Anti-Japanese War: From Becoming Chu Yunfei to Rising

Japan, Tokyo.

The Prime Minister's official residence was now in complete chaos.

It wasn't because US B-29 bombers visited Tokyo again.

It was because of a "desperate report" from the 46th Division.

The Southern Army Headquarters had long been disbanded by Chu Yunfei, and the various units that originally belonged to the Southern Army had long been transferred to combat units directly under the headquarters.

Therefore.

Military and political officials at headquarters could directly receive reports from the front lines filled with despair.

Hideki Tojo sat in that leather chair that symbolized power, but at that moment he felt as if he were sitting on a red-hot iron plate.

Opposite him stood a row of dejected high-ranking officers from the Army and Navy.

"The speed at which Qiongzhou Island was lost far exceeded our expectations."

Hideki Tojo's voice was hoarse as he gripped the report tightly, his fingers turning white from the force: "You all know what this means, don't you?"

Navy Minister Shigetaro Shimada removed his glasses and wearily rubbed his temples: "If Qiongzhou Island is lost, Chinese and American bombers can directly occupy it!"

"Their operational radius will cover the entire South China Sea shipping lanes!"

"Those are the veins of the Brother Kingdom!"

"Petroleum, rubber, bauxite, rice."

"Without these, what would domestic factories use to produce?"

"What will the fleet use to set sail?"

"How will the people eat?!"

Tashiro's words were like a sharp blade, piercing the last vestige of illusory peace in the room.

All the military and political leaders fell silent.

They all knew this was a disaster, a disaster worse than losing a fleet, or even a field army.

Japan's nephew is being strangled, and he could suffocate at any moment.

"Can we take it back?"

A cabinet senator tentatively asked, "The Combined Fleet is short of fuel, but what if we fight to the death?"

"idiot!"

Shigetaro Shimada retorted without any politeness, "What are you taking?!"

"The American carrier strike group is still patrolling there!"

"There are not only Americans on there, but also that terrifying war general Chu Yunfei!"

"His Dingnan Army is now fully equipped with American weapons, including heavy artillery and tanks. Even the 46th Division, relying on permanent fortifications, couldn't hold out for half a month. Who should we send to land?"

"Are we sending those child soldiers who haven't even learned how to fire a gun to fill in the sea?!"

The name "Chu Yunfei" had long been a nightmare for the Japanese military and political leadership.

From a regimental commander in Shanxi to a "war commander" who commands respect across Asia.

He was like a grim reaper born specifically to destroy the Great Japanese Empire, stepping on the very lifeline of the empire with every step.

Hideki Tojo took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. He knew that now was not the time to panic.

"The situation in the south is beyond saving."

Hideki Tojo closed his eyes and made a difficult decision: "Order the Southern Army to use every possible means, including small boats and even submarines, to smuggle supplies into the mainland."

"Ship as much as you can."

"in addition……"

"Send a telegram to Commander Okamura Yasuji."

“Tell him that since Chu Yunfei is in command in the south, the commanders in North China must be incompetent.”

This is the last chance!

"Make him do whatever it takes to launch a counterattack in North China. Even if he can't defeat the Chinese army, he should disrupt their plans and buy them some time."

"As long as we can stall until we're ready for the final battle in the Philippines."

"Perhaps the Empire still has the right to come to the negotiating table."
-
Washington, White House, Oval Office.

President Roosevelt was sitting in a wheelchair, clutching a newly translated top-secret telegram tightly in his hand.

His face was filled with an almost childlike excitement, and his eyes, which held a deep smile, were now shining with a dazzling light.

"George!"

"Did you see that? Did you see that?"

Roosevelt waved the telegram in his hand, his voice trembling slightly with excitement: "Qiongzhou Island! We've taken Qiongzhou Island!"

"No, to be precise, it was Chu Yunfei, that war god of the East. He led our troops and captured the Japanese's throat in the South China Sea!"

Army Chief of Staff General Marshall stood before his desk, his delight barely concealed, yet he maintained the composure and restraint characteristic of a soldier: "Yes, Mr. President."

Marshall nodded, his tone steady: "This was a glorious victory."

"Not only militarily, but also strategically."

"The Japanese people's lifeline to the south has been completely cut off, and their hundreds of thousands of troops in Southeast Asia are now trapped like turtles in a jar."

"more importantly"

Marshall paused, a hint of admiration in his eyes: "This joint operation has proven the true strength of our Eastern ally."

"After receiving our equipment and fire support, their combat effectiveness completely exceeded our expectations."

"Even in such a difficult island-seizing and landing operation, given sufficient firepower support, their performance far exceeded our previous expectations."

"Bradley further stated in the report that the Dingnan Army's ability to attack fortified positions and its tactical skills are top-notch, even on the European battlefield. This means that we can rely on our Eastern allies for subsequent island-seizing and landing operations, which will further reduce the number of casualties among our lads."

"And all we need to do is contribute the resources we are supposed to contribute!"

"I knew it! I knew it!"

Roosevelt slammed his fist on the armrest of his wheelchair and laughed heartily: "My judgment was correct!"

"As it turns out, if you give this sleeping lion even the slightest spark, it can unleash a power that will shock the world!"

"Those British who are still advocating 'Europe first, Asia later' should shut up now. China's allies are performing much better than they have in Europe!"

Roosevelt turned his wheelchair to the giant globe and gently traced his finger across the Pacific Ocean: "Now, we have a real dagger in Asia."

"We can launch bombers from Qiongzhou Island and strike Taiwan, or even the Philippines, directly!"

"That megalomaniac MacArthur is still wallowing in the mud of New Guinea."

In his excitement, Roosevelt suddenly remembered something, grabbed the red telephone on the table: "I need to call John!"

"I want to tell him this good news myself!"

"Australia also deserves credit for this victory!"

"Mr President"

Marshall glanced at the wall clock and said with a hint of helplessness, "It's morning in Washington now, but it should be late at night in Australia."

"No, no, no, George, you've got the time difference wrong. They should be at ten o'clock."

Marshall rubbed his temples: "What I mean is, although it's ten o'clock in Australia now, as far as I know, Prime Minister Curtin hasn't been feeling well lately and has been recuperating."

"At this time, he is probably resting."

"As allies, shouldn't we..."

"rest?"

Roosevelt shook his head, a sly smile on his face: "No, George, you don't understand John."

"For people like us, nothing is more uplifting than news of victory."

"I'm sure he wasn't asleep!"

"He might even be waiting for my call!"

Without hesitation, Roosevelt dialed the number that was halfway around the world.

Canberra, the Prime Minister's residence in Australia.

Prime Minister Curtin was indeed unwell, but he was not resting as Marshall had guessed.

At this moment, he was sitting at his desk, his brow furrowed as he looked at a battle report from the front lines.

The fighting in New Guinea remains at a stalemate, with the Japanese resistance proving more stubborn than ever before, and young Australians still bleeding in the jungle.

"Jingle Bell--!"

The red dedicated phone on the table suddenly rang shrilly.

Curtin was startled and quickly grabbed the microphone.

"I am Curtin."

"John!"

"My old friend!"

Roosevelt's signature, magnetic, and energetic voice came through the microphone, and even across vast distances, one could feel the overwhelming joy emanating from him.

"Franklin?"

Curtin paused for a moment, then glanced at the clock on the wall: "My God, has something terrible happened?"

"event!"

"What a wonderful thing!"

Roosevelt's voice was high-pitched and impassioned: "We won! John! We won!"

"Qiongzhou Island! Just now, Stilwell sent an urgent telegram: Haikou has been liberated!"

"The Japanese garrison commander committed seppuku! The entire 46th Division was annihilated!"

"what?!"

Koting jumped up from his chair, his previously pale face flushing instantly: "Completely annihilated?! You mean the Japanese were driven into the sea? They retreated?"

"They didn't retreat; they were completely crushed!"

Roosevelt laughed loudly, "Well done, Shropshire!"

"Of course, the most exciting part is our Chinese ally."

"They were like a pack of tigers descending from the mountain, tearing the Japanese to shreds!"

"John, do you know what this means?"

Curtin took a deep breath, trying to calm his agitated emotions: "This means the Japanese nightmare has begun."

"Their southward advance has been cut off, and the pressure on us in the South Pacific will be greatly reduced!"

"That's right!"

Roosevelt exclaimed excitedly, "Moreover, we have proven to the world that we are capable of launching a counter-offensive not only in Europe, but also in Asia!"

"This is a victory for the unity of the Allied powers! It is a model of joint operations by the United States, China, and Australia!"

"John, tonight's a good night's drink!"

"Even if you're about to rest, you should still have a glass of champagne."

Curtin held the microphone, tears welling in his eyes.

As the Prime Minister of Australia, he is under tremendous pressure.

Japanese bombs once fell on Darwin, and the fear of national subjugation and annihilation has always loomed over this isolated country in the Southern Hemisphere.

Now, with the victory on Qiongzhou Island, a crack has finally been torn open in that gloom.

"Thank you, Franklin."

Curtin's voice choked with emotion: "Thank you for calling me at this time."

"You're right, I really didn't sleep, and I couldn't sleep."

"But now, I think I can get a good night's sleep tonight."

"Haha! That's good!"

Roosevelt laughed heartily: "Stay healthy, my friend."

"The road ahead is long, but I believe that as long as we stand together, nothing can stop us!"

"Victory will ultimately belong to us!"

"Victory will ultimately belong to us!" Curtin repeated emphatically. After hanging up the phone, he leaned back wearily in his chair, but a long-lost smile remained on his lips.

He rang the doorbell on the table.

The secretary pushed open the door and entered: "Mr. Prime Minister?"

"Go and get a bottle of wine."

Curtin pointed to the wine cabinet: "The best kind."

"Also, inform the cabinet members that an emergency meeting will be held in half an hour. I have good news to announce!"

"But, Mr. Prime Minister, it's already ten o'clock..."

A sly look appeared on Curtin's face as well: "So what if it's ten o'clock? I haven't rested either."

……

Washington, D.C., the White House.

Even after hanging up the phone, Roosevelt was still eager to continue the conversation.

He turned to look at Marshall, his eyes gleaming with an almost fanatical light: "George, you're right."

"Chu Yunfei, this Chinese man, has given us so many surprises."

"We must reassess the value of the China battlefield."

"Perhaps we can resolve the conflict in Asia without waiting for Germany to surrender."

Marshall nodded slightly: "Mr. President, General Stilwell also mentioned in the telegram that Chu Yunfei is planning a major counter-offensive in North China."

"If he could receive more support, perhaps he could drive the Japanese out of the mainland."

"give him!"

"Give it all to him!"

Roosevelt waved his hand and declared with great confidence: "Whether it's tanks, airplanes, or artillery!"

"As long as he can win the battle, as long as he can help us reduce the casualties of our American lads, I'm willing to be his logistics minister!"

"in addition."

Roosevelt narrowed his eyes and tapped his fingers lightly on the table: "I think we can be more specific about that 'four policemen' idea."

"Only a country that can win battles and has a strategic vision is qualified to sit at the same table with us and jointly manage the world."

"George, I want to give Chang Ruiyuan and that Commander Chu a lot of face at the Cairo Conference!"

Qiongzhou Island, outside Haikou, a temporary prisoner-of-war camp.

Thousands of Japanese prisoners of war sat dejectedly on the open ground surrounded by barbed wire, their eyes vacant and numb.

The Battle of Qiongzhou was the battle in which the most prisoners of war were captured since the outbreak of the War of Resistance against Japan.

Most of these prisoners of war were dressed in rags, and some had blood-soaked bandages wrapped around their bodies.
A corner of the prisoner-of-war camp.

A young man wearing glasses and a Zhongshan suit sat at a simple wooden table.

He was a special correspondent for the North China Daily who was embedded with the army. His name was Fang Zhe.

Opposite him sat a Japanese soldier who looked to be in his forties, named Tanaka Nobuo.

Nobuo Tanaka's hands were rough and cracked, with black dirt stuck under his fingernails. He didn't look like a soldier with a gun at all, but rather like a laborer who had been working all year round.

"Mr. Tanaka, don't be nervous, have some water."

Fang Zhe spoke in fluent Japanese, pushing an enamel mug over.

Tanaka Nobuo held the cup with trembling hands, took a sip of water, and the warm liquid flowed down his throat, seemingly calming his terrified heart a little.

Fang Zhe asked softly, his pen hovering over the notebook, "Can you tell me how you got here?"

Upon hearing this question, an overwhelming sadness suddenly welled up on Nobuo Tanaka's previously numb face.

His eyes instantly reddened, and large tears rolled down his cheeks, dripping onto his dusty military trousers.

"I was originally a worker in a textile factory in Tokyo's downtown area."

Tanaka Nobuo choked up, his voice hoarse: "I was captured, I really was captured!"

Fang Zhe's eyes narrowed, and he quickly took notes: "Please explain in detail."

"The factory stopped production a long time ago because it ran out of raw materials."

Nobuo Tanaka recalled painfully those dark and hopeless days: "I had no job and could only do odd jobs here and there. I was barely able to get enough to eat with the meager rice rations from the government every day."

"My family was so poor we couldn't even afford to eat."

“My eldest son has already served His Majesty the Heavenly Locust on the battlefield.”

At this point, Nobuo Tanaka's body trembled violently, and tears streamed down his face like a burst dam: "But that damned Tojo cabinet only gave us a tiny bit of meager compensation!"

"This money isn't even enough to buy a few decent bags of rice!"

"That day, the conscription officer rushed into my house with a red paper in his hand, saying that I was being forced to enlist in accordance with some National Mobilization Act!"

Tanaka Nobuo clutched his head in anguish, as if he were back in that nightmarish afternoon: "I told him I'm too old and I have severe rheumatism, so I can't hold a gun at all."

"But they wouldn't listen! They said it was an honor to be loyal to the Locust King!"

"I do not want to go."

"My eldest son is dead!"

"Only my wife Chiyo, my six-year-old daughter Hanako, and I are left at home."

"If I leave, how will these orphans and widows survive?"

"That little bit of compensation money has long been spent!"

Fang Zhe's hand trembled slightly, but he did not interrupt, and simply listened quietly.

“I knelt on the ground and begged them to spare this cripple.”

Tanaka Nobuo lifted the messy hair from his forehead, revealing a hideous scar: "But that military policeman!"

"That beastly military policeman smashed my head with the butt of his rifle!"

"I fainted on the spot."

"When I woke up, I was already in the hold of a troop transport ship bound for China."

"I didn't even have a chance to say goodbye to Chiyo and Hanako one last time."

Nobuo Tanaka covered his face and wept bitterly, his desperate cries sounding like the howl of a wounded wild beast.

"I could still hear Hanako chasing after the car, crying and calling 'Daddy'."

"That voice keeps echoing in my head every night, and I just can't get rid of it!"

"Sir, please tell me, why is this happening?"

"My son has already died for that so-called locust, why force this old man to come and die as well?"

Why did they completely destroy my home?!

Looking at the distraught man before him, Fang Zhe felt a complex mix of emotions welling up inside him.

Is it hatred?

Of course there are.

But there was also a hint of sympathy.

Just like the Xinhua News Agency editorial, Japanese militarism, this meat grinder, is not only crushing the Chinese people, but also their own people.

Two days later, a sharp and emotionally charged editorial was published on the front page of the North China Daily.

At the same time, it was also broadcast on the radio throughout the entire rear area.

The title is strikingly similar: "When Orphans and Widows Weep Blood, the End of a War-Conquering Journey—A Veteran Japanese Prisoner's Accusation"

The article begins by stating:

"He is also a son, he is also a father."

"Nobuo Tanaka, a textile worker in Tokyo, was a hardworking and honest citizen, but his factory closed down and he struggled to make a living."

"Although his eldest son has died for his country and his soul perished in a foreign land, the so-called 'compensation' is nothing more than a drop in the ocean and cannot alleviate the hunger and cold of the family."

"Only his widow and young daughter remained at home, weeping day and night, their eyes filled with longing."

"Although the Japanese invaders were fierce, their manpower was exhausted and their national strength was depleted."

"Today, they even use gun butts to force the elderly and weak to fight, and even go so far as to break up families that have lost their only child. Their cruelty and inhumanity are not only directed at our fellow Chinese, but also at their own citizens. It is a ruthless and inhumane act of exploiting them to the bone!"

"The so-called 'holy war' was in reality a manifestation of the selfish desires of the Japanese militarists."

"The so-called 'royal ambitions and hegemony' are nothing but the blood and tears graveyard of millions of families."

"Tanaka's tears are not just the tears of one person, but a harbinger of the collapse of the hearts and minds of millions of Japanese people."

"At this juncture, our army should prioritize winning hearts and minds, making the enemy understand that resistance will lead to certain death, while surrender offers a chance of survival; the warlords are despicable, but what have the common people done wrong?"

This article caused a huge sensation as soon as it was published.

It not only revealed the truth about the depletion of manpower in the Japanese army.

It dealt a more precise blow to the morale of the Japanese army and, from a human perspective, stripped away the "sacred cloak" of Japanese militarism.

Haikou, the forward command post.

Chu Yunfei held the newspaper in his hand and carefully read the editorial.

His gaze lingered on the name "Tanaka Nobuo" for a long time before he slowly put down the newspaper, a cold and profound smile playing on his lips.

When the Japanese are having a smooth and successful time, there's no point in publishing editorials like these.

Because the Japanese don't care; they are constantly winning, so why would they care about the words of the losers?
Now, they have fallen into a complete disadvantage.

This gave them the time and patience to think seriously about this damned war.

"A good article."

Chu Yunfei exclaimed in admiration, then looked at Li Jingzhong beside him: "This is not just a news report, but a cannonball, a cannonball that hits the heart of the Japanese people."

Li Jingzhong tentatively asked, "What does Your Excellency mean?"

Chu Yunfei stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the gloomy sky to the north: "The Japanese are just putting up a brave fight right now."

"Hideki Tojo wanted to use the slogan 'One hundred million people die for the Emperor' to hold the entire nation hostage, making these ordinary people die with the military and political leaders."

"But people's hearts cannot be completely united."

“There are countless people like Nobuo Tanaka in Japan.”

"Their husbands and sons were forcibly conscripted into the army, and their fate is unknown."

"Their food rations were all taken away, and they were starving and freezing."

"If they knew what the real situation was like on the front lines, if they knew how their loved ones were being treated, and how meaningless their sacrifices were."

Chu Yunfei suddenly turned around, his eyes gleaming with wisdom: "By doing this, we're essentially setting fire to Hideki Tojo's backside!"

"Jingzhong, prepare a telegram!"

Chu Yunfei's voice became decisive and forceful: "Send a telegram to General Stilwell and General Chennault, and report to the General Headquarters, requesting that it be discussed at a meeting immediately."

"We request the assistance of the U.S. 14th Air Force and the long-range bomber force soon to be deployed in China to carry out a special mission."

Li Jingzhong asked, "Bombing?"

"No, it's dropping bombs."

Chu Yunfei pointed to the newspaper on the table: "Throw 'paper bombs'!"

"Translate this article into Japanese and print it into tens of thousands of leaflets."

"We also need to attach photos of our humane treatment of prisoners of war, as well as letters from Nobuo Tanaka to his family."

"Spread it all over mainland Japan!"

"Spread it across Kyushu, spread it across Shikoku, spread it across Honshu! Even spread it to the Imperial Palace in Tokyo!"

"I want every Japanese person to see this!"

"I want to tell them: as long as you lay down your weapons, you can live; as long as you hand over the war criminals, you can go home!"

"I will use these scraps of paper to break their morale and tear their lies apart!"

"Yes!"

Li Jingzhong loudly accepted the order, his eyes filled with admiration.

Attacking cities is inferior to winning hearts and minds; Commander Chu's move is far more brilliant than any bombing campaign! (End of Chapter)