In the first month of the year of the Republic of China (1938), the Fifth War Zone of the National Army mobilized more than 600,000 troops to gather in Xuzhou. After more than four months of hard fighting, it finally severely damaged the main force of the 10th Division of the Japanese Army, which was alone along the Jinpu Road, and achieved the result of annihilation of more than 20,000 enemies. This is the Taierzhuang victory that has been famous in history.

However, the Taierzhuang victory failed to fundamentally change the situation of the War of Resistance.

Although the main force of the Japanese 10th Division suffered heavy damage, Japan has a complete military service system and a strong industrial foundation. In a very short period of time, a large number of formally trained supplementary soldiers were launched from the country, and the weapons and equipment lost on the battlefield were quickly replenished. The two major regiments quickly recovered their combat effectiveness.

In contrast, the lost veterans and weapons and equipment of the national army are difficult to be replenished in time.

After the Taierzhuang victory, the 10th Division of the Japanese Army changed from attack to defense, while the National Army changed from defense to attack but failed to attack. The Xuzhou battlefield was in a stalemate. Chairman Jiang, who was far away in Wuhan, was anxious. The National Army finally achieved a great victory, but he was unwilling to miss the opportunity to take advantage of the victory and expand the results of the battle.

So, Chairman Jiang began to mobilize troops and condemn generals again. The dozens of divisions that were defeated from the Songhu battlefield and Nanjing battlefield did not get enough rest and started to the battlefield again. The army, the 71st Army, the 74th Army, the 78th Army and the 1st Army were all on the list of reinforcements to Xuzhou.

By the end of April, the national army gathered in Xuzhou had more than one hundred divisions and nearly one million troops.

But the reality is cruel. The forty or fifty German divisions transferred to Xuzhou this time are no longer the dozens of German divisions that had just stepped onto the Songhu battlefield. Whether it is weapons, equipment or the quality of soldiers, they are no longer on the same level. At the Songhu battlefield, seven or eight German divisions could compete with the two A divisions of the Japanese army, but when they arrived at the Xuzhou battlefield, dozens of German divisions were still weak in attacking against the two B divisions of the Japanese army.

The Kuomintang army was unable to open up the situation on the Xuzhou battlefield for a long time, so it gave the Japanese army a great opportunity.

In response to the favorable situation where hundreds of elite divisions of the National Army gathered in the Xuzhou battlefield, the Japanese base camp quickly adjusted its deployment.

The 10th Division continued to defend Zaozhuang, Yi County, and Linyi, firmly attracted the main force of the National Army in Taierzhuang and Linyi battlefields. At the same time, it ordered the North China Front Army and Central China to form a heavy army group and attack Shangqiu from the north and south ends, in order to encircle and annihilate hundreds of elite divisions of the National Army near Xuzhou.

In early May, the 16th Division of the Japanese Army crossed the canal from Jining and successively captured Yuncheng, Shanxian, Jinxiang, Yutai, Fengxian, and the 14th Division of the Japanese Army also crossed the Yellow River from Pu County, with its troops aimed directly at Lanfeng. At this point, the connection between the 1st War Zone of the National Army and the 5th War Zone had been completely cut off by the Japanese army and they were in a dilemma of fighting each other.

At the same time, the Central China sent a condemnation army to send four elite divisions along the Jinpu Road. The 9th 13th Division captured Mengcheng on May 9 and Yongcheng on Ridi, so it divided its troops into two groups. The Di Pei regiment went straight to Xuzhou through Xiaoxian, and the 13th Division attacked Dangshan through Handaokou, trying to meet with the 16th Japanese division to completely block the Longhai Railway.

In an instant, the emergency documents flew towards the Wuhan camp like snowflakes, and Lao Jiang was stunned.

Faced with the cruel reality, Chairman Jiang's mind, which was severely hot due to the great victory in Taierzhuang, finally cooled down. He finally adopted the advice of senior generals such as Bai Chongxi and Chen Cheng, and decisively ordered nearly 100 elite troops gathered in the Xuzhou battlefield to retreat along the Longhai Railway to Shangqiu, Lanfeng, and Kaifeng, and abandon Xuzhou.

After the Huangpi military parade, the 74th Army and the army were incorporated into Xue Yue's L Corps and were affiliated with the First War Zone.

The Corps is a unit between the theater and the army. In this way, the National Army will have five-level command agencies at the division level. What’s more, there are often cross-command situations between the corps, army, army, army, and even the theater. In addition, Jiang’s remote control command in Wuhan, the entire command system of the National Army is a mess. It is often just as an order was issued in the morning and changed in the afternoon.

For example, the 74th Army and the Army went to Xiaoxian after the military parade. After the Huangpi military parade, they took a train north to Zhengzhou in Xiaogan. As soon as the train arrived in Zhengzhou, the situation on the Xuzhou battlefield had taken a sharp turn. The millions of troops gathered on the Xuzhou battlefield had already begun to retreat in big strides. The 74th Army was then transferred to Hebei by Cheng Qian, the commander-in-chief of the War Zone.

So the 74th Army, the officers and soldiers boarded the train again and walked north along the Pinghan Railway. However, as soon as the train arrived in Xinxiang, they received another telegram from General Xue Yue, commanding the 74th Army to go to eastern Henan to join the main force of the Corps, guarding the Lanfeng and Shangqiu lines, to cover the retreat of the main force of the National Army on the battlefield in Xuzhou.

So the 74th Army, more than 30,000 officers and soldiers, quickly got off the train and walked back on foot. After walking back to Zhengzhou, more than a dozen military trains were transferred to Shangqiu to transport military supplies retreating from Xuzhou. So the 74th Army and 27th Army officers and soldiers took the train again to walk east along Longhai Road. This time, there was no more trouble.

In the early morning of May 16, 1938, the 74th Army successfully arrived in Shangqiu.

Lu Erdan woke up from a nightmare and found that the sky outside the window was already bright.

Since the troops set off, Lu Erdan has fallen into endless fear like all the recruits who have stepped onto the battlefield for the first time. Yes, the endless fear troops had passed Minquan County in the middle of the night yesterday. From the perspective of time, it was time to arrive in Shangqiu soon. Not far from Shangqiu, it was Dangshan.

It is said that two Japanese divisions are attacking Dangshan

In other words, they were about to fight with the Japanese army soon. When they thought of trying to kill the Japanese on the battlefield, Lu Erdan's heart jumped up in a daze, and her throat came from the waves. She felt dizzy in front of her, and she was sitting on a pile of clouds, and she was not in a position and she was not in a position.

Lu Erdan quickly unbuttoned the cotton military uniform placket and took out a photo from her close-fitting shirt pocket. The photo shows a girl with a round face. Although she is not pretty, she has big eyes, two dimples on her cheeks, and a big black braid hangs on her bulging chest, and her whole body is filled with a singular youthful atmosphere.

Looking at the girl's sweet smile in the photo, Lu Erdan quickly calmed down. Gradually, a smile appeared on Lu Erdan's face, as if he had returned from the battlefield in triumph, and then it seemed that he and his young wife who had not passed the door had already reunited, and there was a cry of a baby in the small courtyard of his hometown.

A big hand suddenly leaned over from behind Du Erdan and grabbed the photo.

"Let's see where everyone, look at Erdan's wife. Erdan's new wife is so beautiful. Come and see where everyone." The one who took the photo was the naughty recruit in the cannon company. The name was very difficult to pronounce. Everyone called him "Duzi". His father was a butcher, and he raised him like a calf since he was a child, so it was appropriate to call him "Duzi."

"Give it to me, give it to me again." Lu Erdan was anxious and reached out to grab it.

The officers and soldiers of the third company in their sleep were awakened one by one. The veterans did not react much, but the new recruits followed suit and passed the photos to the carriage, and then the photos to the other end of the carriage. Lu Erdan was so anxious that she almost cried. However, the new recruits found fun in it and became more and more excited.

The noise of the recruits disturbed Li Zihan. He could no longer write his diary, so he had to close the diary.

There is a photo on the cover of the diary, Wang Yulan's photo. This diary was customized by Wang Yulan and used her photo as the cover. In this way, every time Li Zihan takes out a Japanese note, she can see her appearance as soon as possible. Under the photo, there is also a blessing written by Wang Yulan: Returning Triumph.

Looking at Wang Yulan's sweet smile in the photo, Li Zihan couldn't help but recall the scene when the two parted.

Although Wang Yulan found another better way out for Li Zihan through her family relationship, Li Zihan was also very moved, but after thinking about it, Li Zihan finally decided to return to the team. He could not give up the good brothers of the 19th Brigade and absolutely did not want to be the first deserter in the history of the 19th Brigade.

After Li Zihan made his decision, Wang Yulan's expression was very complicated, with appreciation and loss, but she was more worried. Then she found someone to customize this diary and sent Li Zihan to Xiaogan. She also accompanied Li Zihan for nearly half a month while Xiaogan was with him. At the time of parting, the two of them ordered each other for life.

Thinking back to the night when the moonlight shines on the woods, Li Zihan is still ecstatic.

Hearing the sound of the wheels rolling over the rail connection gradually became sparse. Li Zihan, who had been on the army countless times, knew that the train was slowing down, and Shangqiu should be not far ahead. He turned his head out the window and looked out the window. The scene on both sides of the railway was vaguely evident, but there were dilapidated and quiet small villages.

The train was getting slower and slower, and it was about to stop, Li Zihan suddenly took a breath of air conditioning.

Outside the car window, endless military officers and soldiers rushed over like a tide. In just a moment, the outside of the car was filled with sad and anxious expressions, despairing and tired military officers and soldiers. From the car window to the end of their vision, they saw all the crowded heads and surging tides of soldiers. They waved their hands and shouted, and were running forward with the train.

The carriage suddenly became as quiet as death. All the recruits were stunned. Only Lu Erdan took back the photo from the other recruit, and then carefully put it in his shirt pocket and hid it tightly. Then Lu Erdan also looked out the window, and like all the recruits, he opened his mouth and was stunned.
Chapter completed!