In Idaho, the pocket formation painstakingly laid out by the American army was entering its final battle. Clearly dissatisfied with having caught only a small fish this time, Pershing began considering another strategic plan after tightening the encirclement.
"Commander, perhaps we could consider ambushing the enemy reinforcements along the way!" Douglas MacArthur suggested.
Pershing's eyes lit up, only to dim again moments later. The enemy reinforcements numbered at least in the hundreds of thousands—how could they possibly ambush them?
Too few men would be useless, while too many would make secrecy impossible. It was a fine plan, but difficult to carry out in practice!
"No, MacArthur. We can't keep the movement of a large army secret. The enemy already knows our situation; they can't possibly be unprepared!" Pershing rejected the idea.
Still unwilling to give up, Douglas MacArthur said, "We can use disguises and send the troops in batches. The enemy's marching column will certainly be very long. We can launch a surprise attack once night falls!"
After some thought, Pershing said, "Your plan is only suitable for small-unit operations. No matter how well we disguise ourselves, we can't send hundreds of thousands of troops over there without the enemy discovering them!"
Douglas MacArthur countered, "Why must it be hundreds of thousands of troops? If we only deploy several tens of thousands, scatter them, and disguise them as local militia, even if the enemy discovers them, they won't take them seriously!
"And I've noticed something else: our troops are especially suited for night combat. As long as we dye the soldiers' uniforms black, the enemy won't be able to spot anything under cover of darkness!"
After pondering it, Pershing said, "All right, go give it a try. Let's hope you succeed! But before that, we still need to swallow up