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The old grievances between the Maori family and the Tokugawa shogunate were deep, and the Tokugawa family made financial difficulties.After finally earning some money by smuggling, the shogunate wants to close the country, what does the Maori family think?

The entire Changzhou Fan, from the lord to the samurai, all have a heart for China, wishing that the Datong Army would bring down Edo as soon as possible!

After the resumption of trade, the feudal lords could squander their money, and the samurai could not be owed their salaries.

Mao Liji clamored to take back Xiaguan, but secretly sent his confidants to Xiaguan to contact the Datong army.

"On behalf of Hiroshi Fukuhara in the Maori family tree, meet the general of the Celestial Dynasty!" This retainer probably has been in contact with Chinese businessmen for a long time, and he speaks Chinese very fluently, but the accent sounds uncomfortable.

The head of the Datong Army stationed in Xiaguan was called Qian Hui, and he asked with a smile, "What does your master want to say?"

Hiroshi Fukuhara said: "The governor of the family should live in Edo this year, but he was in the country (territory) last year. The governor of the family has given instructions that if the celestial dynasty sends troops due to the shogunate's lock-up, the Changzhou domain must not block anything. Before the next visit Here, I just want to contact the Celestial Dynasty to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings."

"Tell me what you have," Qian Hui said.

Fukuhara Hiroshi said: "First, the Heavenly Soldiers occupy Shimonoseki. Whether it is to explain to the shogunate or to be in the dignity of Changzhou Fan, we will send troops to take it back. But the speed of dispatching troops will be very slow. Even if the army arrives in Shimonoseki , General, please don’t really use force, we are just showing it. Second, if the heavenly soldiers need any supplies, they can buy them from the Changzhou Fan. The merchants of the Celestial Dynasty can also trade in Xiaguan, and we will let the merchants come to eat.”

Good guy, Changzhou Fan's troops are just acting, and they don't forget to continue to do business.

Changzhou Fan is so cooperative, but Osaka is just the opposite.

The merchants and handicraftsmen in Osaka are extremely hostile to Chinese maritime merchants, and they can also share their hatred against the Datong Army.

First of all, the merchants in Osaka belonged to one of the maritime trade monopoly groups, and the smuggling of Chinese merchants broke this monopoly.

Secondly, Osaka is one of the centers of handicraft industry in Japan, with 40 to [-] handicraft workers.The massive and cheap import of Chinese goods has wiped out the handicraft industry in Osaka, and every year there will be new unemployed workers in the handicraft industry.

People in Osaka hate China, and China will definitely attack Osaka.

Because Osaka is the grain transshipment center of Japan, the annual tribute grains of the feudal lords are transported to Osaka by sea, and then transported from Osaka to various places. The grain transshipped through Osaka every year is 200 million shi.

Therefore, the Japanese call Osaka "the kitchen of the world".

As long as Osaka is taken, Japan's grain can be controlled. Even if the shogunate organizes a large army, the transportation of grain and grass is still a big problem.

The Osaka Castle built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi was destroyed in the Battle of Osaka.

Today, the castle was rebuilt by the Tokugawa shogunate, and the garrison... just over 1000.

When the Datong army landed at the port, the Japanese defenders began to react.Their troops are weak, but they dare not recruit ronin temporarily. With the lessons learned from Tsurumaru Castle last year, the Japanese nobles now have great distrust of ronin.

It is normal to distrust ronin. There are [-] ronin living in Osaka, and many of them rely on odd jobs for a living. They have long harbored resentment towards the shogunate.

Seeing that the Datong army came to kill them, hundreds of wanderers came to vote that day, just wanting to make a living with the Datong army.

"Don't be in a hurry to attack the city, but control the industrial and commercial districts of the castle town." Said the division commander Han Shouxin. He had a scar on his neck, which was left when he attacked the Tartar city.At that time, there were more than ten wounds all over his body, and he passed out due to excessive blood loss, and his tibia was broken by the Tatars.

Thousands of Datong troops dispersed, each with 150 people in a team, and blocked every street intersection in the industrial and commercial district.

The industrial and commercial people in Osaka were first afraid, afraid that the Datong army would burn, kill and loot.Then I was puzzled, because the Datong Army only blocked the passage, and did not rush into the workshops and shops to rob.

The next step is to post a notice, the content is very simple: During the war, no commercial activities are allowed.

"Master, there is a Japanese merchant asking to see you!"

"Bring him here."

A 30-year-old Japanese youth cupped his hands and said, "Sumitomo Tomohinobu, I pay my respects to the General."

Han Shouxin asked, "What's the matter with you?"

Sumitomo said: "General, please don't attack the city first. I will go to Edo and ask the shogunate to open the sea."

Han Shouxin smiled and said, "You don't need to go, there are also heavenly soldiers in Edo."

Sumitomo Tomoshin was at a loss for words for a while, and then sighed: "At this time, fighting can be turned into friendship, and there is really no need to fight each other."

"What kind of business do you do?" Han Shouxin asked.

Sumitomo Tomoshin replied: "Copper, silver, cloth, silk, sugar, traditional Chinese medicine... I do all kinds of business. One-third of the copper ingots Japan sells to China come from my Sumitomo family. Seven-tenths of the silver shipped from Japan to China One of them is from my Sumitomo's house."

This Sumitomo family was the predecessor of the Sumitomo Foundation and a major steel supplier for the Japanese invaders.

The prosperity of the Sumitomo family stems from Mr. Baishui's teaching of silver extraction, that is, the technology of extracting silver from copper and silver mines (the Japanese only knew how to extract copper before).This belongs to the mature technology of Ming Dynasty, and Mr. Baishui is Chinese.

The Sumitomo family moved to Osaka. In order to gain a firm foothold, they directly disclosed the technique of drawing silver, which was accepted by the merchants in Osaka.

Today, the Sumitomo family is also supported by the shogunate, providing silver, copper and other raw materials for the shogunate to mint coins.

Han Shouxin said: "You are a businessman, don't mess around. After Japan opens the sea, you businessmen can earn more."

"That's the case." Sumitomo Tomoshin immediately apologized, but in fact he was complaining incessantly.

He has a good relationship with the shogunate, and the Sumitomo family is a monopoly.For them, opening the sea has only disadvantages and no benefits at all. They urged the shogunate to strictly investigate smuggling, and the Sumitomo family also put a lot of effort behind it.

But I never thought that the shogunate locked the country last year, and the heavenly soldiers will arrive this year.

To be honest, Sumitomo Shin has already regretted it. Monopolies hate invasion wars, unless they are attacking other countries.

"You stay in the army and watch the battle carefully." Han Shouxin didn't let him go because the opponent was a big copper and silver merchant.

Sumitomo Tomonobu slept in the barracks for one night, and followed Han Shouxin to the Osaka Castle the next day.

With a face full of doubts, he saw the Datong Army measure the wind direction and speed.

At the same time as the artillery positions were deployed, twelve hot air balloons were launched into the sky.

Dragging a long rope, the hot air balloon slowly floated across the moat and arrived at the sky above Osaka City to adjust its position.

"Boom boom boom!"

Sumitomo Tomoshin was stunned by the sound of the explosion. Those hot air balloons actually threw flower bombs into the city.

Immediately afterwards, three artillery positions fired at Osaka Castle at the same time.

For the Datong Army, Osaka Castle is better than Tsurumaru Castle in Kagoshima.The terrain here is relatively flat, and the artillery and hot air balloons are very well arranged.

The more than 1000 defenders of Osaka, facing the bombing of hot air balloons and the parallel shooting of artillery, soon dared not stand on the outer city walls on the southeast sides.

The observation balloon played a semaphore, and Han Shouxin immediately ordered the infantry to attack the city.

With little effort, the Datong army occupied the outer city.

The next step is still the routine, let the hot air balloon bomb first.

The defenders were already small, and they hadn't fought for decades, and their morale had collapsed at this moment.

According to Sumitomo Tomoshin, the sturdy Osaka Castle can last at least two or three months.But when he met the Datong Army, he only persisted for less than a day.

"The people of Tang are indeed invincible!"

Sumitomo Tomoshin was scared out of his wits. He originally wanted the shogunate, but now he plans to cooperate with the Chinese army.

I dare not cooperate publicly, but it is still possible to provide support in private. We must have a good relationship with the Chinese military.As for Kaihai, although it is not good for the Sumitomo family, it is obviously irreversible.

Chapter 1034 [Edo Sea Battle]

The Japanese Navy, in the era of Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu, still cheered up for a while.

He even hired European shipbuilders to imitate a Galen ship and sailed to America and Europe.This Galen ship built in Japan has been sold to the Spaniards in the Philippines as a battleship.

There is still one Japanese ironclad ship, that is, on the surface of the Anzhai ship, iron plates are nailed to key parts to defend against guns and artillery.

It's not clear if it can stop firearms, but the speed is painfully slow.

The speed of the Anzhai boat itself is slow, and if it is equipped with iron armor, it will be a deadly target in the sea.

"The Tang army navy is here, the Tang army navy is here!"

Several small early boats rushed into Edo Bay. They belonged to the "Pirates" because piracy was common.It can also be called "Jing Gu Zhong", who are hired by rich businessmen as bodyguards to prevent them from being robbed by pirates.

It is not so clear whether it is a robber or a bodyguard.

The speed of the small boat is very fast. The fleet sailing from Shanghai is still half a day away from Edo, and the pirates have already rushed to Edo to report.

The location of the report is Hama Rikyu, which was built on the outlying island of Edo.

Although Edo has begun reclamation, the speed of artificial reclamation is very slow, and the outlying islands are far away from the urban area.Tokugawa Tsunashige, the younger brother of the shogun, built an outlying island garden for the navy as the office of the general of the shogunate.

In another time and space, the Japanese Navy after the Meiji Restoration also used Hama Rikyu as a naval base.

However, at this time it was not called Hama Rikyu, but "Kofu Hama House".

The naval generals are all in the castle town, which is their home.At this time, the people on duty on the island were all young warriors. When they received the news, they immediately took a boat to report to the city.

The 22-year-old Prime Minister of Kofu, Tokugawa Tsunashige, was tall and mighty, with a full height of 1 meters.

He is the daimyo of the Kofu domain, and at the same time he was a councilor in the shogunate, and he was also in charge of the Japanese navy.Although this brother is young, it is rare for him to be able to do practical things. Not only does he exploit the peasants lightly, but he also asks his retainers to remediate rivers and dig weirs and ponds in the fief.

Tokugawa Tsunashige was proficient in Sinology, and even studied "Da Tong Ji". While admiring Emperor Zhao, he asked for the ban on this book.

"Follow me to prepare for battle!"

Tokugawa Tsunashige went into battle, ordered the summoning of the navy generals, and personally ran to the outlying islands to command.

When the Datong fleet arrived in Edo, Tokugawa Tsunashige had already finished reorganizing the army.

The shogunate navy fleet consisted of 1 armored ship, 3 Anzhai ships, 21 Guan ships, and more than 200 small early ships (many of which were pirates).

The ironclad ship is 30 meters long, and generally only the shogun can ride it. Now it is temporarily used as Tokugawa Tsunashige's ship.

Captain Anzhai was more than 20 meters long, and the Guan boat was even smaller.

The shapes and structures of these Japanese ships of various colors are similar, they are just piled up in volume, without keels or ribs.

The small boat sent out to investigate reported that the Chinese fleet was about to enter the bay.Tokugawa Tsunashige immediately drew out his samurai sword: "To meet the Tang army, Japan will surely win, and the shogunate will surely win!"

More than 200 Japanese ships rushed out of the bay.

Tokugawa Tsunashige still had a telescope in his hand. He stood on the deck of the ironclad ship, holding up the telescope and looking into the distance.And then... dumbfounded.

"Are the naval warships of the Tang Dynasty so big?" Tokugawa Tsunashige was going crazy.

Although he is familiar with Chinese classics, he is too young and inexperienced. He has never even left Edo, not even his own fiefdom.And Edo is absolutely not allowed to smuggle, and Tokugawa Tsunashige has never even seen what a Chinese merchant ship looks like.

He always thought that the ironclad ship in Edo was the largest sea ship in the world.

The Chinese Navy will also use battle-line tactics, and eight warships will quickly line up in battle-line.The smallest ones are larger than the shogunate ironclad ships.

Hong Xu, who was born in the Zheng Group, has retired at this time, and the commander of the fleet is his nephew Hong Tao.Hong Xu was the first to join the Datong Army, and separated from Zheng Zhilong. When he retired, he retained the title of Marquis, and was also promoted by the Prince Shaobao.

"What battle line do you want? Just kill them!" Hong Tao ordered.

Eight Chinese warships rushed straight to the Japanese navy.

On the Japanese side, the Kohayaya ships with the largest number, let alone artillery,

Not even muskets, just a group of pirates driving small sampans.

Relying on their numerical advantage, more than 200 ships surrounded 8 ships, and they wanted to climb onto Chinese warships for hand-to-hand combat.

The Chinese warships were surrounded by groups, but they didn't stop at all.Along the way, all the small Japanese boats were knocked over.The pirates tried to throw the hook lines, but it was difficult to throw them onto the side of the ship. Occasionally, a few hook lines were thrown up, and they had to climb up slowly, but the Chinese navy soldiers had already aimed their guns.

"Bang bang bang bang!"

A series of shots fired, and all the pirates who tried to board the ship were shot down into the sea.

The pirates completely lost their fighting spirit, taking advantage of their maneuverability, more than a hundred small boats quickly fled the battlefield.

"Fire!" Tokugawa Tsunayoshi shouted.

Whether it is artillery or muskets, they are called iron guns in Japan.Ironclad ships, Anzhai ships, and official ships equipped with guns and artillery all shot at the rushing Chinese warships.

However, the caliber of the artillery of the Japanese ships is too small, and the warships of the Datong Navy are either built of century-old oak wood, or they are made of strong century-old teak wood.In the mountains of Vietnam, there are a large number of old teak trees, which are now under control and are prohibited from being harvested by any civil forces.

A few shells hit the target, but the shells were unable to cause effective damage to the Chinese warship.

And the eight Chinese warships turned suddenly after they approached, and aimed their side turrets at the enemy ships.The amount of shells fired by a warship is equivalent to more than a dozen Japanese ships, and it is fired at close range, instantly smashing the target into a sieve.

The Guan ship has no keel and ribs, and it will fall apart after a few more rounds.

"Get out!"

In less than 10 minutes from the Datong Navy's firing, seven Japanese ships had been sunk, and Tokugawa Tsunashige was so frightened that he wanted to fly away.

But the iron-clad ship he was riding on was too slow.

Both the Anzhai boat and the Guan boat ran away, and he was still advancing slowly, causing those boats that were able to escape to slow down and come back to protect him.After all, this is the younger brother of the shogun!

"Boom boom boom!"

Two more Guan ships were sunk, and an Ataka ship was also on the verge of collapse.

Tokugawa Tsunashige's ironclad ship was chased by two Chinese warships and caught in the middle trying to capture it, because the ship's flagship status was too obvious.

Short spears with ropes were fired from the Chinese warships, slamming the deck of the iron-clad ship of the national army.