Part 255: The Pacification Army

“In any case, clothing consumption during the training phase is high. Using a simplified version for now aligns with the principle of building the army frugally,” Planning Commission representative Dai Xie responded to the issues raised by Fu Sansi at a meeting of the Military Affairs Directorate.

Fu Sansi had no special feelings for the Japanese, but now they were his soldiers. If you wanted soldiers to risk their lives, they needed at least a basic sense of honor and to be well-fed and clothed—at the very least, they shouldn’t look like beggars, as was the case with the Nationalist government’s troops.

The Planning Commission, as frugal as the reincarnation of Yan Xishan, was more concerned with how to save a bit more fabric. The uniforms sent to the training camp had only one pocket on the shorts, and the Pacification Army’s leggings were simplified to plain canvas strips, unlike the integrated ones of the Fubo Army, which had drawstrings for quick tightening. In the future, immigrants on Jeju Island would primarily distinguish between the two forces by the color of their leggings: white for the Pacification Army, gray for the Fubo Army.

The Japanese soldiers, naturally, had no complaints about having trousers to wear, aside from frequently getting slapped for forgetting to fasten their fly buttons.

The Pacification Army’s tunic was a new style, colloquially known among the Australian employers as the “Soviet-style pullover.” Shusen, of course, had no idea who this “Soviet” figure was, vaguely recalling a well-read Chinese merchant mentioning a similar name during a Mid-Autumn Festival. The officers and men of the Fubo Army had similar thoughts. Later, many pulp military history magazines would erroneously trace the origin of this uniform to Suzhou.

In reality, the Joint Logistics Command had introduced this uniform simply because the clothing factories had been overwhelmed for the past year. The machine shops hadn’t developed button-making or buttonhole machines, and sewing buttons and making buttonholes was too time-consuming. Changing the uniform to a pullover style reduced the number of buttons from five to two.

Although it was a cost-cutting measure, the trial version was widely popular. Even the Fubo Army welcomed the change. After the Second Counter-Encirclement Campaign, the Fubo Army had intensified its training, and emergency assemblies followed by long-distance marches became commonplace. Soldiers would often just unbutton the top two or three buttons to take off their tunics before bed, so they could quickly pull them on at the sound of the whistle in the middle of the night.

However, this pullover was ultimately not widely adopted. There was strong resistance to it among the Senator officers of the Army, so much so that Suo Pu, the Deputy Director of the Joint Logistics Command who oversaw this uniform reform, was cursed as an “unrepentant Yellow Russian.” Suo Pu was baffled by this, repeatedly proclaiming his innocence—in truth, the military he admired most was the US Army. Due to the strong backlash and other drawbacks of the pullover uniform, the Joint Logistics Command eventually decided to designate it only as the “Type 1631 National Army Service Uniform,” issuing it to the National Army and the Pacification Army. The winter uniform simply replaced the shorts with long trousers.

The National Army uniform also only retained the single lower-right pocket, as the web gear was worn over the left shoulder, making a left pocket unnecessary. The officer’s uniform lacked the two upper pockets but added a pocket on the left sleeve for pens.

The Fubo Army’s first-generation uniform was indigo blue. After the Senators themselves shouldered rifles and went on a few drills, they all complained that the dark clothes were too hot. So, the Army quickly switched to gray. The Navy, besides retaining the old blue uniform for winter wear, also switched to a white-based summer uniform—essentially the natural color of cotton fabric.

Since the gray uniforms were still dyed with vegetable dyes, the color fastness was poor, and they faded quickly under the scorching sun during training. After the Special Chemical Industry Complex produced a small amount of picric acid, the Joint Logistics Command used it to experimentally dye a batch of khaki-yellow cotton cloth. The dye was mainly derived from traditional turmeric, with a small amount of homemade picric acid added.

However, picric acid was too scarce, and the supply of turmeric was also insufficient. They couldn’t dye enough cloth, so this batch was given to the Pacification Army for their uniforms. Khaki-yellow pullover tunics, white canvas leggings, and pith helmets made of woven rattan and oiled paper—this was the standard image of the Pacification Army. Needless to say, it looked a bit pathetic, especially when the soldiers were mostly under 1.55 meters tall.

Every day, when the Japanese training detachment of the Pacification Army drilled in the camp, it always attracted onlookers from passing Senators and naturalized citizens. It wasn’t just because of their appearance, but also because the Japanese soldiers would shout “Banzai!” three times before starting their training each day. Thus, everyone nicknamed their camp the “Banzai Camp.”

From the moment they arrived in Lingao, Shusen Shishikawa and the more than three hundred Japanese mercenaries had been confined to the training camp of the Inspectorate General of Training. To prevent these mercenaries, who had no concept of integrity, from causing trouble, the Inspectorate General had also strengthened security, in particular by deploying a guard company trained in riot control. However, the mercenaries’ discipline and obedience to orders surprised the Inspectorate General.

It wasn’t that the Japanese were naturally disciplined, but rather that these Japanese “losers” valued their three daily meals of rice and fish more than anything. Japan had long suffered from the pressures of overpopulation. By the 17th century, Japan already had a population of nearly 100 million and had long experienced the plight of scarce resources. As a mountainous island nation with a large population and little land, coupled with the extremely harsh exploitation by the shogunate and daimyos—a 60/40 split of the harvest was common, and a 50/50 split was considered benevolent—the life of a Japanese peasant was incredibly difficult. They often couldn’t eat the rice they grew year-round, barely surviving on coarse grains and still not getting enough to eat. Even in the modern Japanese countryside of the Meiji and Taisho eras, extreme poverty still plagued the common people. The practice depicted in “Oshin,” where a maid could be hired for a year’s work for just one bag of rice, was not even the most tragic phenomenon. In some remote and barren mountainous regions, the custom of abandoning the elderly even continued. In some areas, only the eldest son, who had inheritance rights, could marry and have children. Younger sons without inheritance rights, unless they went out to find work for themselves, had to stay at home and work like slaves for their older brother in exchange for a bowl of rice, and were not allowed to marry and start a family.

The large outflow of Japanese to Southeast Asia in the 17th century was due not only to religious persecution of Catholics but also, importantly, to the need to find food.

Now, they had ample food. Rice and dried fish were provided in unlimited quantities. The first time they opened the large tin buckets of food sent from the training camp and saw them filled to the brim with rice, dried fish, and miso-seaweed soup, every Japanese man shed tears of emotion. Shusen tightly gripped his cross, looked up at the sky, and thanked the Holy Mother for bringing him to such a good place.

From the moment Hirasakimori brought these men to Hainan Island, “one man’s transgression brings punishment to all” became the slogan they shouted before every meal.

Besides being punished if caught, on Master Hira’s orders, everyone had to engage in self-criticism and mutual denunciation of any disciplinary infractions or thoughts before they could eat. Only then could they shout “Itadakimasu!” or the like. Those who were denounced and found guilty had to go hungry. Their fish and rice were given to the accuser, and depending on the severity of the offense, they also had to clean the latrines, barracks, or parade ground.

“Has the body shown any weakness?” “Have there been any disloyal thoughts?” “Have you always remembered to be grateful?” “Have you given your all in training?” …

Thus, every evening before dinner, the scene of the entire Banzai Camp lined up, legs apart, facing the sun and roaring in unison became a spectacle at the training camp. It got to the point where Fu Sansi had to issue an order prohibiting others from pointing and gawking nearby.

The military training in the “Banzai Camp” was crude and brutal. The corporals, eager to prove their competence, always used physical language to “educate” their men.

Smack! Smack!

“Baka! Sanjiro, you idiot! Can’t you remember to step with your left foot first? My hand is swollen from hitting you, and you still don’t learn! Fifty push-ups, now! Do you hear me? If you don’t get it, you’ll be cleaning the latrines for a week!”

Shusen Shishikawa roared orders at his men almost constantly, using all the hardships he had endured and witnessed to make his men fear him more than death itself. Then, he would immediately glance at the training sergeant assigned to him by his employers, who was monitoring the training of each squad from a distance, hoping for even a noncommittal nod. The other corporals did much the same. However, as a former samurai and a professional mercenary, it had to be said that the Japanese soldiers Shusen trained were the best in the entire Pacification Army, and he was the most promising candidate to become the first Japanese platoon leader.

The basic training in the Pacification Army consisted of drill, combat, and shooting. The performance of the Japanese mercenaries was much better than that of the Li and Miao soldiers. After all, most of them were originally mercenaries. Although they might not have had drill training, they had experience in formations and battle, and had some combat experience themselves, so they understood and adapted to the training content more easily.

The combat training in the Banzai Camp retained many Japanese sword techniques that the mercenaries were familiar with. As a former samurai, Shusen’s mastery of the sword was the best among all the mercenaries, so he also served as a sword instructor, teaching the mercenaries Japanese swordsmanship.

As for the swords they used, the Senate didn’t have to worry about that. When these mercenaries came from Siam, each man had one, some even had two or three, and most were of good quality. To them, these were the tools of their trade. They could be poor enough to not have trousers, but they couldn’t lose their swords.

Because Shusen’s performance was outstanding, Fu Sansi had already placed him on the list for the first batch of promotions to Sergeant and acting Platoon Leader.

Shooting training was done with firearms. The Japanese mercenaries were all proficient with matchlocks. There had been a debate in the Senate about whether to equip the Pacification Army with firearms. Some Senators believed that the Pacification Army was “not reliable enough” and should only be equipped with cold weapons. For example, give the Japanese mercenaries katanas and spears and let them do “boar rushes.” As for the Li and Miao mercenaries, machetes and crossbows would be sufficient.

However, the majority of Senators—especially those in the military—believed this was a waste. Without firearms, the Pacification Army’s advantage over the natives would be greatly reduced, and their casualties in combat would increase significantly. Although the Pacification Army was positioned as a consumable, everyone hoped they would last a bit longer and not be a one-time-use item.