Nanyang Storm 1864

1932 January 12

The day after Christmas, a huge, silver-white transport plane took off from the wide, flat runway of the Zamboanga Air Base, steadily spreading its wings and soaring into the sky.

Hundreds of researchers and support staff on the ground cheered excitedly as the Hercules transport aircraft successfully completed its full-weight payload test.

As the plane landed smoothly on the runway, the accompanying reporters frequently pressed the shutter to capture this precious scene in their viewfinders.

During its test flight phase, the Hercules transport aircraft secured 1072 orders, 350 of which came from the military, while the rest were from airlines of all sizes, including foreign airlines from the UK, France, Germany, Russia, and other countries.

Large aircraft factories are under construction in Zamboanga and Manila. The equipment installation and commissioning phase will begin in February next year, and the first brand-new large transport aircraft will be successfully rolled out in early July.

Compared to the Hercules transport aircraft, the "Flying Fortress" heavy bomber, driven by strong frontline military needs, is faster.

The first Flying Fortress heavy bomber will roll off the production line by the end of March at the latest.

Based on an initial production rate of 12 aircraft per month, the planned production rate will reach 26 aircraft per month by the end of next year, providing the military with a total of 160 heavy bombers.

The factory's maximum production capacity is 36 aircraft per month, which seems insignificant compared to the Hammer medium bomber's production capacity of over 200 aircraft per month.

Don't forget, this is a four-engine heavy bomber, with a payload of up to 7.7 tons per aircraft, which is six times the payload of the Hulk medium bomber (1.2 tons) and costs 9.4 times more. It can be described as an expensive toy.

This 200-pound heavy aerial bomb can carry 60 bombs at a time, allowing for high-altitude carpet bombing of target areas with astonishing results.

Therefore, there is now a saying in the military that the "Flying Fortress" bomber is a strategic bomber.

Three months later
Inside the Northern Army headquarters on the Denver Plateau, a high-level military conference is being held to discuss various military deployments in preparation for the upcoming major battle and to repeatedly examine any shortcomings.

This was the largest campaign launched by the Great Chu Empire since its establishment, involving more than 222 million troops, including most of the army and air force, with the Royal Navy responsible for a flanking maneuver along the eastern coast of the United States to draw away US coastal military forces.

Of the 222 million troops mobilized this time, 172 million are from the Northern Corps and more than 50 are from the Southern Corps, forming a structure with the Northern Corps as the main force and the Southern Corps as a supplement.

Within the two major army groups, there were also more than 40 "North American Volunteer Corps," a tactic commonly used by the Royal Army of the Great Chu Empire, which was also applied in the North American campaign.

The so-called "North American Volunteer Corps" consisted of American soldiers captured in previous battles, supplemented by conscripted white and Mexican-American young men, and even included a Black force of over 3.7 men.

All the "North American Volunteer Corps" had a standardized organization, with the highest level being a regiment, consisting of 1200 men. Currently, they have been organized into 268 regiments, which are dispersed and assigned to various divisions and regiments of the Imperial Army Group responsible for the main offensive, to be used as cannon fodder.

This is mainly because during the Battle of Chicago, the Imperial Army was primarily tasked with offensive operations, making heavy casualties unavoidable.

Based on past experience

Even the most formidable attacking forces, such as the German, French, British, and Chu troops, could not avoid heavy casualties; this was a characteristic of trench warfare.

The British used Indian soldiers to fill the trenches, the French used North African soldiers, and the Chu army used prisoners to fill the trenches, thereby greatly reducing the casualties of the Chu Empire's soldiers.

Despite the seemingly triumphant advance of the Royal Army of the Great Chu Empire, its opponents are formidable, especially the American forces entrenched around Chicago. They possess ample artillery, armored vehicles, and ammunition, along with abundant manpower and logistical support.

This place is different from the desert defense line. It is located in the resource-rich central Great Plains of North America. After 1933, the American economy recovered significantly, and agricultural production reached 90% of the level before the Great Depression.

There was no shortage of food, vegetables, cannons, or weapons; moreover, millions of troops were stationed here, and a strong defensive line and city fortress complex had been built.

Chicago's location on the Great Lakes is a natural advantage.

With unimpeded waterway transportation, massive amounts of supplies could be transported from Detroit, Pittsburgh, Toronto, and even New York without any disruption, and reinforcements and wounded soldiers could be evacuated without any bottlenecks or weaknesses.

This metropolis with a population of over 330 million possesses extremely strong logistical support capabilities, enabling it to continuously supply the front lines with resources for a protracted campaign.

Washington’s confidence stems from this: it has amassed more than 230 million troops along the entire Chicago defense line, with another million American troops available to provide support at any time, and both land and water transportation are unimpeded.

The absolute advantage of the Chu expeditionary force lay in its air power; its ground tanks and armored vehicles were simply out of the question.

In such a typical offensive battle, the "Wild Wolf" light tank, weighing only 4.27 tons, and the "Bison" medium tank, weighing over 10 tons, are simply cannon fodder on a battlefield with extremely dense artillery fire.

It is reported that the U.S. military has 2.27 artillery pieces, with more than 1.6 in the Chicago battlefield alone, ranging from 37mm rapid-fire cannons to 280mm fortress guns, and its ammunition reserves are also very large.

As one of the world's leading industrial nations, the United States, fighting a war on its own doorstep, naturally wouldn't lack these things and could produce them to its heart's content.

从1932年10月至1933年3月间，这5个多月时间内，虽然没有爆发大规模的战役。

There were thousands of battles, large and small, between Chu and the United States, some of which resulted in thousands or even tens of thousands of casualties, which were no less than the scale of a major war.

The two sides fought fiercely along a front of more than 1430 kilometers, repeatedly contesting certain salients, which changed hands more than ten times. The fighting was extremely intense.

Because of their air superiority, the Chu army was often able to quickly call in air support to bombard and strafe American soldiers, driving them back.

Often, the positions they captured during the day were quickly overtaken by the US military in a counterattack at night before they could establish a firm foothold.

Over the course of more than five months, the US military suffered over 700,000 casualties, while the Chu army also suffered over 100,000 casualties, with the flames of war spreading from north to south.

This is what makes powerful industrial nations so difficult to conquer; attempting to subjugate them is extremely challenging and costly. After two consecutive days of high-level military meetings, the Northern Army finally reached a consensus.
The plan was to launch the Battle of Chicago in the early morning of March 9th, employing a general strategy of attacking from the north and south flanks while keeping the main force in the center stationary.

The Battle of Chicago was not a small- to medium-sized battle covering an area of ​​tens or hundreds of kilometers. Its battle line stretched from north to south for more than 1430 kilometers, spanning four states in the central United States and spreading to more than ten states, making it an unprecedented battle.

Of the 172 million troops in the Union Army, the main force was deployed in the central region, along the line from Sioux City, Nebraska to Omaha, Kansas City to Springdale, Oklahoma, with a total of more than 1.2 million troops from three army groups, directly threatening the important defensive nodes surrounding Chicago.

The deployment decided at the Supreme Military Conference was to keep the main force of the central front stationary, and to use feint attacks to keep the main force of the US military firmly engaged, thus creating conditions for breakthroughs on the northern and southern flanks.

Breakthroughs on both the north and south flanks
Taking advantage of the fact that the permafrost had not yet thawed, the North launched a breakthrough against the relatively weak US defenses in the north, mainly carried out by the Imperial Third Army.

The Third Army broke through eastward from Aberdeen, South Dakota, with the 2nd Royal Armored Division and the 9th Royal Armored Division as its two main mobile breakthrough forces, supported by thirteen infantry divisions and six artillery divisions. It carried out mobile infiltration across the tundra and ice fields to break through the American defense lines.

The first breakthrough was made in Morris, Minnesota, a forward defensive line for the U.S. military, guarded by tens of thousands of troops across the vast ice field.

Secondly, they broke through the US forces in St. Cloud and the state capital Minneapolis, as well as along the Farribet line, which was the location of the main US northern defense line, where a total of about 27 US troops were stockpiled, forming a northern defense line stretching more than 180 kilometers.

After annihilating the aforementioned American forces, the Third Army continued eastward into Wisconsin, capturing Wausau and Green Bay, an important port city on the Great Lakes, and then threatening Milwaukee, the state capital in the south.

With this, the Union Third Army achieved its operational objective: by capturing Green Bay, it could use the Empire's superior air power as a base to blockade ships transporting supplies from the lake to Chicago from the north.

This is tantamount to severing the main artery of blood supply, disrupting the extremely busy shipping on Lake Michigan, which will inevitably have a significant impact on the course of the battle and Chicago's ability to sustain a prolonged war.

This creates a favorable opportunity for the full-scale launch of the main battlefield.

The Southern Breakthrough was to be undertaken by the Southern Army Corps, with the 12th Army as its main force, which would advance eastward from Hot Springs, Arkansas.

They marched all the way into Mississippi, then circled north, delivered a right hook, captured Memphis, Tennessee, and then Nashville, the state's transportation hub, cutting off the main railroad artery that transported supplies from the south to Chicago.

By capturing Nashville, they could advance north to attack several important urban hubs, which were also major US troop deployment sites and key points of the outer defense line south of Chicago, attracting a large number of US reinforcements.

In this way

To create favorable conditions for the main force in the central region to break through and to firmly grasp the initiative in the war.

The Southern Army's cooperation with the Northern Army demonstrated the overall strategic approach of North America as a unified whole, without requiring the Northern Army to divert significant forces, thus allowing the two armies to work together effectively.

The Southern Corps has a total strength of over 57.6 men. Under the premise of carrying out the existing occupation mission, it has already done everything possible to mobilize more than 39 mobile troops to participate in the operation.

Commanding the Northern Corps was Field Marshal Zheng Zhongyi, Deputy Chief of the Royal Army Staff. He was a veteran who had participated in World War I and served as the deputy to Field Marshal Chu-Zheng Hui, experiencing three years of war in the Balkans on the Eastern Front of Europe.

At this moment, the glory of more than two million imperial officers and soldiers weighed heavily on his shoulders, making the old marshal feel suffocated, and his hair turned even whiter.

"General, you must take care of your health and not worry too much. Millions of soldiers at the front are still hoping that you will lead them straight to Chicago and bring the good news of victory to the Emperor Taizu." General Hu Junchen, commander of the Third Army Group, advised.

He and Marshal Zheng Zhongyi were old friends who fought side by side in World War I, and they had forged a deep bond of friendship during the Chu-Ri War 28 years earlier.

From those spirited young officers to the current commanders of the First Army, their lives have witnessed countless wars and left behind a glorious history.

Marshal Zheng Zhongyi walked to the window, put his hands behind his back, and looked at the vast plain where the remaining snow was melting. The cold wind blew in his face, making his gray hair flutter in the wind.

He paused for a moment, then said;
"Brother Junchen, we have known each other for decades, and we have fought across the north and south, covering almost half of the globe."

This may be the last decisive battle of our lives, and I, the commander, wish to bring it to a perfect close. I wonder if Brother Junchen could assist me in completing this fateful battle?

Upon hearing Marshal Zheng Zhongyi's words, General Hu Junchen's expression also became solemn. He silently walked to the window and said in a low and firm voice, "Brother Zhongyi, please speak freely. Even if it costs me my life, I will never fail you and will fulfill my mission with unwavering determination."

"Good. I have reached an agreement with the Royal Air Force to allocate ten fighter wings and eight bomber wings to you to cooperate with the Third Army. You must break through the northern defense line within a month, capture Green Bay, and threaten Milwaukee. Can you do it?" Marshal Zheng Zhongyi turned around, staring intently at General Hu Junchen, and said with great expectation.

Only a slight hesitation
General Hu Junchen nodded heavily, raised his hand in salute, and replied: "No matter how many difficulties and dangers there are, the Third Army will resolutely complete the mission, break through and capture Green Bay within a month, and completely block the waterway to Chicago on Lake Michigan. If we disobey this order, we are willing to offer our heads to you."

"Alright, thank you, Brother Junchen." Marshal Zheng Zhongyi patted him on the shoulder with relief, his eyes showing great satisfaction.

Whether in the North or the South, as long as one flank force achieves its goal, it can greatly hinder the operations of the central US forces and create favorable conditions for the main force of the Northern Army to break through.

In particular, the northern third front, on which Marshal Zheng Zhongyi placed his hopes, is now extremely busy with shipping on Lake Michigan, with hundreds and thousands of ships shuttling back and forth, delivering everything Chicago needs.

Once the lakeside city of Green Bay is captured, the bombers and fighters of the Great Chu Empire, based there, will be able to effectively blockade the northern part of Lake Michigan and launch devastating attacks on ships traveling there.

I dare not say more, but it has at least reduced the combat power of the US military by 30%.

This greatly benefits the main force's operations and increases their chances of victory.

Chicago's main supply currently comes from lake transport: food, weapons and ammunition, reinforcements, and large quantities of war supplies, primarily arriving via waterway.

Many wounded and injured U.S. military personnel were also evacuated via lake transport to return to the rear areas in the eastern United States for treatment and recuperation; this was the main route.

If the supply lines were completely cut off, it would be a devastating blow to the American troops on the Chicago front, severely impacting their morale and causing immense damage. (End of Chapter)