Ming East India Company

After retreating to the front of the fence, Shirano rode his horse and shouted to the soldiers behind him:

"Everyone, look closely. The Ryukyuan army is right outside the city. Today is the day for our battle. If we win, I will give you all the rewards you desire. If we lose, remember that the Ryukyuans and the Japanese share the same origin, and you know the methods of the Japanese pirates."

"In today's battle, the Bai family will not flinch. Bai Ye and the entire Bai family are willing to lead the charge."

After arriving on the island, thanks to Bai Ye and Cheng Keqin's intentional or unintentional "indulgence," rumors about Bai Ye being the reincarnation of a dragon had spread throughout the expeditionary force. Coupled with the Bai family members taking the lead in spreading the rumors, the morale of the entire army was instantly ignited.

Moreover, everyone present knew how formidable the Japanese pirates were. Although the real Japanese pirates did not make up the majority of the pirates, their methods were exceptionally cruel.

After completing his pre-battle mobilization, Shirayuki returned to his cavalry unit, ready to charge.

Soon, the Ryukyu army stormed into the city through the gates of Nakijin Castle. The royal guards at the front, upon seeing the dark muzzles of the breech-loading cannons of the expeditionary force, instinctively stopped.

The Ryukyu soldiers behind them also slowed down, but the Ryukyu soldiers outside the city, not understanding why, continued to rush forward foolishly, and the whole column spread out along the city wall in a jostling and pushing.

Seeing the clumsy performance of the Ryukyu army, Shirono felt even more confident of victory.

Bai Jingxing, the commander of the infantry formation, was now spitting fire in his eyes. Bai Ye had previously ordered him not to fire until he received the command flag, no matter what happened.

Shirono kept a close eye on the city gate of Imaijin Castle. After seeing Naoyuki enter the city with his blanket, Shirono waved his command flag.

The dozens of breech-loading cannons in the front row spewed flames. During the advance, the Ryukyu army in the front row, pushed and shoved by the rear ranks, had already entered a range of less than 200 paces from the expeditionary force.

Lacking the experience of warfare, the Ryukyuans neither knew how to use matchlock guns nor how to defend against them, and thus unknowingly remained at the optimal range of the breech-loading gun.

After a whooshing sound, dozens of armored Ryukyu warriors in the front row were hit. Thanks to the rapid reloading capability of the breech-loading cannons, the expeditionary force quickly fired several rounds.

Although the damage was limited, the Ryukyuans, who were already afraid of firearms, were now even more terrified, their faces filled with panic.

As planned, Bai Ling lit the two signal cannons behind her with a torch. The huge sound was like thunder, and it spread to every corner of Jin Guiren City.

The Ryukyuans, who had never witnessed cannon fire before, were immediately gripped by fear. Many even knelt on the ground and kowtowed indiscriminately, mistakenly believing that the gods were angry.

As Bai Ye had predicted, the untrained horses were startled by the cannon fire and galloped forward in a swarm.

Because Hakuno had set up a row of barricades on both sides of his troops beforehand, the startled horses, with fences behind them, city walls on their left, and barricades on their right, could only charge towards the Ryukyu army.

The Ryukyuans, who had never experienced a cavalry charge before, immediately scattered and fled upon seeing these tall horses, lacking even the organizational capacity to pick up their spears to defend themselves.

Untrained infantrymen are indeed thrown into disarray when facing cavalry!

Historically, when the West invaded the Inca, a key weapon was cavalry. Civilizations that had never experienced fighting cavalry inevitably had to pay the price.

Feng Luzi and Bai Ye's cavalry wielded their spears, thrusting and stabbing repeatedly. The unarmored minions in the back row were instantly turned into easy prey, repeatedly harvested by row after row.

At the same time, Bai Jingxing, who was on the front, shouted and commanded his troops to launch a charge. Countless expeditionary soldiers, holding long spears, ran in dense square formations towards the Ryukyu army.

This untrained mob quickly disintegrated during the charge, splitting into small groups of a few dozen people. Fortunately, the Ryukyuans on the other side had completely lost their will to resist, and the expeditionary force still gained a great advantage in hand-to-hand combat.

The defeated Ryukyuans fled towards the city gates, but due to the narrowness of the gates, they were trampled to death. Many died either from the trampling or were hacked to death inside the city by the pursuing expeditionary force. The battle turned into a hunting-like massacre.

Shiro had chosen a docile and obedient horse beforehand, so although he was a little startled by the horn, he returned to normal after whipping it a few times.

Baiye rode his warhorse relentlessly, searching for his target. Finally, he spotted Shang Yong being led away by his attendants.

None of Shang Yong's attendants were armed, so Bai Ye picked up a spear and kept stabbing them until he quickly took them down one by one.

Shang Yong, who had fallen to the ground, quickly took off his fine clothes and crown and tried to escape by blending into the crowd.

Baiye continued the pursuit on horseback, thrusting his spear forward and stabbing Shang Yong in the buttocks, who immediately fell to the ground.

Baiye grabbed Shangyong by the neck and lifted him up, then drew his long sword and slashed him, separating him from his divine form.

He then picked up a long spear from the ground, impaled his severed head on it, and spurred his horse forward, shouting:

"The thief is dead, who are you still risking your lives for?"

The Ryukyu army, whose morale had already collapsed, lost all will to fight when they saw Shang Yong's bloody head and surrendered to the expeditionary force.

Those who managed to escape left their armor, weapons, and clothing scattered everywhere, and the battle ended before noon.

After their victory, the expeditionary force began cleaning up the battlefield, and Bai Ye carried Shang Yong's head back to the rear.

As dusk fell, Bai Jingxing began to report on the battle's outcome:

"In total, including those killed and captured alive, there were about two thousand people. We captured about two hundred sets of armor, most of which were in good condition. We also collected several hundred muskets. Unfortunately, when the fighting started, there were still a small number of enemy troops outside the city who had not yet entered, and they managed to escape."

"It's alright. The rest are just some laborers who were temporarily conscripted. After the main force of the Ryukyu people was wiped out, these people will no longer be able to form a fighting force," Shirono analyzed.

"Lock up all the prisoners; these people will be invaluable laborers in the future."

Bai Wenzheng, standing to the side, was both relieved to have won the battle and somewhat regretful:

"Why did you chop this Ryukyu king down with one blow? He's still very useful!"

"What's the point of keeping someone like that around?"

"After this battle, we still need to do business with him. If we don't keep him around, Ryukyu won't even have anyone in charge."

"We no longer need to do business with them. From now on, we are the masters of Ryukyu."

Bai Wenzheng stared in astonishment, his mouth agape.

"Wild Boy, didn't you say that after this battle, we'd sell the silk through Ryukyu?"

Baiye laughed heartily:

"Didn't you say, Father? How could anyone in this world be a middleman for us for free? Since you don't want to share the profits with others, then we should take control of the entire shipping route."

From this moment forward, we are the kings of Ryukyu, and this sea route to the East will henceforth be our own treasure trove.