Chapter 814: Suppressing the Japanese Kingdom and transforming the four major provinces
The balance of victory is tilting towards Ashikaga Yoshimitsu.
Under the current situation, even Zhu Shu can hardly say that he can defend the remaining three cities.
Moreover, in field operations, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu has a greater advantage, which is the source of intelligence for local operations.
After all, it is the territory of the Japanese country. Although the four vassal kings have been running it for a long time, there are not a few Japanese people who are interested in the Japanese country.
During the siege of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, reports were received from the local Japanese and they discovered Zhu Shu's base camp.
Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was very careful. Even if the person who reported the news was a Japanese, he sent people to investigate in advance.
When it was confirmed that there was no mistake, 450,000 troops were directly dispatched to encircle Zhu Su's military camp.
Even though the equipment of the Ming army exceeded that of the Japanese soldiers, many of the 450,000 troops were the most elite samurai under Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. This was not something that the guardsmen led by Zhu Shu could stop.
After Zhu Shu discovered the Japanese soldiers' actions, he turned around and ran away without hesitation.
Because in his military camp, there was not only his eldest son, but also the eldest sons of the other two kings.
If defeated, it would be an extremely heavy loss for Ming Dynasty.
What Ashikaga Yoshimitsu didn't know was that at this time, a hundred thousand elite Ming army had landed on the west side of Kyushu Island.
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"Dasun, it seems that the situation in Japan has been settled. Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, this boy, does have some abilities, but in our eyes, he is still a bit young."
"He thought that the Ming Dynasty no longer had the troops to take care of him. However, the strength of the Ming Dynasty is beyond the imagination of a small Japanese country."
"This force of 100,000 elites will completely defeat the Japanese nation."
Zhu Yuanzhang laughed heartily.
When Shu Shu led the army, he knew that he would probably not be able to defeat Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. From the beginning to the end, Zhu Shu's 200,000 troops were just a bait.
A bait to induce Ashikaga Yoshimitsu to mobilize the total force of Japan.
Only by allowing Ashikaga Yoshimitsu to concentrate all the Japanese forces on Kyushu Island could the Ming Dynasty take action and directly solve the Japanese problem once and for all.
Attacking Honshu Island would be more costly for Ming Dynasty.
At the beginning, the Ming Dynasty actually had enough troops to deal with Ashikaga Yoshimitsu's rebellion.
But there is a problem, that is, how to attack Honshu Island after defending Kyushu Island.
Honshu Island is the real base camp of Japan, and many of its cities are very troublesome to attack.
Over the years, Honshu Island has been continuously building defensive measures. They followed the example of the Ming Dynasty City and continued to raise and deepen the city walls.
The attack on each city took a long time, and the losses involved were definitely not a small amount.
No matter what time it is, siege is always the most troublesome thing.
Therefore, Zhu Ying discussed with Zhu Yuanzhang whether there was any other way to avoid the tug-of-war on Honshu Island and quickly establish the battle situation.
The final idea came to Ashikaga Yoshimitsu.
Taking advantage of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu's eagerness to regain Kyushu Island, he set up a trap.
Zhu Shu's 200,000 troops were just within the acceptable range of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu.
If it is too much, perhaps Ashikaga Yoshimitsu will withdraw from Kyushu Island. If it is too little, it will not be able to hold back Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and force him to mobilize the entire Japanese army.
It seems that Ashikaga Yoshimitsu is about to regain Kyushu Island, but in fact the situation is now under the control of Ming Dynasty.
These 100,000 troops are the true elite of the Ming Dynasty.
Among them are 50,000 troops, who are the Ming Dynasty Jingwei, and another 50,000 troops, who are the latest graduates drawn from military academies in various places this year.
While Ming Dynasty was fighting foreign wars, it was also speeding up the training of soldiers.
With Ming's strong economic strength, it only takes three months to train qualified recruits.
In six months, an excellent team can be trained.
The way veterans lead new recruits, combined to form an elite, can allow the new recruits to adapt to the battlefield atmosphere faster.
The reason why Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was not able to receive the information in time was because these 100,000 troops were transported by steam ironclads.
Even if there is a Japanese spy who wants to send information, can he still be faster than a steam ironclad?
Ironclad ships cannot cross the sea, but they can reach the seaside in a few days and then be transported by the Qinghai Navy.
Under the current situation on Kyushu Island, these 100,000 elites are the key to breaking the situation.
They are not guardsmen. Every soldier is strong, tall, and knows how to ride and shoot.
Among them were 30,000 cavalrymen, who were brought from the grasslands by train.
These 30,000 cavalry are heavy armored cavalry.
"It's over! It's all over!"
When 30,000 heavy armored cavalry appeared on the battlefield on Kyushu Island, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu became paralyzed.
He didn't expect that Daming would still hide such a skill.
Although the Japanese country also had cavalry, it did not have an organized cavalry team. Firstly, due to geographical factors, the Japanese country did not have horse farms, so it could not build a large-scale cavalry regiment.
The second reason is the terrain of the Japanese country. There are not many plain areas, so the large-scale cavalry is of little use and is not as flexible as the infantry.
But in the wild battle on Kyushu Island, 30,000 cavalry are enough to ignore these factors.
Because this is a battle involving hundreds of thousands of troops, cavalry can naturally play a huge role.
Thirty thousand heavy cavalry rushed into the Japanese army, like tigers rushing into a flock of sheep, dividing the battlefield wantonly, making it impossible for the Japanese to form an effective formation.
Seventy thousand elite infantrymen, equipped with matchlocks, sword and shield men, were like bulldozers, mowing down the fragmented Japanese soldiers.
Even though there were hundreds of thousands of troops, under such overwhelming quality conditions, the Japanese soldiers were completely unable to resist.
The army was defeated like a mountain.
After only holding on for less than two hours, the Japanese soldiers collapsed completely.
Their bows, arrows, firecrackers, and swords were completely unable to break the Ming army's armor defense. This was not a war of the same level.
Most of the Japanese soldiers were not strictly trained samurai, but many were compulsorily recruited civilians.
If it is siege, it can naturally play a big role, but in this kind of battle situation, it can easily become a burden.
Ashikaga Yoshimitsu stared blankly at the collapsed battle line and murmured: "With its four hooves, trample our formation."
Zhu Zhu saw the arrival of reinforcements. Although he did not know how this Ming army suddenly appeared, this did not prevent him from pursuing the Japanese soldiers.
After being frustrated for so many days, I finally felt proud and proud.
Not only Zhu Shu, but also all the Ming army officers and soldiers.
Immediately, their morale soared, and they chased and killed the Japanese soldiers.
Ashikaga Yoshimitsu wanted to escape, but how could he outrun the four-legged cavalry?
After the Ming cavalry entered the battlefield, their first target was the Chinese army camp of the Japanese state, where Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was located.
The chaotic situation could no longer protect the Chinese army camp. The Chinese army, which Ashikaga Yoshimitsu thought was indestructible, was like paper under the Ming cavalry, and was completely torn apart in just one charge.
Only then did Ashikaga Yoshimitsu realize how ridiculous his idea was.
The gap between the Japanese country and the Ming Dynasty was far beyond what some conspiracy and tricks could make up. He finally understood why the Mongols, who were so arrogant back then, were defeated by the Ming army.
Why were the Mongols who had returned to the grasslands driven around like dogs by the Ming army?
Why did the Ming army dare to fight on multiple fronts without any scruples?
It turns out that everything is so ridiculous in the face of absolute strength.
Even the current Ming army in the Japanese region is just the tip of the iceberg of the Ming Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty now has the largest army in the world with the strongest combat effectiveness.
It was only a small part, and it was not something the Japanese country could resist.
At this time, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was thinking that if he had not taken advantage of this opportunity to regain Kyushu Island, would he have been able to stop the Ming army on Honshu Island.
After all, so many tall walls have been built on Honshu Island now.
After thinking deeply, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu shook his head slightly.
In fact, he has already felt that even if there is no war, the Japanese country will gradually be cannibalized by the Ming Dynasty.
In fact, over the years, although the Japanese country has rapidly developed its comprehensive capabilities in all aspects due to its relationship with Kyushu Island, including its military strength, it has also been continuously improved.
But in fact, more and more Japanese people are gradually defecting to the Ming Dynasty.
On Honshu Island, there are many nobles at the bottom who are not doing well, as well as a large number of Japanese people. They prefer to live on Kyushu Island, which is controlled by the Ming Dynasty.
Compared with being exploited by the Japanese nobles, the benefits provided by the Ming Dynasty on Kyushu Island will allow them to live a better life.
Moreover, the Japanese living on Kyushu Island can also receive education from the Ming Dynasty and learn the culture, language and characters of the Ming Dynasty.
If things go on like this, Kyushu Island will become richer and richer, while Honshu Island will become weaker and weaker.
After taking care of the grassland and Goryeo, the Japanese nation was even less able to resist.
Because of the size of their territory and population, they were destined to never catch up with the Ming Dynasty.
Zhu Shu finally contacted the Ming army who came to support him.
"It turns out that it is Song Guogong, the young king Zhu Shu. He has met Song Guogong and thanked Song Guogong for rescuing the siege."
Zhu Shu stepped forward and recognized Feng Sheng at a glance. He immediately got off his horse and saluted.
Feng Sheng also quickly dismounted: "His Royal Highness, King Qi, is not allowed to behave like this. My trip is also based on His Majesty's orders."
"His Majesty knew that the Japanese soldiers would definitely attack in large numbers, so he sent troops here specially."
The commander-in-chief of the first expedition against Japan was Song Guogong Feng Sheng, so Zhu Yuanzhang, the commander-in-chief of the army this time, naturally sent Feng Sheng.
At this time, the Ming army had broken through the Japanese army camp and captured Ashikaga Yoshimitsu alive, as well as a large number of Japanese daimyo.
There were shouts of "Those who surrender will not be killed" could be heard from all over the battlefield.
A large number of Japanese people chose to abandon their weapons and kneel down to beg for mercy.
At this point, the situation on Kyushu Island has been decided.
In order to better capture the remaining Japanese soldiers, the Ming army immediately blocked the connection between Nagato and Chikuzen, Bungo and Iyo.
In this way, all the remaining Japanese soldiers were trapped on Kyushu Island, and the Ming army could slowly capture them.
By almost nightfall, the Ming army had captured more than 200,000 Japanese soldiers.
Because there were too many Japanese soldiers, many fled in panic, and there was no way to capture them all at once.
The Ming troops in the three cities also came out and began to join in the capture of Japanese soldiers.
This arrest lasted almost a month.
A total of nearly 400,000 Japanese prisoners were captured, and this was the time limit that the Ming army could temporarily take care of them.
Many Japanese soldiers who fled to the mountains and forests became more troublesome to hunt down.
What Feng Sheng needs to do now is to transport these prisoners one after another out of Japan.
You must know that the current Ming Dynasty is in the period of vigorous development of railway construction, which requires a large number of labor forces to participate.
These Japanese soldiers will all be sentenced to at least fifteen years of hard labor, and they will contribute their own efforts to the construction of the Ming Dynasty.
Among them, those who know how to farm, because the Japanese who were forcibly recruited will also be included in the labor of farming, and perhaps many will be transported to Nanyang areas.
Of course, Feng Sheng does not need to worry about these details. There will be relevant and responsible officials to implement this matter.
The Japanese daimyo headed by Ashikaga Yoshimitsu would also be escorted to the Ming Dynasty capital to be punished for rebellion.
From a nominal point of view, the Japanese state was also a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty, so naturally it could be considered a rebellion.
This time, for the Japanese country, the firepower has been completely drained, because 70% of the young people of the Japanese country will be sent away from the Japanese country.
Even if they want to launch another rebellion, the source of troops is a huge problem.
This idea was of course proposed by Zhu Ying.
This has also led to a big problem in the current Japanese country, that is, because a large number of Japanese men were convicted and sent out of the country to serve in the Ming Dynasty or Nanyang, resulting in a large shortage of local men in the Japanese country, resulting in more women and fewer men.
situation.
Regarding this situation, Zhu Ying had no better way to deal with it. He could only aggrieve the Ming soldiers stationed in Japan.
And Feng Sheng led tens of thousands of soldiers and horses straight to the capital of the Japanese king.
There he will hold a surrender ceremony.
Ashikaga Yoshimitsu had almost exhausted all the troops on Honshu Island, so it was naturally impossible for the various cities on Honshu Island to offer any resistance to the Ming army.
Facing the arrival of the Ming army, all the cities surrendered, and Feng Sheng led the army directly to Kyoto, the capital of the Japanese king.
After a grand welcome and surrender ceremony was held, it truly represented the demise of the Japanese kingdom.
There is a problem here.
How to define the current Japanese state?
Do you directly arrange a province?
That will probably become the largest province in the Ming Dynasty.
After some discussion, it was decided to turn the Japanese kingdom into four provinces.
They are
Kyushu accepted the Provincial Envoy Department.
The Four Kingdoms accepted the Proclamation Department.
Honshu Tojo Proclamation Secretary.
Honshu West Chengxuan Administrative Affairs Department.
Honshu Island is too big, so we simply divided it into two provinces, so that the four provinces would be more balanced.
In order to take care of the beliefs of the Japanese people and to better govern the four major provinces, the Ming Dynasty retained the title of the Japanese royal family.
However, the inheritance of the Japanese king will be enshrined by the Ming Dynasty in the future.
Of course, this is also related to the fact that the Japanese king himself has always existed as a puppet.