Chapter 3519
Chapter 3519
Chapter 3519
Of course, Hai Han had more military bases in other countries than just Sasebo. For example, Annan's Cam Ranh Bay Base and North Korea's Taedong River Base were also quite large.
However, compared to other places, the time travelers are obviously more interested in the Sasebo base in Japan. After all, most of the strategies Hai Han has formulated against Japan need to be implemented through the Sasebo base.
Whether it is providing military assistance to the feudal lords in the Kyushu region, establishing a trade hub with Japan here, or the current plan to instigate a civil war in Japan, all are based on the Sasebo base.
From the visible environment and hardware facilities, it is not difficult to confirm that Shi Diwen has indeed invested a lot in the operation of this base. After more than ten years of construction and operation, and the hard work of countless people, it is finally time to reap the fruits.
The first group of guests who landed were almost all time travelers. Many of them, out of strong curiosity, asked to visit the Sasebo base immediately, despite the fatigue of the journey.
Even though he had served in the Hai Han army for thirty years and was the commander of an overseas base, Amakusa Shiro was still a little restrained in the presence of so many important figures.
Sasebo's civil affairs director Yuan Wendong, commerce director Yang Tianlei, Amakusa Shiro's two sons Amakusa Masa and Amakusa Hayabusa, and a large group of other local officials were all busy receiving these distinguished guests.
Fortunately, Sasebo had received the notice long ago and had been in gear several days in advance, so the reception work was busy but not chaotic, and was well organized.
The following batches of fleets also arrived at Sasebo Bay a few hours later.
Although the Sasebo base does not have a large number of facilities specifically for receiving guests like a trading port like Zhoushan, it has sufficient barracks for the garrison, and a number of rooms had already been vacated in advance to accommodate this inspection team.
Although the living conditions in the barracks are certainly not as good as those in high-end places like the guesthouse, the advantage is that the arrangements are unified and the guests of the inspection team all stay here, so there is nothing to complain about.
Of course, everyone knew very well before coming that the purpose of this inspection trip was not to sightsee, so everyone's attention was not on these details.
At the welcome dinner held that evening, Shi Diwen arranged for the Saga Domain daimyo Nabeshima Mitsushige to come forward and explain the current situation in the Kyushu region.
Nabeshima Mitsushige was the first to appear and gave a passionate speech. He called Kyushu "Japan's window to the world", but the isolationist policy of the Tokugawa shogunate severely restricted Kyushu's development and also made the people of Kyushu bear extremely heavy taxes and labor.
As a native of Kyushu, Mitsushige Nabeshima did not want to see Kyushu decline under the rule of the shogunate, so he joined forces with several other powerful local daimyo to form an alliance to break away from the shogunate's rule.
Mitsushige Nabeshima did not emphasize the role played by Hai Han in this matter. It was obvious that Amakusa Shiro had already informed him in advance and asked him to pay attention to the international outlook.
If the politicians from various countries who come to Japan for inspection believe that Hai Han deliberately favors one side of the conflict, then Hai Han’s claim of “upholding justice” will naturally not convince the public.
As for the fact that Mitsushige Nabeshima wanted to portray himself as a victim and step on the shogunate at the same time, it didn't matter. To start a war, one must find a plausible reason, and no one would think that the Kyushu domains represented justice because of his remarks.
Mitsushige Nabeshima then said that if Kyushu wanted to break away from the oppressive rule of the evil shogunate, it would not be enough to rely on its own efforts alone, and it still needed more support from the outside world. If the visiting countries could support Kyushu, it would definitely add a lot of strength to Kyushu. Of course, it would be best if they could directly recognize Kyushu's independence and establish diplomatic relations with the Kyushu feudal domains as countries.
In fact, recognizing Kyushu's independence was not a big deal to most of the countries present, and they did not need to worry about offending the Tokugawa shogunate. After all, to the outside world, Japan, isolated overseas, was just a distant country and could hardly pose a direct threat to them.
However, most of the people present were officials, and they would not easily express their opinions before the situation became clear. At least they had to see what Hai Han's attitude was before considering whether they needed to choose a side.
After Mitsushige Nabeshima finished his speech, Diwen Shi walked to the front of the stage and asked for the opinions of guests from various countries.
Li Yi, who was not afraid of trouble, responded from the audience: "What Lord Nabeshima said is only one-sided. Since we want to uphold justice, shouldn't we also invite people from the shogunate to come out and debate?"
Many people nodded in agreement with Li Yi's opinion, believing that it would be fair for both sides to speak out.
Of course, they may not really be doing this for fairness. After all, what Mitsushige Nabeshima said for a long time was just empty talk. It would be better to see if the shogunate can offer some more practical conditions to allow supporters to get more benefits.
Shi Diwen said: "It seems that everyone is taking this matter very seriously. It is indeed worth coming all the way here. Just as you all expected, since we are here with the purpose of mediating conflicts and solving problems, of course we will let the shogunate speak out. Next, please welcome Lord Sakai who represents the Tokugawa shogunate!"
A middle-aged man walked slowly in from outside the venue. He was wearing a black drawstring suit and was indeed a senior Japanese official.
When Mitsushige Nabeshima, who had just come down from the stage, saw this person appear, his face changed slightly, and it seemed that he didn't know the other person was here.
Su Yongshan whispered to his father Su Keyi, "Since Hai Han is planning to arrange a face-to-face debate between the two sides, why not invite them to attend the Zhoushan Forum?"
Su Keyi said, “If we let them debate in Zhoushan, I think there are two problems. First, it will distract the guests from the debate and affect their attention to the topics led by Hai Han. Second, it will prematurely drain the guests’ curiosity about the situation in Japan. Then, there may not be so many people willing to travel so far to watch the fun.”
While the Su family father and son were talking, the middle-aged man had already walked to the front of the stage and bowed deeply to Shi Diwen to show his respect. Then another translator stood beside him, waiting to serve him.
After Shi Diwen's introduction, everyone knew that this person was Sakai Tadamasa, the senior councilor of the Tokugawa shogunate. If the position of senior councilor is compared with the official position in the Ming Dynasty, it is equivalent to the cabinet minister of the shogunate, a minister who assists the shogun in handling national affairs.
Sakai Tadamasa's grandfather Sakai Tadayo was a veteran of the three dynasties of the Tokugawa shogunate, and his father Sakai Tadayoki also served the third shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu. Now Sakai Tadamasa continues to serve the fourth shogun Tokugawa Ietsuga. Naturally, there is no need to say much about his loyalty to the shogunate.
As for how he avoided the eyes and ears of the Saga Domain and quietly came to visit Sasebo Bay, the secret in between is probably only known to the Hai Han top leaders.
(End of this chapter)