American Strategic Deception Bureau

　Compared to the electoral system, local autonomy is the true essence of American politics! It's about piecing together a country at the lowest cost!

　Why doesn't the United States replicate a bunch of federations everywhere? This isn't a step backward in history, but a pragmatic approach.

　Although many history books praise those monarchs who reformed the system of native peoples and achieved centralization of power as "brave talents and great strategies" and so on.

　But the problem is that when conditions are not fully mature, forcing centralization in a short period of time will basically lead to disaster.

　How big your appetite is, how much you can eat. If the ruler is too ambitious and wants to eat a lot,

　The only outcome is that you will die of starvation.

　For the United States, whose political skills are still immature, South Vietnam is still too big. It will be easier to control if it is divided into several smaller countries!

　Thus, according to the blueprint that Firi had casually sketched out, from the wreckage of the South Vietnamese regime, three reborn nation-states and religious states would emerge, relying on their stronger cohesion to compete with the ideologically empowered Vietcong.

　Of course, before that, as the commander-in-chief of the US forces in Vietnam, he had to try his best to defend Hai Van Ridge and prevent the North Vietnamese regular army from moving south in large numbers.

　Otherwise, all of Paradox's blueprints would be shattered by the tracks of North Vietnamese T-34 tanks...

　Author's words: PS: In Vietnam, people with the surname Nguyen account for 40% of the total population, while people with the surname Zunshi are much rarer, and generally speaking, they are descendants of the royal family's side branches.

　After all, the surname Zunshi was not created until the 19th century.

　Meanwhile, the fictional Japanese strategy game "Shogun" has already been released. Strangely, the distribution of the "Five Elders" seems a bit odd after the remake. With the exception of Yoshii Toranosuke (Tokugawa Ieyasu), who is located in Kanto, the remaining figures, such as Ishida Mitsunari, Maeda Toshiie, and Otani Yoshitsugu and Konishi Yukinaga, have all been relocated to Kyushu. The Mori, Uesugi, Shimazu, and Date families have been mysteriously relocated.

　I always feel that the distribution of powerful vassals is too uneven. Two powerful families divide the nine provinces equally and also control the central government. What's the big deal about this?

　Chapter 237: Persisting until the rainy season is victory!

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　May 5, 1963, Hai Van Ling, Da Nang, Vietnam

　The leaden clouds are low-pressure, water vapor is evaporating, and under the gloomy sky, the weather in the tropical jungle is hot and humid, emitting a faint stench.

　The sporadic sounds of gunfire in the vast mountains and forests, as well as the increasingly brutal scout and outpost battles, seemed to be foreshadowing the coming of a bloody battle.

　In the front-line command post at Haiyun Pass, General Wang Bao paced back and forth anxiously, looking back at the map on the table from time to time.

　In order to facilitate unified command, most of the infantry currently deployed on the Haiyunling defense line are Miao soldiers he transported from Laos by plane.

　Although these Miao soldiers under General Wang Bao only received three days of intensive training, they subsequently learned a lot about warfare. Those who failed to meet the requirements had already died or were disabled. The remaining ones were lucky ones with great luck and hardcore warriors with strong survival ability.

　The former South Vietnamese army under General Zun Shiding, now the Quang Nam government army, had only dispatched two artillery battalions. Under the guidance of US military advisors, they provided fire support for the Miao troops on the front lines. Meanwhile, the US Army had also airlifted in an artillery company, which had just entered its position today.

　In addition, on the Haiyunling defense line, there was a battalion of US Marines urgently transported from the Philippines, a battalion of US airborne troops from Okinawa, and hundreds of remaining US troops gathered from the Saigon area and the Mekong Delta. They were temporarily organized into a "battalion-level battle group" and placed behind the front-line positions as a reserve force for mobile filling gaps.

　The total strength of the three-nation coalition was about 4,500 people, only half a division, but they had to face a fierce attack from five North Vietnamese divisions with 40,000 troops.

　(North Vietnam's divisions were very small, with a skeleton division of only 2,000 to 3,000 men, a second-line division of 5,000 to 6,000 men, and a main division of only 7,000 to 8,000 men.)

　——It’s almost one against ten!

　Even though the coalition forces defending Haiyunling enjoyed the renowned natural terrain, had spent nearly half a month urgently excavating and building defensive fortifications, and had superior firepower support from the sea and air, facing such a disparity in numbers still made General Wang Bao feel extremely nervous.

　In particular, according to aerial reconnaissance, despite being frequently bombed and strafed by US aircraft, the North Vietnamese regular army units still marched southward from Hue and successively entered the attack positions at the foot of Hai Van Ridge. It seemed that the general offensive was imminent and an overwhelming offensive was about to be launched!

　However, the commander of the US forces in Vietnam, Fili, who was also sitting in the Haiyunguan Fortress Command Center, had a very calm expression and even closed his eyes and dozed off.

　This is not because Firi is so confident about this battle - on the contrary, due to his lack of practical experience, he is very guilty at the moment.

　Although Firi had served as the commander of the Cuban offensive, there was no longer any war to fight in Cuba at that time, and it was purely a matter of negotiation to conclude the campaign.

　Now he suddenly had to take over a group of rabble-rousing people in Vietnam and resist the North Vietnamese army. It was impossible to say that he was not panicking.

　The reason why he now behaves so calmly and calmly, and seems to have "the style of a great general", is because Firi feels that he has done everything he can, used the military resources at hand as effectively as possible, and fully listened to everyone's opinions to avoid various mistakes as much as possible.

　As for the rest, it was beyond his knowledge and ability, and he could only "do his best and leave the rest to fate"...

　Moreover, in Fili's view, the upcoming battle at Haiyunling, although seemingly outnumbered, still had a good chance of victory for the defenders.

　First, behind the Haiyunling defense line, General Zun Shiding fully mobilized the Catholic militia in the Da Nang area, and with the American air support

　The weapons formed an iron wall to intercept the Viet Cong guerrillas infiltrating from the west and prevent the defense line from being attacked from both sides.

　At the same time, the defenders of Hai Van Ridge relied on the Da Nang airport, 20 kilometers away, for a constant flow of air transport. With the deepwater port of Da Nang, they could readily access vast quantities of logistical supplies. Whether it was ammunition, food, medicine, fuel, or weapons, the defenders of Hai Van Ridge were never short of supplies.

　Rifles and pistols were urgently airlifted to Da Nang from US military bases across Asia, to the point where each soldier was issued ten guns!

　In addition, the United States officially announced its deployment of troops to Vietnam on May 3rd, with Australia and South Korea immediately responding and expressing their willingness to follow suit. Reinforcements from South Korea, Thailand, the Philippines, Taiwan, Okinawa, and even the United States were now on their way to the Vietnam battlefield.

　Even the next commander of US forces in Vietnam, General William Westmoreland, had already flown to Naha, Okinawa.

　According to Admiral William Westmoreland's plan, he will take the 25th Infantry Division from Hawaii and the fleet to Da Nang to take office next week.

　If Da Nang had fallen by then, he would lead his troops ashore and seize a bridgehead anywhere on the South Vietnamese coastline!

　——The reason why General Westmoreland was unwilling to fly directly to Da Nang and take over the baton from Ferry was that there were not many American troops on the battlefield in Vietnam at the moment. He did not want to come to Vietnam as a lone commander, and he did not want to take the blame for the defeat that might be caused by the lack of troops.

　Therefore, General Westmoreland insisted on bringing a division to Vietnam so that he would have soldiers in hand and feel more confident.

　Firi also agreed with this view. He did not believe that the Viet Cong, who had entered Saigon more than ten years in advance, could withstand the furious iron fist of the US imperial army. Since World War II, which small third world country was able to destroy and defeat the main force of the US military in a head-on decisive battle?

　Those countries that were able to defeat the US military and win freedom did so by relying on guerrilla warfare and terrorist attacks to slowly wear down the US military.

　But if you want to fight a guerrilla war, the prerequisite is to give up the cities and land and let the US troops in, so that there will be room for guerrilla warfare!

　If the Viet Cong still wanted to "keep the enemy out of the country", then how should they conduct guerrilla warfare?

　The result of forcing a head-on confrontation would be to be beaten to pieces by the US military's "rain of burning steel".

　Perhaps, the US military in this dimension will also slowly fall into the quagmire in Vietnam, and may even fail - but definitely not this year!

　-

　In addition, after hearing about Filley's plan to create a bunch of bizarre small countries on the ruins of South Vietnam, General Westmoreland sent a telegram to Filley to complain that he had just been appointed as the successor commander of the US forces in Vietnam, and the Republic of Vietnam was destroyed, making his title a bit unworthy.

　Ferry politely replied by telegram, "It's okay, General Westmoreland. When the 27-year-old Napoleon was the commander of the Italian Army and led his troops across the Alps, there was no country called "Italy" on the map of Europe!"

　Just treat the future "Vietnam" like medieval Italy. Just a "geographical name" and so on...

　——This was equivalent to complimenting General Westmoreland as the second Napoleon who was about to become famous all over the world, which made the general very happy.

　In addition to the 25th Infantry Division brought by General Westmoreland from Hawaii, there is also the famous 101st Airborne Division, the Big Red 1st Division of the US Army, and the 1st Marine Division reorganized after the Battle of Cuba, all of which are now on their way to Vietnam from all over the world to participate in the war.

　Although it was impossible for these reinforcements to open the portal and appear directly at Haiyunling, the mere knowledge of such a large number of reinforcements and the understanding that they had not been abandoned was enough to boost the morale of the more than 4,000 coalition officers and soldiers at Haiyunling, and their combat effectiveness soared.

　As we all know, the worst thing about a defensive battle is to hold on to the bitter end. A defensive battle without any hope will not last long.

　But as long as there is still a glimmer of hope and the defenders have enough confidence, the defensive battle will be much easier.

　In addition to having no worries in the rear, ample supplies, and reinforcements in sight, the combat style of this battle also gave Firi more confidence.

　—It wasn't a search and sweep, nor was it a field assault. Instead, the coalition forces sat on the defensive line, waiting for the enemy to rush over in waves and die...

　This "building strong camps and fighting stupid battles" strategy, which is similar to the trench warfare on the Western Front in World War I, happens to be a combat mode that the US military is very familiar with and adept at. It is especially beneficial for the US military to fully utilize its firepower advantage, while making it difficult for the opponent's various fancy tactics to be implemented.

　At Henderson Field on Guadalcanal, the U.S. Marines left the Japanese 17th Army hanging in large numbers on the barbed wire at the edge of the airport.

　Next, on the 38th parallel in Korea, both China and the United States built layers of tunnel fortifications comparable to the Maginot Line, making it impossible for either side to advance: the US military could not take Shangganling even after running out of artillery shells, and the Volunteer Army was also unable to continue attacking even a few kilometers to the south.

　Later, most modern wars depicted in Hollywood movies were about leisurely American soldiers guarding their bases, pretending to be ready to be beaten, while resisting N times the number of "terrorists" who were howling and charging at them from all directions... This has almost become a ingrained idea.

　Of course, this is also due to the fact that there are no cheap drones at present. Otherwise, the US military will go from "defending" to "defending to death" in the base.

　of.

　Now, Firi felt that he was sitting on the steep Hai Van Ridge. Although the trenches he had dug in a hurry were not very strong, the enemy had no heavy firepower - the North Vietnamese tanks certainly could not drive up the mountain, and the heavy artillery could be pulled up the mountain by manpower, but with the current short preparation time, they had no time at all.

　On the Haiyunling defense line, there are Miao soldiers who are good at mountain combat and a small number of regular American troops as a trump card. Above their heads are B-52 bombers of the Strategic Air Force and A-1 "Skyraider" attack aircraft of the Tactical Air Force, which are ready to provide air fire support and intelligence reconnaissance for this not-so-long defense line at any time.

　Although the enemy had five divisions, they were unable to launch a simultaneous attack due to the rugged and steep terrain, making it difficult to fully utilize their superior numbers...

　If he still can't win this kind of battle, then the troops around him are probably all made of tofu!

　Of course, despite all the favorable conditions mentioned above, the huge disparity in enemy and our military strength remains a fact.

　Therefore, over the past few days, Firi could be said to have been working diligently. He patrolled the mountains every day, urging the soldiers to strengthen fortifications, dig more trenches and tunnels, lay more mines—especially directional mines, repeatedly measure the range of artillery, and organize live-fire test firings...

　And let the tactical air force continue to destroy roads north of Haiyunling, destroy bridges, blow up trucks, and cause trouble for the enemy's logistical transportation.

　In short, he has done everything he can think of and do very seriously, and the rest is up to fate.

　However, seeing General Wang Bao looking so stressed, Fili decided to offer some soothing words to calm him down before the full-scale battle even began. So, through Major Bill Lyle's translator, he said to Wang Bao, "General Wang Bao, I heard you fought with the French at the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, correct?"

　At Phi's question, Vang Pao nodded and spoke briefly in French, explaining that he was still a lieutenant at the time and that it was the biggest battle he had ever witnessed. Aircraft that blacked out the sky crashed into the mountains, and the artillery shells erupted like volcanoes, shocking the people. It was a pity that the villagers were deceived by the Viet Cong and failed to make the right judgment. Otherwise, they could have established an independent country with Dien Bien Phu as its capital.

　While the Kinh people of Vietnam believe this is a just anti-colonial war, the Hmong and Tai peoples might have a different view: "You, the Kinh people of Vietnam, want independence and freedom, so why are you coming to our land to protest colonialism? You are the real colonizers, aren't you?"

　In that battle that shocked the world, all the local Dai people stood on the side of the French and were brutally purged by the North Vietnamese afterwards.

　The Hmong in the Dien Bien Phu area were divided at the time, with some supporting the French and some supporting the Vietcong. In the end, the Hmong who supported the Vietcong prevailed, assisted the Vietnamese army in transporting supplies and won the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, while the Hmong who supported the French were forced to retreat to Laos.

　However, due to North Vietnam's extremely harsh land reform policy, many ethnic minority tribes that were once loyal to Ho Chi Minh subsequently rebelled. Today, they are still in the northwestern mountainous areas of North Vietnam, fighting against the Hanoi authorities' suppression teams!

　"Indeed, the French expeditionary force fought bravely in that battle, and General Wang Bao and your compatriots were also very tenacious."

　Firi nodded and said, "However, according to intelligence we later obtained, the Viet Cong troops besieging Dien Bien Phu were actually in great difficulty. Logistics were constantly lagging behind, food and medicine were in short supply, and epidemics were rampant. They had to rely on competing with the French for airdropped supplies to barely get enough to eat."

　The fighting continued until late April, with many North Vietnamese troops on the verge of mutiny. Finally, after much persuasion from Vo Nguyen Giap, they agreed to a ceasefire and retreat by May 10, the beginning of Vietnam's rainy season. If Dien Bien Phu had not been taken by then, they would withdraw.

　But unfortunately, the French army only held out in Dien Bien Phu until May 7, 1954. In other words, if the French army could hold out for three more days on the Dien Bien Phu battlefield, the subsequent development of the war might have been very different..."

　He sighed and pointed at the calendar hanging on the wall, "This principle is still the same today, General!

　Today is May 5, 1963. In five days, Vietnam's rainy season will arrive! As long as we hold on to Hai Van Ridge until the rainy season, victory will surely be ours! I believe that with the bravery and fighting spirit of your soldiers, holding out here until May 10 shouldn't be too difficult, right?

　——Of course, things are not as simple as Fili said. He was just saying some optimistic words to encourage Wang Bao.

　On the battlefields of Vietnam, the dry season is indeed the only combat season, while the rainy season has been the default truce since ancient times. However, in Vietnam, during the first few weeks of the rainy season each year, combat can still be carried out, but it will be extremely disadvantageous to the attacking side.

　Therefore, if Firi was determined to stay put, he would probably have to hold out until early June to ensure that the North Vietnamese were forced to withdraw.

　However, the subsequent war would have nothing to do with Philippe. He would likely only serve as commander of US forces in Vietnam until next week. Furthermore, after leaving office, he would likely not be allowed to remain in Da Nang. He had already been replaced by someone else as military advisor to General Son Seong-dim.

　For Firi, as long as he can hold out until the rainy season, his war will be won.

　Next came General Westmoreland's war.

　Of course, to ensure that nothing could go wrong, Ferry thought for a moment and called in radio operator Wolfe Lee, instructing him to contact the USS Coral Sea and USS Oriskany carrier battle groups in the nearby waters and request the naval aviation to launch several more fire strikes against the North Vietnamese army...

　Author's words: PS: During the feudal dynasty, Vietnam's territory was a thin line distributed along the coastline, similar to Chile. The narrowest part of the actually controlled territory was only ten kilometers. A little away from the coastline and into the mountains, it was the territory of the barbaric chieftains.

　Therefore, most of the inland parts of modern Vietnam were conquered by French colonists with the help of the Vietnamese.

　Just like India was unified with the help of the British.

　For example, the famous Dien Bien Phu was not part of Vietnam's territory until Vietnam became a colony.

　For the indigenous people of Southeast Asia, the Vietnamese going to Dien Bien Phu to resist the French was a bit like the Chinese going to Bombay to resist the British landing.

　Chapter 238: Fighting at Haiyun Ridge

　"Buzzing—"

　The A-1 Skyraider attack aircraft flew over the forest, almost brushing the treetops and passing over the heads of the North Vietnamese soldiers.

　The roar of the piston engine driving the propeller made them all lie down in the grass subconsciously in an instant. An officer shouted sternly: "Hide! Hide! Disperse and hide! Don't gather together!"

　According to textbooks, the air force had entered the jet age. But for the North Vietnamese Army and the Viet Cong guerrillas in the South, the Skyraider, a propeller plane developed at the end of World War II and seemingly outdated, was the god of death that ruled the skies over the tropical jungle.

　Since May, hundreds of Skyraider attack aircraft have been hovering and flying over the North Vietnamese army every day, dropping the napalm incendiary bombs they carry, which have set off seas of fire, baking green grass into ashes and turning trees into burning torches.

　The shattering sparks flew up with the hot air flow, spreading the fire in all directions and igniting any living and dead objects on the ground.

　Then, the hateful Americans would continue to use the machine guns on the planes to crazily shoot at the North Vietnamese soldiers who escaped from the sea of ​​fire.

　Although the North Vietnamese army would fight back with heavy machine guns and anti-aircraft guns, the firepower of machine guns was too weak and the anti-aircraft guns were too heavy to move quickly in the rugged mountains without ready roads, making it difficult to provide them with anti-aircraft fire cover at any time.

　As for the shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missile? Even the Americans don't have such high-tech weapons yet!

　——The world's first practical "Red Eye" man-portable shoulder-fired air defense missile was not successfully developed until 1964.

　In addition, the North Vietnamese army could not rely on its own fighter jets to fight with US aircraft in the sky and defend its airspace.

　Because, Uncle Ho Chi Minh really doesn’t even have a fighter plane in his hands now!

　——At the beginning of 1964, although Vietnam had nominally established an air force, it did not have any fighter jets capable of carrying out combat missions. It only had about 20 trainer aircraft and 50 transport aircraft to carry out some domestic air transport and airdrop missions.

　In addition, Uncle Ho Chi Minh currently does not have advanced equipment such as the "Sam" air defense missile equipped with a radar vehicle.

　Therefore, from the beginning of the war, the main force of the North Vietnamese regular army that moved south to the Hue Plain has been in a state of unilaterally bearing air strikes.

　Although they could occasionally shoot down a few enemy planes with anti-aircraft guns and anti-aircraft machine guns, the loss of air superiority and the passive situation of being attacked could not be reversed.

　Even the territory north of 17 degrees north latitude was bombed from time to time, not to mention the North Vietnamese troops moving south.