Chapter 60: A Solitary Decision Upon the Ramparts, Overriding All Objections to Fight the Mighty Foe

Chapter 60: Deciding Alone Atop the City Wall, Defying the Majority to Fight a Powerful Enemy

Wang Lin stood alone atop the ramparts of Qingyang. The warm summer breeze swept past, yet it could not melt even a fraction of the chill in his heart. Beneath his feet, the bricks were heavy; between his fingers, the tip of his cigarette glowed and faded, mirroring the fierce clash of thoughts raging in his mind.

In the distance, the faint bugle calls of military training drifted over. That was his force—nearly eight thousand battle-hardened tigers, newly expanded and reorganized. Behind him lay the nascent, devastated Qinghuan base area, where land had been redistributed and the eyes of the common people had rekindled with hope. The telegram from the Central Committee carried a clear message: Hu Zongnan’s First Division, over ten thousand elite troops equipped with German weaponry, was marching in anger with its momentum at its peak. Avoiding their sharp edge, maneuvering into the mountainous areas to preserve live forces—this was the safest, most rational choice. Nearly all military logic pointed to this single answer: do not fight.

He took a deep drag of his cigarette. The pungent smoke surged into his lungs, only to transform into a heavier anxiety that weighed so heavily upon his chest he could barely breathe.

Do not fight? Preserve forces? And then what?

His gaze seemed to pierce through the nocturnal gloom of eastern Gansu, catching sight of the bloodshed and gore in an alternative timeline: Hu Zongnan’s First Army, its strength unimpaired after clearing the reinforcement route to Gansu, became the final straw that crushed the Ningxia campaign plan; the Western Route Army, short on grain and ammunition, deep in enemy territory alone, was ruthlessly squeezed into the desperate trap of the Hexi Corridor. Facing swarming, ferocious, and cunning cavalrymen of the Ma family clique, they fought to the bitter end in a tragic, swan-song chorus... Those were not merely a few lines in a history book; they were the blood and bones of countless loyal soldiers, a strategic dilemma that left one weeping with regret!

He must never allow Hu Zongnan's "wedge" to be driven in so easily and completely! He must never let him reorganize smoothly and emerge unscathed as a sword hanging over the northern Shaanxi Soviet area and future strategic operations!

The cigarette in his hand burned down to the very end, scorching his fingers before he snapped back to reality. He lit another. Amidst the swirling smoke, an extremely bold, almost insane idea gradually crystallized and solidified:

"Before it grows fully and while it advances in isolated arrogance, we must shatter its sharpest fangs!"

"Fight! We fight this First Division! Even if we cannot completely annihilate them, we must take advantage of their unstable footing and arrogant underestimation of the enemy to deal them a heavy blow and cripple them!"

And the justification? How to convince the Central Committee, the political commissar, and the brothers under his command who trusted him? He could not claim foresight of the future; it had to be rooted in reality, providing a convincing strategic explanation.

Wang Lin’s gaze grew sharp. His brain operated at lightning speed, integrating all available information:

The reasoning gradually became clear:

First, political deterrence, breaking the deadlock in the Northwest: If this battle could heavily damage or even repel the Kuomintang's most elite direct-subordinate First Division, it would deliver a massive shock to the various Ma warlords of the Northwest (Ma Hongkui, Ma Bufang, Ma Buqing) as well as the wavering Northeastern Army. Ma Hongbin had just been crippled; if Chiang Kai-shek's trump card also suffered a major defeat at the hands of the Red Army, these local warlords would have to carefully weigh whether it was truly worth exhausting their old capital for the orders of the Nanjing government. This would create an extremely favorable strategic posture for the Red Army's upcoming united front work in the Northwest, forcing them to cede corridors and even jointly resist Japanese aggression. This carried far greater significance than wiping out a few local warlord brigades.

Second, covering the main force, coordinating the northward advance: The Second and Fourth Front Armies were about to move north. If Hu Zongnan's First Division were left unchecked to control eastern Gansu, it would undoubtedly pose a tremendous threat and obstacle to the advancing brotherly units. Hurting them, terrifying them, and even temporarily beating them back in advance would sweep away a massive hurdle and buy precious time and space for the three main Red Army forces to successfully join forces and open up a new situation.

Third, the initiative rests with us, with freedom to advance or retreat: In this battle, the enemy is exhausted from a distant expedition while we await them at our ease; the battlefield lies within our base area, and both the terrain and popular sentiment favor us. We hold the initiative in choosing the battlefield! If we fight, we can set up meticulous ambushes, using cleverness to break brute force; if the situation turns unfavorable, we can still follow the original plan, retreating leisurely into the mountains relying on the complex terrain and mass base, keeping losses controllable. This was not a desperate gamble.

The risks were immense, but the potential gains were of strategic magnitude! This was seizing the initiative for the future of the entire Red Army!

The cigarette burned down once more. Wang Lin's gaze became resolute, instantly sweeping away his prior hesitation and heaviness. He took a deep breath of the loess-scented air, turned around, and strode down the city wall.

That night, an emergency meeting of independent brigade-level and higher cadres was convened at the brigade headquarters. The atmosphere was solemn; everyone knew this would be a strategic choice determining the destiny of the Independent Brigade and even the eastern Gansu base area.

Wang Lin did not conceal anything. First, he conveyed the spirit and suggestions of the Central Committee's telegram, while also frankly acknowledging the initial avoidance-of-war mindset held by the majority.

"...The Central Committee's considerations are for our own good, fearing that this newly shaped force of ours might be crushed. Comrades having reservations is completely understandable." Wang Lin’s voice was steady, yet his gaze swept sharply over each person.

Then, his tone shifted, and his voice suddenly rose: "However, comrades! We cannot simply fixate on our own tiny patch of land, thinking only of self-preservation! We must think of our brothers of the Second and Fourth Front Armies currently marching north! We must think of the overall pressure facing the Party Central Committee in northern Shaanxi! We must think of the future outlet for our Red Army!"

He walked over to the map, his finger pressing heavily upon the arrow representing the First Division's direction of advance:

"Hu Zongnan's First Division is Chiang Kai-shek's beloved flesh and blood, a sharp dagger thrust into our Northwest base area! If we retreat now and let it smoothly occupy Qingyang and Huanxian, what will happen? It will drive itself in like a nail. Once Hu Zongnan's subsequent forces complete their reorganization, it will link up with Ma Hongkui in Ningxia and Ma Bufang in Qinghai, tightly blocking our routes heading north and east! By then, not only will it be hard for us, but it will be even harder for the brothers of the Second and Fourth Front Armies who are about to move north!"

The cadres held their breath. Many of them had not thought this far ahead. Li Yunlong stared with wide eyes, while Huang Musheng, Zhou Zhiming, and others wore pensive expressions.

"Therefore, my opinion is: fight!" Wang Lin said decisively, his tone ringing like colliding gold and jade, "Right here in eastern Gansu, right at our doorstep, we will teach this First Division a hard lesson!"

He elaborately detailed the three points of reasoning he had pondered:

"First, forge our prestige and deter all the clowns! We must make all the warlords in the Northwest see clearly that the Red Army is not to be trifled with! Even Chiang Kai-shek's most direct and best-equipped First Division is a force we dare to fight and can defeat! If they still wish to follow Old Chiang in 'encirclement and suppression' against us, they better first check whether their own necks are hard enough! Fought well, this battle will be more useful than ten rounds of united front negotiations! It will clear away many obstacles for our next steps in the united anti-Japanese effort!"

"Second, cover our brothers and open the corridor! The Second and Fourth Front Armies are about to march north. By hurting and crippling the First Division here, we will be clearing a major obstacle for their northward advance and opening a safer corridor! This is the duty we must fulfill as an advance vanguard!"

"Third, take the initiative into our own hands, advancing and retreating freely! We choose the battlefield, we are familiar with the terrain, and the masses support us. We can concentrate superior forces, strike them along their route, and launch an ambush! Even if we cannot swallow their entire division in one go, we must bite off a huge chunk of meat! If the situation turns unfavorable, we can withdraw at any time, drilling into the mountain ravines and waging guerrilla warfare—this is our core competency. What can their First Division do to us? We have the capital to fail, but their First Division cannot afford to lose! In this battle, the initiative is in our hands!"

Wang Lin’s analysis progressed step by step, possessing both strategic height and tactical feasibility, and most importantly, brimming with the boldness and responsibility to overwhelm all formidable enemies. The cadres who had originally leaned toward avoiding battle began to see changes in their eyes, their breathing growing heavy.

Li Yunlong was the first to leap up: "Brigade Commander! Well said! What is there to be afraid of? What elite First Division bullshit—what we smash are elites!"

"Right! Fight! We cannot let them block the road for our brothers of the Second and Fourth Front Armies!"

"On our own turf, are we going to let the Central Army put on airs?"

"Brigade Commander, give the order! How do we fight?"

Wang Guangdao and Zhong Guangbang exchanged glances, seeing the determination in each other's eyes as well. Wang Lin's reasoning had convinced them. Wang Guangdao stood up: "I agree with the Brigade Commander's view! This battle is of monumental significance and worth the risk! We must fight!"

"Good!" Seeing a unified ideological stance, Wang Lin felt his heart settle. "Since everyone agrees, we will immediately report this determination and reasoning to the Central Committee! At the same time, we will instantly begin formulating battle plans, scouting enemy intelligence, and selecting the battlefield! We are going to make Hu Zongnan's First Division leave an everlasting lesson on the eastern Gansu plateau!"

Following the meeting, a lengthy telegram jointly signed by Wang Lin and Wang Guangdao—detailing the three reasons and preliminary concepts for the Independent Brigade's decision to meet the First Division head-on—flew toward headquarters.

In Shaanxi Bao'an (present-day Zhidan County), inside a crude, poorly lit cave dwelling, the atmosphere of bright lights and swirling smoke surpassed even that of the rampart where Wang Lin had stood. An emergency meeting of the Military Commission was underway here, and the core agenda revolved precisely around the choice facing the Qingyang Independent Brigade and the final decision of the Central Committee.

The Leader's fingers habitually tapped against the crude wooden table. Spread across the table was a somewhat coarse military map of the Northwest, where the blue arrow representing Hu Zongnan's First Division looked thick and glaring. He took a deep drag from his cigarette, exhaled slowly, and swept his gaze over those present.

"The analysis everyone just shared makes sense. Avoiding battle aligns with military convention and preserves the Independent Brigade's hard-earned assault force to the maximum extent. Having just gained a firm foothold in northern Shaanxi, we indeed need time to consolidate, and every combat-capable unit is extremely precious." The Leader's voice was steady, yet his brows were knitted with thought. "Wang Lin and Wang Guangdao have fought consecutive victories and their morale is high, but the troops are newly established and it is also a truth that there are many raw recruits; fewer than half of the troops are Long March veterans. Colliding head-on with Hu Zongnan's trump card carries immense risk."

Another leader nodded with a solemn expression: "Chiang Kai-shek has staked his entire fortune this time, and he is truly desperate. The First Division is well-equipped and well-trained, and Yu Jishi is no mediocre commander. Although the Independent Brigade is strong, continuous combat has taken a heavy toll. A direct head-on clash will likely... result in heavy casualties. If their sharp edge is blunted, the loss will outweigh the gain." He had to consider matters from the perspective of military costs and troop preservation.

Another leader spoke next, his thinking leaning more toward politics and the overall situation: "From the perspective of the united front, we are actively striving to win over the Northeastern Army, the Seventeenth Route Army, and even influencing the various Ma warlords of the Northwest. If the Independent Brigade can once again heavily damage the Central Army's direct descendants, it will undoubtedly massively bolster our political bargaining chips, allowing those wavering forces to more clearly see our strength and resolve, compelling them to re-evaluate the pros and cons. But conversely, if we fail, it might also fuel reactionary arrogance and add difficulties to our united front work."

One of the leaders pushed up his glasses: "The crucial point is that the three reasons raised by Comrade Wang Lin and the others—especially their foresight regarding supporting the northward advance of the Second and Fourth Front Armies and breaking future blockades—deserve our high attention. They are on the frontline and feel things most directly. If things are as they fear, retreating now and allowing Hu Zongnan to smoothly control eastern Gansu to form a solid barrier will make the situation extremely passive when the Second and Fourth Front Armies come up."

A brief silence fell over the cave dwelling, broken only by the crackle of the oil lamp and the hissing sound of cigarette smoking. The two viewpoints each possessed valid reasons, concerning the survival of an elite unit and dictating the direction of overall strategy.

The Leader stood up once more, walked over to the map, and locked his gaze tightly onto the area surrounding Qingyang. His fingers swept past Qingyang, pointed toward the general direction of the Second and Fourth Front Armies marching north, and finally landed on the region representing the northern Shaanxi base area.

"Comrades," his voice was not loud, but carried a decisive power, "I have read Wang Lin and their telegram over and over again. They are not acting recklessly; they have used their brains. They saw the risks, but they saw the opportunities even more! A strategic opportunity to seize the initiative for the entire Red Army!"

"Fighting a war sometimes requires calculating not just military accounts, but political accounts and strategic accounts!" His tone deepened, "Preserving oneself is important, but blindly avoiding battle might cause us to miss the critical juncture to turn the tables. Hu Zongnan's First Division is currently an isolated force thrust forward, and arrogant troops are bound to be defeated! If we shrink back, their arrogance will only soar, the warlords in the Northwest will lean closer to Old Chiang, and the road for the Second and Fourth Front Armies to march north will become even harder! We will be trapped and starved to death in a corner of northern Shaanxi!"

He turned around abruptly, his gaze burning like a torch: "However, if we fight! And fight well! Even if we only bite off a chunk of meat and shatter their arrogant spirit, the significance will be completely different! This is like playing a game of Go; playing a 'strong move' here might very well bring the entire board in the Northwest to life!"

"The Independent Brigade has base area support, terrain advantages, victorious morale, and commanders skilled at winning through surprise like Wang Lin. They have the conditions to fight a clever battle. We should trust their judgment and capabilities!"

The Leader's analysis stood on high ground, weighing military risks against strategic gains on the scales of history, and his leaning was now evident.

Another leader pondered for a moment and heavily slapped his thigh: "Chairman is right! Hesitating and worrying about the tail might instead cause us to miss the opportunity! This risky game is worth playing! But we must give clear instructions to the Independent Brigade: they are permitted to fight, but it must be clever and swift, without lingering in battle, and they must reserve a retreat route!"

Another leader wore a knowing expression on his face: "I agree. The primary objective should be to strike their arrogance, weaken their combat power, and deter enemy forces, rather than pursuing total annihilation. Meanwhile, our side must step up our work toward the Northeastern Army to coordinate with their actions."

Yet another leader finally nodded: "Since the pros and cons are thus, I agree to support the Independent Brigade's determination. But we must repeatedly emphasize caution."

"Good!" The Leader extinguished his cigarette butt and delivered the final verdict: "Then reply to the Independent Brigade: we grant principle agreement for them to seize the opportunity to strike the arrogant spirit of the enemy's First Division, so as to achieve the objectives of deterring the enemy forces and coordinating the overall situation. But they must bear in mind: act with caution, deploy meticulously, avoid head-on clashes, and do not pursue unrealistic annihilation goals. If the situation turns unfavorable, they must immediately execute the original transfer plan, with preserving living forces as the primary imperative!"

"Let's give Chairman Chiang a taste of 'trump card versus trump card' and clash with his elite First Division!"