Chapter 57

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Protagonist:

Lv Muzhi

"Military funds? Aren't they given every month!" the Principal asked.

"Oh, Yang Ximin said wartime military funds are more than peacetime, and this part needs to be made up by the Grand Marshal's Office." Jiang Xiangyun, as the Principal's secretary, had already learned of this news.

"How much do they want?"

"Three hundred thousand rubles."

"Rubles?" General Galun became alert. Rubles were given to aid the revolutionary cause on account of cooperation between both sides; once in the hands of warlords, General Galun had to be more careful.

"The aid from Mao Xiong State has always made Yang Ximin envious; they also want a share of the pie. If they can't get guns and cannons, they ask us for rubles."

The Principal looked at General Galun: "This... Yang Ximin's Yunnan Army cannot fail to set out. The battle has reached this point; we cannot cause discord, so we can only agree to them."

General Galun thought it over. Yang Ximin's Yunnan Army numbered tens of thousands and was not to be underestimated. If the Eastern Expedition had not even begun and he defected at the critical moment, the consequences would be unthinkable.

"Tell Yang Ximin's Yunnan Army that his request can be satisfied at most by one-third; the most he can be given is one hundred thousand rubles. If he wants more, it is absolutely impossible!"

After the meeting, through communication, the Left, Center, and Right Route Eastern Expedition Armies reached a consensus, agreeing to send troops simultaneously in late February, with all three routes advancing together.

During the rest period at Danshui City, the Principal met with the Whampoa students who had distinguished themselves in the Battle of Danshui.

Chen Geng, Song Xilian, Huang Wei, Lv Muzhi, and others—all who had participated in the Storming Brave Team—the Principal noted down in his heart.

As for that stubborn donkey Huang Wei, the Principal did not criticize him but praised Huang Wei's courage as commendable.

Lv Muzhi, Chen Geng, and Song Xilian had charged into Danshui City through a breach in the city wall, becoming the first unit to enter Danshui City. Lv Muzhi even raised a red flag at the city gate to guide the assault direction for subsequent troops. The Principal proposed a commendation and promised: "After the Eastern Expedition ends, you will at least all be Company Commanders!"

As for why they were not promoted to Company Commander on the spot, it was of course because the troop establishment was insufficient, and everyone had merits, so they all had to queue for promotion.

During the time at Danshui, under Instructor Wu's guidance, Chen Geng led the propaganda team to carry out revolutionary propaganda in the surrounding villages and towns of Danshui, while Li Zhilong also led the Blood Flower Drama Society to perform in the surrounding villages and towns, striving to win the support of the local people.

The results were very good. Instructor Wu and others were very skilled at mass work. Many local residents actively identified the locations and distribution of small rebel units, indicating shortcuts when going to suppress them.

Compared with Chen Jiongming's warlord troops, the Whampoa Cadet Army had strict discipline, did not harass the people, did not conscript laborers, traded fairly, did not forcibly occupy civilian houses, and even performed plays for the common people. Such troops quickly won the love of the local people.

On February 27, the Right Wing Army divided into multiple routes, advancing toward Haifeng, Chen Jiongming's hometown and the rebel supreme leader's base.

Seeing the Eastern Expedition Army's great momentum, Chen Jiongming directly abandoned his rebel troops and fled by boat to the Xiangjiang Concession. The rebels lost their supreme commander, and their morale fell into chaos at once.

The Right Wing Army's morale was greatly boosted. The Whampoa Cadet Army advanced rapidly and captured Haifeng City in one go. Lufeng was subsequently recovered as well.

Taking advantage of the rebels being leaderless, the Principal led the Right Wing Army all the way without obstruction. There was occasional resistance along the road, but it was quickly repelled by the Right Wing Army. Counting from Danshui City, they advanced two hundred kilometers all the way, recovering countless county seats, and Chaozhou City, Shantou City, Jieyang City, and other cities were also recovered by the Eastern Expedition Army.

If nothing unexpected happened, the unexpected was about to happen.

Although the rebels had lost Chen Jiongming internally, Lin Hu on the West Side served as the rebels' military supreme commander and began to gather and mobilize troops for a counterattack.

But these were not important. What was important was that the Left Route Army's Yunnan Army under Yang Ximin and the Central Route Army's Guangxi Army under Liu Zhenhuan did not advance forward as agreed, but stopped at the foot of Huizhou City and refused to move.

Originally, the rebel Lin Hu's forces were precisely planned to be tied down by Yang Ximin's Yunnan Army.

But now the situation was obviously not optimistic. The Right Wing Army had become a prominent part of the Eastern Expedition Army. Lin Hu's tens of thousands of elite troops watched covetously, while the Left Route Army's Yunnan Army under Yang Ximin and the Central Route Army's Guangxi Army under Liu Zhenhuan watched from behind.

As for the Left and Central Route Armies not following up in time, the Principal of the Right Wing Army could certainly discover it.

But who could resist the temptation of recovering the Dongjiang Region in one go? Chen Jiongming abandoned the rebels and fled; this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, truly not to be missed.

Besides, apart from hitting a snag at Danshui City, the Right Wing Army had smooth sailing all the way, and unknowingly surpassed the Yunnan Army and Guangxi Army by two hundred kilometers.

The Yunnan Army and Guangxi Army did not tie down Lin Hu's rebels, causing Lin Hu to be able to rest and recuperate, gathering twenty thousand elite troops, preparing to attack the Right Wing Army's rear.

As for why the Yunnan Army under Yang Ximin and the Guangxi Army under Liu Zhenhuan did not advance to rescue? It was indeed thought-provoking.

Lv Muzhi had also hinted to Liu Zhi that Yang Ximin and Liu Zhenhuan might betray the revolution, but Liu Zhi was not at all surprised: "It was a matter of time, but it probably wouldn't happen during the Eastern Expedition. After all, the Grand Marshal is still alive; they wouldn't dare act recklessly."

However, what no one knew was that on March 12, the Grand Marshal had already died of cancer in Beiping that day. A bloody storm was about to unfold.

That day, the Principal and others discovered that the rebel Lin Hu was about to attack their rear. He immediately ordered the Whampoa Cadet Army to gather southward, fighting while retreating, to stand firm in the Cotton Lake area, and set up the command headquarters at Xingdao Academy in Cotton Lake.

In the Cotton Lake area, the rebel Lin Hu formed a pincer movement against the Whampoa Cadet Army.

On the northwest and southwest sides of Cotton Lake, Lin Hu's rebels were stationed. The rebels were like a pair of pincers, tightly clamping the Whampoa Cadet Army.

At that time, the news of the Grand Marshal's death had already been transmitted via radio to the Xiangjiang Region. Chen Jiongming, who had fled to Xiangjiang, soon learned of this news and began to contact the Left and Central Route Armies of the Eastern Expedition Army, hoping to rely on this opportunity to subvert Yang Ximin and Liu Zhenhuan and overthrow the Grand Marshal's Office's power in Guangzhou.

However, the Eastern Expedition Army fighting outside was not equipped with radios, nor did they have cavalry. News could only be delivered by soldiers on foot.

The news of the Grand Marshal's death was still unknown. The Whampoa Cadet Army was not prepared for Yang Ximin and Liu Zhenhuan's standing by with folded arms.

To deal with Lin Hu's attack, the Principal ordered the Second Teaching Regiment to tie down the rebels in the southwest.

The Yue Army's Xu Ji's Seventh Brigade was to go around and attack the enemy's rear on the northwest side, while He Yingqin's First Teaching Regiment attacked the enemy's front on the northwest side, preparing to attack from both sides. First defeat the enemies in the northwest, and break off one horn of Lin Hu's pincer movement first.

However, because Xu Ji's Seventh Brigade was unfamiliar with the local terrain, they circled around for half a day but could not get behind the enemy. They went farther and farther and also did not discover where the enemy's rear was.

The First Teaching Regiment could only use over a thousand troops to single-handedly block over ten thousand rebels, fighting ten with one, achieving the famous Cotton Lake Campaign.