Chapter 45: The 448th Regiment

British Army never blames itself for its failures in Southeast Asia.

The end result is insufficient intelligence.

Wei Weier, who previously served as the British Army commander in the Middle East in Africa, was driven by Rommel to the Far East; his titles are many: Commander‑in‑Chief of India, joint commander of the United Kingdom, United States, Netherlands and Australia, and commander of the Southwest Pacific theater.

The commander of the British Army in Southeast Asia is Wei Weier; his mind is also flawed, harboring a huge prejudice against Chinese people.

Three days after China and the United Kingdom signed the "Joint Defense Dian‑Mian Highway Military Agreement," he delayed the Chinese Expeditionary Force's entry into Myanmar, citing insufficient supplies and inability to support many troops, with the entry time to be announced later.

The Japanese Army advanced into Myanmar from Thailand in three columns; with local assistance they quickly captured Moulmein, and ahead lay the indefensible Yangon. Now both the Chinese side and the British are anxious, and the two parties renegotiated Chinese deployment. Just as the Chinese Expeditionary Force's 5th and 6th Armies, totaling 100,000 troops, were preparing to enter Myanmar, Wei Weier halted them again.

At the outset of the Japanese Army's invasion of Southeast Asia, Churchill and Wei Weier believed that the British Army, together with Australian forces and Indo‑Burmese troops, could stop the Japanese; the outcome was predictable.

Wei Weier acted swiftly; after the Japanese attacked Yangon, he immediately withdrew to India and sent a dispatch to Chongqing urging the Expeditionary Force to enter Myanmar as soon as possible, but by then the best opportunity to establish positions had already been missed.

This is why later Churchill sent Yalishanda to handle the Myanmar situation; he realized his faithful subordinate was unreliable, and if India were lost, Germany and Japan would truly meet in the Middle East.

"An." Dai Anlan paced back and forth, noticing an "An" character beneath the cipher.

He understood the meaning of "Sunset" and "An"; that particular "An" must be Jiang Anguo, and his only doubt was whether to trust Jiang Anguo.

Sunset is merely a code name.

An was deliberately left by Jiang Anguo; he feared Dai Anlan would not believe him.

Dai Anlan thought, how could his brother‑in‑law know about the Japanese and learn of their movements, which were certainly secret? It seemed impossible; Jiang Anguo was still in the rear, presumably still at Tengchong.

After all, the main force was already engaged with the Japanese Army; changing formations now would have a huge impact.

"Division Commander, do you think we could redeploy the Regiment's rd Battalion to Yongke Gang Airport?" Zhou Zhizai was also very worried about the th Division's rear.

The Regiment, led by Zheng Tingji, had seized a portion of British‑style weapons when Dai Anlan arrived at Tonggu; of course he did not confiscate the weapons carried by the British themselves, which would later be hard to account for, but he did seize the warehouse and all light and heavy arms on the positions.

The Regiment's rd Battalion was fully equipped with British Enfield rifles, Sten Submachine Guns, and Bren light machine guns, leading anyone unfamiliar to think it was a British unit.

Dai Anlan also kept the rd Battalion as a trump card, using it only when absolutely necessary.

The rd Battalion's firepower now suffices to inflict casualties on the Japanese Army.

If the Japanese were to cut off our rear now, it seems only the Regiment's rd Battalion could be employed.

Dai Anlan finally gave the order: "Zhou Zhizai, immediately command Zheng Tingji's rd Battalion to proceed to Yongke Gang Airport; make sure they are wary of Japanese ambushes, especially night raids, as the Japanese excel at night attacks, and bring some of the captured landmines to bury near the airport."

Compared with his own rear, Dai Anlan was more concerned about the New 22nd Division.

The New 22nd Division was blocked by roads in the rear, unable to provide immediate support; in the short term, it seemed they could only rely on themselves.

And the reason the New 22nd Division could not reach Tonggu at the appointed time lay with the British; compared with the Italians, the British were no better.

Having occupied Myanmar for a century, there is naturally endless wealth; even British aristocrats at home know they can plunder limitless riches in the colonies.

Thus these aristocratic gentlemen, even during war, did not forget their wealth, letting Chinese troops bear the front while they used the valuable railway lines to transport supplies.

If Jiang Anguo were here, he would certainly dispatch a bandit unit to assassinate those people outright—a total waste.

Putting off the fighter aircraft aside, they almost let the th Division be surrounded by the Japanese at Tonggu.

Human lives among these robbers are worth nothing.

The Dian‑Mian Highway concerns a nation's very survival.

The Chinese both provide manpower and effort; as for why only a 100,000‑person force, it is because of British obstruction—this is China's last external supply route; if the Japanese captured it, one can imagine how difficult China's resistance would become.

Yangon's supplies have already been seized by the Japanese, and some remain in Lashu awaiting transport; the current problem is a lack of additional transport vehicles, and Myanmar's rainy season is approaching.

The Expeditionary Force placed excessive trust in its allies: the American Denary Air Force, British heavy weapons, tanks, and artillery.

But when they finally reached the Myanmar battlefield, there was nothing; the Americans, for self‑preservation, moved the Denary Air Force to India, while the British intended to send the American aircraft to the Middle East theater.

The British artillery was left for the Japanese to use against the Expeditionary Force, and the tanks were for fleeing—tanks are faster than walking.

The helpless Expeditionary Force could only rely on a pair of straw sandals, even discarding weapons and gear at Lashu.

Especially the th Division's heavy weapons; fortunately, Dai Anlan accepted Jiang Anguo's Brocade Bag and found every way to send fifteen tanks to the front line.

It was precisely because of this preparation, along with the British weapons‑supply reinforcement units, that Dai Anlan's strength increased; yet, being an overseas operation, countless factors were beyond even Dai Anlan's control.

Dai Anlan merely obeyed orders.

With such allies, how can anyone be convinced? Even Jiang Anguo, as commander of the Expeditionary Force, would not dare obey Stilwell.

Indeed, Stilwell was also overconfident; never having seen combat, he constantly sought to prove himself by sacrificing Chinese troops' lives. The Tonggu Campaign, Pingman Na Battle, and Mandalay Battle all turned into defensive battles.

Your allies could betray you at Tonggu; later at Ren'ankiang, the British—rushing back to Myanmar—had over seven thousand troops, including an armored division and artillery, yet they were surrounded by a Japanese battalion of a thousand men.

This is sheer disgrace.

Stilwell's arrogance and the British's betrayal caused tens of thousands of Expeditionary Force soldiers to die pointlessly in a foreign land.