Chapter 3 last forty minutes

The Prime Minister is scheduled to hold a press conference at the Prime Minister's Residence at 1:30 p.m. It's twenty one past one.Dozens of journalists had already gathered in the hall that served as the venue.On the edge of the table in front, there are many kinds of microphones lined up, and two TV cameras are also ready.Everything is ready, just waiting for the visit of the Prime Minister. In another room, the 62-year-old prime minister was speaking with government dignitaries.Beside him stood the Chief Cabinet Secretary, constantly looking at his watch.But government officials did not want to end the conversation there.In the middle of the conversation, the Prime Minister skimmed through the manuscript of his upcoming speech at the press conference.This speech was not written by him himself, but was drafted collectively by the Chief Cabinet Secretary and think tanks.Written in a question-and-answer format, it will be broadcast simultaneously on radio and television during the press conference.This speech involves various aspects such as diplomacy, economy, finance, culture, education, and construction, and almost all possible issues that may be consulted have been considered.What the government officials are talking about at this moment is not so much a suggestion to the Prime Minister as a statement of opinions on various issues.Due to the need to coordinate the relationship between the various factions, the prime minister cannot rashly suspend the conversation.

At one thirty-two, the Prime Minister quietly covered his mouth with his hand and yawned.After meeting with people from the financial circles in Akasaka last night, he stayed up all night to deal with a series of affairs, which had not been done for a long time.Before he could finish his yawn, one of his secretaries hurried in through the door.The chief cabinet stared at him and reproached him for his rash behavior.But at this time, the secretary had already walked to his side and whispered a few words hastily.The chief cabinet officer suddenly changed his color. He bent down and whispered something in the prime minister's ear.The Prime Minister watched him intently, with a disturbed expression on his face.

"Sorry." He politely stopped a government official who was speaking eloquently, stood up, and strode out of the room.His feet looked a little awkward.The Chief Cabinet Secretary followed him out. "How is this going?" The important government official looked up at the secretary who came in to report in bewilderment. "Hmm...that's right, there was a direct call to the Prime Minister from there." The big man smoked a cigarette in the street with his thick lips.He came here to express his opinions, but was interrupted by soldiers halfway, and he wrinkled his nose in dissatisfaction.He's talking about building a railway in his constituency.

The golden sunlight coming in from the window made his white hair glisten and warmed his thin shoulders.It was a warm, early spring afternoon that could turn off the heat. In his office, the Prime Minister picked up a telephone.Among the ten telephones lined up side by side, only this one has a special mark with red and white stripes on its body.This is a special phone for direct communication with the Defense Agency in emergency situations, that is, when the country is in a major crisis. The prime minister held the microphone nervously, the muscles of his face were gently pulled, and his eyes stared blankly at an indescribable place.A voice came from Jane's words close to her ears:

"Is it Your Excellency the Prime Minister?" Hearing the other party's hoarse voice, the ruddy face of the 57-year-old chairman of the Unified Staff Council appeared in front of the Prime Minister's eyes.Although he is not too young, he still looks majestic and heroic in military uniform. "An extremely serious situation must be reported to you immediately!" The speaker's voice on the microphone became sharper. "Two minutes ago, at exactly one thirty-two, I received an urgent report from the U.S. Army Command in Japan. The gist of it is as follows: At 2:15 this afternoon, that is, in another forty-three In minutes, a missile equipped with a five-megaton nuclear warhead will fly to Tokyo by mistake and cause an explosion..."

Immediately afterwards, the chairman of the unified staff repeated it solemnly. "Misshot? What is a misfire?" The voices of the Prime Minister and Minister are all out of shape. "According to the report, the actual combat missile was launched from country Z of the Pacific Freedom Treaty Organization 20,000 kilometers away from our country. Due to the failure of the automatic destruction device, it could not be detonated in the air. Now it is flying directly towards Tokyo. After calculation, there are still forty-three minutes left in the time to arrive here... No, because of the call, now there are only forty-one minutes and a few seconds left."

"Can't the Defense Agency provide protection? Can't it mobilize missiles such as surface-to-air to take the initiative?" The Prime Minister made a harsh voice. "Yes, corresponding deployments have been made. However, it is difficult to shoot them down halfway." "All? Isn't it just one?" "No, they were launched simultaneously from five bases. Even if the Self-Defense Forces and US forces in Japan attack them together, we are not yet fully confident that they will hit all of them without missing one. There will still likely be two Even three breakthrough attack nets fell to Tokyo."

"One piece has five megatons!" The Prime Minister gasped. "Is it bound to hit Tokyo?" "According to calculations, with the center of Tokyo as the target, the error will not exceed three kilometers." The Prime Minister turned pale and trembled all over. "What on earth should we do?" "Once Tokyo is hit by a missile, the entire area within a radius of 12 kilometers will be razed to the ground... We are ready to go all out to attack. Bases from Hokkaido to the northeast coast have been deployed. But as I just said As has been said, it is difficult to shoot them all down, and the minimum number of missiles passing through the counterattack net should be considered to be more than two, that is, after forty-one minutes, ten megatons of TNT will explode in the heart of Tokyo Therefore, the prime minister must consider making emergency arrangements for the people quickly before the explosion."

"Hey, have you let the Self-Defense Forces know that a missile with a nuclear warhead is about to hit our country?" "No. At present, the attack is only described as a military exercise, and people's hearts must be prevented from fluctuating. However, if the Prime Minister feels the need to announce the truth to all the people, we will naturally obey...Only the last forty minutes, Prime Minister, there is no doubt You have no time to hold a cabinet meeting, and we hope you can make a decision in the shortest possible time." The Prime Minister's forehead was dripping with cold sweat as if water had been poured on it.His eyes stared straight, and he sank into the chair all at once.

"Prime Minister," the Chief Cabinet Secretary came over and supported his body. "What's wrong with you?" The Prime Minister's head was hanging on his chest, his mouth was open, panting like a dog in the heat of the day. "Tokyo, no, the center of Japan, will be completely destroyed in forty minutes... Ten megatons of missiles will fall on us by mistake! Ten megatons... This is the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima five hundred times that of..." The Chief Cabinet Secretary had also noticed the general idea of ​​the matter just now, and now it is all clear, his face turned dead gray.

"What can we do? Prime Minister, call a cabinet meeting?" "Stupid!" The Prime Minister jumped up from his chair. "Where's the time? We only have the last forty minutes left! At 2:15 we're all going to die... what time is it?" "Thirty-four minutes and thirty seconds past one." "Before one thirty-five, a decision must be made...whether to tell the truth to the people." The Prime Minister was pacing up and down the room restlessly, but his legs were trembling uncontrollably, as if strength had been drained from his knees.Suddenly, he stood up and shouted loudly as if in a quarrel: "What should I do? Tell me!" "This……" "Don't you tell the people? Let them face death in peace in a state of ignorance? ... Or, even if it is only the last few minutes, make them mentally prepare to face death together with their families ?..." To the Chief Cabinet Secretary, the voice of the Prime Minister sounded like a different person. The door opened, and the secretary walked in as usual without restraint. "Prime Minister, the reporters are all waiting in the lobby, four minutes past the appointed time." "Find an excuse to send them away, say anything." cried the Chief Cabinet Secretary in a tone of despair.The young secretary was stunned and bewildered. "Quick, go and close the door!" "But, the reporters..." "Are you finished yet!" The secretary was frightened and fled out of the room. "Prime Minister……" The Chief Cabinet Secretary gave a cautious exclamation, and then said: "We must not let the people know. Otherwise, riots will definitely occur, and the army and the police will not be able to stop them. It is better to calmly know nothing..." "Let me be quiet for a while, and keep quiet for ten seconds." The prime minister covered his face with his hands and sat in a chair. The "tick" of the clock in the room was as deafening to the ears of the Chief Cabinet Secretary as huge explosions.He felt the horror in his heart as if standing in front of the guillotine.His wife's face flashed before his eyes, and then the mother and child appeared again. Is the prime minister covering his face with his hands thinking about the life of all citizens at this moment?Maybe you are worried about the safety of your family?This is unknown. The Chief Cabinet Secretary shook his head lightly, in a trance, he felt that the air around him was turning red. Five megatons!If you drop two, that's ten megatons!This is five hundred times the Hiroshima atomic bomb!If the destruction radius of five megatons is 12 kilometers, then the destruction range of the two nuclear missiles will center on Tokyo and destroy the entire southern Kanto region.The entire country will be covered with thick ashes.The Chief Cabinet Secretary seemed to see five missiles whistling through the sky, their slender jet-black barrels glistening in the early spring sun. The red and white striped telephone rang again.The Prime Minister jumped up like a fully inflated ball.His usually calm and confident face was now distorted like a bereaved dog. "Is it the Prime Minister?" The voice of the chairman of the unified staff came from the phone. "Just now I have contacted the US military stationed in Japan. It is said that five helicopters will take off from them soon, and the landing targets will be the inner courtyard of the meeting hall, the front yard of the prime minister's residence, and the National Library Square. Provide conditions, To board high-ranking officials from the Japanese side, fly to Atsugi, and from there transfer to a transport plane to leave Japan as quickly as possible. The purpose of this operation is that in case Japan is in a state of total destruction, the Japanese government can continue to exist abroad. Until It takes about seven minutes for the helicopter to reach Atsugi. The transport planes in Tachikawa, Yokota, and Atsugi are all ready for takeoff... Hey, hey, do you hear?" The Prime Minister responded feebly. "Helicopters are coming towards you, please make a quick decision and tell the people the truth in two minutes... Prime Minister, I, as the commander of the army, will stick to the last moment." "..." "Also, based on the responsibilities of the treaty countries, the U.S. Air Force has decided to evacuate all personnel from embassies in Tokyo in the same way as possible. The request of the U.S. military is that the above-mentioned personnel must arrive at the U.S. Air Force within seven minutes. base, and all reporting is prohibited..."

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