1. "Sword of Justice"

The battle to defend Great Wuhan has been supported for more than four months, which is one month more than the defense of Greater Shanghai; Compared with the five days in Nanjing, one day in Guangzhou is, of course, even more incomparable. The main reason is due to the strong morale and morale of the people. But there is another important reason, which we must not forget, is that the Soviet advisory group is helping us to plan, and there are also Soviet planes and volunteers helping us to defend the skies and cooperate with the front-line operations.

The Soviets supplemented us with SB bombers and E-15 and E-16 fighters, but unfortunately I do not know the exact number. The Soviet Union was known as the "Sword of Justice", and many people were wounded in the air battle, and many people were killed. It's a pity that I don't know the exact number of people.

Soviet friends do not like self-propaganda, and they are by no means like the United States, where the words "aid" and "relief" are engraved on their foreheads. The Soviet Volunteers, who lived a particularly disciplined life, lived a canopy life under the silver wings of airplanes. No matter the week or the festival, it will never be ostentatious in the market. It's even more unthinkable to mess around like the later American soldiers, crashing into jeeps and pulling women. Therefore, few people know that there was such a thing: in the early stage of the Anti-Japanese War, Soviet friends helped us a lot, and in order to defend Wuhan, many volunteers sacrificed their lives for us.

At that time, the Soviet Union had not declared war with Japan, so the situation of the aid was reluctant to be made public. The reactionaries are secretive, and they are even more happy to have excuses. The reactionaries never published about Soviet aid. In normal times, the Soviet advisory group and the volunteer corps were monitored as spies, and some of the people who took care of the advisory corps and the volunteer corps were probably friends with the name of "unification." They sometimes put some gossip in small circles to slander the Soviet Union. They said this in good conscience: The planes sent by the Soviet Union were not good planes, and the personnel sent were not good personnel, and the Soviet Union treated China as a combat ground for exercises.

But everyone always remembers that in World War II, General Chuikov, the general who defended Stalingrad, turned the tide of the European theater, and that was a world-famous figure. He served as general counsel in China before returning to China. Can we say that this is a bad person sent by the Soviet Union?

There were several battles over Wuhan, in fact, they were all the records of the Soviet volunteers. As far as I have seen it myself, April 29 is the so-called "Tianchang Festival" ("Emperor's" birthday) of the Japanese invaders, and it is said that it took two weeks to prepare for the massive invasion of Wuhan by enemy planes. The weather was very good that day, and in the morning we were holding a propaganda conference in Chen Cheng's mansion in Wuchang City. The air raid sirens went out, and everyone went into the air-raid room in the garden, but I was watching outside.

In the clear space, there were clusters of white clouds, and the anti-aircraft guns shot out more velvet flowers. The roar of anti-aircraft guns, the sound of airplanes, the explosion of **, and the continuous sound of machine guns constitute a four-part ensemble. The silver wings of both sides shuttled and tossed in the sunlight, fighting up or down, or on the other or sideways. According to the terminology, it was a "dog-fighti."

g), I am afraid that it should be called "Eagle-fighti" (Eagle-fighti

g) bar. Suddenly, some emitted red light, emitted black smoke, and fell into the air, and some exploded in the air. It's really a vivid picture of ghosts crying and howling. After thirty minutes of that, the universe fell silent. It was the most enthusiastic air battle, and the brilliant result was that 21 enemy planes were shot down and our side lost five.

The "Sword of Justice" not only killed the eagle in the air, but also the shark on the water. According to statistics, 92 enemy ships were sunk and 16 were blown up in the Yangtze River. There is no doubt that this is one of the important reasons for delaying the fall of Wuhan.

Unfortunately, I have not been involved in this area myself, so I don't know the details. I hope that the friends who have participated in the event will report the details of the situation so that the people of China can clearly recognize these "swords of justice" and compare them with the attitude of US imperialism today. We Chinese people should also be a "sword of justice", able to distinguish between right and wrong, good and evil!

2. Meeting of the Big Four

The fall of Wuhan was expected. But four days before the fall of Wuhan, Guangzhou, an important city in southern China, suddenly fell first without resistance. It was truly a complete surprise. The enemy had only 3,000 men, and it was a great shame that our 10th division of the defending army fled overnight. Isn't this the place where Dr. Sun Yat-sen has been living and teaching for many years? Isn't this the birthplace of the revolution? Some of Mr. Nakayama's traitors, who are entrenched in the head of the people, usually act as a prestige and trample on human rights. Their sins are so great that they shouldn't have been put on the gallows twenty-four times? However, those "generals" and generals still live longer, and to this day, they are still whining in the breaking formation of suppressing the people!

The fall of Canton further shook Wuhan, which was already shaking, and undoubtedly stimulated and encouraged the enemy attacking Wuhan. The enemy attacked Wuhan with 12 divisions, and the rear strength of the company totaled 25 divisions and regiments, with a number of about 1 million. The front line was replenished five or six times, with more than 200,000 casualties and more than four months. The enemy is so happy and greedy for many things, and the news of the invasion of Canton does not prompt them to increase their firepower and do a crazy game? In those last few days, especially the frequent air raids on our retreating vehicles and ships, it was the most concrete manifestation of the mad race.

Ships bound for the upper reaches of the Yangtze and Xiangjiang rivers were bombed one after another in those days, and the Xinshenglong, which was carrying part of the Xinhua Daily and the Eighth Route Army office, was one of them. After leaving Wuhan on the 22nd, he was killed on the same day, and many of his friends became martyrs. In this way, needless to say, the three towns of Wuhan, especially some middle and lower-class civil servants who were left behind, are even more panicked. The "tallest" one has a plane to sit on, so there is no need to worry. The second-class ones also have their own cars to sit in. Again, you have to take a truck, you have to take a ship. Trucks and ships are much larger, and there is no escape from the boats on the water. Therefore, everyone avoids waterways, and although there are very few boats on the water, it is a blessing to be able to take a boat.

Several senior personnel of our Political Department, Zhou Gong has a car, and I have a car. My car is available for me and Heal to use when we retreat. He Jinhan had a car, but his car was delivered to his family first. His original plan was to lead the rest of his troops on a boat. The ship was a small steamer from Swire Pacific, which had sailed upstream for the last time, and its destination was Yichang. However, the city, the Political Department, the International Propaganda Department, and other agencies jointly paid a heavy price for it, and after it arrived in Shashi, it unloaded the passengers and turned back halfway. The ship returned to Wuhan on the afternoon of the 23rd, and was ready to evacuate Wuhan for the last time on the night of the 24th. However, there was a small twist and turn in our political department.

Here's the thing: He Jinhan, who originally decided to take the boat, had a temporary change, and he refused to take the boat. He Jinhan is an important person of the party and the state, and it is understandable that he should take care of his life, but the wonderful thing is that as soon as the remaining members of the ministry heard that the secretary general was not on the boat, they all made an uproar like a group of children who had lost the leadership of adults.

- The Secretary-General does not take a boat, and we do not take a boat!

- The Secretary-General is afraid of danger, so we are not afraid of danger?

- Is the life of the Secretary-General valuable, but ours? ……

For this matter, the vice minister even convened a "meeting of the Big Four" to discuss a solution.

He Zhenhan confessed very frankly, he not only insisted that he would not take the boat, but also advocated that everyone should not take the boat. He said: His car has been driven back from Changsha. It is very dangerous to take a boat, and there is no way to escape in the event of a bombing. It's just as dangerous to get in a car, but there's still a way to escape.

Everyone knows this. But when things are in danger, where can I find a car? Not only did people have to retreat, but there were also some bulky public property.

The solution to the problem was very simple, Yue Zhi and I agreed to take a boat instead, in order to calm people's hearts, and leave my car for He Jinhan's entourage secretary Yi to sit on. - This car, on the way to escape, saved Bai Chongxi's life. When Bai Chongxi was fleeing for his life on the Hanyi Highway, a small car and a command car broke down, and as a result, he lost the two cars, squeezed out Yi Lai'an (probably squeezed into He Jinhan's car), and took my car instead. This is what Zhou Gong told me later. The embarrassing situation on the Hanyi Highway, but unfortunately we missed the opportunity to sightsee.

3. Ignore your conscience

On the 24th, as usual, I went to work at Mitsui & Co. Early in the morning of that day, I wrote a final editorial for the Sweep for the newspaper to be seen tomorrow.

At that time, the newspapers in Wuhan had successively shifted their positions and ceased publication, and only "Xinhua Daily" and "Sweeping Daily" were ready to be published until the last day. This is all Zhou Gong's opinion. Naturally, there is no problem that Xinhua Ribao is an organ of the Communist Party of China, and the "Sweeping Daily" is formally subordinate to the Political Department and has to obey the orders of the vice minister. Of course, it is necessary to sacrifice part of the machine and lead characters in the end, but in order to show the Chinese's unyielding, this sacrifice cannot be placed in the plan. What's more, at that time, there was no way to transport the machine and the lead word! Therefore, it gave the "Sweeping Daily" a glorious opportunity to serve the country. This most reactionary newspaper, from its inception to the present day when it was renamed the "Peace Daily", is probably the only time that it can be praised.

The most reactionary of newspapers did not welcome our writing in normal times, and no one who was a little more conscious would want to write for it. But on this glorious performance, even the people who wrote the editorial ran out, and I was so happy that I could bear it. In fact, He Jinhan can also write, but I can't calm down and can't write.

Although I wrote a piece of "Wuhan Will Always Be Ours" (this text is included in the "Yu Book Collection"), it was not a glorious thing for me. Seriously, I also have a clear conscience, lie for others there, and help deceive the citizens of Wuhan there with a clear conscience.

The article was written very reluctantly.

It is clear that the defense war was not done well, so we had to abandon the citizens of the three towns of Wuhan and run away, and I said this: "Our battle to defend Wuhan is a war of attrition and a protracted war!" ”

It is clear that there are people who have not done their best to protect the territory of the motherland and have no determination to fight the enemy desperately, and I prefer to say this: "Our supreme strategy is to exchange space for time, and to fight hard with death and procrastination!" ”

Like a microphone, I also spread that "the center of the final decisive battle is not in the major cities, but in the vast countryside and the hearts of the people", and that "the gains and losses of any city will never affect the overall situation of the War of Resistance".

How loud the words are, but can I guarantee that there is a penny of sincerity in those words?

The sudden fall of Canton clearly and greatly affected us, and I would say that "the protracted battle to defend Wuhan made the enemy agitated, and the enemy was running even more tightly on the road to destruction." As for ourselves, it is all the more indebted to me that "our hostility has increased more and more, our internal unity has become more and more inspiring, and our 100 Guangdong athletes have been more and more inspired," and I also dared to "resolutely believe that the situation in South China will be completely changed in the future."

It's really nice: "Wuhan is dying, but it doesn't have much impact on the whole situation!" ”

It sounds really nice: "On the one hand, it has fulfilled the functions of a protracted war and a war of attrition, and on the other hand, it has also done its best to reduce sacrifices, preserve strength, and cover the rear!" ”

It really sounds good: "The central force of our War of Resistance did not lose money, but instead won the initiative and surrounded Wuhan!" ”

It's a nice thing to say: "Our Wuhan is not for Franco's Madrid, but for Napoleon's Moscow!" ”

It's really nice: "I can't help but shout in an agitated tone: Wuhan will always be ours!" ”

Hum! Where is Guo Moruo making a fuss, but Chiang Kai-shek is making a fuss! Lie! Lie! Lie! Help cheat as hard as you can! deceived Wuhan at the most dangerous time, that is, when it reached the peak. But am I willing?

Let me say it again, I am not willing to be the director of the third hall at all, and the reason is that I am unwilling to be unconscionable. However, for the sake of the War of Resistance, in order to win over that person wearing the hat of the War of Resistance, even if he has no conscience, he has to be wronged, this is not only me, not only when I wrote this article "Wuhan will always be ours"!

Interestingly, we don't know how many "supreme leaders" have been shouted! Shouting "leader" to stand up once, I don't know how many times it has been upright! Looking back today, I should have confessed not only to my compatriots across the country and to the citizens of Wuhan, but also to my own throat and legs.

Fourth, the western cub is typical

On Monday afternoons, as usual, a press conference for foreign journalists is held. The event was jointly organized by the Third Hall and the International Communications Office at the International Communications Office on Jardine Street. It is also an enemy property, with a building, and it is a two-bay room with two entrances in front and back. I don't know what kind of Japanese company it was before, but in the back hall on the left side of the downstairs, where meetings are often held, in a corner, there is still a large safe made in the United States, which has never been opened because there is no key.

The 24th day coincided with a Monday, and a final reception was held on Jardine Street. I went with Yunodu to participate. This time, there were a lot of foreign journalists, and they came to attend the funeral. Because they didn't have the need to escape, they just slept peacefully for one night, and they were about to see the finale of "changing the dynasty".

Normally, at this meeting, it is mainly people from the Military Command Department who report military news, but on this day no one comes at all. In fact, military information does not need to be reported anymore. Everyone knows this: the enemy occupied Xinyang and Huanggang in the northern battlefield, and the vanguard approached Huangpi; occupied Yangxin and Daye in the southern battlefield, and was advancing towards Xianning; Wuhan was already surrounded by the enemy on three sides. There is no problem at all, today's "blue sky and white day" will be replaced by "early morning sun" tomorrow.

Wu Guozhen was the mayor of Hankou at that time, so it was naturally his turn to mourn for the three towns of Wuhan. As usual, it is the same set of deceptive words:

-- In the battle to defend Wuhan, we did our best to fight a war of attrition and a protracted war. Our overarching strategy is to trade space for time. In the long battle to defend Wuhan, we have done quite thorough work in the evacuation of the population and the transfer of industry, and we have also covered the construction of the rear. We are now shifting positions. By abandoning the city and moving to the surrounding areas, we followed our highest strategy and gained the initiative. We insist on a protracted war and a war of attrition, and the longer the war lasts, the more advantageous it will be for us. The larger the area of the battlefield, the more advantageous it is for us. The chairman of the NPC National Committee has long said that "the center of the final decisive battle is not in the major cities, but in the vast countryside and the hearts of the people." Recently, he made it clear that "the gains and losses of any city will never affect the overall situation of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression." "We are firmly convinced that the final victory will be ours.

This is the so-called Eight Strands of the Anti-Japanese War, and what he said is exactly the same as what I said. Foreign journalists, however, were not satisfied with this set and raised additional questions.

They asked if the fall of Guangzhou and the loss of a major international communication route would affect the war of resistance.

They asked why Commander-in-Chief Zhu came to Wuhan. Why did you go again?

They asked whether the planned plan to blow up enemy property was to be carried out when Wuhan was evacuated.

The first two questions were answered according to the eight strands. The answer to the latter question reveals a welcome message. Wu Guozhen said very solemnly, naturally in English: After several consultations, the supreme authorities have decided this morning to respect the opinions of international friends and not to blow up enemy property in Hankou City in order to ensure the tranquility of the whole city.

The foreign correspondents cheered unexpectedly, followed by a round of applause.

What a surprise! In order to blow up enemy property, some foreign diplomats are interfering, I know that. As a result, we will inevitably succumb, and I can imagine that. But when foreign reporters heard the news and welcomed it so much, I didn't expect it at all. Is it the realization of the victory of imperialism? But at least the joy of watching Emperor Nairo burn Rome on fire, right?

The reception was over, and the reporters dispersed. Wu Guozhen walked to the big safe and looked at it carefully. Dong Xianguang walked over to him very happily and thanked him and said goodbye: "Today's results are good and a great success!" A big success! It's all up to you, the Grand Mayor! ”

Wu Guozhen was also very proud and humble: "This is thanks to the old man, otherwise we would not have satisfied them today." Suddenly, the conversation turned to the safe: Is this "Sehut" (English Safety, that is, the safe) opened?

- "Where, there is simply no way! Dong Xianguang spread out his hands to show that there was really no way to say that, but suddenly realized that we were still in front of him, and seemed to hold hands with us again a little unnaturally: "Envy, are you on the boat tonight?" Ah, we can't help it, the old man is not leaving! Ah, goodbye, goodbye! Good-bye! Fawhil (English: Fa

ewell）！ …… Adieu! ……”

5. Korean Volunteers

After I came out of the National Propaganda Office, I broke up with me because of something else. We made an appointment to gather at Poyang Street, and when it got dark, we got on the boat together. Taking advantage of this free time, I took a car around the city of Hankou.

There have been no major changes in the SAR. The French Concession is under martial law and cannot be entered. Take a detour to the Japanese Concession. The so-called Huajie market along the way is very bleak, almost all of them are closed, and only some restaurants are still ajar. The cars are gone, but strangely enough, many of them have been abandoned on the streets, with no one to take care of them. This scene made me feel bored for a moment, and I began to wonder why. But after a little reflection, it is immediately clear. This is someone pulling some rickshaw drivers, either pulling them away, or running away. This realization reminds me of the grand occasion when many rickshaw drivers and dock workers enthusiastically donated money during the "77" donation. It's only been three and a half months, and that's the result of defending Wuhan!

The Japanese Concession is more like a cemetery, which was originally scheduled to be blown up, and the residents have long since been emptied. But what caught people's attention was that on the walls of the streets, or in the middle of the road, the slogans in Japanese were written in thick asphalt: "Soldiers bleed in front, chaebol enjoyed in the rear," or "Blood and life of soldiers, gold and G medal of the general." These are the same sentences I prepared yesterday, and today I have climbed the wall, climbed the water tower, and laid out in the middle of the road.

This is a great way to thank our friends in the Korean Volunteers. They were mobilized to take on the job a few days before the retreat. According to the "Collection of Slogans Against the Enemy" issued by the Third Agency and a number of articles temporarily drafted by me, I scribbled them on the city of Hankou as much as possible. Thanks to the conscientious work of these friends, as far as I have seen, they have indeed built the whole city of Hankou into a spiritual fortress.

This is not a deliberate rhetoric that I am here alone, but it is based on facts. Later, based on the confessions of the prisoners, we were able to learn that the enemy had been troubled by these slogans after the occupation of Wuhan. It took them three days to wash through the slogans! But even if what is written on the street is clean, what is imprinted in the mind may not be clean.

When my car passed through Houcheng Road, the person who wrote the slogan continued to work. They work in groups of threes and fives, some carrying asphalt or paint, others carrying ladders, and they diligently buy time there—work.

I have to admit that it was the scene I was most touched by, but it was also the scene that I was most ashamed of. Those were all friends of the Korean volunteers, and it was clear that there was not a single Chinese in them. We in China should have a lot of talented people who understand Japanese, and there are at least hundreds of thousands of students who have studied in Japan, right? However, at this time when Wuhan was in danger, the only people who wrote slogans against the enemy for us were these North Korean friends!

At the beginning, the organization of the Korean Volunteer Corps belonged to the Second Department of the Political Department and was under the jurisdiction of Kang Ze. When Wuhan was about to be withdrawn, it was temporarily transferred to the Political Department of the Garrison Headquarters. But we can command indirectly. I don't know much about the organization, and it can be quite complex in terms of thinking. This is a common problem of North Korean friends, who have many small parties and are always very difficult to reunify. But they suffered the misery of the loss of their country, and they went into exile in China to engage in anti-Japanese work, and in their own psychology, they were not so much to help us as to fulfill their duties, so generally speaking, their patriotic sentiments are really many times more superb than those of us Chinese who have been educated enough by compradors. Therefore, the friends who participated in this volunteer team, although they were controlled by Kang Ze and He Jinhan, were free from all fetters in the performance of patriotic actions.

After inspecting Hankou City for a while, he returned to Poyang Street, where Yu Zhixian sat and waited. Zhou Gong was busy with things, so he took care not to wait for him when eating. I hastily ate my last supper. After dinner, I went to Mitsui & Co., and the people from the General Affairs Office were already moving their luggage and preparing to board the ship.

We wanted to find He Jinhan and say goodbye to him, but we couldn't find him. Where he went, no one knows.

At seven o'clock, Zhou Gong came and shook hands with everyone.

We rushed to the docks and began our flight, which was not suitable for the light of day.

Sixth, retribution is manifest

When I got on the boat, I naturally sat first-class. The brilliant lighting and decoration in the dining room made me a little dazzled. After taking care of the room, I walked out of the cabin and stood on the deck, peering out into the desert.

The sky was inky black, the three towns of Wuhan were silent, and the Yangtze River was spitting cold air in the chaos. This is the scene of the three towns of Wuhan coming to an end. The feeling is a little dazed. - I've been here for eight or nine months without realizing it, and I've been busy for a while, but what have I been busy with? Isn't it exactly a hollow?

I remembered Commander-in-Chief Zhu's spirit when he left and the poems he gave me. He was so resolute that he went back to the front. He is sure, and he can be sure. He can "support the War of Resistance in North China" and will definitely be able to "recover the Central Plains". But, what about us? What about myself? Can you be sure? Can you "go and support Nantian"? Who can guarantee in the world of unfreedom: we are not going from emptiness to emptiness again?

Suddenly, a dripping scene of blood unfolded in front of me, and I couldn't help but stare with my eyes wide open. That was the bloody scene of the Nanjing Massacre! Who will be able to guarantee tomorrow: won't it be launched again in the three towns of Wuhan? ……

After a moment of confusion, he returned to the cabin and simply slept with his head covered.

The ship was scheduled to leave at ninety o'clock, but in order to wait for some dignitaries, they waited until four o'clock in the morning, but none of them came. Naturally, he was afraid of the danger on the water, so he took the dry road instead. This is also worthy of thanks, so that I spent another night in the dying city.

By four o'clock the ship had sailed after all, and it was not yet dawn. In the northeast corner of Hankow, the rumbling sound of artillery can already be faintly heard.

The boat went very slowly, and dragged a large tow barge in addition to its own load. At dawn, we arrived at Yanzhou, the place where the Yangtze River made a big turn on the map. I stood on the deck again and looked. In the northeast corner, thick smoke peaks rose in the distance. That must have been part of Greater Wuhan being burned.

The dripping scene of blood unfolded before me again, but it was more distant and blurry.

Sitting on the boat is seriously said to be comfortable, especially the people who sit in the salon have Western food every day, and there are refreshments when they are due, which is like going to heaven. Yu Zhi and I are the most senior people on the ship, and there is an accounting section chief in the city, which is considered to be the third. No one came, so Yuyuki and I became the president and vice president of the ship. To be honest, I have never enjoyed such prosperity and dignity in my life. Not only did the General Affairs Office of the headquarters treat us as superiors, but people from other agencies also treated us as if they were subordinates.

The boat went slowly, because it was dragging a huge towing barge, and it was afraid of running aground, so it did not dare to sail at night. As a result, not only do you have a good time during the day, but you can also sleep at night.

Isn't there an air attack by enemy planes? Yes, yes, every day during the day, one or two volleys came in the air and circled away, but they refused to drop bombs. It's because there's a British flag on board. In addition, the Japanese intelligence is extremely sensitive, and he must have known that people would not dare to take the boat, and the rest of the people who took the boat were not worth bombing.

But there's always something in the ointment, right? For example, if you can't read the newspaper every day and can't get any news, you're always bored, right? - Thank you for worrying, but there is no such shortcoming. The chief of the accounting section of the city had a very good radio, which was said to be public property. We put it in the pantry, open it at any time, and the news of the whole world can be heard.

The season is autumn, it is the time when the sky is high and cool, and the days are sunny. The scenery on both sides of the strait is picturesque, and we can see that even the San Sheng Lung and other blown up ships are abandoned along the coast. How could there ever be the slightest danger? Even I'm a little embarrassed, enjoying such a life in the midst of a national crisis!

Hankow is getting farther and farther away day by day. Normally, it takes only two days to get from Hankou to Shashi, but our ship took four days and four nights. The ship has little exercise and too good food, and if it continues to live like this for a long time, who would have thought of fighting the war? People who live too well don't want to fight, who can blame them?

However, for us, the great president and vice president of this outbreak, there is a clear retribution. The ship did not exercise much, but also ate too well, and when it arrived in Shashi on the afternoon of the 28th, it unexpectedly ate all the stomachs.