Chapter 24: Annihilating the 189th Regiment and Striking It Rich
(Page 1 of 3)
Hu Biao was so terrified that he stood rooted to the spot for a long while, completely forgetting even to drop flat and take cover.
The next moment, a bullet came flying toward him and blew his head apart in exactly the same manner.
“The regimental commander is dead!!!!” someone shouted at the top of his lungs.
The news spread like a plague. The soldiers, already dispirited and on the verge of collapse, were suddenly consumed by panic.
“Run! Save yourselves!!!”
The Guangxi Army soldiers began screaming hysterically.
Their rout could no longer be stopped.
At that very moment, the Red Army’s impassioned and mournful charge sounded.
“Bwoo-bwoo-bwoo!!!!”
The instant the bugle rang out, every Red Army soldier let out a roar and charged toward the surviving Guangxi troops.
When the Guangxi soldiers heard that terrifying charge, they plunged into yet another rout.
The rest of the battle became much simpler. A small number of Guangxi soldiers escaped, but most died where they stood. More than a hundred chose to lay down their weapons and surrender. However, Long Wencheng’s order was to leave no one alive, so they were shot on the spot without being taken prisoner.
The battle lasted a little over an hour from beginning to end, yet more than a thousand men of the 189th Regiment were wiped out. On the one hand, every Red Army soldier who had taken part was highly experienced; on the other, they possessed an absolute advantage in both terrain and firepower.
Naturally, Long Wencheng’s shot had also been crucial. It had shattered the 189th Regiment soldiers’ last shred of fighting spirit, allowing the battle to end with such astonishing speed.
The Red Army soldiers began clearing the battlefield and tallying their casualties.
Long Wencheng gazed at the mortars scattered across the ground and felt a genuine pang of distress.
Of the three mortars, one was intact, while the other two had sustained varying degrees of damage. Their bases had been blown apart, or their supports had been severed by explosions.
Although the barrels themselves remained undamaged, the mortars could no longer be used in their present condition.
He called Huang Kecheng over and asked whether they could be repaired.
Huang Kecheng looked troubled.
“They can be repaired, but we’re short of materials. We need to find a town as soon as possible. Once we buy the materials we need, let alone repairing mortars—I could even machine guns from scratch.”
By the end of his words, his face was once again filled with confidence. He patted his none-too-sturdy chest.
(Page 1 of 3)
(Page 2 of 3)
“Good. When we reach the next place and stop to rest, buy whatever materials you need. I’ll approve the funds.”
They had obtained quite a sum of money earlier while dealing with the local tyrants. After annihilating the 189th Regiment, they would certainly acquire even more when they finished clearing the battlefield.
Huang Kecheng rubbed his palms together in delight.
“Excellent, Commander. Just wait and see. I’ll get all these weapons repaired for you.”
As they were speaking, Little Stone came running over excitedly.
“Commander, we found Old Dog Lei’s body.”
With that, he grabbed Long Wencheng and pulled him over.
Wensong was there as well, but there was not the slightest trace of sympathy on his face. Clearly, he had held Old Dog Lei in utter contempt too.
Long Wencheng merely glanced at Lei’s corpse before turning to Wensong.
“Brother Wen, once we cross Five-Finger Ridge, we’ll be in Guizhou. Are you coming with us, or are you returning to Guangxi?”
Wensong paused briefly, then answered almost without hesitation.
“Following you sounds more interesting.”
Long Wencheng reminded him, “Think carefully. Once you leave Guangxi, there will be no turning back.”
“Then I’ll follow this road all the way into the darkness.”
Wensong spoke with indifference, a light and carefree smile on his face.
It was nearly dusk when they finally finished clearing the battlefield and tallying their casualties.
The Eighteenth Regiment had lost twenty-five men killed and thirty-one wounded. They had annihilated 799 enemy soldiers, while roughly a hundred others had broken through amid the chaos. Even so, those fugitives could no longer pose any threat to them.
The captured weapons included three 81-millimeter mortars, two of them damaged; four Maxim heavy machine guns; ten Czech light machine guns; fifteen submachine guns; 530 Hanyang rifles; ten Lee-Enfield rifles; eighteen Mauser pistols; and one Browning pistol.
The 189th Regiment’s weapons and equipment were a remarkably mixed assortment. Even the equipment differed from battalion to battalion. Their quartermasters had certainly had a difficult time keeping everything supplied.
As for ammunition, they had obtained roughly 150,000 rounds, along with fifty mortar shells, twenty crates of grenades, and a quantity of explosives, detonators, and blasting caps.
In addition, there were ten handcarts, fifteen mules, and three donkeys.
They had captured plenty of money as well: more than ten thousand silver dollars and a box of small gold bars, weighing an estimated four or five kilograms in total.
(Page 2 of 3)
(Page 3 of 3)
After a rough calculation, Long Wencheng realized that the weapons and equipment now in his possession could equip four or five thousand men.
After clearing the battlefield at Five-Finger Ridge, they entered Guizhou territory, the domain of Wang Jialie. Compared with the Guangxi Army, however, the Guizhou Army was much easier to deal with, and the local warlords here were not as overbearing.
Otherwise, in history, the great leader would never have firmly chosen to march the Central Column into Guizhou through Tongdao instead of continuing westward into western Hunan and burrowing deeper into the Nationalist encirclement.
The troops marched until deep into the night before finally stopping to make camp and rest.
Compared with before, the soldiers were at last able to sleep through the night.
It was not until ten the following morning that they resumed their march.
After spending another two days traveling along the mountain roads, they finally reached Liping County.
To Long Wencheng’s disappointment, although the Central Column had stopped there for a time, it had already departed some days earlier.
Long Wencheng did not ask where the Central Column had gone. He knew perfectly well that they would be heading to Zunyi, where they would hold a meeting.
What disappointed him even more was that the Central Column had already dealt with the local landlords and tyrants there, leaving him no one to deal with. He could hardly rob the impoverished common people.
Thus, Long Wencheng led his troops westward toward Jianhe County.
His initial plan was to rest there for several days, then deal with the local tyrants, redistribute the land, hand out grain to the impoverished people, and finally recruit soldiers.
After three days of travel, they finally reached Jianhe County.
As before, Long Wencheng had Peng Hongsen take several men in civilian clothing and disguise themselves as merchants. They entered Jianhe County ahead of the main force to investigate the situation.
Their inquiries covered the troop deployments, the identities of the landlords and local tyrants, and the reputation of the local officials among the people.
Learning these details would make it easier for their troops to carry out the series of actions planned after their arrival.
Late on the third night, they reached the outskirts of Jianhe County.
Peng Hongsen met up with Long Wencheng and briefed him on the situation inside the county.
“The local tyrants and landlords can be dealt with directly. Not one of them is innocent. The people here are suffering terribly. This bunch has collected taxes from them all the way through thirty years from now—from the present day to 1965.”
When Long Wencheng heard that, he said nothing more.
They would enter the city that very night and begin their operation at dawn.
(Page 3 of 3)