Chapter 3 Chapter 1 The Burning Land (3)

It turned out that the Xiao brothers were all sent out to inquire about the current situation, that is, to spy on military news.During the war, news from the military was strictly blocked. If you want to get the real battle situation, of course you can't rely on reading newspapers, you can only find ways to find out.Second brother Xiao has been dealing with the press for a long time. He reported that according to reliable sources, the battle of Xuzhou did not make any significant progress, and the situation is quite bad. The failure may only be a matter of time. Third brother Xiao has attracted many friends in the military. The news he inquired also confirmed that the war situation has deteriorated. It is reported that the Chinese army is retreating towards the Central Plains, and Chief Li (Li Zongren) is preparing to withdraw from Xuzhou.After the Japanese occupied the Jinpu Railway, the next step was to advance to Wuhan.

At this time, the Shijiazhuang Daxing Spinning Mill invested by Zhang Songqiao in the north had already fallen into the hands of the enemy. The Japanese declared that all Chinese factories including the Daxing Spinning Mill were "enemy production" and forcibly confiscated them.And the bad news from the occupied areas around the world is also frightening; the Japanese use bayonets to "screen" Chinese factories. If the factory owner refuses to "cooperate" with the occupying forces, your factory will immediately be branded "enemy" Confiscated for "property".If you are forced to agree to cooperate and work for the Japanese, then you are turning yourself into a shameful traitor and lackey.

Zhang Songqiao was speechless for a while. Although my father did not quite understand the serious crisis facing adults, he also felt that the family situation was not good. At this time, Boss Xiao spoke. Boss Xiao lowered his hands, with a respectful and cautious expression.He reported in a low voice: The party headquarters has top-secret news. It is said that the above-mentioned parties are in peace talks with the Japanese. If the peace talks are successful, maybe the war can be stopped. Zhang Songqiao widened his eyes and said: How much hope do you think the peace talks have? Boss Xiao spread his hands and said: Director Li of the party department said that the key is to negotiate conditions.But the Japanese offensive is in full swing right now, and I'm afraid there will be more bad luck than good luck.

Boss Xiao's last words once again plunged Zhang Songqiao into hard-to-disguise disappointment.Obviously, it is unreliable to count on peace talks. As the saying goes, "far water cannot quench the thirst of the near", not to mention that the initiative of the war is not in the hands of the Chinese but in the hands of the Japanese.After a long time, the son finally saw that his father had returned to his former majestic expression. He told Boss Xiao in a decisive tone: Last year the capital fell, and I shipped some spare machines to Sichuan to prevent the situation from getting worse.Originally, I wanted to wait and see, but now it seems that I can't wait any longer. It will be too late when the Japanese hit Wuhan.You immediately set off for Shangjiang, buy the land in Chongqing, and prepare for the relocation of the factory.

"Shangjiang" is Hubei dialect, and Hubei people call themselves "Xiajiang people", so Sichuan and Chongqing above Hubei are collectively called "Shangjiang".In fact, as early as last year when the "July 7th Incident" broke out, Zhang Songqiao, who had prepared for a rainy day, had personally visited Chongqing and Chengdu in the Shangjiang area. The shipping company signed an intentional contract for the overall relocation of the factory.At the beginning of the year, Zhang Songqiao took another step ahead of other colleagues and transferred a small number of spare machines and production materials to Chongqing in advance.

However, the victory in the Taierzhuang War greatly inspired the people in the rear, and they were so excited that they had the illusion that the dawn of victory was about to rise, and that there would be a fundamental turning point in the Sino-Japanese war.Some domestic newspapers even optimistically predicted that the Japanese army would retreat to the Marco Polo Bridge, that the armistice agreement would be signed soon, that peace would come, and so on.So Zhang Songqiao stopped the work of building a factory in Chongqing again, waiting for the situation to change.Unfortunately, what he waited for was the ominous omens of the Japanese bombing of Wuhan and the deterioration of the frontline war situation, prompting the owner of the spinning mill to make up his mind to restart the relocation plan.

Early the next morning, the loyal Boss Xiao boarded the boat and set off. Along with Boss Xiao, there is also a group of smart and capable backbones of the spinning mill who are all called "nine-headed birds" from Hubei. Technical staff.When the small steamer that Boss Xiao and his party were riding on slowly disappeared into the smoky depths of the Yangtze River, Zhang Songqiao had one more thing on his mind, and often led his son to the Yellow Crane Tower to stop and look at it.The Yangtze River is full of mist, water, and sky. "In the past, people have gone by the yellow crane, and the Yellow Crane Tower is empty here. Once the yellow crane is gone, it will never return, and the white clouds will be empty for thousands of years."The poet's eternity and grandeur are endless. My father recalled that at that time, his father, my grandfather, said the most words, "the future is gone, when will we come back to the Yellow Crane Tower?"

But more than half a month passed, and until Xuzhou was defeated, Boss Xiao had no news at all. 3 Just when the enemy was aggressively attacking and the situation of the Anti-Japanese War was deteriorating, a special plane of the Chinese government flew to Wuhan from other places, and the dignitaries on board were Chiang Kai-shek and his wife. Due to bad weather, the American-made Boeing airliner encountered strong air currents and hovered over Wuhan, unable to land.The captain reported that the plane would be diverted to Jiujiang Airport due to emergency notification from the ground.