Prior to this, the Eighth Route Army was not suitable for developing railways in the areas controlled by the Eighth Route Army, and even roads had to be reconsidered.
This was because at that time the Japanese were mainly attacking the Eighth Route Army.
Under this situation, if the Eighth Route Army develops roads and railways, it is almost equivalent to clearing obstacles for the Japanese. As soon as the Japanese attack and occupy these roads and railways, they can immediately use them as their transportation and supply lines, and then use them as quickly as possible to transport them.
Troops, supplies, and equipment were delivered to the front line to attack the Eighth Route Army.
But now the situation is different.
Now that the Eighth Route Army has launched a counterattack against the Japanese, although it is only a partial counterattack, there should be no problems with defense. At this time, is it not time to develop railway lines to strengthen logistics and transportation?
Thinking of this, Wang Xuexin immediately sent a telegram to the headquarters: "Chief, I think we should build a railway line starting from Yuncheng and going north through Sanjiadian to the steel plant!"
When the chief received the telegram, he couldn't help but hesitate. He handed the telegram to the chief of staff and asked: "What do you think of this matter?"
The chief of staff nodded and said: "I can understand Xiaodongbei's desire to build a railway line, because he wants to penetrate the Northeast to dig out the roots of the Japanese! This requires solving the supply problem of the mechanized troops and the follow-up main force of our army! But
… If we build the railway now, is this step too fast?”
The chief was silent for a while and didn't speak.
There is nothing careless about building railways.
Because the Japanese were not completely defeated now, Wang Xuexin was just taking advantage of the fact that the Japanese were fighting an inextricable battle with the stubborn troops in the south, while the northeast was under pressure from Mao Xiong and took advantage of the situation.
What if, after the Eighth Route Army built the railway, the Japanese ended their tug-of-war with the stubborn troops in the south?
At that time, as long as the Japanese counterattack, they can immediately follow the roads and railways built by the Eighth Route Army from Yuncheng all the way north to the steel plant.
This may not seem like a big deal, but it is the rear of the entire Luliang Mountains, which means that the Japanese can use railway lines to surround Luliang Mountains.
At that time, the Eighth Route Army in Luliang Mountain will not be able to receive supplies because the transportation and supply lines are cut off, and the entire defense line in Luliang Mountain will collapse.
Once Luliang Mountain is lost, the Eighth Route Army base area will no longer have a line of defense. Not to mention the industry of Sanjiadian, it will even threaten Yan'an in the rear.
The chief thought for a moment and then called back: "Are you confident that you can keep the railway line? If the enemy's main force attacks along the railway line, what are your plans to deal with it?"
Wang Xuexin had long considered this question, and he answered without thinking: "Deploy guerrillas along the railway line to carry out harassment, and then use the main force and the air force to coordinate to separate and annihilate the enemy's attacking forces!"
Wang Xuexin's words seemed ordinary, even a little bit armchair talk, but the chief understood the hidden meaning.
He returned to the table with the telegram and looked at the map, heading north from Yuncheng to Sanjia Store, then walking all the way up, and then nodded slightly.
The chief of staff asked strangely from the side: "Chief, what did Xiao Dongbei say?"
The chief casually handed the telegram to the chief of staff and said: "There are high mountains and mountains everywhere on both sides of this line. Even if we build the railway, even if the Japanese attack, will it really be that easy for them to take advantage of it?"
After what the chief said and combined with Wang Xuexin's telegram, the chief of staff also understood: "First use guerrillas to harass the enemy on both sides to disperse the enemy's forces, and then take advantage of our army's familiarity with the terrain and being equipped with repeating rifles.
Raid the enemy's logistics or small units and eat the enemy one by one!"
The leader nodded: "Xiao Dongbei understands very clearly that the terrain in this area is not suitable for the Japanese army to deploy. At the same time, our army is equipped with repeating rifles, which has an absolute advantage in close combat with the Japanese and in surprise attacks. In addition,
Our army also has air superiority and can suppress the Japanese supply lines and artillery... If the Japanese main force attacks rashly, not only will it be unable to use our railway lines, but it is also likely to fall into a bottomless pit and be unable to escape!"
The chief of staff thought for a while and then agreed. He said: "Chief, we are not used to fighting with air supremacy! The railway line should be linked to air supremacy. Whoever has air supremacy can use the railway line. Otherwise,
No matter whether it is a railway or a train, it can only be bombed! Especially the train. If the Japanese dare to use the train to transport troops and ammunition to attack our army, they will blow it up with the people and the train!"
The leader waved his fist and said: "Well said! So, air superiority is the key! We can't keep our eyes on the ground troops, and we can't keep looking at the strength comparison between the enemy and ourselves with the old eyes! The Japanese are indeed stronger than me now.
The army is strong, but on such terrain we still
We are sure to fight against the Japs, even the main force of the Japs! Regarding the railway line, as long as we firmly grasp the air supremacy, there won’t be a big problem! It’s too bad. At the last moment, we will spend more explosives to destroy the railway line.
Explode it together with the roadbed, let's see how the Japanese use it!"
"So, this railway..."
"Repair, must repair!" The leader said categorically: "If you want to better attack the enemy, you can't do it without taking risks. We can't just think about safety and defense. We should actively seek to fight the enemy and use them during the battle.
growing up!"
The chief is right, this is actually another reason why Wang Xuexin built the railway.
At this time, the Eighth Route Army had a large number of troops, reaching more than 500,000.
Historically, the strength of the Eighth Route Army in 1943 dropped slightly due to the disaster in Henan and the blockade by the Japanese and stubborn troops. The entire army remained at more than 300,000 people.
But at this time, due to Wang Xuexin's development, the Eighth Route Army's troop strength not only did not decline, but increased by more than 100,000, exceeding 500,000, and it continued to increase.
The specific numbers cannot be calculated because the strength of the troops changes so quickly that there is no time to complete the count. The strength of some guerrillas even changes from one day to the next.
But most of these troops are not trained and have poor combat quality.
If we don't let them go out to fight, how can we train them into elite soldiers who can fight?
There is an opportunity before us. These new recruits who joined the Eighth Route Army can be used to build railways. While building railways, they can also understand the surrounding terrain and conduct necessary military training.
Once the Japanese attack, they immediately transform into guerrillas on the spot and take charge of their own areas to engage in low-intensity combat with the enemy.
As for the main parts of the battle, leave it to the commandos equipped with repeating rifles.
After Wang Xuexin received a call back from the headquarters agreeing to build the railway, he was secretly relieved.
Once the railway is built, it will not only be useful for attacking the Northeast, but the industry of the Eighth Route Army can also develop to another level!