Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 488 Knocked unconscious and dazed, left utterly disoriented

"Commander, the special forces report that they have discovered a large enemy force in the persimmon orchard to the north."

"The enemy troops are all traveling by car and tank and are advancing rapidly towards Wuwangdian at full speed."

Upon hearing Chu Yunfei's report, everyone in the headquarters immediately became serious.

No matter how many men the Fifth Army has deployed, as long as they break through the main force's encirclement, they will cause a major reversal in the battle.

Chen Chengxing immediately ordered, "The 23rd detachment should abandon their supplies and march at full speed to Lütun. Under no circumstances should Qiu Feng be allowed to join the battle!"

Chen Chengxing finally brought out the reserve team he had been holding onto for several days.

"yes!".
At this moment, Ye Si also received a report that Qiu Feng had bypassed the defense line and was speeding towards them.

However, upon learning that Chen Chengxing had already taken countermeasures, the members of the Wild Division breathed a sigh of relief.

However, Nakano's telegram immediately followed, making their hearts leap into their throats again.

After abandoning his supplies, Hu Ziqi advanced at breakneck speed and has now arrived in Taikang. He is expected to reach the battlefield tomorrow.

"It seems Huang Huanran is going to escape unscathed," the commander said with a hint of regret.

The 23 units that blocked Qiu Feng's infiltration forces could only buy him another twelve hours.

If he had another 24 hours, Huang Huanran would definitely be devoured, but he doesn't have that much time now.

Upon hearing that a retreat was to be made, the director of the political department immediately said, "I will organize the staff, members of the cultural troupe, and support personnel to carry the wounded."

The deputy chief of staff standing nearby also said, "Should we cancel the attack orders for each column?"

"No, according to the original plan, we will continue the general offensive at 10 pm tonight and bombard Wu Wangdian."

Upon hearing this, everyone froze, unable to comprehend what this meant.

"Comrades, the transfer of troops is a very serious issue. If the transfer is not done properly, victory may turn into defeat."

"A full-scale attack on Wuwangdian is both an offensive measure and a diversionary measure."

"We need to knock Huang Huanran unconscious, leave him dazed and disoriented."

As night fell, all the cannons of the East China Field Army began to bombard Wuwangdian fiercely.

Wu Wangdian was engulfed in flames.

After the artillery barrage, the East China Field Army launched a fierce attack, and the Wuwangdian front was pushed back again and again.

Inside the underground command post, as the sounds of gunfire grew closer, Huang Huanran gradually succumbed to despair.

However, just when Huang Huanran was in utter despair, he suddenly discovered that the guns and cannons were starting to weaken.

First, the sound of heavy artillery disappeared, then came the sound of mountain guns and mortars, and finally, even the sound of light and heavy machine guns disappeared.

"Commander, what's going on?"

Huang Huanran shook his head: "I don't know either, but don't let your guard down, and tell the brothers to hold their ground."

Huang Huanran had considered that the G army might be retreating, but he simply didn't have the courage to launch a proactive attack.

At this point, he had less than 5,000 soldiers left, and that even included the lightly wounded who were still able to move.

As the various units dispersed and withdrew, the 23rd branch also abandoned its blocking action, creating the illusion that the front line had been breached, and then allowed Qiu Feng to continue to provide rapid support.

Subsequently, the main force of the Second General Corps began to retreat northward along the Longhai Railway.

Before dawn the next day, Qiu Feng and Hu Ziqi, who had been advancing relentlessly, arrived at the battlefield one after the other.

Where did the G army go?

After glancing at the map and confirming that he hadn't gone to the wrong place, Hu Ziqi was completely bewildered.

"Wasn't it said that they were still attacking Huang Huanran's army in the early hours of the morning?"

On the other side, Qiu Feng, upon seeing the empty battlefield, immediately realized that the G army had withdrawn.

Without the slightest hesitation, Qiu Feng chose to lead his mobile force in a fierce pursuit.

"Battalion Commander, the enemy is catching up." In Xiaolizhuang, Zhou Weiguo received a report from the reconnaissance unit.

"The captain was right, Qiu Feng is a madman, he really is coming to pursue us."

According to the field headquarters' orders, the armored combined arms battalion should head north to rendezvous with the Second General Headquarters during the retreat.

However, when Zhou Weiguo sent a telegram inquiring about the rendezvous point, Chen Chengxing specifically ordered them to cover the rear flank of the main field army.

The logistics personnel carrying the wounded cannot move quickly, and if they are pursued by motorized units, casualties are inevitable.

"Pass on my order: the entire battalion prepares. We will launch a surprise attack from the flank, and then retreat immediately after the initial assault!"

"yes!".
At this moment, Qiu Feng sat on the armored vehicle, constantly flipping through the map. He was unwilling to let the G army escape like this.

Just then, Qiu Feng suddenly heard a burst of intense gunfire.

"What's going on?!" Qiu Feng shouted into the walkie-talkie.

"Commander, an armored unit has attacked from our flank! We are under attack!"

In order to catch up and launch an immediate attack, Qiu Feng placed all the tanks and armored vehicles in front as the spearhead.

Following behind were trucks or jeeps.

These unprotected vehicles can still cut through armored forces, even if they are just armored trucks.

Some of the KMT soldiers didn't even have time to jump off the truck before they were mowed down by heavy machine guns in the truck bed.

Zhou Weiguo did not linger in the fight. After a brief encounter, the armored battalion left without further ado.

When Qiu Feng returned with tanks and armored vehicles, all he saw was a trail of yellow smoke.

"Damn it! The G Army is going too far!" Qiu Feng cursed angrily, "If you've got the guts, let's have a head-on fight!"

However, after being ambushed by Zhou Weiguo, Qiu Feng came to his senses. With such a force around, it was now impossible for him to quickly pursue the G Army.

If we slow down and increase reconnaissance, we won't have to worry about a surprise attack from the G army, but then we won't be able to catch up with the retreating G army.

Qiu Feng had no choice but to abandon his plan to continue the pursuit.

Both sides then ceased hostilities.

The East China Field Army fulfilled its military pledge to the Central Committee in just one battle.

This battle also made the Nationalist army, consisting of one or two reorganized divisions, no longer dare to deploy alone.

It is important to understand that before this battle, the Nationalist army was at its peak, with all units fully organized and morale high. In the early stages of the battle, the Nationalist Ministry of Defense promptly discovered that the main force of the East China Field Army had crossed the Yellow River to the south and immediately responded by ordering Qiu Feng to abandon his southward advance and instead turn north.

At the same time, reinforcements were quickly mobilized from Pengcheng, Shandong and other places, forming a decisive battle situation with the G army.

In the subsequent Battle of Bianliang, although Guo's army only had three brigades defending Bianliang, and most of them were local security forces.

However, they defended the city with great tenacity against the G army's siege.

In particular, Zou Yunzhang, the commander of the 66th Division, led his troops to hold out in Longting until the very last moment.

In the Battle of Yongxiang, the 75th Reorganized Division, as an elite force of the Kuomintang army, built a large number of fortifications in a short period of time and fought well against the siege of several columns of the East China Field Army.

The 72nd Division, although it was a unit that had been annihilated and rebuilt, did not lose its fighting spirit after the main force of the 75th Division was wiped out. It continued to actively build fortifications and defend while awaiting reinforcements.

The other three main corps commanders who participated in the battle, Qiu Feng, Hu Ziqi, and Huang Huanran, were all among the most ruthless figures in the Guo army.

Qiu Feng's several unexpected decisions nearly ruined the East China Field Army's plans. In the end, he even took a desperate gamble, personally leading the mobile force straight into the battlefield.

During the Battle of Yongxiang, Hu Ziqi did not hesitate to abandon his baggage and personally led his troops straight to the main battlefield, saving Huang Huanran's army from annihilation.

After receiving the support order, Huang Huanran only took three days to cross 150 kilometers and bring an army corps from Shandong to eastern Henan.

In order to break through the G army's defenses, Huang Huanran even personally led the charge as the corps commander, which was unprecedented and unparalleled in the entire history of the KMT army.

Regardless of the reason, these mobile units of the Guo Army, in an extremely rare move, disregarded their own interests and went all out to rescue their friendly forces.

This time, the teamwork between the Guo troops was arguably the best in history.

However, despite having the advantage of favorable timing, location, and popular support, and with such close cooperation, the elite mobile force of the KMT almost had two corps wiped out by the KMT army.

This terrified all the KMT troops, who dared not venture out to search for the KMT unless they had assembled four or five fully-fledged divisions into a corps.

This led to the over-concentration of the Guo army's forces, creating a vast space for the G army's mobile operations.

In addition, the outcome of this battle directly changed the Kuomintang army's deployment in the Central Plains.

The heavily damaged Guo army mobile corps could only gather near Pengcheng and Shangdu, leaving the rest of the battlefield extremely empty.

Of course, in the Guo army's external propaganda, eastern Henan was a major victory for the Guo army.

Jinling.

Chang Ruiyuan convened a special meeting for senior military officers to review their military performance.

"General Huang, in this Battle of Yongxiang, your troops have made great efforts to advance and put up a tenacious resistance, which can be called a model for the Guo army."

"You flatter me, Chairman." Huang Huanran stood at attention and said, "The reason why our troops are able to fight bravely is entirely due to your daily instructions."

"Hehehe, no matter what, you deserve a lot of credit this time."

As he spoke, Chang Ruiyuan gestured to the operations staff officer next to him, who immediately opened a box and brought it over.

"This Order of the Blue Sky and White Sun is what you deserve." Chang Ruiyuan personally pinned the Order of the Blue Sky and White Sun on Huang Huanran.

"Thank you, Chairman!" Huang Huanran stood at attention and saluted.

A round of applause erupted around him.

After Chang Ruiyuan sat down, he looked at Qiu Feng on the other side.

"General Qiu, tell us about your illustrious military achievements in northern Henan!"

Qiu Feng stood up, bowed his head, and said, "In the Central Plains Campaign, our army has toiled without achieving anything."

"Hmph! No merit? You're guilty!" Chang Ruiyuan pointed at Qiu Feng and shouted angrily.

"You have brought down Bianliang, a vital city in the Central Plains!"

"You have ruined the Jiemei Corps!"

"You have ruined my grand plan to secure the Central Plains!"

Hearing Chang Ruiyuan's furious rant, Qiu Feng felt wronged. He had already given his all in the battle of the Central Plains, so this was really not his fault.

However, faced with Chang Ruiyuan's reprimand, Qiu Feng could only lower his head and say, "The student deserves to die."

Chang Ruiyuan nearly fainted from anger upon hearing this.

He pulled a pistol from the attendant next to him and slammed it on the table.

Upon witnessing this scene, everyone present changed their expressions drastically.

Those who are family know their own situation best. If you put them in Qiu Feng's position, they might not necessarily do a better job.

Seeing Chang Ruiyuan pull this stunt, Qiu Feng felt wronged, but instead of begging for mercy, he stepped forward and picked up the pistol.

"Take care, Principal!"

"I don't have a student like you. You can leave now," Chang Ruiyuan said, tears of grievance streaming down his face.

Seeing this, Qiu Feng understood that Chang Ruiyuan had made up his mind.

After bowing deeply to Chang Ruiyuan, Qiu Feng turned and strode out.

"General Qiu!" Yu Liangzhen, who was standing next to him, grabbed him and took the pistol.

Then Yu Liangzhen walked to Chang Ruiyuan's side and said, "Chairman, the suppression of the rebellion has not been successful, and the execution of generals has been ineffective."

"Who can secure the Central Plains for me? Who can quell the rebellion and save the country?"

"Chairman, at this crucial time when we need capable people, we must not kill generals before the battle even begins," Du Guangting advised.

The other generals nearby echoed his sentiments.

After all, they really couldn't guarantee that they would do better than Qiu Feng in the future.

If Qiu Feng has to die like this, then what about the rest of them?

"Sigh," Chang Ruiyuan sighed, realizing what was going on as everyone objected.

"Since all the generals feel that Qiu Feng's life should be spared, then let him live for now."

Of course, Chang Ruiyuan didn't let it go so easily and ultimately gave Qiu Feng a punishment of being dismissed from his post but allowed to remain in his position.

However, Qiu Feng immediately claimed to be ill and took leave to return to his hometown of Yongjia.

He was truly heartbroken.

Despite their best efforts to provide support, they still received no appreciation.

(End of this chapter)