While Masato Masuyama was running into obstacles in Kyushu, Shi Diwen was introducing the gains of his visit to Japan to his colleagues in the newly built executive committee hall outside Hangzhou.
Shi Diwen actually didn't want to come back so soon. He wanted to stay at the Sasebo base and enjoy the show he directed slowly unfolding.
However, as the end of the year approached, a large pile of government affairs that needed to be handled by him personally had accumulated, and it was also time for the executive committee to review the gains and losses of the year and set development goals for the coming year, and he had to return to the country.
This year is the first year after Shi Diwen took charge of the executive committee. During this year, he not only promoted the further implementation of the capital relocation plan, but also successfully held the 30th anniversary celebration in Hangzhou. Subsequently, they concocted the Hangzhou Assassination Case, launched the Second War to Defeat the Ming Dynasty, and once again annexed large areas that originally belonged to the Ming Dynasty. Then he traveled eastward to Japan non-stop and instigated a civil war between the local forces in Kyushu and the shogunate.
Each of these events, if you pick one of them, is a major event that will be recorded in history. Therefore, the annual work report submitted by Shi Diwen to the Executive Committee can definitely be regarded as a perfect answer.
However, what the rest of the executive committee are currently most interested in is, of course, Shi Diwen's latest news from his trip to Japan.
Due to well-known reasons, ever since Shi Diwen proposed the plan to provoke a civil war in Japan, he has received the support of everyone on the executive committee.
Even Ning Qi, who had always advocated gentleness and opposed war, voted in favor of this matter without hesitation.
However, the specific implementation and how to balance the interests of all parties must be personally operated by the initiator Shi Diwen. All the executive committee can do is grant him the authority to act freely outside.
No one in the executive committee had full confidence in whether Shi Diwen could handle such a big plan with just one visit. It wasn't until Shi Diwen came back this time to introduce the progress of the plan's implementation that everyone knew how clever Shi Diwen's methods were.
"The big names in Kyushu have tasted the sweetness from their previous actions and have begun to enter the next stage of military expansion preparations. When next spring begins, they will continue to march eastward without hesitation and conquer the small vassals in Honshu and Shikoku. Incorporate into your own sphere of influence ”
"Originally, I was a little worried that the shogunate would tolerate this tone to avoid the outbreak of civil war, but at this stage, the shogunate can no longer suppress the ambitions of the Kyushu daimyo. Whether to take the initiative to declare war on Kyushu is no longer that important."
"So the shogunate is also very anxious now and is chasing us to buy arms. Before coming to the meeting this morning, I received a telegram from Amakusa Shiro. The shogunate's special envoy Masato Masuyama has arrived at the Sasebo base. I hope that our country can sell more to the shogunate as soon as possible. For arms, it now depends on whether Lao Bai’s production speed can keep up with the demand.”
Shi Diwen was high-spirited and eloquent, full of confidence in controlling the situation.
Tao Donglai said: "Lao Bai has restarted two old musket production lines at Tiandu Arsenal. According to his estimate, about two thousand flintlock muskets can be produced per month. In addition, Changhua also specializes in exporting A production workshop has been opened for small-caliber artillery, which can deliver fifty or sixty guns every month.”
"As for the warships, we have done some research and we still focus on selling old ships that are about to be retired. The number will definitely not be too many."
Shi Diwen mused: "Then this production speed is probably a bit unsatisfactory... But it's better to be less, the tighter it is, the higher the price it will sell for!" Tao Donglai nodded and said: "That's what Lao Bai means, he We hope to control the supply of arms and not deliver too much at once. If the situation in Japan changes, we can adjust the balance through arms supply.”
Most of Haihan's large arsenals that produce weapons are concentrated on Hainan Island, and Baikes, who stays on Hainan Island, can arrange the weapons production plan nearby. Even with the current tentative supply, the economic benefits that can be obtained are by no means small.
Yan Chujie added: "If necessary, we can also try to recycle the weapons and equipment previously sold to Annan, North Korea and other countries, and give them price discounts to buy new weapons. They still have a large number of old weapons in their hands, and we only need to do some renovation For maintenance work, these old goods can be resold to the Japanese.”
There are many ways to make money through arms trade, especially after controlling the arms markets of multiple countries. With simple resource allocation, a steady stream of profits can be generated.
Of course, the premise is that there must be a battlefield large enough to allow the weapons that have been produced to be consumed quickly.
As for Japan, it was Haihan who created such an area responsible for consuming arms. Even if the scale of the battle between the two sides is at most ten thousand people, as long as the war can continue for a long time, the amount of arms that will be consumed will still be very considerable.
Ning Qi was very interested in another gain from Shi Diwen's trip: "Old Shi, the young daimyo of the Kumamoto clan you mentioned earlier, since he is very interested in our country's culture, is it possible to arrange for him to work there? Visit our country at the right time and let us test in person whether this person is worth investing resources in supporting. ”
Shi Diwen said: "Of course it is possible to arrange for him to visit, but I want to make it clear that I think his interest in our culture is based on Mu Qiang's psychology, not because he agrees with our ideas. ”
Ning Qi said: "Are you worried that we will be confused by his performance and train him as one of our own?"
Shi Diwen nodded and said: "This Hosokawa Tsunato is not very old, but his ambition is not small. While we are making use of him, we must also strengthen our control over him. Otherwise, when he gets older, If he is stronger, he may take the initiative to escape from our control... just like he is trying to escape from the shogunate's control now."
Shi Diwen did appreciate Hosokawa Tsunato's talent and character, but when he left Sasebo and embarked on his return journey, he realized that his idea was not very safe.
It is said that people who are not our own race must have different hearts. How can a descendant of Japanese aristocracy like Hosokawa Tsunato, who grew up in an environment of power struggle, truly empathize with Haihan. The enthusiasm and intelligence he showed towards Haihan and Shi Diwen were undoubtedly all aimed at gaining Haihan's support and achieving his personal goals.
After understanding this, Shi Diwen's perception of Hosokawa Tsunato changed from "talent" to "tool man". Of course, the ease of use of this tool must be higher than that of other famous names in Kyushu.
Tao Donglai said: "Then do you still insist on recommending him as our puppet to control the situation in Kyushu?"
Shi Diwen said: "At present, it seems that he is still the most suitable candidate, so I will give Nagasaki to him for temporary management. This can be regarded as a test question, let's see how he can answer it. If not If he passes, we will find another candidate to replace him.”