NIS Agents Tearing Up the Japanese Empire - Chapter 132



Only Krnovel

The nature of infantry (4)

Everything is going according to my plan.

The independence army, having swept away the Kwantung Army, abandoned the empty Kwantung Province, formerly called the Liaodong Peninsula, and returned to Gando.

Some people wanted to remain in Kwantung Province and further strengthen the independence army, but that was nonsense.

“The fact that we were able to occupy Kwantung Province now is not because we are good, but because the Japanese mainland was in chaos and the Government-General of Korea was also in chaos due to internal strife.”

“But I can’t abandon this great place… … .”

“There is always an opportunity. I think I have proven that now.”

“If you put it that way, I have nothing to say… … But still, I feel like the military is being dragged around by that guy, Mr. Lee from Gyeongseong.”

“Haha, that’s just because Mr. Lee from Gyeongseong and our goals are the same, and they’re providing the funds, equipment, and information needed to run the unit, so it’s just a matter of getting along.”

In fact, their real complaint was that this man, Mr. Lee from Gyeongseong, whose face they had never seen or heard of, had the feeling that he was holding the independence army in his hands and running it like a private soldier.

However, since the high-ranking people who had fought with him in Bongodong and Cheongsanri, including Comrade Kim Dong-sam, who could be called their leader, supported him and confirmed his identity, they let it slide for the time being.

So the independence army returned to Gando.

Of course, I didn’t forget to take the loot.

The Korean Independence Army in Gando actively used military supplies taken from the Kwantung Army and smuggled from the Joseon Army garrison in Yongsan to recruit soldiers. Instead of appealing to patriotism as before, they used different methods.

[Recruiting Korean heroes to fight for Korean independence.

Salary: 5 won paid at the end of each month for trainees. Salary increases by 5 won for each promotion, and 20 won is paid per month for sergeants.

Physical Conditions: Must be fit and strong, able to run on a mountain path for more than 30 minutes without getting out of breath, and able to carry a full sack of rice on his head.

No initiation fee. Weapons and uniforms are provided by the military. Residence, food, and farmland for cultivation when needed are provided for the individual and his family during training and missions.

These were truly groundbreaking conditions.

Of course, if you only look at the details, the salary was much lower than that of rickshaw pullers in places like Gyeongseong, Busan, or Jemulpo, or day laborers who lived hand to mouth.

However, the Korean Independence Army said that they would not only provide food, clothing, and shelter, but also give them land where their families could live separately.

The fact that the pay was low there only meant that it was low when compared to the pay during the training period in cities like Gyeongseong, Busan, or Jemulpo. However, even if you were just a private or a corporal, it was much better than working at a factory or restaurant.

If you were a sergeant there, you would be on par with a first-year teacher at a school.

The war that was supposed to end everything had just ended, and the post-war global economic depression and great earthquake that had occurred, along with various political events, made life even more difficult.

For those who had fled north in order to survive or because they were tired of the endless struggle, the leaflets from the Korean Independence Army were quite a harsh story to hear.

Of course, it didn’t matter how much will for independence they had in their hearts.

After all, most of the people who came to the headquarters of the Korean Independence Army carrying these leaflets were people who had families to support or who were soon to have families.

“Wow… … . There are a lot of applicants.”

“okay.”

“If things continue like this, won’t we be able to organize the army into infantry divisions like the generals wanted in the past?”

“Not to that extent yet.”

“Oh, is that so?”

Kim Jwa-jin, the Chief of Staff of the Korean Independence Army, was staring blankly down at the young men who had come to him to say they wanted to join the independence army. His eyes did not show admiration or pride, but rather a complex feeling.

His subordinate, who found this puzzling, asked,

“Chief of Staff, you don’t look well… … Is there something wrong with you?”

“I’m fine.”

“But still, the face… … .”

“It’s nothing.”

There was a reason why he looked so unhappy.

‘He’s not the type of friend that I don’t hear from… … .’

He wondered about the news of his comrades he had sent to Gyeongseong.

A month had already passed since he had sent his friend to Gyeongseong, but Kim Jo-jin had not received any news from Lee Jeong.

If you stay in Gyeongseong for this long, you will run out of money, so it would be right to send a letter requesting additional funds.

But since Lee Jeong left for Gyeongseong, there hasn’t been a single contact.

‘I hope something is wrong.’

Kim Jo-jin was left to suffer alone, unable to say anything, because he had secretly sent someone to investigate this teacher who was supporting the independence army.

‘Have you been captured by the police? Or perhaps you’ve been caught up in the controversy that broke out in Gyeongseong?’

While Kim Jwa-jin was secretly worrying, the Korean independence army grew stronger day by day and gathered Koreans from nearby areas, and the number of Koreans gathered in Yanji, where the headquarters of the Korean independence army was located, and its surrounding areas exceeded 100,000.

Even though it was only a small provincial town, the fact that the independence army gathered that many people was by no means an achievement that could be ignored.

It was also true that the provisional government in Shanghai was pleased with the achievements of the Korean Independence Army, but at the same time, it had a negative view of the independence army.

It couldn’t be otherwise, because although the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai maintained a loose connection with the Korean Independence Army, it was only a personal relationship or a formality.

Of course, the form included a monthly financial line from the provisional government to the independence army, but if the independence army, with its grown brains, later decided to take a different path from the provisional government, the provisional government, which was virtually isolated in Shanghai, had no choice but to let them go.

In this situation, the only thing that allowed the independence army to listen to the provisional government was the presence of this teacher in Gyeongseong.

To put it bluntly, about 80 percent of the funds currently supporting the provisional government and the independence army come from this teacher’s wallet.

In a way, it could be said that it was all thanks to him that the independence army and provisional government were able to grow their power without worrying about the Japanese government or the warlords of the Republic of China.

* * *

“How does that happen?”

“Sigh… … Inspector Sasaki, you’ve been watching me for so long, and yet you still don’t know?”

“… … ?”

The conversation shifted back to the Sparrow Cafe, and Inspector Sasaki took a sip of the coffee in front of him, then suddenly asked a strange question.

“I don’t know where to start explaining this… … First of all, you know that the Japanese government and the Governor-General don’t even know what the independence fighters are doing and are out of their minds, right?”

“Yes, I heard that there was a great uproar in the mainland and His Highness the Crown Prince was personally dealing with it.”

“Why did all that chaos happen?”

“yes?”

Inspector Sasaki’s flustered expression was quite funny.

“Just think about it. A country that was fine was split in two overnight, and now the same armies are shooting at each other?”

“???”

“Isn’t it strange that no one asked me to do this?”

“Then… … . All of those incidents… … ?”

Sasaki’s two eyes looking at me were trembling like crazy.

He probably thinks I’m the culprit behind this incident, but unfortunately I have nothing to do with it.

“I didn’t do anything directly.”

“Yes, yes?!”

Sasaki was very surprised when I told him that I had nothing to do with the series of events and asked me back.

“So, are you saying that this incident has nothing to do with this teacher?”

“It doesn’t matter… I don’t think so.”

“???”

I smiled broadly and explained to Sasaki, whose face was filled with questions.

“From the beginning, the Japanese army and navy have not had a very good relationship since their founding.”

“That’s right. The two are different from the beginning… … .”

“It made me feel a little bad to see the armies of one country fighting each other because of ill feelings.”

“?”

“So we leaked information to each other so that both sides could get to know each other better.”

“???”

Hundreds of question marks appeared on Sasaki’s face.

And hundreds of question marks appeared on Geoncheol’s face as he listened to this from the side.

“That means… … .”

“Isn’t this story that this teacher was ultimately controlling everything behind the scenes?”

“Is that how it is?”

“That’s what I heard… … .”

“First of all, I didn’t shoot the gun myself. All I did was blurt out the story that the Army or Navy would like the most when they heard it, and write articles that slightly criticize each other.”

Then Hwang Geon-cheol organized my words with a serious expression.

“So, you’re saying that you sold the Navy’s information to the Army and the Army’s information to the Navy, creating a situation where they couldn’t help but distrust each other, and then you wrote articles slandering both sides, fanning their hatred?”

“Haha, it’s all just a story of the results. Is there a crazy person in the world who actually thinks the two of them will fight and pushes things forward?”

“Well… … If a huge earthquake that shook the Kanto region hadn’t occurred, this incident would have gone over fairly well.”

As Sasaki and Guncheol paused for a moment to gather their thoughts, an idea occurred to them.

What if, just maybe, the Ghost of Keijo knew that an earthquake would occur in the Kanto region? That’s a ridiculous thought.

Really… … . It was a ridiculous thought, but I was overcome with fear and my body started shaking like an aspen tree.

“Why are you shaking like that?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

“Oh, it’s so cold outside today.”

“Really? Madam! We need to put some more firewood in the stove! The guests are shivering from the cold!”

“You can figure that out yourself!”

I threw some firewood into the stove myself for the two of them who were shivering, then returned to my seat and continued talking.

“Um… … . Where did we leave off? Oh! Right, how did the independence army get so far removed from the interests of the Japanese government and the Governor-General?”

“… … .”

It’s all thanks to my behind-the-scenes work.

The Japanese government has no capacity to do anything right now because the internal situation is in chaos and there is a mountain of things that need to be dealt with and restored immediately.

And this also applies to the Government-General.

“The Governor-General’s Office is causing a fuss right now, saying they’re fighting the military. They must be really out of their minds, right?”

“I guess so… … .”

“And what about the warlords from Bongcheon?”

I didn’t do anything separately for that one.

“The Chinese diplomatic line is handled by the provisional government family.”

I don’t know for sure, but it seems like they’ve been doing a good job by making full use of the support they’ve received.

The Kuomintang in southern China, which has been diligently supporting them for the past several months, is also showing signs of starting to stir and rise, so in any case, the independence army will not be held back for the time being.

“So why did you tell me to attack?”

“Oh? That?”

There is no particular reason for that.

“The 20th Division was the last secret weapon that Shinnosuke Kikuchi had hidden until the very end. What do you think Commander Shinnosuke will think when he hears that they were defeated so miserably?”

For him, who was suspicious of the relationship between the Governor-General’s Office, the ghosts of Gyeongseong, and the independence army, his feelings must have been very complicated.

“This is why communication is important.”

Ironically, if only one person had put aside their pride and communicated with each other during this series of events, things wouldn’t have turned out this way.

But everyone refused to let go of their pride and picked up a gun.

“Letting go. That’s the hard part. Once you let go, it’s incredibly easy to start over.”

NIS Agent Tears the Japanese Empire Episode 133