Chapter 15

  The big grey horse carried Colonel Gaitskell towards the Cossacks. He tore off his white gloves and thrust his hands into the hard wind, nobody could understand what he meant by putting his hands in the cold wind. In the wind, he grasped something harder and sharper than a war knife, it was an invisible knife. Colonel Gaitskell's hands jumped out of the waves like live fish.

  The vast desert is empty and desolate.

  When the ancient sea surges and splashes towards us, I plucked the dew of adoration.

  The war horses clashed, the two commanders' movements swift as lightning; Colonel Golovin didn't draw his battle sword, but instead pulled out a short dagger from his boot, which darted into his opponent's throat like a bird returning to its nest. The commander of the Don Cossack First Regiment stiffened on horseback, legs in stirrups, back straight, head flipped onto his shoulder, eyes wide and wet, rolling out vast waves. The Don Cossacks led their horses slowly past the riders, carrying the dead man. In the moment he clashed with Colonel Golovin, the deceased had switched his sword to his left hand and attacked from the left side. This was a trick of the Cossacks: attacking with the right hand, then suddenly turning to the opponent's left side when the horses crossed, often catching their opponents off guard and striking them down under their horses.

  The two sides of cavalrymen quickly approached each other, the horses' hooves thundered, blades clashed, and many riders fell. The warhorses dragged them away into the depths of the sunlight. After a dozen rounds, most of the Cossacks fell to the ground, some fell on the stirrups and were dragged by the warhorses as they ran, like peasants plowing the land.

  The 36th Division's main force withdrew from the battlefield, leaving the 114th Brigade to deal with the remaining enemy. The 114th Brigade was made up entirely of new recruits, and after several charges, more than half of them were killed or wounded. Commander He continued to issue attack orders. The Cossack soldiers abandoned their long formation and fought desperately around the military flag. The 114th Brigade had only a few hundred men left, and the brigade commander threw away his sword, shouting the lyrics of "Hezhou Flower" without music, and charged forward with his bare hands. The cavalrymen behind him also threw away their swords and launched a fierce attack on the last defensive line of the Don Cossack First Division. They hid under the horses' bellies and used the knives in their boots to stab the enemy's throats. The Cossacks sang an ancient war song in low, mournful tones: Our glorious land is not plowed with a plow... Our land is plowed with horse hooves Glorious land, where Cossack heads are sown... The quiet Don River is adorned with young widows Everywhere are orphans Quiet Don, our fathers' and mothers' tears flow with your waves... Around the military flag of the First Cavalry Division lay more than 7,000 Cossack soldiers. Two heavily wounded Cossacks crawled to the radio station, and Chief of Staff Wu Yingji raised his gun to shoot them, but Commander He ordered him to stop. The chief of staff said, "They are asking for help, reinforcements will arrive soon." Commander He said, "We have defeated the Northwestern Army, what can the Cossacks do?" Commander He ordered Deputy Division Commander Ma Huishan to lead two brigades to clean up the Soviet reinforcements and himself led the main force towards Di Hua.

  The reinforcements have arrived, an entire armored division, covered by fifty aircraft, charging towards the 36th Division.

  The riders dismounted and fought on the mountain. The tanks lined up at the foot of the mountain, firing cannons upwards, bombers dropped bombs from low altitude, the riders were shattered along with the rocks, and their war horses carried their souls into the heavenly mountains.

  Ma Hu Shan was heavily bombed, and the officers and soldiers desperately resisted. The Soviet armored forces were blocked on the dry riverbed. The 36th Division's officers and men, loaded with explosives and hand grenades, crawled out of the snow piles and reed thickets, and rushed towards the tanks and armored vehicles. Armored vehicles could be destroyed at once, but tanks remained motionless, sometimes being blown up, this massive object spewing black smoke like a toad, and then continuing to attack. The officers and men of the 36th Division were like hunting dogs, several people surrounding a tank, climbing up, opening the cover and jumping in, with a dull roar, the tank turned into a soft persimmon.

  "Smash the egg and let out the yellow water, tank, crush you! Crush you!"

  Rì tà: Northwestern dialect, meaning "to eliminate" or "to annihilate".

  The riders, like they've encountered women, those plump Russian pregnant women, suddenly stir up their masculine power, and with a burst of bombs, they're going to make it glorious! They'll stuff you with hair and meat, the whole person will be stuffed into you, and you'll be trampled. Tanks are just like women, how can they withstand the torture of these sons? Pfft, they'll become a pile of soft mud.

  The proud Russian soldiers could not bear such humiliation. As night fell, more than 600 Soviet soldiers loaded with explosives and machine guns went on a desperate raid. Comrade Political Commissar used Stalin to encourage them, the soldiers were excited like wild horses, they came from Kursk, Ryazan, and the black earth, they were not Cossacks, the Cossack cavalry had been cut down on the dry riverbed of the Head River. Ancient Russia cannot suffer any defeat. A lieutenant couldn't help but sing the old Russian song "The Lay of Igor's Campaign": The whirlwind is coming with dark clouds God shows Igor the way - back to the Russian homeland, escape from the Polovtsian steppes.

  The night is deep, pitch black.

  Igor darted through the reeds like a white ferret, floated to the surface of the water like a wild duck, and ran like a wolf... Six hundred brave warriors crossed the Touyun River and never came back, without even a sound. The commander and commissar completely abandoned any plan for a surprise attack, and not even tanks or armored vehicles were deployed.

  After daybreak, the tanks lined up in a row and fired simultaneously. The planes flew by leisurely to conduct low-altitude strafing and bombing. The brave warriors of the 36th Division, loaded with explosives, cursed loudly on the ground.

  "Whore, come down! You're flirting in heaven, you're teasing flowers in heaven, you're not even as good as a whore, can't take it anymore, get out of here!"

  Machine gun shattered the warrior's skull, mouth and tongue fell to the ground, mouth and tongue still scolding.

  "Whore, come down! You fly your chicken, you fly your mother's leg. You lose your Russian ancestors."

  The ground was stained red with blood, and soon turned black under the scorching fire, emitting a burnt smell.

  The most intense moment of the Toutun River Battle, Sheng Shicai's troops were stunned to see the cavalry and aircraft tanks armored vehicles fighting, performing the most tragic scene in the 20th century war history; the cold light of the war knife flashed, the rider was hit by artillery fire, fell off the horse, and the war knife flew through the air screaming.

  In the city of Dihua, there was a red mountain like a flame. The defenders of Dihua all climbed up to the Red Mountain and looked out at the Hutou River with binoculars and the naked eye. War horses and planes and tanks fought bloody battles for two days and two nights, from dawn till dusk. The sun's blood stained the great desert red, but still no Soviet infantry or cavalry came into view.

  The Northeast Volunteer Army on the Red Hill mouth clenched their fists, this was their second time witnessing the wonders of war. On the night of September 18th, 1931, Japanese troops launched a surprise attack on Beidaying, Shenyang, and the Kwantung Army's dare-to-die corps had just charged in when they encountered the Beidaying patrol team, both sides immediately opened fire, and a large number fell down, the Kwantung Army began to retreat, bullets don't believe in Bushido. The garrison at Beidaying repeatedly reported to Zhang Xueliang, who was far away in Beiping, Zhang Xueliang ordered not to resist, the brigade commander Wang Yizhe shouted into the phone: "Deputy Commander, both sides have opened fire, all of Beidaying are our brothers-in-arms!"

  "Lock up your guns and hand them over to the officer."

  Wang Yizhe received intelligence from his Japanese friends two days ago that the Kwantung Army would attack Shenyang on the night of September 18. When Wang reported this to Zhang Xueliang, he was severely reprimanded. Unable to withstand the deputy commander's scolding, Young Marshal's orders were sent to the Beidaying barracks and executed with great care. The world's most advanced weapons imported from Germany and Italy were quickly put away, locked in warehouses, and shown to the other side and the whole world as a demonstration of the sincerity and kindness of Chinese soldiers. The fierce Northeastern Han people transformed from wolves to sheep in an instant, unarmed, blowing horns to wake up.

  The Kwantung Army woke up from the fear of artillery fire, and now they can calmly and unhurriedly follow the army's drill manual. First, they fired their rifles in a sweeping motion, then charged with bayonets, testing their skills in field combat training. Some Northeastern Army barracks were still waking up because everyone had received orders to put away their knives and guns, thinking that peace had been restored, and they could sleep for a while longer. However, the distant cries of alarm made them suspicious, and the air was filled with an atmosphere of extreme terror. The sun beat down on their faces, making them sweat profusely, and everyone's hands and feet were not very nimble. Without their knives and guns, the soldiers seemed lifeless. Japanese soldiers grew bolder, shouting "Banzai!" as they charged in, stabbing anyone they saw. In a brief charge, hundreds of Northeastern Army soldiers were impaled on bayonets. The officers were ecstatic, swinging their curved swords and chopping down people like snowmen, advancing in a bloody path. The ground was slick with blood, causing the soldiers' boots to slip, even those with hobnails. The thick, sticky blood made it difficult for the warriors to advance proudly, making them furious, and they grew more ruthless with each chop of their swords.

  The 500,000 well-equipped Northeastern Army was defeated and did not listen to Deputy Commander Zhang. The hot-blooded men followed Ma Zhanshan in a fierce battle against the Japanese army's Tieno Division at Jiangqiao, fighting for an entire month, with the Tieno Division suffering heavy losses. Two divisions from Korea joined the battle, but Ma Zhanshan's isolated army could not resist and retreated to Manzhouli, laying down their arms according to international convention and seeking refuge in a third country. The Soviet border guards paid their respects to Ma Zhanshan and his volunteer army with the highest military honors, followed by a long march from Siberia to Central Asia, where tens of thousands of volunteer soldiers trekked through the snowy wilderness for eight months, burying many weak lives along the way. Upon returning to Xinjiang, they were greeted by their old friend Sheng Shicai, who was waiting for them. They took up arms again and marched eastward. Sheng Shicai had strict discipline, clear commands, and fair rewards and punishments, unlike Zhang Zuolin, who indulged in wine, women, and opium. Everyone felt a deep sense of regret, thinking that if Sheng Shicai had defended the Northeast, Japan would have been defeated. The Northeastern men's blood boiled with excitement. The 36th Division facing them was even more impressive, not at all like the rumored evil spirits. Rumors and hearsay spread rapidly among the people of Xinjiang, striking fear into their hearts. However, the 36th Division that entered Eastern Xinjiang had excellent military discipline, making one wonder if Zuo Zongtang's Xiang Army had arrived. The old folks still remembered the Xiang Army's bravery in battle and its strict adherence to military law, never harassing civilians. The 36th Division was a new force to be reckoned with, invincible and unstoppable. A whole division of Red Cossacks lay dead at Toutun River, and the Red Army could only launch air and tank attacks.

  East of Jiayuguan, Xinjiang people refer to inland areas as "Kouli".

  The old Northeast soldier on Red Mountain said, "Even the little devils didn't have it this bad, at most they'd send a few small planes and armored vehicles, but the ones charging forward were still live people, how come the Soviets don't even show their faces?"

  "Little noses and big noses are all bullying us Chinese people, let's rush down to help the 36th Division."

  The Northeast veterans stood up in a large area, the outer circle was all Sheng Duoban's military school students, and the military school students were an iron-clad team.

  "What's going on, what's going on, want to revolt? This is Xinjiang, not your Northeast, you can't make trouble here."

  The officers persuaded the Northeastern old soldiers: "In the border areas, listening to the superiors is not wrong. Sheng Daban has his own reasons for doing so. Sheng Daban is not a non-resistant general. Don't think that Ma Zhongying is a hero, Sheng Daban is also a hero. You just arrived and don't understand this, you will slowly understand." The military officer of Sheng Daban had an absolutely high theoretical level, he grasped the intention of his superiors very well.

  "We lost the Northeast, and then we lost the Great Northwest. How will the people of the whole country look at us? Ma Zhongying is a hero, Ma Zhongying is Xiang Yu, our Sheng Daban is just Emperor Gaozu Liu Bang. A gentleman competes with wisdom, not bravery."

  Everyone's passion slowly cooled down, standing on Hongshan Zui watching from the sidelines.

  The emotions of the subordinates and the people are very clear, let alone he is only temporarily in charge, and the Nanjing National Government has not officially appointed him yet. Ma Zhongying's 36th Division and the Ili Eighth Army are national armies, and the national army's fierce battle with the Soviet army is to defend the country's sovereignty. Sheng Shicai immediately organized a large delegation of negotiators, including all ethnic groups and classes. The main force of the 36th Division fought fiercely against the Soviet army in Toutunhe, while another cavalry brigade remotely controlled Dihua City.

  Ma Zhongying met with the representatives of the peace talks in the midst of war, his division's special operations battalion arrived on horseback, their military demeanor was stern and imposing, the representatives were secretly shocked, the 36th Division's morale had not diminished in the slightest. Ma Zhongying spoke eloquently and forcefully, while fiddling with a Soviet-made machine gun, he told the representatives: "Go tell Sheng Shicai to surrender the city unconditionally, as for the terms, I will decide them myself, all troops will be under my command, and I might consider letting him be the provincial chairman. He cannot be the border defense supervisor, being the border defense supervisor means having control over the army, he should learn from Jin Shuren and become the provincial chairman instead."

  Ma Zhongying was very hospitable and treated everyone with Soviet canned goods and biscuits, and even brought two tubes of Soviet biscuits for Sheng Shicai.

  Sheng Shicai's face twitched with rage as soon as he received Ma Zhongying's gift, and when he heard Ma's terms for peace talks, he burst out laughing. "Either call him the commander-in-chief, his conditions are worth considering." His subordinates were anxious, "Handing over military power is the end of it all." "Political power is everything," they thought to themselves. From Chiang Kai-shek to various warlords, who didn't grasp for military power? Sheng Shicai smiled faintly: "Carry out the orders. You will understand later." "What about what we say to outsiders?"

  "So be it, let's make a big show of it and let everyone know."

  The contents of the negotiations spread throughout Dihua City. No one doubted Sheng Shicai's sincerity. Ma Zhongying felt unexpected, and his subordinates did not believe that Sheng Shicai would be so quick to agree. "He is an old fox, can he satisfy a provincial chairman?"

  The staff members were experienced and knowledgeable, they were engaged in underground activities such as riots and military operations, always targeting the army. Including overseas students like Wu Yingqi, they couldn't see through Sheng Shicai's true intentions either. The Di Hua side was very sincere, asking the 36th Division to send someone to Di Hua for specific negotiations.

  Chief of Staff Wu Yingqi and Director of the Political Department Yang Boqing represented Ma Zhongying to enter Dihua City. There were two senior Soviet military officers in the conference room, and the Soviet Consul General in Dihua was also present. Sheng Shicai could not bear the mocking eyes of Yang Boqing and Wu Yingqi, so he coughed twice and said: "Sheng has been yearning for socialism since his studies in Japan, determined to overthrow the warlords and eliminate dark forces. The Soviet Union is the headquarters of socialist revolution, and it must have the help of Soviet comrades to make a revolution in Xinjiang."

  Yang Boqing said: "Is there such help? You are not even as good as Jin Shuren, who knew not to rely on foreign forces when he stepped down."

  "Jin Shuren is a reactionary warlord, I am a revolutionary, let the proletariat of the whole world unite."

  Sheng Shi recited many socialist slogans in one breath. Yang Boqing smiled, "Our 36th Division wrote such slogans all over the four county towns of Su Zhou."

  "The 36th Division is the Nationalist Party's army."

  "It was organized by the National Government, but it is an armed force of the people in the northwest, and all the political workers are communists. You didn't expect that, did you?"

  What Sheng Shicai did not expect was that Wu Yingqi could speak Russian, and Wu Yingqi directly communicated with the Soviet consul and military officers. No one knew what they were talking about, and Yang Boqing couldn't understand either. Sheng Shicai's heart was very tense, his face pale.

  The secretary understood Russian, and during the break, the secretary told Sheng Shi-tsai in detail: Wu Yingqi's main purpose was to tell the Soviet side that Ma Zhongying was a revolutionary, and the 36th Division was friendly to the Soviet Union. When attacking Dihua, the 36th Division had sent a small team to the border of Tacheng to contact the Soviet border defense army. "What attitude does the Soviet side have?" Sheng Shi-tsai was most concerned about this. The secretary let the supervisor put his mind at ease, saying that the Soviet military was extremely angry about the defeat of the Cossack cavalry division and would definitely eliminate the 36th Division, not leaving a single one. The blood of the Red Army could not be shed in vain. "Supervisor, you can rest assured, even if the 36th Division is completely eliminated, it's useless. The Soviet Union wants the 36th Division to withdraw from the battlefield and retreat 50 kilometers. Wu Yingqi wants the Soviet army to withdraw first and withdraw from the national border."

  "Did you hear clearly?" "Not a bit wrong, I heard it loud and clear."

  The prosperous world is too tense, and when he returned home, he was still frowning. His wife, Qiu Yu Fang, asked: "The Soviet Union has sent troops, what are you worried about?"

  "Ma Zhongying actually wants the Soviet army to withdraw, is he crazy? The negotiation representative he sent had studied in the Soviet Union and was a *, on the one hand wanting to cooperate with the Soviet Union, but on the other hand asking the Soviet Union to withdraw its troops."

  "What would you do if you were Ma Zhongying?"

  "This is a rare opportunity, the liaison team they sent to Talu was intercepted by us, and they cannot contact the Soviet Union. Unexpectedly, the 36th Division has so many Communist Party members, and there are even Soviet international students, almost causing trouble."

  "They didn't come to an agreement after all."

  "I'm so anxious, I don't understand why Ma Zhongying gave up this opportunity."

  "What you're worried about now isn't Ma Zhongying, it's this delegate. This person is too dangerous, whatever you do, don't let him come into contact with the Soviets again."

  "They fell apart, and the Soviet army must eliminate the 36th Division."

  "You really believe in the Soviets? Now they're seeing red, but when they calm down, these Communist Party members will take action, and we'll be in trouble."

  Sheng Shicai immediately summoned the head of the police department and had Ma Zhongying's representative locked up without informing the Soviet advisers.

  "Now you can rest assured."

  Sheng Shi Cai's heart had just calmed down for a moment when it hung up again. The lady was angry, "What's wrong with you now? Are you going to eat this meal or not?"

  "I just don't understand why Ma Zhongying gave up a chance of success."

  "I know what you're thinking: it's better to fail with a bang than to succeed with a whimper, and be a hero who shakes the mountains and rivers!"

  "We came to the desert, isn't it just to be heroes?"

  "I liked you from the start because you had the heroic spirit of our Kanto people."

  "Am I being a bit of that now?"

  "More mature, more cunning and more sinister, my beloved husband. Ma Zhongying is an eagle on the grassland, you are a wolf in the wilderness, wolves are more suitable for the desert."

  "Thank you, madam, you always give me strength."

  "Mount your swift steed and go outside, the army needs you to boost morale."

  The provincial military officers and men on the top of Red Mountain were attracted by a sudden rainstorm-like sound of horseshoes, their commander rode a big white horse to rush up to the West Bridge, under which was the rolling waves of the Urumqi River, originating from the icy glaciers of Tian Shan. The roaring ice river and the sudden rainstorm-like sound of horseshoes immediately drew everyone's attention away from the battlefield of Toutun River. When Ma Zhongying besieged Dihua, his vanguard troops once entered the city, and had a fierce battle with the provincial military on the West Bridge, where the most elite military academy students were defeated, and the West Bridge was filled with Ma Zhongying's cavalry, cheering for victory rather than pursuing the victory.

  Attack west of Dihua Street, attack a little more, and the city of Dihua will be finished; no need for large troops, the vanguard search team of the 36th Division can take down Dihua. The provincial army is most aware of their danger, even the most capable officers have given up their resistance plans, the whole army collapsed, and escaped to the top of Hongshan Mountain. Everyone was stunned by the scene in front of them, their commander Sheng Shicai led a dozen guards to rush up to the west bridge like a storm, giving a fatal blow to the 36th Division cavalry who were celebrating wildly.

  The first to react was the Northeast Volunteer Army, a regiment of the Northeast Army rushed forward, chasing and beating, driving out a small group of cavalry from the 36th Division outside the city. Now everyone saw the West Bridge again, their officer riding a white horse, majestic and powerful, rushing onto the bridgehead. The scene composed of ice river, snow peak, and fine horses made everyone feel invigorated. The officer did not bring troops, only two guards behind him, galloping through the West Bridge to the suburbs like a strong wind. Everyone thought the officer was going to observe the enemy situation and prepare for a counterattack, but no one expected that it was the distant cannon fire that attracted their officer; the officer was more curious than they were, they could climb up the Red Mountain to enjoy the war spectacle, but the officer couldn't be so casual.

  The outskirts have no more troops from the 36th Division, and the White Horse Regiment has just withdrawn to join the battle at Toutun River. All signs indicate that the 36th Division is at its last stand. The Soviet army has been blocked at Toutun River for a week now, with bombs and artillery fire echoing across the land. Xing Shicai rode his horse to the top of Tian Shan Mountain, where the sounds of war suddenly turned into a visual spectacle. The Toutun River was not a river at all, but rather a mass of ice blocks and human flesh. It was an extremely cold winter in Central Asia, and despite the artillery fire, the snow and ice refused to melt. The hot blood of the brave warriors had all congealed on their bodies, shining brightly like rubies. What a strange scene it was - tanks and armored vehicles lined up along the western bank of the river, with thousands of cannons firing in unison yet not daring to launch a charge. Only the air force was active, with a large group of bombers repeatedly circling above and dropping bombs, firing machine guns. On the low hills, cavalrymen would occasionally emerge, as if popping out from cracks in the ground, holding machine guns on horseback and firing at the planes; the planes would suddenly soar into high altitude, and then a group of planes would surround the cavalryman from all sides, with the web of fire from the machine guns swallowing up both the man and his horse.

  Sheng Shicai and his guards were all stunned, Sheng Shicai almost blurted out: "They should build their positions in the Tian Shan Grand Canyon, and the planes and tanks will lose more than half of their effectiveness. Such a low mountain is simply a joke."

  When the language is dull and colorless, it means a huge unavoidable reality: The Battle of Toutun River pushed Ma Zhongying's military career to its peak. On top of Mount Tian, the cold wind was biting, and Sheng Shi suddenly broke out in a sweat.

  Back in Di Hua, the first thing Sheng Shi Cai did was to summon Wu Ying Qi. Sheng Shi Cai was very forthright, and the old fox's forthrightness always made people feel strange.

  "Does Mr. Sheng still have the interest to appreciate the wonders of war?"

  "Not talking about war, let's talk about Ma Zhongying, this person is too unbelievable."

  "Did it evoke Mr. Sheng's fond memories?"

  "What a wonderful memory!"

  "Is Mr. Sheng entering Xinjiang from the Siberian Railway?"

  "This is the road, going to Xinjiang all take this road."

  "After Zuo Zongtang, very few people went to Xinjiang via the Silk Road anymore, this is the difference between Mr. Sheng and Ma Zhongying."

  "You're a graduate of the Kiev Military Academy, how could your 36th Division build its positions on the Toutun River, where there are low hills everywhere? By placing the battlefield in the Tian Shan Grand Canyon, aircraft and tanks would lose their effectiveness."

  "Mountain warfare would also render cavalry useless."

  "Do you want to attack?"

  "Soldiers must attack, even if facing planes and tanks."

  "The way of using troops must be flexible and mobile."

  "Aren't you being too flexible? If you were to personally arrive at the Toutun River battlefield, you wouldn't be saying this. The cavalry blocked the air force and tank troops on a dry riverbank, unable to move forward an inch. Is there such a precedent in world military history?"

  "I just came back from Toutun River."

  "It takes courage to go there. Let me tell you a more wonderful story, do you know how Ma Zhongying beheaded the commander of the Don Cossack Cavalry Regiment? Everyone was staring at how Ma Zhongying inserted his knife into the throat of the Cossack, but few people heard the sound coming from his mouth, a very solemn and tragic oath of life: When the ancient sea surges towards us, I plucked the dewdrop of love."

  A great era is called: "The ancient and vast ocean, are the Gobi Desert and the Taklamakan Desert the ocean?"

  "White mountains and black waters, the forest sea and snowy plains are also a great ocean."

  "Have you been to Northeast China?"

  "You forgot that I graduated from the Kiev Military Academy, took a train from Manzhouli, crossed Siberia, and the Lin Tao of the black land has been forever etched in my memory. Later, when I arrived in the Great Northwest, I saw the deep gorges and ravines of the Loess Plateau, without water, yet all with names related to water: One Bowl Water, Shouting Water, Mali Well, Clear Water... all the way to the dreamlike ocean, which has been rolling endlessly in people's blood when they defend their lives. When knives turn into waves, one wave after another, unstoppable and overwhelming."

  A bowl of water, shouting water, Ma Lian Jing, clear water: all are place names in the arid regions of Gansu and Ningxia.