Anti-Japanese War: From Becoming Chu Yunfei to Rising

Luxi, Jinan, Provincial Government Building.

This magnificent antique-style building has just been ravaged by war, and traces of smoke and fire still remain on its walls.

The air was still filled with that distinctive, pungent smell, a mixture of gunpowder and lime.

While the engineers were urgently repairing it, trucks loaded with documents, radios, and communication equipment were parked in the square, and staff officers wearing "Joint Command" armbands were going in and out.

Despite being busy, everyone's face was beaming with undisguised joy.

Inside the operations hall on the second floor, a huge military map occupied an entire wall.

Chu Yunfei stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed intently on the Jiaoji Railway, the railway artery that traverses the Shandong Peninsula, on the map.

"Your Excellency."

Fang Ligong held a baton in his hand, pointing to the azure bay at the eastern end of the map, his tone revealing an urgent excitement: "Now that Jinan is in our hands and the main force of the 12th Army has been completely wiped out, a huge vacuum has appeared in the Japanese defense system in Shandong."

"I suggest that the main force should immediately advance eastward, even if it means a forced march, to take Qingdao in one fell swoop!"

Fang Ligong pushed up his glasses, his eyes gleaming with longing for American aid supplies: "As long as we take Qingdao Port, according to the Quebec Conference's Joint Communiqué, the Americans' 10,000-ton Liberty ships can land directly with tanks, heavy artillery, and complete sets of industrial equipment!"

"We no longer need to worry about the long logistics line, nor do we need to rely on that long Burma Road!"

In Fang Ligong's view, having a deep-water port means that the North China Theater will be directly connected to the Allied forces' maritime supply lines, which is a strategic qualitative change.

“Brother Ligong, I understand your feelings, but you’ve oversimplified things.”

Chu Yunfei shook his head slightly, not letting victory go to his head.

He walked to the map and gently tapped the Bohai Sea, Yellow Sea, and East China Sea areas with his finger, drawing a large circle.

"You forgot, although we beat the Japanese devils to a pulp on land, the Japanese Navy's Rising Sun Flag is still flying over this sea."

Chu Yunfei's voice was calm and rational, like a bucket of cold water poured on Fang Ligong's hot head: "Although the Combined Fleet suffered losses at Midway and Guadalcanal, they are still the undisputed hegemon in China's coastal waters."

"Although our air force can gain local air superiority, it is still unable to provide long-term, long-range cover for merchant convoys."

"We can't count on Qingdao Port receiving US aid right now. After all, the Japanese Navy's submarine and destroyer blockade is not just for show. The US transport fleet may be safe on the open ocean, but once it enters the Yellow Sea, it's a sitting duck."

"Even if they get in, Qingdao Port will be under the fire of Japanese naval guns and could turn into a sea of ​​fire at any time."

Chu Yunfei's words shocked everyone.

Those with limited strategic vision were unaware that the Japanese Navy possessed such strength!
It is perfectly normal for them to make wrong judgments.

Fang Ligong frowned deeply: "Then what is the strategic significance of our eastward advance?"

Chu Yunfei's voice suddenly rose: "Okamura Yasuji has been carrying out the 'Strengthening Public Security Campaign' for so many years, and has raised 200,000 locust guerrillas in this province, claiming to be a million strong!"

“In the past, when the Japanese were powerful, these opportunists followed them and acted as their accomplices, oppressing the people. They thought that this was fate and destiny.”

"now what?"

"The Japanese army's momentum has been lost, and Jinan has been liberated."

"These hundreds of thousands of puppet troops, armed with guns, familiar with the terrain, and even controlling a large number of counties and strongholds, are the biggest piece of meat in front of us, and also the biggest variable in the current Shandong war situation!"

"If we launch a direct assault, they might be forced to fight us to the death in order to survive, which would result in many unnecessary sacrifices for us."

"But if we give them a chance to live..."

"Your Excellency, do you mean differentiation, education, and labor reform?"

Chu Yunfei smiled and nodded: "Kill those who should be killed, arrest those who should be arrested, and give those who should be given a chance."

"Give me the order!"

"Send a telegram to all puppet troops throughout Shandong and even the entire North China region!"

"Give them only three days!"

"Those who kill Japanese soldiers and protect supplies within three days will be forgiven for minor mistakes, while major mistakes will be dealt with according to the circumstances. Those who make great contributions will be rewarded and given reorganization and pensions."

"Three days later, wherever the army goes, anyone still flying the five-colored flag and carrying a gun will be considered a traitor and killed without exception!"

"Yes!"

Chu Yunfei paused for a moment, then continued, "Make a detailed record of this propaganda and political offensive and send it to the General Headquarters for notification."

"it is good."

……

at the same time.

On the ground, episode 88, Li Yannian's episode 34.

Like two sharp iron plows, they launched an overwhelming eastward advance along the Jiaoji Railway and the highways on both sides.

Zichuan County, in central Shandong.

This is an important coal-producing area in Shandong, where the Third Division of the puppet "Shandong Autonomous Army" was stationed, and its commander was Ma Degui.

This man was originally a bandit, but was later recruited by the Japanese army. He was a notorious cunning and ruthless character.

The atmosphere in the division headquarters compound was extremely eerie.

The puppet army officers, who were usually so arrogant and domineering, were now looking like wilted eggplants, huddled in the courtyard whispering among themselves, their eyes constantly drifting toward the tightly closed gate.

"Baka! Masan!"

"Why haven't your troops assembled yet?!"

A roar broke the silence.

Major Murata, the Japanese instructor stationed in the division, with his hand on his sword, led a squad of fully armed military police and stormed into the division headquarters hall.

He looked at Ma Degui, who was sitting leisurely in a grand chair and sipping tea, and was furious: "The Locust Army is going to build a new defensive line in Weixian. Your division must set off immediately. This is a death order from headquarters!"

Ma Degui was dressed very neatly today, even buttoning up his top button tightly.

He slowly put down his teacup and glanced at Murata.

The fawning and ingratiating look in his eyes was gone, replaced by a hint of mockery and murderous intent.

"Sir, what's the rush?"

Ma Degui said with a forced smile, his fingers lightly stroking the Browning pistol at his waist: "The brothers haven't been paid yet, and their families are starving. They really can't walk."

"Baka! Are you trying to rebel?!"

Murata was furious. He hadn't realized the sudden change in the situation and still habitually wanted to draw his sword to assert his authority: "You, you have a terrible conscience! You delayed the Locust Army's retreat, you're dead!"

"锃——"

The gleaming command sword had just been drawn halfway.

"boom!"

A sharp gunshot suddenly rang out in the lobby.

Murata had a bloody hole between his eyebrows. For a moment, his face was frozen in disbelief as he fell straight backward and crashed heavily onto the floor.

The one who fired the shot was the guard company commander standing next to Ma Degui.

"rebel?"

Suddenly, there was a loud sound of gunfire.

Ma Degui stood up, kicked aside Murata's still convulsing corpse, and roared at his trusted confidants who were already lying in ambush outside the door: "Brothers! Did you hear that?"

"Commander Chu has spoken; Jinan has been liberated!"

"The Japanese devils are doomed!"

"If we continue to follow the Japanese, we'll be buried with them, and after we die, people will talk behind our backs and dig up our ancestral graves!"

Ma Degui slammed the teacup in his hand to the ground and smashed it: "I've been wanting to get rid of this dog skin for a long time!"

"Pass down the order! Cut off the queues throughout the city, bah, change the flags and banners throughout the city."

"One regiment, go to the train station and seize those two train cars of Japanese weapons!"

"Second Regiment, go to the military police headquarters and surround all the Japanese military police in the city. Don't let a single one of them escape. Cut off their heads and hang them on the city gate tower!"

"We must hand over Zichuan City to the Nationalist Army intact and win big!"

"Anyone who dares to stop me from joining the National Revolutionary Army, I'll wipe out their entire family!"

"Yes!"

……

Similar scenes were playing out wildly in every county town, every stronghold, and even every pillbox along the Jiaoji Railway.

Jiaozhou, outside the county seat.

The two puppet army commanders from different factions faced off at the city gate with their respective troops.

The bolts rattled, but the guns were not pointed at the Nationalist troops, but at each other.

"Fuck it!"

"Liu the Cripple, what do you mean?"

A puppet army commander pointed at the other side's nose and shouted, "I was the one who surrounded the Japanese garrison in Jiaozhou City first!"

"This credit belongs to me! What right do you have to bring people here to interfere?"

"fart!"

The man opposite, "Liu the Cripple," was not to be outdone, waving his pistol and shouting, "I sewed up the Blue Sky with a White Sun flag yesterday! I hung it up first thing this morning! If anyone's going to surrender the city, it'll be me offering it to Commander Li!"

"I think you're trying to steal the credit!"

"Brothers, grab your weapons!"

Just as the two groups were about to clash, a Nationalist Army reconnaissance unit dressed in Central Army uniforms appeared in the distance.

The two puppet regiment commanders, who had just been at each other's throats, instantly changed their expressions, immediately ordered their men to lower their weapons, and then eagerly raised their hands in unison.
"Sir! Sir! It's a misunderstanding, it's all a misunderstanding!"

"We're discussing how to welcome the royal army!"

"The Japanese soldiers are all tied up inside; everything was prepared for you long ago!"

The company commander of the reconnaissance unit was somewhat confused upon hearing this, and immediately sent someone to continue reporting.

Weixian Railway Station.

This was an important hub on the Jiaoji Railway, where a battalion of Japanese troops and several thousand puppet soldiers were stationed.

When the vanguard of the Nationalist army cautiously approached the station, they were stunned by the sight before them.

The station gates were wide open, with no landmines or barbed wire.

Thousands of puppet soldiers stood in neat rows by the roadside without weapons, each with a white towel wrapped around their left arm (symbolizing an uprising) and holding faded blue-sky-white-sun-red flags they had found somewhere.

Even more outrageous, dozens of large square tables were set up in the middle of the road, with sliced ​​watermelons, freshly cooked mung bean soup, and even steaming steamed buns and stewed meat on them.

"Sir! You've worked hard, sir!"

A puppet army brigade commander with the rank of major general, leading a group of officers, ran towards the tank tracks, bowing and scraping, his manner more respectful than if he were seeing his own father.

"My name is Zhang Debiao, former commander of the Independent Fourth Brigade of the puppet army. I have long been eager to serve my country, but the Japanese invaders are too powerful, so I can only endure humiliation and hardship."

"Now that the royal army has arrived, it's like seeing family!"

"The more than one hundred Japanese soldiers in the city have been drugged and tied up by me! They're kneeling in the stationmaster's office. That battalion commander tried to resist, but I shot him dead with my own hands!"

"In addition, we have also repaired three kilometers of the railway that was destroyed by the Japanese, ensuring the unimpeded passage of the army!"

The tank commander opened the hatch, witnessed this surreal scene, removed his goggles, and reported into the radio:

"Battalion Commander Chang, we've been pressing the accelerator a bit too hard. It looks like we've run out of fighting?"

"These traitors finished all the work and even treated us to watermelon."

……

"Extra! Extra! A tremendous diplomatic victory!"

The newsboy waved a still-warm newspaper: "China ranks among the top four, Minister Kong angrily rebukes the British Prime Minister, vowing to defend sovereignty over the southern border!"

Central Daily News, Ta Kung Pao, Xinhua Daily

North China Daily, Changzhi Weekly, Guanghua Daily, Shen Bao, Fuxing Daily

Even newspapers that usually hold differing stances have almost identical headlines on their front pages today.

Those bold, black-lettered headlines struck the hearts of every Chinese person like a heavy hammer:
"A Triumph! The Quebec Conference Establishes China's Status as a Great Power!"

"Eastern sovereignty cannot be trampled upon! Kong Yongzhi: The fate of the East should be determined by the people!"

Not only must we reclaim lost territory, but we must also reshape the Asian order!

In the teahouse, a schoolteacher in a long gown held a newspaper with trembling hands. He took off his glasses, wiped his moist eyes, and sighed to the tea drinkers around him, "Gentlemen, things have changed!"

"Since the Opium War, when have we Chinese ever stood so tall in front of foreigners?"

"This is not just diplomatic rhetoric; it is a reflection of our national strength and the dignity that our soldiers on the front lines fought and gave their lives for!"

however.

Before the nation could even recover from the joy of this diplomatic victory, an even more violent storm swept in.

That very afternoon, urgent reports of victories from the southern front bombarded the entire rear area like a barrage of bullets, pushing the fervent atmosphere to its peak.

The General Staff's promise has been fulfilled!
With the complete collapse and retreat of the Japanese Central China Expeditionary Army, the well-prepared Ninth and Sixth War Zones, like two unsheathed swords, plunged fiercely into the enemy's chest.

Even the radios in Yan'an were filled with the voices of announcers.

He was so excited he almost choked up: "A message to our compatriots across the country! A major victory from the front!"

"Following the recapture of Jinan in North China, our armies in Central and South China launched a full-scale attack, advancing with unstoppable momentum!"

"Sun Lianzhong's troops from the Sixth War Zone broke into Wuchang yesterday. The remnants of the Japanese army fled eastward in panic, and Wuchang was liberated!"

"Xue Yue's troops from the Ninth War Zone, pursuing their prey for a thousand miles, are invincible wherever their advance points!"

"Jiujiang liberated! Nanchang liberated!"

"This is the first time since the defeat in the Battle of Wuhan that our army has recaptured a strategic stronghold in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River!"

"The Yangtze River, a natural barrier, is back in my hands!"

When they heard the familiar yet somber place names of "Wuchang" and "Nanchang," countless refugees who had fled to the rear poured into the streets, knelt down in the direction of their hometowns, and wept loudly.

It's been five years!
It’s been five whole years!
They finally took back the home they had always dreamed of returning to!
In the streets of the mountain city, the sound of firecrackers continued throughout the night, and red paper scraps covered the bluestone pavement.

People spread the news with joy, their faces beaming with unprecedented hope and confidence.

Everyone is spreading that saying—

"The General Staff did not lie to us, the War Commander did not lie to us!"

"The hard times are over, the good times are yet to come!"

Amidst this nationwide jubilation, everyone clearly realized...

A new and powerful China is emerging from the ashes of war, amidst the thunderous roar of cannons and triumphant diplomatic achievements, reborn through the baptism of blood and fire! (End of Chapter)