Main text Chapter 42 Backfire over the Thousand Islands (Part 1)

(I will update one in the evening, and the rest will be updated tomorrow morning. Good night everyone)

The Japanese state banquet usually includes tuna sashimi, Hokkaido hairy crab, sea urchin sashimi and Kobe steak. This is undoubtedly a challenge for Pavlov, who tried "eating raw meat and drinking blood" for the first time, but he fell in love with these raw and delicious Japanese dishes the moment he put them in his mouth. Moreover, the chefs with superb cooking skills arranged these dishes in a colorful and fragrant way, making people reluctant to stop eating.

The Soviet delegation, who are used to knives and forks, may not be used to oriental chopsticks, but this does not prevent this carefully arranged banquet from being highly praised by Soviet government officials. During the banquet, Kaifu Junshu also raised his glass to toast the friendship between the Soviet Union and Japan, and Pavlov also touched his glass insincerely, wishing long live the friendship between the Soviet Union and Japan.

As for how much water is in "Long Live Friendship", Pavlov's heart is also as clear as a mirror.

The state banquet usually starts at 8 o'clock and ends at 10 o'clock, but Kaifu Junshu specially held it an hour earlier, in order to strike while the iron is hot. After the banquet, he will talk to Pavlov about the loan issue and finalize the territorial issue between the two countries as soon as possible. Whether it is called the Southern Kuril Islands or the Northern Four Islands, Kaifu Junshu hopes to have a reliable answer tonight.

"Prime Minister Pavlov, are you satisfied with this banquet?" Kaifu Junshu asked with a smile, as if he was the one who needed help from the Soviet Union, not the Soviet Union needing help from Japan. The humble appearance reminded Pavlov of the flattering images of those despicable traitors who surrendered to the enemy on the screen.

"Very good, Prime Minister Kaifu Toshiki." Pavlov took a tissue and wiped his lips, then leaned close to Kaifu Toshiki and whispered, "About our disputed island issue, I think we can give a clear answer tonight. So should we put aside the dispute and discuss it in detail tomorrow, or can we agree on the same policy tonight and sign the agreement tomorrow?"

The translator beside Kaifu Toshiki translated Pavlov's words into Japanese word for word. Hearing Pavlov's suggestive answer, Kaifu Toshiki was delighted. He quickly stood up, made a gesture of invitation, and said to Pavlov, "Then let's go to the conference room now?"

"Of course, why not." Pavlov said with a smile. After enduring for so long, the polar bear that had been licking its palm for a long time could finally show its ferocious claws.

Kaifu Toshiki took Pavlov to a small room, but the specifications and furnishings were extremely high-end. This specification was probably used to receive the top leaders of other countries. Pavlov sat on the leather sofa in the VIP seat and asked Kaifu Shunshu, "Hmm? Can we smoke here?"

Smoking in front of the top leader of another country is impolite, but Kaifu Shunshu smiled and replied for the sake of the overall situation, "Of course, you are a distinguished guest after all."

Pavlov lit a cigarette, took a deep breath and asked, "I want to know what conditions the Japanese side will offer so that we can bargain, right? After all, if the cession of sovereignty is not handled properly, it will cause political turmoil. The Soviet government may be able to withstand the turmoil, but your cabinet may not be able to."

When talking about political issues, Kaifu Shunshu immediately turned into the face of an excellent politician and revealed the draft that he had prepared in his mind, "The conditions we offer here are very simple. As long as your country gives up the sovereignty of the four northern islands, we are willing to provide the financial assistance you want."

Kaifu Shunshu did not say the specific amount, but relied on the other party to guess, which was also his brilliance. If the Soviets only wanted 5 billion US dollars and he offered 10 billion, it would be obvious that Japan would lose.

However, Pavlov had no interest in discussing the sovereignty of the Southern Kuril Islands with Kaifu Junki. He was just stalling for time, waiting for the Japanese Prime Minister to receive the unfortunate bad news.

"Before the negotiations officially begin, I would like to ask if Japan, whose economy is booming and seeking to become a political power, has the strength to manufacture heavy industrial products. Of course, I know you have Mitsubishi Arms Export Company, and your cars are also good, but compared to large aircraft, basic industrial equipment for ballistic missile technology, I wonder if your country is interested?"

When the translator translated Russian into Japanese, Kaifu Junki's expression was obviously hesitant, and then he asked, "Huh? What does Prime Minister Pavlov mean by this?"

Kaifu Junki did have his own little thoughts in his mind. Japan's rapid economic growth in the past 20 years and the goal of seeking a political power have long become the great power dream that successive prime ministers have been striving for. However, due to the existence of the US-Japan Security Treaty, all of them ended in failure. But Kaifu Junshu did not give up his goal and began to seek to get rid of the shackles of the chains by improving his own comprehensive national strength.

"Does the Soviet Union intend to sell its heavy industry to Japan?" Kaifu Junshu was secretly happy. Not only did he recover the four northern islands, but he could also get industrial facilities from the Soviet Union. This was definitely a good thing to kill two birds with one stone. If this was the case, he would not mind raising the loan by a few hundred million, after all, the money would eventually return to the hands of the Japanese government.

"No, no, no, I think Prime Minister Toshiki Kaifu, you may be overthinking it." Pavlov rolled up his sleeves, glanced at his watch, and then said slowly, "As long as you have money, the heavy industrial facilities of the Soviet Union can certainly be used. Sell ​​it to you. In fact, as long as you have money, we can even sign orders for ballistic missiles, but I hope you don't misunderstand one thing."

"What's going on?" Toshiki Kaifu asked in confusion.

Pavlov threw the cigarette butt into the ashtray. The moment he raised his head, his eyes became sharp. He looked at Toshiki Kaifu and said word by word, "The Soviet Union will not take a step back on the Kuril Islands issue. This is not something you can repay if you have tens of billions of loans. If you want to take it, then go ahead as long as your navy and air force can walk over the corpses of the Far East Air Force and the Pacific Fleet."

Pavlov's words were so domineering that the translator beside Toshiki Kaifu thought for a moment before telling the Prime Minister in another euphemistic way. However, when he heard that there was no negotiation on the sovereignty issue, Toshiki Kaifu's face suddenly changed. He became gloomy and his voice became a little cold, "I guess the sincerity you showed before was all disguised. Or maybe you didn't intend to have a sincere negotiation at all."

"Neither have you." Pavlov retorted, "You are a small country, don't you just want to take advantage of the Soviet Union's critical situation to carve out a piece of meat from him? Now I can tell you, you will never If we want to win over the Soviet Union by luck, we love peace, but when it comes to matters of vital interest, we only speak with our fists."

Toshiki Kaifu clenched his fists. If the other party was not the leader of the country, he really wanted to punch Pavlov in the face. I was actually being played like a monkey by these communists, which would make anyone feel angry.

"Very good, really good, Prime Minister Pavlov." Toshiki Kaifu pretended to clapped his hands and said sarcastically, "A country facing economic collapse can say such words without shame. I'm just waiting to see you. The economy collapsed, the regime was subverted, and the glory of democracy pierced the clouds of communism. Maybe when you come to Japan again, we will just watch you die."

"Before you ridicule us, you should worry about your own situation first." Pavlov sat on the sofa, holding his chin with his left hand, and said calmly, "I guess someone will bring you a bad thing later." What’s the news?”

As soon as Pavlov finished speaking, an unknown Japanese official rushed in anxiously and whispered a few words into Toshiki Kaifu's ear. The other person's face suddenly turned pale.

Pavlov knew what the guy said without even looking. Probably during the state banquet just now, an unidentified bomber from the north approached the airspace of Hokkaido, Japan. The Air Self-Defense Force scrambled to intercept the bomber. A bomber flying group with fighter escort. The bombers first circled the four northern islands before approaching Japanese airspace.

Toshiki Kaifu turned around, looked at Pavlov in shock, bit his lip and said, "Are you doing this to declare war on us?"

"Declaring war on you?" Pavlov, who was watching the excitement, said something very heart-wrenching, "Do you think you are worthy?"