I'm really not doing business

Chapter 730: Invade Shuntian Prefecture and make the emperor surrender!
"Soul-stealing technique." Zhu Yijun looked at the first photo of himself and pulled Wang Yaozhuo to say, "Our Ming Dynasty scholars call him soul-stealing technique. It's a more interesting term. It perfectly expresses his pedantry, conservatism and stubbornness."

Zhu Yijun liked this photo very much and took the opportunity to scold the literati of the Ming Dynasty. He said that when these lowly scholars saw a camera, they acted as if they had seen a ghost and looked like they had never seen the world before.

Wang Yaozhuo was very curious about the camera.

The rumor started because of the immaturity of technology.

The previous camera exposure required up to four hours to etch, and the image was very blurry. Because of the changes in light and shadow, the final image was somewhat bizarre. For example, there was a scholar who was more receptive to new things, so he asked Zhu Zaiyu to take a photo of him.

After the filming was completed, a human figure appeared next to the camera. This figure was shorter than a human and more distorted. The scholar thought it was a ghost and was so frightened that he couldn't sleep or eat all day. He believed that the camera could see things that people could not see. He firmly believed that a dirty creature was following him, so he was frightened all day and even fell seriously ill.

The idea of ​​soul-stealing spread among the scholars and officials, saying that video could capture a person's energy, spirit, three souls and six spirits, which could cause serious illness at the least and death at the worst.

The rumor was widely circulated because the literati were dissatisfied with the Doctors of the Inner Mongolian Academy of Sciences, who had received the emperor's favor and preferential treatment, even though the Doctors of the Inner Mongolian Academy of Sciences had repeatedly proved that they were worthy of the emperor's favor and preferential treatment.

The pedantry, conservatism and stubbornness of the Ming Dynasty scholars were partly due to their lack of understanding of new things, but this was not the case for some people at all. Those despicable scholars often lied with their eyes open for their own interests.

"It is indeed beautiful. You can tell that the emperor's uncle has worked on it with great care." Wang Yaozhuo casually pointed out several changes that the emperor had not noticed. Zhu Yijun looked at it for a long time but could not tell where the changes had been made, but Wang Yaozhuo could tell at a glance.

Zhu Yijun never cared much about such things. If a penny of silver was missing, he would find it at a glance. However, it didn't matter if there were some minor modifications on the photo.

"What I am dissatisfied with Lin Fucheng and Li Zhi is that they did not discuss the alienation of power sufficiently and only touched upon the subject briefly. Although the ministers told me that the travel notes of Baoding Prefecture were shocking enough, after all, even the direct descendant of the Jin Party, Fan Yingqi, lived in the Jiekuiyuan." Zhu Yijun thought for a moment and said, "In fact, you have discussed the alienation of power in more depth."

"I have roughly summarized it into several aspects. The first aspect is empathy. The ability to empathize and put oneself in others' shoes will become more and more indifferent and ruthless as one gains more power and holds power for a longer time. One will take everything for granted, which is extremely dangerous for those in power."

The longer one holds power, the more indifferent and ungrateful he will become. This is inevitable, a change that no one can escape, because when one is always making rules, one will become more and more dependent on them, gradually turning into a stone, thinking that everything in the world must conform to laws and rules, just like a machine, operating according to rules and discipline.

Anything that does not conform to the rules must be completely overthrown, turning it into a cold political machine.

Although Zhang Juzheng did not mention Dao Ye at all when discussing this issue, every word and sentence was about Dao Ye.

The Taoist's inaction in his later years was probably due to the ruthlessness of a saint, who had lost the enterprising spirit of his youth. With the loss of empathy, people will become slaves of power and be alienated by power. This alienation is the absolute and extreme Confucianism, where officials are ranked appropriately according to their status and respect for the elderly and the young.

If the common people do not understand the court's difficulties, should we destroy the dikes and flood the fields to force the people to switch from rice to mulberry? This is obviously not rational, it is alienation.

It's like opium is constantly alienating people, making them lose the hormones that suppress pain. Even the blood flowing in the body becomes as unbearable as ants crawling.

Similarly, the longer one holds power, the more alienated power becomes to the person. One only needs to give orders to do whatever he wants, without having to care about anyone's thoughts. Over time, he will naturally stop understanding the needs of others, and the ability to put himself in other people's shoes will be completely lost, because he can get it with just an order.

Zhu Yijun did not have this kind of "rationality". He was a living person. When the censors attacked Duntai Yuanhou, Zhu Yijun was not rational at all. He directly ordered the two guys to be thrown to Java Island to fight with the big crocodiles.

Even if Liu Ziji really brought salt to the grassland, Zhu Yijun would not allow any form of temptation regarding the descendants of the loyal hero.

"Besides the lack of empathy, there is arrogance and pride." Zhu Yijun talked about the second level of alienation, this kind of arrogance and pride, namely: I am the rule, I am the law, I am the logic, my words are the law, and no one in the world dares to disobey, I am absolutely right, 'I am different from ordinary people', I think I am a saint, no longer an ordinary person.

The one who suffered the most serious illness was undoubtedly Ming Baozong Zhu Qizhen.

"The greatest harm caused by the alienation of power is pedantry, the inability to accept emerging things and new ideas, and the stubborn belief that one is right and the world is wrong." Zhu Yijun succinctly explained the greatest harm of pedantry.

Being pedantic means indulging in the narrative of "I am different from ordinary people", constructing a bubble world and a kingdom of God on earth that is divorced from reality, entirely based on imagination and absolutely false. The specific manifestation is the wishful thinking of those in power, who do not face up to reality and call a horse a zebra without regard for reality, causing the organization, society and country they lead to lack new motivation for progress.

Standing on past experience and merits, constantly repeating everything that happened in the past hinders the development of productivity.

This is the greatest harm of power alienation, and pedantry leads to the corruption of the political power.

Those with great power will be destroyed, and those with great achievements will fall.

Zhu Yijun was willing to accept new things. Whether it was iron horses or cameras, he was not old-fashioned and pedantic. He actively embraced these new changes, actively promoted and even led the development of productivity, and gave the Ming Dynasty new impetus to move forward.

This is very dangerous. History tells Zhu Yijun that this may have a subversive impact on his throne, but Zhu Yijun doesn't care. It is enough for the Ming Dynasty to become better.

Zhu Yijun took the video himself to dispel the rumors of soul-stealing, and then began his daily busy life. Legazpi was Felipe's messenger and a secular official, while Galileo was a scholar who opposed religion. The only missionary who could work openly in the Ming Dynasty was Matteo Ricci.

But Matteo Ricci's missionary work was not smooth. He was not allowed to preach in the heartland of the Ming Dynasty. And on the grassland, Matteo Ricci's missionary work was even more of a mess. He returned to the capital in embarrassment and continued to study the "Daoist Canon".

The Ming Dynasty's rejection of missionaries was actually a rejection of the Western missionaries' way of thinking. The biggest problem with the Western missionaries' way of behavior was that they forced others to accept their own thinking, which was resisted by the Ming Dynasty.

Whatever Westerners do, it is all full of religious flavor. You cannot disagree with me. If you disagree with me, you are a heretic and must be completely eliminated. This way of thinking is like poison to the Ming Dynasty.

I live my own life, and if you insist on dictating how I live my life, I will resist.

The Ming Dynasty only likes Western mathematics, because the mathematics of the Ming Dynasty at present cannot be regarded as leading in the style of the Celestial Empire.

Zhu Yijun looked towards the Korean battlefield. Qi Jiguang had already set up a huge pocket formation and laid out his cards, forcing the Japanese pirates to fight the first phase of a decisive battle with the Ming army in Pyongyang.

At this time, on the east side of the Taedong River, the Japanese pirates had assembled four legions, with a total of 7.7 Japanese pirates and the 12 Hwarang Association, which was a supporting army composed of Koreans. These Hwarang Association were led by the Hwarang who were previously raised by the Korean king.

Before the war, these Hwarang rode on the heads of the Joseon soldiers and did whatever they wanted.

Now these Hwarang are still riding on the heads of the poor laborers and showing off their power. There is no change in their status, and they don't even have any moral burden. This is why Yi Sun-sin, Han Kecheng and others hate these Hwarang with a vengeance.

The Japanese pirates and the Hwarang Association, numbering nearly 200,000, were waiting for Konishi Yukinaga, Kato Kiyomasa, Kuroda Nagamasa, and Fukushima Masanori to give the order to launch a general attack on Pyongyang.

No matter how you look at it, two hundred thousand versus seventy thousand, the advantage is on my side!
The Ming Dynasty had only 40,000 troops in the Beijing garrison, more than 20,000 defenders in Pyongyang, and two Liaodong infantry battalions with 6,000 people. The total strength of the Ming Dynasty on paper was only 70,000.

Two hundred thousand against seventy thousand, and the Japanese pirates were still in high spirits after their great victory. Everything seemed to be in their advantage.

"The Hwarang Association is already clamoring to invade Shuntian Prefecture of the Ming Dynasty and force the Ming Emperor to surrender." Konishi Yukinaga sat upright on a stacked mat, looked at the daimyo of the other three legions, sighed and said.

Blind self-confidence, arrogance, and extreme impetuousness are the current atmosphere on the east bank of the Taedong River. This atmosphere makes Konishi Yukinaga very uneasy. After all, the Hwarang Association is stupid, but Konishi Yukinaga is not stupid. Konishi Yukinaga is very clear about the truth that an arrogant army will eventually be defeated.

Moreover, the First Army led by Konishi Yukinaga had arrived at the Taedong River for more than 20 days and had fought 21 large and small battles with the Ming army, almost once a day. But up to now, Konishi Yukinaga's First Army had not cut off a single head of the Ming army.

In addition to maintaining a perfect record, the Ming army also maintained a record of zero casualties. This dealt a huge blow to the morale of the Japanese pirates. Now scouts could no longer be sent to the west bank of the Taedong River, and they didn't even know what the Ming army was doing. They only knew that they could now cross the river from the downstream.

This was an obvious pocket formation, a pocket formation waiting for the Japanese pirates to jump into the fire pit. Konishi Yukinaga saw it, but he could do nothing about it.

Konishi Yukinaga was truly not a member of the Hwarang Hyuk, who was so arrogant that he made the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty bow down to him.

"Oda Nobunaga has ordered us to return to Seoul for the third time." Kato Masaaki said with a frown, "Oda Nobunaga ordered us not to cross Imjin and not to attack Kaesong before the New Year. We should fight to Seoul and build the first line of defense relying on the Imjin River and Seoul, and use the main forces to maintain stability in the rear."

"In the words of the regent, even if it means death, we must knock out a tooth of the Ming Dynasty. In this way, the Ming Dynasty will not easily enter our land."

Oda Nobunaga was holding back the expeditionary army. After several consecutive great victories, the expeditionary army on the front line no longer accepted Oda Nobunaga's command and had no intention of executing Oda Nobunaga's warning orders.

According to Oda Nobunaga's strategic plan, victory would be achieved by capturing Seoul.

Four defense lines were established in Imjin, Seoul, Chungju, and Busan, and the morale and strength of the Ming army were consumed by the defense lines. No matter what, a big tooth of the Ming army must be broken, and heavy casualties must be inflicted on the Ming army to prevent it from further attacking the Japanese mainland.

If the order of the regent was carried out, the nine legions at this time should have driven out the poor laborers of Korea and vigorously built city defenses to deal with the offensive of the Ming Dynasty. According to Oda Nobunaga's plan, after destroying the Japanese pirates who invaded Korea, the Ming Dynasty would have no ability to enter Japan and could only negotiate peace with Japan. This was the best outcome.

But the army did not listen to Oda Nobunaga, and the trend of subordinates rebelling against their superiors was very common in Japan.

"How about we leave the Hwarang Association behind and withdraw secretly to Seoul? The Hwarang Association has 120,000 soldiers, which is enough for the Ming army to kill for more than ten days. How about we take this opportunity to return to Seoul and build a defense line?" Fukushima Masanori proposed a very bold idea. He let the Hwarang Association stay behind, and the Japanese warriors withdrew from the battlefield and returned to Seoul. Fukushima Masanori said confidently: "You can fight if you want. I won't fight anyway. The Ming army is not something that can be countered by human power. Their firearms are very powerful. There are thousands of artillery alone. No matter what kind of charge, they will be covered by the artillery of the Ming army. Moreover, their fire guns can shoot farther and more accurately than our iron cannons. The conflict under Kumsusan has proved this point. Up to now, the Ming army has suffered zero casualties."

Fukushima Masanori rushed here and was still shouting, but when he saw the battle results, he immediately came to his senses. These were all his own warriors, and one less would be a loss.

"Since we entered North Korea, every battle has proven one thing, that is, the Hwarang Hyuk runs faster than us." Konishi Yukinaga said with certainty: "They may not know anything else, but the North Korean army is indeed very good at running away, and we can't go back. We either take Pyongyang or die in Pyongyang."

"War is never a joke."

Invading Korea was itself an act of gamble on the country's destiny that had to be undertaken under intense internal conflicts and high pressure. The whole army was mobilized and all efforts were put in. If defeated, they would be killed without a burial place. However, disobeying Oda Nobunaga's orders and continuing to attack westwards from Seoul was also a violation of Oda Nobunaga's orders. Having come to this point, there was no choice but to keep going.

At this moment, all the Japanese pirates on the banks of the Taedong River were gamblers who had won the bet, and won huge amounts of money, and were so excited that they were red-eyed.

"Withdraw? Even if the Hwarang Association cannot run as fast as us, we must tell our samurai the reason for our withdrawal. The Kanpaku's order seems to be a good reason, but we violated the Kanpaku's order and attacked Pyongyang privately. This reason is not valid, and then the truth we have been covering up will be known to all the samurai." Konishi Yukinaga explained in detail why they could not withdraw.

Once the troops are withdrawn, the powerful combat capability of the Ming army, which had been concealed for a long time, could no longer be hidden. This truth had been blocked by Konishi Yukinaga. He also reduced the number of scouts he sent out to prevent cowardice before the battle. At the same time, he vigorously announced: If we annihilate 100 million enemies, the Ming army will be nothing to worry about!
Kato Kiyomasa said with a serious face: "Once we retreat, we will face a great defeat, the same defeat as the North Koreans. It seems that we can choose to advance or retreat, but in fact, there is only one choice, that is to advance and survive."

If we don't retreat, we can still fight. At least our morale will be maintained. But if we retreat, the morale will be gone.

"We can also stay here and wait for the Ming army to attack instead of crossing the river. This is also a way of waiting for the enemy to tire themselves out, rather than crossing the river and handing over the initiative on the battlefield to the enemy. We then build up momentum and say that the Ming army is afraid of our powerful combat capability and is negotiating peace with us." Fukushima Masanori gave another plan, choosing between advancing or retreating.

Fukushima Masanori chose conspiracy and intrigue, and he is stuck in this situation.

The Ming Dynasty did not seem to have any intention of launching an offensive. This was extremely good news, creating a momentum for peace talks. No matter whether all the forces on the ground in Korea believed it or not, as long as the Ming Dynasty court believed it, it would be fine.

Just like the Japanese pirates in Korea did not obey the orders of the Kanpaku, breaking trust is the core logic of the entire conspiracy.

Konishi Yukinaga sighed and said, "Your idea is really good and should have had some effect, but the Ming Emperor killed all the Japanese merchants active in the Ming Dynasty, and the Korean nobles were also placed under house arrest by the Ming Dynasty. The Ming Emperor predicted your idea in advance. The Ming Dynasty will only hear the voices from the Ming army. The public opinion we created has no effect."

"The most important thing is that during all the years Qi Jiguang fought, the Ming emperor never interfered with his specific operations."

"Besides, we don't have time. The activities of the North Korean bandits have affected our logistics supply. Our food and fodder can't even last for half a month."

"There is only one way left for us, and that is to attack."

Konishi Yukinaga, as a rising star in the Japanese civil war, was somewhat disdainful of Qi Jiguang. He always felt that if he had been in Zhejiang, Qi Jiguang would have been defeated by him!
But as soon as he came into battle with Qi Jiguang, he immediately fell into an absolute passive position, absolutely passive in both strategy and tactics.

He had clearly seen through all of Qi Jiguang's plans, but he just had no way to crack them.

"I think it's an honor to die at the hands of Lord Qi! Give the order. After a full meal tomorrow morning, cross the river and attack Pyongyang!" Konishi Yukinaga took a deep breath and said, "Everyone, running away is useless. Only by working together can we have a chance of survival!"

"Must win!"

"We will win!" Several legion leaders looked at each other with a hint of madness in their eyes and shouted in unison. They were holding onto a glimmer of hope in their hearts. What if, what if the Ming army was not that strong?
In Japan, rebellion against the superiors was common. When daimyo fled from the battlefield and refused to commit suicide by disembowelment, there would naturally be people who would help them.

Once the Ming army is defeated head-on, entering Shuntian Prefecture and making the Ming emperor surrender will no longer be a dream.

At this time, on the bank of the Taedong River, Qi Jiguang put down the telescope in his hand and said to Li Rusong: "General Li, when do you think the Japanese pirates will launch a general attack?"

"The Hwarang Association is on the periphery. Through the telescope, we can see that smoke is rising from the Hwarang Association's camp. The attack will begin tomorrow." Li Rusong pulled the reins and answered the question with a smile.

"Yes, the Japanese pirates will launch a general attack tomorrow." Qi Jiguang asked again: "How will they attack?"

"The water in the Taedong River is shallow in spring, so we can walk across. I judge that they will let the Hwarang Hyuk cross the river at the Changjin Ferry to attract the attention of the Ming army and the Pyongyang defenders. Then the Japanese pirate headquarters will cross the river from the Yanggak Ferry further downstream. The water in Yanggak Ferry is shallower and it is very far from the Mudan Peak, so we can't attack them halfway across the river." Li Rusong looked at the Taedong River again and said with certainty.

"Yes, the Japanese pirates will certainly use the Hwarang Association to attract our attention. When we deal with the Hwarang Association, the main force will cross the river from Yangjiaodu." Qi Jiguang asked again: "If you were the commander-in-chief, how would you deal with it?"

Li Rusong thought for a moment and said, "Keep the troops in place and fight a decisive battle with the Japanese pirates at the Qixing Gate in the west! Make the most of our firepower advantage and kill the enemy."

"Well, let's go." Qi Jiguang pulled the reins and glanced at the Japanese pirates' camp. His face was quite calm, without any tension before the war. As a general who led troops to fight against the Japanese pirates, everything was within his plan.

Compared with the stumbling blocks in the campaign against the Japanese pirates during the Jiajing period, Qi Jiguang is now confident of a complete victory. This is not arrogance but a reflection of his trust in the Ming army.

"General Qi, how would you respond?" Li Rusong rode his horse to catch up and asked loudly.

"Just as you said, your response is very good, I think so too." Qi Jiguang smiled, spurred his horse and rode towards Pyongyang. While the Japanese pirates were hesitating to move forward, the Ming army completed the replacement of Pyongyang.

"Ah? General Qi thinks so too?" Li Rusong asked with his eyes lighting up. He really needed Qi Jiguang's approval.

If Konishi Yukinaga was really a good general, he should not have given the Ming Dynasty's capital camp a chance to change its defense. He should have made every effort and fought to the death while only the cavalry battalion was deployed near Pyongyang.

When the Korean defenders opened the city gates to surrender and Konishi Yukinaga was afraid of a trap and did not enter, he had already lost. Only the Japanese pirates had reinforcements, but the Ming army did not?
"You are very strong. Even if all those famous Japanese people were put together, they would not be your match." Qi Jiguang praised Li Rusong. After arriving at the Korean battlefield, Qi Jiguang found that in fact, he did not need to come and completely hand over the battlefield to Li Rusong. He had gradually grown into a talented commander.

It's just that the emperor specifically instructed Qi Jiguang to prevent Li Rusong from being the first to climb the wall. Li Rusong was really capable of doing such a thing. In the original historical line, when Li Rusong attacked Pyongyang, he dismounted and led his soldiers to the top of the Pyongyang city wall, becoming one of the first to climb the wall.

The next morning, at daybreak, just as Li Rusong had said, the Hwarang Association began to cross the river at the Changjin Ferry. The current at this ferry was very small, just above the knees, and it was still a little chilly in the morning of March, but the Hwarang Association had to start crossing the river under the pressure of the Hwarangs.

These Hwarangs have no other abilities except supervising battles and killing deserters without mercy.

Qi Jiguang was looking at the two hot air balloons floating on the top of the city wall. These two hot air balloons were made of silk. They were experimental products brought by the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty to the battlefield. They were used as watchtowers and were tied with ropes. They could not fly far because of the wind, and the hot air balloons swayed greatly in the air, but they were enough to observe the enemy situation.

The Ming army's formation was very strange, with only four thin rows, but the battle line was very long. Everyone was shoulder to shoulder, almost standing tightly together. This was the Ming's new tactic, the line tactic. The first row of infantry was the tiger squat cannon. A total of 5,000 tiger squat cannons were placed in the front of the infantry.

The main weapons used in this operation were firearms.

The Ming Emperor gave too much. There were still 4,000 tiger squat cannons that had not been deployed on the battlefield. It was not because there was no gunpowder or they wanted to save money, but simply because there were not enough gunpowder to deploy on the battlefield.

Behind the army was the Ming Dynasty's artillery. On the city wall was a heavy 15-jin cannon that could fire flower shells. Behind the infantry line was the 9-jin field artillery, which was installed on a side chariot, waiting for orders.

The Ming army was already prepared, and the enemy began to come into sight.

The first thing that came into the telescope's field of view was a group of old, weak, sick and disabled people. These were the people of North Korea. They were driven to the battlefield by the Hwarang Hyuk to die and resist the first wave of firepower.

Qi Jiguang did not put down the telescope, but raised his hand. The flag behind him flipped and began to wave quickly, and the cannons on the city wall began to load ammunition.

Qi Jiguang lowered his arms when he saw that the old, weak and sick people had come within range.

The 15-jin cannon weighs four thousand jin and is filled with jin of gunpowder. The barrel is one zhang and two chi long and the diameter of the shrapnel shell it fires is up to four inches. It is a heavy cannon that is not convenient to move for defending the city. The effective range of the shrapnel shell is one thousand steps. When Qi Jiguang put down his arm, the fuse of the cannon was ignited. Almost at the same time, the roar of the cannon sounded on the top of the city. Amid the violent explosion, the top of the city was filled with smoke, and the spring breeze slowly blew away the smoke.

The noise from the firing of forty 15-jin cannons was earth-shaking. The violent explosions even startled the birds in the distant mountains and forests. Countless birds flew towards the horizon and fled the battlefield.

The shrapnel was spinning in the air, drawing an arc, reflecting the morning sun, and flew towards the group of Hwarang Hyuks. The shrapnel flew over the heads of the Hwarang Hyuks and exploded in mid-air. In the explosion, countless caltrops whizzed towards the Hwarang Hyuks without armor, erupting into bursts of blood mist, and screams seemed to echo in everyone's ears.

Qi Jiguang raised his hand again, waiting for the other side to regain their courage and formation in the explosion. Then Qi Jiguang put his hand down again and fired the shrapnel again.

This happened three times before the Hwarang Association finally stopped the attack and halted outside the range of the artillery. The Hwarang Association did not collapse at this time, not because of their high morale, but because the Hwarangs behind them would kill those who escaped.

Qi Jiguang did not order an attack but waited. What he wanted to destroy were the Japanese pirates. The main force of the Japanese pirates had already crossed the river at Yangjiaodu and were entering the battlefield.

(End of this chapter)