The Joseon Prince Went To America And Didn’t Return – 142



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“Whew- the more I dig into this the more of a mess it becomes.”

It’s been exactly one year since the San Francisco attack.

It has been nearly six months since Ito Hirobumi the leader of the moderates was assassinated by hardliners in Harbin.

During this time many winds of change blew in Japan.

Following the sudden resignation of Katsura Taro Saionji the leader of the moderate faction and former prime minister took over as prime minister once again.

Because a Kwantung Army officer assassinated Ito who had served as prime minister four times the military had to follow Saionji’s instructions for a while while judging public opinion.

Not missing this opportunity Saionji quickly implemented a disarmament policy.

but.

Even though expenditures have been reduced significantly there is still a deficit.

“Oh really. I have no answer.”

Saionji hasn’t been able to smile for a single day since he became prime minister.

Why?

That’s because Japan’s finances were a total mess.

“dismissal.”

“Oh. Hara Minister of the Interior.”

The only time he can smile is when he meets his successor Minister of the Interior Takashi Hara.

After the death of Ito Hirobumi.

Saionji was able to breathe a sigh of relief as he watched Takashi Hara emerge as the new leader of the moderates.

When Ito died it seemed like the world had collapsed and the future was bleak.

Even a mouse hole gets its day so he is happy that his successor is growing up so well.

“Sit over here.”

At Saionji’s suggestion Home Minister Takashi Hara sat comfortably on the sofa.

“Yes. You said you had something urgent to report to me. What was it?”

A simple tea ceremony to fill the stomach is placed on the table in Saionji’s office.

Hara Takashi took out a bundle of documents from the briefcase he was carrying.

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“What is this?”

“This is the budget plan for next year submitted by the Government-General of Korea.”

“hmm.”

Saionji frowned as he received the document in Hara Takashi’s hand.

It was because I didn’t like it.

“Did I calculate this correctly?”

“Yes. Please take a look at the paragraph starting from the top of the fourth chapter.”

He pointed out important parts of the documents that Minister of the Interior Hara had brought.

After Saionji finished the fourth chapter at Hara’s urging he began reading its contents in detail.

“The Government-General of Korea is strongly requesting the construction of the Northeast Line from Hanyang to Hamheung?”

“Yes. As you know our Japanese troops stationed in Joseon have achieved the success of completely eradicating Joseon’s righteous army in the three southern provinces after two long years.”

“yes.”

“But in the Hamgyeong Province alone we are still struggling.”

“….”

“It is said that the supply of our troops is in danger due to the intensifying guerrilla attacks of our enemies. In order to resolve this Resident-General Sone is actively promoting the construction of the Northeast Line.”

While the home country is working hard to reduce expenditures the author the Resident-General of Joseon is doing the exact opposite.

Saionji clicked his tongue and shook his head from side to side.

“I understand but the timing is not right.”

I need to tighten my belt more.

Son this kid is actually crying out for an increase in the support budget.

At best they are sending rice or repatriating it to the home country.

There are so many things to wish for.

“Ha! It feels like pouring endless water into a broken jar.”

“Yes I think so too. Joseon is really like a money-eating ghost.”

“What I’m saying is.”

Saionji sighed as he looked at the map of the Korean Peninsula and the Japanese archipelago hanging in the center of his office.

“And yet the hardliners are just parroting about the annexation of Joseon. They are like fools.”

Protectorate and annexation policies are completely different concepts.

Since annexation is literally becoming one at least on the surface they should be treated the same as the mainland citizens.

Infrastructure too.

Education too.

The same goes for health care.

They say that the initial investment cost is enormous.

Of course hardliners emphasize that they can extract more money than the investment amount through violent exploitation.

At least that wasn’t the case in Saionji’s eyes.

Even if you merge them.

I thought it would be more stable to implement this after the financial situation had improved somewhat.

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“By the way is Sone Arasuke still holding on to his position as Governor-General?”

“yes.”

“He is truly more tenacious than iron tendon.”

Sone Arasuke who became the second Resident-General of Korea after Ito was from Katsura.

As one of the hardliners he naturally wanted to annex Joseon.

This means that the route is completely different from Saionji’s.

“Sone Tonggam has once again stated that he will carry out his duties until the end of his appointed term.”

“Even though I secretly put pressure on you?”

“yes.”

This is why people with strong convictions are difficult to control.

Sone believes that his final mission is to annex Joseon so he steadfastly refuses to step down despite Saionji’s pressure to do so.

Saionji narrowed his eyes and handed over a document from the cabinet to Minister of the Interior.

“Contact Prosecutor Nomura Takei. Tell him to launch a full-scale investigation into the corruption of Governor-General Sone Arasuke.”

“yes.”

The days of coaxing and appeasing the opposition are over.

If someone doesn’t listen you have to take action.

“dismissal.”

The office door opened and Saionji’s secretary came in.

“Prime Minister Takahashi who left for the United States on a business trip has just arrived at the official residence.”

Korekiyo Takahashi is one of the few economic experts in mainland Japan.

He served as the Deputy Governor of the Bank of Japan and then became Japan’s financial leader through Saionji’s unconventional personnel actions.

Upon hearing that he had returned Saionji jumped to his feet and brought Takahashi into his office with an expectant expression on his face.

“Your Majesty! Sit over here over here.”

Korekiyo Takahashi was not a person well-versed in politics perhaps because he had spent his entire life working on something related to studying numbers.

He entered the Prime Minister’s office with a dazed expression.

“What happened with the negotiations to extend the loan term?”

“We were able to extend more than our target amount.”

“okay?”

Saionji’s face became as bright as a full moon.

“JP Morgan and Lee Kang. I was nervous because they seem to be on good terms. I’m glad things are going well. By any chance what happened with the additional loan issuance?”

“This was also resolved relatively easily.”

Saionji looked surprised as he received Korekiyo Takahashi’s report.

“Morgan loaned an additional fifty million yen?”

“Yes. Not only Morgan but also the Rothschild family of England have promised to purchase additional government bonds. They even met with the Baron’s henchman in America and signed the contract.”

“okay?”

After Saionji checked the signed contract he exchanged glances with Takahashi again.

“The conditions are also very generous. An annual interest rate of 5%…”

“Isn’t it because we are well aware of Japan’s growth potential?”

“well.”

Korekiyo Takahashi who has no political power whatsoever.

That’s as far as he can help.

Saionji looked at Home Minister Hara and cautiously asked him what he thought.

“What do you think?”

“Morgan Rothschild and Rockefeller. These three powers are said to have been holding frequent meetings and coordinating their opinions. Recently Lee Kang has also been attending these meetings.”

Since it was a widely spread rumor among political and business figures Saionji nodded with a relatively calm expression.

Then Minister of the Interior Hara expressed his opinion.

“I think it’s because of internal political strife. Lee Kang has grown so much over the years.”

“Me too. It seems like they’re trying to keep that guy Lee Kang in check through us.”

“yes.”

Although he feels a bit bad about being used Saionji is willing to swallow his pride.

Because they are the ones in a hurry.

At a time when liquid funds were drying up due to the hardening of the monetary system the loan provided by Morgan and Rothschild was truly a life-saving gift.

“You can tell just by looking at the fact that they are not asking for the issuance of national bonds publicly but rather asking for it to be done through a private contract.”

“Yes.”

I guess he wants to keep it a secret from Lee Kang.

Well there is no such thing as an eternal secret but if a creditor asks for it there is no reason not to grant the request.

“Anyway thanks to you we have been able to put out the urgent fire. If we continue disarmament like this Japan will once again be able to rise to prominence in East Asia.”

There is hope.

Saionji clenched his fists and tried to revive the Japanese economy once again.

“Oh Prime Minister. I heard that guy Lee Kang has been touring Europe recently.”

“europe?”

In Japanese politics.

Especially for Saionji and Katsura Taro the word “Igang” is a taboo.

However Korekiyo Takahashi who was a bureaucrat and scholar with no political power whatsoever began to mention this and start to disturb the Prime Minister’s mind.

“Yes. Do you know the news?”

“That guy Lee Kang is in Europe not America?”

“I heard that he is currently in Germany after passing through the Netherlands and England. I heard that he is holding an airplane demonstration event at the Szczecin port near Berlin.”

“Airplane demonstration?”

“It is said that Lee Kang-i developed a military aircraft not just a civilian one. It is said that the German Emperor the Austrian Crown Prince and the Russian Archduke Mikhail will attend this event to see it.”

Japan was currently experiencing a slight economic downturn due to a liquidity crisis.

But you know.

I don’t know why but I feel like that guy Lee Kang is growing up.

“Ugh.”

Upon seeing Saionji’s unusual reaction Minister of the Interior Hara noticed the danger and stood up from his seat.

“Your Excellency the Prime Minister. Then I will take my leave now.”

Korekiyo Takahashi continues to sit in his seat as if he still doesn’t understand the situation.

I looked at Takahashi like that and spoke to him.

“Admiral Takahashi.”

“yes.”

“I have something to discuss. I’d like to talk to you on the way back.”

“Oh yes.”

Everyone is leaving.

Only Saionji remained in the office.

He meditated quietly for a while trying to figure out why Lee Kang was traveling around Europe.

* * *

“I never thought something like this would happen at this time.”

Three days ago.

I felt a little bad when Lee Kang’s name was mentioned.

A newspaper article that stimulated Saionji reached his ears.

“I never thought Lee Kang would release a military plane.”

The demonstration was reportedly a great success.

If everyone is lining up to meet Lee Kang after the event it pretty much says it all.

“How did I suppress the military forces….”

The problem is.

This news will not just spread within Europe and the United States.

The appearance of military aircraft was sure to awaken the Japanese military from its hibernation.

“Damn it. That fucking Lee Kang!”

When airplanes appeared.

The Japanese military also thought a lot about how to utilize this on the battlefield.

The reason we didn’t introduce it until now is because we judged it to be of little use.

but.

Now that Lee Kang has broken this logic the Japanese military will once again discuss it.

‘It really doesn’t help.’

We need to implement more aggressive disarmament and improve our economic structure.

This movement could be blocked by a new weapon called the military aircraft.

Furthermore they could have restored the reduced budget and even demanded more money.

A year later.

It was really bad timing as the aftermath of the raid was slowly fading from the public’s mind.

“Your Excellency the Prime Minister.”

“What’s going on?”

“The Admiralty has sent someone.”

“Tell him I’m busy.”

Look.

Isn’t the military already taking action?

“You find out for me why he wants to contact me.”

“yes.”

Saionji trembled and tried to come up with a plan.

That was when.

“Your Excellency! Your Excellency! Army Minister Yusaku Uhehara has just arrived at the Prime Minister’s Office.”

The secretary hurriedly opened the door to the official residence office and announced the arrival of a new person.

“I am coming up here to request an audience with Your Majesty.”

It’s already noisy outside.

This was because the idiot Army Minister Uhehara was pushing aside the dissuasion of the official residence staff and barging into Saionji’s office.

“Prime Minister did you sleep well last night?”

Saionji frowned and did not hide his displeasure at the sudden appearance of the Army Minister.

“You came here all of a sudden without an appointment… I guess something urgent came up.”

“I believe the Prime Minister has heard the hot news from Europe.”

“….”

“This guy Lee Kang seems to be pushing something very interesting.”

Army Minister Uhehara reported to the Prime Minister while sitting comfortably on the sofa with his legs crossed.

“I won’t beat around the bush and get straight to the point. I’m talking about that bomber plane. Let’s introduce it to Japan too.”

“Will Lee Kang sell that to us?”

“That’s true. Well since this is a problem that can be solved if we make it ourselves let’s skip over such trivial matters.”

Who develops military aircraft?

Who will pay for that?

Saionji barely held back his anger as he listened.

If that idiot Uhehara were to become angry and resign his cabinet could collapse in an instant.

“Well anyway.”

“….”

“Please assign this bomber to our army. [Exclusively].”

In a foolish move he even advised Prime Minister Saionji not to assign any aircraft to the Navy and asked him to restore the Army budget.

It was the moment when another deep wrinkle appeared on Saionji’s forehead.

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