Tokyo, Japan.

The Emperor's Imperial Council. For the sake of the war in Tohoku, the Japanese emperor frequently held imperial councils to discuss. The total annihilation of the 1st Division this time was a huge shock to the Japanese army. The 1st Division held an extremely important position in the Japanese army, and it was the foundation unit of the Imperial Japanese Army. It was also a semi-aristocratic unit in the Japanese army. Unlike the title of the noble unit of the Guards Division, although the First Division is not a noble unit, there are many noble children inside. Many of the elite children of the Japanese big families will enter the first division for development, hoping to achieve a higher status in the army. And if the children of the family want to join the army, they will enter the Guards Division. As the emperor's guards, the Guards Division was not allowed to go into battle, so that the children of the nobility could be trained and gain military merits without risking their lives. But if the children of the side line want to get ahead, they need to work their own. However, if the children of the side family of the big family who can enter the first division are not very good, then the power of the family is very great. Therefore, the total annihilation of the 1st Division was a great shock to the entire Japanese leadership.

At this Imperial Meeting, the Emperor did not scold his image as he did last time, except for his stinky face. Marshal Youpeng in Shanxian County is also like a frosted eggplant, a little listless. After all, he was an old man, and the jade fragments of the first division made him so angry that he vomited a mouthful of blood, and his originally tough physical condition was a little unbearable. It's good to be able to hold on to it without falling.

"Marshal of Shanxian County, the military department should explain the jade fragmentation of the first division!" Emperor Taisho looked at Youpeng in Yama County, and he became more and more displeased with this old man's words. As Emperor Meiji's minister of the humerus, Yamaguchi Aritomo was instrumental in stabilizing Emperor Taisho's early reign. But after Emperor Taisho gradually gained a foothold, the arrogant and domineering Yamaprefecture Aritomo became an eyesore. It's just that Marshal Yamaguchi Aritomo's power in the military is deep-rooted, and even if the emperor doesn't like him, he needs his help in many things, so although the two sides seem to be in harmony with the monarch and the minister, there are still private struggles. Emperor Taisho was frail and sickly since he was a child, and his spirit was not very good. In modern parlance, a bit neurotic, such a person is very sensitive and prone to do a lot of ridiculous things in public. Yama Prefecture Youtomo once used the emperor's bad spirit as a reason to control the government. In the past two years, Emperor Taisho's mental condition has improved significantly, and the struggle between Emperor Taisho and Aritomo in Yamaprefecture has also intensified. However, it is undeniable that both Emperor Taisho and Yamaguchi Aritomo, although they are also infighting, can still cooperate closely in the face of imperial interests. This is different from the domestic infighting of pure internal friction.

"Your Majesty, the old minister has nothing to say, the first division is broken, and the old minister is willing to take all the responsibility." Shan County Youpeng said.

Everyone was a little stunned. In the past countless years, who has ever seen Marshal Youpeng of Shan County speak in such a low voice. It seems that the jade fragments of the first division made this stubborn old man a little disheartened.

Prime Minister Terauchi Masashi stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I think the destruction of the 1st Division has something to do with our inaccurate assessment of the strength of the Shina Army. Judging from the battle situation, the Northeast Army of China had already expected a war with the Empire. So the army of China has been accumulating strength all along. The Imperial Army, on the other hand, had just finished refitting last year, and the new weapons were not fully combat-effective, and according to the latest information from the Special High School. The level of armament of the Chinese army was somewhat higher than that of the empire. In particular, the large-scale use of automatic firepower such as light machine guns by the Chinese army put the soldiers of the empire under tremendous pressure. ”

"Terauchi, do you mean that all this is to blame for the conspiracy of the China?" The emperor's eyes were crossed, and everyone could see the dissatisfaction.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, this matter cannot be blamed on the head of the military department, the minister is from the army, and he has a deep understanding of the imperial army. For more than a decade since the victory in the Russo-Japanese War, the empire's finances have been strained, but even so, the empire has not stopped expanding its navy. A large amount of the already inadequate financial resources have been tilted towards the navy, and the result has been that the army has been slow to update its equipment for more than a decade. In the battle with the Northeast Army of China, the China Army even invested in individual weapons rocket launchers, and tanks with high combat performance, and also equipped with a large number of automatic firepower, in this case, the firepower level of the Imperial Army was much worse than that of the China Army. Your Majesty the Emperor, this is the comparison of weapons and equipment between the Northeast Army of China and the Imperial Army that the Minister has compiled through the intelligence of the Special High Division. His Majesty the Emperor, please take a look. Saying that, Terauchi Zhengyi stepped forward and sent the music fold in his hand.

Emperor Taisho took it, and there was a hint of solemnity between his eyebrows.

"Terauchi, with the current finances of the empire, how much can be equipped in a period of time to equip troops at such a level?" Although Emperor Taisho was frail since he was a child, as the heir of the Japanese Empire, his knowledge was still very good. In addition, his father, Emperor Meiji, was a generation of military madmen, so he naturally paid more attention to the military education of his children, so although it was impossible for Emperor Taisho to lead troops to fight, those military data could still be seen clearly. This gave the emperor a clear understanding of the contrast between the Chinese and Japanese forces.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, after the war, the Empire's finances are already facing depletion, and it is unable to equip troops on a large scale." Masaki Terauchi said in a low voice. Last year, the army's hundreds of thousands of troops had just completed their redressing, and most of the already modest finances were occupied, and the rest was taken away by the navy. After all, the cost of maintaining the navy is also very staggering, and the Empire's plan to purchase ships in previous years has not yet ended, and the Empire has to pay a lot of money to new ships every year.

"Damn, for the sake of the Empire's reputation, the war must not stop. Terauchi-kun, you need your cabinet to work hard to raise funds, you can try to issue government bonds and borrow from abroad. Emperor Taisho said in a deep voice.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, if the empire issues national bonds and borrows from abroad, of course, it can be supported for a period of time, but we have just received information that another local force in China, Cai Yi, who occupies the four southwestern provinces of China, has already led a division of troops to the northeast, and it will soon reach the front line of the Yalu River, and when the time comes, on the front line of the Yalu River, the strength of China will have an advantage again. In addition, the general Cai Ye is an excellent student who graduated from the empire, and he is very good at commanding wars, and he is a formidable opponent. Such people play a much greater role on the battlefield. I have studied several victories of Cai Ye, and this man has the norms of an orthodox soldier and the traditional characteristics of China. Very difficult to deal with. With such people on the battlefield, it may be difficult for the empire to realize its plan for a quick victory. Terauchi said in embarrassment. There is also the final point, the participation of the southwest in the war will greatly increase the potential of the war in the northeast.

As a soldier, he hopes that the empire will not retreat even if it is fought to the last soldier, but as the prime minister of the government, Terauchi Masayi hopes that he can seize the opportunity to develop the economy now and increase the national strength of the empire first.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, the ambassadors of Britain, France, and other countries have contacted us many times, hoping that we will be able to combat the arrogance of China and ensure order in the Far East. I'm afraid there's some kind of conspiracy involved. Xiyuan Temple Gongwang said in a deep voice.

"The Westerners want nothing more than to sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight, weaken the strength of us and China, so that they can wait until they settle the war in the West, and then draw forces to intervene in the Far East. These greedy Westerners are just too hateful. Emperor Taisho said in a deep voice. It can also be seen from this that Emperor Taisho was not confused.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, I think that the current all-out war with China is not conducive to the development of the empire, several defeats have caused heavy losses to the empire's army, the loss of a large number of weapons and ammunition has seriously affected the development of the empire, the empire's foreign trade is in deficit, the United States and other neutral arms dealers have gathered in the empire, selling their weapons and equipment to the empire, clearly hoping to earn war money in the hands of the empire, the empire has finally recovered a little with the help of the tide of the world war, and the national strength that the empire has finally recovered slightly with the help of the tide of the world war should definitely not be wasted here. Therefore, the minister suggested that we should look for an opportunity to stop the war with the people of China and concentrate on developing the national strength first. Masaki said helplessly. If the Japanese Empire can defeat the Shina people without breaking their bones, Terauchi Masatsushi will support the Empire's war, no matter how difficult the Empire's finances are. However, on the battlefield, the performance of the imperial army is too rubbish.

"Let's talk about this again!" The emperor didn't like to be the first to take a stand on this matter, but he did listen to Terauchi Masatsu's opinion. Emperor Taisho experienced firsthand the situation in Japan during the Russo-Japanese War. In order to fight for the country and concentrate all the resources, the emperor's life was extremely difficult, which left a deep impression on Emperor Taisho, who was still the crown prince at the time, and he did not want to try such a hard life again. This may be the difference between the founding king and the king of the keep.

Although no specific plan was set for this imperial council, the cabinet members generally guessed that the Japanese Empire would be subdued this time, judging by the performance of the Japanese bigwigs and the attitude of the emperor. After all, the battle with the people of China is not about the fortunes of the country. Although the defeat had some impact on the reputation of the empire, the strength of the Japanese empire was created, and naturally no one dared to underestimate Japan. It's just that Japan is soft, but it is cheaper than China.

But for the government's cabinet members, the truce was a good thing, after all, the issuance of government bonds and borrowing from abroad were expedient. Sooner or later, the borrowed money will have to be repaid, and if the fiscal gap is too large, it will even lead to the collapse of the empire's finances. Terauchi Masatakeshi is a military man, and he can be said to be a layman in terms of economics, which puts a lot of pressure on them as cabinet ministers. If they don't have a good economy, the emperor will definitely not hesitate to replace them. Japan's political scene is extremely chaotic, and there are definitely many people who are qualified to be prime ministers. Terauchi Masashi is just the lucky one in the game between the emperor and the emperor.

(To be continued)