The spy career of a surgeon

Chapter 332 Voting
The atmosphere in the meeting room was somewhat tense.

Even at this time, the people on the Mitsui Mitsubishi side did not think that Muto Akira had betrayed them, but instead asked if there was anything happening in Shanghai that needed to be dealt with now.

Until Muto Akira made it clear: "Kagesa Yoshiaki's position is very critical, involving all aspects of the Chinese battlefield. If there is a problem with him, even if it is just a suspicion, our military must handle it with caution. Moreover, since he is involved with the Military Control Commission, we would rather kill him by mistake than let him go."

As soon as these words came out, many people's faces changed.

Muto Akira really betrayed!
There is no point in saying anything else at this time. With Muto Akira's position and the personnel power in his hands, if he rebels, he will have many ways to mobilize the personnel below to influence the Chinese battlefield.

Given his weight, even the Vice Minister of the Army Ministry had to sit down again and start the discussion.

"Since Muto-kun thinks it's necessary, let's discuss it."

Discussion has never been the key. No matter how intense the argument is, the final vote that determines the conclusion has already been determined before the meeting begins.

Passed 6 to 5!

Kagesa Tadaaki resigned as director of the China Special Affairs Commission and returned to the headquarters to report on his work.

Muto Akira proposed three alternative options for the new candidate, and the decision was made on the spot.

None of them was a candidate from Mitsui Mitsubishi. The matter happened suddenly and there was no room for negotiation. Mitsui's people directly sacrificed Fatty to save their lives.

"General Doi-maru is familiar with Chinese affairs. In fact, he is the most suitable person to serve as the director of the Special Affairs Committee."

Muto Akira denied it outright: "It has not been long since Doi-maru caused the defeat of Mongolia. It is not appropriate for him to take this position at this stage. In addition, the Military Affairs Bureau has already decided on Doi-maru's new position as Lieutenant General. The principal of the military academy has reached an age, and there are not many candidates for the position of Lieutenant General. Doi-maru is the most suitable person to take over."

This would make people stupid. How could they let a fat guy be the principal?
"No! How can a fat lieutenant general be the principal?"

Passed 6 to 5!

The meeting is over!

"Ha ha ha ha."

Inside the Yasuda Manor, a group of people were laughing around the tea table.

"These people have won all their lives, and this is probably the first time they have tasted the disgusting nature of this voting process."

"It's just one vote difference. It's useless to say anything. It's really disgusting. Hahahaha."

Zhou Qinghe was also laughing as he listened to Konoe and Yasuda talking. This meeting was indeed very interesting. Our side proposed a motion, and the other side gave a bunch of reasons to deny it, which were well-founded and valid. Once it came to a show of hands to vote, it was passed.

In that scene, the way Mitsui's people looked at Muto Akira was so fierce that they could spit fire. They smashed the table and the meeting was suspended.

This was the first battle in which Konoe Yasuda gained prominence in the Army Ministry, and everyone was very happy. Moreover, when the news spread after the meeting, the people in the Army Ministry and the General Staff were shocked.

The world has changed!

"Hahahaha, the next step is to form a cabinet." Konoe Fumimaro restrained his smile a little: "Whether we can stabilize the situation in the Army Ministry depends on the next cabinet candidate. We are at a disadvantage in this regard."

Everyone nodded, knowing what was going on.

Rationally speaking, although we won this meeting, the victory is only temporary so far.

Once Lu Xiang takes office and the number of votes returns to 13, they will no longer have a chance to win.

The disadvantage is that they have no candidate qualified to be the Minister of Army, a Lieutenant General of the Army, not even one who can fight.

This is the decisive reason why Mitsui Mitsubishi has been able to firmly control the Army Ministry for so long. No matter what the cabinet does, as long as those lining up for promotion are their own people, how much does it matter who becomes the Army Minister?
"The position of Army Minister can only be held by people from Mitsui Mitsubishi. We have made a lot of progress step by step." Konoe encouraged everyone.

Zhou Qinghe smiled and said, "Then I have something good to say. Last time in front of the palace, His Majesty asked me to be Yan Junliu's assistant. But before I took office, Yan Junliu would be gone. So I asked His Majesty, and His Majesty said, then wait until the cabinet is formed. In other words, no matter who becomes the Minister of Land, I will be his assistant."

Konoe's eyes lit up when he heard this, "Is there such a thing? Fujita, you should disgust the other person when the time comes. No matter who he is, you can't let him sit comfortably. Anyway, you were appointed by the Emperor, and he can't dismiss you. So what if he's angry? Hahahaha."

The cabinet formation proceeded quickly. The other candidates were easy to decide, except for the Minister of Army, which was more difficult to decide.

Although Konoe did not have a candidate for Army Minister, he could discard the person promoted by Mitsui Mitsubishi if he was not satisfied with him. After all, he was the one who formed the cabinet. He did not have the power to recommend, but he had the power to veto.

Either the qualifications are not enough or the achievements are not outstanding. There are many reasons for rejection. Anyway, none of the diehard army members who are determined to fight in the Chinese battlefield are wanted.

Taking this action is not only a reflection of dissatisfaction with the candidate, but also a way to delay time.

Although their votes no longer determine the outcome after Prime Minister Lu takes office, who says that Prime Minister Lu must take office immediately?
Until the cabinet is formed, they will still control the Army Ministry. During this period, they cannot decide who will be the major general, but it is easy for them to make appointments for military personnel in the Chinese battlefield.

This is called a job, and Muto Akira’s major is just right for it.

During this period, a large number of Yasuda Konoe's middle-level leaders were sent to the Chinese battlefield to make up for the most missing link in their faction, the army generals.

Although it is not possible to achieve success overnight, there is still a long way to go. As long as you occupy a position, there will always be opportunities for promotion in the future.

He deliberately did not form a cabinet and found all kinds of excuses to replace people, which made the people at Mitsui Mitsubishi sick!
If they were to push for a prime minister, they must have had a long talk with him before pushing him. Maybe he was already ready to take the position, but he refused as soon as they pushed him. It's really disgusting!
The loss of power on the Chinese battlefield was something they could never accept.

So the flame of anger broke out directly. He didn't hate Fujita or Yasuda, but he hated Muto Akira the most!

One day, during morning rush hour, Muto Akira was assassinated.

When Muto Akira came out of his house, four gunmen rushed out and besieged the vehicle in which Muto Akira was sitting.

The bullet was so powerful that it went through the car window glass. Muto Akira was unable to dodge and was shot in the shoulder.

Afterwards, the gunman was beaten away by the guards who rushed out of Muto Akira's house and disappeared from then on.

This matter was covered up and outside reporters were unaware of it, but it caused an uproar within the Army Ministry.

The assassination of a high-ranking official of the Army Ministry reminded people of the orthodoxy dispute between the Control Faction and the Imperial Way Faction in the Army Ministry a few years ago. On that occasion, the fight between the two factions evolved directly from a verbal battle to sending soldiers to rush into the Army Ministry and openly shoot at people from the other faction in the office!
That time, the director of the Military Affairs Bureau was also assassinated.

And it’s right inside the Army Ministry’s office!

After that, it turned into the 226 coup d'état that shocked the whole of Japan. The army took to the streets and the guns of the naval ships were aimed at the Japanese mainland, ready to fire at any time.

Everyone was terrified. Could this be another fight between the two factions?

Dare to assassinate someone who just came over? How can you bear this kind of anger? Zhou Qinghe must be trying to stir up trouble. He has nothing to do, so why not watch the fun?
"We must take revenge! If we can't protect others, who will join us in the future? If we keep silent at this time, others will think that we have no place in the Army Ministry!"

This is intolerable, what he said makes sense, we must retaliate!

So a revenge assassination operation was launched against the Army Ministry personnel from the Mitsui Mitsubishi faction.

The two sides fought back and forth, with blood and flesh flying everywhere. For a while, the Army Ministry could not do its work. Several major directors held a meeting, and the enemies were extremely jealous of each other when they met.

However, the matter was eventually mediated after Hirohito scolded him after hearing about it.

Konoe was about to form a cabinet, and he didn't want his political achievements to look so bad.

What the other party wants is nothing more than to form a cabinet as soon as possible.

Therefore, after weighing the interests of all parties, Tojo Hideki, who had made contributions in Mongolia and whose air force could indeed assist in future transoceanic operations, was nominated and approved as the Minister of Aviation.

Tojo Hideki made it clear to Konoe Fumimaro that he wanted to expand the war and would not limit himself to the Chinese battlefield.

The cabinet was formed, Konoe Fumimaro became prime minister, and Razor Tojo became army minister. Assistant Zhou Qinghe finally had someone to serve.

The next day, go to work!

Zhou Qinghe went to the Army Ministry General Office to report in.

Today is the new boss' first day in office, so as his assistant he has to show some respect.

He and Tojo Hideki didn't know each other and had no contact before. They only met once at a meeting at the base camp later, and they never even spoke to each other.

However, Zhou Qinghe has done research on Tojo chickens.

In summary, this person has very strong luck and can be called the chosen one in Japan.

First of all, his background. Tojo Hideki came from a good family and his father was a lieutenant general, which was a very high starting point.

Then I went to school in places like the Army Kindergarten and Primary School, and was exposed to militarist education from an early age.

Then there is the academic qualifications. He was a notorious poor student who loved reading and studying. He took the exam for three years but failed to get into the Army University. In the end, the school accepted him because of his father's face. In a place like the base camp where there are many talented people, such academic qualifications are simply unimaginable.

People give him the nickname "poor student".

Logically, he should then be promoted smoothly in time under the protection of his father.

But in fact, his father died before he graduated.

So logically speaking, with no background and an older poor student, his future should be like this. After all, no one in the base camp likes such a dull person, and the Army University is an elite group that advocates elitism. Everyone has a high attitude. Who could like such an outlier?
As a result, Tojo Hideki was squeezed out and sent to Germany, which was in chaos at the time, to serve as a military attaché, with the main strategy of turning a blind eye to everything.

Looks like bad luck.

Who would have known that Hirohito, who was still a prince at the time, went on a trip to Europe and specifically summoned these people from the consulate in Germany. Hirohito wanted to recruit some of his own people in the military, so Tojo Hideki clung to this thigh and became Hirohito's loyal minister.

The backstage suddenly expanded!

Logically speaking, his development should have been smooth, but the people in the military really didn't like him. They only listened half way to Hirohito's words. They promoted him when the time was right and gave Hirohito enough face. There was no place left for him if he was promoted to section chief. If he was promoted higher, all the positions would be powerful. There were not enough for their own people, so why should they give it to him?
He kicked Tojo Hideki and sent him to school to teach.

Don't you like reading? It's quite suitable.

Isn’t it time to waste time? After all, he was 31 when he graduated from college. After so many years of dawdling, he is now in his 40s. What future does he have? The positions above him are all powerful positions. Who would give them to him?

Originally, Tojo Hideki didn't have any friends in his base camp. No one liked him at the university, and he couldn't borrow any power from the university. It was impossible for anyone to help him.

Even His Majesty may have forgotten about this person because Tojo Hideki has not performed well for so many years.

It was at this time that Tojo Hideki's elementary school friend was promoted to director of the Military Affairs Bureau.

Eight hundred years ago, the relationship between urine and mud really worked. Tojo Hideki was dragged out of the school and thrown to the Northeast where he was about to make a great contribution. He was directly appointed as the commander of the Manchurian gendarmerie.

He was promoted to major general and chief of staff of the Kwantung Army. He was smart because the headquarters of the fat man's Takenori Agency was in the Northeast.

Can that fat guy allow anything to happen in his own territory?

It's really just a casual act, and you can get credit for it without doing anything.

Because of the position of this commander, Mitsui and Mitsubishi's investment in the Northeast cannot bypass the gendarmerie commander, and the consortium behind them is also involved.

The war then broke out. The initial battle went smoothly and the Kwantung Army made great contributions. However, the then Army Minister Sugihara Hajime was dismissed for boasting that he would destroy China in three months when he failed to do so. Tojo Hideki was transferred back to the headquarters and promoted to Deputy Army Minister because of his great contributions in the early stages.

Then Tojo Hideki brought disaster upon himself by attending a political and economic forum in Japan. While speaking at the forum, he made some outrageous remarks for some unknown reason.

It said that it would fight against the Soviet Union and China at the same time, and it was also preparing to go to war with Britain, the United States, and France. The Japanese Empire was bound to conquer the world.

Well, the deputy minister is gone and he was thrown into the aviation corps to be the minister, which is actually a cold storage.

Because of this step! Tojo Hideki perfectly avoided the Mongolian War. If he was thrown into the Kwantung Army, he would be held responsible for the Mongolian War.

It was precisely the air force that not only bore no responsibility in the Mongolian War, but its fighter planes even made great contributions.

And the reason he was able to achieve such success was because the Soviet fighter planes were not good enough. Their fighter planes formed an air rescue team and went to bomb Hankou. They didn't try their best to fight him at all.

When Konoe Fumio was selecting the Minister of War this time, many people were not qualified, but Tojo Hideki met all the requirements. His resume was spotless and full of merits. Hirohito remembered him as a loyal minister. As for Konoe's strategy, aircraft would be useful in naval warfare in the future, so the air force must be in hand. Even the army on the Chinese battlefield would be commanded by Tojo.

In addition, when the two sides were trying to assassinate each other a while ago, Tojo was in the Aviation Ministry and was not on the assassination list at all. He had never been assassinated by them, so he had no hatred towards Konoe Yasuda.

That’s all, it’s not enough.

What's outrageous is that when Japan wanted to form an alliance with Germany, Tojo Hideki actually served as a military attaché at the Chinese embassy in Germany. If everyone sat down and talked about it, this was the origin of the relationship. Maybe Tojo had even met some big shot in Germany.

What's even more outrageous is that while he was making bold statements at the forum, he was also preparing to go to war with Britain, the United States and France. What he said has actually come true today.

This statement used to be considered arrogant, but now it has become a long-term vision.

When Hirohito saw him, he remembered it.

Then they were very satisfied with him being the Prime Minister of Army.

There is such a person who can never die no matter how hard he tries, and who will always have someone to help him at the critical moment. If he is not the chosen one, who else in Japan can be?

After reading it, Zhou Qinghe could only say one thing: outrageous.

If there was ever a time during this period when Tojo achieved the result through his own hard work, Zhou Qinghe would have to say that Tojo was a fighter, but there wasn't ever a time when he achieved success, and he won the entire time without any effort.

Hirohito's reign was called Showa. When Tojo was in the Kwantung Army in Northeast China, he had a colleague named Ishiwara Kanji, who was called the best military strategist and strategist of the Showa era by the military.

He served as the Vice Chief of Staff of the Kwantung Army for Tojo Hideki. After working with Tojo, he commented on Tojo in one sentence, "This guy is at most a private first class. He got the private first class title because he stood up straight and was qualified to stand guard at the entrance of the military department as an extra reward.

His real ability is to manage guns, and there can be no more than ten of them, because if there are more than ten, his arithmetic ability will be lost. "

After being promoted to the rank of officer, Tojo was given another honor, private first class.

Zhou Qinghe had never met Tojo Hideki before. Now, after asking around from various sources, including reading his resume, to be honest, he really couldn't tell whether Tojo Hideki was a capable person or not.

It is said that there are wrong names but no wrong nicknames. If that is the case, Tojo Hideji is indeed mediocre in ability.

Poor student or top soldier, which evaluation from classmates and colleagues sounds better?
He also has a nickname, Razor Tojo, which was given because he used drastic measures to arrest and deal with anti-Japanese elements during the Manchuria period in Northeast China.

This only shows that he is violent, but not wise. If wisdom is needed, Zhou Qinghe believes that the fat guy in that place would have used it earlier than him.

I can't tell his ability, but I can tell his luck. He wins all the time, and it's not just a small win, he directly beat the top person in the army, the Minister of the Army! This is really hard to judge.

What is even more difficult to evaluate is the second skill of the Chosen One. Anyone who goes against it will have a bad ending.

I won’t talk about the people in the past. Anyway, no one could surpass Tojo Hideki’s achievements. Some died, some went to jail, and those who could survive and join the reserve were lucky enough.

Take Ishiwara Kanji as an example. He was the top strategist and the emperor's military adviser. He was very famous and had many friends. But after he made the corporal's sarcastic remarks, he suffered a series of bad luck. He was the vice chief of staff of the Kwantung Army during the Tojo period and a 50-year-old lieutenant general of the army. Now he has been exiled by the military to serve as a commander in the wilderness of his homeland.

It's a one-man headquarters. Not to mention soldiers, there's not even a cook. They have to cook their own meals. How miserable it is.

Ha, after reading this resume, Zhou Qinghe found it a bit scary.

If he goes against Tojo, will he also be sacrificed by Tojo?

Now we need to see the real person and judge what the truth is. We have to come into contact with him ourselves.

I walked into the office and greeted several assistants in the general office.

They were all very polite to Zhou Qinghe. Firstly, the storm had just passed and Fujita Kazuki was the backbone of that faction, with his great power he could crush them with ease.

Even if we don't take this relationship into account, Fujita Kazukiyo is the powerful section chief, and they are just assistants, so there is a big difference in their levels and they are not on the same level.

Zhou Qinghe went to his office to work, and soon an assistant from the Medical Bureau brought in documents. Lu Xiang's matters must be more important, so the new office was in the General Office, and the documents from the Military Medical Department were sent here for processing, so that neither would be delayed.

After a while, I heard someone outside calling out, "Army Minister, Tojo" and other respectful words.

Apparently, he had arrived. Zhou Qinghe didn't plan to go and say hello. Anyway, he would be called when he was asked. What else could he do if he didn't go? He was also very busy, with a lot of documents to review.

Who knew someone would knock on the door right away.

"Section Chief Fujita."

Zhou Qinghe looked up, was stunned for a moment and stood up: "Tojo Army Minister?"

He really didn't expect that the first thing Tojo Hideki did when he came to work was to look for him. Why? Want to retaliate right away?

"Do you need me for something? Just send someone to call me." Zhou Qinghe maintained his courtesy.

Tojo Hideki looked serious and said after scanning the room, "I've always heard that you are very capable. Are you familiar with the affairs of the General Office?"

"good."

"Come with me, now."

There was no room for refusal at all, because Tojo Hideji had already strode out with a swift and decisive approach.

(End of this chapter)