Tokyo, Japan, the Emperor's Imperial Palace, Miyagi.

The young Meiji Emperor sat solemnly on the throne, Iwakura Gushi, Kido Takayoshi, Sanjo Minoru, Okubo Toshitsu, Saigo Takamori, Ito Hirobumi, Yama Prefecture Aritomo, Saigo Congdao and other important ministers are kneeling and sitting, this posture is also unique to Japan, and it is like kneeling and sitting, which is not only in line with the courtesy of the monarch and ministers, but also the ministers kneel for a long time and are not too tired.

It's just that now these ministers don't look good, and the groups of people who fled from Ryukyu are crying to the government, asking the government to send troops to retake Ryukyu; However, Japan is now in ruins, and the throne under Emperor Meiji has just been secured.

In the eyes of these ministers, the era of Japan's backward and ignorant shogunate rule has finally come to an end, and with their efforts, Japan is moving towards a new era of prosperity.

Emperor Meiji on the throne coughed lightly and signaled that the emperor was about to speak, and everyone who was still talking to each other in whispers immediately knelt down and listened to the hadith.

"Tell me, where did these people come from?"

This is exactly what everyone at the bottom is just discussing, and in any case, we must first find out the identity of the enemy.

These important ministers exchanged glances with each other, because the Ryukyu Kingdom was actually controlled by the Satsuma Domain in Kagoshima, so it was robbed this time, and the Satsuma Domain suffered the most, so it was Saigo Takamori who was born in the Satsuma Domain to answer.

"Your Majesty, according to intelligence analysis, the enemy should come from the Qing Dynasty."

Nonsense, those who captured the Ryukyus looked like Chinese and spoke Chinese, how could they not be Chinese?

Emperor Meiji on the throne coughed lightly twice, clearly dissatisfied with this answer.

Saigo Takamori just blushed slightly, and continued: "It's just that the minister thought about it again, and he really couldn't think of which force this army belonged to in the Qing Dynasty."

"Oh?" Meiji was still not satisfied, and looked at several other important ministers, but these people all lowered their heads, saying that they couldn't help, and he could only look at the general Saigo Takamori again.

Xixiang raised his left hand, wrenched his fingers and said: "Although the Qing Dynasty is a big country, its military strength is not strong, and most of the Manchu and Mongolian cavalry that their Manchurian emperor relied on have been wiped out by the Westerners. Zeng Guofan has basically withdrawn from the army, Zuo Zongtang is taking his army to Shaanxi to quell the rebellion, the only one who is likely to send troops is Li Hongzhang, but Li Hongzhang is now the governor of Huguang, and his army is inland, how could he suddenly rush to Ryukyu? Therefore, I beg your pardon for being foolish and not being able to guess the origin of this army."

Depend on! The little devil actually knows the military strength of the Qing Dynasty very well!

Saigo said it so clearly, although there was still no clear answer, Meiji couldn't blame him, so he could only ask others with his eyes.

But the people below still watched their noses and noses and their hands on the ground, and no one met his gaze at all.

Emperor Meiji felt hurt, so he pretended to wipe his eyes with his hand and whimpered in a low voice: "Takasugi went early, who can you ask about the important affairs of the imperial kingdom?" ”

Now these important ministers can't sit still, who is Gao Shan? Shinsaku Takasugi! The hero of the downfall, the genius of the Changzhou Domain, can be literary and martial, has always been known for moving like thunder and lightning, hair like wind and rain, but unfortunately died young, less than 28 years old when he died. It was because I heard Meiji talk about Takasugi, and these former Takasugi comrades-in-arms were all moved.

Emperor Meiji's agitation method was very effective, and the county at the bottom blushed and said: "Your Majesty, why do you care which faction this army belongs to, wait for the minister to lead the troops to attack, and keep it so that you can annihilate these chaotic soldiers and take back the Ryukyus for Your Majesty!" ”

Yamagu's words are actually sandwiched between bones, because the Ryukyu Kingdom was controlled by the Satsuma Domain, and now the islands such as Amami Oshima in the Ryukyu Islands are still controlled by the Satsuma Domain. If the Ryukyu Oshima Island is recaptured, will it be returned to the Satsuma Domain? This is absolutely impossible, and the Imperial State is promoting the abolition of feudal prefectures and is about to seize power from the feudal lords.

Of course, Yama Prefecture Youtomo was born in the Choshu Domain, and of course he can't be of the same mind as the Satsuma Domain. Alas, where there are people, there are rivers and lakes!

Emperor Meiji nodded with a smile, as if admiring the loyalty and courage of Yamaprefecture; Through the Japanese who fled back and the foreigners who came to Japan, I learned that this army has more than 10,000 people, soldiers have guns in their hands, and they are equipped with several twelve-pounder guns, as well as two sail warships, although these forces are very strong, but they are not something that Japan cannot deal with, he also has 50,000 or 60,000 troops under his command, although not everyone is equipped with guns, but there are still more than 30,000 spears, although there are not many artillery, there are still more than a dozen, although the navy of the imperial country does not have any big warships, but there are more than 20 warships, and there are many ants that can bite the elephant to death!

was bullied by someone, of course you have to fight back, otherwise where is the face of the imperial country? Especially now that the regime has been decided, it is even more necessary to maintain the face of the imperial state! He also needed a victory in Meiji to suppress the feudal lords under him, so that the national policy of withdrawing the feudal lords and retiring the prefectures could be carried out smoothly.

Thinking of this, Meiji even thanked this Qing army a little bit, it came at the right time!

Kido Takayo, who was good at observing words, understood the emperor's attitude, and also made a statement: "Your Majesty, the courtier feels that Yamayama's words are reasonable, and the Chinese call them rough words, since people are knocking on the door, we must fight back, otherwise why face the dead Takasugi."

Saigo Takamori's younger brother Saigo Congdao is a pure soldier, just simple belligerent, and when he heard that there was a battle to fight, he immediately became excited: "Your Majesty, the minister is also willing to go with the army!" ”

Saigo Takamori heard the subtext of Yama Prefecture Youpeng, and he couldn't object at this time, otherwise wouldn't he still be interested in the Satsuma Domain? He simply stood up and asked for battle: "Your Majesty, the minister is willing to lead troops into battle for Your Majesty." This sentence clearly expresses his attitude.

Meiji saw the attitude of his first commander and was very happy: "With Saigo's words, this battle is half won!" ”

Because since the beginning of the Curtain Movement, Saigo Takamori has led his troops to fight without a single defeat, and has repeatedly defeated the strong with less, and everyone present is convinced. Although Shan County Youpeng thinks very highly of himself and is also very powerful, he is a little worse in terms of qualifications and achievements.

The other few people here, Iwakura Gushi and Minoru Sanjo are the Minister of the Interior, regardless of the military, Ito Hirobumi does not lead troops, and his qualifications are also a little worse, only the important minister Okubo Toshitsu, who is tied with Saigo Takamori Kido Takayoshi, did not speak.

At this point, Okubo had to speak, in fact, he did not advocate fighting, Japan has just stabilized the situation, it really can't afford to lose, the so-called war is not considered to win before the defeat, for the sake of such a small place as the Ryukyus, there is really no need to gamble.

It seems that the room is full of people, and Okubo Ritsu is sober-minded; Historically, Japan has been able to achieve rapid development, and among these people, Okubo Ritsu has contributed the most, and this person is indeed very powerful. However, no matter how powerful he was, he could not oppose the unanimous opinion of everyone, especially His Majesty the Emperor.

"Your Majesty, the minister feels that we don't know much about the enemy's situation, so we should still be cautious, especially not underestimate the enemy on the battlefield, and we must be more thoughtful in tactical arrangements." Alas, isn't this strategically about despising the enemy and tactically valuing the enemy? This Okubo really has some insight.

Emperor Meiji always attached great importance to Okubo Ritsu's words, so he instructed: "You should draw up a plan and discuss it at the next imperial meeting."

"Congratulations to Your Majesty!"

Well, little Japan is quite like learning!