Chapter 57 4. "General Long Legs" wants to wipe out Liu Deng's army

Liu Zhi, director of Zhengzhou's "Appeasement" Office, was the same age as Liu Bocheng. He graduated from the second phase of the Baoding Military Academy. He joined the National Defense Army and followed Chiang Kai-shek. "The name.He was also very brave in the Central Plains War, also known as "General Ever Victorious", and was awarded the second-level general.But in the battle against Japan, Liu Zhi collapsed at the first touch and was dismissed twice, so he got another nickname: "General with Long Legs". On August 24, Liu Zhi arrived in Nanjing from Zhengzhou by plane.At the official residence on Huangpu Road, Chiang Kai-shek summoned his "fortune general".

"Jingfu, I entrust you with the most important part of the Central Plains because I trust you the most, but..." "Chairman, I know that the two battles were not successful, please give me another chance to make up for my mistakes." "Okay, it's up to you to wipe out Blind Liu in one fell swoop. If there is another defeat, I won't protect you anymore." Chiang Kai-shek's words put a heavy burden on this bloated "Fu Jiang"! Not long after, Liu Zhi was really crushed. Minister of National Defense Bai Chongxi and Chief of Staff Chen Cheng both doubted whether Liu Zhi could deal with Liu Bocheng. They reminded Chiang Kai-shek one after another: "Liu Jingfu uses troops, but in name only. Let him command, I am afraid it will be difficult to win."

Since Chiang Kai-shek has said it, of course it cannot be changed.He said to Chen Cheng: "This battle is still mainly based on economic support. Go and tell Boling (Xue Yue) that his goal is Suyu in East China. The day Liu Bocheng confers the title in the west is the time to attack Suyu in the east." When Chen Cheng heard this, his heart turned cold.His original intention was to focus on Xuzhou, under the unified command of Xue Yue.In his opinion, although Liu Zhi has a large number of soldiers, he fought a mess in both the North and the South; and the two main forces of Xuzhou Xueyue have shown the characteristics of fast action and strong attack power in several battles. If the Xuzhou Group is the main offensive force , It is expected to wipe out Liu Bocheng's troops in one fell swoop.However, Chiang Kai-shek insisted that Liu Zhi be in command. As Chiang's son-in-law, what else can he say.

However, Chen Cheng knew it in his heart, and he concluded that Liu Zhi would most likely fall under Liu Bocheng's feet this time.At that time, you "fortunate general" don't blame the "little committee chairman" Chen Cheng for not being sympathetic. "Little Zhuge" Bai Chongxi went to Kaifeng and Zhengzhou for a round, and he knew it well.Since it was decided by Chiang Kai-shek, let's wait for the next good show.Liu Zhi was ordered back to Zhengzhou from the chairman's mansion in Nanjing, and he planned a battle plan with his chief of staff Zhao Zili non-stop, and then rushed to Kaocheng overnight to establish a front-line headquarters.

At the same time, Liu Zhi issued an order to the well-equipped reorganized 3rd Division: quickly go to Kaocheng to assemble and stand by for the main strategic campaign to eliminate Liu Bocheng. Zhao Xitian, commander of the 3rd Division, received the order and led his troops from Wuzhi to Kaocheng. The Reorganized 3rd Division was the main vanguard force for attacking Liu Deng this time. At this time, it was attacking Dingtao and Heze. Passing Zhengzhou, the division commander Zhao Xitian came to pay a special visit to his superiors.Liu Zhi shook his huge head, and said to Zhao Xitian: "Blind Liu is setting himself on fire. Originally, our army hadn't attacked him yet, so he attacked my Longhai Line first."

Zhao Xitian said: "Principal's move is very good. While Liu Bocheng's army has no time to rest, he will attack Dingtao and Cao County with a pincer-shaped offensive with an absolutely superior force, and they can be wiped out in one fell swoop." Zhao Xitian graduated from the second phase of Whampoa, so Said Chiang Kai-shek as the principal. Liu Zhi had a charming smile on his oily face due to overnutrition, and said to Zhao Xitian: "Brother Xitian is brave and mighty. When he entered Burma to fight against Japan, he made great military exploits and his reputation spread far and wide. He is also the chairman of the committee this time." Reuse, I have ordered to equip my brother with a field artillery battalion, a tank company, and a large amount of ammunition and food, I think my brother will make great contributions to deal with blind Liu this time."

Why did Liu Zhi, who has always been known for being greedy and money-hungry, flatter Zhao Xitian so much?It turned out that Zhao was the nephew of Gu Zhutong, the commander in chief of the army. Liu Zhi had the same qualifications as Gu Zhutong, and Gu had been his subordinate. A popular person next to Lao Jiang. Another reason why Liu Zhi supports Zhao Xitian is that he wants to make a comeback in this battle with Liu Bocheng and earn a lot of votes.Liu Zhi had a good time in his early years, but he collapsed at the first touch in the war against Japan and was dismissed twice.After regaining power after the Anti-Japanese War, he naturally wanted to regain face with Lao Jiang.