A black three-door luxury bulletproof car of the "Venus" brand produced by the Syrian government, escorted by a total of 14 black off-road vehicles, nine in the front and five in the back, slowly drove out of the gate of the government, drove to the right, passed by Qingliang and Xuanwu Lake,
Then exit the Peace Gate, turn west, and drive towards the Lion Rock Fort.
Chiang Kai-shek was sitting in the car with his eyes closed and concentrating. His complexion looked a little bad, his thin cheeks were a little blue, and his slightly swollen eye circles showed signs of fatigue and lack of sleep. Soong Meiling sat silently next to Chiang Kai-shek.
, her face looked slightly haggard, she sometimes looked out the window absentmindedly, and sometimes stared worriedly at the strong yet thin husband in front of her who had the safety of the country and the nation at stake.
The car bumped heavily. Chiang Kai-shek opened his eyes and asked, "Have you arrived at Xiaguan Pier?"
Song Meiling shook her head slightly: "Not yet. By the way, Darling, I have a question. You have so many things to do, why do you think of going to the dock to welcome the New Second Army across the river in person?"
Chiang Kai-shek rubbed his face and tried to cheer himself up: "Zhang Wenbai doesn't know how to fight, so he ruined the three tank companies he had worked so hard to build on lease... I heard that the tank division of the New Second Army was equipped with
There are a large number of new tanks independently developed by the Syrian government, so I want to see it with my own eyes to understand the gap between our Central Armored Force and An Yi's tank force, so that we can make up for it in time and catch up as soon as possible."
Song Meiling was a little surprised, her beautiful eyes flashing: "The tanks in Xiaoyi's tank unit are more advanced than the tanks in the center? Is this impossible?"
Chiang Kai-shek held Soong Meiling's hand and patted the back of her white hand gently: "I'm not very clear either. Last time the New Second Army went north to Bengbu, we were still in Lushan. This time Xu Yuexiang wanted me to come and see it for myself anyway.
Look. Although the enemy has reached a tacit agreement with us and ceased war, the call for expanding the war in their country is very loud. In the past two days, I have always had nightmares. I dreamed that Shanghai was defeated like a mountain, and the enemy troops came to the gates of Nanjing and carried out brutal and inhumane attacks.
The massacre. I saw with my own eyes the desolate scene of blood flowing into rivers in the capital, but there was nothing I could do about it. I was very frightened. Now I just need something to ward off evil spirits. If the New Second Army is true as Xu Yuexiang said, I guess I can have a good sleep.
"
When Song Meiling heard the word "massacre", her heart tightened: "Darling, do you also have such nightmares? I don't know why in the past two days, I have always dreamed about the scene of the Japanese killing people in Nanjing. There is a scene in it.
I have a very vivid memory. The enemy first ordered hundreds or even thousands of Chinese to dig holes. After digging the holes, they drove them all in, then set up machine guns to kill them. After killing them, they buried them in the soil and drove away. I also
I am always awakened by these horrific scenes!”
Chiang Kai-shek turned his head in surprise and looked at Soong Meiling, both seeing a hint of fear in the other's eyes.
...
At Xiaguan Wharf, there were huge crowds of people on both sides of the road. After hearing that the Anjia Army marched south to Songhu, Nanjing citizens who were in urgent need of psychological comfort gathered here, vying to witness the majesty of the Anjia Army's tank troops.
The military police force and the New Second Army Special Forces Corps officers and soldiers responsible for maintaining order had already cleared the road. Chiang Kai-shek's motorcade easily entered the dock area and parked in front of a two-story building.
Under the protection of the guards, Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Meiling got off the car one after another, walked into the building, and came to the window near the river. They leaned on the railing and looked into the distance. They saw the Pukou Pier on the north bank and the shadows of boats. They knew that soon the tank division of the New Second Army would arrive.
Cross the Yangtze River.
At this time, Lieutenant General Xu Tingyao, commander of the Central Armored Forces, strode into the house and came to Chiang Kai-shek. Just as he was about to stand at attention and salute, Chiang Kai-shek smiled and waved his hand to indicate that you were welcome. He pulled him and pointed to the opposite side of the river and asked: "New Second Army
How many tanks does the tank division have?”
Xu Tingyao respectfully reported: "The New Second Army is a tank division organized entirely according to the German armored forces. It has two tank regiments, an anti-tank infantry regiment, an anti-aircraft artillery regiment, a special agent regiment, an engineering regiment, and a repair battalion.
A logistics support battalion, an armored reconnaissance company, and a communications company. Among them, each tank regiment has 75 medium tanks, the anti-tank infantry regiment has 80 armored vehicles, and the anti-aircraft artillery regiment has 60 88 self-propelled anti-aircraft guns.
There are 20 self-propelled artillery vehicles equipped with Zhongzheng Type 5 machine guns, the special service group has 30 armored vehicles, and the armored reconnaissance company has 10 armored vehicles. It can be said that this is a new type of tank armor unit that has never been seen before."
Chiang Kai-shek took a breath after hearing this: "So, this tank division alone has 150 tanks and 120 armored vehicles. What do the self-propelled anti-aircraft guns and gun carriages mean?"
Xu Tingyao said: "I'm not sure. It's said to be an anti-aircraft gun that is mounted on a vehicle chassis and can move on its own without external traction. As early as 1914, Russia produced the world's first anti-aircraft gun mounted on a truck chassis.
The 76mm artillery on board, the German armored forces are currently also forming self-propelled anti-aircraft artillery units, I think the anti-aircraft artillery regiment of the New Second Army Tank Division is also formed based on this principle."
"So, a tank division has more than 300 tanks and armored vehicles? Oh my God, how much does it cost to build such a force?" Soong Meiling next to Chiang Kai-shek covered her mouth and exclaimed.
Xu Tingyao shook his head and did not answer.
At this time, a large ferry had docked, and thirty tanks drove off the ferry one after another, making a huge roar, and stopped by the road in front of the dock.
Looking at the majestic appearance of the tank, Nanjing citizens from far and near burst into cheers. If it were not stopped by the military police and the special brigade, they would have gathered in front of the tank and started to move.
Chiang Kai-shek couldn't help his curiosity and strode out of the house, followed quickly by Song Meiling and Xu Tingyao.
I saw that these tanks were all painted with the four-color camouflage colors used by the Anjia Army. Compared with the tanks of the Central Armored Brigade, they looked much taller and more powerful, especially the huge tank guns, which left a deep impression on Chiang Kai-shek. He Xin
Compared with the tanks equipped by the tank divisions of the Second Army, the German Type I tank, which originally seemed to be so powerful, suddenly felt like a child's plaything, too simple and crude.
The top cover of a tank was opened, and a major general wearing camouflage uniforms and a helmet quickly jumped out of the tank, walked quickly to Chiang Kai-shek, stood at attention and saluted:
"Report! Li Yuewu, Commander of the 103rd Division, pays tribute to the Chairman."
Chiang Kai-shek wanted to understand the performance of this tank that he had never seen before. He quickly grabbed Li Yuewu's hand, strode to the tank, touched the outer wall of the tank, and asked loudly: "General Li, what kind of tank is this? What kind of tank is this?"
How about A, how powerful is it?"
Li Yuewu introduced: "Chairman of the Standing Committee, this is our Syrian government's comprehensive collection of American m1931 tanks, British Vickers series medium light tanks, French Renault series medium light tanks, various enemy models captured during the Songhu Battle and the Great Wall Anti-Japanese War.
The tank, based on the characteristics of Italian Fiat series tanks, German Type I and Type II tanks, adopts the tilted front armor and side armor design developed by the Syrian Ordnance Research Institute for armored vehicles, and is made of special alloy steel through the latest welding process.
A first-generation tank. Different from German-made tanks, we use a high-horsepower diesel engine developed by the Fox Company Power Research Institute in the United States to drive it, which is more secure in terms of safety."
Chiang Kai-shek nodded silently and looked up at the huge muzzle, his eyes full of excitement.
"The design and layout of our tank is extremely reasonable. It consists of the body, turret, engine, control device, transmission device, chassis and suspension device. Our tank has five pairs of huge road wheels. Between the second and third pairs of wheels,
There is a certain distance between the wheels, and the suspension device of each wheel is installed independently. It is suspended laterally on the vertical coil spring installed in the body of the vehicle. The driving wheel is installed at the rear to improve the impact resistance. Through the center of the staggered track link,
The guide shaft die drives the track with a width of 48.2 mm. Our tank has a total combat weight of 27.2 tons and can travel through mountains and muddy areas."
After listening to Li Yuewu's explanation of the driving device, Chiang Kai-shek rarely squatted down in front of everyone and took a closer look.
Li Yuewu continued to introduce: "The tank body is suspended on the tracks. The front and side armor are 43.8 mm thick, the rear armor is 39 mm, and the top armor is 19 mm. In addition to the driver's cabin and the machine guns installed in the body, the slope armor
There are no gaps, and the driver's cabin is equipped with a periscope. The oblique armor around the turret has an inclination angle of 60 degrees and has excellent bulletproof capabilities, equivalent to 75 mm thick vertical armor. The rear armor behind the turret is slightly raised to install the engine compartment grille and both sides.
There is an engine inspection hole cover for the exhaust pipe for easy inspection and maintenance.
"Our tank has a crew of three, divided into gunner, loader and commander. The commander observes the terrain, masters the radio communication system, commands the tank and cooperates with other tanks. Our main gun is the German 50mm kwk39 l/60
The smoothbore gun is powerful and has a fast rate of fire. Its secondary weapon is a Zhongzhen Type 5 general-purpose machine gun, which can fully meet combat needs."
Chiang Kai-shek touched the thick armor, turned around and asked: "How much does it cost to produce such a tank? If it is installed in the army, can the survivability of the army be greatly improved?"
"I don't know the specific price, but I believe it will be no less than 500,000 yuan. In fact, what troubles China's development of tanks is not money, but the problem of oil supply. It is these tanks and armored vehicles that have caused our oil inventory to be significantly tight.
, for this purpose, various parties have been raising funds to quietly smuggle oil through the Burma Highway, but this always treats the symptoms rather than the root cause, and the supply of oil will be more difficult in the future. In my opinion, if a large number of tanks are developed, but the oil supply cannot keep up, the consequences will be
It's just that there are more steel forts, which will not greatly improve the combat effectiveness of the troops." Li Yuewu answered cautiously.
Chiang Kai-shek was greatly disappointed, but it makes sense when you think about it. Mechanically driven transportation and combat tools such as tanks, armored vehicles, cars, airplanes, and ships are originally monsters that devour oil. Now that China's coast is blocked by enemy forces, if you want to get oil replenishment
It is extremely difficult. It seems that the time is not yet ripe for my dream of developing China's own armored forces.
During the conversation, several more ferries docked, and tanks and armored fighting vehicles disembarked.
The armored fighting vehicles of the New Second Army Tank Division once again attracted Chiang Kai-shek's attention. These armored vehicles not only include the "Cheetah II" six-wheeled fighting vehicle displayed during the Syrian military parade four years ago, but also include an eight-wheeled fighting vehicle.
The main weapon is a 37mm anti-tank gun, and the secondary weapon is a Zhongzhen Type 5 general-purpose machine gun.
After questioning, Chiang Kai-shek learned that this was the new "Cheetah III" armored fighting vehicle finalized by the Xufu Ordnance Research Institute last year.
Relatively speaking, the self-propelled anti-aircraft weapons owned by the tank division's anti-aircraft artillery regiment made Chiang Kai-shek slightly disappointed. The so-called self-propelled was nothing more than a flak36 88mm anti-aircraft gun towed by a special half-track transport vehicle and mounted on the rear of the half-track vehicle.
It’s just a four-link machine gun mount. According to Li Yuewu, the flak36 88mm anti-aircraft gun is towed by a special eight-ton half-track truck produced by the Xufu Automobile Factory. The truck carries the gun crew members and personal equipment, and there are 88 88 mm anti-aircraft guns behind the vehicle.
Cannon ammunition box.
Looking at the murderous torrent of steel, Chiang Kai-shek suddenly felt a heroic spirit of pointing the country and scolding Fang Qiu.
Although the tank unit belongs to the Anjia Army, it must obey its orders no matter what. If you add the 102nd Armored Division, which is all equipped with "Cheetah" series tanks, and the New Second Army, which is organized according to the German Mountain Division,
The 136th Division, you can imagine what a threat it was to the enemy when such a unit appeared on the Songhu battlefield.
"Perhaps, facing my powerful mechanized troops, it is possible for the enemy to seek peace!"
Chiang Kai-shek thought to himself, and looked at Soong Meiling, who had the same idea. The gloom that had accumulated in his heart for many days was swept away, and a bright smile appeared on his face.