Volume 2: Soaring! The Overlord of the Region Chapter 409: Thousands of Sailing Ships Compete for Yingzhou
On April 1, 1619, in Busan Port, the sky was high and the clouds were light, the weather was sunny and there was a gentle breeze.
The endless sails stretched from the port to more than ten miles east and west of the port. There were also endless helmet tassels that stretched from the port to more than ten miles inland.
After traveling more than ten miles inland from the port coastline, there are endless temporary granaries and arsenals with isolation zones set up in the distance...
In less than a month and a half after the Japanese troops in Korea were pacified, the whole of Busan became like this.
This was due to the continuous expansion of Busan Port in the three years after the Japanese army conquered Korea, Cao Sanxi's strong dispatching ability, the full support of the Ming Dynasty's wealthy maritime merchants, the hard work of Korean workers, and the meticulous arrangements of officials headed by Sun Chengzong...
Now, at the end of March, the capacity of the entire Busan Port has reached its limit. Both Zhao Lujiao, who was responsible for the security of land equipment and materials, and Li Guozhu, who was responsible for the protection of sea transport ships, told Sun Chengzong that the scale could not be expanded any further. At this scale, our army and navy simply could not take care of it. As long as the Japanese made up their minds and rushed into the port to detonate the gunpowder ships without retreating, I am afraid that more than half of the thousands of ships here would be written off!
The teachers sent by Fangshan Medical School also issued a stern warning: more than 200,000 troops and hundreds of thousands of civilians are crowded here, and the daily disposal of excrement alone is a big problem. If this continues, I am afraid that a plague will break out.
So Sun Chengzong and Cao Wenzhao discussed and quickly made a decision: we can’t wait any longer and we must send troops immediately.
The time for sending troops was set on April 1st.
"General Du, due to the limited shipping capacity, I have decided to divide the troops for this expedition into two groups. The first group is your Liaozhen and the Nine Borders reinforcements, a total of 50,000 people, and more than 80,000 people from the Japanese Toyotomi family, a total of 130,000 people, starting from here and landing at Chijianguan!"
"I will obey the commander's orders, but I am a rough man who only knows how to fight. The soldiers from the nine important towns under my command have been working together for more than a year. But now there are 80,000 friendly troops, who don't speak the same language, have different flags, different equipment, and different tactics. This makes me nervous."
"Hahaha, the emperor had anticipated this. So he sent a consultant to you."
"consultant?"
"Master Du, please look, who is this person?"
"Huh? Ah! When did you arrive, Ma Shuai?"
"I just arrived last night." Ma Gui, who was already over 70 years old, was obviously not in a good mood at this time, but there was still a trace of excitement in his tired face: commanding 130,000 troops! This was a battle that had never happened before.
"Commander-in-chief, with Marshal Ma here, I feel completely at ease. Please give me the order to be a deputy general and fight under Marshal Ma."
"Hahaha, Commander Du, I'm just a consultant. A consultant only consults and asks questions. You are the one who will take charge along the way!"
"Ma Shuai!"
"Alright, alright, General Du, don't be so modest. It's the Emperor's will that General Ma serve as an advisor instead of a commander-in-chief."
"...Yes, I will obey the emperor's order."
"General Du, according to the intelligence recently sent back by the Royal Guards, the main force of the Tokugawa family is still entrenched in the central and eastern regions of Honshu Island. Therefore, if we go to Akama Pass at this time, we will not encounter strong resistance. In fact, because the Nagato Province where Akama Pass Port is located was originally the territory of the Mori family, and this time our friendly forces include 15,000 people from the Mori family. Therefore, if nothing unexpected happens, your landing should be no problem."
"What the commander-in-chief means is that he is afraid that after we land in large numbers, the Tokugawa family will mistakenly think that our army is the main force of our dynasty. Then the new army under his command will come in full force?"
"That's right." Sun Chengzong took a deep breath. "The soldiers from the nine important towns have been guarding the northern border for the country for more than 200 years. Their combat power is very strong. However, as the emperor said, the times have changed, and the way of war has also changed a lot. So, frankly speaking, if these 130,000 people face the 100,000 new troops of the Tokugawa family, I'm afraid their chances of winning are very small."
“Hahaha~” The old but strong Du Song laughed loudly with his head raised. “Commander-in-Chief, there is no need to be like this. To be frank, if this unit were to face the new army, we would have no chance of winning.”
"So, after Commander Du's troops go out to sea, they must quickly split into two teams."
"Two teams?"
"Yes, one team will land at Akama-kan Port, and then quickly occupy Nagato Province. Then, under the guidance of the Mori family, they will choose a strategic location to dig trenches and prepare to defend. The other team will land directly on Kyushu Island, and under the guidance of the Shimazu family, they will wipe out all the daimyo on Kyushu Island!"
Sun Chengzong quickly lowered his voice when he said this: "The Jiuzhou Island is already the fiefdom reserved by the emperor for the King of Gui. If you clean him up, the King of Gui will definitely thank you a lot afterwards."
"Huh?!" Du Song's eyes rolled slightly, and his whole face suddenly turned into a smile: "Thank you for your reminder, Commander. Please rest assured, I will do it myself and guarantee to hand over a clean island to King Gui."
After the two finished their private conversation, Sun Chengzong raised his voice a little: "I will equip you with 50,000 Korean civilians, so the total number is 180,000. In addition to the 20 ammunition bases, there are also 300,000 shi of food in the initial stage. But I think you also know that after this batch of ships sends you and these supplies to the shore, you will not be given any supplies for at least three months, and you can forget about reinforcements. General Du must control these supplies well and make sure they last for three months."
"Um... Commander?"
"What is it?"
"Then Kyushu Island." Du Song also lowered his voice: "It will be the territory of King Gui in the future. Needless to say, I will treat the people there better. But on Honshu Island, hehehe..."
"What did you just say? I didn't hear you!"
"Hahaha, I didn't say anything. Please rest assured, Commander-in-Chief, I will go right away. In three months, I will definitely pacify Kyushu, Shikoku, and the Sanyo and San'in regions of Honshu!"
On April 1, a large number of Ming troops and Japanese rebel forces began to board the ships. Due to the large number of people and supplies on board, this process lasted from morning to dusk. At 6 pm on that day, as a signal flare soared into the sky, nearly 5,000 ships of various sizes around the harbor within a radius of dozens of miles began to raise their sails. Then, with the afterglow of the setting sun, they sailed out of Busan Port.
The straight-line distance from Busan Port to Akagamiseki or Hirado in Kyushu is about 50 to 70 kilometers. At that time, the speed of a fully loaded Daifuku ship was generally only 3 knots (5.5 kilometers). It would take this fleet more than ten hours to cross the Korean Strait.
Therefore, it is most reasonable to depart at 6pm and arrive at 4 or 5am.
Du Song's journey was generally smooth. At 4 a.m. on April 2, a fleet of about 2,000 ships appeared outside Hirado Port on Kyushu Island. At 6 a.m. on the same day, a fleet of 3,000 ships arrived at Akagamaseki Town on the western end of Honshu Island!
These two places were originally commercial ports, with almost no garrison. After seeing such a large fleet, the guards had already fled without a trace. Therefore, the two fleets were able to land smoothly and deploy.
Then, after unloading the cargo, these large ships quickly turned around under the escort of Li Guozhu's fleet: there was another troop waiting to board the ship in Busan, which was the real sharp knife stabbing into the heart of Japan!
