The merchant ship converted from the Haiao ship sailed through Uraga Chong and entered Edo Bay, Luo Wugui stood on the bow of the ship and inspected Uraga Chong, not letting go of any detail, but was pierced by another gaze and sent a chill in the neck.

Tamarira, one of the courtiers of the Satsuma Domain, sent Shimazu Moritsune and him to escort the "Angel of the Kingdom" Chen Xinghua to the shogunate palace in Edo. Shimazu Sheng often treats Chen Xinghua with respect, but this Yuli Liang is always full of vigilance.

Luo Wugui is the general Wei Lang of the Beiyang Fleet, the captain of the Haihe cruiser, and the cadre general under Bai Yanding. That calm and solemn temperament, looking up to find where the threat came from, converged into a smell that was both familiar and unfamiliar, a little like their samurai, but lacking a humble side.

Luo Wugui glared back impatiently, and snorted coldly, Yu Liliang lowered his eyes, and his waist was habitually bent.

"I really can't be soft on this widow......

"Well, yes, the Japanese people I met in Nanyang are like this, their waists are folded diligently, and their knives are also sharp."

Fan Sihai came and chatted with Luo Wugui, the former eldest brother and younger brother got together again, things are wrong, but because they all serve the country, their feelings are still retained.

"Ataka ship? Yijing can't see it much, it's basically Guan Ship and Xiao Zao, and the biggest Guan Ship is only two or three hundred materials. ”

"That's big? Our sea carp ships can be bullied at will. ”

"The Japanese ship didn't have a keel, it was built by the rib board, or it would have sunk in the Battle of Imchen. It's a waste to bombard with a cruiser's thirty-pound guns. ”

"I've seen a ship left behind by the Japanese in the Ryukyus, and I thought it was a merchant ship, but it turned out to be their warship?"

Fan Sihai chatted with Luo Wugui, and his words were filled with the heat of artillery fire.

"But can this battle really be fought? Although the Japanese are vigilant and vigilant against us, they are more afraid like that Yuli Liang's eyes, and they can't get enough of General Secretary Chen, oh, Governor Chen let the Japanese open the door with a mouth. ”

Luo Wugui was very optimistic about the prospects of this mission, of course, from the perspective of the navy.

"Open the door? What the official family wants is not as simple as opening the door, this battle must be fought, and Governor Chen's mouth is for this. ”

Fan Sihai had other feelings, Luo Wugui looked at his former boss, and said that the eldest brother is the eldest brother.

Changing to a small boat and going ashore, an old man of the shogunate greeted him, and bowed down to Chen Xinghua, who was dressed in a purple robe and swaying in a black gauze hat, and behind him, Shimazu Shengtsune, Yuri Liang and Zhenfu Nobuhei also knelt down together.

Yuri Liang grinded his teeth a little unwillingly and said: "Your Excellency, the Satsuma Domain has done its best to talk about the Ryukyu for the Lordship, and I hope that the Satsuma Domain will understand the painstaking efforts of the Satsuma Domain." ”

Shimazu Moritsu said respectfully: "The upper kingdom rules thousands of miles, Japan is only the lower country, the Satsuma domain is the lower country, and the Ryukyus are even more delicate." It is also hoped that the Lords will be lenient and gracious, and the Satsuma Domain will have a respite between the Lordship and the Kingdom. ”

Zhenfu Xinping also said: "Hundreds of thousands of Chinese atomic people are in Japan, and I hope that the envoy will not forget them!" Peace ......"

Chen Xinghua smiled, waved his hand, and nodded noncommittally.

In the shogunate palace, the noise was overwhelming, and Tokugawa Yoshimune, the eighth shogun of the Edo shogunate, was in the midst of the controversy, his face expressionless.

"Eleven years ago, sixteen Ming vassal kings sacrificed to the heavens and passed the Ming law to the British, and the Chinese law fell on the British! There is no doubt about it! ”

"Emperor Shengdao is not a man in the world, now he is only in his thirties, he has recovered half of China, and he has defeated Spain, the strongest power in Europa, how can we disobey his will for such a great king?" ..., "We closed the country because of Catholicism...... No, Roman Catholicism is a disaster in the hearts of the people. The Holy Daoist also forbade Roman Catholicism! The Portuguese have long been taken over Macau, and the Spaniards have been beaten out of Luzon, and the scourge has been removed! We should open our doors widely, follow the example of our ancestors, and continue to respect China! ”

Many of the elders and adherents are in this position, and Tokugawa Yoshimune is also struggling in his heart.

China, after all, is a role model for Japan. The Song Dynasty died in the Mengyuan period, but in less than a hundred years, the Ming Dynasty stood up again. Although the country is not as majestic as the Han and Tang dynasties, and the wealth is not as dazzling as the Song Dynasty, it is still like a giant dragon, dominating the east pole of this shijie.

After all, China has not escaped the fate of a catastrophe of three hundred years, more than 80 years ago, the Ming Dynasty was destroyed by the Manchu Qing, what is the situation of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, it is not very clear, it may destroy the Ming Dynasty, and it has been stable for so many years, it must be very powerful.

No xiangdao, from the south of China suddenly rose vengeful Han people, built the British Dynasty, more than ten years to occupy the entire south of China, although the whole of China has not been recovered, the country seems to be more prosperous than the Ming Dynasty, even the Spaniards who have been entrenched in Luzon for so long have been driven away, the Dutch are more British as the lord of the South Seas, do not dare to step across the Lei Chi.

The shogunate rules a country, and the shogunate rules the world, although the country is closed, the eyes and ears are not closed, and the shogunate has a conclusion about this British dynasty: it is powerful and difficult to match.

We in Japan have always admired the strong, and such neighbors must of course bow their heads and serve and study hard.

But......

After Tokugawa Yoshimune succeeded to the throne, he was forced by the financial pressure of the shogunate to implement reforms. Not only has the policy of locking the country been relaxed, but it has also made great efforts in agricultural affairs. Under the slogan of "restoring the old system of the shogunate", the shogunate strengthened its control over each feudal domain, and at the same time, it carefully opened the window cracks that penetrated overseas.

During the first decade of Tokugawa Yoshimune's succession, he continued to strictly adhere to the policy of seclusion, allowing only Dutch ships to trade in designated Nagasaki and other places, and only one ship a year, and the sea trade was still dominated by China and Korea. However, it is also allowed to import Western books translated by Chinese, so that China can learn "the study of the world" and solve urgent practical problems.

This was a balancing act of last resort, so why did the shogunate lock down the country? On the surface, the reason was that he was afraid of the impact of the hearts and minds of the Roman Catholic Church, but in fact, he suppressed the feudal domains by sealing off the country and maintaining the absolute power of the shogunate above the feudal domains.

For this reason, he also continued, and even magnified, the policies of the generals of previous dynasties, built a "holy church", and taught Cheng Zhu Lixue, so that "righteousness" was deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.

Seeing that this "Xiangbao reform" is about to be completed, China's changes are like a hurricane, which continues to blow from the south. Cochin, Quang Nam, Siam and even Luzon all became the territories of the British dynasty in southern China, and even as far as Funan. It is said that because the Nanyang is more profitable, and there are no such cumbersome procedures and restrictions, not only are there fewer and fewer smuggling "Chinese ships" coming to Japan, but even the regular merchant ships are not enough.

Gradually, he learned more about the things in the south, and Tokugawa Yoshimune faintly tasted the taste, this Great Britain is indeed strong, but it seems to be walking an incomprehensible road, closer to the path of Westerners.

This made him suspicious, and it also made the shogunate quietly watch for the past few years, seeing where Daiei would go and what would become of him.

Before the play was finished, he was pulled onto the stage, and Daying began to look north, and with just a faint glance, he grabbed the Ryukyus.

Ryukyu is just the territory of the Satsuma Domain, and it was secretly announced, even if it is trouble, it is only the trouble of the Satsuma Domain, and he and the shogunate ministers both think so, so there is no reaction, and I feel that I can continue to watch. ..., well, the choice finally came to the door, and the British sent envoys to ask for clarification of the suzerainty of the Ryukyus.

The suzerainty of the Ryukyus was not a big problem, and what made the important ministers of the shogunate fight for each other was the future of Japan and how Japan should get along with the British.

Many important ministers suggested that they should be friendly with Great Britain so that they could learn from it, and Tokugawa Yoshimune also had this idea. He also grew up learning waka and Chinese since he was a child, and Cheng Zhu is also very proficient in learning, China is a high mountain that enters the clouds, always standing in front of Japan's eyes, and it is difficult to surpass. Pursuing and surpassing China is the deepest dream in the heart of any general who rules the world.

But in the past few years, the books imported from China, as well as those "newspapers", show that great changes are taking place in China, and such changes have confused Tokugawa Yoshimune, who is familiar with Cheng Zhu, Han and Tang and Song Ming.

The hundreds of schools of thought of the ancient pre-Qin dynasty and the various theories of the European countries were all integrated under the "Heavenly Dao", and they were also parallel to the Catholicism of the people, making the face of the British seem particularly mixed and unfathomable.

Unable to understand such a China, the shogunate and he still closed the door of Japan tightly until Britain knocked on the door for the suzerainty of the Ryukyus.

"Britain and North Korea only occupy a corner of China, and cannot represent the whole of China at all! I heard that the country is full of greedy businessmen who are manipulating national affairs, so we in Japan should stay away from them and never have anything to do with them! ”

"The Ryukyus are only the first step in the British invasion of our Japan, and the Emperor of the Holy Way is so happy that he is fighting on all sides of the South Seas, and he must have the ambition to conquer our whole of Japan! We should be on guard like the Mongols! ”

"There must be no backsliding! Once the Ryukyus were ceded, what would happen to the Satsuma Domain? They will only be more dissatisfied with our shogunate! We should protect the majesty of the shogunate, and under the banner of the safety of all Japan, unite all the feudal clans to resist the British and the DPRK, so that they will surely retreat in the face of difficulties! ”

Tokugawa Yoshimune was a little panicked, he didn't know how to deal with it, and his original knee-jerk reaction was to quickly spit out the Ryukyus, angering this rising new China, which was by no means a good thing. But the roars of other important ministers made him realize the dignity of being a Japanese and the duty of being a shogun.

"Baga! You red deer don't think about the old things that happened more than a hundred years ago? And something that was more than a thousand years old? We, the Yamato nation, from ancient times to the present, can only respect China and take China as our teacher. Even if a figure like Taige can call on the people of the world to gather a million troops, what will be the final result? ”

"We have always studied China, and even the knowledge of Westerners can only be understood by relying on Chinese translations. I heard that they sent a powerful fleet to Europa, and now that Yijing has learned the knowledge of Westerners, plus the knowledge that China has possessed for thousands of years, such a great country, do we still think we can get along with it on an equal footing? ”

"Recently, there have been more and more books coming from China, and they are becoming more and more incomprehensible. The kind of steel machinery that roared and spewed black smoke was everywhere in Britain, capable of lifting 10,000 pounds of weight, turning dozens of looms, and spinning silk and cotton cloth at surprisingly low prices. Their warships are in no way inferior to the Westerners, and the Portuguese say that their national collapse is unparalleled in the world, and they can tear the earth apart, open your eyes and take a closer look! ”

A young junior priest stood up and spoke excitedly.

"Wisdom! Knowledge! Great Britain is like the Tang Dynasty thousands of years ago, we in Japan can only look up and worship! Why not follow such a great country closely, but instead make enemies of Great Britain for a land that does not belong to us in the first place!? ”

This is Aoki Kunyang, the shogunate's book officer, presiding over the Edo Shrine and teaching Cheng Zhu Confucianism, but now he seems to have begun to deviate from the path of Confucian saints. ..., Tokugawa Yoshimune felt that Aoki had fallen into a frenzy of worship, and these words detracted from the majesty of the shogunate and his general, but unexpectedly Aoki Kunyang then shouted loudly: "Your Highness should be like Emperor Shumei, pay tribute to Great Britain!" Let's make Japan a vassal of Great Britain! ”

Everyone was in an uproar, and even the people who had previously advocated befriending Daying jumped up and scolded loudly. Japan is the country of Amaterasu, the emperor hangs the arch, and the general rules the world, how can it be possible to still claim to other countries?

Tokugawa Yoshimune finally made a decision, he could not offend the British, otherwise it would invite disaster, but he could not be too weak in front of the British envoys, otherwise it would be difficult to control the country. So...... In fact, he still didn't make a decision, so he could only listen to the true intentions of the British envoys first.

As if they were about to fight a big war, they cleaned up the main hall of the shogunate palace spotlessly, for fear of being seen dirty by the British envoys, Tokugawa Yoshimune also found Aoki Kunyang, regardless of his previous fanatical clamour, and humbly understood the official etiquette of the Great Britain, so as not to be embarrassed when he received the envoys.

It stands to reason that Tokugawa Yoshimune should not have shown his face so early, and he should be received by the elder to discuss practical issues, and then he would come forward to go through the motions, but at this critical juncture, he couldn't care about it.

In the main hall, under Chen Xinghua's long bow, Tokugawa Yoshimune's eyes were a little confused, he was really an angel of the kingdom, this dress, this temperament, it was authentic.

The general nodded, bowed slightly, and suddenly seemed to be too polite and lost his identity, but the elders, elders, and ministers who knelt around did not react, and they all felt that this was as it should be......

Chen Xinghua's cold voice echoed in the main hall: "This envoy came, in addition to the affairs of the Ryukyus, there is more important business, to explain to the king of Japan." ”

The originally quiet hall, because of this sentence, is more like falling into a frozen time and space.

Chen Xinghua's next words, like a giant god roaring in the sky, shook the hearts of Tokugawa Yoshimune and every Japanese present.

"I, the British Celestial Empire, join hands with the old feudal kingdoms to build Asia for common prosperity. Japan has been a vassal of China since ancient times, and it should be the only one who is the head ......of the Celestial Empire."

Look~~~

The echo of the last word did not seem to fade away in the hall, and the subordinates kneeling below were also in a daze, until Tokugawa Yoshimune let out a violent cough, and everyone woke up from a dream.

Vassals!?

Japan is a vassal of China!? It seems, seems, maybe, maybe...... There used to be such a saying.

Now this Great Britain is not here to talk about the suzerainty of the Ryukyus, but to talk about the suzerainty of Japan!

This, this, this......

What is this for!?

Tokugawa Yoshimune suppressed his urge to gasp for air, his eyes were round, and he stared at Chen Xinghua, and the expressions on the faces of his subordinates were also the same.

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