Chen Zhongji held Zhang Hai and ordered to find the security personnel from the Ryukyu Commercial Building of China Company.
The former pirate leader Zhang Hai broke away from his hand in confusion: "Ji Zai, what's the matter with you? Why... you forgot what the ship owner said. The China Company was created to protect the interests of all Chinese people. The people below said They are all spoken in the dialect of Fuzhou, our hometown.”
"Brother Zhang, please be patient. Come and take a look." Chen Zhongji patiently dragged Zhang Hai over. He pointed at the crowd of refugees outside the gate and said, "Look at these refugees. Almost all of them are young men. There are almost no women or children." .And you see, it was only a few women who were shouting. There is something wrong with these men. Just now, the strong men had already passed by both sides of the store. Now those who passed were the weak and slow ones. Women, old people and children. Why are these men still lagging behind?"
Zhang Hai looked at it in confusion for a long time. He shook his head and said, "I can't see it. The Japanese were burning, killing, looting, and the refugees were running around. This is also possible."
Chen Zhongji shook his head: "Taiwan Port was attacked in a sneak attack because five Japanese pirate merchant ships were put in. The Japanese pirates took advantage of the loophole... We are now alone on Ryukyu Island. We must not make any mistakes. It is better to be careful."
"Report. Zeng Xiren, the special director of Ryukyu Department of Security, reported for duty."
A short young man stood on the wall. He was thin and lean, and looked at Chen Zhongji with piercing eyes. Chen Zhongji cupped his fists and cupped his hands and said: "Brother Zeng, have you stayed at the Ryukyu Commercial Center for two years? Are you familiar with Ryukyu around you? Common people, oh, are you from Master Zeng’s family?”
The little man Zeng Xiren's face darkened. He smiled bitterly and said: "I am the son of the Zeng family. It was Captain Yin who redeemed my body and asked me to work for him..." "The son of the family" refers to the slaves of the family. The child is born as a slave of the family and is a pariah.
Zeng Xiren puffed up his chest and said: "I was ordered to come to Ryukyu. Within two years, I have dealt with the people in the four major jurisdictions around Naha Port."
Chen Zhongji smiled and said: "That's it. Come and screen the refugees down here."
Zeng Xiren stood on the gate tower and talked for a while with the shouting refugees below. Then he shouted: "Everyone, wait a moment. I'm going to report it to the shopkeeper." He hurriedly came to Chen Zhongji and Zhang Hai. In front of supervisor officer Mai Yangtian and others, he said with a sullen face: "At least half of the people below are very suspicious. Their hairstyles are similar to the local Ryukyuan people. But they speak Chinese with a weird accent. Moreover, I spoke in Ryukyuan dialect. They answered each other, but they responded in Chinese. The Han people in Kume Village have lived here for more than a hundred years. They have been almost the same as the locals for a long time. They speak Ryukyu dialect better than they speak Chinese. It is impossible not to speak Ryukyu dialect. "
Zhang Hai patted his head and cursed in annoyance: "Damn it, it's really the Japanese pirates who are causing the trouble. I'll take people to kill them."
Chen Zhongji pulled him back and said, "Let Brother Zeng identify him. Try not to accidentally hurt innocent people."
More than a dozen sharpshooters from the special battalion were transferred to the gate tower. Under Zeng Xiren's guidance, they fired with "crack bang bang" for a while, killing dozens of Japanese pirates pretending to be refugees who gathered under the gate one by one. Other Zhenzong The refugees were all frightened for a moment. They stood there blankly, trembling all over, and forgetting what to do... At this time, the door opened halfway. Chen Zhongji and Zeng Xiren rushed out with dozens of sailors. Dragging a dozen women, old and young, who were dazed on the spot, into the store gate.
In the afternoon, a large number of Ryukyu refugees fled to the east gate of the Chunghwa Merchant Building, begging the Chinese to open the door. Amidst the huge fire behind them, the figures of Satsuma feudal soldiers could already be seen. Zeng Xiren shouted at the gate with Ryukyu " The words shouted: "Folks, get out of here quickly. Go to the west gate and come in. Hurry."
The Ryukyu people below the gate were stunned for a while. Then they went around the east gate and continued to escape. They had just left the east gate when a group of Shimazu Army Ashigaru infantrymen with long spears and bamboo armor rushed over. The leader The samurai brandished Japanese swords and came to a hundred steps away from the wall of the Zhonghua Company's commercial building. He shouted in Japanese.
Chen Zhongji walked up to the east gate gate with a flintlock musket. Luo Aquan was loading his musket in the corner of the gatehouse. As the first sharpshooter of the Chinese company's escort team, Luo Aquan had a specially made extended musket. It was better than the Chinese army's standard flintlock musket. It is half as long. Moreover, there are a total of six such guns. In addition to Luo Aquan, there are five assistants to help carry them. The amount of ammunition per load is also twice as much as that of a normal flintlock musket.
Zeng Xiren was also on the gate tower, looking at the Naha Port that had been engulfed in flames.
"Damn Japanese pirates. I bought a house here..." he said angrily.
Chen Zhongji smiled and patted him on the shoulder. Is this a signature move he learned from Captain Yin Feng? "Brother Zeng, your mother-in-law is also from Ryukyu. What are these Japanese people shouting about?"
Zeng Xiren smiled: "Yes. I got married here last year. I took the Sea Spirit back to Taiwan a few days ago. These Japanese pirates seem to be saying that they want us to open the door and let them come in to check."
Chen Zhongji sneered and said, "Okay. Just invite them in."
Zeng Xiren opened his mouth and suddenly realized: "Please enter the urn. That's it... We now have the advantage of the terrain. A burst of musketry can also solve the problem."
Chen Zhongji looked at the Japanese warriors who kept approaching the wall of the commercial building. He said coldly: "The last time the Sea Spirit came to Naha, it brought a message from the captain; he asked us to try to slow down the Shimadzu army's advance and contain it. Their military strength. Our merchant house is the nail on the head of Naha Port. Sooner or later we will have a real fight with the Japanese pirates. However, now we have to rely on the Ryukyu people to block the Japanese pirates for us. These Japanese pirates are obviously here to accept the merchant house. It’s from the stockade. If we fire on the city wall, there are houses everywhere in the adjacent city area near the east gate. As long as they hide in the residential areas, there will be nothing we can do.”
At this time, another small group of Shimazu Army samurai appeared from the Naha Port City area. They fought with the previous group of Ashigaru. They seemed to be discussing something.
Chen Zhongji took a look at the telescope and said to Zeng Xiren: "These warriors are not high-level. Maybe they don't know how to deal with us. The Japanese should have known that our Zhonghua Company was stationed here. Now we have to try our best to delay. .Destroy all the small group of Japanese pirates in front of us. We cannot let them go back to report the news."
As the sun set, a team of more than 30 samurai from the Hirata Department of the Shimadzu Army, including Zaemon, stood sparsely 100 paces from the east gate of the Chunghwa Merchant Village. They were looking at the door of the merchant store that was slowly opening. Under the reflection of the setting sun, the two large flags hanging on the gatehouse were particularly conspicuous. One flag read: "The Ming Dynasty was ordered to go to sea for trade". The other flag was the Chinese flag with Chinese characters on a blue background.
The Shimadzu soldiers who had been burning and killing for a day were all a little tired. They were squatting or standing, talking in twos and threes.
"Is this a business store for people from the Ming Dynasty? It looks like a city..."
Compared with the castles of the Daimyo lords of Japan during the Warring States Period, this one-mile-square Chinese business building surrounded by thick walls three feet high can indeed be considered a city.
"I heard that Zhonghua Company is the richest in the world. There are piles of gold, silver and jewelry here."
"Why haven't the leaders ordered us to enter the village yet?"
Oyozaemon came here to receive the property from the Chinese Merchant House directly under the orders of the Shimazu Army Deputy General Hirata Masumune. He had been waiting for the group of Unos sent earlier who were disguised as refugees to start an uprising in the walled city. .However, it is almost night now. There is still no movement inside the Zhonghua Commercial Building. However, the door is opened very strangely.
A short man who looked like a Ryukyu commoner appeared at the gate. He jumped on his feet and waved to them. He shouted vague words in Japanese: "Come quickly... someone is here..." This was the Japanese disguised by Zeng Xiren. He Before taking the post in Ryukyu, I lived in Japan, so my Japanese is not bad.
An Ashigaru petty leader said in surprise: "Oyu-kun, someone from the Oyama team must have succeeded."
Oarizaemon nodded: "That should be it. Let's set off. I didn't expect these guys from the Ming Dynasty to be so useless..."
More than 30 Japanese pirates swaggered into the east gate of the wall of the merchant house. Everyone was careless and full of fantasies about gold and silver. They didn't even notice that there was no one on the gate tower or in the doorway.
Under the setting sun, more than 30 Japanese pirates rushed into the courtyard of the commercial building. The scene before them was unforgettable for them. Of course, the so-called lifetime was just before their eyes.
The village wall casts a shadow over the entire courtyard in the last rays of the setting sun. Under the shadow, 100 Chinese people wearing black clothes and black armor stood in the middle of the courtyard in a standard posture, facing the east gate.
"Raise the gun." A strong voice commanded.
More than 30 Japanese pirates suddenly realized that they were facing the dark muzzles of more than 100 muskets. At the same time, the surrounding walls were filled with Chinese people armed with live ammunition. Since they all had their backs to the setting sun, they could not see clearly. The faces of the Chinese people, but from their calm, silent and uniform movements, there is a boundless murderous aura.
"aim."
Oarizaemon's mind was in confusion. He opened his mouth wide and could not say anything.
"Fire."
The moment darkness fell on the earth, hundreds of gun muzzles sprayed flames and bullets almost simultaneously.
The Chinese company's escort team shot more than 30 Japanese pirates to death in one second.
In the thirty-seventh year of Wanli, on April 20th in the fourteenth year of Japan's Keicho reign (1609), the Chinese at Naha Port in Ryukyu fired with uniform flintlock muskets to bid farewell to the sun on this day. On this day At the end of the day, the Japanese pirates occupied Kohama Bay north of Naha Port. At night, the 200 Ryukyu defenders of Mie Castle near Kohama Bay surrendered without a fight.
In Naha Port, except for the Yaraza Mori Castle where 1,000 Ryukyu troops led by Zheng Jiao are stationed, only the Chinese Commercial Building is still outside the control of the Japanese army.
The first day of blood and fire in Naha Port is over. One-third of the docks and buildings in the city were burned. Next, this once prosperous trading port will undergo more baptism of blood and fire.
…
Late at night, in the old camp of Shuizhai in Jilong Port, Taiwan Island, Yin Feng's ship was aboard the Flying Wolf.
Yin Feng was looking at the map of Satsuma Domain in his cabin. Li Lihua was looking for something in a pile of documents next to it.
Yin Feng suddenly put down his pen and asked Li Lihua: "Ali, is there any new news from Nanyang?"
At Yin Feng's insistence, Li Lihua began to take charge of Nanyang intelligence work again.
Li Lihua stopped what she was doing and smiled faintly: "There is news from Mai Xiaoliu. They fought with people from Tianhua Company in Malacca and Wantan. They didn't suffer any loss. Don't worry. Also, there is news from a big food businessman. Here’s the news. Ye Hua’s fleet has arrived at the black country on the coast of Africa.”
Yin Feng nodded, rubbed his eyes, stood up and opened the window. A gust of wind blew in and blew out three candles in the cabin.
"Stop lighting candles, Lihua. Take a rest."
Yin Feng hugged Li Lihua in his arms and sighed. He looked at the lights on the warships around him. On land, the military camp kept calling for the watch. He breathed out slowly: "I don't know what happened to Ji Zai. The Ryukyu people support me." It won't be long. Then it will be all up to Ji Zai to hold back the main force of the Shimazu army. Alas..."