Chapter 278 Selecting the Landing Point
After the interrogation, Qian Tiandun asked someone to send the summary of the results back to the Yongan Port headquarters via radio. Although not much information was obtained, some military information on South Vietnam can still be deduced from the limited information. For example, from the scale of South Vietnam's military food transportation, it can be inferred that the South Vietnamese army's current strength in the area north of Zhengjiang will be approximately 30,000 to 40,000, far from the 70,000 to 80,000 that North Vietnam thought, and it does not have an overwhelming force. Advantages. However, judging from the opponent's continuous replenishment of troops to the war zone, there may be tens of thousands of troops in the area south of the Zhengjiang River, but they have not yet been deployed to the front battlefield at once.
Qian Tiandun and others speculated that the South Vietnamese Army did not invest all its troops in the war zone and still used refueling tactics even though it had gained an advantage in the battle. The fundamental reason was probably due to insufficient supply capacity, which was a last resort.
According to the information given by the prisoners, Donghai, located fifty miles south of Zhengjiang, is currently the rear base camp of the South Vietnamese Northern Expedition. Food, grass, soldiers, and supplies are all concentrated in Donghai and transported northward. However, starting from Donghai, you have to cross Hengshan and Zhengjiang before reaching the front war zone. This supply line, which is more than a hundred miles long, has mountains, water, and swamps, and the traffic conditions are very poor. With South Vietnam's organizational and transportation capabilities, it is estimated that The size of the existing frontline army is already at the limit of its supply capacity. If more troops were deployed on the front line, the South Vietnamese Army might collapse due to supply problems.
"This is the disadvantage of not having shipping capabilities!" Sun Changmi pointed out the biggest problem of the South Vietnamese army: "If they could have a fleet like ours, then North Vietnam's defense line would have been breached long ago."< br>
"This is probably the reason why the Annan Civil War has been going on for decades, but in the end we still have to maintain the dividing line between mountains and rivers." Qian Tiandun stared at the map and added: "Look, whether it is from north to south or from south to north , any side that crosses this dividing line will face a supply problem. If this problem cannot be solved, the battle will not be able to continue if it has the upper hand. ”
"Is it possible to think that even if North Vietnam's mountain defense line collapses, the South Vietnamese army will be unable to maintain an overly long supply line and may eventually stop the Northern Expedition on its own." Wang Tom put forward a new view. Prior to this, the general view of the military and police departments was that once the North Vietnamese defense line was broken, the flat terrain in the north was likely to be pushed straight through by South Vietnam. But according to the situation obtained from the reconnaissance, it seems that it is not that simple to push to Shenglong Mansion.
"It's hard to say. If the South Vietnamese army can find a way to collect food on the spot after it attacks, then North Vietnam may really be unable to resist. But if North Vietnam fortifies the wall and clears the country in advance and does not give the opponent a chance to collect food and grass on the spot, then the South Vietnamese army will indeed It is very likely that we will be held back by supply problems," Qian Tiandun said thoughtfully: "But we cannot take this risk. Regardless of whether the South Vietnamese army has the ability to directly overthrow the North Vietnamese regime, as long as the North Vietnamese side is defeated, the result will definitely not be consistent. Our interests, so this battle must still be fought.”
"I think we can look at the current situation from another angle." Xie Chun also joined the discussion: "Whether South Vietnam or North Vietnam, their shipping capabilities are very poor. In fact, we only need to control the sea power to basically control the situation. The trend of their civil war ”
"After all, you just want to expand the scale of the Black Tu Port Shipyard, right?" Sun Changmi immediately pointed out Xie Chun's real purpose: "The executive committee must agree with this matter in principle, but I'm afraid it can't be given. Black Earth Port has too much practical help, because the shipyard in Victory Port also has a big expansion plan in the first half of the year, and the executive committee can only give priority to the needs of the base camp. ”
"What about our Heitu Port? We can't just stop at building a few fishing boats, right?" Xie Chun obviously couldn't accept the news.
"My personal suggestion is..." Sun Changmi pondered: "You can think of a solution from Lianzhou Prefecture. There must be many shipwrights in the coastal cities of Yong'an, Qinzhou, and Lianzhou over there, and you can target them Sexually introduced.”
Xie Chun frowned and did not continue to argue with Sun Changmi on this issue. Since Black Tu Port gained hematopoietic capacity, the base camp's support for Black Tu Port is not as strong as before. However, the autonomy given to Black Tu Port is indeed very large. Not only can it independently introduce immigrants, but it also has the right to cooperate with North Vietnam and even Guangdong and Guangxi regions. Trade on your own. Even the military power, which is most valued by the Executive Committee and the Military and Police Ministry, has opened a back door to Black Earth Port, allowing the local area to organize its own militia groups for training. The main purpose of the base camp in giving Black Earth Port these autonomy is to hope that Black Earth Port can be self-reliant and solve some basic development needs on its own - of course, as long as the Executive Committee blocks the supply of industrial products, especially military supplies, it will not be afraid of Black Earth Port. Hong Kong can change the world.
"There is no need to rush when it comes to shipbuilding. Let's think about the direction of tomorrow's reconnaissance." Wang Tom said something fair and brought the topic back to business: "Based on our reconnaissance today, Zhengjiang From the south to Donghai, there are at least tens of thousands of South Vietnamese troops. I think if we continue to go south, we may be discovered by the South Vietnamese army.”
Qian Tiandun pointed at the map and said: "Even if we are to launch a raid, we will use the Zhengjiang line as the main battlefield. The purpose of the operation is to destroy the opponent's supply line. I think the area north of Zhengjiang should be the main reconnaissance target. After all, if we want to open a second battlefield, the distance of force projection through sea transportation should not be too long.”
Early the next morning, the fleet packed up and set sail, slowly sailing north along the coastline. The distance from the coast where we camped last night to the battle zone is only about ten nautical miles.
In order to cover their tracks, after traveling for a period of time, the fleet turned to the open sea and kept a distance of four to five nautical miles from the coastline to avoid being discovered by the South Vietnamese army on land.
About ten miles away from the South Vietnamese frontline military camp marked by the advance team, observers on both ships noticed through their telescopes that small military camps began to appear on the coast. These camps extend all the way north, becoming more dense the further north you go.
"Pay attention to the mountain pass in the northwest. It was the first line of defense that the North Vietnamese Army broke through at the beginning of the month." Qian Tiandun held a telescope in one hand and a walkie-talkie in the other. While observing, he talked with Wang Tom and others on the "Speed" communicate.
The mountain pass Qian Tiandun mentioned is located about six or seven miles south of the mountain defense line. Another mountain pass almost parallel to the mountain defense line extends from the inland eastward to the seaside. However, there is a gap more than a mile wide in the middle of this mountain ridge, which is far less dangerous than the current defense line. It's no wonder that when the North Vietnamese Army retreated here, they didn't even last ten days before they were able to break through the defense line. Now there are a large number of South Vietnamese troops stationed on both sides of the mountain pass.
"This level is only a few hundred meters away from the seaside. I think you can use your brain here." Wang Tom replied on the walkie-talkie.
"I'm afraid it will be difficult." Qian Tiandun was not very optimistic about this: "Our militia and the North Vietnamese trained troops only have more than a thousand actual combatants. More than a thousand people have to maintain a 700-800-meter-wide The battle front is too difficult. We have no chance to slowly dig trenches and build fortifications there. As soon as we land, we will face an attack from the north and south by 30,000 to 40,000 troops. This is too risky. "
"Then let's keep looking. I remember there is another candidate location in the north." After hearing this, Wang Tom also felt that what Qian Tiandun said was reasonable, so he did not insist on his opinion anymore.
The fleet continued to travel north and soon saw the candidate location mentioned by Tom Wang. This is a triangular sandbar near the sea surrounded by two hills with an altitude of more than 100 meters. The only opening from the sandbar to the inland is on the west, and west of this pass about 200 meters wide is the South Vietnamese Army's The location of the main camp. The distance from the seaside to this narrow pass is about five to six hundred meters, and there are not many obstacles on the ground. If you land from here, it is indeed easy to control the western pass. In terms of geographical structure, this place is similar to the Yong'an Port built by the Military and Police Department at the rear. They are both seaside beaches surrounded by hills and mountains, and both have natural gateways for building fortifications.
"This place is good!" Qian Tiandun admired the actual terrain here from a distance from the boat: "With such a terrain, the South Vietnamese Army can only use human lives to feed bullets!"
"If we start a fight with the South Vietnamese Army here, I'm afraid they won't hide the musketeers anymore." Wang Tom also agreed with Qian Tiandun's point of view.
In the current mountainous offensive, the South Vietnamese Army has not put its precious firearms troops into the battlefield, because the offensive and defensive warfare in the mountainous position is indeed not suitable for the musketeers to exert their combat effectiveness. But if the battlefield changes to a flat place, the South Vietnamese army will have no reason not to use the sharpest weapons they have. Two or three miles further north from here is the mountain defense line built by the North Vietnamese Army. After inspecting this area from the sea, the reconnaissance team did not rush back to Yong'an Port. Instead, they chose to sail eastward and stopped behind Henyu Island in the outer sea. Wang Tom and others planned to wait until dark to sneak in. Further reconnaissance was conducted ashore.
For this kind of small-scale sneak reconnaissance, it is not appropriate to use Qian Tiandun's special operations company. However, Qian Tiandun did not intend to just sit idle, but proposed to act together with Wang Tom and others. Although there were voices of opposition, believing that the two senior commanders should not go deep into dangerous areas at the same time, in the end Yan Chujie, who was sitting at the rear, made the decision and agreed to their request for action.
After nightfall, the "Speed" turned out from behind Hunyue Island and sailed slowly towards the coast. Nearly two hours later, the "Speed", which had been traveling in the dark, completed this short journey and arrived at the target location.
The South Vietnamese Army did not choose to station troops on this sandbank near the sea. After the "Speed" came close to the shore, it unscrupulously turned on the search equipment to confirm the coastal terrain, anchored near the shore, and then several people boarded the rubber inflatable boat. Use your paddle to paddle toward the shore.
Morgan lowered his voice and said: "I never thought that one day I would sneak into Vietnam in a rubber boat in the middle of the night."
"You are not the only one who has this idea!" Qian Tiandun also responded in a low voice.
Under the moonlight, it is difficult to see clearly with the naked eye this black rubber boat that rises and falls with the waves. After arriving at the beach, Qian Tiandun and Roger, who were sitting in front, jumped into the water, grabbed the handle of the bow with their hands, and dragged the rubber boat to the beach and ran aground. Several other people also went down to the shore at this time, and together they lifted the rubber boat to the land to avoid being swept away by the waves.
"Put on your night vision goggles, check your weapons, and march along the foot of the hill at intervals of five meters. Pay attention to cover in front and behind." Wang Tom issued the action order as the commander.
Soon the heavily armed detachment was moving inland to the west along the hills surrounding the sandbar. They first need to confirm the location of the South Vietnamese military camp, which is suitable for their own defensive position, and then find the shortest landing route from the seaside to the predetermined position when they return.
The defense strength of the South Vietnamese military camp was obviously worse than the team had expected beforehand. There were not even early warning sentries outside the camp area - perhaps they also believed that it was impossible for the North Vietnamese Army to cross the sea and launch a sneak attack from their side and rear.
The team confirmed the layout of the South Vietnamese military camp, and then conducted reconnaissance of the area where the expected position would be. The entire process did not alarm the South Vietnamese army at all. After completing the scheduled mission, the team conducted a comprehensive inspection of the landing area without any rush - "Tampering" was what they said to the command post afterwards. The real reason was the delay in action due to poor visibility at night. .
After completing all the reconnaissance work, the team boarded the "Speed" in a rubber boat again, and then notified the "Discovery" waiting outside the sea. The two ships did not delay here any longer, and after rendezvous, they sailed north toward Yong'an Port overnight.
"How is it?" Yan Chujie opened the tent curtain and walked in, asking Qian Tiandun and Wang Tom who had just returned to Hong Kong. When he was woken up by the orderly just now, he checked the time and it was four o'clock in the morning. At this time, except for a few security personnel, the entire Yong'an Port was still asleep.
"There are some minor discrepancies between the No. 2 alternative site and the information we have at hand, but we believe that it fully meets the operational needs and we can consider using the No. 2 alternative site as the second battlefield." Qian Tiandun reported in a concise and comprehensive manner.
"It's normal for there to be discrepancies. After all, the map we have is data from several centuries later. Over these hundreds of years, the coastlines of these coastal areas will definitely change." Yan Chujie looked at the two people slightly squinting under the light. With a tired face, he stopped talking and called the orderly in: "Go and inform the kitchen to make some hot food and send it over. Hurry!"
"Let's talk about our reconnaissance results in this area first!" Qian Tiandun was still in the excitement stage at this time. He spread out the map and began to explain to Yan Chujie.
"The width of this pass is only two hundred meters. Compared with the No. 1 alternative location in the south, it is only about a quarter as wide. This means that we can invest four times as many troops on the unit-length defense line. , and there is no need to worry about being attacked from both sides." Qian Tiandun pointed at the map and explained: "The South Vietnamese military camp is still some distance away from this pass. The pass is located right behind their main camp. If we move quickly and covertly enough, maybe we can. They won’t be discovered by the other side until the fortifications are built.”
"What if the opponent chooses to attack from the north and south over the mountain?" Yan Chujie asked.
"This is unlikely, because there is a flat attack channel at the bottom of the mountain to attract their attention. Before they suffer the pain, I am afraid they will not take the route of climbing over the mountain. We will establish early warning observation posts at the commanding heights. If necessary, We will retreat to the coast and rely on the beachhead and the artillery cover on the ship to attack the opponent. The area of this area is too small. Although the South Vietnamese army is large in number, the attack surface that can pose a threat to us is very limited." Wang Tom immediately answered Yan Chujie. question.
"In addition, while we are opening up a second battlefield to attract South Vietnam's attention, we can also go to their rear to attack the supply line." Qian Tiandun added: "Based on what we have learned, it is speculated that the food and grass collected by the South Vietnamese army on the front line There are not many, and their transportation capacity is limited. Once there is a problem with the supply line, it will quickly cause a chain reaction and affect the combat effectiveness of the front troops. My company will be forced to fight for the river for three to five days, which will probably cut off their logistical supplies. The life of the South Vietnamese Army was not easy.”
"But there is one thing we have to prepare in advance. The beach here is shallow and not suitable for building a pier. Our landing method may need to choose a floating trestle." Wang Tom reminded: "The trestle is operated from the base operation. It’s a semi-finished product, but the boats to build the bridge may have to be recruited from North Vietnam.”
"This matter will be communicated to the North Vietnamese as soon as possible after dawn." Yan Chujie nodded and wrote down the matter: "In addition, the North Vietnamese have agreed to deploy a group of spearmen to cooperate with our operations. But where are these people specifically arranged? Getting on the ship, we are still coordinating with the shipping department.”
After Zheng Ting and others arrived at the front line, they immediately asked Zheng Bai to mobilize at least a thousand spearmen to cooperate with the operation. Of course, what these spearmen really want to cooperate with is not the Haihan militia, but the training troops of North Vietnam. In the combat method designed by the Military and Police Department for this training unit, spearmen are indispensable. However, due to the hasty departure, North Vietnam did not equip this unit with corresponding spearmen and could only start from the front line. We have temporarily redeployed manpower.
However, the base camp was fully prepared for this. It even prepared more than a thousand four-meter-long wooden iron-tipped spears in advance. This time they were all shipped over by ship. The North Vietnamese did not even need to prepare weapons. It's enough to directly provide people with help - this is probably one of the reasons why Zheng Bai agreed so readily. The only thing that made the headquarters a little uneasy was that this temporarily deployed spear unit had never trained with the North Vietnamese musketeers. The first time they cooperated, they had to go directly to the battlefield. The combat effect might not be ideal.
(End of chapter)