The price of greed

The first feeling when General Honjo Shizuo, the commander-in-chief of the Kwantung Army, received a clear call from the Ninth Army was that his military career was over and it would not take long for a new commander to be sent to take over as his commander-in-chief of the Kwantung Army. He would be sent back to the country under the escort of the military police, or even sent to the military court.

Since receiving the telegram, General Shinto Honjo has been in a state of confusion. After handing over military affairs to Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Koisaki, he locked himself in the office, quietly waiting for the domestic reprimand telegram and his final decision.

A day passed in a blink of an eye. In the office, after a day of confusion, Honjo Honjo's eyes were invisible, and two big dark circles were already covered with their eyes.

At this moment, a slightly rapid knock on the door suddenly reached General Shinzo Honzo's ears. A trace of throbbing finally flashed through General Shinzo's decadent face.

After sighing, he said to himself: "What is coming is finally here. If nothing unexpected happens, my military career has been completely finished..."

After saying that, he ordered to the door: "Come in..."

The office door was pushed open, and Lieutenant General Koizumi, who looked calm and could not see any emotional fluctuations, hurried in with a telegram.

Seeing General Honjo Shin-shou’s pale face, Koiki Akira just wanted to say something. He sat in his seat and looked directly at General Honjo Shin-shou from entering the door. He waved his hand and asked bluntly: “Chief of Staff, is it the latest order from the country?”

"Hayi..." Lieutenant General Koi Iso nodded affirmatively.

Under the gaze of General Honjo Shizuka, he replied: "Your Majesty the Emperor. This is a telegram sent to us by His Majesty himself... His Majesty the Emperor decree: I ask my Kanto Army to immediately withdraw all combat troops entering the three northeastern provinces of China and end the battle..."

"Nani. End the battle..." General Honjo Shin-sama asked with a pair of puzzled eyes.

After being recognized by Lieutenant General Koisaki Koisa, General Honjo Shinobu's face was instantly covered with anger. He roared loudly: "Bageya Road, why should we retreat? Is it because hundreds of thousands of troops of the Japanese Empire lost in vain to the Chinese army? Is this military operation that our Kanto Army has planned for a long time so much that it was defeated? No, I am unwilling to give up. I want to telegram to His Majesty the Emperor immediately and ask His Majesty to take back this order..."

Until the anger on Honjo Shin's face slowly subsided, Koiki Akira spoke again: "Mr. Commander-in-Chief, the reason why Your Majesty gave us this order is a last resort..."

Seeing the puzzled expression flashing rapidly on Honjo Shizuka's face, Koiki Aki sighed and explained: "Commander-in-Chief, just today, because the failure of our Kwantung Army in Northeast China was made public by the Chinese government, the entire empire has fallen into a state of turmoil. All the imperial citizens unanimously demanded that the imperial government end the battle that took place in the three northeastern provinces of China..."

"Under the suppression of all the people of the empire, His Majesty had to be forced to make this decision. At the same time, the current Inukai Cabinet was dissolved and a new Saito Cabinet was formed. Not only that, in order to calm the anger of the people in the country, even the Inukai Prime Minister who proposed this battle plan had to commit suicide by committing suicide by cutting off the caesarean section in front of the parade..."

"Boom..." Honjo Shin's head seemed to be suddenly hit hard, and instantly became dizzy.

Five minutes passed. Honjo Shin-kun reacted from his shock and murmured to himself: "Prime Minister Inokaku became the victim of the defeat of my Kanto Army... No, it should be me, it is my Honjo Shin-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-kun-

At this moment, Chief of Staff Koiki Akira spoke: "Your Excellency, I believe that now is not the time to hold you accountable. Instead, you should order all combat troops on the front line to quickly evacuate the three northeastern provinces of China in accordance with Your Majesty's edict. Cooperate with the imperial government to quell the domestic unrest as soon as possible..."

After repeated persuasion by Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Koisaki, the angry General Honjo Shizuo slowly recovered from his calmness.

However, he paid such a huge price in this battle and did not intend to withdraw his troops as ordered by Emperor Hirohito, and to save the Chinese army for nothing.

After a brief contemplation, a complex gaze filled with strangeness and ruthlessness quickly flashed through Honjo Shin's eyes. He spoke to Chief of Staff Koi Iso Kwanaki in front of him, "Chief of Staff, I will definitely implement the decree of Your Majesty. However, before implementing this decree, our Kanto Army must recover the loss of the Great Japanese Empire from the three northeastern provinces. We cannot let hundreds of thousands of troops lose in the Chinese battlefield in vain and gain nothing..."

After saying that, Honjo Shin-chan took Koi Iso Kyoto to the huge combat map and analyzed: "According to the attack speed of the Chinese Ninth Army, it will take at least two days to enter Jilin Province. Therefore, our Kwantung Army activities and the imperial elites of Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces will have at least two days to move..."

"Your Excellency Commander-in-Chief, what do you mean..." Koiki Akira frowned and asked back.

"In order to seize the three northeastern provinces, both our Kwantung Army and the entire imperial government have paid a huge price. As the commander-in-chief of the front-line enemy in this operation, we must do everything possible to make up for the losses of our great Japanese Empire in this military operation, and even gain some practical benefits from it..."

Speaking of this, Honjo Shizuno no longer conceals it and directly expressed his thoughts: "Chief of Staff, my idea is to order all combat troops of the two provinces to plunder all hard currency such as gold and silver in the occupied areas within two days. Follow the retreating troops and bring them back to North Korea, as the empire's loss of troops this time, and at the same time, support domestic construction..."

Chief of Staff Koiki Aki's eyes flashed instantly.

It is obvious that Lieutenant General Koi Iso was also moved by this bold idea.

Since we cannot win the territory, then we will plunder economically, alleviate the losses of this military operation, and even help the imperial government obtain a large amount of economic benefits.

You should know that although Jilin and Heilongjiang are only two provinces in China, in terms of area, it is more than half of the empire's land. Such a huge land area, coupled with tens of millions of Chinese people, the various wealth they own are absolutely incalculable.

It is certain that as long as the front-line combat troops can plunder one-third of the wealth of the two provinces, it will not only make up for the various losses caused by the imperial army this time, but also transport a large amount of funds to the country, help suppress the insurgency and develop the domestic economy...

Of course. In addition to this, there is a very huge benefit...

This failed to send troops to the three northeastern provinces of China. Although Prime Minister Inukai has become the ultimate scapegoat for responsibility. However, as the chief of staff of the former enemy general command center, he will definitely bear a considerable command responsibility in the battle. However, if he can toggguo this economic plunder to the empire in exchange for sufficient benefits, it is conceivable that he will not only not take responsibility, but will also be praised by domestically and promoted.

Facing the hot gaze of Honjo Shizuo looking at him, Koi Iso Kyoshi immediately made a final decision and spoke firmly at Honjo Shizuo, saying, "The Commander-in-Chief is wise. Huyi fully agrees with this suggestion. He will implement two-day unrestricted economic plunder for Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces in China. Make up for the losses of our great Japanese Empire this time..."

"Yo Xi..." A rare smile finally flashed across Honjo Shizuka's solemn face.

In the eyes of Honjo Shizuo and Koiki Akira, the decision to launch economic plunder in Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces was undoubtedly very wise and wise. However, what the two people did not expect was that the two Japanese troops scattered in Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces for two consecutive days of economic plunder invisibly made them lose two days of precious retreat time.

In two days, for several divisions of the Kwantung Army, countless wealth can be plundered from Chinese land. Similarly, for the Ninth Army, two days are also very precious.

The order of General Shinto Honjo, Tongguo radio wave, quickly spread to various combat troops in the two provinces. After the two main divisions of the 74th and 76th Army who had been hiding day and night for several consecutive days, the last 100 kilometers were left before the Japanese army retreated to North Korea.

At the General Command of the Shenyang Ninth Army, Li Guosheng was browsing a message just sent by Chief of Staff Jiang Baili with a smile on his face.

After reading the telegram, a smile full of sarcasm flashed quickly from the corner of Li Guosheng's mouth.

He spoke to Xiong Shaowen in front of him, "These warlords are really a group of tyrants who bully the weak and fear the strong... Just as he showed them the strong combat power of my Ninth Army and reached into the tentacles of our Shandong Province, he hurriedly shrank back... This time, I, Li Guosheng, will be cheaper for them. If there is another time, I promise that all of them will know how the word regret is written."

As soon as Li Guosheng's voice fell, Xiong Shaowen, the deputy chief of staff standing in front of him, took out a telegram again and said anxiously: "Chief, an emergency telegram just sent by the Special Forces Division, the Japanese troops scattered in Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces have abnormal movements..."

"What a strange movement..." Li Guosheng frowned and asked Xiong Shaowen.

Xiong Shaowen did not hesitate and said bluntly: "The General Secretary, the Special Forces Division, reported that the Japanese troops entering the two provinces have stopped all military operations starting this morning and will no longer conduct military expansion to the outside world."

Li Guosheng frowned even deeper and continued to ask: "What do the Japanese want to do? Have the Special Forces Division sent a more detailed message?"

Xiong Shaowen nodded and replied: "From this morning, the Japanese Kanto Army scattered in the two provinces have begun to carry out economic plunder of the occupied areas. Whether ordinary people or wealthy business landlords, they are the targets of their plunder. In addition, during the entire plundering process, the Japanese only need gold, silver and foreign currencies..."

"What did you say? The Japanese carried out unlimited economic plunder of the occupied areas?" Li Guosheng's face was immediately covered with anger.

As a person from later generations, Li Guosheng was not only an excellent soldier, but also had some knowledge of various economic discoveries. He was very qingchu. This kind of economic plunder by the Japanese would cause such a devastating blow to Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces, which were originally underdeveloped.

He qingchu, the Japanese economic plunder lasted for two days, and the two provinces found that the economy, which had just improved for decades, would collapse instantly. Return to the state decades ago.

After his anger slowly calmed down, he asked Xiong Shaowen in front of him with a strong shock expression, "Deputy Chief of Staff. Don't the Japanese know that their behavior is completely a manifestation of fishing in Heze. Once they do this, they will become enemies of all the people of the two provinces and will never be the masters of the two provinces..."

Deputy Chief of Staff Xiong Shaowen shook his head and replied: "General, I don't know what the Japanese think specifically. Maybe because of the two consecutive defeats, the highest commander of the Japanese army has lost his mind..."

After a brief analysis, Li Guosheng quickly rejected Xiong Shaowen's idea. The Japanese commander-in-chief General Honjo Shizuka. Although he cannot be called an excellent general in the Japanese military, his two partners, Koiki Koiki Showa Komura, were both outstanding Japanese generals who left a strong mark in history.

Even if Honjo Shinobu did not see the disadvantages, the two partners would definitely see these disadvantages and prevent this from happening. Therefore, the reason for the command error of the top leaders of the Japanese Kanto Army is not valid in any aspect.

Seeing the thought that Commander-in-Chief Li Guosheng rejected him, Xiong Shaowen couldn't help but smile awkwardly on his face. Then, he fell into deep thought again.

At this moment, a bold idea quickly surged into Xiong Shaowen's heart. He blurted out at Li Guosheng and asked: "Master, is it possible that the Japanese Kwantung Army knew that it could not defeat the three northeastern provinces. If you want to be a bandit in the three northeastern provinces, you can make a fortune and leave. In this way, all difficulties will be thrown to us by the Japanese..."

A word woke up the dreamer. Xiong Shaowen's suggestion made Li Guosheng's mind quickly flash through a thought that he had never thought before. As this idea was opened, a series of abnormal movements that the Japanese army began this morning could be explained.

The thoughts in his mind were opened, and a trace of excitement flashed quickly on Li Guosheng's face. He looked at Deputy Chief of Staff Xiong Shaowen with a look of admiration and said, "Deputy Chief of Staff Xiong, there is a great possibility of your idea..."

"Tongguo An economic plunder will make up for the losses of my troops this time... If I were the highest commander of the Japanese Kwantung Army, I would regret ordering the troops to do this..."

"Yes, it must be like this... The Japanese must have carried out unlimited economic plunders on the two provinces with the idea of ​​making a fortune. However, what the Japanese did not expect was that if they retreated now, they might have a chance to successfully withdraw from North Korea. However, if they delayed for another two days, the result might not be."

Speaking of this, a very spicy expression flashed across Li Guosheng's face. He spoke to Xiong Shaowen in front of him, "Since the Japanese are so greedy, then let them pay the price for their greed. Not only will the two divisions be completely left in the three northeastern provinces, but all the wealth they plundered in the three northeastern provinces will be left in the three northeastern provinces, so that our Ninth Army will be cheaper."

After saying that, he ordered Xiong Shaowen with a serious face: "Deputy Chief of Staff, immediately report to Zhang Yusheng, asking him to seize Tonghua before the Japanese, and leave these two divisions completely in the three northeastern provinces. In addition, in order to cooperate with the army's operations, after occupying Tonghua, a front-line combat airport will be built immediately so that the air force can support them nearby."

“Yes, the chief executive…”

It was just dawn, and in order to prevent the marching teams of more than 20,000 people from exposing their targets, the vast army of marching quickly disappeared on the highway and was hidden in a dense forest less than two kilometers away from the highway, so as to continue the night marching tonight.

Commander-in-chief Zhang Yusheng, just walked into the tent set up by the guards, and a communications officer followed him out of breath. After raising the telegram in his hand to Commander-in-chief Zhang Yusheng, he reported with an anxious look: "The head of the division, the head of the chief is an emergency order issued to us..."

"The chief officer gave us an order at this time, and it was an emergency order. Could it be that the situation in the Northeast war has changed..." Zhang Yusheng frowned and asked subconsciously.

"The teacher is wise..." The communications consultant nodded in agreement and replied.

"The General Officer's Telecommunication Order: We require our troops to quickly seize Tonghua County and block the Japanese army's retreat road from east... At the same time, after occupying Tonghua County, we quickly find favorable terrain, build field airports, cooperate with the Second Air Division to establish a frontier airport, cooperate with our troops to defend Tonghua nearby, and wipe out all Japanese troops who want to withdraw from Tonghua..."

Seeing the solemn expression on Zhang Yusheng's face instantly, the communications staff continued to respond: "According to the information reported by the headquarters, the two Japanese divisions entering Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces are showing signs of retreat. At present, these two divisions are carrying out unprecedented large-scale economic plundering in the area they occupy. The General Office requires us to wipe out the two Japanese divisions outside Tonghua City at all costs and regain all the gold and silver plundered by the Japanese."

After receiving the telegram and confirming that the content of the telegram was true, Zhang Yusheng ordered to a commander in the command center: "Staff General Wang, immediately notify all officers at the regiment level and above in the army, especially Commander Luo Zhang, to come to the command center for a meeting quickly. I have an emergency task."
Chapter completed!