The Japanese pursuers were like beasts with fangs baring their fangs, chasing and beating the retreating Chinese troops. Not to be outdone, the swarms of bombers caught up from behind and bombed the crowds of people indiscriminately.
The terrain of the plain area gave the troops and civilians who crowded the roads nowhere to hide. Amidst the huge fires and explosions, blood was everywhere, limbs were flying everywhere, and countless people were blown to pieces.
Yang Ling and his small force at the rear continued to exchange fire with the approaching Japanese troops. Although many Japanese troops were killed under Yang Ling's command, they themselves also suffered heavy losses.
In this plain area, which is conducive to the movement of the Japanese mechanized troops, the refugees and retreating troops can run fast, but how can they compare with the Japanese pursuers with cavalry and armored vehicles.
Seeing the Japanese troops approaching from behind, the main force of the 74th Army evacuated to Qinyang, Henan Province and stopped to prepare to rely on buildings to resist. The troops quickly repaired fortifications and dug trenches. A new battle was about to begin.
When the Chinese troops and thousands of refugees retreating from the Lanfeng battlefield were about to be overtaken and eliminated by the Japanese mechanized troops, the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress in Wuhan was also extremely anxious.
Not to mention the consequences of the destruction of more than 100,000 elite Central Army troops, once the Japanese army moves westward from central Henan and takes the Pinghan Line straight down to Wuhan, with Wuhan's current strength, it will be impossible to stop the Japanese offensive.
At this moment, Wuhan, as the capital of the war, not only gathered millions of people, but also countless factories, schools, party and government agencies. If the Japanese army took over everything, then the country would really be destroyed.
At this critical moment, the plan to bomb the Yellow River to block the Japanese army was once again placed in front of the Supreme Military Council. On the one hand, it was the danger of national subjugation, and on the other hand, the lives and deaths of millions of residents and the inestimable economic and property losses after the breach.
After a night of intense discussions, the Wuhan Supreme Military Commission finally decided to approve the First Theater District's motion to blow up the Yellow River dykes to intercept the Japanese troops.
A call from the Supreme Military Council was made to the headquarters of the First Theater Command overnight, and engineering troops from two regiments rushed to Zhaokou on the south bank of the Yellow River overnight to begin work on breaking the embankment.
But things did not go smoothly. The engineers worked hard to excavate and blast, but in the end the earth and rocks from the blast blocked the gap, so they had to re-select the blasting point.
Faced with the Wuhan Military Commission's repeated inquiries about the progress, Cheng Qian, the commander of the First Theater District who was sweating profusely with anxiety, had to send the New 8th Division, which had just blown up the Yellow River Bridge, to Huayuankou to dig and blast again.
When the troops of the New 8th Division evacuated the residents of the villages downstream of the breach, while digging profusely with sweat, the fiercely attacking Japanese troops had already entered Kaifeng. No one cared about the lives of the residents further away. They just wanted to
Finish the blasting early.
After two days and nights of work by thousands of people, a large hole thirty meters wide was finally opened near the entrance of the garden. A torrent poured down and swept downstream, turning into a vast ocean as far as the eye could see.
Watching the turbulent torrent rolling down, the officers and soldiers who stood on the river and worked hard for two days and nights completed their mission, but they didn't know whether to be happy or sad.
Although the breach of the Yellow River could block the pursuit of the Japanese army, hundreds of thousands of people further downstream would suffer disaster. The officers and soldiers who opened the breach felt heavy.
"Young and old men in the lower reaches, our brothers are also executing military orders, I'm sorry -" A battalion commander couldn't help but burst into tears, knelt down and kowtowed to the lower reaches.
The brothers who were covered in mud all knelt down and kowtowed to the downstream direction. They dug out the mouth of the Yellow River. They had no choice but to do so. The country was poor and the family was weak. They could only stop the Japanese army in this way and avoid the destruction of the country and the species.
One of the regiment leaders fired into the air and roared with grief and anger: "Brothers, remember today, we have to blame the devil for this!"
The raging floods rolled down the entire southeastern Henan region, and the people who had no time to move were swept farther away by the torrent.
The leading troops of the Japanese 14th and 16th Divisions also suffered a devastating disaster. Seeing the torrent sweeping in, they scrambled to climb onto the roof.
However, the earthen houses were quickly washed away by the turbulent floods. Those evil-doing Japanese soldiers fell into the water with horrified eyes and disappeared after a few waves.
The Japanese mechanized troops fell into the swamp and mud overnight and were unable to extricate themselves. Many small troops were even involved in the floods and disappeared.
Facing Zeguo blocking the way, the elite Japanese pursuit divisions had to retreat in a hurry to avoid catastrophe.
The troops of the 74th Army retreating to Qinyang, Henan Province also heard the thunderous roar from behind, like thousands of troops galloping. They thought it was the Japanese pursuing troops.
But soon news came that the troops of the New 8th Division had blasted the opening of the Yellow River at Huayuankou, and everything behind them had been flooded.
After hearing the news, the soldiers in the army were struck by thunder and couldn't react for a while.
Those brothers who were from southeastern Henan reacted and yelled at the New 8th Division. They were going to take revenge on them with guns in hand. Their families were all gone. Who could accept it?
The commanders of the troops at all levels stepped forward in time to stop the angry brothers, showed their righteousness to them, and began to persuade them.
Those brothers who came from the flooded areas were finally persuaded by the superiors at all levels to come down. Thinking of their relatives whose lives were uncertain, these tough men couldn't help crying anymore, and the entire army was enveloped in an atmosphere of grief.
Yang Ling's heart was equally heavy. Although he had known that such a day would come, he could not stop it. Firstly, because of his humble position, and secondly, compared to the danger of national subjugation, blowing up Huayuankou was a helpless move for a weak country.
If the Chinese army has the strength to stop the Japanese invasion, why would it sacrifice the lives of thousands of people? No one is willing to do such a stupid thing, because it will only leave eternal infamy.
But for the survival of the nation, millions of innocent people can only be sacrificed. Soldiers serve their country with their own lives. These people are also worth remembering. They all made huge sacrifices for the Chinese nation.
The Japanese pursuers were blocked at the other end of the country by the torrential floods, and the troops and people who retreated in embarrassment were finally able to take a breather.
Without the pursuers of the Japanese army, the Japanese aircraft in the sky also began to search and rescue the Japanese troops trapped in the flood. They had no time to bomb Yang Ling and the others, which gave them a rare peace of mind.
After the troops briefly rested in Qinyang, Henan for two days, the order came and the troops moved out again and arrived at Hankou via the Ping-Han Line.
The heat in June is unbearable, and the flow of people fleeing is overwhelming. Tired and dirty refugees are everywhere along the railway line. They are enduring the most profound suffering of this country and nation.
Seeing the same dirty troops walking past them, the common people had no cheers or joy, only a pair of numb eyes. This look made Yang Ling and the others uncomfortable and helpless.
Although the army fought bloody battles with the Japanese in various battlefields, thousands of people still had their homes destroyed. They were completely disappointed with the army and no longer had any illusions.
Moreover, whether it was Nanjing or the Yellow River breach, the government had been sacrificing the interests of the people for overall strategic considerations, which further deepened the people's misunderstanding of the army and the government.
In this complex social background, any explanation is futile. Yang Ling and the others feel equally aggrieved, but they can only hold it in and prepare to go to the battlefield to seek justice from the little devil.