Ch.264China Division Project (5)

# The Far East Expeditionary Force generals seemed to agree with me.

“Hahaha, that would be an excellent approach.”

“No, let’s show them directly.”

“Directly, you say?”

“Yes. Seeing once is better than hearing a hundred times, after all. We’ll show them the nuclear strike on Nanjing directly. Of course, they shouldn’t watch from too close—they should be far enough away to see the city completely disappear. Something like that?”

I’ll show it directly to that second-in-command bastard.

How dare that bitch try to pull tricks?

Well then, shall we meet with the delegate and settle this?

I summoned the delegate who had brought Soong Mei-ling’s personal letter.

“It’s an honor to meet the Emperor of Greater Russia.”

The delegate was smirking at me as if he’d scored a point.

I wanted to just slap him squarely across the face, formalities be damned.

But that wouldn’t be appropriate, no matter how I felt.

Most people are surprised by my youth, but this guy just keeps smiling smugly, apparently pleased with himself for getting one over on me.

“I’ve heard much about you. The second-in-command of the National Government and aide to the Acting President.”

“I’m grateful that Your Majesty thinks so highly of me.”

“I’ve heard about your country’s unfortunate situation. It all stems from the Japanese military, doesn’t it? In the end, it’s all because of those islanders.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Especially Nanjing—it’s not something to take lightly. It’s already fortified, and since the Imperial Headquarters used it as a temporary residence, there are still considerable supplies remaining.”

Yes, that seems to be the case.

This guy’s thinking is ultimately complete psychological warfare based on my position.

Would I kill treaty forces to recapture Nanjing for them? Or would I just provide them with supplies?

But supplying materials here would only help subjugate the warlords and lead to a future where they beg to be recognized as the legitimate government.

So I need to be firm here.

“Unfortunately, our situation isn’t very good either. We only joined this war because we were promised post-war reconstruction support from the United States.”

He opened his mouth with a confident expression, as if he had anticipated my response.

“Our Acting President—”

“We’ll catch the thieves in Nanjing for you.”

“Pardon?”

“Nanjing is already completely devoid of civilians. And the city is essentially fully fortified.”

I slowly laid the groundwork.

To capture the Japanese army and recapture Nanjing, we’d have to destroy Nanjing. So it makes sense for us to handle it.

Perhaps they’re deliberately not attacking Nanjing themselves.

Most of the Japanese Expeditionary Forces in northern and southern China have been eliminated, but Nanjing remains—they’re probably using it as an excuse to extract as much as possible from the treaty forces.

“That’s true, but…”

“Our army will show you something interesting. Come along.”

He’s going to follow the Russian army, the world’s strongest military.

That alone should be considered an honor for this National Government official who survived thanks to the treaty forces. And then he’ll be shocked by the divine weapon I’m about to show him.

“Directly, you say?”

The delegate blinked with a bewildered expression.

He apparently hadn’t expected me to tell him to go to the battlefield in person.

“Since I can’t go myself, but need to convey my intentions… We’re definitely planning to eliminate the Japanese forces, so there’s no need to decline.”

“Pardon?”

“This is something I haven’t shown even to many great power leaders. I hope you’ll appreciate it.”

I smirked viciously in return.

He’ll probably faint when he sees it.

He’s going to witness a nuclear explosion with his own eyes.

Imagine how terrifying it would be if he thought it might fall on Chongqing, their temporary capital.

If they still refuse to listen after this, that will truly be the end for them.

They need to learn who they’re messing with.

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“You’ll understand when you see it.”

Even the most hot-headed fools should be able to understand this.

Let’s see how they enjoy the spectacle.

Would they prefer watching a nuclear explosion? Or would they rather continue living in a divided state?

# * * *

The delegate couldn’t help but question Anastasia’s words.

In truth, he had simply intended to raise the National Government’s profile in the international community and somehow struggle to be recognized as the legitimate government.

He thought that by dragging things out, the United States, having ended the war, might help them, and that Anastasia, the real power behind the Rome Treaty, would at least find some common ground with them.

But why was she suddenly sending him to Nanjing?

What exactly did she want to show him?

“Could it be…”

If there was any possibility in the current situation, it had to be that new weapon.

Was she planning to showcase their new weapon to intimidate them?

Well, he was prepared for that. He had wanted to see with his own eyes just how powerful it was.

With that, he boarded a White Air Force bomber squadron headed for Nanjing.

Meanwhile, the last Japanese forces in Nanjing were in a desperate situation.

Commander Yasuhiko of the South China Expeditionary Force had received orders from his homeland to hold the position at all costs, but it seemed impossible.

Supplies from home had been cut off,

He’d heard that some divisions had captured weapons from treaty forces, but even those troops had been annihilated by the treaty forces.

Defeat was certain.

Wouldn’t it be better to at least save the soldiers’ lives?

“Wouldn’t it be better to surrender?”

“Would the Chinese leave us alone? We’d be lucky if they didn’t do the same to us on the spot. The treaty forces would certainly hand us over to the Chinese. We should have returned to the homeland earlier. Now we have no choice but to fight until death. We must show the spirit of the Empire to those inferior Chinese and filthy white men.”

Isamu Jo opposed surrender.

It was too obvious they would die either way.

Even if they surrendered to the treaty forces, considering they would be handed over to the Chinese or face war crimes trials like those in Europe—

“So that’s how it will be.”

Indeed, the Chinese had repeatedly tried to capture Nanjing despite its lack of supplies, only to be repelled.

If only the treaty forces hadn’t interfered.

No, if they had given troops to Renya Mutaguchi earlier instead of carrying out the annihilation operation, the China front would have been finished.

How did the Emperor end up like that?

If the Emperor hadn’t passed away, things wouldn’t have turned out this way.

The China front would have been wrapped up faster than expected.

But now nothing could be done.

“Sir, Russian bomber squadrons have been spotted.”

“No fighter escorts, I assume?”

“Correct.”

They didn’t even have fighter planes anymore.

The Russian bombers flying high above had quite impressive capabilities.

If only Russia had been an ally of the Empire—no, such hypotheticals were pointless now.

Their Tsar carried the title of “Holy One.”

“Conserve the anti-aircraft guns as much as possible. We just need to hold out.”

But the bomber squadron behaved strangely.

As if taunting them, it circled Nanjing once, dropped a single bomb, and then fled.

The exhausted soldiers manning the anti-aircraft guns, barely surviving on reduced rations, were puzzled.

Then it exploded above Nanjing and instantly engulfed the Japanese forces.

The delegate, watching this scene from the bomber, was horrified.

To think such a bomb existed—what would happen if it fell on Chongqing?

He momentarily felt faint.

This demonstration was clearly a warning.

With trembling hands, he instinctively read the personal letter from the Tsar.

There must be something about this bomb in it.

Though verbose, the message was clear:

‘We will purify any place in China where Japanese forces are believed to be.’

What could this mean?

The Tsar was saying that if the National Government didn’t comply, they too would be treated as Japanese forces and purified.

This was serious.

At this point, it would be better to cooperate with the Tsar’s federal government.

The delegate immediately headed back to the National Government.

# * * *

Things progressed more easily than expected.

Nanjing was completely destroyed, as anticipated.

Looking at the photos, the city that had already looked worse than Paris was now utterly demolished.

It would likely become a ghost town at this rate.

Fortunately, there were no civilians there—if civilians had died, even I couldn’t have escaped criticism.

Even in America, many civilians died when the atomic bombs were dropped.

“What about the Japanese forces in Nanjing?”

“They seem completely finished. The survivors have become living dead, like the communists in Paris.”

While there might be some room for sympathy for the French civilians who suffered greatly, I don’t feel any pity for the Japanese forces.

“It’s sad, but what can we do? They were troops who followed the order to hold their position. They actively participated in the annihilation operation, so it’s right for us to eliminate them.”

It’s a shame we can’t hold war crimes trials, but that’s all.

I’m not sure if any war criminals will survive for trials after this war.

And I heard that around the time the nuclear bomb was dropped, the United States also began landing operations in the Kantō region.

They deployed over 700,000 troops and more than 3,000 aircraft.

Operation Downfall had officially begun.

It seems they haven’t dropped nuclear bombs yet, but judging by America’s determination to punish Japan, they plan to inflict as much damage as possible before using nuclear weapons.

I heard that except for the areas where Renya is advancing, the entire country is starving.

“Japan has become pitiful.”

“In fact, the situation in western Japan, which Mutaguchi Renya is securing, isn’t good either.”

“I’m sure. The starvation operation began before Renya’s landing. They might even surrender to Mutaguchi Renya who came to save them.”

As soon as America secured naval supremacy, they implemented a starvation operation before landing.

They burned all the farmland in Japan. This might kill tens of millions.

It’s probably to make Operation Downfall easier, but Japan’s population might be reduced by more than half.

If nothing else, isolating and killing the Japanese archipelago is America’s priority project now.

I’m not going to interfere with that.

It’s better for us if Japan never again has the capacity to project military power externally.

Better to let them fight among themselves than on the continent.

I wonder how the delegate who witnessed the nuclear explosion will react.

“The delegate fled in panic, I’m told.”

Yes. But I don’t intend to end it here.

I can’t leave those who disrespect me unpunished.

“Then, let’s proceed with the next plan. I need to see Zhang Xueliang.”

I have one more plan in mind.

One nuclear bomb isn’t enough to finish this.

# * * *

Zhang Xueliang, well-trained like an obedient pet, came running at my call.

He must have heard about Nanjing.

“Your Majesty, you called for me!”

From what I remember, Soong Mei-ling and Zhang Xueliang were quite close.

They exchanged many personal letters, I heard. It’s probably no different here.

The reason Zhang Xueliang held out in Shandong was likely because the National Government supported him from behind. It doesn’t make sense that Zhang Xueliang could have held out alone.

“Do you know about Soong Mei-ling?”

“Yes. She provided weapons so I could attack the Japanese forces from behind, and we have a personal relationship.”

Yes. It was similar here too.

Then it would be good to use that.

“That woman wants a unified government. To continue Chiang Kai-shek’s legacy.”

“If that happens…”

“Exactly. If we recognize this, your country to be established in the Shandong Peninsula would be in trouble.”

Of course, I have no intention of doing so, but I need to frighten Zhang Xueliang a bit. Then he’ll cooperate more actively with us.

“Didn’t you promise me?”

Of course I did.

I don’t really need Zhang Xueliang, but I should make things clear.

“Of course we’ll oppose it. But if they keep whining, it becomes annoying for us too. So, I need your help.”

I pointed directly at Zhang Xueliang and spoke firmly.

You need to follow our orders for all of this to happen.

“Give me your orders.”

“I want you to pretend to be Soong Mei-ling’s lover. For example, say you’ve been having an affair since Chiang Kai-shek was alive. Of course, it will tarnish your reputation, but that won’t be a problem as long as we’re behind you. Once the rumors spread, the warlords in the National Government will also doubt Soong Mei-ling. It would look like she gave the National Government’s budget to her lover.”

In this era, an affair might not cause a huge scandal.

But what if it’s connected to the war?

She secretly gave National Government supplies to her lover. This should be enough to make it difficult for Soong Mei-ling to hold on.

The warlords would be furious if what they gathered was secretly passed to her lover.

“That’s not difficult. I’ve already exchanged many letters with her.”

Wait, is this bastard telling the truth?

His unnecessarily confident and smug face makes me suspicious.

“Could it possibly be true?”

“We never met in person or had physical relations, but we did exchange letters expressing mutual affection.”

Considering Soong Mei-ling’s personality, it’s probably not true.

She likely just exchanged letters that would please Zhang Xueliang because she needed him to attack the Japanese from behind.

“Good. Then it shouldn’t be difficult. We don’t need it to be completely factual—suspicion alone is enough. I want you to testify and spread rumors.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

I sent Zhang Xueliang away.

Would Soong Mei-ling even be interested in Zhang Xueliang?

He’s focused on establishing his own territory now.

That woman made a mistake challenging me.

Apparently, she’s treated as the mother of the National Government. Unfortunately, she won’t be able to maintain that position.

Even if she does, I’ll have to shatter the National Government.