"Boom, boom, boom......"

"Buzzing ......" flocks of Japanese-style Type 92 bombers flaunted their might in the sky of Nanjing like flocks of crows. Throwing away a long string of spiky aviation **, whether it is drilling into the barracks or residential areas, splashing patches of blood mist, countless fresh lives are gone.

On July 7, 1937, the Japanese invaders caused an incident at Lugou Bridge and launched a large-scale invasion of North China. Soon, the Japanese army burned the flames of war to East China, and the Battle of Songhu broke out. Nanjing, as the capital of China at that time, was the national political and military command center, and naturally became the main point of the Japanese attack. In the case that the land and sea forces were temporarily unattainable, air raids became the first choice to destroy Nanjing. As a result, from August 15, 1937, the Japanese air force carried out a four-month wanton and indiscriminate bombing of Nanjing, which caused a profound disaster to the Nanjing military and civilians, and also opened a bloody road for the Japanese ground troops to blow up the massacre in Nanjing. The Chinese Air Force and the Soviet Volunteer Air Force defended the strong enemy, fought hard, and launched one thrilling killing after another against the attacking Japanese "vultures." Many pilots shed their blood in the blue sky and sacrificed their young lives. Their fame will be with the mountains and rivers of the ancient city.

Japan did not have an independent air force during the war of aggression against China. The so-called "Japanese Air Force" is actually an air force belonging to the Japanese Army and Navy. Prior to the Pacific War, the invading Japanese Army Air Force was mainly responsible for supporting and coordinating operations with its ground forces, while the Naval Air Force was responsible for long-range attacks on military, political, and economic targets in the Chinese rear and annihilating the living forces of the Chinese Air Force. The bombing of Nanking was carried out mainly by the Japanese naval air force. At that time, the Japanese army and navy had more than 1,800 aircraft.

Although the Japanese Navy made full preparations before the war and conducted many long-distance raid exercises, it did not fully grasp the air defense capability of China, especially the Nanjing area, and had no bottom of the reaction of world public opinion. During the period of more than a month, the air raids were "throwing stones to ask for directions", and the number of them was small and the scale was small.

The first Japanese air raid on Nanjing took place on August 15, 1937. At about 9 o'clock, Captain Hayashida Ruhu of the Japanese Navy's Kisarazu Air Force led 20 new Type 96 land attack planes to take off from the Omura base near Nagasaki, braving winds of more than 15 m/s to cross the sea and invade Chinese mainland from Hangzhou Bay.

Because the aftermath of the typhoon at sea was still there, the meteorological conditions were bad, and they were intercepted by the Chinese Air Force over Suzhou, and four Japanese planes were scattered, and only 16 Japanese planes flew over Nanjing, dropping a total of seven bombs at the Ming Imperial Palace, Daxiaochang, Bafutang, Daxing Palace, No. 1 Park, Xinjiekou, and other places, and strafing them. Some buildings in Nanjing were damaged, and dozens of soldiers and civilians were killed or wounded. At 19:20 that night, 16 Japanese planes returned to the Japanese naval airfield on Jeju Island.

After the Japanese planes bombed Nanjing, it aroused condemnation from many countries and righteous people in the world.

However, the Japanese invaders ignored it and continued to bomb Nanjing. On 16 August, 12 attack planes of the Navy's Luya Air Force, departing from Taipei, attacked Nanjing, Yangzhou, and Jurong.

On the afternoon and night of August 19, the Japanese Kaya and Kisarazu air fleets attacked Nanjing, respectively.

Due to the daytime air raid on Nanjing, the Japanese planes suffered great damage, and the Japanese planes changed to a night raid after that. From August 22 to the next morning, in the early morning and night of August 24, and in the early morning of August 27, Japanese naval planes raided Nanjing in batches, destroying many buildings in the city, including the National Health Bureau, the Experimental Middle School Affiliated to Central University, the Provincial Third Hospital, the school for the bereaved families in Weigang, the residential area in the south of the city, the arsenal, the Dajiaochang Airport, the garrison headquarters, the military police regiment, etc., more than 500 houses were destroyed alone, "hundreds of innocent people were blown up and burned", and thousands of people were displaced. The normal order of life and work in Nanjing has been disrupted.

In mid-September, as a result of the large number of Japanese troops landing in the Songhu area and the establishment of land airfields in Wusong and Yangpu respectively, Japanese naval planes could attack China's urban and rural areas in the vicinity without having to depart from the mainland, from bases in Taiwan, or from aircraft carriers, and without the fatigue of pilots and a large amount of fuel consumption caused by long-distance flights. In particular, in order to strengthen the forces of aggression against East China, the Japanese authorities transferred more than 40 planes of the 3rd Flying Regiment of the Army Air Force (under the jurisdiction of 2 squadrons of reconnaissance planes, 1 squadron of fighters, and 1 squadron of light and heavy bombers) and 66 planes of the 2nd Combined Air Force of the Navy to Songhu for operations. In the 2nd Combined Air Force, there were 24 carrier-based fighters of the Type 96, which were the most advanced in Japan at that time. The aircraft has a speed of more than 400 kilometers per hour and a cruising range of 1,100 kilometers, and it is also the world's ace fighter at that time.

The haze of early winter shrouded the ancient capital of Nanjing, and the severe cold river wind caused the ancient city to wither. A black car slowly drove out of the Tang Mansion in Baiziting and drove towards the Zhongshan Gate.

Tang Shengzhi, director of the Hot Brigade Department of the National ** Military Commission, was dressed in the uniform of a first-class army general and sat in the car.

It seems that everything is still calm here, singing and dancing, but dozens of miles away, the Chinese and Japanese armies are fighting to the death, and blood is spilled on the battlefield. At the beginning, the Japanese army threatened to destroy China within three months, but the Battle of Songhu was fought for three months, and the Japanese army's vain words were destroyed. Let the Chinese people breathe a sigh of relief.

However, Tang Shengzhi judged from the battle of Songhu that the defeat of the battle of Shanghai was decided. The next target of the Japanese army was Nanjing. Who will guard Nanjing? It seems that the candidate for guarding Nanjing has been decided. Judging from all kinds of signs, he knew very well that the battle of Songhu, which Lao Jiang personally commanded, was defeated and retreated......

Tang Shengzhi knew that in the first battle of Songhu, although the myth of the Japanese army's "quick battle and quick victory" had come to naught. Tang Shengzhi knew very well that the battle to defend Nanjing would be even more tragic. The national army has been greatly damaged. If you want to hold Nanjing, you must deploy troops and strike hard.

In November 1937, the Battle of Songhu, which was like a melting pot, ended with the Japanese landing in Hangzhou Bay to outflank the Nationalist army and the general retreat of the Nationalist army. The exhausted main force of the national army was no longer able to fight.

After a chaotic peripheral battle, Nanjing was soon directly exposed to the Japanese army. On December 6, the Nationalist Army declared martial law in Nanjing. On 7 December, the Nationalist Army declared Nanking a fighting zone.

Nanjing's back to the Yangtze River, the Japanese could blockade it with warships in the north, shelling. On the ground, the Japanese troops who had advanced from Wuhu had already copied up from the west, cutting off the connection between Nanjing and the rear. The east and south sides were also surrounded by Japanese troops. Nanjing has become an isolated city.

The garrison of the Nanjing National Army included the 41st Division and the 48th Division of Xu Yuanquan of the 2nd Army Corps. 66th Ye Zhao 159th Division, 160th Division. Wang Jingjiu's 87th Division of the 71st Army, Sun Yuanliang's 88th Division of the 72nd Army, Yu Jishi's 51st Division and 58th Division of the 74th Army. The 78th Division of Song Xilian of the 36th Army, the 154th Division and the 156th Division of Deng Longguang of the 83rd Army. Gui Yongqing, 103rd Division, 112th Division and other 14 divisions. 2 military police regiments under the command of the commander of the military police, Xiao Shanling. The 8th Battalion of the 1st Artillery Regiment, the 10th Battalion of the 1st Artillery Regiment, 10 light combat vehicles, the city defense communications battalion, 27 anti-aircraft guns of the Air Defense Command, special forces.

The troops participating in the battle were basically all retreating troops on the battlefield of the Battle of Songhu. To put it bluntly, all of them were broken troops, and the 14 divisions of the National Army in Nanjing actually only had about 80,000 people, of which 30,000 were temporary strong men who had not received any training at all. Moreover, the firepower is weak, and in terms of strength, it is simply impossible to block the blow of the Japanese heavy group.

The design and manufacture of the fortifications of the national army was backward, and the circular position in Nanjing was built by the Nanjing Garrison Command, but the designers lacked experience in modern warfare, and the position of the fortifications was not hidden, and little attention was paid to oblique and side firing and depth. Most of them are set up at high mountain tops and mausoleum lines, and the gun holes are too large. It is easy to be destroyed and broken through by artillery fire. The deployment of the national army was that the 74th Army defended Niushou Mountain, the 88th Division defended Yuhuatai, the 87th Division defended north of the Jiangnan Railway, the Teaching Corps defended Purple Mountain, the 2nd Army defended Oolong Mountain, the 36th Division defended Mufu Mountain, the 66th Army defended Dashui Pass, and the 83rd Army and 1 regiment of the 36th Division covered in Qinglong Mountain and Longwang Mountain. Zhenjiang's 103rd, 112th divisions reinforced Nanjing.

Tang Shengzhi's small bridge car stopped at the door of Chiang Kai-shek's official residence in the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum, and Tang Shengzhi hurried into Chiang Kai-shek's office. Chiang Kai-shek had already sat in the center, and He Yingqin, Bai Chongxi, Xu Yongchang, as well as Liu Fei, director of the War Department of the National Military Command Department, Xiao Shanling, commander of the military police and commander of the Nanjing garrison, and several other people had arrived.

In the Nanjing crisis, Tang Shengzhi attended the Nanjing Abandonment Conference for the second time today.

In the past few days, Chiang Kai-shek has been unpleasant to eat and unable to sleep.

The Japanese deceived people too much, Britain and the United States were not friends enough, and Chiang Kai-shek had always fantasized about the "glorious peace" achieved between China and Japan, but there was no trace of it.

"Niang Xipi, who can make Japan stop attacking?"

Chiang Kai-shek obviously lacked confidence in saying this, and in the Battle of Shanghai, more than 70 divisions were sent to the Shanghai battlefield, and most of these troops were Chiang Kai-shek's descendants, but they were defeated by the Japanese army and retreated one after another. Chiang Kai-shek threw out all his family funds, how can he not be sad? However, although he knew in his heart that Nanjing could not be defended, and only the loss of troops was lost, but if he did not defend it, he could not afford to lose face.

Liu Fei said: "I believe that the Japanese army is taking advantage of the situation gained in the battle at Shanghai, with its superior navy, land, air force, and heavy equipment, and taking advantage of the favorable water and land transportation conditions such as the Yangtze River and the Shanghai-Nanjing and Beijing-Hangzhou National Highways, to directly approach Nanjing. Nanjing is located at the bend of the Yangtze River, and the terrain is backwater, so the Japanese army can block our artillery from the river and block us with the navy, cut off the line of communication from the rear of our army from Juhu Lake on land, and then attack with the coordinated attack of the army and air force. It puts Nanjing in a three-dimensional encirclement situation, and it is impossible to defend it......"

He Yingqin nodded, Bai Chongxi frowned, Chiang Kai-shek was shocked, and only Xu Yongchang remained silent. Tang Shengzhi was lost in thought.

"What do you think?" Chiang Kai-shek wanted to hear the opinions of other generals.

Bai Chongxi was the first to speak: "I agree with Liu Fei's opinion. Our army has suffered a new defeat, and it is urgent to fight for a chance to recuperate in order to fight again. The enemy wants us to fight him, and we don't fall for him. That's right. ”

Chiang Kai-shek was greatly annoyed, but in fact, Chiang Kai-shek did not want to lose Nanjing in his heart. He was the leader of the Anti-Japanese War, leaving Nanjing to the Japanese in front of the people, and he had to bear the infamy of non-resistance. The tragic lesson of the September 18 incident made him soberly realize that in the face of the aggressor, the only way to fight back is to fight back until the aggressor is driven out of the country. He can't pull this face, no matter what, Nanjing is to be guarded. However, the opinions of these generals who came to the meeting today were all withdrawn and they did not want to defend Nanjing. No one wants to leave themselves here. In the battle of Songhu, everyone has learned the power of Little Japan. That was to take out all his belongings and gamble with Little Japan. I thought that this big bet on the national army must win, but I didn't expect to lose, and it was a miserable loss. If Little Japan occupies Nanjing, how will the national army have face? Where did he put his own face? For a Chinese culture, Sun Yat-sen placed great trust in himself. A magnificent China was defeated at the hands of a small island country. Chiang Kai-shek really didn't want to lose face in front of his countrymen for the second time.

Chiang Kai-shek saw that everyone was a shrunken ghost, and he couldn't help but sigh: "When the national disaster is at the head, no one responds to the war!" ”

Just when Chiang Kai-shek was in a dilemma, a thin, medium-sized general who seemed to have just recovered from a serious illness stood up and said: "Chairman, the rise and fall of the country is the responsibility of the husband!" Nanjing is the national capital, if there is no one to guard, I will guard! I will swear to live and die with Nanjing! ”

When Chiang Kai-shek saw it, he was shocked, it was him!