Sword: Heart of Iron

Chapter 232 The Zhanggufeng Incident

Zhanggufeng area.

Headquarters of the 19th Division of the Japanese Kwantung Army.

Division Commander Takashi Oogi paced back and forth in the room, his expression grave.

The chief of staff strode in: "General, the investigation is complete. Soviet soldiers have crossed the border without permission, occupied Zhanggufeng, and begun digging trenches!"

Oogami Takazo: "How many people are there?"

Chief of Staff: "There are only a few dozen soldiers."

Should we retaliate?

Ogame Takazo hesitated for a moment: "Hold your positions for now and immediately report the message to the Commander of the Korean Army, Lord Koiso Kuniaki!"

The chief of staff nodded: "Hai!"

Oogami Takazo looked at the picture on the wall, forcibly suppressing his inner excitement.

War is finally coming!

Changgufeng is inconspicuous on the map; it is just a small hill on the Sino-Soviet border near North Korea, with no strategic value whatsoever.

A month ago, the Soviets, for reasons unknown, began building fortifications in this inconspicuous place and repeatedly crossed the border to test the waters.

This unusual move quickly attracted the attention of the Japanese Kwantung Army.

As the "flower of the Imperial Army," how could she sit idly by in the face of such blatant provocation from the Soviets? She immediately reported to Tokyo and requested military action.

But the battle for Wuhan is imminent.

Tokyo imposed strict restrictions on frontline troops and, in order to prevent the situation from escalating, also relocated nearby army air force units.

The 19th Division, stationed on the border, could only suppress its anger and watch helplessly as the Soviet army's fortifications became increasingly complete.

This time, however, the Soviet army went a bit too far, actually building fortifications to the west side of the border.

It doesn't take a while.

The chief of staff rushed over again: "General, the headquarters of the Korean War has sent a telegram requesting that we immediately move closer to the border!"
"At the same time, the Kwantung Army Headquarters also clearly replied that the actions of the Soviet army must be contained, but direct military conflict should be avoided as much as possible!"

Oogami Takazo's lips curled into a smile: "Yosh! Order the 75th Infantry Regiment to advance immediately toward the Zhanggufeng border!"

The chief of staff bowed and said, "Hai!"

------

Tokyo.

Lu Xiangshan sat in the car, his eyebrows furrowed into a line. Even though it was his own car, he felt somewhat cramped.

What exactly happened at Zhang Gufeng?

"Who gave the order to attack?"

Standing to the side, Army Vice Minister Hideki Tojo hesitated for a long time before saying, "Your Excellency, it may be the 19th Division's unauthorized decision."

Gen Sugiyama clenched his fist: "Baka!"
"These deer!"

Hideki Tojo: "Your Excellency, what is His Majesty the Emperor's attitude toward the 'Northern Advance'?"

Sugiyama Gen: "It's all unclear. On the Chinese battlefield, with the Battle of Wuhan imminent, His Majesty the Emperor has always wanted to avoid war and seek peace with the Soviet Union. I only recently learned about this."

He was inspecting the Kwantung Army headquarters a week ago, not in Tokyo.

As the Zhanggufeng Incident escalated, he entrusted the Chief of the General Staff, Prince Kan'in, to enter the palace and petition His Majesty the Emperor to request that military action be taken in the Soviet Union.

Unexpectedly, before entering the palace, Prince Kan'in Kotohito spoke with the Emperor's close advisors and learned that His Majesty was seeking peace and avoiding war. In order not to make a fool of himself, he took the initiative to cancel his memorial.

The crucial point is that the General Staff did not inform him of this matter.

Furthermore, Foreign Minister Kazushige Ugaki, in his memorial to the Emperor, also requested that His Majesty not use force against the Soviet Union.

As a result, only Sugiyama Gen was kept in the dark. When his subordinates asked for his opinion on how to handle the situation, he could only give a vague answer and did not strictly prohibit military operations.

He only learned about these things gradually after he returned to Tokyo.

But it's too late!
The 19th Division made an unauthorized decision to attack and, taking advantage of the Soviet army's lack of preparedness, seized the key area of ​​Zhanggufeng.

Sugiyama Gen looked out the window: "How much longer until we reach the palace?"

Hideki Tojo: "About five minutes left."

Sugiyama Gen took a deep breath, his palms clenched so tightly they were sweaty, and he was restless.

------

East Hall 1 of the Imperial Palace.

The meeting room had a yellowish tinge.

Hirohito sat solemnly on the throne, a symbol of imperial power, his gaze sweeping coldly over the assembled officials on either side of him.

"Why!
"Who gave the order to attack?!"

On either side of the long table, a group of civil and military officials held their breath, glancing at each other privately, and whispering among themselves.

"Who exactly gave the order to attack?"

Seeing that no one spoke, Prince Kan'in Zaihito was the first to stand up:

"Your Majesty, what's done is done, and there's nothing we can do now. The most urgent task is to prevent the situation from escalating." Foreign Minister Kazushige Ugaki stepped forward: "Your Majesty, the Soviets are now refusing to hold any diplomatic talks with us. If this incident is not handled properly, it could even trigger a large-scale war!"

Hirohito's forehead veins bulged: "Lord Sugiyama, I need an explanation!"

Sugiyama Gen, with his head bowed, immediately stood up when he heard the Emperor call his name.

“Your Majesty, this incident was an unauthorized act by a unit under the Kwantung Army, and I received no prior notice.”

Hirohito: "Sugiyama-kun, are you trying to shirk responsibility?"

Sugiyama Gen was startled and quickly explained, "Your Majesty, this humble subject dares not."

Seeing how frightened the other party was, Hirohito stopped pressing Sugiyama Gen for answers.

He actually knew that the Zhang Gufeng incident was not solely the fault of the Minister of the Army.

Within the Japanese Army, there existed a secret political organization called "Ichiyashikai".

The organization's members have a strong "northward" sentiment.

They constantly promoted the "Soviet threat theory" in the army and even the cabinet, believing that apart from China, the Soviet Union was the empire's main enemy.

But now this organization has basically disappeared.

The core leader, Nagata Tetsuzan, the director of the Military Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of the Army, was considered a central figure in the Control Faction. Due to his suppression of the Imperial Way Faction and other reasons, he was killed by Imperial Way Faction officer Aizawa Saburo in 1935.

His four most capable subordinates.

Neiji Okamura and Kenji Doihara were both killed on the Chinese battlefield.

Due to the defeat at the Battle of Xinkou, Seishiro Itagaki was transferred to the reserves, completely removed from the center of army power.

They should be training new recruits right now.

Only Isogai Rensuke remained. After the defeat at the Battle of Taierzhuang, he was transferred to the Kwantung Army as chief of staff and continued to secretly promote the "northern advance" strategy.

The mastermind behind this incident is most likely Rensuke Isogai.

Hirohito: "From now on, without my order, no one shall move a single soldier!"

Since the "Manchurian Incident", the Emperor's command authority has been frequently violated, especially during the "February 26 Incident", when the rebels initially stormed into the cabinet under the banner of protecting the imperial power.

But something went wrong, and amidst the chaos of war, some began to try to support his younger brother, Chichibu-no-miya Naohito, as emperor.

How can this be allowed!

Although the "February 26 Incident" was suppressed, the military's usurpation of the Emperor's command authority became completely out of control.

Hideki Tojo spoke up at the opportune moment: "Your Majesty, the Soviets' recent actions are indeed strange. Building fortifications on Zhanggufeng is completely meaningless. It is very likely that this is not a simple test at all!"
"Recently, communist activities have been unusually rampant, with clandestine gatherings being held in cities such as Osaka, Nagoya, and Hokkaido. When the military carried out arrests, a large number of Soviet-made Mosin-Nagant rifles were found at the scene!"

Hirohito frowned.

He had heard a little about this, but at the time, the whole country was preparing for the battle in Wuhan, and the anti-war sentiment was being incited by communist elements for quite some time.

Aside from ordering the garrison troops to intensify patrols, they did not pay much attention to it.

Prince Kan'in: "Your Majesty, Vice Minister Tojo is right. The Zhanggufeng incident may not be a coincidence!"

Hirohito remained calm: "The Empire's main task at present is to completely resolve the China Incident through the Wuhan operation, and the Soviet Union should do its best to control the development of the situation."

Before launching the war against China, he had already laid out his strategic plan for the subsequent development.

At the time, almost everyone believed that the China Incident could be completely resolved within three months.

"Advance north" or "move south" had become a consensus at the strategic level of the empire.

But no one expected that the war would have lasted for more than a year since July 7th.

The situation did not turn out as expected; on the contrary, it tended to drag the country into a quagmire of war.

Hirohito: "Who was the overall commander of the Chinese side in this Battle of Wuhan?"

Xianyuan Gong Zai Ren: "It is the king's decree!"

Upon hearing this name, Hirohito's heart skipped a beat:
"Wang Feng?"

Why not Chen Cheng?

Prince Xianyuan Zai Ren: "Your Majesty, half a month ago, the Chinese side held a military conference, and Chiang Kai-shek personally recommended Wang Feng to serve as the commander-in-chief of the campaign."

Hirohito: "What about Hata Shunroku? How is he?"
"Could he be a match for Wang Feng?"

Terauchi Hisaichi went to Europe to negotiate an alliance with Germany in his capacity as foreign affairs attaché.

Command of the Wuhan operation naturally fell into the hands of Hata Shunroku.

The impact of the frontline troops on Tokyo was greater than anyone had anticipated.

After the Huaibei Campaign, along with the news of the annihilation of the 13th and 18th Divisions, another Chinese name was brought back – “Wang Feng”!
In Japan, currently gripped by war fever, this name has become a household name.

There are always imperial warriors who want to challenge him.

But without exception, the fates of Okamura Neiji, Nakajima Kesago, and Doihara Kenji are still vivid in our minds.

Gradually, the soldiers' mentality on the front lines changed from eager for challenges to fearing them.

Faced with such an opponent, Hirohito was very worried about the morale of the front-line troops.

Prince Kan'in bowed slightly: "General Hata Shunroku has made all the necessary preparations, Your Majesty, please rest assured!"

(End of this chapter)