Tokyo, Japan, the Emperor's Imperial Council.

All the high-level leaders of the Japanese military and government were present, but they all looked extremely frightened with mournful faces.

"Yaga! This is what you call the mighty Imperial Army of Japan? Ahem...... The face of the Great Japanese Empire has been disgraced by you! Emperor Taisho of Japan roared with a pale face. Brandishing a telegram from the North Korean army in his hand.

The Japanese military and political ministers all lowered their heads, and even Marshal Aritomo, who had always been bullish, lowered his arrogant head. There was a sad look on his face. The Imperial Japanese Army was like his child, and now there was such a major defeat that he felt like a white-haired person sending a black-haired person.

"Two divisions were completely annihilated, three divisions were severely damaged, this is what you mean by the invincibility of the Imperial Japanese Army? Rice buckets, all rice buckets! Emperor Taisho's shrill voice echoed throughout the main hall, filled with a kind of hoarseness.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, please take care of the dragon's body!" Terauchi Masatsuki looked at the emperor's abnormal face and said stiffly.

"Yaga! Take care of your dragon, my empire is about to be destroyed by you rice buckets! Where else do you need to take care of the dragon body? "Emperor Taisho has been suffering from illness since he was a child, and his mental state has always been bad. Some time ago, he suddenly showed his shrewd side, and the shock to the Japanese top was very great. But now that I have been stimulated frequently, my spirit has begun to become a little abnormal. This made the ministers very worried. If something happens to the emperor, it will be a major event that will affect the development of the Japanese Empire.

Masaki Tsunachi did not say anything. The emperor is like an angry monkey, and whoever touches him is unlucky.

Half an hour later, the anger on the emperor's face finally subsided, and there was a hint of humanity on his pale face. It's just that the coldness of his eyes made the ministers standing below very nervous.

"Terauchi-kun! You can share your opinion! Emperor Taisho stared at Masaki Terauchi and said. I didn't even glance at Yama Prefecture Youpeng, it seems that the emperor's anger has only disappeared on the surface, and I still have a very strong opinion on Marshal Yama Prefecture Aritomo in my heart. After all, before the war, Yama Prefecture Youpeng had been advocating the invincibility of the Imperial Japanese Army, especially after the Battle of Qingdao, the German ** team, known as the world's first army, was defeated by the Imperial Japanese Army. The war was not only as simple as allowing Japan to occupy the important port of Qingdao, but it also strongly supported the theory of the invincibility of the imperial army of Marshal Yama Aritomo, and made Yama Yama Youtomo's prestige in the country increase again.

It's just that after the war with the Northeast, from the beginning to the beginning, there were problems one after another, first the Sixth Brigade was completely annihilated, and the brigade of a full 6,000 people did not escape a few people. Then the 10th Division, which was under the protection of the navy, was heavily damaged by the sneak attack of the Chinese army, and lost more than half of the troops. Moreover, that sneak attack spread all over the world under the hype of the Northeast Army, although the results of that battle were nothing, and even the losses of the Northeast Army itself were not small. But if you look at the background and strength of the two countries, the Northeast has already won a big victory. What worries Japan's top brass the most is that because of this war, countries around the world have begun to pay attention to the local government of Tohoku. After all, there are not many forces that can slap the face of Japan, an upstart who is in the limelight, especially since this army is still from a semi-colonial country.

When the Japanese army was about to find the field, the Northeast Army suddenly launched a counterattack and deceived the entire Korean army with a broken battle plan. In two battlefields, one lost and one drawn, the losses of the North Korean army reached almost two-thirds. Heavy weapons were all lost. Not to mention the Japanese emperor, even the head of the military department, especially Marshal Aritomo Yamagu, was also dumbfounded. Is this really the result of the heroic North Korean army? It's incredible.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, the combat effectiveness of the Shina army is indeed very strong, but it is certainly not comprehensive to say that their strength is stronger than that of the Imperial Japanese Army, and the prestige of the Imperial Japanese Army is fought on the battlefield, not by our own boasting. I believe that the reason for this defeat was the incompetence of the generals and the lack of a clear understanding of the combat effectiveness of the Chinese army, and the carelessness of the enemy. In addition, Jiang Baili, the general of China, is a famous general who has studied in the empire and Germany, and he has a very good set of commanding troops to fight. Terauchi Masashi used his words carefully for fear of angering Emperor Taisho.

"Toshiyin Matsukawa is indeed a piece of waste. The elite of the 160,000 empire and the 50,000 Korean Imperial Cooperative Army were completely lost in the first battle, and now they are even more shameless to come to ask for help. What a shame to the Great Japanese Empire. Emperor Taisho said sarcastically.

A look of panic appeared on Terauchi Masaki's face, after all, Lieutenant General Matsukawa Toshiyin was able to serve as the commander of the North Korean Army, in addition to his own ability, there was also his recommendation to Yama Prefecture Youpeng. Lieutenant General Toshiyin Matsukawa is also a cadre of the Yama Prefecture Friends lineage. Now the bullshit that is refuted by the emperor is not, which makes Terauchi Masatsuki feel troubled, for fear that he will also be affected.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, the Empire cannot just admit defeat, and I suggest that we should prepare for a national war and take out the government of the northeastern part of China before it is fledgling. Otherwise, once the northeast of Tochina really develops, I am afraid that it will become a big problem for the imperial Japanese army. Youpeng in Shanxian said in a deep voice. As the founder of the Japanese army, Yamaguchi Aritomo was a famous strategist himself, and geographically speaking, there were two great powers in the Far East, Russia and Japan, and it was more in the interests of the empire to have a weak China in the middle, after all, a weak China could be used as a buffer between Japan and Russia. If China rises, the Far East will be a triumvirate. The situation in the Far East will become even more complicated. Japan has an instinctive fear of China's rise, because for thousands of years, Japan has been a vassal of China, a domestic slave-like existence. They fear that after the rise of China, there will be no place for Japan in the world. This concern was one of the reasons that led Japan to declare war on Tohoku.

"Marshal Yama Prefecture, now that the Empire has only one Sixth Division in Korea to defend against the Russian Far East Army, can it be that if they are sent to the battlefield in China, then if the Russians make trouble, who will be responsible for the safety of the Great Japanese Empire!" Emperor Taisho said sarcastically.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, we can transfer the 4th Division from the mainland, the 8th Division from the Ryukyus, and the 5th Division from Taiwan to form a more powerful expeditionary force and completely defeat the government in the northeastern part of China. There is a saying in Zhina, 'let the tiger return to the mountain and eventually suffer', and it is easy to be injured by the tiger if you don't die! Marshal Youpeng of Shan County said firmly.

"Yaga! The treasury of the Imperial Japanese Empire has been emptied because of the previous battle, and what are we going to do with the Shina people? In the event of such a major defeat, the empire will fall into a state of total destruction. Emperor Taisho roared at the marshal of the prefecture. This is the first time since Emperor Taisho succeeded to the throne that he has roared at an elder like Yamaguchi Yutomo.

"Xiyuan Temple-kun, what do you think!" The Emperor turned his head to look at the other remaining patriarch, the Saionji Gongwang, and asked.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, strategically speaking, the government of Shina is indeed a great problem for us. But now that the imperial economy is finally recovering, the treasury is not full, and the imperial government is likely to be on the verge of collapse if it rashly launches a national war. Nishijiyuan Gongwang said slowly, as if the tense atmosphere in the main hall had not affected him.

"Xiyuan Temple-kun, if you have any suggestions, just say it." Emperor Taisho frowned unconsciously, these old guys were as cunning as foxes, and what they said was cloudy, which made Emperor Taisho very uncomfortable.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, I agree with Marshal Yamagi Aritomo that there will be a war with China. But I don't think it's a good time for us to go to full-scale war with the Chinans, and the Empire's finances are finally pulling back from the brink of collapse. Although foreign loans have been repaid and there is a fiscal surplus, it should be noted that the current empire is no longer a small country at the beginning of the Meiji Restoration, but the largest power in Asia, with a world-class navy and army. Now that war has broken out in the West, we are far away from the battlefield and have a good opportunity to develop our economy. Under these circumstances, it would be unwise to go to war with the Chinese people. Therefore, I believe that we should end the war with the people of China as soon as possible and devote our energies to developing our national strength. Wait until we're strong. It's easy to deal with the people of China! Xiyuan Temple Gongwang said in a deep voice.

"Xiyuan Temple-kun, have you forgotten the speed of terror development in the northeast of China? In just two short years, Tohoku has become a force that can compete with the Japanese Empire, and if he is given more time, God knows how far they will go. Marshal Youpeng of Shan County loudly blocked it. He saw the emperor's expression of intent and hurriedly said.

"Marshal Yama County is too worried. Although the Northeast Army of China has developed rapidly, there is still a gap compared with the empire. What's more, there is not only one force in the northeast in China. The Beiyang government and several other forces can still be united. As long as we encourage China to break out into a civil war, China will have no energy to develop. It is even possible that we will dismantle the government of the Northeast without bloodshed. Xiyuan Temple Gongwang said in a low voice. For the Chinese nation, Xiyuan Temple has a deep understanding. This is a nation that likes infighting, and internal power struggles are very common. As long as Japan operates well, it will be in the best interest of the Great Japanese Empire to let Shina fall into internal friction.

"Yo Si! What Saionji-kun said makes sense. But I was very unwilling to fail like this. Should the empire win one or two big wins to salvage its reputation? Emperor Taisho said with squinted eyes.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, there is a saying in Shina that victory and defeat are a common thing in soldiers. Now the empire's finances are tight, and if it continues to fight and miss this golden period of development, the impact on the Great Japanese Empire will be fatal. Compared with the Western Empire, the Great Japanese Empire still has a big gap in terms of heritage. Xiyuan Temple Gongwang said. After speaking, he glanced at Youpeng in Shanxian proudly, in exchange for Youpeng's extremely gloomy eyes in Shanxian County. Saionji Gongwang is a proud disciple of the Japanese patriarch Ito Hirobumi, and he is not as good as a friend in Shanxian in terms of status. However, after the death of Ito Hirobumi, the Japanese politician Yamaprefecture Youtomo was the only one, which made the emperor and other nobles very jealous, so he consciously cultivated the Saionji Gongwang to contend with him.

(To be continued)