Short answers, pulled from the story.
The campaign began in early February 1938 when Japanese armored units attacked Chinese divisions protecting the Jinpu Railway. The main fighting concluded on the 21st of May 1938, after Chinese forces completed their evacuation from the city.
Chiang Kai-shek declared defense of Xuzhou his top strategic priority at a military conference in Wuchang at the end of January 1938. Generals Li Zongren, Bai Chongxi, Tang Enbo, Chen Cheng, and Xue Yue led the troops positioned along both railway lines.
A two-week battle raged from March 22 until April 7, resulting in the first major Chinese victory of the war. Both sides suffered heavy losses with approximately 20,000 men lost each during this period while the city of Taierzhuang was almost completely destroyed.
Estimates place civilian deaths between 400,000 and 500,000 people following the destruction of river dikes in central Henan. The resulting flood inundated some 54,000 square kilometers of central China and displaced three million refugees.
Japanese troops marched into Xuzhou on the 19th of May 1938, finding it nearly abandoned but capturing some 30,000 Chinese soldiers and civilians left behind. The withdrawal operation completed by May 21 allowed preservation of the majority of Chinese forces for future defense of Wuhan.