Zhuo Fei's telegram back to Chongqing made Chiang Kai-shek very excited for a few days, especially after Chen Shaokuan determined that the Fengxiang had been captured by the Independence Army based on those photos, and Chiang Kai-shek, who was overjoyed, even accompanied Song Meiling to drink half a glass of red wine. Also ecstatic was Chen Shaokuan, the naval commander, after getting Chiang Kai-shek's approval, Chen Shaokuan tried his best to draw his capable generals and fly directly to Yangon on a military plane, he couldn't wait to see the Japanese warships captured by the independent army.

Chongqing was excited about the Independence Army's success, but the Japanese were not so happy with the news, as they had lost Burma and a makeshift mixed fleet. According to the habit of the Japanese army, someone must be pushed out to take responsibility for such a major mistake, not to mention that the Fengxiang was not sunk, but was captured by the Chinese army along with the three battleships of Seventeen.

Tokyo, the capital of the Japanese Empire and the political, economic, and cultural center of Japan, was like most cities in Japan at this time, with no bustle and bustle before the outbreak of the war, and most of the pedestrians on the streets were in a hurry. The news of the defeat of the imperial army in Burma added a little heaviness to the hearts of the people in the city, and the whole city seemed to be much quieter.

Walking into the center of Tokyo, you can see the "Green Island" surrounded by water from a distance, which stands out from the busy streets, and the deep part of the green island is the Imperial Palace of Japan. The surrounding "moat" separates the palace from the hustle and bustle of the city, and to the hearts of the Japanese, the palace is a sacred place to their hearts.

At this time, in a hall of the Imperial Palace, the Imperial Council was going on intensely, and the cabinet ministers who attended the meeting knew that today's meeting would decide the fate of the empire in the future. But this choice is too difficult, and a sense of confusion and pain that "looks at the end of the world" fills everyone's heart. The war waged in China has been going on for four years, and it is still unwon. Four years ago, the army clamored to take the whole of China in three months, and now it ...... If the newly formed troops continue to be sent to China, Japan as a whole will watch as these forces are once again plunged into what seems to be a long-term war of attrition.

If we talk only about the military issue, then the problem is simple. Not to mention the generals in the military department who have heavy troops. Even the members of the Cabinet, who know nothing about war, will not continue to consume their precious troops in this endless war of attrition. “…… Now the empire must make a choice, and the direction of the war is to continue to lock in Asia, mainly China! Or turn to the wider Americas! ”

The venue was quiet, dreary and a little nerve-wracking, and everything seemed to change overnight. The Chinese army, which had been suppressed by the imperial army, suddenly began a major counteroffensive, and after successfully opening the curtain in North China, this major counteroffensive has evolved into a battle that swept the three provinces of Hebei, Shandong, and Henan. Looking at the generals in front of him who had sworn to him, Konoe Fumiro felt a sense of being fooled in his heart, and the empire's decades of planning and all his efforts were about to come to naught in the blink of an eye.

"Your Majesty, if the elite of the Imperial Army is consumed in the Americas, then what is the use of us occupying all of Asia? Once the elite of the Imperial Army is lost, the Empire's decades-long foundation will be destroyed! "Konoe Fumiro was opposed to sending troops to the Americas from the beginning, but the landing operation of the United Fleet on the west coast of the United States made the entire cabinet optimistic about the imperial army in the Americas, and at this moment, Konoe Fumiro could only seek the emperor's help.

Everyone's eyes gradually turned to the emperor. In the past, whenever I encountered this scene, I was finally judged by the emperor. But the expression was dull, and the emperor just waved his hand but said nothing. "Prime Minister, since last year, the Imperial economy has experienced a recession that lasted for one year and five months, and now the Imperial economy has deteriorated to a difficult situation. If we delay any longer, we will undoubtedly personally send the imperial economy to the gallows. Saving the army or preserving the economy is a dilemma, and with the collapse of the empire's economy, what we lose is the foundation of the empire for the next hundred years, and the army can be reorganized! But if the imperial economy collapses completely, we will lose not only Asia, but ourselves. ”

The discussion among the members of the inner mission failed to provoke the emperor to make a decision, and at this moment, a close attendant walked up to the emperor's side and bowed and whispered a few words, and then saw that the emperor, who had a cold expression, changed his expression. "Ladies and gentlemen, I have just received news that the mixed fleet sent by the Empire to Burma to assist in the war, including the Fengxiang, has been almost completely wiped out. Not only have we lost Burma, but the Chinese army that occupies Burma is attacking Thailand, and I guess they will attack other South Asian countries after they occupy Thailand. ”

The news from the Emperor himself instantly disrupted the minds of the cabinet members, and the defeat and almost total annihilation of the mixed fleet, including the Fengxiang, was indeed not good news, especially for the Empire's plan to occupy South Asia. "Your Majesty, I think it's time to adjust the strategic goals of the empire, once the Chinese start a large-scale counteroffensive, it means that they are completely ready. If we continue to entangle with them, the army sent by the empire to China will only be endlessly mired in a war of attrition like now. War Minister Hideki Tojo, who represents the interests of the military, spoke at the right time, and several members of the cabinet already nodded in agreement with Hideki Tojo's statement.

The failure of the mixed fleet completely disrupted Konoe Fumiro's original plan, and Tojo Hideki's speech at this time also caused Konoe Fumiro's thoughts to pause, "The Chinese killed the counterattack, which is indeed a good sign for the Empire's Asian plans, but the army's war prospects on the American continent are good." The military valued the benefits of the American continent more than the Chinese, after all, the Americans' resting factories could be put into production as soon as they were repaired, which was beneficial to the empire. ”

Hideki Tojo's speech finally caught the emperor's attention, and after receiving the emperor's instructions, Hideki Tojo continued, "Since the Manchu Qing Dynasty, we and China have been rivals, and we have never stopped fighting for a hundred years, and we know the nature of the Chinese very well. Now, if we propose peaceful coexistence with the Chinese government, we can even withdraw our troops to the line of defense before the Battle of Lugou Bridge. I think the Chinese government will be happy to accept the temporary compromise of the empire, and the empire's army can be freed from the quagmire of endless attrition. ”

At this point, Hideki Tojo stopped, but the opposition that he had thought had appeared did not appear, and everyone seemed to be waiting for him to continue. Hideki Tojo, who paused for a moment, suddenly looked serious, stretched out his hand and pointed to the reply map on the table and continued, "Burma, Thailand, or even Indonesia don't matter, these places can only provide us with rice and spices at most, these are not what the empire needs, what we need is here!" ”

Hideki Tojo pointed to a spot on the map, "This is the Philippines, this is where the empire needs it most, there is rubber, there is oil, there are many mineral deposits that the empire needs." Further east, there is a separate continent, Australia, which is home to the world's largest iron ore mine and large copper mines, and once the empire takes over it, the endless supply of iron ore, copper concentrate, and factories on the American continent will bring the empire's industrial development to a new level. ”

Hideki Tojo's proposal seemed a little unbelievable, but the cabinet members were all dumbfounded, and they were all secretly wondering in their hearts whether Hideki Tojo's proposal was valid: "Your Majesty, for the sake of the empire and the future, we can even go and cooperate with the devil." Through diplomatic efforts, I think the Chinese should be very willing to reach a truce agreement with the empire, of course, this ceasefire agreement is only a delaying tactic. Once we turn the benefits we have gained from the Americas into national strength, the empire can turn around and annex China at any time, and the victor has the ability to tear up all agreements! ”

Hideki Tojo had already shown his intentions, and looking at the route of the march marked by Hideki Tojo with colored pens on the map, everyone, including the emperor, was moved, and even Fumiki Konoe had nothing to say. Once the imperial army advancing into the American continent can occupy the large industrial base of the Americans, relying on the mineral resources obtained by the Australian continent, the empire will be able to integrate an industrial power pattern that is close to Germany and far surpasses the British and Americans.

Hideki Tojo knew that the Cabinet would definitely agree to the plan he proposed, and in fact, before the Cabinet convened this meeting, the German side had already sent a special envoy to hold secret talks with him. The German government was overjoyed by the news of the Japanese landing in the United States and expanding the battlefield, and Hitler believed that the Japanese landing in the United States would be a better way to contain the energy and material consumption of the American government, and on the eve of the German landing operation against the British Isles, Hitler hoped that the Japanese army would expand the scale of the operation against the United States.

As an ally, of course, Hitler could not fail to give Japan some benefits, and Hitler's envoy even made a promise to Hideki Tojo that as long as the Japanese army could expand its war in the United States, as long as it was the American continent occupied by Japan, it would all be owned by Japan after the war ended. It was precisely because of Hitler's promise and guarantee that Hideki Tojo made such a proposal at a cabinet meeting, and Fumiro Konoe, as Prime Minister, did not know that Hideki Tojo had already held secret talks with the emperor on this matter in advance, and the young emperor also coveted the American continent, which was richer than China.