Honshu, Japan, October 1929.

This is a beautiful beach made of white sand, children are following the traces of beautiful shells, and the whole beach is full of footprints left by small feet, and the cheerful sound echoes in the ears from time to time.

For children, worries never seem to exist.

Gradually, another sound came from the wind on the sea in the distance, like a swarm of bees looking for flowers, or a bunch of lingering flies, a few barefoot children in the cold sea stopped their work and looked up at the sea in the distance, a large group of black spots were gradually getting bigger.

I don't know which child was the first to scream, and then the other children babbled and ran away from the beach, no one told them that the beach was safer than their home.

In a few moments, the familiar and unsettling sound of air raid sirens sounded again, and it was no longer clear how many times the bomber group of the European power had visited the area, but since the beginning of autumn, the once beautiful seaside town had not been at peace.

Those who were hiding in a huge hidden fortification near Kofu also found that from some point onwards, their opponents began to drop bombs on small and medium-sized cities and even small towns, and that the terrifying yellow-green fog appeared more and more frequently, and the humanitarian protests and appeals never went unanswered, and these people who once thought of themselves as gods finally began to despair.

As a result, in the underground fortifications, which were both safe and well-equipped, there was often a voice of mournful lamentation.

"Could it be that Amaterasu is determined to abandon me and thousands of people?"

While the Japanese archipelago was being bombed in a continuous, high-intensity, and diversified manner, the situation on the Korean Peninsula, which was just across the sea from Japan, was quietly changing, and until October, it was regarded as a place of refuge by many Japanese, but in the face of unfavorable conditions on all fronts of the Japanese army, such a good life was destined to be only temporary.

"Gunsan Port, Gunsan Port again!"

Yamanashi Hanzao walked up and down his room restlessly, and the young lieutenant standing in front of the Korean governor stood a little bewildered. And on the comfortable sofa not far from the two sat an expressionless army general, a Japanese lieutenant general to be exact.

Just three hours ago, a group of uninvited guests visited the port of Gunsan, an important port in the southwest of the Korean Peninsula, and these German heavy bombers from across the Yellow Sea mercilessly blew up the port, which was the third bombing of Gunsan Port since October, and the largest bombing.

It took a while for the 65-year-old Yamanashi to stop. "Let Kurooka Osa report the damage to the port as soon as possible!"

33-year-old Masayo Arikawa, Yamanashi's adjutant, put his legs together, "Hey! ”

Yamanashi waved his hand and motioned for Arikawa to go down first.

Arikawa Masayo breathed a sigh of relief as he left the suffocating room, but before closing the door, he quietly glanced at the sofa and the lieutenant general sitting with his back to the door.

The reason why Arikawa thinks this way is not only because Lieutenant General Koiso Kuniaki, who only took office at the beginning of the year, is already notorious in North Korea. There is also a very important reason why he is fundamentally different from the Japanese people who worship the emperor madly - he is one of the anti-royal, anti-**, and anti-militarist radicals in Japan.

Don't think that in a traditional country like Japan, everyone is loyal to the emperor.

Since the Meiji era, assassinations of government officials have been common, and in the Taisho period, there were even attempts to assassinate Prince Hirohito, who was the crown prince at the time. A small number of radicals have seen through the disadvantages of the imperial system, they are dissatisfied with the old system of strict status hierarchy, they are dissatisfied with the frequent wars of aggression waged by the army, and they are looking forward to an American-style pure democratic system, a new society in which everyone is equal.

However, despite their great ideals, these radicals are a very weak group in Japan at present, and they have taken a "sidetrack" in the means of resisting the government, that is, to overthrow the current imperial family and government by direct and violent means, which is destined to cure the symptoms rather than the root cause or even moths to the fire in the case of a complete imbalance of power, and they do not have the support of the majority of the Japanese people. The most immediate consequence of their reluctance to turn to the European countries under the constitutional monarchy was that they had to continue to lurk in government departments and armies for opportunities, and as Japan continued to retreat in the war, the prestige of the Emperor's government among the people was no longer in full swing, and although the way in which the war would end – peace talks or surrender – was unclear, the radicals saw it as a great opportunity to achieve great things.

After Arikawa Masaji left, Yamanashi Hanzo walked up to Koiso Kuniaki and asked with a worried face, "Your Excellency Commander, the Germans are not preparing to launch a landing at Gunsan Port!" ”

"Your Excellency the Governor!" Koiso said slowly. "In the current situation, a German landing in Korea is inevitable! All we have to do is to hurt the Germans with a successful anti-landing war and make them abandon their attempt at a direct landing! ”

"But ...... the Kwantung Army," Yamanashi asked worriedly, "will they be able to sustain themselves for a long time under the onslaught of the Shina Army?" ”

"Does Your Excellency the Governor doubt the capabilities of the Kwantung Army?" Koiso served in the General Staff of the Kwantung Army before being transferred to the post of commander of the Korean garrison, and he was very unhappy with Yamanashi's questioning.

Yamanashi suddenly came to his senses, so he explained again and again:

"No, no, no, Your Excellency Commander, I don't mean to belittle the Kwantung Army in the slightest, and the combat effectiveness of the Chinese army can't be compared with the elite Kwantung Army! It's just that at the moment the transportation between us and the mainland has been in trouble, and the war supplies transported from the mainland to China have dropped by three-quarters, and the Kwantung Army is brave, but it ...... in the absence of ammunition and supplies."

"Don't worry!" Xiao Ji gently stroked the saber he was wearing, "As long as North Korea is not lost, the Kwantung Army will not have to worry about it!" ”

"Then how to keep North Korea ...... lost" Yamanashi was a little unassertive.

"Anti-landing war! A victorious anti-landing war! Koiso accentuated his tone.

"In Gunsan Harbor?" Yamanashi is running out of ideas.

Koiso shook his right index finger in front of Yamanashi, "No, the Germans are cunning, since they are in a posture of preparing to attack Gunsan Port. Then the real landing site must be somewhere else! Mokpo, Nampo, Incheon, Gwangyang, Masan, Busan, the Germans are fully capable of landing in these places! ”

"You can't divide your forces to defend!" Yamanashi finally said one point correctly, as far as the Japanese army is currently stationed in Korea, there are only one division and three garrison brigades, and dividing troops to defend is tantamount to abandoning defense.

"Of course! We must turn the existing power into a fist! Koiso gestured with his right hand.

Compared with Koiso Kuniaki's self-confidence, Yamanashi, who has entered the age of ear shun, has lost the sharpness he had when he served in the army.

"Then can you ask the Kwantung Army to temporarily transfer some troops? Or do you want to send some more from home? ”

"There is basically no hope on the side of the Kwantung Army, and it would be good if they did not draw troops from the Korean garrison! As for the local side, I have already sent a telegram to the military department, and it is estimated that there will be a response in the near future! Koiso's words made Yamanashi breathe a sigh of relief. But Koiso did not express his speculation - although there were still many troops on the mainland, considering that the Tsushima Strait and the Korean Strait had been blockaded by the German army, it was very likely that the War Office would refuse to trust the lives of a large number of soldiers on the navy, which was no longer powerful, and the dangerous shipping lanes.

Looking at the thoughtful Yamanashi, Xiao Iso couldn't help but have to be comforted:

"Your Excellency the Governor, rest assured, our Imperial Flower will get the information we want from our allies in the Germans, and don't we have a clear grasp of the number, equipment, and deployment of the squadron right now?"

"Oh? Oh! By the way, we also have the Flower of the Empire! Hahahaha! The so-called flower of the empire refers to a group of Japanese female spies who have been lurking in China for a long time, and some of them have become the daughters of wealthy businessmen who are close to high-ranking Kuomintang officials and army generals. Some of them are directly mixed into government departments.

In short, they have used all kinds of means to obtain military intelligence from the Chinese side.

Xiao Iso laughed wryly.

Dalian, China.

After more than half a month of emergency repairs, Dalian Port, which was seriously damaged by the battle and the deliberate sabotage of the Japanese army, finally restored part of its navigation capacity. Although the squadron's current front has only advanced to more than 30 kilometers east of Dalian, and the sound of artillery from the front line can still be faintly heard from the front line while standing in Dalian Port, a part of the German ** squadron preparing to launch a landing operation on the Korean Peninsula has already arrived here by boat and has begun to make final preparations for the next landing operation.

"Who dares to step through the rough waters and brave the enemy's intense fire to the beach?"

"We!"

"Who dared to plant the first battle flag on the enemy's entrenched beaches against enemy artillery, machine guns and bayonets?"

"We!"

"Who is the most tenacious, brave, and fearless fighting spirit of sacrifice?"

"We!"

"Who is it that makes the enemy fearful!"

"We!"

"We are the great ......"

"1st German Marine Division!"

The sound of the mountains roaring and the tsunami sounded on a flat ground surrounded by trees, and the trees had withered yellow for ---- for a long time, but one bloody battle after another had tempered its soul! To talk about the desire to fight and that kind of brave momentum, maybe even His Majesty's Guards Legion can't be compared! ”

The one who spoke. He was only about forty years old, but he already had the enviable rank of lieutenant general of the German Army and the blue Max Medal, and looking at this viewing platform, the only person who could do this was probably the Marine General who stood in the front desk and constantly stirred up the atmosphere of the scene.

"If our division were to engage them head-on, do you think we have any hope of winning?" The previous major general asked again.

The lieutenant general, wearing the blue Max medal, pondered for a moment, "Well, it depends on the circumstances of the battle, if it is a plain, we are completely sure; If it's a city, we have a 70% chance of winning; If it is a complex mountainous area or woods, then the result is difficult to say! ”

The Major General seemed very surprised, he had thought that his superiors would at best say that he would be in a tie, but his answer was that his troops would have the upper hand in most cases.

Dare to say this in front of the German 1st Marine Division, there are not many people looking at Germany, but he Erwin Rommel is definitely the most qualified one, don't look at the current command of an armored division, but this unit has changed dramatically compared to the German-American war in 1924, first of all, in terms of equipment, 72 IV tank modifications - IV-C replaced the original IV-A type, and the improved IV tank has a new diesel engine of the same level, The maximum road speed has been increased to 50 km/h, the failure rate of the improved suspension system has been greatly reduced, and the new 75 mm tank gun produced by Krupp and the side skirt armor for enhanced protection have been greatly improved, and the equipment provided by Siemens has greatly increased the communication distance and effectiveness of the on-board radio.

Before the German-Russian War, the German Army was equipped with thousands of No. III tanks that had been upgraded and modified, and after actual combat tests in Russia, the German High Command realized the shortcomings of the temporary modification of the No. III tank - although the power of the engine was increased, the cooperation between the new engine and the original machinery was not tacit, so that this kind of assault tank that performed well in the German-American war repeatedly failed on the Russian battlefield, and instead of tirelessly modifying it again and again, it was better to directly produce a new, Tanks that met the requirements, and in this case, the Type III-E tank came out. The shape of the new assault tank is not much different from the original No. III tank, but the hull is slightly larger than a small one, and the total weight has risen to 24.5 tons, and the 43 times the diameter of the 60 mm tank gun replaces the original 50 mm gun, and the upgrade of the main gun is not only reflected in the increase in caliber by 10 mm, Krupp has improved the previous several shells according to the needs of the battlefield, according to conservative estimates, the main gun of the III-E type has increased by nearly half compared with the III-A type!

In addition to giving priority to the new main tanks, Rommel's armored division was also equipped with a series of new armored vehicles, especially the DG28 half-track armored transport vehicle with a load capacity of 4 tons jointly developed by Daimler and Gigi Arms.

In addition, Rommel's Panzer Division was also one of the first units of the German Army to be equipped with helicopters, and although the current helicopter technology cannot constitute the protagonist of the battlefield, this kind of convenient aircraft that has almost no requirements for take-off and landing places and can be carried by cars can play an amazing role in reconnaissance!