On the eve of the fall of Liaodong, he led his troops in a remonstrance against the young marshal.

Zhang Xueliang took the telegram and read it from beginning to end.

In the telegram, Cai Tingkai's wording was very direct, describing the battlefield situation in great detail.

"The dean will take note."

"...The Battle of Zhabei was fierce, and Japanese planes bombed the area. The 19th Route Army suffered more than half of its casualties. Li Changkong's air force arrived in time."

"The Japanese Notoro has sunk, Hongkou Airport has been bombed, the 19th Route Army has launched a full-scale counterattack, has broken through the North Sichuan Road defense line, entered the Japanese concession, and surrounded the Matsui Iwane headquarters. Victory is in sight."

"Good! Good! Good!"

Zhang Xueliang became more and more excited as he read, slapping his thigh and shouting "Good!" three times, causing the water in his teacup to spill all over the table.

But when he saw what came next, the smile on his face froze instantly.

"He Yingqin repeatedly ordered the withdrawal of troops, and Britain, France and the United States jointly pressured the Chinese army to withdraw from the Japanese concession."

"The White Bear side expressed serious concern through diplomatic channels, implying that it would be forced to take corresponding actions on the northeastern border if the situation escalates further."

Zhang Xueliang's eyelid twitched.

He gritted his teeth. Britain, France, and the United States.

These Western devils are all bad. They talk about civilization, order, and justice, but all they care about is business.

They carve out a few plots of land on Chinese soil, fly their own national flag, and dare to claim it as their territory.

The Chinese army is not to be touched.

However, China is not strong enough yet. China's navy has not been built yet, and although China's air force has the second brother's air force, it is not strong enough to turn against all the great powers at the same time.

What truly made his heart sink was not Britain, France, or the United States, but the polar bear.

He placed the telegram on the table and tapped lightly on the last few lines of text, his rhythm slowing down until he finally stopped.

As he watched the fields rushing past the window, he suddenly felt that the scenery outside the window had become exceptionally gloomy.

The withered yellow fields reminded him of Northeast China and the Chinese Eastern Railway.

The Sino-Soviet conflict over the Chinese Eastern Railway in 1929.

That year he was twenty-eight years old, having just taken over his father's position as Commander-in-Chief of the Northeast Army. He was at the age of high spirits and eager to make a name for himself.

He felt that the Middle East Railway was a railway in Northeast China, so why should the White Bear occupy it?

So he ordered the revocation of the right-of-way for the Chinese Eastern Railway, expelled the White Bear railway staff, and tore down the White Bear flag from the stations along the railway line, replacing it with the Blue Sky, White Sun and Red Earth flag.

He thought that at most the White Bear would just protest a few words, and at worst fight a border skirmish with him. The Northeast Army had 300,000 troops, what was there to be afraid of?

As it turned out, the polar bear didn't waste any words with him.

The White Bear directly deployed the Far East Special Group Army, with 80,000 troops crossing the border and, under the cover of aircraft, tanks, and heavy artillery, surging into Northeast China like a tidal wave.

The Northeast Army was routed, and the naval river defense fleet was completely annihilated at Tongjiang Estuary. More than a dozen warships sank to the bottom of the Songhua River, and more than a thousand officers and soldiers, including the captains, were killed in action. The river was filled with corpses and broken planks.

The army fared no better. Manzhouli fell, Zhalainuoer fell, Hailar fell, and tens of thousands of troops were routed and retreated all the way to Harbin.

In the end, he had no choice but to sign the Khabarovsk Agreement, restoring all of the White Bear's rights and interests in the Middle East Railway, replacing all officials involved in reclaiming the railway rights, and compensating the White Bear for its losses.

That battle terrified him.

The Japanese devils were like wolves—fierce and cunning—but at least they could still fight and struggle.

But a polar bear is not a wolf; a polar bear is a bear. It is a massive, suffocating bear that crouches in northern China.

With a single swipe of its claw, it won't even give you a chance to fight back.

The navy was completely wiped out, and the army suffered a crushing defeat. He never wanted to experience that again in his life.

Now, the bear has extended its claws again.

Zhang Xueliang's finger hovered over the telegram, his fingertips trembling slightly.

He could disregard He Yingqin, and even Britain, France, and the United States, but he could not disregard the White Bear.

He Yingqin was just a mouthpiece; the chairman behind him had already stepped down. He could withstand his orders as long as he used his position as Premier to suppress them.

Although Britain, France, and the United States are not to be trifled with, they are thousands of miles away. At most, they can only impose economic sanctions or diplomatic pressure. It is impossible for them to actually start a full-scale war with China over a Japanese concession.

But polar bears are different.

The border of the polar bear is in the northeast, right behind the second oldest.

If the battle at Tojo angers the White Bear, and the White Bear takes action on the northeastern border, what will happen to the Second Brother?

The Northeast had just finished fighting the Japanese and had just recovered all of the Japanese's rights. It hadn't had time to digest the gains or to reorganize its army for war. If the White Bear stabbed it in the back at this time, the Northeast would be completely finished.

He can't let that happen.

On the other side, Cai Tingkai and his brothers from the 19th Route Army had been fighting the Japanese for a day and a night in Zhabei.

They withstood the Japanese planes and tanks with their own flesh and blood, and finally broke into the Japanese concession, surrounding Matsui Iwane in the headquarters. They were just one breath away from completely driving the Japanese out of Tojo.

If he were to order a retreat at this point, the blood of those brothers who died in Zhabei, at Tiantong'an Station, and on the Baoshan Road defense line would have been shed in vain.

What would Cai Tingkai think of him? What would the 19th Route Army think of him? What would the people of all China think of him?

He was just elected Premier of the Executive Yuan and just said in a statement that he "will never give up an inch of territory".

If the second order is to retreat, how can he, as the dean, have the face to issue orders in the future?

"The Dean?"

Seeing that Zhang Xueliang's expression was off, Tan Hai tentatively asked a question.

Zhang Xueliang did not answer.

He placed the telegram on the table, stood up, and walked to the car window. A thin layer of frost had formed on the windowpane, and he unconsciously traced his name on the frost with his finger, drawing a crooked "Zhang".

Two voices were fighting in his head.

One voice said, "We can't withdraw. If we do, we'll be traitors, sell out the country, and become the second Chairman."

Another voice said, "We can't fight. If we fight, it will be like the second Middle East Railway. Once the White Bear makes a move, the Northeast will be finished, the Zhang family will be finished, and everything will be finished."

At this moment, he couldn't help but think of his father and his second brother.

If Dad were here, what would he do?

If it were his second brother, what would he choose?