I started with the Shinsengumi in Bakumatsu

Chapter 188 The Ruan Dynasty sends troops and declares war on France!
  Vietnam has been a vassal state of the Central Plains Dynasty for a long time. During the Qianlong period, there was a rebellion in Vietnam in Annan, and the Li Dynasty was overthrown. However, with the suzerain power of the Qing Dynasty, the Li Dynasty was revived.

At the same time, Qianlong sent [-] Qing troops to attack the three Ruan brothers in the south. They were first victorious and then defeated. Then Qianlong listened to the advice of minister Fukang An and sealed the Xishan Dynasty as a vassal state, and the Li Dynasty was divided into two.

Although Li Weiqi was not good at it, he had a very fierce nephew, Nguyen Phuc Anh, who soon became the leader of the anti-Taishan forces.

Nguyen Phuc Anh took advantage of the civil strife in the Tay Son Dynasty to gradually pacify the south and unify Vietnam, directly ascended the throne to usurp the throne, and asked the Qing Dynasty to enfeoff South Vietnam, and Jiaqing gave it the name Vietnam.

Less than fifty years later, the Second French Empire expanded into East Asia and colonized Vietnam along the way. The slogan was to ask the Nguyen Dynasty to fulfill the agreement made seventy or eighty years ago.

This agreement is also called the Treaty of Versailles.

When Nguyen Phuc Anh usurped the throne, he tried to bring in foreign help. He initially contacted Siam, but unfortunately Siam could not do it, so he asked the French priest around him, Pedro, who suggested asking France for help.

In 1787, France and Vietnam signed the Treaty of Versailles. The two parties agreed that France would send troops to help Nguyen Phuc Anh destroy the Tay Son Dynasty, in exchange for Vietnam ceding Conlun Island and Da Nang to France.

But not long after the treaty was signed, a revolution broke out in France, Louis XVI was guillotined, and the First French Republic was in chaos. What followed was the Napoleonic era.

By the time France stabilized, Nguyen Phuc Anh had been dead for a long time.

The excuses made by the French army made the Ruan Dynasty very angry. The two sides fought a battle, and the Ruan Dynasty lost six southern provinces.

Now France has established the Nanqi Governor-General in the six southern provinces, and the current Governor-General Alphonse.

Alphonse has a general under his command, Rear Admiral Du Belle, who has been plotting the entire Vietnam, and he has already made a plan.

On this day, Du Belle also wanted to persuade Alphonse to describe his plan, but Alphonse found him first.

"General Du Belle, something happened in the country. His Majesty the Emperor declared war on Prussia. It has been more than a month since the war started."

Alphonse handed the information to Du Belle.

Du Bai Lei was a little surprised and annoyed. He took it and took a look, frowning and said: "This war really comes at the wrong time."

Alphonse held his chin and said: "General Du Belle, this time it is for the dignity of France. As for Vietnam, there is no need to worry. No one is our opponent here."

As soon as he finished speaking, an officer came to the door and shouted: "Mr. Governor, there is an urgent report from Japan!"

"Huh? What can happen to Japan?" Alphonse was quite puzzled, "Nian."

An Ye thought: "Mr. Alphonse, Japan has declared war on Spain, and the fleet and army are already on their way to Manila. In view of our relationship with Japan, we must not let Manila fall into Japanese hands."

Du Belle was surprised: "How could it be? How dare Japan attack Spain? Isn't he afraid of our fleet?"

An Ye said: "Ambassador Roches said that Japan has built an ironclad ship of more than [-] tons."

Alphonse sneered and said: "It's so funny that such an armored ship dares to attack Spain in front of us. This is a provocation to France.

Japan and Prussia are allies. It just so happens that if we take action against him, I can present this achievement as a gift to His Majesty the Emperor. "

There is no doubt that Du Belle, as fleet commander, led the French fleet in Da Nang to Manila, which had been occupied by the Japanese army for many days.

After the army occupied Manila, Sakamoto Ryoma led the fleet to retreat to the seaport for supplies, and at the same time sent ships to Vietnam and Japan to contact them.

The current Japanese navy is not a match for the French army, so according to Yagyu's plan, the Vietnamese Nguyen Dynasty will become the key to containing the French army.

Nobuyuki Nakajima rushed to Hanoi, met Ruan Changzuo, and said: "Sir Ruan, our country has declared war on Spain and captured Manila. France will never sit idly by. Now that the French fleet has left Da Nang, it is now up to you to regain the lost ground. Good time."

Ruan Changzuo coughed a few times, held back the pain and said: "I will report this matter to the court. After finding out, our army will never let go of such a good opportunity."

Nakajima Nobuyuki didn't care whether Ruan Changzuo would do this or not, he just left as ordered.

Ruan Changzuo was dubious about such a move. If Nobuyuki Nakajima had persuaded him sincerely just now, he would have felt that there was something fishy in it.

He immediately asked someone to help him change his clothes, and then dragged his sick body to the capital to report the matter to Nguyen Phuc Thiet.

Nguyen Phuc Thi was so excited that he immediately asked the minister to check.

A few days later, the news came back true. There were only a few small ships in the French fleet in Da Nang.

Nguyen Phuc Thi was overjoyed and excitedly said to the ministers: "I have been living alone and enduring for several years, just to wait until today. Now that Japan is our friend, and our new army has been training for more than a year, it is time to take back the lost territory of our country." .”

Nguyen Phuc Thi immediately appointed Nguyen Zhifang as commander-in-chief and asked him to lead the new army to recover Nanqi.

Ruan Zhifang fought with the French army in Nanqi in 1858. At the same time, he used to be a strategic ambassador in Nanqi. He has a better understanding of things in Nanqi and is the most suitable coach.

He was a very strong man and very loyal to Nguyen Phu Thie. He took over the position of coach and immediately led [-] new troops south to recapture Nan Qi.

Of the [-] new troops, only more than [-] have received Western-style training, while the other [-] or so are still in their original formation, but are equipped with new guns and artillery.

Although these [-] troops were not in battle formation, in terms of numbers, the Nguyen Dynasty army was far superior to the French army. In addition, the guns and guns were the same as those of the French army, so the French army could only shrink its troops and retreat.

Alphonse was greatly surprised. He could only rely on the strong fortress of the Governor's Palace to resist the enemy army, and at the same time sent people to recall the troops heading to Manila.

……

In Nagasaki, the messenger sent by Sakamoto Ryoma arrived here and reported to Yagyu that the Japanese army had captured Manila.

Yagyu passed the battle report to others and said: "Tell Ryoma Sakamoto that if the Nguyen Dynasty loses to the French army, we can provide support, but we must remember that Nguyen Phuc Thi will pay a sufficient price, but do not want Nguyen Phuc Thi to cede territory.

I only want Vietnam’s resources and money, but not their territory. You must remember this. "

The messenger immediately returned to Haikou with Yagyu's order and reported back to Ryoma Sakamoto.

Although the Japanese army captured Manila as planned, many people were surprised by Spain's overwhelming fighting power, but many people were still worried about France's attitude.

Among the people present, many people came from the shogunate, and they were deeply impressed by the strength of France.

Someone reminded again: "Your Majesty Prime Minister, if this delay continues, it will still be detrimental to us. Once France sends troops again, our country will inevitably..."

Yagyu raised his hand and interrupted: "Don't worry, France has no energy to take action against us. Tetsunosuke immediately sent a telegram to Kyoto and asked the parliament and cabinet to declare to the French ambassador that Japan has declared war on the French Empire!"

"what!"

"Declare... declare war?"

"Lord Prime Minister!"

Yagyu stood up directly and said: "This is my order, execute it immediately!" Ichimura Tetsunosuke immediately ran out to deliver the news.

The officials and generals below are still in shock. They are the overlords of the European continent. Are they declaring war?
  Yagyu glanced at the officials and generals below, put away his serious expression, sat back in his seat, and said pleasantly: "I know what you are worried about, but you don't have to worry, France has already gone to war with our ally Prussia. , they don’t have the energy to take care of things here.

Moreover, soon even England had no time to care about things here.

Everyone, this is the best opportunity for us to rise. If we miss it, we will have to wait for decades! "

The news about Yagyu once again shocked everyone, and many people suddenly realized that it was no wonder that Prime Minister Yagyu was not afraid of France. It turned out that it was Prussia who had taken action.

In their view, although Prussia is Japan's ally, it should be said to be the elder brother in terms of strength.

However, some people are still worried. They feel that although Prussia is powerful, it is still inferior to France.

One month and twenty-five days after France declared war on Prussia, Japanese Deputy Prime Minister Matsudaira Yoshiyasu announced that Japan declared war on the French Empire!

This was earth-shattering news, and the entire Kyoto was detonated by the news.

Whether it's in high-rise buildings or in the streets, everyone is discussing this matter.

Ambassador Roches, one of the protagonists, is being deported. The Guards directly dispatched a regiment of troops to surround the French Embassy, ​​demanding that Roches and others leave Japan immediately.

The British, Prussian, and Russian embassies were nearby, and both Parkes and Van Pols saw this scene.

Van Pols was so frightened that he couldn't speak. Parkes was shocked and couldn't help but said: "Is Yagyu Heiyan crazy? This is a rift with France. Napoleon III will never let Japan go."

Van Pols was frightened by Yagyu, and he couldn't help but said: "Maybe he has something to rely on?"

"Who, who else dares to offend France and help Japan?" Parkes asked directly in surprise.

Van Bols couldn't think of it, so he could only whisper: "But a cunning person like Yagyu Heiyan would never do such a dangerous thing."

This sentence reminded Parkes.

"You're right, he wouldn't do such a stupid thing." Parkes thought of a possibility, but he felt it was a bit ridiculous.

Van Pols saw Parkes' expression and asked, "Mr. Parkes, what did you think of?"

Parkes looked strange and said: "If France and Prussia go to war, then it makes sense that Yagyu Yoshihide is so bold."

Van Bols immediately nodded and said: "That must be the case!"

"Clap clap clap..."

Outside the door, the secretary knocked on the door eagerly. Parkes didn't bother to talk to Van Pols, he raised his head and said: "Come in."

The clerk opened the door and said eagerly: "Mr. Ambassador, the telegram I just received states that France has declared war on Prussia. The time is July [-]th!"

"What!"

Parkes didn't expect that his suspicion just now would be true.

"What happened? Why did France declare war on Prussia?"

He asked immediately, his expression very urgent.

The clerk handed over the telegram and said: "The King of Prussia angered His Majesty Napoleon over the matter of the heir to the Spanish throne, and France declared war."

Van Bols on the side shouted excitedly: "This is Yagyu Heiyan's conspiracy!"

"Mr. Parkes, do you still remember that the Prussian Ambassador Barland had a secret conversation at Yagyu Koshien's wedding banquet and then returned to Prussia?"

Parkes immediately remembered this and his expression changed drastically: "Impossible! They actually started planning this war last year!"

"France is in danger. We must report this matter to Congress. Our troops should immediately support France!"

The secretary was a little puzzled and admonished: "Mr. Ambassador, this is probably impossible. Who would believe that this war was planned by the Japanese?

France will not agree to our assistance, and they are more likely to think that this is our conspiracy. "

Parkes slapped his head. He was really anxious just now. He said such stupid things. Even though he knew that Japan was involved in this matter, there was no actual evidence. He only relied on a secret conversation without knowing the content and Barland's return to Prussia. As evidence, the French will definitely think that this is an English conspiracy.

When the time comes, this will cause France to negotiate peace with Prussia in a daze and turn its spearhead against England.

"Damn it! I know it's him, but I can't prove it!" Parkes was furious.

The clerk suggested: "We can only remind the parliament to pay more attention to the development of the situation."

Parkes nodded and said: "This is the only way. I will write to the Parliament personally."

Roches, who was being expelled, also received the news that France had declared war on Prussia. He now knew where Japan's strength was so strong.

Roches cursed at the eyeing Japanese soldiers and the Japanese people watching the theater on the street: "You little dwarfs, do you think you can humiliate the French Empire with the support of Prussia?

Just wait, our army will crush Prussia, and when the time comes, I will definitely lead the French army to flatten this place! "

Unfortunately, what he saw was not the fear of the Japanese, but the abuse of the Japanese.

As for Eto Shinpei, no one dared to show up to speak for Roches and the others.

They only felt the terror of Yagyu in their hearts. Even though this powerful prime minister was not in Kyoto, at this moment, his name was like a mountain pressing on them, making them breathless.

Eto Shinpei looked at his companions with a puzzled look on his face and asked: "No wonder Yagyu Hiyan dared to declare war on Spain, and now he dared to declare war on France. It turns out that he had already known that France and Prussia would go to war.

But how did he know, and the action was around the date of the declaration of war. We were completely kept in the dark. Even Ambassador Roches didn't know. How did he know? "

Okuma Shigenobu's expression was stern and he said solemnly: "Unless he is involved in this matter, so he knows the date of the war in advance."

Soejima Taneomi shook his head and said: "Not necessarily. France declared war first, and it is definitely not something he can control."

As soon as these words came out, several people fell silent.

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  (End of this chapter)