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

There used to be one train on the station platform, but now there are two.

Infantry, supply troops, and cooks were all crammed into the dozen or so carriages of the second train.

People were pressed together, and the smells of sweat, engine oil, and even urine mingled together. The smell was indescribably awful.

Some people were dozing off against the carriage wall, some were squatting on the ground, and some were so crowded that they couldn't even squat down and had to stand.

"Damn it, why aren't you driving yet?" someone in the crowd shouted first.

"Who the hell are you yelling at?" another voice immediately retorted.

"I didn't call you! Get out of my way!"

"Hey, you're pretty cocky, aren't you?"

A chorus of rude insults erupted in the carriage. Someone swung a fist at the other person across the crowd, but the people were so tightly packed that they couldn't swing their arms freely.

There were seven or eight people between the two, so they couldn't reach each other even if they wanted to fight; they could only use spittle to get the upper hand.

"Damn it! I didn't do anything to you, why are you spitting on me!"

"Who threw up on you? Which eye of yours saw me throw up on you?"

"You're still glaring at me, you fucking jerk?"

"So what if I glared at you?"

The argument grew louder and louder, spreading from one end of the carriage to the other.

If this were in Northeast China, a simple "What are you looking at?" would immediately ignite a bloody battle.

But now they are in South China, where the local customs are quite fierce, and a quarrel can easily turn into a bloody battle.

But if you want to take action, you need space.

Outside the station, Xia Chuzhong paced back and forth on the platform with his hands behind his back.

He would walk a few steps, then stop and look at the intersection outside the station, then walk a few more steps and look again.

The train's engine is already lit, and steam is being compressed in the boiler; it's just waiting for the order to depart.

Everything is ready, except for Li Zhiwen.

He glanced at his pocket watch, then at the intersection.

As time ticked by, his unease grew stronger with each passing second.

He should have decided to drive a long time ago, but every time he tries to say that phrase, the image of that little piggy bank pops into his mind.

Those silver dollars, those gold bars, those boxes of stuff were worth more than a hundred years' worth of his salary.

Then there's Li Zhiwen. Although he's greedy and lustful, he's resourceful, knows how to get things done, and is good at making money. He's a rare and useful person.

He has been waiting for so long.

What if Xiao Li arrives in a little while, but I've already driven off? Wouldn't that mean losing a lot of money and also losing a subordinate who knows how to make money?

He gritted his teeth and waited another minute.

Then he heard gunshots.

The sound came from the direction of the sentry post outside the station. At first, there were only two or three sporadic sounds, but then they became more frequent and crackled together.

Xia Chu's heart tightened suddenly.

Oh no, it must be the Red Army attacking.

He had no time to regret it. He rushed onto the platform and shouted towards the front of the first train, "First train! Prepare to depart! Soldiers of the second train, disembark! Block the Red Army!"

The order was given, and the doors of the first few carriages of the second train were suddenly pulled open, and soldiers poured out like a flood bursting its banks.

Getting off the bus was much harder than getting on. The doors were already narrow, and after hundreds of people squeezed in, many people's backpacks and gun straps got tangled together, jamming each other, making it impossible to get in or out.

Some people were still inside and hadn't even reached the doorway, while those outside had already blocked the passage.

The carriage was in complete chaos, with people shouting and cursing, some climbing on each other's shoulders, and others jumping out of the windows.

"Get out of the way! Let me get off first!"

"You fucking stepped on me!"

"Don't push! Don't push! If you push again, I'll shoot!"

Chaos spread from the second train.

The soldiers, who had been crammed into the carriage for most of the hour, breathed a sigh of relief when they heard they were going to get off and fight.

At least once you're outside, you can run and find cover, instead of being stuck in a tin can as a sitting duck.

But the more they tried to squeeze out, the more blocked the doors became.

The screams and curses mingled together, making it even noisier than a vegetable market at eight in the morning.

Xia Chuzhong stood on the platform watching this scene, his face ashen.

The gunfire outside the station was getting closer.

The Red Army's offensive was even faster than Xia Chuzhong had anticipated.

The small number of defenders left to guard the perimeter only lasted five minutes before they collapsed and retreated.

The makeshift fortifications made of trenches, earthen walls, and sandbags collapsed one after another like paper in the face of wave after wave of attacks by the Red Army.

There should have been sufficient troops here, and with the help of strong fortifications, it wouldn't have been a problem to delay the Red Army for an hour or two.

But now the garrison here has basically all boarded the vehicles. Without troops, even the strongest defensive fortifications are useless.

The Red Army soldiers charged forward as they fought, moving with lightning speed, tearing apart the outer defensive lines.

At this moment, a bunker on the south side of the train station blocked the way.

The bunker wasn't large, but the two heavy machine guns mounted on it blocked the only way to the station platform.

The bullets shot out of the firing port, sweeping back and forth like two brooms, kicking up clumps of dirt and debris on the open ground.

The first few soldiers who rushed forward were immediately pinned to the ground and unable to move as soon as they showed their faces.

A young demolition expert, clutching a satchel charge, shouted "Cover me!" and rushed out from behind cover.

He ran a few steps, rolled to the side, lay prone on the ground for two seconds, then suddenly leaped up and darted forward a few steps.

It moved in a serpentine pattern, sometimes crawling and sometimes leaping, its movements as nimble as an eel.

But after only a few dozen steps, the machine gunner in the bunker had already locked onto his route, and a burst of bullets caught up and hit him in the side.

He fell forward, and the explosive charge in his arms rolled far away.

Just as another demolition expert was about to rush out, a large hand grabbed his shoulder from behind and pulled him back.

"Don't be reckless! Wait for the mortars to come up!" That was the platoon leader's voice.

Not long after, the mortar squad that followed had chosen their positions in the rear.

The gunner crouched on the ground and skillfully adjusted the angle. The shells whistled through the night sky and landed on the flat ground in front of and to the sides of the bunker.

The continuous explosions kicked up clouds of dust, obscuring the view from the bunker.

Taking advantage of the opening, the soldiers rushed out, and four or five demolition experts sneaked into the bunker from several directions.

When the gunmen in the bunker regained their sight from the dust, the dark figures had already closed to within thirty meters.

The machine gun spat fire again, and another soldier was hit. He staggered, fell to one knee, still clutching the explosive charge in his hand.

Another soldier rushed to the base of the bunker wall, casually stuffed the explosive charge into the gap next to the firing port, pulled the fuse, and rolled away.

With a muffled boom, the bunker walls shook violently, sending bricks and stones flying everywhere.

Whether the people inside were dead or alive was unknown, but the gunfire had stopped.

Xia Chuzhong was still somewhat hesitant, but when he heard the explosion, he turned around and ran towards the platform.

He ran with unwavering determination, as if a raging flood or ferocious beast was chasing him.

"Start moving!" The train jolted violently the moment the doors closed and began to move slowly forward.