The special envoy came with money and medals, and did not stay in Chang'an. Under the escort of a cavalry regiment sent from the second theater, he rushed to Zhongtiao Mountain in only two days.
On the fifth day before the Lunar New Year in 1939, the Second War Zone held a grand awards ceremony in Monan Town, the headquarters of the 38th Army of the 4th Group Army in Zhongtiao Mountain.
The Ministry of Military and Political Affairs chose this place from among many locations, so naturally it has some deep meaning.
The 38th Army was the infantry army that wiped out the most enemies on the Zhongtiao Mountain battlefield, and the 38th Army's headquarters was the only one among all group army infantry corps that fought a bloody battle with the Japanese army.
To this day, the bodies of nearly a thousand Japanese soldiers are still buried in the mountain stream less than 3 miles away from Munan Town.
On that day, in order to take pictures for the big newspaper and radio reporters who came on special planes, the 38th Army dug out the corpses and displayed them again.
Fortunately, the weather was very cold at this time, and the corpses of the Japanese invaders who were almost stripped naked were basically just a pile of frozen meat. Otherwise, the smell alone would have smoked away those "uncrowned kings".
However, after being exaggerated by these big reporters, the white-haired general became the hero who personally carried a rifle and led military civilian personnel to annihilate a Japanese brigade.
Although the white-haired general has no intention of being greedy for merit, and specifically mentioned the names of meritorious officials such as Long Yan and Luo Wanjian when introducing this battle, their ranks are too low. At this time, China needs a famous and brave general.
Boost morale.
Even Tang Dao sent a message to General Baifa for one reason: for the sake of the overall anti-Japanese situation and for the survival of the Northwest Army!
The greater his fame, the more stable the status of the Northwest Military Faction will be, and the more military funds he can obtain will be guaranteed, and he will not be squeezed out and marginalized like before. Even that person can't touch them if he wants to.
General Fa had no choice but to become the heroic general who went into battle "shirtless" carrying a shell gun in the propaganda.
Don't tell me, as soon as this article written by that passionate reporter came out, all the departments of the former Northwest Army, which originally had a very low sense of grandma and uncle, received cordial greetings from all walks of life.
This can be regarded as one person leading a marginalized army, and the name of Lengwa in Shaanxi Province truly became famous throughout the country.
The special envoy surnamed Chen is a very smart person. Different from those high-ranking officials with eyes on their heads in the past, he knows that without the help of the people, let alone relying on the army alone to defeat the Japanese, he even wants to defeat the Japanese in this place.
It’s difficult to stay here long term.
Therefore, the medal ceremony hosted by him was not only attended by soldiers, but also invited the Second War Zone in advance to the prestigious gentry from various towns in the mountains and all the townspeople of Munan Town to participate.
The number of participants in the entire medal ceremony reached an unprecedented number of thousands. If the surrounding security forces are included, the number could reach tens of thousands.
In order to prevent the news from leaking out that the Japanese would use aircraft to cause trouble by air strikes, the start time of the medal ceremony was chosen in the evening when it was dark, and the entire venue was surrounded by torches.
The burning flames shone brightly on the faces of the officers and soldiers waiting to receive medals.
That is the color of joy and the color of victory!
However, compared to the excited ordinary officers and soldiers, the generals sitting in the first row with bright gold stars on their collar badges had different expressions.
This award ceremony is a bit weird!
The 4th Group Army became the biggest winner of this battle. Not only were 5 people from the commander of the group army below were awarded the Medal of the Blue Sky, becoming the only group army-level recipients since the war began, but as many as 110 people were awarded the Medal of Baoding, Medal of Yunhui, Medal of Loyal Courage and Medal of Loyalty.
The number of recipients of the Diligence Medal is as high as 836.
If the 4th Army had 70,000 combat personnel, the ratio of medals awarded to the Army would be almost 40 to 1, which is extremely rare in the history of Chinese and foreign wars.
You know, except for those senior officers at the regiment, brigade, division, and corps levels, those ordinary officers and soldiers who have won medals will basically be promoted to one rank, which means that military expenditures will have to increase.
That person is suddenly so nice to the northwest military department. This is unscientific!
But it was so unscientific. After conferring honors on the Fourth Army, the special envoy handed over the two-month military expenditure of 1.74 million French currency allocated by the Ministry of Military Affairs to the Fourth Army, and an additional reward of 500,000 French currency.
This undoubtedly made the other four armies extremely jealous.
The term "arrears of wages" does not appear in the future. In this era, it is completely normal to be in arrears of wages. Even for frontline troops like them, they owe as little as three months, and as much as half a year. Many officers and soldiers
Until his death, he still had not received the military pay he deserved.
This service lasts for two months, especially at the time of the New Year. Plus bonuses, from generals to the most ordinary privates, doesn't it mean that everyone's wallets are bulging and their morale must not be over the top?
If the Japanese dared to come again at this time, even the most cautious group army commander would probably dare to take a gun and go up and kill them severely.
What’s more! Having a lot of money is one thing, but what’s more important is the signal it conveys.
Currently, the Ministry of Military Affairs is very particular about the allocation of military expenditures. The annual military expenditure of an A-type division, 3 brigades and 6 regiments is about 2.83 million, which is nearly 240,000 per month on average. A B-division is less, but on average it is about 240,000 per month.
230,000, and a C Division's 2nd Brigade and 4th Regiment are much worse, 1.99 million a year, and the average monthly is just over 160,000.
The 4th Group Army belongs to the Northwest Military Department. Its main force, the 17th Division of the 38th Army, originally consisted of 2 infantry brigades and 4 infantry regiments. Even though an independent brigade was later added, military expenditures of 1.99 million were still allocated.
To put it bluntly, the intention reflected in this military expenditure is that the 4th Army will at least be treated as a B division in the future.
In addition, the reward of 500,000 French currency is not too small. Even though the French currency has depreciated now, the purchasing power of French currency at the end of 1938 was still good. 100 French currency can buy a big cow, which is the wealth that can buy 5,000 buffaloes.
However, in this battle, the 4th Group Army withstood successive attacks by the Japanese army of 40,000 men. The 46th Independent Brigade under its command also sent out unexpected troops to defeat Ruicheng and Yuncheng, and held the outnumbered enemy in Jiulong Mountain for seven days.
The hard battle crippled more than 20,000 Japanese troops and created a miracle in military history. This leaves people speechless and they deserve the reward.
It's okay up to this point. Even if there is dissatisfaction, it is mostly just envy, waiting eagerly for the name of his own army group to be read.
But the famous special envoy surnamed Chen read out the name of a unit, and the faces of the other generals of the major group armies were not good-looking.
Because the person who was rewarded second in order still had nothing to do with them.
Not that group army, but the Four Lines Regiment which was rumored not long ago to be placed under the direct jurisdiction of the war zone.
Is this stingy old man really shameless? In order to win over a colonel commander, he actually ignored the face of all of us? The dissatisfied generals targeted a certain army general who was standing next to the special envoy.
The stingy old man's face has been gloomy most of the time since the special envoy surnamed Chen stood on the stage to personally announce various awards and awards. He would only try to squeeze out a smile when he was conferring honors on generals.
It's not because the special envoy surnamed Chen has usurped the honors and left him, the dignified commander of the Second War Zone, as a mascot. The special envoy represents that person, so he is naturally ranked first. Naturally, the stingy old man has an opinion and pretends he has no opinion.
But as various medals and awards began to be distributed to the 4th Army, he gradually came back to his senses, especially when he heard that the name of the Fourth Army was ranked second. His brain was so smart that it was almost hairless.
The melons even flew up.
The one who struck back at him was really fast, accurate and cruel!
Before the awards ceremony, the special envoy surnamed Chen specifically mentioned that after referring to the opinions of the commander of the Second Theater Command, the following reward decision was made.
The superiors also need to listen to the opinions from below. Whether this rhetoric is implemented or not, it will basically be mentioned in public. This is also a Chinese practice.
Needless to say, no matter the ranking or any reward, it all falls on him, the commander of the theater.
First use the 4th Army as a gun to stir up trouble in the hearts of the other commanders of the Army!
Of course, this is just an introduction.
The ancient Chinese ancestors once said: Don’t worry about scarcity, but worry about inequality!
The 4th Army was raised high first, and the other commanders were jealous first, but it was okay to say that it was the 4th Army that fought with real swords and guns.
For example, when the Independent 46th Brigade sent troops to Zhongtiao Mountain, there were more than 4,300 people. When the battle of Jiulong Mountain was over, the entire brigade could still leave the battlefield standing. Together with the major general and brigade commander, there were only less than 500 people, and even the entire battalion had fewer than 500 people.
Not enough.
Excluding minor injuries, the brigade suffered more than 2,300 casualties and more than 1,400 serious injuries. Five infantry platoons were wiped out. Such a battle loss rate is something to be proud of on any battlefield.
What's more, more than 10,000 Japanese troops fell in front of their positions. More than half of the Japanese military rank badges and command knives brought back by newspaper and radio reporters a while ago were obtained in Jiulong Mountain.
But here comes the real drama.
The second one to be organized was actually not any other group army, but the Four Elements Regiment.
The stingy old man only wanted to scold his mother. As the saying goes, "The beauty of a tree will be destroyed by the wind." The one who wanted to bring Tang Dao and the Four Elements Group to the forefront had bad intentions, but it was him who took the blame in the end.
Theater Commander.
Not only did the other group army commanders think that he was trying to win over Tang Dao, but even Tang Dao probably wanted to slap him in the face from afar.
After all, it was clear that he acquiesced to Tang Dao to lead his troops to rescue Jiulong Mountain last time, and no one knew that he, the commander of the war zone, showed his kindness to Tang Dao Chiguoguo.
Yes, no one denies the military exploits of the Four Elements Regiment.
Whether on the battlefields of Wangwu Mountain or Sizhou Mountain, or Jiulong Mountain and Taihang Mountain, the Sihang Regiment at least exerted the combat power of a Category A infantry division. The Japanese Army's Guozaki Detachment, the Reserve 21st Infantry Brigade, and the 4th Division's West Tuo Detachment,
The three major mixed brigades, the 114th Division, the 108th Division and other units all fell in front of the Si Xing Regiment.
The number of Japanese troops it annihilated was second to none among all Chinese units, but the Si Xing Regiment is an infantry regiment-level unit after all!
Your reward is directly superior to the major armies. Do you generals still have face?
Fortunately, due to the long journey, the Fourth Army Regiment and the Eightyth Group Army stationed in the Taihang Mountains were absent from this massive awards ceremony. Otherwise, Tang Tuanzuo would have endured so many eyes like sharp arrows.
But no matter what other group army commanders, army commanders and other big guys think, these medals and awards still have to be issued.
Tang Dao was awarded the Medal of the Blue Sky and a third-class Medal of the Cauldron. His subordinates, Deputy Commander Lei Xiong, Director of the Political Department Ye Chenghuan, Chief of Staff Gong Shaoxun, and Director of the Logistics Department Zhuang Shisan, all received the fourth-class Medal of the Cauldron, and all the others
School-level officers are awarded the fifth-class Medal of the Precious Cauldron, and lieutenants and soldiers with military exploits are awarded the seventh- to ninth-class Medal of the Precious Cauldron.
If we look at the number of people with the Baoding Medal, the Fourth Army Regiment is actually catching up with the 4th Army!
Not to mention, the Fourth Army Regiment was established as a special regiment and was allocated a military expenditure of 1.4 million French currency for one year. It was also issued with a letter of appointment as deputy director of the Southern Hebei Administrative Office stamped with the seal of the Executive Yuan, as well as the rumored 20
Dedicated funds of 10,000 legal currency.
The eyes of the other military generals were almost red, and the stingy old man was almost crying. Even the Blue Sky Medal hanging on his chest no longer tasted good.
What kind of medal ceremony is this? This is just putting him, the commander of the second theater, on fire!
Really, if he just wanted to kick that person off the stage with a JIO before, now he wants to hit that person on the head with a piece of shit.
I have never seen such a bad person, who can use such a moment of celebration to give him, the commander of the theater, enough eye candy.
Of course, that man was a smart man. He used the 4th Army and the Four Lines Regiment to torment a certain theater commander, but he did not hesitate to reward several other group armies who participated in the war and made meritorious deeds.
Basically, each army group allocated 2 months of military expenses. Even the 80th Group Army was given 1.24 million French currency according to the original establishment of three infantry divisions of 50,000 people. That is to say, in terms of rewards, 100,000 to 300,000 French currency was given based on military merit.
etc. amount.
I felt grateful to that person, but the feeling of dissatisfaction was left to the stingy old man who was the commander of the theater.
This time it was a big hemorrhage. Nearly 4,000 medals of various types were issued, and tens of millions were spent on military expenses and rewards. In order to let the troops stationed in Zhongtiao Mountain and Taihang Mountain have a good New Year, the Shaanxi Provincial Government prepared 300,000 in cattle, sheep, and pork.
800,000 jins of rice and noodles, and 1,000,000 jins of Chinese cabbage and radishes are being transported continuously through the Yellow River Ferry to Zhongtiao Mountain for labor.
It seems that there are not many assigned to each army, but this is extremely rare for the armies who have not seen a few meat dishes in half a year.
Especially in such a big mountain, let alone French currency, the ocean is not easy to use, and even if you have money, you can't buy things. In fact, to a certain extent, these supplies are worth more than any medals, rewards and pensions to hundreds of thousands of officers and soldiers.
It's more practical.
As the telegram was transmitted to all armies, the defense line of more than a hundred miles in Zhongtiao Mountain was filled with joy.
Except for Commander Yan, who looked dark all night.
........
Dakouzidong Town in Taihang Mountain!
Although there was no fighting or training, he was still busy and enthusiastic.
The Four Elements Group has several major things to do during this time.
First, Tang Tuanzuo is finally going to end his happy single life! Moreover, Tantai Mingyue’s family has come all the way, so this ceremony must be held grandly.
In the words of deputy regimental leader Lei Xiong, in order to save face for the regimental commander, this matter is the top priority at the moment and the entire regiment must work together.
Second, in order to boost people's morale, the Dakouzidong Town garrison and the whole regiment will hold a New Year's party, and all friendly generals will also be invited to watch the ceremony.
Of course, this is also because Tang Tuanzuo's wedding was just in time and they happened to be held together.
Third, this is what Tang Tuanzuo considers to be the most important. There should also be an awards ceremony within the Si Xing Tuan Tuan.
However, the medals awarded are not medals from the Ministry of Military Affairs. The medals brought by the special envoy will be distributed according to the list after the New Year, and everyone will be worthy of them.
Compared with the medals from the Military and Political Department, at least the people in the Si Xing Regiment are more looking forward to the military medals customized by the military factory in their own regiment.
After fighting the Japanese invaders throughout 1938, the Political Department of the Fourth Army Regiment, which was responsible for identifying military merits, designing medals, and implementing the military merit system, became more experienced than before.
The military merits this time are divided into four levels: 'special military merit', 'first-class military merit', 'second-class military merit', and 'third-class military merit'. As the Four Elements Group's financial resources become more and more abundant, copper and iron are no longer used.
Yes, all military medals are decorated with gold or silver as the base, emerald, crystal, agate and other precious stones.
Rare things like agate and jade were valuable when they were bought. When the Four Elements Group snatched them from the Japanese and wanted to cash them in, they discovered that those who had the financial resources to swallow up the internal inventory of the Four Elements Group were stingy in the Second War Zone.
An old man alone.
You can imagine with your butt that stingy old man how low he will keep the price. Zhuang Shisan, who is in charge of logistics, only asked the banker for a symbolic price from Jin Provincial Bank. He only gave him one-fifth of the market price.
I scolded my mother for two days.
We don't lack this little money, so Tang Dao simply ordered the Political Department to find someone to design and cut these gems, which may be valuable in the future, and set them on military medals.
No matter how valuable it is in the future, it belongs to these meritorious officials and must not fall into the hands of those evil capitalists.
For example, the 'Extraordinary Military Merit' Medal is basically a piece of pure gold in the shape of a tiger's head, about the size of an egg, with 93 grams of pure gold, symbolizing the year 39. The tiger's eyes are made of two bright green emeralds.
Made of mosaics.
According to Li Jijin, compared with these two emeralds, which are no more than the size of mung beans, 93 grams of gold is nothing.
The 'First Class Military Merit' medal is a bear's head, with 80 grams of gold as the base and 13 grams of silver as the supplement. The bear's eyes are the same precious red jade.
The "Second Class Merit" medal is a wolf head, with 60 grams of gold as the base, 33 grams of silver as the supplement, and the wolf's eyes are one grade lower red agate.
The "Third Class Military Merit" medal has an eagle head, with 50 grams of gold as the base, 43 grams of silver as the supplement, and the eagle's eyes are red crystal.
Moreover, the Fourth Army Regiment Headquarters also issued an order that if the holder of the military medals issued the first three times wants to update them to a new model, they can hand in the old ones, and the new ones will be issued after the new ones are produced.
In terms of value, the newly produced military medals produced to celebrate the victory in the Battle of Zhongtiao Mountain and the New Year are obviously much higher, but many people have not replaced them.
In their opinion, the commemorative significance of these military medals is far greater than the so-called value. Looking at the military medals, they will not forget those brothers who have fought side by side and are still walking in the front. It is not only a memorial, but also a burden.
