Chapter 46

Upon learning that the main force of the Red Army had returned to Zunyi, Xue Yue, who was stationed in Guiyang, seemed to realize that the Guizhou Army led by Wang Jialie was utterly unreliable. He urgently mobilized troops from the Central Army stationed in Guizhou to encircle, pursue, and intercept the Red Army.

Additionally, to prevent the Red Army from continuing to move north, Xue Yue, as the commander of the front enemy, ordered the two main divisions led by Wu Qiwu, which were closest to Zunyi, to quickly head to the Zunyi area to assist the Guizhou Army, which was already powerless to resist.

Upon learning that the Red Army had acted swiftly and had already annihilated one of their main regiments, Wu Qiwu was naturally very angry. However, he was still quite satisfied that another regiment was still holding its position, preventing the Red Army from breaking through smoothly.

Even after receiving the telegram, he explicitly informed them in the telegram that he hoped the 704th Regiment would continue to hold out and must block the enemy for three hours. This would create an opportunity for the main force to encircle the Red Army. If they could achieve this, the credit for this operation would be significant!

When Wu Qiwu ordered his two Central Army divisions to accelerate their advance, they received another rescue telegram from the 704th Regiment while they were not far from the 704th Regiment's position. The telegram stated that the Red Army was attacking fiercely, and they were about to be overwhelmed!

"Order the 704th Regiment that the main force of the division has arrived and will reach them within half an hour at the latest. Command them to hold the Red Army at their defensive line, even if they have to fight to the last man."

In Wu Qiwu's view, the 704th Regiment had already done a very difficult job by holding out until now. With just a little more distance to go, if they could hold on a bit longer, the final victory would belong to them.

However, what he did not know was that upon receiving his telegram, He Zhengdao said to the five battalion commanders around him, "Comrades, the battle we are about to fight will not be easy. One regiment against a division is a tough challenge!

But you must understand that although the main force has been rested, they have already fought a battle in Zunyi and will still have to deal with the pursuit by the Guizhou and Sichuan armies. The pressure on them is greater than on us. Therefore, the 59th Division must be defeated!

In fact, the 59th Division we need to deal with is not a complete main division. Their strength is less than 6,000 men. Compared to our forces, it is roughly two to one in our favor.

Now, we just need to wait for them to enter the ambush we have set. To avoid affecting the main force's transfer, we must act quickly. When the battle starts, don't hesitate to use ammunition; we must fight them to the death.

They have been on the move for a long time, and their soldiers are surely more tired than ours. So, the artillery battalion should not hesitate to use their shells. After this battle, except for the mortars, the rest of the mountain guns and remaining shells will be buried on the spot, understood?"

"Yes, Commander!"

With the approval from headquarters, the battalion commanders, who were more senior than He Zhengdao, also knew that He Zhengdao was the commander of the independent regiment appointed by headquarters. This meant they had to unconditionally obey He Zhengdao's orders.

As the 59th Division, urged by Wu Qiwu, rushed to the position of the 704th Regiment with all their might, they never expected that the 704th Regiment, which they intended to rescue, would deal them a fatal blow.

Seeing that the 59th Division, which had not even posted any sentries, truly believed that the 704th Regiment was still holding back the Red Army, they quickly advanced towards their defensive line. He Zhengdao knew that the fate of the 59th Division was already sealed.

"Order the artillery battalion to bombard for ten minutes! After the bombardment, all battalions will launch a full-scale assault to crush them!"

He Zhengdao gave the order to the communications officer. Zhu Dingyi, the commander of the artillery battalion of the independent regiment, who was already prepared for the bombardment, looked at the Central Army entering the ambush and said with a cruel smile, "Fire!"

With Zhu Dingyi's command, the twelve mountain guns of the independent regiment roared. When the marching 59th Division heard the thunderous cannon fire, they were momentarily stunned.

As the shells rained down from the sky, the already exhausted Central Army soldiers were thrown into chaos. The orderly marching formation instantly became a chaotic mess, and the deadly shells continued to fall into their ranks.

At this moment, the four main battalions of the Red Army, set up in the ambush, also opened fire. The dense rain of bullets plunged the 59th Division's soldiers into complete panic and terror.

More tragically, the commander of the 59th Division was hit by a mountain shell in the first round of bombardment. Even the telegraph operator beside him was killed by the same shell.

Despite the officers of the 59th Division shouting, "Take cover! Take cover! Set up the machine guns, counterattack! Organize a counterattack quickly, or we will all die here. Hurry!"

Unfortunately, their shouts made them the best targets. He Zhengdao, who was clear about the Central Army officers, had no interest in them. The sharpshooters from the reconnaissance companies of the four main battalions calmly shot down the surviving command officers one by one.

As these officers were quickly killed, He Zhengdao, looking at the chaotic battlefield and the Central Army soldiers fleeing in all directions, remained calm. He knew that it was not yet time to charge and end the battle.

The lack of a charge signal meant it was not yet time for the final charge. The soldiers of each battalion also knew that such an opportunity was rare. With ample ammunition, each soldier quickly harvested the enemies in their sights.

Even some newly captured Central Army soldiers, who sympathized with their former comrades, knew that after joining the independent regiment, they had no chance to back out.

If they did not want to be held accountable by the Central Army, they had to prove themselves and gain the recognition of the independent regiment's soldiers. Perhaps in the near future, they could become Red Army officers or survive to the end.

After ten minutes of bombardment, the artillerymen of the artillery battalion were also exhausted. Although Zhu Dingyi was very reluctant to leave the mountain guns, he knew that carrying them would slow them down.

"Alright! Drag these mountain guns to the pre-selected location and bury them, along with the remaining mountain shells."

At this moment, He Zhengdao, looking at the 59th Division, which had lost its ability to resist, calmly said, "Bugler, sound the charge!"

The bugle call "Dida, dida" sounded, and the Red Army soldiers, who had been waiting impatiently, immediately rushed out of the trenches. Under the command of the officers, "Comrades, charge!" they quickly rushed into the disorganized 59th Division.

Seeing the Central Army soldiers with red armbands, the disoriented 59th Division soldiers could not understand why these men in the same uniform would ambush them. What was going on?

The familiar slogans "Surrender and you won't be killed!" and "The Red Army treats prisoners well!" echoed across the battlefield, and many 59th Division soldiers who had survived the ten minutes of bombardment breathed a sigh of relief, threw their guns aside, and squatted or sat down, raising their hands high.

Looking at the Red Army soldiers who were charging past them and firing occasionally, they were also incredulous. When had the Red Army, which they had been chasing around, become so powerful with such fierce artillery? What was happening?

As the independent regiment launched a full-scale assault and began to round up prisoners and clean up the battlefield, He Zhengdao said, "Send a telegram to headquarters, our regiment has defeated the 59th Division and is now cleaning up the battlefield!"

When the telegram was sent, the 93rd Division, personally commanded by Wu Qiwu, was also surrounded and being cleared by the main force of the Red Army. The newly received mortars played a crucial role in this battle.

Under the personal command of Ye Jianying, the twenty mortars relentlessly bombarded the 93rd Division. Such intense artillery fire left Wu Qiwu in disbelief.

Was this the Red Army, which he knew had only one gun per man, capable of such intense artillery fire?

Wu Qiwu, protected by his guards, said in fear, "How could the main force of the Red Army be here? Weren't they being blocked by the 704th Regiment? Why? Why is this happening?"

Unable to understand why the Red Army had circled behind the 704th Regiment, Wu Qiwu was indeed puzzled. However, he knew that the fate of the 93rd Division would not be good.

Having fought the Red Army multiple times, he was well aware of the consequences of being ambushed by them, which always left him in terror. After a few rounds of bombardment, the main force of the First Red Army Corps also launched the final annihilation battle.

By the time they ended the battle and successfully captured Wu Qiwu, the independent regiment, responsible for another reduced division, had already finished cleaning up the battlefield and was advancing in the direction of the main force's transfer.

All the weapons and ammunition from this battle were taken with them. As for the lucky prisoners who survived, He Zhengdao still ordered a battalion to escort them. For those who tried to delay by claiming they could not walk, He Zhengdao ordered them to be shot.

In such a situation, there was no room for mercy. If these prisoners delayed the independent regiment's retreat, they would be in trouble when the Central Army caught up. The threat of death for those who could not walk made the captured Central Army soldiers dare not complain. This also proved the saying that under the threat of death, human potential is truly limitless.