In the east of Xinfeng Town on the south bank of the Wei River, artillery fire roared and gunfire continued. Wang Yizhe's troops of the Northeast Army, which occupied a favorable terrain, were very calm and held back.
In the fierce battle that started from early morning to two o'clock in the afternoon, both sides suffered heavy losses. Two divisions of the Northeastern Army took the initiative to withdraw from Weinan and retreated to the Xinfeng line. They withstood the two-pronged attack of the well-equipped and highly morale Central Teaching Corps.
, and gradually reversed the decline, seizing the initiative little by little.
On the high ground of Daiwangmiao in the south of Xinfeng Town, Wang Yizhe, commander of the 67th Army, picked up his binoculars and observed the smoke-filled forward positions. He could clearly see the corpses strewn on the ground and the four burning British tanks left behind by the officers and soldiers of the Central Training Corps.
Scattered German steel helmets and Mauser rifles with bayonets were everywhere.
However, the officers and soldiers of the teaching corps who returned to the offensive position were still gradually gathering, apparently preparing to devote all the reserve teams of the two regiments to launch a more violent attack.
Wang Yizhe sighed, feeling sad in his heart. The reason why he ordered his two divisions to withdraw from Weinan was to gain time, stop the fighting, and avoid greater casualties on both sides. But now it seems that the teaching corps will not stop.
It's a red eye. The 67th Army, as the main force defending Xi'an, can no longer retreat. If it retreats, it will retreat to Lintong. By then, the city of Xi'an will be in chaos, and anything can happen.
"Reporting to the military, the armored regiment has been ordered to come for reinforcements! Commander Liu's independent division has also arrived with our regiment."
Colonel Liu Yuze, the commander of the armored regiment who ran up, reported loudly.
Wang Yizhe turned around and jumped off the ridge, returned the salute, and then patted Liu Yuze's shoulder affectionately: "Xiao Qi, you guys came very quickly, how about it? Are you ready?"
"Everything is ready, just waiting for the command from the military commander! Our armored regiment has been training hard for a long time. As long as the military commander gives the order, we will never give the Central Army opposite the slightest chance to fight back!"
Liu Yuze was very excited, with a strong desire to fight flashing in his eyes. It was undoubtedly the greatest honor to win the respect of Wang Yizhe, who was extremely respected and loved by the Lingquan soldiers.
The surrounding generals laughed loudly, and Wang Yizhe nodded: "Okay! The current situation is that we can no longer retreat. The current short-term truce is just a prelude to a larger-scale battle. The Central Army opposite has obviously become red-eyed.
Troops are being assembled and prepared to launch a large-scale attack.
"Xiao Qi, I will give you half an hour to prepare. When the enemy's charge begins, your armored regiment will rush forward at full speed, use the strongest firepower to open a passage, disrupt the enemy's charge formation from the front, and deter its main force.
The troops, then at full power, penetrated along the railway to Yejiapo, the rear of the enemy's central army, and flattened Gui Yongqing's headquarters for me!
"Our two divisions will launch a counterattack on both sides of you. The cavalry regiment will deal with the enemy's artillery positions. You don't need to worry. You can just lead your troops to charge hard. In this battle, we will fight back to Weinan in one go.
Go, teach the Central Army in front of you a lesson, and take Weinan back!"
"yes!"
Liu Yuze answered excitedly.
"Yeah, An Jiajun's plane is here again..."
Wu Keren, deputy commander and commander of the 117th Division, shouted angrily.
Wang Yizhe and the generals quickly looked up and were surprised to find that the dozen or so fighter planes in the sky were very different from the previous routine reconnaissance. Three A25 attack planes were constantly circling, and six large bombers were covered by two groups of attack planes.
, suddenly lowered its altitude, made a huge roar, flew over the open space between the fighting positions of the two armies, and dropped a string of heavy bombs one after another under the astonished gaze of more than 50,000 soldiers on both sides of the war, with earth-shattering explosions.
Huge fireballs and thick smoke shot up into the sky one after another. In the blink of an eye, the open area was filled with debris and debris, and the sky was covered in flames and thick smoke.
After the plane dropped its bombs, it flew away. Several reconnaissance planes hovered high over the battlefield and continued to monitor. Under the ground, a zone more than 300 meters long was blazing with fire. The hot air was filled with gunpowder smoke and the unpleasant pungent smell of chemicals.
odor.
Covered in dust, Wang Yizhe got up from the ground and looked at the formation of Anjiajun fighter jets flying south. He felt particularly heavy. He thought of the ceasefire order he received from An Yi, director of the Central Military Commission's Special Leading Group, in the morning, and understood that it was An Yi.
A stern warning was issued.
If these bombs fall on the headquarters position, I am afraid that this battle will be impossible to fight, and the main forces of the various units, including the armored regiment, will suffer heavy losses.
The surrounding generals got up, shook off the dust from their bodies, pointed to the sky and shouted curses, as unpleasant as they wanted. Wang Yizhe shouted to stop everyone, saying "Please show mercy", which made everyone understand, and soon under Wang Yizhe's order
, parted ways and left dejectedly.
At this time, the Chief of Operations Jin Kuibi came to report urgently: "Military seat, the assault brigade of the 44th Division of the Anjia Army has crossed the 15-kilometer cordon to the south of us. The following two brigades and an armored battalion are continuously coming to the battlefield.
Their brigade commander asked our security company commander to send a message that the 44th Division will march all the way to Bawangzhuang, seven kilometers southeast, to camp on the front line."
Wang Yizhe was shocked: "Kui Bi, you go there in person immediately. You must see General Wu Liheng, the commander of the joint service who led the 44th Division, and ask him personally what is going on. General An Yi, the commander of the Anjia Army, gave a message in the morning
The Marshal telegraphed clearly opposed the war between the two sides, saying that his army would never take the initiative to attack Xi'an and occupy Hanzhong and Shangluo. The purpose was to resolve the incident peacefully. Now his 44th Division suddenly moved northward, forcing us to engage in firefights with the Central Army.
What on earth do you want to do on the main battlefield? I immediately called the young marshal to report that the entire army will stop all military operations and be on standby, waiting for orders at any time."
At 2:50 in the afternoon, the frontline headquarters of the Central Military Academy Teaching Corps in Yejiapo, east of the battlefield.
Lieutenant General Gui Yongqing, Chief of Staff Fu Zhaoqian and more than ten generals stood behind the bunker on the hillside, looking at the open position ahead of them, filled with blazing fire and smoke, and there was silence.
In the earlier attack positions, more than 10,000 officers and soldiers who were ready to go were completely unprepared for this unexpected situation. They still had not woken up from the huge explosions that shook the mountains and the ground. The hearts of officers at all levels gradually became...
He was timid and did not dare to move. He was deeply afraid of another violent bombing by Anjiajun planes whose enemies and friends were unknown.
"Old Fu, it seems that you have to make a trip to Bawangzhuang in the south to meet the bearded Wu Liheng and ask him what he wants to do? Is he going to go against the teaching corps of the Central Military Academy?" Gui Yongqing ordered through gritted teeth.
The chief of staff next to him.
Fu Zhaoqian hesitated: "I guess it would be more useful to call Junior Brother An immediately to inquire. Junior Brother An issued two ceasefire orders in the name of the Military Commission, but we didn't reply to him. It was very likely that he was annoyed by this, so we sent the plane and
The 44th Division is causing trouble, and my subordinates are worried that these Anjiajun generals really dare to start a fight."
Gui Yongqing looked up at the reconnaissance plane hovering in the sky, and shook his head helplessly: "No matter what, you should go for a trip. I will call the Military Commission and Commander He to report, and ask Junior Brother An what he wants to do.
."
"Okay! I'll go right away."
Fu Zhaoqian took his adjutant with him, strode down the hillside, called two guards and jumped into the military vehicle parked by the road, and drove south.
Gui Yongqing returned to the bunker, and the communications staff quickly greeted him and handed him a telegram. After reading He Yingqin's telegram ordering him to "stop advancing and lead his troops to return to Tongguan and stand by", Gui Yongqing sighed quietly, his face full of tears. It was a look of frustration. He vaguely realized that the situation in Nanjing might have changed. Otherwise, He Yingqin, who was determined to seek war and resolutely crusade, would not have issued such an order. The Luoyang Air Force controlled by Zhu Shaozhou would not have failed to assist in the battle. The two troops stationed in Luoyang and Huayin It is said that the Central Army of the Division also stopped advancing and waited for further orders from the Military Commission.
Baoji, Shaanxi Province, Headquarters of the First Army of the Central Army.
Hu Zongnan, deputy commander Fan Hanjie, deputy division commanders Li Wen, Luo Lie, 78th Division Commander Ding Delong, brigade commander Li Zhengxian, Zhan Zhongyan, Wen Chaoji, Liao Ang and other Huangpu generals came out of the camp to meet Guan Linzheng, who hurriedly drove over. , Wang Yaowu, Li Jilan and other senior brothers hurriedly saluted, exchanged brief greetings, and walked to the headquarters together.
At noon on the day of the Xi'an Incident, Guan Linzheng, who was leading his troops to suppress the Communists with Ma Hongkui, the commander of the Ma Jiajun, in Yinchuan, Gansu, received a call from Hu Zongnan. He was shocked to hear that Chiang Kai-shek had been detained. At that time, he fainted and couldn't even talk on the phone. He thought that the whole country was over. No. After a while, representatives from Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng suddenly arrived to win over Gansu Provincial Chairman Ma Hongkui to jointly oppose the central government.
Ma Hongkui's relationship with Hu Zongnan was very tense, but he had a deep friendship with Guan Linzheng. He was shocked when he heard the words of representatives Zhang and Yang. He dismissed the matter as important and worthy of consideration, and sent away representatives of Zhang and Yang. Guan Linzheng then arrived, and Guan Linzheng joined forces with Chen Dayi. He said generously:
"The situation is critical, and everything between Qin and Chu can be decided by Chairman Ma. If you want to cooperate with Zhang Xueliang and Yang Hucheng and disobey the central government, please detain me; if you decide to continue to follow the central government, you should detain representatives of Zhang and Yang , you must not deal with both sides, otherwise you will not be able to please anyone."
After listening to Guan Linzheng's words, Ma Hongkui made the decision on the spot: "Yudong (characterized by Guan Linzheng), don't you know that I obey the central government and am loyal to Jiang Gong? I will immediately put representatives Zhang and Yang under house arrest."
Ma Hongkui's uncle was standing by. Seeing this, he said, "Hongkui! It's best for you to become sworn brothers at this time."
Ma Hongkui knelt down when he heard this, and Guan Linzheng also knelt down and swore an oath to heaven to become brothers.
Three days ago, Guan Linzheng and the Huangpu generals from surrounding divisions led their troops to siege Xi'an on the orders of He Yingqin. Yesterday afternoon, they received a secret message from An Yi on the way. The generals met together and found that An Yi had sent a secret message to every leading general, informing Nanjing in detail. situation, stated the interests of the siege of Xi'an, and the serious consequences that may lead to the death of the principal, and recommended that all ministries stop advancing and wait for further orders from the Central Military Commission, instead of following the orders of He Yingqin's so-called thieves-fighting headquarters. Finally, in the name of his junior brother, he Let me tell you frankly:
The 16th Division has successfully entered Nanjing City. Under the leadership of the Supreme Council of the Military Commission composed of veterans such as Commander Gu Zhenglun, Feng Yuxiang, Li Liejun, Zhu Peide, etc., they are striving to rescue the principal as quickly as possible through military oppression, political mediation, and influence of public opinion. To avoid further division and civil war across China, and to prevent the Japanese aggressors from taking advantage of the situation and launching an all-out invasion.
After discussing with Wang Yaowu and others, Guan Linzheng immediately contacted Hu Zongnan, and thus the Baoji gathering was held.