Fu Youde was full of anticipation for this major battle. He knew he was getting on in years and could be considered a veteran. Although he had made great contributions before, Fu Youde did not think he should be complacent.
Being posthumously granted the title of king, Fu Youde felt he had reached the threshold and could probably work harder.
Even if he can't compare to Xu Da, the Prince of Zhongshan, or Chang Yuchun, the Prince of Kaiping, with some effort, he could probably be compared to Tang He, the Prince of Dong'ou, or Deng Yu, the Prince of Ninghe.
Hamgyong Province has been captured by the imperial army, as has Pyongan Province. Of the so-called eight provinces of Joseon, the Ming army has already taken the two adjacent provinces. In Hwanghae Province, the imperial detachment that crossed the sea has established a foothold, echoing Incheon in Gyeonggi Province.
Fu Youde, with a serious expression, said to Xu Huizu, "Lord Zhongshan, this time the main army has assembled in Zhonghe. We will first break through Huangzhou, and then send a detachment to directly attack Haizhou. At that time, Huanghai Road will be captured, and our forces will advance directly towards the capital region."
Xu Huizu also said at this time, "Haizhou Province has two capitals, Huangzhou and Haizhou, but both places are heavily guarded by Goryeo troops."
The reason for the fall of Haizhou is easy to explain: once Haizhou fell, the Ming army would be poised to strike directly at the capital region. The large force amassed in Huangzhou, on the other hand, signified an attempt to halt the Ming army's advance.
"Furthermore, we cannot allow the Goryeo people to calmly assemble their army. I intend for the Duke of Zhongshan to go to Hamjeong Province. The army will rest and reorganize at Anbyon, while the royal army will march east and directly attack Gangwon Province, forcing Goryeo to divide its forces." Fu Youde continued, "I underestimated the resilience of these Goryeo barbarians. They have been leading tens of thousands of troops all the way here."
Xu Huizu also fell silent. In fact, conquering Xianjingdao and Ping'andao was no easy task.
The Goryeo people's strategy was actually quite simple: to wage a war of attrition and establish a layered defense. They especially concentrated heavy troops in major cities and prefectures. Conquering such cities was no easy task.
Moreover, the terrain in Goryeo was actually not very conducive to cavalry charges, as there were simply too many mountains. The once invincible cavalry of the Ming Dynasty often couldn't find opportunities for open-field battles and couldn't directly annihilate the enemy in the open field.
The Goryeo people's intentions were clear: to defend the city and continuously wear down the Ming Dynasty's army. Every time the city was about to fall, the remnants of the Goryeo army would decisively retreat and withdraw, continuously using the fortified city to defend itself.
Fu Youde continued, "In my opinion, the loss of two provinces has caused widespread panic in Goryeo. With war breaking out on all sides in Hwanghae Province, the Goryeo people are forced to divide their forces and defend their territory. In fact, once Hwanghae Province is conquered, the Goryeo people will probably sue for peace."
Fu Youde's meaning was quite clear, and Xu Huizu could naturally also analyze it.
Despite the fact that Goryeo has assembled hundreds of thousands of troops, many of them are just laborers and not true soldiers. The number of truly capable warriors is probably only around two hundred thousand; the rest are just there to bolster morale.
The fighting in Hamgyong and Pyongan provinces was arduous, with heavy consumption of food and gunpowder, and many soldiers killed or wounded.
Aside from some arrogance and underestimation of the enemy, as well as acclimatization issues, the main reason for this was the Goryeo people's meticulous defenses, with elite troops at the front. Fighting such arduous battles naturally required paying a higher price.
However, this was a gathering of the elite troops of Goryeo, and the fighting strength and desire of these troops were indeed quite strong. Many of these men had fought alongside Yi Seong-gye, Yi Bang-won, and the Mongols, or had emerged victorious in the various rebellions of princes.
However, everyone understands that such elite troops are constantly being depleted, and it is impossible to make up for it in a short period of time. Goryeo's war potential is far inferior to that of the Ming Dynasty.
Ultimately, however, siege warfare is inherently difficult and results in numerous casualties. For these generals, such offensive battles often meant paying with human lives, leaving no room for mercy.
Xu Huizu continued, "As long as we capture Gyeonggi Province and Gaegyeong, Goryeo will naturally descend into chaos. The false king, Yi Bang-won, is acting perversely, and many people are already complaining about him."
Fu Youde thought so too; Yi Seong-gye had long been overthrown by his son. However, many people still longed for the Wang dynasty of Goryeo. After all, Yi Seong-gye had only been in power for less than ten years, and even though most of those who opposed him had been killed, many still cherished their homeland.
Moreover, although Yi Bang-won played a significant role in Yi Seong-gye's usurpation of the throne and ultimately prevailed in the two princely rebellions, he still fell short of Yi Seong-gye's initial prestige, especially among the common people.
Lee Bang-won is currently gathering a large army to defend some important cities, but once the capital, Gaegyeong, is captured, Goryeo will naturally descend into complete chaos, and the people's hearts and prestige will be utterly shattered.
“That false king of Goryeo is quite interesting, repeatedly apologizing,” Fu Youde said mockingly. “He said that he wanted to invade Tieling Guard back then, which was the crime of the former monarch of Goryeo. Our Great Ming Master should not have attacked the Yi family of Goryeo.”
Xu Huizu just smiled. In fact, over the years, the Li family had sent many envoys to Yingtian Prefecture, for example, to obtain investiture from the Ming Dynasty.
However, these were largely ignored by the imperial court, except perhaps because Emperor Ying Shi was initially very interested in the four commanderies of the Han dynasty. In reality, everyone understood that the silver mines in Japan were isolated, and without opening up access to Goryeo and controlling the silver mines in Japan, no one felt at ease.
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