Volume 1 Unsettled Times Chapter 223 Peace Talk
China and Japan did not cease to fight. In addition to the extra calmness of the Jiaodong battlefield, the Fengtian battlefield, which had fought extremely fiercely from the beginning, unexpectedly stopped fighting fire. The Japanese army, which was beaten by rocket launchers, quickly retreated from the front line, and the two sides set aside. In order to find out what weapons the Chinese team used to cause such great losses to the Japanese army, commander Uehara Yoshizu took such a reluctant measure. Due to the unilateral contact between the Japanese Navy and the Chinese government, the position of the army in this war became increasingly awkward. Most members of the cabinet now tend to engage in Sino-Japanese peace talks, and the navy even held a ceasefire with the Chinese government under the nose of the army. The ability of the army to fight alone cannot guarantee the continued war. Unless Uehara Yoshizu can capture Fengtian in the shortest time and achieve a brilliant victory, perhaps it can gain support in the cabinet.
But this idea is just a luxury. Without the Chinese using rocket launchers, the Japanese army stopped moving for more than a month. How could they talk about capturing Fengtian in the short term? The emergence of rocket launchers suddenly changed the situation of Buyunshan. Although the Japanese Army, which suffered a severe blow, was still yelling to take down Buyunshan and step on Fengtian's arrogant slogan, in fact, the 20th Division, which survived from death, was scared out. In a short time, the powerful power of the Chinese rocket launcher was added to the fire by the officers and soldiers of the 20th Division. One and ten to hundreds of times spread to all the Japanese divisions, causing some ordinary soldiers to panic.
The current Japanese Army is not the "Imperial Army" in history. Whether in terms of equipment, training, and morale, there is not much difference from the elite National Defense Forces. From a certain perspective, except for a few Class A divisions, it can also be compared with the Eighth Army, and other divisions are even less firepower than the Chinese National Defense Forces, and the gap between the two sides is not too big.
Zhang Zuolin's 27th Army suffered huge losses in the Fengtian battlefield, but war will also hone an army. During the repeated struggles on the Buyunshan front, the 27th Army gradually grew up in the war. Although the large number of new recruits were not as experienced as trained veterans, they were real soldiers as long as they did not die on the battlefield.
A kind of thing, or the soul of the military, is gradually reflected in this local army that was originally composed of complex components such as bandits, farmers, and tyrants. It can also be said that although this war caused Zhang Zuolin's vitality to be severely damaged, it actually also caused his troops to begin to be reborn. In time, it will definitely become a truly strong army.
Chen Ju is still in Fengtian for the time being. The first actual combat of the rocket launcher was a huge success. After the war, he was not complacent. In addition to collecting data from all aspects for future improvements. After returning to Fengtian, he ordered some personnel to quickly dismantle and ship them back to the military factory with eight rocket launchers. As for the two left behind, he continued to be on the Fengtian front line as a deterrent force.
In doing so, first, consider the secret leakage. The targets of the ten rocket launchers are too large, and the Japanese who are hit will definitely try their best to get rocket launcher information. Therefore, it is necessary to transfer most of the targets. Second, it is also for maneuver. From a practical perspective, the Buyunshan position has these two rocket launchers enough to pose a threat to the enemy. Fang Zida, a former leader of Fengtian, explained to Chen Ju that in the use of rocket launchers, the target of eliminating the opponent, but mainly forcing the opponent to seek peace. From this goal, the two rocket launchers have been sufficient.
.As for the final consideration, it is the issue of artillery shells. Rocket launchers are powerful, but the forming time is too short and there is not much shell reserve. Although they are backed by military factories, the journey is long. Transportation and confidentiality are extremely inconvenient. After the rocket launcher was launched, not only did the Japanese urgently want to know about the situation of this weapon, but other forces from various countries also turned their attention here. In this case, it is no longer guaranteed to be completely confidential. Once something happens on the way, the true face of the rocket launcher will be clear.
Chen Ju's idea was approved by Fang Zida. Although Zhang Zuolin felt sorry for the departure of these big killers, he also understood the need to keep this weapon secret. In the following days, the Japanese army also carried out several tentative attacks, and they were all shot back by the Chinese team. Once, Chen Ju even used two rocket launchers to shoot a volley against the attacking Japanese army. Although the effect was not as effective as the first actual combat, the Japanese army still frightened. The frightened Japanese soldiers did not even dare to drag the bodies of their dead compatriots back, but ran back.
"Baga! There is no information on the secret weapons of the Chinese people yet?"
In the Governor's Office of Kanto Prefecture, Commander Uehara Yoshiro was anxiously wandering around the living room. In front of him, several generals stood in a row respectfully, all bowing their heads without saying a word, and they didn't even dare to speak out.
"Mantik! Where are we in Mantik? Where are the intelligence officers of our Great Japanese Empire?" Uehara Yuzusa waved his hands, his face extremely angry.
"Your Excellency, before the war started, the Chinese expelled all the Manchurian Railway personnel. Even the ordinary Chinese expatriates in Fengtian City were under the strict supervision of the Chinese, and they were powerless in this situation." Nakamura Hiroshi's position in the venue was second only to Uehara Yosuke, and he was the governor of Kanto Prefecture, so he reminded him on the side.
"What about the people from the Black Dragon Society? Don't they claim to know all the news about China?" Uehara Yuzuo asked with a glaring glance.
"This... you have to ask Tokyo directly." Nakamura Kazumi smiled bitterly and shook his head. He couldn't control the Black Dragon. This was the matter of the Tokyo intelligence department. He was just a governor of Kanto Prefecture.
"Your Excellency, is there any progress in Tokyo? How do you say diplomatic negotiations?" Yamaguchi Katsuki frowned. The current situation is very bad for their army. Not only can't attack or chew Buyunshan, the Chinese team suddenly developed this terrible weapon. As the timid navy became increasingly uncooperated, the pressure on the army was under increasing. In addition, the emergence of rocket launchers made the frontline soldiers depressed. In addition, the severe cold in the northeast also led to a significant increase in the difficulty of the war in the future. Although Yamaguchi Katsuki was arrogant, he also knew in his heart that this battle might be difficult to continue.
Opening his mouth, Uehara Yuzusa seemed to want to say something, but in the end he just raised his hand and put it down heavily. He signaled everyone to go out. He walked around the house like a trapped beast. Finally, he shouted wildly, and pulled out the command knife and slashed a chair in front of him. Then he stared at the red eyes and leaned on the knife, gritting his teeth and didn't know who was cursing.
Since the rocket launcher was officially used on the battlefield, the capital city changed in the next half month, and all the outside world's attention was focused on it. However, because Fang Zida had been prepared for a long time and kept the secrets consistently and could not get any information by any country inquiry. As time went by, the Japanese could not bear it anymore. Due to the failure of the army's attack and the emergence of rocket launchers, the Japanese government cabinet directly put the Sino-Japanese armistice proposal on the table for the first time. Although the army still shouted, it finally lowered its head, admitted the failure of the China strategy, and acquiesced to the cabinet to pass the decision to formally negotiate with China.
"Zhengming, good news! Good news!" Yang Yongtai rushed into Fang Zida's office and waved the telegram in his hand: "The Japanese cabinet has decided to negotiate!"
"Haha, this is really good news." Although Fang Zida had expected it, he couldn't help but feel excited when the news really came. He quickly received the telegram and read it carefully twice, then laughed.
Just a few hours ago, the Japanese cabinet finally reached an agreement to decide on the Sino-Japanese peace talks to stop the war. The news quickly spread to the capital from Tokyo through telegram, and the Japanese Embassy submitted the peace talks proposals through diplomatic channels. At the same time, Fang Zida received the news, President of the Republic of China Yuan Shikai, Prime Minister of the Republic of China Song Jiaoren, Minister of State of the Republic of China Cao Rulin, and ambassadors of the Allies. The diplomats all heard the news, and their reactions were both surprised and happy. For the Republic of China government, this was a victory, and for the Allies, this meaningless war could finally stop, and for the allies, it was a kind of unclear regret and loss.
In addition to these, of course, each has their own plans. Japan's failure to win and seek peace. Although it was the result of the tenacious resistance of the Chinese team, the rocket launcher, which was unprecedented, also played a key role. All countries around the world are very interested in this weapon that the Chinese government strictly keeps confidential, especially the governments of the Allied countries instructed the ambassador to China to take appropriate care of the Chinese people while mediating the Sino-Japanese armistice. However, they must understand the secrets of this weapon and try to let the Chinese transfer the weapon technology to reverse the stalemate in Europe.
Ten days later, the preliminary meeting of the Sino-Japanese armistice negotiations was held at the Six Kingdoms Hotel. For this negotiation, the Japanese side specially sent Prime Minister Masato Desunari, who happened to be Nishihara Kamezo in the capital as the plenipotentiary representative of the Japanese side. Japanese Ambassador Hiraii was the negotiator assistant, former special envoy Ichiro Fujita was the negotiator member, and the Second Fleet Deputy Commander-in-Chief Prince Iitsuhito and others formed a negotiating group of nearly ten people to begin formal contact with the Chinese government.
As for the Chinese government, the head of the foreign minister Cao Rulin was the head of the country. In addition to the participation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the General Staff, Fang Zida participated as an important member of the negotiation team. In addition, the United Kingdom, France, Tsarist Russia, the member states of the Allied countries, also attended as mediators including the United States, the United States, and other diplomats from several countries.
On this day, Fang Zida took a bus to the Six Kingdoms Hotel early. Today, the Six Kingdoms Hotel is different from the usual situation. Due to the war and peace talks, the hotel is not open to the public. All the original residents have arranged to check in to other hotels in advance. The entire hotel is under strict security. There are guards composed of soldiers from various countries participating in the mediation at the door to guard and protect them, so as to completely ensure the absolute safety of the negotiators of the two sides of the war.
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Chapter completed!