During his stay in Ili, Qian Zhengxin also saw the rain prayer rituals of the local Chinese ignorant officials and gentry, as well as the bad customs of Chinese officials taking concubines. On the second day of his arrival in Huiyuan, a governor married a little wife, "the subordinates sent a play to celebrate", "picked a civilized marriage ceremony", and also admired the bride's demeanor: "The end is fashionable, and the charm is still good." Another time I heard at a banquet that Manager Liu, who was in charge of the livestock tax of the town office ten days ago, "bought a concubine with 3,000 gold, and the banquet of her wedding was not expensive." From this, the letter of relocation of the government inferred: "If the last rank (the petty official in the lower position) is extravagant, it will not be levied in the collection, and there will be disadvantages and confusion." He believes that Xinjiang's tax policy has great drawbacks to the rule of officials more than Chinese mainland provinces, and extravagance should be a common problem in Xinjiang and Chinese officialdom.

There are not many ordinary Xinjiang people recorded in the travel notes of the relocation of the political letter, and there are many records of Haida, the translator who accompanied him to Yanqi, and Nawu, a Manchu peasant in Gongliu County who told him about the history of the old and new armies stationed in Xinjiang.

Through Qian Zhengxin's pen about Xinjiang's customs and the activities of various figures, the Japanese Army General Staff Headquarters can understand the general situation of Xinjiang society in all aspects.

"Although Xinjiang lags behind the interior of China in all matters, according to the local gentry, in the past two years, a large number of businessmen from the mainland have come to Xinjiang, either to build factories or to do business, and many of them have official support. Although most of the Chinese troops stationed in Kazakhstan this time are Xinjiang armies, most of the weapons and equipment are provided by the mainland, and the guns and artillery are all the latest American-made models, and a number of tanks and planes have been allocated, and Xinjiang's military strength has increased a lot compared with previous years. ”

"The soldiers who entered the territory of Kazakhstan are mostly cavalry, and part of the artillery team, and there are fewer chariot soldiers, but the Chinese soldiers have airships to help, so the Soviet Russian soldiers originally stationed in Kazakhstan will collapse at the touch of a button, and they are unable to resist it, and the entire territory of Kazakhstan has been occupied by the Chinese army, and all the Kazakh departments have sworn to belong to China, and China now has the land of Siberia, and its territory is unprecedentedly vast, far better than the Han and Tang ......."

After reading the report, the expression on his face was very sad.

"If China is allowed to develop like this, Japan will not only be unable to realize the great cause of 'eight humerus and one universe', but may even be annexed by China."

"Today, we can understand why Prime Minister Hara Kei made peace with China." "Although Japan has lost Taiwan and Manchuria, as well as northern Korea, it has gained a vast land of Siberia, and if it can effectively exploit the resources there, it will have a chance to defeat China." ”

"Resources are only one aspect," General Kawai Cao nodded and said, "More importantly, technology." China has completely turned to the United States, received technical support from the United States, and with its all-out development, it has surpassed Japan in some aspects, and the technical reasons for Japan's failure to levy and support twice cannot be ignored. ”

As soon as General Kawai Cao's voice fell, there was a strange roar outside the window, and Nagata Tetsuyama heard the sound of the engine of a tank that was the latest technology imported and produced by Japan, and couldn't help but come to the window with General Kawai and look out.

Outside the window, the humble tanks were slowly driving through the streets, and beside them were groups of cavalrymen of the Guards Division riding tall horses and wearing Japanese swords.

At this moment, the cavalry wearing sabers and the rumbling tanks formed a strange picture, attracting a large number of passers-by to stop and watch.

Looking at the tanks painted with the emblem of the Japanese sun flag, Nagata Tetsuyama's heart felt a little gratified.

Japan finally had a full-fledged tank force, although the day came somewhat late.

Although long before the outbreak of World War I, Japan had established a strategic alliance with Great Britain. During World War I, although Japan sent naval and land forces to fight with the British and French armies, Japan was not enthusiastic about participating in the war in Europe, but was keen to be an "observer". From the very first moment of the tank's birth, Japanese military observers smelled the charm of the tank and transmitted information about this novel weapon back to Japan. However, the shortcomings of the early tanks, such as low speed, short life, weak firepower and poor armor, made it difficult for the Japanese top brass to accept. Coupled with the fact that tanks are expensive, tanks are not valued in the Japanese army. Therefore, at the beginning, the Japanese army only experimentally equipped a small number of tanks imported from Britain, and at the same time purchased several samples of the most advanced tanks at that time from European countries as self-developed samples. By the eve of the Vladivostok Incident in 1920, Japan had less than 100 "males", "females" and unarmed supply tanks. After the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War, 20 Japanese tanks participated in the battle for the first time in the battle of the Chinese army's attack on the Lushunkou-Jinzhou defense line garrisoned by the Japanese army, but because their speed, protection and firepower could not be compared with the Chinese tanks, they were all destroyed in the battle. In all the battles of the Liaodong Battlefield, the Chinese army participated in the battle, and for the first time in the Asian theater, it achieved the combat effect of quickly breaking through the enemy's complex defense line with a large number of dense tanks and infantry. During the Battle of Vladivostok, three Japanese British-made "Mark IV" heavy tanks encountered three Chinese "Land Patrol 1" tanks, and as a result, one Japanese tank was destroyed and the other two fled in disarray, while none of the Chinese tanks were damaged or destroyed. It was the first tank battle on record between the squadron and the Japanese army. ,

After the armistice between China and Japan joined forces to deal with Soviet Russia, a large number of advanced double-turret and single-turret tanks equipped by the Chinese army played an important role in the battle, annihilating a large number of Soviet and Russian cavalry. The advanced equipment of the Chinese army once made the Japanese generals ashamed of themselves, and the Japanese began to catch up at any cost.

At the end of the European War, the Japanese army began to purchase a number of "Mark IV" tanks from the British. And hired several groups of all-tank crews and several military advisers from the British. The aim of the British at that time was to demonstrate to the Japanese their great industrial and technological prowess, and did not want to build their own tank forces.

After the end of the war with China, tanks purchased from Britain were exhibited to the Japanese public during the "Tank Week" in Tokyo. Subsequently, the Japanese military conducted several demonstrations and tests on it. Most of these tanks were then sent to various parts of Japan and the Japanese-controlled areas in southern Korea for traveling exhibitions, and later became exhibits at the Yasukuni Shrine. Because the "Mark IV" tank did not make a very good impression on the Japanese army, and the design of this tank was backward at that time. However, this was the first time that most people in the Japanese military circles had seen tanks as a weapon, and it played a certain role in the decision of the Japanese army to equip tanks.

Soon after the introduction of British tanks, Japan developed the first practical "A" tank on its own based on British experience, but the Japanese soon discovered that this tank was not as perfect as imagined, and although it could effectively break through the enemy's positions during the exercise, it left many gaps in the battle line during the breakthrough, and could not completely destroy the remnants of the enemy army. Later, the Japanese tank designers proposed to the Japanese military department to build a lower-cost, lighter, faster, and more agile tank, which could be used to clear the battlefield gaps left by the "A" tank and use it to pursue the remnants of the enemy, just like the traditional cavalry. The War Department officially approved Triton's proposal and named the development plan for the tank "B" Hussar Fighting Vehicle".

A prototype of the light tank "B" was soon built and tested. This tank had a large fixed box-shaped turret in the rear of the tank for the crew to work in. Twin engines, specially equipped to increase power, were placed at the front of the tank, and the two engines drove the tracks on one side each. When steering, the driver must skillfully operate the accelerator and brake of both engines, and if you are not careful, the engine will stall. The in-situ special operation is usually to stop the engine on one side and the engine on the other side to work normally, but it is easy to cause the track on one side to fall off on soft ground, which is very dangerous on the battlefield. The Japanese also have a unique design, that is, the side of the track frame is sloped, and the silt is adhered to the upper part of the track body by the track and falls off, and after it falls off, it will slide down the slope to the ground, and will not fall vertically and stick to the track and load wheels. Like the "A" tank, the "B" also had a spring system in the load wheels, which caused it to travel much faster than the "A", but the actual speed on the rugged battlefield was still not as fast as the cavalry on horseback. Moreover, the gasoline tank is designed to be placed in the front of the hull, although there is armor on the outside, it is really dangerous, and even if the fuel tank is penetrated by shrapnel on the battlefield, it is easy to shoot sparks and cause the fuel tank to explode and turn the tank into a fireball. The tank capacity was too small to have a range of about 40 miles, so the tank crew was used to hanging oil drums on the outside of the hull, which was even more dangerous.

Although there were such and such shortcomings, the happy senior Japanese generals still decided to adopt it. After a series of tactical tests, the Japanese finally decided to officially equip the two tanks, and planned to buy or make more tanks in the next ten years, and about 200 tanks were built in total. At this time, the Japanese also began to explore and study tank tactics, and in the battle to attack Siberia, the first Japanese tanks and cavalry participated in the "Battle of Lermonov", which led to the crushing defeat of the Soviet Russian Red Army. At that time, two tank units and two cavalry units launched an attack on the positions of the Russian Red Army, and the battle plan was originally to open the way for the cavalry behind the tanks. But as soon as the battle began, the formation was all chaotic, first the slow tanks were left behind by the cavalry, and when the bullets and shells of the Russian Red Army kept flying, the cavalry left their tanks and hid in Tibet. Nevertheless, the result of this "cavalry and tank coordinated operation" was that the Japanese broke through the defense line of the Russian Red Army, destroyed the artillery positions in the front of the defense line, and crippled the defense of the Russian Red Army. After this battle, more Japanese tanks joined the Allied forces that armed the Russian civil war, and the Japanese army's ambition to occupy Russian territory hidden in its heart for many years was finally realized, which was the first time that the Japanese army used tanks in foreign military operations on a large scale, and accumulated experience for the development of Japanese tank tactics in the future. Although these Japanese tanks did not have the opportunity to fight the Chinese tanks, their appearance and equipment, and the victory they achieved in the battle against Soviet Russia played a significant role in improving the morale of the Japanese. ,

The Japanese cavalry officers found the tanks to be too bulky, but the infantry officers were satisfied with their combat capabilities, especially the tank's ability to turn on the spot. Since then, the tank unit of the Japanese army has been officially born. At the same time, the Japanese defined the role of tanks as supporting the infantry.

While developing tanks on its own, Japan also paid attention to absorbing and borrowing advanced technology and experience from foreign countries, and the "Renault FT" tank equipped by France attracted the attention of the Japanese, and Japan soon introduced this tank and began to imitate it.

As early as May 1916, the French company Renault began researching and manufacturing an armored vehicle, which became the "FT" tank, commonly known as the "FT-17". In total, the French ordered about 1,000 vehicles. After testing the model with a 37-mm gun, the French ordered another 650 units. By the end of the war, the French had received a total of 2,697 vehicles. By the end of World War I, 3,177 FT deliveries were recorded, of which 514 were given to U.S. troops who had fought in France and three were sold to Italy. By 1921, France had produced 3,728 FTs, including 2,100 machine guns, 1,246 guns, 39 75mm self-propelled guns, 188 command tanks, and 155 for tank school instruction.

The "FT" tank is a tank equipped with a rotating armored turret. Its turret is at the top, the engine is in the tail, and the driver is in the front. The full of the "FT" tank is riveted with steel plates, the engine is located at the rear of the hull, and there is a pair of tracks on each side of the hull. There is a rotating turret mounted on the roof of the hull. The crew of the tank consisted of 2 people, the driver and the commander and gunner. The armament is a "Haggaeus" 8 mm machine gun or a 37 mm low-rate fire semi-automatic gun.

After the defeat and surrender of Germany, a large number of "FT" tanks that were built to play car and sea tactics against German positions were useless. After the war, France dumped its stockpiled FT tanks overseas from more than a dozen countries, including Poland, Finland, Estonia, Lithuania, Romania, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, Switzerland, Belgium, Spain, Brazil, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, and, of course, Japan. So much so that the tank forces of most countries at that time were armed with "FT" tanks, and often the first tanks were equipped.

In 1920 Japan purchased 120 "FT" tanks equipped with machine guns or artillery to equip its cavalry units. The Japanese army named this tank, which appeared during World War I in 1917, the "C" tank. Japanese cavalry officers were very pleased with the thickness of their armor and their cross-country ability, but complained that they could only reach speeds of up to 7 kilometers per hour. After a series of tests and exercises, the Japanese military department decided to form at least one cavalry reconnaissance unit equipped with armored vehicles in the next two years. However, in 1922, the War Department changed its original intention and decided that only infantry could be equipped with armored vehicles. The tanks were then deployed to the army's infantry divisions.

Around 1921, some Type C tanks were replaced with Japanese-made Type 3 heavy machine guns or Type 11 37mm guns, but the original turret was too small, which made it difficult to operate the 37mm guns. So much so that later all 37-mm guns were replaced with heavy machine guns.

In addition to this, Japan also tried to develop a multi-purpose tank on its own, that is, the "D" type dual-purpose tank. The tank designed by Japan's Mitsubishi Corporation is to a large extent a technical verification of a dual-purpose military vehicle. Because on flat ground, especially on the road, wheeled vehicles can run much faster than tracked vehicles, and on rough terrain, tracked vehicles have much better off-road ability than wheels. The so-called dual-use design concept is to make a tank have both wheels and tracks, so that it can travel all over the world.

The first prototype was built in 1921. The body is basically a box-shaped body riveted with steel plates, with the front slightly sloping back. The only armament was an 8-mm machine gun mounted in the front. After testing the car, it was found that its practical application was cumbersome. It's relatively easy to switch from wheel mode to track mode, as long as the wheels are slowly raised and the original suspended track slowly lands on the ground, and it can be done in 15 minutes (it's actually long enough, isn't it by hand?). ）。 Switching from track to wheel mode was cumbersome, as the suspension system of the wheels was not designed to be strong enough to lift the tank body and tracks off the ground. To complete the changeover, the tank is first driven onto two parallel slopes of the same width as the tracks, then lowered the wheels but suspended without touching the ground, and then reversing until the wheels touch the ground. Such a conversion method is extremely troublesome. If it is on the battlefield, it is simply impossible to find ready-made two slopes. The chassis is too complex and prone to mechanical failure or external damage. Eventually, the military department lost interest in this design. And later Mitsubishi's designers also threw this brain-in-water design into the garbage heap.

Despite all these shortcomings, Japan's tank forces have been built up after all, and although Japan is still lagging behind China in terms of tanks alone, Japan's speed of catching up is unimaginable. Since Japan's industrial base is still stronger than China's, and Japan's top brass is aware of these disparities, it is not surprising that this has been achieved.

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