Decisive Battle for Beiping

The people inside the city had been driven nearly mad; Beiping was no longer what it had been yesterday. Following the inner streets of the Outer City back toward regimental headquarters, not a single soldier could be seen on the thoroughfares. Tens of thousands of citizens jammed the northern half of the city; if not for Beiping's perimeter walls, the surrounding countryside would have already been swarming with crowds fleeing across the hills and fields. Fang Wenjian suddenly recalled what that young boy had said and muttered a few words to Zhu Shiqing, who immediately caught on. Didn't this match what Lin Hongwen had just claimed? Ruan Xuanwu had originally served as commander of the 37th Division's Independent Brigade, stationing his troops at Beiyuan. They had suffered heavy casualties in their very first clashes with the Japanese army. After Song Zheyuan signed the peace accord, Ruan, like Sun Yi, reorganized by combining his old remnants with the Military Training Corps. Right now, his mission was supposed to be defending the Zuo'anmen sector. Zhu Shiqing noted each of these clues and rushed back to regimental headquarters. Compared to the north, the southern part of the city seemed relatively quiet. The main thrust of the Japanese assault was from south to north; no one was foolish enough to flee straight into the enemy's blades. Escaping northwest was the only sensible choice. Yingtaoyuan could practically be described as tranquil. When Zhu Shiqing and his party stepped into the camp, the squelch of their boots sounded loud as thunder. The sun had already vanished from the sky, leaving only lingering bands of sunset clouds holding out against the encroaching night. "Regimental Commander, it's done. They've been safely escorted out." Having settled the exhausted recruits, Zhu Shiqing turned into the headquarters and spoke cheerfully. Sun Yi sat propping his head with one hand, leaning against the corner of the long table with his back to the door. Beside his right hand sat a small cup containing a clear liquid. Lost in thought over who knew what, he did not react at all to Zhu Shiqing's voice. "What's the matter?" Zhu Shiqing grew suspicious. Hurrying to Sun Yi's side, he cried in shock, "Don't go doing something foolish! So many brothers are still depending on you!" With that, Zhu Shiqing snatched up the half-empty cup on the table and threw it out. Sun Yi slowly turned his head, exasperated. "That was fucking liquor!" Zhu Shiqing twitched his nose. Indeed, it smelled of alcohol. Only then did he ask, "Why are you drinking all of a sudden?" "Deputy Army Commander Tong Linge has died for the country," Sun Yi said, keeping his head bowed. "Word came from the front at noon. The Japanese penetrated and cut off the retreat route from Nanyuan. When the deputy commander was preparing to direct the troops' withdrawal at Dahongmen, he was struck by stray Japanese fire and killed in action." Tong Linge, a native of Gaoyang, Hebei, was only forty-five when he fell. "I never thought it was true..." To think that what had seemed like a mere rumor on Xizhimen Street was actually the truth. No wonder the Outer City had felt so suffocating; the various units must have received the news as well. Zhu Shiqing could not help but worry: with the battle having deteriorated to this point, how could morale among the troops and the populace ever be restored? "There is even worse news," Sun Yi continued. "Division Commander Zhao was ordered this morning to lead the entire 132nd Division to support Nanyuan from the flank. Unexpectedly, they were ambushed by the Japanese around Fengtai and Qinghe and encircled. We have completely lost contact with them." Speaking of Zhao Dengyu, Sun Yi nearly choked up. This was his old superior from the Great Wall War of Resistance, a brother in arms who had charged enemy camps alongside him with broadswords in hand. "The 29th Army is finished." Hearing this, Zhu Shiqing felt that all hope was lost for Beiping-Tianjin; not even gods descending to earth could save the situation now. Every strategic position had fallen, their troop numbers were in obvious decline, frontline commanders had laid down their lives, the citizens inside the city were rioting, and certain battlefield generals were contemplating surrender... How could this battle possibly be fought? Sun Yi gathered his emotions, grief transforming into resolve at that very moment. He slammed the table and declared in righteous fury, "The Japanese invaders run rampant, but even if we have to fight street by street in Beiping, we'll make them bleed for every step! Pass down the order: no one in the regiment sleeps tonight. Everyone up to Yongdingmen to guard against a night raid!" "Regimental Commander, is Brigade Commander Ruan Xuanwu the one holding Zuo'anmen?" Zhu Shiqing asked suddenly. "Yes." "He might surrender," Zhu Shiqing said resolutely. "He's tied to that business at Guang'anmen as well." "Are you sure?" Sun Yi hesitated. Although Zhu Shiqing had indeed been tracking the matter, Ruan Xuanwu was truly no ordinary figure—he was one of the few lieutenant generals serving as a brigade commander in the entire army! Though a brigade and a regiment were separated by only one rank in theory, Sun Yi was practically a generation behind him in standing. Even the current commander of the Beiping Security Regiment, who carried the title of Beiping Garrison Commander, was merely a major general. "Nine chances out of ten." Sun Yi nodded. He would not doubt Zhu Shiqing's judgment. "I'll go to the Security Regiment in person right now. Go rally the troops at once and get up to Yongdingmen to observe enemy movements. If the Japanese move fast, they'll be at our city walls tonight!" Sun Yi stood up, straightened his uniform, took down his holster from beside the doorway, strapped it on, and gave instructions to Zhu Shiqing as he bustled about. *** Dazzling sunset clouds lingered across the sky, and Japanese fighter planes flew alongside the evening glow, bearing down on Beiping's urban districts. Hearing the buzzing drone overhead, the defenders stationed at Yongdingmen looked up. Swarms of Japanese warplanes swept in at high speed. Moments later, bombs dropped like eggs, raining down onto the Beiping gate towers and tearing along Yong'an Road all the way to Zhengyangmen. The street turned into a sea of fire. Wails and weeping could be heard on every side; many citizens who had not yet fled perished within the dense smoke. Zhu Shiqing and his men were leading their troops toward Yongdingmen. Seeing the warplanes wheeling in the sky, they knew instantly that the Japanese offensive had begun. The enemy intended to swallow Beiping whole without pause; before nightfall, the Japanese aviation corps was delivering final close air support to their ground forces. There were nine outer gates around the capital, or eleven if the two side gates were counted. Sometimes having many gates was hardly a blessing. Wang Bing, commander of the Security Regiment, had been forced to scatter his forces across multiple locations, while keeping a detachment to maintain order within the city. At this moment, civil servants had lost all authority, and every government bureau existed in name only. When all was balanced out, only a single reinforced company remained to guard the critical position of Yongdingmen. Under cover of the bombing, a Japanese armored vehicle regiment raced along the highway like lightning. Three armored cars fanned out into formation, shielding the infantry battalion sweeping forward in their wake. In an instant, Yongdingmen was choked with billowing smoke and deafening gunfire. Atop the gate tower, sandbags had been blown to pieces by the preceding bombardment. Although the soldiers had skillfully crouched at the base of the parapet, the tremendous shockwaves had still flung many through the air. The only ones suffering lighter casualties were those stationed in the middle tier's concealed machine-gun embrasures, where several loopholes had been knocked out in advance to allow gunners to fire. Facing the Japanese charge, the first to return fire were the two machine guns in the embrasures. Swish! Swish! Swish! Two tongues of flame leaped past the armored cars, raking toward the infantry formations behind them. At the same time, the defenders atop the wall opened fire, but under the relentless momentum of the armored vehicles, the Japanese steadily closed in on the wall. Outnumbered and outgunned, the embrasures took two shells from the enemy armored vehicles and fell completely silent; no one knew what had become of the men inside. Had the Military Training Corps not mounted the wall in the nick of time, Yongdingmen would have fallen then and there. Xiang Chengyu leaped onto the gate tower ahead of the others, a Czech light machine gun cradled in his arms. Appearing boldly at the edge of the parapet, he sprayed a burst of fire directly at the Japanese infantry nearing the city gate below. Under his lead, the Military Training Corps successfully took over the positions at Yongdingmen. Crouching low, Zhu Shiqing dashed several paces toward the parapet, quickly poked his head out, and peered down. The Japanese armored vehicles were already below the tower! Before two seconds had passed, Zhu Shiqing yanked his head back, just as the whistling whoosh of air hissed past his ears! With superior firepower on their side, the Japanese fought with sheer brutality! Armored cars led the charge upfront, machine gunners laid down suppressive fire from the rear, and the infantry echelons in between fired on the move with deadly accuracy! "Get out the grenades! Throw them down!"