Chapter 55

After resting and regrouping in Xishui City for a day and a night, the Independent Regiment entrusted all the seized and purchased supplies to the Red First Regiment, which was taking over the defense. The Red First Regiment was somewhat surprised by the Independent Regiment's sudden departure.

However, the Red First Regiment, which was advancing lightly equipped, understood that they needed to ensure the safety of Xishui City after the Independent Regiment left. Most importantly, they had to prevent the news of the Red Army re-entering Xishui from leaking out prematurely.

This meant that the curfew order issued by the Independent Regiment had to be continued by the Red First Regiment. Before leaving, He Zhengdao also clearly briefed the Red First Regiment's commander on the important matters that needed attention.

Initially, the Red First Regiment did not fully believe that the Independent Regiment had captured Xishui City without firing a single shot. However, upon seeing the detained militia prisoners, they had no choice but to believe it. If any problems arose after the handover, they would feel ashamed to face others.

Regarding the security of Xishui City, He Zhengdao believed that the Red First Regiment had the strength to hold it. To ensure absolute safety, he transferred all the heavy machine guns seized in Xishui City to the Red First Regiment.

With the strength of a main force regiment of the Red Army, and relying on the city defenses of Xishui, it was believed that they could withstand an attack by a division-level force of the Guizhou Army. Moreover, the strength of the Guizhou Army in Xishui was not significant.

The Independent Regiment, setting out from Xishui City, quickly reported the news to headquarters. Upon receiving the telegram, Mao Zedong felt a great sense of relief. He knew that the news of the main force advancing into Xishui would not leak out in the short term.

Even if someone nearby knew that the Red Army had recaptured Xishui City, without radio or telephone, it would be difficult to report the news in time, even with the fastest horses.

With the reconnaissance company leading the way and two main battalions providing flank support, the Independent Regiment, which set out last, only needed to quicken its pace. They did not need to worry about encountering Guizhou Army forces on their way forward.

After marching through the night, the Independent Regiment was already far from Xishui City. Seeing the somewhat exhausted troops, He Zhengdao timely issued an order to rest. After the troops set up camp for rest and regrouping, He Zhengdao also convened the reconnaissance company to inquire about the situation.

The reconnaissance company, serving as the vanguard of the Independent Regiment, needed to find the best route for the advance. Fortunately, after leaving Xishui City, the security posts in some small towns were no match for the reconnaissance company.

Therefore, the reconnaissance company's report made He Zhengdao quite pleased. This situation at least indicated that there were not many forces capable of blocking their advance on the way to Guiyang.

However, He Zhengdao knew that, according to intelligence, a division of the Guizhou Army was stationed in Renhuai. To avoid this Guizhou Army division posing a threat to the Red Army's subsequent operations, He Zhengdao convened the four battalion commanders for a combat meeting.

In response to He Zhengdao's inquiry, Deputy Regiment Commander Wang Tianlin quickly said, "Commander, we can bypass Renhuai and advance directly towards Bijie. That way, we won't alert the enemy. The Guizhou Army division stationed in Renhuai is still quite strong!"

This response also gained He Zhengdao's approval, but he added, "That's true. We all know that compared to the Hunan and Sichuan armies, the combat effectiveness of the Guizhou Army is not great. But this Guizhou Army division is different from Wang Jialei's Guizhou Army.

Everyone knows that Renhuai was once the territory of Hou Zhidan's Guizhou Army. When the Central Army advanced into Guizhou, Hou Zhidan defected to the Central Army. The Central Army also provided many benefits, re-equipping and reorganizing Hou Zhidan's forces.

If they know that our main force will enter their territory, do you think they will not fight to the death? Instead of waiting for them to attack us, we should take the initiative and eliminate them first."

"But won't this expose our main force's offensive intentions?" Battalion Commander Zhang Cheng raised a concern. After all, Renhuai was different from Xishui. Capturing Renhuai without firing a shot would not be easy.

With the battalion and company commanders already recognizing He Zhengdao as their commander, he also discussed the combat plan with them when formulating the mission. Through such exchanges and discussions, they could learn from each other's strengths and improve together.

"That's true! If we attack, our intentions will indeed be exposed. But don't forget that we are at least three days' march from the main force. By the time the main force enters Xishui, do you think the news won't spread?

Although the news of the main force entering Xishui won't reach Guiyang in a day or two, I believe the Guizhou Army stationed in the surrounding counties will know. This will lead to various forces converging for a siege.

Attacking Renhuai has several advantages. If we directly attack Renhuai, even if we eventually capture it, our Independent Regiment will suffer heavy losses. I won't do something that costs us eight hundred to kill a thousand.

My plan is for the four battalions to start attacking key towns around Renhuai from tomorrow, to draw out the Guizhou Army division. Once the Guizhou Army division in Renhuai comes out, we will concentrate our main force to annihilate it.

By gradually eroding Renhuai's strength, we will continuously weaken it. At the appropriate time, I will send the reconnaissance company into Renhuai. Once we launch our final attack, we will use a coordinated inside-out strategy to capture Renhuai.

Another reason I want to capture Renhuai is that it is Hou Zhidan's base. I believe there are plenty of supplies there. Although our main force is not short of supplies, who would complain about having too much?

Moreover, by eliminating this Guizhou Army division, our advance to Guiyang will not be threatened by large Guizhou Army forces. This will make the subsequent advance of the main force safer and more secure. With so many benefits, why not attack?"

In He Zhengdao's view, as a commander, simply issuing orders without considering the opinions of subordinates would not gain their support. But by explaining the pros and cons of the plan, subordinates would be more willing to follow the orders.

After He Zhengdao explained the specific combat plan to everyone, the four battalion commanders all felt that if his plan to besiege and lure the enemy, and to attack the tiger alone, could be realized, it might indeed achieve the goal of eliminating the Guizhou Army division with minimal cost.

After the meeting, the four battalion commanders conveyed the orders to each company and platoon commander. The reconnaissance company began reconnaissance of the towns around Renhuai the next day, providing detailed intelligence for the attacks by the battalions.

To ensure that the Guizhou Army in Renhuai could be lured out, the four main battalions of the Independent Regiment sent a vanguard company to impersonate Red Army guerrillas. They conducted harassment attacks on these towns, thoroughly disrupting the area around Renhuai.

Even He Zhengdao himself led the main force to a place he had long admired, Maotai Town. The security post in the town, seeing the reconnaissance company impersonating the Central Army, opened the gates early to welcome them.

Naturally, the security post troops, who failed to curry favor with the Central Army, were captured. With the security post commander killed, Maotai Town naturally opened its doors to the Independent Regiment.

He Zhengdao, who had reported the combat plan to headquarters early in the morning, soon received a reply. Headquarters agreed with his plan but hoped that the Independent Regiment would delay the battle time as much as possible.

"Reply to headquarters: Our unit has already entered Maotai Town. Next, we will conduct harassment guerrilla warfare around Maotai Town. If the combat situation changes, we will promptly report to headquarters!"

Knowing that the Central Army was very popular in Renhuai, to avoid trouble, He Zhengdao had his troops change into Central Army uniforms. Many soldiers in the Independent Regiment knew that they each carried three sets of uniforms for changing.

One set was naturally for the Red Army, another for the Guizhou Army. Each time they changed uniforms, they could also wash the dirty ones. This way, they could constantly change their identity, making it hard for others to discern what unit they belonged to.

Coming to Maotai Town, it was natural to taste the famous Maotai wine of the era. When He Zhengdao ordered that all officers and soldiers be given some wine, Yao Shengjun felt somewhat amused and puzzled.

Shaking his head, he said, "Commander, drinking during combat might not be a good idea, right?"

"No problem! We confiscated a lot of wine from the landlords and corrupt officials. You can't sell it to others, right? Not drinking it, should we pour it into the river? Drinking a little wine is fine! Except for the duty units, is that okay?"

Who doesn't like wine among soldiers?

Although Wang Tianlin and others felt that this might violate discipline, they still supported He Zhengdao's order. It was rare to come to such a wine town, and not tasting the local wine would be a pity.

As a result, in the evening, the soldiers of each company were somewhat surprised to see the cooks carrying a wine jar. Those who didn't drink wouldn't be forced. For those who did drink, the cooks poured them a small bowl to moisten their throats.

Even just tasting the wine, for many Red Army soldiers who loved alcohol, He Zhengdao's status in their hearts undoubtedly rose. They also knew not to drink too much. Otherwise, He Zhengdao would not let them off easily!