American Strategic Deception Bureau

　What? The nuclear war is still going on? A clash of U.S. troops in Vietnam? Commander Weyand's sudden death? What the hell is going on?

　Don't die.

　In another timeline, it was already 88. Le Duan, who had strongly advocated pro-Soviet and anti-China, had died. Gorbachev's "new thinking" in Moscow caused dramatic changes in Eastern Europe. The Berlin Wall was about to fall. Soviet aid to Vietnam was basically cut off. The war against China was completely hopeless no matter how you looked at it.

　As for Vietnam, the people were in dire straits, starving to death everywhere. Grassroots cadres' monthly salaries were barely enough to buy two kilograms of salt. Border counties and cities, while engaged in war with China, were also thriving in smuggling. The nation's GDP plummeted by 80% in just one year! (Seriously, the statistics are almost terrifying.)

　But in order to compete with China, Vietnam still launched the Battle of Johnson South Reef in the South China Sea in 88, using a landing ship and two armed merchant ships to launch a brave attack on China's missile destroyers and frigates. In the end, as expected, the Vietnamese side was defeated, and two of the three ships sank.

　Well, the casualty ratio in the Battle of Johnson South Reef was 1:400, with one Chinese person slightly injured and 400 Vietnamese casualties.

　Although this record was a failure, the Vietnamese people's courage and recklessness are worthy of praise.

　In this altered dimension, the intensity and scale of the Vietnam War soared more than tenfold. Most of North Vietnam was turned into a radioactive wasteland by countless American nuclear bombs. The country's casualties were probably calculated in the tens of millions. The entire Vietnam cannot be said to have been destroyed, but rather to have been uprooted!

　Faced with such a deep blood feud, how can the Pentagon and the White House just turn the page with a simple "that's it"?

　Not to mention, despite claiming to abandon Saigon, hundreds of thousands of US troops are still on Vietnamese territory and have not withdrawn at all!

　Who knows if they really want to retreat back home, or just withdraw from Saigon and retreat to coastal strongholds to continue the confrontation with the Vietnamese?

　Therefore, with the two sides completely at odds, no diplomatic exchanges, and despite repeated deceptions, it was impossible for the Vietcong to allow the US troops stationed in Vietnam to escape unscathed. Who knew when the enemy would return? Since the US military seemed to be unable to fight, the Vietcong would surely "strike while the sick are weak," trying to eliminate as many US troops as possible!

　As a result, the US Army, which was ordered to withdraw from Saigon, had just moved to Bien Hoa when it was hit by a miniature nuclear bomb launched by the Viet Cong guerrillas, which blew up people and horses on the road. Then, the Viet Cong guerrillas continued to attack and harass the ground forces, which seriously hindered the retreat of the ground forces.

　Then, the port of Vung Tau, which was full of transport ships and landing ships, was hit by an atomic bomb smuggled into the city by the Viet Cong special forces, causing chaos in the city and the port. A merchant ship loaded with arms collided with an aircraft carrier in the chaos, causing an unprecedented explosion on the sea.

　That same night, the South Vietnamese port city of Nha Trang was also attacked by Viet Cong guerrillas using a miniature atomic bomb in a suicide terrorist attack. This area was home to the main frontline medical center and sanatorium for US troops stationed in Vietnam, where over 40,000 wounded and sick US soldiers were receiving treatment and recuperation.

　As a result, the commander of the 1st Cavalry Division and half of the division headquarters were wiped out in the nuclear attack, and the entire division was completely out of control.

　——After these three nuclear bombs were dropped, the number of casualties among US troops stationed in Vietnam exceeded 1 on January 4, 1970 alone!

　Then, even more troublesome was the 100,000 American troops withdrawing from Saigon, the Vietnam-Cambodia border, and the Mekong Delta. Due to the frequent harassment and ambush by the Viet Cong guerrillas, they were blocked in the wilderness near the border, with the roads destroyed and the airports bombed and pitted.

　They wanted to turn back to Saigon, but the Vietnamese army had already entered the city and planted their flag. With the American army's morale and organization on the verge of collapse, another siege was impossible. Moreover, they had insufficient ammunition and supplies, and could only stay in the wild, stuck in a dilemma.

　The port of Vung Tau, which had just been devastated by an atomic bomb, was unable to muster any reinforcements to go to the rescue.

　It just so happened that the 26th Army Division sent from the mainland had just arrived at Phu Quoc Island. The anxious commander of the US forces in Vietnam, General Weyand, immediately ordered the 26th Division to quickly join the battle, board ships to cross the sea and land in Vung Tau, and then attack Saigon!

　To encourage this new force, the propaganda staff of the US Forces Vietnam Command called on them to "march towards the mushroom cloud to save our allies!"

　What General Weyand, the commander of US forces in Vietnam, didn't know was that the 26th Army Division, this so-called "fresh force," actually had a very poor quality. Not only were 80% of its recruits new, but it was also filled with idiots with substandard IQs and anti-war activists. Because the anti-war movement was surging in the US, the US military recruiting department, in order to suppress the anti-war movement, would quickly draft any anti-war activists they could find and send them off to fight the Viet Cong.

　How dare you oppose the war? The more you oppose the war, the more the masters will force you to kill Vietnamese people! Or be killed by the Vietcong!

　But the problem is, if the number of anti-war elements in an army reaches a very high proportion, and the remaining people are fools who are easily fooled, and are assigned a mission that is almost certain to lead to death... then the consequences are no different from putting a detonator in a powder keg, which is simply courting death!

　Therefore, the new recruits of the 26th Division, who were already full of resentment and were caught on the front line of the Vietnam War, immediately started a fight on Phu Quoc Island after receiving this seemingly suicide order. They broke out into a fight with officers and veterans, and they got really angry during the fight. Some people started to fight each other.

　Shoot.

　Among them, the anti-war elements who were forcibly conscripted into the army not only took the lead in provoking trouble, but also fooled a large number of fools to rebel together, leading to infighting in the military camp.

　It just so happened that most of the other American soldiers staying on Phu Quoc Island at this time had just been hit by nuclear bombs on the front lines in South Vietnam or Thailand. They were evacuated after being devastated by the bombing. Everyone's spirit was in a state of high tension and depression, and their trust in their superiors had plummeted to the lowest point.

　Hearing the gunshots on the island, rumors immediately spread among the defeated soldiers. Then, fear turned into anxiety, and from anxiety to madness, chaotic and violent conflicts spread everywhere, eventually causing a full-scale "camp roar"!

　In wartime, especially after a devastating battle, soldiers often experience prolonged periods of extreme mental depression. If this stress is not promptly addressed and is instead stimulated, a mass frenzy known as "camp hysteria" can occur.

　Sometimes, just a soldier in the barracks would become mentally disturbed and shout loudly due to a nightmare, and his behavior might infect other colleagues who were also on the verge of madness, and they would then engage in similar behavior, and then fight or even kill each other, causing widespread chaos and serious casualties - some of them were really crazy, while others were bullied in their daily lives, and when they saw the chaos, they would take the opportunity to take action, seeking revenge for their grudges and avenge their grievances.

　Throughout history, countless officers have perished in the chaos of battle, just as countless soldiers have been tormented by the battlefield and driven to mental collapse.

　In fact, the internal atmosphere of many of the worse armies is even more insane and terrifying than Arkham Asylum!

　Just like that, within just half a day, more than 100,000 American troops who retreated to Phu Quoc Island were all caught in a fire and melee of infighting.

　What's even more terrible is that there was a prisoner-of-war camp on Phu Quoc Island holding more than 10,000 Viet Cong prisoners of war. Seeing the chaos in the US military, these Viet Cong prisoners took advantage of the chaos to rush out of the camp, snatch weapons and ammunition, and joined this devastating melee, further destroying the order on Phu Quoc Island.

　After learning about the chaos on Phu Quoc Island, General Weyand, commander of the US forces in Vietnam, panicked and immediately rushed to Phu Quoc Island with a team of military police and a battalion of paratroopers to deploy suppression and mediation tasks.

　As a result, his plane had just landed at the field airport on Phu Quoc Island, and Admiral Weyand had not even left the airport when he was shot halfway through the head on the runway. It was unknown who had arranged the sniper...

　Maybe it was the rebels, maybe it was the Viet Cong, maybe it was the KGB, maybe it was the high-level vested interests in the United States whose cheese was moved... Who knows?

　Therefore, with the sudden assassination of General Weyand, no one cared about suppressing internal strife and resisting the Viet Cong.

　The US military headquarters in Vietnam, which had just moved to Kunlun Island, was completely paralyzed and handed over the problem to the Pentagon.

　-

　"So, what's the situation on the front lines right now? What's going on with the unlimited fighting tournament on Phu Quoc Island?"

　In a corridor of the White House, seeing President Nixon walking out of the press conference with an almost distraught expression on his face, as if he had lost his parents, Firi, who had just arrived, couldn't help but lean over to Dr. Kissinger's ear and whispered, the equally worried Dr. Kissinger asked.

　"The situation is so dire that the Pentagon has deployed the 101st Airborne Division from Singapore to suppress the situation. But the troops on Phu Quoc Island have completely turned into mad mobs, and no orders are effective against them. Even if they can be suppressed, they won't be able to go to the battlefield for at least a month."

　Dr. Kissinger replied in a low voice, “But the more than 100,000 American soldiers, civilians, and logistical civilian personnel evacuated from Saigon can’t hold out for more than a month!

　They were now trapped in the rural area between Bien Hoa and Vung Tau, with only enough supplies to last for seven more days! The bridges in front of them had been blown up, the roads had been dug up, they were harassed by Viet Cong guerrillas every day, and had to endure nuclear bombs from time to time. They relied entirely on helicopters for transfer and retreat.

　But the problem is, even if all the American helicopters on the front line were to move back and forth day and night, they could only evacuate 10,000 to 20,000 people at most...

　Honestly, the fact that they have managed to hold out under the Viet Cong's siege until now without going crazy is already surprising!"

　"It sounds really bad, unimaginably bad." Fili shook his head. "It's like the sky is falling apart."

　"It's even worse! An ICBM silo just exploded! The entire state of Arkansas has declared a state of emergency!"

　Dr. Kissinger sighed and continued, explaining to Firi why President Nixon looked so grim. "A nuclear warhead with a TNT equivalent of five million tons was blown into the river. The National Guard is urgently trying to salvage it. A wave of exodus has already broken out from the area where the incident occurred..."

　——After learning that the Viet Cong armed forces had completely ignored the Pentagon’s latest “goodwill” and were still “brutally attacking” US troops stationed in Vietnam with their toy-like miniature nuclear bombs, President Nixon became furious and once again ordered the use of the most advanced intercontinental missiles to attack North Vietnamese targets.

　Then, at present, solid missile fuel technology has not yet appeared, and any intercontinental missile can only use liquid fuel. If there is any progress compared to the first generation of intercontinental missiles, it is the Titan II intercontinental missile equipped by the United States in the 2s, which has replaced the more difficult to use liquid oxygen and kerosene low-temperature liquid fuel with room temperature liquid fuel.

　It is stored in the missile fuel tank all year round, and there is no need for temporary refueling before launch.

　But as a price, room-temperature fuel uses highly toxic substances such as nitrogen tetroxide, which is extremely corrosive and can damage the missile itself if not handled with care.

　Under normal circumstances, the fuel stored in these Hercules intercontinental missiles must be inspected regularly just in case.

　But the problem is that in the current social unrest and disorder, various rules and regulations have gradually become meaningless.

　- The 308th Strategic Missile Wing, deployed in Damascus, Arkansas, has a Titan II intercontinental missile silo under its name that has not been carefully inspected and maintained for a long time. The maintenance personnel not only slacked off on their work for years, but also forged reports to deal with their superiors.

　As a result, when this intercontinental missile was ordered to be launched towards North Vietnam, the missile body did not even get out of the launch silo and exploded underground!

　A full 140 tons of missile fuel exploded underground, shattering the three-meter-thick reinforced concrete silo. Concrete fragments and missile debris flew as far as five kilometers. The 500 million tons of TNT equivalent nuclear warhead was blown one kilometer high and then dumped into a nearby river...

　The search team has not yet recovered the nuclear warhead, but significant nuclear contamination has been detected in the river water, indicating it has leaked.

　So, after the incident, the entire state of Arkansas fell into panic and chaos, and cars trying to escape the state blocked the highways.

　President Nixon, already overwhelmed by the Vietnam War, saw the disaster in Vietnam not yet subsided, and yet another disgrace occurred at home. This added to the chaos and disaster, and naturally his mood was extremely bad, and he was almost on the verge of mental collapse...

　In short, Dr. Kissinger briefly briefed Feeley on the latest situation and then tentatively suggested that, among all the American commanders in Vietnam to date, Feeley was the only one who had successfully saved the battlefield from danger and emerged a hero.

　So... after seven years, as the former commander of US forces in Vietnam, is there any way for him to clean up the mess in Vietnam?

　If he was sure, he could get someone to recommend Fili to serve as a firefighter in Vietnam. He should have no problem getting promoted to lieutenant general...

　"Don't harm me! Don't harm me! Doctor, I'm just a space army commander. How can I command hundreds of thousands of troops to fight a nuclear war?"

　Fili was so frightened when he heard this that he waved his hands repeatedly. "Seven years ago, I only needed to hold the strategically located Haiyun Ridge, and I could have gotten a steady stream of reinforcements. Although the enemy's morale was high, they were ultimately only third-rate light infantry. Not only did they lack nuclear bombs, they didn't even have heavy artillery.

　But what about now? Our army may seem strong, but some are mutinying, some are collapsing, some are trapped, and the command system is in disarray and dysfunctional.

　The Viet Cong may not have many troops, but they have enough miniature nuclear bombs. At this moment, the Soviets will definitely be very generous and use up their nuclear arsenal. As long as the Viet Cong can still find suicide soldiers who are willing to die with us, our army will have no way to fight on the ground.

　What’s more, General Wang Bao and his brave Miao soldiers who fought alongside me in Haiyun Ridge are no longer with us…”

　Recalling the turbulent events of seven years ago, Fili couldn't help but sigh, "At this point, the Vietnam War situation is already hopeless. Forget defeating the Vietcong and rebuilding a free South Vietnam. Even if the White House just wanted a dignified exit, it's no longer possible..."

　"Even if the war situation is hopeless, Washington should at least come up with a solution, right?"

　Dr. Kissinger said somewhat unwillingly, "What do you think the White House should do now to address the issue?"

　"The best solution? I only know the easiest one! That is to withdraw as many troops as possible back to the country. As for those that cannot be withdrawn, or those that have lost control and mutinied, leave them to the Vietcong and let them recover their composure in the prisoner-of-war camps!"

　Fili shrugged and muttered irresponsibly, "One hundred thousand American soldiers disarming themselves and throwing trouble in a prisoner-of-war camp? Sounds pretty good."

　"If things in Vietnam really turned out like that, I think there's a metaphor that might be more appropriate to describe it - the self-deprecating song 'The World Turned Upside Down' played by the defeated British army as they surrendered to President Washington at the Battle of Yorktown at the end of the American Revolutionary War."

　Dr. Kissinger was silent for a moment and then complained.

　Even if the Japanese Empire was hit by an atomic bomb, it would not dare to surrender. The key point is that no one took such responsibility.

　In the end, Emperor Showa took the responsibility himself, but from then on the Japanese emperor completely became a mascot, and had nothing to do with power and wealth anymore!

　(The British royal family still has very large assets, while the Japanese royal family had their gold coins taken away by the US military after their surrender, and there are really not many assets left.)

　General Clark, the commander of the US military at the end of the Korean War, became even more notorious because he signed the first armistice treaty in US history in which the US failed to win. Even after his retirement, General Clark was still criticized for this.

　Signing an equal armistice treaty was considered so unbearable; wouldn't it be even more disgraceful to order the US military to admit defeat and surrender?

　Well, you don’t want to admit defeat, right? Then it’s not a bad idea to continue fighting. Hurry up and send a powerful guy to the Vietnam battlefield to take over the command!

　However, the position of commander of US forces in Vietnam had become a hot potato, and all qualified generals were reluctant to take it. While the Vietnamese front nominally had over 300,000 troops, in reality, they were largely out of control and collapsing. The few remaining fresh troops were fighting their own forces on Phu Quoc Island. Commands from headquarters were completely ignored, so what good would it do even if they were parachuted in?

　What's more, although the assassination of General Weyand was publicly announced to be committed by the Viet Cong, according to the Pentagon's speculation, it seems more like the work of one of their own people, probably to punish the general for his "treasonous behavior" of advocating abandoning Vietnam, a complete withdrawal of troops, and stopping the war.

　As for who exactly did it, that is a topic that no one dares to talk about - who knows who is the mastermind behind it?

　At the same time, there is no guarantee that these masterminds will not do it again: they don’t have the ability to eliminate the Viet Cong, but they are very experienced in killing their own people!

　Therefore, if we go to Vietnam now to preside over the withdrawal of troops, we will have to gather an army that has already mutinied and make them resist the harassment and nuclear terrorist attacks of the Viet Cong, while also being on guard against assassins behind the scenes. After the war, we will be attacked and questioned for the loss of cities and territories... Who can bear this?

　As a result, the generals who usually fought for power turned into non-stick pans, and no one was willing to take on the heavy responsibility of going to the front line in Vietnam.

　In short, within the next 48 hours, the position of commander of the US forces in Vietnam remained vacant, and the US forces in Vietnam headquarters continued to remain paralyzed.

　But according to the tradition of US military retreat, the Pentagon still dispatched the Air Force and missile forces to bombard the battlefield to cover the rear.

　However, because all the nuclear weapons deployed by the US military in the Asian theater were exhausted last year, even if the Pentagon wanted to immediately transport replenishment from the domestic nuclear arsenal, it would be impossible to do so in a short period of time, and it would be too troublesome.

　Therefore, in view of the critical military situation and the urgent need for reinforcements, President Nixon decided to launch 12 Titan II intercontinental missiles at the Viet Cong-controlled area.

　However, misfortunes never come singly. This hastily launched intercontinental missile strike was plagued by errors. In addition to the missile that exploded in Arkansas, three other intercontinental missiles lost control mid-flight and crashed into the Pacific Ocean. One missile flew over the target and landed on the China-Myanmar border.

　There was also a Titan II intercontinental missile that inexplicably flew to the southern hemisphere and hit near Perth in western Australia. It crashed in an Australian Aboriginal reserve in the upper reaches of the Swan River, killing dozens of unlucky Aboriginal people!

　Fortunately, the nuclear warhead on this intercontinental missile did not detonate, preventing the citizens of Perth from witnessing the mushroom cloud that the citizens of Hiroshima did. However, unfortunately, the 500-million-ton hydrogen bomb was impacted and leaked during its fall, allowing radioactive materials to enter the Swan River.

　The upper reaches of the Swan River where the nuclear warhead fell is the main water source for Perth and surrounding satellite towns!

　Now, the Americans have suddenly dropped a leaked nuclear warhead into the country. Isn't this equivalent to poisoning us from halfway around the world?

　How immoral this is! What a sudden disaster! How maddening!

　As a result, white immigrants in Western Australia complained bitterly, saying that it would be better to blow up the American nuclear warheads and settle the matter once and for all!

　Now, the citizens of Perth, living in the lower reaches of the Swan River, have to drink radioactive water, take radioactive baths, and use radioactive water to grow vegetables and water flowers every day. They worry all day long whether there will be carnivorous plants growing in their backyards, or a group of mutant cockroaches crawling out of the sewers, accompanied by terrifying death claws!

　Now, in response to the "accidental nuclear strike", the Australian government has publicly announced that it will seek compensation from the United States, and a number of Pacific island countries have also followed suit, trying to ask the US government for compensation - because the uncontrolled US intercontinental missile that fell is said to have fallen into their fishing grounds.

　The remaining six intercontinental missiles hit the designated targets in the Viet Cong-controlled areas. Relying on nuclear explosions with a total TNT equivalent of 30 million tons, they flattened Qui Nhon, My Tho, Da Dao and several other transportation hubs that had just been recaptured by the Vietnamese army not long ago, claiming to have destroyed two Vietnamese divisions.

　However, according to the speculation of senior intelligence personnel, this wave of nuclear strikes only destroyed two Viet Cong division headquarters at most. In guerrilla warfare, where operations are generally dispersed and even battalion- and regiment-level units rarely assemble, the destruction of a division-level command unit is not a fatal problem.

　Therefore, the US military's large-scale nuclear explosion, in addition to

　Apart from giving people courage, it has basically not been of much help in resolving the current crisis.

　Apart from the "much ado about nothing" in military affairs, there has also been no progress in diplomacy.

　President Nixon's newly appointed Secretary of State, William Rogers, was practically a non-stick frying pan, always saying nice things to please the president. But when things got tough, he'd immediately lie down and play dead, not daring to make any "bold" moves unless explicitly instructed by the president.

　So, despite rushing to Geneva, Switzerland, for an emergency meeting with Soviet Foreign Minister Gromyko, the meeting was essentially nothing but empty talk. Both sides "frankly exchanged views," each with their own perspectives, and no consensus was reached.

　As for the Senate and House Foreign Affairs Committees, they strictly adhered to the political correctness of "opposing the war while never compromising with the Bolsheviks," opposing all compromises and concessions. They also demanded that if the White House failed to win on the battlefield, it must overwhelm its opponents diplomatically!

　In short, it is just a bunch of "correct nonsense" and requires the president to only say "correct nonsense" in diplomacy.

　How can I describe this? It's like saying something easy when you're not doing it—pretending to help, but actually sabotaging someone.

　In this atmosphere where everyone was busy shifting the blame and shirking responsibility, the situation on the Vietnam War front continued to deteriorate rapidly.

　The 100,000-strong American retreating force, trapped on the outskirts of Bien Hoa, barely held out for 72 hours before collapsing and disintegrating...

　-

　“Some journalists compared the group of our army that withdrew from Saigon and was subsequently trapped outside Bien Hoa with the French army trapped in Dien Bien Phu more than a decade ago. This really overestimated the strength and organization of this armed group.

　The French troops in Dien Bien Phu were all elite field troops, but among our troops now trapped, there are a large number of civilians, civilian personnel and logistics units.

　Even though the French troops at Dien Bien Phu were besieged by the Viet Cong, at least they had positions and fortifications to rely on, and a clear command system until the end. Our troops on the Bien Hoa battlefield were trapped in an open field with no shelter, and without any command over each other, each fighting their own battles.