I formed the strongest swordsman group.

Chapter 1028: Changes in Choshu! Katsura Kogoro regains power! [4500]

Building a modern military factory and mastering the ability to independently manufacture guns and artillery - Qing Deng has always been thinking about this since he was granted the title of Dajin.

As a time traveler, he knows too well what it feels like to be "choked by someone".

Entrusting important trade involving one's lifeline to outsiders is equivalent to putting one's neck under the other party's knife - whether the knife will be swung depends entirely on the other party's wishes.

If the seller raises the price, you can only bear it; if the seller closes the transaction, you can only hold it in.

The current Western powers are in a period of "barbaric growth of capital". They are more brutal and cruel than each other. They will do anything to gain profits.

In fact, Qingdeng has received accurate intelligence in recent days: the activities of England, France and Russia in Japan have become more intensive.

Russia set its sights on Ezo in an attempt to further expand its territory.

England and France were also ready to make a move - they both wanted to dominate Japan, on the one hand to expand their colonial territories, and on the other hand to curb Russia's eastward expansion.

At present, France is closer to the shogunate.

The Kingdom of England, as always, used its ability to "stir up trouble" - seeing that the shogunate was getting close to France, they ran to contact Satsuma!

One of the secrets to “stirring up shit” is to maintain balance.

Neither side can be too strong nor too weak.

At this stage, the most powerful lord in Japan who is closest to unifying the world is undoubtedly Qing Deng.

Therefore, in order to weaken Qingdeng and make it easier for them to continue to "stir up trouble", the Western powers are likely to use some shady tricks to cause trouble for Qingdeng...

The guns and cannons currently used by the Shinsengumi were all purchased from arms dealers introduced by Gooseberry.

Although the transaction between the two parties is currently going on well, with one hand paying the money and the other hand receiving the goods, there is no guarantee that something may go wrong in the future.

For example, pressure from England or France may cause the arms dealer to no longer dare to sell weapons to the Shinsengumi.

Without a stable channel for acquiring guns and artillery, the Shinsengumi's military equipment level would instantly regress to the Warring States period...

By then, not to mention defeating the Western feudal lords and unifying the world, even protecting oneself would become a problem.

Such a hidden danger is like a sword of Damocles, always hanging over Qingdeng's head, forcing Qingdeng to not slack off.

As early as the beginning of the establishment of the clan, he regarded "building modern military factories" as the highest strategy of the Qinjin clan.

In a nutshell - we would rather have lower quality and lower output than not have the ability to independently produce guns and artillery!
Qing Deng entrusted this important task to Iwasaki Yataro, who was good at business.

Iwasaki Yataro always strictly followed Qingdeng's orders without any ambiguity.

He selected capable cadres from the newly elected Chamber of Commerce to form a special "military factory team".

In addition to concentrating all resources within the domain, Qing Deng also asked Kinoshita Lin for help.

As an ally of Qinjin Clan, no matter from which angle it is judged, Huluwu is absolutely worthy of the evaluation of "selling its head to support"!

Faced with Qing Deng's commission, Kinoshita Lin (the owner of the gourd house and Awu's grandmother) did not say a word and directly started the "big money spending mode".

Not only did he provide financial support to Qin Jinfan, but he also used his own connections to hire a number of foreign experts as consultants - leaving the former aside for now, the latter was exactly what Qingdeng needed most.

Although Qing Deng is now quite powerful in Japan, he is completely in the dark when he goes abroad and can't even find anyone he knows.

Fortunately, Kinoshita Rin is here to make up for his weakness.

She has extensive connections overseas, and knows several arms dealers alone.

The firearms currently used by the Shinsengumi are the M1861 muzzle-loading rifle and the Parrot rifled cannon.

In order to make it easier for the Shinsengumi soldiers to use them, the guns and cannons imitated by the Qinjin clan were these two weapons.

Under the scientific management of Yataro Iwasaki and the strict guidance of foreign consultants, the construction of the military factory progressed at an extremely fast pace.

Both the construction of the production line and the training of craftsmen went very smoothly.

Finally... Yataro Iwasaki fulfilled his mission, and the long-awaited Qinjin Military Factory was finally completed!

Although the current output is unremarkable, with only 80 rifles and 10 artillery pieces produced per month, the quality is very good, and it has ultimately achieved a breakthrough from "0 to 1".

Of all things in the world, the beginning is the hardest.

As long as the initial accumulation is completed, subsequent progress will be much smoother.

The main reason why the current output is so bleak is that there are too few craftsmen.

This is the most advanced firearm at the moment... Its level of precision is far beyond the reach of matchlock rifles and the like.

It jumped directly from matchlock guns and bronze cannons to muzzle-loading rifles and rifled cannons... The technology tree evolved too much and the level of craftsmen could not keep up at all.

Even the master maker of the matchlock rifle was at a loss after seeing these two weapons, and had no idea how to imitate them.

The number of craftsmen determines the level of output.

In order to increase the number of craftsmen, Qingdeng offered extremely generous salaries to recruit craftsmen from all over the world, and summoned apprentices who were interested in the forging business for intensive training.

Once the number of craftsmen increases, production capacity will naturally increase by leaps and bounds.

It is a great fortune that we were able to complete the construction and operation of the military factory at this critical juncture when the "East-West War" was about to break out.

Qing Deng was very satisfied with today's inspection.

With excitement in his heart, he slowly left the factory accompanied by Yataro Iwasaki.

But at this moment, a soldier from the 9th squad came running over.

"Lord."

He bowed slightly to Qing Deng, then leaned close to his ear, whispered something quickly, and then stepped aside with a serious expression.

In an instant, Qing Deng's facial expression changed subtly - just because the other party said this: There has been a change in Changzhou.

"Yatarou, I'll go ahead."

Iwasaki Yataro knew something urgent was going on, so he nodded vigorously:

"Yes!"

After saying goodbye to Iwasaki Yataro, Qing Deng hurried back to the Tachibana residence in two steps at a time.

……

……

Otsu, Tachibana Residence, Qing Deng's office——

"What? The 'secular school' is doomed?"

Qing Deng couldn't help but raise his voice because he was too surprised.

Standing directly opposite him, Yamazaki Sho (Vice Captain of the 9th Division) lowered his head and responded in a deep voice:

"The special forces led by Katsura Kogoro have breached Hagi Castle."

"According to the latest intelligence, officials from the 'Secular Faction' fled Hagi Castle in disguise before the city was captured."

"However... during their escape, they were captured by the special forces and had little chance of escaping."

If Qing Deng wasn't so confident in his hearing, he would have really doubted whether he had heard it wrong.

He had just received the news that "the 'Secular Faction' launched a coup and successfully took control of Choshu."

How come it was only a short time ago that they were defeated?
The messengers he sent to contact the "Secular School" are still on the way and have not yet arrived in Changzhou!

After a brief moment of shock, he quickly calmed down and asked in a serious tone:
"What's going on? Tell me the details."

…………

After asking in detail, Qing Deng finally understood the whole story.

He couldn't calm down for a long time... He couldn't believe the defeat of the "secular school".

Simply put, the rapid demise of the "secular theory school" reveals a magical color throughout! Even writers who specialize in comedy would not dare to write like this!
Later history books would probably write like this: The "Gongshan Temple Uprising" sounded the death knell for the "secular school."

Under the pursuit of the "secular theory faction", the desperate Katsura Kogoro raised an army at Kozan Temple and decided to fight to the death.

They first captured the Xindi Club in Xiaguan and seized a large amount of supplies.

Grabbing supplies - expected, nothing special.

What really stands out is their next actions.

They did not care about the gains and losses of a city or a place, and did not slowly attack the city and occupy the land. Instead, they attacked Mitajiri with lightning speed.

Mitajiri is a naval base in Choshu, where the battleship Keihai Maru is stationed.

Guihai Maru - Built in 1863 (the year of Guihai), hence the name "Guihai Maru", it was a steam-powered battleship.

The surprise attack by the special forces was a great success. They captured Mitajiri in an instant and successfully captured Keihaimaru.

Qing Deng couldn't help but secretly praise this: What a brilliant plan! The person who came up with this plan has a very strategic vision!
A warship is equivalent to a mobile military fortress. It can not only transport troops and supplies, but also has a large number of artillery.

Hagi Castle is located on the sea, which is well within the range of the naval guns.

In other words - with Guihai Maru in hand, the special forces team has the power to break through Hagi Castle!
The special forces launched a massive counterattack, even with warships... Logically speaking, any normal person with a normal brain would quickly concentrate their forces and suppress the civil unrest at all costs.

However, the "secular school" showed astonishing incompetence and stupidity!
Faced with a powerful enemy, they did not send troops immediately, but were still worrying about some insignificant matters!

Perhaps in order to intimidate the "justice faction" or perhaps simply to vent their anger, they sent important "justice faction" officials such as Maeda Mamon, Mori Noboru, and Matsushima Gozo to prison, and beheaded them all the next day.

This is a classic bad idea.

Not only did it fail to produce any results, but it further aroused the resentment and fighting spirit of the "righteous faction" as well as the disgust of the general public.

After killing these insignificant people, the "secular faction" reluctantly organized a pacification army with 2,000 soldiers.

Compared with the more than 100 people of the special forces, the pacification army with 2,000 soldiers has the advantage.

Then...the magic part comes.

The news of "Katsura Kogoro Uprising" spread quickly.

The people who were sympathetic to the "righteous faction" were all proud.

All of a sudden, civilian armed forces such as the Rikishi-tai and the Go-tate-tai rushed to join Katsura Kogoro.

In addition, many ordinary people were inspired by this and came to help, carrying hoes, shoulder poles, sickles and other simple weapons.

It looked very lively, as if people from all over the world were responding, but in reality, there were not that many people at all.

The special forces originally had more than 700 people, and when these volunteers who came to surrender were counted, there were only people in total, which was still weaker than the pacification army.

Katsura Kogoro divided the 700 people into two groups.

Some of them used the Guihai Maru and took the sea route. This army was commanded by Omura Masujiro.

The other part went by land, and this group was commanded by Katsura Kogoro himself.

The two routes advanced simultaneously, heading straight for Huanglong and rushing towards Hagi City!

The sea was calm and there were no accidents.

The disastrous defeat in the Battle of Shimonoseki resulted in the near-complete destruction of Choshu's naval forces, with only a few warships left, and not enough combat power to intercept the Keihai Maru.

The land side is interesting.

The troops traveling by land advanced towards Hagi Castle at an extremely rapid speed, and eventually met the pacification army in Ota.

Because of their excitement and high morale, the common people who volunteered to join the war ran to the front and served as vanguards, while the main force led by Katsura Kogoro fell behind.

In the evening, the "vanguard troops" composed of ordinary people encountered the pacification army and were easily defeated.

Seeing that the enemy was vulnerable, the soldiers of the pacification army became arrogant, so they did not pursue them and went straight back to the camp to sleep.

No scouts were sent out to investigate the enemy situation, nor were the camp's defenses strengthened... In this way, Katsura Kogoro and his main force easily reached the edge of the pacification army's camp.

Seeing that the opponent's defense was weak, Katsura Kogoro did not hesitate and launched a night attack directly.

The ending is predictable... The pacification army blew up the camp on the spot, a small number of people were killed, and the vast majority of people fled in all directions.

In this way, the pacification army that the "Secular Faction" had worked so hard to put together was completely destroyed, and there was no longer enough manpower to fight against Katsura Kogoro.

Katsura Kogoro's great victory caused panic among the "secular" officials in Hagi Castle.

The neutral retainers quickly organized a calming meeting to negotiate with Katsura Kogoro.

Katsura Kogoro made the following demands: dismiss the "secularist" officials! And disband the pacification army!
The neutral faction only wanted to stop the civil strife as soon as possible, so they reported the request made by Katsura Kogoro to the feudal lord Mori Yoshichika.

Maori Jingqin... This "Just Do It" Marquis gave the following reply as expected:
"Okay! Let's do it!"

The neutrals and the "secularists" are not of the same mind.

In the latter's view, the former had already sought death by agreeing to Katsura Kogoro's request without authorization.

Therefore, when the four members of the Calming Society went to negotiate with Katsura Kogoro, they were assassinated by assassins sent by the "Secular Faction", and only one of the four survived.

In fact, Katsura Kogoro's so-called "negotiation" was just a delaying tactic.

While pretending to negotiate to stabilize the political situation in Hagi Castle, they accelerated their march, and the two armies rushed straight to Hagi Castle overnight.

During this period, the late Qing lord Mori Motozumi and the Chofu lord Mori Motoshu - both of which were branches of Choshu - entered Hagi Castle together to discuss the aftermath. Their position tended to be "righteous", so they asked Mori Takashika to stop the suppression.

Soon, Keihai Maru arrived at its destination first and stopped in the sea adjacent to Hagi Castle, ready to fire at Hagi Castle at any time.

The "popular theory faction" has no soldiers left and can only defend the isolated city... It seems that their time is up and their road is almost over.

Not long after, the land forces also arrived at Hagi Castle - because of their small number of troops, they were able to move extremely nimbly and quickly.

Katsura Kogoro did not want to suffer unnecessary casualties, so he issued an ultimatum, demanding that the "secular faction" immediately open the city and surrender.

While giving a stern warning, he ordered Guihai Maru to fire a blank shot to intimidate everyone in the city.

Seeing that the situation was hopeless, officials from the "secular theory faction" disguised themselves and fled.

However, their every move was within Katsura Kogoro's predictions.

As soon as they left the city, they were all caught by the soldiers of the special forces.

All the core members of the "Secular Theory School", including Tota Kurari, were caught red-handed.

In this way, the city of Hagi was broken without bloodshed, and the "Secular Theory School" was completely destroyed.

The decades-long struggle between the two parties in Choshu Domain came to an end, the domain government became unified, the "Justice Faction" once again took control of Choshu, and Katsura Kogoro became the actual leader of Choshu.

The above is the information Qingdeng knows so far.

The detailed process of Katsura Kogoro's overthrow of the "righteous faction"... Anyone who reads it will surely feel the same as Qing Deng, and will be unable to calm down for a long time...

Qing Deng had expected that the governing ability of the "secular faction" would be terrible, but he never expected that these guys would be so incompetent!

Faced with a rebel force of only 700 people - most of whom were civilians who were hastily assembled, and there were only 1 to 200 real fighters - they were easily defeated and lost power. It was a joke!
The downfall was so swift that Qing Deng had no chance to interfere!
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In the blink of an eye, it's the beginning of the month again! Book friends who have monthly tickets, please be sure to vote for this book! (crying leopard head.jpg) Please vote for the monthly ticket! Please recommend! (crying leopard head.jpg)

PS: The whole process of the "righteous faction" defeating the "secular faction" is based entirely on historical facts, and even beautified to a certain extent. The defeat of the "secular faction" in historical facts was more miserable, more ridiculous, and more magical.

Let's put it this way: in historical facts, the "Justice Faction" defeated the "Secular Faction" with fewer troops and of lower quality. But the process was generally not bad.