In the Qianqing Palace, Zhu Yuanzhang's face was somewhat unhappy.

News from Japan has been transmitted once a month, which is basically the fastest speed.

This is because there is the Yangtze River near Nanjing. After the Japanese intelligence reaches the coast, it goes straight up at an expedited speed of 600 miles.

"We all know that this second brother is the most likely to stir up trouble. We were thinking of giving him the city on Kyushu Island, but he ended up going straight to Shikoku Island."

"What an idiot! Do you want to start a war in advance by provoking the entire Japanese nation like this?"

Zhu Yuanzhang was really angry with his second son Zhu Chong.

It has only been a few months since the entire Kyushu Island was taken over, and Zhu Yuanzhang was already prepared to let his eldest grandson do the arguing.

This is also to prevent Japan from becoming too desperate and directly triggering a war between the two countries.

It’s not that Zhu Yuanzhang was worried that he could not win the national war, but if he did, the Ming Dynasty would have to invest a large amount of manpower and money in Japan.

It is said that a single cannon shot is worth a ton of gold.

Even if it's not that exaggerated, it's still a wasted loss.

Last year, before he could even warm up the 180 million treasure notes, 100 million had already been spent by his eldest grandson, which made Zhu Yuanzhang very distressed.

But he also knew that whatever his grandson had arranged, whether it was the shipyard or the large-scale expansion of the gunpowder department, including the construction and widening of the direct official road, these were all things that had to be done.

Keeping the money in your pocket without moving it is no different from the wealthy people in Jiangnan. Only by spending the money where it should be spent can you collect more taxes in the future.

The second brother's actions have directly blocked Japan's path, leaving it with little room for maneuver.

If a war really breaks out, there are small-scale uprisings in various places on Kyushu Island now, and more troops will be needed on the front line. War will also lead to a reduction in mineral mining.

This is totally inconsistent with the established strategy.

Originally, after taking over Kyushu Island, the first thing to do was to digest it, at least to stabilize the territory, and then plan for the next development.

"Grandpa, Japan is probably already carrying out a large-scale mobilization, but I think this situation can still be alleviated."

"I've looked at the intelligence from Japan. Ashikaga Yoshimitsu now has a lot of conflicts with the Japanese royal family. If we start a war, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu will naturally gain more power, which is not in our interests."

"We just need to persuade the Japanese royal family to mediate, then Ashikaga Yoshimitsu will not be able to call on all the local daimyo to follow him, and this matter can be temporarily put on hold."

Zhu Ying said as he thought about it.

Defeating Japan is not a complicated matter, but if you want to truly swallow Japan, you need careful planning.

As for the current total population of Japan, if a large number of troops are recruited and the whole country is mobilized, it is estimated that there will be 800,000 troops.

The 400,000 Ming troops can defeat the 800,000 Japanese troops, but this method will consume a lot of time.

As the war escalates, Japan's population will decline sharply.

At the end of the battle, there were not many people left in Japan.

In this way, the Ming Dynasty would have to invest more manpower in post-war constructive development.

If you really want to do this, you might as well develop Hainan, Ryukyu, Luzon and Johor.

That is the area of ​​Malaysia and the Philippines in later generations.

For example, present-day Johor is currently ruled by the Malacca Sultanate, commonly known as the Malacca Kingdom in the Ming Dynasty.

It sounds like it's not bad, but the total population is less than 200,000, which means there are only a few hundred thousand people.

The Ming Dynasty could easily take down the Malacca Sultanate by simply mobilizing a few troops from its garrisons.

Moreover, the military equipment of the Malacca Sultanate was completely different from that of the Ming Dynasty. There might be less than a hundred sets of armor in the whole country.

But this doesn't make much sense. We can only control it after the great voyages begin.

For a small country like this, if Zhu Yuanzhang just issued an edict, they would have to submit without any disturbance at all.

The situation in Luzon is even worse.

Therefore, these places that became more famous in later generations were, in the early Ming Dynasty, wild and desolate places where input and output were completely disproportionate.

Zhu Yuanzhang listened to his eldest grandson's words and asked, "Does your eldest grandson mean that I should first return the captured four cities to Japan, and then mediate?"

"But I don't think Japan is so stupid. I'm afraid they still want to take Kyushu back."

Zhu Ying pondered for a moment and said, "At this time, if we just return the territory of Shikoku Island, Japan will naturally not agree. My grandson has other ideas."

Zhu Yuanzhang asked curiously, "Tell us about it."

Zhu Ying did not start talking eagerly. Instead, he took out a map of Japan from the bookshelf, pointed at Bungo Castle and said, "My grandson wants to build a port for trade between Ming and Japan here."

"Japan itself produces very little, especially in the area of ​​food. We can introduce high-yield crops to Japan at the same time to make Japan's food more abundant. While enhancing the reputation of our Ming Dynasty, we can also allow more Japanese people to have enough food."

"As long as we offer to trade high-yield crops, no one, whether it's the Japanese royal family or the shogunate's Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, will refuse."

"Kyushu Island can also be smoothly incorporated into the direct jurisdiction of our Ming Dynasty."

At first glance, it seems that Zhu Ying's actions are helping Japan to strengthen its national strength.

But from the emperor's perspective, the meaning is completely different.

The Ming Dynasty had never been afraid of war. What it was most worried about was not the losses in war, but the fact that there was no source to replenish these losses, thus resulting in a huge deficit.

In fact, sending high-yield crops to Japan has always been Zhu Yuanzhang's idea. However, some things do not require being too hasty. Naturally, they must be exchanged for enough benefits.

Now that the second brother Zhu Chong has messed it up, it is just right to take it out as an exchange.

Faced with such a "divine object", there is no way Japan would refuse it.

Even if the Japanese royal family and Ashikaga Yoshimitsu did not want it, the local shugo daimyo would still scramble for it.

Zhu Yuanzhang agreed and said, "This is a good idea, but we need to choose the right person to talk to. I think it would be best for you to go over and talk to him."

Zhu Ying smiled and said, "This matter is of great importance, so even if my grandson goes there in person, it will be convenient for him to take a look."

"If ordinary people go, they really can't suppress the emperor's uncles."

The four princes, Zhu Chong, the Prince of Qin, Zhu Chong, the Prince of Jin, Zhu Di, the Prince of Yan, and Zhu Gui, the Prince of Qi, can be said to be the people with the highest status and power in the Ming Dynasty except for Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Ying.

Not to mention the ministers in the court, even dukes and nobles like Lan Yu could be completely ignored by the four princes.

Especially Zhu Chong, who lives far away from the emperor, so he is really not going to obey.

Only if Zhu Ying goes there can they suppress it completely.

It can also express the Ming Dynasty's sincerity and prevent the occurrence of national war.

If Japan doesn't even give face to the Ming Crown Prince and the future Ming Emperor, then you can understand what it means that when the Emperor is angry, millions of people will die.

In a world where imperial power is supreme, it does not mean that starting a war requires calculating the consequences of gains and losses.

This is the horror of personal feelings taking precedence over national sovereignty.

As for safety issues, there is even less need to worry.

First of all, Zhu Ying would bring enough troops with him when he went to our country, and there would be four great vassal kings guarding the country.

As for Japan, it is even more worrying than the Ming Dynasty.

Because if anything disturbs the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty, then the entire Japanese country will have no reason to exist.

Given Zhu's temperament, especially at this time, it was inevitable that he would mobilize a million troops to pacify Japan.

Almost all of Japan's aristocracy was killed along with their entire clans.

There is no such thing as the Japanese royal family or the shogun. There are only wanted criminals listed in the arrest warrants.

"Okay, Da Sun can go, but we will feel at ease only if he brings at least 200,000 soldiers with him."

In fact, Zhu Yuanzhang himself also wanted to go out and have a look, but he was too old to bear the constant traveling.

The eldest grandson is young and strong, and it is time for him to broaden his horizons. In the past, Crown Prince Zhu Biao often toured various parts of the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Ying continued, "You can send an envoy to Japan to tell them about my grandson's trip to Japan. This will also remind my uncle to return Iyo Castle to Japan and not cause any trouble."

"Once Japan receives the news that my grandson is going there, they will temporarily stop mobilizing their army, or at least put it on hold, which will delay the process for quite some time."

Zhu Yuanzhang nodded and said, "Okay, let's do as Grandson said."

…

The news that the Ming Crown Prince was coming to Japan to negotiate a peace treaty was quickly conveyed by the red envoy to the Japanese royal family, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu.

The atmosphere was originally tense, and Japan, which was always preparing for a national war, was suddenly forced to stop.

When the news reached Zhu Chong, he had already led his army to besiege Tosa Castle on Shikoku Island.

If the situation was similar to the last time we attacked Iyo Province, the cannons would bombard the city and not only the city gate but also the city wall would be broken.

However, Tosa Castle is now well prepared. Behind the city wall, there are a large number of stones piled up to form simple fortifications, which can effectively block the impact of the Ming cavalry.

Moreover, the width is sufficient, and it is difficult to force open the passage by artillery bombardment alone.

It is obvious that this is a fight to the death with Zhu Chong.

Zhu Chong was very excited. After being in Japan for such a long time, he finally found some fun. The previous ones were too boring. They ended before he could even have enough fun.

"Mobilize my Japanese army and tell them that if they can capture this city, I will grant them the status of joining the Ming Dynasty household registration. From now on, they can be considered half Ming people."

"Anyone who dares to hesitate will be killed immediately."

Zhu Chong did not want to consume his own troops every time he sieged the city. After the first two sieges, he selected more than 10,000 Japanese soldiers who were still capable of fighting as the Japanese slave army.

Since sieges require the sacrifice of human lives, it is natural to let these Japanese soldiers do it.

Having been given some simple weapons, now is the time for them to come into play.

After a new round of artillery bombardment, at the command of a Ming army officer, tens of thousands of Japanese soldiers were driven towards Tosa Castle, roaring and charging.

These Japanese soldiers, who had been easily defeated by Zhu Chong before, were now rushing forward with all their might as if they had been injected with chicken blood.

The low city wall could be climbed using simple stairs, but the Japanese troops hiding in the fortifications clearly had an advantage.

With equal combat power, Zhu Chong's Japanese army and the Japanese soldiers defending the city directly started a fierce tug-of-war.

"These Japanese slaves are pretty good. They fought well. I thought we needed to execute a bunch of them as a warning to others. Now it seems that it is totally unnecessary."

"Their morale is even stronger than that of the Japanese soldiers defending the city. We need to gather more of them in the future."

Zhu Chong said with a hearty laugh, and the generals around him also joined in the laughter.

However, there were obviously still tens of thousands of Japanese soldiers in Tosa Castle. The Japanese army had strong momentum but insufficient stamina. In less than half an hour, the casualties had reached 30%.

If it weren't for the Ming army's musketeers intimidating from behind, anyone who turned around would have been shot dead without the King of Qin's order, and the army would have collapsed completely long ago.

There was death to be had if he went either way, and turning back would mean certain death, but there was still a chance of survival if he moved forward, so of course he would force his way forward.

As time went on, the casualties of the Japanese army were close to half, and it was time for the Ming army to take action.

But just as Zhu Chong was about to issue an order, the soldier who was delivering the message hurried to the front, knelt on one knee, clasped his fists and said, "Your Majesty, His Majesty has ordered us to withdraw our troops immediately and return the land occupied by Shikoku Island to Japan."

As soon as these words were spoken, the generals around who were originally excited and ready for a fierce battle suddenly felt as if cold water was poured on their heads. They looked at each other, not knowing what to do.

Zhu Chong said nonchalantly: "A general is not subject to military orders when he is away from home. Now is the best time to attack the city. We have already spent thousands of lives. The arrow is on the string and has to be fired. How can we stop it just like that?"

After saying that, he looked at the messenger and said, "When the time comes, just say that you were a little slow in delivering the message. I have already taken Tosa Castle. As for the return of it, we will discuss it after the war."

After saying this, he did not hesitate to draw the sword from his waist while on horseback, and was ready to shout and mobilize the entire army to capture Tosa Castle in front of them in one fell swoop.

At this juncture, we can't worry too much.

But the messenger's next words made Zhu Chong freeze in place.

"Reporting to the prince, there is news from the capital that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will be visiting Japan in the near future to discuss a peace treaty with the Japanese royal family. His Majesty has ordered the princes to prepare for the reception."

When Zhu Chong heard that Zhu Ying was coming, he couldn't sit still.

He knew that he was able to bring enough soldiers to Japan today entirely thanks to Zhu Ying's negotiations and arrangements.

It doesn't matter much if he has a falling out with his father, but if he does, I'm afraid all his military power will be taken away, and he will return to the capital to become an idle prince and a clan leader.

He could only dismount in frustration and kick the messenger to the ground.

"Next time you summon me, tell me everything at once. If you keep hesitating and only say half of it, I will kill you."

The messenger soldier dared not talk back to the King of Qin and could only lie on the ground and kowtow.

"Your Majesty, what do you see?"

The vanguard generals around bravely asked.

Zhu Chong was furious and said, "What kind of fight is this? Pass the order down and call off the troops."