Their plan was basically the same as the previous one, the first was to besiege them economically, implement group tribes, control all the places where the democratic coalition forces were in trouble, and separate the people from them. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 infoThe second is to send out all the people in the hand who have seen the bandits before, and let them go out, and use money and status to pull all the people who can pull them over. Third, send a large force to crusade.

The crusade begins in the summer, and begins with the summer grain harvest, when all the grain is put into the granary, and they are starved. Aim to eliminate this force by next fall.

The forces dispatched for the crusade were all dispatched except for the troops guarding the border in the east, west, and north. At present, the mobilized military strength is about 100,000 imperial troops and 40,000 Manchurian troops. All police were dispatched.

This time, Major General An Qin Yanzaburo reported a new situation, or a new conclusion, that is, judging from the intelligence collection in the past year, the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army is a unit supported by the Soviet Union, and its core force is Soviet equipment, and its combat effectiveness is very strong. The elimination of this core force can only be achieved by using the regular army and conducting a large-scale war.

After listening to the report, Umezu Mijiro didn't say a word.

Lieutenant General Iimura said, "Please share the opinions of the 2nd Division, the 4th Division, the 23rd Division, and the 7th Division." ”

An Qin Yan Saburo said: "Several generals such as Yasui Fujiji and Sawada Shigeru of the Second Division put forward a new strategy for the Soviet Union after returning to the team. Although they left the army, their successors, Yoshimoto Sadachi, Yamashita Fumi, and others agreed with their strategy, believing that they should not focus on the Northeast Volunteer Army, as long as the Soviet Union was defeated, the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army would not be defeated. If we attack the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army first, the Soviet Union will inevitably come to their aid, and then we will be caught in a battle with the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army and will not be able to complete our plan against the Soviet Union. ”

Lieutenant General Iimura said: "When these generals and their subordinates were fleeing from the wind and snow in the Great Khing'an Mountains, they made this plan with reference to the plan for the destruction of the communication lines of the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army. Today, this plan is limited only to the Kwantung Army, since it is not yet official. Many people disagree, believing that the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army should be eliminated first. ”

Umezu Mijiro heard this and asked, "What is the relationship between the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army and the Eighth Route Army?" ”

Lieutenant General Iimura said, "Based on the current information, it is not certain. Intelligence from Chongqing showed that they had contacts and were under command from Yan'an. However, intelligence in Vladivostok showed that they were under Soviet command. However, the intelligence agencies believed that they were an army with ties to both Yan'an and the Soviet Union, and that they had a strong sense of independence. ”

Because of the paralysis of the entire Northeast espionage system, the intelligence is very vague. This Kwantung Army judgment caused trouble. For example, last year, the Kwantung Army, based on intelligence, believed that the anti-Manchurian army in Manchuria had collapsed, so there was no crusade, and power was invested in the Battle of Nomenkan, which caused great pressure on the Manchurian transportation line and led to the defeat of the campaign.

Umezu Mijiro said, "Everyone has worked hard. Very good. The work has progressed a lot from a month ago. As for the strategy, since there is a controversy, let's get the situation clear. In addition, when formulating plans, it is necessary to study more examples of war in North China. The report I brought with me from North China gave a detailed account of the characteristics of the Communist army. We must not underestimate the enemy. ”

It is clear to everyone that this is a negation of the battle plan.

Umezu Mijiro said: "Once again, I would like to emphasize to all units that they cannot act without unified deployment. Violators. No matter how brilliant the results of the battle, they must also be dealt with by military law. ”

The meeting was adjourned, and Umezu Mijiro left the conference room first. Iimura followed. The two entered the small conference room, and Iimura said, "The economic report you want has come out." The data is bad. While incomes have increased by 15 per cent, prices have risen by 80 per cent. As a result, real incomes fell by roughly 60 percent. ”

Umezu Mijiro: "Where is the main decline?" It is difficult for the state treasury to afford our military expenditures, and at present, many materials cannot be distributed, and only the income from Manchuria can be solved. ”

Iimura said: "The main thing is that the planting area has shrunk by 50 percent compared with last year, and if it is compared with four years ago, the planting area has shrunk by 95 percent. Now, in order to continue to sell, I have to import**. Sales in North China are okay, sales in Manchuria are not good. ”

Umezu Mijiro: "Those people in the Black Dragon Society are the main force in the ** industry. What did they do not do? ”

Iimura said: "I don't know the specific reason, but a few years ago, some organizations such as the Black Dragon Society were hit by a huge blow, and almost all the Black Dragon Society that operated ** were assassinated. These organizations soon weakened because they did not have the Manchurian eyeliner. ”

Umezu Mijiro: "The officials of Manchuria are incompetent!" The country can only be governed if it is all handed over to the imperial army. You organize a group and agree on a fund-raising plan. We need to get the money there by the fall, so that we can put trained recruits on the battlefield by the time the winter comes. ”

Iimura said, "Yes." Plans are already being made. If the finances are not good, we simply cannot fight. ”

Umezu Mijiro has been busy rescuing Hailar's troops this year, especially this winter. In this matter, the troops used up the reserves of the Kwantung Army, and also consumed half of Japan's military supplies. The food was fine, but the consumption of fuel for the aircraft caused the base camp to be very dissatisfied with the Kwantung Army.

The most dissatisfied is the Navy. The navy and the army have been competing for military spending and military supplies for many years, and the contradictions have been very fierce. Japan is an island country with many fishermen and a strong navy. The navy is very powerful in the ruling class of the whole country. The Army was a little overwhelmed.

In order to obtain more fuel to rescue Hailar, the army repeatedly enlisted the emperor's personal interrogation, hoping that the navy would transfer some of the fuel to the army. The navy resolutely refused to allow it, demanding that they open the railway. The Kwantung Army spent more money and manpower on the railway, and repairing the railway and repairing the bridge in the severe cold was extremely difficult, not to mention, sometimes it was simply impossible.

Almost all the strength of the Qiqihar front-line troops was invested in the railway, and Hailar also invested a large amount of manpower and food to send the west side of the Great Xing'an Mountains to open up the railway to the east. They had planned that even if a few railways were not connected, some of them would use pack horses to transport grain, but unfortunately the railway front was too long, and there were constantly new explosion points, and food and other materials did not leave Zhalantun at all.

Now that spring has begun, the communication lines have been opened, and the pressure is gone, but the economy of Manchuria has also collapsed.

Umezu Mijiro: "How's that radio station doing?" He remembered another annoyance. This radio station was not directly troubled, but the base camp attached great importance to it and kept asking the Kwantung Army to find out the background of the radio station and destroy it.

Iimura said: "The radio station has been ascertained and is run by the Northeast Democratic Alliance Army with the funding of the Soviet Union. At present, the location of the radio station is preliminarily judged to be around Yichun. ”

Umezu Mijiro: "Their equipment is so advanced and powerful that even Japan can receive it." It should be the most advanced equipment in the world right now. Continue to reconnoitre, strive to destroy. ”

He himself had a judgment that this radio station was actually very likely to be on the territory of the Soviet Union, in Vladivostok. If this is true, then the task of destroying the radio station can only be done by shooting spies.

Iimura annoyed him with those plans again.

Umezu Mijiro: "Regarding several plans to eliminate the anti-Japanese coalition forces, the first plan was too contemptuous of this unit. They are not simple, they are troops supported by the Soviet Union, and I am afraid that the old methods of dealing with bandits will not work. The second again attaches too much importance to this unit, they will not have the same combat effectiveness as the Soviet army. No planes, no tanks, no armored vehicles, no heavy artillery. Even a county town is not capable of occupying it, so it depends on familiarity with the terrain. ”

Iimura said: "We are in a situation where we are fighting on two sides in Manchuria. ”

Umezu Mijiro: "Always be aware that our main enemy is the Soviet Union. I really appreciate the plans of Toji Yasui and Shigeru Sawada. We don't call it Project Blizzard. Now, the War Department is studying why the Nomenkan incident failed. I think the most important thing is the line of communication. This Hailar time once again illustrates the importance of this plan. Many people only pay attention to the fact that the transport capacity of the USSR was very strong at that time, and if the Far Eastern Railway had been destroyed, would cars still be able to transport? If their railroad breaks, our good soldiers will defeat the Soviet soldiers. ”

Iimura said, "That's what I appreciate about these plans. ”

Umezu Yoshijiro: "The crux of the matter, the War Department, the Cabinet, and even the Emperor himself, want to go south, not north. If you don't have the certainty of killing with one hit, you can't act rashly. ”

Iimura said: "Actually, the secret service also put forward a plan, which is a top-secret plan. It was the commander-in-chief who assassinated them, Lu Xiaoming, Lieutenant General Lu. ”

Umezu Mijiro: "In North China, we mainly adopted the strategy of separating the Eighth Route Army from the common people, and punished the people who collaborated with bandits. The effect is still good. Use these methods as a reference when making your plans. How's the progress of the Pioneer Group now? ”

Iimura said: "The pioneer group is actually the root of solving all these problems, but it is too slow. If it is implemented for ten years, then we will need soldiers, soldiers, materials, and materials. So, we have stepped up our operations recently, and tens of thousands of people have come recently, and we have gradually sent them down, trying to settle down before the spring planting. ”

Umezu Mijiro: "That's the solution. Be sure to stick to it. Fourteen or fifteen-year-old boys who come now will be able to enlist in the army in three years. As for the crusade, it can be started in a local area of Dongbiando. Try it out. In addition, the Suijia Railway has stepped up construction and strived to complete it as soon as possible. ”

Iimura said, "It will definitely be completed by the end of this year." By that time, we will be able to move our troops faster. ”

The Suijia Railway is a railway from Suihua to Jiamusi, on the north bank of the Songhua River at the southern foot of the Xiaoxing'an Mountains, from west to east. This railway was an important communication artery for the attack on Yichun, and it was also the lifeblood of the plundering of the Xiaoxing'an Mountains. In previous years, the construction of the railway had been harassed, and it was not far from Yichun, so there was talk of whether to stop it. The Kwantung Army insisted on continuing to build the railway, using it as a passage to attack Yichun.

Strangely, in the past year, there has been a lot less harassment, and a few steps do not affect the construction of the railway.