Bright Sword: From Northwest Shanxi to Shangganling

Chapter 622 Biochemical Attack
Looking at the casualty figures compiled by the General Staff, Clark, who had just taken over as Commander-in-Chief of the UN forces from Ridgway, felt like his head was about to explode.

Ridgway had been promoted to Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, and when Clark took over, Truman told him that the US military's goal was no longer to seek a decisive victory, but to make the Chinese military feel that a stalemate was more disadvantageous to the Chinese military.

The ultimate goal was to convince the Chinese military that a ceasefire would be more beneficial to China than a non-stop one.

But now the situation is exactly the opposite.

No matter how Clark calculates it, the UN forces suffered more casualties.

This makes it impossible for the Chinese side to believe the conclusion that a ceasefire is more beneficial to them.

Clark put down the report and looked at Van Fleet, his tone tinged with helplessness.

"In just three months, 1.1 people have been killed or wounded. Lieutenant General, what are your thoughts?"

No one in the U.S. military, from top to bottom, expected that sniper fire and artillery would cause such great damage.

Van Fleet said, "Sir, although it is very reluctant, the central army has already constructed a large number of permanent reinforced concrete fortifications along the front line."

"Based on reports from the front-line troops, judging from our current situation, a frontal offensive is simply not feasible."

"My suggestion is to land behind enemy lines!"

"In this way, we can bypass the enemy's strong defenses and launch a pincer attack on the enemy from two sides."

"If things go smoothly, we can turn the tide of the war in North Korea in one fell swoop."

Clark felt even more helpless after hearing Van Fleet's suggestion.

This is a complete all-in tactic. If you win, all is well, but if you lose, the landing troops won't even have a chance to retreat.

Although Clark had only recently taken office, he was well aware that it was simply impossible for the U.S. military to achieve victory through military means.

In other words, the probability of losing is extremely high.

Therefore, Clark rejected Van Fleet's proposal without even thinking about it.

"Lieutenant General, I must remind you that, putting aside the question of whether we have a chance of success in a landing operation, we simply do not have the manpower to carry out this mission. Therefore, let's not bring this up again."

“Okay.” Van Fleet shrugged.

Van Fleet was already used to his proposals being rejected.

From Ridgway's time onward, the idea of ​​amphibious operations was never approved.

"Sir, since we can't land, the army's operation is hopeless. Now we can only let the air force find a solution."

“The Air Force.” Clark sighed when the Air Force was mentioned.

Compared to when the strangulation campaign began in the fall of 51, the air force's attack capabilities have now been greatly reduced.

The Chinese People's Volunteer Army's air force grew too rapidly, and the two sides had become entangled in the Yalu River area and the region north of the Chongchon River.

On the front lines, aerial bombing had almost no effect on the tunnels.

Seeing Clark sighing and groaning, Van Fleet suggested, "Sir, although an explosion won't destroy the tunnel, we can use other methods."

Clark shook his head helplessly: "The Air Force has tried many solutions, even using tear gas to simulate poison gas, but it was still ineffective."

If tear gas had been effective, the next step the US would have been to use poison gas, but that proved ineffective, so the US military naturally wouldn't have chosen to provoke international controversy.

“I’m not talking about poison gas,” Van Fleet explained. “Poison gas spreads and dilutes too quickly; even if it’s effective, it’s only effective locally for a short time.”

"Don't we have something colorless, odorless, that can be released over a long period of time, and that can infect enemies with?"

Upon hearing Van Fleet's words, Clark stroked his chin thoughtfully.

As a former deputy chief of the general staff, he naturally knew about some of the military's projects, and there were indeed weapons among them that met this requirement.

In 1947, MacArthur and Shiro Ishii reached a written agreement that the United States would protect the experts from Unit 731 so they could continue their experiments in the United States.

The laboratory's products could be used to deal with the central army.

Soon, a top-secret telegram flew from Tokyo to the Pentagon.

American aircraft circled briefly over the position of the 211th Regiment of the 21st Detachment of the Second Brigade before leaving.

The soldiers who had completed their air defense work emerged from the tunnels.

The soldiers were puzzled; they hadn't heard any explosion.

"What's the point of those American planes just circling overhead? Why aren't they laying eggs?"

"Maybe the American devils knew they couldn't hit it and were too stingy with the bombs."

The soldiers discussed their mission as they returned to their positions.

At this moment, someone looked at the ground in confusion and asked, "What's going on? How come there are so many insects?"

When the group looked up, they saw countless flies, fleas, spiders, centipedes and other insects crawling and flying around on the ground, which was about a hundred meters wide.

"It's already autumn, how come there are so many insects? And they shouldn't all be appearing at the same time!"

"Something's wrong, report it immediately!"

Chen Chengxing received the report very quickly.

"Commander, a large number of insects have been discovered on the Second Command position. Preliminary estimates indicate that they are scattered over an area of ​​six square kilometers, and the density is extremely high."

"In the areas with the highest density, there are five or six hundred insects per square meter!"

Upon hearing Xu Wu's report, Chen Chengxing immediately realized the seriousness of the problem.

"This incident is highly suspicious. It occurred simultaneously in multiple locations and was characterized by its concentration and high density. It is very likely that the enemy deliberately spread it."

Just as Chen Chengxing finished speaking, another staff officer ran over: "Report! An unusual number of insects have also been found on the positions of Army A, Army B, and Army C!"

Chen Chengxing asserted, "The bugs came as soon as the American planes flew over. There's no mistake, this must be a dirty trick played by the American devils!"

"Xu Wu, two things."

"First, immediately report to the headquarters of the Volunteer Army, explain the situation, and ask the headquarters to investigate whether other units have encountered the same situation."

"Second, the chemical defense battalion will be deployed immediately to cooperate with other units to isolate the areas where the insects have spread."

"Tell all units that they must not be complacent, but also not cause panic."

Large-scale disinfection requires disinfectant powder, which the Fourth Army Corps is currently unable to do. Isolation is the only thing Chen Chengxing can do; the rest will have to be handled by higher authorities.

While the commander was investigating the situation, some troops witnessed the plane dropping bombs.

The bombs dropped by the US military did not explode upon landing. After the outer casing of the bombs broke off, a swarm of flies immediately flew up around them.

Although I had never encountered this situation before, since it was released by the US military, I could guess that there was something wrong with these insects without even checking them.

The headquarters immediately informed the entire army of the situation and sent a telegram to the Central Committee.

Upon receiving the report from the Volunteer Army Headquarters, the Central Committee attached great importance to it. On the one hand, it urgently conducted tests on the insect specimens, and on the other hand, it ordered the Volunteer Army to immediately carry out protective work.

Looking at the laboratory test results, the leader's expression was very serious.

"Plague, cholera, and other pathogens—the United States' actions are despicable!" "Immediately expedite the identification of other pathogens; results are required within one day!"

"Mobilize epidemic prevention troops, vaccines, and disinfectant powder to send to the front lines. Telegraph the front lines to mobilize for epidemic prevention."

"We also need to strengthen our vigilance in the Northeast! The Americans won't just deploy the virus to the front lines."

Upon receiving the order, the General Staff urgently mobilized more than three million doses of plague vaccine, 4 tons of disinfectant powder, and other epidemic prevention equipment to be urgently transported to North Korea.

Meanwhile, the General Staff also arranged for relevant departments to urgently produce ten million doses of plague vaccine and mass-produce disinfectant powder to continuously send to North Korea.

While the Chinese People's Volunteer Army was responding urgently, the US military continued to drop poison insects, with the airdrop area covering 44 counties in North Korea.

"Commander, we have received a telegram from our superiors."

"According to the tests, more than ten kinds of bacteria, including plague, cholera, anthrax, typhoid, dysentery, meningitis, and anthrax, were found in the poisonous insects distributed by the US military."

"The pathogens can infect humans, livestock, and poultry, and all of them have undergone artificial mutation and culture, making them highly infectious."

"The higher command has ordered all troops to prepare for epidemic prevention."

"The relevant vaccines are being urgently produced and transported, and some of the epidemic prevention materials have already arrived."

After listening to the report, Chen Chengxing immediately said, "Old Luo, according to the instructions from higher authorities, each department must immediately establish an epidemic prevention committee."

"You will take the lead as the chairman of the committee, and the other military and political commissars will serve as vice chairmen, in charge of bacterial response and, more importantly, the vaccination work."

"I have a few suggestions for you," Chen Chengxing said.

"All personnel must be vaccinated with the vaccines that have been distributed, without exception."

"We must eradicate infectious pests such as flies, fleas, and rats with a fighting spirit, and this must become a regular task; we must kill them whenever we see them."

"To keep the environment clean, areas where daily activities take place must be cleaned once a day. Outdoor toilets must be at least one meter deep and covered."

"The kitchen must be kept away from the toilet, and the cooks must pay strict attention to their health and the cleanliness of the kitchen."

"No one is allowed to drink raw water or eat raw vegetables. Food and water delivered to the front lines must also be covered."

"Water sources must be controlled, and wells must be covered."

"If anyone develops a fever, they must be immediately isolated, given sulfonamides, and their residence must be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected."

"Tell the soldiers to show their fighting spirit; the fight against the epidemic should not be underestimated."

Luo Ping nodded and said seriously, "No problem! I will start organizing immediately."

For the next period of time, the Chinese People's Volunteer Army devoted itself to the fight against the epidemic, while the US military also ceased its offensive, not only stopping small-scale attacks but also ceasing artillery fire.

At the same time, the fight against bacteriological warfare has also become a serious task in China.

Isolation and vaccination were primarily the work of the military and medical personnel, while the general public began a thorough cleaning.

Major cities across the country began cleaning up the garbage left over from the periods of feudal warlord, Japanese, and Kuomintang rule.

In Northeast China alone, 70 million tons of garbage were cleared, with more than 90% of the population participating in the cleanup.

As a result, the bacteria from the US military did not cause any harm to China; on the contrary, the public's health knowledge was greatly enhanced.

Hygiene knowledge such as thorough cleaning, drinking boiled water, and frequent handwashing has become increasingly well-known.

Seeing that the germ warfare had no effect and that the Chinese exhibition and the prisoners' confessions had exposed the true nature of the US military, Clark was somewhat embarrassed and angry.

Clark picked up the phone and called the Far East Air Force Command directly.

"Lieutenant General Otto Weland, I'd like to ask about your next steps in the strangulation operation. Where is the air force planning to bomb?"

Air Force Commander Otto Welland was somewhat embarrassed when he heard Clark's question.

"Sir, as you know, the Chinese army has more and more fighter jets and anti-aircraft guns, so we can only rely on small-scale bombing now."

North of the Chongchon River, the air forces of China and the United States are currently locked in a stalemate; south of the Chongchon River, the Chinese People's Volunteer Army has deployed anti-aircraft artillery at all important points.

If bombers were to be deployed in large numbers, the casualties would be too great.

Clark interrupted Otto Weyland's stammering reply and ordered directly, "Since the bombing of military facilities is not going well, then expand the bombing range and directly bomb civilian facilities!"

Otto Weyland was alarmed: "Sir, bombing civilian facilities could have a significant international impact!"

Now is not the time to scalp Native Americans. There are too many journalists from various countries in North Korea. Once the bombing range expands, the photos will soon appear in the newspapers.

“That’s not something you should be thinking about,” Clark said firmly. “Just follow orders!”

After hanging up the phone, Otto Werland had no choice but to order the bomber force to prepare for action.

However, Otto Weland didn't dare to go all out right away, so he chose to target the power plant instead.

The loss of power will not lead to civilian deaths.

Just as Ottowell had predicted, the U.S. Air Force’s first bombing of 14 power plants immediately triggered a huge reaction.

The British army directly questioned the American army, asking why they were acting recklessly without their consent.

They were already wearing tuxedos and couldn't accept their clothes being splattered with blood.

Clark ignored the questions from other UN forces and instead escalated the situation.

Under Clark's personal supervision, more than 300 bombers carried out a massive air strike on Pyongyang.

More than two thousand buildings were destroyed, resulting in tens of thousands of casualties.

This infuriated the volunteer soldiers who had just emerged from the anti-bacterial warfare.

Luo Ping slammed the newspaper on the table and roared, "Damn it, those American devils only know how to attack powerless civilians. If they're so capable, let's have a real fight!"

Chen Chengxing said, "The United States has always been a bully who picks on the weak and fears the strong. Since it can't do anything to the Chinese and North Korean forces, it's expected that it will take its anger out on the people."

Of course, this was expected, but it doesn't mean that Chen Chengxing wasn't angry about the US military's actions.

"Old Chen, you've always been full of mischievous ideas, do you have any way to give his mother a piece of your mind?"

Chen Chengxing stroked his chin: "The US military planes mainly bomb civilians. Our defense forces cannot cover all of North Korea, so let's fight fire with fire."

"Xu Wu!"

"Captain."

"Take a count immediately and see how many prisoners each army has, and which countries they belong to."

"yes!".
Luo Ping, standing to the side, asked with some puzzlement, "What do you want to do with the prisoners?"

Normally, prisoners captured by the army would be sent to the headquarters of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army for unified custody.

The prisoners still remaining in various units are likely only those captured recently, and their numbers are not large.

"Don't worry, you'll find out in time." Chen Chengxing deliberately kept everyone in suspense.

(End of this chapter)