Time travel! Regrets will never happen again!

Chapter 197 Surrender 2

Okamura Yasuji and a group of senior officials of the North China Expeditionary Army sat in the conference room, listening with serious expressions to the news brought back by the negotiating representatives.

They all knew the importance of this negotiation, but after hearing the conditions proposed by the Chinese side, they couldn't help but gasp.

These conditions were actually very simple and clear: the North China Expeditionary Army must surrender unconditionally; all war criminals who had committed crimes against the Chinese people must be tried.

Ordinary Japanese citizens are allowed to return to mainland Japan with their personal belongings.

As for the soldiers who have surrendered, Huaxia will ensure their personal safety and promise that all trials will be fair and just.

When Hata Shunroku heard these conditions, he finally couldn't help but explode. He slammed the table in anger and roared loudly.

"Baga Yalu! What kind of negotiation terms are these? This is simply naked unconditional surrender! How can we accept such humiliation? I would rather die on the battlefield than kneel like a dog in front of the Chinese and beg for my life!"

There was a flash of anger in his eyes, which seemed to set the entire conference room on fire.

In fact, Hata Shunroku knew very well that if he accepted this condition, he would inevitably face trial and there would be almost no chance of survival.

But as a soldier, he would rather die in battle than succumb to the enemy's pressure. However, faced with such a serious situation, other generals fell silent.

They knew very well that the Japanese army was now in a desperate situation and continued resistance would only result in more casualties and losses.

Although they were filled with resentment and humiliation, reality forced them to reconsider.

After roaring, Hata Shunroku found that no one paid any attention to him at the scene, which made him more angry.

"Bakayaro, are you all deaf?" Hata Shunroku roared angrily.

"In the name of the commander of the North China Expeditionary Army, I now order you to immediately execute the orders I have issued. Otherwise, you will all be punished by military law."

However, the Japanese generals present remained silent, for they knew very well that Hata Shunroku's plan was too crazy and might bring irreversible consequences.

When Hata Shunroku saw that no one responded, he became even more furious. He pointed at everyone and cursed.

"You cowards, don't you dare to follow my orders? Have you forgotten the honor and responsibility of a soldier? If you don't follow my orders, you will be disloyal to His Majesty the Emperor and betray the Empire of Japan."

Hata Shunroku became more and more excited as he cursed, and even began to wave his command knife, threatening to kill those disobedient generals.

At this time, a Japanese major general stood up and said, "Commander, please calm down. We understand your feelings, but your plan is too risky."

"If we really destroyed the historical sites in Peking, it would not only cause condemnation from the international community, but would also provoke stronger resistance from the Chinese people."

"Also, we cannot guarantee that we can hold Peking. After all, the enemy has surrounded the city."

Hata Shunroku was so angry that his face turned purple after hearing this. He glared at the major general and said with gritted teeth: "How dare you question my decision? You are a coward and you are not worthy of being a general. If you are not willing to follow my orders, then get out of the army and go home to farm."

The major general was angered by Hata Shunroku's insults. He stood up straight and loudly retorted: "Commander, I am not a coward. I am just considering the overall situation of the war."

"We can't make wrong decisions on impulse, we should calm down and look for better solutions."

Hata Shunroku sneered, "Humph, do you think I don't know what you are thinking? You are just afraid of taking responsibility and being cursed for eternity, but I tell you, I am not afraid. As long as I can defeat the enemy, I am willing to pay any price."

After saying that, Hata Shunroku turned to the other generals and shouted, "Who else opposes my plan? Stand up."

The meeting place was dead silent and no one dared to speak.

Seeing this, Hata Shunroku smiled triumphantly, thinking that his authority had been established.

But in fact, the Japanese generals present were secretly cursing Hata Shunroku in their hearts, thinking he was a madman.

Hata Shunroku continued, "Since no one objects, then execute my order immediately. We must destroy the historical sites in Peking as quickly as possible and let the Chinese people taste the pain of losing their cultural heritage. At the same time, we must strengthen our defenses and prepare for the enemy's attack."

After Hata Shunroku finished speaking, he turned and left the meeting room, leaving a group of Japanese generals looking at each other in bewilderment. They didn't know how to respond to Hata Shunroku's crazy order, and could only pray silently that the war would end soon.

Okamura Neiji looked at Hata Shunroku's departing back with a gloomy face, his heart filled with helplessness and anger.

At this moment, everyone else in the conference room focused their eyes on him, as if waiting for his instructions.

However, Okamura Yasuji knew very well that he was no longer the commander of the China Expeditionary Army. Although he was well aware of the situation here, he could no longer issue orders.

In the morning, the Imperial Military Department did not clearly express support or opposition to their request, but quietly removed him from his post as commander of the China Expeditionary Army.

This undoubtedly dealt a heavy blow to Okamura Yasuji, making him feel extremely lost and frustrated. Faced with Hata Shunroku's arrogant and domineering orders, Okamura Yasuji didn't even have the strength to refute.

He thought, since I'm going to die anyway, I might as well just let it go.

After all, now that he had been dismissed, the fate of the North China Expeditionary Army seemed to have nothing to do with him, but Hata Shunroku's stupid order was tantamount to seeking his own death, which made Okamura Yasuji shake his head and sigh.

At this moment, he could only pray silently, hoping that the war would end as soon as possible without any more unnecessary sacrifices.

The young commander of the Chinese 78th Army should have been secretly rejoicing when he received this news.

He hoped that there would be more people like Hata Shunroku in Japan because it meant that they would continue to resist, giving him a good excuse to eliminate those Japanese who were unwilling to surrender and continued to resist.

He would certainly appreciate Hata's persistence and hope that other Japanese could learn from Hata. Only in this way could they continue to resist instead of easily choosing to surrender.

He hoped that the Japanese could continue to resist, because this would give them a reason to kill all the Japanese who refused to surrender and continued to resist.

In this way, they can justifiably eliminate their enemies without facing any moral or legal condemnation.

He must have imagined himself standing on a pile of ruins, overlooking the destroyed Japanese mainland, hoping that through continued bombing, the Japanese archipelago would sink into the Pacific Ocean and disappear from the world map forever.

This scene must have made him extremely excited, as if he had seen the dawn of victory. In his view, only by completely destroying the enemy can the country's security and stability be ensured.