The First Evolution

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Hearing the names of these two people, the current Japanese Prime Minister Hirobumi Ito couldn't help but lowered his head silently, and the corners of his eyes were moist, recalling the hardships of the past step by step!

However, at this moment, a staff officer came over in a hurry. Looking at his livid face, he really looked a bit angry.

This staff officer walked up to Ito Hirobumi, stood at attention, touched his heels, then bent down and bowed:

"Sir, this is a telegram about Nagasaki."

After Ito Hirobumi took the telegram, he glanced at it casually, then frowned, and then continued to read it with an understatement.

As Prime Minister, the risky national policy he formulated at this time also achieved overall success, so his every move was watched by countless people.

At this time, they saw Mr. Ito calmly, so everyone relaxed and continued the carnival, but they did not realize that Ito Hirobumi's fingers were already tapping the handle next to him, and this was only done when he encountered a problem. generated habits.

Because the words "Nagasaki Fire" were clearly written on the message.

After almost ten minutes, Ito Hirobumi stood up, then smiled and nodded to the people around him, and slowly walked to the side. He was a dignified prime minister, and he had a lot of things to do. If he left at this time, no one would compare him with the previous one. Telegraph contact was made.

The door of the conference room was closed, blocking out the noise and carnival inside. Immediately afterwards, Ito Hirobumi's pace quickly quickened, and his brows also furrowed! An attendant next to him brought a coat over and tried to put it on him, but Ito Hirobumi waved him away.

He got on the carriage and rushed to a high-rise building in only about ten minutes, and then entered the hidden office on the sixth floor.

Immediately afterwards, Ito Hirobumi said urgently to a staff officer next to him:

"Have any specific losses been found in Nagasaki?"

The staff officer immediately lowered his head and said:

"Your Excellency! There was a latest call five minutes ago, which mentioned some details of the Nagasaki fire."

Ito Hirobumi immediately stretched out his hand and looked at it at a glance, and then his expression was a little contradictory, as if he was a little relieved, but also a little angry and helpless.

After just five seconds, Ito Hirobumi immediately ordered:

"Immediately contact the Kurosawa Division approaching Nagasaki and ask them to stop their advance and not come within forty miles of Nagasaki! At the same time, inform the combined fleet that if they still want to retain a complete Nagasaki military port, then Keep your distance from Nagasaki!”

After hearing what Ito Hirobumi said, the staff officer immediately responded.

But after a while, I heard noisy sounds coming from outside. Then, a drunken Japanese soldier walked in wearing a military uniform. He looked at Ito Hirobumi and said loudly:

"Your Excellency! Was it you who just ordered the Kurosawa Division to stop advancing?"

Before Ito Hirobumi spoke, the staff officer next to him had opened his eyes and said angrily:

"Bold! General Shanxian, you are talking to the Prime Minister!"

Shanxian, who rushed in, roared:

"Go away, you incompetent guy. When I was carrying a rifle and shooting the enemy, you were still sewing the Sunny Day doll with needle and thread!"

Then he continued to breathe alcohol and said:

"Your Excellency, those Chinese people are weak guys. They are just blackmailing. They know very well the consequences of lighting Nagasaki on fire. After they are all arrested, they will be hanged alive by our Empire of Japan!"

"Even if we have achieved a strategic victory and let the Qing Dynasty take the initiative to sue for peace, we are still troubled by internal and external troubles. Therefore, we must remain tough, as tough as the rocks at Cape Zongya! This is the spirit of the empire. If we lose this spirit, the empire will be destroyed. There is no spine at all!”

At this point, Shanxian was already shouting at the top of his lungs! But there's no way he looks drunk at all?

Facing such a general who looked like a crazy beast, Ito Hirobumi sat there quietly,

Like a statue of sadness and endurance.

However, even if Ito Hirobumi, who was sitting quietly without saying a word, slowly calmed down the unruly and arrogant Japanese general in front of him, it was then that Ito Hirobumi said a little tiredly:

"Yamagata-san, you are a soldier and you only need to fight bravely. However, since I have reached this position, what I see and grasp is the overall situation, and I must consider the whole of Japan."

"The old Zhongtang from the Qing Dynasty once sighed and said that he was actually just a paper framer. The huge house was leaking from all directions, and all he did every day was just tearing it apart and patching it up to make ends meet. I feel the same way."

"The citizens of the empire have worked hard to serve the army and have gritted their teeth to support the army. They are on the verge of collapse. The wartime national bonds sold to prepare for military expenditures have already reached their third installment. Our industry is still so weak. At this time, it is still Handicrafts are the main industry. Arms, ships, and even small bullets all rely on imports. Our citizens have even begun to suffer from severe malnutrition! Even the humble prostitutes took out the last copper from their pockets... ....”

Ito Hirobumi's words seemed to have magic power. He spoke softly and eloquently, with a touch of fatigue, but made Yamagata stand up suddenly, bowed deeply and said:

"Your Majesty, Prime Minister, I am taking the liberty of doing this."

Ito sighed softly and said:

"We are all working hard to bring Japan to the pinnacle of Asia. What is there to be presumptuous about?"

"But General Yamagata, Nagasaki has been Japan's external gateway since the days of Emperor Yosei. Now, about one-seventh of our economy depends on Nagasaki for supply!"

"Those who are entrenched at this time are those Japanese Chinese businessmen who were expelled by us a few days ago. You can imagine the resentment in their hearts. They are really capable and determined to destroy the entire Nagasaki! The Nagasaki military port was attacked, and now The fire they started has destroyed half of Nagasaki’s vitality.”

"According to the budget of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, if the domestic situation is not supplemented at this time, a huge famine will occur in the country as early as the second half of this year! General Yamagata, war is just a continuation of politics, you If you don't understand this, you will never become a first-rate general. If the foundation of the country is unstable, the victims are wailing, and the relatives of the soldiers under your command are about to starve to death, what do you think of the morale and combat effectiveness of this army? "

After Ito said a few gentle words, Yamagata's expression suddenly changed. The drunkenness had long since gone away, and he immediately saluted and nodded:

"Ha Yi! I will restrain those idiots immediately and make sure they don't cause trouble to you!"

After Yamagata left, Ito picked up the telegram again and read it, with anger, helplessness, and sadness in his eyes.

Because what was written in this telegram was not only the details of the Nagasaki fire, but also some relevant requirements of the Zheng family...

“First, transfer/lease multiple pieces of land outside Nagasaki Minami-Yamate Town to Edward Gouda of the UK/Benjamin Pavard of France/Dino Zoff of Italy, etc. at a price of 1 yen. Sir, this transaction must be in an internationally recognized standard contract format and witnessed by a manager from Citibank USA/HSBC UK.”

"Second, the authority of Nagasaki Customs must be delegated to the United States within the next thirty years..."

These two items alone make Prime Minister Ito Hirobumi’s eyes twitch!

Obviously, these transferred/leased land must be the essence of Nagasaki Port. It seems that they are all sold to foreigners, but without thinking too much, the actual controller must be the Zheng family.

However, the Japanese government is still in a small country with few people at this time. Once the corresponding contract is signed according to the above process, it will be even more difficult to abolish it. That would be equivalent to slapping the Western powers of Britain and France in the face at the same time!

Of course, if Ito Hirobumi grits his teeth and really wants to abolish it, it can be done. Transactions between countries are nothing more than exchanges of interests, but it means that Japan has to pay more and more shocking prices.

The rest of the Zheng family's requests are similar to the first one. To put it simply, they are as disgusting as you can get. They even asked for a mold for printing Japanese currency... This damn thing is trying to open a banknote printing factory!

Even with the magnanimity of a man like Ito Hirobumi, his face turned pale with anger when he saw these demands made by the Zheng family, his hands holding the telegraph paper were trembling slightly, and the unique Japanese "Haga" curse was in his throat. Although I held it in for a long time, I still didn't cry out.

After putting down the message, Ito Hirobumi rubbed his face vigorously with both hands, exhaled a long breath and pressed the bell on the desk. The secretary waiting outside immediately walked in and bowed:

"Sir, what are your orders?"

Ito Hirobumi picked up the telegram, then hastily scratched it with a pen, handed it to his secretary and said:

"Submit this message to Mr. Kimura of the Ministry of Defense. The terms I drew are negotiable. If I did not draw them, I will firmly reject them and let Mr. Kimura follow up on the matter."

The secretary bowed deeply and left.

After Ito waited for him to leave, he stood up from the chair and walked around the room a few times, and then looked out the window tiredly.

At this time, looking down from the room where Ito was, you could see that the wind was strong in Tokyo Bay, with layers of waves rushing up one after another, smashing into pieces on the iron-green rocks, and then slowly retreating. Down.

The same is true for Japan's national power at this time. There is no way to retreat. It grits its teeth and moves forward in the turbulence of history. It will not be known until the moment before it is shattered whether it is a beach or a reef that is blocking it.

***

Two hours later, Fang Linyan was already running on the road to Shinano. Accompanying him was the ninja Hattori Kazuki.

Fang Linyan was a little distracted, because the previous reminder from the Mobius mark kept replaying in his mind:

"Are you sure you want to keep trying? So, are you ready to pay any price?"

To be honest, Fang Linyan asked himself, and he really couldn't give a definite answer. He just knew one thing very well now, that is, if he just accepted his fate like this! I am afraid that I will regret it for the rest of my life! !

Deep in my heart, I can’t calm down after all! !

Hattori Kazumas next to Fang Linyan originally didn't want to make this trip, but he didn't expect that his family leader: Ni Yurang, although only twelve years old, had a very stubborn personality. He felt that he owed Fang Linyan's kindness, so he asked Hattori Kazumas Go and help.

To be honest, Fang Linyan found it a little funny to see a twelve-year-old kid wearing a kimono and speaking like an adult with a straight face. However, Hattori Kazumasu obeyed his orders sternly. Perhaps this was the family tradition advocated by the old aristocrats before the Meiji Restoration.

Looking back at this time, I can still see a large piece of faint red in the dark sky. It is the trace of the Nagasaki fire that is still raging. Hattori Kazumasushi is a man of few words, but he still often looks back unconsciously. From the rear, apparently because he had lived in Nagasaki for a long time, he couldn't bear to see it destroyed in a raging fire.

Seeing this scene, Fang Linyan said simply:

"Hattori-kun, please rest assured. If Japan has no hope of defeating the Sino-Japanese War, the cabinet will never give in to the Zheng family. Nagasaki was very dangerous at that time."

"However, now that the central government of the Qing Dynasty clearly has the intention of suing for peace, the possibility of Japan's victory has greatly increased, so it will definitely give in."

Fang Linyan actually said it clearly enough, but the confused expression on Hattori Kazumasuki's face clearly meant four words: I didn't understand.

Seeing this, Fang Linyan sighed in his heart, secretly thinking that this guy might have over-exercised and trained his muscles into his brain, so he could only add:

"Hattori-kun, if you threaten a beggar and say that you will burn down his house, will the beggar be afraid?"

Hattori said in astonishment:

"Why should the beggar be afraid? Because he doesn't have a house at all."

Fang Linyan nodded:

"What if you threaten a citizen and say you're going to burn down his house?"

Hattori said:

"Then the citizens must be afraid ------- What do you mean by telling me so much?"

Fang Linyan:

"....Okay, you think I have nothing to say. By the way, how long until we get to Shinano?"

Hattori was quite familiar with this topic when it came to it, and he said simply:

"We are now using the Speedy Ninja Talisman, and our running speed is very fast, so we will definitely arrive before dawn."

The Speedy Ninjutsu Talisman is a ninjutsu secret talisman that Hattori affixed to Fang Linyan. It is said to be a unique secret of Iga ninjas. It can greatly increase the speed when running. For ninjas who pay attention to agility and speed. , which is actually a must-have.

Hattori's judgment was quite accurate. After running for almost four hours, the two came to this land surrounded by mountains. Due to its special geographical location, this place was also home to the Takeda family and the Uesugi family, the feudal lords of the Warring States Period in Japan. The focus of contention.

Even at dawn, the town called Takai, where Hattori and Fang Linyan came, was bustling with activity. For this poor and lively town, the morning light was like a fire, making the town quickly wake up and boil.

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