"The Anglo-French naval fleet in the East is nothing, but whether to fight or not is inconclusive, if they get the news of the declaration of war and surrender first, the fleet may be blockaded in Naha......"

North of Shuri Castle, the capital of the Ryukyu Kingdom, next to the port of Naha, I don't know when a majestic fortress was erected, the new commander of the Russian Eastern Fleet, Ferdinand. Petrovich. Baron Wrangel frowned deeply, complaining to the chief of staff next to him, Nevelskoy.

Baron Wrangel was also a great man, a great navigator and geographer, who contributed to glaciology and geomagnetism. From 1825 to 1827 he also led a round trip to Russia. Before becoming commander of the Far Eastern Fleet, he was the head of a Russian-American company. At the same time, he was also an excellent naval officer.

Therefore, his complaint is very reasonable from a military point of view.

After the Battle of Osaka Bay, the strength of the Russian Eastern Fleet was greatly reduced, and it was no longer possible to blockade the coast of China with the Ryukyus as a base. Therefore, this Ryukyu country has become a chicken rib, and it is not very willing to give up. There is little point in continuing the occupation, especially since it is a bit dangerous to leave the entire Eastern Fleet here.

However, the Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Navy, Marshal Menshikov, insisted that the Eastern Fleet was valuable. Although the fleet has lost the ability to threaten China's coast, it can still attack China by attacking merchant ships. And the departure of the fleet from the Ryukyus is more favorable than from Petropavrovsk. Because the latter is too far from the Pacific and South Sea routes.

But the question arises, when will the fleet leave the Ryukyus to rob merchant ships? His Majesty the Tsar had made up his mind to go to war with Turkey, but he had no intention of going to war with Britain, France, or China. If the Eastern Fleet now goes out of port to rob. Isn't it tantamount to pushing Russia into war with China, Britain, and France? So this is not allowed. The Eastern Fleet could only survive as pirates after the outbreak of war (with China, Britain and France).

But. Will the Ryukyus get news of war here faster than India, the Straits Settlements, and French Annam? I'm afraid that the news of the declaration of war has not yet arrived, and the British Indian fleet, the Far East Fleet, the French Far East Fleet, and the Ming Navy have already surrounded the Ryukyus, right?

So after Baron Wrangel took over the Eastern Fleet, he was worried all day long, and everyone lost a lot of weight. In addition to being afraid, he certainly took some other action. First of all, Naha was fortified by building forts and forts, and purchasing large-caliber artillery from the Spaniards in the Philippines to house Naha's naval fortress. A number of Russian hunters were also recruited from Alaska to serve as soldiers at the naval fortress of Naha.

The second is to let several light ships fly the Stars and Stripes and pretend to be Americans to go around the Strait of Malacca, hoping to get the news of the war as soon as possible.

"Maybe we can take the initiative and sneak attack the Chinese naval base in Dinghai." It is checked. It was not too well defended, and no fortified coastal batteries were built. ”

Chief of Staff Nevelskoy, the same one who had visited the military parade of the Ming army in the Mulan paddock, suggested. His suggestion was actually even more deceitful, the Ming army did not build any forts in Dinghai, because there were six steam ironclad ships there, which were much more powerful than forts. If the Russian fleet is sent to the door, it will be meat buns for dogs.

"This is too risky, I plan to take the fleet out to sea in a few days and go around the South Pacific......"

Baron Wrangel muttered to himself. Now that he is suffering for one more day if he stays in the Ryukyus, it is better to leave the Ryukyus as soon as possible and go to the South Pacific to avoid the limelight. There are many islands in the South Pacific Ocean. It's not too difficult to get some supplies. It's even more difficult to get news of Europe, but it's better than waiting for the enemy to come to your door in the Ryukyus.

"Baron. As soon as the fleet left, the Ryukyus could not be defended, and the Japanese army was not weak. ”

Nevelskoy's reminder allowed Wrangel to push the thought out of his mind. Now in addition to Britain, France and China, there is also a little Japan! Their navy, naturally, is not worth mentioning, but they have an army that is not weak. If the Russian Navy left, the fortress of Naha would certainly not be able to withstand the attack of the Japanese Army......

Just when Baron Wrangel was in a dilemma, a second lieutenant of the Russian Navy suddenly walked in hurriedly: "Your Excellency, Brigadier General Perry, commander of the US East India Fleet, asks to see you." ”

The U.S. East Indies Fleet was one of the black ships that blasted Japan open the door in history, and he also received a similar task at this time and space - to force Japan to sign an unequal treaty, and a little earlier than in history, in May 1851, after the news of the Russian occupation of the Ryukyus reached the United States, he came to Japan with four steam ships. In the eyes of the U.S. government at the time, small Japan would definitely not be able to defeat Great Russia, so the task of forcing Japan to open the country must have been completed by the Russians. However, the United States still has to make a treaty with Japan......

But when Perry arrived in Singapore, he heard the news that he couldn't believe that the Russians had lost the battle in Osaka Bay! Having lost a first-class battleship and 2,000 marines - the Japanese actually had a new army of tens of thousands of men!

This is still forcing a hairy, tens of thousands of new army! Pulling all the men and horses of the US Army to fight Japan may not be able to take it! However, Perry did not leave Asia because of this, but continued to wander in East Asia, going to a Chinese port today to take measurements, and then being driven away by the Chinese navy. A few days later, I went to the coast of North Korea again, but I was hit by a shell and had no place to reason. After a while, I would like to visit Yokohama or Nagasaki with the flag of the Dutch or the Ming Dynasty......

In short, I really want to do something, but unfortunately the United States in this era is still some distance from imperialism, and neither the Ming Dynasty nor Japan takes the United States too seriously. So the tired Perry ran into walls everywhere, and in the end, he only signed a treaty with the Ryukyu Kingdom under the control of Russia - Russia actually got along well with the United States at this time! During the Civil War, Russia still resolutely sided with the North and supported the unification cause of the United States, and did not hesitate to send a fleet to threaten Britain and France, which wanted to support the South.

And just when Perry was about to pack up and go back to China, he actually got the news of the "Jiayong Coup".

"What? The daughter of former Japanese general Tokugawa Iekei instigated a coup d'état by the Japanese Army, took control of Kyoto, and deposed the Japanese emperor! ”

Baron Wrangel stood up suddenly, and a blush suddenly rose on his face: "General Perry, is the news reliable?" ”

Japan did not have a founding country, but only diplomatic relations with China, and only the Dutch had access to Dejima (a small island of less than a square kilometer) in Nagasaki for whites. After the Battle of Osaka Bay, Japan was extremely tough on the European and American ships that went to test the situation, and all the artillery expelled them. And those guns were all purchased from Zhu Jishi, either 32-pounder guns or 68-pounder guns, and they were also equipped with flowering shells! Those ships that go to temptation are generally disgraced and swept away.

Therefore, the white people of today can only learn a little about the inside of Japan through the Chinese merchants who have been to Japan and the Japanese samurai in China. But the knowledge is often inaccurate and comprehensive, especially for the Japanese samurai in China, who all hate whites and rarely tell the truth.

"This information is very reliable, both the Dutch and Chinese businessmen from Japan to Hong Kong. And the most reliable source was a minister of the emperor who had escaped from Japan, named Iwakura Goshi. He fled to Hong Kong on a Dutch ship, where he approached the U.S. Consulate for help. He said that this 'Kaei coup' was a conspiracy of the Chinese emperor to control Japan! The woman who orchestrated the coup d'état was the wife of the Chinese emperor, and the general she supported was the adopted son of the Chinese emperor. The Emperor of China, through these two men, has taken control of the supreme power in Japan! The next step may be to annex Japan! I think this is an opportunity to intervene no matter what, even if it can't stop the annexation, and it can't make Japan close its doors to both of us forever. Your Excellency, please let the fleets of our two countries act together! (To be continued......)