Yi Sunsin was killed in the battle, and Yoo Sung-ryong confronted the king of Joseon

It was not until Kato Kiyomasa withdrew almost entirely from Ulsan that the Ming army really confirmed that the Japanese army was withdrawing, and Xing Jue and Wan Shide immediately ordered the coalition forces to launch a general attack immediately, Ma Gui entered and occupied Ulsan and approached Pusan, and Dong Yiyuan, Liu Ling, and Kwon Li began to attack Sacheon and Suncheon Woseong. In the early morning of November 11, the 26th year of Wanli, the second army of Konishi Xingchang, stationed in Shuntian, began to board the ships one after another while blocking the Ming army's offensive.

When the advance party drove to the vicinity of Cat Island at the mouth of Gwangyang Bay, it was intercepted by the Chaoming joint naval forces. In order to break through the interception group, Captain Konishi launched an unsuccessful attack for several days, so he sent a letter to the surrounding Japanese troops asking for help. Zong Yizhi hurriedly asked: "Now that all teams are thinking about returning to their respective territories as soon as possible, and they are too busy to take care of themselves, if no one comes to save us, what should we do?" ”

Konishi Yukicho said: "Don't say such depressing words, I have prayed to God, we will not die here, even if Kato Kiyomasa receives my request for help, he will fight to save me, otherwise how should he humiliate me?" What's more, I have no old grudges with other people, and I should help each other in times of crisis. And I'm also asking for help from Kuroda Nyosui Lord, and he will definitely order nearby ships to come and rescue us. If there is really no one to save us, then we can only rely on ourselves, if we really die here, my Konishi Yukicho will not let them go even if he turns into a sea ghost! ”

After Kuroda Rusui received Governor Konishi's letter asking for help, he knew that something was wrong: "The Ming army's reaction was very fast, and they wanted to intercept our evacuation, and they must not let Governor Konishi fight alone, and they must bring back all the sergeants as much as possible." Concentrate forces to break through the defense line and rescue Yukinaga Konishi. Kuroda Rusui ordered Wakisaka Yasuji to lead the naval army, and together with Shimazu Yoshihiro, Tachibana Muneshige, Kobayakawa Hideho, Takahashi Tozensu, and Terasawa Hiroko, they went to rescue Konishi Yukinaga. According to Kuroda's order, the Japanese navy prepared to pass through the Luliang Strait by moonlight on the night of the 18th and break into Gwangyang Bay to rescue Yukinaga Konishi, with a fleet of 500 ships and more than 10,000 troops.

When the coalition forces learned of the war report, Chen Luan, Deng Zilong, and Yi Sunsin immediately held a military meeting, and Li Sunsin analyzed: "Luliang and its surrounding waters have two major characteristics, one is that the waterways are complex, the islands are dotted, and the waterways are criss-crossed, which is convenient for the navy to rely on the island shore to maneuver covertly. The second is the rise and fall of the tide, when the tide is high, the water is turbulent, and it is very easy to run the ship aground at low tide. In the Luliang Sea area, as long as we make good use of these characteristics, it will be beneficial for our coalition forces to fight. ”

Deng Zilong reported: "Our navy has 13,000 troops, 500 warships, and a wide variety of ships, such as fortune ships, building ships, sand boats, cangboats, sea boats, horn tigers, and so on. ”

Chen Lan ordered: "In this case, the tactics of our coalition forces are as follows: Previously, the main force of our coalition navy had advanced from Gujin Island, advanced to the sea east of Zuoshui Camp and Qianlao Island, and established a base in Zuoshui Camp to command joint operations. A part of the army has occupied Cat Island to strengthen its defenses, Gwangyang Bay has been blockaded by us, and Luliangjin is under our control, and the retreat of the Japanese army has been completely cut off. A unit of troops is patrolling the waters east of Luliang and monitoring the movements of the Japanese army. Now the deployment is adjusted, and the deputy general Deng Zilong led 1,000 troops and led three huge ships as the vanguard, ambushed on the north side of the Luliang Sea, and after the Japanese ships passed through the Luliang Strait, they would cut off the return route after detouring to its side. Yi Sunsin led the Korean naval army to the right and ambushed Guanyinpo on the south side of the Luliang Sea, waiting for an opportunity to flank the Japanese ships with us. I led the main force of the Daming Navy to block the Japanese ships head-on in the harbor of Zhudao and Pratun Cave. The two of them must see the right time, not to delay the fighter plane to cause the Japanese to evacuate, and if there is no objection, prepare immediately. ”

In the early morning of the 18th, Yi Sunsin summoned the Korean navy to take the oath: "The Japanese are now planning to leave this land, and they have wantonly invaded our land without our permission, ravaged our hometown, and brutalized our parents, children, brothers and sisters. So I can't let the Japanese leave in peace, how can I just watch the enemy cross the sea and return home safely, we want them to see how painful the price of ravaging our hometown is! Let the Japanese invaders who invaded our hometown never return to their hometown! Let all the pirates be buried in the waves! "The officers and men of the Navy were thus highly motivated.

On the 19th, 500 Japanese naval warships entered the Luliang Sea area westward, and the Japanese fleet encountered hidden mines in the front, and the Japanese army was shocked by loud noises. Seeing this, Chen Ling ordered the fleet to fire rapid-fire artillery to block it, and Wakisaka Yasuharu saw that there was a blockade in front of him, and in the dark night, he didn't know how many ships the other side had, so he didn't dare to fight hard so as not to fall into a heavy encirclement, and he misunderstood and saved Konishi, so he ordered the fleet to turn south. When they reached the vicinity of Guanyinpo, they were ambushed by the Korean naval forces led by Yi Sunsin, and Wakisaka Yasuji urgently ordered the fleet to march northward again. Deng Zilong on the north bank took the opportunity to attack, and the coalition forces took advantage of this to encircle the Japanese army on three sides, and the Japanese army and the coalition army launched the Battle of Luliang.

Wakisaka Yasuharu shouted: "It's unbelievable, I can't hide no matter how I dodge, and I ended up surrounded by it!" I didn't want to get into a big war, but now I have to fight! Yuki-nishi Yuki-chan! What a troublesome guy! Command the whole army to meet and kill all the enemies! Rescue the second team! Seeing this, Shimazu Yoshihiro said: "It seems that the Ming army and North Korea have long known the route of our army, set up an ambush in advance, and have been prepared for a long time. Ordered Tachibana Soshige, taking advantage of the fierce battle of our army to attract the Ming army to attack one after another, the defense line on Konishi Yukinaga's side should be greatly weakened, and he chose the opportunity to lead his troops to rescue the second team and report that we will evacuate again, and we must open the gap before evacuating. ”

Yi Sunsin also shouted: "In this move, we must not let go of a single soldier of the Japanese Invaders, and remember our oath that we will bury the entire Japanese army in water to avenge the dead fathers, brothers, and children!" Take out your courage and release your hatred, today we will either die or die with the Japanese invaders, and the whole army will attack! ”

The two armies suddenly, covering the left and right, the cannons and drums sounded in unison, the arrows and stones were handed over, the firewood was thrown indiscriminately, and the sound of killing and shouting shook the mountains and seas together. Most of the Japanese ships were ignited, and the Japanese army fought to the death and blood, and they were unable to support it, and retreated into Guanyinpu again, and the sky was already half-bright. The Ming army first opened fire on the Japanese army with a large hair and a furlong machine, and then used bowl-mouth guns, bird guns and rockets to shoot at the approach, and then used spray canisters and fireball projections when the strings were connected, and then hooked the enemy ships with hook sickles and cross-ship nail guns to carry out gang jumping.

The Korean navy continued to fire artillery to bombard the enemy ships, and the turtle boats rushed out to ram and disrupt the Japanese formation. The Japanese warships were attacked by the artillery and rockets of the coalition forces, the hull was broken, the deck was on fire, the formation was chaotic, and it fell into a melee.

The front of the coalition army has started a string jumping gang with the Japanese army, hand-to-hand combat, Shimazu Yoshihiro also drew his sword to fight, Shimazu Yoshihiro's Notai knife technique is fast, and there is a great tendency to sweep thousands of troops, where the knife passes, there will be two or three soldiers who will be killed by it, unstoppable. The Japanese army is accustomed to gang fighting, but now it is in a disadvantageous situation, and the white-knuckle battle is also at a disadvantage.

The veteran Deng Zilong was over 70 years old, and wanted to get the first merit, so he led 200 elite soldiers to jump onto the Korean warship and bravely rushed to kill, killing countless enemies. Deng Zilong was old and strong, dancing the knife and making the wind, several people could not stop the joint attack, suddenly the coalition forces projected firearms to the Japanese army, mistakenly hit Deng Zilong's boat, the warship caught fire, Deng Zilong had nowhere to dodge, and did not want to jump into the sea to survive, and was immediately surrounded by three Japanese ships, the Japanese army jumped on the ship in large numbers, Deng Zilong's knife was knocked down, hand-to-hand fighting, punching three people, two knives in the body, the entourage guards stepped forward to cover, Deng Zilong took a few steps back, picked up the javelin and hit a hundred shots, and then fought with the enemy again, because the enemy was outnumbered Deng Zilong was unable to fight, and died in battle, The Japanese army scrambled to cut off its head.

At noon, Chen Lan's deputy general Chen Silkworm and guerrilla general Ji Jin led their troops to help, and the coalition forces launched a fierce attack on the main Japanese army from the north and south. Some of the Japanese warships caught fire, the Japanese troops jumped ashore and were intercepted and killed by the Ming army on land, the Korean turtle boats raided and plundered along the island in batches, the Japanese troops scrambled to flee, the small Japanese ships sank with one blow, the warships driven by Yi Sunsin were too close to the enemy, and many officers and men around him were shot and killed.

Yi Sunsin shouted: "This battle is the last battle against the Japanese invaders, and we must go all out regardless of the cost of casualties, instead of caring about my safety, you should immediately plunge into the battle and desperately prevent the Japanese from returning home!" Left and right persuaded again: "My lord, you shoulder the responsibility of commanding the navy, once you fail, how can the command of the whole army be good?" Yi Sunsin said: "Although the Japanese are still stubbornly resisting, the defeat is decided, we only need to go all out to annihilate the enemy, at this time we must no longer have the intention of caring for our own safety, the whole army must sacrifice life and forget death!" I have long been determined in my heart to die today, and I have made up my mind, and I have to say no more! ”

Yi Sunsin was unfortunately shot in the chest and fell to the ground, but the adjutant general Song Xili and his nephew Li Guan came to inspect and repeatedly shouted for military doctors to treat him, and Yi Sunsin strictly ordered not to leak the news. Yi Sunsin advised: "The war is in full swing, don't claim that I have died in battle, otherwise the army's morale will be chaotic!" Hold the flag of our army and give orders on my behalf, let the whole army know that Yi Sunsin is still there, and be sure to annihilate the enemy! After saying that, Li Sunchen died in anger. Song Xili and Li Guan wept and were overwhelmed with grief. But seeing that the war was not over, and there was still artillery fire and fireworks all around, Song Xili endured his grief and strongly persuaded Li Guan to cheer up again.

Song Xili took over the banner of Li Sunsin and continued to give orders, the Japanese army fought to the death, but in fact had no intention of fighting at all, and because the Ming army came to help one after another, the intercepted Konishi Yukinaga's second team was able to be received by Tachibana Muneshige's department, and finally broke through the defense line and retreated to the open sea. Tachibana Muneshige sent a signal to Shimazu Yoshihiro and Wakisaka Yasuharu that the Japanese army had opened a retreat gap at this time, and after Shimazu Yoshihiro received the letter, he immediately signaled to the flagship of Wakisaka Yasuharu, and the Japanese army began to retreat at full speed. Chen Lan saw that the Japanese army had broken through the encirclement, and it was useless to pursue it any longer, so he ordered the troops to be withdrawn. Nearly a day after the fierce battle of Luliang, the number of Japanese warships damaged and sunk had reached 200, and 3,000 to 4,000 people were killed, and the remaining 300 warships led by Wakisaka Yasuharu withdrew from the battle.

After the war, Song Xili gathered the Korean naval army to hold a grand funeral for Yi Sunsin, and at the same time paid tribute to Deng Zilong and other fallen soldiers. The commander of the Ming Dynasty navy, Chen Lan, and the general of the Korean navy, Li Yiqi, all came to pay respects. The whole army threw itself to the ground, mourned, and the company and battalion wept bitterly. Wherever the coffin went, the people set up sacrifices, pulled the car and cried, and the car was not allowed to enter. The imperial court posthumously presented the right to discuss politics, set up a memorial to the ancestral hall, and called loyalty.

When the Japanese army was sailing towards Japan at sea, Zong Yoshizhi came to comfort his frightened father-in-law, Konishi Yukicho: "Father-in-law, when you arrive at Tsushima Island, you will stay with your son-in-law for a few days, the army has already informed His Royal Highness that Taiko is dead, and now he can finally return home safely with his life, and he no longer has to worry about His Highness Taiko's anger, it is time to rest in peace." ”

Konishi said, "You're right, it's time to rest in peace. From the very beginning, we opposed the war in Korea, tried all kinds of methods, hinted at the Korean monarchs, negotiated during the war, and deceived the Taiko, but none of them succeeded, and we ourselves were in danger several times, fighting hard in Korea on the one hand, and on the other hand, we were worried that we would be killed by His Highness the Taiko, and now although we have saved our lives, the result is still nothing, and the family's financial and military resources are almost empty. But you have to remember that the crisis is not over yet, His Royal Highness Taiko is dead, the young lord is young, there are already factions among the retainers and they are hostile to each other, there will be turmoil within the Toyotomi family, and there are still many things that we need to guard against in the future. ”

After the Luliang War, most of the Japanese troops had withdrawn to the country, and there were still many remnants of Japanese troops in various coastal parts of Korea who could not board the ships and evacuate in time, so the Ming army immediately launched a pursuit, and Chen Lan swept away the Japanese troops who tried to sneak in Xiongfangshan, Dadapo, Geumsan, Yishanchuan and other places in the South China Sea, and wiped out the remnants of the enemy.

After the leader of the council, Liu Chenglong, submitted his resignation request to the king of Joseon, Li Hao called Liu Chenglong to dine and drink late at night, Li Hao personally poured wine for Liu Chenglong in civilian clothes, Li Hao said that he had seen Liu Chenglong's resignation, but he would not agree to Liu Chenglong's resignation. Liu Chenglong said that he had already guessed this, and Li Hao said: "That's the same, the prime minister knows the widow very well." Those who go will return, whether it is Zheng Che or Yi Doushou or Li Shanhai, haven't they all left several times, and you have been dismissed several times, so you don't have to be too sad. The widow will miss you, and will call you back in the future. ”

Liu Chenglong replied that he would not return to the court even if he was recruited again, Li Hao pretended to be idle, complaining that this was to cut off his fate with him, and asked why he was so dissatisfied with himself? Liu Chenglong said: "Your Highness is a sensitive and kind person, how can a minister hate such a Highness." But His Royal Highness, as the monarch, was indeed dissatisfied. ”

Li Hao asked rhetorically: "Why is this?" Is it because the widow is a monarch who is busy abandoning the people and fleeing from the west? The widow has said many times that if the widow who was occupied by Wangjing at that time had been captured by the Japanese invaders, this land would have already become the territory of the Japanese invaders today. Isn't it right what the widow said? Liu Chenglong replied: "Judging from the results, this is true, but the minister is criticizing His Royal Highness as a monarch, His Royal Highness has no will to fight, but he can easily abandon the people." If they leave after doing their best, how can the people burn down the palace? Your Highness, you only care about your own safety. ”

Li Hao's face was already very ugly at this time: "Prime minister, the widow is the king of North Korea, if the widow is a puppet, he would have gone out and died on the battlefield with the widows." But the widow is the king of the survival of the society, so he cannot risk the danger to fight. The widow did not think about his own safety first, but worried about the safety of the community first. ”

Liu Chenglong asked: "Is the execution of the innocent volunteer general also to defend the community?" Not to mention threatening the safety of Sheji, but they who defended Sheji died in the hands of His Highness. Therefore, when the Japanese invade again, almost all the volunteers will live in seclusion and refuse to show their faces. ”

Li Hao said with a smile: "Heroes are born in troubled times, and the volunteer generals are heroes who should be born in troubled times, but as long as the heroes have power, they will be cranky, Guo Zaiyou is standing on top of the head of the Gyeongsang Envoy, and Jin Deling is ignoring the imperial order to release all the rebels, all of which are ignoring the government and ignoring the order!" And the widow punished them not for their own sake, but for the sake of maintaining order. ”

Liu Chenglong asked, "Then does His Highness think that he has nothing to reflect on and be responsible for?" No one who has to reflect on himself and turn over a new leaf based on cause and effect after a serious situation has experienced a serious situation, and no one is not responsible. Of course, many people will come up with all kinds of excuses to convince themselves that they are not responsible or misrepresent their responsibilities. And Your Highness, you will only blame the state of affairs and others. Never willing to look for his own faults and unwilling to be responsible, how can he become a wise man? ”

Li Hao was angry: "Now I finally start to ask the widow about his fault and responsibility, and the widow will come to tell you that you and the southerners who follow you are responsible for this war!" Since the messenger returned, he has clearly informed the widow of the movements of the widows, and Jin Chengyi, one of the easterners, said that the widows were bluffing, and if you do not support them, you can stop this war. How can it be said that it is the fault of the monarch that the monarch believes in the words of his subordinates? ”

Liu Chenglong said: "Of course, the ministers are at fault, but since the monarch can choose to believe the words of his subordinates, it means that the monarch himself must have the ability to distinguish between right and wrong, so when he meets an excellent monarch, the people will praise him, and if he does not, he will complain." Therefore, the reward given to the subordinates is also the reward given to the monarch himself, and the punishment of the subordinates is also the punishment of the monarch himself. ”

Li Hao said: "This is not unreasonable, but if the monarch is allowed to bear all the sins of his subordinates, which monarch can sit on the throne for a long time?" Liu Chenglong replied: "The throne has always been accompanied by pain and heartache, and the qualification of a king is also given by God because only a few people can bear this pain. ”

Li Hao was furious: "The widow is also very painful and responsible, so he agreed to your reform strategy in order to restore the livelihood of the people despite the opposition of the two classes, isn't it!" If the widow doesn't want to be responsible, he has already been carefree and reckless, then he will get the same fate as Yan Shanjun and be scolded by the world, how can the widow be an irresponsible monarch? ”

Liu Chenglong sighed: "Your Highness, you refuse to admit anything, what's the use of the minister saying more?" The Japanese rebellion will be peaceful, but the mountains and rivers are broken, thousands of miles of scorched earth, the people are miserable, the party struggle between the DPRK and China is continuous, and the society of the country is still in danger. The minister only wants to implore His Highness for one thing, to rebuild the mountains and rivers and rebuild the community. Your Highness, please be sure to restore this devastated land, shattered mountains and rivers. If you can achieve this, Your Highness will become a veritable holy lord, and not only the ministers will always praise your merits, but the people will also praise your holy deeds for generations to come. Li Hao was silent for a long time.

The Japanese army was completely expelled from the territory of Korea, and Liu Chenglong had resigned and retreated, but after all, the Japanese rebellion had been quelled, so the Korean king Li Hao was extremely comfortable, and summoned Xing Yu and Wan Shide to praise again and again, and wanted to give generous gifts to show concern. Xing Jue said: "Your Highness has won the award, and His Highness's courtesy, the ministers and others really dare not accept it. The foreign minister came to help the restoration of Korea at the behest of the emperor, and His Royal Highness wanted to thank him as well as present it to the emperor to thank God. ”

Li Hao said: "Your Majesty the Emperor is rich all over the world, how can you thank Your Majesty the Emperor with this gift." His Majesty the Emperor fully supported the restoration of Korea and the pacification of the Japanese rebellion, and the DPRK was really broken and could not be retributed. In the future, His Majesty the Emperor will meet any request of the widow, and the Joseon Dynasty will be grateful for the grace of the re-creation of the Celestial Empire. He also asked the superintendent to greet His Majesty the Emperor on behalf of the widow after returning to Beijing triumphantly. Speaking of triumph, I wonder when the Ming army will return to Beijing? It's not a secret, the widow is still afraid of a sudden counterattack by the Japanese invaders, and wants to ask the Ming army to leave a section to deal with the aftermath, and has also asked His Majesty the Emperor for an order, I don't know if the will has been issued? ”

Wan Shide said: "We have reported the great victory to the emperor, and we are now waiting for the emperor's will to see if there are any other arrangements, and after receiving the will, it should be the day when the Ming army departs* and returns to Beijing in triumph." Your Highness's worries, the foreign ministers can understand, since His Royal Highness has also asked the emperor for an order, then just wait with peace of mind, now that the war has just ended, the ministers and the superintendent still have a lot of affairs to deal with, Your Highness, you still need to worry about restoring the livelihood of the people in Korea, and the ministers and others are inconvenient to bother more, so they will retire first. Your Highness can then summon the ministers if you ask any more questions. Li Hao thanked him again. Later, the imperial court issued an order to prepare 3,000 soldiers to garrison North Korea to prevent changes in the Japanese situation. The rest of the ministries will return to the DPRK from now on.