The battle in Zhangde (Anyang) is still fierce. The two front armies and Fengjun armies invested by Feng Yuxiang are gritting their teeth and fighting for their lives. Overall, Feng Yuxiang's troops are still at a disadvantage.
General Fan Zhongxiu, who had originally attached himself to Feng Yuxiang, could not bear the exclusion from Feng's troops, so he suddenly turned against him. Taking advantage of the emptiness behind Feng Yuxiang's troops, he led two armies to defeat Feng Yuxiang's Tongguan garrison and pushed straight into Luoyang. Li Yunlong's troops in Shaanxi also responded and attacked Xi'an. Feng Yuxiang
In a hurry, they hurriedly dispatched Song Zheyuan and Shi Jingting's two front armies to rescue Luoyang. At the same time, they sent a telegram a day, begging Li Zongren to let the troops move faster. Even if they could not help themselves to rescue the siege, they would join the Zhangde battlefield to defeat the Fengtian army as soon as possible.
Under the command of Chiang Kai-shek, the First Army continued to advance according to the established goal. On April 27, the First Army, which became more and more courageous in the Vietnam War, captured Tai'an under the leadership of Chiang Dingwen; the next day, the Third Army of Chen Tiaoyuan's Second Army
Seventeenth Army
After capturing Mingshui Town and cutting off the Jiaoji Line, Chen Zhuo's troops of the 26th Army launched a massive attack on Longshan, a strategic town on the Jiaoji Line. On the same day, Song Zheyuan and Shi Jingting defeated Fan Zhongxiu's troops on the Luoyang line. The main forces of the two armies turned around and headed north to the Zhangde battlefield.
Seeing that Zhang Zongchang was gone and his flanks were empty, Fengjun could only order the two legions that had been fighting fiercely on the Zhangde front line for more than ten days to quickly withdraw northward and leave the battlefield.
Feng Yuxiang was in high spirits, and immediately rushed to the mailbox from the Lanfeng front line, commanding the army to quickly go north to pursue. The wavering of the Feng Army on the southern front directly affected the battlefield on the western front. Yan Xishan seized the opportunity and went to Niangziguan to supervise the battle. The morale of the first army was greatly boosted.
The Third Army immediately sounded the clarion call for counterattack.
Infected by one good news after another, the Yanzhou First Army Headquarters was filled with joy, except for An Yi, who did not have the slightest smile on his face.
However, An Yi did not distance himself from the masses because of this. He was polite to everyone and never showed any impatience. He would not criticize any staff member who made mistakes. He worked conscientiously fifteen hours a day.
Analyzing the battle situation and checking the implementation of each legion's plan, every little flaw on the frontline battlefield seemed to escape his eyes. He would personally draft telegrams and give them to the confidential staff at the headquarters to send to all armies and divisions to remind the frontline
Attention, commander.
An Yi's outstanding commanding ability and rigorous and diligent work attitude have won praise and admiration from all over the headquarters. In addition to admiration for the staff officers and chief officers of various ministries who are much older than An Yi, they are also more and more interested in the young chief of staff who is mature and has a profound vision.
The more awe-struck.
Commander-in-chief Chiang tensed up his nerves every day. His sworn brother, Huang Yong, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Nanjing National Government, issued a statement severely refuting the so-called reasons for the Japanese government to send troops to Shandong. He then joined Yang Yongtai, chief advisor of the think tank.
He left Nanjing and headed north. When he arrived in Xuzhou, he sent a telegram to Chiang Kai-shek, reporting "the inside information of the Second Department of the Japanese General Staff Headquarters Matsui Iwane and Shanghai Consul General Yada, Shandong's negotiations with Japan, and Zhang Qun's appointment" and other matters.
Facing the influx of battle reports and intelligence, assistants such as Chen Bui, Chen Lifu, Ge Jingen, etc. were sweating. The two armies and four armies of the First Group Army have already reached a range of 35 kilometers from Jinan. Now,
Jinan can be captured with just one order.
After careful thought, Chiang Kai-shek finally recruited his favorite protégé, An Yi, who had just been nicknamed the "Young Leader" by the generals of the First Army.
"At this point in the war, Jinan must be occupied. In order to avoid diplomatic disputes, it needs to be handled properly and with caution. We discussed it and made a preliminary decision. Now we want to hear your opinion." After speaking, Commander-in-Chief Jiang pointed at An Yi.
The wicker chair next to you.
An Yi continued to stand: "Principal, in my humble opinion as a student, the sooner we capture Jinan, the better. At this time, our military units are as close as seven kilometers to Jinan and as far away as less than 40 kilometers. As long as the principal nods, Jinan can be conquered in one go."
Next, he ordered Chen, the commander-in-chief of the front line of the Jinan Campaign, to
General Tiaoyuan held a ceremony to enter the city, leaving one unit to be stationed symbolically, and then moved all the main forces to the west and north to prevent the Japanese army from seizing the opportunity, causing trouble, triggering fierce military conflicts, and thus harming the people.
The safety of life and property of the people of Jinan.
If the Japanese army provokes a provocation, the students suggest that we not even stay in the symbolic garrison, but transfer them all to continue the Northern Expedition, and leave everything else to diplomats to resolve; if the Japanese army dares to pursue us, beat them in the wild, and the Japanese army will not pursue us and continue walking.
, it is not too late to come back to deal with him after taking Beijing, otherwise the exchange of fire will cause disaster to the innocent civilians in the city, and the consequences will be unimaginable."
Chiang Kai-shek looked at An Yi in surprise. He did not expect that An Yi, who had always been tough on Japan, would suddenly be willing to make such a big concession. After thinking about it carefully, he suddenly understood what An Yi was thinking. He sighed and whispered:
"Sit down, sit down and speak slowly. I can see that you have been thinking about this matter these past few days. I can also understand your difficulties. These opinions of yours basically coincide with mine, although some of them are temporarily sacrificed.
interests, but it can ensure the smooth progress of our Northern Expedition to the greatest extent.
The only difference between my thoughts and yours is that we cannot give up military occupation. Foreign Minister Huang, negotiator Cai Gongshi and other government officials are coming soon. We will negotiate with the Japanese through various channels. As long as we are polite and polite and do not take the initiative
If provocative, the Japanese would not dare to risk the disdain of the world and cause trouble.
In the past half month, we have repeatedly stated that we will protect the safety and interests of Japanese overseas Chinese in Shandong and will not harm the current rights and interests of European and American countries. The whole world knows this, and our diplomatic channels are also open. Countries around the world do not want the Japanese to dominate Shandong.
In North China, even if the negotiation fails, European and American countries will intervene, and the League of Nations will support us."
"Principal, please forgive the students for being bold. Some things have been buried in my heart for too long, and it feels very uncomfortable not to say them. Principal, over the years, that bullshit League of Nations has deceived us more than once. It has always favored European and American countries and the Japanese when it comes to China's rights and interests.
Let’s not talk about the humiliation during the Opium War, the Sino-Japanese War, and the Revolution of 1911. The League of Nations had not been established at that time, so we have no way to blame. However, from the time when the Beiyang warlords came to power until now, when did the League of Nations help?
We? The seemingly fair League of Nations was established after the last world war. In fact, it is a group of wolves in sheep's clothing. It is a powerful group composed of great powers with the purpose of coordinating how to carve up weak and small countries. As long as they complete each other's
We will never remember the so-called justice, the so-called democracy and equality when it comes to the distribution of interests. We absolutely cannot place our hopes on the League of Nations." After An Yi finished speaking, he still stood quietly with his head bowed.
Ge Jing'en, Chen Lifu, Chen Bulei and other more than ten senior advisers and followers all put down their work and stared blankly at An Yi, who was making bold remarks.
Chiang Kai-shek frowned, slowly lowered his head, slowly closed his palms and intertwined his fingers, looking at his hands quietly without speaking. The air was filled with tension. The atmosphere in the entire office was getting heavier and heavier.
People seem to be unable to breathe.
Chiang Kai-shek was silent for a long time, then raised his head and said calmly: "An Yi, political issues are very complicated. You need to strengthen your study and training in this area. If your political level is half of your military level, I, as the principal, will be satisfied."
Okay...Okay, I know you are feeling very uncomfortable during this period. You have not rested for three days and three nights for the Jinan Campaign. From Xuzhou to Jinan, your command has become smoother and smoother. You have a good view of the overall situation and are deeply loved by all armies.
All departments in the headquarters and I are very satisfied with the general's praise.
However, the overall situation has been decided. The second phase of the war is about to end. The finishing work of each legion is also commanded by General Zhu Yizhi and General Chen Xuexuan (Chen Diaoyuan). The third phase of the war is about to begin as planned. In view of this, I want to
You go to the front line and map out the route our army will take to cross the river to the north. The iron bridge over the Yellow River in the north of Jinan is not safe. Just in case, we must map out several other crossing sections in the plan, otherwise I won't worry."
An Yi felt extremely sad. He knew that Chiang Kai-shek was worried that he would cause trouble and that his attitude would affect other Huangpu comrades and lieutenants in the army, thereby affecting the upcoming Sino-Japanese negotiations, and even lead to an unstoppable war.
That's why we moved ourselves to the northwest away from Jinan.
An Yi felt very sad, but he did not complain, and still respectfully agreed without changing his expression: "Students obey your orders! Please ask the principal to allow students to lead their independent divisions to take the first step and serve as a front for each legion."
"Agree, if you don't tell me, I will let the independent division follow you. If the troops are not enough, I can transfer one or two divisions to you. There are still many remnants of the Zhilu Army on both sides of the Yellow River to the west and north of Jinan. Everything
You must be careful, I will let the headquarters logistics and other departments strongly support you." Chiang Kai-shek looked at An Yi with concern.
"It's enough for the students to bring the independent division. There are no strong enemies on the northern and western fronts. The students don't even need the artillery regiments and convoys. Let them stay just in case. If the situation in Jinan direction changes, the artillery regiments will be by the principal's side."
Maybe it can be used. The students will definitely complete the assignment as soon as possible and never let down the principal's expectations!"
After An Yi finished speaking, he took half a step back, stood upright, gave a standard military salute, and strode away with a soldier's steps.
Chiang Kai-shek watched An Yi leave. He didn't look back until he could no longer see anyone. He sighed deeply and grabbed the cup on the table. The generals in the hall also resumed their work. The room was so quiet that the slightest sound of turning papers could be heard.
Chen Lifu walked gently to sit opposite Chiang Kai-shek who was drinking water quietly: "Principal, is your suggestion too much?"
Chiang Kai-shek shook his head slightly: "You are right, you can't leave An Yi here. His mood has been very low these days. I can see that he is very worried about changes in Jinan. From the Northern Expedition to now, he has no good impression of the Japanese.
and trust. What he said just now was very sensible. Being able to bear the humiliation and compromise is already a big improvement.
An Yi is a person who hates evil and is far from being as kind and quiet as he appears on the outside. As long as you recall his cruel methods of annihilating the enemy's 9th Division of the Wan Army, you can see his character. He is so cruel to warlords, let alone
The Japanese army that has been worrying him for several years? It’s right to let him leave temporarily just in case. If he can’t control his emotions, his strong generals will be even less able to control them.”
"My subordinates always feel a little sorry for him." Chen Lifu sighed.
Chiang Kai-shek raised his head and stared into Chen Lifu's eyes: "Lifu, those who achieve great things must be able to endure humiliation and bear heavy burdens, and endure things that ordinary people cannot endure. You should trust your own judgment and not be swayed by emotions. You must consider the overall situation for everything and never act on it.
A small loss leads to a big loss.
Take the crisis that may arise in front of us as an example. No matter whether you feel good or not, you must face it. Only by overcoming the current difficulties can we successfully complete the Northern Expedition and complete the reunification of the country. Only after several years of hard work can we bear fruit.
Even if it is only nominal unity, we can legally cut off the separatist dreams of the great powers. As long as we capture Beijing, the northern government will perish. We can cut off open ties between governments around the world and the separatist forces and force them to recognize us, China.
The government of the Republic of China is the real legal government, do you understand?"