Chapter 63: Raiding Greater Wuhan (4)
On the evening of April 1, in the headquarters of the Jiangxi Pacification Army, Zhang Zizhong was sitting triumphantly in his high-backed redwood armchair. Also present were He Yingqin, Yang Yongtai and Lin Weixian, the Chief of Staff of the Pacification Army. Originally, this was a military operation, so Yang Yongtai did not have to come, but this time it was different. Li Mingrui and Yang Tengxiao were both involved in Yang Yongtai's plan to defect, as Chiang Kai-shek's chief of staff, and some issues still needed his personal attention.
Chiang Kai-shek had them come to discuss Hunan He Jian and Wuhan Li Mingrui, Yang Tenghui's request for a telegram.
Chiang Kai-shek picked up a cup of white water from the table and took a light sip, saying in a voice that couldn't hide his excitement: "I asked you to come, mainly for two things. The first thing is He Jian of Hunan Province, who sent a telegram today, clearly stating that he wants to immediately connect with the Central Government; the second thing is Li Mingrui and Yang Tenghui wanting to send telegrams ahead of time. This is because the Fourth Route Army's Song Wenzong troops have already arrived in Xiaogan, north of Wuhan, at noon today and have started fighting. Yang Tenghui can't hold on anymore.
As for He Jian of Hunan Province, you are not very clear about his problem. At the beginning of March, he sent Zhang Mouxian to Nanjing to see me and Director Tan, expressing gratitude for letting him serve as acting provincial chairman, and complaining about his difficulties in Hunan. Because Lu Diping, who was driven out by them, is an old subordinate of Tan Zong'an, he asked him to forgive the matter of overthrowing Lu, and hypocritically expressed his resignation. He also sent a telegram to Zhu Yizhen (Zhu Peide), saying that "Hunan cannot bear another war disaster, willing to protect the border and pacify the people. If you must solve the Guangxi system by force, please consider the disaster area and do not enter Hunan territory." And he asked Zhang Mouxian to chase after him in Jiujiang, bringing a handwritten letter. In the letter, he said: "I am willing to dedicate myself to the party and the country, I dare not be an outsider, I am willing to be loyal and sincere, and support it from beginning to end."
I gave Zhang Mouxian a personal order, appointing He Jian as the commander-in-chief of the 5th Route Army of the Punitive Expeditionary Force, and allocated 700,000 yuan for his expenses. However, this He Jian still had his own plans and did not immediately send a telegram to take up the post of commander-in-chief of the 5th Route Army. He wanted to wait and see, now that Cheng Qian has sent a telegram, Wenzong has already sent troops to Wuhan, and Zhu Peide, Jing Fu, and Wenzong have already pressed the borders with a large army, the Guangxi system is doomed to fail, only then did he send a telegram asking for connection.
As for Li Mingrui and Yang Tenghui's request to send telegrams ahead of time, it was because Yang Tenghui was beaten by Wenzong. Speaking of this, Chiang Kai-shek couldn't hide his excitement, revealing a faint smile!
About Zhang Muxian coming to Jiujiang to see Chiang Kai-shek, they all knew, but the specific content was not very clear, and they could all guess Zhang Muxian's intention. Even so, when they heard that He Kui wanted to send a telegram, they were still very happy, but the mood of the three people was different.
He Yinquan's mood was complicated, and at first, he had concerns about the expedition against the Guangxi clique. Apart from the strong power of the Guangxi clique itself, he also worried that Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan would take advantage of the situation to launch a surprise attack. However, it is now proven that Chiang Kai-shek's judgment was exceptionally accurate. Yan Xishan has already sent a telegram expressing his support for the central government's expedition against the Guangxi clique, and in name, he also dispatched Song Zheyu's Fourth Route Army to participate in the expedition; although Feng Yuxiang has not yet clearly expressed his attitude, he can be considered to have accepted the fact of the central government's expedition against the Guangxi clique, dispatching Han Fuqu's Third Route Army with 100,000 troops to garrison at Wushengguan. Despite still being cautious, the current situation is clearly favorable to the central government, and Feng Yuxiang dare not make any moves unfavorable to the central government. Thinking back to Chiang Kai-shek's series of unbelievable and dazzling combinations over the past few months, which had left Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi bewildered and unable to cope, they were almost defeated without even engaging in a real battle. Now, it is clear that the Guangxi clique is doomed to lose. He felt regretful, regretting that he had not resolutely supported Chiang Kai-shek when the Guangxi clique forced him to step down last time. It was precisely because of his ambiguous attitude as the second most important person in Huangpu that he had crushed Chiang Kai-shek's last line of defense and led to his downfall. Chiang Kai-shek continued to trust him after his comeback, knowing that this was to maintain the unity of the Huangpu clique, at least on the surface, and this unity was mainly for show to people outside the Huangpu clique. He now deeply realized that in terms of political maneuvering and intrigue, he was far inferior to Chiang Kai-shek. He regretted being blinded by his own biases back then. He secretly reminded himself that as long as Chiang Kai-shek remained in power, he would never again harbor any treacherous thoughts!
Yang Yongtai was secretly pleased in his heart, the mastermind behind all this was Yang Yongtai Yang Changqing. It was he who gave Chiang Kai-shek the idea of "reducing the vassals" at this time; it was also he who advised Chiang Kai-shek to let Tang Shengzhi come out again to deal with Bai Chongxi in Hebei; and it was he who personally ran to Hong Kong to win over Yu Zupei, a former general of the Guangxi clique, and then induced Li Mingrui and Yang Tenghui to surrender. This time, it can be said that the Guangxi clique was almost solved without bloodshed, and most of the credit goes to Yang Yongtai.
Lin Yu then was full of admiration for his chairman, the Guangxi clique, which was still a mighty force more than ten days ago, under Chiang's series of brilliant and almost seamless moves before and after, Li Zongren and Bai Chongxi of the Guangxi clique had not even completed one round when they were defeated. He believed that in today's China, where new warlords are emerging, only a leader like Chiang Kai-shek with high political wisdom would have the ability to suppress and ultimately solve them, making China truly end its internal strife and achieve true national unity.
Yang Yongtai was very happy to see Chiang Kai-shek and decided to flatter him, saying with a smile: "The Chairman is really 'operating in the tent, winning thousands of miles away!' He forced Tang Shengzhi out of the mountain, forced Xiao Zhugei Bai Chongxi to flee to the sea, and destroyed the Guangxi system's 100,000-strong army in Hebei without a fight; successfully manipulated Guang Chenming and Chen Jitang to turn to the Central Government, dissolving the two-Guang alliance, making the Guangxi system's rear start a fire; pulled over Li Mingrui and Yang Tenghui, making the Wuhan Eastern defense line a mere formality. Until now, Li Zongren is still in the dark, not knowing that his Seventh Army has become like fish and meat, thinking that his several armies can still compete with Liu Xiang's Second Route Army on the eastern front. Cheng Qian sent a telegram to surrender to the Central Government, with his prestige in Hunan, half of the Hunan problem was solved, and the door to Hunan was already open, Zhu Peide's First Route Army could enter Hunan at will. It was still He Jian who was quick-witted, he sent another telegram to betray Guangxi, and the Guangxi system in Hunan was left with only Ye Qi's troops, it can be said that Hunan has been solved. Now as long as the Chairman agrees, He Jian and Li Mingrui, Yang Tenghui immediately send a telegram, Xia Wei's Seventh Army can be said to have ceased to exist. The remaining troops of the Guangxi system in Wuhan, Hu Zongdang's 19th Army, Tao Jun's 18th Army will immediately become isolated armies, they are absolutely not the opponents of my two-route army. Now it seems that even without Song Xuewu's Fourth Route Army, taking down Wuhan is just a matter of time."
Chiang Kai-shek smiled slightly and nodded, saying: "Jiang Qing, don't flatter me anymore. This time, you are the one who deserves the credit for suppressing the Guangxi clique. As for Wen Guo's Fourth Route Army, it is absolutely necessary to have them, otherwise we cannot guarantee that we can take down Wuhan quickly and reliably prevent Feng Yuxiang from making any rash moves. Li Zongren knows very well that with their own strength, the Guangxi clique is no match for the central government, but he still dares to make a desperate attempt, thinking that as long as the war drags on, Feng Yuxiang and Yan Baichuan will get impatient and create trouble, which would give him an opportunity. However, his plan is going to fall through now, as he no longer has the resources to drag it out. Take a look at He Jian's telegram, what do you think is the most beneficial way for us to handle this?"
I recommend a book written by a friend of mine called "Burial Song", it's well-written.
