When it came to the report of the Military Intelligence Bureau, Zhao Rundong and Wang Yuanqing were relieved. 【Reading.com】

Although there have long been indications that Murakami is preparing to purge the army of dissidents, no one can be sure whether Murakami has the courage to do so until he receives accurate information.

After receiving the exact information, the situation became much clearer.

If Murakami had successfully completed the purge, Japan would certainly not have entered the war. If Murakami loses and is overthrown by the army, Japan will be mired in civil strife and will not enter the war anytime soon. Both Zhao Rundong and Wang Yuanqing believed that there was no need to "help" Murakami, and that they should concentrate on winning the war on the peninsula.

Contrary to the situation in Japan, Yan Shanglong did not have much "gain" in Madrid.

On the night of the 30th, Beijing time, at noon on the 30th, Madrid time, Yan Shanglong and the US undersecretary of state for European affairs had their first secret meeting in the Hilton Hotel. The United States proposed that China set aside an air passage in the western theater of operations for the U.S. military to pick up the officers and men of the 1st Armored Division, provided that it promised to withdraw its troops as soon as possible. In accordance with Huang Guowei's instructions, Yan Shanglong did not dwell on war affairs, but proposed to discuss and resolve the issue of prisoners of war as soon as possible.

Although both sides agreed that a second meeting was necessary, neither had much hope.

On the last day of 202, before dawn, Zhang Ruinan, commander of the 2nd Army of the South Korean Army, announced his surrender in Xiaokunli.

On the three battlefields, the South Korean army, which had run out of nearly 150,000 bullets and food, laid down their arms and stopped resisting.

According to the military agreement reached between China and the DPRK, the "Korean Defense Forces" were responsible for the recruitment of ROK prisoners of war, and the Republican Corps provided only necessary assistance.

7:30. The first army crossed the 38th parallel from Jiuyi. Begin to advance towards the south of the ground sokcho.

The 36th Army did not move south. Instead, he went to Xitunli to replenish and recuperate. Prepare to participate in the offensive Kaesong combat operation.

9:15. On the western battlefield, the ROK-US coalition ground combat operations began.

The fire preparation lasted for the bell. More than 3,000 large-caliber howitzers and rocket artillery units directly under the artillery units of 5 military and local artillery units and 20 combat brigades participated in the shelling operation. The Air Force flew more than 3 sorties. More than 1,000 tons of bombs were dropped on hundreds of thousands of South Korean and US troops gathered in the interior of more than 30,000 square kilometers.

The main attack was held by the 27th Army.

The 27th Army, which participated in the Lao War and the Vietnam War, is known as the "Fourth Army of the Republic". Although the reputation is not as loud as the 3 ace army. But the combat effectiveness is in no way inferior to that of other troops.

Assisting the offensive of the 27th Army were low-altitude assault units of the 3 Airborne Corps.

The main place of fighting that day was not Haizhou, but Huangzhou.

The 211th Army defeated Yantan in the early morning of the 29th and successfully crossed the Huangzhou River. Jin Zexiao had to send two infantry divisions of the reserve to fortify east of Huangzhou and hold the flank defense line of Huangzhou.

The 24th Army began to attack Huangzhou on the morning of the 30th.

Jin Zexiao was very aware of the importance of Huangzhou, and successively transferred three infantry divisions from the reserve to strengthen Huangzhou's defense force.

By the morning of the 311th, the 611th Army moved south from Pyongyang to join the combat operation of attacking Hwangju.

At noon on the same day, the main force of the 211th Army crossed the Huangzhou River and began to advance westward.

Because the fighting on the eastern battlefield ended about 2 years earlier than expected, Hwangju was still in the hands of the South Korean army when the 27th Army advanced in the direction of Haeju.

In order to eliminate the threat to the flanks of the 27th Army, Pei Chengyi issued a "death order" to the 211th, 24th and 611th armies, which must take Huangzhou by the early morning of January 1, 2025. In order to ensure that the three armies attacking Huangzhou received sufficient combat materials, Pei Chengyi even ordered the 27th Army to slow down its southward movement and delay the attack on Haizhou from the night of the 31st to the morning of the 1st.

Obviously, the course of the battle on the eastern battlefield deviated greatly from the predetermined battle plan.

The US 1st Armored Division did not become a key target, and the ROK 1st Army, which gathered in Huangzhou, became the "focal point."

The Battle of Huangzhou, which began on the 29th and lasted until midnight on the 311th, is known as the most tragic battle in the Peninsula War.

According to the combat records of the ROK army, the 1st Group Army of the ROK army has successively invested an armored division and 7 infantry divisions in Huangzhou, with a total strength of more than 170,000! At that time, the total strength of the 1st Army was about 240,000, and about 50,000 were left to attack Qinghe. In other words, after getting rid of Qinghe's combat troops, Jin Zexiao concentrated almost all his forces to defend Huangzhou.

It's a pity that modern warfare is not about troops, it's about firepower!

The ground logistics support line of the ROK Army's 1st Group Army has long been cut off by the 163rd Airborne Brigade, and the longer the fighting continues, the more difficult the situation of the ROK army becomes. Before deciding to surrender, Kanazawa could only compensate for the firepower with troops.

The Army of the Republic did not fight with the South Korean Army for "attrition".

In order to reduce casualties, Pei Chengyi repeatedly ordered the front-line troops to stop advancing and "open the way" with artillery.

Large-scale shelling began on the night of the 28th and continued until the capture of Huangzhou by the 24th Army. According to the statistics of the logistics department of the army of the republic, during the three-day shelling, the logistics support unit, mainly the Korean National Defense Force, which was reorganized from the Korean People's Army, delivered a total of 180,000 artillery shells and rockets of various calibers and types to the front line, and more than 2,500 barrels were damaged.

On the battlefield of Huangzhou, artillery became a veritable "god of war".

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More than 60,000 officers and soldiers of the ROK army were killed, 75% of whom died in shelling. In the meantime, 1 South Korean soldier was killed!

The battle has reached this level, and the only blame can only be blamed on Kanazawa.

Kanazawa used the main force of the 1st Army to defend Huangzhou, which was tantamount to giving up the breakout operation. Since it was unable to break through, the 1st Army would have to be finished sooner or later, and the longer it held out, the more officers and men would be killed or wounded.

According to documents declassified after the war, it was not that Kim Ze-hyung did not want to surrender, but that Yoo Jong-chun did not allow the South Korean army to surrender.

After the surrender of the 2nd Army under Zhang Ruinan's command, Liu Zongchun personally gave an order to Jin Zexiao, requiring the 1st Army to fight to the "last man".

According to the judgment of the outside world, Yoo Jong-chun's real purpose was not to buy time for the 3rd Army to strengthen the defense of Kaesong, but to buy time for the transfer of gold, silver and foreign exchange in the Korean treasury.

Kanazawa faithfully carried out Yanagi's orders.

It was not until the night of 311 that the vanguard of the 24th Army crossed the Huangzhou River and attacked the city of Huangzhou. In the words of Major General Pu Liangdong, commander of the 24th Army, the main task of the 24th Army after entering Huangzhou was to contain the wounded of the Korean army, not to clear the enemy entrenched in the city.

Until this time, Kanazawa did not give the order to surrender.

In addition to the nearly 1 South Korean army that was blocked by the 211th Army in a roundabout way to the north of Sariwon, more than 10,000 South Korean troops still followed Kim Taek-hyo to retreat to Sariwon.

Kanazawa did not organize a defense in the Sarryin Courtyard, because the troops in his hands could not hold the Sariwon at all.

The South Korean army continued to retreat south, and the more than 50,000 South Korean troops blocked north of Cheonghak desperately attacked, in a vain attempt to defeat Cheonghak before the main force of the Republic Army arrived.

On the morning of January 1, 2025, Pei Chengyi adjusted the offensive arrangement.

The 211th Army quickly moved south to assist the 27th Army in encircling and annihilating the 1st Armored Division of the US Army trapped in Haizhou; The 24th Army remained behind to reorganize prisoners of war, clear out scattered small units of the ROK army, and help the Korean Defense Forces repair transportation infrastructure; The 611th Army advanced in the direction of Qinghe at the fastest speed, supporting the 163rd Airborne Brigade and the 772nd Quick Counter; The 373rd Brigade and the 383rd Brigade, which had been stationed in Tan Kye, advanced in the direction of Cheonghak and helped the 163rd Brigade hold its position, and after the 383rd Brigade advanced south along the highway and surrounded Kaesong with the 36th Army, which was moving westward.

It was only by this time that the focus of the campaign fell on the 1st Panzer Division.

Using the strength of 2 armies and 1 brigade against the 1st Armored Division can also be regarded as giving the US army "face".

The order Pei Chengyi received was very clear, it was necessary to annihilate the 1st Armored Division before the 3rd!

Because the ROK 1st Army basically lost its combat capability, Bae Seung-yi threw almost all of its support forces into the Haeju direction.

Beginning at noon on the 1st, the Air Force and the Navy mobilized 12 brigades, all equipped with J15 series fighters, to bomb Haizhou.

The artillery acted a little slower, after all, the artillery could only maneuver on the ground, not in the air. In the evening of the same day, the long-range artillery brigade of the 24th Army took the lead in the battle, and then the long-range artillery brigade of the 27th Army also aimed its guns at Haizhou during the artillery bombardment throughout the night, and the two long-range artillery brigades ran out of all the "stockpiled ammunition".

After dawn, the Air Force and artillery carried out the last round of "strikes" on Haizhou.

The bombs dropped by the bombers were not loaded with explosives, and the shells fired by the artillery were not loaded with explosives, and the leaflets were written in English and Korean script.

At 18:30 on the 2nd, Bowman surrendered to Ling Yunxiao, the commander of the 77th Army.

I have to say that Ling Yunxiao picked a big bargain. At that time, the 773rd Brigade was closest to the headquarters of the 1st Armored Division of the US Army, and was the first to fight the US Army. After Bowman decided to surrender, the first thing he thought of was the nearest squadron, so it was logical to hand over his rifle to Ling Yunxiao, who was also a major general.

Bowman made the wisest choice to allow tens of thousands of American GIs to return home alive after the war.

After the surrender of the 1st Armored Division, the ROK 1st Army once again became a key target.

On the morning of 3 July, Beijing time, Frederick ordered less than 7,000 officers and men of the 1C11th Air Assault Division, which had been transferred to Daegu, to immediately return to Guam by transport plane, and the US Air Force and Navy immediately ceased combat operations over the Korean Peninsula.

In order to give the United States "face," Zhao Rundong asked Xiang Linghui to adjust the operational arrangements, and the air force temporarily stopped striking military targets south of Seoul.

With fewer air opponents, the Air Force concentrated its forces on striking the ROK Army's 1st Army near Cheonghak.

In the afternoon of the same day, the Air Force also dispatched more than 100 warplanes to carry out a "carpet" bombing of Kaesong.

Kim Taek-hyo and the remnants of the ROK Army's 1st Army had only two ways to return, either to become cannon fodder or to surrender with their hands raised.

On the night of the 3rd, Kanazawa was killed by a laser-guided bomb dropped by a J-15 on his way to Rinide.

At 1:15 a.m., the chief of staff of the 1st Army of the ROK Army surrendered to the commander of the 611th Army, Choi Suikang.

At this point, the second campaign ended. Two South Korean armies and two divisions of the U.S. Army, totaling more than 50,000 officers and men, were annihilated.

Although the number of enemies destroyed was much lower than expected, the second battle still set a record for the largest number of enemies destroyed since World War II