Chapter 52: The U.S. Military Gets Mercilessly Bullied (Please Keep Reading!)
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The documentary film The Second World War (Miniature Edition) 2: The Southern Front set a record in America for having a soundtrack more popular than the film itself.
No one knew how many viewers had chosen to return to the theater again and again just to hear the epic battle anthem “For the Win.”
And after watching the film, Americans finally came to terms with the American army’s “minor defeat.”
They had seen it all on the screen: both sides were brave, and the Germans had paid a considerable price as well.
Even if the American army had not won, at least it had not lost!
The post-credits scene was even more thrilling.
A bayonet charge!
Although the First World War had already demonstrated that, with the spread of automatic weapons in modern warfare, the bayonet’s position and function had greatly diminished, in the hearts of many people, the bayonet remained the embodiment and symbol of martial valor!
The United States Army even had a training doctrine: “Bullets run out, but bayonets do not. To encounter the enemy in hand-to-hand combat and destroy his will—that is the spirit of the bayonet...”
It was not difficult to see from the post-credits scene that the British and the French wanted to test their courage—and their bayonet spirit—against American soldiers!
How could the Americans not take them up on it?!
“The American doughboys are about to engage the Allied forces in a blood-boiling hand-to-hand battle!”
According to unofficial reports, the Prohibition Bureau had specially selected the soldiers with the highest bayonet-fighting skills from the 361st Regiment to participate.
Once that rumor spread, the number of people heading for Chicago surged again!
At that moment, the most scarce commodity in Chicago was binoculars, while the most overcrowded places were every hilltop in the North Side from which the battle could be viewed.
The Voice of Freedom radio station could only move to the second-highest floors of the tall buildings around the battlefield.
There was no other choice. The wealthy seemed even more enthusiastic about bayonet combat, and the number of spectators had surged as well. Even the prime viewing spots on the top two floors were no longer enough.
Under the gaze of the entire nation, the more imposing American army advanced toward the North Side arena.
Colonel William had not naively believed the British invitation to a “bayonet fight” in the film. Although his request for artillery had been mercilessly rejected, he had still brought in more elite veteran companies, increased the number of heavy machine guns, and issued the assault teams large quantities of satchel charges and Bangalore torpedoes...
Compared with the South Side, the North Side arena covered a much wider area, allowing the Americans to commit more troops at once.
From the very beginning of the assault, the American army displayed the qualities of an elite force.
Snipers specially drawn from other units occupied the high ground. Crossfire from the reinforced heavy-machine-gun positions firmly suppressed the enemy emplacements in the warehouses. Under covering fire, assault troops crawled forward, cautiously clearing every fortification and obstacle along the American advance route with satchel charges and Bangalore torpedoes...
The visual spectacle was on an entirely different level from the Southern Front battle!
“Ladies and gentlemen! Ladies and gentlemen! The Second World War: The Northern Front battle has begun!”
Logan’s voice once again ignited the expectations of the entire country through the radio. “We are watching the American army return for revenge! A stronger formation! More ferocious firepower! With wills of iron and superb skill, they are taking the position inch by inch!”
“The British and French firepower inside has been completely suppressed! They have no snipers and are retreating step by step! The scales of victory are tipping toward the American army!”
“As expected of the elite American army—they are marching toward a grand and overwhelming victory!”
Seeing the American troops advance like a force of nature, the onlookers outside grew excited as well. Cheers and whistles rose one after another. The gamblers seemed to see hope of a comeback and screamed themselves hoarse, cheering on their wagers.
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“Excellent, excellent! The American army has methodically cleared the outer defenses. I can see the soldiers behind them fixing bayonets to their rifles. Are they about to charge? Has the thrilling moment arrived?”
Logan’s voice cracked with excitement, but none of the listeners by their radios cared. Their faces were flushed with anticipation, and they bitterly regretted not being there in person.
At that very moment—
Boom!
A strange, muffled sound, unlike either gunfire or explosions, came from behind the defenders’ final fortifications.
“Wait—what was that sound?” Logan’s voice sharpened with bewilderment over the radio.
The listeners thought: Not again! Don’t tell me the British are cheating too. Have they produced dozens of snipers as well?
They had guessed only half right.
Boom!
A shell landed with pinpoint accuracy near one of the American heavy-machine-gun positions. The blast wave and fragments instantly sent the entire machine-gun team tumbling.
“Artillery! It’s artillery!” Logan screamed. “Good Lord! The defenders have mortars! They actually have mortars!”
The listeners thought: Excuse me? Am I hearing things?
Are you saying that just when the Americans wanted to fight with bayonets, the British fixed bayonets to their artillery?
“Yes! The British misled the American army—and all of us! Those devious British! Can there be no basic trust between human beings anymore?”
Even through the radio, Logan’s boundless contempt and indignation toward the British could be clearly heard.
On the battlefield, more shells came thundering in one after another.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Crash! Crash! Crash!
The moment the artillery began, the American troops abandoned their heavy equipment without hesitation. Dragging and hauling their wounded, they fled the battlefield, now plowed under by the god of death, without once looking back.
Their movements were so fluid and their efficiency so remarkable that even Logan had to praise them.
“The American army is retreating at least ten times faster than it advanced, displaying the true qualities of an elite force...”
That remark nearly broke many of the listeners by their radios.
This time, the crowd outside did not boo.
Every spectator stood stunned.
They watched in a daze as the American army, magnificent only moments before, was blasted into a frantic rout. They watched shells continue to fall, the shock waves of the explosions reaching even the edge of the cordoned-off area and making the ground tremble beneath their feet.
This was the first time they had come into close contact with the power of the god of war!
Meanwhile, Logan raged at heaven and earth over the radio, speaking up for the Americans—
“I cannot help but ask: why do the Chicago gangs have artillery?”
“I cannot help but suspect that there are sinister forces within the government, encouraging the spread of heavy weapons!”
“The American army was not defeated by the British and French! The Americans were stabbed in the back by traitors!”
“The shells are still exploding!”
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“They’re still exploding!”
“It won’t stop!”
“It’s over! The Americans are being brutally bullied by the British and French!”
As if to prove Logan’s point, the shells continued to fall even after the entire American army had withdrawn from the battlefield.
The defenders seemed to be flaunting their limitless firepower. As though the shells cost nothing, they kept raining down one after another, precisely bombarding the now-empty assault zone, as if drawing an invisible boundary of death.
Bullying! Utterly brutal bullying!
Seeing this, Colonel William continued retreating with his troops, expressionless and without looking back.
No one was paying attention to the American army.
The deafening explosions continued to batter everyone’s eardrums.
In the silent crowd, someone was the first to clap—perhaps releasing the tension that had built to an unbearable pitch, or perhaps inexplicably infected by the violence of the spectacle.
The applause was sparse at first, but more and more people soon joined in.
Then, as if a floodgate had been opened, a twisted mood of revelry once again seized the upper hand.
“Ohhh!”
“Fantastic!”
“Absolutely incredible!”
“This ticket was worth every penny!”
“Now this is a real arena battle! Too bad the Americans had such quick legs...”
Cheers and whistles erupted once more, even more fervently than before.
People began swaying to the rhythm of the explosions. Some even put their arms around one another and started dancing.
Thus, from above, the scene presented a striking contrast: on one side, a battlefield shrouded in smoke and shaken by artillery; on the other, a vast sea of revelry, singing, dancing, and cheering!
The visual spectacle was absolutely complete!
Even the wealthy on the uppermost floors raised their glasses and celebrated the grand fireworks of “freedom”!
Logan himself seemed unable to keep a straight face anymore, producing one memorable line after another.
“The American army may not count this as a defeat, but the people of Chicago have definitely won!”
“This is the roar of freedom! This is the salute of faith!”
“Ah, these lonely fireworks, white as snow—what a beautiful sight!”
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