Chapter 15, Absurdity in October (Part 2)
On October 28, 1945, at Xiaguan Pier in Nanjing, China, a river ship covered with colorful flags slowly approached the trestle.
There was a crowd of people on the shore. As the river ship docked, drums were played and salutes were fired.
At this time, the city of Nanjing was decorated with lanterns and banners everywhere, creating a festive scene. Flags with a blue sky and white sun were fluttering in the wind, and various plaques and banners reading "Welcome the return of the capital to Nanjing" and "All walks of life in the capital celebrate the triumph of the National Government" were spread all over the streets. Large loudspeakers temporarily installed on the street repeatedly played Chairman Chiang’s speech with a strong Zhejiang accent: “…the Nationalist Government moved to Chongqing in November 26th to continue the war of resistance. For eight years, thanks to my loyalty and bravery, Soldier, front Served one after another, fought tenaciously. Allied countries marched together by sea and air, fought side by side, and defeated the enemy. As a result, the country was restored and the country was intact. Although the task of resisting the war was completed, the responsibility of building the country was increased. The government Hereby triumphantly return to Nanjing , to comfort the public's expectations. However, after the war, the people's livelihood is difficult and the national strength is withered. It is urgent to rest with the people, restore their strength, work hard to build, and maintain the results of the war. I hope that the soldiers and civilians across the country will work together with one heart and one mind to live up to the war. The original intention of founding the country, To realize the mission of the Three People's Principles... This government will continue to use all its wisdom and ability to build the country and eliminate the Red Party, so as to save our compatriots from the Bolshevik terror and maintain the integrity and unity of the country..."
Standing next to the side of the river ship, looking at the bustling scene in front of him, the expression of Lieutenant General Stilwell, the chief of staff of the Allied China Theater, was really weird, and there was always an unreal and absurd feeling in his heart. .
Just on this day last month, this theoretically legal capital of the Republic of China was still an area occupied by Japanese invaders, and the people who ruled it were puppets under the bayonets of the Japanese army. However, Chairman Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist Government in Chongqing was being crushed by the Red Army due to a new round of civil war between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party that he had recklessly provoked. The remaining troops were running out of ammunition and food, defecting or mutiniing one after another, and the long-awaited U.S. aid never came. If he can't be sent in, he is as panicked as a lost dog.
For this reason, the desperate Chairman Chiang even used his imagination in a desperate situation to play a double act with He Yingqin. He directed and acted a "bloodless coup" in Chongqing. He pretended to step down and let He Yingqin take the lead. On the stage, he went to seek refuge with Japan, and at least asked for some Japanese aid to survive.
Unexpectedly, less than forty-eight hours after the Chongqing National Government’s declaration of surrender to Japan was released, Tokyo was hit by a nuclear bomb: Japan was subjugated!
This bolt from the blue really shocked the entire Chongqing National Government. So He Yingqin went out to pretend to be under house arrest, and Chairman Chiang came back to power to raise the anti-Japanese banner. However, the existential crisis of the Chongqing National Government has not yet been resolved - there is no hope for Japanese aid, and it seems that US aid will not be sent in for a while: Who allowed Chairman Chiang to completely destroy all the major seaports in the country? ? However, the Red Army in the north is still advancing step by step, and has even rushed into the Sichuan Basin and captured Chengdu. The troops in Chongqing are also demoralized, and it is really unknown whether they can hold on until next month.
Fortunately, just when Chairman Chiang jumped anxiously, Zhou Fohai, the mayor of Shanghai under the Nanjing puppet regime, suddenly sent him a gift package from heaven: The entire Nanjing National Government respectfully welcomes him to take office in Nanjing! The only request is for an amnesty, regardless of their previous sin of defecting to the Japanese!
It turns out that not only the Chongqing National Government but also the Nanjing National Government are facing an existential crisis: as we all know, the regime team that Wang Jingwei brought up during his lifetime was simply a puppet of the Japanese. Now that even the Japanese Empire has been destroyed by two atomic bombs, the officials of the Wang Puppet Regime naturally have to find a way out to find a new father, so as not to be buried with His Majesty the Emperor... Originally, this kind of conspiracy to defect could not be hidden. From the Japanese "China Expeditionary Force" stationed in Nanjing. However, the Japanese troops currently stationed near Nanjing are mainly surrenderers, and they are even more urgent about the "armistice and peace cause" than the Wang Puppet regime. So the Japanese and the puppets first conspired, and then the Americans, and finally informed Chairman Chiang Kai-shek of the good news, and asked him to follow the example of the "Ning-Han merger" between him and Wang Jingwei, and quickly do it again "Ning-Chongqing Convergence" peacefully accepted the legacy of Wang Jingwei and the Japanese invaders, and then continued to fight against the "red disaster" ravaging China with the support of the American godfather...
As a result, after Chairman Chiang wrote a warrant and swore, and the U.S. Ambassador to China guaranteed that he would never pursue any past responsibilities, Chen Gongbo, chairman of the pseudo-Nanjing National Government, immediately resigned and resigned as a bachelor, preparing to leave office after the air route was opened. If you go to the United States for inspection, you will never return to China without permission from Chairman Chiang Kai-shek. Then, a group of senior officials of the pseudo-Nanjing National Government also cleverly packed up the gold and silver they had collected over the years, and each announced their resignation and lived in seclusion. From then on, they withdrew from politics and left Nanjing in order to free up their seats. Place the direct descendants of Jiang Gong.
Next, among the hundreds of thousands of puppet troops entrenched in the Jiangnan area, except for a few high-ranking generals who were forcibly retired to make room for the direct descendants of Chiang Kai-shek, the rest directly became the National Revolutionary Army, and some of them were willing to continue fighting. Japanese officers and soldiers became Chairman Chiang’s “foreign mercenaries”. The remaining Japanese officers and soldiers who were tired of the war received a moderate severance package, took off their military uniforms and became "residents from friendly countries"... What made Stilwell even more unacceptable was that all this was so disturbing. The jaw-dropping "skin-changing magic" was all understood and approved by the White House in advance!
Because, after defeating the old enemy, the Japanese Empire, and winning the final victory in the Pacific battlefield, the United States of America's top priority has changed from winning the so-called "Worldwide Anti-Fascist War" to resisting the madness of the Bolshevik forces as quickly as possible. expansion.
In the face of the iron-clad torrent of the Soviet Red Army, the free world has basically lost Europe, but now it must not lose Asia again.
In order to counter the rapid expansion of red forces in China and prevent the post-war world hegemony from slipping away, the White House has resorted to unscrupulous means.
Thinking of this, Lieutenant General Stilwell could only sigh helplessly. No matter how absurd his inner feelings were, he did not have the courage or ability to resist domestic orders, even though this would undermine his previous plans and plans to attack the Japanese. Effort seems to have become a joke.
In any case, with the success of the "Ningbo-Chongqing Convergence" and the surrender of the Japanese Governor in Taiwan, the sea channel for the United States to deliver US aid to China has been opened. With the arms and supplies provided by the United States and the legacy of the Japanese invaders, Chairman Chiang’s government should be able to survive, right?
Seeing Chairman Chiang walking up to the pier in high spirits, as if he was victorious and triumphant, Lieutenant General Stilwell gave a wry smile and comforted himself by saying this.
At the same time, the Nanjing citizens who were forcibly driven on the shore to "welcome the arrival of the Chairman" watched Chairman Chiang, who was wearing the uniform of a special admiral and wearing five medals on his chest, walking up to the pier in high spirits and riding in a car. The convertible was waving around, and the absurd feeling in my heart was indescribable.
——On the first day of October, because of the "extremely good news" that the Chongqing National Government surrendered to Japan, newspapers throughout the Japanese-occupied areas were celebrating with the headline "The Surrender of the Chinese Dragon" and daydreaming about "Greater East Asia" Jihad is about to start from a Victory leads to the next more glorious victory." Unexpectedly, on the second day, some vague gossip appeared on the market, and the expressions of many Japanese people changed from arrogance to disbelief, and then to mourning. Then on the third day, a bold newspaper finally announced the death of the Japanese Empire with the headline "The Rising Sun Falls", announcing the news of the nuclear explosion in Tokyo and the death of the emperor. And in the radio stations run by Japanese expatriates, there was even more wailing and mourning like a bereaved dog...
In just forty-eight hours, the Japanese devils and their followers fell from the peak of unexpected victory to the bottom of the country's subjugation. Such a rapid and intense ups and downs are probably the first in human history. One incident - many Japanese soldiers with bad hearts collapsed and died suddenly on the spot. Some Japanese could not stand such stimulation and chose to commit suicide. After these guys with poor mental endurance were all dead, the remaining people slowly woke up and began to think about the next way out... According to the thinking of the Chinese people, since Japan has been subjugated, then the ground in China It’s time for all the Japanese devils to get out, and it’s time for those traitors who helped others to be put on trial, right?
As a result, Chairman Chiang and the Central Committee returned soon, but none of the traitors were tried. Instead, they all became "recovery heroes." Then the puppet army became the government army, the Japanese army became the friendly army, and the Japanese ronin became the "friendly aliens"... After such a chaotic chaos, it seems that everyone has become a good person! No one made any mistakes! But in this case, what was the purpose of the previous eight years of resistance war? Did the 300,000 compatriots in Nanjing die in vain? Anyway, the people in Jiangnan basically feel that their thinking is a bit broken, and they can't figure out the reason at all.
However, the "reception officials" who came to Nanjing with Chairman Chiang had no interest in paying attention to what the common people were thinking. Their red eyes were all staring at the gold, silver, and gold in the beautiful world of Jiangnan. Women, cars and money: After living in a poor place like Sichuan for so long, the little wealth I finally saved was probably confiscated by the Red Army. Now if I don’t make a big profit, how can I be worthy of myself?
The only fly in the ointment is that Chairman Chiang and the reception officials were still drinking and drinking at the celebration banquet, and the "good news" of "accompanying the capital Chongqing to peacefully liberate" came from the radio station in Yan'an. "Warmly celebrate" Chairman Chiang's "return of the capital to Nanjing"...
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Japan, Tokyo Bay, the first-class coastal defense location protecting the imperial capital Tokyo, Yokosuka Imperial Naval Garrison
Ninety-two years ago, in 1853 AD, U.S. Navy Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry led four warships flying the Stars and Stripes to arrive here, triggering the "Black Ships Arrival" The incident also dragged this autistic nation into the international arena where the jungle prevails.
The gunfire from Perry's black ship opened Japan's borders and caused confusion and thinking in Japan. In the confused eyes of the Japanese, the outside world reveals its glory and its ugliness: no one sympathizes with the weak, and the survival of the fittest is the most basic law of nature. If Japan cannot become strong, Westerners will inevitably ride on the Japanese and shit. The British fleet blew Kagoshima into a sea of flames, and the forts at Choshu were razed to the ground by the Western powers... The lessons of blood and fire allowed Japan to fully understand the cruel nature of this world - and then came the bloody chaos of the end of the Tokugawa period, and the chaos of the Meiji Restoration. Comprehensive changes: from the large-scale establishment of raw silk factories to the export of "Nanyang Sister" to Southeast Asia. The Japanese gritted their teeth and learned from Europe and the United States, accumulating foreign exchange penny by penny, exchanging machines, technologies, and guns. In a cardboard room with a few tatami mats, they dreamed of an empire and chanted the slogan of enriching the country and strengthening the army.
After completing the initial preparations, the tanks of the Japanese Empire began to rumble into action. Following the footsteps of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, they crossed the Tsushima Strait and rushed towards North Korea; then crossed the Yalu River and invaded China. Finally, he turned around and rushed towards the vast Pacific Ocean, taking advantage of white European and American teachers, wanting to show off his skills in a broader world, and looking for his own dream of peace and harmony on the ruins of the old Western colonial empire.
However, today, all fantasies are over. Japan's imperial dream comes and goes just as quickly as the cherry blossoms bloom and wither.
——Ninety-two years later, another larger and more majestic American fleet brazenly broke into the inner waters of the Japanese Empire, and then in the frightened and confused eyes of Japanese civilians, Arrogantly, the land was once again planted with the Stars and Stripes Banner.
Standing at Kurihama in Yokosuka City, where Admiral Perry's "Black Ship" landed, I looked at the "Monument for the Landing of Admiral Perry of the United States Navy of North America" handwritten by former Japanese Prime Minister Hirobumi Ito, the current commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, Hal Admiral West couldn't help but feel a little dazed for a moment.
This victory came so fast, so violently, so suddenly, so dreamlike that it made him feel unreal.
——Just over a month ago, he was still drinking wine at the headquarters in Pearl Harbor, mourning his comrades who were buried in the blue sea, and cursing the hateful Japanese devils. But at this moment, he stood outside the gate of the imperial capital Tokyo as a conqueror, with his feet on the heart of the Imperial Japanese Navy. And the enemy general Isoroku Yamamoto, whom he cursed and feared, had already been reduced to ashes in the mushroom cloud of the atomic bomb.
To be honest, to take the risk of leading a large fleet into Tokyo Bay when the situation is not very clear is to risk the lives of the entire army. There was even more opposition in the fleet staff department beforehand. But Admiral Halsey gave full play to his "brute bull" nature and insisted on this order... The result was very dull. Facing the menacing U.S. Pacific Fleet, the Japanese along the Tokyo Bay did not make any resistance.
Like General Perry's four "black ships" ninety-two years before, Halsey's fleet docked at Yokosuka unscathed.
In response, the US officers and soldiers throughout the fleet were jubilant, but Admiral Halsey only felt a sense of boredom.
How to say it? It feels like an act of revenge that has been prepared for a long time, but the final result is a punch in the face, so there is nothing to do...
It’s really ridiculous, I obviously haven’t fought enough yet! Are there no enemies left? ! Where should I vent this frustration in my chest?
However, this depressed mood mixed with loss and hesitation did not linger in Admiral Halsey's chest for too long.
Because Admiral Halsey soon discovered that the remaining Japanese Japs had not been completely defeated, and his war was not over yet.
——A few days before the U.S. Pacific Fleet broke into Tokyo Bay, the Japanese naval members of the Yokosuka garrison had already fled in advance, disappeared without a trace, and drove away all the submarines and cruisers that could still move. , destroyers, coastal defense ships, modified aircraft carriers, guns boats, torpedo boats and transport ships, flew away all the naval air force aircraft, transported away the entire garrison's funds, ordnance and ammunition, even distributed coal and food to the citizens, and put the remaining fuel into the sea water , except for empty houses, nothing was left for the US military. There is only one immobile battleship Mikasa left on the entire coast of Yokosuka: it was the flagship of the Japanese Combined Fleet during the Russo-Japanese War forty years ago, and the ship of the famous naval admiral Admiral Togo Heihachiro. It had been disarmed and retired for many years, and now it is It is preserved in Yokosuka Seaside Park in the form of a maritime memorial.
So, the next question is, where are the Japanese naval ships and aircraft that escaped from the Yokosuka Fort now?
After patrolling the shore and confirming that there should be no fighting breaking out in this area, Commander Halsey first ordered to stop some bored sailors from trying to destroy the Mikasa battleship, and then in his On the flagship "Enterprise" aircraft carrier, they met with representatives of the "Japanese Provisional Government" in Yokohama and ordered these "Japanese collaborators" to provide the latest trends of Japan's mainland naval fleet as soon as possible.
After waiting for another day, Admiral Halsey, who was staying at the port of Yokosuka garrison, finally received a relatively vague report on the enemy's situation.
——Since the nuclear explosion in Tokyo and the destruction of the empire, in the face of the massive attack by the American Halsey Fleet and the confusion caused by the surrender notice of the "Japan Provisional Government", the domestic fleet ships that were previously scattered throughout eastern Japan have basically One after another, Xanadu weighed anchor and fled westward.
Most of the Japanese naval ships originally deployed in Hokkaido passed through the Tsugaru Strait or Soya Strait (before the Soviet troops moved south) and escaped into the ports in the Sea of Japan on the other side of the archipelago, and some even fled to various ports in the eastern part of the Korean Peninsula. Probably because he wanted to wait and see.
A small number of advanced ships capable of ocean navigation are said to be heading to the Truk anchorage in the South China Sea to join the main force of the combined fleet.
Most of the ships fled to the cradle of the Imperial Japanese Navy, the Etajima Naval War School in Hiroshima Prefecture. These captains and captains had some communication before setting off. They seemed to think that since the cabinet, the Ministry of Navy and the Military Command no longer existed, they should go to their alma mater to find teachers and principals to discuss a countermeasure. The local naval aviation and army aviation flew everywhere, and many people simply flew home.
At the same time, various Japanese armies stationed in North China, Manchuria, and the Korean Peninsula are continuously crossing the Tsushima Strait and gathering towards Hiroshima, Matsue and other places in western Japan. It seems that a heavy troop group has been formed there. , signs of leading a local counterattack.
The Etajima Naval Academy and the Kure garrison, which has Japan's most advanced shipyard, are also located in Hiroshima Prefecture. Today's Hiroshima Prefecture can be said to be heavily populated by navy and army troops. The most combat-effective troops in the Japanese Empire, as well as the most stubborn militant elements, are constantly gathering in that area. The large amounts of ammunition and materials originally stored in several giant caverns in the base camp during the war were enough to support a long-term battle.
"...It turns out that these Japanese navy have returned to their alma mater! Etajima...the cradle of the Japanese navy..."
Looking down at the map of Japan on the table, Admiral Halsey's eyes once again burned with combative fire, "...just in time, the second batch of reinforcement fleets and supply fleets arriving from China are currently also It has arrived off the coast of Tokyo. In this case, let the air force use Tokyo and Sendai. At the airport, prepare for a strategic bombing of the Japanese Navy and Army in the Hiroshima area! Well, you can use all the remaining gas bombs!" He nailed a dagger to the location of Etajima on the map, "... Strangling these demon cubs to death in their cradle!”