Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 500 It's okay to wait a bit.
After vomiting blood, Chang Ruiyuan rested for a few days and then summoned several people from the Ministry of National Defense on the 5th.

"Jingzhi, what's the status of the battle plan now?" Chang Ruiyuan sat on the sofa, his face still slightly pale.

"The battle plan has been issued and all units are preparing, but they have not yet begun to withdraw."

The retreat is not something that can be done on a whim. Each corps has a large number of personnel, equipment, and supplies, and it is impossible to complete the preparations in a short period of time.

"Don't wait any longer." Chang Ruiyuan waved his hand.

"The main force should withdraw first, and less important supplies can be transferred by the logistics department."

"I'll make the call and arrange it in a bit."

"Hmm." Chang Ruiyuan nodded: "What about the G Army? What's their current situation?"

Gu Mosan, who was standing nearby, reported: "According to the reconnaissance of the telecommunications department, the radio stations of the various columns of the G Army are still in southwestern Shandong."

The Kuomintang army was completely helpless in its reconnaissance of the liberated areas.

After the Battle of Quancheng, the Pengcheng Suppression Headquarters organized a reconnaissance unit with more than 100 radios in an attempt to infiltrate the liberated areas.

As a result, all these radios were delivered to the G army, and not a single message was transmitted back.

The only reconnaissance channel for the Kuomintang army now is to intercept and decipher the radio messages of the Kuomintang army.

Hearing that the main radio stations of the G Army were all in southwestern Shandong, Chang Ruiyuan breathed a sigh of relief.

In addition, during the previous Battle of Quancheng, Chang Ruiyuan received information that the G Army suffered extremely heavy casualties when attacking Quancheng and would need several months of rest to recover its combat effectiveness.

Therefore, based on the above intelligence, Chang Ruiyuan concluded that the next attack by the G army was still a long way off, and even if they were to launch an attack, it would take the G army time to move troops from southwestern Shandong.

Based on this assessment, Chang Ruiyuan adjusted the original plan: "Mo San, in the original plan, was the 44th Army supposed to withdraw by sea?"

“That’s right.” Gu Mosan nodded.

"However, a large number of ships have already been transferred to the Northeast, and it is now difficult to allocate enough ships. Therefore, the 44th Army was given a new order to return to Pengcheng along the Longhai Railway."

“It’s a bit dangerous for the 44th Army to march alone,” Chang Ruiyuan said.

"Have Liu Jingfu inform Huang Huanran that after picking up the 44th Army, they will return to Pengcheng together."

According to Chang Ruiyuan's assessment, the well-equipped 7th Army Corps was perfectly safe in the short term and could retreat at a leisurely pace.

On the contrary, the 44th Army in Haizhou was outnumbered and vulnerable to attack by the North Jiangsu Corps of the East China Field Army.

"yes!".
Chang Ruiyuan was unaware that all the troops in the East China Field Army had long since shut down their radios and were communicating with each other entirely by horse and motorcycle.

Meanwhile, radio signals from southwestern Shandong indicated that the C Column and the Guangdong-Guangxi Column were sending out telegrams using the numbers of more than a dozen columns.

"Officer, it's Commander Liu on the phone."

When Huang Huanran heard that the call was from Liu Jingfu, he quickly answered the phone.

"I am Huang Huanran."

"Officer Huang Siling, the Chairman has ordered that the 44th Army is moving towards your unit from the direction of Haizhou. The 7th Army Corps must wait for the 44th Army in Xin'an Town and only after assembling with the 44th Army can it retreat to Pengcheng."

Upon hearing that they would have to wait, Huang Huanran immediately became anxious: "When will the 44th Army arrive?! When can our corps withdraw?!"

Although intelligence indicated that the G army had not yet made a move, Huang Huanran was still very nervous.

The earlier you run, the less danger you face.

As for Huang Huanran's question, Liu Jingfu couldn't give a clear answer either.

He really couldn't say for sure when the 44th Army would arrive.

Seeing Liu Jingfu talking about something else, Huang Huanran angrily slammed the phone onto the table.

Although Huang Huanran was furious, the only thing he could do at that moment was to quickly convene a strategic meeting.

After making arrangements for the entire 7th Army Corps in advance, Huang Huanran waited anxiously for the arrival of the 44th Army.

However, Huang Huanran never expected that the 44th Army, which was not far from him, would make him wait for two whole days.

Even so, Huang Huanran could not blame the 44th Army for this.

Because Li Lihui, the commander of the 44th Army, was not the first person in Haizhou to receive the order to retreat.

On the 5th, Li Lihui did not receive the order to retreat. It wasn't until that evening that a salt merchant came to find Li Lihui.

"Commander Li, Commander Liu Jingfu called and asked me to go back to Pengcheng with you."

"Back to Pengcheng? What about Haizhou?" Li Lihui was completely bewildered.

He knew that the 44th Army was to be assigned to the 7th Army Corps, but he had not received any orders to retreat.

Moreover, surely a merchant shouldn't be allowed to convey the orders of the Siling Department?
"We don't need Haizhou anymore. The army is retreating back to Pengcheng. I'm ready and at the city gate. We can leave together at any time," the salt merchant explained.

After explaining things to Li Lihui, the salt merchant hurriedly left.

After the salt merchants left, Li Lihui, still confused, received a call from Liu Jingfu.

"Commander Li, you must retreat towards Pengcheng immediately. The Seventh Army Corps is waiting for you in Xin'an Town."

At this moment, Li Lihui was so angry that he could hardly breathe.

"Damn it! Liu Jingfu values ​​money more than the affairs of the Party and the country, it's simply outrageous!"

"How can we not fail when military secrets are leaked like this?!"

Under Liu Jingfu's careful notification, when the 44th Army hurriedly organized its retreat, almost all the merchants and landlords in Haizhou followed.

At this point, the 44th Army no longer resembled an army, but rather a massive wave of refugees.

Even though Li Lihui chose to travel day and night, eating while walking, this short distance still took him two days and two nights to traverse.

On the morning of the 7th, Huang Huanran stared in disbelief as the refugee wave arrived in Xin'an Town.

"Lord Siren, what do we do?" The chief of staff standing nearby was about to explode with worry.

This is war, not child's play. This is utter nonsense!
"What to do? How should I know what to do?!" Huang Huanran's feelings at this moment were beyond words. "Order the troops to retreat to Pengcheng at full speed immediately!" Huang Huanran couldn't care less about anything else now; retreating was the priority.

Almost at the same time that Liu Jingfu conveyed the order to wait to Huang Huanran, all units of the East China Field Army had arrived at their designated departure positions.

After a brief rest, the troops immediately began to advance according to their established objectives.

Inside the Second General Staff Temporary Command Post, the operations staff were nervously hanging up maps.

As the vanguard, the Second General Headquarters has already arrived north of Taierzhuang, and the various branches are also moving forward to prepare for deployment.

"Commander-in-Chief, we have received an urgent telegram from the Field Command."

Chen Chengxing took the telegram and read it: "The original text from the Central Committee? It seems the situation is very urgent."

"Huang Huanran is very vigilant. He ran away as soon as we made our move."

"Yes." Chu Yunfei handed over a telegram.

"According to the report, the Lunan Column surrounded the 1st Security Brigade in Yancheng, but when the vanguard of the F Column arrived at Xin'an Town, it was an empty town."

"If we can't capture Huang Huanran, then we'll really only be able to take Xiapi and Haizhou," Luo Ping said, looking at the map.

"The massive mobilization of hundreds of thousands of troops to liberate a few small strongholds, not to mention the enormous amount of supplies consumed, was a significant blow to the morale of the troops."

Huang Huanran chose to flee, and by this time he must have already reached the canal.

With the canal providing natural cover, no matter how hard the East China Field Army pursued Huang Huanran, they were unable to encircle him.

As a result, the battle could only annihilate a portion of the 7th Army Corps, which was far from the pre-battle plan.

"Old Chu, order all units to prepare for the enemy's flank march!" Chen Chengxing gave the direct order.

Since the main force failed to complete the encirclement of Huang Huanran in Xin'an Town, they had to be blocked on the west bank of the canal.

“Bypassing the Third Pacification Zone directly? That’s far too risky.”

If the enemy's flank movement is not handled properly, it can result in heavy losses, a point that Liao from Northeast China is best qualified to make.

“Reinforce the armored battalions to 21 units; if anything unexpected happens, they will be responsible for covering the rear,” Chen Chengxing added.

"Yes!"

Just as Chu Yunfei was about to relay the order, the communications officer ran over:

"Commander-in-Chief, the Field Army has ordered my unit to immediately launch an attack on the Qingshuizha area and annihilate the enemy garrison in a short period of time."

"Qingshui Gate?" Chen Chengxing turned his head and found the location on the map.

"Something's not right, Captain. This isn't right."

"Qingshui Gate is not in a key location, and the defending force is only one battalion. Why would they attack here?"

Seeing Chu Yunfei's confusion, Chen Chengxing stroked his chin and said, "I think I understand now."

"Old Chen, tell me quickly, what happened?" Luo Ping asked anxiously.

"Are you still thinking about how, when we crossed the Yi River, the 59th and 77th Divisions were right next to us, but the Field Army ordered us to move north and attack the 26th Division?"

"Now it's the 59th Army and the 77th Army again, don't you find that strange?"

"Does the commander mean we have people in these two armies?" Chu Yunfei realized something.

"But ordinary positions probably cannot play a key role at this time."

"We can't guess who he is. Since Noji has made the decision, there must be a reason. We'll just do as he says."

"Send orders to the 24th Regiment, dispatching two infantry battalions and one artillery battalion to swiftly capture Qingshui Gate," Chen Chengxing commanded.

"Yes!"

After the Qingshui Gate was attacked, He Jifeng and Zhang Shutang, deputy commanders and army commanders of the Third Pacification Zone, immediately convened a meeting of officers at the regimental level and above.

When Feng Zhitai learned that the two had suddenly started a meeting, he pretended not to hear anything and locked himself in his room.

After scanning the room, He Jifeng said, "In the past, Chang Ruiyuan treated our Northwest Army like an unwanted stepmother, refusing to give us any equipment or supplies."

"Now that a major battle is imminent, Chang Ruiyuan wants us to wear mourning clothes for him and send us to our deaths on the front lines. Are we really that stupid?"

In the Battle of Quancheng, Wu Shaozhou's defection on the battlefield not only harmed Wang Yaowen, but also caused undeserved disaster for the troops of the Third Pacification Zone.

Liu Jingfu and Du Guangting transferred them out of Pengcheng and put them in charge of the defense of the northeast of Pengcheng.

The troops in the Third Pacification Zone all knew that they had been used as cannon fodder again, so there was a lot of resentment throughout the army.

Upon hearing He Jifeng's words, everyone immediately understood what he meant.

Some of the officers they had already contacted immediately echoed their sentiments:

“Vice Siling He and Vice Siling Zhang, since Chang Ruiyuan was unrighteous first, you can’t blame us for being unjust.”

"I'm willing to go with you!"

"I'd like to too!"
As more and more followers joined, the officers who had been wavering began to gradually sway.

Seeing the officer who was still somewhat hesitant, Zhang Shutang spoke:

"We are currently in a state of isolation and helplessness. If we are attacked, no one will come to our aid."

"You have all seen the fighting power of the G army. In less than half an hour, the five hundred men at Qingshuizha were completely wiped out."

"How long do you think your position can hold out?"

These words were like the last straw that broke the camel's back, directly making those wavering officers make up their minds.

They have no choice now. If they resist, they will become scapegoats for others, and scapegoats who will gain nothing from it.

After securing all the officers, He Jifeng and Zhang Shutang breathed a sigh of relief and immediately made arrangements for the uprising.

(End of this chapter)