After the fall of Wuhan, Okamura Ningji lost face because he suffered heavy losses in the Battle of Wanjialing. Therefore, he did not give up and commanded the divisions of the 11th Army under his command to pursue the retreating troops of the Ninth Theater.
Taking advantage of the situation, they successively captured Xianning, Tongcheng and other places, and on November 11th, they captured Yueyang. Taking advantage of the clear weather, the Japanese aircraft also began to frequently and indiscriminately bomb Changsha and other places.
Although the troops belonging to China's Ninth Theater have deployed defenses along the Xiushui River and Xinqiang River to prevent Okamura Yoshiji's 11th Army from continuing to invade Changsha.
However, hundreds of thousands of refugees and a large number of troops transferred from the Wuhan area poured into Changsha, and various rumors were flying all over the sky, making Changsha become a place of great concern.
"The Japanese have already crossed the Xinqiang River and are heading towards Changsha!"
"The Japs are less than fifty miles away from Changsha..."
...
Various rumors undoubtedly made people in Changsha panic. In addition, on the 11th, the Chairman sent two telegrams to the Chairman of the Hunan Provincial Government, demanding that the "scorched earth war of resistance" be persisted.
Once Changsha cannot be defended, no bricks or grains of food can be left to the little devils. With all kinds of news flying all over the sky, Changsha has to be prepared to burn the city.
However, there was an agreement in advance that the city was not allowed to be burned unless absolutely necessary. After all, Changsha is a thousand-year-old city, and all provincial government agencies and banking schools are in Changsha.
The number of refugees pouring into Changsha has reached 300,000 to 400,000. Once the city of Changsha is burned down, the damage caused will be immeasurable.
However, the situation was too chaotic at that time. On the night of the 13th, the leading troops of the 74th Army retreating to Changsha and deploying defenses arrived on the outskirts of Changsha. The people who set fire to the city thought that the Japanese had attacked outside the city, and began to set fire to the city without confirming it.
city.
As one location started to set fire, other agreed locations began to light fires one after another. With the help of the night wind, in a short period of time, the entire Changsha was plunged into a sea of flames.
The fire burned for two days and two nights, burning this thousand-year-old city to ashes. When the fire broke out in Changsha, the little devil was still blocked by the troops of the Ninth War Zone at the Xinqiang River and Xinqiang River hundreds of miles away.
What about Xiushui River?
When Yang Ling and others arrived in Changsha by car, the entire city was almost burned, black ash was floating in the sky, and the city was in ruins.
"Quick, gather, gather!"
The officers and soldiers who had just got off the bus did not have time to take a breath before they had to assemble and run into Changsha City to carry out rescue and maintain order.
Changsha turned into a Shura field. The smell of burning wafted in the air. As far as the eye could see, it was charred and black. There was not a complete building left. Many people who died in the fire were lying on the roadside, and their appearance could no longer be distinguished.
"Whoever set the fire will be dragged out and shot ten thousand times!"
Seeing the tragic situation in the city, the brothers were naturally angry. Thinking of last year, in order to stop the Japanese troops, the Military Commission ordered to blow up the Huayuankou Yellow River embankment, turning dozens of counties into a swamp, and the people in the floods were flooded.
There are more than a million people, and the current situation is so similar.
The brothers were cursing while rescuing the burned people from the rubble. The officers and soldiers who lived in Changsha were crying loudly, which made the brothers feel even more uncomfortable.
"Scorched Earth Resistance, Scorched Earth Resistance, why didn't his house burn down!" Looking at the miserable situation, some people couldn't help but yell.
In the battle with the Japs, in order to preserve its strength and for the sake of the so-called grand strategy, the Chinese people endured too much suffering. They were burned, flooded, and abandoned in Nanjing to be massacred by the Japs...
Even in this difficult situation, the Chinese people who were in dire straits still scrimped on food and clothing, tightened their belts and donated excess food to the front line to resist the invaders.
Although the people did not get anything from the country, every time the army was recruited, the people sent their sons and husbands to the front line to fight without any complaints, fighting for the country, and honoring their ancestors.
However, after every battle, almost every family in many villages and towns wears mourning, and the tragedy of white-haired people giving away black-haired people is played out in countless families.
In the battle with the Japs, tens of millions of casualties were just a cold series of casualties. But behind the scenes, how many people can deeply understand the suffering that the Japs have caused to the Chinese nation?
Wives and children were separated, families were destroyed...
The city was in ruins, and the Japs were blocked at the line of Xiushui River and Xinqiang River, facing each other across the river from the troops belonging to the Ninth War Zone.
The Japanese were unable to attack Changsha for a while, and the 74th Army troops that went to Changsha to deploy defenses had no combat missions for a short time. Under the orders of the superiors, they began to help maintain order and rebuild houses for the people.
Although the houses can be rebuilt in a short period of time, the wealth of the thousand-year-old city was completely burned in the fire, which has to be said to be a huge loss.
The fire in Changsha had an extremely bad impact. Not only the people were filled with resentment, but even the troops had many accusations against the government. The hearts of the brothers were full of resentment.
They fought bloody battles against the Japs on the front lines, but in the rear, in order to carry out the scorched-earth war of resistance, their homes were burned down by the officials before the Japs came.
Since hundreds of thousands of people in Nanjing were killed by the Japs, the Yellow River burst open and flooded more than 40 counties and districts, and now a fire has burned Changsha... The actions of the government have aroused public outrage.
Although the little devil was said to be extremely vicious, nothing the government did was considered for the people. After the fire, in order to calm the people's anger, the government ordered a thorough investigation into the whole story.
The investigation was carried out very quickly. Just a few days later, news came that Hunan Provincial Chairman Zhang Zhizhong had been dismissed from office on the spot, and a large number of people, including the head of Changsha's Second Guard Regiment and the chief of police, were arrested and shot.
After receiving the news, Yang Ling was already lying on the bed in the field hospital. The journey was bumpy and tiring, and he was busy directing the troops to fight fires and disasters for several days and nights.
His physical strength was severely exhausted, and the bullet wound was not treated in time due to the poor conditions on the battlefield, resulting in wound infection, forcing him to be admitted to the hospital to recuperate.
Although the national government's handling of the Changsha fire was unprecedentedly vigorous, and even the provincial chairman could not escape, when looking at the underlying reasons, the so-called "scorched earth war of resistance" policy was the most important driving force.
Without this order, Changsha would not have piled all the streets and houses with firewood and poured gasoline on them in preparation for burning the city, and there would have been no subsequent accidental ignitions.
Although the matter was solved almost perfectly, the person who took the blame was found, and the people saw that a large number of people were dealt with, and the anger in their hearts gradually calmed down, the hearts of the people and the government were lost in the repeated attempts to commit suicide.
Yang Ling is a soldier, and his duty is to defend his country against invaders, so he doesn't bother to ask about the so-called current politics.
The Japanese were blocked by troops belonging to the Ninth War Zone at the front line of Xinqiang River and Xiushui River. After the Japanese captured Wuhan, they were actually unable to continue the attack because the battle line was too long.
The Japanese would not be able to fight for a while, the war gradually subsided, and away from the smoke battlefield, Yang Ling enjoyed a rare rest in the hospital.