When it comes to the original abacus of the staff, they actually had only one idea in their minds at that time. They had to continue the war in any case, and they would never give up the previous results obtained by the army. Their southward advance strategy proposed in the cabinet to attack European countries' colonies in Southeast Asia was to continue this war of aggression against China, which was about to completely drag down Japan. They needed fresh blood from Southeast Asian resources to fill Japan's dry blood vessels, so that their war machines could continue to operate and fight this war of conquest against mainland China.

French Indochina is the first springboard chosen in those staff plans. It is not only because of its special geographical location, but more importantly, the Japanese government's bold test of the attitude of European and American countries towards Japan, or to see the bottom line of tolerance of European countries. This is the first time that the Japanese extended their minions to the sphere of influence of European countries after the end of World War I. The final result will directly affect the Japanese government's formulation and review of subsequent strategies. Therefore, the Japanese Army has done a lot of preliminary work for this, because the Southward Advance Plan is related to the core interests of the Army and cannot be allowed to fail.

Faced with the French Indochina Federation, the Japanese Army was actually a little scared at the beginning. The world's strongest army, the invincible European Continental Army, is the impression that the French Army has always been in the minds of the Japanese. France's advanced military technology and strategic and tactical ideas were repeatedly preached by instructors in the Japanese Army's non-commissioned officers' school class. The Japanese army was once obsessed with the French army. Not only infantry tactics, but even equipment and clothing accessories were filled with a strong French style. Some officers even directly brought out French-style beanie hats, looking like a strong European army. However, the bloody and tragic battlefield of the battle, huge losses and stupid tactics made the halo of the French Army dull. Instead, it was Germany that rose after the defeat. Because of its beautiful uniforms and iron-blooded style, it became the target of young Japanese army officers.

But even if the French fever in the army has subsided. However, compared with Japan, France is still extremely powerful. Even if the French army is full of ugly appearances on the European battlefield, the impression of the strongest army in Europe has long been deeply rooted in the thoughts of the army generals. This is an old imperialist country and must not be compared with China. If there is a conflict, it is best to solve the problem through diplomatic means, which is the ideal result. Unless otherwise necessary, we should try our best to avoid military conflicts with the French Indochina Federation. This is the code of action formulated by the top leaders of the army and the cabinet. It was also issued to the implementing unit with a clear written order.

But then the international situation suddenly changed. France encountered a series of miserable defeats on the European battlefield. Before the Japanese could figure out what was going on, the German army had already paraded on the streets of Paris. The French army failed too miserably, which made the Japanese government misjudgment. They felt that their previous plans seemed to be too cautious. France's strength was simply an illusion. This country was actually strong outside and worked on the inside.

As a result, the Japanese government's attitude towards French colonies changed again. Not only did it send a tough military and diplomatic negotiation team, it also dispatched the armed forces of the Fifth Division to station on the Sino-Vietnam border. In addition to cutting off the circulation of materials between China and Vietnam, it was also a display of force against the French. At this time, the Japanese side tried to put pressure on the French government from both military and diplomatic aspects to force the French colonial authorities to submit. They agreed with those non-division conditions that they did not even dare to mention before. Japan asked France to open airports and ports in northern Vietnam and allowed the Japanese army to station and pass on French Indochina territory.

The French government did not make any clear response to the diplomatic documents sent by Japanese Foreign Minister Yoe Matsuoka to the French ambassador to Japan, but only asked the French ambassador to Japan at that time, Anri, to negotiate with Japan as much as he could. In fact, he was asked to find a way to delay it. In the French government at that time, the two factions of Betaine and Renault were busy in infighting, and there was no free energy to take care of the small colonies half of the earth.

Anli was very honest. He started to push away the grin with Songgang. After a while, Songgang also understood that there was nothing to talk to with the French ambassador. The other party had no authorization from the French government at all. He wasted time by arguing with him. Matsuoka Yoyou was not a fuel-efficient lamp. He immediately proposed to put the breakthrough on the head of the French colonial authorities. Japan could directly sign an agreement with the colonial authorities, and planned that once the French colonial government surrendered, the army must immediately dispatch it to occupy the key areas of northern French Indochina, creating a fait accompli. In this way, when the French government wants to repent, there can be enough room for lawsuits.

Moreover, the situation in France at present should not last long. The German army is heading straight in and has occupied most of France's territory. Once France surrenders to Germany, there will be no problem. In Songgang's view, Japan's alliance with Germany is a foregone conclusion. As long as Germany is supported, the Japanese government can ask for the colonies of these European countries in Asia.

As a result, when Japan was dreaming of forming a three-country alliance and the Great Japanese Empire dominated Asia, news came from Paris, France that Japanese soldiers assassinated the German head of state. The Japanese side was really scared, and this was really not a joke. If this triggered a rebellion between Germany and Japan, the consequences would be unimaginable.

So the Japanese government and diplomatic departments focused all their attention on negotiating with the German government, and made every effort to make up for the conflicts arising from both sides and to save the consequences of the incident as much as possible. The negotiations on the French colony were temporarily frozen and put aside. The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs felt that at this time, the Germans could never stimulate the Germans anymore. If they touched the French colony at this time, it might make the Germans feel that Japan was trying to seize German spoils, which would obviously deepen the misunderstanding between the two countries.

The Japanese Guards Cabinet also felt that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had made mistakes in its previous judgment and work, and the army's actions were also a bit reckless. According to international practice, the French Indochina Federation should indeed ask the Germans for their opinions. Although France has not officially surrendered to Germany, Germany must have regarded the French colony as its own sphere of influence at this time. Japan cannot act too hasty and rashly offend the powerful European hegemon.

Finally, the Japanese envoy met with the German Head of State. Although there were some conflicts in concepts and opinions during the negotiations, the final result still made Japan feel relieved. Germany agreed not to pursue the matter anymore, and Japan only needed to make some compensation to Germany, so that the two sides could continue to maintain the good relationship in the past. The head of state also personally agreed to Hiroshima Oshima, and he would carefully consider the issue of further alliance between the two countries.

This made the Japanese cabinet breathe a sigh of relief, but Fumiko Koeba knew very well that the relationship between Germany and Japan would not be able to recover to what it was a few months ago in a short period of time. He also realized that the young German head of state should be a leader who was more difficult than Hitler. Even if he could not become an ally in the end, he would never be able to become a Japanese opponent.

In this incident, Germany showed considerable restraint. Instead of expanding the impact of the incident, it chose to block the news and cover up the truth. Of course, Japan also wanted to repay the favor. Not only did it severely reprimand the intelligence officer of the General Staff Headquarters, dismissed several colonels, and forced a dozen of staff members to retire. The direct responsible persons of the two French squads also faced the emperor's Imperial Garden on the basketball court in the backyard of the General Staff Headquarters to apologize in public. Major General Tohashi, the Minister of the Second Department of the General Staff Headquarters, personally used a pistol to make the two majors. The scene was solemn and a circle of Japanese officers who died of rabbits and foxes were surrounded by a circle of sad Japanese officers.

When the incident was settled, the Japanese turned around and prepared to continue to resolve the French Indochina issue. The German Head of State did not immediately respond to Japan's proposal to obtain German support. Hiroshi Oshima stated in his report to Tokyo that the head of state was still angry and could not put pressure on the other side at this time, as this would backfire. It would be better to ease for a while and then exchange opinions with the German diplomatic department in this regard. I believe that the German side will not reject the request of Japan, the ally for France.

At this time, Japan had gradually realized how terrible power it would accumulate once Germany won the European battlefield. The voices of the Japanese people for Japan and the German alliance became increasingly high with the victory of the German Wehrmacht. Japan once again sparked a German fever. The portrait of the young and handsome German head of state became a best-selling product in the bookstore, and various products with German patterns on the outer packaging were much better than similar products. German Ambassador General Eugene Ott became a celebrity in the upper social circle of Japan. He invited banquets every day, and was drunk every day and was very happy.

On the French Indochina side, Japan began to increase its pressure. Although they had not received Germany's guarantee, they believed that it was only a matter of time. The Japanese Army decided to solve this difficult problem as soon as possible, because they knew that the Fifth Division was really unable to hold on.

This division is the main force of the Japanese Army and has been incorporated into the Southern Army. This is an elite corps formed by the Japanese Army specifically to implement the southward advance plan. Now the Fifth Division is stuck in Nanning, which makes the Japanese even more troubled. They cannot replace the garrison in the controlled area. Although the straight line distance from Qinzhou Port to Nanning is less than 100 kilometers, the area is full of undulating mountains, and the roads are winding and can only pass through the mountains. At that time, the road conditions were not expected to be in the 21st century. The road construction could only follow the original terrain. In fact, it would take at least four times more to reach Nanning from Qinzhou to Nanning.

If a smoother supply route cannot be opened, any troops will fall into the same dilemma as the Fifth Division. The best solution is to replenish material resources and mobilize troops through French colonies, because the Yunnan-Vietnam Railway and the Yunnan-Vietnam Highway are backed by the more complete facilities, and the local food and agricultural products of Vietnam, there will be no problem even if it supplies corps like the fourth or fifth divisions. Now it depends on whether the French agree or not.

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