The fleet soon arrived at the Shanghai Japanese Army Headquarters located at No. 6 Chongming Road, Shanghai. The sedan stopped in front of the building gate, and Muyang and Jiang Tingdao got out of the car and walked into the building, observing all the way, but didn't find any suspicious places, so Muyang slightly put down his mind.
Muyang's question, Jiang Tingdao had no answer, he just received the order to come to No. 76 to pick up Takanashi Akira, it seems that he can only go ask Takada Koushirou himself.
As they walked down the slightly quiet corridor, Mu Yang and Jiang Tengdao stopped in front of a wooden door. Jiang Tengdao raised his hand and knocked three times with a "bang bang bang" sound. A slightly hoarse voice came from inside, saying: "Come in."
Kōtō opened the door and walked in with Mù Yáng. Mù Yáng found that it was a spacious office, with several large bookshelves on one side, a large desk in front, with many files neatly stacked on it, as well as a telephone, desk lamp and other items.
On the other side is a set of leather sofa and coffee table, which should be used for receiving guests.
Behind the desk, a man in his 50s with glasses was looking over at Muyang. Muyang stepped forward and slightly bowed, saying: "General Takaeda, I am Kurita Akira."
This rectangular bath still knows some, even if he is a royal family, others have a respect for the royal family in their hearts, but the relationship between superiors and subordinates, if the gap is too large, it's not possible to take liberties, seeing Takaaki Mutata, as a junior and subordinate, Takashi Kurita should show courtesy.
Takada Kou smiled and stood up, walking out from behind his desk to stand before Muyang. His short stature made him look up slightly when gazing at Muyang, a warm smile on his face as he said, "You might not remember, but I've actually met you before."
Muyang's eyes widened slightly in surprise, but he didn't show it. Instead, his face showed a thoughtful and puzzled expression at the right moment, which was very natural, neither exaggerated nor artificial.
"When your older brother, Sohaku Kowata, had his grand wedding ceremony, I was fortunate enough to attend the ceremony and saw you there for a moment. At that time, you were only 16 years old, but you haven't changed much in appearance, just grown a bit taller."
Muyang secretly let out a sigh of relief, he had basically passed the initial test, as long as he was careful in his subsequent conversations and didn't reveal any flaws, everything would be fine.
"At that time, I was still young and ignorant, today to see General Takaeda again is also my honor." Muyang showed neither humility nor arrogance, but respect and courtesy, showing a demeanor of having received higher education and imperial etiquette training.
"Let's not stand and talk, come sit over here." He said, leading Mu Yang to the sofa.
"Mr. Kō, you go down first, and let the secretary bring in a good pot of tea."
"Yes, Chief of Staff, Lieutenant General Taketa, Lieutenant General Etō has taken his leave." With that, Etō Issei bowed and left the room.
"Kurita Denka..."
"Please don't be polite, just call me Ritsuta," said Muyang.
Takada Kou smiled and nodded, saying: "Kurita-kun, what brings you to China this time?"
Tada attacked like this, there is a reason, Kurita Akira is not an ordinary person, apart from his identity as a lieutenant colonel in the Army General Staff Headquarters, he is also the son of Prince Higashifushimi Yorihiro, as a high-ranking general of the Empire, he is very familiar with the history of the Higashifushimi family.
Fushimi-no-miya Kuniie Shinnō, the fourth son of Fushimi-no-miya Kunihide Shinnō, established the Fushimi-no-miya house and was granted the title of Shinnō. If this Fushimi-no-miya Yoshihiko Shinnō is not well-known, then his younger brother should be very famous, namely Yasukuni-no-miya Tsunehisa Shinnō, who once served as the Chief of Staff of the Imperial Japanese Army.
The Prince Yasuhiko Asaka had several children, and in the history of resistance against Japan, he was notorious for producing the eighth son, Prince Higashikuni Naruhiko, who manufactured the Nanjing Massacre. Four sons, Princes Yasuhiko Asaka, Morimasa Nashimoto, Higashikuni Naruhiko, and Teruhiko Higashifushimi, were all generals.
He was born into such a family and is the third son of Prince Kuniyoshi Kuninomiya.
Such a character, such a royal family member, ran to China. In the understanding of Takaoka, it is likely that there was a purpose behind it. For these elderly people who take care of things, there are no unnecessary events. Prince Kuniyoshi of Higashifushimi would not let his own children run to China casually.
"I'm just here to have some fun, after all this time, Father has been fighting in China, I'm very curious about this place, why the Empire's powerful military hasn't conquered Vietnam yet." Mu Yang replied seriously.
"The person below reported that Your Highness purchased a lot of tea and silk, and also visited many dance halls and smoking dens in Shanghai. It seems that Your Highness likes these Chinese things very much." said Takaeda Kou with a smile.
Muyang was also slightly surprised. The Japanese had a strong intelligence capability, and in such a short time, his whereabouts for the past two days were probably all investigated by them.
"It's just for fun, these things are far inferior to those of our great Japanese Empire, it's just for comparison, and for freshness." answered Mu Yang.
"Did His Majesty Naruhiko know that Kurita-kun came over this time?"
"I don't know, I sneaked out after taking leave from the army department. Ah, you won't go to the army department to verify my identity, will you? That would cause trouble, and if my family finds out, I'll be punished." Muyang's face showed a hint of tension as he looked at Takaeda Kou.
"Temporarily, there isn't."
At first, Takada Kou had indeed thought of verifying the identity of Muyang with the Army Department, but just as his secretary was about to leave the office, he was called back. Takada Kou thought a lot, especially thinking that Kurita Akira might have come to China on a secret mission, which could involve other things, even imperial family matters. If he reported it, and destroyed their plans, he would be ruthlessly crushed.
It is said that Takada Kō was born in the Sanbō Honbu, and can also be considered a general of the Higashinomiya family, otherwise he would not have attended the wedding of Prince Higashinomiya Naruhiko's son.
In terms of the military, these officers have a deeper understanding than outsiders. Although the imperial family holds all the power, when it comes to actual application, they still need to rely on these generals. Today's Japan is a society completely controlled by the military, and the Togo family is the most powerful branch in the military department.
"Kurita, China is in a mess right now, with battles everywhere. The Central China Area Army has launched a new campaign to open up the Pinghan, Yuehan and Xianggui railways, connecting them into a single land transportation line leading to Vietnam and Singapore, establishing contact between the General Headquarters and the isolated army in the South Pacific."
"In Shanghai, however, the Nationalist and Communist parties frequently attempt to disrupt our operations, even going so far as to assassinate our high-ranking officers. They also interfere with our efforts to transport ancient artifacts back to Japan. It's very insecure here, I wonder when Lieutenant General Tachibana will return to Japan."
"I think I'll be going back soon."
If a member of the imperial family has an accident on their own turf, they can't shirk responsibility. Resignation is a good thing. Since Takanashi Akira is always willing to go back, no matter what the reason, it's something that Takada Kō is happy to see.
"If that's the case, there will be a ship returning to Japan tomorrow. And I'll also go to the pier tomorrow to see off Lieutenant General Nakamura Kōtarō." said Takada Kō.
"General Nakamura Kōtarō?"
