readsfreenovel Chapter 213 North-South Alliance
Chapter 213 North-South Alliance
It was September 9th. That morning, Tao Yunong hurried into Fang Jian’s temporary office.
"Commander, the northern envoys have arrived in Jinchang Province."
Upon hearing the news, Fang Jian paused, put down the pen in his hand, and a complicated expression appeared on his face.
Although he had long anticipated that the North and the South would unite, when the day finally came, he still felt a little pressured.
After tapping his fingers on the table and thinking for a moment, Fang Jian said, "Both sides will need time for talks and preparations. We should still have more than half a month."
Since he couldn't avoid the war, Francis Xavier had nothing to fear.
The troops that can be mobilized on the Eastern Front are still the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th divisions, totaling 230,000 people.
The shortfalls in soldiers in each unit have been filled with newly recruited soldiers, reaching full strength.
Although the combat effectiveness of new recruits is not as good as that of old soldiers, the army is still mainly composed of old soldiers, and it does not have a big impact on the overall combat effectiveness.
"Yu Nong, get ready, we're going to Xinyuan."
"Commander, Changhuan will soon be used as a battlefield. Would it be inappropriate to go to Xinyuan at this time?" Tao Yunong hesitated.
Fang Ji'an's safety is the first priority in Tao Yunong's heart, so naturally he doesn't want him to take risks.
Fang Jian chuckled and said, "It's okay. The garrison division in Nanling cannot move lightly, but the two regiments we brought out can also be used as combat power to firmly guard the source of the information."
If the North and the South unite, the coalition forces may reach about 400,000.
The most important thing is that these 400,000 people are not a mob of warlords, but well-trained regular troops.
"Yunong, don't worry, the source of the information is very safe." Seeing that Tao Yunong was still very worried, Fang Jian said again.
"Even if there are only two regiments, plus the original militia forces in Xinyuan, it is more than enough to defend Xinyuan."
Seeing Fang Jian'an's insistence, Tao Yunong stopped persuading him.
The reason why Fang Jian went to Xinyuan was that he was worried about the front line. More than 200,000 troops were stationed in Changhuan. Facing 400,000 enemy troops, how could he not feel at ease if he didn't stay by their side?
"Oh." Fang Jian couldn't help but sigh.
I didn't want to use armored and air force units, but if the North and the South really unite, without using these two units, even if I win, it will be a pyrrhic victory.
In order to reduce troop losses, Francis could only deploy armored forces to the battlefield.
If we can win this battle, the North and the South will no longer be a threat at all, and there will be no time to recover for several years.
It is not possible to obtain elite troops simply by recruiting soldiers and appointing officers.
Soldiers need training, and officers also need to master certain military skills. Even if enough soldiers are recruited, without enough officers and long-term training, they will still be just a mob.
Retracting his thoughts, Fang Jian ordered: "Send a telegram to Xu Ting'en, asking him to lead the First Armored Division to Xinyuan, temporarily stationed in Xinyuan, and prepare for battle."
"At the same time, send a message to Liu Maohang, asking the Air Force to prepare for battle and wait for orders at any time."
"Yes, Commander." Hearing that the armored division and the air force would be involved in the battle, Tao Yunong felt a little relieved.
On September 9, Fang Jian arrived in Xinyuan and asked several division commanders to hold a meeting in Xinyuan.
It is worth mentioning that during this period, the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 8th and 9th divisions were successively transported to Changhuan by trucks.
Military factories also transported various weapons and ammunition to Xinyuan for storage every day. At the same time, a steady stream of medicines, food, tents, etc. were also transported to Xinyuan.
In the Xinyuan Command Conference Room, Fang Jian and the commanders of various divisions gathered together.
After looking around at everyone, Fang Ji'an said, "You should all know that the North and South are planning to unite, and they want to deal with our Nanshan Army."
"Their coalition forces are probably no less than 400,000 strong and will be able to enter Changhuan within a month. Are you afraid?"
Fang Guoxuan smiled and said, "Commander, rest assured. Our Nanshan Army has always won by using fewer troops to defeat more, fighting big battles and tough battles. Let alone 400,000, even if there are 400,000 more, we have nothing to fear."
"Yes, it's not like we haven't fought against the Northern Army before. The number of Northern Army soldiers we have wiped out must be more than 200,000." Li Zhongwu also echoed.
The other officers also echoed this, and they all looked very angry.
What made them angry was that the Southern Army abandoned its allies and joined forces with the Northern government to attack Nanshan Province.
Fang Jian nodded slightly, feeling that the army's morale was strong. He then pressed his hands down to stop everyone from talking, and the scene gradually quieted down.
"We will defend Changhuan, Lingshan, Yanping and Jingshui will still be guarded on the northern front, and Dehua and Qinghe counties will be guarded on the southern front."
"Fang Guoxuan is the main defender on the north line, while Cai Tingwu is the main defender on the south line."
"The 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 10th, and 11th divisions are assigned to the northern line of command. The 4th, 5th, 8th, and 9th divisions are assigned to the southern line of command."
After assigning the tasks, Fang Jian said, "Each unit will temporarily arrange its defense line in this way."
"Everyone needs to be prepared. If we can find a flaw in one of the parties, we can annihilate that party with all our strength."
Fang Guoxuan and others nodded. The Nanchuan and Changhuan battles were won so easily thanks to seizing the opportunity to defeat the enemy one by one.
If the three parties had sent out their troops at the same time and none of them had advanced rashly, the Nanshan Army would have suffered heavy losses even if it had won, and would not necessarily have achieved such a result.
After discussing some details of the deployment of each division, Fang Guoxuan said with some concern: "Commander, although we defeated Feng Zhangshan and Yun Zhizhou in Nanchuan, we still have to guard against them marching into Nanchuan again."
Fang Jian nodded slightly. Yun Zhizhou was captured by the Nanshan Army, but after a period of chaos, the Yunshan Army elected a new commander, who was Yun Zhizhou's cousin, Yun Zhilong.
Yun Zhilong gathered Yun Zhizhou's subordinates, and now has nearly 40,000 men under his command.
Feng Zhangshan still has 130,000 troops in Yongxi and Guanxi, so we must be on guard against them.
Fang Jian had already made arrangements for this. He said, "Commander Wang Zhixian has already built a defense line in Guangshan. If we can build it, we can resist even if Feng Zhangshan attacks with all his might."
"Nandu is still guarded by Li Weiling's Seventh Division. As long as the Nanshan Road is completed, 40,000 people will be enough to defend all parts of Nanchuan."
Having said that, it was just to comfort those present. In fact, Fang Jian did not have the confidence to keep Nanchuan.
Not to mention that it takes time to build the Qingnan Defense Line and the Nanchuan Road, there are many internal problems in Nanchuan that have not yet been resolved one by one, and there are many hidden dangers.
Fang Jian had already made plans to give up Nanchuan. As long as he could win on the eastern front this time, it would be easy to retake Nanchuan.
Moreover, retaking Nanchuan can also solve the hidden dangers in Nanchuan.
Of course, Fang Jian would not give up Nanchuan until the critical moment. He also hoped that the two divisions could defend Nanchuan.
After the plan was finalized, the meeting ended and the commanders of each division returned to Changhuan and began to redeploy their troops.
While the various Nanshan tribes were busy and supplies were continuously transported from the hinterland of Nanshan to Xinyuan and Changhuan, on September 9, the north and south parties formally established an alliance and decided to send troops to Nanshan Province.