Kuroda Mitsuyuki's idea is to sit on the sidelines and wait until the domestic situation becomes clear before deciding which side the Fukuoka Domain will fall to. What Amakusa Shiro did was to pull him from the wait-and-see position and not leave him any room to swing left and right.
Of course, this is easy to say, but it is not easy to actually implement it. If the shogunate finds out, it will most likely be self-defeating.
Shi Diwen asked: "If I leave it to you, how sure are you that it will succeed?"
Amakusa Shiro responded in a deep voice: "I have a five-point confidence in my humble position!"
Five points sure may not sound like much, but for Shi Diwen, it is enough to try. After all, he was not even five-point sure about provoking a civil war in Japan, but he still won the support of the Executive Committee.
Of course, this move cannot be used as the main means to surrender the Fukuoka Domain, but as long as it can help fuel Haihan's pressure on him, it is worth a try.
Shi Diwen continued to ask: "How long do you need?"
Amakusa Shiro said: "Before the end of the year, a humble position can drag the Fukuoka Domain into trouble."
Shi Diwen pondered for a moment, then nodded and said: "Then you start implementing it as soon as possible. If there are any results before the end of the year, I will give you a credit!"
Amakusa Shiro was overjoyed when he heard this, and he quickly bowed and responded: "Please rest assured, sir, I will do my best to complete this matter despite my humble position!"
Mitsuyuki Kuroda did not know that his opponents were already plotting to drive a wedge between the Fukuoka Domain and the shogunate. The focus of his discussions with his retainers was how to use the trade relations proposed by Shi Diwen to strengthen his own family.
No matter which side the Fukuoka Domain ultimately turns to, its own strength is its greatest confidence. Kuroda Mitsuyuki believed that Shi Diwen's initiative to visit was essentially Haihan's recognition of the Fukuoka Domain's strength. Otherwise, Shi Diwen would not have to come to Hakata Bay in person. At most, Shiro Amakusa would just go and send a message.
Mitsuyuki Kuroda may not know what the "united front value" is, but he knows that as long as the Fukuoka Domain does not express its position, the shogunate, Kaihan, and even the Kyushu clans will try their best to win over him - at least until the civil war breaks out, this will not happen Much has changed.
Fukuoka Domain can also take advantage of this delicate situation to gain more benefits from all parties. Since Haihan has put forward a series of conditions to try to get himself into the group, he can of course ask for some support from the shogunate, such as lifting the previous ban on the import of certain military supplies to the Fukuoka Domain.
As for the possibility of the Fukuoka Domain being affected by the civil war, both Kuroda Mitsuyuki and his retainers are still relatively optimistic about this.
They believed that neither the Kyushu clans nor the shogunate as far away as Edo would regard the powerful Fukuoka clan as their primary opponent. Fighting against the Fukuoka Domain would greatly consume its limited military strength, and any commander with a clear head would not make such a mistake.
Of course, the premise of everything is that the Haihan Army will not directly participate in the war.
Kuroda Mitsuyuki saw this very clearly. Haihan encouraged all the feudal lords in Kyushu to fight against the shogunate, but he did not intend to take action himself. Unless there is a one-sided situation after the outbreak of the Japanese Civil War, and the Kyushu clans are unable to fight back in front of the shogunate army, Haihan may personally end up supporting the Kyushu clans.
Judging from the military strength of both sides, if the future battlefield of the civil war is in Kyushu or the western region of Honshu close to Kyushu, then the shogunate will not be able to take much advantage, and the war may continue for a long time until one side can no longer support it.
Kuroda Mitsuyuki believes that the Kyushu clans will not be defeated quickly after receiving Kaihan's support, but subconsciously he does not believe that the powerful shogunate will lose the civil war, so the only question he does not understand so far is why Kaihan tried to Provoke such a war that may be difficult to determine the winner.
And his retainers were limited by their vision and knowledge, so of course they couldn't understand this problem. However, since there are benefits coming to their doorstep, the retainers believe that they should accept Haihan's conditions first, and if the situation changes in the future, they can just adapt to the situation.
After both parties calculated the pros and cons, the subsequent talks went much more smoothly.
Shi Diwen and Kuroda Hikaru took the initiative to put aside the topics that had previously caused disagreements, and focused their discussions on trade cooperation.
Shi Diwen hoped that in this way, the interests of the Fukuoka Domain could be tied to Haihan, and at the same time clear the obstacles for Amakusa Shiro's alienation plan.
Mitsuyuki Kuroda hoped to profit from trade and at the same time dispel Haihan's hostility towards Fukuoka Domain as much as possible. If the day comes when all parties come to meet each other, with this friendship, at least they can discuss the terms of reconciliation with Haihan.
Finally, after the day-long talks, the two parties immediately signed a memorandum of cooperation.
However, this is only a draft agreement and not the final implementation plan. The big guys on both sides are only responsible for setting the direction, and the specific content has to be discussed by the people below.
After reaching the cooperation agreement, the relationship between the two parties was obviously much harmonious. Kuroda Mitsuyuki held a dinner in the city to entertain Shi Diwen and his party.
However, the Kuroda family's dinner was far inferior to the banquet previously arranged by Yoshin in Tsushima Domain. Soyoshi took the opportunity to hire Chef Haihan, but Fukuoka did not have the same conditions. The banquet arranged by Mitsuyuki Kuroda was just some rare food that only Japanese nobles could eat in this era, and the seasoning and cooking were lackluster.
Fortunately, Shi Diwen wasn't picky about this. It was just such a meal anyway, so it didn't matter if it was lighter.
After the dinner, Shi Diwen said goodbye to Kuroda Mitsuyuki.
Due to the intensive schedule, Shi Diwen would not stay too long at each stop, and would not stay overnight if it was not necessary. He would immediately leave to visit the next stop after talking about business.
The Chikugo, Bunzen, Bungo, and Hyuga regions of Kyushu currently do not have powerful powerful vassals, and Shi Diwen does not intend to waste time visiting places that will be annexed by other powerful vassals sooner or later.
Currently, he is planning to visit the Nabeshima family of Hizen Kingdom, the Hosokawa family of Higo Kingdom, and Kaihan's old friends, the Shimazu family of Satsuma Domain.
Under the rule of the Nabeshima family were the feudal lords of Hizen Province, led by Saga Domain, including Hasuike Domain, Ojo Castle Domain, Kashima Domain, etc. It is worth mentioning that most of the Hirado Domain, formerly ruled by the Tagawa family, has now been annexed by the Nabeshima family.
Strictly speaking, the Sasebo Bay occupied by Kaihan is also within the territory of Hizen Province. However, the Nabeshima family knows that it is not powerful enough to challenge Kaihan, so they have always been in peace with each other. The two sides have maintained a relatively harmonious relationship in many fields. partnership.
The territory of the Hosokawa family is mainly dominated by the Kumamoto clan. Together with the Nitta clan and the Uto clan, it covers almost 80% of Higo country.
The strength of these two families is stronger than that of the Tsushima clan, and is on par with the Kuroda family of Fukuoka clan, but slightly inferior to the Shimazu family of Satsuma clan. These are the only local forces in the entire Kyushu region that can make Shi Diwen look at him differently.