On the first day of November, there was an outbreak of requests for tickets and subscriptions. Today, I will update two chapters and 12,000 words. The next one is updated around 11 p.m.

After issuing the order, Liu Yimin directly said to Luo Ronghuan, Cai Zhong, and Feng Dafei: "The big war is imminent, and whoever arrives in Hanyang Town first on both sides will have the initiative." The troops were ordered to be completely lightly armed, and all but weapons, ammunition, dry rations, and torches were thrown away. All cadres of the corps headquarters, divisions, and regimental headquarters are to be sent to the troops. All cadres of the whole army and the old Red Army had to help the weak soldiers carry their guns. For every 30 miles walked, you can rest for 5 minutes. The political commissar acted with the 12th Division, the chief of staff went to the artillery regiment, and Director Cai went to the heavy machine gun regiment, and it was necessary to ensure the marching speed of the two fire regiments. In the event of reconnaissance by enemy planes, they are not allowed to open fire, and the troops turn on the spot and make reinforcements to Mianyang to confuse the enemy planes. I took the intelligence and information department, the communications company, the cavalry battalion, and the guard battalion to go first, and preemptively occupy the town of Hanyang and deal with the cavalry regiment of the enemy's vanguard. One slogan for the whole legion: rush to Hanyang Town and eliminate Hu Zongnan! Let's do it! ”

After speaking, without waiting for a few people to react, he ordered Li Chengyi to notify the Intelligence and Information Department and the communications company to follow the guard battalion team, and under the unified command of Zhang Haitao, the commander of the guard battalion, to advance behind the cavalry battalion, and to get on his horse and chase after the cavalry battalion.

Cai Zhong sighed: "Let this guy run away again!" Turning around, he yelled at Li Chengyi, who was about to inform the troops: "What are you? Hurry up and protect the corps commander, I'll send someone to inform the troops. ”

Li Chengyi left with a cavalry guard squad, and Tang Xingying chased after him.

Hu Zongnan, a native of Zhenhai, Zhejiang, was born in 1896 and is now 38 years old. It is said that when Hu Zongnan applied for the Whampoa Military Academy, he was eliminated during the physical examination because he was less than 1.6 meters tall. At the Whampoa Military Academy, Hu Zongnan met Chiang Kai-shek, a fellow villager in Zhejiang and the principal. After graduation, he served as a second lieutenant trainee, platoon commander, deputy company commander, battalion commander, regiment commander, brigade commander, and now the commander of the 1st Division.

After receiving Chiang Kai-shek's telegram order, Hu Zongnan, who respected the principal as a celestial, did not hesitate at all, and immediately ordered the chief of staff to draw up a marching plan, and sent a telegram to inquire whether there had been any changes in the enemy situation of the Jiange garrison and the troops on both sides of the Jialing River. After the garrisons reported that there was no change in the enemy's situation, Hu Zongnan personally sent a telegram to the defenders of Jianmen Pass.

After confirming that Jianmen Pass was under the control of the Sichuan army, Hu Zongnan immediately convened a combat meeting to convey the principal's telegram order and make arrangements. Ordered the cavalry commander Xu Liangyu to lead the cavalry regiment to serve as the top soldier of the whole division, take the Shu Road, advance to Jiange County through Jianmen Pass, and after entering Jiange County, camp to rest and wait for the large army. He ordered Li Tiejun, commander of the First Brigade, to be the first echelon, Peng Jinzhi, commander of the Reading Brigade, and Liao Ang, commander of the Northwest Supplementary Brigade, to be the second echelon, and he personally led the troops directly under the division and the Second Brigade to follow up.

A cadre of generals sat at the conference table, listening to the short, concise, and energetic division seat making combat deployments in high spirits. After the deployment, Hu Zongnan looked at his subordinates and said hurriedly: "Everyone, the red bandits besieging Mianyang shows that they have felt the danger and are eager to escape. As long as our army moves quickly and attacks resolutely in the south, the remnants of the Red Bandits will inevitably be defeated at the first touch. At that time, we will be located in the Mianyang Plain, Xue Yue will occupy Chengdu, and the entire Sichuan Central Committee will be in control, and the president's plan to unify military orders and government orders will make substantial progress. I hope you will work hard! ”

Zhang Zhonglin, the commander of the first regiment of the Reading Brigade, stood up and saluted the report: "Report to the division, Mianyang is in danger, Jianmen Pass is an important pass for our army to rush south, I request, with my first regiment as the vanguard, immediately seize Jianmen Pass to cover the southward movement of the army." ”

Hu Zongnan admires Zhang Zhonglin very much, this little junior brother is full of fighting spirit and is a tiger general. But can your first regiment outpace the cavalry? Hu Zongnan motioned for him to sit down: "Say, everyone should learn from Lingfu and have the courage to take on the task of attacking and conquering the pass." However, Jianmen Pass is now in the hands of our army, and the cavalry is fast, and the cavalry regiment is still the vanguard. After arriving at the Sword Gate, you should conduct a careful inspection and search, and after confirming that there is no danger, you should move towards the Sword Pavilion. The whole division did not stop all the way to camp in Jiange County. Early tomorrow morning, we will advance to Zitong according to the marching sequence determined today. Beyond Zitong is the Mianyang Plain, and Mianyang is ours! ”

Xu Liangyu, the commander of the cavalry regiment, reported: "Division, if we encounter red bandits on the road, will our troops rush over and go straight to the county seat of Jiange, or will we search for the enemy and cover the main force?" ”

Hu Zongnan rolled his eyes: "Stupid, of course it is directly into the county seat of Jiange, is my first division still afraid of the enemy disturbing?" We are not afraid of the enemy's blockade, and we are afraid that the enemy will flee as soon as he knows the news of the imminent arrival of our army. ”

The generals burst into laughter.

Hu Zongnan waved his hand: "The meeting is adjourned, and all troops will act immediately according to the deployment." ”

All the troops were sent out for reinforcements, so many men and horses, not to mention anything else, it took a lot of time just to gather troops and mobilize at all levels. Fortunately, most of the officers of the various units of the First Division were from Whampoa students, and the military orders were strict and the actions were fast. By 11:30 a.m., the battalions of the cavalry regiment had completed their concentration, and the people had eaten and served immediately. At half past twelve, the cavalry regiment galloped out of Guangyuan and advanced towards the Sword Pavilion.

Subsequently, the troops opened one after another, forming a long snake formation on the Shu road from Guangyuan to Sword Pavilion, squirming forward.

At this time, [***] and Nie Rongzhen had already led the Red First Division and the Third Division to Jiangyou.

Jiangyou is the boundary between the upper and middle reaches of the Fujiang River, and the gateway to the Mianyang Plain in northwest Sichuan, so its strategic location is very important. Deng Xihou put a brigade headquarters and two regiments in the small Jiangyou City, and hoarded a lot of food and ammunition. Be prepared to hold on for the long haul.

The division of Jiangyou during the Republic of China is different from that of today's Jiangyou, and today's Jiangyou County was two counties in the Republic of China, one is Zhangming County and the other is Jiangyou County. The county seat of Zhangming is located in the town of Zhicheng, which is today's Zhangming Town; Jiangyou County is located in Wudu Town, all of which are built on the Fujiang River. However, Wudu Town is on the west bank of the Fujiang River, and Zhangming Town is on the east bank of the Fujiang River.

In the early morning of the 26th, when the Red Ninth Army was encircling Mianyang, Yang Dezhi, the head of the Red First Regiment, and Li Lin, the political commissar of the Red First Regiment, led the Red First Regiment to cross the Fujiang River and touched the West City Gate of Zhangming County.

The early morning of Zhangming was shrouded in mist, and the fishermen who got up early had been waiting at the door for a long time, and they were all in a hurry to open the door quickly, so that they could catch the first net fish of the day in Fujiang and come back to catch the morning market. There was a lot of noise at the gate of the city, but it was not lively.

The squad leader of the Sichuan army, who guarded the city gate, yawned in his mouth, carried his gun diagonally, and walked towards the city gate. scolded as he walked: "You guys melon babies, what are you arguing about early in the morning?" I made Lao Tzu anxious, and went to your house at night to find your cousin. ”

A fisherman named Li San'er shouted: "Squad Leader Hu, did you win a lot of money last night?" ”

When the Hu squad leader heard this, he laughed: "Your turtle son's eyes are really poisonous, and you know that Lao Tzu wins money." ”

The fishermen laughed and laughed.

Squad Leader Hu said as he opened the door: "Li San'er, come back and leave me two fish, your sister-in-law's father was born today, and Lao Tzu has to go to the ceremony." ”

Li San'er regretted it when he heard it, and blamed himself for talking too much, what did he shout, the two fish shouted and disappeared. Bastard, your cousin's father said in his life, take care of Lao Tzu's egg affairs? scolded in his heart, but said on his lips: "Don't worry, the insurance will get two fresh and fresh big fish with you, so that your waist will be straight in front of your sister-in-law!" ”

Squad Leader Hu's eyes narrowed into a slit with a smile: "Your turtle son really wants it, okay, when Lao Tzu is free, I will drink and play with you." ”

The gates opened, and the fishermen rushed out.

Soon the fishermen retreated. Squad Leader Hu was surprised, did this group of melon babies take the wrong medicine? How did you get it back? Looking up at the gate, a group of red bandits rushed towards the city gate with bayonets.

The gates were closed, and it was too late to call out to the brethren. Squad Leader Hu was also well-behaved, and immediately slipped into the fishermen's team and slipped into the city.

The 1st Red Regiment that entered the city immediately divided into several routes, controlled the city gates, and the main force went straight to the garrison barracks.

The scale of Zhangming County is not large, and it belongs to the kind of small county town that stands here and looks at that end, and smokes a cigarette to the end. By the time the main force of the 1st Red Regiment arrived at the garrison barracks, the Sichuan army was still in the morning. Looking at the muzzles of the black holes and the gloomy bayonets, a regiment of Sichuan troops had no choice but to be captured.

In this way, Zhangming City fell into the hands of the Red Army without firing a single shot.

[***], who was accustomed to sneak attacks, immediately ordered the Red First Regiment to change into the clothes of the Sichuan army, and asked Yang Dezhi to select soldiers from the Sichuan army who were willing to lead the way with a reward of 5 silver dollars per person, and guide the troops to kill Jiangyou.

The soldiers of the Sichuan Army heard that they could get 5 silver dollars for leading the way for the Red Army, so there was no reason why they were unwilling to go. As for whether the Red Army will sneak attack Jiangyou, what does it matter to them? The Red Army did not attack Jiangyou, and did not see any benefit to the garrison of Jiangyou! As a result, the defenders of the Sichuan Army of a regiment, except for a few officers who were still staring at each other and were unconvinced and wanted to fight hard, the soldiers all asked to lead the way, which made Yang Dezhi laugh. I had to pick out one battalion of soldiers to lead the way, and the rest were handed over to the second and third regiments and division headquarters to follow.

By the time the Red Regiment crossed the Fujiang River and marched all the way to Jiangyou, it was already noon.

Yang Dezhi knew that the soldiers were fast, and he didn't dare to hesitate, so he directly ordered the troops to rush to the south gate disguised as routs.

The Sichuan army guarding the south gate of Jiangyou already knew that the Red Army was besieging Mianyang at this time, so the vigilance was very high. Seeing the rout of the army coming, he immediately entered a state of imminent battle. Drink and ask which part it is.

A captured soldier of the Sichuan army immediately jumped to his feet and scolded: "Blind the eyes of your turtle son, Lao Tzu is the army stationed in Zhangming." Scattered by the red bandits, those who fled here, open the door quickly, the old men haven't had a sip of tea in the morning! ”

The other soldiers also followed suit, shouting fellow countrymen, calling names, calling brothers and brothers, and there was a mess.

They are all from the same unit, and the soldiers of the defending army see that many people know each other, and then think that the Red Army is besieging Mianyang, and it is impossible to come here at once and let it go.

The rout entered the city, and the Red Army soldiers caught in the middle also entered the city, and immediately at the south gate there were gunshots. The Sichuan army guarding the south gate could never have imagined how their own people could suddenly turn their faces and shoot at themselves. By the time he reacted, the Red Army's bayonet was already in the chest.

The Red Regiment, which took control of the south gate, set up mortars and heavy machine guns on the tower, preparing to deal with the enemy's counterattack. And they divided small troops and went along the city walls to seize the other gates.

The gunfire at the south gate alarmed the Sichuan defenders in the city, and the enemy brigade commander knew that the big thing was not good when he saw that the Red Army had attacked the south gate, and urgently ordered a regiment to organize troops to counterattack at the south gate, drive the Red Army out, and consolidate the city defense; One regiment strengthens the defenses of the other gates and serves as a reserve. Feeling that such a deployment was not at ease, the enemy brigade commander ordered the special service battalion to immediately take control of the ferry boats and be ready to board the ships and retreat at any time.

The Sichuan army, which was ordered to recapture the south gate, quickly completed its preparations, formed a battle formation, and rushed towards the south gate.

Yang Dezhi stood on the city tower, saw the Sichuan army swarming towards the south gate, a smile flew on the corner of his mouth, and ordered the artillery company of Zhao Zhangcheng, a sharpshooter under his command, to open fire and disperse the Sichuan army. Order the heavy machine gun to open fire and knock the enemy back.

Zhao Zhangcheng, who received the order, first knelt on the ground, chanted words in his mouth, prayed, and said that he was ordered to open fire, and the souls should not come to him. Then he stretched out his thumb and aimed it with his eyes, shouted the direction, elevation, and distance, and gave the order to fire.

The first shell landed in the open space in the middle of the street, and after a slight correction, the next six artillery salvos were fired, all of which exploded in the middle of the Sichuan attacking team. At this moment, the Sichuan soldiers were stunned, and many people shouted "my mother", turned around and ran away. The officers who led the attack in anger raised their guns and killed several deserters one after another before stabilizing the ranks. But the momentum of the offensive was broken, the machine guns and mortars on the city tower were so evil that everyone had only one life, and who would want to do it in exchange for bullets for the Red Army!

Seeing the failure of the troops' counterattack, the enemy regiment commander couldn't sit still and personally came up with the guards to check. When he was about to reach the south gate, he saw the brothers crawling on the ground in the corner of the wall and under the eaves with their buttocks, and the enemy regiment commander was on fire in his heart, and he went up and kicked an officer in the ass: "Turtle son, you will be shot if you pretend to be a coward." Get up and rush up for Lao Tzu! ”

As soon as the kicked officer turned around, he saw that it was the regiment commander, and he did not dare to stand up, but crawled on the ground and said tremblingly: "Tuanza, Jiangyou can't hold it, and the Red Army is coming up." ”

The commander of the enemy regiment picked up the telescope and looked at the city gate, outside the city gate, the Red Army troops were rushing along the main road to the south gate, and their hands trembled, and the telescope fell to the ground. The commander of the enemy regiment did not care to pick up the binoculars, and immediately ordered the attack to be stopped, and the troops quickly retreated to the ferry.

After giving the order, the enemy regiment commander turned around and ran away with the guard troops, and this time it was chaotic, and the soldiers of the Sichuan army, who were advancing along the walls on both sides of the street, suddenly did not care about covering their bodies, turned around and ran backwards, and made a mess and herded sheep.

The machine guns and mortars on the city tower were even more happy, chasing the retreating team of the Sichuan army and reaping lives.

Yang Dezhi saw that the Sichuan army was about to run, so he ordered the trumpeters to blow the trumpet of the charge and command the troops to pursue in separate ways.

When the commander of the enemy regiment ran to the ferry, he found that the boat had been robbed by the troops directly under the brigade, and from a distance, the largest boat on which the brigade was riding had raised its white sails and was drifting downstream.

Look at the Red Army that caught up, and then look at the men who were in chaos at the ferry, the enemy regiment commander scolded the bastard hatefully in his mouth, and then sat on the ground and could not get up again.

[***] and Nie Rongzhen, who entered Jiangyou, smiled happily. It is no wonder that Deng Xihou stored a large amount of ammunition and food supplies here in order to hold on to Jiangyou, and it was easier for the captured Sichuan soldiers to mobilize. Poor Deng Xihou was tantamount to stockpiling supplies and soldiers for the Red First Army.

[***], who was in a happy mood, changed his unsmiling style, and repeatedly urged Nie Rongzhen to quickly arrange for cadres to mobilize prisoners to join the Red Army. Nie Rongzhen was amused in his heart, and couldn't help but tease him: "Commander, weren't you like this in the past." We've taken prisoners before, and you don't usually ask. Why did you suddenly change your surname? ”

[***] also think it's funny, why have you become so anxious? After thinking about it, he said: "It's all Liu Yimin's trouble, look at his Seventh Legion, weapons and equipment, material reserves, and total number of people, which one is not more than us?" If you don't hurry up, the signboard of the first-class main force of my army will let that kid run away! ”

Nie Rongzhen said: "That kid does have a set, you can see that the grievance activities he engaged in are simply specially designed for the transformation of prisoners." I heard that he has a famous saying, what is it called to get married first and then fall in love. That is, the prisoners are first integrated into the army, and then slowly educated. In short, except for the soldiers and ruffians, none of the other captives were spared. ”

[***] eyes lit up: "Yes, we also have to get married first and then fall in love, simply mobilize the prisoners, and directly integrate them into the army for education, and raise consciousness while educating." ”

Nie Rongzhen laughed, laughing so much that [***] suddenly felt embarrassed, looked at the political commissar, and couldn't help laughing too.

After knowing that the Second Division also occupied Zitong, [***] ordered the Third Division to draw out a battalion to supplement some of the prisoners who came from Zhangming to lead the way, and set up the Jiangyou Garrison Regiment to garrison Jiangyou, mobilize the masses, and expand the red; The Second Division was ordered to draw out a battalion, replenish the prisoners on the spot, set up the Zitong Garrison Regiment, garrison Zitong, mobilize the masses, and expand the red. The other prisoners were immediately integrated into the army and undergoing educational transformation. The three main divisions hurriedly rested and regained their strength, and then concentrated on Zitong, preparing to attack the Sichuan army on the Jialing River on the front line of Langzhong. When encircling Mianyang, the Ninth Army Corps was ordered to pay attention to the enemy's air raids, leaving a small force to monitor Deng Xihou's movements, and the main force to rest in concealment.

[***] The order made Nie Rongzhen shake his head, it really made Liu Yimin, a kid, bad, and Commander Lin also began to think about expanding the troop structure.

In the afternoon, [***] planes began to fly towards Mianyang, dropping bombs and strafing on the Red Army positions outside the city. Fortunately, Liu Yimin was hurt by the Wujiang River last time, and these planes did not dare to fly too low, and the hit rate of bombs dropped. This also made Luo Binghui grit his teeth in pain, since he transferred to Guizhou, the Ninth Army has been smooth sailing, and the troops have been growing, where has he suffered this loss? I can't wait to launch an attack immediately and take Mianyang.

Fortunately, He Changgong kept reminding him on the side that Deng Xihou had been prepared, and the loss of the attack was too great. Besides, the task is to besiege Mianyang and lure the enemy to come to help. Not to mention that it can't be attacked, that is, if the whole army is crippled and captured, and if it can't destroy the enemy's reinforcement group, the gains outweigh the losses.

Luo Binghui decided that after nightfall, he would carry out a small infiltration attack on the enemy, and he could not let Deng Xihou be so comfortable in the city, so he had to feel the pressure and actively ask for help.

The soldiers of the Sichuan Army defending Mianyang City, seeing the planes bombing the Red Army position, knew that reinforcements were coming, and their momentum soared, and many soldiers climbed on the city wall and cheered.

After the plane flew away, the officers took the opportunity to publicize to the soldiers that the Central Army was about to arrive, and as long as Mianyang was held, not only the military seat would be awarded, Chairman Liu would also be awarded, and Chairman Chiang would also be awarded. The eyes of the soldiers were red, and they were eager for the red bandits to attack quickly, so that they could practice their marksmanship.

Deng Xihou learned that the news of Jiangyou's loss was already 5 o'clock in the afternoon.

The enemy brigade commander who escaped from Jiangyou went down the river, did not dare to stop along the way, and went directly to Mianyang. Fortunately, the Red Army did not have sailors and could not block the water, and the enemy brigade commander still entered Mianyang.

Seeing Deng Xihou, the brigade commander who fled back did not blush, knelt on the ground and knocked his head three times, and then hugged Deng Xihou's legs, crying and shouting for the army commander to shoot him.

Things have reached this point, even if the brigade commander is shot, he will not be able to recapture Jiangyou, Deng Xihou asked the brigade commander to gather the special battalion and join the Mianyang city defense force. The brigade commander went out with a thousand thanks.

Deng Xihou sat on the chair and worried, it seemed that the red bandits had opened a big net, ready to wipe out their garrison in Mianyang. You don't have to think about it to know that Zhangming's defenders are over, Zitong's defenders are estimated to be over, and the appetite of this Red Army is too big, just take advantage of it and leave, you really have to live with Lao Tzu in the Mianyang realm!

Deng Xihou didn't care about anything else at this time, and wanted to keep Mianyang. As long as you hold Mianyang and wait for the central army to arrive, then you will be a great achievement. If even Mianyang is lost, it is estimated that this country of abundance will have no place for itself to stand.

The chief of staff reminded that he took advantage of the fact that the red bandits could not control the river and retreated downstream by boat.

Deng Xihou said patiently: "We can't withdraw, our territory is here, and it is not possible to withdraw to someone else's territory." If we hold on here, when the Central Army arrives, there is still a possibility of eliminating or defeating the Red Bandits. If we withdraw, maybe there will be no more of the 28th Army. Only by holding Mianyang, whether it is a seat, Liu Xiang, or a red bandit, whoever has the upper hand will drink tea with whom we will set up a dragon gate array. Without Mianyang, the ghosts won't pay attention to us, and they can't invite people to drink tea. ”

The chief of staff said: "It is okay to hold Mianyang, the problem is that the losses of the troops are too great. From the morning to now, two regiments have been lost in the Mianyang City Gate assault, two regiments have been lost in Jiangyou, one regiment has been lost in Zhangming, and eighty percent of the regiment in Zitong is gone, plus a battalion on the periphery of Mianyang, we have lost six regiments and one battalion. It's terrible to go on like this! ”

Deng Xihou was silent, and the chief of staff saw that he couldn't say anything, so he went to urge the rescue telegram.

After nightfall, the mortars attached to the Red Ninth Army opened fire on the targets marked during the day and bombarded the Sichuan troops defending on the city wall. Taking advantage of the cover of night, the small units of the Ninth Army launched an infiltration attack on Mianyang. A small unit even touched the root of the city wall and blew a hole in the city wall with explosives packs, which frightened the Sichuan army to immediately mobilize troops and block the gap.

Fortunately, the Red Army Corps did not have the intention of attacking the city on a large scale, but only fired artillery for a while, and heavy machine guns for a while, covering the small troops to attack in multiple ways, and the disturbed Sichuan army could not survive in peace overnight.

Deng Xihou's radio station at the military headquarters of the 28th Army also did not stop all night, and Nanjing, Yucheng, Guangyuan, and even Yang Sen and Wang Zhangxu, who were far away in northern Sichuan, received telegrams calling for help.

(To be continued)