allonlinenovel Chapter 1095 Extreme Degradation and Simplification
Chapter 1095 Extreme Degradation and Simplification
Takasaki Motonori, counting on his thick fingers, began to meticulously recount his son's "crimes," his tone exaggerated, filled with the heart-wrenching indignation of a common father scolding his spendthrift son:
“Your Majesty, take a close look at all the things he has done. Which one of them was the result of careful consideration and shrewd planning?”
In the freezing cold of Harbin, the only useful thing was that those spineless Chinese who surrendered were able to do some dirty and tiring work that our imperial soldiers disdained to do or that were inconvenient for them to do directly.
For example, they might keep watch, gather information, or deal with disobedient "troublemakers."
They can also serve as ready-made bait to lure real resistance fighters into a trap, so that they can be wiped out in one fell swoop!
In a moment of impulsiveness, he slapped his thigh and came up with this bizarre and incongruous "Security Brigade".
What's this called? This is called children playing house, improvising whatever comes to mind!
He became increasingly "angry" as he spoke, almost spitting out saliva: "When he got to Tianjin, it was a dazzling world, with even more all sorts of shady characters. I reckon he felt he was quite comfortable with the unorthodox methods he used in Harbin and wanted to try them again, or even something bigger and more extravagant!"
And what happened? He messed things up! He got involved with local thugs, Green Gang members, and spies who were either Kuomintang agents or Communist Party members—the relationships were all murky and ambiguous!
To be honest, this is classic rebellion! The mentality of a spoiled brat who hasn't even finished puberty!
Takasaki Motonori suddenly leaned closer to the imperial desk, lowered his voice, as if revealing a ridiculous secret: "Your Majesty, think about it, he grew up in Kyoto, in our circle, what kind of rules hasn't he seen?"
What important figures haven't I met?
They might feel that climbing the ladder step by step, in a conventional and orderly manner, is too boring!
He likes to do things weird and take risks! He feels that associating with those open enemies, those Chinese underground rats that everyone looks down on and wants to devour alive, makes him seem unique, skillful, capable of what others cannot, and able to keep everyone in the dark and manipulate them at will!
He found it incredibly exciting and gave him a real sense of "accomplishment"! How childish!
He scoffed, his voice filled with the disdain of an elder for the immature tricks of a junior: "And what was the result? In the presence of Your Majesty, who is so insightful and discerning, and in the eyes of Prime Minister Fumimaro, a wise and experienced strategist, his little tricks were nothing more than a child wearing adult clothes, full of loopholes, and only making him a laughingstock."
He thought he had done it secretly and flawlessly, but little did he know that there is no such thing as a secret that can't be kept.
He thought he was a national chess master, but in the eyes of a true expert, he hadn't even set up the chessboard properly!
Your Majesty, please don't overcomplicate or think of him as something too profound! He's just a spoiled brat, a bit clever but also incredibly rebellious!
He likes to play with fire, but he doesn't know how dangerous it is, nor does he understand the principle that those who play with fire will get burned! I think he'll only know to cry, to know what pain and fear are, when he actually burns his hand and eyebrows!
Takasaki Motonori's rapid-fire "accusations" were extremely derogatory and simplistic.
He attributed all of Takasaki Takuto's complex, contradictory, and even dangerous behavior to "youthful impetuosity," "rebellious misbehavior," "show-off," "naive methods," and "lack of self-awareness."
This is a typical protective strategy of retreating to advance, which downplays the "unpredictable thoughts" that may contain political risks and arouse suspicion as an understandable, even somewhat endearing, "personality defect" or "growing pains".
It also perfectly captures the "humble" or even "demanding" attitude a father should have towards his son in front of a supreme monarch, creating the image of a rough and tough father who is "disappointed in his son's lack of progress".
More importantly, he skillfully steered the Emperor's deep-seated doubts about "contradictions" and "schemes" toward "nothing to worry about" and "just childish mischief," thus providing a relatively safe explanation for his son's possible outrageous behavior.
However, Prime Minister Fumio Chikao, known for his aristocratic elegance, meticulous thinking, and strategic planning skills, offered a completely different interpretation from Motonori Takasaki, one that possessed greater political depth and theoretical significance.
He clearly did not agree with Takasaki Motonori's simplistic explanation of "rebellious teenagers".
After Takasaki Motonori's "righteous indignation" performance came to an end, Ayatomo first nodded slightly to Takasaki Motonori, who was still "blowing his beard and glaring," and said in a calm and understanding tone: "Mr. Motonori loves his son very much, and his words may have been too... blunt."
"A father's deep love is truly touching." This is a beautifully said statement, both giving Takasaki Motonori a way out and implying that his words might be biased due to emotional expression.
Then, he slowly turned to Emperor Hirohito, sitting upright, a habitual posture he adopted when explaining important national policies before the Emperor.
His tone became steady, clear, and persuasive, as if he were not discussing the strange behavior of a young officer, but rather dissecting a profound national strategy:
"Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, after considering all the intelligence from various sources and observing calmly, Tuoren Jun's series of actions in Manchuria and North China are by no means 'naive,' 'playing with fire,' or 'fooling around' as Yuande Jun claimed."
On the contrary, this fully demonstrates his keen political acumen beyond his years, and a highly pragmatic, even shrewd and cunning, ruling style.
In my view, their logic even aligns with a longer-term strategy for governing the occupied territories of China that I and some of my cabinet colleagues have been pondering and discussing.
"Oh?" Emperor Hirohito raised an eyebrow slightly, his body unconsciously leaning forward slightly.
Ayako's opening remarks were clearly more in line with his mindset as a ruler than Motonori Takasaki's "heartbreaking" words, and they were more likely to touch his deep concern about how to effectively govern this vast new territory.
"What insightful opinion does Fumimaro have? Please explain in detail."
"Your Majesty." Encouraged, Jinwei Wen began to construct his logical framework with a steady and powerful pace: "Since the establishment of Manchukuo, the Empire's war against China has been unstoppable, conquering cities and seizing territories. It has already moved from the initial stage of military conquest to the destruction of its living resistance forces."
It gradually transitioned into a more complex and prolonged phase of occupation, assimilation, and domination.
Conquest can be achieved through the invincible military strength and loyalty of the imperial army.
However, to govern, especially in a country as vast as China, with a population of hundreds of millions, a long-standing civilization, and a will to resist that, though severely damaged, has never truly been extinguished like a fire burning in the ground, requires sophisticated political maneuvering, flexible strategies, and long-term planning.
While high pressure and iron-fisted suppression may have a temporary deterrent effect, making people afraid to speak or act.
However, hatred accumulates over time, like subterranean fire gathering energy. The will and actions of resistance will be like wild grass on the plains, which cannot be burned out and will grow again when the spring breeze blows.
This is by no means the way for the Empire to achieve long-term stability in China; it will only continue to deplete the Empire's national strength and give international anti-Japanese forces a pretext.