After some twists and turns, the Taiping army entered attack mode again.

This time, I am afraid that the Japanese army is really dangerous.

Soon after Huang Xu led his army to Osaka, he received a report that most of the 10th Army Corps, the vanguard led by Li Xiucheng, had entered outside Kyoto, and they were ready to attack and were waiting for further instructions from Huang Xu.

The soldiers are fast, so it can be seen that Li Xiucheng is definitely a good general.

After a little discussion with Li Hongzhang and others, Huang Xu ordered Li Xiucheng to lead the army to attack.

To take them by surprise and attack them unprepared, it is necessary to give the Japanese no chance to breathe.

And Li Xiucheng, who was under the city of Kyoto, couldn't help but be overjoyed after receiving Huang Xu's order, he didn't say a word, and immediately issued an order to let the army attack Kyoto City.

And so, the great war began.

Of course, the tug-of-war between offense and defense is just like that, no different from the past, you attack and defend, do not give in to each other, and the fight is very fierce.

However, this time was still slightly different from the previous offensive and defensive battles, due to the haste of the incident, the Japanese army did not have much time to organize an effective defensive line after withdrawing to Kyoto, and the morale was low, so in the face of the fierce attack of the 10th Army, the Japanese army was quite unaccustomed.

Of course, the consequences of this unaccustomed were also quite severe, and the Japanese suffered heavy casualties under the strong fire of the 10th Army.

It seems that this Kyoto is in jeopardy, and sooner or later it will fall into the hands of the Taiping army.

Meiji and Ito Hirobumi were both worried when they saw this scene, and they were originally planning to reorganize the defense line in Kyoto so that they could snipe the Taiping army, but now it seems. There is a good chance that this plan will go bankrupt.

And what should be the next step, Meiji and Ito Hirobumi have no bottom in their hearts.

"Ito-kun, the Taiping army is fierce, I'm afraid it will be difficult to beat!" Emperor Meiji was worried.

The difference in strength between the two sides is already on the surface, and no matter how arrogant Ito Hirofumi is, he has to admit it. The comprehensive strength of the Taiping Army at this time was indeed superior to that of the Japanese army, and now the only reliance of the Japanese army is the strength of the spirit, and they believe that they are not weaker than the Taiping Army at the spiritual level.

Because, the Japanese army advocates the spirit of bushido, and they are not afraid of death.

However, not being afraid of death does not mean that you can not die, and some things are not subject to human will.

The Japanese army may also be too blindly confident in their own spiritual strength.

"Your Majesty, the minister will defend the dignity of bushido to the death." Hirofumi Ito's face was solemn and authentic.

Although he did not explicitly reply to Emperor Meiji's question, the meaning of his words was quite clear. He had already admitted that the Japanese army was inferior to the Taiping army, and he also believed that if it continued like this, the Japanese army would be defeated by the Taiping army.

It's just that Ito Hirobumi didn't say these words in the end, and no matter what, he had to protect the dignity of the emperor and the Japanese army. So, the only thing he could say. That is, to show one's heart, so as to clarify one's will.

"Ugh......" Meiji said with a long sigh.

I don't know how much helplessness and sorrow there is in this sigh.

Meiji's mood became heavier and heavier.

"Your Majesty, the matter has come to this, please be excited, don't be discouraged, besides. Although the situation is urgent, the matter has not reached the point of no return, after all, the Taiping army has only occupied a few cities in our country, and most of the land is still under our control, as long as we make good use of it. It's not that there is no possibility of turning defeat into victory, so, Your Majesty, please cheer up. Seeing that Meiji's mood was becoming depressed, Ito Hirobumi couldn't help but say in a hurry.

If Meiji's heart is gone, then Japan will really be hopeless, so Ito Hirobumi is very anxious, he must not let this happen, he must encourage Meiji, at least let Meiji feel that there is still hope.

"Ito-kun, having said that, the truth is the same, but how to do it, my heart is still a mess, is there any place Ito-kun can teach me?" Meiji is still worried.

These things can't be explained in one or two sentences, even if you know that it is so reasonable, but if you want to completely let go, it is not a trivial thing.

"Your Majesty, with all due respect, looking at the current shape, Kyoto may be difficult to hold anymore, but if you retreat to Nagoya and then reorganize the defense, from the point of view of time, it is also a little too late, and the final result is probably similar to the current Kyoto, perhaps, perhaps the most realistic way at present is to withdraw the army to Tokyo, relying on the unique geography and human conditions obtained by the Beijing Division, to establish an effective defensive depth, so as to withstand the attack of the Taiping army, so, the minister built yì, abandoned Kyoto and Nagoya, Retreat directly to the Imperial Kyoshi-Tokyo to establish a defensive line. Hirobumi Ito took a deep breath and said.

The tone of his voice sounded rather difficult, and he must have been nervous in his heart.

Because, it takes courage to say such a thing and make such a deployment, this is a major matter related to the overall situation, let's not talk about success or not, just say that if Meiji is unhappy, then Ito Hirobumi can definitely be punished immediately, and at that time, Ito Hirobumi will not only fail to realize the idea, but it is very likely that it will cause a commotion.

However, having said that, although Ito Hirobumi is worried, but now is the time to employ people, even if Meiji really has any ideas, at such a time, he may have to think twice, so it cannot be simply said that Ito Hirobumi's worries are reasonable or unreasonable, in short, even if his words really offend Meiji, it is not a big problem.

Perhaps, to put it bluntly, this is just a matter of facts.

"Abandoning Kyoto and Nagoya? How can this be done, they are important towns on the outskirts of Tokyo, how can they just give up. Meiji was taken aback and said.

Sure enough, Meiji really had an idea.

However, it is no wonder that the importance of these two places is not only understood by Meiji and Ito Hirobumi, but also by most Japanese people, so these two places are not just given up, and Meiji is not mentally prepared for such at all.

Therefore, it is strange that Meiji is not surprised.

"Your Majesty, it's time to make some necessary sacrifices, if we hesitate any longer, I'm afraid..."

"I'm afraid of what?" Meiji said with a frown.

He was a little nervous in his heart, and he knew that Ito Hirobumi was not the kind of person who had no purpose.

"Your Majesty, if there is something that offends Your Majesty if the following words of the minister, please forgive the minister for the crime of disrespect." Hirobumi Ito still has to keep the ugly story in front of him.

Although it is for the good of the empire and the emperor, you must also think for yourself, don't make the emperor unhappy, and if you really punish yourself, it will be a little uncost-effective.

Hirofumi Ito's account is very well calculated.

"Say, whatever you say, forgive you not guilty." Emperor Meiji waved his hand and said.

It's all at this time, how can there be so many concerns.

Moreover, no matter how big the wrong thing Ito Hirobumi is, no matter how wrong he is, Emperor Meiji will not do anything to him, after all, the only person he can really rely on now is Ito Hirobumi, if there is no Ito Hirobumi, Meiji really can't do it.

"Yes, Your Majesty, the minister means, if you don't prepare early, I'm afraid disaster will not be far away." Ito Hirofumi gritted his teeth and made his debut with what he thought and discussed.

Without a clear explanation of the severity of the situation, it is possible that Meiji's concerns about withdrawing troops to Tokyo would not be dispelled.

"Woe? Could it be that by abandoning Kyoto and Nagoya, disaster could be avoided? Emperor Meiji would not have agreed with Ito's words so lightly.

If he doesn't resist and give up, then he, the emperor, will be too incompetent.

Survival is important, but the emperor also has to save face.

"Not necessarily, but it's definitely better than this gradual passive defense." Hirobumi Ito looked Emperor Meiji in the eye and said firmly.

Hirobumi Ito must definitely grit his teeth at this time, otherwise, he will try to convince Emperor Meiji.

And Emperor Meiji stared at Ito Hirobumi for a long time, then sighed again, and then said softly, "Let me think about it." (To be continued......)