Chapter 2: The Stormy Weather of Ji Zhou

  Qin Yang was preparing to rush to Jizhou with his troops when Zhao Dengyu in the city of Jizhou was also having a bad time.

  Jizhou, formerly known as Yuyang County. As a county town, it was first built in the Sui Dynasty and became famous in the Tang Dynasty. It is an ancient city with a history of about 1,400 years. Due to the many wars it has experienced, the ancient buildings have been greatly damaged, and most of them were rebuilt during the Qing Dynasty and are well-maintained. The Yuyang Drum Tower, Gongshuban Temple, Yuyang Ancient Street, Dule Temple, and White Pagoda Temple are all scenic spots within Jizhou City that are very beautiful. Even in times of war, there are still many tourists visiting these places. Among the famous historical sites, the most famous one is the Dule Temple. The mountain gate has an inscription "Dule Temple" written by Yan Song, a treacherous minister of the Ming Dynasty, and the Guanyin Pavilion has an inscription "Guanyin Pavilion" written by Li Bai, a famous poet of the Tang Dynasty. This coexistence of good and evil shows the broad-mindedness and tolerance of the people of Jizhou.

  Dule Temple is now the headquarters of the 109th Brigade of the 29th Army of the National Revolutionary Army.

  At the end of 1932, the 29th Army was ordered to move from Chahar Province to Jiabei, stationed in the Zuoying area. The 217th Regiment was ordered to station at Lengkou, and Deputy Division Commander He Jishan also led a cavalry regiment to station there. The 109th Brigade was stationed north of Jizhou City.

  Since the September 18th Incident, the Japanese aggressors' ambitions have expanded rapidly. They divided their troops and attacked simultaneously along the Great Wall line, intending to open up a passage from outside the pass to inside the pass, so that large troops can enter North China unimpeded.

  Due to the increasing pressure from the Japanese army, the 29th Army stationed in Zhuozhou, Hebei Province faced mounting pressure.

  On the street, a war horse was galloping, with a cavalryman on its back, his right arm wrapped in a red silk ribbon, whipping the horse with one hand and shouting loudly. Passersby saw him and hastily dodged to the side of the road. The cavalryman rushed past the alleys where people dodged.

  Arriving at the gate of Dule Temple, the cavalryman jumped off his horse and asked the guard at the gate, "Is the commander in?"

  The sentry returned and said: "The brigade commander has gone to the 218th Regiment for inspection!"

  The orderly pulled out a towel from his waist and wiped the sweat off, grumbling: "I've run so far, I'm exhausted to death!"

  He then turned around, pulled over his war horse, jumped on and rushed towards the 218th Brigade's garrison.

  The 109th Brigade of the 29th Army had two regiments, namely the 217th Regiment led by Wang Changhai and the 218th Regiment led by Tong Jinying. There was also a cavalry regiment with two battalions stationed in Lengkou, commanded by Deputy Brigade Commander He Jigang.

  The 109th Division was one of the most powerful divisions in the 29th Army, with a reputation for being "fierce and fearless". The 217th Regiment under Wang Changhai was particularly elite. Most soldiers were young people from North China and Northwest China. The land of Yan and Zhao has been known for its bold and fierce folk customs since ancient times, and the 29th Army is even more strictly disciplined, so it has strong combat effectiveness.

  The messenger rushed all the way and arrived at the 218th Regiment's barracks. Before he could dismount, he saw Colonel Zhao Dengyu walking out of the main gate of the 218th Regiment with Regimental Commander Tong Jinying by his side. The two were walking and talking about something.

  The orderly jumped off his horse and ran to Zhao Dengyu's face, saluted: "Commander Zhao!"

  Zhao Dengyu raised his head and saw that it was a messenger from the division headquarters. He then asked: "Are there any instructions from the division commander?"

  The orderly took out a letter from his file bag and handed it to Zhao Dengyu, saying: "The commander's letter to you, it's an urgent order!"

  "Oh!"

  Zhao Dengyu took over the order and unfolded it to take a look, his eyebrows furrowed.

  Tong Jinying looked at the traveler with a puzzled expression by her side.

  After finishing reading, Zhao Dengyu put away the letter and said to the messenger, "Go back and tell your commander that I know, everything is fine, don't worry, I won't let him down!"

  Chuan Lingbing responded with a single word and mounted his horse, galloping away.

  Tong Jingyuan saw the orderly leave, and Zhao Dengyu was still lowering his head in thought, not speaking. He approached him and asked: "Commander, what happened?"

  Zhao Dengyu woke up from his contemplation and handed him the letter in his hand.

  Tong Jinjing took over the letter and turned it over for half a day. Finally, he sighed with a bitter smile: "Traveler, I don't recognize characters!"

  Zhao Dengyu scolded with a smile: "Let you young man learn some characters, you young man just don't learn, now eat bitterness!"

  "Hehe!" Tóng Jǐnyíng stroked his bald head and laughed.

  "The commander said that the Japanese army occupied Chifeng on March 2, and the Matsuda unit occupied Jianping on the 1st. The vanguard has advanced to Pao Shouying, the Kawabata unit captured Ye Baishou, and is pressing towards Lingyuan. It is reported that Lingyuan has already fallen, and now they are rushing to confirm."

  "In this way, the Great Wall defense line has been completely exposed to the Japanese army. The next step is that they will definitely attack the Lengkou, Xifengkou and Gubeikou lines. It seems that the battle is about to begin!" Zong Jinying immediately judged the situation between the two sides.

  "Yes, the Military Commissioner has already received the task assigned by the Northern China Military Commission to our army group. To ensure Ji North, against the enemy advancing from Xingcheng and Suizhong in the northwest, delay their advance, enter the mountainous area, and defeat them one by one. Commander Song personally wrote the oath 'Rather die as a battle ghost than be a slave of a lost country' with his own hand, had someone deliver it to the 37th Division, and handed it over to Commander Feng, who in turn had someone bring it to me!"

  As he spoke, Zhao Dengyu pulled out a scroll from the letter and unfolded it. On it were written in large characters: "I would rather die as a martyr than be a slave to an invader." The signature at the bottom was Song Zheyuan.

  Zhao Dengyu walked towards Dule Temple, the location of his traveling department, while instructing Tong Jinying: "You immediately notify the battalion company platoon leaders to sharpen their knives quickly, even when sleeping they must be vigilant for me!"

  Tong Jingying stood up straight and happily responded with a "Yes, Captain!"

  Zhao Dengyu turned his horse around and left!

  As Zhao Dengyu walked away, Tong Jinying turned around and roared towards the inner gate: "Brothers, all of you, cheer up!"

  As soon as Zhao Dengyu returned to Dulles Temple, he hadn't even sat down yet when a guard came to report that someone from the Japanese North China Garrison Command wanted to see him.

  Zhao Dengyu was taken aback, he didn't expect the Japanese to come knocking on his door at this critical moment before the outbreak of war. He had originally intended to instruct that he would not see them. But thinking twice, he decided to meet with him and see what tricks he had up his sleeve, also to understand a bit more about the other party's intentions. So he instructed: "Let him in!"

  Before long, the sound of wooden clogs clattering on the ground came from outside the door. A stout middle-aged Japanese man walked in from outside and, upon seeing Zhao Dengyu, hastily bowed at a 90-degree angle.

  "Japanese Garrison Commander's Deputy Chief of Staff Morita has met General Zhao Dengyu!" Morita spoke fluent Chinese.

  Zhao Dengyu looked at the patch of medicinal plaster on Morita's upper lip, suppressing his disgust, and smiled: "Mr. Morita has come recently, what brings you here?"

  Moriwake stood up, looked around and saw that Zhao Dengyu didn't even offer him a seat. He felt very displeased in his heart but since he came with a purpose today, he naturally didn't dare to show it. Instead, he said politely: "I've come to see General Zhao recently, hoping to discuss with you the efforts we can make together to establish the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere."

  He didn't notice Zhao Dengyu's gloomy face and continued to say: "General Zhao, you are also aware of the current situation. The Japanese Empire has dispatched hundreds of thousands of troops, advancing in all directions like a broken bamboo, and has occupied Shenyang, Changchun, Chengde, Shanghai, and established Manchukuo. Under the leadership of the wise and great Emperor Puyi, the people of the three northeastern provinces are working hard to establish the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere and build Manchukuo into a land of prosperity. I believe that in the near future, North China and even the entire China will become part of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. General Zhao is a wise man, shouldn't you know how to make a choice?"

  Zhao Dengyu looked at him and said coldly: "Your meaning is that I should join your Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere?"

  "Right, right! General Zhao is really clever!" Morita nodded repeatedly.

  "Let your mother's fart!" One of the staff on the side couldn't bear it anymore and picked up the big knife in the corner of the wall.

  Zhao Dengyu suddenly said: "Why not?"

  Everyone was stunned! As if they had misheard.

  Moriya was overjoyed, he originally thought that there was little hope of persuading Zhao Dengyu, but unexpectedly he agreed.

  "Long live the General!" several staff officers shouted in unison.

  Zhao Dengyu raised his hand to silence several people, then turned around and said, "But I have a condition!"

  "Oh, what conditions? General Zhao, just go ahead and mention them!" said Morita with a smile.

  "That's right, you Japanese get out of China and go back to Japan, from whence you came. Let your emperor wear mourning clothes and kowtow to apologize for the Chinese compatriots who died in vain. Maybe then I'll consider it!"

  "You... you deceived me!" Morita's face turned pale in an instant, he stretched out his hand and pointed at Zhao Dengyu, his fingers trembling non-stop.

  Zhao Dengyu stood up; "Damn you, you little Japanese devils ran to our China to burn, kill, loot and plunder, doing all sorts of evil, how many innocent Chinese people died at your hands, what kind of Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere are you talking about? Do you think everyone is like that Puyi, forgetting their ancestors, betraying their ancestors? I spit on you, I hate you bunch of bastards, I wish I could smash each and every one of you to pieces, grind you into powder, burn you to ashes, it still wouldn't be enough!"

  "Ah!" Morita suddenly flew into a rage and reached for his pistol.

  The guards kicked him to the ground with one foot and snatched the gun out of his hand.

  Morita fell to the ground, still shouting loudly and rudely.

  Everyone glared at Morita in anger, and the staff officer who had just taken out a sword came over to ask, "Commander, what should we do with this kid?"

  Zhao Dengyu waved his hand, "Take him out and cut off his tongue!"

  The staff officer happily responded with a loud "Ah", and dragged Morita out by the scruff of his neck, holding a large sword in one hand.

  Mori was flabbergasted, he didn't expect Zhao Dengyu to do such a thing. He immediately stopped cursing and shouted loudly: "You can't do this! My great Japanese Empire's overseas citizens are protected by international law, not you Chinese people, you can't harm me!"

  The staff officer sneered at him: "You're just a heavenly king, but today you won't be able to run away!"

  A scream like killing pigs came from outside the door!

  Zhao Dengyu gazed at the map on the table, and involuntarily thought of that young man with a dark face who was not given to smiling or talking, whom he had encountered during that terrain reconnaissance mission when they were ambushed.

  It was he who had already foreseen the current situation at that time.

  "Qin Yang, where are you, kid? Why haven't you come yet!"

  Zhao Dengyu let out a sigh!

  ————————————————————————————————————————————

  Chapter 2 is here today, this book has been signed, rest assured to collect and recommend, won't be TJ, hope everyone will support!

  ;