While the officers and soldiers of the 88th Division were fighting to survive and die with Yuhuatai, the Second Army Corps headquarters was lost in the morning and was cut off from communication with the city. By the afternoon of the battle, the situation was already unclear.
That night, a new round of military adjustments was carried out in Nanjing City. In order to shorten the front and ensure that the position was not lost, the 88th Division had no choice but to stick to the main position outside the city. The defense of the city wall was left to the 15th. The Sixth Division and the 74th Army were respectively responsible for this.
Originally, the garrison commander's headquarters planned to organize troops to launch a counterattack. However, after careful consideration, the commander's headquarters believed that the troops were extremely exhausted and had basically lost the ability to carry out an attack. The 112th Division, which had recently withdrawn from Zhenjiang, The 103rd Division was even more exhausted and found it difficult to take on the important task.
At 2 o'clock in the morning on December 12, Liao Ken, chief of staff of the Garrison Commander's Department, hurried to the office of the Ministry of Railways and called Tan Daoping, chief of the first section, and said, "Let's go to Tang Mansion as soon as possible. !”
"What happened?" Tan Daoping asked.
"Don't ask, you will know when you get there!" After saying that, Liao Ken walked out, took Tan Daoping and others into the military off-road vehicle, and headed to Tang Mansion.
By the time Liao Ken, Tan Daoping and others arrived at Tang Mansion, it was still dark, and garrison commander Tang Shengzhi, deputy chiefs Luo Zhuoying, Liu Xing, and chief of staff Zhou Lan were already sitting in the conference room of Tang Mansion.
After seeing Tan Daoping and Liao Ken come in, before they could sit down, Tang Shengzhi said with a serious face, "Now the city has been defeated and cannot be defended. The chairman of the committee has given an order. You should hurry up and prepare a retreat order." Bar!"
"Yes!" Liao Ken and others responded.
Before Liao Ken and others could turn around and leave to draw up a retreat order, Tang Shengzhi asked Liao Ken, the chief of staff, "I remember that Song Xilian also had a regiment that was a German weapons reinforcement regiment, and it was fully manned, right? "
Liao Ken thought for a moment and said, "Yes, this regiment is temporarily under the command of the 78th Army, and its designation is the First Regiment directly under the Third Theater. This regiment was also separated from the 36th Division. The regiment leader Zhang Tianhai can be said to be Song Xilian’s old subordinate.”
Tang Shengzhi thought for a moment and said, "Okay, when you draft the order, add a clause that the regiment will be included in the battle order of the garrison commander's department and will be directly under the direct leadership and command of the commander's department!"
"Yes!" Liao Ken responded.
…
Starting from dawn on December 12, the Japanese army began to mobilize aircraft and artillery to intensively bombard the city gates. The solid city walls were blown up and stones were flying everywhere. The surrounding houses were also collapsing. The defenders inside the city Even the once prosperous ancient city of Nanjing suddenly fell into war.
This morning, Zhang Tianhai sent Liu Houming back to the regiment headquarters early to convey his orders. All units should step up contact with the regiment headquarters and be ready to gather for battle at any time!
"Adjutant Liu, how is the situation over at Yijiangmen now?" Zheng Man stopped Liu Houming before he returned to Yijiangmen.
Seeing that it was Zheng Man, Liu Houming did not dare to lie. He just smiled bitterly and said, "Director Zheng, don't worry. The regiment is with the teacher now. Nothing will happen. It was just a matter of time for him to send me back to the regiment headquarters." Look at the situation at the regiment headquarters.”
"Well. Okay, then you can help me convey a message to the leader and ask him to pay attention to his safety." Zheng Man warned Liu Houming.
"Sister-in-law, don't worry! Even if I, Liu Houming, die, I won't hurt a single hair on the group." With that, Liu Houming got in the car and drove away. As for the relationship between the group leader and Director Zheng, in Who in the regiment headquarters doesn’t know?
And Zheng Man was in a really good mood, just because Liu Houming called her "sister-in-law."
In the regiment headquarters, Guo Qiliang's head was locked. Zhang Yulin was always very predictable in his actions and never fired arrows without aim. What's more, he was still next to the master at this time!
Thinking about it, Guo Qiliang threw the pen in his hand on the table, and then said, "Xu Xun. Pass my order, the second battalion, the third battalion, and the fourth battalion, all return to the regiment headquarters to assemble! Be ready to fight at any time!"
Guo Qiliang was not that kind of fool, and with the news that the Japanese army had reached outside Nanjing, how could he not know the purpose of Zhang Tianhai's order? We must be ready for battle as soon as possible and enter the Nanjing battlefield at any time!
Various units have suffered heavy casualties. Among the troops in Nanjing, Song Xilian's 78th Army is now considered a relatively well-equipped army. The entire army, including the first regiment directly under the third theater, still has more than 10,000 people. The new force, especially the directly affiliated first regiment, is fully manned and well-equipped, and still has a certain degree of combat effectiveness.
Therefore, under the orders of regiment commander Zhang Tianhai and chief of staff Guo Qiliang, the three main battalions on guard along the river immediately headed towards Xiaguan, the regiment headquarters.
The city tower of Yijiang Gate had long been blown up by Japanese planes, and even Song Xilian's office had been moved to the circle of the city gate, not to mention Zhang Tianhai's radio station and office.
Hearing the sound of a car outside the door, Zhang Tianhai knew that Liu Houming was back.
So Zhang Tianhai walked out quickly and asked, "Hou Ming, how is the situation in the regiment now?"
Liu Houming walked quickly to Zhang Tianhai and lowered his voice and said, "Regiment leader, the chief of staff has been notified now. If there are no accidents, our regiment's troops have begun to assemble now."
"Well, that's good. Well done." Zhang Tianhai patted Liu Houming on the shoulder and said.
At this moment, a voice sounded from behind Zhang Tianhai: "Captain Zhang, what are you doing?"
As soon as he heard the voice, Zhang Tianhai knew who it was. Who else could it be if he wasn't the master? He immediately turned around, stood at attention and reported, "Reporting to the division seat, I am asking the subordinate adjutant about the situation at the regiment!"
"Zhang Yulin, it's not the first day I've met you. Let's be honest, what did you do behind my back?" Song Xilian's tone was very serious. As the captain of the supervising team, he would not allow the troops under his command to appear. In the case of the deserter, at this critical moment, any abnormal behavior should not escape his eyes.
Seeing the look in Master's eyes, Zhang Tianhai's heart trembled. If he explained the unclear situation at this time, he might have to explain it here. Who knows whether Master would shoot him?
"Reporting to the commander's seat, I have privately ordered the troops of the Zhiyi Regiment to assemble and reinforce the battle in the city at any time!" Zhang Tianhai looked directly at Song Xilian with his eyes straight, his back straight.
After hearing this reply, Song Xilian not only did not scold Zhang Tianhai, but nodded slightly and said, "Well done this time, but it won't be the same next time!"
"Yes, Master!" Zhang Tianhai saluted to show his obedience to the order.
Song Xilian took two steps on the spot, with his hands behind his back. The index finger and thumb of his right hand wearing a white command glove were rubbing it constantly. Finally, he finally made a decision: "The situation in the city is very critical now, and the division headquarters also needs it." A mobile force, let's do this. I will now transfer the first battalion of the 216th Regiment back to Hepingmen to take over the defense. All the first battalion of your department will be transferred back to Yijiangmen! Once special circumstances occur, your regiment can quickly move to Yijiangmen. Gather at Jiangmen!"
…
PS I finally got to the meaty scenes, and the foreshadowing is basically done.
Thanks to Qidian book friend Cold-Blooded Devil Father for two monthly passes, and thank Qidian book friend Don’t Guess I Must Be Very, Very Handsome for a monthly pass!
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