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Chonburi, southeast of Bangkok.

As soon as the hatch opened, the two rusty Thai Navy troop carriers slowly approached the dock, and the thin, child-like soldiers of the 18th Division, carrying large bags and small bags, were quickly unloaded.

Moments later, a slightly larger freighter docked, unloading 12 Type 89 tanks, 4 Type 92 heavy tanks, and 12 Type 94 tanks. The strangely shaped steel monsters made the Siamese laborers present deeply afraid. Takeo Imai, who disembarked with the chariot brigade, was very satisfied with this fearful look, no matter how Siam bet on both sides and struggled to survive, it was an indisputable fact that the sun had taken control of this place. Songkhla, Pattani, Bangkok's Manlong Airport, and all the railways and ports in the territory, as well as all military installations, were occupied, and now even the weak Siamese navy was in the service of the Imperial Army. With such might, is it still far from the decisive battle of encircling China?

This time he came, he completed the last link.

Soon after, he met with the commander of the 10th Army, who was in charge of the French East Indies Raiders, Heisuke Yanagawa at his headquarters in Chonburi.

"Your Excellency, it's a pleasure for you to be here."

"It's Imai Daisa, please do it."

Yanagawa Heisuke graduated from the 24th saber group of the Army University, and according to Japanese tradition, it was not appropriate for Yamashita to be promoted after completing the Malayan Campaign, and then continue to lead troops to grab credit. Therefore, the military department sent him to preside over the French East Indies, and not only handed over to him the 18th and 29th divisions that had made great contributions in attacking Nanyang, but also the 114th division from China had already been on the road and were jointly organized into the 10th Army. To put it bluntly, this is a game of sitting in rows, and the army has already laid down several times the amount of land, so of course so much credit will have to be lost. It's just that this time the exploits are a little tricky. The French East Indies are the key to shielding southwest China, and no one can say whether it will cause a major war. So when he saw Takeo Imai, he also wanted to know more about the specific situation, and immediately asked after sitting down, "Imai-kun, why did you suddenly come here?" ”

"I'm here to see General Yamashita and His Excellency Shunroku Hatata, aren't they there?"

"You're late, they're back in Singapore." Yanagawa Heisuke wrinkled his eyebrows slightly and reminded: "The big camp has handed me over this place to be in charge. ”

"Hey!" After hearing the dissatisfaction in his words, Takeo Imai hurriedly got up and nodded: "Your Excellency Lieutenant General." I'm here to report on important news. Without waiting for an answer, he immediately recounted the information collected by Kotamhiro: "We suspect that the people of China are preparing for an attack through the Lu Company. So I think the entry of the people of China has been very obvious. We have to act as soon as possible and get the Navy here to help. ”

"It's late, the Navy has already departed last night."

"How can they do that? The fleet of the Chinese is already eyeing it, why don't you attack here first?! Although Takeo Imai disdained the navy in front of Kodamaro, he accused the navy of ignoring the life and death of the army at a critical time. In fact, this kind of thing is a common thing in the Japanese army, and no one in the army and navy looks down on the other, but when it comes to a critical time, they hope that the other party will help. Of course. In the end, the result will definitely be the army fighting the army, and the navy fighting the navy.

"Imai-kun, as the emperor samurai of the Great Nippon Empire, shouldn't think about those traitors of the Satsuma Domain!" Yanagawa Heisuke stood up. Walk to the map next to it: "There is a lot of quarrel in the empire over French Indochina right now, so we need an action to shut up those cowards!" I need your help to tell me the information of the colonial army. ”

Of course, Takeo Imai knew that Japan had torn its face on the issue of China, and Nagata Tetsuyama and the navy directly refused to attack French Indochina. The matter of destroying Sino-Japanese relations even said that he would give up his interests in the oil fields. And Yanagawa Heisuke in front of him is the main battle faction of Hideki Tojo. Determined to take the entire southeastern peninsula and completely encircle China. So immediately said the disposition of the French army: "The army of the French ghost beast has entered Siem Reap in Khmer (Cambodia) and Champasak in Laos (Laos). The intention is very obvious, which is to block the Tonle Sap Lake and the southbound passage of the Mekong River. There was also a battalion of troops outside the Nanguan Pass in the town of China (the previous chapter was called Wusheng Pass), with a total strength of about 4,500 people, as well as some servant troops. Their river gunboats have also assembled at these two locations, stockpiling large quantities of military supplies and food, as well as about 40 aircraft deployed here. Your Excellency, I have already contacted the Black Dragon Society's Koyuro, and he will create some trouble in the past few days, giving you and the empire enough excuses, lest those villains stand up and sabotage again. ”

Yanagawa Heisuke heard this, smiled slightly, nodded and was about to speak, when there was a rush of footsteps outside the door. Turning his head, the new commander of the 18th Division, Hyakutake Haruyoshi, and the staff officer of the 10th Army, Masanobu Tsuji, walked in.

"Baiwujun, why are you in such a hurry? Did the people of China come? ”

Hyakutake Haruyoshi was stunned for a moment, looking at Takeo Imai beside him who seemed to understand something, but just as he was about to speak, Masanobu Tsuji was the first to shout excitedly: "Your Excellency Commander, good news!" God bless, God bless! ”

Masanobu Tsuji was very famous, and before going south, he compiled a southern combat manual that "as long as you read it, you will win", which was very appreciated by the battalion. He has made great efforts in the campaigns of Batavia, Malaya, Singapore, the Philippines and even Burma, and many battle plans are drawn up by him, so he is called the "Nanyang Military God" by the soldiers. This time, the War Department insisted on going its own way, and in order to ensure the smooth capture of the French East Indies, Yamashita deliberately left him to assist the Tenth Army. Relying on the name of "Nanyang Military God", coupled with the Japanese army staff officer's tradition of arrogance towards the officers leading the troops, he continued to shout without waiting for the three of them to speak: "It's a telegram from the battalion, the latest news, the Italians declared war on France yesterday afternoon!" That's great! The French ghost animals are finished, and even Italy is starting to rob them of their inheritance. Your Excellency, Lieutenant General, give the order to attack! We can't be stopped by those old and weak soldiers, so let Omura and Kurume's united forces attack Siem Reap at once, and after capturing it, collect ships, and then we can go down the river to occupy Phnom Penh and Saigon. ”

Baiwu Qingji frowned very much, and said in his heart, why did this guy speak lightly and heavily? Yanagawa Heisuke is commander didn't speak, but he opened his mouth to come. He asked angrily, "Your Excellency Masanobu Tsuji, our equipment and supplies haven't been delivered yet, is this too urgent?" ”

"How can you be in such a hurry? It is said in the book of soldiers that the love of soldiers is the main speed. Now even Italy has declared war. It means that the British and French ghost animals are finished, do you still have to treat guests to dinner if you don't attack quickly? As for Your Excellency's concern about logistics, I don't think it's necessary at all, and we should learn from the practice of General Yamashita, the French ghost animals have already prepared delicious food and wine for us in Siem Reap. ”

"But what about the people of China? The Shina had long been eyeing the enemy, and they had deployed three divisions northeast of Siam, two divisions outside Zhennan Pass, and a fleet in Guangzhou Bay, ready to move south. Hyakutake Haruyoshi was choked and sulked. Reminder: "If you don't prepare well, what if that person also attacks?" ”

Masanobu Tsuji shook his head, pushed his glasses with his hand, and said with a chattering attitude: "The main force of the army of the Shina people is still entangled with the Soviets in Central Asia and West Asia, even if they enter." It also takes a long time to go south from Zhennan Pass. This is not a savannah, and the rainforest and mud will slow them down, so I think it would be better to attack quickly and decisively. As long as Cam Ranh Bay and Saigon are taken, even if the Chinese troops come, they will not be able to penetrate because they have no strongholds. ”

"Alright, don't fight. I need to consult the camp on this matter. Yanagawa Heisuke interrupted the argument between the two, but was more inclined to Masanobu Tsuji's opinion. However, this matter involves the top level of the military department. Because many members of the navy and the Nagata faction blocked the attack on the French East Indies, the battalion did not give the order to attack for a long time. After thinking about it, he said, "Baiwujun, let the 55th Wing and the chariot unit set off as soon as possible." The food you need can be collected on the spot, and I will arrange other things as soon as possible. ”

"Hey!"

After Hyakutake Haruyoshi agreed, Yanagawa Heisuke immediately asked Takeo Imai to go back and make sure to cause trouble as soon as possible. Wait until he has all the attacks deployed. Only then did he carelessly send the telegram that was preparing for the attack back to the Tokyo camp.

"Stupid, stupid! They are captivated by lust! "Inside the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo. Nagata Tetsuyama slapped Yanagawa Heisuke's telegram on the table, looked at Mitsumasa Yonechi, and the color behind his glasses flashed: "It's burying the empire!" The people of China will never give up French Indochina! They are not entering now because there is an agreement with the French government. If we attack, they will find an excuse, and then it will be war! This is the most stupid thing to do, and the Imperial Government should be committed to ensuring the independence of the Indochinese government, and using this as a buffer is the most correct means! ”

After a year of struggle, Mitsumasa Yonechi finally ascended to the prime minister's throne thanks to the cooperation of the navy and Nagata Tetsuyama. However, due to the constant constraints of Hideki Tojo and the army, this position became more and more unstable. That's why he promised Yama Fifty-six to continue westward, hoping that the navy would continue to win big victories to suppress the army. So I was surprised to see this telegram, but I didn't expect the army to be ready to attack the French East Indies. And when he saw that the fight was about to start, he thought of saying hello to his prime minister.

Foreign Minister Hirota Hongyi next to him was also very angry, as a minority of sober factions, he knew too well how terrible Yang Qiu was after more than 20 years of recuperation, as evidenced by the battle of one million prisoners of war in East Kazakhstan. So don't look at the Japanese army's successive victories in Nanyang, but reason tells him that a war with China is the biggest adventure! Because the Japanese national power cannot withstand the millions of squadrons, even if the navy can achieve an initial victory, it will eventually be crushed by industrial capacity. So he immediately said, "Your Excellency Nagata is right, you should stop the adventures of Tojo and the War Department!" China is no longer the Beiyang of 50 years ago, and the role of the Soviets in the production is getting smaller and smaller. What's more, the empire still has to face pressure from the United States, and there is already clear news that Roosevelt's government has begun to arm itself, and may soon announce its entry into the war, and in this situation, it really should not provoke a war with China. ”

Mitsumasa Minei is also in a dilemma, the Anglo-French legacy is coveted, but this inheritance is particularly hot to pick up. If Britain is offended, it will be offended, anyway, there is no room for maneuver, but it is better to expel the British power east of Suez, right? Before Britain was completely driven out, the attack on the Philippines offended the United States again. If attacking the Philippines was a last resort due to the need for transportation and distance, then the War Department's attack on French Indochina was an obvious stupid decision. Britain and the United States have not yet settled, and he can't imagine offending China again. So I put down the telegram and thought for a long time before raising my head: "Hirota-kun, can you contact Shina and test it?" ”

"Yes, but the War Department's adventure must be stopped first! Otherwise everything makes no sense. Hirota Hiroki thought about it and said.

It was a matter of national fortune, Yongtian Tieshan was more anxious, picked up the telegram and bowed to Hirota Hongyi: "I'll go to the military headquarters and stop them." Hirota-kun, I'll leave the rest to you. After finishing speaking, he immediately walked to the car downstairs on crutches. But just as he walked out of the Prime Minister's Office, a vague figure suddenly appeared in front of him.

"National thief! Kill the national thief! A soldier in an army uniform suddenly burst out of the spur, pulled out his pistol and aimed it at Nagata Tetsuyama in broad daylight