Episode 82 Military and Diplomatic Approach

At eight o'clock in the morning of July 7th, in the Forbidden City of Nanjing, .

First, all the military and political officials of the entire empire quickly agreed: immediately declare war on Japan and impose a blockade on Japan. Because Japan relied on imported materials to sustain the war, and even survive. At this point, Daming has the upper hand. Until now, Japan has imported most of its oil and steel from the United States. And the United States is a neutral country. Once the Ming Dynasty declares war on Japan, then Japan will not be able to buy at least a little war materials from the United States.

In other words, Japan had only two ways to do it: either to import supplies through the South Sea route, or to pass through the Ming Dynasty's control; Either imported from the Soviet Union via the Sea of Japan, which would test the capacity of the Trans-Siberian Railway and the loyalty of the Soviet Union to Japan as an ally. Of course, Japan could also cross the Pacific Ocean eastward and buy supplies from Latin America. Or across the Pacific and then across the Atlantic, buying supplies from Europe, the western tip of the Soviet Union. In that case, Japan would certainly have to pay a great price (every shipment of goods had to circumnavigate the world), and the Ming Dynasty faced the superior Japanese navy, and it seemed that there was nothing to do except engage in submarine warfare in the Pacific. And the submarine broke the diplomatic relationship, and the efficiency was very low. This may be one of the reasons why Japan dared to start a war.

The next key is how to balance the relationship between the Mingsu battlefield and tomorrow's battlefield. That is, who is the main and second on the eastern and western fronts. Or who comes first and who comes last.

This is a strategic decision and an important topic for the Imperial Council. At present, the Ming Dynasty has been in a stalemate with the Soviet army in the west, and the supply lines of both sides are very long, between the western part of Gansu and the eastern part of northern Xinjiang. Now that Japan is attacking in Northeast Asia, the Ming Dynasty is stuck in a two-front war. It is said that the Ming Dynasty is a big country, with great depth and sufficient war potential, and can withstand two-front battles, at least not as fatal as Germany. But after all, a two-front war is a two-front war, and everyone knows that this is a taboo in war. If two enemies attack in the same direction, one plus one equals two. And two enemies attack from different directions, that is, one plus one equals three, or even equals four, equals five.

After some discussions, both the cabinet and the military fully expressed their opinions, and they basically reached a consensus: first the east and then the west.

The military and political leaders unanimously held that the Soviet Union was a big country, and its national and military strength were much stronger than Japan's, and it was difficult for them to win a quick victory. Moreover, the areas where the two sides are at war are located on the "tails" of the two countries, and they are all secondary areas and non-core areas. Moreover, it is very far away from the industrial and economic centers of both sides, and it is inconvenient to supply. Therefore, this war is estimated to be a protracted stalemate, and the intensity is not large, and no one can do anything to anyone in the short term. Therefore, it is possible to take a break for a while.

Japan, on the other hand, is a small country, and its national and military strength is much weaker than that of the Soviet Union, and it is also much weaker than that of the Ming Dynasty, and it has almost no war potential. Moreover, Japan is an island country, with scarce local resources, and everything depends on imports. The Ming Dynasty could launch a diplomatic and military offensive to encircle Japan. Diplomatically, try to get as many countries as possible not to do business with Japan, and militarily attack Japan's sea lines of communication. It is relatively realistic to produce a result in the short term.

The so-called "one result" does not mean that Japan can be defeated and surrendered, but that Japan will be defeated into the sea and driven out of the Northeast Asian continent, and even that Japan will be able to sue for peace and withdraw from the war. In this way, Daming can turn around and go all out against the Soviet Union.

And Japan, although much weaker than the USSR, was much more dangerous than the USSR. Japan is next to Daming's pillow, and you can cut Daming's head with a swing of a knife. A series of political and economic centers in the eastern part of the Ming Dynasty can be said to be within the scope of Japan's attack. Many coastal ports were under the guns of Japanese warships, and even Nanjing was within the range of Japanese carrier-based aircraft. Also, now the Japanese army is attacking Mukden with all its might, and if it is not good, it will enter the Guannai and threaten the Pingjin area. Also, Japan has a navy that is stronger than the Ming Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty can threaten Japan's sea lines of communication, why can't Japan threaten the Ming Dynasty's sea lines of communication. Therefore, Japan must get rid of it as soon as possible.

……

"The battle for tomorrow is on land at the moment," said the Foreign Secretary, "but the final victory is at sea." By the way I say victory, I mean at least forcing Japan to sue for peace, so that it will spit out the land we have previously given it, and then withdraw from the war. In other words, it is mainly by blockade. And our navy is weaker than Japan, and it is impossible to surround the Japanese archipelago. At most, we will block the western side of Japan, and if Japan goes from the eastern side, our navy will have no way. At this time, it is necessary to fight for international exchanges and rely on the help of international friends. A war between two countries is, to a certain extent, like a fight between two people, in addition to seeing whose fists are hard, but also who has good popularity and wide contacts.

"And we are obviously much better than Japan in this regard. Needless to say, after we declare war, Japan will no longer be able to buy things from there. Our other main diplomatic partner is the United Kingdom. As we all know, Britain is known as the 'empire on which the sun never sets', and its sphere of influence is all over the world. As long as Britain stands with us and imposes an embargo on Japan, then not only Britain itself, but all British colonies and Commonwealth members on the planet, such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, India, South Africa, Egypt, Burma, Malaya, ...... will close the door to trade with Japan.

"Moreover, we can go further to get Britain to deny Japanese ships and warships port and resupply in British territory. This will put a lot of pressure on Japan's maritime transportation. Our ocean-going assault ships can be repaired and replenished in friendly ports around the world. In this way, even if the overall strength of our navy is at a disadvantage, it can exert its maximum efficiency. Japan is the opposite. Overseas bases are important and determine whether or not you can be resupplied and repaired far from home. It can be said that one more overseas base is more useful than a few more battleships. Hehe, this ...... Lord Fan and Lord Xiong, you navy should know better than me. ”

Navy Minister Fan Yaochen smiled and nodded:

"Lord He is right, it is true. If you can do this, the odds are really high. Our Ming Navy can be used as two and three overseas, while the Japanese Navy can only be used as two and one with three overseas. They can only find neutral countries, or countries that we don't have influence on. Only Europe and South America can be counted. At least in the South Seas, that is, in Southeast Asia and Oceania, and in the Indian Ocean, there is no place for Japanese ships. For example, in the Indian Ocean, after a naval battle, our warships can sail into the nearest friendly ports for repairs, and the Japanese ships can go back if they are slightly injured, and if they are seriously injured, then they can only explain here. ”

Xiong Dingming, chief of the General Staff of the Navy, frowned and hesitated:

"Lord Fan, Lord He, the last general is a soldier, and he is not very proficient in this political matter, so please don't be surprised if you make a mistake. The last general always felt that it was not too difficult to unite with the British embargo on Japan. But if Britain were to refuse all Japanese ships to call at ports, this would seem ...... It's a bit of a strong man's difficulty. The last general personally felt that this condition seemed too much for the British. In accordance with international practice, wounded warships can enter the ports of third countries for repair and replenishment. Even if Britain stands with us diplomatically, it has not declared war with Japan after all, and it belongs to a 'third country'. Moreover, even if Britain could refuse the entry of Japanese warships, there would be no reason for Britain to refuse the entry of Japanese civilian ships into the port for replenishment. This is not only contrary to international practice, but also to international conventions. ”

Xiong Dingming's words should be said to be relatively realistic. The relationship between Britain and the Ming Dynasty is good, but it seems that it is still difficult for Britain to blatantly violate international conventions for you.

Shen Rongxuan spoke. He laughed and said:

"This, what Master Fan and Lord Xiong said makes sense. It was indeed difficult for Britain to refuse the entry of Japanese ships. But it's not impossible. As long as there are enough benefits available in exchange. And we have what Britain wants. For example, we can do so at the cost of alienating Germany. Of course, there are others. Of course, we can't be so optimistic at the moment, and we have to plan according to what we can't do. ”

……

Next, Tang Yunsheng, chief of the general staff of the Ming army, said:

"I am not satisfied with you saying that Tingzhi has repeatedly warned me before that the Japanese army will attack the Ming Dynasty. And just yesterday, on the eve of the Japanese attack, it was precisely because of the reminder that the high command issued an order to the Mukden garrison to urgently prepare for war, avoiding the unfavorable situation of being caught off guard. Although there is a huge disparity in the strength of the enemy and us in Mukden, our army has resisted very well in Andong. This is also thanks to the foresight and courage to stand out in advance. ”

After he finished speaking, he looked at Xiang Xiaoqiang with a smile. The many civil ministers and military generals present also looked at Xiaoqiang and applauded. For a while, there was applause in the hall. Zhu Yourong sat on the first seat, and at this time he also looked at Xiang Xiaoqiang sweetly, satisfied, and applauded gently.

Xiang Xiaoqiang smiled very low-key, coughed twice, and waved his hand modestly:

"Ahem...... What, you are all my predecessors, so don't praise me like that...... I was just a fluke. ”

Tang Yunsheng smiled and said:

"After receiving the alert, there were some disagreements among the command of the General Staff, not whether Japan would attack or not, but how we should respond to the attack. At that time we all knew that the Japanese Army was going to attack from Korea, that was for sure. However, it is uncertain whether the four divisions of Mukden should be withdrawn to the pass as soon as possible to avoid being eaten, or whether they should rush to Mukden with more troops and risk greater losses and defend Mukden.

"Now we only have four ordinary army divisions in Mukden outside the Guan, and at least ten divisions of the Japanese army are attacking them. Now six hours have passed, and we find that the Japanese are not advancing as fast as we thought. Their ability to maneuver is not good. In view of this, it should not be a problem for our army to transfer reinforcements into Mukden ahead of the Japanese army. The strategic location of Mukden is too important, and if there is a glimmer of hope to defend it, we must defend it with all our might. ”