The sea is very calm. This book is from.

The First Fleet of the Zhenyang Fleet, headed by the "Jingyuan," embarked on the return road at this time, and at this time, the laughter and cheers all ended after the cannon sound and gunpowder smoke on the sea dissipated.

As a staff officer, Su Yueyang did not rejoice with his officers and colleagues in the officer's cafeteria, but walked quietly on the deck alone.

The calm sea made him feel empty inside.

In Su Yueyang's view, this war should have been a war where enemy and enemy shells flew around, they tore the air, and at that moment, there would be a strange loud noise in the vacuum environment created in an instant. The whole sea was boiling with falling shells, and the ships that were rushing in all directions burst into flames like crazy.

In the midst of the artillery fire, the officers and men of the enemy and the enemy competed for skill and will, and when all this was a thing of the past, the expression of the sea returned to calm, and all the warships sailed slowly. The dark gray hulls of the ships, with some peeling paint under the shells and flames, and the officers and sailors who had returned victoriously after a hundred battles cheered the victory, rejoicing in their own survival, but also saddened by the loss of their comrades.

However, in this war, the taste has changed.

"Why, why do you have to fire?"

Su Yueyang, who was standing on the upper deck, could not understand why the commander ordered the artillery to be fired, and even after the shelling finally stopped, he also ordered to "stop", and after watching from a distance for nearly three hours, he ordered the battleship to sail and ordered the rescue of the Japanese naval officers and men who had fallen into the water.

At this time, he couldn't help but think of that scene again, on the surface of the sea, a floating corpse, with severed arms and stumps floating on the sea, as the waves undulated, the water seemed to turn red.

Thinking of that scene, Su Yueyang's mood suddenly changed, tears flowed from his eyes, and tears flowed down his cheeks.

As a soldier, he thought he could accept that the tragic scene of the battle scene had caused a huge shock to him, and in his opinion, it was what a soldier had to face.

But is that scene something that the military must face?

No

It was a massacre

A real massacre

This is not only contrary to the morality of the military, but also to the creed of the navy.

But Su Yueyang found that he was powerless to stop all this, and even the other people around him agreed with all this.

"From now on, there will never be a Japanese navy in the seas of East Asia."

From the discussion of his colleagues, he vaguely understood what the commander meant, people, talents are the most precious, battleships need people to operate, no matter how advanced the battleship, it must also rely on people, and it needs the best sailors and officers to give full play to his advantages, and now?

The combined fleet, which was once ahead of China, no longer exists, not only in the sense of formation, but more importantly in the sense of personnel, the essence of the Japanese Navy for decades was destroyed in one day.

"Still can't accept it?"

A voice came from behind Su Yueyang, and listening to the thick Fujian accent, Su Yueyang turned around and saluted.

"Your Excellency"

After that, Su Yueyang wanted to leave, he really couldn't face this chief.

"I know,"

Liu Guanxiong sighed helplessly, with a hint of sadness in his expression, this was the first time he showed this kind of expression.

"None of you can accept my determination, but ......"

He looked at the fleet behind him, this intact fleet, from now on, this fleet will be the only force on the surface of the Eastern Sea, in the future it will be stronger, and it will dominate the sea of the Eastern Ocean.

"If we do that, we will have another war with Japan in 10 years."

"Impossible"

Su Yueyang, who was about to leave, said categorically.

"Impossible?"

staring at the young man with a smile, Liu Guanxiong shook his head and said.

"There is nothing impossible in the world, even half a year ago, we could not have known that there would be such a result today, and the Japanese never imagined that it would be like this for half a year, let alone ten years?"

Thirty years in Hedong and thirty years in Hexi, no one knows what the future will be, the chief's words made Su Yueyang silent for a while, but it was only a second or two later, he was arguing for his opinion again.

"But, but even then, we can't, we can't go, now, we can defeat them, ten years from now, we, we will definitely be able to defeat them"

"If you have the opportunity today, why wait until ten years from now?" ,

After a rhetorical question, Liu Guanxiong continued.

"After this war, China will really become a country that attracts people's attention, and we may even become an important international force, of course, if Westerners are unwilling to face it, it is not ruled out that we choose to use ......"

Although he didn't say the whole sentence, Su Yueyang still understood what the chief meant, and now China has the ability to use force to pursue its own interests.

"We're going to have a lot to gain and a lot to lose because of this war, and as soldiers, maybe we shouldn't think about all of that, but we have to take into account that in the next ten years, there will be a lot of changes in the empire, in terms of international status, in international cooperation, even in our enemies, in this war, Britain has shown their hostility towards us, so we have to take that into account, and it means a transformation."

"A change in status has led to a change in our foreign policy"

"That's right, so, at this time, we will have a new enemy, and this enemy will be stronger, and if this enemy, if we become an ally with Japan, in ten years, we may win, but we are more likely to lose"

"So ......"

"So, even if we bear the reputation of murder, as soldiers, we must solve this problem for the country"

After Liu Guanxiong spat out these words, Su Yueyang fell silent, and now the commander's intention is very clear, in order to avoid the re-emergence of the Japanese Navy in ten years, he must do this.

"......"

Just when Su Yueyang was about to say something more, Liu Guanxiong turned around and left, and when he left, he only dropped a sentence.

"Okay, pack your mind, we have to go home and celebrate the victory"

The chief's words made Su Yueyang can't help but muttered in his heart.

"Celebrate the victory, that...... What about Japan? ”

On 22 December, although the weather was clear in the morning, it became cloudy near noon. Tokyo Bay, a bay deep in the heart of the land, is more beautiful than most bays, but the snow-stained pine forests of Tokyo and the cape look black and the sea is also leaden.

Even in winter, it's definitely a gloomy weather.

By twelve o'clock in the afternoon, the sky began to snow, and the snow soon covered the whole city thickly, and it looked like it was going to fall. A few days ago, there were also several heavy snowfalls, and the snow was more than a foot deep at this time, which was a heavy snow that had not been encountered in more than ten years.

Despite its silver cloak, Tokyo still looks almost always Western and Eastern. In the decades since the Restoration, Japan has left behind much of what it used to belong to Asia and has become one of the most advanced and Westernized countries in Asia.

In the city of Tokyo, in the Imperial Palace behind the moat surrounded by ice, the stone path that had been carefully swept out of the garden would be covered with snow again, and at this time, although the sky was fluttering with snowflakes, Meiji, dressed in black robes, was pacing slowly in distraught, and the snow and the chill in the air seemed to reflect the dark clouds in the heart of the self-proclaimed descendant of Amaterasu.

At this time, the cloud is getting thicker and thicker.

In the past two years, this small country miraculously defeated Lucia, but that war, instead of bringing the expected economic benefits to Japan, everything was like a bottomless pool, absorbing Japan's military spending and soldiers. Even after the victory of the war, all the problems that had been hidden during the war, like demons rising in the wind, suddenly filled all corners of the island nation of Japan.

Inflation, depreciation of paper money, and the outflow of gold and silver coins, and the raw silk industry, which is the support of Japan's economy, was seriously affected in this economic turmoil.

And now, the empire is engaged in a war with unknown victories, the war against China, in order to divert the domestic crisis, but also to obtain war reparations and solve domestic problems, Japan must fight this war, but what is the result of this war?

"The Combined Fleet was defeated"

Thinking of yesterday's report, Meiji only felt that he was still dizzy, the Combined Fleet was defeated, four battleships and four armored cruisers were sunk, six battleships and armored cruisers suffered heavy damage, and now the Combined Fleet is shaky and cautiously retreating, and the most terrible thing is that the Chinese First Fleet has not yet been put into battle. ,

What would have happened if the First Fleet had discovered the Combined Fleet

Every time he thinks about this question, Meiji finds himself completely enveloped by a fear that he has never experienced before.

"I'm going to lose everything"

This is the first time that Meiji has used me to describe himself, as the supreme emperor, the word is inappropriate, but at this time, he can't think about so many issues.

If the combined fleet fails

What happens next?

The nearly 300,000 army deployed in Korea will become a lone army, and the DPRK will not be able to afford to support the 300,000 army in any case, and at that time, there will be no need for the Chinese army to attack, and it will only take a few months, and the army without any supplies may fall into collapse, and at this time, the door of the whole of Japan will be open to the Chinese navy.

Once the Combined Fleet was lost, all that remained of the Japanese Navy was a few dozen destroyers and torpedo boats, and at that point, the Chinese Navy would be able to shell any Japanese city along the coast whenever they wished.

If all this really happens, then Japan will have no choice but to seek an armistice by all means.

"I really shouldn't have done that."

Meiji muttered to himself, now that he regretted his choice, why couldn't he stick to it? Why do you have to let the ministers dictate their decisions?

During the Sino-Japanese War, he was swayed by the ministers and agreed to declare war on the Qing State, and during the Rilu War, he agreed to declare war on Lucia under their left and right, and won both times, but this time?

Have you forgotten that sentence, forgotten "can two cannot be three?" ”

Just as Meiji was in a state of panic and chagrin, a soft footstep came from behind him. He turned to look, and a military attache bowed to him.

"Your Majesty, Prime Minister Katsura and the Minister of Staff of the Teramachi Minister, Yamamoto Kaixiang, and Kodama are here."

Is it good news, or is it ...... Waving his hand, Meiji muttered again as he was thinking in his heart.

"I'll come."

When he reappeared, Meiji was still wearing the black kimono, he did not sit on the wide, imposing throne, and stood in front of the half-open window, looking at the lake in front of the window, which had already formed thin ice, the gentleman is good water, most of the time, he likes to look at the lake and think about problems, but he can't calm down.

Behind him, Prime Minister Katsura Taro, Rikusho Terauchi Masatake, Kai Xiang Yamamoto Gonbei, and Deputy Chief of Staff Kodama Gentaro were all standing there, but none of them took the initiative to speak.

"Say it"

The silence of the four made Meiji realize that it was bad news, and as the emperor, he had to remain calm, and he had to be calm no matter what, and Meiji, who attached great importance to how to maintain the Holy Honor in front of his civil servants and military generals and all the people, said to himself in his heart over and over again.

"I'm ready for bad news"

It's nothing more than bad news that's just a year late

Meiji said to himself in his heart, bad news that is a year late, just take it as a dream

The four people with solemn expressions looked at each other, and for a while, they didn't know who should tell His Majesty the news, they had patted their chests and told His Majesty that they would definitely win, no matter how strong China was, it would not be stronger than Lucia, but now?

"Your Majesty......"

Squeaked, Katsura Taro, as the prime minister, knew that he was the only one to tell His Majesty, but he just spat out two words, his voice became a little whimpering, and his vision in front of him was also blinded.

It seems that the situation is worse than I imagined

At this time, Meiji began to think of one person, Hirobumi Ito, who had told himself that no matter what, even if China tried everything to blackmail, Japan would have to endure it, otherwise it would ...... Why, Ito, hey......

Thinking that Ito was so dead, Meiji sighed in his heart, but he didn't show any expression on the surface, and even looked a little numb, so he cast his eyes on Katsura Taro, who seemed to be sobbing, and then turned his eyes to the sea phase, so it was up to him to tell himself the news.

"Combined Fleet ......"

When every word is spit out, Yamamoto Gonbei will give birth to a kind of suffocating pain.

The combined fleet is finished

The Combined Fleet ceased to exist

When the thunderous news sounded in Meiji's ears, he only felt a buzz in his ears, and there seemed to be no other sound in the heavens and the earth, only one voice.

The Combined Fleet was completely annihilated

"Why, why sink yourself"

At this time, he no longer cared about what he wanted to defend in front of the ministers, and he asked angrily with his eyes almost wide open. ,

"To avoid being captured by the Chinese His Majesty's warship"

As a member of the Navy, Gonbei Yamamoto could understand the approach of the front-line officers, and for them, it may be the only option.

In that case, it only takes one shell to sink the warships that have suffered heavy losses, and the warships can be sunk, but what about the officers and men of the navy on the ships? That was the last essence of the Japanese Navy, without them, no matter how many warships were bought, it would not be possible to build a navy.

"Combined Fleet"

After a wail, Meiji found that something seemed to slip through his eyes, tears, and it was a great irony that the combined fleet built by exhausting the imperial crossbow was actually destroyed by himself in the end.

"My Combined Fleet"

Looking at His Majesty, whether it was Katsura Taro or Yamamoto Gonbei, Terauchi Masatsuki and Kodama Gentaro all hung their heads, His Majesty's sorrow was definitely a great shame for the courtiers, enough to make them commit suicide.

But now is not the time to weep for the Combined Fleet.

"Your Majesty"

Gentaro Kodama raised his head and looked at His Majesty with tears in his eyes.

"Now, we have to prepare further"

"Ready, go and prepare what?"

Meiji, of course, didn't ask, as the emperor, he didn't even need to make any noise, he didn't need to express any attitude, the ministers would make decisions for him, and it was and still is.

“…… If it comes to that point, I am afraid that only His Majesty and hundreds of millions of Japanese subjects will work together to resist the invasion of the Lu Kingdom,......"

Once upon a time, it was also in the midst of that cold winter that Ito Hirobumi once said to himself what he had to do after defeat.

“…… The army will become a lone army in one fell swoop, and it will be completely wiped out in less than half a year, so ......"

At this time, Gentaro Tai was talking about something, Meiji didn't care at all, or it wouldn't have any effect on him at all, he just looked out the window, doing everything possible to calm himself down, in that fantasy, he already understood what would happen next, everything next couldn't be simpler, Japan had to face a choice, to be precise, a choice.

Whether to continue the war, or to end the war without any cost

But in the same way, Meiji also understood that the choice was not in his own hands at all, and in the small imperial palace in the neighboring country, the decision was now in the hands of that person.

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