Discovering signs that the Japanese pirates might plot against North Korea again made Lu Xiangsheng very nervous. Because he understood that the fighting strength of the Japanese country should be similar to that of Jianlu. However, the number of troops is far greater than that of Jianlu.
In addition, the Ming Dynasty had four advantages over the Jianlu troops. It can be said that the Ming army took a great advantage in the war against the Jianlu troops.
First, the advantage in population allowed the Ming Dynasty to fight repeatedly, and it was still able to support the current general pattern of turning defeat into victory. However, the Jianlu population was too small. After the Ming Dynasty fought two annihilation battles, the Jianlu army was unable to survive. The captives can only defend passively.
Second, the advantage in food and grass supplies. The Jianlu were located in the barren Liaodong, and had no source of plunder. The food and grass supplies were extremely scarce, which greatly restricted the use of the Jianlu's combat power. Today's Ming Dynasty's strategy is to take advantage of Jianlu's shortcomings and attack them. It can be said that this is completely a seven-inch attack on the snake, and it has the effect of getting twice the result with half the effort.
Third, Ming Dynasty has the advantage of navy. On the long coastline, with the support of the navy, we can attack when we advance and defend when we retreat. It also made the Jianqi, who lacked troops, unable to defend themselves, and eventually had to abandon coastal towns.
Fourth, the Ming Dynasty had an advantage in firearms. In any case, when Kong Youde and Geng Zhongming surrendered to Jianlu, they brought a full set of firearms to Jianlu, including training, manufacturing, etc. However, Jianlu was limited by the lack of raw materials and supplies. In fact, the scale of firearms was not large. In the war with the Ming Dynasty, they were completely suppressed by the Ming Dynasty army.
However, if we have to face Japan in the future, these four advantages will not be obvious.
Although the population of the Japanese country is definitely not as large as that of the Ming Dynasty, they still have a large population, and they definitely consume much more energy than the Jianlu people. This is one of the reasons;
Secondly, the Japanese state is on the sea and is its own country, with no land connection to the Ming Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty could not send out cavalry like it did against the Jianlu, so it only took advantage of the grain and supplies.
Third, the Japanese country is an island country, and the navy they have is not comparable to the navy before the founding of the Han Dynasty. Regardless of the number of warships, the quality of the warships, or the elite level of naval training, they are not at the same level. To be honest, Lu Xiangsheng had no idea about the superiority of the Ming Dynasty Navy over the Japanese Navy.
Fourth, as early as the Wanli period, the Japanese army that invaded North Korea was equipped with large-scale firearms. The shotgun of the Ming Dynasty was actually passed down from the Japanese country. Now that so many years have passed, Lu Xiangsheng is not sure what happened to the Japanese firearms.
All this made Lu Xiangsheng very anxious, so he sent an urgent report to the capital.
Before this memorial reached the capital, Emperor Chongzhen naturally knew the news through the Class A eavesdropping seeds on Lu Xiangsheng.
In this regard, he did not have Lu Xiangsheng's anxiety at all. On the contrary, he could lead the Japanese army to North Korea and destroy it. This was the result of Emperor Chongzhen's secret prayer in the past few days. Unexpectedly, God would come true, and traces of Japanese pirates would actually appear in North Korea.
It seems that the Tokugawa shogunate's legendary isolation from the country was not so resolute! If possible, these Japanese would not want to stay on an island with constant volcanoes, tsunamis, and earthquakes.
In fact, Emperor Chongzhen didn't like the Japanese country very much. However, no matter what, no matter how bad a place is, it still has its advantages.
For example, the silver mines and sulfur production areas of Japan, and the geographical location of Japan. This is a very good starting point for the Ming Dynasty to go to North America. If the Japanese country can be occupied, it will be much more convenient for the Ming Dynasty to expand to North America.
Anyone who has traveled through time in later generations will definitely know that this was the Age of Discovery in the West. It was at this point in time that the backward American regions were continuously devoured and colonized by Europe. If Ming Dynasty had the ability to go to such a big place but could not go there, then he would be considered a time traveler in vain!
The goal is clear, which is to conquer the Japanese country. Nowadays, the Japanese pirates are more active than expected. It is very likely that it will not take too long for the Japanese pirates to reappear in North Korea. With this in mind, Emperor Chongzhen issued an order to send Zheng Zhilong, the commander-in-chief of the Dongjiang Army Navy, to the capital for an audience.
In this era, the person in Ming Dynasty who was most familiar with Japanese pirates was definitely Zheng Zhilong. He still has a home in Japan. Zheng Chenggong's mother was from Japan.
After Fei Ge passed the message, Zheng Zhilong knew why the emperor had sent him the message, and immediately rushed to the capital to have an audience.
Sure enough, as soon as they met, Emperor Chongzhen asked him straight to the point about the current situation in Japan.
In this regard, Zheng Zhilong had already considered this matter comprehensively when he was on the road. He had to consider it more comprehensively than when he answered Lu Xiangsheng. Therefore, he immediately replied: "Your Majesty, I think that Japan will not send any more troops." North Korea. As far as the general knows, the Tokugawa shogunate that actually rules the Japanese country now took advantage of the former Toyotomi shogunate to attack North Korea and become an enemy of the Ming Dynasty..."
When he said this, he was a little hesitant, thinking about whether to explain what the shogunate is and why the emperor does not rule these things. Unexpectedly, Emperor Chongzhen interrupted him directly and said: "There is no need to explain these, I Knowing that Tokugawa Ieyasu usurped the throne from Toyotomi Hideyoshi, he didn't want to give this opportunity to others, so he thought about seclusion, right? I know all this. What do you think of the current people in power in the Tokugawa Shogunate? Will he send troops, or is it possible that he will send troops when there is great benefit?"
Hearing this, Zheng Zhilong was stunned for a moment. But then he remembered the emperor's ability, and felt that the emperor knew it, and it didn't seem strange. So, he put aside his thoughts and specifically answered Emperor Chongzhen's question: "Your Majesty, from the 10th to the 11th year of Chongzhen's reign in the Ming Dynasty, there was a riot by Western pagans in the Japanese country. The shogunate, named Tokugawa Iemitsu, suppressed it. Then, he began to expel foreigners and prohibited trade with the Japanese country. This was what His Majesty said was a closed country. As far as the general knows, the Japanese country has passed through three generations of the Tokugawa family. Basically, no other big name can shake the rule.”
At this point, he paused and continued to answer: "As far as the general knows, it seems that the possibility of Japan sending troops to overseas expeditions is still very small. Judging from the current situation in North Korea, it may be possible, but the general will not If the Japanese know that the last general is commanding the Dongjiang Navy, they may hesitate."
When saying this, Zheng Zhilong was actually very confident. If he didn't even have this confidence, he wouldn't be able to monopolize smuggling along the southeastern coast of the Ming Dynasty. You must know that the overlord of this region has to defeat the Folangji people of Haojing'ao, the Hongyi people of Taiwan, and the smuggling forces of Japan and Ming Dynasty in order to receive protection fees of tens of millions a year. .
At this time, he was reminding Emperor Chongzhen in a subtle way. He wanted to tell Emperor Chongzhen that with me here, the Japanese pirates would not be arrogant!
But who would have thought that after Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he said calmly: "In that case, I will first find an excuse to remove you from office!"
"..." Upon hearing this, Zheng Zhilong's sense of accomplishment that just surged from the bottom of his heart suddenly disappeared. He felt a little stupid. What is going on?
Didn’t I just say it clearly enough? With me here, if the Japanese pirates want to land in North Korea, they must at least ask themselves whether they agree or not, right? Otherwise, if the navy master and I fight, it is hard to say whether the Japanese pirates can win, but they will definitely have to pay a heavy price!
Seeing Zheng Zhilong looking a little stupid, Emperor Chongzhen smiled slightly and said: "I want to let the Japanese pirates land in North Korea. Since they are worried about you, they will naturally remove you from your post so that the Japanese pirates can feel more at ease!"
"Ah..." Zheng Zhilong never expected that Emperor Ming would still have such thoughts! This seems to be completely different from the previous Ming emperors. Not only is he not afraid of trouble, but he is looking for trouble?
"This matter is known to me and your Majesty. No third party knows about my plan." Emperor Chongzhen looked at Zheng Zhilong and explained carefully, "This matter must be kept secret!"
Zheng Zhilong listened in a daze. At this time, he naturally understood that it was not that the unpredictable power of God wanted to punish him, but that the emperor had an ulterior motive. However, he was still a little confused, so he played: "Your Majesty, why What if we want the Japanese pirates to send troops to North Korea? In this case, the Dongjiang Army will definitely face the greatest threat!"
After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen just said lightly: "Japanese pirates have always coveted the mainland. Toyotomi Hideyoshi was the one before, and there will definitely be Japanese pirates in the future. And this kind of Japanese pirates usually only appear when the Japanese country is strong. . In this case, I plan to destroy the Japanese country directly to avoid future troubles..."
Hearing this, Zheng Zhilong couldn't help being a little dumbfounded again. Just because of this reason, the emperor wants to destroy a country?
Although the Japanese pirates did send troops to Korea during the Toyotomi Hideyoshi era, and they still wanted to occupy the Ming Dynasty, the Japanese were a frog in the well. How could they possibly occupy the Ming Dynasty? Is it possible that the emperor is a little too worried because he is planning ahead for a rainy day?
Of course he didn't know that if history did not change, one day in the future, China would become very weak, and Japan would become strong. Therefore, a larger-scale invasion than the previous Toyotomi Hideyoshi era would make the land of China worse. The people are suffering from dire straits. Although they could be defeated in the end, the price paid was too heavy.
"In addition, I once told you that one day in the future, I will fly the flag of the Ming Dynasty on the other side of the ocean!" Emperor Chongzhen looked at Zheng Zhilong and said at the right time, "On the east side of the ocean, I believe you will also Knowing the situation there, I intend to use the Japanese country as the starting point and send my ministers and others to go on an expedition, what do you think?"
As the Pirate King, Zheng Zhilong certainly knows the general situation on the other side of the Pacific Ocean. He also knew that if the Ming Dynasty wanted to go to the Pacific, there was an existing route taken by the Spaniards on Luzon Island, which passed through Japan.
When I heard it at this time, it turned out that the emperor's ultimate goal of occupying the Japanese country was actually to use the Japanese country as a springboard to achieve that grand goal. Suddenly, he became excited.
Over the years, although Zheng Zhilong has been appointed as the commander-in-chief of one army and his son has become the prince's attendant, with a bright future, he has been watching the army making meritorious deeds in wars. To be honest, he has watched with enthusiasm. How could he not have the dream of being a wife, a prince, and a general?
It’s just that it’s too difficult to be knighted in the Ming Dynasty. Although he estimated that after the Jianlu were eliminated, a group of people would be knighted, but he was certain that he was definitely not among them. However, if there is a real use for the navy, that is when he makes a contribution!
He has already earned enough money. Now, all he has left is the dream of honoring his ancestors and getting a title!
Thinking this way, he became excited and immediately replied to Emperor Chongzhen: "Your Majesty has a will, and the general will not hesitate to die!"
When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he smiled and said: "So, I am going to find a reason to remove you from your post and punish you for your crimes?"
He said that as long as he was around, the Japanese pirates might not dare to send troops. Now that the emperor has decided to use force against the Japanese, it must be the easiest way to lure the Japanese pirates to North Korea to eliminate them. In other words, it is because of his talk. What a calamity!
Zheng Zhilong thought this in his heart and reluctantly admitted it.
However, Emperor Chongzhen did not look down on the Japanese country because of this. He immediately asked Zheng Zhilong: "Who should be sent to the Japanese country to find out the news?"
In the past, during the Toyotomi Hideyoshi era, when Japanese pirates attacked North Korea, the Kinyiwei received the news in advance and sent it back to the country. If the Japanese country wants to send troops again, the Ming Dynasty will naturally conduct surveillance to avoid being caught off guard and suffering unnecessary losses.
When Zheng Zhilong heard this, he said without hesitation: "Your Majesty, the general also has some property in the Japanese country. It would be better to send the fifth brother Zheng Zhibao to Edo to spy on the news!"
Zheng Hongkui is currently a Fujian coastal defense guerrilla. He is in charge of the Zheng family fleet instead of Zheng Zhilong and is responsible for purchasing grain from Nanyang. This is absolutely unavoidable. Of course Zheng Zhilong would not give it to anyone else if he had the opportunity to appear in front of the emperor, so he recommended his younger brother.
After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen nodded and said, "In that case, I will grant him the title of Jinyiwei Baihu, okay?"
At this time, Zheng Zhibao was just a scholar. To be honest, this scholar was actually bought with money. Based on Zheng Zhilong's understanding of his younger brother, it was absolutely impossible for him to pass the Jinshi examination. In this case, if the emperor wants to make him a member of the Imperial Guard, that is the best way out.
Therefore, after hearing this, Zheng Zhilong quickly thanked his brother and said that he would write a letter immediately and send his brother to Edo.
But who would have thought that after hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen shook his head and said: "No, let him come to the capital first. There are some things that I have to give you instructions on."
In fact, he wanted to reward him with a Class A eavesdropping seed, so that he wouldn't have to worry about the message not being delivered in time.
It was also an honor for his fifth brother to be interviewed by the emperor, so Zheng Zhilong quickly agreed.
After the discussions on these matters were completed, Emperor Chongzhen issued a decree at a public level, saying that Zheng Zhilong had violated him and removed Zheng Zhilong from his official position, leaving him to stay at home and study with his son Zheng Sen.
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