cicada

Chapter 1402 [Meeting an old friend in a foreign land]

At the entrance of the Eighth Area Army headquarters of the Japanese Army, Zuo Zhong and He Yijun, both dressed in kimonos, stood in the shade of a tree and talked quietly. Beside them were several Military Intelligence Bureau agents disguised as attendants.

Rabaul in March was much hotter than the mountain city. With the temperature over 3 degrees, Zuo Chong was sweating profusely, but his eyes were always fixed on the door.

For this operation, he only brought He Yijun and a small number of personnel, and the rest of the people all stayed in the mountain city. Now the relationship between the National Government and the Northwest is becoming more and more tense. He really feels uneasy if he does not leave a few confidants in the Military Control Commission headquarters.

In addition to the personnel, Zuo Chong also brought thousands of tons of food on this trip. These food are key to whether he can get close to Imamura Jun and Yamamoto.

Just as he was thinking about it, the Japanese officer who had gone in to report earlier came over quickly and said to Zuo Zhong: "Qingshui Jun, please follow me to the headquarters. His Excellency the Commander wants to see you."

"Hayi, thank you."

Zuo Zhong bowed slightly, nodded to He Yijun, and then followed the officer into the headquarters.

Along the way, the Japanese soldiers coming and going walked hurriedly, but their faces did not look good and their bodies were relatively thin.

Through these two details, Zuo Chong had a more accurate assessment of the Japanese army's logistical supply situation. It was only the beginning of 1943 that the Japs could no longer hold on, and the future would only become more difficult.

At the same time, he was more confident in completing the task. Imamura Hitoshi and Yamamoto would treat him with courtesy even for the sake of the thousands of tons of grain.

As expected, as soon as Zuo Zhong entered the reception room, the short and fat Imamura Jun came to greet him. This executioner had a warm smile and there was no sign of the cruelty he had shown on the battlefields of the Republic of China.

"Yoshi, you must be Qingshui-kun, the empire needs ten thousand loyal subjects like you, please take a seat."

Imamura Jun played the trick of showing courtesy to the wise and warmly invited Zuo Zhong to the Japanese-style room. The guards temporarily put down their weapons, brought out tea sets and acted as servants to serve tea and water to the two of them.

After smelling the subtle fragrance of the tea, Zuo Zhong was surprised and said, "It is this year's Dafo Longjing new tea. Thank you for your hospitality, Commander."

"Oh?" Imamura Hitoshi's eyes flickered, and he asked casually, "Shimizu-kun must have lived in the Republic of China for a long time."

Zuo Zhong sat cross-legged at the low table, his head suddenly paused: "Hayi, during the first Shanghai Incident [January 28], I was active in the south of the Republic of China, so I have some understanding of the Republic of China."

Imamura Jun was quite surprised. The other party was not very old, but he was an expert on the Republic of China, so he continued to ask questions.

"Qingshui-kun, you look like you are only thirty years old. Could it be that you went to the Republic of China to do business as soon as you came of age?"

"Hayi, I was born a commoner. If I wanted to find a way out, I had to take risks. It happened that the Empire and the Republic of China were at war at that time, and I was fortunate enough to provide some food and fodder for the Imperial Navy."

Zuo Chong told out the experiences he had prepared in advance one by one. These experiences all had sources and he was not afraid of Japanese investigation. He then revealed more information.

"After the war, I sold food and industrial products from America to the Empire and the Republic of China through American friends I met in the Shanghai Concession, and I made quite a lot of money."

Upon hearing this, Imamura nodded. It turned out that he was a smuggler. No wonder he had the courage to transport food to Rabaul. Now many things made sense.

Now that the doubts in his mind were answered, Jincun Jun's attitude became more friendly. He took the initiative to ask Zuo Chong if he needed any help and how he planned to operate the grain processing plant.

Zuo Chong already had a plan in mind and immediately talked about many plans, such as using local crops to make flour, starch, coconut oil and sago.

Or they may import rice, oats, beef and mutton fat, and milk powder from outside the island, and use industrial means to produce artificial beef and mutton, as well as milk substitutes, etc.

Imamura Hitoshi was very excited after hearing this. If these plans could be realized, the Imperial Army in Rabaul would not only be able to eat enough, but also be nutritionally satisfied.

As Zuo Zhong introduced the troops, he sneered in his heart. It was not enough to have sufficient food and grass. He had to find a qualified commander for the Eighth Front Army.

Imamura Hitoshi is a very smart and rational person. In history, when the other side saw that the war situation was unfavorable, they decisively surrendered to the Australian army. This is not acceptable.

The Zuo family's plan to usurp the throne was only halfway through. The more Australian soldiers died, the better. He was thinking about tricking Imamura Jun in his mind, but he had a smile on his face.

The ensuing conversation between the two was very pleasant. After all, both sides got what they wanted, and there was constant laughter in the house.

"Haha, Shimizu-kun, it's really a pleasure to chat with you. Don't worry, I will order people to reserve the best land for you to build a factory." Imamura Jun took the responsibility.

New Britain Island is not small in area, but there is not much flat land. With Imamura Jun's guarantee, Zuo Zhong can save a lot of time and money.

As a qualified businessman, he would naturally return the favor after receiving the benefit. Zuo Chong glanced at the door and lowered his voice to give Imamura Jun an unexpected surprise.

"Commander, 50% of the profits from the food processing factory belong to you. This is just a small token of my appreciation. Please accept it."

"Oh!"

Imamura Jun slammed the table hard, his eyes widened. Just when Zuo Chong suspected that he had met a Japanese Bao Qingtian, the other party impatiently stretched out seven fingers.

"I want 70%! Shimizu-kun, as long as you agree, you will be my best friend from now on." Damn, Zuo Zhong cursed Imamura Jun's greed in his heart, but on the surface he could only smile and agree. MD, you bastard, this little money is just buying paper money for you in advance.

Jincun Jun got the biggest benefit. He was very satisfied and personally offered Zuo Chong a cup of tea. He also ordered his adjutant to immediately select suitable land. He couldn't even wait for a minute and looked like he was afraid of being poor.

Zuo Chong thanked him quickly and after chatting for a while, he politely said goodbye. During this time, he did not mention anything about Yamamoto. Now was not the time to talk about this.

The next morning.

A Japanese major led Zuo Zhong and others around Rabaul and introduced several pieces of land, some large and some small, in different locations.

Passing by a small hill on the way, Zuo Chong saw that the hill was covered with war-preparation roads but was deserted. He suddenly had an idea and deliberately pointed to the land at the foot of the hill and asked the major if he could build a food processing plant here.

"Sorry, Mr. Shimizu, this is a military restricted area." The major answered vaguely and quickly led everyone away.

Zuo Chong and He Yijun looked at each other, said nothing, and followed the major to another place not far from the hill. The surrounding scenery was quite beautiful.

"Mr. Qingshui, can you take a picture for me?" He Yijun said softly to Zuo Chong while standing on the beach.

Hearing this, Zuo Zhong looked at the major, who made a gesture to invite him to go ahead. This was neither a beachhead nor any military facilities, so he had no reason to offend the commander's guest.

After getting permission, Zuo Chong took the camera from his entourage and took several photos of He Yijun, one of which happened to capture the hill.

A few days later, the location of the food processing plant was determined and a large number of workers began to dig the foundation. Zuo Zhong met with Imamura Jun from time to time to report on the progress.

By the beginning of April 1943, Zuo Chong and Imamura had become very familiar with each other and no longer had so many taboos when speaking to each other.

During a banquet, Zuo Chong boasted to the other party that he had met the Admiral once in Temasek, and the two even made a bet.

He bet that the U.S. military would attack Guadalcanal, and the Admiral bet that they would not. In the end, he won, but unfortunately the two never had the chance to meet again.

Imamura was skeptical, but he did not talk much about this sensitive topic. He just silently took note of the matter.

On the second day after the banquet, Imamura Jun drove along the war-preparation road to the back of the mysterious hill. A heavy steel gate stood at the end of the road, and several fully armed Japanese soldiers appeared.

Imamura Jun got out of the car, took out his ID and handed it to the soldier. After passing the inspection, he walked into the slowly opening steel door. Behind the door was a huge underground space. Dozens of naval officers were walking around in it, and the sound of the radio's keys rang like a buzzing sound.

"Haha, Imamura-kun, why are you here? Did the Army General Staff send you to the Navy?"

Amidst hearty laughter, Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet, Yamamoto, walked over. He had a lot more white hair on his head compared to when he was in Temasek a few months ago.

"Mr. Yamamoto, if the General Staff agrees, I would rather fight the Americans to the death with you on the sea than to farm here like a farmer." Imamura Hitoshi said as he shook hands with the other party.

Unlike other Japanese naval and army officers who were incompatible with each other, Yamamoto and Imamura Hitoshi had a very close relationship. Their friendship can be traced back to around 1924.

Hearing his friend's complaints, Yamamoto raised his two fists and bumped them together: "The Americans have been very active recently. The Empire cannot confront them head-on. We must find an opportunity to deal a fatal blow to the Americans."

Imamura nodded to show his understanding, and then got down to business. He handed over the Army Intelligence Agency's investigation results on the US military to the other party.

"There is reliable intelligence that in addition to the operations in the New Guinea area, the US Joint Chiefs of Staff have decided to attack Rabaul, and Halsey and MacArthur may split their forces."

"It has been confirmed that the Enterprise and Saratoga were operating in the waters near Noumea, and the sightings of the new Essex-class aircraft carrier still need to be further verified."

"The U.S. military's airport expansion project on Espiritu Santo Island has also been basically completed and can accommodate more than 200 fighter planes. Aerial reconnaissance on March 3 found that two new P-17 Lightning fighter squadrons had been added, and the number of B-38 Flying Fortress bombers stationed there had doubled."

Imamura told him three pieces of information. Yamamoto walked to a map of the South Pacific and thought for a long time, feeling very regretful.

The incomplete victory or failure in the two battles of Midway and Guadalcanal quickly offset the strategic advantage of the Combined Fleet after the Pearl Harbor attack, causing the Empire to lose the initiative in the South Pacific.

Recalling what happened in Temasek, Yamamoto turned around and said with a hint of regret: "You know, before the Battle of Guadalcanal, someone told me that the US military would take action there."

Imamura was stunned for a moment, and asked back: "You are not talking about Shimizu-kun, are you? He is on the island right now."

"Really?" Yamamoto was a little surprised. It is always a pleasure to meet an old acquaintance in a foreign place, especially an old acquaintance who has the same hobbies as you.

Besides, he still owed the other party a gambling debt of 10,000 yen. As an admiral of the Imperial Japanese Navy, he naturally could not leave a bad reputation for not paying his debts. This was an unacceptable shame for a professional gambler.

"Of course, Shimizu-kun is a good young man, very loyal to the Empire, and brought us a lot of food."

Imamura, who was grateful for the favor, praised him a few words. Yamamoto looked at the map on the wall and a sly smile appeared on his face. Why not have another bet?