Chapter 28 Chapter Twenty-Eight

On March 9, 1933, the vanguard of the 29th Army entered Xifengkou. After the actual confrontation, it was discovered that the devils were not so easy to fight. Due to the crude firearms, at Xifengkou, every time the 29th Army killed a Japanese soldier on average, dozens of their own troops had to fall. The situation became more and more serious, and telegrams requesting emergency reinforcements were continuously sent from the front to the headquarters of the 29th Army. Obviously, the development of the situation is far from what was originally expected. If you want to stick to Xifengkou, you must have more investment, but this undoubtedly means a sharp increase in risks. If it is not done well, you may even lose all your money.

The 29th Army has used the War of Resistance to boost morale for a long time, but when it really faced this problem in reality, it had to feel hesitant. Objectively speaking, as a local army, when confronting the Japanese army, they often have more concerns than the central army.They can hold their chests up in front of Chiang Kai-shek, that is to say, they rely on someone with a gun in their hands. Once these losses are almost the same, it means that they have no bargaining capital.At the least, the land is reduced and the establishment is cut off, and at the worst, they can only be electrified and go to the field in despair, hiding in the alleys to work as an apartment.

Although the 29th Army is headed by Song Zheyuan, it implements the now popular round table conference mode.When the army was first established, there were eight sworn brothers including Song Zheyuan and Xiao Zhenying. Everyone reached a tacit understanding that no matter how big or small things were, they had to be discussed collectively, collectively responsible, and acted after the plan was completed. At this moment, the "Eight Brothers" felt that they were standing at a crossroads.Where to go is not only a matter of personal honor and disgrace, but also determines the future fate of this fledgling local new army.

The Northeast Army is fighting like this, do we still need to fight the Japanese on the Great Wall? Have! A person suddenly stood up and fought with all his strength. This person is Xiao Zhenying. He believes that compared with the North China Great Plain behind him, the terrain of Xifengkou is dangerous and it is really a place to fight. As long as the 29th Army is determined to fight to the death here, there is great hope of winning. As for retreat, don't even think about it.That was a dead end. Seeing that Xiao Zhenying was so determined, Song Zheyuan immediately stated that even if he gave all his money, he would have to fight the devils this time.

Most of the other brothers also agreed with Xiao Zhenying's proposition, only one remained silent. To everyone's surprise, this person was none other than Zhang Zizhong, the commander of the 38th Division. Of course, Zhang Zizhong did not say that he disagreed.he is sick. When you can't be sick, when you are sick, it is obvious that you are pretending to be sick. No public disapproval, either, but that's what it means. Xiao Zhenying is the most particular person in dealing with people, he can't take care of him even in a hurry, and just ran over with a kick. What are you pretending for me? Are you afraid of death?

If you use other methods to insinuate, Zhang Zizhong may have to hum for a while, but saying that he is "afraid of death" is the most terrible thing. He sat up suddenly. I'm not afraid of death, but we only have this few people, this little capital, you have to take it all to the front line.In my opinion, winning is not necessarily, but it is absolutely possible to fight all the way. The following sentence is estimated to be reluctant to say: It doesn't hurt to sell your father to Tian Tian! Xiao Zhenying breathed a sigh of relief, it's not as good as being afraid of death, I can explain this to you thoroughly.

The voice of the Anti-Japanese War has resounded throughout the country. If the 29th Army does not continue to participate in the Anti-Japanese War, it will be difficult to win the sympathy and support of the people of the country.As a local miscellaneous army that is crowded out everywhere and has little place to stay, the road will only get narrower and narrower, and the situation will only get worse. If you retreat, you will lose everything. If you advance, no matter how successful you are, you will always gain more than you lose.At this point, everyone has to think clearly. In the end, Xiao Zhenying said a resounding sentence:

In the future, whoever is willing to resist Japan will be able to stand firm.If you keep your capital and dare not bet, you will be eliminated sooner or later! This sentence is to the point, it is like enlightenment to Zhang Zizhong. He stood up suddenly, I understand, I listen to you. Big brother is still big brother, if you don't accept it, you can't do it. So far, the opinions of the brothers have been unified.Song Zheyuan appointed Zhao Dengyu as the commander-in-chief of the former enemy, and led a strong reinforcement army to march to Xifengkou. When discussing martial arts, the Chinese like ranking the most, and they will not give up regardless of their stature, even if it is Guan Gong fighting Qin Qiong, so there is a saying that "there is no first in literature, and there is no second in martial arts".

On the martial arts ranking list of the 29th Army, if Zhao Dengyu, who is known as the "Tiger Fighter", ranked second, no one would dare to be the first. When Zhao Dengyu came to the Northwest Army to join the army to find food, the deadline for recruiting soldiers had already passed, but as soon as the recruiters heard that he declared his family name, they immediately looked at him differently and made an exception to recruit him. In fact, Zhao Dengyu's hometown is not in the Northwest, but in the eyes of fierce Northwesterners, it is still a thunderous ear. This place is Caozhou (now Heze) in Shandong Province.

In the folk legends passed down by the Chinese people, the Shandong Bandit may be more influential than the Northeast Beard.If there is no such profession, it means that there will be no Qin Qiong, no Cheng Yaojin, and a movie will be eclipsed immediately. Caozhou is a place that specializes in thieves.In the Song Dynasty, because there were too many thieves, they all crowded into a cottage called Shuibo Liangshan to arrange seats. Later, another light cavalry troop flew out from here. Back then, Zeng Guofan was able to command the Hunan Army to defeat the Taiping Army, but he had nothing to do with them. The name of this army was "Nian Army".

Living here, if you don't know how to fight, you don't dare to say hello to others when you go out! The place where Zhao Dengyu was born is said to be less than a hundred miles away from Jingyanggang, where Wu Song fought the tiger. After joining the army, he actually did the same thing. He killed a tiger alone in the Hunan countryside, hence the name "Tiger Fighter". Although the tiger was shot beforehand, it did not die completely. Zhao Dengyu, who was still working as a guard for Feng Yuxiang at that time, rushed straight up, killed the tiger and took a photo while riding on its back. His strength and courage were truly amazing. as far as possible. At that time, people called Zhao Dengyu "the torso is sculpted, the physical strength is strong, and the riding is fine." "Torso Xiuwei" is not a pretense. He is almost as tall as Feng Yuxiang, and at 1.9 meters tall, he is also a giant standing upright. Since the firearms are no match for others, Zhao Dengyu is going to show off the "special weapons" of the 29th Army on the Great Wall Ridge this time. Needless to say, of course it is a big knife. Up and down the 29th Army, there are generally broadsword teams, and officers and soldiers generally have a broadsword in their hands. It can almost be said that they rely on broadswords for food. No way, because their firearms are really bad. The rifles of the 29th Army are not only old and young, but many of them are not equipped with bayonets. The latter looks unremarkable, but the craftsmanship is very sophisticated. Many small arsenals can make local guns and cannons, but they can't make qualified bayonets. So I naturally thought of the treasure left by our ancestors, the cold weapon that has been used from Qin Qiongwu Song Cheng Yaojin to the Nian Army Hunan Army Taiping Army. For the 29th Army, its advantages are too many. It is convenient to obtain materials: as long as there is iron, a large knife can be integrated with the material of N kitchen knives. The manufacture is simple: a country blacksmith can complete it, even ordinary machine tools are not needed. Of course, the most important thing is to save money. Not only is the initial investment less, but also there is almost no need to increase any investment in the later stage, and it can be used just by taking it over. It takes bullets to practice target shooting, and the cost of playing knives is nothing more than profuse sweating. However, things are far from that simple. If you don't have martial arts background and are not familiar with sword skills, no matter how hard you swing around, the power of the big sword will have to be greatly reduced. In Zhou Xingchi's version, Wei Xiaobao wants to learn kung fu from his master for self-defense, and the latter gave him a book—just the catalogue, the master told him, after you read all the martial arts secrets in the catalogue, Almost able to show a small face in the arena. Wei Xiaobao immediately retreated. This is the difference between dreaming and reality.The former can be proud of the world as long as he gets a secret book, while the latter may not be able to get in after years of hard work. Not only martial arts, but any skill. Soldiers wielding broadswords in battle are about to come in handy, who can wait so long. then what should we do? There is a way. Let's take a step back and think about it, what are you doing with a big knife?It's not about being a martial artist, nor about being a star or an actor, that's for killing people. There is no need for foreshadowing, no need for fancy, no need for dazzling move after move, because there is no judge with a pen on the battlefield, the only criterion for deciding the winner is whether you can cut down the opponent in the shortest time. After countless times of practice, the 29th Army has formed a unique set of knife techniques.This is the "Baofeng Eight Knives", also known as the Wuji Sword Technique, which is the eight key points extracted from the traditional knife technique. It is enough to use them to deal with bayonets. I have seen all these eight tips, but idiots like me can neither understand nor remember them.Can it be simpler. of course can. One set is reduced to one trick. If it is written on the secret book, half a page is not needed. The name is very vulgar, it is called "wrapping the head and wrapping the brain". It includes two movements, that is, knocking first (to fend off the bayonet), and then swinging (one circle is enough, too much is useless). Simple, yet practical. It doesn't matter if you don't know martial arts, and it doesn't matter if you don't turn your mind fast, just remember to get familiar with this movement. What the 29th Army usually practiced the most was the broadsword, and it was just the trick of "wrapping the head and wrapping the brain". They practiced it over and over again, endlessly. What jumped out of their minds was this prescribed procedure. This is no longer ripe, it is overripe. In the 29th Army, masters of sword dancing are everywhere, but the master of masters is Zhao Dengyu, the tiger general. People spread beans into soldiers, but he asked someone to scatter handfuls of soybeans over, covered himself with a knife, and was able to pull all the beans far away without leaving any. Of course, a good horse is equipped with a good saddle. Zhao Dengyu’s broadsword is also the kind used by Liangshan hero Yang Zhi. It is said that there are two of them, each of which exceeds "three thousand guan", nearly 200 silver dollars each, without counter-offer. What he was doing was "cutting copper and iron, cutting steel like mud". After arriving at Xifengkou, Zhao Dengyu was bare-chested, brandishing his two precious swords, taking the lead and always rushing to the front line. In ancient times, there were many hand-to-hand combats by the commander-in-chief of the enemy, but in modern times, it is rare. It is estimated that only a martial arts master like Zhao Dengyu can do it. It was almost evening.Dusk, sunset, sword light, sword shadow, courage, blood. Even the best martial arts novels can hardly fully describe the bloody life-and-death struggle on the real battlefield. The devil with the bayonet was very unaccustomed to the sword skills of the heroes. Seeing that the opponent just knocked and swung, his own head was blown away. It's incredible. The Japanese army was hacked on the spot, so that "all the corpses were abandoned on the slope of the Great Wall", and even Zhao Dengyu's two knives were chopped off. In the face of Chinese martial arts, Japanese bushido lost its spirit. But the Japanese army has cannons, which can't beat you in close combat, but they can fight at a distance. After all, flesh and blood can hardly resist shells. Zhao Dengyu is so brave in hand-to-hand combat that he can't kill the enemy, but he can't dodge the shell fragments flying around. The general was injured, and the front line was once again in turmoil. There were even rumors that the 29th Army might abandon the battle and flee because it couldn't stand it. The base camp at the rear sent a telegram to the 29th Army: Since Zhao Dengyu is dead, Xifengkou must be replaced with a new former enemy commander. After receiving the telegram, Song Zheyuan did not act in a hurry. It is taboo for military strategists to change generals just before the battle, not to mention that the battle for Xifengkou is at stake, if Zhao Dengyu is replaced at this time, it will undoubtedly shake the morale of the army. He summoned Xiao Zhenying and asked his military adviser to find out more details. Xiao Zhenying first inquired about Zhao Dengyu's injury from the side, and learned that the latter was only injured on his leg, which was not very serious, so he felt at ease. Then he called Zhao Dengyu: I heard that you have flowers on your legs, does it matter? It is sympathy, but there is more meaning contained in it, that is, whether you can still, or whether you are willing to fight again.At this time, let alone being injured, someone who is not injured may lie in the hospital pretending to be sick.Xiao Zhenying knew that Zhao Dengyu was not such a person, but he hoped to hear a clear and resounding answer. The answer really didn't disappoint him: just a small injury, nothing to worry about. Xiao Zhenying frowned. Well, I hope we all die on the front lines and serve our country faithfully. The latter generously agreed: Good! For a straightforward man like Zhao Dengyu, this one-word promise is not just a word, it must be fulfilled with actions. After listening to Xiao Zhenying's report, Song Zheyuan felt a bright light in front of him. With Zhao Dengyu in front, I will surely win. Song Zheyuan, courtesy name Mingxuan, was born in Leling, Shandong. He was the most prominent of the "Five Tiger Generals" of the old Northwest Army. Feng Yuxiang's evaluation of him is eight characters and two sentences, one is "trained well", and the other is "brave and calm". The military training is well-trained, and the military training of Jindong University has already explained the problem, and the next step is "brave and calm". Song Zheyuan wrote a hand letter, in which there are two "don't seek", showing his brave style: First, don't seek meritorious service, only seek to be able to sustain it. Second, we don't want to play the prestige of the 19th Route Army, just want to prevent the Japanese army from underestimating us. Bravery alone is not enough, the most important thing is "calmness", that is to come up with practical and effective strategies to defend against the enemy. Since the start of the battle at Xifengkou, in just two days, 2,000 officers and soldiers have been killed or injured. The 29th Army has only nine regiments in total. With this way of fighting, after a week, Song Zheyuan can only be a bare-bones army commander. Obviously, it is not enough to continue to fight hard. The so-called "If you want to go if you have a move, you will die if you don't". The Japanese army was able to gain an advantage because of the artillery positions established behind Xifengkou.The name of this place is Baitaizi, and it constitutes a major threat to the 29th Army, which must be eliminated in order to move forward quickly. Since the frontal attack during the day is blocked, why not change the straight line into a curve, and the day into night? Song Zheyuan made a firm decision: launch a big night attack to completely reverse the situation of the battle. With Song Zheyuan's instructions and strategies, Xiao Zhenying flew to the front and presided over an emergency military meeting of the former enemies. At the meeting, there were still some people who were worried that the troops on the front line were exhausted after a fierce battle, and a sudden large-scale night attack might be incapable. However, Xiao Zhenying believed that the morale of the officers and soldiers was still high, and the attack was at the right time. As far as being tired, the devil is not much better, brothers, cheer up and fuck it. In order to cheer up again, Xiao Zhenying also revealed the trick of material rewards. If a Japanese soldier is captured alive, Dayang will be rewarded with 100 yuan; if a Japanese soldier with evidence is hacked to death (it is best to bring his head back, we are a poor army, we cannot afford to take credit), and Dayang will be rewarded with 50 yuan. When everyone attacks and hacks people at night, remember to count the heads of the dead devils, this time there will be a bonus. Commander of the night attack: "Tiger Fighter" Zhao Dengyu. His injury was not serious, and he was still trembling with pain when he walked on the ground, but Old Zhao was a man, he gritted his teeth, and persevered. If you don't enter the tiger's den, how can you get a tiger's cub, this battle is life and death, I will destroy the thief! March 11 was the third day that the 29th Army entered Xifengkou. At 11 o'clock in the middle of the night, snowflakes floated inside and outside the Great Wall, and there were "silver snakes dancing in the mountains, wax figures in the past", and the heroes set off. Under the guidance of the guide, Zhao Dengyu led the team to sneak out from the pass, and walked towards Baitaizi along a secret path. The night raiders are all lightly armed, but there is one thing that cannot be missing, and that is the pocket, which is not used for other purposes, just to hold the devil's head, and this is the only way to pay bonuses when you go back. Entering the periphery of Baitaizi, the devils were sleeping in the barracks, and the first head was put into the pocket. This is called a good start. Next, sit in a row and eat fruit, one by one in turn. 50 yuan each, the devil's head is still quite valuable. Thousands of people slaughtered cattle and sheep next to each other. What a spectacular scene. Cutting the heads of Japanese people is like cutting spring leeks in the rain at night! For these devils, it doesn't matter if they are dead, anyway, they don't know, so let it go.The sad thing is that there are still sober ones, such as the brother who just walked out of the barracks and wanted to "sing a folk song". After relaxing, I turned around to the barracks and was immediately dumbfounded. What kind of scene is this? A group of vicious gods, surrounded by knives, everyone is carrying a bag in addition to a big knife, and the bloody heads of his colleagues are in the pockets. "The Ring" and "The Ring at Midnight". With a scream, he turned and ran. When the other Japanese soldiers who hadn't had their turn yet heard about this incident, they were also frightened and scattered. This one wants to say, aren't the Japanese devils very tenacious in fighting spirit, why are they so intimidating. Because they are afraid of beheading. In the eyes of the Japanese, the human soul is attached to the head, and if the head moves, it is useless to be a god or to be reincarnated. Therefore, he would rather you stab him with a bayonet than kill him. An hour later, the periphery was completely cleared, and Zhao Dengyu entered Baitaizi. The battle of Baitaizi was the focus of this large-scale night attack. Whether it was successful or not, it all depended on the gains and losses of this battle. That is to say, the roasted whole lamb was almost roasted to the fattest part. Heroes, carry your pockets on it, you will be like a broken bamboo. But obviously, the Japanese army in Baitaizi had already made preparations. The howling of ghosts and wolves coming from the outside was still heard by them. It was creepy and chilled to the neck.But when the night attack troops were already very close, it was too late to think of moving the shells in the warehouse, so they could only bite the bullet and concentrate the machine gun fire to block the road. The Broadsword Squad carried a lot of pockets, but no heavy weapons. They were blocked on the road for a while, and suffered heavy casualties. Under normal circumstances, this kind of scene is easy for people to have a fluke mentality, thinking that the opponent will be blocked or frightened, but the hero cannot be frightened, and soon someone crawls forward from the side, and when approaching the enemy's wall, grabs Hold the muzzle of the machine gun, ready to drag it out. Unfortunately, the barrel is thick and the wall is small, so it is blocked and cannot be dragged out. What is a fierce man?This is ours. With a cry and a pull with all his strength, the machine gun was pulled out, and the earthen wall fell down in response. This is called momentum. Those who have this momentum are unstoppable. Seeing that "hey yo hey yo pull carrots" like this, there are not a few people who follow the example. Of course, when the barrel of the gun is burning hot, in addition to strength, the strong men are also unavoidable to suffer some flesh and blood. Afterwards, they all suffered skin trauma, and even the bones of their hands were scorched and the skin was rotten, and their arms were thick and swollen. It took a few months to send it to the rear for treatment. But the door to victory has been opened. The next step is the familiar way of the Broadsword Team, open the pockets, and continue to harvest the enemy's head. According to the previously established rules, there were rewards for capturing the Japanese soldiers alive and hacking them to death, but the rewards were different. The former was more valuable than the latter, and two dead devils were worth less than one living devil. Of course, it is more cost-effective to catch the living than the dead. But at the entrance of Xifeng, the devils got a lot of heads, but not many people lived.It's not that the Japanese army is playing cool and giving you something that would rather die than surrender.In fact, in the face of the bloody effect created by the big sword, no matter how powerful the Japanese soldiers were, they would have to show their true colors, and few dared to be heroes again.Under the knife, there are even real devils who pretend to be Korean soldiers and kneel down to beg for mercy in order not to be beheaded. If you really can't escape, you can only act like a dead dog, cover your ears with your hands, close your eyes and wait for death, and say "Dad" a few times in your mouth. It's strange, everyone is calling you mother at this time. Swordsmen are not interested in taking prisoners! When encountering death, sticking to death, 100 yuan is good, but it is too troublesome, it is better to have a knife.I will swing a few more knives, maybe it will be more than this number. It is said that there are even super fierce men who beheaded 15 Japanese soldiers. In terms of the number alone, this brother has made a lot of money when he goes back, worth more than 700 yuan. In Baitaizi, more than 500 Japanese artillerymen and guards were beheaded. up. Baitaizi is ours now. Baitaizi is where the Japanese special forces are concentrated. There are not only mountain guns, but also tanks and chariots, all of which are owned by the 29th Army. No one can drive a tank, but someone can use a mountain cannon. When Zhao Dengyu set off, he specially brought a battalion commander with him. This gentleman had worked as an artilleryman before, so he came to teach on the spot and led everyone to have a good time. The Japanese soldiers in the first-line trenches didn't know that their old nest had been given to others. They waited until the shells fell from the sky before they jumped up as if their buttocks were on fire. Seeing the Japanese army rushing back, Zhao Dengyu started "beating, smashing and looting". Baitaizi has ammunition stored by the Japanese army, and it is just right to use one bomb to blow up another weapon.Mountain guns, tanks, and cars were all destroyed and reduced to scrap iron, and ammunition depots were burned.For a while, "flames blazing and explosions sounding", it was really lively. In addition to the old artillerymen, Zhao Dengyu did not forget to bring reporters with him. All the above-mentioned spectacular scenes were photographed with cameras and brought back for everyone to enjoy. "Smashing" means "robbing".It is hard to carry such a huge field gun, but the gun mirror and bolt on it are good things, no matter how much money you spend, you may not be able to buy them, and they all become spoils of war. This is the famous Xifengkou Great Victory. The opponent of the 29th Army is the Hattori 14th Mixed Brigade.This brigade once fought Ma Zhanshan in the northeast, and when Ma Zhanshan retreated into the territory of the Soviet Union, he was still chasing after him. On the second day of the night raid, Japan's "Asahi Shimbun" unceremoniously published a comment: "Since the founding of the Meiji army, the imperial army's reputation has been lost outside Xifeng's mouth, and it has suffered an insult unprecedented in 60 years." The loss of face is second, and the loss of strength is the most important thing. Most of the divisional brigades of the Japanese army are equipped with special forces. Compared with the infantry, the special forces are more deterrent, and the same is true for the Hattori brigade.However, with the destruction of the Baitaizi base, special forces including field artillery and tanks suffered heavy losses and their combat effectiveness was greatly reduced. The success of Xifengkou's great victory allowed Song Zheyuan to find the trick to confront the Japanese army, that is, to make use of his strengths and avoid weaknesses. For this reason, he formulated a tactic specifically for the 29th Army, that is, two strikes and two no strikes. Two fights: fighting at night and fighting in close combat. Two do not fight: do not fight during the day, do not fight at long distances. Since the great victory at Xifengkou, the 29th Army's night raids have become "Dabao sees you every day", and every once in a while, you have to use a big sword to give the Japanese army a little meeting gift.The Hattori brigade had already taken precautions enough, but there was no way they should be axed or they would be axed. Japanese officers and soldiers thus cast a huge psychological shadow. This is not difficult to understand. For example, when you walk into an empty barracks after a catastrophe and see a room full of headless ghosts, can you not be afraid? I didn't dare to sleep at night, and I had nightmares when I fell asleep. How to do it? Don't the Japanese like to invent, they invented an "iron bib". I have seen descriptions in relevant materials, which say that a piece of iron leaf is folded into a semicircle, and then two holes are punched in both ends, and then nailed to the helmet. When wearing a helmet, the iron leaf can be wrapped around the neck. side and back. The gizmo is not bad, it means a little ingenuity.But if you want to say that you can block the strength of a big knife with this, you are too underestimating the arm strength of the officers and soldiers of the 29th Army.I can only talk about the role of psychological comfort at the beginning, at least I can sleep well at night. Thinking about it, sleeping like that is really a pain: holding a gun in your hand, wearing a helmet on your head, and an iron leaf around your neck, it is difficult to even turn over. It's not easy being a ghost. Although the Hattori brigade is still confronting the 29th Army at Xifengkou, it is difficult to gain any upper hand. According to a junior officer of the brigade, in his diary, there was a time when, due to the disconnection between the front and the rear, they ran out of food, even dinner. Following the victory at Xifengkou, Song Zheyuan did the same in Luowenyu, repelling Suzuki's 4th Brigade in one fell swoop. In Xifengkou, he used Zhao Dengyu, and in Luowenyu, he used Liu Ruming. The former is brave to attack, while the latter is good at defending. Both of them have made the most of their specialties. The former "Five Tigers" first place. After the Great Wall Anti-Japanese War, the broadsword of the 29th Army has become as famous as the bamboo hat of the 19th Route Army. It is called "the bamboo hat in southern Guangdong, and the broadsword in the northwest". "God of War", the newspapers ranked it with Cai Tingkai, and it was called Southern Cai and Northern Song Dynasty. Many years later, when the "eight brothers" of the 29th Army recalled this scene, they would still be very excited. It was the time when they were most united and successful. Looking around, the prospect is so bright, the land is boundless, let you gallop, flying all over the sky, are all honor and praise. The old farmer said: "It's hard work."