Chapter 15 Before the War ()

June 25, 1938 was definitely a big day for Tao Ping, because on this day, Xinhua Daily and the Central Daily News published the news on the front page of the headlines, "The victory in Tongxian County, the Japanese Lieutenant General Tani Shoo was executed!"

There is no need to say about Xinhua Daily, but the Central Daily, which is a quarrel in the National Government, used the entire front page to comprehensively report the 911th Battalion of a Communist anti-Japanese guerrilla team, and called its battalion commander Tao Ping (now the commander of the National Army) "the righteousness is weak, the wisdom and courage are both strong, and the three armies are brave!"

It can be said that this is the first time since the founding of the Central Daily News, which has used such a large amount of space to report the anti-Japanese war behind the Communist Party, thus completely shattering the lie of "the Eighth Route Army's Circle without Strike"!

The Central Daily News' move was so big that it alarmed the top leaders of the Communist Party of China far away in Yan'an, a military genius who came from a Hunan Normal University and loved spicy food.

"From deserter to general, General Tao Ping, I know," published on the front page of "Central Daily reporter Wang Meifeng," gave Tao Ping a very high popularity.

Wang Meifeng recalled the whole process of getting to know Tao Ping in the way she said in a lingering way, and wrote down every bit of the two from Lin'an to Nanchang without reservation.

Especially Tao Ping's sentence "Believe me, I have unscrupulous difficulties. I am afraid that I will harm you. The country will become like this, so how can we talk about family!" It made countless men even more moved by it, and girls and young women shed tears for it. For a moment, the passionate young man became a trend for joining the army!

Wang Meifeng showed deep love for Tao Ping between the lines, which made the so-called young talents who had fantasies about Wang Meifeng completely give up.

Who is the other person's man? Even horse thieves can conquer them, and they can kill dozens of ghosts in one go. He is also a nationally famous general. There are no less than ten Japanese soldiers Jiang Zuo who died at his hands. Among them, they also include two lieutenant generals. What can I compare with others?

Let us go back to 10:20 pm on June 24th. After receiving the order from the Eighth Route Army headquarters, Tao Ping, a professional soldier, immediately realized that a great war was imminent. The Japanese army would definitely come to attack Tongxian for the survival of the Sixth Division, and it was just in these few days.

So Tao Ping immediately held a two-hour combat meeting to arrange the task of strengthening the city defense immediately and recruit soldiers immediately.

In fact, Tao Ping's urban defense plan was not too complicated in the eyes of later generations. It was to learn and apply tactics in later Korean battlefields and Vietnam's self-defense counterattacks, and carry forward the local work in the fourth field later, and further strengthen the urban defense fortifications that the Japanese had originally formed. However, at that time, it could be said that there was no other one.

In the eyes of those veterans of the original national army, it was extremely shocking!

First, further strengthen the original fire support point of the Japanese army, enhance its ability to resist strikes, ensure that it can withstand the attack of more than two heavy artillery shells, and arrange a large number of light and secretly strengthened firepower points nearby to form cross firepower. Each light and secretly, the dark firepower points are supplemented by two meters deep and a traffic trench with a cover on it to ensure that at least people run inside and cannot be seen outside.

Second, relying on the original key fire support points of the Japanese army, a Type 94 37mm rapid-fire gun was added to each three thousand meters away from the positions to further enhance the fire suppression of possible tanks and large-scale infantry charges in the Japanese army, and equipped with more than five artillery positions. Each artillery position is a stump type to ensure that it can withstand the attack of more than three heavy artillery shells. Each artillery position is supplemented by a two-meter-deep traffic trenches with covers on it, and the artillery position can be changed at any time during combat.

Third, all circular position trenches are required to dig at least two meters deep and two meters wide, and dig an anti-aircraft hole every five meters on the back slope. Trenches should be covered with tree sections, door panels, wooden strips, sandbags, etc. The trenches are connected by three-meter-wide traffic trenches. For the soil dug out of the trenches, all the soil dug out of the trenches are placed on the side, rather than on two passes.

Fourth, a large number of camouflage artillery positions were established for the possible aerial strikes by the Japanese army, and a large number of camouflage artillery positions were established for all artillery positions in accordance with the model of the Second Artillery Underground Great Wall in later generations, a four-meter-wide underground corridor was established to ensure that each artillery had at least five artillery positions, and the artillery positions could be changed at any time during combat.

Fifth, based on the reasonable arrangement of the twelve anti-aircraft guns, each anti-aircraft gun is equipped with more than five mobile gun positions to ensure that the gun positions can be changed at any time during battle. A large number of smoke points are set up, a large amount of camouflage of ground targets, and an air defense sentry is set up at a high place. When an enemy plane is found, a warning will be fired. The field telephone lines left by the Japanese are added and the deep buried again.

Sixth, we will use anti-aircraft guns to reconnaissance enemy aircraft to reconnaissance to retaliate, thus making it impossible to obtain our troops distribution and position configuration.

Seventh, a large number of minefields were arranged in front of the circular position, and a large number of explosives were arranged on the routes where the Japanese army might charge, clearing all fire points, trees, houses, and mounds within the position shooting boundary, etc., which may be used by Japanese teams when attacking, to ensure that once the Japanese army rushes to the peak, they will become mobile targets within the shooting boundary, measure the scales for all areas, set the shooting distance and time, and ensure that after firing, the starting shot hits the target, and try their best to reduce the possible re-climbing of the war.

Eighth, the city has set up a large number of barricades, fortifications, condoms, walls, houses, and various firepower points to ensure that once the frontier positions are lost, large-scale street fighting with the Japanese army can be carried out.

On June 25, Tao Ping wanted to have the clone technique, and he didn't know that today was his good day. He worked hard all day, constantly guiding the configuration of light, dark firepower points, traps, side attacks, and reverse attacks.

Fortunately, these veterans of the former army were all those who had lived for a long time. They could get through at a glance, but they could quickly get into the state. With the help of the continuous joining migrant workers, the local work progressed very quickly.

At five o'clock in the afternoon, our student Tao received a notice from instructor Zhang Hailong, saying that the instructor and combat staff assigned by the superiors to the company would arrive the day, and now we can inspect the recruits.

"Lao Zhang, you are really my Supreme Laojun, you are a soldier."

This is the first thing Tao Ping said to Instructor Zhang Hailong when he was recruiting new recruits.

In fact, as a political worker, instructor Zhang Hailong is very outstanding, otherwise he would not have been able to serve as the secretary of the underground county party committee of the Communist Party of China. He participated in the underground work of the party at the age of sixteen and has been in full swing for eight years.

As an old underground party in Tong County, Zhang Hailong has a good grasp of the various situations in Tong County. In just two days, under the mobilization of more than 800 local guerrillas he called from a distance, young people from all over the country rushed to join the Eighth Route Army. The total number of people reached an astonishing 3,000. Among them, there were even nearly 100 remnants of the Kuomintang soldiers who had been dispersed by the Japanese army. There was no way. The entire Wuhan area was a battlefield with enemies everywhere. The only way to survive was to fight the enemy in groups. At least there was a bit of hot meal when the troops arrived.

Looking at Tao Ping who was happy like a child, Instructor Zhang Hailong felt a sense of ingenuity towards this military chief who was more than teenager than himself, just like a brother treating his younger brother.

Tao Ping, who was standing on the height of the city defense, announced a discipline of participating in the war that moved everyone present.

"Comrades, our great war of resistance against Japan is a just war of inevitable victory, and victory will eventually belong to us. But now the power of the enemy and us is very different now, and victory cannot come in one day. Therefore, we must preserve our strength and preserve our vitality. I do not want to see unnecessary sacrifices! I announce below:

1. Don’t want to be eighteen years old;

2. Don’t do it if you are over fifty years old;

3. Don’t want the only son in the family;

Fourth, both father and son join the army at the same time, wanting father or son;

5. If there is only one male in the family, don’t want it;

Six, only one of the two brothers came to join the army at the same time;

7. Don’t want to get married and don’t have a son yet;

8. If you get married and have children, don’t want them if your children are under ten years old;

I know that many comrades are very dissatisfied with the "Eight Don'ts" I announced above, but I wonder if you have thought about it. The battle to be held is a life-and-death battle. What is our purpose here today? In order to eliminate the enemy, not fight against the enemy. Only by effectively preserving ourselves can we better eliminate the enemy.

After our troops are organized, the retired comrades can form militias. We will also send you some guns. The road ahead is still long. Your family and the villagers of Tong County still need your protection.

We just got the information that two Japanese corps were driving towards us from Hefei and arrived in Tongxian in about four or five days. I still have to ask the retreating comrades to help us do two things:

1. Escort and mobilize all non-combatants in the county to transfer to the mountain base. I really don’t want to see too many unnecessary sacrifices;

2. Let a few comrades first build fortifications with us. You must leave before the war begins;

3. Transport all the things that can be transported away, leaving no grain of rice or grain for the Japanese invaders.

Comrades who have not been elected, please remember that the burden on you is not lighter than that of the brothers who participated in the war. What you are doing now is also fighting the Japanese and defending your country!”

Finally, amid the dissatisfaction of the crowd, less than a thousand new recruits remained in the army.

So, the reorganization was then reorganized overnight, disrupting the previous organization, and the new and veterans were mixed together. All troops were organized into twenty-four companies and sixteen reserve teams.

At 10 o'clock in the evening, Tao Ping said to Zhang Hailong who had passed by: "Now, everything is ready, just wait for tomorrow, the superior work team will come to train the team!"

Zhang Hailong said: "Yes, I finally look forward to it! By the way, I'll give you this is today's "Central Daily".

Lao Tao, you are now the commander of the National Army Colonel. After our 911 Battalion, we will be the 911 Regiment. Tomorrow, the letter of appointment will arrive. At the same time, the headquarters appoints me as the first political commissar of our regiment to cooperate with your future work. In addition, there is also a reporter Wang from the Central Daily News who will come with the team tomorrow.”
Chapter completed!