The Flames of Resistance Against Japan in Jiangnan

In the imposing building of the Pacification Commissioner's Office in Jiankang Prefecture, the capital of Zhejiang Province, Commander Gu Zhutong gazed at the moonlit night sky, his heart filled with conflicting emotions.

Gu Zhutong was refined in appearance and loyal in spirit, but sometimes petty and vindictive. Because the president trusted him greatly and gave him free rein, allowing him to act recklessly, he gradually became arrogant and domineering. He favored those he liked and found fault with those he disliked, determined to get rid of them. His stubbornness nearly caused the Zhejiang army to be wiped out several times.

Gu Zhutong had been in high spirits these past two days, his joy barely concealed and often evident on his face. He should have been excited, as the plan to eliminate the remaining Red Bandits was proceeding smoothly according to his meticulously planned strategy.

Now that everything was deployed according to his battle plan, he felt an unprecedented sense of ease and joy.

This evening, Gu Zhutong was attending a grand banquet held in his honor when, just as the banquet was about to begin, his adjutant hurried up to him and presented him with an urgent telegram reporting on the state of the battle:

The remnants of the Red Tenth Army Corps, which were active in the Anhui, Zhejiang and Jiangxi regions, suddenly disappeared without a trace, and their whereabouts are unknown.

Gu Zhutong was greatly alarmed. He immediately abandoned the banquet and rushed back to the Pacification Commissioner's Office to convene relevant personnel to discuss countermeasures.

After everyone had arrived, Gu Zhutong, who had been silent for a long time, walked from the window to behind his desk. His sharp gaze swept over everyone in the room, and he suddenly asked, as if seeking others' opinions but also as if talking to himself:

Where could the remnants of the Red Tenth Army Corps who escaped be now?

"Did they scatter and flee into the deep mountains and dense forests?"

He Qi, the chief of staff of the command headquarters, who was carefully reading the telegrams sent from various places, looked up and said.

Gu Zhutong shook his head and said:

"No, the leader of this Red Army is cunning and fickle. He must have realized that we will not let him go."

He Qi seemed to understand something and said:

"Are the remnants of the Red Army hiding somewhere deep in the mountains, waiting for us to relax our search before sneaking out of eastern Zhejiang?"

"Order the garrisons in Jinhua and Chuzhou, especially the local militias between the two places, to immediately mobilize and search everywhere. This time, we must ensure that the Red Army has nowhere to escape!"

The usually gentle and refined Gu Zhutong slammed his hand heavily on the table in front of him, his icy gaze radiating murderous intent.

Shortly after the order was issued, Bai Chongxi received a phone call from the garrison in Chuzhou:

"Commander Gu, I am Guo Dehong from the Chuzhou Security Regiment. This morning, our regiment was attacked by the main force of the Red Army in the Chuzhou area and was completely wiped out."

Guo Hongde from Chuzhou shouted hoarsely on the phone, making the ominous news explode like a thunderclap in the office, leaving everyone stunned.

"Nonsense, the main force of the Red Army had already been driven into western Jiangxi. How could you have encountered them?"

Commander Gu Zhutong's first thought was whether the other side was giving a false report.

Guo Dehong hurriedly explained:

"Commander Gu, I really didn't lie. The Red Army has many mortars and a large number of light and heavy machine guns. The brothers who followed me back can testify to that!"

"Mortars? Could it be that the main force of the Red Army has infiltrated eastern Zhejiang again?"

Gu Zhutong was very puzzled. He knew that the Red Army didn't have much artillery; only the main Red Army divisions possessed mortars. But there was no sign of the Red Army returning to their bases. Was Guo Dehong still lying? Suspicious, Gu questioned him sharply:

"Since the entire army was wiped out, how did you escape? And why are you only reporting this now?"

"The Red Army was so despicable! They stripped more than a dozen of us naked and threw us into the woods by the roadside, saying that going against the Red Army was a sign of being hot-headed, and that they were just letting us cool off and clear our heads!"

The voice coming through the microphone sounded somewhat helpless:

"I didn't rush back to Xing'an until I bought some clothes from a passing farmer in the afternoon. The other brothers are still freezing in the woods."

The people in the room couldn't help but chuckle at the thought of Dehong coming out naked to rob people of their clothes, thinking to themselves:

"He's completely naked but has money to buy clothes? You're kidding me. If you're going to rob someone, then so be it!"

"I'm asking you how you escaped?"

Gu Zhutong also thought of this lame joke, and suppressing the inexplicable pleasure in his heart, he asked again.

Mo Dehong stammered:

“I was released by the Red Army, and they asked me to pass on a message to you.”

"What are you saying? Speak quickly."

"Let me tell you, the main force of the 10th Army Corps of the Red Army has returned, and they are here to avenge the defeat at Tanjiaqiao!"

Two troublesome figures flashed through Gu Zhutong's mind: "The 10th Army Corps, the 19th Division? The 20th Division?"

Which direction are they marching in?

"Wenzhou, the Red Army was heading towards Wenzhou!"

Guo Dehong said it with great certainty.

"President Gu, should we immediately contact the Wenzhou garrison to increase alert levels?"

Chief of Staff Ye Wanqi made a suggestion. Gu Zhutong nodded in agreement. The staff immediately went out to make contact, but the phone to Wenzhou remained unreachable until late at night. Sensing something was wrong, Ye Wanqi quickly arranged for a telegram to be sent to the headquarters of the garrison division stationed in Wenzhou, but the result was the same.

"Wenzhou must have been occupied by the Red Army!"

Ye Wanqi said with certainty:

"Commander-in-Chief, what do we do now?"

Gu Zhutong took off his hat and threw it on the desk, then sat down listlessly. His mind was filled with despair, as if he could see countless people who knew the inside story laughing loudly at his miscalculation and incompetence. Among these people were not only political enemies from outside, but also people within the Zhejiang faction.

He slumped helplessly into his chair, like a beast defeated in battle, while those around him, waiting to laugh at his misfortune, were his own kind who were secretly chuckling.

Upon hearing the Chief of the General Staff's question, Gu Zhutong waved his hand weakly and said softly:

"A telegram to the Commander-in-Chief in Jiujiang: The main force of the Red Army has infiltrated eastern Zhejiang again and seized Wenzhou. Please return to eastern Zhejiang immediately to discuss this important matter!"

"Order Wang Bin to lead the troops stationed at the border of western Jiangxi and southern Anhui, which were preparing to intercept the Southern Anhui Independent Regiment, and four regular battalions of militia to Wenzhou."

Gu Zhutong, as expected of the lucky koi who rose three ranks in a row, calmed himself down and issued the orders methodically:

"Telegram to Liao Shitou, ordering the two divisions of the Second Pursuit Team to disengage from the Red Army in western Jiangxi and move towards the northeastern border of Zhejiang."

Ye Wanqi considered how things would develop:

"Commander-in-Chief, if the rescued Red Guards join forces with their infiltrated main force, it will be even more dangerous!"

"A moment of compassion has led to today's disastrous situation!"

Gu Zhutong was filled with remorse:

"If I had known things would turn out this way, I should have dealt with them by force much earlier!"

"They're just putting on airs. If they could resolve this by force, they would have done it already."

Ye Wanqi found Gu Zhutong's performance somewhat uninteresting and thought to himself:

"If your wife dies, people will say you're selfless. But if your sister-in-law dies, how will you explain it to the commander-in-chief? If your captured superior officer dies, aren't you afraid your subordinates will lose heart?"