The Flames of Resistance Against Japan in Jiangnan

As soon as the artillery fire ceased, the bugle call sounded. Soldiers roared and surged forward from all sides, shouts of "Surrender and you will not be killed!" echoing across the battlefield. The training battalion of the 59th Regiment, the main force, charged ahead, making contact with the enemy first and engaging in brutal hand-to-hand combat.

The security regiment, stunned by the sudden appearance of cannons, resisted for a few minutes. Seeing the situation was dire, they obediently lay down on the ground, motionless. Encouraged by the veterans leading the charge, the new recruits, who had just mustered their courage, became enraged, kicking the prisoners in front of them repeatedly while shouting:

"You coward, get up and fight again!"

Upon seeing the new recruits abusing prisoners, the political commissar of the 59th Regiment quickly arranged for officers to stop them.

Based on information gathered from interrogating prisoners, the 59th Regiment headquarters learned that only one company remained in the city. Regiment Commander Ding immediately convened a meeting of battalion commanders to discuss a plan to annihilate the enemy. They decided that the mortar company would cooperate with the training battalion to attack the west gate of Huangzhou Town, while the recruit battalion would block the east gate to prevent the enemy from escaping. If the training battalion's attack was unsuccessful, they would seek an opportunity to attack the city. The engineer battalion would advance and ambush the east side of the city to prepare to intercept any enemy that might appear from the direction of Jinghai County.

The 59th Regiment covered a distance of ten kilometers and reached the outskirts of Huangzhou Town in less than two hours. The mortar company quickly set up positions, and the training battalion rushed towards the west gate without stopping. Several sentries standing guard at the gate were huddled together, boasting. When they saw the Red Army appear like divine soldiers, they surrendered without saying a word.

The soldiers surged into Huangzhou town like a tidal wave, only encountering their first resistance at the crossroads. The hastily assembled security regiment members lay prone, firing haphazardly. Under the barrage of machine gun fire, the enemy scrambled to their feet and scattered in all directions. They hadn't gone far when they were ambushed by a small detachment that had flanked them from an alley, suffering fifty or sixty casualties. The remaining enemy could only retreat into a large mansion at the end of a side alley, putting up a desperate resistance. They lined up their three light machine guns on the roof of the main hall, effectively blocking the entire alley. Due to the narrow alley and lack of cover, the training battalion suffered heavy casualties in several attacks and was forced to temporarily withdraw.

Inside the Huangzhou Town County Government compound, in a warm and cozy bedroom, the county magistrate of the White Army government was half-lying on the bed, resting with his eyes closed. His charming third concubine, like a Persian cat, curled up in his arms and begged him to put the record player in her room. The fat, pig-like old man responded half-heartedly.

Suddenly, a piercing scream erupted from the soft, gentle voice. The portly county magistrate frowned and muttered to himself:

"I just bought a new record a few days ago, how come it has static?"

A series of hurried footsteps approached, and the steward rushed in, ignoring the third concubine's disapproving look, and whispered in the county magistrate's ear:

"Sir, the situation is dire! Run! The Red Army is attacking!"

The portly county magistrate, without even opening his eyes, said angrily:

"What nonsense! The Red Army is far away from us!"

Just then, a clattering sound came, and a burst of bullets hit the roof, causing several pieces of broken tile to fall down with a clatter.

The old man shoved his concubine aside, jumped to his feet, and ran outside. He saw the street filled with shouts of people and the neighing of horses, with security guards running wildly along the street, yelling:

"The Red Army has stormed into the west gate!"

The fat county magistrate rushed towards the door, waving his hands and shouting loudly:

"Don't panic. It's just a small Red Army unit. The security regiment can easily defeat them. Don't run around. If anyone dares to run around again, I'll..."

Before he could finish speaking, he was swept into the frantic crowd. After the crowd had gone far away, the butler saw that his master had been trampled to death on the street.

The soldiers in the training battalion were all filled with rage, each demanding to be the vanguard, to be at the forefront, and to capture the enemy stronghold at all costs. The battalion commander and political instructor decided:

Organize a commando team composed of officers and regimental members to deal with this stubborn enemy; other troops should cooperate in a preemptive attack on the new recruits' camps in the city and attack the security regiments in other places.

At this moment, Third Company Commander Ma Xianyun volunteered to fight to the battalion commander:

"Battalion Commander, let me lead our company in one more charge! Although I haven't been in the Red Army long and am a new recruit, we're not cowards!"

The battalion commander hesitated, feeling very conflicted. According to the Red Army's custom, the more dangerous the place, the more party members and cadres should be at the forefront. However, if he didn't agree, he was afraid of dampening the enthusiasm for the new notice.

Sun Daniu jumped out again, stood next to Company Commander Ma, and shouted loudly:

"Comrades, before, we joined the army just to get a living, and we were often oppressed by our superiors; now that we're in the Red Army, officers and soldiers are equal, and we eat the same food as our superiors. If you eat human food, you have to be willing to risk your life for others. Those who are willing to be at the forefront, come on over!"

One, two, more and more people came out. Company Commander Ma Xianyun waved his hand, picked up a machine gun, and led the charge in. The other soldiers hesitated for a moment, then followed closely behind the company commander, braving the hail of bullets, and thrusting at the enemy like sharp swords. The battalion commander of the training battalion hurriedly ordered machine gun cover. In an instant, shouts of killing and gunfire mingled together, frightening the enemy who were hiding in the courtyard.

At this moment, the mortar company also arrived. They quickly set up their guns and, without even testing them, fired five or six shells from the two guns. The courtyard was shrouded in smoke. Taking advantage of the situation, the 3rd Company assault team launched a fierce attack and managed to break open the gate of the mansion.

The soldiers shouted as they fought:

"We are the Red Army! Surrender and you will not be killed!"

"The Red Army treated prisoners of war well!"

With nowhere else to turn, the security guards laid down their weapons and surrendered.

As more and more Red Army soldiers stormed into the city and fewer and fewer enemies resisted, the gunfire gradually subsided. The soldiers escorted a large number of prisoners and counted the various weapons they had captured.

After the battle began, Ding Fujiang sensed something was wrong. The enemy's resistance was quite tenacious, and the gunfire couldn't possibly be from just one company. When they saw the count of prisoners, the officers of the Second Regiment broke out in a cold sweat: more than three hundred people!

It turned out that the security regiment battalion commander rushed to the ferry to surround and attack the Red Army because he knew that the regimental commander who led the troops out to suppress the Red Army would return, and he privately thought that he did not want the other party to steal his credit.

Fortunately, the 59th Regiment happened to catch a good opportunity when attacking the city. It turned out that this battalion of the security regiment had also just entered the city. The regimental commander, who was leading another battalion and the supply train behind, was in a good mood because he had been commended and rewarded by his superiors for his meritorious service in suppressing the Red Army. He promised to give the regimental soldiers half a day off. When the battle started, many of the regimental soldiers were strolling around the streets in groups. At that time, the officers could not find the soldiers, and the soldiers could not find the officers. When they finally found them, they found that many of them did not carry guns!

Ding Fujiang was filled with lingering fear. If the attack had started half an hour earlier, if the security regiment hadn't disbanded, and if the recruit camp hadn't launched its attack earlier, this battle would have undoubtedly resulted in heavy losses for the 59th Regiment (Training Regiment), leaving it utterly demoralized. In that case, the division commander wouldn't have just assigned him to be a cook...