"Chief Hijikata, do we really have plans to rebuild the shogunate?" Division Commander Umegawa asked a question with a cautious expression.

Hijikata only felt tired of this question, which has been asked by too many people in the past half month. The upper echelons of Hokkaido had long decided to leave behind all the burdens of the past and move forward lightly, and the Tokugawa shogunate was just a thing of yesterday, not a problem of today. However, after the Meiji government killed Matsudaira Yoho, the lord of the Aizu domain, whom they hated most, they left the Tokugawa family and a group of old shogunate ministers in Tokyo when they withdrew from Tokyo. These people happily welcomed the arrival of the Hokkaido Army. Rumors about the re-establishment of the shogunate began to spread unconsciously in the areas controlled by the Hokkaido Army.

"We've said it so many times that the Tokugawa shogunate is still falling, and there's no point in rebuilding it." The commander-in-chief of the army, Toshizo Hijikata, told Division Commander Umegawa with a serious expression. Seeing off the division commander Umegawa, Toshizo Hijikata felt that something was very wrong, and he ordered the political commissars in the army to come to a meeting.

"Ladies and gentlemen, how much have you encountered about the restoration of the Tokugawa shogunate?" The question was raised by the earth.

The political commissars looked at each other, they were in charge of ideological and political work in the army, and theoretically such problems were under the management of the political commissars. However, the structure of the Hokkaido Army was transplanted from the Liberation Army, which was the leader of the party, and the Hokkaido Army regarded political work as a category. The political commissar of the Hokkaido Army is a subordinate unit under the military department, not the situation in which the political commissar is the number one in the army. Comparatively speaking, the Liberation Party is the core and leader of the Liberation Army. Hokkaido's political commissars were hired to do political work to make a living. Since he is here to mix rice, he has to figure out what he wants, and the political commissars don't know what the attitude of the army chief Hijikata Suizo is.

But the earth side didn't speak, and the political commissars below had to come out to speak after waiting for a while. "Chief of the Turkish Formation, the soldiers have not been in a stable mood lately. Many people think that we worked hard and only let the Tokugawa family be revived again, which is not what everyone originally thought. ”

"There were people in the military who seemed to be in private contact with the Tokugawa family and the shogunates of the Tokugawa shogunate. Recently, many people from the Tokugawa side want to join our army. ”

"We also heard that you haven't been visiting the Tokugawa family because of the chief, and it seems that the Tokugawa family is not very happy."

……

The Japanese also have this benefit, and they are more serious. For example, a popular Japanese saying goes, "To be a rat is to be the best one." Although there are problems in the system, this kind of more serious momentum can make up for the shortcomings brought about by the system to a certain extent.

Hijikata's face became more and more cold, because of the problem of war, Hijikata Suizo did not have the energy to focus on the recent ideological work. In fact, for ideological work, Hijikata finds it very troublesome. He also participated in the ideological work conference of the Chinese army, and was shocked by the cumbersome content of the meeting. In Hijikata's view, since the Chinese army is so strong, the discipline is much stronger than that of the Japanese army. I did not expect that the Chinese political commissars would have to face too many opinions in the ideological work, which is the most important thing. In the eyes of the Turkish side, many opinions are not at all what a soldier should make.

For example, why did we come to Japan to fight? The Turkish side thinks that after the commander's order is given, then it must come!

For example, the folk customs of Japan are weird. Well, Hijikata thinks that it is his own personal problem to blame or not, and it is an extremely strange choice to talk about it to the supreme governor.

There are also questions about life, and even questions about complaints. The number one military leader, who is theoretically the leader of the whole army, is an incomparably stern father figure. China's political commissars, on the other hand, have taken on the role of mothers.

With this experience, the Turkish side has no intention of introducing China's political commissar system in its entirety. Of course, the Japanese have a very correct attitude when plagiarizing, and the political commissar is not the commander of the army, but the Japanese political commissar has to learn all the ways of doing things of the Chinese political commissars.

Looking at it now, Hijikata thinks this decision was too wise. If the Japanese political commissar still uses the traditional Japanese authoritarian style of doing things, the soldiers will not tell the truth to the political commissar. In order to ensure the authority of the political commissar, the Turkish side itself is under great pressure.

"Immediately after you return, hold a meeting and tell the soldiers that we have no intention of rebuilding the Tokugawa shogunate. I will also inform the whole army that no one should have such a wrong idea. "The Turkish side decisively gave such an order.

Soon, the entire Hokkaido Army learned what their chief of the earth was. It was after that time that the situation of the Hokkaido Army began to deteriorate.

The Meiji Army's forces regained the battlefield offensive with superior forces, and the Meiji Navy quickly controlled the maritime superiority in the Sea of Japan after sinking two of the main warships of the Hokkaido Army. In October, it launched an onslaught against Niigata, which was controlled by the Hokkaido Army.

On October 22, they launched an attack on Tokyo by land and sea. The Turkish side had no choice but to order the fleet to respond to the battle, in an effort to inflict heavy damage on the Meiji army's naval strength and regain battlefield superiority. It was on this day that the Turkish side learned that the Chinese fleet had appeared on the edge of the sea where the fighting was raging. The Chinese are here to help! Hijikata was happy in his heart. Unexpectedly, in the evening, the Chinese navy, which had watched the naval battle for several hours, actually retreated.

The morale of the Hokkaido Army was greatly damaged, while the morale of the Meiji Navy was greatly boosted.

The reason for the retreat of the Chinese Navy was simple, there was a problem with the turrets of the new warships. Forcibly attaching a triple turret to a warship was an impossible task. The Chinese shipbuilders exerted their wisdom and realized Dudu's entrustment. However, a few months after this was realized, the problem of insufficient structural strength of the turret always broke out. This time, the fleet battery did not intend to open fire, but prepared to move the muzzle for aiming, and as a result, three of the four turrets had problems. If there is a problem with their own turret, everyone can only go back to China to solve it first. For China, there was no intention of entering the war in the first place. If the Hokkaido Army feels frustrated, it can only be said that the Hokkaido Army thinks too much.

The next day, the anti-dumping and anti-dumping forces did not fight again. Heihachiro Togo received a piece of information. In the battle on the 22nd, three warships in the Hokkaido Navy suffered relatively heavy damage. Therefore, three warships of the Hokkaido Navy are temporarily resting in Tokyo Bay, and the warships that are not injured are in the open sea.

"Is this news accurate?" Togo Heihachiro asked suspiciously. Getting such accurate information in such a quick time is not in line with the efficiency of the Meiji government army as Togo knows.

"The news is true." The person who delivered the information was Togo's old boss, Navy Minister Gonbei Yamamoto.

"Your Excellency, this is a matter of victory or defeat in the war. If this information is not accurate, the Navy cannot move based on this information. "Togo has to stress again.

Seeing that the young Togo attached so much importance to it, Yamamoto did not mean to fool. He lowered his voice and said, "This is news from the old shogunate. The Hokkaido Army has stated that they will not allow the shogunate to be restored. Someone in the old shogunate, who felt cornered, wanted the Hokkaido army to go to hell with them. ”

As a Japanese, Togo immediately understood what he meant. While there was a great disdain for the remnants of the old era, Togo also admired the commander of the evacuation from Tokyo. Many people did not agree with the Meiji government's hasty withdrawal from Tokyo, but Togo, who came from the navy, believed that if he could win, he would fight, and if he could not win, he would run. If the elite troops are exhausted in Tokyo, there will be no capital to fight back in the future.

Now, the withdrawal from Tokyo is not only a strategic choice, but also a big trap for the Hokkaido Army politically. Although the Hokkaido Army was strong, its overall strength was still inferior to that of the Meiji Army. It was almost inevitable that the Hokkaido Army would win over its allies, and at this time Japan would be considered allies of the Hokkaido Army, probably only the Tokugawa Shogunate. The Hokkaido Army decisively announced that it would disassociate itself from the Tokugawa shogunate, which was a good move. It's just too late. If they had made such a declaration before they sent out their troops, there would not be the problem now. But looking back, the Hokkaido Army had no intention of taking Tokyo before it sent its troops. When tactical developments exceed strategic expectations, confusion is inevitable.

"In that case, I'll follow the news." Togo replied decisively.

"You ......" Yamamoto Gonbei admired his subordinates very much, so he wanted to question the news a little more, but Yamamoto Gonbei still held back. Heihachiro Togo is not a gullible person, and even if there is such a situation, he will choose the precautions he deserves. If Yamamoto Gonbei says again at this time, "The credibility of this news must also be doubted", it is a way to prepare to shirk responsibility. What Yamamoto Gonbei has to do is to shoulder the responsibility and let these young superior soldiers play to their heart's content.

Early in the morning of the 23rd, the Meiji Navy sailed off the coast of Tokyo Bay, where almost all the entire army had assembled. The small boat of the Hokkaido Army, which was in charge of the vigilance, immediately went to deliver the news. The Meiji Navy did not try to go deeper, but began to lay mines in Tokyo Bay under the cover of warships. Togo Heihachiro was also out of the way, and although the mines were expensive, the opportunity to divide the enemy's forces was fleeting.

The Hokkaido Army was inferior in the number of warships, but it was able to confront the Meiji Navy with solid armor and advanced artillery. In the battle between the two sides, the Meiji Navy did not have the slightest upper hand. If the Hokkaido Navy could be split in two, the Meiji Navy's navy would be able to compensate for the lack of quality with its absolute superiority in quantity. Naval battles really have the possibility of victory. Compared to this victory, the cost of this mine is insignificant.

The mine-laying operation lasted more than four hours, and at noon, in addition to the presence of warships in the Gulf of Tonkin, news of the enemy's arrival from the open sea also came from the warning circle on the outer sea.

The order was given to throw the last mines into the sea as soon as possible. Heihachiro Togo gave an order to the captain, "Raise the Z-flag!" ”

The captain was stunned, but did not question it. He just asked, "What do you use for the flag?" ”

Dongxiang sighed slightly, and said word by word: "The rise and fall of the imperial kingdom is in this battle, and everyone works hard together. ”

Needless to say, all the Meiji Navy knew that this was an order for a decisive battle. The beating of the heart suddenly became intense, and the steady breathing turned heavy. The captain was not completely immersed in the excitement of a decisive battle, he turned his head and shouted to the communications officer: "Raise the Z flag!" Flag, the rise and fall of the imperial kingdom in this battle, all members work together! ”

Soon, the signal flag on the mast of the flagship of the Meiji Navy fluttered, and ten warships turned around, thick black smoke spraying from their chimneys, and headed for the three Hokkaido warships coming from the open sea.