Sword of Light: Humanoid Self-Propelled Artillery

Chapter 271 Topography of Changjin Lake

However, right after Wang Gensheng said this, Li Xiu, who was standing to the side, spoke up:

"Si Ling, what about the Seventh Company's infiltration? They don't have skis, and it's over 400 li (200 kilometers) from here to the Changjin Lake area! The snow is so thick now, it'll be very difficult for them to move!"

Li Xiu's words immediately silenced Wang Gensheng. You see, in the movie "The Battle at Lake Changjin", after the Seventh Company was tasked with escorting the radio station, they separated from the main force of the Eighty-Nine Lions and then escorted twenty codebreakers and the radio station to Dayu Cave.

However, after arriving, he was ordered to rush to Chosin Reservoir to join the battle.

The distance between Changjin Lake and Dayu Cave is over 200 kilometers! So it means that the Seventh Company had to travel at least 100 kilometers more than the other units of the Ninth Army Corps.

After all, other teams headed straight for Changjin Lake after crossing the Yalu River, while the Seventh Company's incursion was essentially a detour.

Fortunately, the attack is scheduled to begin on the 27th, so there is still time; it's only the 10th now!
Therefore, twenty days is more than enough time.

After all, walking 200 kilometers in 20 days averages out to no more than 10 kilometers a day, which is enough even if the snow is knee-deep.

But they were comrades-in-arms after all, so it wouldn't be right to just leave Wu Qianli's Seventh Company behind and let them advance slowly.

In the end, Wang Gensheng made up his mind and decided to lead the Seventh Company, which had been flanking the enemy, toward Changjin Lake.

After all, each Marine carries a load of around 100 pounds, while the soldiers of the Seventh Company only weigh around 120 or 130 pounds. Therefore, even if you carry them while skiing, it will only add 20 or 30 pounds of weight.

Thus, Wang Gensheng carried the hundred or so men of the Seventh Company on his back and spent two and a half days to reach the designated assembly area at Changjin Lake by the 10th.

At this time, the snow was already more than a meter deep in some places, such as in the mountain hollows. Wang Gensheng led the Marines and the Seventh Company to start building snow houses in these areas with thick snow.

Of course, calling it a snow house is really just a snow cave carved out of the ground under the snow, big enough for a person to bend over and crawl inside.

But don't underestimate this hole. Its existence keeps the cold air outside out and the warm air inside out, thus creating a temperature difference of 20 to 30 degrees between the inside and outside.

Although Wang Gensheng took a detour to the front-line command post, because of skiing, they were actually among the first to arrive at Chosin Reservoir. So naturally, they had to wait here for the American troops to arrive, for friendly forces to arrive and form a huge encirclement, and then for a battle that would go down in history: the Battle of Chosin Reservoir!

The Battle of Chosin Reservoir in the north, which took place amidst tidal surges, is hailed as a "spectacular ice and snow event." The underlying geographical factors were key to creating this cold miracle.

A deeper geographical analysis reveals that every aspect of this battle was closely linked to the local natural environment. It was precisely this profound understanding of the unique geographical environment of the Chosin Reservoir area that enabled the relief forces to achieve remarkable results under extremely cold conditions.

This battle was not only a successful military operation, but also a model of profound insight into and utilization of the geographical environment. A deeper analysis from a geographical perspective reveals that the unique geographical environment of the Changjin Lake area provided the key conditions for this cold-weather miracle.

Changjin Lake is located on the Gaema Plateau in northeastern Chaozhou, at a latitude of approximately 40 degrees north, only a few dozen kilometers from the coastline. However, despite its geographical location, it experiences exceptionally cold weather.

However, Changjin Lake is located on a high plateau, where the temperature drops by 0.6 degrees Celsius for every 100 meters of elevation gain. The thin atmosphere on the plateau significantly reduces its insulating properties, further exacerbating the temperature drop. When cold air from Siberia moves southward in winter, the high altitude of the Gema Plateau, where Changjin Lake is situated, without any surrounding mountains to block the flow, and with the surrounding area mostly plains and ocean, allows the cold air to penetrate unimpeded. At the same time, the abundance of moisture near the ocean results in widespread snowfall.

Furthermore, according to meteorological research, a La Niña event occurred during the Teochew Wars. For East Asian regions like the Teochew Peninsula, the arrival of this phenomenon often means low winter temperatures and frequent cold waves and strong winds. These climatic conditions make the cold weather on the Gema Plateau even more severe.

Actually, Changjin Lake was not originally a lake. It was formed by damming the upper reaches of the Changjin River with a 55-meter-high dam, making it the second largest artificial tidal lake in the country.

Of course, such terrain is very suitable for ambush. The Y-shaped lake and the only highway form a natural ambush site, while the Langlin Mountains and Fuzhanling Mountains form an encirclement at an altitude of 2,000 meters.

Furthermore, this area is a waterway hub, with Changjin Lake, Langlin Lake, and Fuzhan Lake all connected to the Yalu River. Controlling this area means controlling the strategic position of the southwestern plains of North Korea.

Of course, that's not all. This place is also the lifeline of the US military, because after the US troops landed, the mechanized forces had to take the Fuzhanling Highway to reach the lake, and the Shuimen Bridge was the only way to retreat.

Therefore, setting up an ambush here is the best choice, because the narrow road is flanked by high mountain slopes, which are so high that even US tanks cannot climb them.

Therefore, this place is a natural ambush site. Moreover, with high mountains on both sides and only one road, it is very easy to cut off and encircle the enemy, preventing the US army from exerting its firepower advantage.

The narrow highway naturally stretched the US military's marching route to be very long, which allowed them to hit superior forces and annihilate the US troops.

When Wang Gensheng was here, he also observed the surrounding terrain and naturally agreed with the frontline command's decision to choose this location for the ambush of the American troops.

Wang Gensheng had originally thought he would have to wait there for more than ten days, but unexpectedly, Wu Qianli found him that evening and said to him:
"Could Wang Siling teach us how to ski? If our Seventh Company learns to ski, we can march much faster!"

Wang Gensheng was taken aback by Wu Qianli's request, not expecting him to make such a demand. Wang Gensheng then agreed.

"That's no problem, but there are US military aircraft conducting reconnaissance during the day, so we can only teach at night! However, the time for launching the full-scale attack is probably not far off, and whether you can learn it is not something I can decide!"

"Of course, Wang Siling can teach us as she pleases. If we can't learn it, it's because we're not smart enough! We won't blame Wang Siling!"

Of course, Wang Gensheng didn't teach them himself, but let Li Xiu teach them. Wang Gensheng would occasionally go and scout out the speed of the American army's advance. But to be honest, the American army's advance speed was really slow, which made Wang Gensheng doubt that they were still a non-mechanized army.

(End of this chapter)