As soon as he heard this, Major General Youen immediately broke the score, which Li Junhao didn't expect.

Yuen threw away his gloves directly, sat down on the sofa in the suite, and said, "Mr. Observer, if you can promise not to tell you what I am saying to you and my boss, I will tell you the truth." ”

Li Junhao was amused by him, and said directly: "NO! Mr. Major General, I will not give this assurance, because it will affect my fairness and impartiality as a battlefield observer, but what I can guarantee is that as long as you keep telling me the truth, I will be your loyal friend and will do my best to help solve your problems. ”

Hearing this, Major General Yuen was silent, and after a moment he said, "Okay! Mr. Observer, I would like to ask you, now Degon, what methods do you think we can use to stop the Japanese attack?

"You know, although my current 17th Division of the British and Indian Army claims to have four brigades, it can actually fight less than 12,000 people now, and except for the officers above the company, they are all Indian soldiers, and their combat effectiveness makes me have no confidence at all.

"The 17th Division is facing the 33rd Division of the Japanese Army, but it is a special division, I heard that it was strengthened before entering Burma, with more than 18,000 troops, and rich combat experience, we have no chance of winning at all!"

“NO！ NO！ NO！ Li Junhao said with some disdain, "War is not just a comparison of numbers, if a large number of soldiers can achieve victory, then you British may not be able to control India, right?" ”

Of course, he knew that Britain had relied on advanced ships and firearms to defeat the backward Indians and Burmese, and established a colony on the Indian Peninsula, and became one of Britain's most important colonies overseas.

But now in the face of the fierce Japanese army, Yuen is a little timid. You know, just a month ago (February 11), the 17th Division was defeated once by the Japanese 33rd Division on the defense line of the Salween River and the Milin River, and now there is still a shadow in the hearts of the soldiers!

Of course, it was because of this defeat that the former commander of the 17th Division, Lieutenant General John Smith, was dismissed, and Major General Yuen was urgently appointed as the new division commander, but his main job after that was to retreat all the way north with the 17th Division, and he had no intention of fighting hard with the Japanese at all.

But what he didn't expect was that Lieutenant General Hutton, who was reinstated as the commander of the Anglo-Burmese Army, actually issued a death order, requiring the 17th Division of the British and Indian Army on the west road to hold Degong, the 1st Division of the Anglo-Burmese Army on the middle road to guard Tonggu, and the 36th Indian Infantry Division on the east road to guard Mengzhen, and not to be ordered to retreat. This made him very pessimistic about the future of the battle, and felt that he and the 17th Division were finished.

Seeing that You En was silent, Li Junhao continued: "Of course, the fighting style of the 33rd Division of the Japanese Army is more fierce than that of the 17th Division, and its combat experience is also very rich, but the general should not forget one point, that is, the weapons and equipment of the British and Indian armies are superior to those of the Japanese army, especially in terms of heavy weapons such as artillery, you have an absolute advantage!" In this case, why don't you take advantage of it? ”

"Oh? You mean...... We used our superiority in artillery fire to resist the Japanese attack? Yuen's eyes lit up and he said happily.

"Alas! General Yuen, why do you keep thinking about defense? Li Junhao said with some hatred, "As far as I know, the forward force of the 33rd Division of the Japanese Army is only a 214 infantry wing, and there are not even a few artillery pieces, why don't you take the initiative to attack and directly knock it out with superior forces and artillery fire?" Even if it can't be completely annihilated, it can be completely defeated. In this way, on the one hand, the effective force of the Japanese army will be eliminated, and on the other hand, the fighting confidence of the officers and men can be re-established. ”

"Hmmm! That's a good idea! You En suddenly jumped to his feet and shouted, "Mr. Observer, I sincerely invite you to join my staff and help our 17th Division win this battle!" ”

"Haha!" Li Junhao laughed, "Your Excellency General, I can't promise you this. You know, I'm just an observer, and I don't have the authority to get involved in the command of the British-Burmese Army. Of course, I can make your own suggestions if you wish, but it's up to you whether to listen or not. ”

"Alright, I'll go back now, urge those stupid staff officers to come up with a suitable battle plan, and then I'll come back to Mr. Observer to discuss." With that, Yuen stood up and walked out.

"Wait a minute, General." Li Junhao stopped him, "Could the general please show me the report on the recent battle situation?" As an observer, I would like to know what is going on. ”

"No problem, I'll have someone deliver it as soon as I get back. Goodbye, Mr. Observer. "You Enxing rushed away.

——

The reason why Li Junhao only used his capacity as an observer to say this to this Major General Yuen was because he had an idea, that is, to use his judgment that Lieutenant General Hutton, the commander of the Anglo-Burmese Army, wanted to win a battle, and persuaded (fooled) the 17th Division of the British and Indian Army to strike a severe blow at the arrogant Japanese army at Dergun and strive to defeat it.

If this idea succeeds, the Japanese army, which is eager to occupy other parts of Southeast Asia, will have to send more troops to Burma, which will reduce the pressure on the Chinese battlefield and other theaters in the Far East.

The reason why he did not reveal his true identity was because the current British would not easily follow his orders as a major general of the American army. He can now influence a lot of decisions in the United States, but for the British army...... Oh, and the Chinese Expeditionary Force, which has now entered Burma, has no prestige!

Under such circumstances, even if he is the special envoy of the US president and the deputy commander of the Allied Indo-Burma theater, it is impossible to carry out his will, and given the current state of trilateral cooperation, he cannot directly apply military law to the British generals who do not obey the command.

He had already used assassination to kill the fleeing general Alexander, but this method could no longer be used, it was not the right way, and it could not be used again in the short term.

Instead of getting angry and making things stiff because the British army did not obey orders, it is better to use the status of an American observer and flank to help the staff officer and encourage this Major General Yuen to fight a battle, and if he can win the victory, even if it is only a small victory, he can later spread his reputation for knowing military command, so as to facilitate his future actions.

After thinking about it, Li Junhao asked Xiaoyu's latest idea to draft a telegram and send it back to China, on the one hand, it was a routine report of safety, and on the other hand, it was to make a record first to pave the way for future actions.

(End of chapter)