In mid-November 1937, after the Japanese invaders occupied Shanghai, they marched westward from the north and south of Taihu Lake at the same time, and after the Japanese army occupied Shanghai, they mobilized 8 divisions, two brigades and a navy with a total of 200,000 people, and attacked Nanjing by two routes, north and south. The north route is the Shanghai Dispatch Army (under the jurisdiction of the 3rd, 9th, 11th, 13th, 16th, 101st Divisions and the Shigeto Detachment), and the south route is the 10th Army (under the jurisdiction of the 6th, 18th, 114th Divisions and the Kunisaki Detachment).

The Chinese army defended the Taihu North Corridor by the Left Wing Army (under the jurisdiction of the 15th, 19th, and 21st Group Armies), and the Right Wing Army (with the jurisdiction of the 8th, 10th, and 23rd Group Armies) responsible for the defense of the Taihu Nanjing-Hangzhou National Highway. On November 20 and 24, 1937, Tang Shengzhi was appointed as the commander of the Nanjing garrison, and a total of more than 110,000 troops were mobilized to defend Nanjing. Its troop configuration is as follows: the 72nd Division of the 88th Army serves as the garrison of Shuixi Gate, Zhonghua Gate, Wuding Gate, and Yuhuatai; The 78th Division of the 36th Army served as the garrison of Xuanwu Gate, Red Mountain, Shogunate Mountain, and Rujiang Gate; The teaching corps served as the garrison of Guanghua Gate, Zhongshan Gate to Taiping Gate, Purple Mountain, Qilin Gate and Tianbao City, and sent another part to garrison the fortress of Wulong Mountain; The 87th Division of the 71st Army defended the area of Tongji Gate and Guanghua Gate, and the gendarmerie served as the defense of Dinghuai Gate, Hanzhong Gate and Qingliangshan. The troops on the periphery of Nanjing retreated from Shanghai to Nanjing in a hurry: the 74th Army was deployed on the line from Niushou Mountain to Chunhua, and the 66th and 83rd Armies were deployed on the east and west sides of Tangshan.

The Japanese army was well-armed, and the 200,000 Japanese troops were fierce and determined to win. In order to break the Japanese army's attempt to break Chiang Kai-shek's will to resist the war by occupying the capital Nanjing, Chiang Kai-shek began to adjust his strategic deployment and made two preparations: first, he officially announced his relocation to Chongqing on November 20 to show a protracted war of resistance; The second is to urgently formulate a plan for the defense of Nanjing. However, on the question of whether to defend or abandon Nanjing, Chiang Kai-shek decided to defend it for the sake of his own face, but he did not really defend Nanjing. However, most of the generals were opposed, and everyone knew that Chiang Kai-shek was just a false shot to give the people an anti-Japanese explanation.

Chiang Kai-shek officially proclaimed Tang Shengzhi as commander of the Nanjing garrison on November 24, and Tang Shengzhi began to organize the command. On December 7, Chiang Kai-shek and his wife Soong Meiling quietly came to the Sun Yat-sen Cemetery, standing in front of the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum, and did not expect that the hundreds of thousands of troops in his hands could not withstand the attack of the evil bandits. Now like a lost dog, he wants to leave Nanjing. He naturally knew that after he left, Nanjing would be under the continuous attack of the Japanese army, and once it was occupied by devils, what would become of Nanjing, and he didn't dare to think about it. He had to get out of this dangerous place as soon as possible and save his life. Under the nose of the soldier, Chiang Kai-shek took his wife and flew away quietly in a plane.

As soon as Chiang Kai-shek left, Tang Shengzhi became a veritable king of Nanjing. It has also become the focus of attention of Nanjing citizens. Nanjing's survival depends entirely on his military resistance. His confidant asked him privately in bewilderment, "Why did you make such a stupid decision when you are a smart man?" Nanjing obviously can't be defended! ”

Tang Shengzhi said lightly: "There are some things in this world that are done by stupid people. As a Chinese soldier, I should stand up for the national crisis. How can you let evil run rampant! Tang Shengzhi generously stated that he was willing to be a stupid person in the autumn of the country's survival and danger. With Tang Shengzhi's shrewdness and ability, he could completely follow the example of Gu Zhenglun, commander of the Nanjing garrison, and return to his hometown in Hunan to recuperate and recuperate on the grounds of physical discomfort, judge the situation, and try to make a comeback. But he chose the latter and stayed in Nanjing, hoping for a miracle and holding Nanjing.

Since Tang Shengzhi was appointed to the crisis, he saw that although the troops left by Chiang Kai-shek were the elite of the national army, most of them were defeated divisions left over from the Battle of Songhu. Now that the soldiers of the national army have gone through the battle of Songhu, they have smoothed out the spirit of killing, which has become a sharp contrast with the fierce and domineering spirit of the devils. Even the combat commander lacked confidence, and naturally there was no chance of winning this battle to defend the city. And the morale of the Japanese army was high and well-armed. There are planes on and heavy artillery below. Tank fighting vehicles. There are warships on the river, this is an asymmetrical war! In the midst of danger, is it worth it to die for Chiang Kai-shek with his sick body? However, Tang Shengzhi immediately defended his decision. Thinking that he was in the face of a national crisis, he stood up and guarded the capital of China, not for Chiang Kai-shek alone, every time he thought of this, a stream of blood boiled in his body, and he felt that he was the pride of a soldier and the backbone of the nation, and he was proud to be a real soldier.

On 27 November, General Tang Shengzhi, commander of the Nanjing Garrison, openly met with reporters at home and abroad. Especially on such an occasion, Tang Shengzhi was well aware of the profound impact of his words and deeds on the officers and soldiers defending the city this time. Although he has always been in poor health, he is not like Gu Zhenglun who said he was sick and became a deserter, nor like He Yingqin Bai Chongxi who advocated abandoning the city, and not like Liu Fei, who had no military power and no hair, who let go of the strange theory that Nanjing could not be defended.

Tang Shengzhi said: "I am confident that I have been ordered to defend Nanjing. First, the troops to which I belong are all elite divisions left behind by Chairman Chiang, and they are all troops loyal to the party-state. all have the determination to live and die with Nanjing; Second, in this autumn of national survival, our combat troops will be like falcons in the sky, once they find their prey, they will pounce on them, skin them and eat meat. The Japanese want to swallow up my China, and we only have one sentence: "Destroy him!" ”

As soon as Tang Shengzhi's voice fell, he immediately won warm applause. The major newspapers in Nanjing praised Tang Shengzhi as the Chinese god of war, and all Chinese soldiers stood up and killed themselves in the face of national disasters. The citizens of Nanjing spontaneously organized citizens to take to the streets to show solidarity with the Nationalist army and resolutely support the officers and soldiers defending the city to resist the Japanese army. It is hoped that the national army will truly live and die with Nanjing.

Tang Shengzhi felt that his decision to volunteer to stay and defend Nanjing was correct, and no matter what the success or failure was, he felt no regrets. He made a decision that a soldier was proud of in the face of a national crisis. It is the highest honor for a soldier to lie on the battlefield with a smile.

In order to express his determination to live and die with Nanjing, Tang Shengzhi ordered Yu Feipeng, Minister of Communications, to stop the ferry between Xiaguan and Pukou, and ordered all military and civilian ships of all sizes to be handed over to Song Xilian's 36th Division for strict guarding. At the same time, Tang Shengzhi issued a death order, ordering Hu Zongnan's 1st Army, which was stationed in Jiangbei, to stop any troops or soldiers crossing the river from Nanjing to the north, and to kill anyone who did not comply. As soon as this order was issued, the officers and soldiers defending the city saw that the retreat was dead, and they only had the determination to fight to the death. Because of Tang Shengzhi's order to seal the river, the shadow of a boat could not be seen on the river surface all of a sudden, and the entire river surface seemed empty, only the endless river water was rolling eastward.

Tang Shengzhi swears that he is willing to live and die with Nanjing! He also had the determination to die and fought to the death with the Japanese army. He knew very well that in this Sino-Japanese battle, the cruelty of the war was unprecedented. The tenacious fighting qualities of the Japanese army are the evil star of the national army. Judging from the situation of the war, Nanjing is surrounded by water on three sides, the Japanese army has already controlled the Yangtze River, and the national army just wants to transfer troops, which is very difficult. Because the people did not have a strong navy and air force, Nanjing had become an isolated city.

At that time, the total strength of the troops participating in the defense of Nanjing were: Gui Yongqing's teaching corps, the 36th Division of the 78th Army, the 87th Division of the 71st Army, the 88th Division of Sun Yuanliang of the 72nd Army, the 41st Division of Xu Yuanquan of the Second Army, the 48th Division of Xu Jiwu, as well as two regiments of the military police and the 8th artillery regiment, with a strength of about 70,000 people. Soon after, Wang Yaowu's 74th Army, Ye Zhao's 66th Army, and the 154th Division of the 83rd Army joined one after another, and the total strength of the defending city was close to 150,000 when the Battle of Nanjing began.

At eight o'clock in the evening of December 4, Chiang convened a meeting of officers above the division commander of the Nanjing Garrison, at which Chiang said six points: first, to summarize the gains and losses of the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression in the past five months; Second, China's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression received international support; Third, Nanjing must be adhered to, which takes into account the international outlook, and is also the location of the Prime Minister's Mausoleum, which also has a great impact on the hearts of the people in China; Fourth, holding on to Nanjing could contain the Japanese troops, so that other troops could repair and breathe; Fifth, everyone must stick to the end, because the three divisions of the Yunnan troops are all fully equipped, have sufficient troops, and have combat experience, and will soon be able to reach Wuhan. When the time comes, I (Chiang) will personally lead these three divisions to relieve the siege of Nanjing. Sixth, defending Nanjing is a great and glorious task, and everyone must work with one heart and one mind, with the determination that if they do not succeed, they will become benevolent, take Commander Tang as an example, follow the determination of Commander Tang, and swear to live and die with Nanjing.

An hour after Chiang's speech, Tang Shengzhi expressed in a tragic tone that he swore to live and die with Nanjing, and made it clear that if Nanjing was lost, he would end up with the enemy as the first choice, and live up to the expectations of the country and the people. That night, all the soldiers expressed their attitudes one after another, and their determination was firm, which was moving. After the meeting, Chiang left Nanjing by plane, and the battle to defend Nanjing officially began.

For the sake of international view, in order to protect the prime minister's mausoleum, in order to calm the hearts of the people in the country, in order to strive for respite. This is the reason why Tang Shengzhi defied public opinion and took the initiative to defend Nanjing. However, a big battle with the Japanese army fought to the end and fought to the death, before the start of the battle, they were united, but after the start of the battle, they went their own way, and the command and support were chaotic.

Tang Shengzhi faced the fierce Japanese army approaching step by step, and cold sweat broke out on his pale face. He hadn't closed his eyes for two nights, the situation of the war was far from what he had imagined, he had thought that the 150,000 army could hold out for three months, but now it seemed that his heart was empty, and he felt that he had fallen into a trap, and it was dark and terrifying......