If the strategy of waiting was proposed once or twice, and the results were good, then it was called luck. However, if they waited every time, and the results were good, then it could only mean that Vézé's judgment was very accurate. Lei Hu raised a question. "Commander-in-chief, you said before that there are wishful thinking, but there are also wishful realities. Can you tell us how far wishful thinking should go? "
At this point, Vézé did not want to hide it from everyone anymore. He said frankly, "Wishful thinking? I only want to advance to the west of the Aral Sea. I want to get the traditional China region that borders Iran. And since we have saved the Osman Empire, then I hope that one of our comrades can become the governor of Khartoum. "
The comrades of the Military Commission exchanged glances with each other. Many things could be explained now. Ruan Xihao seemed to have woken up from a dream. He asked, "Is this comrade you are talking about Li Weiren … comrade Pasha?"
"Hmm … If he can survive in Pleven, I think he is indeed a very good candidate." Vézé expressed his agreement with Ruan Xihao's idea.
"Do you have any next plans?" Lei Hu did not want to be kept in the dark anymore. It did not feel good to listen to Vézé's future plans paragraph by paragraph.
Vézé continued, "If the first plan works, I will build two railways. One is the railway from Basra to Istanbul that we have already suggested to the Osman Empire, and the other is the railway from Central Asia through Iran to enter the Osman Empire."
With the future plans at this point, the Military Commission also felt that the next few years would not be idle. Ruan Xihao nodded repeatedly. "So, Commander-in-chief, do you mean to let the Osman Empire come and beg us?"
Hearing this, not only was Vézé very satisfied, but the members of the Military Commission also nodded one after another. Ruan Xihao immediately explained the implementation of Vézé's strategy. Ruan Xihao didn't think it was enough. He continued to ask, "What if the Osman Empire refuses to beg us?"
"The Osman Empire isn't willing to beg us, but we can achieve these goals on our own. It was better to rely on oneself than to rely on others. At most, it would be more troublesome. But from another perspective, we're already so strong. If the Osman Empire doesn't come to us for help, who will it go to? Patience is a virtue. Learning to wait is a skill. Our ancestor, Sun Wu, has repeatedly said that those who are good at fighting are invincible, and do not lose to the enemy's defeat. "Vézé explained his way of doing things. When he was younger, he would have been in high spirits when he talked about these things. But now, Vézé only felt very tired. These experiences sounded simple, but when it came to actual implementation, one needed to know oneself and the enemy. How could it be so easy to know oneself and the enemy?
The United States became the largest industrial country in the world after 1870, and the United States became the dominant power in the North Atlantic after World War II. The process took 70 years. China had a large population, and it was difficult to achieve a breakthrough. After the breakthrough, the general trend would be set, and the overall speed would be relatively faster. Even so, Vézé suspected that he wouldn't live to see the day when China dominated the world. All he could do was to pile up layers of soil on the table and tamp it down carefully. Thinking of such a long and arduous process, Vézé himself felt a little depressed. Although he was not yet 45 years old, which was considered a youth for a leader, Vézé often wondered if he was already old.
Facing Central Asia, which would determine the future of China's strategy, Vézé could still lead the military commission to make decisions. In Japan, which had no influence on China's national destiny, Vézé only needed to be the gatekeeper, and the specific work would be handed over to the comrades in charge. In terms of the system, this was a step that had to be completed. But Vézé was still worried that he was starting to get tired.
Li Xin, a young man in his thirties, couldn't understand Vézé's feelings. In the eyes of the higher-ups, Japan didn't have any decisive significance, but for the young evaluation team, it was a big deal. This was the first time they had been authorized to decide the fate of a country according to their wishes. It was a great feeling.
There was no need to invalidate the authority, and the opinion of the interventionist faction in the evaluation team became the mainstream. Everyone wanted to do something in the chaotic situation in Japan. Of course, Li Xin knew Vézé's attitude, but he was only in his thirties. As the discussion went on, Li Xin also felt that it was not inappropriate to do more in Japan.
Until Zhou Dagang from the Asia Division asked a question, "Do you think this civil war can really solve Japan's problems? Do you really think that after this civil war, Japan will settle down? "
Someone immediately answered, "After the civil war, the winner will have to take a breather, right? Naturally, they will have to settle down for a while. "
Zhou Dagang insisted on his point of view, "It's just that they can't continue to make trouble. What does it have to do with stability? "My home is in the mountains. When there is a flood, it will be better if the water is washed away. "If there is a landslide halfway and a lake is formed, it will be more dangerous. "If the river is not restored, the lake will be noisy every year. "It's like a wound festering. If there is pus in the body, it will be endless."
This was a very correct truth, and everyone could understand it. But for the time being, they didn't know what Zhou Dagang wanted to say.
Zhou Dagang said, "I don't think this civil war can solve the problem, and the problem will only get bigger and bigger. "If we go too far, it will only make Japan more vigilant against us. "There have been many civil wars in Japan in the past two thousand years, but Japan continues to exist. "This civil war can't destroy Japan, and Japan will continue to exist. "In this case, we don't need to let the Meiji government think that our purpose is to destroy the Meiji government. "Why didn't we become enemies with the Meiji government when we strongly supported the Republic of Prawn before? That's because the Meiji government knows that our opponent is the United Kingdom, not the Meiji government …"
Such historical words didn't get applause. Obviously, most of the young people were hot-blooded and wanted to show their strength in the civil war in Japan. The remarks unique to young people gushed out.
"So what if it's the Meiji government? We can deal with them if we want to …"
"It's not difficult for us to destroy the Meiji government!"
…
Before this arrogant speech could be finished, and before these words could ferment, Li Xin interrupted, "Whether we have the ability to overthrow the Meiji government is one thing, and whether our purpose is to overthrow the Meiji government is another thing. "Since the central government has not decided to overthrow the Meiji government, it is putting the cart before the horse if we make the Meiji government feel threatened by their existence."
Even if the foreign minister spoke in person, these comrades were only disappointed but not convinced. However, even if the foreign minister Li Xin came out to set the tone, the comrades were not completely convinced. In this day and age, it was not the mainstream idea to win people over by virtue. The rise of China did not rely on its own benevolence, but on its strong military power. A comrade asked, "Minister Li, will Japan think that we are afraid of it by doing this?"
Li Xin sneered, "Oh, I don't know if Japan thinks that we are afraid of it. But I really want to know what will happen to the foreign ministry if the central government thinks that we are trying to lead the central government's policy. "
Young people were high-spirited and hot-blooded. According to the evaluation that Li Xin heard from Vézé, "all young people have this process." However, this process didn't mean that they could be stubborn to the end. Standing still because of a certain delusion was not perseverance, but stubbornness. The result of stubbornness could only be falling behind.
Li Xin's words temporarily shut the group of young people up. They still had the utmost respect for the central government led by the Military Governor Vaize. After Zhou Dagang's suggestion was supported by Li Xin, it became the basis for the foreign ministry's action against Japan. "We will sell them as many weapons as the Japanese businessmen can pay. As for the future of the Satsuma Domain, let them deal with it themselves. If the Meiji government is willing to pay, we will sell them weapons. This matter is limited to a commercial action, don't become a political action. "
Vézé was very satisfied with the foreign ministry's report, which was in line with Vézé's recent view of the world. From the end of the 19th century to the 21st century, many regimes were destroyed, but there had never been an area that was completely wiped out. Even with the cruelty of the United States, the Indians had not been completely wiped out. In any case, humanity had entered a new era. Brutality was inevitable, but absolute brutality was no longer the mainstream. In this era, whoever could occupy a higher moral high ground, who could come up with a more moral system, would have a greater advantage.
"Let's do it." Vézé made the decision.
In Okuma Peninsula, the Satsuma Domain's vassal knelt opposite Saigo Takamori. "Sir, the businessmen have confirmed that China sold us weapons."
Saigo Takamori's eyes narrowed slightly. "What did China ask for?"
The vassal replied, "China only asks for cash transactions. They don't accept any debts or mortgages."
Saigo Takamori frowned. "Is that all?"
The vassal replied, "So far, China has only made this request!"
Not only was Saigo Takamori suspicious, but the other participants also didn't believe it. China had cooperated with the shogunate and intervened in the affairs of Hokkaido. From Japan's point of view, China was bound to be more deeply involved in Japan's situation. Now that China was acting so calmly, what were they trying to do? Were they waiting for the Meiji government and the Satsuma Domain to perish together, and then stab Japan in the back?
This worry didn't last long. If the situation continued to develop like this, the Satsuma Domain would be destroyed by the Meiji government before China could stab Japan in the back. The Meiji government had begun to arrest Satsuma Domain's military school students. These military school students were the backbone of Saigo Takamori's plan to destroy the Meiji government in the future revolution.
Saigo Takamori believed that now was not the best time to start a war. After participating in the Bochen War to overthrow the shogunate, Saigo Takamori learned the meaning of patience. The Satsuma Domain had been patient in the face of a strong enemy. When the situation was ripe, they would overthrow the arrogant shogunate in one fell swoop. At least in Saigo Takamori's eyes, the Meiji government's "perverse" was undoubtedly following the shogunate's old path. He was now just waiting for the whole of Japan to rise up against the Meiji government. When the whole of Japan rose up against the shogunate, the opportunity to overthrow the Meiji government would be ripe.
It was just that the Meiji government was far smarter than the shogunate. Okubo Toshimichi was not someone who could be fooled with superficial obedience. Taking away the weapons and ammunition from the Satsuma Domain's arsenal and arresting the military school students were all digging up the foundation of the Satsuma Domain. There was no room for bargaining in this kind of thing. Saigo Takamori was now left with two choices. He could either watch his foundation be destroyed or rise up against the shogunate while the foundation was still there.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
