On November 1, with the departure of Xie Jin and others in the Sixing Warehouse, the Songhu area completely fell, which also marked the official end of the Battle of Songhu.

For most of the following month, the Japanese troops in the Songhu area and even in the entire central China region were recuperating and recuperating, and while controlling the economy that permeated the occupied areas, they decided on a new operational policy.

On 15 November, Japanese General Matsui sent a telegram to China requesting an attack on Nanjing, the most important city in China.

Nanjing, at that time, was the political center, its position was very important, and it was also one of the safest cities for the majority of the people, because the chairman's permanent residence was Nanjing.

The intention of Matsui's move is very obvious, first, if Nanjing is attacked, it will be a major blow to the people of all China.

Second, the war has been started for a long time, although the Japanese army is fierce, but it is also difficult to be a little tired, Matsui wants to stimulate his own soldiers through this move, and at the same time stimulate the ordinary people in the country, so that the domestic people support the war.

Third, the Songhu area has completely fallen, and the gate of Nanjing has been exposed, and this is a good time to attack.

After Matsui's telegram was sent back, the Japanese ***** consulted several generals and finally decided to attack Nanjing.

On 17 November, the emperor formally issued an order appointing the commander-in-chief of the Central China Theater of Operations, Japanese General Matsui Wei, to launch an attack on Nanjing in a short period of time, and at the same time to dispatch the navy, air force, and Shanghai dispatch troops, a total of about six lieutenant generals and about 150,000 troops, to prepare for Nanjing.

On 18 November, the chairman of the NPC National Committee convened an emergency meeting in Nanjing to discuss the understanding of the Nanjing issue.

Without exception, the participants were all bigwigs in the military, and the chairman personally took the lead in convening the meeting.

"The Japanese army is about to attack Nanjing, what do you think is good?" The chairman asked, looking at the people below with his hands behind his back.

"I don't think so." Ma Feng took the lead in expressing his position.

Ma Feng, in his forties, with the rank of army commander, had a division of his troops who went to participate in the Battle of Songhu and suffered very heavy losses.

"Why did Commander Ma say this?" The chairman motioned to Ma Feng to give a reasonable explanation.

"In the first battle of Songhu, our side suffered heavy losses, and the defeat in the battle of Songhu led to the low morale of our army, if we stick to Nanjing, it is bound to be another big war, and regardless of winning or losing, just say that once this battle is fought, then our side will be greatly damaged, and it will be unfavorable for long-term combat." Ma Feng made a reasoned and well-founded tirade, and several people nodded frequently.

"I agree with Commander Ma's words." Another army commander replied, "The most important thing is that Nanjing is not easy to defend, after the defeat of the Battle of Songhu, the gate of Nanjing is equivalent to being open to the Japanese army, and Nanjing is still in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and the Japanese navy is too strong, once the war starts, the Japanese army's land, navy, and air forces will fight together, which will be extremely unfavorable to our army." ”

"Well, that makes sense!" Suddenly, someone nodded in agreement.

"I disagree!" Tang Zhi directly retorted: "Nanjing, as our capital, is not only our political center, but also our face in the international community, and Mr. Sun's mausoleum is also in Nanjing. ”

"Surrendering without a fight is a major blow to our army and our people."

"So, I suggest, hold on, you must keep it!"

"What are you going to keep?" Ma Feng raised his head and said, "Just the Japanese navy, we have to spend most of our troops to deal with it, if the Japanese navy, land and air force attack together, we can only use the lives of soldiers to fill." ”

"Are there any immortals in war?" Tang Zhizhen said-for-tat: "How to fight the Battle of Songhu, how to fight Nanjing, regardless of victory or defeat for the time being, our attitude is very important." ”

"Am I afraid of death?" Ma Feng patted the table and said, "I mean, this kind of sacrifice is not necessary, the Battle of Songhu has just been fought, if you fight again and continue to lose, have you considered the impact?" Have you considered a plan for a long-term war? ”

"I don't have to think about it that much." Tang Zhi glared and said, "I know that retreating without a fight is not only irresponsible to Nanjing, but also irresponsible to the people of the whole country." ”

"The money we spend, the military expenses we use, it's all the people's money, the people can't eat enough, give us military funds to support us, so can we get back?"

"Besides, Nanjing is the capital and the faith in the hearts of the people, and when Nanjing is destroyed, the faith in the hearts of the people will collapse."

"What the are you talking about......

“………………”

Both sides are stubborn and very understanding of the quarrel, at first it was two people arguing, and then gradually it became a group of people arguing, and the whole scene was chaotic.

"Peng! Splatter! Splatter! ”

The chairman frowned and listened for a long time, and finally couldn't help but pat the table and said, "Silence! Quiet! ”

When everyone heard this, they quieted down.

"This is not a vegetable market, let you express your opinions, not quarrel, what is the system?" The chairman frowned and reprimanded, "Don't argue about this matter anymore, I already have a decision in my heart." ”

No one answered, and everyone listened intently to what was next.

"I listened to what you just said, it all makes sense, Nanjing is not defended, and it is not defended if it is not, in this case, we will defend for a short time, only for one to two months, if we really can't hold it, we will withdraw the army, and leave it for later, and it is not too late to make plans."

"What do you think?"

"That's a good plan!" Ma Feng nodded and said, "This way you can also get a glimpse of the reality of the Japanese army." ”

"I agree." Another person agreed, "If we keep it for one to two months, we will be able to show our determination, and even if we retreat at that time, the people will not complain so much." ”

"I agree." Tang Zhi also nodded.

“………………”

"Good!" The chairman nodded and said, "Since they all agree, then who will stay in Nanjing?" ”

The words fell, and everyone fell silent.

The job of staying in Nanjing is obviously a thankless effort, and if you keep it, you won't boast about it, and if you can't keep it, you will definitely be scolded, and whoever takes this job is a fool.

"No one wants to keep it?" The chairman waited for a while, but when he saw that no one answered, he asked again.

"I'll keep it!" Tang Zhi thought for a moment and said, "I'm willing to keep it." ”

"Good!" The chairman nodded and said, "Then let's continue to study the issue of Nanjing's armament." ”

"Good!" Everyone nodded, pointed to the map, and began to study it.

Three hours later, the meeting dispersed, and it was finally decided to transfer 150,000 troops, led by Tang Zhi, to deploy and defend Nanjing.

On 20 November, Nanjing published a newspaper announcing that it would leave its troops in Nanjing and move its capital to Chongqing to prepare to meet the Japanese army.