The Courtyard House: The Little Red Devil Returning from the Peninsula

When the red-stamped telegram was delivered to the operations room, there were still bridge materials piled up outside the door that had not yet been put into storage.

Two hundred sleepers were divided into four stacks, the top layer covered in dried mud. The materials clerk squatted under the awning, checking the numbers, reading one aloud, while someone next to him marked it in a register. The telegram was passed between them, sealed with three seals, a corner of the red clay cracked.

Before opening the package, Zhao Gang checked the delivery person's handover book.

Who translated it?

"Two people from the Wuhan office collaborated on the translation, which was then reviewed by the communications department. Both the original code and the translated text are available."

Zhao Gang then used a paper cutter to pry open the seal.

The document was short. Okamura Yasuji listed Jinzhong as the primary direction for the North China Area Army, and railway, air, and mobile forces could be prioritized for deployment; the Kwantung Army and the Japanese forces in Central China only needed to submit contingency plans, and the telegram did not specify whether deployment was possible or how much to deploy.

The last line was marked with two red lines.

Before the enemy forces assemble on a large scale, a countermeasure plan for Chiyabao must be developed.

After reading the telegram, Zhao Gang placed it on the corner of the table.

"There are already rumors outside that it's 150,000."

Who sent it?

"The transport team listened to the radio and heard about the total troop strength in North China. They came back and said 150,000 were going to enter Chiyabao. Just now, someone asked me if twelve days' worth of rations would be enough to feed 100,000 people."

Zhao Weiguo reached for the telegram, but stopped halfway, moving the list of bridge materials aside first. The edges of the paper were covered in mud; top-secret documents couldn't be placed on it.

"150,000 is the nominal total. We need to retain people in Taiyuan, Yangquan, Yuci, railway outposts, airports, coal mines, and county towns. If we really pull all 150,000 out, they'll abandon their own paths first."

Zhao Gang did not respond to this lighthearted remark.

How many can come?

No one in the operations room answered immediately.

The staff officer spread out six railway mileage tables, and the radio transcripts that Zhi Zi had brought were divided into three stacks. The bridge section brought over a bridge condition book, its cover damp and sticky to the touch when turning the pages. All the known information was laid out on the table, with blank spaces left blank; no one was allowed to fill in the gaps with common sense.

Zhao Weiguo opened the system's auxiliary interface and entered only four types of data: reconnaissance records from the past three months, railway distance, number of vehicles that could be confirmed, and historical radio intercepts.

The interface first lists the conditions, then provides the range.

The nominal total strength of the North China Area Army was approximately 150,000.

Theoretically, about 60,000 can be transferred.

The maximum number of troops that can enter the area surrounding Chiya Fort within seven days is approximately 40,000.

Errors arise from temporary convoys, airport scheduling, the reliability of puppet troops, and the actual number of personnel remaining at each stronghold.

No line states that the enemy would necessarily commit 40,000 troops. Nor does it mention the marching route, arrival time, or the precise number of troops on each side.

Zhao Weiguo copied the words "upper limit" in large characters.

Zhao Gang asked, "What if we need to add more vehicles at the last minute?"

"The upper limit may change."

"Should we send one large group to the airport first?"

"Things will change."

"What if the puppet troops scattered halfway through?"

"The attendance will be low."

Zhao Gang asked three questions in a row, and someone in the staff seat lowered their head to correct their notes. Zhao Weiguo pushed the paper over so that everyone could see it clearly.

"Forty thousand is a risky account. Whoever writes it as having reached forty thousand will be able to use fake enemy intelligence to obtain real food and ammunition tomorrow."

The monk stood by the door, arms crossed.

"Forty thousand. What about my two thousand five hundred men? Which hole are they plugging?"

"Plug whichever hole is leaking," Zhao Weiguo said without looking at him. "You're not just plugging one hole. You're plugging all the holes."

The monk smacked his lips.

"Okay. I'll wait to plug all the holes."

In the afternoon meeting, four general ledgers were placed on the long table.

The Independent Regiment has a formally established strength of 20,000 men.

Training and reinforcement of personnel will be listed separately.

Local defense, transportation, sanitation, and industrial protection are listed separately.

The neighboring units are listed separately according to their respective unit numbers.

The total for the four columns is 100,700. This number is spread across six counties, two railway sections, four industrial sites, and twelve warehouse nodes. Within a week, approximately 38,000 frontline troops can enter the decisive battle zone at Chiyabao. The rest have their own roads, warehouses, wounded soldiers, and factories to defend.

As the operations chief wrote this, a piece of chalk broke off on the blackboard.

Old Zhou bent down to pick it up and casually put it back in the chalk tray.

"One hundred thousand seven hundred, that sounds like more than forty thousand. If a fight really breaks out, could we four take on one?"

No one laughed.

Zhao Gang turned to the first page of the twelve-day food and ammunition list.

"Thirty-eight thousand men entered the encirclement, and they were fed by this chart. One hundred thousand men were all moved to Chiyabao. On the first day, the roads were blocked; on the third day, the wounded couldn't get out; and on the fifth day, the factories were unguarded. By then, the Japanese wouldn't even need to attack; chaos would break out on their own."

Old Zhou put his pipe on the table.

"Then report who can come."

Nine thousand five hundred to the east.

Eight thousand five hundred to the west.

Nine thousand northwards.

Seven thousand to the south.

The total is 38,000. An additional 4,000 is reserved and cannot be included in any one route in advance.

This is just a contingency plan; the formal deployment will be left for the next meeting. Today, let's first determine where the enemy is coming from and what they will pass through on their journey.

The Red Cliff Fortress in the center of the map is drawn very small, but it is surrounded by slips of paper.

There is a railway bridge and telephone line to the east.

To the west are a highway bridge, a granary, and two high grounds.

To the north is a mule track for transporting coal and iron, and three perennial wells connect six villages.

The highway to the south leads to Yuci, allowing the convoy to bypass the main stronghold.

The four industrial sites were scattered more than ten miles apart, and the cessation of production at any one of them would mean more than just the removal of a red dot on the map. Gun barrels, artillery shells, medicines, and auto parts each had their own workers and machines.

Zhao Weiguo circled the bridge, coal, grain, telephone lines, and industrial sites on the map.

"Red Cliff Fortress is a whole area. The enemy has destroyed two or three parts of it, but our men are still here. The roads and warehouses are cut off first. Defending the city walls is useless."

Duan Peng brought three bridge plans. The first listed the bridge's length, width, and load-bearing capacity; the second listed the available timber nearby; and the third noted whether any old explosive holes had been found under the bridge. There wasn't a single word on the papers stating "it can be held." The engineers were only responsible for the bridge, not for the infantry.

The monk placed the map of the southwest mountain pass under the bridge beam.

"Where do the special agents enter from?" someone asked.

"Not decided yet," the monk answered quickly. "Put mine down first. A dozen or so people will crawl over there to check the signal lights, explosives, and oil drums. Whoever makes this line their main attack, I'll be the first to fight them."

Old Zhou glanced at him.

"Now I realize I'm outnumbered."

The monk wanted to argue back, but seeing that Zhao Gang was still checking the food and ammunition list, he held back.

Zhi Zi didn't enter until halfway through the meeting. She only had three sheets of paper in her hand.

The first image shows train schedules for Taiyuan South Station over the next four days, confirming the rescheduled departure times of two temporary trains.

The second image shows the number of oil drums entering the warehouse at Yangquan Airport, which is more than usual.

The third message only contained a few lines of fragmented code, mentioning northbound movement and airport priority. The telegraph operator had changed shifts, so the entire message was not captured.

Zhao Weiguo asked, "Can you confirm how many reinforcements are needed?"

"Unable to confirm."

"Troops loaded on the vehicle?"

"It can't be confirmed either. The number of carriages can be counted; freight cars and passenger cars are mixed together. It's true that the oil drums were put into storage, but whether they were given to airplanes or trucks remains to be investigated."

Zhao Gang clipped the three pieces of paper into three clips: one black, one blue, and one white.

The black box has been confirmed to be inside.

The blue clip contains a well-founded speculation.

The white clip is placed for further investigation.

Two temporary trains will enter the black compartment, while mobile forces on board may enter the blue compartment. The remaining cargo and oil drums will enter the white compartment.

Gardenia closed the white bud.

"I only report the train number, the number of fuel drums, and the remaining weight. How to proceed from there is the staff officer's job."

"That's how it should be," Zhao Gang said. "The fewer guesses written on paper, the fewer unnecessary detours the frontline staff will have to take."

As dusk fell, the ration and ammunition list for the 12th day was finally checked for the first time.

Shells from the east and west should be delivered to the bridge first. Those on the northern route should carry more shovels, ropes, and buckets. Due to the large number of vehicles on the southern route, repair parts and gasoline should be sealed separately. Medical stations should be connected by white string; stretcher lanes must not be used interchangeably with heavy vehicle lanes. Workers at the industrial sites cannot be completely evacuated; emergency repair teams must remain.

Zhao Gang tapped twice in the casualty estimate column.

"This place is still empty."

The operations chief said, "The number of enemy troops present is uncertain; we can't calculate it accurately right now."

"Even if you can't be sure, you still have to write down the boundaries. Stop the attack when any wounded soldier is beyond evacuation range. The reserves can't just be there to cover gun barrels; they also need to cover stretchers and clear routes."

Zhao Weiguo wrote this sentence down next to the master plan.

Old Zhou asked, "If it really reaches 40,000, should we fight?"

"beat."

"With 38,000 against 40,000, how many casualties will there be?"

"We can't give you numbers right now. Whether the bridge was lost, whether the artillery reached its destination, and whether the wounded can be evacuated on the first day—all of these things will change."

Zhao Gang continued to stare at him.

"Then what makes you so determined?"

The only sound inside was the rustling of papers. Outside, someone was moving sleepers; one fell to the ground with a thud.

Zhao Weiguo did not mention the fate of the nation, nor did he mention the 100,000 soldiers.

"The enemy wants to dismantle roads, warehouses, and factories. If we retreat from Chiyabao, the grain supplies of six counties and four industrial sites will have to be moved. Any machinery that can't be moved will be smashed, and the wounded will have to walk dozens more miles. If we stay here, the cost is uncertain; if we give way, the cost is already laid out before us."

After listening, Zhao Gang left the casualty estimate column blank and added four words next to it: Daily calculation.

The logistics department did not immediately take away the ration and ammunition list for the 12th day.

The grain could last for twelve days, provided that each direction took the grain from its own warehouse and the convoys did not meet on the same road. The eastward convoy used two small warehouses along the railway, the westward convoy relied on the grain road for transshipment, the northward convoy carried more fried noodles and salt, and the southward convoy could travel faster, but the biggest fear was that fuel and repair parts would run out halfway.

A grain clerk circled out the damp grain bags separately. The grain couldn't be counted by the bag; it had to be sieved first, then checked for mold. Another person checked the salt and cooking pots; a note said there was grain, but at the front lines there were no pots, no water, so they still couldn't get anything to eat.

Zhao Gang asked, "Were any wounded counted over those twelve days?"

"We've included initial deliveries, but not bulk deliveries later."

"Then let's recalculate. The wounded eat little, but hot water, sugar, salt, and parking spaces take up a lot. Don't wait for them to be carried back before scooping food from the infantry's cooking pot."

The health department added three water replenishment points next to the white line. The transportation department then dug out the bridge map and marked which bridges could only be crossed by mule carts, which bridges could be crossed by heavy carts, and which sections of the road had to be detoured when it rained. The detour distances were not added to the food and ammunition table out of thin air; they were first given to the scouts for verification.

Zhao Weiguo watched as several people huddled around a form, arguing over the pot, salt, and bridge, but didn't urge them on.

The 38,000 troops on the map only occupy a few lines. What truly gets them to their posts is these seemingly unimpressive things.

The meeting ended late at night, but Zhao Weiguo still hadn't issued any orders to the various parties to move forward.

He first rechecked the railway, highway, bridges, and fuel depots between Yangquan and Taiyuan. The red pen extended westward from Yangquan, along the mountain passes and highways, finally stopping on the outskirts of Taiyuan.

That line didn't have people standing in rows to die.

Each red circle corresponds to a bridge, a section of road, a station, or a group of cars that can move.

Zhao Weiguo wrote seven characters on the side of the map.

From Yangquan to Taiyuan, the first line of defense.

Zhao Gang stood behind him, staring at the seven words, and remained silent for a long time.

The sounds of moving railway sleepers outside stopped; the materials clerk finished work and locked the awning. Only the crackling of the kerosene lamp wick remained in the operations room.

"How long will we hold the first line of defense?" Zhao Gang finally spoke.

Zhao Weiguo placed the pencil on those seven characters.

"Stay put until the second line is drawn."