Japan under the feudal dynasty has always had the problem of strong scholars and a weak country!
This is because the core of vassal politics is actually to raise scholars! Most of Japan's manpower and material resources are used to raise warriors, and they have raised countless samurai. They not only need to feed them, but also educate and train them, and strive to train them into feudal warriors with comprehensive development of morality, intelligence, and physical fitness.
It needs to be emphasized that the system of the Tokugawa Shogunate was not actually the shogunate dictatorship recognized by later generations. There was no dictatorship at all, there was no shogun Tokugawa at the central level, and there was no lord dictatorship at the local level. Because the general's family is specialized in weird things, the power of the old man becomes more and more powerful.
And the local feudal lords and their heirs have all become Edo people because of the introduction of the pilgrimage system. These days, there are no telegraphs or telephones, and Japan doesn't even have a 600-mile express service. How can a bunch of Edo people dominate their hometown? Therefore, vassal states in various places usually adopt the method of collaborating with ministers to govern.
In fact, those important ministers of the vassal state did not weigh much. Their salaries were hundreds or even thousands of dan. In China, they were just big landlords.
The real power of Japan lies in the hands of this group of people! Therefore, what Japan raises are these samurai who are not engaged in production but specialize in killing people.
There is no doubt that the personal combat effectiveness of this group of warriors is very strong, and they are generally civilized and martial, and their minds have been washed to the point of being brave and fearless of death. They are very good warriors and can also serve as low-level officers.
But whoever thinks that Japan is a military power with this group of professional murderers is talking nonsense!
Because Japan is just a place name, and these groups of professional murderers are divided into about 300 vassals, and there are also a group of people who are not doing well enough to become troublesome rogues. As for the upper echelons of Japan, the generals were wary of the daimyo, and the daimyo suppressed the important ministers in a suffocating and solidified feudal system. Although those at the top had to support scholars, they could only do so, and they had to do their best to guard against rebellion by those below.
Therefore, as long as Japan's feudal government system exists, there will be no way to convert the combat effectiveness of samurai into the combat effectiveness of the country.
Moreover, Japan still has a problem of separation of justice and actual power!
The emperor, who had a great title, had a name but no real power, while the shogunate held real power but no title. Therefore, there was a mutually restrictive relationship between the title and real power.
Now that the external situation in East Asia has undergone drastic changes, the shogunate in power must make a choice between joining the Chinese Empire and fighting against the Chinese Empire.
However, the lack of status and mutual restraint between the vassals put the shogunate in a dilemma. If they join the Celestial Empire, the shogunate will have to act like traitors, depose the emperor, and turn the general into the king of Japan. The current Tokugawa shogunate is still very powerful, and with the support of the Celestial Empire, this kind of treasonous thing may not be unsuccessful.
But the problem is...the Tokugawa family must have a hero in order to succeed in plotting to usurp the throne!
For example, if Mito Domain's clever lieutenant general Tokugawa Mitsukuni is the official, and he seeks to usurp the throne, things will hopefully succeed. But now there is a stupid Gongfang in the shogunate... How can the stupid Gongfang usurp the throne?
If we want to fight against the Celestial Empire, we must completely change the shogunate system and establish the centralization of power by the emperor... This means the end of the shogunate!
But the problem is that the strength of the Tokugawa family is too strong, and the prestige of His Majesty the Emperor is too low... In this case, to end the shogunate and return the great power, can the Tokugawa vassals and generations agree?
Moreover, Feng Fang cannot make decisions by himself. Who among a group of old men can do such a thing?
Therefore, facing the alternative proposed by Tokugawa Mitsukuni, the shogunate veterans present fell silent.
I don’t know how long the silence lasted before I heard Masayuki Hoshina sigh: "It would be great if the Ming Dynasty was defeated by the Spaniards! Then... maybe everything can remain the same!"
Tokugawa Mitsukuni said, "It is impossible for the Spaniards to defeat the Ming Dynasty. Spain only has a population of more than five million. The maximum number of people it can send to China is 5,000. How can it be possible for 5,000 people to defeat the Ming Dynasty?"
He paused and looked at Masayuki Hoshina: "Your Highness Aizu! Do you want to be a loyal minister of the emperor?"
Hoshina Masayuki quickly shook his head: "No, no, this is not okay... Our Aizu Domain exists to protect the Shogun's family! Even if we are scolded as a traitor and traitor by the world, we will not hesitate!"
Yes, Dewa Aizu has a 530,000-koku seal! How could it be possible to exchange him for a loyal minister? How much does a pound of rice cost to a loyal minister?
"Izu Mamoru, are you a loyal minister of the emperor?" Masayuki Hoshina then kicked the ball to Matsudaira Nobutsuna.
"Emperor?" Matsudaira Nobutsuna snorted, "I don't know! My family has been a country samurai for generations, and I got where I am today because I followed the Lord of Gods. I don't know the Emperor!"
Musashi Kawagoe Domain's 60,000 koku! It is to be passed on to sons and grandsons. If he hands it over in exchange for a loyal minister, then there will be no filial sons or grandsons in the family!
"My Sakai family has been loyal to the Tokugawa family for generations!" Tadaki Sakai, the lord of the Ueno Amabashi Domain, also expressed his stance.
There's nothing to say. Since his surname is Sakai, he has to help the Tokugawa family kill people! This is 1656 in the Western calendar, not 1856! Tadaki Sakai has not forgotten how to kill people!
Of course, his territory is not much, only thirty-three thousand... He needs to kill more people to perform meritorious deeds! The territory of the "Emperor's loyal ministers" in the west looks huge!
Abe Tadaki, who was considered to be the best at getting things done among the elders, frowned and whispered: "Are the Warring States Troubles coming again? Once the world is in chaos, all life will be in ruins... This chaos is clearly caused by How come it has spread to Japan? We in Japan have not had much to do with them since the end of the Tang Dynasty!"
"Abe-kun!" Matsudaira Nobutsuna looked at the nagging Tadaki and said, "What's the use of talking about this now? Let's talk about something useful!"
Abu Tadaki sighed: "We, the Tokugawa retainers, only know Tokugawa, not the Emperor!"
Seeing that all the senior officers had expressed their stance, Tokugawa Mitsukuni nodded and said in a serious tone: "Since everyone only knows the general and not the emperor...then, let's be rebellious ministers and traitors together!"
"What are we going to do?" Masayuki Hoshina had a straight face and looked very scary - is he going to Kyoto to kill the emperor?
"First of all," Tokugawa Mitsukuni said, "of course it is to grandly welcome the American envoy Wei Zaode of China! Although the Emperor of China has given us two bitter pills, we should swallow them with a smile!"
"Then what?" Baoke asked again.
"Then he signed a secret agreement with the Celestial Envoy..."
"A secret agreement to become a vassal?" Baoke asked.
"No." Tokugawa Mitsukuni replied, "Unless China defeats Spain and becomes the overlord in the Pacific, we cannot surrender to China. Because that will lead to an attack from Spain... If Spain tries to support it with arms If a powerful feudal lord falls, the shogunate may be defeated, and the shogunate cannot take such a risk!"
"So what secret agreement are we signing?"
"Of course it is a secret agreement to maintain neutrality in name, but in fact to secretly support China..." Tokugawa Mitsukuni said, "The Chinese navy can be allowed to secretly use Mito, Aizu, Kishu, Ezo and other ports, The condition is that China must provide us with coastal defense artillery, field artillery, siege artillery, and artillery instructors. I have studied many battle cases in the Ming and Qing wars and found that field artillery plays a decisive role in forming battles. The Shogunate Artillery must be established as soon as possible before we can launch a war against the southwestern feudal lords! As long as we defeat the southwestern feudal lords with ulterior motives, the shogun can take another step forward and become the king of Japan!"
"How to deal with the Spanish envoy?" Baokezheng said, "Should we expel him?"
"Of course we can't expel it!" Tokugawa Mitsukuni said with a smile, "Spain is a world empire and a power that Japan cannot resist... Therefore, Japan has to adhere to the principle of neutrality and allow the Spanish navy to operate for a long time. Stopped briefly at Saki and Uraga ports to replenish food and fresh water.
Of course, our Tokugawa shogunate admires the great Ming Dynasty, but we have no choice but to do so. Once the shogunate strengthens its military equipment and eliminates the powerful feudal lords with ulterior motives, they will definitely follow the Chinese dynasty and fight against Spain! "
