Rebirth from the Ashes: Rebuilding the Red Soviet Area

Half an hour later, the leader of the 83rd Division's vanguard regiment, with a sullen face, walked towards the center of the team.

"Report to the division commander, the vanguard regiment leader reports to you."

Commander Liu looked at the leader of the vanguard regiment in front of him expressionlessly, without saying a word.

Anger suddenly fell to freezing point

Chief of Staff Wei had to speak:

"Commander, no matter what, Captain Li still wiped out this group of Red Bandits."

Captain Li of the Pioneer Corps looked at Commander Liu, who was still silent, and sweat was already pouring down his forehead.

Captain Li knew too well the temper of his division commander.

If the master scolds me, it means the problem is not serious. If I remain silent, it could be fatal.

A minute later, Commander Liu snorted heavily.

Then he asked, "Have you calculated the losses?"

Captain Li did not hesitate and said directly: "Report to the division commander, we have lost a total of 160 people this time, 50 seriously injured, more than 60 slightly injured, and weapons..."

Before Captain Li could finish his words, Commander Liu whipped Captain Li with a horsewhip.

He roared, "This is a completely stupid command. A small group of Red Bandits has caused me to lose almost two battalions of troops."

"Guards, take him away and shoot him."

Commander Liu's words made Commander Li stunned on the spot, his eyes filled with fear.

Chief of Staff Wei quickly dissuaded him, "Commander, killing a general on the spot will easily shake the morale of the army."

"What's more, Captain Li is loyal to the division commander."

"Master, please consider that he has followed you for many years and has made many military achievements. Please think twice."

Most of the 83rd Division's battalion and company-level cadres were veterans who had fought with Commander Liu in battles throughout the country, and most of them were members of the Huangpu clique.

It is certain that Commander Liu is angry.

But if Liu Shizhang decided to kill his general, he would not be able to bear it.

Just as the Chief of Staff pleaded for mercy, he followed the trend.

Commander Liu raised his whip high and lashed at Commander Li again: "If it weren't for the Chief of Staff's plea for mercy, I would have shot you!"

"Next time if you lose more soldiers, no matter who pleads for mercy, I will definitely put you on trial by military law. Get lost."

Captain Li looked at Chief of Staff Wei with gratitude, then quickly turned and left.

I even forgot to salute.

After Captain Li left, Deputy Division Commander Zhang said in confusion: "Commander..."

"We have fought the Red Bandits so many times, and they dared to snipe an entire brigade with less than a platoon of men."

"This kind of phenomenon is rarely seen. There must be something wrong when things are abnormal."

Commander Liu was attracted by Deputy Commander Zhang's words and took a few steps

The senior officers of the 83rd Division watched all this quietly.

Suddenly, Commander Liu's eyes lit up: "Deputy Commander Zhang's meaning is that the Red Bandits are starting to get desperate."

Deputy Commander Zhang raised his lips and said, "Yes, Commander."

"I think the ones who attacked us this time were the remnants of the Red Bandits from our last campaign against them in Meishan."

Commander Liu nodded. Deputy Commander Zhang's words were very logical.

So he asked, "Deputy Division Commander Zhang, if you have any ideas, please tell me."

Deputy Division Commander Zhang said: "Commander, we must eliminate this group of Red bandits for three reasons."

"First, this group of Red Bandits is in the southern part of Meishan, which is the territory of our 83rd Division. We have the responsibility to defend this territory and resist the enemy."

"Second, our division suffered heavy losses in the last Battle of Meishan."

"I was reprimanded by the chairman and lost face in front of several other division commanders."

"Since this group of Red Bandits has become desperate, it means we really dealt them a heavy blow last time."

"If we take them down, we can restore the division's reputation and regain the chairman's appreciation."

"More importantly, the third thing is that wildfires cannot be extinguished, and spring breezes will bring new life."

"We recently received news that many people in nearby villages and towns are aware of the existence of this Red Army, and some have even migrated to Meishan."

“We have to guard against this.”

"I mean to eradicate the roots."

Chief of Staff Wei said at this time: "Commander, we have received orders to gather in Longyan to encircle and suppress the red bandits of Zhang's army in southwestern Fujian."

"If we pursue the Meishan Red Bandits, the higher-ups will blame us..."

Deputy Division Commander Zhang smiled and said, "Chief of Staff, you're worrying too much."

"Master, look, there are two forks in the road in front of us. The left one goes through Xinqiao Town and takes the main road to Zhangping. The right one goes through Shuangyang Town and also goes to Zhangping."

"Shuangyang Town can also directly reach the heart of Meishan."

“We can split into two groups.”

"The division commander will lead the main force to continue along the left road. We can separate some elite troops and go to the right. When we reach Shuangyang Town, we will directly attack the heart of Meishan."

"Given the current situation of the Red Bandits, I think it will take less than two days to completely wipe out the enemy in Meishan."

"We will gather in Longyan in five days."

"After our elite troops on the right have completely wiped out the enemy at Meishan, they will then reunite with our main force at Zhangping."

“Isn’t this the best of both worlds?”

Commander Liu pondered for a moment and said, "Deputy Commander Zhang, I'll do as you wish. The right flank is now in your hands."

"I'll bring a large army to celebrate your success in Zhangping"

Commander Liu did not expect that this decision would put the 83rd Division in a desperate situation.