On Mount Higashino, Ujie Naomoto and Hirate Hanhide, who thought they were the masterminds of the Oda family, were full of ambition and gearing up to seize great power.
They obviously don't know that they are just a bait and a pawn, no better than the poor people on Iwasaki Mountain opposite.
At the same time, Akechi Mitsuhide has arrived at Domushan and is looking at each other and getting along with Christina.
Akechi Mitsuhide pointed to the four artillery pieces in front and asked.
"Your Excellency, is this what your Majesty calls the collapse of the country? It looks like an enlarged version of the iron cannon."
Christina nodded and said in broken Japanese.
"I don't know what your so-called national collapse is. In my country, they are called Fran cannons.
They are completely different from iron cannons. No matter in terms of deterrence or production difficulty, they are not weapons of the same level."
Akechi Mitsuhide looked at it curiously.
"There seems to be some difference in the size of these countries' collapse."
Christina replied.
"There are two three-pound cannons and two six-pound cannons here. The operators are all crew members I brought. They do not understand Japanese and cannot communicate with your army.
We are only responsible for artillery drills and will not participate in the war itself. If the opponent attacks us, please allow me to lead them out of the battlefield.
This is not their war. I promised them that I would bring them back to the ship alive. I hope you can forgive me."
Akechi Mitsuhide smiled and bowed.
"Your Excellency, you are too kind. You are the helpers invited by Your Majesty. I am very grateful for your help, Ariado, so I am here."
Akechi Mitsuhide did not answer Christina's question directly, so Christina couldn't help but frown, feeling that the person in front of her was not sincere enough.
"We accepted the employment fee from the Great Lord. This is what we should do. You don't need to express your gratitude to us.
I just hope you can abide by the agreement I made with the great lord and not embarrass my crew."
Christina didn't have much fondness for these island warriors who had complicated etiquette and killed without batting an eye. Instead, she was wary of them.
They can be very polite to you, but they can also draw a knife and chop you to death in the next moment without even blinking.
Faced with Christina's deliberate alienation and warning, Akechi Mitsuhide just smiled and didn't care.
Shiba Yiyin cared about making a contract with these southern barbarians, but Akechi Mitsuhide didn't.
If necessary, she would put a knife on these people's necks without hesitation and force them to obey her orders.
At this time, Mitsuhide Akechi changed the subject and avoided talking. He pointed at the Iwasaki Mountain defense line where the battle was in full swing and asked.
"Excuse me, sir, can these cannons attack there?"
Christina took a look and said.
"The effective range of the Fran cannon is 0.5-1 mile. The hills there are a little further away. It may be hit, but the impact point cannot be guaranteed. The entire small plain under the mountain is within the range.
With the kinetic energy of solid bullets, four shells at a time can plow four vertical lines on the ground, which I believe will be of great help to the battle situation."
Akechi Mitsuhide nodded. Although she didn't know how far a mile was, Christina's explanation gave her a rough idea.
This cannonball is an iron ball that is shot out. It rolls forward and plows out four straight lines. Its range can cover the entire small plain. With this explanation, the tactical idea set by Sibo Yiyin is very clear.
The Yuwu Lake battlefield is not very big. It is less than ten kilometers from the Oiwa Mountain where Oda Nobunaga is located to the Fox Tomb of Shiba Yoshigan.
Even if the surrounding mountains and personnel mobilization areas are included, the entire battlefield will not exceed twenty square kilometers.
The real core battlefield, the small plain on the east side of Yuwu Lake, is only about two square kilometers.
In such a narrow Yuwu Lake battlefield, both sides invested 70,000 to 80,000 people. It can be said that they were shoulder to shoulder with no room to turn. Especially in the small plain of the core battlefield, it was almost crowded with people.
In this environment, it was actually very beneficial to the Oda family's iron cannon and gun formation tactics. Using super long guns as a blocker, the iron cannon bows and arrows fired in three stages, continuously killing and injuring the Shiba army until their morale collapsed.
Because the plain was narrow and could only be described as a wider mountain valley, Sibo's army had no way to avoid it and could only rush forward, wasting its own military strength in vain.
But with the emergence of the Nanman Artillery Corps, the Oda family's advantage turned into a disadvantage.
Because they were so narrow, there was no room for maneuver for long guns and iron cannons. They were so densely packed in the small plain that they could only endure the bombardment of artillery with a longer range.
Although the solid bullets of the 16th century were far less lethal than the blooming bullets of later generations, the kinetic energy of the projectile rolled up and could still overwhelm the enemy formation.
Soldiers from the island country who have never seen artillery bombardment, and see those around them plowed into pulp by rolling shells, can they still maintain their formation and continue fighting?
I'm afraid that by then, most people will be frightened to the point of mental collapse, flee in all directions, and trample their own military formation into chaos. And this is the best time for Shiba Yiyin to lead his troops to attack.
Akechi Mitsuhide nodded with satisfaction, bowed deeply to Christina, and said.
"My troops and I will stay here to protect your safety. Please help me to win this war, please!"
Christina watched Mitsuhide Akechi bow, her eyes a little wandering.
It has been almost a year since the incident with Yiyin Spo last year.
But to this day, Christina is still unforgettable. When she dreams back at midnight, she will still think of the shame of that day.
Christina's mind was a little confused, wondering how she could have molested the great lord while being tied up by the same hands and feet.
Forget it, I don’t think about it anymore, but if there is a next time, I must be on top.
Christina said coldly.
"Of course I hope that your Excellency, the High Lord, can achieve victory. This is the reason why the artillery team is here.
I will do my best to command the artillery and open the door to victory for Your Excellency, and you don’t need to ask me for help.”
Akechi Mitsuhide straightened up, looked at the four artillery pieces, and said with a smile.
"I hope your country's collapse is as severe as you say."
Christina sneered.
"Ignorant islanders, don't underestimate the God of War. Just wait and appreciate it."
Akechi Mitsuhide nodded and said.
"I am looking forward."
———
Mitsuhide Akechi was not the only one who was looking forward to it. Maeda Yoshi who drove her to Dokiyama was even more looking forward to it.
In Maeda's main formation, a group of warriors knelt on the ground, and the news from the front was passed in one by one.
"Report! Hosokawa's vanguard broke through the defense line at the foot of the mountain. Lord Hosokawa sent ten subsequent reserve teams to continue the attack, and they have already reached the halfway point of the mountain!"
Maeda Yoshida raised his head and glanced at the sun. The sun had just risen for three seconds, and the Iwasaki defense line was already crumbling.
Is Hosokawa Fujitaka too powerful? Or is it that the defenders of the Iwasaki Line have no fighting spirit? Maybe it all has something to do with it?
Maeda sent Hosokawa Fujitaka to lead the charge, but he did not expect that her speed would be so fast. The Hosokawa army went against their usual reserved strength and pursued her fiercely, which was indeed impressive.
If Fujitaka Hosokawa knew what Maeda was thinking at this time, he would definitely laugh out loud.
The troops that Hosokawa Fujitaka sent to the front line were all close confidants of Hosokawa Mototsune, Mibuchi Fujihide's buddies, and the thorns in his family who he couldn't deal with.
To put it simply, Hosokawa's army attacked so fiercely and did not care about casualties. It was Hosokawa Fujitaka's deliberate action, killing three birds with one stone.
First, he showed his undying loyalty to Siba Yiyin and his absolute support for the Sibo family.
Second, let both the enemy and ourselves see the heritage of the Hosokawa family, and show everyone the dignity and strength of the Izumi-Hosokawa family.
Third, weaken the opposition forces in the family and prepare to take over the entire Hosokawa Mibuchi family in the future.
As the saying goes, kill enemies and bandits externally, eliminate dissidents internally, and flatter your superiors, killing three birds with one stone.
This time, under the instigation of Hosokawa Fujitaka, the Hosokawa Mibuchi family dispatched 20 reserve troops and mobilized a mobilization force of 200,000 koku, fulfilling their obligations as allies.
Coupled with the credit and hard work of the pioneers, Shiba Yoshigan will definitely not treat Hosokawa Fujitaka badly after the war. Hosokawa Fujitaka is staining his own merits with the blood of others, and he is rising step by step. Isn't it wonderful?
The cannon fodder from Minami Omi and Kita Ise on the Iwasaki defense line had low morale. Even with Sasanagi Masa's team supervising the battle, it was impossible to defeat Hosokawa Fujitaka who was attacking at all costs.
The Iwasaki defense line was torn open instantly, thus catching both the enemy and ourselves by surprise.
Maeda thought for a while and said.
"The Hosokawa Army has torn apart the enemy's defense line. Who is willing to lead troops to support and help the Hosokawa Army?"
Hosokawa's army has twenty reserves with 5,000 men, which seems to be a large number.
But having to break through the Iwasaki defense line in a short time put enough pressure on Oda Nobunaga, and the Oda family couldn't help but release Higashinoyama's main force in advance, and there was still a little time left.
To be continued...