After the September 17 incident, the whole country was shocked, and all major well-known newspapers, well-known social organizations, social elites, religious figures, and so on issued declarations of resistance one after another. Some well-known personalities, such as Cai Yuanpei, Lu Xun, and others, even launched some patriotic activities, calling on the Nanjing political axe and the Northeast Army to resist the enemy and counterattack the Japanese people's aggression against China's three eastern provinces.

After Zhang Shusheng, the chief of the southwest, made a radio speech declaring war, Chiang Kai-shek was not far behind, changed the previous situation of slow reaction, and issued a letter of proclamation to the people in Nanjing.

“…… The northeast of the country, with its vast land and rich resources, is one of the foundations of China. It is said that people are rampant, occupying the rivers and mountains in the northeast of China. Although Zhongzheng does not have the great ability of the ancients, it also knows the importance of protecting the family and defending the country. Immediately order General Zhang Xueliang of the Northeast Frontier Commander's Office to reorganize the elite of the Northeast Army, lead hundreds of thousands of tigers, wave the army to Shenyang, and defeat the enemy to break the siege......"

Nanjing Zhengaxe's order this time was very strict, and several urgent telegrams were sent in succession, asking Zhang Xueliang to wave his army north to relieve the siege of Shenyang. Zhang Shaoshuai, who received the order of Nanjing's political axe, did not delay any longer, and set off to the northeast as soon as possible, while mobilizing the rest of the Northeast Army in the northeast, and at the same time mobilizing the elite of the Northeast Army in the Pingjin area, preparing to personally lead the army to rescue Shenyang.

Shenyang had to be saved.

Although Shenyang is now besieged by three divisions and a large number of garrisons, there are still nearly 10,000 people in the city, including the Seventh Brigade and the police force, led by Wang Yizhe and others. In the wave after wave of protests throughout the country, Shenyang has become a kind of symbol, and whoever loses Shenyang, or who does not save Shenyang, will become a national sinner.

However, the situation developed so quickly that everyone did not expect.

When Zhang Xuehao finally scraped together enough military expenses, raised a little war materials, and went bankrupt to prepare to rescue Shenyang, Shenyang was breached.

A week after the bloody battle, the main force of the 7th Brigade was led by Rong Zhen, chief of staff of the Northeast Army, to break through from the direction of the North Gate, but was blocked by the 19th Division of the Korean Army and the 2nd Division of the Kwantung Army.

Before the city was broken, Lieutenant General Wang Yizhe committed suicide and martyrdom in the Northeast Frontier Commander's Office in Shenyang, and the army successfully captured Shenyang. However, before the Northeast Army broke through the encirclement, the officers and men of the former Special Operations Battalion of the Seventh Brigade blew up the Shenyang Arsenal and the arsenal, and even many planes at the Shenyang military airfield were burned to the ground, leaving him with ashes all over the ground.

On the other hand, the army not only transferred the 19th Division and the first part of the Korean Army from Korea, but also urgently transported two divisions from the country to land in the northeast, so that the total strength of the army in the northeast reached five divisions and regiments, plus the original railway garrison and the soldiers in the villages, and the number of troops plummeted to nearly 200,000.

In order to transport reinforcements and prevent the Kwantung Army from being eaten by the Northeast Army, which reacted, he not only urgently transported two divisions to land in the northeast, but also transferred a special task force headed by the aircraft carrier Akagi and the aircraft carrier Kaga to the Bohai Sea. After the occupation of Shenyang, the army completely repaired the Shenyang airport in less than a week, and at this point, the air force of the army began to join the military operation of invading the northeast.

Zhang Xueliang had no choice but to lead the army to stay on the front line of Jinzhou, wait and watch the army's actions, and no longer rush north.

By this time, it was late October 1931.

Cai Ye originally went to Beiping, but unfortunately he didn't meet Zhang Xueliang, so he went all the way north to Jinzhou.

"Principal, let's go see Zhang Xueliang as soon as possible."

Xiu Chenghao, the accompanying secretary, saw that Cai Ye was a little distracted, and reminded in a low voice.

"Let's go, let the master go slower."

Sitting on the rickshaw, Cai Ye looked at this strange city with some fascination, whether it was Beiping before or several cities between going north to Jinzhou now, it gave him a very strange feeling.

He gave up martial arts and followed literature back then, and in a flash, he has been the principal of the Huaxia Military Academy for 15 years. From his thirties to his forty-nines, he was high-spirited back then, and Huafa was born early at this time. Compared with the past, although Cai Ye is no longer in charge of the military now, he is invisibly more majestic, and even his secretary Xiu Chenghao, who has been with him for many years, will occasionally have a kind of fear.

Over the years, living in the southwest, Cai Ye has become accustomed to life in the Huaxia Military Academy, and speaking of which, the number of times he has left the Huaxia Military Academy is pitiful. In the early years, he was tired of running around, he was not as good as Jiang Baili, and directly moved his family into the accommodation area of the Huaxia Military Academy, got up every day with the sound of the military horn, and accompanied the students out of the morning.

He was also accustomed to the prosperity of the southwest, from Lishuping to Huize to Kunming, and even he was accustomed to the prosperity of the southwest, without realizing what that upheaval meant for China today. In the space of fifteen years, the southwest has left the whole of China behind. In Kunming, for example, there are more and more small cars on the road, buses running to and from major streets, and even school buses and hospital ambulances. There were no homeless beggars to be seen in the streets, people's faces were no longer hungry and yellow, their faces were full of happiness, and everyone's steps were strong and powerful, even the voices of the small traders were particularly loud. The wide streets are lined with taller and taller buildings, and the low-rise shops always have a wide range of goods that are exported abroad, from household appliances to new lighters, cigarettes, fancy sweets, and so on, most of which are affordable even for ordinary workers or peasants.

And what about Beiping? What about Jinzhou?

Backward cities, low slums are full of them, poor children running around barefoot, and coolies carrying goods through the streets and alleys.

There is a tram in Beiping, but Cai Ye is not used to the tin bucket-like car.

"Han Qing, how is your new house?"

After getting off the rickshaw, not far in front of Zhang Xueliang's temporary station in Jinzhou, the guards with guns could already be seen at the door, changing the lazy and lazy style of the Northeast Army, but also straightening the waist.

"Hehe, it's good, the location on the fourth floor, the lighting is very good, and it is close to the hospital where Changzhi and Wanjun work, which is convenient for young people to work."

Xiu Chenghao just moved into a new house last month, and the house in the dormitory area of the Huaxia Military Academy was originally a little small because it was not free, but had to be deducted from his salary year by year. In order to make his son and daughter-in-law closer to work, he made the decision to move out. It is very convenient to commute to work by bicycle every day.

"Well, once I passed by that area, I also saw it, a very good small building, six or seven stories high, very suitable for the younger generation to live." As Cai Ye spoke, looking around, he saw a dilapidated mess, just like the southwest more than ten years ago, and couldn't help sighing, "Alas, I don't know when the entire land of China will be able to live like the southwest." Now that the political axe of Nanjing has not fallen, he has come, and the suffering of the nation is the head. ”

He knew that Zhang Shusheng was not a brutal leader, and he was even too cautious when liberating certain areas, and before he was ordered to go to the north, he had a long talk with Zhang Shusheng, suggesting that he should properly let go of his hands and feet and liberate more places. Zhang Shusheng revealed to him on the spot that he was formulating a new liberation battle plan, which made him very satisfied.

"General Cai!!"

Zhang Xueliang received a report from confidential secretary Lu Zhengde, saying that Cai Ye had rushed to Beiping from the south, and then rushed to Jinzhou from Beiping, and had traveled thousands of miles to discuss matters.

Speaking of Cai Ye, although he is a celebrity who protects the country, Zhang Xueliang does not have much intersection with him. And the old handsome Zhang Zuolin is only a little bit of a gap with Jiang Baili, and for Cai Yi, Zhang Xueliang is more famous for a long time.

I really saw Cai Yi, but he couldn't combine with the rumored young general who was high-spirited and served the country and the people, but Huafa was born early, and the whole person had a terrifying momentum that was not in a high position but was better than a high-ranking person.

Just two people. This former famous general who protected the country came to Jinzhou with a secretary.

"Cai Gong, please take a seat. Cai Gongde is highly respected, and he is the principal of the Huaxia Military Academy, so he is very busy with teaching affairs. How can Han Qing dare to work hard to see Cai Gong. All kinds of teachings only need a telegram, and Han Qing must think about it carefully. Zhang Xueliang also knew that although Cai Ye was not a high-ranking official in the southwest, he was also a member of the southwest, and he came to see him this time because of the war in the northeast. The war in the Northeast was frequent, far exceeding his expectations, and he didn't gossip much at the moment, waved back left and right, and talked straight to the point.

"It is said that people are rampant, and they have repeatedly provoked wars in our northeast, because they have the evil intention of stealing the entire northeast. Although I don't have a military position, I also have a heart for the Northeast. To tell the truth, Zhang Shaoshuai came to the northeast this time to convey some information to Zhang Shusheng, the supreme leader of the Southwest Alliance. Cai Ye didn't have empty words, now that the situation is urgent, Zhang Xueliang did not move, obviously because he was taken by his arrogance, and he was a little timid.

"Chief Zhang of the Southwest? Han Qing is incompetent, I'm afraid that President Zhang will see the joke. Zhang Xueliang couldn't help laughing at himself, he didn't have any special resistance to Zhang Shusheng, in his opinion, it was nothing more than a powerful warlord, and the situation in China had just changed from many warlords to two major warlords, and there was no big difference between life and death. Cai Gong rushed to Jinzhou all the way, and must have heard a lot of news. It is said that people are rampant, the offensive is fierce, and the Northeast Army is not as strong as the Southwest, and it is afraid that it will be invincible. ”

"The young marshal's worries, I don't know, the Northeast Army has hundreds of thousands of sons, and the head of the young marshal family naturally can't be hasty. However, the momentum of the offensive is so rapid that even if the Northeast Army is pressed on all fronts, it will be difficult to preserve the hinterland of the Northeast. ”

"It's also my fault that I have laxed the requirements for the troops in peacetime, resulting in insufficient training and poor ordnance." There is another point that Zhang Xueliang did not say, many troops have even been empty of military salaries by middle- and low-level Northeast Army officers, and this time it is still a scraping together to make up for it. In general, the Northeast Army was in a mess, and apart from being able to command and mobilize troops, Zhang Xueliang really did not dare to guarantee that such a unit would be able to make an inch of merit in the face of the Kwantung Army.

Elite such as the Seventh Brigade can't stop the Yue Army, let alone other worse Northeast Army.

As for the various problems existing in the Northeast Army, how could Cai Ye, as the principal of the Huaxia Military Academy, not be clear, and even in the teaching of military schools, the Northeast Army has repeatedly become a negative teaching material. However, at this time, it is inappropriate to say whose responsibility is, and it is the right thing to block the person himself and prevent the invasion of the people from spreading rapidly to the Guannai.

"In today's situation, please ask Cai Gong for some advice." Zhang Xueliang is telling the truth, at this time, in his eyes, Cai Ye is already a domestic military master, and now whether it is him Zhang Xueliang or the Northeast Army, they are all standing on the cusp, there are orders, there are emotions, and there are hundreds of millions of people in the middle.

"At this point, the Northeast Army has only three roads. The first is to turn around and retreat towards the pass in great strides. The second is to immediately march to the front line of Shenyang, and compete with the army. Cai said.

"Neither I nor the Northeast Army have a way to retreat, and if we don't fight, we will retreat...... As for the march into Shenyang, Cai Gong is an understanding person, and with the Northeast Army currently gathered, I am afraid that it will be more than lucky. Zhang Xueliang knows that these two roads are dead ends, and neither of them will work, "As a soldier, I, Zhang Xueliang, also have some blood surnames, and there is nothing to fear from dying in the Northeast." But once these elites of the Northeast Army are buried outside the pass, the entire Pingjin area will be difficult to protect. ”

Cai Yi nodded, "The army is too strong, the Northeast Army is not well prepared, and the Nanjing political axe is also not well prepared." In this case, the young marshal might as well garrison the Jinzhou area and build a new defense line in the Ningyuan, Jinzhou, and Shanhaiguan areas. If this brand-new Ningjin defense line is accompanied by nearly 200,000 troops of the Northeast Army, it may not be enough to counterattack the Yue people, but it will definitely be able to prevent the Yue army from entering the pass and buy time for the whole of China. ”

"Hold Jinzhou?" Zhang Xueliang was speechless for a long time when he heard this, at present, this road is indeed the most chosen, but he also knows that once he chooses to hold Jinzhou, then the entire Northeast Army will have no achievements in the tide of China's times, and he will not be able to leave an inch.

Do you abandon your ambitions and swear to block the southward movement of the Yue army, or do you wave your army to retreat into the pass and find another way?

"This is also what Southwest Zhang Shusheng and Chief Zhang mean?"

"Chief Zhang supports the young marshal's personal decision, and he believes that the young marshal will definitely choose the right path. He asked me to convey a message to the young marshal, as long as the Northeast Army was willing to build the Ningjin Defense Line to prevent the Yue Army from moving south, the Southwest could provide a certain amount of financial and military assistance. ”

It is Zhang Shusheng's intention to assist the Northeast Army in resisting and maintaining a considerable number of resistance forces on the road to the south. It is somewhat different from the original history, judging from the latest information, because the war is going smoothly, the resistance of the Northeast Army is beyond my imagination, especially after the battle with the elite Seventh Brigade of the Northeast Army in Shenyang, the Kwantung Army, which has reassessed the combat effectiveness of the entire Northeast Army, is plotting to go south.

This is quite different from history. If he didn't stop it, but wishfully prayed that he wouldn't be shut out, Zhang Shusheng would probably become a national sinner.

Because in this era, no one knows better than him how big his ambitions are for China and even the whole of Asia.

"Military aid and funding?" Zhang Xueliang was a little moved, these are the two things he lacks the most. Although the Nanjing political axe repeatedly sent telegrams to resist, it did not give guns, did not send people, and did not give money, and urged itself to march into the northeast just by shouting slogans.

He Zhang Xueliang was not afraid of failure, but when he arrived at this field, it was difficult for him to imagine that if the Northeast Army was defeated, the entire Pingjin area, and even the entire North China, would be plunged into war.

"I, Zhang Xueliang, am not a coward, if I can get effective support, I am willing to fight this battle with myself. As long as I, Zhang Xueliang, don't die for a day, I don't want to make great strides south. ”

Zhang Xueliang also knows that now, whether it is Chiang Kai-shek or Zhang Shusheng further south, they all hope that they can stop him. He also got the information that the increase in troops was getting bigger and bigger, and the Kwantung Army and the Korean army reached a certain tacit understanding, and jointly wrote to the emperor, requesting that the interests of the Great Empire in China be expanded to the Kannai...... "As long as the young marshal can resist the war, General Zhang will naturally abandon the camp, coordinate the resistance, and do not hesitate to support." The first batch of 20,000 rifles and 120 artillery pieces have arrived in Tianjin, plus Cai's 1 million yuan of anti-Japanese war funds, will be the first batch of support. ”

Zhang Xueliang was a little surprised, the southwest of the secret road was so fast, the 917 incident happened only a little more than a month, he actually not only mobilized the first batch of arms, but also sent them to the Tianjin wharf. The value of 1 million southwest yuan, he knows, is definitely enough for the construction of the first phase of the defense line. "Mr. Zhang is really courageous."

In fact, in Zhang Xue's conscience, he didn't really believe that Zhang Shusheng, who was far away in the southwest, would sincerely resist, after all, with today's thinking, no matter how big or small, the warlords are only in charge of their own affairs, and what is he doing when they are thousands of miles away?

Perhaps he was a true national revivalist.

Zhang Xueliang couldn't help but secretly say, judging from various reports, this Chief Zhang is indeed the political slogan of realizing the rejuvenation of China and making the Chinese people rich and self-reliant.

Looking at the bill of exchange handed over by Cai Yi, Zhang Xueliang finally made a decision, "Well, at this time, there is no way to advance or retreat, and it may be the best way for the Northeast Army to stay in Jinzhou and build a defense line to prevent people from going south." However, Han Qing is incompetent, and he hopes that Cai Gong will stay for more time, and Cai Gong will have to mention more about the construction of the Ningjin defense line. ”

Cai Yi nodded and said with a smile: "Since the policy has been decided, then everything is easy to do." I have been idle for many years, and I am not proficient in the matter of leading troops to fight, but a few students I brought this time are still in Beiping, and they are all talents with a lot of skill in military affairs. I hope it can be of some help to the young marshal to build the Ningjin defense line. ”

"It's just wonderful." Zhang Xueliang is not stupid, after all, Cai Ye is a lobbyist in the south, and it is impossible to stay in the Northeast Army to help himself, but these students of the Huaxia Military Academy, although they are suspected of being in the south, but after all, they are the students of the Huaxia Military Academy, known as the "Military Academy of the Country", and they are not real soldiers in the southwest. Use them yourself, and there will be no gossip.

Moreover, this Ningjin defense line, he also believes that it was proposed by the southwest military, and let these people help him, maybe he can really build a solid defense line.

Cai Ye finally said: "After all, Chief Zhang of the Southwest is concerned about the entire nation. Not only did he not prevent these students from coming to Northeast China, but he was ready to encourage some outstanding retired officers to join the War of Resistance on their own. A solid defense line still needs high-quality soldiers, and the training of the Northeast Army by the young marshal should also be stepped upon. ”

"Thank you Cai Gongjiyan, it's not too late to discuss this matter later. It's almost noon, so let's invite Cai Gong to try some home-cooked food in the north. ”

"That's fine, let's say Fang Chang."

Cai Yi smiled and said, Zhang Xueliang, Zhang Xueliang, your father couldn't refuse the temptation of himself back then, but now that you are replaced, can you grow three heads and six arms? What's more, if you really don't make some changes, relying on a single line of defense, I'm afraid you won't be able to stop a large-scale attack by yourself.

However, these are not what he needs to care about, the southwest has its own plan for the southwest, and what he cares about is the new round of liberation war that is about to be staged in the south.

At the same time, along the coast of Guangdong, a series of military preparations are actively underway.

(To be continued)