Beiyang reactionaries

"You let me think about it. When I think about it, I will bring it up."

Yang Wei understood that Duan Xun asked him to talk to him alone because he hoped that he would bring up this matter.Because of such blatant centralization of power, it is impossible for Duan Xun, the prime minister of the cabinet, to speak out.In ancient times, when the emperors took office, they had to decline several times before finally taking over the position of emperor.What's more, Duan Xun is empowering himself now.

Only Yang Wei, the Speaker of the National Assembly, is the most suitable to bring it up.

"Then please."

"General, what does this mean at home?"

As Japan issued an ultimatum, the British side was very nervous.Britain does not want to fight, especially in the Far East with Japan.Because the biggest enemy of Britain now is Germany.

After Germany and the Soviet Union signed the "Soviet-German Non-Aggression Pact", Britain and France knew that they had been fooled, and they all understood that the current situation was not good for them.Today's Germany is no longer the Germany of a few years ago, and its military strength is very strong.Especially after swallowing Czechoslovakia, all the military factories in Czechoslovakia became German.

Czechoslovakia is a typical country that only develops industry.With a population of 1000 million, Czechoslovakia was able to become the eighth largest industrial country in the world only by developing industry.

Because Czechoslovakia is an ally of Britain and France, when Czechoslovakia became independent, everyone had a cooperation agreement.The agricultural products and raw materials that Czechoslovakia needs are supplied by Britain and France, while Czechoslovakia only develops industry.As a result, Czechoslovakia's industries are very developed, including the steel industry, chemical industry, and machinery industry.Of course Czechoslovakia is best known for its military industry.

The Kodak arsenal in Czechoslovakia is the second largest arsenal in Europe.The Kodak arsenal in Czechoslovakia currently produces more arms than Britain and France combined.Germany swallowed Czechoslovakia and took over such a large arsenal at once, and the expansion speed of the army increased again.

Including the tanks produced by the Czechoslovak arsenal, they all entered the German main battle tank sequence.

Germany is getting stronger and stronger, and it is acting more arrogantly.And beyond the expectations of Britain and France, they "shake hands and make peace" with the Soviet Union.This made Britain very nervous, so it didn't want to go to war in the Far East.After all, no matter how you say it, Europe is the foundation of Britain and its nest.Compared with the problem of the old nest, the Far East can only be pushed back.Therefore, although Britain has rejected Japan, it has not sent a large number of troops to the Far East.

Of course, the time is too late.It was already too late for the British mainland to dispatch troops.

"The current situation can only be resolved by ourselves."

The commander-in-chief of the British Far East Army, Robert Brooke Popham, frowned deeply and spoke helplessly.

Robert Popham served as Commander-in-Chief of the British Air Defense in 1933 and was a general of the British Air Force.He was already going to retire from active service, but because of the tense situation in the Far East, he was sent to the Far East as the commander-in-chief.

He came to the Far East at the end of 1936 and became the commander-in-chief of the British Far East Army.After coming to the Far East, Robert Popham still made some preparations.Because when he came to the Far East, Britain had no military preparations in the Far East at all.The entire armament has been completely abandoned.

At that time Robert Popham had only a few local troops to maintain order in the colony.It's okay to show off to the common people in those colonies, but it's completely unqualified to fight against the rising regular armies of China and Japan.

So Robert Popham's first step is to train those local troops and strengthen their combat effectiveness.

Unfortunately it's useless.

Because the development of armaments in the UK as a whole has not been very good in recent years, and there will be no support for the Far East.Therefore, although Robert Popham worked hard, it was only to increase training and improve some combat effectiveness.Weapons and equipment are still very backward.

"General, in the current situation, if we don't provide domestic support, it will be difficult for us to deal with Japan. Japan has been increasing its military strength during this period. They already have seven brigades of army troops in Nanyang, and they have also helped the Republic of Indonesia train three The total number of army units in the division has reached 8. And the Japanese army also has more than 300 tanks. The number of other aircraft, warships, and artillery are far more than ours. Now I only have less than 200 aircraft in my hands. A tank. Although it claims to have two armies, one of the armies has only two brigades. It is a reorganized Malay local army with average weapons and equipment. If it is not for the increased training this year, it will not be able to fight at all. .There is also an army transferred from India. Although it has two divisions, it is the first time to come here, and it is not used to the jungle here.”

The British Far East Army Army is divided into the Malaysian Army, the Singaporean Army, and the Burmese Army.

Japan was aggressive and even issued an ultimatum.So Robert Popham called Lieutenant General Arthur Percival, the commander of the Malaysian forces, and Major General Simmons, the commander of the Singapore forces, to discuss how to deal with the current situation.As for the Burmese army, they were not called here.

Arthur Percival, who is in charge of Malaysia, was quick to complain.

Compared with the elite of the Japanese army, the troops under him are all rubbish troops.Both armies were reorganized after Robert Popham became the commander-in-chief of the Far East Army.One is a local unit in Colonial Malaysia with only two brigade units.Fortunately, it was Robert Popham who came to step up training, otherwise he would not be able to go to the battlefield at all.There are also troops specially transferred from India, the Indian troops with two divisions.None of the elite British troops.

And the other side?

Japan's seven brigades are all Japanese elite troops.Japan regards Nanyang as its goal, and all the elites of the Japanese army are dispatched.Including that the Japanese army has more than 300 tanks in Nanyang, which completely crushed the British Far East troops.Speaking of these tanks, most of them were sold to Japan by China.

Let's talk about the plane.

The aircraft currently deployed by Japan in Nanyang are all aircraft produced in recent years.The number of planes is more than double that of his own.And the [-] or so planes under his hands are all old-fashioned planes.Many of them are old aircraft that are more than ten years old.

Not to mention anything else, most of the current Japanese aircraft are monoplanes.The planes under Percival's hands are mainly old-fashioned biplanes.During the Spanish Civil War, monoplanes had already shown their excellent performance.In particular, German aircraft far surpassed the original biplane in terms of speed and flexibility.

And it's not just old-fashioned planes, many of the planes in Percival's hands are trainers.

How is this fight going?

"Lieutenant General Percival, you are a lieutenant general of the Kingdom Army, you shouldn't be so negative. Before you took over your current position, many people told me that Lieutenant General Percival is a general that everyone in the army is optimistic about. You come Help me, it will greatly reduce my pressure. How can you be so frustrated if you haven't fought yet?"

"General."

Arthur Percival replied immediately: "I am a soldier, and I am expressing the current situation truthfully. The situation we are facing is very serious now. It is not the time to sing high-profile, we must seek truth from facts. If Japan goes to war with us now, We don't have many troops in Kalimantan at all. How can we resist the Japanese army?"

Listening to Percival's words, Robert Popham sighed.

How could he not understand the current situation.But he is the commander-in-chief of the Far East Army, and he must not show his anxiety in front of his subordinates.So Robert Popham was silent for a moment, and said: "Lieutenant General Percival, tell me, what should we do now?"

"Move troops, move more troops. General, the only way we can do now is to strengthen our army strength. Currently in the Malay archipelago, our strength is too weak. I think we should transfer two more troops from India. able to stabilize the situation.”

"Two armies?"

"Yes."

Robert Popham was thinking too.

At present, on the Malay Archipelago, the strength of the United Kingdom is indeed inferior to that of the Japanese army.So an army has been transferred from India, but Percival thinks it is still far from enough.At the very least, the troops of the two armies should be transferred.

But the Indian troops and the Far East troops are not a system.The procedures required to mobilize troops from India are very complicated.

"General, I can't wait now. The Japanese army is aggressive. According to our intelligence, the Japanese army and the Indonesian army are mobilizing frequently. Many troops have already been deployed in the southeastern area of ​​Kalimantan Island. Once a war is launched, it will be difficult for us to resist. .In addition to mobilizing Indian troops, we should also invite London to add tanks to our troops. To maintain the situation here, London should equip us with at least 500 tanks."

Robert Popham smiled wryly.

500 tanks?

That's easy to say.Britain and France are not Germany, the Soviet Union, or China, who produce thousands of tanks a year.On the contrary, Britain and France have not paid much attention to armaments in recent years. France has more tanks than Britain, but the number of tanks is only about 2000.The number of tanks in the UK is less than 2000, only about 1500.It is easier said than done for Britain to equip the Far East with 500 tanks.

So he turned his head and said, "Major General Simmons, tell me what you think."

The head of the Singapore Forces, Major General Simmons.

Very young.

He is currently the commander of the No.18 Division of the British Army and is also in charge of the military work in Singapore.Simmons looked at the two people and said very directly: "My opinion is to abandon Kalimantan Island. With our current strength in Kalimantan Island, it is impossible to stop the Japanese army. It is better to shrink the defense line and withdraw the troops. Come."

"Withdraw?"

"Yes. Concentrate the troops in our hands, and then we will have 10 brigades. With the help of the Far East Fleet and the French army in French Indochina, we will be able to resist the Japanese army."

"This one……"

Losing Kalimantan, such a responsibility, Robert Popham did not dare to take it lightly.

"General, this is the best way."

"Let me think. I can't make such a decision alone. I..."

"Tap-tap-"

When several people were discussing how to deal with the Japanese, Robert Popham's adjutant rushed in.Although he walked in, the eager pace and the sweat on his face all indicated that something big had happened.