readx; "For God's sake, stretch out a hand of charity!"

After Alexander gave an account of the situation, he lowered his horsewhip and cast expectant glances at Stilwell and the Chinese generals. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info

The British general, who was known for his ability to handle crises, had no other way at this time. Of the two British divisions in Burma, the 17th Division was annihilated by the Japanese army long before the fall of Rangoon. In that battle, 7,000 British troops were captured. Now, more than 7,000 people of the 1st Division have fallen into the trap. The British had no troops to send. The only hope for a break is the [***] team.

Stilwell ignored Alexander, who was single-mindedly digging through the sludge that had accumulated in his mouthpiece. It was a carved cigarette holder, his beloved plaything. According to his own account, it was given to him by a friend when he was a military attache in Beiping. After picking out the smoke and mud, he put in another cigarette and lit it, and took a deep breath, Stilwell raised his eyelids and asked Alexander:

"Your Excellency, the British army has been retreating, and it is not slow. I don't understand, how could I let Yu copy the back road? ”

Stilwell was unhurried, but his words were quite spicy.

Alexander was a man of understanding, and so cultured. He understood that on the battlefield in Burma, he could not take an offensive against the Japanese army, and at the conference table, he should not launch a counterattack against Stilwell. He said helplessly: "Indeed, it should be admitted that the speed of the attack of the Yue army has greatly exceeded our expectations. ”

"One more point." Stilwell then asked, "It has always been the 33rd Division of the Chinese Army that has been fighting on the Western Front. According to the Air Force's reconnaissance, on April 15, the main force of the division was still far south of Magway, so how could they suddenly appear in Ringanqiang? How many troops are there? ”

"God knows." Alexander really couldn't figure it out.

"God bless you, then!"

Stilwell's ridicule hurt the pride of the English gentleman. When has the British Empire ever begged someone else? Alexander angrily drew an arc in the air with the whip in his hand and said:

"To destroy the main force of the British army in Ringanqiang is not only contrary to the wishes of Britain, but also not in the interests of China. You must know that the British army has been tasked with the task of covering the flanks of the Chinese army in the middle lane, and for this, they have made great sacrifices. In times of crisis, they have the right to ask for help. ”

Stilwell's original intention was not to destroy the British army, but to knock Alexander. Since the Burma War, the British army has performed too poorly. Stilwell had some good plans, but they were all ruined by the British. Seeing a few words that made Alexander sarcastic and uncomfortable, Stilwell changed his words, pushed Du Yuming out, and said, "In that case, listen to the opinions of Chinese friends!" ”

Du Yuming lacks a Westerner's sense of humor, but he was happy to hear Stilwell sneering at Alexander. Due to the defeat of the British army, which had seriously threatened the Battle of Pingmanna, which was being organized, Du Yuming was greatly annoyed by this, and he made up his mind not to send troops to Ren'anqiang. The chairman of the committee had already predicted: "The decisive battle area of our army is in Mandalay. If the British army retreats to the Ringanqiang oil field, we will move forward and not go beyond Dongdunji. Besides, Alexander couldn't tell how many troops there were. Think about it, you have to make two catties of stuffing for buns, 7,000 British troops are surrounded, how many troops should there be? To relieve the siege of the British army, how many rescuers must be sent? If it is a bottomless pit, and the rescuers sent have gone and never returned, how can they be explained to the chairman? Du Yuming thought, you have 7,000 British troops, chariots, artillery, if you can't kill a bloody road, no one will be able to carry you out.

Stilwell is now asking Du Yuming to come to the rescue. Du Yuming glanced at him, and said in his heart, you have a big nose and lost the battle, and the chairman of the committee can't help you. I can't do it, I have to listen to the chairman, and I can't go lightly. So, he was in debt and said to Alexander: "The Allied army is besieged at Ringanqiang, and our army is deeply troubled, so I should do my best to help them." ”

Hearing this, Alexander's brows suddenly stretched, and his face turned from cloudy to clear. Stilwell nodded approvingly.

"However," Du Yuming took a sharp turn and said: "At present, the battlefield in Burma is in full swing, and the battle of Pingmanna is unfolding. ”

When the translator translated this passage, the sentence "ten fingers pressed ten fleas" could not be translated for half a day. However, Alexander was not interested in this. As soon as he heard that "but", his face immediately became gloomy.

"Even if we can pull out a force," Mr. Du added, "given the current traffic situation in Myanmar, it is impossible to get to Ringanqiang in three or two days." As you know, in late March, in order to relieve the siege of Tonggu, the new 22nd Division drove 150 kilometers from Mandalay to Nanyang Railway Station, and walked for 10 days. Therefore, we may not be able to reach the allies of Ringanqiang. We can only step up our attacks in the middle and east to reduce the pressure on the west to help them break through. ”

Du Yuming's words are equivalent to a slap in the face to Alexander. Burma's railways have always been in the hands of the British, who used to give "red lights" to the transfer of the Chinese [***] team.

The meeting became an impasse.

Sun Liren couldn't sit still. Du Yuming talked about this finger and that finger, but he didn't mention the finger of his new 38th Division. The day before yesterday, the 112th and 113th regiments of the new 38th Division had already moved to Natmank and Chok Padang on the Western Front, not far from Ringanqiang.

He and Du Yuming are in different positions and have different ideas. He thought that if the British 1st Division was annihilated at Ringanqiang, then the next target of the army would be Natmanck and Chok Burdan. Today's fate for the British army is tomorrow's end for the new 38th Division. Rather than sit back and watch being broken by the enemy, it is better to join forces as soon as possible, and maybe we can defeat the Japanese army and stabilize the Western Front. Moreover, he had eaten foreign bread, and Stilwell and Stilwell both graduated from the Virginia Military Academy, although they did not have a deep personal friendship. However, there are always many things in common in their military thinking, tactical style, and principles of doing things. Sun Liren once went to Europe to investigate, and also made many friends in the British and French military.

For these reasons, Sun Liren's request to Alexander, especially Stilwell, could not be rejected as categorically as Du Yuming, who was sitting next to him.

Du Yuming sensed that Sun Liren was eager to try, and hurriedly pulled the corners of his clothes, signaling him not to move.

Sun Liren had made up his mind, and pretended not to know about Du Yuming's hints. He stood up and said, "The new 38th Division can send troops to Ren'anqiang." ”

In desperation, a rescue force suddenly appeared, and Alexander was overjoyed and hurriedly said: "Thank you! ”

"I have two conditions." Sun Liren said to Alexander in English, "First, within four hours, transfer 80 cars to Chokpadang to transport troops. Second, within 48 hours, the British army in Ringanqiang was to hold on to its existing positions. ”

"Good!" Alexander said yes.

When the meeting was dismissed, Alexander patted Sun Liren on the shoulder and hugged him, and specially appointed Lieutenant General Slim, the commander of the British Army, to coordinate the actions of the Chinese and British troops with Sun Liren's command post. Pulling Sun Liren and Slim together, Alexander said, "I wish you every success in your cooperation. ”

Du Yuming had already brushed his sleeves away.

Alexander counts this time. Within four hours, 80 "Ford" red-headed cars drove to Chokpadang. The officers and men of the 113th Regiment immediately boarded the bus and set off. Sun Liren's command post also left Mandalay and moved forward with the team.

Since arriving in Burma, the new 38th Division's combat knife has not yet been opened, and the officers and men are full of fighting spirit. The 113th Regiment seized the opportunity to fight first, and its morale was higher. They traveled day and night, and on the evening of the 17th, they rushed to the Binhe area on the outskirts of Ringanqiang. That night, the troops launched an attack and fought fiercely until noon the next day, clearing the army on the north bank of the Bin River.

The British troops besieged on the south bank had been trapped for two days, with neither food nor drinking water, and they were hungry and thirsty, and were on the verge of collapse. Division Commander Scott, a major general who likes to sleep lazily in the morning, since March 9, after handing over the defense of Tonggu City to Dai Anlan, he led his troops to the western road to garrison, and then retreated all the way in a daze, and fell into the encirclement of the Yue army in Ren'anqiang. Hearing that the north bank of the Bin River was starting, he knew that the reinforcements had arrived, and he couldn't wait for the [***] team to immediately hit the south bank and rescue him. One after another, Scott's urgent telegrams reached Sun Liren's command post, begging the [***] team to cross the river quickly. He also said: "Otherwise, his troops will have to put up a white flag." Captain Slim also urged from the side. The English gentlemen almost knelt down. Seeing that the situation was urgent, Sun Liren adjusted his troops overnight and decided to attack tomorrow morning.

At 4 o'clock in the morning, the East wanted to dawn. Looking south through the glow, on top of a wilderness, stands rows of tall derricks, which is the Ren'anqiang oil field.

The battle that took place in the oil fields at dawn was thrilling and brutal.

After wading through the icy Bin River, the Chinese officers and soldiers immediately plunged into a blazing battlefield. Ren'an Qiang is truly a veritable oil river. There are oil pipes, oil tanks, and oil drums everywhere, and a single shot can ignite a fire. Rows of oil canisters exploded violently, and dragons scurried around with the flow of oil. The tall derricks made a terrible appearance in the firelight, and some were burned by the flames and collapsed with a bang. The entire oil field turned into a fireground. The enemy and the enemy fought in fire and smoke.

When crossing the river, the Chinese officers and soldiers soaked their clothes and took advantage of the fire battle. After rushing into the enemy's position, he actively seized the commanding heights and the upper hand, and gained greater initiative. At the heights, the Chinese soldiers opened the oil tanks, and the black oil flowed downward, and wherever it flowed, there was a sea of fire. Some rolled the oil drum towards the enemy formation, and wherever they rolled, a ball of fire exploded. It was said that the army was smoky and burning, as if it had entered a crematorium.

The British troops in the encirclement took the opportunity to break outward, and the army was caught in a two-sided attack.

After a four-day siege, 7,000 British troops, more than 30 chariots and more than 1,000 military horses were finally out of danger. At the same time, more than 500 American missionaries and journalists were saved.

Scott was so frightened that he didn't dare to stay. On the same day, he commanded the British army to cross the Bin River and continue its retreat north.

The battle report of Ren'anqiang's breakthrough flew to Chongqing, to Washington, and to London. The whole world was shaken. The British Isles are even more jubilant. The British compared the Ringanqiang breakout to the second Dunkirk retreat, which was celebrated and exaggerated. Britain is a decent people, and everything is very beautiful and inspiring.

And what happened in the battle of Ren'anqiang, only Sun Liren knew best. When the British army retreated from the oil fields, Sun Liren interrogated a captured staff officer of the Imperial Army. As a result, Sun Liren couldn't laugh or cry. It turned out that the army that surrounded Ringanqiang was only two brigades of the 214th Wing led by Sakuma Daisa, with less than 1,000 men.

The Sakuma unit was originally a mobile search force and was ordered to occupy the Ringanqiang oil field. At midnight on the 15th, they advanced to 5 kilometers east of Ringanqiang, and unexpectedly found that the British 1st Division and the 7th Armored Brigade had retreated to this place. Sakuma Osa was ambitious, and despite the disparity in troops, he boldly surrounded the British army. He took advantage of the fear of the British army, bluffed, attacked in all directions, and used the ravines and ravines around Ren'anqiang to carry out a "barrier encirclement" of the British tanks. The timid British donkey really scared the fierce little tiger and didn't dare to move.

Sun Liren was lucky.

He suddenly became the only hero of Burma's failed war. Chiang Kai-shek awarded him the Order of the Cloud of the Fourth Class. Roosevelt awarded him the "Meritorious Service" medal. King George VI presented him with a glittering "Imperial Commander" medal. Sun Liren was the first foreign general to receive such a medal.

Faced with a large string of tinkling medals, Sun Liren thought, I became a hero, and the British face would look better. On the Burmese battlefield, the Allies were too short of inspirational things.

After the Battle of Ringanqiang, the new 38th Division covered the retreat of the British army and entered the Mandalay area in late April. Soon after, the Battle of Mandalay collapsed, and the British army was determined to retreat to India.

Under the city of Mandalay, the Chinese and British armies were about to part ways. The night before the retreat, Sun Liren, deputy division commander Qi Xueqi, and chief of staff He Pingping studied the plan for retreating. Sun Liren thought that at present, the 7th Armored Brigade of the British Army was still on the right bank of the Irrawaddy River, and before retreating, if it acted in conjunction with the British Army, it would ambush the Japanese army and strike at the enemy's arrogance. In this way, we can calmly retreat, and the enemy will not dare to pursue it.

The idea is good, but do the British do it?

Chief of Staff He Pingping said: "I don't think the British have the courage. The 7th Armored Brigade did not leave because the road to India was blocked. As soon as the road is clear, they will say goodbye to us. ”

Sun Liren said: "I don't think so. In any case, the 7th Panzer Brigade was always rescued by us. Besides, a fight would also be good for their retreat. ”

Deputy Division Commander Qi shook his head: "The British are unreliable." ”

Sure enough, a notification was received from the British during the night: the 7th Armored Brigade began to retreat.

Sun Liren did not give up, and after dawn, he drove to catch up, and finally caught up with Alexander. During the retreat, the British commander was still personable, calm and calm, with black leather shoes and white gloves. After listening to Sun Liren's statement, he said unhurriedly: "Our army is short of fuel, and it is still a question whether the chariot can drive back to India, and it is really impossible to cooperate with your army to fight. ”

After speaking, he got into the car, waved his hand, and left only one sentence for Sun Liren: "Goodbye!" ”

Sun Liren was so angry that he couldn't say a word.

From May 2, the new 38th Division was the rear of the Chinese Expeditionary Force and slowly retreated to the north. On May 9, they retreated to Kassa, knowing that the army had occupied Myitkyina first, cutting off the retreat of the [***] team. Du Yuming presided over a military meeting to study the way out.

The atmosphere of such a meeting at the time of the defeat of the army will not be relaxed. In addition, the generals have their own plans at the critical juncture, and it is really difficult to get along. Sun Liren had no relationship with Du Yuming in the past, and the new 38th Division originally belonged to Zhang Zhen's 66th Army, but now it was temporarily assigned to the command of the 5th Army. Moreover, because of the dispatch of troops to Ren'anqiang, the two of them held back their strength. Du Yuming believed that the defeat of the army had a lot to do with Sun Liren's disobedience to the command and his unauthorized dispatch of troops to Ren'anqiang, which stretched the defense line of the expeditionary force. Sun Liren complained, and Du Yuming, as a deputy marshal with real power, had no overall situation in mind and ignored the defense of the Eastern Front. The army occupied Lashio, cut off our back road, and trapped the whole army in a desperate situation.

At the military meeting, Du Yuming and most of the generals put forward a plan for all units to cross the Gaoligong Mountains and return to China by separate routes, and asked the new 38th Division to continue to block the enemy troops in the area south of Kasa, so as to cut off the rear of the whole army.

This plan is incompatible with Sun Liren's ideas. First, he was not in favor of bypassing Myitkyina and returning home via the Gaoligong Mountains. He believes that Du Yuming still has four divisions in his hands, and he should concentrate his forces, take advantage of the enemy's unstable foothold, carry out a strong attack, recapture Myitkyina and Bhamo, and open up the way to return to China. Second, he was not satisfied with continuing to break off the new 38th Division. He knew that the west and north of Myitkyina were all tropical jungles, thousands of miles long, uninhabited, difficult to feed, and that an army of 10,000 people swept by like a swarm of locusts in front of him, and that his troops were following behind others, and that they might not even have the bark of wild plants to eat. Sun Liren thought that Du Yuming was eccentric, and at a critical juncture, in order to save his 5th Army, he did not hesitate to take the new 38th Division at the bottom.

Sun Liren was reluctant to retreat by a detour, Du Yuming was very angry, and Liao Yaoxiang, the commander of the new 22nd Division next to him, was even more angry. Liao Yaoxiang thought to himself, how old is your new 38th Division, didn't you just pick a cheap one in Ren'anqiang? Lao Tzu's new 22nd Division fought a defensive battle in depth on the Swa River, and fought head to head and face to face with Yue himself for half a month, blocking the attack of the two divisions of the Yue Army, which point is worse than you. Liao Yaoxiang is an anxious surname, admitting death and not the living. He didn't look at Sun Liren with his eyes, and said to Du Yuming: "That's it, at this time, only you can rely on yourself, not others." We're going our separate ways. ”

Sun Liren and Du Yuming have reached a stalemate, and after Liao Yaoxiang's agitation, they collapsed. Moreover, before coming to Casa for the meeting, Sun Liren received a telegram from Stilwell and Luo Zhuoying, ordering the new 38th Division to retreat to India with them. So, Sun Liren stood up and said uncompromisingly:

"The deputy seat, with the current position of the division, is still thousands of miles away from the Sino-Burmese border, and the road is difficult. And to India is only more than 300 miles. As the old saying goes, the two benefits are more important, and the two evils are the lesser. Since it's all about retreating, why not take a shortcut. I decided that my division would first withdraw to India, and then return to China under false pretenses. ”

After speaking, Sun Liren picked up his military hat and left.

After returning from Du Yuming's headquarters, Sun Liren immediately deployed troops to retreat to India. At that time, the 112th Regiment was surrounded by the Japanese army in Wenzao. Division Commander Sun decided to relieve the siege of the 112th Regiment first and open the road to India.

On May 10, Sun Liren led the main force of the division to rush towards Wenzao. On the 12th, he was in contact with the army at the Wenzao Railway Station. The Araki troops of the 112th Regiment had been fighting hard for three days, exhausted, unable to resist the onslaught of Sun's division, and fled south. Sun Liren took advantage of the gap to quickly withdraw from Wenzao, break away from the battlefield, and retreat westward.

The road to India was littered with abandoned tanks and artillery, numbered by the equipment of the British 7th Armoured Brigade. Some tanks were blown up and placed on the passes, which were used as roadblocks. Remembering that when he evacuated Mandalay, Alexander gave him that "goodbye", Sun Liren was extremely indignant: there is no reason to be undefeated in fighting with the British!

Some Chinese soldiers angrily wrote three big characters on the British tanks: Bastard!

(To be continued)