Volume 1: Red Star Shines Over China Chapter 61: The Great Victory of Qingxi Town (4)

  The main road is full of snow.

  The main force of the 59th Division of the enemy army marched in several columns on the snowy ground towards Qingxi Town.

  Although they were several columns, although they were well-trained and well-equipped Central Army, marching on snowy ground, it was inevitable that some people fell down, some scolded their mothers, and the troops could not be very neat.

  Fifty-ninth Division Commander Han Han-ying rode on horseback, looking at the marching troops that resembled a flock of sheep, and couldn't help but smile wryly in his heart. What can you do? It's all caused by the Red Bandits. One moment they occupy Liping, the next they occupy Jianhe, then Huangping and Shibing, and then they run to Fuquan. They're like a group of monkeys, jumping around without any regular pattern. This time they've stirred up even more trouble. Clearly, the main force of the Red Bandits is advancing westward to besiege Guiyang, forcing Wang Jialie to retreat and defend, and seek help from all sides. But the Red Bandits just made a false move, suddenly occupying Zunyi. How clever! They pretended to go west but actually went north, mobilizing their opponents while opening up strategic space, deeply understanding the essence of military strategy. It seems that Mao Zedong has started his favorite trick again, and it's going to be difficult to surround the Red Bandits like they were in the Jiangxi Soviet or on both banks of the Xiang River.

  Fortunately, the commander understood and ordered the troops to advance directly on Guiyang.

  This move is also very high, and the grand strategy is not to be said. Simply occupying Guiyang can mobilize various warlords to surround the Red Army, which is already a clever move. What is the Central Army for? Is it just used to suppress rebellions? These warlords often think about rebelling or causing chaos whenever they want. Rather than waiting for them to rebel and fight with the Central Army, why not force them to fight against the Red Bandits? Once they have all exhausted themselves, the world will be at peace, and the country will be unified. Therefore, as a revolutionary soldier, one must seriously implement the decisions of the leader. The revolution has not yet succeeded, comrades still need to work hard!

  Han Han Ying turned to the chief of staff and said, "It's too hard for the troops to march in the heavy snow. Pass down the order that just ahead is Qingxi Town. Once we enter the town, let's take a half-hour break and have the soldiers drink some hot water before continuing."

  Before the chief of staff could answer, Han Ying heard the sound of gunfire.

  Zhang Hongtao gazed coldly at the increasingly close enemy, very good, the troops were well hidden, and the enemy had not discovered them even though they were so close. It seemed that the enemy was exhausted from marching all the way, no one looked around, and the soldiers walked silently with their heads down.

  At 60 meters, 50 meters, 30, Zhang Hongtao shouted "hit" and the shotgun in his hand made a crisp sound, knocking down a white dog that was about to pounce on him.

  The well-aimed rifles and light machine guns all burst into cheers.

  The attack came too suddenly. At such a close distance. And not a bit of defense. The 349th Regiment of the 59th Division was walking at the front, and in an instant, it was swallowed up by firepower. Team leader Lin Xiancha crawled on the ground, looked around with his eyes, and said, "Damn it! Brothers are all messed up." Those who were quick-witted immediately lay down, took their guns, and prepared to fire. Most of them started running wildly. Lin Xiancha sighed. Isn't this providing targets for the Red Bandits? Damn search team. Damn vanguard company. It's just a bunch of pigs. Even before death, they would still make a few cries. They led the troops under the guns of the Red Bandits without making a sound. Fucking damn it! No way. Withdraw first. Reorganize the troops and then talk.

  It really made Lin Xianzhe think that the enemy who was fleeing in all directions provided an opportunity for the soldiers of the Second Guard Regiment to practice shooting at moving targets. The faster they fled, the faster they died. In the end, it was impossible to run wildly. The enemy soldiers didn't care whether the ground was covered with snow or mud, and they all crawled onto the ground.

  Gunfire was heard. Han Ying immediately rolled off the saddle. The first reaction was terrible. Encountered the Red Bandits. Immediately thought of ordering the troops to retreat. But after listening carefully, there were only rifles and light machine guns, not even heavy machine guns. It seemed like an encounter battle. The Red Bandits didn't seem like a large force. Immediately ordered the 349th Regiment to withdraw and clear the way for the attack. The 30th was in front, the 351st was behind, and the supplementary regiment was the reserve. Charged forward, determined to annihilate the Red Bandits in one swift motion.

  After a brief reorganization, the 59th Division began to attack Qingxi Town. The soldiers crouched down, holding their guns and charging along the highway while firing. Heavy machine guns and mortars also started to establish positions and soon joined the battle.

  The enemy launched a full-scale attack. The advantages of the Central Army's good weapons, strong firepower, and rigorous training were immediately revealed. The pressure on the Second Guard Regiment increased immediately.

  Hu Yüqing was a Red Army soldier who had been rescued from the clutches of the Guizhou army. Before joining the army, he was a peasant in a mountain village in Yudu. After hearing the news about the expansion of the Red Army, he joined the Red Army and learned how to shoot a gun. Just as he was getting the hang of it, his unit left Jiangxi. During the Battle of Xiangjiang, he marched with his troops for several days and nights without sleep, until he finally fell asleep from exhaustion. When he woke up, he had become a prisoner of the Guizhou army. After being rescued by the Guards Regiment, Hu Yüqing vowed to kill more enemies, otherwise he would not be able to face his comrades who had died in enemy hands. So when the battle began, he took aim at the enemy and fired. But strangely, no matter how accurately he aimed, he just couldn't hit the target. He looked over at his squad leader, who was hitting one enemy soldier after another with ease. "Wow, you're really accurate!" Hu Yüqing thought to himself. "I won't believe I can't hit them if I try again." But when he took aim for the second time, he missed the opportunity and the enemy soldier dodged and weaved, making it impossible to hit him. When Hu Yüqing tried to aim at another soldier, this one suddenly dropped to the ground, and by the time Hu Yüqing aimed at someone else, the first soldier had already gotten back up and was running away while firing his gun. It seemed like he was a skilled fighter.

  I don't believe it! Hu Yaqing recalled the shooting techniques taught by his instructor in Jingzhou, took a deep breath, slowly aimed at the figure, and finally pulled the trigger when the figure jumped up again. Seeing the figure's hand raised, the gun fell to the ground, and a blood arrow spurted out of its chest. Hu Yaqing couldn't help but stand up and shout: "I hit it! I hit it!"

  The monitor beside him hastily went to pull him, but still slow by one step. A bullet shot over and knocked Hu Yuching to the ground. The monitor sighed: "This new soldier!"

  Watching the warriors being suppressed by the enemy's firepower and unable to use heavy weapons according to the commander's deployment, Zhang Hongtao was so anxious that he wanted to curse, hoping that Liu Jianli would start fighting soon.

  With great difficulty, they repelled the enemy's attack for once. Zhang Hongtao took stock and found that in this wave of attack, his own soldiers had suffered dozens of casualties, and he was heartbroken with gritted teeth. Although the enemy's casualties were greater, Zhang Hongtao, who had become accustomed to Liu Yimin's ideas and way of fighting, still felt deeply guilty and regretful that there should not have been such heavy casualties.

  Seeing the first wave of charge being repelled, I feel that the red bandits on the opposite side are still very stubborn and their guns are also very accurate. Although they don't have heavy weapons, their combat quality is high. In this case, even if only our own troops fight, we can defeat the red bandits, but it will increase casualties and affect the speed of advance.

  Immediately inform the chief of staff to have the 93rd Division at the back reinforce quickly and end the battle as soon as possible.

  Han did not expect that his supporting 93rd Division would be defeated by the Red Army before his own 56th Division.

  The commander of the 93rd Division, Tang Yunshan, was a graduate of the first class of Whampoa Military Academy and was a classmate of Xu Xiangqian, the commander-in-chief of the Fourth Red Army. In a strict sense, he was also a student of Han Huaiyuan. Because Han Huaiyuan graduated from the sixth class of Baoding Military Academy and had taught at Whampoa. At that time, the Nationalist army attached great importance to seniority. Although Han Huaiyuan and Tang Yunshan were of the same rank, Tang Yunshan privately showed great respect for Han Huaiyuan. In fact, Han Huaiyuan was quite accomplished in military education and had presided over the Guangzhou and Dushan branches of Whampoa Military Academy, cultivating a large number of military talents. Therefore, although Han Huaiyuan's reputation in history is not very prominent, within the Central Army, due to his many disciples, he was indeed a powerful faction.

  So when the gunfire sounded in front, the commander of the 93rd Division, Tang Yunshan, did not abandon his troops like many National Army generals. Instead, he ordered his troops to advance at a run and reinforce the 59th Division. After running for a while, seeing that they had merged with the rear guard of the 59th Division, Tang Yunshan consulted with Han Hanying and then ordered his troops to prepare for battle. By the time the chief of staff of the 59th Division came to request reinforcements, the troops of the 93rd Division were already deploying.

  At this time, neither Han Ying nor Tang Yunshan expected that on the other side of the river, a row of dark and dense machine guns, mountain cannons, and howitzers emerged from the forest.

  Liu Jianli, standing on the opposite bank of the river in the forest with binoculars, saw the enemy's 93rd Division rushing to reinforce and had already merged with the 59th Division, and was making combat preparations. He immediately ordered all heavy machine guns, mountain cannons, and howitzers to aim at the 93rd Division and open fire. In an instant, a large number of shells hit the 93rd Division, which was preparing for battle. Every shell would stir up a wave of blood, accompanied by severed limbs and wailing, and the 93rd Division from the division commander to the soldiers were instantly stunned.

  Before they woke up, dozens of heavy machine guns burst into a roar.

  The terrain of Guizhou has determined that almost all rivers flow through the valleys between two mountains, with narrow river surfaces. For example, the Wu River is basically only 50-60 meters wide. The Wuyang River is also like this, with a narrow surface but abundant water volume. From the opposite bank to the Xiangda Road where the 93rd Division stayed, the straight-line distance was at most around 150 meters, which was exactly within the optimal shooting range of heavy machine guns.

  The top is a hail of shells, and the waist is a river-like flow of bullets poured out by dozens of heavy machine guns. To say that the 93rd Division can't hold on, even if it's the 93rd Army or the 93rd Group Army, it won't work. So when the fifth round of artillery fire from the artillery battalion came down, the 93rd Division collapsed.

  Tang Yunshan felt his head spinning, what the hell was this? The troops had just merged with the 59th Division and were preparing to deploy into battle formation when they were suddenly ambushed by the Red Bandits' firepower. This wasn't coming to fight a war, it was simply coming to be slaughtered! An entire division's worth of troops, densely packed on the highway, became targets for the Red Bandits' mortars and heavy machine guns. It wouldn't even be this easy to slaughter pigs! The Red Bandits were really good at calculations, their timing was spot on! If it had been five minutes later, no, two minutes later, his own troops would have dispersed. Unfortunately, the Red Bandits didn't give them a chance. In just this short period of time, two of his three regimental commanders were killed, and even the chief of staff wasn't spared. If not for the corpse of a war horse blocking him, he estimated he would have ended up like them, going to see King Yan.

  The bandit's artillery and machine gun groups finally turned to the 59th Division, Tang Yunshan also raised his head from the ground, this look, lungs were blown up, the highway was full of soldiers' and mules' corpses, their own troops had scattered like sheep, saying that they were defeated soldiers was a bit too high for them. Some ran along the highway back, some ran to the mountain slope, some lay on the ground pretending to be dead, and others were even more excessive, already kneeling on the ground holding guns shouting "Red Army grandpa spare our lives". Is this still the Central Army that Principal Yi was proud of? What a loss, not just for me Tang Yunshan's men, but also for Principal Yi's men.

  Look over at the Red Bandits, on the mountain slope you can't see anyone, only dense bullets shooting out from the forest are harvesting lives. Take a look back at the road, I don't know when the Red Bandits have already blocked off the way back, light and heavy machine guns firing away, soldiers fleeing in all directions are falling down one after another.

  It's all over, it's completely over, the Reds are going to thoroughly wrap up their 93rd Division and the Korean Division!

  It seems that the 59th Division can't hold on for much longer, and defeat is only a matter of time. Poor me, since graduating from Huangpu, I have been diligent in serving as the principal, campaigning east and west, but in the end, I will be defeated in this poor mountainous area of Guizhou. Some time ago, I heard that He Jian's troops were attacked by the Red Bandits, and three divisions were wrapped up like dumplings. At that time, I thought that He Jian's troops were a motley crew, with poor combat effectiveness, and it was no wonder they were unlucky. If it were my own troops, I would definitely take advantage of the situation to attack, chasing the Red Bandits all over the mountains, making them kneel down and beg for mercy. Who would have thought that when it came to my own head, I also had no power to fight back?

  Damn it, I'm so damn frustrated! We haven't even met face-to-face yet and our main force has already been defeated. I refuse to accept this!

  At this point, Tang Yunshan raised his pistol and was about to commit suicide. Wei Shi grabbed his hand and said bitterly: "Master, you absolutely cannot do it. Think of your family members at home. I heard that the division commanders and brigade commanders of the Xiang Army were all released by the Red Bandits and are now reorganizing their troops."

  Tang Yunshan thought about it and felt that he was a professional soldier, except for the fact that his subordinates often committed murders and arson during battles, but he himself had never killed any innocent people. He estimated that the Red Bandits would not do anything to him either.

  It dawned on him that Tang Yunshan immediately called the guards to take off a set of clothes from a dead soldier, and after changing into them, he followed the guards and blended in with the fleeing soldiers.

  Looking through binoculars, the 93rd Division has been defeated and started to flee. Liu Jianli immediately ordered the heavy machine guns and artillery to turn around and concentrate their forces to attack the enemy's 56th Division.

  When the artillery was speaking, Zhang Hongtao ordered the second battalion to open fire with heavy firepower. The 56th Division, which was in its second attack, suddenly found that the firepower on its front had increased dramatically, and machine guns and mortars were all deployed. Run, or else you'll be waiting for death! The soldiers immediately turned around and ran back.

  It's not a play, what I encountered was not a small detachment of the Communist army, and this battle was not an encounter battle. This is an ambush with ulterior motives. It's strange, the main force of the Red Army is clearly in Zunyi, when did they come here? Can they fly?

  Han Ying knew from multiple encounters with the Red Army that they were

  He can fly. However, he did not know that the Red Army had an additional unit with a certain number, nor did he know that it was this unit that had eliminated three divisions of the Xiang Army. If he knew, he would definitely suggest to Commander Xue to send planes for reconnaissance and escort. It's not anyone's fault, but He Jian, Liu Jianxu, and Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi didn't report the situation to the Central Army in time. But thinking about it, it's not like they're celebrating a victory or something, do He Jian and the others need to report to the Central Army? Besides, the relationship between the Central Army and the Xiang Army and Guangxi Army doesn't seem that good, does it?

  Cutting the chatter, it felt like they had encountered a tough opponent in Han Yu, and immediately ordered the troops to turn around. The three main regiments and the supplementary regiment all went into battle, racing against time to seize the high ground on the east side.

  It's lively now, the officers and soldiers of the 56th Division are crawling all over the mountain slope. Soldiers keep stepping on landmines, legs blown off, bodies pierced by nails after explosions, one after another.

  Alas, what kind of troops are these, who have calculated their own demise so carefully that they even used landmines. He had intended to withdraw the troops and retreat in the direction of Yangping Town, but the report from the chief of staff that the 93rd Division had been badly damaged and the troops had collapsed dispelled his idea of retreating. The top priority now was to hurry up and occupy the high ground and hold it firmly, and then wait for General Xue's main force to arrive and rescue them.

  Han ordered his chief of staff to immediately send a telegram to General Xue requesting rapid reinforcements.

  Then he gathered the special task force, wearing a steel helmet himself, holding a submachine gun handed over by the guard, and shouted loudly: "Brothers, our army has been ambushed by the enemy. In this critical moment, I want to lead you to open up a passage for the whole division. From me down, all officers must take the lead in charging forward. The target is to capture the mountain peak and hold it firmly until reinforcements arrive. Those who charge up first will be rewarded with five big oceans each."

  The Fifty-sixth Division's special task force was the elite of Han Ying's troops, each equipped with a submachine gun. Most of the officers were students from Whampoa Military Academy and had strong combat capabilities. Unless it was a critical moment, Han Ying would not easily deploy them. What could be said at this point? Han Ying led the charge, taking the special task force to rush up the mountain slope.

  The artillery and heavy machine guns on the other side of the river fired at the 56th Division, and the soldiers who stayed on the highway became targets. The other soldiers saw that staying on the road was a dead end, so they all jumped up and rushed towards the hillside.

  Han Ying, who was charging forward with the soldiers, was pulled back by a guard and fell behind the charging troops. Seeing that all the soldiers were attacking up the mountain slope, those who fell behind were hit by the heavy machine guns and howitzers on the other side of the shore. Han Ying felt that he had never encountered such a fierce battle in his life: he couldn't see an enemy, only shells and bullets, and the mortality rate of officers and artillerymen was extremely high, being constantly hit in the head, and no one dared to touch the machine gun after a while. Such opponents were rarely seen in his lifetime. I don't know how big the web that the opponent had woven was, but it could accommodate two divisions at once, which was terrifying.

  The special forces have retreated, when they went it was like the Qiantang tide rising, and when they retreated it was like the Qiantang tide falling, rising quickly and falling quickly. Looking at his most beloved troops unable to charge forward, Han Ying no longer wanted to blame anyone, because he had already thought that in the forest on the mountain slope, who knows how many people and horses were hiding, and who knows how many gun barrels were aimed at his soldiers.

  No way, the other side has set up a good formation, and we're jumping right into it. It's laughable that Commander-in-Chief and General Xue still insisted that the main force of the Red Bandits was in the north. Looking at today's situation, it seems that they've concentrated all their firepower here! Blind, stupid, foolish - from top to bottom, everyone has been played by Mao Zedong. Who would have thought that with my own pride and research on military affairs, I wanted to achieve great things for Commander-in-Chief, but in the end, I still fell into the Red Bandits' trap? I don't know how soon General Xue will arrive; if he's late, I might just end up leaving my bones in this desolate wilderness.

  Just as Han Ying was indulging in wild fancies, he heard a strange noise, like the sound of shells exploding. It seemed that the explosion was even louder than usual. Could it be a bundle of explosives? But who could have thrown such a thing so far? Looking up, he saw that the Red Bandits on the mountain were continuously firing these shells, with over ten exploding at once, and after they hit the ground, the surrounding soldiers fell down in unison. Han Ying crawled to a soldier who had been blown down and took a look - his seven orifices were bleeding, and he had long since stopped breathing. What was strange was that there were no other injuries on his body. It was too frightening - the enemy's methods were endless, was this still the Red Bandits of Jiangxi? When did they become so fierce, so cunning, so brutal?

  Run, whoever can run out is whoever, otherwise, we'll all die here. Thinking of this, Han Han Ying immediately ordered the troops to retreat.

  Who knew, this retreat became the target of heavy machine guns and mortars on the other side. Watching the soldiers being shot down one by one, Han Ying lowered his head in grief. Just as he was about to order a stop to the resistance and surrender with a white flag, the bugle call for charging sounded from the mountain slope where the Red Army was stationed, and the mortar and heavy machine gun fire on the other side also ceased. The Red Army soldiers all over the mountain were holding their guns, shooting and shouting "Surrender without killing", rushing towards the 59th and 93rd Divisions' soldiers. The bugle call for charging also sounded from the east and west ends of the highway, and the red bandits in the town and those who blocked the way all came out to kill. Occasionally, some of his own soldiers opened fire to resist, but as soon as they knocked down a red bandit, they would be hit by several bullets at the same time. Han Ying let out a long sigh and put down the gun in his hand.

  Seeing the superior put down his gun, the guards beside him also put down their guns, and soon, all the soldiers put down their guns.

  The gunfire finally stopped, and the battlefield suddenly fell silent.

  The warriors were busy capturing weapons and ammunition, and taking prisoners. The stretcher team organized by Wu Zheng also came up, first carrying the wounded Red Army soldiers, then carrying the wounded National Army soldiers. The medical personnel at the battlefield aid station were busy bandaging the wounded and providing simple treatment.

  According to the pre-war deployment, the third battalion handed over the captives to the new recruits' camp and replenished their ammunition before setting off immediately towards Yangping Town. The artillery regiment and heavy machine gun regiment on the other side of the river also began to relocate their positions. Li Qing led the fourth, fifth, and sixth battalions to replenish their weapons and ammunition before relocating to Yangping Town with his troops. Liu Yimin ordered the first and second battalions to immediately collect the light machine guns and submachine guns captured from the Central Army, aiming for each squad to have two light machine guns and four submachine guns with sufficient ammunition. After replenishing their supplies, they also set off quietly.