afterglow

Chapter 664 President’s Round Table; Health is not optimistic
"Tsk! How do you censor newspapers? If this kind of mistake is made and the news leaks out, the US military might actually try to counterattack."

In fact, Zhou Changfeng himself also has some responsibility for this matter. After all, he should have stayed at home during this period of time, on the one hand to recuperate, and on the other hand to prevent the outside world from knowing about it.

Something that made him feel troubled happened soon. Not long after, Zhu Lingjing called him and scolded him harshly.

Controlling the news media during wartime is the most basic operation. The mainstream newspapers in the Ming Dynasty all have review teams sent by the government, who have a higher veto power than the editor-in-chief of the newspaper.

However, there are all kinds of things in this world, and there will always be people who are crazy enough to make big news.

The tabloid that published the Xu's Gazette was obviously overwhelmed with joy, from the reporters to the editor-in-chief, and published the headline "Breaking News! General Zhou is suspected to have returned to Beijing for treatment due to injury."

When people from the Criminal Investigation Department rushed into this remote tabloid, the employees were still confused and didn't know why. Most of them were immersed in the self-satisfaction of having exclusively reported the matter.

Facing the aggressive agents, the editor-in-chief put down his pen and asked in confusion: "What...what is this for? A big fuss!"

"What are you doing?" The tall agent in the lead looked around and sneered, "You've got into big trouble!"

The manager at the side also said with a confused look on his face: "Getting into trouble? Our company has never violated any laws, and we have paid all our taxes."

The tall agent felt like he was talking to a wall. He impatiently took out today's newspaper, pointed at the front page and asked, "Look at this! Don't you understand?"

"Ah? This is just a report on General Zhou. It doesn't involve any military secrets."

"A bunch of idiots, hopeless. Who told you that the whereabouts of the generals don't need to be kept secret? Capture them and seal off this place!"

Because the fact that Zhou Changfeng returned to Beijing injured was accidentally exposed, people in the court and the public were shocked, and all kinds of rumors and hearsay emerged one after another.

Facing inquiries from the Advisory Council and the public, the Ministry of War quietly acknowledged the incident after two days of silence. It also emphasized that the situation on the front line was still stable and that the commander-in-chief was only accidentally attacked and injured during his personal inspection.

The main channel for spies and various intelligence personnel to obtain information is the public news media, followed by spying through various means.

The military attachés of the British and American embassies sent diplomatic telegrams back to their countries almost at the same time, reporting that Zhou seemed to have returned to his homeland for treatment due to injuries.

There is no doubt that Zhou has a bad reputation, and the nickname given to him by the US military is widely circulated.

Upon hearing the good news that he was attacked and seriously injured, the entire US military in Hawaii was delighted and it would not be an exaggeration to say that they were celebrating.

Lieutenant General Simon Buckner received hints from his superiors, so he was particularly confident and determined when facing interviews with military reporters.

"We are gaining the upper hand, first in the sea, then in the air, and now we have dealt a heavy blow to Viper in the Pacific. Without him, as a field commander I firmly believe that we can also regain the initiative on land."

This greatly cheered up Washington, even the doves who wanted peace as soon as possible, not to mention the radical hawks.

Both the political and military circles agreed that now was the best time to counterattack Oahu and it should not be missed.

George Marshall warned politicians not to be too optimistic, saying that even if the U.S. military successfully gained a foothold on Oahu, it would not be possible to quickly capture the entire island.

Considering that the Ming army deployed no less than 15 defensive troops on Oahu, even in the most ideal scenario - the Ming fleet did not provide any support during the battle, it was estimated that the Ming side would have to pay a huge price of 20 to 25 casualties, including 5 to 6 deaths, which was obviously unacceptable.

The politicians don't care, or rather, except for the hawks, the politicians have never thought of completely occupying Oahu by force. They just want a certain number of US troops to gain a foothold on the island, which will be enough to win bargaining chips at the negotiating table.

The president also supported this view. He believed that the Ming Dynasty would not be unaware of the principle of leaving some room for others.

Anyone who puts himself in their shoes will understand this clearly - how can one tolerate the threat of a knife on one's neck? Unless one's national strength is weak and the military is weak, one can only swallow one's anger.

The current diplomatic contacts between the two sides have basically proved this point. It can be seen that the top leaders of the Ming Dynasty are also wavering under pressure from all sides.

That’s why applying more external pressure should be effective.

The president then summoned the Army Chief of Staff and the Secretary of the Navy to the White House and asked about the general idea of ​​the counterattack plan, and the three held a small roundtable meeting.

"If we were to attack Oahu and create a large enough defensive area, how many troops should we commit?"

George Marshall answered without hesitation: "The Sixth Army is currently under-strength, Mr. President. We need to reinforce it with at least five divisions. When attacking Oahu, I think we should deploy two Marine divisions and two infantry divisions. When the landing site is stabilized, our allies - the troops of Mexico, Peru, and Chile can also assist in the battle."

"How many casualties might be caused by the landing and opening of the landing site?" the president asked thoughtfully.

"If the Chinese army does not launch a counterattack during the landing phase and only conducts passive defense, we will not suffer too much loss. If the goal is to establish a solid position, our casualties will not exceed 1, of which the death toll is between 20 and 25%."

“Is it possible for the enemy to launch an aggressive counterattack?”

"Chinese military training states that a counterattack on the beachhead should be considered very cautiously if it is isolated and unsupported, as it could result in heavy casualties with little effect."

"Okay." The president looked at the Chief of Naval Operations and asked, "How long can the Navy keep the situation under control?"

Ernest King replied confidently: "About 10 weeks. The Chinese warships need repairs, and the 4-5 newly commissioned aircraft carriers are also in training."

"Is it possible that they could send a fleet of poorly trained aircraft carriers to support Hawaii and prevent our counterattack?"

"The possibility is very small. This stupid decision will destroy the precious fleet. It is meaningless. The Pacific Fleet is capable of destroying such a fleet."

The roundtable meeting ended not long after. The three people spent half an hour to roughly finalize the strategic deployment for the next Pacific battlefield.

Compared to the Pacific battlefield, where the war situation has stabilized and major changes are unlikely to occur again, the situation in the Manhattan Project and the European battlefield is more worrying.

Due to the high level of confidentiality surrounding the Manhattan Project, most people did not know about it, and the few who knew about it have yet to recover.

The President had been worrying about the attack on the Manhattan Project for the past two days - with such a high level of secrecy, how could the enemy have clearly identified its location and carefully planned and carried out the raids on Los Alamos and Oak Ridge at the same time?
It is obvious that there is a mole among the participants of the Manhattan Project!

Most of the tens of thousands of soldiers, workers, employees, and scientists actually had no idea what they were doing; they were just doing the job at hand.

Only a few people, such as Maj. Gen. Leslie Groves and the leading physicists, knew that the overall plan was to build a nuclear bomb.

It is not uncommon for senior scientists of this era to be communist, and many of them are left-wing empaths.

Therefore, the Manhattan Project faced the risk of confidential information leakage as early as the planning stage, and at that time only unreliable people could be carefully selected and screened out.

Even with such caution, something like this still happened. It is impossible not to be suspicious. This time, it was the specific location of the base facilities that led to a carefully planned raid.

And after that?
Next time, they might steal key design plans and various data.

Major General Leslie Groves proposed to suspend the entire plan and conduct a thorough investigation of the middle and upper levels of each base to find out the traitors. There must be no risk of key secrets being leaked.

The president was extremely conflicted about this - if an investigation was conducted, the Manhattan Project would probably be delayed for several months or even longer; if no investigation was conducted, secrets might be leaked.

He viewed this powerful nuclear bomb as an important tool to deter Germany and was caught in a dilemma.

At the end of the roundtable, Ernest King noticed that the president looked unwell, haggard and red.

Although the workaholic admiral, known for his rude and blunt manner, had a lot of things to do, he believed that the president's health was more important.

After he left the hall, he called over the staff and said by name in an imperative tone: "Send that guy McIntyre over here immediately!"

Rear Admiral Ross McIntyre, the president's personal physician, hurried over a few minutes later.

In response to the admiral's questioning, he quickly replied: "Please rest assured that the president is in good health and is capable of doing his current job."

Ernest King looked him up and down and said sternly, "I don't trust your judgment. You don't look smart."

Later, when he left the White House and was about to leave by car, White House Secretary Grace Tully quickly followed him.

She said worriedly, "Mr. Admiral, I have recently noticed that the president's condition is worse than before. Since the summer, he has often dozed off while reading reports, but McIntyre has always claimed that the president is in good health."

"I see." Ernest King groaned, "We should find an expert, but you need to submit an application first. You know what to do."

after one day.

At a Navy station in Washington, D.C., Reserve Captain Medical Officer Gal Green is packing his bags to leave for the Italian war zone.

He graduated from Harvard Medical School with a specialty in cardiovascular disease, but the war disrupted his career plans and he was now drafted into the army.

At this time, an officer suddenly told him that there was an urgent matter. There was a patient who needed his diagnosis before boarding the ship to Europe.

So Gal Green came to the White House in a daze to diagnose the president's physical condition.

He felt something was not right as soon as they met - the president's face was red, and a little purple if you looked closely, his skin, lips, and fingernails were also purple, and he seemed to have difficulty breathing.

He first used a stethoscope and immediately heard a systolic murmur in the heart, indicating that the mitral valve was not closing perfectly and there was regurgitation.

The subsequent X-ray, blood pressure, and electrocardiogram tests were even less optimistic, showing that the heart was somewhat enlarged, blood supply was poor, and blood pressure was as high as 182 for the systolic pressure and 110 for the diastolic pressure.

Gal Green, who was facing a serious enemy, gave his own diagnosis - the president was obviously suffering from heart failure, his heart could not pump blood well, and his high blood pressure was also severe, and he must receive treatment immediately.

Amid the surprise and sorrow of others, he then wrote down the treatment and medication plan, which was as follows:
① Take digitalis cardiotonic.

② Pay attention to your diet and reduce your salt intake.

③ Reduce working hours, ensure at least nine hours of sleep, and take sleeping pills if necessary.

④ Drink Danshen and Panax notoginseng tea.

As an expert in this field, Gal-Green believes that as long as it is effective, it can be used. He has studied herbs from various countries, and Danshen and Panax notoginseng are indeed very helpful for patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.

After completing the diagnosis, he hurriedly left the White House and drove to the dock to board a troop ship to Europe.

White House staff were concerned, but McIntyre, the president's personal physician, was skeptical.

He insisted that the president's health could not have suddenly deteriorated so badly, and he also refused to inform the president of the diagnosis.

While the White House was filled with gloom and sadness, the scene in the capital Yingtianfu on the other side of the world was completely different.

In the early morning, the army of bicycles was as huge as usual, with a few rumbling motorcycles in between.

Citizens were waiting at the station for the next streetcar, and teenagers selling newspapers were shouting loudly.

"Extra! Extra! The royal army has conquered Perth. The largest city in western Australia has been reduced to ashes. The stubborn enemy has suffered heavy casualties and has escaped thousands of miles away."

"Seven of the top ten stocks rose and three fell today. Tianning Telecom rose sharply by three points. The stock market master suggested long-term layout of the mining industry."

The port city of Perth faces the sea to the west, with endless plains to the north and south, but to the east there is a large area of ​​hills running north and south - the Darling Ranges.

The 136th Infantry Division and the 3rd Marine Brigade of the Ming Army landed and attacked from the north and south. In view of the fierce resistance of the Australian army, the Ming army carried out indiscriminate air strikes and artillery bombardments without regard for collateral damage, and most of the city was razed to the ground.

The Australian Army's 2nd Infantry Division and 15th Cavalry Regiment (Battalion), which were unable to hold on alone, were mostly annihilated. The remaining thousand or so people abandoned their heavy weapons and broke up into small groups and retreated eastward into the mountains.

The Ming army paid a heavy price because the enemy held every house and street. The 136th Division executed almost all the prisoners of war at will.

The convoy Zhou Changfeng was in drove out of the Yingtian Naval General Hospital and headed straight towards Jianye University and Imperial University of Science and Technology in the direction of Mochou Lake in the western suburbs.

Because of that stupid tabloid, Zhou Changfeng was worried that this might undermine the morale of the military and civilians, so he thought maybe he could make a public appearance and give a speech?

After considering it, Zhu Lingjing agreed. She felt that she could use Zhou's words to explain the current war situation, and it would be more convincing if he spoke from the perspective of the general public.

Before that, the two countries were in the midst of a fierce battle, so propaganda naturally focused on the good side. This boosted morale while also confusing the people, causing them to underestimate the enemy and overestimate themselves.

Looking at the things passing by outside the car window, Zhou Changfeng sighed: "People these days are so comfortable, living a plain and simple life, waiting for the war to be over soon."

Xia Xiaoshi, who was traveling with him, was looking in the mirror. Upon hearing this, she said, "Not really. These past few years have been difficult. There are many things I want to buy that I can't even afford. One of my students got married and I couldn't even have a big banquet."

(End of this chapter)