Wanli 1592

Chapter 373 The Desperate Mang Yingli
When Xiao Ruxun launched an attack on Mawlamyine, the Burmese defenders in Mawlamyine were less than 2000, and it didn't take much effort. After a few rounds of shelling, these defenders collapsed by themselves, and Xiao Ruxun took only a small army. Moulmein was killed, and more than [-] heads were beheaded by the way.

After taking down Mawlamyine, Xiao Ruxun headed north all the way. There was no resistance from the establishment on the road. Many military fortresses could be seen to be inhabited, but there was no one inside. It was a mess like the arrival of the Ming army. He ran away before, which made it much easier for Xiao Ruxun to advance all the way to Bagu without having to start a war.

Myanmar is still too weak, and its background is too poor. Although it has had hegemony in this area for decades, once they are completely wiped out by the traditional power Ming Dynasty, they will immediately weaken to an unbelievable level. It was exposed, and he didn't even have the courage to resist. It was obviously a pretty good military fortress. Matteo Ricci, who was by Xiao Ruxun's side, also said that it was a very European-style fortress. But no one is watching.

Not only was there no one guarding them, but the weapons inside were also not taken away. Xiao Ruxun seized more than 30 European-style cannons, more than 700 matchlock guns, and countless swords, bows and crossbows along the way to the seventeen or eighteen fortresses. There are some undamaged grains and fish raised in the pond. I don’t know what these Burmese soldiers think of this place.

All in all, Xiao Ruxun had taken advantage of it, and Matteo Ricci had always lamented the cowardice and ignorance of the Burmese. Even if they had a stronghold to resist, the Ming army would not be able to advance so quickly.

"It's not that they are cowardly and ignorant, but that I, Da Ming, are too strong! So strong that they dare not resist at all!"

The corners of Xiao Ruxun's mouth curled up slightly, and he looked at Matteo Ricci with unusual eyes. The latter was a little uncomfortable being looked at by Xiao Ruxun, so he lowered his head and stopped talking.

After this battle, not to mention the Japanese and Spaniards, Matteo Ricci and the two hundred Portuguese in the army also became more honest. When they first taught the Ming army the scientific method of using artillery and guns, they still hid They didn't tell the Ming army the reason, but let them do this, and then when they saw the Ming army's overwhelming barbaric artillery coverage and firearms assault, they lost their energy in an instant.

When he was free during the march, Xiao Ruxun would call Matteo Ricci over to have a look at the "Elements of Geometry" written in Latin in his hand, but Xiao Ruxun could not understand Latin, and Matteo Ricci He can understand, and after learning Chinese, he can also translate, but when it comes to the definition of some professional terms, he is helpless, because there are some concepts in this book that are not found in ancient Chinese mathematics.

How to create some unknown nouns from scratch is impossible for an Italian missionary who knows little about Chinese. Therefore, he must find a scholar-bureaucrat who is knowledgeable and understands mathematics.

But now, Matteo Ricci seems to have discovered that the bloodthirsty general is very interested in mathematics.

"Three angles, if you ask me, this is a triangle, this is an angle, it can be translated as a triangle, and this is... an equilateral triangle, what does this word mean?"

Xiao Ruxun pointed to a Latin word and asked Matteo Ricci, and Matteo Ricci looked at it, showing a bit embarrassed look: "This meaning can be described as, for example, when shooting with a musket, raise the head of the gun a little bit, you can This is probably what it means to hit a farther place, the distance from here to here."

Ricci drew a corner with a branch on the ground, then drew an arc between the two lines: "This is what the word means."

Xiao Ruxun immediately understood that this word means angle.

"I see, it can be translated as 'angle'."

Xiao Ruxun now understands how many difficulties Xu Guangqi and Matteo Ricci encountered when translating this book. Some words that did not exist needed to be created by Xu Guangqi. The basic concepts of mathematics such as point, line and plane were created by Xu Guangqi at that time. He is the earliest creator of all Chinese mathematics textbooks. Without Xu Guangqi giving Chinese meaning to these Latin words, we really would not be able to study Western natural science.

But Xiao Ruxun doesn't have this kind of trouble. He can't read Latin, but he can understand what it means in an instant. As long as Matteo Ricci roughly describes it and draws a picture, he can know what mathematics Matteo Ricci is talking about. noun.

"That is to say, you can only make a straight line through two points. This is what Euclid meant, right?"

Xiao Ruxun clicked two points on the ground, and then drew a straight line.

"Yes! That's what it means! The general is a genius in mathematics!"

It is not easy for him to find a high-status person in China who has a common language and is very interested in mathematics.

"It was the first time I heard about these things in Ming Dynasty. In the past, there were many mathematicians in China. The circle you mentioned, our ancestors could use the circle cutting method to measure pi long ago. Using a point It’s very interesting to make a circle center, a line to make a radius, and a circle to be made, but our ancestors didn’t pay attention to it, and even if they knew it, they knew it, and they didn’t understand it deeply.”

Xiao Ruxun dropped the stick and stood up.

"Why? This knowledge is very useful knowledge."

Xiao Ruxun sighed: "For our ancestors, the knowledge of being able to survive is the most useful knowledge. How to farm the land, how to get rid of insects, and how to increase food production are the things that the ancestors were most concerned about. , you can search the whole world and you can’t find people who are better at farming than the Chinese. Besides, they don’t care too much. After all, if you don’t have enough food, you can’t do anything. If you want to study mathematics, Always have a full stomach first!"

"China is very rich, how can someone not have enough to eat?"

At first glance, Matteo Ricci is based on the perception of China in the cities, but has never entered the countryside to experience the real situation of farmers.

"You will understand later that mathematics can only be studied by people with a full stomach. Fortunately, there is no shortage of people with a full stomach in China, so we can still research something after all. , you put this book away, and after packing up the things here, I will take some time and we will translate this book, so that our scholar-officials can also have a good understanding of your mathematics."

Matteo Ricci showed a relieved smile: "I see, General."

"Let's go!"

Xiao Ruxun got on his horse and headed for the barracks.

Different from Xiao Ruxun's confident and leisurely march, the Burmese are not so leisurely. Even in the core of their rule, there is an air of despair everywhere, and this breath of despair hangs over every Burmese. Heart, let them know what to do, let them look around at a loss, let them tremble with fear.

The little prince Min Qide, who had been invincible for more than ten years, was defeated, and the [-] troops were wiped out. The Ming army was marching towards Bagu, and Bagu no longer had enough defensive power.

These news bombarded the sensitive and fragile nerves of the Burmese people one after another, from the ridicule and disbelief at the beginning, to the panic among the people caused by the influx of defeated soldiers with broken arms and legs. But it’s only been a few days. Nothing can explain the problem better than the defeated soldiers who came down from the battlefield, and nothing can explain the problem better than the continuous robbery and attack by unknown forces in the villages inhabited by Bamar people around Bago.

According to the words of the defeated soldiers, the army was defeated miserably. Prince Min Qide died in battle. Most of the army was lost, and many were captured. Only a few escaped. None of the forts along the way insisted on defending, and all were discarded. After fleeing from the fortress, everyone fled back to Bago, because only here can give them a little sense of security.

But in the final analysis, no one can believe how long this sense of security can last. With more and more defeated soldiers and the influx of refugees from surrounding villages, Bagu began to become overcrowded, and people finally completely believed it. The defeat of the army, the complete defeat of the army that has been rampant for decades, came without warning, making everyone at a loss. They are used to the triumph of the army and the sharing of spoils, used to victory and glory.

It is too cruel to let them accept defeat now.

They all set their sights on the tallest, largest and most luxurious building in the city. There, there was their king for decades, the king who brought them countless glory and victories. They urgently needed the king's instructions. The need of the king to give them a guarantee of safety.

But now, their king can no longer respond to their expectations. Mang Yingli has been in a coma for two days and two nights. After learning the news that Min Qide died in battle and the army was defeated two days ago, he passed out and has not woken up to this day. The palace was in chaos, civil and military ministers were running around like ants on a hot pot, there was nothing they could do - they were used to Mang Yingli's powerful rule, they were his tame assistants, and they were not used to it when they left him up.

The [-] main force was defeated, and only a few escaped back. Now the available army is only [-]. There are unknown numbers of Ming and Siamese troops marching outside Bago. The country is in danger. King, what are you doing? Just fell down?Have you ever considered the desperation of those of us?
Perhaps because of hearing such a desperate cry, that night, Mang Yingli woke up leisurely, and when he opened his eyes, he saw the Minister of Civil and Military Affairs staring at him and asking him——Wang, what should we do?
what to do?What do you ask me to do?can i know what to do?I am also very desperate!

The qualified son who had been trained for more than ten years died in battle, the [-] elite army was defeated, the foundation of the country was destroyed, and the remaining army lost the will to fight. Attacking Bagu, he has absolutely no chance of defeating...

Until this time, he realized that his country and his government were moving forward with vigor. He had never considered what to do in case of defeat. He and his father had never failed in the battle for many years , He has a kind of blind self-confidence, he believes that he can definitely overcome, he will never fail, no matter how dangerous the situation is, he will never fail.

He used the wartime system to maintain his government and rule, but he never thought that once he was defeated and his military power could not maintain the wartime rule, his regime would collapse.

He could already imagine how ecstatic the tribes in the west and south would be when they learned that they were defeated, and how they would quickly assemble their troops to fight the autumn wind. Are you facing the situation?
"My lord, if you don't want to come up with countermeasures, more people will escape. There are already many people who have escaped. We must quickly come up with countermeasures!"

An old courtier who had followed Mang Yingli for many years looked at Mang Yingli with grief.

Countermeasures?I also want to know what countermeasures I should use...

"How many troops do we have left?"

Mang Yingli asked like this.

"At most [-], it may be less than this number. Many defeated soldiers have already fled with their families, and many people were seriously injured and unable to fight. If we really want to fight, we have no advantage at all. Now the city gate is closed. The personal guards are managing it, but there are still people who escape from other places, my lord, if you don’t think of a way, all the people will run away.”

The old courtier replied anxiously.

Mang Yingli sat up and sighed: "Run away! Run away! Now, what else can I do? My family has been rampant for decades, and it is finally time for retribution. This land There will never be a place for my family in the world. Every one of them wants my life. There is no point in resisting any longer. They can only be killed by the Ming army. If you want to survive, go now! As far as I can go, I'll just stay here alone."

The courtiers, civil and military, looked at each other, and couldn't believe that this sentence came from their king's mouth.

How could Mang Yingli, who was once astonished and invincible, say such words?How can this be?Is this still their king?
No one could believe that their king had reached this point. After saying this, Mang Yingli curled up on the bed and remained motionless, as if resigned to fate.

Several personal guard generals looked at their king in disbelief, then gritted their teeth and stamped their feet and left. Some people who were not very firm in their stance looked around and left quietly. There were also some old people who had bled After shedding tears, she slowly withdrew.

The defeat of the army did not bring him a great blow. The death of Min Qide, who really made Mang Yingli desperate, and the death of his most proud son made him feel that no matter how hard he worked, he would not be able to pass on his career. , since this is the case, is there any meaning to fighting to the death?
(End of this chapter)