1932: Playing with the Japanese Communist Party with a doll

How do you think a group of poor people who have long been starving, poorly clothed, and subjected to arbitrary bullying suddenly feel when they encounter an army that has ample food and drink, generous pay, friendly officers, and a dignified life?

If you don't put your life on the line for the other person, you're a fucking son of a bitch!

After Kenji Doihara explained the current treatment of the soldiers of the 386th Brigade and what kind of life they had lived in the past, Chongren fell completely silent.

Although he was a member of the royal family, he was not completely ignorant of the miserable lives of the lower classes in Japan due to the influence of his brother who was a scoundrel.

At least, he had seen with his own eyes those girls who were starving and forced to sell themselves to brothels.

"...Back then, when Yuan Shikai was training his troops at Xiaozhan, he won the hearts of his soldiers simply by handing out money. Now, His Highness Kaneshi's tactics are far more powerful than his own, by a hundred or a thousand times."

Kenji Doihara became more and more excited as he spoke, and he sounded more and more like a fanatic:

"With the current 386th Brigade, let alone defeating Ma Zhanshan's troops, I think it would be easy to even defeat the Red Army that is about to march north!"

Chongren did not speak, but continued to observe for three days, and then made a decision:

He hid his identity and joined the 386th Brigade.

314 Borrowing the Enemy to Suppress the Bandits

"Pfft! What the hell?"

Upon hearing this news, Fujiwara no Kanezane nearly spit out his tea. Takahito wasn't going to join the Kwantung Army, but the 386th Brigade in Manchukuo? What the hell!

Shouldn't we just let him take a look around?

How can you visit someone's home and still plan to join? Really smart people would all join the Communist Party, right?

Although Chongren was touted as the so-called "Red Prince" by some people in later generations, and although many of his actions were indeed more "leftist" than those of ordinary Japanese, it would be foolish to really regard him as the "Red Prince"!

How could a top Japanese prince who had received a complete royal education and Japanese militarism education be so simple?

At most, one could say, "He still possesses basic human morality, a sense of shame and compassion, has a firm vision, and, like those naval officers, realizes that Japan is about to fail."

Hey wait?

I almost fell into the habit of looking at the problem again.

This guy is barely 17 years old! In other words, is there really a chance to turn things around?

Well... okay, just leave it to that kid Chen Kang to deal with.

"Okay, I understand. Tell Vice Chairman Doihara that I agree." "Hi!"

After his subordinates retreated, Fujiwara no Kanezane gave an apologetic smile to Muto Nobuyoshi, with whom he was discussing military strategy:

"I'm sorry, Mr. Muto, I'm sorry to have embarrassed you." "I wouldn't dare..."

Muto Nobuyoshi quickly lowered his head in response, and then "concernedly" offered his own suggestion:

"But, Your Highness, wouldn't it be a bad idea to let His Highness Chongren join a Chinese army?"

"Haha, Mr. Muto, do you think I agreed to this so easily?" "Uh...ah! Could it be that you want to control and monitor the 386th Brigade?" "What do you think?"

"Your Highness's wisdom is truly not even one ten-thousandth of ours—!" "Hehe..."

The two smiled at each other, and the atmosphere was harmonious.

How could Muto Nobuyoshi, a seasoned political player, not have guessed that Fujiwara no Kanezane's decision to allow Takahito to join the 386th Brigade was partly for surveillance?

What happened in Japan, especially the series of changes in the royal family, had long been reported to the Kwantung Army. He was just looking for an opportunity to flatter the "future emperor".

Although I am old, my children and grandchildren are still young!

If I could make Lord Kanezane happy, or even catch his eye, then... hehehe...

After all, the Muto family is a descendant of the samurai family of the Fujiwara family. From a historical perspective, the advantage is still on my side!

As for Fujiwara no Kanezane, he knew in his heart that Muto Nobuyoshi was just flattering him. But since he was in the Japanese army anyway, it didn't matter.

The two foxes, one large and one small, hypocritically flattered each other and exchanged polite words for a while before returning to the topic they had just discussed.

"...Under the ship, do you still insist that the Kuomintang will send that Red Army to Rehe?"

"Yes, I'm even sure of that."

Fujiwara no Kanezane casually changed the tone of what he had said to Chen Kang:

"...In short, based on the above reasons, I believe the Communist army will definitely choose Rehe."

"this..."

Fujiwara no Kanezane's judgment cannot be said to be exactly the same as that of the Kwantung Army Headquarters, but at least they are very different.

Because they all agreed that the Kuomintang would never give up a fertile and core area like Rehe to the Communist Party, and would more likely send the Communist Party to Chahar to die.

The Japanese were very aware of the grievances between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party. They knew that the two parties had long been mortal enemies and that there was no possibility of true cooperation.

Even if they are forced to mix together because of the "Wuhan Incident" like now, they must have their own ulterior motives. At least the Kuomintang must want to kill the Communist Party.

So, let the Communist Party enter a good place like Rehe?

Do they want the Communist Party to join forces with Tang Yulin, who hated Japan to the core?

Was Chiang Kai-shek really not worried that the Communists would collude with this anti-Japanese general, seize Zhang Xueliang's territory in North China, and then move south?

(Note: Don’t forget that during the September 918th Incident, the Japanese looted more than ten cars of property and military supplies from Tang Yulin’s mansion in Northeast China, basically emptying his family’s wealth.)

(At this time, the conflict between Zhang Xueliang and Tang Yulin had become semi-public. The two sides did not fight because they remembered their old friendship and were wary of each other.)

By the way, although Tang Yulin was rampantly corrupt in Rehe, the Japanese did not take it seriously;

Because all the warlords in China and even themselves are like this;

Whether a general is corrupt or not cannot be used as a criterion to measure the combat effectiveness of an army. Well, even if Chiang Kai-shek really lost his mind and agreed to the Communist army entering Rehe, would the Communist army dare to accept it?

If the Communist army wanted to enter Rehe, it would inevitably pass through the territory of Zhang Xueliang and other Kuomintang troops. Weren't they afraid that the Kuomintang army would use a trick to "catch the turtle in the jar"?

Therefore, according to the Kwantung Army's speculation, Chiang Kai-shek would never agree to the Red Army's entry into Rehe, and would more likely abandon it to a bitter cold place like Chahar.

In this way, the harsh natural resource environment and complex ethnic conflicts there can be used to eliminate the Red Army, the mortal enemy. The main forces of the Kwantung Army also made preparations according to this idea.

As a result, Lord Kenji insisted that the Red Army would march into Rehe, which made everyone very embarrassed.

Do you want to listen or not?

Although His Highness Kanezane has a broad vision and a broad mind, matters of military strategy like this...

As if he could see Muto Nobuyoshi's embarrassment, Fujiwara Kanezane smiled kindly and said:

"It's alright, I'm just stating my judgment, not interfering with your decision. Don't worry, the Kwantung Army's military affairs are always yours to decide."

"Of course, I still have only one request. For the victory of the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere, the Kwantung Army must reduce its activities in the Northeast region as much as possible and station as few troops as possible."

"...I understand, Your Highness. We will seriously consider it." Muto Nobuyoshi showed a grateful look.

The fact that Fujiwara no Kanezane could say this shows that he really had no intention of interfering in the internal affairs of the Kwantung Army and was willing to share power and face with the top brass of the Kwantung Army.

In fact, the current status of the Kwantung Army is very embarrassing - this mainly refers to the embarrassing status of the senior Kwantung Army officials such as Mutō Nobuyoshi and Koji Kuniaki.

Strictly speaking, apart from the General Headquarters Guard, the Port Arthur Heavy Artillery Garrison and the Military Police, the Kwantung Army's main combat sequence now consists of two forces: the 4th Division and the Independent Garrison.

Why so “little”?

In fact, after the "September 918th Incident", because the situation in Northeast China was uncertain, the Japanese military successively transferred the 39th Mixed Brigade, the 4th Mixed Brigade, the 38th Mixed Brigade, the 20th Division and other troops to Northeast China;

However, these troops were soon withdrawn due to the smooth progress of the conquest of various parts of Northeast China, the establishment and explosion of Manchukuo, the unrest in Korea, and the proposal of the "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere" by His Highness Kanezane.

The Japanese imperial family and government were eager for this—who was it that allowed Fujiwara no Kaneki to pacify the entire Northeast with the least number of troops, the lowest cost, the least disturbance, and the shortest time?

Of course, the most important reason was that Emperor Hirohito became increasingly wary and defensive of the Kwantung Army, a huge military group, due to the slander of someone.

于是，原本计划要调动的第6、7、8、10、14师团也被叫停了调动，只留下了第20师团司令部及混成第4、第8、第38、第39旅团各一小部停留在了中朝或中苏边境...

In the end, the only mobile forces that the Kwantung Army Headquarters could nominally command directly were Terauchi Hisaichi's 4th Division and Mori Ren's independent garrison.

The question is, can they command these two armies?

The 4th Division was almost Fujiwara no Kanezane's "house army" and had a "bad reputation", was "undisciplined", and was "cunning and treacherous", so Muto Nobuyoshi and others were reluctant to use it;

After Fujiwara no Kanezane agreed to ask His Majesty the Emperor to expand the independent garrison into 1-5 new garrisons and appoint him as the general commander, Mori Ren was left with only the "good morning and good evening" greetings to His Majesty Prince Kanezane.

As for other troops?

After seeing what the 4th Division and the Independent Garrison did and hearing what was happening in Japan, would they dare not seriously "read the air"?

It is no exaggeration to say that in the entire Northeast China today, as long as Fujiwara no Kanezane does not give the order, the Kwantung Army Headquarters cannot command a single soldier except for the main force.

Who is the supreme authority in Northeast China?

Is it Muto Nobuyoshi who is too old, feels he should retire, and doesn't really care about many things?

Do you believe what you said?

Therefore, Fujiwara no Kanezane stated that he would not interfere with the decisions of the Kwantung Army. Mutō Nobuyoshi finally breathed a sigh of relief and dared to arrange plans and mobilize troops openly.

Even so, Muto Nobuyoshi continued to ask as if he were addressing a superior: "...Your Highness, what do you think? Should we mobilize troops from Korea or China to guard against the attack of the Red Army?"

Although the Kwantung Army did not take the Red Army, whose equipment was worse than that of the National Army, seriously, the Kwantung Army was still wary because the National Army's defeat in the "Wuhan Incident" was too strange and the Red Army had been calling for resistance against Japan early on.

"Hmm... deploying troops from China or North Korea right now would easily give rise to criticism and spark international public opinion."

Fujiwara no Kanezane thought for a moment and decided it wouldn't be a good idea to refuse too obviously, so he said, "However, if you're going to transfer troops, please do it in a low-key manner, in small batches. Send me a copy of the plan later so I can arrange my troops accordingly."

"What exactly do you mean..."

"Personally, I think there's no need for the Empire's warriors to shed blood on such a meaningless matter. Let the Manchukuo army take over."

"Well, can they take on this responsibility?"

"There's definitely no problem with the 386th Brigade. At least, we can let them enter the Rehe border to take the most basic precautions."

,

I still firmly believe that the CCP will enter Rehe...

Muto Nobuyoshi sighed and decided not to go against his leader's wishes:

"Your Highness, how about this? You command the Independent Garrison and the Manchukuo troops, and the Kwantung Army mobilizes other troops based on actual conditions to deal with the upcoming war. What do you think?"

"Then thank you, Lord Muto." "I dare not..."

After the two men finalized the basic strategy, they dispersed to prepare. On the way, Fujiwara Kanezane casually instructed his agent:

"When the Kwantung Army's plan arrives, send a copy to Li Desheng and the others. Remember to keep them informed of any changes."

"clear."

The agent agreed calmly and reported:

"Commander, 40 just sent a message saying a guest has arrived and is already sitting at Wanrong's place. He refused to reveal his identity when asked and said he would only tell you when you arrive."

"You don't know him either?"

"I don't know him. He must be a minor figure in history. Cloud Atlas doesn't have any information about him." "Oh."

Returning to the Shenyang Imperial Palace, Fujiwara Kanezane met an unremarkable young man. After confirming his identity, the man actually explained his purpose respectfully in fluent Japanese:

"Your Highness, I am the special envoy of 'that person' from China..."

".."

Are you fucking sick? Chinese people? Which one?

Is that me, your grandfather from another ancestor?

"Who is that person? Tell me clearly, or you'll be out." "Uh..."

It seemed that Fujiwara no Kanezane had not expected such decisiveness, so the visitor had no choice but to explain his identity:

"I am the special envoy of Commissioner Chiang..."

Fujiwara Kanezane raised his eyebrows. Chairman Chiang?

That damn bald guy? Why did he send someone here?

Why such an unknown young man? "Just speak Chinese!"

Fujiwara no Kanezane waved his hand arrogantly and asked, "You said you were Chiang Kai-shek's man? How can you prove it?"

"Hey! My father said you wouldn't believe it, so he sent me here first. If you'd like to see him, please move over. As a special envoy, his status is somewhat sensitive."

"Your father is..."

More than ten minutes later, Fujiwara no Kanezane left the palace and met the real "special envoy of Chairman Chiang" in a small courtyard nearby.

"Are you Zhang Qun?"