New Shun 1730

Liu Yu thought that this should be the last time he would bring up the choice between etiquette and interests.

He should not have talked about this matter. Under the etiquette system of family and country, foreign monarchs are also monarchs, and foreign superiors and subordinates are also superiors and subordinates. The court still attaches great importance to some things because it does not want the domestic people to follow suit.

But this matter is too important, and the shogunate must exist.

Because Liu Yu did not have too long-term ideas about Japan, he just wanted to take away its last bit of gold, silver and copper; and use it as a dumping ground for commodities.

In fact, from the founding of Dashun to the present, a total of 2.5 million taels of gold and 1.1 million kilograms of silver, about 1,100 tons, have flowed out of Japan. About four-fifths of this flowed into Dashun, and the rest went to the Netherlands.

There is not much oil and water that can be squeezed out.

But just like what the Japanese "noble" colleagues said: like sesame, the more you squeeze, the more oil you get. It is estimated that if you squeeze hard, you can squeeze out a hundred thousand taels of gold and six or seven hundred tons of silver.

Liu Yu took great pains to make the emperor and nobles see the benefits of fighting Japan.

He kindly helped the shogunate reform its coinage and provided very constructive suggestions, which stabilized prices and stopped deflation. It also allowed the Japanese shogunate to collect a lot of "coinage tax" through coinage reform, and the shogunate now has cash in its hands.

He kindly helped the shogunate promote sweet potatoes, which enabled the shogunate to survive the economic crisis and maintain the stability of a subsequent dumping market. It also made it convenient to transport rice when there were no precious metals to be squeezed in the future.

So it was very convenient to ask for money. If it had been a few years earlier when the shogunate had to ask the daimyos to contribute rice, it would have been difficult to squeeze out money even if they fought.

As long as the shogunate existed, there was someone who specifically helped Dashun collect taxes. When the tax revenue was almost collected, they would go and collect a wave, which was always easier than going out to collect it themselves.

Moreover, the special political system of the shogunate and the popularity of Zhu Xi's doctrine in Japan have made the Japanese shogunate unjustified. So far, Liu Yu has not figured out why the shogunate would promote Zhu Xi's doctrine itself, and how Zhu Xi's doctrine views Cao Cao. Does the shogunate have any idea?

If Dashun wins this time, the prestige of the shogunate will be directly reduced to the lowest level.

At that time, if the shogunate wants to survive, it can only rely on Dashun. This can be called selling out the country, or it can be said to be class consciousness. The story of automatically giving up power and interests by shouting a few slogans is basically only in fairy tales, and the shogunate has no choice.

Besides, dumping in the future is not dumping arms, so it is better not to create a Warring States period. That will seriously affect the trade volume.

It would be better if Dashun sat on the side as a balance.

When he said this, the rest of the people present also felt that it should be so.

If it was just like this, it would be nothing.

But this matter is not that simple.

Liu Yu wants to get Hokkaido.

The official name of the shogun is "Shogun". Yi means Ezo.

If Ezo is gone, where will the Shogun go?

In this matter, we still have to give the shogun some face, otherwise it will be embarrassing. If we don't give him a way out, it will be difficult to negotiate at that time. This is equivalent to abolishing the legal basis of the shogun.

The emperor knew that he had stored grain in Ezo in advance, but he didn't take it as a big deal before.

When Liu Yu talked about this matter, everyone present was speechless.

They are all people who live under the system of etiquette and law, so of course they understand this matter as soon as they hear it. The title of Japan's Shogun is indeed troublesome.

But Liu Yu is definitely unwilling to let go of Hokkaido.

"Your Majesty, although Ezo has few products and a similar climate to Vladivostok, its situation is comparable to the Hexi Corridor."

"If we get Ezo, we can monitor Japan and cut off the Russians. We can also prevent the Russians from colluding with Japan. Therefore, although Ezo is a barren land at this time, we must get it."

"Your Majesty has entrusted me with the post of Jiedushi of Whale Sea. For the long-term stability of Whale Sea, I have always moved people outside and then inside, and occupied the surrounding estuaries, coastal areas, ports, etc. First, the so-called drawing a line to form a prison, the population around it will grow, and sooner or later the interior will become the real estate of the Celestial Empire."

"Ezo is extremely important to Whale Sea. Although the Jiedushi is a temporary official, I have to consider the long-term."

He was determined to cede Hokkaido. In terms of economic value, it is almost non-existent now. The emperor had already privately promised Liu Yu that he could cede it.

I just think that such a small matter can be ignored as a pre-planned condition, and it can be discussed at the time. I think it is not a rich place, but only more than 10,000 people, so even if it is ceded, Japan will not feel bad.

However, when considering the military of the General of the Shogunate, the emperor frowned and said: "This matter is indeed a bit difficult to handle. Do you have any ideas?"

The few people present were all important military officials, and they really did not have much experience in such matters.

You looked at me, I looked at you, and finally said: "During the Wanli period of the previous dynasty, the king of Japan was also canonized as the regent Toyotomi Hideyoshi, wasn't it? It's just that it was not clear before, and it's not good to pretend to be deaf and dumb now, so there is another explanation."

"Under the emperor, there can only be one king of the tributary states. The Japanese call themselves the Great King. What is this Great King? It's okay for them to call it that, but the one canonized by the Celestial Empire does not have the position of the Great King..."

"It's really difficult to deal with it at this time."

Not only did the ministers frown and think hard, and couldn't think of a way to have the best of both worlds, but the emperor also bowed his head and thought.

The emperor felt that what Liu Yu said made sense. Maintaining the existence of the shogunate and the king of Japan would make it easier to control them.

Without deposing either the king or the shogunate, it would be easier for Dashun to control Japan.

But neither the king nor the shogunate should be abolished, but the "barbarians" of the general who conquered the barbarians must be cut off...

It was not so difficult to formulate a battle plan. It was indeed a collective difficulty in this matter.

Furthermore, if Japan goes to war against Dashun again in the future, the shogunate will name the general who conquered the barbarians, which will also make Dashun very unhappy - who is the barbarian?

After thinking for a long time, he couldn't come up with any better solution. The emperor had no choice but to say: "That's all, let's not mention it in advance. After the matter is completed, let the Li government think about it."

"Japan cannot engage in diplomacy and can only pay tribute. It is most appropriate for the government to handle this matter. They are very knowledgeable and they will find a solution in the future."

Liu Yuxin said what kind of statement is this?

After looking at the emperor eagerly for a few more times, the emperor smiled and said: "Don't worry, sir, you are an envoy to the Jinghai Sea. Since the Whale Sea is so important, I naturally want to listen to your advice. I just mentioned the three principles for conquering Japan, and now I want to Just add one.”

After hearing the emperor's guarantee and memorizing the letter, Liu Yu thanked him and thought that this matter must be done.

Coal and iron mines are either in Hokkaido or near Nagasaki. The latter can be controlled at any time. If the former is obtained, it will block Japan's future path.

But at this time, he couldn't think of a way and could only stop mentioning it.

The emperor said something more about the conquest of Japan, and finally said: "If you have any other opinions, please tell me."

The old British Duke glanced at Liu Yu and asked, "Isn't the scale of this expedition against Japan, with a scale of ten thousand people, a bit exaggerated?"

"It's either no levy or not."

"If we conquer, we must use the power of thunder to kill with one blow. Although Shouchang can guarantee the maritime transportation, God's will is unpredictable. Once the troops are insufficient, it will happen that there is a heavy storm and it will be difficult to support... Although after the military reform, the heavenly soldiers will be able to When it comes to five, the Japanese country is not a small country. In the past, it invaded Korea with 200,000 to 300,000 soldiers. "

Liu Yu hurriedly said: "Don't worry, Sir, ten thousand people are enough. This time, that time."

"At that time, the Japanese country achieved great things in the troubled times of Guanbai, and its soldiers and generals were all experienced and trained for a long time; now... their armaments are lax."

"Furthermore, I have also been to Nagasaki and Kokura, and I have had a glimpse of their cities, but they have not been repaired for a long time. Since the Tokugawa gained power, they were afraid that their feudal lords would rebel. If each family built the city walls, they had to report to them, but it was difficult to get approval."

"The country is long and narrow, and Edo is far away from Kyushu Island. It will take a year for the navy to assemble its forces to harass. By then, I only need to go around Edo and dry the sails, and they will not dare to attack the Edo headquarters. All of them will be used, and the rest of the feudal lord’s troops will not be willing to contribute.”

"So ten thousand people are enough. If there are more, money will be needed for food, grass, military equipment, money, wages and pensions. It's better to save whatever you can."

"But...these ten thousand people need elites."

The emperor nodded and said: "They are certainly elite. It takes a thousand days to raise an army for one day. The country spends countless money and food on military reform. This is the time to use it."

"Don't worry, gentlemen, the Japanese country is not a quasi-bunk. To attack the quasi-bubu, it is very difficult to transport thousands of kilograms of cannons. But the cannons of the Japanese country can be used in many ways near the sea."

"Before the military reform of this dynasty, the artillery was very good. It is rare that we can use more artillery in this battle, so we will have no worries."

"Moreover, the Japanese country is close to the sea. If the enemy is here, I will be there, looking for its weak points to attack. Even though there are many troops, how can they move as fast as ships on the road?"

These words were exactly the nightmare that had been lingering in the emperor's mind.

When it was just a nightmare, it was Liu Yu who told about Westerners invading the coast, using ships to transport troops at high speed and carrying out guerrilla attacks.

Before the French mission came and signed the battleship exchange agreement, this kind of nightmare would often float in the emperor's heart like a ghost and be difficult to erase.

It is really an indescribable pleasure to spread such nightmares on other people now.

Li Gan thought to himself that as long as Liu Yu's navy could win, there would be nothing to say about this battle.

"Liu Yu, you are responsible for the navy in this war against Japan. However, you also need to supervise the transportation of grain and grass. I won't find anyone else to do it. You originally planned to establish the navy, so you want to do it. There are also staff officers in the navy, so you all take care of the food transportation."

"You have also discussed all maritime matters. The conditions are as you said. For two years, we will transport military rations in exchange for two years of monopoly trading rights. Once the two years are up, we will sell it."

This time of transporting rice to the north, as well as the previous transport of grain smuggling to Japan, can be regarded as a logistics exercise.

The emperor was confident in this.

Ordinarily, the army's staff department is responsible for logistics planning, but the navy under Liu Yu also has a staff team. This time the army has to rely on the navy if it wants to succeed. Therefore, Jiang Chen didn't mention the logistics issue at all, which was equivalent to directly pushing it to Liu Yu.

The relationship between Liu Yu and maritime merchants is also obvious to all, so it is appropriate to leave this matter to Liu Yu.

"Yes, I obey your order."

After receiving the military order, the emperor asked everyone for their opinions. There was nothing to say for the time being. After all, this was an unprecedented operation, and the last time it was done was the Mongols. If we talk about lessons, we learned a lesson not to set sail during a typhoon, but there is nothing else to talk about.

"In that case, please retreat first. This matter must be kept secret and cannot be told to others. If the information is leaked, it will be punished as collaborating with the enemy."

"Liu Yu, please stay, I have something else to say."