PFC Chapter 771 What do you think?
Chapter 771 What do you think?
Ito Masayoshi stood there with a pale face. He knew Matsui Iwane's character. This commander would sacrifice an entire division without hesitation for victory in the battle.
The atmosphere in the headquarters was so heavy that it was almost suffocating.
The officers looked at each other, not knowing what to do, while the military police still stood at their posts, carrying out their duties with expressionless faces, as if none of this had anything to do with them.
At around 8 o'clock in the morning, a Type 94 seaplane slowly landed on the water where the river and the sea meet outside the Lion Grove, stirring up layers of waves.
The plane door opened and Mitsuda Shouma appeared at the door.
He was dressed in the neat uniform of a lieutenant of the military police, the collar badge gleaming in the morning light, and his black leather boots were spotless.
Despite the short flight from the Kaga to the land, his appearance was still impeccably neat, with only the slight wrinkles at the corners of his eyes revealing a hint of fatigue.
Two military police officers followed closely behind, and the three of them quickly boarded a motorboat that had been waiting there. A naval lieutenant on the boat immediately saluted: "Staff Officer Mitsuda, the vehicle is ready at the dock."
Mitsuda Shoma nodded slightly and glanced at the other warships and transport ships on the river.
He noticed that a large number of wounded were being carried off a medical ship, and the smell of blood could be faintly smelled even here.
"Go directly to the 101st Division Headquarters." His voice was calm and cold, without any emotion.
The motorboat moved quickly through the muddy river water. There were many Japanese military transport boats along the way. When the soldiers saw the military police uniforms, they all stood at attention and saluted, with a mixture of awe and fear in their eyes.
Mitsuda Shoma always stood at the bow of the boat, his posture as straight as a pine tree, like a moving statue.
At the dock, three black cars and several three-wheeled motorcycles were waiting in line.
Upon seeing Mitsuda Shoma disembark, a military police officer quickly stepped forward and reported, "Your Excellency, the military police of each division have secured the 101st Division headquarters area as planned, but Commander Matsui Iwane is on his way there and is expected to arrive about twenty minutes ahead of us."
Mitsuda Shoma's eyebrows raised slightly, which was the first change in his expression along the way.
"Got it. Let's set off immediately and move as fast as possible." He got into the middle car and picked up the latest report from the front line that had been prepared in the car and read it.
The convoy drove along the bumpy road to the front line. The scenes along the way were shocking: villages destroyed by artillery fire, makeshift field hospitals, and teams of exhausted soldiers staggering forward.
As we got closer to the battle area of Zhaozaobang, we could occasionally hear artillery shells exploding in the distance, causing the vehicles to tremble slightly.
"Stop the car." Mitsuda Shoma suddenly ordered.
The convoy stopped at a high ground. He got out of the car and raised his binoculars to observe the situation on the front line.
Through the lens, he could clearly see the confrontation between the Chinese and Japanese armies on both sides of Yunzaobang.
The situation in the area where the 101st Division was located was particularly tragic. The battlefield was filled with smoke and almost no intact fortifications were visible.
"Captain Mitsuda, it's too dangerous here," the accompanying military police reminded.
Mitsuda Shoma didn't respond and continued observing for a full five minutes before putting down the telescope.
"The 101st Division's position has been shattered." He muttered to himself, "Continuing the attack will only increase casualties." The words were so soft that only he could hear them.
Back in the car, he closed his eyes to rest, but his clenched fists revealed his inner unrest.
As a noble, he was well aware of the political significance of this war, and Commander Takuto Takazaki's orders coincided with some of his own inner thoughts. . .
At around nine o'clock in the morning, Mitsuda Shoma's convoy arrived at the outskirts of the 101st Division headquarters.
The military police on guard immediately stood at attention and saluted, but their expressions were extremely nervous.
"You must be Staff Officer Mitsuda Shoma, right? I'm Jiro Yamaguchi, Captain of the 9th Division Military Police! Commander Matsui is already at headquarters," Major Yamaguchi hurried over to report. "He's...quite agitated."
Mitsuda Shoma smiled and nodded, adjusted his uniform and sword, and strode towards the command center.
His footsteps were particularly clear in the sudden silence, and the eyes of all the officers and soldiers present were focused on the military police staff officer from Tianjin.
Inside the command center, Division Commander Masayoshi Ito was having a heated argument with Iwane Matsui.
When Mitsuda Shoma walked into the command center, all the sounds stopped abruptly. Matsui Iwane turned around abruptly, and his cold gaze shot towards the newcomer as if it were real.
"Are you Mitsuda Shouma, the guy sent by Takuto Takazaki?" Matsui's voice was filled with suppressed anger. "Excuse me, what does this mean? You mobilized the front-line military police without the approval of the expeditionary force headquarters and interfered with the combat command?"
Mitsuda Shoma saluted calmly, his movements as standard as a textbook. "Your Excellency, this is the responsibility of the Military Police Headquarters. According to Article 17 of the Imperial Army Military Police Regulations, when the safety of the regimental flag is at risk, the Military Police System has the authority to take necessary measures."
"What do you mean!?" Matsui Iwane asked with a cold face.
"The Imperial Japanese Empire, Imperial Military Police Headquarters, Commander General Takuto Takazaki, has reported that over half of the Imperial 101st Division has been killed or wounded.
The four subordinate infantry regiments, the 101st Infantry Regiment, the 149th Infantry Regiment, the 103rd Infantry Regiment, and the 157th Infantry Regiment, have all reached the brink of collapse.
The regimental flag is in an extremely dangerous situation, so the decision is to require the 101st Division to immediately withdraw from the battle sequence and return to the rear for repairs."
Matsui Iwane's face turned pale. He took a step forward, almost face to face with Mitsuda Shouma. "Takazaki Takuto has no right to bypass me and directly command the frontline troops! This is disobeying military orders! Are you, the military police, planning a rebellion?"
The air in the command center seemed to freeze.
All the officers held their breath and watched this sudden high-level confrontation. Ito Masayoshi stood aside with a complicated expression, worried but also with a hint of hope.
Mitsuda Shouma did not retreat, but took a step forward.
He took out a document from his briefcase and slowly unfolded it. The paper looked particularly pale under the dim light, but the words and seal on it were clearly visible.
"Commander, please carefully read this investigation letter signed by Commander Takuto Takazaki." Mitsuda Shoma's voice was steady and clear, and every word hit the hearts of everyone present like a hammer.
"After investigation, the custody of the regimental flag of the 101st Division's regimental flag has reached a risk threshold. If the flag was lost due to improper command, Commander Matsui Iwane will bear full responsibility. The Military Police Command has the authority to immediately arrest those responsible!!!"
Matsui Iwane snatched the document and quickly looked through it.
As he read, his face turned pale, his fingers trembling slightly. "This... This is a false accusation! The 101st Division's flag is well preserved. I have the latest report!"
"The report was from three days ago, sir." Mitsuda Shoma showed his signature smile, and his big white teeth were particularly eye-catching.
"According to the intelligence we received last night, the Chinese army has received further reinforcements. If they launch a surprise attack, the safety of the regiment flag will be seriously threatened.
We, the Military Police Command, are very suspicious of you, Commander of the Expeditionary Force, Commander Iwane Matsui.
Do you think that the 101st Division is a newly formed special reserve division and you intend to use them as cannon fodder?
The 9th and 13th Imperial Type A Divisions were allowed to recuperate and wait until both sides were defeated before emerging to reap the fruits of victory.
Hehe, even the 13th Division, which was originally to be disbanded and had just been rebuilt by drawing a part of it from the 2nd Division of General Okamura Yasuji, you are reluctant to use it to fight. What are you thinking?
Let me guess...
Hmm... Do you think that according to your arrangement, you only lost one special division in the end, and you achieved the final victory, which is another glorious achievement on your resume?
But don’t you forget that the 101st Division was also the division that received the regimental flag bestowed by His Majesty the Emperor when it left the mainland!
No matter what you plan, we, the Imperial Military Police, will never let the gift bestowed by the Emperor be humiliated!!!"