You were tasked with guarding the Sihang Warehouse, and you brought out a Tiger tank?

"Good riddance."

Lin Feng exhaled a puff of smoke and stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray on the edge of the sand table.

"Your Excellency, shall we press our advantage and pursue them?"

Zhao Dashan rubbed his hands together, his face full of fighting spirit:

"Our brigade's tank tracks haven't even cooled down yet."

"Just say the word, and I'll lead my men straight to the provincial capital and take over Qizhou Prefecture too."

"Nonsense."

Lin Feng glared at Zhao Dashan, picked up his baton, and slammed it down on the location of the provincial capital.

"You can't fight a war just by being passionate; you have to consider the terrain."

Look at the terrain around the provincial capital.

To the south lies the Taishan mountain range, and to the east, the Yimeng mountain area.

The Japanese are now like frightened birds; once they retreat to the provincial capital, they will inevitably rely on these mountains for defense.

Lin Feng's baton drew a circle in the Taiyi Mountains:

What is our trump card?

It's a tank, a half-track armored vehicle, a heavy artillery piece, and a Stuka in the sky.

Should armored units be driven into mountain valleys to fight siege battles?

That's using our mechanized advantage to fight the Japanese in a war of attrition; it's pure idiocy.

After listening, all the generals nodded in agreement.

Now that the 33rd Army Corps has armored and air superiority, there's absolutely no need to go to the mountains and fight a bloody battle with the Japanese.

"What does Your Excellency mean?" Zhang Wenzhong asked humbly.

"Take the plains first, and avoid the mountains."

Lin Feng's baton traced two arcs on the sand table:

"The first step is to take over the entire Jiaolai Plain."

This will completely connect coastal cities like Qingchenggang, Yantai, and Weihaiwei with the inland plains.

The second step was for the main force to advance northward and capture the North Shandong Plain.

They fought their way to the Yellow River, where their horses drank.

During this period, he spent all his free time reviewing history and studying maps.

Back then, when Lao Han was stationed in Shandong Province for seven or eight years, he commanded an army of 100,000. But when the Japanese invaded, he didn't even put up a decent fight. He simply abandoned the city and fled, handing over his beautiful land to the enemy.

Why?

Because Lao Han only knows how to collect taxes and exploit the land, he doesn't understand how to manage a base of operations at all.

Without a stable rear and the unwavering support of the people, an army is like water without a source or a tree without roots.

Even though he has a system, he can't rely on it entirely. After all, the system itself is a money pit, and only a good rear base can continuously generate revenue for him.

Lin Feng's gaze fell on the map of Shandong Province hanging on the wall.

Compared to the Taiyi Mountains and the coastal mountains of Jiaodong near the provincial capital, Shandong Province itself has four fertile plains:

The southwestern plain of Shandong, the northwestern plain of Shandong north of the Yellow River, the northern plain of Shandong south of the Yellow River near Laizhou Bay, and the Jiaolai Plain in Jiaodong.

His next target is the Lubei Plain, which is connected to the Jiaolai Plain.

Thinking of this, Lin Feng pointed with his baton:

"The Yellow River is our best natural defense line."

As long as we control the ferry crossings along the Yellow River, we can either destroy or defend the bridge.

If the Japanese North China Area Army wanted to launch a counterattack from the direction of Beijing and Tianjin, it would have to carry out a large-scale river crossing operation.

"Then we'll strike while they're crossing. A few bombers and heavy artillery units will be enough to show the Japanese why the Yellow River is so swift!"

"Your Excellency, your plan is excellent!"

Zhao Yushu slapped his thigh and exclaimed in admiration:

"Once the two plains are captured, the Japanese troops in the provincial capital and the Taiyi Mountains will become the salient."

"Whether we fight, encircle, break through the Yellow River and attack northward to cut off their retreat, the initiative will be in our hands."

"It's settled then."

Lin Feng put down his command baton and issued the final military order:

"All departments should immediately return to prepare."

Three days later, a full-scale attack was launched, sweeping across the Jiaolai Plain!

"yes!"

The generals stood at attention and saluted in unison, then turned and strode out of the conference room.

The military conference has ended, but Lin Feng's work has only just begun.

He rubbed his slightly swollen temples and, with Zhao Yushu in tow, quickly made his way to another small conference room.

Pushing open the door, I found three people already sitting inside.

"I apologize for keeping you all waiting; military affairs have been very busy."

Lin Feng took off his military cap and walked forward with a smile.

"You flatter me, Your Excellency."

The legion's chief steward, Lin Peiji, quickly stood up and introduced the two strangers beside him:

"Your Excellency, this is Mr. Tian Peizhi."

He studied in the United States in his early years and is one of the top agricultural PhDs in China, specializing in wheat cultivation and soil improvement.

When the Japanese occupied Qingcheng Port, they forced Old Tian to take a position in the puppet government's agricultural bureau, but Old Tian refused, preferring death to submission, and remained hidden in the countryside.

Lin Feng sized up Old Man Tian.

In his sixties, his hair was already gray, his skin was tanned dark, and his hands were covered with calluses.

If it weren't for the faded Zhongshan suit he was wearing, he would look no different from an old farmer toiling in the fields.

"I admire Mr. Tian's noble character and integrity."

Lin Feng took the initiative to reach out and firmly grasp Tian Peizhi's rough hands:

"Now that Qingcheng Port has been liberated, Shandong Province's agriculture will have to rely on you, Mr. Tian, ​​to continue to shine."

"General Lin, you're too kind."

Tian Peizhi's eyes reddened with emotion:

"You led your troops to drive out the Japanese invaders and avenged us ordinary people."

"As long as the people of Shandong can have a full meal, I, this old man, would be willing to work myself to death in the fields."

Lin Feng smiled and nodded.

He had already planned it out in his mind; this Tian Peizhi was the one he was going to appoint as the Director of the Shandong Provincial Department of Agriculture.

As the old saying goes, "An army marches on its stomach."

In those war-torn times, food was sometimes even more precious than gold and silver.

Lu Province is a traditional agricultural province of the Great Xia Dynasty, with flat terrain and a suitable climate.

According to pre-war historical data, Shandong Province's total annual grain output reached over 20 billion jin.

What does this mean?

Although Lin Feng currently only has over 100,000 men under his command, his future goal is to expand his army to 200,000 or even 300,000.

According to the "Wartime Supply Standards for the Army" formulated by the Ministry of Military Affairs of the National Government, each soldier needed to be supplied with 22 liang of rice or 26 liang of flour per day (in the old system, one jin equals 16 liang).

That translates to 690 grams in modern units.

Each person receives more than one pound of grain per day. Of course, due to the scarcity of side dishes, Lin Feng actually planned to supply his troops with more staple food in order to fill their stomachs and ensure the consumption for training and combat.

With an army of 20, the daily food requirement, including provisions for the men and horses, plus losses in battle, would be close to 180 tons.

An army of 200,000 would consume nearly 5000 tons of grain in a single month.

That's quite a lot.

If he wants to go all out and mass-produce troops through the system, he must restore Shandong Province's agricultural production to its pre-war peak level.

Only in this way can the grain produced in a year be enough to feed the people of the entire province, and the surplus grain can be used to support the army and expand the military.

The person before us is the key to restoring agricultural production.

"Your Excellency, this is Chen Zhiyuan."

Lin Peiji then pointed to the young man next to him, who was in his early thirties, wore round-framed glasses, and looked very shrewd and capable, and introduced him:

"He was an internal affairs officer whom I promoted from among the patriotic students and teachers in Qingcheng Port, breaking with convention."

They have performed exceptionally well these past few days in investigating the assets of traitors and comforting refugees.

"Greetings, General Lin." Chen Zhiyuan bowed respectfully.

Lin Feng looked at the young man and nodded inwardly.

Old Tian is a pure technician. Appointing him as the director of the Agriculture Department serves as a benchmark, like spending a fortune to buy a horse's bones, and can quickly win people's hearts.

However, those who engage in scientific research are not necessarily skilled in administrative management and overall coordination.

Chen Zhiyuan is energetic and quick-witted, so he can be placed next to Tian Lao to assist him and carry out specific administrative tasks.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, everyone took their seats.

Lin Feng put away his smile and got straight to the point:

"Old Tian, ​​Zhiyuan."

Although we have now conquered Jiaodong, everything is in ruins and needs to be rebuilt.

The most urgent task right now is to quickly restore agricultural production.

Please feel free to share your thoughts.