The news of the Japanese Emperor's miserable death spread rapidly across China, whether in KMT-controlled areas, Soviet areas, or even in occupied territories under Japanese military control, people were secretly spreading this news.
The news of the Japanese emperor being killed by a Japanese military man has become the fastest-spreading and most talked-about topic among Chinese people recently.
Many people, after tea and dinner, would take out this topic to discuss it, and later gradually evolved into different versions. Some said that the Japanese Emperor and the Japanese Army were vying for power, and in the end, the Japanese military killed the Emperor with a heavy heart, which is a realistic version. Some said that Asano Kaichi's woman was occupied by the Emperor, and Asano Kaichi angrily killed the Emperor, which is a triangular love affair version. Some said that the Japanese royal family conspired to seize power, and the Crown Prince wanted to take over, which is a palace struggle version. Some said that the Japanese cabinet conspired to seize power, manufactured multiple conspiracies, and killed the Emperor to destroy the army, which is a conspiracy theory version.
Anyway, the Chinese people are delighted to hear of Emperor Hirohito's death, while those with insight and political minds are paying attention to Japan's next move.
The news of the death of Emperor Hirohito also spread to Western society, especially in the United States, which was very concerned about the emperor's death. Special speeches were made for Mikado Kuni no Akitsushima, and special personnel were organized to analyze and study them, drawing a conclusion that Japan was in internal turmoil, with some people vying for power. They also analyzed that this round of internal power struggle in Japan would have a great impact on the combat effectiveness of the Japanese army, which would lose half of its combat effectiveness.
This is absolutely good news for the United States, and General MacArthur, Commander of the US Far East Command, was overjoyed after reading the report. That night, he even held a dance party attended by generals to celebrate the ascension of the Japanese Emperor.
The news of the assassination of Emperor Hirohito naturally spread to the Japanese military as well. At first, neither high-ranking officers nor ordinary soldiers believed that imperial soldiers would do such a thing, but the fact was before their eyes, and it happened anyway.
An unstable atmosphere began to spread in the Japanese army, and some Japanese soldiers, especially officers, were more aware of some actions by the army. Some people even gradually believed that the assassination of the Emperor was true, just as Prime Minister Kiichiro Higashikuni said, it was done by General Hideki Tojo in collaboration with General Shigenori Kuroda and General Yoshijirō Umezu.
Many people's beliefs were overturned, and they wondered whether their loyalty was to the Emperor or the Imperial Army. They questioned who they were fighting for and why those generals dared to assassinate the Emperor.
"Ah, I don't believe it, His Majesty the Emperor is a god and cannot be killed. The General Staff are all traitors, I'll kill them." In the barracks of the Kwantung Army in Tonghua, a soldier suddenly fired his rifle into the air and began shouting loudly in the courtyard.
Everyone in the command center was stunned, and then Major General Naji Tetsuo immediately stood up and loudly ordered: "Hurry up and dispatch a law enforcement team to capture that madman who fired randomly."
"Yes, General." A staff officer hastily took orders and left.
Kanae Yoshiro sat down again and said, "Now you've all seen the situation. The soldiers are extremely unstable after hearing the news of the Emperor's passing away. As a brigade commander, you must do a good job in stabilizing the soldiers. The army cannot be chaotic, so let's cheer up..."
Just as Kanaji Osamu said that, another gunshot was heard from outside, followed by several more. Kanaji realized something must have happened and quickly stood up to lead the way outside.
This group of Japanese officers rushed to the playground, only to see that the lieutenant colonel who had just gone out was already lying on the snowy ground with a bloody chest. Just twenty meters away, another soldier also fell to the ground, his death was extremely miserable, his head was blown up, and his brains were scattered all over the place, his rifle was still lying not far from him.
White snow, red blood, the contrast is so strong that it makes Shinji's eyes narrow.
Kanaji Osamu got angry and shouted loudly on the playground: "What's going on? Who can tell me?"
The officers around General Ka Na stood still and didn't dare to speak. After a long time, a slightly hesitant voice came from behind the officers: "Commander of the Brigade, I saw what happened just now."
"Hurry up and speak!" shouted Kanae Osamu.
"I was the class leader of Lin Badai, and after he learned about the assassination of His Majesty the Emperor this morning, he became somewhat dispirited. Just now, when we were chatting in the dormitory, Lin Badai suddenly ran out of the barracks and fired his gun into the sky. At that time, several people from our class followed him out."
The Japanese squad leader glanced at Mizukawa, who was lying in the snow, and then looked at Lin Baidu's miserable body. He continued: "After Mizukawa arrived, he wanted Lin Baidu to surrender his gun and accept treatment. However, when Lin saw Mizukawa, he shouted loudly that Mizukawa must also be a co-conspirator in the assassination of the Emperor since he was sent by the General Staff Headquarters. Suddenly, he raised his rifle and fired at Mizukawa, hitting him in the chest."
Then the law enforcement team shot and killed Lin Badan, that's what happened. After finishing speaking, the Japanese army sergeant quickly retreated back.
Kanaji Takeshi panted heavily as he walked around the snowy playground, his frustration spreading through his mind, but he knew that stabilizing the emotions of the soldiers was now the top priority. He ordered his subordinates: "Hurry up and find someone to collect their bodies, and when we write the report later, just say they died in battle."
Then Ka Na Chikao turned to face several brigade commanders and said, "It seems that we still have some shortcomings in our consideration. All officers above the rank of company commander must come to the military department for a meeting. It seems that stability work can no longer be delayed. If we don't seize the moment to stabilize the army, not only will we have trouble fighting against the Chinese army, but also big problems may arise within our own army."
The Tonghua Garrison Army was only a very small part of the more than 5 million Japanese army, it can be seen that at this moment, the Japanese army has become extremely unstable due to the assassination of the Japanese Emperor by an army officer, and the news of Matsumoto's rebellion against Tōjō.
The Japanese army was notorious for its ferocity in battle, and a large part of this ferocity was the result of brainwashing by the military. The most fundamental aspect of this brainwashing was loyalty to the Emperor, dedicating oneself to the Emperor's cause, even if it meant dying in battle, as they believed they would return to heaven and be reunited with the Emperor.
But now they actually heard that the Emperor was assassinated, and it was even done by a military officer. How could this be accepted? Many generals participated in the rebellion, and there were even soldiers who rebelled against the Emperor. Many soldiers felt distrust towards their commanders who led them into battle.
The current Japanese military, let alone fighting against the Kuomintang and Communist Party armies, has many problems within itself. If these issues are not properly handled as soon as possible, it is uncertain whether this force can still fight. However, even if it temporarily stabilizes, its combat effectiveness will likely be greatly discounted.
Will Muyang be able to calm them down? Don't dream on.
