The emergency assembly horn sounded, and the mournful sound of the trumpet pierced the silence of the mountains. At this time, it was already close to evening, and a round of red sunset was rapidly sinking towards the peaks and valleys in the west of Guanmen Mountain without any heat. Wei Xin stood beside the trumpeter, listening to him repeat the same melody over and over again. This melody suddenly evoked the memories of all the 7th Company, including the company commander - just a few days ago, this emergency assembly call suddenly sounded in the night sky of Xiping Village where the fierce battle was raging, it was the retreat order issued by the battalion commander Feng Changzhi; At the sound of the trumpet, the 6th and 7th companies of the 2nd Battalion began to retreat from the forward defense line like a tide, but in the end, how many people failed to retreat is still unknown.

The people of Hongxingxia heard the emergency assembly number sounded by the 7th consecutive at the first time.

At this moment, in this Grand Canyon, which was personally named by the instructor before, it was already full of all the units of the Second Battalion of the Eighth Route Army Forest Division, the 8 companies that stayed behind, the 6 companies and 7 companies that retreated with the battalion headquarters, the remnants of the recruit company, and even a small number of people from the 5th company!

The main force of the second battalion led by Liu Shu arrived at Hongxingxia one day earlier than Wei Xin's main force of the 7th Company.

One of the reasons for this is that Liu Shu has been urging the team to speed up, and there is almost no rest halfway; The second is also because the guide of Xiping Village is familiar with the path of Guanmen Mountain, although he does not understand where the so-called Hongxing Gorge of the Eighth Route Army is, but according to the description of the distance from there to Hekou Village, he understands that the place where the Eighth Route Army is going should be near the northern edge of Guanmen Mountain, so he took this huge team and marched to the north.

The difference is that when Wei Xin's 7th Company was chasing the main force of the Second Battalion, it stabbed in the direction of the north and east of Guanmen Mountain, and as a result, he had a meeting with the bandits of the Black Stone Cliff located in that direction, and then walked into the lair of the Black Stone Cliff bandits, delaying time.

The main force of the second battalion led by Liu Shu was directly discovered by the patrol team sent by the 8th Company of Hongxingxia. At that time, just after learning the news of the defeat of the main force of the 2nd Battalion from Xiping Village, Lu Dajiang, commander of the 8th Company, on the order of Wu Zijian, deputy commander of the 2nd Battalion, immediately dispatched a patrol group of five people all the way out of Hongxing Gorge to search due south. As a result, the main force of the second battalion almost did not take much effort to cross the middle line of Guanmen Mountain and reach Hongxing Gorge.

Of course, the second battalion carried the body of their battalion commander to the Red Star Gorge. On that day, there was no joy of the teacher, no celebration of the rest of the life, only sadness and grief.

And it wasn't until this moment that instructor Liu Shu knew that the 5th Company led by Deputy Battalion Commander Wu Zijian had already made contact with Hongxingxia before the main force of the battalion headquarters!

According to Lu Dajiang, the commander of the 8th Company, the 8th Company was initially ordered by Wu Zijian, the deputy company commander led the troops of two platoons to temporarily move to Hekou Village, but the reason for the temporary relocation was not explained by the deputy battalion commander at the time (it was later learned that the 5th Company was going to go out to Xiaoyushu Mountain to perform the task); Unexpectedly, two days later, in the middle of the night, Wu Zijian, the deputy battalion commander, sent someone to Hongxingxia again to report urgently, saying that Hekou Village had been attacked by the Japanese puppet army at night, and the battle situation was critical, and the 8th Company should be ready to respond in Hongxingxia, and strictly prevent the bandits from taking advantage of the fire to rob the Black Stone Cliff in Guanmen Mountain.

Immediately, Lu Dajiang, who was not worried about the front line, sent another platoon to Hekou Village to support at dawn that day. However, after that, the two platoons of the 8th Company that moved to defend Hekou Village and one platoon that rushed to Hekou Village were all sent back to Hongxing Gorge by the deputy battalion commander, saying that the battle at Hekou Village had ended, and the Japanese puppet army suddenly withdrew its troops, and the fortifications of Guanmenshan Pass were finally defended. However, the deputy battalion commander also reported that Xiping Village had been attacked by the enemy at the same time, and that the main force of the second battalion might have been defeated, and Wu Zijian asked the 8th Company to send a patrol group from the Hongxingxia garrison to search and prepare for the return of the main force of the 2nd battalion to Hongxingxia.

"Instructor, thanks to Deputy Battalion Commander Wu's thoughtfulness, we were able to meet the main force in time, otherwise we would still be stupidly waiting for you in the canyon." In the company headquarters of the 8th Company, Lu Dajiang said to Liu Shu.

Unexpectedly, this sentence angered the instructor, and he angrily threw the military cap on his head on the table made of wooden planks:

"Thoughtful ghost! It was because of this deputy battalion commander Wu who violated the military order and acted without authorization that this fiasco was caused! The battalion commander died! And so many excellent commanders and fighters have also died! The good revolutionary base area was occupied by the Japanese! He's seriously responsible for that! ”

Lu Dajiang was taken aback. Although he had already learned from the deputy commander of the 8th Company who led the troops to temporarily move to Hekou Village that Deputy Battalion Commander Wu Zijian led the 5th Company to attack Xiaoyushu Mountain, he did not know that this operation was actually a separate deployment made by Wu Zijian without consulting the battalion headquarters.

"You, immediately send someone to Hekou Village!" Liu Shu pointed at Lu Dajiang and said, "Inform Deputy Battalion Commander Wu to abandon Hekou Village and retreat to Hongxing Gorge!" This is the highest combat order of the 2nd Battalion Headquarters of the Eighth Route Army, and anyone who dares to disobey will be punished by revolutionary discipline! ”

The commander of the 8th company was almost stunned, he looked at the instructor with burning eyes, and was at a loss for a while. On the contrary, the deputy company commander on the side cautiously said to Liu Shu: "Instructor, I led two platoons of the 8th Company to participate in the night battle in Hekou Village; I saw with my own eyes that at dawn, the Japanese puppet army hastily withdrew, and the village of Hekou is now back in the hands of the 5th Company, although it has been severely damaged, but the village still belongs to our ......"

"Shut up!" Liu Shu turned his head and stopped the words of the deputy company commander of the 8th Company: "You still haven't understood, this is not a night attack by the enemy!" This was a great defeat caused by the disorganized, undisciplined, left-leaning adventurist tendencies that spread throughout the Second Battalion! ”

The instructor's stern conclusion made the two principal and deputy company commanders of the 8th Company suddenly shut their mouths in a chill. Liu Shu looked at the two people, and then ordered the battalion communication officer beside him: "You immediately run to notify the instructor of the 8th Company to come to me!" ”

He no longer trusted the two company commanders and deputy company commanders of the 8th Company, who had served Wu Zijian as a god militarily, so he elaborated on the seriousness of the situation to the instructor of the 8th Company, and asked the instructor to immediately lead a squad to Hekou Village, send the instructor's handwritten letter, and order Wu Zijian and the entire 5th Company to unconditionally carry out the order to immediately retreat to Hongxingxia!

Wu Zijian actually held the fortifications of the mountain pass! Liu Shu thought angrily, he had seen the mountain pass fortifications, and he had to admit that they were very hidden and strong; However, now it is not a matter of gains and losses in one place, and this deputy battalion commander who broke into a big disaster has already led to the complete collapse of the second battalion of the forest division in the base area outside the Guanmen Mountain, and a small mountain pass position cannot be held and has no substantive significance.

But to the instructor's even more shock and fury soon came again, the instructor of the 8th Company returned from Hekou Village, only brought back more than 20 wounded soldiers of the 5th Company, deputy battalion commander Wu Zijian, after reading the instructor's handwritten letter, asked the instructor of the 8th Company to bring a message to the instructor, saying that Hekou Village had just been recovered, and it was necessary to immediately rebuild the defense system that had been completely destroyed by the enemy, so as to prevent the enemy from killing a horse gun; In addition, the people who fled from the village also returned one after another, and needed help and pacification, so he could not carry out the instructor's order to lead the entire 5th company to retreat, and after the village and the mountain pass fortifications were repaired, he himself would go to Hongxingxia to discuss the next military and political plans of the second battalion with the instructor and the commander of the whole battalion.

After listening to this message brought back by the instructor of the 8th Company, Liu Shu was so angry that he trembled, he forced himself not to scold in front of everyone - he really wanted to scold!

This lawless Wu Zijian! He knew that the battalion commander had sacrificed, and he, the deputy battalion commander, was now nominally the highest military commander of the second battalion of the Lin Division, so he completely disregarded himself as an instructor!

"You, why don't you tie Deputy Battalion Commander Wu back!?" Liu Shu glared at the instructor of the 8th Company viciously: "Didn't you hear me say that if anyone dares to disobey this order, he will be punished by revolutionary discipline?!" ”

8 Even the instructor was so frightened that he didn't dare to come out, and looked at his head leader timidly, unable to say a word.

Lu Dajiang and Wang Shuanglong, the commander of the 6th Company, who were standing on the side, were also pounding in their hearts, they had experienced the brutal purge in the army during the Red Army era, and they knew the killing methods of political cadres like instructor Liu Shu. However, Lu Dajiang still secretly felt sorry for his instructor who was reprimanded: Deputy Battalion Commander Wu now has a 5th company in his hand, and the instructor took a squad of people to announce the instructor's instructions, if he really wants to tie up people, he can't tell who will tie whom!

At this moment, a platoon commander of the 8th Company came running to report that the sentinels set up in the outermost part had reported that they heard the emergency assembly call of our troops sounding in the southeast direction.

The first reaction of Wang Shuanglong, the commander of the 6th Company, was: The 7th Company, which may have fallen behind, came to the neighborhood and was in trouble!

"Order the bugler, immediately blow the same emergency assembly number in response, and assemble the whole company!" Without thinking about it, Lu Dajiang instructed his deputy company commander that the 8th Company was the master in Hongxingxia, and it was his duty to respond to his comrades.

"Shut up!" Liu Shu, who was in a bad mood, shouted at Lu Dajiang again: "Who gave you the trumpet of power?" The situation is unknown, what a trumpet to blow! All combat preparations, be vigilant that the enemy is following and sneaking attack, and do not expose the location of the Red Star Gorge! ”

Several company commanders and instructors looked at each other at first, and then reacted: the instructor is now the supreme commander here, and must obey his orders. Moreover, the instructor's consideration was obviously meticulous, although the possibility of the Japanese puppet army using the Eighth Route Army's military horn was very small, but the second battalion was undoubtedly worth being cautious on the occasion of this new defeat.

In addition to the battalion headquarters and the wounded and sick, the 6th Company and the recruit company were on standby in the canyon, and the 8th Company, which was familiar with the terrain, was all deployed on the periphery, and at the same time, the deputy commander of the 8th Company personally led a platoon to the direction where the horn sounded, and quickly found out the situation.

The sound of the trumpet continued to echo in the peaks, and the sky became darker and darker in the sound of the trumpet.

When the deputy commander of the 8th company and his people finally reached the location where the horn sounded impatiently and cautiously, a round of red sun had completely sunk to the bottom, and with the help of the vast twilight, the deputy company commander finally saw clearly the large group of people wearing the same military uniform.

It was confirmed that the judgment of the 6th company commander just now was accurate, and it was indeed the main force of the 7th company led by Wei Xin, the commander of the 7th company, but the comer did not encounter trouble.

They will be taught.