Twentieth Century Chronicle

Page 39

Therefore, the Japanese Navy supports the Sino-Japanese Manchuria Agreement, provided it is effectively implemented. However, if the Chinese don't contribute any effort, will Japan still abide by the agreement? It is precisely from a national perspective that I want to issue this serious warning to the Chinese and North Korean students.

I want you to remember that what the navy needs is to establish a new order, and deception can only destroy order, not build it. Only by honestly telling others our intentions will they know what we want and adjust their thinking accordingly. If Japan believes it can make allies serve its interests through deception, then it will soon have no allies but only enemies.

After boarding the ferry with Hayashi Shinichi, Inoue Tsunetatsu finally confessed to Hayashi Shinichi with genuine admiration, "My thoughts were actually no different from those other trainees. I also felt that what you said to the Chinese and North Korean trainees was a bit excessive, seemingly harming Japan's interests. But now that I hear what you've said, I realize I was somewhat shallow. The navy's strategy really can't follow the army's lead..."

The alliance between Japan and China was also a major shock within the army. Army Minister and Director-General of Education, Masatake Terauchi, had always harbored doubts about the plan to invade the Russian mainland. He believed that the conflict between Japan and Russia should be limited to colonial interests and should not escalate into a direct conflict between the two countries. Invading Russia's Far Eastern territories and attempting to force Russia to cede the area east of Lake Baikal would clearly lead to a situation that Russia could not easily accept.

Taiwan Governor-General Kodama Gentaro also supported Terauchi Masatake's view, but he was far away in Taiwan and it was inconvenient for him to communicate with Tokyo, so he ultimately could not stop the alliance between Japan and China.

Kodama rushed back to Japan and went to the General Staff Headquarters to question the Vice Chief of Staff, Tamura Iyozo: "Do you even realize the seriousness of attacking Russian territory? This will make Russia and us fight to the death, and this war will never end until a victor is decided."

Tamura Itsuki calmly said to him, "Yes, so our goal is to cleanly and decisively destroy Russia's organization in the Far East. Unless Russia launches a major expedition from Europe, it will no longer be able to threaten our country's security. This is a once-and-for-all operation."

Kodama Gentaro looked at Tamura in great surprise and asked, "Are you sure we can cleanly and decisively crush Russia's power in the Far East? Are you dreaming?"

Tamura presented his battle plan and explained it to Kodama. Kodama quickly saw the problem and pointed to the map, asking, "The core of this plan is to capture Harbin, thereby cutting off the Russian army's logistical supply in southern Manchuria."

However, to capture Harbin, at least two divisions would be needed. Transporting such a large force to Harbin would have to rely on the railway, making Vladivostok, the terminus of the Chinese Eastern Railway, crucial.

In other words, the key to this plan lies in whether the navy can capture Vladivostok in a short period of time. If they can't capture Vladivostok, the plan will be a failure. Are you trying to entrust the fate of the army and the Empire to the navy? Do you really think the navy can take Vladivostok, which the Russian army has been developing for so long?

Tamura remained silent for a long time before saying to Kodama, "I also asked the Navy about this issue. They told me to wait two days and they will give us a solution soon."

"Ha." Kodama tilted his head back and gave a speechless, cold laugh, then turned to Tamura and said, "What kind of solution can the Navy offer? A plan on how to attack Vladivostok? But how can we be sure that the Navy can really carry out their plan?"

After considering it for a moment, Tamura said, "If it were the Navy of the past, it would indeed be difficult to fully trust them. But the Navy of today has a truly intelligent person, so I think we can have some hope."

Of course, even if the navy can't come up with a solution and we can't deploy a large army to occupy Harbin, we can at least launch a surprise attack to destroy Harbin's railway bridges. Then, using Jilin as a base, we can send small units to sabotage the railway transportation between Changchun and Harbin, which would also achieve the goal of disrupting the Russian army's logistics.

But in that case, we would still need the support of the Chinese people, which is why I advocate for a Japan-China alliance.

Kodama Gentaro replied solemnly, "That's exactly what I'm worried about. Cutting off the transport route between North and South Manchuria will certainly create an opportunity for the army to encircle and annihilate the Russian forces in South Manchuria, but the Russians can still continuously reinforce Harbin from Europe via the Trans-Siberian Railway. We can't afford to fight this war. What we need is a battle plan that can make the Russians withdraw their claws from Korea and Manchuria, not one that completely enrages this bear. Unless we can take Harbin, I firmly oppose expanding the scope of the war beyond Manchuria."

Just as the two were arguing, a staff officer knocked on Tamura's door. Tamura stopped arguing with Kodama and let the staff officer in. The staff officer handed him a telegram that had just been received. Tamura glanced at the telegram, then his expression became serious. He picked up a pencil, looked at the telegram, and drew a circle on the map of Shirotsu Port, then another circle on Sojoko, and then connected the two places with a line.

He then handed the telegram to Kodama and said, "The navy's solution is to have the Russians build a railway from Shuangchengzi to Chengjin Port in northern Korea. Now we don't need to attack Vladivostok."

Kodama Gentaro stared wide-eyed at Tamura, then picked up the telegram and began to read. It read: "Yi Wan-yong proposed to the Korean Emperor the expansion of Seongjin Port and a joint construction project with Russia to build a railway from Seongjin Port to Sangseongja, connecting it to the Trans-Siberian Railway, in order to develop the northern region of Korea. This plan received the approval of the Russian Minister to Korea."

Kodama Gentaro was completely stunned. After a long while, he said, "Are the Russians so sure that we won't dare to attack Russian territory, so they're rushing to infiltrate North Korea? They've gone mad."

Tamura agreed with Kodama's view. Given Russia's constant provocations against Japan, the Russians had actually built a branch line connecting the Trans-Siberian Railway to the Korean Peninsula for their own benefit—essentially exposing their own interior. In that case, what use would Vladivostok's fortified defenses be to Japan? Once they seized this branch line, Japan could advance inland along the railway.

This left Kodama with no reason to oppose the battle plan. He could only shake his head and say, "The Russians are so blinded by greed; if we don't accept their invitation, it would be a crime against Japan..."

Chapter 133 Benevolence and Propriety

On April 24, a Japanese newspaper suddenly published the following news: Wang Zhichun, the governor of Guangxi, requested the assistance of the French troops stationed in Lang Son, Vietnam, in order to quell the rioters; at the same time, he borrowed a huge sum of money from the Hengdali Foreign Firm, promising to repay him with the rights and interests of railways, mines and other resources in the province after the matter was settled.

On April 25, the staff of the student associations and student halls of students from various provinces who had studied in Japan held a meeting and decided to call the Beijing government office to request the removal of Wang Zhichun from his post and to reject the unreasonable demands of the legal entity; they also called the Shanghai Chinese Education Association to request a response and to work together to fight the dispute.

On April 26, a general assembly of Chinese students studying in Japan was held at the Kanda Kinkikan Hall, with over 500 participants. At the assembly, the students not only proposed rejecting France but also, taking the opportunity, put forward their advocacy against Russia.

The signing of the Sino-Japanese Manchuria Agreement led some Japanese radicals to believe that the time for war against Russia had come. Therefore, inciting China to go to war with Russia, thereby getting Japan to join the war, was the most logical course of action.

At this gathering, the students studying in Japan were indeed inspired with patriotic fervor. They discussed everything from rejecting France to rejecting Russia, and advocated urging the imperial court to negotiate with Russia to withdraw its troops and to establish a volunteer army to resist Russia by force.

On April 26, the Chinese Educational Association held a rally in Zhangyuan, Shanghai, to oppose France. More than 400 people from all walks of life attended and sent a telegram to stop the borrowing of loans and troops in order to protect sovereignty. Soon, the anti-French and anti-Russian movement spread throughout the country, mainly led by intellectuals.

The surge of nationalist sentiment among the Chinese people also aroused the vigilance of the Japanese. On April 29, Hori Teikichi anxiously asked Hayashi Shin'ichi in the activity room: "Anti-colonialism and anti-imperialism can indeed inspire the people in colonized areas to rise up in resistance, but after this surge of nationalist sentiment, will they still be willing to submit to Japanese leadership? If nationalism succeeds, won't they see Japan as an external interference? Then wouldn't we have wasted our efforts and done something that harms others without benefiting ourselves?"

More than thirty people, including Hori Teikichi, Shiozawa Koichi, Matsushita Kaoru, Inoue Tsunomatsu, Yoshida Zengo, Takano Isoroku, Maehara Kenji, Wada Nobufusa, Ohno Hiroshi, and Shimada Shigetaro, also stopped talking and looked at Hayashi Shin-yi, who was flipping through the newspaper.

Sitting by the window, Lin Xinyi put down his newspaper, thought for a moment, and then said, "This is indeed an excellent topic. I suggest including it in this issue's discussion topics. I'll prepare, and then we'll have a formal discussion on this topic at the seminar..."

Hori Teikichi was surprised by Hayashi Nobuyoshi's answer. In his view, this question should be unsolvable, because Japan could not liberate those colonies for nothing, and a nation that had achieved self-liberation by adopting Hayashi Nobuyoshi's method should not be willing to be controlled by Japan again. This was a dilemma.

After more than two years of being classmates, even though Hori Teikichi consistently ranked first or second in the entire grade, he still felt a sense of defeat when facing Kamiya Nobuyoshi, because he could never achieve the same level of confidence that Nobuyoshi had in control of the future.

This difference meant he needed to focus most of his energy on his studies because he couldn't afford to lose his ranking; only that ranking could prove he was truly better than others. But Lin Xinyi didn't need to do that. Everyone thought he no longer needed grades to prove his ability. Teachers and students alike strangely believed that if Lin Xinyi couldn't do something, then they certainly couldn't either; if they could do something but Lin Xinyi couldn't, then that thing must be insignificant.

If Hori Teikichi had wanted to compete with Hayashi Shinji when he first enrolled, he no longer had that intention. His purpose in asking this question wasn't to embarrass Hayashi Shinji, but rather he genuinely wanted to know how to resolve the issue. If this problem couldn't be solved, then the southward route pointed out by Hayashi Shinji could very well become a huge pitfall.

With this expectation in mind, the others felt the same way. After all, Hori Teikichi wasn't the only intelligent person; it's just that the others were unwilling to directly raise such questions with Hayashi Shin'ichi. In any case, Hayashi Shin'ichi was the founder of the Naval Research Association, and according to most people, any Naval Research Association member who questioned Hayashi Shin'ichi was a betrayal.

The reason people hold this view naturally stems from the education system of the Meiji era. Their elementary and secondary education instilled in them the idea that one should not question superiors, even if they are truly wrong; one should wait for them to realize their mistakes, otherwise it is considered disrespectful. In this context, "superior" naturally refers to His Majesty the Emperor. However, once this educational ideology took hold, it became literally meaningless: senior students and superiors were not to be offended.

Even though Lin Xinyi abolished the overt hierarchy at the naval seminar, the trainees still tacitly adhered to these unspoken rules. After all, this was the society outside the naval seminar, and they didn't live in a vacuum. Taking a few breaths of fresh air inside the naval seminar was fine, but they didn't have such lofty ideals as making the outside world like the naval seminar.

Since Lin Xinyi has overthrown his seniors and teachers, he naturally takes their place and becomes their protector. Everyone enjoys the freedom Lin Xinyi brings; how could they possibly oppose him?

However, when Lin Hsin-yi faced this dilemma head-on, everyone became highly motivated again. The reason why a leader is a leader is that he can do things that others cannot.

Lin Xinyi didn't shy away from the question raised by Hori Teikichi. Since no one could answer it anyway, Lin Xinyi, following usual practice, simply isolated Hori Teikichi, letting him withdraw from the naval seminar on his own—a solution in itself. If no one raised a question, then naturally there was no problem. However, doing so would diminish the respect people had for Lin Xinyi, because they could do the same thing.

Before long, the day of the formal seminar arrived. This time, all the senior members were present, eager to hear Lin Xinyi's response. Lin Xinyi kept his word, chatting with the students around him for a while before walking directly to the podium and addressing the group: "Today's seminar topic is the conflict between the rise of Asian nationalism and the southward expansion strategy of the Japanese Navy, as proposed by Hori Teikichi. First of all, I would like to thank Hori Teikichi for raising such a question, because raising a question is the first step in solving a problem, so at least we have found the right direction."

Everyone in the activity room chuckled, and the tense atmosphere that had just started to build was eased considerably. Lin Xinyi then continued, "Speaking of Asia, in a broad sense, Asia should be the region east of the Mediterranean and Black Seas, while in a narrow sense, Asia should be the region east and north of the Strait of Malacca."

Whether it is Asia in a broad sense or in a narrow sense, the regions or countries within this area are all dominated by agriculture. Even Japan is an agricultural country.

Therefore, the fundamental problem of Asia is essentially the problem of the peasantry. So-called nationalism and patriotism ultimately cannot escape the choices of the peasantry. Whoever the peasantry chooses, that person dominates Asia; whoever the peasantry abandons, that person loses Asia.

Nationalism and patriotism are actually borrowed terms, as these concepts didn't exist in Asia historically. Why did nationalism and patriotism emerge in Asia in modern times, when they were absent in the past?

Speaking of this, we cannot ignore the Confucian cultural sphere of East Asia. In traditional Confucianism, the entire world is one, and all under the emperor are feudal lords; where does the distinction between states come from? Therefore, Asia has no patriotism, only a worldview, which is the core of Confucianism's benevolence and propriety. The emperor bestows benevolence upon all people, and the feudal lords serve the emperor with propriety; naturally, there is no strife in the world, and therefore no disputes between states.

Nationalism doesn't exist in the East. Under the concept of "all under heaven," there is only a distinction between "nationalists" and "savages." In the past, the so-called ethnic groups in the East were more like descriptions of regions and physical characteristics. Therefore, people living on the Mongolian grasslands were called Mongolians, Hui people wearing white hats were called White-hat Hui people, Hui people wearing flowery hats were called Flowery-hat Hui people, and people living in Tibet were called Tibetans, and so on.

Therefore, after the reform of the chieftain system in the East, the "savages" became Chinese. However, even if you convert to a Western religion, you will not become a French, Italian, or Germanic people; you will remain a Yamato.

From the perspective of comparing Eastern and Western cultures, I believe that the reason why nationalism and statism emerged in the West can be summed up in one sentence: the West had feudal lords but no emperor. As a result, there were constant conflicts between the feudal lords, which eventually led to the formation of national and ethnic groups, who used the power of the masses to defend the interests of the nation and the country.

However, in the East, the emperor was always present, and the world did not lose order. Therefore, there was no concept of nation or state that could unite the consciousness of the people, because the emperor, not the feudal lords, was the one who distributed the benefits to the world.

Once we understand the essence of nationalism and statism, it becomes clear that the root of the state and the nation lies in the absence of a supreme ruler to distribute benefits to the people, which led to the rise of nationalism and statism. This does not mean that nationalism and statism are so advanced.

To eliminate nationalism and patriotism, all that's needed is to rebuild the world order. How to rebuild the world order? By distributing benefits among the people. The largest group in Asia is the peasantry, so distributing benefits to peasants is the key to rebuilding the world order. How to get peasants to accept the existence of the emperor? The ancient Chinese explained it very clearly: it's simply about ensuring that the tiller owns the land.

Therefore, when the emperor bestows benevolence upon all people, in Asia this means promoting land reform so that farmers in all countries have land to cultivate. Then, he establishes rites to maintain the achievements of land reform. Once benevolence and rites are accomplished, order will be restored throughout the world, and farmers will become supporters of this world order because they are the beneficiaries of it.

At this point, what need do we have for patriotism and nationalism? That's just my opinion. What are your thoughts?

The room fell silent. Everyone exchanged glances, but no one stood up to speak. After a while, Hori Teikichi stood up, but after glancing at Lin Xinyi, he didn't say anything and slowly began to clap. Next, Inoue stood up and clapped, followed by Takano and Shigeru Shima. Soon, everyone in the room stood up and applauded Lin Xinyi.

Chapter 134 The Wind Rises

After redeeming the Luhan Railway, Tian Junyi went to see off Cai E and 45 others who were going to study in Europe. At his and Cai E's urging, Zhang Zhidong finally decided to reduce the number of students studying in Japan and increase the number studying in Europe. The number of students allowed to study in Europe increased from the original 30 to 150, covering military, engineering, chemistry, and education fields, while the number of students studying law and politics was reduced to a minimum.

Cai E and others were among the second group of students to go to Europe. They would travel to Shanghai, then take a regular liner to Marseille, then transfer to Paris, and finally go to Germany.

When they said goodbye at the dock, Cai E said to Tian Junyi with some concern, "After I leave, will you be able to handle the situation here? There will be no unified command in the army for the time being."

Tian Junyi looked at Cai E with a smile and said, "Don't underestimate Duanfang. Zhang Zhidong was just old and lacked energy, which allowed us to take advantage of the situation and establish some organizations in the army."

However, Duanfang was one of the few shrewd and capable people among the Manchus. As soon as he arrived in Wuchang, he couldn't wait to seize military power and money. Our spreading of new ideas in the army would be discovered sooner or later, so it was better to give him some leeway for now.

But don't worry, he's targeting Zhang Zhidong's cronies now, and there are people even more eager than we are to get rid of him. So, let's keep the military quiet for now, and wait for you all to return from Europe before we launch another major offensive.”

Cai E looked at Tian Junyi in silence for a while, then reached out and shook his hand tightly before saying, "Be careful. It's better to develop slowly than to compromise our own safety. We'll settle things with them four years from now."

After watching Cai E and the others board the ship, Tian Junyi turned and left the dock. Although he agreed with what Cai E said, the development of the situation still disrupted the Labor Party's development plans.

The Qing government's perception and handling of the anti-French and anti-Russian movements were completely different. The anti-French movement was mainly directed at Wang Zhichun, the governor of Guangxi. The students and people from all walks of life in China demanded Wang Zhichun's removal, but there were no drastic actions against the French.

Of course, Empress Dowager Cixi would not go against public opinion for the sake of a mere lackey. Although the students' accounts of Wang Zhichun's actions in Guangxi were mostly exaggerated and lacked factual basis, Cixi still agreed with the Qingliu faction's opinion to first quell public opinion both domestically and internationally. Therefore, Wang Zhichun was summoned back to the capital to await punishment, while Ke Fengshi, the minister in charge of tax collection in eight provinces, was transferred to the position of governor of Guangxi. This Ke Fengshi was Zhang Zhidong's moneybag. On Tian Junyi's advice, the tax on local medicines doubled from 700,000 to 800,000 taels, thus making Zhang Zhidong give up the idea of ​​running a lottery.

While the court's strategy of using someone else's strength against them quelled the anger of the gentry and some students in Guangxi, it greatly alarmed Zhang Zhidong's faction in Huguang. Everyone felt that the court's behavior was too blatant. They were loyal to the court, but if Zhang Zhidong fell, how would they survive in the future? In the late Qing Dynasty, the absence of cliques in officialdom meant the absence of a future.

Leaving aside how the Zhang clique officials of Huguang united to outwit and outmaneuver Acting Governor-General Duanfang, the situation at the imperial court regarding the anti-Russian movement was quite different. When Empress Dowager Cixi summoned Yuan Shikai, the Governor-General of Zhili, she made it very clear: "My agreement with Ronglu to sign the Sino-Japanese Manchurian Agreement was not to fight the Russians alongside the Japanese, but rather to hope that the Russians would be somewhat wary and not continue to push their luck. Otherwise, we would have to join forces with the Japanese against them. Now, those students are ignorant of the bigger picture and recklessly interfere in national affairs. This trend must not be allowed to continue, lest it lead to another Boxer Rebellion."

Yuan Shikai also did not support the anti-Russian movement, as he, as the Governor-General of Zhili, was on the front lines. However, he also knew that since the Sino-Japanese Manchurian Agreement had been signed, it was impossible to renege on it. As for Empress Dowager Cixi's comparison of students to the Boxers, it was somewhat misjudging the relative importance of the matter. Students were the future officials of the Qing Dynasty, and she dared not treat them as Boxers to be suppressed.

While Yuan Shikai ordered the disbandment of anti-Russian groups in the name of the imperial court, he also recommended Zhang Zhidong to revise the school regulations to strengthen the daily management of students and make them prioritize their studies.

However, at this critical moment, Duanfang, the acting Governor-General of Huguang, suddenly stepped in to shield Yuan Shikai. He sent a telegram accusing the participants of the Zhangyuan Conference in Shanghai of "rebellious and outrageous discussions" and ordered their arrest. In the same month, he again accused the patriotic students of "ostensibly resisting Russia, but in reality engaging in revolution."

In June, Zhang Zhidong made a request to the Japanese ambassador in Beijing to restrain the students studying abroad and asked the Japanese government to assist in its implementation. He also drafted the "Regulations for Independent Filing of Cases," which was sent as an appendix to the Japanese Foreign Minister, Komura Jutaro.

The charter states that three generations of ancestors must have upheld the Qing Dynasty and have no bad records, and that students should only study medicine and science, with less emphasis on politics, law, and military affairs.

Zhang Zhidong's actions severely damaged his reputation. Overseas students began to criticize him, and the Qing government's oppressive policies towards anti-Russian groups and students in Japan further alienated those who had initially advocated patriotism and anti-Russia stances, turning them into patriotic anti-Manchu advocates. The revolutionary party's momentum surged, and Sun Yat-sen's Revive China Society gained significant support from overseas students through its anti-Manchu ideology.

In May, Zou Rong, a student who had studied in Japan, returned to China and wrote the book "The Revolutionary Army" in response to the Qing government's demand to disband the anti-Russian movement. On May 14, Zhang Shizhao wrote a book review entitled "Introducing 'The Revolutionary Army'", which rapidly expanded the influence of the book. Zhang Taiyan also wrote "Refuting Kang Youwei's Book on Revolution" in response to Kang Youwei.

For a time, the Su Bao newspaper became the source of the nationwide revolutionary movement. In June, the Su Bao published a secret order to "strictly arrest overseas students," which ultimately led to the Su Bao case.

The Workers' Party's stance wavered somewhat in mid-April, May, and June. The Shanghai branch, led by Tang Caichang, advocated active participation in the anti-French and anti-Russian movements. However, there were two factions within the Shanghai branch. One faction advocated that patriotism was superior to anti-Manchuism, arguing that China should be preserved before discussing anti-Manchu sentiment. The other faction advocated that nationalism was superior to patriotism, arguing that a Han Chinese nation should be established before discussing patriotism, and that a non-Han Chinese nation had nothing to be loved about it.

The initial opinion of the Hankou headquarters was that party members should not make any external statements without authorization. They should first discuss the matter at a party meeting and pass a resolution before they could express their views on the anti-Russian and anti-French movements in the name of the party.

Unlike the Hankou headquarters, which rectified its Party organization and strengthened Party discipline during the construction activities, the Shanghai branch's Party organizations were mainly distributed in the cultural and educational sectors and did not have close ties with the workers.

Therefore, while the Hankou headquarters advocated that party members should first follow the party's position, some party members in the Shanghai branch had already expressed their views in their own names without authorization. For example, when Zhang Taiyan published "Refuting Kang Youwei's Theory of Revolution," he did not think of reporting to the party at all. Tang Caichang, as the secretary of the Shanghai branch, did not have any intention of stopping Zhang Taiyan's actions.

Therefore, before Cai E left Hankou, the Hankou headquarters, with committee members Tian Junyi, Cai E, and Qin Lishan, passed a resolution criticizing the Shanghai branch's disorganized and undisciplined actions. Qin Lishan was then dispatched to Shanghai to rectify the discipline and organizational issues of the Shanghai branch.

On June 11th, at the Shanghai French Concession's Labor Party branch, Qin Lishan convened a branch meeting. After conveying the Party's Central Committee resolution, he stated: "The anti-French movement now appears to be nothing more than a farce of power struggles, while the anti-Russian movement is blind loyalty based on the principle of 'supporting the Qing and destroying the foreigners,' not patriotism. True patriotism should begin by asking to whom this country belongs..."

The Central Committee believes that contemporary China needs to awaken the national and ethnic consciousness of its people, but this cannot be done solely through enthusiasm. The Suzhou Daily has made considerable achievements in recent months and greatly boosted the national consciousness of the people, but the time for revolution is not yet ripe. Prematurely revealing our intentions will only allow the enemy to eliminate the revolutionary forces…”

Qin Lishan ordered all members of the Su Bao newspaper to retreat to Japan to temporarily avoid capture by the Qing dynasty. Tang Caichang and several other party members were still somewhat unconvinced and asked Qin Lishan, "Then how exactly do we develop revolutionary forces under the enemy's nose? Without open propaganda, how can the masses understand the principles of the revolution?"

Qin Lishan replied, "The Central Committee has decided to take advantage of the favorable opportunity presented by the redemption of the Luhan Railway to also reclaim the rights to the Yuehan Railway from the Americans. We have contacted the Americans, but they are unwilling to relinquish them. Therefore, we will take the United States as our adversary, exposing the ugly acts of American imperialism in discriminating against Chinese and people of color domestically, its brutal suppression of popular uprisings in Cuba and the Philippines, and the crimes committed by American imperialism in China, so that the people can recognize the hypocrisy of American imperialism..."

Almost simultaneously, Tian Junyi expressed his opposition to the suppression of the workers' movement in Hankou and Hanyang in front of Duanfang. He argued that it was necessary to reduce workers' working hours and improve their treatment. Currently, child laborers aged seven or eight to fifteen have to work 12 hours a day, just like adult workers. Even adults can't handle it, let alone these children. I believe that at least reducing the working hours of child laborers to eight hours and ensuring their working conditions and wages will not cause social unrest.

Duanfang was also very wary of Tian Junyi. At first, he thought that the core of Zhang's faction should be Zhang Zhidong's confidants Liang Dingfen and Tao Senjia. However, he soon discovered that what truly supported Zhang's faction was the Economic Development and Urban Construction Committee. Without the orders issued by this committee, he, as the Governor-General of Huguang, could not get the local areas to accept his orders, because the funds and operations for local construction, as well as the infrastructure construction in various places, were all under the management of this committee.

However, he could not abolish the committee, because he couldn't handle the negative consequences of doing so. This committee now represented not only the interests of the gentry in Hubei and Hunan, but also the interests of the foreign powers. It was precisely because of the committee's obstruction that Britain and France had to abandon their plans to expand their concessions, and the Germans even intended to return police power to the Hankou Police Bureau.

Duanfang knew he lacked the ability to negotiate these terms with the foreign powers. After the completion of the Zhanggong Embankment, the land between the railway and the foreign concessions became valuable, and everyone wanted a piece of the pie in Hankou's urban development. Only Tian Junyi could appease all parties and ensure everyone could share in the benefits of urban development; otherwise, he would become the target of everyone's anger.

Duanfang could only question Tian Junyi: "Can you guarantee that these laborers and shop assistants won't be exploited by those revolutionaries and eventually turn into a riot against the court? If such a situation occurs, I cannot bear the responsibility."

Tian Junyi calmly replied, "As long as Your Excellency the Governor-General allows the committee to handle this, I can guarantee that nothing will go wrong. As for the revolutionaries wanting to stir up trouble, we might as well focus the attention of the gentry in Hubei and Hunan on the issue of the Yuehan Railway rights..."

Duanfang looked at him with some surprise and asked, "But aren't Americans not easy to mess with either?"

Tian Junyi replied, "China's coastline and inland waters have already been divided up by the great powers. The Americans are not even on the same side as our country. No matter how powerful they are, what can they do to our country? Provoking the United States is at least safer than provoking Russia, and it can also quell the students' dissatisfaction with the court's diplomacy."

Chapter 135 The Wind Rises II

While the Japanese objected to the Russians' collusion with Yi Wan-yong in building a port to Seongjin in northern Korea, their opposition was not particularly strong. However, Japan was quite interested in establishing a North Korean naval base in Jinhae Bay in southern Korea.

In the eyes of the Russians, Japan was likely trying to use this as an opportunity to make a deal with Russia. At the beginning of the year, Russian Navy Minister Tertov passed away, and Chief of the General Staff Avilan succeeded him as Navy Minister. Rear Admiral Rozhestvensky was promoted to Chief of the General Staff, becoming the de facto leader of the Navy Ministry.

On April 23 of this year, Captain Ebergat, adjutant to General Alexeyev, the governor of Kwantung Province, made a proposal to deploy the entire Pacific Fleet to Jinhae Bay in southern Korea.

However, other officers opposed the idea, arguing that the Japanese fleet had the advantage; furthermore, Zhenhai Bay was too close to the enemy command post and torpedo boat base, which would pose a great danger of blockade to the Russian forces.

Given the attitude of most officers in the Far East Command, Rozhestvensky quickly came to the conclusion that, under the existing conditions, it was not wise to push Russia into war.

Therefore, Rozhestvensky, representing the Navy, strongly opposed North Korea building a naval base in Jinhae, arguing that it would only further provoke Japan into taking risks. He suggested that it would be better to back down first, since the base would nominally belong to North Korea, not Japan.

Bezobulazov strongly supported the construction of the railway connecting Shuangchengzi to Chengjin Port, believing it would allow Russia to establish a fortress complex at the foot of the Korean Peninsula, thus preventing Japan from entering Jilin and Primorsky Krai provinces from this region. If Japan were to annex the Korean Peninsula, Russia could then rely on this railway to gain control of the right bank of the Tumen River, thereby completely controlling the river's estuary.

With various forces working together, the construction of the Shuangchengzi-Shiratsu Railway and the Zhenhai Bay Naval Base seemed unstoppable. At this time, Naval Veteran Ito Sukeyuki presented Emperor Meiji with an article entitled "A New Treatise on Benevolence and Respect".

Unlike naval veterans such as Saigo Tsugumichi and Kuroda Kiyotaka, whose power came from themselves and who were appointed elders by the Emperor because the Emperor needed their power, Ito Sukeyuki's power clearly did not reach that level. His elder title came from the needs of the navy, so he was also eager to establish a special relationship with Emperor Meiji. When this article appeared before him, he immediately realized that it was something that could please Emperor Meiji.

After reading the article, Emperor Meiji asked the Minister of the Interior and Chamberlain, Chōtoku Ōji Sanetsu, "Do you think this will work?"

Tokudaiji asked, "Does Your Majesty mean land reform?"

Emperor Meiji shook his head and said, "No, it is to rebuild the world order."

Tokudaiji was now at a loss for words. He felt that the core of the article was land reform, and everything else was just empty talk. Talking about land reform might have some possibility, but everything else was just empty talk.

Emperor Meiji, looking at Tokudaiji but unable to speak for a long time, finally couldn't help but reveal his true feelings: "Western warships and cannons are indeed very good, but Western ideas of freedom and civil rights are shaking the foundation of the Empire. Although Lord Yamagata has spared no effort in maintaining the foundation of the Empire, his blind loyalty is only suitable for the military and is difficult for the common people to accept. In comparison, rebuilding the world order is more likely to resist the spread of ideas of freedom and civil rights."

Tokudaiji could only say, "However, this talk of land reform for the sake of the nation will likely attract a lot of criticism, and the army will also find it difficult to agree with this idea."

Emperor Meiji said softly, "Land reform is the Navy's ideology, and I will not interfere. All I want is benevolence and courtesy. Have someone revise this text, remove the land reform elements, and then add it to the textbooks at Gakushuin. Tell Count Ito that the Navy can publish this text, and reward the author of the revised version."

Tokudaiji actually had someone revise the article according to the Emperor's wishes, and then asked the Emperor for his corrections before taking the revised text to the Ministry of the Navy building. After handing the revised article to Ito Sukeyuki, he said, "Congratulations, Count Ito. His Majesty believes that it is quite inappropriate to appoint a senior elder as a minister, and therefore suggests that the Minister of the Naval General Staff be changed to the Chief of the Naval General Staff. I hope that Count Ito will not refuse."

Ito Sukeyuki, of course, would not refuse. In fact, discussions had already begun after he became a senior elder, suggesting that the Naval General Staff's status should be elevated. However, the Army General Staff believed that this would lead to confusion in the command of the Imperial General Headquarters and therefore consistently refused. Now that Emperor Meiji had made up his mind, although the situation of the army being dominant and the navy being subordinate could not be completely changed, the Naval General Staff and the Army General Staff were now on equal footing, which was another step forward.

Tokudaiji then asked Ito Sukeyuki, "Was Hayashi Shinji, who wrote the article, an instructor at the Naval Academy? What was his rank?"

After a moment's hesitation, Ito Sukeyuki said, "They are trainees, not instructors."

Tokudaiji Minoru paused for a moment before saying, "Then a special appointment will be needed to award the medal. You Navy can handle this yourselves. But it must be done quickly; His Majesty wants to see the Navy's stance."

In early June, Lin Xinyi was summoned to Dongxiang Zhenglu's office. Upon seeing him, Dongxiang Zhenglu congratulated him with a beaming smile, saying that he would become the first military academy student to be awarded a medal, apart from members of the royal family.

Lin Xinyi, however, was somewhat prepared and casually asked, "Oh, is the design of the completely new capital ship finished?"