Forty-eight years of Qianlong

Chapter 274 The cannon is not enough

The princes' meeting lasted until late at night, and no one came up with a solution.

In order not to give up the pretext of "colluding with Tang Yi", Hou Yida Shigemura of Sendai refused to come forward to negotiate, and he did not agree with his subordinates; on the head.

In history, after Tokugawa Eight Daime Yoshimune asked his fourth son Zong Yin to establish the Tokugawa House of Hitohashi, two generals came out of the Hitohashi House.One is the current Tokugawa Iezai, and the other is the last Tokugawa Yoshiki.

After returning to his residence in Hitotsubashi Gate, 35-year-old Tokugawa Jisuke had an urgent discussion with his subordinates, and his subordinates came up with an idea.

"Why don't you let Marquis Baihe go?"

Tokugawa Jisu narrowed his eyes and said, "Tell me?"

"My family wants to support Marquis Shirakawa as the chief senior middleman, but Owari and the Mito feudal clans are opposed to it. If Marquis Shirakawa can negotiate well, the opposition will surely subside."

After hearing this, Tokugawa Jisu couldn't help but feel moved.The reason why he chose Matsudaira Sadanobu is because Tokugawa Iezai needs someone who can be by his side for a long time and strongly support him to grow to full-fledged, and the chief senior middleman is the most suitable candidate.

In terms of blood relationship, Marquis Baihe himself and the Yiqiao family are both descended from the line of the Eighth General Yoshimune.However, as a bastard, Matsudaira Jonobu was adopted at the age of 15 to Hisamatsu Matsudaira as the head of the family, Shirakawa feudal lord, and Matsudaira Jobang.Moreover, Matsudaira Sadanobu is just the head of the last family, and Tokugawa Jisu doesn't have to worry that Matsudaira Sadanobu will seize power, or even threaten his right to speak in the shogunate.

In this way, on the next morning, the envoys who rushed out from Yiqiao Hall arrived at the residence of the Baihe clan, and conveyed the warrant of Gong Fangzhang. After the 28-year-old Matsudaira Sadanobu and his retainers knelt and listened, they looked resentful, thinking that this bastard was trying to kill me!However, when the messenger told Dakanobu about Tokugawa Jisuke's original intention, Dakanobu decided to set off for Uraga.

The problem is that Matsudaira Sadanobu can't negotiate with a small surname alone on a horse, the Kingdom of God also wants to show face!You have to bring thousands of warriors with you, right?
At this time, panic had begun in Edo Castle.Because there were no cargo ships entering the port in the morning, when the shops opened in the morning, the prices of daily necessities such as salt, rice, and soy sauce began to increase.

And the shops selling swords and armors were full of Banner warriors, all busy ordering armors and choosing weapons at hand.It's gone!When the mobilization order is issued, even if the Banners go to Zacha merchants to borrow money, they must have a piece of armor that fits.

"How do you wear this thing?" A samurai muttered while carrying two armor pieces.

A bearded Banner warrior stood in front of a pile of armor on a platform and shouted, "Give me a Nanban chain mail!"

"Chenghui Shiliang." The store clerk greeted with a smile on his face.

"It's so expensive!" The bearded warrior almost jumped up, and then he picked up a leather armor with an iron plate on his chest and said, "How much is this?"

"This is only two taels."

"Okay, let's take it!"

Just as the bearded warrior was about to leave, another warrior suddenly grabbed him, bowed and asked, "Excuse me, how should I wear this armor?"

The bearded man rolled his eyes, and said in his heart that if you ask me, who will I ask!
On the coast of Shinagawa, hundreds of Banner Samurai and Ashgaru in miscellaneous armors were practicing assassination with two guns.

Others were busy arranging all kinds of cannons pulled out of the armory in Edo City on the defensive positions built overnight.Among these cannons, there are not only the large Portuguese Francophones covered with green rust, but also the British naval guns and Ieyasu heavy cast iron cannons used in the Siege of Osaka 200 years ago.

The famous Ieyasu heavy iron cannon was the most conspicuous in black, almost the caliber of a 12-pound gun.

Since the Warring States period, the big tube of the island country has already distorted the technology tree.Almost 200 years ago, the self-made artillery almost had a wooden support underneath, regardless of the caliber, which looked like a large matchlock gun; and the firing method was the same as the matchlock gun.

These large-caliber matchlock guns are generally mounted on the gun carriage, and the height of the muzzle can be adjusted with a few ropes.

Most of these cannons have a caliber of more than 30-40 mm, and are called "hugging large barrels".Either set it on a tripod when shooting, or find someone to carry it in front.The maximum range of the hugging large barrel can reach 800 meters, but the accuracy is extremely poor.

"Go up, push hard, push hard!"

Several warriors struggled to push a cart with a large bronze bell pulled from the temple on it.

"I said, why did we bring this hanging clock here?" A sweaty young warrior asked the people around him.

"I heard." The samurai next to him was pushing the cart, and replied wheezingly: "Come on, put the mouth of the bell facing the sea, so that the white boat will think it's a cannon."

"Cannon?" The young samurai looked up at the huge bronze bell, thinking that if the people on the white ship dared to approach Shinagawa, they would probably be scared away when they saw such a thick cannon muzzle.
At this time, the Uraga Magistrate's office received an order from Edo, requesting to delay the time as much as possible, so Tanzawa Hisaoemon negotiated with the Raijin again and asked to board the ship for negotiation.

Zhao Xin thought about it for a while, he knew that the pissing nature of the islanders was terrible, so he asked Jiuzang to deal with it.

When Tanzawa Hisaemon and his companions were led into the meeting room of the Thunder God like fools, Jiu Zang took a clerk and quickly sat across from them.

The two sides saluted each other, and after introducing their respective identities, Tanzawa Hisaemon said: "Our country asks you to withdraw from Uraga and then negotiate."

"Impossible." Jiu Zang shook his head and refused.

"What is your purpose?"

"On behalf of the Great Ainu Kingdom, we request that the shogunate no longer immigrate to the Ezo land, and must not attack the Ezo land. Can you agree to this? Do you dare to agree?"

Tanzawa Hisaoemon said that if I agree, I will die!So he said with a blank face like a repeater: "Please leave Uraga and talk again."

Jiuzang said: "Since last year, your side has attacked Matsumae Castle twice in a row. As a friend of the Great Ainu King, my Highness is very angry with this behavior of the shogunate. This time we brought an army of 3000 people. If you If Fang doesn’t send a representative who matches the status of His Royal Highness tomorrow, we will bombard Edo.”

Tanzawa Kuzaemon said angrily: "You attacked Matsumae Castle for no reason, and then blackmailed the Nagasaki Magistrate. This is an act of aggression!"

Jiu Zang said: "The Matsumae clan has been blackmailing and oppressing the Ainu people for a long time. We should expel them at the plea of ​​the Ainu country. As for Nagasaki, we were going to negotiate the 'Susa Tang Ship Incident', but Nagasaki pursued They actually sent troops to sneak attack. So you should ask Nagasaki Makoto and Hagi Fan about this."

Tanzawa Hisaoemon said that the former Nagasaki deputy is dead, I ask who to go to!So he said: "Since the leader of your party claims to be His Highness, he should submit his credentials first and wait for our response, so please withdraw from Uraga Haimian before discussing."

"No! My lord has already told you yesterday, Yu Sanjia or Yu Sanqing. The trick of delaying the deployment of troops is useless to us. The range of the artillery on our ship is 20 miles. If you don't believe me, you can ask the Nabeshima family. people."

Zhao Xin still kept his hand hidden. The maximum effective range of the D30 is 15.4 kilometers, which is 30 miles.He asked Jiuzang to say 20 miles, concealing a third of the range.

But when Danzawa Hisaoemon heard the number "twenty miles", his eyes widened!

Tanzawa Kuzaemon, who tried his best to suppress his inner emotions, stared at Kuzang, and suddenly said after a while: "Could it be that your Excellency is from the Mutsu area of ​​our country?"

Jiuzang nodded and said, "That's right, I was originally a mountain dweller in Yanmu Mountain."

Dan Ze Jiu Zuo Wei's face was angry, and he reprimanded: "Have you forgotten all the laws of the shogunate? It is a felony to leave the country without permission! It is betrayal!"

"Seeking a way out is betrayal. Don't we peasants who live in the dirt deserve to be starved to death?" Jiuzang looked at the other party coldly, and murderous intent suddenly arose in his heart. "For you samurai masters, it is best for us all to die, and become bones that are not buried by the roadside and eaten by wild dogs. And you people, continue to live a life of drunken dreams in Edo city .This is your reasoning?!"

Tanzawa Hisaoemon said that I would like to, but it's a pity that we are only two hundred stones, and it's not my turn to live and die.

After that, Jiuzang brought two samurai to the deck, pointed to the two D30 doors covered under the cannon coat and said: "Remember, you only have one day! At the right moment at noon tomorrow, we will drive to Edo In the bay, bombard Shinagawa."

The four-meter-long barrel of the D30 and Kuzo's warning made Tanzawa Kuzaemon and his companions shocked. When they walked down the gangway tremblingly, they were already sweating profusely.

If the other party really bombarded Edo, he and his companions, including Uraga Makoto and the leader of the navy, would all have to apologize.

In the late afternoon, when the eight strikes sounded from the bell tower of Nihonbashi Ishicho [-]-chome, another Uraga who was stationed in Edo rushed to Uraga with a group of his subordinates, following the order of the official. He Fengxing Office.

(The timekeeping in the Edo period started from the nine bells at Zishi, and then reversed from eight, seven, six, five, and four; when it was noon, it started from nine. As for why it starts from nine, Because the number nine is the largest positive number.)
"Ah! Twenty miles!" When the two Uraga officials heard that the artillery on Tang Yi's ship could reach twenty miles away, they were so frightened that they almost peed their pants. "How many cannons do they have?"

"Only two doors can be seen below."

The two Uraga Fushin let out a sigh of relief, saying that they only have two schools.

wrong!The Uraga Magiyuki who was stationed in Edo suddenly remembered what happened to the Nabeshima family in Nagasaki.It is said that Tang Yi fired two cannonballs at that time, and Quanxian Shannaoshima's lineup was immediately killed and injured, and even Nabeshima Zhimao was injured and evacuated.Tang Yi's shells will explode!
"Fortunately, His Royal Highness Baihehou is already on the way, and he will be able to arrive at the Imperial Palace in the evening!"

"Then what about the negotiation time?"

The two Uraga ministers discussed it. Since Tang Yi said that he was going to shell Shinagawa at noon, he set the time for noon.

"Where is the formation?" It would definitely not work to let Tang Yi drive the boat to the Imperial Palace; and the Yashikiura on the south side is populated by civilians and businessmen, which is even more inappropriate.

At this time, Yi Yuli suddenly said: "My lord, I know that there is a very suitable place. It is in the narrow strip between the 'Whale Cutting Field' and the Mingdeng Hall on the south side of Pinggen Mountain. The beach there is flat and has a wide view. Moreover, our army can set up a defense line on Pinggen Mountain, and Tang Yi's every move cannot escape our surveillance."

"Oh? Map!" The two executive officers first looked at the map, and then asked the team leader below to lead the people to survey the terrain.

Under Zhao Xin's so-called threat of shelling Shinagawa, the speed of the Uraga Magistrate's Office was so neat and fast.By four o'clock in the afternoon, the negotiation site had been surveyed.

The messengers galloped out of the Imperial Palace on fast horses, some went to Edo Castle to report the progress of the incident, and some reported to Matsudaira Sadanobu on the road at any time.

At the same time, a group leader samurai from the Uraga Prefectural Office brought his subordinates Yuli, Tongxin, and fifty ashigaru to the vicinity of the Whale Cutting Field. He first dispersed the fishermen working nearby, and then began to plan the battle. set up.

At dusk, the Raytheon received a notification document from the Uraga Magistrate, explaining the time and place of the negotiation.However, when the Thunder God sailed into the bay according to Danzawa Hisaoemon's guidance, Zhao Xin, who was standing on the deck, was very happy.

Isn't this the location of the later Perry Park!Well, Zhao Xin feels very satisfied.

At nightfall, the [-] Banner Samurai who arrived from Edo took advantage of the night to enter the western side of Pinggen Mountain and set up camp.In addition to the small hills on both sides, they mainly set up defense lines overnight at the mountain pass on the west side of the whale cutting field, and built antler wooden fences.

At around four o'clock the next morning, when it was still daylight, Zhao Xin went to the deck, looked around for a while with an infrared telescope, and then asked several sailors to put the gangway on the right side of the ship's side close to the water surface.Afterwards, he shooed away the sailors, waited for a few more minutes, walked down the gangway alone, and took out the two catamaran passenger boats that transported the oilfield workers.

This boat can hold 300 people at a time, and it goes back and forth three times, and a group of people can complete the landing.

Zhao Xin came with two regiments this time to frighten the shogunate and let them understand that he has the ability to capture Edo Castle at any time, so that they can stop their ambitions for Ezo.

As for the thankless task of taking down Edo, Zhao Xin was not interested.

When the sky was bright, the samurai who were in charge of guarding on the shore had already discovered that there were two more strange white ships under the Thunder God. Although they were not as huge as the Thunder God, they were comparable in size to the main ships of the shogunate navy.

Especially the guards on duty all night on the shore, and the sailors watching on the nearby sea were even more frightened. They couldn't figure out when the two white strange boats slipped in.

Good guy!Under my nose, I can do it without anyone noticing. If I sneak into Edo Bay at night, a hundred heads like myself are not enough to chop off.And the water master Tongxin on the several closed boats was already ashen-faced, and his defense was weak, and the shogunate's thunderous wrath could not escape!

At eight o'clock in the morning, another group of thousands of samurai and ashigaru rode donkey-like southern warhorses, with bright armor and holding a big flag, and came slowly from the direction of the Uraga Prefectural Office.

After these people arrived at the whale cutting site, they quickly arranged guards near the negotiation site and planted flags.The ashigaru people took tools and set up a formation at the position of the negotiation point.

Since the Nara period, the curtains have been the curtains around which the army camped in the field, and they are also called "military curtains."The early military system stipulated that every 10 soldiers must carry a dark blue curtain for camping in the wild.

"Konjaku Monogatari" says that when warriors set up camp, the curtain can not only block the wind, but also resist the weakened bow and arrow shooting.

According to the "Military Weapons of the Dynasty" written by Arai Shiraishi, a famous Confucianist in the Edo period, the height of a curtain is 5 feet each, and the total length must reach two feet and eight feet; that is, each curtain is 1.5 meters high, and the total length is 8.4 meters.

The poles with heads protruding from the curtain and decorated with patterns are called "curtain strings".In the formation of generals, there must be 10 curtains; for ordinary generals, there are eight.There are also requirements for the ropes tied on the curtain, usually white ropes, black ropes, or green cloth ropes.

As for the family crest on the curtain, it must be in the position corresponding to the number three, five, and seven of the curtain string.

What needs to be explained is that in the middle and late Edo period, the array already had a religious nature like an enchantment, which could exorcise evil spirits and avoid ghosts.This thing cannot be cleaned, otherwise it will be an ominous sign.

An hour later, a formation surrounded on three sides with a total length of more than ten meters was completed.

On the Raytheon side, it was ten o'clock in the morning, and before Uraga sent someone to notify, Zhao Xin began to order Pan Xiucheng to take people aboard the catamaran and prepare to disembark.

And 500 people began to land, and this formation quickly scared the samurai on the shore.

　Note: The biggest use of the holding tank is in naval battles. After loading gunpowder, it is then loaded into something called a "stick fire arrow"; it has a thick metal arrowhead and a wide metal fletcher, both of which are installed on the on a short wooden pole.One shot can dig a big hole in the opponent's wooden boat.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)