Zhao Changshu took the long message with hesitation and read it from beginning to end.
In the message, Zhou Wen gave a detailed report on how he discovered the Japanese army, how Chen Wanli deployed it, and the battle.
Zhao Changshu's heart was surging when he saw it. He secretly praised Chen Wanli for his intelligence on the enemy plane and his boldness in setting up an ambush. He was also frightened by the Japanese army's final madness, and finally he was happy and excited.
Zhou Wen kept the radio silent, but he didn't.
In the past few days, battle reports from the front line have been coming from the headquarters. The performance of the various units of the Northeast Army on the Jehol battlefield can be said to be shameful and useless.
On the day when the main force of the Model Brigade set off, that is, March 1, the Japanese army stormed the Tianshan Mountains, and the Northeast Army's Shi Wenhua Brigade fled across the board.
On March 2, the Japanese army attacked Lindong, and the Cui Xing Fifth Brigade of the Northeast Army surrendered.
As of this morning, Chifeng, an important town in central Rehe, has been besieged by Japanese troops from three sides. It is only a matter of time before they lose.
As for Chengde, the provincial capital of Rehe, the defense lines on the east and west sides have collapsed. Chengde's defensive barriers have been lost and the doors are wide open. Now it is like a lamb that has shed its hair, waiting for the Japanese army to cook.
Less than half a month after the war between China and Japan, most of Rehe Province fell. However, the Chinese defenders with a defensive force of 200,000 were defeated by tens of thousands of Japanese troops. Many troops fled before even seeing the Japanese troops, even if they completely wiped out the Japanese troops. A small team has no record.
According to the Japanese army's external propaganda report, during the ten days of fighting, the Japanese army only killed dozens of people and injured more than 100 people. Most of the achievements were the result of the tenacious fighting of the anti-Japanese volunteers in Northeast China. However, the Japanese army killed and wounded many people during the pursuit. Tens of thousands of Chinese troops were captured.
Although the Japanese army's report was suspected of being too boastful, there were no big bosses from the Peking branch to come out to clarify. It can be seen that the corruption of the war situation has made the young marshal of the Peking branch of the Military Commission too anxious to take care of it.
Not to mention the frightened remnants of the Northeastern Army, but also the reinforcements from various departments of the Chinese Army who are rushing to the front line day and night. In response to the constant news of defeat, the military morale has been shaken, morale is low, and they have lost confidence and fighting spirit in the next war. .
It is said that you are not afraid of opponents who are like gods, but you are afraid of teammates who are like pigs. For the Northeast Army, which has completely lost its military honor and morale, who dares to fight side by side with them, and who has the heart to support and rescue them?
Even those who hated him for not fighting began to send messages to the Nanjing Military Commission, demanding severe punishment for Marshal Zhang who had lost his power and humiliated the country.
The president of the Nanjing Military Commission is currently riding a tiger. After all, no matter how ineffective the Northeastern Army is, it is still the most important military force in northern China. When the Central Army is busy with the civil war and has no time to go north, rashly replacing Marshal Zhang will probably cause the situation that has become desperate. The dissatisfaction of the Northeastern Army, when the enemy troops were pressing down on the border, caused a mutiny, which would make things even worse.
By then, not only will Rehe Province be unable to be saved, but even the Ping-Tianjin region will be in danger.
Therefore, during this period, both the Nanjing government and the people and the army across the country were in urgent need of a demonstrable record to inspire the morale of the military and the people, and at the same time demonstrate to the powers of the League of Nations our country's determination and confidence in resisting Japan.
Therefore, Zhao Changshu knew that the news that the advance detachment had completely wiped out a reinforced Japanese brigade came at the right time. It was undoubtedly a shot in the arm for the Chinese military and civilians who were anxious about the current situation and felt extremely humiliated. It also allowed Marshal Zhang to save a little face.
After all, as long as the victory against Japan in the north was nominally carried out under the command of the Peiping Branch, Marshal Zhang would naturally have the merit of command and deployment.
Of course, while Zhao Changshu was happy and excited, he also felt a little bit disappointed.
"To wipe out a large Japanese army, what a great opportunity! Why the hell didn't I catch up?"
In any case, the advance detachment is a member of the model brigade and a member of the Jin army. Now that they have such a good record, they naturally have to quickly report it to the headquarters and the commander-in-chief who is waiting eagerly in Shanxi.
…
At the same time, the 32nd Army headquarters, which had just arrived in Cangzhou with the 139th Division of the vanguard after a long march of hundreds of miles, was busy building various facilities. A group of communication soldiers were busy pulling telephone lines and setting up radio stations.
The temporary headquarters of the 32nd Army is actually a temporarily requisitioned residential compound. At this time, the army commander, General Shang Zheng, took off his dusty cotton coat. Before the orderlies could make hot tea to warm themselves up, a staff officer hurriedly walked in. A telegram was handed over.
Although General Shang Zheng is from the north, he is not very tall. He is nearly middle-aged and has the most popular Danren beard of this era. His tall and straight figure paired with a woolen general's military uniform makes him quite a bit taller. Majestic and majestic.
General Shang Zheng did not accept the message in a hurry. He stretched out his hand to wash his hands in the basin brought by the guard and asked: "Is the Peiping Branch coming again to urge us to speed up the march? The situation in the Rehe War has deteriorated to this point. No matter how hard we try, it will be impossible for us to hurry up." We rushed over to reinforce Rehe before he missed."
"Reporting to the military seat is a good news from the Jin Army Model Brigade."
"Good news? Has Zhao Changshu arrived at Jianchang Camp?"
As he spoke, Shang Zheng wiped his hands casually on his body, took the message from the staff, looked at it, frowned, and handed it to Lieutenant General Huang, the commander of the 139th Division beside him.
Lieutenant General Huang took the telegram and read it carefully, and fell into deep thought.
Shang Zheng snorted coldly and said: "This Zhao Changshu, I haven't seen him for a few years. The stern man back then has actually learned to lie about his military exploits. Has he served as a security commander in Taiyuan for several years? He has lived a comfortable life for too long, and he has become the most shady officialdom." Have you learned all the tricks?"
Huang Zhongzhong read the telegram carefully again and said hesitantly: "Military Commander, Changshu is my junior brother in Baoding. I still believe in his character. No matter how much General Baima changed back then, he cannot possibly degenerate into lying." It’s a degree of credit. But it’s too unbelievable to completely wipe out a Japanese army brigade, and it wasn’t his main force, it was just an advance detachment.”
"Although he did not say clearly how many people there are in this advance detachment, I think it is at most the strength of a regiment. According to the combat effectiveness of our domestic army, even the most elite Central Army, one regiment cannot completely eat up a small Japanese brigade. , it would be a blessing to have a draw, how did he fight this battle?"
General Shang Zheng smiled bitterly and said: "Yes! This is where I am embarrassed. He did not describe the battle process in detail in the message. Please report it to the superior. I am afraid that he will lie about the military situation and you and I will also suffer. After all, The Model Brigade is now under the command of our 32nd Army. But I don’t want to report it, because I am afraid that the commander-in-chief in Shanxi will find out and say that I am unfair to the Model Brigade. He already has some opinions about me. If there is a quarrel through this matter, I will Isn’t it hard to please both ends?”
