The spy career of a surgeon

Chapter 339: Shota
"Kill all those who have embezzled money and make them confess." Kobayashi wanted to kill people to silence them.

Sonobe and Ichiro didn't care how much money Kobayashi got when the division passed it over, but killing people obviously wouldn't solve the problem.

“Killing them is easy, but what happens after you kill them?

When Nanjing distributed meat to your division, it was 120 grams of meat. Even if the people below were not greedy, and all of it was distributed to the regiment, it would only be 60 grams per meal. Do you think they can be satisfied? Will there be another mutiny in a few days?"

"Just report it to the Nanjing headquarters and let them figure it out on their own." The staff officers of the headquarters didn't want to get involved in such a mess. It had nothing to do with them at all. They wouldn't get any benefits, and instead might get scolded.

"It cannot be reported!" Xiao Lin was the first one to oppose reporting it. If it was reported, he would definitely be held responsible and would be assigned to the reserve force for sure.

He even threatened, "Aren't you worried that the people above you will get angry?"

But once the staff officers met Sonobe Kazuichiro's eyes, the matter was settled.

They had no money to buy meat, so what else could they do?
If they report it, they will offend people. If they don't report it, the soldiers outside the city will be mutinous. Only my fellow Taoist will die, not me. From the beginning to the end, this matter has nothing to do with them.

The matter was quickly reported to the Nanjing Expeditionary Force Headquarters.

Just as they were waiting for the possibility of upper-level bargaining on this matter.

The headquarters' response was surprising.

Everyone thought that someone was corrupt and made so many psychological assumptions about it.

Who knows, the headquarters will definitely reply, yes, the Type A division will have two meals of meat, and one meal of meat in addition, this is the regulation, there is no problem, let them calm the soldiers' emotions and complete the food cut-off plan as soon as possible, otherwise they will be punished.

What do you mean no problem? How can it be just a meal of meat?

Sonobe Kazuichiro again telegraphed the Nanjing headquarters, asking why the Type B division was just a meal of meat?

Nanjing replied that this was an order from Army Minister Tojo. As for the reason, don’t ask. The only answer is that the Army Minister was wise.

When Sonobe Kazuichiro saw the reply, he felt like his spirit was struck by lightning. This order was actually given by Tojo?
Is this really the new regulation of the Ministry of Army?
So it's not just that someone is corrupt, but that it really happened?
"No, how could he come up with such a bad idea! Why would he even want to save this money?"

No matter what the situation is, you must execute the orders from your superiors whether you understand them or not.

The result was soon told to the soldiers on the front line.

If it is an order, it must be executed.

The soldier was completely furious!

Why are they inferior to others? Why don’t they have meat to eat?

The troops gathered outside the city had already attracted the attention of many people. More brigades and regiments had already known what had happened, but they all wanted to take advantage. Once someone took the lead, they didn't want to step out and just waited to see the result.

Now knowing this result, many people are really disappointed.

The people of Type A Division were happy.

Suddenly I felt that two meals of meat were not a small amount and they were quite delicious. The corners of my mouth curled up into a smile. Then a few people said to the people from Type B Division with a sense of superiority, "You are lucky to have one meal of meat, as we only have two meals of meat."

Because of this sentence, the accumulated conflicts broke out completely and the two teams started fighting on the spot!
No hot weapons were used, just pure hand-to-hand combat and the use of cold weapons, such as gun butts.

The conflict escalated and in the blink of an eye it turned into a fight involving thousands of people.

When Sonobe Kazuichiro learned about the situation, he was furious and called on other divisions to come and quell the rebellion, and they had to be Type A divisions.

He was afraid that if he called in a Type B division, they would also be led into a ditch.

At the same time, the Military Intelligence Bureau and the Central Intelligence Bureau in Hankou sent telegrams to Chongqing.

The 101st Division, the 3rd Division, and the 13th Division were caught in internal strife, and there might be loopholes in the defense line. The reason was that the Type B division had one meal of meat while the Type A division had two meals of meat, which caused dissatisfaction within the Japanese army.

Boss Dai in Chongqing immediately handed over the contents of the telegram to the front-line command post.

With Zhou Qinghe's intelligence in hand, the principal had already ordered the front-line command to wait for an opportunity to act. How could they let go of this God-given opportunity for internal strife in the Japanese army?

In the city of Hankou, the Type A Division rebellion suppression team called by Sonobe and Ichiro experienced a conflict and killed several old soldiers who were leading the riot. After several hours of melee, they finally suppressed the group of rioting soldiers.

With a big stick in front and fish behind, Sonobe Kazuichiro stepped forward to be the good guy and said that this was the military regulation, and he would request the military to allocate more supplies for their daily expenses.

Even after he finished speaking, he shot two quartermasters of the regiment brigade on the spot as a sacrifice to God.

This matter was finally suppressed briefly.

All soldiers were asked to return to defense.

When they were returning to defend, a plane from Chongqing took off, flew over their camp, and dropped a large object. The soldiers were terrified, thinking it was a bomb.

Unexpectedly, the package burst open with a bang, and a pile of hastily produced flyers exploded on the ground.

The Japanese soldiers picked up the papers and read them. They said something like the Japanese upper echelons don't treat you as human beings. The Type A Division eats meat twice a day, but you only eat meat once. The meat you eat less is actually eaten by the upper echelons of your army. These were all words to sow discord.

This kind of propaganda paper was not only used in the 101st Division's defense zone, but also in all Type B division camps deployed on the front lines.

All of a sudden, the soldiers from several divisions that had participated in today's incident and those that had not participated started discussing it. Their earlier dissatisfaction broke out, and they all asked their superiors whether these things were true.

The next day, the news spread rapidly, and more and more soldiers became dissatisfied. Large-scale conflicts occurred in more than a dozen regiments, and the remaining regiments did not have no conflicts, but their conflicts were suppressed, saying that they would consult the higher-ups and then deal with them.

Mars is brewing.

And it was in the middle of the night, after a busy day and a day of exhausting hand-to-hand fighting, that the Japanese army launched a fierce artillery attack on Chongqing!

At the frontline, the Whampoa Military Academy's direct troops began a large-scale charge. The Japanese army was already in low morale and exhausted, and their defense was quite fragile, but they still defended.

A fierce battle begins!

A telegram was sent to the headquarters in Hankou, and a busy night of mobilization and command work was carried out.

Even Zhou Qinghe, who was sleeping at the naval base, was woken up because there were too many bombers taking off from the base.

For three consecutive days, the sound of fierce fighting never stopped.

Zhou Qinghe didn't know the outcome of the battle as it was still going on. Looking at Sonobe Kazuichiro's gloomy expression and his occasional bad temper, he felt that the Whampoa Army must have gained an advantage this time.

The timing of the Whampoa Army's action was perfect. While the two sides were resting, the Japanese soldiers were still wondering whether their rations were being stolen by the upper echelons of the army.

They don't give him money or food, and his wife and children have to work in the factory. The salary is not as high as before, and even then, they have to restrict the purchase of supplies.

Zhou Qinghe felt that the new version of the regulations was insane at the time, as it was completely pushing people to the limit.

Anyway, there are only two options for Tojo Hideki: either take action against his Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, or take action against the people.

I thought Tojo would make some revisions, but who knew he would copy everything!
Zhou Qinghe had to say, "Tojo is the ace agent of the Military Control Commission."

Zhou Qinghe took a walk and then went back to the naval base to continue fishing.

While they were fighting, the causes, consequences and situation of the battle here were all reported to the Expeditionary Force Headquarters in Nanjing and the Japanese Army's home base.

The battle is not over yet and the death toll is not serious, but if we look at the casualties ratio with the Chinese army, this is an undisputed defeat!

The cabinet questioned Tojo Hideki about the matter.

Ask Tojo why he made distinctions among soldiers?

Tojo didn't care: "What's wrong with eating less? The Type A divisions bear heavy responsibilities, so they should eat more. The Type B divisions only have one less meal of meat than the Type A divisions, but Hankou is close to the Yangtze River, so they can fish in their spare time to supplement their rations! The Yangtze River has so many resources, am I wrong?"

When these words were first heard, several people in the cabinet could not think of any rebuttal, and it seemed that saving some money was no problem.

"What about the other Type B divisions? I heard that you cut the rations of all Type B divisions? There must be divisions that are not on the Yangtze River, right?"

"It's either by the river or by the mountain. Aren't there pheasants, rabbits, and wild boars on the mountain?

Even if there are no rivers or mountains, there must be fields, right?
When they have combat missions, the combat rations for individual soldiers are not reduced. Isn't it the rations in the camp during the preparation period that are reduced? Then can't they go up the mountain to catch chickens or go down the river to fish during their free time?
How many difficulties does the military have? How many difficulties does the country have? I tried my best to save money, and you actually think I did something wrong? If it weren't for the East Asian plan, would I need to think so deeply and foresightedly? "Even the cabinet, even the Konoe, found that they were somewhat unable to convince Tojo. Come to think of it, this statement is indeed correct.

Type A divisions are responsible for daily defense tasks, and Type B divisions obtain food locally when they are free. They take it, which can also reduce the chances of Chinese people obtaining food.

That sounds like it would be fine.

"But you lost the battle in Hankou, and the soldiers are dissatisfied!" said the guard with a frown.

"Victory and defeat are common in the military. Isn't it normal to lose a battle due to a surprise attack?" Tojo said coldly, "Their food is almost gone. If they don't fight now, will they wait until they are almost starving to death before fighting? But they can only win with difficulty by relying on occasional surprise attacks. What do you think their winning this battle will change? Nothing will change!"

What Tojo said makes sense.

Hankou.

The battle ended two days later, and the Whampoa Army in Chongqing, having gained the upper hand, began to retreat.

The Japanese army cleaned up the battlefield and reported the specific casualties one by one.

Sonobe Kazuichiro at the headquarters looked unhappy again. Although he certainly didn't have to take the responsibility for this matter, no one wanted their side to lose.

Tap, tap, the sound of running footsteps came to the door.

The soldier came in with a folder to report, bowing his head and saying, "An order from Nanjing."

Sonobe Kazuichiro took a look at it, then said thoughtfully, "According to the order from the headquarters, Nanjing asked us to quickly gather our troops and not take any countermeasures against the Chongqing army. We need to form a blockade and encirclement of Chongqing within three days and strictly implement the food cut-off plan!"

"Go and deliver the order."

"Hi."

"The headquarters also transferred six infantry battalions and one mountain artillery battalion from North China to supplement our defense."

Sonobe Kazuichiro glanced at Zhou Qinghe, then at the map: "It seems that the headquarters' overall strategy will not change. We will only bomb and blockade Chongqing, and the army will not participate in the battle.

Fujita-kun, if you have time, I hope you can go to the hospital to see the wounded. Some of the wounded are seriously injured and may need your help to survive. Please."

Zhou Qinghe nodded. Although amputation was a tiring job, it was like chopping a Japanese with a knife. After he chopped them off, the Japanese would still say thank you. So it was tiring.

The next few days will be garbage time.

Chongqing worked hard to publicize the dietary gap between the Japanese troops and continued to sow discord. The bombers did not drop shells but leaflets, and the city was filled with leaflets flying all over the sky.

The Japanese side was not to be outdone and worked hard to publicize to the people that after their earnest persuasion, Britain finally changed its ways, recognized the incompetence of the Chongqing government, and decided to withdraw its aid to China. From then on, the Chiang Kai-shek government completely lost international recognition and fell into an isolated and helpless situation.

Following suit in propaganda methods, bombers also began dropping leaflets in Chongqing.

And while they were talking nonsense.

North China.

The Japanese troops in North China also received orders from the headquarters to cut off their food supplies. They were not disturbed, so the "丰"-shaped cutting plan went very smoothly. They set up patrol teams on railways and roads early on, and gradually built bunkers at various transportation hubs to prevent large-scale blockades and insufficient personnel, which would lead to sneak attacks by Chinese troops.

With railways as pillars, roads as chains, bunkers as locks, and armored vehicles patrolling day and night, the main goal is to make it unbreakable.

The important railway trunk line of the Japanese army in North China is called the "Zhengtai Railway", which extends from Zhengding, Hebei to Taiyuan, Shanxi. It is an important line for the Japanese army to transport troops and food.

At the same time, the existence of this railway also has an important significance, which is that it separates the connection between the Red Party headquarters and the Taihang Mountain base and the Shanxi-Chahar-Hebei Border Region.

In order to break the blockade of the Japanese army, the Red Party seized the opportunity and launched a counterattack, with the main target being the Zhengtai Railway, and carrying out a destruction mission in the first phase.

At first, the Japanese army did not take it seriously. Big and small sneak attacks and counter-sneak attacks were common in war, and the Zhengtai Railway was heavily guarded. It was just a small battle, and there was no possibility of anything happening to the Zhengtai Railway. It was a place that the Chinese could never get close to.

However, the six infantry battalions and one mountain artillery battalion defending the Zhengtai Railway were transferred to Hankou.

The military force on the more than 200-kilometer-long Zhengtai Railway is becoming increasingly tight.

They also did not estimate how determined the Red Party was. In the first battle, not counting the cooperating militia, 20 regular army regiments were dispatched.

The Red Party swam across the river in the rain, avoiding the eyes and ears of the blockhouses and strongholds, and moved directly to both sides of the Zhengtai Railway, launching a sudden attack on the entire Zhengtai Railway. The surprise attack was a success!
The Red Party carried out comprehensive destruction of Japanese military strongholds, stations, and fortification facilities on the railway section.

The Japanese army launched a counterattack in panic and mobilized troops.

However, all the stations along the railway were blown up, and the trains carrying troops could not move at all. It took too long to communicate by telephone, telegraph, or for the troops to march from far away and move forward on foot.

The Japanese army suffered heavy casualties.

The Red Party did not retreat, but continued to expand its results.

Finally, we came into contact with the large Japanese army that came to support us.

The Japanese army called for reinforcements, and the Red Party also called for reinforcements. The scale of the battle continued to expand, and the territory of the battle continued to expand. The scale of the Red Party's participation gradually expanded from 20 regiments at the beginning to hundreds of regiments.

More than 200,000 people!
Where did all these people come from?!

The Japanese military headquarters in North China did not understand, and the top leaders of the Red Party were actually also shocked.

On weekdays, we use a free-range mode because of communication inconveniences, and some information is indeed not updated in a timely manner. For example, a random group may report 3000 people last time, but this time there may be 7000 people.

In this battle of the Zhengtai Railway, more and more people were involved, and it turned out that all the people standing along the entire Zhengtai Railway were members of the Red Party.

It was so exaggerated that the Japanese were so scared that they quickly called for more support.

Both sides were eager to fight, and with the surging crowd, the entire North China was turned into a mess with the Zhengtai Railway as the center.

It completely destroyed all the passes along the Shotai Railway, and also gave a slap in the face to the Japanese cabinet that was preparing to annex China.

Especially the guards.

If we say that the last failure in Hankou was due to the surprise attack by the National Army and the low morale, it was a failure caused by multiple factors.

This time, the battle of Zhengtai Railway was a fair and direct confrontation.

From the railway as the initial trigger to the real battle between the two sides' large armies, the Red Party destroyed countless strategic strongholds in this battle, suffered heavy casualties, and the casualty ratio was so exaggerated that it could not even be maintained at a one-to-one ratio.

In the past, one was worth ten or even a hundred!
"We can't follow Tojo on this path. We must take East Asia as soon as possible." Konoe made up his mind to strictly remember that Tojo, a poor student, was a big trouble.

Konoe convened a cabinet meeting and asked Tojo to adjust his direction and stop spending so much energy on the Chinese battlefield.

"We can't spend all our resources on China! Tojo, I don't care what you think. Even if you really want to conquer China, you must do it after we conquer East Asia. Otherwise, all the resources and talents will be used up by you. What will we have to fight East Asia?"

Tojo suffered a defeat, but he would not admit defeat. The more he failed, the more he refused to accept it.

"The Chinese battlefield must continue! If you don't understand military affairs, don't express your opinion! Retreat now? What if the Chinese fight back? How can we continue to fight in East Asia?
Only when we hurt the Chinese, kill them, and make them shrink, can we withdraw our troops. Do you understand?"

Konoe felt a little headache. He found that he could not win the argument with Tojo. Tojo could always find a reasonable logic.

No, we have to find someone who can convince Tojo.

"Tojo, military affairs are not my strong point, but I am in charge of the general direction. You cannot use excess resources to attack China. You must reserve resources for East Asia, otherwise we will be doomed."

"I know."

"Also, the people around you are too bad. Your assistants and staff officers can't give you any advice on the war. The staff officers of the General Staff Headquarters should bear most of the responsibility for the failure of the North China battlefield. They are too stupid!
Invite Fujita Kazukiyo back. At least he can always come up with some unexpected ideas at critical moments. You can't be surrounded by such idiots."

Tojo was unhappy with the first half of the sentence, but the second half suddenly touched his heart.

That’s right, the failure of the previous battle was definitely due to having too many idiots around him.

Especially the General Staff Headquarters, which is a well-known gathering place for idiots, a room full of idiots!
In comparison, Fujita Kazukiyo is indeed much more clever.

(End of this chapter)