Chapter 47: Raiding the Jade Tree

  Within just one night, Ma Ke took control of all three battalions stationed in the area with the help of Ma Yun-tao, Bai Meng, Ding Zhongming and Zhang Mingyuan. During this time, they sent trusted men to seal off the surrounding roads, so that what happened here was not able to get out. There were also some soldiers who were die-hard loyalists of the Green Horse Army. As soon as something happened in Nangqian, they immediately wanted to escape back to Yushu and report this to their superiors. However, just after escaping from Nangqian, they were caught by the guards. For these die-hard loyalists, Ma Ke ordered them all to be executed, in order to intimidate others.

  Two days later, Wang Yuezhe and the main force of the 10th Brigade also arrived at Nangqian. Here, Cai Yun, deputy chief of staff of the Western Sichuan Army, announced the latest appointments of the Western Sichuan Army. The 11th Brigade of the Western Sichuan Army was established, with Ma Qi as the brigade commander and no deputy brigade commander for the time being. Ma Yuntiao served as the chief of staff. Ma Qi was promoted to lieutenant general of the Western Sichuan Army, and Ma Yuntiao was also promoted to colonel. Bai Meng, Ding Zhongming, and Zhang Mingyuan were all promoted to lieutenant colonel. The 11th Brigade had three regiments under its jurisdiction, temporarily composed of the 12th Regiment, 17th Regiment, and 23rd Regiment of the Qingma Army. Insufficient personnel would be supplemented after capturing prisoners from the Qingma Army later on.

  For this appointment, Ma Qi and Ma Yuntong were both quite satisfied. They all knew that the Sichuan Army had only ten regular army divisions besides three divisions. Now they have become division-level officers of the Sichuan Army, which is also a high-ranking officer of the Sichuan Army. The senior generals of the current Sichuan Army are scarce, and as they develop in the future, they will naturally be able to follow the trend.

  After resting for a day in Kangding, the army marched northward with all its might to attack Yushu. It was best to capture Yushu before the news of the Kangding incident spread out and annihilate the five battalions of defenders in Yushu. If they could be smoothly reorganized, it would necessarily give the Western Sichuan Army enough advantage. At the same time, the 4th Brigade of the Western Sichuan Army was also prepared to defend against the attack of the Mazhuang Ma Family Army and prepare to cooperate with the 10th and 11th Brigades of the Western Sichuan Army to attack Maqu. Once Yushu was captured, Maqu would be the next target. If it went smoothly, they could solve half of the Qinghai Ma Family Army's forces at one stroke. This would lay a decisive victory for the Western Sichuan Army to capture Qinghai.

  This time, the battle was still led by the newly formed 11th Brigade. Wang Yuezhe and Cai Yun promised that as long as they could take down Yushu, all captured Qing soldiers would be incorporated into the 11th Brigade. After the war, the brigade would also receive a full equipment replacement, including artillery and other supplies that were lacking. This made Ma Qi and others very excited. Why was the Sichuan Army able to win with weakness? Wasn't it because of its advanced weapons? As long as someone had weapons, they could be considered to have a foothold in the Sichuan Army.

  The main force of the Tenth Brigade marched at a slightly slower pace, carrying a large amount of heavy weapons and ammunition. Although the Tenth Brigade was a cavalry brigade and did not have any heavy artillery, the artillery battalion under its command still had twenty-four 75mm infantry guns, plus a large number of mortars. It was enough to deal with the Qing Ma Army, which also lacked big guns.

  "Chief of Staff, do you think Ma Qi and his men can make it? Yushu is not comparable to Nangqian. Nangqian is just a small town, while Yushu has already become a small city. Although the city walls are low and short, they can still withstand the cavalry's charge." said Zhao Bowei, the commander of the 10th Brigade with some concern.

  "From Yushu to Gyêgu, it's only 170 kilometers away. If the cavalry charges, it will take at most half a day. However, the five regiments of the Qinghai Army stationed there are not easy to deal with. The 11th Brigade wants to capture them all at once, which is somewhat difficult. But as long as they can enter Yushu and hold the entrance to Yushu, that's also considered completing the task. What happens next will depend on us!" Cai Yun said.

  "Perhaps Ma Qi and his men can create a miracle, who knows. For now, the Yushu side has not yet learned that Kou Xun's garrison has defected to our side, and since this time we have sent troops in secret, it is entirely possible that we can achieve a surprise victory!" Wang Yuze was extremely confident.

  "Everything will be clear by tomorrow at the latest. Let the troops speed up! Try to arrive in Yushu tomorrow morning!" Cai Yun ordered.

  "Yes, order the troops to speed up their march!" Zhao Boguang loudly gave orders to the soldiers of the 10th Brigade. The cavalry's march was much faster than the infantry. It's just that the artillery battalion and logistics battalion behind couldn't keep up with the speed. At this rate, arriving in Yushu before tomorrow morning is completely no problem.

  On the other hand, the soldiers of the newly formed 11th Brigade of the Western Sichuan Army were galloping wildly. The soldiers of the Qingma Army were mostly herdsmen on the grasslands and had an innate advantage in horse riding. Their marching speed was much faster than that of the 10th Brigade behind them.

  Ma Qi is now full of confidence, easily taking down Nangqian has greatly boosted his morale, and also made him see that joining the Sichuan Army will have a bright future. Although he hasn't personally fought against the Sichuan Army before, during the last attack on the military station, he witnessed the terrifying firepower of the Sichuan Army, which made him fearful of them. This time, with the arrival of the 10th Corps' main force in Nangqian, those big cannons made him even more terrified. The Sichuan Army's equipment is so advanced, how can the Green Horse Army be their match? The more he thinks about it, the more he feels that joining the Sichuan Army was a brilliant decision. Not to mention that he has already lost hope of inheriting the Green Horse Army, even if he did inherit it, he probably wouldn't be able to withstand the Sichuan Army's attack! In the end, there would only be one dead-end road, which is why joining the Sichuan Army now is a more advantageous choice.

  Ma Yuntao, Bai Meng, Ding Zhongming and Zhang Mingyuan under him were also the same. As frontline generals, they also knew the terror of the Sichuan Western Army, and now that they had joined the Sichuan Western Army, they no longer had to face that terrifying firepower, which made them extremely happy. At the same time, they also received news that the intelligence personnel deployed by the Sichuan Western Army in Xining had secretly rescued their families and were now settled in a safe place, which made them even more free from worries and even more willing to sacrifice for the Sichuan Western Army. After all, before this, their families were under Ma Haiyan's control, and now they were also in the hands of the Sichuan Western Army. If there was any disloyalty, the Sichuan Western Army would not show mercy to their families either.

  The Eleventh Brigade set out early in the morning and by the afternoon, they had already arrived at a place less than twenty kilometers outside Yushu. Because there was Gong Zhen in front blocking the way, the defense of Yushu was very lax and did not send out a large number of scouts. The Eleventh Brigade marched all the way, without even encountering a single soldier from the Qing army.

  "Right ahead is Yushu, now let's discuss how to take it down. For us who just joined the Western Sichuan Army, achieving military merit is extremely important. If we can help the Western Sichuan Army take down Yushu, our position will be even more solidified. At that time, everyone will naturally have endless benefits!" After ordering the entire army to rest, Ma Qi gathered the high-level officials of the 11th Brigade to discuss how to take down Yushu.

  "We should make a surprise attack! Before they can react, we'll charge into the city of Yushu. In the chaos, although they have more people, they won't be our match!" suggested Bai Meng.

  "No, that's too risky. The Jade Tree Garrison has five regiments stationed here: the 6th Regiment, the 8th Regiment, the 32nd Regiment, the 34th Regiment and the 35th Regiment. The last three regiments are relatively new units formed not long ago. But the 6th Regiment and the 8th Regiment are elite troops of the Qing Ma Army! With just our three regiments' strength, we can't defeat them at all!" The newly appointed Chief of Staff of the 11th Brigade, Ma Yun Tao shook his head.

  "What should we do? Either wait here for the main force of the Tenth Brigade. The Tenth Brigade is equipped with many big guns, and when the time comes, they can be blasted directly! The low walls of Yushu cannot withstand the fierce bombardment of the big guns!" Ding Zhongming suggested.

  "It won't do, we can't just wait like this. Once the Tenth Army arrives, there will be nothing left for us to do. At that time, we may be able to take down Yushu smoothly, but our military achievements will also be gone!" Ma Qi shook his head.

  P.S: The first update is here, sorry for the delay today, I uploaded it late, extremely sorry!