Sword: Heart of Iron

Chapter 65 Wei Lihuang's Gift
Just as Wang Feng was struggling, a signalman came running from behind.

"Sir, thank you, Staff Officer!"

"Urgent telegram from the 14th Army!"

Sergei took the telegram with a frown. His last name was not Xie, but after staying in the Temporary Brigade for a long time, he gradually got used to this name.

After a quick glance, he said, "Sir, these are supplies for General Wei Lihuang."

"Four hundred thousand rounds of bullets, forty thousand grenades, and some logistical equipment."

Wang Feng folded the telegram in his hand and took the next one.

"Fifteen thousand uniforms?"

Seeing this, his brows gradually relaxed.

It turned out to be the case.

It seems that Chiang Kai-shek has become sympathetic to Wei Lihuang and is trying hard to win over his own troops.

Even the military uniforms needed to change the order were fully prepared.

Sergei probably understood what it meant: "Sir, is our army going to accept the reorganization of the central government?"

As a Soviet, he still had a limited understanding of China's warlord politics and only vaguely knew the difference between the central army and local armies.

After careful consideration, Wang Feng nodded: "That's right."

"There's nothing wrong with the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, but the Central Army is more open to me!"

"The entire army must march quickly and reach Xinkou before dark!"

Sergei grinned, crossed his arms over his chest, and held his left wrist with his right hand: "Wise, sir!"

This set of movements is a unique way of saluting of the Soviet people. It originated from the October Revolution and is mainly used in formal political and military occasions to express respect for authority and leaders.

But Sergei, wearing the uniform of the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, always gave people a feeling of being neither Western nor Chinese.

After deciding to change their allegiance, the troops' marching speed couldn't help but increase significantly.

5 p.m.

The Temporary 1st Brigade officially arrived in the vicinity of Xinkou Town.

Wei Lihuang personally led the guard battalion and went five miles outside the city to meet them.

Yellow sand rolled all over the sky, and a group of people appeared in everyone's sight.

Among the group of infantrymen carrying guns, one can clearly see a heroic general riding a tall and handsome white horse.

The flag guard was right next to this man, with the military flag swaying in the wind and clanging.

Zheng Yanzhen, commander of the 5th Independent Brigade, saw something that lit up his eyes.

An army of soldiers riding on white horses, how majestic it is.

I guess this person must be Wang Feng.

Wei Lihuang also noticed it and got into a jeep nearby: "Go meet them, quick!"

Stay here for now.

Wang Fengmi held the reins tightly with both hands. In order to build national defense fortifications, the troops cut down all the trees that could be cut in the surrounding area, and the wind was too strong.

Xinkou Town is also a command center, where a large amount of logistical supplies are stored.

The howling wind blew up sand and gravel, making it difficult for people to open their eyes.

Sergei walked on foot beside him, glancing sideways at Wang Feng on his horse.

He muttered in his heart: "General blessed by God, glory belongs to the great commander!"

At first, Sergei was strongly opposed to such a high-profile march.

This is really too dangerous!

What to do if you encounter an ambush?
But Wang Feng insisted on doing so.

If the soldiers in an army can see their military commanders at a glance, whether they are in intense combat or on the march, then this will definitely be a powerful tool to rally the troops' morale.
Even Wang Feng began to wonder if he had a hidden BUFF.

As long as he appears in front of the soldiers, the speed of the troops' organizational recovery will increase rapidly.
It reminded him of the leadership bonus he gained when playing the Total War series of games.

Wang Feng rode leisurely on his horse, his consciousness withdrawing from the three-dimensional combat map.

After the overlooking range is expanded to ten kilometers, it can basically cover the marching range of the entire Temporary 1st Brigade.

Not to mention the Japanese infantry, even if planes were sent to bomb, Wang Feng would be able to respond in time.

There is no need to worry too much about safety.

"stop!"

Wang Feng waved his hand, and the troops obeyed the order and immediately stopped marching.

He jumped off his horse and walked quickly to the front of the team.

There was a roar of an engine, and Wei Lihuang got off the jeep. Looking at the young face in front of him, he couldn't help but admire: "He is really handsome and vigorous!"

Wang Feng stepped forward and saluted: "Commander Wei, thank you for your compliment!"

Zheng Yanzhen stood quietly by and watched the two of them.

He couldn't get a word in during the conversation between the two.

Wang Feng turned his head and asked, "Who is this?"

Wei Lihuang introduced: "The commander of the 5th Independent Brigade, Zheng Yanzhen, is currently stationed in Xinkou Town and is supervising the battle on the front line with me."

Zheng Yanzhen put her heels together: "Hello, sir!"

Wang Feng suddenly realized.

Zheng Yanzhen.
He had some impressions of his past life.

This man was a fierce general who fought fearlessly and bravely. He should have been killed in the battle for the Jinshan 1300 Heights.

At present, the 5th Independent Brigade is still stationed in Xinkou Town and has not been engaged in front-line combat.

Wei Lihuang patted Wang Feng on the shoulder and said, "It's dangerous outside the city. If you have anything to say, let's go inside first!"

Although he had participated in the warlord struggles in his early years, now that the united front had been formed, he had always advocated that all factions put aside their prejudices and unite. He had never made things difficult for Wang Feng because of his identity as a member of the Shanxi Suiyuan Army.

On the contrary, after receiving the battle reports of the great victories in Nanhuaihua Village and Yangmingbao Airport, before receiving the appointment letter from the Nanjing government, it was decided to allocate supplies to the 1st Temporary Brigade.

It was just that the telegram was sent a little late.

Wang Feng nodded slightly, turned his head and signaled Sergei to lead the troops to station outside the city.

Then he got on the jeep that came to pick him up.

Wei Lihuang noticed Sergei behind Wang Feng, who had a foreign face.

I was a little surprised but didn't take it seriously.

Although foreigners are rare in the Chinese army, they do exist.

Even the Nanjing government hired foreign instructors to train its troops, and there were foreigners in the armies of local warlords.

Since the full-scale war, many international friends have come to China to provide assistance. Ordinary soldiers find this rare, but officers of Wei Lihuang's rank are not surprised by this.

The jeep stopped in front of a house.

Led by the guards, Wang Feng got off the jeep and looked around the courtyard through the gate.

There were many battles on the front lines, and the confidential clerks looked hurried. Even though all the departments were in the same compound, they still ran back and forth to deliver information.

Under such circumstances, Wei Lihuang still took the time to personally go outside the city to greet him, which showed great sincerity.

Inside the 14th Army Headquarters.

The staff officer held a tray and handed over a set of military uniforms.

Wei Lihuang smiled and said, "Don't be shy. From now on, you and I are real colleagues."

"This is your new uniform. The collar patches and everything else are in here."

Wang Feng nodded: "Thank you for your concern, Commander Wei."

The situation on the front line is tense, and it is not easy to raise a large number of military uniforms in a short period of time.

The military uniform distributed to Wang Feng was still dark blue. Although the color was the same as the original Shanxi-Suiyuan Army uniform, the style had been greatly changed.

It is a very standard Type 24 military uniform of the Republic of China, adopting the design style of the Zhongshan suit, with a folded collar, single row of buttons, square pockets, etc. The overall style appears to be quite conventional.

Woolen fabric, feels very good to the touch.

Wei Lihuang added: "As for the issue of military uniforms for the Temporary 1st Brigade, I have already ordered the logistics department to prepare everything. As for the weapons and equipment."

As he spoke, he looked embarrassed.

The infantry equipment systems of the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army and the Central Army were very different.

Both sides used rifles of their own production.

The Jinsui Army produced the Type 65 rifle for Jin.

The Central Army used a mixture of Hanyang and Zhongzheng rifles, as well as a small number of imported Mauser Type 98 rifles.

There is a big difference in caliber.

The counter-offensive has just ended and the Temporary Brigade is fighting smoothly.

The progress of the rest of the troops was not smooth. They suffered repeated casualties and were crying out for supplies.

At this juncture, it is extremely difficult to fully re-equip the more than 10,000 soldiers of the Temporary 1st Brigade.

The 6.5 rounds of bullets previously promised to Wang Feng were all the mm rifle bullets that Wei Lihuang could get.

Failure to replace equipment means that the North China Battle Group, which is about to be formed, cannot be incorporated into the supply system of the Central Army.

Wei Lihuang was naturally aware of the huge impact that the lack of stable logistical supplies would have on the combat capability of an army.

Wang Feng thought for a moment and said, "I appreciate your kindness. I won't bother Commander Wei with the equipment for now."

Nanhuaihua Village was the headquarters of the 9th Brigade. After the battle, most of the logistical supplies piled up by the Japanese army here fell into the hands of the st Temporary Brigade.

The number is so huge that it is far beyond imagination.

The statistical data alone took most of the day.

If we add the 400,000 rounds of ammunition supplied by the 14th Army, it will be enough to meet short-term needs.

As for what will happen in the future, there is no point for Wang Feng to worry about it now.

At present, all the troops seem to be quite wealthy, whether it is the Central Army of the Nanjing government or Yan Laoxi's Jinsui Army.

Every time ammunition supplies are allocated, the starting amount is often hundreds of thousands.

But the good times didn't last long.

With China's weak industrial base and sporadic international aid, it is difficult to supply a protracted war.

It wasn't long before the various factions began to run into financial difficulties, and supplies were distributed like squeezing toothpaste, with only a little bit given each time.

Maintaining training is not enough.

The Shanxi-Suiyuan Army in particular, after losing the Taiyuan Arsenal, lived even worse than the Eighth Route Army next door.

Relying on others for supplies is ultimately not as reliable as producing your own weapons.

Wei Lihuang smiled awkwardly, feeling that he owed Wang Feng: "But don't worry, if the weapons and equipment cannot arrive, I have prepared a big gift for you!"

Wang Feng was slightly surprised.

Big gift?

Is there anything better than real swords and guns?
Wei Lihuang pretended to be mysterious and looked at the staff officer beside him: "Go, call Lang Shaohua to me!"

A moment later, a doctor in a white coat with blood stains on his body ran in.

"Commander Wei!"

Wei Lihuang introduced with a smile: "Lang Shaohua, the superiors have set up a new Second Field Hospital for our 14th Group Army, and this is the new director."

"This Second Field Hospital has more than 300 medical staff, countless stretchers and medicines."

"Since weapons and equipment cannot be supplied for the time being, this field hospital will be assigned to the North China Battle Group."

"This is Commander Wang."

Lang Shaohua responded: "Hello, sir!"

Looking at the doctor in front of him, Wang Feng was stunned.

A formalized field hospital?
This is a great gift, in a sense, much more important than weapons and equipment.

Wang Feng: "Thank you for your kindness, Commander Wei. I will respectfully obey your orders!"

As the saying goes, if the meat is right in front of your mouth, there is no reason not to eat it.

Medical drugs are even more scarce in China than weapons and equipment.

The First Brigade had a temporary clinic, but it was extremely short of medicines, and the doctors were all mediocre, so they often used folk remedies to treat injuries and illnesses.

A formal field hospital like this was unthinkable in the past.

Wei Lihuang is more generous than Yan Laoxi and Chiang Kai-shek!

The war was tense, and Wei Lihuang did not beat around the bush: "The newly formed North China Battle Group currently has no combat missions. It will first rest in Jinzhong, Taiyuan and other places, waiting for subsequent combat missions."

Now Wang Feng is considered one of their own, and Wei Lihuang is very sincere to him, so it is impossible for him to be thrown onto the battlefield without any care.

The situation in the Xinkou battle is still unclear.

After entering the stalemate phase, Yan Laoxi started to make trouble again.

According to the current situation, there is a trend to transfer the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army back and let the Central Army hold Xinkou alone.

Wei Lihuang naturally couldn't agree to this. He still had these little thoughts when facing a powerful enemy. I really don't know what he was thinking!

This is the current situation of the War of Resistance. When facing the bloody bayonets of the Japanese army, we must also be wary of being stabbed in the back by friendly forces beside us.

Under such circumstances, how can we drive out the Japanese invaders?
(End of this chapter)