cicada

Chapter 1376 [Operation Parallel Lines]

North Africa, headquarters of the British Eighth Army.

The overwhelming sandstorm came from afar, and the air was so dry that it seemed to be able to ignite everything.

In such an environment, even the camel, known as the "ship of the desert", seemed a little lazy, lying beside the tent and unwilling to move.

"Bah, bah, damn sand, damn London."

Bai Longdu, wearing a white robe and a blue turban, spat out the sand in his mouth, lifted the curtain of a tent and walked in.

In the tent, Zuo Zhong, Wu Chunyang and Gui Youguang were learning Arabic. Hearing Bai Longdu's complaints, Zuo Zhong smiled and comforted him.

"My friend, as a bridge of friendship between the Republic of China and the United Kingdom, you should feel honored to serve as the coordinator of this operation."

Not long ago, Zuo Zhong and his team went to North Africa in the name of FIRC, and Bai Longdu also received an order from London to accompany them.

There are many reasons why the British government made this decision. The most important reason is that this was the first intelligence cooperation between the Republic of China and Britain. There were bound to be conflicts during the period, which required communication at the diplomatic level.

Of course the gentlemen in London were unwilling to go to the wilderness, so Bai Longdu had to do the hard work, since the other party was an old friend of the people of the Republic of China.

Bai Longdu took off his headscarf, picked up the military water bottle on the table and took a few sips, then replied to Zuo Chong weakly.

"Zuo, save those nice words for the interview. I just want to get out of this damn place as soon as possible."

Zuo Chong was too lazy to comfort this guy and directly asked him why he came to see him.

After arriving in North Africa, the British side only provided FIRC with minimum supplies and then ignored it.

This situation was within Zuo Zhong's expectations. The arrogant British even looked down on the Americans, let alone the Republic of China. They were only able to provide supplies out of respect for London.

Bai Longdu was very troubled by this and had been negotiating with relevant personnel at the Eighth Army Headquarters. His sudden arrival today must have been due to new news.

As expected, Bai Longdu nodded and said, "The personnel from LRDG, SAS, and SOE have arrived. I think you need to meet and have a chat."

Wu Chunyang and Gui Youguang frowned. It was clearly the British who needed help from the government this time, but it was making it seem as if FIRC needed help from the other side.

Zuo Chong said nothing, put on his turban and walked out. Although he was prepared, the British people's rudeness and arrogance still made him angry.

A weak country has no dignity, this saying is really true. In this case, let's show our skills. If the tiger doesn't show its power, people really think he is Hello Kitty!

Sitting in the jeep heading to the meeting place, Zuo Zhong and Gui Youguang whispered a few words, and Gui Youguang paused heavily.

The sandstorm became more severe. The jeep drove in the wind and sand for more than half an hour and finally arrived outside a military camp. Several British officers were already waiting at the door.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Ambassador."

The leading British lieutenant colonel greeted Bai Longdu, and Zuo Chong, who got off the car shortly after, looked at him upon hearing his words.

This is a tall white man, about thirty years old, with a beard. He is not strong, but has sharp eyes and looks quite capable.

It is worth noting that this person has a badge on his collar with a golden scorpion pattern.

"Hello, Lieutenant Colonel Bagnold."

Bai Longdu nodded slightly, and then introduced the identities of Zuo Chong and the other two to Bagnold, whom he called "Bagnold", especially their military ranks.

"This is Major General Zuo, Director of the National Government's Foreign Intelligence Bureau. The other two are Colonel Wu and Colonel Gui."

Bagnold's expression softened instantly, and he saluted the three men: "General, Colonel, hello."

The British Army adheres to the tradition that officers are gentlemen and regards professional soldiers as an honor class that transcends nationality. Therefore, British officers usually respect senior officers of other countries.

But this respect was conditional and did not include colonial officers.

If the National Government and Britain were not allies and the British needed the National Government, I am afraid Zuo Chong would have been classified as an indigenous chief.

After Bagnold put down his hand, Bai Longdu introduced the other party's position to Zuo Chong.

"Left, this is LRDG Commander Bagnold, who is also the British leader of this operation."

As for other British officers present, Bai Longdu only said that these people were from SAS and SOE, and did not mention much, obviously due to some confidentiality requirements.

Zuo Zhong casually returned the greeting and said calmly: "Mr. Lieutenant Colonel, it's nice to meet you, but I want to know, when can we take action?"

Bagnold shrugged and led everyone to dozens of cars that were being modified. He patted the hood of one of the cars and answered Zuo Zhong's question loudly.

"General, long-distance desert reconnaissance cannot be separated from these Chevrolet unarmored trucks and Willys Jeeps. It will take some time to modify them."

"All vehicles will be fitted with special desert tires, larger radiators and cooling systems, and any unnecessary parts will be removed to minimize weight."

Kicking the car parts on the ground, Bagnold first introduced the details of the modification and explained the necessity of the modification.

"After maintenance, a single vehicle can carry up to about 1.8 tons of equipment, ammunition, and supplies."

"According to our past experience, the supplies loaded in six Chevrolet unarmored trucks and one Willys are enough to support 20 people to fight independently for three weeks without supplies, and the maximum distance they can travel is 1700 kilometers."

"Once the vehicle is modified, we can set off at any time." Listening to Bagnold's explanation, Zuo Zhong walked to a Willys Jeep with a Browning heavy machine gun mounted on the back.

In the desert, such a configuration and firepower are definitely not weak. As long as the reconnaissance troops do not encounter German armored forces, they can move unimpeded, so waiting for a while is acceptable.

After getting the answer he wanted, Zuo Chong asked again what the specific tasks of the reconnaissance operation were.

To answer this question, Bagnold invited everyone into the tent and began an operation briefing by referring to the map of North Africa.

"Gentlemen, we have four tasks this time."

"Monitor the German supply lines from the port of Tobruk to the Alamein front, especially the transportation routes of fuel and ammunition."

"Find out the distribution of mines in the Devil's Garden, the core minefield of the German defense line, and provide intelligence for engineers to clear mines."

"Destroy the German rear communication stations and warehouses, create chaos and disperse the enemy's forces."

"Provide the Air Force with the precise coordinates of German headquarters and artillery positions."

Bagnold didn't waste any words and directly stated the core tasks while also pointing out the difficulties.

After entering the desert, the scouts will face various dangers, including sandstorms, lack of water, navigation failure, German patrols, etc.

Therefore, only those who meet the requirements are eligible to join the operation. Having said that, Bagnold turned his gaze to Zuo Chong and the other two.

Facing the British people's contempt and suspicion, Zuo Zhong chuckled and gave orders to Gui Youguang.

"Find a few brothers to have a competition with the lieutenant colonel's men. Shooting or fighting is fine. Remember, competition comes second, friendship comes first. Don't hurt the harmony."

He said this in English. Bagnold, not to be outdone, also pointed out a strong subordinate.

Gui Youguang and the other party strode out of the tent. Bagnold continued to explain the mission, but everyone's attention was focused outside.

Ten minutes later, Gui Youguang came back triumphantly, but the LRDG players behind him were bruised and battered.

"Commander, we won all three competitions: shooting, fighting, and radio communication."

As Gui Youguang's voice grew louder, the British people's faces turned ugly. They could not accept losing to the Republic of China three times.

Only Bagnold looked calm. The better FIRC's performance, the higher the success rate of the operation, which is undoubtedly a good thing.

FIRC won respect with its strength, and in the subsequent conversation, the British people's attitude improved significantly.

For example, the British originally planned for each side to form their own teams, but this time they not only agreed to a mixed team, but also a balanced number of people.

After discussion between Bagnold and Zuo Zhong, the total of 140 investigators were divided into seven groups, with 7 people in each group, half from the Republic of China and half from Britain.

Each member of the team has mastered one or two professional skills, including guides who are familiar with the desert, radio operators who are skilled in using radio stations, and field doctors.

During the operation, if there were any tasks that required disguised reconnaissance, they would all be handled by the Republic of China intelligence personnel.

After being exposed to the sun for more than half a month, Zuo Chong and others became much darker, especially Gui Youguang, who looked like a complete desert native after putting on local clothes.

After confirming all the details, Bagnold suggested that Zuo Chong wait for news in the camp, and he personally led a team deep into the desert.

This was not to make things difficult for Zuo Zhong. It was a tradition in the British Army that senior officers did not directly participate in combat. What the generals had to do was to command from the rear rather than charge into battle.

Zuo Zhong waved his hand and declined the other party's kindness: "Lieutenant Colonel, I need to stay with my subordinates."

Bagnold was a little surprised, but he didn't try to persuade him anymore. He asked Zuo Zhong what code name he should give to the operation.

After thinking for a long time, Zuo returned to a phrase: [parallel lines], and Bagnold did not object.

Late at night three days later, seven reconnaissance teams set out from Alamein, entered the vast desert from multiple directions, and rushed towards the German defense line.

In order to avoid German aerial reconnaissance, the reconnaissance team hid during the day and moved at night, using the sand dunes and the cover of darkness to travel at high speed.

Somewhere in the Sahara, sitting on the passenger seat of a speeding Willys Jeep, Zuo Zhong, wearing a headscarf and hat band, was observing the front with a telescope in his hand.

The coastal areas of North Africa have a flat terrain and a wide field of vision, and at night you can see a bonfire or a fire source of equal brightness as far as ten kilometers away.

Without intelligence support, visual observation becomes the only means of vigilance for the reconnaissance team, and the observer in charge of lookout has a heavy responsibility.

Half an hour before dawn, Zuo Zhong signaled to stop the car for a rest. The driver from SAS slowly slowed down and drove the jeep behind a sand dune.

Other vehicles also stopped in a hidden place nearby, and the investigators in the vehicles began to work according to their division of labor.

The radio operator turned on the radio to contact the other six teams, the mechanics checked the vehicles, and the fighters set up defense lines. Everything was so orderly.

As the most elite professional soldiers on the planet, these scouts have extremely rich experience in field life and combat, so Zuo Chong does not have to waste time on trivial matters.

He took out the map and orienteering compass and studied them for a while, and finally determined his location, which was 400 kilometers away from Tobruk.