Yes, Prime Minister of Japan

But in the eyes of the soldiers, this was already quite merciful; at least they didn't open fire on the students with machine guns.

"Clear the dormitories!"

"Clean up the cafeteria!"

"Clear the stadium!"

"Clean up the entire campus!"

The intense military-civilian combat competition at Jeonnam National University ended in complete surrender less than 30 minutes after it began, as the students were brutally beaten with batons and boots by the soldiers.

After the Chonnam National University student contingent suffered a crushing defeat, they were driven back to their classrooms and dormitories, while some radical leaders were tied up and paraded in the square.

Two passionate student representatives vehemently denounced the soldiers:

"You enemies of democracy, your dictatorial actions will be condemned for eternity. You cannot stop our just struggle. We won the first time, and we will win again this time! Think of Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo, they have both been sentenced. Your old men behind the scenes are mostly dead, and no one will protect you anymore."

After saying this, the student leader seemed quite proud, raising his face arrogantly while secretly glancing at the baton that the soldier had already bent, fearing that the next blow would land on his forehead.

While the students mistakenly believed that their excellent speeches could be selected for textbooks and make them famous in the Second Gwangju Democracy Movement, the soldiers on the other side did not think so.

It's not like they don't read books.

The South Korean military participated extensively in Lee Sung-ha's southward movement, naturally exposing soldiers to major discussions on the changing modern world order, such as "epochal change" and "the rise of the East and the fall of the West." With higher wages, a stable livelihood, and better benefits, soldiers not only engaged in extensive discussions about the political future but also published their own internal journals and wrote news articles.

Therefore, the soldiers refuted the students:

"Because we firmly believe that, given South Korea's precarious survival crisis, only Lee Ka-ka's path of unity can save South Korea!"

"How would you kids, sitting on campus enjoying air conditioning and not working full-time, know how much the outside world has changed?"

From a paradoxical perspective, South Korea was facing yet another existential crisis at this time.

Last time, they chose to follow the United States. The Gwangju Democracy Movement was in line with the historical trend at the time and met the political security needs of the South Korean people under rapid economic development. Therefore, even though the United States instigated and betrayed them behind the scenes, the whole event was still just in retrospect.

But now it's different.

Now, South Korea, a self-funded passenger, has reached the point where it must jump off the crumbling train of Europe and America. A few steps later, and it will become prey for neighboring countries in the changing regional landscape.

The soldiers launched into a complex analysis of the contradictions, and then criticized the passionate students:

"A new era, a new order. Some countries get to sit at the table and eat, some are responsible for picking up leftovers under the table, and some are responsible for becoming food on the table. If students like you were in power, you would just blindly follow America's lead, and South Korea would have been on the table and turned into kimchi long ago!"

At this point, when the old politicians, who had already enjoyed the political benefits of two generations under the democratization movement, wanted to continue to maintain their Sixth Republic system, still cling to the United States, and try to use the United States to achieve regional strategic balance, their actions went against the trend of the times and they became the reactionary and backward party.

If this continues, we will only stand on the opposite side of East Asian countries, going from being seated at the table with the big brother to becoming food on the big brother's table.

Major General Zhang Zhihuan and his staff criticized them:

"What do you students know? You hear a few words about 'democracy' and 'freedom' and get all hot-blooded, forgetting who you are. All you do is follow the US around. When you run into a brick wall, you'll know what the day of South Korea's demise is."

Extremely rare, this time it was the ordinary soldiers of the army who, under Li Xinghe's tutelage, not only carried out physical criticism with military batons, but also achieved a complete victory in the verbal debate, conducting a major verbal criticism.

In more sophisticated terms, the South Korean military at this time had already abolished conscription, significantly increased military pay, and also received ideological indoctrination.

The students' empty, passionate words could no longer influence them.

What angered the students at Chonnam National University even more was that Gwangju Station was located just south of the university, and there were dozens of primary, secondary, and tertiary schools nearby.

As banners with Chinese characters proclaiming "Kaka's brilliance shines upon Korea" were erected at Chonnam National University, a number of Lee Sung-ha's supporters appeared in the vicinity. These included not only traitors from Chonnam National University who were helping the Eleventh Air Transport Company, but also students from nearby Donggang University, Gwangju University of Education, Dongshin High School, tourism industry workers, small vendors, and even elementary and middle school teachers and staff.

These people, who normally wouldn't dare show their faces in Gwangju, where the democratic movement has always been considered politically correct, gathered around after the Yeonmun banner at Chonnam National University was torn down and replaced with a banner in Chinese characters.

There were even female students from Dongshin Girls' High School and North Korean Girls' High School, wearing forehead bands with the Chinese characters "Forever Support Li Xinghe," who came over to guide the 11th Air Transport Team.

"Here! Go this way!"

"We'll take you to defeat the student movement headquarters at North Korean University and North Korean Polytechnic University!"

Chapter 914: The seawater is too cold for jumping off Yai Shan; you should go to North Korea to grow potatoes (5000 words)

The night was dark.

The 11th Airborne Special Operations Brigade successfully completed the first phase of its operational mission and took control of Jeonnam National University.

However, it is clear that in a place like Gwangju, the holy land of democracy in their hearts, and the South Korean military command headquarters during the Gwangju Uprising, is the Chosun University located on the east side of Gwangju.

This is a very large educational area.

Besides North Korean University, there are also North Korean Women's High School, North Korean University of Science and Technology, Chonnam National University (Hakdong Campus), North Korean Nursing University, North Korean University Hospital and Dental Hospital. Not far away are also Honam Theological University and Speer Girls' High School.

This is why the students here are so closely integrated with the left-wing movement, which is why the resistance struggle centered on Chosun University was ignited so quickly when Lee Sung-ha declared in Seoul that a seven-nation alliance would be formed and liberals would be excluded.

Local students, Gwangju democracy activists, and politicians from the Democratic Party continue to flock to the campus, hoping to mobilize more students for international mobilization as South Korean workers become less left-leaning.

That very night.

Unaware that Chonnam National University had been captured, the students, who had gone out to buy supplies and were carrying large quantities of alcohol, entered the subway station to take the subway back to campus when they suddenly realized that something was wrong in the subway.

Countless burly men in military uniforms and fully armed black suits stared at them in the subway.

Immediately, the subway turned into a classic scene of soldiers beating up students:

"Buying beer, right?"

"Buying condoms, huh?"

After giving them a good beating, the 11th Air Force disembarked at Namgwangju Station and, led by female students who supported Lee Sung-ha, stormed toward Chosun University.

"Fire! First Battalion to North Korea University, Second Battalion to Polytechnic University, Third Battalion to Nursing University, Fourth Battalion to stake out the hospital entrance!"

"Ah~~"

Screams from men and women echoed through the campus. On the green lawns of several school playgrounds, groups of students scattered and fled. Soldiers rushed into the scene, their batons creating endless afterimages as they pounded the backsides of the ignorant youths, urging them to run even faster.

The soldiers chased and fought at the same time.

"Five kilometers! You're not allowed to stop until you finish five kilometers! You bunch of pigs, you dog-like bastards, did your parents send you to school just so you could do drugs, have sex promiscuously, and expose your asses to just anyone on the playground?"

It is well known that the left-wing movements in the modern Western world, under the guise of freedom but lacking serious leadership, often end up being associated with drug use, promiscuity, sexually transmitted diseases, and mental illness.

So when the soldiers scaled the wall and entered the school, the first thing they saw and heard was a scene from the grove and grass, resembling a damn adult film set. This infuriated them. "You're having a sex party here? Do you know how hard we had to run all the way here?"

Watching the men and women running wildly across the playground, crying and screaming, getting beaten with sticks for running too slowly and having their heads struck with iron rods for running off course, Major General Zhang Zhihuan felt a surge of smug satisfaction:

"It's truly a scene of joy and harmony between the military and civilians!"

The school district was quickly overrun, finally attracting the attention of the Gwangju City government.

At that time, they were actually assigning official positions and preparing to establish the Eighth Republic. So many people were quite pleased with their promotions.

Taking the subway from Namgwangju Station, where Chosun University is located, and heading west for less than six or seven stops, you will reach the core area of ​​the Gwangju citizens' resistance: the Gwangju Metropolitan City Hall and the Gwangju Bus Terminal.

Just like their predecessors 40 years ago, the people of Gwangju once again blocked the roads with buses, using them as ramming vehicles for attacks and as defensive barriers. Only this time, they had few weapons and lacked systematic combat training.

The 31st Division, upon entering this area, immediately declared:

"Using military batons to beat students is considered a favor. We wouldn't use military batons to beat you!"

But the citizens of Gwangju across the street did not agree:

"Defend our God!"

"Right stick, die!"

"The people from Lingnan have opened fire!"

Whether based on religious factors, regional factors, or the city's habitual traditions, the citizens of Gwangju have demonstrated a fighting spirit far exceeding that of other places.

The recent Battle of Yeouido, while partly due to the fanatical fighting spirit of evangelical believers, was primarily caused by the confined space and the shock of the collapsing cathedral, leaving them nowhere to escape and resulting in thousands being killed by machine guns and artillery.

Meanwhile, the citizens of Gwangju gathered in the square to engage in a dual combat of cold and hot weapons with the 11th Air Force and the 31st Division.

A drone flew in from the sky, towing a can that sprayed out terrifying capsaicin.

This is something the 31st Division temporarily found in a food processing plant in the Hanam Industrial Zone of Gwangju, their base. They're now handing it over to the angry citizens of Gwangju, hoping to further fuel the democratic fervor ignited by the Democratic Party's calls. You, Lim Yong-jae, are you free? You, Lim Yong-jae, are you even available...?

Capsaicin, originally added to spicy chicken noodles, fell from the sky and landed on the heads of citizens. The hot chili peppers stung their skin, noses, eyes, and mouths, causing them to scream and flee in terror.

"Charge!"

The soldiers of the 31st Division rushed forward.

During the struggle, the soldiers did not hesitate to pull the trigger. The shock of the gunfire was an effective way to drive away the citizens and students.

In the vast square, soldiers ran wildly, chasing and beating citizens. At best, they hit people on the head with batons; at worst, they caused lead poisoning from bullets. The fanatical crowd of hundreds of thousands quickly collapsed.

The no-holds-barred fighting tournament returned with the same result.

The soldiers advanced step by step, while the disorganized citizens fled in disarray.

From the dead of night until the early hours of the next day, the citizens of Gwangju retreated step by step, gradually transforming from a determined fighter against the dictatorial rebels into a disoriented escape into small neighborhoods, beginning to question the meaning of life.

Clearly, the situation is not as tense as it was in the 80s, and the people of Gwangju are not as fighting as they imagined. Their behavior is more like a large-scale cosplay.

As for those who had the strongest will to fight, they were either killed or wounded.

On the contrary, Mayor Jiang Qizheng and a group of politicians from the Democratic Party are fleeing southwest.

They happened to be escaping from the Gwangju Bus Terminal, so they drove dozens of long-distance buses out of the blockade and sped along the highway, followed by many cars that followed without their knowledge, forming a spectacular escape convoy that was even filmed and posted on a South Korean short video platform.

The 80-kilometer escape route was not far.

Because there are no major cities south of Gwangju, except for Mokpo, the seat of Jeollanam-do Province.

This is a fishing port and a trading port. The city area is far smaller than Gwangju, and of course, it lacks the determination to 'defend democracy'.

While being pursued and fleeing, they eventually discovered that they had escaped to the southwesternmost corner of the Korean Peninsula—truly the ends of the earth.

This was Mokpo Maritime University, a place where retreat was impossible; one more step and they would plunge into the sea. This university, built with its back to the sea, offered a little help to the resistance forces who had come from afar, providing them with bandages, food, and water. Beyond that, there was nothing else they could do but send them to the newly constructed port area.

Kim Hyun-young, president of North Korean university, knelt on the ground, bewildered.

"This is already the southwest corner of the three thousand miles of rivers and mountains of Korea. We have come to the ends of the earth, and we have probably reached the end of our journey."

"Stop! Stop!"

They had only rested for less than 10 minutes in the half-finished reclaimed land area when, looking up, they saw the 11th Airborne Special Operations Brigade and the 31st Loyal and Brave Division, with "Asia-Pacific Innovation" written on their foreheads, charging over again.

Shin Seon-geun, a professor at a North Korean university, stood by the sea with a gentle sea breeze and couldn't help but shed tears of sorrow:

"Alas, perhaps this is our moment of reckoning. That Lee Sung-ha is as despicable as Kublai Khan and Huang Taiji, relentlessly hunting down us democrats. We thought we had won the 30-year struggle for democratization, finally overthrowing Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo with all our might, but then came Park Geun-hye and Yoon Seok-yeol, these vermin. And now Lee Sung-ha has emerged, his evil heart deceiving heaven and earth, and he will destroy our Republic of Korea."

A large group of scholars, professors, and democracy activists shared their inexplicable sense of national subjugation amidst the chilly winds blowing from the shore:

"Yashan faces south, Seoul faces north!"

"Jump! The situation is hopeless now. Gwangju has fallen, and even Jeju Island has been occupied by those villains, who have built a naval base there. The world may be vast, but we have nowhere to land!"

"The commander of the 11th Air Transport Command is Zhang Zhihuan. Isn't he just another Zhang Hongfan?!"

Of course, even if these pro-democracy activists wanted to go to Jeju Island to stage a surprise attack, Li Xinghe would never give them the opportunity to become independent. There was already a Jeju Island independence organization organized by Li Xinghe on the island, serving as a strategic reserve. Even if they went, they would have to experience firsthand the heavy iron rods of the G Brigade's garrison.

Seeing thousands of people crowding around the seaside, performing some kind of 'Loyalty and Righteousness at Yai Shan', the 31st Division and the 11th Airborne Special Forces, who had parked their cars at a distance to watch the show, were speechless.

"Are these people out of their minds? Do they really think this is Yaishan, and they're the Song Dynasty royal family being searched by the Mongols?"

"If you get too caught up in a role, your brain is generally beyond repair."

"That stupid professor is shouting all over the place, why don't the students say something? Do they have no idea what jumping into the sea at Yai Shan means?"

The officers sat down to watch the play.

Some officers even held up their phones to livestream, shouting through megaphones:

"Jump! Jump now! We're broadcasting this live!"

"Anyone who doesn't jump is a grandson!"

"South Korea doesn't care whether you're here or not. Do you think you're some important figure?"

The pro-democracy activists, being chased, were furious, their faces flushed. They all believed they bore the mission of leading South Korea towards a democratic and free nation, and that if they jumped in, it would be a loss for the Republic of Korea and for all South Koreans; only in this way could they satisfy their self-image.

The Koreans must be very sad to lose them, right?

Who knew that these despicable, shameless, and brazen South Korean soldiers would actually be shouting things like 'they are not important at all'?

Finally, after dawdling for more than thirty minutes, the old professor who had been the first to express his feelings couldn't help but pinch his nose and shout:

"The cliff is here, let's jump!"

Then, with a series of thuds, hundreds of people jumped in with the old man.

As for Gwangju Mayor Kang Ki-jung, who was leading the team, he and a large group of bureaucrats hid to the side, preferring to be subjected to Korean-style bone-setting massage with large iron rods by the pursuing soldiers rather than jump in and die for their country.

Of course, before jumping into the sea, one must understand one thing: the water temperature isn't exactly pleasant. At this time of year in March, the water temperature is only around 5 degrees Celsius in the early morning, and may even be lower.