Hawaii, Oahu, the town of Waipio, eight kilometers north of Pearl City.
The sun was setting in the west, on the north bank of the Ford River, Lieutenant General Jun Imamura, commander of the 16th Army of the Japanese Army, stood on a high hill with high spirits, raised his command knife, and shouted, "Kill him--"
"Rumble--"
The staff quickly conveyed Imamura Jun's order to the artillery position, and concentrated a total of fifty-four Type 38 75mm field guns and thirty-six Type 99 105mm mountain guns from the two divisions. At the same time, shining fireworks were sprayed out, and the ground was
Shivering under the shelling, the neat and ferocious shelling caused trembling ripples to appear on the water of the Ford River, and smoke almost enveloped the artillery position.
The U.S. military defense line south of the Ford River was suddenly covered with debris shot from steel, and turned into a hell on earth amidst the steaming fire and gunpowder smoke.
As the engineers bravely built a pontoon bridge for vehicles on the river more than ten meters away, Imamura, who calmly observed the battle situation through the telescope, once again issued an order.
The team's one hundred Type 95 light tanks quickly drove onto the pontoon bridge. The tracks made a "click" sound. The leather boots worn by the Japanese army soldiers stepped across the pontoon bridge. The uniform sound made people palpitate and bright.
The bayonet shines brightly in the setting sun.
When the *** Army landed on Oahu, it was the newly formed Sixteenth Army, which had jurisdiction over the First Division, the Sixteenth Division, the Thirty-fifth Division and the Thirty-eighth Division. These four
The divisions are all Class A divisions of the Japanese army. Among them, the First Division and the Sixteenth Division are equipped with tank regiments, which can be said to be quasi-mechanized troops in the Japanese army.
Imamura's command was quite satisfactory. He used the 38th Division to clean up some strongholds deployed by the US military in the Colau Mountains, and the 35th Division was responsible for the fortresses at Sunset Beach and the newly occupied Eva Beach.
Properly repair it, be alert to theoretical counterattacks by the U.S. Navy, and at the same time protect the island’s traffic arteries and bridges.
The remaining 1st Division and the 16th Division, with a total of eight infantry regiments and two tank regiments, carried out an all-out offensive with Pearl City as the center.
The offensive of the 16th Division can be described as lightning-fast. Under the ferocious bombardment, the US military, whose psychological defenses had already collapsed, chose to escape or surrender.
The performance of the U.S. military in the Waipio area north of Pearl City was unflattering. This surprised Lieutenant General Gao Morioka, the commander of the 16th Division, who was preparing for a tough battle. At first, he was worried that the U.S. military was luring the enemy deeper.
The plan was to let the troops deliberately slow down the attack speed to ensure the safety of both wings.
However, as the main buildings along the way were easily captured and more and more US troops surrendered, it was basically certain that the US military was no longer interested in fighting, so the Japanese attack speed unconsciously accelerated.
On the way to the main urban area of South Pearl City, in addition to huge craters, there are cannons and vehicles, corpses and rifles, bullet bags and wide-brimmed hats, shell casings and ammunition boxes all over the ground. There is no street fighting as imagined.
There was a hail of bullets, no sudden anti-tank fire, no flying cold guns, and no white soldiers holding bayonets or carrying explosive bags to carry out suicide attacks.
The morale of the Japanese army was high, and commanders at all levels drove the troops to advance rapidly. Everything seemed to be going well, but several earth-shaking explosions came from the south, which gave Morioka Gao, who was sitting in the armored command vehicle, a sense of foreboding.
An hour later, the tank regiment of the 16th Division responsible for the northern attack did not fire a single shot. The infantry following the Bean tanks successfully arrived at Pearl with more than 2,000 American prisoners without firing a single shot. The north end of the bridge.
Morioka Gao's premonition became a reality. The bridge across the Pearl River, connecting Beicheng District and Nancheng District of Pearl City, had been blown up by the US troops who were in an emergency retreat. Sporadic artillery fire and bullets were fired from the south bank from time to time.
Since the engineers were still stranded along the Ford River, the attacking troops had to temporarily stop here, firing at the U.S. troops on the other side while waiting for the engineers to build a bridge, and then continue the attack.
Just when the Sixteenth Division stopped advancing, the Japanese naval aviation force, composed of more than a hundred carrier-based aircraft, flew over the battlefield.
Since no targets worth bombing were found between the Ford River and the Pearl River, the fleet had to turn further south to Pearl City. Unfortunately, when preparing to drop the bomb, the commander of the Naval Air Force received an order to suspend the bombing - the commander in charge of Hawaii Commander Jun Imamura during the war believed that the U.S. military had lost the will to resist, and now the Imperial Army should move forward steadily to fully bring Oahu under control instead of accepting a ruin.
Lieutenant General Gao Morioka, the commander of the 16th Division, came to the Pearl River, which was more than 40 meters wide and was half sea water and half river water. He listened helplessly to the intensive gunfire coming from the west of Pearl City and told Chief of Staff Imaka Major General Dafu said:
"I am going to lose to Nakazawa-kun's first division in this gambling battle! It was really a mistake. I originally thought that I would launch an attack with lightning speed, but the US military was at a loss to deal with it and had no time to worry about the bridge. ....Now it seems that the Americans have already prepared a plan to deal with it!"
Imaka Dafu comforted him: "The division commander does not need to worry. Except for the bridge in the central city, the offensive route of the first division is not blocked by rivers. But we are different. We can fight like this now. It is already very long." Not bad!”
"That's right, I shouldn't be too greedy!"
Morioka nodded proudly: "The Americans have preached that they will resist on Oahu for a month, but it has been less than five days. We have occupied most of Oahu. We only need to occupy Pearl City and more." To the south, Honolulu and Oahu were declared victorious!
"Konaka-kun, I have to admire the decision-making of the commanders in the base camp. The Imperial Army obtained the unsinkable aircraft carrier of the Hawaiian Islands without any bloodshed, and now has the initiative in the Pacific battlefield. It only needs to capture the islands of New Guinea and Australia. and New Zealand, then the Pacific Ocean will truly become the inland sea of the empire. By then, whether it is war or peace, the initiative will be in our hands, and the hegemony of the empire can be expected!"
"Yes, Your Excellency, Division Commander!"
Konaka Daifuku said in a joyful tone: "If this world war is won, the empire will become a leading power like the British Empire, and the names of the conquerors will be recorded in history, and they will be remembered for thousands of years! People in the country like it. Looking at China's "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", I guess what people will talk about in the future will be our great achievements!"
"Haha! I hope so!"
Morioka Gao stroked Rendanhu and laughed arrogantly.
Just when the Sixteenth Division was stalling, the First Division, which was attacking from Waipahu, advanced with great success and crashed into the western part of Pearl City.
A tank squadron in the lead of the 1st Division, together with an armored infantry squadron, fought fiercely along the way and passed through the entire western part of the city in just a quarter of an hour.
However, just as the tank squadron approached the bridge connecting Xicheng District and Dongcheng District, it suddenly encountered fierce artillery fire from the US military. Five tank tanks and two armored personnel carriers were hit by bullets and burned.
At this time, due to rushing too fast, the American troops guarding Xicheng that had not been cleared attacked from behind. The Japanese forward troops had no choice but to retreat while fighting, and withdrew from Xicheng District of Pearl City.
The commander of the 1st Division, Lieutenant General Mitsuo Nakazawa, was very calm. He did not believe how much resistance the U.S. military still had in Pearl City after the continuous battles. He immediately ordered the infantry to launch a general attack with tanks as the lead. Regarding the combat effectiveness of his own division,
, Mitsuo Nakazawa was full of confidence. In his opinion, the U.S. Army was a bunch of new recruits who had just gotten their weapons, and there was nothing to be afraid of. All they had to do was engage in a hand-to-hand combat with bayonets and blood, and the morale of the U.S. Army would be greatly reduced.
You will hit rock bottom in an instant.
Although the base camp and the top military officials are uneasy, the middle-level and lower-level officers of the Communist Party of China are full of confidence in the Pacific war. The U.S. industry is developed, but it will take some time to transform into guns, aircraft, and tanks, and it was not until the second half of last year
Before the war in Europe, the United States only had an army of 100,000 people. In the exaggeration of the *** media, Americans are businessmen and hedonists who travel around the world to do business. Women in that country, in order to pursue a pair of thin
Silk stockings, you can even give everything, which is not rational at all. No one will believe how strong the people of such a merchant country are.
After all, Japan has the Osaka Fourth Division as a living example of a merchant division. Many jokes have become an effective way to relieve fatigue in the military. Most officers and soldiers are full of hope for victory in the war with the United States.
expect.
The bravery of the Japanese is indeed not exaggerated. After all, the First Division is a first-class A division. After being equipped with a tank regiment, the number of the entire division has exceeded 30,000. With such a powerful force to deal with a defense line, it is already in tatters.
In a city full of holes, the consequences are conceivable.
Under the leadership of tanks and armored vehicles, densely packed Japanese soldiers, like locusts, passed through the streets, constantly dividing their troops to inspect every building. The main force continued to move forward, attacking the bridge that had just been attacked.
The U.S. military seemed to feel the crisis and fired artillery shells rapidly. The grenades kept falling on the Japanese crowd with a sharp whistling sound, taking away lives one by one. However, the Japanese soldiers did not flinch and instead accelerated the attack.
, rushed towards the place where the shelling was.
The strength of the U.S. military was limited after all. House after house was either bombarded by tanks or artillery, or was thrown into grenades by the approaching Japanese soldiers, emitting dazzling flames. The remaining U.S. officers and soldiers escaped from the house in panic. Fortunately, they could still raise their hands to save their lives.
Most of them were either mowed down by the dense bullets and left dead on the spot, or were stabbed with bloody holes by bayonets. In terms of bayonet skills, the Japanese army was indeed unique. Even the Anjia army did not dare to claim a guaranteed victory.
In combat, you can only gain the absolute upper hand by relying on the advantage of close combat firepower.
Pearl City is not big, and the area of West City accounts for one-third of the entire city. In the face of the powerful Japanese offensive, the U.S. military was defeated, and the captured U.S. soldiers lined up in a long line behind the attacking Japanese troops.
More than a dozen Type 95 light tanks drove majestically to the bridgehead. Just as they were about to cross the bridge, a shell roared in and hit a four-story high-rise building at the bridgehead. The bricks and stones were scattered everywhere, and several Japanese infantrymen were dropped.
His head was cut open with sharp fragments, and his head was dripping with blood. He couldn't help but curse.
The Japanese army's thin-skinned bean tank did not stop. It increased its horsepower and rushed onto the bridge. After crossing the bridge, it found the US artillery position. A burst of intensive fire beat the US military to howling ghosts. Under the deterrence of the subsequent infantry, the US military defended
Jun raised his hands obediently and became a prisoner.
As the First Division broke into Dongcheng District, the US military's defense line had completely collapsed. The remaining troops did not dare to neglect and urgently retreated to Honolulu to continue to defend.
For the current U.S. Army, it no longer cares about winning or losing, it only depends on how long it can persist and maintain the honor of the United States.
...
Washington, White House.
In the conference room, U.S. President Roosevelt was sitting in a wheelchair, holding a thick National Defense Address in his hand. This was compiled urgently by the Army Intelligence Department to facilitate the President to better understand the situation of the army.
By Roosevelt's side were Secretary of State Hull, Chief of Staff George Marshall, Secretary of War Stimson, Secretary of the Navy Knox, Chief of Naval Operations Harold Stark, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral William Seeley,
Major General Arnold, commander of the U.S. Army Air Force, and others looked solemn and listened carefully to the explanation of the war situation by Major General Myers, director of the Army Intelligence Agency:
"As of yesterday, the battle on Oahu, Hawaii, is still ongoing. However, according to a telegram from Lieutenant General Short, commander of the Hawaiian Army, various units were basically separated by the Japanese landing force. Pearl City could no longer hold on under the assault of the powerful Japanese troops.
How long will it take, the troops are expected to make their final resistance in Honolulu? General Short said that he will live or die with the city and will not let himself fall into the hands of the Japanese army."
Everyone in the conference room was trembling.
Since the beginning of the war, all fronts have been in a disadvantageous state. Guam and Wake Island have fallen, and the Hawaiian Islands, Philippine Islands and Midway Islands have all been attacked. Moreover, the situation on the New Guinea Island held by the Australian army is also not good, and the Japanese army has swept away thousands of troops.
With this momentum, it quickly gained the initiative in the Pacific War.
"Can the Air Force send a plane to bring General Short back?" Roosevelt asked with a frown.
"Can't do it!"
Arnold flatly rejected this suggestion:
"Mr. President, we must realize that with the destruction of the Pacific Fleet, the Navy has basically lost its control of the Pacific Ocean. As for the Air Force, it cannot be denied that the new passenger aircraft we developed after purchasing the patent rights from Nanhua can be used after adding auxiliary fuel tanks.
We flew to Oahu, but we couldn’t fly back without refueling. Moreover, Oahu’s airspace has been occupied by Japanese naval aviation. Sending fighter planes to rescue people at this time is tantamount to sending a sheep into a tiger’s mouth.”
"However, not long after the war started, we lost an army lieutenant general. This was a severe blow to the morale of the army. I think it is necessary to save General Short's life!"
Roosevelt insisted.
Arnold was also very stubborn: "Mr. President, instead of wasting energy to save General Short's life, it is better to think about how to save General MacArthur, who is already in an extremely difficult situation. General MacArthur is a hero of World War I and the former president of West Point Military Academy, and served as
The position of Chief of Staff of the Army has great prestige among the army and the people. If something happens to General Short, the government can still suppress the media news, but if something happens to General MacArthur, the impact on morale will be immeasurable!"
Although Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army George Marshall had a long-standing feud with MacArthur, he also agreed with Major General Arnold’s analysis:
"That's right, Mr. President, I also believe that Douglas should be withdrawn from the Philippines immediately. According to the battle report, the main force of the Japanese army has been in Phangga Sippi, Lagonoy Bay, in the southeast of Luzon Island, and Lamon Bay, in the central and eastern part of the island.
The landings at Maoban and San Fernando in Lingayin Bay in the northwest, plus the Japanese troops landing in the northern area, made it impossible for the entire Philippine defense line to hold on!
"The Japanese army came with ferocity. They did not follow common sense and take the lead in attacking Manila, the political and economic center of the Philippines. Instead, they occupied the fortress on the Bataan Peninsula first, blocking our army's attempt to use the Bataan Peninsula for final resistance. According to the staff and
The intelligence department concluded that Manila can hold on for at most half a month. If MacArthur falls into the hands of the Japanese army, the United States will lose face and the Japanese government will definitely use this to make a big fuss."
Hull interjected and asked: "George, I remember that you ordered General MacArthur to evacuate in the name of Chief of Staff two days ago. Didn't he obey the order?"
"He's just a stubborn ass!"
Marshall smiled bitterly and said: "During the last European war, he and I had some personal grudges. He thought I was laughing at his failure. Speaking of which, Douglas is also a bloody man. After the San Fernando defense line fell, he once
At one point I was about to pull out a gun and commit suicide, but I was stopped! The only solution now is for the president to personally call and ask Douglas to put the overall situation first, otherwise I am worried that he will coexist and perish with the Philippines!"
"Okay, I'll call General MacArthur after the meeting!"
Roosevelt nodded and said: "In the name of the United States, I will order him to evacuate the Philippines immediately. I will give him the hope of leading troops to counterattack the Philippines, so that he will have to think more about his own safety! But I have a question. Now the Philippine Islands are also
How can we save General MacArthur and his family when surrounded by Japanese aviation?"
Everyone looked at each other, feeling that the problem was difficult.
Different from the original Philippine Battle in history, in this time and space, the Japanese army gained control of the Lanyin Islands as early as early 1938, and built a navy in East Borneo, Sulawesi, Maluku Islands and West New Guinea.
bases and air force bases, plus the Caroline Islands, Marshall Islands and other islands that Japan acquired from Germany after World War I, the Philippine Islands were under heavy siege by the Japanese army.
Before fighting the Japanese army, no one realized this embarrassing situation. Now as the war progresses, it is discovered how obvious the strategic advantage of the Japanese army is.
Chief of Naval Operations Stark suddenly suggested: "Our navy also has some submarines deployed in the Hawaiian Islands and the Philippine Islands. If the arrangement is clever, it may not be impossible to pick up General MacArthur and General Short, but the action must be fast, otherwise we will wait for the Japanese troops on the ground.
The troops have occupied the port facilities and cannot evacuate anymore!"
Roosevelt cheered up: "Okay, in that case, the Navy please immediately formulate a rescue plan, and the two generals and their families must be rescued within the next two days! The United States has shed too much blood, and I don't want to
See more blood shed!”
At this time, Deputy Secretary of the Army Robert Patterson quickly walked into the conference room with a copy of the telegram. Secretary of the Army Stimson took it and read it, with a joyful smile on his face and said to Roosevelt and others:
"Finally there is good news... At four o'clock this morning, Nanhua's army launched an attack on the Japanese army in Iraq and the Khuzestan region of Persia at the same time. The Japanese army's painstaking defense line has been torn apart, and the war has begun.
It is developing in depth!”
"Is this true?"
After Admiral William Seeley returned to the United States from his trip to Asia, he was appointed Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and had greater power than when he served as Chief of Naval Staff. At this time, he heard that he had met three months ago.
The warlord leader finally took action and asked in surprise.
Roosevelt also finished reading the telegram at this time, nodded and said: "This is forwarded by the General Staff of South China to the Army Staff, and a simple battle report is attached. South China stated that this is only the first step of the military operation, and the Japanese troops will be dispatched later."
After being expelled from the Middle East, the South China Army will fight steadily to drive all the Japanese troops in the subcontinent, Burma and Malay into the sea, and then cooperate with us in the Pacific Operation!"
Hull said happily: "My previous trip to Asia finally paid off. After the Nationalist Government and the South China Government declared war on the Japanese, the South China Army finally began to fight against the Japanese, so the pressure we faced was reduced."
Many, I hope this can be an opportunity for the Allied forces to launch a counterattack!"
Secretary of the Navy Knox said: "It is too early to talk about counterattack. Now the United States does not have enough ships to suppress the actions of the Japanese navy! However, it is a good thing to be able to contain some of the Japanese forces. We
You should call and congratulate!
"In addition, if possible, I suggest strengthening the relationship between the United States and South China. I heard that the fiancée of South China President An Yi is a citizen of the United States. Is this true?"
This last question was asked to Major General Myers, the director of Army Intelligence.
Miles shrugged: "Mr. Knox, I think you asked the wrong person. This should be the scope of Director Hoover's authority. Unfortunately, he did not attend the meeting today. Why don't I ask him for you later..."
....”
Roosevelt raised his hand and said with a smile: "You don't need to ask anyone else for this, I know it. You also know that my special adviser on Far East policy, Mr. Zhang Xi, is a Chinese, and he is friends with An Yi's two fiancées.
, I met those two girls at a private party he held.
"Do you know who is the chairman of the now famous Fox Department Store chain? It is one of An Yi's fiancées, Ms. Lin Xiaoran! And the other fiancée, Ms. Lin Xiaotong, is the chairman of Meiya Media. The two ladies are twins
, came to the United States during the economic crisis. In the second year of my term as president, after states successively repealed the Chinese Exclusion Act, the two ladies obtained American citizenship. If polygamy was not prohibited by American law, I would have thought
I will officiate their marriage in person, so that the relationship between Nanhua and the United States will be much closer!"
Most of the people here, no matter how little information they have, know that An Yi already has two wives. Now that they heard that he has two fiancées, they all feel incredible.
No one thought much about Roosevelt's outspoken relationship with the Chinese consortium. After all, the Chinese consortium had contributed a lot of political funds in the two presidential elections. All the media controlled by the Chinese consortium were cheering for Roosevelt, and everyone here benefited.
who.
Hull is very open-minded: "We should respect the laws of our allies. In the Republic of South China, polygamy is currently allowed. I think this may exist as a special case! Dear Franklin, in Newfoundland next month, you are not
Is there a party with Mr. Churchill? I think this meeting can be more relaxed and invite Nanhua Chairman An Yi to attend, and by the way, An Yi and his fiancée can get married in the United States. This may be an opportunity to promote bilateral relations!"
"this--"
Roosevelt hesitated for a moment and finally nodded: "Okay, I'll have a phone call with Winston after the meeting to discuss this matter..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
***: Thank you all for your tips, subscriptions and *** support!