At 13:00 on the afternoon of the 20th, the newly dressed Emperor Hirohito of Japan stood on the high platform of the Imperial Palace, looking at Hibiya Park and other directions that were hit by Chinese missiles.

The look of shock and fear on his face was no longer there, but there was only an occasional flash of panic in his eyes.

The bright sun was obscured by the thick black smoke rising from the city of Tokyo. The sunlight struggled to penetrate the black smoke and sprinkled patches of orange on the ground.

Instead of the sharp, rapid and unpleasant sound of air raid sirens, the faint sound of crowd shouts and the sound of speeding firefighting vehicles could be heard outside the palace.

The air was filled with the smell of burning wood, and soot fell on Hirohito's head and clothes in the breeze.

He stood quietly like this, his expression slightly numb.

A few minutes later, the current and former cabinet prime ministers Kuniaki Oiso and Hideki Tojo came under the high platform.

The two of them said hello to the Emperor above their heads at the same time, with cautious movements.

Hirohito waved and motioned the two prime ministers to step onto the high platform and come closer to him.

The two of them didn't waste any time and quickly came to Hirohito's side.

"My dear friends, have you figured out what weapon was used to attack Tokyo?"

Koiso Kuniaki is the current Prime Minister and should answer the Emperor's questions first.

"Back to Your Majesty, judging from the reports from various places, the cabinet speculates that it was China's secret missile that hit Tokyo."

Hirohito hummed noncommittally, continued to look ahead and asked:

“Which cities have been hit?”

"What are the casualties in various places?"

Koiso Kuniaki glanced at Tojo Hideki, who was standing beside him, and replied bravely:

"Nagasaki, Hiroshima, Fukuyama, Kobe, Tokyo, and Sapporo, six major cities were attacked by missiles, with Tokyo suffering the heaviest losses."

"The cabinet has just received reports from relevant parties that more than 8,000 people died directly in the explosion."

"In addition, more than 6,000 people were engulfed by the fire after the explosion, 2,000 people are missing, and 15,000 people were injured."

"More than 3,000 houses have been damaged. The fire has not yet been completely controlled, and the losses may increase!"

"The worst is Hibiya Park. The most people died in and near the park."

After Koiso Kuniaki finished speaking, he lowered his head in shame.

Hirohito looked in the direction of the city and was speechless for a long time.

Tojo and Hideki stopped talking and watched the burning city with the emperor.

The purpose of holding such a high-profile state funeral for Isoroku Yamamoto is to rally the morale of the military and the people.

But the grand state funeral turned into an escape race, with tens of thousands of casualties.

The purpose of uniting the morale of the military and the people will definitely not be achieved, and it will have the opposite effect.

The Yamato nation urgently needs a victory to prove its own bravery and prove that this country is invincible and will never perish.

But now it is difficult to even maintain the status quo, so where can we win?

Hirohito suddenly had the idea of ​​accepting the Allied announcement against Japan.

He was startled by his own thoughts, and his body shook involuntarily.

Both Koiso Kuniaki and Tojo Hideki noticed the emperor's abnormality, and the former asked:

"Your Majesty, are you injured?"

Hirohito shook his head, signaled the two prime ministers not to dwell on this issue, and asked:

"Is Yamamoto Ai's coffin okay? The subsequent funeral will trouble both my beloveds. I really can't bear to see the people suffering."

The expressions on the faces of Oiso Kuniaki and Tojo Hideki instantly became weird.

After some hesitation, the current Prime Minister decided to tell the truth.

"Your Majesty, Marshal Yamamoto's coffin... is... missing."

Hirohito turned his head sharply, with a look that made the two prime ministers heartache.

Slowly, his head turned back and said to himself:

"Yes, Hibiya Park is a key target for the enemy."

"How could a small coffin survive such an earth-shattering explosion?"

"Alas... I feel sorry for Yamamoto Aikyō and his family who have served the country so loyally."

Tears were about to flow as he spoke.

Tojo and Hideki hurriedly offered words of comfort, appearing to be in a hurry.

Hirohito summoned Kuniaki Oiso and Hideki Tojo at the same time, with an obvious and simple intention, which was to put pressure on each other.

The two of them naturally knew what the emperor meant.

After his feelings of loss and sadness subsided slightly, Hirohito said:

"My two dear friends, judging from China's military strength, they are fully capable of landing on the mainland of the empire, but why didn't they do so?"

"Also, besides destroying our people's will to resist, what purpose does China use missiles to attack many cities in the empire?"

When talking about business, Koiso Kuniaki's mind was still very bright. He said:

"Your Majesty, I think there are two reasons why China did not land on the mainland of the empire."

"First, the political struggle within the Allied forces is fierce, and other countries will not sit back and watch China control our country."

"Second, the people of our country are united as one and will never surrender to the enemy, showing the heroic and fearless spirit of defending the country. One hundred million pieces of jade is not an empty slogan. In order to maintain the independence of the nation, the Showa men can really

Do it.”

"China cannot afford to land on the mainland of the empire!"

Tojo Hideki continued:

"In addition to destroying the nation's will to resist by using missiles to attack imperial cities from a distance, the Chinese people also want to use this to frighten His Majesty and the government."

"An attempt to force us to accept the Allies' brazen announcement against Japan!"

"There are various signs that China does not dare to land on the mainland of the empire, and they are still afraid of our Yamato nation!

Afraid of our determination to resist to the end and fight back against aggression!"

Koiso Kuniaki nodded frequently on the side.

Hirohito looked at the two prime ministers he trusted most, and the surprise in his eyes slowly disappeared.

He seemed to agree with what the two said.

The three of them took this topic as an entry point and began to discuss the local defense strategy.

Koiso Kuniaki once again expressed his idea of ​​negotiating while fighting to achieve a conditional armistice.

Hirohito encouraged the new Prime Minister with a few words, his face showing fatigue.

Before the conversation ended, he said worriedly:

"China's science and technology is making rapid progress, and long-range missiles are the best proof."

"My dear friends, in two or three years, will China have the ability to destroy the nation without landing on the mainland of the empire?"

"This..." Koiso Kuniaki didn't know how to answer.

Judging from China's current development speed, this possibility is very high.

Tojo Hideki reacted faster. He reassured the emperor and said:

"The empire is composed of several main parts: Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu. Although it is not as vast as China, it cannot be destroyed simply."

"Your Majesty, please rest assured, such weapons will never appear."

"In two or three years, the world situation will undergo earth-shaking changes, and the empire will definitely be able to stand up again!"

Hirohito shook his head, as if to get rid of that terrible thought.

"The funeral will continue after the fire has subsided, and I will comfort Yamamoto Aikyo's family."

After saying that, he left the high platform and walked towards the deep palace.

"Cough cough cough..."

"Cough cough cough......"

Koiso Kuniaki and Tojo Hideki coughed at the same time.

The air was full of burning dust. They wanted to cough very early, but they did not dare to lose their composure in front of the emperor.

The two of them made their vows in front of Hirohito, but in fact they had no idea where the country's future lay.

We can only take one step at a time.

After their throats felt comfortable, they took one last look at the burning Tokyo city, left the palace, and returned to the cabinet.

There are still many things waiting to be dealt with, and each one is a headache.

"Alas, we can only build a cenotaph for Mr. Yamamoto."
Chapter completed!