The Empire will continue to win

Chapter 107 The Kōshō, laden with deer!

The Hirata family were farmers who lived next to the Takei family. If it weren't for the Meiji Restoration, the two families would never have had any contact.

Warriors are noble, farmers are lowly.

How can they be compared?

Hirata had four sons.

Last year, my eldest son, Hirata Ichiro, who is a Chinese language teacher at an elementary school, was admitted to the Etajima Naval Academy. He was able to eat rice for free and became a golden phoenix that flew out of the countryside.

The second son, Jiro, joined the army.

The third son helps with chores at home.

The fourth son is an apprentice in Osaka Prefecture.

The Hirata family prospered while the Takei family declined. In the context of the early days of industrial society, the fate of an all-female household was self-evident.

"Jiro~"

-

Hearing the call from behind, Hirata Jiro slowly turned around and looked down at his childhood friend, who was kneeling in a dogeza and as thin as a white sheep.

Fangzi is pure and gentle; she is a rare and wonderful girl.

My heart is breaking.

But there's nothing we can do about it.

Hirata Jiro is a sergeant in the second-line unit of the 4th Division's supply battalion. He has never set foot on the battlefield, does not receive battlefield allowances, and has a meager income due to his rank.

Etiquette must not be abandoned.

Even at this moment, Yoshiko remained polite, not only taking the initiative to remove Hirata Jiro's armor but also folding it neatly.

The stack on the left is kimonos, and the stack on the right is military uniforms.

"Jiro, this is my first time serving you, please take good care of me."

"Ha-yi."

The process of their first sexual encounter was bound to be arduous, but the strong Sergeant Hirata Jiro finally won over the girl next door whom he had secretly loved for a long time, making the hardship worthwhile.

The next morning.

When the rooster crowed for the second time, Yoshiko Takei got up from the tatami mat. The first thing she did was not to put on a kimono, but to push open the two wooden sliding doors and bask her body in the sunlight.

The village is not built on flat land, but along a relatively gentle mountain slope.

It offers a wide field of vision.

In the morning sunlight, the village is quiet, with wisps of smoke rising from the chimneys. If one could eat rice at every meal, this would be paradise.

There was a rustling sound behind him, and Hirata Jiro also got up.

Fangzi quickly bowed and said, "Thank you for your hard work."

He was violated, but instead of being angry or asking for money, he proactively expressed his gratitude. I have to admit, he was extremely polite to the woman.

The two looked into each other's eyes.

"Fangzi, how much money would it take for you to not go to Southeast Asia?" Hirata blurted out.

"500 yen."

Hirata Jiro hung his head and remained silent. In peacetime, as a sergeant, he only earned 30 yen a month in military pay. Where would he get such a huge sum of money?

"It's alright, Jiro, take good care of yourself." Yoshiko Takei gently hugged him.

"Fangzi, please take good care of yourself on your journey to Southeast Asia, and remember to write back often. If I can become a major, I... I will definitely go to Southeast Asia to ransom you."

"Um."

That's just wishful thinking.

The Eastern Sang army had a strict hierarchy; soldiers were soldiers, and officers were officers, and there was no way to cross that line.

An army sergeant earns only 30 yen per month, while a major earns as much as 220 yen per month.

The rank of major is practically the ceiling for graduates of the Army Academy, something that a country boy with poor grades like Hirata Jiro could not possibly aspire to.

His older brother, Hirata Ichiro, on the other hand, was an excellent student, skilled in both academics and martial arts. If he followed the proper path, he could easily become a naval lieutenant commander by the age of forty.

In addition, the navy is inherently noble, and if a senior student helps you, you might even be able to marry the daughter of a hatamoto family and move into a mansion in the city.

Although she knew it was a lie, Yoshiko Takei did not expose it.

Life is like a dream, it's good to be drunk on it.

The two exchanged some more words of reluctance.

Knock knock knock~

There was a knock on the door outside.

"Fangzi, it's time to get going. We still need to get to Kobe to catch the ferry, so let's set off as soon as possible."

"Please wait."

Yoshiko Takei slowly rose and took one last look at the house she had lived in for over a decade. At that moment, there was no sadness in her eyes, only numbness.

Behind the tatami mats, on the simple wooden wall hangs an unframed piece of calligraphy: "Blood flows like the sea on the frontier, yet the Emperor's ambition to expand the borders is not yet satisfied."

Chinese calligraphy.

Coarse hemp paper.

In this era of rampant illiteracy, only two people and one ghost in the entire village could understand this calligraphy: Hirata Ichiro—

Motoko Takei, and her father.

After half an hour.

Dressed up and ready, Yoshiko Takei embarked on her journey of no return, looking back at the villagers every step of the way.

In fact, even during the most difficult times, not many women from Osaka went to become Miss Nanyang. The main contestants for Miss Nanyang were from Hokkaido, Shikoku, and Kyushu.

The Takei family owns 10 acres of land, which shouldn't be the case.

But Masao Takei is dead, and Yoshiko is unaware of the reasons for the debt, which even involves land and sea conflicts. Of course, that's another story.

In the chilly wind.

"Jiro, how was the taste of the women from the samurai family?" Among the crowd seeing them off, an elderly woman with gray hair suddenly turned her head and asked.

Everyone laughed.

Everyone is happy whenever this topic comes up.

During the civil administration period, farmers lived extremely hard lives, with almost no enjoyment of food or drink, and no hope for the future. The meager resources they had on their tatami mats—

This became the only source of joy in the village.

They talk about women during the day and go hiking at night.

They feel alive because there is still this touch of pink in their lives.

Ignoring the bored old woman, Hirata Jiro roared at the distant fields, his eyes glistening with tears, "Damn the United Empire!"

The older woman, puzzled, asked the others, "What country are you allied with?"

The crowd laughed, but no one thought there was a problem.

Before entering modern society, information spread very slowly, and it was common for ordinary people to be unaware of the Han Dynasty or even the Wei and Jin Dynasties.

A hundred years after Toyotomi Hideyoshi's death, the news reached the ears of the Ezo mountain people, who were so frightened that they couldn't help but keep an eye on the sea while hunting, fearing that the Ming Dynasty's fleet would cross the sea to retaliate.

One of the villagers present, who had run a small business in Osaka Castle, explained in a language she could understand: "The United Empire is the former Ming Dynasty. When Oda, the rice market manager, was young, his great-great-grandfather visited the Ming Dynasty. He said that the people of the Ming Dynasty fed their dogs rice soaked in meat broth, and they were extremely wealthy."

"Truly worthy of the Ming Dynasty."

Everyone sighed in dismay.

Meat broth with rice is a delicacy reserved for high-ranking samurai in this country.

Suddenly, this ignorant old woman slapped her forehead: "Jiro, quick, stop Yoshiko! Let her go to the Ming Dynasty! Men in the Ming Dynasty are rich, and they sell for a higher price."

The crowd burst into laughter again.

Hirata Jiro shook his head helplessly: "No, we're at war with the Ming Dynasty right now, so they won't let them send money home."

Everyone sighed again.

Yes, if they can sell in the Ming Dynasty, why would they sell in Southeast Asia?

The old woman couldn't help but sigh, "I don't understand. The Ming Dynasty was incredibly wealthy, so why did His Majesty the Emperor in the capital still wage war against it?"

This statement is truly presumptuous.

But when the villagers looked at the skinny Shiba Inus in the village, and thought about how the local dogs in the Ming Dynasty could even eat rice soaked in meat broth, they lost interest in scolding the old woman.

They went their separate ways.

Two days later.

Kobe Port.

A large crowd gathered, and the sound of car horns filled the air.

Small vendors carrying their goods and hawking their wares, foreigners in tuxedos and leather shoes, new recruits standing in neat rows, still looking quite young, and crowds holding flowers to bid farewell.

Through the thin mist, the outlines of warships could be faintly seen on the distant sea.

pier.

The three steamships were lined up in a row: Saikyo Maru, Kōshō, and Nisshō Maru.

The laborers carried baskets of raw silk on shoulder poles onto the Xijing Maru, bound for Songjiang Prefecture.

The brightly dressed girls boarded the Risho Maru with their heads down, their destination a Southeast Asian city.

The new recruits of the newly formed division, dressed in black military uniforms, carrying backpacks and rifles, boarded the Gowshing ship with a blank expression, heading to Incheon.

-

The world only saw the brilliant achievements of the Cultural Revolution. In just a few decades, railways, mines, and factories were built one after another. How was this done? Where did the funds come from?

The answer is: people.

A generation of young girls, a generation of farmers, and a generation of young men were sacrificed in exchange for the initial industrialization of the empire.

The most crowded part of the dock.

"A family recipe, one bite of these incredibly fresh and piping hot takoyaki will make your eyebrows fall off!" A bald vendor wrapped in a white towel and wearing wooden clogs shouted loudly along the street.

The takoyaki looked so appealing that everyone's appetite was whetted.

"How much?"

"10 qian."

"Baka! Why is the price higher again? It was only 7 sen last month."

"Sir, there's nothing I can do, all the ingredients have gone up in price." The vendor was also helpless.

at this time.

-

Suddenly, a young man stood atop the carriage in the crowd and unfurled a red flag. He was Kita Ikki, the founder of the Imperial Way Faction and a former warrant officer discharged from the army. "Fellow citizens!"

The sea was turbulent, and Mount Fuji was shrouded in dark clouds.

Living in this terrible era, the wealthy and powerful indulge in extravagance and are arrogant and domineering. They are indifferent to the affairs of the nation and its people.

Honor the emperor and seek rape!

For the Emperor!

For the Yamato people!

In the distance, several patrol officers rushed over, blowing whistles.

"Fellow citizens, always remember that the traitors have blinded His Majesty the Emperor. We, the patriots, must stand up and punish these traitors!" Kita Ikki was incredibly agile; with a whoosh, he jumped off the carriage and ran off in a flash.

By the time the patrol officers caught up, they were nowhere to be found in the vast sea of ​​people.

"Damn it, another Tianjian Society rioter. This is the third one this month."

Several patrolmen who had been converted from former samurai were furious. Although they were skilled with swords, they were helpless because they couldn't find the person and would be scolded by their superiors when they returned.

soon.

Wanted posters were put up around the dock.

The Osaka Prefectural Police Department is offering a reward of 500 yen for the capture of Kita Kazuki and his associates.

The crowd did not share a sense of righteous indignation; some even felt sorry for the young man.

Because the prices of necessities such as food have risen too quickly in the past six months, everyone's life has been greatly affected.

The emperor is wise and sagacious.

If there weren't traitors in the country, why would everyone be living such a difficult life?

Kita Ikki's influence among the general public was not significant, but within the army, his name was like a plague, spreading spontaneously among ordinary soldiers and junior officers.

After the speech controversy.

"As long as we can defeat the United Empire, everything will be alright," a young man who looked like an intellectual remarked while eating takoyaki.

-

"Can we win this war?" A middle-aged man with a sickly face but dressed in rich clothes asked in a low voice. "We definitely can."

"What if we can't?"

"Sir, your thoughts are dangerous. If they hear them, you'll be in trouble." The young man pointed to a patrolman who had posted a reward notice.

"What's your name?"

"Fukuzawa Yukichi".

"I've read your 'Exhortation to Learning,' which speaks of individual independence, family independence, and ultimately, national independence. It's a powerful and thought-provoking statement." The middle-aged man's eyes sharpened, then he changed the subject, "But I never imagined that an intellectual who wrote such an article would also endorse expansionism?"

"Yes, Your Excellency, we have no other choice but to expand. After all, we have an extremely powerful neighbor." Fukuzawa Yukichi's tone was noticeably respectful. "With a powerful neighbor on our side, we cannot develop. We must defeat our powerful neighbor in order to develop."

"Shouldn't we rely on the system?" the middle-aged man retorted.

Fukuzawa Yukichi was taken aback. He realized that the stranger in front of him had seriously read his work. After a moment's thought, he said, "One is internal, and the other is external. They are not contradictory."

"I see."

The middle-aged man looked lost and forlorn, and then, supported by a beautiful woman, he slowly left the noisy crowd.

No one could have imagined that he was actually Katsura Kogoro, one of the first key ministers of the Meiji Restoration.

Back in the carriage.

"A real man?" the beautiful woman asked with concern.

"It's nothing. I'm just worried that the nascent Dongsang Empire will go astray." Katsura Kogoro forced a smile, as he had a vague sense of unease about the future.

"Our future is irrelevant. Let's find a house by the sea to recuperate," the woman softly comforted him. Who would have thought that she was once a stunningly beautiful Kabuki actress from Sanbongi, Kyoto, and that the two of them had once shared a breathtaking love affair?

The train carriage was bumpy.

The road conditions are terrible.

"How can you say it has nothing to do with me? I am, after all, a central minister. I will go to Kyoto in a few days to question Okubo in person. I will tell him that expansion should stop at the right time, and the empire should be content if it can control the southern part of the peninsula. Development needs to be done step by step; we cannot become fat in one bite. If he does not agree, I will follow Saigo's example and raise the banner of rebellion."

Overwhelmed with emotion, Katsura Kogoro coughed incessantly. When he removed his handkerchief, he saw a bright red stain on it—he had coughed up blood.

Faced with the woman's tears, he smiled and said, "Matsuko, I am ultimately no match for Saigo."

"No, you are my hero."

The day.

Katsura Kogoro fell into a coma.

A few days later, Katsura Kogoro (also known as Kido Takayoshi), one of the three heroes of the Meiji Restoration, died of illness at the age of 45. With this, only Okubo Toshimichi remained of the three heroes.

The Strait of Shimonoseki.

Seagulls hovered overhead.

The Kowshing carried 1000 soldiers and 10 75mm field guns. At this time, these young people, who had never left their hometown for more than 10 miles, crowded on the ship's side and found everything novel.

Look, over there.

-

Hirata Jiro quickly squeezed to the side of the ship, and sure enough, several columns of smoke appeared on the sea to one side, then a dozen, then dozens.

Half an hour later, plumes of smoke blotted out the sky.

A massive fleet swept in.

Leading the way were three high-speed cruisers: "Naniwa," "Takachiho," and "Akitsushima," slicing through the waves at full speed.

Then came dozens of transport ships of varying tonnages, their smokestacks billowing black smoke.

Behind them were two ironclad warships, the "Hiei" and the "Fusō".

Further on were three larger warships: Matsushima, Itsukushima, and Hashidate.

"Onboard~"

The new recruits on the deck shouted in unison, their eyes filled with tears.

With such a powerful fleet, how could the empire not be victorious in war?

Hirata Jiro was also cheering wildly, completely forgetting Takei Yoshiko's gentleness at this moment, his heart filled with thoughts of making a name for himself. If a sergeant could be promoted to sergeant major, his salary would more than double.

With the addition of combat subsidies and high-altitude/cold-region subsidies, he would soon have a considerable sum of money.

Yoshi yoshi.

Black card scam! (This appears to be a nonsensical string of characters and words, possibly a result of a machine translation error.)

The following afternoon.

The Kowshing suffered a sudden mechanical failure in its engines, causing its speed to drop sharply to 3 knots, which was no longer enough to keep up with the fleet's average speed of 8 knots, and it was forced to fall behind.

20 minute later.

The cruiser "Naniwa" was ordered to return and launched its small boats.

Captain Togo Heihachiro personally boarded the ship to inquire about the situation.

"Captain Smith, what's going on?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, due to force majeure, the engine of the Kaowling has a minor malfunction, and the repair is expected to take 5 hours."

Don't worry.

Why didn't you check it before you left?

"force majeure."

Looking at Captain Smith, who was shrugping his shoulders and looking relaxed, Togo Heihachiro had no choice but to suppress his anger, because the Kowshing belonged to the Kingdom of Britain, from the ship itself to its crew.

For reasons that cannot be stated, Navy Minister Yamamoto Gonnohyōe hired some foreign merchant ships at high prices, and the Kowshing was one of them.

"The fleet cannot remain anchored and wait for eight hours. Therefore, I order the Kowshing to change course immediately after repairs, enter the East Sea via the Tsushima Strait, and land at Wonsan Port."

"Haha~ Look up and see what's that?" Smith pointed to the mast, where a Union Jack was flying, and said in a loud voice, "I don't believe the United Imperial Navy would bombard a British merchant ship."

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