Nouvelle Quatrième armée
In the fall of 1940, the Communist New Fourth Army attacked Nationalist forces under Han Deqin. However, Benton's book "New Fourth Army" argues the Communist attack was a counterattack, a response to an initial attack by Han Deqin, and that this initial attack was the result of Chen Yi's goading and harassment of Nationalist forces. Regardless, the conflict led to heavy losses for the Communists.