The next morning, Zhang Hongluan, commander of the 44th Army, suddenly received a notice from the Commander-in-Chief's Attendant's Office that Commander-in-Chief Chiang Kai-shek would go to Changde to visit the officers and soldiers of the 44th Army.
Zhang Hongluan, who was ready to leave and was about to say goodbye to Commander-in-Chief Chiang Kai-shek and officials from various central ministries, was caught off guard and was very surprised. However, he knew in his heart that since Commander-in-Chief Chiang Kai-shek's itinerary was fixed, it could not be changed. He quickly calmed down and arranged the reception work.
with the help of the headquarters radio
Knowing that the garrison of the Third Division garrisoned in Changde had done a good job of security, he also ordered the guard battalion to ride ahead and return by land. Then he led his generals, boarded the ship with Commander-in-Chief Chiang Kai-shek, and sailed to Changde via Dongting Lake and the Yuanjiang River. Officially,
He Jian, who serves as the chairman of Hunan Province, also happily accompanied him.
The inside and outside of Changde City, where the war had just subsided, were cleaned up by more than 9,000 officers and soldiers of the Third Division of the 44th Army. Since most of the officers and soldiers of the Third Division were children of the former garrison regiments in Changde and surrounding counties, they were very important in maintaining public security.
, did a very good job in security and security. Although there was no grand ceremony like He Jian to greet Commander-in-Chief Chiang, all walks of life in Changde still organized a warm welcome ceremony.
On their way into the city, Commander-in-Chief Chiang and his entourage were surprised and satisfied to see the rare smiling faces of the people and the small colorful flags waving in the hands of young people and children.
Amidst the smiling faces and slogans that became more and more uniform without prior discussion, I felt that
The welcome from the people was heartfelt. This remarkable feature left a deep impression on everyone. Even He Jian, the provincial chairman, and his entourage were very confused. They did not know that Changde had been occupied less than ten days ago.
Why was the 44th Army able to win the hearts and minds of the people so quickly?
But Ye Kaixin and An Yi knew the reason. What Zhang Hongluan's department is now implementing is the political propaganda spirit of the independent division. Almost one-third of the 44th Army, from the military generals to the instructors of each company,
Both commanders
After receiving training at the Nanchang Non-commissioned Officer Training Base, most of the successful experiences and political education methods summed up by the independent division were transplanted. On the first day of the newly formed Third Division stationed in Changde, Colonel Lu Ping led his two thousand
two hundred
A directly affiliated teaching group composed of outstanding soldiers from the entire army stationed in counties and towns inside and outside the city. According to the original plan, they began vigorous political propaganda activities. First, in the name of the Political Department of the 44th Army of the National Revolutionary Army, they announced that people in the Changde area would be exempted from the first sentence
They reaffirmed the revolutionary army's strict military discipline and set up military police patrols. They then convened celebrities from all walks of life in the Changde area to discuss development plans and solicit opinions from all walks of life on matters such as the army's funding to repair schools and build hospitals in the city.
In the past ten days, brothers from each company of the teaching group have been mobilized to promote policies, clean streets, empty garbage, repair broken bridges, and improve roads. More than 500 people whose houses were burned down by the war were invited to temporarily live in the military camp, and a free house was provided.
Having two meals a day, he worked with teachers from various schools to organize young students in the city whose classes were suspended due to the war to visit the military training. Soon, two boy scout teams of more than 300 people were formed to go to the military camp to receive basic military training.
The group leader Lu Ping and several deputies invited craftsmen from inside and outside the city to quickly build sturdy wooden houses on the cleared ruins of residential buildings. Not only did they not charge the people a penny, they also paid the labor and wood materials in full.
This series of tangible measures to benefit the people immediately triggered a huge response and won praise from people from all walks of life in Changde. The officers and soldiers of the 44th Army quickly won the hearts of the people with their new style of people's soldiers that had never been seen in the traditional Hunan Army.
support from local people.
At first, other officers and soldiers of the Third Division could not understand what the teaching group was doing. Some even sneered and said that this was all false. The army only needs to obey orders and fight bravely. What is the use of so many fancy tricks?
However, under Zhang Hongluan's strict military discipline, no one dared to cause trouble. They could only sit back and watch with the mentality of watching a good show. As a result, no results were achieved for several days.
The results came out. The officers and soldiers of the teaching regiment wearing new camouflage uniforms were warmly greeted by the people wherever they went. The people all smiled at the soldiers, including the officers and soldiers of the Third Division. Every day, the elderly and children gave some
Fruits and local products that were not valuable but full of affection were delivered to the camp gate as a token of gratitude. The officers and soldiers of the 3rd Division were deeply touched and their thoughts and ideas changed accordingly.
Army commander Zhang Hongluan passed through Changde when he went to Changsha. He greatly appreciated the efforts of Lu Pinghe and the teaching group. He ordered the entire army to learn from the teaching group. Officers below the third division battalion level must receive a month-long political and ideological work training from the teaching group. Finally, he announced that
Lu Ping and the teaching team recorded their merits once and were rewarded 10,000 yuan. The officers and soldiers of the 3rd Division were immediately dumbfounded and finally realized that their army was different now.
Although He Jian, who was walking behind Chiang Kai-shek, had doubts, he did not pay too much attention to the humble people. His eyes were focused on the people wearing new camouflage combat uniforms, helmets, new pistols and daggers on their waists, and slings on their backs.
German flower machine
The officers and soldiers of the teaching regiment and the gendarmerie who had closed their guns were secretly surprised, wondering how the 44th Army stationed in the mountains of western Hunan could be so rich and actually possess elite weapons and new combat uniforms that can only be equipped by direct troops of the Central Army?
He Jian entered the Third Division Headquarters in the city with a lot of questions. He Jian still couldn't think clearly and didn't dare to ask Zhang Hongluan. He privately wondered whether he should ask Chiang Kai-shek indirectly, firstly to see if Chiang Kai-shek noticed this problem, and secondly.
It's a good idea to capture something from Chiang Kai-shek's reaction.
What He Jian did not expect was that Commander-in-Chief Chiang Kai-shek, like He Jian, did not know that the 1st and 2nd Divisions of the 44th Army had quietly completed the change of equipment two months ago.
It has become a unified standard of weapons, and there is an independent regiment whose equipment is not inferior to that of the teaching regiment directly under the military headquarters. It is still in the
The first brigade and the divisional artillery regiment of the 1st Division that Zigui assisted Yin Jinan's 16th Division were stationed in were better equipped. They were all veterans. All the officers above the company commander were first and second-term trainees who graduated from the Nanchang Non-commissioned Officer Training Base. The two main divisions
Their combat effectiveness and fighting style far exceed that of any other team under He Jian's command.
After a simple lunch, Commander-in-Chief Jiang, under the leadership of Army Commander Zhang Hongluan, reviewed the officers and soldiers of the First Regiment of the Third Division, and gave high praise to the officers and soldiers of the Third Division who joined the revolutionary army and made great contributions in the war against the Guangxi rebels.
After Chiang Kai-shek finished his praise, he then encouraged and urged the soldiers to make new contributions to the country and the people.
The officers and soldiers of the First Regiment, who were still wearing the old-style dark gray revolutionary army uniforms and carrying standard messy weapons, never dreamed that they would see Commander-in-Chief in person today and hear the Commander-in-Chief’s praise and instructions. Although the team was not very neat,
But everyone held their heads high and their chests high and energetic. An Yi, who was standing on the stage, also showed a knowing smile and was quite satisfied with Zhang Hongluan's arrangement.
After the ceremony, Commander-in-Chief Chiang, who felt that he had had a glimpse of the true appearance of the 44th Army, was no longer interested in staying temporarily. Instead, he praised Zhang Hongluan and other generals who accompanied him and then set off back to Changsha. He Jian and other Fourth Army soldiers
Although the military general wanted to see more
There was no chance to find out more about the real combat power of Forty-Four, so they could only put all the doubts in their stomachs and accompany Commander-in-Chief, who was eager to return, to board the ship and leave this wealthy Changde that they were reluctant to leave but had to give up.
.
Chiang Kai-shek stopped when he returned to Yueyang, held a two-hour secret talk with He Jian, took a boat north again in the early morning, and returned to Wuhan to camp on the evening of the 28th.
It was the first time for An Yi to travel with Chiang Kai-shek, and he was not used to this rhythm. In addition, there was almost nothing for him in the itinerary, so he felt a little bored along the way.
Returning to the temporary residence of the generals at the headquarters in Wuhan, An Yi took a shower and was about to go to bed. Chiang Kai-shek, who was extremely energetic, held another core military meeting. An Yi, as a member of the commander-in-chief's military think tank, was ordered to participate. When An Yi put on his uniform and wore
When he stopped, he saw that the watch on his wrist pointed to 11:20 at night, and he couldn't help but smile and shook his head.
When everyone arrived, Ruan Zhaochang, the director of the Second Department responsible for intelligence and investigation matters, reported the urgent military situation to the eight civil and military personnel present: "Due to a domestic military force with ulterior motives spreading rumors to confuse the public, there are rumors in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Pingjin that General Yan Baichuan has received orders from the Commander-in-Chief
The secret order is about to echo the Central Army's north and south, and launch sudden attacks on Shandong, Henan, Shaanxi and other places occupied by the Northwest Army, which will cause huge changes in the situation in the entire north:
On the 25th, General Sun Liangcheng, who was originally elected as the Chairman of Shandong Province, suddenly led his troops back to Henan, and then called the central government to resign as Chairman of Shandong Province; yesterday, after Yunnan General Long Yun was elected as the Commander-in-Chief of the Tenth Route Army, he launched an army to attack the Guangxi clique.
After General He Jian sent troops to northern Guangxi again, General Lu Zhonglin, who acted for General Feng Huanzhang as deputy minister of the Ministry of Military Affairs, and General Xiong Bin, director of the Aviation Administration, left Nanjing without permission and went to Shanghai.
What is puzzling is that, as agreed in advance, a telegram from General Feng Huanzhang arrived soon, explaining that General Lu Zhonglin and Xiong Bin went to Shanghai to treat old illnesses, and General Sun Liangcheng came to Shanghai because he was suffering from illness and had no energy to take care of government affairs.
Regretfully resigned as governor of Shandong Province
job, rather than for any other reason. But according to the secret report we obtained from Xi'an, the Northwest Army stationed in Shandong has quietly retreated westward and gathered on the front line in western Henan, including four divisions stationed in northern Shaanxi, Gansu, and Ningxia.
It has been assembled in the eastern area of Xi'an.
The above sudden change is very detrimental to the central government and our army. If it cannot be dealt with in time, it may lead to an unmanageable situation. Therefore, tonight's emergency meeting is convened according to the opinion of the Commander-in-Chief. I hope that all colleagues will work together to come up with countermeasures.
strategy."
Ge Jing'en, Liu Guang, An Yi, Yang Yongtai, Chen Guofu and others who attended the meeting have more or less understood the current situation in the north in the past few days. The increasingly widespread rumors of a joint attack on the Northwest Army have been reported a few days ago.
The form was sent to the General Staff Headquarters, but until now, no one knows who the "military group with ulterior motives" is spreading the rumors.
An Yi secretly analyzed this countless times. After much deliberation, he first eliminated the Guangxi clique, which was currently surrounded by enemies and was in a state of distress, and then excluded the "person involved" Yan Xishan. The Northeast Army was currently at war with the Soviet Union over the Middle East Railway and had no energy.
The warlords in Sichuan were in a fierce melee, and they did not have the ability or energy to spread rumors that were not beneficial to them. The rest made An Yi feel quite confused and shocked: there are only two possibilities!
First, Feng Yuxiang, who did not gain much in the Northern Expedition and the war against the Guangxi Clan, shouted "Catch the Thief" in an attempt to cause chaos, thereby gaining the sympathy of public opinion and the appeasement of the central government, and then repeated his same tricks as he did in the early stages of the Northern Expedition and the preparations for the second Northern Expedition.
A series of conditions and requirements were proposed to the central government and Commander-in-Chief Chiang Kai-shek to alleviate the financial difficulties caused by the 400,000-strong Northwest Army and to quell the growing public anger in the occupied provinces of Henan, Shaanxi, Gansu and Ningxia.
In particular, the current five-month drought has become unavoidable and is forming a famine of unprecedented scale. Tens of millions of people in Shaanxi and western Henan, the worst-hit areas, are in dire straits. Tens of thousands of people have died of hunger in northern Shaanxi in the past few days.
The plague it caused has spread uncontrollably. The original severe
The Northwest Army, which had sealed the secret to prevent the leakage of information, was no longer able to deal with it. One huge contradiction and difficulty after another made the Northwest Army unable to stand upright. Therefore, this underhanded trick was used to divert conflicts and alleviate the consequences of exhausting the land through military force.
Notoriety and negative consequences are not impossible.
The second possibility is that Chiang Kai-shek, who was determined to eliminate local warlords and achieve the de facto reunification of the country, deliberately spread rumors, harmonized with Yan Xishan, a common interest who strived to continue to control the Pingjin area, and forced Feng Yuxiang, who was eyeing Shandong and Pingjin areas, to withdraw from Shandong without any blood. Chiang Kai-shek could still
Therefore, the relationship between the Northwest Army and the Shanxi-Sui Army was further alienated, so as to achieve the purpose of disintegrating the local military forces and defeating them one by one.
An Yi, who left the last question by elimination method, did not delve into it further, nor did he have the ability to delve into it. An Yi, who had just been divided up by Chiang Kai-shek's army, had already learned to be smart, and keeping a secret was the only way he could take at present.
These analyzes and judgments can only rot in the stomach, but at this moment, an emergency meeting was proposed, and An Yi couldn't help but not consider it.
"My subordinates agreed to send Deputy Director General He Yaozu to Tongguan and his delegation. At the same time, I suggested sending General An Yi as deputy envoy to accompany him. In view of the good relationship between General An Yi and the generals of the Northwest Army, and General Feng Huanzhang's consistent respect for General An Yi,
I have a good impression, it would be better if General An Yi goes with him."
Ge Jing'en thought deeply for a while and made a serious suggestion. Everyone looked at An Yi who was bowing his head in thought.
An Yi was thinking about something when he suddenly heard his name and raised his head in surprise: "What? Where should I ask my subordinates to go? Northwest?"
Everyone laughed, and Chiang Kai-shek frowned in displeasure: "That's it! An Yi, you rush back to Nanjing immediately tomorrow. I will send the gunboat of the Jiang Defense Fleet to take you back, and go to Tongguan with General He Yaozu. Also, for
To express the central government’s concern for the people affected by the disaster in Shaanxi, two special trains of disaster relief food urgently organized by the central government will go northward at the same time, so be prepared."