Song Zhewu came to Bahrain Zuoqi in the evening of the next day, and saw many people waiting to greet him at the intersection from a distance.

As the distance got closer, Song Zhewu saw that there were not only Li Wentian, Zhang Yafei, Mengxi and others, but also several soldiers wearing gray uniforms of the Northeast Army standing beside Li Wentian, and one of the tall young men was actually a general. Song Zhewu can confirm that this young general is Zhang Xueliang, the commander of the Northeast Frontier Defense.

Now how many people have the rank of general in the country, ordinary people really can't say, but generals who are less than 30 years old, in today's country, there should be only two people, Song Zhewu and Zhang Xueliang.

Since Zhang Xueliang came to greet him, Song Zhewu didn't dare to hold it up, although he was one year older than Zhang Xueliang, but Zhang Xueliang's official position was higher than him, not to mention that he was still the overlord of the party with an army of 400,000.

Song Zhewu jumped off his horse from a distance and strode over. Seeing Song Zhewu like this, Zhang Xueliang nodded slightly, and also strode over.

When there were still more than a dozen steps between the two sides, Li Wentian took a few steps to grab the middle of the two and introduced Song Zhewu and said: "Commander, this is Zhang Hanqing, the commander of the Northeast Frontier Defense, and Zhang Shaoshuai. ”

Song Zhewu stood up and saluted neatly. Without waiting for Song Zhewu to speak, Zhang Xueliang stepped forward, grabbed Song Zhewu's saluted right hand, and said with a sincere face: "Wen Ge, you have worked hard, regardless of gains and losses, and put the national righteousness first, and personally led the army to gallop thousands of miles to help, to solve the danger of my fathers and elders in the Northeast, Xueliang is inexplicably grateful, and I sincerely thank you Wenge on behalf of tens of millions of compatriots in the Northeast!" As far as Chong Wenge moves, I, Zhang Xueliang, will make you a friend. In terms of age, I Zhang Xueliang is one year younger than Wen Ge, I think Wen Ge is also a person with the surname in love, the two of us don't make these false courtesies anymore, I will call you Wen Ge in the future, you can call me Han Qing, okay? ”

Song Zhewu looked at Zhang Xueliang and said in his heart: "Zhang Hanqing really lives up to his reputation, he is bold and enthusiastic, and he values affection and righteousness, such a person should indeed be a good friend." ”

Song Zhewu knew that if he was polite with Zhang Xueliang, a bold person like Zhang Xueliang would not only be unhappy, but even despise himself. For people like Zhang Xueliang, you can only tell the truth, do practical things, and make friends sincerely, and he will definitely treat you as a brother.

At the moment, he was not pretentious, he took Zhang Xueliang's hand with both hands and said, "Okay! Han Qing is really arrogant, since this is the case, I am not hypocritical. As soon as the words fell, the two of them laughed at the same time.

Zhang Xueliang said apologetically: "Wenge, I won't tell you, these days, the border war, especially the old Maozi on the Suifenhe on the Eastern Front, has been constantly crossing the border and invading, which has made me anxious and unable to deal with it." I didn't feel here until last night, but I'm just in time to greet you, otherwise I'd be rude, brother. ”

Without waiting for Song Zhewu to answer, Zhang Xueliang said again: "Wen Ge, I have long heard that your Fourth Route Army is a lion force, and now I see that it is indeed worthy of its name, your army is well-organized, and at a glance I know that it is a well-trained and strong army, now I have a bottom in my heart, I will hand over the war on the Western Front in Manchuria to you, and I have ordered that the Northeast Army on the Western Front will be under your command." ”

Song Zhewu said with a smile: "Since Han Qing trusts me so much, I also make a statement to Han Qing, I came to the Northeast with the determination to win, and I will never return to Laiyuan if I don't teach the Soviets a lesson." ”

"Good! Good! Zhang Xueliang's slightly melancholy face was immediately filled with happy smiles.

Since the Soviet army began to accumulate troops on the border, especially since the continuous cross-border provocations in the past two months, Zhang Xueliang has been anxious all night, because he knows too well the true strength of the Northeast Army. The predecessor of the Northeast Army was a reckless armed force pulled up by his father Zhang Zuolin, although after many years of operation by Zhang Zuolin, there has been great progress in regularization, but the senior generals are basically old brothers who started with his father. These people came from reckless backgrounds, and none of them received a formal militarized education, so it is conceivable that the training of the troops they led can be imagined.

Fortunately, in recent years, the Northeast Lecture Hall run by the Northeast Army has trained many middle- and low-level officers, and now these people, including many people who have received formal military education at the Baoding Military Academy and abroad, have gradually stepped into the position of middle and high-ranking generals under Zhang Xueliang's deliberate cultivation, and the regularization of the Northeast Army has gradually become regular. However, freezing three feet is not a cold. If you want to completely change the Northeast Army, it will take time. Judging by the current situation of this army, it is inevitable that it will be defeated in the battle against the Soviet army. In Zhang Xueliang's view, it is very good to be able to use the advantages of geography not to lose miserably.

However, since he saw the troops brought by Li Wentian and Zhang Yafei yesterday, a faint hope rose in his heart, especially after talking with the two, Zhang Xueliang's hope of victory was even more obvious, but he now wanted to get a definite answer from the supreme commander of the Fourth Route Army. Now he hears it!

Zhang Xueliang laughed and said, "Okay! Good! Wenge, with your words, I have the bottom in my heart, I am relieved about the war on the Western Front, and now I can concentrate on dealing with the old Maozi on the Eastern Front. ”

Zhang Xueliang took Song Zhewu's hand, came to the two Northeast Armymen who followed him, pointed to a lieutenant general officer who was nearly 40 years old, and introduced Song Zhewu and said: "Wen Ge, this is Hu Yukun, the commander of my newly formed Second Army to defend against Russia, and his troops are now stationed on the front line of Hailar and Manchuria, and they will be under your command in the future." Ling Chen and your Chief of Staff Li both graduated from Baoding Military Academy, so they are very familiar with each other, and they have even fought together. ”

Hu Yukun saluted Song Zhewu very casually, and said lightly: "The units of the Second Army of the Second Army of the Defense of Russia have completed the frontline defense in Manchuria, and our troops are well fed. ”

Song Zhewu heard the meaning of Hu Yukun's words, that is, he did not pay attention to the Fourth Route Army, the Fourth Route Army only supported them in the back, and with them to defend against Russia, the Second Army could defeat the Soviet Army, and even treated the Soviet Army with contempt.

Song Zhewu has no impression of Hu Yukun, but looking at Hu Yukun's demeanor, Song Zhewu can feel that Hu Yukun is telling the truth, and he didn't mean to say it to Zhang Xueliang or him. Since a high-ranking officer like Hu Yukun is so confident, why is Zhang Xueliang so worried about the failure of the war against the Soviet Union?

Zhang Xueliang frowned slightly, and said with a wry smile: "Wen Ge, our Northeast people are very straightforward, and we can say whatever we want." The reason why they are confident is that during this period of time, the First Army of the Eastern Front fought several battles with the Soviet army, although our losses were not small, but the Soviet army did not take advantage of it every time, and was beaten back by us every time. In fact, they don't know that Lao Maozi is still increasing his troops, and this war has not yet begun. ”

"Fighting a war is the momentum of fighting, if the Northeast Army loses its momentum up and down now, this battle will really not be easy to fight." Song Zhewu said with a smile: "As the saying goes, 'When you meet on a narrow road, the brave wins.'" Before the war, General Ling Chen's momentum was needed to win. ”

Although he has no impression of Hu Yukun, the result of Song Zhewu's battle in Manchuria is very clear, and the Northeast Army in the Manchuria-Zhalainor Battle can be said to be a complete defeat.

In Song Zhewu's memory, the Soviet army began to launch an attack on Zhagainor at midnight on November 16, and occupied Zhalainor on November 18; On November 20, the city of Manchuria was occupied. The 15th and 17th mixed brigades were basically annihilated in the whole campaign, and more than 8,000 officers and soldiers in the northeast were captured by the Soviet army, including Liang Zhongjia, commander of the Western Front and commander of the 15th Brigade, and about 250 officers of his headquarters, about 1,500 were killed in battle, and less than 2,000 broke out of the encirclement. 30 artillery pieces, 2 armored trains, and a large amount of military supplies were lost; The Soviets lost only 123 killed and 605 wounded.

"However, 'the husband and the general, before he speaks, he will defeat before he speaks.' Confidence alone is not enough, in order to achieve victory, you must be well prepared, not only to know yourself, but also to know your opponent, to anticipate all kinds of possible problems, and to prepare in advance to be invincible. Song Zhewu still couldn't help but want to remind Hu Yukun, who was a little full of confidence.

Of course, Hu Yukun could hear the meaning of Song Zhewu's words, but Hu Yukun only moved the corners of his mouth slightly, and did not make a sound, after all, Zhang Xueliang was still here, he could not buy the face of Song Zhewu, the temporary governor, but he could not help but give Zhang Xueliang face.

"Wen Ge, let me introduce you to my 'Guan Yunchang'"

Zhang Xueliang pointed to the major next to him and said, "This is Gao Zhihang, a major pilot of our Northeast Army Air Force. He came this time to be responsible for liaising with the Northeast Army Air Force to cooperate with the Fourth Route Army. ”

From Zhang Xueliang's smile, Song Zhewu could feel that he was very satisfied with Gao Zhihang.

On Chiang Kai-shek's 50th birthday, he once overwhelmed the aerobatic performance teams of Germany, Britain, France, Italy, and other countries, and was highly praised by Chiang Kai-shek for his skillful and superb flying skills. During the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the hero of the Republic of China Air Force, the commander of the destroyer unit of the Chinese Air Force, and the captain of the 4th Air Brigade, not only shot down many planes, but was also the first person in the Chinese Air Force to shoot down planes. It's just a jealous hero, Gao Zhihang was killed by a military plane in Lanzhou in November 37.

For people like Gao Zhihang, Song Zhewu is thirsty for thought, in his air force, except for Mike and the three instructors who joined the Fourth Route Army, the rest are rookies among rookies, and they are still learning the most basic flight knowledge. Although Mike will have good flying skills, he is not an absolute Chinese after all. If there is someone like Gao Zhihang, Song Zhewu will really put his mind at ease. It's just that looking at him now, Zhang Xueliang also values him very much, and it seems that it is not easy to dig him up.

After Gao Zhihang saluted, Zhang Xueliang saw Song Zhewu looking at Gao Zhihang with a smile on his face, thinking that Song Zhewu was puzzled by his words that Gao Zhihang was his Guan Yunchang, and said with a smile: "Wen Ge, during the Three Kingdoms, Yunchang scraped the bones to cure poison, but Ziheng broke and reconnected the leg that had grown in order to fly, and his courage was no less than Guan Yunchang. ”

Seeing that Li Wentian and Zhang Yafei also showed surprised expressions, Zhang Xueliang proudly told several people about Gao Zhihang's broken leg.

It turned out that after the Northeast Army expanded its air force in 1924, Gao Zhihang signed up to study in France, majoring in destroyers, and after graduation, he was awarded the rank of sergeant and went to the 23rd Destroyer Regiment of the French Army Air Corps in Nancy for training. In January 1927, 19-year-old Gao Zhihang returned to China with excellent grades, and was subsequently appointed by Zhang Xueliang as a major pilot of the Flying Eagle Team of the Northeast Aviation Department. During this period, because of his technical excellence, he was rewarded for every exercise.

However, during an exercise at the end of last year, due to a mechanical failure, he unfortunately broke his right leg during landing. Later, he was treated by Nan Manyue's own hospital, and although his leg was reduced but slightly bent. Due to the obstacles to piloting the plane, in order to continue to fly the plane, Gao Zhihang resolutely decided to go to the hospital run by the Russians in Harbin to interrupt the pick-up. His leg had not yet healed completely, and his right leg was a little shorter than before, so he had to wear heel shoes to make up for it.

Seeing Song Zhewu looking at Gao Zhihang's leg steadily. Gao Zhihang thought that Song Zhewu didn't believe that he could still fly a plane, so he raised his leg and said: "Commander Song, please rest assured, although my leg is shorter, it will definitely not affect the flight, if my leg is a month early, I must give Commander-in-Chief Zhang and Commander Song a few old planes." ”

Song Zhewu nodded appreciatively and said: "Those who have great perseverance must have great power." I believe that Brother Ziheng will not only be able to fly a plane, but also drive it even better. ”

He turned his head to Zhang Xueliang and said: "Han Qing, I led 100,000 troops to aid the Northeast this time, if you defeat the Soviet army in Manchuria, how can you thank me?" ”

Song Zhewu's words made Zhang Xueliang stunned, and said in his heart: "It seems that this Song Zhewu is nothing more than this, he will not do anything without interests, he is worthy of being Yan Xishan's subordinate, and Yan Xishan, the old man of Shanxi." ”

Although Zhang Xueliang was unhappy in his heart, he saw that Hu Yukun and Gao Zhihang had disdainful expressions on their faces, and knew that he could not act rashly at this time, if he, the commander-in-chief, had an unhappy expression, he was afraid that Hu Yukun would do it immediately, and if Song Zhewu turned around and left, the war on the Western Front would not be easy to handle.

Zhang Xueliang secretly swallowed and said: "Wen Ge, as long as you can defeat the Soviet army in Manchuria, Zhang Xueliang doesn't dare to say more, after all, my Northeast Army also has hundreds of thousands of mouths to eat, Nanjing gives us 10 million military salaries for the Northeast Army every month, and I will give you all the military salaries that Nanjing gave me for the last three months this year." ”

"Three months' military salary, that's 30 million!" As soon as Zhang Xueliang's words came out, everyone except Song Zhewu couldn't help but gasp!

Hu Yukun hurriedly said: "Han Qing, this is not appropriate!" If the last three months of military pay are given to ......"

Hu Yukun breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Where does the salary of the brothers in our army come from? After speaking, he gave Zhang Xueliang a strong look.

After Hu Yukun's words, Zhang Xueliang also felt that his price was a little too much, although he regretted it a little, but when he saw Song Zhewu looking at him with a smile, Zhang Xueliang gritted his teeth and said: "Ling Chen, don't say it, I, Zhang Xueliang, am a husband who stands up to the sky, and I will do what I say and never regret it." ”

(To be continued)