Chapter 24

Smoothly leading away nearly a thousand Red Army prisoners from the county, He Zhengdao didn't even spare the wounded. Of course, to the county security regiment commander, it was better to kill by mistake than to let anyone go, and this reason was deeply believed by Commander Ma.

As for the so-called reward of 100,000 yuan, only the first two boxes contained money, while the rest of the sealed boxes were filled with stones. When Commander Ma watched the central army leave, he immediately had the 100,000 heavy silver dollars carried to the security regiment's base.

When they opened the two boxes He Zhengdao had instructed to be opened and tore the paper wrapping the silver dollars, the shiny silver dollars made all the security regiment officers present smile broadly.

However, this smile quickly froze on their faces as the third box was opened, revealing the stones inside. Looking at the 18 other boxes, all filled with stones except for the first two, the security regiment officers were stunned.

Commander Ma finally angrily said, "Damn it, even my hard-earned money, these damn dogs dare to embezzle. Brothers, gather the men and chase after those damn central army troops. I want to see how black their hearts are, to dare to take my money."

It was only after discovering the money in the boxes had been switched that these security regiment soldiers, who belonged to the Guangxi army, became exceptionally angry. A fully armed security battalion followed their nearly exploding commander, angrily rushing out of the county to chase the central army troops, who they now understood had left in a hurry to avoid being caught embezzling the money.

How dare they not only embezzle the money but also kill our men? Isn't this going too far?

But no one answered him; instead, they were met with a barrage of machine gun fire, which knocked down several leading security regiment officers from their horses.

If Commander Ma hadn't quickly jumped off his horse, he wouldn't have avoided the sweeping machine gun bullets!

Well! Not only did they embezzle my money, but they also dared to kill my men. Isn't this too much?

But no one gave him an answer. Instead, he was met with the booming sound of mortars. Seeing his security regiment soldiers being hit hard, Commander Ma knew that the city defense troops were no match for the central army.

If you have the green hills, you won't lack firewood!

Commander Ma said, very straightforwardly and bitterly, "Damn it, listen up. You embezzled my money and killed my men. I will report this to Commander Li and have him talk to your bald-headed chairman.

Is this how you treat our Guangxi army? Brothers, retreat! These damn central army troops won't get away. Tell Commander Li, and let our regular army brothers deal with them."

Hearing this, the security regiment soldiers, who had come in anger and had already lost over a hundred brothers, could only return in bitter frustration. After they left, the 4th Battalion and the battalion's mortar platoon, responsible for the rear guard, immediately emerged from their ambush positions, quickly got into the cars left for them, and sped off to catch up with the main force.

When the 4th Battalion arrived at the assembly point not far from Fairy Ridge, they saw the Red Army prisoners, who had been rescued from the county, hugging and cheering with the Independent Regiment soldiers. The Red Army prisoners had already recognized these central army soldiers with submachine guns as their former comrades.

The Red Army prisoners, who understood the situation, whispered to their comrades after getting into the vehicles, "Don't panic, they are our people. That guy shouted at me to prevent me from calling out his name. These people are probably sent by the main force to rescue us. So, don't make a fuss, sit down quickly, and we'll be safe once we leave the city."

It was this tacit understanding that made the Red Army prisoners behave so obediently, allowing He Zhengdao's Independent Regiment to rescue them so easily!

After He Zhengdao introduced himself to everyone, the rescued Red Army soldiers learned that it wasn't the main force that had sent people to rescue them, but this former bodyguard company commander of Comrade Mao, who had been rescuing captured Red Army soldiers along the way, leading to this moment.

After the introduction, He Zhengdao continued, "Comrades, we are still surrounded by the enemy. We don't have much time to move, so we must leave here as soon as possible.

Now, follow my orders. Comrades who have served as officers in their old units, please register with Commissar Yao. We will assign you to the Independent Regiment's officer ranks based on your experience.

Additionally, we have a base at Fairy Ridge. Comrades from the 34th Division, please report to my right. Your Commander Chen is waiting for you there. You will be led back by guides I will send.

I hope you can quickly recover and continue fighting bravely with Commander Chen. Comrades who wish to join the Independent Regiment to catch up with the main force can register with Commissar Yao.

We will assign you to one of the four main battalions of the Independent Regiment based on your previous units. Comrades who have served in the artillery do not need to report to the infantry battalions. You can report to the artillery company commander, and with these new infantry guns, you will be expanded into an artillery battalion.

Now, comrades, quickly form your teams according to my orders. I must emphasize that chasing the main force will be difficult. Comrades who are injured or unwell should not force themselves to join the Independent Regiment.

I suggest you join Commander Chen's 34th Division. He has established a base with medicine and food, which will help you recover and achieve new successes."

After these words, the nearly a thousand people quickly divided into two distinct groups. About 500 chose to follow the Independent Regiment to catch up with the main force, while the other 400, including the wounded, followed He Zhengdao's orders and agreed to join the 34th Division to conduct guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines.

Among the 400 returning, nearly 200 were wounded, plus over 100 scattered soldiers from the 34th Division. The true number of soldiers who did not want to chase the main force was only about 100.

For those who chose to stay, He Zhengdao didn't say much. He handed over the rifles and machine guns left by the central army to the Red Army returning to Fairy Ridge.

After briefing the guides and temporarily appointed battalion and company commanders, He Zhengdao sent them on their way, cautioning them to be careful on their return to Fairy Ridge. The Independent Regiment would also divert the attention of the Guangxi army.

When they arrived at Fairy Ridge, they were to send a telegram to Chen Shuchun to report their safety. After all, He Zhengdao had sent a main battalion to him in this battle!

From the rescue and reunion to the division of those staying and joining, it took only about an hour. Apart from the rescued Red Army officers, who were temporarily assigned to the four main battalions based on their previous ranks, even if a battalion had two deputy battalion commanders or several deputy company commanders, He Zhengdao told them not to worry. Along the way, more people would join the Independent Regiment, and once they did, these deputy officers would be promoted. After all, He Zhengdao knew that soldiers were easy to find, but officers were hard to come by.

For these officers who had survived, they didn't care about leading troops. As long as they could continue fighting against the reactionary warlords with the Independent Regiment, they were willing to serve as soldiers.

With the addition of over 500 soldiers, He Zhengdao's Independent Regiment was undoubtedly strong. Especially the artillery battalion, which was not yet fully organized. The artillery company commander, Zhu Dingyi, who had only operated infantry guns twice in his old unit, was not only promoted to battalion commander but also received several infantry guns that were previously only available to main divisions.

After everything was prepared, He Zhengdao ordered the guard company to send a few soldiers to call back the machine gunners guarding the central army. He also quietly briefed them on the situation, making the guard company soldiers chuckle. They knew that with this move, the Guangxi army and the central army would likely have a conflict with the Hunan army.

Sure enough, when the guard company soldiers arrived at the valley, they found the central army troops to be quite obedient. The two soldiers, who had learned some Hunan dialect in southern Hunan, chatted quietly for a while. After saying a Hunan dialect phrase, "Let the central army and the Guangxi army fight each other," they successfully left the valley with the machine gun team.

When Liu Zhendong had his guard look up the hill, he saw that the other side had indeed left. He immediately said fiercely, "You wait, when I return to the rear, I will report you to the chairman. Brothers, let's go!"

At that moment, a Hunan native soldier suddenly said quietly, "Commander, I think these people might not be from the Guangxi army. The two guys just now spoke in the Hunan dialect.

Although I was far away, I seemed to hear them say something about making the central army and the Guangxi army fight each other. Could these people be from the Hunan army? After all, we're not too far from southern Hunan!"

Hearing this, Liu Zhendong also felt confused. He began to wonder if these people were from the Hunan army or the Guangxi army. But no matter who they were, since the incident happened in the Guangxi army's territory, the Guangxi army would have to give an explanation.