gnovel Chapter 105: Big Moves at the Military Headquarters?
Chapter 105: Big Moves at the Military Headquarters?
Sakurai Yu and Kameda Taro did not have a good relationship, and even had conflicts with many high-ranking officers of the First Army in North China.
This brings us to two factions in Japan: the "Imperial Way Faction" and the "Control Faction."
The "Imperial Way Faction" in Japan was a loose group, largely composed of young junior officers in field units, even company-level officers.
Before entering the Imperial Japanese Army University for further studies, Yu Sakurai was a member of the "Imperial Way Faction".
The Imperial Way faction members had very radical military ideas, acted boldly and disobeyed orders, and had long harbored ambitions to conquer China and then the world.
In the early 1930s, they attempted to steer Japan toward extreme nationalism. Their undisciplined activities, including assassinations and coups, shocked their more conservative opponents, the "Control Faction," primarily composed of high-ranking Japanese military officers.
The old rival, the "Control Faction," was a faction within the Japanese military during World War II. Centered around figures like Nagata Tetsuzan, they advocated for a gradual and stable national reform process, conducted through legitimate, top-down channels, without the use of force, under the control of the military.
Clearly, differing core ideas will inevitably lead to disputes.
For example, in this large-scale mopping-up operation, Sakurai Yu's operational philosophy was to concentrate forces to attack one point at all costs, completely crush the Eighth Route Army's will to resist, and the civilians were simply not worth mentioning.
If the Eighth Route Army's will to resist breaks down, the Chinese people will panic and be slaughtered at their mercy.
Kameda Taro's idea was to divide his forces and encircle the enemy, which clearly contradicted Sakurai Yu's battle strategy.
Of course, Yu Sakurai knew that Taro Kameda's tactics were not wrong, but they were too conservative. He preferred to win quickly!
At the same time, he also had a personal grudge against Taro Kameda.
That old bastard Taro Kameda had previously harassed his wife when they were at the Army War College. If he hadn't arrived in time, his wife would have been assaulted.
Although the two parties later mediated and stated that it was a misunderstanding, Sakurai Yu remained resentful about the matter.
But since he is a superior, Sakurai Yu can't go too far and can't disobey Shinotsuka Yoshio's orders.
Yoshio Shinotsuka was his mentor.
At that moment, Sakurai Yu ordered, "Inform all units to carry out the general's instructions!"
"Hai!"
Several officers bowed hurriedly and quickly relayed the orders.
Sakurai Yu's next opponent will naturally be Li Yunlong's Independent Regiment.
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The Japanese field hospital in Daxia Village was bustling with activity as large numbers of wounded soldiers were being evacuated from the front lines. Soldiers were coming and going in and out of the village.
The Japanese medical team treated the wounded day and night, and in just three days, the field hospital had hundreds of wounded soldiers.
Zhou Huaiqi had been observing secretly.
He not only recorded the Japanese artillery positions in the village, but also secretly noted down the Japanese troop deployment and the wounded.
He pondered to himself: the Japanese were fighting fiercely at the front, and their main force had already gone far away. The command post in Daxia Village had more than 300 troops defending the area, plus the supply train, reserves, and field hospital guards, totaling 780 people. There were also 340 wounded soldiers, which made more than 1,000 people.
He thought of the Eighth Route Army's predicament hidden in the secret room. Wang Yousheng was determined to take down the Japanese command post, but how easy was that?
It's evening again.
Zhou Huaiqi was preparing to meet with Wang Yousheng, but several Japanese guards drove him out of his house.
"Sir? I'm a law-abiding citizen, this is my home, why are you kicking me out?"
"I want to see General Kameda!"
In front of the Zhou family's gate, Zhou Huaiqi was dragged away in a disheveled state by the guards, shouting as he was led away.
The guards ignored him and instead threw him and several servants to the village entrance.
They herded them more than a hundred meters away like animals, and with guns pointed at them, strictly ordered them not to approach the village.
Zhou Huaiqi's heart tightened. Why had the Japanese suddenly driven him out of his house? Had he been exposed?
If I were truly exposed, I would probably be shot on the spot...
Actually, it wasn't just him who was kicked out of his home; the translator, Bai, was also affected.
While Zhou Huaiqi was in a daze, the translator Bai was also dragged out of the village by the Japanese soldiers and dumped on the road at the village entrance.
He hurried over after the Japanese soldiers had gone far away.
"White-collar translator? You got kicked out too?"
Zhou Huaiqi stepped forward to help Bai translate, and hurriedly asked.
The white translator patted the dust off his backside, groaning and crying out in pain.
He glanced back at Zhou Huaiqi and said, "That's right, those damn Japanese devils, damn it."
Zhou Huaiqi frowned and began to think.
Because of his proficiency in both Chinese and Japanese, the white-clad translator was highly sought after by the Japanese. With the Japanese command post located in the field, how could they function without a translator?
The fact that the translator was kicked out proves that Taro Kameda no longer needs a translator. Why is that? It's extremely strange.
The two of them looked at each other, both completely bewildered.
Zhou Huaiqi tentatively asked, "You're a translator, General Kameda needs you, so why are you also...?"
The translator rolled his eyes, didn't think much of it, and said, "Don't even mention it. They heard there was some big movement at the Japanese military headquarters, so they think I'm in their way! Damn it, a bunch of dwarfs!"
"..."
Zhou Huaiqi's eyes darted around, and he said, "A big commotion? What big commotion?"
Bai translated, "I don't know. When Kameda answered the phone, he kept nodding and bowing, like a grandson."
Zhou Huaiqi thought to himself that since there was a big commotion, the Japanese would definitely strengthen their defenses. Now that there was no way to send intelligence to the Eighth Route Army, Wang Yousheng and his men were in danger.
With Japanese soldiers lurking in and around the village, and searchlights illuminating the area as if it were daytime, sneaking back into the village was impossible.
It happened suddenly!
All he could do was pray that his comrades would be safe and sound.
Meanwhile, Wang Yousheng and his men had been hiding in the secret room for three days. The soldiers seemed to have gotten used to it, and no one suggested rushing out.
They had been conserving their energy and waiting for Wang Yousheng to give them orders.
Inside the secret room.
Wang Yousheng leaned against the dry earthen wall, his eyes fixed on the large map on the joystick. He had just received news of the aftermath of the battle: Zhou Huaiqi had been driven out of the village by the Japanese.
This is not a good thing.
Now that they had lost their informant, and Zhou Huaiqi had not told him about the enemy's firing positions, they were in a difficult situation.
Although this doesn't have much of an impact—the Eye of Analysis allows you to observe enemy firing positions—you still don't know what the Japanese are actually doing.
For example, Zhou Huaiqi brought him information that Sakurai Yu and Kameda Taijun had a conflict.
Don't underestimate this seemingly useless thing; given the right opportunity, it can turn the tide of an entire battle.
It seems that I can only rely on myself now.