Anti-Japanese War: From Becoming Chu Yunfei to Rising

North China Joint Command, Operations Room.

Outside the window, the cold wind howled, and the snow had just stopped.

Inside, the coal stove was burning brightly, making it warm and cozy.

Chu Yunfei, unusually, did not stand in front of the huge map, but leaned back in the wicker chair, holding a steaming cup of water in his hand.

He was humming an unknown local tune, the melody melodious, clearly indicating that he was in a pretty good mood.

Zhao Pengcheng, standing to the side, was carefully rinsing a brand-new set of purple clay teaware with boiling water, preparing to brew a pot of fine tea for the chief consultant who was enjoying a rare moment of leisure.

Hearing the off-key tune, Zhao Pengcheng skillfully warmed the cup and added tea leaves, then asked with a smile, "Sir, you seem to be in a good mood. Is there something good to tell you?"

"Well, it is."

Chu Yunfei put down his water glass, a relieved smile on his face: "I just received a telegram from Shancheng. Senior Song Xilian and his 11th Army Group have completed all the training work three and a half months ahead of schedule."

"They are now a strong and well-equipped force. Including their directly subordinate units, their total strength has exceeded 45,000."

He paused, his tone full of approval: "According to the plan drawn up by the General Staff, his troops have now begun to enter Siam and other places in batches, and will be fully stationed in Indochina in about a month."

In this way, Huanran's exhausted army, which had been fighting the Japanese in the jungle for almost a year, could finally rest and rotate its troops.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Pengcheng's spirits lifted.

Song Xilian's troops were the elite of the Central Army, and there was no problem in having them replace Huang Baitao's equally elite troops.

Moreover, they had just completed their training, and many of their combat units did not yet have combat experience. Training with the Japanese in the jungle would help them better adapt to the terrain and climate of Southeast Asia.

"The combat force, which is based on the 71st Army, consists mostly of soldiers from Yunnan and Guizhou, who are adapted to the local climate to a certain extent."

"Brother Huanran has been waiting for this day for more than half a year."

Taking this opportunity, Zhao Pengcheng carefully poured the first brew of tea into Chu Yunfei's cup, and then asked a question he had been curious about: "Sir, what is your opinion on the 'island-seizing and landing operation' that the Far East Theater Command has been urging us to carry out?"

"The aid fleet provided by the Americans is said to be on its way."

According to the original plan agreed upon by both parties.

Once the new batch of landing ships and escort warships arrive, after a brief period of acclimatization training, this "task force" jointly formed by China and the United States will be officially deployed to the bloody Pacific battlefield.

Island-seizing amphibious operations include not only beachhead battles but also subsequent assault operations.

The task is arduous and extremely difficult.

Chu Yunfei didn't want to fight this battle, but he had no choice but to.

Without fighting, we can't explain ourselves to America's allies, and without fighting, we can't recover Hainan Island and other regions.

Where should we set our first goal?

Zhao Pengcheng pressed for an answer.

Chu Yunfei picked up his teacup, gently blew on the rising steam, but did not answer immediately.

His gaze seemed to pierce through the walls of the command post, reaching towards the distant, azure South China Sea.

The first objective had been lingering in his mind for a long time.

“Hainan Island.”

He slowly uttered those three words.

"Hainan Island?" Zhao Pengcheng was taken aback, clearly not expecting this answer: "Didn't you say before that you would cooperate with the Allied forces to counterattack the Philippines?"

"the Philippines?"

Chu Yunfei smiled and said, "That's right, that's what I promised them before."
He put down his teacup, his eyes gleaming: "But now we need to change our minds. The Philippines is not in our traditional sphere of influence, and it's a former American colony. Helping them attack would do more harm than good for us."

"But Hainan Island is different; its area is neither too big nor too small."

"Although the Japanese defenses on the island are not weak, they are still much easier to attack than those core Pacific islands that they are desperately fortifying."

"More importantly, the island has an existing airport and a deep-water port, which have extremely high strategic value."

Chu Yunfei looked at Zhao Pengcheng and said, word by word, the most crucial point: "Hainan Island is a key springboard and support point for the Japanese army to maintain its operational lifeline throughout the entire South Asian continent!"

"But will the Americans agree with your idea?"

"I admit."

Chu Yunfei's lips curled into a smile: "I have my own reasons for choosing to attack this place. However, Stilwell cannot possibly refuse this plan!"

"Once Hainan Island is liberated, we will have effectively severed the Japanese army's claws that extended into South Asia, and driven a fatal nail into their long maritime lifeline!"
Whether for our future recapture of the coast, our attack on Taiwan, or for the Japanese army that directly threatens the entire South Asian region, this is a tremendous boon!

Although it was driven by personal motives, it was acceptable on the surface.

Although Stilwell might have been somewhat dissatisfied, he couldn't refuse the suggestion in the face of the bigger picture.

After all, ending the fighting in Southeast Asia as soon as possible would allow their allies to devote more energy to the Pacific theater.

Speaking of troops on expeditions abroad.

Zhao Pengcheng then thought of another group of people, and a relieved smile appeared on his face.

"Your Excellency, speaking of which, those student soldiers you promoted from the front lines have all been trained and developed under Huanran's command."

"Oh?"

"Take Meng Fan for example. Back then, he was just a student soldier who kept complaining. Now, he is brave in battle, skilled in command, and has repeatedly made meritorious contributions."

This year, he has been recommended by Commander Huang for a promotion to colonel and regimental commander, a promotion that is considered exceptional.

Zhao Pengcheng's tone was full of emotion.

Hearing those familiar names, Chu Yunfei's face also showed a genuine smile.

"That's right. Student soldiers, as long as they are willing to put in the effort and get experience, can indeed grow much faster."

“This is not entirely thanks to you,” Zhao Pengcheng said sincerely. “It is because you started to establish our own cadre training system as early as 1937 that we now have enough military cadres in North China, instead of being as short-staffed as other places.”

He lowered his voice, a hint of schadenfreude in it.

"I've heard that the reorganization of the troops under Commander Chen's leadership at the South China Joint Command is going even more poorly than anyone anticipated."

"Oh?" Chu Yunfei became interested. "Isn't Commander Chen still inspecting the troops here in North China? Where is he now?"

"Judging by the time, it should have been with Commander Qian Bojun of the Sixth Army Group a couple of days ago," Zhao Pengcheng replied. "I heard that General Qian Zhaoyou, the Chief of Staff of the Army Group, personally accompanied him throughout the trip, and Commander Qian's troops received high praise."

Including the army group's directly subordinate units, all units that underwent inspection achieved an average rating of 'A' or higher.

Upon hearing this, Chu Yunfei simply smiled noncommittally.

From his perspective, Chen Cixiu's abilities, while not top-notch, were certainly not mediocre.

However, Chen Cixiu was just too "obedient".

Compared to Gu Zhutong, who was known for his adherence to conventions, Chen Cixiu's ideas were not much better.

His mind was filled with too much political balancing and factional considerations. In his personnel selection criteria, "loyalty" always came before "ability." In order to balance power, he even went so far as to absorb a large number of officers from miscellaneous troops into the core circle of the Civil Engineering Department, directly lowering the original morale of the entire department.

It was precisely because of his "Mr. Nice Guy" attitude that his troops frequently engaged in double-dealing and found ways to circumvent the policies set by the higher-ups.

Today, the reorganization of troops in North China is progressing smoothly and efficiently. However, the South China region, which he leads, is still mired in difficulties.

Without comparison, it would be better to say that the difference is obvious. The system implemented by the South China Joint Command was almost no substantial improvement over the army reorganization that yielded little result from 35 to 37.

"The Chairman was hoping that Commander Chen's visit this time would give us a warning and curb the momentum of our North China National Army." Chu Yunfei picked up his teacup, his tone carrying a hint of sarcasm. "Now it seems that Commander Chen is actually a pragmatic person, not a villain who would call a deer a horse."

"That would only be if he dared to," Zhao Pengcheng laughed. "Now, our combat troops in North China, let alone compared with friendly forces, are completely outmatched even by the elite Japanese troops on the front lines, whether in terms of individual combat skills, squad tactical coordination, or troop discipline!"

"To put it bluntly, at the same size, it could easily crush any other army!"

How could Chen Cixiu not see it?
Faced with such irrefutable facts, if he still tries to go against his conscience and give a low evaluation, he will not only be humiliating himself.

I'm afraid Chu Yunfei will be the first to take the inspection report and report it directly to the General Headquarters.

I should have a good argument with Chen Cixiu.

……

A few days later, Chen Cixiu's inspection of the Nankou defense line, the last stop of his year-end inspection, came to an end.

A top-secret telegram, drafted by Chen Cixiu himself, flew directly from Nankou to the mountain city!
When this telegram was translated and placed in front of Chang Ruiyuan...

Even he fell into a long, shocked silence after reading it.

The telegram was filled with the most effusive praise!

"I am here by order of the Chairman to inspect the war zones in North China."

What I saw and heard was incredibly inspiring; the revival of the Party and the nation is hopeful, all thanks to the leadership of the Chairman.

After the usual flattery, came a report that was alarmingly detailed.

"I conducted spot checks on Sun Xinpu's 15th Reserve Division and Guo Yanzheng's newly formed 16th Division. The impressive military bearing, high morale, and excellent weapon maintenance I witnessed were truly unprecedented in my military career!"

"What is particularly valuable is that, after extensive investigation, the problem of unpaid military salaries for all units in North China has been completely resolved!"

"Each unit can reclaim wasteland and cultivate land in its stationed area, and develop industries, basically achieving the goal of 'self-sufficiency and local support,' which perfectly aligns with the previous call from the Ministry of Military Affairs to 'build, support, and utilize the army'!"

At the end of the telegram, Chen Cixiu used an almost fanatical tone to describe at length the scenes he had seen in North China.

From the harmonious relationship of "the army loves the people and the people support the army", to the construction of a place with factories everywhere and everything being rebuilt, and then to the sound of children reading aloud and people living and working in peace and contentment.

He concluded by saying, "The scene in North China today is vibrant with life, and everyone is eager to fight. This is precisely the grand blueprint for the future of our Party and country, and the hope for national rejuvenation!"
I firmly believe that under the wise leadership of Chairman Chiang, within a year our army will surely march straight to Beijing and Tianjin, and liberate North China—it's just around the corner!

Chang Ruiyuan slowly put down the telegram.

He then looked at the other two reports submitted by the North China Joint Command.

My Views on the Recovery of Northeast China and the Destruction of Manchukuo

Three-Year Plan to Revitalize North China!

His face was filled with an overwhelming joy, and he was completely looking forward to the future.
-
In the blink of an eye, another three days passed.

There's not much time left until the Chinese New Year, a traditional festival in China.

At this time, it was on the plains and river network outside Zhenjiang City in southern Jiangsu.

Deep within a patch of withered, yellow reeds lies a long-abandoned earth temple.

Inside the temple, only a tiny oil lamp flickered stubbornly in the cold wind.

Xu Hu and his more than forty special assault team members were silently checking their equipment.

Submachine guns, tactical gear loaded with ammunition and grenades, and six soldiers also carrying disposable rocket launchers.

Opposite them were several New Fourth Army soldiers, all dressed smartly.

The leader was a company-level commander from the local Second Military Sub-district, surnamed Li.

"Captain Xu."

The New Fourth Army commander lowered his voice and pointed to a simple map: "Thirty li west of here is the Japanese 'fence' blockade line."

“We have arranged guides in advance, and tonight they will lead you across the river through the weakest point in the defenses.”

Company Commander Li paused, his tone becoming serious.

"However, once we cross the blockade line, we will really be in the outskirts of Nanjing."

“Although that area was nominally within our base area, the Japanese ‘mopping-up’ and sweeping operations were far too frequent.”

“Our grassroots support is relatively weak, so we can’t offer much help. From now on, you’ll have to rely on yourselves.”

Xu Hu nodded and said succinctly, "Understood."

He extended his hand and shook hands firmly with the other party: "Thank you very much, New Fourth Army. Our North China Joint Command will remember this kindness."

"We are all Chinese fighting against the Japanese invaders, this is what we should do."

"Our Commander Chu said that if you encounter any difficulties in the future, you can report them to the Joint Command at any time. After all, you are still nominally under the Third War Zone and are an armed force under the command of our National Revolutionary Army."

The New Fourth Army commander also gripped the handshake firmly, a similar emotion flashing in his eyes: "Captain Xu, I will definitely tell our regimental commander to take care of yourself."

No further words were spoken.

After saying goodbye, Xu Hu gestured to his teammates behind him to start their journey.

More than forty black figures, like ghosts, silently disappeared into the endless shadows of the reed marshes.

Their target was a secret assembly point outside Nanjing.

……

The next day, early morning.

Just after Xu Hu and his group disappeared into the last ray of darkness before dawn.

A Japanese patrol unit belonging to the 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade.

During a routine patrol, they discovered the trampled reeds near the local temple.

An experienced sergeant immediately ordered his squad to search carefully.

Soon, one of the Japanese soldiers discovered some clues: "Squad leader, there are footprints over here!"

Upon hearing this, Old Cao immediately ordered the Japanese soldiers to be on guard around the area, while he himself squatted down to carefully examine the marks on the muddy ground.

His expression gradually turned serious: "Retreat, report to the squad leader!"

Not long after.

He found a second lieutenant in his patrol squad: "Squad leader, we've spotted marching tracks 350 meters ahead. Based on the tracks, I believe a small force passed through last night. Judging from the depth and number of footprints, there were at least 30 or 40 people! Moreover, they seem to be carrying heavy equipment!"

The lieutenant stepped forward and also noticed the military boot prints that were completely different from ordinary straw sandal prints: "Is this the main force of the New Fourth Army?"

"Do not."

Old Cao shook his head, his tone resolute: "I've seen plenty of the New Fourth Army, and I've fought against them for several years. These New Fourth Army soldiers don't have such good boots; they're more like the elite troops of the Chongqing Army."

This discovery put the entire patrol team on edge.

The message was reported up the chain of command.

Soon, an urgent report about the discovery of an "unidentified elite Chongqing military squad" in the southern part of Zhenjiang was delivered to the brigade headquarters of the Independent Mixed Brigade 2 stationed in Zhenjiang.

It was eventually reported to Lieutenant General Shimomura Sada, commander of the 13th Army.

Shimomura looked at the telegram, but didn't seem to care, just pursing his lips: "It's another trick of the New Fourth Army."

In his view, this was nothing more than the elusive Communist guerrillas pulling some kind of trick again.

Wearing a few pairs of captured KMT military boots, they thought they could impersonate the main force and bluff their way in.
This isn't the first time they've done something like this.

"How much of a threat can a bunch of rats that only know how to hide in the gutter pose?"

Shimomura hastily signed his name on the report and wrote "Order the 2nd Mixed Brigade to strengthen its defenses and closely monitor the situation" in the "Handling Opinions" column.

Clearly, he didn't care.

In Shimomura Sada's view, this level of "enemy situation" was not even worth holding a special operations meeting for.

He simply accepted this insignificant intelligence as part of his routine battle report, as was customary.

As usual, the report was submitted to the General Headquarters of the China Expeditionary Army, located in Nanjing.

Within the headquarters of the Chinese Expeditionary Army.

This most deadly warning to them was simply drowned out by the mountain of documents.

When it was finally delivered to Commander-in-Chief General Hata Shunroku by a confidential staff officer, it was already two days later, and had lost all its timeliness.

This veteran of the army, who had achieved great military exploits on the Chinese battlefield, merely glanced at the words "dozens of elite enemy troops" and then put them into the "to be processed" folder.

Half an hour later.

General Hata Shunroku picked up a cup of freshly brewed Gyokuro tea, preparing to enjoy a moment of leisure. A confidential staff officer respectfully placed a routine battle report from the North China Area Army on his desk.

He took a sip of tea and casually opened the folder.

The telegrams mostly contained Okamura Yasuji's analysis of the recent movements of the Nationalist army in North China—food shortages, strategic contraction, inability to launch offensives, etc., which were no different from his previous judgments.

But at the very end of the telegram, an inconspicuous note caused him to abruptly stop in his tracks!
"Furthermore, according to reports from our troops stationed on the southern section of the Jinpu Railway, in the past week, the Chongqing Fifth War Zone troops facing us have been frequently mobilized, and four days ago they launched a brief probing attack on our outer defense line of Jinan."

Their unit designations were inconsistent during the attack, suggesting that elite troops from North China were mixed in.

Jinan North China Elite Troops
Hata Shunroku's brows furrowed instantly.

He subconsciously connected this telegram from North China with the report from the Second Mixed Brigade he had just received.

Hata Shunroku suddenly stood up and strode to the huge battle map.

His gaze, like that of a hawk, swept rapidly across the map.

Hata Shunroku took out a pencil from his pocket with his right hand and first drew a circle around the location of Jinan.

Then, the pen tip turns south, extending all the way through Anhui, Henan, and other areas where the Nationalist army frequently made unusual moves.

Finally, it landed heavily on the point in Zhenjiang where the anomaly had just occurred!

A fairly clear dotted line running from north to south across hundreds of kilometers of Japanese-occupied territory quietly took shape under his pen!

"hiss"

What if none of this is an isolated incident?
Hata Shunroku looked at the alarming red line on the map and couldn't help but gasp!
If the feint attack in Jinan and the so-called "unusual movements" in North China were all just a cover for one purpose!
To provide cover for a truly elite small force, advancing southwards?
Hata Shunroku's back was instantly soaked with a layer of cold sweat!
For such a small force of only a few dozen people, they went so far as to mobilize several divisions or even army groups across hundreds of kilometers of front lines to create chaos and divert attention!

Such a grand gesture!

So reckless!

So, where exactly is this small unit headed?
What exactly is its mission?!

Hata Shunroku's gaze followed the end of that red line—Zhenjiang—and continued eastward.

Across the Yangtze River, the city he knew so well, the symbol of the "Greater East Asia Holy War," stood before him.

Jinling!

His heart clenched suddenly, as if gripped tightly by an invisible hand!
Could it be that Chu Yunfei has organized a true suicide squad and is attempting to launch a surprise attack on the headquarters of the Chinese Expeditionary Army in Nanjing?

He's simply crazy!
Not to mention the elite Japanese 15th Division stationed outside Nanjing, there were also a sufficient number of military police and civilian police inside the city.

What kind of small force could possibly fight its way into the city and attack his expeditionary headquarters? (End of Chapter)