In Shangqiu City, inside a room where the Japanese military spy agency resides.
After Sun Liangcheng arrived in Shangqiu, he was put under house arrest by the Japanese army on the pretext of reviewing the battlefield conditions. At first, the Japanese army actually sent several combat staff to learn about the specific battlefield conditions from Sun Liangcheng.
As a result, after a few days, the Japanese army did not send anyone over again. However, Sun Liangcheng's rank was not low, and the 38th Division of the Appeasement Army was alone outside. The Japanese army not only did not torture him, but instead served him with delicious food and drink, and also allowed him to
Stay in touch with the outside world.
There is no unified opinion within the Japanese army on how to characterize Sun Liangcheng's case. The reason is that the Kojima Yoshizo jade is broken, the Japanese army in Shangqiu lacks a final say, and the Japanese cavalry 4th Brigade chief of staff Araki Sadahiro and the secret service chief Nishimura Takehiko have different opinions.
.
Araki Sadahiro advocated that Sun Liangcheng be sentenced to death in order to pay tribute to the fallen Japanese soldiers. Nishimura Takehiko was worried that Sun Liangcheng would be eliminated and the 38th Division of the Appeasement Army would rebel, so he advocated sparing Sun Liangcheng's life.
On the same day, news of the successive losses of Dingtao, Caoxian, and Chengwu reached Shangqiu. The Japanese army in Shangqiu was shocked and worried that the Eighth Route Army would take advantage of the situation and attack Shangqiu, which was empty of troops.
On this occasion, there were only nearly 300 Japanese troops left behind in Shangqiu. In addition, there was a police force of more than 600 people in the city.
On that day, the Japanese troops in Shangqiu asked for help from the 35th Division, and immediately held an emergency meeting.
Since ancient times, wherever there are people, there has been struggle. This is the case in China, and it is also the case in Japan. No one can escape this law.
In the conference room.
The main seat is vacant, with Araki Sadahiro and Nishimura Takehiko on the right, and Kuroshima Morita on the left.
The atmosphere between the three of them was a bit awkward. The two little devils, Sadahiro Araki and Takehiko Nishimura, thought that Morita Kuroshima was in pieces, but they didn't expect that this guy came back unscathed.
The two wanted to escort Kuroshima Morita back to the country and send him to a military court in the name of being unfavorable in the battle. However, under the protection of Isamu Terauchi, Okamura Neji thought that the main responsibility for this battle was the idiot Yoshizo Kojima.
So he was ordered to perform meritorious service and stay in Shangqiu.
"Gentlemen, the Eighth Route Army has successively captured the three counties of Dingtao, Caoxian and Chengwu within two days. Now Shangqiu's defense strength is empty. The Eighth Route Army is very likely to launch an offensive on Shangqiu next! So we must unite!" Araki Sadahiro took the lead!
said.
"Yes, the current situation of the imperial army does not allow us to have any other ideas. If Shangqiu is lost, we will have no choice but to die to atone for our sins!" Takehiko Nishimura on the side also said.
The two old Japanese were as anxious as ants on a hot pot. In contrast, Kuroshima Morita was not so anxious. Since Kuroshima Morita came back, he has noticed the subtle situation in Shangqiu City.
However, Sun Liangcheng's backer, Murayama Seinosuke, was far away in Jinling. After Sun Liangcheng learned that Kuroshima Morita was safe and sound after returning to Shangqiu, Sun Liangcheng entrusted his wife to find Kuroshima Morita and climbed into Kuroshima Morita's lap.
Both of them escaped from the Battle of Southwest Shandong and formed an alliance of losers.
Sun Liangcheng needed a backer within the Japanese army, and Kuroshima Morita also needed a force to expand his voice.
In order to suppress the arrogance of Araki Sadahiro and Nishimura Takehiko and seize the initiative, Kuroshima Morita did not rush to express his position. Instead, he brought up the past: "Araki-kun, Nishimura-kun, the former brigade commander went his own way and violated the orders of the North China Expeditionary Force Headquarters.
, sent troops privately, resulting in all the soldiers under his command being shattered, thus causing the current situation of the Eighth Route Army in southwestern Shandong to be extremely difficult to control!"
"Now a mess has been left. Commander Harada has not given a clear reply because of this matter. Should he still report to Commander Okamura and ask the North China Dispatch Army Headquarters to send troops for reinforcements?"
"You know, you two were in Shangqiu when the brigade commander decided to send troops. Why didn't you stop General Kojima's reckless move? You are jointly and severally responsible!"
The Fourth Cavalry Brigade is directly under the North China Expeditionary Army, but is managed by the 35th Division to conduct public security operations in southwestern Shandong.
Although Harada Xiongyoshi was lucky enough to be freed from responsibility for the defeat of the Shandong Southwest War, he was extremely angry. This implicated the remaining Japanese personnel in Shangqiu, so much so that Araki Sadahiro sent a telegram requesting reinforcements, but did not give a clear explanation.
reply.
Araki Sadahiro's expression changed when he heard this. He immediately tried to shirk responsibility like Kuroshima Morita, and said in a hasty tone: "The brigade commander is already in pieces and the incident has been determined. There is no need to dwell on this matter. Let's discuss how to solve the problem at hand.
dilemma!"
Looking at the panicked Araki Sadahiro, Kuroshima Morita said with a smile on his face: "Gentlemen, if you want to solve the current predicament, I have a way!"
"The top priority is to release Sun Liangcheng first. Since no problems have been found, let him be released!"
"No, in the Battle of Southwest Shandong, only the 38th Division retreated intact, which is extremely suspicious. Moreover, all the advisers and instructors sent by the Imperial Army to the 38th Division died in the battle. What's the explanation for this?" Araki flatly refused.
road.
"Humph, Mr. Araki, you have to know that the 38th Division of the Pacification Army cannot be commanded without Sun Liangcheng. The division is currently stationed in Qingji and Guocunji. Do you really want to force the 38th Division to rebel? Mr. Nishimura
, what do you think?”
Sun Liangcheng's wife had previously been active within the Japanese army. Nishimura Takehiko and Kuroshima Morita both accepted the benefits. Nishimura Takehiko said: "Araki-kun, Sun Liangcheng is still loyal to the imperial army, otherwise he will not escape the blame even if he knows that he is guilty.
He could have gone north to join the national army. Judging from the situation at the time, he led the 38th Division and retreated unscathed, which shows that he is still somewhat capable. We should not shirk all the responsibility on him!"
According to Sun Liangcheng's explanation, the superiority of the Eighth Route Army's artillery fire immediately destroyed the strength of the Imperial Army's headquarters, and then covered up the troops. When the situation was over, he advocated conserving strength and retreating immediately. However, the Japanese adviser advocated continuing to fight with the Eighth Route Army and insisted on going his own way.
In the end, they all died in battle.
When Araki Sadahiro saw the two joining forces, he could only remain silent.
"Then it's settled. After the meeting, Sun Liangcheng will be released, and he will be sent back to the 38th Division to pacify the troops and build a defense line north of Shangqiu. In order to prevent the 38th Division from having different intentions, Sun Liangcheng and I will personally go and take charge!
"Kurojima Morita seemed to be putting his own safety aside and said with dignity.
"Yusi, Kuroshima-kun is indeed a soldier of the empire. I apologize for the previous misunderstanding!" Takehiko Nishimura was extremely moved when he heard this. He stood up and bowed respectfully.
In contrast, Araki Sadahiro, set off by Kuroshima Morita, is like a reckless man who only knows how to pursue blame and completely ignores the chain reaction after killing Sun Liangcheng.
In fact, the little devil was not a fool. He had already guessed that Sun Liangcheng had killed the Japanese adviser who was placed within the 38th Division in order to preserve his strength. However, the current situation did not allow the Japanese army to take drastic actions.