Twentieth Century Chronicle

Page 199

In the Workers', Peasants' and Soldiers' Committee in Wuhan, although the principle of majority rule was not strictly applied, the power of the Workers', Peasants' and Soldiers' Committee was held by various specialized committees. As long as a majority opinion was obtained in these specialized committees, the minority could oppose the majority. In these specialized committees, Party members basically constituted the majority. That is to say, while Party member representatives accounted for slightly more than one-third of the total delegates at the congress, Party members made up at least half of the delegates in each of the various committees.

While not a representative system like those in Europe, this was a remarkable step forward for a monarchical state that had lasted for thousands of years. After all, if Wuhan had implemented a dictatorship similar to Japan after overthrowing the Qing Dynasty, it wouldn't have faced widespread opposition. Eighty percent of China's population were farmers who had never left their homes for more than thirty miles in their entire lives; they didn't consider themselves to have any political rights. Governing the country was the domain of emperors and scholars; they only sought to make a living.

If the Shanghai concessions and Qingdao were European cities built by Europeans for themselves in the East, then Wuhan is a city built by the Chinese after absorbing European culture and applying their own understanding. Although this city has a completely different appearance and operating mechanism from traditional Chinese cities, it was by no means built for foreigners; it is a city built by the Chinese for China.

The development of Wuhan is quite remarkable, even from an American perspective. Compared to Europeans, the United States is arguably more forward-thinking in urban planning, as it is a European nation that evolved from a relatively undeveloped continent. American cities have largely developed within the last century, resulting in a lack of historical and cultural accumulation.

The urban development of Wuhan is actually more similar to that of New York than Berlin. Berlin is a showcase of Germany's industrial technology, while New York is America's understanding of European urban development and its integration with its own local conditions. For Americans, Wuhan is like seeing the construction of another New York City.

Once you've seen the city of Wuhan, even the most stubborn racists will have to reconsider whether the assertion that industrial civilization is a culture unique to white people, and that people of color cannot build or manage a European-style city, is truly valid.

German capital penetrated deeply into the construction of Wuhan. They recognized more than other Europeans just how capable the organized Chinese workers were, and the Workers' Party was key to organizing them. Faced with such a China, Germany simply couldn't conquer it across tens of thousands of kilometers. If Germany had that capability, Moscow would have become its border city first.

After Franz Krupp saw the two Chinese men off, he stood on the steps watching the light they had used to illuminate their path, and couldn't help but glance at his secretary, Artoni, beside him.

Cohen asked, "Do you really think their suggestions are feasible?"

Cohen hesitated for a moment before replying, "For political matters, you should consult Advisor Hawkes; he should have a better understanding of Berlin's psychology. However, I believe that the Chinese repelled the British on the Tibet issue, much like the Spanish won the Battle of Cofadunga. Although the Spanish could not yet drive the infidels out of Europe with such a war, it was undoubtedly the starting point for the Spanish to do so."

China today may be embarking on a campaign to reclaim lost territory. With the Chinese having secured Tibet and defeated Russia in the north, they will inevitably become increasingly intolerant of the privileges enjoyed by foreigners in China.

I don't know if the Chinese suggestion is feasible, but I think if the Japanese incite the Chinese people against German rule in Jiaozhou, they would almost certainly win the Chinese people's support. It's like how whenever we want to reconcile with the French, someone always mentions Alsace and Lorraine, and the people of France and Germany quickly become agitated.

After overthrowing the Qing dynasty, the Chinese are increasingly resembling the French of 1792; they are easily swayed by terms like revolution, republic, and anti-imperialism, thus inciting mass uprisings. While the Workers' Party has close cooperation with us, it is unlikely to antagonize the Chinese people for our sake. Doing so would undermine their popular support, as they are revolutionaries, not the former rulers.

Krupp felt that the secretary's analysis was quite close to his own thoughts, and he agreed with the secretary's suggestion, sending a long telegram to his private advisor, Hawkes, to ask for his opinion.

As an advisor to the Krupp family, Hawkes primarily advised them on political matters to help them avoid political risks. Of course, Hawkes's way of thinking was Junkerian; for example, regarding the scandals Krupp caused in Italy, he advocated for a media blackout by confiscating newspapers, which nearly cost Krupp his life.

Therefore, in personal matters, Krupp now prefers to listen to advice from Wuhan, but on issues involving domestic politics, he still trusts his advisors quite a bit. Hawkes also responded actively to Krupp's inquiries, stating succinctly in a telegram: "The independence of the Pacific islands is possible; the people only think of Africa when it comes to overseas colonies, believing that the barren islands of the Pacific bring no benefit to Germany other than wasting tax money..."

The Krupp family's strategy of using this newly established state to mitigate the risks of European war was brilliant. The war was drawing ever closer, and Britain and France were helping Russia recover its economy; soon Russia would be strong enough to recover from its defeats in the Far East. Even third-rate newspapers were saying that once the Russians were strong, Britain, France, and Russia would be ready to wage war against Germany. The question was no longer whether European war would break out, but when…”

Hawkes' reply helped Krupp make up his mind. He decided to cooperate with Wuhan to promote the normalization of relations between China and Germany, and exchanged views with Wuhan on issues such as the independence of German Pacific islands and the country's subsequent status in the East Asian alliance.

At this time, Lin Xinyi was preparing to return to China. Although he wanted to stay in Wuhan to learn more about other aspects of the situation, a telegram from China urged him to return as soon as possible because the Saionji Kinmochi cabinet had announced its resignation. Issues such as the internal affairs of the navy and the formation of the navy cabinet meant that a large number of interests were waiting to be redistributed.

Although Akiyama Saneyuki and Sato Tetsutaro were the leaders of the Navy's reformist faction, they knew they had no leverage to interfere in the distribution of interests among the Navy's high command. Only Hayashi Shin-yi could do so, since the Navy's current advantageous position was orchestrated by Hayashi Shin-yi, and even the Navy's high command had to listen to his opinions to avoid being besieged by others.

The Navy is currently in the most balanced period among the various factions since Saigo Tsugumichi's death. Yamamoto Gonbei, who should have inherited all of Saigo Tsugumichi's legacy, had to accept the reality of Ito Sukeyuki's promotion to elder statesman after Hayashi Nobuyoshi intervened. This caused the Navy's monopolistic politics to fail. Ito Sukeyuki used his elder state to gain the power to advise His Majesty, thus breaking the Navy Minister's monopoly on the right to submit memorials.

Because of Ito Sukeyuki's promotion to elder statesman, the Naval General Staff (NGS) gained a higher status, achieving a position of equal importance with the Army General Staff within the Imperial General Headquarters. This meant that the Chief of the Naval General Staff was no longer just a figurehead within the Navy, but truly became the Navy's second power center. The expansion of the NGS's power also broke the Navy Ministry's monopoly within the Navy, thus triggering a confrontation between the old and new naval policies.

After losing the struggle over the new direction, Yamamoto Gonnohyōe almost lost his position as the leader of the Satsuma clique in the navy, which he had inherited from Saigo Tsurudo. As a result, the forces in the navy began to recombine, evolving into factions of varying sizes. Although the pan-Satsuma faction still dominated the navy, the reformist forces representing the new direction of the navy began to break down the old factional barriers and formed the transverse faction that supported the new direction.

However, the "cross-cutting faction" was mainly comprised of junior officers, while generals were still trying to maintain the old cliques. The young officers and officers of the naval reform movement were dissatisfied with this phenomenon, as they saw these generals as hindering the navy's development. Therefore, they urgently needed someone to speak out and represent the naval reform forces, and that person could only be Lin Xinyi. This was because the cultural studies department under Lin Xinyi's command was the only unit in the navy with an independent channel of communication; other units were controlled by generals, and no orders could be issued without their approval.

Upon realizing that Navy Minister Yamamoto would be leaving the naval power center due to cabinet formation issues, Sato and Akiyama immediately sent a telegram to Hayashi Nobuyoshi, requesting him to return to Japan as soon as possible and to voice the opinions of a naval reform group regarding the naval power structure after Yamamoto Gonnohyōe's resignation.

Although the naval reform group was only formed in June of this year amidst discussions about the professionalization of the navy, it quickly transformed into a new faction centered around the 17th and 18th naval cadets, thanks to the efforts of Sato, Akiyama, and others. While no admirals have yet emerged from the 17th and 18th naval cadets, these two classes are the backbone of this major naval battle, and it's inevitable that a number of admirals will rise from among them. Therefore, there is a high degree of consensus within the group, as they believe they are destined to lead the navy forward and cannot allow the conservatives to create trouble for them.

Lin Xinyi could not refuse the group's request. Although he had become one of the leaders of the reform group after more than a dozen terms, there was still a layer between him and the others. After all, they were seniors and juniors who had never met even in school, while the others had spent years together and their relationship was naturally closer.

Therefore, to gain the group's approval, Lin Xinyi had to demonstrate that he possessed abilities indispensable to the group, such as a new naval strategy, which was precisely the group's weapon against conservative figures within the navy. The Japanese navy had completed its development from nothing to an ironclad fleet in just a few decades; while this was an astonishing efficiency, it also indicated that the Japanese navy was filled with outdated figures.

Although these veterans were the founders of the Japanese Navy, they were completely unaware of the current development direction of world navies and the future naval combat tactics. Their experience was no longer suitable for the current development trend of world navies. Therefore, it was inevitable that the new generation of navies would want to replace the veterans. Explaining new things to these veterans was too tiring, so it was simpler to just let them step aside.

This is also why Yamamoto Gonnohyōe failed in the struggle over the direction. Yamamoto Gonnohyōe once represented the new force of the Japanese Navy, but the current Yamamoto Gonnohyōe has fallen behind the times. The expansion route he and Saitō proposed did not help improve the combat power of the Japanese Navy or its future strategy, because Japan's opponent has changed from a second- or third-rate country to the world's maritime hegemon.

Chapter 660

Chapter 660

After receiving the telegram, Lin Xinyi had no choice but to have someone buy him a ship ticket and prepare to return to Japan. After all, if he couldn't make the reformist group feel like they were on his side, it would be difficult to gain their approval for anything he wanted to do in the navy.

In short, the current reformists in the Navy believe that the Navy's interests are paramount, and only the reformists can represent those interests. In this situation of power change within the Navy, how could they give up if the reformists had no voice?

Although Sato and Akiyama were recognized as leaders by the reformists, they were far from being considered as group leaders. Their proposals would only become the group's proposals if they conformed to the consensus of the reformists. Their views, expressed in their personal capacity, could not actually be accepted by the group.

Simply put, today's reformers are more like political clubs in the early days of the French Revolution. They only gather to discuss how to seize power because they share common interests, rather than believing that a certain person or theory is unique and that they should follow that person simply because they believe in that theory.

Sato and Akiyama were clearly unable to suppress the debate within the reformist faction about what stance should be taken in the change of naval power, which is why they urgently sent him a telegram. Although the two did not say it explicitly in the telegram, Lin Xinyi had already realized from their hints that they were both emphasizing that the group should speak with one voice, rather than each finding its own way to express itself.

The reformist group had been established for less than four months. Apart from their agreement with the new naval policy, the strongest relationships within the group were those between their peers and seniors. Lin Xinyi was well aware that the group's structure was not yet stable. If they were allowed to speak out now, various small cliques would soon form within the reformist group.

Once these small groups are formed, their interests will inevitably supersede those of the larger reformist group. If he doesn't return, the head of the Fourth Department, Arima Ryotachibana, certainly won't allow Sato and Akiyama to interfere with the Cultural Studies Department's work. Although Arima is also a leader of the reformist faction, his ties with the Fleet faction are too deep. At this point, he might not fully stand on the side of the still insignificant reformist faction, but rather choose the more secure path of following the Fleet faction to secure his own share of the benefits.

Therefore, the telegram only contained the names of Sato and Akiyama. Minister Arima sent a separate telegram, which did not express any urgent need for him to return from leave. On the contrary, he was very interested in the achievements Arima had made in China, indicating that the minister had not yet made a final decision. As for the telegrams from Ito, Kawahara, and Togo, they contained nothing unexpected. Although they also urged him to return to Japan as soon as possible, everyone felt that the situation was under control.

Before returning to his home country, Lin Xinyi convened a small meeting with the personnel who had been negotiating cooperation with China and India. At the meeting, he presented part of the contents of the telegram from Ito Genro and then said: "The Saionji Cabinet has announced its resignation. When Prime Minister Saionji resigned, he suggested to His Majesty that the next cabinet be organized by the Navy."

Veteran Ito, displaying great integrity, decided to support Navy Minister Yamamoto's cabinet formation. This silenced dissent within the Navy, and barring further opposition, the news of the new Navy cabinet would be announced within the next week. In other words, the work you are currently doing will be incorporated into the new government's policy objectives.

You now have two choices: either come up with a preliminary agreement as soon as possible before the new government sends personnel to take over your work, then all your hard work these past few days will have been worthwhile; or wait for the new government to send its own representatives to organize the negotiations, with official status. I believe the Chinese and Indians won't waste any more time with you then…”

Aside from Katayama Sen, everyone else present was momentarily in an uproar. Katayama Sen remained unmoved because he was only helping out voluntarily. If it weren't for the fact that they were in Wuhan, these representatives of Japanese political and business forces would never have sought his assistance. After all, the two sides were locked in a fierce struggle domestically, and he and Kotoku had been forced to go abroad by these forces.

However, in Wuhan, neither the official diplomatic system nor the independent ronin forces could reach the Wuhan Workers' Party. The former could only communicate with the Workers' Party's foreign affairs department, which could not provide guidance on trilateral cooperation between Japan, China, and India. This matter was directly under the jurisdiction of the party's political council, and the foreign affairs department could only convey their requests to the political council.

In contrast, Katayama and other Japanese socialists had close ties with the Labor Party and were more likely to communicate directly with the other side. Therefore, when Hayashi Shin-yi arranged for Katayama and other Japanese socialists to provide assistance in the negotiations, it was quickly accepted by the members of the negotiation team.

Katayama Sen was well aware of his position in the negotiations, responsible for ensuring that misunderstandings did not arise during the communication between the two sides. After all, capitalist Japan would find it difficult to understand that the Labor Party, as a representative of the working class, would not engage in secret diplomacy. The Labor Party would not accept conditions that it deemed impossible, and it believed that agreements that had been reached must be fulfilled without compromise, which was contrary to common sense for the Japanese.

While the Japanese complain that the Chinese refuse to fulfill the various treaties signed by the Qing Dynasty, they are now demanding that the Japanese fulfill their promises without any compromise. This is clearly a double standard. After all, Meiji Japan's attitude towards treaties was not much different from that of the Qing government. They would implement anything that was beneficial to them, and delay anything that was not.

This Japanese mentality led to numerous embarrassing blunders in the early Meiji government's diplomatic negotiations. It wasn't until elites who had studied in Europe brought back the entire European treaty system that Japanese diplomacy finally began to take shape. Of course, these elites' understanding was also superficial. They grasped the power dynamics of the great powers as enshrined in the treaties to a great extent, but almost entirely ignored their responsibilities.

Simply put, Japanese diplomacy is a clumsy imitation of European diplomacy. They thought treaties were for protecting national interests, but in reality, treaties were for establishing a European-style relationship between states.

Although Europe had never had a unified emperor, it was subject to a unified theocratic authority—the Pope. The Thirty Years' War was a rebellion by European secular states against papal power, which led to the establishment of diplomatic relations based on the Peace of Westphalia. From then on, conflicts between European states and peoples were no longer arbitrated by the Pope, but were handled through treaties between nations.

After the Europeans destroyed China's authority as the hegemon of East Asia through the two Opium Wars, the Huaxia system with China as the common master of East Asia ceased to exist. China's position in this system was similar to that of the Roman Catholic Church in the past. The Chinese emperor was the sovereign of all nations, and conflicts between countries could be arbitrated by the Chinese emperor.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi's invasion of Korea triggered the Imjin War (Wanli Emperor's aid to Korea), which is the best proof of China's "all-under-heaven" system. However, the treaty diplomacy that the Japanese learned from Europe was not used to mend relations between East Asian countries after the collapse of the Chinese system; instead, it became a tool for Japan to protect its own interests.

Therefore, even the most knowledgeable Japanese about international law during the Meiji era, such as Komura Jutaro, did not have a vision that extended beyond Japan itself, and naturally, they lacked a profound understanding of the treaty system. This is also the root cause of why Japan's century of national fortune gained during the Meiji era resulted in almost nothing after World War II, instead turning Japan into an enemy of Asia, forcing it to rely on the United States, and making it difficult for Japan to regain its status as a member of Asia.

Diplomats who lack respect for the treaty system often treat treaties as laws to restrict ordinary citizens, while the other party to the treaty becomes a privileged class unbound by law. The harmfulness of the Meiji Constitution was most vividly demonstrated in the actions of Japanese diplomats.

Because the two sides of the treaty were treated as an unequal relationship from the beginning, the implementation of the treaty and the order it was supposed to maintain were not considered by the diplomats. Their entire focus was on how to force the other party to sign a treaty that was unfavorable to them.

Katayama Sen's job was to prevent these negotiators from using their individual abilities to paint an unattainable picture for the Chinese and Indians. Therefore, he was well aware that these negotiations would not gain the approval of the upper echelons of Japan, because these leaders did not believe they unconditionally stood on Japan's side.

However, after Katayama Sen left Japan, he felt that Hayashi Shin-yi's assessment of the nation was reasonable. Unconditionally emphasizing patriotism without considering who owns the nation is essentially demanding that slaves unconditionally love their slave owners. If slave owners are truly so worthy of slaves' love, why would slaves rebel against their masters?

The so-called love for the Emperor and the country essentially demands that people relinquish their rights and happiness, becoming slaves to the Emperor and the nation. Whether the suffering and poverty of the Japanese people are caused by the Emperor and the ruling bourgeoisie, or by the common people of Korea and China, is precisely the question that socialists must first clarify.

The detailed debate on this issue led to a formal split among Japanese socialists who had gone abroad. Japanese socialists represented by Kotoku Shusui and Katayama Sen became anti-Emperor and anti-nationalist proletarian revolutionaries, while others chose to return to Japan, advocating for moderate social reforms and rejecting the radicalism of proletarian revolution.

If this hadn't happened in China, Kotoku Shusui and Katayama Sen would likely have been reported and arrested after this meeting. After all, many Japanese socialists at that time only wanted to resolve the intense conflict between peasants and landlords in rural areas. They saw socialism as a panacea rather than truly believing in it. Some even refused to acknowledge that the foundation of socialism lay with the urban working class, advocating instead for prioritizing the interests of small farmers.

Therefore, when Kotoku Shusui and Katayama Sen turned to the theory of proletarian revolution, Japanese socialists immediately split. Many not only disapproved of their theory but some even vehemently accused them of trying to betray Japanese interests. It was in Wuhan that, because the Japanese government couldn't intervene, the final result was that the proletarian revolutionary faction led by Kotoku Shusui and Katayama Sen established their own party, while the reformists abandoned their party-building efforts and returned to Japan.

Although seven out of ten socialists abandoned forming a party, making the already weak Japanese socialists even weaker, only thirty or forty people were willing to follow Kotoku Shusui and Katayama Sen in the proletarian revolution, roughly the size of a branch of the Wuhan Workers' Party in the Wuhan Iron and Steel Plant workshop.

However, Lin Xinyi did not believe this signified a weakening of Japanese socialist forces. After all, few of the socialists who went abroad to join the Japanese Socialist Party were from the working class; most were intellectuals and small factory owners. Their presence within the party would offer no benefit other than creating ideological confusion. Once the domestic working class sought party leadership, a proletarian party with unified ideology would naturally garner more support. If the party was in disarray, the workers wouldn't even know who to support.

While Kotoku Shusui and Katayama Sen didn't entirely agree with Hayashi Nobuyoshi's views, they had long-standing ties with these socialists and had forged deep friendships during their past confrontations with the feudal clique government, so they still felt regretful about their departure. However, they also acknowledged that the party's establishment went much more smoothly after these socialists left, because those who remained believed that the party only represented the interests of the proletariat and wouldn't pursue so-called class-transcending humanitarianism. They also believed that peasants needed to be transformed to become allies of the proletariat, rather than being naturally allies of the proletariat.

However, the other negotiators were not as calm as Katayama. President Matsukata, who always advocated for reaching an agreement as soon as possible, naturally spoke up. Using Hayashi Shin-yi's words, he severely criticized some people in the team for creating obstacles to the negotiations all day long, waving the banner of protecting national interests, but in the end, hindering the negotiation work that was beneficial to the country.

Although Matsukata Kojiro didn't name names, everyone knew he was referring to Yoshida Shigeru. This negotiation was essentially a private meeting between the Navy, political and business forces, and China and India. Therefore, the negotiation team didn't have a designated leader; everyone was recommended by their respective factions, primarily to demonstrate their own interests rather than to actually be responsible for achieving anything.

Although Matsukata Kojiro appears to represent the Matsukata elders, the others also have their own factions backing them, so they are not truly subservient to him. Yoshida Shigeru, in particular, is well aware that Matsukata Kojiro is not a representative of the Matsukata family; his participation in the negotiations is essentially to break free from the family's control. Therefore, Yoshida Shigeru is even less concerned about the Matsukata family behind him, which often leads to disagreements between Yoshida Shigeru and Matsukata within the team.

Although Matsukata Kojiro wasn't a particularly powerful figure, he was still getting impatient with Yoshida Shigeru. If it weren't for Makino Nobuaki's backing, he would have already clashed with this arrogant young man. He himself understood perfectly well that Makino's support was essential for him to become a minister; otherwise, his brother could forcefully push him back. After all, as the successor of the Matsukata faction, Makino could shield him from his brother's pressure.

However, when Hayashi Shin-yi indicated that if there were no negotiation results before the new government list was finalized, the new government would take over the negotiations on its own, Matsukata Kojiro could no longer tolerate it. Without the prestige brought by these negotiations, what would he use to serve as a minister? At this point, he couldn't care less about Makino's reputation. His position as minister was about to slip away, so why should he care about Makino's reputation?

Those who had previously echoed Yoshida Shigeru didn't dare speak up in his defense this time. They all understood that if the negotiations failed, their trip to China would be a waste, and they would only be seen as incompetent by their factions upon returning home, receiving no reward. However, if they signed any written agreements before the new government was formed, they could use these documents to curry favor with the new government, which would benefit their political futures.

Originally, these people sided with Yoshida Shigeru in the conflict between him and Matsukata Kojiro. After all, Matsukata was the son of a senior member of the family, and no matter how much they supported him, he would feel it was just to give face to his father. Supporting Yoshida Shigeru was different; Yoshida Shigeru would definitely be grateful to them, since they were standing on his side for the greater good.

However, once this act of taking sides turned into an act of overturning this political feast, they immediately changed their stance. Yoshida Shigeru's personal gratitude was clearly less enticing than the rewards offered by the new government. Even when faced with unanimous criticism at the meeting, Yoshida Shigeru had to first admit his mistake, stating that his view of the issue was too one-sided, thus delaying the negotiations. However, he emphasized that he still supported the trilateral cooperation plan and had no personal opinion on it.

After listening to everyone's statements, Lin Xinyi outlined the obstacles encountered by the three countries in the negotiations, defined the scope of concessions and the basic bottom line, and then concluded the discussion on the negotiation process. At the end of the meeting, he meaningfully told everyone: "The cooperative negotiations with the People's Committees of China and India are to establish a model for future cooperation among Asian countries. The Navy will not allow anyone to act freely on this issue, because it is in the Navy's fundamental interest. I hope everyone understands this..."

Chapter 661

Chapter 661

Yoshida Shigeru was actually quite astute. He understood why Hayashi Shin-yi dared to state at the meeting that anyone who didn't follow the Navy's lead would be rejected by the Navy. This was because the Navy had gained the power to form a cabinet, which meant that the importance of the various faction representatives present to the Navy had diminished.

The reason why everyone came to Wuhan to discuss cooperation with Chinese and Indians, even before receiving official authorization from the state, is because everyone knows that if this matter is successful, it means that the right to form the next cabinet will undoubtedly fall into the hands of the navy. This is because the coal and iron cooperation among the three countries is Japan's current national policy. Whoever controls the power to promote this national policy will inevitably gain the right to form a cabinet. Otherwise, the national policy will not be implemented, or the cabinet will become a puppet of the navy, since the national resources are controlled by the navy, and the cabinet will have almost nothing to do.

Because they saw a high chance of the navy forming a cabinet, everyone followed the navy to contact the Chinese and Indians. This was essentially placing a bet on the navy in advance. When the navy actually gained the power to form a cabinet, it would distribute the benefits to everyone, since everyone was the first to bet on the navy.

However, before the Saionji Cabinet announced its resignation, most people believed that the current cabinet could last at least a year, so they didn't pay much attention to the negotiations and cooperation. Instead, they saw it as an opportunity for internal factional exchanges and cooperation. After all, while unity was indeed needed to help the Navy compete with other forces for the right to form a cabinet, unity was not an option when it came to the internal distribution of power.

For example, between the Matsukata family and the Makino faction, everyone is either observing or taking sides, all based on their judgment of the power distribution after the cabinet is formed. After all, the navy is just a group of soldiers. They are experts in military construction, but they must rely on political forces outside the military to do government work. Ito Sukeyuki's efforts to win over university professors and the legal profession when forming the cabinet have already shown that the navy has no intention of monopolizing government affairs.

Before Ito formed his cabinet, the Choshu faction's cabinet was almost entirely composed of factional bureaucrats. Even though Ito Hirobumi treated the law department of the Imperial University as his own, these legal elites who graduated from the Imperial University could only serve as administrative officers, that is, assisting bureaucrats from the domains in handling official business. It was impossible for them to become heads of ministries or departments.

Although Itō Hirobumi believed that the talent cultivated by the Imperial Universities was still too immature to replace the old bureaucrats who had passed through the Meiji Restoration in an instant, thus destabilizing the government structure, he also found it difficult to arbitrarily reprimand these top students. After all, those old bureaucrats retained the spirit of the samurai era, and as long as they did not want to overthrow their superiors, they had to implement their orders without question.

Ito Hirobumi was so familiar with these old bureaucrats who had risen from the ranks of lower-ranking samurai that he could reprimand them at will without worrying about them causing any rebellion. However, to the elite graduates of the Imperial University, while Ito Hirobumi was a distinguished elder statesman, he did not hold absolute authority on matters of governance, as they were the ones who had professionally studied the institutional development of Western countries.

This idea wasn't just held by one or two individuals, but was prevalent among the elites of the Imperial University. They believed that the era of the elders was over, and that for Japan to move forward, the elders needed to retire and enjoy their old age. They argued that the elders' ideas were too outdated and difficult to reconcile with global trends. For example, graduates of the Imperial University's law department were dissatisfied with the constitution and other laws drafted under Ito's direction, believing that Ito had only talked with so-called legal experts in Europe for a few days before completely copying the German constitution. They argued that this was not a constitution for Japan, but rather a German constitution for Japan.

Of course, given that Ito Hirobumi was the founder of the Imperial University, the elites of the Imperial University at least respected him. Their criticisms of Ito were limited to specific matters. However, the elites of the Imperial University were ruthless towards the Choshu clan. They believed that clan politics was not the norm in the country, but merely a transitional system during the early stages of a nation's establishment. As Japan's national system gradually improved, clan politics should be abolished.

The ideal Japan envisioned by the elites of the Imperial Universities was one where these graduates implemented political democratization according to the Western model, and further eliminated constraints on capital to promote Japan's economic development. Aside from disagreements on whether to choose the American model of eliminating the zaibatsu and allowing free competition for small and medium-sized capital, or to retain the zaibatsu to concentrate resources and compete with foreign capital, the consensus within the Japanese intellectual community was to abolish the feudal clique system.

Therefore, when Ito Hirobumi organized a political party, he received strong support from the graduates of the Imperial University. However, when Ito tried to turn the party into another faction, these elites from the Imperial University withdrew from the party one after another because they could not agree with Ito's political ideas.

The Ito Cabinet can be said to have broken the monopoly of the clan politics. Compared with the Saionji Cabinet, it was more like a party cabinet because Ito completely rejected the appointment of clan cronies and chose to push young people such as Ogawa Heikichi, Hara Yoshimichi, and Abe Isoo to the front line, thus winning high praise from the intellectual community.

Ogawa Heikichi and Hara Yoshimichi represented the elite of the Imperial University, while Abe Isoo was a talent who had returned from studying abroad. Although the feudal lords had previously used these elites as bureaucrats, they merely utilized their talents, not allowed them to express their political ideals. Although Ito was a member of the Satsuma faction of the Navy, he provided these elites with a platform to freely develop their abilities. This was the root of the Ito cabinet's success, because these young people were willing to work and would not prioritize their own interests over the nation's interests like the feudal lords.

Simply put, young officials like Ogawa Heikichi and Hara Yoshimichi brought personal benefits along with official duties, while feudal officials prioritized the interests of their feudal clan and their own personal interests, only handling official business incidentally. Comparatively, the former created far less turmoil within the cabinet, while in the feudal cabinet, almost every matter triggered a conflict of personal interests.

If it weren't for Ito's pronouncements on East Asian peace, the Ito Cabinet would actually have been the most popular cabinet among the common people, a comparison clearly evident in the public opinion surrounding the two cabinets that followed. Less than a year after the Katsura and Saionji Cabinet, public opinion had begun to yearn for the political clarity of the Ito era.

Leaving aside the corruption of the domain clique politics represented by the Katsura Cabinet, the Saionji Cabinet, which was highly anticipated and represented the so-called people's party politics, immediately revealed its members' greed, which was no less than that of the domain clique officials, once they became bureaucrats. As a result, the so-called reputation of popular politics was tarnished. Although Hara Takashi claimed that this was due to compromise with the domain clique politics, he himself knew that those local party members supported the party with the aim of becoming officials, and the aim of becoming officials was to gain benefits.

While it's true that clan officials were accountable to their faction leaders—after all, clan politics advocated top-down power transfer, with subordinates expected to repay their superiors with loyalty—the Democratic Party was merely a political group of failed clan politicians and local luminaries banding together for mutual support. They themselves had no hierarchical relationship; on the contrary, the Democratic Party central committee needed the support of these local luminaries. Otherwise, if these luminaries chose other parties, the party would suffer electoral losses, failing to secure seats in the House of Representatives, and its influence would significantly diminish.

Therefore, in the Kuomintang's logic, it's not that local luminaries pledge allegiance to the party's central leadership, but rather that the central leadership must guarantee the interests of these local luminaries to prevent them from abandoning the party. Under such circumstances, the party must seek official positions for these local luminaries, but cannot demand that they serve according to its own requirements, because the party has no power to control officials. Meanwhile, local luminaries backed by the party can use the party's influence to oppose the central government.

Therefore, the biggest beneficiaries of party politics are not the legislators, but the local luminaries who influence the elections. In such cases, if a local luminary becomes an official and then engages in corruption, the party not only cannot expel him, but also covers for him to prevent him from losing the local elections.

However, to the public, the warlords were like well-fed tigers, while the Democratic Party was like a ravenous wolf. The latter was no better than the former, and the so-called foreign democracy lost its luster in the public's eyes. This is why everyone felt that the opportunity for the navy to form a cabinet again would come soon, because the army and the Democratic Party had both tarnished their reputations, and now the country could only rely on the navy to salvage its political influence.

Because the image of the Ito Cabinet is getting better and better among the public, and because Ito gave other political forces enough freedom when he formed the cabinet, more and more political forces now want to ally with the Navy. The most active of these are naturally the Satsuma faction outside the Navy. When the Navy first formed a cabinet, it did not receive the full support of the Satsuma faction because people were not optimistic about this transitional cabinet and thought it would be overthrown in a month or two, and then handed over to the Army to form a cabinet.

This judgment was naturally based on the impression that the navy was too weak politically. After all, the Satsuma clique had split after the Satsuma War, and the antagonism between the government and the Satsuma faction in the military was even more pronounced than the antagonism between the army and navy. Therefore, the bureaucrats of the Satsuma clique were naturally unwilling to bother with a transitional government. However, no one expected that the Ito cabinet would not only not collapse quickly, but would also win the favor of the common people.

This shattered the impression that the navy was politically weak. The situation was no longer one where the navy needed political support to form a government, but rather where allies with the navy could participate in government. The fact that everyone is sitting here indicates that their respective factions all want a share of the pie in this naval-led government formation.

However, before the Saionji cabinet collapses, the Navy cannot act like the master of the house. After all, the Navy hasn't yet gained the right to form a cabinet, and being overly arrogant at this time would only create trouble for the Navy in forming a government. Furthermore, everyone is psychologically viewing the Navy's relationship with them as a cooperative one. Although the Navy has a good chance of winning the right to form a cabinet in the next administration, it will still require a great deal of effort without everyone's support.

However, the Saionji Cabinet suddenly collapsed, and the Navy took the opportunity to obtain the right to form a cabinet. As a result, all of everyone's plans became meaningless, because the Navy no longer needed their support on the issue of forming a cabinet. On the contrary, everyone needed the Navy to give them the opportunity to form a cabinet, and the balance of power between the two sides was instantly lost.

Lin Xinyi's threat became real, and Yoshida Shigeru had no choice but to make a public apology. He knew this wasn't just a personal matter, but rather a matter of his father-in-law Makino's stance. If he sided with the Navy at this point, the cooperative relationship between Makino and the Navy would be jeopardized. Of course, he couldn't betray his father-in-law; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to stay at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The statements from others also indicated that everyone had chosen the Navy over Makino. Yoshida Shigeru couldn't question Hayashi Nobuyoshi's words, since Makino Nobuaki also needed the support of these political forces to secure his position as the successor to the Matsukata faction. As long as the Matsukata elders didn't hand over factional power to Makino, Makino could never become the leader of the Matsukata faction, and everything remained uncertain.

After being forced to publicly admit his misjudgment during the negotiations, Yoshida Shigeru finally understood why his father-in-law had instructed him to closely monitor Hayashi Nobuyoshi's movements. Hayashi Nobuyoshi, seemingly detached from the negotiations, was merely a lieutenant colonel in rank, perhaps destined to become a high-ranking figure in the navy. However, he was currently out of the running to put on airs in front of them. His family background was not only inferior to Matsukata Kojiro's, but even to Yoshida Shigeru's; after all, Matsukata had inherited a large fortune from his adoptive father and was a minor celebrity in Tokyo circles.

If he were to directly clash with Matsukata and Hayashi Shin-yi, very few people would choose Hayashi Shin-yi. But today, Hayashi Shin-yi used just a few simple words to win everyone over. Whether they supported Matsukata or him, they have now become Hayashi Shin-yi's supporters. Because at this moment, everyone believes that Hayashi Shin-yi represents the Navy, and opposing him is opposing the Navy. To oppose the Navy at this moment would be utterly insane.

After his self-criticism, Shigeru Yoshida raised his vigilance towards Shinichi Hayashi by several notches. He felt that Hayashi was the most formidable opponent he had ever encountered, and that he could be easily overwhelmed if he wasn't careful. However, Yoshida had always been a person who faced challenges head-on, so he didn't distance himself from Hayashi. Instead, after the meeting, he stopped Hayashi and explained his concerns about Japan-China cooperation: "The development of Wuhan shows that the Chinese are no slower than the Japanese in absorbing Western technology. This cooperation between Japan, China, and India in the coal and iron industry will naturally promote Japan's industrial development, but it will undoubtedly strengthen China's power as well. Compared with China, which possesses coal and iron resources, isn't this cooperation more beneficial to China?"

Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the tree canopy, casting dappled patterns on the ground beneath the outer corridor. It was a rather beautiful autumn morning. Lin Xinyi was thinking that he should take Mu Zi to stroll around the newly established Wuhan University campus in the afternoon. Therefore, he replied somewhat absentmindedly to Yoshida Shigeru's concerns, "We all know that the shogunate collapsed because it tried to maintain its rule by restricting the development of the feudal domains."

The relationship between China and Japan was never that of a vassal state to a shogunate. We didn't even have the administrative means to restrict China's industrial development, so what's the point of talking about containing China's development? Since you know that China and India both have coal and iron resources, while Japan does not, then you should understand that, in fact, even without Japan, China and India can still reach a cooperation agreement.

So, if this situation were to occur, have you considered what consequences it would bring?

Shigeru Yoshida instinctively replied, "If China and India exclude Japan, then their maritime safety cannot be guaranteed by Japan. This is also disadvantageous for China and India."

Lin Xinyi glanced up at him and then said, “I agree with your assessment. Therefore, China and India will definitely seek Britain’s protection of maritime navigation in Asia. If Britain fails to do so, they will invite the US Navy into Asian waters to counter the Imperial Navy.”

So-called sea power actually refers to the right to freedom of navigation on the sea, and the sole purpose of freedom of navigation is trade. The cooperation between China and India in the coal and iron industries will inevitably lead to the need to safeguard maritime trade routes. Neither China nor India will possess the maritime power to protect their overseas navigation rights in the short term; therefore, they will have no choice but to choose a protector.

The reason the navy insisted on joining the trade cooperation agreement between China and India was to prevent China and India from choosing other countries to protect their right to maritime trade. Because both China and India are continental Asian countries, supporting either country's maritime power would pose a threat to Japan's right to maritime passage.

Therefore, the best option is for the Japanese Navy to guarantee China and India's freedom of navigation at sea, thus depriving other countries of the opportunity to gain support in the Asian region. The purpose of cooperation is to expand the Imperial Japanese Navy's maritime power in Asia, not to contain the development of China and India. Japan should be concerned with changes in the global situation, not just focusing on its own neighbors.

Some people shout "leave Asia and join Europe" every day, as if the Japanese archipelago could be shipped to Europe. They think that politically and culturally, Japan can leave Asia and join Europe, but how can it do so geographically? Since Japan is geographically located in Asia, it must consider the future of Asia. Will selling out Asians to Europeans make Japan European? Even now, Russians cannot be considered true Europeans, let alone the Japanese, whose racial differences are even greater than those of Europeans. Asia's security is Japan's security—that's my view.

Chapter 662

Chapter 662

Hayashi Nobuyoshi's frank expression of his views left Yoshida Shigeru speechless. Hayashi was speaking about the fundamental interests of the navy; discussing the benefits of containing China for Japan at this point was tantamount to talking past each other, as they were simply not on the same wavelength, making further debate impossible.

Yoshida Shigeru, being a top student specializing in diplomacy at the Imperial University, could tell that Hayashi Nobuyoshi's words were not based on a Japan-centric diplomatic approach, but rather on an assessment of relations between countries from the perspective of Asian nations. It sounded quite similar to the Pioneering Movement, but the Pioneering Movement was merely a slogan without substance, and clearly could not be compared to the already clearly defined Japan-China-India trilateral economic and trade cooperation plan of the Navy.