[Anti-Japanese Iron Blood King] Chapter 155: A Surprising Answer (Fourth Update!) Ask for a subscription! ）

Ma Zheng was very happy with the attachment of the Chahar tribe, and immediately sent people to conduct an all-round investigation of the Chahar tribe, and finally decided to include the entire tribe of 20,000 young and middle-aged people into the army, some of which were organized into a cavalry group together with Ma Desheng's cavalry brigade, and the rest were incorporated into the infantry.

In addition, in order to protect the Chahar tribe, Ma Zheng also transferred 3,800 young men from some of the remaining tribes to form an infantry regiment and a cavalry regiment, and equipped them with weapons.

The addition of the Chahar tribe greatly enhanced the strength of Ma Zheng's department, and the two infantry regiments promised by the Nationalist Government also arrived in the base area, and now the total strength of the Suicha base area is about to exceed 45,000 people, which is not far from the 50,000 people advertised by the Japanese army.

The number of troops is indeed more, but in terms of combat effectiveness, Ma Zheng found that it has not increased much, and even decreased.

The main reason is that the vast majority of the Chahar tribe usually ride horses and herd sheep, and not many people have received military training at all. Fortunately, those who were transferred to the cavalry group were fighting on horseback, and for them riding horses was part of their daily life, as long as they were taught how to shoot and kill the enemy, they could become a qualified cavalryman.

However, those who were transferred to the infantry regiment suffered a lot, and because of the language barrier, they were quite troublesome in training, so Ma Zheng had no choice but to organize them into three regiments independently, and formed the Chahar Assault Brigade, the third infantry brigade of the Seventh Division, to specially mobilize officers who knew Mongolian for training.

Due to the lack of training and the serious shortage of weapons and equipment, the combat effectiveness of these newly formed units of the 7th Independent Division is very limited, and it is okay to deal with the bandits in the area under their jurisdiction in peacetime. If you have a face-to-face battle with the Japanese army, you will not be able to do it.

However, Ma Zheng knows that as long as there are people, weapons and equipment are easy to handle. Not to mention the seizure, the Sumushan Arsenal has already begun to put into production, and the production capacity is quite considerable with sufficient raw materials, which can produce 500 rifles and more than 30 light and heavy machine guns and hundreds of thousands of rounds of ammunition in a day.

Of course. This refers to the fact that there is an abundance of raw materials, which has not been sufficient since the construction of the Sumushan Arsenal. But even so, an average of two hundred rifles and five or six light and heavy machine guns were produced here every day. At this rate, the troops will be able to produce all of their weapons within three months.

In addition, the last time the 1st Cavalry Brigade of the Japanese Army was annihilated, the weapons and equipment of an entire cavalry brigade were captured, and in fact, the equipment lacking in the Suicha base area was only less than 10,000 guns.

In other troops, more than 10,000 guns are enough for their commanders to drink a pot, but in Ma Zheng's opinion, it is nothing, as long as it is planned properly, the problem of weapons and equipment can still be easily solved.

But just as Ma Zheng was about to launch a surprise attack. When it comes time to solve the problem of the lack of weapons in the troops, the trouble comes!

On July 7, the first anniversary of the outbreak of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the Nationalist Government announced to the people of the whole country its decision to defend Wuhan. As for the Kuomintang government's positive action to defend Wuhan, people from all walks of life have expressed their support and praised it.

Even Vice Chairman Zhou, who served as deputy director of the Political Department of the Military Commission of the Nationalist Government, pointed out in an editorial written for Xinhua Daily: "Wuhan is the birthplace of the Republic of China, the highest peak of the Northern Expedition of the Great Revolution, and now the center of the Chinese nation's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression. The united front will be consolidated and developed forever, and the great Chinese nation will be united forever. It has been the victory of the Anti-Japanese War and the success of the founding of the country. ”

Subsequently, the Propaganda Department of the Central Committee of the Kuomintang and the Political Department of the Military Commission of the Nationalist Government issued the "Propaganda Outline for the First Anniversary of the Anti-Japanese War", officially putting forward the slogan of "Defending Great Wuhan".

The Central News Agency of the Nationalist Government published an editorial entitled "Defending Great Wuhan" with a conspicuous title, calling on the people of Wuhan to actively organize. Armed to fight on the front lines for the defense of Greater Wuhan. All the young fighters who were willing to take part in the activities of the enemy's rear quickly organized themselves and heroically went to work in the enemy's rear.

It can be said that with the attention of all sectors of society, the Battle of Wuhan has become the most eye-catching event on the battlefield in China. Subsequently, people from all walks of life in the three towns of Wuhan held a huge "Defend Great Wuhan" singing procession, and under the command of the famous musician Xian Xinghai, the marching masses sang "Defend Great Wuhan" in unison. The passionate singing resounded in the sky of the three towns of Wuhan:

Blood boiling in Poyang,

Sparks flew in the Yangtze River,

The whole country roared violently to defend Wuhan

Wuhan was the center of the National War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.

Wuhan is the largest metropolis today.

We will resolutely defend her,

Like the Spanish people defend Madrid.

Crush the enemy's attack,

Consolidate the anti-Japanese front,

With our infinite power,

Defend Greater Wuhan

………

At this moment, the Kuomintang government sent a report to Yan'an, formally proposing to mobilize the Duqi Division, a model force of the Anti-Japanese War, to go south to participate in the Battle of Wuhan.

It can be said that the Nationalist Government's record really hit the soft underbelly of Yan'an, and it is unreasonable not to agree to it. After all, it is now a national anti-Japanese war, and the people of the whole country are supporting the battle of Wuhan, donating money if they have money, and contributing to what they don't, everyone is doing their best.

Now the Nationalist Government has asked the famous Seventh Division to fight in the south, and if they refuse, they will inevitably find the spurning of the people of the whole country. At the same time, this is also a blow to the people's rising anti-Japanese enthusiasm, and Yan'an absolutely cannot afford such serious consequences.

But if you say yes, it's not appropriate, why! The main reason is that the Nationalist Government has already shown its fear and dissatisfaction with the Duqi Division before, and now if the Duqi Division arrives in Wuhan, it will not be fish and meat on the board, to be slaughtered by others. And with Lao Jiang's personality and character, he will definitely not let this army go north intact.

It's easy to find a strong combat force like this, and the leaders really don't want this force to be destroyed under the conspiracy, let alone Ma Zheng, a fierce general, who has any mistakes.

In desperation, the chairman had to send a report to several bosses of the Eighth Route Army Headquarters and Ma Zheng, a party concerned, to hear their opinions, and the opinion of the Eighth Route Army Headquarters was very clear, and the Seventh Division could not go south.

There are three reasons, the first is that the 7th Division has just fought hard with the 1st Brigade of the Japanese Cavalry, and the troops have suffered extremely heavy losses, and the rest time is less than a week. The second reason is that the Duqi Division is now responsible for the defense of the eight counties of Chanan, Suidong, and Hebei, and once the main force moves south, these easily recovered territories may be reoccupied by the Japanese army.

The third is that the Chanan area is so far away from Wuhan that it will take several months for the infantry to walk alone, and the daylilies will be cold when they arrive.

After receiving a call back from the headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, the leaders of Yan'an felt that it was very reasonable, although such a reason was not enough to explain to the people, but it would not be scolded for being scolded.

But just when Yan'an was about to reply to Wuhan with this, Ma Zheng's reply was much more than the leaders expected, and he was in favor of going south to participate in the Battle of Wuhan! (To be continued.) )