Chapter 3191 Goodbye, Moment of Surrender

Just as Malashenko and his political commissar comrades were discussing Yamada Otozo's next step.

In the Kwantung Army headquarters just one district away, Yamada Otozo, who was being talked about by Malashenko, was also worried about his fate.

The Russian army, including tanks and infantry, was parked just a block away. Of course, Yamada Otozo could see it even if he was not blind, and he was more aware of his current situation.

But when it comes to how to deal with the current situation and what to do, Yamada Otsuzo is in trouble. Seeing that the time for the Russian ultimatum has expired, he is unable to make a decision.

Time passed by minute by second, and Yamada Otozo continued to wait. The feeling of suffering and anxiety was no better than that of ants on a hot pot.

"Your Excellency, Commander! Call me back, I've got a call back!"

"Nani!? Did Tokyo call back?"

Yamada Otsuzo stood up from the chair instantly and was very excited, as if he had grasped some sudden life-saving straw. However, the next words of the chief of staff undoubtedly disappointed him.

"Hi! Your Excellency Commander, but the content of the message, the content"

The Chief of Staff, who knew what the Commander was expecting, stammered for a moment and couldn't speak clearly. He was speechless for a long time.

Yamada Otsuzo, whose bad premonition was getting stronger, stopped writing, and immediately snatched the message from the chief of staff's hand, and started reading it himself without hearing the report.

It doesn't matter if you don't look at it. One look at it really made Yamada Otozo angrier and angrier. In the end, he was so angry that he slapped the table with a loud "bang".

"Baga! A common man in the military! Malu Yelang!! Totally incompetent!!!"

There was only one reason why Yamada Otsuzo was so angry that he was yelling and swearing - the people from the military headquarters asked him about surrender or war, but they neither agreed nor denied it, and they openly played a game of kicking this hot potato again. Put him back.

Nominally, he was asking the military department what to do next, whether to fight the Russians to the end or surrender depending on the situation.

But in fact, Yamada Otsuzo had already made the situation very clear in his telegram, emphasizing that "the battle can no longer be fought." It was not that he did not want to fight but that he simply could not fight.

To this day, Yamada Otsuzo, who even had his headquarters taken away by the Red Army once, has completely lost the capital to continue this battle.

There are still many remnants of the Kwantung Army on various fronts, but in fact there are almost no troops that can still be commanded and can exert valuable military significance.

The reason is also very simple. The telegrams sent by the various units that can still be contacted are either asking for help or in emergency. As for mobilization, don't even think about it. They are either tightly entangled and overwhelmed by the Russian army, or they are being destroyed. in the process of.

In this case, even retreat is a delusion. Anyone who dares to leave the position will be overtaken and intercepted by Russian tanks, followed by a steady stream of Russian troops to cover them up, and finally in the form of a torrent of steel. Completely submerge the Japanese troops who dared to retreat.

Several organized division-level troops have told the other Kwantung Army at the cost of blood not to even think about escaping in front of the Russian tracks. Various rumors and horror stories from the front reached the remnants of the Kwantung Army, and most of them were in panic all day long.

Faced with such a rotten battle situation, Yamada Otozo had long discovered that there was actually no difference between giving orders and not giving them.

The troops cannot move or fight, and the ground connections between the troops have long been cut off piece by piece by the Russians. How can we fight this battle? What do you want the troops to do? What is meaningful?

There are almost no orders to give except "continue to hold on". Yamada Otsuzo, who initially said in the telegram that "reinforcements are on the way", can no longer even say this.

There is only less than one brigade of troops left in front of the Kwantung Army Headquarters. At this time, where are there any reinforcements to send?

The situation was clearly stated in the telegram, and then an inquiry was added as to whether the war would be fought or surrendered.

Yamada Otsuzo felt that as long as the people in the military headquarters were not pig heads, they would definitely understand what he wanted to express. It would be too hasty for him, the commander of the Kwantung Army, to make the decision to surrender. It would only be appropriate if there was at least an order from the military headquarters.

Who would have thought that those smart people in the military department who were really not wetted in their brains and could still understand the twists and turns involved would not accept his trick at all.

It was obvious at a glance that Yamada Otsuzo was trying to pass the blame. He didn't want to bear the blame for the surrender himself, so he insisted on passing it on to the military in the hope of achieving "surrender as ordered."

The military department, which has its own interests, has always been at odds with the Kwantung Army Group. You don't like me, and I think you are a weakling. Naturally, it is absolutely impossible for Yamada Otsuzo, the leader of the Kwantung Army, to take the blame.

Moreover, this method is almost "impeccable". I neither say that you are allowed to surrender nor that I will not allow you to surrender. If I say it, it means I haven't said it. What I want is this effect.

You, Yamada Otozo, are responsible for what to do specifically.

The war has reached this point, and Yamada Otsuzo, who is still nominally under the orders and control of the military headquarters, really didn't expect it. The intrigue between the Kwantung Army and the Military Headquarters is still going on even at such a critical juncture, and they are still shirking responsibility and blaming each other.

But in his anger towards the military, Yamada Otozo failed to realize, or he directly subconsciously filtered out one thing and selectively forgot it.

The initiator of this blame-shifting drama was none other than himself.

"Your Majesty Commander, what should we do now? The Russians don't have much time for us."

""

As the saying goes, what kind of commander leads what kind of soldiers.

Yamada Otsuzo himself was a wavering surrender faction, and he was like this as the military chief of the Kwantung Army Group. It can be expected what the chief of staff will be like to help him.

Anyone who really couldn't pee in a pot wouldn't be able to survive now. Yamada Otsuzo would have driven him back to his hometown to eat himself.

Like Yamada Otsuzo, the chief of staff, who knew that the war was no longer possible and that there was only a dead end except surrender, was more inclined to choose the former.

Now that I know that the military department's reply is so rude, my mentality is almost the same as Yamada Otozo's. I feel worse than swallowing a fly alive, but there is no better way.

The two leaders of the capitulation faction looked at me and I looked at you, but neither one of them could tell a trick.

The chief of staff, who really couldn't think of a way to do it, and felt that he was being pushed into something, suddenly felt a little superior, and suddenly a sentence popped out of his mouth that made Yamada Otozo shake his head just listening to it.

"Your Majesty Commander, if there is really no other way, why not kill those civilians and then fight to the death with the Russians! We will all perish together!"

Yamada Otozo, whose right eyelid couldn't help but twitch, slowly opened his eyes, glared at the chief of staff, and then spoke without thinking.

"You mean, just like what Ushijima Mitsuru did in Okinawa, right?"

Although the Battle of Okinawa had just ended, Yamada Otsuzo, as an absolutely powerful person within the Japanese army, still learned some relevant news at the first time.

It is said that in the last moments before the defeat of Ushijima Manna, the madman almost killed all the local civilians, and the number of people killed was hundreds of thousands. If you include the Japanese soldiers who were killed, the total number of dead has exceeded 200,000, at least half of which were directly caused by Ushijima Mitsuru's crazy orders.

Yamada Otozo didn't want to imitate this kind of behavior, and made a surrender plan in advance for later use, just to avoid committing suicide like a crazy and stupid guy like Ushijima Mitsuru.

Without waiting for the chief of staff to answer, Yamada Otozo, who was shaking his head more and more, spoke immediately.

"Let me ask you a question, do you know why the Russians haven't shelled the city until now? Why, except for those artillery shells to persuade them to surrender, have they never fired an explosive projectile?"

Upon hearing this question, the chief of staff, who felt that he understood it well, immediately answered without thinking.

"It's obvious, Commander, that the Russians care about the civilian casualties in the city. I think that since the Russians have exposed this, what do they care about and we have to do the opposite. Killing all these civilians will definitely make people The Russians are very embarrassed. Their previous efforts and bloodshed were all in vain!"

The logic makes sense, but it's a pity that Yamada Otozo, who is still shaking his head like a rattle, doesn't think so.

"Then let me ask you again, do you know how the Russians will react after doing this? Do you know how they will retaliate?"

"revenge?"

Subconsciously, the chief of staff was about to say, "How else can we take revenge? It's just to kill us all, or at worst, use artillery fire. Anyway, it's just a piece of jade and there's nothing to care about."

Unexpectedly, before he opened his mouth, Yamada Otsuzo, who asked and answered his own questions, had already given what he thought was the answer, which was really unexpected by the chief of staff.

"The Russians will retaliate in equal measure, or even double retaliation. Do you know how many Japanese expatriates are in the hands of the Russians now? It is everything on the land under our feet, everything! We only have less than one brigade of troops, and the Russians They are just a block away from us, do you think the Russians will let us attack civilians?"

The chief of staff who was speechless when asked was still puzzled. Although he hesitated, he couldn't help but finally replied to Yamada Otozo.

"Your Excellency, Commander, can the Russians really do such a thing? Aren't they coming to attack us claiming to be liberators?"

"Liberator? Oh, do you really believe what the Russians say about themselves?"

""

The chief of staff, who really felt something was wrong and that was not the case, was speechless. Yamada Otsuzo, who had put away his disdainful tone, returned to his normal state and continued to speak.

"From 1941 to the present, millions of Germans have died at the hands of the Russians. The total number of servants who obeyed the Germans and been wiped out by the Russians is already more than our Kwantung Army. ”

"What makes you have the illusion that the Russians, who have taken millions of lives at their own hands, will not take the lives of tens of thousands of people? Have you forgotten what happened outside Harbin? The Russians have repeatedly Our consuls and diplomats will kill whenever they say, do you really think they will have any scruples in retaliating? "

"Since we are no longer able to defeat, why should we involve those who have nothing to do with it? When those expatriates fell in droves under the butcher's knife of the Russians, what do you think of these relatives, family members, and supporters of the Kwantung Army? Do you know that we caused them to end up like this? What will they think about waiting for us in hell?"

After all, surrender sounds disgraceful, and you have to find some excuse to whitewash your appearance. For example, Yamada Otsuzo, who doesn't really care about those Japanese expatriates, is like this right now.

It sounds like it's a righteous thing, but what's the purpose? The purpose is nothing more than to make the chief of staff give up this idea and continue to stand in the "surrender faction" camp with him. The so-called expatriates are just an excuse.

The chief of staff, who is not stupid, probably heard something and knew that the commander's words were not meant for him, but for him first, so that he could repeat them to those young and strong people who were determined to fight to the end.

Let these idiots understand how helpless and how there is no other choice to surrender, and that there must not be any unrealistic fantasies attached to it. This is more important than anything else and is also a key step to surrender in the end.

The chief of staff, who understood, reacted quickly and changed quickly. After a few seconds in his mind, he quickly showed a knowing expression to Yamada Ozo, and then nodded and bowed, and answered.

"Hey! Commander, you are right! I was not thoughtful just now."

"Well, it doesn't matter. It's not important. It's most important to understand the reason behind it. It's not too late to understand it now."

Yamada Otozo thought for a moment before he finished speaking. From the "You do the first day, I do the fifteenth, don't blame me for being unjust if you are unkind" plan that he had just thought of until now, it's time to make the final decision.

"Telegraph the Russians or go there in person. It's not far away anyway. Tell the Russians that we accept their conditions and are willing to surrender on the premise that they can guarantee our lives."

The chief of staff was shocked when he heard this, but it was not surprising to think about it carefully.

"Then, how should the troops below deal with it? How to inform them of this? The Russians will definitely ask us to order the entire Kwantung Army to surrender."

Yamada Otozo, who had already thought of a solution to this problem, did not think much and replied directly.

"Telegram all the troops of the Kwantung Army and tell them that the military department acquiesced to the surrender of the Kwantung Army and did not refuse it. Our troops were allowed to surrender under the approval of the military department. Remember to send the message in plain text. You will draft the specific content of the telegram yourself."

""

The chief of staff felt a chill on his spine as he listened, but he knew that once this plain text message was sent out, not only the Kwantung Army and the Russians on the battlefield outside the pass would receive the message, but many people who were staring at the battlefield and listening carefully could also hear it.

"Commander, what do you mean by this..."

The chief of staff could almost guess what Yamada Otozo was going to do. It was not an exaggeration to say that he was going to tear his face off with the military department and turn the table over. Before he finished speaking, Yamada Otozo, who was smiling coldly at the corners of his mouth, spoke again.

"Those idiots in the military department don't care about our lives at all. They don't act like superiors at all. They can only use such vague telegrams to fool us and shirk responsibility!"

"In that case, there is no need to care about the military department! Didn't they neither agree nor deny in their reply? Well, it all depends on our own understanding. My understanding is that no denial means agreement. The war situation has deteriorated to this point and they don't deny surrender. What else can it be but agreement?"

"They dare to send such a telegram to shirk responsibility at such a critical moment, so they will have to pay the price! Let these idiots explain to His Majesty the Emperor!"

It is obvious that Yamada Otozo's clear-code telegram was equivalent to directly putting the military department on the fire.

Originally, the Kwantung Army Group and the military department sent such weird telegrams to each other all day long. Both sides were already used to it. They could understand the "code words" in them and would not take certain things seriously. It's just that this kind of thing cannot be brought to the table to talk about it, as long as both sides understand it in their hearts.

As a result, Yamada Otozo chose to play the "Spring and Autumn style" this time, pretending to be confused when he knew the truth, and deliberately using the "neither yes nor no" method to engage in bipolar thinking.

I have explained the situation so clearly. If you don't deny it, I will just agree, and I will also "announce it to the world". It depends on how you, a bunch of idiots who don't even give clear military orders and deliberately shirk responsibility, will explain this embarrassing thing to His Majesty the Emperor.

In this way, the chief of staff who understands the situation will certainly know what to do next.

Anyway, now I am tied to Yamada Otozo and have been abandoned by the military for shirking responsibility.

It is better to do it according to the commander's method. At the very least, I can find a way out for myself, so as not to become a scapegoat cannon fodder for the military to shirk responsibility.

Once the decision of the Kwantung Army Headquarters is made and finalized, the next thing will be relatively much easier to handle.

Soon, Malashenko was at his temporary military headquarters, late at night.

With less than two hours left before the ultimatum, the Kwantung Army Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Shitsunamasa, came to visit late at night.

"We are ready for battle and are about to launch the final general offensive. I wonder why you came here in the middle of the night? Are you here to surrender to us?"

Facing the Russian lieutenant general in front of him, who spoke in a sarcastic and proactive manner without even using a basic honorific, the Kwantung Army Chief of Staff, who did not even have a chair to sit on and was not invited to sit down, felt humiliated.

But with orders in hand and knowing that this was the only way, he still endured the humiliation and stood there, speaking to the Russian lieutenant general sitting behind the negotiating table opposite.

"Lieutenant General Shitsunamasa, Chief of Staff of the Kwantung Army, was appointed by General Yamada Otozo, the commander of the Kwantung Army, to lead a special negotiation team to discuss the armistice with your army."

"Pfft - armistice?"

I couldn't hold back my laughter for a moment, and not only Malashenko who was sitting in the main seat was laughing, but also the political commissar and Lavrinenko who accompanied him to the seat and carried the rank of major general on his shoulders. A group of staff officers, meeting recorders, and translators who were also present at the meeting also laughed out loud, and the scene was extremely happy for a while.

Being in a scene that was almost bursting with laughter, the Japanese soldiers, who had no chairs to sit on and could only stand, wanted to find a crack in the ground and crawl in.

"There is no truce, and we have no intention of truce at all. I know that a certain word is difficult for you to say, but what I want to say is that if I can't hear the word, then I can only order the guards to Kick all of you out immediately, and then—"

After speaking for a while, he raised his hand and glanced at his watch, and Malashenko continued to speak deliberately.

"Well, we will launch a general attack on you in one hour and seventeen minutes. We will definitely see you again in less than two hours, but at that time, there is no guarantee whether everyone standing here is dead or alive. Of course, I don't care about convenience. Yes, even if you turn into minced meat and bring it to me to meet again, that’s not impossible.”

Malashenko's Russian voice gradually faded away, and the translator on the side immediately repeated it truthfully.

Knowing that he was forced to a dead end, the Chief of Staff of the Kwantung Army had only one way left. His last trace of dignity seemed to have been beaten to pieces by the Russians in public, so he had no choice but to lower his head and speak slowly.

"We are willing to surrender and accept the conditions proposed by your army. We are here to discuss surrender with you."

Malashenko, who could understand this without the need for an interpreter, sneered, glanced at the Kwantung Army chief of staff, and then spoke quietly.

"Look, you can still say this. It's not that difficult. Face is sometimes worth less than the Japanese soldiers you can recruit with just one stamp."

"If I had known this, why did I do it in the first place?"

I coded a big chapter and uploaded it all in one go. I’ve been waiting for a long time, brothers.