Comrade, your ingredients are too complicated.

The main reason why the comrades of the advisory group wore French military uniforms during this aid to Vietnam operation was to conceal their identities.

There is no way. At the current point in time, any military action related to the border area will make Japan a frightened bird. This is the dominance and oppression of the strongest army in Asia.

If the enemy discovered that the Eighth Route Army suddenly appeared in Indochina, the local Japanese garrison troops would definitely strengthen their security or even launch a large-scale mopping-up operation, which would ultimately make the soldiers' actions even more difficult.

As for why not wearing the clothes of the Alliance?

Everyone wanted to wear it, hoping to be more down-to-earth. But the allies themselves hadn't unified their attire yet, which made it difficult for the logistics department.

Hearing the complaints from his old comrades, Ding Wei couldn't help but laugh out loud. However, considering that the journalists were generally well educated and some of them might be able to understand Chinese, he quickly adjusted his expression and said:

"Pay attention, don't forget our discipline. Before we set off, the deputy commander and the deputy chief of staff specifically told us that breastfeeding is prohibited during this operation."

"By the way, give me your new gun later, and remember to pull out the magazine in advance."

"If we don't give these reporters something to do, who knows how long they will take to film. We have to get off the plane and get down to work quickly, and not let trivial matters interfere with our work."

"Okay, let's do as you say."

The new weapon that Lao Ding mentioned is the semi-automatic rifle that even the French themselves have rarely used: Mas-40.

If this thing was put into use in 1942, it would definitely be a powerful weapon on the same level as the M1 Garand.

Look around the world.

It can be equipped with a bayonet, launch rifle grenades, and is also equipped with an optical sight. Apart from being a little heavy, it has almost no disadvantages, otherwise the French would not have allowed it to serve until the Cold War.

If Shunliu were allowed to choose now, he would definitely choose the Mas-40 produced by his own arsenal, rather than Achou's Johnson M1941 semi-automatic rifle.

After discussing countermeasures, Cheng Shifa was the first to get off the plane.

Facing the French who were surrounding him, he greeted each of them with a smile, showing his commanding demeanor.

In order to get away quickly, Ding Wei, who was one step behind, first made a few poses, and then handed over the semi-automatic rifle in his hand without saying a word.

As expected, the reporters from Algeria's AAF news agency were ecstatic when they saw the cutting-edge infantry equipment that their own troops had not yet mass-produced.

If the conditions on site were not bad, they would have to write a few big headlines on the spot.

After squeezing out of the crowd, Cheng and Ding finally met the real person who came here. Seeing the ally who came from afar to support him, Lao Hu said excitedly:

"In the rocky mountains lies a noble man, in the dense forest comes a beautiful woman!"

"Brother Cheng, Brother Ding, you have worked hard along the way. On behalf of all members of the Viet Minh, I welcome you to Cao Bang to guide our work."

"Let's go, let's get started. I have prepared a welcoming banquet for the two regiment leaders at the headquarters. Don't worry about the other comrades. Lao Wu will stay at the field airport to take charge of the subsequent pick-up work."

After these words were spoken, the expressions of Blind Cheng and Ding Wei were so interesting that they didn't even know how to respond for a moment.

Although the commander of his brigade had warned them before departure about the address, telling them not to take it to heart and just talk about their own affairs, it was still awkward to be called "brother" by a 50-year-old comrade.

But to be honest, their attitude is indeed impeccable.

For the sake of liberation and victory, even if one has to be humble, it deserves respect.

After a short silence, Blind Cheng finally took action. He waved his hand and told Lao Hu not to be polite and just call each other comrade.

"Then let's go and try to reach the Viet Minh headquarters before dark."

"If possible, I hope to visit the frontline troops today. The sooner we understand the situation, the sooner we can formulate a combat plan. Time is short and the task is heavy, so we must seize every minute and every second."

"Okay, I'll follow your arrangements."

······
Late that night, in the advisory group’s temporary dormitory.

In a relatively simple thatched house, Ding Wei recorded what he saw and heard that day in a notebook by candlelight. Judging from his frowning brows, his mood at this moment could definitely be described as complicated.

In theory, serious people don't keep diaries.

However, the border area requires the person in charge to report work progress to the headquarters every three days. In desperation, Lao Ding had to use a bald experience card.

"Today is our first day in Indochina.

The weather was hot, the mountains were high and the roads were narrow. The mud was slippery and difficult to walk on. We had horses but couldn't ride them. We paid a little price for internationalism.

The Viet Minh authorities treated us very well. Three women brought two carts of fruit and sugar and made coffee and lemon tea for us. We declined several times, but they said it was instructions from the top and it was disturbing.

The welcoming banquet arranged by Lao Hu was held in a simple thatched cottage in the mountains.

The senior advisory group members who learned the news did not show any dissatisfaction, and everyone was even prepared for a hard struggle on the road.

It’s been hard times, we’ve experienced that before.

But who would have thought that beneath the barren appearance there is a world of mystery inside.

When the comrades saw the sumptuous feast of roast suckling pig, milk and fruit, they all felt a sense of absurdity. Is this ideology really okay?

However, since they were on someone else's territory, Cheng and Ding couldn't say much.

The two could only ask their comrades to reduce the burden on local people as much as possible and maintain the fine style passed down from the Red Army period.

Of course, disturbing things must be recorded.

After Director Xiao and his team arrive, they must give the Viet Minh cadres some serious lessons and try their best to eliminate the root cause of hedonism.

Just as Ding Wei was writing furiously, recording his suggestions and opinions, Blind Cheng, who had been busy all day, finally returned to the dormitory.

After entering the house, he first took off his military uniform, and then drank half a tank of water in one breath.

"Well, although I have long expected that being a military advisor is not easy, the problems with the frontline troops here are too big." "To put it bluntly, if their 304th, 308th, and 312th main divisions collide head-on with the 772nd Regiment on the plains, I am confident that we can fight a magnificent annihilation battle within two days."

"It's outrageous. It's really outrageous. They are all military advisors, but why are their situations so different?"

Seeing that his old comrade was full of anger, Ding Wei hurriedly took a basket of fruit from the table and motioned for him to eat something to calm down.

As an old comrade who had climbed snow-capped mountains and walked through grasslands, he naturally knew how difficult it was to advance from a guerrilla force to a regular army.

This is not just a matter of combat experience. The key is whether bad habits can be completely eliminated and regular construction from ideology to management is the top priority.

After eating two pieces of pineapple, Cheng Shifa's mood was obviously relieved. He picked up the diary and pen from the table and analyzed while recording:

"The only advantage of the three main divisions of the allies at this stage is their high morale. After receiving a batch of French and Japanese equipment, they will be able to go to the battlefield without mobilization."

"But success or failure depends on morale. The Viet Minh, who had been poor for a long time and suddenly became rich, have been blinded by equipment."

"When I inspected the 308th Division today, their mid- and high-level commanders actually asked me when we could attack the city. Isn't this nonsense? My last name is Cheng, not Wang!"

After a brief contact and conversation, Blind Cheng discovered that the allied cadres rarely talked about how to erode the manpower of the Japanese and Vichy troops, but instead wanted to swallow a fat man in one bite.

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This kind of behavior, which was both incompetent and addictive, once caused his blood pressure to soar.

As expected, the only lesson mankind has learned from history is that mankind has not learned any lessons from history. If you want to learn from the Russians right from the start, isn't that just courting death?

Hearing this, Ding Wei patted his old comrade on the shoulder. This kind of "work injury" caused by anger is really infuriating.

In fact, he didn't understand why the commander of the 308th Division felt that he could recapture the city where the Japanese division was stationed, just based on the cultural level of those grassroots soldiers who seemed to have been through the burning of books and burying of scholars.

Compared with the vast military blind spots of these cadres, the entire Soviet Union can be considered to be geographically narrow.

After his comrades finished recording the problems they encountered today, Lao Ding rubbed his stubble and suggested:

"Directly attacking a large city is to commit suicide."

"The deputy commander-in-chief said that our advisory group must serve as good advisers and share more experiences and lessons with our allies. Leave this matter to me. I will take Brother Wen to hold a meeting with the cadres tomorrow."

"But as advisors, we have to think of a way to find a more suitable enemy for the Viet Minh."

As soon as these words were spoken, Blind Cheng immediately pulled out a military map from his shirt pocket, which clearly marked the distribution of enemies in the entire northern region.

Among all the high-threat targets, the most challenging one is naturally the Japanese Army.

"Come, take a look. The biggest enemy in the entire Indochina Peninsula is the 21st Division of the Japanese Army. This unit was established in Henan Province four years ago. It is a third-rate security division."

"In a sense, this group of devils are still the old rivals of our 129th Division. They participated in the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain, but they escaped because they retreated too quickly."

"Although the 21st Division's forces are scattered across three provinces, the Japanese are quite mobile. It's best not to use them to start an attack."

In the first half of this year, Lao Hu and Wen Ge did not just wait for assistance. Before the advisory group arrived in Indochina, they worked with the French insiders to roughly understand the enemy's troop distribution and organization.

The 21st Division just mentioned is one of the results of their efforts.

The main force of this group of devils entrenched in the coastal areas is the 82nd and 83rd Infantry Regiments. In addition, the enemy also has two artillery battalions to provide fire support.

To be honest, if the above-mentioned 772 Japanese devils were placed in North China, Cheng Xiazi would have full confidence that he could wipe them out with the strength of the nd Regiment alone.

But if it were the Viet Minh, without three times the number of troops, it would be hard to say who would win or lose.

After eliminating a wrong option, the two turned their attention to the Vichy French troops on the inland border of Indochina. Looking at the sparse deployment of the other side, Ding Wei said with some difficulty:
"Excluding those who secretly sided with us, the French can use less than 3 troops, a total of 5 infantry battalions."

"To put it bluntly, the actual combat effectiveness of these people is not as good as that of local troops. It is indeed a good choice to use them for training."

"However, the other side are all fence-sitters who can be won over. Even if the foreign legion is weak, it is still stronger than the Viet Minh 3rd Division, which has little experience in large-scale battles. Perhaps they can become a good filling-in force in the future."

At this point, the train of thought reached a deadlock.

There is no opponent anymore. We can't let Brother Wen take three divisions on a detour expedition to lead Britain. We are still in the Allied camp.

Just when the two were at a loss, Cheng Shifa accidentally lost his grip on the pencil and let it fall onto the military map.

Sometimes, fate comes so suddenly. Looking at the area pointed by the pen tip, the two brothers who were originally frowning immediately became energetic.

"Oh, how could I have forgotten it? Just do Italy. I will draft a telegram now and let the border region make the final decision."

"As long as War Fox and the Army Morale Wizard approve it, I will tell Lao Hu, Brother Wen and several commanders about this proposal at the meeting tomorrow."

"This opponent is moderately tough and soft, and is a member of the Axis Powers. He is also a must-go on the new route! Perfect, absolutely perfect!"

When Cheng and Ding mentioned Italy, they were definitely not talking about Mo Guangtou. It was far away in the Mediterranean, and they had nothing to do with it.

The whetstone they chose for the Viet Minh was Siam, a Japanese vassal state that called itself Asia's Little Italy. The country declared war on Britain and Austria in January 1942 and was a full-fledged member of the Axis.

As the little overlord of Southeast Asia, the Siamese Army has about 48 troops, including 2 infantry battalions, 1 cavalry battalions, 1 artillery battalion and armored regiment.

A force of this level is definitely considered a powerful force in the entire Indochina Peninsula.

It has infantry, cavalry, tanks, armored vehicles, air force and even navy, which makes it a suitable training target no matter how you look at it.

Hearing the suggestion from his old comrade, Ding Wei slapped his thigh excitedly.

"Sure, you're really smart today. Siam won the Franco-Thai War two years ago and took away a lot of disputed territories from Vichy."

"If we lead the Viet Minh to break through the enemy's defenses, I'm afraid Cambodia and Laos will also come with troops to surrender."

"By then, if we cannibalize the Japanese 21st Division, the wavering Vichy will surely raise the white flag. By then, when we integrate the entire Indochina Peninsula, we may be able to gather a force of no less than 100,000 troops to fill the gap." (End of this chapter)