readx; In the expansion plan of the Nationalist Army, the 11th Division, like the Eighth Division and the Ninth Division formed earlier, is a newly organized and trained unit; except for a small number of backbone and middle- and high-ranking officers who are drawn from several main units, the rest of the new recruits and grass-roots officers are all brand new, and the soldiers are directly supplemented from the new barracks, while most of the grass-roots officers are directly appointed from the graduates of the Fuzhou Military Academy. However www.biquge.info in order to maintain the combat effectiveness of the troops, the general staff of officers at and above the battalion level still expressed a slightly conservative opinion, holding that in the previous training process of the Eighth and Ninth Divisions, because too many backbone officers had not been replenished, and even middle-level officers such as battalion commanders were newly promoted, the training time of the troops was too long, and it was not possible to bring into play its combat effectiveness for a long time. You must know that the Eighth and Ninth Divisions took nearly half a year to form an army, and this time was obviously unacceptable to the Nationalist Army.

Therefore, in the course of the 11 th Division's organization and training, basically all officers above the company commander level were drawn from various units, and this time the officers were not only drawn from the main field divisions of the First Division and the Second Division, but even some officers were transferred from the guard division. In this way, the formation of the 11th Division will be much faster, and after it is formed in a short period of time, it will be applied to possible battles in the future.

Whether it is Chen Jingyun himself or the generals of the Nationalist Army, they have already concluded that the next war will come soon, and they will still fight with the Beiyang Army. This prediction is not their imagination, but is based on the development of reality. The Beiyang Army's large loan for the aftermath has been successful, and although it is impossible to get all the money in a short time, Yuan Shikai has already obtained the first part.

The Military Intelligence Department has found out that the Ministry of Finance in Yanjing has continuously allocated part of the military expenses to the subordinate troops, which has greatly relieved the divisions of the Beiyang Army, which have not received military funds for a long time.

After receiving sufficient military supplements, the divisions of the Beiyang Army, especially those on the Jinpu line, have begun to reorganize and train, and the Cao Kun Third Division, which was transferred back to Xuzhou from the southern Jiangsu front to rest and recuperate, has also been restored to its formation after a long period of rest and recuperation, and is currently stepping up training, and the same is true of the Second Mixed Brigade in Chuzhou. After the war in southern Jiangsu, Yuan Shikai did not reduce the strength of the Jinpu line, although the third division had been withdrawn to Xuzhou for recuperation, and the second mixed brigade was also in Chuzhou, but these two troops could go south to Jiangbei at any time to support. However, Zhang Xun's Eighth Division in Qingjiangpu was more miserable, the first battle in southern Jiangsu made the Eighth Division almost annihilated, including Zhang Xun and other senior officers, a total of only less than 1,000 people returned, although Yuan Shikai and Feng Guozhang both promised to support the reconstruction of the Eighth Division, but the military budget of the Beiyang Army was so tight, this promise was finally lost, and it was only given hundreds of thousands of yuan before and after. Although Zhang Xun made great efforts to loot money in Qingjiangpu, it was almost impossible to complete the reconstruction of the Eighth Division by looting that place alone, and the cost was not a matter of hundreds of thousands, but a matter of several million. So now, Zhang Xun's Eighth Division is just a retrained brigade of recruits, and there is no decent artillery, only a battalion of 57-mm Hanyang mountain artillery.

However, on the whole, the strength of the Beiyang Army on the Jinpu Line has not weakened too little, and the second brigade Yuan Shikai, which was originally transferred from the first division, has been officially upgraded to the second mixed brigade, and the first brigade, which was lacking in the original first division, has been reorganized and retrained.

The military intelligence office of the national army keeps an eye on the movements of these Beiyang army units almost every day, and judging from the situation reported by the military intelligence office, the Beiyang army has recovered from the war in southern Jiangsu and is already preparing for the next war.

"If the 11th Division is to be used, it will have to be at least four months later, and before that, it can only continue training in Fujian and serve as the defense of Fujian!" Chen Yi, director of the Operations Department, walked lame to the large military map during the staff meeting: "However, the defense of southern Jiangsu is tense, and although we already have six divisions in southern Jiangsu and Zhejiang, the sixth division must not be transferred to face Anhui and Jiangxi. The remaining 1st and 4th Divisions of the 1st Army and the 2nd and 7th Divisions of the 2nd Army plus a 5th Division are only five divisions, and it is not difficult for these troops to block the Beiyang Army on the Yangtze River, but if they want to cross the river and attack north, then the strength will be thin! ”

Jiang Fangzhen, director of the Department of Education, said: "As long as the logistics can be supplied, after the five divisions launch the battle of crossing the river, it will be enough to occupy an advantage in Jiangbei, but as Brother Chen said, if they want to continue to go north along the Jinpu line, this force is still a little thin!" ”

The purpose of this staff meeting is different from usual, before and even during the war in southern Jiangsu, neither within the staff department nor other middle and senior generals said that they had the idea of continuing to go north, or that they did not dare to think about it, but after the war in southern Jiangsu, even if the national army was said to be a draw, the casualties on both sides were about the same. As long as the combat effectiveness of the Nationalist Army is too weak to that of the Beiyang Army, then there is hope that the Northern Expedition will succeed.

Therefore, many generals have begun to plan how to go on the Northern Expedition, and even the General Staff Department has also carried out relevant operational planning, and this time the General Staff Meeting discussed how to fight after the outbreak of the next war, whether to defend the operation or take the initiative to attack and cross the river, or simply go north along the Jinpu Line to fight to Yanjing.

Yuan Fang had a straight face, and the general's official uniform on his body was spotless and unwrinkled at all.

"Although the commander has not yet said that he will carry out the Northern Expedition, we cannot be unprepared, when the situation changes, the commander orders the march, the staff must come up with a complete battle plan!" Yuan Fang continued: "According to what everyone just said, if it is only a defensive operation, then five divisions on the front line are enough. However, we must take a long-term view, whether it is a battle across the river or a northern expedition along the Jinpu line, this requires a complete battle plan! ”

Chen Yi said at this time: "What the chief of staff said is right, be prepared for current affairs. As I said before, the five divisions in southern Jiangsu have already defended their operations, and even if they launch a river-crossing operation, they may have some advantages in the early stage, but if they want to achieve a decisive victory or even go north, they must continue to increase troops in southern Jiangsu! ”

Chen Weihua, who was dismissed from his post due to the defeat in the battle and was reactivated by Chen Jingyun as the director of the Strategy Department, also spoke at this time: "If you want to increase the troops, I am afraid that it can only be these divisions in Fujian, and the 11th Division has not yet become an army, so only the 8th and 9th Divisions are left." ”

For example, the Third and Tenth Divisions deployed in Guangdong cannot be moved, and the Third Army is used to guard against the Gui Army and even Jiangxi and Hunan. As for the rest, most of the main forces of the Nationalist Army are already in Zhejiang and southern Jiangsu, and the Sixth Division in Jinhua cannot be transferred, so the only ones left can only be transferred are the Eighth Division and the Ninth Division under the Fourth Army deployed in Fujian. As for the guard division, this unit is too special, its main task is not to conduct field operations, but to ensure Chen Jingyun's personal safety, basically belongs to the state of Chen Jingyun going there and the guard division also going there, as long as Chen Jingyun does not go to the front line, then it is impossible for this unit to be sent to the front line with the whole division.

However, there are still workarounds, Guo Siheng of the General Affairs Department said: "In my opinion, is it possible to follow the battle of Hangzhou and the battle of Guangzhou, and draw a part of the guard division to form a reinforced regiment and send reinforcements to the front line?" ”

Yuan Fangdao: "This is a method, since there is a precedent, the commander will agree!" Think of this as an alternative! As for the Fourth Army, if it only launched a river-crossing operation at that time and captured Jiangbei, there would be no need to send it. If the Northern Expedition was to be carried out, then at least one division of the Fourth Army would have to be transferred north. ”

Whether it is a defensive operation or a short-distance roundabout crossing the river to seize Jiangbei, the strength of the national army in southern Jiangsu is sufficient, even if it is more tense, it will be almost the same to send an additional guard division to reinforce the regiment. But if you want to go on the Northern Expedition, then the situation will be completely different, thousands of miles along the way, although the northward along the railway is fast, but the Beiyang Army will certainly not sit still, it will inevitably be fortified layer by layer along the railway, it is difficult to fight without superior forces, and after occupying the railway line, it is impossible to leave some troops left behind to prevent being cut back, all of which add up, the General Staff predicts that it is impossible to accomplish such an arduous task by relying on the five divisions of the National Army in southern Jiangsu alone, and it is necessary to continue to increase troops.

Of course, these operational plans discussed by the General Staff are only operational plans within the General Staff and can be regarded as preparatory work in the early stage. Not only is the General Staff preparing various operational plans for the next possible war, but the Logistics Department is even more busy, and the ammunition stocks of the Chinese People's Army in southern Jiangsu are almost exhausted, especially the artillery shells are almost exhausted. After the war, the logistics department was busy transporting ammunition and all kinds of combat materials to the southern Jiangsu region, and the logistics department did not care whether it was a defensive operation, a river-crossing operation, or a northern expedition, because no matter what the plan was, it would require a large amount of ammunition and all kinds of combat materials, and it would be too little and not too much.