Film and Television World Life Record

Chapter 445 Opening Private Routes

Nobody wants to suffer when there's a good life to be had. After a brief consideration, Meng Fanle, Mi Long, and the others all decided to stay.

These days, too many wounded soldiers leave the army. After they recover, many have already been transferred to other units to fight, and it's not easy for them to return to their original units.

It's quite simple for these people to stay here. They're not important figures, their ranks aren't high, no one will investigate, and their units have already assumed they died from their injuries.

……

On the eastern Henan front, two more battles were fought with the Japanese forces in Xuzhou over the past two days, with neither side gaining the upper hand. Most importantly, Li Mu obtained the locations of the artillery and armored positions on the front lines from his notebook, and launched two more nighttime bombing raids. These Japanese heavy firepower units suffered significant damage and became even more cautious.

This made Li Mu's bombing tactics more difficult.

The main reason is the inability to accurately determine the target's location and intelligence.

Actually, this is quite normal. Even with the Japanese army's powerful intelligence network, they couldn't pinpoint our army's exact location and specific firepower deployment, such as where the artillery positions were hidden or where the armored units were located.

Otherwise, you could target weaknesses and defeat them one by one, and even some encirclement tactics wouldn't be applicable. Because any intention you have will be detected by the opponent in advance.

The same applies to Li Mu's side; they know the approximate location and troop deployment of the Japanese army. However, getting further down the line—where the artillery is, where the armored forces are, and other specific locations—is much more difficult.

In addition, the Japanese have suffered heavy losses in the air recently, and have become increasingly vigilant. They have not only increased their anti-aircraft weapons, but have also learned to conceal them.

If a war doesn't break out and artillery and armored troops aren't deployed on the front lines, it's difficult to pinpoint their locations at other times, making it hard to carry out airstrikes.

Even the infantry learned to set up decoys and hide at night. With limited visibility at night, it was difficult to distinguish clearly, and many bombings were just a waste of ammunition with little effect.

Although the opportunities for bombing have decreased, the Japanese have indeed become much less arrogant after Li Mu's several bloody lessons. The days when small Japanese units would swagger around and act recklessly are now rarely seen.

Wherever they marched, they became much more cautious, guarding against air raids that could come at any time.

Realizing that the eastern Henan region was a tough nut to crack, they knew that unless they fought another major battle to completely eliminate the 200,000 troops in eastern Henan.

However, the focus of the Soviet Union is now Wuhan, where some of the government's institutions relocated after the fall of Nanjing. Currently, Wuhan has become the de facto military, political, and economic center of the country, holding a very important strategic position.

After the Japanese army occupied Nanjing, they began to study the operation to capture Hankou, but due to various limitations, it was temporarily shelved.

Until early April of this year, when the Japanese decided to launch the Battle of Xuzhou, they also decided to launch the Battle of Wuhan. When formulating the Battle of Xuzhou plan, they anticipated the situation after the battle and also took into account the future Battle of Wuhan.

Wuhan is currently the Japanese's biggest target. Dragging them into the quagmire of the eastern Henan battlefield at this point would delay the best time for an attack, and it's uncertain how long this will drag on.

As a result, things in eastern Henan became increasingly quiet.

In late June, the Japanese convened an imperial conference to discuss the attack on Wuhan.

Japan had two routes to attack Wuhan: one along the Huai River and the other along the Yangtze River. Considering all factors, Japan's navy was well-developed, so the Yangtze River route was the most advantageous and would also facilitate the use of large ships to transport weapons, ammunition, and wounded soldiers.

The Huai River route not only lacks the wide waterways of the Yangtze River, which allow large ships to pass through, but also faces the presence of a formidable 200,000-strong army stationed in eastern Henan to the north, ready to move south at any time, cut off the Huai River, and attack the flanks.

Just like in history, the Japanese ultimately chose to attack Wuhan along both banks of the Yangtze River.

The Japanese army's southward advance and assembly could not be kept secret, and Li Mu breathed a sigh of relief. Since the Japanese had not chosen to take eastern Henan but instead attacked Wuhan along the Huai River, the matter of Huayuankou was naturally no longer relevant.

A disaster was averted without a trace.

……

Next, both sides, as if wound up, began emergency preparations for battle.

Also in June, the government formulated a battle plan to defend Wuhan and stipulated strategic guidelines.

The core idea was to establish a foothold on the outer lines, maintain high troop mobility, utilize terrain and fortifications to gradually resist and wear down the Japanese army, trade space for time, and ultimately change the war situation from enemy attack to our defense.

According to this plan, the principal himself took on the role of commander-in-chief, mobilized troops, and organized defenses along the Dabie Mountains, Poyang Lake, and both banks of the Yangtze River, preparing for a protracted war.

The main objectives were threefold: first, to trade space for time, combining internal and external fronts to wear down and defeat the enemy; second, to relocate factories, transport supplies, prepare the army, and accelerate production as soon as possible in preparation for a protracted war of resistance; and third, to win international sympathy and support, hoping for the opening of an international battlefield in order to completely defeat Japan.

At the subsequent conference, it was solemnly declared: "Our Chinese nation will, with an unyielding will, mobilize all its material and human resources to wage a protracted war of resistance against these vicious aggressors for self-defense and for humanity, until the day of final victory is achieved."

Subsequently, in order to strengthen its command structure and combat capabilities, the government decided to adjust the order of battle and establish the Ninth War Zone. It was also decided that troops from the Fifth and Ninth War Zones would be used to defend Wuhan. The troops participating in the defense, along with the air force and navy, totaled fourteen army groups and fifty corps, with approximately two hundred combat aircraft, over thirty ships, and a total strength of nearly one million personnel.

Starting in June, troops from various corps organized defenses to protect Wuhan, utilizing natural barriers such as Poyang Lake and the Dabie Mountains.

On the Japanese side, after capturing Xuzhou, they actively prepared to expand their war of aggression, using a portion of their forces to capture Anqing as a forward base for attacking Wuhan.

Subsequently, in accordance with the resolution of the Imperial Conference, the 16th, 9th, 13th, and 6th Divisions, which were stationed in eastern Henan and northern Anhui after the Battle of Xuzhou, were transferred south and concentrated in the Hefei area. A large number of troops were also transferred from North China and other parts of the country.

For this battle, the Japanese concentrated the forces of fourteen divisions in Central China. Nine divisions, totaling approximately 25 men, were directly involved in the operation. In addition, the 3rd Fleet and air wing of the navy, along with approximately 120 ships of various types and about 300 aircraft, were also deployed.

Immediately, the entire Yangtze River region was gearing up for a fight, ready to erupt at any moment.

At the same time, Li Mu also began to make preparations. Once the fighting started in Wuhan, local civil aviation would be suspended. Although it was possible to detour to Xi'an or Luoyang, those places would soon be bombed, which was not a long-term solution.

Now, the only way is to find a new route to foreign countries.

Li Mu thought about it for a long time. Relying on civil aviation probably wouldn't work. As the war escalated, domestic civil aviation would gradually cease operations. At a certain point, apart from special planes, it might be difficult to find any civil aviation operating internationally.

Then… an idea popped into Li Mu’s mind: since there is no existing route, could he open up a new one?

It doesn't need to be very large, nor does it need to accommodate civilian aircraft. Just find a few key locations and build a small military airfield to accommodate aircraft takeoffs and landings.

These days, there's no real sense of airspace control. If a place is remote, nobody cares what's flying in the sky. It's not like you can't fly a fighter jet to the vicinity of Singapore.

With this in mind, Li Mu's mind immediately became active. He found a map of Asia, especially a map of Southeast Asia, and began to study it carefully.

After observing for a long time, Li Mu set his sights on Beibei. Although it was a British colony, it was extremely chaotic, with private armed forces everywhere.

Most importantly, the British focused their efforts on southern Myanmar and had very weak control over northern Myanmar, or even only nominal control. Northern Myanmar was basically entirely controlled by various private armed groups.

If Li Mu sends people to impersonate merchant groups or local armed forces, occupy a piece of land, and build an airport, as long as he has the power, there will be very little resistance.

Europe was about to catch fire. The British had too many colonies around the world to pay attention to such a trivial matter.

If a transit airport can be built in northern Xinjiang to accommodate fighter jets, then half of his new personal air route will be successfully opened.

However, Li Mu then calculated the distance from Nanyang to Mianbei, and it turned out to be two thousand kilometers, so far…

Therefore, a transit airport must be built in the middle. Li Mu looked at the map and finally chose Suining County, Shaoyang City, in the southwestern border of Hunan Province.

The straight-line distance from Suining County to Nanyang is over 900 kilometers; to Mianbei it is over 1,000 kilometers.

The location is ideal, and the mountainous terrain makes it easy to hide, making it a rare and excellent spot.

Having made up his mind, Li Mu dispatched an infantry battalion and a group of engineers, disguised as a militia of the Muwu Trading Company, to Suining County to find a suitable place to build the Suining Military Airport.

As for logistics and supplies, they were all handled by Muwu Trading Company. In order to maintain the secrecy of the airport and avoid conflicts with the locals, Muwu Trading Company would even buy the selected hilltops to serve as the nominal base of the trading group.

In the north, the situation is even more complicated. It's not easy for outsiders to gain a foothold, but that's only because you're not strong enough. If you were strong enough, all forces would be your underlings.

The strength of the security regiment is questionable; it's hard to say whether it can compete with the Japanese. But if it were placed in northern Xinjiang, it would be able to easily defeat those local private armed forces.

However, Li Mu still decided to do it secretly, with the security team acting in the name of the local Chinese community or the local business community.

After all, the infighting among the locals is an internal conflict, and since the area has been fighting for years, no one cares. But if external forces get involved, things could get complicated.

This time, he sent two infantry battalions and one engineer battalion, not too many people, mainly because he was afraid that sending too many at once would arouse the local forces' rejection and vigilance.

Once we've established a firm foothold, we can continue to send more people.

When the European war breaks out, Britain will retreat inland across the board, making it easier for it to develop.

In addition, it's not a short trip from Beibei to Singapore, and a transit station is also needed in between.

Li Mu entrusted this matter to Far East Trading Company, who would either lease or build a small cargo airport in a port in northern Malaysia.

With this springboard, we can go directly to Singapore.

……

With the matter of establishing a private air route settled, Li Mu's attention turned to Wuyi Mountain.

Wuyishan is located at the junction of Jiangxi and Fujian provinces in northwestern China, covering an area of ​​nearly 1,000 square kilometers.

This place is more than 360 kilometers from the sea, and the straight-line distance to Hangzhou is also more than 300 kilometers. If a military airfield is built here, fighter jets can take off from here, and the combat radius can cover most of several provinces.

Li Mu's bombing range will expand again, sometimes to the south, sometimes to the north, making it even more mysterious and unpredictable.

Although we don't know when we'll need it, we should plan ahead. Having something that's useless and not having it, or being unable to use it, are two different things.

Once the airport is repaired, it will be useful sooner or later. Who knows, one day we might be able to secretly inflict a huge loss on the Japanese.

He also sent an infantry battalion and a group of engineers to Wuyishan. It was just a simple, small military airfield, not a big project, and he estimated it would be completed in three or four months at most.

After making these arrangements, Li Mu returned to Wuhan. Once the fighting starts, it will be difficult to catch a flight on public transport. He figured he should make as many trips as possible while he had the time, and stockpile as many supplies as possible.

At this time, Wuhan appeared somewhat chaotic, with crowds of people migrating westward everywhere.

This time, Li Mu didn't rush to Singapore. He took a day to explore the city thoroughly, knowing he probably wouldn't see many of its sights again. Who knows how much of the city would survive once war broke out!

Today, Wuhan is more commonly known as Hankou. The city is composed of three cities, Hankou, Wuchang, and Hanyang, which stand on opposite sides of the Yangtze River. The Yangtze River divides them in two: Hankou and Hanyang are located on the north bank, while Wuchang is isolated on the south bank.

Located on the south bank of the Yangtze River, Wuchang was filled with government buildings, private residences of important officials, and numerous scenic spots and historical sites; while Hankou on the north bank was famous for its prosperity and bustle. As a major commercial port of the era, Hankou on the north bank was second only to Shanghai in fame, attracting many merchants and travelers from both the north and south.

As for Hanyang Town at the foot of Guishan Mountain, it is equally famous. The Hanyang Arsenal gathered the essence of China's military industry in this era. Today, at least half of the guns and ammunition in the hands of the domestic army, apart from those imported from overseas, were manufactured by the Hanyang Arsenal.

The War of Resistance against Japan had been going on for a year. With the fall of many major cities, the three towns of Wuhan had been given too much symbolic significance and were truly the heart of the country.

From the south of Han, it connects to the South China region; to the east, it leads directly to Jiangsu, Anhui, and Zhejiang. This place also served as a bridgehead for the army to later recover lost territory.

Since the start of the War of Resistance against Japan, waves of merchants and residents carrying gold and silver, along with desperate and helpless refugees and wounded soldiers, poured into Wuhan like a tidal wave. Although the various departments of the government were nominally relocated to Chongqing, after arriving in Wuhan, they did not move an inch further west.

Factories, schools, and community organizations that had moved westward naturally settled here. Factories started emitting smoke again, and shops gradually increased in number.

Western-style mansions and private residences, as well as humble inns and lodgings—any place that could provide shelter from the wind and rain was packed to the brim. The streets and markets were equally crowded. Rents and the prices of grains and vegetables, along with the influx of people, sprang up like spring seedlings after a rain.

Just when everyone thought they had finally found a place to stay, the Japanese came again. Guo Fu was also sharpening his knives, planning a big battle, and troops were gathering everywhere.