Rise From Eight Hundred

Jinling Residence.

A thin middle-aged man in a long robe has been looking out the window for a long time.

He maintained this posture for several minutes.

Behind him stood a soldier in the uniform of an army general. Although the soldier was standing, he was like an old monk meditating, with his eyebrows lowered, and he was not impatient at all because of the silence of the middle-aged man.

"Jingzhi, what do you think of this telegram from the front line?" The middle-aged man, who had been silent for a long time, finally came with a soft voice.

"This time, the 67th and 43rd armies have made great contributions to blocking the Japanese invaders in Songjiang and relieving the difficulties of retreating to the west of Shanghai. Otherwise, the Songhu War Zone Command would not have handed this telegram to me for decision-making." The army general seemed to have expected the middle-aged man to ask this question, and answered with his head slightly lowered.

"Songjiang blocked the enemy's 10th Army for four days and nights, which is indeed a great achievement. But according to the telegram, don't you think it's too much to let the country's air force cover its retreat? This is forcing others to take credit. Our air force warriors have been fighting over Songhu for two months and have already been completely lost. If they can still fight, how can they let the Japanese fighter planes wreak havoc!" The middle-aged man turned around and spoke sternly.

The Army General lowered his eyebrows again and stopped talking.

The atmosphere in the room was slightly solemn.

"Jingzhi, tell me what you think. This war is different from the past. It is a national war. You and I should work together. Even if you disagree with me, I will never blame you." The middle-aged man tried to soften his tone.

The Army General raised his head slightly, his eyes revealing the tenacity of a soldier. "The 67th and 43rd armies blocked the 100,000 Japanese troops in Songjiang this time. Major newspapers and magazines have already vigorously publicized it under the instruction of the Propaganda Department, especially the war correspondent Tan Tai Mingyue, who serialized it in the form of a war diary. The spirit of more than 30,000 people from the lieutenant general to the general who fought hard against the enemy has already spread throughout the country. If my Supreme Command sits and lets them be bombed by the Japanese Air Force during their retreat, I am afraid that the people from all walks of life will be dissatisfied with me.

What's more, the Sihang Battalion, which was appointed by the Supreme Command, is also among them, and has made great achievements in this Songjiang battle."

"Sihang Battalion? Is it the infantry battalion in the Sihang Warehouse blocking battle?"

"Yes!"

"They actually participated in the Songjiang Defense Battle? Shouldn't they be wiped out in that building?" The middle-aged man was slightly stunned. It was obvious that he heard this news for the first time.

As for his current status, he would not pay too much attention to the whereabouts of a mere troop of less than 100 people, and no one thought he should pay attention.

"Yes, they should have hidden in the secret room in the building first, and then detonated the building to stop the Japanese pursuit, and then sneaked out of the Japanese occupation area in Songhu, and happened to enter the Songjiang war zone. Its new battalion commander Tang Dao was originally under the 43rd Army and was recruited by the 43rd Army to enter Songjiang City." The Army General replied.

It can only be said that this person is worthy of being a local hero. Although no one reported to him specifically about the whereabouts and route of the Four-Line Battalion's escape, he combined the final result to reverse the story, as if he had seen it with his own eyes.

"Very good! The Four-Line Battalion is worthy of being the leader of my 88th Division. I said that the result of the Songjiang defense battle was far beyond my expectations. It turned out that such elite troops joined." The middle-aged man smiled.

The Army General's expression did not change, but his eyes flickered slightly under his drooping eyelids.

I think he was somewhat disdainful of the middle-aged man's double standards. No matter how elite the Four-Line Battalion affiliated to the Imperial Guard was, it was only a few hundred people. How could it influence the battle situation of the battlefield where the two warring parties invested nearly 100,000 troops?

The reason why the Four Camps could receive such praise was nothing more than that they were the direct line of the person in front of them, while the 67th and 43rd armies were all miscellaneous.

However, he knew that the appearance of the Four Camps might have won a glimmer of hope for this matter. The middle-aged man didn't care about the miscellaneous lines, but he was very nervous about his direct line. Now he just needed to light another fire.

"Although the Japanese invaders were unable to stop our Huxi army from retreating to the Wufu, Xicheng and other national defense lines on the ground, their air force bombed our army on the march without restraint, causing a large number of refugees and officers and soldiers to be killed and injured. For dozens of kilometers along the way, corpses were scattered all over the field, and the wailing was deafening. Husbands lost their wives, and children lost their parents. It was horrible and particularly hateful. Even if it was not for the retreat of 20,000 officers and soldiers in Songjiang, our country should counterattack its air force, otherwise this tragedy would continue. The number of refugees retreating from Songhu could be as high as millions." The Army General's eyes flashed with grief.

"Oh? Jingzhi, do you think so?" The middle-aged man's eyes flashed with anger.

However, it was obviously not because he heard that refugees and soldiers were bombed by Japanese planes on the way of retreat. Such news had been reported to him by many people.

His anger was directed at the general in front of him. At this time, he used this reason to make a fuss. For him, it was both exposing the scar and forcing him to make a decision.

However, the army general in front of him was not an ordinary general. Even the middle-aged man today could not vent his anger on him.

This point was not only clear to the middle-aged man, but also to the general, otherwise, he would not have stated his position so bluntly.

As the head of the military and political department, he believed that he had to fight this war, even if it meant destroying the last assets of the Chinese Air Force.

"You know, respectable, there are not many left in the air force." The middle-aged man struggled.

At this moment, he also needed to make a choice.

Undoubtedly, this was extremely difficult, especially because he did not like the army that was about to face a catastrophe.

Thinking of the difficulties he suffered because of this army a year ago, he had to send out his last precious force to save them today. This was really a very bad thing.

"If we lose the plane, we can buy more. If we lose the pilot, we can train more. But if we lose the people's hearts, it will be difficult." The Army General obviously understood the hesitation of the middle-aged man and answered firmly.

For a long time!

"Well, let's deal with this matter according to your opinion! At the same time, telegraph the Songhu War Zone Command. This kind of thing can only be done once. The Air Force is the most important weapon of the country. It must not be used unless it is absolutely necessary." The middle-aged man left this sentence and turned away.

"Yes!" The Army General nodded slightly.

He couldn't help but feel relieved.

He knew that the middle-aged man who left was unhappy, but he finally lived up to his trust. He not only achieved his goal, but also gained several favors from big people.

The big figures of the faction to which the 67th Army belongs are now in prison, which makes them like children without mothers, whose grandmothers don't love them and whose uncles don't love them, but the 43rd Army is not like that.

The general commander of the Sichuan Army in Hankou sent him three urgent telegrams at about 6 a.m., asking him to save the 43rd Army at all costs.

The reason was very simple. After all, it was the heroic army that survived the seven-day bloody battle in Songhu, and only one-tenth of the army remained. If the whole army was annihilated on the way of retreat, it would be difficult for him to explain to the 60 million people in Sichuan Province.

The reason seemed simple, but it was very powerful. Sichuan Province, located in southwest China and surrounded by mountains and ridges, was a major source of food and soldiers. Their future contribution to the country's needs was almost decisive.

The general of the army, who was worried about the war situation, naturally found it difficult to refuse the request of the commander-in-chief of the Sichuan Army.

In addition to the Sichuan Army, he also received two other telegrams for help, one from the headquarters of the 88th Division. It was understandable that they wanted to save the Sihangying, after all, it was a unit that earned face for them; but the Hunan Army actually asked him to come forward, which was a bit unexpected.

Perhaps, it was because of Tan Tai Mingyue, the war correspondent! Her battlefield diary about the defense of Jinshan made the people of Hunan shed tears, and even he, a general who had commanded hundreds of thousands of troops, was filled with tears.

After calling his military secretary to convey the order, the Army General looked southeast.

In public and private, he had completed this extremely difficult persuasion work.

However, this was only the first step. As for whether the Songjiang army, which was still in the wilderness, could finally escape, it mainly depended on themselves.

After all, in addition to the Japanese air force, they had to face the ground pursuit of 80,000 Japanese troops.

And the Songjiang army, which relied entirely on two legs to march, was still 50 to 60 kilometers away from Kunshan.

Can they succeed?

The Army General had no idea.

He could only do what he should do.