Chapter 910

At the edge of the blue sky and vast sea, a flower of fire seemed to bloom, beautiful and seductive, yet utterly lethal. In just a breath’s

At the edge of the blue sky and vast sea, a flower of fire seemed to bloom, beautiful and seductive, yet utterly lethal.

In just a breath’s time, the Nagitsu defenders stationed at the Japanese pier were reduced to ashes by the artillery fire. When the smoke and dust cleared, not a single soldier remained standing on the pier.

“We must never be merciful to the enemy, otherwise, we ourselves will pay the price,” Yue Yun said, as if to the generals beside him, and also to himself.

Countless wartime experiences taught him that when the enemy wanted to kill them, they showed no mercy. Therefore, any excess pity now was merely self-deceptive soft-heartedness.

The marine soldiers on the flagship looked at Yue Yun, then turned their gaze to the pier, their expressions resolute.

The nation before them was the Great Yu Empire’s ancient foe, always seizing opportunities to devour the Great Yu Empire during its weak periods. The ubiquitous Japanese pirate raids along the coast, the Goryeo War—countless common people and soldiers died at their hands. Now, it was their time to pay.

“Land!”

Confirming the pier was safe, Yue Yun issued the order to land to Liu Chen.

Soon, small boats were lowered from the warships one by one. Marines, with hand grenades hanging from their waists and Falcon Rifles on their backs, rowed towards the shore.

They would seize the opportunity to establish a pier position before Japanese reinforcements arrived, relying on the warships’ artillery fire to gain a firm foothold in Nagitsu.

At this time, on the city wall of Nagitsu City, only five li from the pier, a richly dressed middle-aged man was observing everything happening on the pier through a telescope.

Watching his three hundred soldiers suffer casualties and die in an instant, his legs couldn’t help but weaken. And after seeing the Great Yu Empire soldiers begin to land, he grew even more flustered.

“Lord Tokugawa, the Great Yu Empire’s artillery is too fierce. Nagitsu City’s forces simply cannot contend with them. If we directly clash with the Great Yu Empire, I’m afraid our Tokugawa family’s feudal troops will be completely wiped out. At this time, we should ask Lord Yamada to assemble the feudal troops of other daimyo to resist the invading enemy,” a samurai reminded him.

Tokugawa Ieyasu, hearing this, nodded. Nagasaki, where Yamada was located, was only a little over a day’s journey from Nagitsu.

“Go quickly! Nagitsu is lost, and so will our Tokugawa clan!” Tokugawa Ieyasu said sternly. In his eyes, the Great Yu Empire was a fearsome beast, and he had always harbored intense hostility towards them.

After all, he had been the most active in attacking the Great Yu Empire’s coast. He also sent the most feudal troops. It was precisely due to the wealth obtained from plundering the Great Yu Empire over the years that Nagitsu became the most prosperous city in Japan, second only to Nagasaki.

So, after the Great Yu Empire drove them out of Goryeo and blockaded their coast, they were also the most terrified, because he knew very well that once Japan was defeated, the Tokugawa family would surely face utter disaster.

Receiving the order, the samurai immediately rode out of the city towards Nagasaki. At the same time, more cavalry followed him, heading in all directions. While Tokugawa Ieyasu sent news to Yamada, he also sent out distress signals to other daimyo.

However, while Tokugawa Ieyasu was scared out of his wits, the Great Yu Empire soldiers who landed did not rush to attack. Instead, they quickly secured the pier. Then, taking out shovels, they began digging trenches in front of the pier, implying a long-term encampment.

At the same time, some warships began to dock at the pier. Cannons were lowered from the warships, and in addition, boxes of ammunition, canned goods, and other supplies were also moved from the ships by soldiers.

After an afternoon and a night of preparation, the marines gained a firm foothold at the pier. Liu Chen looked at the warships behind him. They would be their powerful fire support. Of course, their own firepower was not weak either. Hand grenades combined with field artillery would be enough to give the Japanese army a hard time.

“Ask the General if we should take Nagitsu tonight?” Liu Chen said to the flag signalman.

Receiving the order, the flag signalman turned and signaled to the sea. Soon, information came back: Yue Yun ordered them to hold their ground and wait for Japanese reinforcements to arrive, to annihilate them in one fell swoop.

…

Nagasaki

Large numbers of soldiers had already gathered here. Faced with the Great Yu Empire’s action this time, he made full preparations.

Undoubtedly, the Great Yu Empire’s action this time was full of malice. And with Yue Yun leading the troops, it was even more malicious. Although he had decided on the strategy of “sleeping on faggots and tasting gall,” as Sato said, this Emperor of the Great Yu Empire always acted unexpectedly.

So, after weighing the situation, he decided to prepare two plans. If they lost, and the Great Yu Empire agreed to negotiate, then he would comply with their wishes.

If the Great Yu Empire did not agree, he would have no choice but to force the Great Yu Empire to negotiate through war. He believed that the Great Yu Empire would also be unwilling to place too much attention on his country.

As he was contemplating, a samurai suddenly entered, leading a panting man. The man was wearing a samurai uniform embroidered with the Tokugawa family crest.

“Lord Yamada, Great Yu Empire warships are outside Nagitsu. Their soldiers have occupied the pier. Lord Tokugawa requests that Your Lordship immediately dispatch troops to reinforce them.”

The samurai spoke continuously in one breath.

“It is Nagitsu, after all.” Yamada Nobunaga’s eyes narrowed. He said, “Did Tokugawa also send news to others?”

“Yes,” the samurai said.

Yamada Nobunaga nodded slightly. He suddenly felt somewhat pleased. He had originally worried that other daimyo would oppose him, but now the Great Yu Empire’s actions seemed to have given him an opportunity to unite the other daimyo.

“Perhaps we can win this war!” Yamada Nobunaga’s dejection was suddenly replaced by confidence.

Thinking of this, he said, “The daimyo are inherently connected like roots. Tokugawa’s crisis is my crisis. To resist the Great Yu Empire’s invasion, our soldiers have already assembled. Now is the time to reinforce the Tokugawa family. Additionally, take my military tally to your Lord Tokugawa and have him mobilize the Nagitsu inland navy to attack the Great Yu Empire’s navy, delaying their advance. Of course, it would be best if they could heavily damage them.” Yamada Nobunaga said sternly.

“Yes.” The samurai bowed and said loudly. Taking the military tally, he turned and left.

Watching the Tokugawa family samurai depart, Yamada Nobunaga’s face broke into a smile. He said to the samurai beside him, “Takasugi-kun, the battle for Nagitsu is entrusted to you.”

The samurai Yamada Nobunaga called Takasugi-kun was tall and thin, with a slightly dark complexion and a grim expression. He said in a deep voice, “I will certainly not disappoint Lord Daimyo.”

With that, the fully armored young man left the great hall, mounted his horse, and led the assembled musketeers and arquebusiers towards Nagitsu.

While he was rushing to Nagitsu, other daimyo supporting Nagitsu also dispatched troops.

The next day, a continuous stream of soldiers appeared in Nagitsu City.

Tokugawa Ieyasu finally breathed a sigh of relief. With the addition of other daimyo’s feudal troops, Nagitsu City now had a full two hundred thousand soldiers, while the Great Yu Empire had landed only over twenty thousand men.

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