Anti-Japanese War: From Becoming Chu Yunfei to Rising

Late spring of 1944.

As dawn broke through the fog in the mountain city, a bright red sunrise tore through the thick fog on the Jialing River, casting thousands of golden rays upon this historically significant secondary capital.

"Extra number! Extra number!"

"Liberate! Liberate! Shanghai liberated! The Japanese army in East China has been completely annihilated!"

"Breaking News! Under Commander Gu's command, 200,000 Japanese pirates have been annihilated!"

A dozen or so ragged but excited newsboys, waving copies of the Ta Kung Pao and Central Daily News that reeked of strong ink, ran wildly across the cobblestone streets like a flock of swifts heralding spring.

The once quiet mountain town suddenly became incredibly lively.

"boom--!"

That was the deafening sound of countless firecrackers being lit at the same time.

The deafening sound of firecrackers turned the entire street into a festive red hue filled with the smoke of gunpowder.

In that old teahouse on the street corner that has been open for more than ten years.

Several veterans, some missing limbs and all retired from the Battle of Shanghai, were sitting around an octagonal table.

Upon hearing the newsboy's piercing scream, an old soldier with one eye suddenly stood up, so abruptly that he knocked over a teacup on the table.

He seemed oblivious as scalding hot tea was splashed on his legs.

"Old Liu, did you hear me?"

The one-eyed veteran grabbed the shoulder of his limping old buddy next to him, his fingers trembling like a leaf: "I heard you! I heard you!"

With trembling hands, the lame old soldier pulled a handful of Chinese currency from his pocket, scrambled out of the teahouse, and snatched a newspaper from the newsboy's hand.

The front page headline featured a black-and-white photograph that took up half the page.

In the photo, tanks are seen swaggering into the Japanese Expeditionary Army headquarters.

The flag of the Republic of China on the turret fluttered in the sea breeze.

Beside the tank tracks were groups of Japanese prisoners of war, their hands raised and their faces ashen.

The lame veteran's knees buckled, and he collapsed to his knees amidst the firecracker debris scattered on the ground. He looked up at the clear sky and wailed.

"Seven years!"

"Our troops have finally fought their way back to Sihang Warehouse!"

The entire teahouse and the whole street saw countless people stop in their tracks, listening to the heart-wrenching cries, all of them weeping.

The blood feud of 300,000 soldiers who died in the Battle of Shanghai has finally been avenged.

"Look, there's more content on the second page!"

"Tell me quickly, stop keeping me in suspense, what does it say on it?"

"It's not just that they played well domestically."

A schoolteacher in a long gown wiped away tears, pointed to the subheading on the second page of the newspaper, his voice hoarse with extreme emotion.

"Fellow countrymen, look to Southeast Asia!"

"Look at our expeditionary force!"

He held the newspaper high and read aloud: "Our Sixth Expeditionary Army has decisively defeated the Japanese Fifteenth Army in the rainforests of Sumatra!"

"The British fought for two months but couldn't advance more than thirty miles. Our Commander Zhuo Tianyu, with 100,000 American-equipped troops, burned the Japanese rainforest defense line to the ground in just one week!"

The tea drinkers gasped, then erupted in thunderous cheers: "Well done!"

"The British have been swaggering around here for over a century, and now they have to rely on our Chinese soldiers to save their lives in Indonesia!"

The teacher grew more and more excited as he read, his fingers trembling: "And the Philippines!"

"Our fifth expeditionary force, under the command of Huang Jie, in coordination with US Commander MacArthur, has successfully landed on Luzon Island!"

"One hundred thousand elite Japanese troops were cut off from supplies and were trapped and died on the island!"

"In this world today, who dares to underestimate our Chinese army?!"

On this bright and sunny morning, national pride has been elevated to an unprecedented level by countless incredible victories.

But when this victory, which heralded the end of an era, truly arrived, the deep-seated ecstasy still captivated the 400 million people of China.

……

The wheel of time turned wildly.

half a month later.

Fengtian, Northeast China, was the former headquarters of the Japanese Kwantung Army.

This massive Atlantic-shaped building, once the headquarters of the invading Japanese army and exuding endless gloom and hegemony, has now been completely taken over by the North China Joint Front Command of the National Revolutionary Army.

On the plaza outside the building.

Thousands of Japanese Kwantung Army prisoners of war, who had just laid down their arms, were being escorted by heavily armed Flying Tiger soldiers toward the concentration camp, their heads hanging low.

The million-strong army, once hailed as the "flower of the locust army," melted away completely like ice and snow meeting the scorching sun under Chu Yunfei's encirclement, division, and strategic maneuvering.

Top floor of the building, inside the command center.

Chu Yunfei looked into the distance, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

I finally did it!
Those were the promises he made to the people of Northeast China, and to the officers and soldiers of Northeast China.

The spring breeze swept through Fengtian City, turning the tender buds green and dispelling the bloody gloom that had lingered there for fourteen years.

"Your Excellency, the Northeast Campaign has come to a complete end."

Chief of Staff Lin Wei and Fang Ligong walked into the command room side by side.

The two men looked exhausted from not having slept for many days, but the glint in their eyes was frighteningly bright.

Fang Ligong placed a thick post-war inventory report on the table, pushed up his glasses, and spoke with barely concealed excitement.

"Except for a few remnants who fled to the Korean Peninsula, most of the Japanese Kwantung Army has surrendered to our army."

"The puppet Manchukuo regime has collapsed, and the puppet emperor and a host of traitors and officials have been intercepted and captured by our advance column at Changchun Airport!"

"What is the deployment status of our main forces?"

Lin Wei stepped forward, picked up his baton, and drew a red line heavily on the Sino-Soviet and Sino-Mongolian borders on the sand table.

"In accordance with the secret order given by Your Excellency half a month ago."

Lin Wei reported in a deep voice: "Commander Fu's Seventh Army Group, Commander He's Fifteenth Army Group, and Qiu Yu'an's First Armored Group have not taken any rest."

"They have advanced to the banks of the Heilongjiang River and the Sino-Soviet border in full force, just as planned."

"Our hidden agents on the other side of the river are sending back messages."

"After learning of our actions, the commander of the Soviet Far Eastern Red Army ordered the main border defense force to withdraw forty kilometers, fearing a conflict with us."

"The Soviet Union is currently making great strides on the German front, and naturally it is doing its best to be accommodating in the Far East."

In the European theater, the Normandy landings began two weeks ahead of schedule.

The Germans are now completely caught in a two-front war.

The Soviets and the Allied forces also needed to compete to see who could capture Berlin faster.

Meanwhile, the leader who chose to gamble everything and fight to the bitter end also amassed a large number of troops and armored forces for a final resistance.

Chu Yunfei knew clearly that they still had time to make final plans.

"First shut the Russians up, then restore the ancestral territories."

"Order Qian Bojun's sixth episode and Commander Sun's fourth episode to proceed immediately according to the original battle plan."

"Once supplies are replenished, immediately cross the YL River and advance at full speed toward the peninsula!"

Fang Ligong's expression hardened: "Sir, shall we invade the peninsula?"

"The Americans' side"

"This is to wipe out the remnants of the Japanese army, and we have every right to do so."

Chu Yunfei's tone was serious and left no room for doubt: "The territory we have conquered is China's strongest bargaining chip in the post-war East Asian landscape!" "Tell Bojun to fight without restraint, to go all out, and not to hold back. We not only want to flex our muscles at the Russians, but also to let the Americans understand our strength."

"Yes!"

……

at the same time.

mountain city.

While the whole of China was immersed in the jubilation of liberating their homeland, the core strategic meeting inside Yunxiu Tower was already discussing plans for dividing the world after the war.

Chang Ruiyuan sat at the head of the round table, holding a top-secret proposal from the U.S. side in Washington.

U.S. military attaché to China, General Stilwell, Chen Cixiu, He Jingzhi, and others lined up on both sides.

"Your Excellency Chairman"

Stilwell's eyes gleamed with undisguised fervor and greed: "General MacArthur's leapfrog tactics have been extremely successful, and your expeditionary force has drawn considerable attention from the Japanese army in the Indonesian direction."

"The Supreme Command of the Allied Powers has decided to launch a decisive strike against the Japanese mainland defense perimeter ahead of schedule!"

"We plan to assemble the absolute main force of the Pacific Fleet."

"At the same time, we request the China Theater Command to transfer the main force of fifteen fully American-equipped divisions of the Army!"

Stilwell's voice echoed in the conference room: "Under the absolute cover of the naval and air forces of China and the United States, we will directly carry out a large-scale joint island-seizing and landing operation against Guandao, VVVV, and even the Ryukyu Islands!"

"As long as we take these springboards, the Sino-US allied forces can put bayonets directly to the throat of the Japanese locusts!"

The meeting room fell silent instantly.

Fifteen reorganized divisions.

Those were nearly 300,000 elite veterans, tempered by war and equipped to the teeth.

This is both the essence of the recent six-month reorganization plan for the 60th Division and the result of that plan.

The Americans are trying to use the lives of Chinese people to fill the gaps in the Japanese army's insane island fortresses in the Pacific meat grinder.

Chen Cixiu and He Jingzhi exchanged a glance, both with furrowed brows.

Chang Ruiyuan casually tossed the American proposal onto the table, his face expressionless, only gently stroking his bald chin with his fingers.
The two sides engaged in heated discussions on regions including Toungoo, Southeast Asia, the peninsula, Pearl City, and northern India.

The two sides eventually reached a preliminary consensus.

……

The gears of time turn especially fast in this passionate era.

Two months later.

In the scorching heat of late summer, as two special bombs, representing the ultimate destructive power of humanity, suddenly lit up the skies over Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the blinding flashes finally became the last straw that broke the camel's back for Japan.

The facts have already proven on the plains of central Jiangsu and Manchuria that Japan's war machine had been crushed by the Chinese army two months earlier.

Meanwhile, the Allied landing forces had already conducted corresponding operations.

Their National Guard offered little resistance against the powerful expeditionary force and marines.

The so-called "one hundred million jade shattered" appeared utterly laughable and fragile under the powerful offensive.

The square in front of the Central Broadcasting Station in the mountain city.

Crowds of people, red flags waving.

Countless soldiers and civilians spontaneously gathered here, and even the rooftops of the surrounding buildings were crowded with people who wept with joy.

The loudspeakers on the streets are broadcasting the most solemn and historic message to the world simultaneously.

Chang Ruiyuan was dressed in the formal attire of a general, his chest adorned with dazzling medals.

He walked to the microphone and looked down at the sea of ​​black heads and waving flags below.

This national leader, weathered by life's storms and burdened with a mixed reputation, was now trembling uncontrollably.

He took a deep breath, his eyes red-rimmed, and his hoarse yet penetrating voice traveled on the radio waves, reaching every corner of the country, from the Great Wall to the Yangtze River, and to every corner that had been trampled by the iron hooves of the Japanese invaders.

Fellow countrymen!

"Peace-loving allies of the world!"

Chang Ruiyuan's voice echoed in the silent square, making people's souls tremble.

"Our war of resistance has been won today. The truth that 'justice will always prevail over might' has finally been proven, which also signifies the success of our national revolution's historical mission."

"Our Chinese people's belief in fighting during dark and desperate times has finally been realized today."

"After more than a decade of hellish suffering and the immense sacrifice of tens of millions of innocent lives and indomitable soldiers, the Chinese nation has finally and completely defeated Japanese militarist fascism!"

He suddenly raised his voice, as if he wanted to etch the sound into the monument of history.

"The Japanese government has formally surrendered unconditionally to the Allied Powers today!"

boom--!!!
The square, and indeed the entire land of China, erupted in an instant!
Countless people embraced and wept, countless hats were thrown high into the air, and deafening cheers drowned out all other sounds.

"We have not only recovered all the territory lost since the First Sino-Japanese War!"

Chang Ruiyuan's eyes were filled with tears, but when he read these words, he exuded an indescribable iron-blooded domineering aura.

"Our army has now liberated the peninsula;"

"Our expeditionary force is now awe-inspiring on the shores of the Pacific!"

"Fellow countrymen, remember the humiliation and struggle of these past years!"

"Remember those heroic souls who lie buried in the earth!"

"Victory in the War of Resistance is assured!!!"

Long live Great China!

Long live China!

……

at the same time.

Beiping, formerly the headquarters of the North China Area Army of the invading Japanese army, is now the Northern Supreme Command Building of the Republic of China Army.

In front of the huge floor-to-ceiling windows.

Chu Yunfei was dressed in a perfectly wrinkle-free dark green general's uniform, holding a cup of unsweetened black coffee in his hand.

An old radio was playing Chang Ruiyuan's impassioned declaration of victory in the War of Resistance against Japan over and over again.

Outside the window, one could see the ancient and magnificent red walls and yellow tiles of Beiping City, as well as the jubilant parades that swept through the streets and alleys.

Fireworks rise into the sky during the day; though the light is invisible, the sound of their explosion is like thunder.

"Your Excellency."

Fang Ligong gently pushed open the door and entered, holding a brand-new world strategic situation map in his hand.

"The war is over."

Fang Ligong pushed up his glasses, and his usually calm voice now trembled uncontrollably.

Chu Yunfei turned around and drank the bitter coffee in his cup in one gulp.

There was little elation in his deep, dark eyes, like an abyss.

Instead, after that initial sense of relief, a more profound and unfathomable light ignited within it.

"Brother Ligong."

Chu Yunfei walked to the huge desk and gently traced the newly unfolded world map with his fingertips.

His fingertips moved back and forth between the Pacific Ocean, Siberia, and the Mediterranean Sea in Europe.

"The end of the War of Resistance Against Japan is not the beginning of peace."

Chu Yunfei turned his head and looked at the sea of ​​cheers outside the window. His voice was low and deep: "The real beasts will soon tear off the warm pretense of the anti-Japanese alliance. Before long, they will show us their fangs."

"A grand geopolitical game, sweeping the globe, dividing up interests, and more covert and brutal than ever before, will inevitably unfold slowly after the Germans fall." (End of Chapter)