Bright Spring

The flowers on the treetops have been broken, scattered petals are floating in the air, only the ground is covered with withered cherry blossoms.Cherry blossoms with a very short flowering period, when people see her withering, they can't help but think of it, as if it was only yesterday when they saw her in full bloom.

Not far away, under the cherry tree, stood a few armored warriors. They all held the handle of the Japanese sword and looked at Ouchi Shengjian eagerly, with very anxious expressions on their faces.Those samurai obviously don't like Ouchi Shengjian and are in the mood to watch the cherry blossoms.

Ouchi Sheng saw in his heart, but he was not necessarily calm, otherwise he would not subconsciously sing such a poem full of sadness and regret.

The situation in front of him really made him feel regretful, heartbroken, and in a dilemma.

In just a day or two, his strategy went bankrupt; the line of defense planned at the beginning was broken before it was fully established.When Ouchi Sheng Jian suddenly woke up, he still seemed to be sleepwalking.

The fatal gap, the valley at the southern foot of Mt. Bofu!

Previously, Ouchi Shengjian immediately responded and adjusted after confirming the landing site of the Ming army.He ordered the defenders of Shima County in the northwest peninsula to go south to deploy defenses to the south of Mount Banfu; at the same time, he mobilized reinforcements from Kasuya County to march southwest, and the target was still south of Mount Banfu.Ouchi Shengjian intends to block this passage immediately.

It stands to reason that it was completely in time, and the Ming army had just begun to land at that time.It is common sense to speculate that the expeditionary Ming army had just arrived, and I am afraid that it was too late to figure out where the Japanese army was and the specific local terrain. How could they know the deployment and intentions of the Japanese army?

However, things were very unexpected and backfired.

Ouchi Shengjian received the news today that the Shima County defenders had been blocked, their survival was unknown, and they could not reach their destination according to the military order; A blocking attack was implemented.

At this time, the main forces of the Ouchi family were all in the north of Mt. Banfu and along the Xiashan Gate defense line along the coast.Seeing this morning, Ouchi Sheng sent another urgent order to dispatch the second batch of reinforcements from Xiashan Gate to the south to reinforce the Nanzhangkou of Bofu Mountain.

But these transfers don't necessarily work.Ouchi Shengjian realized that the southern front battlefield was likely to be lost.

It has only been two or three days since the Ming army began to land, and the situation on the battlefield has changed drastically.Such a speed is simply unbelievable...

If only the first step in the strategy failed, even if he had to abandon Hakata Port, Kasuya County, or even the entire Chikuzen Kingdom, Ouchi Shengjian would not feel so sad.

The most terrible thing now is that almost all the elite forces of the Ouchi family have gathered in the northern part of Mount Bofu and the Xiashanmen area!

If the main force of the Japanese army in Kasuya County immediately retreats to Dazaifu in the south according to the second step of the plan, then the Ouchi Army in the Xiashanmen area will soon face the enemy's siege and attack, and the doom of destruction cannot be avoided.The foundation of power that the Ouchi family has built up for many years will be completely ruined in a short time.

And if the main force of the Japanese army in Kasuya County moves closer to the Ouchi Army in the west, then this battle will soon turn into a large-scale joint battle.Hundreds of thousands of people from both sides were fighting in the open field, Ouchi Shengjian felt that the chances of winning were very low.

The choice was actually simple: try to preserve the main force of the Ouchi army, or preserve the main force of the entire Japanese army?It is clear at a glance which is big and which is small, if Da Nei Sheng Jian is not the governor of Da Nei's family.

At this time, a samurai hurriedly walked into the door, bent down under the tree and said, "My lord, Sibo Guan invites my lord to discuss matters immediately."

Ouchi Sheng Jian nodded, stared at him, turned around with a decisive attitude, and walked out the door.

Tao Jing, the city lord of Kasuya County soon caught up, and said in a low voice in front of the horse that Ouchi Sheng saw: "My lord, why don't you order the samurai of the Ouchi family in the north of Mount Bofu to ride away from the fortress?"

Tao Jing is very smart, so he must have understood the crisis at this time.

Ouchi Shengjian scolded: "As soon as the samurai leave, the northern fortress of Bofu Mountain will immediately fall apart, and the enemy army will rush eastward from the sea to pursue the main force of our army."

On the road not far away, another warrior on horseback came.Seeing Ouchi Shengjian, the warrior hurried forward and said, "More enemy cavalry appeared on the east side of Bofu Mountain! Our second batch of reinforcements also encountered attacks."

Ouchi Sheng Jian nodded without showing the slightest surprise.

Now that the enemy has found the road to the south of Bofu Mountain, and dared to come forward with a small cavalry vanguard and venture deep alone, its generals must have realized the importance of that direction, so how could there be no follow-up reinforcements?

Ouchi Shengjian rode to the Chinese army with his entourage.When he arrived at a house, he saw several generals including Shiba Yishige, Hosokawa, and Yamana were inside.

All the generals came to see the big nephew, maybe they wanted to persuade the big nephew?So that he can make self-sacrifice and save the overall situation?

Unexpectedly, the chief general Shiba Yizhong said, "The situation is urgent. The original defense plan is out of date. The army of Kasuya County should immediately march westward to the vicinity of Mount Bofu."

Originally thought that Ouchi's family was about to end, but Ouchi Shengjian suddenly heard such words from the mouth of the chief general Spoko.Ouchi Shengjian couldn't stand the temptation immediately, and a little hope was ignited.

"I'm afraid it's against the strategy we agreed in advance. This method is a bit hasty." Daming said.The Yamana family was also a powerful guardian in the past, known as "six points and one hall".But his words were very reserved, because opposing Shiba's proposal was equivalent to abandoning Ouchi.

Hosokawa, the commander in chief of the South Route Army and one of the leaders of the Muromachi Hall, also echoed: "The issue that was originally reached was not a fight to the death."

Ouchi Shengjian didn't say a word.

Shiba Yishige was opposed when he opened his mouth, and he was obviously very displeased.With a fierce look on his face, he said coldly: "It's very unfortunate that the army dare not fight. If one arm is cut off today, the situation will force it to give up another arm tomorrow. If this continues, you will definitely lose! If you attack with all your strength, your reputation will last forever." live."

Yamana turned his head to look at the silent Ouchi Shengjian and asked, "What's your opinion, Ouchi-kun?"

Ouchi Shengjian felt that what Spoel said was not unreasonable. After all, as long as the war is not over, no one can fully determine the outcome.Of course, the most important thing is that Ouchi Shengjian is willing to believe in Spock's claims.

However, in the depths of Ouchi Shengjian's heart, he still maintains an unbiased rationality: Once he decides to join forces, he will invest the essence of the entire Japanese force. How serious the consequences will be if the outcome is a snap of the fingers?I'm afraid it can't be overestimated.

The battle where the Japanese army repelled the Yuan invaders more than a hundred years ago has had an impact until today; how long will the outcome of this decisive battle determine the fate of Japan?

Who would dare to believe that the choice between the ups and downs of "Tianxia" (the Japanese vassal states) is at this moment?

Daming suddenly said coldly: "Ouchi-kun's hesitation has confirmed the situation."

Sibo Yizhong said: "The enemy army came from a long way by sea, and their foothold is not stable. Our army is several times larger than the enemy, but we have to abandon the soldiers and horses of the Ouchi family. Who will bear such a fault in the future? Retreating may not necessarily win the battle. It’s not entirely impossible.”

Ouchi Shengjian bowed and said: "You are the chief general, please make a decision!"

Shiba Yoshishige pulled out the Japanese sword with a "swish", and suddenly raised it and said loudly: "His Majesty the Emperor, long live!"

Several people were stunned for a moment, and they had no choice but to echo: "Long live!"

Shiba Yoshigetsu's determined shout did not move Ouchi Shengjian, but rather shocked him.

However, the decision to join the war still made Ouchi Shengjian feel temporarily relieved; because in this way, the power of the Ouchi family would not be destroyed immediately.Japanese people will not sympathize with losers. Ouchi Sheng Jian knows that once he loses everything, all that awaits him is humiliation|humiliation and contempt.

From Kasuya County, where the army is stationed, to the lower gate of the Ouchi family's fortress, Bofu Mountain, there is still a journey of nearly forty miles.Shiba Yishige decided to gather the whole army today and set off tomorrow morning.If there was no interference from the cavalry of the Ming army, the army would be able to reach the vicinity of Bofu Mountain within a day.

Military orders were conveyed to various barracks one after another, and the morale of the Japanese generals was high and they were actively preparing for war.Most of the people had never fought against the Ming army; in addition, the voice of the main combat faction in "Luoyang" was very high, and they may have carried out some false agitation, so that most of the soldiers from the eastern countries were eager to fight.

Ouchi Sheng Jian left the Chinese army, stopped near a barracks, and stopped his horse, watching the soldiers over there.Some samurai over there were practicing, and they stood intently, and suddenly they drew their katana swords and swung them forward.

Ouchi Shengjian was also encouraged.When he returned to his residence, he knelt down under the cherry tree and meditated.After all, things have come to this point, only to go all out.

In "swordsmanship", fear and looking forward and backward are taboos; only with one heart and one mind, at the moment of knocking down the opponent, can the danger be truly relieved.Such determination and tension gradually made Ouchi Shengjian feel a little bit of pleasure.

The petals that occasionally fall to the ground are silent.Ouchi Shengjian seems to be feeling their quietness, looking for inner peace and concentration without distracting thoughts.

A sharp knife light kept appearing in his mind.But Ouchi Shengjian understands that he has always just hidden his fear; such a major responsibility for the world can only be forgotten by all the people who share his fear.

In the early morning of the next day, the genius was dim.All over Kasuya County, there have been massive shouts, "Oh..." The shouts in a very special tone of ups and downs are constantly rippling in the air.The weather is sunny and the temperature is pleasant, and the season of late spring is just right.

Ouchi Shengjian also set off with his retainers and guards. His team is the simplest because there are not many people.Almost all of the troops of the Ouchi family are stationed in the area near the sea to the north of Mount Bofu.At this time, the troops from all walks of life were tens of thousands of reinforcements from various countries in Japan.

The Ouchi family crest with a four-leaf flower wrapped in a rhombus flutters in the wind on the flag.All Japanese troops gathered in the Hakata area, making it full of unprecedented prosperity.

Chapter 8 Twelve Cherry Blossoms in Hakata (3)

According to estimates by the Ming army on horseback riding, the mountain body of Bofu Mountain extends for more than 20 miles from north to south, and more than ten miles wide from east to west; to the south of Bofu Mountain is a larger continuous mountain range.This kind of large mountain forest has steep and complicated terrain, and a large number of troops are absolutely unwilling to enter the mountain unless they are forced to.

Shengyong, the main force of the Ming army, had about three infantry battalions and 8000 soldiers. They set out from the coastal battalion in the north and marched roughly southward. In the afternoon, all the troops approached the valley entrance at the southern foot of Mount Bofu.The marching distance was about 30 miles that day.

Compared with the lower mountain gate passage with highlands, forests, and fortifications in the north, Sheng Yong naturally chose to use the main force to detour and attack the Japanese army from the valley in the south.