Volume 2: Soaring! The Overlord of the Region Chapter 415: Use the power to suppress others
"Kōfuden, Kyoto is the residence of the Emperor, a thousand-year-old capital, it cannot be destroyed by war."
"Yes, Lord Kufang, please understand how difficult it is for us and withdraw all the troops from Kyoto."
"Wow, Kufangdian, most of Japan's cultural heritage over the past thousand years is concentrated in Kyoto. If a battle breaks out in the city in broad daylight like today, I'm afraid the entire Kyoto will be reduced to a sea of fire. I beg the Kufangdian to show mercy and spare Kyoto from the flames of war."
On the night of the 25th, when Zhu Youdong was winning the hearts of the Ming army, Tokugawa Yoshinao, who was stationed in Fushimi Castle, southeast of Kyoto, about 20 miles away from him, was surrounded by a large group of nobles, who made so much noise that their heads hurt.
The nobles had only one idea: If you want to fight, that's fine, we can't do anything about it. But please do n't fight in Kyoto. This city is full of cultural relics and almost all the buildings are made of wood. If a fight breaks out, the city will be burned down. If that happens, the thousand-year-old capital will be destroyed, and you, General, can't afford to be blamed for that.
Looking at the nobles below, some crying and acting pitiful, or frowning and pretending to be concerned about the country and the people, Tokugawa Yoshinao had an urge to chop all of them into pieces and feed them to the dogs.
Originally, according to his idea, Ming would land in either Nagato, Osaka, or Edo. No matter where, the battlefield would not be in Kyoto. Who knew that the Ikeda family in Tottori would be so bold and line up before the other side landed. As a result, the Ming army did not have to take the steep mountain road of Sanyo Road at all, and rushed directly into the Kyoto Basin. He was forced to pull the main force to the Kyoto front line under extremely inadequate preparation: it was really unprepared, otherwise how could they only occupy a little geographical advantage without a complete defense system?
After Kyoto was chosen as the battlefield, these nobles didn't dare to say a word at first, but now they all came here to show off - wasn't it because their side was defeated during the day?
Speaking of the daytime battle, Tokugawa Yoshinao was also helpless: he had summoned the commanders at all levels who were on the scene at the time to learn about the course of the battle in detail. It can be said that there were no obvious problems with the various measures taken by the commanders on the scene - this is what makes people feel desperate!
But Kyoto has a very high "political significance"! If we give up this place easily, we really don't have to fight the war later: the orphan of the Toyotomi family is now marching eastward in the west. When he enters Osaka and Kyoto, he will raise his arms and call for action! I am afraid that the whole of Japan will completely change its perception of the shogunate, and the Tokugawa family will become a traitor that everyone wants to kill!
But what can we do if we don't give up Kyoto? It's impossible to fight street battles in Kyoto: Kaiyang is not stupid, how can he send a large army into Kyoto? Wouldn't it be enough to just fire a few hundred incendiary bombs outside the city and burn it all down?
Therefore, from a political and military point of view, Kyoto could no longer be defended.
"I understand clearly that you are all concerned about your country and people. Please rest assured that the Tokugawa family is also a part of Japan, and it is natural that they should take their own responsibilities for the inheritance of Japanese culture. I am willing to withdraw all the troops from Kyoto, but I would also like to trouble everyone present to send representatives to the Ming army to meet their emperor. I cannot withdraw my troops while they take advantage of the situation to launch a sneak attack. What do you think? Is there any lord willing to take on this task?"
This was something that the nobles who had often traveled between the daimyo during the Warring States period were very familiar with. Soon, the nobles nominated a representative from the Kyogoku family, a representative from the Imadegawa family, and a senior monk from Rengein Temple in Kyoto to form a delegation of envoys to go to the Ming army camp for negotiations.
After receiving such a request, Zhu Youdong of course agreed.
After the envoys of ministers and nobles withdrew amidst their numerous thanks, Zhu Youdong quickly summoned Sun Chengzong, Cao Wenzhao and others to discuss the matter.
"My Lords, now that the Tokugawa family has voluntarily given up the Kyoto line, this means that the remaining 90,000 Tokugawa troops have all gathered around Fushimi. Let's discuss how our army should respond next."
"Your Majesty, I think that after today's battle, both sides are very clear about each other's strength. Even if we fight again in Fushimi, the Ming Dynasty will still win. However, the combat effectiveness of the Tokugawa family's new army is indeed not weak. If we must fight head-on, it is possible that our army can only reap a miserable victory."
"Master Cao, what do you think?"
"Your Majesty, what Commander Sun said makes a lot of sense. I second your proposal. However, if Your Majesty wants to shock the officials and people here with a great victory, I believe that our Ming soldiers will still be fearless in sacrifice, and will clear all obstacles for Your Majesty and win all the victories."
"Am I a foolish ruler who would waste the lives of my Ming soldiers for my own selfish reasons? If the Tokugawa family takes the initiative to attack Fushimi Castle, we will certainly take it. If they don't attack, then we will dig fortifications in the south of Kyoto and prepare for defense."
"Uh, Your Majesty. Our army is a guest army after all. After the war is suspended?"
"Hahahaha, now that the war has come to this point, it's only natural that we shouldn't limit our focus to this battlefield. Now, the overall situation is on my side."
Standing up and pacing for a few times, Zhu Youdong said, "Please ask Mr. Sun to write a letter to Toyotomi Dongxiu in Sanyang Road, asking him to lead the army of the Mori family, gather the daimyo of the western part of Japan, and enter Osaka Castle as soon as possible. Announce the return of the Toyotomi family to Japan.
Send a letter to Dusong on Kyushu Island, asking him to enter Shikoku Island after clearing Kyushu Island. After clearing Shikoku Island, land in Kii Domain on Honshu Island.
Spread rumors that the Ming navy will land in Hokuriku and Tohoku with the armies of the daimyo such as Maeda, Date, and Uesugi. Help these families' armies return to their territories in mainland Japan. Then mobilize the daimyo of Hokuriku and Tohoku to attack the Tokugawa family from all directions!
In short, this time when I attack Japan, as long as the Tokugawa family surrenders, they will be the so-called Tokugawa family genealogical daimyo. As long as you repent and revolt on the battlefield, I will forgive you. Even if your surname is Matsudaira, or even Tokugawa? As long as you can hand over Tokugawa Yoshinao's head, I will still forgive you, at least I can guarantee your safety. "
"Your Majesty's idea is to suppress the enemy's main force with a large army, and then use the momentum to shake the foundation of the Tokugawa clan. In this way, within three to five months, the Tokugawa clan's army will probably be scattered like birds and beasts."
"Hahaha, everyone. The most difficult thing about this war against Japan is reputation. After we rescued the orphans of the Toyotomi family several years in advance, this reputation problem was solved. The second is the success of the landing. We found a suitable insider and landed smoothly. The third is winning the field battle. Although our victory north of Kyoto was not brilliant, it was a victory after all. In this way, the daimyo, nobles and even ordinary people in Japan who are still waiting and watching will make a choice in their hearts. After these three are in place, we can fully mobilize the general situation and use things outside the battlefield to crush the Tokugawa family's army."
"Yes, Your Majesty is very wise and I admire you very much. However, what Your Majesty said just now was all about the kingly way, and I have a little trick that I cannot show on the stage."
"Oh? Hahaha, Mr. Sun, I didn't expect you to come up with something like this. Well, I'll leave this matter to you."
…
On the night of the 25th, the Ming Dynasty and the Tokugawa family reached an agreement. In order to protect Japan's thousand-year-old capital, both sides would not attack Kyoto . Within three days after the Tokugawa army withdrew from the Kyoto defense line, the Ming army guaranteed not to pursue them.
On the 28th, after the Tokugawa army completely evacuated Kyoto, Zhu Youdong, accompanied by a group of Ming officials and guards as well as many Japanese nobles, enthusiastically visited the Imperial Palace, Nijo Palace, and Sanjusangendo Hall in Kyoto.
Then! The emperor's carriage was attacked by the shameless ninjas of the Tokugawa family near the Kinkakuji Temple! Although the emperor himself was safe and sound, seven or eight Japanese nobles died...
Afterwards, with the cooperation of the nobles and local daimyo, the Ming Dynasty launched a full-throated public opinion: in addition to criticizing Tokugawa Yoshinao for being a despicable person, as a general, he actually used ninjas to assassinate again and again , which was simply shameless. They also spread the tone of the Toyotomi family returning, the daimyo of the whole country jointly conquering the Tokugawa family, and only killing the chieftain and not the rest!
As time went on, the atmosphere within the Tokugawa army, which had just built a defense line near Fushimi Castle, became increasingly weird.
