Chapter 10

As He Zhengdao led the remaining over a hundred well-armed Red Army soldiers straight towards the headquarters of the security regiment in Gongcheng, the security regiment soldiers who tried to block their way were all defeated by the overwhelming momentum of the Red Army. By the time He Zhengdao had cleared the surrounding Guangxi troops, a group of Guangxi troops was already guarding the security regiment headquarters, ready for battle.

Looking at the defenders hiding behind the fortifications and the walls of the headquarters, He Zhengdao knew that a direct order to charge would result in unpredictable casualties for the already exhausted Red Army.

Thinking of the mortar that had been brought over, He Zhengdao quickly said to the soldiers, "Bring the mortar over, and get a few more brothers to man it. We'll use the mortar to blast these dogs to pieces. I want to see how long they can hide like turtles in their shells!"

Hearing that He Zhengdao knew how to operate the mortar, the mostly infantry Red Army soldiers were visibly excited. The soldiers carrying the mortars quickly set up two mortars in front of He Zhengdao.

For this common Red Army mortar, He Zhengdao, who had almost played with all kinds of weapons in his previous life, quickly assembled the parts that the soldiers had placed on the ground. Looking at the heavy machine gun positions and the defenders on the walls of the headquarters, He Zhengdao adjusted the firing angles of the two mortars with just a thumbs-up gesture.

When He Zhengdao took out two shells from the mortar box and said to the soldiers beside him, "Just follow my operation and drop the shells into the barrels."

Watching He Zhengdao align the tail fins of the shell with the barrel and release it with both hands, the shell quickly slid into the barrel. A few seconds later, the mortar fired with a "thud." A smoke-trailing mortar shell accurately hit the nearby heavy machine gun position.

With the parameters adjusted, the task of just dropping the shells into the barrels was carried out by the two designated grenadiers. One after another, the shells were loaded, and the tightly closed security regiment headquarters soon echoed with chaos.

Seeing one heavy machine gun position eliminated, He Zhengdao slightly moved one of the mortars. He then had the excited grenadiers load more shells into the barrels.

As the mortar shell accurately hit another heavy machine gun position, He Zhengdao waved his hand and shouted, "Brothers, charge! Kill the white dogs!"

With the threat of the heavy machine gun positions gone and the defenders in the headquarters in chaos from the mortar attacks, He Zhengdao, leading the vanguard, held a light machine gun and shot down any Guangxi troops who dared to show their heads. When they reached the front of the headquarters, worried about possible ambushes in the courtyard, He Zhengdao quickly had some grenades prepared.

Feeling the weight of the grenades in his hand, he turned to the soldiers behind him and said, "I'll throw the grenades in. When they explode, the light machine gunners will be the first to charge in. Don't listen to what they say inside; just push into the headquarters and capture their commander. That will be a major victory for tonight's operation. Got it?"

The machine gunners, already amazed by He Zhengdao's marksmanship, immediately shouted, "Got it!"

Seeing that the machine gunners understood, He Zhengdao took a few steps back to the courtyard gate, took a deep breath, and pulled the pin of the grenade. He delayed for two seconds and then threw it into the courtyard. Soon, the people inside shouted, "Quick, there's a grenade!"

As soon as these words were spoken, there were several "boom" sounds. He Zhengdao kicked open the gate with a powerful kick. As the iron gate groaned and fell, the machine gunners, who had been preparing, rushed in, firing their light machine guns without hesitation.

Following the machine gunners, the Red Army soldiers who rushed into the headquarters were amazed by the deep indentation on the iron gate, a testament to He Zhengdao's strength. They all marveled that he was indeed a martial arts expert from the leader's side.

Faced with the Red Army soldiers who charged in and started shooting without asking questions, the Guangxi troops inside quickly surrendered. Without any prompting from the Red Army, many of them raised their hands and shouted, "We surrender! The Red Army treats prisoners well!"

Damn! These guys knew the Red Army's prisoner policy better than He Zhengdao and his men.

For the soldiers who surrendered, He Zhengdao had Wang Tianlin quickly confiscate their weapons and ammunition and detain them for later handling. He then led his men into the security regiment headquarters in the courtyard.

After shooting two city defense officers who tried to resist, the deputy commander of the security regiment wisely surrendered his pistol and ordered the remaining officers to surrender their weapons to the Red Army.

When He Zhengdao asked him to call for the city's security regiment to lay down their weapons and surrender, the deputy commander, not wanting to die, agreed to fully cooperate. He only hoped that he would receive mercy from the Red Army commander, He Zhengdao. In response, He Zhengdao said that it would depend on the effectiveness of his efforts to persuade the troops to surrender.

Initially, He Zhengdao thought that there might be some die-hard Guangxi troops in the city, but when the deputy commander was brought to the remaining resisting troops, they surprisingly surrendered without a fight. By the time the city's Guangxi troops, except those killed or hiding, were rounded up and detained in the security regiment's camp, He Zhengdao had Wang Tianlin post two squads with four heavy machine guns around the camp. If anyone tried to resist or escape, they would be shot on the spot. Thus, the Guangxi troops, if they wanted to live, had to be honest and ensure others did the same. Otherwise, they would die in vain when the Red Army's machine guns opened fire.

After securing the city's Guangxi troops, He Zhengdao quickly sent men to take over the city's defenses and had the Red Army soldiers ride the captured security regiment horses to bring Zhang Cheng and others into the city. He also arranged for the inventory of the city's warehouses.

For the large amount of weapons and ammunition that couldn't be carried, He Zhengdao, seeing that there were four trucks for transporting supplies in the city, selected a few brave soldiers to learn driving. He explained the driving techniques in detail and led them through the process.

After the crash course, He Zhengdao was not worried about any accidents and had the excited soldiers drive the four trucks around the city. From the initial bumpy rides to the smooth driving in the later laps, the newly trained drivers were getting the hang of it.

With the four trucks, He Zhengdao could transport more supplies from the city. He selected valuable items to load onto the trucks and, to prevent news from leaking, ordered the Red Army soldiers in Guangxi uniforms to allow only people to enter the city, not to leave.

The speed of the attack was so fast that the deputy commander had not had time to send out the news of the city's fall. This gave the Red Army a valuable rest and resupply time during the day.

While Wang Tianlin and others took turns resting, He Zhengdao continued to arrange the withdrawal. During their stay in the city, they captured several Guangxi search teams bringing Red Army prisoners, rescuing dozens of Red Army soldiers.

With these reinforcements, He Zhengdao's forces quickly grew to over 300, forming three 90-man companies and a specially selected guard platoon.

Knowing that the news of a Red Army force in Gongcheng could cause a stir in the surrounding areas, He Zhengdao decided not to bring the severely wounded soldiers, as it would increase the difficulty of the campaign.

To prevent the captured Red Army soldiers from falling back into the hands of the Guangxi troops, He Zhengdao thought of the underground party organizations in almost every county. He immediately ordered the posting of the news of the Red Army's capture of Gongcheng. The citizens of Gongcheng, who felt something was amiss when they woke up, learned that their city had been occupied by the Red Army.

Originally planning to draw some pursuers for the main force, He Zhengdao, after posting the Red Army's special posters, ordered the three companies to change into Red Army uniforms. Soon, a middle-aged man dressed as a merchant requested to meet their commander at the temporary Red Army post set up at the security regiment headquarters.

Hearing that it was the secretary of the underground party branch in the city, He Zhengdao was delighted and quickly ended the meeting on the next route. He had the man brought to him.

From the conversation, He Zhengdao learned that the local guerrillas had already rescued over a hundred Red Army soldiers and hidden them in the mountains near Gongcheng. He immediately sent a small detachment to accompany the secretary to bring back the unarmed and non-combatant Red Army soldiers.

He also generously provided the secretary with a batch of weapons and ammunition captured from the Guangxi troops, to equip the underground party and the local guerrillas for future expansion.

This would ensure that the guerrillas, when encountering small groups of Guangxi troops, would not have to retreat or hide due to a lack of ammunition.

The secretary, who also served as the political commissar of the local guerrillas, was both surprised and delighted. He marveled that they would no longer have to worry about a lack of weapons!