To annihilate Li Yuanhong's troops, the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army dispatched the fully equipped and fully staffed 104th Division. The organization of the 104th Division was a "traditional" four-four system unit. In this infantry division, which would serve as a model in the future, Chen Ke surprisingly abolished the brigade level. A division had four directly subordinate infantry regiments and one artillery regiment. Each infantry regiment had four infantry battalions, one infantry battalion had four infantry companies, and so on; each company had four platoons, and each platoon had four squads. The total number of officers and soldiers in the 104th Division was as high as 21,000, four times that of Li Yuanhong's subordinates.

Fighting with the Hubei New Army yesterday day and night was the 2041st Regiment, the 1st Regiment of the 104th Division. All their officers and soldiers had fully realized firearms equipment, with a rifle in every hand. The total number of the 1st Regiment was as high as 4,000, comparable to the number of Li Yuanhong's troops. Yesterday, only the 1st Battalion of the 1st Regiment participated in the battle. The reason for sending the entire 1st Regiment to fight was that the Military Commission didn't know how strong the offensive spirit of Li Yuanhong's troops was. According to the tactics of the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army, an attack should be launched immediately after encountering the enemy. Behind the harassment troops, the other three battalions of the 1st Regiment were already ready for battle.

Li Yuanhong shrank back and did not come out. This response baffled Regiment Commander Yang Baogui of the 1st Regiment. If the 1st Regiment adopted such a tactic of passively taking a beating after encountering the enemy, Yang Baogui would be dismissed immediately.

The 1st Regiment fought smoothly. Yang Baogui felt that relying solely on his 1st Regiment, coordinating with the division's directly subordinate Artillery Regiment and Reconnaissance Battalion, could completely solve Li Yuanhong. However, the task of solving Li Yuanhong in the plan was assigned to the 2nd Regiment, and Yang Baogui's request for battle in front of Chen Ke was rejected.

At that time, Xiong Mingyang, the Political Commissar and Regiment Commander of the 2nd Regiment, was also there. Xiong Mingyang patted Yang Baogui's shoulder and said proudly, "Brother, oh, Regiment Commander Yang, you can't let your 1st Regiment take all the good things."

The 2042nd Regiment, the 2nd Regiment of the 104th Division, was used in the final charge. The 2nd Regiment originally belonged to Chai Qingguo's leadership. After Chai Qingguo went north, Regiment Political Commissar Xiong Mingyang temporarily served as the Regiment Commander. Two battalions in the 2nd Regiment achieved firearms equipment, equipped with captured "Hanyang 88s." In the other two battalions, one company each achieved firearms equipment, and other troops were all equipped with spears (*suobiao*). Rushing at the very front were the two battalions with firearms.

Although column attack was the most common in daily troop training, the situation today was special. The enemy adopted the hollow square mode. If encountering the Hubei New Army's formation shooting during a column attack, the Revolutionary Army's counter-fire would be slightly weaker. So Xiong Mingyang simply let the deputy regiment commander lead the 1st Battalion to attack from the north, and he personally led the 2nd Battalion to attack from the south.

When they arrived at the departure position along the communication trench, the shooting of the Division Artillery Regiment reached its climax. Amidst the "bang bang" firing sounds, the New Army's front line had completely collapsed from the bombing. Xiong Mingyang failed to observe the battle yesterday; he only heard that the New Army only knew how to take a beating passively, and the 1st Regiment fought extremely smoothly. Seeing the result with his own eyes, Xiong Mingyang was really scared. Not to mention the New Army, even if he led the 2nd Regiment to take a beating passively like this, Xiong Mingyang didn't believe he could be much better than the New Army.

"Battles are won by attacking; passively taking a beating is a dead end." Xiong Mingyang couldn't help recalling Chen Ke's words in the military academy course. But a moment later, these useless thoughts were thrown to the back of his mind by Xiong Mingyang. Now was not the time for reflection. The New Army was completely chaotic; how to win this final battle was the key. How to fight? Xiong Mingyang hadn't quite thought it through.

In daily training, the opponents were comrades of the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army. Everyone was taught by Chen Ke, and tactics were basically similar. Interspersing encirclement, feint attack and main attack. If the troops of the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army really reached such a desperate situation, there was no need to consider it; the troops would have split into two waves. The first wave of probing troops would have fixed bayonets and rushed over. As long as the enemy didn't have machine guns to hold the line, as soon as the first wave began to engage in hand-to-hand combat, the main force would split into two routes, advancing side by side left and right, and start a desperate charge.

It was the first time Xiong Mingyang saw so many enemies crowded together like this. Even in Anqing, for whatever reason, the defenders relied on the civilian houses of Anqing city to set up defenses layer by layer. In that Anqing street battle, the defenders relied on machine guns and sandbags and other fortifications to cause considerable trouble for the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army. But the Hubei New Army obviously didn't care about digging fortifications in field battles, and as a result, they were completely exposed under the guns of the Revolutionary Army like lambs.

After pondering for a moment, Xiong Mingyang ordered, "Wait for the artillery to stop, the troops shout the slogan 'Kneel and don't kill,' and charge straight into the enemy center."

Second Battalion Commander Heidao Ren (Kuroshima Jin) asked, "Regiment Commander, how to determine this center?" Heidao Ren had never seen such a situation either; heaven knew what was in the enemy's center.

Xiong Mingyang pondered for a moment before saying, "Take the enemy's artillery position as the center; we must seize their cannons."

"Yes!" Heidao Ren replied.

After the order was conveyed, Xiong Mingyang ordered the charge bugle to be blown. Heidao Ren ordered the 1st Company to start charging, and he led the 2nd Company into the reserve position. The soldiers of the 1st Company leaped out one after another, shouting the slogan: "Kneel and don't kill!" and rushed towards the Hubei New Army.

In the era when Chen Ke went to university, university courses still continued the style of the old era. That is to say, the whole country still continued the mode of preparing for a comprehensive world war. Under this mode, although the possibility of China falling into a mutually destructive world war was very small, and this school organization mode was already very loose, the curriculum and organizational form were still built on such a mode: "After communication is interrupted, each unit can quickly fight on its own." So undergraduates like Chen Ke had to study military courses and a full set of physical exercise courses. And this organizational model undoubtedly fully conformed to the world Chen Ke faced. Chen Ke taught all his military and kinematics knowledge to the troops.

To run fast, you have to use force in your thighs. If the martial artists of this era realized this kind of physical education through master-apprentice inheritance, the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army promoted "military science" in a mode of larger-scale scientific training and information collection and improvement. Under long-term training, the soldiers had long turned the force generation mode into a habit of their own. More than two hundred people of the 1st Company leaped out of the trenches more than half a person high, their movements all equally light and powerful. The soldiers almost sprinted like a hundred-meter dash, crossing a distance of more than seventy meters in a dozen seconds and killing their way to the front of the Hubei New Army. Such rapid speed left the Hubei New Army's chaotic formation, huddled here and there, with no time to react.

The soldiers were boiling with blood after charging. The soldiers rushing in front were old soldiers. They knew that there was absolutely no room for mercy before the enemy knelt down and surrendered their guns. "Kneel and don't kill!" After shouting this slogan, the soldiers immediately opened fire.

Close-range shooting was more accurate. It was the first time the Hubei New Army was so close to the People's Party in dark blue military uniforms. Their chaotic brains hadn't even formed the concept of "this is the enemy." In such a daze, a new close combat unfolded fiercely.

At this time, the distance between the two sides was only a dozen meters, and the formation was so dense. The soldiers of the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army knew they couldn't hold back; everyone shot at vital parts. Nearly a hundred New Army soldiers were killed or wounded in an instant. Some New Army soldiers were scared silly and stood there to be shot dead. Some began to return fire subconsciously. Although the New Army soldiers who dared to return fire were shot dead in a blink of an eye, or stabbed to death by bayonets of Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army soldiers who had emptied their bullets, the return fire still caused casualties to the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army.

The Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army was not frightened by the casualties. All soldiers not only didn't retreat but accelerated their attack speed instead. While firing, they quickly approached the Hubei New Army, inflicting fierce casualties with bayonets. If the New Army still had a little courage during the exchange of fire, after the hand-to-hand combat where bayonets saw red began, the New Army, like the Qing army of the old era, collapsed completely in a blink of an eye. Even if they had guns in their hands and bullets in their guns, watching the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army soldiers pull out bloody bayonets from the bodies of New Army soldiers and then pounce on themselves, the soldiers of the Hubei New Army let out almost inhuman screams, turned their heads, and ran.

When Heidao Ren was in Japan, he heard how vulnerable the Qing army was in the First Sino-Japanese War. He had an extremely oppositional attitude towards the government after the Meiji Restoration in Japan, so Heidao Ren didn't quite believe these. Today's performance of the Hubei New Army made Heidao Ren discover that these rumors were actually true. He was truly surprised in his heart. But Heidao Ren had no time to think deeply. He was participating in the battle as a member of the People's Party now. The Manchu Qing army was the enemy of the People's Party; the enemy being vulnerable was a good thing. He was originally preparing to see where the charge direction of the 2nd Company should be. Since the Qing army was so vulnerable, there was no need to think so much.

"2nd Battalion, charge in echelon." After Heidao Ren shouted the order, he personally led the 2nd Company to charge up. After receiving the order, the 3rd and 4th Companies followed the two companies charging in front and killed towards the Hubei New Army. This column easily broke open the "crowd" of the Hubei New Army which could no longer be called an organization at all, knocked down all enemies in front who dared to resist and might resist, and cut deeply into the hollow square of the New Army.

In the north, the 1st Battalion led by the deputy regiment commander also killed into the camp of the Hubei New Army. The slogan "Kneel and don't kill" resounded through the entire battlefield. The New Army fled like lambs under spring thunder towards the east where there were no enemies. Those who couldn't run away simply knelt down and surrendered.

Xiong Mingyang didn't expect the Hubei New Army to turn from chaos to collapse so quickly. He dared not wait any longer and ordered a comprehensive attack. A red signal flare rose into the sky drawing a bright trajectory, and immediately the charge bugle sounded in the east. The 3rd and 4th Battalions took the companies equipped with rifles as the vanguard, and other troops thrust spears to kill towards the fleeing Hubei New Army. These soldiers charged against the light. The New Army running east already had swollen eyes, and blinded by the sunlight, they couldn't see anything clearly. How could they withstand such a fierce charge? The New Army was completely surrounded by the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army from the north, south, and east. To the west was the Nanfei River. The desperate New Army soldiers either surrendered or threw down all burdens they could throw down and fled desperately towards the Nanfei River.

When the New Army collapsed completely, Li Yuanhong had already escaped onto a boat. Although the underwater obstacles set by the People's Party prevented the navy warships from advancing, ships with a draft of no more than one and a half meters could still sail in the river. Under the continuous attack of the People's Party, Li Yuanhong couldn't organize the Hubei New Army to escape by water. Moreover, Li Yuanhong was unwilling to abandon his cannons and flee. Seeing that the Hubei New Army couldn't hold on anymore, Li Yuanhong said nothing and ran to the riverside with his personal guards. Among the boats that went north to attack Hefei with the New Army, there were steam launches. Li Yuanhong boarded a steam launch and began to flee south for his life. The officers of the headquarters also followed Li Yuanhong to the riverside, grabbed boats, and left.

The fleet had been on tenterhooks all night since last night. Fortunately, no People's Party troops appeared on the opposite bank of the river, and the fleet was not attacked. So they barely stopped by the river obeying Brigade Commander Li Yuanhong's order. Now that Brigade Commander Li Yuanhong took the lead in fleeing, how could the fleet be willing to stay? The boats that were ready long ago all weighed anchor, either turning on full steam power, or hoisting all sails, or paddling with all their might. Sailing downstream was convenient. Before long, all ships had left the shore and fled towards the south.

After those New Army soldiers who tried to board the boats to escape ran to the riverside, they found the fleet had already run away. It was summer now, and most New Army soldiers could swim a little. They jumped into the Nanfei River one after another and began to swim towards the boats. A few with better swimming skills barely caught up with the last few boats. Most New Army soldiers failed to catch up.

Chief of Staff Pu Guanshui watched all this through binoculars. Holding binoculars for an hour continuously was a considerable test for the body. Even if he didn't feel it mentally, his body couldn't stand it. When he put down the binoculars, his palms trembled uncontrollably.

"Is the battle over?" Pu Guanshui asked in a tone of profound doubt.

"The battle against the Hubei New Army infantry is over. The battle of the Hubei Navy is not over yet." Chen Ke said calmly.

Pu Guanshui didn't expect Chen Ke's thoughts to have already jumped from the massive battle in front of him to a farther place. For a moment, he felt his train of thought couldn't keep up with Chen Ke's rhythm at all. Pu Guanshui tried to imagine the water battle dozens of *li* away, but his excited nerves forced him to raise the binoculars again to look at the battlefield in front of him. The Hubei New Army had completely collapsed and been annihilated. Those who didn't surrender were all put down by bullets, bayonets, or spears. The entire battlefield had become a Asura field (slaughterhouse). All crisscrossing the battlefield were excited soldiers of the Workers' and Peasants' Revolutionary Army.

"Chairman Chen, the Hubei New Army shouldn't be so weak." Pu Guanshui couldn't help saying a sentence that was extremely untimely. But this was Pu Guanshui's sincere words. He knew the training of the Beiyang New Army. Even if the Hubei New Army couldn't compare to Beiyang, looking at it now, the Anhui New Army was more capable of holding out instead.

Chen Ke originally wanted to smile slightly, but the corners of his mouth just pulled stiffly at an angle; he couldn't smile at all. Chen Ke simply gritted his teeth slightly and said, "If the Hubei New Army attacked against us, it indeed shouldn't have ended so dismally. But the Hubei New Army didn't know why they were fighting, so these soldiers considered getting benefits first. They fought for themselves. Standing behind the New Army soldiers was just a group of Manchu officials oppressing the common people. Of course, they would fail."

Pu Guanshui looked at Chen Ke in surprise. He didn't expect Chen Ke to explain this battle from a political perspective. Pu Guanshui had always been uninterested in political issues. He believed a professional soldier should stay away from complex politics.

Chen Ke knew Pu Guanshui's thoughts. He hoped Pu Guanshui could understand the essence of People's War. People's War is fought for the interests of the people. If he couldn't understand this, Pu Guanshui's operational command would encounter insurmountable obstacles in the future.

"Guanshui, if a person only thinks for himself, then doing things is completely driven by interests. To win a war, naturally, there are laws conforming to war. Without a scientific attitude, failure is destined." Chen Ke said.

Pu Guanshui could feel Chen Ke advising him, but the established military concepts in his heart resisted involuntarily. Although he didn't deliberately want to oppose Chen Ke, Pu Guanshui still asked, "Chairman Chen, then if we enter Hubei to fight, will these New Army soldiers have a reason to fight?"

"If we go to Hubei to fight to protect the interests of Anhui people, then the Hubei New Army might fight to the death for the interests of Hubei people. So, our people's revolution is not to create new oppressors, but to liberate the people of the whole of China. In our future foreign wars, it is not to let China ride over the world and rule and enslave the people of the whole world for thousands of generations. Instead, it is to liberate the whole world and let the people of the whole world get freedom. This is the essence of the people's revolution."

Hearing Chen Ke's words, Pu Guanshui was speechless. He could understand the concept of liberating the whole of China, but he couldn't accept Chen Ke's concept of liberating the whole world. If possible, Pu Guanshui also hoped to fight to Europe, but he didn't want to be a "liberator," but an "avenger." He hoped to make the European powers pay the price for their bullying of China. As for the European people, Pu Guanshui thought they were in the same group as the powers.

Seeing Pu Guanshui didn't accept his concept, Chen Ke also felt very helpless. Because Chen Ke also had exactly the same thoughts as Pu Guanshui, hoping to let the whole white-skinned world bleed into rivers, so that Chen Ke could wash away the strong sense of humiliation he felt when reading history. But Chen Ke didn't think so now. If a system itself is to create oppressors, then this system is destined to oppress its own people. Chen Ke himself was like what was said in that joke: he hated two kinds of people most, racists and black people. Chen Ke also believed that China could not introduce black people, but up to now, Chen Ke also firmly believed that China's future could not follow the old path of empires. The socialist system itself is a science, and there is no room for discrimination in a scientific attitude.

Although he wanted to continue persuading Pu Guanshui, the words turned into other content when they reached his lips. "Let the medical team hurry up to take in the wounded and seize the time for treatment."

Li Yuanhong stood on the steam launch, his mind in chaos. The bumping of the ship and the sound of the steam engine working at full power failed to make Li Yuanhong feel anything. He had completely lost himself. Various thoughts entangled in his mind like a mess of hemp. He lost the battle. Division Commander Zhang Biao, Lord Zhang Zhidong, and even the people in the court would absolutely not spare him. This thought appeared erratically in Li Yuanhong's mind but couldn't make Li Yuanhong feel the slightest fear.

This tragic battle completely occupied Li Yuanhong's brain. He could even clearly recall the command when first engaging, and the deployment of various units. Then it was the battle that hadn't stopped for a whole day. This is war. Li Yuanhong, as a soldier, participated in the war, commanded the war, and then he was defeated.

The merciless war method of the People's Party completely destroyed Li Yuanhong's understanding of war. It made the consciousness of this Brigade Commander of the Hubei New Army as a soldier infinitely strengthened and then completely shattered. Li Yuanhong's spirit collapsed.