Spy Wars: Red Shopkeeper

Chapter 253 Continue
Nanjing Headquarters.

After the railway arrived, Gu Yansheng and Minister Zhou came here by car.

Those entering and leaving the gate were all high-ranking Japanese military officers in uniform. In other places, a lieutenant colonel could be the head of a department, such as Haruki Keiichi in Shanghai, or Suzuki Takuya who went to Hong Kong for negotiations.

Here, the rank of lieutenant colonel is commonplace; Gu Yansheng has seen several colonels along the way.

It's probably not common for Chinese people to be able to get in here.

He met with Seishiro Itagaki.

Since Gu Yansheng did not speak Japanese, the Japanese side also arranged for a Japanese translator.

Minister Zhou began by asking directly, "Lord Itagaki, what are your expectations for this negotiation?"

Itagaki laughed and said, "Mr. Zhou, is it because you heard the feedback from the people negotiating in Hong Kong and thought that we would agree to Chongqing's conditions and kill you that you came to me?"
You don't need to be so nervous.

For China, there is no doubt that we have always hoped to resolve wars peacefully.

After our peace talks with Chongqing are successful, we hope that you and Chongqing will form a coalition government.

This is for the sake of peace, and we do not want China to become a one-man show by Chiang Kai-shek in Chongqing. This is not in our interest. The coalition government will certainly include you, and we will do everything in our power to guarantee your personal safety. I can assure you of that.

Minister Zhou raised an eyebrow. "Thank you for your frankness, Your Excellency Itagaki. For the sake of peace, we can accept forming a coalition government with the Chongqing government."

However, Mr. Wang kept asking me whether Japan was sincere in negotiating. Since so many people Mr. Wang had gathered were currently in Shanghai, and there was still no progress on the establishment of the new government, Mr. Wang needed to give them a clear answer, which put us in a difficult position.

Negotiation is one thing, but we can't place all our hopes on it.

If Chongqing is simply trying to use this negotiation to buy time and influence our morale, Mr. Itagaki, have you considered this factor?

By then, morale will be low, and Chongqing will have achieved its goal.

Itagaki frowned and said, "Peace talks are the best outcome for Chongqing. Based on the feedback from the negotiations, I believe that Chongqing is indeed willing to negotiate. If we push for the establishment of a new government at this time, it will make Chongqing feel that we are not sincere in negotiating."

There's nothing we can do about this. In the upcoming negotiations, I will order our people to urge Chongqing to implement the specific terms as soon as possible and accelerate the negotiation process.

"This is too passive."

Minister Zhou still expressed his dissatisfaction, saying, "If we just passively wait, where is Japan's initiative? Does Chongqing now think it can dominate the negotiations?"

"So what do you think?"

"At least give us a deadline. Before that, we can negotiate. After that, things should return to normal."

"I can't give you this deadline."

Itagaki came to China as chief of staff to lead the negotiations. The peace talks had to be successful, otherwise he would not be able to return to the central government.

Minister Zhou felt he shouldn't have approached Itagaki; the guy was having a relapse.

"Lord Itagaki, if this is your attitude, I need to consider going to Japan to talk to the cabinet. I think there is something wrong with your thinking. You should be assertive towards Chongqing, instead of waiting for Chongqing's reply like this."

You are putting our Mr. Wang in an unjust position!

So many people in Shanghai are waiting for us, what are we supposed to do?
If you don't care about our attitude, you can just say so, and we can leave Shanghai!

Minister Zhou's assertiveness made Itagaki uncomfortable, and he said firmly, "Then you can go and talk to the cabinet!"

Minister Zhou, let me remind you that our goal is to peacefully build up East Asia. Even if I support you in establishing a new government now, do you have the ability to take over the whole of China from the Chongqing government?

Doesn't it still require a lot of time to proceed step by step?
Now there is an opportunity for peace talks to resolve the China issue once and for all. If you were me, what would you choose?
Don't you understand this choice?

"Let me say a few words," Gu Yansheng interjected after listening to the translation. "Please calm down, both of you. We are both trying to achieve peace, but we have different methods. We are definitely not enemies."

Your Excellency Itagaki, I think Minister Zhou's considerations are reasonable.

Let me clarify first that I am not speaking from the perspective of the new government ministers, but rather from the perspective of an observer.

As you can see, based on my observations at the peace talks, the Chongqing government's attitude towards the talks is somewhat ambiguous.

If you genuinely want to negotiate, you should send a dedicated team to discuss the relevant matters.

But right now, Chongqing has only sent one person, Song Ziliang. It was understandable that he was the only one during the first negotiation, but this is the second time. He returned to Chongqing and came back alone, which is not normal.

To put it bluntly, he said he talked with Chiang Kai-shek and offered terms, but that's just his side of the story. Can you be sure he talked with Chiang Kai-shek?
What if it's not true, and he made it all up to fool us?

Although Song Ziliang was a relative of President Chiang, he acted too carefree and irresponsibly, behaving like a cynical rich kid.

Is President Jiang being too trusting to entrust such a significant matter as peace talks to someone like this?
These are all risks.

Therefore, I think we can go along with his wishes.

Didn't Song Ziliang propose ending the Battle of Changsha as a way to show his sincerity?
I think it would be better to let him end the Battle of Changsha and show him this goodwill.

At the same time, we continued to push for the establishment of the Wang government in order to force him to make a choice as soon as possible.

From Chongqing's perspective, they certainly don't want us to establish a new government, especially a government led by Mr. Wang, who enjoys high prestige within the Party.

If you can't give us a timeframe for the negotiations to end, then we'll create one—the timeframe for the establishment of Mr. Wang's new government—to give Chongqing a sense of urgency.

Either we succeed in negotiations before then, or we form a new government and let them choose for themselves.

We have shown our sincerity.

As for Mr. Wang, this reassured his faction. They didn't need to know about the negotiations, but with a clear opening date for the government, everyone could focus on their duties. In any case, it was a good thing for the Japanese-occupied areas at present.

“I think what Minister Gu said makes a lot of sense.” Minister Zhou responded immediately after confirming that Gu Yansheng had finished speaking. “A balance of firmness and gentleness, and appropriate assertiveness, is necessary to demonstrate the Japanese side’s attitude.”

"Lord Itagaki, you must also hope that these peace talks will yield a definite result as soon as possible, whether successful or not, so that you can give an explanation to the General Headquarters and the Cabinet."

Itagaki glanced at Gu Yansheng, frowned and pondered for a moment, then stood up and said, "I'll go out for a bit and give you an answer later. Please have some tea and wait a while."

"Okay. We should go to the meeting to discuss this."

Watching Itagaki leave, Minister Zhou smiled and said, "What you just said was very timely and excellent."

Opposition is nothing; providing solutions is the most important thing.

The purpose of this trip to Nanjing was merely to persuade Itagaki not to believe Chongqing's peace-making tactics, but now Gu Yansheng has gone a step further, taking a different approach and advancing the establishment of the new government, which is an unexpected delight.

Now that Itagaki has clearly been persuaded, the matter is practically settled.

Gu Yansheng's aim wasn't to push for the establishment of a new government. The Battle of Changsha was taking place during the peak harvest season. If the war could be delayed, local farmers could have a harvest this year, saving many lives from starvation.

It's just a matter of talking; pushing forward with the new government is merely a side effect.

I gladly accepted the praise for my contributions.

After waiting for an hour, Itagaki returned. "Sorry to keep you waiting." Itagaki glanced at the two of them. "I discussed it with the General Staff and we decided to adopt Mr. Gu's plan to end the Changsha offensive within a certain period of time and continue to promote the establishment of the new government. The specific time will be discussed with you by Colonel Kagesa Yoshiaki later. This time needs to be spread out so that the agents in Shanghai can inform Chongqing and achieve our goal of putting pressure on them."

This exceeded my expectations! It really exceeded my expectations!

"Haha." Minister Zhou couldn't help but laugh. "Lord Itagaki, this is definitely a win-win decision for both sides!"

The Japanese were stingy. They ate a working meal at the headquarters, which consisted of miso soup, salted fish, and pork chop. The food wasn't bad, and the meals weren't terrible either, but for two corrupt officials who had their own cooks, it was utter garbage.

"The Japanese are harsh even on their own people; the Army Headquarters canteen serves this kind of food," Minister Zhou complained.

“I’ve heard that the situation in Japan isn’t good either,” Gu Yansheng echoed.

"It's not good. Once the war machine is turned on, money is flowing out like water every day. Before the war, Japan's domestic economic problems had already reached a critical point. War always serves to solve economic problems. Fighting China was to solve economic problems."

Now that they have not yet conquered China, and the signing of the peace treaty between the Soviet Union and Germany has also hindered the Japanese plan to advance north into the Soviet Union, there is certainly controversy within the country regarding whether their military should continue fighting.

Just look at how prosperous the Hongkou Concession was and how many Japanese people came there. If they had any opportunity in China, who would be willing to leave their family and business to come to Shanghai to make a living?

And look at how many more brothels have opened in Hongkou! Why are Japanese women coming to China to work as prostitutes? Isn't it because the prostitution industry in Japan is saturated and there's no money to be made there?

Gu Yansheng was filled with awe. Looking at the economy through the lens of brothels, Minister Zhou could actually write a monumental work on economics by sleeping with women.

"I didn't expect the minister to be so perceptive."

"Haha, stop flattering me. When it comes to flattery, I have to flatter you." Minister Zhou murmured to himself, "I used to wonder if Itagaki really wanted to negotiate with Chongqing, and if he had some ulterior motives or some goal in mind to deal with Chongqing."

For example, exposing the negotiations and the terms of the negotiations caused Chiang Kai-shek to lose face and undermined the determination of the people and soldiers in Chongqing to resist Japan.

But now it seems to me that this might really be because the Japanese General Headquarters didn't want to fight Chongqing anymore and wanted to withdraw their troops. Otherwise, they wouldn't have agreed to withdraw from the Battle of Changsha so easily.

What you said about Japan wanting to move south is very likely true.

They wanted to move south to acquire resources. Now that Europe was in chaos, Britain and the United States were likely too preoccupied to attend to their Asian colonies. The Japanese wanted to take advantage of the situation, but they were afraid of the risks of Britain and the United States joining the war and did not want to fight on two fronts. Therefore, they wanted to negotiate with Chongqing first to buy time before turning back to deal with Chongqing.

"You're absolutely right, Yansheng. If you weren't going to be the Minister of Justice, I think you should become the Chief of Staff of the military. Although you've never led troops, your strategic vision is in no way inferior to, and perhaps even surpasses, that of a seasoned veteran."

Gu Yansheng scoffed, "Minister, I can't handle your flattery. It's all baseless, just a guess."

Minister Zhou waved his hand and looked at Gu Yansheng seriously, asking, "How did you think about this at the time? Japan had just been defeated in Mongolia, and you already thought of this? Tell me, I want to learn from you."

"I'm a rather materialistic person, and I like to consider issues from an economic perspective. At the time, I saw in an American newspaper that the reason for Japan's withdrawal was the Soviet-German peace talks. So Japan's remaining options were to conquer all of China and to move south to challenge the British and American colonies."

From a resource revenue perspective, China has no oil, and the economically prosperous coastal areas are now in Japanese hands. Would attacking places like Chongqing, Yunnan, and Sichuan really bring much benefit? The gains might not even cover the expenses.

The colonies that challenged Britain, the United States, and France were different; they truly possessed valuable resources, such as oil, rubber, and raw materials for Western medicine—things that Japan desperately wanted.

Britain and the United States are currently tied up in the situation in Europe. As long as Germany does not lose, this constraint will continue, which presents a great opportunity for Japan.

If I were the Japanese cabinet, I would decide to move south. The only question now is whether Japan dares to challenge Britain and the United States.

I've heard that many people within the Japanese camp also have friendly relations with Britain and the United States.

Minister Zhou nodded in agreement. From the perspective of the situation, negotiating with Chongqing and then taking advantage of the chaos in Europe to acquire resources was indeed the best solution for Japan.

He now wholeheartedly agrees with Gu Yansheng's theories.

However, it's uncertain whether the Japanese would dare to challenge Britain and the United States; no one knows until they take action.

"So now the Japanese are waiting for the outcome of the negotiations to determine their next move. Once the negotiations with Chongqing are successful, that will be the time for them to head south."

Whether Japan could successfully negotiate peace with Chongqing became another important question.

Return to Shanghai.

Minister Zhou first took Gu Yansheng to the Wang Mansion to commend Gu Yansheng.

Anyway, Gu Yansheng was someone he had discovered and used with discerning eyes, and Gu Yansheng's merit was due to his ability.

The Wang faction was naturally delighted that things were progressing, and they praised Gu Yansheng highly.

"The presence of such pillars of the Party and the nation is truly a blessing for the country!"

Even Chen Bijun, who had always been dissatisfied with Gu Yansheng's rise to power, smiled and comforted him, "Fohai, Yansheng, you've worked hard running around."

Since Itagaki said he'd have Kagesa communicate with us about this, we need to hurry up with the next steps. The Japanese are unpredictable; we should complete all preparations as soon as possible.

“That’s what I think too.” Minister Zhou nodded in agreement and looked at Gu Yansheng. “Now that we’ve confirmed the Japanese’s intentions, we’re wondering if we should send someone back from Hong Kong. They’ve been handling the specific negotiations all along. If we change the person, Kagesa won’t be familiar with the situation, and there will be more people in the know. I don’t think it’s necessary.”

It was just a symbolic inquiry, but Gu Yansheng readily agreed: "I think it's feasible. I have personnel stationed in Hong Kong."

"Now that Song Ziliang has been going back and forth for a month, Minister Mei and Vice Minister Gao aren't really doing much good there. If he comes back, we can fly over again; it'll only be a day later, and it's convenient to travel back and forth."

"Okay, then send a telegram back and tell them to come back first."

"Ok."

"Don't make Yansheng do all the work. You're using the Minister of Justice like a secretary." Wang Ni had to say a few words of complaint for Gu Yansheng, but it was a joke directed at Minister Zhou. "Let's have dinner together tonight and discuss the upcoming matters over dinner."

Minister Zhou nodded. "The current issue to be addressed is the merger of the political powers."

Liang Hongzhi of the Nanjing Reformed Government and Wang Kemin of the North China Provisional Government are both veterans who have sided with the Japanese since the beginning of the war and have close ties with them. They refused to come to the meeting in Shanghai when we invited them, and their behavior of relying on their seniority is quite serious.

We've figured out a way to deal with Liang Hongzhi in Nanjing; the army is now in our hands. The Central China Expeditionary Army has been disbanded and replaced by the China Expeditionary Army. His connections within the Japanese military should be reduced, and the Expeditionary Army will support us. I don't think his problem is too big.

Wang Kemin from North China, however, is quite troublesome.

North China was the territory of the North China Garrison Army, now renamed the North China Area Army. This army had been entrenched in North China for a long time, and Wang Kemin was supported by them. Due to the conflict of interests, the Japanese General Headquarters also felt that it was difficult to handle, so they asked us to step in.

But after thinking about it, I really can't think of any angle to break through Wang Kemin's psychological defenses. If I can't handle him, then the Japanese behind him can forget about it either.

Chen Bijun interjected, "The Japanese army's defeat in Mongolia led to Itagaki's resignation. Could this affect personnel changes in the military? I think we could start from this angle. If there are personnel changes in the military, it might be an opportunity."

Minister Zhou slowly shook his head. "It's very difficult. Even if we change the personnel, the new general will still be biased towards North China. Why should he cooperate with us?"

“Fo Hai, I think you can go to North China and talk to Wang Kemin. Offer him some benefits and have him negotiate with the North China Army. He needs to know what the North China Army’s interests are.” Chen Bijun wanted to pass this tough nut to Minister Zhou.

Minister Zhou kicked Chen Bijun to Guangdong. "Let me think of a way. We can put aside Central and North China for now. Guangdong is also a major economic province. It has both an army and a navy. I think it's easier to deal with the internal factional conflicts within the Japanese army than with a single relationship. Bijun, that's Mr. Wang's and your hometown. Why don't you think of a way to take over Guangdong?"

With one person on each side, Chen Bijun couldn't refuse. Besides, Guangdong was indeed not to be abandoned; it was lucrative, and she also needed to cultivate relationships with the navy.

If Chu Minyi, the Minister of the Navy, wants to implement this, he'll need to get some ships out.

"Okay, I'll think of a way."

"Let's talk while we eat." With the general direction set, Wang Ni was thinking about food and said happily, "Yansheng, let's go, you decide where to eat."

(End of this chapter)