A Journey Through the Flames of War in the Republican Era

The Battle of Chishui River caused a sensation among the high-ranking officials of the Central Army and the Nanjing National Government, elevating Song Hongfei's prestige to its peak.

The media controlled by the central government reported extensively on the reform achievements of the modernization plan of the Central Military Academy's Training Corps, with front-page articles featuring the advanced tactics of the National Revolutionary Army and the theories and tactics of armored forces and mechanized warfare.

For a time, a great deal of theoretical discussion and military training climax was set off throughout the Chinese army and the top echelons of the Nationalist government.

Gui Shuaizhen, the commander of the training brigade, was beaming with health, and he was constantly busy welcoming and seeing off a steady stream of important figures and people from all walks of life who came to learn from his experience, visit, and inspect his work.

Song Hongfei, who personally carried out all of this, rose to fame and became extremely popular. The Central Military Academy, the Army University, the Transportation and Logistics School, and the Armored Corps all vied to invite him to give reports and lectures.

This battle also attracted great attention from the German military and military advisory group. The German Ministry of Defense sent a telegram to General Falkenhausen, the chief of the advisory group, specifically instructing the German advisory group to request detailed reports on the battle from the Chinese side, as well as information on the combined arms tactics of infantry, armored forces, and mechanized warfare.

The National Government's Military Commission, which had always been led by the nose, suddenly felt triumphant. The Military Commission's liaison group took full advantage of this great opportunity and, by virtue of its scarcity, even managed to negotiate a good price for the exchange of benefits.

This also caused a huge shock among various warlords in the country.

Since Sun Yat-sen's death in 25, the Nationalist government had been embroiled in a constant power struggle over leadership. Chiang Kai-shek, Wang Jingwei, Hu Jintao, Lin Biao, Sun Yat-sen, and other key figures within the party each had their own agendas, engaging in intrigue and power struggles; none of them were easy to deal with, and none were willing to concede to the others.

From the success of the Northern Expedition until the 30s, six major military groups were formed, namely Chiang Kai-shek, Feng Yuxiang, Yan Xishan, Zhang Xueliang, Li Hongzhang, and Chen Yi. These groups were essentially six warlords who were constantly intertwined and entangled with each other.

There were also countless local warlords in Sichuan, Yunnan, Guizhou, Hunan, and the northwestern provinces, who would fight each other at the slightest disagreement and always obeyed the orders of the central government in Nanjing but not its summons.

For a long time, various factions and groups have been vying for power, and in this long and complex struggle, a great deal of energy, financial resources and material resources have been tied up and consumed in China.

However, with China fragmented and warlords and politicians fighting amongst themselves, creating chaos, isn't this a golden opportunity for the Japanese?

They'll strike while the iron is hot; if not now, when?!

From the September 18 Incident and the Ning-Yue War to the Liangguang Incident in the summer of 1936, it is clear that the Japanese government and military's intelligence agencies were omnipresent, plotting and sowing discord to incite internal strife in China for their own benefit.

Taking advantage of the infighting and infighting among various warlords and politicians, they launched a sudden attack, each step precise as if calculated in advance! And now they are still eyeing the enemy covetously, constantly pressing forward, and preparing for a full-scale invasion!

After the Xijing Incident, all factions realized that only a strong central government in Nanjing could handle the situation and quickly end the division and chaos.

For a time, the central government's core position and prestige in Nanjing were enhanced to an unprecedented degree. In any case, this was crucial to the domestic situation at that time, which was fragmented and chaotic.

The warlords stared at the prominent headlines on the front page of the Central Daily News:

"Look at what your senior officers are doing?"

"They use slogans as a means of speculation, shouting grand and passionate slogans, but what actual preparations have they made?"

"They lack ambition in modern military affairs, know nothing about modern tactics, and are completely ignorant of basic inter-service joint operations! Soldiers are not numbers, nor are they bargaining chips to be sacrificed at will for personal gain or fame!"

The warlords secretly admired the brilliance of this move, which was truly incisive and hit the nail on the head. It not only criticized the current affairs and guided public opinion, but also occupied the moral and political high ground.

Although the Guangdong-Guangxi Incident had ended, its aftershocks lingered for a long time, and the leaders of the Guangxi and Guangdong cliques were somewhat dissatisfied. Mr. Li and Mr. Bai looked at the large characters on the front page and could only smile bitterly and sigh: "Winning is the only truth."

The Central Army's formidable fighting power in this battle shocked every warlord. The Fengtian clique's equipment was among the best in the country, making all the other warlords feel inferior. However, the Southeast Army was utterly powerless against the Central Army and suffered a crushing defeat.

Now they had to reassess their own strength and importance. Each warlord secretly pondered: what would happen if they were facing the Central Army or the more powerful Japanese army with superior equipment?

This is a very serious problem!

All parties and factions have reached a consensus: only by training and strengthening the military can we achieve our goals! If we do not strive forward and instead seek only temporary peace, we will only plunge our troops and our nation into an abyss of no return!

This was exactly the effect Song Hongfei wanted. With a formidable enemy at hand and a full-scale war imminent, a battle to awaken those who were complacent and unambitious was one of his goals and his heart's desire. Only by uniting as one, making up for past mistakes, striving to catch up, and preparing for war could they avoid being defeated piecemeal by a powerful enemy who had long been plotting against them.

As the troops of the Eastern Front Group withdrew from the war zone one after another, and the Training Corps returned to its garrison at Xiaolingwei in Nanjing, a series of tactics and methods led by the Sergeant Battalion were fully and vigorously promoted throughout the Corps, and all units launched a training upsurge to strengthen the army.

After this battle, the Military Commission and the Ministry of Military Affairs showed great favor to the Training Corps, giving it the green light in terms of personnel, finances, and materials, and fulfilling all its requests.

This made other units extremely envious. The soldiers of the Training Corps were all very proud and walked the streets of Nanjing with their chests held high and their heads held higher than others.

After New Year's Day, one afternoon in early January, the Training Corps suddenly received an order to cancel all training missions, and all members of the 1st Regiment, 2nd Regiment, Sergeant Battalion, Special Service Battalion, Artillery Battalion and other units participating in the battle were ordered to assemble at the large training ground.

The entire Xiaolingwei garrison was under heavy guard, with rows of military police standing as straight as javelins, fully armed. The parade ground had also been newly decorated, with military flags planted all around, fluttering in the wind. A red carpet was laid out on the viewing platform, and a megaphone wrapped in red silk stood in the center of the reviewing stand.

The soldiers whispered amongst themselves, discussing among themselves: it seems that the person who came to give this speech is no ordinary person.

As the soldiers were still wondering what was going on, Fu Zhaoqian, the chief of staff of the brigade in charge, suddenly shouted the order: "Silence! Attention! Commander Gui, please give your instructions!"

Commander Gui Shuaizhen, dressed in a brand-new, crisp general's uniform, his leather shoes gleaming, and beaming with excitement, exclaimed, "Comrades! Today is our most glorious day. The Commander-in-Chief has come especially to visit you all..."

Song Hongfei was both surprised and delighted. He couldn't find the right words to describe his feelings at that moment. Having traveled from the future, he was quite looking forward to seeing this famous figure from history books in person.

He looked around and saw that the soldiers of the training brigade were full of anticipation and excitement, and they were all so excited that their faces were almost red.

"It seems he really has a knack for it; he has a high reputation among the elite troops," Song Hongfei thought to himself.

After waiting for about ten more minutes, a convoy drove up and stopped nearby. A figure in military uniform walked steadily up to the reviewing stand, surrounded by many high-ranking officers. He had a thin face, but his spirit was very vigorous. His military bearing was impeccable, with a crisp and neat uniform, a belt, and striking white gloves.

The chief of staff shouted the command: "Attention! Salute!"

Everyone on the playground saluted in unison.

Commander-in-Chief He Jingzhi's piercing gaze swept over the soldiers below the stage, and his thick Jiangzhe accent burst forth powerfully from the microphone: "Comrades of the revolution, I have come here today to visit you all. You have fought a brilliant battle, and you have worked hard!"

"The policies formulated by the Nationalist government have always advocated seeking peaceful coexistence externally and unification internally. All of you pioneers and pillars of the Party and the nation, concerned about the national crisis, upholding the spirit of Whampoa Military Academy, united sincerely, and striving forward..."

Commander-in-Chief He began to talk at length about the situation, national policies, and the spirit of the revolution. When he got excited, he spoke with great emotion, raising his thin but powerful fist and shaking it vigorously, which was quite passionate.

"I must say, he is indeed a very persuasive speaker," Song Hongfei thought to himself.

The loudspeaker kept blaring out a thick accent, which was hard to understand at first glance, giving Song Hongfei a major headache.

After giving his instructions, Commander-in-Chief He Jingzhi inspected the troops participating in the battle.

Commander-in-Chief He walked slowly forward in front of the ranks, his gaze sweeping over each soldier's face as if trying to remember them all. The soldiers were all moved by the Commander-in-Chief's concerned gaze, and each one of them was overwhelmed with gratitude and excitement.

When he walked up to Song Hongfei, his piercing gaze swept over him, and Song Hongfei met his gaze with neither arrogance nor servility.

Commander-in-Chief He seemed to have rarely seen a junior officer dare to look him in the eye with such confidence. He paused for a moment, then patted Song Hongfei on the shoulder with apparent concern, saying, "Well done!"

Song Hongfei stood tall and proud, saluted, and declared in a loud voice: "Fight tirelessly for the nation and the people!"

Commander-in-Chief He smiled and nodded in satisfaction, then walked toward the next soldier.

Being so close to such a famous figure still made Song Hongfei's heart race a little. Seeing his thin but high cheekbones, he couldn't help but sigh, "Beset by internal and external troubles, the country is struggling. It's truly not easy!"

Soon, the Military Commission issued an order to promote Song Hongfei to the rank of colonel and regimental commander, appointing him as the commander of the 3rd Regiment of the Training Corps. Several company commanders of the sergeant battalion who had made meritorious contributions were also promoted one rank.

The appointment caused quite a stir.

Some people couldn't help but exclaim: "All things considered, he had only been back in China for half a year, and he became a regimental commander in the first war!"

But no one was dissatisfied; everyone thought it was only natural.