The War of Resistance Against Japan: Special Operations Battalion Traverses Shanghai and Slaughters

Ignoring Kita Seiichi's anger, I coldly reminded him.

“General Kita, before I returned, Long Fei learned that the Third Regiment I sent to Qinhuangdao had been annihilated by the Longyan Legion.”

Kita Seiichi frowned and asked, "What do you mean by telling me this now? Are you trying to tell me that it's no longer possible for us to retreat to the border by land?"

Benwen Yaqing nodded and continued, "That's only one aspect. In front of me, Long Fei ordered the killing of all three hundred-plus wounded soldiers captured from my Third Regiment."

"What?! Baka... Damn it, he actually gave such an order! It's insane! He actually slaughtered our wounded soldiers and prisoners of war!"

Honma Haru looked at Kita Seiichi and suddenly found it ridiculous.

He couldn't help but mock himself: "General Kita, I think your accusations against Ryubi are completely unreasonable."

"Didn't we also massacre a large number of wounded and prisoners of war in the Chinese army? Not to mention wounded soldiers, we also massacred intact prisoners of war. Moreover, we also massacred unarmed Chinese civilians."

"Baka! Benwenjun, do you know what you're saying? You are a general of the empire, and these words should not come out of your mouth."

Honma Haru didn't want to argue with Kita Seiichi, so she sighed and shook her head.

"Alright, General Kita, let's not waste time on these things. I'm telling you this to show that this Ryufei is truly ruthless and will never have a shred of pity for us."

"We only have one hour. What you need to think about now is how to make a decision."

"Because when the time comes, the Dragon Flame Legion outside the city will flood in like a tide, and we will all be loyal to the Heavenly Locusts, and the expatriates in our city will be in grave danger."

After saying that, Benwen Yaqing walked to the side, sat down, lit a cigarette, and smoked silently.

All the pressure is now on Kita Seiichi. His decision not only concerns his own life and death, but also the life and death of more than 10,000 Japanese soldiers, as well as the lives and deaths of Japanese expatriates in Yanjing and Tianjin.

After thinking for more than ten minutes, Kita Seiichi sat down in front of Honma Ayaharu and asked in anguish.

"My lord, even if we surrender unconditionally, we will still have to undergo labor reform. I'm afraid it will be worse than death for us."

Kita Seiichi wasn't stupid; he knew very well what so-called labor reform meant.

At this moment, Honma Yaharu looked up at Kita Seiichi and said calmly.

"As generals of the empire, we are ready to serve the Heavenly Locusts at any time."

"But what about the more than ten thousand imperial soldiers below, and the expatriates in the city? Should they also die for the Heavenly Locusts?"

Kita Seiichi was deeply moved by Aya Haru's words, and he nodded in agreement.

“You’re right. We can die, but we should find a way to save the lives of so many soldiers and civilians.”

"Unconditional surrender would at least give them a chance and hope to survive."

Having said that, Kita Seiichi had clearly made a decision.

He slowly stood up and said to Benwen Yaqing, "Benwen, I hope you can live on and take care of my parents and family in the future."

Honma gave a wry smile: "General Kita, you should take care of your parents and family yourself."

Kita Seiichi frowned: "My lord, what do you mean..."

Honma Haru nodded: "General Kita, given the current situation, I think we shouldn't rush to follow Commander Terauchi's example. Let's stay alive first and see how things go."

"Sigh... okay, you have a point."

Long Fei gave him an hour, but only forty minutes passed before Kita Seiichi ordered an unconditional surrender.

Immediately afterwards, the Longyan troops surrounding Yanjing and Tianjin took custody of the surrendered Japanese soldiers and quickly seized control of the two cities.

When the foreigners in the Tianjin concessions learned that the Japanese had surrendered unconditionally and that the Longyan Army had taken control of the entire city, they were shocked.

They were all terrified. Long Fei ordered them to pay up and leave by 8 a.m. the next morning, as there wasn't much time left.

Chaos erupted in the concession as the foreigners rummaged through their belongings, each trying to scrape together five thousand silver dollars for rent.

Many foreigners, however, remained undeterred and went to the consulate to demand that the government issue a protest to stop the Dragon Flame Legion's actions.

But who to protest to has become a problem.

The National Government had long ago moved its capital to Shuangxi City, and Tianjin had long been controlled by Japan. Now, the Japanese garrison has surrendered, and the Longyan Legion has occupied it.

After discussing the matter, the consuls of these countries decided that they should still lodge a protest with the Nationalist government.

The reason is simple: Japan is an aggressor nation, while the legitimate government of China today is the National Government.

Soon, WYZ, located in Shuangxi City, received strong protests from several countries.

These countries demanded that the National Government order the Dragon Flame Legion to retract its orders and apologize to all nations.

At the same time, these countries demanded that the Nationalist government inherit all treaties and agreements signed by the Qing government and recognize the legal existence of the concessions.

Most importantly, these countries also pressured the Nationalist government, saying that if it could not stop this, they would stop all aid to the Nationalist government and would not rule out treating this as a declaration of war and intervening militarily.

WYZ's head was throbbing so badly it felt like it was about to explode.

He hurriedly summoned relevant personnel from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other departments to discuss countermeasures.

“Niang Xipi, has Long Fei gone mad? He actually said he doesn’t recognize the existence of the concession, and not only did he order the foreigners in the concession to leave, he also demanded that each of them pay a rent of five thousand silver dollars.”

Foreign Minister Guo Taiqi was also extremely worried; he was under immense pressure and felt like he was about to be torn apart by the protests from these countries.

“WYZ, who can disagree? This Long Fei is just messing around completely.”

"His actions will not only make these countries hostile to us and cut off our aid, but will also bring us many more unfriendly countries."

General He shook his head and sighed, "The war of resistance is so difficult now, we desperately need the aid and support of countries like the United States."

"Therefore, we must find a way to make Long Fei retract his orders and apologize to these countries."

Everyone could talk, but when it came to stopping Long Fei, no one could do anything about it.

Just then, the head of the personal guard rushed in to report.

"WYZ, we just received a telegram from the Dragon Flame Legion to the entire nation..."

Upon hearing this, WYZ felt a pang of anxiety, and his head began to throb with pain again.

"He sent a telegram to the whole country again, sigh... read it... listen to what he has to say."

"Long Fei, the commander of the Longyan Legion, sent a telegram to the whole country, saying that the Longyan Legion had recovered the entire territory of Shanxi and Hebei, and that the Japanese in Yanjing and Tianjin had surrendered unconditionally and been liberated."

"The telegram also stated that the Longyan Legion would not recognize any of the humiliating treaties previously signed by the Qing government, and therefore would reclaim the concessions in Tianjin and order the foreigners in the concessions to leave China."

"What? This...this...what should we do?"

WYZ was completely flustered at this moment. Everyone knew that Long Fei's telegram would definitely receive the support of all Chinese compatriots.

Not to mention that the Nationalist government had no way to stop Long Fei before, even if it had a way to stop him now, it wouldn't dare to do so because it would be condemned by the people of the whole country.

The Qing government's corruption and incompetence brought immense suffering and humiliation to China.

Now, Long Fei and the Longyan Legion have stepped forward, not only defeating the Japanese invaders and recovering vast swathes of land, but also responding to the will of the people by making such a great decision and issuing such a popular telegram.

Anyone who opposes this now is going against the people of the whole country.