- Tokyo, Japan

If Song Zheyuan's mood at this time was contradictory and entangled, the entire Japanese military circles would be in chaos.

When the news of the Wanping Incident reached the Japanese General Staff Headquarters, the first person to get the news was the head of the First Department of the Japanese General Staff Headquarters at this time, the so-called greatest genius of the Japanese Army, and the main planner of the 918 Incident. As the main planner of the September 18 Incident, he is now an out-and-out non-expansionist, and he is not awakened to the act of aggression, but he believes that it is the Soviet Union and the United States that are really hindering Japan's outward expansion, and that Japan's five-year war readiness development plan aimed at dealing with the Soviet Union and the United States in "Manchuria" is currently underway, so in guiding the war, we should not abandon the set long-term goal because of accidental incidents and consume our strength in the quagmire of the Chinese war, and created an opportunity for the Soviet Union and the United States to take advantage of Japan.

Therefore, the incident cannot be expanded. Ishihara immediately explained this policy to the chief of staff of the palace. In the name of the General Staff Headquarters, he immediately ordered that in order to prevent the incident from escalating, further use of force should be avoided.

Ishihara, who was in the General Staff Headquarters, did not want to expand the war, but he himself was famous all over the world for not obeying the command of 918 and finally conquering Manchuria for Japan, so where was he qualified to let his juniors obey the order?

The most frustrating thing was that a large group of unrelated Japanese officers became as excited as they ate gunpowder.

The commander of the Kwantung Army, Kenkichi Ueda, the chief of staff, Hideki Tojo, the governor of Korea, Minamijiro, and the commander of the Korean army, Kuniaaki Koiso, jointly sent a letter to the Japanese cabinet, demanding that troops be sent immediately to teach the Shina government a lesson, and that Masanobu Tsuji and Takayoshi Tanaka be sent to the front line to cheer up the Japanese army.

However, not all of the Chinese garrisons in Tianjin supported the expansion of the war, and Junhisa Ikeda, the chief of staff of operations, was against the expansion, and he went directly to the room of Tashiro Wanichiro, who was already critically ill at this time, and said to Tashiro Wanichiro, "If our army is mired in China, then what should we do against the Soviet Union?" What about Britain and the United States? ”

Tashiro Wanichiro was tossed by illness, where did he have the strength to answer him, and Kazuki Kiyoji beside him said, "With the combat effectiveness of our imperial army, I think we can solve the main force of China in half a year at most, and when we have the entire China, are we still afraid that they will not succeed in the Soviet Union and Britain and the United States." ”

Masanobu Tsuji, who was next to him, said incitingly, "Our Kwantung Army is all ready, and our bombers can take off to Pingjin at any time to help fight." ”

Ikeda said angrily, "Isn't Ishihara your teacher?" Why don't you even listen to his orders? ”

Masanobu Tsuji sneered, "Ishihara-kun sitting in the office has lost the courage of the emperor's warriors, are you too?" And I'm not emulating what Ishihara-kun did in Manchuria? ”

Junhisa Ikeda threatened, "Okay, if you Kwantung Army dare to send bombers, I will dare to send fighter jets to take it down!" ”

The two of them stared at each other and were unwilling to retreat, and they fainted again when Tashiro Wanichiro was angry.

At this time, the Japanese cabinet was also arguing, and everyone had different opinions on whether to start a war against China immediately and on the scale of the war.

On the one hand, the navy already looked down on the army red deer, especially now that a squadron was completely wiped out and a wing was besieged at the beginning of the battle, thinking that such a record would simply be a shame for the imperial army.

Lu Xiang Sugiyama Yuan was angry and wanted to drop the cup on the spot, and said excitedly: "If we forget it like this, what prestige will our Imperial Japanese Army have in the international community in the future, I am afraid that not only North China, but also Manchuria will have more and more anti-Japanese activities." ”

When Konoe Fumiro heard this, it made sense, he was actually half angry at the army's attitude of doing its own thing, but if it really swept away the majesty of the imperial army like this, I'm afraid it would not be appropriate.

Mitsumasa Yonechi sneered, "Please don't bring the defeat of the army to our navy, only your army will be disgraced, and the majesty of our navy can be well on the ocean." ”

Sugiyama glared at Mitsumasa Yonechi as if he wanted to eat him.

At this time, the opinion of the General Staff Headquarters was submitted, and Konoe Fumiro still knew about the famous Ishihara Waner, and when he saw his suggestion, he was moved again, and thought that the current Japanese army in North China was indeed insufficient in strength, and once the war started, he did not dare to say that he would ensure victory, and he was not ready, so he simply waited for the next time, anyway, the excuse for fighting could be found at any time. After thinking about it, Konoe Fumiro concluded, "We must put the lives of the warriors of the Imperial Army first, and first solve this problem through negotiation, and if it cannot be solved, it is not too late to talk about the next step." ”

The next day, the Japanese cabinet also welcomed the Minister of Land, Sugiyama Moto, the chief of the military section of the General Staff Headquarters, Tanaka Shinichi, and the third section chief, Muto Akira, to visit Konoe again, and put forward the idea that the army wanted to increase troops in North China and teach the 29th Army a lesson, and at the same time brought a telegram from the Kwantung Army, the Korean Army, and the North China garrison army asking for war, and proposed that "since the Xi'an Incident, the original civil war situation in China has ended." Now red and white cooperation, all of them are united. Diplomatic relations with Britain, the United States, Germany, and the Soviet Union are increasing, and preparations for war against Japan are also being carried out with great urgency, so it is necessary to launch a war against China before preparations are made, and the Kwantung Army and the Korean Army are now ready to do so. If we give up, I am afraid that the battle will become more and more difficult in the future. And this time the Imperial Army has been disgraced, I am afraid that the first person His Majesty the Emperor will be angry with is Your Excellency. ”

Konoe Fumiro has only been forming a cabinet for only a month, and he doesn't care how difficult the battle is or how many people will die. Don't you want him to step down now? Suddenly changed his mind and decided to expand the war. Immediately on the 11th, the five-phase cabinet meeting was reconvened.

July 11 at 11 p.m

When the meeting of the five prime ministers of Japan was officially convened, when they heard that Fumihiro Konoe suddenly changed his mind and decided to expand the war, the foreign minister and the land minister were naturally happy, but Mitsumasa Yonechi expressed his opposition, and Mitsumasa Yonechi opposed it not because he was a messenger of peace, but because he was different from the army's general pro-German, he was a pro-British and American faction, so he believed that if the war was expanded, it would inevitably affect relations with Britain and the United States.

Lu Xiang Sugiyama Yuan can be said to be full of ambition at this time, and said with a smile: "In order to fight better, our army hopes that the navy will assist our army in Tianjin." ”

Mitsumasa Yonechi said as if a nerve reflex: "The fleet is used to defend the country, not to be used casually to fight a war, and the fleet is used to defend the country, not to be used casually to fight a war." ”

Sugiyama has the urge to smash this pesky navy face with a cup again.

In the end, it was Konoe Fumiro who played the round and said, "Okay, let's stop arguing, I propose to vote and send 3 divisions and 18 flying squadrons to North China to prepare for the war." ”

Except for Mitsumasa Yonechi who did not speak, the other four said that they passed.

15 o'clock

Konoe Fumiro convened a cabinet meeting and voted to approve a resolution on expanding operations against China.

16 o'clock

Fumiro Konoe met with the Emperor, who approved the decision on the spot to increase the number of troops in China.

17 o'clock

The head of the Fushimi Palace's military command department met with the emperor and asked for permission to send the navy to cooperate in the battle, and the emperor approved it on the spot.

18 o'clock

The Japanese Government issued the "Government Statement on Increasing Troops to China."

6:35 p.m

The Chief of Staff issued Provisional Command No. 56, ordering the commander of the Kwantung Army to send the 1st and 11th brigades and regiments and a unit of the Air Force Group (two squadrons each of reconnaissance, combat, and bombers) under his jurisdiction to North China to accept the command of the commander of the Chinese garrison. Among them, the 1st Brigade of Sakai Hoji was even more excited to set off overnight and went straight to Beiping.

8:40 p.m

The Japanese Military Department issued the 20th Division with the No. 57 Provisional Order, ordering the division to quickly reach North China and be incorporated into the Chinese garrison army.

In just one afternoon, the Japanese government changed from not expanding the operation to expanding the war, and dispatched troops as quickly as possible, and this astonishing speed clearly told everyone that the full-scale invasion of China was not just the idea of one or two officers and high-ranking officials, but the idea of all military and political officials at that time, and their joint efforts made the war in the eastern theater burn at the shortest speed.

It is extremely ironic that at the same time that the Konoe cabinet decided to expand the war against China, Matsui Taikuro also signed an armistice agreement with Qin Dejun.

July 9, 1937

After learning that the First Wing was surrounded, Matsui, who had made peace talks with Qin Dechun, immediately changed his tone, and while constantly threatening an all-out war, he signaled that he was willing to use peace talks to resolve the incident, but the 29th Army needed to show enough sincerity first.

After receiving instructions from Song Zheyuan, Qin Dechun asked the Japanese army to withdraw the troops near the Longwang Temple first, and Matsui demanded that the 29th Army retreat to the west bank of the Yongding River. Qin Dechun thought about it again and again, and felt that it was acceptable for each side to take a step back, so he agreed.

Ji Xingwen, who received the order in the position of the Dragon King Temple, couldn't believe his eyes, he led his brothers to reclaim the position with hard work, and now he actually asked himself to withdraw, after many confirmations, Ji Xingwen left this position with hundreds of lives in tears.

The Dragon King Temple was abandoned by the 29th Army less than six hours after being retracted by the Chinese army, and the Japanese army took the opportunity to return to occupy the Dragon King Temple to re-arm, and the railway bridge was occupied by the Chinese and Japanese armies respectively, and the two armies faced each other across the bridge. After Qin Dechun got the news, he scolded Matsui for being shameless, but he was helpless.

But the Japanese army was not satisfied.

Matsui got the sweetness of this negotiation, and immediately after the agreement on the 9th, he demanded the withdrawal of the 29th Army from the rear route, and demanded that the 29th Army publicly apologize.

When Song Zheyuan learned about it, he thought that these were just small sections, and agreed again. The encirclement of the 1st Wing was thus opened.

Matsui proposed a renegotiation for the fourth time, and this time he had a new request.

Qin Dechun was so angry that he couldn't bear it anymore and demanded that a formal agreement must be signed this time.

When Matsui heard this, he said, "Okay, the last thing we Japanese are afraid of is an agreement."

As a result, the Qin Dechun Matsui Agreement was immediately signed, which was as follows: (1) The representatives of the 29th Army apologized to the Japanese army, punished those responsible, and were responsible for preventing similar incidents from provoking in the future; (2) The proximity of the Chinese army to the Japanese troops stationed in Fengtai was likely to cause incidents, so the security forces around Lugou Bridge City and the Longwangmiao area were replaced by security forces; (3) In view of the fact that this incident was conceived under the guidance of the Lanyi Society, the Red Party, and other anti-Japanese organizations, measures should be taken in the future and completely banned.

This agreement was signed at 8 p.m. on July 11, 1937, when the Japanese division officially received the order to transfer troops.

When this agreement was put in front of Song Zheyuan, Song Zheyuan's mood was extremely complicated, on the one hand, he hoped that this piece of paper could really help him keep Pingjin, and on the other hand, there was a voice in his heart that kept shouting not to believe in this agreement.

Zhang Yueting said worriedly, "Our army has just sent a telegram, and now that such an agreement has been signed, I'm afraid——"

Song Zheyuan shook his head and said, "As long as we can keep Pingjin and keep our territory, what if we are scolded?" What's more, there is no substantial loss of sovereignty in our agreement, and we have done our best! ”

When Chiang learned that the 29th Army and the Japanese army were secretly negotiating peace, he immediately sent Xiong Bin to Baoding and promised the 29th Army that if bullets and military reality were needed, the central government would replenish them. However, Song Zheyuan euphemistically said that the July 7 Incident had been resolved peacefully, and hoped that the central government would not be too nervous.

When the first phase of the 77 Incident ended, Jiang Cheng was working in the United States for his stockings plan.

After Jiang Cheng transported the first batch of arms to Yan'an, he immediately returned to Heitie Island and brought the arms equipped to his troops to Shanghai in the Republic of China, which was already July 7, Jiang Cheng knew that he had not yet had a butterfly effect to the intensity of the situation in North China, and understood that Song Zheyuan would still be like in history, so he wrote a small book and handed it to Li Qian for safekeeping.

Jiang Cheng shook his head and pulled Wang Yong, who was salivating to see the new weapon, and said, "After a while, you may go north to carry out a mission, Li Qian is from Tianjin, listen to her advice more when the time comes." ”

Wang Yong nodded to show that he understood, but at that time, the eyes that looked at the AK-47M from time to time betrayed him, and he was still only a soldier king, not a qualified special operations commander.

Jiang Cheng couldn't help but have a headache for not having a good special forces officer, and thought of Zhou Weiguo, who had a one-sided relationship, and didn't know how he was now. Shaking his head to delete these distracting thoughts, Jiang Cheng went to look at Huang Jinrong and the others again, and found that Huang Jinrong still looked like I was not leaving, so he had to give up, and the first batch of international students had already gone to sea. Hitler in Germany also welcomed Chinese students, and of course, the borrowing fee was not low.

In fact, the industrial equipment that Jiang Cheng bought from the United States is not a complete industrial system, whether it is three acids and two alkalis, or the equipment that can synthesize ammonia and make coal tar is not complete. Sulfuric acid has pyrite and bile alum as raw materials, but hydrochloric acid requires a lot of electricity, as for the important material of nitric acid saltpeter in Shaanxi, although it is mainly distributed in Hanzhong, there are also some small mines in the red area, and there are toilets and other soil methods to make nitrate.

The best manufacturing method of soda ash in China is Hou Debang's Hou's alkali method, but this method will be invented in 43 years, and now Hou Debang is working as a factory director in Nanjing, and is very valued by Jiang Zhong, at this time, he has no way to turn to Yan'an, so he can only provide his own technology to digest those scientists who are about to go to Yan'an.

And caustic soda needs soda ash as raw material to manufacture, and don't think about it before the success of soda ash industrialization.

Therefore, at this time, Yan'an could only produce nitric acid and sulfuric acid, and the rest still needed research talents and college students from Pingjin and Shanghai to come to Yan'an to digest and develop.

There is also the problem of refractory bricks that must be used in factories, and now Yan'an can only use soil methods to make refractory bricks, which is also very restrictive to industrial development in the later period.

Jiang Cheng is also helpless about this, after all, the talents in Yan'an at this time cannot be described as scarce, it is simply a talent desert.

Jiang Cheng thought that if the stockings were sold in the United States, DuPont would really be rough, so he simply wore back to Heitie Island and crossed to the United States with hundreds of guns and ammunition, Jiang Cheng was unwilling to see what Song Zheyuan did in the Republic of China, so he simply went to the United States to prepare for the sale of stockings, after all, once China went to war, Shanghai's business would have to be completely abandoned, and he could only develop overseas markets as soon as possible in order to provide financial help for the upcoming long war.