1932: Playing with the Japanese Communist Party with a doll

"If it were me who governed Taiwan, definitely.

"I can't guarantee that you will come to...manage...Taiwan?

"No."

Fujiwara Kanezane shook his head:

"You know, I am an honest and trustworthy person. I cannot promise you anything that is uncertain. My stay or departure will be subject to the arrangements of His Majesty the Emperor and the country.

"Well? Are you ready to lay down your weapons? I guarantee your absolute safety with my personal honor.

"I…"

Zheng Qingshui was about to answer when something strange happened again!

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

491 You’ve Made Me Suffer!

Keelung Port was bombed.

When Zheng Qingshui's assassination and explosion threats were stopped in time by Fujiwara Kanezane, and the two sides were about to reach an agreement and resolve the issue peacefully, continuous explosions suddenly rang out.

Starting from Keelung Station, a number of buildings or important targets such as warehouses, fleets, tax bureaus, city halls and post offices were attacked one after another.

Especially near the dock where Fujiwara Kanezane and his group were, because the rows of buildings were very close to the seashore, the shock waves and debris generated by the explosion of the buildings instantly enveloped the "welcoming crowd".

Even when a door panel hit his head, Taiwan Governor Kenzo Nakagawa was still filled with shock and confusion:

Haven't we already sent people to check on it several times in the past few days?

What is this...

He then lost consciousness, and when he woke up again in the hospital, he received one piece of bad news, one piece of worse news, and one piece of not-so-bad news:

The bad news was that the explosion caused some buildings near the dock to collapse and crack, and nearby Taiwanese officials, traitors, and "pro-imperial" people suffered heavy casualties, with at least one hundred people completely killed.

Even worse news was that a merchant ship belonging to the "Osaka United Commercial" was sunk, two Northeastern Navy ships were damaged, several naval officers were injured, and many buildings were destroyed;

The not-so-bad news was that His Majesty Hachiman was basically safe and sound, with only a small stone hitting his arm, which was barely bruised because of his clothes.

Here is the silver lining in this misfortune:

Fujiwara Kanezane is safe and has taken over the on-site command. The most important suspect, Zheng Qingshui, is still alive and under control.

His Highness has asked me to tell you to rest and recuperate, and not to return to work immediately. He will take care of the rest for you.

Keiji Furuyoshi, who came to visit the wounded, report the situation and convey orders according to Fujiwara no Kanezane's order, was indifferent, but Kenzo Nakagawa did not care at all. Instead, he looked grateful:

"Thank you, Your Highness! Thank you, Mr. Gu Yao!

He was not stupid and knew that it was a great favor for Fujiwara Kanezane to help him take over the follow-up processing and send someone to express condolences and inform him.

This means that Fujiwara no Kanezane, the most important victim, has made the decision not to pursue, or at least to lightly pursue, Nakagawa Kenzo's dereliction of duty.

Otherwise, the person who came to inform him now could not be Gu Yaoguici, the "Republican Navy Officer", and it was even more impossible that he just had a cold expression.

At least, his head was definitely saved. As for what to do next, it depends on how Prince Kanezane handles this incident.

Anyway, let’s “rest and recuperate” first!

the other side.

...Some suspicious traces were found at the explosion site. Preliminary judgment was that it might be some kind of timed detonator. Zheng Qingshui’s suspicion can be basically ruled out. It is impossible that he was the one who did this.

The agent pretended to report the results of the investigation to Fujiwara Kanezane, and also let others listen together.

Of course, the other people mentioned here mainly refer to Fujiwara no Kanezane's people, rather than local Chinese and Japanese officials in Taiwan.

After all, the biggest explosion at that time occurred in a warehouse behind the group of traitors "hostage" by Zheng Qingshui, and they were the group that suffered the heaviest losses.

In short, at this moment, Taiwan’s senior leadership center and mid-level executive team have been almost completely functionally paralyzed, and the situation is temporarily controlled by Fujiwara Kanezane.

Well, this scene seems to have happened before, and it seems a little familiar.

It doesn’t matter if the moves are old, as long as they are useful.

“Well, as expected, thank you for the hard work.

Fujiwara no Kanezane also nodded pretentiously, thanked the doctor who was bandaging his wound, and then said to Prince Hiroyuki who hurried back from the ship:

"Uncle Bogong, it's nothing serious, don't worry, go back and rest!"

"You haven't rested, why should I rest?

Even though some time had passed and Fujiwara no Kanezane was safe and sound, Prince Hiroyuki, who would have been bombed if he had left a little later, still showed a look of shock and anger on his face.

"Your Highness, declare a state of emergency in Taiwan, block the news, initiate martial law, and hunt down the attackers!

This is a normal reaction from normal people.

Historically, after the Zheng Qingshui bomb attack (although it didn't hit him at all), King Bogong also made the same request to Taiwan, which ultimately led to the killing of hundreds of innocent people in Keelung.

But the person handling this matter is not a "normal person".

Fujiwara no Kanezane curled his lips inwardly, and did not comment on Prince Hiroyuki's suggestion, but simply asked:

"Uncle, do you think that what happened this time can be kept secret from the people of Taiwan, China, and Japan?"

“This…M

Prince Bogong certainly knew that this bombing attack was very different from the bombing attack at the founding ceremony of Manchukuo.

The victims in that incident were basically "system people." Once an order was issued, everyone had to actively help block the news, regardless of whether they understood it or not. Moreover, the explosion range was relatively small, so the impact was not significant.

But this time, explosions occurred in dozens of places throughout Keelung. Thousands of ordinary people knew about this, and unless they were all killed, there was no way to block the news.

However, if nothing is done, if the attackers' prestige is not severely shattered, how can Japan maintain its prestige in Taiwan?

However, as if he had guessed what he was thinking, Fujiwara Kanezane smiled slightly and stated his plan in a calm and firm tone:

"Uncle Bogong, prestige is not maintained by killing and blockade. On the contrary, excessive suppression will only arouse more resistance and hatred. Prince Bogong frowned, obviously not completely agreeing with Fujiwara Kanezane's statement, but he refuted and said in a deep voice:

“Your Highness, if there is no killing, this attack will only inspire more people.

"So, is killing effective? Take the most recent example. In North Korea, those idiots have killed enough people, haven't they? Hundreds of thousands of troops crammed into that tiny country, killing each other. Has North Korea become peaceful because of this?"

"Well"

Completely irrefutable.

Not only did the Korean Peninsula fail to stabilize, but the number of people fleeing increased, the resistance became more intense, and the casualties inflicted on the Japanese army became increasingly greater.

Now, Japan, especially His Majesty the Emperor, is extremely dissatisfied with the situation in North Korea where “the more you invest, the smaller the returns.”

Look at how many Japanese troops and how much money Prince Kanezane spent to easily pacify Northeast China, and then look at you!

If the Northeast had not been pacified, wouldn't both sides be in chaos now?

"...If the killing continues and triggers more resistance, I wonder how many troops and money the country can afford to suppress Taiwan? Will we really sell Taiwan to France?

After the Treaty of Shimonoseki, Japan occupied Taiwan, but due to the fierce resistance of the local people, they had to frantically increase troops to suppress it;

This resulted in Japan not only not making any money in the early days, but also having to pay for it with China's indemnity every year, so after a few years they planned to sell it to France for 1500 million francs;

If Japan had not reassessed Taiwan's strategic value internally and faced firm opposition from some senior officials, Taiwan would not be pro-Japanese but pro-French.

At this point, Prince Bogong was completely speechless and could only mumble:

"Then...what exactly do you plan to do, Your Highness?

"I already have a preliminary idea, but I still need to report it to His Majesty the Emperor and the Saito Cabinet. Uncle, don't worry.

“...I understand, Your Highness, I won’t ask any more questions then.

willing.

After sending off Prince Hiroyuki who came to inquire about the situation, Fujiwara no Kanezane looked at Keiji Furuyoshi who had just returned from the hospital and reported:

“Have you got the authorization?

"Yes, Your Highness, as you expected, Governor Nakagawa has cooperated. Here is his signed document.

"That's good, pass on my orders..."

Soon, the terrified people of Keelung discovered something they could hardly believe:

The Taiwanese authorities surprisingly did not launch a large-scale manhunt or massacre in Keelung because of this massive explosion!

As we all know, at this time, Taiwan was still following the "new management method" implemented by Kodama Gentarō, who was known as the "reincarnation of Toyotomi Hideyoshi," and Goto Shinpei, who had just died of illness a few years ago, namely:

The simple massacre during the Meiji period was abolished and replaced by a combination of suppression and appeasement.

Difficult, huh?

The Chinese have been using the strategy of "combining suppression and appeasement" for thousands of years. It was not until the Japanese suffered heavy losses in Taiwan that they realized that doing so could reduce the cost of governance and improve governance efficiency.

In short, the Taiwan authorities brutally suppressed and killed people, implemented discriminatory policies against the Taiwanese people, and implemented the Baojia system to monitor the people;

On the one hand, they overhauled public facilities, measured land, developed resources, and bribed traitors to create an atmosphere of friendship between China and Japan. On the other hand, they were boasted by later generations that "the Japanese colonial era was the period of the fastest economic development in Taiwan."

However, whether it was "suppression" or "pacification", the starting point of the invaders was for the interests of Japan and themselves. They were engaged in colonial economy. How could they truly care about the Chinese people?

The construction of public facilities and factories was simply to facilitate economic exploitation, not to mention the "Land and Wilderness Control Law" and other decrees that took almost all of Taiwan's forests and land into Japanese hands;

For the Taiwanese, economic plunder is secondary. What they feel most deeply in daily life is still the "meticulous" massacres by the Japanese.

During Goto's rule alone, the number of Chinese people killed accounted for 6% of Taiwan's total population, and the "police politics" implemented was so severe that it could even make children cry.

At that time, even in Japan, some people drew cartoons to satirize Kodama and Goto, mocking them as hypocritical and pretentious "two-faced people":

You cut off your husband's head and hung it on a flagpole for public display, while at the same time asking his wife and children to believe that the Japanese would treat Taiwan well. Do you think the Chinese are idiots?

However, because the method is simple and effective, and does not require much thinking or excessive investment, almost all subsequent Japanese governors in Taiwan adopted this method:'

As long as they can control the gentry and ensure that Taiwan can be basically stable and can bring benefits to Japan, then they will be fine. As for the life and death of the vast majority of Taiwanese people, what is it to them?

Therefore, the Taiwanese people were actually suffering from double oppression in terms of ethnicity and class from both the Japanese and the local powerful families. Any resistance they showed would be met with unhesitating slaughter.

For example, the "Wushe Uprising" that just ended a few years ago not only led to the killing of more than a thousand Seediq people who participated in the uprising, but also implicated local people of other ethnic groups.

What the Japanese did in Taiwan even made many native Taiwanese people who had no national consciousness at all develop a sense of national identity with China.

(Note: At this time, Japan had not yet begun its "Imperialization Movement" in Taiwan, so most of the traitors were from local Taiwanese aristocratic families. People like "Iwashiro Masao" did not appear until the outbreak of the full-scale Anti-Japanese War.)

Therefore, when the explosion occurred, the first reaction of the local people in Keelung was:

not good!

The Japanese are going to massacre us again!

not good!

The police are coming to extort money again!

Some people planned to flee back to the mountains, some prepared "immunity money", and some plotted to resist, but they soon discovered that the police were ordered to stay in the police station or at home.

Instead, a group of "outsiders" in navy uniforms took over the police's work, maintained basic public order, announced the lifting of martial law, and recruited people to begin recovery and reconstruction.

It was as if the previous series of explosions had never happened and it was just a natural disaster.

Oh no, even if we suffered a natural disaster, the Japanese and the masters just watched us suffer and then made money from it!

After some inquiries, we discovered that the person currently in charge of maintaining public order in Keelung was the renowned "Hachimangu Kanezane-oh" from Northeast China, who was also well-known in Taiwan!

Now, the streets and alleys of Keelung were full of discussions.

Although some people doubted Fujiwara no Kanezane's intentions, most people were excited and relieved when they heard about this person and this matter.

Everyone knows that the current "Five-Star Eastern Republic", under the leadership of Fujiwara no Kanezane, has become a "heaven on earth"!

How many Taiwanese people dream of "developing Manchuria"!

Although it's a bit cold in the Northeast, I heard that Prince Kanezane and his officials never killed people indiscriminately. Instead, they practiced benevolent governance and protected the people!

Perhaps there is some exaggeration in this, but compared with the days now where one is always worried about being killed by a bayonet just because one accidentally glances at a Japanese soldier, what else could it be but heaven?

Putting aside how this assassination attempt infuriated Japan and led to the authorization of Fujiwara no Kanezane, the Taiwanese authorities' previous positive publicity for a certain prince played a significant role in stabilizing the current situation.

Even though there was no martial law or massacre, the people of Keelung were still very cooperative because they knew that it was the "Benevolent King" who was in charge of the matter, so the explosion did not cause any unrest, not even a riot.

This once again consolidated the prestige of someone who was visiting Taiwan for the first time.

However, shortly after Fujiwara Kanezane issued the order, an organization calling itself the "Taiwan Strait National Salvation and Anti-Japanese Volunteer Army" sent a telegram, claiming responsibility for the incident.

Well, it's a familiar plot again... Don't you think so? "Northeast Anti-Japanese National Salvation League