The one shouting was none other than Saigo, who had been so frightened by the first round of shelling that he immediately jumped into the water. He panicked as soon as he saw the harbor shelling in this direction and immediately jumped into the sea.
As an army general, he had never fought in a naval battle before. This was a hasty decision, but it turned out to be the most correct one by chance.
The warships behind sank one after another, and the sinking ships stirred up the currents, making it extremely difficult for those who jumped ship to escape.
——
On the harbor, Dian Wei's face was flushed with excitement; he even climbed onto the wall and roared at the top of his lungs.
"Fire! Fire!"
"Give these drowning bastards a good beating!!"
"Bang bang bang!"
The soldiers, drenched in sweat, were rapidly loading lead bullets. They were currently loading slightly smaller bullets, which, once fired from the general's cannon, would form a dense barrage, and these raindrop-like bullets would sweep across the water's surface.
For those remaining soldiers struggling on the sea, these lead bullets were a nightmare.
In fact, this sudden artillery bombardment mainly caught the Fusang fleet off guard, and many people were hit by the shells before they could react.
Unlike battles that take place on land, where one can turn around and flee immediately if things go wrong, it is not so easy for ships at sea.
These ships couldn't turn around in a short time, especially since they were already close to the shore and had their sails down, with oarsmen now providing power. As a result, the Fusang fleet was caught completely off guard.
In addition, it is very important to note that the fleet that came this time was not a fleet specifically designed for combat. After all, their purpose was to reach the East China Sea for amphibious landing operations, not primarily for naval purposes.
Thus, under intense artillery fire, in less than half an hour, the Fusang fleet was reduced to almost nothing. Countless people were killed directly by the cannon fire, and many others jumped ship to survive while wounded, but most of them drowned in the sea.
Of course, some uninjured soldiers, thanks to their excellent swimming skills, were still struggling on the surface of the water, but the artillery was still firing!
On the chaotic sea, several ships at the rear of the fleet made an emergency turn. The oarsmen were drenched in sweat, their feet practically burning. The wheels kept turning, and the ships parted the water, beginning to retreat in the direction they had come from!
——
After a while, the sound of cannon fire gradually stopped.
Countless ship fragments floated on the nearshore waters, alongside the broken hulls and the floating corpses. However, compared to the floating corpses on the surface, there were even more corpses sunk to the bottom of the water—soldiers who hadn't had time to remove their armor.
The azure sea had changed color; the Japanese pirates, struck by cannon fire, had their limbs mutilated, and the blood flowing from their bodies stained the sea red.
It was sunset, and as the sun dipped below the horizon, some corpses and ship debris were pushed ashore by the rolling waves.
Standing on the shore, Qin Ze coldly observed the corpses and murmured to himself:
"After this battle, I think the Japanese pirates' forces will be reduced considerably."
As soon as he finished speaking, Qi Jiguang, who was standing to the side, said, "It's a pity that some of their ships still managed to escape, and we failed to annihilate them all."
Qin Ze said calmly, "It doesn't matter. You can run away from the monk, but you can't run away from the temple."
"They can't escape to the ends of the earth; they'll only end up back in Japan."
"That's where we're going soon. Let's end this centuries-old struggle right there."
As he spoke, Qin Ze looked at the generals and said in a deep voice:
"Tomorrow, I will cross the sea to Japan!"
"Although I have already set up defenses here, I am leaving Yan Kingdom after all, so I need you to stay here to guard the country."
"Yes, my lord!" the generals replied immediately.
Qin Ze looked at each of the generals one by one, and then said:
"Dian Wei, Xu Chu, and Qi Jiguang, the three of you will stay by my side."
"The rest of you will guard the Yan Kingdom."
"Yes! I will obey your command, my lord!"
Qin Ze nodded and said, "After I go to sea, I will not return from the East China Sea. From now on, this place will be under your care!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Lü Bu raised an eyebrow and immediately asked, "My lord, after you destroy Fusang, will you not return to the East Sea?"
“Yes, we won’t be going back to the East China Sea.” Qin Ze narrowed his eyes slightly and continued, “After we destroy Fusang, I will lead the fleet from Fusang straight to the South China Sea.”
"After arriving in the South China Sea, I will disembark at a port in the South China Sea and go directly to Nanze."
"Heh, where is Jin Fengluan still hiding...? I miss her terribly..."
Upon hearing this, Dian Wei's face lit up with excitement, and he smiled, saying:
"That's right! That woman ran away quickly back then, and now she's hiding in Nanze like a turtle. It's time to find her."
Qin Ze nodded slightly and then said:
"Yes, if it weren't for her, how could these Japanese pirates have found an opportunity to come to my Yan Kingdom to kill and burn?"
"Hmph, she sowed the seeds of this bitter fruit, and now I'm cleaning up her mess."
"She wants to hide in Nanze and be a local tyrant, ha... keep dreaming!"
"Once I've dealt with Fusang, I'll definitely find her in Nanze and bring her back to Jinling... Hmph."
At this point, Dian Wei made a throat-slitting gesture.
Qin Ze shook his head and sneered, "Killing her would be too easy on her."
"Her crimes cannot be atoned with death alone!"
Dian Wei, being impatient, immediately pressed on, "My lord, what should you do?"
Qin Ze patted his shoulder and said with a faint smile, "You'll see in the future."
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