"Haha... Mr. Yamauchi has gone too far. I, Hirobumi Ito, will never forget why I ended my studies in the UK early in my life, because the Shimonoseki incident made me clearly understand the faces of the Western powers..."
"Don't doubt your loyalty to Japan. People who are born in Japan will die as Japanese souls. No one can buy my heart, not even Xiao Letian."
"But when we are angry, please calm down a little and think carefully about whether all our analyzes are wrong. May I ask, my lords, what does Xiao Letian want? What is his strategy? Is he really Do you have any plans to annex Japan?"
"Haga." Nabeshima Naohao stood up and roared fiercely, "Occupying Osaka Castle is not invading Japanese territory. Joining our civil war without invitation is not evidence of his ambition. I I have already seen it clearly, you have already taken refuge with Xiao Letian, right..."
"Wrong, absolutely wrong... Your analysis is always one-sided and superficial. The fact that you can make such remarks shows that you have no understanding of Xiao Letian and his Asian strategy..."
"Bold." When they heard that someone dared to disrespect the daimyo, the warriors of the Hizen clan subconsciously wanted to attack. In the end, the general stopped them.
"Baga, the state affairs are already like this, and you still want to kill your own people. No wonder you will be defeated in my hands. If I give you another chance with such a big heart, I will never succeed."
After all, the shogunate's rule had lasted for more than 200 years. Under the remaining power, even the lords of the four southwest lords did not follow suit. Nabeshima Naoda and his samurai returned to their seats.
The small interruption actually helped Ito straighten out his thoughts, and the dry information mentioned below moved everyone present.
"Xiao Letian's strategy for Japan, I think, should be considered from two aspects: heart and action. Let's talk about the heart first. Does Xiao Letian have the heart to annex Japan? I don't think so. Don't rush to refute me. , first listen to what I say..."
"Since Xiao Letian was born in the Qing Dynasty four years ago, he first accumulated popularity in the Qing Dynasty and encouraged the Qing government to carry out the special zone plan. Then he conquered Ryukyu and became the prime minister of a small country in the East China Sea. Why is this, you know Once he becomes an important minister of Ryukyu, it will also block his way to gain a foothold in the Qing Dynasty..."
"A small Ryukyu, its land, wealth, and population are not even as good as a high-class county in the Qing Dynasty. Even we in Japan looked down on that small place at that time, but Xiao Letian still chose Ryukyu instead of the Qing Dynasty. This is why."
Ito Hirobumi looked at the Japanese nobles and high-ranking officials around him. From the serious expressions on their faces, he suddenly felt a surge of pride in his heart. It turned out that they would also listen to my voice.
"Why, I know why... because Xiao Letian is a true master of Western learning, and his judgment of the world situation is even better than that of Europeans... Every step he takes is very British, isn't it?"
"The British Isles are now known as the Empire on which the sun never sets. In the eyes of outsiders, India, Australia, Odessa, Hong Kong... and other places are British territories. But let me tell you, that is wrong. Those lands are in Europe People’s mouths are called colonies…”
"What is a colony? It means that the sovereign country controls all diplomacy, politics, economy, military...everything, but retains the national concept of the original land..."
"This is a completely different expansion idea from the medieval times. In ancient times, the expansion of countries was based on directly annexing land and establishing their own political power. This old model will definitely cause fierce resistance from the indigenous people. When the time comes, The output of the new land cannot even cover the cost of quelling the rebellion..."
At this point, Ito Hirobumi suddenly said with a strange expression, "The Battle of Baijiangkou in the Tang Dynasty and His Highness Taige's conquest of Korea failed. The main reason was that under the control of the powerful Central Plains civilization, they did not know how to restrain themselves and always wanted to take a bite. Eat a fat man..."
"Europeans are too smart about this. Instead of directly occupying it, it is better to establish their own colonies honestly and manage the people together with the original rulers. With the original rulers on the throne to protect them from wind and rain, These Europeans can naturally reap practical benefits..."
"Adults around, don't forget that Hong Kong is a British concession, and Shanghai is also a concession. Even the Indian kings have not lost their heads, and they can still rule their people one by one... Don't you understand now?"
Ito Hirobumi looked around contemptuously, "Now you think Xiao Letian will directly occupy Japanese land. He is a true sage of Western learning...you don't understand this game played by Europeans."
In one sentence, Yamauchi Dou was dumbfounded. This knowledge was really something they had never touched before. They were proficient in Chinese military art and culture. Even if they had learned about Western learning, they had only scratched the surface and could not go into it at all.
"So that's it. Do you mean that Xiao Letian will rent Osaka City directly? Ten years, twenty years, do you mean one hundred years?"
Ito shook his head, "I don't think so. Ryukyu and Japan are too close. Now Ryukyu's powerful commercial power can indirectly control Japan. The current rice riots are a real example. According to the latest intelligence from Ninja, now Even the rice riots occurred in the Sendai area of Tohoku, which shows that Ryukyu's control over Japan's economy has reached a very terrifying situation..."
"Xiao Letian could starve to death thousands of Japanese without even using a single soldier. Why would he choose such a stupid method as direct occupation and leasing?"
Ito Hirobumi said quietly, "In fact, all Xiao Letian's revenge was actually forced out by our stupidity. The assassination version of Suzuki was just a pardon. How could he dare to assassinate His Majesty the Qing Dynasty? If he didn't show the fire of thunder, The Qing Dynasty and Western countries will question the strength of this teacher..."
"Well, we have just analyzed whether Xiao Letian has the intention to annex Japan. Now let's analyze whether Xiao Letian has the strength to annex Japan..."
Ito pretended to smile mysteriously, "Based on my analysis, the Prime Minister does not have the strength to annex Japan yet. Everyone has been deceived by the appearance of Ryukyu."
"Nani, why didn't you...His three thousand soldiers have defeated our two armies of thirty thousand. And how many such soldiers does he have in Ryukyu? Ninjas reported that it is at least forty thousand..." Shimazu Tadayoshi asked .
"The number of 40,000 is correct, but most of them are this year's recruits. Only the veterans who participated in the European Campaign and Ryukyu French Campaign are truly his elite. The prime minister only has less than 10,000 such soldiers in his hands. , he will not invest in Japan..."
"What's more important is that three months ago, Ryukyu suddenly added a special tax. One-thirtieth of all businessmen's profits were collected and charged into the national treasury... Through my various inquiries, I found out the purpose of this tax increase. Just to build the Ryukyu Shipyard, do you know how much tax revenue is expected to be collected?"
Everyone shook their heads: "Fifty million silver coins, a total of fifty million silver coins..."
Hiss, everyone gasped, "How do you know, why do you understand so clearly." Ito smiled and said nothing. He couldn't say that the prime minister secretly told him, just to calm these short-sighted people. The frog in the well.
Ito did not answer the question but changed the subject with a smile, "Of course fifty million silver coins cannot be collected in one year. The Prime Minister will not kill the goose to lay eggs. The fifty million gold coins are expected to be collected for twenty years..."
"Oh my God, you can think about it, what kind of army requires so much military expenditure? Even Europe can't match it, so all this wealth can only be invested in the navy... Don't forget, just this year, the Ryukyu people are talking about the new The name "military" has gradually become less common, and their name has become the Marine Corps..."
"The Prime Minister has never thought about annexing the land as the ultimate goal from the beginning to the end. We are the only ones who are still stupidly afraid. Isn't this stupid?" Ito growled.
Tokugawa Yoshiki, who was sitting in the middle, clenched his hands, "Okay, I admit that what you said makes sense, but if Japan becomes a colony of Ryukyu, how can we meet our ancestors? Japan is already very poor. How can we meet our ancestors?" Can withstand Xiao Letian's second squeeze."
"General, if you cooperate with the French, don't you accept their colonization? How can the French train your troops and provide you with weapons without special policies? You would rather accept the control of the Europeans than Xiao Letian Yes."
"The most important thing is, do we still have a choice? You don't want to accept the fate of being controlled, but the reality is that Ryukyu has controlled Japan's economy. At least the rice trade has been controlled by others... If we don't bow our heads, will all Japan starve to death? .”
Ito knelt in front of the general and said quietly, "Actually, the Tanggu Special Administrative Region of the Qing Dynasty is now a colony actually controlled by Xiao Letian. Although the Qing Dynasty has the sovereignty of the Tanggu Special Administrative Region, the government is just a decoration there... From the perspective of public security, Taxation, industry and commerce...even the military are all decided by Xiao Letian, what is this if not a colony?"
"The proud heads of the Manchu and Qing Dynasties have also lowered their heads. Who are we? How can we compare with the Manchu and Qing Dynasties? It's too late to wake up to the reality."
Everyone in the military tent was shocked by the loud shout, and their faces turned pale. The majesty of a strong prime minister after decades was actually shown in advance. The shogun and the four daimyo were completely speechless. No one knew how to refute his words.
Having said this, Long Ye and Suzuki Tai, who were disguised as Ito Hirobumi's guards, looked at each other, then turned around and left. They wanted to bring the latest news to the prime minister.
After Xiao Letian listened to Suzuki Tai's report, he felt much better. This trick of using one to control another is really easy to use. If Xiao Letian and the Chinese were to say these words, the Japanese famous people would not know how to do it. listen.
But let Hirobumi Ito, a talented man who has studied abroad, say that the effect is so good, it seems that negotiations with Japan can begin soon.
