Hong Kong Island: From a small stall to a global supplier

Kengtung, Shan State Revolutionary Army, War Room.

The original war room was rejected on the first day of Chen Yuanchao's arrival, and it was ordered that a basement be dug immediately to serve as a conference room.

Although Luo Xinghan and Peng Jiasheng felt that this was making a mountain out of a molehill, they did not stop them and ordered the digging to be completed the next day.

At this moment, all the key personnel from both sides were gathered in the operations conference room. Luo Xinghan and Peng Jiasheng stood at the head, while Chen Yuanchao stood at the first position on the left.

"In the operation to liberate Jingdong, all objectives of the first phase of the operation have been successfully achieved. Overall, the progress has been relatively smooth. Our side successfully occupied the northern camp of Jingdong, killing more than 240 enemy soldiers and capturing more than 180 prisoners. During the siege and reinforcement operation, we annihilated the support teams of the three major camps in the east, south, and west, eliminating more than 300 enemy soldiers and destroying most of the vehicles in the three camps. This greatly restricted the mobility and transportation capabilities of the enemy forces in Jingdong, laying the foundation for victory in subsequent operations." After saying this, Chen Yuanchao smiled and applauded.

Luo Xinghan, Peng Jiasheng, and all their subordinates clapped enthusiastically, their faces beaming with excitement.

They had an absolute advantage in troop strength, so it was only natural that they would win. However, there are many different accounts of how they won.

Ultimately, Luo, Peng, and Zhang were all short-term graduates of the Kokang Military Academy, which itself was run by the remnants of the KMT's 93rd Division. Instructors Zhang Wenhua and Zhao Guozhu were only at the regimental level, and the entire academy was a makeshift operation with questionable competence...

It's certainly enough to show off our power in Myanmar. Compared to the Myanmar army, we are inferior in terms of population, economy, and equipment, but in terms of pure combat capability, we may be even stronger.

But if he were in his hometown, he would at most be a militia company commander.

Chen Yuanchao: I'm not looking down on anyone, I'm saying that everyone here is trash!

After being dispatched by Wang Yaotang, Chen Yuanchao immediately became the chief advisor of the allied forces, and he led the people from both sides to make the entire battle plan.

They were all soldiers; let's see if they could handle it. After the first phase of the battle, Chen Yuanchao earned the heartfelt respect of everyone from both sides.

Mars!

After the applause subsided, Luo Xinghan continued, "Our results this time were remarkable. We captured a total of 642 intact rifles, 52 submachine guns, 6 light machine guns, a number of bullets and grenades, and we don't know if we can repair the two heavy machine guns!"

"In addition, there are 14 intact tractors, 1 pickup truck, and 23 other damaged vehicles!"

The crowd erupted in another round of enthusiastic applause; this equipment was enough to form an infantry regiment.

The equipment of the Myanmar army is quite complex, including the Type 56 series from its homeland, the AK series from Russia, and the G3 series from Germany. These guns are also divided into imported and domestically produced ones, and their quality is completely different.

Chen Yuanchao, in any case, looked down on it. In his view, these equipment should either be sold or given to local troops in villages and towns.

In 1960, in order to eliminate the remnants of the Kuomintang army entrenched in the "Golden Triangle" border region, China and Myanmar jointly carried out border demarcation and guard operations. During this period, they provided military cooperation and support, and also assisted Myanmar in establishing a production line for the Type 56 rifle series and sold a small number of Type 59 tanks.

Relations between the two sides deteriorated sharply after the June 72 Incident in 1967, after which Myanmar introduced the production line for the German HK G3 rifle.

After Luo Xinghan finished recounting the spoils, Chen Yuanchao continued with the battle plan, "In the second phase, there are two main operational objectives: 'removing the nails' and 'attacking reinforcements.' From a tactical perspective, we will continue with the previous strategy of besieging the point and attacking reinforcements. However, this time, the 'attacking reinforcements' will target reinforcements that may come from the Taunggyi direction."

“Taunggyi is the enemy’s stronghold in Shan State. They have ample troops and are well-equipped…” Chen Yuanchao couldn’t bring himself to say the word “well-equipped” against his conscience. After considering it for a moment, he said, “They have heavy equipment including tanks, armored vehicles, artillery, and aircraft. It is extremely difficult to attack them. If we can lure the enemy out and ambush them in the field, that would be the best outcome. It would greatly reduce the difficulty of attacking Lashio and Taunggyi in the future.”

"Therefore, this second phase of the operation does not pursue speed. We need to give the enemy enough time to request reinforcements. At the same time, we should also use this time to conduct a certain degree of training, using combat as training, to improve everyone's urban combat capabilities and skills as soon as possible, accumulate experience, and lay the foundation for subsequent operations."

"Good!" Luo Xinghan led the applause, and the command center was filled with applause once again.

This was a successful and victorious meeting. It brought together the wisdom and consensus of all participants and pointed out a clear direction for our journey ahead.

At the meeting, with a high sense of responsibility and mission, everyone deeply analyzed the opportunities and challenges they currently face, reached a broad consensus on key issues, and formulated practical action plans...

……

“That’s not how you dig trenches, it’s too rudimentary.” Chen Yuanchao led his men to the front line to provide on-site guidance. “You should dig ‘W’ shaped semi-buried trenches, which provide greater protection against machine guns and artillery.”

"You don't even understand semi-bunker trenches?"

"Build a reverse slope, and dig a multi-person blasting tunnel underneath!"

After years of summarizing their experiences, his hometown had developed a specialized tutorial on excavating fortifications, making these temporary fortifications incredibly easy for Chen Yuanchao.

(As shown in the picture:)

"Do you understand crossfire? Most of the firepower that's dug flat is wasted."

"We can connect them here using trenches."

“Build a semi-buried machine gun bunker at this bend… There’s no problem with that. Just dig a little forward, pile up sandbags on both sides about half a meter high, put logs and sandbags on top, and leave a firing port.”

"Why make it so tall? Are you waiting to get blown up by a 40mm rocket? Shorter, just enough to stick half your head out."

Myanmar's industry is underdeveloped, and Kengtung, being located deep within Shan State-controlled territory, receives even less industrial support. The roads are entirely dirt tracks, and defensive lines can be dug up directly.

There were definitely no burlap sacks or flood control bags available, as they would rot too quickly, but the locals did have a solution: bamboo baskets.

They 'purchased' a large number of bamboo baskets from the households below, filled the excavated soil into the baskets, and piled them up in front of the trench to form a reverse slope. The loess was watered, and only half a meter thick, so that even a 7.62 full-power bullet could not penetrate it.

A 20-meter-long trench can be used to set up a machine gun emplacement, which a squad can defend.

Twenty makeshift trenches were scattered haphazardly across the eastern and northern halves of Jingdong, without any connecting trenches between them. Time was limited, and the number of prisoners was also insufficient...

Chen Yuanchao did not believe that the Burmese army could break through the first line of defense without armored vehicles, but he still set up a second line of defense, albeit a simpler one with only 10 trenches.

Of course, it was impossible for all 3000 people to dig trenches, and besides, the climate in Myanmar did not allow them to do physical labor at midday. Of course, prisoners of war were not human.

Around 3 p.m., the joint forces of Luo Xinghan and Peng Jiasheng launched an attack on "Dong Daying". Although Chen Yuanchao said that they were not in a hurry to defeat the Burmese army and that the main goal was to exert pressure, the morale of the men below was high and they were all asking to fight, as if they were afraid of not making enough contributions. The two men could not refuse all of them, so they approved a few attacks to try.

Chen Yuanchao didn't say anything about this. He didn't think they could succeed at all. Even though their morale was high and the enemy's was low, if they really had such strong fighting power, they wouldn't have been suppressed by the Burmese army to this extent.

Back at headquarters, Chen Yuanchao and his team returned from directing the excavation work at the front lines. It was a very hot afternoon, so they started drinking a little wine indoors.

This isn't my hometown; there's no rule against drinking alcohol here.

"They have no chance of taking it down, right?" Hai Wanyang said with a smile as he flipped over several skewers of snake meat.

“It’s impossible to take it down.” Chen Yuanchao curled his lips. “The weapons of Luo and Peng are already very advanced, much stronger than when we were fighting against the US. Can the Burmese army compare with the sister and brother and the 17th gang? The current backward situation is not due to equipment suppression at all.”

"In the end, it's just a matter of the person being incompetent." Hai Wanyuan laughed as he tore off a piece of roasted chicken, popped it into his mouth, took a sip of liquor, and said with narrowed eyes.

"They just thought taking Beidaying this morning was easy, and they're planning to copy it exactly," Hai Ligong said with a hint of amusement. "It's not a bad thing to let them suffer a few losses; it'll help them realize their limitations."

As for whether Luo and Peng's men will suffer casualties... there are always casualties in war, they don't care about that.

There's a major battle going on here, so Wang Yaotang sent Hai Dazhao and his men in two groups to come over for command and observation. The team doesn't lack combat experience, but it lacks sufficient command talent.

Military officers who are transferred to civilian jobs are all cadres, so it was very difficult for Wang Yaotang to recruit them. He was only able to recruit Chen Yuanchao because he was somewhat inferior after being seriously injured.

Now that we have the opportunity, we should definitely take this chance to nurture Hai Dazhao and his colleagues.

……

Dongdaying direction.

The locals in Shan State were quite understanding when we chose a location as an observation point; it had nothing to do with the two armed men downstairs.

Chen Yuanchao and his group set up a thatched shed on the roof as cover, with a large tree nearby to block their view. They watched Luo Xinghan's men launch their attack while holding binoculars and drinking.

As expected, they were imitating the tactics from this morning, but with some changes.

Two platoons approached from two directions, using nearby houses as cover. The men on the Dongdaying watchtower wouldn't be sleeping this time; they had piled sandbags in front of and behind the fence for an extra layer of protection, set up machine guns at the cut, and had two Burmese soldiers peering out, constantly watching the surrounding streets.

You can throw a grenade 20 meters away, but you definitely can't throw it as high as a three-story building!
After peering around from the base of the wall for a while, the platoon leader couldn't come up with a good plan. "Suppressive fire, and the grenadiers will take the opportunity to move in. Make sure to take out the people on the watchtower!"

At a command, several men rushed out from both sides of the street and simultaneously fired at the watchtower, "rat-a-tat-tat!"

"Da da da"

Six Type 56 assault rifles fired in a crossfire, making the sandbags on the watchtower thud loudly. The light machine guns on the watchtower immediately turned around and opened fire on the grenadiers rushing out from the street corner!
"Tu tu tu tu——"

"Tu tu tu tu——"

One person was immediately struck in the chest by a bullet. The 7.62 NATO round was too powerful and pierced through the body, drawing a spurt of blood from behind. The person staggered a couple of steps and collapsed to the ground, convulsing.

Bullets whizzed past, and even a soldier's mind went completely blank. Fear took over his body, and he screamed and ran to the side.

The gun barrels were chasing people, and the bullets hit the dirt road, kicking up a row of dust. It was as if the trajectory of the bullets was indicated. There was no cover at a distance of less than 20 meters, and people had nowhere to hide. Another person was knocked to the ground.

With one light machine gun and two submachine guns, it was impossible for a grenadier to get close!
"Go! Go! Suppress fire!" The platoon leaders on both sides shouted loudly, and seven or eight more ran out, lay on the ground, and began to fire at the watchtower. The sandbags were hit with a thud, and sand flowed down through the holes.

"Tu tu tu tu——"

"Tu tu tu tu——"

The light machine gun turned and swept across the roadside.

"Puff-"

Two of Luo Xinghan's soldiers were hit by bullets on the spot. Their arms were shot, their bones were broken, and the surrounding muscles were completely torn apart, leaving only a thin piece of skin and flesh connecting them. Blood spurted out more than a meter away.

With current medical conditions, there's a high probability that he'll suffer for a few days before dying from the infection.

In comparison, the other person, whose head was smashed, was relieved of his suffering much faster.

At the same time, Burmese soldiers emerged from the sandbag fortress behind the fence and opened fire on the street entrance through the fence. The fence could stop people but not bullets. Three or four guns aimed at the street and sprayed bullets indiscriminately, and another person was hit on the spot.

They retreated seven or eight meters along the wall, losing another life, finally escaping the watchtower's firing range. The two platoon leaders were panting heavily. No, it was impossible to break through like this.

"Calling in artillery support!!"

"Calling in artillery support!!"

"Boom-"

“Boom!” “Boom!” “Boom!” “Boom!” “Boom!” “Boom!”

Just 30 seconds later, more than 30 mortar shells landed inside the East Daying barracks, causing the ground to shake violently!

The two assault platoons were immediately roused to fight and charged out again under the cover of artillery fire. Three men provided suppressive fire while two grenadiers rushed forward with grenades.

"Da da da"

"Da da da"

"Tu tu tu tu——"

Fire erupted again from the watchtower, this time with machine guns fully extended and firing wildly. The grenadiers who rushed out were shot down before they could even raise their hands. With two loud bangs, the grenades exploded on the spot, sending the bodies flying.

The artillery barrage clearly had little effect, and the attack was once again forced to retreat.

“This thing…” Hai Wanyang was a little surprised. “I thought this kind of watchtower was only useful in ancient times. I didn’t expect it to be so difficult to deal with.”

“The boss said that everything that exists has a reason. There are many of these watchtowers in the jungles of the Indochina Peninsula. We encountered many when we were fighting in Annam, which caused us a lot of trouble.” Chen Yuanchao said in a deep voice, “There are many trees here, and the visibility is not good. Without these watchtowers, the camp is easily attacked. In addition, the high position provides a wide shooting angle, which is very useful.”

“Build a half-meter-wide fence on top of the watchtower, fill it with soil to make a bunker, and think about how to deal with it when there are no armored vehicles.”

Hai Wanyang and the others frowned and fell into deep thought.

"If we can't play during the day, we'll be too passive in terms of vision."

"and then?"

"At night, sneak up and blow it up with a 40-ton fuse."

"The enemy can also set up hidden sentries and machine gun bunkers. Don't be fooled by the fence that seems easy to break through; the 40mm impact fuse might not be so easy to breach. And what if the fighting is to take place during the day?"

"During the daytime, we must get close and dig a trench."

“I don’t think it’s necessary. Just lay the 70mm recoilless rifle flat and blast it!” Hai Wanji added.

"If that's the case, then just use airplanes to drop bombs and flatten all the fortresses and watchtowers."

"Yes, why not use it? It's not like we're fighting a war now."

Seeing the group start arguing, Chen Yuanchao chuckled, "Alright, there's nothing wrong with what you're saying, but we'll have to ask the boss about this, see if he supports you."

Hai Wanji and his group exchanged glances. "Shall we contact the boss?"

Luo Xinghan's attack was naturally a half-hearted effort, losing more than 20 men in total. They were beaten badly and looked like they wanted to dig a hole and bury themselves when they saw Chen Yuanchao and his men.

In the past, we'd lost countless battles, but at most we'd come back, vent our frustrations, have a drink, and brag a bit, and that would be the end of it. But today…

Losing face in public is nothing, but losing face in front of family is the worst thing. That feeling is worse than killing them.

"Chen... Chief Consultant Chen, look..." Luo Xinghan and Peng Jiasheng also felt ashamed, but there was nothing they could do, as they were the leaders.

"Hehe, victory and defeat are common occurrences in war. This is how it is when attacking a well-prepared position. This is the norm." If this were in his own unit, Chen Yuanchao would definitely have a dark face and give them a good scolding. Kicking each person a few times would be the least of his worries. The dead are not just numbers; they are his comrades.

But the situation is different now.

"These kinds of camps can only be taken piecemeal. Most of the time, the brute force approach works better. It's not like we're without any gains. At least we've determined the situation of the enemy camp. I just observed that there are no heavy weapons, so it will be easier to take it from here on out. We encountered a similar situation when we fought the Japanese. The trenches, combined with machine gun bunkers and pillboxes, were much more difficult than this. But we had an absolute advantage in terms of both troop strength and the situation. We had the right timing, the right place, and the right people in our hands. Taking it wouldn't be difficult."

"Oh!" Peng Jiasheng stepped forward anxiously. "Chief Consultant Chen has a solution."

Everyone looked over. Chen Yuanchao smiled, picked up his teacup, took a sip, put it down, and spat out some tea leaves. "We have plenty of time. Right now, our main concern is preventing them from escaping. As for our attack strategy, we'll dig a 'Z' shaped trench and get closer little by little. At that point, whether we use 40mm mortars or simply lay them flat, it won't be a problem."

Having all been through war, they understood the gist of it after hearing Chen Yuanchao's explanation. The 'Z'-shaped trench defense towers provided a commanding view of the enemy, with such a large firing area that a 40mm gun could come out from anywhere and a single shot could end the battle.

Of course, they had considered the 40mm gun, but the gun required a specific firing angle, and its exhaust flame was too large to be used inside buildings, so they were somewhat at a loss for what to do.

With a confirmed attack plan in place, the command center immediately became lively again, and the group of people who had just been dejected began to vie for the right to attack.

Chen Yuanchao didn't get involved. He smiled and walked over to Peng Jiasheng and Luo Xinghan, whispering, "We need to be wary of the enemy in the East Camp breaking out under the cover of night. It would be best to arrange a few harassing attacks tonight."

“I understand.” Luo Xinghan nodded.

Chen Yuanchao didn't mention requesting air support. He said he needed to ask Wang Yaotang's opinion first, and it would be better if Luo Xinghan and the others made the request.

Rushing things isn't a good business practice. (End of Chapter)