Chapter 3 2. Chiang Kai-shek was forced to prepare for the War of Resistance

The July 7th Incident was a major step taken by Japanese imperialism in its attempt to destroy China, and it was the beginning of its all-out war of aggression against China.The sound of gunfire at the Marco Polo Bridge aroused the anti-Japanese spirit of the Chinese people to unite and defend against aggression, promoted the new awakening of the Chinese nation to resist Japan and save the country, and thus opened the prelude to China's all-out anti-Japanese war. On the second day after the incident, the Communist Party of China published "The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China Powered Up the Japanese Army's Attack on Marco Polo Bridge", expressing its solemn stand of resolute resistance in time.Under the call and impetus of the CCP, mass organizations from all walks of life across the country demanded that the Kuomintang government immediately declare war on Japan.However, the Kuomintang government attempted to resolve this incident as a local problem and asked the Chacha authorities to negotiate with Japan.Later, due to the advance of the Japanese army and the huge pressure from the people of the whole country to resist the Japanese, Chiang Kai-shek had to make a speech on July 17 in Mount Lu, expressing his readiness to "take up the challenge", but in fact he still did not give up the idea of ​​compromise and concession. position.The following is the entire content of Chiang Kai-shek's Lushan talk:

Gentlemen: When China was seeking peace externally and reunification internally, the "Marco Polo Bridge Incident" suddenly occurred.Not only the people of our country are full of grief and indignation, but the world public opinion is also extremely shocked.The outcome of this development is not only a matter of China's survival, but also the fate of mankind in the world.You are concerned about the national crisis, and of course you are particularly concerned about this incident.Here are a few points about this incident, for you to explain frankly: First, the Chinese nation loves peace. The foreign policy of the national government has always advocated self-existence internally and coexistence externally.In the past two years of diplomacy with Japan, we have been working hard with this purpose in mind; we hope that all kinds of chaotic situations outside the track in the past will be brought into the right track of diplomacy to find a legitimate solution.This kind of painstaking efforts and facts can be seen in most of the country.I often feel that if we want to deal with national crises, we must first understand the status of the country.We are a weak country, and we must have a faithful estimate of our national strength; in order to build a country, we absolutely need peace.In the past few years, it has been the same principle to maintain peace with the outside world at all costs.In my diplomatic report at the Fifth Plenary Session of the year before last, it was said that "Peace must not be abandoned until it is in a period of despair; sacrifices must not be sacrificed until the last moment." Following the explanation of the "last moment" at the Third Plenary Session in February this year, fully Show our love for peace.Since we are a weak country, if we come to the last moment, we can only fight for the life of the whole nation in order to survive the country. At that time, we will not be allowed to compromise halfway.It must be known that the condition for a compromise halfway is the condition for the entire surrender and the entire annihilation.The people of the whole country must clearly understand the meaning of the so-called "last moment".When the last moment comes, we can only win the final victory by sacrificing to the end, fighting to the end, and only with the determination to sacrifice to the end.

Second, after the occurrence of the "Marco Polo Bridge Incident", some people may think that it happened by accident.However, in the past month, the other party's public opinion or direct and indirect expressions in diplomacy have made us feel the signs of the incident; and before and after the incident, various news have been spread, saying that the scope of the "Tanggu Agreement" is to be expanded; The Jidong puppet organization wants to expel the 29th Army and force Song Zheyuan to leave.There are countless rumors like this.It is conceivable that this incident was not accidental.From the course of this incident, we know that people are deliberately seeking the best, and peace is no longer easy to obtain.If we want peace and nothing to do right now, we can only let other people's troops enter and leave our country without restriction, but our own army must be restricted and cannot freely station in our country's land; or people shoot at the Chinese army, but we cannot return gun; in other words, "man is the knife, I am the fish"!We are about to come to this extremely miserable situation in the world, which is unbearable for any nation with even the slightest personality in the world.It has been six years since our four northeastern provinces fell, followed by the "Tanggu Agreement"; now the place of conflict has reached the Marco Polo Bridge at the gate of Beiping.If the Marco Polo Bridge can be oppressed and occupied by others, then Beiping, the political and cultural center and military center of our 500-year-old capital in the north, will become the second place in Shenyang; if today’s Beiping becomes the old Shenyang, today’s Jicha will also become It became the four northeastern provinces in the past; if Beiping can become Shenyang, why can't Nanjing become Beiping?Therefore, the deduction of the "Marco Polo Bridge Incident" is an issue that concerns the whole of China.Whether this matter can be ended is the realm of the last juncture.

Thirdly, in the event of the inevitable final moment, of course we have nothing but sacrifice and resistance.But our attitude is only to fight, not to seek war.Fighting is a last resort.We, the people of the whole country, must trust that the government is already in the overall preparations; because we are a weak country, and because it is our national policy to uphold peace, we cannot seek war.Although we are a weak country, we must maintain the life of our nation and shoulder the historical responsibilities left to us by our ancestors. Therefore, when we are forced to, we cannot answer the challenge.As for the outbreak of the war, because we are a weak country, there is no chance of compromise; if we give up the land and sovereignty, we will be the sinners of the Chinese nation through the ages; at that time, we can only fight for the life of the nation and seek our final victory.

Fourth, whether the "Marco Polo Bridge Incident" will not expand into a Sino-Japanese war depends entirely on the attitude of the Japanese government; the key to the continuation of hope for peace depends entirely on the actions of the Japanese army.One second before peace is hopeless, we still hope for peace; we hope to find a solution to the "Luke incident" through peaceful diplomatic methods.But our position has four very obvious points: 1. Any settlement shall not infringe upon China's sovereignty and territorial integrity; 2. The Jicha administrative organization shall not tolerate any illegal changes;

3. Local officials sent by the central government, such as Song Zheyuan, chairman of the Jicha Political Affairs Committee, etc., cannot be replaced at the request of others; 4. The area where the 29th Army is currently stationed cannot be subject to any restrictions.These four positions are the minimum for a weak country's diplomacy.If the other side can still put themselves in their shoes and make a long-term plan for the Eastern nation, and does not want to promote the relationship between the two countries to the last moment, and does not want to cause eternal hatred between China and Japan from generation to generation, they should not ignore our minimum position.

In short, the government has determined a consistent policy and position regarding the "Marco Polo Bridge Incident", and will stick to this position with all its strength.We want peace, not peace, and we are ready for war, not war.We know the situation after the national war of resistance, there is only sacrifice to the end, there is no reason to escape by chance.If the war starts, there will be no distinction between north and south, and no distinction between young and old.No matter who, everyone has the responsibility to defend the land and resist the war, and everyone should be determined to sacrifice everything. Therefore, the government must be particularly cautious in the face of such a major event; the people of the whole country must also be serious and calm, and prepare for self-defense.At this critical moment, the whole country must be united, obey discipline, and strictly observe order.I hope that everyone will return to various places and convey this message to the society, so that Bixian can understand the situation and be loyal to the country. This is what the brothers sincerely hope for.