I

The Datong Army that attacked Amami Oshima had a total of more than 30 large and small ships, 5,000 army troops, and 1,000 naval troops landing operations.

There are mostly mangroves around the island, making it impossible for large ships to dock. Small and medium-sized ships can land at the four fishing ports in the southwest, northwest, northeast and east. From the remaining villages, Datong soldiers all landed in small boats, and under the guidance of their guides, rowed ashore through the mangroves.

Six thousand soldiers were divided into six groups and set off, intending to end the battle as quickly as possible.

The main target of the attack was the northeastern landing point, which was the urban area of ​​​​Amami a few hundred years later. It has the most arable land on the island, and certainly the largest population. It is ruled by a Ryukyu royal lord, and all the Japanese are here.

Zhu Dafu joined the army in the ninth year of Chongzhen's reign. He served as a peasant soldier for two years before joining the army. Now he came out with 1,500 people.

He was afraid that there would be an ambush on the island, so he asked Shi Daxuan for fire support.

"Boom boom boom!"

More than ten artillery shells were fired, destroying two buildings, one of which was a Japanese office. It was no coincidence, but the house was quite large (there were small thatched houses elsewhere) and it was close to the coast, making it a prime target for naval artillery.

After the bombardment ended, many natives in the thatched houses on the shore were so frightened that they ran away and hid in the forest behind them.

Finally, Zhu Dafu successfully led his troops ashore.

After a search, the soldiers came back and reported that those who had not escaped were all indigenous civilians, and not a single enemy could be seen here.

Lin Jingchong took the initiative to communicate with the indigenous people. He also came from the surname Kume Thirty-Six, and may be the ancestor of Yui Aragaki. He will settle in Amami Oshima with his wife and children in the future.

Not long after, Lin Jingchong gave half a kilogram of rice to the natives. He successfully detected the information and came back to report: "General, the Ryukyu governor (lord) here left with the Japanese two days ago. He also raised an army. , plundered the food of the nearby natives, and reportedly went to the mountains and forests to the south to join forces with another Ryukyu governor."

Zhu Dafu asked: "Have all your family members been taken away too?"

Lin Jingchong said: "Not only his family, but also all his valuables have been moved away. It seems that he plans to live in the mountains and forests for a long time, and then come out after the Chinese army leaves."

"Is the island full of mountains?" Zhu Dafu asked.

Lin Jingchong said: "The coast around this island is cultivated land, and the middle is full of mountains and forests."

Zhu Dafu said with a headache: "If the enemy is determined to hide, it will be difficult to fight. We have to slowly search the mountain to find people."

The "difficult to fight" here refers to the inability to complete the battle within the scheduled time. This time the navy and army were dispatched together, not only to recover the Ryukyus, but also to quickly solve the Ryukyus problem and go to Japan.

The Satsuma clan often plays pirates and robs Chinese merchant ships. This matter must be solved smoothly!

To solve the problem, the navy alone cannot solve it. By the time the Datong Navy was dispatched, the Japanese pirates had already run away, transformed into the Satsuma Domain Navy, and hid in the port of Kagoshima. In this case, the army must also send troops to directly attack the enemy.

Zhu Dafu ordered: "Carry a few bags of grain off the ship and let a few more natives lead the way. Tell them that as long as they find the target, each person will be rewarded with ten kilograms of white rice!"

…

In the mountains and forests fifteen miles due east.

Shang Kun was sitting in the thatched hut, eating fresh fish caught from the mountain stream, and worried: "Will these Tang soldiers really leave?"

Shang Hong said: "They will definitely leave. They send a lot of troops and consume a lot of food every day. And we took all the food away. The Tang soldiers will leave after eating the food and just hide in the mountains for a while. If the Tang soldiers come to kill , just fighting in the woods, their big cannons are useless, but our bows and arrows can kill people."

Yamamoto Hideo ate chazuke rice and carefully selected the assassins. He said: "I heard my father say that the army of the Tang Dynasty did not know how to fight at all. They only dared to fight because of their large numbers. I don't think we can keep evading and send small groups of soldiers to lure them." , set up an ambush in the mountains and defeat them! No matter how big the Tang warships are, can they still sail into the mountains?"

"It's better to be cautious." Shang Hong objected.

When the Satsuma Domain first invaded Ryukyu, Japanese soldiers burned, killed, looted, and made the people of Ryukyu miserable. At that time, Ryukyu monarchs and ministers were very hostile to Japan, but in recent years, relations have eased.

First, under pressure from the Ming Dynasty, Japan gave up its annexation of Ryukyu and gave the king and officials more autonomy. Second, the Ryukyu royal family must send young people to study in Japan to cultivate more pro-Japanese factions.

Before lunch was finished, a soldier suddenly came to report the news.

However, two Tatung troops on the east coast of Amami Oshima, one with 1,000 people and the other with 800 people, were heading towards their hiding place under the leadership of the islanders.

"Hurry up and go deeper into the forest!" Shang Hong said quickly.

However, Yamamoto Hideo was unwilling and said: "The enemy is divided into several groups, and the number of each group is no more than ours. Just set up an ambush and lure them, and defeat them one by one. If you keep hiding, you will always be found. When the Tang soldiers gather together, we will definitely be beat."

Shang Kun nodded and said, "It makes sense."

Shang Hong firmly objected: "We can't defeat Tang Bing, we must hide."

Hideo Yamamoto asked: "How do you know you can't beat someone if you don't fight?"

The three people argued about this. The Satsuma clan warrior was the emperor after all, and the two Ryukyu royal families finally obeyed the order.

Hideo Yamamoto asked all Japanese men on the island to take up arms, including hoes and sticks. So they stormed again, and including the Ryukyu soldiers, the number of troops reached 1,300.

They asked the family members to wait where they were and took the initiative to approach the 800 Datong Army in the southwest.

An ambush was set up in a mountain forest. Yamamoto Hideo sent dozens of people to lure him, and the only five fire rifle soldiers were also sent out.

The general of this Datong army is called Li Tang, who is just a battalion commander. He has 500 army soldiers and 300 navy officers under his command. They dispersed into a group of thirty people and slowly searched the forest, narrowing down the area bit by bit.

The person who served as Li Tang's guide was a local chief.

The prefecture-level administrative units of the Ryukyu Kingdom, also known as "Cangiri", can only be headed by the royal family.

The county-level unit, called "Mula", is usually headed by the clan, but there are also a few indigenous chiefs who serve as village chiefs.

These indigenous village chiefs hated the Japanese deeply.

It’s okay that they were exploited by the Ryukyu royal family in the past. After the Japanese came, they also introduced a poll tax system. They had to pay taxes twice a year, and villagers continued to starve to death.

A young man who looked like a hunter dug through the grass to look at the footprints, and found a broken branch. He quickly ran back and said, "That's where the bad guys are going!"

The indigenous village chief's name was Du Bo, who didn't even have a surname. He said to Yang Hao: "It's right in front."

Yang Hao, a Chinese from Kume Island, immediately translated to Li Tang: "General, traces of enemy troops have been found ahead."

Li Tang said to the messenger: "Pass the order, advance cautiously, all the ministries will assemble nearby, a mountain search team of sixty people."

"boom!"

Before the military order was fully conveyed, gunfire suddenly came from two miles ahead.

A Datong soldier fell and was hit by a bullet from a Japanese "iron artillery". But it was just an arm injury, and timely treatment would not be fatal. This was also the first wounded person to go to Ryukyu.

"Enemy attack, enemy attack!"

The Soushan team here has not been merged yet, and there are only thirty people. The wounded man was ordered by the captain to return, and all the remaining soldiers gave chase.

"Boohoo!"

During the pursuit, bows and arrows were shot from time to time. The Datong soldiers raised their arms to block their necks and allowed the arrows to hit themselves.

The climate here is subtropical, and it is still winter. The temperature is about 10 degrees, so wearing cotton armor can keep you warm. The indigenous bows and arrows have no power at all when shot on the cotton armor.

"Dududududu~~"

A suona sound sounded, but it was a signal to postpone the pursuit. Li Tang was afraid that the search team would be ambushed.

When the team heard the bugle, they immediately slowed down and waited for more friendly troops to join them.

When the enemy saw this, they stopped and hid in the woods, firing arrows and shooting from time to time.

40 minutes later, the Datong Army completed its assembly, but the enemy was still there and refused to move.

"There is an ambush ahead, these are used as bait." Li Tang saw through the enemy's plan at a glance.

"Fire the volley!"

Eight hundred Datong troops raised their muskets in unison and fired into the dense forest ahead.

"Bang bang bang bang!"

Gunfire rang out and smoke filled the air.

Four of the dozens of enemy soldiers hiding in the dense forest were hit by random shots, and the rest were so frightened that they fled quickly.

"There's still one alive!"

Li Tang went to check in person, and found a Japanese man lying on the ground, who had been held down by Datong soldiers.

"Hey, there are also fire guns," Li Tang kicked the matchlock gun away and asked, "Where is your main force hiding?"

The accompanying merchant translator immediately asked questions in Japanese.

The Japanese iron gunner closed his eyes and said nothing, as if he was determined to die.

Li Tang said: "Peel some wooden sticks and prick his thumbs first."

The wooden skewer was quickly sharpened and inserted into the two thumbs. The Japanese soldier screamed in pain and cursed at Li Tang.

Such stubborn people must be taught a lesson.

The wooden skewer was inserted into his index finger again from between the nails.

This respectable Japanese soldier suddenly couldn't hold on anymore and shouted quickly: "I say, I say!"

He said it was true, but Li Tang didn't dare to believe it completely.

He divided the 800 soldiers into three groups, and on the advice of the indigenous village chief, climbed the mountain from three directions to surround them.

Yamamoto Hideo soon discovered the movements of the Datong Army and knew that his plan was leaked.

Shang Hong said in panic: "Run away quickly, there is no chance of an ambush."

However, Yamamoto Hideo drew his sword and shouted: "There are many of us, so the Tang soldiers are not scary. Moreover, we are on the mountain and have terrain advantages. The Shimazu family and the Ryukyu warriors all picked up their weapons and followed me down. We will definitely be able to do it." Kill the Tang soldiers!"

Nao Hong hesitated to speak. Although he was a member of the Ryukyu royal family, the Japanese were the Supreme Emperor.

More than 1,300 miscellaneous soldiers took the initiative and rushed towards the 300 Datong Army in front. The other 500 Datong Army divided their forces and surrounded them from the mountains on both sides.

The enemy troops came in force, and there were more than a thousand people.

The three hundred Datong soldiers did not panic at all. On the contrary, the indigenous village chief who led the way was frightened.

"Shoot the arrow, shoot the arrow!"

Yamamoto Hideo roared and ordered. There were only a hundred archers under his command, and most of them were earthen bows used for hunting.

Because they were condescending, these bows and arrows were thrown randomly and could hit the Datong army.

But the forest is very dense, and most arrows are blocked by the tree crowns when they land.

"Come and kill with me!"

Yamamoto Hideo raised his katana and charged forward with a roar. The soldiers behind him were inspired by him and rushed down with strange screams.

The two sides approached quickly, and they could almost see each other's eyebrows clearly, before Li Tang said: "Blow the trumpet and fire the cannon!"

"Bang bang bang bang!"

Three hundred flintlock guns were fired in two rounds.

Yamamoto Hideo was hit in the thigh by a bullet during the first round of firing. He fell to the ground and rolled down the hillside.

The smoke from the volley of guns had not yet dissipated, and the enemy army had collapsed.

Nearly half of the enemy troops running in the middle were killed or wounded, and the enemy troops on both sides were so frightened that they turned and ran away.

The two Ryukyu royal families, Shang Hong and Shang Kun, stood higher on the mountain to watch the battle. At this time, they were so frightened that their livers and gallbladders burst.

They didn't even dare to run away because this was an island and sooner or later they would be discovered. He immediately returned to his hiding place and planned to surrender with his family members. Even if he was taken to Nanjing for trial, he would at least have a chance to survive.

Hideo Yamamoto was tumbling down a hillside when he hit a rock and fell into coma.

When he woke up, the wound on his thigh had been bandaged, and he found that he was being held captive.

The next day, he was brought in front of Li Tang. The Datong army with all the armor around him made Hideo Yamamoto feel a sense of despair - the feudal lord's elite soldiers could not defeat such a powerful force.

Li Tang smiled and said: "You are the biggest official on this island, so you must know a lot of inside information. It's okay if you don't know. Just say whatever I tell you. If you are willing, you can live and follow us to Kagoshima." "

Kagoshima?

Tang Bing is going to attack Satsuma Domain?

Yamamoto Hideo was frightened. He was so arrogant before, but now he is so scared. He nodded repeatedly and said: "If you are willing, I will be the general's loyal dog from now on!"