The meeting ended on a sour note.

Stepping out of the Prime Minister's office, Chief of the General Staff General Uehara Yusaku stopped and looked back at the Cabinet building. War Minister Tanaka Giichi, observing the dark, predatory glint in Uehara's eyes, could not help but sigh inwardly.

Just then, the car arrived. Tanaka signaled for General Uehara to board. Once the vehicle was in motion, General Tanaka asked, "Uehara-kun, I heard Nagata-kun is being sent to Europe? Is that true?"

Hearing Nagata Tetsuzan's name, Uehara's anger subsided slightly. He replied coldly, "Nagata-kun applied to go to Europe. He wants to continue understanding Europe, to continue learning..."

"Oh?" Tanaka expressed a half-genuine surprise. "If Nagata-kun were sent to Vladivostok, perhaps he could achieve great results."

Uehara shook his head, ignoring the bait. "Tanaka-kun, would you join me in submitting a memorial to the Emperor?"

Tanaka shook his head slightly. Personally, he had no interest in occupying the Far East. It wasn't that he supported Prime Minister Hara Takashi, but rather that he believed such a policy offered no real return. Invading Russia was not the same as directly annexing Russian territory. Unless the Russian government signed a territorial treaty with Japan, the nations of the world would not recognize Japanese-controlled regions as belonging to Japan.

Although Tanaka did not support Hara's policy, he agreed with Hara's view that "Great Britain would never agree." If Britain did not provide support, the cost of Japan facing Russia alone would be completely disproportionate to the gains.

However, as a military man, Tanaka did not wish to come into direct conflict with Uehara Yusaku. So he sighed and said, "His Majesty the Emperor has completely accepted the views of Hara and his ilk. Our submission would only provoke His Majesty's holy wrath. It would help nothing."

The dark, dangerous light flashed in Uehara's eyes again. The Chief of Staff felt the urge to wash the Cabinet in blood.

But General Uehara quickly pulled himself out of such emotions. *Tenchu*—Heaven's punishment on traitors—was not something to be rushed. If Hara were suddenly "punished by Heaven" now, it would instead provoke the wrath of the Taishō Emperor, who had been bewitched by politicians like Hara. The next one to take the stage would likely be another politician with the same ideas.

Looking at Tanaka beside him, General Uehara laughed. "Speaking of Nagata-kun earlier, he believes He Rui has been an enemy of the Empire of Japan from the very beginning. By 1925 at the latest, He Rui will be at war with the Empire."

Tanaka Giichi was not one to be swayed easily. He smiled. "If Nagata-kun truly said that, then he truly understands the meaning of the Manchuria-Mongolia lifeline."

Uehara had no interest in listening to Tanaka fire blanks. Seeing that Tanaka was about to launch into a grand theory, he cut straight to the point. "Tanaka-kun, as the Minister of War, do you truly not wish to expand the Empire's frontiers? The Empire's strength is currently at its peak since the Meiji Restoration. The European Great Powers have been weakened by the war. This is the Empire of Japan's opportunity!"

Tanaka had not expected Uehara to be so direct and was momentarily at a loss for words. There were countless men like Uehara in the army; their understanding of the world remained stuck in the era of the First Sino-Japanese War, believing that acquiring land and reparations through military victory was the only correct path.

For Tanaka, the "Manchuria-Mongolia lifeline" centered on the "lifeline," not "Manchuria-Mongolia." Manchuria and Mongolia were mentioned only because, compared to other options, they were the easiest targets to secure. If Japan's national destiny shifted and a better option appeared, Tanaka would not hesitate to propose a different lifeline.

In this regard, Uehara was truly inferior to Nagata Tetsuzan. Nagata won the praise of the army elders because he proposed schemes for *how* to strengthen Japan.

At this level, those who understood, understood; those who didn't, never would. Tanaka remained silent for a long while before suddenly speaking. "We've arrived at the Ministry of War. Uehara-kun, I will get off first. Farewell."

As soon as he spoke, the car stopped at the Ministry's entrance. The door opened, and Tanaka stepped out. He bowed politely to Uehara inside the car, turned, and walked through the gates.

Watching Tanaka's back disappear, Uehara felt a turmoil of emotions. Even within the military, there were not many who supported action against Russia, a fact that infuriated him.

The car started up again quickly. Uehara had made up his mind. Since this group refused to act, he would have to fight for the Empire of Japan alone.

Upon returning to the General Staff Headquarters, a staff officer rushed over with a document. Without even waiting for Uehara, the officer spoke, his voice trembling with excitement, "Excellency, the White Russians... the White Russian Provisional Government has been defeated by Soviet Russia. They are requesting our aid."

Uehara's eyes widened. He had been expecting this, but he hadn't thought it would happen today.

Opening the file, the attached telegram draft confirmed the officer's words. Uehara was overjoyed and immediately ordered, "Meeting!"

The members of the General Staff assembled rapidly. Upon learning that the opportunity for full-scale intervention in the Russian Civil War had arrived, their reaction mirrored General Uehara's exactly. Ushijima Mitsuru, in particular, shouted with an excitement that bordered on a loss of composure, "Excellency, let's do it!"

Now that the opportunity was here, General Uehara actually became calm, refusing to be influenced by a junior officer like Ushijima.

"Prepare operational plans immediately," Uehara ordered.

As his subordinates sprang into action, Uehara began to consider how to achieve his goal in one stroke. The Imperial Japanese Army General Staff was the command authority; operations were formulated by the General Staff and submitted to the Emperor. If the Emperor approved, the operational plan would be issued as an imperial decree to the Ministry of War, and the War Minister would be responsible for execution.

This was why Uehara had been forced to drag Tanaka along to persuade Prime Minister Hara. The current Emperor, Taishō, was deeply influenced by party politics in his policy-making; it was no longer the era of Emperor Meiji, where the monarch and the military were united in heart and mind.

If the Emperor rejected Uehara's plan, it naturally could not be implemented. And it was the Ministry of War, not the General Staff, that commanded the front lines. The General Staff had no power to bypass the Ministry and command troops directly.

Given Tanaka Giichi's behavior, the old fox likely believed the Emperor would not agree to a plan for formal war with Russia, hence his vacillation.

How could the Emperor be persuaded?

After some thought, Uehara suddenly hit upon a method. He called for his trusted aide, Lieutenant Colonel Ikeda, and whispered a few instructions.

***

That evening, Lieutenant Colonel Ikeda of the General Staff walked into a restaurant. Amid the owner's warm "Welcome," Ikeda entered. Sitting in a corner, he looked around and saw that, even at dinner time, there were very few customers. Seeing this situation, Ikeda felt a pang of sadness.

Since the end of the war, the Japanese economy had been hit hard, and the market was deteriorating day by day. Not to mention comparing it to the wartime period over a year ago, even compared to six months ago, the number of customers was far lower.

As he was thinking, the entrance curtain lifted, and two people walked in. The owner quickly stepped forward to bow and welcome them.

Ikeda saw the leader was wearing a western suit—it was his classmate Iguchi, who worked at the *Asahi Shimbun*. He stood up. Immediately, Ikeda froze. Behind Iguchi followed a young woman.

She wore a British Victorian-style light grey coat and a newsboy cap favored by reporters. Her attire was clean and sharp, her round face very cute, yet she exuded the air of a scholar. For Ikeda to be assigned to the General Staff meant he was an elite graduate of the Army War College; he had seen many people. Yet at a glance, he could not figure out this young woman's background.

Iguchi walked up to Ikeda, and the two shook hands directly. Iguchi then introduced, "Ikeda-kun, this is the newcomer the paper assigned me to mentor, Miss Morita. Morita, this is my elementary school classmate, Ikeda."

Facing Miss Morita's polite and warm greeting, Ikeda hurriedly returned the bow. The three sat down. It was Ikeda's first time facing a career woman, and he was momentarily unadjusted. Reporter Iguchi, seeing Ikeda's reaction, laughed. "Ikeda, don't underestimate Miss Morita. She is a graduate of Tohoku Imperial University—a genuine female university student. If it weren't to see you, I wouldn't have asked Morita to come out this late. Speak, what's the big news?"

Hearing that the person opposite him was a female university student, Ikeda was shocked. Having served in the military for many years, Ikeda had seen dozens of generals, and had met Marshals and even Imperial Princes more than once. Even His Majesty the Emperor, Ikeda had seen from a relatively close distance at a conference.

However, a living, breathing Japanese female university student was something Ikeda was seeing for the first time in his life. It made him bow his head to Reporter Morita again.

Morita Mitsuko, seeing Ikeda's demeanor, smiled faintly and said, "Iguchi-kun, perhaps I should go for a walk outside?"

Iguchi knew exactly why the editor-in-chief of *Asahi Shimbun* had sent Morita Mitsuko to follow him, so naturally, he did not agree. As long as Lieutenant Colonel Ikeda did not explicitly state he wanted to pass news privately, Morita Mitsuko had to be there watching. For a reporter, social experience was a crucial accumulation.

Ikeda had absolutely no thought of asking the female reporter to leave. He was simply suppressing himself, trying not to stare at Miss Morita. Female university students had powerful families behind them; being impolite could have consequences Ikeda might not be able to bear.

By this time, the restaurant owner had served two side dishes and a pot of sake. Miss Morita arranged the sake cups, picked up the pot, and poured for the three of them.

This elegance and thoughtfulness gave Ikeda a very good impression. He raised his cup and said to Miss Morita, "A pleasure to meet you."

Morita revealed a polite, sweet smile. When Iguchi raised his cup, she did the same. After the three clinked cups, Morita held her slightly loose left sleeve with her right hand, said "A pleasure," and drained the cup in one go.

Seeing such an elegant yet bold manner, Ikeda felt that what had been a dull affair was becoming interesting.

The three ate and chatted. A while later, hearing Ikeda recount recent events, Reporter Iguchi frowned. "Is the request for troops from the White Russian Provisional Government confirmed?"

Lieutenant Colonel Ikeda really didn't want to answer such a stupid question. Moreover, Miss Morita was refilling his empty cup again. The faint scent of perfume from Miss Morita made Ikeda feel unable to focus. To cover his lapse, he drained the cup again.

As soon as he put it down, Iguchi laughed. "Even if you want to get drunk, make the matter clear first."

Riding the alcohol, Lieutenant Colonel Ikeda sighed deeply. "The Empire's opportunity is right before our eyes, but judging by the government's intent, they actually want to let it slip away."

Reporter Iguchi knew, of course, that his old classmate's purpose in coming was not to catch up, but to use the *Asahi Shimbun* channel to leak this news. But this matter was indeed beyond Iguchi's authority; he dared not give his classmate any promises. Especially since the *Asahi Shimbun* editorial department had published quite a few articles on the Far East situation. Since the president of the paper had been called in for a meal by the higher-ups, the tendency was toward even greater caution.

Seeing Iguchi remain silent, Ikeda's dissatisfaction flared. He asked, "Iguchi-kun, do you not think this is an opportunity?"

Iguchi remained silent, simply taking a sip from his cup. Expanding territory was certainly an opportunity, but after being a reporter for so long, Iguchi's view of the world was very different from when he was young. He could no longer simply disregard everything for some possibility. Furthermore, the lesson of the Russo-Japanese War was not far behind. The Japanese Army had taken the impregnable Port Arthur fortress, and the Navy had annihilated almost all of Russia's capital ships with minimal losses.

From the perspective of victory alone, it was indeed an unprecedented triumph for Japan. Politically and economically, Japan had gained Britain's respect and signed the Anglo-Japanese Alliance.

However, the Katsura government, which had achieved such success, collapsed amidst the spitting curses of the entire Japanese populace. The Japanese people were certainly happy with the victory, but they absolutely could not accept that the war ended without obtaining any reparations.

Now the White Russian Provisional Government was asking for help. Based on the intelligence Iguchi had, the White Russian government could give Japan very little. Its leader was Admiral Kolchak, who had fought in the previous Russo-Japanese War. He would never cede land to Japan, and most of the gold the White Russian government carried had been used to buy arms and supplies from Northeast China.

If Japan sent troops this time, even if they won a great victory, they could not obtain territorial cessions or reparations. The current Hara Cabinet would never make such a choice.

Iguchi made his judgment while sipping his sake slowly. Seeing Iguchi's reaction, Lieutenant Colonel Ikeda felt he had found the wrong person. If it were a reporter bent on scooping news, they would be asking for details immediately.

Since Iguchi didn't react, Ikeda looked at the female reporter, Morita. Perhaps it was the alcohol, combined with his inner frustration, but Ikeda posed the question to her. "Miss Morita, do you support sending troops?"

Miss Morita displayed that polite, sweet smile again. "If I could interview the General Staff when the troops are sent, that would be wonderful."

Ikeda was delighted by these words. Feeling even more contempt for his old classmate Iguchi, he turned back and asked, "Well, Iguchi, can you report it?"

Iguchi still dared not agree. He was also somewhat impressed by his colleague Morita Mitsuko's answer. It was a classic evasion; Morita Mitsuko's response was a perfect model. His classmate Ikeda seemed not to notice at all that Morita Mitsuko hadn't answered the question but had used a very clever verbal trick to make him think she supported the war.

Morita Mitsuko could do this, but Iguchi could not. Finally, Iguchi steeled his heart. It was indeed big news, and the kind the Japanese public loved most. If he offended his old classmate, his opportunities to get information in the future would be much fewer. Iguchi grit his teeth and replied, "Please wait and watch the papers in the coming days, Ikeda-kun."

Finally receiving a clear answer from Iguchi, Ikeda was relieved. Raising his glass, he said, "May the Imperial Japanese Army be victorious in every battle."

They chatted for a while longer until Iguchi said, "It's getting late. I need to escort Morita home."

Ikeda somehow found the courage to say, "If it's alright, I'll join the escort."

Iguchi smiled bitterly and looked at Morita.

Joining the escort squad, Ikeda became more and more surprised as they walked. The direction Morita Mitsuko was heading was the old downtown of Tokyo, not the wealthy district. Arriving at her door, Ikeda looked at the very ordinary small courtyard with puzzlement. This kind of old courtyard was too far removed from Morita's status as a university student. A university student might emerge from such a place, but absolutely not a *female* university student.

After Mitsuko went inside, Ikeda finally asked, "Iguchi, whose relative is this Miss Mitsuko?"

Iguchi hesitated, but having been pestered by the curious Ikeda all the way back, he finally answered, "Go check at the General Staff. There's definitely a file on Miss Morita. As for who that person is, I really can't say."

Ikeda nodded and committed this to memory.

When he woke up the next day, Ikeda had forgotten about it. After breakfast, he hurried to the General Staff and picked up the *Asahi Shimbun*, only to find no news about the White Russian Provisional Government. This disappointed Ikeda greatly.

By late morning, arriving at his office, Ikeda checked the latest edition again. Finally, he found the news in an inconspicuous spot on the first page. However, the placement was quite different from the massive coverage Lieutenant Colonel Ikeda had expected.

Looking at this inconspicuous spot, Ikeda suddenly remembered the news about the female reporter, Morita. Unable to restrain himself, he actually ran to the archives and asked the person in charge to help look for a file on a young woman named Morita.

The officer in charge listened to the details and asked for confirmation with a confused look. Ikeda replied, "That's right, a girl about twenty years old."

The officer looked carefully at the official request Ikeda had brought, then went into the archives without a word. Ikeda thought the search would take a long time, but less than five minutes later, the officer walked out, holding a file.

Ikeda took the file with great suspicion. Flipping to the first page, he was dumbfounded.

The very first entry in the file stated clearly: "Sworn Brother: He Rui."

As a graduate of the Army War College and a staff officer at the General Staff, Ikeda knew exactly *which* He Rui this was.

Ikeda had never imagined that the female reporter Morita's backer was actually the Chinese warlord He Rui.