There were several daimyo from Kobe Castle, Kobe Domain, and others who could not escape in time. Yan Yingyuan led his men to attack the mansion and killed them all.

The two thousand soldiers in Chengdai Mansion resisted for a while, and after half of them were killed, the rest knelt down and surrendered.

After taking Kobe, the Ming army took a short rest and rushed to Osaka under the leadership of Yan Yingyuan early the next morning.

…

On the Ming warship in Osaka Bay, Zhu Chenggong was arranging tactics to attack Osaka.

Pointing to Osaka Bay on the map, he said:

"The Royal Navy Fleet of the Ming Dynasty has blocked the Japanese navy in Osaka and trapped more than a dozen Japanese broken ships in the port. Today, they will be destroyed together with the forts to escort the landing of the marines."

"Yang Bao and you three will lead the Ming army to land. After the successful landing, assist the Marine Corps in launching a general attack on Osaka Castle!"

After Zhu Chenggong finished speaking, he asked again:

"Generals, do you have any better suggestions?"

"Everything must be obeyed by the commander-in-chief. Resolutely seize the Osaka Fort and attack Osaka Castle."

Seeing the high morale of the generals, Zhu waved his hand:

"Okay! Get ready to eat. After the meal, we will start to attack the city. You must attack with all your strength. If you flinch and refuse to go forward, you will be killed immediately!"

Osaka was the home base of the Toyotomi clan and one of the three fortified cities of Japan.

The location selection of the city and the layout of the defense line were all planned and supervised by Kato Masakiki himself.

This product was very influential in Japan's Warring States Period. During the Wanli War to Aid Korea, Kato Masakiro led his army to Korea and captured the Korean princes Linhaijun and Shunhejun.

He also served as a vanguard with Governor Konishi to conquer Jeolla Province, and successfully withstood the offensive of Ming general Yang Ho's army in Ulsan Castle.

For such a man who is good at defense, the Osaka Castle he built is naturally not weak either.

The selected site has the Okawa River to the north, the Nekoma River to the east, the Toyokohori River to the west, and only the south is open space.

Osaka Castle is 14 miles away and is surrounded by a moat. The castle tower in the city is 56 meters high.

The combination of the city wall, moat, and Shoutian Pavilion makes it impregnable.

After the Battle of Sekigahara, Tokugawa Ieyasu attacked Osaka twice in succession, with more than 200,000 troops dispatched each time.

It took a lot of effort to break through Osaka Castle. Since then, the Osaka Domain has been abolished and has been directly controlled by the Tokugawa Shogunate.

The Japanese army currently has heavy troops stationed in Osaka. If they attack by force, the soldiers of the Ming army will definitely suffer heavy casualties.

Today's Ming army officers and soldiers are all heroes who opened up territory for the Ming Dynasty. Their lives are so noble.

The Ming army would rather spend a lot of advanced firearms than give priority to ensuring the life safety of the main force.

The Ming Dynasty had this condition. No matter how much silver was consumed, it could be earned back after conquering the Japanese state. The Ishimi silver mine of the Japanese state was already controlled by Zheng Zongming.

Until now, the Ming army has never engaged in loss-making business, and all war funds can be plundered from occupied territories and colonies.

…

From Kobe to Osaka, the surroundings are basically plains, crisscrossed by rivers, with only a few undulating hills and a few dense forests.

Yan Yingyuan led the troops in an orderly manner, with more than a thousand Ming auxiliary troops leading the way.

Along the way, the puppet soldiers talked and laughed, and they all seemed to see a bright future for themselves.

They were too familiar with Osaka. With them leading the way, the Ming army would avoid many unnecessary mistakes.

In order to make them work harder, Yan Yingyuan deliberately relaxed military discipline and allowed them to eat and chat during the march.

Mao Li was not a mediocre person. He sent multiple lines of puppet troops to explore about ten miles ahead. Once he discovered anything, he immediately reported back.

The army marched to a dense forest, and a puppet scout reported:

"Master, there are birds flying ahead from time to time, and the Japanese country may have set up an ambush in the dense forest."

Yan Yingyuan picked up the telescope, looked around, and asked:

"How far is it from Osaka Castle?"

Maori hurriedly reports:

"Reporting to my master, this place is about forty miles away from Osaka Castle."

"Forty miles away? The shogunate army has already ambushed here. Have they discovered the Ming army?"

Maoli said hurriedly:

"Master, Osaka is the home base of the Tokugawa shogunate. There are hundreds of thousands of troops stationed there. Scouts will definitely be sent to find out the news."

Yan Yingyuan nodded slightly:

"If we want to divide our forces, we must kill the ambush in front. Wang Biao led 3,000 men to quietly outflank them from the side, and Maori sent 500 men to lead the way."

"Here!"

Qian Zong Wang Biao gave the order to let 500 puppet troops lead the way, and began to divide the troops and advance in a detour.

…

Yan Yingyuan said to Maoli again:

"Moori, lead your troops to explore the woods ahead. If you find Japanese ambushes, don't shoot at will. Lie that you escaped from Kobe and go to Osaka to gather."

Maoli hurriedly bowed and said:

"Don't worry, Mr. Marquis, I'll go check it out right away."

Yan Yingyuan nodded:

"Be smart and try to ensure your safety."

"Well, thank you for your concern, Master."

Hearing that Yan Yingyuan cared about them, Mao Li was immediately flattered and almost shed tears. He didn't even shed tears when his own father died.

Seeing the red circles in Maori's eyes, he did not hesitate to lead his puppet troops towards the woods ahead. Mr. Qian smiled and said:

"Master Marquis, I finally know what it means to combine kindness and power. Look at how excited that little devil is."

"hey-hey……"

…

In the dense forest, there was indeed an ambush of a Japanese army of five thousand people.

They received news that a Ming army was passing by here, but what appeared in front of them were hundreds of Japanese soldiers, and no trace of the Ming army was seen.

Before coming, the Tokugawa shogunate promised them many benefits. As long as they defeated the Ming army, women, money, and promotions would not be a problem.

According to intelligence at that time, there were tens of thousands of Ming troops, but he had 20,000 shogunate main infantry under his command. There should be no problem in repelling the Ming troops.

Nomurafu of Monotoushan in the Japanese Kingdom was also a famous general in the shogunate. He had never encountered the Ming army. Of course, he did not know how powerful the Ming army was.

This guy is a little arrogant. The Ming army swept through the Japanese country. He didn't think the Ming army was strong, but that the Japanese army was incompetent.

In order to protect Osaka, the shogunate also spent a lot of money, and women in silver and official positions increased their commitments, even to unprecedented levels.

For the sake of his position as the shogunate boss, he worked hard today and wanted to use the Ming army as a stepping stone for his promotion.

He was very disappointed when he saw that more than a thousand Japanese troops were coming.

After the First World War in Kobe, Mori and the others went to Osaka without changing their clothes. It looked like they were a defeated army.

In fact, Mori and Yamanomurao are distant cousins. They both know each other, but their relationship is not very good.

In ancient times, news was transmitted very slowly. The Ming army destroyed Kobe and headed straight for Osaka. The Japanese in Osaka knew very little about the current situation in Kobe.

Of course, he didn't know that Maoli surrendered to the Ming army, otherwise Maoli's trip would never come back.

Although he was very nervous, Mao Li still pretended to be brave, pretending that he didn't know there was an ambush in the woods, and walked directly in with his men.

As soon as they walked into the woods, they were immediately surrounded by Japanese people, with black holes pointing at them.

General Ashigaru asked coldly:

"Where is the army and why are they here?"

Maoli said hurriedly:

"We are the defenders of Xiaguan. The Ming army defeated Xiaguan and we withdrew to Kobe. As a result, the Ming army slaughtered Kobe again and is chasing us..."

Hearing that the person coming was Maori, Mr. Yamano didn't want to see his cousin at first, but when he heard that the Ming army was chasing him, he stepped over.

"Maori, look at you like this. It really damages the image of Japanese soldiers. Soldiers should fight to the death and never retreat..."

Before Yamano finished his words, Maori snorted coldly and said loudly:

"Fight to the death and not retreat? The shogunate army was defeated by the Ming army and fled from Edo to Osaka. Why can't we retreat?"

Maoli was a little flustered at first, but after seeing his cousin, he was relieved. Although his cousin had always looked down on him, he would never chop off his head.

Seeing that Maori was not convinced, the village man Yamano was furious:

"Maoli, I heard that you have surrendered to the Ming Army. Why are you here? Could it be that you are working as an undercover agent for the Ming Army?"

Mao Li was shocked in his heart, but on the surface he was calm and said hurriedly:
To be continued...