Dominate the Country

No one could predict a storm in the vast ocean thousands of miles away, and the storm that Zhu Wo was about to experience did not fall into the depths of Edo Bay at all. But at this time in Edo Bay, the tense and solemn atmosphere was no weaker than that on Zhu Wo's exploration ship, which was about to face the test of life and death...

Because the Chinese naval fleet had already fought two battles with Japan.

The South Fleet destroyed Kagoshima, the main force of Satsuma Domain, and Shimazu Shigehiro's efforts in the past few years. The entire Kagoshima Castle was burned to a mess, and the city and town under Kagoshima Castle were also burned by the fire. Many treasures became the spoils of the Southeast Navy. The Odaiba, the City and Town Museum, the Astronomical Museum, and the Satsuma Navy's base after Sakurajima were all destroyed...

The losses of the North Fleet in Edo were much lighter than those in Kagoshima, because Chen Han's North Fleet was fighting cautiously. What level is the Japanese Navy? At this time, they were not even as powerful as the Qing Navy. The Northern Fleet's punishment of them was like a strong man teaching a young child. Half of the Edo Navy was easily defeated in one battle, and the battlefield was in Edo Bay.

Then the Chinese Navy's incredibly fast ships, under the bombardment of the Odaiba cannons in Edo Bay, rushed to the Edo Pier 300 to 400 meters away, and fired two rockets at Edo Castle, burning hundreds of houses and shops near the landing point. The sea breeze that day was relatively small.

The chief elder of the Tokugawa Shogunate who stayed in Edo, Tanuma Okitsugu, was about to kneel down after seeing this scene.

He could understand and tolerate the fragility and overall backwardness of the Navy's combat effectiveness, just like Emperor Xianfeng understood Senggelinqin's "bravery" after the defeat at Baliqiao. Tanuma Okitsugu never expected the Japanese Navy to defeat the Chinese Navy. He felt that as long as the Japanese samurai could show due courage and loyalty, they were worthy of praise.

But what about this scene now? Doesn't this mean that the Chinese could set fire to the entire Edo Castle at any time?

The entire Edo was in chaos, and countless people rushed out of the city. The exchange rate of the Japanese yen on the black market staged a scene of Mount Everest diving. At this time, people believed more in real gold and silver, and the prices of various Japanese stocks, including Mitsui Bank, continued to plummet.

For the first time, Tanuma Oji saw Japan's weakness so clearly. Japan, where all the cities in the country are wooden buildings, is a clearly exposed weakness. It is so vulnerable under the guns of the Chinese navy. Japan really has no capital to fight the Chinese now. Even if they don't land, they can only use this kind of super-powerful shrapnel and hot bombs to make Japan kneel down.

Japan, which is full of wooden buildings, can never withstand the ravages of the Chinese navy's firepower.

After a short battle in Edo Bay, the latter evacuated Edo Bay as a whole and rushed to the Kii Channel, and after joining the South Route Navy, they went straight into the Seto Inland Sea.

The "active points" of the Chinese Northern Navy were not high, but the impact it brought to Edo was devastating.

Whether it was the Bank of Japan, Mitsui Bank, or the stock exchange run by the Mitsui family, the unstoppable bank runs and the surging stock market made people despair and made people clearly aware of the absolute fear of war among the Japanese people.

Edo, the residence of the Mitsui family.

An old man with almost no hair sitting cross-legged in the middle of the room, the moonlight shining through the screen window onto the old man, the gloomy old man looked like a poisonous snake hidden in the dark, with a pair of bright eyes radiating cold poisonous light.

There were several sheets of paper scattered in front of him. Through the moonlight, one could vaguely see the following words written on the paper: Mitsui Bank, opened at 11.53 yen, closed at 10.22 yen; Mitsui Department Store, opened at 2.44 yen, closed at 2.05 yen;...

Satsuma Bank, opened at 0.25 yen, closed at 0.25 yen;

Iwasaki Shipping Company, opened at 1.90 yen, closed at 1.58 yen...

The 140 listed companies on the Edo Stock Exchange, from the Mitsui family itself to ordinary wealthy companies whose scale was far less than that of the Mitsui family, all had their stock prices falling sharply. Only the stock of Satsuma Bank, which had actually become waste paper, could guarantee the stability of its stock price.

Take Mitsui Bank, the core industry of the Mitsui family, for example. From the highest 28.6 yen, it plummeted to the current 10.22 yen. The old man was so angry that he wanted to pick up a samurai sword and chop people into pieces like the broken lantern in front of him.

In front of the old man, there was a middle-aged man kneeling. He was wearing a red and blue samurai uniform, with his head buried deep. His face could not be seen clearly. Only the extremely strange and dazzling hairstyle unique to Japan at this moment could be seen - the topknot.

The atmosphere in the room was extremely heavy until the old man took out a box with a silver lock from his hand, and then solemnly took out an exquisite building model from it, and the atmosphere was slightly loosened. This is the building model of the Edo Stock Exchange. Now many things in Japan have begun to learn from China. Things like architectural design and models have become common, although the attitude of the Japanese people towards China has become worse little by little.

Taking the Mitsui family as an example, whether it is the name of the bank or the stock exchange, or the titles of department stores, managers, etc., they were all copied from China.

The Edo Stock Exchange has a great significance to the Mitsui family. Just like Mitsui Bank, once it was established, its status was far higher than that of department stores, clothing companies and other retail industries. Therefore, the building model of the stock exchange was regarded as a collection by the old man who dominated the Mitsui family and he always kept it with him.

In the future, when he died, he would bring this building model down to accompany him to sleep forever.

"Crack..."

The building model that the old man loved like a treasure and regarded as the apple of his eye was crushed to pieces under his wooden shoes. The body of the woman with a fringe on the ground could not help shaking.

Although the ruthlessness on the old man's face was even stronger, and the cold breath was about to solidify the substance, although he was reluctant, he still stepped on the entire building model without hesitation.

"Go and do it. Don't leave any handle."

"Ha."

The middle-aged man's head, which had just been raised, lowered deeply again.

In less than a month, the stock price of Mitsui Bank dropped by more than half, which was a loss that the Mitsui family could not tolerate. However, no matter how big the loss was, the stock exchange could not delist Mitsui Bank, or even suspend trading, because that would bring a greater blow to the entire Mitsui family.

The financial loss had already driven the Mitsui family crazy. If their reputation was also severely damaged, the Mitsui family would be finished.

The Chinese did not fight in Edo Bay, which allowed Mitsui Bank and the Mitsui family to escape, but the contradiction between China and Japan still existed. The Chinese did not attack Edo not because they could not conquer Edo. They only needed to fire dozens of shrapnel bombs like the one they fired that day at Edo Castle in the weather with an easterly wind, and the entire Edo would be turned into a sea of ​​fire. They just didn't fight.

The Chinese rushed to Osaka, and their spearheads were always pointed at Kyoto. And after the fire that day, not many people in Edo City dared to speak out against China. Two quick-release shrapnel bombs could easily ignite hundreds of houses and shops. If the shogunate really wanted to fight to the death with China, the entire Edo would inevitably be turned into a sea of ​​fire. This is a price that no one dares to "bear". Otherwise, it would be a sinister intention. Now there are many people in Edo who are clamoring to rebuild the city as soon as possible. Even if the wooden houses in the entire Edo city cannot be replaced by brick houses in a short time, the area near the dock must be renovated.

This kind of thing takes a very long time and has complex and diverse problems. It can be said that the eyes of Edo City have been "shifted" to the end of the war.

Now, the biggest problem is that the final direction of China-Japan diplomatic relations will come to a final conclusion in a few days.

If those damned royal families and nobles do not bow their heads, the whole of Osaka will be reduced to ashes, and can Edo City escape the disaster again in the war? This is also the biggest reason for the stock market to fall again in the past two days.

Unless it is a stock like the bankrupt Satsuma Bank, there are very few stocks in the entire market that have fallen by less than 5%. The most terrifying thing is that if bad news comes from Kyoto, the Edo stock market may once again usher in the dark period of the avalanche...

Since the concept of the stock exchange spread in Japan, few people can resist the temptation of robbing money. That is, the Bank of Japan, which is controlled by the shogunate, cannot be listed because of its responsibilities as a central bank. Other business lords, including the Mitsui family themselves, are salivating over the listing of the stock exchange.

As long as the market behavior and people have confidence, they only need to take out a small part of the shares to exchange for an unimaginable huge amount of funds, which can lay a solid foundation for the next step of the company's own development or the development of its overall industry.

The above-mentioned corporate banks are no exception.

The listing qualifications of the Edo Stock Exchange are much lower than those of China. If it were not for this sudden change, there should be 200 stocks listed on the exchange by the end of the year. The benefits that the Mitsui family can obtain from it and the huge influence that can be brought about will be a qualitative improvement for the Mitsui family. The stock exchange will also become the real pillar of the Mitsui family.

But the war changed all this.

As a victim of this war, the Mitsui family must now consider the consequences of the collapse of the Sino-Japanese negotiations in Kyoto. If a full-scale war breaks out between China and Japan, the terrible impact is simply not something the Mitsui family can bear.

If Edo Castle also suffers the same destruction as Kagoshima, the entire Mitsui family can also be destroyed.

So how to change all this?

In addition to mobilizing all their connections to threaten the royal family and nobles and to help the Tokugawa shogunate, the Mitsui family is transferring their own property, and at the same time, they must also take ruthless measures to strangle the stock exchange, which is the starting point of the fire. The Mitsui family's method is to "suspend" the Edo Stock Exchange!

That night, a beautiful flame "bloomed" in Edo Castle. It is said that a Japanese samurai who used all his belongings to gamble on stocks and lost everything, set fire to the entire Jianghu Stock Exchange in despair.

The arsonist's desperate and shrill laughter spread far and wide in the fire...

"Oh, this Mitsui family is decisive enough." Wang Jun was impressed by the fact that he burned his own stock exchange. He was originally in a religious sect, but none of them were so ruthless and decisive. The drastic measures of the Mitsui family made him shudder with fear.

"Burning down the stock exchange is because a bankrupt guy is seeking his own death. This is a procrastination. The stock exchange is so closed, even if the stocks are still falling in price, there is not such a big place for them to trade. Such a convenient channel for them to quote..." The big fluctuations in the Japanese stock market have stopped this time.

Without this stock exchange, Japan's stock trading has returned to the past tavern era, suddenly changing from four wheels to two legs, and the operating speed of the entire industry has dropped by an unknown number of times. The opaque nature of each other's transactions has caused countless people to worry about each other's quotations, and the trading speed and stock market fluctuations will gradually calm down. In particular, Wang Jun also knew that His Majesty had no real plans to attack Japan. Within a few days, the incident subsided and the Japanese stock market turned from winter to spring. As long as the Mitsui family survives the current wave and the sun comes to an end, they will be like flowers that have survived the cold winter and can shine again with some sunshine.

"Let's not mention this. Our task is still to negotiate. The imperial court has set up a stage for the Tokugawa Shogunate. If Tokugawa Ieharu can't do his job beautifully, he will be a waste."

Wang Jun took a puff of cigarette and said to Zong Weifeng beside him.

In the current Japanese imperial court, the little emperor doesn't know shit, and he's not even qualified to be a brand. The real troublemakers are the little emperor's father, Kanshiro Konoe Uchizen, left minister Kujo Noomi, and Takashi Sukehei. Minister of public affairs.

At this moment, the second generation Prince Kanin Miya Naohito was sitting on his knees on the floor, with the people around him looking longingly. The palace southwest of the Kyoto Imperial Garden has been surrounded by the shogunate's troops.

Of course Tokugawa Ieharu would not take action personally, but the shogunate veteran Matsudaira Yasufuku appeared in front of the second generation Prince Kanin Miya Naohito.

The latter will be 'disembowelled'.

The person who served as the intermediary was the sixth Prince Arisugawa Palace Orihito, another member of the four major palace families. A famous swordsman among the royal family.

At this moment, his face was so solemn that he couldn't hide his paleness. Prince Yusikawa Miya Naohito stood upright next to the second generation Prince Kanin Miya Naohito. The latter was wearing a white samurai robe, with a white belt tied around his head. There was a white silk scarf and a sword in front of him that had been passed down for two generations. His father inherited the sword from Emperor Reigen (the father of Emperor Higashiyama, the 3rd emperor). A samurai sword received from a generation of grandfather).

The tricks played by the second generation Prince Kanin Miya Naohito were beyond Tokugawa Ieharu's tolerance. When news of Kagoshima's destruction reached Kyoto, Osaka businessmen pointed the finger at him out of fear. The Tokugawa shogunate also took the opportunity to launch an attack, and the second generation of Prince Kanin Miya Naohito became a living dead. But at that time, Tokugawa Ieharu did not want to take away the second generation's life. Wasn't this a battle report coming from Edo? The entire Edo City Navy could be burned by the Chinese Navy. I was shocked. Tokugawa Ieharu immediately decided the fate of the second generation Prince Kanin Miya Naohito, and he no longer even had the possibility of living in seclusion and becoming a monk.

With the collapse of a powerful feudal lord, the entire Edo Castle was in danger of being plunged into flames. Now the Chinese fleet has arrived in Osaka. Osaka merchants who have certain connections with the royal ministers of Kyoto have all come to oppose Kyoto. The power and prestige of the entire imperial family has dropped. To the extreme. Tokugawa Ieharu asked the second generation Prince Kanin Miya Naohito to die to atone for his sins. The second generation Prince Kanin Miya Naohito had no choice but to commit suicide by breaking his belly.

Use force to make a crosswise cut on the abdomen from left to right; then make a straight cut from bottom to top, forming a cross shape and reaching the heart. Or make a cross-cut in the abdomen, and then immediately cut your own throat with the knife. Or after making a transverse cut on the abdomen, immediately insert the knife into the heart, and then pull down hard to form a cross shape.

Although Wang Jun had a certain understanding of Japan's disembowelment suicide, he really didn't know there were so many tricks. Moreover, those who commit seppuku know that this method of death is physically painful, but they must always endure the pain without making a sound and actively achieve their goals. When they are about to die, they must maintain a clear will and follow the rituals one by one. First, the body must not be tilted, but must lie forward. If you turn your back to the sky, it is considered a breach of etiquette. Second, the knife marks on the abdomen must not be wrinkled. Third, the knees must be closed. If they are loosened, it means lack of cultivation. Finally, weapons used for suicide must be properly placed and cannot be left scattered.

To perform a head-holding operation on the wrong person, that is, to cut off the neck of the person who had his belly disemboweled with a knife, but not completely, leaving the head and neck still slightly involved.

To be honest, Wang Jun is not incapable of understanding Japan's "samurai spirit", although he feels that this belief is too persistent and too extreme in terms of "loyalty, faith, integrity, martial arts, honor", etc. Some.

The Japanese samurai group, which regards this concept as a universal value, feels like a ferocious beast to Wang Jun.

Their tradition of committing suicide through disembowelment seems to embody a national integrity that requires death and not humiliation in order to maintain dignity. In fact, it is like a beast without intelligence. At the last moment, it only thinks about doing everything it can, without thinking about the longer-term and longer future. This nation should be very 'short-sighted'.

Wang Jun can also be regarded as a scholar. Although he did not obtain any honors during the Manchu and Qing dynasties, he was a serious Jinshi in the Chen, Han and Xin dynasties. His three views are largely influenced by traditional Confucian thinking. Wang Jun looks at Japan from his own point of view and truly feels that Japan is too lucky. Even if they had changed places with North Korea, they would have been killed long ago.

Of course, Wang Jun has not yet realized what is an island nation and what is a mainland nation. The harsh living environment of Japan, where volcanoes have frequently erupted since ancient times, has injected factors into this nation that are very different from the Han nation.

But now Wang Jun very much agrees with the emperor's many practices towards Japan. Such a nation is too "wild" and has already learned the "lesson" of the Korean War in the late Ming Dynasty. They must be firmly chained.

"Send a message to Nanjing, the overall situation in Japan has been determined!"