The War of Resistance: From Overseas Chinese Mechanics to King of Nanyang

"That's right, we'll sabotage them and find a way to force the Japanese out." Huang Zurong said calmly, staring at the Japanese positions on the map in the regimental command post.

He originally planned to use a night raid to mobilize the Japanese army, which would maximize the casualties on the Japanese forces.

However, the Japanese army did not fall for the trick and simply held their camp, greatly reducing the effectiveness of his night raid.

Of course, this reduction is only relative to Huang Zurong; in reality, the effect is still quite good.

Once a division is fully deployed, there are still quite a few positions to be set up.

The night raids, which lasted several hours, still caused significant losses to the Japanese army.

Some smaller camps were destroyed multiple times, with preliminary estimates suggesting at least a thousand casualties.

However, this also made the Japanese army smarter. In particular, Mutaguchi Renya refused to come out no matter what. Not only that, he also ordered the strengthening of night defenses, doubling the manpower in each camp, building field fortifications, and bringing in dozens of searchlights from the rear.

This resulted in the Japanese positions being illuminated as if it were daytime, greatly reducing the effectiveness of infrared flashlights.

"But Commander, the Japanese aren't falling for it anymore," Lin Yi reported. "They're holding their camp tight and aren't coming out at all. While our continued night raids might inflict some losses, they won't be as effective as before."

He felt that sending Long Wenzhang to cause trouble at this time would not be very effective.

"That's why I sent Long Wenzhang to sabotage them. Since the Japanese army didn't fall for it, he had to find another way. Although holding the camp was safe, it also meant being passively attacked. As long as we could disrupt their supplies and logistics, we would eventually force them out," Huang Zurong explained.

As he spoke, Huang Zurong pointed to several locations on the map, "Focus on attacking their supply lines and logistical facilities to force them to launch a preemptive strike."

"I understand." Lin Yi suddenly realized that this was indeed a good idea.

After all, feeding tens of thousands of people and feeding horses would certainly be a huge expense.

Soon after receiving the order, Long Wenzhang immediately set off with a company.

The personnel in this unit were all handpicked by Long Wenzhang. They may not be good at direct combat, but when it comes to guerrilla warfare and sabotage, they are absolutely top-notch.

Perhaps having learned from their previous mistake, the Japanese army dispersed their supply camps this time, instead of concentrating them all together as before. The advantage of doing so was, of course, to prevent them from being wiped out in one fell swoop.

Similarly, it will also disperse the guarding forces.

At this time, Long Wenzhang had already led his men to the vicinity of a Japanese supply line.

This simple road connects Lashio and Mandalay, and a large amount of supplies are transported there every day.

Therefore, the Japanese army set up multiple supply camps and patrol teams along the highway, but Long Wenzhang did not care.

"Split up, in groups of three," Long Wenzhang said in a low voice. "The first group will use mortars to bomb, the second group will lay landmines on the road, and the third group will ambush the pursuing enemy. Remember, hit and run, don't linger."

"yes!"

Before long, dozens of small teams dispersed, each searching for their own targets.

The first group located the position, then began calibrating the coordinates, and launched a barrage of artillery fire at the Japanese camp.

Explosions rang out at the Japanese supply camp.

The second group was on the road, laying pressure cooker landmines.

This time, the landmines were improved, consisting entirely of explosives and rusty iron nails, making them extremely powerful.

Especially with rusty nails, even if you're not killed by the explosion, if you get injured by a rusty nail and it's not disinfected and cleaned in time, the probability of dying later will greatly increase.

The third group's mission was the most dangerous; they had to ambush the pursuing Japanese troops, but fortunately, it was only relatively dangerous.

Because they have night vision equipment, ambushing them isn't too difficult.

Lieutenant General Renya Mutaguchi listened to the constant stream of battle reports at the division headquarters, his face growing increasingly grim.

"Three supply camps were attacked, resulting in the loss of several tons of supplies..." Mutaguchi gritted his teeth, "What exactly are these Chinese trying to do?"

"Division Commander, they're trying to cut off our supply lines," the staff officer reported. "If supplies continue to be disrupted, our troops at the front will soon face shortages."

Lieutenant General Renya Mutaguchi slammed his fist on the table: "Order each regiment to send additional guards to protect the supply camps!"

"But Division Commander, our guards are also under pressure..."

"Then bring supplies from the rear! No matter what it takes, we must protect the supply camp!" Lieutenant General Renya Mutaguchi roared.

He realized that the opponent's tactics were extremely insidious.

They confronted him head-on during the day and sabotaged him at night, especially their attacks on supplies, which gave him a major headache.

If this situation continues, the 18th Division will be dragged down sooner or later.

However, Huang Zurong's sabotage did not stop there. He continued to have Long Wenzhang lead his troops to attack the Japanese army's supply camps. They would hide in the dense forest after dawn and continue after dark, which caused the Japanese army a lot of trouble.

This is a war of attrition, a contest of endurance and logistics.

Once the Japanese army could not hold out, defeat awaited them.

Meanwhile, Stilwell, who was closely monitoring the situation in Lashio, was quite surprised to learn that the Japanese army had deployed a division but had not yet captured Lashio.

The American general in Imphali stared at the Lashio mark on the map, his brow furrowed.

It's unbelievable that the 18th Division, a main force of the Japanese army, with strong combat capabilities and excellent equipment, couldn't capture Lashio.

"Dai Anlan's 200th Division suffered heavy losses. The remaining defeated soldiers and a local militia stayed behind to defend Lashio. It seems that such a combination was able to hold off an attack by a Japanese division. There must be a lot we don't know about this," Stilwell muttered to himself.

He recalled the mention of "militia" in the telegram he had previously deciphered, which fueled his curiosity even more.

If this is truly an armed force, then their combat power is far too strong.

If they really do take them in?

Has one's voice on the battlefield in Myanmar become exceptionally important?

I suppose I no longer need to argue with the British army?

Thinking of this, Stilwell's eyes flickered.

"Send reconnaissance planes to Lashio," Stilwell ordered. "I want to see what's going on there."

The reconnaissance plane took off quickly and conducted a detailed reconnaissance of Lashio.

The pilots took a lot of photos, and Stilwell studied them carefully, his brow furrowing more and more.

The photos show that Lashio's defenses are exceptionally strong, with concrete fortifications, steel plate protection, trenches, and barbed wire.

More importantly, he discovered something strange—British-made cannons.

"Is that a British cannon?" Stilwell pointed to a "cannon" in the photo. "With such a large caliber, it must be quite powerful."

The intelligence officer beside him nodded: "Yes, General, these are indeed British-made cannons."

Upon hearing this, Stilwell fell into deep thought. Could he be a pawn of the British army?

Otherwise, why would it be a British-made cannon?

Or were they weapons captured from within the city?

As he pondered, he looked at another photograph.

The photos show that the Japanese positions also suffered heavy losses, with shell craters and corpses everywhere, clearly indicating that a fierce battle had taken place.

"A security regiment going toe-to-toe with a Japanese division is highly unusual," Stilwell muttered to himself. "Just what is the background of this security regiment?"

He began to peruse the reports sent by the intelligence department, but the information about Lashio was very limited.

All that was known was that the garrison was an armed force composed of overseas Chinese mechanics, and the commander was Huang Zurong, a young cart driver.

"Nanyang Overseas Chinese mechanics? Truck drivers?" Stilwell shook his head. "How could these people transporting supplies possibly know anything about fighting?"

But he did not ignore the facts.

The garrison at Lashio did indeed hold off an attack by a Japanese division, and even launched a night raid, inflicting heavy losses on the Japanese.

This unit's combat effectiveness is absolutely extraordinary.

"General, there's another situation," the intelligence officer reported. "We've deciphered a telegram from the Japanese 18th Division. Mutaguchi Renya has requested air support from headquarters; he wants to bomb Lashio."

Stilwell's eyes lit up, and Mutaguchi Renya's request for air support indicated that he was helpless against the Lashio garrison.

This means that the Lashio garrison is more powerful than expected.

"Interesting, very interesting," Stilwell laughed. "I'd like to see just how capable this security force really is."

He stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the distant sky.

The Lashio garrison gave him a pleasant surprise, which further confirmed his previous idea—that if he could subdue this force, it would greatly help his plans on the Burmese battlefield.

Stilwell was well aware that his position in the Burma campaign was awkward. Although he was nominally the Allied Chief of Staff, his actual power was limited, and he couldn't get involved in many things.

If one can control a powerful and effective force, it will increase his influence.

"Can we get in touch with the garrison in Lashio? I need to have a good talk with them," Stilwell ordered his adjutant.

"General, we can obtain their contact information by contacting the 200th Division, but have you set your sights on this militia?" The adjutant asked with some concern. "The Japanese are currently besieging Lashio, and they could be annihilated at any moment. Should we wait a little longer?"

"No need, go make contact. I doubt the Japanese will be able to wipe them out so easily," Stilwell insisted.

The adjutant was silent for a moment, then finally nodded: "Understood, I'll arrange it right away."

…………

Not long after, a telegram from Imphal was transmitted to the 200th Division headquarters via radio.

After the cipherman deciphered the message, he immediately delivered it to Dai Anlan.

Dai Anlan took the telegram and saw that the sender's name was "Stilwell," and a smile appeared on her face.

After reading the telegram, Dai Anlan handed it to Zheng Tingji, who was standing next to her.

"A telegram from General Stilwell."

Zheng Tingji took the telegram, quickly glanced through it, and looked pleasantly surprised: "General Stilwell is very concerned about the performance of our Lashio garrison."

Gao Jiren joined in, saying, "It seems word has spread that we're guarding Lashio; even the Allied Command has been alerted."

Dai Anlan nodded, a hint of pride flashing in her eyes: "General Stilwell has treated us quite well. The fact that he took the initiative to contact us shows that he is satisfied with our performance."

"But it says here that we need to contact Commander Huang? Division Commander, should we notify him?" Zheng Tingji asked.

"Of course we must notify them," Dai Anlan immediately ordered. "Have the communications officer deliver the telegram, and also inform General Stilwell of their radio call channel."

"Yes." Clearly, they were not opposed to the order, so they did not discuss it with Huang Zurong beforehand.

Soon, the communications soldier arrived at Huang Zurong's regimental headquarters with a telegram.

Huang Zurong took the telegram and was taken aback when he saw that the sender was Stilwell.

"Stilwell?" Huang Zurong asked, somewhat surprised. "Did he want to see me about something?"

He quickly glanced at the telegram, in which Stilwell expressed his appreciation for the performance of the Las Vegas garrison.

Huang Zurong scoffed at this, saying that verbal praise was not as effective as providing more weapons and equipment.

At worst, they could have provided a few aircraft, but unfortunately Mao didn't mention it.

At this moment, Lin Yi also came in with a telegram, saying it was sent to them by Stilwell.

Huang Zurong was even more puzzled. How did Stilwell know that?

However, considering the nature of this telegram, it must have been sent by the 200th Division.

Huang Zurong could only remain silent in response, and did not delve into the details.

This telegram, compared to the previous one, contained nothing but praise.

They also inquired about the organization and equipment of the troops.

More importantly, Stilwell mentioned at the end of the telegram that if the situation turned bad, he could retreat to Imphal, where his troops could be better equipped.

Huang Zurong narrowed his eyes. Stilwell's telegram, on the surface, was full of concern and praise, but in reality, it was an attempt to find out the details of this unit, and even an intention to incorporate it.

"Interesting." Huang Zurong smiled. "This American general seems quite interested in my troops."

"Commander, should we reply?" Lin Yi asked, puzzled.

Upon hearing this, Huang Zurong pondered for a moment and said to Lin Yi, "Reply to General Stilwell and thank him for his concern. Our current situation is acceptable, and we do not need to withdraw to Imphal for the time being. As for the troop organization, I can disclose that."

After all, the stronger one is, the greater one's value in united front work.

He can only make higher demands when others try to win him over.

"Yes," Lin Yi replied immediately.

Soon, Lin Yi drafted a telegram detailing the organization, equipment, and combat situation of the Lashio garrison.

The telegram also specifically emphasized that although this unit was nominally a security regiment, its combat effectiveness was no less than that of a regular army, and its morale was high and its coordination was excellent.

Finally, he thanked Stilwell for his concern and said that there was no need to evacuate to Imphal for the time being.

Imphal and Stilwell were in the command post, looking at the telegram sent by Huang Zurong, a hint of admiration flashing in their eyes.

"Security Regiment Organization: Nine infantry battalions, totaling five thousand men; Equipment: Three thousand British-made rifles, over one hundred light and heavy machine guns, over one hundred mortars, twelve British-made Wickes cannons, and various other weapons." Stilwell read the telegram. "All British-made weapons."

After saying this, Stilwell put down the telegram, walked to the map, and stared at the location of Lashio.

"A security force of five thousand men, and their commander is just a lowly car peddler. What is he trying to do?" Stilwell muttered to himself.