A sturdy Japanese officer kept pacing back and forth at the door of Muto Agency. When he saw Li Jie, he hurriedly walked closer and said.
"Mr. Xiao, Lieutenant General Ishihara invites you!"
Li Jie was startled for a moment. Kenji Ishihara was the top commander of the Japanese army in Shencheng. Li Jie was a little surprised by the sudden invitation today. Li Jie had only met him a few times at banquets and had no friendship with him.
"Okay, let me and Consul Muto report this."
The young Japanese officer waved his hand: "No need, I have already told Consul Muto to leave as soon as possible, so as not to keep Lieutenant General Ishihara waiting for a long time."
Seeing this, Li Jie nodded without saying anything and got into the car, following the steps of the young Japanese officer. The officer looked a bit dull and seemed unsociable. He didn't say a word while driving, which happened to follow Li Jie.
Jay's thoughts.
Kenji Ishihara was a complete radical, and he did not like some of Li Jie's remarks in the book. He even criticized them by name in some private occasions. Therefore, the two of them did not have much interaction, so he felt a little strange about his invitation to Li Jie.
Along the way, I kept guessing what the person wanted.
After thinking about it, every idea was constantly being overturned and denied. Let's just accept it as it comes. Observe the attitude of the officer just now. I think it won't be any trouble.
When he stepped into Kenji Ishihara's office, Li Jie's doubts disappeared immediately and he pretended to be surprised.
"Mr. Ashikaga, why are you here in China? It's been a long time!"
Ashikaga Seiwang was talking to Kenji Ishihara, and when he heard the voice, he turned his head and looked at Li Jie with a smile.
"Haha, Mr. Xiao, you Chinese have a good saying, when you say Cao Cao, Cao Cao has arrived, I just mentioned you to General Ishihara and you arrived."
At this point, he paused and glanced at Kenji Ishihara, and then continued: "I came to China this time mainly to express condolences to the imperial soldiers on behalf of the House of Lords. It is not easy for them to make great military exploits for the empire in the Far East."
Kenji Ishihara looked at Li Jie with a scrutinizing gaze and nodded slightly: "Xiao Jun, sit down."
After sitting down, Ashikaga Seiki took a sip of tea and said: "General Ishihara, Shoto is a world-renowned expert on world history, so why bother asking others for his advice? You might as well listen to his opinion."
Although Ishihara Kenji was quite dissatisfied with Li Jie, he still wanted to give Ashikaga Seiki the face. His appeal in Japan was very important, so there was no need to refute his face for a trivial matter.
"Xiao Jun, Mr. Ashikaga and I were just discussing whether the empire should 'go south' or 'go north'. Mr. Ashikaga highly respects your overall view. I wonder what your opinion is, Mr. Xiao?"
As early as after the Meiji Restoration, Japan formulated the basic national policies of "continental policy" (i.e., heading north) and "maritime policy" (i.e., heading south). There has been a great debate between the two strategies for a long time, so here
Bringing it up wouldn't be considered a leak.
Li Jie thought for a moment and said: "Lieutenant General Ishihara, Mr. Ashikaga, the purpose of the empire's strategy is nothing more than to establish the position of Asia's hegemon, obtain resources, and achieve the purpose of supporting war with war. However, I personally feel that moving south is more in line with the interests of the empire.
.”
Ashikaga Chengwang said with great interest: "Oh? Where to start?"
Li Jie smiled slightly: "Whether you are going south or north, it is nothing more than to obtain resources. Let's talk about the Soviet Union first. Siberia and the Far East are rich in natural resources. They have most of the Soviet Union's oil reserves and are also rich in water resources. But these resources
Compared with Southeast Asia, its mining costs and cycles do not have any advantages.
On the other hand, Southeast Asia, in addition to rich oil resources, also has huge reserves of rubber and non-ferrous metals. Compared with Siberia, Southeast Asia is also indispensable for its food production.
Of course, whether it is moving south or north, it will need to face extremely strong opponents. The Soviet Union's basic position is in the European battlefield and does not directly threaten the empire's strategy. This is not the case with the United States. Its embargo measures directly threaten the empire's strategy.
The reason why I think it is more beneficial to go south is that the U.S. Army has far fewer troops than the Empire. Although the Navy is stronger than the Empire, the strategic focus of the United States is in Europe and it can really invest in Southeast Asia.
Not much.
There is an old saying in China that "Never forget the past is the guide for the future", which means to learn from the past experience and lessons as a reference for the future. Zhang Gufeng's time and the Battle of Nomenkan are still vivid in our minds. The Soviet military power in the Far East cannot be underestimated.
watch for."
As for America's mobilization capabilities and terrifying manufacturing potential, Li Jie would not say it. It would be bad if it scared the Japanese. The apparent military strength of the two countries is not much different, but their war potential is vastly different.
, once the war machine of the United States is fully activated, it will be enough to defeat Japan.
Ishihara Kenji's face softened slightly when he heard this. Ashikaga Seiki noticed the change in his expression and smiled: "Xiao Jun, from your perspective, it should be more than that, right?"
Li Jie raised his eyebrows and smiled slightly, and continued: "Those who know me, including Mr. Ashikaga, Southeast Asia has always been a colony of Britain, France, the United States and other countries, but now Europe is in flames of war. After the German army annexed Poland in May, on the Western Front
The Blitzkrieg was launched again, and the Netherlands and France fell successively, leaving Ingra struggling to hold on and having no time to care about anything else.
A single move can affect the whole body. Most of the United States' energy at this time is focused on the European region. On this occasion, it is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If we don't advance now, when will we wait?
Moreover, moving south can also cut off the supplies provided by the British and American forces to the Nationalist Government. Taken together, moving south can be said to be an achievement that can be achieved in one fell swoop, far beyond what can be achieved by moving north!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Ishihara Kenji clapped his hands with a smile on his face and sighed: "Xiao Jun is indeed an expert in world history. His views on the global situation are indeed extraordinary. What Mr. Ashikaga said is true!"
Ashikaga Chengwang couldn't help but praise: "Xiao Jun's views are indeed unique. By the way, Xiao Jun, can I trouble you with something?"
Li Jie was a little confused and pretended to be surprised: "I don't know what you want to ask for? As long as it's something within my ability, Mr. Ashikaga, just give me your orders!"
Ashikaga Chengwang said with a smile: "Haha, it must be a piece of cake for you, Mr. Xiao. You can go back and write an article for me about your remarks on the southern advance. It should really let those die-hards know something!"
Li Jie was secretly happy. Ashikaga hoped that this move would play into his hands. He secretly thought that I wouldn't believe Li unless he deceived you. On the surface, he said with a smile: "Haha, no problem. Thank you Mr. Ashikaga for your kindness. I will do it today."
I’ll write it all night long and I’ll definitely get it into your hands tomorrow!”