The early morning in Hankow in winter doesn't seem too cold. Chen Shaokuan www.biquge.info pen and fun pavilion stood on the Chu You gunboat going up the river, and next to him stood Rear Admiral Zeng Yiding, commander of the 2nd Fleet. The two men had returned from the Madang Fortress, not because the inspection had ended, but because the Supreme High Command was going to convene a supreme military council in Hankow. Since the victory of Jinshanwei, especially after the capture of Ouyang Ge, the navy has become more and more important in Chang Kaishen's heart, but unfortunately, neither the Electric Mine School nor the 3rd Fleet have been placed under the jurisdiction of the Admiralty.

The river wind hunted, and the roar of the Chuguan machine that had sailed all night was still there, and the huge black chimney pulled out the raging black smoke. At this moment, it has passed Jiangxinzhou, and Hankou is in sight. There, the city had already woken up, and the ferries were pulling out white tracks in the river and garbage, hurriedly carrying the passengers crossing the river to the other side. On the wharf, the whistle sounded and the horn roared, and the soldiers in military uniforms, the passengers carrying rattan and wooden boxes and rattans, the students holding the anti-Japanese donation boxes in groups, and the citizens carrying rice and vegetables and miscellaneous goods in a daze, these people gathered into a surging crowd and filled the streets large and small. In the center of the picture is Chang Kaishen, who is dressed as a generalissimo of the National Revolutionary Army, standing there bareheaded, with a line of blood-red letters written vertically next to him: Great Chairman of the Standing Committee.

The ship finally stopped at the pier, and Lieutenant General Chen Xunyong, chief of staff of the Marine Forces Wartime Command on the shore, was already standing on the Citroen car plate waiting. After Chen Shaokuan got into the car, Chen Xunyong said: "Berlin called yesterday. ”

"Hmm." Chen Shaokuan snorted. Berlin often calls, but it is naturally important to get Chen Xunyong to mention it.

"Sino-German relations will soon be untenable." Chen Xunyong said, "What Shao Sheng means is that the submarine will probably not be able to deliver the ship in September. ”

"Did he mention anything?" Chen Shaokuan had expected this, but he hoped that Li Kongrong would be able to drive the submarine out.

"Didn't say it!" Chen Xunyong shook his head, "But he asked when the Navy will be able to take jurisdiction over the 3rd and 4th fleets?" ”

"Jurisdiction over the 3rd and 4th fleets?" Chen Shaokuan immediately sneered, the 3rd Fleet is homeless, after all, Qingdao has been occupied by the Japanese, but there is still the 4th Fleet of the old nest, how could Chen Ce, who has a blood feud with the Fujian system, listen to the Fujian system.

"Houfu, it's not that simple." Chen Xunyong can be the chief of staff of the Navy Command in wartime, and he always has two brushes. "Shao Sheng will specifically mention the 4th Fleet, I don't think it's that simple. Also, he called and said that he was ready to carry out a number of projects of naval weapons in Europe under the name of the Navy......"

"Where did we get the money to research weapons?" Chen Shaokuan sighed, although the navy has made great contributions, and the Ministry of Military Affairs has supplemented the military expenses for the Jinshanwei operation, and has also rewarded 500,000 yuan, but the military expenses are still the same, and this is still for the sake of the great victory, after all, the fleet no longer exists.

Shao Sheng had already thought of a way, and he asked the Kong family and several wealthy overseas Chinese businessmen in Europe to raise some money. He was going to use the money to set up a company in Switzerland and then open some research institutes in the name of this company. Chen Xunyong said Li Kongrong's lying telegram, which can be regarded as taking advantage of the information asymmetry between the Admiralty and Kong Xiangxi.

Hearing that Li Kongrong didn't ask for money, Chen Shaokuan's furrowed brows finally relaxed, but he asked, "Then who does this research belong to?" Is it from the Kong family or the Admiralty? ”

Shao Sheng said that since it was the Kong family who paid for it, it was naturally the Kong family. However, in addition to selling these weapons to foreigners, they can also be used by the navy for their own use, and he said in his telegram that the property rights belong to the Confucian Swiss Company, and the right to use them and manage them lies in the navy. Chen Xunyong said the awkward explanation on the telegram, but he felt that it was really a waste of countless telegram fees.

"Hmm!" Chen Shaokuan didn't want to earn anything with the Kong family, and he couldn't compete if he wanted to. Thinking that it was impossible for Li Kongrong to send a telegram for no reason, he said again: "What does it mean that Shaosheng sent a telegram?" Is that to tell us? ”

"Well, his adjutant is Zhong Qiangong, who was originally from the Berlin Military Attaché's Office, has returned, and he has returned to China to look for some scholars to set up research institutes in Switzerland. Shao Sheng means that the navy only needs to admit to the outside world that there is such a thing, but remember not to mention the involvement of the Confucian family, so as not to cause an uproar in public opinion......" Chen Xunyong said the instructions in the telegram, and while he was talking, the car had already arrived at the temporary office of the Navy Department, where Chen Shaokuan would go to a meeting of the Supreme Council after resting for half an hour.

Half an hour was not a long time, and Chen Shaokuan only had breakfast, and then got into the car and went to the Supreme Military Council. At this time, Chang Kaishen was going crazy in the rest room of the Military Commission, and there was only one person who was mad, and that was Shandong Han Fuju.

"Sit, after Jinan abandons the defense, the door of Xuzhou will be wide open." Xiao Zhuge Bai Chongxi stood on the side and said the harm of Jinan's abandonment. At this time, the Supreme High Command had been reorganized, and it had four departments under its jurisdiction: military administration, military orders, military training, and politics. In addition to He Yingqin and Xu Yongchang, who are still the ministers of the military, political and military command departments, Bai Chongxi is the head of the military training department, Chen Cheng is the head of the political department, and Zhou Shaoshan, vice chairman of the Red Party, is the deputy director of the political department. Not to mention the Supreme Command, it is his old partner Li Zongren who is in charge of the fifth theater of Jinpu Road, and now that Han Fuju has abandoned Jinan, Bai Chongxi will of course sue in front of Chang Kaishen.

Chang Kaishen, who had scolded 'Niang Xipi', had already suppressed his anger at this time, and he glared and said: "It is the responsibility of the army and the people to resist Japan and defend the territory. If everyone preserves their strength and everyone avoids the war, then wouldn't our China be ruined and exterminated! Deputy Chief Bai, you immediately arrange a military meeting and invite Han Fuju to participate! ”

Chang Kaishen didn't say that he wanted to kill, but his words were murderous. Bai Chongxi wrote it down in his heart and then mentioned another thing, "Chairman: The newly formed 88th Army Xu Yaoting has been requesting to be transferred to Xuzhou to carry out armored warfare with the Japanese army in the plain area, and test the latest armored combat methods to sharpen the troops and build a steel division, you see......"

The 200th Armored Division, as well as the 201st and 202nd Motorized Infantry Divisions, occupied the number that originally belonged to the Fan Shaozeng Department of the Sichuan Army and became the 88th Armored Army of the National Revolutionary Army. Except for the 201st and 202nd infantry divisions, which are equipped with bicycles, 37mm anti-aircraft guns, and trucks, the 200th Division, which is composed of three armored brigades, is the core of the 88th Army, and the whole division is basically formed on the basis of the establishment table given by Li Kongrong in Berlin, with a total of 195 tanks, 108 120mm mortars, and more than 17,300 soldiers.

The 64 tanks ordered in the Czech Republic arrived very early, and these tanks were organized in the 1149th Regiment of the Panzer Division, while the 82 tanks purchased from the Soviet Union belonged to the 1150 and 1151 regiments, and the rest of the tanks that were not enough were still purchased in the Czech Republic. After this batch of tanks was shipped back, everyone's reaction was that the performance was good, the armor, firepower, speed, and mileage were much better than the Vickers tank, the only drawback was that it was not easy to drive, but this was a small problem, the mechanical traffic school did not have anything else, and there were still hundreds of tank drivers.

At the suggestion of his deputy commander, Lieutenant General Xu Tingyao, commander of the 88th Army, also agreed with his opinion, that is, to send a tank brigade and the 201st Division to Xuzhou to participate in the battle, and to use the blood of the Japanese to martyr the party-state saber of the 88th Armored Army.

"Is the 88th Army trained?" The 88th Division stayed in Nanjing, and I don't know if it can be withdrawn. Chang Kaishen had a special affection for the number 88, and the performance of the armored forces in the Songhu battlefield was the only bright spot of the army, and Du Yuming also reported to him in detail about the situation of the Shanghai operation afterwards, believing that the armored division was only suitable for the northern plains. Therefore, for the 88th Army, he wanted to send it to Xuzhou to sharpen the troops as Xu Yaoting said, and he was afraid that Li Zongren would not understand armored warfare, so he blindly commanded and wiped out the 88th Army.

"Report to the chairman of the committee, according to the report of the 88th Army, they can complete the training of a brigade before the battle of Xuzhou begins, and they hope to send this brigade to the battlefield." Bai Chongxi was a little observant, he naturally hoped that Li Zongren would make a good performance in Xuzhou, but he also knew that Chang Kaishen felt sorry for this powerful army that had just been formed, and he finally added: "The 88th Army is not easy to form, after being transferred to Xuzhou, it depends on the situation, if the situation is not suitable, this army can be put to the end and then go to the battlefield." ”

Bai Chongxi apologized for retreating, but Chang Kaishen reflexively advanced. At this time, the guard was putting on the black coat for him, and his white-gloved hand was raised, and he said: "Du Guangting often said that the armored unit is the knight's spear, the scythe of death, and the most powerful offensive weapon on land, how can it be put to the end before going to the battlefield?" Let's transfer them and let them hone and hone on the battlefield, so that they can build an army of a hundred battles......"

"The chairman has arrived!" As Chang Kaishen walked into the meeting, the adjutant at the door shouted loudly. The attendees immediately stood up and greeted each other. In addition to He Yingqin, Xu Yongchang, and others, commanders of various theaters, Song Zheyuan, Yan Xishan, Gu Zhutong, Chen Cheng, and Li Zongren, were also invited to the meeting.

Removing the black coat that could only be used to pretend to be forced, Chang Kaishen sat down and looked around at the generals present, and then began: "Everyone, Nanjing has been lost the day before yesterday, and the defending troops have received an order to transfer in before, and they have all begun to break through. Now the enemy in North China has also begun to move south, having occupied Jinan yesterday, and it is foreseen that in the next two to three months, the enemy will advance north and south in order to open up the Jinpu Road.

Now that we have lost so much land and sacrificed a lot of lives and property, it is not because the enemy has already paid a great price and forced it in, but because our high-ranking generals have not been able to study and change all strategies and tactics in peacetime in peacetime, and have not been able to study and change all strategies and tactics anytime and anywhere in accordance with the basic exemplary program and the actual situation of the battle array, so that the command is improper, and even worse, they embezzle special funds for personal gain, manufacture substandard weapons, and let the enemy land as if they were in a no-man's land. As a result, the whole army had to retreat helplessly, and suffered heavy losses.

To be honest, although this is a personal problem, it shows that generals like us, who do not pay attention to research and self-cultivation, and do not know how to improve their knowledge and skills through wartime experience, will not only be unable to fight the organized, trained, and new-style weapons of the Japanese bandits, even bandits, but will not be able to beat them! Therefore, it is no longer easy for everyone to mistakenly recognize the reason for our defeats in the past, thinking that the enemy's aircraft and artillery are so powerful that this is entirely due to the fact that our ordinary high-ranking generals did not worry about danger and showed their sincere strength to study diligently and try to resist.

I often say: 'Spirit is better than material, hard work overcomes difficulties!' 'If we have the knowledge and skills and are willing to study it attentively, then the enemy will come with tanks, and we can take the method of subduing tanks and take out the burning. bottle to break him. If the enemy comes with aircraft artillery, we must have tactics to deal with aircraft and artillery, and new trenches to subdue him. No matter what ferocious and brutal tricks he uses to invade us, as long as we can exhaust our minds, we will certainly be able to devise all kinds of ways to make the enemy's sharp weapons and skills useless......"

As soon as Chang Kaishen opened his mouth, there was a steady stream of reports, and while he spoke, Ouyang Ge was smoking his last cigarette on the empty grass of the Hanyang shooting range. By this time he had removed the handcuffs, the rank and collar badges on his uniform had been removed, and he would be shot after smoking the cigarette. did not remember the last cigarette, and when the cigarette was halfway through, Ouyang Ge extinguished the cigarette. Hurriedly glancing at the blue sky, he said, "I'm fine!" ”

The gunfire at the Hanyang shooting range could not reach Hankou, and what made Chang Kaishen, who was making a long report, slightly displeased, was the voice of Wang Chonghui of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

"I'm sorry Minister Wang, the chairman is in a meeting!" Qian Dajun in the attendant room stopped Wang Chonghui, who came in a hurry, outside the conference room.

"Oops! I have an urgent matter to see the chairman! Wang Chonghui came in a hurry after receiving Cheng Tian's telegram to find Chang Kaishen, at this time everything in the government was focused on war, and Germany and the Soviet Union were the focus of diplomacy. The former is the source of China's weapons and ammunition, and the latter will provide hundreds of millions of dollars in loans to fight the war on the front line.

"Is there a hurry? Must be dealt with right away? Qian Dajun was also a little nervous when he saw Wang Chonghui's appearance, he was really afraid that he would delay the important matter.

"This ......" was asked by Qian Dajun, Wang Chonghui reversed his senses, the matter is very important and urgent, but it does not have to be dealt with immediately. But since the others came, it was not good to go back, and he said, "I'll wait here." ”

Seeing that Wang Chonghui's expression slowed down and he was no longer anxious, Qian Dajun breathed a sigh of relief, and he said, "Then please ask Minister Wang to follow me to the lounge, and I will report to the chairman of the committee when the meeting breaks in a while." ”

"Okay, okay." Wang Chonghui nodded, he was afraid that Qian Dajun would not be able to speak clearly, so he added: "You just said that the matter is urgent in Germany!" (To be continued.) )