Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 49 Order
"idiot……"

Prince Asaka Yasuhiko immediately swore.

"A regiment... a regiment of Imperial warriors, almost completely wiped out, with even the regimental commander and deputy commander missing. It's a disgrace to the Great Japanese Empire!"

Seeing Prince Asaka Yasuhiko's defenses crumble on the spot, everyone present fell silent.

This man is a radical member of the Imperial Way faction. Although he sided with the coup plotters during the February 26 Incident last year and was severely reprimanded by Emperor Hirohito, who removed him from the list of members of the Imperial Family.

But the royal family is the royal family, and it won't change because of a list.

This can be seen from the fact that he was ordered by Hirohito to take over the position of commander of the Shanghai Expeditionary Army from Matsui Iwane only a year later, which shows that Hirohito actually trusted him quite a bit.

Being labeled as incompetent and stupid by such a member of the royal family would have a huge impact on their careers.

After venting his anger, Prince Asaka Yasuhiko realized that it was inappropriate for him to lash out at his subordinates so soon after taking office.

He took a deep breath and then asked, "Can anyone tell me which Chinese unit is occupying St. Paul's Cathedral?"

"This……"

The crowd looked at each other, and finally their gazes fell on Tani Hisao.

Seeing this, Tani Hisao cursed inwardly, "Why are they all looking at me? I don't know either!"

Seeing that everyone was watching, he dared not pretend to be deaf and dumb, so he could only bite the bullet and say, "Well... I've been busy commanding troops in battle these days. As for the situation at St. Paul's Cathedral, I'll have to ask Kunisaki-kun for the answer."

"you……"

Prince Asaka Yasuhiko suppressed his anger and turned to Matsui Iwane solemnly, saying, "Mr. Matsui, according to the intelligence I just heard, St. Paul's Cathedral has become a key factor in the capture of Nanjing by our Great Japanese Empire."

Right now, countless eyes are watching us.

Not only are established powers like the United States, Britain, and Germany waiting to see us fail, but even the Emperor is awaiting good news from us. We will not allow this to spread. Do you understand what I mean?

Matsui Iwane nodded repeatedly, as expected of a member of the royal family, his approach to problems was indeed thoughtful.

As long as this matter can be resolved within the control of the Shanghai Expeditionary Army, even if there are heavy casualties, it doesn't matter. But once the Emperor is alarmed, the nature of the matter will be different.

He glanced at the surrounding generals and said coldly, "Did you all hear what the Commander said? This matter concerns the reputation and honor of the Shanghai Expeditionary Army. Anyone who dares to leak it out should not blame His Highness the Prince and me for being ruthless."

"Hai!"

Everyone bowed their heads in unison.

If Su Yaoyang were here, he would definitely feel a sense of感慨 (gan3kai3, a complex feeling of mixed emotions, often including regret or unease), realizing that the practice of covering things up is not unique to my country.

After a moment of contemplation, Prince Asaka Yasuhiko said to his chief of staff, Iinuma Mamoru, who had been standing idly by, "Immediately issue orders in the name of headquarters to all participating units, instructing them to end the fighting in Nanjing within three days, or face severe punishment."

"Hai!" Iinuma Mori bowed and responded, but then said, "Commander, apart from some sporadic resistance in Nanjing, the largest resistance in the city is from St. Paul's Cathedral and Mufu Mountain."

In addition, we have captured a considerable number of Chinese prisoners, at least tens of thousands. Managing these people is a major problem. How should we deal with these prisoners? Please advise, Commander. "Prisoners?" Prince Asaka Yasuhiko's face flashed with a sinister glint. "Since these prisoners have become a burden, they certainly need to be dealt with properly."

After saying that, he strode to his desk, picked up a brush, wrote a line, and handed it to Iinuma no Kami: "Circulate this order of mine to all the generals, but destroy it immediately after reading it, understand?"

Iinuma no Kami received the order with both hands, and his body trembled as soon as he glanced at it. Then, he braced himself and showed it to all the generals in the office. Everyone who saw the order gasped in shock.

The order contained only six large characters: "Kill all prisoners!"

Someone said in a trembling voice, "Commander... but... but there are tens of thousands of prisoners."

"So what if tens of thousands of people?" Prince Asaka Yasuhiko said sternly, "As long as His Majesty the Emperor can complete his great task of ruling the four seas, what does it matter if we kill tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions, or even tens of millions of people?"

"Hai!"

Seeing that Prince Asaka Yasuhiko was angry, the general dared not say another word and quickly lowered his head.

Finally, Chief of Staff Mamoru Iinuma stepped in to smooth things over, saying, "Alright, you've all seen the Commander's orders."

"You must completely annihilate all resistance forces in Nanjing within three days. This includes places like St. Paul's Cathedral, Xiaguan, and Mufu Mountain. Do you all understand?"

"Hai!"

A ceremony to welcome the new commander turned into a military discussion meeting. Soon, the generals left with their missions, leaving only Prince Asaka Yasuhiko, Matsui Iwane, and Iinuma Mamoru at the headquarters.

"Your Highness the Prince."

Seeing the office door closed, Matsui Iwane looked at Prince Asaka Yasuhiko and said solemnly, "Nanjing is now basically in our hands. I'm not worried about other places, but St. Paul's Cathedral is the one that worries me the most. You must not let your guard down."

"Even if you don't say anything, I will still pay attention."

Prince Asaka Yasuhiko snorted lightly. "I will personally call Kunisaki Sono in a moment and tell him to eliminate that isolated army within two days. If he fails to do so, I don't mind sending him back to his homeland to retire early."

Upon hearing Prince Asaka Yasuhiko's sinister words, Matsui Iwane nodded and then stood up: "Your Highness, I should personally welcome you to Nanjing since you have just arrived, but my health simply does not permit it, so I can only postpone it. I will definitely make it up to you when I have the opportunity."

"Yoshi... Matsui-kun, you're too kind. Your health is the most important thing."

Once I return to my homeland, I will personally visit you without your invitation!
"I'll definitely hire some of the most beautiful geishas to keep me company!"

"Hahaha……"

After saying that, the two of them burst into laughter.

Matsui Iwane acted quickly, handing over his work to Prince Asaka Yasuhiko and then boarding a ship to return to his home country to recuperate.

For the soldiers and civilians remaining in Nanjing, this day marked the beginning of a nightmare. Under the orders of Prince Asaka Yasuhiko, more than 100,000 Japanese troops launched a bloody and cruel massacre in Nanjing, beginning a tragedy that shocked the world.

(End of this chapter)