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The Rebirth of the Great Scientist Volume 11. Late Incense Time 500. The Lord of Han Dynasty, Qiu Tian, ??is encircling the siege (Part 1)

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    Just as Europe was falling into madness, Japan was also restless as if it were on drugs.  Before Britain was involved in the war, Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs publicly stated that the Japanese government had made all preparations. If Britain participated in the war, Japan would take all necessary measures to effectively fulfill its obligations under the Anglo-Japanese Alliance Treaty.

    As Japan wished, Britain quickly declared war on Germany, but they did not take Japan's request for assistance too seriously because they were worried that Japan would use the issue to fish in troubled waters in the Far East, and that Europe was too far away from the Far East for Japan to do so.  It's beyond the reach of a whip, not to mention that Japan's whip is not long in the first place?  However, due to the alliance between the two countries, the United Kingdom sent a note to the Japanese government through its ambassador to Japan in the following days, hoping that if the European War spread to the Far East and the British concessions in the Far East, such as Hong Kong and Weihaiwei, were attacked by Allied forces, the Japanese government would  Ability to provide appropriate assistance in accordance with the Anglo-Japanese Alliance Treaty.

    Obviously, Britain was wary of Japan, which was like a mad dog biting anyone, and would only allow it to provide assistance when the British Far East colonies were invaded by Allied forces. However, everyone in Japan ignored this intentionally or unintentionally, and everyone was delighted to hear the news.  Crazy, because this reason is exactly what Japan desperately needs!

    That night, the cabinet held an emergency meeting to discuss participating in the war and using force against China.  Prime Minister Shigenobu Okuma drooped his lips, glanced majestically at the cabinet members, and then said slowly: "Everyone should know that just earlier today, the British government formally offered assistance to the Empire of Japan through the Minister to Japan, Mr. Green.  Requirements. The situation in Europe is currently turbulent, and a war is about to break out. It will have a great impact on the political structure of Europe and even the world. The Far East cannot be immune from this catastrophe. However, should our Empire of Japan intervene? How should we intervene?  How deep is the intervention? And how to respond to the British request, please express your own opinions!"

    It is said that Okuma Shigenobu not only served as a member of the first Ito Hirobumi Cabinet, Kuroda Kiyotaka Cabinet, and the second Matsukata Masayoshi Cabinet, and formed the cabinet twice, he also founded the most famous private university in Japan, Waseda University.  Because of this, many people compare him with Sun Yuanqi, who founded Jingshi University and also rose to the rank of Prime Minister.  Someone even wrote a special article comparing Sun Yuanqi, Okuma Shigenobu and France's Painleve (a famous mathematician, there are many terms named after him in mathematics, such as Painleve transcendental function, Painleve equation, Painleve property, Painleve analysis, etc.).  He served as Minister of Education and Minister of Invention in the recent Briand cabinet. If the historical trajectory does not deviate, he will also serve as French Prime Minister twice in the future), and the current President of the United States Wilson (so far the only one with a philosophical  The president of the United States with a doctorate and a former president of Princeton University), finally came to the conclusion that scholars have one, two, three, and four advantages in politics and the necessity of ABCD, which will become the norm in the future.  As for whether anyone believes it, that is unknown.

    Navy Minister Yashiro Rokuro immediately took over: "The current situation is like this. The navy and army have completed mobilization. Is it still a question whether to intervene? The outbreak of the European War is a good opportunity for the country's development and a blessing from the Taisho New Era. Our Empire of Japan  We must unite with the whole country, take advantage of the situation to expand the national destiny, and enjoy this blessing. Is it possible that there are still people who dare to go against the general trend of the imperial army to spread military power across the world? As for how to intervene and how deep to intervene, this is what we need to discuss in today's meeting  question!"

    Army Minister Oka Ichinosuke also said: "General Yashiro is right. Whether or not to intervene is no longer a question. How to intervene and how to respond to the British request are issues that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs needs to consider. Only how deep the intervention is is what our soldiers are most concerned about.  . According to the information sent back by our Acting Minister to China, Kohata Youyoshi-kun, there is now an extremely strong anti-Japanese atmosphere in China, and the China cabinet's attitude towards Japan is extremely arrogant. Some people are even clamoring to take back Southern Manchuria, North Korea, Taiwan, and Ryukyu. China  The people above and below are so violent and ignorant, shouldn¡¯t the imperial army take this opportunity to punish them?¡±

    Foreign Minister Kato Takaaki said slowly just now: "Just now, Yashiro-kun and Oka-kun both mentioned the question of how deeply our country should be involved in the European War. In fact, before answering this question, we must carefully read the request sent by the British government. . It can be seen from the wording of this document that Britain has both expectations and concerns about our Empire of Japan. What they hope is to use our country's strong military strength in the Far East to eliminate its rival Germany's armed forces in China. Maintain peace and stability in the Far East; but the concern is that our country will take the opportunity to expand its strength in my country and affect British interests in the Far East. Therefore, they have repeatedly limited the conditions for our country to use force in the document."

    Yashiro Rokuro was furious and said: "Oniyi is the most abominable. He wants to use our country to eradicate Germany, but he doesn't want to give our country any benefits. What do you think of our Empire of Japan? A servant who comes and goes when you call him? Sooner or later  One day, we will let those ghosts know how serious the consequences are of despising our Japanese Empire!"

    Okuma Shigenobu watched eightRokuro glanced at him, and then said to Kato Takaaki: "Kato-kun, you can give a clear reply to the British government. The Empire of Japan will not infringe on the British sphere of influence in the Far East, nor will it harm any British interests in the Far East. If necessary, it can even guarantee  The Japanese government will not attack areas outside the German-occupied areas. But we also want a guarantee from the British that as long as the Japanese government does not violate the above conditions, the British government cannot interfere in any way with Japan's military operations in China."

    Kato Gaoming bowed slightly to indicate that he understood, and then continued: "There is another piece of information worthy of attention, that is, the German army in the Jiao'ao area has been shrinking its defense lines recently. Some soldiers have packed their bags, and naval ships are also adding water and coal. We have  There is reason to suspect that Germany has secretly reached an agreement with China to return Jiaozhou Bay, and this agreement is being implemented intensively!"

    Everyone immediately sat up straight, and Yashiro Rokuro asked impatiently: "What, Germany plans to return Jiaozhou Bay and withdraw from the Far East? When will this happen?"

    Kato Takaaki said with a wry smile: "About a month ago, the German defense line began to shrink, and naval ships also showed signs of sailing. At that time, our army just started to mobilize the Sixth Division, and Congress approved the formation of the 19th and 22nd Divisions.  Our intelligence officers thought that the German army was adjusting its deployment in response to the changes in our army. It was not until a few days ago that the German officers and soldiers in Qingdao began to pack their bags and sell furniture and other items that we discovered anomalies and concluded that China and Germany had reached a secret agreement  Speculation. However, there is currently no intelligence support from China.

    "In the past year or two, China's awareness of confidentiality has increased significantly. Many information that could be obtained easily before now requires a lot of trouble. For example, there was no news about the secret talks between China and Germany this time. Another example is this time  The Northwest China Army is conducting exercises in the border area of ??Jiangsu, Anhui, and Shandong. It is said that a very powerful weapon was tested, but we have tried every possible means to investigate and still have no clue."

    Okuma Shigenobu tapped his finger on the table. After thinking for a moment, he said in a deep voice: "This matter is of great importance. We would rather believe it or not. Kato-kun, after the meeting is over, you can call the Acting Minister to China, Kohata Yukichi."  Lord, ask him to visit China Prime Minister Sun Yuanqi early tomorrow morning. Warn him in the sternest tone that if the China government secretly reaches an agreement with Germany to take back Jiaozhou Bay without notifying Britain and Japan on the matter, it will be regarded as  Join the Allies secretly. The huge dangers and serious consequences it will bring in the future will be borne by the China government!

    "In addition, Mr. Kato will summon Mr. Green, the British Minister, as soon as possible tomorrow morning to inform him of the relevant situation. He said that Germany has been shrinking its defense line in Qingdao recently, and its naval ships are also adding water and coal. All soldiers are ready for the expedition. Their goal  It is most likely Weihaiwei or Hong Kong; and according to intelligence, the Chinese government privately provided a large amount of assistance to the German army and encouraged the German army to attack the British leased areas in the Far East. The Japanese government has seen that the war has spread to East Asia, and the Japan-British alliance is on the verge of a major threat. According to the two countries  signed alliance treaty, Japan requests to declare war on Germany and China!¡±

    Kato Takaaki bowed deeply: "Hai!"

    The Minister of Finance, Reijiro Wakatsuki, hesitated: "Your Excellency, Prime Minister, are you really planning to declare war on China? Are you planning to threaten China with this, so that they will not dare to make peace with Germany?" The Ministry of Finance is Japan's central financial agency in charge of finance, finance, and taxation.  , similar to China¡¯s current Ministry of Finance plus the People¡¯s Bank of China plus the State Administration of Taxation, and the Minister of Finance is naturally the Minister of Finance.

    Before Okuma Shigenobu could reply, the Minister of Agriculture and Commerce Kanetake Ohura, who was sitting next to Wakatsuki Reijiro, jumped out: "Wakatsuki-kun, what do you mean? You are so concerned, are you still planning to promote your cuts?  The appeasement rhetoric of armies, shrinking finances, and living in peace?¡±

    Wakatsuki Reijiro shook his head and said: "No! After mobilizing the 6th and 18th divisions and forming the 19th and 20th divisions, the government has been unable to make ends meet. Coupled with various foreign debts and interest, national financial bankruptcy is just around the corner. Instead of that, the government can no longer make ends meet. Now it is better to cut down the army and reduce finances than to give it a try. I just want to know how long the war with my country may last, and also evaluate the impact and pros and cons of the war on our country's finances."

    It can be seen that Okuma Shigenobu¡¯s cabinet is a militant who supports the invasion of China. The main difference in their debate is not whether to invade China, but when is the most appropriate time to invade China.

    The expressions of Okaichi Nosuke, Yashiro Rokuro and others changed slightly: "How long the war will last does not depend on our attitude, but on whether the China government is willing to cooperate. If they understand, then declaring war is just a threat.  ; If China doesn¡¯t understand, then we have to beat him until he admits defeat. But based on China¡¯s current military force and the experience of the two Japanese-Qing wars in the 27th year of Meiji (1894) and the 33rd year of Meiji (1900)  Look, even if a war breaks out, time should?No more than three months!  "

    Wakatsuki Reijiro breathed a long sigh of relief and said: "It should be no more than three months. According to last year's statistics, China is one of the most important trading partners of our Empire of Japan. The total trade volume between Japan and China exceeds 300 million taels of silver."  Among them, Japan's exports to China are mainly cotton yarn, cotton cloth, steel, etc., with a value of more than 150 million taels, accounting for about 15% to 20% of Japan's total exports; while China's exports to Japan include important raw materials such as ores and coal.  In addition, it also includes medicines, fast food, engines, arms and other items.

    "It can be said that most of the goods exported by Japan to China can be replaced, while most of the goods exported by China to Japan are necessities. If Japan and China go to war, not only will China's industry not regress, but it will because of Japanese goods  However, Japanese industries are on the contrary. They will be forced to reduce production or even stop production due to lack of raw materials. Therefore, it is best not to start a war with China for more than three months, otherwise the domestic economy will collapse. Your Excellency, Prime Minister, Oka  Jun, Yashiro-kun, and everyone here, please!"

    After saying that, Wakatsuki Reijiro bowed deeply to all the cabinet members.
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