Rise From Eight Hundred

On the last day of the Lunar New Year in 1938, the Four-Line Regiment showed off its muscles to nearly 20,000 soldiers and civilians present.

Even if it was just a sports meeting, even if it was just a partial display of the Four-Line Regiment's strength, it was enough for everyone present to see the reason why the Four-Line Regiment was so strong.

The people were very happy. With such a strong army in Dakouzidong Town or Taihang Mountain, they no longer felt insecure.

Most of the officers and soldiers of other departments were just envious but not jealous. From the perspective of Chinese soldiers, having such a friendly army was also an extra layer of protection, a guarantee of life.

But for the middle and senior officers of various departments, they knew more clearly about the current foundation of the Four-Line Regiment.

It was not about how sophisticated the equipment was, nor how many good relationships the Tang Dao had made. The fundamental core of the Four-Line Regiment's strength was those grassroots officers and soldiers who had experienced hundreds of battles and had a strong will.

The generals with rich battlefield experience believed that even if the Four-Line Regiment suffered a heavy blow in a battle one day, as long as they were given enough new recruits, they would recover at least half of their combat power in just three months.

This foundation with enough skeleton support is the foundation for the Four-Line Regiment to challenge the Japanese North China Front Army.

Moreover, the generals who arrived at the Four-Line Regiment could see that the officers and soldiers of the Four-Line Regiment were extremely loyal, and the middle and high-level officials were also extremely united, unlike some armies, where there were several factions in a small infantry regiment.

The Tang Dao had absolute authority in the Four-Line Regiment. Wherever his blade pointed, the entire Four-Line Regiment would move forward unswervingly.

This was also the decisive factor for the Four-Line Regiment to maintain its strong combat effectiveness!

The Four-Line Regiment completed many things that many military systems had not completed in more than a decade in less than a year and a half.

Because staying up on New Year's Eve and reuniting as a family were considered extremely important things in Chinese families, the Four-Line Regiment did not keep any guests after the sports meeting.

Not only did the people and militia representatives receive a bag of rice and a bag of flour from the logistics department of the Four-Line Regiment and leave to celebrate the New Year, but several bigwigs who came to support the collective wedding of the Four-Line Regiment were also eager to go home.

They were not in a hurry to rush back to the army to celebrate New Year's Eve, but they were all the chief officers of various departments. In such a war year, they could not let the troops out of their control for too long, especially during such a seemingly calm period of time during the festival.

Even the two generals Liu and Zhao, who had strong control over the troops, did not want to delay the night of New Year's Eve and cause other unpredictable changes.

"I admire you! I admire you! The Four-Line Regiment is indeed worthy of the reputation of the first regiment of our Chinese army in North China! If I am lucky enough to fight against the Japanese pirates with the Four-Line Regiment again in the future, my 101st Division will definitely do my best!" After the end of the show, when saying goodbye to Tang Dao, the commander of the 101st Division of the Shanxi Suiyuan Army, Dong, made a meaningful promise.

This was the first time that the Jinsui Army general made such a promise to Tang Dao. Even in the last battle in eastern Shanxi, the 101st Division only sent out most of its main force, leaving two infantry regiments behind, which only used 70% of its strength.

That was very much like the temperament of a stingy old man!

Of course, there was a deeper meaning behind this sentence. This Jinsui Army general had already treated Tang Dao as a comrade-in-arms of the same level. More importantly, he hoped to always be on good terms with the Four-Line Regiment.

And that was what Tang Dao wanted most.

Tang Dao knew that in just one or two years, as the 80th Army gradually grew stronger in the battlefield behind enemy lines, especially after the 300,000-man army organized to retaliate against the Japanese army's sweep, the man in Shancheng was horrified to find that the strength of his old rival had expanded beyond his control, and he was willing to destroy the united front to suppress the 80th Army nakedly.

If nothing unexpected happened, the guests who came today would be forced to change from friendly forces to passers-by or even enemies.

Then today was a seed that Tang Dao had planted in advance.

The right to speak is always born from strength, not from any ideal or because you are a good person! This truth applies not only to love, friendship, and family, but also to the battlefield.

Like Commander Dong, Deputy Commander Cun of the 12th Division and Brigade Commander Hu of the 28th Division, who must start their return journey today, expressed almost similar farewell words to Tang Dao at the time of parting.

Unlike them, when Commander Li of the 104th Division shook hands with Tang Dao and said goodbye, he conveyed the New Year's message from Li Jiayu, Deputy Commander of the 22nd Army Group, to Tang Dao: "Although the Four-Line Regiment has been transferred from our group army, please believe that all officers and soldiers of the Four-Line Regiment will become the most steadfast backing of the Four-Line Regiment. The Sichuan Army will never fail the country and will never fail its friends!"

Why was it not Commander Sun but the famous general who was later promoted to Commander of the 36th Army Group and died on the front line of the Anti-Japanese War? There may be a shadow of internal struggles within the Sichuan Army faction, but as Tang Dao's former superior, it is more appropriate for him to say this.

If we add the firm support of two Sichuan Army generals, General Guo and Commander Rao, it almost means that most of the Sichuan Army will become the backing of the Four-Line Regiment.

Even without the support of Zhang, Wu, Gu and other generals with heavy troops, the Four-Line Regiment is no longer something that anyone can easily control.

Tang Dao certainly didn't know that the Sichuan Army generals who were still fighting outside even used their spare time to communicate with him by telegram.

No matter how complicated the composition of the Four-Line Regiment's troops is, the commander Tang Dao himself is a native of Sichuan, and the Four-Line Regiment has been assigned to the Sichuan Army twice in a row, so the Four-Line Regiment is the Sichuan Army.

The Sichuan Army generals who are extremely eager to show their own prestige on the anti-Japanese battlefield are not thousand-year-old foxes?

This war of national defense will not be completed in a few years. Tang Dao's greatest advantage is not how good he is at fighting, but that he is young enough.

How high can a young general who can fight and has enough time to wait silently fly in the future? This is enough for the Sichuan Army generals who are already in their forties or even fifties to imagine.

After the war, how much of the benefit share the Sichuan Army can get from the big cake of the country may depend on Tang Dao, a young man with infinite potential.

It is precisely under the guidance of this kind of thinking of preparing for a rainy day that although Tang Dao has not yet been regarded as a representative of the Sichuan Army in the future, sufficient support must be given.

The congratulatory telegrams sent by Guo and Rao on the morning of New Year's Eve, on the one hand, are expressions of personal emotions, and on the other hand, they also represent the Sichuan Army behind them. The New Year's message from Deputy Commander Li conveyed by Division Commander Li also means the same thing.

However, he said this at the time of leaving, which was obviously considered.

Of course, Tang Dao was not stingy with these friendly generals who made promises.

When they came, the generals who led the team brought two guard companies with 400 people at least, and a guard battalion with 600 people at most.

Tang Dao gave each person 5 yuan as a "business trip allowance" according to the number of people, and also gave each person a three-edged bayonet!

Today, the Sihangtuan Military Factory can mass-produce this kind of single-soldier bayonet with simple structure and powerful stabbing, and the monthly output can be maintained at about 2,000. In addition, it has specially designed a universal bayonet to address the problem of different types of standard rifles in the Chinese military. As long as it is a gun, even a bamboo pole, it can be stuck after simple adjustments.

The military factory also thoughtfully made a detachable three-edged bayonet handle. If you don't want it to be stuck on the muzzle, install this handle and use it as a single-soldier bayonet.

Just holding this kind of weapon in your hand, just imagining the feeling of stabbing it into the enemy, the soldiers in the guard battalion also felt their hair explode all over their bodies!

Tang Dao also paid out various rewards obtained by ranking in the competition. Although the 12th, 28th, 101st and 102th Divisions received slightly fewer submachine guns than the 17th and 921st Divisions because of their slightly lower rankings in various events, each division still received about 30 guns on average.

Moreover, when several generals got the guns, they found that it was not the MP28 machine gun they imagined, but the MP38 with stronger firepower and more stable trajectory, which almost made several generals happy.

Tang Tuanzuo was not a person who only gave away guns without bullets. Each submachine gun was equipped with 4 standard magazines and 300 rounds of bullets.

The strength of the guard battalions in the Taihang Mountains increased by more than 10% in an instant. How could the big guys not leave with a smile?

Before leaving, Luo Wanjian, the second lieutenant platoon leader of the guard battalion of the 12th Division, went to Longyan specifically to ask him to accompany him to find Cai Yongguan, who was frightened by him, to apologize.

Cai Yongguan admired him very much and gave his pistol to the second lieutenant platoon leader as a souvenir.

According to the regulations on the management of the weapons of the Sihang Regiment, if the pistol is damaged in battle, the company headquarters can apply for a reissue, but if it is damaged or lost in training or daily life, the situation must be explained first and then it can be applied for after review, but it is not free, you have to pay for it.

Like a Black Star pistol, the price is not high but it costs 50 yuan, and like Cai Yongguan, it is not damaged in training but given away by himself, so it is the full price.

But 50 yuan is nothing to Captain Cai.

But Captain Cai seems to have forgotten that from today on, he is not a bachelor who feeds the whole family, he is also a married man.

It seems that the little military pay and bonus he saved was forced to be handed over in full after the collective wedding in the morning.

"Shit! Brother, you are the company commander and I am the platoon leader. Are you asking me to borrow money?" Long Yan looked at Company Commander Cai Dal, who was licking his big face and asking for a loan to buy a gun at the ordnance department. He almost lost his mind. Jaw dropped.

"You are single and have no use for money. If I don't ask for your baby, who can I borrow it from? Hurry up, 50 oceans, and I will pay your baby back after you finish your work in the Japanese group in two months and then the bonus will be given." Cai Yongguan said. It's a matter of course.

Dare to be single and have money? What the hell is this? Long Yan didn't understand the big brother's logic.

But the key point is that he didn't dare to refute. In the past half month, because he was apprenticed to Instructor Han, under the guidance of Old Uncle Han, he had been sparring with this senior brother in unarmed combat, and he was beaten until his nose was bruised and his face was swollen every time. , if you refuse, how will you be beaten next time?

But Longyan didn’t have money, he really didn’t.

Even though he is already a lieutenant and a recipient of special merit, all his money was taken by his sister to the family of the mountain infantry company brothers who died in the counterattack a month ago.

This is also a tradition of Yeyue Village. If a family loses its pillar, the other families will try their best to help this family, even the headman is no exception.

It is precisely because of this tradition of mutual help that the Jiuli people of Yeyue Village can be passed down tenaciously in an extremely harsh living environment.

More than 200 tribesmen died in the last battle of Sun Moon Valley, and dozens of people were killed and injured again this time, involving the livelihoods of nearly 100 families and hundreds of young and old. Long Yan, who has no family to support, must help with all his heart?

Fortunately, each department of the Four Lines Group has a cooking team, and meals are free. Otherwise, Long Yan, a recipient of special merit, would have to go to the mountains to find food by himself. Lieutenant Long, who touched his empty pockets, was instantly sad.

"Then I'll go find my brother-in-law. He's said to be good at searching Japanese pockets, so he must have some private money!" Lieutenant Long, whose eyes were wet because of poverty, said he had someone behind him.

Shen Laoliu

If possible, he wanted to say to his wife: "We can't live this life anymore, divorce!"

However, looking at his wife in her bridal gown with a Jiuli short blade on her waist entertaining guests in the yard in front of the house, Shen Laoliu, who was called out of the yard by his dear brother-in-law to borrow money, temporarily endured this breath.

He took Long Yan to a rock on the cliff behind the wooden house without making a sound, pried open a movable rock with the military knife he carried with him, took out a small pottery jar, and took out a gold medal weighing 20 grams from it.

"This is the amulet I prepared for your future nephew. When you go to the Ordnance Department, remember to tell Director Tan Tai that it's just a temporary detention. You will redeem it after two months when you get the military salary reward. Don't really use it for me." Shen Laoliu was still very experienced and played the family card, including but not limited to.

It not only maintains the family relationship, but also prevents one's private money from disappearing. It can be regarded as a kind of dying struggle!

"Hey, look at what you said, brother-in-law, why bother Director Tan Tai! The head of the regiment is also hosting a dinner tonight, and Director Tan Tai must be there. I will go to my sister with this sign and say that this is a gift I prepared for my future nephew, but I need money now, so please lend me 50 yuan for the New Year, isn't it done?" Long Yan said carelessly.

"Your sister has no money!" Shen Laoliu was still complaining and didn't react, just watching Long Yan run away with his private money.

"Wait, damn!"

Shen Laoliu suddenly reacted. It turned out that his private money went to his wife, and he also borrowed money, which he probably never could pay back, a double loss.

It was in this chain reaction that Luo Wanjian got a pistol that his own battalion commander envied, but the one who suffered the most was Lieutenant Shen, who seemed to have nothing to do with the matter.

However, just like what Wutou said, "You can't take all the good things from you, Platoon Leader Shen. Everyone is risking their lives to fight the Japanese, but your brother Laoliu not only survived the disaster, but also married a capable and virtuous sister-in-law.

What's wrong with having an unreliable brother-in-law who often cheats you? Besides, Lieutenant Long cheats you every day, but on the battlefield, he is like a god protecting him, and he always gives people different surprises."

Shen Laoliu was relieved when he thought about it.

He knew that it was no problem for him to fight the Japanese alone, but commanding a platoon was already the limit. Even if he could survive after the war, he would be a mid-level officer at most.

But this pit brother-in-law has unexpected magic on the battlefield. It is true that the regiment commander loves his soldiers like his own sons, but not all of them are qualified to be selected by him for personal guidance.

In the future, Shen Laoliu's baby may have to rely on his unreliable brother-in-law to protect him.

For those who are married and have a family, the Sihang Regiment's engineering company has built a single-family wooden house around the garrison in advance. Although it is not big, it is enough for the couple to live their own lives.

But if the couple are both soldiers, they may have to return to the barracks after the 15-day honeymoon holiday, and they can only go home to reunite when the army is on vacation.

Even if they have a baby, the couple will not have time to go home to take care of the baby. Tang Dao also plans to allocate a special fund to build a nursery in the town. In the future, the children born to military couples will be taken care of here, and their parents can take them home for family reunion when they are on vacation.

As for single military dependents, they can hire a live-in nanny to help take care of the children. The salary of the Sihang Regiment soldiers is enough to pay for these additional expenses.

This was determined by the war years and the special attributes of soldiers, and no one would complain about it.

Since Tang Tuanzuo did not advocate grand celebrations, even if the wedding was on a special holiday like New Year's Eve, each couple would only invite two or three tables of their best comrades in their own yard.

Not lively, but warm!

Tang Dao only invited one table. In addition to several chief officers of the regiment, even the main battalion commanders such as Guo Shouzhi and Shangguan Yun were not invited.

Otherwise, the small yard belonging to Tang Dao and Tan Tai Mingyue would be crowded.

Xia Dayu and Erya, the former and current service soldiers, came to help themselves, and no one could say anything about it.

The meals for the guests were prepared by the old couple Tan Tai Yunshu and the newlyweds.

Then, Tang Tuanzuo, who was very proactive, was "invited" out of the kitchen by his parents-in-law.

In fact, Tang Tuanzuo, who was extremely charming in dealing with people, invincible on the battlefield, and could make people shine with his singing and poetry, finally exposed his personal shortcomings at this moment.

In addition to Lei Xiong, Ye Chenghuan, Gong Shaoxun, and Zhuang Shisan, the other three guests were the 683rd Journey Brigade Commander, Wang Xiaoqiang, and Tuanzhang Xu, whose base was closest to Dakouzidong Town.

Seven people plus the five people from Tang Dao's family and Xia Dayu and Erya who helped, there were exactly 14 people at the table!

Although it was still a little cold on New Year's Eve, the charcoal fire and the warm emotions of everyone who were happy for Tang Dao and his wife made even the weak Madam Tan Tai feel cold.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

PS: Time flies so fast, it's almost 2024, Fengyue wishes the brothers a happy new year in advance! Starting from today, double monthly tickets, Fengyue is here to ask for the next monthly ticket.

In addition, there is one more thing I want to give you guys a heads up. My daughter, a senior high school student who is exhausted, has used her lunch break for the past six months to write a science fiction novel. She plans to publish the book on January 1. The editor has already signed it. When the time comes, you guys can go and show us your support and take a look at what my daughter is writing.

Of course, Fengyue also spent a lot of time polishing it, so the quality will definitely not be bad!

()