The War of Resistance: My Expedition, My Country

黄伟200师会同英印第4师、第11师残部、中国驻印军直属坦克装甲团，击溃日军第55师高桥支队，夺回哈夫隆；新22师和14师一部会同英缅第1师拿下马克鲁尔，兵锋直插英帕尔！

The main Japanese forces attacking Silchar were met with strong resistance from the British and Indian forces. News of the 55th Division's defeat at Haflon on the northern front, including the complete annihilation of a regiment, reached not only the Allies but also various Japanese units via Allied coded telegrams. Despite persistent attempts to suppress and explain the situation by Mutaguchi Ren'ya and other high-ranking officials of the Japanese 15th Army, word had already spread among lower-ranking officers and soldiers, dealing a heavy blow to Japanese morale.

In Yangon, Burma, Shojiro Iida had already understood from the war situation that the so-called capture of Silje was a joke. Iida had come to terms with the situation. At this point, the most important thing was to withdraw the troops as quickly as possible and save them, so as to avoid a dangerous collapse of the situation in Burma!

Iida immediately called General Terauchi Hisaichi, the commander of the Southern Army, and asked him to take full responsibility. Terauchi was surprised that Iida would do this. He quickly asked, "Iida-kun, do you have any requests?"

Iida said calmly, "Your Excellency Terauchi, I don't have any personal requests. I just hope that the cabinet and the military will pay more attention to the situation in the Burmese theater. We must increase our forces as soon as possible. Otherwise, let alone attacking India, it will be difficult to even maintain Burma!"

The old devil, Terauchi, was also moved by Iida's words and immediately replied, "I will do my best to persuade the military to do this! Don't worry too much, Iida-kun. I believe that this time you are just returning home to recuperate for a while. The Empire will soon remember you and let you lead the troops in battle again!"

Terauchi put down the phone, thought for a moment, and immediately called Tokyo again to make his own arrangements.

Iida knew the worst that could happen to him was resignation and retirement. He ended his call with Terauchi and immediately picked up another, calling Mutaguchi Ren'ya, who was far away on the Silger front. He gave the order without question, "Mutaguchi Ren'ya, organize a breakout and retreat immediately! I want the 18th and 31st Divisions to withdraw intact!"

Iida ignored Muta's explanation and said directly: "This is an order from the Southern Army and the Front Army!"

Then, Iida said to Muta earnestly: "Muta-kun, one failure does not mean anything. The empire needs to preserve its manpower and create greater achievements for His Majesty the Emperor!"

Then, he frankly told Mutaguchi Ren'ya that he took all the responsibility and asked Muta to adjust his mentality to prepare for the more severe battles in the future!

Just as Yang Hong, Huang Wei and others launched a fierce counterattack against the Japanese army from all directions, the various units of the Japanese 15th Army also made a feint and retreated from the battlefield in a roundabout way. In order to gain an opportunity to escape quickly, the Japanese army even blew up some heavy artillery and traveled light!

At this time, the Japanese army also demonstrated its high-quality execution and ability to adapt to battlefield situations. The divisions and regiments dispersed in an orderly manner, unexpectedly penetrated the Allied defenses, and quickly retreated to the Imphal line.

The Allied forces eventually pursued the enemy to Imphal, where they faced a new standoff with the Japanese. During this period, the Japanese 5th Air Corps received orders to provide air cover at all costs. Almost all of the Japanese were deployed, engaging in a fierce skirmish with the US and British air forces. Some aircraft even returned with no fuel, fighting to the death. There were even numerous suicide attacks against Allied aircraft and ground forces, shocking the Allied air forces once again.

Of course, the end result was the near-annihilation of the Japanese 5th Air Corps, which never recovered and was quickly replaced by the 3rd Air Corps stationed in Vietnam. The Japanese Air Force's frenzied actions galvanized the US and British air forces, making them realize how hysterical the Japanese army, influenced by militarism, had become. This accumulated rich experience for later operations and also contributed to the rapid growth of the Allied Air Force.

The Allied forces were now unable to attack, and the Japanese army mobilized all the troops it could, desperately defending against the Allied attack. Inside Myanmar, the Japanese army adopted a new plan of differentiated treatment, vigorously supporting the Burmese Independence Army, such as General Aung San and Prime Minister Ba Maw, and put forward the slogan of Burmese first, allowing the Burmese Independence Army to exploit and suppress other ethnic minorities!

At the same time, the Japanese army quickly established the 28th Army of the Burma Front. Then, the 1st, 53rd and 54th Divisions were transferred from Northeast China and the mainland to the south to join the Burma Front. Shozo Sakurai was activated and became the commander of the newly established 28th Army.

Iida Shojiro was dismissed from his command of the front, but was promoted to general and returned to Japan to serve as commander of the reserve front. Mutaguchi Renya also escaped punishment and was demoted to continue commanding the 18th Division. Unexpectedly, his former subordinate, Kimura Heitaro, took over as the new commander of the 15th Army!

The new commander of the Japanese Burma Front is General Masaaki Kawabe. Before his promotion, he was the chief of staff of the Southern Army and Terauchi's right-hand man!

The Japanese Burma Front was also reorganized. The 15th Army comprised the 1st, 2nd, 31st, and 53rd Divisions, continuing to lead the offensive against India. The 105th Brigade, having performed exceptionally well in this operation, was promoted by Imperial Headquarters to the new 115th Division, responsible for maintaining security in southern Burma while also receiving guidance from the 15th Army. The 28th Army, comprised the 18th, 33rd, and 54th Divisions, commanded northern Burma, providing a flank for the offensive against India. The 33rd Army, comprised the 55th and 56th Divisions, primarily focused on defending against the Chinese forces in southern Yunnan from advancing southwards and launching a second expedition.

This adjustment by the Japanese army was obviously the result of careful consideration. In their view, it was not the lack of combat effectiveness of the Japanese army, but the lack of manpower and mistakes in command!

The 3rd Air Corps is directly under the command of the Front Army. After the 5th Air Corps returns to the country for integration, it will also join the Myanmar Front Army!

Meanwhile, the Southeast Asia Theater also held a meeting in Silchar, formally assigning the Chinese Expeditionary Force in India to the theater. The British-Indian 14th Army had already received orders to launch an offensive into East Africa. The newly formed 11th and 18th Armies were transferred to the Southeast Asia Theater, bolstering its strength. However, the Allied forces' combat effectiveness in Southeast Asia was weakening, and their primary combat operations were clearly dependent on the Allied First Army and the Chinese Expeditionary Force in India.

Stilwell was very unhappy with the arrangement made by the Allied Headquarters. This time, no one, including Chiang, revealed it to him. Obviously, Roosevelt or Marshall gave Chiang a new promise, making him willingly hand over his elite troops to the British command!

Stilwell personally called his teacher Marshall and received an unexpected news. The reason why the Indian Army would accept British command was to concentrate troops to open up the Sino-Indian Highway planned by Stilwell and finally return to the Chinese theater in Burma!