The beacon of youth

One night in August [-], there was a breeze and the stars were shining brightly.

On the eve of Japan's surrender, in order to ensure the interests of the United States in the Far East, the State Department, the Ministry of the Army, and the Ministry of the Navy discussed together. Since it was impossible to enter North Korea before the Soviet Red Army, they had to come up with a practical plan to communicate with the Soviets. Negotiations can not only satisfy the wishes of the Soviet Union, but also fail to disappoint the United States.

Two young staff officers were given important tasks, and the Ministry of Defense ordered them to come up with a research proposal for the heads of the United States and the Soviet Union to discuss together in less than an hour.

It happened suddenly, and the two professional military officers were dumbfounded, because they had never been to or paid attention to this country before, and they did not know the people of this country in the Far East Peninsula. What does it matter to our great America!

After being dazed for a few minutes, a young US military staff officer skillfully picked up a red and blue pencil, and drew a straight horizontal line on the map of North Korea in front of him, dividing North Korea into two.

Since then, the Korean peninsula has never been unified again, and the people of the North and the South have been fighting for reunification and peace until the 21st century.

This line completely coincides with the line that Japan and Russia used to divide North Korea, which became famous later, the 38th parallel north latitude, that is, the [-]th parallel. The name of this young US military staff officer is Dean Riske.

The 38th parallel of north latitude passes through the territory of North Korea, which is about 250 kilometers long. It completely ignores all factors such as politics, economy, military, humanities, and geography, and it is a demarcation line artificially created.Virtual and out of thin air, it exists only on maps and in the minds of politicians.

The dividing line divides several mountains, rivers, roads, railways of this suffering country from different angles, as well as countless villages where ordinary people have lived for thousands of years and their blood and blood.

After June [-].Countless eyes from all over the world are watching here, including Americans, Chinese, Japanese, Soviets, and of course, Li Yong, the brigade commander of an independent brigade of the People's Liberation Army in Tibet.

It took less than three months for the war to be cut off at the middle of the way from the beginning of the war in the north.After the Yinchuan landing, most of the Northern People's Army was wiped out, and the dozen or so infantry divisions brigades formed with the former Chinese People's Liberation Army as the main force were completely lost (three Korean divisions in Siye), and the North has lost its ability to organize large corps operations .

The main forces were the Almond Division of the US Tenth Army that landed in Yinchuan and Walker's Eighth Army that set out from Busan.Coupled with a large number of Korean militia troops, under the cover of ground-to-air firepower, they attacked from north to south, and quickly regained the Korean capital Khan City, which had not been lost for a long time, and then went all the way north.Straight to the dividing line between North and South Korea - the [-]th parallel.

Wake Island

Wake Island is a small island in the Pacific Ocean with an area of ​​only nine square kilometers.It is [-] kilometers west of Tokyo, Japan, and [-] kilometers east of San Francisco, the United States. The island is rich in tropical fruits such as bananas and coconuts. There are hundreds of local indigenous residents and some American troops stationed there. If it weren’t for this war, there might be no such island in the world. Few people know the place, despite its scenic beauty.

On this day, amidst the roar of airplane propellers, two big men came to this remote island.One is the commander-in-chief of the US Far East Army, five-star general MacArthur.The other is the current President of the United States, Truman, the titular commander in chief of the armed forces.

After the outbreak of the Korean War, President Truman wanted to listen to General MacArthur's advice and wanted to have an interview with him in person, but MacArthur, who was very prestigious in the U.S. military, did not give him the face of the president, and repeatedly rejected the president for various reasons. invitation.

The General Staff, the Department of Defense, the State Department, as well as President Truman and his staff all expressed dissatisfaction with the arrogant general.

But it can only be dissatisfaction. After the end of World War II, with General MacArthur's power in the military, even if the president has dissatisfaction with him, he has nothing to do with him.

It was a matter of the overall situation, and an interview with the commander-in-chief of the front line was necessary, but the commander-in-chief of the front line did not give the president face. In desperation, Truman decided to condescend to go to Tokyo to negotiate with Mai Shuai.

The president made a decision, but his staff believed that letting the president of a country and the commander-in-chief of the armed forces visit a general would be detrimental to the president's face. Later, after planning, the meeting place for the president and the general was chosen to be Wick in the vast Pacific Ocean. Island, this is a delicate balance for both sides.

The combined voyage was tens of thousands of kilometers, and the two finally met. The president's first question was how the situation in the Korean War would evolve after the Yinchuan landing, and how the situation in the Far East would change. I would like to hear from the general.

MacArthur's suggestion is: "Since the U.S. Army landed in Yinchuan, the overall situation has been settled. Our army not only restored the entire territory of the Republic of Korea, but also wiped out 30 North Korean Communist troops. Now the North Korean army has less than [-] personnel, and most of them are newcomers. The soldiers recruited have not been trained, and their combat effectiveness is low. Our army’s northward march is no longer a battle, but an act of mopping up. To achieve the goals of the United Nations and unify the entire territory of Korea is just around the corner, and the president does not need to filter it.”

The President's second question was how China would react if the US military crossed the [-]th parallel.

President Truman was mainly concerned about the second issue, because the Chinese side had sent news to the United States several times through India that the U.S. military could restore the territory of the Republic of Korea, but it could not cross the [-]th parallel, otherwise China would not stand idly by.

The general’s suggestion is: “According to the intelligence of the U.S. Far East Headquarters, China has more than 12 troops stationed in the northeast, of which 6 are on the side of the Yalu River. According to the carrying capacity of the Yalu River Bridge, it can provide support for about 6 people. If China wants to intervene, it can only keep about 6 troops in North Korea, and China does not have an air force, so if [-] people cross the river to aid North Korea, they will undoubtedly seek their own death."

The U.S. Far East Garrison collected information on the China-North Korea border in great detail, especially the Yalu River Bridge, and made a careful analysis. MacArthur’s judgment came from this.

Based on intelligence from all aspects, the Intelligence Headquarters of the U.S. Far East Garrison analyzed that China can only maintain about 6 troops in North Korea. No matter how many people there are, there will be major logistical problems.

The analysis is not undetailed, and it is also in line with the logic of reasoning. However, the US Far East Garrison has forgotten one thing. Their intelligence analysis is based on their own analysis. That is to say, the Yalu River Bridge can only provide 6 people. The support is calculated according to the standards of the US military, not the standards of the Chinese army. According to the standards of Chinese soldiers, it is unknown how many people the Yalu River Bridge can support to fight across the river. .

(The spirit that the Chinese can fight with a handful of fried noodles and a mouthful of snow is something Americans will never understand. Calculate the Chinese army according to the standard of the US military’s need for logistics supplies, and the gap is too big)

The third question for the president was whether the Soviet Union would intervene.

The general replied: "No, because the Soviet Union has only an air force in the Far East and no army. The air force has limited intervention capabilities and cannot win a war alone."

The fourth question of the President is: What if the Soviet Union sends out the air force and China sends out the army, and the two armies jointly fight?

General MacArthur laughed loudly: "The president is thinking too much, this is absolutely impossible, because joint land and air operations are difficult tactical actions, and it is difficult to meet the standard without training. Our intelligence shows that the Chinese and Soviet armies did not conduct joint land and air operations." For the exercise, if troops are sent out rashly, I can guarantee that bombs from the Soviet Air Force will be dropped on the Chinese people in general.”

After asking the questions, President Truman let go of his worries. Before leaving, he said: "I am convinced by the general's insight. Since it has been predicted that China and the Soviet Union will not intervene, the general can boldly go north."

After Truman and MacArthur met on Wake Island, the U.S. military’s attacks increased sharply. Before the two met, the U.S. military required that the troops that fought on the [-]th parallel must be the troops of the Republic of Korea in the front, and the U.S. military followed up.

This is not simply asking the Koreans to be cannon fodder, but has a strong political meaning. The US military wants to prove to the world that they were invited by the Koreans and are upholding the UN Charter.

Facts have proved that the combat effectiveness of the Koreans is really not satisfactory, the attack is weak, and the progress is slow under the harassment of the North Korean guerrillas. However, this situation changed after the meeting on Wake Island. MacArthur in Tokyo, Japan ordered his headquarters not to follow Instead of dawdling behind the Koreans' ass, they quickly captured the North Korean capital Pyongyang with the First Division of the U.S. Cavalry as the forward, without giving the opponent a chance to breathe.

Pyongyang, which is interpreted as a flat land in Chinese, is the political, economic and cultural center of North Korea. Since the U.S. Army landed in Yinchuan, the People’s Army has deployed most of the remaining main force here, and wants to build a large defensive circle with the capital. Make sure Pyongyang doesn't lose it.

The total number of Pyongyang defenders is about 2. They have built a large number of fortifications by using mountains, rivers, houses and other buildings, and are preparing to fight the US military here.

As the saying goes, knowing yourself and the enemy is the only way to win a hundred battles. The opponent of the Pyongyang defenders is the 200st Division of the U.S. Vanguard Cavalry. The [-]st Cavalry Division was established during the founding of the United States. As the Founding Fathers Division, the First Cavalry Division has no horses and has been mechanized, but in order to maintain honor, the U.S. Department of Defense specially asked them to retain the number of the Cavalry Division, and embroidered a horse on each soldier's armband head sign.

The First Cavalry Division is the most powerful unit in the minds of countless American civilians and soldiers. Divisions were selected and given what they wanted. By 200, the First Cavalry Division had more than 600 soldiers, more than 700 tanks and armored vehicles, more than [-] artillery pieces, and more than [-] vehicles. (to be continued..)