Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 484 Who's Next?
Inside the Fifth Army headquarters, an operations staff officer approached and said, "Commander, Liu, the resident from Henan, has arrived."

"Liu En? Please come in quickly." Qiu Feng immediately perked up.

As someone who actually experienced the Battle of Bianliang, Liu En must have known a lot of the intelligence he desperately needed.

As soon as Liu En entered the command post, he quickly ran to Qiu Feng.

"Liu, the resident."

"General Qiu, I have been stripped naked by the G army to see you today. I am ashamed to have failed the soldiers who fought to quell the rebellion."

“Liu, let’s not talk about this anymore. The fact that you can leave Bianliang alive is a cause for celebration for the Party and the country.”

"Come, sit down, sit down quickly." Qiu Feng pulled Liu En down to sit.

"Master Liu, I'd like to ask, what's the current situation in Bianliang?"

"Before I broke through and left Bianliang, the 66th Division only had Longting as its core position, and the situation was not optimistic."

Upon hearing that the Bianliang garrison only had one position left, Qiu Feng's expression turned serious: "The G Army's offensive is so fast?"

"The G army is indeed fearless." Liu En still felt lingering fear when he recalled the previous battle.

He lived through the late Qing Dynasty and witnessed warlord conflicts and the Japanese invasion.

But he had never seen a force that could be as warm as spring to the people and as harsh as winter to the enemy, and switch between the two so smoothly.

Liu En had never even heard of such an army, let alone seen one. He never dreamed that such an army existed.

"Did you see any other G Army movements during your breakout?" Qiu Feng asked.

“We saw the G army moving, but we don’t know their destination.” Liu En shook his head.

After leaving Bianliang, the group headed east, and along the way they even bought a donkey cart.

If it weren't for this donkey cart, he wouldn't have made it this far.

However, because of the donkey cart, Liu En could only travel along the main road, and he had to avoid the G army.

"Oh, right." Liu En suddenly remembered: "Not long after leaving Bianliang, we saw G Army artillery moving south."

"They look like they're leaving the battlefield."

"South?" Qiu Feng walked a few steps to the map.

"The G army should run!"

Whether the main force is advancing or retreating, there is a lot to do, and it is common for heavy weapons to be withdrawn first.

"Mr. Liu, I've had a few rooms prepared for you. Please rest for a while."

"It won't be long before I can help you return to Bianliang and take charge of official duties."

"Thank you, General Qiu! Thank you, General Qiu!" Liu En said repeatedly.

The benefits of being stationed in a province are enormous; even leaving for a single day can result in countless losses.

At this time, Noji was also discussing the next steps in the plan.

Although the various departments have already taken action, the next target has not yet been decided.

"I think we can attack Sun Yunliang," the deputy chief of staff said, pointing to the map.

“Sun Yunliang truly lives up to his title of ‘Flying General.’ They came from Shangdu, and a single column of Zhongye blocked their advance, bringing them to a standstill.”

"This shows that Sun Yunliang chose not to help in order to preserve his strength, and at the same time, he was a weak team."

"Moreover, most importantly, Sun Yunliang was the only unit that came from the west to provide support, and his position was relatively isolated."

"In comparison, our CX Corps in western Henan is very close to the main force of the Central Plains Field Army, and it would be easy to wipe them out with coordinated efforts."

"With Sun Yunliang's army wiped out, taking Shangdu will be a piece of cake."

Upon hearing the deputy chief of staff's words, everyone nodded in agreement.

Given the current situation, beating Sun Yunliang is the most suitable option.

However, the leader's plan was exactly the opposite.

"Everyone, my opinion is still to fight Qiu Feng."

"Commander, Qiu Feng, Qu Jieming, and Liu Ziliang together have over 100,000 men, which is very strong. If they stick together, the East China Field Army's outer line corps will have no chance against them."

"If the game becomes a stalemate, we will be in great danger."

“I know that.” The commander nodded. “However, the mission given to us by the Central Committee is to eliminate six to twelve reorganized brigades of the Kuomintang’s most elite forces in the Central Plains region, with the Fifth Army as the core, within six months.”

"If we encircle and annihilate Sun Yunliang in the west, we will not achieve this goal, and there is a high probability that our retreat route to Shandong will be cut off by Qiu Feng."

The purpose of launching the Battle of Bianliang was to target Qiu Feng and Qu Jieming.

If we wanted to defeat Sun Yunliang, we wouldn't even need to capture Bianliang. A simple siege and attack on reinforcements would have been enough to wipe them out.

"My plan is to abandon Bianliang and head south to lure Qiu Feng and Qu Jieming to rescue Bianliang. On the way, we will seize the opportunity to move and annihilate a part of the enemy."

The group still had some reservations about the plan.

However, the commander had already made up his mind, and everyone had no choice but to follow orders.

In Bianliang, after receiving guidance from Chen Chengxing, Guo Sheng's command of his troops made great progress.

When a combat team of three men reached the top, the Guo army suddenly became somewhat chaotic.

As time went on, more and more combat teams advanced into the heart of the KMT forces' territory.

In just forty minutes, the Guo army in Longting was completely annihilated, and Zou Yunzhang lived up to Chang Ruiyuan's reputation for personally visiting him.

When the attacking troops stormed into the division headquarters, Zou Yunzhang still tried to resist, but was shot dead by Guo Sheng.

With the complete annihilation of the garrison in Bianliang, news of the liberation of Bianliang was broadcast throughout the country.

This news shocked the entire nation.

Previously, the Kuomintang's newspapers and radio broadcasts portrayed the KMT army as mere bandits, not worth worrying about.

But now that the "bandits" have captured the capital of Henan Province, it's hard not to have some concerns among the intellectuals.

After all, there have always been signs of dynastic change in this region throughout history. Although these signs are not obvious, and they are unlikely to switch sides now, they would still be willing to play both sides if given the opportunity.

Faced with immense public pressure, Chang Ruiyuan had no choice but to issue a firm order, demanding that all troops advance towards Bianliang at full speed.

We must take back Bianliang no matter what.

Around the key point of Bianliang, the East China Field Army, the Central Plains Field Army, and the Guo Army's mobile corps were intertwined.

The entire Central Plains region was thrown into chaos.

Two days later, the Bianliang Material Transfer Committee reported to the Field Office that the transfer of materials to Bianliang was basically completed.

Without hesitation, the commander immediately issued the order to retreat.

"Chairman! Good news! Reconnaissance aircraft report that troops near Bianliang have begun a fighting retreat and have gradually withdrawn from the sniper line. They are now withdrawing south."

Chang Ruiyuan was overjoyed upon hearing Yu Liangzhen's report.

"Good. The G army will suffer heavy casualties in attacking Bianliang. They are already exhausted and unable to fight any longer!"

"This is a golden opportunity to recapture Bianliang in one fell swoop!"

"Pass on my order: all units, advance immediately and retake Bianliang!"

Looking at the telegram from the General Headquarters, Qiu Feng smiled and said, "Commander Liu, it seems the time has come for you to return to Bianliang to take charge of affairs."

"General Qiu, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you again. Could you speed things up?" Liu En asked.

Even if Bianliang is emptied by the G army, he can still extract a large amount of wealth.

But if you go too late, someone else might snatch it away.

“No problem.” Qiu Feng nodded. “Chief of staff, pass on my order: the troops shall set off immediately, with the 89th Division as the vanguard, target Bianliang!”

"Yes!"

The 5th Army marched very quickly, and by noon the next day, they had arrived at the outskirts of Bianliang.

"Commander, the reconnaissance unit reports that the G army in Bianliang City has completely withdrawn."

"Not a single one was left?"

Not a single one was left!

"The G Army is so decisive." Qiu Feng looked at the map.

As Huaye's old rival, Qiu Feng was not as optimistic as Chang Ruiyuan.

He did not believe that the G army was no longer able to fight, but now that the G army had completely withdrawn from Bianliang, it meant that the G army must have suffered considerable losses.

"The G army is exhausted, while our army is well-organized and has sufficient troops. This is our opportunity."

"Chief of Staff, relay my order: the 45th Division will send a regiment to garrison Bianliang, and the rest of the troops will immediately head south to pursue them!"

The difference between the main force entering the city and not entering the city is significant.

When a large force enters the city, it requires a series of actions such as arranging receiving units and setting up troop garrisons. If it wants to leave the city, it also takes time to regroup the soldiers.

This process of going in and out wastes a lot of time.

Therefore, Qiu Feng simply did not enter the city. Instead, he used a regiment to seize the prestige of recapturing Bianliang and then immediately transferred Bianliang to Liu Ziliang.

In this way, he gained both honor and speed in pursuit.

Upon learning that the Fifth Army had successfully recaptured Bianliang, the rest of the Guo army's reinforcements immediately ceased their urgency.

Qu Jieming also ordered the troops to temporarily halt.

It has been half a month since the East China Field Army crossed the Yangtze River. The 72nd and 75th Divisions are either on the move, fighting, or rushing to fight every day.

The troops were already exhausted.

Qu Jieming planned to rest for a few days and then wait for orders from the General Headquarters before continuing his operations.

"General Qiu's recapture of Bianliang in one fell swoop is a cause for celebration. I imagine your troops must have achieved a brilliant victory."

At this moment, Qu Jieming was leisurely talking on the phone with Qiu Feng.

"Damn it, I didn't expect Bianliang to be an empty city." Qiu Feng said helplessly, "I'm worried that the Chairman's Bianliang battle will turn into an empty battle."

"Oh, General Qiu, the G Army is always cunning in its operations, so you must be very careful."

Qu Jieming was naturally suspicious, and he felt that the situation between the enemy and himself was unclear at this time, so it was best to be cautious.

This is one of the reasons why he chose to set up camp.

However, Qiu Feng clearly did not heed Qu Jieming's advice.

"General Qu, I have handed Bianliang over to Liu Ziliang for defense, and I am now leading the main force of my troops to search for and annihilate the fleeing enemy in the Chenliu and Tongxu areas."

"General Qu, please continue to advance westward so that we can coordinate our efforts."

"Of course, I will do my utmost to serve as General Qiu's deputy."

"Great! Thank you for your support, General Qu!"

However, although Qu Jiemei verbally agreed, he did not actually take any action.

Just as Qu Jieming was about to take a bath to relax, his chief of staff came looking for him.

"Commander, this is a joint order from the Ministry of Defense and Army Headquarters."

"what did you say?"

The chief of staff opened the folder and read aloud: "The elite Qiu Feng unit of the Guo Army fought actively and advanced swiftly, recapturing Bianliang and becoming a model on the battlefield. This order is hereby issued to commend them."

"Hmph, praise is praise, why issue a general order? This is clearly praising him and belittling me."

Qu Jieming was already hesitant, and upon hearing this, she immediately went to take a bath.

Qu Jieming also forgot about Qiu Feng's request for cooperation from the west.

(End of this chapter)