Chapter 241: Operation No. 19, Zhejiang‑Jiangxi Campaign

After the intelligence office's reports were confirmed by the Chongqing side.

In the conference room, everyone's mood also became excited.

These years we've been kept down by the Japanese; when can we finally unleash such a fierce outburst!

"What?! It was really done by our own people?!" O Zhen was the first to jump up, snatched the tea cup from Wu Yizhi's hand, tipped it back and gulped a large mouthful, then shouted excitedly, "My God! We bombed Wuhan?! We wiped out the Little Devil's airfield?! Thrilling! So thrilling!"

Li Yutang's eternally unchanged ice‑cold face also showed a rare hint of excitement. He walked to the map, looked at Wuhan's location, muttering, "So that means the enemy's air power in Wuhan is temporarily neutralized? Then our pressure at Changsha..."

Wu Yizhi, as chief of staff, immediately thought a step deeper: "Bo Ling, the commander asks us to watch the defensive zone's Japanese Army, fearing they might act desperate and launch a retaliatory attack. Without air cover, their ground forces will become more cautious, but possibly more frantic!"

Xue Yue ignored the crowd's discussion. He slowly set down the telegram, walked to the map, picked up a red pencil, and fiercely drew a huge "X" over Wuhan's position.

Then, he turned, looked at his excited subordinates, and his face showed that trademark, so‑called "Tiger" snarling grin.

Xue Yue also learned from the Chongqing telegram that this plan was by the th Division Independent Regiment's Jiang Anguo, and the mission's location was near Changsha, Changde!

"Jiang Anguo... well, you Jiang Anguo!" He punched the map, "You kid, you really make us proud! Make Chinese soldiers proud!"

Of course, Xue Yue was very puzzled.

That's why the th Division Independent Regiment that fought in Burma appears in Changde!

Probably a redeployment from the Chongqing side!

He inhaled deeply, and his aura instantly became sharp and resolute. The previous confusion and doubt vanished, replaced by the excitement and focus of a hunter spotting prey.

"Transmit my orders!"

"Yes!" Everyone immediately stood at attention.

"First, order all front‑line units to switch to Level‑1 combat readiness immediately! All soldiers, stay armed and await dawn! Artillery move into positions, calibrate fire, prepare to meet the enemy's retaliatory attack!"

"Second, the intelligence office must keep a tight watch on the Japanese 11th Army main force in the directions of Yueyang, Tongcheng, and Chongyang! If they move even a single battalion, I must know immediately!"

"Third, inform logistics to inventory ammunition and supplies, prepare for a major battle! The commander said, when a dog is desperate it jumps the wall, so we'll ready the trap and let this mad dog plunge in!"

Xue Yue's gaze swept over the crowd, and he said each word deliberately:

"The Japanese thought that bombing our Chongqing would make us submit. Now we have shown the Little Devil that we can bomb their airfields and their planes! What they lose is not just aircraft, but their haughty arrogance! Once that arrogance shatters, they will go mad! Order all units to stay in place, stay alert to the surroundings. Whatever happens, hold the defensive line! This Changsha city must not have any more mishaps!"

He walked to the window, flung it open, and the morning sun blasted in, casting his figure like a war god.

"Daybreak," Xue Yue whispered, "Our sky should brighten as well."

Only Xue Yue himself knows how grueling the three Battles of Changsha were; now he finally lets out a long sigh!

May 25, 1943, early morning Tokyo time.

This day was destined to be recorded in the Imperial Japan's book of disgrace. For the Japanese Army Air Service in China, this was not just a morning; for Japan, it was essentially the start of a collective funeral.

Nanjing, China Expeditionary Army Headquarters.

In Marshal Hat Junliu's office, the air seemed frozen into ice. The battle‑hardened army marshal was now staring intently at a telegram that had just been urgently delivered, his hand trembling slightly.

The telegram came from Wuhan, sent at 06:20 a. m. Its content was only one line, yet it burned like a red hot branding iron, scorching his retina:

"Suffered massive enemy air raid, airport destroyed, entire army... shattered like jade."

"Shattered like jade?" Hat Junliu forced the words out between his teeth, his eyes flashing with terrifying fury. He crumpled the telegram into a ball and slammed it hard onto the floor.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" he growled into the empty room, "Where does China have an air force?! All their planes were destroyed by us in the first year of the war!"

At that moment, the adjutant Lian Geng rushed in, his face as pale as paper: "Your Excellency Marshal! Guangzhou! Nanchang!... also Yichang!... all lines are in emergency! All have been bombed!"

Hat Junliu's body jolted, nearly losing his balance. He braced the desk, feeling the world spin. Wuhan, Guangzhou, Nanchang, Yichang... these are the most crucial strategic nodes in Central and Southern China! This is a simultaneous decapitation of the Japanese Army Air Service's Central and Southern China forces at the same time!

This is not an air raid; this is a massacre!

"Investigate! Find out for me!" Hat Junliu's voice was hoarse and frantic, "Where did the enemy's aircraft come from?! How many?! Where are our 'Falcons'? Where is our '96' model? Why wasn't a single plane scrambled to intercept?!"

However, the only answers he received were more despairing reports.

"Report, Marshal! In Wuhan, communications are completely cut! We've lost all contact with the 11th Army headquarters!"

"Report, Marshal! Guangzhou Baiyun Airport reports they were destroyed in the first wave! Enemy aircraft count... over one hundred!"

"Report, Marshal! Nanchang... Nanchang Airport has no echo..."

Hat Junliu slumped in his chair, a chill shooting from his feet up to his crown. The military knowledge he had built all his life was utterly shattered at that moment.

He felt he was not a marshal commanding millions, but a clueless fool kept in the dark.

What on earth happened? Yesterday we were calmly watching Operation No. 19 proceeding smoothly; today such a huge incident occurs.

"Operation No. 19", also the Zhejiang‑Jiangxi Campaign, was because American planes landed in Huaxia, prompting the Japanese to decide to clear the airports in the Zhejiang‑Jiangxi area.

Marshal Hat Junliu, commander of the China Expeditionary Army, at that moment thought of the Emperor. He thought of His Majesty's earnest expectations for the "Greater East Asia Holy War". How could he explain to the Emperor? To say that the Empire's air superiority was completely erased in one night by a ragtag group of Chinese troops?

He dared not imagine the Emperor's disappointed and angry gaze upon hearing this news.