Chapter 467

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Protagonist:

Lv Muzhi

"Good, good, good!"

The old man, hearing the report He Yingqin brought back, said "good" three times in a row.

"Not having to pay back the money is great—I love Free France!"

"Wei Yue is such a stubborn fellow; the only thing I like about him now is that he can help me save money."

He Yingqin finally let his heart settle; it seemed that although the old man was dissatisfied with Lv Muzhi's overstepping behavior, he was very satisfied with the outcome of the incident.

No matter the process, the result was finally right!

"However, the matter of organizing troops to move south still needs careful consideration—the impact is too great."

He Yingqin nodded quickly: "You are right! I also thought so; if we move south, wouldn't we directly engage in military conflict with Vichy France? Although they can't fight us, direct conflict is never good."

The old man raised two fingers: "We currently have two international transport routes—the Soviet Union's Northwest Passage and the United Kingdom's Burma Road; that's enough. Wei Yue is too radical; the matter of fighting south can be discussed later."

"I heard Song Zhiwen is back; go ask him how his talks with the British went. I believe the British will not collude with the Japanese!"

He Yingqin received the order, walked to the telephone desk, and made a call.

After a long while, the call connected.

The old man watched He Yingqin on the phone and noticed the other party's expression was very wrong.

"What happened?"

He Yingqin hung up the phone: "Something big has happened!"

"The British announced the closure of the Burma Road two hours ago!"

"The British also said they were very sorry to Xia Guo and had no intention of having direct military conflict with the Japanese army."

The old man's face turned gloomy, and he cursed: "Damn British, they actually sold me out directly to the Japanese!"

He Yingqin continued: "There is also bad news; regarding our only remaining Northwest International Material Passage, Japan has already sent a diplomatic envoy to the Soviet Union, likely hoping the Soviet Union will stop aiding our country!"

"If the Japanese succeed, I think within a year or so, our army's combat effectiveness will greatly weaken, and the Japanese army will instead have the opportunity to counterattack our army!"

The old man held his forehead and pondered: "Could it be that Lv Wei Yue anticipated this step long ago? In that case, I can only be forced to agree to his southward plan!"

Seeing this, He Yingqin analyzed carefully: "Since the situation is starting to collapse, we might as well go with the flow; regarding Lv Wei Yue's southward plan, we must not only agree but also strongly support it."

"I think we should just let the Youth Army go! If successful, we sit back and enjoy the fruits—ah, no, sit back and reap the benefits."

"If it fails, the Youth Army will be stuck in the mud of the tropical jungle; for the Central Government, it would instead be a good opportunity to regain power!"

After hearing this, the old man slowly nodded: "Good! Send a telegram to Lv Wei Yue; I agree to his southward plan. The specific actions will be led by the Youth Army, and as for the Central Government, we support him in spirit!"

A few days later, Beiping Youth Corps Headquarters.

Sun Liren cursed angrily: "The British knelt to the Japanese so quickly! The Japanese didn't even send troops; just a verbal threat, and they sold out Xia Guo!"

Lv Muzhi sat to the side, showing not too much surprise in his expression.

"The British are deeply mired in war with Hans; where would they find the energy to manage the Far East? It's impossible for them to spare a fleet to deal with the Japanese army."

"But this is also just right; the old man couldn't sit still first. Out of various considerations, he specifically named the Youth Army to move south into Indochina and retake the Yunnan-Vietnam Railway; we can also say we are sending troops with a just cause."

Sun Liren turned his head, his eyes full of the desire to establish merit: "Commander Lu, which unit do you plan to send? Fighting in this kind of tropical jungle is not easy."

Lv Muzhi had long had a plan in mind: "To avoid leaving North China empty, I do not plan to move any complete units."

"First, from the Youth First, Second, Third, and Fourth Armies, plus the Guerrilla Corps, five units will each draw out two thousand veterans, totaling ten thousand people."

"These ten thousand people will first form the 'Youth Expeditionary Army' as the backbone of the expeditionary force."

"In addition, I have already greeted Chairman Long Yun of Yunnan Province and Li Zongren of the Guangxi clique, asking them to each provide five thousand trained local soldiers from their respective places, totaling ten thousand trained new recruits."

"This way, ten thousand veterans from the Youth Army, ten thousand from the Yunnan Army and Guangxi Army, a total expeditionary force of twenty thousand people, will first gather in Kunming for two months of tropical training camp, serving as the vanguard of the expeditionary force, and are expected to officially move south to fight at the end of October."

"Regarding air power, I will go and communicate with Chennault, request the Flying Tigers to sortie, plus part of the Central Air Force, and our own Youth Army's one fighter battalion, to ensure air superiority."

"Armor and artillery will be allocated according to the standard of one Youth Reinforced Division."

Sun Liren considered: "A force of twenty thousand people, that is, one reinforced division, is it enough?"

Lv Muzhi said: "This is only the vanguard; we have not actually controlled the four provinces of North China for long, and we need time to conscript troops and expand our forces."

"However, this vanguard force is more than enough to deal with the colonial army of French Indochina on land."

Sun Liren said: "The Japanese army has not yet stationed troops formally in French Indochina; if they send troops to land, do you think our twenty thousand people are enough?"

Lv Muzhi asked directly: "I am appointing you as the Commander of the Expeditionary Force to lead these twenty thousand people south; do you think it's enough?"

Sun Liren was both surprised and delighted, and said confidently: "Twenty thousand is more than enough! One of my Youth Divisions can sweep three Japanese security divisions!"

Lv Muzhi looked at Sun Liren's surprised and delighted appearance and patted his shoulder: "Oh, so it's enough if it's you?"

Sun Liren chuckled.

Lv Muzhi reminded: "This is the vanguard; you first lead the troops to Kunming for training camp. The main combat objective is to take Hanoi, so we can receive supplies purchased from abroad. Don't worry; I think the Japanese will send at most one division to land. Even if they reinforce, don't be afraid; believe that I have a backup plan!"

Sun Liren was extremely excited; leading twenty thousand elite troops on an expedition to a foreign country, he would be the number one person in contemporary Xia Guo.

This also meant that Sun Liren had finally officially stepped from Chief of Staff of the Youth First Army into the ranks of Commanders.

Although this expeditionary force only had twenty thousand people, it could not compare to the formal Youth Army of fifty thousand people.

But with Commander Lu's cultivation, the future must be bright!

Immediately, Lv Muzhi announced a series of new appointments for the Youth Corps within the headquarters.

This was also so that after the Youth Army moved south, the overall situation in North China could be as stable as Mount Tai.

"The Youth Corps and the headquarters of the four provinces of Jin, Ji, Lu, and Yu will be commanded by me, Lv Muzhi, as Commander-in-Chief, coordinating the affairs of the Youth Army and the four provinces of North China."

"The Youth Corps and the headquarters of the four provinces of Shanxi, Hebei, Shandong, and Henan shall be under my, Lv Muzhi's, command as commander-in-chief, overseeing the affairs of the Youth Army and North China's four provinces."

"The Youth Corps establishment and appointments remain largely unchanged."

"Headquarters of the Four Provinces of Jin, Ji, Lu, and Yu, subordinate units:"

"Military Police Command, Chen Mingren continues to serve as Commander of the Military Police Corps, responsible for military discipline execution throughout the army."

"Pingjin Garrison Command, Qiu Qingquan appointed Commander, Chu Yunfei appointed Deputy Commander, coordinating the Youth First and Second Armies and the Guerrilla Corps, currently fifteen thousand strong, holding the gates of Pingjin, defending against the Kwantung Army."

"Shandong Garrison Command, Zhang Fei appointed Commander, commanding the Youth Third Army, fifty thousand strong, guarding against Japanese Army landings from coastal ports."

"Henan Garrison Command, Liao Yaoxiang appointed Commander, Zhou Weiguo as his deputy, responsible for commanding the Youth Fourth Army, fifty thousand strong, maneuvering in support."

"Shanxi Garrison Command, Yan Xishan serving as Commander, leading the Jinsui Army to guard cities and industrial-mining assets within the province, uniting friendly troops within the territory, and turning over grain taxes on schedule."

"In addition, the Youth Expeditionary Army Command is being organized in Kunming, with Sun Liren appointed as its first Commander, commanding the Youth Expeditionary Army, departing for Yunnan immediately!"

Once this list was issued to the four provinces of North China, the entire Youth Army internal boiled over, everyone had found their place.

Commander Lu indeed had not forgotten his subordinates; now everyone had become a Commander or Deputy Commander!

Each Commander held military and civil authority within his jurisdiction, able to expand troops and defend against the Japanese Army within Lv Muzhi's plan and under the supervision of the Military Police Command.

Sun Liren wasted no time, leading advance personnel directly flying to Kunming to begin organizing the Youth Expeditionary Army.