Just as the Empire's counterinsurgency army began to assemble towards Japan, rebels from all over Japan were also massing towards Sendai. In particular, the Japanese near Sendai, except for a part of the people who were left to surround the local barracks of the Imperial Army, the rest of the Japanese rushed to Sendai to respond to the call of the King of Sendai faction, they would march to Edo, completely drive out the Chinese, and establish a new Japanese empire.

On January 17, 1859, Saigo Takamori led 200,000 Japanese from Sendai to Edo in a vigorous manner, preparing to take Edo in one go. Along the way, Japanese joined their ranks, so much so that a week later, when Saigo Takamori arrived in Edo with his army, their ranks had exceeded 500,000 men.

However, Saigo Takamori is not a famous general, and it is naturally not better to lead more troops. The march and supplies of these hundreds of thousands of people drove him crazy. If there is not enough food, they will rob them along the road, whether it belongs to the government or the Japanese people. It is also said that this is a contribution to the Japanese Empire. Those who were unwilling to contribute grain, gold and silver treasures were dissatisfied with the Japanese Empire and wanted to be the lackeys of the Chinese. Even though these people were their compatriots, they were all brutally murdered.

The Japanese can deal with their own compatriots more ruthlessly than others. Kill with a knife, that's already lucky. Victims are often tortured before they are killed. As for the women, the end = is even more miserable. From the old ladies in their sixties and seventies, to the girls who were crushed, none of them escaped the poisonous hands of these guys. Arguably. This rebellion completely unleashed the beastly nature hidden in the bones of the Japanese.

This made Saigo Takamori feel deeply worried, but. He couldn't help it. Even if these rebels were completely unorganized and undisciplined, he could not stop them. After all. In the next battle against Edo, he still expects these people to die!

The news of the Japanese rebels' march to Edo was soon known to Major General Chen Ziqing, the Imperial Governor-General in Japan and the commander of the 15th Army of the Imperial Army. He and Brigadier General Niu Zhiyang of the Military Intelligence Bureau immediately began to deploy for the battle. No matter what, Edo must not be lost. Otherwise, when the Imperial army arrived in Japan, it would lack a foothold. In addition, Edo has well-established port facilities. When the Imperial army arrived in Edo, they could use the port facilities to land quickly without wasting too much time.

At present, the Imperial army in Edo consisted only of the headquarters of the 15th Infantry Corps and the 71st Infantry Brigade, with a total strength of more than 12,000 troops. In addition, there are more than 4,000 Japanese security forces. Although Maori Jingqin and others have said that this is their henchman, their loyalty is absolutely reliable. However, Major General Chen Ziqing and Brigadier General Niu Zhiyang were still not at ease. In case these people and the rebels come together inside and out. That's a big problem.

"General Chen, the Japanese are menacing this time! There are 500,000 people, which is 50 times as large as ours, and Edo is so big. Will you be able to withstand their attacks? Brigadier General Niu Zhiyang was a little worried. Although the combat power of the Japanese is very problematic, however, there are too many Japanese. That's dozens of times the Imperial Army's troops in Edo!

"We have too few troops to defend the whole of Edo. Obviously unrealistic. If only reinforcements had arrived earlier! Major General Chen Ziqing was also a little embarrassed. After all, no matter how strong the fighting power of the Imperial Army is. But how many ants bite and kill elephants!

"It will take three days for reinforcements to arrive. However, two battleships and several cruisers and destroyers of the Imperial Navy in Edo Bay could provide us with fire support! Brigadier General Niu Zhiyang said. The warships of the Imperial Navy had already arrived in Edo Bay first. The two battleships were the "Tang Gaozu" and "Tang Taizong" battleships, the latest 'early Tang class' battleships of the Imperial Navy.

"That's not bad, the firepower of two battleships is completely more powerful than an artillery brigade. Together with other light warships, it is equivalent to two more artillery brigades in our hands. In this case, we will simply abandon the other areas and stick to the port area, which is the nearby area. With a small number of troops, we stay within the range of the naval guns, and as long as the Japanese dare to enter the range of the naval guns, the brothers of the navy can make them pay a heavy price! Major General Chen Ziqing said.

"Well, that's an idea. However, using naval artillery to deal with these Japanese is a bit too bullying! Niu Zhiyang said with a smile.

Major General Chen Ziqing also laughed, how could a rebel army composed of a group of rabble confront the elite of the empire? Especially with the help of naval gunfire, the Imperial Army had the upper hand. I believe that the 343 mm main guns of the 'Chu Tang class' battleships will definitely let these Japanese know the consequences of confrontation with the Empire.

Under the orders of Major General Chen Ziqing, the troops stationed in Edo consciously abandoned the outer encirclement of the river and concentrated their forces near the port. In this way, the area of the defense zone is smaller, but the defense power is multiplied. In order to reduce casualties, the Chinese living in Edo were evacuated with the troops. As for the Japanese, the Governor's Office asked them to evacuate themselves so as not to be poisoned by the rebels.

Many of the Japanese living in Edo are pro-Chinese. Although China's colonial rule in Japan harmed Japan's interests. But these Japanese should belong to the category of Japanese traitors, who assisted the Imperial Governor's Office in ruling Japan, and rode on the heads of the Japanese to make a fortune. Now that the rebellion has begun, it is naturally a great threat to them.

On January 24, 1859, the rebels led by Saigo Takamori launched an attack on Edo. However, they occupied almost half of Edo with little resistance. The exclamation of prosperity dazzled many Japanese people who came to Edo for the first time. They savagely knocked open the goods on both sides of the street, and snatched all the goods that had not yet had time to be transported.

It can be said that just after entering Edo, these Japanese rebels gained a lot. Some of the Japanese who did not have time to flee were even humiliated and slaughtered by these rebels.

Saigo Takamori also found that the Imperial Army did not resist at all, but retreated first, which made him have a bad premonition in his heart. However, at this point, he had no choice but to bite the bullet.

"Compatriots, brothers. Edo is the most prosperous city in the whole of Japan, and there is a lot of gold and jewelry here, but those Chinese have taken all the gold and jewelry away, just in front of the Minato area, as long as you hit the port area, those gold and jewelry will belong to us! Saigo Takamori loudly announced to the Japanese rebels.

Under his orders, the officers of the Japanese rebels quickly passed this word to the ears of every Japanese rebel. As a result, the rebels' eyes were red. Except for a very small number of people who really joined the rebels with the intention of reviving Japan, the rest did so for money. Especially under the colonial rule of the empire, those who did not live as well as they wanted. Now, when they hear that all the wealth has been taken away by the Chinese, how can they stand it.

Looking at these Japanese who had fallen into madness, Saigo Takamori felt a little guilty in his heart, and he could only say sorry to these people. He didn't know how many people would fall in this battle. However, in order to win, he also had no way. Only let these people go to death. If Japan can be revived, then what they die is worthwhile.

At 1 p.m., after lunch, Saigo Takamori ordered the rebels to attack.

In the first wave of the attack, Saigo Takamori invested more than 30,000 people. He hoped to break through the defense line of the Chinese army in one fell swoop by virtue of the superiority of troops. As long as there is an opportunity to enter hand-to-hand combat, then victory is sure to belong to the rebels. After all, although the Chinese are strong in combat, they have too few troops. In a white-knuckle battle, the Japanese can maximize their superiority in military strength.

"Coordinates***, get ready to fire!" As soon as the Japanese attack began, the observers sent a telegram to the Imperial Navy anchored in Edo Bay. On Edo Bay, the three triple 343-mm main guns of the Imperial Navy's battleship 'Tang Gaozu' and 'Tang Taizong' began to adjust the direction of the shelling.

With the order of the gunner, the battleship 'Tang Gaozu' opened fire first, and the three triple 343-mm main guns fired a salvo in turn. The main gun of the triple pack is not capable of firing a salvo. Otherwise, the muzzle storm formed during the firing will cause the impact point to be disorganized, which will affect the accuracy of the shelling. All of the Empire's triple guns are usually fired at a one-second interval between each gun.

The high-explosive bomb, weighing more than 300 kilograms, flew quickly into the distance, piercing the air and emitting a sharp whistling sound.

The battleship 'Tang Taizong' also followed the battleship 'Tang Gaozu' and began the shelling. The rest of the cruisers and destroyers also began to be designed with main guns.

"Woohoo!"

When a sharp whistle sounded over the battlefield, many Japanese looked up blankly and looked at the sky, not knowing what was happening. These Japanese are not soldiers at all, they have not been on the battlefield, they are just a group of untrained rabble.

"Shelling! Shelling by the Chinese. Or a large-caliber naval gun! Saigo Takamori's face turned pale, and he heard that this was the shelling of large-caliber naval guns, and the Chinese navy actually arrived, which made him know that it was not so easy to completely conquer Edo. At the same time, he also scolded those Chinese in his heart, and it was shameless to use naval artillery against these unarmed Japanese rebels. (To be continued......)

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