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Text Chapter 409 Are you going to the front line?

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    Not only Jiang Fangzhen was thinking about how to fight, Yue Peng who was far away in France was also thinking about how to use the power in his hands.

    Saint-Dichier, 230 kilometers east of Paris, is an ordinary French town on the Sa?ne Canal. 40 kilometers north of it is the site of the Meat Grinder Battle of Verdun.  Like most European cities, there are many Renaissance buildings and castles here.  This small town that originally had no trace of industry should be shrouded in tranquility and comfort, but now it is filled with cold steel and rumbling explosions.

    The geographical location made this small town become the concentration point of supplies and support troops for the Battle of Verdun for more than half a year. However, as the German army failed to achieve its goals during the battle and instead retreated steadily, this small town that had been noisy for nearly a year saw a return to calm.  Hope, but the calm that the citizens expected did not last long before an army from the east was awakened.

    The barracks left behind have been filled by newly arrived Chinese soldiers, and the farmland outside the city has also been requisitioned. The French-made 155mm howitzers, 75mm rapid-fire field guns, and 37mm infantry guns that have just come off the production line are quietly  Standing in the field, there are several obvious targets circled by quicklime on the mountain slope in front of the muzzle.  Major Yan Youbing of the 101st Division, who became famous in the First World War in Jiuliancheng, holds the National Defense Forces artillery firing watch and leads the 706th and 707th artillery brigades of the First Expeditionary Force to Europe, which are composed of the 101st Division, the 13th and 14th Division artillery and reserve artillery.  Soldiers undergo adaptive training.

    "Prepare"

    "Target bearing 55-10, distance 6500, left and right range 248, front and rear range 70! Ladder-shaped preset fortifications six rounds in a hurry."

    In the biting cold wind, the first heavy artillery battery to receive training quickly rushed to the gun position, quickly shaking the handle to adjust the muzzle posture according to the parameters given by the officer.  In order to simulate actual combat, not only field telephone communication was used throughout the training, but a Haitung Qing reconnaissance aircraft/fighter aircraft brought from China was also dispatched. The artillery reconnaissance squad also brought optical rangefinders and artillery compasses.  Simple fortifications were built at the gun emplacements, and each cannon was hung with camouflage nets brought from China.  The ammunition platoon followed closely behind, with fuzes, shells, and ammunition bags sorted into categories.  The command center at the back is completely in actual combat mode, with mules, vehicles, radios, and tables covered with gun position maps and operation sheets.

    After adjusting the posture, the soldier quickly opened the gun bolt and filled the simulated ammunition.  Bolts were pulled, guns were fired, and shouts came one after another. Even if they did not hear the deafening explosion, everyone looked serious and did not dare to neglect.  The loader did not insert live ammunition until the last round.  The eight 155 heavy artillery suddenly roared in unison, and the huge recoil caused the gun mount weighing several tons to jump violently. A high mushroom cloud rose almost simultaneously six kilometers away, and the rumbling sound of explosions was faintly heard.

    After this wave of shooting is completed, the two companies withdraw from their positions.  The officers immediately took out the record book to check in detail whether the sight gauge on each gun was in place and whether the shell landing point was accurate. If it failed, they would put a cross Those gun squads who did not have a cross were relieved, and they fired  The cross-marked artillery squad soldier's face turned black, which meant that they had to undergo additional training that was so tiring that they would foam at the mouth.

    Yan Youbing and the officers will never sympathize with these guys. Even though many of them are still their former comrades, they still give them a cross without any expression!  Because he is very clear.  Artillery is the courage of the soldiers of the Western Front Expeditionary Force!  It is the most important support for infantry to survive!  Every gun and every artillery squad must have strict requirements. Only by sweating more during training can the casualties of infantry comrades be reduced in wartime.

    Thisno discount!

    Several judicial officials who were sent for communication sat nearby and watched the training with their feet raised. Like Yan Youbing, they also used small notebooks to record things, and they also discussed a few words from time to time.  After this wave of training was over, one of the officers pulled the translator and walked towards Yan Youbing. He gestured with both hands and pointed at the artillery shooting watch as if to ask for it. But how could Yan Youbing give this to him? The artillery shooting watch of the National Defense Forces was an absolute secret!  These fire tables compiled for different types of artillery embody all Yang Qiu's efforts. They not only contain very detailed fire delivery efficiency, density, damage and other calculation methods for later generations.  There are more than a dozen artillery tactics, as well as core secrets such as different artillery firing methods when the artillery shells are at high elevation angles and low angles!  Even within the National Defense Bureau, only the head of the regiment can obtain the detailed shooting list, and many professional symbols are used to prevent leaks.

    Even if the commander-in-chief agrees to give this thing to France, he will have to exchange it for at least several heavy artillery brigades!

    Yue Penghe didn¡¯t bother Yan Youbing and the others¡¯ training, let alone the red-faced dispute. Coordination at the top did not mean mutual trust at the bottom, so everyone was told to prepare for the most difficult situation before departure.

    Seeing that the judge ran away in anger, Yue Peng also continued to inspect the infantry camp.  Unlike artillery training, the French seem not to be interested in infantry training.  I haven't watched a training session seriously in this long time.  Of course, this is also related to the fact that the troops deliberately made random gestures when they were there.  Now that there are no secret agents, training will naturally focus on individual tactics and tactics.In terms of technical coordination and movement.  In order to simulate actual combat, they were also fully armed and wore gas masks sent by Britain and France. They were not allowed to take them off even if they were exhausted and sweating and had difficulty breathing.  Artillery can provide support during a charge to suppress enemy fire.  But facing the muddy environment and dense trenches, the infantry still have to rely on themselves, so tactics and coordination are extremely important.  Judging from the summary after the Sino-Japanese War, a well-trained force can reduce casualties by 20% when conducting assault battles than the same force that has not been trained or undertrained.

    But this is just the preparation of soldiers.  Starting from the country, he and all the officers knew that previous experiences, command skills and methods must be temporarily forgotten here. A good army must learn to adapt to war instead of following the inertia of war. For them, command skills  and careful planning are the most important. Only the combination of the two is the only guarantee for how far the Chinese Expeditionary Force can go.

    ¡°These are like a big mountain pressing on his shoulders. Behind the challenges and opportunities are failures and deaths.

    The headquarters was set up in the center of the military camp. Yue Peng and all the officers in the headquarters did not even look at the more comfortable headquarters provided by the French army in the city. At this time, the more officers need to share the joys and sorrows with the soldiers.  When he and the guards returned to the command post, there was little hustle and bustle inside. When he walked in, he saw Ke Shao holding a telegram high and looking excited. The officers who came over were laughing and grabbing.

    "What's wrong? What's good?"

    "Commander!" After Ke Shao saluted everyone, Zhang Xiaozhun immediately smiled and said: "It was sent by the Commander-in-Chief, saying that Miss Miao gave birth to a big fat boy for him, and also said that Ke Shao's wife also gave birth to a boy! The two of them said  Exactly the same day."

    "Okay! I remember you are already a boy, right? By the way, let's all write a joint letter of congratulations to the commander."

    "Haha Actually, I want a daughter, hey! This woman has a weak stomach."

    "You have to be slutty! Get the good cigarettes you have hidden in your pocket quickly. Otherwise, I will never let you go today"

    The officers laughed and pushed Ke Shao on the table and took away two packs of good cigarettes.  But this kind of laughter worries Yue Peng even more. As the commander of the expeditionary force, he knows very well what kind of war is going to happen next. How many of these faces can finally persist until the end of the war and return home?  Zhang Xiaozhun saw that he was thoughtful, took out a cigarette and handed it to him and walked to the side: "Worried about the war?" Yue Peng nodded without hiding it from him. The latter came to the Western Front earlier than him, so he knew better how difficult this battle was, especially in person.  After watching the Battle of Verdun for several months, the cruel way of killing people is really frightening.

    But now no one has a good way to solve this problem. Only by experiencing it with live ammunition can we gain experience and lessons.  So he put aside the pressure and began to discuss the current situation with Zhang Xiaozhun.  After a while, Shi Xiaolou and Qiu Wenbin also got the news and came over. When the four of them pointed at the map and studied it, Ke Shao, who became a father for the third time, walked in with a French colonel.

    ¡°Colonel Grandmaison, it¡¯s a pleasure to see you again.¡±

    When Yue Peng stretched out his hand, the military translator immediately translated the original words.  In order to ensure that language barriers do not lead to serious incidents in command, not only the National Defense Forces hired hundreds of translators from overseas Chinese in France.  Many translators were also recruited from overseas Chinese in Britain, the United States and other countries, and many people who knew Chinese were mobilized from Britain and France to cooperate. It is said that even Zhu Erdian's son was recruited.

    "Your Excellency, Lieutenant General, as allies, I feel that we should not have any secrets from each other, so I hope you can provide us with an artillery shooting list used by your army!" Like all white people, this person is already in his forties.  The French colonel, who was fairer than women, had an arrogant attitude. In his eyes, these Chinese were just hired cannon fodder.  Do you need to treat cannon fodder with respect?  It's an honor for their shooting list to be noticed by the world's number one French Army!

    "Sorry, we can't provide it!"

    Yue Peng didn¡¯t look down upon such an arrogant guy at all!  The head of the French military liaison team has been critical since the first day he arrived.  Have you ever looked at yourself?  Today I see that the artillery training data is better than yours, so I will shoot the watch. If tomorrow I see the 33 infantry tactics, armored infantry tactics, and combined infantry and artillery tactics, do I also need step-by-step guidance?  What a joke!

    Yue Peng's cold attitude made Colonel Grandmaison look livid, but before he could say anything, a stack of lists was thrown in front of him. Since he offended him, he might as well be more cruel. Anyway, this guy's report can't be read without looking at it, so he pointed out  The list roared: "Colonel Grandmaison, please understand! The "Plum Blossom Agreement" states that we are allies. Not colonial troops! So I need a reasonable explanation! Why have only two of the five heavy artillery brigades attached to it now?  One? The first batch of Winchester shotguns and ammunition our country ordered from the United States has arrived in Marseille for seven days. Why haven't they been shipped yet? Seven of our first batch of nine divisions have arrived. But only 26 tanks have arrived! Artillery,  Ammunition??The amount of fuel and supplies in the truck is less than half!  There are only 30,000 gas masks. Don¡¯t you know that if the German army attacks this place, it will be on the edge of the poison gas coverage?  And¡­cross those wines and cigars off the supply list.  I need weapons and ammunition instead of these things!  "

    This yelling made the onlookers and guards feel comfortable. It has been two months since the first batch of soldiers arrived, and these French guys have never looked down upon them!  "Well done! Marde, I'm here to save you. It's a good thing I didn't ask you to sacrifice your pussy!" The officer chirped, making Colonel Grandmaison's face turn green. Even if the translator didn't speak, he knew it was definitely not a good thing.

    He didn¡¯t expect that because he heard that the skills displayed by the Chinese artillery training were very good, he was tempted to shoot the watch for reference, but he would be scolded like this.  Although he wanted to retaliate, Yue Peng was a lieutenant general and he was just a colonel. If there was really no good fruit to be gained from the quarrel, he could only say with a pinched neck: "Equipment and ammunition need to be provided to the frontline troops, rather than piled up in the rear to rot!"

    Even the overseas Chinese translator heard the implication in this sentence, which obviously meant that the Chinese Expeditionary Force would not contribute. When he looked at Yue Peng and wondered how the general would answer, the latter had already said something coldly.

    "Please tell General Foch and P¨¦tain that we are ready to go!"

    Colonel Grandmaison, who was furious just now, was obviously stunned when he heard these words. After a while, he came to his senses and said in surprise: "Are you going to the front line?"

    "Yes! But not allonly the first two divisions to complete training."

    "Two divisions are fine, it's better than slacking off here! It's time to let these yellow-skinned monkeys see blood and let them understand that they shouldn't come!" Colonel Grandmaison didn't reply and glared at Yue Peng and the leader.  Curse rushed back to the station to report the big news.  After he left, everyone's eyes were focused on Yue Peng. Zhang Xiaozhun asked on behalf of everyone: "Zian, have you thought about it?"

    "Think about it! The commander asked us to come here to create a sky for the country, not to make a living." Yue Peng clenched his fist and ordered with firm eyes: "Each division will allocate an infantry brigade to form two divisions.  Yan Youbing and the others are also ready to leave! Go tell every soldier"

    ¡°The war among the sons of bitches is about to begin!¡± (To be continued)

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