In the name of the "United Front of National Forces", Le Van Yuan gave Ngo Dinh Diem an ultimatum to relinquish power.

Ngo Dinh Diem made a showdown with Le Van Yuan as prime minister, relieved Le Van Yuan and his subordinates, and ordered Binh Tram to send troops and police to withdraw from Saigon.

The situation suddenly became tense.

In order to avoid a military conflict, the Independence Palace was still defended by the Prime Minister's Guard, and four battalions were urgently repatriated, stationed in more than a dozen important departments such as the General Staff and radio stations, as well as several police stations that had turned to the government.

The old wharf headquarters of the industrial investment company was empty, and Liu Jiachang, Chen Shiguo, Wu Andong and other senior officials all went to the branches, leaving only six security guards to guard the warehouse.

Binh Dong Industrial Village is the closest to the embankment, in order to ensure that nothing goes wrong, as early as the sixth day of the first lunar month, five security squadrons were transferred from Vung Tau, Bo Lieu, Da Nang and other industrial villages, including the security team of Binh Dong Industrial Village, the total strength reached more than 800 people. and to obtain a number of weapons and equipment from the American military advisory group, which if necessary could arm Catholic workers who had served as militia in North Vietnam.

Ah Cheng led the escort team to ambush to the predetermined position, and the large and small intersections and waterways of the embankment were all under the eyes of the Huaqing Association, and they waited for Li Wenyuan to fall into the net after the defeat.

Ngo Htin Ngai left the Independence Palace to co-opt other sectarian warlords on behalf of the government; Defense Minister Li Yuzhen sat in the General Staff Headquarters, and Yang Wenming, Chen Shanpei and other national military academy officers all rushed to the predetermined position to grasp the army's response to possible conflicts at any time; Chen Lichun was so motivated that she handed over the child to her grandmother to take care of, and ran out to form a "women's corps" by herself, planning to fight with Li Wenyuan.

All those who could go to the battlefield went out, and the Independence Palace became empty again. Only a dozen secretaries remained.

In a situation where no one thinks it will be possible. Ngo Dinh Diem has been able to hold on to the present. Luck is not a little bit or two, maybe God willing, at least for this time.

Staying in Saigon and moving into the Independence Palace is to "share weal and beg" and "show loyalty", not to send them to death.

The gun had no eyes, and Li Weimin felt that it was safer to be closer to him, so he simply stayed in the prime minister's office. Except for going to the bathroom, almost an inch away.

When Nguyen Van Xin made trouble, the soldiers with loaded guns ran all the way to the Independence Palace, and almost went upstairs to shoot him.

"Got it, thank you, I'll report back to Mr. Prime Minister."

Li Weimin just hung up the phone, he looked up and asked with a smile: "Who, what's the matter?" ”

"Lansdale called, and he said that Cheng Minh Se would go to him after a meeting with Nguyen Cheng Phong of Cao Dai. They said that the meeting that Li Wenyuan held and the united front he engaged in was a farce. The colonel considered the problem serious. Remind them to keep the oath they took when they accepted the reorganization. They said they were going to stay in that camp for the time being, intending to see what the others did next. ”

Ngo Dinh Yen pondered for a moment. I took off my glasses and said casually, "It's good to take a look." ”

Since he accepted the reorganization of the government and swore allegiance to the government, he should not go to the embankment to attend the meeting convened by Le Van Yuan.

Now not only have I joined the "united front", but I have even to be a grass on the wall, ready to see the situation left and right. And after the meeting ended, he did not report to the Prime Minister's Office immediately, but went to the Americans first.

Li Weimin knew that he was very angry in his heart, so he sat down and suggested: "Mr. Yan, there are only more than 3,000 national troops in the urban area, should we transfer a few more battalions back?" ”

Saigon is the capital of the country and is densely populated, so if the loss is too great in a fight, if it can, it will not be fought.

Ngo Dinh Diem wanted a peaceful settlement, wanted to force Le Van Yuan away like he did with Nguyen Van Xin, put on his glasses again and said: "The people support us, stand on our side, and wait." ”

"Okay."

I don't know if his judgment is correct, or if Li Wenyuan can't make up his mind for a long time.

The day passed, and the wind was calm; Two days have passed, and there is still no wind and grass, and there is a war of words on the radio like during the "Xinyan incident".

However, this time, instead of watching the excitement, people did not hesitate to stand on the side of the government, and even some opposition-controlled newspapers unanimously criticized the sectarian warlords led by the Pingchuan faction.

However, the calm is only temporary.

At 3:21 p.m. on the third day, Li Weimin had just received a telegram from Lin Jiasheng's hand, when a deafening loud noise sounded in his ears, and a cloud of dust rolled up on the right side of the corridor, and the shattered rubble flew in all directions.

The sudden explosion stunned Li Weimin.

A lieutenant of the Prime Minister's Guard ran over, pulled Ngo Dinh Diem out of his office, pulled him by the hand, and while running towards the basement, he said eagerly: "Artillery attack, Binh Chuan faction coup d'état, just 60 mm mortar!" ”

Wu Tingyan was really not afraid of death, shook off his hand and asked: "Is anyone injured, is there any injury?" ”

"No, Mr. Prime Minister, Mr. Min, it's too dangerous here, go to the basement!"

The gentleman does not stand under the dangerous wall, Li Weimin does not want to die here, so he does not hesitate to pull him into the basement. After a while, the secretary and telecommunications staff all arrived, and began to make desperate phone calls, send telegrams, and inquire about the situation outside.

"The radio station is exchanging fire, and Pingchuan sent at least one battalion of the army!"

"The second county police station is exchanging fire, and it has just repelled the first wave of attacks by the Pingchuan faction!"

"Clashes on Catina Street, one national army was killed."

"The premises of the US Military Advisory Group were shelled, and there were no casualties, so it should have been bombed by mistake."

……

In just five minutes, no less than 20 shells fell into the courtyard of the Independence Palace, and more than a dozen places in the city exchanged fire at the same time, which caught the government by surprise.

Ngo Dinh Yen was very calm, took the phone and talked to the front-line officers one by one, and at the same time ordered Li Yuzhen, who was in charge of the General Staff, to mobilize reinforcements from foreign troops in the city.

The coup d'état is not a dinner party, and if you don't do it, you will die, and you don't know how to cut the phone line first.

Li Weimin was relieved, feeling that Li Wenyuan was not atmospheric enough, so he picked up a phone to inquire about the situation on the embankment and Pingdong Industrial Village, and confirmed that no Chinese were accidentally injured for the time being, and Pingdong Industrial Village was not attacked. He looked back and smiled, "Everyone." Don't be nervous. We have a battalion nearby, and the alien police brigade will come to reinforce it soon, and Le Van is far from being able to get in so easily. ”

It has been proven that unjust wars are not supported by the people.

Less than half an hour after the battle began, enthusiastic citizens called one after another to report to the Prime Minister's Office about the moves of the Pyongcheon army. How many soldiers are on which road, what weapons are carrying, and in which direction they are attacking. Some even specified the names of the officers of the Pingchuan faction.

They also did the wrong thing with good intentions, several telephones were all occupied, and orders could not be sent, which made Dinh Diem cry and laugh.

Li Weimin just asked Lin Jiasheng and others to make use of several radio stations of the industrial investment company, and a familiar voice came from outside: "Report!" ”

"Come in."

Han Shuo strode into the basement, straightened his police uniform, and saluted Wu Tingyan with a standard French military salute: "Report to Premier Yan, the foreign police brigade has come to reinforce it, please give an order to Mr. Prime Minister." ”

It's coming so soon, Wu Tingyan nodded with satisfaction. Pointing to a guard officer who accompanied him in, he said, "The situation outside is not clear for the time being, so you should cooperate with the guards to garrison the Independence Palace first." ”

"Yes!"

At the critical moment, the troops that have little intersection with the warlords can be relied on. Wu Tingyan looked back at the map for a while and muttered: "The Fifth Infantry Division will leave now, and it will arrive before 9 o'clock in the evening, and when they and other reinforcements arrive, they will be able to send a flank attack on Pingchuan." ”

Judging from the information provided by Ngo Dinh Ngai and the zealous citizens, only the troops of the Binh Chuan faction are now attacking, and the warlords of other sects are still waiting and watching. With less than 20,000 rabble, where are tens of thousands of national army opponents, under normal circumstances, they are self-defeating.

But now the situation is very abnormal, more than 30,000 French troops are stationed in the city of Saigon, with more than 400 tanks and armored vehicles, just as Li Weimin expected, a few battalions of the national army stationed outside the city have just opened up, and they are encountered by the barricades set up by the French army.

On the way to the Independence Palace, Lansdale braved the bullets and saw a long line of trucks full of national troops, stopped by French troops at an intersection. In fact, the French army blocked almost all the large and small intersections, and the national army could not enter the city, but the Pingchuan army was able to move unimpeded.

When he arrived, Li Yuzhen had just sent the casualty figures.

Li Weimin took the telegram and read: "As of 10 minutes ago, the national army had lost 6 casualties, 34 were wounded, and more than 30 rebels were killed and wounded, and the casualties of the citizens were being counted. The fighting was not very fierce, and the casualties among the citizens should not be very large. ”

There were still sporadic gunfire outside, and from time to time a shell or two landed in the courtyard of the Independence Palace, but not as intensely as it had been.

While beckoning Lansdale to sit down, Ngo Dinh Yen said with a blank face: "Colonel, now that the Prime Minister's Office is under shelling, but the Binh Chuan faction has no sign of launching a full-scale attack for the time being, I have already called the senior officers of the national army, and they have all promised to support the government.

The Pingchuan faction has done all kinds of evil and has a bad record, and I will never hand over the government to the Pingchuan faction, and I am determined to eradicate this rebel force with great public anger. However, the main roads in and out of the city were blocked by the French army, and the reinforcements of the national army could not enter the city. I have lodged a protest with the French side, and I wonder what the attitude of the United States Government is on this issue. ”

The French pulled the shelf, clearly supporting the Pingchuan faction, and everyone would be angry.

Lansdale could understand his feelings, and said without confidence: "Mr. Prime Minister, the United States will only support you, and I will report everything that happened here to Mr. Ambassador and Washington as soon as possible." ”

After Li Weimin finished translating, Ngo Dinh Diem asked again: "According to the information received from the United States, President Eisenhower, on the advice of General Collins, has decided to abandon my government and instead support Le Van Yuan's 'United Front of National Forces' and the coalition government he wants to form, is this true?" ”

He had a group of high-ranking friends in Washington, so he knew that the news could not be concealed from him.

Lansdale cursed and said vaguely: "Mr. Prime Minister, General Collins told me clearly before returning home to report on his duties that the United States is on the side of your government. If Mr. Prime Minister is not at ease, I can use the radio to contact Washington to see if there is any change in policy. But it's midnight in the U.S. now, and it's a few hours before there is news. ”

France interfered unprovoked, and the United States wavered and was considering giving up its support at this time.

Ngo Dinh Diem had never been so angry as he was today, but he clearly understood that the loss of American support would be all over, so he forced down the anger in his heart and pretended to be relaxed: "Thank you, it's dangerous here, and the colonel doesn't need to stay here and be shelled with us." (To be continued.) If you like this work, you are welcome to come to the starting point () to vote for recommendation, monthly pass, your support, is my biggest motivation. For mobile phone users, please go to M. to read. (To be continued......)

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