At this moment, Ning Zhiheng heard the questions from several scholars and his face showed worry. He frowned and said slowly, "The international situation is currently turbulent, and the domestic situation is indeed not good. More immigrants will flood into Shanghai in the future. However, I heard that the cabinet is already taking measures, and I believe good news will come soon."
Ning Zhiheng was unwilling to reveal too much about the situation to these scholars, and could only offer a few words of comfort.
"I hope so. People in China are struggling, but our situation overseas is better. I really don't know how long this situation will continue?"
…………
Just as the group was talking, the sound of wooden clogs came from outside. Soon the gate was pushed open, and when everyone looked up, they saw it was Iwai Ken'i, the Japanese Consul General in Shanghai.
Mulan Academy is the largest and most upscale Japanese club in Shanghai, and has become the most important gathering place for the Japanese upper class and scholars. Iwai Kenichi, as the highest-ranking official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Shanghai, also frequently came to the academy for gatherings and exchanges, and can be considered a regular here.
Upon seeing him appear, Ning Zhiheng greeted him with a smile, "Iwai-kun, you've come at the right time. We were just discussing some changes in the international situation. Your Ministry of Foreign Affairs has the best information network, so you can tell us what's going on!"
Other scholars also greeted him, but Iwai Takei was a high-ranking government official, whose status was far beyond what they could compare to. The difference in rank made them feel somewhat restrained.
Iwai Kenichi nodded politely to everyone, then smiled and said to Ning Zhiheng, "Fujiwara-kun is joking. When it comes to being well-informed, how could I possibly compare to you?"
After saying that, he went directly to the opposite side of Ning Zhiheng, knelt down and sat down. He then said no more. Ning Zhiheng immediately understood from his behavior that he had come specifically to see him and that there must be something to talk about.
At this point, the other scholars also noticed the situation, so they all bowed and left.
Only Ning Zhiheng and Iwai Kenji remained in the room. Ning Zhiheng asked first, "What's wrong, Iwai-kun? Is there something you need to talk to me about?"
“Yes!” Iwai Kenichi nodded and said, “Fujiwara-kun, yesterday morning, the delegation consisting of Vice Minister Shimizu of the Imperial Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and members of the House of Peers Hashimoto Meisuke, Ohara Shunji, and others boarded a ship in Yokohama and is scheduled to arrive in Shanghai tomorrow afternoon. I have come here specifically to invite you to attend the welcoming ceremony and a welcome banquet at the consulate. I hope you will do me the honor of attending!”
Upon hearing this, Ning Zhiheng straightened up immediately and couldn't help but ask, "The Marquis of Qingshui is coming to Shanghai? Has something important happened?"
The Marquis of Shimizu mentioned by Ning Zhiheng was originally named Shimizu Hidetoshi. He currently serves as the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Japanese government. Regardless of his government position, what is more important is that he is an appointed member of the House of Peers, a branch of the old noble family, the Dojo family, and has considerable influence in the House of Peers.
Of course, the Toujou family is still quite different from the Fujiwara family, a noble family with deep roots and a thousand-year history, but they are definitely figures of high status and power.
As for the other two noble councilors, Hashimoto Akira and Ohara Shunji, they are also members of very powerful families with prominent statuses.
In Japan's social structure, status cannot be judged solely by the rank of a government position; one must also consider one's background and lineage. Even members of the aristocracy who do not participate in politics hold a high position in high society, let alone members of the House of Peers.
This was the first time such a high-level delegation had entered China since the start of the full-scale war between China and Japan. Needless to say, they must have come to China with an important mission, which naturally attracted Ning Zhiheng's great attention.
Iwai Kenji glanced subconsciously in the direction of the gate to make sure no one was outside before replying, "The news from the country says that the military is somewhat unstable right now. At the Imperial Conference at the beginning of the month, the military acted extremely aggressively, pressuring the Konoe Cabinet to pass the Southward Expedition Plan as soon as possible and even proposing a motion of no confidence against the Konoe Cabinet. Some people are getting restless, which makes His Majesty the Emperor and many members of the House of Peers very uneasy. It is said that this mission is to contact reliable generals in China to stabilize and control the army. The destination is Nanjing, and they will make contact with some generals of the dispatched army. As for the specific details, we will have to wait until Vice Minister Shimizu arrives in Shanghai to find out!"
So that's how it is. Ning Zhiheng also learned about some of the details of the previous Imperial Conference from the intelligence market, but he didn't expect the conflict between the military and the cabinet to be so serious, to the point that the Japanese high command began a new round of division.
In upper-class Japanese society, the status of the nobility is deeply rooted. Before the Meiji Restoration, all high-ranking government officials and military generals were nobles. In particular, in the military, it was impossible to hold an important position without noble status.
However, in modern times, after the Meiji Restoration, some outstanding talents from commoner backgrounds gradually emerged, especially in the military. Commoner sons who rose through military merit gradually gained the power of discourse and quickly formed an interest group. As the war gradually expanded, the power of this group also expanded.
By the Showa era, nobles were rarely seen among the high-ranking officers in the military. After all, it was difficult to gain a foothold in the military without solid military achievements, and this situation began to threaten the status of the old aristocratic forces.
Thus, a certain degree of antagonism arose between the aristocratic forces, represented by the Japanese Emperor and the House of Peers, and the rising military forces.
Therefore, controlling and restraining the military from slipping out of their grasp became a very important task for the Japanese aristocracy. One of their most common methods was what the Japanese often call "overthrowing superiors."
"Inferiority overthrows superiors" is more accurately described as a coup d'état carried out by nobles instigating pro-Japanese emperor and noble mid-level officers in the military to overthrow the high command. Of course, these actions were actually authorized and supported by the Japanese emperor, and can also be understood as a set of management methods implemented by the Japanese emperor to strengthen his absolute leadership over the military.
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