On the coast of the East Sea. On the warship.
Noon.
On the surface of the sea, the wind was strong, the waves were surging, and dark clouds were gathering.
A storm was coming.
Wave after wave of monstrous waves crashed against the sides of the battleship, stirring up thousands of snow-like sprays and making loud noises.
In the spacious and simple berth cabin, Matsumoto Takeyoshi sat on a futon with a smile on his face. He held an ancient scroll in his hand and quietly read it.
Beside him was an exquisite and beautiful iron stove. A pot of fragrant tea was boiling on the stove. The steam was dense, and the fragrance of the tea was overflowing.
Although it was already summer, Matsumoto Takeyoshi's berth cabin did not remove the stove.
This was the East Sea. The wind was strong, the waves were strong, and it was damp and cold. The heat of the stove could not only dispel the cold, but also boil wine and tea. It was very convenient.
The person in white, whose face was covered by a veil, stood quietly behind Matsumoto Takeyoshi. Her eyes were slightly closed, and she did not move.
In the spacious cabin, only the sound of the waves and the bubbling of the fragrant tea on the stove could be heard.
"How long will it take for the shadow ninjas to reach the Changbai Mountains from here?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi asked the person in white as he flipped through the ancient scroll in his hand.
"At their speed, it will take at least five or six days," the person in white replied. "Now that the wind and waves are so strong outside, it should be a day or two later."
"What about Ye Fan? Has he returned? "Matsumoto Takeyoshi continued to ask.
"He and Akatsuki have left the East Sea for almost two days, and they still haven't returned," the person in white replied.
"Don't tell me they're also at the Changbai Mountains?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi smiled.
"I'm not sure," the person in white replied. The man in white replied, "With his current cultivation level and movement technique, it's normal for him to appear anywhere."
"Tell them to come see me as soon as they return," Matsumoto Takeyoshi said to the person in white.
"Mm." The person in white nodded.
Knock, knock, knock … A rhythmic knocking sound came from outside the cabin.
"Master, State Teacher Xuanji is here. He wants to see you." A Ninja's voice came from outside the door.
"Xuanji?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi frowned. "What is he doing here?"
"I don't know," the ninja outside the door replied. "He said he had something important to report to the Lord."
"Let him in," Matsumoto Takeyoshi said.
"Yes," Ninja replied.
The cabin door was pushed open from the outside, and State Preceptor Xuan Ji strode in.
"Xuanji greets the Lord." After entering the door, Xuanji didn't even have time to take off his raincoat. He immediately knelt down on one knee and bowed his head to Matsumoto Takeyoshi.
"What are you doing here instead of staying in the imperial court to watch over the Great Ming Emperor?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi didn't even look at Xuanji as he flipped through the ancient book in his hand.
Matsumoto Takeyoshi had always hated people like Xuanji who betrayed their master for glory. However, he greatly admired people like Ye Fan who were unruly. If it weren't for the fact that Xuanji was still useful to him, he would have gotten rid of him long ago.
"Master, something has happened," Xuanji said with a serious expression.
"What happened?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi continued reading.
"Tubo, Mongolia, Rakshasa, and Goryeo. Four countries have sent their troops to the border of the Great Ming Dynasty. They are now at the gates!" Xuanji said with a frown.
"What?" Xuanji's words shocked Matsumoto Takeyoshi, who was reading a book. "Four countries' soldiers?"
He couldn't believe Xuanji's words.
"Yes," Xuanji replied with his head lowered.
"What's going on?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi asked with a frown as he slammed the ancient book in his hand onto the wooden table in front of him.
"This subordinate … this subordinate doesn't know," Xuanji stammered, frightened by Matsumoto Takeyoshi's actions.
"You don't know?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi's face was filled with anger. "You are the State Teacher of a country, and you have the Emperor of the Great Ming Dynasty under house arrest. Now that four countries are at the gates, eyeing your city covetously, you actually don't know the reason? Trash! "
"Master, please calm down, please calm down," Xuanji hurriedly said to Matsumoto Takeyoshi. "This is indeed too sudden. Originally, the Great Ming Dynasty and the other countries minded their own business and coexisted peacefully. But overnight, the four countries seemed to have discussed it in advance and sent out all their troops. I don't know why!"
Matsumoto Takeyoshi frowned and looked straight at Xuanji, his eyes cold.
Xuanji trembled and lowered his head in silence.
"When did this happen?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi asked coldly.
"I received the news yesterday," Xuanji raised his head and replied. "This matter is of great importance. As soon as this subordinate received the news, this subordinate immediately rushed here to inform Master and ask Master to make a decision."
"Besides you, who else knows about this matter?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi asked.
"Right now, only Lord Zhou and this subordinate know about this matter. The rest of the court is still unaware," Xuanji replied.
Matsumoto Takeyoshi's expression was solemn and he did not say a word.
Just as Xuanji had said, this matter had come too suddenly and caught him off guard.
As the saying goes, when the city gate catches fire, the fish in the moat will also suffer. On the surface, it seemed that the four countries' troops had nothing to do with him, but in reality, it directly affected his plan to find the cauldron in the Great Ming Dynasty!
Once the five countries started fighting, the Great Ming Dynasty's current strength was no match for the four countries. Not to mention other things, just the Mongolian cavalry and Rakshasa soldiers were enough to make the Great Ming Dynasty face enemies from both sides. Now that Tubo and Goryeo were also involved, the Great Ming Dynasty could be said to be in a precarious situation, surrounded on all sides by enemies!
If the Great Ming Dynasty was divided up by the four countries, then his influence in the court would vanish in an instant and cease to exist!
At that time, war would break out everywhere, and the shadow troops and trusted informants in the Great Ming Dynasty would be affected by the war!
Without the support of the court and the shadow troops, he would be like an eagle with broken wings and a tiger without claws and fangs. How could he talk about finding the Nine Cauldrons?
Matsumoto Takeyoshi's expression became more and more unsightly.
Right now, he had to think of a way to stop this war from happening! Otherwise, his ten-odd years of careful planning would all go to waste!
"What's the movement of the four countries now?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi asked Xuanji. "Have they crossed the border?"
"The four countries are currently stationing their troops at the border and preparing their horses. They haven't crossed the border yet," Xuanji replied.
"How many troops do they have now?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi continued asking.
"According to the reports of our spies, there are 300,000 Mongolian cavalry, 300,000 Rakshasa soldiers, and 50,000 Goryeo and Tubo soldiers each. In total, there are 700,000 troops," Xuanji replied.
700,000 troops, this was a number that could not be underestimated.
"How many troops does the court have now?" Matsumoto Takeyoshi asked.
"Regular troops, garrison troops, and the imperial guards of the capital, there are about 1.5 million of them," Xuanji replied.
Matsumoto Takeyoshi frowned after hearing this.
If a normal person heard the comparison of the military strength of the two sides, they would definitely not care and would not care.
1.5 million against 700,000, they would definitely win.
However, this thinking was too naive.
The Great Ming Dynasty did have an absolute advantage in terms of military strength, but if a war really broke out, they would not be able to mobilize so many troops.
One must know that the Great Ming Dynasty's territory was vast and they had many people. If a war broke out, they would have to leave a portion of their troops behind to maintain order and defend the cities. Otherwise, if there was a riot or an enemy army broke through the defensive line, they would definitely be defeated.
The Great Ming Dynasty had many cities. If they wanted to defend them to the death, they would need at least half of their troops to stay behind.
In other words, out of the 1.5 million troops, only 750,000 could be deployed freely.
750,000 against 700,000, it seemed like the Great Ming Dynasty still had the advantage. However, one must not forget that the majority of their opponents were Rakshasa soldiers and Mongolian cavalry.
The Rakshasa soldiers were tall and muscular. Coupled with their thick hair, they looked extremely majestic. They were known as the 'Old Hairy' and were extremely strong in battle.
There was no need to even mention the Mongolian cavalry. Back then, the Great Song Dynasty was flattened by the Mongolian cavalry, who were as swift as the wind and as sharp as swords.
750,000 Han soldiers against 700,000 valiant soldiers, the result was easy to imagine.
"Return to the capital now and inform all the civil and military officials of this news. Then send four imperial envoys to each country to find out the reason," Matsumoto Takeyoshi said. "Also, inform Tai Lang to gather the troops and guard the borders. If there is any news, report it immediately. "
"Yes, Milord," Xuanji lowered his head and replied.
"Remember, the more important it is at this time, the more important it is to stabilize the ministers. Do not let other voices appear in the court. Everything will be discussed after we find out the reason," Matsumoto Takeyoshi said. "If there are any ministers who refuse to be disciplined, kill them."
With the four countries pressuring the borders, there would definitely be voices in the court that supported war or peace. The current situation was not clear. Before they found out the reason, it would be too early to support war or peace.
"This subordinate will remember," Xuanji replied.
Matsumoto Takeyoshi waved his hand at Xuanji, indicating that he could leave.
Xuanji nodded at Matsumoto Takeyoshi, then stepped back to open the cabin door and left.
A large number of soldiers were pressing down on the borders.
The news brought by Xuanji instantly dampened Matsumoto Takeyoshi's good mood.
He stood up from the futon, walked slowly to the cabin window, and pulled open the thick wooden window.
Whoosh … As soon as the wooden window was opened, a sea breeze carrying a fishy smell blew into the cabin.
Matsumoto Takeyoshi took a deep breath, then exhaled heavily.
Outside the cabin, the wind blew wildly, and the waves rose to the sky, just like his current mood.
"Men," Matsumoto Takeyoshi said.
"This subordinate is here," the ninja outside the door replied.
"Go and invite Mr. Kongsuke here," Matsumoto Takeyoshi said.
Kongsuke Susukino was the name of the man in blue.
In terms of cultivation, he was below the man in white, but when it came to strategizing and strategizing, this man in blue could be said to be second to none. Even Matsumoto Takeyoshi could only sigh at his own inferiority.
Now that such a major incident had happened, Matsumoto Takeyoshi didn't dare to act arbitrarily, so he directly sent someone to invite the man in blue for a discussion.
"Yes, Master," the ninja outside the door answered, then quickly went to invite the man in blue.
After a cup of tea's worth of time, the cabin door slid open from the outside, and the man in blue, wearing a straw raincoat and holding an umbrella, walked in from outside the cabin.
Ever since he was injured by Ye Fan, Matsumoto Takeyoshi had been sending people to treat him and visit him regularly. He also gave him the holy healing medicine sent by his only son Zhou Dao.
After two months of careful treatment and recuperation, the man in blue was no different from an ordinary person except that he couldn't use spiritual energy.
"Matsumoto is really sorry for inviting Mr. Kongsuke here so late, I hope Mr. Kongsuke won't take offense." When Matsumoto Takeyoshi saw the man in blue come in, he immediately reached out and personally took off the man's straw raincoat.
"Mr. Kongsuke, what happened?" The man in blue directly asked Matsumoto Takeyoshi.
Matsumoto Takeyoshi was so anxious to invite him here, something must have happened.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
