The Ouchi clan was the guardian of the six countries of Shubo, Nagato, Iwami, Bunzen, Izumi, and Kii, and was also in charge of Sakai City, the most important trading port on Honshu Island, controlling the east-west shipping route of the Seto Inland Sea, and its power spanned from the northeast of Kyushu Island to the western part of Honshu Island.

But under the strong leadership of Jiang Xinghuo, the Ming army violated the common sense of the soldiers, and did not take advantage of the great victory of Tachibana Mountain Castle to march into Honshu Island, but began to clean up the interior of Kyushu Island.

On the island of Kyushu, at this time, in addition to the most powerful three transnational prefectures, Ouchi, Otomo, and Shimazu, which occupied a vast territory, there were also small families such as Matsuura, Sagara, Ito, and Kikuchi, and these small families could only hold one or a few counties, or a small country.

According to the agreement with the Ouchi clan, although the Ouchi clan did not make any efforts, but it itself "dared to be the first in Japan" and took the lead in the political move of losing sincerity to the Ming army, and it should be duly rewarded.

Therefore, part of the territory of the Otomo clan was given to the Ouchi clan as a reward for his sincerity.

Although the Ming army did not occupy the land of the Ouchi clan, it showed no mercy to the other defeated princes on Kyushu Island.

Under Jiang Xinghuo's plan, the two countries of Satsuma and Osumi, which were occupied by the Shimazu clan, were directly taken over by the Ming army.

In this way, Jiang Xinghuo's previous life in Japan's Kagoshima, Satsuma Kawanai and other regions, together with Yakushima, Tanegashima, and Koshishima, were directly taken into the pocket by the Ming Dynasty.

There are three obvious advantages of this, one of which is that it controls the southern part of Kyushu Island, so combined with the string of islands of Jeju Island, Tsushima Island, Iki Island, Goto Island, and Koshikishima Island, it can form a chain that separates Japan from the Ming Dynasty, plus the Ryukyus, Japan does not have any possibility of directly threatening the Ming Dynasty, even if it is a small boat of the Japanese Kou, it is difficult to break through. In this way, while suppressing Japan, it was possible to ensure that the defense circle of the Ming Sea Frontier expanded thousands of miles to the east, even if the world situation changed hundreds of years later, as long as the ruling class at that time did not pull its crotch to the extreme, and had naval armaments that were basically equal in size, then it would still be very difficult for any enemy to attack from the east.

The second is to eliminate the hidden danger of the Satsuma Domain, after all, no one knows how to break the spell of the Shimazu family's standing, so it is better to physically eliminate it, so that even if the historical line has changed, Jiang Xinghuo has also achieved the best solution he can do, just like he used Duoyan Sanwei to drive the tiger and devour the wolf to eliminate and expel the Jurchens.

The third is that the Ming army directly occupied the southern part of Kyushu Island, so the nature is completely different from that of Tsushima Island and Iki Island, which only occupy the northern part of the island, and the sailors can use this as a base to pose a threat to the Gyeonggi region of Japan at any time, just like the original can only be used to press a person's head with both hands, but now a dagger can be stabbed into his abdomen.

As for the other leftovers on Kyushu Island, Jiang Xinghuo intends to make it more chaotic while maintaining the existing situation, and only chaos is the most beneficial to Daming.

Because as long as you don't get carried away by victory, you can clearly judge that the Ming army must not fall into the quagmire of law and order warfare!

It was not that the Ming army did not have the ability to directly eat most of Kyushu Island, but that it was not necessary.

Once eaten, half of the 100,000 reserve Japanese troops will have to be dragged into the quagmire of law and order warfare!

There are millions of people here, the customs and culture are completely different from the Ming Dynasty, and they generally will not obey the management of the Ming Dynasty.

Why does empires always fall into the graveyard of empires? Herein lies the reason.

It is not difficult to win the regular army of the enemy country, but if you want to suppress the resistance one after another, you will have to invest manpower and material resources for many years, and eventually all the troops will be lost in the quagmire and have to withdraw.

And in order to plunge Kyushu Island into chaos, Jiang Xinghuo also carefully selected the best grip.

—Kikuchi.

The Kikuchi clan's territory is located in the northern part of Higo Province in the middle of Kyushu Island, and it is a veritable "land of four wars" on Kyushu Island, and no matter which direction you fight from the east, west, north and south, you have to pass through here.

During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the Kikuchi clan was the main force of the Southern Dynasty camp, and after Imagawa Ryatoshi commanded the Northern Army to launch the Battle of Mt. Korayama, the Kikuchi Army was forced to withdraw to the base area of Hi, and the Kikuchi Army built 18 outer castles along the Kikuchi River and the Kino River with Kuma Prefecture as the center, and then confronted the Northern Army with the fortress Mizushima Array in the west of the city.

The following year, there was a far-reaching "Mizushima Change" that had a profound impact on the pattern of Kyushu, and the young two of the three were killed by Imagawa Toshi, and the Shimazu clan led the army back to the territory in a fit of anger, giving the southern army the opportunity to counterattack, and forced Jun back to Hizen Province, and then Kikuchi Taketomo and Aso Weiwu marched into Hizen Province but the good times did not last long, and with the defeat of the Hizen Curl Fight, Kikuchi Takeyasu, Takeyoshi, Aso Weiwu and other southern armies will lead and die, and the Southern Dynasty's plan to recover Hizen was declared a failure.

Then Imagawa Ryōtoshi attacked Higo Province again, the satellite cities of Kuma Castle, Jono Castle, Gohei Castle, Kawachi Castle, Kikuchikan Castle and other castles were conquered one after another, under the command of Imagawa Ryōtoshi, the northern army launched an attack from Itai to Kuma Castle, after five days and nights of attack and defense, Kikuchi Honjo Castle fell, Kikuchi Taketomo and Prince Miyara Nari, the general of Seisei, went to Ikjo to defend the mountain, and then fled to Uto Castle.

However, after the fall of the main castle, the Kikuchi clan still united the Higo forces to confront Imagawa Ritoshi, although he defeated Imagawa Yoshinori at Kamezaki Castle in Higo Province, and defeated Imagawa Chuaki at Waist Tail Castle, but as the Southern Dynasty forces were subdued one after another, Imagawa Ryōtoshi gathered the armies of Hizen, Chikuzen, Bungo, and Chikugo to attack Seifu again, and Uto Castle was breached.

The Kikuchi clan led by Kikuchi Takesa was the most stubborn Southern Dynasty force, and there was no one, until the unification of the Northern and Southern Dynasties under the Meitoku Contract, the Kikuchi Takeshi Dynasty still continued to fight against the shogunate, and Imagawa Ryōtoshi was recalled to Kyoto in the second year of Eiei, and the Kikuchi clan fought fiercely for another three years with the new Kyushu exploration Shibukawa Manyori, until the fifth year of Onei, that is, ten years ago, the Kikuchi Takeshi Dynasty returned to the Muromachi Shogunate.

The Muromachi shogunate recognized the control of the Kikuchi clan's original domain and still retained its position as the guardian daimyo of Higo Province, but the situation on Kyushu Island remained tense, and the various factions were intrigued, and the Kikuchi clan joined forces with the old enemies of the Shoji clan and the Otomo clan against the Shibukawa clan and the Ouchi clan.

Last year, Kikuchi Taketo, the "last Southern general," died and was succeeded by his sister-in-law, Kikuchi Kaneto, who continued to maintain a hostile attitude toward the shogunate.

This year, the Ming army landed nominally at the invitation of Emperor Go-Kameyama, and after coming to the shogunate to "help suppress the heavenly soldiers", the Kikuchi clan also decisively re-raised the banner of the Southern Dynasty.

Daming's daughter buys bones, so she naturally does not hesitate to reward the Kikuchi clan.

Therefore, Jiang Xinghuo decided to eliminate the Shimazu clan and weaken the Otomo clan at the same time, support the Kikuchi clan and cede the eastern part of Higo Province occupied by the Otomo clan to the Kikuchi clan.

As a result, the northern part of Higo Province was ruled by the Kikuchi clan, while the southern part was ruled by the Sagara clan.

As for the Sagara clan, there is nothing to say, as the force that ruled the southern half of Higo Province during the Muromachi period, it is currently sandwiched between the Ming army and the Kikuchi clan, and it is basically a state of "left and right for men", and there is no good choice but to surrender to the Ming army.

The best thing is that although the Kikuchi clan and the Ouchi clan are both anti-shogunate, the relationship between the two sides is very bad because of the old feud during the war between the northern and southern dynasties.

In this way, the Ming army not only occupied the southern part of the island of Kyushu and gained key territory, but also deepened the contradiction between the Ouchi clan that occupied the northern part and the Kikuchi clan, which occupied a key position in the central part.

In addition, the Otomo clan died but did not stiffen, although many territories were ceded and divided among the Kikuchi clan, the Ito clan and the Ouchi clan, but they were still entrenched in the eastern part of Kyushu Island, so the source of the contradiction is still deep.

And after the gradual fermentation of time, the contradictions between the princes within Kyushu Island are obviously much more violent than before the arrival of the Ming army, and the destruction of the Shaoji clan who occupy the Iki country and the Zongzhen clan who occupy the Tsushima country cannot affect the era when too many heroes rise together, and there are always small princes who sacrifice first.

And the same is true of the Ito clan, during the reign of Yumochi, he followed the Ashikaga clan to obtain military exploits, and was rewarded by the three hundred towns of the capital in the gun, and then Yuji built the Ito clan's residence in the capital of the county for generations, the Ito clan and the Shimazu clan have always had a dispute over the fertile castle of the Hyuga country, so after the battle of Tachibanayama Castle, it quickly fell to the Ming army, following the Ouchi clan, the Kikuchi clan, and the Sagara clan, becoming the fourth dog leg of the Ming army on the island of Kyushu.

And the Ming army never hesitated to cut other people's flesh to reward dogs, so the fertile city of Hyuga was given to the Ito clan by the Ming army.

Of course, there is no such thing as a free lunch, let alone fat falling from the sky.

Therefore, the Ito clan also boarded the chariot of the Ming army half-pushed and half-on-the-spot, preparing to pay for a decisive battle with the shogunate coalition army.

As for the Matsuura clan, which has cultivated two pirate kings, Wang Zhi and Zheng Zhilong, in the history of Jiang Xinghuo's previous life, there is nothing to say.

The Matsuura clan was the largest Japanese family that traded with the Ming Dynasty outside of the Ouchi clan, and as a wealthy family active in Hizen Kuninan and Kitamatsunura Prefecture, they had a strong economic power because of their geographical location as a trading port, Hirado Port.

Although the Matsuura clan did not dare to open the landing ground for the Ming Dynasty like the Ouchi clan at first, they saw that the Ming army had conquered Tachibana Mountain Castle, and they were also very aware of the times and saw the wind to rudder the rudder.

And the more famous Kyushu nobles in the history of the Warring States period, such as the Arima clan, who was the first to believe in Christ in Japan, was still a little Karami at this time.

In fact, a hundred years later, Arima Takasumi and his son Arima Shokan used troops as governors of the Arima clan to grow from local lords to nationalist lords, suppressing Takarai Gun based on Hino Ejo Castle, and then merging Fujitsu and Kitejima Counties to build the famous Hara Castle, which established the largest territory in Hizen Province before the rise of the Ryuzoji clan.

And now there are Ma clans who are not even qualified to be dogs for the Ming army.

In this way, after consolidating the island of Kyushu, the Ming army gathered the armies of the Ouchi clan, the Kikuchi clan, the Sagara clan, the Ito clan, the Matsuura clan and other princes, and began to attack the island of Honshu.

Jiang Xinghuo's tactics are also very simple, just like the Mongols.

On the land division, the armies of the Ouchi clan, the Kikuchi clan, the Sagara clan, and the Ito clan were the vanguard, while the naval division was spearheaded by the Matsuura clan fleet and the Korean naval division led by the Korean governor Chuan Jun Lee Congmao.

Let these servants go and fight the shogunate coalition forces first to show their loyalty.

It is naturally best for the servant army to win (although the probability is extremely low), but if it is defeated, it can also consume the strength of the shogunate coalition army, and finally the Ming army will come out to clean up the scene.

The Ming army and its servant army soon landed on Honshu Island from Nagato and Zhoufang, which were controlled by the Ouchi clan.

At this time, Jiang Xinghuo received unexpected good news.

That is, the reason why the Ming army has picked up Kyushu Island and the shogunate coalition army has not yet arrived is because there is a force that suddenly intervenes to stop the westward advance of the shogunate coalition led by Ashikaga Yoshimochi.

- Yamana!

The Yamana clan was originally a clan of the Nitta clan, and the Yamana clan followed the Ashikaga clan to raise troops, and during the conflict between the Northern and Southern Dynasties, he made great achievements as a subordinate of the Muromachi shogunate.

However, during the Kano Rebellion, Yamana Tokishi rebelled to the Southern Dynasty with Ashikaga Naoyoshi, the younger brother of the Ashikaga Son, and after the death of Ashikaga Naoyoshi, the Yamana Tokishi clan once returned to the shogunate, and then rebelled again and belonged to the Southern Dynasty, and cooperated with Ashikaga Naoyoshi's son Ashikaga Naoto to fight in San'in to expand his power.

Later, the Yamana Tokishi returned to the shogunate during the reign of Ashikaga Yoshikan, the second shogun of the Muromachi shogunate, and was appointed as the guardian of the five kingdoms of Inaba, Hakuki, Tanba, Tango, and Misaku.

After the death of the Yamana Toki, the power of the Yamana clan continued to expand, and the eldest son of the Yamana clan, who inherited the commander-in-chief, was protected by Tango and Boqi; Jioyama is nominally guarded by Kii; Sano Yama Nama's winter is guarded by the inabata; The name of the four male mountains is guarded by Tanba, Yamashiro, and Izumi; The name of the five male mountains is a beautiful work, but the horse, and the guardian of the back; The three men of Yamana Shiyoshi were fortunate to be given the guardian position of Harima again.

There are 66 countries in Japan, and the Yamana clan occupies 11 countries, which is called "one-sixth hall" by the world.

Seventeen years ago, in the second year of Meitoku in Japan, the Yamana clan launched the "Manotoku Rebellion" against the Muromachi shogunate, and the Yamana clan was suppressed by Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, and the fief from the eleven countries to the present is only the three kingdoms of Tajima, Hakugi and Inaba.

And the current head of the Yamana clan is Yamana Shikiyo.

Just like the sentence in Huaxia, "Although Chu has three households, the death of Qin will be Chu", although there are only three feudal states left in the Yamana clan, its geographical location is very important!

The three kingdoms of Tajima, Hakuki, and Inaba were all located by the sea in the north, across the central and western parts of Kyushu Island, and to the south of the Yamana clan were the domains of the Hosokawa and Akamatsu clans, which were subordinate to the Muromachi shogunate.

However, as long as the shogunate coalition wanted to prevent the Ming army from landing to the west, it would either pass through the territory of the Yamana clan from the north, or pass through the territory of the Hosokawa family and the Akamatsu clan from the south, and even if the shogunate coalition army borrowed the road from the south, at least hundreds of miles of supply lines would still be completely exposed to the Yamana clan.

And on this necessary road, Shiqing raised the anti-flag.

The grudge between the Yamana clan and the Muromachi shogunate during the "Meitoku Rebellion" was now over.

There is revenge, there is revenge.

And you, Tokiyoshi Yamana, my friend, you are the real hero.

The Shogunate coalition was attacked and harassed by the Yamana clan's army, and Ashikaga Yoshinori was forced to deal with the Yamana clan first.

However, Equestria was quickly defeated by the Shogunate Coalition forces, but the Shogunate Coalition forces were forced to stop at Inaba Province.

As one of the eight kingdoms of the Yama, Inaba Province is a standard mountain castle defense system that can be said to be a standard mountain castle defense system built by the Yamana clan through the Tajima Province to the east, Hakuri Province to the west, Mimasaka Province and Harima Province to the south, the Sea of Japan to the north, and the Ice Mountain, Mt. Sanmuro and Mt. Nagi from east to south.

At this time, the famous Tottori Castle had not yet been established, but the Yamana clan's mountain castle defense system still caused the shogunate army who had stopped feeling great trouble.

The Shogunate coalition led by Ashikaga Yoshimochi can be said to have come from all over the country, and the "three leaders" of the Spo clan, the Hosokawa clan, and the Hatakeyama clan, as well as the "four positions" of the Isshiki clan, the Kyogoku clan, and the Akamatsu clan (the Yamana clan is also one of them) poured out the lineup of military generals, and the big names of the Muromachi shogunate such as Hatakeyama Kikuni, Spo Yoshisho, Hosokawa Mitsumoto, Akamatsu Yoshinori, and Isshiki Mantsu can be said to be one and all of them.

The Ice Mountain, also known as Mt. Suka, is the second highest peak in the entire mountain vagina after the Great Mountain.

The offensive and defensive battle around the Ice Mountain is a brutal and long tug-of-war.

Clearly, the Yamana clan had fully learned the lessons of the Matoku Rebellion.

Seventeen years ago, in the Meitoku Rebellion, the Yamana army generals Yamana and Kobayashi Uenosuke led 700 cavalry to attack Nijo Omiya, and the 300 cavalry under Ouchi Yoshihiro started a fierce battle, Ouchi army first dismounted and shot arrows to harass Yamana's army, the enraged Yamana army launched a reckless assault, and was defeated by the Ouchi army ambushed on all sides with melee tactics, Kobayashi Uenosuke was beheaded, Yamanaka also died in the chaos of the army, the shogunate army flag was victorious, Ouchi Yoshihiro was rewarded by Yoshimitsu Taidao.

Then, Yamana Mitsuyuki's main force of 2,000 cavalry also stupidly put into the battlefield of the Uchino, and Tayama and others fought fiercely, and was dragged to death, at the critical moment, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu put his five thousand Praetorian Guards into the nature of the "Imperial Horse Return" into the battlefield, Yamana Mitsuyuki's army was defeated on all fronts, and his people fled to Tanba, Yamana Kiyoshi led the remnants of thousands of men and horses, and the soldiers launched the final offensive in two ways, Ouchi and Akamatsu Army could not resist the defeat and retreat, and at that time, the heralds successively reported to Ashikaga Yoshimitsu in a hurry, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu thought that the decisive moment had come, so he ordered the reserve army of Spo and Isshiki to enter the battlefield, and he himself personally carried the banner of the shogun and went out to meet the enemy.

After this battle, Hatakeyama Kikuni was given the title of Yamajo Province, Hosokawa Yorigen (the father of Hosokawa Mangen) was given the title of Tanba Province, Isshiki Mantsu was given the title of Tango Province, and Akamatsu Yoshiki was given the title of Misaku Province, and each family divided the territory of the Yamana clan, and at the same time, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu also strengthened the "Goma Return", expanding the elite samurai cavalry force directly under the shogun to the size of tens of thousands of people.

Therefore, seventeen years later, it is actually still a copy of the "Mingde Rebellion", and the lineups of the two sides have basically not changed.

And the Yamana clan, which has a total strength of only more than 10,000 people, including all kinds of auxiliaries, is resolutely not to fight in vain this time, and as for the precious samurai cavalry, they dare not move at all, and only dare to use them as mobile infantry, and use them as firefighting teams.

The Shogunate coalition army has been assembled for so long, including 10,000 "Imperial Horse Returns" and 30,000 shogunate infantry, as well as 60,000 soldiers and horses made up by the Spo clan, the Hosokawa clan, the Hatakeyama clan, the Isshiki clan, the Kyogoku clan, and the Akamatsu clan.

The shogunate coalition forces were surging, and their swords and spears shimmered in the sunlight, giving them a sense of momentum.

However, the mountain castle of the Yamana clan built on the ice mountain is like a dormant beast, entrenched on the top of the steep mountain, and the walls look up from below as if they are about to reach the sky, and it is covered with arrow stacks and lookouts, and every detail reveals a sense of despair.

The fort is built on the mountain, cleverly taking advantage of the terrain, the integrity is very good, the interior is full of troop transport roads, and the soldiers hidden in the cave can be quickly deployed to any position.

The soldiers of the shogunate alliance looked up, and they couldn't help but feel a chill in their hearts, everyone knew that this battle would not be easy, but Ashikaga Yoshishi held the military order like a mountain, and they could only grit their teeth, climb the cold stones, and charge towards the mountain castle.

The drums of war beat and the shouts shook the earth.

The soldiers of the Shogunate coalition flocked to the mountain castle like a tidal wave, their footsteps leaving deep marks on the ground, but the Yamana clan defenders, who were waiting for their work, remained unmoved, and calmly aimed their bows and crossbows at the charging enemy, and the arrows rained down like drops.

It was also an attack on Yamashiro, but the Shogunate coalition army obviously did not have the kind of firepower of the Ming army, not only did there not have a few artillery, but even the muskets were captured from the Yuan army a hundred years ago.

To be honest, this kind of antique from a hundred years ago is already good if you don't blow yourself up by firing, and it is simply impossible to expect it to kill the enemy.

And without enough long-range firepower, it is impossible to form a firepower suppression situation like the Ming army's low fight and high fighting, which means that the Yamana clan defenders above the mountain castle can give full play to their condescending advantage to kill and injure the enemy, and the shogunate coalition forces have basically no way to take them.

The charging ranks kept falling, blood staining the ground.

However, the shogunate coalition forces did not flinch, they stepped on the corpses of their companions and continued to advance.

Under the city walls, the siege crash cars that were pushed up from the narrow mountain road made a loud roar, trying to help the coalition forces bypass the impregnable city walls and open a gap in the city gate, but unfortunately the city gate had long been blocked, and the siege crash cars that had worked hard to use it were only doing useless work.

However, despite the difficulty of the shogunate coalition army's counterattack, the defenders of the Yamana clan were not easy, and they had to be vigilant at all times and not dare to slack off in the slightest.

You know, they are openly on the opposite side of the shogunate.

In the Ashikaga Yoshimitsu era, whether it was the Ouchi clan, the Yamana clan, or the Imagawa clan, or even the Kamakura Gongfang, who owned the ten kingdoms of Kanto, as long as they dared to provoke a stabbing head, they were greeted with a severe beating from the shogunate.

At this time, the Muromachi shogunate was not a wasted existence, but a strong military group that really ended the troubled times of the Northern and Southern Dynasties of Japan.

The Yamana clan knew very well that once the walls were breached, they would be doomed, so they did everything they could to stop the enemy's attack with bows and arrows, boulders, rolling logs, and things like wolf fangs.

The battle lasted for more than ten days, and both sides were already nervous, and although the shogunate coalition forces attacked fiercely, they were never able to break through the core defense line of the Yamana clan's Yamashiri, and although the Yamana clan held on to the line, they also paid a huge price. The rest of their territory has been almost wiped out by the Shogunate coalition forces.

——————

As the night wore on, Ashikaga Yoshinori was still standing in front of his desk, unfolding a map showing Japan's major cities and topography, and carefully studying the Ming army's route and possible strategic disposition.

At this moment, the silence of the night was broken by the sound of hurried footsteps, and a samurai hurriedly walked in, knelt down in front of Ashikaga Yoshinor, and presented a secret report with both hands.

Ashikaga Yoshimori took the secret report, unfolded it, and his face suddenly became solemn.

"The Kamakura Princess's office has really taken action!"

He said to himself, "And faster than expected!" ”

The secret report said that the Kamakura Principality had led a large army to Kyoto, and it was expected to arrive in more than 20 days, which was undoubtedly a heavy blow to Ashikaga Yoshimochi, he thought that he could concentrate on dealing with the Ming army first, even if the Yamana clan jumped back, he also felt that he had time to clean up the Yamana clan before continuing to march, but he did not expect the Kamakura Principality to launch an attack at this time.

Ashikaga Yoshimochi took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. Panic and anxiety are useless at this time, only reason can help him make the right decisions.

However, the shogunate was not unprepared for the backstabbing of the Kamakura Gongfang, and Kyoto also left 20,000 soldiers and horses, and the important passages and checkpoints from Kanto to Gyeonggi were in the hands of the shogunate. After all, it has not been a day or two since the Kamakura Princes of Kanto coveted the position of shogun, and if they were defenseless, wouldn't the shoguns of the past generations become fools.

These left-behind soldiers and horses may not be able to attack, but the defense is more than enough, at least, the Kwantung coalition army definitely does not have the siege ability of the Ming army, and that series of checkpoints alone is enough for Ashikaga to have a headache.

Geographically, Kanto and Gyeonggi are also two geographical units, separated by a series of mountains.

Therefore, it must be no problem to live in Kyoto in a short period of time, but it is difficult to say if the time drags on.

Ashikaga Yoshimochi thought about it, and although he felt that it would be better for the Hui army to attack the Kwantung Coalition Army first with an absolute superiority of troops, he still had to ask everyone's opinions.

After all, he didn't have the absolute control of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, and if most of the coalition forces were against it, even if he was a shogun, he would not be able to enforce his strategy.

"Go and call them to the table."

At the foot of the Ice Mountain, in the tent of the Shogunate Alliance, the atmosphere was almost suffocating.

The candle flame cast a flickering shadow on the outer curtain of the tent, as if it would be extinguished at any moment, and the shogun Ashikaga Yoshinori knelt on the throne, his eyes full of annoyance, because these people began to quarrel when they met, and there was no intention of giving him face at all.

With a loud "bang", Hatakeyama Kikuni slammed the table, shaking the cups on the table.

The stout Hatakeyama Kikuni stood up, his eyes wide with rage, and his voice echoed in the hall like thunder: "The Ming army has trampled on our territory!" This is an extreme insult to the dignity of our samurai! We cannot sit idly by, we must immediately send troops to meet the battle! When the Yuankou invaded, this is how our ancestors fought back! No withdrawal! Absolutely not! ”

General Spoy sat firmly on his knees, his eyes revealing a hint of disdain.

General Spoyi spoke slowly, but his voice was as piercing as ice: "Fighting? You said it lightly, the Ming army was strong and strong, although we did not lose many troops at this time, but the morale had already fallen, and a rash attack at this time was tantamount to hitting a stone with an egg. What's more, we still have traitors from the Southern Dynasty at work within. There has been a large-scale 'national rebellion' in Yamato, and at this time, we should first fight for internal thieves and then seek external enemies. ”

Hatakeyama Kikuni was so angry by General Spo's words that his face turned red, like a freshly cooked lobster.

Hatakeyama Kikuni pointed at General Spo's nose and roared angrily, "You coward! I only know that the turtle is cowering here, what are you talking about thieves? By the time you return to the division and finish the thieves, the Ming army will already come to Kyoto and cut off our heads and kick them as balls! ”

General Siboyi's face also sank, and a trace of murderous intent flashed in his eyes, but he didn't attack, but took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the anger in his heart.

General Spoyi looked at Hatakeyama Kikuni coldly, and said word by word: "So, may I ask Hatakeyama-sama, what is your opinion?" Could it be that with your enthusiasm and bravery, you can be sure that you will defeat the Ming army immediately? If we haven't defeated the Ming army, Kyoto will be captured by the Kamakura Duchy, then we will be cut off from supplies and have no food or drink, and even be caught between the Ming army and the Kamakura Duke, how will we deal with ourselves then? ”

Kikuni Hatakeyama was dumbfounded by the question, and he opened his mouth, but he couldn't speak.

At this time, Hosokawa Mitsumoto took the opportunity to interject: "In my opinion, we should first solve the problem of the Kamakura Principality, the Kamakura Principality is our biggest threat at present, and it is not difficult to solve the important Xiongguan from the Kanto to Gyeonggi is in our hands, and the Kwantung Coalition Army is just a group of monkeys that are being crumpeted, as long as they hit it with a stick a few times, they will collapse." ”

His voice was calm and steady, like a spring flowing into a dry riverbed, and his views were rare among the shogunate's coalition forces.

When dealing with the Ouchi family's Onaga Rebellion, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu personally served as the general and sent the Hosokawa clan, the Kyogoku clan and the Akamatsu clan as the vanguard, with a total force of 40,000 troops to attack Ouchi Yoshihiro, at that time Ashikaga Mitsukane of the Kamakura Principality was about to raise troops in response, but was dissuaded by Uesugi Kenda and did not raise troops as scheduled, resulting in Ouchi Yoshihiro falling into a lonely battle, December 21 of that year, Sakai Castle was captured by the fierce general Hatakeyama Kikuni, and Ouchi Yoshihiro was killed in battle.

At that time, in order to prevent the Kamakura Princess's theft, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu left more than 60,000 soldiers and horses around Kyoto, which shows that Ashikaga Yoshimitsu attached great importance to the Kamakura Prince.

And this deployment was Hosokawa Mitsumoto's suggestion to Ashikaga Yoshimitsu at that time.

Hosokawa Manyuan always believed that the Kamakura Dukes must not be ignored, and at present, since the sharp spirit is dull under the fortified city, it is not suitable for a decisive battle with the Ming army here, and the Kofukuji Temple in Yamato or the Gokameyama Emperor in the south of Yamato Province is just a small problem, and what we really have to watch out for is that the Kamakura Dukes and the Ming Army join forces with the Ming Army The Ming Army is not easy to fight, but the Kamakura Dukes are much easier to fight.

Because of this, Hosokawa Mitsumoto advised Ashikaga Yoshimoto to return to the division to fight the Kamakura Duke, and then hold on to Kyoto after victory, and at the same time gather the princes of the eastern part of Honshu Island to fight against the Ming army.

In Hosokawa Manyuan's view, the Ming army came across the sea, and if it could, it was the best way to stick to the defense line and consume its troops and materials, and it was the next strategy to fight a decisive battle with the Ming army.

But it is clear that Hosokawa Manmoto's views were not the mainstream of the shogunate coalition.

"Kamakura Princess?" Akamatsu pouted disdainfully, "What are they?" As long as we return to the division, we can easily defeat him. ”

Akamatsu Yoshinori's voice was full of confidence and arrogance.

"Regardless of whether or not you can easily defeat the Kamakura Duke, in my opinion, you have to paralyze the Ming army first."

Hosokawa Manyuan thought for a while and said: "The emperor of the Ming Dynasty is so happy, we can completely follow the story of Emperor Yang of Sui to conquer Goguryeo, pretend to surrender, and then use this to delay time, first return to the division to defeat the Kamakura Duke, and finally fight against the Ming army." ”

"Fake surrender?" Yishi Manchu immediately retorted, "Do you think the Ming army is the Sui army?" You're looking for skin with a tiger! The wolf ambitions of the Ming army, how can they really accept our surrender? Even if you accept it, where do you put the general? ”

Hosokawa Manyuan glared at Ichiseki and said angrily, "Then what do you say we should do?" Is it just waiting to be killed? I tell you, if the shogunate falls, you and I will die without a place to bury! ”

Undeterred by Hosokawa Manmoto's threat, Isshiki Mantsu said in a deep voice: "We should reach a rapprochement with the Southern Dynasty as soon as possible and end the civil war, only in this way can we concentrate our forces on dealing with foreign enemies." ”

"Don't forget, the Mingde contract is still in effect, as long as we agree to make the eldest son of Emperor Go-Kameyama the heir to the throne, and let the Daikakuji Tong and the Jimei-in Tong inherit the throne of the emperor alternately, then Emperor Go-Kameyama will definitely reconcile with us."

Ashikaga Yoshinori had been listening to everyone's arguments, his eyes flashing with impatience.

These big names of the shogunate, each with their own thoughts, no one obeys anyone, and no one's plan can satisfy Ashikaga Yoshimori, and he knows very well that these big men are arguing endlessly for their own interests.

Ashikaga Yoshimochi took a deep breath: "Shut up." ”

His voice was not loud, but it resounded like a morning bell and a dusk drum in the tent, and everyone immediately fell silent and looked at him in unison.

Ashikaga Yoshinori glanced at the crowd before he said: "No matter what measures are taken, the interests of the shogunate must be the most important, in the words of the Huaxia side, that is, we are all 'grasshoppers on a rope', the Ming army is our enemy, but the Kamakura Gongfang and the Southern Dynasty are also our enemies, and we cannot damage the interests of the shogunate because of a momentary battle of will." ”

Don't look at Ashikaga Yoshinori's age, but this is said thoroughly, other daimyo can surrender to the Ming army, but they, the core group of the shogunate, have long been deeply bound to the interests of the shogunate, and if the shogunate falls, most of them will have no good end.

"Listen up."

Ashikaga Yoshimashi paused and continued: "First, mobilize cavalry to monitor and block the Ming army, and buy time for our army to withdraw from Inaba Province to Kyoto in its entirety; second, to send envoys to the counties of Yamato Province to pacify the local samurai, and then negotiate with the Southern Dynasty; Third, we should strengthen the defense forces of Kyoto, pay close attention to the movements of the Kamakura Principality, and if necessary, we can consider dealing with the Kamakura Principality first. ”

As soon as Ashikaga Yoshimori's words fell, there was a lot of discussion in the hall, and although his decision was still controversial, many of them knew that it was the best choice in the current situation.

After Ashikaga Yoshinori's words fell, Kikuni Hatakeyama took a deep breath, his chest heaving violently, apparently trying to suppress the anger in his heart.

Hatakeyama Kikuni glared and said word by word: "General, I respect your decision, but I have to say that giving up a decisive battle with the Ming army is a great insult to our samurai!" I'd rather die on the battlefield than back down! ”

Ashikaga Yoshinori did not change his decision because of Hatakeyama Kikuni's opposition, he glanced at him lightly, and said slowly: "I understand your thoughts, but you also have to understand that the current situation no longer allows us to stick to the so-called samurai glory. We must put the big picture first and the interests of the shogunate. ”

His words made Isshiki Mantsutsu and the others fall into deep thought, in fact, they all knew that Ashikaga Yoshinori was right, the current situation was indeed extremely grim, and if they didn't act decisively, I am afraid that it would really put the shogunate in a situation from which it could never recover.

At this time, Hosokawa Manmoto opened his mouth to break the silence: "General, I support your decision, although it is a bit humiliating to withdraw the army and retreat, it is better than letting the shogunate perish, we should act as soon as possible." ”

His words were immediately echoed by Yoshinori Akamatsu and Isshiki Mantsu.

Isshiki nodded and said, "That's right, we should act as soon as possible, the Ming army has landed on Honshu Island, if we hesitate any longer, I'm afraid it will really make them drive straight in." ”

Akamatsu Yoshinori also said: "In addition to facing the Ming army, we should also strengthen the defense of Kyoto, and I ask to defeat the Kamakura Duke, and teach Ashikaga Mitsukane a lesson!" ”

Ashikaga Yoshimori watched everyone express their support for his decision, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief in his heart, at this critical moment, his decisive decision can still stabilize people's hearts.

Ashikaga Yoshinori stood up and said in a deep voice, "Since everyone agrees, let's act immediately!" I will go back to Kyoto first, in case the night is in trouble, I hope you can work together to get through the difficulties! ”

Ashikaga Yoshiji didn't say it thoroughly, but everyone knows what the so-called "Yokoko Rebellion" means, and it is nothing more than the ancient sword Miaokuai of Xiangguoji Temple, and the opposition forces of the Shogunate in Kyoto, such as Emperor Gokomatsu, who has always been unwilling to be erected by the shogunate and become a puppet.

"In addition, please also ask the Hosokawa clan's army to stay in Tanba Province, so that no matter what, the Ming army will not be able to easily approach Kyoto."

"Please!"

Ashikaga Yoshitsu stood up and saluted Hosokawa Mitsumoto, who gritted his teeth and took over the heavy responsibility.

Originally, this was what he insisted on, and it was the most suitable task for him to take over, but the terrain of the Tamba Province under his jurisdiction was very conducive to blocking, and it was also the northwestern barrier of Kyoto.

Everyone stood up and saluted Ashikaga Yoshinori and said that they would go back immediately to prepare.

As the crowd left, peace gradually returned to the tent, but Ashikaga Yoshinori knew that it was just the calm before the storm.

There was no one around, and Ashikaga Yoshinori raised the hand that had been in his wide sleeve just now, but he didn't shake at this time.

Ashikaga Yoshinori never imagined that he had just grasped real power and become the coveted de facto ruler of Japan, and he would face so many sudden problems.

The invasion of the Ming army, the threat of the Kamakura principality, the rebellion of the Southern Dynasty, and the turmoil of the people from the Yamato Province to Kyoto were all issues that weighed him down like mountains. But Ashikaga Yoshimochi has long had no way out, and anyone can escape, but he can't, he is the general of the Muromachi shogunate, and he must take on this responsibility.

——————

Soon, the Shogunate coalition withdrew from the Ice Mountain to Kyoto, much faster than they could advance, after all, they had to make all kinds of preparations when they marched, and the retreat to prevent the Kamakura Princess's house from being stolen was not so slow.

In fact, the Ice Mountain was not far from Kyoto, and after a little rest, the Shogunate Coalition sent troops to repel the Kwantung Coalition Army advancing westward.

Located between the northwest of Hokuriku and the southeastern part of Ise, Mino is the most important of the three main roads that stretch from Kinai to Omi to Togoku, and is a basin about four miles long from north to south and eight miles wide from east to west, surrounded by Mt. Ibuki, Mt. Sasao, Mt. Tenman, Mt. Matsuo, and Mt. Nangong.

Under the thick cloudy sky, the unbroken barrier of Minong Province seems to have become the center of the storm.

More than 100,000 shogunate troops poured in, samurai horses shattered the tranquility of the land, and banners embroidered with the coats of arms of the major families hunted in the wind.

On one side was the Shogunate Coalition Army, led by Ashikaga Yoshimori, and accompanied by Hatakeyama Kikuni, Spo Yoshisho, Akamatsu Yoshinori, Isshiki Mantsu and other generals.

On the other hand, there are 60,000 Kwantung coalition troops, Ashikaga Mitsukane, as the Kamakura prince of this generation, leading the elite divisions of the ten Kwantung countries, and the Kwantung governor Uesugi Kenji is also a hero of the famous side, and under their command, the Kwantung coalition army can be described as menacing.

The two armies confronted each other, and the air seemed to freeze.

The two cavalry teams led by Hatakeyama Kikuni and General Spoyoshi cut into the formation of the Kwantung coalition like two sharp blades, their horses' hooves trembling on the ground, and the sound of iron armor colliding was as shocking as thunder, cutting through the silence of the field.

Akamatsu Yoshi, on the other hand, commanded a phalanx of archers, and a dense stream of arrows poured mercilessly on the heads of the Kwantung coalition like a summer rainstorm.

The Kwantung Coalition Army was not an idle generation, Ashikaga Mitsukane and Uesugi Kendai quickly adjusted their tactics and commanded the troops to counterattack.

Although the Kwantung coalition army stubbornly defended, it was at a numerical disadvantage after all, and under the onslaught of the shogunate coalition forces, their formation began to crack, and Ashikaga Mitsukane rode a tall war horse and brandished a long sword, trying to stabilize the position, but the infantry led by Isshiki Mantsuki had already pounced like a tiger.

Under the onslaught of the shogunate coalition forces, the Kwantung coalition army gradually showed fatigue.

Ashikaga Yoshimori saw the opportunity, raised the spear in his hand and shouted loudly, and then as the most elite unit of the shogun, "Mima Hui", launched a thunderous charge.

He had to hurt the Kwantung coalition who was backstabbing him, and then turn around and fight the Ming army.

The "Imperial Horse Return" was worthy of being the most elite unit in Japan, and their charge was like a tiger descending from the mountain, unstoppable, and it tore through the defense line of the Kwantung coalition army in an instant.

Soon, the morale of the Kwantung Coalition Army, which was already only half the number of the Shogunate Army, began to decline, and some soldiers began to flee, and their rout was as unstoppable as a flood that burst the levees. Ashikaga Mitsukane and Uesugi Ken saw that the general trend had gone, so they had no choice but to order a retreat.

However, how could the Shogunate coalition let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity? The retreat turned into a rout, and the soldiers of the Kwantung Coalition Army threw away their armor and fled for their lives, while the soldiers of the Shogunate Coalition Army pursued the victory and harvested the lives of the Kwantung Coalition Army with swords and guns.

The Shogunate Coalition pursued them all the way to the camp of the Kwantung Coalition before stopping.

Eventually, on the plains of Mino Province, the Shogunate coalition was victorious, while the Kwantung coalition retreated, leaving the ground in shambles.

Obviously, the strength of the Shogunate coalition was still quite strong, and this beautiful joint battle successfully shattered the ambitions of the Kamakura Principality, and the Kanto region could no longer pose a threat to the Shogunate in a short period of time, and Ashikaga Yoshinori's own prestige began to reverse because of this battle.

But this is not the final battle.

——————

Soon after the Battle of Bubakan, the Ming army joined up with the Yamana clan and marched towards Kyoto with the armies of the Ouchi clan, the Kikuchi clan, the Sagara clan, and the Ito clan.

The last obstacle for the Ming army to reach Kyoto was the country of Tanba.

Tanba Province is the easternmost country of the mountain vagina connecting, the northeast and northwest are connected to Wakasa Province and Tango Province, the east is connected to Yamashiro Province, and a small part of the north is close to the border of Jiang Province, which is a landlocked country that is not close to the coast, and the domestic Tamba Highlands occupy a large part of the country, and there is some arable land in the Kameoka Basin of the Kameoka River Basin and the Fukuchiyama Basin of the Yuragawa River Basin, which is relatively flat, and because it is close to Kyoto and is an important mountain barrier that enters the Kyoto Plain from the northwest, it is very valued by the shogunate, and the guardian daimyo here, It was Hosokawa Manmoto, who had been left behind by Ashikaga Yoshinori to block the Ming army.

The dawn of the horizon gradually dyed the sky red, and Hosokawa Mitsumoto, dressed in armor, stood on the ramparts of the Tamba Highlands.

At this time, the castles of the lords of Japan, although not as perverted as the Warring States period, were already somewhat similar to those in Europe at the same time, and almost all the guardian daimyo liked to build their nests in the most dangerous positions in the entire fiefdom.

Around the castle, the soldiers of the Hosokawa clan of Tanba Province were nervously preparing for battle, checking weapons and equipment, reinforcing defenses, and making final preparations for the upcoming battle, and an atmosphere of slaughter and tension filled the air, as if everyone was waiting for the judgment of fate.

This was not an illusion, in fact, Hosokawa Mitsumoto's latest mission was to delay the Ming army in order to buy time for the shogunate coalition to recuperate after the war.

Negotiations between the Muromachi shogunate and Emperor Go-Kameyama had collapsed, but fortunately, although there was chaos in Yamato, the Southern Dynasty could not afford to go north to Kyoto for the time being.

Therefore, in a short period of time, the Shogunate coalition only had to face the attack of the Ming army and its servant army.

At this time, the shogunate coalition army tossed back and forth and fought a big battle without breaking the pass, so as long as the Ming army did not reach Kyoto, then the shogunate coalition army would never have a head-on decisive battle with the Ming army without resting.

So Hosokawa Mitsumoto must hold on for a while.

But this is obviously not a good errand, how the Ming army conquered the precipitous Tachibana Castle, and now the senior generals of the shogunate coalition army have become clear.

Hosokawa Mitsumoto knew very well that this was a battle with no way out, and he had to come up with all his strategy to deal with it.

Just then, a messenger rushed in, holding an urgent message in his hand.

Hosokawa Manyuan took the information, and when he unfolded it and took a cursory look at the Seden behind him, he became solemn, and the information said that the Ming army had broken through the defense line in front and was advancing here.

Hosokawa Mitsumoto took a deep breath and handed the information to the Hosokawa generals beside him, they looked at the content of the information, and their faces also showed a solemn look, this battle will be more difficult and cruel than expected.

"What should we do, master?"

Hosokawa Mitsumoto was silent for a moment, and then said slowly: "We can't back down, this war is related to the survival of the shogunate and the future of Japan. ”

He paused and continued: "Pass my order, the whole army is ready to meet the Ming army!" At the same time, we sent an envoy to Kyoto to ask for help, so that the shogunate could send reinforcements to support us as soon as possible. ”

With Hosokawa Mitsumoto's order, the entire castle immediately boiled, and the soldiers rushed to their respective posts to prepare for battle, and the messengers quickly set off to Kyoto for help.

But even if Hosokawa Manyuan has done enough psychological construction, the Ming army's ability to attack fortifications is still beyond everyone's expectations.

In the glimmer of dawn, the Ming army had quietly descended, surrounding the castle of the Hosokawa clan on all sides.

The soldiers of the Ming army were as ironclad as frost and swords and guns as forests, and this momentum accumulated through the invincible combat experience of fighting in the Japanese army had taken shape, as if they were going to crush all obstacles under their feet.

This kind of momentum is a bit similar to a team or team winning streak, the more you win, the stronger your self-confidence, and the current Ming army has reached this state.

These 100,000 reserve Japanese troops are specially trained for five or six years with Japan as an imaginary enemy, which is equivalent to thinking about how to kill pigs before.

Therefore, nature is becoming more and more comfortable and more and more confident.

The heavy artillery unit, the steel fist of the Ming army, took the lead in launching a fierce bombardment of the castle.

The Ming army has already told the whole world with facts that artillery is the king of war in the new era!

The sound of the huge siege artillery firing was like the arrival of the god of thunder, and every roar shook the heavens and the earth, and the cannonballs with a long tail of fire flew towards the castle with a long tail, and then exploded on the city walls, blasting the hard stones to pieces.

The walls of Hosokawa Castle trembled under the continuous bombardment of artillery fire, as if it would collapse at any moment. Of course, the power of the siege cannon was not so powerful that a single cannon could destroy this pure stone structure of the city wall, but the Japanese soldiers on the head of the city felt that the power was amplified after adding psychological effects.

The most cruel is the attack on the city carried out by the servant army driven by the Ming army, these servant soldiers are mainly from the Kikuchi clan, the Sagara clan, and the Ito clan.

They walked on rickety ladders, braved the rain of arrows and stones from the defenders, and even faced hot oil or boiling dung, their figures flickering across the walls, each ascent accompanied by countless casualties.

However, these cheap servant soldiers did not dare to retreat at all, and could only keep moving forward and forward, until the last moment of their lives.

The retreating Japanese soldiers will be killed directly by the Ming army!

At the same time, Yamana's engineer troops were also nervously digging tunnels, and they were like a group of dexterous moles, quietly shuttling under the castle, and the goal of the Ming army was to plant explosives under the castle and destroy the stubborn castle from the roots, but the Ming army would certainly not dig it themselves.

Every time the Yamana clan's sappers dug up, there were splashes of dirt and dripping sweat, but they worked very hard, because the hatred between the Yamana clan and the shogunate army was too great.

Above the castle, the defenders of the Hosokawa clan also struggled to resist, braving the artillery fire of the Ming army, holding on to every inch of the city wall.

Hosokawa Mitsumoto prepared sufficient supplies to defend the city, and the arrows of the defenders rained down like a torrential rain in an attempt to stop the attack of the servant army, which was also a Japanese soldier.

However, under the powerful offensive of the Kikuchi clan, the Sagara clan, and the Ito clan, their resistance became weaker and weaker.

The battle lasted for several days, and the castle and its surroundings had become a human purgatory, and the valet army of Japanese soldiers was exhausted, but their offensive continued unabated. The three families rotated, and each family was able to take two days off.

And the defenders in the castle, under the indiscriminate bombardment of the Ming army, there is not much left, their eyes are full of despair, but they still hold the last position.

However, with a loud explosion, all of Hosokawa's efforts were in vain.

The city wall was directly blown down by a large amount of explosives in the tunnel, the castle of the Hosokawa clan was completely breached, and the servant army of the Kikuchi clan swarmed in, and they showed an even more cruel attitude towards these compatriots than the Ming army. All the men were killed, even the children, and the women were taken captive.

——————

Kyoto.

The news that Hosokawa Mitsumoto was captured and slashed by Tokiyo Yamana directly made the Muromachi Shogunate fry the pot, which was not only a serious challenge to the authority of the Muromachi Shogunate, but also a heavy blow to everyone's confidence. The rabbit died and the fox was sad, no matter how he didn't get along with Hosokawa Manmoto during his lifetime, Hosokawa Manyuan was also one of the top levels of the Muromachi shogunate, and he was still brave and resourceful, and he died so sloppily, who wasn't frightened?

And now an even greater threat is looming - the Ming army is getting closer, and their road to Kyoto is clear.

Ashikaga Yoshimochi, Hatakeyama Kikuni, Spo Yoshisho, Akamatsu Yoshinori, Isshiki Mantsu and other high-ranking shogunate officials sat around the meeting hall of the Hana no Imperial Palace, and everyone's faces were extremely grim.

They knew that in the face of a well-equipped and powerful Ming army, the traditional strategy of defending the city would no longer work.

"The artillery of the Ming army is huge, and if they attack our city, we have no chance of winning at all."

Kikuni Hatakeyama was the first to break the silence, insisting on his consistent view: "We can't sit still, we must take the initiative." ”

"I agree with Hatakeyama-sama."

General Spooyi continued: "Defending the city will only make us passive, and although the Ming army has a large number of artillery, if we can concentrate superior forces in the field, we will have a chance to defeat them." ”

In fact, this painful lesson also made the upper echelons of the Muromachi shogunate understand one thing, that is, in front of the Ming army, it was useless to defend the city, not only could not have the effect of delaying the enemy's spirit, but would damage their own morale because they were quickly attacked.

The reason is obvious, in the past, the attacking side of the defending city could only rely on piling up human lives, and the defender had an advantage, but now for the Ming army with strong firepower, staying in a fixed city, that is, the fixed artillery likes to fix the target like this, and the more accurate it is.

Considering that although the number of artillery of the Ming army was large, if it was spread out to a wide front, especially a wide front where hundreds of thousands of people would fight, it would not be possible to have the same firepower density as when besieging the castle.

Therefore, many people in the top echelons of the shogunate suggested that they should fight the Ming army in the field.

In the field, although the artillery of the Ming army is terrible, the density of firepower will be much sparse with the development of the battle line, and on the other hand, that is, the comparison of troops, the shogunate coalition army does not have any disadvantage, the shogunate coalition army after resting and conscripting the rest of the whole Japan, all the princes who came to help the war, as well as the shogunate's own soldiers and auxiliaries are counted, it has reached as many as 170,000, while the Ming army is 100,000 reserve Japanese army plus less than 40,000 servant army, a total of 140,000 people.

Ashikaga Yoshinori listened to the general's discussion, his brows furrowed.

Ashikaga Yoshinori knew very well that the stakes were high, and if it failed, the entire Muromachi shogunate would be in danger of being destroyed.

However, he also knew that this was the only feasible plan at the moment, and this was already Kyoto, and it was impossible for him to lose Kyoto and run away.

"Then, let's fight the Ming army in the field."

Ashikaga Yoshinori finally made a decision: "We must use our familiarity with the terrain and the advantage of our troops to give the Ming army a head-on blow." ”

This decision quickly spread among the Shogunate coalition forces, and although the soldiers were terrified by the strong firepower of the Ming army, they also knew that this was the only option.

As a result, the shogunate coalition began to actively prepare for this battle of life and death.

At the same time, the Ming army was also preparing intensively, and although the high-level leaders of the Ming army were disdainful of the field combat capabilities of the shogunate coalition forces, they also knew that this battle was related to the direction of the Ming Dynasty's strategy against Japan, so they did not dare to be careless.

Soon, the 140,000 Ming army and its servant army, led by Zhu Neng, Li Jinglong, Jiang Xinghuo, Zhu Gaoxu and others, arrived in the northwest of Kyoto, and the 170,000 shogunate coalition army also marched out of the city in a vast array, on a wide front of nearly 20 miles, the two sides completely formed a formation, and began to carry out the final decisive battle that would determine the fate of Japan.

(End of chapter)