It was the Soviets shooting, and he could make out from the direction in which they struck. Liu Zongsheng's heart fell into complete despair again: 9 consecutive defeats! The 634 heights are still controlled by the Soviet army!

Not at another time, it was precisely at this time that Xiao Qiang reported to him from the 633 Heights the bad news of the sacrifice of the trainer Cui Shi'an! After dark, Xiao Qiang sent people to quietly touch the cedar forest between the eastern canyon of the 634 Heights, and verified the news that Cui Shi'an and the platoon he led were all martyred. These two things happened one after another, which completely changed Liu Zongsheng's heart!

Before the last bad news came, Liu Zongsheng's heart of grief and despair was filled with only the following remorse: because he failed to be more vigilant to Peng Tao, he brought the whole battalion into the 632 highland area in a daze today, if he was more vigilant at that time, he would have chosen another route instead of the route he had taken in the morning to rush to the 632 highland area, and the result was likely that the whole battalion was blocked in the mountain pass between the No. 1 Ridge and the east of the Vulture Ridge and could not pass, and could not approach the 632 highland area, of course, he would not fall into this dead land; Secondly, he knew that the 9th Company could not fight, but he let this company attack the 634 Heights, and finally brought about its total destruction. Now he realized that he had made a big mistake in the afternoon: it was he who agreed with Cui Shi'an to take a platoon supported by the 3rd Regiment to the 634 Heights to participate in the battle, and it was he who directly caused Cui Shi'an's death!

Before the 9th Company was truly wiped out and knew that Cui Sai An had died, although he was desperate for the situation of the whole battalion in the 632 Heights area today, this despair aroused his strong sense of attack, and he eagerly longed for the officers and men of the battalion to fight the Soviet army to the end; However, when these two events happened, the consciousness and urge to attack disappeared, and a new, unusually heavy sense of guilt seized his heart!

In this short half day, there were enough people sacrificed in the 3rd Battalion of the 5th Regiment! He can't let anyone else continue to die because of his mistakes! He doesn't have that power!

Today they made the greatest sacrifice in the 632 Highlands area! The 634 heights were not taken because they did not try their best, but because their strength was exhausted! With the strength of a battalion, they stubbornly resisted the attacks of Soviet troops from both the Vulture Ridge and the Hills of Xilian, and in every sense of the word, they were worthy of it! There is no reason for anyone to ask this force, which has suffered heavy casualties, to continue the assault on the 634 heights! No reason!

He stood up, paused, glanced at Heights 634 to the southeast, and walked down the hill without hesitation. His first wish has been fulfilled, and now he is going to fulfill his second wish...... He's coming tonight. 634 Heights went to the heights and was with those who had died because of his mistakes—Cui Sai An, Cheng Yukun, and Liang Tenghui—with Shang Yujun, a 17-year-old platoon commander he had met on the march last night, and with every soldier whose names he did not know but who felt guilty about his heart.

Behind him, a small team silently followed.

They followed the route once taken by the 1st Platoon of the 9th Company, along the depressions and gullies on the west side of the 632nd and 633rd Heights, and walked south to the place where Li Ansheng, the commander of the 1st Platoon of the Company, died. Xiao Qiang thought of this route, and he also thought of it...... Liu Zongsheng lay down next to Li Ansheng's body, calmly took out a big paper clip from the pocket of his army's jacket, and patiently straightened it...... Each veteran who returns to the battlefield has several large paper clips in his pocket, and when they are pinched straight, they are searched for pressure-fired fuse mines, which are much lighter than using a standard mine detector. As for the pull fuse mine, you should carefully touch and grope with your hands in the grass in front of you, and then put your teeth together and gently bite off the tripwire...... There was a kind and intense smell of earth, the smell of grass, the smell of night dew that wet the earth and blades of grass...... There is a feeling that the burden of decades of life has been lifted in an instant, a feeling of returning to home...... Maybe you can't get rid of every mine in front of you, but that's not what matters...... We come from the dirt and have to return to the dirt, but this is the dirt of a foreign land...... He took a slow breath and plunged the homemade lightning rod into the dirt in front of his face...... Peng Tao threw away the radio transmitter, sat down, and buried the huge soldier-shaped bald head deep in the palm between his knees again.

Liu Zongsheng did not answer his call! Liu Zongsheng didn't want to answer him! In the stoic silence of the deputy commander of the 5th regiment, he clearly felt a desire to push him into a corner, and he had to be so determined!

From the afternoon to the evening, his heart was immersed in the thought that made him anxious: the Soviet army's attack on heights 630, 632, and 633 from the direction of Vulture Ridge was the prelude to its large-scale counterattack from the direction of Xilian Mountain towards heights 164 and 342. He felt that he had made a very correct choice by seeing through the conspiracy of the Soviet commander, and only gave reinforcements to one platoon of the 3rd Battalion of the 5th Regiment, and maintained the original strength and defensive deployment on the 164th and 342nd heights.

Although the Soviet army never left Xilian Mountain, he did not dare to relax his high vigilance in this direction. At the same time, the battle that took place up and down the 630 heights at the eastern end of No. 1 Ridge also became another point of anxiety in his heart. The longer and more intense the battle dragged on, the more uncertain he was about how the battle would play out today. In his subconscious, the silence of the Soviet army on Hill Hill and the fierceness of the fighting in the area of heights 630 and 632 were two parts of the Soviet conspiracy: the commander of the Soviet army was testing his will with the battles that took place up and down the above-mentioned heights, waiting for him to finally be unable to withstand the pressure brought about by the dangerous prospect of the loss of the 630 heights—once the heights were lost, the Soviet troops would also go up to the No. 1 Ridge and the mountain beam, which could threaten the 631 Heights and the entire No. 1 Ridge Chinese positions to the west. It was also possible to move diagonally to the southwest and encircle the 5th Regiment and 3rd Battalion of the 5th Regiment in the 632 Heights area with the Soviet Army in the Xilian Mountains - and finally made the decision to reinforce the 164th and 342nd Highlands to the 630 Heights or 632 Highlands areas, resulting in the emptiness of the defenses in the western and middle sections of the 1st Ridge, and they made a large-scale sortie from the direction of the Xilian Mountains and took the 1st Ridge with lightning speed.

No, he could not fall into the trap of the Soviet army. But the danger of the loss of the 630 heights exists, and once the 630 heights are lost, the danger that comes to mind above will appear, and even if the first ridge is only partially lost, he will be held accountable for the loss of his position. Later, he could not help but realize that in fact, the 630 Heights were becoming the key to the decisive battle between the Soviet Army and our two sides, especially the commanders: the 630 Heights would not be lost, and he would not reinforce the Heights and the 632 Heights area, and the Soviet troops in the Xilian Mountains might not dare to rashly attack the 164 and 342 Heights areas; And once the 630 Heights were in danger of being lost, he had to send 1 or 2 Battalions to reinforce the 3 Battalions, and the Soviet army in Xilian Mountain might take the opportunity to move, and the defense of the entire No. 1 Ridge would be in jeopardy!

After the sky outside the cavern was dark, the gunfire of the 630 Heights fell. After an afternoon of frantic attacks, the Soviets finally did not take this high ground, which made Peng Tao breathe a long sigh of relief. A certain rhythm of life inside his body reminded him that as long as the Soviet army could not take the 630 heights before dark, it would be difficult to do so after dark. They voluntarily stopped the attack, indicating that they had exhausted their strength in the afternoon's attack, and could only continue the attack after resting and replenishing. He sat down on the edge of the bed exhausted, his head bowed, his eyes closed, and the premonition of imminent defeat that had been oppressing him for most of the day suddenly became unreal.

He sat for a moment with tears in his eyes, his mind gradually sobering up from his frenzy and a certain confusion. That's when he heard staccato gunfire coming from the direction of Heights 001. Not an inch of land has been lost on the No. 1 Ridge. The 4th Regiment still failed to take Heights 001. The crisis that appeared in his life today is temporarily over, but the crisis in Zhu Yongde's life continues. The Soviet army ran out of strength after fighting for half a day at the 630 heights, and had to stop the attack after dark, and the 4th Regiment, which had been fighting hard for a day in the sandwich of the Soviet troops on Hill and the 001 heights, would of course stop after dark to take a breath, and it was unrealistic to ask Zhu Yongde to make another astonishing move now. Compared with Zhu Yongde, today's winner is still himself.

At this time he thought of the 5 battalion of the 3 regiment. In fact, after he decided to give reinforcements to this battalion a platoon, he basically forgot about it. As far as the overall situation of guarding No. 1 Ridge is concerned, this battalion and the 632 highland area where it is located are not the most important, due to the lack of more reinforcements, this area has become a dead move on the battlefield of the Chinese army, Liu Zongsheng and his battalion are more than lucky today. But in any case, as the supreme commander of the No. 1 Ridge battlefield, he can only care more about the key point of the 630 heights. Now it's different, he can and should care about Liu Zongsheng and his battalion. Peng Tao found the commander of the 3rd Battalion on the 631 Heights by phone. The latter reported: From the time the Soviet army in Vulture Ridge launched a counteroffensive to the 632nd and 633rd heights, the fighting in the area of the 632nd heights has been very fierce, and the 3rd battalion of the 5th regiment is still fighting, and they have not lost the two heights they have occupied! Peng Tao's heart warmed up: The 3rd battalion of the 5th regiment is good! Liu Zongsheng is good! Today, this battalion was wedged into the defensive depth of the Soviet army, attracting a large number of Soviet troops in the direction of Xilian Mountain and Vulture Ridge, and the barrier blocked the Soviet army's possible direct attack on the 631 heights, and objectively defended the main position of the Chinese army at No. 1 Ridge! As his mind became more and more sober, Peng Tao could now give a new explanation for the crisis that lasted for an afternoon: the reason why the Soviet army in Xilian Mountain did not launch a counterattack on the 164 and 342 highlands may have a great deal to do with Liu Zongsheng's existence in the 632 highlands area! The No. 1 Ridge Mountain Beam is the weakest link in the Chinese army's defense system, and the 632 Heights area is the most sensitive part of the Soviet army's Xilian Mountain-Vulture Ridge defense system. As soon as - and now he had a new vision - the Chinese army continued to advance from that area into the depth of the Soviet defense, the entire defense system of the Soviet army in the Xilian Mountain-Vulture Ridge area would be divided and in danger of complete collapse! It is likely that there is another explanation for the fierce fighting that took place today in the area of heights 630 and 632: the Soviets did not know the real intention of the Chinese army to break into the area of heights 632, and they simply invested a lot of troops in the area to try to recapture heights 632 and 633 and hold on to heights 634 just to ensure the defense system of Hill Xilian-Vulture Ridge. The conclusion is astonishing: today's Soviet attack on the 630 Heights at Vulture Ridge is not to capture the No. 1 Ridge, but only to contain the Chinese troops on the No. 1 Ridge, so that he, as the commander, is determined to reinforce Liu Zongsheng in order to achieve his operational goal of recapturing the entire 632 Heights area. The next astonishing conclusion is that it was precisely because of the bloody and bitter battle between Liu Zongsheng and the 3rd Battalion of the 5th Regiment in the 632 Heights area that the Soviet Army could not let go and boldly launch a counterattack against it after losing the No. 1 Ridge. It was Liu Zongsheng and the 3rd Battalion of the 5th Regiment who kept the No. 1 Ridge!

Peng Tao's heart warmed. He was once again relieved by the decision to send Liu Zongsheng to the 632 Highlands area in the morning. He wanted to contact Liu Zongsheng in person, even if it was just to express his gratitude and condolences to the other party. But he immediately suppressed the urge again. The 5 Battalion of the 3rd Regiment has held out in the 632 Heights area with the strength of one battalion until now, and the difficult situation can be imagined.

Liu Zongsheng had asked him for reinforcements in the afternoon, but he only gave one platoon! Now that he has taken the initiative to talk to Liu Zongsheng, the other party is likely to ask him for reinforcements again. Liu Zongsheng had every reason to do so after the lone army had resisted a large number of Soviet troops, and if he did not agree to the other party's request, the 3rd Battalion of the 5th Regiment would not be able to complete all the combat missions—that is, finally complete the occupation of the 634 Heights, which Peng Tao himself believed would be difficult—and he would have to bear part of the responsibility. Liu Zongsheng has not contacted his command post since the last time he called for reinforcements, so let the former continue to forget about him - the day has passed, the night is coming, who knows if the Soviet army will suddenly launch an attack on the No. 1 Ridge after taking a breath (the opponent is also good at night fighting, and in his opinion, the Soviet army did not "gnaw" the hard bone of the 3rd Battalion of the 5th Regiment after an afternoon of attack, and there is more reason to change the main direction of operations tonight, By capturing the 631 Heights area in the eastern section of the No. 1 Ridge to achieve the encirclement of the 5 regiments and 3 battalions in the 632 Heights area), he could not but be vigilant and could not easily send his troops to the 632 Heights area!

And Liu Zongsheng has become the key to his success or failure at this moment! Could it be that when and what did he offend the deputy head of the regiment today? In the afternoon, when the Soviet army of Vulture Ridge counterattacked the 632 highland area, Liu Zongsheng asked him for reinforcements, and he only gave the other party a platoon! But did he really do something wrong about it? …… No, even now that he thinks about it, he can't think that the 632 Highland area will be more important than the No. 1 Ridge!

But Liu Zongsheng wouldn't think so, he would think that you deliberately ignored the life and death of his battalion!

Even if he now ordered the 3rd Battalion on the 631 Heights to immediately send troops south to the 634 Heights, it would be unrealistic to take that small high ground before 24 o'clock at midnight! It takes an hour to go down from the No. 1 Ridge Mountain Beam to the 632 Highland area! What's more, this will also lead to the emptiness of troops in the eastern section of No. 1 Ridge, and if the Soviet troops in Vulture Ridge launch a night attack, Heights 630 may still be lost.

The transfer of troops from the 164 and 342 highland areas is even more time not allowable!

He lifted the large, soldier-shaped bald head from between his knees, as if from an abyss of despair. His defeat and disgrace are a foregone conclusion! But from this moment on, he was also free! He is no longer an infantry regiment commander who must be trapped in the command post of the 3rd Regiment in Snow Ridge, but a failed soldier who has relieved himself of responsibility and will never shoulder such responsibility again! Today he did not lose to the Soviet army, but only to Liu Zongsheng, a peasant with a head full of sorghum flowers! He was betrayed by this man at a critical moment! …… After the war, he can hold this person accountable for dereliction of duty, but he can't change his fate! In any case, as the commander of the 3 regiment, he did not complete the combat mission within the allotted time!

Do you not do anything at all, just hide on the snowy ridge and wait for that moment of shame to come? …… No! Peng Tao's heart cried out in pain. This war was the first and last war in which he commanded a regiment! If you fail on the 634 Heights, you should personally lead people to the 634 Heights and take it down!

Although this cannot rewrite your failure, it can at least make all those who laugh at you understand that Peng Tao, as a soldier, is at least as brave and fearless as Zhu Yongde, who personally led people to hit the No. 001 heights!

For everyone in Cave No. 2, this moment was both long and short - they saw their regimental commander stubbornly rising from defeat and shame again!

"Chief of Staff, you stay at the command post, I will now take the guard platoon to the 634 heights! …… Let's go! He said impulsively in a frenzied tone, his eyes sparkling.

Xu Yanglin looked at Peng Tao motionlessly. He suddenly felt that it was at this moment that he discovered the true heroic nature from the regiment commander!

"Yes, Commander! I'll arrange it! He replied excitedly, feeling that tears were about to well-up in his eyes, and hurriedly turned and ran out of the cave.

The jeep stopped in an empty stream at the bottom of the northern valley of Highlands 631. This is where he gets off the bus. With the help of the misty moonlight, Peng Tao looked south and saw the towering mountain beam of No. 1 Ridge in the night sky. Three hours after leaving the snowy ridge, the despair, anger, and shame in his chest were still the same, but the embarrassing moment he had to dodge—24 a.m.—was long gone. The sense of anxiety, crisis and urgency that Peng Tao had instilled in his life disappeared, so when he led this small team to climb the No. 1 Ridge Mountain, there was only a simple and strong idea left in his heart: go to the 634 Heights and take this small Heights!

(To be continued)