allonlinenovel Chapter 957 Opportunity knocks but once!
Chapter 957 Opportunity knocks but once!
At this moment, the dock area has been turned into a sea of fire.
Huge explosions followed one after another, with towering pillars of fire and thick smoke engulfing everything.
You can see wood chips, cargo boxes, and even human remains that have been blown up.
Several small cargo ships moored near the dock, used to transport the wounded and supplies, were also hit, burst into flames, and slowly sank.
Precise! Extremely precise!
The navy's artillery fire seemed to have eyes, avoiding the dock's infrastructure, perhaps for their own future use, and specifically targeting the ammunition stacks and hospital tent area!
"Hasegawa Kiyoshi!" Matsui Iwane trembled all over, whether from the cold or from extreme anger and fear: "You... how dare you!!!"
He knew, of course, that the Navy and the Army had a long-standing feud, but he never expected that the Navy would dare to so blatantly and thoroughly kick someone when they were down, even going so far as to shell a hospital full of wounded soldiers!
This is no longer a factional struggle; this is blatant murder!
They wanted to completely kill Matsui Iwane and the entire Central China Expeditionary Army!
“Even the Yangtze River… our last escape route…” Matsui Iwane’s binoculars fell to the cold city bricks with a “thud,” the lens shattering.
He seemed to have all his strength drained away; his body went limp, and he collapsed to the ground. The staff officer and guards beside him rushed forward to help him up.
"It's over... It's all over..." He stared blankly at the distant sky, which was set ablaze by naval gunfire and symbolized his last hope, muttering to himself and repeating the same phrase over and over.
The disastrous counterattack at Taiping Gate had broken his last spearhead for a counterattack; while the navy's bombardment of Xiaguan completely destroyed the foundation upon which he depended for survival and any possible escape route.
At this moment, Matsui Iwane, the once invincible "Commander of the Central China Area Army," truly and utterly fell into the abyss of despair.
He was not only surrounded by "traitors" in the army, but also stabbed in the back by the navy.
He was like a trapped beast that had fallen into a snare; all his struggles only hastened his demise.
The night in Nanjing was filled with the roar of naval heavy artillery and sporadic gunfire from within the city, all of which together played a dirge for his demise.
. . . . . . . . . . .
Tianjin, the headquarters of the Japanese military police in the Japanese concession.
In the office late at night, only a green-shaded desk lamp cast a dim yellow light on the large desk.
Zhou Zhengqing unconsciously tapped his fingertips on the table, making a dull thud.
A huge military map of Central China was spread out in front of him, with the situation around Nanjing marked densely in red and blue pencils, like a festering wound.
He, a stranger whose soul travels through time, successfully entered the power center of the Japanese army by relying on his vague memory of the course of history and the Japanese noble identity of "Takuto Takasaki" given to him by the system, and meticulously planned this coup aimed at tearing the Japanese war machine apart from within.
The initial progress was perfect: the decisive action of the 4th Division, the strong intervention of the Navy, and the encirclement of Matsui Iwane by various divisions—everything was proceeding according to his script.
However, as the fighting between the "rebels" outside Nanjing and the Central China Expeditionary Army intensified, the casualty figures on both sides skyrocketed like wild horses, and Zhou Zhengqing's brows furrowed more and more.
This is no longer a simple internal drain, but is evolving into a self-destructive frenzy of the Imperial Army's elite.
Through the detailed reports from the front lines transmitted by Nanzo Yunzi, he could almost smell the stench of blood permeating the ancient city of Jinling, a stench stronger than ever before.
That was the blood of the Japanese soldiers themselves...
But! ...There was also the blood of those Chinese people in Nanjing who couldn't be evacuated in time...
"Foolish!" he muttered under his breath, directed at both Matsui Iwane, who was stubbornly resisting even in dire straits, and the "rebel" division commanders who were blinded by rage and attacking at any cost.
In his calculations, this internal strife should be a quick way to subdue Matsui Iwane at a relatively low cost, achieve a change of power, rapidly dismantle the Central China Expeditionary Army, greatly weaken the overall combat power of the Japanese army in Central China, and immediately occupy Nanjing, thereby preventing the bloodthirsty divisions under Matsui Iwane from committing a "massacre".
But now, the battle is at a stalemate, casualties are heavy, and the civilians in the city and the captured Nationalist soldiers are also suffering.
This deviates somewhat from his core objective: to protect the people to the greatest extent possible and prevent a massacre.
Thinking about all this, Zhou Zhengqing raised his hand and rubbed his temples in deep thought.
A bolder, even riskier, idea became clearer in his mind: now was the perfect opportunity for the Chinese army to launch a counterattack!
When the two major Japanese army groups were locked in a fierce battle outside Nanjing and were exhausted, if the fresh forces of China had launched a decisive attack from the outside, they could not only have severely damaged or even annihilated these two enemy forces, greatly boosting the morale of the national resistance fighters, but also possibly recaptured the capital Nanjing in one fell swoop. The political and military significance of this would have been immeasurable.
At that time, Zhou Zhengqing, as the "behind-the-scenes manipulator" of all this, although unknown, will undoubtedly deal a heavy blow to the invaders and win a precious turning point for China in this time and space.
"Opportunity knocks but once!" He stood up abruptly, a resolute glint in his eyes.
We must seize this fleeting opportunity, even if it means taking greater risks.
"Yunzi!" Zhou Zhengqing called out in a deep voice.
Nanzo Yunzi, dressed in military uniform, entered as soon as she was called. She still looked as charming as ever, but there was a hint of weariness and seriousness in the depths of her eyes.
Having long navigated between various factions and transmitted intelligence capable of causing upheavals, her nerves were always on edge.
"Immediately send a telegram to Dai Li of the Military Intelligence Bureau in Wuhan, using the most urgent channel." Zhou Zhengqing spoke very quickly, with an unquestionable commanding tone: "The content is as follows: The internal strife in Nanjing among the Japanese army has reached a critical moment. The main forces of both sides are deeply embroiled in street fighting, suffering heavy casualties and their combat strength has been sharply reduced."
The strengths and weaknesses of Nanjing's defenses are uncertain. If your army can launch a decisive attack, taking advantage of the enemy's exhaustion and launching a pincer attack from both inside and outside, you can not only lift the siege of Nanjing, but also inflict heavy damage on the enemy and even recover the capital.
The opportunity is fleeting; a swift decision is crucial!
Zhou Zhengqing paused for a moment, then added, his tone full of enticement: "Tell them that as long as they agree, I can provide them with the Japanese troop deployment, firepower configuration, supply lines, and even the locations of the command posts of each division in Nanjing!"
Provide as many details as you need!
Nanzo Yunzi quickly jotted down the key points. She knew the weight of this intelligence and understood that Zhou Zhengqing was taking a huge gamble.
After hesitating for a moment, Nanzo Yunzi still whispered a reminder: "General, things are very tense in Wuhan lately. Dai Li is a suspicious man, and after the defeat in Nanjing, I'm afraid he will find it difficult to make this decision."