On the way to escape famine, my parents divorced

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In an instant, bloodshed and violence swept through Shimane Prefecture, and everyone lived in fear. However, this also forced the Japanese people in Shimane Prefecture to unite in a very short period of time, forming a fragile but efficient wartime order.

A month or so passed in the blink of an eye.

Li Shiyue stood in the command post, which had been converted from the former residence of Mori Motonobu, looking at the simple map on the wall pieced together from information provided by Japanese prisoners and Xuanjia Anren.

Above, the red color representing the controlled area has spread outward from the core of Shimane Prefecture (where the Iwami Ginzan is located), covering the coastal areas of eastern Tottori Prefecture, northern Hiroshima Prefecture, and northern Yamaguchi Prefecture. Even the northwest corner of Hyogo Prefecture has been planted with a large flag bearing the character "Li" due to the advance of Ding Haisheng and his troops.

A base, with the Shimane Prefecture silver mine at its heart and the powerful Zhenhai Navy as its arm and fist, has already risen strongly in the western part of Honshu Island, Japan.

Outside the window, the clanging sound of chisels came from the direction of Iwami Ginzan. It was the Japanese miners under the supervision of Xuanjia Anren, digging for silver—the lifeblood that would sustain Li Shiyue's future war.

Li Shiyue's gaze was calm; she knew this was just the beginning.

The main force of the Mori clan has not been completely wiped out; she only destroyed one branch of the Mori clan in Shimane Prefecture.
Other powers in Japan will not stand idly by as she occupies Shimane Prefecture.

Even more brutal and large-scale battles are yet to come.

But Li Shiyue was fearless.

Because every inch of this land was washed with the blood of Japanese pirates;

Every bit of wealth here will become capital to continue punishing this sinful land.

Her journey is to the stars and the sea, and also to the endless blood and fire of this foreign land.

More than two months after Li Shiyue occupied Shimane Prefecture, news of Hirota Koki's failed westward voyage finally reached the Japanese mainland.

The occupation of Shimane Prefecture by foreign powers was like a resounding slap in the face to the Japanese pirates who had dominated the East China Sea for many years.

These two events not only signify the failure of the Japanese pirates' westward raiding operation, but also indicate the rise of a powerful and ruthless adversary who seriously threatens their traditional sphere of influence and means of survival in the East China Sea.

The various clans in Japan who supported the Japanese pirates were filled with shock and anger, and felt an unprecedented crisis.

Three years ago, they thought it was an accident;

Three years later, they finally had to admit that if they could not quickly eliminate this woman named Li Shiyue and the Zhenhai Army she led;

Not only will they likely lose their foothold in the East China Sea, but the expansion of Li Shiyue's sphere of influence in Japan could also render the country uninhabitable.

While Li Shiyue was busy expanding his gains outward from Shimane Prefecture, aiming to occupy Honshu Island as soon as possible, after nearly two months of emergency coordination and compromise, an unprecedentedly large Japanese pirate fleet was finally assembled in the harsh winter.

Led by the most powerful Matsuura Party, they gathered together multiple Japanese pirate forces entrenched in Iki, Hirado and other places, and assembled more than eighty ships of various sizes.

Among them were eight large Atakebune, which could be called sea fortresses, more than thirty medium-sized Sekibune, and the rest were agile and fierce Kohaya boats.

The Japanese pirate coalition elected Matsuura Nobuhiro, the leader of the Matsuura Party, as their general and launched a massive attack on the western part of Honshu Island, determined to completely annihilate Li Shiyue's main naval force on the vast sea.

The news was relayed by Xuanjia Anren immediately. In the former Mori clan mansion in Shimane Prefecture, Li Shiyue received the message from Xuanjia Anren and stared at the huge map in front of him. Li Shiyue had about seventy or eighty ships under his command capable of naval operations, so he was not at a disadvantage in terms of numbers.
Moreover, in terms of quality, the "Breaking Waves" was already a superior vessel compared to wooden boats, not to mention that it was equipped with the "Thunder God Cannon".

Looking at the map, Li Shiyue showed no fear on her face, but instead revealed a sneer of triumph.

The massive fleet signified that the enemy had been provoked and had lost patience and caution.

And this was the opportunity she had been waiting for.

Where else could Li Shiyue find such a good opportunity to wipe out all the Japanese pirates in one fell swoop?

Of course, even though she had the "Breaking Waves" and artillery, Li Shiyue knew that a head-on confrontation was not the best strategy.

She decided to take advantage of the Japanese pirates' arrogance and underestimation of their enemy, and set up another huge trap.

She deliberately spread the word through the channels of captured Japanese pirates and sailors on merchant ships traveling along the coast: "Although the Jian'an naval force won a battle, it suffered heavy losses and is actually weak inside."

"General Li was worried about retaliation from the Japanese pirates and had already considered retreating. He wanted to withdraw the main force of the Zhenhai Navy to the inner sea to avoid battle, leaving only a small number of ships to patrol."

Li Shiyue even deliberately caused several grain transport ships to "accidentally" run aground in waters where Japanese pirate spies might appear, creating the illusion of a shortage of supplies.

These true and false messages spread like a poisonous fog, eventually reaching the ears of Nobuhiro Matsuura.

The Xuanjia Dark Blade certainly played a part in this.

Upon hearing the news, Matsuura Nobuhiro, the veteran Japanese chieftain, stroked his short beard and said smugly to his subordinates, "See! Women are just women. They're scared out of their wits after winning one battle!"

Want to retreat to the inland sea?
dream!

This time, we must take advantage of their retreat and annihilate them at sea, eliminating any future threat!

After confirming that the main Japanese fleet had been deployed, Li Shiyue began her second move.

She ordered Chen Yong to lead a "flanking force" of fifteen relatively fast but outdated small and medium-sized ships, laden with flags, to sail westward in a grand display, making it appear as if they were about to retreat to the inland sea.

The fleet sailed in a loose formation, even deliberately leaving behind broken planks and debris to create the illusion of a rout.

Their mission was to "expose" themselves within the sight of the Japanese pirates, and then "panic" retreat to the pre-arranged ambush area—an area in the open sea with few reefs but complex hydrology and frequent sudden storms.

At the same time, Li Shiyue, along with Sun Xiaoliu and Ding Haisheng, personally led the true elite of the Zhenhai Navy—thirteen steel warships equipped with "Thunder God Cannons"—to quietly sail towards a string of uninhabited islands on the edge of the ambush area under the cover of night.

The fleet remained silently hidden on the leeward side of the island, shutting down its "spiritual engines" and maintaining complete silence. Everyone on board obeyed orders, like giant sharks lurking in the deep sea, waiting for their prey to fall into their death trap.

Li Shiyue once again deployed the mechanical golden eagle to closely monitor Chen Yong's every move in luring the main force of the Japanese pirates. (End of Chapter)