In the vast mountains in southeastern Shanxi.
A convoy and horse team with Japanese sun flags and German flags were moving forward slowly at a speed of 20 yards.
But in front of the convoy, there was a Chinese cavalryman galloping in a row.
Above the valleys we passed through, we could see the angry gazes of rows of Chinese soldiers hidden in fortifications on the mountain tops.
This phenomenon of sworn enemies being so close to each other but miraculously not opening fire has basically disappeared since the war began.
But this is a fact. On the North China battlefield, the Chinese Second Theater Command and the Japanese North China Front reached an agreement on a temporary ceasefire six days ago.
The negotiating delegation sent by the Japanese side also arrived in Yuancheng, the capital of Shanxi Province, a few days ago until the Chinese side agreed that they could leave.
Although they know that the Chinese are playing tricks again and deliberately delaying the negotiation for a few more days, the Japanese side is helpless. After all, in this negotiation, they are begging the Chinese to exchange, and the Chinese take the majority of the initiative.
As early as a few hours ago, the convoy had escaped from the area controlled by the Japanese army and completely entered the Chinese defense area. In half a day, it would reach Linfen, an important city controlled by the Chinese in the southeast corner of Shanxi Province.
Jindong in June is already quite hot.
But what was hotter than the weather was the heart of a certain Japanese Army Lieutenant General.
Even though the cool mountain breeze brought a little chill to his body due to the driving of the car, Saburo Okabe's hot sweat kept rolling down his forehead in the truck compartment.
It’s not because they are afraid of invading the enemy’s territory. The entire convoy is composed of 10 trucks carrying 100 elite special agents and a cavalry squadron. The 200 elite elites of the empire equipped with 4 heavy machine guns and 12 light machine guns are enough to cope with it.
Any emergencies.
Also traveling with the convoy was a director of the German Empire's largest trading company in China and 15 Roman Empire soldiers with loaded weapons, which was also one of the guarantees of his safety given by the Japanese North China Front Army.
Before setting off, that person contacted the German Empire's consulate in Jiangxia and sent a note to the Chinese side. The Chinese Second Theater Command made it clear that it would ensure the safety of their group.
Of course, Japan's biggest trump card is not these accompanying Westerners, but the tens of millions of Chinese people in the occupied territories.
Needless to say, if the Chinese dare to attack their negotiating team, they should know the consequences of angering the empire, and hundreds of thousands of Chinese will be buried with them.
In fact, reality is not friendly to the Chief of Staff of the North China Front who had just been promoted to Lieutenant General of the Japanese Army.
He didn't like the mountains here at all, and he didn't like the reason why he was quickly promoted. It turned out to be because he had to negotiate with the Chinese, and the Chinese required that he must be an army lieutenant general to lead the team, so he originally set a month.
The subsequent promotion ceremony has been urgently brought forward.
This is not the most egregious thing. The most egregious thing is the expressionless words of Gen. Gen Sugami after the brief promotion ceremony: "Okabe-kun, this negotiation with the Chinese for the exchange of prisoners of war is of great importance, especially for the Jin Dynasty."
The numerous remains of the imperial warriors who sacrificed their lives for the empire in the battle in the southeastern mountainous area have touched the hearts of the people in the country. I hope you, Okabe-kun, can bring the souls of these warriors back to their homeland. If you successfully complete this mission, Okabe-kun, I will personally send them to you.
You will take office in the Kwantung Army! Please!"
Every time I think of these words, Saburo Okabe wants to punch that old guy in the nose. Why should you bet my future on the mess you made yourself?
Regardless of what Yuan Shanshan said in a grand manner, what he said about welcoming the souls of many imperial warriors back to their homeland was actually just to save one person. Even a fool could understand the subtext. If the negotiation task was successfully completed and that person was rescued, everything would be easy.
, he could give Saburo Okabe the greatest honor of being sent off personally by a front commander for transfer, but what if he couldn't accomplish it?
Even Saburo Okabe, who has enough cards in his hand, is confident enough that the Chinese cannot refuse the negotiation conditions he offers.
Saburo Okabe tugged on the tightly buttoned military discipline button a little irritably. I'm afraid that, let alone being transferred to the Kwantung Army as the division commander, he would have been a senior official if he could continue to serve as the chief of staff of the North China Front.
Be open-minded.
"Qingmizu-kun, what do you think of the good or bad luck of this trip to Linfen?" Saburo Okabe asked softly, holding on to the railing of the carriage and looking at the mountains in the distance through the window opened by the tarpaulin.
In the back compartment of the truck, in addition to the chief of staff of the North China Front, there was also a Japanese soldier, Shao Zuo, who stood not far away from him, standing upright and with a somewhat rigid face.
Obviously, this young left-handed officer was someone Saburo Okabe trusted greatly. The fact that he could still maintain an upright posture in the rather bumpy truck compartment also showed that he had undergone extremely strict training.
Hearing Naosaburo Okabe's question, the somewhat rigid-looking Japanese soldier Shaozuo became respectful, but he answered with great confidence: "But please rest assured, Chief of Staff, since the Chinese agree with our army's proposal to exchange prisoners of war, naturally
They will not go back on their word easily. Even if they dare to make any changes, Shimizu Hideaki will definitely keep you safe."
Saburo Okabe glanced back at the Army Shaozuo, who was formerly a senior intelligence officer in the Intelligence Section of the North China Front and is now the first deputy of Fujiwara Senio of the Front's Special Forces, and nodded happily.
What he cared about was not the guarantee of this authentic master who had been engaged in intelligence for many years and was a direct descendant of the Yinhe sect of Ninjutsu, but that he, the Chief of Staff of the Front Army with an uncertain future, was not just a decoration in the North China Front.
Even if it's just out of superficial respect!
An army lieutenant general was actually happy because of a young leftist's statement, even though he occupied an important position.
It can be seen from this that the new Japanese Army Lieutenant General, who is about to leave the North China Front Army, is in a difficult situation in Japan's North China Front Army.
In fact, some commanders at the top were not happy with him, and some lieutenant generals and division commanders at the bottom were not pleased with him either.
"Very good, I wonder how Takaji Daizuo's deployment is going." Saburo Okabe asked again.
"Chief of Staff, please rest assured that the work of instigating rebellion against Chinese prisoners of war has been carried out in the intelligence class several months ago, and now there are at least dozens of backbone personnel.
A few days ago, the Intelligence Section specially arranged for our personnel to follow another group of prisoners of war into the prisoner of war camp. The prisoner of war camp itself has a mixed number of numbers, but the numbers of our personnel are complete and will definitely not conflict with the numbers registered in the prisoner of war camp. Moreover,
They have all been engaged in intelligence work in northern China for more than 7 years." Qingshui Xiucheng nodded.
"Very good! The Chinese thought they had a great victory in the battle in southeastern Shanxi, but they didn't know that this was just a small setback in the empire's progress. The one who laughs in the end is the real winner." Saburo Okabe was a bit rigid.
A smile appeared on his face.
This can be regarded as good news that has a certain soothing effect on Okabe Saburo's impatient mood.
As long as this negotiation is successful, maybe the front army can take advantage of the opportunity of exchanging prisoners of war to insert more secret chess in its army, thereby defeating the Chinese defense line in southeastern Shanxi. Then he, the front army who plays a leading role, will definitely be indispensable.
Credit to the Chief of Staff.
Lieutenant General Division Commander is not the end of his military career, it may be just the starting point. One day, he may be able to stand in front of that old guy Shan Shan Yuan, smile and say something that makes him feel like he has swallowed a fly, but
You also need to pretend to be grateful and virtuous.
"Hi! In Chinese terms, victory or defeat is a matter of military strategism. Even if the 2nd Mixed Brigade was defeated, it was because the entire 2nd Mixed Brigade underestimated the enemy. Our front army's hundreds of thousands of troops were already overwhelming.
The Chinese can only rely on the advantage of the terrain to hold on, and victory will come sooner or later. The empire will have a prosperous military fortune!" Qingshui Xiucheng said to meet Saburo Okabe.
"Haha, it's true!" Saburo Okabe felt much relieved after hearing this.
Although the initiative to exchange prisoners of war was taken by the Front Army this time, the overall battlefield situation was still that the Front Army had the complete initiative. The defeat in the southeast Shanxi battle did not affect the overall situation of the entire North China battlefield at all. It was difficult for him to believe that the Chinese would not accept the Front Army's launch of an exchange of prisoners of war.
out conditions.
As for the large number of Chinese prisoners of war who still consume food pointlessly, what if they are returned to the Chinese? The front army can defeat them once, and they can defeat them a second time, or even more times, but they are just a bunch of rabble.
Don't tell me, Saburo Okabe's thoughts are very suitable for Tang Tuanzuo, and Tang Dao thinks the same way.
Not to mention that Fujiwara Senzuo is almost a useless person now. Even when he was in his prime, Tang Dao could still beat him to the ground.
Oh no, Fujiwara Senzuo doesn’t have many teeth to lose now. In this era when dental medicine is still underdeveloped, dental implants are impossible. From now on, Fujiwara Sentsuo can only open his mouth, as if he can’t speak.
old lady.
Okabe Saburo didn't know that just tens of meters behind his vehicle, two Westerners sitting in a jeep were also chatting about their views on the Sino-Japanese negotiations.
"Mr. Krupp, what do you think of this Sino-Japanese negotiation?"
The brigadier general in the Roman Empire military uniform asked respectfully about the middle-aged man sitting next to him wearing a plaid suit and holding a pipe with a pair of blue eyes.
Although the German Empire has become more and more powerful, due to the defeat of the last war, the concession in Jincheng was taken over by the Western world. As the German Empire and the Roman Empire got closer, many expatriates and business firms from the German Empire opened in
In the concession of the Roman Empire, this brigadier general of the Roman Empire was the current commander of the concession of the Roman Empire. He could be said to be one of the most important figures in the Western concession, otherwise Shanshan Yuan would have paid a lot of money to invite him.
But it was extremely rare for such a senior officer at the brigadier general level, and a senior officer from a Germanic allied country, to be so polite to a businessman doing business within his jurisdiction.
However, anyone who knows Germanic history will not be too surprised when they hear the surname "Krupp".
Krupp is definitely a surname that the German Empire caused turmoil in the whole world, and billions of people cried in the raging war, a surname that could not be avoided.
The Krupp Company has been the largest arms manufacturing company in the German Empire since the last century. The Krupp cannon it developed allowed Bismarck to defeat Austria and France in the 19th century.
The 44-ton Krupp cannon with a range of 19,760 meters embodies the saying "Truth is within the range" to the fullest.
Artillery changed the war pattern in the 19th century, and it was at that time that the name "God of War" was attached to artillery.
Chinese soldiers have suffered enough from artillery and have generally suffered from "fear of insufficient firepower". In the future, they have equipped themselves into an army with the most various calibers in the world. Even in the era of rampant missiles,
Still stubbornly developing artillery, rocket launchers with a range of 400 kilometers make all neighboring countries shiver just by hearing the data.
Krupp is an arms company that made its fortune manufacturing various types of artillery.
Mr. Rostav Krupp, who was next to the Brigadier General of the Roman Empire, was an important member of the Krupp family. He was the uncle of the current head of the Krupp family, Arold Krupp, and the previous Krupp.
The younger brother of the head of the family.
As for why this elder came to war-torn China, it was difficult for the brigadier to know the real reason, but he thought it was also the result of power struggles among the big families.
The young head of Krupp swore allegiance to the Mustached Führer, and drank and chatted with him several times. There was even a portrait of the Führer hanging in his office with the words 'Together with the Führer until victory' written on it. Undoubtedly, this was
Bit is the loser in the family power struggle.
But losers are only relative. The arms manufacturing and sales controlled by Mr. Rostav Krupp account for one-fifth of the entire Krupp family.
Don't underestimate the one-fifth he has in hand. If you know that at this time, Krupp Company already accounted for 60% of the entire German Empire's arms supply, employing nearly 100,000 employees, you will know
What a behemoth this is.
The reason Rostav Krupp came to China was simply to claim that he had loved ancient Eastern civilization since he was a child. China, the center of Eastern civilization, was his dream place, so he arrived in China just a few months ago.
Of course, in fact, this man is really a China expert. Not only does his fluent Chinese put to shame Brigadier General Sebastian, who has been in China for several years, but his familiarity with China's major cities also exceeds that of many Westerners in the concession.
people.
If he hadn't been worried about irritating the Japanese who had already paid a huge price this time, Mr. Krupp might have gone to the negotiation table set by the Chinese wearing a traditional Chinese robe.
When the brigadier general from the allied countries asked about his views on this negotiation that has not yet been conducted, Rostav smiled meaningfully: "Before answering your question, General Tian, you may want to first talk about this negotiation between China and Japan. A view of the battle.”
"Although Japan's national strength cannot be compared with that of your country, its domestic industrial manufacturing capacity and soldier training level are far above China. There is almost no suspense about the outcome of this war. The current one-sided situation between the two countries has already illustrated this. ." After the Roman Imperial Brigadier thought for a moment, he still gave his opinion honestly.
"But General Tian, you still don't give the absolute view that China will lose, like those people in our two countries, do you?" Rostav said with a smile.
"Yes! Although China's equipment is backward and its soldiers are poorly trained, if you have never been to China or seen those battlefields with your own eyes, you cannot know the spirit with which the army, which is almost composed of farmers, is fighting against their powerful enemies. "." The Roman Empire's brigadier general's face became serious.
"I even often wonder whether your country's army, composed of armored torrents, comes across the ocean and can conquer this ancient country in half a year."
"Oh? With Brigadier General Tian's military talent, what is the result of the deduction?" Rostav's eyes flashed with curiosity.
"No, China is too big. It is more than 20 times the area of your country and is almost as big as Europe." The brigadier general of the Roman Empire replied with a wry smile. "Their population is also large enough. As long as they do not give up resistance, I can assert that it would take three years or even longer for the Japanese to conquer the entire territory of China, not to mention three months as they claimed."
"Haha, that's it. Those short-sighted guys in China don't come and see for themselves. They just say that China will lose based on the comparison of national power between China and Japan. They abandon such a huge market like China and support Japan, which has only learned a little bit. A warrior with a superficial oriental civilization is really ridiculous." Rostav laughed loudly and unscrupulously criticized certain senior figures in the German Empire who made such a decision.
Rostav dared, because behind him stood the largest arms group of the German Empire. The Roman Empire's brigadier general did not dare to agree, so he could only pretend not to hear.
"This ancient country missed the precious opportunity of the Industrial Revolution. It is still in the agricultural era, and many domestic forces are intertwined and unable to form a joint force. However, they have an extremely long history and splendid civilization. If they can survive this Maybe they will surprise us.
There is a saying in ancient China: a phoenix bathed in fire! Yes, that’s right, China at this time is like that phoenix bathed in fire. It just doesn’t know that they were completely reduced to ashes in this war. , can still be reborn." Rostav turned his attention to a machine gun bunker visible to the naked eye on the top of the mountain, and commented.
Brigadier General German knew the opportunity and did not ask the previous question. This person's attitude actually said everything.
However, he still had great reservations about the arms dealer's so-called "phoenix rising from the ashes" rhetoric.
In this war, Japan's chances of victory accounted for more than 95%. This was the result of his deduction for half a year.
The wheel of history keeps rolling forward like this huge motorcade.
The Germanic people who had great admiration for the ancient Eastern civilization did not know that they would meet a man who could change his destiny.
And Tang Dao, who was still waiting for the arrival of the Japanese in Linfen City, didn't know that he would bump into the "babies" he had been thinking about for so long in this mountain nook in advance.
The big boss behind the foreign company where the weapons and equipment ordered by the young marshal arrived in Linfen!
This chapter has been completed!