Chapter 11

When more than a hundred scattered Red Army soldiers were gathered and safely reunited with He Zhengdao's unit under the protection of the underground party in Gongcheng and the local guerrillas, the guerrillas, most of whom were armed with large knives and old muskets, looked at the large batch of regular army equipment and ammunition that He Zhengdao had prepared for them, their eyes unable to look away.

Seeing that even light and heavy machine guns were included, these guerrillas, who had long been restricted by a lack of weapons, finally experienced what it felt like to "trade in their old guns for new cannons."

While the guerrillas were delighted to have this batch of weapons and ammunition provided by He Zhengdao, which would allow them to no longer have to hide in humiliation every time the White Dogzi searched the mountains, He Zhengdao was also very pleased to have over a hundred more Red Army soldiers, who had been scattered in previous battles, rejoin his ranks, adding another infantry company to his command.

With the addition of these more than a hundred Red Army soldiers, his temporarily independent battalion became more substantial. He could now smoothly divide the nearly five hundred Red Army soldiers into four combat companies and a battalion-level guard platoon, no longer worrying about a lack of manpower.

For the Red Army wounded and sick who could not travel with the unit, He Zhengdao chose to entrust them to the guerrillas for care. When bidding them farewell, he sincerely said, "Brothers, after the main force moves on, it may be a long time before we return here. I hope you can stay with the guerrillas and use the tactics and skills you learned in the army to teach these guerrilla comrades how to master regular army and guerrilla warfare skills. I also look forward to the day when we will meet again. I cannot promise how long it will take, but I can tell you that no matter how difficult the road ahead, the ultimate victory of this national liberation will certainly belong to us. What you need to do is to persevere and endure, waiting for the day when spring comes and the flowers bloom."

As many Red Army soldiers shed tears while bidding farewell to their former comrades, He Zhengdao also forcibly handed over a batch of seized silver dollars and medicine to the secretary of the underground party in Gongcheng, who also served as the political commissar of the guerrillas. He told him that their situation would be very difficult in the coming period, and this money could help them in their direst moments.

Seeing that He Zhengdao's attitude was firm, the old party member, who was over fifty, solemnly promised He Zhengdao that he would lead these guerrillas to persist in guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines and wait for the day when the main force would return.

As for the Red Army soldiers who were unable to travel with He Zhengdao due to their injuries, he would arrange for dedicated personnel to take care of them. Once they recovered, he would lead them to continue fighting the reactionaries in these mountains and hills.

After sending off these tearful guerrillas and wounded Red Army soldiers, He Zhengdao immediately ordered the independent battalion to prepare to depart. Under the cover of the night, they quickly and quietly left Gongcheng, where they had rested for a day. When the townspeople woke up the next morning, they found that the Red Army, who had been on guard in the city the previous night, had all disappeared.

The Guangxi troops who had hidden in the homes of the townspeople the night before, after a thorough search confirmed that there were no Red Army soldiers left in the city, hurriedly ran to the camp where the prisoners were held and rescued the security regiment soldiers who had been fortunate enough to survive.

However, the Guangxi troops who had blood debts with the Red Army were summarily executed by He Zhengdao's order before they left, and this was done in front of the security regiment soldiers to intimidate the surviving Guangxi troops. He warned them that if they dared to abuse or kill Red Army prisoners again, they would face the same fate.

This bloody method of killing to stop killing was undoubtedly a violation of discipline in the eyes of the Red Army. However, in this temporarily formed independent battalion, the Red Army soldiers who had seen their unarmed comrades tortured and even beheaded by the Guangxi troops felt that He Zhengdao was a very bloodthirsty commander.

Dealing with these Guangxi troops who were not even human, executing them was undoubtedly the most satisfying way. They followed the policy of not killing those who surrendered and treating prisoners well, but what about these Guangxi troops? When they captured unarmed Red Army soldiers, beating and cursing them was a common occurrence.

Some Guangxi troops even committed acts that violated the dignity and honor of the Red Army. Some of these inhuman Guangxi troops would use whipping, shooting, or beheading to demonstrate their loyalty to the Nationalist Party.

If He Zhengdao and his men were acting with the main force, such violations of military discipline would not be approved by their superiors. However, for a Red Army unit formed from captured Red Army soldiers, each of them had experienced the torture and humiliation inflicted by the Guangxi troops.

Faced with He Zhengdao's method of not indiscriminately killing but only executing those Guangxi troops with blood debts to the Red Army, even the most stubborn Red Army officers felt that why should only the Guangxi troops be able to arbitrarily abuse and kill them when they surrendered, while they could not take revenge after turning the tables?

With four trucks loaded with weapons, ammunition, and food, the nearly five hundred-strong independent battalion, after changing into Guangxi troops' uniforms, appeared outside Fuchuan City near Gongcheng in broad daylight.

The commander of the Fuchuan city defense battalion, seeing the neatly uniformed soldiers in the trucks, thought they were regular Guangxi troops and hurriedly ordered his men to open the city gates. When he led the deputy regimental commander, impersonated by Wang Tianlin, into the city defense battalion headquarters, he was immediately arrested. The city defense battalion, in shock, realized what a foolish thing they had done. They had no idea that at a time when the main Red Army force was fleeing, there was still such a well-disciplined Red Army unit daring to impersonate Guangxi troops and occupy their county town in broad daylight.

Unlike Gongcheng, Fuchuan, with only one city defense battalion, had fewer supplies. However, there were nearly two hundred Red Army prisoners held there. These were the reason why He Zhengdao boldly entered the city.

After controlling the Guangxi city defense battalion in Fuchuan and rescuing the Red Army soldiers, they were quickly integrated into the four undermanned infantry companies. After enjoying the breakfast prepared by the city defense battalion, He Zhengdao ordered the telephone lines and radio equipment in the city to be dismantled. Then, without the knowledge of the townspeople, he openly led the Red Army prisoners out of Fuchuan.

Without radio or telephone, the only way to pass messages in those days was on foot. As for the horses used for communication in the city, He Zhengdao did not let a single one go, confiscating them all for the use of the weak soldiers to speed up the independent battalion's movement.

After leaving Fuchuan, He Zhengdao ordered the independent battalion to quickly advance toward the Xiangnan region. He needed to capture Dao County, which was garrisoned by Xiang troops, before the Guangxi troops reacted. There were also many Red Army prisoners held there. He believed that by the time the Guangxi troops in Gongcheng and Fuchuan reported the situation, he would already be outside Dao County.

With the help of trucks and horses, and with no information leaked, He Zhengdao ordered the unit to advance quickly. By midnight, they successfully reached the mountains outside Dao County. Knowing that a major battle awaited them the next day, He Zhengdao ordered the soldiers to eat on the move and quickly rest to recover their strength.

He also convened a brief meeting with the company-level officers of the independent battalion to finalize the plan for the attack on Dao County. He was aware that not only were search teams spread throughout the Guangxi region, but there were also many search teams around Dao County.

Therefore, according to He Zhengdao's plan, he would lead the disguised guard platoon to infiltrate the city to reconnoiter the situation and then seize Dao County at the right moment.

At this time, the main Red Army force had already crossed the Xiang River, and the main Xiang troops were following them. The forces left behind in what they considered a safe rear area were generally not very strong. Compared to the Guangxi troops, the Xiang troops were even weaker but treated the Red Army more brutally.

Deputy Battalion Commander Wang Tianlin, who understood that every step must be taken with caution, also believed that He Zhengdao's method was the safest. He knew that the carefully selected guard platoon, once in combat, could unleash a fighting power no less than that of an infantry company.

Therefore, it was decided that He Zhengdao would lead the vanguard, impersonating an Xiang search team to enter the city. The rest of the main force would be led by Wang Tianlin to lie in wait outside the city, ready to act at the right moment. Once He Zhengdao deemed the time ripe, they would immediately attack and capture Dao County, rescuing all the Red Army prisoners inside.

Then, before the Xiang troops could react, they would move to the western part of Guangxi. This would prevent the two warlord forces, who were now allied but secretly wary of each other, from joining forces against them.

Once He Zhengdao felt that the rescue operation was nearly complete, he would suddenly disappear, leaving the two warlord forces uncertain about their next move.

Only in this way could he ensure the safe reunion of these scattered Red Army soldiers with the main force. He also had the opportunity to personally experience the military miracle known as the Long March.