cicada

Chapter 1479 Bombing
A group of army generals openly attacked the intelligence chief, which was the first time in the history of the General Staff. After being shocked, Chief Yoshijiro Umezu immediately realized that Kiyofuku Okamoto had angered the masses.

In fact, he was also one of Ryosuke Hase's partners and knew that the smuggling business involved countless powerful figures, so he immediately spoke up to appease everyone.

"Gentlemen, please calm down. Okamoto-kun said this for the sake of His Majesty the Locust and the safety of Tokyo, and it is absolutely not directed at Hase-kun. I assure you, Hase-kun will not be implicated in this matter."

At this point, he looked at Ryosuke Hase, softened his tone, and whispered a suggestion to him.

"Hase-kun, please, for the sake of His Majesty the Locust and the safety of the people, do not hold a grudge against Chief Okamoto. Please."

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Yoshijiro Umezu actually performed a deep bow, something unimaginable in Japan, where hierarchy is so strictly defined.

Ryosuke Hase didn't dare to be presumptuous, so he jumped up from his seat and returned the greeting, repeatedly saying that he didn't dare.

"Your Excellency, you are too kind. The disputes between the generals and Mr. Okamoto were all out of public interest. In the words of the Republic of China, it was a matter of gentlemen agreeing to disagree, not a personal grudge."

"American planes could appear in Tokyo at any time. I think the most urgent task is to determine a strategy to deal with the bombing, after all, His Majesty the Emperor's safety is more important than anything else."

These words immediately improved everyone's expression. Okamoto saved face, and the generals avoided being attacked afterward.

Yoshijiro Umezu breathed a sigh of relief, feeling even more satisfied with Hase. Who wouldn't like such a clever person who could both help everyone make money and was also sensible?

He smiled and gestured for Ryosuke Hase to sit down: "Mr. Hase is right. We must come up with a strategy as soon as possible. His Majesty the Emperor is waiting for the results of the meeting."

The atmosphere in the conference room immediately became relaxed, and a general proposed to immediately evacuate Tokyo and relocate important military industrial equipment.

Upon hearing this, some agreed and some disagreed. The opponents had good reason to agree: the evacuation of millions of citizens was extremely complicated and could easily turn into a riot if not handled properly.

Moreover, once military industrial equipment is dismantled, it takes a long time to resume production, which will greatly affect the logistical supply to the front lines, making it a losing proposition.

Ryosuke Hasegawa observed coldly and discovered that those who supported the evacuation came from the air defense forces, while those who opposed it came from the Army Ordnance Administration Headquarters, which was in charge of weapons production. It was indeed a case of whoever was in the most powerful deciding who was in the most powerful position.

Yoshijiro Umezu, sitting at the head of the table, remained silent. Both sides had valid points, but the generals only needed to consider their own duties, while he, as the Chief of the General Staff, had much more to consider.

Whether or not to evacuate is not only a military issue, but also a political one.

The American planes hadn't even arrived yet, and the Empire was already making such a big fuss. What would its allies think if word got out? Where would the face of the Great Japanese Empire be?

Therefore, deep down, Yoshijiro Umezu did not agree with the evacuation, but he could not openly express his support for either side, otherwise he would be the one to be blamed for the huge losses caused by the air raid.

Gradually, the opponents gained the upper hand, because many generals had businesses in Tokyo, and their businesses would be affected if they were evacuated.

If Zuo Zhongyao were present, he would surely sigh and say that this is a world where everyone is trying to outdo each other in terms of how bad things are, and that the Japanese and the high-ranking officials of Chongqing are truly a perfect pair of adversaries.

These generals who opposed the evacuation spoke with conviction, claiming that the powerful air defense forces and army air force would teach the Americans an unforgettable lesson, and that the Great Japanese Empire was invincible.

Just as the air defense and air force commanders were about to object again, Yoshijiro Umezu slammed his hand on the table, and the meeting room fell silent.

"Yes, I have heard everyone's opinions. Just as Hase-kun said, everyone is acting out of public interest, and I am very gratified by that."

Having set the tone for the debate, Yoshijiro Umezu looked around, a slight smile playing on his lips, and continued speaking.

"Therefore, I have decided to carry out a limited evacuation. The safety of His Majesty the Heavenly Locust, the Imperial Yuan Su, and other important personnel cannot be compromised. They can be evacuated to the air defense fortifications outside the city first."

"As for lower-ranking officials, civilians, and ordinary employees, they should continue to hold their posts. The warriors on the front lines need weapons and ammunition, and arbitrary evacuation could easily cause riots. The information must be kept strictly confidential."

"Air defense forces and air force units are ready for battle at any time. As soon as American bombers are detected, we will retaliate immediately. We will let the devils of Europe and America know the might of the Japanese army."

In short, Yoshijiro Umezu's words can be summarized as: let the common people suffer a little longer, and let the powerful and wealthy go first.

The people present looked at each other, and then said in unison, "Your Excellency the Minister is wise."

"Yoshi."

With a wave of his hand, Yoshijiro Umezu announced the end of the meeting, as he needed to hurry back to his residence to transport valuables to the air-raid shelter.

The attendees left in twos and threes. After exchanging a few pleasantries with his business partners, Hasegawa Ryosuke took a car to the airport, intending to detour via Pseudo-Mite and then transfer to a flight to Shanghai.

God knows where the American planes are. The direct flight route from Tokyo to Shanghai is no longer safe, and he doesn't want to become the first American to shoot one down.

Watching Hase's car drive away, Okamoto Kiyofuku stood in front of the window of the General Staff Headquarters building with a solemn expression. That damned non-citizen is finally gone. He must teach that guy a lesson when he gets the chance.

He had long suspected that Ryosuke Hase was involved in illegal business, but for some reason, the intelligence department's investigation had yielded no results after several years.

Intelligence Agency Agent: Of course it's because Lord Hase is so generous. Otherwise, how could they support their families and live in luxury villas with just that little salary?

After making those harsh remarks, Okamoto Kiyofuku turned around and packed his belongings to reunite with his wife and children. They were currently heading to an air-raid shelter in the suburbs.

After packing several important documents into his briefcase, Kiyofuku Okamoto walked towards the door. Before leaving, he caught a glimpse of a stack of reports that had just been delivered and he hadn't had time to look at them yet.

He hesitated for a moment, then walked back, picked up the report, and flipped through it. It contained the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's statistics and investigation results on unfamiliar individuals. Okamoto Kiyofuku quickly read through it, and when he saw the conclusion at the end of the document that no suspicious signs were found, his tightly furrowed brow slowly relaxed.

Tokyo is a large city, and people come here to make a living all the time, so it's normal for a large number of people to appear in a short period of time.

However, to be absolutely certain, before leaving, Kiyofuku Okamoto called the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and asked them to screen the unfamiliar faces again to ensure that there were no spies among them.

During the war, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, which had always been at odds with the military, dared not disobey the reasonable orders of the General Staff Headquarters, and a large number of police officers were called back to the police station from their homes.

Yokoyama, who was in charge of Nagata-cho, was also among the personnel urgently recalled. He yawned and listened casually to the instructions given by his direct inspector.

"You've all heard the military's requirements, right? Now let's get moving!" After explaining the mission, the patrol chief clapped his hands and turned to leave.

He had received a warning from his lieutenant general brother-in-law, and now he just wanted to get out of the city as soon as possible, leaving official business to his subordinates.

Before long, the highway from Tokyo to the outskirts of the city was crowded with luxury cars, trucks, and even horse-drawn carriages that could fit in a museum.

Any secret is no longer a secret once more than three people know it; Yoshijiro Umezu's "strict secrecy" became a joke.

Hayashi Fuichiro and his family were also in the evacuation team, but unlike the others, he already knew that the Allied forces were about to bomb Tokyo.

As the only mole of the Military Intelligence Bureau in the upper echelons of Japanese politics, Lin Fuyilang's intelligence value was self-evident. As soon as the US military's action plan was finalized, the Military Intelligence Bureau informed him.

Unaware of the situation, the officers grumbled as they rode their bicycles to their assigned area, the night wind gradually picking up.

Yokoyama hunched his shoulders and pedaled his bicycle at breakneck speed, soon arriving in Nagata-cho, where he began visiting the newly moved-in residents one by one.

At the same time, the air defense listening post in Kyushu also received a mysterious call sign: "Tiger-4".

The monitor wrote down the call sign on a piece of paper, got up, picked up the internal phone, and reported the matter to the Tokyo Air Defense Command, but the call could not be connected.

Unbeknownst to him, the air defense command was already in complete chaos, with everyone busy calling their families to evacuate and having no time to attend to official business.

Time ticked by, and the monitor decided to contact Tokyo again after dawn. This decision plunged millions of Tokyo residents into despair.

At 12:10 a.m., Yokoyama knocked on the door of the oil supply station. The loud knocking was quite jarring in the quiet night.

"Funaki-kun? Funaki-kun?"

Yokoyama called out the name of "New Friend" loudly, but received no response. This was very unusual; the fat boss and Funaki should be on duty at the oil depot.

His knocking grew louder and louder. Suddenly, air raid sirens blared over Tokyo, and the entire city went dark instantly, leaving only the beams of air raid searchlights streaking across the night sky.

Anxious, Yokoyama didn't have time to think. He quickly turned off his flashlight and kicked open the door of the oil depot.

As the door opened, a strong smell of alcohol wafted out. Yokoyama covered his mouth and nose and walked into the room to look around.

With the help of the moonlight and the light reflected from the searchlight, Yokoyama could roughly see the interior of the room. In the middle of the hall, there was nothing but a table of leftover food.

He called out the names of Chuanmu and the fat boss several more times, but still no one answered; the room was eerily quiet.

The alarm outside became more urgent, indicating that enemy planes were approaching. Yokoyama turned on his flashlight and, mustering his courage, went down the stairs. The smell of gasoline in the air gradually intensified, which was not a good sign.

He carefully drew his sidearm and quickly walked to the underground oil depot at the end of the stairs. When he saw the situation inside, Yokoyama was so frightened that his legs went weak and he almost sat down on the spot.

Beside the massive oil storage tank, several timed explosive devices were ticking, with the countdown timer needle less than ten ticks away from the red detonation line.

Driven by his survival instinct, Yokoyama frantically ran upstairs, but it was all in vain.

The bomb detonated successfully the instant the countdown timer needle aligned with the red detonation line, opening the oil tank.

The gasoline, air, and high explosives mixed together, causing a secondary explosion. A firestorm tore through the ground and roared up the stairs, engulfing the mountain.

In the blink of an eye, Hengshan was vaporized by the high-temperature shockwave, and the oil depot and surrounding buildings were turned into a sea of ​​fire. Nearby residents were blown into the sky while they were sleeping.

Not only in Nagatacho, but also at several oil depots in Tokyo, explosions occurred. American pilots who had just flown over Tokyo looked down at the ground and saw dots of light appearing in the dark city.

"Boom~boom~"

Anti-aircraft shells exploded in the air, and the resulting shockwaves caused the American bombers to shake violently. The searchlights that occasionally shone into the cabin further intensified the tense atmosphere.

But the U.S. military crew members remained calm. The navigator used a map and compass to locate important targets by comparing them with ground markers, and then lay down next to the Norton sight and loudly issued orders.

"Illumination flares, drop them!"

(End of this chapter)