Cai Junxian initially ridiculed the commander of the opposing Hu Lao Brigade for not knowing how to defend, and didn't even form a basic formation or concentrate firepower according to Cao's tactics. But soon he couldn't laugh anymore. The fierce attack arrow from Hongjiang was quickly met with gunfire from multiple directions in front, left, and right. They followed Cao's tactics to squat down and counterattack, but often after firing just one shot, they were hit by several bullets themselves. The soldiers immediately became disordered. Someone shouted: "There are enemies shooting at our backs and sides too!!"

  Cai Junxian is not a fool, he has been in the army for nearly twenty years. He immediately saw that the defensive formation of the Hu Ben's brigade was suspicious and must stop attacking immediately, otherwise once his own side collapsed, the consequences would be very serious.

  The result of this wave of attacks was a very ugly defeat for the defenders, with significant casualties and more than 70 deaths. In addition, there were over a hundred wounded. The enemy's casualties are not clear, but they are estimated to be small, after all, hiding behind obstacles and firing can only cause so much damage?

  Zhou Zefan saw Cai Junxian retreat in defeat, extremely angry. Although Cai Junxian was much older than himself, Zhou Zefan, who was furious and humiliated, scolded him severely before ordering him to continue the attack.

  Cai Junxi had no choice but to turn back and reorganize his troops, preparing for another attack. However, although Cai Junxi was hot-headed, it didn't mean he was stupid. He thought carefully for a moment, then ordered the division to split into three parts: two regiments would attack the flanks of the Ma Xiwu's V-shaped defensive position, while he personally led the other two regiments in a fierce charge, aiming straight for Mazhen Town.

  Cai Junxian was indeed a man of vision, quickly spotting the strengths and weaknesses of this defensive tactic, and promptly dividing his troops to exploit its flaws. His plan was simple: lead one army in a direct charge at the weak point, and as long as he could break through the bottom, this tactic would be solved, and the triangular pincer defense would directly become each fighting alone, and relying on the bravery of these seasoned soldiers under his command, eliminating these sick cat troops would not be a difficult task.

  If the commander of this battle was Xu Yuanquan or Yang Wanguo, they would definitely make adjustments immediately in the face of Cai Jun's desperate fighting style. Unfortunately, Song Xianfu and Hao Bing were both fierce generals who failed to adjust in time according to the changes on the battlefield, so the Hu Ben Brigade suddenly couldn't hold on, and the entire defensive position began to loosen up.

  Lost the frontal position that had been supported by firepower on both sides because it did not form concentrated firepower, and the distance from the enemy was quickly shortened. The soldiers began to feel tense, but long-term training made them choose to continue loading and shooting.

  However, the officers and soldiers of the Hongjiang defense team were clearly not bandits from Guizhou, their tactical level was not low, they quickly dispersed, constantly adjusting the impact point, and also based on the terrain to launch an attack against the 1st Regiment.

  The Mǎo Hǔ Lǚ began to suffer casualties, and some of the Hongjiang garrison troops broke through certain sections, engaging in fierce hand-to-hand combat with the Mǎo Hǔ Lǚ troops defending those sections. This was precisely the Mǎo Hǔ Lǚ's weak point, and they were at a disadvantage. The entire front line began to waver, and the battle situation reached a critical moment.

  Wan Yaohuang, who was directing the battle from the rear, saw this situation and suddenly became furious. He took three steps in two strides to find Song Xianfu and Hao Bing: "Launch a full-scale counterattack immediately, otherwise we will definitely collapse on all fronts, hurry up!"

  Song Xianfu and Hao Bing were also a bit dizzy at this moment, they were used to obeying orders, and when someone gave an order, they didn't care about the other person's age or position, they picked up their rifles and big knives and led people out to kill.

  Fortunately, the well-trained soldiers did not follow them in their madness. Li Dachao, the company commander of the 8th Battalion's *** Department, and Shi Yong, also known as "Stone Courage", led the way by throwing hand grenades at the defending troops. The soldiers behind him suddenly came to their senses and followed suit.

  Cai Junxian was about to make a final dash, but suddenly dozens of people jumped out from the opposite side, followed by several dozen small black wooden handles flying over. Although he didn't know what these things were, Cai Junxian clearly felt a strong sense of danger, his breathing became urgent, and his heartbeat stopped abruptly.

  Then came the rumble, continuous explosions, and the three hundred strong defense troops who were trying to break through this section suffered a heavy blow. Cai Zhuo sacrificed himself greatly, and it was fortunate that several guards pressed him down on their bodies, or he would have been blown to death by hand grenades. But he was also shaken dizzy and naturally became a prisoner.

  Zhou Ze Fan used binoculars to observe the situation ahead, and before he could speak, Wan Yao Huang of the Hu Ben Brigade kicked the platoon leader of the mortar squad: "Fire immediately, aim at the center of the enemy army in the distance, hurry up."

  The first shell landed within twenty meters of Zhou Zhenfan, immediately blowing up five or six soldiers.

  Zhou Ze's face suddenly turned pale with fright, this thing he had seen in the Japanese book, a mortar, never thought that the Hu Ben Brigade actually had such a thing, now it has appeared, what's the point of fighting this battle!

  It's all over, it's all over. I was clearly underestimating them and didn't even understand the opponent's strength before recklessly leading the team to battle outdoors. This time, it's hard not to lose.

  Zhou Ze Fan, after all, was a regular army officer, his first reaction was to order the various departments under him to counterattack on the spot. At this critical moment, he ordered a retreat, waiting for their own side to be absolutely defeated in an irretrievable defeat, it's better to make a desperate attempt and then withdraw when the opportunity arises, after all, the power of howitzers is limited.

  However, things went against his wishes. Zhou Zhenfan had seen this thing before and knew that its lethality was limited, and it couldn't compare to large-caliber field artillery. But the rural-born soldiers below didn't understand; as soon as they saw the enemy had big guns while they didn't, their biological instincts took over and they only thought of escaping with their lives.

  The defeat was inevitable, and Zhou Zhenfan had been overly confident from the start, thinking that he would definitely win this battle. As a result, not even the reserve troops were deployed, and now the defeat could no longer be stopped.

  Another team leader Liu Xuwei grabbed Zhou Zefan: "Commander, we can't beat the fierce tiger regiment at all, let's withdraw!"

  Zhou Ze Fan finally came to his senses, grasping Liu Xu's arm like a lifeline and saying: "Commander Liu, immediately organize the militia and launch a counterattack on the enemy, try to turn the tide of battle."

  "Never mind those bastards, after the battle started, they disappeared one by one. I should have let them take the lead from the very beginning."

  Zhou Ze Fan suddenly smiled wistfully and asked out of nowhere, "Lao Cai, where's Lao Cai?"

  Liu Xu looked back at the defeated army, no longer having time to chat, he hastily hugged Zhou Zefan who was like a madman and together with several other soldiers, they carried him away.

  At this time, if Yang Wanguo or Xu Yuanquan were present, due to the doctrine of "don't pursue the defeated enemy", they would have let Zhou Zhenfan go. Perhaps Zhou Zhenfan could still rally most of his troops after a frantic sprint.

  Unfortunately, the ones who have been killed are Song Xianfu and Hao Bing. The defending troops were repeatedly defeated, unable to organize even the slightest resistance. Officers couldn't find soldiers, and soldiers couldn't find officers. When they really couldn't run anymore, they raised their guns above their heads with both hands, knelt on the ground, and surrendered.

  Until the sun sets, Song Xianfu and Hao Bing, who had killed their habits, gave a hearty laugh and ordered the troops to retreat. However, they saw Wan Yaohuang leading his men to join forces with them. Wan Yaohuang was now determined to ignore his own fatigue and, no matter what, thoroughly defeat Zhou Zefan that night. Song Xianfu and Hao Bing were deeply impressed by this General Wan, and naturally listened to his plans. They immediately ordered their troops to take a short rest while assigning a company to guard the over 900 prisoners of war and wounded soldiers. The remaining troops continued to advance towards Jiang City.

  When Zhou Ze Fan and Liu Xu Yi escaped back to Jiang Shi Town, they counted their troops and found that there were less than two hundred people left. It was heart-wrenching.

  However, Zhou Zhenfang seemed to have been born with a revolutionary optimism. As he entered the town, he suddenly burst out laughing again.

  Liu Xu Yi was confused and asked: "Commander, we've come to this point, what's there to laugh about?"

  Zhou Ze Fan waved his hand and said, "You don't understand, we still have thousands of troops in Hongjiang. As long as I go back, there will be half of the people and horses left to guard Hongjiang. Waiting for Changsha to come and rescue, what's difficult about that? I laugh at Wang Zhenyu for not using clever tactics. At this time, just disguise ourselves as our army and deceive Hongjiang, can we still fight?"

  After finishing speaking, Zhou Zefan, who had been tired for a day, didn't even wash his face and went to sleep directly.

  The house leaks and encounters continuous rain at night, having just slept for a short while, Chief of Staff Yang Yusheng led several people to escape into Jiang City. Zhou Zefan saw that he was drenched from head to toe, and the dispirited Chief of Staff was shocked: "Old Yang, what's wrong?"

  "We're done for, we're done for! The TMD Flying Tigers have fallen from the sky!"

  At the time of Zhou Ze's defeat, Wang Zhenyu had already led his troops to the shore of Wushui (now Xishui), and the merchants sent ships as promised. Wang Zhenyu secretly crossed the river and then entered the city under the cover of darkness, and the garrison troops defending Hongjiang were disarmed before they could react. Yang Yusheng discovered that something was wrong and cleverly escaped with a few guards by climbing over the wall, evading the search by the Menghu Lü (Fierce Tiger Brigade), and then swam across Wushui to Jiangshi overnight to report the news.

  Zhou Ze Fan was both shocked and angry. He grabbed Yang Yu Sheng: "Don't you still have 3,000 militia? Why can't you hold on?"

  Yang Yusheng also became angry: "Commander, don't mention those bastard troops anymore. They've all turned against us and it was premeditated. Commander, those merchants must be accomplices."

  Zhou Ze Fan didn't smile this time, he looked up at the sky and sighed: "Heaven is destroying me too."

  Needless to say, not only did he lose his base, but the 45 million yuan that Tan himself had raised was also likely to have fallen into the hands of the fierce tiger regiment at this moment. He was completely cleaned out now.

  Just as they were in a state of despair, Liu Xuyi rushed in again: "Commander, there are many people outside the town, we are surrounded, what should we do?"

  Zhou Ze Fan plopped down on the armchair, took a deep breath, and with great difficulty spat out two words: "Surrender!"