Zhong Yi was busy rectifying the rout, and the Japanese side was not idle.

After Tada Jun, the deputy chief of staff of the base camp, and Shimomura, the chief of operations, entered the palace one after another and reported the defeat in Nanjing to Hirohito, Hirohito immediately issued an edict to let Prime Minister Fumitsu Konoe, Foreign Minister Hirota Hiroki, Chief of Army Staff Kanin Miyajihito, War Minister Sugiyama Moto, and other ministers go to the Zichen Hall to attend the Imperial Council.

Tokyo time is an hour ahead of Nanjing.

It's just dawn in Nanjing, but it's already dawning in Tokyo.

Although the sun was already shining outside, the Zichen Hall of the Imperial Palace was still air-conditioned.

Hirohito, who was kneeling on the throne, looked gloomy, and the military and political ministers who were kneeling on the tatami mats on both sides of the stairs all looked trembling, and they didn't even dare to take a breath.

It all started with the Nanjing battlefield.

Last night, the situation on the battlefield in Nanjing suddenly took a sharp turn for the worse!

The more than 100,000 Nationalist troops who had taken refuge in the security zone suddenly launched a riot, which eventually led to a large-scale riot throughout the city of Nanjing.

The imperial army stationed in the city of Nanjing was attacked by a frenzied attack!

In the face of the riots, the commander of the 10th Army, Hatohiko Asakanomiya, strongly suppressed it and gave the 6th Division and the 114th Division orders to enter the city and sweep it.

However, Matsui Ishone, commander of the Shanghai Dispatch Army and commander-in-chief of the Central China Front, believed that the result of sending a large force into the city to sweep the city was unclear and the enemy situation was unclear, so he opposed the transfer of troops into the city to sweep the city, and in the name of the commander of the Central China Front, he directly issued orders to the 6th Division and the 114th Division not to enter the city.

This move annoyed King Hatohiko of Asaka Palace, and he sent telegrams to the base camp in succession, demanding that the base camp uphold justice!

In the end, due to the lack of reinforcements from the main force outside the city, the 7th Infantry Wing, the 9th Infantry Wing, and the 13th Infantry Wing, the 45th Infantry Wing, the 6th Field Artillery Wing, the 10th Independent Field Heavy Artillery Wing, and the 5th Independent Siege Heavy Artillery Brigade that had entered the city before were completely wiped out by the Chinese Army!

Not only that, but the wing flag of the 9th Infantry Wing was also captured by the Chinese Army!

This was definitely an unacceptable fiasco for the Japanese army invading China!

Since the First Sino-Japanese War, the Japanese army has rarely suffered defeats in the face of the Chinese army, and a fiasco like last night's Nanjing has never happened!

The flag of the 9th Infantry Wing was captured, which is a great shame!

In the Zichen Palace, Hirohito did not speak, and none of the military and political ministers who attended the meeting dared to speak up.

The atmosphere in the entire hall seemed to have frozen, and the popularity was overwhelming.

At that moment, an attendant suddenly hurried into the main hall, ascended the steps, and delivered a telegram to Hirohito.

After reading the telegram, Hirohito immediately sneered twice, picked up the telegram in his hand and said: "Gentlemen, this is a telegram just sent by Matsui-kun, saying that he is no longer qualified to serve as the commander of the Shanghai Dispatch Army, so I have another competent general from the base camp to go to Nanjing to replace him. ”

Hearing this, Tada Jun immediately said: "Your Majesty, Matsui Shigen is trying to evade responsibility!" What an old disease flares up, it's all an excuse, an excuse! I don't believe it, his lung disease doesn't attack sooner or later, but at this time? Before, I heard people mention that Matsui Ishone's body is very healthy! ”

War Minister Sugiyama Motoya echoed: "That's right, Matsui Ishine is to evade responsibility!" ”

Shimomura sat up on his knees and said: "Your Majesty, the Nanjing battlefield lost four infantry wings plus two and a half artillery wings at one time, such a heavy defeat, Matsui Ishine, as the commander of the Shanghai Dispatch Army and the commander-in-chief of the Central China Front, bears an unshirkable responsibility, and he must be responsible for this defeat!" ”

After Shimomura expressed his opinion, the rest of the military and political officials also echoed it.

If Matsui Ishine was present and saw this scene, he would definitely be angry to death.

What does it mean to have a wall fall down and people pile up? This is called the wall falling down and everyone pushing it, so many military and political officials who participated in the imperial meeting, none of them spoke for him, and they all thought that he should be responsible!

Listening to the military and political leaders attending the meeting crusade against Matsui Ishine in unison, Hirohito's face became a little gloomy.

All the military and political officials are saying that Matsui Shigen should be held responsible, but the reason is that Matsui Shigen is the commander of the Shanghai Dispatch Army and the commander-in-chief of the Central China Front, so it is natural for him to take responsibility! In other words, Matsui Ishine did not make a mistake in command, he just assumed leadership responsibility.

It's a protest! How smart is Hirohito? Immediately reacted, this is a tactful protest by the ministers!

Obviously, the ministers were very dissatisfied with the royal family's practice of sending Hatohiko Asakanomiya to China to serve as the commander of the Tenth Army, so they protested to him in this way!

At this moment, Hirohito is also repentant.

In fact, Hirohito also knew that Hatohiko Asakanomiya was a man of great ambition and talent, but at that time, his original intention was that the battle to capture Nanjing was already in his hands, that is, to send a pig to serve as the commander of the Tenth Army, and he could also win a piece of military merit, so he sent Hatohiko Asakanomiya.

Who would have thought that there was a Zhong Yi and a 367 regiment on the Nanjing battlefield?

Who would have thought that a battle that had already been won would be fought like this?

Knowing this, Hirohito would never have sent Hatohiko Asakanomiya to China anyway!

At this moment, Hirohito really hated Hatohiko Asakanomiya, this waste who is ambitious and talented!

Fortunately, it is not too late to make amends, although the Nanjing battlefield suffered a heavy defeat, but the Japanese Imperial Army still occupies an absolute advantage, as long as it does not make mistakes in the next battle, the victory is still in hand!

At that moment, Hirohito waved his hand to stop the ministers' denunciation, and said: "Don't say it, what do you mean, I know that the real person who should be responsible for this is not the commander-in-chief Matsui Ishone, but my imperial uncle, the commander of the Tenth Army, King Hatohiko Asakanomiya, if he hadn't been obstinate, and stubborn, the Battle of Nanjing would definitely not have been defeated!" ”

The ministers present at the meeting lowered their heads one after another, and by not saying a word, they acquiesced to Hirohito's statement.

Hirohito sighed in his heart, turned his head and said to Matsudaira Keitin, the minister of the Imperial Household Province: "Matsudaira-kun, immediately call the Tenth Army, and let King Hatohiko of Asaka Palace return to Tokyo to report on his work, and as for the command of the Tenth Army, it can be handed over to Inaba Shiro for the time being!" ”

After a pause, he continued: "In addition, immediately call the Imperial Legation in Paris, and ask the embassy personnel to immediately find King Tsugahiko of the Higashikure Palace, and tell him about the defeat of King Hatohiko of the Asaka Palace!" ”

"Hello!" Matsudaira Keimin bowed deeply, then got up from the tatami mat and left.

(End of chapter)