The wired telegraph relied on people to complete the task of signal identification and signal expansion, which was done by integrated circuits in later generations. The telegraph operator industry also absorbed a lot of labor.
Starting from St. Paul, there was a telegraph station every ten kilometers. The telegraph station more than ten kilometers away from St. Paul had been taken care of, and the telegraph operator in the telegraph station more than ten kilometers away had a worried look on his face. Of course, he knew that the war had begun, but what would be the result of the war? After forwarding more than a dozen SOS telegrams from St. Paul, the telegrams over there had ended.
Last night, he had summoned the courage to send a telegram to St. Paul asking for help, but the response he received was: "The Chinese army has taken over St. Paul. Sir, do you want to surrender?" This news frightened the telegraph operator, and he didn't dare to send another message.
The news from St. Paul was cut off, but the news from other places about St. Paul did not stop. In particular, the news asking about St. Paul's current situation came one after another. The telegraph operator didn't dare to refuse. He hadn't received his salary for this month. After enduring through the night, the telegraph operator who came to take over the job didn't show up on time. This was bad news. Normally, the replacement would have shown up sooner or later.
After waiting for more than two hours uneasily, there was movement outside. The telegraph operator ran out to take a look and saw a strange motorcade in the distance heading straight for the telegraph station. In the eyes of the Liberation Army, there was nothing strange about a formation of five motorcycles and two trucks. This was the standard configuration for a motorized infantry platoon to carry out a mission. However, in the eyes of the Americans, even if this American was a slightly knowledgeable telegraph operator, the motorcade driving on the dirt road was very strange.
The telegraph operator couldn't wait any longer. He went back to pick up his coat, put on his hat, and ran out the back door. Behind him was a small vegetable field. He would farm here in his spare time and sell vegetables to St. Paul in exchange for some income. Passing through the vegetable field, he ran all the way into the woods. It wasn't until he was sure that no one was chasing behind him that the telegraph operator, panting, stopped. Leaning against a nearby tree, the telegraph operator suddenly burst into tears. His salary was gone. There was no money to buy food this month.
A platoon of the Liberation Army was ordered to occupy a nearby telegraph station. Wire telegrams were easily destroyed, but they were better than nothing. When the troops broke into the telegraph station, they found that the water in the cup was still warm. It seemed that the people inside had not run for long. Before he could search, the telegraph rang. Naturally, there were telegraphers among the troops on this trip. He sat down to pick up the telegram and quickly finished receiving it.
Ten minutes later, St. Paul's 24th Division's staff office received a telegram from here. Qi Rui read the message. "What's the situation in St. Paul?" The sender of the message seemed to still be hoping that St. Paul could resist the Chinese army.
"How should we respond?" Qi Rui asked the deputy chief of staff beside him.
Deputy Chief of Staff Zhu Jiyun was also a little hesitant. Of course, everyone hoped that the US Army at the northern frontline would immediately move south. As long as there was a gap in their battle line, the Liberation Army could immediately charge in through this gap. But what kind of wording would be effective? War was war, after all. This wasn't like the Liberation Army telling the Americans, "Hurry up and come over," and the Americans would obediently move south.
"Let's tell the Americans that St. Paul is in danger. If the US Army hurries over, there might be hope," the communications staff officer beside him suggested.
After hearing this suggestion, Deputy Chief of Staff Zhu Jiyun frowned and asked, "Will it be effective?"
Acting Chief of Staff Qi Rui didn't dwell on this matter. He agreed with the communications staff officer's telegram draft. "Let's just send it. No matter what the Americans think, at least we tried our best. "
Therefore, this telegram went straight to the US side and arrived at the White House that night along with other telegrams.
The White House was brightly lit. It had been like this ever since the US Army and China fought. News of the war kept coming in. Since yesterday, the news of the attack on St. Paul had reached the White House. At first, everyone, including the president, thought it was a joke.
There was no news from the frontline, but a Chinese army suddenly appeared in St. Paul. Moreover, it appeared in the east of St. Paul. Did the Chinese fly there with wings? However, throughout the day, there was more and more news about St. Paul. The news mentioned the possibility of the Chinese army appearing in St. Paul. In the evening, a telegram from the frontline mentioned that the train that was supposed to arrive at the frontline never appeared. The railway telegram confirmed that since yesterday morning, there had been no train departing from St. Paul. This piece of evidence was very credible. The White House finally began to have some doubts.
When they received the news that St. Paul was in a fierce battle with the Chinese, the people in the White House Office had to consider the possibility of the Chinese army really attacking St. Paul.
With this possibility, the Minister of War, Lincoln Jr., ordered the frontline to send a cavalry unit south to St. Paul to see the situation. Late at night, which was the second night after the 24th Army of the Liberation Army began to attack St. Paul, and three days after the 24th Army of the Liberation Army arrived in St. Paul, the White House finally had some movement.
The telegram was sent late at night and only reached the front commander's table when he was eating a rather sumptuous lunch. The commander finished his meal, wiped his mouth with a napkin, and opened the telegram. There were many telegrams from the White House. The commander didn't think this was an important telegram.
After reading the telegram, the commander frowned. He received a similar telegram yesterday, but the commander and the staff didn't think it really happened. Since the White House sent a telegram, he couldn't completely sit back and do nothing. The commander finally ordered a cavalry regiment to go south to see the situation.
Two hours after the order was given, the adjutant led Division Commander Hendry to the commander. The cavalry regiment that was sent out was Division Commander Hendry's troops.
"Commander," Division Commander Hendry saluted and immediately said, "Our troops want to go south by train. This is fast. "
F * ck … The commander immediately felt a burst of anger in his heart. It had been two hours. If the cavalry ran fast, they should be able to run more than ten miles by now. Faster by train? It would take at least half a day to transfer a train that could accommodate a cavalry regiment. By the time it was done, it would probably be dark. The troops still needed time to get on the train. If the troops really left, it would probably be tomorrow.
Thinking of this, the commander said angrily, "You guys set off now, go to St. Paul immediately! Arrive by tomorrow morning at the latest! "
"Sir, if a war really broke out in St. Paul, our cavalry would not be able to fight when they reach St. Paul after running so far." Division Commander Hendry immediately raised an objection.
"Stop talking nonsense, you guys set off right away. Time is of the essence now! "The commander didn't intend to listen to Division Commander Hendry's nonsense.
Division Commander Hendry had no choice but to return to the division headquarters and order the cavalry regiment to go south. The commander of the cavalry regiment was very disappointed. Cavalry running 50 kilometers a day was not a small amount. It was a hundred kilometers from here to St. Paul. If they took the train, the troops had a good chance of arriving near St. Paul tomorrow night.
However, the commander had given the order, and they couldn't resist. The troops finally set off in a bad mood.
There was nothing much to say along the way. The cavalry was majestic and powerful south. Even if there was only one regiment of cavalry, it was a long column. After a quiet night, they got up the next day and continued to move forward.
At night, the troops were only 20 kilometers away from St. Paul. The commander was unhappy, but he wasn't stupid. The contact troops heading to St. Paul had been sent. Seeing that there was no black smoke from burning buildings in the direction of St. Paul, the commander was relieved.
He had also participated in the Civil War. At that time, when the northern army passed by the southern towns, there was bound to be a fire. The fire didn't go out for a few days, and even after a few days, smoke could still be seen. The spring sky in the direction of St. Paul was very bright under the evening sun. There was no sign of war at all.
After giving the order to gather the troops, the commander prepared to set up camp. However, just as the troops began to gather, there was the sound of whistling artillery shells. "Enemy attack!" This thought flashed in the commander's mind when the artillery shells exploded among the group of cavalry.
Some of the cavalry dismounted, and some didn't even get off their horses. In the midst of the panic, the commander immediately ordered the troops to return the way they came. Along the way, he was also quite cautious, at least on the road that he had already passed.
The American federal troops of the cavalry regiment immediately turned their horses around and fled along the road they came. Artillery shells flew continuously from both sides, and almost every shell caused damage to the American cavalry regiment.
The commander's heart was filled with fear and pain. After the Civil War, the United States went through a major retirement. Almost the entire federal army was disbanded, leaving less than 100,000 federal troops. Under the military policy of hiding troops among the people, each state had its own troops. For example, this cavalry regiment was the army of North Carolina, and the division commanded by Division Commander Hendry was actually the National Guard of North Carolina.
This army was usually very scattered, and would only be gathered during times of war, under the command of the federal war department. The soldiers who fell off their horses were all children of North Carolina, just like the commander. As a fellow countryman, it was impossible for the commander to not have some feelings for his hometown.
However, the artillery of the Chinese army was too amazing. How many cannons did they bring over? The artillery shells flew over like raindrops and exploded on the ground. Almost every minute, there would be a few shells landing on the ground. The commander felt that the sky was falling. Fear gripped his heart tightly, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.
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