King Luhuang of the Ming Dynasty: My father, Ming Taizu

After receiving the order, Ma He immediately began to make arrangements.

He first found several Ryukyu merchants who were in collusion with the Japanese pirates, and pretended to inadvertently reveal the news that the Ming army was about to withdraw from Ryukyu.

These merchants were profit-driven by nature, and when they heard that the Ming army was leaving, they lost all scruples and immediately spread the news, which soon reached the ears of the Japanese pirates.

The leader of the Japanese pirates was named Matsuda Yoshihisa, a cunning and brutal guy.

He occupied the islands near Ryukyu and made a living by plundering Ryukyu merchant ships for many years.

When he heard that Ming Jun was leaving this time, he was overjoyed and thought that the opportunity had come.

He immediately summoned his men and prepared to launch a large-scale attack on Ryukyu and rob property while the Ming army was away.

"Hahahaha, the Han people are all cowards. When they heard we were coming, they were scared to death. It feels so good!"

Yoshihisa Matsuda laughed and said to the group of Japanese pirate leaders.

"The boss is wise and brave. Those Han people are just empty-handed. How can they be our opponents? Once we kill all the Han people and rob all their gold, silver and treasures, we can go back to the island and live happily!"

A Japanese pirate leader said this in a flattering tone, causing everyone to laugh.

"Okay! Pass the order down, we will set out tonight and head for Ryukyu!" Matsuda Yoshihisa waved his hand excitedly and gave the order to set off.

That night, the moon was dark and the wind was strong, and the sea was rough. Matsuda Yoshihisa led hundreds of Japanese pirates on more than a dozen warships and headed towards Ryukyu.

They didn't know that their every move was under Ma He's surveillance. Ma He had already sent people to keep a close eye on these pirates and reported their whereabouts to Zhu Tan.

Zhu Tan learned that the Japanese pirates had taken the bait, and a sneer appeared on his face: "Humph, a bunch of ignorant people who dare to show off their skills in front of me!"

He immediately ordered the Ming navy to prepare for battle, waiting for the Japanese pirates to enter the encirclement so that they could be caught in the trap!

On the Ryukyu side, Wu Ning got the news that the Ming army and the Japanese pirates were about to fight, and he was extremely anxious. He knew that the gap in strength between the two sides was huge, and the Ming army would definitely win this battle.

But what worried him even more was that once the Ming army eliminated the Japanese pirates, the next target would be Ryukyu.

"No, I can't just sit there and wait to die!" Wu Ning was in a state of confusion and paced back and forth in the room.

He must find a way to preserve Ryukyu. He cannot give up even if there is only a glimmer of hope.

"Damn the pirates! Why pick on those killers when you can pick on anyone else?"

Wu Ning cursed under his breath and punched the mahogany desk, causing the teacup on it to jump twice.

He knew that the Ming army would undoubtedly win this battle, after all, the power of the Ming navy was well-known.

But he knew better that once the Ming army had time, the next target would definitely be Ryukyu.

"Your Majesty, don't worry too much,"

The counselor at the side twisted his goatee and said calmly, "The Ming army has come here from afar, so they must be short of food and grass. As long as we..."

"Shut up!"

Wu Ning turned around abruptly, pointed at the counselor's nose and roared:
"What do you know? That's Zhu Tan! The Mad King of Ming! What would he care about forage? If you piss him off, he might even burn down the entire Ryukyu Island!"

The counselor trembled.

He knew that Wu Ning was right. The mad king of the Ming Dynasty could not be understood by common sense.

Wu Ning took a deep breath and tried to calm his anxiety.

He walked to the window, looked at the sparkling sea outside, and a hint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes.

"Send the order and gather all the generals. I want to discuss matters with them!"

That night, the meeting hall of Prince Zhongshan's Palace was brightly lit, but the atmosphere was terribly depressing.

A dozen generals in armor sat around a long table, each with a solemn look on their faces and not saying a word.

"Generals," Wu Ning sat in the main seat and glanced at everyone:
"The war between Ming and Japan is imminent, and the fate of Ryukyu is at stake! I have made up my mind. I cannot sit and wait for death. I must seize the opportunity to counterattack and catch the Ming army off guard!"

"what?!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the generals present were immediately in an uproar, whispering to each other and discussing the matter.

"King, this is absolutely impossible! The Ming army is very powerful, and our small number of troops is like an egg hitting a rock!"

"Yes, King, think twice! If we anger the Ming army, I'm afraid that Ryukyu..."

Wu Ning slammed the table and roared:
"Shut up, everyone! The Ming army is ambitious and will not let us go even if we obey them! Instead of waiting to die, we might as well fight to the death. There may be a glimmer of hope!"

He looked around, his eyes sharp as torches, and said in a deep voice:

"I have decided to send a thousand elite troops, led by me personally, to sneak into the bay secretly and wait for the Ming and Japanese to fight. Then we will seize the opportunity and launch a surprise attack on the Ming army!"

"This..." The generals looked at each other. No one expected Wu Ning to make such a crazy decision.

"King, no!" An old general stood up tremblingly, tears streaming down his face:

"You are the king of Ryukyu and our backbone. How can you risk your life? I am willing to go in your place!"

"Yes, King, please think twice!" Other generals also knelt down and begged.

Wu Ning looked at these loyal soldiers in front of him and couldn't help but feel moved.

But he knew that this battle was about the life and death of Ryukyu, and as the King of Zhongshan, he could not retreat!
"Generals, please stand up,"

Wu Ning's voice became softer:
"My king has made up his mind. No need to persuade me. This battle is dangerous. I know it, but for the future of Ryukyu, I will die!"

He paused, and looked at everyone with a firm gaze:

"I believe that as long as we work together, we will be able to defeat the powerful enemy and protect our homeland!"

Three days later, as night fell, gusts of cold wind blew over the sea and the waves rolled, as if foreshadowing the coming of a bloody storm.

Wu Ning was wearing black armor, with a sword hanging from his waist, standing on an inconspicuous boat, with five hundred elite soldiers also dressed in black behind him.

They have been lurking in this sea area for a whole day and night, waiting for the best opportunity.

"King, the bay is just ahead,"

A soldier pointed to the dark sea ahead and whispered, "The Ming and Japanese armies are fighting in there."

Wu Ning nodded, staring sharply ahead, as if he could penetrate the thick night and see the fierce battle in the bay.

"Pass the order down, everyone get ready, once you receive the signal, launch the attack immediately!"

"Yes!" The soldier took the order and left. Soon, the entire team was in a state of high alert.

Time passed by minute by minute.

The shouts and cries in the bay became clearer and clearer, and the deafening sound of artillery fire rose one after another, lighting up half the sky red.

Suddenly, a beam of fire shot up into the sky in the center of the bay, illuminating the entire night sky.

Wu Ning's heart was shocked, he knew that the decisive battle had begun!

"Now! Attack!"

With Wu Ning's order, a thousand Ryukyu soldiers rushed out of the sea like arrows and killed towards the bay.

The dark sea surface was like a giant beast with its huge mouth as deep as the abyss, swallowing up any creature that dared to approach.

A thousand Ryukyu soldiers were like stones thrown into the water, which caused some ripples before disappearing into the endless darkness.

Wu Ning stood at the bow, the sea breeze blowing his cloak, making a rustling sound.

He stared ahead, the flames rising from the bay reflected in his eyes, but it could not cover up the trace of anxiety in them. "King, the Japanese army's signal has not appeared yet?"

The deputy general beside him asked in a low voice, with suppressed uneasiness in his tone.

Wu Ning did not answer, but just gripped the hilt of the sword tightly in his hand.

According to the plan, they should launch a surprise attack from the rear of the Ming army when the Japanese army and the Ming army were fighting fiercely, killing them by surprise.

However, they had been lurking in this sea area for nearly two hours, but the Japanese army had not yet sent out the agreed signal.

"Could it be... that something happened to the messenger?"
The general's voice was trembling. "Or did the Japanese pirates betray us?"

"Shut up!" Wu Ning shouted, but his tone could hardly hide a hint of panic, "They don't dare!"

"Report——"

A soldier covered in blood stumbled to Wu Ning, knelt on one knee, and said in a trembling voice:

"King, it's bad! The Japanese...the Japanese pirates..."

"What's wrong with them?!" Wu Ning grabbed the soldier by the collar and roared.

The soldier looked pale and spoke incoherently:

"The Japanese pirates...they didn't attack the Ming army at all, but...turned their ships around and ran away!"

"What?!" Wu Ning was struck by lightning and let go of his hand in disbelief.

"This is impossible!" The deputy general also exclaimed, "How dare they..."

Before they could recover from their shock.

Suddenly, a deafening cannon shot was heard in the distance, and the sea surface suddenly boiled.

Countless fireballs with long tails of flames cut through the night sky and roared towards them.

"Enemy attack! It's the Ming army's artillery!"

"Get out of here!"

Panic shouts echoed across the sea, and the Ryukyu soldiers fled in panic.

However, under the intensive artillery fire, their figures seemed so small and fragile like leaves in a storm, and were torn apart mercilessly.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Deafening explosions continued, and flames shot up into the sky over the sea.

Smoke billows.

The sea water was dyed red with blood, broken limbs were flying everywhere, and shrill screams resounded through the sky, it was like hell on earth.

The flagship where Wu Ning was was not spared either. A cannonball hit the hull, wood chips flew everywhere, and flames instantly engulfed everything.

"King! Be careful!"

The deputy general desperately threw Wu Ning to the ground and protected him with his body, but he was swallowed up by the subsequent explosion and his body was completely destroyed.

Wu Ning only felt a buzzing in his ears and everything in front of his eyes was blurry.

The violent impact caused him to lose consciousness.

Before coma.

He seemed to see a huge "Ming" flag, with countless Ming soldiers rushing in like a tide, surrounding him and the remaining Ryukyu soldiers...

When he woke up again, Wu Ning found himself in a dark cell, with his hands and feet locked tightly with thick iron chains, unable to move.

"woke up?"

Zhu Tan walked up to Wu Ning and looked down at him:
"Do you really think that I don't know what you are up to? Tell me! What exactly are you and those Japanese pirates conspiring about?"

Wu Ning remained silent. He certainly was not naive enough to think that the Ming army had attacked them by mistake.

All of this is clearly a carefully planned trap!

But he didn't understand when the Ming army discovered their plan?
"Don't tell me? Good, very good!"

Zhu Tan's eyes flashed with ruthlessness. He kicked Wu Ning in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Then he stepped on his head and said coldly:
"Since you are so stubborn, don't blame me for being rude!"

"Come here! Bring all the Ryukyu envoys here!"

A moment later, a dozen Ryukyu envoys were escorted into the cell trembling with fear.

They were in rags and covered with wounds, obviously having suffered a lot of torture after being captured.

"Kings!"

Seeing Wu Ning being trampled under Zhu Tan's feet, the Ryukyu envoys were furious and fell to their knees, shouting loudly.

"Shut up! You're a bunch of rubbish!"

Wu Ning roared.

He never imagined that the plan he had worked so hard on for many years would fail at the last moment.

And he was also captured and became a prisoner!
Zhu Tan watched all this coldly, with a cruel arc at the corner of his mouth.

He squatted down, grabbed Wu Ning's hair, forced him to raise his head, look directly into his eyes, and said word by word:

"See? This is the fate of betraying my Ming Dynasty! Now, I will give you one last chance. Tell me what you and those Japanese pirates are plotting. Otherwise, I will kill your ministers first, and then massacre all the citizens of your Ryukyu!"

Wu Ning's pupils suddenly contracted.

He looked at the terrified envoys, his heart filled with pain.

He knew that he had reached his limit.

If he didn't say it, Zhu Tan would really do what he said.

By then, he will become a sinner of Ryukyu and will be nailed to the pillar of shame in history forever!

"Okay... I'll say..."

Wu Ning closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and said slowly:
"The Japanese pirates promised me that as long as Ryukyu is willing to send troops and cooperate with them to attack the Ming army, they will cede Kyushu Island to Ryukyu after the success..."

"Kyushu Island?"

"Not only that..." Wu Ning laughed bitterly:
"The Japanese pirates also promised that as long as Ryukyu is willing to submit to them, they will help Ryukyu annex the entire South Seas and build a maritime power comparable to the Ming Dynasty!"

Hearing this, Zhu Tan’s face turned completely gloomy.

He stood up suddenly and kicked Wu Ning to the ground, his eyes full of cold murderous intent.

"What a pirate! What a Ryukyu!" Zhu Tan gritted his teeth and said:
"How dare you dream of annexing the South Seas and establishing a maritime power? This is simply wishful thinking!"

"Someone! Take this old man away and keep him under strict guard!"

After saying this, Zhu Tan turned away, leaving Wu Ning and the Ryukyu envoys shivering in the cell.

"Very good, pass the order down, all troops ready, target, the Japanese pirates!"

"Yes!" The man in black took the order and left, while Zhu Tan's eyes became deep and terrifying.

"Japanese pirates, Ryukyu, do you really think that you can shake the Ming Dynasty by playing tricks? This time, I will let you know what real power is!" (End of this chapter)