Yang Zhen and Guo Bingxun's predictions were still very accurate, and sure enough, on the third day, the Japanese planes stopped reconnoitring this mountain forest after finding nothing. Whether it was to give up completely, or to move to other places, or to prepare to change other reconnaissance methods, was not something that Yang Zhen could know. But Yang Zhen knew that the Japanese army would never give up their efforts to find their traces. In terms of resilience, if the little devil recognizes the second, no one dares to admit the first.

After the Japanese reconnaissance plane withdrew, Yang Zhen immediately ordered the troops to prepare for battle. Not only have posts been added at night, but light and dark sentinels have been coordinated with each other, and preparations have been made for alert fire points to enter the first level of combat readiness. Even the daytime guard posts were placed far away, and the means of cooperating with the light and dark posts were also implemented. At the same time, a number of various blocking positions were added around the station, and even a few others opposed it, and all extremely concealed communication trenches were built between the various fortifications.

Fortunately, at this time, Zhang Guangcailing, which has not yet been developed on a large scale, is a primeval forest that covers the sky and the sun, hidden in the deep mountains and old forests, lacking everything, that is, no lack of wood. Although there is no reinforced concrete, the protective properties of the fortifications are somewhat compromised. However, the abundance of wood resources, coupled with Yang Zhen's painstaking design, makes the concealment performance of various fortifications excellent. Many fortifications, if they don't fire, ordinary people will think that it is just a small dirt bun when they get very close.

On the third day after the Japanese planes withdrew, on a hillside overlooking the entire secret camp, Li Yanping, who was busy building fortifications in accordance with Yang Zhen's requirements of concealment, solidity, and mutual support, had been fighting guerrillas for many years, and he paid attention to fighting if he won the battle, and left if he could not win, and said to Yang Zhen: "Commander, are you too careful? If the Japanese really find out about us, we can give up here altogether. Sticking to one place is not the best policy. ”

Yang Zhen shook his head and said, "Political commissar, I understand what you mean." If you win, you will fight, and if you can't win, you will leave. Regardless of the gains and losses of one city or one place, we can preserve our own vitality, which is what we should do most in today's situation where the enemy is strong and we are weak. ”

"But Commissar, building these fortifications is not for me to stick to one place. In this deep mountain and old forest, the dense vegetation does provide us with an excellent hiding place, but it also provides a lot of convenience for the sneak attack of the Japanese puppet army. Good vegetation not only obscures the sight of the Japanese puppet army, but also the same result for us. ”

"With these fortifications, even if the little devil touches us, we can have the strength to fight, at least until we find a favorable opportunity to break through. Without these fortifications, once the little devils sneak attack, we will fall into passivity. Night battles, especially hasty battles at night, are not a good thing for either us or the Japanese puppet army. ”

"Even if you take 10,000 steps back and say that the little devil didn't touch it here, these fortifications didn't play any role here, but they also exercised the army's ability to do earthwork. Unless we always want to hide in the deep mountains and old forests as we do now, these troops will have to learn sooner or later. Instead of rushing around at that time, it's better to make some preparations in advance. ”

After saying that, Yang Zhen turned his head to Guo Bingxun beside him and said: "Old Guo, after these fortifications are completed, I ordered each company to build a traffic trench to its own barracks, and not just one traffic trench. At least two of each company should be built, so as not to block the barracks by then. ”

"In addition, for the fortifications that have been completed, each company must send troops on duty every day in accordance with the area of operations it is responsible for, and in the form of platoons. Especially for the main fortifications, at least one reinforcement class should be assigned. The commanders of all companies should pay attention to the rotation of troops and not let the troops feel fatigued. ”

Guo Bingxun nodded and said, "I think it's okay." It's not just the companies that have to send troops, I think a few of us should also take shifts and leave one person on duty at the headquarters every night? ”

Hearing Guo Bingxun's construction, Yang Zhen was slightly stunned for a moment, and couldn't help but secretly curse himself for being so careless, even neglecting such an important matter as the main commander on duty. I only thought of arranging the troops on duty, but I forgot about the matter of the chief officer on duty. If it weren't for Guo Bingxun's reminder, I am afraid that I would not have remembered to make up for such a big omission.

Regarding Guo Bingxun's construction, Yang Zhen nodded and said, "This is my negligence, and I should have handled it a long time ago." In this way, Deputy Chief of Staff Wang has not returned. Just the four of us will be on duty in rotation first, one for each day, and I will come first today. ”

Speaking of this, Yang Zhen looked at the fortifications that had gradually taken shape, sighed slightly, and said, "We still lack equipment. If there are enough mines, scattering a circle, or even a few circles, on the periphery of the position, our safety factor will be greatly increased, and we will also greatly save the number of troops on guard. In addition, it would be nice to have enough telephones, so that communication between the various positions would be much easier. ”

When he first joined the army in later generations, Yang Zhen, who had been to the Invalides several times to do voluntary labor, once chatted a lot with a disabled soldier who came down during the Liangshan Wheel War. He had heard the disabled soldier tell him a lot about his battle in the Two Mountains.

For the disabled soldier who had been in the spotlight of the whole of China for nearly a year in the 80s, the most unforgettable impression left on that mountain was not the lack of water, nor the intensive artillery fire of the confrontation between the enemy and us, but the countless mines on the mountain that could not be completely cleared until Yang Zhen lost his military status and returned to this era.

At that time, this disabled soldier who was blown up by mines all over the mountainous area and shrank sharply to 1.08 meters after undergoing surgery, but shrank sharply to 1.08 meters, once told Yang Zhen, a rookie recruit, that the types and patterns of mines laid by the enemy and us against the enemy on that mountain were only unthinkable, and there was nothing that could not be done. And under the number of minefields per unit, it can be called the best in the world.

In some key areas, both sides of the enemy and the enemy have even used rocket-laying trucks to dump whole boxes and whole boxes. And those mines will move under the impact of the abundant rains in the subtropics of southern Xinjiang, and the devil knows where they will go. Even the rear of the mine has been swept clearly, and after a heavy rain, this mine is not a few.

The disabled soldier once told Yang Zhen that an engineer company in their regiment was fully composed when it went up, and when it came down, except for the casualties and the disabled, there was less than a squad of complete ones, and all the casualties were blown up by mines during mine clearance.

Except for a few lucky ones who became disabled, most of them were sacrificed. And in war zones, many casualties are related to landmines. Especially in the later period, after our side had an absolute advantage in artillery fire, almost most of the casualties were caused by mines.

As for himself, he was wounded during a cross-border reconnaissance, and one of his comrades did not get his marching bag in order to set off. During the halfway break, when I was re-carrying it, because the movement was too big, I hit the thunder hanging on the bamboo next to me. Connected to this very strange mine were blasting canisters, cluster grenades and at least five or six of the same mines.

An entire reconnaissance squad was blown up by a series of mines and lost its combat effectiveness without firing a single shot, and before it even encountered the enemy. Except for the soldier who died on the spot, the rest were all wounded. At that time, he was the least injured, and when he was rescuing his comrades, he touched two mines in a row. And the area where it rested was cleared by sappers.

He didn't even know whether the mines he had struck were planted by his own people or by his opponents. Because after decades of China's all-out assistance, the opponent also had a lot of standard Type 72 anti-infantry mines and grenades in the hands of the Chinese army at that time.

Since then, Yang Zhen has developed a strong interest in landmines, although the lethality of mines is not great among weapons, but in combat, especially in defensive warfare, it has a very high cost ratio.

After being selected for the special brigade, he became even more interested in this weapon, which can even be said to be somewhat lacking in morality. In several covert operations in which he participated, his favorite weapon was a variety of mines. In the special brigade, he was once known as the Thunder King because of his hobby and the variety of mine-laying methods.

Recalling the various resources he had at hand before, Yang Zhen sighed. The captured Japanese-style mines on hand have long been used up, and now I don't have a single weapon that is excellent for defensive warfare.

Looking at the busy soldiers, thinking of the huge role played by mines in the battle between the two mountains in the future, Yang Zhen made a decision: "When there are certain conditions, I must think of a repair shop." Even if you can't make high-tech gadgets like rifles and ammunition, you must at least be able to repair guns damaged in battle, and you must be able to make mines and grenades. Especially mines, with this thing, when fighting an ambush, it will be twice the result with half the effort. ”

Thinking of this, Yang Zhen turned his head to Guo Bingxun who was following him and said, "Old Guo, we have to think of setting up a repair institute with a certain production capacity. Otherwise, the damaged weapons captured in the battle, and damaged by ourselves, will be thrown away in vain. ”

"In addition, we have a repair shop with a certain production capacity, and we can manufacture a large number of grenades, mines, and reloading ammunition. At the very least, it will solve the problem of some of our sources of ammunition. In particular, if we now have such a weapon that is very effective in defensive warfare, we can greatly save our troops by arranging one or several circles around the position, as a necessary means of defense. ”

Hearing this, Guo Bingxun nodded. He also believed that with the expansion of the army, it was necessary to set up an armament repair institute. In several battles, after almost every battle, some damaged weapons were captured, and his own troops also had battle-damaged weapons every time.

Many of these weapons only need simple repairs before they can be put into use again. However, no one in their own unit was able to repair ordnance, and many captured weapons were destroyed and discarded after only minor damage that could not be repaired. This will result in a significant Lang fee.

And with the continuous expansion of the troops, the use of ammunition will be larger and larger. The means of seizure alone make the source of ammunition too single. And in many cases, captured ammunition does not necessarily make up for the consumption. If your own troops can reload some of the ammunition, and the captured original ammunition is only used for machine guns, then the cost of the operation will be greatly reduced.

It's the same with grenades. Guo Bingxun, who came from an army with poor firepower such as the Sichuan Army, has a special preference for grenades, a weapon that can effectively compensate for the lack of melee firepower, and most people from similar backgrounds like him. At that time, the horsetail grenade of the Sichuan army, which was easy to produce, could be regarded as impressive to him. It is also much more secure to have your own repair shop to make some grenades, which is also more secure than just by seizing them.

As for the mines that Yang Zhen said, he seemed a little unimpressed. In Guo Bingxun's view, landmines are basically useless in offensive warfare. In defensive warfare, in addition to fixed defense, the rest of the combat role is not very large.

Tripping mines need to be hung up at the right time, otherwise they are dangerous. Pressed mines can easily cause accidental injuries, and as for electric mines, there are still very few such things in China. In mountain warfare, especially when there is a high chance of mutual attack, landmines are not the best weapon. Because there is no guarantee that he will not accidentally injure his own people. Instead of putting hope on landmines, it is better to think more about how to build the fortifications better.

However, although he did not care about Yang Zhen's tone of attaching importance to landmines, Guo Bingxun agreed with Yang Zhen's proposal to establish a repair institute that not only has maintenance capabilities, but also has some manufacturing capabilities.

Listening to the conversation between the two people about the establishment of an armament repair institute, Li Yanping, who had been silent, suddenly interjected: "Speaking of the armament repair institute, I think of the Eleventh Army, which is active in North Manchuria, has a small arsenal in Qixing Lizi Mountain on the border of Fujin and Huachuan. ”

"Not only can you repair all kinds of light weapons, but you can also reload them and even make some weapons. They have such an arsenal, which brings great convenience to the Eleventh Army and even the Third Route Army. At the very least, the lack of ammunition is much better than that of other units that are completely seized from the enemy. It's a pity that it's too far away from us, and the enemy situation on the road is very complicated. Otherwise, those of our damaged weapons can be sent to them for repair. ”

Yang Zhen nodded and said, "Yes, with an arsenal or repair shop that can repair and manufacture weapons, the pressure on ammunition for us has been greatly reduced." However, it is not only the equipment needed to build a repair machine, but also talents, especially skilled workers, which can be difficult to find. ”

As he was talking, Yang Zhen saw Xiaohuzi carrying a few lunch boxes up the mountain to find a few of his people, and after looking down at the time on the watch, he realized that it was time for dinner.

Yang Zhen smiled and said to a few people: "But difficulties are difficulties, we still have to find a way to solve them." Is it man-made? As long as we work hard, I think there will be a way to solve it. Now let's eat first, and after eating, let's take a walk and see if there are any deficiencies in the fortifications. ”

It's just that Yang Zhen and a few people just picked up the lunch box, but suddenly there was a quarrel at the bottom of the mountain. Yang Zhen looked at the soldiers who were arguing around the cooking squad delivering food at the foot of the mountain, and several company platoon commanders in charge were obviously a little unable to suppress the situation, so they couldn't help frowning, and stuffed the lunch box into Xiaohuzi's arms and walked down the mountain a few steps.

Seeing Yang Zhen's arrival, several soldiers who were arguing happily just now closed their mouths. And the cooking squad leader looked at Yang Zhen with some grievances and said, "Commander, you give a review." The soldiers all said that these days are training and repairing fortifications, and eating only these is really a bit of a hunger, and they want to eat some meat. ”

"I also know that the fighters are right. This training is also for our cooking class to participate, and the intensity is very high, I know this. The weather is getting cooler day by day, and I can't bear hunger without meat, and I know this. But in the deep mountains and old forests, where do I go to find meat for them? ”

"During this time, you are not allowed to hunt, and those canned meat that have been captured are not allowed to move except for the wounded and sick. The mushrooms and fungus used to make the soup were picked by the staff of our cooking class on the mountain after being busy. ”

"The fighters said that the diet was not good, and I can understand that. After all, we have limited things at hand, and no matter how we do it, it is all sorghum rice, pickle lumps, but not even potatoes and cabbage. But they shouldn't say that I drink the blood of soldiers, and that I eat the delicious food for myself except for the chief, but they detain them. ”

As soon as the cooking squad leader's words fell, a soldier on the side stood up and said, "Commander, it's not us who is looking for trouble with them. But you don't know the situation, this day we are training, repairing fortifications, and learning to write. We are all from the Zhuang family, and we are not afraid of being tired, but this training is tiring, and there is no meat in our stomachs, so we can't stand it. ”

"Commander, we can't compare with you. You and the chiefs have run five kilometers like us, but you only have a small gun with you. We have rifles and ammunition, and we have to weigh dozens of pounds. The brothers who resisted heavy machine guns weighed nearly 100 pounds with a machine gun. Eat some food this morning, a five-kilometer down, and it's all empty. ”

"You and several chiefs are chiefs, eating canned food, and drinking that kind of milk powder, there is meat. In addition to five kilometers, I don't participate in other training and don't repair fortifications, so I naturally don't feel like anything. But we just can't take it. ”

"In the past, before I joined the army, I worked in the landlord's house. When the autumn harvest comes, no matter how hard the landlord's house is, there will be meat for a meal, and sorghum rice, flatbread, and bean curd will be enough. When I arrived in the army, this training and repairing fortifications were more tiring than carrying work in the landlord's house, but I just had so much food every day, and there was no meat, which was really unbearable. ”

"The food on the troops is limited and cannot be eaten openly, we know that. But there were so many cans seized in the warehouse, why didn't he give it to everyone, and said that it was your order. What is he not drinking the blood of soldiers? ”

This soldier's voice fell, Yang Zhen didn't do anything, his company commander heard his subordinate soldiers making trouble in front of the commander, and even pointed the finger at the commander, political commissar and other leaders, but his face was a little unbearable. After untying the belt, I had to step forward and teach this soldier a lesson, so that he knew what to say and what not to say.

Seeing that the company commander was holding an armed belt to beat the soldier who spoke, Yang Zhen immediately stopped him sharply: "What are you going to do?" The fighters can't figure it out, it's normal to react to us with questions, how can you be like this? In the regulations, it has been repeatedly stated that corporal punishment is not allowed for soldiers, and you have forgotten it? ”

After stopping the company commander's actions, Yang Zhen turned around and said to all the soldiers who the soldier thought were around him: "The training intensity is high, the food can't keep up, and everyone is starving, this is my negligence as a commander, and I didn't think about it thoroughly." I'm here to apologize to everyone. ”

"You guys reacted to the problem, it's not a problem, after all, isn't the emperor a hungry soldier. But you should not quarrel with the comrades of the cooking class, let alone accuse the comrades of the cooking class of withholding you and drinking the blood of the soldiers. ”

"You have to train, and they have to train. You have finished training to repair the fortifications, and they have to prepare meals for thousands of people after they have finished training. In the evening, when you are resting, they go up the mountain to collect mushrooms and fungus, and think about how to improve the food for everyone. ”

"Besides, the comrades in the cooking class are not wrong, I gave the order not to move the cans except for the wounded and sick. Because we haven't reached the hardest time yet, those cans can't be moved for the time being. The sick and wounded are because they need more nutrition than we do to recover from their injuries. As for me and other leaders eating canned food and drinking milk powder, I believe it is better to see is believing. ”

Speaking of this, Yang Zhen walked to the several large baskets where the food was placed, looked at the sorghum rice and pickle gnocchi with soybeans in the basket and the same as in his lunch box, as well as the mushroom soup in the big pot, then turned his head to Xiao Huzi, who was holding a few lunch boxes behind him, and said, "You show you the lunch boxes of me, the political commissar, and the chief of staff." Let's see if we've done what we say. ”