Japan's defeat gave birth to an ancient idea, and the demon that had been born in the bones of the Japanese was unleashed at this time. On the outskirts of Pukou, the "Yasukuni Shrine" was completed with donations from active and retired military personnel, and more than 50 middle- and high-ranking officers of the army, headed by General Ogamitoshi Osako, gathered here to pay respects to the shrine, wearing straight military uniforms and facing the northeast with solemn expressions.

The Yasukuni Shrine was destroyed in the bombing of Tokyo, and the post-war political situation was chaotic, and various forces were vying for supreme power, so there was no time to rebuild the shrine. General Kamitoshi took the lead in organizing donations, and the reconstruction was finally completed after more than four months.

"It has been 30 years since Lord Aritomo of Yamayama County issued the "Military Admonition" and the "General Staff Headquarters Regulations", and in these 30 years, the soldiers of our Imperial Japanese Army have strictly obeyed the imperial orders and fought bravely, and have never failed to live up to their duties as soldiers."

"However, the defeat of the Sino-Japanese War caused our soldiers to suffer unexplained humiliation, and the politicians and the people poured the dirty water of defeat on our soldiers, and when they enjoyed peace, did they ever think that it was our soldiers who resolutely rushed to the enemy's chariot with their flesh and blood, did they think that it was our soldiers who endured the enemy's artillery fire, and did they think that it was our soldiers who brought prosperity to this country?"

"We lack artillery, machine guns and ammunition, no tanks, no planes, and this is the root cause of our defeat! The lack of these equipment should be borne by the government! Look at Japan today, ignorant politicians, chaebols, business owners, veterans such as Katsura Taro, who have been blinded by profits, have lost their qualifications to lead Japan. ”

"From today on, the Great Japanese Empire should be commanded by our army soldiers, and only when the soldiers rule this country can he come out of the shadow of defeat and step by step to glory!"

"Japan under the leadership of the military, all the people. Men and women, young and old, should uphold the spirit of bushido and contribute everything they have to the rise of the Japanese Empire. The zaibatsu, landlords, and business owners should all contribute everything they could to the foreign expansion of the Japanese Empire. Every grain of rice, every inch of cotton, every piece of steel, was applied to the army of the Great Japanese Empire! ”

"Take back Kagoshima, take back Taiwan, take back Manchuria, and plant the flag of the Great Japanese Empire all over China! Let me and other soldiers die on the road of foreign expansion! ”

Da Forced Kamitoshi's words are over. All the officers shouted, "Long live the Emperor!" "Long live the militarism!". The army militants calling themselves "royal faction" are fully formed, and a military coup that shocks the world is about to begin.

The plan of the militarists led by the great force was very simple, that is, to take advantage of the opportunity when their own forces were vying for power and had no time to worry about anything else, and to use the young soldiers to launch an armed coup d'état, to storm the major strategic points in Pukou City, to control all politicians and elders, and to remove obstacles for militarism to take power.

But the most clever thing about the Imperial Way faction was to get the support of Emperor Taisho and the Americans in advance. This would not only give the coup d'état of the Imperial faction a veneer of legitimacy, but also allow them to quickly obtain assistance from the Americans after the coup d'état, thereby consolidating the regime after the coup.

Although Emperor Taisho was arrogant, he was not stupid, and after he came to power, his power was controlled by the elders, military leaders, chaebols, and bureaucrats, and the emperor was almost overthrown by Katsura Taro, and he needed to use the power of the "imperial faction" to take back his power. Therefore, Emperor Taisho ostensibly spent his days doing nothing, roaming on horseback, and secretly had secret contact with the Imperial Sect. And a coup d'état plan was drawn up.

The Americans on the other side do not care which side controls Japan, as long as it is in the interests of the Americans. They don't mind propping up the royal faction to come to power. The Americans, who understood the ideas of the Imperial Daoists, even hoped that the Japanese would be completely militarized, so as to attract the firepower of China and buy time for the United States to complete the modernization of military equipment.

On the afternoon of the 27th, Matsunaga Masatoshi, who was in charge of carrying out the coup d'état, ordered the troops to disperse the crowd according to the government's instructions, and he personally led three young officers to greet the other coup coupers, and the temporary coup headquarters was set up at the 2nd Division on the outskirts of Pukou. At two o'clock, the personnel of the headquarters arrived.

"I, Lieutenant General Masatoshi Matsunaga of the 2nd Division, will lead 500 of my subordinates to carry out the operation, and these three are the young officers who lead the soldiers, Second Lieutenant Okamura Ninji, Second Lieutenant Hideki Tojo, and Second Lieutenant Yamamoto 56, the representative of the Navy."

"I am Major Rihachiro Sakanishi, representative of the Army Intelligence Department. Entrusted by Lord Aoki Kasumi, I came to be in charge of information and liaison matters, so please give me a lot of advice! ”

"I am the liaison representative of His Majesty the Emperor, Minamizojiro, and I have been asked by His Majesty to participate in this matter, but I will not express my opinion on all matters."

The last man was a tall and imposing Lieutenant MacArthur, a West Point graduate of the class of 1899 who had set a record for graduation grades. After graduation, he was appointed second lieutenant in the Engineering and Technical Corps, and in 1904 he was promoted to lieutenant. He followed his father in intelligence and served as President Roosevelt's military adjutant in 1906. After Roosevelt stepped down, MacArthur was implicated and sent to Japan as an intelligence liaison officer.

"MacArthur, the U.S. side of this incident will remain neutral, and there will be no comment until the matter is over, and there will be no help to either side."

It was enough to have this sentence, Matsunaga Masatoshi nodded to MacArthur, although the military rank is much higher, but now the Americans have the posture of being too emperor, and no one dares to offend them, even if it is only a twenty-seven-year-old lieutenant intelligence officer.

"Let me make arrangements, now the 2nd Division is under the leadership of Major General Rinda to disperse the crowd of marchers, and Major General Rinda will take the opportunity to arrange troops at various key points such as the Prime Minister's Office in Pukou to pave the way for the mutiny. According to the plan of General Osako Kamitoshi, the 2nd Division will use violent means to disperse the crowd, which means that a large number of casualties will occur in the process, and we will launch a mutiny under the pretext of 'government persecution of soldiers', and Second Lieutenant Okamura Ninji, Second Lieutenant Tojo Hideki, and Second Lieutenant Yamamoto 56 will lead all the way and occupy various key points, especially Second Lieutenant Okamura Ninji, and must control the Prime Minister's Office as soon as possible. Second Lieutenant Hideki Tojo, you must find Katsura Taro and other elders and control them, but do not harm them. Lieutenant Yamamoto 56, you control the residences of the heads of the major chaebols, and don't harm them. ”

"I personally led the way to capture the vital telegraph offices and newspaper offices and control the direction of public opinion. Major Rihachiro Sakanishi, please inform Lord Aoki Nobuyun-sama that the public announcement written by him will be used at that time, and Aoki-sama's words will influence the direction of public opinion and are of great importance to us. ”

"Your Excellency Nanzo, please ask His Majesty the Emperor to declare the legitimacy of the mutiny to the outside world after the success of the mutiny, and invite Lord Katsura Taro to come to the stage to form a cabinet." Minamizojiro nodded, he understood why Katsura Taro had come to the stage to form a cabinet.

But MacArthur didn't understand that the twists and turns in Eastern culture are difficult for Westerners to understand, and they can't help but pretend to understand in such a critical period: "Excuse me, why did you finally make a political enemy prime minister?" ”

Masatoshi Matsunaga politely explained: "Mr. MacArthur, after the mutiny, a prestigious figure is needed to reunite people's hearts, and Lord Katsura Taro is the most suitable person. When our Imperial Sect takes control of all the powers, Prime Minister Katsura Taro is a rag doll to us, and he will not give instructions contrary to our will. ”

There is also the word "puppet" in English, and MacArthur immediately understood: "Then, the last point is that you must not cause harm to Americans during the mutiny, even if they are Japanese with American nationality, and the factories and shops invested by the United States need to be protected." After all, we are an elected country, and if you are implicated in a mutiny, it is very likely that there will be problems in cooperation between the two countries. ”

"Mr. MacArthur can rest assured that our men will be aware of this."

After leaving the temporary headquarters, everyone walked to their respective destinations according to the division of labor, and Major Rihachiro Sakanishi of the Army Intelligence Department left in a car and went to the Intelligence Department, but their vehicle was blocked by the crowd on the road. Major Rihachiro Sakanishi asked the driver and the escort to drive back slowly, and he walked back from the alley on one side, which was faster.

Apparently a little thirsty, Major Rihachiro Sakanishi walked in and had a drink when he passed a bar, and only came out ten minutes later to return to the Intelligence Department and report to Nobujun Aoki.

At 2:30 p.m., the 2nd Division entered the city of Pukou with live ammunition, and Katsura Taro and others, who were the first to get the news, had extremely strong political sensitivity, and the 2nd Division did not obey its orders and stood still, which made the elders feel a huge crisis. At this critical juncture, whoever has the army in his hands will be able to take the lead in the political situation. The 2nd Division and possibly under the control of Prime Minister Hara Kei, so that Katsura Taro would have to have other troops to confront it, so he immediately issued an order to the 9th Division, which was far away in Yokohama, to rush to Uraguchi immediately.

Without waiting for the Ninth Division, Katsura Taro and the others heard bursts of gunfire first. The 2nd Division was attacked by the marchers while dispersing the crowd, and the soldiers who received the order immediately opened fire, even using machine guns, and more than 500 marchers were killed within an hour, and the rest of the marchers dispersed under the threat of violence. (To be continued.) )