The expeditionary force began to dominate Southeast Asia by recruiting defeated soldiers

Chapter 264: New Soldier Li Chutou and the Japanese Major General Infantry Regiment Commander (Part

Far away in Saigon, Annan, the commander-in-chief of the Japanese Southern Army, Marshal Shishi Shouyi, had a Go board in front of him, with black and white ivory chess pieces in one hand and an ancient Go book stolen from the Qian Kingdom in the other.

Kneeling on the tatami, he was apparently studying a Go game.

Suddenly, footsteps were heard outside the quiet room.

In the room, Shouyi's ears twitched, and he finally pulled his mind away from the fight between the black and white dragons on the chessboard.

He looked up and happened to see the staff officer opening the sliding door of the quiet room.

Facing the advisor who looked troubled, Shouyi asked softly:

"Still can't contact General Tanaka?"

The staff officer shook his head in frustration. "Hey, I'm so sorry, but the radio still can't reach Mr. Tanaka."

After a pause, the staff officer continued, "Commander Kimura of the Pegu Front again requested to abandon Rangoon and retreat the entire army into Siam."

In the room, Shouyi put down the chess book in his hand with an expressionless face, adjusted his black haori, and said calmly:

"I'm replying to General Kimura once again. Whether or not to abandon the entire Pegu region is a matter of great importance. The decision must be made by the headquarters. Before that, the Southern Army will absolutely not be able to act alone."

On the Japanese side, when there is a need, there is naturally no need to report to the higher authorities, they can just take action to "rebel against the higher authorities".

However, for a decision like completely abandoning Pegu, Mushiki Shouichi would never take the blame himself, but instead passed the buck to the current cabinet of Private First Class Tojo.

"Hey, I'll do it right away."

The staff officer looked at Shouyi in the room, who had a calm face and no sign of joy, swallowed his saliva, bowed and greeted him, then closed the sliding door of the quiet room again and backed out.

In the corridor, the staff officer recalled Shouyi's performance in the room and couldn't help but admire it softly:

"As expected of a Minister of the Interior, you remain calm even in times of crisis. Even in such a critical situation, you can still remain so calm?"

In fact, if someone else was in Hu Shi Shouyi's position, he would have encountered a tragic situation where a general and staff officer of a front army was trapped in the chaos, major cities were captured by the enemy one after another, and the entire country was almost handed over. If he was not ordered to commit seppuku, he would have been severely reprimanded by the headquarters and thrown directly into the reserve to serve as a bench.

However, Mushi Shouyi continued to sit in the position of commander-in-chief of the Southern Army as if nothing had happened, leisurely and even in the mood to read chess records?

The staff officer himself couldn't help but sigh: "Who made His Excellency the surname "Shishi"? It's important to have a good father..."

That’s right, now that Zhang Chi has almost completely taken over Bago except for Yangon in the southernmost part and several other cities, the only reason why Terauchi Hisaichi can still sit back and relax is that he has a good father - Terauchi Masayoshi.

As the leader of the Choshu faction after Aritomo Yamagata and Taro Katsura, Masayoshi Terauchi not only left the title of earl to Hisaichi Terauchi, but also left a large number of personal connections in the Japanese army.

There are a group of marshals and generals in the headquarters, and a group of retired nobles and ministers in the capital. They are all comrades-in-arms and colleagues of Terauchi Hisaichi's father, Terauchi Masayoshi.

What can a mere private first class from Tojo do to Terauchi Hisaichi?

On the other hand, anyone with a discerning eye could see that, given the current situation, the Locust Nation was doomed, and the first place to go would be at sea.

The Allied forces represented by Zhang Chi are making rapid progress in Southeast Asia, while the army mainly composed of the White Eagle Marines and Navy is also advancing step by step in the Pacific.

If Terauchi Hisaichi is really transferred from the position of commander of the Southern Army, who will be responsible for this mess?

That's why Terauchi Masayoshi can calmly fiddle with the Go board at this moment.

Anyway, Kimura Heitaro, nicknamed the Robot Vice Minister, was Tojo's favorite general. If he really lost Pegu, it would be a disgrace to the Tojo cabinet, wouldn't it?

Thinking of this, Terauchi Hisaichi placed a white chess piece according to the chess book, instantly cutting off the lifeline of the black dragon on the chessboard.

"Luzon Island is the focal point of this war. Yamashita-san, please don't let me down."

Muttering to himself, Terauchi Juichi put down the chess book again and looked towards the east.

Over there, his trusted general Yamashita Tomoyuki was setting up defensive fortifications on Luzon Island, ready to face the returning Marshal Mai Yanpi at any time.

-----

The many Japanese generals who still remained in Pegu did not know that they had been abandoned by Terauchi Hisaichi like stray dogs on the roadside just to undermine the prestige of the Tojo cabinet.

Five days after setting off, the 35th Regiment where Li Chutou was located finally found the trace of the Japanese.

At this time, an infantry company of the 2nd Battalion of the 35th Regiment had gradually surrounded them.

The frantic sounds of firing from the M1 Garand semi-automatic rifles and M1 carbines echoed in the mountains, while the occasional shot or two from the Type 99 rifles fired back by the Japanese invaders could be heard.

"It was you who led the Anmin Army here?"

In a cave in the mountains, a middle-aged Japanese soldier was holding the orderly by the neck with a ferocious face. The anger in his eyes seemed to want to burn the trembling orderly to death.

The latter was holding a kettle that had just been filled with water. It was obvious that he had just been discovered by the Anmin Army when he went to the mountain stream to fetch water, which led to the current siege.

"Mr. Yoshida, please spare him. As a samurai of the Locust Country, it is really shameful to vent your anger on an innocent soldier." Another older middle-aged Japanese soldier raised his hand and held Yoshida Tadayoshi's arm, shaking his head.

"Indeed, at this point, your safety is more important, Lord Murata." Yoshida Tadayoshi made a quick decision, "Colonel Kunomura, please lead the division commander to escape immediately."

"You!" Yoshida Tadayoshi pointed at the orderly, "And you, come with me and stop those security forces right now!"

After saying that, Yoshida Tadayoshi drew out his sharp saber, a determined light flashed in his eyes, and then he shouted, "Everyone, see you at Kudanzaka!" and then rushed outside.

-----

After a burst of gunfire, Li Chutou and several of his comrades carefully approached with their weapons.

Yoshida Tadayoshi's body had been beaten into a sieve and blood was all over the ground.

However, his face, which was intimidating without being angry, was still well preserved. Li Chutou walked up and kicked Yoshida Tadayoshi's body with his military boots. After confirming that the other party was dead, he squatted down.

Judging from his appearance, Yoshida Tadayoshi looked to be in his 50s. At his age, he would be either a high-ranking official or a cook in the Japanese army.

Li Chutou looked at the beautiful saber held in the severed hand on the ground and was very sure that this Japanese soldier was not a cook.

He reached out and touched Yoshida Tadayoshi's body, and quickly took out a red-stained certificate.

"Major General Yoshida Tadayoshi, Commander of the 18th Infantry Regiment?"

Li Chutou, who had undergone literacy training at the recruit base, was surprised when he saw the familiar traditional Chinese characters on the certificate.

"Damn it, we killed the commander of the Japanese 18th Division!" Li Chutou couldn't help but curse in a low voice, and then he couldn't help but reveal an irrepressible smile.

Another recruit opened his mouth blankly and muttered:

"But aren't all the Japanese division commanders Lieutenant Generals? How did this old man get the rank of Major General?"