The Missichchenko cavalry corps, which received orders from the commander-in-chief Kuropagent, attacked the rear of the Japanese army for six whole days, and did not withdraw to the Sifang Terrace until February 20. When the Russian army had little to gain from the labor divisions here, there were Japanese cavalry detachments in the rear of the Russian army, among which the Naganuma detachment was the most famous, because there were very few people in each team of the Japanese army, generally dozens or a hundred people, but there were a lot of them, so many cavalry squads were active in the rear of the Russian army, and the cowardice of the commander-in-chief Kuropagent was committed again, thinking that the Japanese army in the rear was about 10,000 people, and he actually wanted to draw away Missichko's cavalry army before the war. Under the arguments of Billy Gellinger, Kuropatkin's vision did not come to fruition.

Because Yang Rui is an outsider in the end, he has no idea when the Russian army will attack, and the order is only to keep him on standby and enter the battle at that time. So the independent army had to enter a state of alert, the second division because of the temptation to enter the city, under the efforts of Zhang Zongchang, the second division gathered a whole group, these 3,000 people are basically bearded, and a small number of bold peasants who want to work hard to come back to receive a reward - in order to retaliate against the Japanese wanted by himself, Madlidov also made a reward for the Japanese army, killing a Japanese for twenty rubles, and doubling the number of prisoners; If it is an officer, it depends on the rank, and it is at least doubled - although this award is not as high as that of the Japanese, everyone still flocks to it.

When the Russian army was waiting for the attack and the fighting spirit was high, Akiyama Haogu on the opposite side also seemed to feel something, in the Jade Emperor Temple of Li Datun, Akiyama Haogu listened to the report of Major General Zhongshan of the Third Wing of the Cavalry, and said loudly: "Have your subordinates searched seriously?" Is the army of the country of Lu just gone? ”

Major General Akiyama of the 1st Cavalry Brigade was an eccentric man. He was in his forties but bald, because he had never been in the habit of bathing, and he was still an alcoholic - before the war between Japan and Russia, he bought all his savings and brought it to Manchuria, and when he drank the brandy, he drank the local Manchurian pots - so he often emitted a foul smell, and his subordinates avoided it every time they reported, so he spoke loudly every time, and from time to time some dust fell from the roof of the Jade Emperor Temple.

"Yes, Your Excellency. The cavalry had carefully scouted. Misychenko's cavalry corps had completely disappeared. The rest of the Lu army did not move. This attack of Lu Guo should be over. Nakayama Shaozo said that every division in Japan has a cavalry wing, and the third cavalry wing comes from the third division. Because it is a large corps operation. The headquarters transferred the cavalry wings of each division to the command of Akiyama Yoshiko.

"Nani? Bastard! Lu Guo didn't stop attacking, they were preparing to attack. "Major General Akiyama is a person with a keen sense of the battlefield, and there must be something wrong with the fact that the Lu Guo army was so active before, but now it has disappeared. But now the cavalry who reconnoitred could not find the slightest evidence that Lu Guo was going to attack, and he was very angry.

"Your Excellency. Do you want to increase the number of scouts? Nakayama asked. On the Russo-Japanese battlefield. The biggest task of the cavalry was reconnaissance, and the Luguo cavalry was a reconnaissance team of dozens or more than 100 people at a time, while the Japanese reconnaissance team only had a dozen people, and they were dispersed every time, so Major General Akiyama's countermeasure was to reduce the number of Japanese reconnaissance cavalry to two or three. Major General Akiyama's concept was that cavalry was a branch of the army that was used intensively. The more dispersed the enemy, the more concentrated we must be.

"Increase." Akiyama said, then pointed to the location of the quad, "Focus on scouting this area." ”

Zhongshan Shaozo took the order and left. Nakamura Nakasa, who had been listening to the 9th Infantry Wing next to him, said. "Your Excellency, hasn't the headquarters added reinforcements yet? Last time, we sent information about the large-scale movement of the Lu Army. They ......"

"Slap" Akiyama slapped his palm on the table, and he was very angry when he talked about the headquarters. The cavalry had already passed on a lot of information about Luguo's imminent attack to the headquarters, but the headquarters was unmoved. It is said that the staff officer of the headquarters, Matsukawa Toshiyin Osa, thought that it was impossible for Lu to attack in winter, he was a native of Miyagi Prefecture, that is, a native of Northeast Japan, and he always felt that the cold of Manchuria was incomparable to Northeast Japan, and the urine would freeze on the spot, and the dung pile could not be smashed with a shovel, and the ground could not be excavated.

Judging from the habits of the Lu army, they will not make a decisive assault like the Japanese, but prefer the offensive mode of advancing with a large army, digging trenches, and pulling up barbed wire. But in such weather, they could not dig any fortifications in the ground, so they would not attack until spring. This was Matsukawa Daisa's point of view, and then the chief of staff, Kodama Yaji, agreed, and every time there was information that Lu Kuni was going to attack on a large scale, he would reprimand: "Stop talking nonsense!" Lu Guo will not attack in winter. ”

This stereotype of the General Staff of the Manchurian Army made every report of Akiyama Yoshiko be ignored, and in the end the headquarters had become numb to his report, and Akiyama Yoshiko also knew such a situation, so he had to continue to reconnoiter and then wait for it. He took a sip of the soju from the kettle and said, "We're left to defend ourselves." According to the current situation, the enemy has 30,000 men to attack, and it can be dealt with. "I can't do it," he sighed again, touching the pistol that hung from his neck with a rope, "and as long as the enemy's cavalry rushes to my headquarters, then I will cut myself." ”

Nakamura Nakasa was uncomfortable by his words, in the eyes of the Orientals, it was very unlucky to say such things before the war, he persuaded, "Your Excellency, Lu Guo is attacking us, we must wait to resist, we will definitely be able to support the reinforcements sent by the headquarters." ”

Akiyama didn't hear Nakamura's words, he just held the pistol hanging around his neck tightly, and muttered: Come on! Lu Guoren!

The wilderness of the northeast was silent in the cold, as if there was only the sound of falling snow between heaven and earth. Akiyama's feeling is correct, taking advantage of the fact that a few days ago, when Misichchenko's cavalry corps was looking for fault in the rear of the Japanese army, the Russian army was indeed ready to attack, and the headquarters of the 14th and 15th divisions of the Eighth Army had already moved to the vicinity of the Hunhe front, which was the most advanced position of the Japanese army in the Heigoutai area. This is the right bank of the Hunhe River, and some scattered strongholds are only defended by a few squads of Japanese troops, and the army commander Bradonovich is preparing to start shelling at three o'clock in the morning of the 25th, and launch an offensive on the entire front of the Hunhe River at dawn.

On February 22, the last pre-war meeting of the Independence Army, Pei Shoutong introduced the latest orders of the headquarters and the newly reconnoitred intelligence, "The headquarters ordered, our army will start to be on alert today, and the Eighth Army will launch an offensive at three o'clock at dawn on the 25th, when it occupies Heigoutai. Our army must quickly launch an offensive in the area of the three sharp bubbles......

In addition, according to reconnaissance, the Heigoutai area is densely packed with rivers and ravines, and the best route for marching is along the Leek River and the Red River. In other areas, horse-drawn carriages are difficult to walk. That is, when Russia captures Heigoutai, our army should cross the Hunhe River from Huanglatuozi to the west. The best route is to go south from Heigou Terrace to the three-pointed bubble. ”

"Can't you get over the pack horse?" Lu Mengxiong, the commander of the first regiment, said. He didn't want to take the right road, he didn't expect to take Heigoutai, and then drove straight to the three-tip bubble from the Huanglatuozi on the right bank of the Hunhe River.

Bei Shoutong glanced at him and said, "It's difficult, so you can only send a small team." Moreover, the march from this direction can only occupy the Ba Wasteland and Toupao on the right bank of the Leek River, and the best place to cross the first line of the Leek River is near Sanjianpao, which is on the left bank of the river, holding the defense line of the Leek River. Hit the leek river from the west. It's better to attack from Heigoutai's side. In this way, we can move more quickly and have more complete supplies and supplies. ”

"But from Heigoutai, we will have to wait for the Eighth Army to occupy it before we can attack. Once the defenders fled, the defense of the Three-Pointed Bubble would be increased. And according to my previous experience in western Liaoning, because of the large beard, most villages have moats and earthen walls around the village. Not to mention the earthen wall, but the trench was more than five meters wide and at least two meters deep, which was to prevent horse bandits from jumping over it. Two days ago, I went to see the Japanese position, where there is also a trench in Zhuangzi, so not to mention whether the Japanese defense line is strong or not, this ditch alone will require us to drink a pot. After Lu Mengxiong finished speaking, everyone laughed, he was familiar with his beard, and there was a gangster spirit when he spoke, and he danced with his hands.

The trench has been known for a long time, this is not the point, the point is that at the same time as the Eighth Army is attacking Heigoutai, can the Independent Army also attack the three-pointed bubble? The farming detachment in this area had a provisional cavalry brigade and an infantry squadron, but the forces were very scattered. And there is another point that is beyond Yang Rui's estimation - he has always thought that the First Cavalry Brigade of Akiyama has more than 8,000 people, but the facts tell him that this is extremely wrong, and it is completely impossible to understand the Japanese cavalry against the Japanese infantry. In fact, the Japanese cavalry brigade has two cavalry wings under its jurisdiction, each wing is only 556 people, and a brigade plus logistics personnel will not exceed 1,200 people.

Although Chen Mengxiong's mention is outside the military order, it is not impossible, Yang Rui looked at Colonel Madelidov, and now he is responsible for communicating with the upper echelons of the Russian army, and he is the one who answers the phone every time.

"There's nothing wrong with that," the colonel obviously supported Lu Mengxiong's aggressive offensive spirit, but in fact, he was still worried that the beards would not work just for money, "I will report to the headquarters immediately, and I think Your Excellency will definitely agree." ”

If the independent army wants to attack alone, it must coordinate with the Russian army, and seeing that Madlidov agreed to Lu Mengxiong's proposal, Yang Rui began to arrange the offensive plan. "It was ordered that on the night of the 23rd, the 1st Regiment detoured south from Sifangtai to Qibei Village, and then crossed the Hunhe River to the west, and must reach the front line on the 24th, and the attack began at dawn on the 25th. In addition, the 1st Division was directly under the light artillery battalion, and the cavalry battalion was placed under the command of the 1st Regiment. On the 25th, the other troops crossed the Hunhe River from Huanglatuozi, and after the Eighth Army occupied Heigoutai, they drove south to the area of Sanjianpao. ”

All the officers took the order in unison. Lu Mengxiong was surrounded by other people when he left the headquarters, and Fang Yanchen, the head of the second regiment, said, "Zhengrui, this time you have robbed the first credit." Dump us a few streets. ”

Lu Mengxiong, who grabbed the task, looked proud, "Of course, who said that I handed over the plan, as soon as Omaozi agreed, of course Mr. handed over the task to me." Hehe, I'm not going to eat with my brothers today, I have to go back to the camp and get ready. ”

Seeing that he said so proudly, Xu Jingxi from the staff office slapped him on the shoulder, "Cut, if I didn't help you come up with an idea, you guy." Your brain can make plans. It's really crossing the river and demolishing the bridge. ”

Although Lu Mengxiong is flexible in fighting, but in the face of charts and plans is a headache, in the past, when he was in Nanyang College, every arithmetic exam was copied by borrowing other people's papers, the military regulations are strict, the higher the position, the more paperwork is needed, in the case of not assigning staff officers to the regimental level, Lu Mengxiong can't get any formal battle plan, he will just have a flash of inspiration.

Seeing that he seemed to be about to offend the cowman, Lu Mengxiong hurriedly took out a cigarette and handed it over, "Oops." How could Senior Staff Officer Xu forget you, we are good brothers, and after the war, we will definitely invite you to eat and have fun in Fengtian City, I heard that there is a sister of Omaozi in this city. I've never seen this before. ”

In view of health and espionage issues, the Ba'ath Army banned prostitution. saw that Lu Mengxiong used the old jokes of the Russian Mao woman to coax people. Xu Jingxi didn't dare to give him a kick in courtesy, and scolded, "I really owe you in this life." Get lost! "He is from Hukou, Jiangxi, and many inconveniences after coming to Shanghai were solved by Lu Mengxiong, a half-local, so he has a deep friendship, but he is not really angry. Finally, he said: "According to estimates, the temperature will drop in the next two days, and you should be prepared for the night march." ”

Hearing Xu Jingxi's explanation, Lu Mengxiong nodded and wrote it down. Tomorrow night he was going to act, and he left without stopping. When he returned to the regiment headquarters, he ordered the troops to prepare and pack up, and the camp would begin at six o'clock tomorrow night, and in the afternoon, the commander of the artillery regiment, Xu Zhixuan, came over in person, Lu Mengxiong said, "Yo, Brother Xu is here, please." Huh"

Xu Zhi smiled and said, "You're welcome." If it weren't for your kid taking the lead, I wouldn't have bothered to come over. Zhengrui, I'm betting on you here. ”

Listening to Xu Zhiyu's words, Chen Mengxiong smiled even brighter, "Hehe, hehe, it's hard to say." Li Sheng, but your vision is quite good, I dare to pack a ticket, once you are bombarded, as long as my soldiers rush up, the devils on the other side will be finished. The big army is just a walk this time. ”

As soon as Lu Mengxiong finished speaking, Zheng Lanting outside shouted, "Brother Lu has ambition, if you want me to say, what are you doing listening to the big nose, they are just some cowards, and they are afraid to die one by one." Just give the little devil a knife. If you win, you will rush, if you can't win, you will run, on the boundary of Liaodong, I have not been afraid of anyone. "Although Zheng Lanting has been in the camp and has been trained for several months, he still can't change a lot of things.

The cavalry also arrived, although he was not the main attacker, but without him to cover the battlefield, this attack would be difficult to conceal, and Lu Mengxiong immediately welcomed Zheng Lanting in. asked: "Lao Zheng, have there been many devils' cavalry in the past few days?" ”

"Well, there are quite a few people coming out, and there are more than a dozen people coming from each lock, not like the rabbits that were chased away before. They are still very bright, and they know that the fight will start in the next few days. Zheng Lanting said that he is a veteran and has a lot of experience. It's just that the brothers said that the direction of their exploration was near the Sifangtai, and they couldn't find the side of Qibei Village. ”

"Well, I'll bother Lao Zheng to lead the team to cover the area from here to Qibei Village to reconnoitre, and then help explore the road, the troops will start after dark tomorrow, and it is expected to arrive in Qibei Village during the third watch." There is still some distance from Sifangtai to Qibei Village, and the march at night is even more difficult, although I have also trained at night in the cold before, but the temperature is really too low these days.

At about six o'clock the next night, when the cold moon had just risen, the first regiment advanced to Qibei Village. Lu Mengxiong was riding on a horse, he had just come out and was not used to the cold outside, and when the cold wind blew, he only felt like it was penetrating into his bones. He had to touch the second pot on his body and take two bites, and then he felt the heat spreading from his stomach.

The first regiment was short of staff, and there were only 2,600 troops directly under the three battalions plus the regiment, but now with the addition of an artillery battalion, there would be more than 3,000 people along the way. The night march was silent and the only sound could be heard except for the occasional snort of pack horses and the creaking of leather boots on the frozen ground. If you look down from the moonlit sky, the first mass of white cotton cloth is like a knife that pierces the night with a cold light.

Except for some officers in the First Regiment who were cadets, many of the other grass-roots noncommissioned officers were from the former Liaoxi guerrillas, and most of them entered the noncommissioned officer training class in Tonghua after being rotated by newcomers in October. Originally, Qi Xiaomao, who was in the fourth platoon of the guerrillas, was already a squad leader, and he could have been a platoon leader according to his grades, but he himself knew that he was two pounds, and he was only willing to be a squad leader. Even if it was the squad leader, there were many people who were not convinced at first, after all, he was too young, but after a bayonet stabbing, everyone else obeyed, not that he could fight, but that he was like a mad dog who fought and didn't want to die, which scared everyone down.

Qi Xiaomao didn't know where the destination of this trip was, of course he didn't need to know, he really wanted to know that as long as he asked the deputy company commander Zhao Dawang, he would tell him, what he wanted now was to raise his spirit, so that after the war, he would kill more little devils to avenge the platoon commander and other brothers. He walked in the queue with his eyes closed, lifeless. (To be continued......)