Chapter 21

With the cherry blossoms dancing in the wind, Misaki opened the old diary and read the words of promise written there.

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Leading the reorganized independent regiment who had set out overnight, He Zhengdao ordered the guard company to lead the way, trying to avoid drawing attention as much as possible. They quietly lay in ambush on the only road leading into the county. Tomorrow, they would capture the Nationalist inspection team there and impersonate them to rescue their Red Army comrades in the county.

Considering that the next day would mainly involve a surprise attack, if they could disarm the enemy without a fight, it would be best not to engage. To prevent any mishaps, He Zhengdao still organized the independent battalion to dig concealed positions and trenches on both sides of the road.

If they had no choice but to use relatively mild means to capture the Nationalist inspection team tomorrow, they would have to annihilate them as quickly as possible to ensure no news leaked out and attracted the attention of the surrounding Guangxi troops.

It was important to note that although there were no large units of Guangxi troops in their current location, if a small detachment of Guangxi troops discovered the commotion here, it would inevitably cause trouble for their hostage rescue operation!

After everything was arranged, seeing that it was still early, He Zhengdao personally inspected the concealed positions. Finding no issues, he instructed the soldiers to take a nap in the trenches they had dug.

Once the guard company on reconnaissance duty brought news, they would only need to prepare for battle and wait for his orders to encircle and annihilate the Nationalist inspection team.

As the morning sunlight spread over the land, this relatively busy road would occasionally see convoys of merchants transporting goods. These convoys, completely unaware of the heavy ambush on both sides of the mountain road, passed through quietly.

Although the guards hired by the convoys were very vigilant, they did not notice anything unusual and passed through the ambush site of the independent regiment quietly.

Until the guard company on reconnaissance duty reported that the Nationalist inspection team, along with ten vehicles and an infantry artillery company, was advancing toward the ambush site under the cover of an infantry unit. Upon learning that the inspection team was also accompanied by an artillery company, He Zhengdao realized that if they did not deal with this artillery company, it would be a real problem once the fighting started!

He quickly ordered the 1st Battalion, led by Zhang Cheng, to impersonate Guangxi troops and set up the prepared roadblocks on the road. At the same time, several heavy machine gun positions were quickly established. This setup made it look like a genuine Guangxi Army checkpoint, which no one unfamiliar with the situation would suspect was actually a Red Army impersonation.

During wartime, such checkpoints were common on every major road. Therefore, some pedestrians and merchant convoys who arrived before the Nationalist inspection team were unusually polite and cautious when inspected by Zhang Cheng, who was impersonating a Guangxi Army battalion commander.

Although many Red Army officers and soldiers were averse to accepting bribes, to play the role of a Guangxi Army inspection team, He Zhengdao specially required Zhang Cheng to pretend to be satisfied and accept the bribes offered by the passing merchants.

The idea was that it was not strange for soldiers to set up checkpoints and collect money in those times. If they did not collect money, it would be strange. Only by deceiving themselves could they deceive others. This was the concept He Zhengdao taught Zhang Cheng on how to look calm while accepting bribes!

Considering that the Nationalist inspection team had an artillery company, He Zhengdao directly ordered the guard company to be responsible for dealing with the artillery company. If the situation went wrong, they were to immediately kill the Nationalist soldiers guarding the artillery. Although the independent regiment had few soldiers skilled in using infantry artillery, forming a company of artillerymen should not be a problem.

Compared to rifles and machine guns, the power of artillery was undoubtedly greater. With these infantry artillery pieces, they would look more impressive when entering the county and more like the well-equipped Nationalist troops of that era.

When the Nationalist inspection team was one kilometer away from the ambush site, the reconnaissance soldiers of the guard company sent a message back. After the main force of the Nationalists passed, they quickly set up a checkpoint on the road, blocking all merchant convoys from passing.

Of course, the excuse He Zhengdao gave to the guard company for setting up the checkpoint was that a Red Army suppression operation was underway ahead. To avoid civilian casualties, they were specifically blocking the road to prevent them from entering the combat zone. Once the main force of the Guangxi troops finished the operation, they would be allowed to pass.

Everything proceeded as planned. When the ten vehicles slowly came into the sight of the independent regiment's ambush, all the Red Army soldiers placed their hands on their rifles, ready to wait for He Zhengdao's order to launch a surprise attack on the unsuspecting Nationalist inspection team.

However, they all knew that the sound of gunfire would attract the attention of the Guangxi troops. Therefore, they were also looking forward to seeing if this young regiment commander could once again achieve his goal without firing a single shot, dealing with the well-armed Nationalist inspection team.

As the lead vehicle of the Nationalists saw the roadblock ahead, the arrogant Nationalist drivers did not even get out of their cars. They simply honked their horns, signaling the Guangxi troops to quickly move the barrier and let them pass.

After all, compared to the Guangxi and Hunan troops, they, the Nationalists, were the regular army here, and the others were just irregulars!

Unfortunately, the Nationalist drivers did not expect that the Guangxi Army officer in charge of the checkpoint seemed to be a fool. He ignored the honking and continued to shout, "Stop the car, please show your identification!"

Seeing that their cars were still moving forward, Zhang Cheng, impersonating the Guangxi Army battalion commander, pretended to be angry and said, "Damn it, you won't stop for inspection, right? Brothers, get the machine guns ready. I want to see who dares to run the checkpoint!"

The Nationalist soldiers in the driver's seats saw that the Guangxi Army battalion commander seemed very angry and gave the order. Many of the soldiers guarding the checkpoint indeed pulled the bolts of the heavy machine guns and loaded the bullets. If they really pulled the triggers, the Nationalist soldiers would be in real trouble!

Seeing that the Guangxi Army patrol seemed very serious, the Nationalist driver quickly stepped on the brakes and shouted, "Are you blind? Don't you see the flag on our car? We are the Nationalist inspection team, here to deliver money to you. Hasn't your superior told you to let us pass when you see us?"

In response to the Nationalist driver's angry curses, He Zhengdao, impersonating Zhang Cheng's guard, also pretended to be angry and said, "Even if you are the Nationalists, you can't bully us like this! Our battalion commander is also following orders to inspect all suspicious convoys. How do we know you're not Red Army impersonators? Without a pass, no one is allowed to pass. This is an order from our superiors. If you dare to curse our battalion commander, I'll beat you to death, you little red bastard!"

He Zhengdao, who could hear the driver's accent and recognized a hint of Shanghai dialect, played the role of a guard trying to save face for his battalion commander. In the disbelieving eyes of the Nationalists, he dragged the driver who was cursing Zhang Cheng out of the car and gave him a beating. This act clearly meant that the Nationalist soldiers and the Guangxi troops were about to engage in a fight.

He Zhengdao repeatedly said, "Do you think you can bully us just because you are the Nationalists? Tell you, this is Guangxi, not Nanjing. Whether you are a dragon or a tiger, you have to lie down for me."

Upon hearing this, the 1st Battalion soldiers, who knew He Zhengdao was deliberately provoking a fight, began to shout angrily, "Can the Nationalists just bully us? Can the Nationalists just curse our battalion commander? No, you must apologize, or we won't let you pass. What can you do? Shoot us? Kill one of us, and there are still hundreds of thousands of Guangxi troops behind us. We'll see if you can kill us all, and if you can leave Guangxi safely. This is our Guangxi territory. You can be arrogant, but how can you humiliate us like this? No, your commander must come down and apologize. Otherwise, we, the 1st Battalion, will not let this go."

This loud and angry shouting undoubtedly made the soldiers on both sides very angry. But everyone knew that although the Nationalists had a righteous identity, the situation in Guangxi was not something they could easily interfere with.

Moreover, since they were the ones who started the trouble, if this matter escalated, it would be the Nationalist inspection team that would suffer. The Nationalist soldiers also realized why the driver had been so rude and cursed people.

After all, he was just a low-ranking soldier, and the other side was a Guangxi Army battalion commander. There should be some respect for hierarchy! Now, the other side's soldiers were unhappy, and they were in the wrong and could not say much.

With no choice, the Nationalist inspection team's colonel had to come out from the rear car and say, "What's all the fuss about? We are brothers. Can't we talk things out calmly? The Guangxi Army brothers are just doing their duty. If you need to check identification, just let them check. Who told you to cause trouble? Get back in your cars. What are you doing here, making a scene? What will people think if they see this?"

After scolding his men, the Nationalist colonel quickly smiled and said, "Battalion Commander Zhang, right? My subordinate was rude just now. Please forgive him. Here is my identification. I am Colonel Liu Zhendong, the commander of the Nationalist inspection team stationed in Guangxi. By order of the chairman, I am responsible for verifying and dealing with the Red Army bandits in Guangxi. Before coming to the county, I also informed your Guangxi Army commander Li and others. I believe you have received the notification, right?"

Zhang Cheng, who had rehearsed this, knew that he had to play the role fully. He saluted and said, "Colonel Liu, it's my duty. To be honest, recently a Red Army guerrilla unit has been impersonating Hunan and Nationalist troops, harassing the surrounding towns and the county. To suppress this Red Army unit, the higher-ups have ordered strict inspections of all passing military units. Although I believe Colonel Liu is not a Red Army impersonator, if you don't mind, could my men conduct a quick inspection? We won't touch your belongings; we just want to check for wounded soldiers. According to our intelligence, this Red Army unit has many wounded. If there are no wounded soldiers in your vehicles, it will prove that you are not impersonators. At that time, I will go to the city to apologize. For now, it's my duty, and I hope Colonel Liu can understand."

Hearing that the Guangxi Army battalion commander still wanted to conduct an inspection, as long as they did not board the vehicles and touch their belongings, Liu Zhendong did not think there was anything to check. Therefore, without much thought, he agreed and let Zhang Cheng lead his men to start inspecting their vehicles.