Chapter 341 Surprise attack, Edo Bay! (Please order, please vote)
February 3, 1854 AD.
Edo Castle, Black Academy.
A room full of shogunate seniors, side servants and "shogunate princes" in Edo all sat in awe, looking at a copy of the draft treaty placed in front of everyone in a daze. The brainless general of the Tokugawa shogunate, Iatesada,
With the support of two young people, he sat in front of a Chinese landscape painting (Tangshanshui) and fell asleep.
It is said that this general was fed poison when he was a child because of the struggle in Ooku, which hurt his brain. He has been confused and sometimes suddenly went crazy. However, Tokugawa Ieki only had one son, and he could only be allowed to take the throne after his death.
And the general’s side servants and nicknames,
In order to prevent the shogun from making a fool of himself in public, he was often fed some medicine to put him to sleep before he needed to meet with the shogunate ministers or make a decision. Anyway, according to the rules of the Tokugawa shogunate, the shogun can rule the world even when he is asleep.
of!
The bosses will read the decisions made by the senior officers aloud in front of the sleeping general. As long as the general does not object, it will be considered approved...
The lighting in the Black Academy located in Edo Castle Honmaru was very poor, so they had no choice but to light a dozen oil lamps for illumination. The dim yellow light flashed on the manuscript of the draft treaty, which made every important shogunate minister who looked at the manuscript in front of him feel moved.
, all became more uneasy.
The contents of this copy were obviously unacceptable to the Tokugawa shogunate—at least not until they were beaten!
After all, the shogunate is a samurai regime that upholds the spirit of bushido!
How could they surrender without fighting? The Qing Dynasty next door also resisted when faced with the oppression of the British and barbarians. Although the battle was a mess and they finally signed an unequal treaty that ceded land as compensation and humiliated the country, they still resisted and could not defeat it.
no way!
Now this matter has been brought to the attention of the Tokugawa family's general who conquered the barbarians. If he doesn't fight and just signs the unequal treaty, wouldn't that mean he doesn't resist the general?
How can you explain this to the samurai all over Japan?
Tokugawa Iedada, who co-authored the samurai regime, turned out to be a non-resistance general who surrendered without a fight. He did not have the slightest bit of Bushido spirit...\n.\n.\n.\n. Such a pillar of the samurai family is worthy of Japan
Do the warriors of the country swear allegiance to the death?
But if the Tokugawa shogunate rejects the unequal treaties of the great powers and chooses to resist...:::.\nThe dozens of light artillery on the Shinagawa Fort can defeat a dozen ships on the sea of ​​Edo Bay.
Steam battleship?
If we can't defeat...:...then the unequal treaties imposed by the great powers will become even more unequal!
When the time comes, the land will definitely be ceded and compensation will be paid!
The brainless leader of the samurai family is getting more and more sleepy and is about to fall asleep, while the air pressure in the black academy is getting lower and lower. The elder of the Tokugawa Gosan family, the former lord of the Mito domain, the current shogunate sea defense director, and also the shogunate
Tokugawa Qi Zhao, the leader of the anti-barbarian faction, was sitting there.
The angrier I became, the more I took one more look at the idiot general Iashada, and suddenly I couldn't bear it anymore. I slapped the tatami and said, "The Tokugawa family will never tolerate the humiliation of surrendering without a fight! The shogunate should have fired artillery to expel the Japanese black ships.
...The cannon should have been launched last year!”
He took a few steps out with a weird, bent-knee walking posture, and then stiffly saluted the sleeping general: "Sir Kokata! Please give the order to fire to the Shinagawa Fort immediately! The samurai on the fort
Already have the consciousness of Tamashii! In addition, please give orders to the mansions of each feudal clan in Edo Castle to summon samurai!
All the Mito clan members, weeping and crying, beg the Lord to allow us to sacrifice our lives for the country!"
There was a solemn atmosphere in the Black Academy, followed by most of the old men, side servants, and princes in the room. They all saluted respectfully to the sleeping general, and shouted one after another: "I beg you, your Majesty, to order the war. We are willing to sacrifice our lives for the country."
!」
Abe Masahiro, who is only in his thirties, slightly fat, has a very big and pointed nose, and looks particularly cunning, is sitting in the seat closest to the general, motionless, among a group of noble nobles.
His breathing became heavier and heavier, and finally,
Tokugawa Qiaki raised his head again, facing the general who finally fell asleep, and said in an urgent tone: "My lord!"
Abe Masahiro slowly turned his head, with a treacherous face full of helplessness. He looked at the Satsuma clan leader Shimazu Saibin who was shrinking to one side and also said nothing: "Satsuma Lord, do you think you can fight?"
Shimazu Qibin's face was livid, and his chest heaved violently: "Marquis Fukuyama! The special envoy of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is at the Satsuma Domain now...\n.\n. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom has never bowed to the great powers. How can we, the Japanese samurai, still do so?
Not as good as them
Even if you are defeated today, as long as you follow the example of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Qing Dynasty's Shanghai Governor's Office, be determined to innovate, and be brave and diligent, there will definitely be a time for revenge in the future. If you surrender without a fight, it will not only despise the great powers, but also chill the hearts of the loyal people in the world!
"
Although Masahiro Abe was a peace advocate, he also knew that he could not accept the treaty brought back by Lin Fuzhai.
These foreigners are so shady that they will not give the Tokugawa shogunate a chance to compromise without a fight!
The reason for compromise is to survive, not to be hacked to death as soon as you step out of the Sakurada Gate!
But if the war starts now, is there even a slight chance of victory?
Thinking of this, he looked at Kaibo Kake Tokugawa Saiaki again: "Mito Chunagon, can you win?"
"Yes!" Tokugawa Saiaki said decisively.
"How to win?"
"Surprise attack!" Tokugawa Qiaki had already made an idea, saying: "The only way is to take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness and launch a surprise attack!"
Abe Masahiro sighed softly, then glanced at General Tokugawa who had fallen asleep, nodded and said: "Okay! Mr. Kokata agrees to start the war!"
His tone was iron and his face was ashen: "Gentlemen...\n.\n. Since we are going to start a war, then this war must show the majesty of the Tokugawa Shogunate and Japan. We must let the great powers see our Japanese samurai."
of loyalty and courage.
Only in this way can we survive in death and fight for a way out for the shogunate, for Japan, and for ourselves!"
He bowed to Tokugawa Saiaki again: "Mito Chunagon, please serve as Lord Kokata's Jindai...\n. Please!"
Tokugawa Saiaki looked solemn and solemn, and nodded heavily: "Hi!"
Edo Bay, the sea near Shinagawa Port.
In the early morning, the sky became slightly brighter.
More than twenty warships and transport ships were forming a double column in the darkness at a low speed of two to three knots, cutting through the waves and sailing slowly.
Most of the officers and soldiers were very relaxed and intoxicated in their dreams at this time. Only Luo Xueyan, who knew the ways of that island country very well, would feel extremely uneasy every dusk and early morning.
With the strength of the shogunate navy, apart from carrying out sneak attacks without respecting military ethics, I am afraid there is no chance to cause losses to the four-nation combined fleet..::..And with the urinary nature of the Japanese devils, it is impossible to surrender without a fight.
. And the conditions Luo Xueyan encouraged Britain, the United States, France and the Qing Dynasty to propose were too harsh.
Even if the Qing Dynasty did not fight an Opium War, it would be impossible to accept such conditions, let alone the Tokugawa Shogunate?
So....:.War will definitely break out!
And Japan will definitely attack!
The time of the sneak attack... is either in the evening or early in the morning.
Because they can't defeat them at all during the day, it's too dark and the target can't be seen, the morning and evening are the most suitable. And compared to the evening, the possibility is undoubtedly greater in the early morning.
However... Luo Xueyan did not tell the commander of the combined fleet, Major General Matthew Perry, about this judgment.
What he was looking forward to was a sneak attack, one that could anger Matthew Perry.
Only in this way can the American rear admiral order severe revenge.
Just waiting quietly for the enemy's bombardment on a cruiser that may encounter a sneak attack is definitely not conducive to sleep.
Therefore, in the past two days, Luo Xueyan would have difficulty falling asleep in the latter half of the night.
At this time, he would get dressed and run to the best-protected command room on the cruiser to chat with the American officers on duty. Or he would simply stand at the window and stare at the hazy Edo Bay coast in the night.
and the Edo Castle Town not far away.
Edo is really big, but the sky is still a little dark and I can’t see anything clearly—”
Just when Luo Xueyan thought of this, he suddenly saw a little light flashing out of the darkness.
This is muzzle flash!
Has it started yet?
Luo Xueyan, who had been on the battlefield a long time ago and had seen too many shellings, immediately understood what happened?
This is what he expected!
"Shell attack! Captain Henry—" He turned around and yelled at Captain Henry who was on duty in the command room today, "Boom...
But just as his shout came out, the simultaneous roar of dozens of Japanese cannons was heard.
The U.S. Navy captain who had been yawning just now suddenly became excited, and then shouted: "Enemy attack, sound the alarm..."
"Woo-"
The whistle then sounded loudly on the American cruise ship.
"Boom boom boom——."
Another round of shelling!
At the same time, countless burning boards suddenly appeared on the sea surface.
Groups of firelight flickered on the sea!
"Oh my God! It's a fire ship——" Captain Henry exclaimed, "What age is it? There are still people doing this!"
"Boom boom boom."
The Japanese bombardment continued, another salvo fired, and dozens of solid rounds crossed the sea of ​​Edo Bay and landed on the ocean near the cruiser Powhatan.
"Damn it!" Captain Henry cursed, then went up to grab the rudder with his bare hands and began to steer the ship himself.
But steamships accelerate very slowly these days—you have to boil the water slowly!
Therefore, the speed of the Powhatan could not be increased all of a sudden, and it was relatively large and had four masts for hanging sails. Even under the cover of night, it was still a very conspicuous target, attracting many people.
All the firepower from the nearby Shinagawa Fort.
When the Japanese shelling reached the eighth round, Luo Xueyan suddenly felt the floor beneath his feet shaking. Although he had been prepared, he still couldn't stand firm and almost fell to the ground, but was hit by a
A strong big hand helped me.
A voice full of anger and a bit rough sounded to Luo Xueyan in English with an American accent: "Xueyan, are you okay?"
"Nothing," Luo Xueyan knew without looking, it was Matthew Perry, "Matthew, we were attacked!"
"And he got hit!"
Matthew Perry's voice didn't sound panicked at all, but rather angry.
Luo Xueyan said: "General, we must fight back! Fight back hard - I suggest using incendiary bombs to bombard the wooden houses near Edo Bay!"
Matthew Perry smiled and said: "This is a good idea, I like it!
But before that, I want to use explosive bombs to destroy the Shinagawa Fort!
Send an order, order all ships to concentrate their firepower and destroy the Shinagawa Fort!"
Chapter completed!