Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

“Ma Hongyuan didn’t know what to say.

Because Ma Hongyuan had never considered this issue. His troops had always come and gone without a trace, doing the same things as bandits. So this problem didn't exist. But now that Xia Houwen had brought it up, Ma Hongyuan had to consider it.

Yeah, what should I do if that's the case.

If he asked his troops to do such a loss-making thing, he would definitely not agree.

Xia Houwen continued, "If this happens once or twice, it's fine. But if it keeps happening, no one will be willing to fight back.

If all armies behaved like this, would they still be able to fight in the future? This is a military matter, so let me talk about our soldiers. If everything captured on the battlefield were theirs, then during a battle, if you saw gold on the ground, would you pick it up or not? If whoever picked it up owned it, then who would have the heart to fight? Pick up the items first, then talk about it later.

If all soldiers think like this, how can we lead the army?"

"What should we do?"

Ma Hongyuan asked Xiahou Wen very humbly.

Xiahou Wen is not preaching any great principles to you, but presenting facts to tell you that what you are doing is wrong.

Ma Hongyuan was very convinced by Xia Houwen.

Xia Houwen smiled and said, "Brother Ma, that's why our army has such a rule, that is, captured items must be turned over to the public. That is to say, everything captured on the battlefield must be handed over. Just like our New Third Regiment, everything captured in the future must be handed over to the regimental headquarters. The regimental headquarters will distribute the captured supplies according to the needs of each unit. If a unit is short of food, we will give more food. If a unit is short of weapons and ammunition, we will give more weapons and ammunition. Of course, whichever unit performs better on the battlefield will also receive rewards from the regimental headquarters. This way, the blocking troops don't have to worry about not having enough supplies after the war."

"I'll just talk about how our New Third Regiment captured Longguan this time.

The First Battalion and the Pistol Company routed the city's Self-Defense Corps and police forces, later occupying the Corps' barracks and police station, seizing a large quantity of weapons and ammunition. After entering the city, the Second Battalion seized control of the city's food supply. The Cavalry Battalion not only eliminated the fleeing traitors outside the city but also entered the city to confiscate a large amount of their assets, leaving them with a large amount of money. If everyone took their own spoils, the First Battalion and the Pistol Company would have more guns than men, the Second Battalion would have a large amount of food, and the Third Battalion would have more money. This would not benefit the development of the new Third Regiment. Only when everyone turned over the spoils could the Second Battalion obtain the weapons and ammunition it needed to arm itself, and the Cavalry Battalion would also have sufficient food. Only with money and food in hand could the regimental headquarters continue to develop the troops and purchase the supplies they needed.

"Comrade Ma Hongyuan, what I said makes sense, doesn't it?"

Chapter 155 Sweeping Dragon Pass

It is very difficult to return the captured weapons to the public because the army is composed of a complex group of people with many different opinions.

Despite Xia Houwen's mobilization efforts, many still hid items. Xia Houwen knew about this, but he didn't pursue the matter. This required a period of instruction before the New Third Regiment could truly learn this. They couldn't tolerate any injustice; blindly pursuing responsibility would tear the newly formed New Third Regiment apart. Overall, everyone obeyed, and since no one had hidden anything significant, they managed to save face.

Xia Houwen was still very satisfied.

After all, the New Third Regiment had just been established and it had already achieved such performance.

The seizure was astonishing.

172 water-repeated rifles, 360 Hanyang rifles, 28 pistols, 2 light machine guns, more than 11000 rounds of ammunition. In addition to these weapons and ammunition, more than 48000 kilograms of various grains were also seized.

In addition to food, there were more than 70 gold bars and 16000 ocean dollars.

Of course there are also 12 horses, 86 broodmares, and various feeds for the horses and broodmares.

Anyway, I made a fortune.

With these weapons and ammunition, although the New Third Regiment could not provide every soldier with a gun, most of them could still have guns in their hands. Xia Houwen did not delay at all and summoned the troops and gave the order.

Divide the New Third Regiment into four groups.

The first battalion, the second battalion, the cavalry battalion, and the pistol company each attacked.

Their mission is simple.

That was to destroy the puppet government offices in the various townships of Longguan. Longguan was different from other places in Shanxi. Shanxi had just been occupied by the Japanese army, and many places had not had time to establish complete puppet governments.

Even though puppet regimes were established, many of them were destroyed by anti-Japanese armed forces behind enemy lines.

However, Longguan was occupied by the Japanese for a relatively long time. After the Rehe and Great Wall Wars, the Japanese began to establish various puppet government agencies in Chahar, gradually gaining control of the region. Consequently, places like Longguan were filled with numerous puppet government agencies.

Not only in Longguan County, but also in many of its subordinate townships, various pseudo-government agencies exist. Under the county, there are town offices and liaison township offices, each with a mayor, liaison township heads, and multiple secretaries. Within the liaison township offices, there are also general affairs and security departments, each with a director, secretary, administrator, and accountant.

The whole village is called Jia, and Jia has a leader.

There are also police stations like the Longguan Police Station, which have resident agencies in every township.

They were few in number in the towns and villages. The police force in the towns and villages was usually only about 10 to 20 officers, and 30 to 40 officers in the most. Their strength seemed average, but in Longguan, a place that had been under their rule for some time, it was enough to intimidate the locals.

Now Xiahou Wen gave them the task of destroying these pseudo-government agencies.

Xia Houwen wasn't too worried about this mission. The police stations in these towns and villages were only good at bullying the locals and didn't have much combat power. Furthermore, among the traitors eliminated in Longguan County this time were their leaders.

Without a leader, they would not be able to fight to the death.

As long as these traitors were dealt with, even if the Japanese army returned to Longguan, it would be difficult for them to control it for a while. Without the help of the traitors, it would take at least two or three months to restore order here.

After all, with the die-hard traitors gone, the Japanese army could easily select new traitors. They could even use this opportunity to send their own Eighth Route Army members to serve as so-called "traitors" and infiltrate the puppet regime.

After deploying these things, Xiahou Wen talked with Zhou Yuanming.

Xiahou Wen really admired Zhou Yuanming. Although he might have some shortcomings in courage, he was very capable in other aspects.

Being able to contact so many people quietly, and right under the noses of traitors.

This kind of publicity and organizational ability is absolutely first-class.

If he could be brought into the party in the future and be responsible for propaganda and organizational work, his strengths would definitely be brought into play.

"Comrade Yuanming, have you read the book I showed you?"

"Some things have always been foggy, but after watching them, they suddenly become clear."

Xiahou Wen considered Zhou Yuanming his first Party member, so he showed him some CCP articles he had brought back from the column headquarters. He particularly included articles such as "Analysis of the Various Classes in Chinese Society" and "Investigation of the Peasant Movement in Hunan," all of which were from the period of the CCP's Great Revolution.

Although these articles were written ten years ago, the principles they contain are very valuable.

Directly analyzes the problems of Chinese society.

Zhou Yuanming is also a scholar, and after reading these articles, some questions suddenly became clear to him. Zhou Yuanming has been educated, and in recent years, he has supported the overall development of the Lianzhuang Association and has come into contact with various people. Therefore, he is more able to understand the content of the articles.

"These are articles written by our party, the Communist Party of China, when people were our age."

"It's really extraordinary."

Zhou Yuanming was amazed.

I have always been living in such a small place, and I have been a little complacent due to the praise from others. But after reading these articles, I have truly felt what it means that there is always someone better than you.

"So what we need to do now is to find friends and annihilate the enemy. You are a local. Besides the local village associations, are there any other anti-Japanese armed forces that we can win over? We in the Eighth Route Army have strict discipline, and we cannot accept bandits who rob and loot."

Xiahou Wen planned to expand the New Third Regiment in a short period of time.

Internal problems can be resolved slowly, but the current situation in Longguan presents a rare opportunity. The New Third Regiment must be developed and expanded before the Japanese react. Therefore, Xiahou Wen is searching for armed forces capable of resisting the Japanese.

Zhou Yuanming thought for a while and said, "There is an armed force that I can fight for.

He unfolded the map, pointed to one of the hills and said, "There is a group of bandits in this location. Their flag is 'Water'. Because their leader's name is Kang Shui. Kang Shui's family was originally a wealthy local family. He has read some books since he was a child and has also practiced martial arts since he was a child. It is said that Kang Shui is skilled in archery and horse riding, and his martial arts are not weak. He is even familiar with military books. Many people say that he is both civil and military. When he was a child, he was even known as a child prodigy. Later, the Xu family colluded with the government to seize their land. Then they lent them usurious loans. In the end, Kang Shui's parents were forced to death because they could not repay the money. So In a rage, he went up the mountain and became a bandit. Many farmers oppressed by the Xu family followed him into the banditry. For a time, they were causing great trouble in Longguan, and it was during this time that Li Deguang's security group was formed. But Kang Shui was a very principled person. His troops did not kidnap people, did not plunder the countryside, and never took women. Previously, they had always been against the landlords who had caused public discontent in the area, mainly robbing them to maintain their power. Since the arrival of the Japanese, their group has begun to attack the Japanese logistics. The Japanese army organized self-defense groups to encircle and suppress this person several times, but they were unsuccessful.

“It’s legendary.”

Xiahou Wen nodded.

Then he said: “This Kangshui has principles and national integrity.

The most commendable thing is that even though he went up the mountain, he didn't degenerate into a real bandit. This kind of person is the friend we need."

"But this person also has some problems."

"What's wrong?"

"I heard that when this man decided to go up the mountain and become a bandit, he burned all the books in his home and said he would never read again in his life. He later became unruly and unkempt. When he walked on the street, everyone thought he was a gangster. Once, they broke into Zhonggu Village. A well-known local scholar came to see him. He actually lay on the ground and asked the man to stand to talk. The old scholar was so angry that he stormed out. He went out and told everyone he met that Kangshui was 'not a human being.'"

"Hahaha."

Xiahou Wen laughed out loud.

Then he asked, "How old is Kang Shui this year?"

"Twenty-five. He went up the mountain when he was seventeen, so it's been eight years now."

"Twenty-five, twenty-five. Comrade Yuanming, do you have any connections to contact Kangshui?"

"The captain wants to see him?"

"Yes. I want to talk to him. We should unite with armed forces like his. Only when there are more and more teams fighting the Japanese can we kill more Japanese."

"That's no problem."

Zhou Yuanming nodded and said, "He's a local. Although he's up the mountain, he still has connections with the people down there. I can find someone to protect him."

"that would be great."

"There are many bandits in the Longguan area, including many horse bandits. However, most of them are desperate robbers who do all kinds of evil. It is best not to deal with such people, as they will ruin our reputation. However, there are a few bandits with good reputations. Among these bandits, Kang Shui has the best reputation. His team is not large, with only about a hundred people. But he has successfully attacked the Japanese convoys several times, and the Japanese have failed to encircle and suppress them several times, so everyone admires him very much. Even those bandits who do all kinds of evil dare not mess with Kang Shui. Because Kang Shui's troops can fight. If the regiment commander can really persuade Kang Shui to join the New Third Regiment, many people in the outlaws will choose to join us."

Chapter 156 Conquering Kang Shui

A vigorous operation to eliminate traitor organizations and traitor armed forces was carried out in Longguan.

The troops of the New Third Regiment launched a mighty attack.

Specialized to crack down on these traitorous organizations and Hanhao armed forces. Without the presence of the Japanese troops, without the support of the county's self-defense corps and police brigade, those scattered township police, as well as some landlord armed forces, including the lackeys of the rural security chiefs, were no match for these troops.

It was a complete sweep across Longguan.

Where there is oppression, there is resistance. This has been a truth since ancient times.

This is especially true in a small-scale peasant economy like China. China is still an agricultural nation, especially in the vast rural areas far from major cities. Agricultural nations are characterized by slow growth in wealth, and overall, agricultural societies experience little fluctuation in overall wealth.

In the past, when there were government officials and landlords, there was already a lot of oppression.

After the Japanese army arrived, the Japanese army was here, and the various traitor organizations supported by the Japanese army were here, and so many traitor armed forces had to be maintained. It is impossible for all these organizations and armies to be supported by Japan.

Japan's occupation of China was not for its own spending. It came to China to plunder China's resources. Therefore, so many puppet regime personnel and traitorous armed forces were definitely not paid by Japan.

Where does the money come from?

Of course, we have to raise money locally.

A piece of cake, divided among many, leaves less for the local people. This is blatant oppression, and how could they not feel resentment? Especially when they see those traitors acting tyrannically, their hatred for them increases even more.

It's just that these people are dissatisfied, but they dare not speak out. Even a powerful person like Zhou Yuanming dare not act rashly because of the enemy's strength, let alone those unarmed people.

But this does not mean that they have no thoughts of resistance.

Now, seeing that these traitorous organizations and armed forces were being swept away, the more courageous young people began to inquire about the situation of this unit. Some even expressed their desire to join the army.

"So far, we have taken down eight pseudo-township offices, four strongholds, and twelve police sub-stations, and destroyed the baojia system in over a hundred villages. Those baojias composed of ruffians and scoundrels with blood debts have been killed by us. We have seized 175 Hanyang rifles, 16 pistols, 17 horses, over 37000 silver dollars, and over 4000 kilograms of grain. Many young people have enthusiastically signed up to join the army."

Zhou Yuanming reported to Xiahou Wenhui.

Xiahou Wen nodded repeatedly.

This move essentially destroyed the pseudo-government organizations established by the Japanese army in Longguan. A large number of traitors, both large and small, who were affiliated with the Japanese army were also dealt with. This laid the foundation for the Japanese army's rule over Longguan.

"By the way, Kang Shui wants to see you."