Iron Cross

"First of all, please send a strong warning to the Soviet Union that our army will cross the border to fight back..." Just as someone was about to express his objection, he was immediately stopped by King Higashino Gongminuhiko, "Don't make trouble, listen to Ishihara-kun."

"Second, ask the German side to send a military observation team. It is best to let the Russians know that they are here. The level cannot be too low, at least a lieutenant general; third, the Kwantung Army must mobilize, secretly assemble, and hoard supplies, especially The new tank brigade must be formed as soon as possible to scare the Russians - there must be Soviet spies in Manchuria, and they will know the movements of our troops; fourth, aircraft cross-border reconnaissance, fly to wherever the location is important, but don't It's really a misfire; fifth, if possible, let the navy cooperate and conduct a landing exercise, the effect should be more realistic..."

Ishihara smiled and said: "In this way, the Soviet army thought that our army would soon give up the Soviet-Japanese neutrality treaty and cooperate with the German army to attack them. Not only did they not dare to dispatch troops from the Far East to Europe, on the contrary, they might need reinforcements from Europe. Diplomacy There will also be a lack of confidence in negotiations, which will restrain the energy of the Red Army and support the European War. Envoy Cole is a smart man, and he naturally knows how much this move is worth. We will not do it if it is less than 200 million marks, and then we will raise it domestically! 300 million marks, wouldn’t it be enough to get 500 million marks? Of course, the price can be higher during negotiations, and the price must be paid on the spot! But the bottom line must be at least 200 million marks.”

Everyone immediately started discussing that with 500 million marks, you can buy 800 Tiger tanks and more than 2,000 No. 4 tanks. Of course, you can't just buy tanks. You need aircraft, artillery, other supplies, and supporting equipment, and you also need to prepare consumables. and spare parts, but after calculation, I am very optimistic. There is no problem at all in expanding two new tank divisions (only heavy equipment costs are counted, not including light equipment and personnel). If it is not used to expand new troops, it can probably be used to improve equipment and improve combat effectiveness of 10-12 divisions.

"Okay, that's a good idea! The Kwantung Army moved its legs, said a few tough words, put on a posture, and burned some gasoline, and 200 million marks can be easily earned." Shun Tada slapped his thigh, "As expected of Ishihara-kun , full of bad ideas."

Ishihara smiled and rolled his eyes: "Are you so complimentary?"

"I think it's okay." King Higashikata Minuhiko also expressed his approval.

However, Shimomura Sada raised objections: "What if the Soviet side misjudges the situation and really starts a fight with us? This is no joke."

"Yes, it's okay to bluff, but it's troublesome to make the lie come true." King Higashikata Minuhiko, who was full of joy just now, suddenly calmed down again. He turned his eyes to Ishihara and waited for the latter to explain.

"First of all, we can look at the direction of the wind in the past few days. If the Soviet Union is not willing to declare war on us after suffering losses, then it goes without saying. There is only one word, fight! Secondly, if Stalin is not willing to fail and continues to increase the number of troops to attack, but the war will end If we don't declare and fight without defeat, then we will continue to fight head-on - in this case, it is absolutely right to seek some benefits from the German side. After all, if one more Russian dies here, there will be one less Russian to face on the Soviet-German front line. Even if the Germans come out We must also be rewarded with money; once again, Stalin chose to settle down and swallow his anger, which is even more important - the navy also raised 50% of the transit fee. We must maintain the same position as the navy! The Soviet Union is now too busy to take advantage of it! When will this opportunity be taken to rip off?”

The logical basis supporting Kanji Ishihara's judgment is that the Soviet Union was badly beaten in Europe, and the channels for receiving US aid were successively blocked. It was too busy to take care of itself, and it was unlikely that it would turn back to look specifically for Japan's bad luck. This was the strategic basis for his speculation; Of course he had also heard about the secret peace talks between the Soviet Union and Germany, but he believed that this was not enough to prompt Stalin to turn his attention and focus to the east, because even if the Soviet Union and Germany ceased the war, would the Russian People's Liberation Army and a group of Eastern European brothers still be eyeing it? What if one side has just entered into a war with Japan, and the Axis over there tears up the treaty and comes back - it is very likely based on the personality of the head of state (Hoffmann in Berlin rolled his eyes in anger, is my credibility so bad?); the last and most important thing is The point is that after the Japanese army stopped large-scale military operations in China, and the US military in Nanyang is now persuaded by the Japanese navy not to move arbitrarily, the only real war is the Indian dispatched troops, coupled with the continuous input of European resources , the military resources are completely surplus, so he can let the Kwantung Army and the Soviet Red Army fight. Fighting with 100, 200,000, 200,000 or even 300,000 troops, he believes that it can train the team - combat effectiveness depends on training, but just practicing without fighting is blind training !

Everyone heard that it made sense. The battle of the Kwantung Army was not over yet. It was completely possible to take one step and then look at the next step. It was right to contact the German side first to get some benefits. As for the transit fee, it was a bit small when you think about it. Excited - Damn, this is just lying down to collect money, the navy is cunning, road robbery can be said so elegantly, no wonder they are so rich, the army is not thick-skinned enough in comparison.

"In addition, at the same time, we can test Russia's bottom line, see the combat readiness and combat effectiveness of their troops in the Far East, and see if there is really an opportunity in the future to engulf Siberia in one fell swoop. At least Huatai Island should occupy the entire territory; I have another one The concern is that the Soviet-German armistice will probably result in Russia losing what it has gained and gaining in the east, and it will come to attack Manchuria. Now, by attacking the enemy in advance, we will allow them to carefully weigh the risks and costs of a full-scale development with us, and prevent Stalin from misjudging the situation and taking risks. Although we have more capital than them now, we still have to wait for our mecha strength to reach a higher level. "

"Ishihara-kun's business is getting better and better."

"This routine was learned from Admiral Guan Hori. He is very good at fighting and doing business. I have studied the battles he commanded. He almost never made a loss. He often showed strength when he was strong and weakness when he was weak. The Combined Fleet was full of money. The bowls were almost full and about to overflow. Which naval officer and soldier who came back from Europe with him did not get promoted and make a fortune?" Ishihara Kanji sighed, "But such a capable person is now squeezed out and has to go abroad to protect himself. It's hard to be a human being, and it's even harder to be an official in Japan. It's even harder to achieve something without offending people..."

This remark aroused sighs from everyone. Everyone generally had a good impression of Hori Teikichi. Apart from other things, the first thing the Combined Fleet did when it returned was to send equipment to the garrisons (both sea and land) on the islands in the South Pacific to strengthen firepower. So much so that Kurita Takeo, who was responsible for the specific implementation, was given the reputation of "Vice Admiral who sent weapons". How many people were grateful for this? As for the Indian Expeditionary Force, the Combined Fleet took great care of it. Not only did they provide strong support in terms of weapons, but Hori Teikichi also brought in four German Marine Brigades to help with free "labor", which made the war process very smooth. Otherwise, how could these hundreds of tons of gold be obtained so quickly? Then the Kwantung Army, the Korean Army, and the Chinese Expeditionary Force have all received benefits. It is okay to call the Navy a deer, but there is really no front-line army general who calls Admiral Hori a deer, otherwise it would be too conscienceless.

Because it involved Prince Fushimi Hiroyoshi, Prince Higashikuni Toshihiko, who was also a member of the royal family, could not comment publicly, so he had to change the subject and said: "If this thing is done, I think Ishihara-kun's military rank can also be moved. He has accomplished so many things in the past year, why can't he be a general? He is almost in the position of seniority!"

After hearing the prince's words, a bunch of people immediately began to congratulate General Ishihara, and even Shimomura Sadada, who was not a general himself but had more seniority than Ishihara Kanji (he and Prince Higashikuni Toshihiko were classmates at the Army Academy and one year older than Ishihara), also expressed his heartfelt agreement. The reason why the current army high-level is so harmonious is that a group of friends and confidants are in power. Ishihara Kanji is a person trusted by Prince Higashikuni Toshihiko, Army Minister Tada Shun is a good friend of Ishihara and was even recommended by Ishihara for his appointment, and the Vice Minister of the Army is Prince Higashikuni Toshihiko's classmate. They were in the same group with Ishihara at the Army Academy - the Army Academy cadets were formed by students of different grades. Ishihara was in the 21st class, Prince Higashikuni Toshihiko and Shimomura Sadada were both in the 20th class, and they were both outstanding and influential students of the same class, so they couldn't be more familiar with each other.

In Shimomura Sadada's view, Ishihara is Ishihara after all, and his work results in the past year are obvious to all: from the adjustment of strategic policies - orderly withdrawal of troops from mainland China, to the acquisition of resources and adjustment of armaments, they have achieved remarkable results, and for the first time began to lead the Japanese Army in the direction of modernization.

Only Ishihara shook his head in his heart: Hori Teikichi sold dozens of ships and hundreds of thousands of tons of supplies, and he was dismissed; I only sold 200 million marks, and I can become a general. The army's vision is too low. Fortunately, the army is used to suffering. The starting point is too low, and it will get better slowly.

Just like submachine guns, the army used to have the idea that they were too expensive and too lazy to equip them. Of course, the poor effect of the 100-type submachine gun developed by Japan itself was also the main reason. But after picking up the German MP-38, the Soviet PPSh, and the American Thompson submachine guns from Europe, the army's submachine gun equipment level suddenly improved by several levels, and all officers agreed to improve the close combat intensive firepower. So several arsenals started to think about imitating production, but they were all stopped by Ishihara. The reason shocked everyone at the beginning: imported goods are so cheap and the supply is large, why not buy them but make them yourself? You don’t have the concept of cost and time in your mind? After careful calculation, I felt that it was very correct. Compared with these imported goods, the price and performance of the Type 100 submachine gun were at the bottom, but the price was more than twice as expensive. It was stupid to make it.

In addition to submachine guns, the light weapons of some front-line divisions of the army also began to upgrade. They were no longer a combination of Type 38 rifles + crooked handle submachine guns, but gradually replaced with a combination of 7.7mm Type 99 rifles and light machine guns. In order to speed up production, Ishihara Kanji even decisively stopped the production line of Type 38 rifles and crooked handle submachine guns and forced them to switch production. This approach was not without criticism, but Ishihara Kanji, whose prestige was at its peak, simply disdained it. As for the old rifles that were eliminated, except for a batch of them for rear training, the rest were all sold to China together with other infantry weapons bought from Europe. Both the Kuomintang and the Communist Party and the warlord forces rushed to buy them.