At the Meiji Restoration he was full-time advisor to the Office of the Supreme Head (effectively the first prime minister), proposing enlightened policies such as 'the public election of governmental officials' in line with 'the Constitution of 1868' from the very beginning.
明治維新を総裁局顧問専任（実質的な初代宰相）として迎え、当初から「政体書」による「官吏公選」など開明的諸施策を建言し続けていた。