It took Wang Xuexin three full days to arrive at Toishipo Airport.
It took three days to cover a straight-line distance of more than 400 kilometers... This would be considered a "turtle speed" in modern times. It would take just a few hours on any high-speed car.
But in this day and age, it is completely normal.
However, this is also because Toishipo Airport is still a high-level secret at this time. An order was issued by the headquarters. In order to prevent the airport from being discovered prematurely by the Japanese and bombed before the airport is ready, all aircraft entering the airport must fly at night.
, all those rushing to the airport can only walk or ride horses.
This makes sense.
Because the Eighth Route Army had previously launched a massive wave of road construction in the Luliang Mountains, the nearly 1,000-kilometer road was completed in just over a month under the section-by-section contract system.
But of course, the "roads" in many sections are just widened and leveled... The roads of this era are almost like this. This kind of road is completely sufficient for the Eighth Route Army. Only the Japanese have higher requirements for roads. They usually
It also needs to be pressed several times with a road roller.
If the Eighth Route Army makes such a big move, it will definitely not escape the eyes of the Japanese, so the Japanese will spread their spies near the highway to find out the purpose of the Eighth Route Army's road construction.
At this time, if there is a car or a car driving blatantly from the highway to Toishipo Airport, I am afraid that the Japanese bombers will fly over the airport the next day.
Riding a horse is much slower, especially if you worry about the horse getting tired. You have to take a break every few hundred miles, and occasionally you have to dismount and walk. Two or three hundred miles a day is enough, which adds up to more than 400 kilometers.
It really takes three days.
It only took three days to get there because there were many Eighth Route Army mule and horse shops along the way...
The Eighth Route Army set up many mule and horse shops in the Luliang Mountain area.
These mule and horse shops are for the first time to generate income. As mentioned before, the Eighth Route Army implemented the strategy of "getting enough food and clothing by yourself". Each army solves its own food problem. The mule and horse shops are one of the ways to generate income: the mule and horse shops can allow
Passers-by stayed, took care of their animals, ate, replenished their food supplies, etc.
The other is that the Eighth Route Army needs such a contact line and transportation line to prepare for emergencies.
For example, now, Wang Xuexin rushes to Toishipo Airport. If he hadn't changed horses at the mule and horse shop along the way, he might not have been able to get there in three days.
However, this journey still left Wang Xuexin almost exhausted... People who have not experienced it cannot understand what it is like to be bumpy on horseback for three days.
When Wang Xuexin walked down the flat road at the airport, he unconsciously thought about the rhythm of the horses and swayed along with the rhythm as he walked.
However, when Wang Xuexin walked into the hangar and saw several "La-5" parked inside, his fatigue immediately flew away, and he walked forward in three or two steps and turned around to look at them.
The hangar is built of logs and caves.
Because of its characteristics, the stone from Peishipo is very suitable for making whetstones. Whetstones are needed by every household and are also consumables, so they are in great demand.
As time went by, pits were dug into the rock wall of Toishipo, and they were deeper at the bottom and shallower at the top.
At this time, due to the backward quarrying methods, it was relatively easy for workers to quarry in the lower part, but it was more difficult and dangerous to quarry in the upper part, so such a mine was formed.
This kind of mine is very suitable for use as a hangar for fighter aircraft. The soldiers only need to extend a log shelf along the upper part of the mine and cover it with soil. Japanese fighter jets and reconnaissance planes will not be able to detect the clues even if they fly overhead.
And even if it is discovered, it will be difficult for Japanese bombers to drop bombs into such mines.
Several bear pilots were squatting under the plane to repair the landing gear. When they saw Wang Xuexin circling around the plane, a man with the rank of captain murmured, and then several pilots laughed.
Lao Fan glanced at the pilots and his expression became very ugly.
When Wang Xuexin saw this, he asked: "What's wrong? It's like eating explosives!"
"Batalion Commander!" Lao Fan replied: "Those idiots were laughing at you just now. They said you seemed to understand very well and had a good way of pretending!"
Wang Xuexin glanced at the pilots and replied nonchalantly: "They are talking about their own business, why bother with them?"
"But, this..." Lao Fan was angry and unconvinced. He originally wanted to go forward and argue with those idiots, but after Wang Xuexin said this, he could only swallow it in his stomach.
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At this time, the aviation captain rushed out of the headquarters in a hurry.
The captain of the aviation team is Yu Ping, who was transferred from Wangxing Airport. He once led the patrol to defeat a much larger number of "zero battles" in unfavorable circumstances.
Because of this outstanding performance, Wang Xuexin believed that he had the ability to take charge of Dishipo Airport alone and was the captain of the Second Air Force.
Yu Ping arrived here a month ago, and all preparations at the airport were completed under his command.
At this time, he received a report that Wang Xuexin had arrived, and immediately came out with his cadres to greet him.
"Report to the battalion commander!" Yu Ping and his subordinates stood up in front of Wang Xuexin and saluted: "All thirteen members of the Third Air Force headquarters are here! Please review the battalion commander..."
"Hey!" Wang Xuexin waved his hand towards Yu Ping.
This Yu Ping used to be a member of the Jinsui Army together with Wu Guozhi. The stubborn army's routine of reviewing and the like could never be changed, and a sentence would pop up from time to time.
"How many times have I told you!" Wang Xuexin said, "Our Eighth Route Army is not interested in this!"
As he spoke, Wang Xuexin looked at the people behind Yu Ping and said, "As soon as I come, you will call out all the people in the headquarters... No need to work?"
"Oh, battalion commander!" Seeing Wang Xuexin's enthusiasm for speaking, Yu Ping was immediately infected, and he also became casual: "It's not like you don't know that we are keeping the radio silent now, and there is nothing we can do except wait!"
"That's pretty much it!" Wang Xuexin said, "Don't do this to me in the future, do you understand?"
"Yes!" Yu Ping quickly saluted and agreed.
At this time, Captain Maozi, who was repairing the landing gear, stood up while wiping his hands. He looked at Yu Ping and then at Wang Xuexin with a strange look on his face.
Yu Ping hurriedly introduced: "Battal Commander, this is the flight consultant sent by Mao Xiong, Captain Ferard... Captain Love!"
The feeling is that the name of Mao Xiong is a bit long, and Yu Ping has some difficulty remembering it.
Then Yu Ping whispered: "Battal Commander, Mao Xiong's first batch of thirty aircrafts and thirty pilots have arrived. In addition, twenty ground crews have been transferred and many parts have been transported. They are all in place.
!”
Wang Xuexin joked: "Thirty pilots? Please tell me their names and I will listen..."
Yu Ping immediately stood there with his mouth open, unable to speak for a long time.