Di Ming

Chapter 62 Strategy
Qi Jiguang skillfully drew a simple map of the Zhoushan Islands on the deck and pointed to a location, saying, "This is Ding Huogen's Daishan Island."

"This is Zhoushan Island (the main island), this is Shuangyu Island, this is Qushan Island..."

"This is a waterway."

The veteran emphasized the waterway and even pointed to it.

“Matsuura Tadanobu has gathered at least a thousand Japanese pirates, while Ding Hugen only has six hundred armored men. The enemy outnumbers us.”

"Moreover, Matsuura Tadanobu came prepared, and Ding Huogen was not only unaware of this, but he also had to protect the people on the island."

"The Japanese pirate coalition will converge at Qushan and then launch a night attack on Daishan. Ding Huogen will not have time to ask for help from outside."

"Young Tiger, I'm going to test you. In this battle, if you were Ding Huogen, how would you have a chance of winning while minimizing your losses?"

After Qi Jiguang finished speaking, he didn't wait for his adopted son to reply and immediately started preparing the braised ribbonfish that had just come out of the pot.

"No rush. Take your time thinking. I'll have some snacks to go with my drinks first."

Ning Caiwei, being very sensible, poured him a full glass of wine.

After Qi Jiguang finished eating several pieces of delicious ribbonfish and drinking two cups of strong liquor, Zhu Yin slowly said:
"Father, according to the information, the troops of Matsuura Tadanobu and his men are at least twice the size of Ding Huogen's. Although Daishan Island has a large population, most of them are ordinary people."

"Six hundred armored soldiers, defending such a large island, could not hold it no matter what. On the contrary, the enemy could concentrate their forces and land on the island from anywhere, gaining the upper hand."

“Ding Huogen served under Father for ten years and was a capable naval commander. How could he not know this weakness and not take precautions?”

Qi Jiguang showed a hint of approval, picked up the yellow croaker head with one hand, protected his beard with the other, and sucked on the fish head, making two "slurp" sounds.

Then he put down the fish head, slurped down the wine in his cup with a "slurp," and released his long, thick beard, letting out a contented sigh as he slowly said:
“Child Tiger, it seems you already have a plan. Hmm, continue. Caiwei, fill the cup.”

Zhu Yin glanced at the two plates of fish on the small table, swallowed hard, pointed to a spot with his little finger, and pressed it firmly.

"This! It's a simple diagram, yet Father deliberately drew this waterway. It's rough but detailed; there must be a reason for it."

Upon hearing this, Qi Jiguang stopped drinking and remained silent, nodding slightly with increasing admiration.

Seeing Old Man Qi's expression, Zhu Yin felt even more confident, and a confident smile spread across his face.

"If Ding Huogen were not an incompetent man, he would surely have secretly set up a trap to lure the enemy in advance along this waterway."

"He has few soldiers and cannot take care of the people. Once he discovers that the enemy is coming, he may immediately order the people to take their food and board small fishing boats to enter the waterways for temporary refuge."

"This is the best way to protect the people and concentrate on fighting the enemy."

“The enemy probably won’t bring small fishing boats, and their large ships can’t enter the waterway. So their best option is to run aground at least two large ships to block the waterway exit and try to trap them like turtles in a jar.”

"After all, people, money, and food are the most important spoils of war. If the waterways are not blocked, thousands of fishermen can take small fishing boats, carry money and food, and break out separately. How can we catch them in the vast ocean?"

"Then what are the benefits of launching a large-scale, costly attack on Daishan Island?"

"Therefore, population, money, and grain are both bait and a calculated scheme!"

"Hahaha." Qi Jiguang couldn't help but laugh. This time, he didn't eat any food and just drank a glass of wine.

It seems that Zhu Yin's words are good for drinking.

Zhu Yin continued, "One large ship cannot block the waterway. Even if only two large ships are stranded at the entrance of the waterway, they will suffer a great loss."

"Two large ships, there must be at least several hundred pirates, right?"

"If the child is Ding Huogen, when setting up a killing move, he would first set up two hidden emplacements in the caves on both sides of the waterway entrance."

"When the pirate ships run aground, the hidden gun emplacements will bombard them at close range, cracking their skulls. The pirates on both ships will be doomed."

"With this advantageous terrain, just four cannons and twenty gunners are enough to wipe out hundreds of pirates!"

"As a result, the enemy's morale was greatly dampened, their numerical advantage was reduced, and they were caught in a dilemma, unable to advance or retreat."

"If we continue to block the waterway, we will continue to be bombarded by concealed artillery positions and bleed continuously. If we give up blocking the waterway, we will be abandoning people and resources. Why risk our lives?"

"Therefore, the coalition forces will inevitably have disagreements, which is nothing to fear."

Qi Jiguang looked very pleased and couldn't help but pat Zhu Yin's young shoulder, saying:
"I deliberately drew this waterway in the middle of the island. Although it was a hint, you immediately realized it was both bait and a scheme, which shows your exceptional intelligence."

“Indeed. This waterway is a noose that Daishan Island has placed on the enemy. Ding Huogen is a good general. He has served under me for ten years. He will surely use the waterway to set up a killing move.”

"Unless pirates don't care about people or money, but how is that possible? Even wolves don't eat meat and just fight to the death?"

"If this plan succeeds, the pirates will suffer hundreds of casualties and will have no choice but to retreat."

"Even those low-ranking pirate leaders would have a hard time figuring out this arrangement."

"However, this plan still has a major flaw, a very fatal flaw, and it is impossible to guard against it."

Qi Jiguang couldn't help but sigh slightly as he said this.

Zhu Yin himself worked in intelligence; how could he not know Qi Jiguang's concerns?

"Is Father worried about an internal traitor? Alas, it is indeed impossible to guard against such a thing."

Qi Jiguang put down his wine cup. “You don’t understand the habits of the Japanese pirates. They are short and strong, and their character is the most cunning and vicious. They are the best at using spies and attach great importance to military intelligence gathering.”

“The Japanese pirates would never act without sufficient confidential information. If they dare to act, it must be because they have discovered the secrets.”

"Since Matsuura Tadanobu has taken action, it most likely means that someone inside Daishan Island has been bribed by the Japanese pirates and become a hidden spy. This trick of the Japanese pirates has never failed."

"In terms of intelligence, the Ming Dynasty has suffered a lot of losses at the hands of the Japanese pirates. What is most hateful is that many Han people have no sense of national identity and are willing to collude with the Japanese and become their lackeys for some benefits."

"That's what I'm most worried about. Ding Huogen is indeed a good naval commander, but his ability to deal with spies and secret agents is just so-so."

"If he's truly betrayed by a traitor among his accomplices, this plan will be unlikely to succeed." "Now, I have a second problem. How do we rescue Ding Huogen?"

Zhu Yin stared at the map, pondered for a while, and suddenly pointed to a place:
"this!"

Qi Jiguang raised an eyebrow and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Good! Young Tiger, you already have the makings of a great general, I have nothing to worry about!"

……

Daishan Island.

The second largest island in the Zhoushan Archipelago, stretching over twenty miles in length and width.

This island not only boasts dense forests and abundant fishing grounds, but also tens of thousands of acres of fertile farmland, enough to support tens of thousands of people, making it a veritable pearl of the East China Sea.

However, in order to ban maritime trade and passively defend against Japanese pirates, the Ming court gradually abandoned Daishan Island.

The current owner of Daishan Island is Ding Huogen, a former pirate who served as a naval guerrilla in the Ming Dynasty. He is nicknamed "Fire Monk".

Ding Huogen was an anomaly among pirates, and was met with hostility and exclusion from the various "island lords" of Zhoushan.

The masters of Shuangyu Island, Songpu Zhongxin, Taohua Island, and Yangshan Island, Shi Yongzhen, all regarded Ding Huogen as a thorn in their side.

Because Ding Huogen had accepted the Ming court's offer of amnesty, he served as a Ming general under Qi Jiguang for a full ten years.

The more than 600 armored soldiers under his command were mostly remnants of the former Ming army, with the core members being elite troops personally trained by Qi Jiguang.

He was originally a pirate, but after being granted amnesty, he became a mortal enemy of Japanese pirates and other pirates.

Even if he betrayed the Ming Dynasty and became a pirate again, the island lords would not accept him.

This is the first reason.

The second reason is that Ding Huogen not only repeatedly refused the allied forces' attack on Ningbo, but also warned the Ningbo government, betraying the allied forces.

But the third reason is even more important.

Ding Huogen actually protected the people of the Zhoushan Islands, recruited slaves who had fled from various islands, and managed Daishan Island as if it were under the rule of the mainland.

Today, Daishan Island is the most populous island, with four to five thousand people of all ages and genders, more than the main island of Zhoushan.

Ding Huogen helped these seafarers to farm and fish on Daishan Island, and they thrived.

If this continues, within three to five years at most, Ding Huogen will be able to increase his strength dramatically and become the overlord of the Zhoushan Islands.

However, Ding Huogen's troops were based on Qi Jiguang's army, and their fighting strength was unparalleled in Zhoushan. Even the Japanese under Matsuura Tadanobu did not dare to confront them head-on.

As a result, the island owners, both large and small, were temporarily powerless against Daishan Island.

What many people don't know is that tonight, Matsuura Tadanobu has joined forces with several factions and is determined to destroy Daishan Island.

By the time they realize what's happening, the population, money, and food supplies of Daishan Island may have already been divided up.

...

Mopan Mountain in the center of the island is the highest and steepest, and it was where Ding Huogen's camp was located.

In the council hall of the camp sat a burly man in his forties, with a purplish-red face, dressed in black. He exuded an imposing and authoritative aura.

Anyone who saw him could tell he was a military general.

This person was none other than Ding Huogen, nicknamed "Fire Monk".

He sat on the commander's seat covered with a sharkskin, with a group of burly men with a fierce aura and wearing straw sandals sitting on either side of him. They were all his captains and lieutenants.

Although he had long since returned to being a pirate and only had a little over six hundred armored soldiers, Ding Huogen was still accustomed to his military rank in the Ming army.

"Commander Liu," Ding Huogen said, looking at a fair-skinned man in blue. "When will the new recruits you're in charge of training be put to use?"

Commander Liu stood up and said, "Reporting to your subordinate, your subordinate has instructed me to train troops using the methods of General Qi. If we are to train them into elite troops, it will not be a matter of three to five months."

"At the earliest, it won't be ready for use until next spring."

Ding Huogen nodded and said, "Don't be too hasty. It's better to spend more time to train an elite force. Most of you were trained by Commander Qi, so you naturally know that although Commander Qi's training methods are complex, they are the best methods for building a strong army in the world."

He then looked at another subordinate, "Commander Wang, the matter of supervising the construction of large ships must be expedited. The new ships must be launched by next winter at the latest."

Commander Wang stood up, looking somewhat embarrassed, and said:

"We're still short of money. We don't have enough high-quality materials, and new materials will take three years to be ready. How can we possibly have enough?"

"If we allocate a few tens of thousands of taels of silver to purchase ready-made ship materials, we can start construction this year. Why wait until next winter?"

Ding Huogen thought for a moment, "I'll figure out a way to cover the funding shortfall. You just need to contact the timber merchants and secure the ship materials first."

"We must take over the entire Zhoushan within three years!"

"It's not about seeking amnesty, it's just about maintaining peace in this region. The imperial court doesn't care about Zhoushan, so let us take charge. We can't let the Japanese pirates run rampant."

"Let me repeat myself: we can rebel against the court, but we cannot disgrace Commander Qi. Even if we are rebels, we must be tough."

As Ding Huogen finished speaking, he suddenly frowned and stood up abruptly.

"Today is Ghost Festival, and I almost forgot to commemorate our fallen brothers. Why didn't anyone remind us?"

"Hurry up and make the arrangements! Tonight's grand ceremony will allow the brothers who have returned from the dead to have a good feast!"

(End of this chapter)