Xinshun 1730

Chapter 331 Thunder Punishment
He said he wanted to fight, but he was not in a hurry, but let the Ryukyu King return to the Zhongshan Prince's Mansion first, and announced the seven hatreds against the Japanese country, so as to stabilize the mood on the Ryukyu Island.

Anyway, according to Liu Yu's theory of "flies gather in cesspit", it would be better to delay it for a longer time, lest there be fish that slip through the net.

Since the Satsuma clan has been acting in this way for 130 years, as long as there are envoys from the Celestial Dynasty, the samurai who monitor Ryukyu will hide in Zhongcheng City, so in the current situation, the first choice of the Japanese on the island may be to stick to Zhongcheng. city ​​city.

In order to make the Japanese on the island give up, Liu Yu let the squadron go around to the southwest of Ryukyu, occupying a port in the bay that can be seen from Zhongcheng City.

It is very famous in later generations. As the naval base of the US military in Ryukyu, it has an excellent location.

To the north is a Liansheng peninsula extending out to the sea, with a long snow-white sandy beach on the front, and a series of islands such as Tsuken Island and Kugao Island that resist the waves at the back. Like Weihai Bay, it is an excellent naval base. A natural breakwater formed by several small islands and peninsulas.

In addition, typhoons usually blow through the waters between Ryukyu and China. The Zhongcheng Port on the back is the most suitable for a naval base: Naha is more suitable for a civilian port. It is very convenient to go to China or Japan, but it is a military port. Very inappropriate.

Liu Yu has already figured out where the Ryukyu naval base will be built in the future, and he is waiting to flatten Zhongcheng City and bring King Zhongshan back to the capital, so we can have a good chat.

A few days later, the situation in Ryukyu has stabilized. Most of the families that are closer to Japan have brought a dozen private soldiers from the family to Zhongcheng City. In addition to the samurai who are scattered and watching, there have already gathered about 200 people.

In the battle between Confucianism and Hexue in Ryukyu, Hexue has always had the upper hand. Japan's influence in Ryukyu is growing, and many officials are pro-Japanese.

There are very few high-ranking officials with 36 surnames in southern Fujian. At this time in history, it happened to be the second official with 36 surnames who was in charge of the government, but even in history, this official with 36 surnames also implemented a pro-Satsuma policy.

Originally, in history, the official with the surname 36 who was in power at this time was named Cai Wen, and his emergence was also due to the tribute incident:

In 1683, the Manchu Qing was attacking Taiwan, so overseas trade was locked down, and no one except North Korea could get the goods—that is, in that year, North Korea accumulated enough heavy metals by relying on trade with Japan under special circumstances. , the currency was officially issued.

In that year in history, taking advantage of the opportunity of canonization of Ryukyu, many businessmen followed the canonization ship to Ryukyu.

Since Taiwan had not yet been conquered at that time, and the strict maritime ban policy was still being implemented, it is obvious that this time the trade was extremely profitable.

Merchants from Japan, Holland, and Spain gathered in Naha and ate up this batch of goods worth tens of thousands of taels of silver in one day, and the profits were extremely high.

By the time Shang Jing was canonized in 1718, Taiwan had already been captured, and the policy of banning the sea was no longer there. Westerners could get goods from Guangdong at any time; Japan itself also had Nagasaki trade.However, businessmen did not know how to analyze the impact of major policies on business. According to the experience of 1683, they followed the canonized mission and prepared for another grand event in 1683.

This is a textbook-like "carrying on the boat and seeking the sword".

However, in 1718, the situation had changed. After going to Ryukyu, I found that no one was buying goods here, and it was not like it was in 1683. The experience of that year killed these maritime merchants.

Are businessmen who can go to sea easy to deal with?Forcing the Ryukyu King to ask the Ryukyu King to eat all the goods, but the Ryukyu King couldn't eat them, so the sea merchants carried forward the traditional art of sea merchants: I am a merchant when I can sell goods, and a merchant when I can't sell goods. Pirates robbed Naha and forced the King of Ryukyu to eat all the goods.

Cai Wen, who was born with 36 surnames in southern Fujian, took this opportunity to stand out and dealt with the matter calmly and satisfactorily. A great turmoil broke out in the history of Ryukyu because of the interests of the nobility.

In general, his policy is pro-Japanese in diplomacy, pro-China in culture, swaying left and right, land reform, planting trees so that ships can be built.Everything is for the purpose of paying tribute, and all policies are formulated to maintain the tribute from both sides.

However, in this time and space, Dashun has never locked the country at all, and it has never been out of all East Asia except North Korea in 1683. It can only take advantage of the grand scene of getting the goods in Naha.

Therefore, not many businessmen followed the canonization in 1718, and this "evaluation incident" did not occur. Naturally, Cai Wen did not use this to become famous.Time makes a hero. Although this person is talented, he missed the opportunity to "show his face" under the changing background of the times.

Therefore, Ryukyu only had a ruling minister with 36 surnames before it was controlled by Satsuma, and there was no more 36 surnames.

This time Liu Yu chose to find a cesspit to gather flies, and it was exactly the same. If these harmony schools and pro-Japanese factions were not wiped out, Ryukyu would end sooner or later.

Seeing that the flies in the cesspit were almost gathered, they lit up their soldiers and horses and headed towards Zhongcheng City, twenty miles away.

The king of Zhongshan held a guard of honor, took five hundred soldiers and horses from the Ryukyu Kingdom as a show, and followed Liu Yu to the city of Zhongcheng.

It is not far from Shuri Castle, and Ryukyu is not that big.

There is a small mountain with a diameter of about 400 meters. After the height measurement, the highest point is about [-] feet. It is a bit like a Japanese mountain castle, built against the mountain.

For a force of only more than 200 people, this city is really big.

If we only consider the technology of building the wall, under the [-]-pound gun, the stone wall is equal, but it is a bit troublesome to build it against the mountain.

Still the same, the hot air balloon was raised, and the staff members read the city defense map of Zhongcheng City on it, and marked the two forts on it, looking for a suitable point to break through.

Although the mountain is fifty feet high, it is still unobstructed in front of the hot air balloon.

A group of officials from the Ryukyu Kingdom looked at the hot air balloon and were amazed, but they also thought that since it is the Celestial Dynasty, it is normal to have such means.It feels quite unexpected and reasonable.

The drawn map was placed in front of Liu Yu. The south was a cliff, the north was a steep slope, and the west was easier to fight. Of course, it was the place with the most walls.

The city wall is not thick, and the thickest part is only two meters. It is paved with stones. It may be difficult to attack in the era of cold weapons, but it is indeed impossible to defend against solid artillery.

The staff officers quickly found the weak point of Zhongcheng City, pointed to a city wall on the west side and said: "My lord, just need to capture this place, pull up the cannons, and slowly bombard it for two days, the city will be broken. The Japanese are condescending, They can also see our actions clearly, and the limited troops will also be drawn here to confront us."

I basically agree with Liu Yu's opinion. The city is three or four miles wide, but many places are meaningless. As long as this point breaks through to the west, the city will not be able to hold.

There are two stone walls at the breakthrough point mentioned by the staff.There is a wide flat land on the mountain, which is just right for artillery positions. As long as it is captured, it will cost money, and it will take two days for the rest of the city wall to collapse.

"Okay, just use this idea, and give me a detailed plan before dark. I heard that there are many mountain cities in the Wa country, and true knowledge comes from practice. This time, it's a rehearsal."

The staff officers were ordered to leave, and the battle plan was sent to Liu Yu before dark.

The trouble with capturing a mountain city is that the trajectory of the cannon is too straight, blocked by a hillside, and it is easy to bypass the city wall without hurting anyone.

Therefore, the [-]-pound gun, which is the main force of the siege, can only be used after the western city wall is taken down.

The staff also happened to try a new flowering ammunition produced by the Weihai Northern Chamber of Commerce, using howitzers and mortars with slower firing rates and more curved ballistics to open the gap.

In the early morning of the second day, heavy mortars and light howitzers were launched in front of the position. The artillerymen tried to fire solid ammunition twice to correct the distance, and the artillery officers began a routine check-up before the formation.

After adjusting the elevation angle, those on the mountain had nothing to do, they could only watch helplessly as the Dashun Marine Corps down the mountain slowly and methodically.

Tried to charge twice, but was shot back by a line of miniature bullets and muskets, and the arquebus in their hands couldn't hit that far. Some private soldiers of Ryukyu families still used Ming's bird guns, yes Shooting is less than a little bit cheaper.

The artillery squad carrying the shells took off their shirts, and moved one after another of the flowering grenades or mortar shells to the front from the back.

Blooming shells are very dangerous, and they may explode if you are not careful, so they cannot be piled up directly in front of the cannon like solid shells.

Like those gunpowder monkeys in the navy, bringing shells and powder over and over again from the storage of ammunition.

The officer finished checking his watch and shouted, "Fuse, inch three. Get ready!"

The gunner took out the cutting saw and cut off the wooden fuze in front of the flower shell according to the above size.This kind of flower bomb, to put it bluntly, is a kind of big firecracker.

A hollow piece of wood filled with compacted black powder. The black powder contains nitrate as an oxidizing agent. It can burn without oxygen. After compaction, it burns evenly.

The hollow iron ball is filled with gunpowder, and the hole left is inserted with a hollow wood fuze, which will explode when the fuze burns inside—the same principle as a firecracker with twisted seeds.

In field battles, it's best to explode this thing above your head for the best effect.This requires the artillery officer to look up the table to determine how long the fuze is left outside.

When attacking the city, it is not good to stay too long: if someone is brave enough to throw out a grenade that has not yet exploded, it is not impossible, because there are warriors everywhere.

The biggest difference in appearance from solid shells is that there is a wooden support at the back.Because they are all smoothbore guns at this time, the caliber of the shells is smaller than the caliber of the barrel, and there is a gap between the shells and the barrel. Maybe the shells will spin around inside. If the side with the fuze is turned inside, the bore With such a high pressure, it is very likely that the fuze will be blown into the shell at once, and it will explode immediately, which will be very lively: there will be no gun group left.

With this simple wooden bullet holder, the flowering bullet has no chance to spin around in the barrel, at least before it is fired, the head is the head, the buttocks are the buttocks, and there is no need to worry about exploding the chamber.

Liu Yu was not near the artillery position. Although the chance of an accident was not high, he didn't want to take the risk.

He didn't even want the King of Ryukyu to approach him, because if he died in an explosion accident, he couldn't bear the responsibility.

The Ryukyu Kingdom has not fought a war for 130 years, and after the opening and closing of Dashun, there have been no pirates for nearly a hundred years.

Looking at the way Dashun and others fight, the King of Ryukyu and the Baiguan are a little strange, and they don't know what they mean.

"King Zhongshan, is Zhongcheng City considered strong in Ryukyu?"

Liu Yu asked maliciously.

"Back to the angel, Zhongcheng City has been repaired many times since the Zhengtong period of the former Ming Dynasty. In the 37th year of Wanli, the Japanese came to attack from the north, and the Ryukyu soldiers were few, so Zhongcheng City was not defended. The Sazhou Japanese occupied Zhongcheng City, and Zai Fanfeng also stationed here In previous years, when angels came to enshrine it, Sazhou warriors would hide here. In addition, this place is located in a dangerous place, divided into the north and south of Ryukyu, so the Sazhou Japanese people repaired it more. It is not an exaggeration to say that it is the number one city in Ryukyu. "

Liu Yu said with a smile: "From my point of view, it's like inserting a label to sell the ears. A soldier's weapon is a weapon that a sage uses as a last resort. If the heavenly soldiers attack, they will be defeated. If you said that the Japanese were a disaster, why did you wait until today?"

This is an obvious political battle, used to frighten the Ryukyu people.Since Zhongcheng Castle is considered the most difficult mountain city in Ryukyu at this time, even if it is an exaggeration, it is similar to Shuri Castle.

Conquering here means that the Celestial Dynasty can capture Ryukyu at any time, and it will also let the Ryukyu people know whose thigh to embrace in the future.

Shang Jing's face was slightly ugly, and he didn't know how to answer.

If it is said that angels should not be underestimated, it seems to be a disservice to the face of the Celestial Empire; if it is said that the Celestial Empire will be invincible, if the fight is not good, it will be even more embarrassing.

There are more than 500 soldiers in total. Although they look mighty and majestic, none of them wear armor or knives. They only have muskets. The Ryukyu King does not know whether such soldiers can fight. Anyway, he knows that the samurai in Sazhou are all armed with knives and armor. Yes, and it is easy for the samurai in Sazhou to fight the Ryukyu soldiers.

At this time, the officer came and told Liu Yu that everything was ready.Flower bombs are still quite expensive, but since this is a political battle, there is no need to worry about spending more money. As long as Ryukyu can be completely surrendered, the money will definitely be reimbursed when the emperor is happy after returning.

Look at the watch, it is already noon.Look at the sky, the sun is shining brightly, and there will be no rainfall in the short term.

"Let's bomb all afternoon. Tomorrow morning, we will start bombing at six o'clock, and we will start attacking at eight o'clock."

"As ordered."

The officer took the order to go, and it didn't take long, just like when the sun was shining at noon, a series of thunderbolts were hit unexpectedly.

Thick black smoke exploded on Zhongcheng City, and flames flickered from time to time in the black smoke. It took a long time after the flames passed before the sound of the explosion came from there.

Like the call sign of a typhoon passing through the border, or the roar of a thunderstorm in winter, the faces of the Ryukyu king and officials changed suddenly. It's not like they haven't seen a cannon before. How have they ever seen such a cannon?
It's like God of Thunder punishing Zhongcheng. Although I can't see the tragedy in the city, I can imagine what it would be like if this thing exploded on top of my head.

The few timid ones shrank to the ground, not daring to look up at the black smoke and flashes. The Ryukyu King tried his best to keep calm, but his mouth was dry.

How can Xindao Shuri Castle withstand the wrath of the Celestial Dynasty?Fortunately, I reacted quickly, otherwise I would be the one who was punished by the sky.Looking at the hot air balloons floating in the sky, the King of Ryukyu cupped his hands in the northwest direction and bowed: "The emperor's divine power saved Ryukyu from fire and water, and punished the barbarians with thunder. The people of Ryukyu are all grateful for the benevolence of the emperor."

Not long after the worship, the survivors gathered on the western wall of the city could no longer bear the bombardment.

Under the leadership of several armored warriors, they rushed down from the mountain shouting.

I would rather die on the charge than be killed by the shells that explode on the top of the head from time to time on the city wall without any power to fight back.

(End of this chapter)