The winter of 1937 was extremely cold. Howling cold winds swept south from Siberia. Most of China was frozen and shrouded in severe cold.
The Japanese troops who captured the capital Nanjing also stopped continuing their offensive and were busy consolidating the occupied areas, began to rest and reorganize their troops, and train the security forces.
In just four months, the Japanese army fought from Shanghai to Nanjing. Although they defeated the resistance of nearly one million Chinese troops, their non-stop attacks were exhausting and their troops were also severely damaged.
Therefore, after capturing Nanjing, the Japanese army only sent a small force to attack Chuzhou on the outskirts of Nanjing, and then entered a rest period after the Yangzhou line.
The Japanese troops are busy resting and replenishing their troops, preparing for the next battle, while the Chinese side is also not idle and is also preparing nervously.
The defeats in the Battle of Shanghai and the Battle of Nanjing made the Chinese government completely give up hope on international mediation and intervention. The lessons learned with blood and tears made the top management change their strategy, from stubbornly defending one city and one place to trading space for time.
, hoping to fight for a long time through broad depth.
The fall of Nanjing caused the Chinese side to give up the idea of peace talks and instead actively prepare for war. A steady stream of new soldiers from the rear were transported to the frontline units that suffered heavy losses for training. Countless weapons, ammunition and food were also pulled to the front line one by one. Railway lines and
The highway is as busy as ants passing by.
The two battles of Shanghai and Nanjing caused heavy losses to China. Thousands of wounded soldiers were transported to the rear. Insufficient medical staff resulted in a large number of wounded soldiers dying of infection.
Taking advantage of the temporary lull in the war, countless volunteer young students and frontline medical soldiers were transferred to the wartime capital Wuhan for assault training and study to supplement the huge gap in field hospitals in various war zones.
Zhang Hongying was also sent to Wuhan along with a large number of selected female medical soldiers. When leaving, she hugged Yang Ling to see him off and burst into tears.
The two met and got to know each other on the smoke-filled battlefield. This life-and-death relationship was stronger than gold and stone. Thinking that she would be separated from Yang Ling for a long time, Zhang Hongying couldn't hold back her tears.
"Okay, okay, stop crying, girls look good when they smile." Yang Ling, as if coaxing a child, gently patted the crying and sad Zhang Hongying.
Yang Ling was also reluctant to give up, but he also knew in his heart that the front line was very dangerous. Zhang Hongying would be safer if she could return to Wuhan in the rear. He hoped that she could stay in a safe place.
Yang Ling's comfort not only did not stop her crying, but made her even more sad. It was not until the train started that she reluctantly boarded the train.
"You must take good care of yourself and take care of yourself——"
Zhang Hongying's eyes were red and swollen from crying. She leaned out of the train window, waved her arms and shouted at Yang Ling as hard as she could.
Yang Ling also waved to her: "Don't worry, you have to take care of yourself too."
Zhang Hongying's voice became farther and farther away as the train moved away, and in the end, only the sound of the howling wind was left.
Looking at the train that finally turned into a black spot and disappeared, Yang Ling's heart suddenly became empty and she felt an unprecedented sense of loss.
But he also knew in his heart that in this raging war era, the love of being together does not exist. He is a soldier, and his duty is to protect his family and the country.
Now that the Japanese aggressors were ferocious and his family and country were in ruins, he quickly recovered from his loss and devoted himself wholeheartedly to the training of the troops.
After the Battle of Nanjing, there were only 350 surviving veterans of the 301st Regiment of the 71st Army, and their morale was low. Faced with this mess, Yang Ling took on the responsibility of his deputy commander.
The remaining brothers were beaten miserably in Nanjing and were beaten into a panic. When they retreated to Bengbu, they no longer looked like human beings. They were all dejected and lifeless, without any vitality.
Yang Ling, with the cooperation of First Battalion Commander Lu Xing, began to reorganize the troops. The original 350 brothers plus the nearly 200 brothers brought over by Yang Ling were reorganized.
Lu Xing still serves as the commander of the first battalion, and the commander of the second battalion is from the 58th Division
The transferred Major Chen Ming served as the commander of the third battalion, and the acting deputy commander Yang Ling himself served as the commander of the third battalion.
Lao Yanqiang was promoted by Yang Ling to become the deputy battalion commander of the third battalion. Wang Meng, Liu Yidao, and Wang Huzi also continued to serve as field company commanders, and Qin Shou was promoted to the commander of the special agent company directly under the regiment.
The original group of old brothers have all gone their own way, for example, Shunzi was promoted to deputy company commander, and Wang Zikun, a student soldier who had just joined the army in Nanjing and was considered a veteran of the war, was promoted to squad leader.
Yang Ling's reorganization allowed the 301st Regiment to build its frame again. Although there were insufficient soldiers and many companies and platoons were seriously vacant, Yang Ling was not in a hurry at all. He had already received news that additional soldiers were on the way.
Because Yang Ling had conducted a thorough investigation of each company in advance, he had no objections to the officer adjustment this time and was convinced of him.
After the reorganization was completed, Yang Ling began to improve morale. First, he ordered the cooking squads of each company to boil water and ordered every brother to take a bath.
Although many brothers in their regiment were issued new cotton-padded clothes, they were reluctant to wear them. They were still wrapped in the dirty clothes from the battlefield and looked unkempt and disheveled.
"You guys should take a shower first. It's freezing out here. Why take a shower? You're just messing around."
First company commander Wang Meng stayed in the warm bed and refused to come out.
Yang Ling was not polite: "With one knife, take it out for me!"
"Okay!" Liu Yidao rolled up his sleeves, and with a few brothers, he dragged the captain and company commander Wang Meng out of bed and began to take off his clothes.
"Hey, what are you doing? What are you doing?" Wang Meng was pushed to the ground, and his brothers hurriedly helped to pull off his clothes. He shouted hurriedly.
But the brothers were polite to him, stripped him naked and threw him into the steaming vat, causing water to splash everywhere.
"Liu Yidao, I'm not done with you." Wang Meng didn't want to take a shower. In his eyes, the smoke and dirt on his body was the best honor of a soldier. It was only for veterans who had fought in the war.
Now that he was stripped naked and thrown into the bathtub, he couldn't help but cursed, and the brothers around him burst into laughter.
Their Captain Wang was a fierce general in battle, but he was not afraid of taking a bath. Every one of his brothers leaned forward and backward with joy, and Liu Yidao kept pouring water on Wang Meng with a gourd, causing Wang Meng to scold him repeatedly but he was helpless.
The brothers washed away the gunpowder smoke and dirt all over their bodies and put on brand new cotton military uniforms. The unkempt and decadent appearance was swept away, giving people a brand new look.
In addition, Yang Ling specially went to Bengbu City, bought a large number of recent newspapers, and gathered the brothers to read the newspapers to them.
Most of these newspapers reported on what the Japanese troops did during the Nanjing city raids. They massacred civilians, looted, and killed soldiers who laid down their weapons in droves.
In addition to reading newspapers, Yang Ling also found some stragglers who had escaped to come forward and speak out. Most of them were people who had narrowly escaped death during the massacre by the Japanese army. They choked up and recounted their experiences.
"We didn't get the news when we retreated. When we got the news, all the surrounding fighting troops had withdrawn. We were surrounded in Shogun Mountain for several days and nights without food. The Japanese asked us to put down our weapons in exchange for food, saying that this war was between them and
Chairman Chiang’s conflict has nothing to do with us soldiers. We were too hungry and believed the Japs. However, we were kidnapped by the Japs as soon as we laid down our weapons. What a pity for our more than 3,000 brothers, who were all driven to the Yanziji River.
The Japanese used machine guns to attack..."
This brother who had narrowly escaped death wiped away tears as he spoke. He spoke with real emotion, saying that the atrocities committed by the Japanese invaders were worse than animals. The brothers who were sitting and listening below had their eyes reddened and felt suffocated in their hearts. They wished they could do it now.
He went back with a gun to take revenge.
After several speeches, the original depressed attitude of the brothers disappeared, and each brother became murderous. Yang Ling used the atrocities of the Japanese invaders to arouse their common hatred.
"Deputy Commander Yang, your method really works."
Major Battalion Commander Lu Xing admired Yang Ling's admirable attitude. He did not expect that a few simple speeches could boost the morale of the brothers.
Yang Ling also knew that the brothers were simmering with anger, so he struck while the iron was hot. He told Lu Xing: "Our morale has improved, and we will start training tomorrow."
If the army wants to win the war, it cannot just rely on momentum. Yang Ling also hopes to improve the combat effectiveness of his brothers through rigorous training, so that the next time he encounters the Japanese army, he will avenge this blood revenge!
"Yes!" Lu Xing now obeyed Yang Ling's orders without question.