"Since four months ago, the independent country has begun to provide weapons support to the Chinese army on a large scale. The Imperial Army has increasingly encountered the China army equipped with Independence guns, including chariots and land planes piloted by Independence mercenaries, which has severely hindered our offensive on the Territory of China. And it is precisely because of this blatant intervention of the independence that the government of China has repeatedly ignored the peaceful construction of the imperial side and has chosen to continue the war, and we must ......fight back with the utmost determination," Umezu Mijiro, commander of the Japanese Kwantung Army, wrote in his report to the base camp.

"The main forces of the Independence Fleet began to gradually assemble towards the Far East. Half a year ago, they had only one small fleet in Singapore, but now they have two large task forces in Manila and Cam Ranh Bay. According to the information we have, the other side has a total of no less than 10 regular air carriers, including 2~3 'Duyi' type maritime aviation fortresses with a standard displacement of more than 60,000 tons. In order to prevent an accidental conflict, the main forces of the Combined Fleet have withdrawn from the South China Sea and are focused on controlling the coastal areas of China. However, this is not a long-term solution to the current situation. As time passed, the line-up of the Independence Fleet that rushed from Europe to the Far East only grew stronger and stronger, and eventually formed an overwhelming advantage over the Combined Fleet; Compared to Lucia 35 years ago, the overall suppression of the combined fleet by the independent navy today is even better! In addition to the ever-expanding lineup, the Combined Fleet is also beginning to face the problem of fuel shortages: if it is not solved in time, we will be severely restricted from warships to aircraft......," Yamamoto Isoroku, commander of the Combined Fleet, also wrote worriedly in his report.

By the time of the Mid-Autumn Festival of 1940, the situation of the Japanese base camp had become increasingly severe: it was not only the long-delayed continental war situation ahead. It is also about the oil embargo imposed on Japan by the forces led by Germany. Except for Germany. The Netherlands, who controlled Indonesia, and the defeated United States, were involved in the operation: the Netherlands had been under intense pressure from Japan to move south since the end of the Russo-Japanese War. It was obviously more than happy to be able to follow behind Germany and fight this robber who was eyeing him; And the United States, which has been removed from its claws and teeth, can only advance and retreat with Germany in the field of the oil embargo in the face of German pressure. Moreover, Germany has also made a tempting condition that the US government cannot refuse: as long as the joint sanctions are successful, Germany will make Japan significantly reduce its demand for reparations against the United States. Under such coercion and inducement, how could the White House not immediately comply?

It was only then that the Japanese base camp finally felt a trace of tension and panic. Neither Korea, nor East Asia, nor the Philippines, nor California, which they control, have found any large oil fields capable of supporting the operation of their own warplanes; The oil producing areas of the United States are all inland and eastern, and it is really not all the extravagance that Japan has to offer, which even Hawaii did not take at the time of the armistice. And in the present. The world's industrial civilization has already fully entered the oil age led by the internal combustion engine, once there is no drive of this black viscous liquid, any industrial country will suffer unbearable catastrophic damage!

Japan, feeling the severity of the situation, began to contact the German government in order to obtain the understanding of the other side within a framework acceptable to it; Berlin's attitude, however, was unusually resolute that Japan must respect the Plymouth Peace Treaty signed in 1905 and fully withdraw its troops from Chinese mainland. This situation made the Japanese base camp feel a mixture of anger and hatred. You must know that whether it was the 1895 Three-Power Intervention to Return Liao, the 1905 Japan-Russia War End of War Agreement, or the 1923 Four-Power Pact, Japan was forced to give up the fruits of its victory on the battlefield at the negotiating table, which made countless citizens regard it as a great shame for civilian diplomacy. At present, the military government is determined to give Japan a well-deserved right. How can he break his word and get fat, and once again shrink back into his shell like a turtle and steal his life in shame?

In the furious clamor of the army and the right-wing forces. The engagement of understanding between the Japanese government and Germany soon reached a dead end. The far-right organizations in Japan even said: "Whoever dares to abandon the land that hundreds of thousands of Yamato samurai have bought with their loyal bones and blood will inevitably make him regret living in this world!" Prime Minister Mitsumasa Mine, who advocated understanding-based negotiations with Germany, soon resigned from his post under tremendous pressure; Fumiro Konoe, who is known as a hawk, was ordered to re-emerge and form a cabinet and became the 15th prime minister of the Showa era in 13. And with the departure of Mitsumasa Yoneuchi, the last shred of rational prudence in the Japanese base camp is gone; On October 21, the Japanese government, which was controlled by the Imperial Army, broke off negotiations with Germany and responded to Germany's support for the Chongqing government by announcing the severance of diplomatic relations with Germany.

"There is nothing to be afraid of in a single country!" In the past few days, the Japanese military and civilians have been filled with this similar voice. The military set a precedent for the Russo-Japanese War, talking about the fact that the extremely long geographical distance would create unimaginable obstacles to the attackers: there was no reason why Japan, which was fighting the enemy's 1st Brigade with the strength of the whole country, would fail. The old accounts of the Battle of Tsushima were also turned up by the navy, which was used as a powerful basis for boosting the morale of the base camp and arguing that the enemy fleet would be defeated. The only thing that makes Japan a little jealous is the other side's nuclear weapons. However, after some careful argumentation, the base camp came to the conclusion that there were many restrictions on the use of this weapon; As long as you can resist the enemy outside the absolute defense circle, the local area can be as safe as Mount Tai!

After deciding to further increase the number of troops on the mainland, the generals and staff officers at all levels of the Japanese base camp also began to intensively plan for the war against Germany. The officers were full of excitement and anticipation for the future, and after more than 40 years of humiliation and restrictions, they were finally able to let go and make a big difference in the land of East Asia. After a lapse of 35 years, Japan's warplanes finally began to operate in full swing again, and countless hot-blooded young men who had been poisoned by militarist ideology loaded with guns and boarded merchant ships bound for the Asian continent. This time, however, the chariot rumbled to the abyss of hell from which it could never return.

When Newwright informed Qingying of the news that Japan had severed diplomatic relations with him, he saw that the emperor in front of him had a calm face, as if he did not have any psychological fluctuations because of the rebellion against the country that had maintained friendship for 25 years. Faintly, Newright had an inexplicable feeling, as if since the outbreak of war on the Asian continent, the emperor had deliberately forced Japan step by step to become an enemy of Germany, without making any effort to return to ease in the process! As Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, he did not have the right to know the decisive wedge planted by Qing Ying in Vladivostok in the Far East, let alone the unique soul of the other party, which was not confined to this era; All he knew was that the empire, which had just been at peace for more than three years, was very likely to face war again in a short period of time. Although the enemy does not have the industrial strength of the United States, it is far away on the other side of the world 14,000 kilometers away, and they are no longer as weak as the United States, which advocates freedom and human rights, and the whole process of the war will be a long and bloody journey of killing.

"Rest assured, this war will not last long. If we had a qiē shun lì, we would have won before the National Day in three months' time. As if seeing the hesitation in the foreign minister's heart, Qingying smiled indifferently and said confidently. Seeing the stunned Newwright, Qingying spoke again: "In addition, please tell Marshal Raeder that our fleets in the Far East will be on increased alert and remain vigilant in battle at all times." In order to win the victory, the Japanese will most likely launch an undeclared sneak attack on our fleet, as in the case of the Arthur Mouth raid, and the German Navy must not repeat the tragedy of the Russian First Pacific Fleet. ”

It was a moment before Newwright recovered from his great shock. The Emperor's optimistic estimation of war had turned his cognitive world upside down, and if it weren't for the other party's words, he would have regarded it as the babble of a mentally ill person! Seeing that the other party was as calm as ever, Newwright just saluted respectfully; Now that the other party has already planned a qiē, then he just needs to follow and wait and see the situation!

In the early morning of December 7, 1940, just as the Manila port in the Philippines was ushering in the rising sun as usual, the piercing air raid sirens sounded extremely suddenly in the sky. The German radar soldier Kruman found the echo signals of a large number of aircraft nearly 200 kilometers to the northwest, and when there was no response to two ciphertext calls, he decisively pressed the button of the air defense alarm. As the screaming sound of the horn echoed over the harbor, the whole base began to operate sharply in an instant: the pilots threw away half of their breakfast and rushed to the location of the landline, and the fighter planes soon flew in swarms like bees out of their holes; All kinds of large and small anti-aircraft guns are like thorny forests pointing straight to the sky, reflecting the cold brilliance of the forest under the illumination of the sun. The warships anchored in the harbor began to sail out quickly, the whole process swiftly and without panic; The German fleet did not give the other side a chance to take off in the harbor because of its early precautions, and the replenishment and maintenance of the ships were carried out according to a strict schedule. Even if the enemy fighter suddenly arrives, it can leave the port in time to avoid it except for the ships that are docked for maintenance; The main fleet cruising overseas will also turn around at the first time to search for and strike at the enemy fleet.

"Your Majesty, the Japanese ambassador has handed us a declaration of war!" At the same time, in the Berlin Imperial Palace on the other side of the world, Qingying, who was about to sleep peacefully, suddenly received an urgent call from Newwright. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, and then he turned off the light in front of the bed. (To be continued......)

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