New Shun 1730

After writing his last letter of remonstrance and signing it, he called all his trusted retainers to his side.

He handed over the remaining samurai to them. The Ii family was not extinct, and he still had the children left by his uncle to take over.

The remaining samurai retreated to Hikone Castle, or stationed in Tsuruga Town in Obama. If the Taishun attacked Hikone Castle, they could just abandon Hikone Castle.

Anyway, it couldn't be defended, and the Taishun couldn't stay here for a long time, so there was no need to cause unnecessary casualties.

After arranging everything for the Hikone Domain, he took this last letter and two trusted retainers and rushed to Edo at night.

In Edo Castle, there was visible panic and chaos, an unspeakable depression, and even the most prosperous flesh trade on weekdays was suspended.

Although the shogunate tried to block some bad news, some news was still transmitted to the outside through different channels.

The news that the Taishun army had entered Kyoto could not be concealed.

The people were panicking, and a sense of failure was also pervasive in the Honmaru of Edo Castle.

A few days ago, the head of the Dutch trading house came to Edo and conveyed the Dutch attitude on this matter: the Netherlands will remain absolutely neutral in this standard oriental conflict caused by the affiliation of a tributary state.

This time, Tokugawa Yoshimune gave the Dutch head enough face, and once again lifted the bamboo curtain that blocked his way in front of him, and talked to the Dutch head face to face, and even threatened to cut off trade.

The last time he lifted the bamboo curtain was when he became a general and became interested in Dutch studies for the first time, and then he restored the previous system of separating the curtains.

But the Dutch head's attitude was also very tough, believing that this matter had nothing to do with trade. They refused to send troops in any form and repeatedly reiterated their neutrality.

The threat of cutting off trade failed, and Tokugawa Yoshimune followed the method of inducement proposed by Ooka Tadami, proposing that if the Netherlands sent troops to support, the Netherlands' trade quota would be expanded, China's trade letters would be abolished, and doubled to the Netherlands.

The Dutch still refused.

Just as Liu Yu said to Ooka Tadashi, the Dutch knew that they could not open up sales in Japan with only the goods they had.

Britain, France, Switzerland, Portugal, Denmark, Spain and other countries were all eyeing Guangdong, Fujian and Songjiang, hoping to share the Dutch trade with China.

The only things the Netherlands could sell in Japan were sugar and spices, and the sales of these things were not enough to make up for the profit of reselling Chinese raw silk. Just like the Busan trade in Korea, the Koreans thought they were selling ginseng, but they were actually selling Chinese raw silk.

Whether they could defeat the fleet of Dashun at sea was not the reason for the Dutch to consider. What if the fleet was defeated? How many East India companies in Europe were staring at the Dutch at the Dashun Customs Port?

Britain, a suspicious ally, would definitely avenge the complete expulsion from Southeast Asia in the third year of the Ming Dynasty.

Dashun would not allow the Netherlands to monopolize Japan's trade. The Netherlands knew this very well. It was unwise to intervene in the disputes in East Asia when Batavia was busy with its own affairs.

However, the Dutch did not go all the way, but hinted secretly: If the Sino-Japanese War ends, the Netherlands is willing to provide Japan with certain assistance, such as instructors, shipbuilding engineers, etc., and is happy to help Japan build a fleet.

After all, the Dutch have been the world's boss for more than a hundred years. They have completely destroyed the British and French fleets, burned the port of London, and beat the world's first empire on which the sun never sets, Spain. They still have strategic vision.

He was worried that his interests in Southeast Asia would be damaged, so he hoped to support a force to fight against Dashun, but he would never end up on his own.

It was expected that Tokugawa Yoshimune's threats would fail and his inducements would be ineffective. Considering the future, he did not get angry with the Dutch and still allowed the Dutch to continue living in the Nagasaki trading house.

Rather than saying it was expected, it was better to say that when Ooka Tadashi went to see Liu Yu that day, Liu Yu showed disdain for the matter of borrowing troops from the Netherlands.

This made Tokugawa Yoshimune even more worried. Dashun seemed to have calculated everything, even the possible accident of the Dutch. It can be said that it has been considered thousands of times and there is no room for error.

One side started to calculate and lay out ten years ago; the other side did not know the armament of Dashun when the war started.

The scary thing is that the side that started to lay out ten years ago has ten times the population and a hundred times the wealth.

The reaction of the Dutch was exactly the same as the reaction estimated when Liu Yu warned Ooka Tadami not to have delusions. Therefore, the important officials in the shogunate who knew about the Edo negotiations were shrouded in a strong sense of failure.

As soon as the Dutch left, news came from Kyoto.

The Dashun army raided Kyoto and attacked the Imperial Palace. More than 4,000 Dashun troops landed in Obama and mobilized the field troops in the hands of Osaka Castle. There was no force around Kyoto that could resist.

The letter from Emperor Akihito to Tokugawa Yoshimune was also sent by Toki Yoritoshi overnight.

Such heavy news exploded in Edo Castle, and the important officials were panicked, but Tokugawa Yoshimune secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

The Dashun Army conquered Kyoto, which was a good thing in his opinion.

It was also a funeral and a wedding. Tokugawa Yoshimune finally believed that what Dashun wanted might really be what Liu Yu said in the letter: trade, tribute, founding a country, and compensation.

Otherwise, it would be meaningless to conquer Kyoto and capture the emperor.

Tokugawa Yoshimune was sure that Liu Yu could not have been unaware that the emperor was just a puppet. Even worse than a puppet, a puppet still needs someone to control it to make movements behind the scenes, and the emperor is at best a shrine that does not move.

The letter from Akihito convinced Tokugawa Yoshimune that the shogunate had been defeated in this foreign war; but the internal rule could still be maintained, and even had a turnaround.

The most panicked person when the Dashun Army attacked Kyoto should not be Tokugawa Yoshimune, but the southwestern feudal lords on Kyushu Island.

If Dashun wanted to cede land, it would not go to the Tokugawa direct jurisdiction near Edo to cede land, but would definitely cede the nearby Kyushu feudal lords.

The Dashun Army attacked Kyoto as if it were in an empty land, which would make the Kyushu feudal lords understand that their few soldiers could not win at all.

Let alone field battles, only logistics and sea transportation capabilities, the Kyushu feudal lords should know that there is no hope as long as they have brains.

The current situation is a win-win situation for the remnants of the Western Army, the Kyushu feudal lords, and the shogunate.

At this time, the military strength of the Kyushu feudal lords has not been lost, and peace talks at this time are most beneficial for the Kyushu feudal lords to preserve their strength.

Therefore, after receiving the news that the Dashun Army had entered Kyoto and made a long-distance raid, the feudal lords of Kyushu Island would definitely take the initiative to ask for peace talks.

Otherwise, if the war really continued, what would happen if the Dashun Army really landed on Kyushu Island and swept away all the troops of the southwestern feudal lords?

Moreover, if they took the initiative to ask for peace now, it would force the shogunate not to cede the land of Kyushu Island: peace talks are possible, the righteousness is still with the shogunate, and everyone supports peace talks; ceding land is not possible, ceding land means that the shogunate is selling out the country and losing all its authority.

This is equivalent to roasting the shogunate on the fire.

If Dashun wants to cede land, of course it will cede the land of Kyushu Island; the feudal lords took the initiative to support the peace talks, not for the shogunate to cut the meat of their southwestern feudal lords.

This is equivalent to their recognition of the authority of the shogunate and guaranteeing the dignity of the shogunate. The feudal lords will take the blame for the peace talks and will not use this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to weaken the authority of the shogunate by using righteousness; the shogunate will not cede the land of Kyushu Island in return.

This requires Tokugawa Yoshimune to seize the opportunity and take the initiative in this chaos.

The method is also very simple: claim to fight to the death, claim to establish a new emperor, and claim to fight to the last man.

The louder the slogan, the smaller the obstacles to the ceasefire, and the more the authority of the shogunate will be retained.

The current situation is really the best.

At this time, there are actually three influential forces in Japan.

The court officials, that is, the emperor, the nobles, etc., although they are just shrines, they still have influence, and it is easy for people to rob this shrine.

The shogunate.

And, the outer daimyo and the real feudal domain.

The three things that Dashun may want also correspond to these three forces.

Tribute.

Trade.

Cede land.

Now, Tokugawa Yoshimune believes that as long as he shouts the slogan of persisting in the war and persisting in fighting to the last man, he can minimize the losses.

Akihito was bombed, and there are still other royal families. How can they find a bloodline?

Tokugawa Yoshimune only needs to ask the daimyo and propose to follow the example of Ming Tumubao, establish a new king, and continue fighting.

With a good attitude.

The first to panic are the daimyo of Kyushu and the powerful daimyo such as the Date clan in Mutsu.

If the war continues, the shogunate will certainly be finished, but the first to suffer will inevitably be Kyushu Island and Mutsu Province.

Anyway, the Dashun can only land 4,000 to 5,000 people at most at one time, and it is unrealistic to want to land and fight directly to Edo.

Then we must first take Kyushu Island and Shikoku Island, or take the Date clan's Sendai from Ezo to the south. Advance step by step.

At that time, see who can't stand it first. Anyway, it won't be the Tokugawa shogunate hiding in Edo.

As long as the slogan is shouted and told to the world, the shogunate will win the support of those who advocate war, believing that the shogunate is "not unwilling to do it, but really can't do it, and it's not the fault of war."

As long as the slogan is shouted, the feudal domains of Kyushu Island, the Date clan, etc. will jump up and down to Edo to ask the shogunate for peace talks: do not establish a new monarch, do not fight anymore.

Of course, they will not say that they are afraid of their own strength being hit, but will come up with many righteous reasons.

For example, the emperor took the initiative to negotiate, not surrender, so he cannot be deposed.

And it is not impossible to establish a monarch by a minister.

However, Taijia was obscure, so Yi Yin drove him out of the Tong Palace; King Changyi took the throne for 27 days and committed more than 3,000 crimes, so Huo Guang abolished his throne.

Zhaoren did not do anything wrong, nor did he violate the "Laws of the Imperial Court and the Public Officials". Dethronement and establishment must also abide by the basic laws, and cannot be abolished and established.

For example, if Xiang Yu crossed the Yangtze River, he might not be unable to rise again; Gou Jian was defeated and tasted feces to seek revenge; Han Gao also suffered the humiliation of Baideng, and Tang Zong also had the Weishui Alliance.

We should stop the war and sleep on firewood and taste gall.

At that time, the shogunate, which wanted peace talks the most, became the benchmark of the war faction.

It was not that the shogunate wanted to lose power and humiliate the country, but that the public officials took the initiative to negotiate and the various feudal lords insisted on peace talks. The shogun had no choice but to accept the peace talks and various humiliations, just like Goujian who tasted feces and King Wen who ate his son's meat soup.

Needless to say, the tribute was the first request made by Dashun.

At that time, Tokugawa Yoshimune could pretend to cede land in exchange for the status of not being a tributary state - the feudal lords of Kyushu Island would definitely cite ancient stories, not seeking false reputation, and using tribute in exchange for not ceding land.

As for trade and compensation, there is no need to consider it.

Money must be compensated. At worst, the audience will be cancelled in the future, and the cost of the audience will be converted into compensation.

This kills two birds with one stone, not only compensating Dashun money, but also continuing to weaken the power of the outer daimyo.

It is even possible to convert the money paid by the various fiefdoms during their visits to the emperor and mortgage it to the Dashun.

As long as the feudal domains don't pay, Dashun will go armed to collect debts, and the shogunate will absolutely support it.

As for trade, Kyushu Island has Nagasaki, which is enough. If Dashun wants ports outside Kyushu Island, it will try its best to get them within its own direct jurisdiction, or transfer them in the future to ensure that trade is under its control.

In this way, those "fools" who are not very smart, fanatical, and serve the country for seven lifetimes will think that the shogunate is the main war faction and that the feudal domains are harming the country.

And these "fools" who are not very smart and serve the country for seven lifetimes are easy to make big things. At that time, they will not ask for the overthrow of the shogunate, but for the reduction of feudal domains and the integration of the public and the military.

Those other than the "fools" will pursue their own interests and naturally know when to advance and retreat.

The shogunate still has the advantage without the participation of idealistic saints, pretending to be kind by force, and comparing whose fist is bigger, and it will not shake the foundation of the shogunate's rule.

Taking advantage of the situation, the righteousness of reducing the feudal lords was promoted; using the public sentiment of reducing the feudal lords, the feudal lords were forced to rely on the shogunate and remain loyal.

As long as it is handled properly, "Laws of the Imperial Court and the Court Officials" may also be blown up into the advice in "Departure to the Imperial Court"...