After returning to Hexin Island, Ouyang Xuan notified the convening of a joint military-political meeting. After the Mongolian army raided the three crossings of the water, the top brass of the Perak army either led the army back and went back to the factory and mine to prepare for defense, and they were all relieved to hear that the crisis was over. A single horse marched much faster than the brigade, so the top brass of the Perak army arrived at the island in time the next morning. The meeting was not long, and the theme was clear, that is, to expand the army. On behalf of the General Staff, Huang Dagen explained the plan for the expansion of the army, but in fact this plan had been drawn up as early as two months ago, but Ouyang Xuan felt that the time was not ripe, so he did not submit it to the joint military-political meeting for deliberation. The battle of the three crossings of the water made him feel that the expansion of the army was already on the verge and had to be launched.

At present, the regular army of the Perak Army includes a field brigade, a naval brigade, a special brigade, a garrison brigade, and a team directly under the General Staff, plus the troops brought by Yu Zhu to the Liuqiu Company, with a total of about 7,000 people in six brigade-level units. The expansion programme does not involve the backbone militia companies, nor does it involve troops who are far away. Under the new programme, the special brigades and naval brigades and units directly under the General Staff will remain unchanged in terms of their current personnel and strengths. The opinion of the General Staff is that the personnel of the current naval forces, directly subordinate units, and special forces are sufficient to cope with the current war, and that these three units are all highly specialized units, which are more important than too many, and if they expand too quickly, their combat effectiveness will be weakened.

The newly established teaching brigade consists of three teaching battalions, each with 500 people, the brigade commander is Zeng Yong, and the brigade headquarters is stationed in Hengyuan Fort. The first battalion trains junior officers and non-commissioned officers of the Perak Army, the second battalion trains military backbones in the Miaojiang and Yibo regions, and the third battalion trains professional officers and non-commissioned officers such as engineering, artillery, navigation, demolition, and machinery. These personnel will be the multiplier of the combat effectiveness of the troops, and they will spend half of their time learning in various specialties in addition to regular military training. As the cradle of officers, to enter the teaching brigade requires not only political loyalty and reliability, but also a certain level of education.

After the latter was upgraded to a brigade, the new garrison brigade will have three garrison battalions, responsible for the defense and defense of important places, and the brigade headquarters will be located in Dayi County, and the brigade commander will be Shi Zhongshu. According to the plan, the three battalions of the garrison brigade will be stationed in Baizhangcheng, Guankouzhai and Sandushui respectively, and will be responsible for the dispatch, command, and training of the basic militia. In order to enhance its combat effectiveness, the plan stipulates that the personnel selection, weapon allocation, training syllabus, and logistical supply of the garrison brigade are the same as those of the field infantry, and even the number of horses is specified in detail.

The biggest change is the field brigade, which is also the main goal of this expansion. According to the plan, the field brigade was directly expanded into a field division, and the total number of troops was expanded from the original 1,500 to 4,500. The division commander is Cao Ergou. The cavalry battalion and two infantry battalions were originally expanded into brigades, of which the cavalry brigade was stationed in Qiongzhou, and the two infantry brigades were stationed in Chongqing Fucheng and Pengshan County. The cavalry brigade will consist of three cavalry battalions, two of which will be light cavalry and one heavy cavalry battalion. This light cavalry battalion is actually the previous cavalry battalion, and the heavy cavalry battalion is not equipped with men and horses, but is equipped with heavy artillery and matching mules and horses. The infantry brigade also has three battalions, one heavy battalion and two light battalions, and the difference is also whether it is equipped with heavy wheeled field guns.

According to this plan, the total number of the Thunderbolt Army's regular army in western Sichuan will reach 9,500 people, and if the Liuqiu troops are added, the number of troops will exceed 10,000. In terms of numbers alone, this will be a considerable combat force. You must know that although Yu Xing's Jiading army claims to be 20,000 people, after removing the number of false salaries, and then deducting logistics and the old and weak, the elite soldiers are estimated to be about 5,000. Although the Song army in Luzhou, Chongqing and other places was larger than Jiading, the number of elite soldiers would not exceed 10,000. Although the Mongol army, which occupies two-thirds of the territory of Bashu, claims to be 100,000, it will not exceed 40,000 including the new annexed army, and the elite Mongolian cavalry will not exceed 7,000.

It was precisely because they knew the difference between the claimed number of troops and the actual number of troops that as soon as the plan for the expansion of the army was announced, some people in the congregation were amazed, while others gasped. You must know that the number of troops expanded in Huang Dagen's mouth is a real number of elite soldiers, and once this plan is implemented, the Thunderbolt Army will have no less than the number of elite soldiers in Chongqing Prefecture. If we take into account the powerful power of firearms, the Thunderbolt Army will become the strongest anti-Mongolian force in the Sichuan battlefield, and there will be the power of the Western Sichuan Mongolian Army to resist the ceremony, and even the Mongolian Army will be expelled from the Western Sichuan Plain.

Ouyang Xuan strongly supported the army expansion plan, and also wanted to expel the Mongolian army from Xichuan as soon as possible. The battle of the three crossings of the water made him understand that the passive defense would eventually be sought by the Mongolian army. "Offense is the best defense," and only by taking the initiative can we change the situation of being passively beaten, establish a strategic buffer zone and defensive depth, and prevent the flames of war from burning under the rule of the Thunderbolt army. Although there are more than 20,000 people in the western Sichuan Mongolian army, most of them are new annex armies with low combat effectiveness, and the real opponents of the Thunderbolt army are the Mongolian cavalry and the Mongol Han army composed of the northern Han, Jin, Khitan, and Tangut people. Defeating them in the field battle is a difficulty that must be overcome in the cause of resisting Mongolia, and it is also the only way for the Perak army to grow. This is also the reason for the focus on expanding the field forces this time.

It's just that in the face of such a radical military expansion plan, Li San'er, Lu Dezhi and other personnel in the government affairs system are quite suspicious. Li San'er's worries come from two aspects: On the one hand, he is worried about the problem of military spending, the number of troops has been expanded by more than one-third at once, and the amount of food and clothing alone is not a small amount, not to mention the huge cost of weapons, equipment, and training. It is said that during this period of time, the arsenal tried all kinds of ways to increase production capacity, expanded the plant and increased personnel training, and also engaged in labor competitions. On the other hand, the expansion of the army will inevitably bring about a decrease in revenue, and you must know that the wealth and taxes created by those thousands of strong laborers every day are not a small number.

Rudezhi talked a lot, but finally returned to one problem: money. He is worried that excessive military investment will affect investment in education, science, culture, and public health, and will lead to a decline in the living standards of the people. At present, although the people in the territory of the Perak Army work hard, they can be fed and clothed, and they can be treated when they are sick, just like the Datong world that even saints yearn for. The scholar's dream of "uniting the family, governing the country, and leveling the world" has realized two of the three, which makes Lu Dezhi quite proud, and he is really afraid of returning to the days of hunger and cold.

Cao Ergou and other military personnel were both expecting and slightly uneasy about the expansion of the army. Their uneasiness stems from the heavy pressure on their shoulders, that is, how to quickly build up combat effectiveness after the expansion of the army. They knew that the expansion of the army was only a means, and the purpose was to expel the Mongolian army from western Sichuan, in addition to saving the people from fire and water, but also to occupy the entire anointed land of the western Sichuan Plain, obtain more grain, minerals, and make more firearms, so as to expel the Mongolian army from Bashu and even the entire Han land.

Just when everyone was arguing, Li Shuang's words calmed the debate: "At present, the evil wolf has not been eliminated, and survival is the top priority." The premise of food and clothing is life, and only strong force can ensure our survival." As soon as these words came out, everyone was thoughtful. Yes, "the road to simplicity", only by living can we consider the issue of development, and they immediately expressed their full support for the expansion of the army and the formation of the army as soon as possible.