"Conservation of strength" means that the stubborn army will probably only receive equipment and not fight, because they prefer to watch the Japanese and the Eighth Route Army fight back and forth, while the stubborn army reaps the benefits.
The fact is indeed true, especially in the later period, the stubborn army at that time was not even taking advantage of the Eighth Route Army and the Japanese. They were even taking advantage of the "fishing" of Yingjiang and the Japanese...
Isn't Yingjiang in sight of victory on the Pacific battlefield?
Then why fight?
Just wait for Yingjiang to attack the Japanese island and force the Japanese to surrender!
We need to take a longer-term view and have a bigger picture.
Wouldn't it be nice to keep the equipment, ammunition, and troops to prepare for the next war?
So despite being urged again and again by Yingjiang, the recalcitrant army remained unmoved... You urged me, and I just made an excuse saying that I was not ready and was unable to counterattack. What can you do?
In fact, in the later period, especially after the opening of the external highway, Stilwell organized ten art divisions in China. However, the enemy's equipment and the quality of the soldiers had declined drastically due to the long years of war. At this time, the stubborn army was fully capable of counterattack.
ability.
Needless to say why they did not counterattack, the recalcitrant army was reluctant to put these art mechanics into the war to deal with the Japanese. What they really wanted to use these art craftsmen to deal with was the Eighth Route Army.
At this time Wang Xuexin said nothing more.
He knew that he shouldn't say anything more at this time. If he acted too eagerly or said too much, he would be considered a stubborn smear force with "ulterior motives."
Therefore, Wang Xuexin said: "We are not in a hurry, Lieutenant Colonel. You can study it slowly and make a decision after a clear investigation. As for whether these aircraft will reinforce the stubborn army or our army, we will respect your choice. We believe you will
Make the right decision!”
With that said, Wang Xuexin shook hands with Doolittle and left.
This made Zhao Gang confused. He caught up with Wang Xuexin from behind and said, "Comrade Wang Xuexin, you just got to the point. Why did you stop?"
This may be a habit developed by Zhao Gang as a political commissar. No matter what he said, he was accustomed to explaining it thoroughly and analyzing it deeply.
Wang Xuexin, who was just scratching the surface and then giving up, made him feel uncomfortable.
Wang Xuexin replied: "Political Commissar, I don't think we can rush these matters. Yingjiang has contact with the stubborn army, we just need to point out a direction and let them investigate on their own!"
Li Yunlong understood Wang Xuexin's intention. He nodded with a smile: "I say, Lao Zhao, you are not as good as Xiao Dongbei in this regard! Xiao Dongbei is right. What we are saying is only one-sided. If Yingjiang himself
If you go and investigate...then they can't help but not believe it. As long as Yingjiang is sure that the stubborn army has the intention of 'preserving strength', hehe, I think this matter is very close!"
Zhao Gang said "Oh" and seemed to understand Wang Xuexin's intention.
Li Yunlong then asked: "Xiao Dongbei, what do you think...should we keep these pilots or not?"
As he spoke, Li Yunlong raised his head in the direction of Sun Erwei's office.
Wang Xuexin knew that Li Yunlong was referring to the Doolittle pilots.
If they want to stay, Li Yunlong may really have a way to keep them. He can make excuses today and find excuses tomorrow. It doesn't make sense to say it's a safety issue.
but……
Wang Xuexin replied: "It's up to you to stay or go. Let's explain the truth clearly. What's more, most of these pilots fly bombers. What we want are pilots who fly fighter jets. It's not the same thing!"
Li Yunlong said "What": "If we fly a plane, how can we separate bombers and fighter jets?"
Wang Xuexin explained with a smile: "Bombers drop bombs, and fighter jets shoot machine guns in the sky!"
Li Yunlong said "Oh" and understood.
The next second he shouted again: "Then... we have to keep them all, bombers and fighter jets too. It will be so fun to blow up the Japanese with all kinds of meat and vegetables!"
Wang Xuexin shook his head helplessly.
Li Yunlong is always determined to "take advantage of himself". Before he even scratched his horoscope, he started to think about bombers.
While Wang Xuexin was discussing with Li Yunlong and others, Doolittle was also discussing the matter with Sun Erwei.
"Wilson!" Doolittle flipped through the plan again and said, "Personal feelings aside, do you think the Eighth Route Army is trustworthy?"
Sun Erwei did not answer directly, but asked back: "Lieutenant Colonel, I want to know how you feel about your contact with the guerrillas in the past twenty days?"
"They are a respectable troop!" Doolittle replied: "Although their equipment is poor and their bodies are malnourished,... I saw their unyielding spirit."
Then Doolittle said uncertainly: "Is this a misunderstanding? I mean, this is probably not a spirit."
"What is that?" Sun Erwei asked.
"They live in such an environment." Doolittle replied: "Some of us think that they don't take life seriously. You know, if they live so hard, they won't have much hope for life, so
You can face death calmly!"
"No, you are wrong!" Sun Erwei shook his head and replied: "That's just looking at them from our perspective, because our living conditions are superior, and looking at their living conditions, we take it for granted that they can't accept it either. But
, they have grown up in such a difficult environment since childhood. Many of them don’t even know that this is hardship and have regarded it as a normal habit. Of course, there is no such situation as you mentioned.”
"Maybe you are right!" Doolittle nodded in agreement: "At any time, people will have the desire to live."
"What I want to say is." Sun Erwei said: "This is a common phenomenon among the Eighth Route Army troops. You may stay in Yuncheng for a few days. You can look around here, and then you will understand."
Doolittle asked in confusion: "Does this phenomenon not exist among the stubborn army?"
Doolittle thought this was a common trait among Chinese people.
"No, of course not!" Sun Erwei laughed: "In a few days, I will arrange for you to go to Xi'an, and you will take a plane back to China from there. When you arrive in Xi'an, you will see the stubborn troops, and you can also choose
Observe them for a few days and I believe you can see the difference."
Then Sun Erwei added: "I think that at that moment, you will not hesitate about which party you should hand over the plane to!"
Doolittle smiled noncommittally.
He didn't quite believe what Sun Erwei said, because he didn't believe that a troop could tell any difference in just a few days without a deep understanding.