Chapter 29 Chapter 29 The Crisis in North China

Next to Xifengkou, there is a more important and more difficult pass: Gubeikou. In the military circles of the Republic of China, there was a saying of "two and a half" military strategists. "Half one" refers to "little Zhuge" Bai Chongxi, and what can be called "one" refers to Jiang Baili and Yang Jie respectively, the latter is the commander-in-chief of Gubeikou appointed by Chiang Kai-shek himself. Yang Jie, a native of Dali, Yunnan Province, graduated from the third phase of the Japanese Army University Chinese Student Class. The reason why Jiang and Yang can be called "a military strategist" is that they both have original creations in military theory. Among them, Jiang Baili is the author of "On National Defense", and Yang Jie is the author of "New National Defense Theory".

In those days, if you were taking classes in a military academy or carrying a general title on your shoulders, but you didn't know the "two theories" ("National Defense Theory" and "New National Defense Theory"), others would definitely look at you sideways and think that you were really outdated , absolutely out! In terms of theoretical attainments, Yang may not be as good as Jiang, but in the use of strategic and tactical staff, Yang has surpassed Jiang. As early as when Yang Jie was studying in Japan, he was a leader in the Chinese class, and it was common for him to be the first in the exam. Gradually, even the Japanese instructors looked at this Chinese student with admiration.The instructor handed over all the test papers of the class to Yang Jie for correction, and let him be the judge for the field work. Whoever played the role of chief of staff, who played the brigade commander, who played the regiment leader, all assigned by him, and the good or bad marks were also determined by him Fighting, becoming an instructor who is not an instructor.

It is precisely because he became famous too early that Yang Jie has a high self-esteem, which can be said to be arrogant, and often compares himself to the contemporary Jiang Taigong and Zhuge Liang.Apart from Jiang Baili, he didn't think highly of anyone in the country. He once said in front of others that people like He Yingqin and Chen Cheng were "stupid as a cow and as stupid as a mule". After all, the Soviet military officer was really powerful, and he didn't even get into the eyes of others. He didn't even want to be a student if the other party posted it to him.

The Soviets were no good, and the Japanese were okay to follow as students, but there were only three qualified, namely: Ishihara Kanji, Tojo Hideki, and Oiso Kuniaki (then chief of staff of the Kwantung Army). Since you are a great person, you must have something to be proud of. Yang Jie followed Chiang Kai-shek very early and was an essential staff member in the latter's account. He won the trust and reuse of Chiang Kai-shek, and many of Yang Jie's suggestions were also adopted and used. During the second Northern Expedition, Chiang Kai-shek wanted to fight Chen Tiaoyuan in Anhui, and asked Yang Jie how to fight.

Yang Jie immediately picked up a pen and wrote on the paper: "Present him with prestige, lure him with profit, and he will surely surrender." Chiang Kai-shek's heart moved, and the battle of the heart is the first thing, it is indeed a brilliant move.Then I asked again: How much would it cost to induce a surrender? That means, the price is not big, if it is too big, I can't afford that much money. Yang Jie smiled: Wu Peifu and Sun Chuanfang have fallen, and Chen Tiaoyuan is mediocre, so why bother too much. If you have money, you can give more, if you don't have money, you can give less, it doesn't matter.

Chiang Kai-shek followed his plan, and Chen Tiaoyuan obediently surrendered after only spending tens of thousands of dollars. I don't know how much effort the Northern Expeditionary Army saved. What impressed Chiang Kai-shek the most was probably the time of the Central Plains War. Chiang Kai-shek was commanding on the train when he was suddenly attacked by Feng Yuxiang's cavalry.At that time, Chiang Kai-shek only had a spy battalion in his hands, but the opponent was a cavalry army, so he was immediately in a desperate situation where he could neither fight nor escape. Everyone panicked, Yang Jie offered a suggestion: install a locomotive at each end of the train.

When the cavalry caught up, the train headed north, and then went south again after twenty or thirty miles. Afterwards, even Chiang Kai-shek, who has always been indifferent to emotions, praised Yang Jie, saying that if you were not by his side, I would have become Feng Yuxiang's prisoner. Yang Jie said with a smile: This is just a small trial with a sledgehammer! As a staff officer, Yang Jie can be called a top-notch expert.Even the "half military strategist" Bai Chongxi had to be persuaded, saying that Yang Jie was indeed knowledgeable, and if he was asked to make a plan based on a map, he would be able to write out a complete battle plan in a short time, which few people could do at the time. get on.

Yang Jie is so talented, but he mainly participated in military affairs before, and basically never led troops to fight independently. Therefore, some people advocated that "military strategists" should be in command of the army. No. He Yingqin and Yang Jie debuted at the same time, but they were never compatible.Yang Jie compared He Yingqin to "Liao Hua" in "There is no general in Shu, Liao Hua is the vanguard", while He Yingqin believed that Yang Jie was a person like Ma Su, who did not do practical things but only bragging, so he also gave a hat in private : Yang Dapao.

Minister He even directly advised Chiang Kai-shek, saying that it is okay for you to let Yang Dapao be a staff officer. If he controls the important affairs of military aircraft, it will inevitably be bad, and maybe it will play a role that even traitors can't do. Long before the Great Wall Anti-Japanese War, Yang Jie had already served as the deputy chief of the staff. If he wanted to rise further, he would have to have some actual military achievements. Still resisting all opinions, handed over the command of the Battle of Gubeikou to Yang Jie. Crazy knife is finally not a small test, but a big test.

But He Yingqin's words unfortunately hit the mark, and Yang Jie really became a copy of Ma Di from then on. When describing the section "Lost Jieting", it is said that Ma Di was arrogant and underestimated the enemy, and did not follow Zhuge Liang's order to "be close to the mountains and rivers", but deployed his army on Jieting Mountain far from the water source. When Deputy General Wang Ping raised an objection, Ma Su snorted: "What are you? I know the art of war. Everyone knows it. Even the prime minister sometimes has to ask me for advice." Yang Jie is almost exactly the same. As the commander-in-chief of Gubeikou, he has never been to the front line, so he is working behind closed doors at home, making some big and empty plans.As for how to coordinate and deploy on the front line, he didn't ask at all, and of course he didn't know anything about the progress of the war.

When the Kwantung Army was approaching Gubeikou, the Northeast Army and the Central Army were still arguing over who would guard the front line and who would guard the second line. He didn't know this. After the battle, the Northeast Army "resigned in advance" and took a big gap, causing Gubeikou to fall across the board. He only knew it afterwards. If you personally go to the front line to command and see it on the ground, the situation will definitely not be so bad. In war, people will die, and many people will die. It is not that simple. The fall of Gubeikou shocked Chiang Kai-shek. The 29th Army guarded Xifengkou, not only defended it, but also achieved a great victory. The Central Army of their own direct line guarded Gubeikou, but lost it within a few days. It is incredible and shameless. The reason for the fall was very complicated, and it also involved the internal contradictions of the various factions of the army, so it was impossible for Chiang Kai-shek to kill Yang Jie alone, but it would be false to say that he was not disappointed. From this moment on, the impression that Yang Jie was not a chief official had begun to sprout in Chiang Kai-shek's heart. It should be said that this is not the worst. The worst thing is that soon Chiang Kai-shek also had doubts about Yang Jie's character. Regarding the fall of Gubeikou, Yang Jie naturally felt disheartened, and at the same time felt Chiang Kai-shek's disappointment in him. Others may not care about it, but it is really unbearable to put it on "a military strategist" like him. At the military meeting, Yang Jie was ready to fight a turnaround, so at the beginning of the meeting, he made a surprising statement, saying that he would turn the Great Wall War of Resistance from defensive to offensive. How to attack? Lure the enemy deep! The specific strategy is to let the central army retreat, wait for the Japanese army to chase in, and then lay an ambush on both sides, and attack at the same time, so that the main force of the Japanese army can be wiped out in one fell swoop. In Yang Jie's opinion, this is a very remarkable strategy. Now that things are going on, is it okay not to give everyone a bright spot? But when he finished speaking, everyone in the meeting looked at each other in blank dismay. Yang Jie's strategy sounds good, but it is impossible to implement it.How strong the Kwantung Army is, how strong the Chinese army is, even if you surround them, how can you "kill" them. What's more, the Great Wall is still dangerous to defend. After it is put in, there is no danger to defend, so why don't you directly explain Pingjin? Everyone knows that "luting the enemy to go deep" will not work, but they are also familiar with Yang Dapao's temper and personality, so no one is willing to stand up and point it out directly, and just let him fire cannons there. Yang Jie was very enthusiastic when talking about the relatively imaginary "ingenious plan", but when it comes to reality, he also emphasized that the front line at Gubeikou (now the front line at Nantianmen) is very difficult and reinforcements are necessary. Then, Da Pao focused on exaggerating how "quite difficult" the front line he was in charge of was, including the influx of Japanese troops and the extremely fierce fighting. Of course, more than half of this was created by the "military strategists" in their "reasonable imagination" in the room with the door closed. Up to this time, Yang Jie didn't know that he had made a fatal mistake. It's hard for Chiang Kai-shek to get to the front line. If you report to him one-on-one, it might be okay to brag a little bit.There was also He Yingqin sitting at the venue that day, he was analyzing the battle situation every day, how could he not know what was going on at Nantianmen. In those few days, there was no fierce fighting at all. In terms of position, He Yingqin is Yang Jie's superior.In front of Chiang Kai-shek, he naturally couldn't agree with his subordinates' statement, so he raised an objection on the spot: Was the battle at Nantianmen very intense?impossible.As far as I know, the entire Great Wall defense line has been very quiet recently. In fact, He Yingqin is still a relatively gentle and generous officer, and there are steps to go down in his words.At this time, if Yang Jie said haha, he would have passed in a flash.But he didn't know what medicine he took wrongly that day, and he said: I just came back from the front line, how could I not know the situation there, of course it was very intense! This is good, you swear, you are very happy, but you have driven others to a dead end. Assuming Yang Jie's words are true, then He Yingqin has a big problem.Isn't it obvious that he is not as good as his subordinates? Although it was a dispute between the two, Chiang Kai-shek kept staring at him: He Yingqin, you are the general manager of the North China War Bureau, but you don't even know the basic situation of the battlefield. ? In order to prove himself, as soon as He Yingqin changed his true nature of being an honest and kind person, he immediately asked someone to call the front line to inquire about the situation at the front line of Nantianmen. Without any suspense, the other party's answer was: the front line is very calm. Yang Jie blushed immediately and said nothing. At this time, Chiang Kai-shek must have sighed in his heart. It is wrong to use Yang Jie! Ma Su lost Jieting and Yang Jie lost Gubeikou, both exaggerated and useless. If the commander is not adjusted, Nantianmen will also be lost. Soon, Yang Jie was removed from the post of commander in chief of Gubeikou. Yang Jie's story is not over. Although he has encountered a major setback in his life, his habit of blowing cannons has not changed at all. A long time ago, Yang Jie's military rank was lieutenant general, but when junior Gu Zhutong, Chen Cheng and others were promoted to general, he was still lieutenant general. Yang Jie complained to others: I was a lieutenant general 20 years ago, and I am still a lieutenant general now. I don’t know who I will be 20 years from now! Probably this was heard by Chiang Kai-shek, and he was sent to the Soviet Union as a special envoy, and he was promoted from lieutenant general to general by the way. I went to the Soviet Union to seek military aid, because the war of resistance had entered the most difficult stage at that time.But Yang Jie soon lived a life of debauchery in a foreign country, and a lot of related reports were placed on Chiang Kai-shek's desk. Chiang Kai-shek couldn't help it, and asked him if he had gotten military aid.But Yang Jie replied that he met a person in the Soviet Union who had a secret weapon. As long as he got it over, all the Japanese soldiers in China would be wiped out, but he needed a lot of money to buy it (could it be an atomic bomb? ? It doesn't seem like it). Yang Jie's tone was extremely mysterious, but Chiang Kai-shek never asked him again. Until Japan and the Soviet Union signed the non-aggression agreement, Yang Jie, who was in the Soviet Union, was kept in the dark and knew nothing about it. After this incident, he was sent back to China and has never been used again. How many opportunities in life, in the eyes of others, are missed one by one. In that era, perhaps people were too eager and demanding to have a perfect military strategist, but unfortunately Yang Jie was not. In a way, he is more like a naughty boy.The naughty boy held a stack of beautiful paper in one hand and scissors in the other. Amid the screams and regrets of the adults, the naughty boy cut the paper into pieces and threw it into the sun. You cry, I laugh, you laugh, but I cry, this is Yang Jie, a person who can only see his own shadow, but has never really found himself. Xu Tingyao succeeded Yang Jie. In the group photo of the generals of the Central Army who participated in the Great Wall War of Resistance, we can see that everyone is surrounded by one person like a crowd of stars.Not only did he sit in the center, but he was indeed of great importance in the hearts of the generals. He was Du Yuming's old officer, Zheng Dongguo's old officer, and Dai Anlan's old officer. It can be said that quite a number of generals who were capable of fighting in the Central Army at that time all came from his sect. Many years later, when Dai Anlan was dying of injuries in Myanmar, she still couldn't forget to use her own merits to offset the fault of "Officer Xu", who was being dismissed and demoted at that time. Xu Tingyao took the initiative to ask Chiang Kai-shek to go to Gubeikou to fight, but when he reached the front line, Gubeikou had been lost, and he could only defend according to Nantianmen. Different from the academic school like Yang Jie, Xu Tingyao belongs to the pure combat school. He has experienced countless battles before. He did not stay in a small room, but honestly surveyed the front line. Positional warfare depends on the strength of fortifications.Xu Tingyao personally urged that the fortifications had been greatly improved than before, and he was very satisfied after his own inspection. The reason why the Japanese army was able to easily occupy Gubeikou was not only due to the disordered command of the Chinese side, but also artillery battles played a very important role. In the end, the Kwantung Army almost used up all the shells it brought for the first time, but relying on this high-intensity shelling directly led to the early departure of the Northeast Army and the complete collapse of the Gubeikou defense line. Xu Tingyao's fortifications withstood the cannon. The Japanese army's 10,000 shells could only destroy the fortifications of one company of the defenders. Xu Tingyao dispatched the three main divisions of the Central Army in turn to carry out wheel battles, which gradually stabilized the front line. Fighting on the front line of Gubeikou is the absolute main force of the Kwantung Army-the 8th Division of Hongsaki.The division has extremely strong combat capabilities, and has created military miracles such as "128 cavalry captured Chengde" many times before.It can be said that the entire battle of Rehe was almost handled by the Hongqian Division. For this reason, the front line of Gubeikou has always been the most intense battlefield in the Great Wall War of Resistance.The so-called layman watches the excitement, and the insider watches the way. Those who like the excitement love to watch "Big Sword Song Mingxuan". Only those who know the way know that Xu Tingyao's skills are actually very good. After Xu Tingyao was sent, his direct descendants were finally able to account for the past. Chiang Kai-shek was very satisfied with this, thinking that he had used the right people this time. He wrote in his diary that the battle of Nantianmen was enough to boost the morale of the army. But it seems that it is destined that Xu Tingyao will still fail. The 29th Army has learned from the 19th Route Army that participated in the Battle of Songhu, but the experience of the 19th Route Army may be applicable around Shanghai, but it may not be effective in the North China battlefield. Compared with the Chinese army, the biggest advantage of the Japanese army is the special forces. However, due to the complex terrain of ravines and ravines in the south, this role was not brought into full play in the Battle of Songhu. The 9th Division of Kanazawa was at a loss in Jiangwan, and the "elder of the army" Ueda could not advance or retreat, which was the reason. Nantianmen is not Shanghai, or even Gubeikou. It has neither the advantages of the terrain nor the danger of the pass. It is an ideal battlefield for mechanized warfare. Seeing that the cannon was ineffective, the Kwantung Army Command decided to assign the special forces directly under the army to the Hirosaki Division. This is the tank chariot. During the Great Depression, at the cost of cutting off the army's four standing divisions, Japan saved funds for the formation of special forces, one of which was the combat convoy. They wanted to take money to buy at first. The Vickers wheeled tank that made a fool of itself in downtown Shanghai was bought from the UK.At that time, a total of 10 vehicles were imported, but they were paralyzed on the road in Zhabei, and they were blown up. In the end, they were all used as scrap metal and used for other purposes-as fortifications and barricades. Vickers sucks, it's just a city patrol car, but that doesn't mean british tanks suck, in fact, it has good ones, british latest tanks hit 30kph, which was pretty fast at the time . But people don't sell it to you. The British said that our own troops are not equipped yet, so I will give it to you first, how is it possible? Britain was the first to build tanks in the world, and then it was France's turn, so I went to France again. The French spread their hands and asked if there were any new tanks. They hadn't been built yet, but old tanks were plentiful, good and cheap: Renault tanks. In World War I, apart from British tanks, the most popular thing on the battlefield was this legal Renault.Among all the tanks at that time, only Renault was the first to adopt a turret that could rotate 360 ​​degrees. The tank driver sat on it, held a machine gun, and swiped around. It was really cool. During World War I, the French produced more than 3,000 tanks at a time with their eyes closed because of the shortage of goods. When the war ended, they were dumbfounded and stopped fighting. Who wants to buy you so many tanks?And I can’t help plow the fields and weave cloth, it’s not too different from buying a bunch of useless scrap iron, and after World War I, everyone knows the power of tanks, so more and more people will build this thing, not only Britain and France The stronger ones of these two can be manufactured by themselves, so there is no need to buy yours. What to do, the serious oversupply, so many tanks at home can't be eaten, so I had to resort to the last trick in the business field - tearing and vomiting blood for a big sale. In this way, only half of it was thrown away.By the time the Germans invaded France in World War II, there were still 1,500 Renaults piled up in the warehouse. To the Japanese, the French only told half the truth. It is true that Renault is cheap and cheap, but it is not necessarily good. The earth is constantly spinning.More than ten years have passed since the First World War, and weapon technology has advanced by leaps and bounds. If you want to say how good Renault is, it is a big joke. Some of the Renault tanks owned by the Japanese army were directly purchased from France, and the other part was snatched from the warehouse of the Northeast Army after the "September 18th". In the Shanghai Miaoxing battlefield, the French Renault was once put into use by the 9th Division of Kanazawa.But it turns out that cheap garbage is still garbage.Rubbish Reynolds made the Japanese soldiers suffer. Let’s not talk about whether the firepower is strong or not. The key is that there are so many problems. It’s normal to have a little trouble here and there. There it stopped. After all, it is at the level of a grandfather. It is not easy to take two steps and take three breaths.It stands to reason that taking a nap when you are sleepy can also be forgiven.The problem is that this doze is really not at the right time, because it is neither far nor near, neither early nor late, and the place where it rests is often exactly in the middle of the battlefield! What are you going to do to the group of old and young men who are following you? It’s a dilemma. Could it be that they also lie down and rest like you? The opponent will kill you as a living target. Since they couldn't find good ones in the international market, the Japanese had to bite their teeth and take the road of localization. The Type 89 medium-sized tank came into being, but it didn't make much noise when it first appeared. The weather in the Northeast battlefield is so cold that even the tanks can't stand it. It is common for the refrigerant to be frozen. It is not uncommon for the mechanical parts to be brittle, so they often break down. In addition, the speed is slow. To put it bluntly, Ma Zhanshan's cavalry are better than it. In Shanghai Miaohang, the 89 type was once in battle with Renault.In terms of terrain, Miaoxing is indeed much flatter than Jiangwan, but it is only relatively speaking, and it is just as uncomfortable to drive a tank there. Due to the inflexible rotation, the tracks of the Type 89 are often stuck in the mud and cannot move. The Japanese are good at summarizing, and they do have a drive to pursue perfection and drill down to the bottom. The "January 28th" Songhu battle had just ended, and they were already thinking about how to improve the performance of the tank. In response to the shortcomings of the poor maneuverability of medium-sized tanks, the Japanese developed the 92 and 94 series of light tanks. One has strong firepower and the other has good mobility. These two tanks come together and complement each other's advantages. They are like ducks in water in Nantianmen, where most of the ground is open. They're not British Vickers, they don't have wheels to blow you up, they're not French Renaults, they don't "die intermittently", they're armored so thick you can't pierce it with a Czech LMG or a hand grenade, and for For the Chinese army, which is seriously lacking in anti-tank equipment, it is almost an invincible natural enemy. Xu Tingyao built six preparatory positions at Nantianmen, but when the Kwantung Army's chariot convoy launched an attack, not to mention six, ten of them could not withstand it. Basically, one position could only last for one to two days. The three division commanders under Xu Tingyao, not to mention Du Yuming, and Liu Kanxiang, who was evaluated as a single-minded person, were crazy when fighting. However, even a fierce man like him, facing the surging tanks, He also became dumbfounded and helpless. Because he lost his position, Liu Kan was so anxious that he wanted to wipe his neck and commit suicide. There were many casualties on the front line, and Xu Tingyao was undoubtedly shocked in his heart because he blocked the cutting-edge weapons with his flesh and blood, but still couldn't stop the crazy Japanese attack. Night mooring green gauze tents, Tianming Shanhaiguan, tens of thousands of men and women traveled thousands of miles to defend the Great Wall with passion. Unexpectedly, within a few rounds, the ideal sailboat was already facing the danger of being stranded. Facts have proved that if you have good wishes but not enough strength, you will inevitably be defeated in the wind and rain. Since then, these two words have been echoing in the minds of Xu Tingyao and his disciples: tank, tank, tank! China's future armored corps will rumble out from here. Although defense is difficult, Xu Tingyao only needs to be in charge of the Nantianmen battlefield after all, and He Yingqin, who is in Beiping, has to coordinate the entire North China battle, which is naturally even more difficult. In order not to crush the shoulders of the Minister of Military and Political Affairs, Chiang Kai-shek sent Huang Shaohong, Minister of the Interior, to implement a dual leadership, that is, He Yingqin took charge of military affairs, and Huang Shaohong took charge of politics. In Beiping, He Yingqin and Huang Shaohong often went to a place, which was very charming to say the least - the home of a courtesan in Beiping. Don't think of them too dirty, I can assure you that although the two of them may not be able to sit still like Liu Xiahui, they can still stand the test at critical times. Especially He Yingqin, according to his notebooks during the Republic of China, although this old man commanded the three armies on the battlefield, he was majestic, but he actually had "seasonal addiction" at home. What is seasonal addiction?Let me tell you an allusion and you will know. During the Northern Song Dynasty, there was a man named Chen Zhen, who was good friends with Su Dongpo and others, and they often got together to talk about wars and brag.When blowing to the extreme, Chen Zhen got carried away, patted his chest, and acted like he was the only one in the world.Unexpectedly, I forgot the time while blowing, and I didn't even remember whether it was dark outside. As a result, someone beat the wall in the next room and scolded the mountain gate, and they scolded very fiercely. Everyone turned around to look at this Mr. Chen. His face was already pale, his whole body was shaking, and even his walking stick was so frightened that he dropped it on the ground. Withdraw quickly, the group of people who were still in high spirits and pointed out the country just now scattered like birds and beasts. The one who disrupted the situation is Chen Zhen's wife, and Chen Zhen's name is Ji Chang. Su Dongpo, who ran away like other guests, still remembered the ferocity of Chen Zhen's wife and Chen Zhen's pitiful demeanor. After returning, he named them respectively, one is "Hedong Lion Roar" and the other is "Ji Chang's Addiction". . Su Dongpo is a celebrity, but celebrities also love gossip. The difference is that things that come out of celebrity gossip are more likely to become famous.Here, Su Mingren inadvertently revealed a secret to us: whoever said that only women were deeply oppressed in the old society, and many were oppressed, but they were just embarrassed to say it. Our esteemed Minister He is unfortunately one of them, and his "seasonal habit" is really serious. Do you know what nickname he had at the time? President of the National Henpeck Association. It is said that his family tradition is so strict that it is even comparable to Qi Jiguang of the Ming Dynasty. Such a person, even if you lend him a hundred and one guts, you still dare not mess around outside. Then this one wants to say, the situation is so tense, the situation is so tense, the two military and political leaders, but they spend all day in the courtesan's house, what is the intention? The answer is: to do military affairs. I'm not joking at all, He and Huang really did this.In the living room of the courtesan's house, they dealt with representatives from the Northeast Army, the 29th Army, and the Jinsui Army, making connections and discussing issues. China is not Japan. It is said that it is to coordinate the war situation in North China. In fact, the key is not how to command the war, but how to pull the big guys together and unite to ensure that there are no internal problems first. Chaos starts from within and troubles come from within. They understand this truth better than anyone else, not to mention that North China is inherently intricate. Before the Central Plains War, the power of the Central Committee had never been able to reach it. After the Central Plains War, in fact, it could not reach it . As for why the party must be held in such a special place, it was determined by the specific atmosphere of the Republic of China.I can tell you that this was the most social occasion at that time.To talk about feelings and build relationships, this place is much more effective than the office. To ensure the stability of North China, in addition to "internal fraternal grace", of course, external military benefits must also be entrusted. The latter point is more difficult, because the battle reports from the front line are getting uglier and sadder every day. On April 9, 1933, the Kwantung Army launched the first Luandong Campaign. The Kwantung Army at this time is very different from the era of Honzhuang Fan.After that large-scale reorganization, General Nobuyoshi Muto succeeded Shigeru Honjo and became the most outstanding commander in the history of the Kwantung Army. Nobuyoshi Muto, the chief of the 13th "Saber Group" in mainland China, participated in the Sino-Japanese Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, and was promoted from general to field marshal after his death. Back then, Shige Honjo tried his best to defeat Ma Zhanshan, but after Muto took office, he not only forced Ma Zhanshan to withdraw from the Northeast, but also drove the Northeast Volunteer Army into a desperate situation, so he was hailed by the Japanese as "the patron saint of Manchuria". There is no doubt that the Kwantung Army in the Muto era was at its peak in its history.The Battle of Luandong began on April 9 and ended on April 17. In just eight days, the Kwantung Army broke through Lengkou guarded by Shang Zhen of the Jinsui Army. To the point of being invincible. The outside world thought that Lengkou fell to the front, causing the 29th Army to be attacked from the front and back, and Xifengkou fell to the rear. In fact, Xifengkou had already been lost before the Battle of Luandong, but Song Zheyuan concealed the news because he was afraid of smashing the signboard of the 29th Army. There is only one Nantian Gate left, but only the last two reserve positions can be defended. The frontline military is in such a mess that it is almost out of control. How to do it? He and Huang both thought of two words at the same time: show off! Put on a show for everyone to let the outside world know how leisurely and relaxed we are, and indirectly reveal how ideal the battle situation on the front line is. Just do it. The two first went to play golf. However, this thing is not in line with the habits and preferences of soldiers, and it is not easy to convey positive revolutionary optimism, so I soon stopped playing and turned to hunting. Hunting is good, but the place is hard to find.In the huge city of Beiping, there are many people, but there are not many wild animals that can fight.Maybe there were many in the suburbs before, but after fighting so many natural battles, they were already scared away. They had no choice but to go to the Summer Palace to hunt some wild swans.Unexpectedly, after being shot a few times by them, hundreds of wild swans flew away and never came back. Originally, I wanted to show the heroic posture of the enemy who is still calm and composed, but unexpectedly, the heroic posture was not set up properly, but the ecological balance was destroyed, which is really unlucky. These wild swans probably also knew that Beiping is not what it used to be, and will face the disaster of swords and soldiers from now on, so they are gone forever. With the successive defeats on the front line, He and Huang's life became even more difficult. He Yingqin ordered the entire city of Beiping to be under martial law, but no matter how much it was done, it would not be able to stop those domineering Japanese military officers in the city. The Japanese military officer rampages in the city of Beiping, and the sentry will of course interrogate and intervene.Going back and forth, annoying these guys.One of them actually brought heavily armed Japanese guards and threatened He Yingqin face to face, claiming that if he was not treated "politely", the consequences would be serious. He Yiqian is a gentleman, never thought that dignified diplomats would be so virtuous, almost no different from robbers.But he knew that the current frontline battles were not effective, and it was far from the time to cause trouble, so he suppressed his anger and adopted a tolerant attitude. While explaining and apologizing, he asked the officers and soldiers stationed in the city not to provoke these people as much as possible in the future. People speak with strength as their backing. He Yingqin and Huang Shaohong are sitting on pins and needles in the city of Beiping, so how can they care about the excessive words and deeds of Japanese military officers. Without going to the scene in person, Chiang Kai-shek had already concluded that He and Huang could no longer support the situation in North China through telegrams. One more person must be sent to Peiping. After internal discussions, the Nanjing government issued three plans. The first one is to appoint Duan Qirui who has moved to Shanghai. Duan Qirui is a veteran of Beiyang, and has a high prestige in North China, but he is very old, and it is really difficult for him to preside over such a heavy and difficult mission. The second is the appointment of Yan Xishan, king of Shanxi. Before the Central Plains War, the land in North China originally belonged to Yan Xishan.You want him to preside over it now, of course he can't wait for it. The problem is that this will inevitably cause dissatisfaction among other factions in North China, including the Northeast Army. At the same time, Yan Laoxi may also take advantage of the situation and form a new local force in North China. Both plans were rejected, and Chiang Kai-shek adopted the third plan. In fact, this was the best candidate he had already finalized in his mind. This person is very special. He is Chiang Kai-shek's sworn brother. This brother is not the kind who can be counted by just handing over a blue book, and it is not the same as "scene brothers" like Feng Yuxiang, Yan Xishan, Li Zongren, and Zhang Xueliang. He joined the Tongmenghui very early. He was also a passionate young man who risked his life to overthrow the Manchu Qing Dynasty, but he never joined the Kuomintang throughout his life. Later, he served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Beiyang Government and acted as the Prime Minister of the Cabinet. Later, he served as the first Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Nanjing Government, and was the earliest initiator of the "Revised New Testament Movement", the so-called "Revised New Testament Movement", the predecessor of "Revolutionary Diplomacy". Beiyang and the Kuomintang, one north and the other south, were deadly enemies at that time. One can imagine how big this circle was. Obviously, this is a person with a lot of experience and very complicated thoughts. Several years ago, I traveled to Moganshan, Zhejiang, and once ate next to a villa complex.The architectural style of that villa complex is very unique. I asked the tour guide and found out that it is a building complex of the Republic of China. Celebrities of the Kuomintang and the Communist Party lived here. There is our Chairman of the Republic, and of course Chiang Kai-shek—just like Lushan Mountain. There are only a few good places to escape the heat, so the big guys have to get together. Since it is a tour group, it generally has nothing to do with personal interests.A group of people including me were led by the tour guide like a routine, went around the mountain a few times, looked up at Mo Xie, a model worker couple in the sword making industry, and then went back home.As for the complex, no one paid any attention or asked about it. Often the wonderful details flow quietly from our palms like this. I now know that there is a famous villa in Moganshan called Baiyunshan Pavilion, and the owner is Chiang Kai-shek's brother-in-law, who seems to have been completely obliterated by the dust of history. In the spring of 1933, the owner of the Baiyun Mountain Pavilion left Mogan Mountain and headed north. From then on, he will bear the great responsibility with his sick body. Can this person save the crisis in North China?