Di Ming

Chapter 182 Black Soldiers
Zhu Yin named the newly created flintlock musket the Wuzi-type musket.

In addition to four heavy cannons with 40-pound shells and thousands of Type 11 muskets, the arsenal also produced 1,000 long swords, 1,000 long spears, 1,000 rattan shields, 300 sets of heavy cotton armor, and 1,000 sets of light armor.

There are also 500 bows and 30,000 arrows.

More than fifty monocular telescopes made of crystal were produced. Their performance was comparable to that of Western telescopes decades later, and they were greatly admired by figures such as Qi Jiguang.

Many technical equipment manufacturing processes are actually not very difficult; it's just a matter of understanding the basics. Ultimately, it all comes down to ideas and creativity.

Take telescopes, for example. Once the ancients knew the key, they could build them very quickly.

Therefore, in order to prevent the enemy from counterfeiting them, Zhu Yin demanded that the binoculars be kept under the highest level of secrecy and not issued to anyone other than high-ranking officers.

Next, Zhu Yin went to the horse farm to see the five hundred warhorses he had purchased from Korea at a high price.

These five hundred warhorses were purchased in two batches at a high price of twenty taels each.

The hundreds of cavalrymen currently undergoing training only know how to ride horses.

After the inspection and acceptance were completed, Zhu Yin and his entourage arrived at the simple "Military Governor's Residence".

Once we got here, there were only a few people left.

Only then did Qi Jiguang finally ask, "Zhihu, how did you do in the provincial examination this time?"

Ning Caiwei said with a smile, "I have some good news for Father. Not only did Zhihu pass the imperial examination, but he also won the top score in the provincial examination. Right now, who in the whole of Jiangnan doesn't know Zhu Yin? Zhu Lang of Jiangzuo is very famous."

What? The top scholar in the imperial examination? Qi Jiguang, Xu Wenchang, and the others were stunned, staring at Zhu Yin in disbelief.

This is real?

Qi Jiguang looked on expectantly, stretched out his long arm and grabbed Zhu Yin's shoulder, forcefully turning him around. "Zhihu, you really passed the provincial examination with top honors? Top honors in Southern Zhili?"

Zhu Yin said with a bitter face, "Father, your grip is too strong... Father, let go quickly! I really did pass the imperial examination with flying colors. The Deer Cry Banquet has already been held. How could it be fake?"

Qi Jiguang released Zhu Yin and couldn't help but laugh loudly: "Hahaha, the top scholar! The top scholar at only eleven years old! Young tiger, young tiger, this is a story that will last for a thousand years, an auspicious omen for the Ming Dynasty."

“This is destiny!” Xu Wei clapped his hands and said, “Brother Yuanjing, this is destiny! How could it really be obtained through the eight-legged essay? Young Tiger’s destiny is extraordinary.”

"Hehe, the examiners were trying to force the emperor to make his eldest son the crown prince, but they ended up benefiting the young tiger. What else could it be but fate?"

Zhu Yin couldn't help but glance at Xu Wei.

Xu Wei, the Shaoxing advisor, had an incredibly sharp eye. Back then, he was indeed the chief strategist of the Governor-General of Zhejiang and Zhili, and he immediately saw through the logic behind his success in winning the provincial examination.

What a genius! No wonder his disciple Li Rusong was also a famous general.

It might be lucky for the imperial court that such a person could not pass the imperial examination.

When Ding Huogen, Zhang Cha, and others heard that Zhu Yinzhen was the top scholar in the provincial examination, they were filled with even greater admiration and offered their congratulations.

Everyone knows what it means to be an eleven-year-old who achieves the highest rank in the imperial examinations, and how significant that achievement is.

As for why Zhu Yin became the top scholar in the provincial examination, they didn't understand it as thoroughly as Xu Wei.

Upon hearing Xu Wei's words, Qi Jiguang immediately understood the underlying meaning and couldn't help but feel a little worried that Zhu Yin, the top scholar in the imperial examination, would be disliked by the emperor.

Xu Wei, however, understood Qi Jiguang's concerns and offered a veiled reassurance:
"The young tiger's destiny is with him; he deserves not only the title of top scholar, but also even greater fortune. Why should Brother Yuanjing worry?"

He emphasized the words "greater fortune" with particular force.

Qi Jiguang's heart stirred slightly. Looking at Xu Wei's meaningful gaze, he hesitated to speak.

He changed the subject, saying, "Let's not talk about the top scholar for now. Since Zhihu is here, let him preside over the military council."

Zhu Yin said, "Yes."

He then ordered all the generals of the military governor's office, the banner chiefs of the Eight Banners, and the directors of the three major factories to come to the military tent for a meeting.

The drums in the main tent only began to beat loudly after the battalion commanders and deputy battalion commanders stationed on Xiushan Island and Qushan Island had arrived.

The military council finally began. The hundred guards of the military governor's office were under heavy guard, each one standing tall and proud, fully armed and ready to fight.

Ning Qingchen was immediately led out of the tent by Ding Hongying, but Ning Caiwei was qualified to participate in the military council.

Inside the large tent, sitting at the head of the table was Qi Jiguang.

Next was Zhu Yin, with Ning Caiwei sitting to his left and Xu Wei to his right. Below them were Ding Huogen and Zhang Cha.

The banner commanders, battalion commanders, and factory directors are arranged in a staggered formation on both sides. The three battalion commanders are all concurrently serving as banner commanders.

However, the armor worn by the flag leaders, though identical in style, was of different colors.

Everyone in the tent was sitting upright (kneeling), but they were all using heels to support their weight.

Zhu Yin sat down solemnly on the ground, and was very satisfied with everyone's posture.

The Ming Dynasty still had a formal seating arrangement. Contrary to later misconceptions, the Ming Dynasty did not completely abandon formal seating.

The practice of sitting upright was completely abandoned during the Qing Dynasty. By the Qing Dynasty, chairs were used in solemn occasions such as ancestral halls in the countryside and imperial temples.

However, in the Ming Dynasty, the occasions for sitting upright were already rare. It was mainly reserved for nobles in ancestral halls, family temples, hunting expeditions, funerals, and weddings. The vast majority of the time, they sat on chairs.

Therefore, although heel supports still exist today, they are rarely seen.

Zhu Yin restored the proper sitting etiquette, and thus many heel supports were made.

With heels, sitting upright is easy, yet more solemn and dignified than sitting in a chair.

It's laughable that the Japanese learned to sit upright but didn't use their heels to support their weight, resulting in bowlegs that have persisted for thousands of years.

As the drumbeats ceased, everyone knelt on the ground and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Commander-in-Chief! Greetings, General!"

After Zhu Yin returned the bow, he straightened his back and said, "Banner leaders of the Eight Banners, first report the population, birth and death numbers of each banner."

Zhu Yin's first topic was population, which shows his emphasis on population, just like the later chieftain Huang Taiji.

There's nothing we can do; the population is simply too small.

When Ning Caiwei heard the Eight Banners, she tried her best to keep a straight face.

Although she knew that the Eight Banners system was indeed very suitable for the sparsely populated Jinghai Army system, she also knew that the Little Tiger's adoption of the Eight Banners system was a perverse pleasure, full of the intention to mock the Qing Dynasty.

Lin Pei, the head of Zhenghei Banner, stood up first and reported: "Zhenghei Banner has a population of over 2,960. This year, over 220 people were born and over 250 people died."

Cao Xinbing, the head of the Zhenghong Banner, reported: "The population of Zhengbai Banner is over 2,940. This year, over 230 people were born and over 270 people died."

The six banner chiefs, including Wang Huaizhen, reported on the population changes in their respective banners, which made Zhu Yin frown.

"What happened?" Zhu Yin's face showed some displeasure. "According to previous statistics, the Eight Banners population was 23,000. In less than a year, it has decreased by more than 300 people, dropping to 22,700?"

"We treat the people so well, they have food and clothing, they are not treated like cattle or horses, there is no plague or disaster on the island, and there are no foreign enemies attacking, so why has the population decreased?"

Zhang Jia, the judge in charge of political affairs at the military governor's office, said:

"General, you may not know this, but most of the Eight Banners are Han Chinese from Luzon. They have been going to Luzon for many years with their families from Fujian and Guangdong. Many of the young men who ventured out to sea back then are now very old."

"My subordinates have done the statistics. Although the majority of the Eight Banners are young men and women, there are still more than 3,000 elderly people who ventured to Southeast Asia in the early years."

"They traveled across the ocean to Daishan Island, and the sudden change of environment, coupled with their old age and frailty, made them more susceptible to illness and death due to the change in environment. This year's population decline is mainly due to the large number of deaths among these elderly people, who account for the majority of all deaths."

"If we include other people who died from illness or premature death, the population will decrease. I predict that the population will continue to decrease next year and the year after, but at most by a few hundred or a thousand."

Zhu Yin couldn't help but sigh, "The Eight Banners' households are not as numerous as a small, impoverished county in the Ming Dynasty. With only 20,000 men, women, and children, how easy is it to defend this vast coastal border?"

"Everyone, tell me, how can we increase the population? We're already implementing policies to encourage childbirth, so let's not talk about that again."

"Also, I want Chinese people, including Han, Zhuang, Li, She, etc., but not Southeast Asian natives or Japanese pirates."

"General!" Cao Xin exclaimed, "Why don't we just go ashore and plunder! Attack Ningbo, Quanzhou, Songjiang, and Guangzhou—these places are densely populated; we could easily make thousands or even tens of thousands in a single raid..."

"Shut up!" Ding Huogen shouted. "Have you forgotten the commander's words? We cannot plunder ashore! How are we any different from Japanese pirates?"

Cao Xin said, “General, please calm down. Please let me finish. We treat the people well. Even if we take the island, we will not mistreat them. Their lives are even better. Is this harming them? Of course they will resent us at first, but they will be glad as time goes by.”

Zhang Jia shook his head. "Isn't that nonsense? Who would willingly leave their homeland to live on an island? Huh? If they could barely make a living, they wouldn't want to go to sea and become islanders! Ask the islanders, who didn't go to sea because they had no other choice?"

"We're not real pirates. Stealing people would anger the imperial court and invite their encirclement and suppression. Can our small force withstand the attrition of fighting the imperial court?"

Zhu Yin waved his hand, "It is absolutely unacceptable to plunder people ashore! This matter must not be mentioned again! Even if we are forced to demonstrate ashore, we cannot plunder people; this is the bottom line!"

Lin Pei said, "There are still quite a few Han Chinese in Luzon, but if we want to occupy Luzon, we need people to garrison it. I heard from maritime merchants that Burma has invaded Yunnan many times before, enslaving many Ming Dynasty people. If we attack Burma and rescue the Han Chinese who have been enslaved..."

Ding Huogen shook his head and said, "It's too difficult to fight in Burma. By sea, we have to go around for thousands of miles. If we fight on land, we have to go through Annam or go around Yunnan. How can we fight? We are not weak at sea, but once we land, what can our small force do?"

Zhu Yin also felt that the timing was not quite right. To attack Burma at this time, if they were to take the sea route, they would need to go around the Strait of Malacca, which was too far.

If we land in Annam, the sea route would be much shorter, but we would still have to pass through Annam and Lan Xang (Laos). This would mean attacking Annam and Lan Xang before attacking Burma, and then invading Burma. Is this troop strength realistic?
He thought for a moment and said, "It's not impossible to fight Burma at sea. If we take Luzon this year, we can use Luzon as a base to take Malacca, which is occupied by foreigners, next year, and then restore the Ming Dynasty's Old Port Pacification Commission."

"Then we can control the Strait of Malacca, and with the Old Port Pacification Office as our base, we can launch an attack on Burma the year after next."

Qi Jiguang nodded and said, "This method is the safest. Then, at the latest, we can launch a military campaign against Burma in two years and avenge the Ming Dynasty."

Xu Wei laughed and said, "Your method may be safe and sound, but attacking Luzon first, then Malacca and Palembang, and then Burma, is a bit slow, pushing things out year by year."

"We've been saying that Burma has fought with the Ming Dynasty for many years and has repeatedly invaded the Ming Dynasty to burn, kill, and plunder. I've heard that Burma is known as the overlord and has hundreds of thousands of troops."

"Even if we go back two years, at most we can only mobilize seven or eight thousand troops. What can we do to Burma? Even if we win, how much will we lose? It will only benefit the Qing Dynasty, Siam, and Lan Xang. Burma has several million people; they can afford to wait. Can we afford to lose people?"

Zhu Yin raised an eyebrow, suddenly realizing he had been too confident, overlooking a fatal flaw: ancient Burma was very powerful, unlike the Burma of later times.

He was a time traveler, and subconsciously assumed that Myanmar's military was weak. However, he overlooked the fact that Myanmar was now the dominant power in the Indochina Peninsula.

What makes you think you can defeat the Burmese army with just a few thousand men? Do you think it's like the Anglo-French allied forces fighting the Qing Dynasty?
Qi Jiguang also felt that even if they attacked Burma two years later, it would be an overestimation of their abilities.

This plan is not feasible!
Xu Wei continued, "I do have a plan that can not only bring forward the military action against Burma by a year, but also minimize the cost and maximize the chances of success."

Zhu Yin's eyes lit up, and he also came up with a plan.

Qi Jiguang's eyes flashed; he had also thought of that.

Xu Wei laughed and said, "My method should have been thought of by Commander Qi and Commander Jie as well. Then please tell me, Commander Jie, what method I have in mind."

Zhu Yin carefully considered his words and said, "By taking advantage of the long-standing feud between Burma and Siam and Lan Xang, we can incite the two countries to jointly send troops to Burma in revenge. We can then assist the two countries in attacking Burma under the guise of mercenaries."

"In this way, we can not only take advantage of the armies of the two countries, but also use the route to attack Myanmar, and also get a mercenary fee. It's killing three birds with one stone."

Upon hearing this, Qi Jiguang nodded and smiled.

Xu Wei clapped his hands and laughed loudly, "My lord is indeed a prodigy, he thought of it so quickly. That's right, this is the plan of using someone else to kill someone, and using barbarians to attack barbarians."

"In this way, our army can penetrate deep into Myanmar with only a few thousand people and rescue tens of thousands of Han Chinese people who have fallen into enemy hands."

"I've heard that Burma has a deep-seated grudge against Siam and Lan Xang, and has always been bullied by Burma. If the imperial edict from the Ming emperor arrives, ordering Siam and Lan Xang to jointly send troops to attack Burma, this plan will succeed."

“Sir, you are truly a cunning strategist.” Zhu Yin nodded. “The key to this plan lies in the imperial decree issued to Siam and Nan Zhang.”

Zhu Yin, speaking of this, also felt a sense of historical regret. The Ming Dynasty, for some reason, became increasingly foolish and short-sighted in its diplomatic tactics as it progressed.

The war between the Ming and Burma lasted for many years, resulting in huge losses and turning the two countries into complete enemies. Yet the Ming Dynasty failed to take advantage of the contradictions in the Indochina Peninsula to form alliances.

It seems that the strategic value of the animosity between Myanmar and Siam and Lan Xang has been overlooked.

None of the ministers brought it up, as if they were unaware. The emperor also did not bring it up, as if he were equally unaware.

The eyes of the emperor and his ministers were all fixed on the domestic situation.

Or rather, they did not believe that the mighty Celestial Empire needed to issue an edict ordering its vassal states to send troops to conquer Burma.

The same applied to Annam. Annam was fragmented into several parts that fought each other, and the Ming Dynasty, despite having such a good opportunity, remained a bystander and did nothing.

Their diplomatic capabilities have declined to a level not even comparable to those of the Spring and Autumn Period.

Similarly, his diplomatic policies toward the Western Regions, Japan, Mongolia, and the Jurchens were all characterized by foolishness and shortsightedness.

Zhu Yin continued, "Once I pass the imperial examination, I will join a group of officials to petition the emperor and issue an edict ordering Siam and Nan Zhang to conquer Burma. With the addition of petitions from Master Shen, Hai Qingtian, and Eunuch Tian, ​​the emperor should issue the edict."

“Take Hai Qingtian for example. If he knew that tens of thousands of Han people were being treated like slaves in Burma, he would definitely listen to my advice and write to the emperor. This is a gentleman deceiving others with integrity.”

Qi Jiguang sighed, "By doing this, we are exploiting the imperial court, which is tantamount to deceiving the emperor. Our intentions are..."

Xu Wei laughed and said, "Burma is an enemy country of the Ming Dynasty. How many soldiers have died in battle over the years? How much money and grain has been consumed? How many people have been plundered and killed? This is revenge. How can it be considered using the court? It is even more unacceptable to deceive the emperor."

"My lord is already the top scholar in the provincial examination, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, he will surely pass the imperial examination tomorrow. Once he obtains his official position and has the assistance of important ministers, what difficulty will there be in pushing the court to issue an edict ordering the two countries to send troops?"

Qi Jiguang said, "Burma boasts an army of hundreds of thousands. Even if the two countries join forces to take revenge, they may not be able to win. Unless the Ming Dynasty also sends troops from Yunnan to recover the lost territory."

"With such a three-nation alliance, plus our 'pirates,' Burma is bound to be defeated."

Qi Jiguang was eagerly anticipating the imperial court's initiative to send troops to attack Burma.

Zhu Yin sneered, "Father may be disappointed. The court is unlikely to send troops to attack Myanmar on its own initiative. Over the years, when has it ever been a case of waiting for Burmese troops to invade the country before sending troops to resist? Has it ever taken the initiative to invade Myanmar? Not even once."

Zhu Yin got angry when he got to this point.

The protracted Ming-Burmese Wars were fought almost entirely within Ming-controlled territory, with the fighting taking place on Ming land. In the end, the Three Xuan and Six Wei regions were all lost, and the Burmese army repeatedly penetrated deep into Yunnan, causing heavy casualties.

However, the Ming army had hundreds of thousands of troops in the southwest and Guangdong and Guangxi, but never took the initiative to launch a southern expedition. They always responded with "soldiers to meet force and water to dam", which was very passive and negative in strategy.

Emperor Wanli might issue an edict ordering the two countries to send troops, but it would be difficult for him to issue an edict to conquer Burma.

Having settled on this plan, Zhu Yin finally brought up the important matter of launching another campaign against Luzon.

Since news of Luzon arrived, everyone knew that they had to send troops to Luzon immediately.

Otherwise, if it had been too late, the more than 20,000 Han Chinese immigrants around Manila might have been massacred by the returning foreigners out of their rage.

Zhu Yin said, "One out of every three men from the Eight Banners will be selected, and each banner will send out six hundred armored soldiers to replenish the strength of the three battalions."

"One thousand men will guard the home, while three thousand eight hundred will go to war. The Kuaiji will also set sail, as a trial voyage."

"All captains and deputy battalion commanders and above were issued binoculars. All new cannons were taken aboard, and eight hundred new muskets were taken with them."

"Three days later, the army will march south! The foreign barbarians in Manila have less than three thousand soldiers in total. The advantage is on our side!"

Everyone nodded. With a total population of over 20,000, the conscription of four to five thousand soldiers was already the limit.

After all, the three major factories, fish farms, and farms all need people; women are being used like men.

.........

On the eighth day of the tenth month of the sixteenth year of the Wanli reign, a huge fleet appeared in the Bay of Manila, Luzon.

The Westerners stationed in Manila Bay were immediately on high alert.

The commander in charge of guarding the western city was Captain Guterre from Genoa.

The shoemaker's son was promoted to lieutenant by the Governor-General of Luzon last year for his meritorious service in delivering the news, and suddenly became a distinguished military officer.

However, Lieutenant Guter fled Manila before it fell and went to Goa, which was under the control of the Portuguese Indian authorities.

He brought astonishing news to the governor's palace in Goa, recounting the enemy's horrors and his own tenacity.

Therefore, because he delivered valuable intelligence in time, risking his life, he was promoted to lieutenant and made captain by Philippe, the representative of the Portuguese authorities on behalf of the King of Spain and the King of Portugal.

Since the beginning of this year, the shoemaker's son, along with the combined Spanish and Portuguese fleet, conscripted more than 10,000 Indian soldiers and black slaves to return to Manila to seek revenge.

After a bloody battle with 100,000 natives for more than half a year, the Western knights recaptured Manila, but at an extremely heavy cost.

Of the more than three thousand white soldiers, only a little over a thousand remained.

Of the original 8,000 Indian soldiers, only a little over 1,000 remain.

Of the four thousand black slaves, only a little over a thousand remained.

Of course, the indigenous warriors suffered tens of thousands of casualties. The terrifying and ferocious King of Manila fled into the forest with only a few hundred remaining soldiers.

In retaliation, the allied forces relentlessly pursued the horrific man, offering a hefty bounty and carrying out a brutal massacre of the island's native inhabitants.

In the past month, 50,000 to 60,000 indigenous people have been massacred by the coalition forces.

The most ruthless killers were the black slave soldiers. These guys from Africa were not only the most lustful, but they also killed without blinking an eye.

Even Guterres couldn't stand it anymore.

He wrote to his father: "...These black slaves are a bunch of demons; they are both loyal and obedient, and savage and cruel..."

He also wrote: "...relatively speaking, the Ming people were much more civilized than the natives. Yes, they were civilized people, they did not participate in the massacre of white people, and they should not be punished, but..."

"But the Allied commander and many officers still wanted to massacre the Ming immigrants as well, on the grounds that they were in league with the natives..."

"Ming merchants sensed the danger. They came to see the commander with generous gifts, emphasizing that last year's massacre had nothing to do with them and that it was all done by the natives."

"The commander verbally agreed, but after they left the gifts, they started discussing whether to kill the Ming immigrants in Luzon as well."

“I voted against it. My reasoning was that the Ming immigrants did not participate in the massacre of white people, and keeping them alive would contribute to Manila’s prosperity. But the majority voted in favor. It is regrettable that my father will see at least 20,000 innocent Ming immigrants brutally killed.”

"They have been lured together, arrested, and are all being held in custody. Their execution is scheduled for the 13th of this month, which is five days from now..."

As Gutt was writing this, a soldier suddenly ran up to him, his face pale. "Captain Gutt! Sir! The enemy may be coming, many ships!"

What? Captain Gutt stood on the city wall and gasped in shock.

It's the enemy!
And this must be the same group of enemies from last year! The ship looks familiar!
There are several thousand of them.

However, there were less than two thousand people in the city, and more than a thousand others had gone to hunt down the native king.

Guter still harbors a psychological fear of this formidable enemy. He doesn't believe Manila can hold out and may fall to these pirates a second time.

It's a strange intuition.

then.

Guter immediately made a decision.

"Get on board!" the captain said to his trusted lieutenant. "Before the enemy enters port, we're heading to Burma!"

Guter had absolutely no intention of defending the city.

"Captain, why are you going to Burma?" the confidant asked, puzzled.

Gutt explained impatiently, “The only way we’ll get proper treatment is in Burma! They’re hiring Western instructors there with high salaries. I might snag a decent title and live the high life, you get it, buddy! Let’s go!”

"My God, the Ming immigrants might be saved? This is absurd!"

"Let those damned black slaves guard Manila! Damn it!"

Gutt picked up the letter he hadn't finished writing, rushed down the city wall, and out of the city gate.

His close associates also boarded the ship and rushed out of the port first.

...

On the Kuaiji, Zhu Yin and others were looking through binoculars at the approaching port.

They discovered that a small sailboat had left the harbor and was heading south.

“He looks familiar!” Qi Jiguang said. “That foreigner on the deck of the ship, I think his name is Gutt. I captured him last year. He led me into the city, so I spared his life. I didn’t expect that guy to be such a cunning fellow.”

As Qi Jiguang was speaking, the sharp sound of muskets rang out from the top of Manila.

A large group of defenders appeared on the city wall.

Through the binoculars, many Black soldiers appeared.

Zhu Yin was not surprised to see these black soldiers.

African blacks entered China very early, brought by the Mongols. The Yuan Dynasty emperors had many black guards, to the point that wealthy Yuan Dynasty families "must have black servants in their household, otherwise they would not be able to become officials."

This led to a rebellion by Black people in the south during the early Ming Dynasty.

During the late Ming Dynasty, many black people had come to Southeast Asia and were called black foreigners, ghost slaves, or sea ghosts.

Many Ming generals and wealthy families were extremely shameless. They thought that black people were fierce and strong, so they actually bought black people from foreigners to serve as servants and private soldiers, spending a hundred taels of silver per person to show off their status.

Qu Dajun, a scholar from the late Ming Dynasty, said: "Many wealthy families hire black people to guard their gates."

They betrothed Ming Dynasty women to Black men, sometimes even pairing one Black man with several Han women, all in the hope of producing more "fierce" Black children.

Zheng Zhilong's army once had 500 black men as his personal guards.

Over the decades, the number of Black people in Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, and Zhejiang provinces increased significantly. When Chen Zizhuang, Chen Bangyan, and others rose up to resist the Qing dynasty, many Black people served in their armies. This demonstrates that Black people were already quite common in the south at that time.

So, are they really that strong and good at fighting?

Faced with the truly ferocious Eight Banners soldiers, they either died or fled, ultimately suffering complete annihilation. The black population, which had begun to spread, was wiped out by the Manchu's slaughter.

“There are Black Barbarians!” Ding Huogen said. “So many Black Barbarians! I’ve heard that Black Barbarians are fearless, can dive like fish, and are extremely fierce.”

Zhang Cha and the others also looked solemn when they saw the large group of "ghost slaves".

They had all heard that the Black Barbarians were extremely skilled in battle and unstoppable.

Zhu Yin scoffed and said, "That's all just hearsay and exaggerated claims. They weren't that good at fighting. They were probably not even as good as the Japanese pirates; they just had brute force."

"Give the order! Bombard Manila! Let them see the firepower of the East!"

P.S.: That's all for today's 7,000-word chapter. Thank you. Please vote with your monthly tickets!

(End of this chapter)