kingnovel Chapter 592: Command of the Air Force in Pujiang
Chapter 592: Command of the Air Force in Pujiang
Li Shaoyi also heard what Deputy Minister Wu said tactfully, that is, the air force stationed in Pujiang by Li Shaoyi, like the navy stationed in Pujiang, must accept dual leadership.
It was both Li Shaoyi's army and the National Government's army. The Central Navy could mobilize warships in Pujiang, and the Central Air Force could also mobilize the air force in Pujiang.
"Is this really that difficult? I heard that when you faced Commander Chen, you immediately gave in, saying that Commander Chen could mobilize the navy, but now the air force can't?"
Minister He saw that Li Shaoyi had not given in and said with some confusion.
Li Shaoyi admired this air force because during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the combat loss ratio of the pilots of this air force was over 90%, and all of them were from wealthy families. These people were willing to risk their lives for the country. Why wouldn't Li Shaoyi be unwilling to cooperate with them?
However, some of the Air Force's top brass were not so good. These people were only interested in profit and resorted to trickery in ordering aircraft, which resulted in insufficient strength for our country's war of resistance. In this situation, Li Shaoyi handed over the command to them...
"Minister He, you heard something, but you shouldn't just hear the first part. You should hear the whole thing. I promised Commander Chen that he could mobilize the navy, but I have an additional condition. The mobilization of the navy must be for the country, for the people, for the entire Chinese nation."
Li Shaoyi's voice was not loud, but everyone present heard it. Compared with the top leaders of the Air Force and the Navy, the top leaders were indeed not as open-minded as those of Commander-in-Chief Chen. Although there were some incompetent people among the top leaders of the Navy, the main power lay in the hands of Commander-in-Chief Chen, who was able to make the decision, so he dared to make this promise.
Would the Air Force dare to make such a promise? No one in the Air Force dared to discuss this directly with Li Shaoyi, instead sending Minister He and Vice Minister Wu to speak about it. If they were truly being honest, wouldn't they even dare to mention it in person?
"I'm telling you what I'm saying. The three armed forces led by our Nationalist government all serve the country and the people."
When Vice Minister Wu saw this situation, he was about to freeze and quickly raised his glass.
Li Shaoyi smiled along and didn't say anything, but he also drank the wine in the glass.
When I was studying, I always felt that there were many passionate people in this era, but many things could not be accomplished. Now I understand what is going on. You are running hard in the front alone, and you don’t know how many people are pulling you from behind. It would be strange if you can run fast.
"Let's be frank. I don't like wasting time. I can allow the Ministry of Military Affairs to transfer the air force in Pujiang. As long as you two ministers sign and it doesn't harm national interests, it's fine."
Li Shaoyi knew that he had to leave a message today, otherwise it would be difficult for these two to report back. Recently, these two had helped a lot in expanding the army, and he had to give them the face they deserved.
"You've really screwed us both."
After hearing Li Shaoyi's words, Minister He did not fall down, but instead swallowed a glass of bitter wine.
There are rumors within the party and the country that Minister He and Deputy Minister Wu have already started investing in Li Shaoyi. Other factions within the party and the country have spread this news everywhere. If Li Shaoyi makes this promise again and spreads it in a substantive way, then the rumor will become true.
"I'm not trying to trick you. I trust you two. You won't let my Air Force do anything that would harm the country. I can entrust the Navy ships to Commander-in-Chief Chen, and I can also entrust the Air Force planes to you two. I said this today, and I will say the same thing tomorrow at the Supreme Military Conference."
Li Shaoyi's meaning was very clear. What I said could not be changed. If you still want to move forward, then we can only part ways. Giving up Pujiang is impossible. But Li Shaoyi also dared to bet that the Nanjing National Government was not willing to let Pujiang become what it was before.
In Pujiang today, Li Shaoyi has gained the most, but the Nanjing National Government has also gained much more power than before. If things were to go back to the way they were before, if the various government departments wanted to do something in the two concessions, they would have to ask for help from underworld figures like Mr. Du. Although it is just a matter of a word, it still feels like the government's authority has declined a lot.
"Thank you for your trust in us two old guys, but this matter is still difficult to answer. Let's talk about it after the report is made."
Deputy Minister Wu picked up the wine jug somewhat helplessly and poured a glass of wine for Li Shaoyi. When they were young, they were both as passionate as Li Shaoyi, but in the long course of history, such thoughts of the two gradually became less and less, and their edges had long been worn away.
"As for your troops in the north, the Ministry of Military Affairs has agreed to establish the 72nd Army. Each unit will be expanded from a brigade to a division without increasing its manpower."
They also knew that Li Shaoyi would be returning to the north soon, and everything that needed to be discussed had to be discussed all at once.
"So that means you didn't give me anything except a new name?"
Li Shaoyi was almost crying with anger. The 720th Division became the 72nd Army, but there was no substantial benefit at all.
"If you say so, you have no conscience at all. Although the Ministry of Military Affairs has been on high alert, your expansion in the north is a tacit knowledge among us. If you add up all your troops, you know better than us how many there are. Now that you have been promoted to Lieutenant General, if you continue to expand according to the original 72nd Division, you will have at least 1.5 million troops under your command."
Deputy Minister Wu knocked on the table with chopsticks, and Li Shaoyi no longer lost his temper when he heard this.
Now an infantry brigade has more than 40,000 people, and the entire 72nd Division has more than 100,000 or 200,000 regular combat troops alone, not to mention the surrounding security groups. If the 72nd Army had several such infantry divisions under it, a million and a half troops would be no joke.
"Okay, okay, okay. My brigade commander has 30,000 to 40,000 troops under him, which is indeed a bit outrageous. But what about the island city..."
"You don't need to explain much about the island city. In addition to the approval last time, the 9th Infantry Division of the Central Army and part of the troops from Shandong Province will arrive in the island city in the near future to garrison with you."
The importance of the island city is self-evident, and the Party and the country will never allow Li Shaoyi to be stationed in the island city alone...