Southern guerrilla warfare: I led the Red Seventh Army Corps to amassed a million troops.

(Old author, new pseudonym. Last book was banned. Updates are stable now, so you can read with confidence. Fans of the War of Resistance Against Japan, please add it to your bookshelf.)

July 4, 1934, Changting.

The fifth counter-encirclement campaign had been going on for almost a year. Guangchang had fallen, Jianning had been lost, and the territory of the Central Soviet Area was shrinking with each battle.

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Red flags fluttered and slogans lined the county town, each word resounding, as if the White bandits would be crushed tomorrow.

But the people standing on the street showed no excitement, only numbness and fear.

When Zhou Zeyuan walked out of the division headquarters, the midday sun was so hot that the ground was burning.

"Division Commander, the Legion Commander is here," the bodyguard Xiao Zhong ran over to report.

"Come on, come on. It's not like we can't find the door." Zhou Zeyuan took out a cigarette from his pocket, didn't light it, and just put it in his mouth.

A moment later, Xun Huaizhou walked in.

He was short and thin, and the military uniform looked loose on him, making him look like a boy who had stolen an adult's clothes.

But throughout the entire Red Army, no one dared to truly treat him like a child.

"Zeyuan, are you under a lot of pressure here lately?" Xun Huaizhou asked directly.

"Fortunately, as long as the higher-ups don't give any bad orders, I can hold out until the day the peanut company collapses. You came all the way from Ruijin, you definitely didn't come to check on my safety."

Xun Huaizhou smiled, but a hint of heaviness flashed in his eyes.

He pondered repeatedly along the way, deciding that he would eventually settle in southern Anhui, which was only a stone's throw from Nanjing, practically on the edge of a knife inserted into the heart of the Kuomintang-controlled area.

Along the way, they also had to pass through the Kuomintang-controlled areas of Fujian and Zhejiang, penetrating deep into enemy territory alone, without any support or assistance.

Even if they manage to arrive by sheer luck, they will only find themselves in an even more dangerous encirclement, a perilous journey with a slim chance of survival.

Personally, he really didn't want to push his brothers who had risked their lives into a fire pit; but publicly, this team needed to go such a long way and couldn't do without a tough guy like Zhou Zeyuan who could fight and take on any challenge.

He went straight to the point: "The Central Military Commission has issued an order for the 7th Red Army Corps to form a vanguard force to march north to resist Japan and launch an attack on the border of Fujian, Zhejiang, Anhui and Jiangxi provinces to force the enemy to return to their aid. I came to you because I want you and your Western Fujian Independent Division to join us."

"I've already spoken with the Central Military Commission. As long as you join, all your previous disciplinary actions will be wiped clean."

Zhou Zeyuan didn't care about the punishment. As long as he could hold out until the Zunyi Conference, with his seniority, what was he afraid of?

He was a rising star at thirteen, became a platoon leader at fifteen, and followed the Fourth Red Army into Fujian to fight.

Later, he became separated from the main force and fought as a guerrilla in central Fujian alone. Within two years, he captured two county towns, raised a force of over a thousand men, and became a division commander at the age of seventeen.

He was removed from office three times for refusing to follow the left-leaning line, and was reinstated three times because his successors were deemed incompetent.

Having gone through three ups and downs, the title of "the King of Hell who sends people to their deaths" had long been a source of fear among the political commissars and special envoys in the Soviet area.

The first time, I disobeyed orders and refused to work in big cities, which resulted in my dismissal.

On the other two occasions, a political commissar died and a special commissioner was crippled!

Although Zhou Zeyuan did not subjectively intend to harm them, he was objectively trying to harm them.

If we don't drive them away, more Red Army soldiers will die in vain.

However, accidents can happen easily on the battlefield.

It was all too common in this phase of the war for leaders to lead the breakout and political commissars to charge ahead.

These two were unlucky, but you can't entirely blame him. Why are the others okay?

Especially Special Envoy Zhang, without his risking his life to carry the enemy to the front line, it wouldn't just be a matter of having a limp!

Zhou Zeyuan felt that Xun Huaizhou had specifically asked him to come out of seclusion, probably to deflate the corps political commissar's arrogance.

"Please sit down first. There are some things I need to make clear to you."

Zhou Zeyuan pulled up a long bench for Xun Huaizhou.

Looking into his eyes, I asked, "Why do you think the Central Committee decided to send a force north to fight the Japanese at this time?"

Xun Huaizhou thought for a moment: "In order to promote the Party's anti-Japanese propositions, mobilize and contain the enemy, and reduce the pressure on the Central Soviet Area."

Zhou Zeyuan nodded, then shook his head.

"That's all correct, but not entirely. I've heard some news that the Central Red Army is on the verge of collapse and will most likely have to move westward."

Xun Huaizhou frowned sharply. West? Not north!

Doesn't that mean that no matter how long his advance team waits, reinforcements will never arrive?

Zhou Zeyuan continued, "After the Battle of Guangchang, Li Bo's tactics were no longer effective, but they just wouldn't admit it."

The Soviet area is shrinking with each battle; if we don't leave soon, we'll be surrounded and wiped out. Leaving is inevitable, but the question is who will stay behind to cover the rear and who will go out to draw enemy fire.

Xun Huaizhou's face turned pale. "A sacrificed pawn."

Zhou Zeyuan nodded slightly. Isn't that just abandoning a pawn?

The original plan was to advance into central Fujian, cross the Min River, and then head north to western Zhejiang, eventually reaching southern Anhui to join forces with the local Party organization and establish a new base area.

Although this road is also dangerous, at least there is still hope of survival.

As a result, Li Bo deliberately concealed the news that the people's uprising in southern Anhui had been suppressed. After the advance team crossed the Min River, he suddenly ordered them to move east and attack Fuzhou, the provincial capital, which was heavily guarded.

The last time the Red Army captured a provincial capital of the Kuomintang was four years ago, and that was also due to a surprise attack. Moreover, the current Seventh Red Army Corps is not comparable to the Third Red Army Corps of that time.

Li Yunlong had 7000 men under his command, and it took him a great deal of determination to capture Ping'an County.

The Seventh Red Army Corps was not necessarily as strong as the Independent Regiment, yet it was ordered to attack a provincial capital city with well-developed defenses, warships anchored on the coast, and the ability to call for air support at any time.

Anyone who makes such a decision is either stupid or malicious.

The room fell silent for a moment, while the cicadas chirped incessantly outside the window.

Everything seemed so normal, yet there was a calm that seemed to be brewing a storm.

A moment later, Xun Huaizhou suddenly laughed.

"So be it, let's abandon the pawn."

He stood up; he was almost a head shorter than Zhou Zeyuan, but he stood as straight as a spear.

"What revolution is without sacrifice? Even if it means drawing fire, even if it means being a scapegoat, as long as it covers the main force's retreat, as long as it preserves the flame of revolution, my life, Xun Huaizhou, is worth it."

Zhou Zeyuan looked into Xun Huaizhou's eyes, and his [Mind Insight] told him that this guy was speaking from the heart and truly disregarded life and death.

Damn it! Zhou Zeyuan cursed inwardly, not knowing whether he was cursing Xun Huaizhou for being too stupid or cursing himself for being too soft-hearted.

"Okay, I'll go with you."

Xun Huaizhou was taken aback.

"However, I have one condition."

"you say."

"My troops must be the vanguard. The Northern Expeditionary Force for Resistance Against Japan is fighting mobile warfare, so no one is more suitable to be the vanguard than me. In addition... I want the right to take the initiative to engage the enemy."

Zhou Zeyuan's words reminded Xun Huaizhou of his combat experiences before the formal establishment of the Western Fujian Independent Division.

"You mean annihilating the enemy and expanding your forces during the march? You only had a few dozen men before, and at most three hundred. Now we have several thousand men, so the tactic of quick attack and quick retreat is simply not feasible."

Zhou Zeyuan said bluntly, "That's why I often say that rigid instructions from above severely limit your imaginative thinking. The tactics just stop working when the environment changes?"

"The environment changes, we adapt accordingly; there's always a way. A battle that a few dozen people can fight, a battle that a few thousand can fight too. So what if the scale is a bit larger and the commotion a bit bigger? We can adjust accordingly. Just watch me then."

Xun Huaizhou hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping himself. Having known Zhou Zeyuan for so many years, he knew his temperament all too well.

This person doesn't respect anyone except Committee Member Li, but if he says something is possible, it really is possible.

"Okay." Xun Huaizhou nodded, stood up, and prepared to leave.

When he reached the door, he suddenly stopped and turned around.

"By the way, is there anything you want me to tell Commissioner Li? He asked about you a few days ago."

Zhou Zeyuan thought for a while.

"My teacher once assigned me an assignment, asking me what I should do if my friend goes down the wrong path, especially a fundamental one."

My answer is: the best option isn't to guide or wait, but to go up and slap him twice to wake him up. Please reply to him like this for me.

Xun Huaizhou looked at him as if he were a monster. "If you really do this, can you still be friends after you've smoked?"

Zhou Zeyuan's eyes remained calm. "I care more about my friends' lives, deaths, and futures. A person only has one life, and it must be treated with utmost care. The fate of the nation is even more important. Compared to that, personal honor and disgrace, fame before and after death, can all be put aside."

These words were spoken lightly, yet they carried such weight that Xun Huaizhou almost couldn't catch them.

He didn't dare to discuss this topic further and turned to leave!

"Wait a minute." Zhou Zeyuan turned around, took out a small cloth bag from the cabinet in the inner room, and stuffed it into Xun Huaizhou's hand without saying a word.

Xun Huaizhou instinctively clenched his fist. "What is this?"

Zhou Zeyuan looked at him with unusual seriousness in his eyes, "Bring this back to Ruijin, and be sure to hand it to the teacher personally. Don't let it pass through a second person. On the main force's westward expedition, miasma and malaria are rampant. This stuff can save lives."