The night is as quiet as water, various insects in the grass are chirping slightly, and the lights of the Hongji County Headquarters are bright all night long. This will be another sleepless night.
It was almost two o'clock in the morning, but Li Weidong's eyes were still staring at the military map in front of him. This was a detailed map of Vietnam, with the enemy's blue and his own red marks intertwined on it.
Since the Hainan Army attacked French Vietnam, Li Weidong has not slept for several days. This can be said to be the brain of the Hainan Army. Every military action order of the Hainan Army comes from here, so Li Weidong has a heavy burden.
The situation on the battlefield is ever-changing, and Li Weidong cannot guarantee that the plan will be able to keep up with the changes. He just wants to do his best to win this battle.
The telegraph operator on duty nearby yawned and forced himself to receive the telegram. The ticking sound of telegrams continued one after another.
Gao Yi led the aides of the headquarters to constantly sort out the intelligence gathered from the front lines, and the military markings on the map were constantly changing accordingly.
Li Weidong gently rubbed his temples to relieve his sleepy spirit. Then he touched his pocket and took out a pack of cigarettes, took out one and lit it, took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
There is a saying that cigarettes are the best medicine for men to relieve stress, and now Li Weidong deeply understands the meaning of this sentence.
According to the plan deployed by the headquarters, the Hainan Army's 50,000 troops were divided into three groups.
The North Route Army is the first division of Jiang Tao's Hainan Army. After rushing to support the air force base, they will want to attack southward and conquer Nava County and Yen Bai County northwest of the capital of Vietnam.
Now the First Division has arrived in the Gaoping County area. The battle report of the capture of Gaoping has been transmitted. It is planning to encircle and annihilate the French infantry brigade. It can be expected that they will be unable to escape under the siege of the First Division.
The Second Division of the Hainan Army led by Wang Shanhu was the Middle Route Army. With the cooperation of the North Route Army, it mainly attacked Beijiang County in order to tear apart the French defense line built around the Red River.
The Second Division of the Hainan Army, led by Wang Shanhu, went straight to Beijiang County. It could be said that it was invincible along the way. In just two hours, it captured Maoxi County along the way, and then marched to Beijiang City.
However, the French stationed two divisions of regular troops in Bac Giang County, as well as a larger number of miscellaneous Vietnamese indigenous soldiers. Counting them together, the total number exceeded 30,000.
In this regard, Wang Shanhu was not sure of victory. Out of caution and caution, he ordered the construction of defensive positions under Jiangbei City, and instead of attacking, he waited for the North Route Army going south to encircle Beijiang County.
Compared with the North Route Army and the Central Route Army, the Third Division of the South Route Army led by Zhang Qihong was purely a gangster. Their mission was to drive the troops to Haiphong Port and fire a few cannons at them to trap the French soldiers inside.
Just stay inside.
There were not many French army troops stationed in Haiphong Port, but they suffered huge losses after being indiscriminately bombed by the Hainan Air Force.
Now they are relying on solid fortresses to block the pace of the Hainan Army. They have more than enough self-preservation but insufficient offense. The Hainan Army did not storm the Haiphong Port, so they burned incense.
"General! Navy Commander Zhao sent news that they have found the remaining French fleet!" Gao Yi brought a telegram.
"Huh?! Very good! Send an order to Zhao Yujian and ask him to report on the battlefield situation at any time!" Li Weidong's eyes narrowed, his face became serious, and then he said.
Li Weidong looked up at the night sky outside the window. The cold moonlight covered the dusk. He casually put out the burned cigarette butt: "At this time, the French army in Gaoping County should be solved!"
Jungle battlefield in Gaoping County.
Another whole day passed, and the French army attacked Highland 237 again and again, but the Hainan special operations soldiers remained as solid as a rock, motionless as a mountain, and the battlefield was firmly in their hands.
One of the battles was at a critical juncture, and the frontier battlefield changed hands again. If Niu Meng hadn't brought the only soldiers transferred from the air force base to support him, the position might have been lost.
The battle became more and more intense towards the end. The French artillery fire completely plowed up the soil on the top of Hill 237, and the special operations soldiers gradually suffered huge casualties.
As night fell, the fighting on Highland 237 ceased before the last ray of sunset. Both sides were licking their wounds at this time.
The battle has reached this point, and both sides are holding on with breath. The French regular army of a thousand people also joined the battle, and the pressure on the special operations soldiers suddenly increased.
In the trench, Wu Qiang looked up at the night sky. The cold moon hung in the sky, reflecting the night. As defenders of Position 237, the air force base was behind them, and they must not retreat.
Back in the trench, the comrades enjoyed this moment of tranquility. Soon, two soldiers carried a basket of cans and distributed them to them one by one.
After taking the two cans, a soldier casually pulled out a bayonet from the holster on his waist. There was some blood on the bayonet, which was left by a French soldier.
With his chest pressed against his back due to hunger, he wiped the blood stains from the bayonet on his clothes regardless of whether it was done or not, then opened the lid of the can and started eating.
As for why they ate canned food? No one was cooking? Didn't they see "cook chief" Wang Tiezhu next to them? Didn't they see that guy chewing canned food too?
In the Hainan Army's recruitment and training system, no matter what type of service they are, they must receive training in the new military camp. Maybe they are not as powerful as the special operations soldiers, but they can still deal with these inferior Vietnamese indigenous soldiers.
Wu Qiang was also chewing on canned food. This kind of food, which is a mixture of grains and minced fish, has a fishy smell, and the taste is really unflattering.
If he could eat meat-flavored food a few years ago, he might have been ecstatic. But after chewing on this kind of canned food for a long time, he would feel bored no matter how much he liked it.
After eating all the food in the can, Wu Qiang cut the can open with a dagger, folded it into a prickly triangle, and threw it out of the trench.
This method can prevent enemy night attacks. It was accidentally discovered by a soldier and spread among the Hainan Army.
Cans with spikes are difficult to find at night, and the Vietnamese soldiers cannot be wearing leather boots. The spikes can easily puncture or scratch their feet. Moreover, the inside of such cans is hollow, making it difficult to detect them in the dead of night.
When it is accidentally touched, the sound is very loud.
While Wu Qiang and the others were eating, a storm was brewing in the French position under the hill.
Since Ruan Wen came back from the French commander, his face had been extremely gloomy, and then he called a close aide over and gave some instructions in his ear.
Afterwards, the Vietnamese officers who were standing on the same front as Nguyen Van quietly prepared. There was a different feeling in the French camp.
"You guys follow me to the headquarters!" With a calm face and stroking the handle of the gun, Ruan Wen led his followers to the French brigade commander's headquarters.