It's 7:50 o'clock, at Chiyoda Imperial Palace.

Hirohito was standing in front of the mirror adjusting his clothes.

Behind him, Finance Minister Hirose Yutaka bowed deeply. "Your Majesty, the cabinet meeting has not reached a conclusion at all. I'm afraid that even deeper discussions will not yield any results. If that is the case, I hope to receive Your Majesty's assistance."

"Hmm." Hirohito turned around and slowly walked to Hirose Yutaka, his face gloomy. "If a war waged in my name can end with my heartfelt words, I will be extremely grateful."

“I understand,” Hirose Yutaka nodded in agreement.

He then left Chiyoda Imperial Palace.

At 8:49 a.m., the second cabinet meeting was held. In addition to Emperor Hirohito, all other cabinet ministers were present at the meeting.

Before the meeting began, Hirohito said, "Gentlemen, since that is the case, I will now express my opinion."

Everyone stood tall with their chests out.

"I agree with the Minister of Finance's opinion. If we continue the decisive battle, the entire Sakura nation will be annihilated. My responsibility is to pass on this nation, which was inherited from our ancestors, to our descendants."

"I hope that more citizens of the Sakura Kingdom will survive, and that we can rise again one day by relying on these people. There is no other way. Continuing the war, destroying the culture, and bringing misfortune to the world is not what I want."

"I want to save the lives of my people. I hope to endure what is unbearable, just like Emperor Meiji did during the Three Kingdoms Intervention and the return of Liaodong."

"I look forward to the future revival of the nation. As long as it is within my power, I am willing to do anything and I can go anywhere."

As soon as the words were spoken, tears welled up in everyone's eyes, and they all collapsed to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.

Hirohito wiped away the tears on his glasses and smiled. "I will not back down. I hope the cabinet will produce a decree to end the war as soon as possible."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" all the ministers replied in unison, and then they all left.

In the conference room, only Hirohito and Tojo Umetoku remained. He stood silently for a long time before slowly speaking, "Your Majesty, I, Tojo, have thought about this for a long time, and I still oppose accepting the Tokyo Announcement."

"If we use the biology analogy that Your Majesty likes, the army is like the shell of a conch shell; a conch shell without its shell is doomed to die."

"Tojo, I have a question for you."

"Your Majesty, I will speak frankly and without reservation."

Hirohito's gaze was sharp, and his tone was serious. "The scientific name of the conch is Busycon canaliculatu, which was named by John Lightfoot, the British Reverend, in the 18th century. Can you imagine what it would be like for Prime Minister Churchill to eat a conch?"

"I'm afraid he'll throw away the conch shell along with the food when he eats it."

"I'm sorry, Tojo's analogy is very inappropriate."

Tojo Ume lowered her head, feeling extremely ashamed.

Hirohito pondered for a moment, "Napoleon devoted the first half of his life to the cause of the Gallic Rooster, and the second half to his own glory, which ultimately harmed the Gallic Rooster and the world. This is how I see history."

"I do not wish for Japan to follow the old path of Napoleon. Am I wrong, Tojo?"

Tojo Ume raised her eyes, her expression solemn, and shook her head firmly: "Your Majesty, you are not wrong. The fault lies with me. I failed to make the empire prosperous. Even more wrong is that my foolishness led Your Majesty to commit such a mistake. Please forgive me."

"Tojo, I have never blamed you, because I know your loyalty."

Hirohito reached out and patted him on the shoulder, "For the sake of the people of the empire, I am willing to take the risk."

"Now, go back and prepare well. I hope to see the decree of the end of the war by 12 o'clock."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Tojo Ume left the room alone.

...

Midnight, the moon is bright and the stars are few, all is quiet.

10:01 AM.

The Tokyo Defense Forces headquarters was brightly lit, as if it were daytime.

The area in front of the battle map was filled with young and promising generals, all of whom were extremely surprised to hear that His Majesty and the Cabinet were going to accept the "Tokyo Declaration".

But soon, everyone was confused again, after all, the contents of the Tokyo Proclamation were too controversial, on one hand it was about preserving the nation, and on the other hand it was about destroying the empire.

"We cannot accept this! We will defend the dignity of the Empire, even if it means our deaths!" a man in military uniform and wearing gold-rimmed glasses roared angrily. "This is utterly absurd! How could the Empire surrender!"

“I also think this is a disgrace!” another man echoed. “We have already sacrificed millions of soldiers and millions of civilians. How can we accept such humiliation?”

“That’s right!” someone echoed. “We can’t lose! We must uphold the dignity of the empire.”

"right!"

The crowd was instantly agitated, and the younger generation almost overturned the command table.

At the very front of the command post, Tokyo Defense Force Commander Masazo Terakura, facing the surging crowd, remained calm and composed. "Everyone, calm down, calm down!"

"Our soldiers have shed blood and sacrificed their lives to defend the empire, and we must not be intimidated at this critical juncture."

“But Commander, this matter is of great importance. Once the proclamation of the end of the war is issued, the people of Sakura will inevitably fall into panic and confusion, which will have a great impact on the people.” One person raised an objection.

"I agree with Major General Sato's statement."

"The people of Sakura have a very strong sense of belonging to the country, especially the noble class. The interests of the country and the nobles are closely linked. If the country falls, who dares to guarantee the interests of the nobles? Who will guarantee the safety of His Majesty the Emperor?!"

"Shut up!!!"

At that moment, Army Minister Korechika Anami stormed in, shouting angrily, "What do you know?"

Everyone fell silent.

“Minister Anan,” Terakura Shozo greeted him politely, “I will handle this matter.”

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