As an imperial envoy who canonizes the king of a vassal country, the pomp is naturally extraordinary.
Flags of various colors were fluttering in the wind, and there were dozens of cars and motorcycles clearing the way in front, followed by several armored vehicles and escorts in trucks and armed with live ammunition. Uninformed people might mistake this for the motorcade of the head of state.
However, the canonization ceremony does not just happen. There are several days of preparation before that, for example, you have to fast for three days.
To say that the Ming Dynasty's canonization of Japan can actually be traced back to the Wanli period, and that is a trivial matter, which is quite funny if you look into it further.
During the Imjin Japanese Rebellion, Korea, which had been experiencing long-lasting peace and endless internal strife, collapsed. Because the Koreans falsely claimed that there were only more than a thousand Japanese pirates when they asked for help, the Ming army first sent thousands of troops into North Korea to engage in battle. It was only after they discovered that there were tens of thousands of local Japanese pirates that they retreated.
In addition, the Koreans initially promised to provide food and grass for the Ming army, but they were empty words, so the Ming army, which had been tricked, had to prepare to transfer a large amount of food and grass when they regrouped.
During this period, in order to find out the situation of the Japanese pirates as much as possible and delay time for our own troops to gather troops, the imperial court sent a delegation to the DPRK to negotiate with the invading Japanese pirates, including the "famous" Shen Weijing.
This person can be regarded as a figure. He is from Jiaxing, Zhejiang. When he was young, he served as the grain chief of the village, participated in the anti-Japanese war, did business with the Japanese, and was proficient in Japanese. At the same time, he also met the father of the concubine of the Minister of War, and finally recommended himself to become He became an important member of the mission sent by Ming Dynasty.
After arriving in Pyongyang, Shen Weijing started negotiations with the Japanese representative, Governor Konishi, who conveyed the request of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who was full of confidence and thought he had won a great victory:
First, the Ming Dynasty needed to marry a princess to be the emperor’s concubine;
Second, the two countries will develop official trade tomorrow;
Thirdly, tomorrow the two countries will forever vow to have a good alliance;
Fourth, four roads to the capital of Korea were returned and the remaining four roads were ceded to Japan;
Fifth, North Korea must send a prince to Japan as a hostage;
Sixth, North Korea should never rebel against Japan.
Obviously, none of these conditions could be agreed to by the Ming Dynasty, but Shen Weijing calmly said that there was no problem. Therefore, Governor Konishi thought it was feasible and sent his retainers to Shuntian Mansion in the capital to continue negotiations.
In short, after Shen Weijing deceived and forged the Japanese "Guan Bai Surrender", the court had no doubts, and Emperor Wanli was particularly happy. After all, it was a good thing to avoid a large-scale war through negotiation alone.
However, when the imperial mission carrying the imperial edict arrived in Osaka, they read out the edict "canonizing Toyotomi Hideyoshi as King of Japan":
"...Toyotomi Taira Hideyoshi, who has become a great nation in the sea, knows how to respect China... Since his love is strong in obedience, and his kindness can be softened by tenderness, I have made you the king of Japan... I am grateful for the emperor's kindness..."
Of course, the arrogant Toyotomi Hideyoshi was very angry.
but! He still accepted the canonization and hosted a banquet for the Ming Dynasty envoy.
However, the war continued after several years, and finally ended with the Ming army defeating the Japanese pirates to the south of Korea.
As the instigator of this oolong, Shen Weijing was arrested and imprisoned, and two years later he was beheaded by Emperor Wanli's order. The imperial court's evaluation of this great liar was recorded as follows: "He only respects the villains in the market, sneaks into foreign countries, promotes the theory of Japanese slaves begging for titles, and cleverly plots to hinder the army, causing the border guards to withdraw, which humiliates the country and harms its prestige."
The imperial edict, bookmaking, and seals given to Toyotomi Hideyoshi during the Wanli period still exist today, and they are properly preserved in Osaka.
Therefore, a few days ago, the imperial court ordered the envoys in the Osaka Concession to temporarily retrieve them and send them back to the capital for the emperor's inspection.
When the imperial edict and its making were presented, Zhu Shiyan and all the cabinet ministers were very moved.
Both the edict and the book were made of yellow silk brocade, with patterns of auspicious clouds, auspicious cranes and soaring dragons on the edges, and finally a large seal of "Treasure of Guangyun".
The exquisite imperial edict before them was as fascinating as if it were wrapped with immortal magic. It has been 345 years since the 21st year of Wanli to the 38th year of Zhichang.
The weight of history makes people hold their breath subconsciously. Perhaps more than three hundred years are nothing compared to many cultural relics that are thousands of years old, but the imperial edict also contains the profound meaning of the country.
Since the beginning of the Qin Dynasty, the dynasties have enjoyed different periods of time, including 15 years of the Qin Dynasty, 210 years of the Western Han Dynasty, 196 years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, 38 years of the Sui Dynasty, 290 years of the Tang Dynasty, 210 years of the Liao Dynasty, 167 years of the Northern Song Dynasty, 152 years of the Southern Song Dynasty, and 152 years of the Yuan Dynasty. 98 years.
The rise and fall of dynasties is like the changing of lights, sometimes shining and sometimes dimming. The Ming Dynasty, which should have died in the 17th year of Chongzhen, continues to this day in another form.
The new dynasty founded by Emperor Sejo is excellent in terms of legitimacy, and there is no objection to the bloodline and the integrity of the country.
In terms of bloodline, Emperor Guangwu, the ancestor of the Han Dynasty, was a descendant of Liu Fa, the king of Changsha. His father was just a county magistrate and was already in the declining royal family. The ancestor of the Ming Dynasty was similar, he was just a lieutenant in Fengguo and he was also at the bottom of the royal family.
When it comes to winning the country, the Emperor of the Han Dynasty overthrew Wang Mang with an outnumbered enemy. After twelve years, he once again unified the world, and the people's wishes were the same. The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty also faced difficulties, facing the Eight Banners and countless green camps sweeping the Central Plains, as well as the various forces of the Southern Ming Dynasty who were fighting among themselves. , it also took many years of fierce fighting to pacify the north and south of the Yangtze River.
Nevertheless, from a narrow sense, just like the Western Han Dynasty and the Eastern Han Dynasty, although their main structures are similar, their official systems are quite different, and their capitals and lineages have changed, so they are often regarded as two dynasties with the same country name.
The same situation applies to the later Ming Dynasty. Emperors of all dynasties actually did not care about this. The so-called "gentlemen are magnanimous and magnanimous, and villains have long-term concerns." Since the legitimacy is completely sufficient, there is no point in being wary.
Do you want to determine the difference between before and after? The government and the opposition often bring up the old issues again every thirty or fifty years, but every time the pro and con parties quarrel with each other and end up with no result.
In fact, there are many emperors who find such arguments quite interesting, and they can also take the opportunity to add fuel to the flames and divert political conflicts.
At this moment, Zhu Shiyan turned his head and coughed a few times, then gently touched the place covered with the bright red square seal.
"Time flies so fast. I have been in office for more than thirty years, but this edict has lasted ten times longer than me."
"It can be considered as the final touch on what happened more than three hundred years ago." Zhu Lizhen, standing on the left side of the imperial case, said calmly.
Zou Zhuoyun, who had complicated eyes, breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It has finally been settled. This is a matter that has been delayed for more than ten generations."
"Father, let's talk about the future strategy." Zhu Lizhen paused and continued: "In some respects, I still insist on the previous view, that it should not be allowed to control large-scale troops, and the power of military command should not be delegated to outsiders. .”
This is part of the many strategies for dealing with Japan, but it is also the most important one - how to arrange the defense issues of the Japanese Islands?
Should they be helped to reorganize the army?
Is it better to have a larger or smaller army?
The Japanese court has such an army, should other vassal towns also form armies that can compete with it?
How should dispatch and command rights be allocated?
Should we allocate funds to help build permanent defense lines at key places on the archipelago?
The mainstream view of the Constitutional Council is to support the formation of a light infantry force of about 60,000 people and a small number of independent artillery units; the navy mainly uses torpedo boats, minelayers, and small submarines for offshore defense, supplemented by some coastal defense artillery units; the aviation unit equipment Fighters, dive bombers, and torpedo planes.
This plan has been unanimously approved by the National People's Congress, Renhe Party, and Datong Party.
Another view is much bolder. Simply put, the force is increased to five heavy-armored divisions (not armor, only the number of artillery equipment), about 100,000 people, and the local vassals and towns each form a light-armored division. The size of the navy and aviation forces must also be expanded. The navy must have one or two destroyer squadrons that can assist the Ming Navy in carrying out transportation line escort missions.
This plan is obviously more radical, and there are many voices of opposition even within the Chinese Party. However, the Sun and Moon Society, the Pioneer Association, and the Democratic Party still generally support it.
To put it simply, the first is to treat it as a housekeeper and a watchdog, and the second is to make it a thug and lackey.
"Isn't this consideration a bit too cautious?" Li Guangyuan pondered: "When the war starts in the future, the war area will cover Southeast Asia, and there will be a lot of baggage manpower required, and troops will be constantly stationed to maintain stability. It is not cost-effective to rely entirely on the domestic army. .”
"It's not absolute. Both Annan and North Korea can use some troops to assist them. At least it will be enough to maintain stability behind the front." Zhu Lizhen replied.
A long front, a long logistics line, and a vast occupied area require a massive amount of troops to maintain.
It cannot be said that under a wartime economy, the imperial court can unscrupulously collect and collect troops. More conscription will have to pay a reciprocal price - the reduction of young and strong labor force, which is not beneficial to the country's economy and stability.
As the Minister of Finance, Li Guangyuan is naturally not happy to see this situation, and he will do whatever he can to divert it.
"Your Highness, Annan mainly defends against Burma, and should not have much focus on Nanyang." As he spoke, Lin Xi shook his head slightly, and said half contemptuously and half helplessly: "As for North Korea, I think it's quite embarrassing."
The Metropolitan Governor's Office and the Ministry of War also have assessments of North Korea's strength, but the conclusions of the compiled reports are not optimistic.
Throughout history, it seems that there was no time when Lee's Korea became independent?
The military report was objective but also unsparing. It bluntly stated that the military had no fighting spirit, poor morale, and corruption and reselling of supplies were common.
The reason for this, in addition to internal power struggles, is mainly the lack of possibility of expanding territory and the comfort of being protected by the sovereign state.
The peninsula is only so big, where will it expand? There is the sea to the east and west, Japan to the south and Ming Dynasty to the north.
Then, in the past few hundred years, the country was on the verge of subjugation twice, but Wang Shi sent troops thousands of miles to come to the rescue. This invisibly made North Korea feel slack. To put it bluntly, "It doesn't matter if you lie down and die, great things will happen." My dad is here to help.”
And given that the Koreans have tricked the Ming army countless times in history, and coupled with the poor performance they are showing now, the Ming army generals seriously lack trust in them.
It can be said that it is probably human nature to be afraid of pig teammates.
"Based on this consideration, I think I can only arm the Japanese country for my own use." Li Guangyuan also looked helpless.
Zhu Licheng pondered: "It's not easy to control people. It will take at least dozens of years before they can be truly obedient. Today... there are still many people who look respectful but are not convinced. This can be regarded as raising a tiger and causing trouble in the literal sense."
In this regard, the crown prince can be said to be both conservative and radical.
He is committed to eliminating potential troubles from their roots, using methods including but not limited to forced immigration, forced Chinese education, and persecution of leaders of opposition groups to remove the backbone of the Japanese people and build them into a submissive and non-threatening vassal country. Whether it will cause them to lose their fighting spirit and become distracted is something that does not need to be considered.
"I know what you are thinking." The emperor said leisurely: "But if you focus on pulling out the teeth of a vicious dog, you will get hurt if you are not careful."
He didn't say anything more, but said casually: "Ning You, aren't you going to say something?"
Zhu Lingjing was actually present, and was at the rear right, but she remained silent as a listener.
As a special adviser to the Executive Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, how can I not express my opinion?
Her eyes danced across the cabinet ministers in front of her, and finally landed on Zhu Lizhen, and then she said:
"I think it is better to be bolder in the strategy of dealing with the Japanese country. It should be noted that there are many people in the Japanese country who are close to the Celestial Dynasty. Tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands are completely enough. If you use it as the core and lure it with benefits, you can attract Many people who have no feelings for family, country or race participated in it.”
"With the new Japanese army thus constituted, the risk of rebellion is obviously very small, and its aggressiveness is not small. The former type of people will desperately prove their loyalty and personal value to the Celestial Empire, while the latter type of people will fight for their own interests. Fight hard. Not to mention that the Japanese country is poor, and a little wealth or benefits can seduce the hearts of its people."
"Our party has made a rough estimate of this. You should have read the memorial prepared in that report, right? The former is estimated at 100,000, and the latter at 500,000. This is still a matter of selecting the best and eliminating the poor. They can all make up 600,000. Thousands. If the requirements are slightly lowered, there can easily be millions of people. It is enough for them to be competent in maintaining law and order."
Hearing this, Zhu Lizhen, who frowned, asked back: "Is this what you think? Profit and inducement? This kind of people are the least able to withstand the test. They are fine when things go well. Once they are frustrated, they will immediately lose their morale. A small proportion is okay, but That multiple times is definitely not appropriate.”
After he finished speaking, he added, "Besides, Americans have a lot of money."
"War is inevitable, and total war is about maximizing the use of all resources." Zhu Lingjing replied not to be outdone: "Even though our country has an abundant population, the labor force should not be small, and the injured and dead still need to pay pensions. Such It might not be a bad idea to transfer some of the pressure to Japan."
"Don't change the subject and talk about the matter." Zhu Licheng said seriously with a dissatisfied look on his face: "How ridiculous your idea is. Those who admire the Celestial Dynasty are one, and those who are only interested in profit are five. Such soldiers and horses...especially the latter, how can you satisfy them? How to settle this score? Do you allow them to plunder in Nanyang and then all the people turn against you?"
Well, what was a peaceful conversation before turned into a debate between the two of them.
However, the emperor and the cabinet ministers did not mean to dissuade him. On the contrary, they watched the excitement quite briskly.
Push the book.
At the train station going to the university, Lin Yu confessed his love to Qingmei.
But was rejected.
What happened later caused Lin Yu regrets that he could not let go of for the rest of his life.
Ten years later, Lin Yu, although very handsome on the outside, still couldn't fill the regrets in his heart and was heartbroken.
Fortunately, he was reborn!
When he was reborn and returned to the time when he failed to confess his love, he felt completely calm when facing the girl in front of him.
But the strange thing is that she actually took the initiative to confess her love.
(End of chapter)
