Chapter 789

The winding mountain roads of Japanese-style castles were a nightmare in the cold weapon era. This was the final product of a hundred years of war in Japan and also one of the reasons why Japan was in constant turmoil.

No matter who wanted to unify Japan, they had to face one such turtle shell after another. Each mountain fortress required a large number of human lives to pile up, and it took huge manpower, material resources, and human hearts to erase a mountain fortress.

Once you became weak, others would take advantage of the situation and pull out your mountain fortresses with insufficient defensive strength.

The already fragmented Japan became even more fragmented because of the existence of mountain fortresses.

And the solution given by Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi was "one country, one castle"—within one domain, only one mountain fortress was allowed to exist. If more mountain fortresses were built, they would face the joint attack of all the daimyo in the world.

This decree was not realized in Oda Nobunaga's jurisdiction because, in the process of unification, if one's own territory was also "one country, one castle," one had to face the endless harassment of enemies.

Only after unification was it possible to achieve this.

The reason why Japanese-style castles could change Japan's political landscape was entirely because Japan lacked sufficient gunpowder, cannons, and armor.

Facing such a mountain fortress, the best way to avoid excessive casualties among soldiers was to surround it without attacking. After all, mountain fortresses had difficulty with supplies, and it was very difficult to farm on the mountains, but besieging a city was extremely expensive.

Besieging a city required double the enemy's strength, and the grain and fodder consumed by people eating and horses chewing was an astronomical figure.

Qi Jiguang ordered the attack on Zhongzhou City. Chen Dacheng had already described in detail the difficulty of attacking Zhongzhou and hoped that all units would be prepared for a certain degree of attrition.

The next morning, when the sky was just beginning to brighten, hundreds of boats appeared on the opposite bank of the Tanqin Terrace, blocking the entire river surface. The dull sound of drums beat one after another, awakening the dawn.

The sound of horns pierced the sky, and boats of all sizes rushed toward the opposite bank of the Hanjiang.

The Great Ming attack began.

The 24,000 righteous army soldiers led by Li Shunchen began to cross the river. Their goal was to attract the attention of the Japanese pirates in Zhongzhou to the maximum extent and delay time for the flank attack.

Qi Jiguang's task for Li Shunchen was to lead people to attack Tanqin Terrace and attract the attention of the Japanese pirates, even if only for an hour, so that the Great Ming army could successfully cross the river.

As long as the Great Ming army could successfully cross the river on both sides and deploy their formation, the recovery of Zhongzhou would be a certainty. No matter what happened, even if all the gunpowder in the rear was blown up, it would not hinder the Zhongzhou offensive.

The Great Ming army had been operating with full firearms for only a little over a year, and the elite soldiers of the Capital Battalion and the Liaodong army had undergone extremely strict cold weapon training.

The Japanese pirates in Zhongzhou had long noticed the unusual movements on the opposite bank of the river.

The gathering of boats, the loading of various grain and fodder, and the soldiers on the opposite bank waiting in battle array—when the sound of horns rang out, the Japanese pirates also began to attack halfway across the river. They had no cannons, but they had various types of catapults. Stones smeared with various oils were lit, thrown by the catapults, and flew toward the boats crossing the river.

All the flat-bottomed grain boats were manufactured at the Hanjiang Shipyard and were originally used to transport grain, gunpowder, armor, and other items along the Hanjiang; now they were used to transport troops.

The Japanese defense was already very tight and did not collapse in morale due to successive defeats. Boat after boat, set on fire, rushed toward the riverbank, and Korean righteous army soldiers jumped off the boats one after another, pouncing toward the Japanese pirates on the shore.

"Kill!" Li Shunchen jumped onto the shore and charged forward, setting an example for his troops.

Qi Jiguang put down his telescope and began to issue orders. He requested the two brothers, Ma Gui and Ma Jin, to lead two infantry battalions and one artillery battalion to prepare to cross the river; this was an additional deployment.

The performance of the Korean righteous army made Qi Jiguang make temporary adjustments to his orders because the Korean righteous army could stably occupy the beachhead.

More clearly speaking, the Korean righteous army had won Qi Jiguang's recognition and respect, believing that their role was not just to attract attention but that they could execute more in-depth combat missions.

The Korean righteous army fought without any rules, without any waves, let alone any formation. Less than ten percent wore armor, they had no firearms, no bows and arrows, and were even a bit ragged, having only the long and short weapons issued by the Great Ming court.

But with such simple equipment, the Korean righteous army's morale was like a rainbow.

The defensive fortifications of the Japanese pirates guarding Tanqin Terrace were broken one after another by their fearless fighting style.

Li Shunchen's Korean righteous army didn't care about their own casualties at all, pouncing crazily, using every weapon and power they could, killing these Japanese pirates who invaded their homes. The fearless army broke through the Japanese pirates' beachhead defensive positions like a hot knife through butter and pounced toward the depths.

Laozi said: "The people do not fear death, so why threaten them with death?"

Once the common people do not fear death, they cannot be intimidated by death. The Korean righteous army, which had not yet completed its revenge, was probably more uncomfortable alive than dead.

Or rather, they were already dead; it was hatred that controlled their bodies, and revenge was the only goal for them to live.

For a feigned attack to be effective, it must be fought with the momentum of a main attack.

Li Shunchen succeeded; the feigned attack turned into a main attack. Ma Gui and Ma Jin, two military generals from Xuanfu and Datong, led infantry battalions and artillery battalions to cross the river to support the Korean righteous army.

When Great Ming's cannons were placed at the foot of Jiming Mountain and Dalin Mountain, it was too late for Zhongzhou to provide support.

Zhongzhou couldn't provide support either, because it was already overwhelmed.

Whether it was borrowing the tiger's power or the dog relying on the master's influence, with the Great Ming infantry battalions and artillery supporting, the morale of the Korean army rose again. The Japanese pirates' defensive line outside Zhongzhou City collapsed across the board in just three hours.

And the fragile city walls of Zhongzhou City couldn't stop the bombardment of the Great Ming army's cannons at all and were tottering.

At the foot of Jiming Mountain, Great Ming's nine-jin cannons had already begun to pour firepower, and the entrance to the mountain fortress had been completely blown up under the dense artillery coverage.

Zhao Ji, who was guarding the fortress, buckled his helmet. Behind him were 330 men, 30 squads. This was the "Trap-Breaking Battalion." All soldiers in the Trap-Breaking Battalion were elite selected troops, charging in the front, with the highest casualty rate, the most reward money, and the most luxurious equipment.

The Trap-Breaking Battalion had only one goal: go up the mountain.

Clear all strongholds on both sides of the mountain road, prepare for the subsequent entry of heavy infantry into the city, and at the same time, break into the main keep to thoroughly disintegrate the enemy's will to resist.

Every infantry battalion had a Trap-Breaking Battalion, and the selection of elite troops to lead the charge was extremely harsh.

First, one had to be able to afford the armor. The Trap-Breaking iron-mixed armor was a standard five-foot-seven-inch armor, meaning one had to be five feet seven inches (190cm) tall to be able to wear such armor.

Those under five feet seven inches tall didn't even have the qualifications to participate in the selection.

The weight was 200 jin. Full-body armor required physical strength. With 53 jin of full armor, without sufficient physical strength, even moving was very difficult, let alone fighting.

And height and weight—these two items alone could wash out many elite soldiers of the Capital Battalion. Selecting the elite to lead the charge was the elite among the elite.

For the Great Ming Capital Battalion, they didn't need to worry about their affairs after death. Even from the most utilitarian perspective, the pension received after dying on the battlefield was more than being an elite soldier of the Capital Battalion for a lifetime.

The soldiers were not stupid; they had calculated it. The pension given by His Majesty, the extra academies, and the treatment that could be inherited for three generations, all added up to 2,500 silver or even more. Because the priority admission to the Lecture Academy was a privilege that money couldn't buy.

And an elite soldier of the Capital Battalion, even if he started being a soldier from his mother's womb and worked for 70 years, would only receive a total of about 2,100 silver.

Actually, the soldiers sometimes felt that His Majesty really didn't need to give so much; being able to give full pay was really enough to make people sell their lives.

"Click."

Zhao Ji buckled his helmet. He took out a very small dragon-flag patch and stuck it on his iron-mixed armor. This dragon-flag patch was only three inches in size, vermilion, and looked extremely steady.

The three-inch dragon-flag patch was issued by His Majesty for the purpose of encouragement. It would only be taken out and stuck on the body in a situation of life-and-death battle, representing fighting for Great Ming, and Great Ming would never forget your achievements.

The three-inch dragon-flag patch also had another meaning: anyone without a dragon-flag patch was an enemy, regardless of gender, age, or youth.

Japan had female warriors, and female warriors had a specialized weapon called a naginata. In the Battle of Pyongyang, one-third of the Great Ming Capital Battalion died, and infantry battalion soldier Lü Jinlin died under a naginata because he didn't know there were female warriors.

This was a lesson, so once the three-inch dragon flag appeared, it meant that no living soul would be left in the mountain fortress.

His Majesty's meaning in issuing this item was very clear: frontline soldiers didn't need to worry; all the sins of slaughter would be borne by the Emperor. If there was retribution, it would be retribution on the Emperor, not the soldiers, because the soldiers were only obeying the Emperor's orders.

Three hundred soldiers in iron-mixed armor with buckled helmets stood 200 paces away from the entrance of the mountain fortress, standing quietly like a city wall. The golden light of the morning sun shone on them, shining brightly.

The sound of impassioned horns came.

"Kill!" Zhao Ji drew his Qi family army saber, pointed it at the mountain fortress ahead, and after giving the order, lifted his foot and walked slowly and firmly toward the collapsed entrance at the foot of the mountain fortress.

The advance of the Great Ming army was like a city wall moving. This was the Great Ming army's attack from the perspective of the defending Japanese pirates!

Hand cannons, bows and arrows, and long and short weapons could not form effective damage. Rather than calling it an attack, it was better to call it climbing a mountain.

Zhao Ji lifted his hand, grabbed a naginata reaching out from the steps, pulled hard, dragged down a female warrior, and with a clean and neat slash, cut across her neck, letting her escape from this sea of suffering of sin.

The iron-mixed armor had "cages," which were steel gloves.

Female warriors were even more miserable than male warriors. Sometimes they also had to provide some relatively special functions, such as acting as military prostitutes in tea rooms.

This was the tea room that Governor Ling Yunyi saw when he first entered Hancheng, which had the words "A great man devotes his life to the battlefield to polish his long spear; a small woman devotes herself to the country to open her humble door," with the horizontal scroll "Sacrifice oneself to serve the country."

For female warriors, this place was no less than hell. Death was a relief.

The Trap-Breaking Battalion continued to advance. Their footsteps were slow, but every step left a footprint, pulling out all the strongholds along the way one by one. The way of breaking doors was also simple: just hard ramming. A running start, ramming open the iron-reinforced wooden doors, and then killing the people inside.

Sometimes, when encountering places with cellars, they would throw in firewood and light it, and if anyone poked their head out, they would kick them back down.

The heavy infantry attack was relatively slow. Uphill attacks, mountain roads, and defensive fortifications originally required huge casualties for every step, but the heavy infantry left a footprint with every step. It took a full six hours for the Great Ming army to successfully climb to the top of the mountain and clean up Jiming Mountain, and the Great Ming army's record was zero casualties.

Compared to the relaxed and easy Jiming Mountain, the Zhongzhou battlefield was very bloody.

Ma Gui repeatedly emphasized that Li Shunchen should restrain the Korean righteous army and wait for artillery bombardment to suppress the defending Japanese pirates and open a breakthrough before charging; otherwise, it would be meaningless casualties. The Korean righteous army listened, but when they started charging, all the waves were completely chaotic.

The Korean righteous army swarmed onto the collapsed city walls and, after paying painful casualties, captured the outer city of Zhongzhou.

On the first day of the Battle of Zhongzhou, Tanqin Terrace, Jiming Mountain, Dalin Mountain, and the outer city of Zhongzhou were captured by the Great Ming army;

On the second day, Zhongzhou City, Houshan, and Shizong Temple were captured;

On the third day, Nanshan Mountain Fortress was captured. The resistance of Nanshan Mountain Fortress was the most intense, and it even repelled one attack by the Great Ming army.

The Japanese pirates obtained a kind of "fierce fire oil cabinet" that could spray tongues of fire over a zhang long. The Great Ming army didn't know there was such a thing during the first attack and suffered heavy casualties. It took four elite selected soldiers to cover the rear before they could withdraw from the battlefield. After retreating, they repeatedly probed and finally determined that this kind of fierce fire oil cabinet was extremely rare.

After several more rounds of artillery bombardment, the Great Ming heavy infantry finally broke through Nanshan Mountain Fortress.

Finally, the entire Nanshan Mountain Fortress was burned clean by Great Ming with a fire.

"Commander Qi! Urgent report! Hancheng, Yangpyeong, and Yeoju—a total of thirteen gunpowder depots were harassed by Japanese pirate spies, losing over 150,000 jin of gunpowder!" A beacon tower scout rushed into the central command tent of the Wanfu Pagoda camp on Son of Heaven Mountain and reported an urgent message!

The generals who were originally celebrating the great victory in Zhongzhou all had their expressions change drastically upon hearing this!

It was fortunate that they fought fast!

Otherwise, in the midst of a fierce battle, if such bad news came, what would happen to the morale? The direction of the battlefield situation was not yet known.

To avoid long nights and many dreams, the Great Ming army went all out this time, even dispatching the Trap-Breaking Battalion. In terms of Zhongzhou's terrain, it was simply too favorable for the defenders.

If they couldn't break through quickly, the Great Ming army would have to shrink back to Yeoju and discuss it from a long-term perspective.

"Fortunately, the Japanese pirates are now in a rout and cannot organize a counterattack." Chen Dacheng said with lingering fear.

Qi Jiguang looked at everyone and said with a smile: "It's okay, the loss is not serious. There are still 40,000 jin of gunpowder on the front line and 110,000 jin of gunpowder in the rear. Even if we hold our ground, we can wait for logistical supplies."

Qi Jiguang and Chen Lin, the commanders of the land and sea forces, both knew very well that the Penglai Huang family was never just a facade for the Emperor to go out of the palace to play. There were 300,000 jin of gunpowder in Penglai, and as long as there was a need, it could be replenished to Hancheng within three to five days.

Moreover, after finishing Zhongzhou City, the frontline army still had 40,000 jin of gunpowder. If used sparingly, it could last for several months.

The Great Ming army's exploration of full-firearm combat was not that they couldn't fight without gunpowder; on the contrary, even without gunpowder, the Great Ming army still had an overwhelming advantage over Japan.

Of course, the Great Ming army's gunpowder had always been oversaturated.

Qi Jiguang attached great importance to logistics, so even the long-planned surprise attack by the Japanese pirates did not cause fatal damage.

"I'm afraid it was caused by collusion between inside and outside." Li Rusong said with a heavy expression: "The defense of the gunpowder depots has always been strict. Let alone blowing them up, the Japanese pirates couldn't even find them."

On the third day of the fifth month of the fifteenth year of Wanli, the Ming capital became lively again because of the "Opening of the Wine Inspection Day." All the major wine merchants were putting in their best efforts this year to compete for the title of "World's Best Wine," and this year's favorites to win were the "Immortal Wine" from Shanghai County and the "Fast Qu Wine" from the Northern Yamen.

Because the Royal Institute of Technology and Shanghai University had unique advantages in microbial engineering.

The two schools had isolated hundreds of strains from wine starters across various regions. During the fermentation process of wine, these strains would produce various flavor substances, including sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, salty, fresh, and astringent tastes.

The research progress centered on bacterial groups, flavor substances, and mouthfeel determined the ranking on the Opening of the Wine Inspection Day. The better one understood the research, the more delicious the wine would be.

The competition in wine starters and microbial engineering made the Northern and Southern Academies like needles against awns, swearing to win the top spot in this Opening of the Wine Inspection Day.

The Ming's Opening of the Wine Inspection Day had reached its fifth year. Except for the first year, which was very rushed, in every subsequent year, the wine workshop that won the top spot gained huge economic benefits.

Some wine workshops expanded their production scale several times over in just one year. The stoves were like houses, and the smoke rose up, visible from several miles away.

The "National Cellar" wine brewed from the residue left after making starch from sweet potatoes and potatoes didn't taste very good, and it couldn't even be considered grain wine, but it was still the top seller of Ming wine.

After all, this stuff was sold in the Imperial Manor. It wasn't good to drink and was dead expensive, but those who drank it didn't dare to say it was bad, fearing that they would be kicked by the Tax Inspection guards the next day.

While the Ming was in the midst of the Opening of the Wine Inspection Day, the Joseon battlefield ushered in new changes.

Even though Qi Jiguang carefully controlled the speed of the advance, the Ming army still advanced to the outskirts of Chungju City. The main army and the central camp were stationed at Wanfu Pagoda on Son of Heaven Mountain, while the vanguard had already arrived at the foot of Chungju City.

The capital of Joseon was called Hancheng, and there was a river in Hancheng called the Hanjiang. Chungju was on the upper reaches of the Hanjiang. After the Japanese pirates broke through Chungju, the advance to the north would be smooth sailing.

"Chungju is on the upper reaches of the Hanjiang and is the gateway to the Joseon capital. If Chungju is not defended, the hundreds of miles along the river will all be enemy territory. If our army does not take Chungju, we cannot continue to advance southeast to recover lost territory. Chungju is of vital importance." Chen Dacheng introduced the strategic position of Chungju.

Chungju and Hancheng drank the water of the Hanjiang together. The Ming army had to take Chungju first before it could operate on a large scale to recover lost territory; otherwise, the battles of Hancheng and Incheon would have been in vain.

As soon as the Ming army moved, the Japanese pirates would pounce, and the Ming army would be attacked from the front and back.

"Actually, the Joseon righteous army can also defend Hancheng." Li Shunchen had already arrived at the front line of Wanfu Pagoda on Son of Heaven Mountain from Pyongyang.

He proposed a suggestion: let the Joseon army defend Hancheng, Yangpyeong, and Yeoju, and let the Ming army advance southeast to recover Cheongju, Geumsan, Gunsan, Jeonju, Gwangju, and other places.

The only problem was whether the Joseon army could defend Hancheng.

Qi Jiguang shook his head and said: "Currently, Cheonan is being defended by the Liaodong army. Let's just take Chungju first. It's not that I don't trust the Joseon righteous army. I know very well that the Joseon righteous army led by General Li is completely different from the previous Joseon army."

"But General Li must also consider that the Ming army came across the sea and cannot tolerate even the slightest failure. Once it fails, the result will be a total loss. Not only will Joseon lose, but the Ming will also lose, and the Wanli Reform will also lose."

"Can you understand? To save Joseon, His Majesty has also pushed the Ming's national destiny onto the battlefield. This is a battle that can only be won and cannot be lost."

Qi Jiguang gave his reasons. It was really not that he didn't believe in the combat effectiveness of the Joseon righteous army.

The bravery of this batch of righteous army in battle was something even Li Rusong praised repeatedly.

Li Rusong once saw through a telescope a Joseon righteous soldier who, despite having been stabbed in the arm and shoulder and having a huge gash on his head, bit the Japanese pirate's hand tightly, using his elbows, shoulders, teeth, gouging eyes, and kicking the lower parts, finally snatching the opponent's short sword and killing him in a ditch.

The entire battle lasted for nearly a quarter of an hour. When Li Rusong led his troops to reinforce, this righteous soldier had already killed his opponent.

The accompanying physician treated the righteous soldier. Although he didn't lose his life, one eye was gone forever.

The Joseon righteous army wanted revenge, fierce revenge. The only thought they had while living was to kill the Japanese pirates.

The hatred of the righteous army toward the Japanese pirates came from broken homes, from the country being destroyed and mountains and rivers no longer existing, and from bloody hatred. The Joseon righteous army had also suffered thousands of casualties to take down a mountain city built by the Japanese pirates.

This was a group of very brave people.

The Korean righteous army had a ninety percent chance of being able to hold off the mad dog attacks of the Japanese pirates, but there was a ten percent chance they might be defeated, and Qi Jiguang could not make such a decision.

Call him, Qi Jiguang, greedy for life and afraid of death if you will, or call him timid and cowardly, but in the Korean War, Qi Jiguang could not afford to lose.

The Japanese pirates had invaded, and Great Ming had no choice but to fight; otherwise, once the Japanese pirates landed, Great Ming would have no peace for generations, for thousands and ten thousand years.

"Zhongzhou is not easy to attack." Li Shunchen placed the topographical map of Zhongzhou on the table and said with a heavy expression: "The two tributaries of the Hanjiang meet at Tanqin Terrace, and the water flows rapidly. On the outskirts of Zhongzhou City, there are also four mountain fortresses guarding it: Jiming Mountain Fortress, Nanshan Mountain Fortress, Houshan Mountain Fortress, and Dalin Mountain Fortress."

"Nanshan Mountain Fortress and Zhongzhou City form a pincer formation, which is almost adding frost to snow."

"We have to cross the river to attack, and we also have to take down the surrounding mountain fortresses one by one before we can thoroughly take Zhongzhou."

Zhongzhou was a hard nut to crack. If we didn't take Zhongzhou, Great Ming couldn't continue to recover lost territory, but taking Zhongzhou was also very difficult.

"Indeed, Zhongzhou is surrounded by mountains on two sides and water on two sides, leaning against the mountains and rivers. No matter how you look at it, it is a place where one man can hold the pass against ten thousand. How was such an important city lost?"

"It was a collapse without a fight; it was handed over to others." Wang Rulong looked at Li Shunchen and said: "If it weren't for the various decisions of the deposed Korean King Li Yan, where would the Great Ming army need to bite such a hard nut?"

"If Li Yan had acted like a human being, could Zhongzhou City have been lost? The Japanese pirates didn't grow wings; could they have flown?"

The Southern Song Dynasty also had such a city, called Diaoyu City. Even Möngke, the Great Khan of the Mongols who almost pierced through the West, could only drink hatred at the foot of Diaoyu City.

When Möngke participated in the Mongol expedition of the eldest sons, he conquered the Rus' lands and became the founder of the Golden Horde. The Golden Horde collected taxes there until the fifteenth year of Hongzhi.

And the Zhongzhou City that the Great Ming army was facing had terrain somewhat similar to Diaoyu City.

Hard to attack.

Qi Jiguang reached out and said: "Li Rusong and Ma Lin will each lead two infantry battalions to cross the river from the northeast and attack Jiming Mountain."

"Chen Dacheng and Wang Rulong will each lead two infantry battalions to cross the river from the southwest and attack Dalin Mountain and Houshan."

"Li Shunchen will lead his own troops to feign an attack on Tanqin Terrace. The momentum must be great; beat the drums and blow the horns. I will give you another 120 boats. Tomorrow at dawn, immediately create momentum to attract the attention of the Japanese pirates in Zhongzhou City."

"Strive to take Zhongzhou in three days!"

"This general obeys the order!" The various generals accepted the order.

Qi Jiguang had already made specific deployments. The hardest nut to crack was given to Li Rusong and Ma Lin, while the relatively weaker Dalin Mountain and Houshan directions were given to Chen Dacheng. This part was mainly a diversion, making the enemy think they were being attacked from all sides and unable to cope.

"Commander Qi, does the Great Ming army intend to use elite troops to fill the mountain fortress?" Li Shunchen clenched his fists and said: "Give me the hardest nut to crack, Nanshan Mountain Fortress! I will go and bite it."

The Japanese-style mountain fortress, with its labyrinthine design, was truly impossible to guard against. The only way to deal with this kind of mountain fortress was to fill it with human lives.

"Of course, we don't intend to fill it with human lives." Qi Jiguang shook his head and said: "Nine-jin cannons will pry open the turtle shell, and the Great Ming army just needs to go in."

"Ah?" Li Shunchen was stunned for a moment.

Qi Jiguang said with a face full of smiles: "His Majesty noticed that the frontline battle had encountered resistance from the mountain fortress and specifically mobilized 10,000 sets of iron-mixed armor from the rear to use heavy infantry to pry open the turtle shell."

Li Shunchen's eyes gradually widened, and he said blankly: "10,000 sets?!"

Li Shunchen knew too well how terrifying Great Ming's iron-mixed armor was.

Tiger-power bows and flat-barbarian guns also needed sixty paces to pierce the armor, and they had to be shot accurately enough; otherwise, those curved surfaces would deflect the arrowheads and lead bullets, failing to cause effective damage.

And the sixty-jin bows commonly used by the Japanese pirates simply could not pierce the armor.

10,000 sets of iron-mixed armor, coupled with the extremely high armor-wearing rate of the frontline soldiers, were enough to let every Great Ming soldier wear armor to pry open the turtle shell.

Qi Jiguang said with great emotion: "In 'The Art of War,' I repeatedly emphasized that the essence of war is the competition of manpower, material resources, and human hearts. And Great Ming's national strength is formidable; facing various complex battlefield environments, we can always come up with different targeted methods."

"Undoubtedly, in the wild, unarmored musketeers are more convenient to move and can carry more gunpowder to kill the enemy more efficiently."

"In siege warfare, especially in Japanese mountain fortresses dominated by roads, heavy infantry is its nemesis."

"The Art of War" was a military strategy that transitioned from cold weapons to firearms.

He had begun to think about this set of military strategy since he went to Jizhou to resist the barbarians, but he had always lacked practice and couldn't practice it. To practice the contents of "The Art of War," it was really too expensive.

Theories without practice to verify them, no matter how far-sighted, were just empty talk on paper.