Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 375 Protect Mr. Chang
"Zhencheng, there's one more thing. You must protect Mr. Chang! Understand?"

"You must protect it well!" Hu Shoushan repeatedly urged.

"Don't worry, Commander Hu, as long as I'm alive, Mr. Chang will be fine!" Huang Zhencheng assured him.

Upon hearing their conversation, Chen Sijin's first thought was that Chiang Kai-shek had arrived.

However, Chen Sijin immediately rejected the idea as soon as it came to mind.

Chiang Kai-shek was a man who was extremely afraid of death, so how could he possibly go to the front line for such a small battle?

Moreover, Chiang Kai-shek preferred to sit in his command tent and give orders.

"Section Chief Hu, monitor all enemy communications. We must find out who this Mr. Chang is!" Chen Sijin immediately ordered.

The fact that Hu Shoushan and Huang Zhencheng are both so serious means they must be extraordinary.

As the battle progressed, the communications section soon intercepted a telegram sent by the 34th Division to Huang Zhencheng.

[Commander Huang, the situation is already so urgent, why not use Mr. Chang?]

[Our unit is trapped in the courtyard, so Mr. Chang is unable to maneuver effectively.]

Chief Hu of the Telecommunications Department looked at the deciphered telegram and was a little confused.

"Who is this Mr. Chang?"

"It must be some kind of powerful secret weapon," Chen Sijin analyzed.

He has many years of experience in intelligence work and is very knowledgeable in this area.

"I just don't know what it will be." Chen Sijin fell into deep thought.

At this point, the forces of both sides were already entangled.

What kind of weapon is it that's inconvenient to handle in the courtyard?
"Officer Si, is it poison gas?!" Section Chief Hu's expression changed drastically.

They had just finished fighting the Japanese not long ago, and the Guo army likely had obtained poison gas bombs from the Japanese.

The use of poison gas requires a distance, otherwise they themselves will be poisoned.

"You know what, it's actually possible." Chen Sijin was surprised.

If the Guo army is pushed to the limit and resorts to such a despicable tactic, our army will suffer heavy losses.

"Send orders to the troops encircling Liangzhuang on the western front, instructing them to prepare for poison gas attacks and to launch an immediate offensive."

"We must take Mr. Chang down as soon as possible, and not give them a chance to use him!"

Meanwhile, in Liangzhuang, Huang Zhencheng had been squeezed into several houses.

"107mm mortars, get ready! Raise the guns and fire smoke grenades at a high elevation!" Huang Zhencheng shouted.

The American-made M2 ​​107mm mortar can fire a variety of shells.

In addition to high-explosive shells, there are also white phosphorus smoke shells and poison gas shells.

However, the United States did not dare to provide him with poison gas; he only had the first two types available.

Now that the G army is too close, high-explosive shells cannot be used, Huang Zhencheng plans to launch white phosphorus smoke shells.

These smoke grenades are extremely irritating and should be able to slow down the G army's offensive.

The area surrounding the courtyards occupied by Huang Zhencheng was shrouded in white smoke.

Li Chishui had no idea what a smoke bomb was.

In his view, anything that's smoking is not a good thing.

"Damn it! The Nationalist army actually dared to use poison gas!" Li Chishui roared.

"Push the Guo army's anti-tank guns over here!" Li Chishui shouted.

Soon, two M3 37mm anti-tank guns were pushed over.

Also brought along were several KMT artillerymen.

Li Chishui pointed his pistol at several people.

"Aim the cannon and fire! Otherwise, we'll shoot you all!"

"Sir, it's not that we're unwilling, but the distance is too close. Shrapnel could be lethal to you!"

The artillerymen who had been brought along quickly explained.

They are now only about ten meters away from the yard in front, but fragments of a 37mm high-explosive bomb can fly twenty meters.

If the G army is injured by the bomb, who will be held responsible?
"This is not something you should be thinking about! I told you to fire, so fire!" Li Chishui commanded.

"No problem, no problem!"

Seeing that the G army's finger was already pulling hard on the trigger, the KMT artillerymen didn't dare to utter a sound and hurriedly began operating the cannon.

"Boom!" "Boom!"
After a few shells, Huang Zhencheng's will completely collapsed, and he raised a white flag.

Of course, even if Huang Zhencheng could hold on, the other members of the Kuomintang army would not be able to.

The few brick houses in front of us couldn't withstand direct artillery fire.

If Huang Zhencheng doesn't want to maintain a dignified appearance, then others have to help him do so.

Just as Li Chishui was bombarding Huang Zhencheng, the troops in Guanzili launched another general offensive.

Unable to contact Huang Zhencheng, Wang Yawen and Zhou Huan turned to Dong Shengjie instead.

"Commander Dong! Our troops have suffered heavy casualties! Requesting reinforcements!"

"Commander Wang, hang in there! As long as you can hold on until dawn, everything will be alright!" Dong Shengjie encouraged.

Although the 15th Brigade has now moved to Liangzhuang, local troops are still harassing him.

Therefore, Dong Shengjie did not dare to risk traveling at night.

If they can hold out until daytime, the tanks can reach the battlefield, and with the assistance of aircraft, they can easily break through the G army's defenses.

At that time, they will be able to cooperate with the 1st and 2nd Regiments of the 1st Division to counter-encircle the main force of the G Army.

Upon hearing the request to persevere, Wang Yawen casually tossed the microphone onto the table.

"Brother Zhou, what are your thoughts?" Wang Yawen asked.

"To stay until dawn is probably a pipe dream," Zhou Huan said bluntly.

What's the situation now? The G army has divided and surrounded the area and is clearing it out piece by piece.

At the current rate, if they can hold out until three or four o'clock, they'll already be doing right by the Party and the country.

"Brother Wang, how about we..." Zhou Huan pulled Wang Yawen to a corner and made a gesture with two fingers.

Wang Yawen thought about it carefully and said, "Alright, you guys stick with it."

"Brother Zhou, let's go." Wang Yawen nodded.

To avoid being discovered by the soldiers and causing an immediate collapse, Wang Yawen and Zhou Huan only took their respective adjutants with them and then quietly escaped from the chaotic area.

They had already come up with an excuse.

They fought to the very end with the G army, but reinforcements were slow to arrive, forcing them to choose to break out.

After leaving the village, the group ran south along a path. They planned to cross the mountains and leave the Xiaoyi area.

Suddenly, a head popped up on the hilltop a hundred meters away.

"Captain, look! Someone's coming out!"

Another head popped up, holding a telescope with only one tube left, and looked over.

"They're not our people, they're Guo Jun!" the captain confirmed.

The people opposite were wearing peaked caps and tall military boots.

"Set up the light machine gun we just received and see if it works," the captain said to the machine gunner beside him.

They used to carry homemade guns, but now they've got Hanyang rifles and Type 96 light machine guns. The captain has been ecstatic these past few days.

"beat!"

"Da da da da da"

The machine gunner's skill level was clearly lacking; every time he pulled the trigger, it was a long burst of fire.

In other words, the Type 96 rifle fires five rounds at a time; otherwise, it would have used up all its bullets in one go.

Wang Yawen and Zhou Huan were also unlucky.

Of those long bursts of fire, only the two of them were hit.

Their adjutant saw this and turned to run.

The machine gunner fired a few shots, but missed.

He wanted to fight again, but the captain stopped him.

"You son of a bitch, did you get these bullets for free?!"

Inside the siege, both battalion commanders had already discovered that their regimental commander had disappeared.

Knowing that the supreme commander had fled, the battalion commanders gave up.

If the battalion commander gives up, the company commander naturally won't fight either.

As a result of the chain reaction, Guo Jun, who was inside the siege, quickly collapsed.

Chen Sijin was very pleased upon receiving the report.

"Great! Excellent! Annihilate the First Division!"

"Pass on my order: the 13th Brigade shall immediately retreat, open the Pingxiao Highway, and allow the 167th and 27th Divisions to enter."

Chen Sijin decided to wait until the news of the annihilation of the First Division spread before he could see if anyone else was willing to jump into the pit.

Just as the battle in Guanzili ended, Chen Chengxing's system beeped.

Side Quest: The Best in the World. Completed!

[Gained Trait: Number One in the World.]

[Note: This trait disappears if you are defeated in a battle of the same level.]

Before Chen Chengxing could examine it closely, Xu Wu reported it.

"Report, Director Chen is calling today."

Chen Chengxing picked up the phone casually: "Mr. Si Jin, this is Chen Chengxing."

"Chen Chengxing, Li Yunlong has already vacated the position."

The 167th and 27th Divisions of the Guo Army are advancing towards Guanzili. You order your troops to clear the battlefield as quickly as possible.

Also, Liang Zhuang reported that they have captured Huang Zhencheng alive. Go and check on the situation. If possible, bring him to the command post.

"Yes! I'll go right away," Chen Chengxing said, standing at attention.

After hanging up the phone, Chen Chengxing said:
"Xu Wu, clean up the battlefield as quickly as possible. I'm going to Liang Village."

"Yes!"

This battle was a joint operation, so we certainly can't decide what the spoils of war are.

As soon as Chen Chengxing arrived at Liangzhuang, Li Chishui rushed over.

"We've struck it rich! This time it's really big!" Li Chishui exclaimed excitedly.

"What's wrong? Why are you so happy?" Chen Chengxing asked with a smile.

"The Mr. Chang that Chen Sijin mentioned is not poison gas, but two heavy artillery pieces, large-caliber heavy artillery! American-made 155mm howitzers!" Li Chishui reported.

"No wonder Huang Zhencheng didn't dare to use it. If they fired at such close range, none of them would survive."

"Have the prisoners assist in using trucks to transport the captured supplies away," Chen Chengxing ordered.

The main force of the Guo army is still nearby and shows no signs of retreating, so we must be on guard.

"yes!".
When Huang Zhencheng was brought before Chen Chengxing, he had a rather unyielding air about him.

"Who are you? Are you Chen*?"

"Chen Chengxing from the Second Independent Detachment, we're about the same level," Chen Chengxing said with a smile.

"Hmph." Huang Zhencheng scoffed.

The same level? This nobody thinks he's even comparable to me?
Do you know where Germany is?
“Your fighting is not the right way. When it comes to troop deployment, the orthodox approach is better than the unorthodox one,” Huang Zhencheng said.

"If both sides were to deploy their forces and fight a real battle, you would definitely be no match for me!"

"Moreover, your soldiers are using artillery within ten meters, which is completely against artillery regulations!"

Upon hearing Huang Zhencheng's words, everyone burst into laughter.

"To strike unexpectedly and catch the enemy off guard—that's the essence of Sun Tzu's Art of War. How can it be anything but conventional?"

"No matter what, we won this battle, and you lost."

“I think this is enough to prove that our tactics are correct,” Chen Chengxing said with a smile.

"Your troops' equipment and training are inferior to ours!" Huang Zhencheng tried to save face.

"Your equipment is indeed good, but that doesn't mean you can win the battle."

"As for who has better training, we'll have to wait and see," Chen Chengxing said.

The First Division was indeed well-equipped, but now it belongs to the G Army.

"Someone, take him to Chen Sijin."

"Let their seniors and juniors meet," Chen Chengxing waved his hand.

Huang Zhencheng is indeed a highly skilled military man, but he's not very good at running.

For the G party, equipment is a very real issue, so playing to their strengths and avoiding their weaknesses is the normal course of action.

Otherwise, the leader wouldn't have put forward the sixteen-character policy for guerrilla warfare.

Once we're fully equipped, let's see if we dare to put on a show.

(End of this chapter)