Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 621 Standardized Operations

After receiving reports from the U.S. military front lines, Truman was very optimistic about the situation in Korea.

Compared to being chased and beaten before, things aren't just good now, they're incredibly good.

Just as Truman was considering whether to intensify his efforts to make the negotiations go more smoothly, Acheson, Marshall, and Bradley arrived.

"Please have a seat." Truman gestured towards the sofa.

"Have you heard the news from North Korea?"

Upon hearing Truman's question, Marshall immediately replied, "Mr. President, that's why we're here."

Truman leaned back in his chair and chuckled, "Oh? You also think we should give the front lines more support?"

“No, quite the opposite.” Marshall shook his head seriously. “I think we should immediately halt the large-scale ground offensive.”

Acheson and Bradley nodded in agreement.

Truman immediately sat up straight: "Why?"

He didn't understand why they had to stop their offensive when they had clearly won.

Bradley didn't explain immediately, but instead got up and hung up a map he had brought.

"Mr. President, this is the current situation on the Korean battlefield."

"In the past six months, the UN forces have launched continuous offensives, and the front line has moved northward, with the troops occupying approximately 300 square kilometers of land."

“Isn’t this a good thing?” Truman said. “I don’t intend to occupy the entire North, but if we can keep putting pressure on the Chinese on the battlefield, they will come back to the negotiating table on their own.”

In negotiations, whoever backs down first loses out.

Negotiations are currently suspended. If the Chinese side can be forced to the negotiating table, it will give the US military some advantages.

Upon hearing Truman's words, Bradley said with a serious expression, "Moving the front line north is indeed a good thing, but what is the cost?"

"During the summer offensive, the UN forces achieved almost no results; these 300 square kilometers of land were almost entirely gained during the autumn offensive."

"The UN forces suffered more than 30,000 casualties, and this only accounts for the casualties of the autumn offensive, not including the casualties of the summer offensive."

"In addition, the U.S. military has also consumed a large amount of ordnance and ammunition."

After hearing Bradley's report, Truman broke out in a cold sweat.

Putting aside the consumption of supplies, the casualties were something he simply could not accept.

More than 30,000 people for 300 square kilometers—at this ratio, even if all the young and able-bodied men in the United States and South Korea were wiped out, they probably still wouldn't be able to advance to Pyongyang.

Truman looked at Ellson.

Ellson nodded: "These 30,000-plus are actual casualties, and they are mainly American soldiers."

"In addition, the military supplies consumed at the front are staggering, and our strategic reserves are being rapidly depleted."

Ellison thought Van Fleet was a spendthrift.

During the autumn offensive, more than 100,000 155mm and 105mm shells were fired every day across the entire Korean battlefield.

This has exceeded the production capacity of US arsenals.

Of course, if the United States enters a state of war and fully utilizes its military industry, its production capacity could increase several times over.

However, it is clear that the United States cannot enter a state of war at present.

Having figured it out, Truman said definitively, "We can't keep fighting like this. Notify the negotiation team to restart negotiations!"

The resumption of negotiations has put the US military negotiating team in a somewhat awkward position.

After all, the last negotiation broke down because of the US military's unbridled actions.

At the time, the US military acted as if they didn't care whether or not to talk, but now that they want to restart negotiations, they have to lose face a bit.

Fortunately, the US military doesn't care at all about whether it's embarrassing or not.

The two sides resumed contact.

After a long period of wrangling, Ridgway finally agreed to the new negotiation location chosen by China and North Korea—Panmunjom.

By the end of October, while the negotiating teams were again bickering at Panmunjom, the Chinese People's Volunteer Army was already working hard on the front lines.

Under orders from the headquarters, the entire Chinese People's Volunteer Army began in-depth research into tunnel warfare.

Inside the Second General Headquarters, Xu Wu reported: "Commander, the intensity of the US attack has greatly decreased. Although they launch attacks every day, it has little impact. All units are working urgently to dig deeper tunnels."

Chen Chengxing put down the documents and said, "Although we have used tunnels in battle before, this time it is a large-scale, systematic excavation."

"Therefore, all departments must adopt a correct attitude. Although the tunnels are primitive, there is a lot of knowledge and skills involved."

After thinking for a moment, Chen Chengxing ordered, "In this way, distribute the engineers to various units to assist in the excavation, positioning, and concealment of the tunnels."

Xu Wu nodded: "I'll make the arrangements right away."

Luo Ping, who was standing nearby, asked, "How do the logistics departments plan to solve the tool problem? I haven't seen any relevant application reports."

Winter arrives in North Korea as early as October, and by November the ground is already frozen solid.

If a tunnel has already been dug, expanding it is relatively straightforward, but opening a new tunnel is not so simple.

"Political Commissar, Commander-in-Chief, there's a saying: 'Self-reliance leads to abundance.'"

“I’ve visited all the departments and detachments, and they’ve already opened their own general stores and blacksmith shops.”

"We burned our own charcoal, wove our own earthen frames, and forged our own straw ropes. We even made our own handcarts from wood."

"As for ironware, they also set up dozens of blacksmith forges, and made tens of thousands of tools. They have all kinds of tools!"

The shells fired and the bombs dropped by the US military, as well as the fragments from the explosions, are all excellent materials.

All you need to do is forge, stretch, and cut large pieces of material, and you'll have a very useful tool.

"As for the explosives for blasting the permafrost, the Americans have also sent us quite a lot. The explosives salvaged from dud shells and aerial bombs are enough for all units to use."

Chen Chengxing nodded: "Good, tell the comrades to roll up their sleeves and get to work, and see if the Americans have more shells or our tunnels are deeper!"

Throughout the winter, the front of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army's positions was filled with the sounds of gunfire, while the reverse slope behind them was filled with the sounds of explosions.

As the Chinese People's Volunteer Army's positions became increasingly unfathomable, the American troops began to feel uneasy.

The American bombers had to turn their attention away from bombing the supply lines and began to bombard the entrances to the Chinese People's Volunteer Army's tunnels.

Seeing the tunnel entrances being blown up one after another, Chen Chengxing was somewhat annoyed.

"What's going on?! Did they leave all their tunnel-digging experience from back in northwestern Shanxi?!"

The tunnel entrance collapsed simply because its location was too obvious. The US military bombed this one spot, and it was bound to collapse sooner or later.

Fortunately, the tunnels at the front line had several exits, allowing the soldiers to move around; otherwise, the soldiers inside the tunnels would have suffocated.

Xu Wu explained, "The main problem was that we were in too much of a rush. The soldiers focused their main efforts on digging the tunnels, and the excavated soil was piled up outside, which is how the American aircraft were able to detect it."

"We must ensure we are well-hidden and strengthen air defenses," Chen Chengxing ordered.
"All the excavated soil must be transported away at night. During the day, no one is allowed to wander around the tunnel entrance."

Now the US military aircraft are in the open, while the Chinese People's Volunteer Army's tunnels are in the dark; we must make good use of this advantage.

As long as they are well concealed, it's impossible for US military aircraft to land and check every leaf for hidden openings.

"yes!".
As operations became more standardized, US aircraft could no longer find their targets on the Second General Headquarters positions.

Soon, the US military could no longer find their targets across the entire Chinese People's Volunteer Army's positions.

The American reconnaissance planes high in the sky could not find the Chinese People's Volunteer Army anywhere, even though the mountain peaks looked like a single, continuous hill.

While the US military was struggling with the Chinese People's Volunteer Army's earthen tunnels, they were unaware that even more trouble was yet to come.

In April, the commander of the headquarters was urgently recalled by the Central Committee for medical treatment due to health reasons, and the commander of the Fourth Army Corps and deputy commander of the headquarters took over as acting commander.

After the Fourth Army Corps arrived at the headquarters, the headquarters immediately convened a special meeting on tunnel fortifications, which was attended by the chiefs of staff of all the army corps and armies.

After the meeting, the General Staff officially released the tunnel warfare execution standards.

Each company's position must have at least two tunnels dug, and each tunnel must have at least three exits; however, there cannot be too many tunnels to prevent them from being used by the enemy.

The tunnel roof must be at least 15 meters thick to ensure it can withstand direct bombardment from heavy artillery and aerial bombs. Each tunnel must meet the requirements for air defense, artillery protection, rain protection, moisture protection, poison gas protection, fire protection, and flood protection; all seven conditions must be met simultaneously, and none can be omitted.

Moreover, the tunnels must be connected to field fortifications, so that they can be used for both defense and offense.

With the Volunteer Army Headquarters paying close attention, by the end of May, nearly 8,000 tunnels had been constructed on the Volunteer Army's positions, with a total length of over 200 kilometers.

Moreover, the tunnels were no longer just simple shelters, but became front-line command centers integrating various functions such as warehouses, command, and medical care.

This left the US military completely bewildered. Their prized artillery was utterly ineffective; no matter how they fired, the shells had virtually no effect beyond making a sound.

Looking at the latest battle report, the acting commander laughed and said, "It seems the US military has run out of tricks. They're finished."

"Sir, according to statistics, from January to May, the U.S. military launched more than 150 attacks, none of which were successful."

"In the summer and autumn of 1951, 40 shells from the US military could kill one of our soldiers. But in the battle that took place yesterday at the Second General position, the US military fired more than 30,000 shells, but the casualties were less than 40. It would take 800 shells to kill one person."

The operations staff officer said, "Sir, I think we are now in an invincible position!"

“It’s still not enough.” The acting commander shook his head: “No matter what, the civil engineering structure is still not durable enough.”

"No matter what North Korea does next—whether it's war, peace, or protracted conflict—it must build some permanent fortifications, otherwise they will collapse after a few rainy seasons and springs."

"You give orders to the engineering corps to conduct the assessment together with the Soviet advisors."

"My opinion is that, apart from civil engineering, the tunnels of the front-line fortifications should be reinforced with steel and cement, and some important areas should be converted into permanent fortifications."

"On the second line of defense, construct reinforced concrete fortifications in key locations, especially in places with convenient transportation. These areas must be blocked with fortifications to prevent the deployment of US armored forces."

The acting commander's meaning was simple: earthen tunnels were not enough; permanent tunnels needed to be built, and a permanent defensive line needed to be constructed around these permanent tunnels, with preparations made to fight to the bitter end.

After evaluation by engineers and Soviet advisors, the idea of ​​a de facto commander was deemed entirely feasible.

After the headquarters reported to the Central Committee and received approval, the fortifications began to develop from field construction to permanent construction.

By August, a formidable defensive line had emerged, spanning 250 kilometers across the Korean Peninsula and extending 30 kilometers in depth.

The combined Chinese and North Korean forces used permanent tunnels as the backbone to support a complex and complete defense system.

With the defensive line completed, the two sides began to stare at each other in vain.

When neither side could gain the upper hand, the battlefield fell silent.

Of course, in order to create momentum for the negotiations, although neither side intended to engage in large-scale fighting, small-scale battles continued unabated.

Second Commander Chen Chengxing convened a combat meeting to discuss the next course of action.

"The two sides are now in a stalemate, and large-scale battles are unlikely to occur."

"However, large-scale battles cannot be carried out, but small-scale battles are the best opportunity."

"The headquarters has just issued an order that during the standoff with the enemy, every opportunity should be seized to inflict casualties on the American troops."

Upon hearing Chen Chengxing's words, Li Yunlong said proudly, "Our C Army's reconnaissance companies have launched numerous night raids on the US forward positions, achieving considerable success."

Kong Jie, standing to the side, curled his lip and said, "Old Li, don't be so smug. Who hasn't done these kinds of things?"

“Exactly.” Ding Wei nodded. “But Old Chen, you didn’t call us all over just for something like this, did you?”

Chen Chengxing shook his head: "Of course not, what I mean is to expand the battle to the entire army."

“We can place the heavy machine guns at the front. If the spotter spots a small group of enemy targets, the designated machine gunner can then fire.”

"At the same time, each squad and platoon can select top marksmen to specifically shoot individual targets."

The group laughed and said, "We understand, we'll take a sneak attack."

Chen Chengxing said, "Don't underestimate this sniper shot. It can only hit one person at a time, but if more people are involved, the results can be just as significant."

“You don’t need to remind me.” Li Yunlong waved his hand: “Back when we were fighting the Japanese, this was one of our specialties.”

"Not just sniping, but also sniping with artillery." Chen Chengxing reminded him, "The Soviet-made 76mm cannon is a good thing, it can hit exactly where you point it, and the hit rate is quite high."

"Prepare in advance, fire one shot and leave, the US military can't do anything to us."

Chen Chengxing's idea was to use the cannons as sniper rifles, setting them up directly on the mountaintop to engage in sniper duels with the American troops.

The three nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, it's really not used to suddenly having a weapon in your hand."

In fact, it wasn't just Li Yunlong and his group; soldiers from various armies were also somewhat unaccustomed to it, and they still had the habit of calling for artillery support.

Now that Chen Chengxing reminded them, Li Yunlong and his men realized that they were very different from how they were a few months ago.

At the command, the soldiers of the Fourth Army Corps sprang into action.

With Chen Chengxing's support, the Fourth Army Corps had an extraordinary number of sharpshooters.

North Korea's complex terrain, valleys, dense forests, darkness, and snowstorms all became aids for the soldiers in their battles.

The US military was immediately in deep trouble.

Behind a hillside, three soldiers, wearing white cloaks, lay prone on the ground, secretly observing the American positions 300 meters away.

One of them used binoculars to observe the specific movements of the US troops, while the other two relied entirely on their eyes to observe.

An observer can use a telescope to observe details, but a marksman can only rely on his eyes. Therefore, to become a sharpshooter, one must first have excellent eyesight.

A soldier, clearly older than many years, adjusted his semi-automatic rifle, turned his head, and asked in a low voice, "Squad leader, there are enemy activities on the position. Shouldn't we take action?"

The squad leader slowly withdrew his head and casually explained, "Xiao Zhang, although your marksmanship has improved rapidly since you joined Squad 9, your timing still needs improvement."

"Let me ask you, suppose you are lying in ambush by a water source right now, and you see enemies coming to fetch water, when should you fire?"

Without hesitation, Xiao Zhang replied, "Of course, when it appears in the shooting range."

"Wrong! You should do it the moment the enemy has just lifted a bucket of water."

"When the enemy is putting on his pants, you should do it the moment he has just pulled up one pant leg."

"When the enemy is defecating, you should wait until he has taken off his pants and is halfway through defecating."

"The best time to fire is when the enemy is neither too high nor too low. Even if the first shot misses, there is still a chance to fire a follow-up shot."

As they were talking, the observer whispered, "Someone's coming out."

The squad leader immediately stopped talking, raised the semi-automatic rifle covered in white cloth, and pulled the trigger.

"boom!"

The American soldiers had barely walked a few meters out of the trench when they lay down on the ground.

Xiao Zhang was bewildered and asked, "Squad leader, didn't you say we should take advantage of the enemy's indecisiveness?"

"That's when you're not confident you can hit the target with one shot." Patting the semi-automatic rifle in his hand, the squad leader said confidently, "This treasure of mine can hit any target within 350 meters, so there's no need to wait."

Xiao Zhang scratched his head: "Okay, should we move now?"

"No rush," the squad leader explained. "The American isn't dead yet. Let's see if anyone comes to rescue him."

After the American soldier fell to the ground, he couldn't tell whether he was dead or alive, but the observer with binoculars could see it clearly.

Since the observer did not give any signal, it means the enemy is still alive.

However, the squad leader made a mistake this time, as the American soldiers did not rush to the rescue.

It wasn't until the mortar positions behind fired a string of smoke grenades that the medics came out and dragged the wounded back.

Seeing the thick smoke, the squad leader reluctantly switched off the safety on his rifle: "No chance, move out!"

As the sniping campaign spread from the Fourth Army Corps to the entire army, sniping began to rang out continuously on the interlocking positions of both sides.

The American soldiers were completely routed and turned into cowards.

Let alone sunbathing like before, now even accidentally peeking out could result in a sneak attack.

When the artillery of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army also participated in the artillery activities, the American troops were practically in tears.

A few people were walking along the road when a shell suddenly flew over.
The US military was also willing to retaliate, but in terms of individual combat skills, the Chinese People's Volunteer Army was far superior to the US military.

The US military could only gain some advantages in some scattered battlefields. On the overall front, the US military was being tormented to the point of near death.

(End of this chapter)