The Korean rebels and monk soldiers are ready to move, and the Japanese army is certainly not sleeping idle. At this time, the Japanese garrison in Qingzhou City was Hachisuka Kasei. His troops were guarding the small and large towns between Qingzhou and Chungju. The force was quite scattered. There were only more than 300 people in Qingzhou City.
Is it dangerous? It seems very dangerous, but it actually depends on the overall situation. After all, since the Japanese army landed, the Korean army has often collapsed at the first touch, and the Japanese army has not encountered an opponent at all. It was under this overall situation that Haizuka Kasei disdained North Korea's combat power. Although there were only a few hundred soldiers left around him, he believed that it was enough to suppress Qingzhou and intimidate the surrounding areas.
On the first day of this month, Zhao Xian's 1,100 troops, 700 Linggui monks and soldiers, and 500 officers and soldiers, totaling more than 2,300 people, arrived in Qingzhou. Since Zhao Xian had already made up his mind before, he ordered 500 troops from his headquarters to lure the enemy out of the city. The remaining 600 rebels and 700 monk soldiers were waiting for orders on both sides. The official army was responsible for chasing the enemy. It should be said that this is an extremely common tactic to lure the enemy into encirclement and annihilation.
Haizuka Housekeeper saw that the provocateurs outside Qingzhou City were all ordinary people. They were all wearing no armor and holding crude swords and guns. Many of them were just holding hoes, pitchforks, firewood axes and other agricultural tools. At the same time, they were scattered in formation. , only know how to yell and curse outside the range of the matchlock gun.
Housekeeper Hazusuka sneered again and again and said to his subordinates: "There are only hundreds of untouchables in the area, holding farm tools, they can't even be called ashigaru. How dare they dare to yell and curse outside the city. They must all be cut into pieces to serve as a warning!" He was not just talking, he immediately ordered a hundred soldiers to hunt down this rebel army.
When the rebels saw more than a hundred Japanese troops attacking, they fought with them. Obviously, although the rebels numbered 500, their armor and weapons were not as sophisticated as the Japanese army after all. In addition, there was no formation and chaos. Nearly 300 rebels were injured or killed within a moment of the fierce battle. The battle situation could be described as one-sided.
Upon seeing this, Zhao Xian hurriedly sent a signal, and the front retreated to attract the Japanese troops to pursue. Then the ambush troops on both sides rose up and surrounded the Japanese troops in an instant. At this time, the military advantage was too great, and the Japanese army was unable to break through, and they were all killed by the rebels and monk soldiers. However, the rebels did not know how to use the matchlocks they captured, so they had to carry them with them as cold weapons.
Housekeeper Hazusuka saw an enemy ambush on the city tower, and he couldn't help but be surprised. After counting, he was surprised to find that there were thousands of enemy troops. Since there were only 200 defenders left in the city at this moment, Housekeeper Hazusuka was unsure of what to do. Confused.
Zhao Xian and Linggui took advantage of the situation and ordered the monk soldiers and the rebel army to attack the city with all their strength. The morale of the rebel army was high, and their shouts resounded throughout Qingzhou, and they fought fiercely with the Japanese army under the city. At this moment, suddenly there were dark clouds and heavy rain fell from the sky. Although the Japanese army's matchlock guns were made with good precision, their technical level was not high. They were not as rain-proof as the Wanli II type that the Ming army had replaced in previous years. Therefore, suddenly All failed. However, it was a blessing that the North Korean side was unable to attack the city due to heavy rain. Zhao Xian had no choice but to order a withdrawal from the siege.
Seeing the heavy rain, Haizuka Housekeeper hurriedly knelt down to thank the gods for their protection, but at the same time he knew that once the weather cleared the next day, the rebels would attack the city again, and Qingzhou might not be safe by then. Hachisuka Kasei made a prompt decision and led the remaining troops to evacuate Qingzhou overnight.
In the early morning of the next day, the rebels surrounded Qingzhou again, only to find that the city gates of Qingzhou had been opened and the people of Qingzhou were moving around. Zhao Xian and Ling Gui were puzzled and called a woman to ask, only to learn that the Japanese troops had left last night. Zhao Xian was suspicious and didn't know if it was a trick, so he didn't dare to act rashly. However, after the officers and soldiers heard about this great victory, they took the lead and went straight to Qingzhou and announced that Qingzhou had been restored.
After Qingzhou was recovered, Zhao Xian asked the officers and soldiers for a memorial to show his merits, but to his surprise, the officers and soldiers refused to give it. Zhao Xian led his troops to seize and take a look. Sure enough, the memorial attributed the first victory in the recovery of Qingzhou to the army. He praised the monk soldiers for their assistance, but said nothing about the rebel soldiers. Zhao Xian was furious, and conflicts broke out one after another between the rebel army and the official army.
Ling Gui had no choice but to act as a peacemaker to comfort both parties. Zhao Xian replied angrily: "Thousands of volunteers are not afraid of life and death and fight with the enemy invaders. They don't say a word. The officers and soldiers have not made any achievements but entered the empty city first, but they dare to report the first meritorious service." !
What they did was clearly a selfish revenge for not allowing the officers and soldiers to participate in the battle. Such shameless behavior must not be ignored. Master Linggui, since you have no desires or demands, please don’t say too much. The sword has no eyes. If you come forward again, you will definitely suffer disaster! "
At this point, Linggui could only say nothing. From then on, the alliance between the Gongju rebels, the monk soldiers, and the government army had essentially collapsed.
By the middle of this month, Zhao Xian received an order, and the court asked the rebels, monk soldiers, and government troops to work together to go south to recover Jinshan. Zhao Xian firmly opposed joining forces with the government and the army, and was determined to lead his own rebel army to regain Jinshan.
When Linggui learned about it, he quickly advised: "Please don't act on your own initiative. The poor monk thought that after the battle of Cheongju, there were only 700 rebels left. Geumsan Japanese general Kobayakawa Takagyeong. I heard that he was a famous Japanese general with great strategy. This man's soldiers There are many brave generals and strong strength, and we are now occupying a dangerous position. Just because the Duke's current army is less than a thousand, he will never come back. It is better to follow the imperial court's order, work together with the three departments, and take a long-term plan."
However, Zhao Xian's dislike of the officers and soldiers was so extreme that he naturally refused to comply and insisted on acting alone. He proudly said: "The emperor humiliated the minister and died. After receiving the military order, I will immediately rush to Jinshan to make further calculations. Even if I am a moth to the flame, I will not do it." We are determined to regain Jinshan. But please forgive me for never working with Xiao Xiao’s followers. If Master is still willing to kill the enemy and serve the country, then please come with me."
After Zhao Xian said this, he formally bid farewell to Ling Gui and left, chic and decisive.
On the other side, Kobayakawa Takagyeong heard that Gongju Zhao Xian led hundreds of rebels to attack Geumsan and was staying overnight outside the city. He said to Hana Zongmo: "Although the Korean rebels are brave, they are still far behind our army. I didn't dare to station this kind of troops outside the city. I thought they might be suspicious soldiers. However, if the leader of the army is really Zhao Xian, then it should be a different matter.
I have heard that Zhao Xian is a famous scholar in North Korea, but he is withdrawn and stubborn by nature, making it difficult for anyone to work with him for a long time. Inferring from this, this army should be a lone army.
Moreover, although Zhao Xian was well versed in Confucianism, he had no grasp of military strategy and was not a formidable enemy. Munemo, ask Takahashi to lead an additional 1,500 men to leave the city secretly at night and go around behind the Zhao troops. First, check whether there are ambushes in the surrounding areas. If they are indeed alone, lie behind the enemy's rear. Tomorrow you and I will personally lead the warriors out into battle. , attack front and back, and take the enemy general's head. "Tachibana Munoshige accepted the order and made arrangements immediately.
In the early morning of the next day, most of the rebels in Zhao Xian's formation were still sleeping. The gates of Kinshan City were wide open. Kobayakawa Takakage and Tachibana Munesege led their troops to attack Zhao Xian. The rebel sentries were panicked.
When Zhao Xian heard the shouts of killing, he urgently ordered the entire army to fight. However, the main force of the Japanese army was close at hand, and the ambush had already arrived. The rebel army was in chaos. Zhao Xian led the crowd to resist desperately, and encouraged his subordinates: "You only live once, and you must fight vigorously." , for the country and the people, kill all the Japanese pirates!"
However, although military morale is one of the magic weapons for victory in the era of cold weapons, now it is the season of alternation between hot and cold weapons. The Japanese army is not only large in numbers, but also well-equipped and well-coordinated. Its lethality is unmatched in ancient times. .
Zhao Xian's son wore a Qifu jersey and originally wanted to attract enemy troops so that Zhao Xian could escape. However, the Japanese army's iron artillery fire was intense and Zhao Xian's son was instantly shot and killed. After this fierce battle, none of Zhao Xian and the 700 volunteers survived. After the victory of Kobayakawa Takakage, the Japanese army retreated to Jinshan in an orderly manner.
The next day, Zhao Xian's disciples arrived with a small group of rebels. They found corpses everywhere and gathered them together for burial. Three days later, Linggui led the monk soldiers to attack Jinshan. When Linggui heard the news of Zhao Xian's death, he was filled with grief and anger and vowed to avenge Zhao Xian.
Linggui led the monk soldiers to take advantage of the mountains to deal with the Japanese army, and fought for three days and three nights. The monk soldiers were brave and had firm beliefs due to their status. In addition, the Japanese army had many Buddhist believers and they were quite worried about fighting the monk soldiers, causing the war situation to become a bit see-saw.
Kobayakawa Takakage strictly ordered to defend, constantly adjusting the defenses, and the iron gunners fired day and night from a high position. It was not until he discovered that the monk soldiers were desperate to press the entire army, that he ordered a short assault. This assault produced a key effect at the critical moment, resulting in the total destruction of the monk soldiers and the death of Linggui.
In this way, after Go Gyeongmyeong, Zhao Xian, Yeonggyu and others were killed in Geumsan one after another, the rebels from all over Jeolla, Chungcheong, and Gyeongsang provinces were all angry. They moved scattered or gathered troops every now and then, and marched towards Geumsan one after another. Launch an attack.
Kobayakawa Takakage originally wanted to use Geumsan as a base to capture Jeolla Province, but unexpectedly found that he had become the target of public criticism. Instead, he was trapped in Geumsan Castle. He had been exhausted from defending for days - oh no, he had been exhausted for months. This situation It really gave this Japanese military general a deep headache.
However, the Mori Terugen Seventh Army in Gyeongsang Province made poor progress in annihilating the rebels, and even the military advisor Kuroda Kanbei personally rushed from Hanyang to Gyeongsang Province to provide assistance.
After Kuroda Kanbei learned about the local fighting situation, he asked Mouri Terumoto to send generals to distribute in various cities and win over the people. As for Kuroda Kanbei himself, he personally led 3,000 elites, and successively set up tactics to lure the enemy in each city, deliberately showing weakness, inducing scattered rebels to be surrounded and killed, and then pacified the people until the place was stabilized.
At the same time, he ordered the Yoshikawa Hiro family to lead 10,000 troops, keep a close eye on Guo Zaiyou's troops, advance step by step, compress their guerrilla areas, and combine with the Ninth Army to force Guo Zaiyu and other rebels to retreat to Jinzhou.
At this stage, the performance of the Japanese army on land was roughly the same. Next, it is time to talk about the maritime aspect.
However, it was said that since Yi Sun-shin had been victorious in a series of naval battles with the Japanese army, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was furious when he learned about it and ordered the navy general Kuuki Yoshinori to counterattack Yi Sun-shin.
In fact, Kuki Yoshitaka is now bigger than the other two. The reason is that he is responsible for protecting the shipping lines, but he is unable to mobilize the main combat power of the Japanese navy. At this time, the real main force of the Japanese Navy has been staying near Osaka to prevent the Kanto Fleet of the Beiyang Maritime Trade Alliance, which has not yet "reached an agreement" with Japan, from raiding Osaka City. After all, Osaka is Toyotomi Hideyoshi's home base. If Osaka makes a mistake, I'm afraid it would be a light thing for Jiugui Jialong to wipe out his clan.
Kuuki Yoshitaka had no choice but to ask Anji Wakisaka to lead the navy's transport fleet with seventy-three warships to go into battle. He also asked Kato Yoshiaki and Todo Takatora to lead their troops to provide support.
Wakisaka Yasuji met with the three generals Wakiitazabei, Watanabe Nanemon, and Naoko Sama Yun to discuss the matter. At the meeting, Anji Wakisaka said: "That fellow Yi Sun-shin brought the reputation of our navy into disrepute. His Highness Taige has issued a strict order this time to annihilate the North Korean navy! In this battle, our seventy-three warships are divided into three teams and march together. , you each lead a team, assemble on Geoje Island first, and wait for the fighter plane."
Wakiitazabei was quite worried about the situation of the battle: "His Majesty Taikaku's strict orders are naturally formidable, but the main force of our navy cannot leave Osaka at this time, and the turtle ships built by North Korea cannot be underestimated. So far, there has been no Effective coping strategies.
We have discussed in private before that if we want to destroy his turtle ship, we must buy the giant ships from the Beiyang Sea Trade Alliance, and we even need to install a large number of large tubes on those giant ships like the Mingren giant ships ( artillery), but now there are none of these, which will definitely cause trouble for us when we fight again. "
Watanabe Saabei also had this concern: "Yes, Your Highness Kuki, our warships are all old ships at present, which are very short of big barrels, so the tactics can only be based on connecting strings. Compared with the Korean navy, Other generals, Yi Sun-shin has commanded it well. If the fleets of the two armies are of equal size, the outcome may be unpredictable."
Seeing that the two of them were so decadent, Zhiguo Zomayun was extremely dissatisfied and said to them: "How come you two have become so cowardly? Could it be that we have no advantage? I still don't believe it. This Korean turtle ship cannot be shot through or hit." Not bad? The big guns of the North Korean navy are not the big guns of Ming Dynasty. Their big guns can determine the outcome? I think the key still lies in the formation planning of our army, and we need to fully grasp the situation from the beginning!"
The issue of North Korean artillery mentioned here has actually been mentioned before. Although the Ming Dynasty has always regarded North Korea as a relatively honest vassal state, it has always been wary of it. For two hundred years, it has imposed strict restrictions on the export of firearms and gunpowder to North Korea. As for the most powerful artillery among them, it is of course the most powerful. Strictly restricted portions.
As a result, North Korea's artillery level has always been low. Although it is better than the Japanese army, which has been focusing on iron cannons (matchlock guns) and has hardly developed large barrels (artillery), it is "better than nothing". " difference.
According to the thinking of the Japanese navy generals at this time, it is not difficult to solve this problem, as long as the new fleet from Osaka City comes over. After all, those giant ships purchased or improved from Jinghua originally had artillery. Now Facing the Turtle Ship, a previously unexpected enemy, as long as the smuggled artillery is installed on the giant ship, the enemy can be defeated.
However, this problem is actually not that simple, because the artillery smuggled from Beijing has already gone somewhere, generally in two main directions: First, it was allocated to the Army. No need to explain this. In short, the Army took about 60% of it. ;
The second is to build the defense of Osaka Castle. It is no joke to say that Osaka Castle is now impregnable. At least in Japan, its city defense capabilities must have surpassed Odawara Castle, which was captured a few years ago, because 30% of the artillery smuggled from the Ming Dynasty was directly used in the city defense of Osaka Castle. above the system.
As for the remaining 10%, it is naturally loaded on the ship - that is, it is still in Osaka City, on the "new fleet" used to defend Osaka Bay. How should I put this? Although this resulted in the "new fleet" having too few artillery guns, at least they had new artillery. If used intensively, it would not be a big problem to destroy the limited turtle ships in Yi Sun-shin's hands.
It's a pity that no matter what, Kuki Yoshitaka will definitely not be able to get these artillery pieces now. He didn't even dare to ask Toyotomi Hideyoshi that he had such a need.
At this time, when Wakisaka Anji saw that Naobe Sama Yun had reached this point, he stood up suddenly and said fiercely: "That's right, you can't be fooled by the enemy. Our army has assembled such a huge force of seventy-three warships. The purpose is to fight to the death with the North Korean Navy!
Although the North Korean navy has large cannons, its steering and speed are not as good as ours, and its so-called turtle ships are only a handful. Our army is divided into three teams in this battle. Once the battle begins, we will surely use our speed advantage to surround the enemy ships and break into the enemy's formation, effectively disrupting North Korea's deployment, and then continue the battle to make the artillery of the North Korean Navy a target!
Gentlemen, we must seize the Korean warships and their barrels, and then integrate them into our fleet. In this way, the Korean navy will no longer be our opponent. Furthermore, in order to deal with the Korean turtle ships, His Highness Kuki has deployed the Nihon Maru, an iron-clad Anzha ship improved by Ming Dynasty craftsmen, as a secret weapon!
Now, our navy fleet has been assembled in Busan and is on standby. They are just turtle ships. I think it is better for them to be turtles, otherwise I will kill them! "
Since the general had said so, the three had no choice but to accept it. Considering that there was still a "Ming-made Anzai New Ship" to control the situation anyway, everyone still had some hope for Wakisaka Anji's vow to kill Yi Sun-shin. As a result, the Japanese navy completed pre-war mobilization and began to take action.
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