Chapter 947: The Flying Soar, Afraid Now? (Please Subscribe)

Tokugawa Mitsukuni no longer had any heart to remain in Nanjing arranging Wei Zaode's visit to Japan, because the era of peace and prosperity in Japan was nearing its end, and he had to hurry back to report!

Now a villain had appeared to the west of Japan — the great Ming restoration hero Zhu Cilang was in fact a sinister, cunning scoundrel scheming to overturn Japan's peace and prosperity.

And to the east of Japan, a madman had appeared! Spain, that Catholic empire, had gone completely insane — it was actually plotting a massive surprise assault on the core territories of the Ming Empire itself!

Had they not seen the enormous bastion forts on both sides of the Wusong mouth at Shanghai? Had they not seen the Jiangyin–Jingjiang fortress complex along the Yangtze?

As an envoy visiting China, Tokugawa Mitsukuni had been invited to tour the fortress complexes at Shanghai's Wusong mouth and along the Huangpu River, and he had been deeply impressed!

Because the cost of building bastions from sandbags was relatively low, the Ming Navy Department had constructed large numbers of bastion fortresses near all important river mouths and seaports. Shanghai, as the Ming's most important port city and trade center, was protected by layer upon layer of coastal defense fortresses and land fortifications!

Among these, the Shanghai coastal defense fortress complex was mainly located along the Yangtze banks on both sides of the Wusong mouth — not one fortress, nor even one group of fortresses, but two groups! One group on the east bank of the Wusong mouth, and another on the west bank! The two fortress groups not only firmly sealed the entrance to the Wusong River, but also commanded two large stretches of riverbank where landings and dock construction were comparatively easy.

Although Shanghai was a coastal city, its coastline was actually very difficult to land on, because it was mostly mudflats, the water was too shallow, and the shoreline shifted by ten to twenty li between low and high tide. Moreover, there were no ready-made harbors near Shanghai's coastline, only a few small fishing ports. Worse still, there were no official roads in that area, while the water network crisscrossed everywhere, and transportation relied mainly on inland waterway shipping. And these waterways connected to the Huangpu River upstream of the Wusong River.

The Ming army garrisoned in Shanghai Prefecture had built a Jiangpu Fort on the west bank of the Huangpu River, and also built a Pudong Fort on the east bank at the confluence of the Huangpu and Wusong Rivers. The two bastions firmly sealed the waterways leading from the beaches southeast of Shanghai into the city proper. Even if an enemy with the gall of a bear and the courage of a leopard forced a landing on the beach, they would be blocked by the water network and these two bastions. To seize the Shanghai city proper quickly was an almost impossible task.

Moreover, the Shanghai city proper was not without walled protection. Shanghai's Pudong area had the twenty-li-long Baoshan Wall, shielding the rear of the Pudong city district and the Baoshan fortress complex on the east bank of the Wusong mouth. Outside the Baoshan Wall there was also an artificially dug canal serving as a moat. Shanghai's Puxi area was protected by a Wusong Wall, which was even longer, stretching from the Wusong bastion complex at the Yangtze mouth all the way to Jiangpu Fort in a semi-circle nearly fifty li long, with a canal outside it serving as a moat as well.

Although the two long walls of Shanghai were of limited height, had no bastioned gun platforms, and had many gates, they did possess sloped, shell-resistant wall faces, and were thick enough to withstand heavy cannon. As long as Shanghai Prefecture could organize the workers inside the city into militia before an enemy army's surprise assault, and deploy them on the walls together with the small number of regular troops, the city could be held.

At present, Shanghai had two to three hundred thousand handicraft workshop workers, three large arsenals — Shanghai Shen Steel, Shanghai Bujialao, and Shanghai Steel United — and the Shanghai Naval Academy. It not only had large numbers of personnel who were easy to organize and familiar with firearms and cannon, but also possessed large stockpiles of guns and cannon and the capacity to produce them.

Unless an army raiding Shanghai could succeed in an extremely short time, it would never be able to conquer this city!

And in the lower Yangtze, besides the "Shanghai Fortress," the Ming also possessed the Jiangyin–Jingjiang fortress complex. This was a river-defense fortress complex meant to block enemies from advancing upriver and threatening Nanjing. In this era, the lower Yangtze was extremely wide, but the Jingjiang mid-river sandbar and Jiangyin on the south bank together formed a narrow stretch, so it was naturally chosen by the Ming Navy Department to serve as the gateway of river defense. A series of bastions formed an indestructible defense, almost impossible to destroy with naval gunfire, and could only be taken by amphibious assault!

But in this era, the time required to assault a bastion was measured in months, and taking the Jiangyin–Jingjiang fortress complex would probably have to be measured in years... And how much time would the Ming's full mobilization require?

"The Ming's river-mouth defenses can be said to be as secure as a golden moat! Therefore, I believe the Spanish idea of raiding the Ming's southeastern river mouths is complete madness! It cannot possibly succeed!"

Tokugawa Mitsukuni, travel-worn and dusty, had rushed back to Edo and was at this moment in Edo Castle reporting to the roju and the regent Hoshina Masayuki and others on the gains and observations of his journey to China.

This time he had reaped bitter fruit — he had encountered villains and madmen, and had also seen a Ming Jiangnan already in the early stages of capitalism.

"Then, do you think the shogunate should refuse the Spanish and stand on the Ming's side?"

The question came from the roju Sakai Tadakiyo. In recent years, because Matsudaira Nobutsuna was old and frail and found it hard to cope with the increasingly difficult internal and external situation, the vigorous Sakai Tadakiyo had gradually become the roju with the greatest say.

"Well..." Tokugawa Mitsukuni's brows knitted tightly, but he did not know what to say.

"Chujo," said the senior roju Matsudaira Nobutsuna from the side, "you are the heir of the Mito house — is there anything you find inconvenient to say?"

Hoshina Masayuki also said: "Indeed, speak! Anything can be said!"

"Hai!" Tokugawa Mitsukuni nodded. "Then this official will speak without reserve! This official believes that if the Ming defeats Spain in the Pacific, Japan will face the danger of overthrow!

Because Japan as it now stands has no way to join the tributary system led by the Ming... The Tokugawa house can become a vassal of the Ming Son of Heaven, but His Majesty the Emperor cannot submit to the Ming Son of Heaven!"

"Chujo, how can you say such a thing!" Hoshina Masayuki's face changed drastically, and he immediately began to rebuke him. Because he had already understood what Mitsukuni was saying — Tokugawa Mitsukuni was speaking of the possibility of abolishing the Emperor and having the Tokugawa shogun elevated to King of Japan!

Tokugawa Mitsukuni sighed: "This official is merely speaking the truth!"

Hoshina Masayuki angrily rebuked: "As a retainer, can you say such things?"

Tokugawa Mitsukuni shook his head: "Then, can we return the great governance and turn Japan into an imperial country like the Ming?"

"Chujo! What are you saying!"

"Chujo..."

"Chujo, have you gone mad?"

"Chujo!"

All the roju were shocked by Tokugawa Mitsukuni's words, and disregarding all decorum, they all began clamoring at once.

Tokugawa Mitsukuni snorted: "Was it not said that anything could be said? I have merely spoken the truth! These are the two roads now laid before Japan!

Either become traitorous subjects and rebels, and with the Ming's support eliminate all the disobedient tozama daimyo, then make the kubo king, and make Japan a tributary state of the Ming.

Or... let us all be loyal subjects together, with the shogunate taking the lead in returning the great governance, converting the domains into prefectures, establishing an empire, and then allying with the Westerners to resist the Ming!

Apart from these, there is no other way!"

Had Tokugawa Mitsukuni gone mad?

The Mito domain would need a new heir...

What to do! The cleverest man in the Tokugawa house had also gone mad!

Then, was there any other way?

When the roju heard Tokugawa Mitsukuni speak thus, their first reaction was that this clever man had gone mad! But after mulling it over, it seemed there was no third road to take!

And so everyone fell silent.

Tokugawa Mitsukuni continued: "This is no longer an era when one can shut the door and live in isolation! Japan must open the country, and opening the country will bring two great difficulties: first, relations with the Celestial Court! Second, competition with the other powers!

Because His Majesty the Emperor cannot submit to the Celestial Court, Japan not only cannot obtain the Celestial Court's protection, but will be regarded with hostility and subverted by the Celestial Court! If the Emperor cannot be abolished and the imperial title changed to kingship, then Japan must unite the strength of all its domains into one country! Only thus can all the samurai of Japan fight for the nation, rather than each for his own domain! With the combined strength of all Japan's samurai, Japan would be sufficient to resist the Celestial Court!"