On the eve of the fall of Liaodong, he led his troops in a remonstrance against the young marshal.

As night slowly fell, Liaoyang Railway Station was shrouded in twilight.

This second-class station on the South Manchurian Railway would normally be closed and locked by this time, but tonight is different.

The platform was piled high with wooden crates and sacks, and a few windproof kerosene lamps hung on the pillars of the waiting shed. The dim light swayed in the cold wind, making the South Manchuria Railway sign flicker.

Several Japanese sentries, dressed in thick woolen overcoats, stood by the railway tracks. Their bayonets gleamed coldly in the lamplight. They kept stamping their feet to keep warm, and their breath billowed in the darkness.

A train bearing the flag of the Kwantung Army is stopped at the platform to refill its water supply.

The locomotive spewed out large plumes of white steam, which spread out in the twilight, enveloping the entire train in a hazy steam.

The train has fourteen carriages. The first four are passenger carriages, followed by six troop transport carriages, and at the very back are four flatbed wagons covered with mountain guns and ammunition boxes.

The curtains in the cabin were drawn tightly shut, but the light shining through the gaps was still bright, and occasionally a figure moved behind the curtains, accompanied by faint laughter and voices.

In carriage number two, Honjo Shigeru sat by the window with a military map of the area surrounding Fengtian spread out in front of him.

He hadn't received any news from Ishihara Kanji for some time, which made him feel a little uneasy.

Kanji Ishihara was one of his most trusted advisors. The Mukden Incident was orchestrated by Ishihara, whose abilities were beyond question.

Perhaps there was a problem with the telegraph line, or perhaps radio silence was being maintained for security reasons.

In any case, the inside agents in Fengtian City have been arranged, and the 19th and 20th Divisions have entered Baoshan Town as planned. The three-pronged encirclement has been set up, and tonight is the time to close the net.

Mitsuharu Miyake, sitting opposite him, was looking through telegrams.

This chief of staff of the Kwantung Army was short and stocky, with broad shoulders, a short and thick neck, and triangular eyes with a lot of white in the eyes and small pupils. When he looked at people, it was as if he was sizing up a piece of merchandise.

"Has any new telegram arrived from Ishihara-kun?" Honjo Shigeru asked.

Mitsuji Miyake pulled a telegram from his briefcase, glanced at it, and nodded:

"Everything is normal. Mr. Ishihara reports that arrangements have been made within Fengtian."

"Zang Shiyi's men have already taken control of the provincial government and several key departments. They are just waiting for the army to arrive so that they can cooperate from the inside and outside and take Fengtian City with ease."

"Mr. Ishihara is always meticulous in his work, so you can rest assured, Commander."

When Honjo Shigeru heard the words "cooperation from within and without," he nodded slightly, his smile deepening.

His journey north was exceptionally smooth. Starting from Lushun, he passed through Jinzhou, Gaizhou, and Haicheng without any obstacles, and did not even encounter any harassment from the guerrillas.

It went so smoothly it felt unreal.

Having fought wars his entire life, he knew that too much success was often not a good thing, so he always had a nagging feeling that something was amiss.

But now that Ishihara's telegram has arrived, confirming that the situation in Fengtian has stabilized, the anxiety that had been hanging over me has finally subsided.

"Get the vanguard moving faster."

Honjo Shigeru measured the distance on the map with his finger. Liaoyang to Fengtian was less than 120 li. At the train's current speed, they could reach Fengtian before dawn.

"After capturing Fengtian, the greatest credit for this battle will go to you and me."

"After this battle, I will most likely be transferred back to headquarters and promoted to deputy chief of staff."

"The position of Commander-in-Chief of the Kwantung Army..."

He glanced at Mitsuharu Miyake, a meaningful smile in his eyes, "It's yours."

Mitsuji Miyake's eye twitched suddenly.

He sat upright, his expression shifting from calm to ecstasy in a matter of seconds, and then from ecstasy to a near-devout loyalty.

He placed his hands on his knees, leaned forward, and bowed almost ninety degrees to Honjo Shigeru.

"Arigato!"

"I will never forget your guidance, Commander! I am willing to die for you!"

Honjo Shigeru smiled and waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need to be so polite.

"Zhang Xueming's position..."

He squeezed out a "ha" through gritted teeth.

"Where are you now?"

Mitsuji Miyake straightened up, a disdainful smile playing on his lips:

"According to the latest intelligence, they should still be in Fengcheng."

"The 19th and 20th Divisions are closing in on Fengcheng, and he is probably trapped there now and unable to move."

Honjo Shigeru sneered.

"It's time to take action in Fengcheng as well."

"Zhang Xueming... is doomed."

He paused, then his voice suddenly turned cold:

"This beast who dared to slaughter my empire's citizens, once caught, I will surely tear him to pieces."

"Cut off his head and use it as a toilet."

Mitsuji Miyake's eyes turned sinister as he continued, "Commander, when you're done, let me have yours."

"Not only him, but everyone connected to him, his relatives, his friends, his colleagues, everyone around him."

"Not a single one of the ten clans can be missing."

"They were all slaughtered, not a single one was spared."

As he spoke, his voice grew louder and faster:

"Let all of China see what happens when you oppose our Great Japanese Empire."

"Make an example of them, and drive all the people of Fengtian City to the city gates so they can see with their own eyes how every member of the Zhang family gets their head chopped off."

Honjo Shigeru listened and not only didn't find anything wrong with it, but nodded in approval.

"That's a good idea. Let's have a killing contest and see who kills more members of the Zhang family."

"The winner gets to choose the spoils of war in Fengtian City first."

Mitsuji Miyake burst into laughter, laughing so hard that tears almost streamed down his face, and slammed his hand on the table:

"It's a deal! Commander, you'll have to be lenient with me, my hands and feet aren't as nimble as they used to be."

Honjo Shigeru also laughed.

The two men sat facing each other, laughing across a table covered with maps, their laughter echoing through the carriage.

The guards at the carriage door smiled knowingly when they heard the laughter.

Although he didn't hear the specifics, the fact that his superior was happy meant that everything was going smoothly, and he would most likely be able to get a good night's sleep in Fengtian City tonight.

Just as the Japanese devils were laughing heartily—

"boom!"

A deafening explosion suddenly erupted beside the tracks.

The entire train shuddered violently, and the lights in the carriages flickered a few times before suddenly going out, leaving only a windproof kerosene lamp on the table, still waving and emitting a dim yellow light.

The teacup rolled off the table and crashed to the floor, splashing shards of porcelain and cold tea onto Honjo Shigeichi's trouser leg.

A sharp metallic scraping sound came from outside the carriage, along with the panicked shouts of soldiers. Then came a second explosion, a third explosion, one after another, growing more and more frequent.

Honjo Shigeru gripped the edge of the table tightly with both hands, his knuckles turning white from the force.

He turned his head sharply and looked out the window through the gap in the curtains.

At the end of the platform, a huge orange-red fireball was shooting into the sky, black smoke swirling and rising in the night sky, and the firelight reddened half of the sky.

The fireball landed precisely on the tracks directly in front of the locomotive.

Mitsuji Miyake got up from the floor, his smug smile completely gone, his face as white as a sheet.

He stumbled to the car window, ripped open the curtain, and froze on the spot.