Duan Qirui's words sounded nice, but the people present were all human beings. How could they not understand the twists and turns inside? Generals such as Xu Shuzheng and other Duan faction immediately said that they were good. As for Duan Zhigui and other Beiyang big guys, although they felt that it was a little bit...

There is something wrong, but Duan Qirui's suggestion is indeed the best arrangement for the current situation. Moreover, Fang Zida's sudden rise in recent years has also threatened several of their interests. Duan Qirui's help can weaken Fang Zida's strength.

, which sounds like a good thing.

Chief of General Staff Wang Shizhen did not speak for a while, frowning slightly and looking at Fang Zida. The person fighting the Japanese army on Qing*dao was Wu Peifu, and Wu Peifu was a general under Fang Zida. From this point of view, Fang Zida's troops had already

It was placed on the front of the Sino-Japanese battlefield. At this time, three of his army groups that had not yet been fully trained were also required to fight against the Japanese. Can Fang Zida agree?

As the chief of the general staff, Wang Shizhen is very clear about the significance of these three troops. Yuan Shikai's time is limited. Once he leaves and goes west, Fang Zida wants to take over most of the political legacy left by Yuan Shikai. He must have the power to overpower other big guys in the Beiyang system.

The more strength, the more chips, the greater the certainty, so the role of these three new armies is very important. Duan Qirui and others took the opportunity of the war between China and Japan to propose to pull these three new armies up. Once the army is defeated by the Japanese

If they are broken up, Fang Zida's strength will be reduced by half, and the result will be self-evident by then.

As an old subordinate and friend of Yuan Shikai, Wang Shizhen agreed with Yuan Shikai's posthumous arrangements for Fang Zida, but she also had to admit that Duan Qirui's suggestion was indeed a very appropriate and good idea. Japan suddenly asked China in two places at the same time

The start of the war caught them off guard, and now, whether it is to deploy troops or to defend and counterattack, all they need is time. Although Duan Qirui's intentions are not good, this plan is the most feasible from a military point of view. The central government

As long as Japan is held back for a month, it can be freed to deal with it calmly. But if Fang Zida's beloved is sent to the front line as cannon fodder, will he agree?

Holding back his anger, Fang Zida suppressed the idea of ​​jumping up and yelling. Although he was not very proficient in military affairs, the situation in front of him was clear. Duan Qirui's suggestions were not without merit. No matter what Duan Qirui's intentions were, once Fang Zida spoke,

Refusing will definitely put you in an extremely disadvantageous position.

Long before the reorganization of the National Defense Forces, Fang Zida was the first to shout out the slogan "The national army is the country's army, not a private army", and in promoting the construction of the National Defense Forces, Fang Zida has always suppressed local forces in the name of national interests. Use

Use tough measures to eliminate the warlord phenomenon. If Fang Zida openly rejects Duan Qirui's proposal on the grounds that his troops are not suitable for going to the front line at this time, his accumulated reputation will plummet and he will be labeled a "new warlord"

and the label of "careerist". It is conceivable that once this happens, whether it is Duan Qirui, Feng Guozhang or other powerful factions, they will make a fuss about it. This will lead to extremely serious consequences.

"This Duan Qirui...has posed a problem for me!" Suppressing the anger in his heart, Fang Zida carefully considered the gains and losses, and couldn't help but cursed secretly.

"Zhang Ming, what do you think about this matter?" Wang Shizhen asked. As soon as he finished speaking, everyone's eyes turned to Fang Zida.

He calmly lit up a cigar. Fang Zida took a puff of cigarette and said calmly: "I think Minister Duan's suggestion is very good. The National Defense Force is the country's army, and no matter which army it is, it must obey the country's orders. The Japanese invaders took advantage of me.

We are not prepared for a sudden sneak attack on our Fengtian and Qingdao. Once these two places are taken over by them, our Republic of China will face a huge threat. At this critical juncture, we need to work together as one, work together, and put the overall interests of the country first!"

"Okay! What President Fang said is so good!" Duan Qirui was the first to stand up and applaud. The generals of the Duan faction also applauded warmly at the same time. As the applause rang out, everyone in the room burst into laughter, raised their thumbs and praised Fang Zida as worthy of being the leader of the country.

Dongliang, this ideological consciousness is high. With Fang Zida's full support, it seems that there is a way to deal with this battle. Xu Shuzheng immediately struck while the iron is hot and proposed a plan according to Duan Qirui's suggestion to mobilize the 37th and 30th as soon as possible.

The 8th and 39th Group armies marched eastward to support.

How could Duan Qirui, the instigator, let Duan Qirui let go if his confidant Xu Shuzheng was so aware? He immediately took over, expressed his approval on the grounds that the military situation was urgent, and discussed with Wang Shizhen, and the Ministry of National Defense and the General Staff issued orders to the 30th National Guard at the same time.

The Seventh, Thirty-Eighth, and Thirty-ninth Group Armies to complete the deployment.

Soon, this order was formally formed at the meeting and was handed over to the General Staff Headquarters to immediately issue it to Jinan Power Generation.

"Zhang Ming, this matter..."

At the end of the meeting, Chief of General Staff Wang Shizhen deliberately walked behind, walked up to Fang Zida, patted his shoulder gently, and sighed.

Fang Zida smiled disapprovingly: "Chief of General Staff, I leave it to you to arrange the battle situation, especially for Fengtian. I am really worried that Zhang Zuolin's strength may not be able to defend for a long time."

"I know. Please talk to Brother Ziyu about the situation in Shandong, and leave all the power to him. I will arrange the follow-up troop deployment as soon as possible. As long as he tries his best to hold off the Japanese for a while, everything will get better."

On this occasion, Wang Shizhen was unable to say much and could only express his attitude implicitly. Fang Zida shook his hand gratefully to express his understanding.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, the urgent convening of the Congress due to Japan's sudden attack on Fengtian and Qing*dao in China continued. The whole venue became noisy. Song Jiaoren, who was sitting on the rostrum, frowned and looked at the chaotic scene below, helplessly.

He smiled bitterly and shook his head.

Japan's sudden war shocked all members of Congress, but their reactions were different. Some people were shocked and angry, pounding the table and yelling, shouting that they should immediately break off diplomatic relations with Japan and declare war. Some people were a little stunned.

Reasonable people feel that it is inappropriate to declare war immediately. As members of the Allied Powers, it is better to solve the problem through diplomatic channels first. This will give you some room for maneuver. They suggest that Britain, France and other countries should come forward first to pressure the Japanese army to withdraw as soon as possible. Some people

He believes that Japan has strong ships and powerful artillery. If a war breaks out between China and Japan, they will lose more than they win. The situation will not escalate unless it escalates. Peace talks should be held with Japan immediately to eliminate mutual misunderstandings. For the sake of the overall situation, it is not impossible to consider providing appropriate compensation to Japan.

. There are also some pessimists who feel like mourning after hearing this. They feel that this will be the second Sino-Japanese War. They immediately become confused and cannot think of any solution. They can only beat their chests and crouch down and cry endlessly... There are all kinds of things, all kinds of things.

There were various reactions, and they argued endlessly, making the Congress even more lively than a vegetable market.

The Provisional Parliament has been open for four full hours from noon to now, but the members still have not reached a unified opinion. It is not a problem if it continues like this. Song Jiaoren is busy with affairs, and it is impossible to accompany these members here to continue the discussion.

After thinking about it, and with the consent of Lin Sen, Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly, it was decided that the decision would be made by voting. Starting at 7 o'clock that night, the two houses of Congress began voting on the Sino-Japanese War, presided over by Lin Sen and Song Jiaoren.

, the Speakers and Deputy Speakers of the Senate and House of Representatives supervised the voting, which officially began.

When he returned to the office of the Central Bank from the Prime Minister's Office, Fang Zida didn't look very good. After sitting in the office for a while, he asked someone to find Yang Yongtai. After Yang Yongtai came, he directly asked him to take charge of the Central Bank on his behalf.

And he needs to go to Jinan immediately.

"Duan Zhiquan's skills are really impressive. Don't worry, Zhang Ming. I'm here in Beijing, so you can go ahead." Yang Yongtai already knew what happened and immediately agreed.

He nodded, explained the work arrangements, and left a few people with Yang Yongtai. Fang Zida went home to pick up his luggage that night. He wanted to say hello to Song Jiaoren, but when he learned that the congressional voting was still going on, Fang Zida could only let Liao

Zhong Kai conveyed the message and boarded the overnight train to Jinan and set off overnight.

The night gradually fell, and the long day finally passed. On the second line of defense south of Fengtian, Sun Liechen worked hard to hold off the Japanese for a whole day. During the last Japanese charge in the evening, Sun Liechen, as the division commander, even personally

He entered the battle and locked bayonets with the Japanese soldiers who were rushing towards him. With his injured arm, he was no match for the Japanese soldiers. If several of his subordinates had not tried their best to protect him, he would have been killed long ago.

In the night, when Sun Liechen listened to the casualty figures reported by his men, he couldn't help but burst into tears. Now the entire position, including the wounded, only totaled one and a half battalions, and he almost lost all his capital in one day.

If it hadn't gotten dark early in the winter, they would have been unable to stop the Japanese from charging again. In the fierce fighting, even the last machine gun of his unit was destroyed in the previous battle, and the only mortar was also destroyed.

It was blown up by the precise artillery fire of the Japanese army. Sun Liechen, who lost all his heavy weapons, knew very well that he could no longer hold on and had now reached the point of final retreat.

Taking advantage of the darkness, Sun Liechen decided to gather his troops and retreat. However, there were several seriously wounded soldiers who could not move. Under their strong request, Sun Liechen had no choice but to distribute some ammunition for them to defend, and quietly retreated with his troops in tears.

Who would have thought that not long after he left, he heard another burst of gunfire on the position, but it was obviously a night attack by the Japanese army. The less intense gunshots stopped not long after the sound. Sun Liechen looked back at the position, feeling already

I understand that all those wounded may have died.

"Brothers, just wait, I will definitely avenge you!" Sun Liechen clenched his fists and swore in his heart, speeding up the pace and continuing to withdraw troops to the third line of defense. (To be continued...)
Chapter completed!