"Isn't it appropriate to rush to send military forces to the disputed areas?"

What Li Xiaofeng didn't expect was that what seemed natural to him was stuck here in Apanashchenko. The commander, who had always been extremely reckless and rude, suddenly turned into a little daughter-in-law with bound feet, and expressed her refusal in a standard official tone.

Li Xiaofeng frowned, and said coldly: "It is precisely because of the zài controversy that it is necessary to send military forces!" ”

However, Apanashchenko was still unmoved, shaking his head and refusing: "Well, it's a little bit of a border dispute, as for the fuss?" Let's ask the Military Commission first, if the Military Commission agrees, I have no opinion. ”

It seems that this time Aparna has learned to fully respect his superiors and is ready to follow the rules. However, this was not the case for Li Xiaofeng, who, after Ryushikov's defection, had foreseen a possible dispute, and after discussion, granted him and Apanashchenko the privilege of making a decision on the spot. As long as they also deem it necessary to take action, they can deploy and then escalate.

Now Li Xiaofeng just wants to use this power to make a decision on the spot, and it is clear that Apanashchenko is not ready to agree, and Piri Yangqiu expressed his denial. So why did Apanashchenko choose to refuse?

The reason was that he was a little unhappy, Li Xiaofeng slapped him in the face before, which made him quite dissatisfied with someone. Of course, there was no way to vent this dissatisfaction, especially after Voroshilov conveyed Stalin's instructions, and Apanashchenko could only hide his dissatisfaction in the bottom of his heart.

But one thing is certain, if the opportunity is right, Apanashchenko will retaliate. He's just a big old man with a rough temper. There is no way to hide hatred for long.

But. What Apanashchenko did not expect was. The opportunity for revenge was there so soon. Let him agree to transfer troops, no way!

Yes, Apanashchenko rejected Li Xiaofeng's request at once, he believed that Zhang Gufeng's affairs had nothing to do with him, it was the NKVD that caused the trouble, and it was the 59th Frontier Corps that made the matter bigger. He has no reason to wipe his ass for someone else, especially if this person else is still an enemy. Moreover, this matter can be big or small, and if action is taken, it will intensify the contradictions with Japan. He doesn't take this responsibility!

Some comrades may want to say that Apanashchenko's political sensitivity is really problematic, and that the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs has already taken up the responsibility with the Japanese, and the Japanese are actively dispatching troops. Even if it's to wipe the enemy's buttocks, it has to be wiped!

Why did Apanashchenko make this brain-dead decision, it has to start with Stalin's confession when he went to serve in the Red Banner Front in the Far East. At that time, Spain had not yet ceased to exist, and based on the sharp contradictions between the Soviet Union and Germany, Italy, and Japan, Stalin was very worried about the sudden detonation of a war, and even more worried about the simultaneous war between Germany, Italy and Japan against the Soviet Union.

This consequence was quite strict, and Stalin was highly concerned and worried. So he rode Blyukhel to China as a consultant. The efforts of the Far Eastern Red Banner Front to change the number one of the leaders arranged for his henchman Apanashchenko to go over.

At that time, he confessed: "You go to the Far East this time. While it is important to step up defense, it is more important to reduce friction with Japan, and it is better to avoid another armed conflict between the two countries. ”

Apanashchenko remembered Stalin's instructions, so after arriving in the Far East, on the one hand, he was preparing for defense, and on the other hand, he was gradually reducing friction and conflict with Japan. On many small issues, I chose to settle the matter.

Objectively speaking, Apanashchenko's choice did reduce the likelihood of another armed conflict between the Soviet Union and Japan and ease the situation on the border. But side effects are not without it. If it weren't for the outbreak of the July 7 Incident, the main force of the Japanese army tilted towards the Chinese battlefield, so that the Kwantung Army did not dare to make a mistake for the time being, and these grandsons would have kicked their noses in the face long ago.

However, Apanashchenko did not expect that at this moment and then, with the brilliant victory of the Japanese army on the Chinese battlefield, the ambition of the devil was to recover quickly. In particular, after the Kuomintang expressed a strong desire to surrender, the ruling officers felt that it was only a matter of time before China was dealt with, and it was entirely possible to transfer some troops to open up a new battlefield, such as fighting the Soviet Union again and finding a new battlefield.

Before Wang Jingwei surrendered, the ruling officers had already begun a secret plot, preparing to do another vote in the northeast. Even if Wang Jingwei's surrender was thwarted, it did not dispel the crazy thoughts of these war maniacs.

In other words, the shape of the Northeast has undergone fundamental changes, and even if Apanashchenko continues to implement the policy of "restraint", sooner or later the devil will come to the door. That is to say, even if there is no fuse of Ryushikov's defection, sooner or later there will be a war. Actively responded to Li Xiaofeng's request, this is not to help the enemy wipe his ass, but to do his job well.

It's a pity that the narrow-minded Apanashchenko got on his head and unceremoniously refused Li Xiaofeng's request, even a little gloating. It should be said that Apanashchenko is not just gloating, this guy is dead again.

Not long after refusing Li Xiaofeng's request, he sent an investigation team to Zhang Gufeng in the name of the commander of the Far Eastern Red Banner Front, and in the name of investigating the truth about the military confrontation between the Soviet Union and the puppet Manchukuo, the focus was on investigating the truth about Lieutenant Vigneviking crossing the border and killing Matsushima Liuhe.

I have to say that Apanashchenko is really an idiot, obviously he is not good at politics, but he wants laymen to guide insiders, which is death. In particular, after the investigation team he sent arrived at Zhang Gufeng, they immediately arrested Lieutenant Vigneviking, scolded the 59th Frontier Corps, and even privately negotiated with the puppet Manchurian garrison in the name of Apanashchenko.

Anyway, after Li Xiaofeng learned what Apanashchenko had done, he just sighed: "If a person wants to die, he can't stop it." ”

Why does Li Xiaofeng have such an exclamation? Quite simply, because at the same time that Apanashchenko was preparing to "go private" at this time, the diplomatic war of words between the USSR and Japan was escalating.

At that time, the Japanese ambassador to the Soviet Union, Shigemitsu Aoi, twice protested and made representations to the Soviet Union about the death of Matsumoto Rokuhe, and demanded a reply to Zhang Gufeng's status quo in the form of an ultimatum, claiming: "Japan has the right and obligation to defend the territory of 'Manchukuo.' For this reason, Japan will not hesitate to expel the Soviet troops who illegally occupied the territory of 'Manchukuo' by force! ”

It's not just Shigemitsu Aoi who is shouting. Public opinion in Japan followed suit. The Asahi Shimbun openly exaggerated the "Soviet threat theory" and advocated the use of force to defend Manchukuo.

When the Soviet Politburo instructed the People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs how to respond, Litvinov presented a copy of the text of the 1886 Sino-Russian Hunchun Eastern Boundary Treaty in front of Chongguangkui, firmly and forcefully declaring that the entire Hassanhu region, including Zhanggufeng and Shacaofeng, "belongs to Soviet territory", and then he calmly told Chongguangkui: "If you think that the threat of force can achieve the goal of intimidation, you are wrong, because you are facing the entire Soviet Union!" ”

And Litvinov also solemnly protested to Shigemitsu Aoi that the Soviet embassy in Japan was under siege, but the Japanese police were indifferent.

Outcome. The result was naturally unhappy. Incidentally, after the "Matsushima Rokuhe Incident", the Soviet Union claimed that Matsushima Rokuhe's body was lying in the Soviet Union, about three meters from the border. To put it bluntly, this means that it is reasonable and legal to kill Matsushima Liuhe, who let him cross the border illegally!

Anyway, from this series of diplomatic exchanges, we can see that the Politburo has actually come to a conclusion about the Songdao Liuhe incident and Zhang Gufeng -- a tough response. And now, Apanashchenko has dropped the chain ruthlessly, especially behind the back of his superiors to communicate with the puppet Manchukuo in private. This is an extremely strict political mistake!

Unfortunately, Apanashchenko did not realize that this was a mistake. He also believed that he was carrying out Stalin's intentions, turning the big things into small ones, and maintaining peace on the Far Eastern borders. This product is ready to be praised!

It's a pity that it is not the turn to praise Apanashchenko, because his weak response made the Kwantung Army think that the Soviet Union was fierce and inward, and this was preparing to recover the Haraha River in one fell swoop. At the same time as the diplomatic rhetoric, the Japanese army headquarters reacted by ordering the new commander of the Korean Army, Lieutenant General Kotaro Nakamura, to "assemble the troops of the Korean Army near the border according to the needs of the Korean Army, but the exercise of force must be based on a separate order."

After receiving instructions from the base camp, Kotaro Nakamura immediately gave an order to the only division he had at his disposal, the 19th Division in Ronan, North Korea, and ordered them to prepare for battle.

However, many people know very well what the Kwantung Army and the North Korean Army are best at, taking advantage of the loopholes of orders to make small moves on their own, and they are the best at it. So when the order was conveyed to the commander of the 19th Division, Lieutenant General Otaka Kamezo, this person immediately gave free reins.

Not only were the troops mobilized, but even the 75th Wing, a brigade of the 76th Wing, two mountain artillery squadrons, and a field heavy artillery brigade were all sent out in the name of reconnaissance. And that's not all, Otaka Kamizo also sent the 76th National Border Guard (with two squadrons) originally stationed in Qingxing.

It can be said that by this time, the pre-war preparations of the Japanese side were almost complete, after all, the NKVD did not have many troops in Zhanggufeng, and almost used the strength of two regiments to deal with a company. At the same time, Apanashchenko still wanted to "resolve the dispute" and did not immediately notify the Far Eastern Red Banner Front to enter a state of combat alert, and even refused to send troops in the direction of Zhang Gufeng.

To tell the truth, this state is quite dangerous, if you are not careful, the little border guards left in Zhang Gufeng will be eaten by the Japanese along with the bones!

"Do you want to do Apanashchenko's work again, the situation there is too critical!" Yakov built yì tract.

Li Xiaofeng sneered: "Someone is going to die, if he wants to make a fool of himself, why should I stop him." Sue the 59th Frontier Corps, ignore the so-called investigation team, draw a line with them, and do not carry out their orders and orders. Immediately build fortifications at Zhanggufeng and prepare for war! ”

Yakov was taken aback, and just as he was about to say something, Li Xiaofeng continued: "Inform the 1st GRU Special Warfare Brigade to assemble in the direction of Zhang Gufeng as quickly as possible, and be ready to enter the battle at any time!" ”

The KGB is in the Far East, and the only one that can be mobilized is the 1st GRU Special Operations Brigade, which directly belongs to the KGB, while the other NKVD border guards, although the Politburo and the Military Commission gave Li Xiaofeng a certain authorization, but it is very troublesome to transfer, and the only thing Li Xiaofeng can do is to inform them to improve their combat readiness.

On the morning of June 30, the final round of preparations before the Japanese launched a surprise attack began. Not armed reconnaissance. Rather, they instigated a large number of unarmed "Manchukuo petitioners" (mostly ethnic Koreans) to cross the Sino-Soviet border from the Poshet region with the so-called "Open Letter to the Soviet Government." The USSR was demanded to return the "territory of Manchukuo".

Needless to say, this is the trick of the Japanese, this is to create public opinion for themselves, and no matter how the Soviet Union responds, they have left behind the pretext of starting a war.

So how did the USSR respond? On Li Xiaofeng's orders, Colonel Grebiniko, commander of the 59th Frontier Corps, detained the illegal crossers for a short period of time in accordance with international law and then repatriated them. As for the so-called petition, the Soviet government did not respond.

However, the appearance of the petitioner immediately alarmed the 59th Frontier Corps, and Colonel Glepinniko immediately called the Military Council of the Red Banner Front of the Far East: "In view of the fact that the Japanese army openly declares that they want to capture Zhanggufeng. I would like to ask for the support of the army units stationed in Pakshekory, and I would like to ask for military reinforcements in the direction of Zhanggufeng. ”

However, Colonel Grebiniko's request did not receive any response, because the commander-in-chief of the Red Front in the Far East, Colonel-General Apanashchenko, had once again visited the grassroots level, and he had to wait for the commander-in-chief to return before making a decision.

There may be comrades who are going to wonder, why did Apanashchenko go out hunting again? Well, this time it's not really hunting, it's the commander-in-chief who went out to hide. As the war of words between the Soviet Union and Japan over the Zhang Gufeng issue gradually escalated, Apanashchenko also smelled a hint of danger. However, the message transmitted to him from the direction of Moscow was not clear, and Stalin did not tell him whether he would fight or make peace, which made Apanashchenko a little difficult to choose. In desperation, he couldn't express his opinions casually, so he could only go out to avoid the limelight for a while.

From the hindsight. Apanashchenko's move was really unwise, and it led to the passivity of the Red Army in the early stages of the battle. But the root cause is still with Stalin, so why didn't Steel give Apanashchenko a clear instruction?

The reason is that the Politburo has not come to any clear conclusion on this issue, after all, Spain has just stopped, and the Politburo is not ready to fight another fight in the Far East, and it is better if it can use diplomatic means to scare the Japanese back, if not, then fight again. At that time, the negotiations, although not going well, did not completely break down. Under these circumstances, it would certainly be unfavorable for the Soviet Union to take the lead in international public opinion, so the Politburo tended to be vigilant first to maintain the status quo and wait for Japan's response.

In Stalin's view, there was no way to give Apanashchenko any definite conclusions in this state, so he could only maintain the status quo for the first time. And in the end, the mistake is to maintain the status quo!

Stalin always thought that Apanashchenko's basic political and military sensitivities still existed, and at least he had to strengthen his guard, and with Li Xiaofeng staring at the Far East, his vigilance should be tightened, and naturally he did not need to bother to talk about it.

What Stalin didn't expect was that Apanashchenko's political wisdom was really enough, and he failed to fully understand Stalin's true intentions, thinking that maintaining the status quo was to maintain the status quo before Li Xiaofeng arrived in the Far East, that is, thinking that the above still hoped to solve the problem by peaceful means.

In Apanashchenko's view, since it is still the main peace in the end, then don't be too murderous. And Li Xiaofeng pressed it tighter, okay, so this simple-minded guy could only go out to avoid the limelight.

Of course, it cannot be ruled out that Apanashchenko deliberately demolished Li Xiaofeng's platform, because the last order he gave before evading was: "Guarding the border is first and foremost the mission of the border troops, and on the premise that there is no emergency, other units of the Far Eastern Red Banner Front should not intervene too early." ”

This order is tantamount to completely throwing the responsibility on the border guards, that is, unless the war breaks out, the main forces will not participate. The movements of the Red Army were soon transmitted back by Japanese spies, and when Otaka Kamezo learned that the Soviet Red Army had no reaction, he shouted that this was a godsend, and immediately ordered the troops that had gone forward to "reconnoitre" to carry out operations.

On July 2, Soviet border guards observed that, starting a day earlier, Japanese troops had begun to drive villagers from villages near the border. The next day, Japanese artillery positions appeared on the sandbanks and islands of the Tumen River, followed by armored trains on the railway line. Subsequently, the Japanese army built machine gun and mountain artillery positions on the Prayer Mountain (as the Soviet side called), which was 1,000 meters away from Zhanggu Peak. Even in Great Peter Bay, which was part of the territorial waters of the Soviet Union, Japanese destroyers began to appear.

Another day later, a patrol detachment of the Soviet border guards suddenly came under Japanese rifle and machine-gun fire, and a reinforced Japanese brigade occupied the Montenegrin heights in the Sino-Soviet border area and tried to cause trouble while the investigation team sent by Apanashchenko was negotiating with the puppet Manchukuo representatives.

Every indication showed that the Japanese attack was imminent, and in fact, at this time, the Japanese base camp had formed a consensus on this: "In such a narrow area, it is impossible to send a large number of troops, even if the entire division is destroyed, it does not matter, this is the best opportunity to show the Soviet Union Japan's strength!" ”

At this time, compared with Japan's sharpening of knives, the Soviet Union's preparations were quite that, and after the telegrams of the border guards requesting assistance and informing the enemy were sent to the headquarters of the Red Banner Front in the Far East, they were equivalent to sinking into the sea. Apanashchenko is still playing missing, and the others have no way to take charge of their homes, so in the end the news can only be sent to Moscow.

It is clear that the news is sent to Moscow, and it will take time to wait for Moscow to make a decision, and the Red Banner Front in the Far East is running out of time...... (To be continued......)

PS: Bow and thank you to the honorary DE nostalgia, Haochuan, hzwangdd, spike potato, agz00025 and Juventus comrades!