The seafood processing of Bohai Bay kicked off, and across the sea, it was equally unsettled.
Li Xiaogong had arrived at Iwami for over half a month, with twelve Wuya warships anchored ten miles offshore.
Casually discarding a fishbone, Li Xiaogong looked at Li Fengliu beside him and asked, "Those little monkeys on shore haven't decided the victor yet?"
Li Fengliu was his deputy, also a descendant of the Li family of Longxi.
"Reporting to Your Highness, they aren't fighting a war; in my humble opinion, it's purely a bunch of kids playing pretend."
"It's been half a month, and fewer than two hundred have died. I don't know where they get so much free time."
Li Fengliu pointed at the Iwami Silver Mountain in the distance with a distressed expression.
Ever since the fleet arrived half a month ago, they discovered that Iwami Silver Mountain had been occupied from the inside out, and not by just one group.
Li Xiaogong dispatched scouts ashore, exchanging a chicken leg for intelligence.
It turned out that after Fang Er and Chai Shao's armies had departed, the Japanese Emperor had sent troops to occupy the silver mountain.
After all, it was a treasure mountain that yielded silver; how could they allow others to mine it?
The silver produced here had shocked all officials in Japan; its high yield and purity were truly rare.
Under the promotion of Japan's first female emperor, Empress Suiko Kashiwahime, countless slaves were sent to the mines to extract ore.
In just one year, nearly a million taels of silver were produced.
Of course, such a high output was not without the help of the Japanese prisoners of war left behind by Fang Er and his men when they withdrew.
These prisoners were familiar with silver mining methods, and some had even learned the method of refining silver from silversmiths.
However, the good times were short-lived; Empress Suiko passed away before the year's end.
No one knew what this woman was thinking, but before she died, she summoned two individuals qualified to succeed the throne: Prince Tamura and Prince Yamashiro-no-oe.
If you're going to summon them, just say who you're giving the throne to, and be done with it.
But this woman insisted on doing otherwise; one after another, she spoke at length with both candidates, yet refused to name the successor.
Well, as soon as she was laid down, covered with a blanket, and the whole village was waiting for the meal, the two candidates directly started a fight.
In the end, Prince Tamura emerged victorious and ascended the throne as Emperor Jomei.
But what frustrated Tamura was that Prince Yamashiro-no-oe was not killed. Instead, relying on his familiarity with the terrain from his previous role in managing the silver mine, he led over ten thousand troops and took refuge atop Iwami Silver Mountain.
Due to the importance of the silver mountain, Tamura personally led thirty thousand troops to surround and suppress him.
Thus, when Li Xiaogong arrived, he witnessed the ongoing battle.
After listening to Li Fengliu's report, Li Xiaogong tossed the half-eaten bluefin tuna in his hand into the sea.
"Damn it, a bunch of little monkeys, truly weak!"
"Convey my order, we won't wait for them to decide the victor. Take them all down and keep them to mine for me!"
He had originally intended to see what tricks these little monkeys could pull in a fight, but it became increasingly boring to watch, so he decided to capture them and make them miners.
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Li Fengliu cupped his hands and bowed upon hearing the order, then turned and shouted to the soldiers on deck.
"Convey His Highness's order! The great ships will dock and capture those little monkeys to mine!"
"Yes!"
The order was relayed to the engine room, and the stokers began to load coal into the boilers.
The order was passed to the lookout post at the top of the ship, and the signalmen began to send flag signals to the other large ships.
Soon, the Wuya warships, trailing white steam, began to approach the shore.
As the fleet drew closer to the coast, both Tamura and Prince Yamashiro-no-oe, who were engaged in battle, received warnings from their subordinates, as such a large-scale fleet had never been seen before.
"Your Majesty, could it be that people from Great Tang have returned?"
A general knelt before Tamura and voiced his guess.
"Baka! Warewarewa~ No matter who it is, they cannot stop this Emperor from taking the silver mountain!"
"The people in the country are waiting for this silver to buy grain from the clans to provide relief!"
"You lead ten thousand troops and guard the coast. If anyone attacks, kill them!"
Tamura said firmly, gazing at the approaching fleet on the sea.
"Hai! Your Majesty, banzai!"
He kowtowed, forming a large bump on his forehead, then turned decisively to his soldiers and waved his hand.
"Sore wa iku de guddesai~"
The soldiers shouted, "Your Majesty, banzai!" and followed him, rushing to the coast to stand ready.
Li Xiaogong on the Wuya warships watched this scene and smiled. He put down his telescope and turned to the person behind him.
"These little brats, where do they get the courage to bare their claws at me?"
"Li Fengliu, pass down the order: no cannons. Capture these three-inch nails alive!"
"Yes, Your Highness!"
As the order was issued, small boats were lowered from the sides of the Wuya warships. Soldiers jumped down from the large ships, their engines started, and they charged directly towards the shore.
A total of 48 small boats carried over 500 soldiers armed with firearms.
The Japanese soldiers waiting on the shore had already drawn their bows and were aiming at the Tang army in the small boats.
However, the bows made Li Fengliu, leading the landing party, feel quite speechless.
"What is that called a bow?"
"If this less than three-foot short bow were in Great Tang, it would only be a toy for children."
"Come, come, let these little brats see what a bow is!" Li Fengliu said, then retreated to the stern of the ship.
At this moment, the small boats were less than a hundred meters from the shore. The soldiers on the boats removed their longbows from their backs, drew them, and aimed a volley of arrows at the Japanese soldiers on the shore.
The soldiers chosen for the initial landing party were all elites.
Firearms, sabers, sturdy bows, and plate armor were standard issue.
The Japanese soldiers on shore, seeing the arrowstorm flying from such a distance, all laughed scornfully.
"Nani? They dare to shoot from this far?"
"What gives them such confidence that they think they can shoot two hundred paces?"
"Sugoi, they must be nervous, their vision is blurred, hahahaha~!"
"Baka, these weak and powerless fellows won't be able to reach us."
"Yoshi, it feels great to see others miss!"
However, their mockery did not last long. The strong bows from Great Tang could easily shoot a hundred meters.
After all, elites had to meet certain standards.
Soon, the Japanese soldiers' laughter turned into infinite terror.
"These arrows are all three-edged armor-piercing arrows!"
Before the first volley landed, the second was already shot, followed by the third and fourth!
The Japanese soldiers' pupils widened as they watched the arrow-like rain fall. Some raised their wooden shields, no larger than a washbasin, while others grabbed their companions to shield themselves.
More began to flee.
"Yamete~~"
"Aaah~ Yamete~~ Aaah~"
"Aaah~ Okasan~ Yamete~"
"Yamete~ Tasukete~~ Aaah"