Cross the Songhu battlefield and rise to become the most powerful warlord

Chapter 409: Strike first to gain the upper hand

409 Strike First

Ye Qingshan saw Zhou Xinghai and others who were so eager to try.

Then, seeing that the chief of staff and others were not there, he whispered to Zhou Xinghai, "How many militias have you recruited privately now?"

Ye Qingshan knew that Zhou Xinghai and others were still recruiting militia.

But specifically, how many people did the other side recruit?

Zhou Xinghai hasn't reported to him yet.

At this time, Zhou Xinghai saw Ye Qingshan asking, and extended five fingers to Ye Qingshan.

"Five thousand people? That's a lot."

Ye Qingshan nodded.

Zhou Xinghai shook his head.

"Huh? Not five thousand people?"

"Commander, it's five regiments."

Another lieutenant colonel officer nearby couldn't help but whispered.

"Five regiments, that would be over 10,000 people."

Ye Qingshan was also surprised after hearing this.

"Do the three regiments incorporated into the garrison brigade count?"

"Of course not."

Zhou Xinghai said with a smile.

When Ye Qingshan heard this, he was shocked.

In the past two or three months, Zhou Xinghai and his team have actually recruited and trained so many militia soldiers.

Most of them have been hiding in the mountains and forests.

Ye Qingshan knew the location of the training camp, but he had never visited it, so he didn't know the exact number of people.

"Is it so easy for us to recruit soldiers?"

Ye Qingshan was curious.

"Well, that's a good idea."

Zhou Xinghai and other officers nodded.

"General, you still underestimate your current reputation.

You don’t know that the local people are willing to send their children to join our 86th Army.

Of course, in addition to the prestige you brought by fighting the Japanese, it is also related to the good treatment of our 86th Army.

But those aspiring young people came from all over the country to join our 86th Army.

But there are quite a few.

There are only these 10,000 people, and we have carefully selected them, and many of them are left after being eliminated.

If you don’t screen them, I can recruit 50,000 people for you.”

Zhou Xinghai said confidently.

Ye Qingshan was also quite surprised when he heard Zhou Xinghai say this.

“Your five regiments can almost form a division.

What, you can't wait to become a regular teacher?"

Ye Qingshan joked with a smile.

“Are five groups a lot?

I don’t think so.”

Zhou Xinghai muttered softly.

"Commander, I'm telling the truth.

Please calculate how many important targets we need to protect within our current defense zone.

There are two airports in Jinxi and Wanshan, an arsenal, a cement plant, an armory, a material warehouse, and the recently built Bailongshan radar station.

We can't always have our regular troops stationed in these places.

On weekdays, we have to rely on the militia for protection.

Otherwise, what if the Japanese spies or secret agents infiltrate and cause sabotage.

That would be a huge loss.”

“The command won’t care about us, we have to solve these problems ourselves.

Besides, militias are operating everywhere.

We are not the only one that has it, there is nothing wrong with it."

Zhou Xinghai said very seriously.

After hearing this, Ye Qingshan actually felt that it made sense.

"There's nothing wrong with what you said."

When Zhou Xinghai heard Ye Qingshan say this, he immediately became happy.

At the same time, Ye Qingshan also calculated in his mind the total strength of the troops he had at the moment.

In addition to his own 86th Army of nearly 12 people, there were also three regiments of the newly formed th Garrison Brigade with more than people.

Zhou Xinghai now has five militia groups with more than 10,000 people.

Plus, the aviation team.

The troops under Ye Qingshan actually have a total of 50,000 people.

A guard brigade like the 12th Garrison Brigade is normally organized into two regiments.

Ye Qingshan forced the three-group system into place.

Moreover, all the regiments under Ye Qingshan's command were built according to the principles of strengthened regiment construction, and each had about two thousand people.

A regiment of other national army basically consists of about a thousand people.

Originally, the headquarters designated Ye Qingshan's 208th and 209th Divisions as Class B divisions.

According to the rules set by the Supreme Command, the regular division-level troops of the National Army are divided into three categories: A, B and C.

The A-class division is composed of the 3rd Brigade and the 9th Regiment, and the B-class division is composed of the 2nd Brigade and the 6th Regiment.

The Class C division is composed of the Second Brigade and the Fourth Regiment.

The two divisions on Ye Qingshan's side were organized according to the Sixth Regiment of the Second Brigade of a Class B Division.

However, Ye Qingshan built each regiment as a reinforced regiment, with more people than a main regiment of a first-class division.

One third more soldiers are needed.

In this way, the two divisions under Ye Qingshan are still Class B divisions in name.

However, its military strength is greater than that of the National Army's Class A division.

This means that at this time, Ye Qingshan’s 86th Army has a much larger number of people than other main forces of the National Army.

At this time, the number of main forces of the National Army was mostly around 20,000.

Of course, this number is not fixed.

Because there are all kinds of warlords and factions everywhere on the Kuomintang side, as well as many other special reasons.

Therefore, the organization of the National Army has always been very chaotic.

Warlords in various places, if they have the conditions, can expand an army to 100,000 people.

There are no conditions, as an army only has a few thousand people.

Some other warlords did much more excessive things than Ye Qingshan.

When Ye Qingshan thought about it, he suddenly felt that he was being too conservative.

Ye Qingshan belongs to the category that meets the conditions.

If you want to expand your army, the most important thing is to have money.

Ye Qingshan is not short of money, nor is he short of reputation.

This is why it was not as difficult for Zhou Xinghai and his men to recruit soldiers as it was for other warlords.

There is no need to conscript men.

Ordinary poor people are willing to send their family members to Ye Qingshan to serve in the army.

The resettlement fee alone is enough to ensure that a family of four will have enough food and shelter for a few years.

"It's really not appropriate for an army of more than 50,000 to stay in Wenzhou alone."

Ye Qingshan’s main defense area at this time was from Yandang Mountain in the north to the border with Fujian Province in the south, with the sea in the east and Lishui in the west.

This is an area of ​​about five or six counties.

Going further away, you will reach the defense zones of other national army units.

Such a small area actually does not need to be defended by Ye Qingshan's 50,000 elite troops.

At this time, even in the entire Third War Zone, the three armies under Gu Zhutong had a strength of no more than a hundred thousand people.

But in fact, if a fight really breaks out.

Ye Qingshan felt that with his 50,000 men, he was confident of defeating the three armies under Gu Zhutong.

The two sides are not on the same level in terms of soldier training or weapons and equipment.

Expanding the territory has also become Ye Qingshan’s current choice.

However, it would not be appropriate for Ye Qingshan to lead his troops into the defense zones of other national army units without authorization.

It is easy to cause internal strife.

"In this case, I can only seize the territory from the Japanese.

I fought back the lost territories of other nationalist armies.

This way, the headquarters won’t let me withdraw easily.”

Ye Qingshan had a plan in mind and decided to strike first.

"Who said that we can only allow the Japanese to attack us? Can't we strike first?

If the enemy can go there, I can go there too!

Since the Japs are not making any movement now, they will not attack me.

Then I will attack first and recover some lost territory first."

After Ye Qingshan made up his mind, he looked at Zhou Xinghai and the others and said, "Okay, since you all want to fight,

Then let’s fight!”

Hearing Ye Qingshan say this, Zhou Xinghai and others were very excited.

They immediately offered suggestions.

"General, I propose to attack Taizhou.

Taizhou is the closest to us, and now the 209th Division is in Yandang Mountain.

According to intelligence, there were only two Japanese regiments in Taizhou at that time.

With our current firepower, we will be able to capture Taizhou in two days at most."

Zhou Xinghai pointed in the direction of Taizhou on the sand table and said excitedly.

At this time, there were only two Japanese-occupied areas on the territory that Ye Qingshan could attack.

One is Taizhou in the north, very close to Wenzhou.

The other place is Fuzhou, the capital of Fujian Province in the south.

However, given the importance of Fuzhou, the Japanese had stationed a large number of troops there.

Moreover, it is too close to the treasure island on the other side.

The Japanese air force stationed on Formosa Island can fly over to provide support in half an hour.

It’s not easy to attack Fuzhou.

Therefore, Zhou Xinghai and others chose to attack Taizhou.

Moreover, Ye Qingshan's position at this time was the commander of the Wentai garrison.

It is legitimate to recapture Taizhou.

"How can a mere Taizhou satisfy our appetite?

If we are going to fight, let’s give the Japs a hard fight.

Only children make choices, adults want them all.

So, if I want to attack Taizhou, I will also take Fuzhou."

Ye Qingshan pointed to the sand table, where a small blue flag representing the Japanese was planted at the location of Fuzhou.

Just pull it out and throw it away, then put in a small red flag.

Said to the staff officers beside him.

"The commander wants to attack Fuzhou!"

Upon hearing that Ye Qingshan was going to recapture Fuzhou, Zhou Xinghai and others were shocked and their expressions became serious.

"General, the Japanese have at least one brigade stationed in Fuzhou.

Moreover, it is much more difficult to fight than Taizhou."

Zhou Xinghai said.

"Why, you just asked for a fight.

Are you scared now?"

Ye Qingshan taunted.

"No, Commander.

You said that we should despise the enemy strategically and take him seriously tactically.

We are also speaking the truth, making more preparations so as not to cause more casualties among our soldiers."

"Okay, in that case.

That’s decided.

Attack Taizhou and Fuzhou at the same time.

He informed the troops that his 209th Division would be responsible for the attack on Taizhou.

In Fuzhou, the 208th Division and the Garrison Brigade, as well as three regiments from your militia, will also be sent over for training.

But before attacking, we need to obtain important intelligence about the devils on both sides.

I asked Ning Yongchen to contact the Military Control Commission to find out about this matter.

You are responsible for developing a complete plan of attack.

I'll give you two days to prepare.

The combat operation will begin in two days."

Ye Qingshan also knew that speed was of the essence in war, so if he was going to fight, he had to do it quickly.

Complete the attack before the Japanese in Fuzhou get wind of it.

"Yes!"

"Commander, since the battle is about to begin.

Have you given the order to have the armory send new weapons and equipment to our militia?

The weapons used by our militia for training are still the same as before."

Zhou Xinghai requested.

Although he recruited a lot of new militia soldiers, he did not get Ye Qingshan's approval.

Unable to get a single bullet from the armory.

"Well, you take my approval slip later.

Go to the armory and get 5,000 rifles, 30 heavy machine guns, 100 light machine guns, 60 small steel cannons, and 50 rocket launchers.

And two bases of ammunition."

Ye Qingshan agreed to Zhou Xinghai's request and approved a batch of weapons to equip his militia.