Returning to Hexin Island, Ouyang Xuan notified the convening of a joint military and political meeting. After the Mongolian army raided Sandu Shui this time, the top brass of the Perak Army either led their troops back or made defensive preparations in factories and mines. They all breathed a sigh of relief when they heard that the crisis was over. A single horse can march much faster than a large group, so the top brass of the Perak Army arrived at the river island on time the next morning. The meeting was not long and the theme was very clear, namely military expansion. Huang Dagen explained the military expansion plan on behalf of the staff. In fact, this plan had been formulated two months ago. However, Ouyang Xuan felt that the time was not ripe, so he did not submit it to the Military and Political Joint Committee for review. This three-water battle made him feel that the expansion of the army was imminent and had to be launched.
At present, the regular troops of the Perak Army include the field brigade, the navy brigade, the special brigade, the garrison brigade, and the team directly under the staff. In addition to the troops brought by Yu Zhu to Liuqiu Company, there are a total of six brigade-level units with about 7,000 people. The military expansion plan does not involve basic militia companies, nor does it involve troops in Liuqiu. According to the new plan, the special brigade and navy brigade and the troops directly under the General Staff Department will maintain their existing personnel and organization. The opinion of the General Staff is that the personnel of the current navy, directly-affiliated troops and special forces are sufficient to cope with the current war. Moreover, these three troops are all highly professional troops. The most important thing is to be good rather than large. If the expansion is too fast, it will be harmful. will weaken its combat effectiveness.
The newly established teaching brigade consists of three teaching battalions, each with 500 people. The brigade commander is Zeng Yong, and the brigade headquarters is located in Hengyuan Fort. Among them, the first battalion trains grassroots officers and non-commissioned officers of the Perak Army, the second battalion trains military backbones in Miao and Yifan areas, and the third battalion trains officers and non-commissioned officers in professional fields such as engineering, artillery, navigation, demolition, and machinery. These personnel will be multipliers of the combat effectiveness of the troops. In addition to regular military training, they will spend half of their time learning professional knowledge. As the cradle of military officers, joining the teaching brigade requires not only political loyalty and reliability, but also a certain cultural level.
The garrison brigade originally consisted of a guard battalion and a teaching camp. After the latter was upgraded to a brigade, the new garrison brigade will have three garrison battalions responsible for guarding and defending important areas. The brigade headquarters is located in Dayi County, and the brigade commander is Shi Zhong Tree. According to the plan, the three battalions of the garrison brigade will be stationed in Baizhang City, Guankou Village and Sandu Shui respectively, and will be responsible for the dispatch, command and training of the basic militia. In order to improve its combat effectiveness, the plan stipulates that the personnel selection, weapon configuration, training outline, and logistics supplies of the garrison brigade are the same as those of field infantry. Even the number of horses is also specified in detail.
The biggest change is in the field brigade, which is also the main target of this military expansion. According to the plan, the field brigade was directly expanded into a field division, and the total number of people was expanded from the original 1,500 to 4,500. The division commander is Cao Ergou. The original subordinate cavalry battalion and two infantry battalions were expanded into brigades respectively. The cavalry brigade was stationed in Qiongzhou, and the two infantry brigades were stationed in Chongqing Fucheng and Pengshan County respectively. The cavalry brigade will consist of three cavalry battalions, including two light cavalry battalions and one heavy cavalry battalion. This light cavalry battalion is actually the previous cavalry battalion, while the heavy cavalry battalion is not equipped with armor, but with heavy artillery and supporting mules and horses. The infantry brigade also has three battalions, one heavy battalion and two light battalions. The difference also lies in whether they are equipped with heavy wheeled field artillery.
According to this plan, the total number of regular troops of the Perak Army in western Sichuan will reach 9,500. If Liuqiu's troops are included, the number of troops will exceed 10,000. In terms of numbers alone, this will be a considerable fighting force. You must know that although Yu Xing's Jiading Army is said to have 20,000 soldiers, after taking into account the false reports of empty pay and deducting logistics and the elderly and weak, the number of elite soldiers is estimated to be around 5,000. Although the Song army in Luzhou, Chongqing Prefecture and other places was larger in number than Jiading, the number of elite soldiers did not exceed 10,000. Although the Mongolian army, which occupies two-thirds of Bashu's territory, is said to number 100,000, including the new auxiliary troops, it will not exceed 40,000, and the elite Mongolian cavalry will not exceed 7,000.
Precisely because they knew the difference between the army's claimed number and its actual number, as soon as the staff expansion plan was announced, some people in the audience were amazed, while others gasped. You must know that the number of troops that Huang Dagen mentioned is actually the number of elite soldiers. Once this plan is implemented, the Perak Army will have as many elite soldiers as the Chongqing Prefecture. If we take into account the powerful power of firearms, the Pili Army will become the strongest anti-Mongolian force on the battlefield in Sichuan. It will have the power of the Sichuan Mongolian Army to resist the ceremony, and can even drive the Mongolian Army out of the western Sichuan Plain.
Ouyang Xuan supported the army expansion plan and also wanted to expel the Mongolian army from Xichuan as soon as possible. The three battles across the water made him understand that passive defense would eventually allow the Mongolian army to find a way in. "Offense is the best defense." Only taking the initiative to attack can change the situation of being passively beaten, establish a strategic buffer zone and defense depth, and prevent the flames of war from burning under the rule of the Perak Army. Although the Sichuan Mongolian Army currently has more than 20,000 troops, most of them are new auxiliary troops with low combat effectiveness. The real opponents of the Perak Army are the Mongolian cavalry and the Mongolian Han Army composed of northern Han, Jin, Khitan, Xixia, etc. Defeating them in the field is a difficulty that must be overcome in the anti-Mongolian cause, and it is also the only way for the Perak Army to grow. This is also the reason why the expansion of field troops is focused this time.
However, facing such a radical military expansion plan, people in the government affairs system such as Li San'er and Lu Dezhi had doubts. Li San'er's worries come from two aspects. On the one hand, he is worried about military expenses. The number of troops has increased by more than one-third. The cost of food and clothing alone is not a small amount, not to mention the huge cost of weapons, equipment and training. . It is said that during this period, the arsenal has tried every means to increase production capacity, expand factories, increase personnel training, and conduct labor competitions. Seeing that it will be able to meet the military requirements in a while, this military expansion will definitely happen again. Capacity gap. On the other hand, the expansion of the army will inevitably bring about a decrease in income. You must know that the wealth and tax revenue created by those thousands of strong laborers every day is not a small number.
Lu Dezhi talked a lot, but finally came back to one issue: money. He is worried that excessive military investment will affect investment in education, science, culture and health, and will lead to a decline in people's living standards. Although the people in the Perak Army currently work hard, they can still have enough food and clothing, and can receive treatment when they are sick. It is like a world of great harmony that even saints yearn for. The scholar's dream of "ordering the family, governing the country, and bringing peace to the world" was realized. Two of the three were realized, which made Lu Dezhi quite proud. He was really afraid of going back to the days of enduring hunger and cold.
Cao Ergou and other military personnel were both looking forward to and slightly uneasy about the expansion of the army. Their uneasiness comes from the heavy pressure on their shoulders, that is, how to quickly form combat effectiveness after military expansion. They know that military expansion is just a means, the purpose is to drive the Mongolian army out of western Sichuan. In addition to saving the people from fire and water, it is also to occupy the fertilized land of the entire western Sichuan plain, obtain more food, minerals, and produce more Firearms were used to drive the Mongolian army out of Bashu and even the entire Han Dynasty.
While everyone was arguing noisily, Li Shuang's words calmed the debate: "The evil wolf has not been eliminated, and survival is the top priority. The prerequisite for food and clothing is life, and only strong force can ensure our survival." As soon as these words came out, everyone was thoughtful. Yes, "the great road comes to the simplest". Only by surviving can we consider the issue of development. At that time, they all expressed their full support for the expansion of the army and the establishment of an army as soon as possible.
