According to the division of forces between the navy and the army, the territory of the Marine Corps Headquarters in Shanghai was only the Japanese-occupied area of Hongkou, and no military action could be taken against other places.
Therefore, the Marine Corps Headquarters Garrison only took measures against the locations of two grain stores, which involved vital interests and was considered a division's fault.
Under accusations from various forces, the Military Police Headquarters in Shanghai dispatched a large number of military police to arrest members of the law enforcement brigade of the inspection team and accomplices who were committing crimes. The "reason" used was to disrupt the social order of Shanghai.
When encountering a conflict between the Japanese and the Chinese, the military police headquarters usually always helps its own people, but when one of its own people comes into contact with the interests of the military, the result is that they will be beaten without fail!
"Chief of the agency, Mr. Nakajima, Mr. Shimada, please come to my office and sit down. The military police headquarters just called me. The general will be here in a moment," Chen Mingxiang said.
Today it was his turn to sit in the office of the Foreign Affairs Office, but it was not yet noon, and he was rushed to the inspection team by a series of phone calls. Even Ichiro Hirai called him and asked him to come back to handle urgent matters.
The development of the matter was obviously beyond his expectation. He did not expect it to be such a big fuss. Hirai Ichiro was so anxious that he did not even conduct the necessary investigation and directly targeted the smugglers.
Perhaps, in the eyes of the Japanese, as long as the target of the action is not a Japanese company, it is no big deal if they rob it, without considering the consequences at all.
"Minister Tsuda Shizue and General Matsue will arrive at the inspection team soon. The Fleet Command is very angry about this incident. Admiral Shitaro Shimada and Admiral Shunroku Hata talked on the phone. They don't want something like this to happen again. This time the Navy
We and the Army must join forces to suppress the Zaibatsu and restrain the behavior of those Zaibatsu." Kodama said after arriving at the office with Shifu.
The chaebols control the production of weapons, equipment and military supplies for the Japanese army, and the military is unwilling to break up with them. Of course, the Japanese army in China cannot take too drastic actions.
Although the navy and the army have many conflicts and dislike each other, their goals in dealing with this matter are surprisingly the same. They first unite to deal with the plutocrats and protect their own interests from being infringed.
"Please rest assured, chief, I will correct my position. Now is a special period, and maintaining the balance between the military and the plutocrats is the most important thing," Chen Mingxiang said.
"Chen Jun is indeed a good friend of the Japanese Empire. His perspective is completely correct. We really cannot break up with the chaebol at this stage. This would be detrimental to the overall situation." Kodama and Shifu nodded.
Smart people are smart people. There is no need to understand at all. Although Chen Mingxiang is young, his thinking is quite mature and he has grasped the essence of this matter.
For the military operations of the Southward Strategy, the military department needs chaebols to provide guarantees for the war. Everything must be compromised in the face of interests. To put it more accurately, the inspection team will still be in the hands of Japanese business representatives for the time being.
Director Tsuda Shizue of the Central China Liaison Department of Koa Institute, Major General Kinoshita Sakaeichi of the Military Police Headquarters, Major General Matsue of the Marine Corps Headquarters, and Major General Maeda Masami of the Army Ministry's secret service stationed in Shanghai are the representatives of the interests of the military.
President Takashima of the Central China Revitalization Corporation, representatives of the two major chaebols Mitsui and Mitsubishi, representatives of Japanese companies in the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce, and representatives of the pseudo-Shanghai Chamber of Commerce, all rushed to the inspection team.
The essence of these people gathering at the inspection team meeting is to divide the cake. The military-controlled enterprises controlled by the military and the Japanese chaebol enterprises in Shanghai must jointly divide the strategic materials from the Kuomintang-controlled areas.
"Your Excellency General, it is a pity that this kind of thing happened. As the head of the inspection team, I have neglected supervision and have an unshirkable responsibility." Chen Mingxiang said to Kinoshita Sakaeichi.
Hearing these words, Shaozuo Lin and Ichiro Hirai felt a chill go down their backs. This person was really not easy to mess with. He was obviously adding fuel to the fire and shirking responsibility.
The inspection team is now under the Japanese consultant responsibility system, and Chen Mingxiang is just a decoration. He deliberately said this to make a fool of the two of them.
"Chen Jun, this matter is not your fault, and you don't need to take the responsibility on yourself. Mayor Chen Gongbo called me. You will participate in the meeting as a representative of the municipal government, and his secretary will also rush over to attend.
"Major General Kinoshita Eiichi said.
Looking at Shaozu Lin and Ichiro Hirai with evasive eyes next to him, he was very angry and wanted to take out his saber and chop off their heads!
But representatives of the Japanese chaebol had already told him about this matter. Facing those behemoths that even the military bosses were afraid of, he couldn't go too far.
"Nana, please first invite people from the army to the reception room, people from the navy to your secretary's office, and ask all irrelevant personnel to leave the office building." Chen Mingxiang walked to the side and ordered Liu Nina.
"Ichiro Hirai and Shaozuo Lin are going to suffer this time. Do you think the Japanese will abolish the consultant responsibility system and let you come back to take power?" Liu Nina said with a smile.
"It's not that simple. Although these two guys did things a little recklessly, the Japanese chaebol appreciate it very much. With such a strong backing, they will not receive any substantial punishment."
"Since the military wants to launch a war, it must compromise with the Japanese chaebol. It is impossible for me to take back control of the inspection team in a short time. Besides, even if I are asked to take over, I am not willing to wade into troubled waters at this time and offend others.
Let the Japanese do it themselves!" Chen Mingxiang shook his head and said.
Mo Guokang came to the inspection team in Chen Gongbo's special car. Chen Mingxiang met her in an office downstairs. It was expected that Chen Gongbo would have an explanation.
"The Japanese have started to bite themselves. Our city government will not interfere. The mayor means to restore the functions of the previous inspection team. This kind of blatant robbery must be stopped. This is also what Chairman Wang means. The image of the Jinling government
The image of the government and the city government must not be affected internationally," Mo Guokang said.
You guys really feel good about yourself, and you really dare to put gold in your face. Internationally, the Wang Puppet Government has a bad image?
"I understand, and I will explain to all parties what the mayor and Chairman Wang mean. In fact, the Japanese side does not want the Shanghai stock market to be messed up." Although Chen Mingxiang was full of slander, he did not say anything else.
"I have something to tell you in advance. Zhou Fahai and Ding Mocun came to Shanghai last night and had a meal with the mayor. I heard that Zhou Fahai planned to abolish the Police Department and asked the mayor for his opinion on this."
"You know, the mayor doesn't like these gangsters from the Secret Service Headquarters very much. He thinks they have seriously damaged the image of the Jinling government, so he naturally agreed to Zhou Fahai's proposal. Li Shiqun will be in trouble this time." Mo Guokang is really worthy of Chen Mingxiang's big red envelope.
