Wu Peifu has always thought highly of himself, but after encountering the Sichuan Air Force, Wu Peifu also felt a deep sense of frustration. This technical advantage cannot be made up for by tactical level. As long as the Sichuan army is willing, it can turn the generals into one.
In the sea of fire, no matter how many abilities you have, it will be of no use. Seeing this situation, Wu Peifu will not be angry. The majestic Beiyang Army has always been China's most advanced army in terms of equipment development. How come it has been defeated by the Sichuan Army today?
It was exceeded, and the huge gap made Cao Kun very worried.
"Ziyu, now that the road is cut off, I'm afraid we won't be able to get to Wuhan within a day. I think I'd like to report the situation to Your Majesty, and we'll do more emergency road repairs!"
"That's all. But after Commander-in-Chief's matter is over, we must also build our own air force. We must not let the Sichuan army do whatever we want in the air force!"
Cao Kun nodded and hurriedly sent a report to Yuan Shikai, reporting that he had suffered an air raid. At this time, Yuan Shikai also received several telegrams that had been sent half an hour ago. Zhao Erfeng sent him a telegram, saying that the persuasion failed and that the Sichuan Army would cooperate with him.
Cai E teamed up to launch an attack. Just as Zhao Erfeng's telegram arrived, Qiao Yu issued a telegram in the name of Sichuan Zheng Fu.
Accusing Yuan Shikai of destroying the Republic and claiming to be emperor, he also announced that the three southwest provinces would unite closely and jointly raise troops to fight against Yuan. At this time, Sichuan finally expressed its attitude. It has been more than half a month since Cai E announced du li.
, the Yunnan and Guizhou armies have achieved a series of victories, making Hu**'s reputation increasingly high.
With the high-profile participation of Sichuan, the Hunan Army has truly become a joint force of the three southwestern provinces. Anyone with a discerning eye knows that this armed force is absolutely capable of competing against Beiyang. It will be interesting to see how Emperor Yuan ends up.
In addition to this, there is another piece of news that is not very eye-catching. Thanks to the hard work of all workers, the Sichuan-Hankou Railway was completed three months ahead of schedule. This economic artery connecting Sichuan and Wuhan has finally been fully connected. The biggest constraint on Sichuan's development is
Road problems, now having a stable connection with the outside world will definitely greatly promote Sichuan's industrial development.
Of course, what attracts more attention is the military value of this artery. The Sichuan army can quickly attack Wuhan through the railway, and then be able to blockade the Yangtze River and confront Beiyang across the river. The significance of this railway cannot be overstated. With the smooth road
After that, the Sichuan garrison troops who had long been ready for attack quickly left Sichuan and headed straight for Wuhan. Four shallow-water gunboats also left Sichuan together.
The commander-in-chief of the Sichuan Army this time is Zhu Qinglan. He is in charge of three divisions in total. The first batch to leave Sichuan is Wang Huai's First Division. Now the train is pulling this team forward in the high mountains.
Due to considerations of construction difficulty and construction costs, the Sichuan-Hankou Railway is temporarily using narrow gauge. On the narrow gauge, there can only be small trains with a capacity of only fifteen or six tons. It is very different from the standard gauge. Qiao Yu
Of course, we know that this kind of narrow gauge will be eliminated sooner or later, but Sichuan's financial resources at that time were not enough to build a standard gauge train. When the financial resources become abundant in the future, it must be improved.
This kind of small train compartment is small, and the soldiers are densely packed in the stuffy compartment, enduring the strong smell of sweat. However, these first users of the Sichuan-Hankou Railway are still very excited. Having a train is different. They can
We worked tirelessly to bring them out of Sichuan. You must know that in the past, when walking on just two feet, this journey only lasted ten and a half months without even thinking about it. Now, it only takes more than a day to feel the three towns of Wuhan thousands of miles away.
, how could we not make these soldiers who came from peasant families very happy.
At this time, it was not only these soldiers who were paying attention to this railway, but also two old people, one was Zhao Erfeng and the other was Huang Sande.
Zhao Erfeng looked at the train going away with a smile on his face: "Shun Qing, the people of Sichuan have long been looking forward to having such a railway. We Zhao brothers don't have this ability. Now that you have built the Sichuan-Hankou Railway, it's really
What a blessing to the people, I am very happy to see Sichuan developing so fast!"
"The old governor commended him. In order to build such a railway, more than 800 workers lost their lives in the mountains. It can be said that this highway was purchased with their lives. Future generations still don't know how to evaluate it!"
During the construction of Sichuan-Hankou Road, a large number of workers died. Most of these people were former bandits. In addition, more than 20 engineering and technical personnel died. According to Qiao Yu's order, the names of all these people are engraved on the
It was placed on the stone monument and became an eternal memorial. At this moment, there were no bandits or bandits, only martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the country.
"Shun Qing, don't worry about this. I have led troops and fought in wars. You can't be afraid of sacrifice on the battlefield. The key is that sacrifice can bring greater value. The country is too weak. If it doesn't develop, it will
It's really going to end!" Zhao Erfeng looked particularly emotional, as did Huang Sande next to him.
"Qiao Shuai, I have been visiting Sichuan for several months. It can be said that I see the hope of China's future. What China needs most is the spirit of hard work, not the rhetoric of revolutionaries. I will return to the United States immediately to meet Brother Situ.
Let’s discuss it. We will try our best to mobilize overseas Chinese to return to China to participate in construction. As Mr. Zhao said, don’t worry about sacrifices. There is no way around it. Who told us that we were not enterprising before? Now we must pay the price. The key is that the price is worth it.
of!"
The two old men left Sichuan, and Qiao Yu also received the news of the successful bombing at this time. The Lu-Han Railway was cut off, and it would take at least three days to repair it, and it was still more than 300 kilometers away from Wuhan. If it relied on two
It may take more than ten days to travel on one leg, and since there is no air superiority, Sichuan's air force can be dispatched to harass the Beiyang Army at any time. This makes it even more difficult for Beiyang to send troops to the south.
It can be said that the Sichuan Army seized the initiative in the war as soon as they entered the war. At this time, even though Wu Peifu was extremely capable, there was nothing he could do about the damaged railway line.
"Ziyu, something bad is happening. The Sichuan-Hankou Railway has been fully opened to traffic. This means that the Sichuan Army can use this railway to invade Hubei in a large scale. I'm worried that Zhang Jingyao can't resist it at all, and Ma Jizeng, Long Jiguang and others can't resist Cai E.
With our fortifications, half of the country south of the Yangtze River is about to fall!"
"Commander, I'm afraid Sichuan has been waiting for this opportunity. Our intelligence is so backward that we don't even know when the Sichuan-Hankou Railway will open to traffic. No wonder we are so passive. The current situation is indeed critical. I think the only way is to let Feng Guozhang come forward.
Deploy troops from Nanjing to assist Wuhan, so there is still a chance of fighting, otherwise something really bad will happen!"
Cao Kun and Wu Peifu were anxious and had no choice but to make a fuss in Bei Jing. After the news of the Sichuan Air Force's dispatch spread, the whole city of Bei Jing was in chaos. Lao Yuan gathered the civil and military officials to discuss carefully, but
These people don't know much about the new military branch of the Air Force, and they don't know how to deal with it. What worries them even more is that once the three towns of Wuhan fall into the hands of the guards, half of the country will be lost. The current situation looks worse than the Xinhai
The North-South confrontation in 2006 was even more terrifying.
Those who were cheering for Yuan's ascension to the throne a few days ago all felt chills. Sichuan was really powerful, with extraordinary attacks, and it could hit a snake seven inches away. Now Yuan Shikai's situation is getting more and more difficult.
At this time, Lao Yuan had ascended the throne and became the emperor, but he did not look radiant now and was extremely haggard. As Yuan Shikai's confidant Yang Du saw this, he felt quite uncomfortable mentally. He originally thought that ascending the throne was only the first step.
Then Lao Yuan needed to rely on the authority of the emperor to carry out drastic reforms. Little did he know that a proclaimed emperor event would consume all Lao Yuan's efforts. Instead, he maintained it more perfunctorily without a trace of vitality. Although Yang Du was full of regrets, he also
I couldn’t bear to give up my lifelong dream just like that.
"Your Majesty, although Hubei is in danger, Zhang Jingyao still has 30,000 elite troops in his hands. Wu Xiangzhen and Li Binzhi's two mixed brigades will soon arrive in Wuhan, and they still have the strength to fight. In addition, I suggest that Your Majesty can let Feng Guozhang send troops to take the Yangtze River waterway.
Aid Wuhan, and also order the Shaanxi-Gansu army to speed up their march, attack Beichuan, and contain the Sichuan army!" After Yang Du finished speaking, Yuan Shikai nodded slightly, not seeming to be particularly excited.
At this moment, Yang Shiqi stood up and said, "Your Majesty, Wei Chen believes that this time the Sichuan Army relies solely on the power of aircraft, and we currently do not have weapons that can match it. Wei Chen feels that we can ask for help from the great powers as soon as possible to form our air force.
In this way, the advantage of the Sichuan army can be offset."
After hearing Yang Shiqi's words, Lao Yuan's eyes suddenly lit up. This was indeed a good method. As long as the great powers could support it, they could deal with the Sichuan Army. In Yuan Shikai's eyes, the great powers were omnipotent.
The Beiyang Army fell into a passive situation, but the Sichuan Army firmly seized this rare opportunity. Zhu Qinglan led three divisions to attack Wuhan. As soon as Xia Douyin, who was still fighting fiercely in Hankou, heard the news, he immediately knew that victory was at hand.
Beiyang looked huge, but its real combat power was not strong. The air force was able to seize such a huge advantage as soon as it came out, which surprised Xia Douyin.
Soon the Sichuan Army appeared in the three towns of Wuhan. There were shallow-water gunboats of the Sichuan Army on the river, which had firmly blocked the Yangtze River route. The Beiyang Army could not transport any soldiers and supplies to Hankou. Zhu Qinglan commanded the army to land in Hankou.
Join forces with Xia Douyin's troops.
"Commander Zhu, I am ashamed of my humble position. I failed to completely capture Hankou. Most of the train station is still under the control of the Beiyang Army!"
"Commander Xia, Beiyang is the strongest army in the world, and Wu Xintian is also a strong general. It is already very good that you can fight to this level. Now that the Sichuan-Hankou Railway is connected, coupled with the advantage of the air force, the Beiyang Army is just a turtle in the urn. We
We will soon capture the three towns of Wuhan and give Yuan Shikai a blow!"
Zhu Qinglan has enough confidence to say this. He now has nearly 60 heavy artillery pieces and 30 aircraft in his hands. With sufficient supplies, he can definitely crush any counterattack by Beiyang with this power.