Shadow Spy

Chapter 473 The Unprecedented Fourth Term

The Spring Festival of Year Yiyou falls on February 2. The Marine Corps has a three-day holiday from the 13th to the 12th. This has become a routine, and some government departments with many Chinese employees have begun to follow suit.

Because Commander Panson's attitude towards the Chinese has affected many people, now the land, sea, CIA, FBI and other departments dare not discriminate against the Chinese - if people know about it, it will be a big deal!

On February 2, Li Junhao personally called the Pacific Theater and issued a fatal order to Lieutenant General Vandegrift, commander of the Fourth Army and Navy, who was to carry out the Liuhuan Island operation: use superior firepower and advanced equipment to conduct operations, advance steadily, and decide. Don't be allowed to rush forward in a hurry and treat soldiers as cannon fodder!

The next day, the battle of Liuhuang Island began. The already experienced officers and soldiers of the navy and land forces faithfully implemented Li Junhao's orders, working step by step and fighting steadily...

At the end of the first day of battle, although there was no successful landing, more than 2.3 Japanese troops on the beach were wiped out. After this situation was reported to the sea and land headquarters, Li Junhao felt relieved and called back to the Fourth Army: Just fight like this, Liuhuang Island There were only Japanese troops in total, and they couldn't last more than a few days!
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On the 17th, Roosevelt and Marshall returned to Washington and immediately held a meeting to listen to Li Junhao's special report. In fact, the Joint Chiefs of Staff had reported these situations in detail before, and even the handling measures were approved by Roosevelt. At this time, they just didn't want to know more details.

At this time, after so many days, Marshall regretted that he had agreed too quickly. One reason was that he also served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces in Europe and was now very busy!

You know, the Allied forces in Europe now are not just the US and British troops, not counting the armies of several Commonwealth countries or regions, there are also the French army, the Netherlands, Belgium and other countries, and even more so the Soviet army. There are also armies from Eastern European countries such as Poland and Romania. Their numbers vary, but there are nearly 30 countries. This is very difficult to manage!

Another reason is that Marshall felt that the treatment of Eisenhower was too harsh. After all, he had made many military exploits before. This time he was not only removed from his post, but also demoted two ranks.

Of course, this point can no longer be undone. The Joint Chiefs of Staff cannot change orders overnight, and what Panson said is right: Eisenhower used a politician's mentality to manage the Allied Command, which satisfied the British army, but seriously damaged the US military's This led to the discord between the American and British armies. It was not until the Battle of the Ardennes that the American army was besieged while the British army stood by and watched. In the end, the American army suffered 10 casualties! If it is not dealt with seriously, how can American officers and soldiers trust the country and the Joint Chiefs of Staff again?

In the end, Marshall couldn't help but beg for favors from Roosevelt and Li Junhao, saying that Eisenhower was still capable and that he should be given a chance to contribute to the country.

Roosevelt was noncommittal about this. Seeing that Marshall had already spoken, Li Junhao did not stop him, saying that the War Department could arrange the matter on its own and he would not interfere.

On February 2, the Army Staff applied for and the Joint Chiefs of Staff approved the appointment of Major General Eisenhower as deputy chief of staff of the Allied Far East Command.

Subsequently, Marshall resigned from his concurrent post as Commander-in-Chief of Allied Forces in the Far East because he concurrently served as Commander-in-Chief of Allied Forces in the European Theater of Operations, and was replaced by Admiral Stark, Chief of Naval Operations—just as the current combat area of ​​the Pacific Theater began to overlap with that of the Allied Far Eastern Theater. Admiral Stark and Admiral Nimitz, commander-in-chief of the Pacific Theater, will better coordinate the scope of responsibilities and specific division of labor of the two commands.
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On February 2, the Battle of Liuhuang Island ended. The Fourth Army and Navy annihilated 28 Japanese troops defending the island at the cost of 275 casualties and 1280 injuries. Only Li Junhao knew that this time was 2.3 days earlier than in the original history. , originally the US military would have killed 8 people and injured 7000 people!

Although Iwo Jima is a small island, it is located between Tokyo and Saipan, about 1200 kilometers away from the two places. Previously, after the U.S. military occupied Saipan, it used it as a base to launch air raids on Tokyo. However, due to the Japanese alarm on Iwo Jima and the launch of fighter planes to intercept, the effect was not good. So the US military wants to occupy this place, and the Japanese army has to defend it!

Subsequently, a photo taken by the reporter quickly occupied the headlines of major newspapers in the United States—six Marine Corps soldiers planted the American flag on the top of Iwo Jima!

Li Junhao ordered this scene to be made into a statue, and together with the previous statues of the Normandy landings and the Battle of the Mariana Islands, be placed in front of the Maritime and Land Command building as a commemoration!
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On March 3, Roosevelt was inaugurated as the 4th President of the United States, and Truman became Vice President.

What is different from the original history is that Roosevelt's physical condition is now excellent. If the spinal disease had not lasted for too long and caused permanent organic damage, making him still unable to stand up, he would have been better than most of his age at this time. Everyone is healthy!

Because the war was in its final and most important stage, the White House staff and cabinet team remained unchanged. Roosevelt was prepared to consider adjustments only after the war was completely over.

After the ceremony, on the way back to the office, Roosevelt specially called Li Junhao to his side and said softly: "Oger, thank you!"

"You're welcome, you are a good president." Li Junhao also said softly, "If you can, I hope you will keep doing it!"

"Hahaha..." Roosevelt laughed heartily, "Ogg, no matter what, this will be my last term as president. You will be old enough by then. How about you, are you interested in running for office?"

"Not interested." Li Junhao said immediately, "I'll know it when I see the intensity of your work. It's too tiring!"

Roosevelt laughed even louder...

Many people have seen the conversation between the two, which further confirms that the two are very close. This is almost equivalent to stating that in the next four years of the presidential term, General Panson's power will not decrease, but will only increase!

Among them, Truman felt the deepest and knew that he had done something wrong before! ——

On March 3, Marshall flew to Western Europe and presided over the highest military conference of the Allies on the European battlefield. After a fierce debate, the United States, Britain, and France agreed that the Soviet army closer to the target would capture Berlin, and the Allied forces would attack in the direction of Germany. Leipzig and Dresden in the eastern part of the central line, but the stipulation is that after Berlin is captured, it will be jointly managed by the four countries.

The British commander Montgomery was very dissatisfied with this decision, but the generals of the other three countries ignored him, which made him very embarrassed!

On March 3, after breaking through the Siegfried Line, the Allied forces on the Western Front captured the Saarland, drove the German army across the Rhine River, and seized the Ludendorff Bridge in the Remagen area, then controlled the east bank of the Rhine River and attacked the Ruhr. A two-wing encirclement was implemented; then, the Allied forces forcibly crossed the Rhine River and advanced into the hinterland of Germany.

(End of this chapter)