Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

What is the meaning of Chapter 165?

Taiyuan
Yoshijiro Umezu sat in his chair with a sullen face, looking at Ushijima Sanetsu, who was standing in front of him with his head down and his right hand bandaged. He sneered, "Ushijima-kun, I remember warning you a couple of days ago to be careful of Su Yaoyang and his Shanxi militia. It seems you didn't take my words to heart."

Having not slept a wink since yesterday, and compounded by his injuries, Ushijima Minoru's face was exceptionally pale. He straightened up and said with a bitter expression:
"Commander, this matter is indeed my responsibility. My negligence and carelessness led to last night's crushing defeat. I will not shirk my responsibility. Please punish me accordingly!"

Whether it's dismissal or a court-martial, I have no complaints.

"So you know you'll have to go to a military court, huh?" Yoshijiro Umezu glared at him. "An entire regiment... an entire regiment was rendered incapable of fighting without firing a single shot by Chinese artillery fire, including three tanks and over a hundred trucks. How am I supposed to explain this to Commander Hisaichi Terauchi?"

Ushijima Minoru stepped forward: "Commander, you don't need to worry."

This whole affair was due to my own fault. You have already done your part, so please don't make things difficult for me. I will personally apologize to Commander Terauchi Hisaichi.

"Hmph... I beg for forgiveness..."

Yoshijiro Umezu gave a soft hum and said nothing, but gently tapped the table and fell into deep thought.

The loss of a regiment might be a huge deal for others, but for a high-ranking general like Yoshijiro Umezu, it was simply a matter of adding a few more memorial tablets to the Yasukuni Shrine.

What he cared more about was whether the North China Area Army or even the General Headquarters would have a bad impression of him because of this incident; that was the most important thing.

After a long silence, he finally spoke: "The most important thing now is not to apologize, but to figure out how to restore the reputation of the Imperial Army."

Therefore, what you need to do now is to immediately rush to Xinxian, then recapture Dingxiang, and finally march on Wutai County to eliminate Su Yaoyang, this major threat to the empire.

Ushijima Minoru bowed deeply: "Hi... Thank you for your kindness, Commander. I will definitely go back to Xinxian after I return and then organize an attack on the Shanxi militia."

“Go!” Yoshijiro Umezu waved his hand. “Don’t forget what I told you earlier.”

"Hai!"

…………

It must be said that, as a senior Japanese military officer, Yoshijiro Umezu had a very keen political sense.

Just as Ushijima Minoru was preparing to regroup and return to Xinxian, a group of reporters from all over the country arrived in Wutai County as if they were sharks smelling blood. Suddenly, the county town was filled with reporters with cameras hanging around their necks.

"We want to see your superior."

"Yes...we want to go to the front lines to conduct interviews, that's our right!"

Amidst a commotion, the command center in Wutai County was surrounded by a group of reporters who had traveled from all over Shanxi.

"Sir... those reporters outside said they want to go to the front lines to cover the story, and we can't stop them."

At this moment, Su Yaoyang, who was assigning tasks to Pi Ruoyu and several subordinates, glared at the staff officer in front of him who was covered in sweat, but said nothing. These days, reporters are truly the uncrowned kings; they are the ones who can kill without a knife.

Moreover, these people are extremely bold and dare to say anything. If they are angered, they will even curse Chiang Kai-shek, let alone him, the head of the militia.

Left with no other choice, he could only put down his pencil and follow the staff officer out of the command post. Pi Ruoyu and the others quickly followed.

As soon as I stepped out of the command post, I saw that the entrance was already surrounded by a group of people. Dozens of guards were trying to maintain order, spreading their arms to block the reporters outside, some of whom were wearing robes and others in suits.

As soon as Su Yaoyang appeared, a group of people swarmed around him, followed by a cacophony of voices.

"Sir, you must be Commander Su?"

A tall, thin man in a gray cloth robe suddenly squeezed out from the crowd, his nose almost touching the brass button on Su Yaoyang's chest. "I heard that your troops ambushed the vanguard of the Japanese 20th Division in an unnamed valley outside Xinxian last night and bombarded them with heavy artillery. Is that true?"

As he spoke, a pungent smell of sweat mixed with the odor of cheap tobacco wafted over, and Su Yaoyang even noticed that the other man's clothes were still damp with last night's dew.

As the reporter spoke, the previously noisy crowd suddenly fell silent for a moment.

Then dozens of eyes, like bayonets fixed to gun barrels, pressed against his throat.

A woman in her thirties, wearing round-framed glasses and holding a pen and paper, looked delighted and exclaimed, "Commander Su, could you tell us in detail about last night's ambush?"

"Did you command the artillery bombardment against the Japanese troops last night?"

"Commander Su...we request an on-site interview regarding the valley that was shelled last night. Please cooperate with us."

"Yes, we're going to conduct on-site interviews, and we're going to report this good news to the people of the whole country."

As they spoke, the reporters became excited again and surged forward.

"Get out of the way!" Pi Ruoyu's loud shout startled the sparrows under the eaves and startled everyone else as well.

"Let's talk this out. You are all elites in the journalism industry. How can you not even understand this basic etiquette?"

Pi Ruoyu had already strode up to Su Yaoyang at some point, and said loudly to the group with a stern face, "You can ask them one by one what you want to say. What kind of behavior is this, with everyone in such a mess?"

These journalists, who usually consider themselves cultural elites and dare to even curse the Chairman when provoked, were indignant to see a mere colonel dare to berate them. They were so enraged that they were about to start a fight with Pi Ruoyu.

Seeing this, Su Yaoyang raised his hands and pressed them down, and said loudly, "Alright... Friends from the press, I understand your feelings, but this kind of attitude is not how you solve problems."

Moreover, as my chief of staff just said, you are all elites in the journalism field.

Since you're elites, you should have a composed demeanor. You can't just be like those middle-aged women at the market, hurling insults and profanities at people. That's not befitting your status.

Su Yaoyang's words calmed the reporters' anger slightly.

He then added, "Well then, you've all come from afar, mainly to interview people about this battle."

I understand and support everyone's feelings, but as you all know, China and Japan are currently at war, and some military secrets cannot be disclosed.

However, considering everyone's eagerness, I can tell you some things that can be disclosed, and even share some photos with my fellow journalists. What do you all think?

(End of this chapter)