Having said this, Umezu Yoshijiro glanced at Kimura Hyōtaro, who was made a little uncomfortable by his words, and continued with a contemptuous smile on his face: "As for Hyrule, we have issued a direct attack to the 23rd Division. A written order? Lieutenant General Kanji Nishihara wants to move freely, so let him move freely."
"No matter what happens in Hailar, it is the 23rd Division's own business and has nothing to do with the Kwantung Army Headquarters. And those workers have no intention of letting them leave Hailar alive. It will be solved sooner or later. There is no difference."
"I, Umezu Yoshijiro, am not General Matsui Iwane. I am so complacent about being installed as a prisoner. I actually left a written order in my own name when massacring the city. In the end, I became a scapegoat for the sake of the imperial family and my subordinates. In some words, I express my meaning Just come out, but if you don't kill those Manchus, why don't you keep them after conscription and use them to attack us?"
General Umezu Yoshijiro was indeed scheming. His words not only found a scapegoat and cleared the relationship, but also hit Kimura Hyoutarou's vital point at once. Indeed, one hundred troops suffered a severe air attack. As the highest ranking officer of the Kwantung Army, It is almost impossible for the two commanders to say that they are not responsible at all. Once the matter is rigorously investigated, Commander Umezu, as the emperor's favorite general, may be fine, but he, the chief of staff, will not be able to escape no matter what. Lose the relationship,
According to the past practice of the Kwantung Army, once something happened to the Kwantung Army, the chief of staff was often dealt with. If he didn't find two scapegoats, he would probably be involved in this matter. General Umezu Yoshijiro was right. If he didn't want to If his general career ends here, it is inevitable to find a scapegoat with enough weight.
After hesitating for a long time, under the real threat of whether he could still wear his official hat, Lieutenant General Kimura Hyōtaro, who regarded his official position as his life, finally nodded and expressed his agreement with General Umezu's opinion, and Kimura Hyōtaro Taro's nod did not make General Umezu feel relaxed.
After all, even if there is a scapegoat, the losses caused by the air raid on Xinjing are still there. It is not only the emperor and the base camp who value the 100th Army, but also General Umezu Yoshijiro. They attach great importance to it and regard it as a magic weapon in the decisive battle with the Anti-Japanese Alliance. Otherwise, they would not inspect it so frequently.
Without the powerful killer weapon developed by the 100th Army, the Kwantung Army will have to pay an extra price if it wants to solve the current resistance forces in Manchuria in one go. Moreover, once the Kwantung Army suffers excessive losses in combat, it will It will seriously affect the Japanese Army's next strategic actions in the future.
What makes him even more anxious is that the Kwantung Army's current intelligence work against the Alliance is making more and more mistakes. The unfavorable development of the intelligence work of the Alliance against the Alliance and the lack of effective intelligence sources will further affect whether the Kwantung Army can completely defeat the Alliance in the next step. Eliminate an important factor in the resistance,
The current Anti-Japanese Alliance is no longer what it used to be. It was no longer the situation when they were driven out by the Kwantung Army and hid in the mountains and old forests, afraid to come out, and worried about food and cotton-padded clothes all day long. In last year's battle, the Anti-Japanese Alliance's performance The combat effectiveness and powerful weapons and equipment made it clear to Umezu Yoshijiro that the Kwantung Army could no longer treat these rebels as gangsters who had only engaged in harassment warfare before.
More and more phenomena indicate that this army, now and in the near future, has become the toughest opponent of the Kwantung Army. For the always tenacious Japanese army, an army that has always been well-equipped is not terrible, but an army that is both A well-equipped and tenacious army will be a formidable opponent.
Although Umezu Yoshijiro was angry, he was a senior commander after all. Relying on his military's unique keen sense of smell, he vaguely sensed the confrontation between the southward and northward advance in the base camp from the telegrams before the base camp. , Judging from the current development of the situation, I am afraid that going south will have the absolute upper hand in the debate.
Manchuria is rich in coal and iron resources, but rubber and oil, two of the blood of modern military, are all imported from the United States and Britain. Once the United States and Britain impose an embargo on Japan, unless they spit out the fat they have swallowed, they will take War means is the only thing Japan can do at the moment.
As a senior officer of the Japanese army, Umezu Yoshijiro knew his colleagues very well. If they were to withdraw from the occupied China land, it would be more difficult than killing them. In other words, judging from the current situation, going south might be It is the last choice that the base camp can make to solve the urgently needed strategic resources.
If an all-out war breaks out between the Empire and the United States and Britain, the security of Manchuria, which is the Empire's important supply base for coal, steel, wood, and grain, will be even more crucial. Manchuria, as the rear area, is unstable and the resource-poor Empire simply has no ability. War with the United States and Britain,
Whether he can eliminate the already strong resistance alliance that can defeat several divisions of the Kwantung Army in the shortest possible time, and stabilize the situation in Manchuria as quickly as possible, is probably a question of whether the empire can achieve war against the United States and Britain. An important factor in victory, the current situation makes the always confident Yoshijiro Umezu feel somewhat melancholy.
After losing the secret weapon of one hundred troops, how much price did the Kwantung Army have to pay to completely solve the security problems in Manchuria? Although Umezu Yoshijiro was not convinced by the price of last year's battle, it can be said to be unforgettable, with so many military exploits. The illustrious veteran division was not defeated by the Russians or the Chinese government forces, but it collapsed in this desolate northern Manchuria. How could it make General Umezu Yoshijiro angry?
Looking at the melancholy eyes of General Umezu Yoshijiro, Kimura Hyōtaro remembered one thing: "Your Excellency, Commander, important departments of the Kwantung Army are about to move south, so should the Manchukuo Emperor in Xinjing and the governments of various ministries also move to the south?" I would like to ask you for more instructions as I move south."
"Although this Manchukuo was single-handedly supported by the empire, the empire that is currently engaged in holy war cannot do without these people for the time being. Using China to control China and using Manchuria to control Manchuria is a strategy used by the Empire when dealing with China. In case of an emergency Once they fall into the hands of the Anti-Japanese Alliance, it will probably cause considerable inconvenience to the empire's future rule in Manchuria. After all, for many things, we still need their support, at least on the surface."
After hearing Hyōtaro Kimura's request for instructions on whether to move the Emperor of Manchukuo and the government southward when the important departments of the Kwantung Army moved south, Yoshijiro Umezu was originally concerned about the life and death of these dogs, which in his eyes were just a group of dogs kept in captivity by the Japanese Empire. I didn't take it to heart. When I moved south, I didn't even think about the Emperor of Manchukuo and the Manchukuo government.
In his opinion, a group of dogs have died, and a group can still be raised. As long as there is glory and wealth, judging from the despicable nature of the Chinese people, dogs that are willing to serve the Japanese Empire will always be far away from Umezu Yoshijiro. , after considering that these dogs would still be of some use to the Kwantung Army in the future, he changed his mind.
After thinking for a moment, Umezu Yoshijiro said: "Send the younger brother of His Majesty the Manchurian Emperor, who is the military attaché, to the Japanese Army University in my name to study abroad, and the Manchu deputy chiefs of the remaining ministries, as well as all the Japanese deputy chiefs. led by Hoshino Naoki, director of the General Affairs Department of the State Council of Manchukuo, and moved them all to Fengtian."
"And established the office of His Majesty the Emperor of the Manchuria Empire and the Government of the Manchuria Empire in Fengtian to execute the rights of the Imperial Government of Manchuria. As for His Majesty the Emperor of the Manchuria Empire, the Prime Minister, and the chief ministers of various ministries, at this time, they should show the unity of the Kwantung Army. Spiritually speaking, since you and I have to stay in Xinjing to command the battle, then the emperor and ministers of the Manchu Empire should naturally stay in Xinjing in order to embody the spirit of unity between Japan and Manchuria."
"Tell Yoshioka the Imperial Guard that the Kwantung Army hopes that His Majesty the Emperor can appoint his younger brother as the Crown Prince of the Manchuria Empire at this time in order to stabilize the mood of the Manchurian people. If His Majesty the Emperor is not willing, he will be regarded as Non-cooperation with the Japanese Empire and the Kwantung Army.”
In just a few words, two Japanese, Umezu Yoshijiro and Kimura Hyōtaro, arranged the fate of the Manchurian Emperor in the Manchurian Imperial Palace, which was not far away from the Kwantung Army Commander's residence where they were, and even the future of the so-called royal family. fate,
At this time, the so-called Manchurian Imperial Palace in Xinjing was in a state of panic. The Emperor of the Manchurian Empire and the Grand Marshal of the Manchukuo Army and Navy were almost frightened by the dense bomb explosions coming from outside Xinjing. He peed his pants, and the other people in the palace were also in a mess,
When he first heard the dense explosions coming from the suburbs, His Majesty the Emperor, who was watching a movie, thought it was the ammunition depot of the Kwantung Army that exploded. However, the continuous violent explosions caused the entire land of this small palace to be destroyed. Trembling, especially when the thick smoke swept up, the emperor finally felt that something was wrong.
His feeling also immediately changed from the explosion of the Kwantung Army ammunition depot to the attack of the Anti-Japanese Alliance. He was afraid that when danger came, the Kwantung Army headquarters would leave him without saying goodbye and leave himself to the Emperor of the Anti-Japanese Alliance. , not only immediately asked people to call the Kwantung Army headquarters every fifteen minutes, saying they were asking about the situation, but actually checking to see if anyone was there,
By then, there will be no one at the Kwantung Army headquarters, and the emperor is still waiting here stupidly. In addition to asking for news at any time, the emperor also asked people to take a large number of him from the palace to the Forbidden City in Beijing as quickly as possible. Pack up treasures, antiques, calligraphy and paintings, and order people to start the car so that you can escape at any time if anything goes wrong.
He knew that in the eyes of the Chinese people, he, the emperor of the Manchu Empire, could be described as an authentic traitor. Although he considered himself a Manchu, he was not a so-called Chinese, nor did he think that the Manchus were a member of the Chinese nation and a traitor. It's definitely not his turn to wear this brand, but ordinary people in China don't see it that way.
He relied on the Japanese to become the emperor of the Manchu Empire, just to restore the foundation of his ancestors. But the people across the country did not see it that way. They all thought that he was a hardcore traitor among hardcore traitors. Once he fell into the hands of the Anti-Japanese Alliance, he could not There will definitely be no good outcome. Didn’t those red-bearded Soviet ancestors also shoot their emperor to death?