I started with the Shinsengumi in Bakumatsu

Chapter 226 Congress

Yagyu Heeyan's sudden return to Beijing to sit in the National Assembly caught everyone by surprise. This disrupted many people's plans and forced them to discuss urgently.

"Now there is news from the cabinet and the noble council. Yagyu Heiyan has returned to the mansion. He has announced that he will convene the parliament on New Year's Day."

Goto Shojiro's face was a little solemn. He looked at all the representatives of the Patriotic Public Party and his tone was also very serious.

"The situation is very unfavorable to us. Tokugawa is happy that they may move towards neutrality and draw a clear line with us. The number of people supporting us in the House of Lords is estimated to be reduced by one-third."

"Oh!"

Kataoka Kenkichi punched the table in front of him angrily, knocking over the small table and spilling the food and wine on the floor.

He ignored the food and drinks, and excitedly rebuked Tokugawa and others: "These cowards are so incompetent!"

Others were also very angry. This group of people actually backed down just because Yagyu Heeyan was back!

"No wonder the shogunate fell because of the coward Tokugawa Keiki!"

"I told you a long time ago that these people are unreliable."

"Without their help, we still have to fight!"

All the representatives are excited. When things have reached this point, there is no way out. If they remain silent in Congress, then the patriotic public party will be in vain. What will the gentry in Tosa and other states think?

I'm afraid that when they return to the four countries, they will be criticized by nobles from all over the country. It won't take long for the Patriotic Public Party to exist in name only!

The superior Goto Shojiro also thought about this clearly, he nodded and said: "Thousands of years ago, our ancestors fought bloody battles for this land, and generations of people died on the battlefield to get to where we are today.

Fifteen years ago, Japan opened its doors, and powerful countries such as Lucia, America, and England used force to force the shogunate to sign unequal treaties. In order to change, we, the nobles, were brutally suppressed by Ii Naomi.

However, the way of heaven is clear, and outside the Sakurada Gate, the eighteen warriors are slaying the traitors of the country. We and other nobles will rise up again to revitalize the court, return the great power of the shogunate, and restore the royal government of the court!

The country's success today is closely related to our efforts!

No matter what the Tokugawa family and the old shogunate officials do, we cannot give up.

This time we will make our request loudly in front of the Diet, in front of Yagyu Heiyan, and in front of His Majesty the Emperor.

This time we are still not doing it for ourselves, but for the country, for the nobles, and for our descendants! "

Kataoka Kenkichi shouted: "Yes, this time we have to face Yagyu Hiyan directly, and we want to let others know the determination of our patriotic public party!"

"Never retreat, keep moving forward!"

"I am willing to follow Goto-sama!"

Goto Shojiro was worthy of being a loyal minister who had followed Yamauchi-do since the end of the Tokugawa era. He stabilized the morale of the army and regained their morale in a short speech.

Even though this time he failed in his challenge to Yagyu Hien, the Japanese love for tragic heroes will actually increase his local reputation.

For Goto Shojiro, this political show, whether it is a step forward or a step back, he will make a profit.

Kono Hironaka, who had the same idea as Goto Shojiro, also decided to stick to his own concepts and ideas. No matter what, he would try his best.

As for Tokugawa Yoshiki, who retreated from the battle, he had no feeling about it. He was a standard politician who weighed the pros and cons and acted decisively.

Although Tokugawa Yoshiki was the foreign minister in the cabinet and was severely used by Yagyu Hee, he easily won nearly one-third of the votes in the House of Nobles.

Therefore, he regarded himself as Yagyu Heiyan's partner.

Goto Shojiro proposed strengthening the power of the Noble Council, which also strengthened the power of the Tokugawa family, and Tokugawa Keiki would naturally not refuse.

Who would say no to fat meat delivered to their door?

However, there is no need to talk about confronting Yagyu Hiyan.

Tokugawa Keki subconsciously felt that there was no chance of winning in this matter. After all, Yagyu Hiken himself was strong and had the support of the emperor, so there was no need for him to wade into this muddy water.

Therefore, the best choice is to stay safe and stay on the sidelines.

He didn't explain what happened this time to Yagyu Heiyan. After all, he only compromised from the beginning because of the conditions given by Yagyu.

He knew that Yagyu Hiyan would soon know about his meeting with Goto Shojiro. No matter how much Yagyu Hiyan knew, it didn't matter to him.

What he did was actually a statement. The Tokugawa family supports you, Yagyu Hiyan, but if you, Yagyu Hiyan, take a step back, then the Tokugawa family will change its stance.

This is the case in Japan. You cannot retreat. If you take a step back, the people below will dare to treat you as a soft persimmon.

On the contrary, the stronger you are, the more obedient they are.

As for people like Tokifuku Kusama and Shigeru Furusawa of the Osaka Constitutional Party, and Moriichi Numama, Fumio Yano, and Azusa Ono of the Edo Constitutional Reform Party, they simply retreated.

This shows the weakness of businessmen and literati in major matters.

In short, as soon as Yagyu Heiyan came back, it was like a blizzard, which suddenly cooled down the hot Kyoto.

However, the Congress will still be held as usual, and the time will be New Year's Day. This is Yagyu Heiyan's intention.

The fifth year of Meiji, 1872, January st, New Year's Day.

The sky was dimly bright, the street lights were still on, and the early birds were chirping, giving the quiet streets a hint of life.

Within a minute, the sound of yawning came from the houses on the street.

Then the wooden door opened wide, and a clerk walked out, stretched, and started a new day's work.

In just a moment, the quiet streets became lively, with people going to work, vendors shouting, rickshaws rumbling, bicycles ringing bells, etc.

Children held candies in their hands and played in the gaps between the crowds. A little Shiba Inu grinned and stuck out its tongue, running happily behind the children.

"Crackling..."

In the alley, the sound of fireworks and firecrackers continued, and the smoke and smoke mixed together, coloring the sky.

The atmosphere of the New Year permeates the streets and alleys of Kyoto.

However, Kono Hirono's mind was not on this. He left for the Imperial Palace at six o'clock to attend the National Assembly, but the rickshaw was unable to move amid the dense flow of people.

Kono Hironaka looked at his watch, it was already seven o'clock, and urged: "Hurry up, there is only one street left from the palace, why are you still here?"

The laborer pulling the rickshaw bowed his head and said: "Sorry, guest, there are too many people in front of us, and the car can't pass at all." Kono Hironaka had no choice but to pay some fare, then picked up his things, got up, left the rickshaw, and squeezed into the crowd. middle.

The closer we got to the palace, the denser the crowd became. Kono Hironaka was already sweating and out of breath after squeezing for a while.

But the crowd in front seemed to be endless, and they were praying for the emperor and empress in the direction of the palace.

Afterwards, they also prayed for Yagyu Hiyan.

At half past seven, Kono Hironaka finally squeezed out. There was only half an hour left before the start of the Congress.

He took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat on his forehead and hurried towards the palace. Soon, he also saw other representatives, many of whom were as embarrassed as him.

However, ministers and nobles such as Konoe and Nijo seemed to have been waiting here early.

Erjo Qi Jing looked at the direction Kono Hiroyaka came from, and said with a hint of pride: "These people are low-class people after all. They don't know the situation. Take a look, they are all dishonorable."

Uesugi Shigenori said with disdain: "I really don't understand why Prime Minister Yagyu promotes these idiots. Isn't it enough to have a noble council? It's really unnecessary."

Kono Hironaka and others saw the eyes of Nijo, Uesugi and others. It was a kind of contempt coming from the depths of their souls. Many people complained angrily.

On the other side, Tokugawa Yingxi saw Goto Shojiro surrounded by a group of people. Their eyes met and they smiled and nodded to each other.

However, he was a little surprised when he saw that the representatives around Goto Shojiro were all very motivated.

Tokugawa Kexi stepped forward to say hello: "Mr. Goto, it seems that you have made new preparations?"

Kataoka Kenkichi said angrily: "We have been prepared for a long time. If some people shrink from the battle because of timidity, we will definitely achieve a greater victory!"

Goto Shojiro quickly stopped Kataoka Kenkichi and said: "Kenkichi's temper is a bit impatient, please forgive me, Lord Tokugawa."

Tokugawa Yingxi was calm and indifferent, and didn't care about Kenkichi Kataoka's face-cheeking. For him, releasing emotions must be meaningful.

"Mr. Kataoka is still very passionate. I am looking forward to Mr. Goto's performance in Congress."

Kataoka Kenkichi looked at Tokugawa's leaving figure, and still said angrily: "For such a coward, why should Lord Goto look good on you?"

Goto Shojiro shook his head slightly and said: "Okay, just take a breath. We can't offend the Tokugawa family to death. Let's go. Congress is the most important thing."

At 7:50, the members of the House of Lords and the House of Commons entered the parliament hall and took their seats on the left and right sides.

The seats in the Congress venue are a five-story oval seat. At both ends of the oval, one is separated and the other is a three-level high platform.

The top floor is the seat of Emperor Meiji. There are three positions on the lower floor, namely the Speaker of the House of Nobles, the Speaker of the House of Commons and the Speaker of the National Assembly. The middle floor is the position of the Prime Minister.

As the members took their seats, Prince Yagyu and Asahiko entered the Diet and sat down in their seats. Finally, Emperor Meiji appeared and sat in the highest position.

Now on the rostrum, the positions of Speaker of the National Assembly and Speaker of the House of Commons are vacant. Today, these two positions must be elected before the National Assembly is officially convened.

The person presiding over the Diet is naturally Yagyu Heiyan.

He picked up the speech and read it loudly. Everyone applauded without any interruption.

After reading the speech, Yagyu said: "Now we need to elect the speaker of the lower house first. The speaker of the lower house has two votes and the right to supervise ordinary members.

In the election of the Speaker of the House of Commons, a list of candidates is submitted within the House of Commons, and then a vote is held, and the person with the highest ranking becomes the Speaker of the House of Commons. "

"In addition, the Speaker of the National Assembly selects the candidates for election from the House of Peers and the House of Commons, and then votes. Note that becoming the Speaker of the House of Peers or the Speaker of the House of Commons automatically cancels the rights of the Speaker of the National Assembly."

Good guy, everyone didn't expect that Yagyu would directly take two important positions as soon as he came up. Because of the dispute between the House of Nobles and the House of Commons, it would even cause the House of Nobles and the House of Commons to split within themselves.

After all, the Speaker has quite a lot of power, especially the Speaker of the National Assembly. How about directly suppressing the other two Speakers? With the House of Nobles’ stubbornness, why should they not start a fight with the House of Commons in order to compete for the Speaker of the National Assembly?

Join forces? is it possible? Yagyu has a lot of cards in his hand, so he can play them casually!

The Congress had to stop within a few minutes of opening, and now each party in the House of Commons has to nominate its own representatives to run for the position of Speaker of the House of Commons.

This election is most beneficial to the big parties. As for the small parties, it is good to wait for the big parties to win over them and share some interests.

The House of Commons has to elect a speaker, which has nothing to do with the House of Nobles. The people of the House of Nobles temporarily went to the hall next door to rest. Yagyu closed his eyes and rested in his seat. Emperor Meiji had already left first.

More than an hour later, the results of the discussion in the House of Commons came out. Goto Shojiro, Kono Hironaka, Numama Moriichi and others participated in the election of speaker.

Then several people began to give speeches to solicit votes, and Goto Shojiro won the position of speaker with a large advantage of 136 votes.

The reason why there are so many supporters of Goto Shojiro is that, in addition to his own strength, the most important thing is Goto Shojiro's political views.

First, he hopes that the power of the House of Commons should increase its executive power and play an effective supervisory role on the government.

Second, the power of councilors at all levels should also be enhanced so that councilors can participate in the governance of local government.

These two political programs were immediately approved by the vast majority of the gentry.

As long as Goto Shojiro's proposal can be passed, then the gentry can slowly take control of the central government from the bottom up, and then it will be time for Yagyu Heiyan to step down.

Of course, they know that such political demands are difficult to pass, but having hope is better than having no way out.

Goto Shojiro's political ideas have won the respect of the nobles. Even if some people did not vote for Goto Shojiro because of their own interests, they support it in their hearts. Now that Goto Shojiro has become the speaker, they can directly express their stance!

These nobles are so evil that they give Yagyu a headache.

But the reality is that Japan is in a period of transformation. The old shell that restrains development is still there, and new forces are still in their infancy. Even Yagyu himself is a member of the old forces.

It was only his faction's deep understanding of justice and his personal ability that stabilized the situation.

All he can do is continue to protect the new forces and suppress the old forces until the new forces emerge from their cocoons and become butterflies, and then he can retreat behind the scenes.

The Speaker of the Lower House has been selected and still needs to be approved by Emperor Meiji.

Soon, Meiji was invited back. He handed Goto Shojiro a copy of the constitution and said: "I hope you can remember your responsibilities and contribute your own strength to the prosperity of the country."

Goto Shojiro solemnly took the constitution handed over by Meiji, took the oath to Meiji, and took office as the Speaker of the House of Commons.

(End of this chapter)