Chapter 17: The Prelude to War in Jiangsu and Zhejiang

  September 3, 1924, at 10:00 am. In the Jiangsu First Division's position in Yixing, Jiangsu Province, thousands of officers and soldiers from the First Division gathered at the departure position.

  Wang Dashan was a new recruit in the First Division of Jiangsu, who joined the army just to have enough food to eat. In Wang Dashan's impression, military life was all about getting up early and sleeping late, being whipped by officers and bullied by veteran soldiers, always having leftover rice during meals, and never-ending chores and unwashed clothes!

  But everything changed this morning. When fetching water, the class leader smiled and said no need to do it! During breakfast, there was actually meat in every person's bowl! The most unbelievable thing is that he actually received 12 yuan of military pay!!!!!

  As a new recruit, Wang Dasha had never seen his salary before. From the morning on, everything around him was different from what he used to be. Before the age of 20, Wang Dasha, who had never left the village of Wangjia for more than 30 miles, couldn't understand these changes at all. After eating meat in the morning, he carried his gun and followed the team to run into this forest, surrounded by dense soldiers everywhere.

  The old soldiers gathered together, smoking and talking in low voices. The new recruits were either drinking water or squeezing under the shade of trees. In early September, the Jiangnan region was sweltering, with the sun hanging high in the sky, lavishly pouring out its passion.

  The class monitor was squatting next to Wang Dashan, holding a cigarette and gesturing for him to take a puff. "Cough cough" Wang Dashan took a hard drag, feeling like his lungs were on fire, his throat burning, and he couldn't help but let out a string of snot and tears.

  "Hahaha......" Several old soldiers laughed at the new recruit. The squad leader patted him on the back and said with a smile, "Later when I shout 'charge', you just keep running forward, see that village ahead?" He pointed to the village several miles away in front of the forest, "That's Zhejiang Changxing over there. You just charge in and after we win this battle, I'll get you a pot of meat to eat."

  "Monitor, you didn't cheat me?" Wang Dashan can still recall the wonderful taste of that piece of fatty meat this morning.

  "Don't worry, eat until you're full." The class monitor promised without hesitation.

  Wang Dashan wanted to say something, but suddenly felt the ground beneath his feet tremble slightly. Immediately after, he saw a large amount of dust rising from the rear not far away, and the whistling shells flew over his head like hail on a winter day, pounding into the village in front.

  Dense shells slammed into the village, kicking up large clouds of dust and flames, even louder than the firecrackers set off by Wang's family during the Spring Festival, like thunderclaps! The massive roar, the shaking earth, and the loud commotion of his colleagues left Wang Dashan completely stunned!

  Just a few minutes passed, everything suddenly stopped, as if nothing had happened. The sudden silence was terrifying. A shrill military horn sounded and countless soldiers shouted in unison "Kill!" They swarmed towards the village like ants moving house.

  King Dashan was kicked in the butt by the class leader, who shouted loudly at him with a ferocious face "Charge! Charge! Charge!"

  Wang Dashan was like a rabbit being chased by a hungry wolf, running frantically forward in the crowd, with only one thought in his mind: run forward, run forward.

  The dust in the village ahead dispersed, and a clear scene appeared before Wang Dashi. The ruined houses with broken walls, the burning roofs seemed like a ghost town. "No one's alive, right?" Just as this thought crossed his mind, a sharp whistling sound came from above!

  A familiar voice, just like the one I heard earlier. The old soldiers rushed to the ground with a whoosh, and Wang Dashan even stepped on someone's back. Before he could react, dense shells exploded among the charging soldiers.

  Dust and dirt fill the air, the ground shakes violently, and a massive explosion almost shatters eardrums! Shrapnel flies everywhere, and a huge shockwave turns this place into an earthly hell. Flesh and blood fly through the air, severed limbs dance in the sky.

  King Dashan, who was knocked to the ground by the air wave, felt as if he had been smashed in the chest with a heavy iron hammer. The intense pain made him let out a mournful cry. Except for the buzzing sound in his ears, he couldn't hear anything else. An arm wearing a watch fell from the sky and hit his chest, but King Dashan didn't notice the watch he had always envied; all he saw was the arm that was still slightly trembling!

  Go to hell with the braised pork, go to hell with the Pacific Ocean. I don't feel the severe pain in my chest, nor can I hear any sound. Wang Dashan ran back and forth like a madman, his mind only had one thought: "I want to go home!" Behind him was a large group of retreating soldiers!

  This war, which swept across half of China and took countless lives and homes, has begun!

  Commander Chen Diaoyuan of the Second Route Army of Jiangsu, under which were the 24th Division of the Central Army, the First Division of Jiangsu, the Second Mixed Brigade of Jiangsu, the Fifth Mixed Brigade of Jiangsu and the Third Mixed Brigade of Henan, first launched an attack on Changxing, Zhejiang. However, they encountered strong resistance from the Zhejiang army and their advance was blocked. The Zhejiang army and its artillery were entrenched in the mountains near Changxing, only thirty miles away from Yixing, and could directly bombard the Jiangsu army stationed near Yixing; while the Jiangsu army's artillery had little effect on the Zhejiang army as they were stationed in the mountains, resulting in heavy casualties for the Jiangsu army under intense attack.

  At 11:00 on the 3rd, Jiangsu and Zhejiang troops clashed again in the direction of Shanghai-Nanjing Railway. At 10:00, the Suzhou army stationed at Huangdu first fired at the Zhejiang army to provoke a fight, but the Zhejiang army did not fire a single shot while hiding in their fortifications. The Suzhou army thought that the Zhejiang army was afraid of fighting and launched an attack at 11:00. The Zhejiang army used machine guns and artillery to counterattack, killing about 400-500 Suzhou soldiers. The Suzhou army was greatly frightened and retreated in disarray, while the Zhejiang army took advantage of the situation to pursue them towards Anting. At 5:00 pm, they occupied Anting.

  Considering that Qi Xieyuan first provoked the Jiangsu-Zhejiang War, on the evening of September 3, Lu Yongxiang issued a "mobilization order", accusing Qi Xieyuan of "intending to destroy peace and stability, deploying troops with ulterior motives". He stated that "all Zhejiang-Shanghai areas and local people cannot but make every effort to defend themselves, to fulfill the military's duty, to maintain long-term peace and stability in the region".

  Lu Yongxiang then issued a "denunciation of Cao Kun" telegram. In the telegram, he described Cao as a "treacherous and corrupt official", accusing him of "expelling Donghai earlier and driving out Huangpi later"; "the Lincheng case has been ridiculed by the whole country, with neighboring countries repeatedly criticizing... The result of the negotiations was to fawn on foreigners for personal gain". He also accused Cao of "daring to engage in open bribery, with his shameful behavior spreading far and wide, humiliating the nation".

  The telegram finally stated that "Lu Yongxiang and others are military personnel, responsible for defending the country... eliminating the primary evil, punishing those who follow him, ridding the country of treachery, what luck is there to speak of? Being a vanguard for the people, we will not calculate success or failure".

  The next day, President Ts'ao issued a "mandate to punish Chekiang", stating: "This president, for the sake of suppressing violence and pacifying the people, finds it really impossible to listen to their absurd fantasies, which only bring suffering to our people. Lu Yung-hsiang and Ho Feng-lin are both deprived of their official ranks and emoluments, and removed from all their offices; Ch'i Hsieh-yüan is ordered to direct troops to suppress them."

  Zhang Zuolin, as the leader of the anti-Chih clique, issued a telegram to denounce President Ts'ao and General Yü on the second day after the outbreak of war in Kiangsu and Chekiang. He actively mobilized his troops to prepare for action against the Chih clique, personally organized the "Chin-wei Army", appointed himself as its commander-in-chief, reorganized the Fengtien Army into six corps, with a total strength of about 150,000 men, who were actively moving towards Jehol and Shanhaikwan. The war in the north was on the verge of breaking out.

  The day after the Jiangsu-Zhejiang War broke out, Mr. Sun held a meeting at the Guangzhou Grand Marshal's Mansion and declared "aid to Zhejiang is equivalent to saving Guangdong", deciding to launch a northern expedition. His northern expedition plan was to first attack Jiangxi, then occupy Anhui along the Yangtze River after capturing Jiangxi, and later join forces with the Zhe-Hu Allied Army in Nanjing, before heading north along the Tianjin-Pukou Railway, joining forces with the Fengtian Army to directly attack Beijing, and overthrowing the rule of the Zhili clique. The next day, Mr. Sun issued a "Proclamation against Cao Kun and Wu Peifu", calling on the people of Guangdong to "bravely rise up, be pioneers for the people, sweep away warlords, and achieve democratic governance." By then, half of the country was shrouded in smoke.

  The two sides of Jiangsu and Zhejiang mainly launched fierce battles in five directions: Yixing, Shanghai-Nanjing line, Jiading, Liuhe, and Qingpu. After the outbreak of war, the Soviet army's attack on Yixing was blocked, suffering heavy casualties and low morale. On the 5th, the Zhejiang army counterattacked, pouring thousands of shells into the Soviet army's position within half an hour, advancing to just a few miles from Yixing City, causing the Soviet army to collapse, with three regiments defecting. On the evening of the 6th, the two armies clashed fiercely in Anting, with planes also arriving to assist, but ultimately due to equal strength, the two armies became stuck. On the 7th, the Zhejiang army occupied Shushan. The Soviet-Qi urgently dispatched the Anhui Fifth Mixed Brigade to reinforce, finally blocking the Zhejiang army's advance. The Anhui Fifth Mixed Brigade was transferred from Wuhu to the Yixing front line, leaving the defense along the Yangtze River in Anhui Province empty, and Gao Yang's long-awaited opportunity finally emerged.

  At this time, the Anhui Baoying Army within Fengxian County had entered a state of war readiness. Soldiers received their weapons and ammunition, and in battalion units, slowly advanced towards Bengbu, followed by long horse-drawn and ox-drawn transportation teams. Gaoyang was still waiting, waiting for an important day.

  In the Jiading direction, on the evening of September 3, the Soviet army attacked the west gate of Jiading, and the defending army could not hold back, the situation was precarious. On the 4th, Zhejiang Army Yang Huazhao's 6 battalions were ordered to reinforce. On the 5th, a fierce battle broke out between the two sides. On the 6th, the Soviet army continued to launch a fierce attack, but Yang's troops were seasoned veterans, calmly fought back and eventually repelled the Soviet army, with both sides becoming bogged down in a stalemate.

  The Qingpu direction Su army's offensive was repelled, and the Zhejiang army launched a counterattack, forcing Qi Xueyuan to dispatch the reserve Central Army Sixth Division and the Anhui Third Mixed Brigade stationed in Anqing to rush to reinforce. At this point, there were only troops that could block Gaoyang, leaving only one division of the 19th Central Army stationed near Hefei.

  On the main battlefield of Jiangsu and Zhejiang in the direction of Xunhe River, on September 4th afternoon, the Soviet army launched an attack, and the Zhejiang army opened fire to defend itself. At 5 pm, the Zhejiang army could not withstand the Soviet army's fierce attack and retreated to Luodian, allowing the Xunhe River to fall into the hands of the Soviet army. On that evening at 8 o'clock, the Soviet army took advantage of their victory and launched a counterattack, but the Zhejiang army managed to stabilize its position after urgently deploying Yang Huazhao's main force as reinforcements. At 3 am on the 5th, the Soviet army sent 300 daredevils to charge, but they were surrounded and annihilated. The Soviet army hastily retreated, and the Zhejiang army took advantage of the situation to pursue and reoccupy Xunhe River. After that, the Soviet army's reinforcements arrived and launched several counterattacks, all of which were repelled by the Zhejiang army. On the morning of the 6th, the Zhejiang army issued a general attack order, forcing the Soviet army to retreat in disarray, with the Zhejiang army pursuing them relentlessly! In desperation, Qi Xueyuan urgently ordered the 19th Central Army Division stationed in Hefei to rush to Anqing and board ships to provide support. From then on, only scattered security teams and police remained in Anhui Province, and Gao Yang's opportunity had arrived!

  On the evening of September 7, Director Du personally led the 19th Central Army to disembark and arrive at the front line, stabilizing the battle line. Just as Qi Xuan yuan slightly breathed a sigh of relief, on the night of that day, Gao Yang led the main force of Anhui Baoyang Brigade, with about 20,000 people, to suddenly arrive under the city of Bengbu!