Chapter 62 first battle on the way

The rebel army only rested for one day in Guangchang and set off on August 19.Starting from Guangchang, the troops were divided into two groups, with the 11th Army as the right column, going to Ningdu, and the 20th Army as the left column, going to Shicheng, and marching towards Ruijin. When the 20th Army arrived in Shicheng, they looked up and saw a very meaningful stone archway, with four large characters written on it: "Getting better".Literati Guo Moruo and Gao Yuhan naturally would not let this scene go.The riders got off their horses, and the lame ones forgot about the pain, and a few of them were already chanting poems quickly.After walking through the "Gradually Getting Better", there is another stone archway called "Fujian-Guangdong Passage", and everyone is even more smiling: "Damn it, in the past half a month, it really looks like Zhuge Liang conquered the barren land of the southern barbarians. There is nothing to eat." It's all right now.

Indeed, Stone City is much better than the previous towns.Not only is the gate of the city right by the river, but the streets run parallel to the head of the city. The most important thing is that none of the residents run away, and the shops are not closed. As long as you have money, you can buy everything you need. However, just as the insurgents were filling their stomachs and preparing for a good night's sleep, when they left tomorrow, news came that there were enemies ahead.So several literati began to ridicule the archway that "becoming better and better".The staff group was naturally more nervous.Liu Bocheng reported the collected enemy information to the dignitaries.

Zhou Enlai got up from the stretcher, was assisted by someone to sit at the table, and tried his best to hear Liu Bocheng's report: "Li Jishen, Zhu Peide, and Zhang Fakui have negotiated, and they have transferred 7,000 people from Qian Dajun, the commander-in-chief of his right wing, and attached About 2,000 people from the two regiments of Su Shi'an and Bai Tianmin transferred from Dongjiang gathered in Huichang and Ruijin. His central commander, Huang Shaohong, with about 9,000 men, is marching towards our army from Ganzhou via Yudu. Zhang Fakui's army, led by Huang Qixiang, traveled from Nanchang to Ji'an, planning to return to Guangdong."

Liu Bocheng paused for a moment, then turned back to Zhou Enlai and asked, "Should you also tell us about the situation of our army?" Zhou Enlai nodded. Liu Bocheng: "Our strength is the 8 regiments of the 20th Army of He Long's Department, and the 6 regiments of the 11th Army of Ye Ting's Department. That is to say, Zhu De's Ninth Army has fewer soldiers. It used to have three or four hundred people, but now there may be only one hundred and ten people." He Long was not familiar with Zhu De in the past, but this time he was grateful to Zhu De to lead his troops to the front, and he didn't say anything, but he admired him very much.

Thousands of people march, he knows the difficulties of fighting in the front.What's more, Zhu De's army is an empty frame, and there are few people in the first place, plus this sriracha and that slap in the face, making Zhu De, the army commander, run around like a company commander, but this old man is like an old horse, Not only did he not complain, but he also joked and joked with everyone he met, making him happy. He Long talked about his loyalty: "Mr. Zhu is the advance commander, and he is also a polished commander. I think some people have been transferred from our army, so let him command the third division. Don't make him too embarrassed."

Zhu De also jokingly said: "You congratulate the commander-in-chief, I appreciate your kindness. Even if you don't give me soldiers, I will be the vanguard all the way. In this war, I still want to be the vanguard! Besides, I know this area well." The staff group decided to take advantage of the enemy's unstable foothold and preemptive strikes.With the Eleventh Army as the right column and the 20th Army as the left column, attack the enemy at Rentian from two directions at the same time.Zhu De is still a pioneer.The three divisions and one battalion followed Zhu De first.Although there is only one battalion, it has many more people than the previous company.

Zhu De tidied up his bamboo hat, tied up his straw sandals, put two carbine on his back, waved his hand, and set off two hours ahead of the main force of the 20th Army.After walking for twenty or thirty miles, I saw a figure moving in the direction of Rentian.Going closer, I saw that trenches had been dug at the front of the town, sandbags had been erected at the city gate, and machine guns had been set up. This is Qian Dajun's fiftieth and sixty-two regiments.Although these two regiments were not regular troops, most of the soldiers were bandits, and they fought for money rather than life.The enemy also seemed to have spotted the rebel army, and opened fire before Zhu De's advance team approached.Zhu De and Chief of Staff Ran Guoping looked at each other: "Shall we fight?" "Fight!"

"You're in the front, I'll attack from the side!" After Zhu De said that, he poked his waist forward, and when he saw the enemy's face clearly, he switched to two carbine guns to shoot.He hits so accurately that almost everyone he hits falls to the ground.They pushed forward while fighting, and they were about to approach the enemy's position, when the chief of staff fell heavily from the side.Zhu De's heart tightened, and with a glance from the corner of his eye, he saw that Ran Guoping had already fallen, and the sniper fell far away.Zhu De shouted behind him: "Hurry up and save the chief of staff!" The two soldiers who heard the shout left the assault formation, squatted next to the chief of staff, and turned their backs hard, but unfortunately they could no longer move.

The enemy Wang Wenhan's troops are not weak but strong, and now relying on the condescending terrain, they fired fiercely, and the two sides fought extremely fiercely. Thunder and bombs rang out, and the dead and wounded fell down from time to time.When the two sides were at a stalemate, He Long's He Jinzhai department had arrived and immediately went into battle. The gunpowder smoke filled the sky, and the sound of killing shook the sky. One side crushed the other side, and the other side counterattacked. The enemy army had no way to retreat. At this time, He Long's follow-up troops also arrived, and the generals went in, but there was no one in a while.The enemy's line of defense began to collapse. First one escaped from the trench with a dragged gun, and then three and five. All the resisters turned their backs and followed those who ran in front to escape.The enemy retreated.

The rebel army also paid a bloody price: Ran Guoping, chief of staff of the Ninth Army, died; the head of the third regiment of the Twentieth Army was killed; The enemy army retreated to Huichang with more than a hundred casualties, leaving Ruijin an empty city.He Long and the staff of the staff team stepped into Qian Dajun's headquarters in the city.There were scraps of paper and old military supplies everywhere on the ground. Liu Bocheng saw a military map on the wall at a glance, and as if he had found a treasure, he hurriedly took it off and carefully rolled it up. He Long stared at a clear porcelain teacup on the table, touched the cup wall and it was still warm, he laughed loudly: "I almost killed Huaxiong by warming the wine."

According to the analysis of the seized documents, Qian Dajun's 3 divisions and 10 regiments, and Huang Shaohong's 7 regiments are now entrenched in Huichang.The big battle will undoubtedly be in Huichang. With Huichang as the center, Qian Dajun's department built fortifications in the northeast of the city, the Nanshan Mountains in the northwest of the city, the Zhaidong area in the west of the city, and along the Gongshui River surrounding Huichang City.Huang Shaohong's troops were concentrated near the White Goose Market, occupying a favorable position, forming a corner with Huichang, so as to block the southward route of the rebel army.The location of Ruijin is just at the intersection of three forks.It is connected to Xunwu and Pingyuan in the south, Tingzhou City in the east, and Huichang in the west.In the evening, the leaders of the rebel army sat down to study the next route of advance. Malaria - swings, hot and cold.Zhou Enlai took some medicine and he was better.As soon as he appeared at the venue, the eyes of fate always surrounded him.He was unable to say much. Zhu De, who was addicted to a gun during the battle, was in a particularly comfortable mood at this time. He spoke first and advocated going to Xunwu and Pingyuan according to the original plan. The reason is that although this line is a mountain road, it can avoid the enemy. Easy to attack and easy to defend. Zhou Enlai nodded in agreement with Zhu De's opinion. Ji Gong disagreed.The only "big nose" of the rebel army has withstood an unprecedented test, and he is already very dreadful on the road to the mountains and forests. "Because of the lack of food and grass, and the lack of employment of civilians, the number of non-combat troops has been reduced too much, so the mountain road is not easy to go. If we change to Tingzhou, Shanghang, and enter Dapu, we can take the waterway. With boats, the action will be easier. It is much more convenient, the wounded and ammunition can be transported by water, reducing the burden on the troops.” He Long also agreed with Ji Gong's opinion: "It is best not to take the mountain road. Even my soldiers who have lived in the mountains for 20 years are afraid of this mountain road." Zhou Enlai's gaze was still seeking Ji Gong's opinion: "Can you avoid Qian Dajun's troops?" "Yes. Qian Dagou will not attack us easily before the other two troops arrive. Conservation of strength is a common problem of all Kuomintang troops. If we strengthen our vigilance and rush to Tingzhou and Shang Hang, it is possible not to have a war with them." Liu Bocheng had concerns: "Your method may be feasible. But as soon as we move, Qian Dajun will definitely follow us and harass us. This makes us feel as uncomfortable as burning our buttocks. Fighting with him will obviously hold us back and hurt us. Unfavorable; if you don’t fight, he will be desperate and force you to fight. I think, instead of rushing to fight on the way, it is better to take the initiative to attack now and defeat Qian Dajun, so that he will not be afraid of Huang Shaohong.” No one thinks as much as Liu Bocheng thinks , His words are naturally convincing. Zhou Enlai concluded: "No matter which way to go, the most urgent task at present is to defeat Qian Dajun. I know Qian Dajun. He is a man who is cautious in using troops and obeys his boss. He will never give up the pursuit. So we The enemies of Huichang must be resolved first, and then we will discuss which way to go." The people attending the meeting decided: first concentrate on defeating the enemies in Huichang, then turn back to Ruijin, and then transfer to Tingzhou and Shanghang to capture Chaoshan. The specific deployment is: Ye Ting led the 24th and 25th Divisions of the 11th Army as the main attack, attacking the enemy in the northwest of Huichang; The first and second divisions of the army are between Ruijin and Wuyang, serving as a reserve team to support all parties.The whole army is scheduled to start the general offensive at 5:00 am on August 30.