Liu Xing stood there without speaking. Seeing Yang Ling's serious look, he was confused. Is there something that cannot be said here?
Yang Ling was also very worried. As the deputy commander of the Nanjing garrison, Liu Xing held a high position and had a lot of generals under his command.
Although he had been interviewed by Liu Xing several times and had a good impression in Liu Xing's mind, Yang Ling was not sure whether he would give him a chance to talk to him alone as a small battalion commander.
"You come with me."
After Liu Xing was stunned for a few seconds, he decided to listen to what Yang Ling wanted to say.
Hearing Liu Xing's words, Yang Ling also breathed a sigh of relief. No matter whether the persuasion was successful or not, he had to try his best and followed Liu Xing into a separate room next to him.
The furnishings of the room were very simple. Yang Ling closed the door and he and Liu Xing were the only two people left in the room.
Liu Xing walked to the chair and sat down, took out a box of cigarettes from the pocket of the woolen coat, lit it for himself, raised his head and stared at Yang Ling and said, "If you have anything to do, tell me now."
"Yes!" Yang Ling knew that the opportunity was fleeting, so without any delay, he poured out all his inner thoughts.
Liu Xing had been smoking a cigarette without any change on his face, making Yang Ling unable to figure out what he was thinking.
"Are you done?" After Yang Ling finished speaking for a long time, Liu Xing put out the cigarette in his hand and stood up.
"Sir Liu, I'm done."
"Do you know what you just said?!" Liu Xing's voice was filled with anger: "The Tang chief ordered the ferry to be blocked and destroyed, vowing to live and die with the city, and our soldiers also fought bloody battles against the Japanese invaders.
We must fight and shed blood and sacrifice to defend the capital, but now you are demanding that the ban on crossing the river be lifted. What are your intentions?"
Before Yang Ling could explain, Liu Xing slapped his hand hard on the wooden table: "If it weren't for your merit in killing the enemy, I would have you pulled down and shot right now for disturbing the morale of the army!
"
Yang Ling knew that for this reason, it would not be his style to remain secretive. Even if Liu Xing wanted to shoot him, if he could save the entire city's soldiers and civilians, it would be worth his while.
"Sir Liu, it is well known that the Japanese aggressors are ferocious and brutal. We saw countless towns turned into ruins along the way from Shanghai to Nanjing. Wherever the Japanese aggressors went, no humans or animals were left. There are still hundreds of thousands of residents in the city. If the city
Damn it, how can you ensure that the unarmed people will not be massacred by the Japanese invaders?"
Faced with Yang Ling's rhetorical question, Liu Xing sneered and retorted loudly: "We have generals headed by the Tang Chief in Nanjing to plan the strategy, and more than 100,000 loyal warriors below to resist to the death. How can we allow the Japanese aggressors to be rampant!"
Hearing Liu Xing's words, Yang Ling also sighed in his heart. What a waste of strategizing. When the war goes unfavorably, the fastest runners will be the officers of the garrison headquarters, leaving hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians to be slaughtered by the Japanese invaders in vain.
Yang Ling took a deep breath and continued: "Sir Liu, I'm not saying this in a depressing way. The Japanese invaders have nine divisions with more than 200,000 field elites, and we are mostly broken divisions that have been withdrawn from Shanghai. Many of them are
The troops haven't had time to replenish themselves. There are only three to four hundred men in each battalion, and some companies even have only twenty or thirty men. Let alone one hundred thousand soldiers, seventy or eighty thousand would be good. How can we fight this?"
Liu Xing also knew what Yang Ling said. Most of the troops were newly defeated divisions and most of them were not full. However, he still held on to a glimmer of hope and argued: "Even if there are only 70,000 to 80,000 soldiers, as long as we defend to the death, we will be able to defeat them all."
Kou can’t even think of occupying my capital!”
"In just one week, all of Nanjing's outer defense lines, except for Purple Mountain, fell. Commander Liu, do you think our city wall can withstand the Japanese invaders' aircraft and heavy artillery?"
Yang Ling ignored Liu Xing's stern face and continued to talk to himself: "A few days ago, the Japanese commander airdropped a letter of surrender. If we don't surrender, the day the city is broken will be the day of massacre. Commander Liu, I'm waiting for you.
Soldiers are not afraid of death. It is our honor to die on the battlefield, but you have to think about the hundreds of thousands of people. Order the ferry to be opened and let the people in the city evacuate..."
Yang Ling spoke with emotion, and Liu Xing's expression softened. He knew that Yang Ling was not afraid of death, but just didn't want the people in the city to suffer.
Liu Xing returned to his seat and sat down to light a cigarette. He never knew that Nanjing could not be defended. He also knew the strength of the Japanese army. The reason why they stayed here was just to give an explanation to the people of the country. If the capital was abandoned without a fight,
, then the public support is really gone.
Regarding Yang Ling's persuasion to immediately lift the ban on crossing the river, Liu Xing knew that this was absolutely impossible. It was now a last-ditch battle. If the frontline soldiers knew that they could cross the river and evacuate, their morale would be shaken and they would not have the courage to fight to the death. This
The last hope of guarding Nanjing City was shattered.
Liu Xing was silent for a long time and then said: "Foreigners have set up an international refugee zone in the city. Even if our army cannot defend Nanjing by then, we can still save the lives of the people stranded in the city."
Yang Ling was speechless that Liu Xing pinned his hopes on the so-called refugee zones. He knew that these so-called international refugee zones could not stop the Japanese invaders' bayonets because the Japanese invaders were already fighting like crazy.
To a certain extent, international refugee zones have also become accomplices in the massacre. Without these foreign refugee zones, the more than 300,000 stranded people would have been evacuated together with the other 600,000 to 700,000 people during the early evacuation.
You are not stuck in a refugee zone by chance.
These foreigners set up refugee zones to give the people hope of survival and allowed them to stay. However, the refugee zones failed to provide real protection, and the final result was massacre by the Japanese invaders.
"Sir Liu, the Japanese invaders have gone crazy. They don't care about international refugee zones. How can they ensure the safety of hundreds of thousands of people with just a dozen foreigners?"
The Chinese in this era rely too much on foreigners. If the Chairman of the Generalissimo did not wait for the mediation of the Nine-Nation Convention during the Songhu War and delayed the meeting, and could evacuate a week earlier, how could it have led to the subsequent great rout?
"Stop talking. As soldiers, we are powerless to win or lose the war. All we can do is abide by our duties and have a clear conscience." Liu Xing wanted to change the topic.
"Sir Liu, if the people in the city are massacred, you and I will become national sinners. How can we have a clear conscience?"
Yang Ling's rhetorical question made Liu Xing pause. He also knew that Nanjing might not be able to hold it, but he was holding on to a bit of luck. If he persuaded Tang Shengzhi now to let go of the ban on crossing the river, the general would be shaken and there would be no hope at all. He
Very confused...
"Sir Liu, I, Yang Ling, beg you on behalf of the people in the city. Release the ban and let the people cross the river to escape." Yang Ling finally pleaded.
Liu Xing also sighed: "Yang Ling, do you think I am so hard-hearted? Our garrison headquarters has never considered such a thing happening, but once the ban is lifted, the troops will only have a trace of determination to die.
If everything is gone, how can we still fight this battle?"
"I also give you a guarantee here. If Nanjing really cannot be defended, I will persuade Commander Tang to order the abolition of the ban on crossing the river. At that time, our troops will stand behind us and protect the people's evacuation to the death."
"I'm afraid it will be too late by then..."
Liu Xing waved his hand: "There is no need to talk about this matter anymore. You can go back first. Today's matter will be over here. I will not pursue you anymore. If I hear someone say that it will shake the morale of the army, I will not be lenient!"
After Liu Xing finished speaking, he strode away, leaving Yang Ling with a helpless face. He could only hope that Liu Xing could fulfill his promise by then, but as far as he knew, there might be chaos by then.