In the once majestic and sacred inner courtyard of the Imperial Palace, on one side were many ministers tied up securely, and on the other were revolutionary officers and soldiers loaded with live ammunition. Two noble Lord Keepers of the Privy Seal, flustered inside but pretending to be calm, blocked the entrance to the main hall together with himself. This scene gave Saionji Kinmochi a familiar feeling, as if it had appeared in a dream sometime.

It wasn't until Ishiwara walked calmly from the passage cleared by the revolutionary officers and soldiers to stand in front of him that Saionji Kinmochi was completely sure that this was not a dream, but a reality happening for the first time.

After Ishiwara saluted Saionji, he said frankly, "Excellency, I am here. I demand to enter the main hall!"

A complex emotion surged in Saionji's chest, making him stop speaking just as he was about to. Confronting Ishiwara silently, Saionji finally spoke, "Ishiwara-kun, you won. Now you can decide Japan's future and can submit your expected governing strategy to His Majesty the Emperor at any time. So, let's stop here, okay? Withdraw from the Imperial Palace with your troops; His Majesty will summon you soon and promulgate an edict."

He thought Ishiwara would think about it, but Saionji immediately heard Ishiwara's reply, "Excellency, only by pushing Japan onto the path of revolution will Japan have a future. If I stop at my personal victory, Japan will have no future. And I will also become a traitor to the revolution. So please step aside, Excellency; let us complete the final step of the revolution."

Ishiwara's tone was calm and unhurried, with no intention of compromise. Saionji stared at Ishiwara and couldn't see the slightest wavering in him. Joy and sorrow surged in Saionji's chest again; Saionji understood that his final moment had arrived.

Taking a breath, Saionji answered, "Ishiwara-kun, I can never let you enter the Emperor's bedchamber."

Saying this, Saionji raised his pistol and aimed at Ishiwara, preparing to pull the trigger. The moment before the 70-something-year-old man pulled the trigger, the guard beside Ishiwara had already flashed in front of Ishiwara and fired at Saionji first. Saionji's body seemed to be hammered successively; after shaking a few times, he fell backward.

The revolutionary officers and soldiers and the captured high officials were all stunned. A moment later, angry exclamations and curses came from the high officials. The revolutionary officers and soldiers hadn't expected the respected Saionji Kinmochi to die in front of everyone like this, and for a moment were somewhat at a loss. However, Ishiwara's violent shout instantly suppressed other voices, "Ando, take the troops in. Kill anyone who resists without mercy. Saito, make those national traitors shut up! Aizawa, notify all field officers to come to the palace gate!"

"Yes!", "Understood!", "Yes!"

The three Future Society key members whose names were called answered immediately and sprang into action. In the inner courtyard of the Imperial Palace, Puyi saw a squad of Japanese soldiers gripping rifles with fixed bayonets rushing into the palace main hall. Another officer took a rifle, walked among the high officials, raised the rifle, and smashed it down.

Although the revolutionary officers and soldiers guarding the high officials in the inner courtyard respected Saionji Kinmochi very much, they showed no mercy to those national traitor high officials, either picking up weapons or directly punching and kicking them. In an instant, the high officials wailed. Before long, the cursing and wailing stopped. It could be seen that this group of high officials chose to suffer less physical pain in the face of pure violence.

Is this a revolution? Puyi had mixed feelings in his heart. He once thought that if the Qing court hadn't surrendered, they might have been able to hold on for a while longer, and during this time, the situation might have turned around. Seeing everything happening with his own eyes, Puyi understood why the Qing court surrendered back then. If they hadn't surrendered, everything happening before his eyes would have happened inside the Forbidden City in the capital. Moreover, Japan was a powerful country, only driven into a desperate situation strategically, far from the loss of sovereignty and national humiliation of the Qing Dynasty. If a revolution broke out in the Qing Dynasty, the end of the Qing nobles would only be more miserable.

At this time, Ishiwara walked up the stairs, knelt on one knee in front of Saionji Kinmochi's corpse, and pulled the revolver from the old man's hand. Standing up, Ishiwara opened the cylinder; it was empty, without a single bullet. Ishiwara sighed slightly, unable to say anything.

Saionji Kinmochi had various opportunities not to die, but the old man chose loyalty and righteousness belonging to him personally. And those who deserved to die were all trying hard to live, and witnessed the old man die with their own eyes.

At this time, gunshots, shouts of battle, and screams of the dying came intermittently from the bedchamber. But the battle was not fierce; there should be very few resistors. This made Ishiwara feel even more emotional; so-called loyalty was just this kind of thing. The only motivation for those high officials to gather together was the power to prey on the people. When this power was destined to collapse, those who shouted loyalty every day would not choose to martyr themselves for their way but would try their best to choose to survive.

Before long, Ando walked quickly out of the bedchamber. He was breathing rapidly, visibly very excited. When standing at attention and saluting Ishiwara, Ando's body couldn't help trembling slightly. He shouted loudly, "Reporting to Excellency, the battle has ended. The inside of the Imperial Palace has been completely controlled by us!"

Ando's voice was loud enough, and he was facing the direction of the group of revolutionary officers and soldiers in the inner courtyard. Puyi and other officers and soldiers heard Ando's report. Puyi only felt his heart seemed to be gripped tightly by something, yet beat fiercely. This impulse made Puyi feel confused, actually somewhat muddled. However, a thought flashed abnormally clearly in his mind. The Imperial Guard Division annihilated, high officials captured, the Emperor also controlled—the revolution succeeded?!

Puyi felt the revolutionary officers and soldiers around him were stunned in place, unbelieving like him. Just then, Ishiwara ordered loudly, "The revolution has not fully succeeded yet. Ando, take the Emperor and his family to outside Sakuradamon."

"Yes!" Ando answered loudly.

Puyi couldn't help shuddering. Vaguely, Puyi understood something, but he dared not touch that thought. Because that thought was too terrifying; let alone thinking it through, even thinking in that direction made Puyi lose the courage to think.

In less than an hour, Aizawa Saburō had led the vast majority of field officers to Sakuradamon. Although the battle to attack Tokyo was fierce, the enemy only had this much strength in Tokyo. After being wiped out, there were no other special threats in Tokyo. So not only the generals and field officers came, but the Future Society key members, mainly junior and middle-ranking officers, also came outside Sakuradamon.

At this time, a simple platform had been erected outside Sakuradamon. Below the platform, those high officials were brought out and made to kneel in front of the platform. Searchlights lit up on the dilapidated Sakuradamon wall, beams of light gathering on the platform. Thousands of people surrounding the platform clearly saw Ishiwara walking up the platform along a ramp made of wooden boards.

Several soldiers carried two trays onto the platform. These things were used to carry the Emperor during festivals or ministers during sacrifices. There were two bound people on them. Seeing these two people, Okamura's breathing couldn't help but stop. The revolutionary officers and soldiers might not recognize these two, but Okamura recognized them; they were the current Emperor Taisho and the Regent Crown Prince Hirohito.

Ishiwara on the stage knew his physical fitness was very average, and he didn't have the ability to chop off the heads of the Emperor and his son with a sword. If he let kendo instructor Aizawa Saburō perform Kaishaku (beheading) for the Emperor and his son, he could certainly chop off their heads cleanly. But politically, this would weaken the resentment condensed by Ishiwara executing the Emperor and his son. If Ishiwara couldn't condense the resentment of the citizens, he couldn't condense the expectations of the citizens.

So, Ishiwara held a submachine gun in his right hand and took the microphone with his left hand, shouting loudly to the officers and soldiers below the stage, "Comrades of the Revolutionary Army, the person on the left is the current Emperor Taisho, and the person on the right is the current Crown Prince Hirohito."

Many of the officers and soldiers below the stage had seen Taisho and Hirohito from afar, but more officers and soldiers didn't even have this opportunity. Seeing Ishiwara standing behind the two with a submachine gun in one hand, their soldier's intuition made them sigh aloud. The sighs of thousands of people converged into a gale-like movement sweeping across the open space in front of Sakuradamon.

Ishiwara felt the pressure from the officers and soldiers. Maintaining an upright posture, he shouted to the officers and soldiers, "Some say the Emperor is in the Imperial Palace and knows nothing. This is not true. Everyone has entered the Imperial Palace; can just this little distance block the news? This is impossible!

Some say it is the Cabinet and the high officials who betrayed the citizens. If these Cabinet members and high officials did not have the permission of the Emperor and the Crown Prince, it would be absolutely impossible for them to obtain power and status. In the newspapers, which Cabinet change was not approved by the Emperor?

Therefore, the Emperor and the Crown Prince, like those national traitor high officials, are responsible for Japan's current pain and despair. Our revolution is to let Japanese citizens have a beautiful future. Then the first step is to make these national traitor high officials take responsibility! If they don't have to take responsibility, doesn't it mean that all pain is the responsibility of the citizens?

Therefore, today, I, Ishiwara Kanji, will become a regicide! If the Emperor does not die, if the Emperor system is not overthrown, Japan has no future!"

Taisho was already seriously ill at this time. Although he wanted to refute a few words, his weak body and the binding he had never experienced made Taisho's mind groggy, unable to make a sound.

Hirohito was 26 years old this year and very healthy. When he was carried out bound, the huge sense of shame made Hirohito speechless. Hearing that Ishiwara was actually going to do it for real, under shock, Hirohito disregarded the ugly state of being bound, raised his head, and rebuked angrily, "Ishiwara, you are committing treason!"

Ishiwara wasn't scared by these words at all; instead, he felt Hirohito was unexpectedly cooperative. If Hirohito didn't ask this, Ishiwara speaking alone would seem to lack persuasiveness.

Holding the microphone, Ishiwara said loudly, "Just now, the Crown Prince asked me if I was committing treason. I want to answer his question. I, Ishiwara Kanji, want to overthrow Japan's imperial system and establish a Japanese Republic owned by Japanese citizens! From this perspective, I, Ishiwara, am not committing treason! If I, Ishiwara, overthrew the current government and formed another imperial government, that would be called treason. Comrades of the Revolutionary Army, I, Ishiwara, will become a regicide, but I, Ishiwara, will absolutely not become a traitor.

I announce here, if I, Ishiwara Kanji, become a traitor, the whole world can execute me!"

Hearing this, the revolutionary officers and soldiers were speechless. Those Future Society members who already knew Ishiwara's purpose were waiting to see if Ishiwara really dared to commit regicide. Many of those officers and soldiers willing to revolt didn't know Ishiwara actually wanted to completely overthrow the Japanese imperial system and establish a republic. These officers and soldiers were either shocked by Ishiwara's courage or delighted that Ishiwara didn't plan to establish an old system.

No matter what these people were thinking, everyone's eyes were fixed on Ishiwara. They saw Ishiwara throw down the microphone, raise the submachine gun, and start strafing Hirohito's back. Da da da da..., a whole clip of bullets hit Hirohito's back, smashing his entire back to pieces. Prostrate on the table in a kneeling posture, his forehead touching the table surface, he died on the spot.

Ishiwara pulled out the magazine and replaced it with a new one. At this time, the high officials below the stage began to wail like ghosts and howl like wolves. Ishiwara bent down to pick up the microphone and said loudly, "High officials, you always demand citizens to be loyal to the Emperor. Now, it's time for you to be loyal. When the Emperor returns to heaven later, please commit seppuku one by one to fulfill the loyalty and righteousness you usually talk about."

After speaking, Ishiwara threw down the microphone again, walked behind Taisho who was too weak to speak, and pulled the trigger.

Another burst of da da da da shooting. The high officials didn't say a word this time. They understood now that Ishiwara really wanted to completely destroy Japan's imperial system. The Emperor and his son were executed; next, it would be the turn of the 'pillars of the Empire', the high officials.

The bullets were quickly used up. Ishiwara threw down the submachine gun, picked up the microphone, and shouted, "Gentlemen, today I have executed the Emperor. The revolution does not end here, but has just begun. Gentlemen, Great Japanese Citizens... Banzai!"

Below the stage was as quiet as death. Whether high officials or revolutionary officers and soldiers, they were speechless under the strong impact. Emperors had been killed quite a few times in Japanese history, and imprisonment of Emperors happened even more often. But Ishiwara Kanji was the first to kill the Emperor with the goal of establishing a republic. Witnessing Ishiwara really execute the Emperor and his son with their own eyes, the Japanese officers and soldiers were rendered speechless by something for a moment.

Puyi below the stage felt his hair stand on end at this time, completely understanding what he had dodged. It turned out that the history books' records of the ruler of a fallen country dying without dignity were actually true. And in history, revolutions that executed the ruler of a fallen country never failed to succeed.

Thinking that he had dodged such a fate, Puyi only felt intense fear. A thought popped up immediately: what if his identity was known by these Japanese Revolutionary Army soldiers who dared to kill even the Emperor...

Under such intense fear, Puyi suddenly shouted loudly. In the silence, Puyi shouted with a sharp tone that almost broke, "Japan Revolution Banzai! Great Japanese Citizens Banzai!"

Originally, Puyi thought others would shout, so he had to shout too; only in this way could he avoid being noticed. Unexpectedly, only Puyi shouted alone on the square. Seeing that people around him didn't shout along, Puyi subconsciously shouted loudly again, "Japan Revolution Banzai! Great Japanese Citizens Banzai!"

After shouting this time, the unease in his heart subsided a little. Puyi discovered he was actually the only one echoing Ishiwara Kanji, which made Puyi panic even more. A moment later, Aizawa Saburō shouted with a deep voice, "Revolution Banzai!"

Future Society members also knew there was no retreat, so they followed and shouted, "Revolution Banzai! Great Japanese Citizens Banzai!"

The shouts became higher and louder, as if infectious, sweeping the revolutionary officers and soldiers on the square into it. No matter what these people thought initially, at this time they all understood that if this revolution didn't succeed, everyone on the square would surely die without a burial place. Even if they defected to the opposite side of the revolution immediately, they would be eventually liquidated for appearing here. After Ishiwara publicly executed the Emperor and his son, they had no other choice.

Amidst the tsunami-like shouts, many kneeling high officials also calculated in their hearts whether they would have a sliver of a chance to survive if they also shouted 'Long live the revolution' together at this time.

Ishiwara had already executed the Emperor and his son and pointed out the future of the Japanese Republic. If the old-era high officials couldn't jump to Ishiwara's side immediately, there really wasn't any possibility of survival.

On the execution platform filled with the bloody scent of the Emperor and his son, Ishiwara looked at the revolutionary officers and soldiers who were all shouting non-stop due to excitement, and his heart finally relaxed a little. If he didn't go to this extent, but simply changed to an Ishiwara government, the Japanese revolution was destined not to succeed. Because the enemy of the Japanese revolution was actually not the Emperor, but the entire old system of Japan.

Seeing that the revolutionary officers and soldiers below the stage were a bit too excited, Ishiwara raised his hand high and made a gesture for silence. Under the searchlight, Ishiwara's action was seen by all officers and soldiers. A moment later, the shouting gradually stopped, and everyone looked at Ishiwara, this daring regicide.

And Ishiwara had already picked up the microphone and started singing the Future Society's "Song of the Japanese Revolution".

"Waves crash in the Miluo Abyss, clouds surge over Mount Wu. I stand alone in the murky world, singing a song of righteous indignation and hot blood..."

Future Society members also sang along in unison, "The powerful and high-born are arrogant men, with no intention of worrying about the country and no sincerity. The zaibatsu and huge rich boast wantonly, not thinking of the state or the people's livelihood.

Sighing at personal glory while the country declines, the people in the dusty world are all blind. Order and chaos, rise and fall are things in dreams; worldly affairs are just like a game of chess.

Abandoning the sad song of Li Sao, the days of tragic and generous songs are gone. We hold a three-foot sword in our palms, waiting to cleanse the treacherous and foolish with blood."