New Shun 1730

Tokugawa Yoshimune wanted to test his second son, so he called his second son Tokugawa Munetake, who had accompanied the army to Nijo Castle.

Screening off the others, he talked about Dashun's request, but he did not ask a very broad question such as the future of the shogunate, but asked a seemingly strange question.

"The matter of paying tribute and claiming vassal status has become a foregone conclusion. We are the swordsmen, and I am the flesh and blood. We are invincible with military equipment, and we can only serve as ministers."

"It's just that some people say that even if you pay tribute, you can still find other ways to save face."

"The word "Tianhuang" is both in Chinese and was first used by Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty. However, if the pronunciation of "Xun" is converted into Chinese and then translated, one may still call himself "Emperor", but write "Wang Ming Le Mei Yu De". In this way, the ignorance of the Tang people is deceived, and still Keep the title of emperor."

"Everyone in Edo praises my son for his intelligence. In your opinion, is this feasible?"

When Tokugawa Munetake heard the words "My son is smart," his heart almost stopped. His eldest brother has been appointed as the heir. Although he looks down on his eldest brother who dares not speak and wets his pants, he can understand his father's considerations.

His eldest brother gave birth to a son the year before last, and Tokugawa Munetake knew that he was completely out of luck. His father hoped that he and his younger brother would become the new "Royal Three Families" to ensure the power of the family, instead of fighting for it and eventually losing the position of general to others.

"Fortunately" Dashun's war against Japan seems to have turned everything around.

Especially when the war was extremely unfavorable and Japan was beaten without the ability to fight back, Tokugawa Munetake, who had given up before, rekindled hope.

Historically, after Tokugawa Yoshimune passed on the throne in seclusion, Tokugawa Munetake seized the opportunity to fight back, because after his brother became a general, he overturned some of Tokugawa Yoshimune's established policies.

As a result, the reclusive Tokugawa Yoshimune directly reprimanded him and imprisoned him for three years. Only then did he give up.

But now, Tokugawa Munetake, who was already aroused by the turning point brought about by the Sino-Japanese War, felt his heart beat wildly when he heard his father praising him for his intelligence at this juncture.

Now Tokugawa Yoshimune asked him about this matter. Tokugawa Munetake thought for a moment and then said: "My son thinks that this matter is unacceptable."

"In the Tang Dynasty, Zhang Jiuling wrote a reply, thinking that Emperor Shomu's name and surname were 'Wang Minlemei Yude', but he didn't know that this was a method of changing the pronunciation of the pronunciation. The people of the country were secretly happy, thinking that this was a great achievement in sending the envoy to the Tang Dynasty."

"However, Dashun is not what it used to be. I looked at Liu Yu's Brief Examination of Western Countries and told an interesting story."

"Old Book of the Tang Dynasty" says: In the seventeenth year of Zhenguan, King Hatori sent an envoy to offer red glass. The person who made the fortune was the Roman Kingdom in the Middle East in "Xiyang Jiwen" written by Arai Kimimei; Hatori, according to Liu Yu, It is the transliteration of Basileus, not a person's name. He also said in the book that "the distinction between transliteration and free translation should be the first priority in translating the literature and history of various countries."

"Nowadays, the emperor and the king are in love with each other and are virtuous, just like the difference between Potori and Basileus. Since Liu Yu is in charge of the negotiations, how can he hide it from him?"

"Besides, at this time, when you are defeated and outnumbered, how can you do such a little clever thing and be beaten while silently thinking in your heart: How strange is it for a son to beat his father?"

"The ancients said: A gentleman would not do anything if he cherishes a false reputation but gets into real trouble. If this matter is exposed, wouldn't it make the people of the Tang Dynasty have a reputation as a teacher again? By then, wouldn't it be you, father, who will be endangered?"

Tokugawa Yoshimune nodded slightly. In fact, he felt that this idea was pure nonsense. The person who proposed this idea was only smart but not very smart.

Tokugawa Munetake was quite intelligent, and everyone in Edo City knew it. Of course, it may also be that the eldest son is a good foil. Many people hope that Tokugawa Munetake will succeed.

At this time, based on this incident, Tokugawa Munetake has passed the first level. At least he is not the kind of person who seeks fame only for real trouble.

If it were in the past, it would indeed be possible to fool around.

But now, it is probably extremely difficult to fool someone.

Tokugawa Yoshimune added: "The people of the Tang Dynasty requested to change the era name again. Is there any precedent for this?"

"Returning to my father, there is a precedent. In the past, Ashikaga Yoshimasa, the general who conquered the barbarians, also claimed that 'Chen Minamoto Yoshimasa was sincere and frightened, and he paused and spoke sincerely'. The words he used were also based on the eleventh year of the Ming Dynasty. Seven years of civilization without using the country’s era name.”

It was not that he had prepared this in advance, but that he was already well-read and well-versed in ancient studies and Chinese medicine, and had read many books.

As the saying goes, you will miss a book when it is used. If you read more on weekdays, you will eventually need it, and the benefits are great.

Just like this situation, once the answer is answered, it will definitely gain a lot of points from my father.

In the current situation, Tokugawa Munetake is also worried in his heart. At this time, he should not consider the image of "brothers, friends and brothers".

Now that we have reached this point, what the shogunate will need in the future is not a weak, conservative person who respects brothers and sisters; but a smart leader who is enterprising, smart, and able to display his talents.

The shogunate will face a lot of messes in the future, changes that have not happened in thousands of years.

At least, this is what Tokugawa Munetake thinks, otherwise he would have no chance after all.

He already knew the content of the treaty, and he also knew that in the treaty, when the date of signing was signed, China and Japan each used their own era names, and said: "The former great general Ashikaga Yoshimitsu wrote to the Ming Dynasty for the first time, saying 'Tong Okay. Therefore, in the future, the Yingyong reign name of the country will be used. The reign name of the Ming Dynasty will be used later.

"What the Tang people did was because they felt that the treaty was a bit harsh and should not be used against the tributary countries. Therefore, before paying tribute, the Tang people actually recognized Japan's independence and forced the signing of the treaty. This was not to be harsh on the tributary countries, but Be harsh to the enemy; but after paying tribute, you have to say something else."

"Nowadays, the Tang Dynasty has strong military equipment and is unmatched by Japan. In addition, it will open ports in the future. In the past, Fujiwara did not compare it to the "Dabao Order", saying: the emperor is called by the imperial edict; the emperor is called by Huayi. Now there are two emperors in the east and west. , It is impossible for each of them to call themselves China, and the people of the Tang Dynasty were most concerned about this matter, so don’t get entangled in the matter of the emperor and the reign of the emperor. "

"Such a false reputation is based on military preparedness."

Tokugawa Yoshimune nodded again.

Two slight nods, in Tokugawa Munetake's opinion, were really like the rain after a long drought, and the fire in his heart became even stronger.

Even if I kneel down, I don’t even have to kowtow. If you are already on your knees and still wondering whether to kowtow three times or four times, you are smart in a small way but stupid in a big way.

Tokugawa Munetake's answer was in line with Tokugawa Yoshimune's taste. There is really no need to be clever like this in vain, otherwise you will probably get beaten again in the future because of this matter.

Matsudaira Terusada's secret letter made it very clear. Liu Yu told him that a large number of generals in the court were looking forward to continuing the fight.

There is no victory in the battle, who doesn't want to show off his merits?

It's just that the imperial court is suppressing it and has no intention of occupying all of Japan. But if he really wanted to be shameless, Dashun might not be able to continue fighting, and he could just change his strategy a little.

There are only a handful of Daimyos in the entire Kyushu Island, and the rest are all a group of people with their own ideas. Dashun may not necessarily send many troops, but he still has the ability to pull one faction to fight another.

Fight to Guandong and take turns being the general. The person who contributes the most will be crowned the King of Japan. The old land was replaced with new fields, and the height of the stone doubled. Dashun wants Kyushu, and the fiefdoms of the Kyushu vassals are transferred to the main state. What is the difficulty in this?

Originally, in this battle, it was only with Liu Yu's cooperation that the shogunate regained the initiative from a dangerous situation. Now if they don't show some attitude and provoke Liu Yu instead, and use some clever tricks, they may lose their minds.

After these two tests of false reputation passed, Tokugawa Yoshimune once again talked about the issue of Japan's opening of ports.

There are really not many things made in Japan.

Even during the Nagasaki trade, those Dashun maritime merchants did not like figurines, but only liked copper materials.

Dried abalone, dried sea cucumber, dried kelp, how much can you eat if you try to eat this crap? Besides, it’s not that Dashun doesn’t produce anything, it’s really hard to sell.

In addition to these things, the only things Japan can sell are gold, silver, copper, and sulfur.

On the other hand, Dashun's raw silk, soybeans, oil, ironware, medicinal materials, silk cloth, cotton cloth, cane sugar, porcelain...these are all hot commodities.

Of course Tokugawa Yoshimune knew that restricting transactions was useless. Before Shiraishi Arai launched the New Deal, trade was also restricted, but local Japanese businessmen in Nagasaki were able to collude with the Dutch and Chinese to engage in smuggling, and even sailed ships to conduct secret trade at sea.

Now five commercial ports have been opened at once, which is conceivable.

Japan is indeed based on a small farmer economy, but there is one biggest difference between Japan and Dashun.

There is a group of samurai class in Japan who do not produce, do not save money, let alone hide money in cellars. The spending power of this group of people is much greater than that of the landowners in Dashun who hoard their money.

Moreover, these samurai all lived together, either in the castle towns of each domain or squatting in Edo.

Edo is completely a consumption-oriented city. It is conceivable that once restrictions are lifted on such consumption capacity.

Tokugawa Yoshimune already had certain countermeasures in mind, so he tested his second son and asked: "Arai Kimi has long spoken of the importance of seclusion. Gold and silver are like bones, and rice cloth is like hair. Hair can grow again, but bones can no longer grow." "

"The Tang people forced Japan to open ports, and the outflow of gold and silver will become increasingly serious. The output of Jinshan and Silver Mountains is decreasing day by day. Even if there is a frugal order, the samurai will follow the thrift order and pursue sweet food and beautiful clothes. Ezo Brocade is worth a hundred gold in Kyoto; Jiangxi Porcelain is like a treasure in every vassal."

"What can I do?"

Tokugawa Munetake subconsciously looked around, making sure there was no outsider, and said: "Moral saying: Misfortune lies where blessings depend, and blessing lies where misfortune lies. Who knows its extreme? There is no righteousness. What is righteousness is strange. Good people become monsters again.”

"The opening of the port cannot be changed. A wise person should not consider how good it would be if the port were not opened at this time. Instead, he should consider how to turn bad things into good things now that the port has been opened. Between blessings and misfortunes, there is good. "It's amazing again."

"Didn't Liu Yu set a tariff worth six cents per hundred? My father can pocket this kind of income to finance the shogunate's finances."

“The more goods we purchase, the higher our tariff revenue will be.”

"The finances of each domain are not handed over to the shogunate. In previous years, there was a system of participation and submission. What I am asking for is to weaken the finances of each domain so that they are unable to compete for supremacy."

"Now why not take advantage of the trend, import goods widely, sell them to various vassals, and collect customs duties as one; set up a special Zhuzhongjian, and reap the benefits of selling goods as two."

"After so many years, each vassal becomes poorer and richer, and the shogunate is richer in gold. Each vassal is unable to resist, and dare not be disobedient. The gold and silver in the palace are accumulated, and guns can be purchased. The vassals can be suppressed internally and defended externally. Invade.”

"Don't let Yuan Wen feel ashamed and do it again. Money is the only thing."