Regarding the defense of Pyongyang, there had long been a controversy among the Nippon Army's top brass. As early as when the Seoul High Command received the news that the Great Ming Empire might send troops, Ukito Hideo's family had specially convened a meeting in Seoul, including President Konishi, Kuroda Nagamasa, Masanori Fukushima, Mōri Yoshinari, and other army commanders, to discuss the next military strategy.
Kuroda Rusui had been following Ukito Hideo as a staff officer, but he was not optimistic about the invasion of North Korea. He repeatedly advised Toyotomi Hideyoshi not to do such a thing, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi chased him back to his country. Now that he heard that Daming was going to send troops, Toyotomi Hideyoshi had to rely on his wisdom and asked him to come to North Korea to help.
As for the next battle plan, Kuroda Rusui was not polite at all to a group of juniors. His opinion was to use Seoul as the center of defense, and build fortresses on both sides of the main road to the west of Seoul to resist. This way, they could shorten the supply line and send troops from Pusan and Seoul to the front line in time. As for continuing to attack, it was not the right time yet.
At that time, President Konishi did not agree. Pyongyang was his territory. According to the "Hachido Division" plan, the entire Heian Province was his territory. What right did a cripple who was despised by Toyotomi Hideyoshi have to say that?
At that time, Kuroda Rusui was being treated coldly by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and President Konishi was Toyotomi Hideyoshi's favorite. Of course, President Konishi did not give Kuroda Rusui the cold shoulder. Later, Kuroda Rusui wrote a letter to Toyotomi Hideyoshi, saying that President Konishi's actions would cause trouble and should not be done like this. As a result, the mentally ill Toyotomi Hideyoshi suspected that he had ulterior motives. In a rage, he almost ordered Kuroda Rusui to commit suicide.
Kuroda Rusui was lucky to survive and left North Korea, returning to Japan to live in seclusion. He even became a monk and put on an attitude of not caring about the affairs of the world. However, President Konishi was not so lucky. He was directly captured by the Ming Army! Fifteen thousand people were killed, and two thousand of Otomo Yoshitsune's people were buried with them. The Japanese Army suddenly lost seventeen thousand people, and also lost two big shots, President Konishi and Zong Uiji.
In the Seoul High Command, Ukito Hideo looked at the confused people and suddenly had no idea.
"What should we do now?"
Ukita Hideie asked Masuda Nagamori, Ishida Mitsunari, Nagasuke Nagasaka, Kimura Tsunemori, Maeno Nagayasu, and Kato Mitsuyasu for advice. Kuroda Nagamasa sat at the end with a constipated expression.
Everyone looked at each other. No one knew what to do, and no one knew what to say. Under such circumstances, Yukita recalled the plan Kuroda Rusui had told him and could not help but sigh. "If we had listened to Kuroda-san's suggestion back then, we wouldn't be in this situation today, right?"
"These words are completely useless, we have two things to do right now, one is what we should do next, how to arrange the guards, how to fight against Xiao Ruxun, the second is how to explain this matter to the Tai Ge! If Taiko knew that President Konishi was defeated, he might personally lead troops to North Korea! The 100,000 reserve troops of the Eastern Kingdom are still there! "
Ishida Mitsunari said what he was most worried about.
As a close minister of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, he was one of the few people who could see that there was something wrong with Toyotomi Hideyoshi's mental state.
To be honest, the priority of how to fight against Xiao Ruxun was lower than the priority of explaining this matter to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Because Toyotomi Hideyoshi's various actions since the start of the war had made the North Korean generals very uneasy, they had only told Toyotomi Hideyoshi the good news and not the bad news. Toyotomi Hideyoshi was happy and wrote letters everywhere to show off his martial arts. If he were to be instructed to defeat President Konishi at this time, it would be tantamount to a slap in the face.
There were only two results. The first was that someone would be beheaded, and the second was that Toyotomi Hideyoshi would lead the army to attack North Korea.
No matter which one it was, no one could accept it.
"I think, don't tell Taiko about this for the time being!" Masuda Nagamori gave his opinion. "Once Taiko knows about this, I'm afraid the whole of Country R will have to pay the price. Based on the current situation, the best strategy is to defend Korea. If Taiko insists, our logistics will not be able to keep up, and the loss may increase."
Ishida Mitsunari weighed the pros and cons and nodded. "We know too little about Ming General Xiao Ruxun. Except for his name, we are not familiar with anything else. I think it will be very problematic to fight with an opponent we are not familiar with. Moreover, after the Ming Army defeats President Konishi, they will definitely go south. At that time, we will have to face Xiao Ruxun. We should take this opportunity to strengthen our defense and not lose Korea."
Kato Mitsuyasu said, "I agree with Ishida's opinion. Also, Kato Kiyomasa of Hamgyong Province should be retreating south. We can let Kato Kiyomasa threaten the Ming Army of Heian Province from the flank. They will have to divide their forces to defend against Kato Kiyomasa, and we will have more time to make arrangements. At least, we can get Maori Yoshinari of Gangwon Province to help with the defense. What do you think?"
Everyone nodded with a heavy expression.
Yukita Hideka naturally followed the good advice and said, "Then, don't spread the news of President Konishi's defeat. Get Maori Yoshinari of Gangwon Province and get ready to defend Korea. The construction of the city in the rear should also be accelerated. This time, the combat power of the Ming Army is beyond our imagination. It is incomparable to the North Koreans."
After Yukita Hideka gave the nominal instructions, everyone went their separate ways. Kuroda Nagamasa was left behind. He was the closest to the battlefield in Pyongyang. Now that he had given up on Hwanghae Province without firing a single shot, he had moved his troops to Kaesong and Kobayakawa Takagi. Yukita Hideka really needed to give him a private warning.
"It's not that I don't want to defend, but there is really no need for it. President Konishi's troops in Pyongyang and the combat power of President Konishi's troops are above mine. Even President Konishi's troops were completely wiped out. How can I resist the 100,000 Ming Army with just one army?"
Kuroda Nagamasa complained, "It's better to move the troops to Kaesong and join forces with Kobayakawa Takagi to preserve our strength. Then, we can deal with Xiao Ruxun together."
"100,000 Ming Army? Where did you get this information? "
Yukita Hideka was very worried. "If it's really 100,000, we don't have to fight anymore. We can just retreat to Pusan and wait to return home!"
"The three bastards who were released said that the general of the Ming Army personally said that 100,000 Heavenly Soldiers were coming to attack us and told us to wait to die. I think it's fake. The number of soldiers is only about 40,000 to 50,000, but there is no doubt about their combat power. President Konishi's troops are absolute elites, and there are more than 2,000 gunners from the Matsuura family. Their firepower is extremely strong, but they were all wiped out just like that. There are also a few daimyo from other places …" Kuroda Nagamasa moved closer to Yukita Hideka and said in a low voice, "That's too scary!"
The worry on Yukita Hideka's face deepened.
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