The Fourth Outstanding Person of Huangpu Military Academy

Therefore, both the coalition government and the military must be prepared for disaster prevention and relief.

Fortunately, over the past three years, Guangdong, Hunan, and southern Jiangxi have gradually restored many abandoned water conservancy projects, which has been helpful in disaster prevention. In addition, the highly efficient central government and military, as well as the greatly improved road transportation system, have also had a good defensive effect when floods strike.

However, things are not that simple.

Because the flood in 1931 was not called the "Xiang-Gan Flood". The Xiangjiang River and the Ganjiang River were only a small part of the flood, and not the most severely affected part. The name it left in history books is -

Major floods in the Jianghuai region.

Just as the General Staff and the General Political Department had deployed the army's disaster relief plan and completed ideological mobilization, on May 5, the water of the West River flooded the streets of Zhaoqing and Huaiji.

The rivers of the south were not suspended above ground, so floods caused damage by surging river levels, inundating farmland and riverside towns. Citizens watched as the river rose, encroaching on the county seat and entering their homes. With the assistance of the local government and the garrison, they evacuated, taking their necessities with them, to higher ground within the city to temporarily settle.

Some residents, relying on their brick and stone houses with thick walls and deep foundations, chose to live on the second floor instead of on higher ground. However, some of these residents were overconfident. Zhaoqing was flooded for a whole week, and several seemingly sturdy homes collapsed, forcing residents living on the rooftops to evacuate in a panic.

"Two landslides occurred at the construction site of the Shangyou section of the Shaoguan-Ganzhou Railway, and eight people are missing."

"Shaft No. 7 of the Dayu Tungsten Mine was flooded and production has been suspended. No casualties or missing persons were reported."

"On May 10, water from the Ganjiang River entered Ji'an County, causing flooding. About 10 houses have collapsed."

"Xiangtan City is flooded, with water depth of about 1.5 meters, and the water level of the Xiangjiang River is still rising."

The floods in the Xijiang and Dongjiang rivers had just passed, and local authorities were cleaning streets and clearing water sources. The Xiangjiang and Ganjiang rivers were beginning to swell. The Guangzhou Joint Government's Disaster Prevention and Relief Command Center was continuously compiling reports on the disaster situation in the three provinces.

Guo Liang: "Jishui County, is there any situation report from Jishui County right now?"

"Yes."

Guo Liang frowned. "Jishui's terrain is much worse than Ji'an and Ganzhou. There are many places in Jishui that are at risk of potential landslides. Have we confirmed that the telegraph line to Jishui is operating normally?"

The staff went out to contact the communications office to send a telegram to verify. Twenty minutes later, the staff hurried back and told Guo Liang that the telegram call had not been responded to. The telegraph line from Ji'an to Jishui and Fengcheng was broken.

An anxious Guo Liang stayed in the command center for two hours. Finally, the 8th Division of the 3rd Army stationed in Jishui sent back the news. The garrison used a regimental radio to send the information to the 7th Army headquarters in Ji'an. The 7th Army then forwarded it back to Guangzhou, and the General Staff then forwarded the information to the command center.

The troops stationed in Jishui County reported that floodwaters had entered the county seat, causing localized waterlogging, but residents had been evacuated. A large landslide occurred approximately 10 kilometers south of Jishui County, and the 8th Division estimated that this landslide had severed the telegraph lines.

Guo Liang was relieved. But a few hours later, late at night on May 13, Jishui County reported the disaster again by radio:

A large-scale landslide occurred again in the south of Jishui County, burying an entire village and leaving more than 100 villagers missing.

Guo Liang: “…”

从5月10日到5月24日，湘江、赣江几乎同时发威，把流域内的沿河城镇都虐了一遍。12万栋房屋被水泡,其中1100多栋房屋倒塌。两江的洪涝还淹没了约100万亩农田,播种的早稻、红薯、玉米、油菜全部损失,但好在农民还来得及补充中/晚稻，并在秋季再加种一轮红薯。

The casualties included in government statistics 330 urban and rural residents died or went missing, and 11 revolutionary army soldiers died in flood relief efforts.

On May 24, at the forefront of the joint government-controlled area - Fengcheng, Jiangxi, garrison troops and government disaster relief workers watched the last wave of floods in the Ganjiang River recede.

The floodwaters in Ji'an and Jishui counties have been gradually drained, and the water level in Fengcheng is also receding. In Hunan, the flood peak long ago passed Changsha. The Yuehan Railway Bridge, which just passed through Miluo Town today, miraculously remained open to traffic despite the floods thanks to the full support of the garrison troops and the Revolutionary Army Engineering Corps.

The 14-day disaster relief campaign finally reached a turning point.

"Chief Chen, this is the list of meritorious personnel in flood relief and rescue efforts, along with the commendation plan."

Chen Tianheng received a long list of meritorious service members. The floods, which lasted for a month from Guangdong to Jiangxi and Hunan, involved the eight revolutionary army armies, the Guangzhou fortress garrison headquarters, and local troops from various military regions.

"Those who have contributed to the flood relief efforts will definitely be rewarded," Chen Tianheng said, "but not now. We need to help locals restore order in the town, repair farmland canal systems, and address drinking water issues... There's a lot of finishing work to do. We'll hold a commendation ceremony after the disaster is completely over."

"Yes."

Chen Tianheng: "Also, the combat readiness levels of the three frontline fulcrums, the 9th Division in Fengcheng, the 19th Division in Fuzhou, and the 13th Division in Miluo Town, have been raised by one level."

The flood peak has only left the area controlled by the coalition government, but has not disappeared from the land of China. These floods are now rushing towards the area controlled by the Nanjing government - the lower reaches of the Ganjiang River are Nanchang and the Ganjiang Plain, and the lower reaches of the Xiangjiang River are Yueyang, Dongting Lake, and Wuhan.

It was not that Chen Tianheng cursed intentionally, but such a huge flood poured into the downstream, and the heavy rainfall happened to shift from the upper reaches to the middle and lower reaches. The Nanjing government might not be able to withstand it.

Twenty-seven Villages in Jiangxi Submerged by Floods

"Corpses Floating in and Around Nanchang, a Horrific Scene" "I, I..."

Guo Liang, who was in charge of flood relief, nearly tore up the newspaper at the command center. He was speechless about Nanjing's performance.

"Although the damage downstream is generally more severe than upstream when a basin-wide flood occurs, you really don't take human life seriously!"

Chen Tianheng: "What response plan does the Disaster Prevention and Relief Command have for the disaster over there?"

Guo Liang: "For the time being, we will provide disaster relief supplies, mainly medicines, to the disaster-stricken areas in Jiangxi and Hubei."

Guangzhou is now a national center for pharmaceutical R&D and production, a well-deserved reputation. Following the flood, the overall casualties from epidemics far outweighed the direct casualties, primarily from epidemics like cholera. Guangzhou now produces berberine and sulfonamide, a broad-spectrum antibiotic that is also an effective treatment for cholera.

"We want to pass a message to Li Zongren through you."

"This national disaster has nothing to do with military matters. Securing Wuhan and minimizing casualties is not only Commander Li's responsibility, but also what the Revolutionary Army desires. If there's anything we can do to help, we'll do our best once we know of it."

Miluo Town.

Chen Tianheng stood at the Miluo Town railway bridge, looking across at the Nanjing-controlled area. Li Zongren's messenger Cheng Siyuan rushed from Wuhan and met with Chen Tianheng in Miluo Town.

"General Chen," Cheng Siyuan said, "Commander Li is in a very difficult situation right now. It's not that he hasn't done his job in disaster relief, but the Yangtze River embankments and ditches are a mess, and everything is in danger. And there's been virtually no support from Nanjing. Do you know what Chiang Kai-shek gave after the water level of Dongting Lake rose? Just 50,000 silver dollars."

Chen Tianheng: "If the dikes and flood control facilities are in disrepair and in danger of collapse, we should recruit civilian workers and dispatch troops from the First Sui District to help repair the dikes. Didn't you just transfer the Seventh Army from the Second Sui District to station in Wuhan? They are all Guangxi's own troops, so they should be able to be mobilized."

Cheng Siyuan: "This..."

Chen Tianheng: "As I said earlier, in a year of great disaster, military action is irrelevant. It doesn't matter how many troops you mobilize, or how you deploy the empty city plan. As long as you are engaged in disaster relief, we will not touch you. But if you, with nearly 200,000 troops, sit back and watch the people of Hubei be destroyed by the floods, then it is hard to say what resolution the Guangzhou United Government will come up with, and what decision the Military Commission will make."

Wuhan.

The former Huguang Governor's Office in Wuchang was used by Li Zongren as the headquarters of the Second Pacification Zone.

Li Zongren was now standing on the roof of the Governor's Office, looking at the disaster-stricken city of Wuchang through a telescope.

"Commander! I'm back!" Cheng Siyuan waved and shouted on the boat.

He went from Wuchang to Miluo Town to deliver the message, and then returned to Wuchang. Haha, Li Zongren became the commander of the navy.

——The reason why he stood on the roof of the Governor's Office was because the first floor of the Governor's Office was completely flooded, and the second floor was also flooded with nearly one meter of water.

"Commander, Chen Tianheng told me that disaster relief is a matter of course. The Revolutionary Army was already involved in disaster relief last month, and we, the Gui Army, should also participate in disaster relief and save the people. And the Guangzhou side assured us that as long as we are involved in disaster relief, even if we withdraw all our troops from the front lines, they will not attack us."

Li Zongren: "It's not that I don't want to send troops to help the disaster, but I don't have the money. How can we march without receiving military pay?"

Cheng Siyuan: "This... Guangzhou didn't say..."

"I know they won't mention this, so forget it," Li Zongren said. "Liao Lei! How much military budget do we have left?"

Liao Lei, who was also standing on the roof, said, "We still have some emergency funds left, just enough to pay a soldier a month's salary at the standard rate."

"Alas," Li Zongren sighed, "Alas!"

"Then, your Seventh Army should mobilize and go to the disaster relief!"

Chapter 85: If you don't do a good job of disaster relief, I will take over your territory

Li Mingrui and his 8th Gui Division spent the most difficult month in Hankou. Even the battle with the revolutionary army in December 1927 was not as tiring as this.

(He hadn't joined the party yet at that time, so that was a real fight)

This time in Hankou, I was just following orders to provide disaster relief!

"Second Regiment, Second Battalion, First Company, First Platoon, everyone line up! Beep, beep, beep!"

Wei Baqun, chief of staff and director of the political department of the 8th Guangxi Division, led more than 20 armed soldiers from the division's guard battalion into the barracks of the 2nd Battalion of the 2nd Regiment, and took an entire platoon of people out of the dormitory and made them stand in a row.

Wei Baqun: "The masses reported that our troops, while assisting the 'West Eight Households' of Luduan Village with their relocation this afternoon, some soldiers embezzled villagers' property. Upon investigation, it was your company and platoon that assisted the 'West Eight Households' with their relocation today."

"Military discipline is the lifeblood of the army. An army without it is a mob! Whether soldier or officer, all are equal before military discipline! These are the words of Commander-in-Chief Li himself! Our army's discipline is clearly written: you are not allowed to harass the people, you are not allowed to plunder the land, and you are not allowed to force people to work. Anyone who violates it will be severely punished!"

Wei Baqun glanced around at the first row of soldiers before him. "In ten minutes, I'll be in the operations room, taking turns speaking with each of the thirty-four of you, one on one. Whoever stole the small golden Buddha from Mr. Feng's home during the move at 'West Eight Households'? I want you to bring it to me in the operations room. As long as you keep quiet, I won't tell anyone, and the military court won't punish you."

"If the thirty-four people finish talking and the golden Buddha is not handed over to me, I will not be able to protect you, the thief."

Wei Baqun spent over two hours discussing the platoon's thirty-plus members individually. But the final result was quite positive: a soldier pocketed the stolen golden Buddha statue and brought it to the operations room, where he privately handed it to Wei Baqun.

"Thank you for your hard work, Lao Wei!"

At nightfall, Wei Baqun returned to the division headquarters. Li Mingrui said this, and Wei Baqun replied, "Mingrui, you've been very busy today too. We're all the same."

Li Mingrui closed the door to the division headquarters and said, "The First Regiment is led by Yu Zuoyu, and there are no problems with military discipline. The Third Regiment has just been replaced by Zhong Yi, and our people are doing well. It's just that the Second Regiment is a bit difficult to deal with."

Wei Baqun: "The Second Regiment is doing much better now than it did in the first few days after we entered the disaster area. In the early days of disaster relief, if I had just had a one-on-one conversation like I'm doing today, it would have been completely ineffective. They looted everything and divided it equally among the entire platoon and company, then tried to cover it up like trained bandits. Now, most soldiers know this isn't right."

Li Mingrui: "So we still have to chop off a few heads if we need to."

The 8th Gui Division enforced the Gui Army's military discipline to the letter. Those who raped women or committed murder for money were executed immediately. Those who committed murder without killing were subject to flogging, confinement, expulsion, or reprimands, depending on the severity of the offense and whether they confessed or returned the stolen property. In the first week after entering the disaster zone, the 8th Gui Division executed three soldiers for violating discipline, all from the Second Regiment; they also flogged over a dozen, most of whom were from the Second Regiment.

Although the discipline of the Second Regiment is still a drag, it is much better than it was at the beginning.

Wei Baqun: "Lu Shaowu is doing a good job in the First Regiment's staff. We can pull him out and make him a battalion commander in the Second Regiment."

Li Mingrui: "I think it's possible. But how do we solve the problem of Second Regiment Commander Pang Hanzhen?"

Wei Baqun: "I'll have a chat with Pang Hanzhen when I have time. Pang Hanzhen still listens to you and is very fierce in battle, but he has some habits that were formed when he was with Lu Rongting and are not easy to change."

Not only were Li Mingrui and Wei Baqun worried about the 8th Guangxi Division, but in Guangzhou, the "tempering process" of the 8th Guangxi Division was also frequently on the discussion agenda of the Military Commission Secretariat.

After receiving the secret letter delivered by Li Mingrui, Chen Tianheng and Zhou Enlai discussed it and wrote a reply.

First, we must affirm Li Mingrui's work within the 8th Guangxi Division. All three regimental commanders were now his own men (the second regimental commander, Pang Hanzhen, also listened to Li Mingrui, though his discipline was somewhat lax). Party organizations were secretly being established and expanded in each regiment and battalion. After the training gained in the Hankou disaster relief effort, the division's cohesion and political literacy had greatly improved.

对于桂8师与桂1、2师的关系,军委秘书处表示同意李明瑞的想法,可以借此次救灾的军纪问题、军民关系问题,试着与这两个师沟通。但是,如果能影响桂1师和桂2师当然是好事，如果不能影响,那也不要强求，和这两个师保持一定距离,不要让人怀疑桂8师是不是与共产党有关系。

Zhou Enlai: "In recent years, Li Zongren, Yu Zuobai, and we have been collaborating more and more on livelihood and economic matters. Li Zongren has become less shy about discussing these matters publicly. At the track-laying ceremony for the Liuzhou section of the Hunan-Guangxi Railway, he even directly mentioned, 'I have agreed on such and such with the Guangdong authorities.' However, Li Zongren maintains a tight control over his military. Military non-participation in this cooperation is a red line for him."

Chen Tianheng: "So, until Li Zongren's red line 'moves,' Li Mingrui must continue to hide."

"Director Chen, Secretary-General Zhou. Very bad news! There's a major disaster in the north."

The Guangzhou Joint Government fought the disaster in May and eliminated the post-disaster epidemic in June. Since July, Guo Liang, the flood control director, has become an information collation expert specializing in the "northern disaster situation." Today, Guo Liang appeared at the General Office of the Central Military Commission with a very serious expression:

"The night before yesterday, the dike near Gaoyou Lake collapsed. The dam was over ten kilometers long."

Chen Tianheng: "Such a massive dam collapse! ...Has the Huai River's flood control system completely collapsed?!"

Guo Liang nodded. "Yes. The Jinpu Road has been cut off, and all transportation and communications are severed. The news of the Gaoyou Lake dam collapse was only reported by American pilots flying over the area. Nanjing only learned of it after they landed at Nanjing Airport."

The heavy rainfall in 1931 occurred in Guangdong in April, in Hunan in May, and in the Yangtze River in June. Then, for June, July, and August, it kept moving back and forth between the Yangtze River and the Huai River.

During the annual typhoon season, only about two typhoons typically make landfall in the Jianghuai region. However, during the three months of summer in 1931, mainland China experienced seven typhoons, all of which headed for the Jianghuai region after making landfall.

It was like a rookie marksman firing blindly with a rifle, hitting the bull's eye with every shot. Consequently, the Yangtze River rose for two consecutive months, leaving Wuhan submerged for nearly two months. Not only the Yangtze, but also the Han River, remained high. The Seventh Army, including Li Mingrui's 8th Gui Division, was constantly busy in Hankou and Hanyang. The situation was even more severe on the Huai River, a river without an outlet to the sea. Under the pressure of the massive waters, the dike of Gaoyou Lake, at the confluence of the Huai River and the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, collapsed late on the night of August 25th.

The water of the Huaihe River rushed out wildly, and it happened to be late at night. Overnight, the flood washed away several counties south of Gaoyou Lake, destroying county towns, towns, and villages equally.

Three days later, Nanjing received the news of the levee breach reported by the American pilots, and Yangzhou saw the Huai River floodwaters rushing towards the city, then circling the city and rushing towards the Yangtze River. The first and most shocking sight was the corpses dotted in the muddy floodwaters.

In several counties south of Gaoyou Lake, 140,000 people were killed between late night of August 25 and early morning of August 26.

"Premier Chen, Vice Premier Deng. The Red Cross has already donated more than enough for the floods in China. Furthermore, I understand that your government has also donated more than enough money and supplies for disasters in the north, outside the controlled areas."

Todd Gelmer, a member of the International Red Cross's Steering Committee, was in Guangzhou. Chen Duxiu and Deng Yanda asked him to discuss increasing donations to the northern disaster areas. Gelmer expressed his incomprehension.

"The Nanjing government raised only 220 million yuan to respond to the disaster, of which only 80 yuan was government funding. Private donations totaled 140 million yuan, with Shanghai tycoon Du Yuesheng contributing 50 yuan alone. ... Perhaps for the northern government and gentry, the floods on the Yangtze and Huai rivers were not a particularly significant matter."

"Therefore, I do not think Guangzhou should bear such a high responsibility for this flood. After all, your Guangzhou government donated 300 million silver dollars and 1000 million silver dollars worth of medicine to the disaster in the north."

Chen Duxiu: "We donated so much because the number of people affected in the north exceeded 50 million, and the casualties were severe. The floods in the north were much more serious than in the south."

Deng Yanda: "This is not the time to discuss who controls or is in charge of the disaster-stricken areas. Regardless of who governs those areas, they are all Chinese citizens, and we have an obligation to be responsible for them. Mr. Gelmer, the Red Cross donated $150 million in supplies to the disaster-stricken areas in Jiangxi and Hunan, but only $50 in aid to the north. Isn't that a bit too little?"

Gelmer: "Because many of the donations the Red Cross receives have designated uses by donors, we must follow their instructions and use the supplies and funds in the designated disaster areas."

Deng Yanda: "I know that most of the donors to the Red Cross are foreign companies and foundations with interests in the mining industry in southern Jiangxi. They're concerned about minimizing the impact of the floods on the mining area and restoring production. But I still want Mr. Gelmer to explain and lobby these donors, telling them that China is a whole, and we can't just stand by and watch the floods in the north consume everyone."

Gailmer: "Regarding the disaster in the north, I have to say something else. We discovered that a lot of aid supplies were being diverted by officials in the north and sold on the market."

邓演达:“这个情况我们也掌握了。红十字会捐助的粮食和帐篷出现在了北方的商业市场上;同时市场上还出现了大量的磺胺抗生素,都是我们为抗灾特制的140片一瓶的大瓶装。这写药被炒到了很高的价钱，以前14片一瓶的磺胺在北方售价10元,现在在灾区拆散成药片卖，每片药1.5甚至2元。”

Gailmer: "Now that we understand this, you in Guangzhou are still turning a blind eye to it and continuing to make such meaningless donations to the North?"

Chen Duxiu: "We will not turn a blind eye. Since the donated materials are being privately divided and resold, we will distribute them ourselves."

Gailmer: "How do you do that?"

Deng Yanda: "The revolutionary army issued its marching order yesterday. Two divisions will enter the Ganjiang Plain. We will announce today that the entire Ganjiang Plain from Nanchang County south is under the control of the revolutionary army. North of the Yangtze River, the Hubei-Henan-Anhui Military Region has emerged from the Dabie Mountains and is expected to take over Lu'an within two to three days. Lu'an will serve as the central station for the distribution of supplies to the Huaihe River disaster area."

Chen Duxiu: "I hope the Red Cross can also deliver the additional donated supplies to Lu'an for centralized distribution here. Your main task is to transport supplies from Lu'an to the surrounding disaster areas within a 100-kilometer radius."

Central Jiangxi. Fengcheng.

The 9th Division of the 3rd Army of the Revolutionary Army has been stationed in Fengcheng for the past two years. This is the tacit border between the Nanjing and Guangzhou regimes.

Now, this default boundary has been broken.

The three regiments of the 9th Division split into three routes, entering the rural plains over 60 kilometers from Fengcheng to Nanchang. Farmers' associations had long existed in these villages, but they operated covertly. With the arrival of the revolutionary army, the associations and their armed members were "activated," and village after village was brought under the control of the revolutionary army.