Chapter 1481: The Plan Is Viable

After unifying the realm, His Majesty banished the former Ming imperial clan to live among the common people, and all these imperial estates were naturally confiscated by the new dynasty. Since the palace institutions had been abolished, these imperial estates were naturally transferred from the Imperial Horse Bureau to the Grand Secretariat, representing the court.

After the management personnel were replaced, the agricultural output and grain produced here entered the court's granaries and fell under the administration of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Civil Affairs. They then discovered, to their astonishment, that the quantity of grain was enormous. If distributed frugally, it could roughly meet the winter needs of Baoding and several surrounding prefectures. And this was despite agricultural production in these nearby prefectures having been disrupted by years of consecutive famine and warfare, with a severe shortage of labor for irrigation and farming!

While secretly rejoicing at this "windfall from heaven," the officials of the two ministries and the Chancellor also sighed inwardly. The entire upper and lower echelons of the late Ming court were indeed rotten to the core—truly shocking to hear.

If all this grain had properly entered the granaries of the former Ming, the former Ming court might have been able to provide some relief, and so many people would not have been reduced to refugees. Perhaps the realm would not have descended into such chaos, perhaps the former Ming would not have fallen so quickly, and the Great Han might not have been able to replace the Great Ming so readily... The decay of officialdom could wreak such devastation—truly terrifying!

But that is all hindsight now.

The Chancellor and the Grand Secretariat kept this matter well concealed and merely severely punished the managers of those imperial estates. Using this grain that had appeared out of nowhere, the court fairly well resolved the famine in the Northern Metropolitan Region and the capital area. The new dynasty also won the hearts of the people through this; everyone felt that His Majesty's change of reign title and founding of the dynasty was the very mandate of Heaven. Even those scholars and gentry in the Northern Metropolitan Region who were discontented with the new dynasty had no choice but to secretly rein in their rebellious sentiments and reluctantly cooperate with the new dynasty's rule.

The Chancellor, of course, had no intention of explaining the specifics to the irrelevant people at this meeting. To put some pressure on Zhao Song, he deliberately made the situation sound somewhat more severe, to spur Zhao Song to fight even harder.

After speaking, the Chancellor looked back at Zhao Song. "Count of Xingyang, do you understand?"

"Understood!" Zhao Song straightened his back and then replied, "In this offensive, what we must strive for is a quick battle and a swift resolution, while relying as much as possible on local supply, so as not to place too great a burden on the home front. According to our plan, after we launch the operation at the turn of spring and summer next year, even if we cannot completely crush the shogunate within three months and force it to surrender and sue for peace, we will still be able to occupy a certain amount of Japanese territory and then carry out the autumn harvest, reducing the need for transport from home!"

"You've put some thought into this." The Chancellor was rather satisfied with Zhao Song's reply. He then lowered his head to look at the copy of the plan that Zhao Song and others had transcribed. "After setting out from Goryeo, you will first take Kyushu as a base of operations, and then proceed with the next phase of combat?"

"Yes. Kyushu is very close to Goryeo and its area is not too large, so it can be occupied as quickly as possible and then used as a springboard for a further advance into the Japanese mainland. At the same time, Kyushu's agricultural output is also quite abundant, and during summer and autumn it can provide our army with large quantities of grain, easing the transport burden on our rear-area navy." Zhao Song laid out his calculations. "Furthermore, Kyushu is extremely far from Edo, the shogunate's core territory. There must be powerful local clans on the island who are deeply dissatisfied with the shogunate and can be used by us!"

"Well, this coincides perfectly with our own thinking!" The Chancellor was first startled, then suddenly broke into a smile. He glanced at Viscount of Keqin, Kong Zhang, who was seated far away on his side of the round table.

Kong Zhang also smiled. "Indeed, heroes see things alike. Our Foreign Affairs Department's thinking is also to mobilize the clans on Kyushu who are dissatisfied with the shogunate and use them for our army! If the General intends to strike at Kyushu from the very start, then the Foreign Affairs Department and the General can coordinate with each other."

"Oh? That would be wonderful!" Zhao Song's eyes also lit up, and he nodded with great delight. "May I ask what specific plans your esteemed department has?"

"Plans would be too strong a word; we only have some preliminary ideas. We have found out that Shimazu Tadatsune, the daimyo of the Satsuma Domain on Kyushu, harbors resentment against the shogunate for suppressing the non-Tokugawa clans and usurping power. He is very eager to overthrow the shogunate's rule and restore his family's renown. Moreover, the Shimazu clan once ran rampant across Kyushu for a time and is certainly very familiar with every aspect of the island. If we can secure their assistance, the court's grand army crossing the sea to occupy Kyushu will be considerably easier. Likewise, there are many other clans on Kyushu who share their mindset. If we manage things carefully, some of them will surely be usable by us, helping our army occupy Kyushu as quickly as possible and laying the groundwork for the next phase of operations."

"Excellent, excellent!" Zhao Song was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly.

To be honest, the information provided by the Foreign Affairs Department had exceeded his original expectations. He had not imagined that these civil officials could do so much work for them behind the scenes. "Since your esteemed department is in charge of foreign affairs, you naturally have many people well-versed in Japanese matters. If I, Zhao Song, have the assistance of your department's people on this expedition, I expect to achieve twice the result with half the effort. I earnestly request your esteemed department's ample assistance!"

"It is only right, only right." Kong Zhang also smiled and nodded repeatedly.

At this moment, the Chancellor had flipped to a later section of the plan copy. "There are two operational plans this time? And it hasn't been decided yet which one to use?"

"Yes, after several days of joint study, we have two proposals." Zhao Song immediately shifted his gaze back to the Chancellor. "The first: our army seizes Kyushu with lightning speed, then advances northward along the island... crosses the strait to occupy Shimonoseki, and lands on Honshu. Then we advance northward along the coast through Tokuyama, Hiroshima, Fukuyama, and Kurashiki, and finally strike directly at Kyoto! According to our intelligence, the shogun has usurped the state and disrupted governance. The Japanese court and their monarch must harbor considerable resentment toward them in their hearts, and are likely eager to restore their own power, but they dare not move for fear of the shogunate's military might. Therefore, as long as we occupy Kyoto and then find a way to gain the support of the Japanese court, raising the court's banner, the clans across the land who are dissatisfied with the shogunate will surely rise up against it. The shogunate, overwhelmed with troubles, will then have no choice but to hastily raise a grand army to march west and attack Kyoto, and then engage our army in a decisive battle. At that time, our army can wait at ease for the exhausted enemy, increasing our odds of victory. Once the decisive battle is won, the shogunate's rule will naturally crumble into disintegration, and more wavering clans will rise up together to strike back at the shogunate. By then, in their precarious state, they will certainly no longer dare to fight our army and will have no choice but to sue for peace!"

"Interesting." Although Zhao Song spoke with fervent passion, the Chancellor did not appear very stirred and remained quite calm.

He turned his head slightly, his gaze leaving the oval conference table at the center, and then drifted to a young, minor official seated in an inconspicuous spot by the wall.

"Zhihe, did you hear that? You are very familiar with Japan. Tell us, is this plan viable or not?"

All eyes suddenly focused on that young man with the Chancellor's words, including His Majesty seated upon the throne.

Zhou Pu, utterly unprepared, was momentarily flustered. Even his face reddened slightly. It was only with great effort that he suppressed his panic, regained his composure, and then slowly stood up.

"This is Zhou Pu, an official of the Foreign Affairs Department, specifically responsible for matters concerning Japan. He is quite familiar with all levels of Japanese society, and it is largely thanks to him that I have been able to grasp a general outline of this expedition plan against Japan." The Chancellor pointed at Zhou Pu while introducing him to His Majesty and the others.

"Oh? The Zhou Pu who wrote that proposal?" His Majesty had an excellent memory and immediately recalled the proposal and its author's name that the Chancellor had previously presented to him. He then scrutinized this young official once more—a man of sturdy build and fairly handsome features.

"Hmm, not bad, not bad. He has the look of someone capable."

His Majesty's praise made the young man's heart surge with even greater excitement—to be praised by His Majesty to his face, what a blessing of several lifetimes! To be remembered by His Majesty, could soaring success be far off?

"Your subject... Your subject thanks His Majesty!" Zhou Pu wanted to kneel and express his gratitude, but suddenly recalled the meeting discipline that others had previously enjoined upon him. So he merely bowed to His Majesty in thanks, yet that heartfelt gratitude was conveyed to His Majesty without the slightest reservation.

"Don't be in a rush to thank me. I'm still waiting for you to give your opinion." His Majesty waved his hand. "Don't be nervous. Speak freely."

How could he not be nervous? Zhou Pu smiled wryly to himself.

Zhou Pu was simply too agitated. His grandfather, his father—how could they ever have imagined that one day he would be able to speak eloquently before His Majesty? This was a glory that their family had not experienced for generations. How could he treat such glory lightly?

Yet he also understood in his heart that this glory had to be repaid through his own performance, and mere tearful gratitude was useless; he had to demonstrate genuine substance and ability.

He also knew that he possessed it.

He took a deep breath, and then, at a speed that surprised even himself, he calmed down once more.

"In reply to His Majesty, your subject believes this plan is well-reasoned and well-founded, and entirely viable!"

Because he so resolutely endorsed his plan, a look of delight immediately surfaced on Zhao Song's face.

"Hey, those words are pleasant to hear... but I wonder if they are meant merely to make us happy, or if there is truly a well-reasoned argument behind them?" His Majesty, however, merely smiled faintly. "State your reasoning."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Zhou Pu stood up, brimming with excitement, and then immediately continued, "Brigade Commander Zhao said that within Japan, those who do not submit to the shogunate's authority are numerous. These words are not false. Japan has been ravaged by war for many years. The shogunate was only established thirty years ago, and at that time, there were already many powerful clans with heavy troops opposing them. It was not until a dozen or so years ago, when the shogunate launched two campaigns against Osaka Castle, that they slaughtered the majority of the opposition and established their unquestionable authority. However, even so, there are still many who oppose the shogunate; they simply dare not voice it openly."