Spy Wars: I am the Captain of the Military Police

Everyone took their seats in order.

Terauchi Hisaichi sat in the main seat, and Chief of Staff Okabe Naosaburo sat next to him.

Itagaki Seishirō, Daiki Naoki, and other division commanders sat on both sides.

Zhou Zhengqing and Jingren were seated in the middle of the long table, close to Daihui Naoki.

The attendant quietly served the tea and left, closing the door tightly.

Only these core figures who controlled the fate of hundreds of thousands of Japanese troops in North China were left in the conference room, and the air seemed to become sticky and heavy in an instant.

Terauchi Juichi did not speak immediately. Instead, he picked up the teacup and blew the hot steam gently. His eyes swept over everyone present, and finally lingered on Zhou Zhengqing's face for a moment.

Zhou Zhengqing nodded slightly, remaining as calm as ever.

"Okay, the show is over, it's time to tell the truth." Terauchi Hisaichi twisted his neck, smiled self-deprecatingly, and finally spoke. His voice was low and a little hoarse, completely different from the loud voice he had just spoken in the auditorium.

"Okabe-kun, please tell everyone the real situation again."

"Hey!" Chief of Staff Naosaburo Okabe stood up, walked to the map, and picked up the baton. His face was also solemn.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the external propaganda we just carried out was a political necessity, intended to deter the enemy and boost domestic morale.

But behind closed doors, we must face reality." Okabe's voice was calm, filled with cold numbers and facts: "The Shanxi Campaign, which began in early September and basically ended at the end of November, involved approximately 140,000 troops deployed by our North China Front Army.

As of now, preliminary statistics show that the number of people killed in action, died from wounds, and are missing has exceeded 26,000, and the number of injured has exceeded 40,000.

The loss of various technical weapons is also very serious."

As soon as these numbers came out, the temperature in the conference room seemed to drop a few degrees.

Although everyone more or less knew that the losses were considerable, the exact number spoken by the chief of staff himself still brought a huge shock.

This far exceeded the most optimistic estimate of the headquarters before the war, and was far more cruel than the figures announced to the public.

"Especially," Okabe pointed his baton at Pingxingguan, Xinkou, Niangziguan and other places, "at these key points, the enemy's resistance was tenacious, far exceeding expectations.

Although the ambush by the Eighth Route Army of the National Revolutionary Army at Pingxingguan was not large in scale, its impact was extremely bad!

In the battles of Xinkou and Niangziguan, Yan Xishan's Shanxi-Suiyuan Army and Wei Lihuang's Central Army, taking advantage of the dangerous terrain, inflicted heavy casualties on our army.

The Itagaki Division's plan to follow the Mongol "Road to Destroy the Song Dynasty"... He paused here and glanced at Itagaki Seishirō, whose face was ashen.

Itagaki Seishirō slammed his fist down on the table, making the teacup clang. "Baka! If it weren't for the sudden change in weather, the lack of supplies, and the Chinese harassing us like rats, our Fifth Division would have already broken through southern Shanxi and completely surrounded and annihilated Wei Lihuang's troops at the foot of the Taihang Mountains! Why would we be stuck in the mountains like this now?"

His so-called "Road to Destroy the Song Dynasty" was to imitate the ancient Mongolian strategy of destroying the Southern Song Dynasty. He attempted to go south from Datong and attack Taiyuan directly, then go all the way south to open up the Tongpu Road, connect the battlefields in North China and Central China, and cut off the connection between Shaanxi and the enemy-occupied base areas in North China.

This is an extremely grand strategic concept. If successful, it will be a fatal blow to China's war of resistance.

However, the reality is harsh.

Although the Fifth Division captured Taiyuan, an important city in Shanxi, it encountered layers of obstruction from the Chinese army while advancing inland. In addition, its logistics line was long and constantly attacked, so its advancement speed was far lower than expected. Ultimately, it failed to achieve its strategic goals and suffered heavy losses.

"Itagaki-kun, calm down." Terauchi Hisaichi said lightly, but there was not much blame in his tone, but instead a hint of sympathy.

Doesn't he want a quick victory?

But the war in Shanxi is like being stuck in a quagmire. Although points and lines have been occupied on the surface, the resistance underneath is still strong and may counterattack at any time.

The commander of the First Army, Daihui Naoki, also sighed: "Your Excellency, Commander, Your Excellency, Chief of Staff, the current situation is indeed not optimistic.

Although our army occupied major cities such as Taiyuan and major transportation lines, its forces were too dispersed, and the vast rural and mountainous areas were still under the control of the remnants of the Huaxia Army and various guerrilla groups.

The clearing mission is extremely difficult and the logistical pressure is enormous.

The soldiers have been in a state of tension for a long time, with heavy casualties, and war weariness has begun to spread."

Hasunuma, who was stationed in Mongolia, added: "Resistance activities are not only frequent in Shanxi, but also in Suiyuan and Chahar regions, posing a serious threat to our rear, and General Tojo is also exhausted from dealing with them."

For a moment, the small conference room was filled with pessimism and anxiety.

It formed a sharp and ironic contrast with the "glorious victory" in the auditorium just now.

This is the real situation faced by the North China Front Army.

Beneath the appearance of victory lay huge casualties, a long front line, elusive enemies, and increasingly heavy logistical and security pressures.

At this moment, everyone's attention, intentionally or unintentionally, was focused on Zhou Zhengqing who was sitting quietly on the side.

Terauchi Juichi coughed lightly, breaking the silence. He turned his gaze to Zhou Zhengqing and his tone became much more polite: "General Yingqi, you are in charge of the military police and are responsible for the security and intelligence of important areas in North China. You should have unique insights into the overall situation.

I invited you here today to hear your opinion.

In particular... Although our army has made some progress, it has suffered heavy casualties and does not seem to have achieved the strategic goal of completely disintegrating Shanxi's resistance.

What should the front army do next? And how should we report the true situation here to the headquarters?

Itagaki Seishirō also looked at Zhou Zhengqing with a complicated look.

He has always been arrogant, but at this moment he also hopes to rely on Zhou Zhengqing's power.

Because Zhou Zhengqing not only has access to intelligence, but also has some unclear relationships with the domestic headquarters and even within the Kwantung Army. His opinions can sometimes play an unexpected role.

Daihui Naoki said directly, "If we report the losses of this battle truthfully, we'll probably face criticism from the headquarters. But if we conceal them, we'll probably cause endless trouble."

Zhou Zhengqing knew it clearly.

The fundamental purpose of Terauchi Juichi and his gang in inviting him and Jingren was to drag them into the water.

Terauchi Hisaichi needed someone who was both influential and relatively "detached" from the internal disputes within the army to "speak up" for them.

On the one hand, it helps them to explain the situation "artistically" when reporting to the base camp, and alleviates the pressure caused by excessive casualties and failure to fully achieve strategic goals.

On the other hand, he might also want to use Zhou Zhengqing's channels to convey some information that is unfavorable to the Central China Front Army to the headquarters, so as to occupy a more advantageous position in resource allocation and subsequent strategic formulation.

This is a dangerous temptation, but also a rare opportunity.

Zhou Zhengqing slowly put down the teacup he had been holding, raised his head, and calmly met the gaze of Terauchi Juichi and the others.

There was no arrogance on his face, nor did he immediately agree, but instead he showed a thoughtful expression.

"General Terauchi, generals." Zhou Zhengqing's voice was not loud, but clear and steady, and it was unusually clear in the silent conference room: "I am honored to receive your high regard.

Since you have asked, I will, based on my duties as a military police officer, offer some immature opinions on public security, intelligence, and military discipline for your reference only."

He paused to organize his words and to add weight to his words.