Chapter 263: 262, Tokyo Army First Division Mutiny, Auxiliary Fuel Tank Bomb, P220 Night Bombing Of Tokyo
Tokyo, one kilometer south of Yoshiwara Street, there is a temple called Senso-ji Temple.
The residential buildings next to Senso-ji Temple are one of the hiding places for Imperial Way Faction officers.
Yoshida is staying there.
He has to stay there for six days and can only go out when the action begins.
The Imperial Way Faction officers are all devoutly awaiting the arrival of that day, expecting the moment they believe will change Japan’s fate.
Only Yoshida does not think so in his heart, but he dares not show it.
February 21st, 5 p.m.
The guard officer shouted from outside: “Dinner time.”
The Imperial Way Faction officers came out of their rooms, went to the dining hall to get food boxes, and returned to their rooms.
Yoshida did the same.
He closed the door, opened the box, and ate natto rice, miso soup, and a small sea fish.
After eating, he put the food box outside the room, and the rest was just spacing out.
At 8 p.m., he locked the door from the inside, quietly took out the telegraph machine, put on the headphones, and listened.
Radio waves came through, and he was pleasantly surprised in his heart, quickly recording.
After recording the coded telegram, he translated it in his mind.
【Quickly learn the action details, time, location, target.】
Yoshida silently tore up the recorded coded telegram and swallowed it, then disassembled the telegraph machine and put it away.
He got up and went out, knocking on his friend Okayama’s door.
Okayama happily pulled Yoshida into the room and talked with him.
The two talked about their military academy classmate days and their respective careers in the army.
Later, the topic naturally turned to this action.
Because they were in this very secretive place and everyone couldn’t leave, Okayama said frankly:
“We are also forced into this. If we don’t act, there will be no future.”
In his account, the Imperial Way Faction’s core strength, the First Division, was originally stationed in Tokyo, and in the eyes of the Imperial Way Faction, it was the Emperor’s own troops.
But last December, the First Division Commander and staunch Imperial Way Faction member Yanagawa Heisuke was transferred to Taiwan as garrison commander.
The First Division, which had been stationed in Tokyo for 30 years, was also to be transferred to Northeast China and become part of the Kwantung Army.
This action was, for the Imperial Way Faction, a signal of factional war.
Since the First Division was to be transferred abroad in March, they had to act before then.
Yoshida showed a look of sudden realization.
“So, for this action, besides us, there are also troops from the First Division participating.”
“Of course, if the First Division doesn’t participate, our action would be suppressed by the First Division right away.” Okayama replied.
“Then on the 26th, what time will the action start?”
“The main attackers are several infantry regiments from the First Division, and we are assisting in the attack.”
“Then who will we act against?” Yoshida asked again.
Okayama lowered his voice: “Prime Minister, cabinet ministers, Military Department, Metropolitan Police Department, all who obstruct us must be executed.”
“Understood. Thank you.” Yoshida got up and said goodbye.
He returned to his room and immediately locked the door from the inside, feeding back the situation.
Wuhan, Fang Wen’s residence.
Fang Wen was in the bedroom with headphones on, listening to radio waves.
His wife Kuang Mingzhu was peeling an orange nearby and handing it to his mouth: “Husband, eat some fruit.”
“Mm.” Fang Wen ate a slice of orange. February is the season when oranges ripen, and the oranges his wife chose were juicy and sweet enough.
“Are you going out again?” Kuang Mingzhu asked. As the saying goes, a short parting is better than a new marriage. During this time of reuniting with her husband, she was quite reluctant for him to leave.
“Not going out, but flying a long trip.” Fang Wen thought, since his wife had been through so much with him, there was no need to hide this from her, so he explained the situation in a low voice.
“Japan is going to be in chaos?!” Kuang Mingzhu covered her mouth and exclaimed softly.
“It probably won’t be that chaotic, but I want to pour oil on the fire and add some excitement.” Fang Wen smiled.
They say marry a chicken, follow the chicken; marry a dog, follow the dog. Following Fang Wen, Kuang Mingzhu, this young lady from a prominent family, had changed a lot. She, who was also very patriotic, couldn’t help but be curious about what her husband would do.
After hearing her husband explain the plan, she couldn’t help but act coquettish.
“Husband, this time take me with you, just like the last bombing. I didn’t do worse than others.”
“Alright, alright, we’ll see.” Fang Wen had just coaxed his wife when radio waves came through.
He looked serious as he recorded the coded telegram, then translated it.
【February 26th, First Division as main attack, we follow the team. Targets: Prime Minister, cabinet ministers, Military Department, Metropolitan Police Department.】
Looking at the translated telegram, Fang Wen was surprised. Such a big move!
He calculated in his mind that such a large-scale rebellion would likely not happen at night, because at night the targets could easily escape in the dark.
If they acted during the day, it would be hard for him to pilot the airplane and pour oil on the fire.
But a rebellion wouldn’t end that quickly. On the night of February 26th, mixing in and conducting purposeful bombing wasn’t impossible.
This depended on whether Yoshida cooperated.
Then, he sent a reply telegram.
Residential buildings outside Senso-ji Temple in Tokyo.
Yoshida received the reply telegram.
【February 26th night, find an opportunity to pull away, then activate the radio equipment given to you and aim at the targets you are to deal with.】
【Targets include: Imperial Way Faction officers who know your identity, and Prime Minister’s Official Residence, cabinet ministers’ official residences, Military Department, Metropolitan Police Department, etc.】
【For every important target successfully guided and hit, you will receive a 50,000 US dollar reward.】
The reply made Yoshida ponder.
So the equipment he brought back was really an aviation bombing guidance device.
That mysterious organization was clearly not the Chinese government; it was very likely the Russians.
He felt little regret about becoming a Russian spy. Instead, he thought about how to use this opportunity to clean up the Imperial Way Faction officers who knew him and earn some income in the process.
Anyway, on February 26th, those places would definitely be in chaos, and a bit more confusion probably wouldn’t matter.
The action on February 26th was settled.
Japan’s Imperial Way Faction and First Division were preparing for it.
Fang Wen was also preparing for it.
To bomb Japan, the Xuan Ming Seaplane wouldn’t do; it had to be Taishan One.
But Taishan One’s range was only 2000 kilometers, and a round trip to Tokyo was 4000 kilometers. Even with auxiliary fuel tanks modified, it had to depart from a coastal airport.
The problem was that there were Japanese spies outside Jinan Airport, and even more at Shanghai Airport.
Flying from Xiangxi Airport would require 6000 kilometers round trip, exceeding the f.220’s limit.
Just loading auxiliary fuel tanks on both sides of the airplane couldn’t solve this three times fuel consumption problem; it needed greater fuel capacity.
To solve this problem, Fang Wen racked his brains.
How to increase the fuel capacity?
After some time thinking, Fang Wen came up with an alternative plan.
Auxiliary fuel tanks themselves could be discarded in wartime.
So why not make an aviation fuel bomb: before reaching Tokyo, it serves as a temporary auxiliary fuel tank; after reaching Tokyo, drop it as a bomb.
This idea made him put it into practice immediately.
He manufactured six extra-large auxiliary fuel tank bombs. This auxiliary fuel tank bomb is mounted on the f.220’s bomb rack: upper part is fuel space, lower part is napalm, with absolutely astonishing power.
This way, the airdrop of aerial bombs became formalized.
For such an instructive bombing, Pan Jiafeng definitely had to go, Shao Sishen as the teaching backbone had to go, and for the three Red Army flight cadets, it was a precious learning opportunity, so they naturally had to go.
Fang Wen thus gave up the idea of letting his wife participate.
February 25th.
Everything was ready, Fang Wen put on his flight suit and went out.
Before leaving, he whispered to his wife: “As you can see, I now have to train a batch of military pilots. Taking them means it’s not suitable for you to join.”
Kuang Mingzhu didn’t get upset about it and instructed her husband. “Got it. Be careful, pay attention to safety, don’t get arrogant just because you’re skilled.”
His wife’s concern warmed Fang Wen’s heart. He stood straight and replied earnestly: “I guarantee caution, no recklessness. Don’t see me off, to avoid anyone noticing anything.”
Kuang Mingzhu nodded and watched her husband leave.
Fang Wen entered Taishan Wuhan Airport alone and met up with Pan Jiafeng and the others in the airport hangar.
They waited until dusk before boarding Taishan One and flying to Xiangxi Airport.
At Xiangxi Airport, auxiliary fuel tank bombs were loaded, along with one hundred racks of napalm.
After everything was ready, it was just waiting.
Time passed, one night went by, and it was the early morning of February 26th.
Tokyo side began the action.
Yoshida left the hiding place together with the Imperial Way Faction officers.
Joining their action were 1000 soldiers from the First Division.
These people raided weapons from the garrison arsenal, then set out, in the name of “clearing the Emperor’s side,” to assassinate the “bad persons” around the Emperor separately.
Among them, three hundred targeted the Prime Minister’s Residence.
Yoshida was among them.
They charged into the Prime Minister’s Residence with machine guns, grenade launchers, and rifles.
They fought with the guarding police officers, killing 4 resisting police officers on the spot.
Okayama shouted: “If you encounter the Prime Minister, kill him directly, no hesitation.” Then the soldiers began searching in the Prime Minister’s Residence.
Yoshida, who wanted to silently follow through the whole thing, was forced by Okayama to take five soldiers as subordinates and act separately.
This made him hate Okayama even more, thinking that tonight would be this classmate’s end.
But for now, he still had to play the part.
He dawdled, leading the soldiers to search room by room.
After a while, suddenly an elder in a bathrobe ran out, and searchers from all directions immediately shot at him.
After a burst of gunshots, the man fell in a pool of blood, and everyone came over to check.
After flipping him over, someone shouted: “The Prime Minister is dead, we killed the Prime Minister.”
Cheers erupted, and the rebels’ morale soared.
But Yoshida felt something was off. He had visited the Prime Minister with Admiral Nagano Shuu, and the Prime Minister’s face was plumper than this man’s. This one looked similar but should be the Prime Minister’s secretary; they resembled each other somewhat.
But then, servants from the Prime Minister’s Residence were brought in and also identified the corpse as the Prime Minister. The Imperial Way Faction began widely proclaiming this good news, so Yoshida didn’t say anything.
But he felt the Prime Minister was probably still hiding in the residence.
He couldn’t help but have an idea: if he found the hidden Prime Minister and rescued him, wouldn’t he gain another connection?
Then, while the troops were stationed in the Prime Minister’s Residence, he found an excuse to wander around.
The most suspicious was probably the room from which the body double had run out.
He quietly pushed that room’s door but found it locked from the inside.
This made Yoshida even more suspicious.
He whispered at the door: “Prime Minister, I know you’re inside, but hiding like this will be discovered sooner or later. If you trust me, open the door tonight and escape with me.”
After a short while, a voice came from inside: “Can we really escape?”
Yoshida was secretly delighted and added: “I’m Yoshida, adjutant to Nagano Shuu. Last time I visited you with the admiral.”
The voice behind the door relaxed: “It’s you. Then I’ll leave it to you.”
While the assassination at the Prime Minister’s Residence was happening, other assassinations were also underway.
The Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal was shot dead in bed, hit by dozens of bullets.
Then, this troop split off a team to assassinate the Education Minister. During the assassination, because of his resistance, they cut off his head.
In addition,
The Education Minister residing near the Imperial Palace was shot and stabbed to death.
The Emperor’s Chief Adjutant was seriously injured.
Former ministers, House of Peers’ Saionji Duke and Makino Count escaped.
Army Ministry and General Staff Office southwest of the Imperial Palace were blockaded.
Metropolitan Police Department at the Imperial Palace’s main gate was also blockaded.
Tokyo newspaper agencies and radio stations were occupied, publishing and posting their slogans on the streets.
All of Tokyo’s power departments were controlled, and this rebellion seemed to have the whole situation in hand.
But after that, it entered a contest of various interests, and surprisingly, the situation did not worsen.
The Tokyo incident was known only to Japan itself for the time being, except for Fang Wen and the others waiting at Xiangxi Airport.
Time passed bit by bit, from morning to afternoon, then to dusk.
Fang Wen stood up: “Let’s go.”
He boarded the airplane first, the others following closely.
Under the cover of night, the airplane took off, and only after reaching the coast did Fang Wen explain the situation.
“This time we’re flying to Tokyo to bomb over Tokyo. This is a rare opportunity. Once radar becomes widespread, such opportunities won’t be easy.”
Bomb Tokyo?
Pan Jiafeng, Shao Sishen, and the three Red Army pilots were all stunned by this unbelievable action.
“Master, why didn’t you tell me earlier? No preparation at all, now I’m nervous and excited.” Pan Jiafeng shouted excitedly.
“Keep the excitement in check. I told you now for secrecy. Don’t make mistakes when dropping the bomb racks later.” Fang Wen smiled.
“We won’t.” Pan Jiafeng replied affirmatively.
Fang Wen turned to ask the three Red Army flight cadets: “Qi Baoqian, Du Jiahua, Shao Deqing, you three are responsible for handling the bombs. Can you do it well?”
“We will definitely complete the mission.” The three replied in unison.
As for Shao Sishen, Fang Wen didn’t say anything. As a former comrade, he trusted him.
Shao Sishen took the initiative to come to the cockpit door: “General Manager, thank you for taking me on this action. Completing this bombing makes it worthwhile.”
Fang Wen nodded: “Let me state the actual situation. This bombing is based on the rebellion in Japan. Our goal is to bomb amid the chaos, pour oil on the fire, make them even more chaotic, which is beneficial to us.”
After saying this, everyone stopped talking, and the flight was in silent mode.
The airplane crossed the boundary sea area between Yellow Sea and East China Sea, flew over Korea Strait, crossed Hiroshima, Hyogo, Kyoto, and Yamanashi, arriving over Tokyo.
The airplane circled at 6000 meters over Tokyo.
Fang Wen checked the time; it was now 3 a.m. deep into the night, but the radio signal below had not appeared.
The time agreed with Yoshida was between 3 and 4 a.m., so Fang Wen could only wait silently.
Inside the Prime Minister’s Residence.
Though it was late at night, the soldiers remained vigilant.
They knew the importance of tonight and couldn’t let opponents counterattack.
But this vigilance made Yoshida secretly frustrated.
Yoshida’s backpack contained the radio launch device. After over a year of research and development, this directional device customized for Fang Wen had been miniaturized.
To use it, just turn on the switch and point the wireless radio frequency head at the target to lock on.
But the key now was that Yoshida couldn’t get out.
Thinking that if he couldn’t get out, he would become one of the Imperial Way Faction people with an uncertain future, plus worrying about punishment from the mysterious organization, Yoshida was very anxious.
How could a group daring to assassinate cabinet ministers be reused? This bunch of lunatics.
Yoshida looked at Okayama dancing the Awa dance by the fire in the distance, killing intent surging. It was this guy who dragged him into this predicament.
He gritted his teeth and made a decision: first bomb the Prime Minister’s Residence, put himself in a desperate situation to seek survival.
Otherwise, he would really be done for.
With that thought, Yoshida steeled himself, activated the radio guidance device in his backpack, pointed the radio frequency head at the distant rebels, and hid near the room where the Prime Minister was concealed.
