You have truly caused me great suffering!

The army marched to Sagano.

In the fields, the hydrangeas planted by the high monks of Ujiyama-ji Temple are in full bloom.

Fujiwara no Tadashi couldn't help but recall his youth when he came here to admire the flowers and had a long talk with the high monks about the nature of mind.

At that time, I was full of vigor and ambition.

Master Shanyang said that the hydrangeas in the June rain evoked a sense of loneliness.

He wholeheartedly agreed at the time.

Unexpectedly, decades later, the area around Kyoto is now teeming with rioters.

At that time, these people clearly did not dare to resist.

That's how the Japanese people are; they can suppress themselves to the extreme, but once someone provokes them, they will erupt violently.

Even the movements that swept the world in the 1970s and 80s were portrayed as terrorist activities by them.

The samurai in front gradually realized that something was wrong.

A group of people were watching them from among the flowers.

The warriors and monks were somewhat angry, and ordinary people would kneel by the roadside to show their respect when they saw them.

As they got closer, they realized something was off about these people.

Among the hydrangeas, corpses lay scattered haphazardly on the ground.

The smell of blood grew stronger the closer you got.

At this point, someone had already reported it to Fujiwara no Tadashi.

Fujiwara no Tadashi's hair has turned completely white these past few days.

He looked at the people blocking his way and immediately determined that they were not a mob.

They were all tall and had irregular hairstyles. Although they wore ordinary people's linen clothes, they didn't even bother to cover up the armor underneath.

Moreover, their eyes did not flinch at all; instead, they stared coldly at us.

That look in his eyes was murderous and terrifying.

It's obvious that this was Jing Jun in disguise.

This was an army that had fought for ten years, and their opponent was the Jurchen Tartars.

If all of Japan's troops were transferred to the Youyan battlefield, they would probably only last a few days before becoming casualties during the siege.

Fujiwara no Tadashi sent someone forward and asked in broken Chinese, "Where are the Zen masters of Ujiyama-ji Temple?"

His answer was a sharp arrow, followed by more than a dozen crossbow bolts, which riddled him with holes.

Their orders were to secretly follow the mob here, then lie in ambush and intercept reinforcements.

So that Heijiro could successfully storm the city.

Just as outsiders thought, 'Heihigoro' was just a code name. The original Heihigoro, who killed his brother, father, mother, and master, had long been killed.

The current Heiha Goro was chosen from among the mobs. Although he is not as ruthless as the first generation, he is still a tough guy.

In Wei Mao's view, these Japanese soldiers were completely disorganized. He had been lying in ambush here for a long time, and in order to prevent the Japanese scouts from coming, he had specially set up nine hidden sentries to keep watch day and night and take turns resting.

Unexpected.
They didn't send out any scouts at all.

Upon hearing that Kyoto was besieged, they rushed back to its aid. Didn't they know the saying "besiege the city and attack the reinforcements"?

Upon learning that they were about to arrive in Sagano, Wei Mao stopped pretending and massacred Ujiyama-ji Temple, then waited there to ambush them.

But he still didn't expect that these Japanese soldiers would only discover his presence when they were right in front of him.

Six hundred Jing soldiers immediately launched an attack.

To be honest, infantry was a strength of the Song and Jin dynasties, but not of the Jing army.

Jingjun's motto is "more horses."

Ordinary soldiers are typically equipped with one rider and two horsemen, while elite soldiers have three or four riders, and are also accompanied by auxiliary troops who take care of the horses.

Knowing that they would be easily recognized if they came on horseback, these people deliberately did not ride horses.

Wei Mao was now starting to regret it. He should have known that he was coming on horseback; these Japanese soldiers hadn't done any reconnaissance at all.

The battle had barely begun when Fujiwara no Tadashi fled with a group of his personal guards.

He knew the fighting strength of these Jing troops better than anyone else, so he had absolutely no will to fight.

At this time, the Jing army was rampaging across the island nation, just like the Jin army was rampaging across the Liao Dynasty; they were able to conquer it no matter how they fought.

Putting aside combat effectiveness and troop quality, the gap in equipment between the two sides was even greater than the gap between foreigners and Qing soldiers at the end of the Qing Dynasty.

The smelting technology of the Song, Liao, and Xia dynasties was quite advanced. If there were a world ranking at that time, these three would be the top three powers with a significant lead.

Armor, bows and crossbows, and weapons—there's no need to use firearms at all; these three items alone are enough to overwhelm the enemy.

Fujiwara no Tadashi's "decisiveness" did give him a glimmer of hope, but he was still filled with despair as he fled.

Japan has never shown any sympathy for the weak.

His escape back this time is tantamount to death; perhaps he can at least prolong his life and save his life.

But what about the future?
The position of Kanpaku is definitely in jeopardy!
Moreover, if Jing Jun personally intercepts the reinforcements, how can Kyoto still be saved?

I hope they can hold Kyoto. If that fails, it would be good to abandon the retired Emperor Toba and take His Majesty north in hopes of making a comeback.

His mind is filled with many complicated thoughts, and he frequently overturns his own ideas.

Suddenly, Fujiwara no Tadashi, who was riding on horseback, burst into tears.

The guards around them looked at each other, at a loss for what to do.

For Fujiwara no Tadashi, at this point he no longer wanted to try to maintain his authority; he saw no future in it.

Even the entire Japanese peninsula was doomed.

He couldn't help but recall that ever since the Jingchuan first docked, the four islands, which had been quiet and peaceful for hundreds of years, had never had a single day of peace.

In retrospect, perhaps from the very beginning, this was a planned invasion.

Every step they take now may be part of the calculations of the Jing Kingdom's ruler and his ministers.

This is no longer a matter of overwhelming national power; even the people who formulate national policies differ greatly in their abilities.

Isolated overseas for so many years, without contact with the outside world, and without any major internal wars, that's how it is.

It's easy to raise a large group of useless people.

Fujiwara Tadashi seemed to have figured everything out all at once, yet at the same time, he seemed to have figured nothing out at all.

After coming across a house, they decided to stop and eat. There was no one inside, but there was a strong smell of blood, clearly indicating that a mob had passed through.

Having already fled for most of the day, he figured that Jing Jun, without a horse, certainly wouldn't catch up.

He glanced around and saw about a dozen samurai, all of whom were personal guards and had no food on them. One of the samurai went into the house and found the rice bin. The house was clearly owned by a nobleman; it was entirely made of wood and was very clean and tidy.

He lifted the lid and was so startled that he stumbled backward and bumped into the person behind him.

"what happened?"

"You'll see when you go and see for yourself." The samurai then vomited.

Those behind them stepped forward and saw that the rice jar was empty, with only a few human heads left inside.

"My lord, we have not found any food. The people here have all been killed by the mob, and their heads have been stuffed into the rice jars!"

"Damn it! Useless!" Fujiwara no Tadashi was nearly fifty years old and had been on horseback fleeing for most of the day.

I didn't feel it when I was running for my life, but as soon as I stopped, I was suddenly dizzy from hunger.

He leaned against the wall and slapped the samurai twice, once in the front and once in the back. The samurai could only kneel on the ground and dared not move.

Just then, a whooshing sound came from outside, along with the mournful neighing of horses.

"not good!"

They carried Fujiwara no Tadashi out, only to see countless rockets being fired from all directions, threatening to set the house ablaze.

After defeating the Japanese soldiers, Jingjun seized their horses and secretly pursued them.

They discovered that Fujiwara no Tadashi's horses were all outside the courtyard.

Instead of charging forward directly, they first encircled the houses, then shot the horses, and finally fired arrows that had been covered in fire cloth to set the houses on fire, forcing the people inside out to avoid being ambushed if they went in rashly.

These are all qualities acquired during battles against the Jin army; using them here is actually a bit of a waste.

They could simply storm in and wipe out these exhausted Japanese soldiers.

Seeing a group of samurai surrounding a middle-aged man, Wei Mao laughed and said, "That's Fujiwara no Tadashi. Go, kill him!"

The samurai raised their swords and crouched down to protect Fujiwara no Tadashi. As the Jing army rode over, the samurai who had been beaten earlier yelled and charged forward.

Wei Mao raised his knife and brought it down, but after feeling the resistance, he decisively let go, drew another knife, and continued his charge.

Finally, all the guards were killed.

Wei Mao charged forward, brandishing a Japanese sword.

The Japanese sword was thin and long, somewhat similar to the Miao sword from the southwest region of Dajing, and he was actually quite unaccustomed to using it.

Jingjun's weapons were mostly sabers or long spears with white shafts, which were quite effective at penetrating armor. They also used long spears most often for daily training.

Wei Mao glanced at Fujiwara Tadashi, then turned back and laughed, "This guy even cried."

Jing Jun laughed heartily.

Fujiwara no Tadashi felt insulted, but he felt no anger, only fear.

Only then did he realize that he was neither as brave nor as wise as he had imagined.

Perhaps I am just an ordinary person who only achieved my previous status because I was born into a good family.

Before he could speak, the Jingren general's sword had already reached the right side of his head, slashing down diagonally.

With a clang, Fujiwara no Tadashi tried to raise his sword to block, but failed completely. The long sword struck his neck, and his head slumped to the side.

Fujiwara no Tadashi fell into a pool of blood, his eyes gradually losing focus. His last thought was: "They didn't even give me a chance to surrender; it's too much!"
-
It started raining again near Kyoto.

Corpses were scattered everywhere along the dirt roads, in the rice paddies, and on the wasteland.
The corpses scattered along the way seemed to cover the entire land, stretching endlessly.

The casualties caused by the mob crossing the border will certainly be far greater and more devastating than those on the battlefield.

The damp air was filled with a complex and strange smell, and most of the corpses had already developed livor mortis overnight.

This once prosperous and fertile region of Japan now appears as if it has just experienced a plague or famine, and the scene is extremely desolate and terrifying.

The surviving people had no means of livelihood and could only howl and follow their enemies.

They had no purpose, no program, all they knew was killing.

This group of people, like zombies, gathered towards Kyoto, and their numbers kept increasing.

They didn't even glance at the corpses lying on both sides of the road.

Even if they trip over a corpse, they act as if nothing happened, get up and continue on their way.

Anyone who remains rational at this point is certainly not an ordinary person.

Heian-kyo, also known as Kyoto, was built in 794, modeled after Chang'an of the Tang Dynasty, but deliberately without city walls.

According to feng shui principles, this place is protected by the "Four Symbols in Harmony" (Eastern Azure Dragon - Kamo River, Western White Tiger - Sanyo Road, Southern Vermilion Bird - Kyōrachi Pond, Northern Black Tortoise - Funaoka Mountain), providing sufficient natural barriers.
In the past, the common people were indeed quite resilient and hardworking. They could be easily bullied and exploited, and the emperor never even considered the possibility of a popular uprising. Moreover, the emperor's lineage was unbroken for ten thousand generations, and he believed that the emperor's virtue would influence the world, so he boasted that he did not need to use force to isolate the people.

The Fujiwara clan and other nobles controlled the local areas through manor economy and believed that Kyoto did not need military defense.

The imperial city to the north, also known as the Kyoto Imperial Palace, had some walls, or rather, some earthen ramparts, bamboo fences, and moats.

There were also some defensive measures in the noble residences concentrated in Ukyo, but those were mainly for preventing thieves.

Because there were no city walls, the monks of Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei often gathered as warrior monks and armed themselves to go to the capital to coerce the imperial court.

Normally they might fight and joke around, but at this point, almost all the monks from the vicinity of Kyoto came to Kyoto to protect the Emperor.

The nobles from Hokkaido, perhaps because of the great distance, had never had contact with Jingjun.

They may have been encouraged by some false information beforehand, or the Emperor's faction may have given a lot of false information to boost morale.

These people were even eagerly anticipating the battle, wanting to march to the San'in Road and Kyushu Island, slaughter the three major traitors—the Yoshimi clan, the Kitada clan, and the Shoni clan—and seize their wealth and territory.

Especially that Yoshimi family, who was just a lowly small landowner, not even ranking among the top ten in such a barren and impoverished place as Sanyindao, yet dared to establish themselves independently.

That's roughly the situation on both sides. Fujiwara's private army has been intercepted, while the people coming from the east and north are blindly arrogant, and the mob that has gathered here is completely disorganized.

This was destined to be a bad war, not even worthy of being called a war, but rather a chaotic free-for-all.

At this time, the generals stationed in the island nation were also paying attention to Kyoto.

They can't fight directly.

After so many years of fighting, they have long understood that the cost of taking over this place by force is simply too high.

Are you going to repair the road or not? So many years of oppressive policies have caused unrest among the people. Are you going to clean up the mess?
There are no fixed strategies in warfare. As long as there is a war, there are all sorts of variables. Even if a large army can advance rapidly and extend its battle lines and supply routes, it does not guarantee a quick victory.

Even if they capture Kyoto and seize important strongholds, the Japanese nobles will inevitably retreat eastward and find themselves in endless trouble.

Your Majesty's strategy is correct. First, break the myth of the Emperor's unbroken imperial lineage, and then let this land fight amongst itself, all of which will have to come to the Emperor's aid.

At that time, Dajing will not need to govern or manage; it can first control the locations of several mines and focus on mining.

Let them fight amongst themselves until they beg to be incorporated into the government.

Although everyone was eager for military merit, the generals still tried their best to supervise their subordinates and keep them in check.

Don't get carried away by military achievements and act recklessly. The best example is the small team of about ten men stationed at the Ryukyu military camp. (End of Chapter)