The Iron-Blooded Army of Beacon Fire

Chapter 285 Goodbye, Minister He

The convoy traveled along the bustling urban area. Although China and Japan were at full war, the three towns of Wuhan, located at the thoroughfare of nine provinces, still maintained a bustling atmosphere. The streets and urban areas were extremely lively. Due to the migration of people from all over the country after the fall of Jinling, Government agencies and various groups have even brought a kind of abnormal prosperity to the city.

On the street, there are hawkers, newsboys selling cigarettes and newspapers, businessmen coming and going, exiled students carrying large schoolbags and luggage, walking in groups, well-dressed businessmen, and prostitutes soliciting customers. The police and military police patrolling back and forth, as well as the wounded soldiers wandering around, formed a different kind of wartime scene.

However, after listening to what He Shaozhou said, He Weike was not in the mood to appreciate the scenery of the three towns in Wuhan.

He Shaozhou was worried that his 103rd Division would be swallowed up, and He Wei was also very worried about his secret service battalion. Even though his secret service battalion did not have many troops and was crippled in Jinling, it only had more than 600 brothers. , but the remaining brothers can be said to be veterans of hundreds of battles, with countless combat experience and tactical qualities.

Moreover, most of the civil engineering troops near Wuhan were withdrawn from the Songhu battlefield. Their own losses and shortfalls are huge, and they are in a state of rapid military expansion. In this case, my small army may be There is also the risk of being eaten, and once you reveal your identity, you will inevitably be remembered.

Therefore, He Wei was a little anxious and wanted to see Minister He quickly and settle down his spy camp.

In this anxious mood, the convoy finally arrived at the temporary residence of the Ministry of Military and Political Affairs in Wuhan.

This temporary residence is quite impressive. It is a large courtyard with three axes of left, center and right. It is surrounded by fully armed guards. There are officers coming in and out everywhere inside and outside the courtyard, and there are more vehicles coming and going at the door. There was an endless stream, and many officers who came to handle business were queuing up at the door. There were many officers at the rank of colonels and even major generals. It can be seen that the Military and Administrative Department, which is in charge of establishment, weapons and equipment, and the recruitment of soldiers, is really a department with real power.

Of course, the current huge losses of the national army can also be seen from the fact that so many officers came to the Ministry of Military Affairs to handle supplementary business.

He Wei, He Shaozhou, his nephew and commander-in-chief, led him, so he didn't have to wait in line. He successfully entered the Military and Administrative Department under the envious eyes of the queuing officers, and was led into the Military and Administrative Department by a foreman and adjutant in the reception room. Minister He's office.

Here, He Wei once again met Minister He after a long absence.

After not seeing him for several months, Minister He still maintained his spring breeze and good-natured demeanor, but his energy level was obviously not as good as when he was in Aurous Hill a few months ago. His eyes were sunken and tired, and he was a little thinner.

The exquisite military uniform with the rank of general cannot conceal the fatigue and mental exhaustion of the second-ranking figure in the Huangpu Clan. It can be seen that the eroding war across the country in the past few months has also made Minister He very tired.

Minister He was very happy to see He Shaozhou and He Wei coming together. After seeing the two of them, the fatigue on his face also disappeared a lot.

After all, one is my nephew and the other is a young officer whom I value very much and have promoted. After seeing the two of them, they were naturally very cordial and immediately smiled and asked the adjutant to serve them tea.

After Minister He invited the two of them to sit down, he spoke very eagerly: "Shao Zhou, He Wei, you are finally here. I have been looking forward to the stars and the moon, but finally I have arrived."

"Second uncle, this battle at Jinling was extremely dangerous. It was like walking through hell. This battle was really brutal."

He Shaozhou was the first to speak.

Minister He nodded in agreement: "Yes, it was tragic, it was really tragic. I have read the detailed battle reports of various units of the Jinling Garrison. All units were injured and suffered heavy casualties."

Immediately, Minister He looked at He Shaozhou with joy and said: "Although it was tragic, it also showed the momentum of our Chinese soldiers. Your victory at Xiaguan was really a relief. You ate two thousand people in one breath." There are many enemies. To be honest, from the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War to the present, our army has never had such brilliant results. It is really a relief. You guys fought well, fought well, and your 103rd Division also gave us Guizhou It’s very exciting.”

He Shaozhou pointed at He Wei: "This is also thanks to He Wei's advice. First, he helped me solve the unstable factors in the division, helped me control the division, and then made suggestions for the battle of Xiaguan. In this battle, He Wei Take the lead.”

He Shaozhou immediately began to express his merits to He Wei. He Wei not only helped him control the 103rd Division, but also planned the great victory at Xiaguan. At the same time, he took the initiative to move closer to Minister He. In addition, He Shaozhou himself also admired He Wei quite a lot, so naturally he had to do a good job. He asked for credit in front of his second uncle.

"I don't dare. I am just fulfilling my duty in my humble position. It is the duty of a soldier to protect the family and the country."

He Wei said to Minister He.

Minister He chuckled twice, first asked about He Wei's injury and recovery, then waved his hand to He Wei and said pleasantly: "There is no need to talk about these clichés here. We will talk about He Wei's matter later. , first explain to me the situation of your two troops."

Hearing Minister He ask about the troops, He Shaozhou immediately became energetic and said anxiously: "Second uncle, our 103rd Division suffered heavy losses in the Battle of Jinling. Now the available combat troops in the entire division are only more than a thousand. The troops have arrived at Hankou Station, but the specific garrison location and orders have not been released yet. The person in charge in Wuhan now is Chen Cixiu, and the nearby garrison is also his troops. I am worried."

He Shaozhou was interrupted by Minister He before he finished speaking. Obviously, Minister He had seen that He Shaozhou was worried that the 103rd Division would be swallowed up by the Civil Engineering Department.

"No need to worry. I know you are worried that Chen Cixiu will take the opportunity to cause trouble and annex your 103rd Division. It's okay. I have made arrangements in advance. The Military Commission will issue training to you soon. and station orders, your troops are stationed near Hanyang. Although the 54th Army of the Civil Engineering Department under Chen Cixiu is currently stationed in Wuhan, its several divisions are stationed scattered. The 14th Division is stationed In the Gedian area southeast of Wuchang, the 18th Division was in Beiguangshui, Hankou, the 55th Division was near Nanzhifang in Wuchang, and the 185th Division, which had just been swallowed up by Chen Cixiu, lived in Wuchang city. "

"Your troops are stationed in Hanyang, which is a certain distance away from these divisions. Moreover, Wuchang, Hanyang, and Hankou are separated by a river, which is relatively safe. Besides, no matter how good Chen Cixiu is, he would not dare to attack me. We will forcefully annex your troops right under our noses, so don’t worry.”

Seeing that Minister He had already made arrangements, both He Wei and He Shaozhou breathed a sigh of relief. He Wei couldn't help but sigh that Jiang was still too old. Minister He had already arranged things that the two of them were extremely worried about.

He Shaozhou also sighed: "That's the case, that's great, we can finally train with peace of mind."

"Don't worry. This time you won a great victory in Xiaguan. You fought well and relieved your anger. Even the Chairman of the Standing Committee was very relieved after learning about it. It can be said that you have made a great contribution. The top brass of the Military Commission also We all know about this great victory. Even if I don’t make arrangements for you, Chen Cixiu would not dare to attack your troops who have just won the great victory over Xiaguan. Otherwise, wouldn’t it be self-defeating?”

After Minister He finished speaking, he changed the subject and then said to He Shaozhou: "Shaozhou, you have made great progress this time and played well. When it comes to academic qualifications, you are in the first phase of Huangpu and have a degree from Army University. You should do it now." The position of chief official." Minister He's few words contain a lot of information.

The position of chief officer in the national army refers to the full-time chief officer of combat units at all levels. He Shaozhou's current position is major general deputy commander of the 103rd Division. According to the general promotion procedures of the national army, the deputy division commander is promoted to chief officer. , there is no doubt that he was promoted to the position of division commander.

Hearing Minister He's words, He Wei immediately smiled and congratulated He Shaozhou and said: "Congratulations, sir, you will be able to take charge of a division soon, show what you have learned, and defeat the Japanese invaders."

He Shaozhou was also very happy when he heard this. As a first-year graduate of Huangpu with a strong backing, he has just become a teacher. There are also many difficulties and ups and downs in this process. After a short period of joy, He Shaozhou also had mixed feelings.

At this time, Minister He looked at He Wei again, nodded with a smile and asked, "How is the situation of your secret service camp?"

He Wei immediately said: "The losses were also great, but there are still five or six hundred people left. This time they also followed Commander He's 103rd Division to Wuhan. The troops of the Army Armored Corps that stayed in Jinling to participate in the war have been attached to He fought with my battalion, so he followed me when the troops arrived in Wuhan."

Minister He nodded again, knocked on the table a few times, and said: "I went to see your special agent battalion when it was formed. They were all elite troops. Now the remaining five or six hundred people must be veterans. This is the seed. The seeds of five to six hundred veterans can expand a regiment or even form a brigade!"

He Wei's heart skipped a beat and expanded into a ball? Make up a brigade? Could it be that Minister He wants to expand his army? Do you want to improve yourself?

Looking at He Wei's stunned expression, Minister He first said to He Shaozhou: "Shaozhou, you go back and organize the troops first. Take your division and He Wei's troops to the garrison near Hanyang and settle down as soon as possible. , I still have a lot of things to explain to He Wei."

He Shaozhou immediately stood up and saluted Minister He, nodded to He Wei, and left Minister He's office under the guidance of an adjutant.

As a result, only He Wei and Minister He were left in the office. He Wei, who was sitting upright, remembered what General Xiao had just said to him on the train.

Perhaps, most of the things that Minister He wanted to talk to him about next were related to his military exploits and rewards based on his merits. With a little expectation, a little nervousness and a little bit of uneasiness, He Wei sat quietly and waited.

At this time, Minister He thought for a moment and then said: "He Wei, your troops are well led and the battle is fought well. In the first battle at Xinkou, the Japanese tank and the Japanese regiment flag were captured. In the second world war at Jinling, the hand was first Killing the uncle of the chieftain and planning another great victory at Xiaguan is not only a great achievement, it can also be said to be a shining success in battle. I won’t go into details about it. I just mentioned your situation, because of this great victory at Xiaguan, Your name has also caught the attention of many senior officials and Mr. Chang. Since the battle has been won, it is natural to reward according to merit. Shao Zhou will be promoted from deputy division commander to division commander. This is in recognition of his contribution in the victory of Xiaguan. Reward, as for you, I can tell you first, your military rank must be raised one level."

Promoted one level in military rank?
He Wei lowered his head and glanced at the rank of major on his collar badge. He climbed up one level and was a lieutenant colonel. It was a good thing to be promoted to lieutenant colonel. Besides, it was less than a year since he graduated from the eleventh class of Huangpu Military Academy. He has been promoted to lieutenant colonel, and the speed of promotion is indeed very fast. It can no longer be described as riding on a rocket.

Nowadays, the graduates of the eleventh phase of Huangpu basically all have the rank of second lieutenant, and not many even have the rank of lieutenant. Even many of the students of the sixth phase of Huangpu still hold the rank of major, and there are also many students of the fifth phase of Huangpu who have the rank of lieutenant colonel.

In comparison, He Wei, a lieutenant colonel in the eleventh phase of Huangpu, is really very eye-catching.

The military rank was promoted to one level, and the salary also increased accordingly. It increased by a lot of money. This was certainly good, but there was no fluctuation in He Wei's heart.

After all, now he cares more about his position than his military rank. He is also a lieutenant colonel. The deputy commander of the infantry regiment of the field infantry is also a lieutenant colonel. There is also a lieutenant colonel as an attached member of the high-level service unit, but the value of these two is completely different. different.

As for money? He Wei is not short of money at all now, and can even be said to be extremely fat. The property obtained by the secret service battalion from ransacking Wang Zhaoming's mansion and deposits in Jinling City has now been brought to Wuhan by the secret service battalion. Moreover, the gendarmerie troops are engaged in shipping in Jinling. Sooner or later, a large amount of the profits from the business will be distributed to him. He, He, is now a completely rich man.

What He Wei values ​​​​is actually his position and the right to lead troops.

He Wei immediately stood up, saluted and thanked Minister He, and completed his appearance: "Thank you, sir. Thank you very much for the minister's support. I will serve the minister to the death in this humble position!"

Minister He still looked at He Wei with a warm expression. Of course, as a veteran of decades, he could see through what He Wei was thinking at this moment, and he could completely understand what He Wei was thinking. After all, he was in the national army. , any officer who wants to do something will seek the right to lead troops.

Minister He was very satisfied with this young officer who helped his nephew take control of the first division and planned the great victory at Xiaguan.

What's more, He Wei's just sentence of swearing allegiance to the minister is obviously taking the initiative to move closer to Minister He. How could Minister He not understand He Wei's intention of surrendering?
Minister He would definitely not refuse this. Although he is the second-largest figure in the Huangpu Clan of the National Army after the supreme leader Chang Kaishen, he has never been very interested in capturing troops and controlling military power. Moreover, he is already over half a year old. 100, already quite indifferent to factional struggles and struggles for power.

At the same time, Minister He has always acted cautiously to avoid the suspicion of others, and therefore tried his best to avoid showing any interest in military power to the outside world.

But if he could take He Wei, a young officer who was extremely capable of fighting, under his command, and help him secretly, thus strengthening his almost non-existent military power, Minister He would certainly not refuse.

So, Minister He asked directly: "He Wei, do you want to continue leading the troops, or do you want to go to the rear to further your studies."

"Sir, I want to lead troops and control an army independently!"

Regarding Minister He's question, He Wei answered without thinking.

Immediately, he told Minister He all about his original idea of ​​independently controlling the army. After listening to He Wei's idea and appeal, Minister He just left a faint sentence.

"I understand. For these achievements you have made, there are no rewards yet. Everything is run by me. You can lead the troops first."

(End of this chapter)