Chapter 37: Silent Interception, Binding the Dragon in the Dense Forest

Chapter 37: Silent Interception, Binding the Dragon in the Dense Forest

The gunpowder smoke from the great victory at Baozuo had not yet fully dissipated from the minds of the officers and soldiers. With the influx of honors and replenished equipment, the Independent Regiment’s strength had expanded to an unprecedented level. However, Wang Lin acutely sensed a heavy, suffocating pressure permeating the entire Red Army. The warmth and joy that had accompanied the meeting of the two major forces had long since been replaced by profound disagreements over strategic policies and growing, festering suspicion.

As an elite force directly under the command of the Military Commission and currently positioned closest to the Central Committee, the Independent Regiment was ordered to guard the headquarters and the Red Army University. Wang Lin knew the sensitivity and immense responsibility of this position. He ordered the troops to maintain the highest state of alert, but strictly forbade anyone from interfering in or even discussing the decisions of the upper echelons, insisting that all actions must follow orders.

On the night of September 9, 1935, the night air was cold as water. Wang Lin was startled awake by a rapid but deliberately muffled sound of footsteps. A courier brought a top-secret order, the handwriting hurried yet pressed deep into the paper. The order was extremely brief: "To the Independent Regiment, Wang and Wang: Prepare immediately according to the prearranged plan. Starting at 3:00 AM on the 10th, you are responsible for the rearguard and protection of the entire army. Ensure the passage remains absolutely safe and silent. Do not fire unless necessary. Keep this operation highly classified. End of order."

Wang Lin’s heart sank, followed by a surge of grim resolve. What was meant to come had finally arrived. He knew the Central Committee had made that painful and resolute decision: to head north alone.

"Political Commissar!" Wang Lin whispered, waking Wang Guangdao and handing him the order. After reading it, Wang Guangdao’s face turned grave under the lamplight. He took a deep breath, patted Wang Lin heavily on the shoulder, and said, "Understood. Execute the order."

Wang Lin found Li Yunlong alone and gave him only one sentence: "Old Li, do you trust me? If you do, follow me. I’ll explain everything to you later, or you can judge for yourself. If you don't, I’ll leave you behind."

"I don't know much else, but getting along with you, Old Lin, is comfortable and steady. I’m still the Deputy Regiment Commander and the 4th Battalion Commander, so of course, I’m sticking with the Independent Regiment."

For the straightforward Li Yunlong, silence was the best explanation; he used the trust between comrades as his stake.

The war machine that was the Independent Regiment began to move silently at high speed once again. There were no bugle calls, no clamor—only the lowered voices of officers giving commands and the rapid, orderly footsteps of the soldiers. Each battalion and company followed the plan Wang Lin had rehearsed countless times in his mind, quickly moving into designated positions: securing mountain passes, occupying high ground, blocking crossroads, and dispatching silent long-range sentries. Only after the very last person had passed through safely and soundlessly did Wang Lin breathe a sigh of relief and arrange for the troops to withdraw slowly and head north.

As Wang Lin walked, fragments of memories from the "future" echoed in his mind—Li Te, the cavalry, the pursuit, the arguments, the pain of the schism...

"They cannot catch up! And there must be no conflict!" Wang Lin clenched his fists so tightly his nails dug into his palms. Once a firefight broke out, regardless of the cause, it would become an irreparable scar in the history of the Red Army.

He turned his head sharply, his gaze sweeping over the core cadres beside him: Wang Guangdao, Li Yunlong, Chen Ahai, and Zhang Hongtu.

"Old Li, Ahai, Zhang Hongtu, come with me!" He lowered his voice, led them to a hidden spot, picked up a branch, and quickly drew on the ground.

"Look here," Wang Lin pointed to a dangerous gorge about ten miles from their current location. "'Yixiantian' (A Thread of Sky)—this is the only path for anyone traveling from the south to the north. The road is narrow, and the forests on both sides are dense. If Li Te pursues, he must pass through here."

Li Yunlong’s eyes widened: "Then what are we waiting for? I’ll lead the men to block both ends, set up machine guns, and see which turtle’s grandson dares to..."

"Shut up!" Wang Lin hissed. "Forgot the order? Absolutely no firing unless necessary! Besides, those are our own comrades!"

"Then what do we do? Invite them for a drink?" Li Yunlong retorted, neck stiff.

Wang Lin ignored him and looked at the reconnaissance company commander: "Zhang Hongtu, take your reconnaissance company and the best men from the guard company. Switch to soft-soled shoes, and bring all the ropes, sacks, and those sturdy leggings we captured! Bring the thick hemp ropes from the engineer platoon too! I want you to set up a 'net of heaven and earth' in the woods on both sides of the Yixiantian gorge within an hour! Tripwires, snare nets, pits—whatever it takes to take down men and horses without a sound! Remember, absolutely no iron weapons to injure anyone, no bloodshed, and absolutely no firing! I want them alive; I want them 'invited' down in one piece!"

Zhang Hongtu instantly understood the commander’s intention, a spark of excitement and challenge flashing in his eyes: "Understood! Commander, I guarantee we'll bag them all like pheasants!"

"Good! Move out! Be quiet and fast!" Wang Lin ordered, then said to Chen Ahai, "Ahai, take the 1st Battalion and follow far behind the reconnaissance company. Remain in hiding outside the north entrance of the gorge. Once we succeed, move in immediately to help tie them up, secure the horses, and clean the battlefield. Leave no obvious traces of our presence."

"Yes!"

"Old Li," Wang Lin finally looked at the eager Li Yunlong, "your 4th Battalion and I will guard the north side of the gorge. In case—and I mean in case—the situation gets out of hand, you must immediately seal the gorge entrance. Do not let a single person or horse pass to disturb the main force! But unless absolutely necessary, do not use force!"

"Fine, fine, I get it! Damn it, this is stifling..." Li Yunlong grumbled but firmly executed the order.

The troops acted immediately. Zhang Hongtu led nearly a hundred agile soldiers, slipping into the dense forest on both sides of the Yixiantian gorge like cats in the night. They used trees and rocks to quickly set up simple yet effective capture devices: sturdy tripwires a foot off the ground, hanging snares made with the elasticity of branches, and shallow pits filled with leaves (containing leg-binding ropes)... Everything was done in extreme silence, with only the rustling of the night wind through the forest.

Wang Lin and Li Yunlong hid with the 4th Battalion in the woods outside the south entrance, everyone holding their breath. Time seemed to stretch indefinitely.

The east gradually turned a pale white. Suddenly, the rapid, rhythmic sound of horse hooves came from afar, breaking the silence of dawn.

They were coming! Wang Lin’s spirit lifted. Through his binoculars, he saw Li Te in the lead, bringing about a company of cavalry, charging toward the gorge entrance like a whirlwind, showing no sign of slowing down. They were clearly anxious to pursue and never expected to encounter an interception here.

When the first horse neighed and was tripped by a wire, and the rider cried out as he was thrown, the chaos began!

"Thump!" "Ouch!" "What the hell is this?"

"Careful! It's an ambush!"

One after another, the warhorses were tripped, and the riders were thrown off. More men were caught by surprise snares around their ankles or bodies as they charged into the edge of the forest, crying out as they were hoisted upside down into the trees. Others stepped into shallow pits, their ankles instantly cinched tight by ropes, leaving them immobile. It was as if countless invisible hands had appeared in the forest, pulling these elite cavalrymen off their horses and pinning them to the ground.

The entire process was as fast as lightning, yet eerily quiet. There was no gunfire—only the startled neighing of horses, the muffled groans of men, the friction of clothing during the struggle, and the creaking of tightening ropes. The soldiers of the Independent Regiment, like skilled hunters, worked in pairs, pouncing rapidly to gag the men with rags, bind their hands and feet, and drag the captives deep into the forest to be tied to trees. The captured guns, ammunition, and sabers were quickly collected, and the horses were calmed and led aside.

Li Te reacted extremely quickly. The moment his mount was tripped, he rolled off and agilely drew his pistol. But before he could see where the enemy was, a giant net woven from vines and hemp rope descended from above, pinning him firmly. He struggled desperately, but the net only grew tighter. Zhang Hongtu flashed out from behind a tree like a phantom, delivering a clean, swift chop to the wrist holding the pistol. The gun dropped, and another soldier quickly stepped forward, expertly disarming him and binding him tight with rope before gagging him. Li Te’s eyes were wide with shock, fury, and disbelief.

In less than twenty minutes, the battle—or rather, this meticulously planned "silent capture"—was over. The entire cavalry company brought by Li Te, every man and horse accounted for, had been captured alive, disarmed, and bound. The Independent Regiment suffered no casualties and did not fire a single shot.

Wang Lin and Li Yunlong emerged from their hiding spot. The gorge was in disarray, but it was quickly cleaned up by the soldiers, restoring it as much as possible to its original state.

Wang Lin walked up to Li Te, who was bound like a rice dumpling and still struggling and glaring on the ground. He crouched down and signaled for a soldier to remove the rag from his mouth.

"Deputy Chief of Staff, my apologies," Wang Lin’s voice was calm but carried an unquestionable strength.

"Wang Lin! It’s you! You dare to attack headquarters cavalry! This is a counter-revolutionary act! What are you doing?!" Li Te gasped for air, shouting sternly.

Wang Lin did not get angry; he just looked at him deeply. "Comrade Li Te, I am not a counter-revolutionary. I am simply carrying out orders to ensure the Central Committee and the main force can safely head north to resist the Japanese. What do you intend to do by chasing us like this? Do you want to start a fight? To have the Red Army fight the Red Army? To make our loved ones grieve and our enemies rejoice?"

Li Te was momentarily speechless, then retorted stubbornly, "You are fleeing! This is a split! You must go back!"

"Heading north to resist the Japanese is a decision of the Central Committee Politburo, not fleeing," Wang Lin interrupted. "Time will tell, and history will provide the answer."

He stood up and ordered the surrounding soldiers: "Untie their leggings and re-tie them a bit looser so you don't hurt our comrades. Keep them guarded in this forest. Leave one man and one horse, and after we have been gone for half a day, untie one person so they can save themselves and ride to catch up to us. We will take the horses and weapons."

After finishing his instructions, Wang Lin looked at Li Te once more, his tone complex but sincere: "Deputy Chief of Staff, I’ve wronged you today. I believe it won't be long before we meet again. When that day comes, you’ll have to treat me to a drink for what happened today—the strongest liquor there is! Don't you dare go back on your word then!"

Having said this, Wang Lin did not linger and turned away resolutely: "Independent Regiment, assemble! Move out! Catch up with the main force!"

The soldiers gathered quickly, taking the captured horses and weapons, and disappeared silently and rapidly into the morning mist to the north of the gorge. Only Li Te and his cavalry company remained, bound in the woods, looking at each other in silence, the echo of Wang Lin’s final words—firm yet full of hope—still ringing in their ears.

The sun finally illuminated the Yixiantian gorge, revealing only a mess of hoofprints and signs of struggle, which would soon be scattered by the mountain wind. The Independent Regiment had completed a unique defensive mission. Using wisdom and restraint, they had avoided a potential bloodbath within the Red Army, protecting the Central Committee as they continued to march toward the dawn in the north.

Wang Lin knew that he might have only changed a trivial detail, but at the very least, he had not allowed that historic moment to be burdened with more regrets and scars.

After the fact, Commander-in-Chief Xu, upon learning of the event, thought silently to himself that he owed Wang Lin a great favor; this result was the best possible outcome.