"The great victory of our army is not only the work of my own planning, the general is loyal and virtuous, raises his arms and shouts, the army of the king of Xingqin, and asks for the life of all the people. Lin Yiqing said loudly, "Lin Mou, as a citizen of Qianguo, was inspired by the loyalty of the general, and your souls were excited, so he risked his death to come to work hard, and he was expected to be able to make meritorious contributions, and the power of the general and you are also!" ”

Hearing that Lin Yiqing did not take credit, but gave the credit for the victory to Saigo Takamori and everyone, Kirino Toshiaki sighed in his heart.

"Although our army has defeated all the way to this, the thief army is fierce, and there are many sacrifices of our soldiers, Lin Mou every time he thinks of his comrades, his heart is tragic, this cup, please join me to pay tribute to those loyal souls who died bravely for the great cause of King Qin!" Lin Yiqing said, raised the refilled wine glass high, and drained the wine to the ground.

The warriors remembered the bloody battles in the past few days, and they were also excited, and they all raised their glasses and drank wine on the ground with Lin Yiqing, and clapped their high-fives three times as a tribute.

Saigo Takamori saw the respect between the samurai and Lin Yiqing, and his eyes flashed with appreciation.

"My vision is right, Liqiu and Guogan are not as talented as him, do you really want him to inherit my career? ……”

“…… For the early success of the great cause of Qinwang! The world shares the scales! Cheers! At this time, Kirino Toshiaki raised his glass again and proposed, and all the samurai responded one after another, Saigo Takamori retracted his thoughts, smiled and raised his glass, and drank it all with the samurai.

The samurai cut meat and drank heartily, and their comrades toasted each other. Talking about the experience of fighting side by side, the atmosphere in the banquet quickly became enthusiastic.

Saigo Takamori remembered Mrs. Niang's instructions just now, so he arranged for someone to send the cooked wild boar meat to He Yunqing, Lin Yiqing thanked him repeatedly, Saigo Takamori waved his hand indifferently, his eyes swept over the samurai who were eating meat and drinking, and a trace of melancholy suddenly flashed in his eyes.

"What worries the general? Can you tell me about it? Lin Yiqing keenly observed the strangeness of Saigo Takamori's eyes, and took the opportunity of the toast to step forward and ask in a low voice.

"Sit down, Hanpeng." Saigo Takamori moved to the edge of the table. Pointing to the couch. motioned for Lin Yiqing to sit down beside him.

Lin Yiqing sat down as he said, and Saigo Takamori looked at the elated warriors, sighed, and said, "Hanpeng." You know what. I have already put a stamp on His Majesty the Emperor. We ask His Majesty the Emperor to accept our suggestion of a 'new policy of virtue', remove the traitors, and stop the war. ”

"I understand the general's mind. You can't bear to bear the fact that the war is too protracted and the military and civilians are too seriously wounded, so you are taking advantage of the great victory of our army to signal peace talks to the government in order to put an end to the military disaster. Lin Yiqing sighed, "The general's intentions can be described as good, and it is appropriate to be peaceful at this time." ”

"Those who know me, Han Peng." Saigo Takamori sighed, "I didn't discuss this matter with anyone beforehand, and although they didn't say anything after Richo and Kokugan learned the news, I know that they were unhappy in their hearts and thought that I shouldn't be on the table at this time." ”

"The general's idea is not wrong, although our army is now fighting and winning successes, capturing the southwest half of the twenty-two counties, but under the long battle, there is also a sign of exhaustion, and under the repeated fierce battles, the casualties are also heavy, as the chief of staff, I have experienced various battlefields, every time I see the casualties of our soldiers, I regret it in my heart, and then I know that the old saying 'Ci does not command the army', is not a lie," Lin Yiqing sighed, "Although Gai Lin knows the military aircraft, but in the face of the sacrifice of his former comrades and students one by one, he cannot bear it, and he also hopes that the war will end as soon as possible." The general's seal is a method of 'promoting peace by war', which can be worth 100,000 soldiers. ”

"Han Peng said this, I was relieved, I was originally worried that you, like Liqiu and others, would object to me acting like this." Saigo Takamori's eyes flashed with gratitude.

"It's just that I'm worried that the government is now controlled by traitorous ministers, and His Majesty the Emperor is deeply held hostage by him, and he may not be willing to accept the general's proposal for peace talks." Lin Yiqing voiced his concerns.

"What does Hanpeng think?" Saigo Takamori was silent for a moment and asked again.

"Lin thinks that now the sea power is in my hands, the sea route is unimpeded, and I can choose 10,000 elite soldiers, escorted by the main force of the navy, go straight to Tokyo Bay, punish the traitorous ministers, take the general as the regent of the court, assist His Majesty the Emperor, and form a new government." Lin Yiqing said, "The thief army is demoralized and panicked and afraid of war, and when they hear that Tokyo has been broken by our army and will inevitably collapse, then the major event can be decided, and our army can also reduce unnecessary casualties, which is the method of 'ending the war with war'." Otherwise, His Majesty the Emperor may not be able to make up his mind to stop fighting. ”

"Although this method is good, but the soldiers enter the imperial capital, the artillery fire has no eyes, and the soldiers are everywhere, once Tokyo is like Kyoto again, it is burned by the fire and hurts His Majesty the Emperor, then it will be difficult for me to die to atone for his sins!" Saigo Takamori sighed.

Lin Yiqing understood that Saigo Takamori did not agree with his true thoughts about his plan to send troops to Tokyo Bay directly, and sighed and did not break it.

"Other than that, does Hanpeng have any other plans?" Saigo Takamori was silent for a while, ate a few bites of meat, thought about it, and asked again.

"At present, although our army has won a great victory, but the losses are also very heavy, the soldiers are very tired, and the consumption of ammunition is also very large, and it is urgent to replenish, and the ships of the navy are also damaged, and it takes time to repair, my plan is to divide the whole army into three teams, the second team repairs, and the first team enters Nagoya, so that the tigers are in the mountains, so that the thieves do not dare to attack, and our army will manufacture and purchase guns and ammunition during this period, and repair the warships, so it will take about two months." Lin Yiqing guessed Saigo Takamori's intentions, and said according to his thoughts, "After two months, if the government still does not accept the general's suggestion, it will not be too late to send troops again." ”

"That's very good." Saigo Takamori was relieved to hear this, "Hanpeng is thoughtful, I can rest assured." ”

"I hope that His Majesty the Emperor can recognize the painstaking efforts of the great general and make a wise decision as soon as possible, then I will be very fortunate in Satsuma, and the world will be very lucky!" Lin Yiqing sighed.

Saigo Takamori listened to Lin Yiqing's words and sighed deeply.

At this time, Saigo Takamori did not know that Emperor Meiji, who was far away in Tokyo, was also fighting fiercely like him.

Royal Palace, Imperial Garden.

The attendant picked up the flask and filled each of the cups for Emperor Meiji and Hirobumi Ito, who were sitting across from each other and chatting.

Wang Yangming once said a very famous sentence. Does Your Majesty know? Hirobumi Ito looked at the slightly melancholy Emperor Meiji and asked calmly.

"Wang Yangming has said a lot of famous sayings, I don't know which one Itoqing said......" Emperor Meiji sighed, and replied with a little absent-mindedness.

"It's a famous ......" Hirobumi Ito also felt the obvious uneasiness of Emperor Meiji, he picked up his glass, stared at the clear liquor in the glass, took a deep breath, and said: "'It is easy to break the mountain, but it is difficult to break the heart'!" ”

"Oh?" Emperor Meiji was stunned. He looked at Ito Hirobumi with a little confusion. But he didn't go any further.

Saigo-kun once studied with Mr. Shigeemon Ito with Okubo-kun, and studied the study of Yomei's mind and the study of Zhuzi, and this famous sentence of Mr. Yomei can be said to be engraved in his heart. However, he always regarded the gentry as an important class in the revitalization of the empire. Never forget the interests of the nobles. This is the thief in his heart. ......" Ito paused, letting out a long breath. He continued: "Your Majesty is different from Xixiang Jun, Your Majesty knows that if you want to enrich the country and strengthen the army, you must dismantle the foundation of 'small power' and collect 'great power' from the imperial court, and the ice of the interests of the scholar clan must be broken. However, Okubo-kun adheres to His Majesty's wishes, acts too carefully, oppresses the nobles too much, and the so-called things must be opposed, so there is this change. So after being too persistent. This has also become a thief in His Majesty's heart! ”

"Then Itoqing thinks that I was mistaken by the thief in my heart?" Emperor Meiji's brows were habitually furrowed, but he always had a fatherly awe for Ito Hirobumi, and he did not take Ito Hirobumi's words for granted.

"Your Majesty, the minister is not saying that Your Majesty's proposition is wrong. It's just that in terms of timing, it's a bit risky. Ito said to the emperor in a tactful tone.

"Yes! At the beginning, I also thought that Okubo's actions might lead to accidents, but unfortunately I couldn't stop it at that time, which led to today's disaster......" Emperor Meiji's eyes flashed with resentment.

Although he was saddened by the assassination of Okubo Ritsu, he couldn't help but grit his teeth when he thought of Okubo Ritsu's behavior and behavior.

"Ito Qing has already seen the seal on Saigoqing, but what do you think I know?" Emperor Meiji quickly realized his gaffe, he took a deep breath, adjusted his mentality, and asked Ito Hirobumi again.

"Your Majesty, the minister thinks that this seal of the king of Xixiang really wants to stop the war and hold peace talks with the government." Hirobumi Ito looked at Emperor Meiji and replied cautiously.

"After I read the seal, I also knew that he was telling the truth," Emperor Meiji sighed, "If it was someone else in the thief army, I would not have looked at it, but I will definitely read the seal on Saigo's seal, I know Saigo's character, and Saigo's understanding also understands me, so I will have such a statement." ”

"What Your Majesty said is, Saigo-kun, shouldn't have rebelled......" Hearing Emperor Meiji talk about Saigo Takamori's true feelings, Ito Hirobumi couldn't help but sigh.

"Yes! I also knew in my heart that Xixiang Qing should not have rebelled, and the reason why he was like this was that he really had to suffer. Emperor Meiji said, "It's just ......."

Emperor Meiji shook his head and said no more.

Hiroshi Ito's inner anguish for Emperor Shira: Although the emperor had the heart to accept the conditions of "dismissal of traitorous ministers" put forward in Saigo Takamori's seal, the actual situation did not allow him to make such a decision.

If such conditions were accepted, the current Meiji government would soon lose its basis for existence and collapse.

"How do I think I should reply to Saigo?" Emperor Meiji asked.

"This seal, no matter how His Majesty replies, will be misinterpreted by Saigo-kun's subordinates such as Kirino Toshiaki, Shinohara Kunikan and others, and from the perspective of the ministers, although Saigo-kun is the commander of the thief army, it is only nominal, and its real commander is Kirino Toshiaki. Even if His Majesty agrees to the conditions put forward in Saigo-kun's seal, I am afraid that Kirino Toshiaki and his party will not be satisfied, and they will definitely take advantage of this to make trouble, so it is better not to answer. Hirobumi Ito said.

"If you don't answer, you will continue to fight the army, now the morale of the army and the people is extremely low, and I am afraid that I will lose again in the war, Ito Qing thinks, how to reverse the defeat?" Emperor Meiji asked anxiously.

"For today's plan, the only way to do this is to 'borrow troops from foreign countries' as Iwakura-kun said." Ito hesitated for a moment, but finally mustered up the courage to say it.

"Ito Qing also said that it was time to borrow troops from foreign countries...... "I listened to Ito Hirobumi's suggestion. Emperor Meiji was not as furious as Ito had imagined, much to Ito's surprise.

Not long ago, Iwakura Gushi, the right minister and secretary of the interior, first proposed to Emperor Meiji to "borrow foreign teachers to help suppress traitors", and at that time, the Meiji Emperor was rarely angry in front of Iwakura, and although Iwakura Gushi retreated, he still insisted on his own ideas.

A few days later, Iwakura Gushi once again made such a suggestion to Emperor Meiji, and this time along with Iwakura Gushi, there was also Aritomo of the army Qingshan Prefecture.

And Yamaguchi Aritomo went further than Iwakura Gushi this time, and he proposed it directly to the emperor. When to "Britain, France, Mi, independence (i.e. Germany. The Japanese translation of the word German is Duyizhi), Lu (Russia), Qian, and other countries borrowed 120,000 troops and a number of naval ships to help the officers and soldiers suppress thieves. "The reason for Yama County Youpeng is that now the government army and the army have suffered one defeat after another. The navy has been nearly wiped out. There is no longer the ability to fight. There is an urgent need to reorganize and mobilize the military and civilians of Tohoku prefectures and Hokkaido to purchase arms from foreign countries. It takes time to form and train a new army, and if the rebels launch a large-scale offensive at this time, the government forces will be difficult to resist, so during this time, foreign forces must be used to fight the rebels.

In the eyes of Emperor Meiji, the borrowing of foreign troops would inevitably come at the cost of ceding national interests, and this was simply unacceptable to the Meiji Emperor, who was bent on abolishing the unequal treaties imposed on Japan by foreign countries.

Emperor Meiji rejected Iwakura Goshikawa Yama Aritomo's suggestion on the grounds that "there is no such case in the imperial court", but Iwakura Gokumi and Yama Prefecture Aritomo did not flinch, but cited the precedent of borrowing troops from the Netherlands during the "Seicho Campaign" during the shogunate period, which Emperor Meiji could not argue, so he had to say that he wanted to think about it again, and actually wanted to hear Ito Hirobumi's opinion.

But today's private meeting between the monarch and the minister, Ito Hirobumi even said that he should "borrow troops from foreign countries", how could he not shock and hurt Emperor Meiji?

"The minister understands His Majesty's distress, but the current situation has indeed reached the point where it is necessary to borrow troops from foreign countries!" Ito Hirobumi sighed, "Borrowing troops from foreign countries to quell rebellions, the country still has a glimmer of life, and the two powers should harm each other, your majesty should understand this truth......"

"Itoqing said that the two powers should harm each other, so in my opinion, it is better to agree to Xixiangqing's conditions!" Emperor Meiji said angrily, "I can't give up the rights of the country in exchange for foreign soldiers to come and trample on the country!" ”

"If Your Majesty agrees to Xixiangqing's conditions, it will be tantamount to discarding all the achievements made since the Restoration! Doesn't Your Majesty understand the scourge of the Shogunate's domination of the country? Hirobumi Ito snapped.

After listening to Ito Hirobumi's words, Emperor Meiji woke up like a dream for a while, he looked at Ito Hirobumi blankly, and was speechless for a long time.

"Doesn't Your Majesty want to realize the dream of a strong army and a rich country?" Hirobumi Ito asked loudly.

"Realize the dream of a strong army and a rich country...... Itoqing, do you really want me to pay such a price? Emperor Meiji's eyes flashed with confusion and he muttered.

"As long as we can realize this dream of a strong army and a rich country...... Whatever the price, it's worth it! Hirofumi Ito said word by word, "If Your Majesty is worried about being infamy, then the responsibility for this matter will be borne by the ministers!" I am willing to go to the soup for Your Majesty! Don't hesitate! ”

Ito stood up as he spoke, then bowed deeply to Emperor Meiji, who was bluffed into standing up from his seat.

"Good! Let's do as Ito wants! Emperor Meiji was first thrilled by Ito's gaze, and then he was so excited by the promise of great ambition that he immediately replied.

Emperor Meiji took a few steps and looked into the distance side by side with Ito Hirobumi - the red sun was rising in the east at this time, and the cherry trees and trees in the garden had completely shown their true colors.

After Ito Hirobumi's farewell, Emperor Meiji left the Imperial Garden and returned to the palace, where he found Empress Ichijomiko waiting for him in the cloister.

Seeing Ichijomiko in a kimono and Aiko Yanagihara, a servant of the power line, greeted him with a low eyebrow and a bow of his head, and Emperor Meiji immediately stepped forward.

Empress Ichijomiko came to Emperor Meiji and raised her head, and Emperor Meiji saw the melancholy look in the queen's eyes, and understood that the conversation between himself and Ito Hirobumi just now should have been heard by the queen, and couldn't help but sigh.

"Really...... Do you have to do it? Ichijomiko asked softly.

Emperor Meiji nodded.

"But...... In my heart, I was not willing, and I was not sure, that it must be the right thing to do......" Emperor Meiji replied in a whisper.

At this moment in the face of the empress and the power servant, Emperor Meiji, who was raised in the deep palace and born at the hands of a woman, seems to have lost all his courage just now with the departure of Ito Hirobumi, and has returned to the cowardly and timid child he was when he was a child.

"Since Your Majesty has decided, let's relax!" Ichijomiko noticed the change in Emperor Meiji's mood and immediately said.

Emperor Meiji looked at Empress Ichijomiko, and then at the Gonden attendant on the side, and sighed at the beautiful Yanagihara Aiko, the sister of Count Yanagihara Maemitsu, whom he loved very much.

"If that doesn't work out...... I'm so sorry for you...... I beg your pardon ......."

At this moment, the weakness of Emperor Meiji, the first generation of Restoration Heroes, was exposed in front of the two women closest to him.

At this time, Ito Hirobumi, who had already left the palace, did not know what the emperor was like now, and he was in a hurry to find Iwakura Gushi and tell him that he had done the work of Emperor Meiji and agreed to borrow troops to foreign countries to quell the rebellion. (To be continued......)