Republic of Korea in Yeokcheon - Chapter 24



Only Krnovel

#24. Timing, it’s timing.

June 8, 1944.

Ganggye County Office Expeditionary Force Headquarters.

It’s been a while since I received a communication from Uncle Sam.

– Uncle Sam in Washington to General Lee, Commander-in-Chief of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

I really appreciated your advice about Omaha.

Thanks to this, many soldiers survived.

“It looks like Roosevelt put our advice to good use?”

“okay.”

Omaha Beach during the Normandy landings on June 6.

Other landing points such as Juno, Utah, Gold, and Sword went smoothly, but this Omaha Beach was a place where the U.S. military suffered so much damage that it was called Bloody Omaha because the pre-bombing was not carried out properly in response to the German military’s thorough defense posture.

This is the background of the initial landing operation in the movie Saving Private Ryan, and it seems that they somehow managed to avoid it by taking Lee Kang-cheol’s advice.

“If you thank me like this, you won’t wash your mouth later, right?”

“No way? Hehehe!”

“Then shall we go to God’s realm?”

– General Lee, Commander-in-Chief of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces, to Uncle Sam in Washington.

I feel very fortunate to be Uncle Sam’s friend.

However, watch out for the approaching storm.

Mulberries may be ruined.

“I wonder if an old man with a bad heart will collapse like this?”

“But the impact is certain, right?”

“That’s right.”

Mulberry is a type of artificial port being built off the coast of Normandy.

Although the Allied forces succeeded in the landing operation, there was no port to supply manpower and supplies for the follow-up.

It was an artificial port created because it was impossible to load a large amount of cargo on the beach like during a forced landing operation, but on June 19, a severe storm blew and Mulberry A, built by the U.S. military, was destroyed.

Fortunately, Mulberry B, built by the British, was safe and functioned as the Allied forces’ only port until the port of Antwerp was occupied six months later, but severe backlogs could not be avoided in the meantime.

Lee Kang-cheol was telling us to be careful of that storm, which could literally be said to be God’s domain.

It is possible to somehow understand the previous information by giving in and explaining that it has a huge information network, but this is because it is predicting the future.

The reply came almost two hours later than expected.

– Uncle Sam in Washington to General Lee, Commander-in-Chief of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

Oh my god!

Who are you?

“ha ha ha!”

“Look at that, the old man was surprised, right?”

“Noisy! “I have to blame it all on old man Roosevelt anyway.”

“Are you really going to tell me everything?”

“Seokman, sometimes the weight of the truth is scarier. “If we do it this way, it will be easier for us to tear it down.”

“Well, what to do…”

– General Lee, Commander-in-Chief of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces, to Uncle Sam in Washington.

I will tell you everything when we meet in person.

Until then, I hope that as few people as possible know about our existence.

– Uncle Sam in Washington to General Lee, Commander-in-Chief of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

When can we meet?

– General Lee, Commander-in-Chief of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces, to Uncle Sam in Washington.

We will be able to see you within August, two months at the latest.

– Uncle Sam in Washington to General Lee, Commander-in-Chief of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

I will wait for that day.

ah! And support to human butchers has been reduced by about 25%.

Future support plans will be decided after meeting with you.

“25%? Hahaha!”

“Fuhahaha!”

Lee Kang-cheol and Ko Seok-man hugged and cheered when they heard that the United States had reduced its lending support to the Soviet Union by a quarter.

25% may not seem like a big deal, but it was sure to take a huge toll on the ability to wage war.

This is especially true when it comes to getting out of a defensive position and going on the offensive.

If this happens, it is obvious that the speed of the Soviet Union’s advance to the west will slow down and the damage to the Soviet Army will increase, so Lee Kang-cheol, whose goal is to relieve the Soviet Union of power, cannot help but be happy.

June 9th.

Ganggye County Office Expeditionary Force Headquarters.

“What are they doing?”

“Iknow, right? “It’s been completely spread out for a few days?”

A few days ago, I noticed that the movements of the 75th Regiment of the 19th Division stationed in Hoeryeong were suspicious.

Because the movements of the 19th Division, which is currently the only fully armed force on the Korean Peninsula, were so important, Albatross was constantly monitoring them.

But I don’t know why it’s shaking like that.

It’s been two days since we arrived at Hoeryeong Station, and we haven’t even left yet.

“It may be cumbersome to move a regiment that has been stationed in one place for a long time, but it is taking too much time. In a way, it seems like the commander is sabotaging the operation a bit.”

“People are really having fun. Even if they are armed, they are only equipped with common firearms and a few scattered cannons…”

“Leave it alone. There’s nothing wrong with coming slowly, right?”

“That’s true, but. Anyway, let’s have a meeting.”

“All right.”

After a while, the staff and major commanders gathered in the conference room.

“What about our Colonel Oh?”

“I don’t know why Colonel Oh Byeong-moo is ‘our’ Colonel Oh, but I didn’t call him because he seemed too busy. “Because he’s working and can’t sleep well.”

“okay? Good job. Please let me know the details later. “He needs to know what he knows so he doesn’t say anything later, right?”

“How much do you want to eat?”

“Uh-huh! “Let’s stop talking nonsense and have a meeting.”

Lee Kang-cheol drew attention by displaying a map on the screen.

“The reason I asked for a meeting like this was to check the future operational plan now that the 19th Division is coming.”

“I guess the Japanese kids were in a hurry.”

“Lieutenant Colonel Hong is right. What kind of guys are the 19th Division? These are the guys who have to protect the Soviet Union in the north. That is why, even while Japanese soldiers are being massacred on the southern front, they are still protecting their position using Nanam as their base.”

“you’re right.”

“But even though it is only one regiment, they decided to send those guys all the way to this place. What this means is that the Japanese Government-General of Korea and the Korean Military Command are now feeling just as desperate. Of course, there are no troops that can move.”

It is incredibly far from Hoeryeong to Ganggye.

Even if you draw a straight line on the map, it would be over 300km, but unfortunately, because of the Gaema Plateau, there were no straight railways or roads for the regiment’s troops to come through.

In the end, the fastest course was to take the Hambuk Line from Hoeryeong Station, take the Hamgyong Line along the East Sea, and then take the Jangjin Line to Jangjin-gun.

You have to turn around several times to cover the 300 km straight distance, but for a person riding it, it is a way to turn around in a word.

This is all because of Gaema Plateau.

However, the Japanese mobilized troops from such a distant place, and in particular, troops that had the great responsibility of preventing the Soviet Union’s southward advance.

“If the situation is like this, wouldn’t it be better to just quickly eat up the entire Korean Peninsula?”

“I know?”

“Isn’t it Muju Gongsan anyway?”

“you’re right. If we organize it quickly and use the entire Korean Peninsula as a base, it may be easier to deal with the Kwantung Army or the Manchurian Army.”

When Special Forces Brigade Commander Jeong Gwang-ryeol argued for a quick resolution of the Korean Peninsula, many people agreed.

However, Colonel Lee Jae-ha refuted this.

“I am against it. Isn’t it enough to just eat the Korean Peninsula? Manchurian army? Let’s not even pay attention to that trash. Kwantung Army? They’ve lost their troops to the southern part of the country, so there’s nothing wrong with them. The record shows that by now there is nothing we cannot compete with, both quantitatively and qualitatively. “All we have to do is block the Yalu River and the Duman River.”

“Why would someone who knows so well oppose it?”

“Are they the only Japanese soldiers? What about the troops dispatched to China, that is, the troops in China? “They are currently busy with operations to penetrate the continent, but unlike the Kwantung Army, they maintained close to a million troops until the end of the war.”

“You just said that all you have to do is block the Yalu River and the Duman River?”

“Is the Japanese Navy idle? What would you do if at least part of the Japanese Navy and Japan’s dispatched troops cooperated and landed on the Korean Peninsula? And where is mainland Japan thousands of kilometers away? It’s just a stone’s throw away! Do you think they will stay still?”

“So you’re saying we’ll lose?”

“Who said we would lose? Let’s wait a little longer. The Japanese Navy will end this month in the Battle of the Philippine Sea, and most of its remaining strength will be lost in the Battle of Leyte in October of this year. “Until then, let’s act cautiously.”

“Are you planning on keeping the surface-to-ship missiles and making soup?”

“Are there infinite surface-to-ship missiles? And are you going to end the war just this once?”

“That’s not it…”

The conference room was divided into the Korean Peninsula’s quick-clearing faction and the cautious faction, and a difficult debate took place.

And Lee Kang-cheol, who had been listening for a while, opened his mouth.

“stop! “I said everything I had to say, right?”

“…”

“Both sides have a point. Lee Jae-ha’s comment about waiting for the Japanese military to melt away while fighting the U.S. military is quite reasonable, and since the 19th division is in the process of being mobilized anyway, it is also a good idea to quickly organize the Korean Peninsula and fight properly with manpower and material resources that are incomparable to now. ”

“So what do you plan to do?”

Chief of Staff Ko Seok-man asked with an expression that seemed like he had no idea.

“Here are my thoughts. We can’t continue to hunker down in Pyeongando. What if the 75th Regiment comes and breaks up this time? Even if you wanted to crouch down at that stage, it’s not the situation. So far, it seems like the Japanese Government-General of Korea and the Korean Military Command are trying to resolve the situation through their own efforts, but they can no longer hold on to it.”

“Haha! Look at that! I know yeah···.”

“Colonel Jeong! “I’m not finished talking yet, right?”

“Yes, sorry…”

“Anyway, I always get cursed, curses….”

“…”

“Hmm, so first of all, let’s buy time by delaying the arrival of the 75th Regiment as much as possible. “Special brigade commander”

“Yes, Commander.”

“Commissioners, take a helicopter and play pranks on the railroad tracks where the 75th Regiment is coming. “Then it will take more than ten days for them to reach Jangjin.”

“all right.”

“If you come like that, let’s welcome you kindly. This time, we will also mobilize 155mm.”

“Yes, Commander.”

“If we deal with them, we will just go for this month, so in the meantime, we will occupy Yongbyeon-gun, Changseong-gun to the west of Unsan-gun, and Taecheon-gun to the south of Changseong-gun. “Byokdong Army will only occupy part of it.”

“Why is Byeokdong-gun only part of it?”

“If you touch the Supung Dam, as they say these days, you’re drawing too much aggro, right? Shouldn’t the Government General be made to think about it? “If I touch that, I’m worried and I’m being naughty, right?”

“then when···.”

“July 10th!”

“You mean July 10th?”

“Yes, it’s July 10th. As Colonel Lee Jae-ha said, it is difficult to bring here people who are about to die in the south. However, I think that by that time, those who have already been driven to the Philippines will no longer be able to be brought back. Because the Philippines is that important to Japan. You know what I mean, right? “Timing, it’s timing.”

“All right.”

“So it’s July 10th. Even though it’s frustrating, let’s just endure it for a month. On July 10th, they immediately occupied South and North Pyongyang Provinces and pushed down to Seoul. Did you understand?”

“Yes, Commander!”

The advance to Seoul was not far.