"Ladies and gentlemen, it is impossible for us and the Japanese to live in peace. In the future, there will inevitably be a war. The East Asia-Pacific is too small to allow only one powerful country to exist. Therefore, between the two countries of ours and Japan, we must distinguish between the winners and losers. Wu Haoxuan said solemnly to the ministers of military affairs. This is what he has always insisted on.

The ministers all nodded, and from now on, it is true that the contradictions between China and Japan are becoming more and more serious. In the future, there will be no other way to solve the problem than war.

"Japan's overall strength is actually not much stronger than ours. In terms of the army, we are already stronger than them. On the naval side, we are still blank at the moment. However, after the end of the year, our fleet will be able to return. At that time, the gap between us and the Japanese Navy will be significantly reduced. As for industrial and economic power, we are no worse than the Japanese. In addition, our development potential and speed are far stronger than those of the Japanese. Therefore, the gap between the two countries will only widen. In the future, we are the real winners. "Wu Haoxuan has great confidence in winning in the future.

"However, in order for us to win the war against Japan more easily, we will attack Japan from now on. Especially the economic blows. As long as Japan's economy continues to deteriorate, it will not be able to develop. Then, it will be much easier for us to defeat them in the future. "In modern warfare, money is fought. Without money, the war simply cannot be fought.

Wu Haoxuan has a very detailed study of Japan and knows where Japan's weaknesses are. Therefore, the time is now to deploy against those weaknesses of Japan, to ensure that in the event of a war between the two countries, the Chinese Empire will have absolute superiority. This is not just a military advantage, but also an economic advantage. That's the only way. Only then was the Chinese Empire able to win the victory cleanly.

As we all know, in 1894, Japan gained a certain political status through the First Sino-Japanese War and stepped on the decaying corpses of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. The most notable manifestation of this was the signing of the New Treaty with Russia, Germany, France, Austria and other countries in 1897. Completely abolish the unequal treaties that have been imposed on Japan for 40 years. Later, in 1899, the tariff was revised, the export tax was abolished, and the original 5% import tax was abolished, and the imported goods were divided into three categories: taxable goods, non-taxable goods, and prohibited goods. Among them, the tax rate of some taxable products is about 5%-40%, which is subdivided into 8 types, and the tax rate of industrial manufactured products is generally 20%. Duty-free imports of raw materials needed by Japanese industry, such as cotton. Luxury goods such as alcohol are heavily taxed.

However, this revision was not entirely incomplete, and the prerogative of unilateral tariffs was retained for the main exports of the Western powers, such as British cotton and wool fabrics, iron, dyes, etc., at an average of 10 per cent. In fact. It was not until Japan won the Russo-Japanese War and obtained the status of a second-class power. It was only in 1911 that the tariff autonomy was fully withdrawn and a new tariff was enacted. However, even this has led to a significant increase in Japan's tariffs.

In the process of Japan's industrialization, import and export trade has always been an irreplaceable lifeline, and in 1910, the total import and export volume was as high as 41% of the total value of industrial and agricultural production. After all, as an island nation. Japan's dependence on foreign trade is quite high, and the industrial revolution that is carrying out "almost all the machinery and equipment needed depends on imports," not to mention that most of the military expansion in the First Sino-Japanese War and Japan and Russia basically depends on imports. This has led to Japan's serious overtaking in foreign trade. At this time, Japan's flagship export product was raw silk. And in this respect, the Chinese Empire is completely capable of competing with Japan. After all. Before the rise of Japan, raw silk had been the flagship product of China's exports.

Since the beginning of the Meiji Restoration, Japan began to focus on the export of raw silk and tea, and achieved very good results around 1890, the average quality of raw silk exceeded that of the Qing Empire, and the tea industry was also fully mechanized, gradually becoming the world's second largest exporter of raw silk and the fifth largest exporter of tea. By 1910, Japan was already the world's largest exporter of raw silk, with a total annual output of 12,460 tons of raw silk and a total export of 9,462 tons, accounting for 75% of the world's total exports.

At that time, Japan's four major chaebols almost all relied on the profits earned from the export of raw silk to maintain their other industries, support heavy industry, and slowly transition into an industrial power. Japan's silk industry was able to gradually develop and defeat China's silk industry, and half of the credit for the First Sino-Japanese War (after all, although the reparations of the First Sino-Japanese War were basically used to develop the Japanese military, but on the whole, the financial expenditure could be relieved, you must know that in order to fight the First Sino-Japanese War, most of Japan's financial investment was in army construction, and squeezed other industries), and the other half belonged to Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. In 1868, Nishijin Busan Co., Ltd. was established in Kyoto Prefecture to provide relief to impoverished silk farmers and weavers. In the third year of the Meiji era, the Shemi Bureau and the Maternity Office were established, which were equivalent to the Chemical Research Institute and the Technology Promotion Institute. In 1870, a sericulture farm was established to promote new silkworm species and new technologies; In 1871, a livestock farm was set up, new cattle breeds and sheep were promoted, and people were sent to France to learn new silk weaving and Western dyeing techniques, and new machines were purchased...... In seven years, a weaving workshop was set up to promote new hand-weaving machines and processes. These "farms" all brought together the work of collecting, researching, improving, and disseminating technology, and quickly transformed Kyoto's silk industry from decline to prosperity, and spread the successful experience to the whole of Japan. Although Kyoto Prefecture has also taken many detours, it is much more positive compared to the policy of "nothing is wrong" of the local governments of the Qing court.

The Japanese cut down a large number of trees and planted mulberry forests. With the development of Kyoto's silk industry, Japan's more powerful chaebols quickly used it as a model, using the government's support and their own financial resources to spread throughout Japan. In 1878, Japan's raw silk export volume was 726 tons, and the total output was 1,226 tons, and the total output was 2.05 million catties, which was less than 1/3 of the annual output of Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. In 1883, Japan exported 1,347 tons of raw silk, with a total production of 1,682 tons. In 1903, in just two decades, Japan's total export of raw silk reached 6,750 tons, officially surpassing the Manchu Qing in terms of quantity and average quality. In 1910, Japan's raw silk exports were 10,462 tons, reaching 3/4 of the world's total raw silk exports, six times that of China, and this is the most critical export material for the Japanese economy, in exchange for a large amount of foreign exchange and gold for Japan.

However, raw silk, a major product of China's foreign trade income, is shrinking day by day. Just imagine, if China's raw silk industry can compete with Japan in the world, then it is a big restriction on the development of Japan's heavy industry, after all, the Japanese were backward in heavy industry at that time, and the funds for importing equipment basically came from the export of light industry, a large part of which came from the raw silk industry.

Although Japan's raw silk trade no longer accounted for 40% of Japan's exports as it did in 1860, it was still Japan's largest export from 1908 to 1912, accounting for nearly one-third of the total export share.

In other words, if Japan's raw silk exports were blocked, then in 1912 Japan's surplus would soar by 340 million, and in the three years from 1911 to 1913, the surplus brought by the raw silk gap would exceed the trade accumulation of nearly 20 years. In other words, raw silk is the life-and-death line of Japan's foreign trade, and whoever wants to move this big cake has no other way for Japan to choose than to wage an endless war with it.

"If we want to crack down on Japan economically, the first step is to ban Japanese goods from entering the Chinese market. The second step was to prohibit Japan from buying raw materials from China for industrial development. The third step is to compete with Japan on a global scale. Among them, raw silk will be a key area for us to compete with the Japanese. Wu Haoxuan said solemnly.

If China can defeat Japan in the field of raw silk and squeeze Japan's living space. Then, Japan is completely finished. There is no other way to do it than to rely on the war for all its national fortunes.

"Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince, our passage through the treasure island has already blocked the passage of Japanese goods into China. There is no problem at all with banning Japan from buying raw materials necessary for the development of industry from China. However, it will be very difficult to compete with Japan in terms of life and death. Now, the Japanese have completely surpassed us in the export of raw silk. Minister of Commerce Ding Zhenduo said with a frown. He was originally the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, and he also had a certain understanding of the raw silk industry in Jiangnan.

Many of the current silkworm farmers in the Jiangnan area have gone bankrupt due to the squeeze of Japanese products.

"In what areas are we weaker than Japan in the main way?" Wu Haoxuan asked.

"In terms of technology, equipment and funding, we are relatively lacking. In addition, the cost of the individual economy based on the family unit is not comparable to that of the Japanese. Ding Zhenduo said.

"In response to this problem, the cabinet should come up with practical solutions. We now have relatively good relations with Western countries, and we can take this opportunity to obtain sufficient technology and equipment from the West. As for funds, the government and banks should provide comprehensive support for the raw silk industry. At the same time, we will build some large-scale factories to surpass Japan in this regard. Wu Haoxuan said.

"Yes, Your Highness." Cabinet officials nodded their heads.

Although, there may be many difficulties in this regard. However, as long as you work hard, you will not be able to completely defeat Japan's raw silk industry. But as long as the living space of Japanese raw silk can be squeezed as much as possible, the goal of the empire will be achieved. Once Japan's economy collapses, their industry will come to a standstill. And the development of the military industry will stagnate. The Chinese Empire, on the other hand, will develop rapidly in these areas. In this way, the gap between the two sides will widen. The Chinese Empire will also have more advantages.

Of course, once the plan of the Chinese Empire succeeds, then with the Japanese, I am afraid, it will be time for war. (To be continued......)

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