Chapter 1424 Lion fights rabbit
Naturally, local officials like Zhang and Huang knew nothing about Haihan's movements. Their eyes and ears on the island had already sent back relevant information. It's just that they have been worried about Haihan's invasion of the Ming Dynasty. If there was a slight disturbance on Zhifu Island, they could not help but think in this direction. They never thought that Haihan's target was not Shandong, but Liaodong, which was across the sea from Shandong. Fortunately, Qian Tiandun took the initiative to tell Haihan's plan after meeting, otherwise it would be really embarrassing for them to kneel down and kowtow and beg for surrender on the spot.
Huang Qu did not tell the truth when he met Feng Fei on Zhifu Island. On the one hand, Qian Tiandun asked them to keep it secret, and on the other hand, he did not want to make Feng Fei look embarrassed. Of course, as long as Feng Feifei was a little more cautious, there probably wouldn't be any embarrassing scenes.
As for why Haihan went to fight Houjin, not to mention Zhang and Huang, even many officials within Haihan may not be able to understand this matter. Qian Tiandun would definitely not waste time explaining the ins and outs of this to them, so the two discussed it for a long time but did not come to a clear conclusion. If Haihan had no other rivals in this area, Huang Qu would have already begun to doubt the reliability of his inference.
Qian Tiandun was not surprised by the large number of Ming officials near Zhifu Island seeking to see him, but he did not take it too seriously. He knew the purpose of these people seeking to see him, and he was also very satisfied with the deterrent power Haihan had formed in the minds of local officials in the Ming Dynasty. If he didn't have too many war preparations to attend to, he would actually like to see how these people planned to show their loyalty. However, since Haihan has no plans to attack Shandong, there is no need for these officials to jump out and take sides and expose their position in advance. Keeping them as officials in the Ming Dynasty will be more conducive to Haihan's actions.
The spring campaign to be launched in Liaodong will be carried out by Qian Tiandun as the land commander. During the operation, the affairs of the Shandong colony will be temporarily handed over to several non-military officials who came to the north with the fleet this time. , there is really a lot of work that needs to be handed over in the middle. Fortunately, Sha Xi, who came here to take over the civil affairs affairs of Liaodong, has rich practical experience. He had presided over the civil affairs work in several places when he was in Guangdong. It is not difficult to take over the affairs here.
Qian Tiandun, Chen Yixin, Harugong and other military generals were liberated from their posts, and of course they all went to the Liaodong front line to command operations. This is a rare multi-service joint operation for the Haihan military. Therefore, the Ministry of National Defense is trying its best to arrange all generals in the north to the front line in order to make full use of this operation opportunity to train the troops' combat capabilities in cold zone areas.
Judging from the current lineup of generals that Haihan has concentrated in the north, dealing with Jinzhou's post-Jin army is actually quite a bit of overkill. However, what the Ministry of National Defense wants is this kind of effect. This is the so-called strategic contempt, tactical attention, and the principle of using all strength when a lion fights a rabbit.
However, not all the troops transferred from the south by the military will be sent to Liaodong this time. Some of them will be temporarily stationed in Shandong, while the troops who have been transferred from the defense will be sent to Liaodong to participate in the operation. This is mainly due to the fact that it is difficult for southern soldiers to adapt to the northern environment overnight. The previous outbreak in Lushun has taught the military a lesson. Now that heavy troops are being sent to Liaodong, these details will naturally have to be taken into consideration. The Shandong garrison has been here for a long time and must have adapted to the environment much better than the southern troops who have just arrived. That's why there is such a defense change arrangement.
The generals are not satisfied with the existing combat plan, and are still making partial changes to it and improving the details of the plan. If you just want to defeat your opponent, then things are relatively simple. As long as you give full play to the Haihan Army's advantages in long-range firepower, you can be invincible. However, considering that it is necessary to train the troops' combat capabilities in cold zone areas, to make generals and front-line commanders familiar with the fighting methods under such battlefield conditions, and even to consider the impact of task allocation on post-war merit-based rewards for various arms, then It is unlikely that this battle will be fought purely for the purpose of winning, and there will be many areas for bargaining in the arrangement of the battle plan.
Tom Wang was undoubtedly the most relaxed person during this period. No one could snatch the navy's military exploits, and he only needed to obtain the opportunity for his marines to fight ashore in a timely manner. The navy has no comparable opponent in the waters near the Liaodong Peninsula. Therefore, in order to cooperate with the army's advancement, the navy even has to slow down its operations and wait for the army's large forces to attack the Jinzhou Isthmus before launching auxiliary attacks from both sides of the coastline.
"Waiting for the army is not a problem, but since we are going to launch a landing battle on the Jinzhou Isthmus, then I propose that our navy's marines take the lead." Wang Tom faced a group of army generals around him and made his request unabashedly. .
"Tom, not only do you want to eat meat, but you also want to eat soup!" Qian Tiandun said with some helplessness: "The last time the feint attack in Dalian Bay was left to your navy, this time you have to grab it again Go ahead, you have to leave some military merit for our army, right?”
Tom Wang said: "I didn't say not to let the Army participate in the war! What I asked for is that the Marines take the lead, that's all."
"The landing battle has to wait for the army to divert the enemy's main force before launching it. What's the point of taking the lead?" Harugong shook his head and said: "Your few troops can't take away the army's credit, so why bother to make such a fuss?" Ugly?”
"Haha, don't be so mean when you speak." Wang Tom retorted: "My purpose is to train the troops, not to gain any credit! Houjin doesn't have much maritime armed forces, and he can't fight if he wants to. Is it possible that our navy has to fight from the beginning to the end?" Be a spectator? ”
"How can you be a bystander! Doesn't the transportation of personnel and materials from Lushun to the front line all rely on your navy?" Qian Tiandun praised Wang Tom at the right time.
However, Wang Tom obviously did not accept his flattery. He shook his head and said: "If we are just doing logistics and transportation, why do we need to mobilize so many naval ships to the north? Since we have come all the way here, of course we have to find ways to train more troops. OK.”
The generals knew in their hearts that it would not be too difficult to seize the area south of the Jinzhou Isthmus with the forces mobilized this time. Haihan's victory and Houjin's defeat were almost certain, but they just had to wait and see if there would be any recurrences in the process. That’s all. And everyone wants to get more benefits for their own camp during the battle. This kind of benefit is not necessarily personal military merit, nor does it mean much to generals with special status. They mainly want their troops to be tempered during the battle, their combat effectiveness to be improved, and more people to obey orders. For their own junior officers, they can be promoted based on their military merit and have greater authority.
There is cooperation between the navy and the army, but there is also a competitive relationship; they are comrades-in-arms, but from a certain perspective they are also opponents. This complex and contradictory symbiotic relationship is inevitable in the military of any sea-power country. Even if Haihan's social system is more advanced than that of contemporaneous countries and the knowledge of the time-travelers is more advanced, it still cannot be solved. This question. Although this group of people traveled all over the country and fought many battles together, they still inevitably had to fight with each other every time they encountered the navy and the army acting together, and they would try to take the initiative verbally. Of course, the final result cannot be a falling out between the navy and the army. In fact, as long as everyone expresses their respective attitudes and the interests they want to fight for, they will eventually compromise with each other. After all, after the war, they still have to unite to deal with the outside world and deal with those civilian groups who like to point fingers at the military.
The fleet heading north spent a week on Zhifu Island to rest and recuperate. During this period, the troops changed defenses and the work of various departments was handed over, which was naturally quite busy. Some of the combat preparation materials have been transported to Lushun Port in the north of the Bohai Strait ahead of the troops.
Since February, Port Arthur has received more than 3,000 immigrants from Pi Island and Zhifu Island. Except for a small number of civil servants temporarily recruited from Shandong who will return to Shandong after the war, most of the remaining personnel will be resettled in Lushun and the Jinzhou area that will later be captured by Haihan.
After these personnel arrived at the port, they began busy construction under the command of the engineering staff. They have to build a residence for themselves, complete various infrastructure projects in residential areas, send supplies and ammunition to frontline troops, and prepare for farming after spring. Although Liaodong is still under military control, these civil affairs construction projects have been deployed and many have entered the implementation stage. When this wave of offensive ends in the spring, the local people will be able to return to peacetime life in the shortest possible time.
During this period, Liu Shang was probably one of the busiest officials in the Lushun area. He not only had to promote policies to the newly arrived immigrants, but also assisted the civil affairs department in managing these new immigrants. This was not originally his job, but there was a serious shortage of full-time civil affairs officials in Lushun, and he happened to have work experience in related matters, so he was temporarily recruited to help without any suspense.
While walking around the pier of Lushun Port every day, Liu Shang not only noticed the extremely fast construction progress of the pier here, but also noticed that the ships that recently arrived at Lushun Port no longer carried immigrants, but brought a large amount of supplies.
Looking at the mountains of grain unloaded on the shore, Liu Shang was once again impressed by Haihan's powerful material transportation capabilities. It seems that Haihan didn't pay attention to the post-Jin army north of the Jinzhou Isthmus at all. He directly transported these immigrants to build construction projects, and he seemed to regard this place as his own territory. As these war preparation materials gradually arrived at Port Arthur, Liu Shang also understood that the war in Liaodong was probably about to start.
In mid-February, the Haihan Army stationed on Zhifu Island finally began to cross the sea. Seeing the Haihan fleet in Zhifu Bay leaving the port one after another, countless people in Fushan County secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Although it is unknown whether the Haihan army will return here, at least the shadow of war has temporarily left Shandong. Dengzhou probably also knows that Haihan has been gathering heavy troops in Fushan County recently. It has been very quiet recently. Even after the Haihan fleet left, it still did not make any moves. It seems that they are afraid that Haihan's army will attack at some point. A shot in the arm.
Chen Yixin finally got rid of the secular affairs in Majiazhuang and embarked on a journey to Liaodong. Although his beloved wife at home did not want him to return to a battlefield full of risks, Chen Yixin could not resist the temptation to experience such a battle as a commander. This time he will command an infantry battalion transferred from Shandong to Liaodong to assist Qian Tiandun's special operations battalion in operations.
When he set foot on the land of Port Arthur, he was surprised to see an acquaintance: "Director Liu, it turns out you have been transferred here. No wonder I haven't seen you appear recently."
Liu Shang naturally recognized the general who had been his immediate boss for a short period of time. He quickly came forward to greet him and explained how he was transferred to Liaodong after returning to Zhifu Island. When he first came, Liu Shang was a little worried that his affairs in Majiazhuang would be exposed, but after a few days when there was no movement, he knew that this level of trouble must have been passed by luck again. Now that I met Chen Yixin here again, he was already as if nothing was wrong, with no emotional flaws at all.
Chen Yixin did not doubt that he was there. When he was dealing with the Majiazhuang stall, he had repeatedly checked Liu Shang's background, but no problems were found. Chen Yixin already believed that Liu Shang had nothing to do with the Ming spy case in Majiazhuang. . Of course Liu Shang can also feel Chen Yixin's trust. Although he doesn't quite understand why the other party believes in him so much, it is a beneficial and harmless attitude to him, and of course there will be no rejection.
After the two briefly chatted for a few words, Liu Shang realized that such a big thing had happened to him after leaving Majiazhuang, and he couldn't help but secretly rejoice. If he had not left Majiazhuang that day, he might have been involved, and he would never have been able to stay out of the matter as easily as he did now.
Of course, what shocked Liu Shang even more was the scale of the Haihan military's efforts this time, as they actually invested thousands of troops in the Liaodong battlefield. Based on his understanding of the Haihan Army, a troop investment of this size would be enough to capture half of Shandong, not to mention that the only opponents were barbarians from outside the Pass in Liaodong.
When he raised his question, Chen Yixin also said frankly: "It is reasonable for us to win this battle. What we are considering is how to win the battle cleanly and neatly, and to make the participating troops reach the training level." After all, such an opponent cannot be found anywhere and anytime.”
Liu Shang could only secretly admire Chen Yixin's confident remarks. Probably only the invincible Haihan Army could say such confident words. He suddenly sympathized with the Houjin soldiers in the north. Facing such a powerful opponent, he could only say that his life was miserable.
(End of chapter)