Next to Shanghai Huishan Park, there is a three-storey building covering an area of more than 350 square meters, which can accommodate more than 100 people, and is known as the "corporal assembly hall".

"Hiroshi-kun, great news, I heard from my classmates in the Ministry of the Navy that our Minister of the Navy has just received a letter of thanks from the president of Nissin Kisen Shipping Co., Ltd., and we all appreciate our actions in China." Kohei Kimura held the telegram and danced excitedly.

Iwasaki Hiroshi glanced at the telegram, picked up his wine glass and said lightly: "What did that old guy write?" I didn't expect him to be able to boast about it. ”

Kimura Kohei exclaimed: "It used to be before, and now the old guy finally realizes the importance of our group of people, and it is a good compliment in the letter, I don't believe you can see for yourself." ”

Hiroshi Iwasaki put down his glass and took the telegram, which was really as Kohei Kimura said, and there was indeed no shortage of praise in the text.

"Previously, the northern and southern armies of China in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River were fighting...... The ships sailing in England, China and other countries stopped sailing, but only the ships of the Society, thanks to the careful protection of the Imperial Navy, did not miss a single voyage, and the industrial products of the Empire were able to be stationed in the belly of China, and the rapid development ......"

Just looking at the content of the letter, there is no problem, but combined with the identities of the two, then the problem is big.

Before he could finish reading the telegram, Hiroshi Iwasaki threw it back.

Kimura Kohei was in a hurry, and the telegram was received in a hurry, and finally he grabbed it and landed on the ground to reach it: "Guang Zhijun, I know that you Mitsubishi have some opinions about Nissin, but when you go out, we are all contributing to the empire, so don't be so hostile, right?" ”

Iwasaki Hiroshi snorted coldly: "You are very right, but the question is that Nissin is praising the Imperial Navy, what does it have to do with our Mitsubishi?" ”

Kimura Kohei was stunned for a moment, and then he thought that he was a naval sergeant, but this person in front of him was not, he was the son of the Mitsubishi Iwasaki family, so he said stupidly: "I'm sorry, I ignored this layer." ”

"Only a dull person can be so short-sighted!" Iwasaki Hiroshi smiled contemptuously, stood up and said arrogantly: "The Civil War in China caused chaos and chaos in the Yangtze River area, and the situation was not easy to clean up, although it brought more risks to the empire to trade and obtain resources in the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River, but in my opinion, it was an important opportunity for the empire to develop in China. ”

A hint of greed flashed in the corner of Kimura Kohei's eyes, but in front of Iwasaki Hiroshi, he hid it well: "How can this be an opportunity, you don't know that the cost we pay for escorting down is far greater than before." ”

"Humph, stupid!" Iwasaki Hiroshi poured himself a glass of sake, drank it all, and said: "There is a book called "Thirty-six Strategies" in Shina, and the twentieth plan is called 'Take advantage of its chaos, benefit its weakness and have no owner, and then go to the obscurity to feast'. ”

Kimura Yukihei asked with a shy face: "Guangzhi-kun, you know, I don't know enough about Shina. ”

Hiroshi Iwasaki introduced in stiff Chinese: "Fishing in troubled waters. ”

Kimura Kohei was dumbfounded, just said that he didn't know much about Chinese culture, and now he deliberately read it in Chinese, is it because he is afraid that he knows, the resentment in his heart is stronger, but he still pats his horse ass on his face: "Guangzhijun is really erudite, I don't know what it means?" ”

Iwasaki Hiroshi glanced at the other party obliquely, and said with a proud expression: "It means to take advantage of the opponent's chaos to gain benefits." The Civil War made the current China very chaotic, which could make it possible for the Empire to seek opportunities to meddle in the internal affairs of China, and determined that the Imperial fleet was bound to strengthen patrol vigilance in the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River. ”

Playing with the wine cup in his hand, Iwasaki Hiroshi said lightly: "Taking Chongqing as a permanent port is just a starting point, not the end of the empire, and the old thing of the Nissin family is also a good fate, so he caught up with this opportunity." ”

Kimura Kohei lowered his head and rolled around with his eyes dripping, and asked tentatively: "Guangzhijun, the Imperial Navy is constantly expanding in China, and naturally needs more talents to join, why don't you take this opportunity to join the army directly, you and I can just help each other." ”

Hiroshi Iwasaki sneered and said happily, "Do you want to be a big soldier with you?" The old guys in the army are not younger than Nissin, and there are more of them, their thinking is too pedantic, it is better to do what they like, and there are not so many constraints, Wu Songzhen a while ago...... Forget it, I told you that you don't know. ”

Seeing that he was humiliated again and again, Kimura Xinghei held back his anger: "Guang Zhijun, I don't care about the matter of Wusong Town, but you can talk about the matter of the Yangtze River, this time you took the initiative to find me." ”

Iwasaki Hiroshi's face tightened, and for some reason, his face suddenly eased, and he smiled first: "Xinghei-san, you don't have to be so nervous, I will definitely tell you what you should tell you, especially the Yangtze River you mentioned, which is the core of this conversation."

The Yangtze River basin is the source of wealth in China, and it is also the economic center of China, and it is really gratifying that the imperial industrialists and businessmen have stepped on this stage and invaded the area of China's deep roots and strong influence, and gradually dominated the market.

However, we must also take into account that there is no doubt that the end of the European war is imminent, the economic competition among various countries will become increasingly fierce after the war, and the commercial war in the Yangtze River area will become more intense. Does the Empire really have the preparations, arrangements, and strength to win this fiery post-war commercial war? Isn't that the most important question to be studied? ”

At this time, Kimura Kohei really wanted to repeat what Hiroshi Iwasaki had just said: What does this have to do with me?

However, he didn't say it stupidly: "Guangzhijun, since this is an opportunity, presumably Mitsubishi will be able to seize it tightly, but I don't know what I can do in it?" ”

"Not only can you do it, but there is a lot more you can do." Hiroshi Iwasaki got up and came behind Kohei Kimura, patted the other party on the back, and said with a cruel smile: "I know that you have a team of dozens of marines under your command, and I hope they can show up at the right time." ”、

Kimura Kohei's neck stiffened: "What do you mean at the right time?" ”

Iwasaki Hiroshi did not answer this question directly, but squatted down to straighten his trouser legs for Kohei Kimura: "You say it's a coincidence, it just so happens that I know that the Imperial Navy is preparing to change the Seventh Sentai into a detachment fleet, so that it will mainly perform the security mission in the Yangtze River basin at the moment.

It is certainly not enough to rely on the gunboats of "Sumida", "Fushimi" and "Toba", and when the time comes, we will definitely purchase a batch of new gunboats at our Mitsubishi shipyard. ”

In modern history, in order to safeguard and wait for an opportunity to expand its rights and interests in aggression against China, the Japanese navy used Japanese ships to cruise China's rivers and seas and maintain armed deterrence against coastal towns mainly in treaty ports.

Later, until the eve of the Anti-Japanese War, every time there was a riot in Japan, there would be a Japanese marine.

At present, because the Western powers are busy with the First World War, the Beiyang government declares war on Germany and Austria. As a result, China and Japan were nominally both Entente powers. The Japanese Navy took the opportunity to "cruise" its southern rivers and seas, especially the resumption of the Yangtze River basin, and further intensified it.

After China's declaration of war on Germany, Japanese ships in and out of the country's harbors would be restored to the same status as usual, so that they would not have to be constrained on the basis of neutrality.

During the Nanben War, he clamored for "joint action" with the Japanese Army by the Marine Corps and "coordinated action" with foreign navies and armies when necessary, which can be described as quite rampant.

And the so-called "concerted action" is well understood. When the warlords of Anhui Province broke out in the Jiangsu-Zhejiang War, foreign forces declared that they wanted to implement the so-called "neutrality of the Huangpu River," and the Japanese navy, together with Britain and the United States, sent additional warships and marines ashore in Shanghai to defend the North Sichuan Road.

In other words, Japan is not subject to foreign restraint, but it still fully cooperates with its navy to jointly seize illegal interests in China.

And this is the main reason why Iwasaki Hiroshi is not so afraid when facing Morgan, an Englishman.

Thinking of the recent rampant situation in the Japanese Navy, Kimura Kohei said excitedly: "Okay, my Marine Corps will absolutely protect the legitimate rights and interests of overseas Chinese at all times, and anyone who obstructs will be severely punished!" ”

Iwasaki Hiroshi stood up and said, "Very good, there is a person in Shina who is receiving my attention right now, and you need to send someone to follow him, and when I come back in a while, I need you to submit a detailed information." ”

"Hey!" At this time, Kimura Kohei was like a loyal dog, wagging his tail in front of the big bones and begging for mercy: "As long as that person is in Shanghai, no matter who it is, I can check it out for you." ”

Hiroshi Iwasaki smiled: "Very good, what the empire needs is your spirit, and Mitsubishi will never treat you badly." ”

"Hey!" Kimura Kohei nodded violently again, and asked, "I don't know which person you want to investigate?" ”

"That's him!"

Iwasaki Hiroshi took out a photo from his inner pocket, on which it was none other than Cheng Nuo, who was recruiting workers in Wusong Town, without noticing that he had been secretly photographed.

Looking at Cheng Nuo above, Kimura Kohei's eyes were full of fierceness: "Okay, this person has been deeply engraved in my mind, and it won't take long for me to give a detailed information." ”

Hiroshi Iwasaki was unusual, and instructed: "It's better to be careful, this person's name is Cheng Nuo, a professor at Peking University, the highest university in China, and his sense of vigilance is very high, if you treat him as an ordinary person, I'm afraid you won't get any valuable information." ”

With the high-ranking officials in front of him, coupled with the imminent expansion of the Japanese Navy, the time is limited, Kimura Kohei has not much reason left, and said lightly: "Qu Qu a weak person, where is the opponent of the empire's elite, I hope you will do what you say." ”

After saying this, Kohei Kimura took the photo and turned around and left, obviously impatient.

Feeling the empty room, Hiroshi Iwasaki said indifferently: "I hope you also do what you say, Mitsubishi will not waste a single resource on waste."

It's just brother, brother, don't you know that shopping malls are like battlefields? ”

(End of chapter)