On April 28th, the enemy who came out of the southwest of Tancheng County to threaten the Nationalist Army's flank in Pi County was annihilated by the Yunnan Army. More than 2,000 of them were killed. Unable to maintain the current situation, the remaining enemies withdrew from Tancheng.
On this day, thirty-two Japanese aircraft raided Xuzhou, dropping more than two hundred bombs and killing hundreds of residents.
After this battle, the battle line north of Taierzhuang basically remained stable for half a month!
…
April 30, Kaifeng, Headquarters of the First Theater Commander.
On this day, a strong-looking soldier with two gold stars on his collar strode into the gate of the headquarters of the First Theater Commander.
Unlike the officer who went to greet Zhang Tianhai last time, this time the Adjutant's Office sent an adjutant with the rank of colonel to greet him.
Depending on the level, the level of the adjutants dispatched will naturally be different.
This time, Cheng Qian specially chose a time to welcome the new officer who was about to take office.
I saw this relatively strong and mature officer striding to the door of Cheng Qian's office. Then he stood at attention and saluted: "Sir, Commander Cheng, Song Xilian, the former honorary commander of the first division, has been ordered to report to you!"
Cheng Qian, who was working in the office, immediately stood up and walked out quickly after hearing the report.
"Mr. Song, you are finally here now. I have been waiting for you for a long time. Come in quickly!" Cheng Qian greeted him with a smile on his face.
Song Xilian never expected that after arriving in the first theater, he would be paid so much attention by Commander Cheng Qian, so he said with some embarrassment: "Chief Cheng, a humble position means no merit and no salary, but here you can be treated so well." It’s really unworthy of Commander Cheng’s attention..."
"Commander Song led the 36th Division to fight in Songhu for three full months and made great contributions. Your unit was also hailed as one of China's three ace units. You have such courage. , is naturally worthy of my attention, Cheng Qian. If it were others, they might not be treated like this." Cheng Qian said as he greeted Song Xilian to come into the office and sit down.
"This is already a thing of the past. What's more, isn't it the duty of a rank-and-file soldier to lead a war?" Song Xilian said with some embarrassment.
"Well, if that's the case, then I won't be polite to you. This time the Military Commission transferred you to the First War Zone, not for you to brag, nor for you to be paid for your work, but to let you Can take over the 71st Army." Commander Cheng is a very direct person, he will tell his face if he has something to say and will never be secretive.
Under Cheng Qian's greeting, Song Xilian also began to sit down. He frowned and said: "Sir Cheng, to be honest, I have just come to this humble position and don't know much about the situation of the 71st Army. After all, the current 71st Army The army is no longer the 71st Army before."
Cheng Qian naturally understood the implication of Song Xilian's words: There is no problem in taking over, but some help from the chief executive may be needed.
Moreover, Cheng Qian was also very clear about the reason for Song Xilian's concerns: the original 71st Army had basically few people who broke out during the Nanjing Defense Battle. The number of people who broke out from this unit was probably less than 800, and all of them were He was a veteran of the original 87th Division. As for the original 88th Division, except for the division commander Sun Yuanliang, almost none of them left Nanjing alive. The 71st Army has only two divisions, one of which is composed entirely of new soldiers, plus all newly appointed officers; the other division is also mostly composed of new soldiers. In this situation, how can we not worry about it?
In order to allow Song Xilian to take over the army with peace of mind, Cheng Qian said: "Commander Song, if you need any help, just ask the theater commander and I will try my best to meet your request. But the prerequisite is You must train the 71st Army into a force with strong combat effectiveness as soon as possible. If the war in Xuzhou changes, we will be the first to bear the brunt. By then, it may not necessarily be necessary to organize a battle in East Henan."
"Dare I ask, how bad has the war on the Xuzhou front been?" Song Xilian asked.
Cheng Qian sighed: "To be honest, the battle situation in Xuzhou has gradually fallen into a disadvantage. Although the elite troops of the 60th Army of the Yunnan Army have entered the battle, they still cannot withstand the declining situation in the general situation. We in Southern Shandong The army has recaptured Tancheng, but fierce fighting is still going on in the northern part of Pi County. The 51st Army Yu Xuezhong's Department fought in Tancheng for nine days. Officers at all levels came to the front line to command the battle in person. Three brigade commanders and seven regiment commanders were killed or injured. , there were thousands of officers and soldiers below the battalion commander, and the casualties were very heavy. Although the enemy was severely damaged, it was still difficult to withstand the enemy's front..."
After hearing this, Song Xilian immediately fell into silence: he knew that if this continued, the enemy would soon break through Xuzhou and then fight in the direction of Kaifeng.
"Commander Song, don't put too much pressure on yourself. The main officers of the current 71st Army Headquarters are still held by graduates from Huangpu, and their combat effectiveness is guaranteed, but compared with the Third Army you were in charge of before. There may be some differences between the Sixteenth Division, a German weapon division, and the Honorable First Division, a veteran division, but after all, they are also a unit of the same army. I still hope you can lead it well." Cheng Qian said very seriously.
Song Xilian nodded and said very seriously: "Sir Cheng, I am confident that I can lead them well under the command of the 71st Army, but I have always wanted to make a request. I wonder if Chief Cheng can agree?"
"Just say it. If it is within my scope of authority, it will be fine." Cheng Qian agreed very generously. If you want the horse to run, you have to let the horse eat grass. He understands this very well.
"Okay, then you're welcome for your humble position." Song Xilian said politely, and then went directly to the topic: "That's it, Commander Cheng, Zhang Tianhai, the commander of the first regiment directly under the third theater that previously fought in the fifth theater , is my old subordinate when I was in the 36th Division. This person has a temperament similar to that of my old subordinate Hu Jiaji, and I know him better. So I would like to apply to Commander Cheng. Can the Fifth War Zone be released? Personally, transfer Zhang Tianhai to our 71st Army?"
After hearing this, Cheng Qian burst into laughter and said, "Commander Song, what you mentioned is so timely. As early as a week ago, the third theater was directly under the headquarters of the first regiment, and the entire regiment had been ordered to be transferred to our first theater. The order of battle. I'm afraid it's a bit difficult for you to get Zhang Tianhai now. He is currently leading the first regiment directly under the third theater and is stationed in Lanfeng County, Dongdamen, Kaifeng."
Just when Song Xilian thought that Chief Cheng was not going to release him, Chief Cheng laughed and said: "Haha, if this Zhang Tianhai is just transferred from the position of commander of the first regiment directly under the third theater, maybe he will also be transferred. I don’t want to, so let’s do this, I will directly plan the battle sequence of the first regiment directly under the third theater to your 71st Army!”
This reply from Chief Cheng was really beyond Song Xilian's expectation. He never expected that since Chief Cheng agreed so happily, this was an entire reinforcement regiment, close to the strength of a brigade. , it was directly assigned to the 71st Army, which can not but be said to be a generous gift!
…
PS: The second update is here!
Thanks to Qidian Book Friends, Don’t Guess I Must Be Very Handsome, Xi He 33, Liu Ming Feng Yan, Cly903, and QQ Book Friends Workers and Health Workers for two monthly passes each!
