The Fourth Outstanding Person of Huangpu Military Academy

To the north of Leiyang, the 10th and 12th Regiments of the 4th Division cut off the road from Leiyang to Hengyang. Zhang Gan of the 18th Army sent troops to try to reopen the road, but the 10th and 12th Regiments occupied advantageous terrain and drove Zhang Gan's troops back.

At Ma Tianxu, the 7th Guangxi Division was attacked from multiple points by the 2nd Regiment and had to hold its ground. However, by combining the movements of the various Guangxi troops during the battle, Chen Tianheng determined that these troops were defending the Guangxi front-line headquarters.

In addition to Xia Wei and his staff and command team, there were probably remnants of the 2nd Guangxi Division and the 23rd Hunan Division who were destroyed in the battle a few days ago around the front-line command headquarters.

The telegram was sent, and the Second Regiment replied "received". Chen Tianheng's side entered waiting mode again.

At dawn on the 6th, the result of the battle finally came out.

This is Yang Tenghui, commander of the Second Division of the Gui Army.

Chen Tianheng stared at Yang Tenghui and waved his hand to let the soldiers take Yang Tenghui to the back.

This is Xia Wei, commander of the Seventh Army and acting commander of the Second Army Group.

Xia Wei was even more depressed than Yang Tenghui, and he was completely dejected.

The brains of the Gui army's attacking group have been removed, and the outcome of this battle is probably already decided. The only remaining question is whether this group can escape and how many of them can escape if they do.

"Xia Wei, both our armies have fought and won meritorious service in the Northern Expedition. Most of your officers and soldiers are civilians, not much different from us. We have to fight, after all, we have received orders from our superiors. But Xia Wei, can't you just stop at the right time?"

Chen Tianheng couldn't help but scold Xia Wei.

Xia Wei raised his head and said, "You Guangdong Communists are the first to do bad things, so it's no wonder we're fighting you.

"Isn't it just about opium? I tell you, this is non-negotiable. Besides, I know that the bulk of your Guangxi Clique's income comes from opium transit, but that doesn't mean you haven't been given a way out. Don't you occupy Beiqinfang now? We didn't defend Beiqinfang either; we practically gave it to you. Beihai, Fangchenggang, which place can't be loaded with ships for sea transport?"

Xia Wei said: "Chen Tianheng, do you think this is about opium? You Guangdong Communists are killing our people!"

Yuan Zhongxian: "The opium traffickers are still in jail and haven't been tried yet. Do you want us to grant them amnesty? Then why don't you speak up?

Xia Wei: "Do you think I'm talking about those opium traffickers in jail? I want to ask you, my uncle is in Foshan, what does he have to do with opium? Why did you shoot his entire family?

Chen Tianheng: "Your uncle in Foshan?

Xia Wei: "I'm telling you, the Guangxi clique did have an opium business, but I wasn't directly involved. Most of us officers weren't involved either. Commander Huang and Commander Li had people specifically assigned to handle it. My uncle had absolutely nothing to do with it. He was just a family that moved from Guangxi to Guangdong to buy a house for retirement! You arrested and executed their entire family, and what do you say? And what about Wei Yunsong's family? They were arrested and executed in Jiangmen, just like my uncle. What do you say about that?"

"They're not even landlords. They don't own an acre of land in Guangdong! You want my uncle's wealth? No problem. I'll give it to you. Why are you killing his whole family? My youngest nephew is only 6 years old this year!"

Chapter 155: The final battle with all your strength

Xia Wei took him away.

Chen Tianheng speculated that this incident was caused by the old grudges among the people in Guangdong and Guangxi, and that the grassroots organizations were also responsible for not seriously screening the reports from the masses.

After this battle is over, Chen Tianheng will talk about this matter at the Military Commission and the Central Committee meeting, but it is obviously impossible to produce a rehabilitation order to explain to the Gui army and negotiate to persuade them to surrender.

现在必须硬吃下桂系这最后的7个师，尤其是桂1、7、8、10师这四支桂系老底子部队。然后才能谈其他。

"The Guangxi clique's Seventh Army comprises the 1st, 2nd, and 9th Divisions, while the Eighth Army comprises the 7th, 8th, and 10th Divisions. Yesterday's battle completely annihilated the Guangxi 2nd Division, which had been severely damaged at Yapoling. In the battles of Dishuishan and Changning, Du Yuming essentially annihilated the Guangxi 9th Division. Liao Lei, with only a thousand men, managed to break through the encirclement and retreat westward."

"Our initial goal in this campaign was to defeat Chiang Kai-shek's army and prevent it from launching another encirclement and suppression operation within six months to a year. At least half of the Guangxi clique's direct troops must be annihilated. We are now approaching our goal.

Chen Tianheng arranged the next stage of operations.

"The four divisions of the Gui army are now taking turns to cover their retreat towards Leiyang. The 7th Division is stationed north of Ma Tianxu, while the 10th Division is maneuvering in the mountains east of the 7th Division to provide cover. The 1st and 8th Divisions have arrived at Xiaoshui Town and are building fortifications there. Their purpose is clear: once the 1st and 8th Divisions have established their fortifications in Xiaoshui Town and stabilized them, the 7th and 10th Divisions will then move north and retreat behind Xiaoshui Town.

"Considering the basic objectives of the campaign, we secured our victory and concentrated our forces to eliminate the 7th and 10th Gui Divisions."

陈天衡看向贺龙、徐向前:“1、3师五个团围攻设防于马田墟北的桂7师，5个团对3个团，48小时之内将其吃干净。如果可能，最好24小时之内解决战斗。”

"clear!"

陈天衡:“黄再新，你的11团在24小时之内牵制桂10师，24小时之后，如果对桂7师的总共顺利，1、3师用作预备队的团会加入到你的方向。能牵制住这个桂10师吗?”

“Yes!

The command center of the Chenzhou battlefield continued to move forward, and at this time Chen Tianheng was holding a pre-war meeting in Matanxu.

The 7th Guangxi Division, which occupied more than a dozen hilltops and defended them to the death, was located 4 to 5 kilometers north of Ma Tianxu.

The Gui army is highly mobile in mountainous terrain, with soldiers and junior officers adept at exploiting the terrain, and their squad tactics are quite organized. However, the Gui army's weaknesses lie in inter-service coordination (currently primarily infantry and artillery coordination), and the frequent disorganization of coordinated command and control during large-scale joint offensive and defensive operations.

In the original historical dimension, the army of the New Guangxi Clique only discovered that it had "shortcomings everywhere" when fighting the Battle of Shanghai.

The two sides have been fighting fiercely on the battlefield from Hengyang to Chenzhou for a week, and even fought all night yesterday. Both the First Army and the Gui Army are very tired.

The reason for sending two divisions of the First Army to attack one division of the Gui Army was that the 1st and 2nd Divisions now had to rest in rotation, battalion by battalion. Now in Ma Tianxu, Chen Tianheng opened the door to his headquarters and saw rows of officers and soldiers lying and dozing outside. They had fought from daylight yesterday to night and then until dawn today, a total of 22 hours of continuous fighting or marching.

They had to be given a four-hour break whenever possible and then be sent back to the battlefield at noon. Otherwise, the combat effectiveness of the soldiers would be severely reduced due to physical exhaustion.

Fortunately, the weather has been sunny these past few days, so the soldiers can just lie down by the wall in the leeward direction. If there were a freezing rain, a characteristic of southern Hunan winter, it would be a lot of fun.

"The Second Regiment captured Hill 406!"

"Okay!" Chen Tianheng held the microphone in his left hand and drew a topographic map on the table with his right hand: "How many troops does the Second Regiment have now? Is there a battalion?"

"The second battalion is resting in Matianxu, the first battalion has attacked, and the third battalion has not moved yet!"

Chen Tianheng: "The First and Third Battalions must hold Hill 406 together. This concludes the Second Regiment's mission this morning. Where is Wang Erzhuo?"

The person who called Chen Tianheng was not Wang Erzhuo, but Sun Shucheng, the chief of staff of the Second Regiment.

'Observing the enemy situation at the front line!

Chen Tianheng: "Commanders must stay at their command posts and play their roles. Wait for Wang Erzhuo to return and pass this on to him."

挂掉电话，陈明仁过来:“3师7团也攻下了一个高地，东侧的422高地。但1师3团的攻势被阻挡了。"

Chen Tianheng: "There are 11 hills of varying sizes within the 7th Gui Division's territory. We've captured two this morning, which is considered satisfactory. If we continue to see similar results this afternoon, the entire 7th Gui Division's defenses will be exposed to our direct fire by tonight. What's the situation with the 3rd Regiment?"

Chen Mingren: "Qiu Qingquan reported that the enemy's defenses on the hill in front of their regiment were too strong. It seemed that the entire regiment's heavy weapons were on that hill. Moreover, the troops in front of the Gui army quickly dug trenches and foxholes.

Chen Tianheng: "New reinforcements will be deployed from the 3rd Regiment this afternoon. Tell him not to be impatient."

Around noon on December 16, news came from Peng Dehuai in the front that his Fifth Army was marching parallel to the 1st and 8th Divisions of Guangxi. It has now been confirmed that Xiaoshui Town not only has the 1st and 8th Divisions of Guangxi, but also part of Zhang Gan's 18th Army.

Peng Dehuai's Fifth Army, while now designated an army, actually consisted of only two brigades. Due to the failure of the Leiyang City defense, these two brigades could only function as three regiments. However, this did not prevent General Peng from pursuing the approaching enemy with unbridled vigor, keeping the Gui army on edge.

Leiyang County.

Zhang Gan frowned, adjusted his compass again, and pondered the Bagua diagram for a long time.

"Bad luck, good luck, bad luck, ... very good luck?"

Zhang Gan really couldn't understand how fortune-telling for his own troops could lead to good luck.

Yes, because Zhang Lewei was captured by Xia Wei, Li Zongren sent a telegram from Changsha this morning, asking Zhang Gan to take over the command of the group, which was equivalent to a temporary promotion from army commander to the position of commander-in-chief of the group army.

However, it is time now, and Zhang Gan would rather not take the position of group army commander.

"It must be the deployment adjustment I just made!" Zhang Gan slapped his forehead, "Retreating towards Changning and Yongzhou is the right move!

"General, the Guangdong Communist Party has already occupied Changning City." The staff officer reminded.

Zhang Gan: "I remember there was a small road between Leiyang and Changning. If you took this road and made a detour, you could reach Guiyang Town in Qiyang County and then return to Yongzhou."

Staff Officer: "But this is a very narrow road. If we take it, we will have to abandon our baggage and artillery."

"Who cares? Who cares? I don't care about baggage and artillery. I'll just throw them away after using them. Guiyang, Guiyang, what a good name..."

12 o'clock noon.

Chen Tianheng looked at his watch and said, "Old Fan, wake up the soldiers. Have lunch before going to the front line, and everyone should drink at least a teacup of hot water. Drink more water, less colds."

Fan Hanjie: “Yes!

"Report--!

A fast horse rushed into Ma Tianxu. Chen Tianheng remembered that the signalman was from the 11th Regiment of the 4th Division.

"Report, our regiment, the 11th Regiment of the 4th Division, the regimental commander, Huang Zaixin, died in the battle of Yancun!"

Chen Tianheng, Fan Hanjie, Chen Mingren, Yuan Zhongxian: "Little

Chen Tianheng: "Comrade Wen Xiaoyang, please calm down. I need to know more information. How did Huang Zaixin die? Describe the whole process.

"Yes, Commander. At that time, Commander Huang led the regiment into Yan Village and established a command post. At this time, a company of Gui troops arrived outside the village and launched an attack on Yan Village. The regiment's guard troops and reconnaissance platoon repelled the Gui troops, but Commander Huang was killed by a stray bullet in the head during the battle.

Chen Tianheng: "Are there any casualties among the staff members of the 11th Regiment Headquarters and the General Staff?"

"The regimental headquarters suffered only one casualty, Commander Huang. The rest were from the regimental guards and scouts. The staff and regimental headquarters are intact.

Chen Tianheng: "Did you later find out the whereabouts of this Gui army company?"

The attacking Gui army came from the north, attempting to occupy Yan Village, but failed and retreated northward.

"This was an accident." Chen Tianheng put his hands on the table and thought for a while before coming to a conclusion.

Chen Mingren: “Indeed… Although Captain Huang’s sacrifice is very sad, it was indeed an accident.

Chen Tianheng: "Since it was an accident, there's no need to change anything. Chen Mingren, draft a military order for the 11th Regiment. The Chief of Staff will act as the regimental commander and command the battle. Their combat effectiveness can be considered unaffected, so the 11th Regiment will continue to complete their mission. The First Regiment of the General Reserve will remain on standby."

"Also, later, disseminate the news of Commander Huang's death to all regiments, reminding all commanders once again of safety concerns. Your personal safety is a minor matter; the safety of the headquarters and staff, the nerve centers of a regiment and a division, is the greater concern.

In the afternoon, the fighting north of Ma Tianxu became more intense.

The 1st and 3rd Divisions rested some of their troops by rotating them out, and in the afternoon these energetic troops were deployed to the battlefield, putting increasing pressure on the 7th Gui Division's positions. However, Li Chaofang, the commander of the 7th Gui Division, issued a strict order to his troops to hold the hilltop and not to retreat without authorization.

Where the 1st and 3rd Divisions were attacking, both sides fought with all their might.

"Report to the battalion commander! Dozens of enemies have come up from behind the mountain and filled the trenches!

Scout reports back.

"Are these reinforcements coming from the reverse slope?" Liu Zhidan, commander of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Regiment, raised his binoculars. "There were already over a hundred people on the hilltop, and with the reinforcements, there will be two hundred. Mortars! Where are the mortar men?"

"Here! How many rounds do you want to fire?

Liu Zhidan: "Three rounds, 18 rounds. Are you ready? Take my gunshot as a signal!"

Liu Zhidan looked at the mountainside through a telescope and confirmed that the first and third companies were within two or three hundred meters of the position on the top of the mountain. He took out his pistol and fired a shot into the sky.

Behind them, the 2nd Regiment's six mortars went off in a series of bangs. Three mortar rounds were fired, and the combat teams of the 1st and 3rd Companies took the opportunity to advance.

When they were a few dozen meters away from the Gui army's trench line, the combat team threw bombs, and more than a dozen grenades flew out.

The Gui army in the trenches also threw grenades!

Liu Zhidan let out a hiss.

Fortunately, the Gui army's grenades did not kill a large number of people at once. At this time, not all combat teams had reached the grenade throwing range, only the combat teams that needed to throw the grenade had entered the throwing range.

Both sides on the mountain were in a mess due to the grenades, but the combat team of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Regiment, which was originally lagging behind, quickly jumped up, surpassed the grenade team in just over ten seconds, and rushed into the trenches on the top of the mountain.

Liu Zhidan: "Mortar! Add 200 meters to the distance, and 18 more rounds!"

The second round of artillery fire called by Liu Zhidan was to hit the back of the mountain to prevent the Gui army from reinforcing the mountain for the second time. However, the Gui army in the trenches had to be dealt with by the first and second companies.

Liu Zhidan could imagine the scene of both sides fighting with rifles, submachine guns, light machine guns, grenades, bayonets and even gun butts.

"Boom!~~~~'

Suddenly there was a huge explosion on the mountain, sending out a mushroom cloud of thick smoke.

After the explosion, the hilltop became quiet.

Through

"What happened on the mountain just now?"

Liu Zhidan climbed up the hill after the battle.

"Captain, look."

"Here. At that time, the Gui army was almost wiped out by us, and then I saw the last remaining Gui army soldier crawl to the side of the ammunition box and detonate all the grenades."

Chapter 156, Leiyang God of War

After a fierce battle on more than a dozen hills north of Ma Tianxu until the afternoon of December 17, the last resistance of the 7th Guangxi Division finally stopped.

On December 17, the Gui army, which had gained a foothold in Xiaoshui Town, attempted to turn back and fight south to support the Gui 7th Division, but was beaten back by the Fifth Army led by Peng Dehuai.

After the 7th Division of Gui was destroyed, the 10th Division of Gui, which was standing in a parallel position, no longer lingered in battle and quickly retreated from the mountains on the east side of the battlefield to Xiaoshui Town, and then continued to retreat to Leiyang.

The 10th Gui Division, having long been operating in the mountainous battlefields most comfortable for the Guangxi clique, has thus far been the best performing division on the battlefield. For the past few days, the 10th Gui Division has been constantly traversing the mountains, rarely using normal flat roads. This "comfort" is indeed evident. For several days, amidst the bamboo forests of the mountains, the 10th Gui Division engaged the 1st and 11th Regiments. Although only a little over 3,000 men remained from the 6,000-man division, the organizational structure of each regiment remained intact.

“The battlefield is now in our favor.

"The 5th and 6th Divisions of the 2nd Army have already entered Hengyang. Although Hengyang City was difficult to capture, Chen Yi finally took it.

"The main force of the 4th Division is stuck in the north of Leiyang. Although Zhang Gan and Wei Yunsong have 6 divisions at their disposal, it is not easy to open the road back to Hengyang because we have been continuously exerting pressure on them from the front.

"Du Yuming of the 2nd Division occupied Changning, closing off the western flank of the battlefield, but Zhang Gan also had a division advancing towards Changning.