In his shock, Yu Dayou seemed to have seen the outcome of this battle in his mind—
One attacking head-on, the other undermining from behind, Muramura Junsuke would surely fall into complete despair, and Otomo Sorin would be heavily damaged, how dare he send reinforcements? Once the Oda forces entered Kyushu, there would be another round of sweeping and rectifying, and the entire maritime pirate force would decisively decline.
The Portuguese, without their hired thugs, would not dare to openly declare war on the Great Ming and would have to accept the Great Ming's maritime trade order. In this way, the century-long Wako would be completely finished…
Seeing him entranced and disheartened, Zhu Mo reminded him, "General Yu, you are skilled in naval warfare, so choose a time? I will go back to find ships, in about twenty days at most…"
"Yes, yes,"
Yu Dayou nodded, pondered for a moment, and then said firmly,
"Around the fifteenth of April is the most suitable… there will be continuous rain that month, and a thick fog on the sea for more than ten days, which is perfect for a surprise attack."
"Good!"
April fifteenth, still more than twenty days away, everything should be able to be arranged.
Zhu Mo patted his shoulder and sighed,
"General Yu, twenty years, I hope the Wako issue will end in our hands…"
Yu Dayou was filled with emotion, and looking at his nephew again, he felt how bizarre this mysterious fate was? For twenty years, he had lost everything in his fight against the Wako, but twenty years later, it was his nephew who returned to end this nightmare together?
…
It was already late spring.
In Jiangnan, the grass was growing and orioles were flying, but Zhu Mo had no mood to admire the scenery.
Returning to Hangzhou, he asked Qi Jiguang to find some surrendered pirates and have them recruit a fleet of sea ships from various places, preferably twenty to thirty.
That day, he personally wrote a letter and sent it to Oda Nobunaga through Wang Ruxian again.
The letter read:
"Ming Scholar Zhu Mo respectfully:
I have recently captured Huating and am again gazing at the East Sea. While I was on guard, late spring had arrived, and I suddenly thought of Lord Nobunaga's ambition to rule, and felt a sense of emotion? Now, the treacherous villains of the West are bound to disrupt the world, and those like Junsuke and Sorin have gone astray, amassing large armies in Zhoushan, and have long coveted our navy.
I believe your country is not without talented men, but the times are difficult. However, righteousness must be proclaimed to the world. Therefore, I have decided to hunt Junsuke at Lixiang Port. You have always been benevolent and righteous, and will surely not blame me for an unprovoked attack. Mo. April fifteenth."
He deliberately signed it April fifteenth to tell him—
April fifteenth was the day of the general offensive.
The reason he wrote it this way was because he often read web novels and was familiar with the epistolary tone of the Ming dynasty scholars, for example, referring to himself as "pu" corresponded to the status of a cabinet minister. He didn't do so before because he didn't have the title of Grand Scholar yet, but now he was worthy of it.
The tone of the entire letter treated Oda as the future helmsman of Japan, hoping that he would come forward to punish the unrighteous, thereby establishing his reputation. Oda should understand the significance of this battle, which would make him the Great Daimyo who protected the world, and his ambition to rule would no longer be about brute force.
After writing,
He also instructed Wang Ruxian that this letter could be memorized, and if anything unexpected happened, he should swallow it and then verbally relay it to Oda.
Everything was settled,
Zhu Mo, Li Zhi, and Lu Kun went to Wansong Academy again.
On the way, he was thinking—
Was it right or wrong for me to join forces with Nobunaga this time?
However, no matter what, it was like an arrow drawn and ready to be shot. After all, Oda also had to fulfill the conditions, and solving the food problem was the most important. The Hangzhou rice market had already experienced considerable fluctuations, and if it was not stabilized by autumn harvest, there would inevitably be trouble.
…
To be meticulous in a great undertaking,
The wind is high and the waves are rough, but we walk leisurely.
In every major event, maintain a calm demeanor.
Zhu Mo had a deeper understanding of these words. The countless dangers had taught him that the more dangerous the situation, the more important it was to have a relaxed mindset, otherwise, it was easy to make mistakes and miss important opportunities. For example, at this moment—
During the quiet pre-war phase, doing nothing would only exacerbate the tension of the military and the people. At such times, discussing cultural matters could easily resonate with the people. Imagine, when everyone heard that the East Sea was not peaceful and thought of the character of the Wako, how could they remain silent about the defeat at Huating? Retaliation was inevitable, and a storm was likely to come again. Under the influence of such emotions, Yan family's faction would easily stir up trouble.
Zhu Mo personally participated in the grand lecture at Wansong Academy again, and personally reviewed the elementary education textbooks. He sat with ordinary people under the apricot tree and discussed Neo-Confucianism. As soon as the news spread, it was like a shot of adrenaline, calming the entire city.
And at this critical juncture,
Zhu Mo's mind was particularly sharp. He thought of Prince Raoyang and Lu Kun in Xuanda, who had once narrated Zhu Zi's family instructions and "Instructions for Practical Living" to the braves. So why not compile elementary education books for soldiers?
As soon as the idea was proposed, He Xinyin, Li Zhi, and Lu Kun became enthusiastic and engaged in heated discussions.
He Xinyin insisted that the Ming army must be the army of all people, not just the royal army. Lu Kun, however, was hesitant, worried that there were thousands of paths to the heart, and it was difficult for soldiers to be united. Li Zhi was very romantic, believing that the army did not need any ideology, as long as there were rewards and punishments, and so on.
Zhu Mo smiled and recalled the armies of his original world. Who did not have an ideology? An army without ideology was not a royal army, so he said,
"Stop arguing. I think Mr. He is right… Let's try it out with the two thousand musketeers. It's best to distill it into rhymes or simple song lyrics, catchy, and in plain language, easy to understand… Uh, the main theme, of course, is the great way of Yao and Shun, and the ordinary people of the world…"
He Xinyin also smiled and said, "Yes, most soldiers are illiterate, and those who are literate go to take imperial examinations. Who would still go to be a soldier? I think if we slightly modify these elementary education books and refine them into twenty to thirty sentences, it would be enough?"
"Yes, yes,"
"Good, good!"
Zhu Mo knew very well that the early Ming dynasty's guards were very strong, with sufficient spirit and morale, and a good sense of national identity and self-honor, which were impeccable. But after the Hongzhi era, the Wei Suo system decayed, and many military households fell into disrepair. In the past forty years of Jiajing, it had become even more chaotic. After Yan Song gained power, he revived the Yiyong and Jiading armies, which completely changed their nature.
The special habits of the "Jiading Army" were a great corrosion to the Wei Suo army. He clearly remembered how the bandits controlled by the father and son Li Chong and Li Lai in Datong oppressed the Wei Suo army. This situation was extremely serious, and it could be said that the Ming official army had long since become "Jiading-ized."
Even the Qi family army and the Yu family army were no exception. For example, Wang Rulong and Chen Ziluan, the two main generals of the Yiwu soldiers in the Qi family army, were originally from local gentry. Although they were very brave, in terms of internal organization, they relied on networks of confidants to maintain themselves, which inevitably led to the formation of personal attachments. Those soldiers who did not have such attachments were in a very disadvantaged position and were easily marginalized and sacrificed in battle.
This, naturally, needed to be reshaped.