On the morning of July 3, 1917, Liu Dongheng, the commander of the Rishan Third Division, led the officers and soldiers of the rickety and listless 13th Division out of Beiyuan and headed for Changping. It stands to reason that it is now July, and we should set out before dawn, find a shady place to cook and rest at noon, and then march and fight in the afternoon. Our division commander Liu also thought so, but as soon as the 13th Division heard that it was going to fight, they all struggled, and it was not until 8:30 in the morning that the troops that were going to go out were sorted out. Next, Division Commander Liu had a small departure ceremony, and casually talked for half an hour, so it was delayed until half past nine before the team really set off.

Since the few officers and men who had returned from the defeat in Changping yesterday could not tell how many troops the other side had, none of the scouts sent out last night had returned. In desperation, in line with the meaning of killing chickens with knives and cutting through the mess with knives, Division Commander Liu not only brought his own battalion of braided troops, but also transferred a regiment and two battalions of infantry, a battalion and a company of artillery, a battalion of cavalry, and a battalion of engineers, adding up to more than 5,000 people, accounting for more than half of the total strength of the 13th Division in Beiyuan.

It's just that this expedition was not very smooth from the beginning, although Division Commander Liu repeatedly urged and sent a battalion of pigtailed troops to press the formation in the rear, the speed of the entire team was unusually slow. Thinking about it, it is understandable that for the officers and soldiers of the 13th Division, whether it is the Republic of China or the Qing Dynasty is not very important, the key is to let Lao Tzu work hard without even the minimum money, who is willing to give you his life! Moreover, due to the infighting between Duan Qirui and Li Yuanhong, and the fact that the senior officials in the ministry and division were full of private pockets, most of the officers and men of the 13th Division were still wearing spring uniforms in July.

"Hurry up! Keep up! "The Dingwu army, who rode a tall horse and dragged dirty pigtails, interspersed between the ranks, shouting, scolding, and scolding hard, and when they encountered the soldiers who had fallen behind, they would whip them fiercely.

"Lao Yang, how can you be so honorable in the direct division of the Ministry of the Army!" Liu Dongheng, the new division commander on horseback, said proudly: "The marching speed is so slow, the commander is still waiting for our good news!" ”

"Division commander, the brothers have been in arrears for two months, and the summer clothes have not been issued yet!" Yang Deming, the commander of the 25th Brigade (that is, the commander of the 1st Brigade of the 13th Division), said helplessly: "I can't eat enough, I can't wear warm clothes, and my enthusiasm is not high!" ”

"That's your former division commander Li Jincai's business, what does it have to do with me!" Liu Dongheng said nonchalantly: "As long as you win Changping, the handsome will be able to lose your reward!" ”

Yang Deming still wanted to argue, but when he saw Liu Dongheng's face, he gave up, and he also regretted his weakness last night. If the Thirteenth Division really worked together, Liu Dongheng would not be able to sit in the position of division commander at all with a battalion and the so-called holy decree. It's a pity that the two brigade commanders and six or seven regiment commanders have their own thoughts, and the most important thing is that the situation is unclear, and no one wants to be the first bird.

Liu Dongheng is in a hurry now for a reason. In the two hours he was out of the city, the situation changed dramatically: on the morning of July 3, Duan Qirui, Liang Qichao, Xu Shuzheng and others swore an oath to oppose the Manchu restoration in the horse factory, and organized a rebel army to crusade against Zhang Braidshuai; At the same time, Feng Guozhang, the vice president of the Republic of China, the overseer of Jiangsu, and Lu Rongting, the envoy of the Liangguang Tour, also telegraphed in Nanjing and Guilin respectively to oppose the restoration. After the most powerful people in Huaxia made a clear statement, the originally unclear situation suddenly became clear, and the provincial overseers, army envoys, division commanders, mixed brigade commanders, and town guards from all walks of life all expressed their opposition to the restoration, and even a few puppet officials who had thanked the emperor and hung the dragon banner (Anhui Governor Ni Sichong, Jilin Overseer Meng Enyuan, Fujian Overseer Li Houji and others) also hurriedly burned the dragon flag and telegraphed to attack Zhang Braid.

Under such circumstances, the braid commander urgently needed a victory to maintain the crumbling restoration cause, so he had been urging Liu Shichang to solve the Tang Daoist Department in Changping as soon as possible to deter the Gyeonggi Ministry.

"Damn, don't let me go quickly!" A tall pigtailed soldier yelled viciously at a young soldier who was slumped on the ground panting.

"Sir, I can't walk anymore when I have diarrhea at night!" The soldier was stunned and panted.

"Dog, dare to talk back!" The pigtailed soldier raised his horsewhip high, and a hideous smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

"Stop!" The braid was just raised high and was about to be swung down, but someone grabbed him from behind.

The pigtail soldier turned around angrily and was about to scold, when he saw that the other party was a lieutenant colonel officer wearing glasses, his face suddenly looked much better, but he still said unrelentingly: "Your division commander said that if anyone falls behind, he will be beaten hard!" ”

The bespectacled officer said coldly: "My soldier, I will naturally let him keep up with the brigade!" ”

"You, you, you let go!" Seeing that the other party's attitude was not good, the braided soldiers immediately became much more honest, no matter how arrogant he was, he was just a small soldier, and a lieutenant colonel was at least a regimental deputy.

"Get out!" As soon as the bespectacled officer's hand loosened, the pigtailed soldier almost fell off his horse, stabilized his body and fled.

"Three stunned, get on my horse!" The bespectacled officer jumped down and helped up the three stunned men who were sitting on the ground and said.

The three stunned people hurriedly shirked and said, "Battalion commander, how dare I ride your horse!" I can walk on my own! ”

"If you want to ride, you will ride, what so much nonsense!" The bespectacled officer grabbed him and lifted him up, helped him onto the horse, and slapped the horse's buttocks, and the horse ran away.

"Brother Zhaoshi, these pigtail troops are too rampant!" A major officer who rushed over from behind said angrily: "I don't treat our soldiers as human beings!" ”

"Zizheng be quiet, be careful to be heard." Xue Chengming whispered. Xue Chengming, the deputy commander of the 50th Regiment of the 25th Brigade of the 13th Division of the Army, and the commander of the 1st Battalion, while the young major was the commander of the 3rd Battalion of the 49th Regiment.

"Humph! Others are afraid of them, but Lao Tzu is not afraid! Ding Xiangdong deliberately said loudly: "Sooner or later, these turtle grandsons will have to clean them up!" ”

Xue Chengming saw that there were his own people all around, so he said softly: "Effectively control the troops, don't mess up, and act when the time comes." ”

Ding Xiangdong was overjoyed when he heard this: "Brother Zhaoshi is finally ready to act, and yesterday he persuaded me not to be reckless!" ”

"You and I only have two battalions in Beiyuan, and the strength is too weak." Xue Chengming explained: "But it's different when we go out of the city, that is, we can pull the troops out if we can't do anything." ”

Ding Xiangdong suddenly said this time: "No wonder everyone is dodging, only you take the initiative to ask for help, it seems that you have premeditated!" ”

"Premeditation can't be talked about, but as long as there is a glimmer of hope, we can't let the blood of our predecessors be shed in vain!" Xue Chengming said solemnly: "Besides, we are not alone, the third mixed brigade of Zhili is in Changping, and when the time comes, we will join forces in one ......."

"Bang bang bang......" Several gunshots interrupted the conversation between the two. Out of nowhere, a group of cavalry came out of nowhere, and fired a burst of indiscriminate gunfire at the marching team from a distance, and dozens of officers and soldiers were killed and wounded before they could reach it. The cavalry battalion that was on guard immediately chased them out, but the other party did not entangle them at all and fought and retreated and disappeared into the vast wilderness and villages. However, as soon as the cavalry battalion of the 13th Division turned back, the cavalry of the opposing side would try their best to come over and harass the marching troops, slowing down the ranks of several thousand people.

"What a bunch of rubbish, a few harassing cavalrymen can't handle it." Liu Dongheng scolded angrily: "Li Jincai, this bastard, doesn't know what kind of soldiers he brings!" ”

"Dog, take your company and open the way in front!" Liu Dongheng couldn't count on the 13th Division, so he had to send out a cavalry company he had brought from the Braided Army. I don't know whether it was because of the prestige of the dignified pigtail army, or for other reasons, in short, the harassed enemy cavalry suddenly dispersed. Without the enemy's harassment, the team's speed returned to normal.

"Lao Yang, this time you have to take a good grasp of the training in the division!" Liu Dongheng saw that his subordinates had leveled the enemy's scouts, and said to Yang Deming very proudly: "You can't do this little thing with a cavalry battalion, it seems that this cavalry battalion commander doesn't need to be the commander!" ”

"What the division commander said is extremely true, I will definitely reorganize the team when I go back!" Yang Deming didn't argue but swore and said, anyway, the cavalry regiment is directly under the division headquarters, and he can't control it, Liu Dongheng can toss as much as he likes!

Seeing that Lao Yang was still on the road, Liu Dongheng was in a good mood, and raised his horsewhip and asked, "Where are you now, and how long will it take to get to Changping!" ”

Yang Deming looked around and replied respectfully: "I have arrived at Shahe Town, and there are still twenty miles after Shahe to Changping County." ”

"Well, it's not slow." Liu Dongheng glanced down at his watch and said with satisfaction: "It seems that there is no problem in taking Changping today." Liu Dongheng has always been very conceited about the combat effectiveness of the pigtail army and his personal command ability, so attacking Changping seems to him to be like picking up something, and the thousands of men and horses on the other side are like chickens and dogs.

"Bang ......"

"Da Da Da ......"

……

Suddenly, a dense burst of gunfire rang out in front, and the vanguard of the 13th Division was ambushed by enemy troops in the woods on both sides of the road.

"I really don't know if I fucking live or die, even this little soldier dares to ambush Lao Tzu!" Successively defeating the two ambushes on the side of the road, Liu Dongheng became more and more arrogant, and these small movements of the enemy were completely expected by him and made corresponding arrangements.

"Division, be careful that the other party has a backhand." Yang Deming always felt that something was wrong, and kindly reminded him. Originally, this expedition was to catch ducks on the shelves, and it seemed that there was no preparation, and I didn't even know how many troops the other side had and how to arrange them.

"Such an ambush would be in vain even if there were ten or eight more places!" Liu Dongheng laughed and said: "This surname Tang Mofei thinks that he is Han Xin, and he wants to make a ten-mile ambush!" ”

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