Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

During the anti-mopping-up campaign in eastern Hebei, the Eighth Column sent one or two regiments to support them, which was more than enough. In exchange for food support for the Hebei-Rehe Advance Army, it was completely acceptable. However, the relationship between the Eighth Column and the Hebei-Rehe-Liaoning Advance Army was not very good.

The leadership of the Hebei-Rehe-Liaoning Army was not very satisfied with the Eighth Column, or with the cadres of the entire Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei-Yue District. This can be seen from the performance of the cadres of the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei-Yue District during the Hebei-Rehe-Liaoning Army.

Normally, the Eighth Column didn't have much contact with them.

In addition to Jidong, another way is to find a solution from the first division.

In the Jin-Cha-Ji Military Region, the First Division was the richest.

The First Division's base was located between Peking and Baoding, considered relatively affluent areas within Hebei. Controlling these areas gave the First Division considerable wealth. Not only was the First Division wealthy, but its base was also connected to the Central Hebei Military Region. Consequently, the First Division had purchased much of its supplies from the Central Hebei Military Region over the years.

If the Eighth Column lacks anything, it can be exchanged with the First Division.

Given the relationship between the Eighth Column and the First Division, there would be no problem in exchanging some things or even asking for help from the First Division.

Moreover, since the establishment of the Shengxian Anti-Japanese Base in 1937, the Wei Hongjun has attached great importance to food reserves. In recent years, the grain reserves of the Eighth Column have been very sufficient. When the troops, logistics agencies, and local governments are usually busy, they eat simpler meals and save food. They are also allowed to reclaim wasteland themselves, saving a lot of food. Even if the Eighth Column troops, logistics agencies, and local governments sometimes have some food shortages, as long as the situation is not too serious, the Wei Hongjun will not use the food reserves in their hands. Therefore, there is indeed a large amount of food on hand.

Even if the army has more than 60,000 people, if everyone lives frugally, they should be able to hold out for two years.

So Wei Hongjun nodded.

"Yes. How would you like to arrange the officers of the New Fourth, New Fifth, and New Sixth Regiments?"

"Let me tell you what I think, and see if it works. Our Eighth Column is still extremely short of cadres. We should find some cadres with excellent military and political skills to serve as regimental commanders and political commissars to build up the troops first. The missing cadres can be gradually supplemented. The commander of the New Fourth Regiment will be Shi Mangui, deputy commander and chief of staff of the 40th Regiment. The commander of the New Fifth Regiment will be given to Yu Yang, the current commander and political commissar of the teaching brigade. The commander of the New Sixth Regiment will be given to Zhang Shan, deputy commander of the 18th Regiment.

Wang Qiuyun expressed her thoughts.

Wei Hongjun is the political commissar of the army and is in charge of the situation of the army’s cadres.

Wei Hongjun knew all the important battalion-level and above cadres in the column. He even knew their brief resumes. Of course, he didn't know all the cadres above the battalion level, but he knew most of them.

Shi Mangui, a veteran of the Long March, had initially entered Sheng County with Wang Qiuyun and Wei Hongjun. His promotion wasn't rapid, but it wasn't slow either. He previously served as the captain of the Sheng County Brigade, distinguished in the defense of the Sheng County base. Later, he formed the 40th Regiment, where he served as its deputy commander and chief of staff.

Yu Yang followed the 8th Column's Chief of Staff Xu Luomin to the 8th Column's Anti-Japanese Military and Political University cadres.

He is also the current captain of the Eighth Column's teaching brigade. Yu Yang was born in the Shaanxi Army and spent his early years working in military mobilization within the Shaanxi Army. At that time, their military mobilization work was very successful, and the troops successfully revolted and joined the Shaanxi-Gansu Red Army, which later became the 115th Corps. After the July 344 Incident, he followed the th Brigade of the th Division across the Yellow River and participated in the Pingxingguan Victory. Later, he went to study at the Anti-Japanese Military and Political University and graduated from the fourth class of the university. After graduation, he stayed at the university. The second branch of the Anti-Japanese Military and Political University was established in the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region, and he brought his students to the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Military Region. Finally, when Xu Luomin came to the Eighth Column, he also followed Xu Luomin to the Eighth Column.

He was an officer who had worked in the Shaanxi Army as a mobilization officer, and had served as a military cadre and a political cadre in the Shaanxi-Northern Red Army. After arriving at the Eighth Column, he assisted Xu Luomin in establishing a teaching brigade and training grassroots cadres of the Eighth Column.

As for Zhang Shan, he was a member of the Zhangjiacun guerrillas when Wang Qiuyun and Wei Hongjun were developing the anti-Japanese base in Sheng County. He was also the fastest-promoting cadre among that group of Zhangjiacun guerrillas.

He is considered a military cadre promoted by Wang Qiuyun and Wei Hongjun.

Of course, Zhang Shan also fought many tough battles.

Ever since he joined the Shengxian Anti-Japanese Guerrilla Army, he'd been fighting on the battlefield. His unit had always been a column-level fist unit. In the four years since then, he'd grown from a hunter to a corps-level cadre of the Eighth Route Army.

"Yes. First, form the New Fourth, New Fifth, and New Sixth Regiments and get them ready for combat as quickly as possible. These new recruits have already been through some training. With the addition of approximately 300 company, platoon, and squad leaders assigned to each regiment, we should be able to quickly become combat-ready."

Why Yang Quanwu attaches so much importance to the teaching brigade.

He even became furious because Tang Fan was disobedient and wanted to drive him away.

This is because the training brigade is truly crucial. It trains squad and platoon-level cadres and veterans, who then become company and platoon-level cadres, the cadres the army needs most. Even when forming new units, with these experienced grassroots cadres leading them, they can quickly develop combat effectiveness.

In other words, the most important thing for a new army is to have a group of grassroots cadres who have fought in wars.

They are the most important.

With these grassroots commanders with rich combat experience, new recruits can quickly get started and become qualified soldiers. Unfortunately, it is not so easy to train such grassroots commanders.

"Old Wang, there's one more thing. Currently, our Chaxi Detachment is under the command of three battalions, and the units under the Chabei Detachment were previously organized at the battalion level. However, during the Hundred Regiments Campaign, the Mongolian garrison withdrew its forces, giving the Chaxi and Chabei Detachments ample room to maneuver. Their bases have expanded several times, and the Chabei Detachment has even captured three county towns. The troops are expanding rapidly, but they still don't have official designations from the column.

The 5th Detachment of the 8th Column.

The Chanan and Pingbei detachments were the two most powerful detachments of the 8th Column, each possessing three main regiments with military region designations. While the Chadong detachment only had one main regiment with a military region designation, its subordinate local units were well-developed. For example, the New 1st Regiment, the Special Forces Regiment, and the Cavalry Regiment all possessed formidable combat effectiveness.

There are only the Chaxi Detachment and the Chabei Detachment. Currently, not to mention the main force regiments of the military region, there is not even a regiment of the Eighth Column's own number. Previously, the Chaxi Detachment and the Chabei Detachment were understaffed, which was not a big problem.

But now the Chaxi Branch and the Chabei Branch are developing rapidly.

The military force is expanding rapidly.

It would be unacceptable if we don’t give them a number.

Although the military district's designation was not granted, the column's own designation should still be given to them. This was also a way of explaining to the cadres of the Chaxi and Chabei detachments.

After all, it would be unfair to the cadres of these two detachments if they were battalion-level cadres all year round. The regimental-level cadres in the early days of the War of Resistance Against Japan, the regimental-level cadres in the middle days of the War of Resistance Against Japan, and the regimental-level cadres after the War of Resistance Against Japan are all different.

“That’s a real thing.”

Wang Qiuyun nodded.

The Chaxi Detachment and the Chabei Detachment were isolated and received limited support from the column.

Their cadre turnover, or rather, cadre promotion, is also a major problem. The column cannot ignore them for long, as this will easily lead to dissatisfaction. Giving the two detachments regimental-level organization is a must.

"Old Wei, what do you think?"

"My suggestion is to reorganize the Chaxi and Chabei detachments into independent regiments. Give the Chaxi detachment the Independent 1st, Independent 2nd, and Independent 3rd Regiments, exactly three battalions, in that order. Give the Chaxi detachment the Independent 4th Regiment designation, and let them reorganize into a new unit. Give the Chabei detachment the Independent 5th, Independent 6th, and Independent 7th Regiments designations. The former 7th Security Army Regiment from the Pingbei detachment, which defected, will be reorganized into the Independent 8th Regiment."

Each military sub-district can have different numbers for its troops.

The 129th Division is the most special in this regard.

Their different military sub-districts had different numbers. Some were based on the newly formed regiment, some were based on the security regiment, some were based on the independent regiment, and some were based on the special agent regiment.

In the past, the Ji-Zhong Military Region used the number of the security brigade, and the Shandong Military Region used the number of the teaching brigade extensively.

Anyway, it is up to each military region and each military sub-district to decide as they please.

The 8th Column is currently preparing to establish new designations, including the "New Regiment" (likely referring to a specific unit or unit). Names like the "New 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Regiments" are all similar. As for the Chaxi and Chabei Detachments, Wei Hongjun plans to give them the designation of "Independent Regiment" (likely referring to a specific unit or unit).

Such numbers are also easy to distinguish.

Wang Qiuyun nodded and said, "Whether it's the combat effectiveness, cadre reserves, or troop size of the Chaxi Detachment, they are all better than the Chabei Detachment.

I think it's okay to give them four regiment numbers and give the Chabei Detachment three regiment numbers."

"Another point is that the Chabei Detachment is close to Mongolia. I'm thinking we could apply to the military district for some Mongolian cadres. Then, we can have the Chabei Detachment form a Mongolian-led unit. If we can form one or two Mongolian cavalry regiments, it will be of great help not only to the Chabei Detachment, but also to the Chadong Detachment."

As the 8th Column grew stronger, Wei Hongjun's ambitions also grew.

In history, the Eighth Route Army's capture of Zhangjiakou was due to some coincidences.

But what Wei Hongjun is considering now is that by relying on the strength of the 8th Column, he will be able to take Zhangjiakou and completely control Chahar as soon as he has the opportunity.

But if you want to take Chahar, you must contact Mongolia.

Forming several Mongolian troops as early as possible will bring many benefits in the future.

"You're responsible for this."

"it is good."

"I plan to have all the troops undergo a one- to two-month intensive training exercise. With the large-scale expansion of the army and the increase in new recruits, we must familiarize them with the troops as quickly as possible."

Wang Qiuyun trusts Wei Hongjun's judgment very much.

Since Wei Hongjun said that the North China Front Army was going to attack Zhongtiao Mountain, then they were going to attack Zhongtiao Mountain. As long as the North China Front Army attacked Zhongtiao Mountain, then the Eighth Column would have several months to prepare.

Wang Qiuyun wanted to use this time to conduct a large-scale training of the troops to improve their combat effectiveness.

"Okay. You, Comrade Xu Luomin, and Comrade Zheng Weishan will be jointly responsible for this matter. Shouldn't the large-scale military training also include local troops and village militias? In particular, they should be proficient in the use of landmines. When the Japanese army launches a large-scale sweep, if the main force cannot catch up, the people in our base area will need the protection of local troops and militia. Their combat effectiveness and weaponry will make it difficult to stop the Japanese troops. The most effective way to delay the Japanese army is landmine warfare."

"Okay, I'll remember this. After all these years of fighting the devils, our column has mastered a lot of tactics for using landmines. We can send people to train local troops and militias. We'll kill as many devils as we can."

Chapter 355 Japanese Military Movements

After Wang Qiuyun and Wei Hongjun decided on the next strategy of the Eighth Column, they quickly convened a meeting of the column’s Party Committee.

At the Column Party Committee meeting, it was decided to establish the New Fourth, New Fifth, and New Sixth Regiments, assigning the designations "First, Second, Third, and Fourth Independent Regiments" to the Chaxi Detachment, and "Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Independent Regiments" to the Chabei Detachment. Furthermore, the 7th Regiment of the North China Security Army, which had defected, was reorganized into the Eighth Independent Regiment of the Eighth Column, under the command of the Pingbei Detachment. The reorganization of the Eighth Independent Regiment was also assigned to the Pingbei Detachment.

Then the large-scale military training plan was adopted.

The column’s Party Committee decided that all troops in the base area would conduct extensive military training within the next three months.

Wang Qiuyun and Xu Luomin were responsible for developing the plan for the large-scale military training and overseeing its overall operation. Zheng Weishan was in charge of training the newly formed New Fourth, New Fifth, and New Sixth Regiments. Meanwhile, Wei Hongjun organized the local residents to prepare for the spring planting of crops.

Agriculture has always been Wei Hongjun's top priority.

In recent years, anyone would do anything to help. As long as it could increase the grain production in Chahar, Wei Hongjun would serve him like a master. This was because grain production was too low in that era.

Of course, in addition to planting crops in the spring, Wei Hongjun is also planning water conservancy construction in Chahar.

In the past, the base areas were always subject to raids by the Japanese and puppet troops, and many water conservancy projects were just empty talk. But now that the Eighth Column is strong in Chahar, many base areas are now relatively safe.

At this time, many planned water conservancy projects need to be implemented.

Wei Hongjun was also responsible for directing the work of the arsenal.

Wei Hongjun's request to the arsenal was to reduce the production of firearms. Despite the Eighth Column's success, the factory was actually quite lacking in firearms manufacturing. Therefore, Wei Hongjun requested that more efforts be focused on producing bullets, grenades, and mines. The Eighth Column currently had no shortage of guns.

During the Hundred Regiments Campaign, the 8th Column did not fight many tough battles and suffered few casualties.

But the spoils were very rich.

Over a period of more than two months, over 2000 rifles and more than light and heavy machine guns were seized. Furthermore, the puppet troops who had defected brought over rifles and more to the th Column.

For example, the Seventh Regiment of the Fourth Group Army of the North China Security Army came here as a complete organization.

So for the 8th Column, what is more important are bullets, grenades, mines and other things.

It wasn't just the Eighth Column that was training hard, preparing for the Japanese sweep. The entire Eighth Route Army was doing the same, or rather, recuperating. The Hundred Regiments Campaign had been so intense, and each unit had suffered heavy casualties.

Many troops fought for fun, but in the end they suffered heavy losses.

We are all in the recovery stage now.

Fortunately, the Japanese sweep that the Eighth Route Army feared did not come. This was because the Japanese army was heading towards southern Shanxi. Even the reinforcements from Japan were aimed at securing the Japanese forces in southern Shanxi first.

The 37th Division, the 41st Division, the Independent Mixed Brigade rd, the Independent Mixed Brigade th, and the Independent Mixed Brigade th transferred from the Mongolian Garrison to Tongpu Road were all the Japanese army's priority reinforcement targets.

The 9th Independent Mixed Brigade was not returned to the troops stationed in Mongolia.

Instead, the 9th Independent Mixed Brigade was required to continue southward via the Tongpu Road.

However, these replenishments were not easy. Every time the Japanese army organized an army for battle, it took a long time just to prepare weapons, ammunition, and logistical supplies. Even sending new recruits to the troops was not easy.

If the Zhengtai Road was operating normally, transporting personnel and supplies would be easier.

However, the Zhengtai Road was severely damaged by the Eighth Route Army, and it would be impossible to open it to traffic without six months. Of course, if the Pingsui Road were open to traffic, it would also increase the speed of replenishment. Unfortunately, the key areas of the Pingsui Road are currently occupied by the Eighth Column. Unless these troops of the Eighth Column are driven off the Pingsui Road, it is unknown when the Pingsui Road will be open to traffic. Therefore, both personnel and supplies need to travel by road.

But the roads are also difficult.

During the Hundred Regiments Campaign, the roads were severely damaged. Although the Japanese army had been organizing people to repair those roads, it would take time to completely repair them. What made the Japanese army even more troublesome was that most of those roads passed through the Eighth Route Army base.

The main force of the Eighth Route Army was unwilling to engage in a full-scale battle with the Japanese army due to heavy casualties. However, the local troops and militia were different. They would attack the Japanese convoys at any time.