I started with the Shinsengumi in Bakumatsu

Chapter 180 Expansion Plan
Yagyu's bold plan made Katsu Kaishu look sideways. Sakamoto Ryoma was extremely puzzled and said: "Prime Minister, this is too aggressive. Although I also think we should expand abroad, choosing the Netherlands is still too dangerous."

Sheng Haizhou also advised: "Leave aside England's obstruction, I really can't think of a reason why Prussia can defeat France."

From the perspective of Sakamoto Ryoma and Katsu Kaishu, they have a very good reason. France relied on Napoleon to shock the European continent 60 years ago.

In the hands of Napoleon III, France regained its dominance in Europe.

As for Prussia, the navy was suppressed by small countries such as Denmark. Although the army won two victories, its record was worse than that of the French army.

In the eyes of the world at that time, powerful France would definitely be able to defeat Prussia.

However, the opposite was true: France lost.

This battle not only affected the situation in Europe, but also directly affected the ownership of the Spanish throne.

In 1868, Queen Isabella II of Spain was overthrown due to her dissolute private life and political chaos, leaving the throne vacant.

The Spanish cabinet meeting decided to find a suitable successor, and Prince Leopold of the Hohenzollern family, who was distantly related to King William I of Prussia, seemed to be a promising candidate.

The news leaked out at the end of June 1870, which angered the French Foreign Minister Duke Gramont. After Prince Leopold refused, he threatened William I and asked for a guarantee that he would never get involved in the Spanish throne. William politely refused the other party's request.

However, Bismarck, who deliberately provoked a war, sent a telegram known to the world as the Ems secret telegram. This telegram angered French public opinion.

The French Emperor Napoleon III, known as the Fox of the Tuileries Palace and the mysterious Sphinx, who was worried that he could not find an excuse to send troops, immediately declared war.

From November 1868 to 1870, Spain had no king, and the domestic power was ruled by a triumvirate government composed of Juan Prim, Francisco Serrano, and Juan Bautista Topete. .

At the end of 1868, after Queen Isabella II of Spain was overthrown from power, the Prussian veteran Moltke began to discuss with Bismarck a plan to fight the French army.

Both of them realized that this matter would definitely attract France into the situation.

Although Isabella II had a son who could inherit the throne, Juan Prim, who first launched the coup, would definitely not let Alfonso succeed to the throne. The most likely one was Prince Leopold.

Prince Leopold's father was King Vittorio Emanuele II of Italy. The Kingdom of Italy was an ally of Prussia because Austria occupied Venice.

If Spain chooses Prince Leopold as king, France's back will not be safe.

France in particular was already wary of the rise of Prussia.

So France will definitely refuse Prince Leopold to be called King of Spain.

Bismarck immediately thought of an excuse to go to war with France.

He must have said to Old Moltke: "As long as Prim chooses Prince Leopold of the Kingdom of Italy as king, I can let France attack us first."

Old Moltke immediately thought about the subsequent situation. He anticipated the French army's offensive route and approximate strength, and gave his own arrangement. Bismarck confirmed the plan.

When the Franco-Prussian War broke out, Prussia had been preparing for more than a year.

As for France, preparations were very hasty. After the declaration of war, the troops had not yet been assembled. It took nearly a month to urgently assemble the troops, but only more than 20 troops were assembled.

Without waiting for the main force to gather, the vanguard army attacked Prussia, fully falling into Prussia's calculations, and suffered defeat.

Napoleon III hesitated at the Metz Fortress and was overtaken by the Prussian army. He had no choice but to accept the battle. When the battle was about to begin, he handed over command to the brave and foolhardy Marshal Bazin.

Although Bazan initially repelled the Prussian army, he later retreated into the Metz Fortress and was surrounded by the Prussian army.

Napoleon III, who retreated to Sedan, was besieged and eventually surrendered.

France's defeat was not only difficult for the French to accept, but also for other European countries.

No one now thinks that France will be defeated. Yagyu's approach of following Prussia is seen by others as a big gamble.

But only Yagyu knows that this time he can win, and win big!
But he couldn't tell others about this kind of thing, so he could only find a way to explain it.

He asked someone to bring over a map of Nanyang and said: "Our sphere of influence is in the South China Sea and the Sea of ​​Japan. We only have our own base in Ryukyu and the seaport of Qing Dynasty.

The closest thing to us is the Spanish colonial island of Luzon. This place is pretty good. With here, we can go deep into Southeast Asia.

As for the Dutch colonies in the southwest of Luzon Island, it is not convenient to seize them for the time being, but I will make a move to seize the Dutch East Indies and let England stand up for the Netherlands. In this way, I can take a step back and ask for the Spanish colonies. "

Hearing this, Sheng Haizhou's eyes lit up and he said: "So that's it, I understand what the Prime Minister means. You are first proposing an excessive condition, and after the other party rejects it, you then propose a less extreme condition. The other party is rejecting After meeting the first condition, I will agree to the second condition as appropriate.”

Yagyu nodded and said: "Yes, winning the Spanish colonies is the most important, but I will also look for opportunities to take away the Dutch colonies."

Katsu Kaishu saw that Yagyu Sheng had already made up his mind, so he stopped trying to persuade him.

"Prime Minister, I understand. I will urge them to build new warships as soon as possible."

After Yagyu finished inspecting the shipyard, he returned to Hakodate.

Hijikata Toszo reported the development situation of Hokkaido to Yagyu. Now all the Ainu people have moved into the newly built towns and cities, and land reclamation has begun in various places. Sweet potatoes and potatoes have been planted in the past two years.

In addition, in addition to farming, the people of Hokkaido also developed fishing. Local residents still used wooden sailing boats, and Yagyu established the Hokkaido Fishery Company here, which has fifty steamships of various sizes.

These ships are steam ships recovered from the shogunate and various feudal lords. In addition, the Osaka Shipyard can produce twenty commercial steam ships of about [-] tons every year.

A considerable number of these fishing boats are used as distant water fishing boats.

Although the fishery in Hokkaido has just emerged, it has developed rapidly in the past two years with Yagyu's support.

There are several canned fish factories in Hakodate. The fish here are from the Hokkaido Fishery Company, which is large in quantity and cheap. The canned fish here can be directly transported to Tsarist Russia, the Qing Dynasty, and North Korea for sale, and can also support the development of Alaska.

In addition to fishery development, Hokkaido's industry also relies on coal mines and gold and silver mines.Hong Zhimu's Jinshan has expanded in scale, and many locals have signed up to become mining workers. The monthly salary is as much as [-] yen, which is enough for them to support their families and still have savings after a year.

Hijikata Toshizo not only has to manage the civil affairs of Hokkaido, but also takes care of the Hokkaido Border Guard Corps and the development of Alaska.

Hijikata Tobizo now has an army of [-] or [-] soldiers in his hands, but his combat effectiveness is not as good as that of Kyoto's [-]th Konoe Division.

Of course, the combat effectiveness of the Border Guard Corps and the Pioneer Corps is far superior to other troops. They are not only the main military force to defend the northern territories, but also the main force to defend against Tsarist Russia.

Although the situation between Japan and Tsarist Russia in Alaska has eased, coupled with the well-known conflicts between Yagyu and France, and the conflicts between Japan and Britain and the Netherlands, Japan and Russia have tended to have good relations.

Although the situation is arranged to develop in the direction of Japan-Russia friendship, Yagyu must guard against Tsarist Russia annexing Northeast China and North Korea. Otherwise, once Tsarist Russia turns its back, Japan will be passive.

However, in a short period of time, Tsarist Russia was still expanding in Central Asia and would not develop into the Qing Dynasty's Northeast and Korea for the time being.

"Prime Minister, I have made arrangements for the residents who immigrated from the Mutsu area. They mainly live in several big cities. In addition, thousands of children from the local residents have entered schools to study and learn from my Yamato knowledge. Up to five By the year, Hokkaido will be completely stable.

As for Alaska, it may take more than ten years. The local indigenous people are still somewhat resistant. Perhaps we need to launch a war against the indigenous people in Alaska to make them recognize the reality. "

Yagyu nodded and said: "Yes, I will authorize it when you are ready. However, you must remember that the purpose of the war is not to kill people, but to allow these indigenous people to accept our management."

"Understood, I will instruct them to try their best to intimidate them."

……

Yagyu's departure from Kyoto was like leaving a big mountain for Kyoto officials.

The Metropolitan Police Department, which oversees Kyoto, is busy protecting the safety of the emperor and empress, and a large number of secret police have left Kyoto.

Eto Shinpei, Ohara Shigetori and others immediately breathed a sigh of relief, and the stable Kyoto suddenly became undercurrent.

Parkes had already communicated with Eto Shinpei's Saga faction at the previous wedding, and now was the time for development.

Shima Giyuu left Kyoto with 30 pounds funded by Britain, France and the Netherlands, and returned to Saga to develop the movement.

As for Eto Shinpei and others, they continue to stay in Kyoto.

In order to promote the theory of conquest of Korea, Eto Shinpei had people spread the theory of conquest of Korea, but it did not attract much attention.

Soejima Taneomi immediately suggested: "Yagyu Higen has suppressed this kind of speech before. With his prestige, naturally no one dares to speak against him. If we want to achieve our goal, we must find a way to make North Korea our enemy. "

Eto Shinpei suddenly became enlightened, and he immediately said: "There is a way, and it is easy to implement."

Okuma Shigenobu reacted immediately and said: "I remembered that we have an office in Busan, North Korea. How about we find a way to set it up as an embassy in North Korea to anger the King of North Korea?"

Eto Shinpei nodded and said: "Okay, while Yagyu Heiyan is not around, we have to get this matter done quickly."

Soejima Taneomi shook his head and said: "I'm afraid not. This little time is not enough for us to arrange this matter, but it will expose us. I thought we could send people to North Korea to investigate first, and then plan this matter."

Eto Shinpei said with some dissatisfaction: "Then when will we go?"

Soejima Taneomi smiled and said: "I have news here. Yagyu Hien plans to go to Europe. This trip will take at least a year and a half. This is the best opportunity."

Okuma Shigenobu asked excitedly: "He is going to Europe. It is really a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Do you know the specific time?"

Soejima Taneomi shook his head and said: "I'm not sure. I heard it will be within two or three years, not too long."

Eto Shinpei relaxed his brows and said, "Okay, since we have such an opportunity, we don't have to worry. During this period, our main task is to win over more people."

After several people discussed it, they went their separate ways.

The current cabinet is headed by Matsudaira Yoho. In the cabinet there are Aizu faction, Sagawa Kanbei, Yamakawa Daizo, Jinbo and other officials who were his retainers. Now they hold important positions in the cabinet and can assist him in handling national affairs.

During the period when Yagyu left, Sagawa Kanbei was responsible for some affairs of the Metropolitan Police Department. He also had secret police in his hands, but the number was not as large as that of Saito Ichi, but he could still talk about and hear some news.

"Lord Matsudaira, these days, people from the Saga faction have been in frequent contact. I sent people to follow Shima Giyu who left the capital, and found that after he returned to Saga, the old samurai often worried that the people in Saga were plotting evil intentions."

Sagawa Kanbei reported the situation with a worried look on his face.

Matsudaira Yongho frowned and said: "The country has just solved its internal and external problems. Under the guidance of Prime Minister Yagyu, it is prospering and developing. At this time, instead of working together with us to develop the country, they are thinking about making trouble. What are they thinking in their minds?" ?”

Sagawa Kanbei shook his head and said: "Lord Matsudaira, not everyone is as noble as you. I think that the people in Saga want to seize power. There must be other forces behind this.

Perhaps it was Ohara Shigetori and other ministers' faction, or perhaps it was a force from another country. "

"boom!"

"You bastard, this is so unreasonable!"

The angry Matsudaira Yongho couldn't help but slapped the table and cursed.

"I don't think they are allowed to collude with outsiders. What's the difference between this behavior and Red Deer? Kanbingwei, keep an eye on them. As long as evidence is found, they will be dismissed and investigated!"

"I take orders."

Sagawa Kanbei hesitated and asked, "Where is the Prime Minister?"

Matsudaira Yongho said without hesitation: "This matter will naturally be reported to the Prime Minister."

Sagawa Kanbei groaned, and finally resigned and left.

(End of this chapter)