Chapter 258: Zhu Gang debates with scholars at the Imperial College, Li Wenzhong reminds the King of Jin not to implicate Fang Guozhen's descendants
The tribute looked very imposing, with the goatee on his chin trembling slightly.

He raised his voice and shouted, "Your Highness, Prince Jin, please don't speak nonsense!
Think about our great Ming Dynasty, with its vast territory and abundant resources.

That tiny country of Japan is just a tiny piece of land. How can it pose a threat to our Ming Dynasty?
In my opinion, this is just a minor illness or pain!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Gang couldn't help but smile coldly.

Then he said in a voice as loud as a bell: "This tribute student is so bold and arrogant!

Don’t you people know the simple truth that ‘a thousand-mile dam can be breached by a single ant hole’?

The current Japanese country is indeed small in scale, but their wolfish ambitions are obvious.

If we allow it to grow and develop recklessly, it will eventually lead to a disaster!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the scene suddenly fell into a commotion.

Everyone was whispering and discussing.

Some of them even looked skeptical and asked, "Your Highness Prince Jin, are you exaggerating too much?"

Faced with such doubts, Zhu Gang showed no intention of backing down.

His eyes were determined and he refuted sternly, "I am not exaggerating to scare you!

The facts are before our eyes. In recent years, the hateful Japan has frequently invaded my country's southeastern coastal areas.

They burned, killed, looted, and did all kinds of bad things. They were simply insane!
Moreover, the country's domestic political situation was in chaos, and the samurai class gradually gained real power.

Its ambition for external aggression and expansion has never been extinguished.

If the Ming Dynasty cannot plan ahead and make countermeasures in advance, I am afraid that we will encounter a catastrophic disaster in the future!"

Zhu Gang, who knows history, knows that these countries in Southeast Asia are generally very realistic.

Never think of pretending to be a pig to eat the tiger, because in the end you will find that you are really regarded as the "pig" by the other party.

In the turbulent and ever-changing history of the Ming Dynasty, there existed two powerful and frightening invading forces.

One of them is the nomadic people from the vast grasslands in the north, among which the Mongolian tribes are the most prominent.

The other force came from the Japanese pirates in the turbulent ocean in the southeastern coastal area. The two are collectively called "Southern Japanese and Northern Tartars".

His reputation spread far and wide and his power was feared throughout the world.

Although these two powerful rivals, one is active in the vast grassland, and the other shuttles in the surging sea.

However, they have one striking commonality: high liquidity.

The Mongolian cavalry, like a torrential rain, continuously attacked the majestic Great Wall defense line and engaged in thrilling battles with the Ming army.

At the same time, the vicious Japanese pirates frequently appeared on the endless coastline of the Ming Dynasty like ghosts.

They plundered, burned, killed and looted at will, bringing endless suffering and fear to the people living along the coast.

For a long time, people have tended to simply view the Japanese pirates as invaders from the island nation of Japan, but the truth is not that simple.

In fact, the composition of the Japanese pirates was quite complicated. Its members included not only those brutal Japanese ronin, but also many Ming Dynasty pirates with ulterior motives.

These lawless elements are in cahoots with each other and work together to commit crimes.

This caused the Japanese pirates' power to expand and their harm to become increasingly serious.

According to historical records: from the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty to the end of the Ming Dynasty, this group of cruel Japanese pirates had been wreaking havoc along the coast of China for more than three hundred years.

Wherever they passed, there was nothing left but devastation.

The economic development of my country's coastal areas has been dealt an immeasurable heavy blow. Countless innocent people have been displaced, their families have been broken up, and social order has fallen into chaos.

Thinking of this, Zhu Gang's heart suddenly shook.

A heart-pounding cold light suddenly flashed out from his eyes.

"Thinking back to the early years of the Hongwu era, the once invincible Fang Guozhen, Zhang Shicheng and others.

After being defeated in the battle with the imperial army, he had no choice but to lead the remnants of his troops to flee across the vast ocean in a panic, and from then on he transformed himself into a ferocious and brutal pirate.

These pirates often colluded with heavily armed merchants from the island countries of Japan and worked together.

Like a group of hungry wolves, they frequently appeared near the vast coastline of the Ming Dynasty and launched round after round of fierce attacks on the coastal areas.

The area of ​​its ravage was extremely wide, extending from the Yalu River in the north to the Pearl River estuary in the south, covering almost the entire eastern coastal area of ​​the Ming Dynasty.

Among them, Shandong, Liaodong and Zhejiang provinces suffered the most serious damage, and it can be said that they were not spared every year.

However, have you ever thought deeply about this question?

What exactly is the reason that causes these vicious Japanese pirates to be so desperate and willing to pay a huge price to frequently invade the coastal areas of our Ming Dynasty?"

Li Wenzhong quietly pulled Zhu Gang aside and said, "Fang Guozhen's three sons, Fang Li, Fang Guan, and Fang Xing, are now officials of the Ming Dynasty.

The matter of collusion with the Japanese pirates is a thing of the past, so let’s not mention it anymore.

In addition, Fang Guozhen's youngest son, Fang Guomin, Fang Mingqian, is highly appreciated by His Majesty and is now serving as a night guard at the Yingtian Palace."

Zhu Gang frowned and said, "Cousin, you know me well. I always stick to the facts.

Moreover, Japan is now in the stage of division between the North and South Dynasties, two regimes on one small island. Why should the Ming Dynasty support Prince Huailiang who massacred the envoys? "

We need to find out how to cleverly defeat Japan's various forces one by one and make them fall apart.

In fact, throughout the long history, our predecessors have left behind valuable experiences and lessons.

This master was Zhu Di, who later became famous throughout the world and was known as Emperor Yongle.

Looking back to the turbulent Yongle era, Zhu Di was far-sighted and resolutely relaxed the once strict maritime ban policy.

At the same time, he also actively established close business relations with the Japanese shogunate.

The Ashikaga shogunate at that time also showed a strong willingness to cooperate.

They willingly joined hands with the Ming Dynasty to resist the dreaded "Japanese pirates".

Under such circumstances, a series of wars launched against the Japanese pirates brought frequent victories and achieved countless brilliant results.

Especially in the milestone year of 1419 AD.

Liu Jiang, who was the commander-in-chief of Liaodong at the time, personally led the army to set up a tight net in the Wanghaiwo area.

With a thunderous force, all 31 warships of the Japanese pirates were destroyed, and thousands of Japanese pirates' heads fell to the ground.

After this battle, there were no large-scale invasions by Japanese pirates for a long period of time.

The intrusions of Japanese pirates were obviously curbed and gradually reduced.

In any case, in history, the result of the separatist period in Japan's Northern and Southern Dynasties was that the Muromachi shogunate of the Northern Dynasty ultimately won the victory over the Southern Dynasty.

Zhu Gang's current plan is simply to follow history and allow the Muromachi shogunate of the Northern Dynasty to defeat the Southern Dynasty more quickly.

(End of this chapter)