Age of Rebirth

After Admiral Jeffrey finished speaking, President Roosevelt was undecided, and Jeffrey went on to say

"Mr. President, just this morning, I received an urgent telegram from MacArthur. After six days of fierce fighting, the islands of Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, and Mindanao have fallen."

"Our local troops, after being severely damaged by the Japanese army, retreated to several key points, and then were encircled by the Japanese army. After three days of fierce fighting, most of the troops were wiped out, and the rest surrendered to the Japanese army on June [-]."

"The situation in Java is even worse. On June 14, the governor of the Netherlands led the Dutch army and the Indonesian army to surrender to the Japanese army. In fact, only Luzon Island is under our control. However, Japan's No. The [-]th Army attacked very violently, and the reason why Manila has not yet been surrounded is the result of the desperate resistance of General Stilwell, the chief of staff of the Southeast Asia and South Pacific Regional Headquarters, commanding the [-]th Infantry Division in the Calais Mountains."

"According to the report from the front, Ito Yanzaburo, the commander-in-chief of the Japanese South Pacific Dispatch Army, transferred the strategic general reserve force, two divisions and three brigades stationed in Singapore, to the Luzon Wu battlefield to attack Luzon. The number of Japanese troops on the island increased to more than 23, and the situation on the battlefield would continue to deteriorate. Judging from this, Stilwell could not last long.” [

"Mr. President, the two marine divisions in our country that were originally scheduled to reinforce Luzon Island are in a bitter battle in Hawaii. If there is no reinforcement of troops, it will be a precarious situation. The Hawaiian Islands must not fall into the hands of the Japanese. In the shortest period of time, our existing assembled troops can only reinforce in one direction, which does not take into account the issue of the escort fleet."

After Admiral Jeffrey finished speaking, Roosevelt sighed and said: "Jeffrey, I am very aware of the crisis situation you mentioned, but asking for help from the Chinese Tang Qiuli is the last resort. Dealing with each other, I am a little exhausted, now, I feel the feeling of MacArthur."

Jeffrey couldn't help asking: "Mr. President, why is this? We are allies with China, and Tang Qiuli is also the second deputy commander of the Allied China and Southeast Asia Theater. According to the treaty, there is no reason for him not to lend a helping hand. I have received a report that Tang Qiuli has been authorized by the Chinese government to handle matters in the South Pacific battlefield with full power. It is time for the Chinese to fulfill their obligations.”

Roosevelt smiled wryly and shook his fork, saying: "Jeffrey, we haven't had a spring breeze." We can't expect autumn rain. Our biggest mistake was that we failed to prevent this from happening when the British attacked northern Burma. What you did next, you thought you could hide it from Tang Qiuli's intelligence agencies. The weapons and equipment used by the British were printed in the United States. "

"Tang Qiuli will not be so stupid that he doesn't know what we are doing for the British behind our backs. Otherwise, MacArthur's Tiger Shark Action Plan will not pin all his hopes on Tang Qiuli and become a laughing stock against us. According to the sporadic information collected by our intelligence agency, Tang Qiuli's main force is still on the front line in East India, and the war broke out in only six days." His troops had no time to assemble. "

"Besides, in mainland China, apart from Manchuria, there is no Japanese army. Is there any reason for the Chinese to send troops? Even if Tang Qiuli fulfills his ally obligations and sends troops to help us, it will take time, and the length of this time depends on It depends on how much bargaining chip we take out" or how much price we pay. Benefits are the only condition for maintaining the alliance. "

Admiral Jeffrey was silent. He understood the meaning of Mr. President, "If the Chinese Tang Qiuli is allowed to send troops to the South Pacific battlefield, then" the United States has to take out in exchange for Tang Qiuli's bargaining chips to impress Tang Qiuli. What is Qiuli's bargaining chip?Admiral Jeffrey was at a loss. He had never dealt with Tang Qiuli before, and he never talked about understanding him.

Seeing his chief of staff, he remained silent, and Roosevelt went on to say: "There is another crucial issue, that is, whether the strategic focus of our United States is in Europe or in Asia. In terms of the military power pouring in front of us, Continental Europe is the focus of our United States, and Hitler's Germany wants to dominate Europe, which we cannot tolerate."

"Therefore, the military power of Europe must not be reduced. Even so, we and the British are facing great pressure from the Germans. Young people in the United States are fighting in Europe. The domestic people can easily understand that they have the same roots and have a homeland complex. In Asia, what is separated is not only the vast Pacific Ocean, but also psychological cognition.”

"So, for the South Pacific battlefield, we can only take a defensive position and stick to Luzon Island as a foothold for our future counter-offensive, and as Australia's northern barrier, the Hawaiian Islands must not fall into the hands of the Japanese. This is We must be firm. The Japanese offensive in the South Pacific must be stopped at Midway Island and the Hawaiian Islands.

"If we want to do this, we can only rely on our American strength, at least not yet. We pay the price and ask Tang Qiuli for support, I think. Once we have to deal with Tang Qiuli, we will pay the price. The price may be difficult for us to accept, this is the reality, well, Jeffrey, according to what I mean, make a corresponding plan."

Admiral Jeffrey nodded, and said: "Mr. President, I have come up with a preliminary plan. First, use the troops currently assembled in the country to reinforce the battlefield of the Hawaiian Islands at any cost. Second, transfer the Third Fleet from Europe. , to reorganize the Pacific Fleet to protect our maritime safety. Third, we provide a full set of weapons and equipment for the British and Australian troops stationed in Australia.

As part of MacArthur's forces, we will reinforce the Luzon battlefield, and at the same time, use the Australian mainland as our base for the United States to return to the South Pacific region. ,...

Roosevelt smiled, and put Jeffrey as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. It seemed that the United States was lucky. He said: "Jeffrey, follow your plan. As for persuading Churchill, the British In the Australian army, the work assigned to MacArthur's command will be done by me personally, and you can freely and boldly implement the plan."

Just when U.S. President Roosevelt and General Jeffrey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were racking their brains in the White House office to set the basic strategy for the U.S. to deal with the Pacific War, they were talked about by two U.S. heavyweights Tang Qiuli, in Yangon in the Indochina Peninsula, is no more relaxed than the two big men who are worried about the future and destiny of the United States.

It has been six days since the outbreak of the South Pacific War, but Tang Qiuli still knows very little about the overall situation of each battlefield. The information sent by the intelligence department every day is fragmented and not enough to reflect the whole picture of the battlefield. In his mind, he pieced together a complete picture of the battlefield trend in the South Pacific region. For this reason, he was very anxious.

Without grasping the progress of the battlefield and the development trend of the war, it is impossible to make the most accurate judgment. Within a few days, the troops directly under the Corps and the Sulu Mobile Corps that were transferred back to the Indochina Peninsula from the East India region have arrived at the designated positions one after another. The Songhu Garrison Corps transferred from the Shanghai area, the eight brigades of Jiang Yanming's department, plus Li Honggang's No.20 Ninth Corps, Feng Jiwu's Niangziguan Garrison Corps, and Ma Chaoyang's Southeast Mobile Corps.

On the front line of the Indochina Peninsula, the ** Division has assembled five and a half corps, with a total strength of more than 120 million. In addition, Hantie's Marine Corps has seven brigades with more than [-] people, assembled in Hainan Island. Tang Qiu Li has already made full preparations for the attack.

However, for the time being, all the troops are on standby and focused on training. Tang Qiuli is waiting for an opportunity. This opportunity is that MacArthur's US troops were completely wiped out or driven out by the Japanese from the islands in the South Pacific. This is Given the opportunity to send troops, at that time, no matter whether the Americans request support or not, Tang Qiuli will not hesitate to direct his troops to the South Pacific islands. [

Tang Qiuli also thought of it. It has been six days since the war broke out, and the Americans have uncharacteristically not asked themselves to send troops, which means that the Americans do not intend to ask themselves for help, at least not for the time being. With their own strength, they can withstand the fierce attack of the Japanese army, or in a certain important position, they can ensure a foothold.

Tang Qiuli is not optimistic about the obvious actions of the Americans. The Pacific Fleet is finished. The export of American reinforcements was blocked. Even in the Battle of Hawaii, the Japanese Seventh Army that landed on the island was wiped out as a result.

That is also a long period of time. The key is, can MacArthur survive until then?

Certainly not. In history, without the Battle of the Hawaiian Islands, MacArthur had already been beaten by the Japanese and escaped from Luzon Island, and went to Australia to avoid the limelight. Now, the situation facing the Americans is much more dangerous than in history. times.

Now, the only thing that is unclear is the attacking posture of the Japanese army and the current deployment of the US military. From MacArthur's deployment, Tang Qiuli can judge the determination of the Americans in the South Pacific battlefield, and adjust the preparation time of the troops accordingly. This requires accurate intelligence support. Tang Qiuli has never been so eager for news from the various units of the Chutian Special Warfare Detachment.

In the middle of the night on June [-], several other detachments sent information one after another that the fighting on Sumatra, Kalimantan, Java, and Sulawesi had ended, and the U.S. and Dutch Dutch-Indian troops had sent It was not surprising that the Japanese army surrendered, but the U.S. military was defeated after only six days of support, which made him feel unacceptable.

The four groups of teams had news, but Tang Qiuli wanted to know most about the battles in Luzon Island and Mindanao Island, and there was no information. Chu Tian led the team in these two directions.

To be continued

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