Chapter 1419 In full swing

In fact, this was not the first time that Gao Qiaonan heard about this battle plan. In fact, last year's special operations battalion's attack on Lushun was also part of the Liaodong strategy. The purpose was to prepare for this year's large-scale operation. At that time, Gao Qiaonan

We have learned about the arrangements for the spring offensive. However, the combat environment that the special operations battalion is good at is complex terrain such as mountains and hills. It rarely participates in such frontal position battles on the plains. Therefore, Takahashi Minami has something to say about the arrangements of the Ministry of National Defense.

He had no doubts, it must be a lie. But in front of a foreign general like Shen Zhixiang, he would not show the slightest inappropriateness, but he had already begun to think about how to use the battalion of Ming troops sent by Pi Dao to assist in the battle.

, in order to make up for the shortcomings of one's own troops.

In fact, Morgan did not have much experience in commanding large-scale military operations. He was far less experienced than Qian Tiandun and Wang Tom, who had been commanding operations on the front line for a long time. Therefore, he did not realize that Gao Qiaonan and Shen Zhixiang had their own thoughts in their silent attitude.

. His attention is still focused on the large map of Liaodong hanging on the wall. Although he will not be the general commanding the battle by then, at this time, it is necessary to let the senior officers present as much as possible understand the operations planned by the Ministry of National Defense.

The key point in the plan is that after all, all orders issued by the commander during combat must be executed by the officers present.

However, similar combat meetings will be held several times before the arrival of spring. First, to gradually improve the details of the combat plan. Second, there are still a large number of participating troops that have not arrived in Liaodong at this time. Naturally, various departments also need to communicate through combat meetings.

opinions so that a tacit understanding can be reached on the battlefield.

The content of Morgan's explanation was naturally focused on land routes. He personally went to the front line for several days of reconnaissance a few days ago, and he also had a clearer understanding of the local geographical environment and natural conditions. After returning, Morgan compiled the information collected on the front line.

Based on the information, I also had some ideas of my own regarding specific troop formations.

"... The terrain of the Golden State Isthmus is flat, and the width of the battlefield is relatively limited. In fact, this is more beneficial to our side with fewer troops, so that we can concentrate firepower to attack the local area!" Morgan said while drawing on the map: "The enemy's most powerful force is

The most powerful thing is the cavalry, but the narrowest area on the battlefield is only a few miles away. We can try to use long-range firepower to block the enemy's attack channels and seal them in their strongholds, making them unable to play the role of cavalry!"

Shen Zhixiang asked: "My lord, I have heard that the Golden Thieves have built many fortresses for stationing troops in the area and dispersed their troops throughout the area. If they want to completely block their attack channels, I am afraid that a large number of artillery will have to be deployed to achieve this effect."

Bar?"

"Don't worry about this." Morgan responded confidently: "Before the spring, artillery troops transferred from the south will arrive in Liaodong to cooperate with the land offensive. No matter how many strongholds they build, they are only temporary defenses. Those earth walls

Fences are like dregs in the face of cannonballs!"

"Artillery unit!" Gao Qiaonan and Shen Zhixiang's eyes lit up when they heard this word. Although Haihan also invested in artillery in the previous Liaodong campaign, there were usually only a few cannons, and the artillery organization was no more than a company.

.And what Morgan is saying now is that artillery troops were specially mobilized from the south, which is probably a big move.

Haihan's artillery force has always maintained a relatively decentralized organization. Combat units such as special operations battalions are generally equipped with at least one artillery battery. In addition, colonies such as Zhoushan in Zhejiang, Zhifu Island in Shandong, and Ambuna Island in the South China Sea are

In the garrison, there will also be an artillery company. But further up, there will be no dedicated artillery battalion. This is not because Haihan has no money to build artillery, but the old problem is that the force is limited. There are only so few artillerymen trained every year.

, naturally it is impossible to station a battalion in a certain place.

What's more, not all of these artillery are field troops. The gunners required for the forts at various ports, armed strongholds, and the newly launched naval warships every year are also not small. Everyone wants to grab the new artillery every year.

Therefore, the army's artillery establishment level has not been greatly improved. During large-scale combat operations, artillery units can only be mobilized from other places in advance to assemble at the destination.

The situation in Shandong has stabilized recently. Most of Haihan's artillery units stationed in Shandong have been transferred to Liaodong. However, the existing artillery units will be deployed on the battlefield to attack the Jinzhou Isthmus. According to Gao Qiaonan and others

It is still far from enough. However, if the Ministry of National Defense really transfers another batch of artillery from the south, whether it is attacking armed strongholds or dealing with the torrent of Hou Jin's cavalry, the confidence will be much greater than now.

Of course, even if such a big setback is not wasted, as long as Haihan gathers a sufficient number of troops near the Jinzhou Isthmus, he will be able to kill the Hou Jin army stationed there sooner or later. And it takes so much trouble to mobilize artillery from the south to fight, and the national defense

The Ministry may have some intention of training troops in it. In addition, some new weapons and equipment that have been tried out in military exercises last year need to be tested in more severe battlefield environments to ensure that their performance is sufficient to meet combat needs.

While the officers were meeting in Lushun Fort to discuss the battle plan, Liu Shang was at the port responsible for receiving more than 1,500 Han immigrants sent from Pidao. After arriving in Lushun, these personnel will be placed in Haihan.

In the area occupied by the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula, naturalization will be gradually opened to them in the future, so that the status of these people will change from Liaodong refugees to Haihan nationals. Liu Shang's task is to explain the local situation to these people who have just arrived.

, and Haihan official’s next resettlement measures for them.

After telling the propaganda content again according to the script, Liu Shang returned to the bamboo shed on the dock, put down the tin speaker in his hand, then took a sip of tea on the table. He drank the warm tea and let him do it.

His hoarse throat finally felt better. Although he was not a squeamish person, he was the only one responsible for preaching to the immigrants who were disembarking in batches. This task was indeed not easy.

However, Liu Shang's attention was not entirely focused on these dull-eyed immigrants. He had long noticed that there was a Ming Dynasty fortune ship that arrived at Lushun Port with these immigrant ships. He had heard before that the Ming Dynasty's great fortune ship was in a hurry after getting off the ship.

The Ming army general who rushed to Lushun Fort was a certain general on Pi Island, and it seemed that Pi Island would also send troops to participate in the upcoming spring offensive.

The officer responsible for maintaining order on the dock is Sun Zhen, who returned to Lushun with Gao Qiaonan the day before yesterday. Although this job seems to be a bit overkill for a special operations battalion officer, Sun Zhen is.

He didn't care, because he was originally recruited by Haihan as a refugee, and he understood very well what kind of environment these desperate people needed to feel at ease - the first and foremost was the sense of security brought by order.

The special operations battalion has always been fighting on the front line of Haihan's expansion, so many times this ace unit has to take on tasks that should be done by the logistics force, such as detaining prisoners or accepting immigrants. Sun Zhen's

Immigration matters are also no stranger to them. During their stay in Shandong, most of the officers in the special operations battalion took turns responsible for the reception of immigrants. In Sun Zhen's opinion, the performance of these Liaodong refugees from Pidao was quite honest, perhaps because they were setting off.

He had been warned countless times by the local Ming army before, and Haihan was regarded as an irresistible new master.

"Brother Liu is tired. There are many people arriving in Hong Kong today, so I'm afraid I will be busy until the afternoon." Sun Zhen saw the tired look on Liu Shang's face who was drinking water, so he comforted him with a few words.

Liu Shang put down his tea cup, smiled and waved his hands and said: "It's my duty to do things, so why bother? By the way, I have something to ask Brother Sun."

After Sun Zhen agreed, Liu Shang asked: "Who is this gentleman who came from Pidao today?"

Sun Zhen did not doubt that he was there, and responded casually: "It's Mr. Shen Zhixiang, Pidao Counselor. Brother Liu should have heard of it, right?"

Liu Shang nodded and said: "After arriving in Shandong, I heard about the reputation of Shen's uncle and nephew on Pi Island. I didn't expect to see him in person so soon. I heard that Mr. Shen also spent a lot of time on Zhifu Island and interacted with him.

Will our troops eat and live together?"

Speaking of this matter, Sun Zhen also became interested: "When Mr. Shen came to Zhifu Island, he was not a tourist, but came to receive military training. It was a coincidence that I lived in the same barracks with him.

After a while."

"No wonder he greeted you specially when he got off the boat." Liu Shang suddenly said.

Sun Zhen continued: "Master Xiao Shen is also a studious person. After staying on Zhifu Island for a while, he went south with Commander Wang of the Navy. I heard that he spent the last winter in Zhoushan to learn naval maneuvers.

Pidao can cooperate with our army tacitly in the Liaodong Sea, and it is said that he has a share of the credit. In the attack on Houjin after the beginning of spring, Pidao will definitely have to contribute."

Liu Shangxin said that although General Shen was still wearing the military uniform of the Ming Army, he probably no longer regarded himself as a general of the Ming Army. This was not the first time he had seen this kind of thing. When he left Hainan Island, he

During the fleet's journey north, in almost every Haihan colony, Ming officials with high or low official positions could be seen appearing in the local area in overt or covert ways. Even generals like Shen Zhixiang did not

rare.

These officials of the Ming Dynasty had various purposes for interacting with Haihan. Some were to accept bribes, some were to cooperate with Haihan in business, some were to rely on Haihan's thighs to seek support, and some were in Cao's camp and their hearts were in Han.

People who secretly defected to Haihan. The more Liu Shang saw, the more he felt that the Ming Dynasty wanted to drive out or even destroy Haihan in the south. This was just a delusion in the minds of some court officials. Many people retained their identities as Ming officials.

, but he is working for Haihan, and this situation cannot be changed by issuing a few decrees from the capital.

Regarding the situation of Pidao, Liu Shang had previously learned more or less information. He believed that the uncle and nephew of the Shen family who were in charge of the local military power might surrender to Haihan more completely than the Xu family in Fujian, because the Ming Dynasty could not give them any practical advice at all.

benefits, but Haihan can at least let them live in glory. Sun Zhen's words seem to confirm this. Shen Zhixiang's performance may have gone beyond the scope of a partner, but he really intends to play for Haihan

.

Of course, with Liu Shang's current mentality, he will no longer secretly scold Shen Zhixiang for treason and surrendering to the enemy. After all, for Pidao who needs to survive, working for Haihan is almost the best way out. But Liu Shang sees it

Looking at the great fortune ship of the Ming Dynasty on the pier, I can't help but sigh for the declining empire.

While Liu Shang was lamenting Pidao's change of course, a large-scale fleet was slowly sailing out of Dinghai Port, Zhoushan. The huge hulls of the first two majestic-class flagships could be seen from a few miles away.

Civilian and merchant ships gave way to the waterway one after another, lowered half of their sails, and paid tribute to the fleet entering the port.

This fleet departing from Zhejiang gathered the main warships of the Navy's East China Sea Fleet and Northern Fleet. There were also dozens of large and small troop transport ships carrying more than 2,000 army and marine personnel gathered from all over the south, as well as

There are dozens of heavy-loaded cargo ships and comprehensive supply ships transporting various combat supplies, and the number of ships in the entire fleet has exceeded a hundred.

This mixed fleet is still commanded by Navy Commander Wang Tom. After recuperating on Zhoushan Island for a winter, the sailors finally embarked on a new journey. Shi Diwen, who was based in Zhoushan, originally wanted to go north with him and participate in this event in Liaodong.

This is a rare "grand event", but the concubine he married last year is already ten months pregnant and is about to give birth. At this juncture, it is not easy to put down household chores and lead troops to fight. Of course, what's more important is that neither the Executive Committee nor the Ministry of Defense has

To approve his application, after all, Zhoushan is close to Zhejiang, and the garrison has taken away most of it, so it is still necessary to have senior military officials on duty.

As a senior military official, Wang Tom knew very well that the plan to attack Liaodong had actually been discussed at the staff meeting of the Ministry of National Defense for several years. However, in the past few years, Haihan's hands could not reach such a distance, so it was just a matter of paper talks.

It's just a plan. Now that the time has finally come, the Haihan army has the opportunity to once again open up territory for this emerging country.

The battle in Liaodong is very likely to be Haihan's last large-scale military operation in the north in recent years. After that, the occupied areas in the north will enter the stage of cultivation and recuperation, and will not continue to expand further north for the time being.

.This is not because the Executive Committee has been satisfied with the status quo and has no ambitions, but because Haihan's existing colonies are too scattered, and if it continues to expand its territory in the north-south direction, there will be more troubles in both military and administrative aspects.

Although the Ministry of National Defense is not so willing to do this, it also understands that the concerns of the Executive Committee are not unreasonable. After all, the distance between the north and south of Haihan's current control area is thousands of miles away. If it wants to expand rapidly, it must have more

Stable centralization and stronger military power will do. But for the Haihan Kingdom, which is expanding too fast, this is not a problem that can be solved in a short time.
Chapter completed!