Chapter 10: Military Academy Re-examination (Part 2)

  This man was none other than Zhang Zhizhong, the Director of Education at the Central Military Academy and concurrently the Commander of the 5th Army. He had received a letter from his good friend Wang Yuanshan, with roughly the same content as the letter in Wang Mingyu's possession. The day Zhang Zhizhong received the letter was just after Wang Mingyu arrived in Nanjing, and Wang Yuanshan had mailed it to Zhang Zhizhong in Nanjing at the same time Wang Mingyu left. This was the big shot mentioned by the examiner during the initial examination at the Central Military Academy, who, apart from the highest authorities and Director He, would likely be this General Zhang.

  Originally, Zhang Zhizhong disliked such things. He felt that if he didn't have the ability, then even joining the army would only harm the country and sacrifice his subordinates' lives in vain. As a commander, Zhang Zhizhong deeply hated those incompetent military officers who could do anything to save their own lives, often fleeing in battle.

  Wang Yuanshan mentioned in the letter that his son also has a letter of introduction from him, and if he encounters any difficulties, it is he who asked him to find General Zhang Zhizhong. He hopes that at that time, General Zhang can give some thin noodles. The letter mentions that Wang Mingyu has gone to Nanjing and will take the Central Military Academy exam today. Wang Mingyu has not studied any military knowledge (in Wang Yuanshan's own opinion), and he hopes that General Zhang can help him out of their old friendship.

  Zhang Zhizhong had already reviewed Wang Mingyu's test paper yesterday, and his score was among the top three of all examinees. Such a result can only be described as excellent, and some views are even valuable. At that time, I was curious and came to observe, and even prepared to interview him in person to see if Wang Mingyu really had talent or if there was cheating behavior yesterday. If he really didn't have any ability, let him study at the military academy for a while, and then find him a clerical vacancy that is not too difficult or easy, which would also be worthy of my good friend.

  "Next, Wang Mingyu!" a soldier standing at the door shouted loudly.

  "Here!" Wang Mingyu habitually shouted, then walked into the interview room.

  The room is very large, with a long table in front and many documents placed on it. Three examiners are seated there, with a blackboard behind them, and the rest of the space is empty.

  "Wang Mingyu is here for an interview!" Wang Mingyu stood up straight and said, "Wang Mingyu, male, 21 years old, from Ningbo, Zhejiang Province. His father, Wang Yuanshan, is the vice chairman of the Zhejiang Chamber of Commerce. Quite a background, isn't it?" One of the examiners said, "Yes, I heard that Wang Yuanshan is quite close to our Education Minister!" Another examiner said, "Who's giving you a hard time?" At this moment, Zhang Zhizhong walked down from upstairs, and the three examiners immediately stood up, saluted, and shouted: "Minister of Education!"

  Wang Mingyu saw that the visitor was a lieutenant general and also known as the "Education General" by others, immediately thought of him as the famous patriotic general Zhang Zhizhong, and stood at attention, saluted, and said loudly: "General Zhang is good!"

  Zhang Zhizhong raised an eyebrow, "Oh? You know me?"

  "Report to General Zhang, General Zhang is known to all Chinese! I am no exception. Just now they shouted 'General Zhang' and 'Director of Education', I knew it was General Zhang. Our Central Military Academy has only one Director of Education!"

  "Reaction is quite quick, haha!" Zhang Zhizhong smiled and said, "You may also know that I have a close relationship with your father, but today in order to prove that you were admitted to the Central Military Academy by your own efforts, your interview will be conducted by me, and the three of you will be responsible for scoring, whatever it takes!"

  Zhang Zhizhong's words were true, but the people below didn't understand it that way. Although they said what should be done was done, he was the head of education and everyone knew he was a friend of Wang Yuanshan. Even if he answered irrelevantly, they had to give him some face and pass Wang Mingyu. So after exchanging glances with each other, the three examiners readily said: "Don't worry, Education Head, I will definitely be fair and just!"

  "Alright, that's settled!" Zhang Zhizhong waved his hand to let the three sit down, then turned to Wang Mingyu and began to say: "I'll ask you two questions, I'll start with the first one!"

  "Please, General Zhang, give us the questions!" Wang Mingyu said with a serious face. He had just realized that his father's acquaintance was actually General Zhang, which explained why his father had never worried about him not getting in. However, in his impression, General Zhang Zhong was a man of great principle, and if he wasn't extremely close friends with someone, he wouldn't help them out. Even if they were extremely close friends, the most he would do is find them a job, but he definitely wouldn't cover for or indulge anyone! So Wang Mingyu knew that he had to perform well enough to satisfy General Zhang and the three examiners in order to shake off the shadow left by his father.

  "First question: How do you view the current domestic situation?" Zhang Zhizhong said casually, but in fact he was thinking that if this answer didn't come up, or if it wasn't good, there would still be room for maneuver. After all, even the Kuomintang government's advisors couldn't give a very systematic answer to such questions, which relied entirely on intuition.

  "I think the current ceasefire between China and Japan is only temporary, Japan is secretly preparing for a larger-scale war. Although the Shanghai Ceasefire Agreement and the Tanggu Truce have been signed, the Japanese ambition is far from being satisfied with just the three northeastern provinces, they want the whole of China. So I think that although the current domestic situation looks relatively calm, behind this calmness lies an even greater storm." Wang Mingyu asked back "Oh? Then when do you think the war between China and Japan will break out?"

  "Within five years!" Wang Mingyu said with certainty, actually he wanted to say July 7th, 1937, but this was also too unbelievable, now even the Japanese didn't know what they were doing at that time.

  "So sure? What's your basis?" Zhang Zhizhong became interested and asked, "Japan is an island nation, its resources mainly rely on imports, and war is fought over resources and logistics. Japan wants to launch such a large-scale war, does it have enough supplies at home? How can they do it? The only way is to invade and achieve the goal of 'using war to feed war'! Japan's military expenditure has been increasing year by year, if they don't launch a war in a short time, they will collapse on their own without us fighting them. And I dare to conclude that in the Sino-Japanese War, the Japanese army will definitely concentrate its superior forces and capture Nanjing in the shortest time, then force the National Government to negotiate and gain benefits!" Wang Mingyu said "What? Attack Nanjing? Haha" One of the examiners heard Wang Mingyu's words, as if he had heard a very funny joke. Indeed, at that time, Nanjing was considered China's most heavily defended city.

  "We have the Great Wall, millions of troops, and the Yangtze River as a natural barrier. Is Nanjing so easy to capture?" Zhang Zhizhong furrowed his brow and said, "I know all this, but let's not talk about our military strength. The Japanese army's equipment and coordination between their navy and air force are not something we can match!" Wang Mingyu paused for a moment before continuing, "Moreover, the Japanese mechanized troops are not something our current forces can withstand. In general, when one of our divisions clashes with a Japanese brigade, we won't have the upper hand! Although the Shanghai-Nanjing area has the Yangtze River as a natural barrier, must the Japanese army attack from the rear? Don't forget that a major battle has already taken place on the Songhu battlefield. I believe that not long after, the Songhu battlefield will again be engulfed in flames. The Japanese army's next large-scale attack target may very well be Shanghai, and then they'll land in Shanghai and head straight for Nanjing, laying siege to the city!"

  "Shanghai has many foreign concessions, don't the Japanese fear intervention from Western powers? Last time they attacked Shanghai, Britain and America stepped in to mediate!" Zhang Zhizhong asked doubtfully. "What was the result of Britain and America's mediation? The Shanghai Ceasefire Agreement! When Japan attacks Shanghai again, as long as they don't operate within the concessions, Britain and America won't intervene without any interests at stake. Why would they risk offending a militarily powerful country like Japan? They are politicians, not heroic young men who act on justice!"

  "Alright, Wang Mingyu! I'm formally notifying you that you're going to be a student of the 10th term at our Central Military Academy. As for other matters, I won't bring them up; based on what you just said, I personally think you have ability! We'll discuss these international situations and domestic issues later. I'm testing you to see if you're really capable or not - otherwise, it would be irresponsible to Qi Ming's older brother, haha! Qi Ming's older brother has raised a good son indeed! While our National Government still has many people who believe in the mediation of Britain and America, this little guy who hasn't even entered military school yet has already seen through the true nature of the powerful nations, heh heh. I believe in one phrase: 'Relying on oneself is better than relying on others.' Do you three have any objections? This little guy, I'm taking him!" Zhang Zhong said with a smile. "Thank you, General Zhang! I'll definitely work hard to learn various military techniques and fight for the country, without disgracing Huangpu, the principal, or General Zhang!" Wang Mingyu finished speaking, bowed, and then left.

  Up to now, the candidates for the 10th term of the Central Military Academy in Nanjing have all been recruited, with a total of 120 people. The list was publicly posted at the gate of the Central Military Academy in Nanjing on August 23rd.

  After Wang Mingyu and the others finished looking at the list, they went to De Feng Building. Today is a day worth celebrating. The only regret is that Zhao Guocong, Zhao Dage, was not there. However, since Zhao Dage met Wang Mingyu, it can be considered that there is no regret. They all have their own paths to take now.