Chapter 70

Since receiving the order personally issued by Chairman Jiang, Sun Du was well aware that this was a rare opportunity. ... This kind of action, similar to 'rescuing the emperor,' if successful, would undoubtedly ensure that Chairman Jiang would not treat him poorly in the future.

It was this joy and the desire to gain Chairman Jiang's trust that led Sun Du to report to the nominal commander Long Yun after mobilizing his troops. However, such a private mobilization of the army undoubtedly made Long Yun very angry.

Even if Long Yun knew in his heart that Sun Du wanted to play the role of a 'rescuer,' Sun Du was still a general of the Yunnan Army. Without reporting to his direct commander, he privately mobilized the troops to rescue, which put Long Yun in a very awkward position.

If the Yunnan Army were to conflict with the Central Army in the future, wouldn't it mean that Sun Du would also betray Long Yun and seek favor with Chairman Jiang? For such a general, no warlord would dare to trust him again.

However, Sun Du, who was solely focused on becoming a 'rescuer,' had considered that Long Yun would be very displeased. But now that the Central Army had occupied Guizhou, the entire southwestern region would likely be under Jiang's control, rather than under the control of the 'Wang' or 'Long' families.

Even the Sichuan Army under Liu Xiang, facing the Central Army's large-scale advance into the southwest, would likely feel overwhelmed and powerless. This is why the originally opposing Yunnan Army and Sichuan Army suddenly joined forces to fight against the Red Army.

Sun Du, who had not dared to rest for long on the journey, felt a great sense of relief upon arriving in Guiyang. However, upon learning that the Red Army was attacking Guiyang, he also felt that the Red Army was being overly bold.

He knew that rescuing a fatigued army would not be very effective. Therefore, Sun Du immediately ordered the troops to take a brief rest. Once the troops had recovered some energy, they would continue to advance towards the outskirts of Guiyang.

In his view, if the Red Army did not want to be encircled and annihilated under the walls of Guiyang, the best course of action upon hearing that they had arrived in Guiyang would be to retreat quickly. However, Sun Du also knew that the Red Army was skilled at using the 'encirclement and rescue' tactic.

He was also concerned that the Red Army might set a trap for his Yunnan Army division outside Guiyang. If that were the case, his fate would not be pleasant once he fell into the trap. Therefore, appropriate vigilance and caution were still very necessary.

Just as Sun Du ordered the troops to rest on the spot, a barrage of shells suddenly arrived, leaving these fatigued Yunnan Army soldiers completely unprepared. The explosions caused by the shells also created great panic among the resting troops.

"Bad! There's an ambush! Quickly organize a counterattack!"

Some Yunnan Army officers who realized they had been ambushed quickly organized the troops to set up defensive and counterattack positions on the spot. However, the continuous barrage of shells left them dazed and confused.

At the same time, the Red Army, which had been lying in ambush, began their attack. Under the cover of mortar companies, the Red Army's firepower was exceptionally fierce, leaving many Yunnan Army soldiers unable to mount any effective defense or counterattack.

He Zhengdao, who was accompanying the reconnaissance company, also participated in the attack. Unlike other soldiers who charged forward, He Zhengdao held a rifle and occasionally shot down the Yunnan Army soldiers who were counterattacking.

Seeing He Zhengdao's precise marksmanship, the two guards who were loading ammunition and changing magazines for him were very impressed. In their eyes, watching He Zhengdao kill the enemy was a rare pleasure!

Only the chief of staff, Wang Tianlin, was somewhat dissatisfied with He Zhengdao's personal involvement on the front lines. However, he also knew that He Zhengdao was a person who could not stand idleness, and his combat skills were unmatched in the entire division.

Although he only led a reconnaissance company, the killing power of the reconnaissance company led by He Zhengdao was undoubtedly astonishing. The rain of bullets and the superb marksmanship of the reconnaissance company's sharpshooters forced the Yunnan Army to retreat step by step.

Many of the Guizhou Army soldiers participating in the attack felt no pressure in fighting the Yunnan Army. If shooting the Guizhou Army soldiers made them somewhat hesitant, the Yunnan Army required no such consideration.

Seeing his troops retreating step by step and the rapid assault of the Red Army, Sun Du knew he was finished. He had failed to rescue the emperor and had offended Long Yun. His fate would not be good.

Faced with the Red Army's main force, which was forming an encirclement, Sun Du finally gritted his teeth and said, "Retreat to the rear and break through! As long as we break through, we can survive!"

Sun Du's idea was correct, but for the Yunnan Army soldiers who were planning to hold their ground, his order to 'break through' was the last straw. The Yunnan Army reinforcements began to surrender in large numbers.

The reserve battalion, following the main force, began to round up prisoners and clean up the battlefield under orders. Sun Du, after being pursued on horseback by the reconnaissance company for a distance, ultimately ended up fleeing in a wretched manner.

When the reconnaissance company was ordered to return, they did not pursue Sun Du and his men, who had fled into the mountains. To them, this nearly ten-thousand-strong reinforcement force had been thoroughly defeated.

Knowing that cleaning up the battlefield would take some time, He Zhengdao immediately ordered, "Command the artillery battalion and the First Infantry Regiment to immediately head to the outskirts of Guiyang to assist the Fourth Regiment in the attack. Remember, your task is to scare the Central Army in Guiyang.

The Second and Third Infantry Regiments and the logistics regiment will begin cleaning up the battlefield and preparing to retreat. Next, it's our turn to run, and let the Central Army chase us. Everyone, move quickly. The sooner we finish cleaning up the battlefield, the sooner we can retreat."

"Yes, Commander!"

Under He Zhengdao's orders, the artillery battalion, which had already begun dismantling the mountain guns, was pulling the guns with horse-drawn carts to the outskirts of Guiyang. As for the First Infantry Regiment, with the help of the reconnaissance company's drivers, they quickly returned to assist the logistics regiment by car.

Seeing the First Infantry Regiment successfully arrive and the artillery battalion on the way, Ma Xiaojun also felt a great sense of relief and said, "Good, it seems our 'encirclement and rescue' tactic has really worked. I wonder what Chairman Jiang is thinking right now!"

Upon receiving Sun Du's telegram requesting assistance and reporting the ambush, even Gu Zhutong was startled. He could not understand how many troops this independent division had. Why was there such a large discrepancy between the number of troops and the intelligence gathered?

Previously, in Renhuai City, it was said to have about 3,000 troops. By the time they reached Xifeng City, the independent division had grown to 6,000 to 7,000 troops. But now, looking at the troops encircling the city, there seemed to be 5,000 to 6,000 troops.

How could the troops that ambushed Sun Du's division possibly be the main force of the Red Army?

Even though he could not understand, it still made Chairman Jiang furious. The occasional sound of artillery fire in the city made Chairman Jiang feel that this was the Red Army's retaliation and provocation against him.

The problem was that even knowing this, he was powerless to do anything. Even if Gu Zhutong ordered the artillery regiment in the city to counterattack the Red Army's artillery positions, the effect was minimal.

As night was about to fall, the independent division's artillery battalion arrived at the outskirts of Guiyang. Seeing Zhu Deyi, who had brought the mountain guns back, Ma Xiaojun said happily, "Old Zhu, you're finally here!"

"What? Were you anxious?"

"Yes! The Central Army's artillery regiment in the city almost plowed through all the artillery positions I had set up in advance. Fortunately, by firing two shots and then moving, we managed to save these four mountain guns. Now it's up to you."

Hearing Ma Xiaojun's words, Zhu Deyi smiled and said, "Have you calculated the position of the enemy's artillery positions?"

"Yes! This Central Army artillery regiment seems very arrogant! They never changed their artillery positions during the counterattack. We had too few guns to form an effective threat. Now it's up to you!"

"Alright!"

Zhu Deyi readily agreed and ordered the newly arrived artillery battalion to set up the mountain guns. By the time He Zhengdao returned, the artillery battalion had already begun counter-battery fire.

Hearing the sudden increase in artillery fire outside the city, Gu Zhutong was very alarmed and said, "Bad! Order the artillery regiment to move quickly! It's too late, our artillery regiment won't have time to move!"

Leaving the command room, Gu Zhutong soon saw the shells whistling and landing around the artillery regiment's position. He knew that the artillery regiment had lost its combat capability.

Without the support of the artillery, Guiyang City would be in real danger!

The artillery battalion's intense bombardment quickly ended as night fell. At this time, many of the defending troops saw torches being lit outside the city. The red glow of the torches made the defending troops very nervous.

However, the various units outside the city had received orders from He Zhengdao. After setting up the torches, all personnel quickly retreated and met up with the Second and Third Infantry Regiments before dawn.

After this battle, the mission of the independent division as the vanguard was complete. Next, the independent division would take on the responsibility of rearguard, buying more time for the main Red Army force during their movement.

The intense artillery bombardment in the evening had already made the defending troops in the city hesitant to leave. This meant that when they woke up the next day and found no Red Army outside the city, they would realize that the Red Army had already retreated.

If they wanted to pursue, it would likely be impossible to catch up. Even before the situation was fully investigated, the defending troops in the city would not dare to leave the city lightly. They were also concerned that sending troops out of the city might again fall into the independent division's ambush!