Owari Province, Japan.
Dusk was approaching.
Oda Nobunaga had finished his routine inspection of the arquebusiers at the cemetery outside the castle. He ordered his guards to secure all the firearms, hiding them in an empty tomb, and then assigned an entire hundred-man squad to guard the location before descending the mountain, glancing back repeatedly.
These guns were now his lifeline; any initial hiccup would be fatal.
To escape Imagawa Yoshimoto's pressure and take the first step toward unifying the realm, these weapons gave him a solid footing. These firearms, developed by Scholar Zhu Mo of the Great Ming, possessed superior range, accuracy, and loading speed, making them ten times better than the Portuguese falconets. They were undoubtedly the most potent divine artifacts in the Four Islands at present. And divine artifacts must be kept secret, only to be deployed with unexpected effect.
His initial plan was to first defeat Imagawa Yoshimoto. However, after returning from the Great Ming, his thoughts gradually shifted.
As a Japanese, his perspective was similar to that of Zhu Mo of the Great Ming: he would never allow the glorious Imperial Nation to become a puppet. If he had previously considered Imagawa Yoshimoto his greatest enemy, he now turned his gaze towards the insignificant island of Kyushu. Without a doubt, Otomo Sorin was the Imperial Nation's most formidable foe. That Ming scholar Zhu Mo had spoken profoundly: Sorin of Kyushu, Yan Song of the Great Ming, Yun Won-hyeong of Joseon, Zheng Jian of Liguo, and Mangy Ruan of Burma – these were the great scourges of the entire world. If they succeeded, the world would be ruined…
For, in the end, they all belonged to the path of brigandage and would sooner or later usurp nations. If both the Great Ming and Japan fell, the world would surely collapse.
Even putting aside distant threats, Sorin, who already controlled six provinces of Kyushu and was changing the Four Islands in unprecedented ways, would become unstoppable if he defeated the Great Ming. He would inevitably march north, perhaps this year, perhaps next. It was only a matter of time before a final battle. The Oda clan was still very weak; if Sorin launched a major offensive, they would be crushed into powder.
After returning from the Great Ming, he gradually conceived the idea of a surprise attack on Kyushu. If these five hundred arquebusiers were suddenly deployed to attack Saga Castle, the element of surprise alone would ensure the defeat of tens of thousands of enemies.
A few days ago, he heard that Sorin was mobilizing for an expedition to the Great Ming. He had cautiously revealed this to his trusted retainers, Nagahide and Hideyoshi the Monkey, only to be immediately met with their opposition.
At this moment,
As they conversed, Nobunaga brought up the matter again, wanting to gauge the attitude of his close retainers. If he insisted on taking this perilous risk, how many would follow?
Pondering this, he spoke directly, "Monkey, Nagahide, I have decided to land at Hasuike in three days and launch a surprise attack on Saga Castle. You two are to prepare immediately!"
This?
Were they joking?
Or deliberately seeking death?
The two were greatly alarmed.
Hideyoshi blurted out, "Lord Nobunaga, absolutely not! The Kyushu domains are powerful. Imagawa Yoshimoto is strong on the outside but weak within; he is the primary target! Please, Lord Nobunaga, reconsider!"
Niwa Nagahide had objected last time as well. He had initially thought Nobunaga was merely contemplating it, but never expected him to issue an order today. He immediately knelt down and exclaimed, "Lord Nobunaga! Sorin commands a strong army and vast forces! Advancing north first and then south was originally Lord Nobunaga's strategy!"
However, Nobunaga had pondered this matter for a long time. The reason he brought it up again today was that he had made up his mind. Based on recent indications, Sorin was indeed likely to embark on an expedition.
One must understand,
Sumitada of the Omura clan had suffered a severe blow in Matsue, Great Ming, and was currently holed up on Zhoushan Island. Sorin, Mori Mi, and others had received secret letters from Yan Song, the Grand Chancellor of the Great Ming, urging them to send reinforcements. This news had spread throughout the various provinces, and many daimyo sympathized, clamoring for severe punishment of the Great Ming. Sumitada himself longed for revenge and stubbornly refused to return to his domain, thus delaying the overall situation. Under pressure from various factions, particularly from the Portuguese Nozaru, Sorin had likely made up his mind recently.
Initially, he too believed Sumitada would win. However, after witnessing the Great Ming's firearms firsthand, this侥幸 (jiǎoxìng - fluke/chance) completely vanished.
With such formidable weapons, how could Sumitada possibly win? Even before landing, he had guessed that defeat was inevitable. And if Sumitada and Sorin wanted to turn the tide, they would have to send more ships and samurai, leaving themselves exposed. If he let such a once-in-a-century opportunity slip through his fingers, then he, Oda, would truly be a great fool.
With this thought,
He said decisively:
"Do not speak further. My mind is made up! Sorin is preparing warships and has recruited two thousand samurai to reinforce Sumitada in Zhoushan. How can such a golden opportunity be missed? This time, I will not convene the assembled families. It is just you two; no one else must know! You must not go home these few days; stay with me to discuss the strategy!"
The two knew that once he made a decision, there was no possibility of changing it. This surprise attack was to be kept secret even from the other retainers, indicating his firm resolve.
The two immediately knelt before him and respectfully replied, "Yes, Lord."
...
At the same time,
Lixia Port, Zhoushan.
Omura Sumitada's injuries had improved somewhat, but he still had difficulty walking.
The shot from the Ming dynasty's arquebus had penetrated very deeply, its force far greater than that of the Portuguese falconet. The bone in his left leg had been injured. Had it not been for the skilled physician of his domain who opened the wound and extracted the projectile, that leg would have been useless.
Although he had narrowly escaped death in this battle, he still felt he had lost inexplicably. For two months, he had remained unconvinced and repeatedly wrote to Sorin, requesting reinforcements for Zhoushan. If land battles could not be won, then a naval battle must be won, otherwise, the prestige of the Kyushu provinces would be completely lost, and Japan's position as the leading contender would be precarious.
Initially, Sorin had entirely disagreed, urging him to return to his domain as soon as possible. No matter how much he insisted, Sorin remained unyielding. However, recently, Yan Song of the Great Ming had sent a secret letter to Nozaru, demanding that he organize military forces again to fight a decisive battle against the Ming army. In this situation, Sorin finally wavered. Perhaps before the end of this month, Kyushu warships would arrive at Zhoushan. If they were all equipped with Portuguese cannons, they might still be able to turn the tide.
At this moment,
Leaning against a rock, he sat proudly. Thinking of the great humiliation he had suffered and how it would soon be avenged, his mood became surprisingly calm, no longer as dejected as he had been for the past two months.
His personal guards, Shisuke and Jiro, stood beside him. Mori Mi and Wu Ping had also regained their confidence. Recalling how they had lived like neither human nor ghost on this island for two months, with not even smugglers daring to trade, and how they would have starved to death if not for the pirates from Ryukyu providing aid, they were now filled with anger.
Mori Mi, who was the adopted son of Wang Zhi and had some education, thought that the reason for the failure in this battle was overly flamboyant tactics. If they had gone ashore and attacked Hangzhou directly, so many subsequent problems would not have arisen. Now that reinforcements had arrived, they should punish these unruly coastal folk without mercy. Having lived his life at sea, he had already conceived a wicked plan and said,
"Lord Sumitada, I believe that once the reinforcements arrive, we should go to the mouth of the Qiantang River and destroy Yu Dayou's water stronghold! We should engage in tough and fierce battles!"