“…… The troops stationed in various parts of Formosa have largely returned, and only some 385 soldiers in the gendarmerie cantonments deployed in the central and southern regions remain unaccounted for, in addition to those that have been confirmed to have been wiped out by the Chinese resistance forces. www.biquge.info According to the current situation, we can only assume that these soldiers have done their best for the Imperial ......."

"That's enough." Hitoshi Kuroshima interrupts his subordinate's report. During this time, he heard too much news, one moment, the garrison here was wiped out by the Chinese resistance, and the other time, the troops there were heavily damaged by the Chinese resistance. Every day, new casualty reports were sent to him, reminding him of the situation when the Imperial army had just landed in Formosa in the 28th year of the Meiji era. Even then, however, the situation was never as bad as it is now.

At least at that time, the Imperial Army was able to carry out a powerful counterattack against the Resistance and to retaliate on a large scale in areas where the Resistance was active, unlike now, when all the troops were forced to retreat to a lonely city in the north of the island, disguised as if they were about to return to Japan, and waited for his plan to succeed while they were in a false agreement with the War Department and Foreign Ministry officials.

Kuroshima felt a pang of irritability. Although he was convinced that his plan would succeed, the current situation was unbearable; He also knew that since he himself felt this way, the mood of the junior officers and ordinary soldiers who still did not know the truth would only be worse.

"How's the morale of the troops?"

"Very low. In addition to the heavy casualties, the daily night artillery attacks carried out by the Chinese resistance also caused serious problems to our troops, causing many officers and soldiers to lose sleep. ”

"Are the officers and soldiers confused by the order to keep them here?" Hitoshi Kuroshima asked.

"Yes, very confused. Already officers have openly questioned and demanded that they immediately board the ship and return to Japan. ”

Kuroshima's face immediately turned gloomy. "Senior officers should have taken care to control the emotions of junior officers and soldiers, but they didn't do anything-"

"On behalf of the other three Wing Commanders, Tabe said that since they were also unaware of His Excellency's overall plan, and could not divulge the part of the plan that they knew, they did not know how to control the emotions of the troops."

"Stupid!"

"Yes, Your Excellency!"

"Now, the whole plan has reached the most critical moment, and there must be no room for error." Hitoshi Kuroshima stood up and waved his clenched fists as he walked around the room, and said loudly, "The captain of each wing must firmly control his troops, grasp the emotions of officers and soldiers, and eliminate all the adverse effects that low morale and confusion can cause—"

As he spoke, there was a knock on the door, and a spy from the Secret Service pushed the door open and walked in.

"Your Excellency, Tabe Osa, Kimura Osa, Baba Nakasa and Tsugawa Nakasa have arrived."

It was only then that Kuroshima remembered that he had earlier invited the captains of the four infantry wings who were still stranded here because of their involvement in his plan to his office for a meeting to report on the progress of the plan and the distribution of tasks among the various wings when the plan was realized—some things could have been said at the meeting instead of shouting at the air or a piece of wood now.

He regained his composure, motioned to the subordinates who came in to report to wait, and then turned to the subordinates who reported the situation: "What else?" ”

"It was those who followed the withdrawal of our army to this place, frightened by the severe punishment of the Resistance, and repeatedly asked the Reich to guarantee their safety with their families, allowing them to retreat to Japan. At the same time......"

"At the same time what?"

"They want our army to increase their food quota."

"Sad stuff." Kuroshima Ren snorted and ordered, "Don't care about the lives of these people. Just let them fend for themselves. ”

"Yes, Your Excellency, Director."

With a bow to him, the spy left. After a few more seconds, Hitoshi Kuroshima walked over to the conference table on the other side of the room, took his place next to him, and checked his dress. After doing this, he gave an order to the spy, who was still waiting for his instructions: "Captains, please come in. ”

The spies who received the order immediately retreated, and the four Wing Captains walked in one after the other.

"Gentlemen, please be seated." Ren Kuroshima gestured, and sat down first. So the Wing Commanders came over and sat down on his left and right sides—except for Tabe Masasashi of the Second Infantry Wing. He was still standing and had something to say.

"Captain Kuroshima, we agree that the time has come to reveal your full plan, otherwise, it will be difficult for us to convince junior officers and rank-and-file soldiers. At the same time, the division headquarters and Lieutenant General Kodama have put tremendous pressure on us, and if we do not give a reasonable explanation, we may be dismissed. ”

There were a few things he didn't say: initially, Kuroshima had said that his plan had the support of the upper echelons of the Empire, but now the situation seems to indicate that either the upper echelons of the Empire who supported him had changed their minds, or that his plan had not been supported from the top from the beginning, and that it was just his own actions.

The stakes of the plan have increased significantly, but now that things have come to this point, and they have done so much, Tabe and his colleagues are still interested in it.

It's just that they want to know what kind of plan he has put in place, so that they can figure out how risky it is.

Kuroshima nodded, asked Tabe to sit down again, and after a few seconds of hesitation, he raised his voice and announced to the officers who were looking at him with concern, "I can understand your difficulties. But don't worry, because the purpose of this meeting is to reveal my full plan. ”

The officers all straightened up, even though they had been straight.

Their reaction pleased Kuroshima. He smiled and began to explain his plan. "As I have told you, the ultimate goal of my plan is to restore the Formosa to the Empire of Japan, which had been ceded by corrupt politicians. This plan consists of two parts: the first step is to slow down the withdrawal of troops and keep the imperial troops here as much as possible, and at the same time to provide weapons to the rebel organization of the Qing Dynasty to support them in launching an armed rebellion in the Qing country, and the second step is to direct the stranded imperial troops to launch a counteroffensive against the Chinese resistance forces after the rebellion of the League has caused turmoil in the Qing country, destroy them, and occupy the island by force.

"Occupation by force?"

"Occupation by force."

"But the imperial government has mortgaged this island to the Mi people." Tabe Masato reminded, "If our army takes Formosa by force, it will inevitably trigger a political conflict between the empire and the United States." ”

Nodding approvingly, Kimura Masashi Hengsa of the 3rd Infantry Wing added: "What's more, this is just our private action, and the imperial government will definitely try its best to distance ties in order to avoid a political conflict with the United States that will lead to a war between the two countries." At that point, not only will we not be able to get support, but we will be tried in absentia by military courts. ”

"Your plan can't be carried out, Captain Kuroshima." Kenmitsu Nakasa Tsugawa of the 5th Infantry Wing bluntly expressed his opposition.

Kuroshima shook his head regretfully. Tabe Masaoshi and his colleagues are just ordinary soldiers, mid-level officers, who have no qualifications or channels to know the secrets of the state, whether they belong to their own country or to other countries. Then he smiled a little and went on to explain his grand plan: "If the people of the Mi Kingdom did not make a proposal to the Qing government to buy Formosa, then the concerns of the princes are correct and cannot be ignored. However, the fact that the Mi consortium had made a takeover proposal to the Qing government a few months earlier created an opportunity for us to realize our plans by force. ”

"Is your information reliable, Captain Kuroshima?" The 4th Infantry Wing asked. He felt that the news of Kuroshima Ren was beyond the scope of his comprehension: the purpose of the rice country to seize Formosa from the empire was only to sell it again? This is not like how a country should behave.

His confusion was also that of everyone else, and it had been the confusion of Ren Kuroshima as well - he still remembered his reaction when he first heard the news: he didn't say a word for five minutes because of the shock.

Kuroshima Ren smiled to himself and replied, "Please don't doubt the authenticity of the news. Although it is beyond the imagination of the kings, it is indeed true. ”

The officers talked in low voices for a while.

"If so, then the Empire does have a chance." Tabe Masaoshi still spoke on behalf of everyone, "However, will the Qing government accept the proposal of the Mikuni Foundation?" ”

"If the Qing government will not accept the proposal, then Qin Lang will definitely not put it forward." Kuroshima frowned imperceptibly. Using Qin Lang as a means to elevate the authenticity of his judgment was not what he wanted, but there was no way but to do so.

It's just that he can't judge its actual effect yet, and the officers' first reaction is that they don't believe their ears.

"Qin Lang? That Chinese general of the United States? Does this matter have anything to do with him? Tabe asked.

Kuroshima had a look on his face that was by no means joking—and he wasn't joking. "It is certain that it was his plan, and even to take Formosa from the Empire through a mortgage. According to my judgment, his original goal was to sell the island. ”

"What's in it for him?" The officers still did not understand.

"According to my estimates, this business can make him tens of millions of dollars." Of course, it's an exaggerated estimate, but Kuroshima knows that his audience won't care. Secretly following their reactions, he continued: "On the other hand, he was able to gain a good reputation and maintain the territorial integrity of his homeland. Although, in reality, his plan would have pitted the Qing nation in a miserable situation, and it would take many years for the Qing government to fully fill the financial hole caused by the huge expenditure on the purchase of this island, or never be able to—"

He paused, feeling that he was talking too much about unnecessary things, and that he had a tendency to go off-topic. It took a moment to adjust his thinking, and Kuroshima Ren started again. "In short, the Qing government will definitely accept the proposal of the Mi Guo Foundation. And what we need to wait for is the moment when the agreement is signed. ”

The officers had already seen the last key point of his plan: once the Qing government signed an agreement with the Mi Guo Foundation, Formosa would be the territory of the Qing and would no longer belong to the Mi State. As a result, the imperial army could launch a full-scale attack and occupy the island again - the Japanese Empire could not yet challenge the United States, but the Qing Kingdom, it was only a small meaning.

There's just one problem.

"Will the government interfere with the actions of the Imperial Army?"

"Of course not. The people of the United States only care if they get the ransom, but that has nothing to do with the actions of the Imperial army. Kuroshima replied.

The people of the United States will never indicate in the agreement that they will guarantee the sovereignty of the Qing government over Formosa; If they do, they are not Americans, they are fools.

Hitoshi Kuroshima is confident.

However, the officers were not as confident as him: "What about Qin Lang? ”

"He won't do anything, because it has nothing to do with him either—it is the Qing government that has lost the country, and it is the Qing government that has to take responsibility." Kuroshima Ren still looked extremely confident, but this time, his confidence was actually not that strong: for him, Qin Lang was still a mystery to be observed and studied.

And he had already intervened in Formosa's affairs: the weapons and ammunition that the Resistance had received would never have been paid for by the gangs in China, they were not so rich and not so generous. And the latest intelligence shows that each resistance group has a large number of trained volunteers from overseas, and only Qin Lang can do this kind of thing.

Although there is still no hard evidence to point against him.

It's just that Kuroshima Ren still can't conclude Qin Lang's intentions: all the published evidence shows that he is extremely cold to the Qing State and does not care about its fate in the slightest. If this evidence is not a deliberate disguise, then only one conclusion can be drawn that his active involvement in the affairs of Formosa was only to drive away the power of the Japanese Empire, so that his plan to resell the island could be carried out smoothly and successfully.

From the point of view of his personal logic, Kuroshima was not willing to accept this inference, but for now, it was for the best, otherwise there would be big trouble - he could not even convince a few wing captains. They are not cowards, but they do not risk their future.

In particular, Tabe Masaoshi and Kimura Masatosa, they only need to take one more step forward to be promoted to major general. Who would joke with their future at such a juncture?

Therefore, he had to convince them that the plan was not dangerous, that it would be realized, and that in the end they would be able to get the promotion and the award they wanted.

Of course, this last point is very easy to achieve, and as long as the plan is successful, even if it is a privately carried out plan without approval, the Imperial soldiers responsible for formulating and implementing it can still be rewarded. The Captains knew that, and that was the only reason they wanted to sit here.

Kuroshima shook his head secretly. Perhaps it would be a better idea to contact the officers of the rank of junior and lieutenant directly, who have less worries and are patriotic and impulsive......

"If that's the case, Captain Kuroshima, we'll give you your full support." Tabe Masao's voice pulled Kuroshima back to reality, "It's just that we still want to know when the Qing government will sign that agreement, after all, we can't stay here for a long time." ”

"Unfortunately, I can't answer that question." Kuroshima admitted, taking a step back, then two steps forward, "but we can get the Kiyo government to speed things up." Once the Allies will carry out an insurrection as planned-"

"You said that it would lead to political turmoil in the Qing Kingdom."

"Yes, then we can persuade the Qing government to sign an agreement immediately to win back the hearts and minds of the Qing people." His tone became brisk, "Gentlemen, I can bet that even if we don't do this, Qin Lang and the Mi Kingdom Consortium will do the same." (To be continued, if you want to know what will happen next, please log in to the www.qidian.com, more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!) (To be continued.) )