Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 5178 The World is for All
Facing the Japanese, Li Jinxing felt that there was no need for greetings, probing, or even respect. He came straight to the point and put all the conditions into effect. After all, he could not just listen to Jin Renwen's words. No matter how strong Jin Renwen's background was, he was ultimately a "broker" who put his own interests first. The actions of the navy could not be decided by Jin Renwen.

Mononobe Ashikaga seemed a little uncomfortable with this straightforward negotiation style. He was stunned for a moment and quickly repeated the conditions that had been agreed upon before.

As soon as he finished speaking, Mononobe Maro, who was standing beside him, straightened his back and said with a hint of excitement, "But now, we have a more ambitious plan, which will bring greater benefits to you and even the Tang Dynasty. I wonder if you have the power to make a decision?"

Jin Renwen, Li Jinxing and Li Yifu looked at each other and said, "Tell me about it."

Mononobe Maro said: "If we follow the original plan, the Tang Dynasty will only get the lease of Iyo Island. But if we change the plan, then the land of the Japanese islands, the Tang Dynasty will have whatever it wants!"

……

After hearing Mononobe Maro's plan, Li Jinxing, Li Yifu and even Jin Renwen were all shocked.

Kill the King of Wa, establish a puppet, and move the Mononobe clan to Edogawa...

If it is said that the Tang Dynasty had some bottom line when it used the Emishi to force Japan to lease ports and mines, then according to Mononobe Maro's plan, how could the Tang Dynasty reasonably and legally take whatever it wanted from Japan?

The mere Japanese state was naturally unable to stop the Tang army. It would be effortless to destroy Japanese state. The reason why the Tang Dynasty had to rely on the Ainu people to gain benefits was because the Tang Dynasty did not want to bear the bad reputation of destroying a country. Unlike the Turks, Tuyuhun, Xueyantuo, Goguryeo and other countries, Japanese state was subservient to the Tang Dynasty from beginning to end. If even its own vassal states were to be destroyed, how would the world comment on the Tang Dynasty's greed and injustice?
Even if the Tang Dynasty supported the Soga clan to inherit the throne of the King of Wa, it still maintained its bottom line and was unwilling to push Japan too hard. The Soga clan also had to retain some reputation to give an explanation to all the Japanese.

But the Mononobe clan did not care about their reputation, nor did they care about being criticized by the Japanese, because they only wanted to join the Tang Dynasty and become Tang people.

In this case, there is no bottom line at all.

Li Yifu's breathing was a little heavy, and he said, "This matter is of great importance. We need to discuss it and then give Mononobe clan an answer."

Mononobe Ashikaga, who had said little, nodded and said, "Of course we should, but please expel Buyeo Mori immediately. When the time comes, we will sign the lease of Iyo Island first, and we can discuss the rest later."

"it is good!"

Li Yifu agreed readily.

……

In the evening, the three returned to the battleship to discuss the matter.

Li Yifu said, "I will take a boat back to Huating Town to meet with the Grand Commander and discuss whether this matter is feasible."

Long-term plan? Not happening!

He only seizes the day and night!
Li Jinxing reminded: "Send someone to send a letter to Madam Wu to ask for her opinion."

Both he and Li Yifu nominally belonged to the navy, but in reality they were Wu Niangzi's "private persons". Therefore, regarding the matter of Mononobe clan assassinating the King of Japan and restoring the puppet, they did not ask the court for permission, but asked Wu Niangzi for permission.

As long as Madam Wu wants to do it, the two of them are willing to risk their lives and take all risks to get it done.

Li Yifu nodded: "That's exactly what should be done."

Compared to Li Jinxing, this "private person", he is more like Wu Meiniang's "servant". Because he suffered suppression from Fang Junzhi in his official career, people in the court and the public who do not want to offend Fang Junzhi will not look at him differently. His future can only depend on Wu Meiniang. Now Wu Meiniang is his "heaven", and he must protect Wu Meiniang's interests like a loyal dog.

Jin Renwen laughed and said, "The Mononobe clan is really courageous. They actually dared to act like this and even broke the bottom line of being a Japanese. I'm afraid they will be condemned in the history books in the future and will be infamous for thousands of years."

Li Yifu disagreed: "People die for wealth and birds die for food. This is an eternal truth. If you want to have great gains, you must take great risks. But history books are written by the victors. If the Mononobe clan really becomes the first family in Japan and always holds the power of Japan, who would scold him? Even a hundred or a thousand years later, the descendants of the Japanese people may be grateful to the Mononobe clan and regard them as meritorious officials of Japan."

Jin Renwen remained silent.

Isn’t today’s Japan the Silla of yesterday?

The Jin royal family was forced to submit to the Tang Dynasty, and was willing to cut off the inheritance of the country to protect its bloodline, which led to many Silla scholars' rebuke and insults. But several years later, Silla was well-fed and well-off under the governance of the Tang Dynasty. Who would remember that the Jin royal family was servile and sold out their country for survival?
I'm afraid they will all sing praises to the Jin royal family...

Li Jinxing said, "Let's first solve the issue of Iyo Island, and then follow Lady Wu's instructions to discuss the Mononobe clan's plan."

"it is good."

The next day, more than a thousand well-equipped Tang troops landed at the port and marched towards the foothills near Songshan Castle to wipe out the Baekje people entrenched nearby.

Along the way, the nearby Japanese people stood on the roadside and cheered loudly, offering food and drink to welcome the Tang army's "righteous action". In fact, the Baekje people were too cruel. They not only burned, killed, looted and robbed the Japanese people of their clothes and food, but also wantonly captured young and strong Japanese and sold them to the mines and workshops opened by the Tang people on the island, which was really miserable.

After several fierce "battles" between Buyeo Sheng and his pirates who were entrenched in the mountains and the Tang army, they quickly disappeared, and the "bandit problem" in Songshan City was completely eliminated...

On the other hand, Li Yifu followed the warship back to Huating Town, then went up the river into the canal to Luoyang to ask for an audience with Wu Meiniang.

*****
The headquarters of "Dong Datang Trading Company" is located on the street, facing the surging Luo River across the street. There are many boats in the river shuttling back and forth, and there are endless carriages and horses on the street.

The main hall of the backyard was luxuriously decorated with the scent of sandalwood. Wu Meiniang was wearing a light pink skirt and her hair was covered with pearls and jade. She sat in a chair with her back straight and her manners graceful. Her beautiful face was lightly made up, her eyebrows were like emerald feathers, and her lips were like red, bright and dignified.

Faced with such a beautiful lady, Li Yifu bent down and bowed, not even daring to raise his head.

After a long time, the lidded bowl made a slight sound, and Wu Meiniang's soft voice rang out in the hall: "What do you and Li Jinxing think about this matter?"

Li Yifu said respectfully: "We all think it is feasible."

"Ah."

Wu Meiniang did not comment, and said calmly: "Tell me about it."

"Here."

Li Yifu straightened his back and said, "Although Japan is deeply threatened by the military power of the Tang Dynasty, and the Soga clan was able to ascend to the throne of Japan with the support of the Tang Dynasty, these Japanese still have a bottom line, that is, they must preserve the integrity of the Japanese regime even if it is only in name, waiting for the future. Today, the Tang Dynasty is strong, and the Japanese are servile, but if the Tang Dynasty's strength declines, the Japanese will inevitably make a comeback, and the threat to the Tang Dynasty has not been completely eliminated."

Wu Meiniang said nothing. She brought the teacup to her red lips, took a sip, and listened quietly.

"Now that the Mononobe clan has taken the initiative to propose cooperating with the Tang Dynasty to eliminate the position of the King of Wa, it is truly a godsend. It can not only sever the inheritance of the King of Wa and eliminate the bloodline of Wa, but also bring more benefits to the Tang Dynasty without suffering the backlash of public opinion. It is truly a multi-pronged approach."

Wu Meiniang hummed again, and seemed to be lost in thought. The hall became silent.

Li Yifu secretly swallowed his saliva, feeling a little nervous.

He boasted that his talents and abilities were no less than those so-called young talents and pillars of the court, and he was confident that he could make things happen with a wave of his hand. However, for some reason, he was always trembling and treading on thin ice in front of this delicate and beautiful woman.

He couldn't understand how a weak woman who had no official position or real power could have such a strong aura?

After a long while, Wu Meiniang's soft voice sounded: "Even so, the Mononobe clan cannot escape the fate of being a 'traitor to Japan'. Since the Mononobe clan is a 'traitor to Japan', it must mean that they betrayed the interests of Japan, and the Tang Dynasty is the thief who stole this interest... In the future, there will always be people who will not admit it and put the blame on the Mononobe clan alone."

Even if an agreement was signed between the two countries, the Mononobe clan could later boycott the agreement by accusing them of selling out their country. In fact, this would inevitably be the case. The Japanese were not all dead, and how could other Japanese families not be jealous when they saw the Mononobe clan gaining profits by selling out their country?
On what basis did you, the Mononobe clan, sell out all the interests of the Japanese?

Therefore, this move seems to be legitimate and is the request of the Japanese families themselves, but it is no different in substance from the Tang Dynasty sending troops to directly destroy Japan.

Moreover, if this matter were to be made public, it would certainly lead to slander and opposition from the gentlemen in the court...

There are too many criticisms and great hidden dangers.

Li Yifu was stunned for a moment, a little depressed: "I was careless and didn't think it through."

I thought it was a perfect plan, but after Wu Meiniang's analysis, she found loopholes everywhere. At the same time, she also admired Wu Meiniang's meticulous mind and rigorous thinking.

Wu Meiniang smiled, her beautiful face showing a faint smile: "Don't be depressed, although this matter has serious loopholes, as long as we plug them, it is still a great idea."

Li Yifu asked hurriedly: "How do we plug the loophole?"

Wu Meiniang smiled and said, "The biggest problem with this matter is that other Japanese noble families can simply refuse to recognize the decision of the Mononobe clan and label the Mononobe clan as 'traitors', which would make this matter neither reasonable nor legal, because the Mononobe clan cannot replace the King of Japan, let alone the country of Japan... But what if all Japanese people decide their own destiny?"

"Uh……"

Li Yifu stood there in a daze, unable to react for a moment.

Let the Japanese decide their own destiny?
Although the Mononobe clan could not replace the Wa country, could the Wa people replace it?
Wa is the Wa of the Wa king and the Wa of the Wa aristocratic families. When did it become the Wa of all Wa people?

After a pause, he reacted and asked tentatively: "The world does not belong to one person, but to everyone in the world?"

Wu Meiniang nodded slightly, and said in a soft voice: "Political power is not the power of one person, but the power of all people in the world... The world belongs to all."

This is of course a supreme ideal and is absolutely impossible to achieve at present.

But as long as there is such a slogan, it will be enough to give the Japanese the "right to choose their own destiny". If they have to choose between Japan and the Tang Dynasty, what will those ignorant Japanese choose?