Let’s not talk about the flaws in Xu Rui’s strategic concept. Let’s temporarily turn our attention back to the center of this storm, Jiujiang.
Xu Rui was worried that Zhao Baishi would not listen if he randomly sent someone to notify him, so he quickly had someone carry him to the dock.
Seeing Xu Rui, Zhao Baishi rushed forward and said repeatedly: "Captain Xu, why are you up here? It's dangerous here. Get Commander Xu down quickly."
Zhao Baishi said this last sentence to the two Sichuan Army veterans who were carrying the stretcher.
When the two Sichuan Army veterans were about to lift Xu Rui and leave, they were stopped by Xu Rui.
"Captain Zhao." Xu Rui stopped the two Sichuan Army veterans, stared at Zhao Baishi and said, "Do you believe me?"
"Believe it, believe it, of course I believe it. As long as it's Commander Xu, I believe it all!" Zhao Baishi nodded repeatedly. Indeed, if he had doubts before, now with the recovery of Jiujiang, there is only a trace of doubt. It has long since disappeared, and Zhao Baishi now admires Xu Rui's judgment to the point of admiration.
Xu Rui said: "Very good, since you believe me, then order a retreat immediately!"
"Sure!" Zhao Baishi really listened to Xu Rui, turned around and shouted, "Send my order and the first battalion will withdraw from the battle immediately!"
The 1st Battalion of the Sichuan Army, which was fighting fiercely with the Japanese troops on the pier, immediately turned around and retreated all the way to the north gate of Jiujiang City. Half of the 6th Battalion of the Japanese Navy who returned from the Madang Fortress wanted to take advantage of the victory and pursue them, but the result was the opposite. The Sichuan Army launched a counterattack outside the north gate of Jiujiang and lost nearly half of the squadron in an instant.
After all, these prisoners of war in the Sichuan Army are all veterans of hundreds of battles. Whether they are prisoners of war from the Guangdong Army or Sichuan Army prisoners of war, they basically came all the way from the Battle of Songhu, the Battle of Nanjing, and the Battle of Xuzhou. I dare not say that they came from the mountains of corpses and seas of blood. He crawled out, but at least he waded through the bloody water.
What's more, the Sichuan Legion also has five Wolf Fangs to help out.
Especially Leng Tiefeng, who killed more than 20 Japanese soldiers by himself!
After repelling the pursuit of the 6th Japanese Marine Corps, Zhao Baishi followed Xu Rui's suggestion and left four battalions composed of Cantonese prisoners of war at the north gate, responsible for blocking the 6th Japanese Marine Corps, and then took the remaining three Sichuan military battalions with him. , turned around and headed straight for Jiujiang Station outside the west gate. On the way, they also collected the three infantry companies that had just been left to clean the battlefield.
Zhao Baishi had just led the main force of the Sichuan Army to arrive outside the west gate when the commendation from the Military and Political Department arrived.
After listening to Xiao Taohong read out the promotion order and commendation order issued by the Ministry of Military Affairs, Zhao Baishi's face instantly turned red.
The leader! Damn it, I was actually promoted to regimental commander, and directly promoted to major of the 6th Army!
Li Sijin, Hou Zhigang, and Xue Laoyao were also very excited, because the commendation order issued by the Ministry of Military and Political Affairs was much more specific than the one dictated by Chairman Chiang Kai-shek. Chairman Chiang only mentioned Zhao Baishi, but the commendation order issued by the Ministry of Military and Political Affairs mentioned Li Sijin and his four acting battalion commanders were also considered for admission, and they were all promoted to lieutenant colonels and battalion commanders and promoted to captains of the Sixth Army.
Oh yes, there are also bonuses. Each of their four battalion commanders will be awarded a thousand legal coins!
At this moment, Zhao Baishi and the four of them felt like they were in a dream, everything was so unreal.
Especially Xue Lao Yao. Two hours ago, he was a prisoner of war, and he didn't know how many days he could survive. But now, not only has he regained his freedom, but he has also transformed from a small platoon leader to a battalion commander. It’s actual teaching! Not only that, the wife of the family can also get a large bounty!
There is no greater change in life than this!
After Xu Rui read the telegram, he had to accept Chairman Chiang's method of winning over people's hearts. In this way, Chairman Chiang can stand out from so many warlords in modern China and become the first person to formally unify China. It's not a fluke. If nothing else, his method of winning over people's hearts is very powerful.
Xu Rui had previously thought of pulling this unit back to Damei Mountain after the battle in Jiujiang was over.
Now it seems that this idea is destined to fail. Even if this army is still there after the Battle of Jiujiang, Xu Rui will not be able to take them away. You only need to look at the expressions of Zhao Baishi and the others to know this. At this moment, it was obvious that Zhao Baishi and the others were determined to serve Chairman Chiang until death.
But Xu Rui never thought of trying to expose Chairman Chiang.
Because Chairman Chiang's intention was completely consistent with his original intention.
The reason why Chairman Chiang reuses and rewards Brother Zhao Baishi so much is, on the one hand, to reward the meritorious soldiers, and on the other hand, it is also to exchange for their service, because whether the National Army can gain anything next depends on the 799th Regiment. Can Jiujiang be defended? If the 799th Regiment cannot defend it, then everything is an illusion.
Before leaving the city, Zhao Baishi called all the brothers in the regiment together and gave them a lecture.
"Brothers, I won't say any more unnecessary words." Zhao Baishi's stern eyes swept over the more than 1,200 Sichuan Army veterans one by one, and then said, "Since the day we were kicked out of Sichuan, we no longer regard ourselves as We are all alive, we have all died three times in the Battle of Songhu, the Battle of Nanjing and the Battle of Xuzhou!"
More than a thousand veterans of the Sichuan Army, wearing tattered military uniforms and ill-fitting rubber-soled cloth shoes, were silent.
These rubber-soled cloth shoes were stripped from the captured Japanese soldiers. As for the leather shoes of the Japanese soldiers, they belonged to the officers.
Zhao Baishi continued: "We have all died three times. This life is in vain. Chairman Chiang and the National Government think so highly of us, so there is only one thing left for us, that It's like a dog's business. If you kill one, you'll make a profit. If you kill two, you'll make a profit. If you accidentally kill three of them, you'll make a lot of money!"
More than a thousand veterans of the Sichuan Army laughed loudly when they heard this, but a strange chilling atmosphere filled the air among the laughter.
From Zhao Baishi's lecture, every Sichuan Army veteran has already felt that a fierce battle is about to take place!
Zhao Baishi took a deep breath, flipped the military cap on his head to his feet, and shouted sternly: "Brothers, listen to my order and knock down that stupid Jiujiang Station!"
"Fuck the dog to death!"
"Fight with the little devil!"
"It's my son's fault, let's fight!"
"Dear me, count me in!"
More than a thousand veterans of the Sichuan Army immediately started shouting and shouting. Zhao Baishi raised the box cannon and fired it forward. More than a thousand Sichuan Army soldiers immediately rushed out of the city like a flood that had burst the embankment.
Xu Rui's stretcher was carried by Han Feng and Zhuan Shanbao, who also followed him out of the city.
Leng Tiefeng followed the stretcher and said to Xu Rui: "The morale is pretty good."
Xu Rui shook his head and said: "Writing in a war depends not only on morale, but also on strength in the end."
Leng Tiefeng nodded and said, "Old Xu, honestly speaking, how confident are you in fighting the battle at Jiujiang Station?"
"I don't know." Xu Rui shook his head and whispered, "I don't know how many Japs there are in Jiujiang Station, nor do I know when the little Japs like Yoshimoto Seiichi will be able to come back for reinforcements. I don't even know what it's like outside now." The situation is like this, how do I know how confident I can be at Jiujiang Station?"
After a pause, Xu Rui continued: "But one thing is certain! That is, if we don't attack the station, we will definitely die. We will soon be surrounded and annihilated by the devils who are crazy to come back for reinforcements. If we attack the station, , there is still a glimmer of hope, so even if there is only one chance in ten thousand, this battle must be fought!"
Leng Tiefeng's expression changed slightly and he said, "Old Xu, you are really desperate."
"Desperately?" Xu Rui said suddenly, "Fighting is meant to be desperate."
(Dividing line)
At the same time, the long-range bomber taken by Itagaki Seishiro took off from the Kaga aircraft carrier. After a long flight of more than two hours, it finally arrived over Anqing.
The captain piloting the plane slowly lowered the bomber's flight altitude, then turned to Seishiro Itagaki, who was sitting in the co-pilot's seat, and said: "Your Excellency, Commander, we have arrived in Anqing!"
"Yoshi." Itagaki Seishiro took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, "Then let's get started."
"Hai!" The captain paused heavily, then turned around and gestured, and the machine gunner in the middle of the cabin opened the door with force. Once the door was opened, the air in the cabin leaked wildly due to the pressure difference, and some The knitted pieces that were not fixed immediately began to fly in the air.
Itagaki Seishiro composed himself and walked to the cabin door holding the handrail.
It was a rainy day, and when I looked out through the hatch, I could see nothing but white.
Although Itagaki Seishiro is known as the courage of the Army, it is absolutely false to say that he is not afraid at all at this moment.
Although the height has been reduced to one thousand meters, parachuting is very dangerous for the technology of this era. The accident probability of high-altitude skydiving in this era is basically the same as that of wingsuit flying in later generations, as high as more than 20%. , which means that for every five people who skydive, one will be killed.
During World War II, the survival rate of airborne troops was less than 60%! Of course, a considerable number of these paratroopers did not die from parachute malfunctions, but were shot and killed by German troops on the ground during the landing process. However, this terrifying survival probability is enough to show how dangerous high-altitude parachuting is in this era!
So it is absolutely false to say that Itagaki Seishiro is not afraid at all.
But no matter how scared he was, Itagaki Seishiro had to jump down.
Gritting his teeth, Itagaki Seishiro closed his eyes, jumped forward, and flew out of the hatch.
Once he flew out of the cabin door, Itagaki Seishiro was no longer afraid. When he opened his eyes, he saw clouds and mist all around. Everything in front, back, left, right, up and down was completely blurry. Only the whistling wind kept pouring into his mouth and ears, making it difficult to breathe. It was difficult. Itagaki Seishiro estimated that he had already reached a certain height, so he opened the parachute.
With good luck, the parachute opened smoothly, and the figure that was falling rapidly was immediately reduced.
After falling for more than a minute, the clouds and mist below began to fade, and then an ancient city began to reveal its huge outline. (To be continued.)