Twentieth Century Chronicle

Page 221

In fact, if it weren't for Lin Xinyi's forceful intervention, it would have been quite normal for the Liuyuan family to send people to kidnap Liuyuan Bailian and force her into marriage. Such things happen almost every day in Japan, and the government doesn't care at all. The principle that women are property rather than individuals with independent personalities is a universally accepted principle in both the East and the West in this era.

In this social atmosphere, Hayashi Shin-yi's proposal to appoint women as government officials was an extremely bold move. Yamamoto Gonnohyōe instinctively wanted to reject it, but at the last moment he restrained himself, because he remembered that Hayashi Shin-yi never seemed to act on impulse; every suggestion he made represented meticulous calculation, and any dissenting voices would ultimately become a driving force for the event.

Therefore, out of caution, Yamamoto couldn't help but question Hayashi Shin-yi first: "Let's not even mention the conflict between veterans and female clerks, where the public tends to sympathize with the female clerks. Don't you consider how much pressure the government will face if it hires a group of female clerks? This matter will subject the government to fierce criticism from the public."

Lin Xinyi's performance was exactly as Yamamoto Gonnohyōe had predicted. He confidently explained, "Public criticism can actually be a help in appointing female clerks. I suggest that these female clerks should first be appointed to the families of fallen soldiers or women from military families. In order to ensure that the families of our fallen comrades can have a decent income, shouldn't the military stand with the government against the criticisms of those moral guardians?"

If the military and the government stand together against those opinions, then what face will the military have to attack the work of the Veterans Affairs Bureau? For the sake of political correctness, the military will proactively suppress veterans' discontent on minor issues to ensure they don't become wavering opportunists.

After thinking for a long time, Yamamoto Gonbei finally understood how many pitfalls Lin Xinyi had dug for the military and conservative forces in society by proposing to recruit female clerks. It could be said that the government could completely divide and conquer in this matter and would not get burned by it at all. This would give the government more initiative than handing over the Veterans Affairs Bureau to the military.

Yamamoto Gonbei ended his conversation with Hayashi Shin-yi. Although he did not give any conclusion, he had hinted that he would consider Hayashi Shin-yi's suggestion, and Hayashi Shin-yi took the opportunity to obtain the right to suggest the establishment of a Veterans Affairs Administration.

Shortly after his conversation with Prime Minister Yamamoto, Hayashi Shin-yi accompanied his wife, Kiko, to visit Tsuda Umeko, the principal of Tsuda Juku. This wasn't Hayashi's first meeting with Tsuda Umeko; she had previously visited to express her gratitude for a donation he had entrusted to his wife. During their last meeting, Hayashi had suggested that Tsuda Juku adjust its educational policy to better suit the needs of women's lives, rather than simply focusing on improving cultural literacy.

Tsuda Umeko and Shimoda Utako held different views on women's education. The former hoped to cultivate independent women, while the latter hoped to cultivate qualified wives and mothers. However, as someone from a samurai family, Tsuda Umeko's views on independent women differed from Hayashi Nobuyoshi's. Hayashi Nobuyoshi believed that independent women must first be economically independent before they can develop an independent personality.

Tsuda Umeko, on the other hand, believed that female independence stemmed from the accumulation of knowledge and cultural refinement, rather than from economic independence. Of course, this was inseparable from Tsuda Umeko's privileged background, which meant she didn't need to worry about daily life. Therefore, women educated at the Tsuda Academy had virtually no future beyond becoming literary youths, implying that the poor couldn't afford to attend.

Chapter 710

Author: Fuchun Mountain Residence Number: 4866 Comments: 0 Update Date: 2023-08-19 12:54:23

The official name of Tsuda Juku is actually Girls' English School. As you can see from the name, it was originally a private school for teaching girls English. Therefore, the school was not very large. Most of the girls who were able to learn English came from well-off families. However, these families only needed English for one reason: to go abroad or to communicate with foreigners. Therefore, there were not many girls who studied English.

When the school was first established in 1900, there were only 10 students in total. The school building was actually the house of Tsuda Umeko. In 1903, with the support of sponsors, a special school building was built in Gobancho, Kojimachi Ward, which made Tsuda Juku look like a regular school rather than a cram school. However, the number of students was only a few dozen.

However, Tsuda Umeko's teaching philosophy was not favored by the authorities, so she did not receive official funding. Therefore, most of the women who came to study at the Girls' English Academy did so because they admired Tsuda Umeko's character. In fact, most women from high society would choose Chinese girls' schools.

The Chinese girls' school, which aimed to cultivate virtuous wives and good mothers, was at that time the most favored prestigious girls' school by high society. Women who graduated from the Chinese girls' school could easily become daughters-in-law chosen by high society. Therefore, not only ordinary noble families, but even the wealthy were keen to send their daughters to the Chinese girls' school in preparation for marriage alliances.

The best future for female students graduating from girls' English academies is actually studying abroad, which is probably the main reason why some families are still willing to send their daughters here. However, for families who cannot afford to send their daughters abroad, those who graduate from girls' English academies and return home are almost always bound by traditional marriage.

Tsuda Umeko attempted to use education to help women build independent personalities, but she did not actually succeed.

Of course, in front of Lin Xinyi, Tsuda Umeko was unwilling to give up the life beliefs she had always established. Although Lin Xinyi was one of the few men who supported women's independence, and although she gained the support of a group of powerful people, including Shibusawa Eiichi, because of her family background, these people did not support her ideals, but rather showed her leniency out of kinship or other factors.

Men like Shin-Yi Hayashi who express support for women's independent personality are actually quite rare in Japan. Even Umeko Tsuda's father couldn't fully accept the idea of ​​female independence. However, Hayashi's ideas—that women must be economically independent before they can be independent in personality, and that women should have their own voices in politics—were radical ideas that Umeko Tsuda found difficult to agree with.

During her first meeting with Shin-Yi Hayashi, Tsuda Umeko did not reach an agreement with the young man on the social identity of women. Tsuda Umeko ultimately presented him with a problem that she herself believed was impossible to solve: she asked Shin-Yi Hayashi to change the critical views of Japanese society regarding women's participation in politics.

In Tsuda Umeko's view, if even a capable woman like Shimoda Utako could not withstand the slander of public opinion and eventually became a courtesan, she naturally did not want her students to end up as high-class geishas in the public eye, as this would be a great tarnishment to the reputation of the Girls' English Academy.

In fact, the reason why girls' English schools were able to survive was because they were not involved in politics, so they did not attract the attention of public opinion. In a society where women were not good at anything except being good wives and mothers, pursuing female independence was actually regarded as an improper idea by the mainstream society.

In a society where men hold all power, an independent woman means navigating relationships with various men. Such a woman naturally embodies the image of the seductive woman in Shimoda Utako's palace. Therefore, even though Shimoda Utako catered to the mainstream social view that a woman's duty is to be a good wife and mother, she was still relentlessly criticized by public opinion.

Utako Shimoda's fate naturally instilled fear in Umeko Tsuda, which is why she proposed something to Shinichi Hayashi that she thought was impossible. But when Shinichi Hayashi sat down in front of her and told her that the government would be recruiting a group of women as administrative staff, she was finally shocked.

Therefore, Tsuda Umeko had to repeatedly verify the accuracy of this news with Hayashi Shin-yi. Hayashi Shin-yi patiently explained the reasons to her and specifically reminded her: "Of course, it wasn't initially aimed entirely at the recruitment plan for the Girls' English Academy, but I hope that the Girls' English Academy can provide certain training to the recruited women so that they can better familiarize themselves with the procedures of government office affairs. I believe this shouldn't be a problem for you."

Going forward, the educational policy of girls' English schools should be adjusted. The primary goal should no longer be studying abroad, but rather truly cultivating a group of young women with knowledge and social skills, laying a solid foundation for women's employment…

Tsuda Umeko was not a woman with ideals but no substance; otherwise, she wouldn't have been able to keep the girls' English school alive. She understood what Lin Xinyi meant by the specific recruitment targets of women. Serving as resettlement officers for veterans' families and military dependents was, in a sense, the military's own people that needed to be protected. Therefore, it was indeed credible that Lin Xinyi's suggestion could be approved, since others simply lacked the motivation to push this forward.

Given Lin Xinyi's abilities and powerful connections, Tsuda Umeko couldn't fathom his motives for promoting women's independence. While Lin Xinyi's respect for his wife was commendable, she didn't believe he would expend so much effort on this cause simply out of respect for her. After all, this was a political stance contrary to mainstream views, and the risks Lin Xinyi was taking were considerable, which seemed unreasonable.

After much deliberation, Tsuda Umeko finally asked Lin Xinyi directly, "As a woman myself, I am deeply grateful for Mr. Lin's unwavering support for women's independence. However, I have a question that I must ask. I wonder if Mr. Lin could answer it for me?"

Sitting to the side, Lin Muzi looked at her husband with some worry. She felt that Mr. Tsuda's suspicions were a bit excessive. After all, her husband was doing this so diligently, and it seemed like it wouldn't bring him any benefit; it was all for a lofty ideal. In this respect, she actually preferred associating with Mrs. Shimoda, since Mrs. Shimoda wouldn't scrutinize others so condescendingly.

I've met both Tsuda Umeko and Shimoda Utako. While these two women may not be considered the most noble women in the eyes of the public in contemporary Japan, they have become two banners of female independence among Japanese women. Although they put forward different propositions, they undoubtedly have a considerable influence among women, after all, both of them have pointed out a path for women's future.

If it were the old Mu Zi, she probably wouldn't have been able to meet women of this caliber. After all, no matter how famous she was in the entertainment industry, she ultimately existed to please men and had no chance of entering high society's social circles. However, as Lin Xinyi's wife, and as Lin Xinyi's status in the navy and politics continued to rise, she was naturally accepted into this circle. Thus, Tsuda Umeko and Shimoda Utako became social objects within the circle, no longer unattainable goals as before.

Compared to the noble Tsuda Umeko, Shimoda Utako actually came from a declining rural samurai family. Therefore, the latter was easier to get along with in social situations and made Hayashi Muko feel more respected and valued. In contrast, in front of Tsuda Umeko, she always felt as if she were still the popular kabuki aspiring actress, rather than Mrs. Hayashi, which made her feel somewhat constrained.

However, Lin Xinyi clearly didn't feel the same aura emanating from Tsuda Umeko as his wife did. He calmly asked her in return, "I wonder what Mr. Tsuda's view is of Japan today? Do you think Japan is already perfect and doesn't need any changes?"

Although she didn't know why Lin Xinyi would ask her such a question, Tsuda Umeko still replied earnestly to Lin Xinyi, who had already demonstrated his abilities: "Of course, Japan is imperfect now. If it were perfect, there wouldn't be so many social problems. Public discontent is everywhere in the newspapers. Who would think Japan is perfect now? I think even the elders wouldn't dare to say that. But, does that have anything to do with the issue we're discussing?"

Lin Xinyi immediately replied, "Yes, of course it's related. I think the imperfection of Japan today lies in the fact that it is a system in which a minority rules over the majority. The farmers, who make up the majority of the country, work hard all year round, but in the end, they can't even solve their basic needs for food and clothing. Instead, they owe the country taxes and eventually have to sell their daughters to make up for the deficit."

The upper class does almost nothing, yet their annual income equals that of tens of thousands of farmers working hard for a year. Clearly, the upper class, through the current state system, appropriates the majority of farmers' earnings, and farmers have no way to object to this, not even having a voice.

If this continues, Japan will eventually experience a revolution affecting all levels of society, just like our neighboring countries, using the violence of revolution to redistribute the fruits of labor. Therefore, to eliminate the risk of revolution, the first step is to change the system of a minority ruling the majority. The Japanese people must understand that Japan belongs to the Japanese, not to zaibatsu, clans, and the upper class; everyone has the right to live a dignified, self-reliant life.

As members of the Japanese population, women naturally have the right to voice their opinions and protect their interests. In my view, changing the situation where women are subservient to men in society is essentially a crucial part of reforming the current Japanese system where a minority rules over the majority.

"Since women make up half of the population, if half of the Japanese people cannot voice their opinions or protect their interests, then wouldn't the so-called transformation of Japan's current situation become nothing but empty talk?"

Tsuda Umeko was silent for a moment before drawing out her words: "So, Mr. Lin is a socialist?"

Lin Xinyi smiled and replied, "So what is your view on socialism?"

Tsuda Umeko remained silent for a long time before slowly saying, "This is the first time I've heard a socialist speak from a woman's perspective. I've always thought that socialists were a group of people with radical views on political reform. If it's your advocacy for social change, then I don't think it's a radical view."

Tsuda Umeko's view of socialism as radicalism is inseparable from the fact that Kotoku Shusui and others saw Shimoda Utako as a breakthrough point for the Emperor system. Although Tsuda Umeko did not agree with Shimoda Utako's position on the social identity of women, she still felt that the attacks on Shimoda Utako by Kotoku Shusui and others were excessive.

In Japan, a person's reputation is inextricably linked to their social status. Even a Meiji Restoration elder like Kuroda Kiyotaka suffered a significant decline in his social standing due to the reputational damage caused by killing his wife. Society is relatively lenient towards men, but if it were a woman, it would practically be a death sentence in society.

After Shimoda Utako's reputation was damaged, her status as the principal of the Chinese Girls' School was immediately questioned. Judging from the current situation, it is inevitable that Shimoda Utako will step down as principal.

Tsuda Umeko found it hard to accept the baseless attacks that socialists like Kotoku Shusui used against women. It wasn't that Shimoda Utako didn't have affairs, but Kotoku Shusui and his associates weren't based on evidence at all. Instead, they were smearing Shimoda's wife by fabricating stories. This kind of attack was unsafe for any woman and naturally angered all the women in high society.

In reality, upper-class women did not have a clear view of socialism. For example, Kotoku Shusui's actions led Tsuda Umeko to accept the official definition of socialism as radicalism. However, Hayashi Shin's frankness made her feel that socialism was not so radical after all. If it was only for the pursuit of social justice, then she could accept such socialism.

Having understood Lin Xinyi's motives, Tsuda Umeko dispelled her doubts and began to seriously consider his proposal. Frankly, finding a way out for the graduates of the Girls' English Gakujuku was something she, as the principal, had been constantly thinking about, and it was a very important issue. From the school's founding in 1900 to 1908, she had educated several batches of students, and she knew very well that those graduates, pressured by their families to marry, were essentially abandoning the knowledge they had acquired at school and embarking on the responsibilities of being a good wife and mother.

This situation even made Tsuda Umeko doubt whether Shimoda Utako's claim was correct—that women could only fully demonstrate their value and wrest some rights from men by fulfilling their social role as wives and mothers. After all, no matter how much she taught her students self-respect and independence in school, Japanese women had virtually no choice after leaving school.

In terms of career paths, Japanese women face far more limitations than their Western counterparts. While Western women can at least find work as tutors to support themselves, Japanese women, aside from brothels and the service industry, have virtually no respectable employment opportunities for unmarried women. Therefore, Tsuda Umeko could only watch helplessly as the creation she painstakingly crafted was ultimately shattered by societal realities, reverting to its former state.

After much deliberation, Tsuda Umeko compromised with Hayashi Nobuyoshi, believing this to be the best path for women: to gain a position in the government and thus continuously improve their status. She simply asked Hayashi Nobuyoshi about his future plans to clarify whether he truly considered promoting women's independence as part of his overall strategy.

Lin Xinyi's answer satisfied Tsuda Umeko, who said, "For the future of Japanese women, the scale of the Women's English Academy is too small and the level is too high. The education of Japanese women should be more systematic so as to cultivate a system that can continuously provide new blood. Only in this way can we ensure that women can occupy a certain position in the job market."

In my view, while women may not be as physically strong as men, they are not inferior in their intellectual abilities, as evidenced by Marie Curie's Nobel Prize in Physics. Therefore, we need to systematize women's education so that they can assume social roles suited to their gender, thereby making society realize that both women and men are needed, and thus giving women a voice in politics…”

Marie Curie's Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903, an achievement that Tsuda Umeko used to inspire her students, also shocked Western society. This was the first time a woman had demonstrated scientific abilities on par with men, a significant overturning of Western racial theories. Western racial theories not only emphasized that white people had higher IQs than people of color, but also claimed that men had higher IQs than women.

Tsuda Umeko noticed that Hayashi Shin-yi spoke with complete respect when mentioning Madame Curie, which was clearly a heartfelt opinion rather than an example casually given to convince her. Therefore, she ultimately believed in Hayashi Shin-yi's sincerity and decided to assist him in completing the training of the specific recruited women.

Chapter 711

Author: Fuchun Mountain Residence Number: 5116 Comments: 1 Update Date: 2023-08-20 12:51:03

Although the Naval General Staff was essentially idle after the war ended, the plans and programs prepared for the war were merely to ensure the normal operation of the Naval General Staff during peacetime, so they were not actually that urgent. That's why the First Department, which was responsible for naval training programs, became the core of the Naval General Staff, because it was the only department with authority that could communicate with other departments during peacetime.

However, with the start of internal reforms within the Navy and the establishment of reform groups, the Naval General Staff's power during peacetime continued to expand. At this time, the section chiefs of various departments within the Naval General Staff were extremely busy, especially the newly established Cultural Section of the Fourth Department. Because it controlled the internal and external propaganda, the Cultural Section had actually become a unique voice in the military. Although it was just a section, it operated almost like an independent department.

In fact, if it weren't for naval tradition, some high-ranking naval officers believed that the cultural affairs department could be separated from the Naval General Staff and become a separate propaganda department under the Minister of the Navy, thus better controlling public opinion. However, because the navy lacked a tradition of independently operating propaganda agencies—referring to the European naval tradition—the Japanese navy was hesitant to be the first to do so.

Therefore, Lin Xinyi, as the head of the cultural studies department, should have been quite busy. However, he assigned most of his work to his subordinates and devoted a considerable amount of energy to promoting women's education and employment. This surprised his subordinates, and Domoto Keiichi raised his doubts about it with Lin Xinyi.

Lin Xinyi didn't hide anything from him and said, "If we compare politics to a business competition, the purpose of which is to promote one's political views to the public, then traditional businesses have targeted men as their sales targets. After all, men, as heads of households and parents, have an undisputed position in the family. As long as you can gain the support of men, it is equivalent to gaining the support of a family."

However, as a newly established business, if we want to compete with established businesses for these men, we not only need to offer substantial benefits, but they may also not trust us, since our claims need to be proven. Traditional businesses, on the other hand, can at least provide them with fixed benefits.

Now let's think about it the other way around. Half of the world's population are women, and traditionally, women have almost no voice, nor are their interests protected. If we simply side with them, these women will inevitably become loyal to us. In this entirely new market, we are the only ones selling, so we have no competitors.

So the question arises: when half of a society's population supports us, will the other half unite to resist us, or will they acknowledge that what we say makes sense?

Domoto Keiichi's dissatisfaction vanished instantly. Having worked alongside Hayashi Shin-yi in intelligence processing, he was naturally aware of some of the findings from the social survey. Although men dominated society, the rigid hierarchical system meant that men could not truly form a cohesive group. Upper-class men possessed almost everything, while lower-class men had lost almost everything. When women stood up to demand their rights, they were essentially asking the upper-class men for power. In this situation, women were not enemies of the lower-class men, but rather their allies.

While men are often the head of the household and the patriarch, women are the core of a stable family. A family may struggle without its father, but it ceases to exist without its mother. Therefore, in ordinary life, the mother's voice is often stronger than the father's. Lin Xinyi's argument is not unfounded. If women in families choose to support them, many families will also side with them, rather than following the father's decisions.

So what was their purpose? Domoto Keiichi understood it better than anyone else. Their purpose was certainly not the navy, or rather, not just the navy. The navy was merely a foundation they used to transform Japan. After returning from Japan with Hayashi Shin'ichi, Domoto Keiichi knew very well that he could no longer return to his previous routine life, nor could he remain a mere soldier. Transforming and leading Japan was their goal.

The "them" refers to the people surrounding Lin Xinyi. After all, by following Lin Xinyi, they finally witnessed the source of power and how a regime is established. Their past worship of the sanctity of the state gradually disappeared in this practice.

Since anyone can seize power through an organization, why can't they lead Japan? The veterans like Yamagata and Itō, and the naval leaders like Yamamoto and Ito, are nothing special to them, and therefore they have no deterrent effect.

Of course, Domoto Keiichi was also aware of the fact that their powerful influence was due to the personal abilities of the organization's leader, Lin Xinyi's insight into the essence of things, which made them achieve twice the result with half the effort. Therefore, Domoto naturally hoped that Lin Xinyi would focus his main energy on expanding the organization, rather than on unrelated matters.

Lin Xinyi's answer not only cleared up his doubts but also filled him with anticipation for the organization's future. However, he also reported his new discovery to Lin Xinyi: someone was secretly investigating the navy.

Domoto Keiichi casually complained to Lin Xinyi, "The intelligence personnel of the Third Division are simply a bunch of idiots. Apart from military intelligence, they care almost nothing about ordinary intelligence. In particular, their measures for keeping secret internal naval intelligence are a complete mess. I think anyone who is not blind or deaf can easily obtain all the information about the navy from the taverns and brothels in the naval base."

"If I hadn't set up guards in the tavern near the Naval General Staff Headquarters, they probably would have thoroughly investigated the Navy without us even knowing. I think we need to make suggestions to the intelligence section, otherwise these people will sell themselves out without even knowing who they sold them to..."

Although young, Keiichi Domoto, having struggled his way up from India, certainly understood intelligence work better than the office staff in the Naval General Staff. In fact, Japan's best intelligence personnel were almost all in the Army; the Navy's intelligence work was rather mediocre. The most famous espionage operation was the theft of Shimose gunpowder technology, but this was merely an individual's spur-of-the-moment idea, not an organized effort.

The army's intelligence work was excellent and inseparable from its cooperation with the Genyosha. As an active supporter of the theory of conquering Korea, the Genyosha, composed of mainland ronin, spontaneously collected intelligence on Korea. This provided great convenience for the army to launch the Sino-Japanese War and thus formed the army's intelligence work tradition. For example, the military instructors that the army placed in the Beiyang Army were actually responsible for collecting Beiyang military intelligence. This method of intelligence collection was exactly the same as the Genyosha's intelligence investigation on Korea before the Sino-Japanese War.

As for the navy, due to the naval leadership's fascination with battleships and cannons, they didn't place much emphasis on national intelligence gathering. They only focused on intelligence gathering regarding shipbuilding technology and fleet strength, which made the navy's intelligence work quite narrow and highly office-oriented. The only bright spot was the intelligence analysis method proposed by Lin Xinyi during his time at university, which allowed for more comprehensive judgments by integrating intelligence resources.

However, for Keiichi Domoto, who had been in charge of intelligence gathering and analysis for Indian operations, this level of intelligence work was far too crude and riddled with problems. Having followed Lin Xinyi from Tibet to India, dealing with the entire British Indian government and its vassal states such as Nepal with extremely weak forces, he naturally understood the primacy of intelligence work.

In the harsh battlefield environment of a foreign land without support, to avoid being surrounded and annihilated by a superior enemy, it was essential to promptly grasp the enemy's movements and conceal one's own whereabouts. In this regard, the intelligence principles proposed by Lin Xinyi were deeply ingrained in the minds of Domoto and others.

The first is to rely on the support of the people, to collect various fragmented information from them. Although these pieces of information may not provide any useful clues, they are at least true, because the information from the people can be verified by each other to prove its authenticity, which is more reliable than stealing intelligence from the enemy.

Secondly, a dedicated intelligence analysis team should be established to verify these fragmented intelligence pieces and unverified intelligence obtained from the enemy, ultimately determining the enemy's movement trajectory and then judging the enemy's intentions.

Thirdly, there is counterintelligence work. While constantly collecting intelligence on the enemy, we must also guard against the enemy collecting our own intelligence in order to avoid being taken advantage of by the enemy.

By applying these principles, the Tibetan Expeditionary Force and the Indian People's Army maintained control of the battlefield during their operations in India, thus keeping the well-equipped and resource-rich British Indian government in a constant state of vulnerability and ultimately leading to armed separatism in the three northeastern states.

If Lin Xinyi hadn't believed that the Indian nation at that time lacked the strength for independence, and that a full-scale war might lead the British Empire to back down in Europe and launch a full-scale suppression of the Indian national liberation movement, thus proposing a temporary peace plan, then...

Keiichi Domoto believed that India's national liberation war was still worth fighting. Even if it could not immediately grant India independence, it would certainly severely damage the strength of the British Empire.

Of course, as a Japanese, he also agreed with Hayashi Shinji's advocacy for temporary peace. After all, crippling the British Empire would not benefit Japan at present; it would only embolden Russia in the Far East and Germany in the Middle East. Furthermore, Indian nationalists lacked the resolve to completely break with the British Empire. Many Indian nationalists actually sought independence similar to that of Australia and Canada, rather than the complete expulsion of the British.

Although Lin Xinyi paid some attention to the intelligence reported by Domoto Keiichi, he did not approve of Domoto Keiichi's attempt to interfere with the work of the intelligence section. After thinking for a moment, he said to him: "The Navy's intelligence work does have considerable problems, but that is not our focus right now."

The reformist groups have expanded too rapidly within the Navy. If we were to bring intelligence work under their control, it might cause unnecessary concern among some. We cannot afford to provoke other factions too much at present. Moreover, as newcomers who have only recently returned to the country, interfering in everything might appear too domineering and would be detrimental to unity.

Domoto Keiichi listened attentively to Lin Xinyi's instructions. He did not believe that Lin Xinyi would simply give up on intelligence gathering. Sure enough, he heard Lin Xinyi change the subject and say, "Of course, we also need to have a certain ability to understand the situation, otherwise we won't know where the problem lies when something goes wrong."

"We already established a social investigation team, right? I think we could set up a dedicated social investigation office under the Cultural Foundation. This office could gather intelligence from all levels of society and, incidentally, establish a perimeter around the navy. At the very least, we need to know who is investigating the navy and what their purpose is. But we shouldn't alert them."

Domoto Kei nodded, then asked, "Should we report the situation to the intelligence section?"

Lin Xinyi thought for a moment and then asked in return, "Who do you think would investigate the Navy at this time?"

After a moment's thought, Keiichi Domoto replied, "It's either the army or the elders."

Lin Xinyi nodded in agreement, saying, "That's similar to what I was thinking. So, as long as we give them a heads-up, both the army and the elders will immediately sense it, which is no different from stirring up trouble. In my opinion, instead of scaring these people away, it would be better to see what they want to investigate and then show them what we want to show them. That would be more advantageous for us."

Domoto Keiichi immediately understood. He nodded and replied, "You mean, like in India, we'll lure you into a trap... I understand."

In December 1908, news broke that the Yamamoto Cabinet was attempting to recruit a group of women as administrative staff. This news was quickly reported in the newspapers. When reporters sought confirmation from cabinet officials, they were told that the officials had admitted it. Naturally, moralists immediately launched a critique of the Yamamoto Cabinet, arguing that women's duty was to be good wives and mothers, not to serve in government positions. They believed that the Yamamoto Cabinet's decision was undoubtedly corrupting public morals.

When these moral guardians criticized the Yamamoto cabinet, they completely ignored the fact that after the Meiji Restoration, women had essentially left home life and participated extensively in social production activities. Silk factories and cotton textile factories were now mostly staffed by women. Although in the early days of the Restoration, due to tradition, these factories initially employed men, after privatization, capitalists hired women and children for profit, thus breaking down the moral values ​​of traditional society.

By 1908, female workers were a common phenomenon, and no one considered them to be a morally corrupt group. Capitalists also claimed that their management of female workers was morally sound and that they did not allow frivolous men to harass the female workers in their factories. In reality, it was through this so-called closed management that capitalists forced female workers to work excessively long hours to earn excessive profits for themselves.

However, these female factory workers were, after all, daughters from impoverished families. For these families, selling their daughters into brothels was commonplace, so mainstream society didn't impose overly strict moral demands on women from these backgrounds. What these moral guardians truly clung to were women from middle- and upper-class families; for them, this was a matter of personal honor and morality.

Similar to the values ​​of the upper class in Europe at that time, Japanese families who considered themselves to be of high status actually opposed women engaging in work outside of domestic affairs. Merchant families might be more lenient in this regard, but samurai families saw their women going out to work as a symbol of the family's decline, because it meant that the parents could no longer afford the family expenses, which was why the women in the family had to work in public.

A few enlightened upper-class families might allow their daughters to participate in education before marriage, primarily in girls' schools, but after marriage, they would return to the home. Therefore, the Yamamoto cabinet's proposal to recruit a group of women to serve in government positions naturally aroused great dissatisfaction among moralists, who saw it as a challenge to the bottom line of social morality.

However, faced with a barrage of criticism, the Yamamoto Cabinet instead announced a plan to recruit female public officials. After the plan was announced, the military had to issue a public statement saying that the Veterans Affairs Bureau's recruitment of a group of families of martyrs and military personnel as public officials was a sign of respect for the military, not a morally corrupt act. They could not tolerate the offenses made by some idle intellectuals against the families of military personnel.

The military's statement immediately cooled down the tabloids' heated discussion about the matter. No one wanted to be targeted by the military; after all, if the military really sent people to vandalize the newspaper offices, they wouldn't be able to defend themselves, claiming they weren't offending military families but were just seeking news coverage. The tabloids, unwilling to publish articles by moral guardians, instead published numerous articles criticizing them, which ironically put public opinion against the conservative forces.

These conservative forces were mostly opposed to land reform, so the Yamamoto cabinet effectively dealt a blow to the opposition to land reform policies. Originally, the military downsizing plan was a conflict between the government and the military, but the disclosure of the female civil service recruitment plan turned it into a joint effort by the military and the government to suppress the conservative forces, which greatly eased the relationship between the military and the government.

The military did this for one reason only: to address the morale of the troops. In this major war, the army suffered tens of thousands of casualties, and many military families lost their men. While lower-ranking soldiers were relatively better off, as they were mostly unmarried men without family burdens, the deaths and injuries of officers plunged many families into financial hardship. The government's offer to prioritize recruiting women from the families of martyrs and military personnel for public service positions would at least alleviate some of the difficulties faced by officers' families. Therefore, the military could not afford not to support the government's policy; otherwise, the higher-ups would face pressure from the officer rank and file.

Chapter 712

Author: Fuchun Mountain Residence Number: 4893 Comments: 1 Update Date: 2023-08-21 13:08:17

"...Judging from the current internal sentiment within the Army, the military generally supports the government's proposed Veterans Affairs Bureau plan. Although there is still widespread dissatisfaction with the military downsizing, resentment towards the government has decreased considerably. Many believe that the government's move is out of public interest and not intended to suppress the military..."

Army Minister Tamura sat in his office, listening to a young lieutenant's analysis of the military downsizing case. He nodded frequently, feeling that this lieutenant, Nagata Tetsuzan, was indeed a promising talent.

So after Lieutenant Nagata reported his analysis, Tamura did not dismiss him as before to speak with his senior adjutant, Major General Hongo, behind closed doors. Instead, he asked him an additional question with great interest.

"What do you think are the strengths and weaknesses of the navy's strategy this time? If you were in charge of the overall planning, could you have done a better job?"

After pondering for a few seconds, Nagata Tetsuzan honestly shook his head and said, "I cannot devise a better plan than the Navy's. As it stands, the Navy's plan has almost no weaknesses. Although we know that the Veterans Affairs Bureau was established to prepare for military downsizing, we still have to openly support the Veterans Affairs Bureau's plan to appoint military dependents. This is the brilliance of the Navy's plan. I could not have thought of such a breakthrough strategy beforehand."

Major General Hongo, standing nearby, couldn't help but sigh upon hearing this. "Indeed, this is a blatant conspiracy. If the facts weren't right before our eyes, I wouldn't believe this was the work of a Japanese person. This is really not the way Japanese people think. It seems to be more like the behavior of the British. They know it's a British diplomatic tactic, but they still can't help but take the bait."

Tamura wasn't disappointed by Nagata's answer. Instead, he said, "Lieutenant Nagata's willingness to admit his shortcomings is much better than most people. I hope that after three years of studying at university, you'll be even more outstanding, because your opponent is actually your peer, and speaking of which, he's from Nagano Prefecture, just like you..."

Nagata Tetsuzan was finally shocked by Minister Tamura's words. As the top student of the 16th class of the Army Academy, because he was not from Choshu, he had been working at the grassroots level of the army since graduating in 2004. Compared with those Choshu officers who were directly retained in the central ministries and departments, Nagata was a typical captain-in-command. Therefore, applying to the Army War College was the only way to change his situation. As a junior officer, Nagata's information was naturally limited, and he had no way of knowing about the rumors of the navy's rising stars.

Seeing the bewildered look on Nagata Tetsuzan's face, Tamura then offered a hint: "The one who devised this strategy for the Navy must have been Lieutenant Commander Hayashi Nobuyoshi, the head of the Cultural Section of the Naval General Staff. He was born in the same year as you, Meiji 17, but his family background was much worse than yours. So he entered the Naval Academy from an ordinary middle school and had not experienced a complete military education before that."

However, it cannot be denied that he was indeed a genius. According to the intelligence we have gathered, Lin Xinyi had already predicted the outbreak of the war against Russia and the victory of the Japanese navy while still in school. Upon graduation, he took advantage of an internship opportunity in China to join the Chinese Expeditionary Force in Tibet, and under the name Lin Feng, he defeated the British army in Tibet and India, becoming the most wanted criminal by the British Indian government. However, the British eventually withdrew the official arrest warrant.

Looking at the dumbfounded Nagata Tetsuzan, Tamura finally said meaningfully, "Now do you know why I gathered this batch of students who were admitted to the 23rd class of the Army University to study the military reduction plan? It's because you need to understand who your future opponents are. I hope you can understand your opponents' working style in advance so that you won't be crushed to pieces without knowing anything in the future."