Episode 128 The Benefits of the Age of Appeasement

As the situation in the land battlefield in the northeast became clearer and clearer, the Japanese army showed a trend of inevitable defeat. In other words, although the Ming Dynasty is still nominally fighting on two fronts, it has basically gotten rid of two-front operations on land. If the Ming Dynasty is still fighting on two fronts, it only means that it is fighting against the Soviet Union on land and Japan at sea. But naval and land warfare do not conflict, they are each a set, neither competing with each other for transport lines nor for forces. This is very different from fighting on two fronts at the same time on land.

Now Daming knows in his heart that Japan wants peace talks very much. Daming also wanted peace talks, so that he could quickly and completely get rid of the war with Japan and go all out to deal with the Soviet Union. However, Daming also knew in his heart that now that he took the initiative to propose peace talks, Japan would inevitably demand that the place in his hands be retained, that is, Heilongjiang. Because it is still under the control of the Japanese army. Heilongjiang does not share a border with North Korea, so Japan will inevitably demand another corridor linking the two. The problem is that Daming doesn't want to give Japan Heilongjiang, and he doesn't want to give any corridors, and there are still a bunch of "careerists" and "hawks" in the cabinet and the high command, like Shen Rongxuan and Xiang Xiaoqiang, who still have ideas like "Ryukyu **".

What's next? Now the military and political leaders of the Ming Dynasty, whether it is the cabinet or the military, are divided into two factions.

If Japan can honestly return to Korea and restore the areas controlled by the two sides to the state before the signing of the secret treaty on the "partition of the Northern Qing Dynasty," then an armistice can really be considered. That is to say, in order to end the unification war as soon as possible, the Ming Dynasty originally signed an agreement to cede Manchu and Mongolia controlled by the Northern Qing Dynasty to Japan, but now after fighting with Japan, Manchu and Mongolia have been recovered. That's a pretty good deal. The key point is that this will also allow Japan to quickly withdraw the more than 100,000 troops entrenched in Heilongjiang, so that the Ming army can free up its hands to cross the border from Heilongjiang and attack the Far East part of the Soviet Union.

The other faction is the hawks, represented by Shen Rongxuan in the cabinet and represented by Xiang Xiaoqiang in the military. This faction advocated that there could be no peace talks and that the hundreds of thousands of Japanese troops should be wiped out. Now that the war situation in the northeast is obviously very favorable to the Ming army, and it can destroy the Japanese army in one go, why should there be peace talks? If it is only the reason of "fear of casualties", then there is no need for the Ming army to exist.

Now the Ming army is not at the same level as the Japanese army, at least in the army, whether it is the level of equipment or the level of logistics. The Ming army's aviation force was more than twice that of the Japanese army, the armored force was more than three times that of the Japanese army, the strength of the ground artillery deployment was more than five times that of the Japanese army, and the supply of ammunition was dozens of times that of the Japanese army - the supply line of the Japanese army had been completely cut off, and there was no follow-up ammunition supply. The major arsenals of the former Northern Qing Dynasty were producing the best ammunition at full capacity, and they were constantly being transported out of Shanhaiguan by train every day.

There is also the fuel advantage – oil tankers from Sumatra dock in Guangdong every day, and crude oil is piped directly to the major refineries along the coast. And a large number of new finished gasoline and diesel products leaving the factory every day are also being transported to the north by train. As for Japan, not to mention that there is not much fuel left in the remnants of the army in Heilongjiang, it is difficult to say how long the fuel reserves in Japan can last.

In Xiang Xiaoqiang's words: With such a huge strategic advantage, if there are still peace talks, then the so-called "great power advantage" of the Ming Dynasty will be discounted by at least half. Several hawkish generals of the military strongly advocated that they should take advantage of the victory to pursue the attack, give full play to the superiority of the Ming army in air, artillery, armor, and light weapons, and launch a large-scale campaign to completely annihilate the hundreds of thousands of Japanese troops.

The Lord-Peace faction retorted that although the Soviet Union and Japan were now inseparable, they now had a common enemy. Once Japan is forced into a hurry, and the Soviet Union is begged to let the Soviet army directly provide ammunition and fuel to the Japanese army in Heilongjiang, it will be troublesome.

And the hawks also retorted that it was even more necessary to attack as soon as possible and hurry up to destroy these Japanese troops. Many of the calibers and models of ammunition used by the Soviet and Japanese armies were different. The Soviet army did not know the location, number, and number of Japanese troops, as well as the terrain, roads, and traffic conditions on the Heilongjiang side, and even if the Soviet Union was willing to send ammunition and fuel directly, it did not mean that it would be delivered. The Ming army could take advantage of this opportunity to attack decisively, dividing five by two, one hundred, and breaking the thoughts of both sides.

……

Both sides argued, and both thought they had a point. It stands to reason that the hawks' side is more advantageous, because Shen Rongxuan, the first minister, is on this side. However, in the military, Tang Yunsheng, chief of the General Staff, was relatively conservative and tended to fight steadily and steadily, and should pull one to fight the other, that is, he should first achieve an armistice with one of the two Japanese and Soviet Unions, and then he could concentrate his forces against the other. It's too risky to start a war with two at the same time. In particular, more than 100,000 Japanese troops were in Heilongjiang, very close to the Soviet Far East Army, and the two sides could echo at any time, which was more dangerous. There is not a single marshal on the hawks' side, and the highest rank is Xiang Xiaoqiang, a lieutenant general. And then there were a few more major generals. In short, the strength is relatively thin.

After arguing for two days, Xiang Xiaoqiang was also anxious. Today, I went to a meeting after dinner, and it was almost eleven o'clock at night when I came back from the meeting. After taking a shower in the bathroom, I went back to my private room and went to bed exhausted.

Tonight it's Xiuxiu's turn to "accompany".

Xiang Xiaoqiang feels that his wives have a great advantage, that is, they are not only his confidantes, but also the right-hand men of his career. A lot of things can be talked about at will, even if you are lying under the covers, you can not shy away from it, and there is no need to worry about confidentiality or non-confidentiality. Because his wife, who sleeps next to him at night, is the colleague who participates in the planning with him during the day.

Now, Xiang Xiaoqiang is lying in the dark, muttering and complaining to Xiuxiu beside him, complaining about the old stubbornness of the General Staff, and complaining that the opportunity to solve the Japanese problem will be lost in their hands. Xiuxiu crouched in Xiang Xiaoqiang's arm, and did not interject, just listened understandingly, occasionally echoing a few sentences.

Ventilation openings in the ceiling slowly send out cold air. The room was cool, dry and comfortable. That's one of the great things about living in a fortress. Although the rooms are not as spacious and luxurious as those at home, they have central air conditioning that is unique to cave fortifications. This is an extremely rare enjoyment in this era.

It's so easy, after complaining to Xiaoqiang, I'm sleepy, and when I didn't say a word in a daze, Xiuxiu spoke softly:

"Your Excellency."

"Hmm...... Well? ”

"My lord, if we want to completely solve the Japanese problem, what will the big Western powers such as Britain, France, and the United States think?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do they want to see us completely defeat Japan and then dominate the Far East?"

Xiang Xiaoqiang's drowsiness was dispelled at once. He came to his senses and turned over. Staring at Xiuxiu's reflective eyes in the dark, he said:

"Not bad. I've thought about this question too. Even our traditional allies do not want to see us lose our checks and balances in the Far East and become a monopoly. Then no matter how friendly we are, they will worry about their Far Eastern interests. Especially the colonies of the South Seas. ”

Xiuxiu quietly continued:

"My lord, what do Britain, France and the United States want to see the most?"

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled and said:

"Of course, we are evenly matched with Japan. - Of course, we are already dominant on land, but we must be evenly matched at sea. Britain, France and the United States are most concerned about the South Seas, so they will only focus on the balance of power at sea. …… But after all, they are traditional allies, and they don't want us to lose. Japan is the dominant country at sea, and this result is even more unacceptable to them. Because Japan is noticeably more belligerent. The entire state system is a war machine, and no one is worried. ”

Xiuxiu also smiled and said:

"So, my lord...... You say, who do the Western powers want us to fight the most now? ”

"Hehe, then you still need to ask, the Soviet Union."

秀秀 says:

"Not bad. If we defeat Japan and become a monopoly, the West will of course see it as a threat. But the number one and most dangerous threat to the West was the Soviet Union, the Bolsheviks. We are now at war with the Soviet Union, which is very popular in the international community. Hehe...... Don't say that our Ming Dynasty is such a good country, even if it is twice as bad, as bad as Japan, as bad as Germany - but as long as we fight with the Soviet Union, then we are a good country in the eyes of the whole world. For the Western powers, we are the ones who need to be constantly co-opted and connived at. …… My lord, you say no. ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang was slightly surprised, he didn't expect Xiuxiu to say so thoroughly in a few words. He never knew before that Xiuxiu also had such insights into international politics?

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled:

"Well, Xiuxiu, that's a good point...... You go on to say. ”

Xiuxiu said "um" and continued to whisper:

"As long as we can fight the Soviet Union,—— or convince the Western powers that we will fight to the death against the Soviet Union, then no matter what we do now, they will condone us. Or rather, appeasement of us. ”

Xiang Xiaoqiang understood at once and blurted out:

"Yes, even if we completely wipe out Japan and become a dominant player in East Asia, as long as we are still enemies of the Soviet Union, the Western countries will not say half a 'no' to us! Hehe, Xiuxiu, I see what you mean. This is precisely the reason why we cannot negotiate with Japan and must solve the Japanese problem in one go, and it is also the reason why we must immediately eliminate the Japanese army in Northeast China: As long as the Soviet Union remains there, even if we occupy Japan, the Western countries will have to rely on us, and they will give us all kinds of assistance, because they expect us to fight the Soviet Union after we finish fighting Japan. But if we fight the Soviet Union first, and then try to fight Japan after the Soviet Union, then we may not get much support. Not to mention aiding us, if Japan is in a tight situation, there may be countries that will come to Japan's aid. ”

Xiuxiu smiled shallowly and nodded:

"yes."

Xiang Xiaoqiang was overjoyed, and said continuously:

"Okay, good, that's a good way to say, I'll say that to those old stubborns tomorrow...... Oh yes, Xiuxiu......"

Xiang Xiaoqiang grinned and said:

"Did you come up with this truth yourself, or did you ...... Or did my mother-in-law teach you? ”

Xiuxiu was taken aback, shook her head twice, and said with a smile:

"Well, really...... I can't hide it from your eyes. Hey...... Hehe......"