Songhu: Never Give Up

East of Kaifeng, Da Niujiaoling
The new round of offensive by the Japanese was repelled again, leaving hundreds of corpses in front of the position, and a large number of wounded soldiers struggling in pain;
No one cared about their life or death. The Japanese did not dare to snatch the wounded. The defenders hoped that they would suffer all the pain in the world before dying. The more they struggled, the more relieved they felt.

The Japanese used the same trick again, coming with a white flag and asking to take in the wounded, but Deng Zhuxiu sternly refused and replied with just one sentence - only dead Japanese could be taken away!
The Japs were actually just pretending to shut the soldiers' mouths. It would also waste a lot of medicine if they were sent back, but there were plenty of free cannon fodder in the country.

Captain Liao Tao said to Deng Zhuxiu:
"Captain, it seems that the Japanese can no longer fight. Each wave of their offensive is weaker than the last. We still have seven days left. It won't be a problem to hold on to Big Niujiao Ridge."

Deng Zhuxiu nodded and said:
"The Japanese are not made of iron. One bullet will kill them. If they die too many times, they will behave themselves.
Now the most difficult period has passed. The third battalion on the flank hit the outflanking Japanese enemy with a club, killing more than 1 of them.

I've calculated that they still have more than 4 people at most, and our 1st Battalion, 2nd Battalion, and Artillery Battalion together have more than 3 people. The strength of both sides is equal. Unless they can get a large number of reinforcements, both sides will just waste time at Daniujiaoling."

Liao Tao couldn't help laughing after hearing this. He loved to see the Japanese get humiliated. After laughing, he changed the subject and asked:
"Captain, I heard that fighting is about to break out in Wuhan. The whole country is calling for the defense of Wuhan. Can we catch up?"

Deng Zhuxiu was also concerned about this issue, but he did not want the brothers to be distracted by it, so he said:
"These will be considered at the summit. We will go naturally when we receive the order from the Military Commission. Let's win this battle first."

Liao Tao nodded and didn't go into the topic any further. It is the duty of a soldier to obey orders. The military order they have received now is to defend Kaifeng for 15 days. They just need to execute the order.

"Boom boom boom..."

"Boom boom boom..."

The sound of artillery fire rang out again, and a new round of attack began. The Japs were truly indestructible cockroaches, and the 2nd Battalion had no choice but to continue fighting.

Kaifeng City, Guerrilla Column Headquarters
Chief of Staff Chen Zhongyuan walked in excitedly, holding a telegram in his hand. When Yue Qianli saw his cheerful steps, he knew that this was probably another piece of good news.

"Old Yue, the Military Commission has an urgent message!"

When Yue Qianli heard that it was an urgent telegram from the Military Commission, his heart skipped a beat for no reason, and the telegram in his hand seemed to weigh a lot heavier.

Receiving a telegram from the Military Commission at this time would not be a good thing, but escaping was not his style. After opening the telegram, he felt dizzy. Chen Zhongyuan quickly stepped forward to support him and asked:
"Old Yue, are you okay?"

Others also looked worriedly at him. Yue Qianli waved his hand and said:
"I'm fine, I just feel a little dizzy after standing for so long. Call Lao Tian and we'll have a meeting."

Since several detachments had been sent out, the core personnel of the column headquarters were only Tian Yuanxi, Chen Zhongyuan and several direct battalion commanders. The political director Pan Yingming was a marginal figure, but he was also called in this time because the telegram was related to General Chen.

When Yue Qianli saw that everyone was present, he went straight to the point and said:

"Commander Chen has just been promoted to the head of the Political Department, and is also the commander-in-chief of the newly formed Ninth War Zone. Let's all applaud."

After Yue Qianli finished speaking, he led the applause, giving Chen Cixiu enough face. After all, the Shanghai-Nanjing Guerrilla Column was the core force of the Civil Engineering Department. It would be unreasonable not to express gratitude for the boss's promotion. Pan Yingming could not hide his joy on his face.

He has been a marginal person since he was appointed as the liaison officer of the guerrilla column. In many military meetings, Lao Yue did not bring him to play, but just gave him a high place, which made anyone feel uncomfortable.
He was thinking in his mind that Commander Chen was now the director of the political department and commander of the war zone, in charge of both military and political affairs, so Yue Qianli should take a more positive attitude.

"Brothers, the enemy's troops are heading straight for Wuhan. According to intelligence, the Japanese headquarters plans to use 14 divisions and about 30 troops to attack Wuhan. There will be more troops in the future, and the maximum may reach 50.

The National Government is now the center of China's politics, military, economy, and culture. As early as several months ago, it had been planning the Battle of Wuhan and planned to mobilize a million troops to defend Wuhan.

Our Shanghai-Nanjing Guerrilla Column was also incorporated into the combat sequence of the Ninth War Zone, and was managed by the Ninth War Zone Headquarters. It was scheduled to return to the south on a certain day.

Now I announce the order of the Military Commission!"

Everyone stood up and listened to the order. He wrote hundreds of words, most of which were nonsense. The only meaning was to abandon the defense line in eastern Henan that day and move south to join the war.

The next meeting was the military deployment meeting. Pan Yingming was again signaled to avoid it, which made him very unhappy, but he still pretended not to care and left. Yue Qianli, the military leader, was not someone he could challenge at the moment.

As soon as Pan Yingming left, the rest were his own people. The impatient Zhao Tianci was the first to ask:
"Our guerrilla column is heading south, who will guard the Pinghan Line in eastern Henan?

Once eastern Henan is lost, the mechanized troops in North China can move south from the Huanghuai area and directly attack the Jianghan Plain, which will pose a fatal threat to Wuhan."

They were all old brothers, so Yue Qianli no longer concealed the truth and coldly said four words:

"Water instead of soldiers!"

Zhao Tianci and the others were startled at first, then they reacted, their eyes instantly turned red, and they suppressed their anger and asked:
“What about the tens of millions of people living in the middle and lower reaches of the Huanghuai region?
I still have 4 guerrillas in my guerrilla column, which can completely stop the Japs from advancing southwards—"

Li Daomin also reacted and said coldly:
"They are worried. This is a decisive battle involving millions of people. We can only stop the enemy in eastern Henan. The Huanghuai region is not limited to eastern Henan. Without the Pinghan Line, the Japanese can still go south by detour."

Zhao Tianci continued unwillingly:
"The government also has hundreds of thousands of troops in Jiangbei. If the enemy comes, we will stop them. If the water comes, we will block it. We will fight to the death!"

After Zhao Tianci finished speaking, he turned to Yue Qianli and said to him expectantly:

"We will lead our troops to stop them! Or, if we don't follow orders to go south, we can stay in eastern Henan to fight the devils and let the Military Commission see our strength and determination."

Zhao Tianci, who had studied abroad, could not accept such behavior of treating millions of people as grass, even if there were ten thousand reasons.

Yue Qianli couldn't accept this result even more than Zhao Tianci, but he couldn't stop it. He had to use cold words to stop others from having such thoughts, so he took over Zhao Tianci's words and said:
"There are 8 central troops in Zhengzhou. Going north to Zhengzhou without permission is tantamount to rebellion. Are you willing to fight to the death with your comrades in the First War Zone?"

Zhao Tianci was speechless for a moment. The country was in crisis now, and it would not be a good idea to start a fight among one's own people. That would only bring pain to their loved ones and joy to their enemies!

He could only put his hope on staying. Li Daomin shattered his last bit of hope with the same cold words:
"Do you know why we gave them a deadline? After this time, the river will surge in. If we don't leave, we will all be swept away by the flood."

Zhao Tianci was silent. There is no greater sorrow than a dead heart. The faith he had held for more than ten years collapsed in an instant.

Heaven and earth are unkind and treat all things as straw dogs. Then all things will also treat heaven and earth as straw dogs. Water can carry a boat, but it can also overturn it...

Li Daomin has seen through it all. After hearing Lao Yue say "use water instead of soldiers", his faith has collapsed. He is too lazy to even make a final argument because they are also "straw dogs" in the eyes of the top leaders.

Chen Zhongyuan and others also fell silent. Students of the fourth and fifth classes like Chen Zhongyuan and Tian Yuanxi had all experienced the vigorous revolutionary period. When they applied for the Whampoa Military Academy, which one of them did not join the army with the belief of serving the country and the people?
"Old Chen, the column has been ordered to move south first, join forces with the First and Second Detachments, and then retreat to Xuchang;

Then he ordered the Third Detachment and the Independent Detachment to use the cover of night to break away from contact with the Japanese, move south to join the main force, and participate in the Battle of Wuhan.

The replacement detachment held Kaifeng for another week, then headed north to northern Henan and western Shandong to continue guerrilla warfare;

Inform Wang Jianfei to come to the column headquarters immediately, and the others should hurry up and prepare for the retreat."

Since things can no longer be changed, Yue Qianli can only settle for the second best and save the tens of thousands of brothers in the guerrilla column first. Once the flood comes, no one can stop it. Those who don't want to be fed to the fish can only retreat.

That afternoon, Wang Jianfei rushed back to the column headquarters from the front line. As the remaining troop, Yue Qianli naturally had to give instructions in person. Zhao Tianci and Li Daomin were also among them. They were sworn brothers and there was nothing to be shy about.

Yue Qianli first told Wang Jianfei his thoughts, and then said:
"Old Four, even though the National Government has concentrated a million troops to defend Wuhan, the probability of holding on is not high. This is destined to be a war of attrition."

Wang Jianfei nodded in agreement. The government had a consensus that Wuhan was a thoroughfare connecting nine provinces. The enemy was strong and we were weak. Forcibly defending it was not in line with the government's strategy of a long-term war of resistance.
To put it simply, we have to fight hard and hurt the enemy while preserving our bones and blood, otherwise we won't be able to hold on.

After reaching a consensus, Yue Qianli continued:

"Once the National Government retreats to the Southwest, most of China's best land will fall into the hands of the devils. The barren Southwest and Northwest will find it difficult to feed 200 million troops, and they may have to rely on begging for food from abroad.
The Japanese can use war to support war and use the best of China to feed themselves. As a result, the National Government will only become weaker and weaker.

We can’t let the devils comfortably fight and support themselves, nor can we starve ourselves, so after the Battle of Wuhan is over, the main force of the guerrilla column will go north to compete with the devils for the best land in China, and get into the devils’ belly to torment them.”

Wang Jianfei immediately understood Yue Qianli's strategic intentions, and happily took over the conversation and said:
"You mean to let the supplementary detachment first go to northern Henan and western Shandong to prepare for the column to move northward?"

Li Daomin and Zhao Tianci also looked at Lao Yue eagerly. They seemed to have guessed the old man's intention to keep them as well.

Yue Qianli looked around cautiously and said:

"Today's conversation is only known to the four of us brothers."

Zhao Tianci and others nodded heavily, and then waited with expectant eyes for him to continue.

Yue Qianli organized his words in his mind and said:
"The Japanese plan to deploy 14 divisions to participate in the Battle of Wuhan, and the Nationalist government will also deploy a million troops to fight to the death, so this battle will not be short;

Think about how many divisions the devils had in total. They had to leave some troops to guard the outer areas and big cities like Nanjing, Shanghai, Ping, Tianjin, and Taiyuan. The vast occupied areas were almost vacuum zones.

Since ancient times, whoever controls the north controls the world. Hedong is the backbone of the world; Hebei is the granary of the world; Shandong is the soldiers of the world. They are the essence of China and the foundation for the future development and growth of the guerrilla column. "

"Boss, which one did you take a fancy to? Or do you want them all?"

Zhao Tianci asked excitedly. He had found the confidence to keep fighting and to go deep behind enemy lines. From now on, they could fight the war independently as the emperor was far away.

Yue Qianli could also feel the eager anticipation in everyone's eyes. This was the kind of positive and enterprising spirit he wanted, so he said directly:

"Hedong and Qilu, first gain a foothold in western Shandong, and then expand to the whole of Shandong;

Shandong has fertile land, a large population and a developed economy. Once it gains a foothold, it will have no problem mobilize an army of 50.

I decided to set up the Luxi Guerrilla Detachment, with Wang Jianfei as the commander, Zhao Tianci as the deputy commander, and Li Daomin as the chief of staff;
The training camp, the supply camp, and the medical team were divided into two. The supply team (organized as a guerrilla detachment) could produce rocket launchers, torpedo cannons, mines, and other equipment suitable for guerrilla warfare.

The production rights of rocket launchers must remain in the column, and the reconnaissance battalion of the training camp will be given to the guerrilla detachment. All officers above the rank of platoon leader must go to the training team to learn guerrilla warfare tactics behind enemy lines. I have compiled the textbooks, and you can take a look first. "

After Yue Qianli finished speaking, he handed them a "Guerrilla Warfare Manual behind enemy lines", which not only contained various guerrilla tactics, but also a complete set of strategies for mobilizing the masses, arming the masses, and establishing bases. Zhao Tianci and others looked grim after reading it. After looking at each other, Wang Qifei asked:
"Boss, this is exactly what the other side is doing. Could it be you?"

Yue Qianli no longer intended to hide it from them. He nodded and said:
"I won't hide it from you. I joined secretly when I was in school. There were many brothers who parted ways because of their beliefs.

We are brothers, you can choose to withdraw, but I hope you won’t fight against each other. Brothers fight within the walls, but we should defend ourselves from external insults.”

Zhao Tianci stated on the spot:
"Boss, what are you talking about? I've already told you that I'll follow you wherever you go!

Putting aside other things, I just cannot accept the idea of ​​using water instead of soldiers. The people are our bread and butter. Aren’t we fighting wars for the sake of millions of people?

This is completely contrary to what we believed when we entered school. Many people deviate from their original intentions after coming to power!
There are tens of millions of people living in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, including my hometown. They are all wiped out by this flood. I cannot accept it.

I don't care about them, I'm going to do it with you anyway;
I trust you! "

After Zhao Tianci finished speaking, he looked at Li Daomin provocatively. Li Daomin rolled his eyes and said:

"Why are you looking at me? I applied for Huangpu to save the country and the people. The country, the nation and the people are my beliefs.

The reason why I didn't speak out was because I trusted the boss, he would definitely lead us to drive out the devils and achieve national independence and people's liberation."

Everyone looked at Wang Jianfei, who smiled bitterly and said:
"If I say it's the same as Lao Yue, would you believe me?"

Now it was Yue Qianli's turn to be dumbfounded, thinking to himself that this kid was hiding something very well! (End of this chapter)