Chapter 763 provokes Qingbo

On the river, small boats rushed forward desperately. Trying to rush to Mary. Next to the Lady Wood, rescuing the people who had fallen into the water.

"Tom ......" The Japanese army sank Mary. Mrs. Wood stopped the slaughter of the crew members of the lifeboats. They simply machine-gun the lifeboats were forced to move towards them.

And for the boats of the Central Army that tried to rush over, they were not welcome. There was a furious bombardment at them, and countless boats were covered by Japanese artillery fire as soon as they left the dock.

Without any preparation or defense, the dinghy was bombed and flew wildly. Countless soldiers of the Central Army screamed and were overturned from the boat, and they couldn't even get out for more than ten meters.

The Japanese mobilized more than 10 gunboats this time, in order to be able to completely and completely defeat Mary. The Lady Wood was sunk. Even for this reason, they also relaxed their defense of Nanjing.

The sound of "boom, boom, boom ......" artillery continued to roar, and the Japanese artillery fire had begun to pull forward. Bombarded towards the dock, even Chen Cheng, Dai Li, and the others had to leave the dock under the pull of their subordinates.

Watching the soldiers who had been herded into the boat scatter in all directions, the operation was declared a failure to any avail. Leicester and others on the river were pulled onto the boat by the Japanese army in a trembling state.

"I protest! I protest against your violation of the agreement and open fire on unarmed cruise ships! This is a violation of the Geneva Conventions and your agreement with the British Empire! You guys are provoking! It's a massacre! It's ......"

As soon as he stepped onto the Japanese gunboat, Lester began to roar like a lion. It's a pity that these Japanese soldiers basically don't understand English, and no one cares what he says.

After yelling for a while, Lester's words were interrupted.

"I'm sorry, but we opened fire because one of you violated our agreement." A Japanese officer who spoke half-baked English walked out, looked at Lester and said coldly.

"Some of you actually brought out the commander of the Central Army in Wuchang City. When we rescued you, we were already very humanitarian. You have taken advantage of our kindness and done things that hurt us. You know, I can see your actions as entering a war, and I have every right to kill you! ”

The words of this Japanese officer directly made Lester dumbfounded. Unable to say a word, Lester had actually suspected the problem from the beginning.

However, it is still uncertain, and secondly, Japan has a precedent of attacking even though it knew that it was a U.S. warship. Lester subconsciously felt that the Japanese did the same this time.

But when the Japanese officer said this, Lester faltered.

"I'm sorry! What you say is, in my opinion, all nonsense. Unless you can produce strong evidence, I will present the matter to the Parliament of the British Empire, and as the attackers you must compensate us for our losses. and apologize for this and punish the person in charge......"

Lester was still stiff-mouthed, chattering at the officer. This may have become a habit for the British, who will babble on and on about their rights, even if they are not good.

Subconsciously, they still think that they are the "empire on which the sun never sets". didn't know that the sunset that belonged to them had already set. They are no longer the empire that once roamed the world.

"You can talk to my chief about these things." The Japanese officer was obviously extremely impatient, and waved at Leicester: "Now, all you have to do is stay on my ship honestly. I'll keep you safe, but if someone tries to make a dangerous move, then we'll treat it as an emergency! ”

As he spoke, the Japanese officer waved his hand, and several Japanese sailors rushed up. Leicester knew that it would be useless to say anything more, so he reluctantly snorted twice and left the deck under the escort of the sailors.

The rest of Mary. Most of the crew of the Lady Wood were rescued. With the exception of some of the unlucky ones who were hit, most of them were taken from the lifeboats to the Japanese gunboats.

At the same time, the headlights on the gunboat were all turned on. The irradiated water is sparkling, and they are looking for any fish that have slipped through the net. At the same time, they are also looking for anyone who is trying to sneak away.

The fishing boats that had been requisitioned earlier were also sailed out, and the Japanese troops began to launch a landing operation on the wharf of Wuchang City. The headlights on the shore were erected, and countless fishing boats launched a dragnet search on the water.

After the defeat on the shore, the morale of the Central Army seemed to plummet. Even the basic defense was gone, and Chen Cheng and the others withdrew to Wuchang City, and there was chaos in their hearts.

Jiang Zhongzheng didn't know whether he was alive or dead, and they didn't have any intention to command the battle at all. Chen Cheng and the others are like this, and the officers and soldiers below are even more in a mess.

The wharf was occupied by the Japanese in just three or two clicks, and they even took advantage of this time to dig out one fortification after another. The follow-up soldiers were constantly sent by fishing boats to the wharf of Wuchang City, and after a while, more than a brigade of troops gathered on the wharf.

And Chen Cheng, who returned to the headquarters, was in a mess, he knew that once Jiang Zhongzheng really had a problem, then many people in the entire Wuchang City and even Chongqing would be finished together.

However, it was urgent that the pier should not be occupied by the Japanese army. Someone has already run in to report that the dock has been successfully landed by the Japanese army because of the chaos just now. Now the Japanese army is constantly increasing its forces and trying to launch an attack on the city of Wuchang.

"Order the ministries to hold the docks! All reserves advanced in the direction of the pier. Chen Cheng took a deep breath, everything had already happened, even if he thought about it too much, it was just a fantasy.

But if the Japanese army really came in, then they and others would definitely die.

"The whole country was electrified, and the Japanese army brazenly tore up the agreement in defiance of the agreement and launched an attack on the British cruise ship. And taking advantage of the fact that our troops were not on guard, they launched an attack on the dock of Wuchang City. We strongly condemn this! and to file a complaint with the League of Nations requesting assistance from the British Empire, the United States of America, etc......"

This order is issued in the name of the chairman. At the same time, we call on all walks of life across the country to actively resist Japan! Expelle the Japanese from China! After all, Chen Cheng is called the "little chairman", and he naturally has two hands between his actions.

At this time, it was important to stabilize people's hearts, and all the orders he issued were in the name of Jiang Zhongzheng. caused the false appearance that Jiang Zhongzheng was still in Wuchang, whether Jiang Zhongzheng is dead or alive now, this point is extremely important.

The adjutant received the order and went down to convey it to the troops. And all the reserves in the entire Wuchang City also began to act, and those troops who had withdrawn from the front line continued to kill towards the docks.

But without fire support, they simply could not make much progress under the fire of the Japanese army.

"Boom, boom...... Sudden ...... of gunfire and explosions resounded throughout Wuchang City. The Japanese troops on the dock roared strangely and fought with the Central Army.

With its own firepower and the fortifications that had just been built, the Japanese army withstood the counterattack of the Central Army. Although the attempt to attack Wuchang City was interrupted, the various divisions were forced to shrink.

But at least they hold the line for now, although several are precarious. But the Central Army, which rushed up, was immediately suppressed by the Japanese gunboat fire.

Later, the Japanese army recaptured it, and the Japanese troops on the other side were not idle. Through the requisitioned fishing boats and other continuous transfer of troops to the wharf, the two sides suddenly became evenly matched.

Amid the shouts and fights, the sky gradually became lighter.

At this time, about the Japanese attack on the British merchant ship Mary. News of the Lady Wood has spread around the world. Enraged, Chamberlain was interrupted at dinner and received news of the sinking of his merchant ship, and immediately sent a telegram to Ribbentrop.

Ribbentrop was also extremely nervous when he got Chamberlain's telegram, and first found Hitler to report the situation. Then he called Hiroshi Oshima and asked him to explain what was going on.

Oshima was not as nervous as Ribbentrop had imagined, and he handed it to Hitler with a secret telegram from the military headquarters.

"According to the information detected by our Shanghai authorities, these British people are not trustworthy. They said that they were going to pick up five priests, but in fact they were going to pick up Jiang Zhongzheng, the chairman of the national government! ”

So far, even if this is not the case, Hiroshi Oshima can only be this

I said it.

"We received the news too late, and the 10th Army, which was in charge of attacking Wuchang, launched an attack directly before it had time to report. Because if Chiang Zhongzheng escapes, half of our Imperial Japanese strategy in Wuchang will be lost for no reason......"

Hitler was not a fool either, how could he not have known that Japan should have received the news a long time ago. Otherwise, such a thing, where can a small front commander decide?!

It must have been a decision made by the Japanese military department, but it was already like this, and Hitler could only admit it.

"Oshima, I can only accept your explanation for the time being. But if there is no evidence, then you, Japan, must be held accountable for this. "Hitler was a little angry.

He didn't want to be a direct enemy of Britain at the moment, he had to deal with the Czechs. Then Poland, and finally France. But until this goal was achieved, Hitler did not want to come into direct conflict with Britain.

The emaciated camel is bigger than the horse, and even if Britain is in decline now, it is not yet time for Germany to attack easily. Moreover, the Anglo-French were combined, and they had a garrison in Maginot together.

Forcing them to attack Germany was not what Hitler wanted to see now.

"You and we need proof, at least we need one that corroborates what you say." Hitler said in a deep voice to Hiroshi Oshima: "This is a promise between you and us, and a promise between us and Britain. ”

Hiroshi Oshima nodded, and then saw that Hitler didn't talk anymore and left on his own. After Hiroshi Oshima left, Hitler sighed.

"These Japanese ......"

Half an hour later, Chamberlain, who was in London, received a telegram from Berlin. In the telegram, German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop gave a detailed account of the fact that "Chiang Zhongzheng tried to escape through a British cruise ship" put forward by the Japanese side.

At the same time, it states that "Japan promised that they would provide evidence, otherwise Germany would be held accountable for its commitments."

The American side did not comment immediately after receiving the news, but carefully sent a telegram of inquiry to Britain first. The British side itself was in a state of flux, and there was a lot of noise in Parliament.

It seems that Chamberlain only replied that there was something inside to this matter, and now he will not say it directly. Wait until there is conclusive evidence, and then inform the United States.

Although between Europe and the United States, there is constant intrigue. But when it comes to the interests of the white people as a whole, both sides will stand together.

This time it was Japan that attacked the British cruise ship directly, and it was under the condition that they had already promised. This shocked the United States, which was already extremely wary of Japan.

"Your Excellency, I think we should be able to agree to the purchase of battleships that the Wehrmacht has been asking us for." Washington, D.C., in a conference room at the White House.

Secretary of Commerce Daniel C. Roper whispered to Roosevelt, "Now we are not ready for war, from us to all the people. We all need time, and our interests in the three eastern provinces are already under serious threat. ”

"If Japan does this, then who can guarantee that once they invade the three eastern provinces, they will be able to guarantee our interests in the three eastern provinces?!" Daniel C. Roper glanced at everyone and continued: "You know, Japan is already extremely short of resources......

Everyone was silent, in fact, there has been a lot of debate about the sale of large battleships to the three eastern provinces. Roosevelt's own will was to sell, Morgan and several ministers were willing to sell.

But the current situation is that isolationism is extremely prevalent in the United States, and some lawmakers are using isolationism as their political selling point. Therefore, it is extremely difficult to get full support.

Moreover, the economy of the United States is gradually improving, and the wind of isolationism is becoming more prevalent. This issue is not very easy to pass, and it needs to take great political risks.

The bigger reason is that the "Washington Naval Treaty" at this time clearly stipulates that it is not possible to produce warships for backward countries, and even if it is to sell 20,000 tons of warships, it must notify the treaty countries and obtain their consent.

This is because at that time, the main force of all countries in the world was warships, and in order to ensure their own advantages, they signed such an agreement, and at the same time formed a technical barrier.

In fact, at this time, the tactical thinking of most countries was still stuck in the era of artillery and giant ships. Not only Japan, but also all countries.

Until 1942, the world was dominated by warships, which is why Japan produced the Yamato and Musashi. Until the middle of World War II, the British still used biplane carrier-based aircraft, and the United States, although they had the foresight to build aircraft carriers, in fact they did not focus on aircraft carriers.

The rise of aircraft carriers was only discovered in World War II and its strategic role was taken seriously. Speaking of this reason, it is very funny that the United States is a mess because of the attack on Pearl Harbor, which caused the main force of its battleships to be bombed.

Although it can be repaired and reused after salvage, the United States has relied on aircraft carriers for more than half a year. It is precisely because of this that the United States first discovered the role of aircraft carriers in naval warfare.

After that, they stopped the development and production of large battleships. Eventually, U.S. battleship development and production stopped at the Iowa-class battleships, while the 65,000-ton Montana-class battleships that were being developed were stranded.

And Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor with aircraft carriers was also a helpless move, and the United States had a strong defensive battery in Pearl Harbor. And there are a large number of battleships, if you use battleships to attack, you can only find death.

As a result, Japan had no choice but to attack with aircraft carriers.

And the Japanese engine did not work, and the bomb equipped at that time was 250kg. As a result, the warships that were sunk by the Japanese bomb were salvaged and could be repaired and used.

"Battleships are unlikely, after all, the Washington Treaty is there. This is what we signed, and even though Japan withdraws, we still have to abide by it. Little Morgan shrugged his shoulders and said to the crowd: "I heard that the naval officers of the Wehrmacht are very interested in our aircraft carriers, maybe we can start with this." ”

Little John's words made everyone frown, before World War II, everyone basically had the concept of a cannon giant ship. What are you doing selling an aircraft carrier?!

In fact, little John is not sweating in his heart?! But this was a secret telegram from Tu Qianjun himself, asking Little John to help get an aircraft carrier for the three eastern provinces.

Little John was also wondering in his heart, why did the commander-in-chief fall in love with the aircraft carrier?! However, since it was the other party's request, John Jr. could only help as much as he could.

At present, more than 2 million Jews have entered the three eastern provinces, living in various places. There they were not discriminated against, and of course they had to comply with the laws of the three eastern provinces.

"Hmm...... If it's an aircraft carrier, maybe we can think about it. Roosevelt asked Little John with his eyes, and after seeing Little John give an affirmative answer, Roosevelt pondered for a while and agreed.

As long as it is not a large-tonnage battleship, the chances of passage on the part of the council are very good.

Tu Qianjun didn't know at this time that the aircraft carrier he was looking forward to was coming. He pinched the information that had just been sent everywhere and locked himself in his office with no one to see.

Wang Yajiao has just received a telegram from the Japanese side, saying that Jiang Zhongzheng is trying to escape through a British cruise ship. It is because they chose to bring Mary. The Lady Wood was sunk.

However, Wuchang actively denied the matter, claiming that it was a Japanese quibble. The chairman of the committee is still in Wuchangnei, and he is directing the troops to fight a decisive battle with the Japanese army.

In order to find out the situation, Wang Yajiao urgently telegraphed the dark lines everywhere in Wuchang City. After careful investigation, it was confirmed that Jiang Zhongzheng had already left his office in the bomb shelter.

It was present at the homes of the British priests who were about to be evacuated, which means that it is possible that the Japanese were electrified.

Jiang Zhongzheng...... Is it dead or alive?! Tu Qianjun couldn't help but be silent, and his feelings about Jiang Zhongzheng, Tu Qianjun, were extremely complicated. Just like Jiang Zhongzheng's own life, it is as complicated as one or two sentences.

At noon that day, the Japanese army issued another telegram: they had found Chiang's body and captured a guard of the Presidential Guard who had escorted Chiang onto the ship.

Suddenly, the whole world was in an uproar! (To be continued)