Age of Rebirth

Chapter 730 The Battle of Tianjin

During the few days of his stay in Wuhan, Tang Qiuli became the biggest winner and gained the power to command the whole army. After the special plane arrived, he returned to North China overnight because the war in North China was tense. For this transcendent figure who has shaken the political arena of the Republic of China, he is still in the central and local governments in Wuhan. Naturally, he will not lose the opportunity to express his goodwill to Tang Qiuli on the surface, and they all come to see him off, and the scene is very lively.

The special plane took off, and all the dignitaries watched Tang Qiuli's special plane with complicated emotions, rushing into the sky full of sunset glow and gorgeous changing sky, gradually going away, and flying to the north, this dazzling rise of the political arena of the Republic of China Nova, a super heavyweight who stomped his feet enough to cause an earthquake in the political arena of the Republic of China, put too much pressure on them. The vicissitudes of the day and night in Wuhan, open and secret battles, all returned to calm with the departure of this strong man, and everything became a success. foregone conclusion.

Before leaving, he left Shanhu to command the guard brigade, and only led the special guard to go north. The internal relations of the Nanjing camp were complicated. Qiuli would not forgive himself, he was relieved that Shanhu was here, it was the first time that Shanhu parted with him, he was full of reluctance, mainly because he was not at ease, so he summoned several captains of the special guards together and told him to do so for a long time. long time.

Tang Qiuli also explained in detail the three people of Yang Ketian, the details that need to be paid attention to, kept in touch with him at any time, and reported all the movements of the Nanjing camp, and absolutely obeyed the orders of Chen Cheng and Yang Yongtai, and never insisted on it. , I communicated with General Zhang Zhizhong for more matters, and issued an order to Zhou Yushan to immediately transfer the command of the Independent Division Transportation Headquarters to Chief of Staff Bai Shibin and rush to Nanjing to take up his post. This is a time to expand the influence of the Independent Division to An excellent opportunity in the Jiangnan area, not to be missed. [

On the plane going north, Mei Xue snuggled up to him. Ever since she had skin-to-skin contact, this girl has become more and more dependent on Tang Qiuli. Guang became more and more lovable, but today, he seemed to have something to say, and his dark eyes kept observing Tang Qiuli's expression.

Tang Qiuli thought she was worried about Shan Hu and others staying in Wuhan, so he gently hugged Mei Xue's shoulders, and patted him comfortingly, Mei Xue whispered in his ear: "Qiu Li, my sister has a child , don’t let me tell you, for fear of distracting your energy,” Tang Qiuli was startled, then overjoyed, his mind went blank, and there were complex emotions that could not be expressed in his heart.

I have a child. Since Xiaoling and the child in her stomach disappeared together in the mountains and forests in the northeast, Tang Qiuli did not dare to think of everything in the past, for fear of causing sadness. Now, Mei Ting has a child. It was absolutely shocking news, "I have a child, I have a child!" He kept muttering in his heart, with an indescribable feeling, wanting to laugh and cry, rubbing his hands at a loss, if it wasn't On the plane, he may roll a few times in place to express his inner turmoil.

Mei Xue saw her man at a loss, his face sometimes happy and sometimes sad, and her eyes were moist. She already knew everything about Tang Qiuli from her sister Mei Ting. She knew that in the northeast, he had a fiancée who was still pregnant. His child disappeared during the battle, and there is no news about it until now, and he also knows the pain in the heart of this prematurely gray-haired man.

Mei Xue felt happy for her sister and sad for the girl she had never met. She stretched out her hand to wrap Tang Qiuli's head, and pressed it tightly to her towering chest, letting the man she loved, at this moment of sorrow and joy, , Feeling that the soul is supported, at this moment, Mei Xue seems to have grown up.

The plane landed at Shijiazhuang Airport, and the sky was already full of stars. The first thing Tang Qiuli did was to send a telegram to the old general Jiang Baili in Taiyuan, arranging enough troops to escort Mei Ting back to Dingbian, to ensure Mei Ting's absolute safety , This order was carried out immediately, he was really afraid, once Mei Ting had any accidents on the battlefield under heavy artillery fire, he absolutely couldn't bear it, and couldn't afford to be injured, losing Xiaoling, he couldn't lose Mei Ting and the child in his stomach again.

I drove from Shijiazhuang overnight to Tianjin. After seeing Tang Qiusheng and Liu Tiehan, I understood the situation on the battlefield. Generally speaking, the battle went smoothly. More than [-] Japanese troops, relying on the Tianjin city defense fortifications, desperately resisted the independent division. In the five-way attack, the two sides fought repeatedly in Xiaosunzhuang, Liangwangzhuang, Yangliuqing, Shuanggou, Dalongwan, Xiditou, Junliangcheng and other places, and the positions changed hands several times.

According to the command of the division commander, the troops stepped up their attacks and made breakthroughs in all directions. As of this evening, the attacking troops from all directions had entered the periphery of the core area of ​​the Japanese defense line in Tianjin, further compressing the Japanese army. However, the closer the Japanese army As the defense line attacked in depth, the greater the resistance of the Japanese army, the stronger the fortifications also increased.

Seeing that Tang Qiusheng and Liu Tiehan were in excellent spirits, they were obviously full of confidence in capturing Tianjin. Tang Qiuli was no longer worried about the war in Tianjin. When asked about the casualties of the troops, Tang and Liu hesitated a little, which immediately aroused Tang Qiusheng's attention. Pay close attention to the situation, the casualties of the troops are not small.

It was still Liu Tiehan who replied: "Master, after five consecutive days of attacks in the Tianjin campaign, the casualties of the participating troops are still relatively large. According to the statistics of the staff office this evening, the number of casualties has reached more than 6000, of which [-] were killed in battle. More than a thousand people," Tang Qiuli gasped. In five days, the casualties had exceeded the strength of two field brigades, and nearly [-] people were lost in one day. The little devils in Tianjin are really a tough nut to crack.

Looking at Tang Qiuli's expression, Tang Qiusheng and Liu Tiehan were somewhat unnatural. They were veterans who had been through battles for a long time, and they also commanded the field corps with the most combat effectiveness, the largest number of troops, and the best equipment in the Independent Division. Such a large number of casualties , It also exceeded their expectations, Tang Qiuli was relieved immediately, the independent division and the Japanese army, in such a small area as Tianjin, the two sides concentrated nearly 90 soldiers, and a single cannon could blow up a bunch of people. Such a large number of casualties is also in line with the routine, there is no such thing as a deal that only takes advantage and does not suffer.

Seeing the expressions of Tang Qiusheng and Liu Tiehan, he secretly blamed himself. In such a fierce siege battle, facing four 10,000+ red-eyed Japanese troops, even if he personally commanded them, the casualties would not be less than this number. What power do they have? How about blaming Brother Qiusheng and Brother Tiehan?He quickly changed the subject and asked, "How about the casualties of the Japanese army?"

This question lifted Liu and Tang's spirits, and Tang Qiusheng replied: "Master, after five days of fierce fighting, the number of enemies wiped out by the staff office statistics and the brigade reports has reached more than [-]." Good!" Tang Qiuli jumped up and said, "The ratio of casualties was two to one. Tianjin's attacking troops fought quite well, killing nearly a quarter of the Japanese troops. Tianjin's fat meat, you two You chopped off a big piece with one knife, it deserves commendation!"

Liu Tiehan and Tang Qiusheng were obviously relieved, with smiles on their faces. The frontline commander didn't want to be recognized by the commander. They were afraid that the young teacher would be dissatisfied with the fight. Your Excellency, Commander, how many days will it take to capture Tianjin? I can’t wait! Besides, the commander of the Kwantung Army is more anxious than I am, and he is busy dispatching troops to Tianjin!" Half joking and half serious, both Tang and Liu After laughing, the staff officers in the room also pursed their lips and smiled, and a relaxed and happy atmosphere filled the air.

Liu Tiehan and Tang Qiusheng looked at each other, and Liu Tiehan replied: "Master, according to the current battle situation and our army's attack speed, if the Kwantung Army's reinforcements across the sea do not arrive, it will only take four days. If the Japanese reinforcements arrive Now, I'm afraid we need to readjust the deployment, and the time cannot be determined," he said, looking at Tang Qiuli calmly.

Tang Qiuli knew that Liu Tiehan was telling the truth. One hundred thousand Kwantung Army reinforcements crossed the sea to join the Tianjin battlefield. The total strength of the Japanese army would exceed that of the siege troops. , plus the time to cross the sea, after five days, you can land in the Tanggu area. At that time, there will be great changes in how the battle is fought. The situation on the battlefield will not be in your own hands, and the superior Japanese army will counterattack It is possible to go out of Tianjin, and there is also a need to guard against the Japanese army in the direction of Beiping behind. Although there are not many, the strength of 1 troops is also a threat.

*** Headquarters are going to fight themselves in Tianjin and Shanhaiguan. The Kwantung Army is also red-eyed. Regardless of casualties, they stormed the Liuguhe blocking position of Feng Jiwu Corps. Although no telegrams from Feng Jiwu were received, But he knew that Feng Jiwu was gritted his teeth and insisted that the reinforcements of the troops directly under the independent division headquarters had just arrived in the Cangzhou area. Even if they marched day and night, it would take two days to reach the front line of Shanhaiguan. It is very important for Feng Jiwu Corps or the troops attacking Tianjin.

After pondering for a while, Tang Qiuli said: "Okay, I will give the troops attacking Tianjin four days. From now on, until the evening of June 29, I will hear the news of the capture of Tianjin. In addition, I am reinforcing Shanhaiguan. In the army, I will transfer two more artillery brigades for you, concentrate all the artillery fire, and flatten the little devil's position. After capturing Tianjin, I will immediately prepare for anti-landing operations. There are still [-] Kwantung troops waiting for you to deal with them. In the time to catch your breath, you two have to work harder."

Tang Qiusheng and Liu Tiehan got up immediately, and they all promised: "Master, please rest assured that Tianjin will definitely be captured before 29:[-] pm on June [-]." Tang Qiuli believed their words, and said: "If the Japanese army in Tianjin cannot Complete annihilation, half of it is enough, and the rest, let them retreat to the northeast by sea, and attack the troops at Tanggu Port, whether to withdraw and turn to other directions, please think about it.”[

Tang Qiusheng and Liu Tiehan immediately understood that the upcoming [-] Kwantung Army reinforcements would put a lot of pressure on the division commander. He was worried that this unprecedented decisive battle would end up being a raw meal. , out of the way of Tanggu.

(To be continued)