However, he soon laughed again on his own. "No, needless to say."

Where can there be any certainty in this kind of thing, it is nothing more than a gamble. Since ancient times, the Central Plains Dynasty has not taken the initiative to send troops to conquer Japan when the Han people were in power, and they just watched the current emperor of the Han Dynasty behave very differently from the previous Han emperors, so they only had a glimmer of hope -- even their own knew that this was a glimmer of hope, and the possibility of failure was greater than success.

But even so, the Emperor wanted to give it a try and try his luck. If he succeeds, he will be able to defeat his political enemies like Emperor Shirakawa and Emperor Go-Daigo, rule alone as emperor, no longer have to be suppressed, and live as miserable as he is now—even if he had to serve the Han as his suzerainty at that time, he was at least a vassal monarch.

If it fails, that's ...... That's just the same as now, living a lifetime in patience, and then growing old and dying silently, what's the difference? Anyway, since he has decided to gamble, he must not go back.

"When can you send Hashimoto out?" He asked again.

"Of course, the sooner the better, and if Your Majesty has written the letter, I will immediately pass it on to him and let him rush to Nagasaki." Nijo Yasudo immediately replied, "The Hashimoto clan has not received much surveillance, and as long as Minoru says that he is not feeling well and recuperating at home, not many people will pay attention, and when the time comes, as long as he finds an opportunity to hand over the letter to the Han envoy in Nagasaki, the mission will be completed." ”

Of course, the Emperor could hear that this was Nijo Yasudo implicitly suggesting that he act as soon as possible, write the letter and quickly hand it over to Hashimoto Minoru to take away, and not hesitate to delay any longer.

And now he has made up his mind. "Okay, I'm going to write it now, and when I summon the imperial doctor in a few days, you can come and get it, and without further ado, you will send someone over when you get the letter!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Nijo Yasudo was overjoyed, and then knelt on the ground, "The ministers will never live up to the things entrusted by Your Majesty!" ”

After giving the order, the Emperor fell silent again.

After writing the letter and sending it there, the next step is to see the providence. If Providence still favors him and the imperial court, the emperor of the Han Dynasty may respond to his request and raise a large army to conquer the shogunate, and at that time, the shogunate will definitely fall into internal and external troubles, and finally disappear without a trace, and Tokugawa Iemitsu, an arrogant and domineering general, will definitely be punished.

However, Kazuko ...... What did Kazuko do at that time? She's Tokugawa Hidetada's daughter? A thought suddenly flashed through the Emperor's mind.

Because Tokugawa Iemitsu was too arrogant and domineering before, he couldn't help but want to seize all hope to bring down the shogunate, and when he was planning, he was also full of hatred for the Tokugawa family, so he decided. But when everything became settled, he thought of Kazuko again.

Although she is the daughter of the Tokugawa family, she has served herself for many years and has never acted like Iemitsu, which can be described as sincere. When she came to visit her just now, that kind of concern and apology was not fake.

For so many years, she has been between the imperial court and the shogunate, and every time there is a conflict, she has to find ways to heal the rift, which is also very hard for her......

I can't care so much, I'll talk about it then! This momentary hesitation was quickly left behind by the Emperor.

He clenched his hand as if he wanted to write immediately. It was not easy for him to suppress the impulse in his heart and maintain the proper demeanor of the emperor.

"You guys go back first." He waved his hand slightly.

……………………

It wasn't just the imperial court that didn't sleep in the middle of the night, but there was another group of people in the country who also had trouble sleeping. And compared to the imperial court, which had already taken away all power and was bent on bringing down the shogunate, this group of people had many more issues to consider and more complicated.

Compared to Kyoto, which celebrates glitz and culture, Edo is much more serious, and it is a city that has been piled up year after year according to the needs and hobbies of the Tokugawa shogun's family. All the solemnity and solemnity are to reflect the prestige and wealth of the Tokugawa shogun.

Like most cities, Edo Castle was made up of ring-like castles, and its inhabitants lived in peace from the outside to the inside according to their power status. From the starry houses of the outer castle to the center, the population became more and more sparse, and the buildings became more and more grandiose, which appropriately reflected the significance of the shogunate's power center.

When you come to the center of the city, the long moat separates the inner castle from the outer castle, and the inner castle is also divided into two parts, the outer castle is the outer part, which is the residence of the courtiers and the townspeople, and the inner castle is the residence of the family, and it is also the place where the Tokugawa shogun and his shogunates handle government affairs, and it is no exaggeration to say that this is the real nerve center of Japan today.

Because Neiguo was the residence of the general and the center of power, it was built in a particularly magnificent, continuous palace building. These halls were divided into several areas according to the central wheel, and each palace also took on different functions according to the division of labor, and the Honmaru Palace was the most important place where the shogun lived and handled government affairs. Nishinomaru Hall was supposed to be the residence of the previous shogun, the Great Imperial Shogun, Tokugawa Hidetada, and his wife, Shogun Sogenin, but because Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu's mother, Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu, died a few years ago during the period of Tokugawa Hidetada and Tokugawa Iemitsu Joraku, and Tokugawa Hidetada himself died last year, it is now uninhabited. And because the current general has no heirs, and the general likes to be quiet, so many halls and pavilions are now empty and silent, and there is not much anger in sight.

The Honmaru Goden is divided into three parts, the Omoto Hall, the Chuoku and the Daioku. The Omoteden Hall was the place where the shogun met with the shogunate ministers and the shogunate ministers to consult with each other, Chuoku was the place where the shogun himself handled government affairs, and the daiku was the residence of the shogun's sleeping place and his ladies, and no men were allowed to enter except the shogun himself.

Between Goten and Nishinomaruden, there is a high ground, the highest place in the entire Edo Castle, named Momijiyama, on which Hieda Shrine was built and is now the family temple of the Tokugawa family, enshrined in the shrine of Tokugawa Ieyasu and Tokugawa Hidetada, father and son.

In the past, Toyotomi Hideyoshi liked to be vassal, and by currying favor with the imperial court several times, the emperor at that time gave him the surname Toyotomi, and the Toyotomi clan was also listed among the ministers' families. After receiving such an honor, he was not satisfied, so he wanted to deify himself, and obtained the god position of the great god of Toyokoku, using this method to satisfy his vanity and consolidate his rule at the same time.

After Tokugawa rule, Ieyasu of course did not want to live under Hideyoshi, and he also asked the imperial court to honor him with a god position "Tosho Daisen" through coercion, so the shogunate and the general public will now respect Ieyasu when they mention it, and the shogunate has also built Tosho shrines dedicated to him in various places.

At this time, it was already late at night, and according to the usual season, the shogun was about to return to the Oku to rest, and the ruling officials of the shogunate should also leave the omoteden where they worked during the day and return to their respective residences, but the situation today was a bit strange, in the conference hall of the omoto hall, a group of shogunate ruling ministers did not leave today, but gathered here to hold a special meeting.

The dim candlelight illuminated everyone's faces a little uncertainly, and also made the atmosphere in the hall even more gloomy.

The participants in the meeting were all the highest officials of the shogunate, Sakai Tadashi, Matsudaira Nobutsuna, Doi Toshikatsu, Inaba Masakatsu, Sakai Tadakatsu, Naito Tadashige, and the great old I, who are now arguably the masters of power in all of Japan, assisting the shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu in ruling Japan.

Naotaka Ii is the person with the highest title and prestige among them, and he is also the undisputed host of this meeting. Although the title is "Elder", he is only forty-four years old this year. He was born in the Ii family, is a famous general of the Warring States, known as one of the four kings of Tokugawa Ii Naomasa's second son, because of his talent when he was young, at the age of twelve he served as an attendant at Tokugawa Ieyasu's side, in the two Osaka expeditions were very brave, has always been deeply trusted by the shogunate generals, the Ii family also after the shogunate unified Japan, became an important member of the genealogy of the daimyō.

It was precisely because of this appreciation and trust that after the death of Ii Naomasa, Tokugawa Ieyasu ordered his second son to inherit the position of the head of the Ii family, and the family fief of 180,000 koku was divided into 150,000 koku, while his eldest brother Naokuma Ii only got a fief of 30,000 koku.

After Ieyasu's death, he has been trusted and reused by Hidetada and Iemitsu, and more than a year ago, Tokugawa Hidetada specially entrusted him to continue to assist Iemitsu when he was dying, and awarded him the unique title of Elder, which can also reflect his status in the shogunate, which can be called the chief minister. In order to show respect and gratitude to him, Tokugawa Iemitsu recently expanded the territory of the Ii family to 300,000 koku, becoming the largest family among the daimyo of the spectrum.

Among the old middle schools, the highest status is Toshikatsu Doi. Toshikatsu Doi is just 60 years old this year, and he is the chief lieutenant who wields great power and influence.

He was originally the youngest son of the Sengoku daimyo Mizuno Nobumoto, who served the Oda clan as a minor lord in the Warring States period, participated in wars everywhere, and laid a fief of 240,000 koku for the family. However, in the third year of Tensho, Oda Nobunaga suspected that he was secretly colluding with his enemy Takeda Katsuyori because of the rumors, so he beheaded him at Mikawa Daishuji Temple, and the fief and family name of the Mizuno family disappeared.

The youngest son who survived was adopted by Ieyasu's retainer Toshimasa Doi, and changed his name to Toshikatsu Doi and became a retainer of the Tokugawa family. Because of his bravery in the rise of the Tokugawa family, and his many meritorious achievements, he was reused by the shogunate.

At the same time, because he had marched with Hidetada during the Battle of Sekigahara, he was regarded by Hidetada as a close confidant, and after Tokugawa Hidetada became a shogun, he became more and more important, and after Ieyasu's death, he managed to secretly incite Tokugawa Hidetada to get rid of the tyrannical minister Honda Masasumi of the Ieyasu era, and remove him from all positions in the shogunate, thus becoming the chief of the shogunate.

He was a well-known figure in the shogunate, and he single-handedly formulated many policies against the imperial court and local daimyos, and it can be said that he was extremely feared. After Hidetada's death, in recognition of his many years of assistance, Tokugawa Iemitsu specially expanded his fiefdom to 160,000 koku. As a result, the Doi family became a powerful figure among the daimyo of the spectrum.

Sitting next to Toshikatsu Doi is Tadashi Sakai. The Sakai family was one of the earliest retainer families under the Tokugawa family (still surnamed Matsudaira at the time), and even had the same origin as the Matsudaira family itself, so it can be said that it was the most trusted and important family among the shogunate retainers, and several clans were listed as genealogical daimyos.

Sakai Tadashi was born in such a family, so he has always been highly regarded by the shogunate, and he has been the shogunate for a long time, and it has been twenty years now, and he is more than ten years older than the eldest old Ii Naomasa. Now it can also be said that he is the chief of the old man, who is also the highest official of the shogunate.

Another old middle school Sakai Tadashi present was appointed as an old middle school ten years ago, he was also born in the Sakai clan, and he is still a cousin of Sakai Tadashi (their fathers Sakai Shigetada and Sakai Tadashi are brothers, both are the sons of the Tokugawa military commander Sakai Masa), and two cousins in the family served as old middle school at the same time, which shows the shogunate's reliance and trust in this family.

However, Sakai Tadashi's health has not been very good recently, and he has been suffering from many diseases, so among the people present, his face is the most ugly, pale and bloodless, and his spirit is also very low, and his eyes are half closed all the time. Compared to Toshikatsu Doi, who is about the same age and ambitious, his presence is much weaker.

Matsudaira Nobutsuna is the most superior among the others, he was born in the division of the Matsudaira clan, and it can be said that he is the representative of the clan among the old people, and his status is very transcendent. At the same time, he also grew up with the shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu as an attendant since he was a child, and his relationship with the shogun was extraordinary. However, he is low-key and has never talked much, so he has not caused any conflict with others.

Compared with the five people who were born in front of them and had a very high status, Naito Tadashige and Inaba Masakatsu have a much lower status, but because of this, compared to the previous ones, they are much closer to the shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu.

Naito Tadashige has always been a close confidant of Iemitsu, and has always been responsible for Iemitsu's education when he was a child, so it can be said that he is extremely respected and trusted.

And Inaba Masakatsu is even more unusual, he is Kammitsu's nurse Kasuga, he has always been by Iemitsu's side since he was a child, and Ieguang has been following him when he was in danger because he was not loved by his parents, so it can be said that he has a brotherly friendship with Iemitsu. It is precisely because of this friendship that Iemitsu began to focus on cultivating and promoting him as soon as he became a general, and at the age of only twenty-six, he became the shogunate's old lieutenant, and now he is only thirty-six years old, and he has been an old lieutenant for ten years, which shows the degree of credit he receives. In addition, Tokugawa Iemitsu also repeatedly increased his fiefdom to him, and now he has a territory of 85,000 koku, which can be said to be a member of the daimyo.

Because of Iemitsu's admiration for the nursing mother, the influence of the Kasuga Bureau was not limited to Okunai, but even the court of the shogunate was infiltrated.

However, although he was the youngest among the people present, Inaba Masakatsu's body has been suffering from illness recently, and he even vomited blood several times, and his face was even more ugly than Sakai Tadashi, and it seemed that his life would not last long. It is rumored that the shogun intends to let his nephew Masamori Hotta continue to take over the position of Lao Naka in the event of his death, which shows the shogun's trust and dependence on the Kasuga Bureau family.

These people were all subordinate to the shogun as lords, and they had various kinship ties with the shogun's family, relying on blood and cronies to rule Japan, which was a system of rule created by Tokugawa Ieyasu and still working effectively.

In the dim candlelight, the expressions of these people were dark, restrained and deep, and they hardly showed their joy or anger, although their faces were different, but they were almost like wearing the same mask.

Just as time passed little by little, Naotaka Ii with the highest status finally spoke.

"Is there a reply from Yanagi's side?"

Although he is not very old, perhaps in pursuit of a sense of majesty, his tone is unhurried and looks a little old-fashioned.

"Yanagi Yuanzhai has now gone to the capital of the Han Dynasty and has begun to negotiate with the court of the Han Dynasty." Naito Tadashige, the old man who was temporarily in charge of negotiating with the Great Han, also replied in a low voice in almost the same tone. "However, judging from his reply, Dahan's attitude is very tough, asking us to reopen trade as soon as possible and make up for the previous shortfall......"

After hearing such a reply, not only the eldest old Ichi Naotaka was slightly stunned, but even the other old middle schools were also stunned.

"That's the reply?" Sakai Tadashi looked at Naito Tadashige slowly, "Did Yanagi say anything else?" ”

"No, Liu Sheng just said that the big man was very anxious to urge him, but he only mentioned these two opinions to him all the time, and had no other opinions." Naito Tadashige said that he did not hide it, "In addition, Yanagi reported that the attitude of the big man towards him is getting tougher and tougher, but the treatment is still good, and he has always been treated as an envoy. ”

"It seems that Dahan is in a hurry. But if the big man is in a hurry, why are they still dragging out the negotiations and not giving a step? Another senior member of the Sakai family, Sakai Tadakatsu, expressed the doubts in everyone's hearts, "We have made our position so clear, if they really think it is unacceptable, then there is no need to negotiate with Yagyu; If they feel they need copper and can compromise, it's time to back down in the negotiations and put forward new terms. ”