Chapter 45 Chapter 45: Return of the Eight Regiments

On July 3, Fang Xianjue plunged into his empty white room again.This time the room is not empty, there is an extra painting. Fang Xianjue was holding his breath in front of a Chinese painting of plum hanging on the wall. Outsiders didn't know what was going on in his round brain. This painting was the third Changsha victory the year before last, and Fang Xianjue was given to him by the old monk, the abbot of Huaguang Temple, when he returned to Hengyang. The abbot said: The famous anti-Japanese general returned home and presented a treasured painting of the town temple as a token of respect.

Fang Xianjue said: Since it is the treasure of the town temple, how can it win people's love! The old monk said: The general killed the bandits in blood, and the world admires him. A piece of calligraphy and painting is not a respect, but a smile! Fang Xianjue said: I am ashamed to accept it, but I am disrespectful, and I have the right to keep it on my behalf.After the Japanese pirates are expelled and China is restored, they must be returned! What is so magical about this painting?It turns out that it has a long history. According to the ancient "Qingquan County Chronicle", Huaguang Mountain is fifteen miles south of the city.There is Huaguang Temple, where the Song monk Zhongren lived.The number is spent on the old man.Good at painting plum blossoms, Huang Tingjian has poems...

It turns out that this painting was made by Master Huaguang, the abbot of Huaguang Temple, an eminent monk in the Song Dynasty. In addition, there is a poem written by Huang Tingjian on this painting, so it is invaluable.Huang Tingjian's poem says: Inscription on paintings of monks in Huaguang Temple (five musts): There is no land in the mountains in Hubei, but the water in Hunan is full of water.Yunsha is really rich and noble, and the little fairy of pen and ink. Looking at Huang Tingjian's inscription, Fang Xianjue thought of another ancient site on Huaguang Mountain in the suburbs of Hengyang——Sidu Pavilion, a "Sidu Poem" inscribed by another Song Dynasty.Poetry goes:

In the ten-mile Songyin Ancient Daoist Temple, a pavilion still rests on Xiaoxiang.The poet was worried about the Tang Dynasty until his death, and the wild guest is now hanging in Leiyang. Clouds grow in the windows and rain gathers in the mountains, and the flowers of Yanming are fragrant at dawn.Not only does it add melancholy to the view, but the temples have frosted over the years. Seeing things and thinking about people, Fang Xianjue couldn't help but feel a lot of thoughts. "The country is broken, mountains and rivers are here, and the city is full of spring grass and trees. I feel the flowers splashing tears, and the birds are shocked..." The poet Du Fu, who has never had ambitions in his life, clings to the idea of ​​"to be good is to help the world; to be poor is to be alone". Life credo.Until his later years, he was living in Xiangxiang and Leiyang, impoverished, and finally died in Leiyang, a foreign country, and was still worried about the country and the people until his death.But throughout his rough life, he devoted himself to the country and the people, and became a great master admired by later generations.

Today, although the old master has passed away long ago, his spirit is immortal, and it has already penetrated into the bones of literati and sons of all dynasties, and has been passed down from generation to generation.Now that we have lived in troubled times, when the country is broken and the army is in trouble, and the wind and rain are precarious, it is time for us to fulfill our duty and sacrifice our lives to serve the country! "Army seat, military seat, Commander Ge's call!" Just when Fang Xianjue had made up his mind, Ge Xiancai's call came at the right time. "Hey, Yipu! You are a fairy. I was thinking about it just now. I was looking for you when your call came!"

"Haha, Junzuo, it seems that we have thought of a place. Do you want the 8th Regiment of the 3rd Division to come back to the city!?" "This is what a hero sees and agrees with! How about it? Tell me." "After ten days of fierce fighting, our army suffered more and more casualties, and our troops gradually became thinner. I am afraid that it will be difficult to resist the enemy's second onslaught. It is better to take advantage of the enemy's carelessness at this time, and order the 8th The sudden attack of the regiment, breaking through the siege of the Japanese army in one fell swoop, rushing into the city, and returning to its organizational system, will surely strengthen the morale of our army and strengthen the confidence and strength of defending the city!" Ge Xiancai analyzed.

"Yes! It will take a few days to complete the task of defending the city originally planned by the Commissioner. The battlefield is changing rapidly and it is difficult to grasp. Don't panic if you have rice in your hands! As a general, how can you panic if you have no soldiers in your hands! It's hard to believe it Mile." Fang Xianjue couldn't help but feel emotional. "Military seat, make plans early! I'm afraid something will happen if it's too late!" "Yipu, your analysis is right! At that time, we brothers will do a good job of summing up."

"Yes! I am always waiting for the call of the military seat!" Fang Xianjue shook his head first, then smiled again, and hung up the phone.Then he picked up another phone: "Mr. Zhou? We are aware of it first. Please find out the location of the 8th Regiment of your division immediately, and inform them that they have completed the task of blocking and delaying the Japanese army; order them to get rid of the enemy in front of them as soon as possible. , Gather the troops, move to Hengyang, quickly move closer to the military division headquarters, see the right time, break through the encirclement of the Japanese army in one fell swoop, and rush into the city, so as to complete the task of our army defending the city." Fang Xianjue did not allow Zhou Qingxiang to discuss, and ordered.

"Yes! Carry out the order of the military seat immediately!" Zhou Qingxiang knew that Fang Xianjue's determination had been made, so he didn't say anything more and went to assign tasks. "Mr. Zhou, you must keep close contact with the 8th regiment and the military headquarters, arrange the supporting troops, and strive for success in one fell swoop!" Fang Xianjue repeatedly instructed. On June 24th, Commander Fang Xianjue ordered the main force of the 3rd Division to go south into Hengyang. At the same time, he ordered Colonel Zhang Jinxiang, the head of the 8th Regiment of the 3rd Division, to take the radio station and lead the troops of the 8th Regiment to delay the Japanese army along the Changheng Highway.Commander Zhang immediately ordered Lieutenant Colonel Yang Peizhi, the deputy commander of the 8th Regiment, to lead the 3rd Battalion to advance to Shiwan and Dapu areas on the east bank of the Xiangjiang River. Search for the enemy's situation and delay the advance of the Japanese army.

On June 25, the Japanese army occupied Nanyue Town. On the night of the 26th, the main force of the 8th Regiment withdrew from Hengshan County after making contact with the enemy. In the early morning of the 27th, the 3rd Battalion on the east bank of the Xiangjiang River was oppressed by a large number of Japanese troops advancing southward, and was ordered by the regiment headquarters to withdraw to the west bank of the Xiangjiang River to return to construction. At about 9 o'clock, the regiment (belonging to the 1st Battalion) was on the way to the south and found that there were a large number of Japanese troops in the Zhangmutou area of ​​Xixiang, Hengyang. Dixi; and sent plainclothes scouts to recall the 1st Battalion at Baishipu.

After the 28th, they were active near the Yuwang Palace area in Nanyue Town. On the 30th, the 1st Battalion of the regiment returned to construction. On July 3, the headquarters of the 3rd Division ordered the regiment to rush into Hengyang City with cameras.After dusk that day, the regiment went south from Yuwang Palace and rushed to the area north of Wangxian Bridge via Qixing. It detected that the Japanese army was going south through Wangxian Bridge, so it turned back to Yuwang Palace and continued to contact the 3rd Division. On the evening of the 4th, continue southbound along the original route. At dawn on the 5th, I arrived at Yangxian Temple for a big rest, and got in touch with the division headquarters; followed the order and took the night to quickly advance to Caoqiao. In the early morning of the 6th, two aircraft of our air force were covering the sky.The regiment eliminated a small number of Japanese resistance along the way and arrived at the area north of Caoqiao at noon.Commander Zhang immediately convened an emergency meeting of battalion and company commanders to deploy the final assault. "Brothers, we have completed the task of delaying the enemy's actions. The city of Hengyang is ahead. The army and division commanders are waiting for us, and the brothers in the fraternal troops are also eagerly looking forward to us. We have been away from the headquarters for more than ten days. , I believe everyone misses the brothers in the city very much. Do you have the confidence to go to the city?" Leader Zhang urged. "Yes!" Everyone answered in unison. "Okay! Everyone is confident! Now I order: 1. The main road leading to the Caohe Ferry - the Catholic Church has 200 enemies, and the 1st Company of the 1st Battalion attached to the 2nd Battalion and the 1st Company of the 2nd Battalion led by Deputy Head Yang attacked them, and strived to eliminate them all; 2. The 2nd Battalion (owing to the 1st Company) occupied favorable terrain, blocked enemy reinforcements in the direction of Qilijing, and followed up with cameras; 3. The 3rd Battalion took the lead and got in touch with the 9th Regiment of the garrison on the south bank of the Caohe River in time, crossed the river first, and then responded to the regiment headquarters and the other two battalions to cross the river; 4. The whole regiment crossed the river in the order of the 3rd battalion, the troops directly under the regiment, the 1st battalion, and the 2nd battalion.All ministries must be closely organized, cooperate well with each other, and make alternate covers, and strive to return everyone safely and smoothly to the arms of the army. Is everyone clear? " "Understood!" Everyone said. "Okay! Act now!" At ten o'clock at noon, the 8th Regiment organized a powerful surprise attack.A reinforced battalion launched a sudden and violent charge.The 2nd Battalion first met the enemy and launched an attack on the Japanese occupying the Catholic Church.The enemy stands firm.Our army's offensive was once blocked.So the regiment leader Zhang mobilized all the mortars of the whole regiment to bombard the enemy violently.Commander Fang also summoned four planes of our air force to bomb the Japanese fortifications.The Japanese army was suddenly attacked from the side and rear, and without knowing it, they retreated along the north bank of the Zhengshui River after a while of support. At the same time, the 9th Regiment of our army on the south bank of the Cao River has set up a pontoon bridge with wooden boats and bamboo rafts. As a result, the 8th Regiment followed the original plan, and at dusk they all successfully crossed the steamed water south and entered Hengyang City. Upon receiving this news, the morale of the whole army was greatly boosted, the morale of the army became more stable, and the confidence in defending the city and killing more enemies was strengthened.