In late July, after a short rest, the troops once again entered a war-ready state.
The main forces under Xue Yue's First Corps are the Central Army, the Guangdong Army, and the Sichuan Army with strong fighting will.
The troops of the 74th Army built strong fortifications and bunkers along the Nanxun Line and the De'an area. The front line blocking the enemy in the Jinguan Bridge area was the 70th Army, the 60th Army and the 4th Cantonese Army.
After the capture of Jiujiang, the Japanese 106th Division and the 101st Division, with the support of aviation units, launched a fierce attack along the Nanxun Line towards the Jinguanqiao garrison position on the Chinese frontier.
The defense area of General Xue Yue, commander of the First Corps, is in the shape of an isosceles triangle, and Jinguan Bridge is the support point of this triangle defense area.
Once the main position of Jinguan Bridge was broken through by the Japanese army, the further back they retreated, the larger the frontal defensive position became, making the defense more difficult.
Therefore, General Xue Yue strictly ordered several armies on the front line to defend to the death and to block the Japanese army from Jinguan Bridge.
On the south bank of the Yangtze River, the northern Jiangxi region is densely covered with lakes and mountains. The mountains are shrouded in rain, clouds and mist all year round. The bad weather hinders the Japanese army's advancement.
The Chinese army built countless solid positions along the hills and mountains. The Japanese army captured the positions under indiscriminate bombing from aircraft during the day, and the Chinese army launched a counterattack to retake them at night.
In the war-torn frontline areas, the Chinese army and the Japanese army repeatedly engaged in tug-of-war, with many positions fought over and over again, and rivers of blood flowed.
The tenacious resistance of General Xue Yue's First Corps troops on the Nanxun Line exceeded the Japanese expectations, leaving the Japanese 106th Division almost unable to move forward.
When the fighting on the Jinguanqiao front line was in full swing, the 74th Army stationed in De'an and monitoring Poyang Lake also mobilized urgently to build trenches and prepare supplies. The atmosphere of war was strong.
During the mobilization before the war, the regiment leader talked about the general trend and strategy to the brothers, while Yang Ling was responsible for encouraging the brothers.
"The little devils are well-equipped, with bombers in the sky and tanks on the ground. This is their advantage. However, they are short of resources, lack of food and ammunition, and cannot fight for a long time. We have countless civilians to support us and are familiar with the terrain. This is our
I hope our brothers will use our strengths and avoid our weaknesses to give full play to our strengths and deal a heavy blow to the invaders!"
"Kill the Japanese! Revenge your country!"
The brothers raised their arms and shouted, their fighting spirit was very high.
"Check the weapons and equipment and set off in ten minutes!" Looking at the brothers who were very enthusiastic about fighting, the regiment leader Zhang Handuo gave the order with a wave of his hand.
Because the Sichuan Army and the Cantonese Army were fighting bloody battles with the Japanese at the forefront, Yang Ling and the others did not immediately enter the battlefield, but devoted themselves to the intense attack mission.
Regiment leader Zhang Handuo led the first and second battalions and troops directly under the regiment to assist the friendly forces in starting to destroy the Nanxun railway line, while Yang Ling led the third battalion to take charge of the roads and villages in the defense area.
"Blacksmith, take people over there to dig out the road and dig more holes."
The northern Jiangxi region is mountainous and hilly, and the river network is closed. According to the order of the Military Commission, the roads, railways and bridges in the war zone should be destroyed in advance.
Yang Ling and others had no choice but to dig up the road, because only in this way could they stop the march of the Japanese mechanized troops and render their heavy artillery useless.
Without heavy artillery and other weapons, the Japanese army is like a tiger without its claws. No matter how ferocious it roars, its combat effectiveness will be greatly reduced.
"Shunzi, you go forward along the highway. I will blow up all the bridges. No one is allowed to stay."
After watching the blacksmith lead people to dig out the road, Yang Ling asked Shunzi to lead people to blow up the bridge.
"Vice-General, if the bridge is blown up, how will we cross?" Shunzi asked in confusion.
Yang Ling pointed to the lush mountains and forests around him and said: "From today on, we will climb mountains instead of taking roads or bridges."
Before Yang Ling finished speaking, the brothers suddenly complained, but thinking that the little devil would follow them into the mountain, they finally felt much more comfortable.
During the nearly one month of training in De'an, Yang Ling focused on training his brothers' mountain marching abilities in order to be able to better attack and get rid of the enemy in this mountainous area.
"Regimental deputy, what are our companies doing?"
Seeing that Shunzi and the blacksmith were busy with their tasks, Wang Huzi looked around and approached Yang Ling to ask about his tasks.
"You follow me." After Yang Ling finished speaking, he got off the road and walked along the path overgrown with weeds towards the village not far away.
Looking at the peaceful and peaceful village in the distance, Wang Huzi quickly reacted, sighed, and called on his brothers to follow.
This is a small village with only about 20 households. The village is surrounded by terraced fields full of crops. The appearance of Yang Ling's group of heavily armed brothers immediately broke the harmony here.
"Woof woof woof -" the dog in the village barked first.
"We've captured the soldiers! Run!"
Before Yang Ling and the others got close, the village began to boil, and someone could be heard shouting loudly from a distance.
The villagers who were still doing farm work in the fields also dropped their hoes and ran back, while Yang Ling and the others followed closely behind and entered the village.
A defeated army is not as good as a bandit, and refugees are thieves. In this war-torn era, catching strong men has always been a nightmare that hangs over the common people.
When Yang Ling and his team entered the village, the whole village was in a chaotic mess, with young and middle-aged people running up and down in an abrupt manner, trying to avoid the recruits.
Looking at the people running around, Yang Ling's face was heavy, because the order he came to carry out today was more cruel than arresting soldiers.
Yang Ling waved to Wang Huzi, who quickly rushed out with his brothers.
The villagers who were running away were quickly blocked back by Wang Huzi and others, and they all gathered in the dam in front of the village in panic.
Yang Ling jumped onto the stone mill weighing several hundred kilograms, looked down at the nearly a hundred panicked men, women, and children, sighed slightly, and spoke.
"Don't be afraid, everyone. We are neither defeated troops nor bandits. We are troops of the 74th Army. I am Yang Ling, colonel and deputy commander."
Yang Ling first reported his family name. The common people felt a little relieved when they saw that Wang Huzi and others had neat military appearance and neat weapons, and did not take the opportunity to arrest anyone.
"Sir Yang, what are you doing for your troops in our Liujiahezi?" A mature and solemn old man bowed his hand to Yang Ling and asked cautiously.
"We are not here to collect food or capture troops this time, but the Japs are about to attack, and this place will soon become a battlefield. I have been ordered to come here to inform you that you will leave here in two hours and head to the rear.
Evacuate.”
Hearing what Yang Ling said, the villagers felt a little relieved, but then a more serious problem was placed in front of them, that is, they had to leave the village.
"Sir Yang, see if you can be accommodating..."
No one is willing to leave their hometown, but according to the Chairman's scorched-earth war policy, nothing can be left to the Japanese except ruins. Yang Ling is only responsible for executing orders, and they are extremely helpless.
"Everyone, listen to me. I, Yang Ling, are not cold-blooded. Evacuation is also a last resort. When a fight breaks out here, no one will care about you. Besides, the little devils are extremely vicious. Once you fall into their hands..."
Yang Ling's mouth was dry and he began to persuade the villagers to evacuate, but many people were unwilling to leave. The scene was in chaos. Just when Yang Ling asked Wang Huzi to forcibly evict them, the old man who spoke first stood up and spoke.
"Everyone, be quiet, be quiet." The old man had a high prestige, and the villagers quickly became quiet.
"I know you guys don't want to leave. This is our root, but everyone is responsible for the rise and fall of the world. We ordinary people are not capable of going to the front line to fight the Japanese invaders like Chief Yang and others, but we can't drag the country back.
Everyone, listen to Chief Yang’s words, let’s leave first, and we’ll come back after the battle is over.”
"Mr. Liu, what should I do with the crops in the field? If they are destroyed, what will we eat in the future?"
Some young people in the village miss the green crops in the fields.
"If the crops are gone, we will plant them again. If we don't have food to eat, the government will not care about us. But if this country dies, then there will be nothing."
"Everyone, please stop sitting around and go home to pack up. Let's listen to Chief Yang and leave the village temporarily and hide outside for a while." The old man began to greet everyone to go back and pack their things.
Although the villagers were extremely reluctant, looking at the soldiers with guns and ammunition around them, they knew that they would not be able to leave today. Many women couldn't help but shed tears and turned back to the village to pack their things.
"Old man, thanks to you today, I would like to express my gratitude to you on behalf of our group." Yang Ling expressed his gratitude to the old man who knew righteousness.
The old man waved his hand and said, "Sir Yang, please stop saying that. You are bleeding and sacrificing when you fight against the Japanese. What we have done is not worth mentioning. If I were still young, I would follow you to the front line to fight against the Japanese."
"
Yang Ling's heart was full of emotions. What a lovely group of people the Chinese people are. They silently sacrificed their own interests for the interests of the country and nation, but never cried out in pain.
With the help of the old man, the villagers brought the old and the young with tears in their eyes. They turned around and left the village where they had lived for generations, with faces full of reluctance.
"Lieutenant, are you going to burn it?" Wang Huzi ran over and asked Yang Ling for instructions.
According to the scorched-earth war policy, not only the people in these areas must be evacuated, but all roads, bridges, and villages must be destroyed and burned, and the walls must be fortified and the wilderness must be cleared, leaving nothing behind for the little devils.
"The people have sacrificed enough, so the house won't be burned down. Once the Japanese are beaten away, they can come back and live there." Yang Ling sighed, unable to bear to turn this place into a scorched earth.