Chapter 1323 Discussing the details of the operation
"Five million US dollars, one hundred tons each of weapons, ammunition and medicine." Zuo Zhong made the conditions after hearing Melos's question.
As the saying goes, asking for high prices and paying back on the spot, whether it is money or materials, the number quoted by Zuo Zhong will be higher than planned. As for whether the Americans will agree, it depends on whether the other party wants to get new fighter jets. determined.
In fact, Zuo Zhong still underestimated the generosity of the Americans. After hearing this, Melos only thought about it briefly and agreed, with a calm expression.
"No problem, but this exceeds the authority given to me by Congress and I need to report this to Washington."
Zuo Zhong only had one thought in his mind, Gan, he had underpaid. A big dog is a big dog. If he had known, he should have doubled the amount.
But now that the words had been spoken, it was hard to raise the price any more. Zuo Zhong gritted his teeth regretfully and was stunned for a long time before replying.
"Okay, I'm waiting for your good news. Please reply as soon as possible. If the Japanese divert the plane, we will lose this best opportunity."
Mellors shrugged. He thought Washington would agree to this. As long as it could gain sea and air superiority in the Pacific, the money and supplies would be nothing.
A few days later.
A telegram was sent from the United States to the . Cooperation Institute. After reading it, Melos immediately found Zuo Chong, and the two sides began talks in the conference room.
"Left, five million US dollars in cash will be delivered to you within this month. The weapons, ammunition and medicine you need have also been packed and shipped. Let's talk about your plan."
Melos lit up his cigar and took a puff. His nonchalant look, combined with the . Naval Academy commemorative ring on his finger, made him look like a nouveau riche.
Zuo Zhong had always respected his sponsors. He changed his previous indifference, eagerly handed Melos the ashtray, and spoke out his plan.
"My people will use Liu Guotai to instigate the puppet Manchukuo pilots at Wanggang Airport. They will fly the plane to defect at the right time. The Japanese guards at the airport will be handed over to the gangsters and my men to deal with them."
According to the information provided by Liu Guotai, the Japanese had very strict management of the Third Flying Team, and the puppet Manchukuo officers and soldiers were beaten and scolded at every turn, so they all felt resentful.
As long as they are guided properly, the success rate of persuading these people to defect is very high. Even if the other party is unwilling, the military commander is sure that they will have no other choice.
Melos listened to Zuo Zhong's story, studied the telegram from Harbin Station, and asked three questions.
First, the puppet Manchukuo pilots of the Third Flying Team had no experience with new aircraft, let alone the ability to defect by flying them.
Different aircraft have differences in controllability, engines and power systems, flight instruments and system layout, weight and center of gravity, and aerodynamics. Changing flights requires learning and adapting again.
However, the Japanese prohibited Manchukuo pilots from approaching the new aircraft. If this problem was not solved, the plan would be just a castle in the air and not feasible.
Second, the performance data of the new aircraft is unknown, and the speed and range are unknown, so the defection route cannot be formulated.
Wanggang Airport is two thousand kilometers away from the nearest Kuomintang District. Where should the plane land after taking off? You can't just find a place to make an emergency landing.
Third, how to avoid the Japanese pursuit.
Once there is a problem at Wanggang Airport, the Manchukuo Air Force and even the Japanese Army Air Force will definitely be dispatched. No matter how powerful the six new fighter jets are, they cannot defeat hundreds of aircraft.
Facing Melos' first question, Zuo Zhong answered with a detailed action plan.
As early as when he decided to capture the Zero fighter, he had thought of the difficulties he would encounter during the process and also thought of a solution.
But this method is a bit complicated, and it would be troublesome to explain. Let Melos see it for himself. Zuo Zhong doesn’t want to waste his words.
Regarding the second question, Zuo Zhong spread out the map of East Asia, drew a straight line on it with a ruler, and said at the same time.
"Mr. Melos, Liu Guotai said that the new aircraft transfers from Kobe to Wanggang Airport. The distance between the two cities is 1,500 kilometers."
The operation on the map is a basic skill for military personnel and intelligence personnel. Using the scale, Zuo Zhong easily calculated the straight-line distance between Kobe and Wanggang Airport.
Melos' eyes flashed, and he guessed what Zuo Zhong was going to say next. He found a compass and a Republic of China military map, and drew a circle on the map.
The center of this circle is Wanggang Airport, with a radius of 1,500 kilometers. This is the maximum range of the new aircraft, at least the maximum range that can be determined so far.
Looking at the military map, the latest spheres of influence of the Japanese and Fruity armies are marked in different colors, which is very intuitive.
Glancing at the area encompassed by the circle, Melos frowned. Except for Red Russia and Mengdi under Red Russia's control, the places where the new aircraft could fly were all Japanese-occupied areas.
He looked up at Zuo Zhong and asked in a deep voice: "Zuo, I have to remind you that if we fly the plane to Hong Russia, we will get nothing.
The Red Russians are very greedy and will never hand over the new aircraft they have already obtained. In the words of you people in the Republic of China, you will get nothing with a bamboo basket. "
The smile on Zuo Zhong's face continued, and he tapped a certain area on the map with his finger, indicating to the other party to focus on this area.
Melos didn't know why. He lowered his head to check again, and suddenly let out a soft sigh. He had just ignored that there was another color on the map, which was the bright red that represented the border area. The main sphere of influence of the border area is in the northwest, but it also has sporadic bases in North China, and it intersects with the Japanese territory. One of them, Laiyuan, is within the maximum range of the new aircraft.
Laiyuan…
Melos glanced at the map and discovered that this place was in the southwest of Beiping, surrounded by mountains on three sides, and was a strategic location.
What is strange is that the Japanese were not able to occupy all of such an important location. The vast rural areas were under the control of the underground party in the northwest.
Since the decision to cooperate with the national government, how to deal with the relationship with the underground party in the northwest has become an unavoidable problem for the US government.
Some congressmen feel that the underground party in the northwest should be treated with the same attitude as the Red Russians. To be more specific, prevention is greater than cooperation, and the Reds must not be allowed to spread in East Asia.
Other congressmen believe that the enemy of the enemy is a friend. The most important thing for the United States at the moment is to defeat the Japanese. For this purpose, anything can be discussed.
Melos himself had no ill feelings towards Northwest, and was even curious. After hesitating for a few seconds, he tentatively asked Zuo Zhong.
"Zuo, do you mean to fly new aircraft to Laiyuan? Will the Northwest Underground Party seize the aircraft like the Red Russians?"
"And as far as I know, they don't have planes or airports, and Laiyuan is very close to the Japanese, so it's not a good landing place."
Zuo Zhong's expression remained unchanged, and he replied slowly: "Although Northwest and Red Russia believe in the same doctrine, Northwest is more trustworthy than Mosk in terms of credibility, and he keeps his word."
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"As for Laiyuan being too close to the Japanese-occupied area, that's not a problem at all. It's just a transit airport, and the plane can fly to mountain cities or other Kuomintang-controlled areas after refueling there."
"The underground party organization's mobilization capabilities are far beyond your imagination. It is easy for them to build a temporary field airport in a short period of time."
Melos closed the action plan. If the plan inside could be successfully implemented, his first problem would be solved.
Coupled with Zuo Zhong's answer just now, there is only one last difficulty left in the operation, how to avoid the Japanese pursuit.
Zuo Zhong only said two words: "Mengdi!"
"Monte?" Melos asked in confusion.
"Yes." Zuo Zhong didn't give in, and said confidently:
"After taking off, the plane flew southwest first, making the illusion of flying directly to the Kuomintang-controlled area, then suddenly turned to the west midway, and then headed south to Laiyuan when it approached Mengdi."
"Most of the areas that this route passes through are no-man's land, which not only reduces the chance of the aircraft being discovered, but also confuses the Japanese and makes them think that the incident was done by the Red Russians, buying time for the second refueling."
Melos did not rush to a conclusion. He first drew a rough route on the map, and then carefully looked at the terrain along the way. A smile gradually appeared on his face.
To the west of Wanggang Airport is the Greater Khingan Mountains, and to the west is the grassland. Between Mengdi and Laiyuan are also mountains and wilderness, perfectly avoiding densely populated areas.
Only one point on the entire route, Zhangjiakou, is at risk, but the plane can avoid it by adjusting its altitude or route slightly, not much fuel is wasted, and the impact on operations is very small.
After pondering for a while, Melos, who became more and more excited as he thought about it, asked the military commanders to implement the plan as soon as possible, preferably before the Pacific Fleet regained its strength.
Zuo Zhong suppressed his hand and asked the other party to calm down. This operation would be carried out in the Japanese-occupied area, and he must be well prepared and not rush it. Moreover, he had to go to the Eighth Route Army office to seek help from the underground party.
Although Melos intended to object, he finally kept his mouth shut. The United States was only responsible for providing money and had little say in actions.
In the next half month, the spies in Harbin were faced with a formidable enemy because an unknown radio signal appeared repeatedly.
In front of the Harbin Police Department, Gao Bin (who appeared in Chapter 683), who had fought against the military commander, walked out of the office building. He looked at the falling snowflakes in the sky and got into the car.
(The former site of the pseudo-Harbin Police Department, photographed by the author while traveling)
"Section Chief, the electronic reconnaissance vehicle still has no results. The other party is very cunning and will change its location every time it sends a report." The driver reported.
In the past few years, Gao Bin has been promoted from the chief of the ordinary high-level unit to the deputy chief of the secret service department by betraying and killing his compatriots.
Hearing what his men said, he closed his eyes and made a plan: "Closely monitor the people who have come to Harbin recently, and let the brothers be alert. Harbin will not be peaceful for long."
The sudden increase in telegraph communications and the mysterious whereabouts of enemies all indicate one thing: someone is going to do something in Harbin.
Gao Bin went through the opponents of the Secret Service Section in his mind and felt that the opponent was most likely to be a military commander.
The unknown signal was obviously sent by a high-power radio. In Harbin, the only forces capable of equipping such radios were Juntong and Hongru.
However, after the Sorge case, the Red Russian agents went into hibernation and rarely clashed with the Japanese and the Secret Service. On the contrary, the people in the mountain city became more and more rampant.
So what exactly was the military commander going to do? Gao Bin thought of his last experience and decisively ordered to raise the alert level of all key agencies in Harbin to prevent sabotage by state agents.
