Lei Xiong and his company blew up the Suzhou River Bridge in front of the concession garrison and retreated back into the warehouse with great determination.
Such a sudden scene made the commander of the concession garrison, Brigadier General Smartet, who came here personally to command and contact the Chinese defenders, couldn't help but open his mouth. When Zhang Boting walked up to him, the general from the Empire where the sun never sets suppressed his anger.
: "General Zhang, what do the soldiers under your command mean?"
"I'm sorry, General Smartet, this infantry company under my command has mutinied. They have been expelled from the military by our army. From now on, anything they do has nothing to do with our government." Zhang Boting shook his head and sighed with a bitter look on his face.
"You have violated the agreement we made during the day. You should know very well what this means? It means that your government will not receive support from all walks of life in the West at the upcoming League of Nations conference." Brigadier General Smallet's eyes showed
Hanguang continued to put pressure on Zhang Boting. "I hope you can persuade them to cross the river, abandon their positions, and fulfill the agreement we made today."
"General Smartet, do you think these soldiers can still come over after blowing up the Suzhou River Bridge?" Xie Jinyuan took a step forward and said in a deep voice.
"General Zhang, who is this?" The fifty-year-old old man from the Sun Never Sets Empire had gray hair and a stubborn goatee. He raised his beard arrogantly and glanced at Xie Jinyuan, who took the initiative to interrupt.
Said: "I think the lieutenant colonel of your army should know that it is very rude to interrupt the conversation between the two generals!"
"General Smartet, let me introduce to you, this is the commander of the Sihang Warehouse garrison, Lieutenant Colonel Xie Jinyuan, acting commander of the 542nd Regiment of our 88th Division." Zhang Boting introduced. "If you want to persuade, which department refuses to
As a soldier who can't stand a river, I think there is no one more qualified than him."
Zhang Boting's introduction was very skillful. Not only did he clearly introduce Xie Jinyuan's official position, but he also vaguely reminded the arrogant old man of the Empire in front of him that if you want your Western Concession to not be bombed, you must not offend him.
Even if he can't persuade those people, as long as he shouts over there, it will definitely make the situation worse.
But Smartet's reaction was beyond Zhang Boting's expectations. A pair of gray-blue eyes clearly retracted the unique arrogance of the empire where the sun never sets. After staring at the Chinese Army Lieutenant Colonel in front of him for a moment, the arrogant old British man took the initiative to extend his love to Xie Jinyuan.
Take action.
"Lieutenant Colonel Xie, you are the strongest and most talented school-level commander I have ever seen." Smartet held Xie Jinyuan's hand and praised him proactively.
It has to be said that this reversal of performance by the Imperial Brigadier General "The Sun Never Sets" directly shocked everyone's attention, including Zhang Boting.
He had been dealing with this man for a whole day, but he knew that this little old man from the Empire where the sun never sets was stubborn, extremely knowledgeable about military affairs, and acknowledging death. He was an extremely difficult negotiating opponent, and was extremely arrogant, so he and Shanghai Guard were wary of him.
The commander, Lieutenant General Yang, and the two generals with higher military ranks than him did not take it seriously. Who knew they would give Xie Jinyuan such high praise?
You know, he didn't say that he had seen it in China, but that he had seen it, which meant that he had participated in the First World War.
"Yes, I have experienced a brutal war and seen countless battlefields, but I am also certain that in this kind of defensive battle on a local battlefield, there is no commander who can do a better job than Lieutenant Colonel Xie."
Looking around, looking at several of his own school officers and Chinese major generals, the old man from the Sun Never Sets Empire had a slightly angry look on his face, and he explained for the first time.
"General Smartet, I accept your praise, but I want to say that you are praising the wrong person." Xie Jinyuan shook his head, and to everyone's surprise, he rejected the praise from the brigadier general of the Empire where the sun never sets.
.
With this attitude, not to mention that several Western school officials immediately looked unhappy, and even Smallet himself was so angry that his goatee stubbornly stuck out again.
Rejection of praise is more difficult to accept than rejection of criticism.
Not only China has the habit of not hitting smiling people, but all human beings have it. Good intentions always hope to meet good intentions.
"You should praise my soldiers. It is their tenacity and unafraid of sacrifice that allowed us to repel the enemy's attacks time and time again." Xie Jinyuan explained while looking back at the four hazy lines in the night.
Warehouse, eyes full of sadness: "Originally, we could have persisted longer, but it's a pity..."
The entire audience, including the Western military officers, was silent.
As soldiers, they understood the helplessness of the Chinese commander in front of them. He could have continued to fight on his position.
"You are right, the commander's command is very important, but more importantly, the soldiers can complete the commander's orders. In this regard, the soldiers under your command have done a good job. They are real soldiers, let me see
I have never seen the style of Chinese soldiers." Smartet's face looked much better, and he nodded. "If only one-half, no, one-third, of the soldiers under your Chinese commander-in-chief were like this.
, your equipment is also very sophisticated, if you have more cannons and aircraft, you will definitely win this war."
This sentence made the Chinese soldiers present even more silent.
In the Battle of Songhu, there were countless Chinese soldiers who risked their lives like them. However, when it comes to artillery and aircraft, it is a pain for all Chinese soldiers. It is not that there are none, but there are too few. Chinese soldiers almost all use them.
Their flesh and blood bodies were fighting against the Japanese aircraft and artillery. Tens of thousands of soldiers who had died in the battle could have died more valuable.
"But, Lieutenant Colonel Xie, even an excellent commander like you can't make your soldiers obey your orders? I hope that you can make them abide by the agreement signed by our army just like you command them to fight. There is no point in giving up.
Meaningful resistance." The old brigadier general of the Empire where the sun never sets finally returned to his position, "I can assure you in the name of the supreme commander of the concession garrison that your life safety will be guaranteed by the concession garrison, even when appropriate.
When the time comes, you can still return to the battlefield."
"I'm sorry, General Smartet. Chief of Staff Zhang just said that they have voluntarily given up their military membership and will no longer obey the orders of our headquarters." Xie Jinyuan slowly shook his head and turned to stare at the Sixings Warehouse in the night.
The huge figure loomed, and his words were full of sadness: "The current top commander of those soldiers has told us by blowing up the Suzhou River Bridge that the Japanese army wants to occupy it unless all of them are killed. They have no way out.
Return."
"Moreover, you are wrong to say that our army did not abide by the agreement. I have obeyed the military orders of the theater commander, led most of my soldiers to abandon our territory, left more than a hundred robes, and came to your territory.
At gunpoint, isn't it?" Xie Jinyuan turned around suddenly, with blood in his eyes. Although his voice was not loud, it was like cutting gold and stone. "If it weren't for obeying the military order, it would be me and my more than 400 men under my command.
's grave."
Facing the almost question-like answer of this Chinese Army lieutenant colonel, who had a face as white as a scholar but was impassioned, the Western officers from Brigadier General Smartet on down were speechless and no one could speak.
Yes, how could they not know the secret of this withdrawal? It was simply because they were threatened by the Japanese and feared that the war would reach the concession, so they used diplomatic force to pressure the Chinese to surrender and order the withdrawal. From a military point of view, they were also deeply ashamed.
, especially after being pointed out so bluntly by the Chinese Army Lieutenant Colonel.
Soldiers want to stay away from politics, but they have to serve dirty and ugly politics. This is also the helplessness of all soldiers present.
"Lieutenant Colonel Xie, from a military point of view, I completely agree with what you said, and I deeply sympathize and regret it, but as the commander in the concession, I also have things I want to protect. I must ensure the safety of the people in the concession, no matter who
They are Europeans, Americans or even Chinese." Smallet composed himself, "I hope you can understand the difference between an infantry company and an infantry regiment. If they do this, they may not be able to hold on for a whole day, and they will be killed on the battlefield.
.Even if the Japanese only need to deploy two more heavy artillery pieces, the strong and thick walls of the Sihang Warehouse will not be able to protect them. The Japanese may have no patience."
"No, General Smartet, if your country is not at war, you won't understand." Xie Jinyuan shook his head, "Sometimes, dignity is more important than life."
"What they want to protect is China's dignity, and what they want to give up is themselves."
After leaving these words, Xie Jinyuan strode away from the silent negotiation scene again and returned to the front of nearly 300 soldiers who were standing neatly.
In front of him, nearly an infantry regiment of Western soldiers, armed with live ammunition, watched eagerly. No matter where he was, he wanted to be with his soldiers.
"Hey! He is an excellent commander and a real Chinese soldier." Smartet was silent for a moment and gave Xie Jinyuan another comment. "We should give them the treatment of real soldiers."
"But, General, we promised..."
A Western colonel was about to say something, but was interrupted by a stubborn old man with a goatee.
"What did you promise? We maintained neutrality and did not let these outstanding Chinese soldiers go abroad to participate in the war. If the Japanese are not satisfied, then tell the Japanese that if they want war, then come. I, Smartet, are not afraid of war.
, the ten thousand soldiers here are not afraid of war."
That night, Xie Jinyuan's troops entered a barracks where the troops were stationed in the concession. Although they failed to leave the concession, they did not surrender their weapons. This was the lowest limit that Zhang Boting, Xie Jinyuan and others could accept.
They did not know that in the past time and space, after several hours of confrontation with the concession garrison, they were once again forced to accept military orders, were disarmed, and were sealed in the barracks like prisoners.
This time, Liu Lang did not help. Although the little foreign girl might have the ability due to her family background in the Empire where the sun never sets, Liu Lang did not do that. Not only was he afraid of debt, but Liu Lang believed that this time,
Xie Jinyuan has the confidence to earn the treatment he deserves.
Dignity does not come through prayer, but through one's own perseverance.
In the four-day battle of Sihang Warehouse, more than a thousand Japanese invaders were killed and wounded, which showed the tenacity of the warehouse defenders.
Moreover, this time, there are still more than a hundred defenders still clinging to the Sixing Warehouse, which is also the reason for the officers and soldiers to be forced into the concession. If they are treated unfairly, then at the last moment, the more than 100 people in the warehouse will
, might not have the ability to turn the Sihang Warehouse into a super explosive barrel.
Do you think that the Brigadier General of the Empire, who has a lot of experience in the world and the sun never sets, would take the huge risk of going to war with the Japanese and reject them just because these Chinese soldiers are very good soldiers? You are really thinking too much.
He appreciates real soldiers, but that doesn't mean he can emotionally joke with the lives of millions of concession residents. Lei Xiong and his infantry company also put enough pressure on the experienced concession garrison commander.
People who can even give up their military status, people who can even give up their lives, are much scarier than the Japanese who just talk nonsense.