The Delusional Colonel and the Korean Independence Scheme
In the Japanese Empire, Mutaguchi Renya was riding high on a wave of success. He had been assigned to the Kwantung Army, the Japanese force tasked with guarding the South Manchurian Railway—better known as the Manchurian Railway, or simply Mancheol. In effect, he had become the commander of what was essentially called the Manchurian Railway Army.
To be precise, the Army had pushed him forward because of the personal connections he had cultivated with the Russians as part of their expansion into China. There was, however, one small problem.
“The disobedient Koreans are proving troublesome. Hmm.”
The disobedient Koreans who had fled into South Manchuria were carrying out all sorts of terrorist acts against the Japanese forces there. Just what was their problem? These stubborn, unyielding Koreans—what exactly were they dissatisfied with when they could live as loyal subjects of the Empire?
In truth, Mutaguchi Renya didn’t really care whether Koreans held grudges against the Japanese government or whether they had a sudden change of heart and lived faithfully as imperial subjects. Even if Koreans who had sworn loyalty to His Majesty the Emperor right in front of him dropped dead from some plague, it wouldn’t matter to him—so long as it wasn’t the Red Plague.
He simply didn’t want the Koreans in his jurisdiction to cause any strange incidents.
“Hmm. What should I do with these Koreans?”
Suppressing them wouldn’t be a problem in itself, but Mutaguchi Renya was utterly convinced that he was Japan’s most outstanding elite officer, a true soldier, and a samurai. For such a man to personally lead the suppression of mere railway terrorists was simply beneath him.
Besides, there was another issue with suppression. It would mean admitting that the Koreans had carried out terrorism in the first place. As the one responsible for public security in South Manchuria, ordering their suppression would be the same as announcing that security in the region had already collapsed. Word would inevitably reach the Home Islands.
And that would create a serious obstacle to his elite career path.
Not to mention that many Koreans who had come from the Home Islands to South Manchuria secretly sympathized with the disobedient Koreans, since they couldn’t earn nearly as much here as they could back home.
As he grumbled with his lips pursed out in frustration, lamenting his situation—
!!
Mutaguchi Renya’s mind spun rapidly. After all, this was the head of none other than the man recognized by Anastasia—the Saint of All Russia, the Great Khan of Mongolia, the Tsarina of All Russia, and the Empress of the Eastern Roman Empire—as Japan’s destined hero. His brain worked with astonishing speed.
“Weren’t there quite a few Koreans in the Asiatic Cavalry Division?”
He recalled that there were a considerable number of ethnic Koreans in the Asiatic Cavalry Division. It seemed the ignorant fools had improved their combat skills by brawling with bandits in Manchuria and had subsequently been incorporated into the Russian Asiatic Division.
Wouldn’t it be better to simply transfer all of them over there?
It would help fill the ranks of Russia’s understrength Far Eastern forces—an allied nation—and he could quietly ship off all the disobedient Koreans without the Home Islands ever finding out.
Wasn’t that perfect?
Of course, if the homeland learned of it they would probably scream “What kind of nonsense is this?” and slap him across the face while ordering him to arrest every last one of them. But Mutaguchi Renya made his decision based on the judgment that Russia was an allied nation.
And so he sent a separate message to the Asiatic Cavalry Division stationed in North Manchuria.
But of all people, the Korean he had met before showed up.
“Hey. Haven’t we met somewhere before?”
Yes. That Korean named Hong something-or-other.
Mutaguchi Renya inwardly screamed at the unfortunate fact that neither General Ungern nor Semyonov—commanders of equal standing with a great power—were present at this moment.
It was absolutely not because he was scared of Hong Beom-do or afraid of being found out.
True to his elite status, Mutaguchi Renya decided to deceive Hong Beom-do with a flawless performance.
“Good heavens, what are you saying? How could a man like me—Mutaguchi Renya, Colonel of the Mancheol Army under the Empire of Greater Japan—possibly know any Koreans?”
“If not, then never mind. You seem rather upset. But what’s this about wanting to hand over Koreans?”
For Hong Beom-do, there was nothing bad about the offer. After all, the whole reason the Asiatic Cavalry Division existed was to build strength here, raise an army, and prepare for the future liberation of Korea. Naturally, accepting more Koreans into their ranks during that process was a welcome development.
But the Japanese Army was the one offering them? Was this perhaps a scheme to insert Japanese spies pretending to be Koreans? Maybe they planned to infiltrate the Asiatic Cavalry Division and spy on the Russians from within.
“It means exactly what it says. There are many Koreans causing disturbances in South Manchuria, so I intend to hand them over to Russia, our Empire’s friendly neighbor.”
Even so, the statement was difficult to understand. No matter how friendly the nations were, would they really hand over colonial subjects just like that?
“No, no. Is that something that’s normally done?”
“Can’t you understand it in one go? Why won’t you get it while I’m still speaking nicely? Tsk tsk, this is why Koreans are the way they are.”
Mutaguchi Renya clicked his tongue in annoyance when things didn’t go exactly as planned. He couldn’t fathom why these Korean bastards were so suspicious.
And then, at last, Hong Beom-do understood.
‘I see. This fool is terrified that if the Koreans keep causing trouble in South Manchuria, his superiors back home will criticize his management. That’s why he’s doing this.’
In short, he was trying to avoid disciplinary action. Certainly, from the current standpoint, it would be beneficial if he voluntarily sent the Koreans over. But they couldn’t do anything until their superior, Ungern, returned.
Originally, Hong Beom-do had joined the Asiatic Cavalry Division because the anti-Japanese resistance had become impossible due to a lack of supplies. The plan was to earn money, build up forces, and prepare for the future. He had never imagined things would go this smoothly.
‘Wait a moment. If I play my cards right…’
Couldn’t he wring everything possible out of this idiot Japanese armed with ridiculous theories?
“Well, that’s fine. But could I ask one favor? If you do, I’ll keep my mouth shut and take all the Koreans causing disturbances in South Manchuria off your hands.”
“Hmm?”
“The truth is, the Russian Far Eastern Army only has outdated weapons at the moment. The Russian homeland is focusing all its resources on the European theater, so it seems our side will have to wait. Until then, the fighting against the Chinese bandits will surely result in heavy losses, won’t it?”
It wasn’t entirely untrue. From Hong Beom-do’s perspective, the Asiatic Cavalry Division was the strongest force imaginable. Several thousand troops had beaten tens of thousands of Zhang Zuolin’s warlord army like dogs on a summer day and turned North Manchuria into Russian territory.
However, the main force of the current Asiatic Cavalry Division had departed for Europe to fight the Bolsheviks. Naturally, only a small number of European-origin cavalrymen remained, leaving mostly Asian troops whose equipment wasn’t particularly good.
So the request wasn’t unreasonable.
“Oh ho. So you want the Empire’s modern firearms. Well, that’s fine. Since you don’t seem to be one of those disobedient Koreans or whatever, but rather someone who has joined Russia, I suppose that much is acceptable.”
Is this guy really an idiot?Hong Beom-do had only been testing the waters, yet the man had fallen for it so easily. If that was the case, then it was perfect. The Far Eastern Army’s supplies were meager; if they could obtain Japanese weapons like this, they could arm themselves comfortably.
And so Hong Beom-do managed to extract a tremendous quantity of Japanese-made weapons from Mutaguchi Renya.
* * *
Chinese Protection Government, Republic of China.
With the Soviet Union having ceased to exist, the Republic of China found itself equally caught up in the snowball Anastasia had thrown into history.
Yes. The Protection Government opposing the Beiyang Government under Duan Qirui’s dictatorship had fallen into a difficult situation.
In real history, they had contacted the Soviet Union, actively restructured the Chinese Nationalist Party, received Soviet support, and launched the Northern Expedition. But in this timeline where such things had vanished, it was difficult to greatly expand their power.
The Chinese Communist Party had still been founded, but with no Soviet Union or Comintern, its influence within the Nationalist Party was the weakest of all.
Of course, events were merely delayed slightly. Aside from the absence of Soviet support and the weakened Communists, history flowed similarly to the original timeline.
Around this time, Sun Yat-sen championed democracy and fiercely clashed with warlords like Chen Jiongming who advocated Federal Provincial Autonomy. Although the occupation of Manchuria by Japan and Russia and the expulsion of Zhang Zuolin had temporarily forced them toward unity, Sun Yat-sen—who insisted on the Northern Expedition and the Three Principles of the People—was not a welcome figure to the warlords.
Sun Yat-sen’s faction consisted only of the Nationalist Party, which had barely managed to form a coalition with the warlords after barely surviving far more desperate circumstances than in real history, a weak Communist faction that supported him, and their ragtag army below them.
Above all, unlike real history, the enemies of the Northern Expedition mentioned here could potentially include not just the Beiyang Government but Japan and Russia as well.
The warlords had no desire to throw everything away by joining Sun Yat-sen’s absurd Three Principles of the People.
However.
Sun Yat-sen was, for now, the President of the Chinese Protection Government. The future of China had to be discussed under his leadership.
“Japan and Russia have both stationed troops in Manchuria. So what should our Nationalist Party do now?”
“That idiot Zhang Zuolin ended up handing over Manchuria. We should have captured him long ago. And that Duan Qirui fellow—has he joined hands with the Japanese? He hasn’t said a word.”
“Are Japan and Russia definitely allied?”
“They may not be formally allied, but judging from the situation in Manchuria, they appear to be cooperating at least regarding that region.”
As always, the meeting was chaotic. This had become their daily routine.
The Protection Government could not find its path. To make matters worse, they had recently sent Wang Jingwei to Japan to demand an apology and reparations, only provoking Japan even more aggressively.
They needed to create at least one ally. It was then that Chiang Kai-shek, who had overcome even harsher trials than in the original history while guarding Sun Yat-sen, stepped forward.
“I will go to the Russian United States.”
“You?”
“Yes. I will go and secure the support of the Russian Tsarina.”
If they could obtain Russian support, they would be able to carry out the Northern Expedition. Of course, they would have to offer some carrots in the process, but with relations with Japan already strained, they had no choice but to bring the military superpower Russia onto their side.
Although Russia was close to Japan, their relationship had never been good after the Russo-Japanese War and other conflicts.
“Even so, we won’t be able to reclaim the lost Manchuria. Moreover, though they dress it up nicely with titles like ‘Saint’ or ‘United States,’ in the end the Russian Empress is nothing more than another imperialist. She won’t support us just because we’re weak. She’ll only help if it benefits her.”
Sun Yat-sen shook his head, openly displaying his discomfort.
“If we ask for support on the condition that we accept North Manchuria, wouldn’t they at least support us instead of Duan Qirui?”
“That would be a return after losing everything, but such a compromise itself goes against our great cause. Even if we make such a deal and overthrow the current Beiyang Government, what would we have achieved?”
In the end, the conclusion was that they would recognize nothing. They would complete the Northern Expedition and drive out Duan Qirui using only the current strength of the Nationalist Party. That was Sun Yat-sen’s thinking—an act no different from the behavior of a delusional dreamer.
Since he couldn’t see reality at all, even Chiang Kai-shek felt frustrated.
And Chen Jiongming, who had noticed this suspicious atmosphere, began to entertain a different idea.
‘If I play this right?’
Couldn’t he use this to block the Northern Expedition? No, from the beginning he could strike Sun Yat-sen together with others who shared the same vision whenever he wished. But what if he succeeded in forming friendly ties with Russia, which Sun Yat-sen had rejected?
What if, after securing Russian support, he put forward the theory of Federal Provincial Autonomy?
He had heard that Duan Qirui had already improved relations with Japan. If Russia got behind him as well, there would truly be no place left for Chen Jiongming.
Before his relationship with Sun Yat-sen completely soured, Chen Jiongming decided to go directly to Yekaterinburg. But first, he needed to persuade the man currently occupying the seat of provisional president. And he would have to persuade him in a very different way.
“Your Excellency the President. I will go.”
“You? You’re going to say the same thing about North Manchuria—”
Of course not. He had no intention of going the same route as Chiang Kai-shek.
“That’s not it. We won’t bring up the Manchuria issue immediately. We will only request support. The Russian Empress is the hero who destroyed the Bolsheviks, a regime built on dictatorship and authority. With China groaning right beneath her under Duan Qirui, wouldn’t she want to help? Above all, this could be an excellent opportunity for Russia—which has been somewhat humbled among the great powers—to once again exert influence over China.”
Words that a dreamer would love to hear. Even Sun Yat-sen, upon hearing them, found them reasonable.
The arbitrary occupation of Manchuria was something that could never be accepted. But if they could obtain what they wanted from Russia without acknowledging it?
It was nothing but wordplay, but to Sun Yat-sen it was an extremely important matter. A way to extract benefits without selling out Chinese territory. The perfect method to receive weapons support from Russia without borrowing their army to suppress the enemy.
“Indeed. That makes sense. You will go yourself?”
“That way, we will shed less blood during the Northern Expedition, won’t we?”
“Very well. I will trust you with this task.”
Although there had been friction due to the Federal Provincial Autonomy theory, after he had recently flattered him a little, the man was pleased. This was more than enough.
This man called Sun Yat-sen had let his guard down. While he indulged in fantasies that he might truly be able to realize Federal Provincial Autonomy.
And so Chen Jiongming’s journey to Russia was decided.