Di Ming

Chapter 318 Bullying the Jianzhou people is humiliating me!
The samurai who brought the news of victory, his face beaming with joy, knelt before the castle tower and continued shouting:
"Your Highness Taiko! This is wonderful news that will make even Hachiman Okami happy."

"Our army decisively defeated the Ming army's invading forces at Pyongyang, and even General Yang Shaoxun was captured. General Yang Shaoxun is currently outside the city! We respectfully present this captive to His Highness the Taiko!"

After he finished speaking, the report of victory was presented to the emperor for Hideyoshi to read.

Hideyoshi only glanced at it a few times before bursting into laughter.

"Gentlemen, it is indeed good news that we have defeated the Ming army. We have captured the Ming general Yang Shaoxun and killed more than 10,000 Ming soldiers."

The Japanese present were overjoyed upon hearing the news, some waving fans and others clapping their swords.

"Yoshi! Yoshi!"

"May the Great God Hachiman bless our kingdom with a great victory! The conquest of Ming and the invasion of Tang are today!"

"First occupy Liaodong, then knock on the gates and march south, emulating the northeastern nomads of yesteryear, and drink from the Central Plains!"

"The Grand Tutor is a man of great talent and strategy, unmatched in the world. Surely he will achieve his great ambition of unifying the eight directions and spreading his military power throughout the land."

"Let's strive together, everyone! I am also requesting permission to go on an expedition to attack Liaodong."

"How could warriors who would give their lives for their country possibly have any rivals?"

The Japanese army was advancing rapidly in Korea. Except for suffering a defeat at sea at the hands of the famous naval commander Yi Sun-sin, they were practically invincible. Now, having defeated the Ming army that had entered Korea, their arrogance and pride had reached an extreme.

Hideyoshi, always composed, was overjoyed upon hearing the news, but remained calm and laughed heartily as if it were the most natural thing in the world:
"Hehehe, is that so? That is truly His Majesty's good fortune. I am happy for His Majesty."

"It seems I should personally submit a memorial to His Majesty, reporting the victory of the Divine Kingdom's army."

According to the samurai tradition, after winning a battle, they would usually declare that they owed their victory to the Emperor and express their sense of righteousness.

As soon as Hideyoshi finished speaking, many samurai raised their arms and shouted in unison:

"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"

Even powerful figures like Hideyoshi and Ieyasu shouted "Long live the Emperor!" at this time.

That's right. Although Hideyoshi was the leader of the samurai class who held great power in Japan, he had to respect the Emperor even though the Emperor had no real authority over him.

His power nominally stemmed from the titles of Grand Minister of State and Regent bestowed upon him by the Emperor. He was not only the head of the samurai class but also the head of the court nobles, second only to the Emperor.

The invasion of Korea was nominally carried out "on the orders of the Emperor".

Even though the Emperor has no political power, he still holds the highest authority in religious rites. He is a descendant of Amaterasu, the supreme deity, and the embodiment of the spirit of Japan.

Without the Emperor and the Imperial Court, both Hideyoshi and Ieyasu would have lost their legitimacy to govern their subordinates, and Japan would hardly be Japan anymore.

Therefore, Hideyoshi, Ieyasu, and others could only join in shouting "Long live the Emperor!" to indicate that the victory over the Ming army was due to the Emperor.

At least on the surface, they should do it in public.

At this point, Zheng Guowang and his companions finally learned from the translator why the Japanese were so excited.

"The royal army was defeated in Korea, and its commander-in-chief Yang Shaoxun was captured?" Zheng Guowang and more than a dozen other members of the delegation were dumbfounded.

It was as if they had sunk into an ice cellar, chilled to the bone.

They really lost? Counting the days, the army only entered Korea about half a month ago. How could they have been defeated so quickly? Could it be that they were defeated by the Japanese army right after crossing the Taedong River?

Zheng Guowang was so angry that his face turned pale. How could Yang Shaoxun be so incompetent!

He deserves to die!
Zhu Yin felt a chill run down his spine upon hearing this news. However, he reacted quickly, knowing that the old fox Hideyoshi had been observing him all along, and immediately put on a convincing smile, but the smile vanished just as quickly.

For Zhu Yin, intelligent people were actually easy to deal with. The difficult ones were the fools.

As expected, Hideyoshi began observing Zhu Yin's expression upon hearing the news of the victory. His eyes, known as "fox eyes," were always adept at reading people's expressions and discerning subtle nuances.

He noticed that when Zhu Yin suddenly heard the news of the Ming army's great defeat, he was stunned for a moment, but then couldn't help but laugh.

Although Zhu Yin's smile was fleeting and quickly disappeared, it was still keenly caught by him, and he took it all in without missing a single detail.

He was definitely not wrong!
Zhu Yin was secretly pleased with the Ming army's defeat? Hehehe... very interesting.

Thinking this, Toyotomi Hideyoshi felt even more pleased. Little did he know that his shrewdness would be used against him by Zhu Yin.
Zhu Yin wore this expression on his face, but inwardly he was cursing.

That money-grubbing bastard! Yang Shaoxun is a complete idiot!

Upon entering North Korea, he suffered a major defeat and was captured!

Zhu Yin knew that Yang Shaoxun was actually a very senior figure, having served as the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of Liaodong for many years, holding a military rank second only to Li Chengliang in Liaodong.

The History of Ming states that "Shao Xun was mediocre and weak, and border defenses became increasingly lax," indicating that his incompetence led to the relaxation of border defenses.

He succeeded Li Chengliang less than two years before being impeached and dismissed. Left with no other option, the court had to reinstate Li Chengliang as the General Commander of Liaodong.

So, if Yang Shaoxun was mediocre, how did he succeed Li Chengliang and become the number one general with the strongest troops and the largest military budget?

History doesn't record it, but Zhu Yin had already found out.

It's despicable to talk about.

Yang Shaoxun gained favor with the Zheng family and eunuchs, bribed court officials, boasted and exaggerated his military achievements and talents, and presented lavish gifts on Wanli's birthday. This is how he became a "famous general" in the emperor's eyes who was capable of replacing Li Chengliang.

Later generations knew he was incompetent, but Wanli did not.

If Emperor Wanli had been good at recognizing and appointing talent, he would not have relied on mediocre officials like Yang Hao, Tian Le, and Fang Congzhe, favored eunuchs like Zhang Jing, Gao Huai, and Chen Zeng, and demoted capable generals and ministers like Qi Jiguang, Pan Jixun, and Li Rusong.

In the Imjin War, Li Rusong was the commander who led the troops into Korea. It was Li Rusong who decisively defeated the Japanese army in Pyongyang, winning battle after battle, shattering the myth of the Japanese army's invincibility, and crushing Japan's arrogant and overconfident spirit.

But history has changed. Li Rusong is now the General of Gansu, guarding the Northwest, and has not entered the court.

He had previously followed Zhu Yin and made many military achievements in the west, which made the Li family more prestigious in the army, so the emperor did not want him to go to Korea to make meritorious contributions again.

Emperor Wanli was only good at playing the so-called balancing act. When faced with major events like national wars, these were his primary considerations.

Thus, Li Rusong was replaced by Yang Shaoxun. As a result, the Ming army suffered a major defeat as soon as they entered Korea, and their commanders were captured.

However, Zhu Yin had not yet received intelligence from North Korea. He was still unaware of how Yang Shaoxun had been defeated and how he had suffered such a crushing defeat so soon after entering North Korea.

Hideyoshi then handed the victory report to Ieyasu, saying, "Ieyasu, tell the Ming envoy what exactly is written in the victory report. Don't make the Ming envoy worry. Hehehe."

"Hai!" Ieyasu took the report of victory, read it carefully, and then slapped the table with his fan in delight, his smile growing ever wider.

"Ming Envoy, on October 30th, your country's General Yang Shaoxun personally led an advance army of over 40,000 men across the Taedong River to attack Pyongyang."

"The Pyongyang garrison commander, Kosei-gun, had only about 10,000 men defending the city. With the Ming army bombarding the city gates with powerful artillery, Kosei-gun voluntarily vacated Pyongyang and withdrew, taking all the city's grain with him."

"Konishi deliberately spread rumors that the army was powerful and willing to negotiate, and asked Shen Weijing, who was in the army, to meet Yang Shaoxun in order to mislead Yang Shaoxun."

"Yang Shaoxun thought that Xiaoxi Jun was afraid of him, so he happily led his army into the city and reported to the Ming emperor that he had defeated our army, recovered Pyongyang, and killed or wounded tens of thousands of our soldiers. Hehe."

"But because he was greedy for merit and acted rashly, he did not bring any food or supplies, did not build a naval camp at the riverbank dock, and did not guard the pontoon bridge before entering Pyongyang. His army only had three days' worth of rations and was full of confidence that there was food in the city."

"This man is truly incompetent. He was overconfident and arrogant, thinking he had recaptured Pyongyang, and failed to set up defenses along the river to protect the supply lines. Perhaps he thought that even if our army fled in panic, there would still be food in the city."

When Ieyasu talked about these things, his expression was a mix of smugness and disdain.

"No sooner had Yang Shaoxun thought he had recaptured Pyongyang than the reinforcements from Shimazu and Tachibana arrived the very next day. The two generals joined forces with Konishi and, with 30,000 men, blockaded the Taedong River docks, cutting off Pyongyang's food supply."

"As a result, the Ming Dynasty's subsequent military supplies will not be able to cross the river."

At this point, Ieyasu couldn't help but show an incredulous expression. "Logically speaking, at this point, Yang Shaoxun should have taken the initiative to go out of the city and fight a decisive battle while his troops were still at the forefront."

"However, at this point he became fearful. Instead of taking the initiative to leave the city and fight a decisive battle as soon as possible, he retreated into the city with his superior troops and a large number of cavalry, and decided to defend the city."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Yin cursed inwardly.

Yang Shaoxun was not only incompetent, but also cowardly! How could such a person succeed Li Chengliang as the General Commander of Liaodong and even command the Korean army!
The Japanese dignitaries present couldn't help but shake their heads and sneer upon hearing this.

Is this the Ming army's chief general? Why not use Qi Jiguang?
As Ieyasu spoke, the interpreter translated for Zheng Guowang and the others, whose faces turned green.

Zheng Guowang almost vomited blood.

This Yang Shaoxun was able to rise through the ranks precisely because he had connections with the Zheng family, received help from his sister, and was willing to spend money to bribe various people.

But I never expected this person to be so incompetent!

Ieyasu continued, "On the fourth day of the eleventh month, the Ming army in the city had been without food for a day and was starving. They could not wait for their rations and had no choice but to leave the city in an attempt to open up the supply route."

"But at this time, the morale of the Ming army had been greatly damaged and the army was in disarray."

"The Ming army had more than 40,000 men, while our army on the riverbank had only 30,000. As a result, Yang Shaoxun hesitated to advance and had no intention of fighting to the death. Although he led his army out of the city, he did not know the strength of our army and dared not take the initiative to attack. Instead, he hesitated and looked back, hoping for the rear army on the north bank of the river."

"When our army saw that the morale of the Ming army was low, we took the initiative to launch a desperate battle. Shimazu-kun, with the determination to die, personally led the Satsuma warriors to attack from the front, Tachibana-kun led his troops to attack from the side, and Konishi-kun held the riverbank to resist the Ming army's northern reinforcements crossing the river."

"The warriors of the Divine Kingdom disregarded life and death, and each of them had the heart to serve their country even if it meant seven lifetimes. Even Tachibana Ginchiyo, the wife of Tachibana-kun, personally led a group of female warriors to fire arquebuses. After half a day of fierce fighting, the Ming army was routed."

"Yang Shaoxun led his troops in a retreat, but was pursued and captured by Shimazu-kun. More than 10,000 Ming soldiers were killed, and the remaining remnants, mostly cavalry, were fast runners. They fled eastward along the Daedong River, seized a boat at Shun'an Wharf, and escaped back to the north bank of the river..."

Zhu Yin finally understood that Yang Shaoxun's defeat was so simple!
One incompetent general can cause the death of his entire army!

In the historical Korean Wars, the Ming army suffered several major defeats, such as the defeats at Ulsan, Sacheon, and Byeokjegwan, all of which resulted in heavy losses. However, these defeats occurred after the Ming army had stabilized the situation, indicating that both sides had their share of victories and defeats, and their impact on the overall outcome was limited.

But Yang Shaoxun was different. He caused the army to suffer a crushing defeat in its first battle before entering Korea, and as the commander-in-chief, he was captured, which had an extremely negative impact.

Sigh... My appearance changed history, and this is what happened!

The military commissioner Hao Jing and the eunuch supervisor Gao Huai were also incompetent, actually dividing their troops to cross the river!

If an army of 100,000 men were to cross the river with sufficient provisions, and then recapture Pyongyang as a base to control water transport on the river, the situation could be stabilized quickly.

Zhu Yin knew that the Shimazu-kun and Tachibana-kun mentioned in the battle report were Shimazu Yoshihiro and Tachibana Muneshige.

Yoshihiro Shimazu was the most powerful daimyo on Kyushu Island and the famous lord of the Satsuma Domain. In Korea, he belonged to the Fifth Army under Kagetakawa Kobayakawa and was also a major force in the Fifth Army.

Among the most powerful and valiant generals in the invading Japanese army, Yoshihiro Shimazu was undoubtedly one of the best.

The Jinju Massacre was committed by Yoshihiro Shimazu.

Korean historical records describe Shimazu Yoshihiro as "the most ferocious among the Japanese" and Tachibana Muneshige as "cunning and ruthless." But in the eyes of the Japanese, they were both "famous generals of the divine nation."

Zhu Yin also knew that in the Battle of Sichuan in history, Shimazu Yoshihiro defeated Dong Yiyuan and Liu Ting, killing and wounding 20,000 Ming Dynasty allied troops, and covering the main force of the Japanese army to retreat back to Japan in peace.

Yang Shaoxun's abilities were inferior to those of Dong Yiyuan and Liu Ting, so it's not surprising that he was defeated and captured by Shimazu Yoshihiro.

This man's death is not a pity, but it is hateful that he caused the deaths of more than 10,000 Ming soldiers and greatly boosted the arrogance of the Japanese pirates.

After Ieyasu finished reporting the victory, Zheng Guowang and the others looked ashen-faced.

At this moment, not only were Zheng Guowang and others extremely depressed, but three other people present were so frustrated that they wanted to burst into tears.

These three were captured Joseon princes: Yi Jin, Yi Kun, and Yi Jin.

The three men have been sent to Japan for several months and have suffered endless humiliation at the hands of the Japanese. Today, they are forced to attend the "peace talks tomorrow," which is also intended to humiliate them.

When the three princes learned of the heavenly army's crushing defeat, they were all devastated.

The Japanese pirates were already aggressive, making outrageous demands such as marrying a Ming princess to the Emperor as a concubine and annexing Korea. Now that the Ming Dynasty had suffered a major defeat in its first battle in Korea, the Japanese pirates were naturally even more arrogant.

The Japanese present were filled with contempt upon seeing the members of the delegation and the Korean prince looking utterly dejected.

At this moment, they held the Ming Dynasty in even greater contempt.

There is great hope of conquering the Ming Dynasty!
His Highness the Taiko is indeed a peerless hero with great talent and strategy, who established an unparalleled career of conquering the Tang Dynasty!

Hideyoshi then ordered that Yang Shaoxun and other captured Ming generals be brought to the castle tower and presented as prisoners.

Soon, a group of Ming army generals, bound hand and foot, were brought in.

Leading the group was none other than Yang Shaoxun, the General Commander of Liaodong and Imperial Commissioner in charge of military affairs related to the defense against Japanese pirates in Korea!

The other dozen or so men ranged in rank from brigadier general to battalion commander.

After their crushing defeat and capture, they were tossed about on the ship for six or seven days, leaving them all haggard and utterly disheveled.

When they saw Zhu Yin, Zheng Guowang, and other members of the delegation, they didn't dare to raise their heads, feeling utterly ashamed.

Zhu Yin remained calm, but inwardly he wanted to kill someone.

He has already instructed Tiger Fang to use the Embroidered Uniform Guard to provide intelligence to the Ming army entering Korea.

But this person clearly didn't take it seriously at all; eager to make a name for himself, he took the bait as soon as he saw it.

"Yang Shaoxun!" Zheng Guowang shouted, "As the Imperial Envoy and Commander-in-Chief, you suffered a crushing defeat in your first battle and were captured. How can you face the Emperor and the court? How dare you live on!"

Yang Shaoxun blushed and stammered, unable to speak.

Zhu Yin glanced sideways and said, "Vice Envoy, this is the time for peace talks, not for assigning blame."

Hideyoshi's voice came from the high pavilion:

"King Joseon, you all saw it, didn't you? Even the Ming army is no match for the Divine Kingdom's army. The Ming army's commander-in-chief has become a prisoner of the Divine Kingdom."

“If the bearded barbarians (Ming people) you rely on do not agree to the conditions of the divine kingdom, they will become the next Joseon.”

"What is China? The divine nation is China. Your Korea should willingly annex Japan and share in the glory of China."

As the translator repeated the words, Zheng Guowang and the Joseon prince, among others, all looked furious.

The Japanese present, however, nodded in agreement.

Zhu Yin knew that at this time, the underlying essence of Japanese culture was still "Japanese spirit and Chinese talent".

It was not until the rise of "national culture" in the Edo period that Japan broke free from imitating Chinese culture and entered a true period of creation.

But he also knew that the Japanese nobility of today were unwilling to acknowledge that the Ming Dynasty was "China". They deliberately and stubbornly believed that the Chinese civilization had perished after the Battle of Yamen, and that Japan had inherited the legitimate Chinese orthodoxy.

The core theory is that after the fall of the Song Dynasty, the legitimate Chinese lineage no longer resided in China, but rather shifted to Japan.

Fallacies such as "Japan is China", "The Emperor is the legitimate successor of China", "Japan is the protector of China", and "All other countries are barbarians, only Japan is China" have become rampant and widely accepted.

They even went so far as to instigate a "debate between Chinese and barbarians," demonstrating an arrogance that reached an unprecedented level.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi waved his folding fan, his gaze sweeping over the crowd with an air of authority, and said arrogantly:

"The defeat of the Ming Dynasty by the Divine Kingdom was nothing more than expected, not a surprise. However, Yoshihiro, Muneshige, and Yukinaga, as exemplars of the samurai class, should still be commended."

"Ieyasu, tell the Ming envoy to add another condition to the peace talks: cede Liaodong to Japan!"

"The Ming Dynasty acknowledges that the Liaodong region beyond Shanhaiguan Pass is the overseas territory of the Divine Kingdom!"

Ieyasu said to Zhu Yin with a smile:
"Your Excellency, you have heard what His Highness the Taiko said. Let me add another condition: I hope your country will agree to cede all the land in Liaodong outside Shanhaiguan to Japan!"

"Otherwise, the ever-victorious and invincible army of the divine kingdom will not stop its attack and will have no choice but to continue fighting."

Zhu Yin was not surprised at all upon hearing this.

It would be strange if Hideyoshi didn't take advantage of the situation and add more conditions.

According to the "Strategy for Conquering Korea," Hideyoshi once said to his retainers:

"If we gain control of Korea, Liaodong will be in our grasp; once Liaodong is under our control, Shanhaiguan Pass can be breached, and the Ming Dynasty can be pacified."

This shows that Hideyoshi had long wanted to occupy Liaodong, and this was the second step in his established strategy.

However, Zhu Yin was not angry; instead, he devised a plan.

Because Hideyoshi's ambition to conquer Liaodong would greatly provoke the Jurchens.

Not only the Jianzhou Jurchens, but also the Haixi Jurchens, mainly composed of Yehe, would be stimulated.

Then let's "cooperate" with Hideyoshi once, so that the Jurchens in Liaodong know that Japan wants to annex Liaodong and enslave them!
Zhu Yin calmly said, "Your Highness, Lord Ieyasu, although Liaodong is home to many Jurchen tribes, it has always been the territory of the Ming Dynasty. How can we cede it to your country?"

Tokugawa Ieyasu said, "Your Excellency, if Japan does not obtain Liaodong, it will absolutely not cease hostilities. Those Jurchen barbarians will either flee, submit, or be killed."

"For the sake of peace talks between Japan and Ming, we hope the Ming envoy will seriously consider this. If the peace talks do not yield what Japan wants, then Japan will have no choice but to take it by force. At that time, Liaodong will become a second Korea."

Zhu Yin stood up and said, "Your Highness, Lord Ieyasu, I really cannot agree to such harsh conditions. The court and the emperor will never accept such an unreasonable request."

Ieyasu smiled calmly, "Then, there's no need to discuss this for now. Your Excellency, please return to your lodgings and rest."

"I believe that it won't be long before your court will have to give up Liaodong."

Zhu Yin cupped his hands and said, "Since your country is so confident, then I shall take my leave."

After saying that, he calmly led Zheng Guowang and the others away from the castle tower.

How could this be kept secret? Half a day later, Nurhaci and the other Jurchens learned of this undeniable news.

Japan's next move is actually to occupy Liaodong, to seize their "homeland"!
Uncle Cuoha Zhan and Mother Foduo would absolutely not agree to this!

We must never allow the Jurchen tribes to become a second Korea!

What angered Nurhaci and others even more was that Jianzhou was very close to Korea, making it the first to be affected!
In fact, this was one of the reasons why Nurhaci twice petitioned for military assistance against the Japanese pirates. He feared that if Japan annexed Korea, it would then target Jianzhou.

How could Nurhaci, who loved reading "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," not know the principle of "if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold"?

Nurhaci immediately found Zhu Yin and whispered:
"Little Tiger Brother, the cursed Japanese pirates are evil spirits from the forest. Their minds are clouded by greed and cruelty!"

"It's a pity that the imperial court didn't grant my request to send troops before, which prevented me from having the opportunity to repay the court."

"Little tiger brother, please help your brother and make the emperor agree to our request to send troops!"

"The Jurchen warriors must teach the Japanese pirates a lesson they won't forget, so that they'll be haunted by nightmares every night and won't dare to even think of attacking Jianzhou for a thousand years!"

Zhu Yin gritted his teeth and said, "To bully the Jianzhou people is to humiliate me! I am a Jianzhou prince! Brother Wild Boar Skin, don't worry, after we return home, I will definitely make His Majesty agree to send troops to help you in the war!"

Nurhaci was deeply moved. "Little Tiger Brother, we're on the same side, so I won't thank you!"

(End of this chapter)