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Chapter 257 Salyu War
In October of the fifth year of Jingyang, Empress Dowager Wang received a commendation from the emperor for her proper management of the harem.His grandnephew Yongnian Bowang Mingfu moved to the capital to be the governor of Qianshi, and he took over the post of the governor of the rear army.As for how to do it properly, he didn't say it, and no one paid attention. Everyone's attention was attracted by the newly appointed commander-in-chief of the rear army.

Among the five military governors' offices, the rear army governor's office has the largest number of capital guards and is the backbone of the defense of the capital.The last commander-in-chief of the rear army was the British Duke Zhang Weixian, but because he was related to Wen Chun, he had to resign voluntarily even if he did not participate in the rebellion.

It is a common practice to hand over the Governor's Mansion of the Five Armies to the nobles, and there is nothing wrong with it. However, Yongnian Bo Wang Mingfu's qualifications are too young. The emperor appointed such a person to take on such an important task. It was probably not to commend the Empress Dowager's achievements, but to indirectly control it through Wang Mingfu. military power.

But there are also similarities. With such an obvious trick, the empress dowager will definitely be able to see it. Such a dangerous position will definitely not be held by her nephew, and the emperor cannot force it.

But Wang Mingfu happily received the order to express his gratitude at the court meeting, and the Empress Dowager did not complain in private. Could it be that the emperor really wanted to commend and reward him, and had no other special intentions?
Just when the courtiers were suspicious and uneasy, a report from Zhejiang made the already tense atmosphere in the court even more solemn. Japan once again sent troops to invade the Ming Dynasty's vassal state. This reminds us of the bitter war between the court and Japan in Korea. , everyone can’t help but add a bit of sadness.

Yang Zongye, the commander-in-chief of Zhejiang Province, reported that in early March, the lord of Satsuma Domain, Shimazu Iehisa, sent troops to attack Ryukyu with Tokugawa Ieyasu's permission, and defeated them in consecutive battles. By the 3th of April, Ryukyu Kingdom Zhongshan Wang Shangning was defeated and surrendered. Together with the prince and More than 4 ministers were all taken back to Satsuma, and their whereabouts are unknown.

After the king was kidnapped by the Satsuma clan, the Ryukyu officials who were lucky enough to escape the disaster immediately sent people to report the Japanese rebellion to the Ming Dynasty, and implored the sovereign country to send troops to help him seek justice.At this time, the Ryukyu envoy was awaiting orders at Ningbo Port, waiting for an order from the Ming Emperor to be summoned.

Salyu War!Hong Tao only read the beginning, and a war that took place in the Wanli Dynasty immediately popped into his mind.According to historical records, the Ryukyu king and ministers were eventually sent back to Ryukyu to continue to govern, but they were only released after signing some unequal treaties.

I can’t remember the specific content of the treaty, but it probably means that Ryukyu will not only be a vassal state of the Ming Empire from now on, but will also open its ports to Japan, be loyal to the Satsuma Domain, and cede some islands.

Emperor Wanli didn't seem to have any reaction after learning the news. He didn't even verbally protest, which was equivalent to acquiescing to the status quo.In view of the weak reality within the Ming Dynasty at that time, this move was also normal.

He is so weak that he can hardly even pay for military expenses. It will be too difficult to send troops to help the vassal country to seek justice.Moreover, Ryukyu is not connected by land like North Korea. The Ming Dynasty did not even have a serious ocean-going navy, and it could not be tough even if it wanted to be tough across the sea.

After Hong Tao learned the news, his reaction was similar to that of Emperor Wanli. He first summoned six ministers and nine ministers to listen to their opinions. After discussion, he also came to the conclusion that effective rescue could not be carried out. He even sent envoys to Japan to protest in person. Not realistic.

"I have a navy at my disposal. If I don't even protest, I will announce to the whole world that the Ming Empire is no longer able to maintain its status as a vassal state, which will disgrace me. Let Yuan Keli dispatch warships to Satsuma Domain as appropriate to convey my wishes and instruct the Tokugawa shogunate to release them as soon as possible. King of Zhongshan, admit your mistake and compensate!”

But Hong Tao's handling method was a little better than that of Emperor Wanli. After his younger brother was bullied by outsiders, he still knew how to support the situation with a few curses, but it was only a few curses and he had no intention of taking action.

This is in line with the wishes of the ministers. They don't even know where Ryukyu is, and the little local specialties they pay as tribute every year are not enough to fill their teeth. It is already the most benevolent and righteous to be able to curse a few words at this time.But this time they guessed wrong again, and the emperor, who seemed indifferent on his face, had already begun to draw circles and curses in his heart.It's no wonder that the ministers always made mistakes in judgment. They really didn't understand how petty the emperor was.

The superficial tolerance and generosity are just a cover-up for the inability to do so. Once the ability is achieved, everyone will clearly remember whoever spoke back ten years ago, and they will 100% retaliate, at least twice as much!
Facing the step by step pressing of the Mongolian tribes and the Jurchens, they resorted to shrinking defenses because the throne was unstable and they were unable to mobilize national forces to deal with it. There was nothing they could do for the time being. In order to reduce losses and save strength, they endured the pain.

But once the battlefield changes to the sea, it makes no difference whether there is help from the Ming court or not.Facing an island nation, Hong Tao dared to single-handedly tear it apart, relying on advanced battleships, artillery, and timeless navigation technology.

No matter how hard we work on land, and no matter how talented we are, we still can't produce a machine gun with the current industrial base.When the strength of the two sides reaches a certain gap, quality really cannot fully make up for the disadvantage in quantity.

But fighting on the sea is a different rule. Human beings have only truly entered the ocean for more than a hundred years, and the development of sailing ships and naval warfare weapons is far from reaching its peak.At this time, the technical advantages will increase exponentially, and it will be difficult to make up for it by quantity alone.

Even a double-decker sailing ship equipped with a forward-mounted smoothbore cannon, as long as it has a safe anchorage and supplies, can destroy hundreds of primitive warships that rely only on cold weapons for hand-to-hand combat.

What Hong Tao said in front of the ministers was severe condemnation, but he did not say whether he used words or cannonballs.The order he turned to Yuan Keli was also a severe condemnation, but it was clearly stated that it was to use artillery shells.

He asked the Navy to send two warships to the coast of Japan. It would be better if they could find a port in the Satsuma Domain.Resistance or not, anything that can move is a target.

You can start a war without declaring it, run away after the fight, and continue stirring things up at the next port until all the shells are fired.By the way, I would like to give this message to the Tokugawa shogunate:

"If you know you are wrong, just put King Zhongshan back quickly and compensate for dozens of large ships. It won't happen again. If you continue to persist, the Ming Navy will visit from time to time several times every year, bring a lot of cannonballs, and help demolish coastal buildings for free. If you don't agree, you can Go to the coast of Ming Dynasty to take revenge. If you don’t have the ability to come, just endure it.”

Complain?Damn, this is the first time I heard that a foreign government came to Ming Dynasty territory to find Ming officials to sue the Ming Emperor. Hong Tao wanted to see which official dared to accept such a complaint. He didn't need to come to question him, as long as he accepted it, he would immediately confiscate his home and exile him.

You are not worthy of being an official of the Ming Dynasty. Even if your own people cheat your own people, your flesh will rot in the pot anyway, and there will be no advantage for outsiders.How can you still turn your elbows outward and help foreigners deceive our own people!

(End of this chapter)