Gong Cheng's mission to Japan this time, if he wants to complete the task entrusted to him by Wu Chaoyue, the first thing to do is to obtain direct contact with Shimazu Tadayoshi, the current lord of the Satsuma Domain in Japan, and win the opportunity to contact him alone.

But what Gong Cheng and Wu Chaoyue, who were hiding behind the scenes, did not expect that because of a pair of gold-inlaid revolvers that were not of high value, Shimazu Tadaya would directly give this opportunity to Gong Cheng, not only sent someone to invite Gong Cheng to meet again the next day, but also stated early that he would not talk about business and only gossip, which was equivalent to directly helping Gong Cheng go through the most difficult first hurdle, which greatly made Gong Cheng overjoyed.

But it is also natural, human nature, Gong Cheng is also a little afraid that this is the trap of the Satsuma Domain, and wants to trick himself into Kagoshima Castle and slaughter him, but considering that the Satsuma Domain, which has three steam gunboats, really wants to kill himself, he can't escape even if he runs away by boat immediately, Gong Cheng, who is still a little timid, forced himself to pluck up his courage again, and immediately accepted Shimazu Tadayoshi's invitation, changed his official uniform and entered Kagoshima Castle again with the small surname sent by Shimazu Tadayoshi, and saw Shimazu Tadayoshi again in the Nishimaru Garden in Kagoshima Castle.

Gong Cheng soon found out that he had made the right bet, but after meeting Shimazu Tadayoshi with a few small surnames again, Shimazu Tadayashi's attitude was not only obviously much friendlier, but also invited himself to taste the most proud sushi, tempura and sashimi and other Fuso delicacies of the Japanese, Gong Cheng was flattered, and hurriedly thanked Shimazu Tadayoshi again and again, one by one the feudal lords called affectionately, and said: "Thank you for the hospitality of the feudal lord, I am really ashamed, I dare not be, I dare not be." ”

"You don't have to be polite, sir, it's a proper hospitality." Shimazu Tadayoshi, who has received a certain amount of Sinology education, was modest, and said with a smile: "It stands to reason that a banquet should be held yesterday to entertain you, but yesterday the time was in a hurry, and there were too many retainers present, and I was afraid that there would be too many people to restrain you, so it was delayed until today." ”

"The feudal lord really knows too well." Gong Cheng said with a smile: "Don't hide it from the feudal lord, in fact, what I am most afraid of is eating with too many people, and I must pay attention to red tape and not be happy at all, even if it is in the mansion of the Nanwang of our Qingguo Town, when I encounter such a banquet, I can hide and hide, and I can run away, or drink with one or two confidants and friends, and it is best to call a few singers to accompany the wine, and drink and drink in a profligate manner, so that I can have the most appetite for the next." ”

The interpreter translated Gong Cheng's words as carefully as possible, and Shimazu Tadayoshi laughed when he heard it, and said: "I knew that Mr. was so free and easy, so I should have arranged a few maiko to accompany Mr. to drink, but it doesn't matter, it's still too late." Youerlang immediately sent someone to arrange a few maiko to give Mr. Gong Cheng a drink to cheer up. ”

The cronies Yamoto Matajiro agreed, and immediately sent someone to arrange Japan's unique song and dance him, Gong Cheng thanked him happily, and sat down with Shimazu Tadayoshi, chatting and waiting for the maiko to come over to help the fun, and the purposeful Shimazu Tadaya quickly changed the conversation to the topic, took out the pair of revolvers and asked Gong Cheng about the situation of the Daye Arsenal, and Gong Cheng, who had no sense of secrecy, answered all questions, and told Shimazu Tadashi as much as he knew about the Daye Arsenal. He also took the initiative to introduce the situation of the Qing-Russian combined fleet's thousand-mile attack to destroy the Daye industrial base of the Wu army. Shimazu Tadayi listened fascinated, and couldn't help but ask: "Mr. Gong Cheng, in your opinion, who is better than your Daye Factory in the Qing Kingdom and our Jixian Pavilion?" ”

The Jixian Pavilion mentioned by Shimazu Tadashi is actually the modern industrial base of the Satsuma Domain, and the location is on the seaside outside Kagoshima Castle, and Gong Cheng passed by the side when he entered and exited Kagoshima Castle twice, so after listening to Shimazu Tadashi's question, Gong Cheng did not hesitate, and immediately said: "Don't hide it from the feudal lord, although I don't know the situation inside the Jixian Pavilion if I haven't entered the Jixian Pavilion, but I dare to guarantee that in terms of scale alone, the area of our Daye Factory in the Qing Dynasty is at least ten times that of the Jixian Pavilion of the Gui Domain." ”

"It's that big?" Tadayoshi Shimazu was a little surprised.

"It's really that big." Gong Cheng nodded, smiled again and said: "But it doesn't matter, the feudal lord, you are five years younger than our Zhennan King, and after five years, I believe that the Jixian Pavilion of your domain will definitely surpass our Daye Factory in scale, because it can be seen from below that you are the same as our Zhennan King, you are a young and promising young hero." ”

"Your Zhennan King of the Qing Kingdom is only five years older than me?" Shimazu Tadayoshi's surprise is not trivial.

"That's right, the feudal lord, you are twenty-three this year, and our Zhennan King is only twenty-eight this year." Gong Cheng replied with a smile.

Shimazu Tadayi opened his mouth and stammered, and only after a while did he say in surprise: "It turns out that your Zhennan King is so young, I always thought that he was at least forty or fifty years old this year?" ”

Gong Cheng laughed and said, "The feudal lord has misunderstood, our Zhennan King may be that old?" However, like you, the lord of the domain, when our king Zhennan knew that you were only twenty-three years old this year, he was also surprised, saying how could there be such a young and promising lord in this world, who could become the lord of the famous Japanese Satsuma domain at the age of twenty-three? And the Satsuma Domain is so strong and powerful that it can force the Ryukyu Kingdom to the point where it has to ask for help from our Great Qing Dynasty? King Zhennan said very much, you must be a hero who stands up to the sky and the earth! ”

No one doesn't like to listen to good words, Shimazu Tadashi, who was suppressed by his biological father and retainers, who was a little inferior, listened to Gong Cheng's deliberate flattery, of course, he was even more happy in his heart, and quickly politely said a few words of modesty, and also praised Wu Chaoyue's young and promising, only five years older than himself to become the actual ruler of the Qing Kingdom, Gong Cheng was humble and wronged, and constantly patted Shimazu Tadashi's ass with all kinds of sweet words, and soon coaxed Shimazu Tadaya to feel comfortable and treated himself as a beloved relative and friend.

At this time, the unique kabuko of the island country has been led to the scene, in the sound of silk and bamboo, the kabuko danced, Shimazu Tadayoshi and Gong Cheng talked and laughed, constantly toasted each other, and the feelings continued to deepen, when the wine was drunk, Gong Cheng simply sat on the side of Shimazu Tadashi's seat, burped and approached and said: "Lord, speaking of our Zhennan King, in fact, he still has a little regret for you, but I don't know if you want to listen?" ”

"What regrets does King Zhennan have for Yu?" Tadayoshi Shimazu, who was also half-drunk, asked rhetorically.

"Lord, don't be angry when I said it." Gong Cheng first took a preventive shot, and then said angrily: "Domain lord, why are you young, but you can't control it a little, even if our Zhennan King is far away in the Qing Dynasty, I have heard that your retainers are a little disrespectful to you, and many of the things of your Satsuma Domain are not up to the lord of the domain." Our Zhennan King also said ......, and he also said ....... ”

Speaking of this, Gong Cheng deliberately shook his head, pretending to be so drunk that he couldn't speak neatly, while Shimazu Tadayoshi was already a little discolored on his face, and asked, "Mr. Gong Cheng, what else did you say about the Zhennan King of the Qing Kingdom?" ”

"Our king of Zhennan said that if his courtiers dared to do this, he would have slaughtered those courtiers who dared to bully the lord with a knife." Gong Cheng said drunkenly: "Our king of Zhennan doesn't understand, the lord of the domain, you are the lord of a domain, how can you be so tolerant of these bold courtiers?" Why didn't you give them seppuku to commit suicide? As you ......, you can ...... as you want. ”

Speaking of this drunkly, Gong Cheng simply lay down on the ground, and fell asleep directly, while Shimazu Tadayoshi was a little ugly, and only after a while did he instruct Yamoto Matajiro: "Carry him down to rest, so that he can be entertained." ”

Gong Cheng's words pretending to be drunk took root in Shimazu Tadashi's already extremely restless heart, so that after Gong Cheng, who was drunk and unconscious, was carried away, Shimazu Tadayoshi did not rush to leave the banquet scene, and drank the stuffy wine one after another, feeling so aggrieved that he said secretly: "If it weren't for the Father of the Nation, if the real power of the Satsuma Domain was in my hands, and the bastards Saigo Takamori and Okubo Ritsu would have let them seppuku a long time ago, and I still need to let you clear the country?" Do you still need to be seen as a joke by your Qing people? I, the lord of the domain, deserve to be a real wreck! ”

…………

Gong Cheng, who didn't wake up until night, of course forgot what he said when he was drunk, and Shimazu Tadayoshi didn't mention it, and because he was coaxed comfortable by Gong Cheng's sweet words, in the next few days, Shimazu Tadayoshi, who had nothing to do, also met Gong Cheng twice again and formed a friendship that looked good. In the end, at Gong Cheng's casual request, Shimazu Tadayoshi also made an appointment with Gong Cheng to prepare to go to the Senyan Temple, which was famous in the Satsuma Domain.

The appointed time soon came, under the guidance of the small surname, Gong Cheng was invited to the Thousand Eyes Temple to meet with Shimazu Tadashi, and climbed the mountain together into the Thousand Eyes Temple on incense, the result was that Shimazu Tadayi was quite surprised that after the incense, Gong Cheng actually let his entourage take out an old spirit card and put it on the altar, and put the incense on the altar again, Shimazu Tadayi was curious to ask about the origin of the spirit card, Gong Cheng said casually: "My father Gong Zizhen's spirit card, let him receive Japanese incense." ”

"Sir, what a filial son, came to Japan with your father's spirit tablet, and worship it at any time." Tadayoshi Shimazu was amazed.

"It's hard to say anything about offering at any time." Gong Cheng smiled and said: "Don't hide it from the lord of the domain, there is a habit of carrying your father's spirit card at all times, but it is not for the sake of offering at any time, it has other functions." ”

"What else is there to do?" Tadayoshi Shimazu asked curiously.

Gong Cheng smiled and said, "Lord, if you have to know, you can't let too many other people know about this matter, we can only go to a room, put aside the extra outsiders, and let you see with your own eyes what other functions my father's spirit card has." I promise, you'll be blown away. ”

was whetted by Gong Cheng, Shimazu Tadayoshi really asked the monks of the Thousand Eyes Temple to prepare a meditation room, and only led his cronies Yamoto Matajiro to watch Gong Cheng's performance alone, and Gong Cheng only brought a translator from China into the room. After closing the door, Gong Cheng took another bamboo whip and an old book, flipped through it and found a recitation at random, and then suddenly knocked on the spirit card of his father Gong Zizhen, and scolded: "I don't learn the old thing, I don't read your book for a few days, and I really made a mistake again, remember it, I am for the sake of you being my father, so I will help you modify the sentences that do not make sense, so as not to deceive future generations!" Shame on our old Gong family! (Not an exaggeration, Gong Banlun's attitude towards his father's spirit card is this.) ）

After scolding, Gong Cheng slammed a bamboo whip on his dead ghost father's spirit card, and then really picked up a pen to alter the manuscript left by Gong Zizhen, but Shimazu Tadayi next to him was dumbfounded, and asked in surprise: "Mr. Gong Cheng, you Qing people, aren't you the most important ancestor spirit card?" How can you do such a thing to your father's spirit card? "——Question whether Japan has a spirit card, and think about what is served in the Yasukuni public toilet.

"He didn't do it right, I taught him a lesson, what's not to do?" Gong Cheng asked rhetorically and confidently, and said, "Domain lord, do you know our Chinese Tang Dynasty Emperor Li Shimin?" ”

"Of course I do." Shimazu Tadayi replied without thinking about it, and said more objectively: "We still learn a lot of things in Japan from your Tang Dynasty people. ”

"So the feudal lord, do you know how the Tang Dynasty Emperor Li Shimin taught his father what he didn't do right?" Gong Cheng finally saw the dagger.

Of course, this question is difficult for foreigners, and after Shimazu Tadayi shook his head and said that he didn't know, Gong Cheng also took the opportunity to carefully explain the before and after of the Xuanwumen Incident, especially the grudge between Li Yuan and Li Shimin's father and son, and repeatedly emphasized that Li Yuan was too deceitful to Li Shimin to force his son to that step. Shimazu Tadayoshi was dumbfounded when he heard this, shook his head again and again to express his bewilderment, and said: "I can't believe it, I really can't believe that Li Shimin would do such a thing." ”

"But this is a true fact, if the lord of the domain does not believe it, he can send someone to find our Chinese history books to read for himself." Gong Cheng shrugged his shoulders, then smiled and said: "But Li Shimin is not wrong, if he hadn't mustered up the courage to attack his brother, and then imprisoned his father, then the future Heavenly Khan Tang Taizong would go down in history?" ”

Gong Cheng insinuated to this point, Shimazu Tadayi is no matter how honest or stupid he is, he will inevitably be moved, Gong Cheng observed his words, and said casually: "Therefore, it is not filial piety to do this to my father's spirit card in the next, but to learn from Li Shimin, Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, and help my dead father correct his mistakes." ”

Shimazu Tadayi was even more silent, and only after a while did he say that it was almost, and he wanted to go back to rest, and Gong Cheng, who knew that the time was not ripe, was not in a hurry to strike while the iron was hot, and honestly agreed to go out of the meditation room with Shimazu Tadayoshi, and went down the mountain together to say goodbye. As a result, on the way back to the city, Shimazu Tadashi, who had been silent, suddenly whispered to his most trusted Yamoto Tadajiro: "Tadajiro, find a way to get a Chinese history book about Li Shimin, I want to see it." But remember, don't let anyone else know, especially not the people of the Father of the Nation. ”

The loyal Yamoto Tadajiro whispered a promise, but when he saw the respectful appearance of his cronies, he didn't know why, Shimazu Tadayoshi suddenly remembered the most famous surname in Japan, Mori Ran Maru, and then remembered Oda Nobunaga, the master of Mori Lan Maru. And after thinking of Oda Nobunaga, Shimazu Tadayoshi moved in his heart again, and said secretly: "In our Japan, there are also such examples, Oda Nobunaga's father-in-law, Saito Michizo, died at the hands of his own son Saito Yoshiryu. Also, among our Japanese civilians, there is also a habit of sending the elderly to the mountains to feed the wolves! ”

Thinking of this, a seed was also deeply implanted in the heart of the puppet lord Shimazu Tadayoshi, and quietly began to take root and sprout, but the time was not yet ripe, and the shoots did not dare to drill out of the soil in Shimazu Tadayoshi's heart and show the sprouts.

When the seed gradually sprouted in Shimazu Tadashi's heart, it may have heard some rumors, or Gong Cheng, who was not used to seeing some roe deer, wandered around Kagoshima all day, and the next day, Shimazu Hisamitsu, the actual ruler of the Satsuma Domain, forced Shimazu Tadashi to give Gong Cheng a palindrome, clearly rejecting Wu Chaoyue's letter asking the Satsuma Domain to stop invading and oppressing the Ryukyus, and ordered Gong Cheng to leave Kagoshima within one day, otherwise Gong Cheng's personal safety in Kagoshima would no longer be guaranteed.

In this regard, Gong Cheng, who had never expected to force the Satsuma Domain to stop through diplomacy, was not surprised, and immediately began to prepare to return to China after receiving the reply, although Shimazu Tadayoshi, who was a bit righteous, was unable to see Gong Cheng off on the dock because of his identity, but he sent his cronie Yamoto Matajiro to see him off on behalf of himself, and gave Gong Cheng a katana as a salute, and asked Yamoto Matajiro to bring a message to Gong Cheng: "Mr. Gong Cheng, our feudal lord said that if there is a chance in the future, Please come back to Satsuma Domain to meet our lord, who wants to drink and sing with you, and dance and hunt. ”

"Please ask Mr. Yamoto to return to your feudal lord, and say certainly, definitely, I will definitely come to visit the feudal lord again." Gong Cheng didn't say yes, and added in his heart: "I will definitely come back soon, and I will come back with our rebel army's gunboat fleet and army!" ”

Although his character and virtue are a little poor, Gong Cheng is really a man of words, no, he has just left Japan, and on the way back to China, Gong Cheng wrote a letter to Wu Chaoyue, in addition to reporting his own experience in Kagoshima this time, he also reported to Wu Chaoyue all kinds of information he had collected in Kagoshima, warning that the Satsuma Domain was also working hard to build a fairly complete industrial system like Wu Jun's Daye base, and had achieved the ability to produce many industrial products including cannons on its own!

Therefore, from the perspective of the Chinese people, Gong Cheng strongly suggested that Wu Chaoyue should not only think about rescuing the Ryukyus, but should directly send troops to Kagoshima and completely destroy the industrial base of the Satsuma Domain by force, so as not to have the ability of the Satsuma Domain to threaten the southeast coast of China in the future, and even threaten the Chinese industry that is also in the development stage.