Chapter 181: The Vanished 200th Division

The Expeditionary Force main body, i. e., the Fifth Army, and the Allied Forces headquarters, successfully withdrew to Myitkyina.

Even though the Expeditionary Force withdrew early this time, the Expeditionary Force still lost a lot of supplies in Mandalay.

Mandalay can be called a hub of the Myanmar Campaign, so the Allied Forces also stockpiled massive supplies there; now all those supplies are gone.

The Expeditionary Force's supplies were centered on a few points: Mandalay, Lashu, Wandian.

Bamo and Myitkyina are just frontier towns; they have nothing at all.

Fortunately Lashu was held, so at least Lashu's supplies can be safely shipped back home.

Originally Du Yuming had already made the worst‑case plan when retreating to Bamo.

What he never imagined was that Bamo turned out far better than he expected—truly beyond imagination.

A field hospital had already been erected, and the wounded who arrived in Bamo first had already received treatment.

Especially after he arrived in Bamo and saw those supplies, he could hardly believe it.

The Independent Regiment soldiers guarding the supplies, upon seeing Du Yuming, handed over the goods; the inventory was as follows: Transport Vehicles 30, Mauser rifles 3,000, ammunition 1,000,000 rounds, Type‑94 mountain guns 20, various artillery shells, Canned Beef 20,000, vegetable cans 100,000, sugar 10,000 packs, Medical Packs 20,000, rice 100,000 jin.

Good man, Du Yuming inhaled a sharp gasp.

"Which rich landlord left so many supplies in Bamo?" Du Yuming turned and said to the crowd.

Everyone, upon hearing, laughed merrily.

The days of high pressure made it hard for everyone to finally reach a safe place, and a hint of relaxation appeared on their faces.

This now counts as replenishing all the lost supplies.

However, after Du Yuming learned that the supplies were left by Jiang Anguo of the th Division Independent Regiment, he said no more.

Because of his status, it was inappropriate to make jokes, and he felt deeply grateful.

Jiang Anguo's status, in fact, meant little to everyone, since a few relatives of the top leader are perfectly normal; you can joke around casually, but if it crosses into official matters, it can easily lead to being sidelined.

Jiang Anguo also left a good impression on everyone; even those who never met Jiang Anguo would speak of his virtues.

It was Jiang Anguo's early warning of the Japanese Army's movements that allowed the Expeditionary Force main body to retreat safely to Bamo; otherwise Du Yuming could not imagine the consequences.

If the Japanese Army opened the southwest gate, it would be a cataclysmic disaster, and Du Yuming could not even imagine it.

Actually these supplies were only part of the system reward Jiang Anguo received for capturing Bamo and Myitkyina; Jiang Anguo left some to supplement the Expeditionary Force Fifth Army.

These supplies, if rationed, could sustain seven days; with further saving, ten days to half a month is no problem, and with a bit of scrimping, they could hold for a month.

The Fifth Army's retreat to Bamo and Myitkyina numbered fewer than 30,000, including directly subordinate units such as the logistics corps, Engineer Regiment, Artillery Regiment, Motor Transport Corps, and the new‑recruit training center, among others.

It entered Myanmar fully and withdrew fully, and the 96th Division did not take part in any combat; that division had over 9,000 men, under Division Commander Yu Shaobu.

However, during this retreat to Bamo, the 96th Division served as the rear guard, engaged with small Japanese pursuit units, and successfully repelled them.

Among them were mainly some personnel from the Myanmar Allied Forces headquarters, including many Americans, and, of course, a contingent of British who remained in Mandalay, totaling over 3,000 people.

Also the new 38th Division's Sun Liren and the newly formed 22nd Division's Liao Yaoxiang were heading to India, on the retreat route.

And they also received Du Yuming's signal that there was no need to return to rescue the British; if they were again led by the British, this Expeditionary Force Commander could even commit suicide.

Du Lvming's repeated command error was that there was no need to split forces for rescue; in fact, letting Sun Liren and Liao Yaoxiang retreat directly to Bamo was far safer.

Du Yuming sent Liaison Officer Ma Youwei to Lashu to contact the th Division, and a Telegram was returned.

Du Yuming also learned of the th Division's situation and shouted, "Why is the th Division not at Lashu?"

It should be known that the original retreat plan had the th Division, as an elite unit, withdrawing to Lashu—not back home—but relying on Lashu's terrain for defense.

Only because the historical 56th Division moved so fast it seized Xibu first, and the th Division, due to supply issues, had to cross Xibu's mountains back home, suffering heavy losses.

But because Jiang Anguo arrived, he not only reinforced the th Division, though the dispatched troops were few; later, in the Xibu campaign, water transport aircraft were used to resupply the th Division and provide air support during the Xibu offensive.

Perhaps also because the th Division had not successfully returned to Lashu.

This forced Du Yuming, lacking intelligence, not to be careless; he could only enter Wild Man Mountain, hoping to bypass the Japanese and retreat home. No one expected that after May, Myanmar entered a dreadful rainy season.

In fact, if Du Yuming dared to push north in one go, relying on the Fifth Army's elite troops, there would be no need to fear the Japanese at Myitkyina and Bamo, because the Japanese small detachments numbered less than a thousand and could not pose a major threat to the Fifth Army.

"The th Division moved south," Fifth Army Chief of Staff Luo Youlun took the Telegram from Commander Du and read it carefully.

Then he said, "What is the th Division doing moving south?"

The Expeditionary Force Command also wore a look of startled doubt!

Du Yuming was also puzzled.

One could say the th Division suffered the greatest loss after entering the Myanmar battlefield; as for the Forty-nine Division and the temporarily formed Fifty-five Division, they simply offered no resistance and fled back.

What is the th Division doing moving south? The fighting has ended; next they can go into defense, and all units that have fought for months need time to recuperate.

Although the entry into the Myanmar campaign was not smooth, at least the Expeditionary Force's main body was preserved; without British interference, Du Yuming still felt confident he could hold northern Myanmar.

Regarding the th Division's movements, Du Yuming's mind could not keep up; why wasn't the th Division resting at Lashu now, when Lashu's supplies were the richest among the Expeditionary Force's three bases?

Yet it chose to move south at this time.

"Continue probing the th Division's movements," Du Yuming said immediately.

The Expeditionary Force's situation had to be reported to Chongqing almost daily, and the th Division was the Principal's prized asset; if trouble arose now, Du Yuming himself would be in big trouble.

Ma Youwei at Lashu also promptly replied to Du Yuming's Telegram, stating that the th Division's radio had gone silent.

Indeed, the th Division's radio silence could only be reached via Lin Yi's radio.

With the current th Division's organization, the radio has already been issued down to the company level; if there weren't enough operators, it could even be assigned to Platoon units.

Jiang Anguo didn't even know where Dai Anlan was now; you ask why he didn't know, because Dai Anlan and Lin Yi hadn't informed him—Lin Yi was the one who told the th Division's marching route.

Dai Anlan, having walked the route again, was filled with countless emotions.

During the chaotic retreat, Dai Anlan worked meticulously, even mapping out the marching route, hoping that one day they could strike back.

Unexpectedly, after only a few days of rest at Lashu, they set out again.

The schedule was so tight that even the th Division didn't have time to rest, yet for Dai Anlan it seemed already routine, and the th Division's soldiers felt the same.

Because they are elite, they fight as elite.

Upon hearing news of a counterattack on Tonggu, the th Division's soldiers were extremely excited.

Retreating all the way from Tonggu is undoubtedly a blow to the proud th Division soldiers; now that they can strike back at Tonggu, they are naturally very excited.

Tonggu was not lost because the th Division fell; it was truly the British Army's incompetence. The command originally hoped for coordination between the th Division and the British Army stationed in Tonggu.

The Expeditionary Force entered Myanmar lacking heavy firepower, and the British happened to fill that gap.

However, the British Army has no combat capability at all; from top to bottom there is not a single spark of fighting will, and they are completely unaware of the Japanese's terrifying nature.

Moreover, the British have been thinking about how to escape from the very beginning.

And how to use allies to check the Japanese Army; for the United Kingdom, as long as they hold India it would be absolutely secure, and the Myanmar battlefield can be completely abandoned.

This can be seen from the start, when the British refused the Expeditionary Force's entry into Myanmar.

They wasted several months in vain; had they entered Myanmar earlier to set up defenses, relying on Myanmar's terrain they could have completely blocked the Japanese around Tonggu, at least the situation wouldn't be as it is now.

The British betraying their allies is not a first; it was evident from Dunkirk that the British used the French for a massive retreat.