In Fuso traditional Shinto, ghosts and gods are indistinguishable - powerful ghosts are even enshrined, and people succumb to them by offering hard-earned livestock and food, hoping that they will be satisfied with the worship and not stop.

To cause harm to the world.

In the fifth year of Ansei (1858), the nominal highest minister, "Elder" Ii Sobu, like his ancestor Ue Ii Naomasa, also received the title of "Red Ghost"!

The ancestor of the Omi Kuni Hikone Domain, Naomasa, received this title because of his ruthlessness in military management. During the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1573-1603), the Tokugawa family followed the example of the Kai Takeda family in rebuilding the red army, and Naomasa, who was entrusted with this important task, was born.

He stood out from the crowd. He was strict in running the army and feared both the enemy and ourselves, hence his nickname "Red Ghost".

After taking over the power of the shogunate, Ii Sobu, the head of the Naomi, followed the example of his ancestors and showed extraordinary ruthlessness:

On April 23, the fifth year of Anzheng in the Heli period, Jing Yi took up the post of "elder brother".

On June 19 of the same year, without receiving the imperial edict, he instructed two ministers, Inoue Kiyonao, then Shimoda minister, and Tadatsuki Kakeiwase, the foreign trade minister, to sign a trade agreement with the Mi people.

Although this was forced - it was the end of the first phase of the Yarrow War at that time, and the Tang people were forced to sign the "Tinmen Agreement" after their disastrous defeat. The Mi people used this military force to threaten, but undoubtedly, this move further broke the

The balance of government.

You must know that since the first visit of the Miren Kurofune in the sixth year of Kayei (1853), facing the pressure from Western countries, two opposing factions have gradually formed within the shogunate - the old feudal lord of Mito, Sai

The hard-liners of the Shoichi faction and the moderates headed by the chief veteran, Hota Masaki.

Among them, Qi Zhao and his group demanded "to be tough on the outside world and not hesitate to go to war when necessary", while Masumu Hota, Naomichi Ii and others believed that "you should not launch unintentional troops to destroy the life of the shogunate." With the development of Western countries,

As they pressed closer and closer, the battle between the two sides became increasingly fierce.

Gongfang Jiading had a weak character, and no one held the position of "big boss" at that time, so there were not enough authoritative figures who could mediate the conflicts between the two factions - of course, there are still people who hope to mediate, and the winner is

Abe, Fang Laozhong's attendant, tried his best to bridge the gap. But Abe was unable to do this in his position as chief laozhong, and after abdicating, he was even less able to maintain the situation.

What's more, on June 17, the fourth year of Ansei (1857), Abe was critically ill. Although he escaped death under the influence of Naohide's butterfly, he still resigned resolutely because he was discouraged.

Without coordination, the situation has slipped into the abyss step by step, and there is no way back.

After that, Qi Zhao and others played the card of a small court in Kyoto, using the Fuso royal family, which was originally restricted from the government but had a respected status by the shogunate, to restrict and oppress their opponents who had the actual power of the shogunate.

But no matter how fierce the political struggle is, the political principle of fighting without defeat is maintained - that is to say, everyone still fights with each other using the usual methods, collecting chips such as reputation, fame, and strength, and then comparing them.

On winning or losing.

Among them, the edicts from the small imperial court in Kyoto have become rules that both parties must abide by - firstly, the royal family is the nominal boss after all, and the largest in legal system; secondly, the Westerners are coming with force, and it is difficult for the shogunate to deal with it, so

Carrying out the small imperial court can also be used to build momentum, isn't it?

Of course, neither the ministers who are fighting among themselves, nor the daimyo who are trying to gain power on the side, actually do not take the imperial minister seriously - they have been doing nothing for hundreds of years, they are just papery facades.

That's all.

But since obtaining an imperial edict has become a rule recognized by everyone, the cost of breaking this is very high!

On June 19, the fifth year of the Anzheng period (1858), he signed a trade agreement with the Mi people without receiving the imperial edict. This was an act similar to setting off a food table during a meal. It was undoubtedly an announcement that he was "broken and doesn't want to continue playing."

"!

Once political rules are broken, it will be difficult to establish them again - the basis for mutual trust no longer exists, and the hostile parties will undoubtedly consider various dangerous situations. The so-called lower limit is set.

The so-called Tuqiongdijian refers to such a critical situation.

Sure enough, the shogunate eldest brother Ii's actions became more and more dangerous as he took the first step:

On June 21st, I had it framed and pasted - five old Chinese people from the then shogunate jointly signed a memorial, stating to the small court in Kyoto that "it was a last resort to sign an agreement with the Japanese without an order." Two days later,

The shogunate dismissed the old middlemen Hota Masumu (chief) and Matsudaira Tadoko.

But this can't fool Qi Zhao's family.

Thinking about it, it’s like, “Boss, senior and other important positions are all controlled by you, it’s useless to replace them with someone else!”

Originally, this move of Imperial Order was introduced by Qi Zhao and others to limit their opponents, but now it is no longer easy to use, and it will not be allowed to be rounded or flattened in the future.

Therefore, on June 24, Qi Zhao took his son Keitsu (Lord of Mito Domain), together with Tokugawa Qingkatsu (Lord of Owari Domain) and Matsudaira Keinaga (Lord of Echizen Domain) to Edo Castle to question the imperial edict.

Signing a trade agreement!

But his original political opponents also felt that he was wronged, "The imperial edict was originally a trick created by you, and it was an act of chaos in the government" - it was originally "a small court in Kyoto entrusted the great government to the shogunate", but now the royal family is actually

Being able to point fingers at the ministers and lead wolves into the house is not chaos in government!

But Qi Zhao and others are not convinced. Major affairs of the shogunate require the approval of the imperial decree. Everyone agreed before, but now they suddenly go back on their word. Wouldn't it be a mess? Then how are we going to govern in the future?

The two senior middlemen, Masumu Hota (chief) and Tadashi Matsudaira, were both dismissed. The original leaders resigned. Now, the line of Qi Zhao's political opponents is naturally headed by the elder Ii So.

So Jing Yi immediately stepped forward and scolded Qi Zhao and others in person!

Speaking of which, Mito and Owari are the "Gosan", the top feudal lords of the Tokugawa family in the shogunate, and Matsudaira Keinaga, the lord of the Echizen domain, is not only a feudal lord himself, but also comes from a top clan no less than the "Gosan"

He was close to the Tian An family, one of the "Yu Sanqing" of the vassal, so it was no small matter to go to the city to interrogate the identities of these four people.

Although Jing Yi's identity is the "eldest elder", the highest minister, he is suspected of overstepping his bounds when he scolds these people in person.

Although the Ii family is a top generation daimyo, it is the only one among them that had daimyo status before the establishment of the Tokugawa shogunate. Moreover, Ii is a famous family in the world. The Fujiwara family is from the Kamakura shogunate (1185-1333).

) is one of the "Eight Greatest Leaders in the World", but now as a retainer of the Tokugawa Shogunate, this humiliation for his master Yurenji in person shows how tough Ii Sobu is!

After that, the name "Red Ghost" spread like wildfire.

However, at that time, the name was only circulated among the ministers, but it was not until the sixth year of Ansei (1859) that the name "Ii Akaki" was finally known to both the government and the public.

Originally, after being accused of "illegal entry into the city", Qi Zhao and his family lived in seclusion and were cautious, even if they were completely overthrown.

But who would have thought that this matter could cause trouble again!

On June 21, the fifth year of Ansei, didn't the five senior middlemen of the then shogunate jointly sign a memorial, stating to the small court in Kyoto that "it is a last resort to sign an agreement with the Mi people without an edict." Wait for this memorial.

After arriving in Kyoto, it caused panic in the Fuso royal family - after all, the edict was actually resisted in this way, wouldn't it mean that they would no longer have the opportunity to participate in the big government?

Therefore, the small court in Kyoto sent a decree to the shogunate, asking Qi Zhao and others to go to Luo to explain what happened.

Of course, the name was to invite top Tokugawa feudal lords such as the "Yu Sanjia" and "Yu Sanqing" and several shogunate bosses to come to Kyoto together, but everyone knew Sima Zhao's intentions.

Qi Zhao and others were officially ordered to be punished by the shogunate on July 5th. Someone must have tipped off the news before. Therefore, when the decree was issued, the small court already knew about it, and it was just to protect Qi Zhao and others.

It's just a reversal of the verdict.

Of course, the shogunate leader Jing Yisao would not tolerate this happening, so he ignored the edict and just found an excuse to reply - "Qingshu and Qi Zhao are both guilty and imprisoned. Their heirs are all young and weak, and they will not be able to survive."

Full praise for the meeting."

Unless absolutely necessary, it is better to maintain a certain degree of continuity in governance, because this will not lead to unnecessary conflicts.

Suspicion and mutual trust are like a vase. If you want to put it back together and use it again after being smashed, it is very difficult. At least it didn't work this time.

The small imperial court in Kyoto, fearing that it would be liquidated by the shogunate, finally began to raise the banquet in fear and anger. Anyway, you will be in the first grade of junior high school and I will be in the fifteenth grade. The eldest brother should not talk about the second brother!

On August 8, the fifth year of Ansei (1858), the secret decree of the small court was sent to the hands of the two lords of Mito, Qi Zhao and Kei Atsushi. The content was:

First of all, he expressed his dissatisfaction with the shogunate for signing treaties with Western countries without receiving the imperial edict;

Then, it requires that "the public and military families should work together; the shogunate and the feudal lords should eliminate disputes on major state affairs in foreign affairs and internal affairs; regardless of whether they are close to each other, the shogunate, or close to the feudal lord, the Daimyo of the generation and the Daimyo of the outside world should work together and work together to avoid external affairs.

Insults of barbarians, etc.”

The so-called public family refers to the royal family and ministers; while the military family refers specifically to the shogunate in Fuso.

Because according to the theory of heavenly stems and earthly branches, the fifth year of Anzheng (1858) was the year of Wuwu in the Heli calendar, so this secret edict was called the "Wuwu Secret Edict", and the events that followed were also called the "Wuwu Disaster".

The people who escorted the "Wuwu Secret Edict" were said to be two "righteous men", namely Yuezhao and Xixiang.

The great monk Getsho was originally the abbot of Kiyomizu-dera Temple in Kyoto.

After the signing of the "Fuso Mi Reconciliation Agreement" in the seventh year of Jiayong (1854), the forty-two-year-old Yuezhao resolutely resigned from his position as abbot, traveled to the Kanto and Northeastern countries, wrote "Journey to the East", and dedicated it to

It was given to Konoe Tadahiro, one of the three princes of the small imperial court in Kyoto at that time.

"Journey to the East" records the information recorded by Yuezhao traveling around various places, including the situation of various countries and vassals, the conduct and hobbies of the vassal lords, and information about the people who are inclined to use force to fight the barbarians.

In fact, this is an intelligence manual!

The right minister at the time, Konoe Tadahiro, was a close confidant of the imperial family. In addition, he had an extraordinary relationship with the Qi Zhao family - his mother was from the Owari Tokugawa family, and his wife was from the Satsuma Shimazu family.

In addition, although the two imperial offices of the 11th-generation Shogun Iesai and the 13th-generation Shogun Iatei were both princesses of the Shimazu family, before they got married, in order to maintain the tradition of marrying the top ministers

, they all became Konoe's adopted daughters.

Especially the adopted father-in-law of Odaisho Atsuhime Iatei is Konoe Tadahiro. Speaking of which, he is also the father-in-law of the father-in-law Iatei!

The secret envoy traveling with Monk Tsuzuki was an old acquaintance of Naohide and a good friend of Okubo Roshichi. He was Saigo Takanaga, a retainer of Satsuma Shimazu.

In the third year of Kayei (1850), taking advantage of Satsuma's "Yura Rebellion", Naohide successfully recruited the troubled Okubo family. However, at that time, he also persuaded Saigo to change his position, but Naohide failed - Takayaga was not favored at that time.

Due to the spread of civil strife in the Shimazu family, he rejected Naohide's persuasion.

The next year, Shimazu Qibin took over as the head of the family.

Taking advantage of Qi Bin's plan to build a small blast furnace and a reverberatory furnace for iron-making, Xixiang successfully recommended himself and obtained relevant information from the hands of Naohide, the then white master.

Moreover, at the same time, he also obtained parenting tips from Naohide and Eiko - this was undoubtedly a blessing from heaven for Qi Bin, the head of the Shimadzu family who suffered from too many children dying.

The combination of these achievements made Xixiang Takayong start to stand out in front of Qi Bin.

But I don’t know how, Naoxiu failed to induce Xixiang to embark on the road of Lanxue industrial construction. In the end, Xixiang still embarked on the original trajectory of his life - as the head of the family, Xixiang began to work for Qi Bin.

Foreign affairs officers were traveling around Fusang.

Of course, compared with Naohide's original world, Saigo came into Qi Bin's horizons in the fourth year of Jiayong (1851), which was a full three years earlier than originally, and therefore developed better.

Tsukisho and Saigo sneaked all the way, and on August 8, the fifth year of Ansei (1858), they finally successfully delivered the "Buwu Secret Order" to the hands of the two generation reclusive feudal lords of Mito, Qi Zhao and Kei Atsushi.
Chapter completed!