Di Ming

Chapter 366 The dust has settled, a Pyrrhic victory! (Long Chapter)

Zhu Yin knew very well that although the Satsuma cavalry was small in number, they were among the best of the Japanese cavalry, having achieved brilliant victories in their time within Japan. They were composed entirely of Hatamoto samurai. Especially after switching to Korean warhorses, their fighting strength became even greater.

In order to more easily annihilate these thousand Satsuma cavalry, Zhu Yin certainly wouldn't just use cavalry to deal with them.

A thousand cavalrymen roared away, leaving Zhu Yin with only fifty guards. The other several hundred retainers had already followed Nurhaci with their firearms.

Although he had few men with him, there happened to be a high beacon tower nearby. Guarding this easily defensible beacon tower, fifty men could hold off an attack by hundreds.

The warhorses in the woods had long been tethered to the trees, so there was no worry that they would get lost.

Zhu Yin stood on the high ground at Langlinzui, surrounded by the raging winds of the pine trees and the mournful sound of the river below. A gust of cold wind blew, and Zhu Yin couldn't help but tighten his cloak. He looked at the firelight rising from Shuozhou City a dozen miles away and listened to the receding hoofbeats of the cavalry, feeling an unusual sense of peace.

He was clearly the commander-in-chief, the one who orchestrated everything, yet he seemed like a detached outsider, a neutral third party, and an unusually calm and rational observer.

It seems that this fierce battle of Shuozhou had nothing to do with him, the strategist of Korea.

It was as if he were just a passerby who happened to witness all of this. Or as if it were snowing heavily and freezing cold outside, while he was inside warming himself by the fire and drinking.

He had fought in the Northwest War, but this strange feeling was something he had never experienced before.

Zhu Yin sat down on an old pine tree stump, rummaged in his pocket for a long time, and finally pulled out a lighter that he rarely used and was rarely seen by others.

Then, he pulled out a small, delicate bamboo tube. He unscrewed the tube, and inside was a cigarette.

There was only one. Caiwei was very strict with him, giving him only one cigarette each time he went into battle.

Zhu Yin examined the cigarette closely for a while before lighting it with a "pop".

Then, he took a deep, affectionate inhale.

"call--"

After taking a puff of his cigarette, Zhu Yin felt as if the world had become quiet, and he felt lonely.

Loneliness is like snow.

The guards not far away were somewhat surprised to see their lord actually exhaling smoke. They thought their lord was like a deity. But then they heard their lord slowly recite, word by word:

Bright banners obscure the blood-stained sun, iron cavalry encircles Shuozhou.

The Japanese pirates breached the isolated city, and the Han general took a drag on his cigarette.

The pines in the wolf forest howl, and the waters of the Tulu River flow.

Zhu Zhihu of Jiangdong, his hair turned white even in his youth.

After reciting this new limerick twice, Zhu Yin had just finished his cigarette. Reluctantly, he stubbed it out, tucked it into his pocket, and exclaimed:

"Kangxi, bring me my zither!"

In a short while, the ancient zither "Tiger's Roar" was taken out from the double-horse carriage and placed on the bluestone in front of Zhu Yin.

This is a famous zither that Tian Yi gave him when he was in Nanjing. It was made by Lei, a master zither maker of the Tang Dynasty, and was crafted by Gusong of the Qin Dynasty. Zhu Yin always carried the Tiger Roar zither with him when he led troops into battle.

With a flick of his wrists, Zhu Yin unleashed a powerful and resonant zither melody, like iron horses and icy rivers, like arrows piercing the sky—a piece titled "Breaking the Formation."

Over the years, he has cultivated both literary and martial skills. Not only has his calligraphy reached a high level, but he has also made great progress in playing the zither and playing chess. Speaking of his zither playing, he is outstanding among young people and few can match him.

The piece "Breaking the Formation" suddenly rises from the cold forest, startling the mountains and rivers, truly like "cracking metal and stone with an invisible string, and hearing thunder in silence."

The seven strings sound like the Big Dipper, their heavenly voices faintly audible!
The guards listened intently, swords drawn, and felt a palpable killing intent, a desolate and tragic atmosphere that stirred their hearts while simultaneously leaving them feeling melancholic and empty.

They watched Zhu Yin playing the zither alone, their eyes filled with longing and admiration. In this vast world, who could truly understand the heart of their lord?

Zhu Yin played the zither, his deep gaze following the sound of the seven strings across the night sky, chasing the hooves of the Ming cavalry, seemingly a tragic song of the battlefield.

It is said that when the "Breaking the Formation" melody is played, the military formation changes with the music. During the Battle of Yancheng, Yue Fei personally played "Breaking the Formation," and the moment the music reached its most intense, the Jin army's cavalry was decisively defeated.

Zhu Yin, reminiscing about Yue Fei, suddenly played the zither with a rapid, galloping sound, its strings resonating with the spirits.

The sword's spirit remains, and the zither's melody endures.

A spring breeze of ten miles cannot compare to this sound!
...

Shimazu Iehisa's thousand Satsuma cavalrymen galloped to Qingwanyuan with thunderous hooves. The samurai on horseback were full of fighting spirit and had an imposing momentum. Their gleaming katana were as cold as frost.

Qingwanyuan is the only way to enter the Tulujiang Canyon and also the intersection for detouring around Beicheng.

After passing Qingwanyuan, the cavalry force could rush into the canyon road, swooping down and heading straight for the north gate a few miles away.

Upon reaching this point, the Satsuma cavalry slowed down as they changed routes, and the thunderous sound of their hooves ceased. Shimazu Iehisa suddenly reined in his horse and looked north.

"What? It sounds like a zither? Where would a zither come from in the mountains at midnight?"

Shimazu Iehisa couldn't help but stop his horse and listen intently, his expression bewildered. This sounds like a piece called "Breaking the Enemy's Formation," doesn't it? Who's playing the zither on the mountain?
Bushido upholds the principle of "the zither and the sword as one." The so-called "red strings of martial spirit" uses the seven strings of the zither to symbolize the seven virtues of a samurai. Therefore, most samurai nobles and powerful families love the zither.

Although the music was faint and difficult to discern, Shimazu Iehisa was still able to identify it as "Breaking the Enemy's Formation".

"Huh?" Shimazu Iehisa's expression hardened, and he suddenly shouted, "Not good! The enemy—"

Before he could finish speaking, a series of "clattering" sounds of flint striking came from the secret forest on the right. Almost simultaneously, a flash of fire appeared, followed by the "bang bang bang" of muskets and the "boom boom" of tiger-squatting cannons.

It turned out that Zhu Yin's three hundred retainers had been lying in ambush here for some time. They had accompanied Nurhaci on his previous campaign, but instead of attacking the city, they had been lying in ambush here to ambush the Japanese cavalry as they came out of the city.

Our lord is truly a brilliant strategist! The Japanese cavalry did indeed intend to bypass this area and attack the North Gate.

The reason they didn't use the Tiger Crouching Cannon to attack the city was, of course, because the Tiger Crouching Cannon was a small, lightweight cannon, which was not very effective at attacking fortified positions and was mainly used to deal with military formations and cavalry.

This volley of fire was extremely fierce, killing and wounding two to three hundred Japanese soldiers on the spot. Even though they were all armored, they still suffered heavy losses!

"Don't get entangled!" Shimazu Iehisa reacted extremely quickly. He was also a battle-hardened Japanese general, so why would he get entangled with the ambush? He immediately spurred his horse and galloped away.

The remaining seven or eight hundred Japanese cavalrymen didn't even glance at the ambush soldiers operating firearms. They roared and charged out, shaking off the ambush soldiers.

However, just as Shimazu Iehisa led his cavalry into the Turu River Gorge, before they could even dive down, a thunderous roar came from behind them.

"What?!" Shimazu Iehisa turned around and felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.

Ming cavalry! Sure enough, there were Ming cavalry!

Baka! The kappa has been swept away by the flood!

Shimazu Iehisa's eyes were bloodshot with rage. He wanted to take advantage of the terrain and get rid of the Ming cavalry's dive attack from behind, but it was too late.

"Speed ​​up! Speed ​​up!" The warriors could only shout hoarsely as they spurred their horses on.

Before the Japanese cavalry could fully accelerate, the Ming cavalry, charging down like a giant hammer, slammed into the rear ranks of the Japanese cavalry.

The cavalry general at the very front was none other than Lancha!

"Boom—" The fierce Jurchen cavalry collided with the Japanese cavalry, and the Japanese cavalry, who were already at a disadvantage, were immediately thrown to the ground.

Lancha rode a large horse, brandishing a spiked club, and using the momentum of the horse's speed, he killed several Satsuma warriors in the blink of an eye!

The Japanese cavalry collapsed instantly, scattering like a landslide and becoming easy prey for the Jurchen cavalry. The Japanese cavalry were already inferior to the Jurchen cavalry, and having already suffered an ambush with firearms, they now lacked the advantage of terrain and the speed of their horses; they had no chance of resistance whatsoever.

The Jurchen knights were as fierce as tigers and as powerful as dragons, cutting down the Satsuma cavalry with ease and ruthlessly piercing through the Japanese cavalry ranks, leaving the Japanese cavalry with countless heads rolling and heavy casualties, making it impossible for them to mount any effective resistance.

Seeing that the cavalry's defeat was inevitable, Shimazu Iehisa roared, "Satsuma men! Seven lives for the country! Kill a chicken—"

Instead of fleeing, he spurred his horse toward Lancha, brandishing his katana and shouting fiercely:

"State your name! I am Shimazu Iehisa of the Satsuma Domain! If you are a samurai, then let's fight one-on-one!"

Lancha, who had already killed more than a dozen Japanese cavalrymen, saw the most ornately armored Japanese general galloping towards him, brandishing his sword. He squeezed his legs together and charged forward at full speed.

"Koulou Sai!" Shimazu Iehisa suddenly leaped off his horse, his body in mid-air, gripping his katana upside down with both hands, and thrusting it towards Lancha as one with himself.

That sharp katana, powered by Ma Li, moved like a bolt of lightning!
This was Shimazu Iehisa's desperate strike, a leaping slash from his horse! This was a killing move that sacrificed his own life, using the horse's momentum to take the enemy down with him. Japanese cavalry often used this move when facing certain death.

If it were someone else, even if they weren't stabbed to death by Shimazu Iehisa, they would still be forced into a perilous situation and be caught off guard.

Unfortunately, Shimazu Iehisa encountered Lancha, a Ming general who could defeat a hundred men!
Lancha, covered in the blood of his enemies, wore a cold smile as he swung and smashed the heavy spiked club in his hand as if it were nothing!
With a "whoosh," the head of Shimazu Iehisa, who was in mid-air, wearing the crescent moon helmet, suddenly made a chilling cracking sound.

Without uttering a sound, Shimazu Iehisa was smashed from the air by the spiked club, his katana and corpse falling to the ground together.

Yoshihiro Shimazu's younger brother, Shimazu Iehisa, a general of the Satsuma cavalry, died!
Lancha killed Shimazu Iehisa with a single blow, and without even glancing at the corpse, he brandished his spiked club, spurred his horse, and continued to kill the enemy. Wherever he went, Japanese samurai were swept away.

But at this moment, the ferocity of the Japanese army was also fully displayed. Even when they were in a desperate situation, and even General Shimazu had been killed in action, they neither fled nor surrendered.

Instead, they fought back desperately, like trapped beasts!

Even the Jurchen soldiers were shocked and found it hard to understand. Although the Jurchen tribes were fierce and fearless in battle, they knew when to flee and when to surrender, unlike the Japanese army which fought to the death in vain.

Lancha was not surprised at all. His lord, Zhu Yin, had long ago told him that the Japanese pirates were strange and perverse in nature, that they valued shame more than death, and that they regarded surrendering as a great disgrace. Therefore, most of them would fight to the death and rarely surrendered.

Therefore, there's no need to force the Japanese army to surrender; just kill them all.

As the warhorse galloped, Lancha's spiked club swept out with a whistling sound, and with a crisp "crack," a warrior's head exploded like a rotten watermelon. With a follow-up swing, the club smashed through another warrior's breastplate, the sound of bones shattering clearly audible.

"kill!"

……

Just as the Japanese cavalry was facing annihilation, another bloody battle broke out in Shuozhou City.

At this moment, dawn had broken, but it was a blood-red dawn!
"Push forward!" Nurhaci's cold command came from behind, carrying an unquestionable aura of iron-fisted authority.

"Whoo!"

Yoshihiro Shimazu also gave the order: "Attack—"

"Hai!"

"Woo-woo-woo—dong-dong-dong—" The sounds of conch shells, horns, and war drums from both the Japanese and Ming armies rang out together, like the call of death.

"kill!"

Once their strength was restored, the thousands of Jurchen soldiers launched another attack from a battle line more than a mile wide.

The left-wing general was Anfiyanggu, who had lost an arm, and commanded five Niru (military units). In the center were seven Niru under the command of Eidu, and on the right wing were five Niru under the command of Heheli. A total of seventeen Niru fought valiantly in battle.

Nurhaci also left ten intact Niru near the city gate as reserves and replacements.

Shimazu Yoshihiro had no reserves left, and thousands of Japanese soldiers fought desperately. The battle was extremely fierce from the moment they clashed.

Faced with the charging Jurchen soldiers, the Japanese soldiers used their shields to hold back the front, while their spears pierced out from the gaps like venomous snakes.

The Satsuma arquebusiers fired in a rhythmic, sustained manner, their firepower both precise and deadly. The first rank retreated to reload, the second rank immediately took their place, and the third rank was ready to fire. The deadly web of iron and fire never ceased.

The Jurchens' prized powerful bows were greatly diminished by the enemy's concentrated firepower and the cover of fortifications. Arrows struck stone walls and doors, mostly to no avail. Jurchen warriors could only seize houses and shoot arrows from rooftops.

The narrow squares and streets became slaughterhouses, with corpses piled up layer upon layer, blocking the passageways for those who followed. The blood of the severely wounded flowed through the cracks in the stones, accumulating into nauseating dark red puddles in the low-lying areas. The air was thick with the stench of gunpowder, blood, and the stench of ruptured entrails.

The screams of the dying filled the air as they struggled futilely in pools of blood.

Every alleyway had become an independent meat grinder. The Satsuma spearmen used the corners of houses and the ruins of walls to form a tight shield, blocking the passageways.

The Jurchen warriors split into several groups, with their shields at the forefront, enduring the thrusts of the spears with a screeching sound, and then fiercely swinging their spiked clubs to smash the spear shafts.

"Crack! Crack!" The sturdy gun handles snapped one after another. The Jurchen warriors roared and surged in, clashing with the katanas of the Satsuma warriors. Sparks flew, and the dull thud of blades cutting into flesh and bone, along with the dying screams, echoed like nightmares in the narrow alley.

Just as a Jurchen warrior smashed a samurai's chest with his spiked club, a flash of cold light appeared on his side, and a wakizashi (a type of halberd) plunged deep into his abdomen. He roared, grabbed the neck of the sword-wielding Satsuma foot soldier with both hands, and snapped it with a "crack." The two rolled together in a pool of blood.

Elsewhere, a Satsuma samurai's katana severed the arm of a Jurchen soldier holding a spear. The Jurchen soldier then used his remaining hand to cling tightly to the samurai, biting his neck fiercely and drinking blood like a wild beast.

Both sides were blinded by rage and fought each other to the death.

The Jurchen generals, including Eidu and Heheli, wore two layers of heavy armor and led a group of personal guards carrying shields, charging ahead and killing everyone in their path.

The battle gradually moved towards the location of Shimazu Yoshihiro's main camp flag in the center of the city.

That was the last core stronghold of the Japanese army, guarded by the most elite Shimazu samurai. Relying on several relatively sturdy buildings, it formed the last line of defense. Arquebuses continuously spat fire from windows and behind low walls, while long spears formed a hedgehog-like defense on the outside.

For every zhang (approximately 3.3 meters) the Ming army advanced, the Japanese army was compressed by zhang, resulting in hundreds more casualties on the battlefield.

Only about two thousand Japanese soldiers remained capable of fighting.

Of the three thousand arquebusiers, only a thousand were capable of fighting, as they were the primary targets of the Jurchen archers.

The Ming army still had six thousand able-bodied soldiers. But Nurhaci, looking at the heavy casualties of his Jurchen soldiers, turned ashen-faced, his eyelids twitching. His tall, burly body trembled slightly.

The Jurchen warriors have suffered approximately three thousand casualties!
The Japanese army's defeat was inevitable, yet they showed no intention of abandoning Shuozhou or retreating.

In reality, it was too late for them to withdraw.

Shimazu Yoshihiro had already guessed that his brother's thousand cavalry were finished; otherwise, they would have attacked the Ming army's rear guard long ago. What a pity, the Ming army must have ambushed their cavalry outside the city. The Ming commander had actually outsmarted himself.

Yoshihiro Shimazu's eyes were bloodshot, and the hilt of his family's heirloom sword, which had beheaded a hundred Ming soldiers, was covered in sweat.

He was defeated! The Satsuma army was defeated! And defeated utterly!
Even when facing his lifelong rival, Ōtomo Sōrin, he had never felt fear. But now, he truly understood what fear and despair were!

"The ambush tactics of the fishing boats shook the entire nation, the sound of gunfire from Satsuma pacified the East. Is my dream destined to be shattered after all? What a pity."

Yoshihiro Shimazu's eyes changed from blood red to lead gray.

"Invade Tang China to conquer Ming China? Invade Tang China to conquer Ming China?" Shimazu Yoshihiro looked up at the gray sky. "Taiko! Hideyoshi! Monkey! Do you see that?! Do you still think Ming China can be easily conquered?!"

"Conquering Han is easy, conquering Tang is difficult!"

"You've ruined us, and you've ruined Japan too!"

Yoshihiro Shimazu knew very well that even the elite Satsuma army had suffered such a crushing defeat, and the fate of the Japanese army in Korea was now unpredictable.

Countless warriors of the Divine Kingdom will die in Korea, buried in a foreign land, unable to return to Japan.

Yoshihiro Shimazu slowly drew his family's heirloom katana, its cold light gleaming. Looking at his weathered face reflected in the blade, he said in a deep voice:
"Better to be a broken piece of jade than a whole piece of tile, the samurai's jade shattering and cherry blossoms."

"Issue my order! Launch a proactive counterattack, prepared to die a glorious death!"

"Hai!"

"My lord commands! Shatter the jade—shatter the jade!"

"Hai!"

"Hai!!"

As the order to launch a desperate attack was given, the two thousand Satsuma soldiers suddenly let out a desperate shout and charged out together.

"Seven lives for the country!"

"Banzai! The Kingdom of God will prevail!"

With a deafening roar, the Satsuma army, like a frenzied army, clashed violently with the Ming army, and the sickeningly loud sounds of slaughter suddenly erupted.

Seeing the Japanese army fighting desperately, Nurhaci could no longer restrain himself and ordered, "All troops, attack! Kill!"

He charged down the city wall and personally led ten Niru (units of military units) into battle.

The Jurchen army, with its superior numbers, surrounded them like waves tightening a noose.

"Kill!" Nurhaci roared, personally leading a group of his personal guards armed with heavy axes and maces, launching a flanking attack.

The bloody street fighting was even more brutal. Narrow streets and low eaves turned every inch of space into a battlefield. Jurchen soldiers wielded heavy axes, maces, spears, and broadswords, while Satsuma samurai fought fiercely with katanas, nodachi, cross-shaped spears, arquebuses, and bows.

Sparks flew as blades struck iron armor; axe blades cleaved flesh with a dull thud. Blood flowed across the stone pavement, corpses piled upon corpses. Screams and the clanging of weapons mingled together.

Nurhaci was covered in blood. He brandished his terrifying long-handled broadsword, like a tiger descending the mountain, his power unstoppable. A Satsuma bannerman's nodachi slashed at his neck, but he didn't even look, and with a backhand swing of his longsword as if killing a chicken, the blade sliced ​​across the warrior's neck.

Another foot soldier pounced, but Nurhaci didn't even glance at him. With a nimble sidestep, his tall and imposing figure swiftly decapitated the opponent with a single stroke, without even pausing in his tracks. Truly worthy of being called the First Baturu of the Jurchens, he killed with effortless ease.

"Release the arrows!" Nurhaci's voice was hoarse and metallic. The Jurchens unleashed another terrifying rain of arrows, covering the last of the Samo army and suppressing the less than a thousand arquebusiers.

Immediately afterwards, a howl like that of a dying beast erupted from the throats of the remaining Satsuma warriors, coalescing into a chilling sonic boom:
"Banzai! Seven lives dedicated to the country!"

The roar was filled with madness, despair, and a resolute determination to destroy everything. Even the Jurchen army, which held an absolute advantage, was startled by this cry.

Under the fierce counterattack of the Satsuma army, the ferocity of the Jurchen warriors was fully unleashed, charging at the Japanese army like mad bulls. Heavy axes, spiked clubs, bows and arrows, arquebuses, and katanas once again unleashed a bloody storm.

The two sides seemed to have a deep-seated blood feud, fighting a brutal and inhuman battle, as if they had both fallen into madness. The two barbarian tribes fought like two jackals killing each other, biting each other tightly and refusing to let go.

But soon, the shorter Japanese soldiers dwindled in number, gradually disappearing among the taller Jurchen soldiers clad in Ming armor. However, the Jurchen soldiers also suffered heavy losses in this round of fighting, with several hundred more killed or wounded.

The Japanese soldiers were at a disadvantage because they were shorter in stature and less physically strong than the Jurchen soldiers, putting them at a disadvantage in individual combat. However, when it came to being fearless and valiant, they were even more so than the Jurchen soldiers.

Before the watchtower, the last line of defense consisted of Shimazu Yoshihiro's most elite hatamoto samurai. These last Satsuma samurai had cold, calm eyes and were as silent as iron. They formed a tight circle, protecting their lord with their bodies, guarding the Satsuma Domain's Maru-cross banner and horse seal.

For a moment, both sides ceased their attacks, and time and space seemed to freeze.

Standing on the steps of the watchtower, Shimazu Yoshihiro, clad in a scarlet kimono, leaned on his katana and stared coldly into the distance.

Nurhaci stood on a crumbling wall a dozen feet away, looking at Shimazu Yoshihiro across the distance. Both of their gazes were cold and icy.

After a while, Shimazu Yoshihiro's hoarse voice rang out, and he loudly proclaimed in broken Chinese, "General, state your name!"

Nurhaci narrowed his eyes slightly and replied in broken Chinese, "I am Tong Nurhaci, the Governor-General of Jianzhou, General of the Golden Guard, and Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Anti-Japanese Pirates of the Great Ming Dynasty!"

Suddenly, Yoshihiro Shimazu burst into loud laughter, a laugh that was both arrogant and desolate.

"Hohoho! Hohoho!"

Before the laughter subsided, he suddenly shouted sharply, "General Tong! As a warrior, do you dare to duel with me?"

"A duel?" Nurhaci sneered. The Jurchens also had a custom of dueling, but he would not duel with the loser.

"Fire!" Nurhaci waved his hand, giving the order to fire the arrows.

At this moment, he couldn't bear to let the Jurchen warriors engage in hand-to-hand combat. Every death was a blessing.

"Whoosh whoosh—"

After a volley of arrows, the Satsuma army's last line of defense collapsed. The remaining hatamoto samurai were shot dead by the Jurchen soldiers. Even the retainers of the Shimazu clan were killed.

Only Yoshihiro Shimazu remained in the same spot.

Nurhaci stepped over the sticky, slippery mud of blood and flesh and walked toward the Shimazu Main Banner, which was soaked in blood but still stood stubbornly upright.

Under his command, Shimazu Yoshihiro, with his disheveled hair, tattered kimono, and blood-stained face, leaned against a wooden pillar, gripping his katana tightly. His chest heaved violently, but his eyes still burned with the indomitable spirit of a trapped beast, staring intently at Nurhaci.

Nurhaci walked up to him, his imposing figure casting a deep shadow.

"Baka! Koro-sai!" Shimazu let out a beast-like growl as his katana plunged fiercely towards Nurhaci!

Nurhaci's longsword struck and pushed, the immense force causing Shimazu Yoshihiro's arm to go numb. Shimazu Yoshihiro stumbled, his back slamming heavily against the wooden pillar supporting the huge "Maru Cross" banner in the center of the watchtower, causing the pillar to shake violently.

Nurhaci swung his sword again, but Shimazu Yoshihiro parried with his own, his hand gripping the sword splitting open, blood flowing down the hilt. The katana clattered to the ground in the pool of blood.

Nurhaci reached out and grabbed Shimazu Yoshihiro. Shimazu Yoshihiro was dragged by this irresistible force and fell heavily to his knees in the blood-soaked mud. His head was pressed hard to the ground, splattering a patch of dark red blood.

"Tie him up! Don't let him commit suicide." Nurhaci's voice was cold and devoid of any emotion. "The strategist said that Shimazu Yoshihiro should be kept alive if possible."

A group of Goshha rushed forward, bound Shimazu Yoshihiro hand and foot, and gagged him with a rag. Shimazu Yoshihiro hadn't expected that Nurhaci wouldn't kill him; he hadn't even had a chance to die in battle, and instead, he'd been captured!

Nurhaci grabbed the "Round Cross" banner tightly, his muscles bulging, and slammed his arm down!
"Crack!"

The thick flagpole snapped in two! The scarlet "Maru Cross" flag, like a giant bird with broken wings, tumbled and fell heavily onto the blood-stained and corpse-strewn ground below.

Then, Nurhaci's boots trampled on the Japanese army's battle flag.

Nurhaci let out a long breath. The battle was finally over!
By this time, the sky had turned a bleak gray, and the faint light was sparingly falling on the ruins of Shuozhou City.

As far as he could see, not an inch of land was clean; corpses piled up like mountains, filling the square and every street and alley, and even on the low rooftops, one could see fallen figures.

Broken spears, shattered shields, dulled swords, and scattered cannons were soaked in thick, blackened blood.

Of the nine thousand elite Jurchen troops, only a little over five thousand were still capable of fighting, standing silently atop the mountain of corpses and sea of ​​blood.

Shuozhou City, after paying the price of nearly four thousand warriors, was finally trampled underfoot by the iron hooves of the Jurchens. The stench of blood in the city was so thick that it seemed to be stained with an indelible dark red.

This battle involved little strategy; it was all about head-on confrontation.

A Pyrrhic victory! A Pyrrhic victory indeed!
Just then, a messenger came running up, shouting, "The Grand Marshal has arrived!"

PS: Alright, the Battle of Shuozhou is over, and Little Tiger is heading into the city. What a long chapter of over 7,000 words! After this battle, Brother Wild Boar Skin is truly going to become a henchman of the Ming Dynasty, haha. Thank you, and please vote with monthly tickets!
(End of this chapter)