The most reckless man in the Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 286: The Situation in Japan

Jeju Island, Ming Dynasty.

That’s right, this natural horse farm already belongs to the Ming Dynasty.

The price the Ming Dynasty paid for this was simply giving the Korean King Lee Gye a legal identity.

This is an exchange of interests, but North Korea has no way to object to it.

Because a weak country has no diplomacy, not to mention that North Korea itself is full of hidden dangers. Moreover, Lee Gye is just a puppet king, and all the power of the government is in the hands of three ministers: Park Wonjong, Sung Hee-yeon, and Ryu Sun-ting. These three ministers, out of consideration for their own power, had to humiliatingly agree to the bandit-like demands of the Ming Dynasty.

From then on, the Jeju Racecourse and even the entire Jeju Island completely changed hands and became owned by the Ming Dynasty.

Tang Mu was initially stationed at Jeju Horse Farm, but was later transferred back by Tang Hao to assist him. The person who replaced Tang Mu was a centurion of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Chu Tianfang.

Chu Tianfang is Zuo Yidao's close confidant, and is loyal to the emperor and the court. However, the troops stationed here are naturally not the Four Guards and the Ming Dynasty soldiers, but a garrison that migrated from Shandong.

Tang Hao did not expect that the commander of this garrison was actually an old acquaintance, Wang Dabao, who killed three Japanese pirates and unfortunately lost his hand.

"Dabao, why are you here?"

Tang Hao frowned and looked at Wang Dabao, who stammered for a long time and couldn't utter a word. He just touched his head with his one arm and laughed.

Seeing this, Tang Hao's face suddenly darkened.

"say clearly!"

"Who asked you to come? Is someone taking this opportunity to exclude and suppress you?"

Tang Hao still has a deep impression of Wang Dabao.

When the Ming soldiers first went out to sea and encountered a naval battle, this kid fought extremely bravely and was nearly hacked to death by the Japanese pirates. Before he died, he did not forget to look up to the sky and shout that he was Wang Dabao. He killed three Japanese pirates, but was rescued in time by Tang Hao, but unfortunately he broke one arm.

In other words, Wang Dabao was a meritorious soldier who retired due to injury, and Tang Hao arranged for them to stay in the Shandong Guard and serve as middle and senior-level military officers. This would ensure that they could support their families, and even without changing the Ming Dynasty's military system, they could leave a position for their offspring. In any case, it was not considered unfair to them.

As a result, at this critical juncture, Tang Hao saw Wang Dabao on Jeju Island.

Under normal circumstances, the people of the Ming Dynasty would not agree to such migration overseas.

Because the Chinese people are attached to their land, unless life becomes really difficult, they will never leave their homeland and become wandering refugees.

Then why is Wang Dabao here?
Tang Hao instinctively thought that someone must have taken the opportunity to exclude and suppress these wounded soldiers!

Just when he was about to lose his temper, Wang Dabao hurriedly explained: "My Lord, it's not like that, I asked for it on my own initiative!"

Wang Dabao touched his head with his one arm and smiled embarrassedly.

"I heard from Lord Tang Mu that the Marquis is planning to build trade routes overseas, and Jeju Island is definitely one of the routes. Although it is a little barren now, it will definitely prosper in the future, so this is actually a good position..."

Hearing this, everyone was stunned, and then they all burst into laughter at the same time.

Tang Hao also found it funny. He didn't expect that this boy had such insight.

I have to admit that Wang Dabao was right. Jeju Island is one of the future route stops, mainly responsible for the trade between Ming Dynasty and North Korea.

Therefore, the commander of the garrison in this place will definitely become a popular person in the future.

Wang Dabao is a boy with vision and courage. He chooses to take a gamble for his future. Tang Hao doesn't mind letting him guard Jeju Island.

After all, these are our brothers no matter how you look at it, and having our own people in charge is the best option.

"You're quite clever, boy!"

"Now that you are here, what else can I say?"

Tang Hao smiled, patted his shoulder, and nodded.

"That Cui Tan is a smart man. You can interact with him more often in the future and be in charge of the trade between the two countries!"

"Before I leave, I will write a letter to the North Korean side, asking them to appoint Cui Tan as the Jeju Trade Envoy to officially open trade between the two countries!"

Hearing this, Wang Dabao was immediately pleasantly surprised and thanked Tang Hao profusely.

He knew that not only had he made the right bet, but he had also won the recognition of Lord Tang. No one could take his position as the commander of the Jeju Guard.

Tang Hao's face darkened, and he solemnly warned: "I won't say much about corruption and bribery. Just keep it in mind and don't do anything too embarrassing!"

"But there is one thing, Jeju Horse Farm must not be in chaos. These war horses are urgently needed by the court, so you must keep a good eye on the horse farm and there must not be any chaos!"

"Otherwise, don't blame me for not remembering our friendship and being the first one to punish you!"

Wang Dabao's expression froze for a moment, then he patted his chest and made a promise.

Even if he died, he would never let any problems happen to Jeju Racecourse in his lifetime.

After getting Wang Dabao's promise, Tang Hao didn't say anything more. He could only hope that Wang Dabao could keep his original intention, otherwise Tang Hao would really become a bad guy.

The fleet stayed at Jeju Racecourse for three days and finally received information from the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

After reading it, Tang Hao's expression suddenly became strange, and he passed the information to generals such as Tang Mu and Zuo Yidao.

"I really underestimated Ma Yong and Deng Boyan!"

After seeing it, all the generals burst into exclamations.

It turned out that after the Ming Dynasty delegation left, Ma Yong and Deng Boyan led two thousand soldiers and became mercenaries of Ouchi Yoshioki.

Ashikaga Yoshitane, also known as Ashikaga Yoshizai, finally could no longer bear it and wanted to unite with the Ouchi clan to immediately counterattack Kyoto and regain his position as the Shogun that had been taken away from him.

In fact, since he fled, Ashikaga Yoshizai has repeatedly used his status as the tenth shogun of the shogunate to gather followers and try to counterattack Kyoto and regain the throne.

For example, Ashikaga Yoshizai went to Echizen Province and was protected by Asakura Sadakage, and changed his name to Yoshitaka. At the same time, he received the support of Hatakeyama Naojun (son of Hatakeyama Masanaga), and together they marched to Kyoto. With the support of Enryaku-ji Temple, Negoro-ji Temple and Koyasan monks, they approached Omi Province for a while, but was defeated by Rokkaku Takayasu in Omi Sakamoto, and was defeated by Hosokawa Masamoto when he fled to Kawachi Province. Ashikaga Yoshitaka had to flee to Suo Province and join the Ouchi clan, who had supported his father Yoshitaka during the Onin War, and lived under the tutelage of Ouchi Yoshioki.

Ouchi Yoshioki was also a heroic figure. Through the profits from the Kanko trade with the Ming Dynasty, the Ouchi family had long grown into the overlord of the western part of Honshu Island. The reason why Ouchi Yoshioki chose to take in Ashikaga Yoshizai, a stray dog, was because he was the tenth shogun of the shogunate. Moreover, Ashikaga Yoshizai was appointed as the shogun by Emperor Go-Tsuchimikado himself, so this stray dog ​​still had some value.

With the legitimate shogun Ashikaga Yoshizai in hand and the powerful family strength of the Ouchi clan, Ouchi Yoshioki did not want to march into Kyoto, learn from Hosokawa Masato, become the actual ruler of the shogunate, or even create an Ouchi shogunate. However, Ouchi Yoshioki had a much better strategic vision than Ashikaga Yoshizai. He keenly realized that it was not the right time to attack the Kyoto shogunate. Even with the help of 2,000 elite Ming soldiers, the Hosokawa clan was not just a bunch of nobody. Once a war broke out, the Ouchi clan would be instantly trapped in a quagmire.

Furthermore, Ouchi Yoshioki was wary of the two thousand Ming soldiers led by Ma Yong and Deng Boyan. He was secretly on guard and did not trust them very much.

Until a godsend opportunity finally appeared, that is, Hosokawa Masato, a great hero who deposed the shogun and controlled the shogunate, was secretly murdered by his retainer Konishi Motonaga!
The reason for the murder was that there was deep-rooted opposition to the idea that Sumiyuki Hosokawa, who was originally welcomed as the legitimate son and had nothing to do with the Hosokawa family, could inherit the family. Hosokawa Masato himself gradually regretted this, which led to the welcoming of Sumiyuki Hosokawa, a illegitimate member of the Hosokawa family, as the new legitimate son.

However, Hosokawa Motonaga, who assisted Hosokawa Sumiyuki, lost his power, while Miyoshi Nokunaga, who assisted Hosokawa Sumiyuki, became more powerful in the Hosokawa family. Moreover, Hosokawa Nokunaga also intervened in the politics of Sanukai Province, which led to Hosokawa Motonaga, who was born in Sanuki, hating Hosokawa Masatoshi very much. In addition, Hosokawa Masatoshi's problematic tendencies also made Hosokawa Motonaga uneasy about the future. These factors became the driving force behind Konishi Motonaga's desire to support Hosokawa Sumiyuki and take power himself, and the assassination incident followed.

Hosokawa Masato was assassinated and the Hosokawa clan fell into internal strife (Eisho Rebellion). Ouchi Yoshioki and Ashikaga Yoshizai immediately realized that this was a great opportunity to counterattack Kyoto, so the two of them immediately united with the daimyo of Chugoku and Kyushu to march into Kyoto, and with the support of Hosokawa Takakuni and others, they led a large army to attack Kyoto.

In other words, Japan was completely plunged into civil war at this moment, and Ma Yong and Deng Boyan played important roles that could not be ignored.

After reading the intelligence, all the generals looked strange.

This matter... really leaves me... speechless.

You said that Ouchi Yoshioki was a big shot, but he chose to take Ma Yong and Deng Boyan's soldiers with him. So it's hard to say who will be the one who truly controls the Japanese capital in the end.

You say he is a fool, but he knows how to be patient and understands the overall situation. He has been secretly accumulating strength and waiting for the opportunity. As soon as the opportunity comes, he chooses to take action immediately. The situation is very good!
All in all, even Ouchi Yoshioki himself probably did not expect that the two thousand Ming soldiers he had been prepared for would completely shatter his grand ambitions!
"My Lord, we must send out troops immediately!"

Tang Mu said in a deep voice: "The civil war in Japan is our best chance. Once Ouchi Yoshioki completely controls Kyoto, it will be a big trouble."

This sentence is very straightforward and simple.

There is now a civil war in Japan. The former shogun Ashikaga Yoshizai is leading a large army to counterattack Kyoto and attack the current shogun Ashikaga Yoshizumi. The result is that the local daimyo of Japan either choose to join the war or choose to sit back and watch the situation.

In other words, Japan is now in a state of civil war and disorder, which is undoubtedly the best opportunity for the Ming army.

If the situation continued to be delayed, and Ouchi Yoshioki entered Kyoto and supported Ashikaga Yoshizai to restore the throne and become the shogun again, and then rule the world in the name of the shogunate, the difficulty of the Ming army attacking Japan at this time would increase significantly.

Tang Hao naturally understood these principles, so he immediately ordered his troops to go out to sea and head straight for Japan.

The distance from Jeju Island to Japan is actually not that far.

The reason why Tang Hao was so anxious, in addition to Tang Mu's analysis, was that he was more worried about the safety of the two thousand soldiers led by Ma Yong and Deng Boyan.

Once a heroic figure like Ouchi Yoshioki actually entered Kyoto and supported Ashikaga Yoshizai to restore the shogun, his next step would definitely be to take action against the two thousand soldiers of Ma Yong and Deng Boyan!
Ouchi Yoshioki wanted to be like Hosokawa Masato, turning Ashikaga Yoshizai into a puppet, deposing and enthroning the shogun, controlling the shogunate, and becoming the uncrowned master of Japan!
Then, once that time comes, the two thousand elite soldiers led by Ma Yong and Deng Boyan will become a thorn in the side of Ouchi Yoshioki, because they will become an obstacle for Ouchi Yoshioki to take that last step, unless this obstacle is completely eliminated!

Even if Ma Yong and Deng Boyan chose to support Ashikaga Yoshizai and compete with Ouchi Yoshioki, the problem was that Ashikaga Yoshizai was just a useless person.

Tang Hao vaguely remembered that in history, Ashikaga Yoshizai and Ouchi Yoshioki did take advantage of the assassination of Hosokawa Masamune and immediately led their troops into Kyoto and took the position of Shogun again.

However, after taking the position of shogun, Ashikaga Yoshitane had to appoint Hosokawa Takakuni and Ouchi Yoshioki as kanreidai, and use Ouchi Yoshioki as military support.

Unfortunately, because Ashikaga Yoshitane had a strong tendency to rule the country himself, in simple terms, he was unwilling to be a puppet shogun forever, the power of the shogunate was controlled by Hosokawa Takakuni and Ouchi Yoshioki, who made many secret moves. Due to the opposition with the Hosokawa, Ouchi, Hatakeyama and other families, Ashikaga Yoshitane fled to Koga again, fell ill there, and became a stray dog ​​again.

Ashikaga Yoshitane fled again and arrived at Sakai in Izumi Province. Since the enthronement ceremony of Emperor Go-Kashiwahara was to be held in the same month, the shogun's escape might delay the ceremony. Therefore, the emperor was furious and held the enthronement ceremony as usual without the shogun's participation, and ordered Hosokawa Takakuni to be in charge of security affairs.

With the consent of Emperor Go-Kashiwahara, Hosokawa Takakuni supported Ashikaga Yoshiharu, the son of Ashikaga Yoshisumi, as the new shogun. Ashikaga Yoshitane lost the support and trust of the court, fled to Awaji, and once again raised an army to try to attack Takakuni and regain his strength, but was defeated and finally died of illness.

So no matter how you look at it, Ashikaga Yoshitane is a waste among wastes. He was deposed and reinstated as the shogun twice, but twice he became a puppet manipulated by others. However, he was unwilling to be a puppet and was forced to flee. He was a real waste.

If Ma Yong and Deng Boyan chose to support Ashikaga Yoshitane, then the problem would be troublesome. They might not be a match for Ouchi Yoshioki and would not even know how they died.

These two thousand soldiers are all first-generation elite troops, brave and elite troops trained by Tang Hao himself. They cannot be defeated in Japan like this.

Besides, Ma Yong and Deng Boyan are both promising talents and we cannot let them go like this.

The fleet sailed all the way and arrived at Tsushima Island three days later.

This place where Japanese pirates once occupied three islands has now become a hell on earth.

The last time Tang Hao led his army to massacre, he piled up all the corpses together to form a Jingguan, which still stands in the same place today, but it just looks a bit disgusting.

It seems that these Japanese were so frightened by the killing that they didn't even have the courage to collect the corpses and remains, let alone the courage to continue going out to sea to plunder Ming and Korea.

"These Japanese pirates are really trash!"

Tang Mu couldn't help but sneer: "It's been so long, and you didn't even take care of the corpse? Just let it rot and stink?"

"Haha." Tang Hao sneered, "The Japanese are famous for their mean nature!"

"What they are best at is kneeling to the strong and showing their fangs to the weak!"

"For example, in order to help Baekje win, Japan not only provided Baekje with a large amount of military supplies, but also sent 170 ships to assist Baekje in the war. This behavior was undoubtedly a provocation to the prosperous Tang Dynasty. The result was the famous Battle of Baigang. The Tang army surrounded the enemy with ships on both sides and skillfully used the tactics of outflanking and attacking. Many Japanese soldiers drowned in the water, and the ships could not turn around."

"The Japanese army that sent reinforcements to Baekje was almost completely wiped out. At the same time, the Baekje regime came to an end. The Goguryeo regime, which had existed for nearly 700 years, also perished. The Tang Dynasty re-established its suzerainty on the Korean Peninsula and dominated the entire East Asia."

"After being frightened by the Tang Dynasty in this battle, Japan realized the strength of the Tang Dynasty, so it immediately changed its attitude and lowered its posture, and began to send envoys to the Tang Dynasty, restoring the diplomatic corps that had been almost cut off since the end of the Sui Dynasty. This is the origin of the Japanese envoys to the Tang Dynasty!"

"These envoys came to the Tang Dynasty with a purpose. They were crazy about learning Tang culture, military, technology, and everything about Tang Dynasty. Then they brought these cultural technologies back to Japan to develop themselves."

"Then during the Yuan Dynasty, during the reign of Kublai Khan, they relied on the help of typhoons to win Kublai Khan's expedition, so they felt that they were strong again and that Japan was blessed by the gods. That's why they disrespected our Ming Taizu Gaodi in the early Ming Dynasty, repeatedly provoked our Ming Dynasty, and even disguised themselves as Japanese pirates to plunder the coastal areas of Korea!"

"To put it bluntly, these Japanese are all mean-spirited people. They know small etiquette but not great righteousness. They fear power but not virtue. They are strong but will rob and rob, weak but will be submissive. They don't care about gratitude and justice, don't want to be educated, don't know etiquette, righteousness, integrity and shame... They are all beasts in human skin!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the whole place fell silent.

All the soldiers, including Tang Mu and Zuo Yidao, looked at Tang Hao in fear.

It was the first time they had seen Lord Zhongshan evaluate a race in this way. The hatred and loathing in his words were not concealed at all, and were almost condensed into actual murderous intent!

What's happening here?
Why does the Marquis hate the Japanese so much?

Everyone was frightened and uneasy, but they didn't dare to ask too many questions.

They just understood one thing.

This expedition to Japan will be extremely bloody and cruel!

(End of this chapter)