Song Zheyuan, the commander of the 29th Army, seemed to be ten years old overnight. On the eve of the war, luck still prevailed, and he judged that the Japanese, as before, were just bluffing, and in order to show his sincerity, he ordered the demolition of the sandbag barricades in Beiping City where street battles were prepared, and started negotiations with the Japanese side, ignoring the telegram of Lushan's resolute resistance.

Now it's too late, all the right and left arms are lost, Tong Linge Zhao Dengyu was killed in battle, Nanyuan was lost, 100,000 enemy soldiers pressed the border, the Kwantung Army came from the north of the Rehe, the Korean Army's Kawaan Division came south, the riverside brigade came east, and the Fifth Division and the navy attacked Tianjin, although the 29th Army had 100,000 horses, but for the whole of North China, the strength was still overstretched, and the strength was not enough.

Beijing is an ancient city, the city wall is tall and wide, if it can still be guarded by the city wall in ancient times, but the battle of Gengzi The Eight-Nation Alliance has proved that the city wall has no effect in the face of foreign guns and artillery, and there is no danger to defend Pingjin.

In the vast night, Song Zheyuan, chairman of the Political Affairs Committee of Jicha and commander of the 29th Army, left Beiping City by car, looking back at the majestic and magnificent Qianmen building at night, he burst into tears.

Song Zheyuan left, a large number of defeated soldiers of the 29th Army retreated to the city one after another, but what was waiting for them was the order to concentrate on Baoding, Lin Wenlong and his classmates wore military training clothes mixed in the defeated army and slowly moved forward, watermelons and flatbread were placed on both sides of the road, which were donated by the Beiping fathers and elders to the soldiers to eat, and the hungry soldiers ate the flatbread, gnawed on watermelons, and were silent one by one.

The old camel said to Lin Wenlong and the others: "Students, there is no banquet in the world, let's leave it at that, let's go home quickly, it's chaotic outside." ”

The college students who had experienced blood and fire were discouraged and exhausted, and no one ever mentioned anything about serving the country again.

Lin Wenlong left silently, and on the way, he took off his gray cloth military uniform and threw it into the ditch.

……

The little crooked son of the purple light depot went out of the morning shift today, he got out of the car before dawn in the early morning, and the foreign car with four calcium carbide lamps ran in small steps on the empty street, and suddenly felt something strange, there seemed to be something thrown on the side of the road, and he walked over to take a look, and was startled, it turned out to be a few broken guns.

He didn't dare to pick it up, and continued to move forward nervously, the ghost market that used to be very popular to sell old goods was unexpectedly empty today, and he could vaguely hear a burst of neat footsteps coming from the south.

The little crooked man pulled his foreign cart and stood in the middle of the deserted street, the water and moon lamps on both sides emitted a miserable white light, illuminating his bald head, and a rising sun flag with teeth and claws appeared in front of him, and then there were Japanese soldiers lined up in columns, the sunshades under the slightly hats flickered, and the bayonets were like a forest, so long the line, except for the footsteps, there was no noise, and the aura of murder spread in all directions.

The little crooked man was so frightened that he trembled, pulled up the foreign car and turned around and ran, he had never run so fast in the past, he ran all the way back to the Ziguang Depot, smashed open the door and stumbled in, and said breathlessly: "Oh no, bad food." ”

Bao Qing also got up early, and looked at him curiously: "What's wrong, it's like losing your soul." ”

"Little Japan has entered the city, and the old team that came in from Yongding Gate has tens of thousands of horses." The little crooked man was out of breath.

Baoqing was dumbfounded, and muttered: "No, isn't the 29th Army still there." ”

In the offices of the Jicha Political Affairs Committee, the phone was no longer answered, paper was everywhere, and gasoline barrels were filled with the ashes of the burning documents.

The Ziguang Depot was closed, and the large water tank prepared by Baoqing finally came in handy, filled with bricks and tiles to block the door, and the family stored food and clean water, which would not be a problem for a few months.

The family hid in the house and trembled, when the Eight-Nation Coalition Army entered Beijing, it did not harm the people, and the Japanese were not a good thing, they couldn't afford to provoke it, so we could afford to hide.

After a day, no one came to smash the door, Baoqing and Xing'er were a little relieved, but the next day, there was a knock on the door of the depot, which scared the two of them and thought it was a Japanese devil who came to rob them.

"Baoqing, it's me, your Uncle Wang." Outside, there was the shout of Inspector Wang.

Bao Qing came to the door with courage and asked through the door panel, "Inspector Wang, what's the matter?" ”

Inspector Wang said: "I still asked you what's the matter, why did you close the door, I didn't see the car for a day, I thought something was wrong." ”

Baoqing said: "Isn't this the Japanese entering the city, I'm worried about ......"

Inspector Wang said: "I'm worried, the Japanese also eat people's food, and they have to take foreign cars, so quickly open the door and do business." ”

Baoqing said: "What, I can't rest for two days." ”

Inspector Wang said: "It's really not possible, the above has spoken, all shop factories in Beiping must be opened, otherwise they will be fined and detained, whether to open or pay a fine, you can do it." ”

Baoqing said: "Who is it above?" ”

Inspector Wang said: "It's the Beiping Local Public Security Maintenance Association, and the police station is under their control, and the above has a message saying that the shops are not open and there are no vehicles on the street, which affects the harmony between Japan and China." ”

Baoqing had no choice, so he had to summon the coachmen to open the business, the business has been getting worse and worse in recent years, and there are more than a dozen foreign cars left in the factory, and he has to pull the car to run the work in order to make a living.

Pulling a foreign car out for a day, there is no business, there are few people on the street, the poisonous sun is shining in the sky, the dog is lying in the shade of the tree and sticking out his tongue, and on the Zhengyangmen railway station, there is a Japanese plaster flag.

This Beiping is no longer the Chinese Beiping......

Baoqing staggered, the whole person was like a frosted eggplant, and kept asking himself, is he going to die from now on, and he didn't even hear the guests call for a car.

"Rubber!" A person shouted on the side of the road, Baoqing woke up from a dream, hurriedly pulled the car over, and when he got closer, he turned out to be an old friend Li Junqing.

Li Junqing is no longer the bathing worker in the small bathhouse of Huaqing Pool, and now he is a celebrity in Beiping City, and his relationship with Baoqing has long been broken, but he is still polite to meet.

"Yo, Brother Baoqing, it's you." Li Junqing said with a smile, he was wearing a jade-white gown, a straw hat and sunglasses, and a folding fan, and he was spotless.

Baoqing said: "Mr. Li hasn't seen him for a few days, where are you going?" ”

"Go to Xinhua Palace for a meeting. On this hot day, the cart pullers were lying on their stomachs, and they didn't meet foreign cars all the way. "Li Junqing looks good.

Xinhua Palace is the former presidential palace, Zhongnanhai Royal Garden, I don't know who lives there now, Baoqing doesn't care about that, please Li Junqing got in the car, pulled him all the way over, the two had a ride or not chatting, all some irrelevant topics, to the place, Li Junqing took out an ocean to him, Baoqing said nothing, pulled the empty car and left.

Li Junqing smiled and entered the gate of Xinhua Palace, and the police at the gate checked his documents and immediately saluted.

This is the location of the Beiping Local Security Maintenance Association, and Jiang Chaozong, an old Beiyang man, served as the president, and it happened that he was familiar with Li Junqing, so he dragged him into the water to work for the Japanese.

In addition to Li Junqing, there were dozens of other people who came to the meeting, all of them were celebrities in the second and third lines of Beiping, all of them dressed in long robes and horse coats, and the presiding officer was a Japanese military officer, and the topic of discussion was how to form a provisional government in North China as soon as possible.

……

The news of the fall of Pingjin reached Beitai, the Chen family was all indignant and worried, Yao Yilei's aunt's family was still in Tianjin, Lin Wenjing's younger brother was not only stranded in Beiping, but also in Nanyuan military training, I heard that many people died in the bloody battle in Nanyuan, she didn't think about tea and dinner, worried about her brother's safety.

Chen Zikun presided over the work in Nanjing, only the women in the family were the masters, although Pingjin fell, but the traffic has not been blocked, Lin Wenjing wanted to go back to Beiping to find his younger brother, but was stopped by Yao Yilei: "North China is in chaos, what is the use of you going to a woman's house, there is an accident, we are more worried, in case of being arrested by the Japanese, isn't it to make trouble for the master, Wenlong is in his twenties, he can take care of himself, besides, my cousin is also in Beiping, they will definitely take care of each other, don't worry." ”

On 9 August, two Japanese Marines were killed during a provocation at Hongqiao Airport, and four days later, at 9:50 a.m. on 13 August 1937, the Second Songhu War began.

The day after the start of the war, the Chinese government issued a "Statement on Self-Defense and War of Resistance", and the Military Commission formed the Ninth Group Army, still with Zhang Zhizhong as the commander-in-chief, responsible for the Songhu War of Resistance.

For the first time since 918, China took a tough stance toward Japan, and the whole country was united as never before, with Yan Xishan in Shanxi, Li Zongren in Gui, Liu Xiang in Sichuan, and Long Yun in Yunnan all expressing their resolute support for the central government and not fearing any sacrifice in the War of Resistance to the end.

At the same time, the Red Army in northern Shaanxi was reorganized into the Eighth Route Army of the National Revolutionary Army, and the guerrillas in South China were reorganized into the New Fourth Army.

People from all over the country donated money to help the war, and overseas Chinese were even more unwilling to be left behind, and in a short period of time, they donated a huge amount of 3 million.

The armies of the whole country were mobilized, and in Shaanxi, Shanxi, Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, Guangdong, and all parts of the provinces, the troops gathered, wearing straw sandals and carrying luggage, and marched towards North China and Shanghai.

Jiangdong Provincial City University, 10,000 elite soldiers are ready to go, they are the new division under the command of the Jiangdong Provincial Garrison Command, composed of the former Jiangdong Army 99th Army, Jiangdong Army Military Academy 1937 graduates, a water of German-style equipment, steel helmets, cowhide leggings, Mauser 24 rifles, large leather shoes polished shiny.

Chen Shou, commander of the Jiangdong Provincial Garrison, Chen Qilin, commander of the new division, Yan Su, chairman of the provincial government, and Chen Zikun, chairman of the Aviation Committee, who had come from Nanjing, all stood on the stage to inspect the troops.

Liu Ting's younger brother Liu Xiaoyong was in the queue, he was a fresh graduate of the Jiangdong Branch of the Central Military Academy, with the rank of warrant officer in the army, carrying a box gun through the front of the rostrum, and the team leader shouted: "Look to the right!" Countless pairs of eyes turned to the rostrum.

The officers on the stage raised their white gloved right hands one after another to salute the soldiers, and Liu Ting, who was standing behind Chen Zikun, saw her younger brother in the queue, and her heart tightened for a while.