Chapter 1039
Zhang Anping: I gently lit a fire
Beiping.
Mo Die Lin Hotel.
This place has now become Zhang Anping's new base. Compared to the previous Yandu Hotel, the slightly more literary name "Modielin" reveals that it is by no means a first-class hotel in Beiping.
Rumor has it that after Zhang Anping decided to make this place his office, Zheng Yaoquan laughed for several minutes before giving up.
Yes, it's just a rumor. Zheng Yaoquan firmly denied it, claiming that he and Zhang Anping had a very close uncle-nephew relationship and that he had even invited Zhang Anping to work at the Yandu Hotel.
Rumors, just more rumors—rumor has it that after Zhang Anping heard Zheng Yaoquan's invitation from afar, black liquid welled up on his face…
It was 7 p.m. when Zheng Yi rushed into Zhang Anping's office with a telegram in his hand.
"Chief, it has been confirmed—"
"The news of Commander Qiu's martyrdom is true, the news of Commander Du's capture is true, and the news of the garrison's surrender... is true!"
A smile appeared on Zhang Anping's lips.
Two and a half years ago, when the Kuomintang brazenly tore up the Double Tenth Agreement and launched an attack on our Central Plains Liberated Area and brazenly started a civil war, how arrogant the Kuomintang was back then?
They even brought out the "March Theory"!
Only two and a half years, only two and a half years!
Zheng Yi, seeing the smile playing on Zhang Anping's lips, continued to perform her duties as secretary:
"Furthermore, it is now certain that from the start of the Communist army's general offensive on Chenguanzhuang until its end, our army had a total of one army commander and eight division commanders who surrendered during the battle."
Surrender is different from surrender. Surrender means that you have no choice but to admit defeat when you have reached a dead end and have no other option but to fight to the death. Surrender means that you are captured and surrender after a fierce battle.
Surrender often requires a lot of "preparation"!
Upon hearing this data, Zhang Anping couldn't help but smile knowingly. It seems that Political Commissar Zhao put in a lot of effort during the "siege"!
"According to intelligence, the garrison was forced to surrender. Before the garrison surrendered, the Second Army Corps had been completely wiped out. Afterwards, they were surrounded by the Communist army with dozens of times their strength. Finally, Commander-in-Chief Xu had no choice but to order the surrender. Before surrendering, he sent a telegram to Nanjing to apologize, saying that there was no way to reverse the situation and that he was willing to take full responsibility."
Zhang Anping rolled his eyes. Old Xu really knows how to act...
This undisguised eye roll cleared up Zheng Yi's doubts:
The predecessor of the garrison was the Loyal Salvation Army, which had a deep bond with District Commander. However, based on the intelligence currently available, this garrison, which was formed after several reorganizations of the Loyal Salvation Army, did not show the red color that had been infiltrated like at the Beiping Station.
Even the garrison's final surrender was clearly a last resort after allied forces had been wiped out.
Considering Zhang Shih-hao's character, this is fine!
But what if we consider Zhang Anping's character?
Zheng Yi felt it was too strange.
It wasn't until Zhang Anping rolled his eyes that she realized something:
Is what they reported really true?
Is the "truth" uncovered by the Bureau of Secrecy truly the truth?
That's more like it! That's in line with the move-making habits of a strategist like Qu Zuo!
Seeing Zheng Yi's expression of realization, Zhang Anping said softly, "Call a doctor later."
Zheng Yi: ? ? ?
She was completely confused. What did that mean?
Just as I was wondering, I saw Zhang Anping suddenly stand up and then spit out a mouthful of blood.
The crimson mist of blood threw Zheng Yi into a frenzy, and she only snapped back to her senses when she saw the urging in Zhang Anping's eyes. She then let out a piercing scream:
"District! Seat!"
……
Yandu Hotel.
Zheng Yaoquan, who was watching the intelligence summary of the Xuzhou-Bengbu battlefield, looked extremely embarrassed.
He had all sorts of selfish motives, and for his own selfish reasons, he did things that disregarded or even harmed the interests of the party and the state. But in the end, he was a beneficiary of the system under the Nationalist government.
And now, the last legion of the Xuzhou-Bengbu army is gone.
How could he possibly be at ease?
In fact, this scene was destined from the moment Commander Du was hit by the airdrop falling from the sky—but before the dust settled, people always held onto a sliver of hope.
But now that the dust has settled, it has shattered the hopes of the Kuomintang diehards.
South of the Yellow River, there is no longer a large army!
Most importantly, with the Xuzhou-Bengbu battlefield now completely calm, what's next...?
At this moment, Zheng Yaoquan suddenly felt regret—why did I come to Beiping to wade into these muddy waters?
"report!"
Director Yan knocked and entered. Facing Zheng Yaoquan, whose expression was gloomy, he hesitated for a moment before explaining his purpose:
"Sir, a telegram has arrived from Nanjing confirming that Commander Du has heroically sacrificed his life, and a posthumous recognition ceremony will be held shortly thereafter."
Did Commander Du die in battle?
The answer is, of course, no!
At this time, Zheng Yaoquan had already confirmed, based on the intelligence gathered from the Xuzhou-Bengbu battlefield, that Commander Li had escaped, Commander Qiu had been killed, and Commander Du had been captured.
Furthermore, this matter has already been reported to Nanjing.
The "notice" that has just arrived from Nanjing is clearly a reminder to Zheng Yaoquan to adopt a unified narrative!
"I understand." Zheng Yaoquan nodded in a hoarse voice. "Is there anything else?"
Director Yan said in a low voice:
"There's another matter concerning Zhang Chang and Zhang Anping—the Mo Die Lin Hotel urgently summoned several doctors, and after having someone investigate, I learned that Zhang Anping was vomiting blood."
He vomited blood?
Zheng Yaoquan nodded: "I understand—you can go out now."
"Yes."
After Director Yan left, Zheng Yaoquan let out a long and weak sigh.
He knew the reason why Zhang Anping vomited blood—the garrison was reorganized from the traffic police brigade, and the predecessor of the traffic police brigade was the Loyal Salvation Army. Zhang Anping had put a lot of effort into the Loyal Salvation Army, and even after it was reorganized into the garrison, he made large-scale investments.
As a result, the security force he had poured his heart and soul into building was gone, and it was not surprising that he vomited blood as a result.
However, compared to a single garrison, the fact that all five corps were lost in the entire Xuzhou-Bengbu battlefield is the most chilling one!
The backbone of the Party-state has been completely broken.
At this moment, he couldn't help but think:
What am I fighting with Zhang Anping for? All this fighting has only led to the Party and the state's inevitable decline...
But these emotions come quickly and go even faster!
When his gaze fell upon the book "Blue Star Animal Kingdom," all those emotions vanished without a trace!
Divide the country along the river and govern accordingly!
This is the viewpoint of Blue Star Animal Kingdom, and as Zhang Anping's opponent, Zheng Yaoquan agrees with Zhang Anping's strategic vision, and agrees with it very much.
Since the decision to divide the country along the Yangtze River is now inevitable, there are still some things that must be fought for!
Thinking of this, Zheng Yaoquan immediately got up and paced back and forth in his office, constantly pondering and examining his idea:
Could we use the surrender of the garrison troops as an opportunity to attack and destroy Zhang Anping?
Although Zhang Anping did not hold a position in the garrison, his support for the garrison was well-known. Now that the garrison has surrendered, does Zhang Anping bear no responsibility whatsoever?
Currently, Mao Renfeng is under orders to purge the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics. This matter... could be a powerful tool for Mao Renfeng to break the deadlock!
The more he thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed to him. Finally, unable to contain himself, he summoned his secretary and ordered him to draft a secret telegram to Mao Renfeng, reminding Mao Renfeng that he could use the matter of the garrison to deal with Zhang Anping.
"The old man has suffered heavy losses, and he might take his anger out on Zhang Anping because of this!"
"Just use him as a punching bag..."
A smile suddenly appeared on Zheng Yaoquan's face.
……
At this time, Zhang Anping had just received a diagnosis from the doctor:
Acute mild bleeding, without serious organic damage to internal organs, not life-threatening, is functional bleeding caused by severe emotional stimulation;
The more agitated you are or the more you worry, the higher the probability of relapse.
Faced with the doctor's diagnosis, none of the agents present raised any objections—they had all seen how hard Commander Zhang had worked during this period, and they had seen even more of the injustices he had suffered.
The surrender of the garrison troops was, unsurprisingly, the final straw that broke his back.
This also proves how much frustration Zhang Anping had been harboring in his heart during this period, despite his seemingly prioritizing the overall situation!
"You can all leave now." Zhang Anping waved his hand weakly. "Work is more important."
Seeing that Zhang Anping was still thinking about the big picture even in this situation, everyone was filled with emotion and couldn't help but sigh repeatedly. If everyone were like Commander Zhang, how could the situation of the Party and the country have deteriorated to this extent!
After the group of agents from Beiping Station left, only Zheng Yi remained in the lounge, accompanying Zhang Anping who was receiving an IV drip. Seeing Zhang Anping's frighteningly pale complexion, Zheng Yi couldn't help but say:
"District Chief, please don't do that again."
This time, Zhang Anping vomited blood right in front of her, and before vomiting blood, Zhang Anping was leisurely rolling his eyes.
Therefore, she knew that Zhang Anping was definitely not suffering from qi reversal or blood loss.
The blood she vomited was real, and the doctor she consulted was definitely not someone she had arranged beforehand—therefore, she believed that the doctor's diagnosis was correct.
Although it doesn't make logical sense.
Zhang Anping smiled slyly:
“I have my own clever plan. I have no intention of sacrificing my hundred-odd pounds for the Party and the country.”
This was the first time Zhang Anping had broken the unspoken agreement between him and Zheng Yi, openly saying something that would get him shot if it got out.
Zheng Yi felt a surge of heat coursing through her body. She stared blankly at Zhang Anping for a long time before suddenly turning her head and using the pretense of fixing her hair to wipe away the moisture in her eyes.
This scene made Zhang Anping somewhat embarrassed. He was actually deliberately keeping his distance from Zheng Yi. After all, he was deeply influenced by modern ideas, and as a married husband, he did not want Zheng Yi to have any hope in the relationship.
But right now he's a little too excited.
Although he did not participate in the Huaihai Campaign, which went down in history, his presence was felt throughout the campaign. In particular, the "return" of the Special Forces and the Loyal Salvation Army brought an end to his years of planning, so it was no wonder he was excited.
She flirted with Zheng Yi without even realizing it.
He quickly calmed himself down and used his usual tactic of changing the subject:
"Keep an eye on what's going on at the General Headquarters for the Suppression of Enemy Personnel. They'll probably have to hold an emergency military meeting soon—we have to join in the fun."
join in the fun?
Zheng Yi gave Zhang Anping a strange look, wondering if he was just joining in the fun or showing off his "achievements".
"Okay, I'll go to my office to make the arrangements." She returned hurriedly a few minutes after leaving.
"The General Headquarters is indeed holding an emergency military meeting in half an hour. Commander Li and Commander Shi just called to say that you, Commander Qu, do not need to attend."
Zhang Anping scoffed, "How could I not participate?"
"We have to go!"
As he spoke, he got up and tried to take down the IV drip, but Zheng Yi quickly stepped forward and raised the IV drip high before Zhang Anping could do so:
"Should I arrange a car?"
"Hmm—I have a phone here. Go outside and use a public phone to make the call. This is the code—after you say it, tell them they can take action!"
Zhang Anping gave the instructions:
"When you arrive at the General Headquarters, if you receive an urgent message from the office about Jinhua Hutong, be sure to rush into the meeting room and whisper it to me."
Jinhua Hutong?
Zheng Yi was puzzled by Zhang Anping's arrangement—if she remembered correctly, the only arrangement of Beiping Station in Jinhua Hutong was that Commander Chen's family was settled there, right?
It was called "settling in," but it was actually house arrest.
This was because Zhang Anping had secured the condition of having a directly subordinate division for Commander Chen back in Tianjin.
The fact that he was asked to make a phone call to relay instructions allowing the operation, combined with the keyword "Jinhua Hutong," led Zheng Yi to guess that Zhang Anping had arranged for someone to rescue Commander Chen's family.
A tactic to sow discord?
These three words involuntarily surfaced in her mind.
……
The outcome of the Battle of Chenguanzhuang was actually expected by the Kuomintang, but when the two major army groups were completely annihilated, the Kuomintang still could not hide the shock in their hearts.
The Nanjing government, already numb from the earthquake, was shaken again, but the one most shaken was actually the North China Suppression Headquarters.
These were all veterans who had fought on the battlefield for many years. At this moment, even a division commander could tell:
With the events in Xuzhou and Bengbu coming to a close, the People's Liberation Army's attention and all its energy will inevitably fall on North China!
The million-strong armies of the Northeast Field Army and the East China Field Army were already invincible; if the armies that had been rampaging in Xuzhou and Bengbu were to attack again...
Even if Sun Tzu and Han Xin were alive today, they would all be forced to submit.
Now, what should we do?
At an emergency military meeting, Fu Huabei raised this issue.
This is actually a rehash of an old topic—because ever since the Pingjintang area was divided and surrounded, this topic has been brought up again and again.
Even with 300,000 troops under Du's command, they couldn't escape. Facing more than 200,000 troops in Beiping, the People's Liberation Army was just waiting to leave the city!
Therefore, at this moment everyone understands why the old saying is being repeated:
Fu Huabei is interested in negotiating!
Normally, the generals of the Central Army would be in an uproar at this time.
negotiation?
How can it be!
Commander Du was trapped for so long, and he never surrendered despite the Communist army's attempts to induce him to do so. Now that we have the fortified city of Beiping, how can we surrender!
A weak voice broke the deathly silence in the conference room:
"Hold on to the death!"
The speaker was Zhang Anping, whose face was sallow.
Everyone already knew about Zhang Anping's vomiting blood. He wasn't originally invited to this meeting, but he still insisted on coming—he deliberately pulled out his IV drip when he got out of the car in front of the General Headquarters.
"Gentlemen, Commander Chen of Tianjin is confident that we can hold out for six months!"
"If Tianjin doesn't fall, the Communist army can't concentrate its forces to attack Beiping!"
Zhang Anping took a few deep breaths before continuing:
"Tianjin has only a little over 100,000 troops, yet Commander Chen is confident he can hold out for six months. Beiping has nearly 300,000 troops and is currently well-supplied with supplies. Do you all think we can't hold out for six months? Do you really think we're inferior to Commander Chen in Tianjin?!"
"We have the support of our American allies. With their financial strength, they can rearm one, two, or even three million troops for our army in a short period of time. As long as we defend the Yangtze River and complete our troop preparations, we can launch a counterattack with two to three million troops a year from now!"
"If Tanggu is not lost, reinforcements can continuously land and rush to our aid—even if Tanggu falls, our army has strong ships and powerful cannons, as well as the two major strongholds of Pingjin. Surely we can open up a landing point?"
After another heavy breath, Zhang Anping said in a harsh voice:
"Once our army has the strength to counterattack, the tide of battle will turn, and you will all be heroes of the Party and the nation who will turn the tide!"
"But if we surrender our sovereignty and humiliate the country, you will all be traitors to the Party and the nation!"
Although he didn't say it explicitly, his meaning was clear:
If you are heroes of the Party and the country, then I will respect you; but if you become traitors to the Party and the country...
Is Zhang Anping's statement reasonable?
Have!
It is even quite attractive.
However, this statement is based on the premise that:
Tianjin, it really can hold out for half a year.
The question is... can we hold out for six months?
The Imperial Guard's 74th Reorganized Division was utterly annihilated at Menglianggu.
The First Army, the number one army in the world, and the Sixth Army, the ever-victorious army of the jungle tigers, were completely wiped out in the Liaoxi Campaign.
The 18th Army, a seed army, ended its run at Shuangduiji in disgrace;
The renowned Fifth Army, known as the Iron Horse and Mighty Lion, ultimately met its tragic end at Chenguanzhuang!
These five aces are all incredibly powerful, seemingly invincible.
The results of it?
What made him any different from other friendly soldiers when he died?
The five main forces were no match for the PLA's offensive. No matter how confident Commander Chen was in Tianjin, could he really hold out for half a year?
None of the five main forces could hold out for half a year!
Therefore, no matter how eloquently Zhang Anping spoke, the generals present all knew perfectly well what was going on:
Tianjin cannot be held for half a year; it can only hold for two months at most!
It's normal for a city to fall within a month!
Half a year? That's nothing but a pipe dream!
But no one dared to sing this dissenting tune, nor could they sing it.
As a result, a suffocating silence fell over the conference room.
Fu Huabei looked at the silent crowd and sighed inwardly:
The generals of the Central Army had all lost confidence at this point...
Peace talks are indeed the only way out.
but……
Even though he knew that peace talks were the only way out, he was still extremely hesitant.
After the peace talks, the Sui Army was gone!
Just as the atmosphere became suffocating, the conference room door was suddenly pushed open.
Standing at the door was none other than the dashing Zheng Yi:
"Report, I am Director Zhang's secretary, I have an urgent military intelligence report."
Zhang Anping glanced at Zheng Yi with displeasure, stood up and was about to walk towards Zheng Yi, but he stumbled and sat back down in his seat. Seeing this, Zheng Yi quickly came over and whispered in Zhang Anping's ear:
"Unidentified individuals attacked Jinhua Hutong, but fortunately our personnel discovered them and repelled the attackers. Should we send more people to protect them?"
Zhang Anping said calmly:
"Okay, you go back first—"
Zheng Yi turned and left, while Zhang Anping struggled to his feet: "Commander Fu, I'm so sorry. We just received intelligence that a group of Communists have been discovered. My men were oblivious and interrupted the military meeting. Please forgive them."
Fu Huabei waved his hand, indicating that everything was alright.
The others looked at Zhang Anping thoughtfully—was it really because he had discovered a group of Communists?
Or... is there another reason?
Fu Huabei was also slightly uneasy, but he pretended to be calm and was about to announce that the military affairs meeting would continue when Zheng Yi, who was closing the door, was stopped by someone, none other than Director Yan, Zheng Yaoquan's confidant and the director of the Second Division of the Suppression Headquarters.
"Commander Fu, I have something important to report to Vice Minister Zheng!"
Zheng Yaoquan's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that the matter that Director Yan wanted to report was the same as the reason why Zheng Yi had barged in earlier?
He made a decision in an instant and deliberately asked, "What is it?"
Zhang Anping's secretary spoke of it in secret, so it definitely couldn't be made public—so I'll make it public!
Director Yan paused for a moment, then, seeing Zheng Yaoquan giving him a meaningful look, he had no choice but to reply:
"The Jinhua Hutong where Commander Chen's family lives in Tianjin was just attacked by a group of unidentified armed men. Fortunately, the secret operations team of the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics made arrangements to prevent the attackers from succeeding."
Upon hearing this, everyone looked shocked.
Zheng Yaoquan was also shocked. Someone actually wanted to kidnap Commander Chen's family?
He immediately asked, "Who is this person?"
Director Yan replied, "It's suspected to be a Communist."
Communist Party?
The Communist Party is trying to kidnap Commander Chen's family?
wrong!
This is not a hijacking!!!
Zheng Yaoquan's expression changed drastically. This was not a kidnapping; it was clearly a rescue!
Zhang Anping suddenly shouted sternly:
"fart!"
"It can't be the Communists! Vice Minister Zheng has already wiped out the Communists in Beiping several times, there's no way there could be any armed men left—it must be bandits with ulterior motives!"
"If they were Communists, they wouldn't have been so easily defeated—Director Yan, don't make unfounded assumptions!"
Zhang Anping, with a sallow complexion, stared at Director Yan with an unusually cold gaze.
Director Yan was so shocked that cold sweat poured down his forehead. He answered in a panic, "The department...the department knows its mistake. We are not Communists, absolutely not Communists." (End of this chapter)