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

Old Xu was taken aback: "Huh? What's going on? It's not time yet!"

Zhang Qiming's face instantly darkened.

The direction in which the signal flare rose indicated the location of the night raiding force.

According to the plan, the night raiding force should have launched its attack 15 minutes later, but now it has been exposed prematurely.

"The night raid unit has been discovered by the enemy. Open fire immediately! Let's cheer on our comrades at the front!"

Without further hesitation, Old Xu turned and charged towards the artillery position, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Target: the main peak of Houlong Mountain! Four rapid-fire rounds, fire!"

The main peak of Houlong Mountain.

To gain a better view, Brigade Commander Xu Yongxiang set up the brigade headquarters on the mountaintop.

The location here is relatively central, surrounded by troops, and not easily attacked.

But he could think of this, and so could the Red Army.

The artillery was specifically designed to bombard high ground.

Xu Yongxiang inspected various positions in the first half of the night, and his feet were blistered from walking. When he returned to the brigade headquarters and took off his shoes, the soles of his feet were bright red.

He had barely lain down when a violent explosion came from the foot of the mountain, shaking the bed.

"What's going on? Where's the sex?!" He suddenly sat up and grabbed his clothes to put them on.

A staff officer rushed in, flustered. "Brigadier! The Red Army has launched a night attack! The outer front lines... have lost contact!"

"Lost contact? What about the men on the front lines?"

"The observation post reports that there are still sporadic fires there, meaning some brothers are still putting up a fight. But the telephone line is cut, and the messenger sent out hasn't returned..."

Xu Yongxiang took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

He walked to the map, his eyes quickly scanning the location of the outer positions, and pondered for a few seconds.

Night raids, artillery bombardment, loss of contact... he knew this script all too well.

The Red Army's usual tactic was to first send a small detachment to scout ahead, and then have the main force slip through while the enemy was in disarray.

"It seems the Chief of Staff was absolutely right. Order the second-line positions to quickly retreat! All outer blocking positions should retreat and converge on the main position at Houlongshan!"

"yes!"

"Remember!" Xu Yongxiang added, "Every returning unit must have their password verified first. Anyone who can't answer will be killed on sight!"

The staff officer paused for a moment, then nodded emphatically: "Yes, sir!"

After the order was issued to each position, the Nationalist army responded relatively quickly.

The Nationalist troops, scattered across various positions, did not carry much baggage. After a hasty packing, they quickly moved towards the main position along a pre-planned route.

The Kuomintang has learned its lesson.

To avoid being annihilated by the Red Army and having too much ammunition captured, front-line positions generally do not store too much ammunition.

Ammunition was stored in the main positions and in the county town that served as the command post.

Of course, the most crucial issue is poverty.

Li Yutang's troops were new to the area and had no time to stockpile enough supplies in Pingnan.

Therefore, this forward firing point only has four or five boxes of ammunition, which is enough to carry without even needing a horse.

The Nationalist soldiers carried ammunition boxes and rifles, retreating along the mountain path towards Houlong Mountain.

The formation was relatively neat and there was no sign of them breaking apart, but everyone's face showed a hint of panic.

They walked hurriedly, and people occasionally turned around to look.

After they left the small hill, several bird calls suddenly came from the nearby woods.

"Coo coo, coo coo..."

Immediately afterwards, shadowy figures emerged from the depths of the woods and sped northward along the main road.

In the group, Regiment Commander Zheng Sanjiang was walking with several veterans from the transport team.

He lowered his voice and instructed, "Be careful, those gasoline drums must not be lost. They are our army's precious assets."

The transport team leader grinned: "Don't worry, commander, the barrels are as good as yours."

Zheng Sanjiang nodded, glanced at the gasoline cans again, and then strode forward.

The Second Regiment was carrying out the same operation east of the county town.

Taking advantage of the Nationalist army's contraction of its defensive lines, they silently slipped through the gaps in the enemy's lines and advanced towards the county town.

Under the moonlight, the long line resembled a winding snake, silently slithering along the mountain path.

Inside the county command post, Li Yutang frowned as he looked at the map, a hint of doubt in his eyes.

"That's not right. How come the Red Army's night raids ran out of steam so quickly?"

Hu Qisan, the deputy division commander standing nearby, leaned over to look at the map and pondered:

"Perhaps the Red Army came with the intention of taking advantage of our forces. Seeing our army's strong defenses, they naturally lost their will to fight."

Chief of Staff Ruan Yongqi shook his head, his expression grave: "The Red Army is adept at flanking maneuvers. Could it be... that they've already infiltrated our flank and rear?"

Li Yutang was silent for a moment, then slowly nodded: "It's not impossible. But we've already taken precautions. If Xun Huaizhou really dares to snatch something from the tiger's mouth, I'll definitely bite off a piece of his flesh."

Hu Qisan reminded him, "But you also said, Commander, that it is not advisable to move troops at night. Close combat and night combat are the Red Army's forte, and we cannot use our weaknesses to defeat the enemy's strengths."

Li Yutang sneered: "That depends on whether the Red Army will give us face. If their outflanking force attacks the flanks of Houlong Mountain and then retreats immediately after suffering a defeat, I really wouldn't dare to pursue them."

"After all, who knows if this is a trick by the enemy? But if they dare to drag it out until dawn... I'll have to teach them a lesson."

"The Third Division is a direct descendant of the Central Army, not comparable to Chen Qixuan's ragtag bunch. If Xun Huaizhou wants to gnaw on my bone, he'd better ask himself if he has the teeth to bite it."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a muffled explosion was heard in the distance.

boom!

The three of them turned their heads at the same time, looking in the direction from which the sound came.

Immediately afterwards, several more explosions rang out, accompanied by a barrage of gunfire.

The chief of staff's expression changed drastically: "It's the south gate! The Red Army has begun their attack on the city?!"

Li Yutang frowned, quickly walked to the window, and looked towards the south gate.

In the darkness, faint firelight could be seen.

He turned around, his tone still calm: "What's the panic? We're not unprepared. There's a whole battalion of troops at the south gate, fully equipped with light and heavy machine guns. Even if we don't send reinforcements, the Red Army won't be able to take it down anytime soon."

Hu Qisan thought for a moment and said, "Commander, could this be a feint by the Red Army? The purpose is to force the Eighth Brigade to lead its troops back to reinforce, and then set up an ambush along the way."

Just as Li Yutang was about to answer, explosions and gunfire erupted again from the east.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

This time, the commotion was even greater than at the south gate, so much so that even the paper windows rattled.

But now, the three of them were no longer surprised.

Li Yutang stroked his chin, his gaze sweeping back and forth across the map: "The situation is a bit complicated. It's possible that one of these two locations is a feint attack, and the other is the main attack. More likely, both are feint attacks."

"But no matter what, the county seat cannot be lost. Have the Ninth Brigade bring back two battalions from the northern front, and quickly!"

"Furthermore, order Xu Yongxiang to launch a counterattack against the Red Army on the front lines to test their strength and weaknesses."

"But remember, if the enemy retreats, you are not allowed to pursue them. Otherwise, you'll fall into a Red Army ambush. If Xu Yongxiang dares to take it upon himself to chase after them, I'll skin him alive!"