Looking at the general wearing the rank of lieutenant general, Shinozuka Yoshio's expression became complicated. After a long time, he smiled bitterly and said: "Iwamatsu-kun... I didn't expect that the base camp would actually send you here."
I know the person who came in, Yoshio Shinozuka. His name is Yoshio Iwamatsu. Speaking of which, both of them are alumni of the Imperial Army University. However, Yoshio Shinozuka is from the 23rd period, while Yoshio Iwamatsu is from the 30th period.
of.
Iwamatsu Yoshio walked up to Shinozuka Yoshio and bowed slightly to him, "Sir... I'm really sorry. I didn't expect that we would meet on such an occasion after we said goodbye three years ago."
Yoshio Shinozuka nodded slightly: "You are a calm and conservative person. If you were the commander of the First Army in the past, there would be no problem. But now the situation in Shanxi is too turbulent. It will be difficult for you to take over this mess under such circumstances.
It's not very suitable. Forget it, it's not my turn to worry about these things now, but before I leave, I will give you a piece of advice. Be careful of that Gao Hongming and his Liantai militia, otherwise my day will be yours.
Tomorrow. Okay, you can read out the orders from the base camp."
It stands to reason that although the other party is his junior student and on the same level as him, Yoshio Shinozuka should be polite to him and save some face, but Yoshio Shinozuka is already the one who wants to leave, and he is still
He left in such a dishonorable way, so he wasn't very polite at all when he spoke.
Yoshio Iwamatsu gave a wry smile, took out a document from his briefcase and read: "Headquarters 'Ren' No. 687. In addition, Yoshio Shinozuka, commander of the First Army of the Imperial Japanese Army's North China Front, was
His ability to strictly implement His Majesty the Emperor's decree of co-prosperity in Greater East Asia led to a sharp deterioration in the situation in Shanxi. Therefore, the base camp decided to transfer him back to the mainland for investigation, and his position was taken over by Yoshio Iwamatsu, commander of Taiwan's Central Army.
Also: After seeing this order, Yoshio Shinozuka immediately followed the military police to return on a special plane without delay. This order... On February 2, Showa 16, Chief of Staff of the Army Staff Headquarters of the Empire of Japan Base Camp Sugiyama Gen!"
After finishing reading, Yoshio Iwamatsu bowed slightly to Yoshio Shinozuka and handed the document to him with both hands, "Sir, I'm really sorry. Your special plane is waiting for you at the airport."
Yoshio Shinozuka was not pretentious. After completing the document, he took out a pen and signed his name quickly. He said calmly to the two military policemen from the mainland who had been standing behind him since he entered: "Let's go, but
Don’t keep the plane waiting!”
After saying that, he strode out of the office, followed closely by two military policemen.
But as soon as the three of them walked out of the door, they saw that there were already hundreds of people standing outside.
All of these people looked sad, and many even shed tears.
Seeing Yoshio Shinozuka come out, no one said anything. They just looked at the three people who came out silently. Many people even looked at the two military policemen who were following Yoshio Shinozuka with resentment in their eyes.
Seeing this situation, the two military policemen were startled. They involuntarily pressed their right hands on the holsters on their waists, but then put their hands back as if they were electrocuted.
This is the headquarters of the First Army. If I really dare to shoot here, I'm sure I'll be beaten into a hornet's nest in less than a minute.
Fortunately, Yoshio Shinozuka spoke up in time, "What do you want to do? Don't forget that you are all soldiers of the Empire of Japan, and soldiers should obey orders as their bounden duty. I just returned to my homeland to be investigated.
What do you mean by this expression? Can you see me off?"
"Your Excellency, Commander, you are a senior general of the Japanese Empire, how could you be treated so disgracefully?"
"Headquarters shouldn't treat the heroes of the empire like this!"
"Yes, we will jointly accuse the base camp of the shameless behavior to His Majesty the Emperor!"
The officers were talking to each other, and the more they talked, the more excited they became, and they were about to start a fight.
"idiot!"
Shinozuka Yoshio's voice rang out in the hall, and he was seen glaring at everyone with wide eyes: "I reiterate once again, I just returned to my homeland for investigation, and the base camp has not punished me yet. All you have to do is
Do your duty well, obey the orders of the new commander, wipe out all the Chinese resistance forces in Shanxi, and fully integrate Shanxi into the empire, instead of fighting for injustice for this bad old man like me, do you understand?"
Although Shinozuka Yoshio was dismissed, his power still remained. After seeing his anger, the officers lowered their heads one after another, did not dare to speak, and then moved out of the way.
Only then were Yoshio Shinozuka and the three of them able to continue walking until they left the headquarters and got into the car. The two military policemen breathed a sigh of relief and urged the driver to leave immediately and rush to the airport...
In fact, it was not only the two military policemen who breathed a sigh of relief, but also Yoshio Iwamatsu.
Before coming, he had never mentioned that Yoshio Shinozuka's prestige in the First Army was so high. If Yoshio Shinozuka hadn't stopped the excited officers just now, something big might have happened.
Although Yoshio Shinozuka will definitely bear the main responsibility if something happens, it will also be a huge blow to his prestige as the new commander, so from the bottom of his heart, he is not willing to see this scene happen.
Fortunately for him, Chief of Staff Naosaburo Okabe was still very cooperative with his work. He quickly handed over the work of the First Army to him in detail and explained the main problems currently facing him.
"You mean, just this morning, the Chinese have captured Weijiazhuang, Nanhuaihua, Caijiagang and Jiehepu. They have formed a siege situation around Xinkou and may launch a general attack on Xinkou at any time?"
"Yes, Your Excellency, Commander." Naosaburo Okabe replied seriously, "Once Xinkou is lost, the Shanxi-Sui Army can attack Taiyuan along the railway, and we will be in no danger of defending."
"Damn it!"
Yoshio Iwamatsu hammered the table hard and made a muffled sound. Although he had expected that the situation in Shanxi was not good before coming, he did not expect that the situation had become this serious.
Where is Taiyuan? It is the capital of Shanxi and the headquarters of the First Army. Now it is directly facing the threat of the Chinese, and it is the Jinsui Army that was defeated and fled by them four years ago. This is really ridiculous.
.
"Where are the reinforcements? Do we have any reinforcements that we can mobilize?"
"Your Excellency, Commander, the military strength in Taiyuan is very tight now. Our troops have been dispersed to various cities in Shanxi. Currently, the only troops we can use are the 9th Brigade and the 37th Division stationed in Taiyuan."
"No... the Thirty-seventh Division is our only reserve force and must not be moved. You immediately telegraph the Ninth Brigade to quickly reinforce Xinkou and send a request to the commander of Gangcun.
He urgently dispatched planes, the more the better."