Chapter 67

As the telegraph from the Xifeng city defense unit arrived, He Zhizhong, who had previously been worried about whether the Red Army would set an ambush halfway, did not understand how this Red Army unit attacking the city managed to obtain heavy weapons like mountain guns.

Based on the information provided by the defense unit, this Red Army unit, which was accelerating its attack, had completely surrounded Xifeng city. This meant that without the strength of an entire unit, it would be impossible to achieve such an encirclement and attack.

Thinking about this, He Zhizhong was very clear that if the Red Army really managed to break into Xifeng city, the battle to come would be extremely difficult. Therefore, he had to order his troops to support Xifeng as quickly as possible and annihilate this Red Army unit within Xifeng territory.

Such rapid marching was undoubtedly extremely exhausting for the soldiers of the 03 Division. In this era, apart from the Central Army and the Guangxi Army, which had a few vehicles, the Guizhou Army naturally could not afford such high-end equipment.

Relying solely on their legs, how could they not consume a large amount of physical energy?

Just as the soldiers felt that this march was like a death sentence, He Zhengdao, seeing the vanguard of the 03 Division enter the ambush area, felt that this battle would be easier. Looking at these exhausted Guizhou Army soldiers, he thought they must be quite tired.

As the main force of the 03 Division entered the range of the artillery battalion, He Zhengdao raised his signal gun and fired a shot. A red signal flare shot into the sky, causing the 03 Division soldiers who were marching to freeze in place for a few seconds.

At this moment, a whistling sound came from the sky. Hearing this sound, He Zhizhong instantly dismounted and shouted, "They are shelling us; we are ambushed! Spread out and find good cover quickly, and implement defensive counterattacks on the spot!"

With the shouts of He Zhizhong and many other Guizhou Army officers, the 03 Division soldiers, who were in a state of panic, saw the road ahead explode with deafening blasts. Many unprepared soldiers were quickly killed or injured in large numbers.

At the same time, the soldiers lying in ambush on both sides of the mountain ridge lifted the camouflage covering them, aimed their guns at the Guizhou Army below, and pulled the triggers. Soon, the entire ambush valley was filled with the sound of gunfire.

Seeing the dense machine gun fire and the continuous artillery fire, He Zhizhong, who was tightly protected by his guards in a nearby ditch, turned pale and said, "How is this possible? How is this possible? The main force of the Red Army is still in Maotai, isn't it?"

In He Zhizhong's view, such an ambush could only be carried out by the main force of the Red Army. However, according to the intelligence provided, the main force of the Red Army should still be in the Maotai area, which was two to three days away from here.

Looking at his subordinates who were running around in panic, He Zhizhong knew that the 03 Division was finished. He felt wronged, believing that the intelligence provided by the Central Army was incorrect. But at this moment, no matter how unwilling he was, he was powerless.

The commander of the guard battalion, who was lying next to him, said, "Commander, we can't delay any longer. We must break through before the Red Army encircles us. Otherwise, we won't even have the strength to break through later."

The commander of the guard battalion, who had dealt with the Red Army before, knew that such firepower was at least that of a main Red Army division. With the addition of mountain guns, such heavy weapons, it was impossible for them to counterattack.

What they needed to do now was to protect He Zhizhong and break through. As long as He Zhizhong could survive, they would have a chance to rise again. If He Zhizhong also died here, they would be truly finished.

How can we break through with such firepower?

Looking at the fierce firepower coming from both sides of the mountain, He Zhizhong asked himself, such firepower, even the Central Army might not have. If it weren't for the fact that there were no main Central Army units near Guiyang, he would have suspected that the Central Army was ambushing him.

Seeing He Zhizhong's dejected expression, the commander of the guard battalion continued, "Please rest assured, Commander. We will do our best to protect you. The 3rd Regiment is at the back of the formation, and they have suffered less. As long as we can rush through these few hundred meters and set up a blocking position with the 3rd Regiment, we can delay the Red Army's attack for a while. The 1st Regiment, organize the troops to break through and get the Commander out. Otherwise, we will all be finished."

Even if others saw He Zhizhong as a traitor, his subordinates knew that, given the situation where the Central Army controlled the military and political power in Guizhou, anyone who didn't want to die knew that only by joining the Central Army could they have a chance to survive.

If He Zhizhong died here, these officers who had placed their families in Daguxinchang would have no chance of survival. Based on their understanding of the Central Army, the wealth they had accumulated would likely be confiscated.

But if He Zhizhong could return to Daguxinchang alive, even if they died here, they believed He Zhizhong would protect their families. Knowing this, these loyal subordinates of He Zhizhong decided to fight to the death to get him out.

Seeing the 03 Division, which had been cut into several parts, starting to organize small-scale counterattacks, He Zhengdao immediately ordered, "Order the mortar companies of the 2nd and 3rd Regiments to focus on attacking those gathered units. Also, order the artillery battalion to search for targets and quickly crush them. Bring up the 2nd Battalion of the logistics regiment to strengthen the attack on the left. Do not advance without my order."

"Yes, Commander."

The communicator by He Zhengdao's side quickly relayed the orders. Soon, some scattered Guizhou Army soldiers who had regrouped found that more shells were being fired at their gathering places.

Under such artillery fire, the small-scale counterattacks that had just formed quickly dispersed again. The 2nd Battalion of the logistics regiment, which had received the order, began to join the offensive.

Although many of the captured soldiers felt some reluctance, they knew that from the moment they put on the Red Army uniform, they had no way out. If they did not gain the trust of the Red Army, their future would be difficult.

But many of the newly captured soldiers, under the watchful eyes of the Red Army veterans, eventually pulled the triggers and started shooting. They knew this was a test from He Zhengdao.

Wu Zhefeng, who was also sent to the front line, looked at his comrades who were lying on the ground in pain below but could not bring himself to shoot. Even though the Red Army soldier next to him glared angrily, he still had a bitter expression and did not shoot.

"If you don't dare to shoot, get out of here. I despise people who are half-hearted."

A Red Army soldier who was constantly shooting seemed very angry at Wu Zhefeng's refusal to shoot. He couldn't help but say this, and the 2nd Battalion commander of the logistics regiment happened to hear it.

Seeing Wu Zhefeng's bitter expression, he asked, "Wu Zhefeng, what's going on?"

"Commander, I really can't bring myself to do it. The people below are from my old unit. And the Commander promised not to force me to act. I hope you can forgive me for not wanting to shoot at my own brothers."

Hearing this, the Red Army soldier who had previously scolded him was also taken aback. He had thought Wu Zhefeng was a captured soldier from Renhuai city, but he didn't expect that this captured soldier was personally recruited by the Commander.

The 2nd Battalion commander, who also knew that Wu Zhefeng was a talent, thought for a moment and said, "Alright, then you can withdraw from the battle. If you really don't want to kill anyone, you can try to persuade your comrades to surrender. The battle is already decided."

Indeed.

Seeing the Guizhou Army soldiers running around wildly, some even lying on the ground with their heads down, He Zhengdao, who had been observing the battlefield, hesitated for a moment and then gritted his teeth and said, "Bugler, sound the charge. Full attack."

The sound of "dida, dida, didida" rang out, and many Red Army soldiers leaped out of the trenches, shouting, "Comrades, charge!"

Light machine guns led the way, supported by mortars, and the Red Army soldiers lying in ambush on both sides of the road began to pursue the fleeing Guizhou Army. At this moment, He Zhengdao also saw a group of soldiers break out of the ambush area.

In fact, if He Zhengdao really wanted to annihilate them, he had a good chance. But that would mean heavy casualties for the Red Army as well. Therefore, he ordered an opening to be left, allowing these desperate soldiers to escape.

Although this order seemed puzzling, He Zhengdao knew that the 03 Division was already crippled. Moreover, the 9th Red Army Corps had already launched the campaign against Daguxinchang. Even if they escaped, where could they go?

Even a cornered rabbit will bite.

Leaving an opening, he believed that these Guizhou Army soldiers who wanted to survive would not put up much resistance. They would use all their strength to escape the ambush area. But the question was, after running for so long, how long could they keep going?

As the slogan "Surrender and you won't be killed; the Red Army treats prisoners well" echoed across the battlefield, the exhausted Guizhou Army soldiers who could no longer run surrendered, raising their guns and kneeling on the ground. The Red Army's task was to pursue them.

Looking at the smoky battlefield and the bodies scattered on the road, He Zhengdao felt that although they had won the battle, he did not feel any joy from the victory.

If the bodies on the road were the Japanese, He Zhengdao might have been overjoyed. But the problem was that these were people of the same race and nationality. Such fratricidal conflict, if it could be avoided, would be much better.

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