The matter of Tenmangu Shrine will naturally be investigated by the Imperial Household Agency and the police. After leaving Tenmangu Shrine, Akagi took a car to the hotel arranged by the people of the agency.
"My lord, it has been rified. That Dingyuan Pavilion was constructed during the Meiji Era, during the Sino-Japanese War. The shrine priest of Tenmangu Shrine, Ono Ryosuke, leveraged his position as a member of the National Diet to gain permission from the headquarters at the time to salvage and dismantle the wreck of The Dingyuan battleship before building it." Upon returning to the room, the agency''s attendant, who had already collected enough information, quickly reported to Akagi.
Akagi naturally understood that the attendant sent by the Imperial Household Agency was not merely responsible for arranging her amodations. She wasn''t surprised at how he obtained the information and simply asked him, "What exactly did they suppress?"
"The souls of the soldiers who died aboard The Dingyuan, as well as a portion of the Qing Empire''s national fortune at that time." Such matters may be difficult for others to investigate, but it is quite easy for the Imperial Household Agency and the police institutions that wield Japan''s transcendent power to uncover the truth.
Moreover, the temple priests of Tenmangu Shrine, whose shrine had been destroyed, dared not provoke a demigod anymore. They promptly revealed everything.
"Suppressing the Qing Empire''s national fortune? The Qing Empire has long since perished. What they''re suppressing now is China''s national fortune, isn''t it?" Akagi instantly understood that the people of Tenmangu Shrine were downying the matter and trying to hide the most critical part.
The attendant from the agency, however, smiled bitterly and said, "They want to, but they can''t."
"Oh? What''s going on here?" Hearing this, Akagi grew curious and signaled him to continue speaking.
"After the Qing Empire fell, this portion of the Qing Empire''s national fortune lost its foundation. A nation''s fate is an incredibly precious thing, a treasure even for deities. Thus, Tenmangu Shrine took the opportunity to absorb this portion of the Qing Empire''s national fortune into its divine domain," the attendant exined, with a hint of admiration for the audacity of the shrine priests of Tenmangu Shrine. "Initially, Tenmangu Shrine did this covertly, without anyone knowing. However, the matter came to light after World War I, and the Headquarters then made this the basis for a n to steal China''s national fortune to enhance Japan''s own national fortune."
"Those lunatics in the Headquarters. They never came up with any rational ns back then. Stealing China''s national fortune? What were they even thinking?" Thinking of the insane ns devised during World War II, Akagi felt a surge of anger.
Faced with Akagi''s inquiry, the agency''s attendant gathered his thoughts before revealing the newly acquired ssified information: "At the time, the Headquarters leveraged this portion of the Qing Empire''s national fortune, transferring it onto the Qing Dynasty''sst emperor. Using this as the foundation, they forcibly continued the already extinct Qing Empire''s national fortune and grafted it onto China''s national fortune.
The Headquarters nned to use this method to absorb China''s national fortune and thereby boost Japan''s national fortune, enabling Japan to win World War II.
Initially, the n progressed smoothly. With the Imperial Family requesting assistance from the Heavenly Deity summoned from Gao Tianyuan via the Ise Grand Shrine, the transfer of the Qing Empire''s national fortune onto the Qing Dynasty''sst emperor, its continuation, and its grafting onto China''s national fortune—all went very sessfully."
"And then? I recall that what the Army concocted wasn''t recognized by the people there," Akagimented. Although she was part of the Navy back then, she had some understanding of the Army''s ns, especially during the war. These matters were often discussed by the Navy leadership, and Akagi still remembered them.
Hearing Akagi''s statement, the agency''s attendant suddenly realized that Akagi had been directly involved in the war at that time. Quickly continuing, he said, "Indeed, as His Excellency the Demigod said, although the grafting of the national fortune was sessful and the puppet regime created by the Army did allow this portion of the national fortune to reconnect and absorb from China''s national fortune, theck of recognition from the Chinese people meant that this portion of the fortune was effectively stolen.
It never worked as the Headquarters had envisioned—directly extracting China''s national fortune. They could only pilfer bits and pieces of it to sustain the puppet regime they had established, while the idea of the Headquarters to strengthen Japan''s national fortune by stealing China''s never came to fruition."
Akagi was unsurprised by this oue. She remembered that many of the ns created by the Headquarters during World War II seemed magnificent on the surface but were in reality poorly conceived, leading to far greater consumption of resources than gains.
After hearing the attendant''s exnation, however, Akagi still had some lingering doubts. She asked him, "ording to what you''ve said, this portion of the Qing Empire''s national fortune should have been used during World War II. But Japan eventually lost the war, and the so-called puppet regime was eradicated. Didn''t this portion of the national fortune backfire?"
"Naturally, it backfired." This information was originally ssified, but the Imperial Household Agency could still ess records from the Imperial Family to uncover rted details. "At the time of the national fortune bacsh, the deity Sugawara no Michizane, enshrined at Tenmangu Shrine and responsible for this matter, was severely wounded and fell into a deep sleep.
Japan''s own national fortune, however, didn''t suffer much impact since it hadn''t absorbed much from China at the time. On the other hand, the Qing Dynasty''sst emperor, who could have enjoyed a life of modest wealth, ended up dying in misery due to the national fortune bacsh."
Upon hearing this exnation, Akagi couldn''t help but feel a sense of schadenfreude. Although she had once been part of the Japanese Navy, she was now Chen Yu''s subordinate, and her current feelings toward the old Headquarters were far more hateful than nostalgic.
"What happened afterward? How did they end up like this?" Akagi already had her suspicions but still asked the attendant.
"After the war, Tenmangu Shrine remained deceitful, continuing to suppress this portion of the Qing Empire''s national fortune through the Dingyuan Pavilion. Furthermore, they tried to use this national fortune to heal the severely injured Sugawara no Michizane. However, given that this national fortunecked roots and a source, their efforts werergely futile," the attendant exined, having thoroughly learned about the shrine priests'' postwar activities. "Previously, during the 120th anniversary of the Sino-Japanese War, China sought the return of the relics from The Dingyuan battleship, but Tenmangu Shrine still attempted to use The Dingyuan to suppress this portion of the national fortune. They even sought to connect it to China''s national fortune itself, in an attempt to steal China''s fortune to heal Sugawara no Michizane. This time, the two demigods likely came knocking because of this matter."
"Hmph! Bastards!" After hearing the attendant''s exnation, Akagi cursed under her breath. After thinking for a moment, she instructed him: "Demand that Tenmangu Shrine dismantle all the relics of The Dingyuan from Dingyuan Pavilion and return them to China. As for the destruction of Tenmangu Shrine, just say it was caused by lightning. Regarding rumors among the public, I trust you know how to handle them."
"Yes, we will handle it properly." The attendant did not question Akagi''s decision. Bowing in acknowledgment, he left the room to take care of the matter.