Continuous rain enveloped the vast land, as if it never stopped. The water network in Jiangsu was already closed. In just half a day, many areas turned into a swamp.
The officers and soldiers of the Jiangsu Northern Corps have been ordered to move into rural areas. Large paddy fields and rivers have cut the land into pieces, and the brothers can only walk in columns on the field foundations.
The Northern Jiangsu Corps has hardly been separated since its establishment. It has always fought in the vast area between Gaoyou and Huaiyin under the command of Yang Ling.
But this time, the troops had to disperse into the countryside to engage in mobile warfare and guerrilla warfare. Seeing the brothers wearing cloaks and raincoats heading into the rain and fog in different directions in groups, Yang Ling felt particularly complicated.
When the Japanese invaded with heavy troops, they originally wanted to block the enemy at the preset positions in the area south of Jieshou, just like last winter, to crush the Japanese attack.
However, the plan failed to change. The Japanese came out in force, their strength was too strong, and the southern defense quickly fell, forcing the Northern Jiangsu Corps to make the decision to move to the countryside.
Now that the troops are dispersed into the countryside, the Japanese will definitely not give up and will also enter rural areas to encircle and suppress them.
It is conceivable that although the dispersed battalions can rely on the vast space to carry out maneuvers and operations, they also face more severe tests.
Whether it is the relationship between the local military and civilians, the supply of food and ammunition, or the treatment of the wounded, these are all difficult problems they need to face, which test the commander's command ability and the brothers' ability to endure hardship.
But Yang Ling also believes that if the brothers can survive this difficulty, they will become stronger, gradually mature, and become true veterans of hundreds of battles.
Groups of officers and soldiers marched in despite the rain, and many civilians carried packages on their backs and walked in the mud, silently marching into the countryside with the troops.
The cruelty of the Japs has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and many people also know that when the little Japs go crazy, they will not leave humans or animals alone.
Although the little devils are now carrying out solemn operations in occupied areas, the main targets are guerrillas and the Chinese regular army, and they no longer kill ordinary people like they do on the front line of the front battlefield.
However, dogs cannot change their habit of eating shit, and the evil deeds of the Japanese are still reported from time to time. No one can guarantee whether the Japanese will become angry and attack the people again without finding the guerrillas this time.
Although Yang Ling wanted to move all the people in Baoying to a safe place, his current strength was limited. Even if he moved, there would not be enough food to supply these people.
Therefore, they did not force the people to evacuate. They just mobilized the people in Baoying City as much as possible to go north to Huaiyin, controlled by the guerrillas, to take temporary refuge, or to go to the countryside to join relatives, and then go home after the storm was over.
Some people who had witnessed the atrocities of the Japs packed their bags and moved in with the troops, or went to the countryside to escape temporarily.
However, a considerable number of people still did not evacuate Baoying, and Yang Ling did not force them to evacuate.
Yang Ling didn't believe that the Japs dared to massacre the people of Baoying despite the injustice of the world. If the Japs dared to massacre the people of Baoying on a large scale, Yang Ling also left a message to warn the little Japs.
That is, if a commoner in Northern Jiangsu dies under the knife of a Japanese soldier, their Northern Jiangsu Corps will not give up. They will kill every Japanese soldier in revenge until all the Japanese are killed. Their Northern Jiangsu Corps will do what they say.
"Sir, let's leave then. We will definitely follow your orders and beat the Japanese hard while preserving ourselves!"
Outside Baoying City, groups of brothers lined up into the rain. On the roadside, the battalion commanders all said goodbye to Yang Ling one after another.
They used to fight side by side and live and die together, but now they have to go out and fight alone.
In these turbulent years, no one knows what will happen tomorrow, and no one knows what will happen the next time we see each other.
Every separation during the war years was like a separation between life and death, and the brothers were all in a very depressed mood.
"You must lead your troops and attack the Japanese in all possible ways. If you have any difficulties, please send someone to tell me. I will try my best to help you."
Yang Ling felt reluctant to see the troops leaving one after another, but he also knew that if he didn't let these young eagles fly, they would never be able to soar into the sky.
"Fight well, I'm waiting for news of your victory."
Seeing the depressed mood of his brothers, Yang Ling forced out a smile and patted their shoulders to comfort them one by one.
"Sir, don't worry. We will never embarrass the North Jiangsu Corps, nor will we embarrass our ** people!" The battalion commander and deputy battalion commanders said, raising their hands in unison and saluting Yang Ling in the rain.
"Okay, I look forward to the day when we meet up!" Yang Ling also raised his hand in return.
"Sir, take care!"
"Take care, brothers!"
After a brief farewell, the battalion commanders got on their horses one after another, their horses' hooves splashing muddy water, and they and their troops disappeared into the rain.
Yang Ling sent away the battalion commanders and their brothers one by one, leaving only the brothers from the fifth battalion and the commander's guard company behind.
Yang Ling and the general headquarters of the Northern Jiangsu Guerrilla Corps will also evacuate to the vicinity of Liubao Town to hide, and the general commander will act together with Liu Zhi's fifth battalion.
"Sir, can we leave?"
Seeing that all the battalions had left, Liu Zhi, commander of the fifth battalion, came over wearing a raincoat to ask for instructions.
Yang Ling withdrew his gaze, nodded and said, "Order the troops to move towards Liubao Town."
"Yes!" Liu Zhi, commander of the fifth battalion, responded and ran into the rain and fog to shout.
"The first company will follow the guide to open the way, the second company, the third company and the machine gun company will set off in sequence, and the fourth company will be responsible for the rear... Let's go!"
Soon, the assembled brothers of the fifth battalion, under the shouts of the officers, lined up and turned in the direction of Liubao Town.
"I'm really unwilling to accept it. We've just laid down the treasure and haven't warmed up to it yet, so we have to hand it over to the Japanese." Staff officer Lei Xiong looked back at the city gate where the crowd of farewell people were standing, and sighed heavily.
"This is called retreat in order to advance, so let's let the little devils fight for a few days. After all, this treasure still belongs to us Chinese, and we will fight back sooner or later!" Staff officer Liu Sheng clenched his fists and agreed.
"Yes, Lao Liu is right, we will fight back sooner or later."
Seeing the people seeing off the people standing in the dark in the heavy rain, Yang Ling's mood was particularly complicated.
They captured Baoying this time, and the people in the city cheered and celebrated their recovery of Baoying.
However, instead of bringing peace and tranquility to the people, they attracted Japanese bombings, causing countless casualties to the people, and now they have to evacuate again.
I'm afraid the people in Baoying City are now extremely disappointed with their Northern Jiangsu Corps. Yang Ling thought this, and he shook his head and sighed. He couldn't help the people in Baoying who were full of expectations.
"Sir, telegram from theater headquarters."
Just when Yang Ling was in a low mood, staff officer Du Jiang ran over wetly, took out a telegram from the raincloth package and handed it to Yang Ling.
"The theater commanders asked us to defend Baoying, hold off the Japs, wait for friendly forces to encircle them, and annihilate the Japs... What should we do?" Staff Officer Du Jiang looked at Yang Ling solemnly and asked.
Yang Ling thought for a while and said: "Call back to the officers. Our troops are exhausted from the continuous battles and it is really difficult to withstand the Japanese onslaught. In order to avoid greater casualties, we have temporarily retreated to avoid their sharp attack and evacuate Baoying. I hope all officers will understand clearly."
"But this is disobedience. If the officers are angry..." Du Jiang did not say the next sentence, but Yang Ling could guess it.
"I will not accept your orders. The officers do not know the situation on the battlefield. I, the commander-in-chief, know that I am responsible for the lives of my brothers. You can go and call me back. If anything happens, I will be responsible for it."
"yes."
Although staff officer Du Jiang still wanted to say something, seeing Yang Ling's firm attitude, he finally hesitated and turned around to call back.