A sudden conflict can make Jae-chun and his guards understand so much, Xiao Letian didn't expect such a result, and now he is in a nervous meeting with the frightened Mr. Nobel.

"Mr. Nobel, I'm really sorry, I didn't expect that there would be such a group of bandits hidden at the door of the Ryukyu house I managed, which frightened you......" Xiao Lotian stood up apologetically and bowed to Mr. Nobel.

"No, no, no, you don't have to apologize to me, I know that this is not an ordinary law and order case, and this assassination was premeditated!" Nobel's high IQ was not boasted, in fact, the moment he jumped into the sea and swam to the shore, he had already guessed the whole incident.

"The enemy obviously didn't come for money, and our group had already abandoned ship and jumped into the sea, but the pirates in the lead didn't search for the cargo in the cabin, so why did they follow after them?"

"It seems that the news of our secret visit to East Asia has been revealed, and some people want me to die in the Ryukyu Seas, in the prime minister's jurisdiction...... What pirates in the world would be stupid enough to run within range of the coastal defense batteries and rob them?"

"I also have the news to convey to the Prime Minister, that we had met a good friend in the Lion City when we were resupplying, he was a Dutch businessman, and I had received a very important piece of information from him...... A group of French hired a Dutch merchant ship to head north, and it was loaded with weapons and ammunition, including Remington, Enfield, and a small number of American Springfield rifles......"

Nobil had obviously done his homework in advance and was very familiar with the situation in East Asia, "As far as I know, now that the Qing civil war has gradually come to an end, after the southern rebellion is put down, a large number of weapons and ammunition will definitely be rich, and it should be enough to support the turmoil in the northwest for a period of time, so the Hunan army group will not purchase weapons now......"

"Dear Xiao, I still have some understanding of the politics of your Qing State, and the emperor will not tolerate this kind of behavior if you have to purchase weapons after the war is over......"

"Another possibility is that the imperial court procures, but it is unlikely to think about it, now the imperial court of the Qing Kingdom is inextricably linked with you, I think you will not let them buy and sell weapons from the French anyway, this can also be ruled out......"

"Oh my God, that's a whole shipload of munitions, enough to arm three or four thousand people, who can afford such a big deal? Korea, Annam, and East Asia are not a few countries in total, and I think only Japan is the most likely......

Hearing this, Xiao Lotian gasped, this information is too important, although Nobel did not give the answer he guessed, but all the clues have pointed to one place, that is, the Japanese shogunate.

France is naturally unwilling to fail, and the emperor's hatred for Xiao Letian cannot be washed away even if he pours out all the water, and now the most tense place in East Asia is Japan, and the situation in Japan directly affects Xiao Letian's East Asia grand strategy.

As long as Xiao Letian is unhappy, France must be willing to do it, even if it loses money, they will do it.

Because of the flickering wings of his little butterfly, the Meiji Restoration in Japan, which was originally quite smooth, has undergone a huge change. According to the historical records of the previous life, in 1867, Emperor Komei died, and the crown prince Muhito, the Meiji Emperor, ascended the throne.

On November 8 of the same year, the Emperor issued a secret edict. On the 9th, Tokugawa Yoshiki, the shogun, asked for the "return of the Daisei", but at the same time gathered elite troops in Osaka in an attempt to rebel.

On January 3, 1868, the Emperor issued the Imperial Decree on the Restoration of the Shogunate, abolishing the shogunate and causing Tokugawa to resign from the government and accept the land. On the 8th and 10th, Tokugawa Yoshiki announced in Osaka that the "Imperial Decree of the Retro Trumpet" was illegal.

On January 27, the Emperor's army of 5,000 people, led by the Isaac and Naga feudal domains, fought a fierce battle with 15,000 shogunate troops near Kyoto, and Tokugawa Keiki was defeated and left Edo. This was the beginning of the Boshin War.

After that, Emperor Meiji personally ruled the Tohoku region of Japan, fought all the way to Hokkaido, and finally ended the Boshin War, and the Shogunate Movement ended victoriously.

It can be seen from this that the situation in Japan throughout 1867 was in an extremely delicate state of the Cold War, and the battlefield between the enemy and us was still in the struggle between the government and the government, as well as the assassination, and the open war with real swords and guns would have to wait until next year.

Therefore, Xiao Letian does not have any sense of urgency about the situation in Japan, what he has to do now is to plant more of his own chess pieces, and then protect Sakamoto Ryoma, Takasugi Shinsaku, Ito Hirobumi and other strategic talents, and support a strong group of civil officials, and only in this way can we talk about in-depth cooperation in the future.

But now that the French have been involved, it seems that they are going to cooperate directly with the shogunate, and if such a change occurs, will the shogunate, which has received strong reinforcements, passively wait for Emperor Meiji's coercion? Wouldn't there be a third battle of Choshu?

Without the participation of the new army, would the coalition forces that had fallen to the four feudatories really win this battle?

"Thank you Mr. Nobel for your information, you have really helped me a lot, as you can see, East Asia is now on the eve of great changes, all forces are ready to move, those diehards will not hand over their rights lightly, in their hearts forever enslavement of the people is the greatest ideal......"

"If you want to break the feudal shackles of thousands of years, it is impossible to do without bloodshed and fighting, we are not war maniacs and careerists, I think I have proved my virtue from the qiē I did in the city of Beijing, and I did not take a penny from the Manchu treasury in the end......"

"Mr. Nobel, my only ideal is to give Asia a new order, which I dare not say perfect, but it will definitely be better than the old one...... For this ideal, please help me, I need your wisdom, I also need the support of Nobel, please ......"

Xiao Lotian never put on a show and was very humble to those who are truly worthy of respect, and he bowed respectfully to Mr. Nobel and pleaded with the scientist.

In fact, Nobel had already learned the news of Xiao Letian's capture of Beijing when he passed through Hong Kong, and at that moment he was really angry, and even wanted to go home, he really didn't want to cooperate with a careerist.

But the next day, when the new news came, he was shocked. A powerful warlord who entered the Beijing army did not abuse the people, did not rob the government's warehouses, and did not kill people to eliminate dissidents.

After Xiao Letian entered the city, the first thing he did was to calm the people, stabilize prices, crack down on underworld forces, and clean the whole city...... Everything he does is linked to people's livelihood, and Xiao Letian doesn't even have the desire to take a look at the imperial power.

If there were such rebel careerists in the world, then Mr. Nobel would certainly pray to God to produce one for every country.

Nobel bowed respectfully and replied, "The Prime Minister's order is in the next ten thousand deaths!" On this promise, the cooperation plan between Nobel and Xiao Lotian was finally launched.

......

In the dead of night, in the middle of the northern Japanese archipelago in the Ryukyus, Edo Castle, Japan's most prosperous city, sits on the shores of the Pacific Ocean, on the Kanto Plain.

More than 200 years of rule by the Tokugawa family made it prosperous, and in medieval Japan, it was the center of the secular world and the center of the aristocratic world, Kyoto.

The most magnificent building in Edo Castle is the residence of the shogun, and the castle where the shogun and daimyo lived is called the castle, and the place where the people gather is called the castle town.

At that time, the first thing that came to mind when people thought of Edo Castle was the tall castle tower and the heavy stone walls, and only when you think of Edo you think of the bustling street market, the variety of goods, and the singing of geisha in taverns.

Today, in the Edo Castle Castle Tower, a small banquet is being held, the shogun's geisha are singing gracefully, and the tatami mat table is filled with sumptuous dishes, including beef, which is rarely enjoyed by the Japanese.

Today, Tokugawa Yoshiki did not sit in his daily position, but sat face to face with his distinguished guests, and the short table between the two was also very close.

Sitting opposite Tokugawa Yoshiki was the French Minister Roche, a pro-shogunate French diplomat who was enjoying the highest courtesy of the Tokugawa family, allowing the shogun to sit side by side with guests, a rarity in the diplomatic history of the Tokugawa shogunate.

"Mr. Rosh, please fill this glass and wish our cooperation a close one!" Tokugawa Keiki held his own sake glass.

"Happy cooperation, I wish the general an early eradication of dissidents, the implementation of new reforms, cheers!" the minister also brought up the wine.

At this moment, the sliding door was opened, and the little ghost in a luxurious kimono knelt in front of the two of them, "Meet the Shogun and the Minister...... Just now there was news from the port that the merchant ship of the Cape of Good Hope had anchored along the way, and the goods had been moved off the ship while it was night, accompanied by French officers......"

"Hahaha, I'm right, I majored in navigation when I was younger, and I calculated that the merchant ships would arrive in three days, and it turned out to be two days......" The excited Minister Roche toasted with a glass of wine, stood up and opened the sliding door to let the cold night breeze blow against him.

Roche stretched out his hand and pointed to the brightly lit Edo: "Such a prosperous city is rare even in Europe, how can the shogun discard it lightly? We, the French government, still support the shogunate, which has been under de facto rule for more than 200 years! Because although the shogunate has declined, it still has the inertia to rule the country......

"That's right, this kind of inertia you Asians call him righteousness, as long as you have this thing, the society seems to have a buffer spring, and when the ruler carries out reforms, the people will shed much less blood......"

"Japan must carry out reforms, what are the results of the reform led by Xiao Lotian in the Ryukyus, I think the general has seen it very clearly, if Japan rests on its laurels, the final outcome is likely to be controlled by Xiao Letian's forces......"

"Remember that I'm not alarmist, but ironclad facts!"

Tokugawa Keiki and Kirikuin Kigami bowed slightly on the tatami mat, "Hai...... Thank you Minister for your support to the shogunate, and your kindness will be rewarded!"