Chapter 3551
Chapter 3551
Chapter 3551
Kyushu is the closest region to Korea in the Japanese archipelago, and these companies have had a lot of exchanges with Korea. Whether it was the pioneers of the Imjin War, or Korea became the gateway for Japan's trade with Korea after it became close to Shanghai, these companies were at the forefront.
But precisely because they have a better understanding of the situation in North Korea, they have no intention of fighting alongside North Korea.
Putting aside the two countries' age-old feud, North Korea has been supported by Hai Han for many years, and its current military strength is certainly above that of the Kyushu Alliance. If it is allowed to send troops to participate in the war, it may be easier said than done, and it is hard to say who will be the winner of the war in the end.
The Tsushima clan's move to introduce the Korean army to assist in defense undoubtedly broke the tacit understanding among the various clans in Kyushu. However, considering the fact that the Korean army did repel the shogunate army and saved the Tsushima clan's homeland, it seems inappropriate to directly criticize So Yoshizane.
Since the Korean army that aided Tsushima had already fought against the shogunate army, strictly speaking, they were also participating in the war. However, the lord of Satsuma, Shimazu Mitsuhisa, immediately questioned whether Tsushima's actions had been approved by Hai Han.
"This was originally a proposal from General Shi Diwen. After he proposed the plan, I went to the King of Korea to discuss the matter."
When it comes to this issue, Zong Yizhen is quite confident. It was Shi Diwen's idea to bring the Koreans in. It was definitely not Tsushima's willful behavior or any trick of killing first and reporting later.
Zong Yizhen brought up Shi Diwen's name, and the others were speechless. Some people even secretly thanked themselves for not rushing to criticize him, otherwise it would be the same as scolding Shi Diwen.
The lords of several domains had their own plans in mind, but no one was willing to ask the most crucial question. In the end, it was the youngest lord of Kumamoto Domain, Hosokawa Tsunayoshi, who took the initiative to ask the question.
“Master Zong, do you think Hai Han wants us to bring in the Korean army to join the war?”
If Hai Han did this intentionally, then they would have to seriously consider the arrangements after introducing the Korean army, especially the issue of post-war distribution of interests. They must not allow North Korea, an outsider, to take over.
Zong Yizhen was a smart man, so he was not going to be fooled by this. He quickly said, "I don't know what Hai Han meant. General Shi was just responding to my suggestion to Ma Fan. If you have any ideas, you can ask General Shi directly."
As for whether the other companies should introduce the Korean army as reinforcement or even directly participate in the war, Zong Yizhen would definitely not take the blame for them. He immediately cut off all ties with them and asked them to go to Shi Diwen for instructions on their own.
As for the request for Tsushima Domain to act as a middleman to contact the Koreans, So Yoshizane politely declined all requests.
It's not like Korea sent troops for free. A lot of conditions were put forward in exchange, and a lot of negotiation was spent to reach a cooperation agreement. Zong Yizhen was not interested in negotiating with Li Li again on behalf of other fiefs.
Although the other families did not question Tsushima Domain's actions, they all had roughly the same idea in their minds - since Tsushima Domain could do it, why can't I do it?
So after these meetings, the feudal lords came to Shi Diwen one after another, and either directly or indirectly asked him about his views on introducing the Korean army to assist in defense.
Shi Diwen didn't expect that these families would get the news so quickly, but he was prepared for this. He knew how the Tsushima clan operated before, so he just had to let the other families follow suit.
Li Li, who was originally preparing to return home, suddenly had a large number of visitors to his camp. The lords of various Kyushu domains came to visit him one after another, all to consult him about sending troops to assist in defense. Li Li could not help but be overjoyed. After defeating the shogunate army in the Battle of Asu Bay, he had not yet calculated the relevant expenses with the Tsushima domain. He did not expect that this battle would make him famous and bring him so much business.
As long as these companies can offer corresponding treatment, Li Yi doesn't mind letting his troops temporarily play the role of mercenaries.
Moreover, Li Yi’s idea was the same as the other party’s. Since Hai Han was acting as a guarantor, there was no need to worry about the other party breaking the contract.
As for whether there would be an opportunity to directly participate in the war in the later stages and whether he could gain more benefits from the war, Li Yi was not worried.
During the time he spent watching the battle in Northern Kyushu, he had already seen through the strength of the Kyushu coalition. Although these clans had received military assistance from Hai Han, it was too short a time before they became powerful enough. The few new troops they had trained were enough to establish their own regimes, but they still lacked sufficient war potential to overthrow the shogunate's rule and completely defeat an enemy army that was several times their size on the battlefield.
The request for defense assistance from North Korea is a reflection of their lack of strength. As these countries have been exhausted in the end, their reliance on the North Korean army will only increase. It should not be difficult to negotiate new cooperation conditions at that time.
The only thing that made Li Yi a little uneasy was that if he wanted to provide military aid to the entire Kyushu, the scale of the troops would be large, and in the face of actual combat, he could not use those second- and third-tier troops to make up the numbers. After withdrawing a large number of combat troops from the country, the defense would inevitably be empty.
Li Yi was not worried that the shogunate army would divide its forces to attack Korea, but rather that the small northern court that was now competing with him would take advantage of this critical moment to cause trouble in the country.
As if knowing Li Li’s difficulties, Hai Han gave him a reassurance at the right time.
Chen Yixin, who is about to return to the northern region, announced that he would visit North Korea on the way, and made it clear to Li Yi that this trip would not only go to Seoul, but also to Pyongyang, so that the North and South sides can continue to maintain the current stable situation.
This was actually just a greeting to Li Li that the situation he was worried about would not happen in North Korea, as Hai Han would keep an eye on it for him. Li Li understood this as a move by Hai Han to encourage North Korea to send troops.
“Father, since Hai Han wants our country to send troops to protect the Kyushu coalition, why don’t we make this matter public so that our country can go to war in the name of attacking the Tokugawa shogunate!”
After hearing his son Li Bai's question, Li Yi patiently explained, "The situation Hai Han wants to achieve is a civil war in Japan. However, when they were planning, they probably didn't expect that the Kyushu coalition's war potential was limited. After more than a month of fighting, they began to expose their weaknesses. If no measures are taken, the Kyushu coalition will probably be defeated in a few months."
"If our country openly sends troops to join the war, the nature of this war will change. After all, these families in Kyushu are Japanese, and they may not be on the same page with us."
"At this stage, we just need to send troops to assist in the defense. Wait for the Kyushu coalition to slowly wear down the front line. The greater the consumption, the greater the dependence on us. In the later stages of the war, if we want to do something, they will be powerless to stop us."
Li Bai asked, "Will Hai Han stop us then?"
Li Yi said, “As long as we don’t become enemies with the Kyushu coalition, what reason does Hai Han have to stop us? I will negotiate with the Kyushu coalition at that time, using the Kanmon Strait as the boundary. They will seize the southern part of Honshu, and we will occupy the northern coast of Honshu.”