**Chapter 833: World People's Liberation Army (1)**

The design team used "balance" as the core philosophy for the J-13 fighter. Hearing this, He Rui was completely satisfied. The J-13's appearance was highly similar to that of the F-5 fighter—a slender fuselage with side intakes, indeed a model of balance.

"Chairman, welcome. My colleagues and I have a few questions. The first is: if you could completely dominate the US aviation industry, how long would it be before the J-13 was forced out of service?"

The designers were stunned by Wang Dongliu's opening. They wanted to know He Rui's view on the J-13's potential, but hadn't expected Wang's question to be so tricky. Yet no one objected; the question was actually quite piercing.

He Rui liked the question. After reflecting, he replied, "Within eight years, the J-13 would need a comprehensive upgrade. Within fifteen to twenty years, under the conditions of great power confrontation, the J-13 would have to be abandoned."

Wang Dongliu felt an itch he couldn't scratch; such an answer was either prophetic or based on a vast array of considerations. Before he could speak, other designers eagerly asked, "Why?"

"In future air combat, beyond-visual-range (BVR) operations will become the mainstay as the electronics industry develops. The J-13 has room for upgrades in this area; its nose design is sufficient to accommodate a fair amount of electronic equipment. Once we enter that stage, electronic equipment will require larger apertures, and the J-13's nose is too narrow, limiting its potential. That is why, if I led the US industry, the J-13 would have to be discarded within fifteen to twenty years at most." He Rui explained. The surrounding designers nodded; this was the talk of an expert. They all believed that if they kept asking, He Rui would surely speak of various technical directions and even key breakthroughs.

The designers of China's air force fighters had long admired He Rui, both for his ability to point the way and for not making excessive demands during their R&D. If they hadn't asked so directly, He Rui would have only brought up his knowledge step-by-step after the prerequisites were met. In the nearly thirty years of Chinese aviation and industrial development, the desire for perfection had led to many failures. It was only because He Rui guided the nation that these didn't turn into major disasters.

Wang Dongliu didn't want to discuss these things now. He asked another question: "Chairman, how many J-13s do you think we need to produce?"

"For domestic use, 1,500 would be too many. I'm not making a requirement, but from a cost perspective, 800 to 1,000 would be enough. Subsequent upgrades will take time, and this war offers a window of less than three years. For foreign use, I think about 800 to 1,000. It could reach 1,500. It depends on foreign demand."

"Chairman, are we really going to sell the J-13 to foreign countries?" Wang Dongliu was still a bit reluctant.

"Good things should be shared with friends. Although the J-13 is an excellent aircraft, as long as we have all of you, we will surely develop even better ones."

"Where will the J-13 primarily be used at this stage?"

"Australia and New Zealand. Comrades, you must be prepared to go to the Southern Hemisphere and see the Southern Cross."

"Haha!" Hearing this, the designers were finally amused.

He Rui didn't want to say too much, as the formal founding of the World People's Liberation Army (WPLA) was scheduled for July 3rd. Checking his watch, he ordered, "We came here to see the planes. Comrades, let's stop chatting for now and watch the Air Force boys take the stage."

The first item of the flight demonstration was passing through the "arch." High-pressure water cannons sprayed two streams of water, forming half an arch each in the air. The J-13 fighters passed through the "water arch" and headed down the runway. As the engines roared with afterburners, the screaming sound grew louder. the fighters began their taxi, and soon, these representatives of the most advanced technology took to the sky, showcasing their combat power with a variety of dazzling maneuvers.

Immediately after the inspection, He Rui flew back to the capital. Preparations for the formal establishment of the WPLA were essentially complete. In the plan, the WPLA's goal was to liberate European and American nations, so the liberation of Hawaii was a crucial prerequisite.

At 2:00 PM on June 26th, in front of the US Pacific Fleet headquarters in Honolulu, Hawaii, a US military band played the national anthem as the color guard began the flag-lowering ceremony.

The sky was filled with aircraft. The only large island still under US control was Honolulu (Oahu). Relying on airfields built on other islands, the Japanese were launching wave after wave of attacks on Honolulu.

The sound of bombs hitting the ground was incessant. The US had built a solid defense system on Honolulu, and the Japanese were working hard to destroy the coastal defenses to clear the way for landing forces. Japanese planes occasionally entered the airspace over the naval base to drop bombs; though the color guard tried to maintain their bearing, the nearby explosions caused their bodies to instinctively flinch.

Fortunately, no bomb struck to blow both the color guard and the American flag to pieces. The folded flag was quickly placed in a wooden box and sent to the harbor. Under the prayers of the US troops, night finally fell. The American flag and the Pacific Command's flag, both of symbolic value, were prioritized for transport on small boats, sailing out to sea under the cover of darkness.

The US military had indeed considered using large vessels to evacuate as many troops as possible to the mainland and had actually begun executing the plan. Until June 23rd, when a convoy of four transport ships was ambushed by Japanese submarines and all were sunk. Of the over 9,000 soldiers on board, fewer than 1,000 were rescued. The US was forced to abandon its large-scale evacuation plan. Small boats were cheap, and presumably, submarines wouldn't risk exposure to attack such insignificant targets.

The Japanese submarine force indeed had no interest in small boats, focusing all their attention on severing the shipping lanes between Hawaii and the US mainland, while also contending with American submarines.

Honolulu was too far from the Asian Allied heavy bomber bases at this stage, so Japan assigned the bombing tasks to J-9s, while J-10s were used to eliminate the last of the US air power.

The newly arrived US air units in Hawaii had lost another 2,000 aircraft, bringing the total number of US fighters lost in the Hawaiian Islands to 30,000. Because of this, the director responsible for dispatching air units, upon receiving the order, said with bloodshot eyes, "I would rather be shot than sign another order to send planes to Hawaii."

The director was subsequently dismissed, but no one would take the post. Every officer asked if they would sign the orders replied that they had no interest in the position at this time.

The lack of new air units arriving in Honolulu meant the US Air Force had abandoned Hawaii. Furthermore, the entire Air Force knew that sending more pilots to Honolulu was merely sending them to their deaths. The shipping lanes from the US West Coast to Honolulu had been cut. Even if planes reached Honolulu, there was no fuel to continue the fight.

At 9:00 AM on June 27th, the last twelve US planes, filled with the remaining fuel, carried high-value officers out of Honolulu. At 10:00 AM, the Japanese landed on Honolulu and began the ground battle with the US forces.

By 6:00 PM, the US troops, who had lost all will to fight, were in full retreat and had reached the harbor. To utilize the harbor as much as possible, the Japanese sent envoys to demand surrender. After several hours of negotiation, the last US forces in Hawaii decided to surrender and sent a telegram to the Army Staff: "Requesting permission to decide our own subsequent actions."

General Marshall did not reply—not because he was unwilling to take responsibility, but because the Chiefs of Staff for the Navy and Air Force both opposed a reply. Losing Hawaii meant the US lost its foothold in the Pacific. This was a responsibility Marshall could not bear alone, and the Navy and Air Force chiefs would inevitably lose their posts as well.

The US troops defending the harbor were honest enough; without orders, they simply wouldn't surrender. At 7:00 AM on June 28th, the Japanese began their final assault. Chinese-made rocket launchers had been sent to the front and began an indiscriminate bombardment of the harbor.

Paths of fire dragons covered the harbor; no matter the fortification, they were as fragile as paper under the blanket bombardment. At 7:20 AM, the Japanese ceased fire. The remaining Americans in the ruined harbor requested surrender. Post-war statistics showed that because of a single decision by the US commander, over 17,000 US personnel were killed or wounded in that single barrage. Among them, deaths—including those who died of heavy wounds after surrendering—exceeded 12,000.

Thus, the Hawaii campaign ended in a total victory for the Asian Allied Forces. A total of 118,000 US troops surrendered; adding previous fatalities, the US lost 240,000 men in Hawaii.

Although the battle was basically completed by the Japanese alone, their equipment, logistics, and supplies were mostly provided by the Asian Alliance, with China contributing over 80%.

The White House did not hide this failure. Roosevelt announced it to the American people over the radio, then informed them that America would fight on and would never surrender to China. To commemorate the officers and men who fell in the Hawaiian Islands, the White House flew the flag at half-mast for three days, from June 30th to July 2nd. On July 1st, Roosevelt would personally lead a national day of mourning at the Washington Cathedral.

At 7:00 AM on July 1st, the front of the White House was packed with cars. All of Roosevelt's cabinet members had arrived. A White House secretary whispered to Roosevelt, "Mr. President, all the members of Congress you invited have gathered at the Capitol and will meet you at the cathedral entrance."

Roosevelt nodded. This move was indeed very risky. After all, China had not proactively declared war on the US, nor had they launched a sneak attack. The total war between China and the US only began after the US Congress declared war on China. This defeat would surely strike a heavy blow to Roosevelt's prestige. At this moment, the opposition Republican Party had every opportunity to fiercely attack him or even launch impeachment proceedings.

From the current situation, the congressmen opposed to Roosevelt were clear-headed enough and had not done anything foolish.

"Let's go to the cathedral," Roosevelt ordered.

The Washington Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, is also known as the Washington National Cathedral. Despite the word "National," the US Constitution stipulates no state religion, and the government had never invested in the cathedral; its construction over centuries was entirely through donations.

Nominally, the cathedral is open to all citizens and in that sense belongs to no denomination, reflecting the "generalized" tendency of American Christianity. In related Chinese research reports, it was argued that the US was simply a Christian nation without a legally defined state religion. Due to the overwhelming advantage and actual dominance of Christianity, no deliberate state religion was needed.

The cathedral is built in the Gothic style, one characteristic of which is that the entire complex forms a cross-shaped structure. Inside the main building, there is inevitably a cross configuration. This cross is not equilateral; the altar is located at the center of the cross.

When the Washington elite gathered at the cathedral, they entered the interior. On the altar, the rites for the dead were underway. The religious composition of the US forces in the Hawaii campaign was diverse; Black people were naturally ignored, and minorities like Indians were even less mentioned. Participating in the memorial were clergy from Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish faiths. This group had participated in the religious ceremonies before the carrier battle not long ago and was now well-versed in the routine. When it was their turn to speak after the ceremony, they recounted various events from before the battle, mourning the heroes of twenty days ago. They assured the surviving US troops and citizens that if they died, God would look after them and give them a direct ticket to heaven.

Once the procedures were finished, it was the turn of the main figure of the event, President Roosevelt. The eyes of reporters and dignitaries fell upon him. The President looked somber, but not defeated. Having endured this failure, Roosevelt was clearly not broken.

Roosevelt's wheelchair stopped before the altar. He picked up the microphone. "First, on behalf of the United States government, I wish to observe a moment of silence for the fallen in Hawaii. Amen."

"Amen," came the response from within the cathedral.

"On behalf of the United States government, I express my condolences to the families of the fallen. Amen."

"Amen," the dignitaries followed the President's lead with the prescribed words.

"On behalf of the United States government, I express concern for the captured American servicemen and demand that the Chinese government provide them with humanitarian treatment in accordance with the Geneva Convention."

This time, no one followed suit; they knew Roosevelt was about to deliver a defense of himself and his administration's role and responsibility in the war.

"According to statistics provided by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in the Hawaii campaign, the US Air Force flew nearly a million sorties, and the US Army, Navy, and Air Force consumed a total of 2.4 million tons of ammunition. In such a short time, in such a small area, a war of such high intensity is unprecedented in military history. Judging by history as it has occurred, the victor should have been America!"

This opening stunned everyone in the cathedral. The dignitaries hoping to challenge Roosevelt's power through this failure were dumbfounded by these figures. They truly hadn't known the US military had fought such a tragic battle.

"Yet we were defeated. From our statistics of the enemy found on the battlefield, intercepted telegrams, and intelligence from interrogating prisoners, taken together, it appears the Chinese military flew 2.3 million sorties and used roughly twice as much ammunition as we did. The reason we were defeated is that we encountered an enemy far greater in number and one who had invested far more in war preparations than we had." Roosevelt pointed out the cause of defeat with resonance.

Although Roosevelt's purpose was to defend himself, his data were basically in line with the facts, and his explanation for the cause of defeat was correct.

"Gentlemen, citizens of America. As early as 1938, we realized that China was preparing to launch a terrible war. At that time, we were not in the majority; isolationism was rampant in America, believing that we should not participate in any war. We failed to notice that He Rui's government in China was already prepared to promote his desired world order across the globe.

America is part of the world; any world order will affect America. Regarding the power to decide world order, if we cannot sit at the table, we are very likely to be on the menu."

A collective gasp echoed low through the cathedral; Roosevelt's metaphor was cruel but resonated deeply. The tens of millions of indigenous people on the North American continent and the Black people sold there had experienced exactly that. The white Americans, as the perpetrators, felt an unusual empathy for this.

"Since 1938, the government and Congress have passed the Two-Ocean Navy Acts and, through a series of mobilizations, built an armed force that the American people believed was unprecedented on Earth. Yet we still suffered a fierce attack from an enemy with twice our numbers. Let us imagine what situation we would be facing now if America had not conducted such high-intensity war preparations.

Starting last October, an enemy ten times the size of the US Navy would have swept across the Pacific; Hawaii would likely have been taken in two weeks. Millions of enemy troops would have landed on the US West Coast, crossing mountains, fording rivers, and traversing plains, marching like locusts toward the East Coast. And we would have had only 100,000 federal troops to oppose them, with every state having to mobilize its youth to fight independently against many times their number.

Therefore, I do not regret declaring war on China. Because when the He Rui government collaborated with France in 1928, they began preparing for this war. And we only began our preparations in 1928 as well. If I have anything to regret, it is not being able to let the American people know this sooner, to persuade them and let them see the true future.

I know some will say it was America's war preparations that triggered China's insecurity, which is why China built more weapons to defend its homeland. To such a hypothesis, I wish to pose a counter-question. Between America and the Chinese mainland, there are 10,000 miles of distance; China only needed to possess the same strength and equipment as America to ensure America would not dare attack. Yet China built twice as much equipment as we did; was China's purpose truly defense?"

Roosevelt paused to catch his breath after finishing his basic defense. These were his true thoughts; he was 120% convinced that He Rui had long been prepared for total war and that striking America was a predetermined goal. The He Rui government had never considered avoiding war with America, but eagerly awaited an American declaration of war.

At this time, the cathedral fell into a brief silence, followed by whispers. Suddenly, someone clapped loudly and shouted, "Mr. President, I support you!"

Everyone looked; it was a Republican senator. Originally, Roosevelt's cabinet members had decided to show their support, but if a cabinet member had been the first to clap after Roosevelt's speech, it would have left a very bad impression. Now that an opposition Republican senator had expressed support, the cabinet members followed suit with applause and cheers. The atmosphere in the cathedral quickly turned in Roosevelt's favor.

Roosevelt raised his hand and waved, and the cabinet members immediately grew quiet. He continued: "America will never compromise with an aggressor; we will surely wage war against any aggressor who invades the American mainland and fight that war to the end. No matter who the aggressor is, they will certainly fail.

To the people of the colonies: America is a nation that opposes colonialism. As far back as the era of President Wilson, America proposed the view of national self-determination. Therefore, America will never enslave any nation, nor will we oppose colonial independence. Thus, to those former colonial nations that consider themselves independent: America is not your enemy, but your friend. Therefore, newly independent nations, please do not be misled and incorrectly define who your enemy is. America, from the past to the present, has not been your enemy.

Finally, the US Constitution stipulates that America is a nation established on the basis of realizing the beautiful wishes of its people. America is a nation that pursues and maintains peace. America's war is for the pursuit of peace; America is not the enemy of peace, but its friend.

Citizens of America, God bless the USA."

This time, Roosevelt's cabinet members were the first to clap in support. even those who felt there was something worth pondering in Roosevelt's speech couldn't think because of the atmosphere. Seeing more and more people around them clapping, they too clapped politely.

Those sensitive to diplomacy had already analyzed a hint from Roosevelt's words. Roosevelt emphasized that America would fight to the end with any country that invaded the American mainland, yet was willing to be friends with independent former colonies. That is to say, after colonies like the Philippines gained independence, the US would not seek to regain its former status. As for the Hawaiian Islands, they were not legally a US state at this time, only an area administered by the US government. Whether such an area counted as part of the American "mainland" lacked at least some legal support.

If analyzed this way, Roosevelt was indicating that his administration believed China should stop while it was ahead and not break America's bottom line. ...It seemed like a request for peace.

Throughout the entire speech, Roosevelt never mentioned seeking peace; every sentence was beyond reproach. If one wanted to use this to accuse him of yielding to China, there was no handle to grasp.

Before they could think further, Roosevelt's secretary pushed his wheelchair. Roosevelt shook hands with the clergy one by one and left through a side door of the hall.

The "cross" of a Gothic building consists essentially of two ends of a longitudinal axis—one the main entrance, the other the rear wall. On the rear wall is a massive window composed of dozens or hundreds of stained glass panels. The ends of the transverse axis are the two side doors. By leaving through a side door, Roosevelt avoided the many seats along the main aisle. Those opposed to him could have expressed their dissatisfaction as he passed; Roosevelt clearly wouldn't give them the chance.

The speech was broadcast live, and the American people heard it first. Soon, American newspapers reprinted it in full, and He Rui saw the English-Chinese bilingual document in less than 24 hours. He Rui's view was also that Roosevelt was drawing a bottom line, warning his government not to invade the American mainland.

While seeing the possibility of peace, He Rui did not trust the Roosevelt administration or the United States. Putting down the report, He Rui looked at the map. The formal founding of the World People's Liberation Army was to be held in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaya. If the founding took place in China, it would encounter negative interpretations, seeing the WPLA as a military organization established by China.

If the Chinese government invaded America, it would naturally incur American hatred. If the WPLA, two-thirds of whose members were not Chinese, entered America to "liberate" it, the situation would be vastly different.

Thinking of this, He Rui picked up Roosevelt's speech and read the last few paragraphs again. It was clear that Roosevelt, from the height of a strategist, saw the threat of the WPLA, which was why he appealed to the newly independent nations, hoping they wouldn't become enemies of America.

But this was like Roosevelt realizing early on that China wanted to build a New World Order—it was still too late. Whether America was an enemy of the colonies should be judged by the colonial peoples themselves. If Roosevelt could make former colonial peoples believe America was a friend with just a few words, it would only prove he had the powerful ability to create a world with his mouth.