Anti-Japanese War: From Becoming Chu Yunfei to Rising

Washington, D.C., USA.

Deep inside the Pentagon.

In a confidential meeting room filled with the strong aroma of Cuban cigars and freshly ground black coffee, the atmosphere was as oppressive as the sea before a storm.

Army Chief of Staff General Marshall rested his hands on a large oak table.

Scattered before him were several top-secret telegrams, just deciphered and urgently delivered from the Far East theater: "Joseph has clearly been persuaded,"

Marshall's face, as hard as rock, showed little expression as he simply pushed one of the telegrams across the long table: "He requests Washington's support and understanding to postpone the execution of Operation Cherry Blossom for another week."

Sitting opposite him was Admiral Ernst King, Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Navy Fleet.

Upon hearing this, General Kim slammed his pencil on the table, making a sharp, piercing sound.

"put off?"

"If anything goes wrong, our naval soldiers could very well pay the price with their blood."

General Kim coldly questioned without any politeness: "The Chinese bomber fleet is currently parked on the runway, and some of those two-thousand-pound bombs have already been transferred to them."

"Why don't they fly to Kure Port immediately and sink that damned Yamato?"

"Are they using American taxpayers' money and weapons just to blow up a few mud bunkers in Jiangnan?"

Major General Handy, the director of the Army Strategic Planning Office, adjusted his glasses and provided timely additional intelligence details.

"General, according to the report sent back by Stilwell..."

Major General Handy opened the document: "Chu Yunfei's troops have reached the outskirts of their old capital. They urgently need heavy bombers to break through the Japanese army's permanent fortifications."

"In their military order of battle, recapturing this city, which has great political symbolic significance, was even a higher priority than destroying the Japanese navy."

"Political symbol?"

General Kim sneered repeatedly, his tone revealing extreme arrogance and dissatisfaction.

"The 'transportation plan' in the European theater has drained almost all of our strategic bomber wings. In order to pave the way for Normandy, Eisenhower was unwilling to leave even a single spare B-24 for the Far East!"

"Our air power over the Pacific is already stretched thin, and they want to waste these precious missile loads on political performances?"

Marshall raised his hand and pressed it down, silencing the naval officers' complaints: "Gentlemen, complaining will not resolve any real strategic differences."

Marshall's voice was deep and steady: "Stilwell is a pragmatic commander. The fact that he strongly vouched for the Chinese government in his telegram shows that this has indeed crossed the line for our allies."

"We must respect the demands of our allies in this fight for revenge."

Marshall's gaze shifted to General Kim: "Moreover, the precision of the intelligence they provided us has already demonstrated their ability to infiltrate the Japanese General Staff."

"This level of intelligence network is absolutely indispensable to our Pacific Fleet at present."

General Kim remained silent for a moment. Although he was unwilling, he knew that Marshall was telling the truth: "So, what does the Chief of Staff mean?"

"Agreed with Stilwell's request, giving the Chinese a week to retake their former capital."

"However, Washington's patience has its limits."

Marshall turned around, his gaze sharp, and gave the final instruction: "Handy, call Stilwell back immediately!"

"The 'Sakura-Slaying' plan can only be postponed for a maximum of seven days. After seven days, the President must receive news of the air raids on Japanese ports and shipyards."

"at the same time!"

"Tell them."

"The United States has already delivered some of the weapons and equipment for sixty American-equipped divisions, and the munitions for the last thirty divisions are being unloaded at Yangon Port!"

"They must complete the formation and assembly of the expeditionary force in the shortest possible time!"

"The Pacific island-hopping strategy needs them, and Southeast Asia needs them."

Marshall slammed his fist on the table: "This army of hundreds of thousands, armed with this equipment, must be deployed to the Pacific battlefield within three months."

……

The next day, Kunming.

Headquarters of the U.S. Army Forces in China and the Joint Advisory Group for the Chinese Expeditionary Force.

Stilwell, with a corncob pipe dangling from his lips, held an urgent coded telegram that had just been translated from Washington.

He looked at the wording of the telegram, a helpless smile flashing in his deep-set eyes.

"General Marshall and his men are still so impatient."

Stilwell tossed the telegram onto the table and looked at his adjutant, Dorn, who was standing to the side.

Brigadier General Dorn picked up the telegram, glanced at it, and frowned slightly.

"General, General Marshall and General King's words were extremely harsh. They seemed to believe that the Chinese were deliberately delaying the formation of the expeditionary force."

"procrastination?"

Stilwell exhaled a thick cloud of smoke and snorted coldly, "That's because they don't understand this horrible bureaucratic quagmire."

Stilwell walked to the French windows and looked out at the gloomy, rainy sky.

"These damned warlords wish they could hide every American helmet they got into their cellars. It's not going to be that easy to break up and reorganize these stubborn old warlords."

"Fortunately, the results in the past few years have been remarkable, so they won't delay our counter-offensive too much."

Dorn nodded: "Then how should we respond to Washington?"

“Tell them that I have put maximum pressure on Shancheng and Pengcheng.”

Stilwell turned around and sat back down at his desk, picking up his pen: "Send a formal American memorandum to Chen Cixiu of the Ministry of Military Affairs and He Jingzhi, the Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Force and Chief of the Army Headquarters!"

"Urge them to finalize the selection of the army commander and division commanders for the first batch of expeditionary forces heading south within half a month!"

……

At this very moment, in the mountain city.

A chilling wind and rain shrouded the secondary capital in a gloomy and biting fog.

A black sedan from the Military Intelligence Bureau headquarters glided like a ghost across the quiet street and stopped at the back door of a secluded military hospital.

Dai Yunong, wearing a black waterproof trench coat, stepped out of the car with a blank expression, and several Kuomintang agents who had been waiting for a long time immediately came to greet him.

"Director, the entire area inside has been cleared."

A member of the Military Intelligence Bureau's medical team, wearing a white coat but with a murderous look in his eyes, reported in a low voice: "We have cut off the backup generator power in the operating room, and we have also taken care of the chief surgeon. They are willing to cooperate with our work."

Dai Yunong nodded coldly and strode into the door.

The air was filled with the pungent smell of Lysol.

At the end of the long corridor, the red light above the operating room door was shining brightly.

Dai Yunong walked to the glass observation window outside the operating room, stood with his hands behind his back, and quietly watched everything that was happening inside.

On the operating table.

Chen Guofu, one of the Kuomintang's two oligarchs who once held immense power and was on par with Chang Ruiyuan, lay there with his eyes closed.

His chest cavity had been opened, and the area was filled with blood and blood-stained gauze.

Several "doctors" wearing masks were gathered around the operating table.

But their actions did not resemble those of treating and saving lives.

The head of the Military Intelligence Bureau's medical team walked up to the anesthesiologist and whispered something in his ear.

The anesthesiologist nodded expressionlessly.

Before long, the beating pointer on the old heart rate monitor next to them suddenly began to fluctuate violently.

"The patient's blood pressure has dropped rapidly!"

"Ventricular fibrillation has occurred!"

A “nurse” reported in a cold, monotone voice.

The surgeon didn't even glance at the emergency medications; he simply used hemostatic forceps to clamp a non-life-threatening blood vessel very slowly.

Time ticked by, and the heart rate monitor emitted an extremely piercing long beep.

The emaciated body on the operating table ceased all movement.

"Heart stopped beating."

The surgeon put down the scalpel and took off his blood-soaked medical gloves.

He turned his head, looked through the glass observation window at Dai Yunong standing in the shadows of the corridor, and nodded slightly.

A chilling smirk finally appeared on Dai Yunong's lips.

A medical tragedy has arrived as predicted.

"Prepare the death certificate and contact the media."

"The official statement was that Minister Chen Guofu suffered acute heart failure during the lung removal surgery due to his weak constitution and intolerance to anesthesia."

"Despite the best efforts of many renowned doctors, he passed away in the early hours of this morning."

The Kuomintang agent beside him stood at attention and bowed his head: "Yes, Director."

"Let's go, the show's officially starting..."

Four hours later.

Huangshan Official Residence, Yunxiu Tower.

The somber tolling of the bells seemed to still echo throughout the mountain town, the aftershocks of the fall of a generation of party oligarchs.

Chang Ruiyuan changed into a plain black Zhongshan suit.

His eyes were slightly red, and he held a white silk handkerchief in his hand. He stood in front of the huge French window in the study, looking at the rain outside. His figure appeared unusually hunched and sorrowful.

Behind him.

Chen Lifu sat slumped on the mahogany sofa like a soulless puppet.

That usually shrewd and capable face was now deathly pale and filled with unconcealable grief.

"Lifu."

Chang Ruiyuan turned around, his voice filled with deep sorrow and sobs.

"The passing of Guofu is an immeasurable loss to our Party!"

He strode up to Chen Lifu and tightly grasped the other's cold, trembling hands.

"The doctor told me yesterday that the success rate of the surgery was very high. But who could have imagined... this damned God, how could He be so blind!"

A single, glistening tear even slid down Chang Ruiyuan's cheek, dripping onto the carpet.

The performance was so realistic that it was practically flawless.

"Chairman..."

Chen Lifu's voice was completely hoarse, and he couldn't even utter a complete syllable.

"It's all fate... it's my elder brother's time to die..."

Chang Ruiyuan sighed and patted the back of his hand, then sat down on the sofa next to him.

He took out a handkerchief and wiped his eyes, his tone subtly and fatally shifting politically.

“Lifu, now that Guofu is gone, the heavy burden of the Party and the country will fall entirely on your shoulders.”

Chang Ruiyuan sighed, his eyes revealing a deep sense of "heartache" and "worry".

"But, right at this critical juncture, that scoundrel Xu Enzeng actually committed such a heinous and shameful act on the Burma Road!"

Upon hearing Xu Enzeng's name, Chen Lifu's heart skipped a beat.

He abruptly raised his head, his mind, which had been immersed in grief, instantly sensing an extremely terrifying political threat.

“Chairman…Emperor…”

"He not only smuggled strategic materials on a large scale, but his ex-wife even engaged in usury in the rear areas, disregarding human life!"

Chang Ruiyuan suddenly raised his voice, grabbed the thick stack of documents on the table, and slammed them heavily onto the coffee table.

"The evidence is irrefutable!"

Chang Ruiyuan pointed to the photos and confessions, feigning heartbreak: "The Americans have already slammed these things directly onto my desk."

"They have been accusing our government of fighting corruption for a year or two, and now they have even found substantial evidence."

"And North China and Shaanxi are also putting pressure on me on this matter."

"Many media outlets have already leaked this information."

“Even the New York Times had a subheading for one issue that was ‘Our Scandal.’”

Chang Ruiyuan paused, then let out a long sigh: "Now, the whole country is watching me, watching our central government!"

"Lifu!"

"President."

Chang Ruiyuan's eyes instantly turned sharp as knives, fixed on Chen Lifu's pale face: "Xu Enzeng was a trusted and capable lieutenant whom you promoted and regarded as your confidant."

"Now that he has made such a huge mess, not only has the reputation of the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics been completely ruined."

"This overwhelming public outrage has even reached your CC Clique and you, the Minister of Education!"

Chen Lifu felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

He finally understood that this was not a simple anti-corruption campaign.

When a leader turns left, the first thing he will inevitably do is to sever ties with the past.

Since the Fuxing Society and Chang Ruiyuan were of one mind, they naturally wouldn't make the first move.

Therefore, the Central Bureau of Investigation and Statistics (CBIS), which had always acted as the vanguard in the civil war, inevitably became a necessary sacrifice.

From the raid on Xu Enzeng, to the "accident" on his elder brother's operating table, and now to the irrefutable evidence in Chang Ruiyuan's hands.

This is an airtight, meticulously planned, and ultimately deadly trap!

In this situation.

The CC Clique has been stripped of all its cards and has been completely brought to the guillotine of national law.

If he dared to resist, Chang Ruiyuan would absolutely not hesitate to pin the charges of smuggling and colluding with the enemy, along with the accusation of reselling American aid on a large scale, firmly on Chen Guofu's head.

After all, everyone knows that the dead cannot defend themselves.

At that time, it will not only be the destruction of the CC Clique, but the Chen family will also be branded as traitors for all time!
"Chairman, you are wise to see the truth!"

Chen Lifu gritted his teeth, swallowing back all the resentment, humiliation, and fear in his heart.

To discard a donkey after it has served its purpose.

The two Chens had anticipated this day, but they never expected it to come so soon.

"Xu Enzeng was audacious and reckless, and his crimes are unforgivable."

"I am willing to accept any punishment for my failure to make the recommendation!"

“I have never doubted your loyalty to the Party and the country.”

"But right now, public opinion in China is raging, and the Americans are watching us like tigers eyeing us from behind."

"If you continue to stay in the central government, you will inevitably become the target of those political enemies' frenzied attacks."

As Chang Ruiyuan spoke, he handed over a newspaper.

After quietly waiting for Chen Lifu to finish reading.

It's as if they're waiting for the other person to accept their fate.

Chang Ruiyuan walked slowly to the window, his back to him: "In Siam, a top-level embassy has just been established."

"This is not only about appeasing the overseas Chinese in Southeast Asia, but also about the future diplomatic relations between Siam and us."

"I can only feel at ease if you go to this extremely important location, which is far from the center of domestic controversy."

Going to Siam?
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary?

Chen Lifu's face was ashen as he looked at the newspaper criticizing him from the Communist Party, his mind already contemplating his future.

He had no followers or political base in Siam.

Even doing something might require considering the whims of the Thai royal family.

It was ostensibly a promotion, but in reality, it was a permanent political exile.

"Lifu, just consider this a trip to Southeast Asia to relax and escape this storm."

Chang Ruiyuan turned around and looked at him quietly, his eyes brooking no refusal: "This is the best outcome to give me, the chairman, an explanation and to save face for the party and the country."

"We thank the Chairman for his kindness. Please rest assured, we will do our utmost."

Chen Lifu's unsteady gait, as if he had aged ten years in an instant, disappeared outside the study door.

Dai Yunong, who had been listening in from the dark room, and Chang Ruiyuan's eldest son, Chang Jingguo, quietly came out.

"President."

"Chairman."

Chang Ruiyuan turned around and casually threw the handkerchief he had used to wipe his tears into the wastepaper basket: "The CC Clique still has a huge number of party affairs backbone members and informants in various provinces at the grassroots level."

At this point, Chang Ruiyuan paused: "If we don't clean it up completely, it will spring up again, and then we'll have to avoid it contradicting me again."

"Jianfeng".

A hint of reluctance flashed in Chang Jingguo's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it: "Yes."

"From the Party Affairs Section to all the secret trading companies under it."

"Anyone found guilty of corruption, possessing firearms illegally, or attempting to obstruct military orders."

Chang Ruiyuan's eyes revealed a ruthless determination to eliminate any potential threats: "Go directly through the Inspectorate's procedures, no need to report, investigate and handle it on the spot!"

"Understood..." (End of Chapter)