Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 530 Peace Talks (Bonus Chapter, Requesting Monthly Tickets)
After returning to his hometown of Xikou, Chang Ruiyuan was busy for a long time.

While Li Delin was busy preparing for peace talks, Chang Ruiyuan also summoned He Jingzhi, Gu Mosan, Tang Keqin and others in Xikou to jointly study the issue of Yangtze River defense.

"Li Delin wants to show off his skills by turning the General Headquarters of the Suppression of Bandits into the Military and Political Commander's Office. He also wants to release Zhang Hanqing. Will Premier Sun Ke comply?"

"Hehehehe." Chang Ruiyuan chuckled coldly as he took a sip of water.

"As for the three hundred political prisoners in Nanjing, Commander-in-Chief Tang has already transferred them all to Shanghai."

"Innocent!"

Although Li Delin is currently acting merrily, the political and military power of the Kuomintang remains firmly in the hands of Chang Ruiyuan.

Chang Ruiyuan pushed Li Delin forward simply to buy him time to build a defense line along the Yangtze River through peace talks.

Standing up, Chang Ruiyuan walked to the hanging map and pointed to it, saying, "I have divided the Yangtze River into two major war zones."

"Bai Jiansheng led forty divisions to the west; Tang Keqin led seventy-five divisions to the east."

"The overall operational policy of the Beijing-Shanghai-Hangzhou war zone is to take the Yangtze River defense line as the periphery, the Shanghai-Hangzhou triangle area as the key area of ​​defense, and the Songhu area as the core, and to adopt a long-term defense strategy."

"The key is to hold Shanghai. If necessary, we can use our superior naval and air forces to support Shanghai from Wa Island."

"We will focus our main efforts on Dantu to secure Shanghai and Lin'an."

Looking at the river defense deployment on the map, He Jingzhi frowned.

How did Tang Keqin set up such a defensive line? How is it different from the Changshan Serpent in the Central Plains Battle?
"President, the main forces of the Eastern Theater Command are concentrated in the Shanghai-Hangzhou triangle area, so the defense of the Yangtze River is bound to be weak."

"With such emphasis on Shanghai and neglect of the Yangtze River defense, once the G army breaks through the natural barrier of the Yangtze River, even if Shanghai is well-defended, given its geographical location with no strategic depth, it probably won't be able to hold out for long."

Judging from the map, in the western theater of operations west of Hukou, Bai Jiansheng deployed 27 divisions along the Yangtze River and 13 divisions in the rear second-line positions, which clearly indicated that he intended to fight a battle on the banks of the Yangtze River.

However, the configuration on the eastern front was clearly wrong, and the Yangtze River defense line was extremely weak.

"Hmph! The G Party only wants my life, while Li Delin and Bai Jiansheng want both my life and my money."

"They're capable of anything, even forcing a coup! The gold and US dollars in Shanghai can't be given to the CCP, nor to Li Delin."

"Li Delin must not know about this; let him guard Nanjing. Bai Jiansheng must also not know about the troop deployment in the Eastern Front."

Chang Ruiyuan knew very well that no matter how he defended, he could not change the fate of the G army breaking through the Yangtze River defense line; it was only a matter of time.

Therefore, the right thing to do is to rush the gold, US dollars, silver dollars, and large quantities of supplies stockpiled in Shanghai to Frog Island.

As long as Shanghai can hold out for one more day, he can scramble for another batch of supplies. If he has enough time, after scrambling for the critical supplies, he also plans to plunder the civilian property.

The defenses in the eastern section of Hukou were sparse, making it easy for the G army to break through from there.

The best target for the G army to break through the defenses is Hankou, which is less than 200 kilometers away from Hukou.

Chang Ruiyuan's goal was to place the Guangxi clique troops under attack by the G army in order to avenge old and new grievances.

The old grudge was that the Guangxi clique deliberately refused to send reinforcements, allowing 600,000 elite troops of the Kuomintang army to be completely annihilated on the Huaihai battlefield.

The new source of resentment is that they forced me to step down.

However, for this plan to succeed, the first thing to do is to keep Bai Jiansheng in the dark.

Otherwise, given Bai Jiansheng's abilities, he could see through his plans at a glance, and then things would get really troublesome.

A few days later, Bai Jiansheng, who was in Nanjing, looked at the battle plan that Li Delin had given him and felt a headache coming on.

"Even after Lao Chang stepped down, he still hasn't forgotten to exclude dissidents!"

"The Yangtze River defense line is a unified whole. Why didn't you tell me about Tang Keqin's battle plan?!"

At this point, Bai Jiansheng had long forgotten how he had tricked Chang Ruiyuan.

"Forget it." Li Delin waved his hand. "Let's ignore Lao Chang's tricks for now. The most important thing now is to stop the G army from crossing the river."

Neither Li Delin nor Bai Jiansheng anticipated that Chang Ruiyuan intended to abandon the Yangtze River defense line.

After Li Delin came to power, he genuinely wanted to preserve his half of the country.

The Guangxi clique still has hundreds of thousands of elite troops. Given time, they may be able to transition from puppets to legitimate forces.

"Didn't you say you were going to negotiate with the G army? Who are you planning to send?" Bai Jiansheng put down the battle plan and picked up his teacup.

Since Tang Keqin's formation wasn't listed above, there was no need for me to look at it; I knew my own formation well.

"People are easy to talk to, but the plan to divide the country along the river is not easy to implement; the G army may not accept it."

"The G Army has neither a navy nor an air force. With just a few dilapidated fishing boats, do they think they can break through the natural barrier of the Yangtze River?" Bai Jiansheng said disdainfully.

The G army is gathering ships everywhere; with such a large commotion, it's impossible for the Kuomintang spies not to notice.

However, there are only some small fishing boats on the north bank of the river now, and Bai Jiansheng doesn't think these boats can break through the dozens of gunboats of the river defense fleet.

“That’s not how it’s calculated.” Li Delin shook his head: “Those guys in the G Party are all shrewd people; they’re pragmatic.”

"The reason we are negotiating with them now is twofold: first, to absorb the large cities north of the river; and second, to reorganize the troops and requisition fishing boats."

Bai Jiansheng affirmed, "I believe that if the G Party is smart enough, it will accept the plan to divide the country along the Yangtze River."

"Whether to divide the country along the river or not depends mainly on our strength," Li Delin said.

Although Li Delin was a puppet president, he knew more than Bai Jiansheng.

Although he was unaware of Tang Keqin's plans, even if Tang Keqin staked all of Lao Chang's resources, it would be difficult to withstand the attack from the G army.

The Yangtze River defense line, stretching over a thousand kilometers, was simply too long; their 700,000 troops were simply not enough to defend it.

"Dividing the country along the river isn't just a matter for us. Didn't Ambassador Situ say they wouldn't stand idly by?"

"As far as I know, the combined US and British fleet has arrived at the Bund, and the British Far East Fleet is also ready in Hangcheng."

“Don’t place your hopes on them.” Li Delin shook his head: “They won’t do anything that doesn’t benefit them.”

"Do you think we'd dare sign any treasonous agreement? If we don't sign, do you think they'll help you?"

Li Delin did not become president to be remembered for his infamy.

"Then I will return to Hankou immediately and carefully consider the defense of the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River." "Lord De, please make sure to take care of Tang Keqin regarding the defense of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, and make sure he does not try anything sneaky."

"When the nest is overturned, no egg remains intact. Tang Keqin must understand this principle."

"He knows nothing! He's a perpetual loser! He never takes the enemy's strength seriously."

Bai Jiansheng didn't believe Tang Keqin at all.

“Times have changed,” Li Delin laughed. “Tang Keqin isn’t a fool.”

"I hope so."

Bai Jiansheng and Li Delin were unaware that Chang Ruiyuan had already set them up.

While actively arranging defenses along the Yangtze River, Li Delin also sought out Zhang Wenbai.

"General Wenbai, I would like to ask you to be the chief representative to be in charge of the peace talks with the G Party." Li Delin got straight to the point.

"Me, the chief representative?" Zhang Wenbai was somewhat surprised.

He didn't expect Li Delin to let him take the lead, after all, he belonged to Chang Ruiyuan's faction.

"General Wenbai, I have considered everyone in the Party and the State, and I believe that you are the only one capable of this task," Li Delin said.

“During the War of Resistance Against Japan, you visited Yan'an several times and had a good relationship with several members of the Communist Party. You have always been a proponent of peace, so it would be easier for you to take the lead and open up new possibilities.”

Despite Li Delin's high regard for him, Zhang Wenbai was in a difficult position: "President Li, I am empty-handed and I am afraid I am not up to the task."

He knew how difficult the negotiations would be, he knew Chang Ruiyuan's tricks, and he knew that Li Delin couldn't handle things.

Although he has a good relationship with the G Party, the negotiations are between their respective parties, not based on personal relationships.

The preparations of the Jiangbei G Army are becoming more and more complete every day. With battle imminent, the G Army cannot stop its actions because of him.

Li Delin knew this negotiation would be difficult, so he offered his assurance: "I will sign as long as you reach an agreement."

“What if Mr. Chang doesn’t agree?” Zhang Wenbai asked.

Although Li Delin is now president, he is only in name; apart from the Guangxi clique, he has no control over the rest of the troops.

Upon hearing Chang Ruiyuan's name, Li Delin pondered for a long time before finally gritting his teeth and saying, "For the Party and the country, even if he disagrees, I will sign!"

"Okay." With Li Delin's approval, Zhang Wenbai finally nodded in agreement.

Although Li Delin was only the nominal president, his signature was legally binding.

"Wenbai, putting everything else aside, the most basic principle is to divide the country along the river. The G army cannot cross the river. Everything else can be compromised to a certain extent."

"They might not agree," Zhang Wenbai said, a bit of a headache.

The G army's million-strong main force has already set out, and it won't be easy to apply the brakes.

"We must fight to the death."

"Of course, concessions can be made in other areas when necessary."

"The five provinces and three municipalities in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River can be jointly governed by the Communist Party of China and the Kuomintang. This condition should be set aside for now."

“Okay, I’m willing to take on this chief representative role.” Zhang Wenbai nodded.

Regardless of the outcome, he was prepared to fight for it for the sake of the Party and the country.

Although he received Li Delin's assurance, he still vividly remembered how Chang Ruiyuan had managed to make Li Delin obediently serve as acting president with just a few maneuvers.

Therefore, before setting off, Zhang Wenbai chose to take the draft to Xikou for instructions.

After all, if Chang Ruiyuan doesn't agree, all the negotiations will be for nothing.

Before he had even finished reading the draft of the peace talks, Chang Ruiyuan threw it directly onto the table.

Seeing that there were many people in the room, Chang Ruiyuan did not speak directly, but said, "Wenbai, let's go for a walk."

Walking in the garden, Chang Ruiyuan said, "Wenbai, you know me. I am willing to make peace."

At this time, Chang Ruiyuan still pinned his hopes on World War III, so he needed time to transport Shanghai's property and machinery to Frog Island in order to launch a counterattack later.

Upon hearing Chang Ruiyuan say that he was willing to make peace, Zhang Wenbai immediately asked, "Then what is the peace draft?"

"I have no objection."

"The president's attitude is crucial to the peace talks." Zhang Wenbai breathed a sigh of relief, then asked, "President, could your attitude be published in the newspapers?"

If Chang Ruiyuan's attitude is made clear, it can greatly eliminate the differences of opinion within the KMT.

"You can decide for yourself," Chang Ruiyuan said casually.

His meaning was clear: whether or not to publish it in the newspaper is your business, whether or not to approve it is my business.

Upon hearing Chang Ruiyuan's words, Zhang Wenbai immediately understood his meaning, but for the sake of peace, Zhang Wenbai still mustered his courage and said:
"President, we can no longer fight. Negotiation is the only option. If we negotiate now, we still have resources and can preserve some strength."

"Heh." Chang Ruiyuan sneered twice: "Even if we can preserve some troops, given the political work of the G Party, it won't be long before they disintegrate the troops. What's the point of talking about preserving strength?"

“Since Li Delin is already acting president, let him be in charge of the peace talks. There’s no need to ask me.” Chang Ruiyuan directly pushed the responsibility onto him.

Zhang Wenbai then said, "President, some people in Jinling hope that you can stay away during the negotiations to prevent rumors from spreading."

"If the president is willing to travel to Europe and America for inspection and sightseeing, it may be more beneficial to his health and to broaden his horizons."

"Wenbai, you have to believe me," Chang Ruiyuan said, spouting complete nonsense.
"I will never come out of retirement again, I will never be president again, and I will never take office."

"Now that I'm no longer president, I'm just an ordinary citizen. Ordinary citizens should have the freedom to live in their own homes, right?"

Faced with such shameless words, Zhang Wenbai was quite helpless.

That's no different from farting.

However, in order to strive for peace, Zhang Wenbai still boarded a plane to Beiping.

(End of this chapter)