At the headquarters of the Northern Expeditionary Army of the Guangzhou Military Government, Pei Gejin hurriedly broke into Deng Zixuan's office with a telegram in his hand. "Commander-in-chief, the good news is that Suizhou has won a great victory, 10,000 Qing troops and 8,000 Japanese troops have been eaten cleanly and completely, and the commander of the Japanese army's advancing column, Watanabe Kawao, has been killed!" Deng Zixuan heard that he let go of the documents in his hand, but he just showed them with a smile and didn't look surprised. "Commander-in-chief, why aren't you excited about the total annihilation of the Japanese troops you are expecting?" Pei Gejin didn't understand Deng Zixuan's calmness.

"It's to be expected, what's to get carried away. Frankly, it's a pleasure to hear the good news. Deng Zixuan still smiled. Commander-in-Chief, your composure is terrible, and compared to you, you are judged from above. You can be happy and angry, and you can simply cultivate to the home. Commander-in-chief, what to do with those Japanese prisoners? "Order Chen Jintang to take the Japanese prisoners of war to Guangxi to build roads, and let them know what the fate of robbery while the fire is burning." Those wounded soldiers of the Japanese army should be treated as much as possible, after all, we are an ancient civilization, and we must show benevolence. Deng Zixuan made a gesture in a dashing manner.

Pei Gejin was a little confused and said: "Commander-in-chief, there is a question I have always wanted to ask you, the small country of Dongying is not to be afraid. But I feel that you have a deep hatred with the Japanese, could it be that the Japanese have offended you? Deng Zixuan's face became serious and said: "Is my heart so narrow-minded, little Japan took advantage of the cowardice of the Qing court to forcibly occupy the Ryukyu Islands and send troops to harass Taiwan, this is a national hatred not a family hatred." Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty once roared wildly, although those who offend my big Han will be punished from afar, the small country of Puer is actually not self-sufficient, do you say that this shijie still has a royal law? ”

"It's my motivation to take little Japan first, and the purpose is to stimulate the Japanese. Frankly, I was depressed if the Japanese were not coming, and I very much hoped that the Japanese would send troops. The Yamato nation is a very vindictive nation, and the Emperor of Japan will definitely increase his troops, and this is exactly what I want. This time, I must beat little Japan down and make him surrender forever. "Commander-in-Chief, you are really far-sighted and insightful, yes! In the future, we have every reason to clean up the Japanese in a high-sounding manner! Pei Gejin once again understood Deng Zixuan's extraordinary.

In the capital, the headquarters of the coalition forces, McMahon was shocked to hear that the Japanese advance column had all been defeated, and he was furious and said like thunder: "Stupid pig, Watanabe Kawao is a stupid pig, he almost disrupted my defense, and ordered the French 6th Division to be immediately transferred to the Tongbai Mountain defense line to replace the Japanese monkey's defense area." Li Hongzhang was a little worried: "Will the Northern Expeditionary Army take the opportunity to launch an attack on Tongbai Mountain?" ”

McMahon shook his head and said: "It is impossible for the Northern Expeditionary Army to launch an attack on the Tongbai Mountains, and his target is still Xiangfan. The Northern Expeditionary Army took advantage of the victory to capture Suizhou, and the target was the Japanese, with the intention of declaring war on our Western countries in order to defeat the morale of our allied forces. It's a pity that the stupid pigs of the Japanese monkeys became the scapegoats. Warned Liu Mingchuan that the Northern Expeditionary Army would soon launch an attack on Xiangfan, and he must stick to Xiangfan. ”

A few days later, the news reached Japan and the whole country was shaken. The 8,000 well-equipped tiger and wolf army was actually wiped out by the rebels of the Great Qing Kingdom in the blink of an eye, not to mention that the common people could not understand it, and the Japanese emperor, including the cabinet officials, could not understand it. Mayday is the season for cherry blossoms, and the grounds of the Kyoto Imperial Palace are filled with pink cherry blossoms, and the air is filled with fragrant aromas, but the pleasing cherry blossoms do not bring a trace of joy to the owner.

At this time, Emperor Meiji sat on a chair with a depressed face, and the military ministers and cabinet ministers stood on either side. "Emperor Bixia, the rebels of the Great Qing Dynasty used despicable means to brutally attack and kill the Japanese army. Is it tolerable or unbearable, we must retaliate with a tooth for a tooth, I ask to lead the troops to fight to the death with the rebels of the Qing Dynasty, and restore the dignity of the emperor Bixia! A War Minister stepped forward, indignant.

"Emperor Bixia of the Qing Dynasty is gracious, and the Japanese army cannot be humiliated like this!" "Emperor Bixia, take this opportunity to show the majesty of the great Japanese army, and can't let the Westerners underestimate us?" The ministers of the military department clamored one after another. Emperor Meiji waved his hand and set his eyes on the cabinet ministers. The prime minister stood a thousand steps and said: "Emperor Bixia, now is the best time for Japan to rise in Asia, and I propose to form an army of 100,000 to go to the Great Qing Kingdom to strive for greater benefits." ”

Another cabinet minister stood up and said, "At present, modern industry is being built in China, and Western countries are jointly strangling the rebels of the Qing Dynasty, so we have received a lot of assistance from Western countries. We will continue to send troops, and we can use the equipment provided by Britain to build up our army, and we can use the assistance of Western countries to prepare for the establishment of our arms industry, especially the shipbuilding industry. If we continue to send troops, the Westerners will trust us more, and we will be able to gain greater benefits from it! ”

The cabinet ministers echoed one after another, and the prime minister stood up again and said, "Emperor Bixia, if we continue to send troops, we will definitely gain greater benefits." Given the strength of the rebels, the war may have been protracted. Due to the supply needs of Western countries, they have to travel across the ocean and travel long distances. For the sake of safety, we can ask Western countries to build factories in Japan, which can greatly speed up our industrialization process, killing two birds with one stone! ”

The Japanese prime minister's calculations are very shrewd, and the history is strikingly similar, and in the Korean War in later generations, the Americans built a large number of factories in Japan, so that Japan quickly recovered from the wounds of the war and embarked on the road of economic take-off. In the current situation, it is impossible for Western countries to invest and build factories on a large scale in the Qing Dynasty, and if they are defeated, they will lose all their money. This is not the case with Japan, which has a powerful fleet in the West, and even if the rebels win on land, they can only look at the sea and sigh.

The unity of opinion among ministers is unique in Japanese politics. With so many benefits, Emperor Meiji naturally would not refuse. As the initiator of the Restoration, Emperor Meiji dreamed of a strong Japan, and he forgot to sleep and eat every day, and he worked hard. Now that such a haode opportunity has come, how can you let it go. Suddenly, it seems that it is not important for the 8,000 Japanese warriors to lose their halberds, and in order to make Japan strong as soon as possible, they must pay the due price.

Subsequently, the Meiji Emperor authorized the prime minister to negotiate with the British minister, and the Japanese government offered to continue sending troops. The British minister, together with the ministers of other countries, soon reached a consensus, agreeing to equip 100,000 Japanese troops, with the British providing weapons and equipment, and the Americans paying for it. Other European countries decided to set up factories in Japan. Russia could not afford it, but promised to provide iron ore to Japan. It was a great joy for everyone, and the whole country of Japan was excited again.

Some people laughed and some were sad, and at the wharf on the north bank of the Wuhan River, Japanese prisoners of war were crossing the river by boat with their faces dirty. The Japanese prisoners of war were asked to change their clothes before boarding the ship, and the clothing was an off-white uniform, which was clearly marked by four eye-catching characters on the front chest of the clothing -- Japanese prisoners of war. "Deputy Commander-in-Chief, what does the Commander-in-Chief mean by asking the Japanese prisoners of war to change into new clothes, this seems to be inconsistent with the Commander-in-Chief's character and consistent advocacy, and the words on the chests of the Japanese prisoners of war clearly show that they have the meaning of humiliating the Japanese." Li Tianxiang stood aside and said confusedly.

Li Tianxiang escorted the captives back to Wuhan from Suizhou, and the next step was to attack Xiangfan, so he was recalled by Chen Jintang to discuss and draw up a new battle plan. "I don't know, the commander-in-chief has always played his cards according to common sense, and I also find it strange that this move is made." Chen Jintang shrugged his shoulders and said he didn't understand. Chief of Staff Wang Feng asked: "Deputy Commander-in-Chief, where are Japanese prisoners of war taken?" "Guangxi!" "I understand, the Japanese prisoners of war have the words written on their clothes and they are clear at a glance, and the people along the way have seen it really, and the shocking effect is beyond any propaganda."

"Maybe! It's not something we should be concerned about, let's go! We went straight back to the headquarters. The Operations Staff Office has already drawn up an operation to attack Xiangfan, and we will examine it again to see if there are any improvements. After Chen Jintang finished speaking, he glanced at the Japanese soldiers on the dock and turned to leave. At this time, the common people on the riverbank wharf gathered more and more, and many people had never seen what the Japanese looked like, so they naturally flocked to see the excitement.

The Japanese soldiers who became prisoners of the stairs had no mental head, and they were very honest in their sluggish expressions and slow movements. During this period, the common people did not have hatred for the Japanese, and even had some pity. There was a lot of talk about it, and I felt that there was nothing strange about the Japanese. The Japanese soldiers, who were not tall and strong, silently boarded the ship and sat on the deck silently, no one made noise, no one made noise, and the Japanese soldiers were almost like puppets, helplessly accepting the arrangement of fate.

A group of Japanese officers were escorted in, and when changing their uniforms, the Japanese officers saw the humiliating words on the clothes and refused to change their clothes. I saw that the escorted soldiers quickly stripped the clothes of the two Japanese officers, and then picked up the leather whip and whipped it, and the two Japanese officers rolled and howled on the ground, and after a few minutes they lay on the ground, and the flesh and blood were blurred and did not move.

The other Japanese officers watched silently, numb. Soon they succumbed and began to change their costumes. The ferry began to leave the pier and headed for the opposite shore. The pier on the other side of the river was also crowded, and perhaps people were in the same mood to witness this exciting scene. It was the first time for the people to see such a shocking scene of prisoners of war in their own country, and their feelings could be described as mixed, probably sympathy and pride.

Zuihou was a team of wounded Japanese soldiers, some of them supported each other, staggered, and some were carried on stretchers, and the misery was simply unbearable, and the people were once again shocked ・・・・・・. On the same day, the Wuhan Daily reported the situation of the Japanese prisoners of war, and at the same time exaggerated them with photos, and the newspaper supply of the day was in short supply.