Volume 1 Teacher Chapter 21: First Battle
"Thank you for your hard work, Brother Park Chu!"
It was winter and snow was falling outside. Sitting in the airtight truck was unbearable even for people wrapped tightly in cotton coats. So being able to drink a sip of hot soup when the car stopped was already a great enjoyment.
“It’s so comfortable!”
"No way, this is what Zili should do."
The regiment's chief of staff Zhang Zilii led the baggage company to attack the front and set up seven or eight supply stations along the way. Therefore, except for seven or eight people with frostbite on their hands and feet, there were no other casualties in the Second Regiment. The First Regiment and the headquarters of the Guard Army suffered relatively heavy losses, with basically more than 10% of their personnel being reduced.
"The captain could have just sat in the front float. Why did he have to suffer the cold wind with his brothers?"
"The brothers below are suffering, and I am enjoying myself up front. How can we fight this war?"
Dai Jiliang waved his hand.
"Although we all received officer education abroad, it is inappropriate to talk about officer privileges when we return home. Our ancestors advocated that we should be with you and walk with you!"
"The leader is really unique."
Zhang Zilii smiled. Like Dai Jiliang, he did not smoke or drink, but he still retained a trace of the reserve of an officer. He always had a serious face towards his junior officers, let alone those privates.
"The commander and Captain He of the First Regiment also rode on the float. I'm afraid you will have a bad reputation among them."
"Fuck reputation. As long as we can win the battle, Mr. Lu will never say a second word."
Dai Jiliang stamped his feet; the effect of the hot soup was gradually disappearing.
"Let's not talk about it anymore. It's really cold. You should gather the people quickly. While our car is refueling with water and coal in Luohe, we can change to other cars and rush to Zhumadian. The damn Bai Lang is about to flee west again. When we get to Zhumadian, I guess our guards will have no choice but to walk..."
On March 5, 1914, the Second Regiment of the Guard Army advanced westward from Zhumadian and took the lead in fighting with General Wang Shengqi's troops between Biyang and Tanghe.
"What does this kid Li Debiao do for a living?"
In the temporary command post of the Second Regiment in Chuzhuang, Deputy Regiment Commander and First Battalion Commander Zhang Binnan was cursing.
"We were actually broken up by the bandit cavalry. We lost more than 20 men and 40 guns without firing a single shot. It's a great shame!"
"Forget it, the Second Battalion has lost its fighting spirit, let the First Battalion lead the way."
Zhang Zili looked at Dai Jiliang with a frown on his face, thought for a while, and then said a few words on behalf of Li Guo. You know, this Second Battalion was the direct line brought up by Dai Jiliang himself, and Zhang Binnan's words seemed to be just to watch the fun.
"Although our regiment has been well trained, none of us have ever seen blood. It is normal for us to panic when we see the ferocious bandits. The key is to learn a lesson."
In fact, Zhang Zili had doubts about Duan Qirui's command in Xinyang. The Guard Army only had two regiments, and they had to split them up. Let the army and the first regiment advance westward from Tongbai, and let the second regiment clear the area from Biyang. Wouldn't this weaken their own combat effectiveness? "By the way, since there are a large number of bandit cavalry nearby, we should remind all units to pay attention to the bandit raids."
"Report!"
Zhang Zilii can be said to be a typical crow's mouth. Just after he finished speaking, Song Cheng, the staff officer in charge of communications, ran in hurriedly.
"The Third Battalion sent someone to report urgently that the Second Company of the Third Battalion was besieged by about 500 bandits in Guanzhuang. Deputy Battalion Commander Ma has led the rest of the troops into battle."
"map!"
Although the Beiyang force was the strongest in China at that time, the map surveying and mapping as the basis of military and construction was done very poorly. Up to now, the Guard Army has only a few low-scale maps that are regarded as treasures, and the Second Regiment had a lot of trouble to get one of them.
"Three kilometers is simply too much."
Dai Jiliang punched the stage.
"Brother Binnan, please go back and take charge of the First Battalion immediately and be on guard in the direction of Tanghe.
Brother Park Chu, I'll leave the regiment headquarters to you.
Come here, order the machine gun company, the baggage company, and the first company of the second battalion to hold on to Chuzhuang, and have Li Guo come to see me immediately. If he cannot atone for his sins this time, I will let him be the company commander..."
Spring came early this year, and the earth in March of the Gregorian calendar was faintly green.
However, in this very season when poets should be writing poetry, a bloody battle is going on in full swing.
"Open Guanzhuang and enjoy delicious food and spicy drinks."
Amid waves of frenzied slogans, the fearless Bai Lang bandits once again rushed forward with outdated cold weapons under the cover of a few shooters.
"How come these bastards are so accurate with their guns?"
A corporal was lying in a hiding place, with his head down, nervously peering at the situation outside. Several people around him had been shot in the head by the enemy.
"Sir, they are coming up."
The second lieutenant platoon leader, with a livid face, kicked the soldiers around him.
"I've already aimed , but all those bullets have been fired in vain. You're not as accurate as the bandits! Get close and shoot. Listen to my command. Ready, fire!"
The power of more than thirty Mauser rifles was definitely not comparable to that of a few bandits' cold guns. After a burst of smoke, a large number of the bandits who were sprinting forward fell down crookedly, and the momentum of the bandits was immediately deflated.
"Quick, fire another volley of bullets!"
The young platoon leader gave orders. There were three entrances and exits to Guanzhuang. Except for a very small number of reserve troops, all the platoons of the Second Company had been stationed at the entrance of the village. If they could not stop the attacking bandits, the entire Second Company would be in danger of being destroyed.
"Attention, everyone, hide well, be careful of the bandits' sneak shots. Third squad leader, send someone to keep a close eye on them, and notify me immediately if any bandits come up."
Seeing the bandits retreating crying, the second lieutenant, who seemed to have exhausted all his strength, sat down on the ground.
"Platoon leader, do you think the battalion commander will come to rescue us?"
Seeing that the number of bandits outside seemed to be increasing, the soldiers of the Second Company who had never seen blood naturally felt a little insecure.
"Yes, of course!"
The young platoon leader held on.
"Stop talking nonsense and check the bullets and guns. If anything jams, I'll hold you accountable!"
The battle in Guanzhuang was still going on, but Ma Kang, who was coming to rescue, ran into an ambush by the bandits.
"Damn it, I didn't expect the bandits to know tactics. Give the order, everyone in the battalion, draw your bayonets. I don't believe these shrimp soldiers and crab generals can stop me."
Ma Kang jumped up, regardless of the cold weather, tore off his coat, picked up a rifle from the hand of a dead soldier on the ground, and rushed out with bullets flying all over the sky.
"Brothers, follow me!"
"I heard that this guard is the favorite of that Tu Bo Lu. I don't think it's a big deal."
Wang Shengqi, nicknamed Wang the Crazy, had fought several battles with the Henan Patrol Battalion, the Yi Army, and the Zhenhao Army. He won more battles than he lost, and he became arrogant all of a sudden.
"They set up a long snake formation, which is just right to split us in two."
"That's right, Commander."
As the liaison officer sent by the Kuomintang to the Bailang Army, Xu Angyan insincerely complimented the big bandit who had just been appointed as the commander of the front army. Who said that the Kuomintang's own military power had been completely ? Sun Wen and other bigwigs were helpless in fighting this bandit force.
"Now the enemy troops have been completely mobilized by our army. Do you think we can start attacking the enemy regiment in Chu Village?"
In the early 20th century, the people in southwestern Henan were bandits and the bandits were the people. Therefore, the Bai Lang Army's base here was far better than the guard army that came from thousands of miles away. In other words, this was also an alternative people's war.
"hold on."
Wang Shengqi looks rough, but it is not something a simple person can do to get to where he is now.
"The main force of the Beiyang Army has just left for half an hour. It's so cold, let them go a little further. Pass the message on, let the brothers take action in another half an hour and open the regiment headquarters. Everyone has a share of the quick-firing guns and foreign money inside."
Dai Jiliang never expected that his opponent was so determined and wanted to eat him up in one bite.
But the perfect plan is just a legend, and Wang Shengqi finally bit into the iron nut.
"Report, Captain Ma was intercepted by bandits, and the enemy in front of him is no less than 500 people."
What was going on? There were more than 500 bandits in Guanzhuang, and there were more than 500 bandits here besieging Ma Kang's main force. Dai Jiliang felt something was wrong.
"Order, stop advancing, send out guards immediately, and search the area!"
The road from Chuzhuang to Guanzhuang was relatively flat, and Dai Jiliang would immediately shudder in fear if a bandit's cavalry suddenly appeared from an unexpected place.
"Messenger, immediately order Captain Ma to defeat the enemy in front of him and hold on to Guanzhuang until reinforcements arrive."
"Captain, it's bad. A large group of bandits have been spotted near the regiment's headquarters."
It was another piece of bad news, but this time Dai Jiliang felt relieved.
"You want to eat me in one bite? I want to see who has better teeth or stronger defense."
Dai Jiliang waved his hand.
"Order Li Guo and several company commanders to report to me immediately..."
Half an hour passed quickly. Seeing Xu Ang take out his pocket watch and nod, Wang Shengqi raised his hand and more than 300 bandits from the bandit army, who had been unable to wait, rushed towards the outer wall of Chuzhuang shouting.
"Throwing an egg against a rock!"
Zhang Zilii had also received the report. Although the baggage company did not have many guns, the Second Regiment's most powerful weapon - the six Maxim guns of the machine gun company - had already been lined up along the earthen wall of Chuzhuang.
"Listen, no machine gun fire without my order."
Zhang Zili was not interested in the exploratory troops, he wanted to catch the big fish.
"The rest of the troops, wait until you are 50 meters closer before opening fire."
They were getting closer and closer, and even the ferocious features of the bandits could be seen clearly. Zhang Zilii gave an order, and suddenly the muzzles of nearly 160 rifles jumped at the same time. Then the officers and soldiers of the Second Regiment, without even looking at the results of their shooting, all pulled the bolts desperately, and then the second shot, and the third shot, were fired one after another.
"You bastard."
Looking at his men howling in misery in the hail of bullets, Wang Shengqi's face suddenly darkened.
"If we don't show them how powerful we are, they will think that we, the Fu Han army, are easy to bully. Come on, pull up our treasure!"
"Chief of Staff, look, the enemy has artillery."
The sound of sucking air immediately spread throughout Chuzhuang. Can you imagine what would happen if one of the two evenly matched people pulled out a knife ?
"Two-pounder (37mm) gun, these bastards!"
It was obvious that this was the spoils obtained by the Bai Lang Army from an unlucky transport brigade, but now it has become the biggest crisis for the Second Regiment.
"Don't worry, these bandits can't handle this guy. Look how close he is, I thought it was the old gun from before."
Zhang Zilii loudly encouraged his brothers, and at the same time he no longer cared about hiding his strength.
"Machine gun squads one and two, destroy the enemy's artillery immediately."
Then the clear sound of copper music was heard, and the bandits' artillery position was turned into a hornet's nest.
"Damn it, it's a machine gun!"
Wang Shengqi and Xu Ang looked at each other, and both of them had the idea of retreating almost at the same time. You know, machine guns are high-end weapons in this era, and their power is enough to destroy a regular army that is ready for battle.
Just as the two men were hesitating whether to retreat, suddenly there was a shocking shout of killing from behind the team.
"what happened?"
"Commander, it's bad, the Beiyang Army is coming from behind!"
"What?"
Wang Shengqi almost fell to the ground.
"Where did the Beiyang Army come from?"
"It seems like he just came out of Chuzhuang."
The terrified sound was like the announcement of a death.
"Bayonets, the Beiyang Army is crazy, all of them are gleaming white bayonets."
"Commander, please leave now. As long as the green mountains remain, there will be no shortage of firewood."
It's bad, it seems like someone has rushed out from Chuzhuang. Being attacked from both inside and outside, it's impossible to remain undefeated. Seeing that the situation is hopeless, the Kuomintang's liaison officer Xu Ang immediately came up with a plan.
“Go, go, go!”
"You bastard, I will definitely come back for revenge."
With this shrill scream, the battle of Chuzhuang, which was extremely disastrous for the 2nd Regiment of the Guards Army, finally came to an end.
