After listening to Yang Zhen's words, Li Yanping shook his head and said, "Old Yang, what are you asking me to say about you?" First of all, you are the commander of the military district, so it is not good to interfere in the work of the place . Secondly, the commander-in-chief has more experience in dealing with these matters. Besides, it is Director Xiang who is responsible for liaising with the local government in the military region, and it is not very good for me to intervene. ”

"Besides, these things you said. The commander-in-chief did not participate in the negotiations on the funds given to the Central Committee, and it is not yet known that there will be this money every year, and it cannot be decided for a while. As for the matter of education funds, the Northeast Bureau and the Northeast People's Government are all funds allocated on a per capita basis. It is better to be in arrears than to pay a penny for teachers' salaries and educational expenses. ”

"The coal used for heating every winter is also given priority, and all of them are high-quality coal produced in Hegang and Qitaihe. After last year's incident, the Northeast Bureau has demanded that all schools with dormitories in various localities rearrange and thoroughly clean up all the kang in the first autumn of each year, so as to resolutely prevent this kind of thing from happening again. ”

"And all the allocated school coal, the Northeast Bureau and the Northeast People's Government must send people to spot check from time to time. In order to ensure the quality and quantity of coal allocated, it will not be diverted for other purposes. Although we didn't change all of the heating to what you requested, we were well prepared. ”

"Lao Yang, the commander-in-chief considers the problem very comprehensively, and the local work experience is far richer than ours, I think it is better for us not to interfere in the local work. Since you have decided to quit local work, it is better not to become a mother-in-law. After all, we are not now integrating the military and the government, and the military interferes too much in local work, which can easily lead to disputes. ”

Li Yanping's reminder, Yang Zhen was stunned for a moment and then couldn't help patting his head: "Political commissar, you are right to criticize, I am indeed a bit of a mother-in-law." In this way, Lao Li, you will separate the part of the agreement involving the implementation of the local government and transfer it to the Northeast Bureau. When it comes to the part of the military district, we'll have a meeting after the guys leave. ”

After that, Yang Zhen stretched his waist a little disregardant, rubbed his somewhat astringent eyes, and said, "Old chief, political commissar, I have to go and rest for a while." It is estimated that he will continue to grind with Admiral Wavell at night, although this guy has given up on letting us send troops to Southeast Asia. But in terms of strategic coordination, I am afraid it will be very picky. ”

"Whether it is an American or a British, it is quite realistic, and it is the master who does not see the rabbit and does not scatter the eagle. These guys will never let us take equipment and supplies for nothing. They estimate that they will put forward harsh requirements in terms of strategic coordination. So I had to be quite patient and grind with them little by little. ”

Yang Zhen's words were not false, and the matter of the two armies working together was extremely complicated. In addition, there are two major strategic directions, one south and one north, thousands of miles apart, how can they be explained by two simple words? Especially when the two sides are calculating each other, the degree of trust can be imagined.

After dinner, the negotiations with Admiral Wavell went on all night. It was not until the sky had already brightened that a general agreement was barely reached on the issue of strategic coordination between the two armies. The British side agreed to provide a batch of tanks and transfer a batch of tactical aircraft to the anti-United Nations before the end of the year.

And according to the previous British proposal, a group of long-range bomber pilots and navigators were trained for the Anti-United Nations. At the same time, when this group of pilots and navigators returns, the British side will, depending on the situation, provide a batch of strategic bombers that can reach Japan with a range of anti-Japanese bombers, and also pay for a batch of navigation equipment.

Taking into account the number of tanks and the slight lack of direct-aim firepower, the British decided to provide a batch of two-pounder anti-tank guns, as well as a full set of shell-making technology for two-pounder guns. In addition to being a British anti-tank gun, this two-pounder gun was also the main gun of the Crusader and Matilda II tanks, and could be used with each other.

At the same time, during the entire war, the British side captured German tanks, artillery guns of more than 100 mm caliber, and all anti-tank guns and steel helmets in the current North African and future European theaters to the Anti-United Nations. The captured German armored engineering and technical personnel, staff officers, and some armored and artillery command officers were transferred to the Anti-United Nations side.

At the same time, Yang Zhen also agreed that after the arrival of British equipment, once the Japanese army launched an attack on the British army in Southeast Asia. Within two to three months, the Anti-Japanese Union will devote its main forces to northern China and launch an offensive on a strategic scale. In order to contain the Japanese army in Northeast China or North China, it was impossible to transfer south to reinforce the Southeast Asian battlefield.

In this military negotiation mixed with a strong political flavor, Yang Zhen and Wavell, two soldiers who should have killed decisively, were desperately fighting like two small traders. Almost every clause has to be discussed repeatedly before it can be finalized.

Whether or not the Japanese army attacked Hong Kong and the British concession in coastal China was also included in the scope of the British army in Southeast Asia. However, the attack of the Japanese army invading China on these Lend-Lease and Hong Kong was not counted as an attack by the Japanese army against the British army, and the two of them argued for more than half an hour.

Hong Kong is close to China's Japanese-occupied zone, and if the Japanese army and the United States and Britain completely turn their faces. Then Hong Kong, which is a small land, will become the first target of the Japanese army. The time of its attack is probably much earlier than that of Southeast Asia, which still has defensive capabilities. If the British had complied with their request, then the time for the Anti-Union to enter the battlefield would have been much earlier. The inclusion of Hong Kong in this plan is undoubtedly quite inconsistent with the interests of the Anti-United Nations.

Therefore, Yang Zhen insisted that only when the Japanese army launched an attack on the Malay Peninsula could the British army be regarded as a full-scale offensive by the Japanese army, and Hong Kong must be excluded. Admiral Wavell, on the other hand, insisted that Hong Kong should also be included. If Hong Kong was attacked, the Anti-Union would have to launch an offensive in Manchuria within two months.

In fact, Admiral Wavell was well aware that Hong Kong was blockaded under the powerful Japanese navy. Unless the main forces of the British fleet poured out of the nest to fight the Japanese navy, there could only be a dead land. But it is already unskilled to carry out the task of blockading the European continent, escorting the fleet, and fighting the German and Italian navies.

Now the newly formed Far East Fleet has also taken great pains to draw out ships. And with just a few warships, it is impossible to compete with the powerful Japanese navy. Relying on a limited number of batteries, which were not even equipped with shore defense artillery, it was almost impossible to contend with the powerful Japanese Navy.

In addition, because there is no depth, Hong Kong is hardly equipped with any air force, and Hong Kong has no defensive value at all. Even symbolic defense doesn't have much value. This is well known to Admiral Wavell. Otherwise, he would not have repeatedly demanded from London that all Hong Kong garrisons be withdrawn to Singapore, and that Hong Kong be declared an undefended city.

The reason why Admiral Wavell, who knew it well, was entangled in this matter was actually because they had always been accustomed to the British, and they were quite uncomfortable when they could not take advantage of the negotiations. It was not until after some quarrels and Yang Zhen's unusually tough attitude that Admiral Wavell finally made a certain concession and did not demand that Hong Kong be included in the scope of the British army in Southeast Asia.

And for the buffer period of two to three months, Yang Zhen even slapped the table with Admiral Wavell. In the end, when Admiral Wavell was not ready to retreat at all, Yang Zhen, who had lost his patience for argumentation, sued him directly. If he can deliver the promised equipment tomorrow, no matter when the Japanese army attacks the British army, the next day the Anti-Japanese Union will launch an attack on the Kwantung Army.

If not, then ask Admiral Wavell to shut up. As a British Army general, he should know that after the equipment is in place, there is a necessary process of changing clothes and forming combat effectiveness. Moreover, the Anti-United Nations, which has just ended a major war, will need at least five months to train and replenish. Without a period of replenishment and training, there is no power to launch an attack.

He came from a military family, not a general of some country who came up by nepotism, and he should be quite aware of these situations. If the Japanese army launched a war against the United States and Britain at the end of this year, it would be far from completing the anti-Japanese alliance that had been reorganized, and if there was no certain buffer time, it would not be possible to launch an attack on the Japanese army at all. If he Admiral Wavell doesn't even understand this, then he can only say that he is a straw bale.

Although he was speechless by Yang Zhen's words, after hesitating for a long time, Admiral Wavell agreed to the two-to-three-month buffer period proposed by Yang Zhen. However, although he agreed to give the Anti-United Nations a certain buffer period, General Waver, who was not too relieved, repeatedly asked Yang Zhen that the scale of the Anti-United Nations commitment offensive should be stipulated in this negotiation.

Faced with Admiral Wavell's request, Yang Zhen could only shake his head and tell him with a wry smile. Now he can't be sure how big this scale is, but he can use his personality to guarantee that the Anti-United Nations will definitely do its best. However, this is premised, that is, the equipment promised by the British must be delivered.

And the British must not make a decision about the raw materials that the Americans provide to the anti-coalition military industry, because the anti-coalition has to hoard enough ammunition. Otherwise, once there is not enough ammunition, gasoline and heavy equipment, the living force of the Anti-United Nations can only be consumed in the endless battle for points.

In this regard, Admiral Wavell patted his chest and assured that the British side would strive to deliver the promised equipment in the shortest possible time. At the same time, before February next year, the British side will provide another batch of Crusader cruiser tanks and Matilda II infantry tanks to the Anti-Japanese Union. He will also coordinate with London to provide another batch of tactical bombers and fighters for the Anti-United Nations.

It's just that for Admiral Wavell's assurance, Yang Zhen didn't care too much at all. Although the British promised to provide a batch of equipment by the end of the year, according to their usual practice of putting themselves before others, they also needed a large amount of weapons and equipment on the battlefield in North Africa, and it would be good to promise that they could do so by March next year.

And after the Pearl Harbor attack, whether their promises can be taken seriously is another matter. After all, under the condition that the British army refused to give up the Southeast Asian battlefield, and even Hong Kong, a small land that could not be defended at all, the British army in Southeast Asia itself also needed a large amount of materials and weapons and equipment.

Even the two tanks supplied by the British, especially the Crusader cruisers, have proven unsuitable for combat in the tropics. Yang Zhen still believed that the British, who had reached the point of starvation, would increase their defense strength in Southeast Asia regardless of their priorities, regardless of whether these were suitable for fighting in the tropics.

In Yang Zhen's view, this batch of equipment is transported from the United Kingdom through the Arctic route, or from the Middle East through Iran. It takes a lot of time and energy, plus the Soviets to do something about it. No matter how fast the British are, I am afraid that they will not arrive until February next year. So Yang Zhen's idea is to stretch out as much time as possible and give himself some time for training.