A.D. 1** 4th September 29th.

Hiroshima, the base camp of the army.

The drunkenness that has filled the base camp in the past few days has disappeared, leaving only a sultry irritability before the mountain rain is about to come. Even the weather that should have been sunny in autumn seems to be as hot as summer these days.

Figures came and went, and the army and navy generals, senior civil officials, all gathered indoors, each sweating profusely. But no one thought to wipe it, just stared at the map, staring at the newspapers and telegrams that shuttled back and forth.

A few days ago, the carnival furnishings on the balcony had not been removed, and a few bottles of foreign wine were still placed on the white tablecloth. But no one went to the balcony to drink and sing and revel. The sea breeze mixed with the hot and dry air blew through the white tablecloth, but it looked like a shroud for a large burial.

“…… The US minister to China, Tian Bei, has already made a phone call, and Li Hongzhang euphemistically told him that he will not be responsible for future matters and will no longer be able to bear responsibility! ”

A courier from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs hurried into the conference room of the base camp, and before anyone arrived, he had already loudly reported the latest telegram received. The messenger was dressed in a neat Western-style dress, but the white hard collar had long been torn open for himself, and his neat oily hair was messy, so he just rushed in and shouted.

There were several gasps in the room, and several army generals jumped up in the lead, and the chairs rattled with ping-pong noise.

"The people of China are the most cunning! What has been said doesn't count! ”

Some generals shouted at Baron Zhiyi, the vice minister for foreign affairs who was sitting in the middle of the people, his body was stiff, and his eyes were straight: "Diplomats are all rice buckets, and they should all be seppuku!" Who assured the military department that Li Hongzhang could be grasped with a solid grasp? Also proposed to start demobilization of the Army? Who fell for the people of China? Now Li Hongzhang has said that he is irresponsible, and the words he said at the beginning of the proposal for the demobilization of the army have shaken the determination of His Majesty the Emperor on the front line to fight to the end! The military department will never assume this responsibility! ”

He sat there dumbfounded, not moving his eyes. After the Qing Dynasty started the war, he was recalled to China because he knew the domestic situation of the Qing Dynasty and was promoted to the position of vice minister of foreign affairs as a representative of the foreign affairs department to participate in the base camp. does not assume overall diplomatic responsibility - fundamentally speaking, after the establishment of the base camp, the power of the entire Daishomoto Empire was concentrated in the hands of Ito Hirobumi for a time. The steps and channels for negotiating peace talks with the Qing State are all controlled by Ito Hirobumi himself, not to mention that he is a well-prepared foreign minister, even the foreign minister can't speak.

However, Foreign Minister Ben was originally a veteran of the army, Count Mutsu Somitsu, and now he is leading the Third Army to fight in Shandong. Now that the negotiations are unfavorable, the situation has been reversed, these army leaders, if they don't vent their anger at him, to whom?

He didn't want to tell the difference, and he couldn't tell the difference. He himself is confused. He has been an envoy to the Qing Dynasty for more than ten years, and he boasts that he deeply understands everything in all aspects of this ancient empire.

This old empire, which has disintegrated from top to bottom, is far behind the times, and not only has its national strength declined to a certain extent, but even this declining national power cannot be fully mobilized. Just kick the door hard and the whole old house will collapse. In short, an empire that is not a modern nation-state cannot survive in this world at all, and it is even doubtful that how many people in the entire Qing Dynasty can understand the term modernized nation-state!

The previous development of the situation turned out to be as most of the Empire's celebrities had expected. Although there were some minor setbacks in the Korean War, the blow to the Qing headquarters was quite smooth. The center of the Qing State did not have the ability and courage to mobilize the whole country to fight. Once the whole country is mobilized to fight, it will inevitably lead to the breaking of the weak balance that Cixi has painstakingly managed. The center of the Qing State no longer dared to face the situation after this balance was broken. I'd rather go on like this lifeless.

And the tide of resistance of the whole country to the end is stirred up – in other words, the will of the modern nation-state is revealed. Either it is wise and enlightened, and the educated people will acquire this realization spontaneously. Either there is an epoch-making figure who will lead this tide to sweep everything by his victory. Looking at the Qing Kingdom, how could there have been such a great figure? As long as he concentrates on defeating the water and land strength of Beiyang, Li Hongzhang, who is already the first-rate figure in the Qing Kingdom, has fallen, who can replace him, be the mainstay of this, and inspire such a big empire to resist and fight to the end?

Li Hongzhang really collapsed, he is not a figure who can surpass the times.

The center of the Qing Kingdom really decided to surrender. They are afraid that the status quo will be broken, and it is better to surrender to Yuben.

The local governors with real power in the Qing Kingdom really did not express any fierce expressions, and the Qing people were as chaotic as ever, because there was no one who led such a trend, let people follow, and let the thunder oscillate into the depths of this old empire!

When the telegram of the Qing State seeking peace arrived, these navy and army, civilian officials and chaebol elites who were gambling on their own country's fortunes were so ecstatic!

When I opened my eyes one step ahead, I was even more fortunate to gather so many talented people and people with lofty ideals to gather in the year of the Meiji era, which is said to be the history of the two thousand and hundreds of years of the Jimmu era, and I have never had such luck! Twenty years of painstaking management, twenty years of always planning and arranging, coldly looking at the old empire across the sea, and twenty years of gambling on all the desperate military affairs. For the first time in more than 2,000 years, this impoverished island nation has the opportunity to climb to the top of Asia!

These super bulls, who have never had them for 2,000 years, can be said to have used all their efforts to deduce the outcome of this war before this battle, and arrange it step by step. Even if it is counted as such a weak family foundation, it is almost exhausted to fight to this point - this is different from Xu Yifan's scale of operations that always maintains a corner of the land and does not easily seek supplies for the battle, it is a huge war that traverses two seas and supports a comprehensive attack by more than 100,000 troops on overseas and external fronts. And Xu Yifan doesn't have to maintain a modern gold-swallowing giant beast that consumes huge amounts - the navy.

Although it can be said that it is a gamble on the fortunes of the country, from Ito Hirobumi to the commander of the unit who specifically commanded the operation, they all believe that the success of this war is 70% certain.

However, there was a Xu Yifan in the Qing Dynasty.

This comet-like figure who has risen to the top of East Asian politics has changed the tide of the war so profoundly. Let all their plans, all their ambitions, be in vain!

The Qing state announced its peace and surrender.

Xu Yifan did not fall.

He has a strong army that has annihilated two field divisions of the Yue Army, he occupies the position of the inner line of Liaoxi and Liaonan, he has incorporated tens of thousands of Qing troops in Liaonan, and he seems to know that as long as the fight continues, it will be difficult to continue!

The most important thing is not this, but that he has already gathered a trend. It's not that the Qing Kingdom doesn't have the strength to fight, but that they don't have a mainstay to lead them into battle. Xu Yifan has replaced the grizzled Li Hongzhang and has become the hope of the world for a while!

It is not that Zhiyi did not evaluate Xu Yifan and his forces at the beginning, and the channels for collecting intelligence on the Qing State are multifaceted and multi-layered, but the evaluation of Xu Yifan, the information summarized from various channels and the final judgment are similar. The foreign affairs department's evaluation of Xu Yifan is particularly high, because he knows some of Xu Yifan's inside story in Nanyang. Think he has considerable strength. However, everyone thinks that Xu Yifan is located in Haidong, and he is not as well-equipped as Li Hongzhang, and he has a lot of Austrian aid in all aspects of the Qing Dynasty's political arena, and his financial resources are also abundant, so he is not a force that surpasses Li Hongzhang. Everyone also thinks that Xu Yifan is very ambitious, and when the army attacked the Qing headquarters and Li Hongzhang, careerists like him, according to the traditional path of Chinese history, should be provocative according to the soldiers, and the worse the defeat of the Qing headquarters and Li Hongzhang, the more opportunities he has to fish in troubled waters. The center of the Qing Kingdom was originally very unkind to see Xu Yifan, the strength at hand is the capital of his life, will he fight his capital for the Qing Kingdom?

The original judgment of Xu Yifan's force after the war started was that Xu Yifan was likely to take advantage of this war to retreat from Korea to Manchuria, and it was likely to include both Jihei and Jihei, get out of the way, and then take the opportunity to take advantage of Fengtian. No one thought he would resist resolutely.

No one expected that Xu Yifan resolutely resisted and made the army suffer a big loss. returned to the division for thousands of miles, and when the world was all down, he shouted out that deafening sound.

Xu Yifan, don't fall!

This wave of agitation is so great that the elite of the Meiji era, which has been cultivated by the vitality accumulated in the past 2,000 years, may have lost all their life's painstaking efforts!

Looking at the red eyes of the generals of the army, Zhiyi could only sigh in his heart. He didn't mind the anger of these soldiers. I just feel that my heart is empty and blocked, where is this war going to end?

As soon as the war begins, it is necessary to think about how to end it. It is said that he was approaching a big country with a small number of soldiers, but what he originally wanted was to deter the stunned opponent with lightning speed. This is the purpose of unfolding the battle in three places at once.

But what happens when the war can't be over?

The wind outside was getting louder and louder, but not a trace of the sea breeze blew into the meeting room of the base camp. The air pressure is getting lower and lower, making everyone feel out of breath. Everyone was sweating like rain and their faces were pale.

Footsteps were heard outside the room again, and the eyes of the staff of the base camp sitting in the room turned their eyes. Now all the information that comes is diplomatic information, and all the transmission of military information is suspended, and the sound of footsteps outside must be the messenger. Who knows what bad news will be sent! The dozens of people sitting in the room seemed to be hypnotized by the collective, with all kinds of eyes - crazy, sluggish, unwilling, desperate, angry, irritable...... At this moment, they all converge in one place, turning neatly and slowly. Even his breath was held at this moment.

In the silence, I saw a messenger who specialized in delivering diplomatic information walked to the door with a pale face, holding an intelligence pouch in his hand, and the seal was full of fire, but looking at the courier's expression, he clearly knew what the information in the pouch was.

“…… The Qing State has already issued an edict asking for peace, which was done by Weng Tonggong without authorization...... Weng Tongyi has been dismissed and returned to his hometown, and Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty personally issued an edict not to negotiate peace with the empire, but to appoint Xu Yifan and Li Bingheng as ministers of the north and south, and fight with the empire to the end! ”

The hearts of everyone in the room seemed to fall to the bottom at once, and the feeling of falling from the high platform seemed to be able to hear the sound of shattering!

Yu Zhiyi closed his eyes, he didn't have the wisdom to sort out the messy thoughts now, he just deeply felt that the history of East Asia, from this moment, has been deeply different.

The brief silence in the room was quickly broken, and several army and navy generals with blood-red eyes jumped up violently and banged on the table like madness.

"Punish these unfaithful Shina people!"

"The Imperial Army has 100,000 tigers, and it should attack to the death and wipe out all the Qing [***] teams that dare to resist!"

"Launch the Battle of the Zhili Plain! Burn the flames of war to the foot of Yanjing City, capture the Qing Emperor to Tokyo, and capture Xu Yifan to Tokyo! ”

"The Imperial Navy, which has crisscrossed East Asia, has not tasted defeat. Now it's even more unlikely to fail! Shelled Tianjin again, swept the Qing coast, in Tianjin, in Shanghai, in Guangzhou, in Taiwan...... Landing in all the ports of the Qing Kingdom! Even if there is one soldier and one ship left in the navy, we must fight to the end! ”

"The battle of the Zhili Plain, the battle of the Zhili Plain! Kawakami-kun's last wish, let's fulfill it for him! ”

This battle of the Naoli Plain was the final battle envisaged when Kawakami Yoroku was alive and presided over the compilation of the battle outline. Now that the war has progressed, all the units of the army have been scattered and trapped in three battlefields, and the navy is even more exhausted. Even if Xu Yifan was not blocked in southern Liaoning, according to the strength that the army now has, it would be impossible to fight in Zhili. The Second Army and the Third Army, which maintained the ability to fight, had already exhausted all of its supply capacity, so how could such a major offensive be carried out again? Shouting now to advance this final battle is tantamount to a fool's dream.

National strength is the most real thing, especially when doing offensive national wars, it is impossible to be false at all. There is no doubt about how much there is a well-trained standing army, how many ships have the tonnage of transportation, how much foreign exchange can be used to buy arms and materials, and how much production capacity there is. It is said that it started from a foundation that is nearly 20 times weaker than the Qing Dynasty, and although the business over the years has taken advantage of opening its eyes to the world first, the national strength must be accumulated for a long time. Fighting on the enemy's territory, transporting every soldier to the enemy's territory, and firing every bullet is a manifestation of national strength. And the accumulation of these decades has long been exerted to the limit in this war!

But looking at the way those soldiers knocked the table loudly and the foam at the corners of their mouths splashed, who would dare to say more to the other staff members in the base camp?

I just don't know who it is, and muttered in a low voice: "These are all for Your Excellency Ito to make the final decision......"

A sentence reminded these soldiers, and one by one they widened their eyes and looked around: "What about Your Excellency Ito?" On this occasion, he needs to unify everyone's will, play His Majesty the Emperor, and fight to the end! Tens of thousands of soldiers sacrificed their lives, and the kings of Yama County and Kawakami became gods, and we have no choice but to continue fighting! ”

What about Hirobumi Ito? Even Yue Zhiyi, who had his eyes closed, opened his eyes and looked around. Ito must have known the news for a long time, and he has always controlled the course of the war with his iron fist. At this time, what kind of countermeasures will Your Excellency Ito use? He's got to find a way, right?

The sea breeze grew stronger and stronger, dark clouds piled up in the sky, and the wind finally blew into the conference room of the base camp. The sea breeze with damp moisture came in and blew the windows rattling, and the orderlies hurriedly went to close the windows. The atmosphere in the room seemed to be loosened by the sea breeze, and the soldiers ripped their necks indiscriminately, gasping for breath, and the roars became louder and louder, and when you listened to it from the outside, it seemed that the headquarters conference room was no different from an insane asylum.

Just as these roars reached the highest point, a cold voice came from the entrance: "Who is going to fight to the end?" ”

Everyone stopped their voices at once, and when they turned their eyes, they saw Ito Hirobumi's tall figure standing at the door, dressed neatly, handing over his top hat to the orderly who was standing, looking dressed up and ready to go to Tokyo to meet His Majesty. His face was still moving, his hair was neat, but the bags under his eyes were deep and large, as if he hadn't slept for several nights.

He strode to the front of the conference table and glanced at the cluttered desk. What telegrams, maps, ashtrays full of cigarette butts, were everywhere on the conference table where I grew up. Everyone watched his actions with bated breath, especially the soldiers, who turned red one by one.

Ito Hirobumi's cold gaze swept around, swept away the messy things in front of him, and pushed them all to the ground, and the rumbling sound frightened everyone's hearts.

"The empire is not sinking, why is it so flustered?"

His voice was calm, which made everyone unconsciously sigh out. An army officer took advantage of the situation to stand up, knocked his riding boots and bowed his head and saluted: "Your Excellency! I beg your Excellency to give the order to immediately fight with the whole army and completely defeat the Qing Kingdom! The empire still has strength, please let the people perish if they are not willing to surrender! ”

One voice rose and a hundred voices were heard, and all the soldiers stood up, and everyone saluted and bowed their heads. I was very emotional, and I was in tears, looking at Hirofumi Ito!

The dark clouds on the horizon flashed brightly, illuminating the gloomy interior, and everyone's faces were pale and bright.

Ito looked at the soldiers coldly. said lightly: "Forget it...... It's time to wrap up. The contemptible people will rush to Tokyo to play His Majesty the Emperor and end the war. The final guidance of the base camp to the army and navy is to prepare for retreat and demobilization, and other matters are resolved politically and diplomatically. ”

At this time, the thunder came from a distance, muffled and repeated in the dark clouds in the sky, but no matter how much the thunder rolled, it couldn't compare to Ito Hirobumi's words!

With a thud, the saber that an army officer had been clenching in his hand fell to the wooden floor.

Another officer immediately took the case: "The empire was not defeated, why should the army and navy suffer such humiliation?" Sir, are you serious? Your Excellency, please don't be a thief of the Empire! ”

His Majesty the Emperor will never approve of such a betrayal! Your Excellency, please retract what you said! ”

"This is the national thief, the national thief!"

"The army and navy do not obey the chaotic instructions of the base camp! Otherwise, the monarchs who have no face to become gods will have no shame to face the people of the empire! They sent their sons into the army to fight to the death for the empire, and they worked diligently and took out the last copper plate, not to make us admit defeat! ”

"The army and navy also have the right to play the battle, and we will swear to the death to ask Your Majesty to personally guide the war and carry out the war to the end!"

At this time, not only the military staff of the base camp, but also many civilian staff members jumped up and spoke loudly. Several officers even stood up and put away their briefcases and strode out. The soldiers who remained in the field had lost their usual appearance of being obedient to Ito Hirobumi, clenched their fists and shouted, their fingers almost pointing at his face.

And Ito Hirobumi just looked coldly at these elite staff members of the base camp who had gone crazy.

Outside, heavy rain poured down.

I don't know how long it took for these staff members to leave angrily one by one. There is no doubt that the Army and Navy will exercise their power to oppose Ito's incomprehensible decision.

Although Xu Yifan of the Qing Kingdom did not surrender and turned the overall situation around, in the whole battle, Yue Ben still had the upper hand! If you fight one more dozen, you can still seek a decent ending!

In the conference room, only one person remained. Ito Hirobumi stood there without moving, the light of the lightning outside the window illuminated his face for a while, and his face was bright and dark. His back had always been straight, and at this time, he gradually bent down.

Zhiyi stood up gently, walked to Ito Hirofumi's side, and bowed his head and saluted: "Your Excellency......"

Ito seemed to wake up at this time, glanced at him, and said with a wry smile: "Zhijun, are you also against me?" ”

Yue Zhiyi shook his head slowly: "I trust Your Excellency's judgment, but it's hard to figure it out......"

Ito smiled wryly: "Who doesn't understand? It's just that you don't want to admit defeat! ”

He looked gloomy: "War is never about the success or failure of the number of killings, but only the continuation of politics...... The empire rose up and struck a blow in the First Sino-Japanese War, which was nothing more than taking advantage of the changes in the overall situation in East Asia. The British and French powers needed a force that could balance Russia's expansion in the Far East. The empire was a small country, and it was easier to control than the Qing state. Therefore, they are happy to see our victory over the Qing Kingdom, and they can share the dividends of our victory...... But once the war was deadlocked, especially in Manchuria, it gave the Russians an excuse to get involved...... The British and French powers absolutely did not want to see such a situation occur. If we can't win quickly, we can only admit defeat! Without their support, the empire would never have been able to defeat the Qing alone!

…… If the war continues to stalemate, various forces will be involved. It is difficult to guess how the Qing Kingdom will end. But after all, it is easy for the big countries to survive this storm, and they have buffer space. It's a small book, but there is only a top share! We have earned respect, for the sake of the future, we have to retreat, and if we continue to fight, we will only lose all the chips in our hands! Everyone understands this truth, but they don't have the courage to admit it...... We'll just have to go back and wait for the next chance......"

Said Zhiyi just listened silently, and said in Ping, with the respect of Ito Hirobumi, it would never be possible to pour out his heart with him at length like this. At this time, Ito Hirobumi was the loneliest person in the entire book.

"Your Excellency, if we return it, will we have a chance next time?"

Ito didn't answer for a while, just walked to the window and looked at the heavy rain outside. Outside the port of Ujina, the deep black waves rolled, the white foam spread over the sea like a slanting mist, and a fishing boat that had not had time to return to the port passed through the undulating waves like a mountain, and it was precarious.

"We ...... The best opportunity in more than 2,000 years may have been missed...... I really want to make Yuben stand at the top of Asia...... Even if it's only for a hundred years......"

(To be continued)