I'm really not doing business

Chapter 818: The long edict spreads its power and the sea is at peace, the Japanese court is paying close attention and the blue waves are shocked

Zhu Yijun put the joint letter from Wang Chonggu and Wang Jiaping and Deng Zilong's memorial together.

Wang Chonggu talked about two aspects: lack of confidence and effective means. Wang Chonggu was an authoritarian worshiper, and his explanation of lack of confidence was a bit one-sided. In Wang Chonggu's view, the emperor's golden signboard should not be too hard.

But Zhu Yijun knew very well that the emperor's golden signboard was not that hard and firm.

If the treasury cannot store a large amount of gold, then the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty cannot issue banknotes at will.

The exploration of the Jinchi Governor's Office made up for the lack of confidence. At least the golden narrative of the Ming Dynasty could be made sense. If the development of the Jinchi Governor's Office went smoothly, a large amount of gold would flow into the Ming Dynasty. In this way, the issuance of banknotes would have the most basic credit guarantee.

The emperor's credit is never unlimited.

"The Governor's Office of Jinchi has done a great job. The thunder has cleansed the Japanese spirit, and the loyal souls shine on the sea border." Zhu Yijun made an instruction. In the context of the Ming Dynasty, "Japanese" means overseas enemies, just like "barbarians and man", which initially represented only the direction.

"The Book of Rites: The Royal Regulations" says: The east is called Yi, the west is called Rong, the south is called Man, and the north is called Di.

"Wo" and "Wo pirates" both refer to enemies at sea. Later, because the Wo pirates in Japan were so violent, it gradually became a special term for the Japanese people.

Zhu Yijun blacked out part of the memorial, which meant that the sin of the pioneers of the Jinchi Governor's Office in launching a colonial war was wiped out and there was no clear and reliable historical record.

Only a brief record was left: the governor led his army to expand the territory, the barbarians resisted the king's rule, and they were finally pacified.

As for the first colonial war of the Jinchi Governorate, how big it was, how many people the Ming Dynasty dispatched, how the prisoners of war were dealt with, how the imperial sword was retrieved, etc., there are no credible records in the future. No matter how future generations guess, they will put the blame on the emperor.

This is actually a very common practice in all dynasties in the Central Plains. It is always like this: you win two words and lose a few books.

"I obey your command." Feng Bao bowed his head and accepted the order. In fact, His Majesty didn't need to say anything or embellish it. The cabinet would handle the matter properly after receiving the reply. Who else could be better than scholars at interpreting the Spring and Autumn Annals in a roundabout way?
"There are many ways for a trading house to make money. Wang Qian has nine prohibitions and does not ban short selling. He is so hated. If we send him a luxury official, I am worried that he will die before his father." After reading Wang Qian's memorial, Zhu Yijun immediately realized the danger.

Those who block someone's path to wealth will die the fastest.

How much money can you make from mergers, farming, workshops, and production? It is better to tell stories, paint a rosy picture, and then send the stories and rosy pictures to the trading house and sell the stories to all traders.

In fact, Zhu Yijun also did this kind of thing of painting a big pie in the sky and selling it.

When the profitability of maritime trade was still unclear, especially when the five major ocean-going trading companies were first established, trading houses had already begun issuing ship tickets, spreading the costs of large ships and the risks of maritime trade onto every trader.

However, later developments proved that the story of maritime trade was true and that huge profits could be made by opening up the sea. This story and the pie became part of the emperor's credibility and authority.

The Nine Prohibitions are certainly very strict, but the basic logic of the world is that some people can do whatever they want. For example, if the Ming Emperor Zhu Yijun wanted to draw up a new pie, but needed to send it to a trading house to raise money due to lack of money, Wang Qian's Nine Prohibitions would have to give way.

If short selling is not allowed, those guys who want to sell stories to the people, including the emperor himself, will not be able to sell stories to the people. Those carnivores who cannot make money easily must hate Wang Qian to the point of gnashing their teeth, right?
Zhu Yijun sent She Yuan to prevent Wang Qian from dying earlier than Wang Chonggu. She Yuan was responsible for paying for the food, and would keep a portion of what was eaten every day and send it to the Jiekuyuan for research to prevent the harm of chronic poison.

Sending a special officer to further increase Wang Qian's security level.

While the Ming Emperor was busy dealing with memorials to the emperor's grave, on the Korean battlefield, the Ming army completed the final cleanup of the Ulsan front and drove all the Japanese pirates in Korea into the sea.

This battle was much more difficult than Qi Jiguang had imagined. In the Battle of Busan, the Ming army's attack lasted only three days, but the Battle of Ulsan lasted a full month, and seventeen elite soldiers were sacrificed before all of the sixteen mountain fortresses in Ulsan were captured.

The resistance will of the people in Ulsan was very firm, it was a typical case of a trapped beast fighting to the bitter end, and they would fight desperately when in a desperate situation. After the Ming Dynasty captured Busan, the Japanese pirates in Ulsan knew that they would inevitably lose, and began a desperate resistance, but were eventually wiped out by the attack of Ming Dynasty's firearms, artillery, and fully armored heavy infantry.

Qi Jiguang sat in the central army tent, looking at Ling Yunyi, Chen Lin, Li Rusong, Chen Dacheng, Ma Jin, Ma Gui, Ma Lin, Zu Chengxun and others, and said with emotion: "Since the Korean War broke out suddenly at the end of the 13th year of Wanli, the Ming army has fought six battles in Pyongyang, Kaesong, Incheon, Seoul, Chungju, Busan and Ulsan, and completely drove the Japanese pirates into the sea. All thanks to the bravery of the generals, we have won six victories."

"The battle of Ulsan has been counted and concluded. I will report this to His Majesty and ask for credit for you all."

"General Qi is impartial, and he treats relatives and strangers equally, and the nobles and the commoners equally, and all the merits of the soldiers are recorded; rewards and punishments are like hanging mirrors, and the three armies use them as a mirror." As the governor-general of military affairs, Ling Yunyi highly praised Qi Jiguang's character.

When Qi Jiguang led his troops, he never treated them differently based on their close relationship with the emperor. He never gave special care to Ma Lin because he was Ma Fang's second son, nor did he transfer the military merits of ordinary soldiers with poor backgrounds to the generals.

Zhao Ji was born in a vegetable farmer's camp and was exiled to Yingchang Prefecture for committing a crime. He climbed up step by step relying on his military merits, but Qi Jiguang never made things difficult for him because of his poor background.

Indeed, the military, as it should be, should be impartial, not indulge the nobles, not conceal the common people, not ignore the merits of others, not deceive the world, and not bend the law, but very few can do so.

This is also the fundamental reason why the Ming army has strict military discipline. Laws and regulations are often corrupted from top to bottom, and there is no ability to break the rules from bottom to top.

Qi Jiguang set an example himself and brought strict military discipline and strong combat power to the Beijing army.

"So is it time to return to the capital?" Li Rusong said with some lingering feeling.

When it came to prying open the turtle shell, Li Rusong was no match for Zhao Ji. Zhao Ji, relying on the fact that he was younger and could wear full armor and fight continuously for three hours, pried open 60% of the turtle shells built by the Japanese!

"If nothing unexpected happens, we will return to the capital." Qi Jiguang said with a smile: "After a year and a half of fighting, the Japanese pirates have been wiped out. We can just leave it to the Liaodong Army to defend."

Ling Yunyi said solemnly, "I may not be able to fulfill General Qi's wish. His Majesty has ordered us to garrison in Busan and Guangzhou to prevent the Japanese pirates from counterattacking, and at the same time prepare to attack the Japanese mainland."

The war is not over, it is still going on, and the Ming army is preparing to attack Japan's homeland.

The Ming court was still divided over whether to continue implementing the policy of reducing the population or to directly attack and destroy the Japanese mainland.

Continuing to reduce the population means constantly reducing Japan's war potential through various economic and cultural means.

For example, allowing the Pure Land Sect to spread wantonly in Japan, tightening the list of goods prohibited from being sold to Japan, controlling Japan's economy through the circulation of Japanese banknotes, further undermining Japan's consensus, and gradually reducing the population through the export of Japanese slaves and Nanyang sisters.

The advantage of this approach is that it saves money. The Ming Dynasty does not have to spend too much money and food to completely eliminate the threat from Japan, and it will no longer pose a threat to the Ming Dynasty. The disadvantage is obvious. If it takes too long, the weeds will not burn out and will grow again in the spring breeze.

The direct way to attack the Japanese mainland is to march from the Korean land, which is a lower sea distance and safer, and completely destroy Japan.

The benefit of this approach is that it eliminates the problem completely, but the Ming Dynasty's treasury is already a bit stretched because of the heavy investments in education.

Qi Jiguang frowned and said, "Japan now has 800 million people. To attack Japan, we need to deploy at least elite troops. These elite troops need to border troops to cooperate, and at least laborers are needed to ensure logistics. Although Japan does not have much depth, it will still take at least three to five years."

"I have devoted my life to destroying the Japanese, but I do not agree to launch an unprepared war against them, and I have made it clear to Your Majesty in the capital that the success of destroying the Japanese does not have to be achieved by me."

The emperor once made a promise that after conferring the title of Duke of Fengguo on Qi Jiguang, he would still let Qi Jiguang lead troops into battle. As for the drama of wearing the yellow robe, it was unlikely to happen in the Ming Dynasty.

After all, the Beijing Army highly recognizes Your Majesty, and it is not a critical moment when the ruler is young and the country is in doubt.

Your Majesty's promise at that time was that General Qi would be needed to lead the troops in the battle to defeat the Japanese pirates. However, after assessing the situation, Qi Jiguang told Your Majesty that defeating the Japanese pirates did not need to be accomplished by me.

Qi Jiguang was already very satisfied to be able to lead troops into battle again and drive the Japanese pirates back to the sea. His Majesty's promise had been fulfilled, and there was no need to interrupt the process of the Ming Dynasty becoming great again for the sake of the promise.

It is more important to make Ming Dynasty great again, and the heavy investment in education must never stop.

Only when the old literati and Confucian scholars became a minority among the scholars can we truly say that the Wanli Reform was a success, and only then can the achievements of the Wanli Reform be mostly preserved, and only then can we say that the Ming Dynasty escaped the fate of being doomed to failure and slowly decaying in failure.

"Everyone in the army says that General Qi has become cautious after achieving success. It seems to me that they don't understand General Qi." Ling Yunyi exclaimed sincerely.

No one knows where the Ming Dynasty got its blessings from. Zhang Juzheng, Qi Jiguang, and Hai Rui were all outstanding people and loyal ministers.

Their loyalty is to the Ming Dynasty, to the people of the Ming Dynasty, to His Majesty, and to themselves. The golden saying that knowledge and action should be consistent with conscience has been verified once again.

A person who is loyal to the Ming Dynasty will not put his personal glory above the interests of the Ming Dynasty. Qi Jiguang thought so and did so.

"Then let me be the villain." Ling Yunyi arranged three silver coins and nine Wanli Tongbao coins and said, "These are silver coins and copper coins."

"The late Wan Zongbo once said in the "Book of Fan Kingdoms: Ancient Inca Kingdom Volume": If you control the mines, you can completely interrupt the evolution of local civilization. Bronze tools can't beat iron tools, let alone firearms."

The emperor believed Wan Shihe's statement that he controlled the mines and took it as his guiding principle. As a scholar, Ling Yunyi was somewhat dissatisfied when he saw the emperor talking about Wan Shihe's words every day, so he read the book on the history of foreign countries.

Ling Yunyi was deeply impressed after reading the volume on the ancient Inca country. Wan Shihe was extremely proficient in etiquette and law, but Ling Yunyi was better at action and practice.

Mineral veins are the bones and blood of heaven and earth. In the past, Guan Zhong was in charge of mountains and seas, and Qi became the hegemon of the princes. If we block the veins and cut off the flow, the tools of all craftsmen will only be made of bronze. Although the Zhou tripod is heavy, it will eventually be broken by the iron spear; although the Shang lord is fine, it cannot withstand the plowing of the iron plow.

In the past, the King of Chu closed the Great Smelter, and the Yue people sought iron in the sea; Emperor Wu of Han monopolized salt and iron, and the Xiongnu bows and arrows became weak; if we cut off the mineral veins today, it would be like cutting off the roots of the five grains. Even if you have the skill of Gongshu, how can you cast a plow without gold? Even if you have the skills of Ou Ye, how can you quench a sword without ore?

The importance of mining policy is more important than the use of weapons. It not only cuts off the current military forces, but also prevents changes in the future.

"What does Lingbudang mean?" Qi Jiguang turned to look at Ling Yunyi and asked in confusion.

Ling Yunyi smiled and said: "To stop the change of the millennium, we must not only take an offensive posture, but also recapture the Yamatai military port and force the Japanese pirates back to their homeland."

"It is true that the Ming Dynasty's treasury is empty. If you pay a little attention to the court reports, you will know that the court is indeed short of money, but it cannot resist the enthusiasm of the powerful and powerful along the coast to collect donations."

"If the imperial court really wants to destroy the Japanese, the wealthy, the local gentry, and the local nobles will really be willing to donate money and grain. Even after death, they can erect a monument for themselves."

"We must force Japan to hand over the ownership of the minerals. The Ming army will station troops on their mineral veins. Taking away their silver and copper mines is taking away their future." Wan Shihe compared the mineral veins to the dragon veins of a dynasty, and the stationed troops are the bone-piercing nails on the dragon veins.

"This makes sense. It still depends on scholars." Qi Jiguang said with emotion. This scholar is indeed a scholar. It is not unreasonable that the uneducated warriors are suppressed by the scholars.

In the past, this group of scholars only used this kind of tricks to deal with the people of the Ming Dynasty. The people of the Ming Dynasty were really miserable. Even the emperor of the supreme nine heavens was fooled by them.

Now the scholars have begun to use their intelligence and talent to deal with the barbarians, and the barbarians are beginning to suffer as a result.

"General Qi, you could be more tactful when you curse. It's not me who said it, it was Lord Wan." Ling Yunyi coughed lightly and looked outside the big tent, feeling that the sky was so blue and the mountains were so green.

"Scholar" is both a compliment and the most vicious curse. When it is difficult to describe a person accurately, using the term "scholar" is the most appropriate.

"If Japan refuses to comply, we will fight them until they hand over the mines. That will be easy." Qi Jiguang understood the specific purpose of this war.

As the governor of military affairs, Ling Yunyi's job is to interpret the emperor's will.

In fact, he didn't say it all... In the eyes of scholars, in addition to gold, silver, copper and iron mines, Japan also has another very important mineral, that is, the human mine.

After opening the sea, the Ming Dynasty exerted too much effort, resulting in too large a territory and insufficient manpower. There were too many places that needed manpower. Highways had to be built, canals had to be dug, mines had to be opened, and plantations had to be reclaimed through forced labor. The black labor brought in by Persian merchants was simply not enough.

When the Ming Dynasty had not yet completed the return of land and the people were still unwilling to have more children, there was a need for a human mine.

Japan is the human mine of the Ming Dynasty. Even if no one has explicitly stated this, it is a common understanding among the meat-eaters. There are already laborers working at the construction site of the East Zhejiang Canal.

Qi Jiguang looked at the geomancy map and said, "Attack the Yamatai military port. This is a military port built by the Ming Dynasty. We are very familiar with the hydrology and geography here."

"I will formulate the battle plan. The landing operation is divided into five phases."

"In the first stage, we will send a message to the Nagasaki Governor-General's Office, asking them to cooperate and send a letter to Japan to create a situation where the Ming Dynasty will launch a full-scale attack on Japan from the sea, so that the Japanese Azuchi Shogunate and the daimyo will focus their attention on the sea."

"During this period, the coastal defense inspection team has been dispatched on a routine basis to investigate the Japanese garrison, city defense, waterways, fortifications, and other conditions at the Yamatai naval port."

"The second stage is to seize sea power. The navy will be dispatched to lure the enemy out of the port and defeat their main maritime interests on the sea. At the same time, the navy will be required to suppress them in all aspects and cut off the connection between the Yamatai port, Tsushima Island and the Japanese mainland."

"In the third stage, after cutting off their logistical supplies, the Nagasaki Governor's Office and the Osaka Bay Garrison will make offensive and marching gestures, forcing the Japanese mainland to give up supporting the Yamatai naval port and Tsushima Island. At the same time, our Ming navy and army will attack the Yamatai naval port and strive to capture it in one fell swoop."

"In the fourth stage, within two days, the engineering battalion must restore the handling capacity of the Yamatai military port. The army must occupy the entire island of Tsushima and its affiliated islands within a month, making Tsushima Island the springboard for the Ming Dynasty to launch an anti-Japanese campaign."

"The fifth stage is to focus on harassment. In the name of eliminating the Japanese pirates, we will harass Japan's long coastline, conduct multiple raids, create the illusion of a full-scale attack, and force Japan to sue for peace and hand over control of all minerals."

"What do you think?"

The generals in the big tent looked at each other, and no one said anything. This was the fighting style that Qi Jiguang was best at. He fought you fairly and you couldn't fight back. Even though you knew what Qi Jiguang was going to do, you couldn't stop him.

Li Rusong was a little dazed. He suddenly felt that the burden on his shoulders was a bit heavy. After Qi Jiguang retired, could he, Li Rusong, really carry the banner of the general? After the general's banner was handed over to him, could he formulate such a perfect military deployment strategy?
Li Rusong noticed that Qi Jiguang never put down his books unless he was fighting. To some extent, Qi Jiguang was also a scholar.

"If everyone has no problem with it, let's get started, one step at a time. We are not in a hurry. If it really doesn't work, we can ask the powerful local tycoons along the coast to donate a little more. It won't be much, just enough for one year's military supplies." Seeing that all the generals had no objections, Qi Jiguang made specific arrangements.

Doing a good job in intelligence work is the prerequisite for winning a battle. The sacrifices of Duntai Yuanhou and the coastal defense patrol inspector deserve respect and courtesy from the entire Ming Dynasty.

Ling Yunyi wrote Qi Jiguang's plan into a memorial and composed a poem, and presented it to His Majesty the Emperor.

The long edict spread the power and the vast sea was calmed, the Japanese court was awed by the blue waves;
The boats patrol the islands to explore the terrain, and the maps show the keys to the strong cities.

The snake formation raised its flags to destroy the warships, the dragon soared to lock the sea and cut off the flying geese;
The false thunder drum shakes the three islands, the real hammer strikes the yellow dragon and breaks through the nine layers.

The cloud ladders are erected at night, the rainbow beams are raised, the iron cavalry gallops in the morning, the islands are leveled;
Thousands of sails pass by the shore, with smoke blazing; a letter of surrender reveals a mineral vein.

Emperor Zhu Yijun of the Ming Dynasty received the memorial and said with a smile: "No, what does Ling Butang mean? He wants to show off that he is a scholar and can write poems better than General Qi, right? General Qi writes doggerel, and he writes in a flowery way, right? Ling Butang is so capable, how can he lead his troops to capture the Yamatai military port!"

Feng Bao pondered for a moment and reminded quietly: "Your Majesty, is it possible that Ling Butang is also very good at fighting? He suppressed the Japanese invaders in Fujian, and suppressed the rebellion of the Yao people in Luopangshan, which led to the establishment of the three counties of Luoding?"

"Well, it seems so. Ling Bu Tang is also capable of leading troops. He has three thousand guest soldiers." Zhu Yijun said with a smile on his face.

Ling Yunyi's poem talks about the five stages of war, one sentence for each stage.

The Governor-General's Office was ordered to create a maritime deterrent and make the Japanese government focus on coastal defense; coastal defense inspectors drew up details of the military port defense and grasped the enemy situation at the waterway passes; the navy lured the enemy and annihilated the main force, and completely blocked sea and land communications; feinted attacks by land and sea were used to contain the mainland, and a combined sea and land attack was used to capture the fortress; engineers repaired the port facilities, and ground forces launched a blitzkrieg to take full control of Tsushima Island.

Finally, thousands of ships sailed past the shore, smoke of war blazed, a letter of surrender revealed mineral veins, and multiple attacks created panic, forcing Japan to sue for peace and give up ownership of the minerals.

"The one who knows me best is General Qi. General Qi knows my plans and thoughts. I am very satisfied with this plan." Zhu Yijun was very satisfied with the plans made for the front line.

The Ming army occupied Japan's mineral resources and was also carrying out the campaign to exterminate Japan. Mineral mining is a business that involves killing people, and a lot of people.

Especially in this era of insufficient productivity, there was a pit for dumping corpses next to the rich silver mine of Spain in the Viceroyalty of Peru. In just a few decades, hundreds of thousands of miners were thrown into the pit.

The Xishan Coal Bureau in the capital of the Ming Dynasty stopped production for the same reason. The underground environment is complex, and mining is prone to landslides, flooding, explosions, etc. It is safer to mainly mine in the open air.

Zhu Yijun was a student of Zhang Juzheng and learned how to go around in a circle.

The Ming army's hands were stained with blood when it was forced to directly defeat Japan. Not to mention how the carefully maintained military discipline could continue to be maintained, these soldiers were also living people. When the soldiers had general doubts about the justice of the war, people's hearts would be scattered.

But if you think about it in a roundabout way, the soldiers are just stationed there to protect the ownership of the minerals, which belongs to the Ming Dynasty. So this is justice. And why kill people with your own hands and dirty the hands of the soldiers?
The Japanese compradors and brokers who opened mines blamed the Japanese harshly, and many Japanese died in the process. The soldiers did not have to bear this sin, as they were only guarding the mines of the Ming Emperor.

Zhu Yijun continued, "When General Qi was in the capital, he told me that Sun Tzu's Art of War said: Do not stop a retreating army, besiege an army and leave a gap, do not press a desperate enemy. Ulsan resisted resolutely and lasted ten times longer than the main force of Busan. This is the principle of not pressing a desperate enemy."

"It is the same with state affairs. If you do not give them a chance to negotiate, these Japanese daimyo will unite under the banner of Oda Nobunaga and fight to the death. But if you change the method, they will be caught in the disagreement between war and peace."

"Sir, this detour is really powerful sometimes."

Zhu Yijun reviewed the memorials of Ling Yunyi and Qi Jiguang. He did not like to interfere in military planning and chose to accept it in its entirety. When it comes to fighting a war, could he know more than Qi Jiguang?
Feng Bao thought for a moment and said, "Shilong Hou Deng Zilong said that General Qi would return in defeat even if he reached the Big and Small Jinchi. I don't really believe it. The terrain is indeed very good, but battles are fought by people. I don't think General Deng can win."

(The current state of the Jinchi Governor's Mansion, in the present-day Melbourne area, in the early stages of exploration.)
"General Deng is also very good at fighting." Zhu Yijun said with a smile. The Big and Small Jinchi are indeed natural harbors that are easy to defend and difficult to attack, but there are too many factors that influence the outcome of a war.

The winner will be decided by who fights better.

"Bring us the petition from the powerful and wealthy people." Zhu Yijun looked at the petition that Feng Bao had found. This petition came from Songjiang Prefecture, in which the powerful and wealthy people in Songjiang requested the court to reopen the door to donations.

The imperial court is also planning to launch a second fundraising campaign at the end of the year, and to raise all the funds at Tanggu Port in Tianjin Prefecture before April.

The meat-eaters of the Ming Dynasty did not choose to blow up the gunpowder and other materials stored in Tanggu Port in order to interrupt the progress of the Wanli Reform. The meat-eaters at least maintained a certain rationality and did not deliberately create a crisis in the battle for national destiny.

"If Your Majesty is unwilling, we can squeeze out a little from the imperial treasury." Feng Bao saw the emperor's hesitation. It is better to be cautious when it comes to matters involving military power.

"Then just squeeze in and don't pay donations." Zhu Yijun made the final decision. Initially, the imperial court was worried that there was not enough money, so it raised funds urgently. After all, the powerful and wealthy also had a sense of participation, which enhanced the common social responsibility and strengthened the centripetal force.

However, the court's finances are still relatively healthy. Further asking powerful and wealthy people to pay donations may cause dissatisfaction and opposition from some people. Moreover, these powerful and wealthy people are best at passing on the burden to others. If this continues, price gouging and land rent inflation may occur.

The most important thing is that it is easy to cause corruption and the spread of corruption. Once can be said to be accidental, but twice or three times, local officials will use the name of collecting donations to levy heavy taxes and enrich themselves, exacerbating corruption in the bureaucracy. This is a situation that Zhu Yijun would not allow to happen.

It would be best if the money could be squeezed out. If not, Zhu Yijun could use the silver in the old treasury.

If it doesn't work, just confiscate their property. There is always a way.

The Ministry of Rites drafted an "Edict to Suppress Japan", asked the emperor to approve it, and then announced it to the world. The Nagasaki Governor-General's Office responded immediately, and the navy began to gather frequently in Nagasaki Port. The Osaka Bay Garrison Thousand Households Office directly closed the information channels to the Japanese capital, as if preparing for war.

Everyone in Japan and abroad was in a complete panic!
The Korean battlefield had been completely defeated, and no matter how glorious the battle reports were, they could not be concealed. Deserters who fled back to their homeland from the front lines kept telling stories of the terrible Ming Dynasty's soldiers and generals, and people were in a state of panic.

The panic of fearing that the Ming army would attack with all their might greatly shook the rule of the Azuchi-Momoyama shogunate, and even the prestige of Oda Nobunaga became precarious.

When a country loses its credibility, people will become suspicious. After repeated revisions, the battle reports sent back to Japan had changed beyond recognition. They were all big wins. Just looking at the battle reports, one would think that the Ming army had suffered heavy losses again and again and that Japan had won.

However, the battle line had already spread to Japan's homeland, causing panic both inside and outside Japan to reach its peak.

The more frightened people are, the more they want to seek psychological comfort. The Pure Land Sect spread rapidly in a short period of time and was no longer under the control of the shogunate. It even surpassed Buddhism in Japan and became the largest religion.

The Ming Emperor's edict to pacify Japan was spread everywhere by merchants and Japanese followers of the Pure Land cult.

The Ming Dynasty's condition was that Japan gave up ownership of all its mines as the price of defeat in exchange for the emperor's appeasement.

(End of this chapter)