Chapter 65 Tuning
Since Yang Aiyuen took office as commander-in-chief of the Shanxi-Chahar War Zone, the relationship between him and Fu Zuoyi, then chairman of Shanxi Province, became increasingly delicate.
Speaking of which, the second most worthy person in the Jin army in the early years should be Xu Yongchang, followed by the veteran Shang Zhen.
However, one of these two men did not care about power and was content to be indifferent, while the other, although ambitious, was suspected by many and had to leave in anger, thus leaving the competition for the second seat in the Jin clique to the so-called "Thirteen Guardians" of the Jin clique. Fu Zuoyi was the most famous of the Thirteen Guardians and had always been good at fighting tough and big battles.
From the perspective of leading troops to fight, Yang Aiyuen's ability is indeed not as good as Fu Zuoyi's, but Yang Aiyuen has an advantage, that is, he has participated in the reorganization of the Shanxi Army twice, has good connections among the senior leaders of the Shanxi Army and has the trust of Yan Xishan.
Of course, the competition between the two was not overt, nor did they deliberately trip each other up, and their status rose almost simultaneously. Therefore, although it was tacitly understood, the conflict had not become public.
However, after the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, the conflict between the two suddenly became intense.
The initial fuse was the incident in which Yan Xishan shot Li Fuying. In the incident, Fu Zuoyi spoke up for Li Fuying several times, but Yang Aiyuen stood on Yan Xishan's side, and the conflict between the two began to intensify.
Later, in the Pingxingguan Campaign, the front-line commander was originally Yang Aiyuen, but Yang listened to the advice of Deputy Commander Sun Chu and changed combat opportunities several times, which led to an unfavorable progress of the battle. For this reason, Yan Xishan urgently transferred Fu Zuoyi to jointly command. Although the battle situation could not be saved in the end, the contradiction between Fu and Yang deepened.
Yan Xishan was not unaware of the grudge between the two generals , but for the sake of balance and his own interests, he turned a blind eye to it. As a result, the conflict between the two became increasingly intense, so much so that in battles such as the "Huima" campaign, the two repeatedly failed to cooperate properly, causing considerable losses to the Shanxi side.
Fu Zuoyi's basic forces were annexed by the Northwest Army after crossing the Yellow River to the west. Although he was ordered to rebuild the 35th Army, his vitality was severely damaged and he had to lie dormant in the Northwest.
During this period, Yang Aiyuen was quite active in southern and southeastern Shanxi.
Unfortunately, the good times did not last long. Under the attack of the Japanese army, Yan Xishan finally fell into the trap and was forced to stay in the northwest.
Although Yang Aiyuan was awarded the title of deputy commander-in-chief of the Shanxi-Chahar War Zone, the decline of the Jin faction led to the idea of common hatred against a common enemy within the Jin faction.
Just when Yang Aiyuen was committed to serving as a liaison for the unity of the Shanxi faction after Yan Xishan, the Northwest cut off the source of the trouble by appointing Fu Zuoyi as the chairman of Shanxi Province. Fu was a man of accomplishment, so the split of the Shanxi faction was inevitable.
Yang Aiyuen, who was very angry about this, called Yan Xishan many times. Yan Xishan, who was trapped in Lanzhou, was helpless and could only call the two men separately, asking them to live in harmony and jointly safeguard the interests of the Shanxi Army.
However, most of Shanxi fell, and the remaining counties were extremely devastated. The financial resources controlled by Shanxi were very limited, and if they were given to Fu Zuoyi, they could not be given to Yang Aiyuen. Therefore, the conflict between the two was beyond the reach of Yan Xishan, who was out of reach.
Yang Aiyuen was at a loss as to what to do when things suddenly took a turn for the better. The Northwest had withdrawn its forces across the board due to the defeat in eastern Henan. As a result, Yang Aiyuen was promoted to the position of commander-in-chief of the Shanxi-Chahar War Zone, gaining the highest military and political power above Fu Zuoyi.
Once power is in hand, one must obey orders. Yang Aiyuen was considered loyal and honest, but he could not resist the fanning of flames by Sun Chu and others. So, at the suggestion of Sun Chu and Zhao Chengshou, Guo Zongfen's Second Reserve Army under the command of Fu Zuoyi was transferred south to western Shanxi to fill the gap left by the 34th Army, Yang Aiyuen's old unit, which was transferred to southeastern Shanxi.
As if thinking that simply withdrawing the Second Reserve Army was not enough to teach Fu Zuoyi a lesson, Sun Chu also suggested using the excuse that northwest Shanxi was mountainous and difficult for the Japanese to invade as an excuse to further weaken the 35th Army, which had just recovered its strength. Fortunately, this move was delayed by the subsequent raids in North China and the Japanese sweep before it even began.
After the Japanese army's summer sweep, the various units of the Shanxi Army suffered heavy losses. In addition, a considerable number of Shanxi army officers and soldiers were disappointed with the war situation and the future of the Shanxi faction, so they either fled back home or became traitors.
In view of this, Yang Aiyuen had to restore the strength of the Jin army as much as possible.
However, the military equipment, military supplies and military expenses allocated to the Shanxi Army by the Northwest were inspected and paid out on a monthly basis. Yang Aiyuen had no way to raise the necessary expenses for large-scale restoration of strength. Under such circumstances, the position of Fu Zuoyi, who controlled the finances of Shanxi, became quite important.
However, Fu Zuoyi was not a gentleman who did not bear grudges. Therefore, he repeatedly declined Yang Aiyuen's request. Instead, while strengthening the 35th Army, he expanded his troops in the name of the Provincial Security Brigade.
Such a contrast strengthened Yang Aiyuen's determination to drive out Fu Zuoyi and regain provincial power. Therefore, after Yu Xuezhong and Shen Honglie from the Northeast Army system fought for the power of Shandong Province, a situation of Yang and Fu fighting for power also emerged within the Shanxi Army.
"Brother Baichuan, Yang Xingru and Fu Yisheng are now at odds with each other. This is not good. It will affect the overall situation of the anti-Japanese war in Shanxi."
Dai Jiliang looked at Yan Xishan, who looked a little distressed, sneered secretly, and then asked.
"It seems necessary to transfer one of them out of Shanxi. I wonder who Brother Baichuan wants to transfer?"
Although Yan Xishan had considered this a long time ago, he did not answer immediately. Instead, he asked with a wry smile: "I still hope that Brother Yisheng and Brother Xingru can work together. Your Excellency also knows that Shanxi's anti-Japanese war strength was originally insufficient." Dai Jiliang understood Yan Xishan's choice as soon as he heard it. Yes, Yang Aiyuen's position was really important. In the end, Yan had no choice but to abandon Fu Zuoyi.
However, Fu Zuoyi was at least a lieutenant general and provincial governor. It was impossible to ask him to hand over both military and political power, so Yan had to reluctantly let Fu take the 35th Army away.
"The Military Commission has also considered the problem of insufficient military forces in Shanxi."
The so-called Military Commission is nothing more than a rubber stamp, and ultimately reflects Dai Jiliang’s will.
"Considering that the current pressure in Suidong is not great, the Military Commission has decided to transfer the 1st Mongolian Cavalry Army, which is under the Reserve Group Army, to the Suiyuan front line, and then withdraw two divisions of the 6th Army to form the Northwest Shanxi Group." After Dai Jiliang said this, Yan Xishan knew that the transfer of Fu Zuoyi was a foregone conclusion, so he pondered for a moment, and then asked: "Who will take over the position of Chairman of Shanxi Province, and where will the 35th Army be transferred to?"
"If Brother Baichuan is willing to do so, then let Secretary Jia return to Jin. If not, I think Zhao Pilian or Nan Guixin will do."
Jia Jingde was Yan Xishan's most trusted confidant. There were many things he needed to do while serving in Lanzhou. Yan Xishan naturally didn't want him to leave his side. I think Dai Jiliang also understood this, so the last two names were his real intentions.
However, Yan Xishan was not at ease with either Zhao or Nan, the two former members of the Jin faction, otherwise he would not have forced them away.
So after thinking it over again and again, Yan Xishan said: "Now that the military is on the rise, I still think that only by having the military leading the government can the military and the government work together."
Yan Xishan cited Shandong as an example: "Didn't Miao Chengliu also become the governor of Shandong Province?"
"The situation in Shandong is different from that in Shanxi."
Of course they are different. One is isolated and the other is connected to the Northwest. Dai Jiliang naturally does not want the Shanxi faction to continue to linger in this area, but he also does not want to put too much pressure on Yan Xishan and the Shanxi faction, so he keeps saying that the two places are different, but finally agrees to Yan's price.
"Well, Brother Baichuan, please suggest one."
Yan Xishan had people who supported him, but there were not many who were both military and political, so after much deliberation and weighing, he finally proposed a candidate : "I think Zhou Ziliang can temporarily serve as the chairman of Shanxi Province."
"Zhou Dai is a good candidate for the provincial governor, but after he becomes the governor, should he continue to hold the position of the chief commander of the Jindong Command?"
If we trace back to the precedent of Fu Zuoyi, Zhou Dai's position as the commander-in-chief of Jindong could naturally be retained. However, in order to pave the way for Yang Aiyuen, Yan Xishan finally chose to let Zhou Dai resign from his military post and concentrate on presiding over the provincial government.
"Then who will take over as the commander-in-chief of Jindong?"
"How about swapping the 61st Army with the 19th Army and letting Chen Changjie concurrently serve as the commander-in-chief of the Jindong area?"
"The 19th Army is in Yanbei, and the 61st Army is in Jindong. Redeploying the two units will be time-consuming and labor-intensive, and will also require breaking through the Japanese blockade, which is too dangerous. It is better to directly let Chen Changjie and Feng Pengzhu swap their positions."
Yan Xishan nodded and said, "Your Excellency has considered it carefully. Let me send this telegram."
"no no."
Dai Jiliang shook his head.
"The telegram to dismiss and appoint the provincial governor will be issued in the name of the Northwest National Defense Government. Chairman Wang and Brother Baichuan will be on the list. As for the personnel of the military in East Shanxi, it will be announced by the Military Commission."
Yan Xishan certainly understood that Dai Jiliang was limiting his influence, but the other party said it openly and in accordance with the procedure, so he couldn't jump out to object, so he was silent for a moment and then agreed, but he continued to ask: "Your Excellency has not answered my question just now, where will the 35th Army be transferred to."
"The Military Commission is considering transferring the 35th Army to the Hunan-Hubei-Bashu War Zone."
Dai Jiliang said with some regret.
"Uncle Liu's blind command not only made the battlefield in northwestern Hubei lose the ability to contain the Japanese 11th Army, but the more terrifying thing is that the Japanese army can rush to Xiangfan and attack Nanyang at any time, so I can only borrow a general from Brother Baichuan."
Borrowing generals? It sounds good, but it is actually to divide and disintegrate, taking advantage of the opportunity to occupy territory. It can be seen that the conflict between Yang and Fu was deliberately caused by the Northwest.
But what good was it to understand it? The situation was stronger than the person, and Yan Xishan could only swallow the bitter pill and send the 35th Army, which had slipped away from the mouth of the Northwest, back.
"It's just that Fu Yisheng was wronged."
"We won't let him down. The Military Commission is going to restore his name as the Fourth Corps. We will first expand it into a division, and then gradually strengthen and complete it."
