Abe Mitsuhiro sighed and said, “What he said just now was quite right. War is not the goal; it is merely a means of conquest.”
“I reminded His Excellency Matsui long ago that we must not waste the majority of our forces on Huaxia soil.”
“The purpose of war is to obtain tremendous benefits, not to flaunt one’s own strength.”
“But within the Empire, many people have already become obsessed when it comes to the Huaxia question.”
“All they think about is how to conquer this great Eastern nation, not how to secure sufficient profit.”
Iwai Koichi chuckled softly. “Abe-kun, not every Imperial soldier can be as calm as you.”
“Ever since the Jiawu naval war of 1894, every war the Empire has launched has yielded ample benefits.”
“Especially in dealing with the Huaxia question—from the Treaty of Shimonoseki, to the Twenty-One Demands, to the Tanggu Truce—”
“Every time, the Empire has extracted enormous benefits from Huaxia. Each victory has further stimulated their ambitions. By now, they are no longer satisfied with something as simple as profit.”
After a brief pause, Iwai Koichi said, enunciating each word, “What they want is the entirety of Huaxia’s thirteen million square kilometers of land.”
Abe Mitsuhiro said slowly, “You’re quite right. Whether it was against the Beiyang Fleet of the Manchu Qing, or that huge Tsarist Russian bear,”
“The Empire was always able to defeat them with ease. That has made them arrogant beyond measure.”
“But now, the war is not progressing smoothly. According to the War Command Section’s simulations, if we want to completely occupy Huaxia, we will need to commit at least more than two million troops.”
“But at present we only have a little over thirty divisions in total, just over a million men, and some of them are the Kwantung Army. They must remain stationed in the Northeast to prevent the Soviets from launching a sneak attack while we are engaged in large-scale combat.”
“The only main force currently on the battlefield is the Central China Expeditionary Army.”
Iwai Koichi frowned and said, “Isn’t there also His Excellency Terauchi’s North China Area Army?”
“The telegram Inukai-kun sent earlier said that Commander Itagaki of the Fifth Division and Commander Isogai of the Tenth Division under the North China Area Army have already been ordered south.”
“They intend to link up with Commander Hata Shunroku from north and south, advance together, crush the main force of the Nationalist Government in one stroke, and completely stabilize the war in the south.”
Abe Mitsuhiro smiled bitterly. “I’m afraid it won’t be that easy.”
“Iwai-kun, the War Command Section has conducted simulations on the progress of the war.”
“We believe that unless the Huaxia soldiers repeat what happened in the Battle of Shanghai—two armies clashing head-on, with the entire nation’s strength poured into a decisive battle—”
“Otherwise, we simply cannot smoothly annihilate the enemy’s main force.”
“Huaxia is too vast, and its population is several times that of the Empire’s. Do you know what that means? As long as they want to retreat, there are still many places they can retreat to.”
“As long as they want to replenish their troops, they can obtain large numbers of replacements in a short period of time.”
“But we cannot. We are not fighting on our home soil. If the war shifts from fierce confrontation into a prolonged tug-of-war, that will be extremely unfavorable to us.”
“I can tell you very responsibly that we cannot afford a war of attrition.”
“The Empire is simply too small. Every expansion requires enormous resources to drive the war machine at high speed. If, at that point, the supply of resources fails to arrive in time, we won’t need anyone else to defeat us—we ourselves will be the first to collapse.”
“Take this campaign as an example. When the homeland prepared for the decisive war with Huaxia, it prepared six hundred tons of gold, a full twelve million taels. But less than half a year after the war broke out, half of that gold has already been consumed.”
“If the Huaxia question cannot be resolved quickly, then once the backlash begins, the Empire’s internal administration could collapse at any moment.”
Iwai Koichi shook his head and said, “Abe-kun, you are still too pessimistic. We must firmly believe that the Empire will surely achieve victory.”
Abe Mitsuhiro merely smiled and said nothing.
Iwai Koichi pulled open a drawer, took out a sheet of paper covered in names, and placed it on the desk.
On the paper were the positions and names of the officials to be appointed in the Jinling Reformed Government.
After thinking for a moment, Iwai Koichi picked up his pen and filled in Chen Yang’s name for the position in the Economic Bureau of the Ministry of Finance.
Abe Mitsuhiro was stunned. “Iwai-kun, you want Chen Yang to serve as Director of the Economic Bureau under the Ministry of Finance of the Jinling Reformed Government?”
“This is a position of real power, in charge of logistical allocation. He’s only a newly graduated…”
Iwai Koichi raised his hand, cutting off Abe Mitsuhiro’s words. “Abe-kun, you think it inappropriate?”
Of course it was inappropriate. As everyone knew, throughout the feudal dynasties of every age, there had always been two departments with the richest pickings.
The first was the Department of Merit Evaluation under the Ministry of Personnel, responsible for reviewing officials’ political achievements. With a single stroke of the brush, it could make you rise, or make you fall.
The second was the Armory Bureau under the Ministry of War, responsible for manufacturing arms, requisitioning and transporting grain and fodder, and nominations for the military examinations.
The Economic Bureau of the Jinling Reformed Government’s Ministry of Finance was the former Armory Bureau, providing supplies and provisions to all levels of troops under Jinling. It was truly a post so lucrative it dripped with fat—yet he was handing it to a young man?
Iwai Koichi said flatly, “Abe-kun also knows that this department is of the utmost importance. Those old bureaucrats in officialdom are experts at every manner of eating, taking, obstructing, and demanding.”
“If we hand it to them, I’m afraid it won’t be long before they fatten up a large group of people.”
“This Chen Yang has no real foundation, and he is also the student my teacher values most. How much can he take on his own? No matter what, it cannot compare to an entire group of people, can it?”
“Most importantly, Abe-kun, who do you think is easier to control—this Chen Yang, or those cunning old hands in officialdom?”
“That’s right. What the Empire needs are obedient hounds. But I think this Chen Yang is well suited to becoming a hawk, not a dog that only knows how to wag its tail.”
Abe Mitsuhiro pondered for a moment. “But to raise him up like this is far too casual, isn’t it?”
Iwai Koichi said seriously, “Abe-kun, this position is not one that just anyone can sit in securely. He still has many hurdles to pass.”
“The new government has only just been established. The personnel disputes and struggles for power inside it—any one of them can cost a man his life.”
Abe Mitsuhiro instantly understood. “Iwai-kun, I understand. You are tempering a hawk…”
Iwai Koichi sighed. “If one wants to train a young hawk into a master hunter, it requires many prey. Just as a blade must have many whetstones if it is to become sharp enough.”
As he spoke, Iwai Koichi handed the letter Chen Yang had brought to Abe Mitsuhiro. “Teacher’s meaning is that as long as he can resolve the Osaka Chamber of Commerce’s supplies issue, this position will be given to him.”
Abe Mitsuhiro glanced at the letter and nodded. He was just about to speak when a knock on the door interrupted him.
“Report. Your Excellency Iwai, Mr. Liang has arrived.”
“Oh, please ask Mr. Liang to wait for me in the conference room. I’ll be there at once.”
With that, Iwai Koichi rose and said to Abe Mitsuhiro, “Abe-kun, it seems I can’t continue chatting with you. I have to go meet someone.”
Abe Mitsuhiro hesitated. “This Mr. Liang? What kind of person is he?”
Iwai Koichi straightened his clothes and smiled. “He is a dog. A very obedient dog.”
Shanghai, French Concession, Ferguson Road.
This road might not be known to many, but in the future it would have an exceptionally resounding name: Wukang Road, Shanghai.
It was one of the main roads of the French Concession, with many residences of famous figures lining the entire street.
For example, the literary master Ba Jin, Huang Xing who had commanded the Guangzhou Uprising, and the Song family, one of the four great families of the Republic.
Those who could live on this road were, one might say, either rich or noble.
The Buick drove forward all the way until it arrived at the Lin Residence at 1311 Ferguson Road.
Uncle Qi, the driver, honked twice. The gatekeeper trotted out at once and hurriedly opened the gate.
The car drove into the garage and stopped. Chen Yang had just walked into the main hall with his luggage when a voice suddenly rang out.
“Chen Yang, get on your knees.”