Chapter 3462
Before ending the conversation, Qian Shaobao asked one last question: "Then our plan to march into Ceylon Island, does it mean that we have no plans to jointly send troops with Xingdao?"
Qian Tiandun pondered: "Roger has not made a decision for a long time. I think this has shown Xingdao's attitude that the Indian Ocean direction is not their first choice at the moment."
"Everyone has his own ambitions and cannot be forced. However, I think Singdao will not withdraw from cooperation completely. After all, the progress we have made in the Indian Ocean will also bring considerable benefits to Singdao in the future."
"I have informed Roger of the approximate time of the operation and asked him to provide transportation and material assistance. I believe there will be a reply soon."
If troops can be jointly dispatched with Star Island, the pressure on the special operations division will of course be much less, and even the strength of the troops alone can be enough to deter all parties on Ceylon Island.
But under the current situation, Qian Tiandun could only settle for the next best thing, not asking Xingdao to send troops, as long as they could send some ships to help complete the delivery mission.
This should not be difficult for Xingdao. After all, shipping is one of Xingdao's main businesses, and its transportation capacity is far beyond that of the special warfare division. A temporary fleet can be mobilized to meet Qian Tiandun's operational plan needs.
The actual situation was just as Qian Tiandun thought, and he received a telegram from Xingdao the next day.
Roger stated in the cable that due to the training arrangements of the Singdao garrison, he was unable to participate in Qian Tiandun's action plan at the beginning of the year and would have to wait until at least the second half of the year to free up time.
As for Qian Tiandun's request, Xingdao will try its best to meet it. A fleet led by Tan Tianlei will set off from Xingdao in two days. In addition to more than 300 tons of various materials transported to Phuket, seven In addition to more than a hundred immigrants, the twelve cargo ships in this fleet will also temporarily stay in Phuket and obey the dispatch of the special operations division.
The ship Roger gave was not that many, but considering that Xingdao may have a large-scale expedition plan in the near future, it would be a great favor to be able to free up part of the shipping capacity for Qian Tiandun to use.
The arrival of this telegram can be regarded as a reassurance for the special operations division headquarters that is preparing for war, so that it no longer has to face the difficulties of stretched transportation capacity.
The original plan also took into account the situation that Xingdao would not help at all. Even if all ships, including Li Yuande's fleet, were temporarily requisitioned, it would be difficult to deliver combat troops and supplies to Ceylon at once. On the island, it is feasible to make at least two trips.
The return trip of the cargo ship between the two places takes a long time. One way takes seven or eight days, and a round trip takes at least half a month. This will undoubtedly greatly increase the risk of the first batch of troops landing on the island.
With Sing Tao's assistance, this problem can be easily solved. The twelve cargo ships, whether carrying people or cargo, can make up for the existing capacity gap.
After a long journey, Qian Shaobao finally returned to work and rejoined the staff of the special warfare division.
The combat staff of the division are all old men who have been promoted one level at a time within the special operations division based on their military exploits. All of them are direct descendants of Qian Tiandun.
Naturally, these people are no strangers to Qian Shaobao. In terms of seniority, they are all Qian Shaobao's uncles and brothers. As for why Qian Shaobao was transferred back to the special warfare division, they all knew very well that it was Qian Tiandun who was arranging his successor.
Qian Tiandun was already in his fifties. Even if he was in good health and energetic, he would not be able to lead troops to fight for much longer, at least ten years. After returning from his studies, Qian Shaobao entered the division headquarters as a combat staff officer and began to slowly take over the command of the special operations division, which can be regarded as a step-by-step process. Qian Shaobao took the initiative to join the vanguard force led by Gao Qiaonan this time and participated in the landing on Ceylon Island, which made these colleagues couldn't help but have the idea of "a tiger father has no dog son".
As for whether Xiao Qian really inherited his father's skills, it depends on his subsequent performance.
Qian Shaobao can naturally feel the attention from the surroundings, but he has grown up in such an environment since he was a child and has long been accustomed to this state.
Special warfare divisions have always valued ability over qualifications. Although Qian Shaobao was a special case, he knew that if he couldn't perform brilliantly, it would be difficult to convince the public.
Qian Shaobao had just arrived here two days ago and was not yet familiar with the environment here. He knew that he had little say in the formulation of the battle plan, so he was not eager to express himself.
However, he is not bragging about studying military engineering at the Sanya Army Academy. It happens that the expeditionary force also needs to build a stronghold and port in Hambantota, and he can help in this regard.
Before his arrival, the engineering unit under the special warfare division had already produced a design plan. After Qian Shaobao read it, he felt that it was almost perfect and there was nothing to improve. After all, the officers responsible for the design are also experienced professionals, and it is not easy for a young boy like him to find faults.
To put it into practice, a construction plan must be formulated based on the actual situation. After returning from the field trip to Gaoqiao South, the arrangements for building materials and manpower in the original plan needed to be adjusted. Qian Shaobao volunteered to take on the task of calculating the project quantities.
So the combat staff turned into a bookkeeper, took an abacus and started playing.
Qian Tiandun and Gao Qiaonan came to visit twice. Seeing that Qian Shaobao was concentrating on sorting out data, they did not disturb him and allowed him to perform on his own.
A few days later, the fleet promised by Roger also arrived in Phuket successfully.
In addition to the food and daily necessities for the special operations divisions, a considerable part of the supplies sent this time were arms from China and were transshipped by Xingdao.
As the ace unit of the Haihan Army, the weapons and equipment used by the special operations division have always been the most advanced models. Weapons such as bolt-action rifles, small-caliber mortars, and belt-type light machine guns currently being trial-installed in small batches in special operations divisions are all the most cutting-edge products of Haihan Military Industry.
After these weapons are used in actual combat by special operations divisions, the arsenal will continue to improve based on feedback. After many iterations, they will enter the finalization and mass production stage.
Even if it enters the mass production stage, it is unlikely that ordinary troops will enjoy the same treatment as special warfare divisions and install these expensive new weapons as soon as possible. The Type 33 rifle, which was finalized and mass-produced in the 1930s, is still the main individual weapon of many troops.
It is precisely because they are equipped with a large number of advanced weapons that the special operations divisions are more than capable in foreign wars and have significant advantages in dealing with any enemy.
Although the vanguard troops sent to Ceylon Island were only more than 2,000 people, in terms of actual combat strength, this group of troops was enough to deal with opponents several times their size.