Chapter 23: Mountain City

  Chairman's Official Residence

  As soon as I and Yunyan stepped into the main hall of the government office, Qian Dajun and Chen Bulei came out to greet us. After a brief greeting from Chen Bulei, Qian Dajun dragged me away without even exchanging pleasantries, leaving Yunyan bewildered and going to the backyard to find Sanjie.

  "What's wrong? Why are you two directors so anxious?"

  "Something's gone wrong! Hu Zongnan has made a big mistake in the Northwest! The Chairman just had a huge fit of rage in his office, and now his wife is trying to calm him down; help out, Zi'an!"

  "How did things turn out like this? I don't know! It's better for you to persuade the lady, Cloud Goose is more effective than me!"

  "Alright, let's hurry up and discuss this among ourselves in Team 2 first."

  We stepped in quickly and I laughed saying: "Entering 'White Tiger Hall' again!"

  Qian Dajun was crying and laughing: "At this time, Zisan still has the heart to make jokes? Quick! This is a sequence list! This is a brief combat action of these days, look at the map quickly."

  Commander-in-Chief of the First Route Army Zhu Shaoliang

  The First Column had jurisdiction over 7 divisions with 2 regiments each, 12 divisions with 2 regiments each and 25 divisions with 2 regiments each.

  The Second Column Hu Zongnan commanded 1 Division with 2 brigades, the 78th Division with 2 brigades, the 43rd Division with 3 regiments and the 97th Division with 3 regiments.

  The Third Column under Ma Hongbin's jurisdiction had 2 regiments of the 35th Division

  Second Corps Intelligence Summary for November

  At 2:00 pm, the second column reported and requested supplies of grain and fodder.

  At 3:00 pm, the second column again reported a request for urgent food supplies.

  On the 16th, Chairman ordered Hu Zongnan to rapidly advance eastward to Dingbian and Yanchi line to occupy favorable terrain and wait for supplies.

  On the 17th, the second column divided into three routes to advance. The left route, the 1st Division's 1st Brigade, advanced from Hui'anbao in the east; the central route, the 1st Division's 2nd Brigade, advanced towards Yinccheng and Tian Shui Bao; the right route, the 78th Division, advanced from Tianjiayuan. The 43rd and 97th Divisions formed the second echelon, advancing to the Yuwang area to cover the main force's flank and rear.

  Yesterday, our central troops encountered a counterattack from the enemy's 4th Route Army and suffered over 600 casualties, including the regiment commander. We were forced to hold out and wait for reinforcements.

  At 19:00, the second column reported that the 1st Division's 2nd Brigade had been ordered to withdraw to Yuwang for rest and reorganization. The central route was reassigned to the 43rd Division, which has begun advancing towards Baoniu Fortress. The Chairman of the Committee instructed caution.

  On the 20th, the Second Column reported that the 1st Brigade of the 1st Division on the left route had occupied Hongjingzi, and the 97th Division followed up to occupy Dashuikeng; The middle route 43rd Division advanced smoothly; The right route 78th Division has occupied Fengtaibao, Xiaotai Village, Shanchengbao line.

  "Mountain stronghold!" I suddenly thought, haha, Hu Zongnan is going to be in trouble! Indeed.

  At 10:00 on the 21st, the second column battle report, yesterday the 78th division sent out a search party along the mountain castle to Hongde city road southward, encountered enemy attack at Bali Pu, the vanguard company lost more than half, and the remaining troops retreated.

  At 2:14 pm on the 21st, the second column sounded the alarm. The enemy's main force launched a fierce attack on our 78th Division from the southeast and north with an absolute advantage in troops.

  At 15:00 on the 21st, the 78th Division directly reported to headquarters that enemy forces from the 1st and 4th Route Armies had been discovered in the surrounding area, with two army corps from each route army attacking fiercely. Our division has lost most of its outer defensive positions and is now preparing to defend the mountain fortress with its main force, while another unit defends the advantageous terrain in the north, awaiting reinforcements.

  At 15:00 on the 21st, the Second Column reported that the 43rd Division had been ordered to change direction and head south for rescue.

  I took a look at the watch, now it's 3:47 pm. I sighed and smiled bitterly: "Director Qian, I'm afraid the situation is already difficult to reverse. If the 78th Division breaks out now, it may still be possible to save half of the men. But if we hold our ground, the entire division will hardly survive, and even the 43rd Division might be dragged down with us."

  "Zi'an, speak your reason!"

  Old Chiang walked in with a stride, and indeed his face was rosy and the country's fortune was prosperous! Hehe! I secretly smiled to myself.

  "Yes, Comrade Chairman. The 78th Division's occupation of Shanchengbao was originally a temporary stop during their advance, and this unit has been fighting on the front lines without time to learn or train in 'Field Fortification Construction Methods', so they wouldn't have had any decent fortifications for the troops to hold; and Shanchengbao is just a small fortified town left over from the cold weapon era, which cannot provide the necessary fortifications for tens of thousands of modern troops to hold. Moreover, there is a lack of water sources in the area, and the surrounding mountains are mostly rocky and barren; the enemy attacking us is the elite of the 1st and 4th Armies, with as many as four armies, equivalent to more than two adjusted divisions, and now it's almost dusk, if the 78th Division holds out, they will definitely not see tomorrow. The last point is that the rest of the Second Column's troops are too far away, and the 43rd Division that might arrive in time is only a small division with three regiments, which may not be able to defeat an enemy army in a field battle, and relying solely on them would be impossible to break through."

  "What about the breakout?"

  "The enemy attacked from three sides, and there was already a gap in the defense. It is clear that they intended to surround and annihilate our army by attacking from three sides and leaving one side open. Moreover, the surrounding mountains are rugged, and the 78th Division still holds the northern mountain fortress. Abandoning the baggage and relying on the northern mountains to break through the encirclement, although losses may be significant, it will not lead to the complete destruction of our army."

  "Alright, order them to break through!" Old Chiang thought for a moment and turned around to leave, leaving behind the words: "Tell the 43rd Division to be careful, after meeting up with the 78th Division that broke through, immediately move towards the main force. Zi An, come with me."

  "Yes!"

  Just as he was about to enter the Chairman's office, a guard cautiously said: "Chairman, it hasn't been cleaned up yet."

  I thought Old Chiang would lose his temper again, but apparently he had adjusted his mentality and said nothing, turning to walk into another room next door. There was only Chen Bulei in the house. Old Chiang stopped Bulei and let everyone sit down before speaking calmly: "Zi'an! You've just read the intelligence summary, help summarize it."

  "Yes. Faced with the enemy's three main forces converging, it poses a substantial threat to our army's division and below units acting alone. Our army can only enter the northwest region in poor conditions with corps-level units. In this operation, Commander Hu's decision to divide his troops is a big taboo, especially when his own supplies are severely insufficient. The three routes advanced separately, and the middle route was counterattacked by the enemy, further increasing the distance between the other two routes. Moreover, the reserve troops were used to replace the middle route army, causing the left and right wings to lose actual contact. As a result, when the right route army encountered the enemy's main force attack, except for the 43rd division, the rest of the troops could not provide support within 2-3 days, forming an isolated and besieged situation."

  "The troops did not learn the 'Field Fortification Construction Method' in the wilderness is also an aspect!"

  "The chairman said that if there is a solid field position, even if the enemy breaks through the outer perimeter, our army can still hold on to the solid position and wait for reinforcements."

  "General Order: The entire army must hasten to study and train in this 'Field Fortification Method'! It will be included in the mid-year assessment next year!"

  "Yes."

  "Hmm, a few months ago when you said 'Zong Nan's military strategy is far better than fighting', I didn't believe it, but now I think it's indeed true! No wonder Lin Xing wrote in his memorial: 'The enemy's movement is unstable and their strength has not yet gathered, we should take advantage of the enemy's weakness and launch a swift attack to defeat them.' He asked Zong Nan to send troops, but Zong Nan said he wanted to observe first; after the enemy's situation stabilized and their strength had gathered, it was no longer possible to take risks lightly, and they should advance steadily. Zong Nan then asked him to send troops, but he refused, so Zong Nan divided his army and advanced recklessly!"

  "Everyone has their own strengths, and the key is to play a suitable role in a suitable place; Zongnan is the chairman's trusted general, and he still has his strong points, it's just that he lacks a bit in commanding battles."

  "Hmm, let Zhong Nan practice more from now on!"

  Got it! The great King Hu might be overthrown before he even starts his reign!

  Song Gongguan

  A beauty in my arms, warm and gentle; I am half asleep and half awake.

  "Get up!" Someone shouted loudly!

  "What?"

  "Ah!"

  I saw Yun Yan hiding in the quilt and didn't dare to show his head, I finally recognized that there was a neatly dressed Li Jing standing by the bed!!!

  "What's wrong with you?"

  "What's wrong? Didn't you say you had to be at the government office at 10 o'clock today? It's already 9 o'clock! Hurry up and get out of bed!" She turned around and left after saying that.

  We hastily got up, washed and dressed, and then hurriedly ate a few mouthfuls before rushing to the government office.

  The sedan sped all the way to the government office, "Lijin, when did you become a senior captain?"

  "I was originally a captain and an aide-de-camp."

  I sneered: "Li Jing, is this how your servants' quarters are trained to call me, the third sister, to get up?"

  "Get out!"

  The elder brother's special car was very arrogant in the midst of Li Jing's waving hands, and rushed into the government office under the gaze of many officials. However, things didn't go well afterwards. Qian Dajun handed over a report, "This is just received, last night the 78th division broke through the encirclement process, most of the troops were defeated by the enemy, heavy weapons and equipment were basically lost, fortunately personnel losses are not many."

  "How much?"

  "Nearly two thousand have yet to return."

  "It's okay!"

  Qian Daquan then told me another big news: "The Chairman has demoted Hu Zongnan!"

  "Unbelievable? Just over 2,000 losses?"

  "It's far from over, now I know that during this period the First Army had a large number of non-combat casualties in the northwest campaign, with at least over 5,000! Also lost a large amount of weapons and equipment! The Chairman was furious, and in a fit of rage demoted Hu Zongnan back to his old position as commander of the 1st Division; now the First Army is led by Old General Chen Jicheng again."

  The meeting is starting!

  Another confusing meeting, Old Jiang's sleep-inducing speech, the big shots' frantic applause, made me drowsy, almost fell onto the stenographer's body, hehe!

  But just before it was over, Old Chiang let out a loud shout that woke me up!

  "I have decided to go to Xi'an personally to direct the battle and vow to destroy the enemy army!"

  In the applause of the big men, Old Chiang turned back and added a sentence: "Zi An, come with me!"

  Xi'an? 36 years old? Now it's already November 22nd? Double Twelve? My body went soft, I really fell!