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

He's the kind of person who likes to treat people differently based on their status.

When he encountered someone timid, filled with fear and uncertainty, he would have his guards shout a message:

"What good will come of you guarding this dilapidated bunker for Jiang Dingwen? If we capture Fuzhou, you'll be a war criminal and face execution."

"Put down your gun now. The Red Army treats prisoners of war well. You can go home alive to see your wife and children. The choice is yours."

When dealing with someone whose emotions are driven by greed and calculation, Zhou Zeyuan's approach becomes even more direct.

Have someone wrap a large yellow croaker in cloth and secretly hand it over while they are shouting.

The man took it, pinched it between his fingers, weighed it in his hand, and immediately felt an unbearable weight.

Just a moment ago, he was still shouting with his neck stiff, "We can't risk my father's life just to survive."

The next moment, he tucked the gold bar into his sleeve, lowered his voice, and changed his words:

"But then again... my father is actually a shrewd businessman, rotten to the core. I've wanted to sever our father-son relationship for a long time."

On this point, Zhou Zeyuan agrees with Peanut's view: opponents who can be dealt with with money are trash!

When faced with emotions tinged with a bit of passion and resentment, Zhou Zeyuan rarely spoke up himself.

He gave his seat to the political cadres behind him, letting them go up and talk about revolutionary policies, national righteousness, and the mission of marching north to resist Japan.

Such people often don't need much preaching; if you give them a way out, they can take it on their own.

Not only did they surrender, but some even shouldered their guns on the spot, shouting, "Sir, I'll go with you! I want to go north to fight the Japanese too!"

Human nature always has weaknesses. Especially when the enemy is strong and we are weak, or when we are in a desperate situation, these weaknesses are magnified infinitely by the environment.

If you give someone who's afraid of death a way out, they'll seize it; if you give someone who's greedy for money a little something, they'll waver.

And those who were unwilling to serve the reactionaries in the first place, you only need to give them a gentle push and they will turn over on their own.

And so, Zhou Zeyuan "persuaded" them all the way. Some trips took a few minutes, some took more than ten minutes, but he didn't waste too much time at any of the outposts.

Occasionally, you'll encounter those who are stubborn, unyielding, and completely uncooperative.

Without further ado, Zhou Zeyuan waved his hand, and the machine guns and mortars immediately opened fire.

The assault team charged forward relentlessly, fighting desperately to take it down.

The troops advanced almost at a jog. As dawn broke, the outline of Fuzhou was already faintly visible in the morning mist.

Once you reach this point, you'll be in the defense zone of the Kuomintang's regular army.

The hilltop was covered with fortifications, with each unit supporting and maneuvering for the others.

The artillery positions behind them had already been marked with firing parameters, and the cannons were pointed in the direction the Red Army might attack.

He also lurked menacingly at the backs of the friendly troops ahead, ready to unleash a barrage of shells on anyone who dared to retreat.

The tactic of persuading someone to surrender doesn't work very well here.

Zhou Zeyuan sat down on a rock by the roadside, took out his pocket watch and glanced at it, then looked up at the hazy shadow of Fuzhou in the distance.

He took stock of his troops—besides the seven hundred men Hu Tiantao had sent out, he still had more than two thousand one hundred men left.

They fought their way through with almost no major casualties, but they always had to leave a few men to guard the strongholds and passes they captured along the way so that the main force could follow smoothly.

Even though it was just a few bits and pieces, it didn't deplete much of our strength.

He closed his pocket watch, stood up, dusted himself off, and said two words to the messenger beside him:

"rest."

War doesn't involve many inspiring, all-out attacks. The capture of Luding Bridge, for example, was ultimately a potential forcefully revealed in dire circumstances.

Zhou Zeyuan asked himself if he could do the same if he were in his place.

Although the current situation is tense, it is far from being a desperate situation, and the soldiers cannot be forced to unleash that potential.

Instead of forcing the soldiers to push forward despite their exhaustion, it would be better to let them rest and wait until tomorrow night.

However, while he was quietly resting, Fuzhou was in an uproar.

The news that the Red Army had appeared outside Fuzhou City like a divine army had swept through the entire city like a shockwave.

Rumors spread like wildfire: "The Red Army flew down from the sky!"

"It is said that an army of 100,000 has completely surrounded Fuzhou!"

"The gunfire in Minhou last night lasted all night long; the entire security force was wiped out!"

The city's officials, wealthy merchants, and relatives of overseas Chinese were in a panic. Many began packing their belongings and rushing to the dock, attempting to escape by boat.

The dock was crowded with people and luggage, filled with cries, arguments, and the honking of car horns.

The Marines at the port had to set up machine guns to maintain order and prevent a stampede.

Inside the city defense command headquarters, the atmosphere had plummeted to freezing point.

Wang Jingjiu stood in front of the map, his face ashen.

Fortunately, he had inspected the defensive positions outside the city last night and personally witnessed the troops entering their positions and beginning to reinforce their fortifications, which gave him some peace of mind.

Although he currently commands a large number of troops, the only elite force he truly trusts is the regiment under his command.

The rest, such as the military police, police, and marines, were fine for dealing with guerrillas, but they were not good enough to go head-to-head with the Red Army's elite troops.

The only option was to leave them inside the city and rely on the sturdy city walls to fight a defensive battle.

He picked up the phone, about to contact the various positions outside the city to confirm their defenses, when a voice came from the doorway announcing, "The Commander-in-Chief has arrived!"

Jiang Dingwen walked to the map, looked at it for a while with his hands behind his back, and said calmly, "The sky won't fall. So what if the Red Army reaches the city? Do they have heavy artillery? Do they have airplanes? Do they have a navy?"

He turned around and glanced at all the staff officers and officers present.

"I personally supervised the construction of the Fuzhou city defense fortifications. They were well-equipped and exceptionally sturdy. There were three lines of defense outside the city: Hongshan Bridge, Wufeng Mountain, and Dafuling, with layers of defenses."

"There are also military police, security forces, and police corps inside the city, with a total strength of no less than five thousand. Add to that naval artillery and air support, and even if the Red Army sends one hundred thousand men, they won't be able to set foot in Fuzhou!"

These words were forceful and resounding, which calmed the somewhat uneasy atmosphere in the command center.

But Jiang Dingwen's heart was not as calm as he appeared.

The Red Army arrived so quickly that he was caught off guard.

According to his plan, the Red Army would need to rest for at least one night before they could continue their eastward march this morning.

With so many strongholds along the way, even if the journey is unimpeded, it will still take until at least tomorrow morning to reach the city.

By then, the vanguard of the 261st Brigade would have arrived and could immediately engage in battle.

But in reality, the Red Army's mobilization efficiency was as if divine intervention had descended from the heavens!

This speed completely exceeded his military common sense.

What made him even more uneasy was that he didn't know how many people were in this Red Army, what their equipment was like, what their morale was like, or who their commander was.

The unknown is often the greatest fear!

On his way to the headquarters, he felt a chill on his neck, perhaps from the cold wind.

Despite his composed demeanor, he was secretly groaning inwardly: he had thought it would be a crushing victory, and that he could use the head of the Red Army commander to further establish his own prestige!

Unexpectedly, after just venting his anger, the situation turned into a fight with the Red Army commander.