The Wanli Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was extremely rebellious

Chapter 386 How to Destroy Japan

After Wanli approved Qi Jiguang's memorial, he began to consider how to destroy Japan.

It is not easy to destroy Japan.

He was quite clear about this.

The Japanese pirates were brutal and violent, and their nature was aggressive. They could invade others, but they could not let others invade their homeland and destroy them.

These guys will definitely fight to the death.

History has proven that it was not possible when the Mongols were at their most powerful, and it was not possible when a certain country in later generations was at its most powerful.

This group of brutal and violent guys directly proposed a plan of 100 million people dying in battle, which scared a certain country so much that it didn't dare to mobilize its army to attack their homeland!
If the Japanese pirates really put up a desperate resistance, it would be truly terrifying.

So, is there any way to prevent the Japanese pirates from fighting to the death?

It seems there is a way.

This method is actually the same method used by Japanese pirates to invade China in later generations.

The method used by the Japanese pirates was cannibalism!
In the 20th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu, during the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, Japan forced China to sign the Treaty of Shimonoseki and obtained 230 million taels of silver as expansion funds.

In the 26th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu, they invaded together with the Eight-Nation Alliance and stole a large amount of property.

In the 30th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu, he took advantage of the Russo-Japanese War to infiltrate the Northeast.

In the second year of the Xuantong reign, the Japanese occupied Korea, a vassal state, and continued to infiltrate the northeast.

During the First World War, they invaded Jiaozhou Bay and infiltrated into Shandong.

Immediately afterwards, the Japanese pirates spent more than ten years infiltrating the Northeast, and seized the opportunity to launch the September 18th Incident and completely occupied the Northeast.

Finally, the Japanese pirates felt that China had no power to resist and launched a full-scale invasion.

This trick of cannibalization is really good, and it can be used on the Japanese pirates themselves!

Wanli's fingers kept moving across the map, and a plan to encroach on Japan slowly took shape in his mind.

The first step is naturally to erode the main force of the Japanese pirates in the vassal state of Korea.

His orders were constantly delivered to the two capitals and thirteen provinces of the Ming Dynasty through the express cavalry of the post stations and the fast ships of the navy. The entire Ming Dynasty was like a predatory lion, gradually opening its huge mouth and slowly biting the Japanese pirates who invaded its vassal state, Korea.

Groups of elite cavalry from the nine frontiers of the Ming Dynasty braved the severe cold to cross the Hetao Plain, crossed the grasslands outside the Great Wall, and continued to gather in the Laoha River Valley of the Beijing Xingdusi.

A large amount of timber and even stone from the Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan Xingdusi were loaded onto speedboats and transported downstream to the Xinjiangkou Naval Base.

The Ming Dynasty navy's centipede ships set out one after another, continuously transporting food, supplies and various materials to Jeju Island and Jeolla Province of the vassal state of Korea.

The workshops in the Beijing Summer Resort, Longjiangzhou and Xinzhou in Nanjing were put into operation, and the production of muskets, cannons, bullets, shells, sky bombs, kerosene cans, etc. was gradually increasing.

The naval port terminals in the vassal states of Jeolla Province and Jeju Island were taking shape at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The twelfth lunar month passed just like that.

The New Year passed just like that.

The naval port terminal was also built.

In February, the ice and snow in the capital city melted quietly, and Li Yuansheng also returned quietly.

Around 5 p.m. that afternoon, when it was getting dark, this guy had already appeared in the side hall of the Qianqing Palace where maps were specially displayed.

After the emperor and his ministers exchanged greetings, Wanli asked impatiently, "How is it going? Did the Spanish consume the two million pieces of silk?"

Li Yuansheng nodded repeatedly and said, "Eat it. These guys are really rich."

Their money was stolen.

I am also going to Japan to rob some money. The money I get will be used to expand the army and improve the treatment of soldiers.

In fact, he had been considering whether to increase the food and wages of the Ming army soldiers.

Now the minimum wage for craftsmen is one tael of silver for one dan of grain per month, and there are many who can earn three or even five taels of silver per month. It seems that the monthly wage for Ming army officers and soldiers is still one tael of silver for one dan of grain per month, which is too little.

The problem is that he has recruited too many soldiers now. There are 360,000 soldiers from the Beijing garrison, 900,000 soldiers from the border army, 500,000 soldiers from Sichuan, and 350,000 soldiers from the navy. That's over 2 million. In addition, there are the Jinyiwei, the imperial guards, and the secret guards, which together total about 2.2 million!
Even if he increased the monthly pay of each soldier by one tael of silver, that would mean an extra two million taels a month, or more than twenty-five million taels a year! Who could afford that?
Therefore, he decided to improve the treatment of the soldiers instead of increasing their food and wages.

This treatment includes food, clothing, housing and transportation for the soldiers.

As for clothing, military uniforms must be made of the best materials, and they must be issued in large quantities, for spring, summer, autumn and winter, two sets for each season, and eight sets every year!
As for food, the rations are of course sufficient to satisfy the soldiers. We have to find ways to provide them with chicken, duck, fish, meat, etc., so that they can have both meat and vegetables for every meal.

In terms of accommodation, they will be provided with two sets of tents, one for summer and one for winter, and they will also find a way to build barracks for all the soldiers so that they have a place to garrison and rest.

As for transportation, they now have enough war horses. Except for the cavalry and navy soldiers, he plans to equip the other soldiers with chariots or food carts.

This investment is actually quite large. Fortunately, the soldiers can basically produce what they consume, which is equivalent to developing productivity in disguise.

In other words, they only need to calculate the cost price, and the extra money the Spaniards spend on silk should be enough.

Wanli thought about it carefully, then asked, "Where is your fleet now?"

Li Yuansheng said without hesitation: "Your Majesty, my fleet is currently exchanging deerskins in Dongfan. It is also loading soybeans, salted fish, silk, cloth and other supplies. These are all what Tokugawa Ieyasu wants."

Upon hearing this, Wanli nodded slowly and said, "Well, it would be best if you could meet with Tokugawa Ieyasu after you go there this time, to test his attitude and see how he is preparing.

You can also hint to him that the Ming army seems to be showing signs of mobilization, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi is likely to be defeated.

However, you must be careful not to let him think that we can completely wipe out the Japanese pirates in Korea. Just let him think that the Japanese pirates in Korea will be defeated and flee. "

This provoked internal strife between Tokugawa Ieyasu and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, which was also part of the encroachment.

Hearing this, Li Yuansheng slowly nodded and said, "Okay, I understand."

Wanli explained in detail: "You can also reveal one thing, that is, the person you are trying to curry favor with has already played an important role in the Ming Dynasty court.

If Toyotomi Hideyoshi is defeated, they will worry that the Ming Dynasty will take advantage of the situation to counterattack Japan. You can act as a mediator and facilitate peace talks between the Ming Dynasty and Japan."

what?
Peace talks!

Isn’t it true that we in the Ming Dynasty refuse to negotiate?
Li Yuansheng was stunned when he heard this.

He was stunned for a moment, then asked carefully, "Your Majesty, I dare to ask, aren't we going to take this opportunity to destroy Japan?"

Yes, no matter what, no matter how much sacrifice we have to make, we must seize the opportunity to destroy Japan this time.

Wanli nodded slowly and said, "We want to destroy Japan, but we want them to feel that everything can be negotiated. As long as the negotiations are successful and we are satisfied, we will stop.

Then they will consider whether to fight to the death. If we make it clear that we want to destroy Japan, they will definitely be determined to fight to the death. If we pretend to negotiate and stop, they will hesitate.

"The first push will weaken the second, and the third will exhaust them. If they hesitate, their will to resist will become weaker and weaker. Then when we attack the Japanese mainland, the casualties of our soldiers will not be so heavy. Do you understand?"

Oh, you want to boil the frog in warm water. You don't let the Japanese pirates feel that they are going to die at the beginning. Once they feel it, they are almost dead.

Li Yuansheng nodded repeatedly and said, "I understand."

Wanli pondered again and said, "You are still busy with business. The peace talks will probably take more than one or two days or even one or two months. Let Guozhu come forward when the time comes.

Just say that Kunisuke is your trusted confidant sent to curry favor with important officials in the Ming Dynasty court. If Tokugawa Ieyasu or even Toyotomi Hideyoshi want to negotiate, they can just go to Kunisuke."

Well, it would be better to let Kunisuke come forward.

I am still a pirate leader, so it is a bit inappropriate for me to participate in the peace talks between Ming Dynasty and Japan.

Li Yuansheng repeatedly bowed and said, "Your Majesty is wise."

This guy is really smart and I like him very much.

Wanli nodded in satisfaction and said, "Well, do your best. Although you may not be able to lead the army into battle, the intelligence you have gathered and the situation in Japan you have stirred up are comparable to that of thousands of troops. I will count all of this as military merit. When we conquer Japan, I will grant you a title of nobility."

Oh, I was born as a pirate leader, but I can still be granted a title of nobility!

This really brings honor to the family.

My family would probably be shocked.

Upon hearing this, Li Yuansheng couldn't help but bowed excitedly and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace."

(End of this chapter)