I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 301

While Killian was in Osaka negotiating with the Emperor,

Choshu, Satsuma, and Tosa were steadily advancing their troops, engaging in back-and-forth battles with the shogunate forces.

Although these powerful clans weren’t exactly on good terms, they often cooperated surprisingly well when faced with a common enemy.

Objectively, the shogunate forces were superior in strength from the start, but in war, once momentum shifts, such a difference in power can easily be overturned.

Burning with the determination to overthrow the shogunate, the anti-shogunate faction hoped that this opportunity might truly bring an end to the shogunate.

However, this moment of joy was fleeting.

Reports came in from Choshu and Satsuma that British Empire warships were heading towards Osaka, immediately dampening their rising momentum.

Satsuma’s lord, Shimazu Nariakira, and Choshu’s lord, Mori Takachika, urgently convened a meeting, and their retainers began to share their opinions.

“Aren’t the British trying to get involved in earnest? Since Killian is a Tokugawa [a powerful family during the Edo period], he will naturally side with the Shogun.”

“But even if Killian is a Tokugawa, he doesn’t have the authority to bring in foreign troops at will, does he?”

Two young men, despite being in their early to mid-twenties, were recognized for their abilities by the lord of Satsuma and attended him.

Saigo Takamori and Okubo Toshimichi were engaged in heated discussions, predicting the future course of the war.

“Okubo, you’re right. Killian may be a Tokugawa, but the forces he leads are clearly foreign. If Britain really intervenes in the conflict, we must seize on that point and advise the lord.”

“Exactly. If Killian is helping his relatives, he should come alone, so to speak.”

“Wait. But what if the Shogun allows Britain’s participation? I think they know that, so they headed to Osaka Castle first…”

“You haven’t forgotten that international diplomatic documents must be approved by His Majesty the Emperor, have you? His Majesty is conservative and reluctant to even accept Western culture. Of course, he wouldn’t approve it right away, so we need to emphasize this point even more, don’t you think?”

Saigo nodded at Okubo’s logical argument.

Of course, just because we have the moral high ground doesn’t mean we can stop Britain’s intervention.

However, in that case, it becomes possible to argue that the Shogun is ignoring the Emperor and trying to sell the country to foreign powers.

Killian is a Tokugawa, so it’s a perfect fit, isn’t it?

The British Empire and Killian, using their Tokugawa bloodline, intimidated the weak-hearted Shogun, and the Shogun’s aides were promised immense wealth in exchange for selling the country.

If we reel off such a story and persuade the daimyos [feudal lords] of each region, even more people will join us than now.

No matter how strong the British Empire is, it won’t be able to overcome it if all the local daimyos rise up.

They predicted that if they pretended to be in conflict and negotiated behind the scenes, they could sufficiently assert their intentions and make the army retreat.

“Saigo, speed is important. Even now, the lord needs to issue a statement immediately and attract other forces who are watching.”

“I think so too. Let’s tell him to take action tomorrow.”

The new government of Satsuma and Choshu is not opposing the shogunate.

It was Okubo Toshimichi’s vision to create a coalition of all the daimyos to punish the shogunate for trying to sell this imperial country to foreign powers.

If this happens, it will be possible to turn the crisis into an opportunity, and it will be easier to form a new government after the war.

However, as if to mock the predictions of such a young strategist,

-I, the Emperor, acknowledge the claims of Killian Goa Tokugawa, the envoy of the Great British Empire.

Before the new government coalition could even move, the content of the imperial edict personally issued by the Emperor arrived as breaking news.

Following this was a statement from Killian Goa Tokugawa, stating that he had inevitably dispatched troops to protect his young nephew, as per the will of the former Shogun Ieyoshi.

The coalition forces, who had been severely backstabbed before they could even establish their justification, fell into chaos in an instant.

“T-This can’t be! There’s no way His Majesty the Emperor would so easily acknowledge foreign intervention!”

“This is a fake document fabricated by the Shogun and Killian, using the Emperor’s name!”

“The mere fact that such fake edicts are circulating is clear evidence that the Shogun is trying to sell the country to foreign powers! We must unite our strength even more to protect this country!”

Some argued that they should take an even more hard-line stance than before.

“This is, in effect, His Majesty the Emperor acknowledging Killian’s intervention, but wouldn’t that create too much of a power imbalance?”

“We can handle the shogunate forces, but can we beat Britain?”

“Wouldn’t it be possible to get through this somehow if we negotiated now?”

Others wanted to withdraw now that the British Empire had intervened.

“Or how about trying to appease Lord Killian?”

“Appease? How are you going to appease that Tokugawa?”

“If that Tokugawa becomes the Shogun in place of the incompetent current Shogun… If we proceed with the story in a way that we acknowledge that, wouldn’t he listen?”

Some even uttered words that made one question their sanity.

The public opinion, which had been divided in an instant, engaged in heated debates all day, but in the end, there was only one answer.

“Everyone! The situation is already irreversible. Now that we’re on the tiger’s back, we have no choice but to run to the end, whether we like it or not! Think about it logically! Do you think they will respond even if we request negotiations here? Even if they do, the minimum condition will be the seppuku [ritual suicide] of all the leaders in this room.”

“…That’s…”

“Appeasing Killian is also unrealistic. If we did that, they could launch a counterattack, claiming that we are trying to sell the country to foreign powers because we are at a disadvantage.”

“Saigo is right. Retreating now means death. If we want to negotiate, we need to rise to a position where that negotiation is possible.”

When Satsuma’s lord, Shimazu, supported Saigo’s opinion, the atmosphere of the meeting rapidly tilted to one side.

Mori Takachika of Choshu also agreed with Satsuma’s opinion, and in the end, the opinions of the negotiation faction and the appeasement faction were suppressed in a day.

The coalition forces decided to proceed with the plan that Okubo had initially proposed, with only a few minor adjustments.

Judging from the Emperor’s usual tendencies, there is no way he would allow Western intervention.

This is a fact proven by all the Emperor’s previous statements and actions.

The fact that this has suddenly been overturned is clear evidence that the shogunate side has manipulated the Emperor’s will, and this is clear evidence that they are trying to hand over the country to Britain.

Satsuma and Choshu, having constructed their logic in roughly this way, passed a resolution to engage in the struggle even more actively than before.

However, Okubo Toshimichi, who had originally proposed this plan, could not shake off an unsettling feeling as he watched this trend.

Did the Emperor’s attitude really change suddenly because the Shogun or Killian manipulated the edict?

Logically, that can’t be. It would be difficult to handle the aftermath if they did such a foolish thing that would be exposed so quickly.

Then, did the Shogun’s side intimidate the Emperor and force him to issue the edict? This is somewhat possible, and the coalition forces will probably strongly assert this.

However, Okubo somehow had a feeling that the Emperor might have actively approved of this.

That’s because the news is spreading too quickly.

If they really pressured the Emperor, it would normally take a day or two, no matter what, so this doesn’t make sense.

‘Could it be that Killian coaxed His Majesty? But how?’

When Killian visited Japan in the past, Okubo was too young to go see him in person.

Therefore, it was impossible to objectively judge what kind of person Killian was, but seeing that an Asian mixed-race person had risen to become the envoy of the world’s strongest power, he was by no means an ordinary person.

‘His tendencies seem different from the incompetent old men of the shogunate side or the Shogun… Could we have a conversation once?’

Curiosity rose in proportion to the surging anxiety.

In fact, wasn’t the reason why Satsuma had gained more momentum in accepting Western culture also due to the existence of Killian Tokugawa?

Suddenly, he turned his eyes and saw that the 모습 of his colleagues, who were still continuing the meeting in high spirits, looked so precarious.

* * *

I expected that walking the tightrope between the Shogun and the Emperor wouldn’t be easy, but fortunately, things worked out well.

What the Emperor wants is to be treated as the head of the real imperial family, breaking away from being a stamp-approving automaton.

And what the Shogun wants is to have his current precarious position guaranteed and to live a comfortable life.

It is difficult to satisfy both sides at the same time due to the political structure in which the Shogun suppresses the Emperor, but fortunately, Tokugawa Iesada was not an ambitious person.

The momentum of Satsuma and Choshu is so strong now that he is even worried that he might lose the war, so it was not difficult to coax him appropriately.

Most other places are the same, but the current Japanese political scene is a place where the perception that the strong eat the weak, join if you can’t win, and the strong guy is my ally is deeply ingrained.

I don’t know about other places, but I could feel very well that such people were rampant around the Shogun.

So, if I finish this war, get rid of all the powerful retainers around the Shogun, and surround him with pro-British factions who are cooperative with me, the situation will take care of itself even if I don’t do anything.

The Emperor’s side has been treated so badly so far that he is losing his mind just by hearing that he will be converted to a constitutional monarchy at an ordinary level, so there is no need to say more.

There is a place where the actual royal authority rises when the monarchy is changed to a constitutional monarchy?

Surprisingly, it actually exists before my eyes.

Moreover, if we move in this direction, wouldn’t it be justified for me to properly modify Japan to my liking?

“…So, when that constitutional monarchy is converted, I can only use the powers specified by law.”

“Yes. But this also means that you can reliably exercise the powers specified by law. It is impossible for people like the Shogun or Taiko [a retired regent] to infringe on His Majesty’s authority as they do now. They will also be reliably controlled by law.”

“At first glance, it looks like I’m wearing shackles, but that’s actually a lifeline that will guarantee my safety. Hmph, I never knew power was so difficult.”

“Yes. Therefore, it is necessary to further modernize the system of this country and rationally adjust the privileges of the Shogun and the daimyos. At first glance, it may seem like we are completely overhauling the fundamental system of the country, but if we don’t do that, groups seeking power can rise again at any time.”

In order to create a system that treats the Emperor like an Emperor, it is necessary to carry out a major surgery to destroy the existing shogunate system and rebuild it.

If this reform is started by external pressure, a nationwide backlash will naturally occur, but if the Emperor actively agrees, the story will be different.

This is a noble task of destroying the wrong old system that has suppressed the Emperor until now and creating a new order that can lead the Japanese people on the right path.

The current Shogun can also be easily won over if he is coaxed by guaranteeing legitimate power even in the changed system.

Those who oppose it can be branded as impious people who are trying to make the Emperor a puppet by putting power first and purged.

“Your Majesty, but there is something that must be accompanied in order to create a new system.”

“What is it?”

“It is to take away the power of the military. In any country, once those who hold military power start to run wild, royal authority is naturally restricted, and in fact, they have no choice but to go down the path of military dictatorship. What Your Majesty must do is show that the Emperor’s authority cannot be shaken by raising troops.”

“Listening to my husband’s words, I feel like the stuffiness I’ve had has gone down in an instant. Yes, how can I show that?”

Even if I modernize Japan to my liking and use it as a breakwater to block Russia, there was something that bothered me, and that was the military.

I don’t care whether it restricts the Emperor’s authority or not, but history proves how far Japan’s hopeless military can go if it starts to run wild.

In particular, the headquarters of the Japanese Navy and Army, which went crazy in the original history, were Satsuma and Choshu, who raised troops this time.

“It’s simple. Your Majesty, order the suppression of the powerful clans who sell the Emperor’s name in vain.”

So, take this opportunity to never be able to act out again.

After thoroughly crushing them, I’ll pick out only a few useful people and take them with me.