Just when the relationship between Zhou Wen and Liu Ruolan was developing rapidly and they were inseparable, the Japanese began to deploy their attack on Jehol.
Rehe Province, with its provincial capital Chengde City, was the original provincial-level administrative region of China during the Republic of China and one of the four eastern provinces outside the Great Wall. The Rehe Special Zone was established in January of the third year of the Republic of China (1914). In September of the 17th year of the Republic of China (1928), it was reorganized into a province. On July 30, 1955, Jehol Province was abolished. The jurisdiction is distributed in today's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Hebei Province, and Liaoning Province.
The province's jurisdiction is approximately equivalent to the entire Chifeng City in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, most of Tongliao City (west of Horqin District), the area north of Yixian and Jinzhou City in Liaoning Province, the west of Zhangwu County, most of Chengde City in Hebei Province, and the entire province It covers an area of approximately 147,500 square kilometers.
After the September 18th Incident, Jehol Province became the rear base for the remnants of the Northeast Army and the Northeast Anti-Japanese Volunteer Army. Since when the Puppet Manchukuo was established, the so-called "Declaration of the Founding of Manchukuo" stated that the four northeastern provinces north of the Great Wall and outside the Pass were the so-called "Manchukuo" legal territory, and Rehe was part of the puppet regime.
The Japanese army was stationed outside the Great Wall. It was quite obvious that they would occupy Rehe and go straight to Peiping. As long as they occupied Rehe, the entire Chinese defense line along the Great Wall and spanning hundreds of kilometers would be completely exposed to the Japanese troops. The Japanese army could choose any point to attack. As long as the Chinese army's Great Wall defense line is broken through, the Japanese army can choose a shorter route besides Shanhaiguan to go south and take Peiping directly.
It should be noted here that Japan's attack on Jehol at this period and its attempt to break through the Chinese army's Great Wall defense line and then peek into the Pingjin area does not mean that they have plans to fully invade China at this time, but that they are gradually encroaching on Chinese territory in accordance with Japan's long-standing plan plan of.
Capturing Rehe can further expand the military pressure on China and create a fait accompli for Manchuria's independence. At the same time, it can break through the Great Wall defense line, the natural strategic barrier in the Northeast and Hebei regions, and maintain a strategic offensive posture against Hebei and even the entire hinterland of the Central Plains, allowing China to On the other hand, they can only be tired of passive defense and no longer have the strength to fight against the fall of Northeast China.
Another purpose is to further test the bottom line of the Republic of China government. Through victory on the battlefield one after another, create the myth of the invincibility of the Imperial Japanese Army, undermine the determination and will of the Chinese military and civilians to resist the war, and lay the foundation for a future all-out invasion of China. The basis for strategic, psychological and spiritual advantage.
Of course, if the Chinese army lacks the determination and ability to fight bravely at this critical moment, and even suffers a devastating defeat, it is not impossible for the Japanese army to take advantage of the situation and occupy the Pingjin area and advance into the Central Plains.
Moreover, the Japanese army has always had a tradition of subjugating superiors. Officers at all levels are very fanatical in their desire to make contributions to the emperor. If they see an easy opportunity to occupy the entire northern China, they will continue the war even if it goes against the wishes of the senior officials.
In early January 1933, after the Japanese Kwantung Army captured Shanhaiguan and relieved the threat from its flanks, it began its campaign to attack Jehol.
Under the command of the Kwantung Army Commander Muto Nobuyoshi, the traitor Zhang Jinghui was nominally the "Commander-in-Chief of the Manchukuo War-seeking Army" and dispatched the Kwantung Army's 6th and 8th Divisions, the Mixed 14th Brigade and the Mixed 33rd Brigade. As well as the puppet troops led by traitors such as Yu Zhishan and Zhang Haipeng, the Japanese puppet troops totaled more than 100,000 people and planned to launch an attack on Rehe in three directions.
As for China, as it had already taken precautions against the Japanese attack on Jehol, the Peiping Branch of the Military Commission organized the North China Northeast Army into two armies in order to respond: the commander-in-chief of the First Army, Marshal Zhang, was personally appointed, and the deputy commander was Wan Fulin; The commander-in-chief of the group army is Zhang Zuoxiang, and the deputy commander is Tang Yulin. Tang himself also serves as the commander-in-chief of the former enemy in Rehe.
Judging from these phenomena, the Chinese people are full of confidence in the Rehe War of Resistance. First, they believe that the local resistance war in Rehe will definitely become a reality. Second, they believe that Rehe will at least not become the second "September 18th Incident" that did not resist. Shenyang.
However, the Chinese troops stationed in Rehe at this time were basically the Northeast Army that had retreated into the pass. The troops were disorganized and morale was low. The most fatal thing was that Marshal Zhang was nominally the commander-in-chief of the entire army, but all his generals had their own agendas, and even Some of them are just obedient and treacherous, but Marshal Zhang has no way or means to do this.
The most typical figure is Tang Yulin, chairman of Rehe Province and commander of Rehe security.
Speaking of Tang Yulin, he is a veteran senior officer in the Northeast Army. He once had an acquaintance with Marshal Zhang for eight times. Even Marshal Zhang would call him "uncle". He was entrusted with important tasks by Marshal Zhang in his early years. He has served as provincial chairman-chairman for 6 years and has actually become the emperor of Jehol Province.
Tang Yulin relied on nepotism. During his six years in charge of Jehol, he also plundered people's wealth, robbed emperors' tombs, planted opium, and collected taxes. Thirty years later, the province seemed to have become an independent kingdom of the Tang family. On the surface, he is the commander-in-chief of the first army, but in fact, he has seriously lost the morale of the people and the military.
The strangest thing about this man is that he forgot that he could turn a province into his own independent kingdom because of his tens of thousands of troops. Instead, he was obsessed with money and deducted the soldiers' pay for ten months, which caused resentment among his troops. , facing the extremely vicious Japanese army, there is no fighting spirit and morale.
Moreover, when the Japanese army mobilized troops and began to frequently deploy offensive forces on the border between Jehol and Jinzhou, he turned a blind eye to the Japanese ambitions. Instead, he held unrealistic illusions and hoped to use the international The intervention of the great powers prevented the Japanese invasion.
On the other hand, he was afraid that if Marshal Zhang led his troops into Rehe, it would be detrimental to his warlord regime, and he had been preventing Marshal Zhang from sending reinforcements into Rehe. As a result, Marshal Zhang could only send a small number of troops to set up defenses in Rehe, and in order to prevent him from fighting without a fight. After surrendering, Marshal Zhang also sent his deputy commander, Zhang Zuoxiang, who was more senior than Tang Yulin in the Northeast Army, to Rehe to supervise him.
But at this time, Rehe had been tormented by Tang Yulin and the people were boiling with resentment. The army had no combat effectiveness. How could Zhang Zuoxiang alone be able to reverse the situation.
It was in this critical situation that Marshal Zhang and the knowledgeable people of the Peking Branch of the Military Commission had realized that the war in Jehol would be unpredictable and dangerous, and it was beyond their power to defend it.
Moreover, once Rehe is lost, the Pingjin area will only have the last barrier of the Great Wall Defense Line.
Therefore, Marshal Zhang had no choice but to request assistance from the Nanjing government, and quickly accepted Marshal Yan of Shanxi's offer of sending troops for reinforcements. Incidentally, he reciprocated the favor and agreed to Marshal Yan's request to resume production at the Taiyuan Arsenal.
