Zhu Yijun withdrawing the three princes and admitting defeat were expected, and Xiao Ruxun did not find it strange at all. It was just that Wang Xijue's rotten idea had ruined the only chance of reconciliation between ruler and subject in the Wanli era. In the end, Wang Xijue dejectedly stepped down from the throne, and Zhu Yijun was depressed for the rest of his life. He used non-violent and non-cooperative methods to torment the court and civil officials. In the end, both sides suffered, allowing the Adept to take advantage of the situation.
"That's to be expected. The only regret is that after this, there's probably no chance of reconciliation between the Emperor and his subjects. The Emperor has suffered such a heavy blow, and his dignity is at stake. How can he not hate?"
Song Yingchang gave a long sigh. "It's a pity, Ji Xin. You've spent so much effort to create such an excellent opportunity, but it was destroyed just like this. I don't know if the Daming will have another opportunity like this. I think it'll be very difficult to find one."
Xiao Ruxun nodded her head, and then said, "As the saying goes, good fortune is accompanied by misfortune, and misfortune is accompanied by good fortune. Although this matter is a calamity for the Great Ming Dynasty, it may not be a calamity for everyone. The court officials must know the reason why the Emperor suddenly made such an unyielding request, so I'm afraid they will target me. But I've also gotten so much silver, if they were to make a move on me, it would be too unsightly.
Thus, I feel that even if I don't ask, they won't let me stay in the capital. They'll drive me away, far away. I originally wanted to go to the southwest. At the start, I didn't have much confidence, but now it seems that my confidence has increased. Whether I put forward a few suggestions or not, they'll definitely arrange the most suitable place for me. "
"What if it's not the southwest?"
Song Yingchang smiled. "What if it's some other place, perhaps even Ningxia?"
Xiao Ruxun shook his head. "I'm so good at making money from war. Would they be willing to keep me in a place like Ningxia and not move? They'll definitely think of a way for me to continue fighting and earn money for them to squander. The more I earn, the greater their appetite will be. In their insatiable greed, they'll actually agree to my requests. "
Song Yingchang stopped laughing and said sternly, "Ji Xin, you're dancing with a wolf and asking a tiger for its skin."
"Nothing ventured, nothing gained. If we want to leave this Great Maelstrom and survive, how can we not have the determination to work with the tiger and dance with the wolf? Duke Song, my problem has been solved, but what about yours? "
Song Yingchang smiled. "If you can do it, I can do it too. Otherwise, why would I still be an official? I'll just resign and retire. "
The two of them looked at each other and smiled, not saying a word.
The ceremony of returning one's troops in victory had begun to take shape in the Zhou Dynasty and was greatly developed during the Northern Wei Dynasty. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the ceremony was the most complete. When encountering a major victory or one of great significance, the emperor would lead the civil and military officials five kilometers out of the city to welcome them. Then, the commander-in-chief would hand over the report of victory and the official seal.
After the ceremony of returning one's troops in victory, there would be a ceremony of offering prisoners to the imperial temple. This was a ceremony used in ancient times to offer prisoners of war to the imperial temple as a consolation to the ancestors and sects for their victory. The ceremony usually included offering sacrifices, the emperor receiving the prisoners in his usual attire, the prisoners prostrating themselves, the emperor pardoning and releasing them, bestowing gifts, or issuing edicts to deal with the prisoners.
After the ceremony of returning one's troops in victory, there would be rewards based on merit. According to the regulations of the Ming Dynasty, whenever an army returned victorious, the Secretariat would send a document to the Viceroy's Office to reward them. The Ministry of War would list the merits of the soldiers who participated in the war, the Ministry of Personnel would prepare titles and titles, the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Rites would issue rewards, and the Secretariat would submit the list of rewards and opinions agreed upon by the six ministries to the emperor for his decision. After the emperor's decision, there would be a ceremony to announce the merits and bestow titles and gifts.
For this war, the most noteworthy event was the ceremony of offering prisoners of war. Xiao Ruxun had captured sixteen high-ranking Japanese generals and staff officers led by Yukita Hideie. Other than those who had died, none of the high-ranking Japanese officers of the Korean front army had escaped Korea alive. They were all captured. Moreover, their official and military positions were very high, so the value of the captives was very high.
Basically, whenever Xiao Ruxun captured someone, he would send them to Song Yingchang in Seoul. Song Yingchang even used a Korean noble's mansion as a prison. Every time a new high-ranking prisoner of war was sent over by Xiao Ruxun, Song Yingchang would gather all the previous high-ranking prisoners of war and have them meet each other. They would exchange greetings such as, "You're here too," "I'm here too," and so on. Then, Song Yingchang would laugh out loud and amuse himself.
It was really a bad taste.
Xiao Ruxun and Song Yingchang had achieved their goal of beating these famous generals of the Japanese Warring States Period until they began to doubt their own lives through their continuous victories. After the war ended, they would ship all of them back on a ship and lock them up in cages like livestock. After they disembarked, they would follow the Ming Dynasty's method of detaining criminals. They would make a prison carriage, with their heads exposed and their bodies locked up in a cage. They would then stick a sign on the back of their necks that said, "Daring Nihon War Criminal so-and-so".
Because this war had almost destroyed two-thirds of Japan's national strength, the results of the war were also unprecedented. Therefore, when the officials of the Ministry of Rites received the list of prisoners of war, the entire Ministry of Rites was shocked. The tragic events of the Nihon rebellion decades ago were still vivid in people's minds. No one thought that Nihon was a weak country. They just thought that it was a small country with extremely strong fighting power. Now that Nihon had captured so many generals and nobles, this country was almost finished. There would be no more Nihon rebellions.
When Zhu Yijun learned the list of prisoners of war, he was also quite excited. The era of the Southern Japanese and the Northern Barbarians was a tragic era. Zhu Yijun had not experienced it, but he knew that if Nihon was completely eliminated, the biggest worry of the coastal provinces of the Daming would be solved. They would all rejoice.
Later, after Nihon surrendered, Toyotomi Hidetsugu also asked Xiao Ruxun through Maeda Toshiie if he could release the captured Daimyo, but Xiao Ruxun refused. He also said that they would be brought back to the Daming's court and handed over to the emperor to supervise the execution. Then, their heads would be spread everywhere. None of them could escape.
Ukito Hideika, President Konishi, Kato Kiyomasa, Fukushima Masanori, Maori Keiwon, and other senior generals and staff officers of Nihon were either killed or captured alive. None of them escaped. These people's hands were stained with the blood of the Korean army and civilians, as well as the blood of the Daming's soldiers. If they did not die, it would be difficult to eliminate the anger of the people. Decades ago, the blood of the coastal areas of Daming was not directly related to them, but they were the best scapegoats.
Therefore, they had to die. They had to be presented to the emperor, and the emperor would personally order their execution. Then, the news would be spread everywhere, and the good news would be announced to the world that the Daming had pacified the Nihon rebellion.
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