History Park: Starting with the Imjin War

Chapter 89 Argument

Nian Gengyao stared at the map on the table for a long time without saying a word.

From the main seat, Yinzhen was staring at him.

"Are you blaming me for not speaking?"

Nian Gengyao raised his eyes and said slowly and deliberately.

"This servant dares not."

Yinti sneered.

"You don't dare?"

"Nian Gengyao, is there ever a time when you dare not?"

Nian Gengyao lowered his eyes again and deliberately slowed down his speech.

"In the Battle of Byeokjegwan, the Prince set up a trap, and I carried it out."

"The game is half over."

"They didn't eat Li Rusong."

"Moqin wasn't killed."

"This is not a complete success."

The tent fell silent, and the atmosphere immediately became tense.

The Qingliu Club players nearby all lowered their heads, not daring to make a sound.

Yinzhen's fingers tapped repeatedly on the table.

"Not a complete success?"

"If it weren't for that golden aura, Mo Qin would have died by my blade long ago."

"If Yang Yuan hadn't arrived faster than expected, Li Rusong might not have been able to escape."

Nian Gengyao said:

There are no "what ifs" on the battlefield.

These words, neither too soft nor too hard, still sent a chill down Yinzhen's spine.

Nian Gengyao simply lowered his eyes, his posture and tone respectful.

It is precisely because of the excessive respect that it sounds all the more jarring.

Yinzhen said:

"Are you saying that I, the king, am incapable of fighting?"

"That's not what I thought."

"So what do you mean?"

Nian Gengyao paused for a moment and said:

"This servant simply feels that the best opportunity has already been missed."

"The main force of the Ming army was not lost, Li Rusong was not dead, and Mo Qin was not eliminated."

"They will continue south."

Yinzhen squinted.

"so?"

Nian Gengyao raised his head.

"Therefore, Your Highness cannot only think about killing Mo Qin alone. You must consider the overall situation."

Yinzhen's expression grew increasingly cold.

"Nian Gengyao".

"Your servant is here."

"I have a question for you."

Yinzhen leaned forward slightly.

"If you exert all your strength, can you kill him?"

Nian Gengyao fell silent.

"able."

Yinzhen's eyes finally moved.

But the next moment, Nian Gengyao said again:

"But it's not worth it."

The tent fell silent instantly.

Yinzhen smiled slowly.

"What a terrible waste of money."

"In your eyes, is this humiliation of mine not even worth it?"

Nian Gengyao lowered his head.

"Your Highness's words were certainly worth it."

"The entire situation in North Korea shouldn't be ruined by a single act of anger."

Yinzhen slammed his hand on the table.

The lights jumped violently.

"presumptuous!"

Nian Gengyao quickly knelt down.

"This servant has misspoke."

He verbally admitted his mistake, but his heart was cold.

Losing is not shameful.

Things will go wrong if you can't accept defeat and can't see what's next.

Yinzhen was bold, ruthless, and had a murderous aura.

But after this battle, Nian Gengyao had seen things clearly.

Yinzhen was too eager to win and show others.

He wanted to make Mo Qin bow his head, and he wanted the emperor and the princes to look at him differently.

Let Byeokjegwan be the stage to prove yourself.

So at that moment, he had to wait for Mochin to arrive.

In a deadly situation, the worst thing is to wait.

On the battlefield, the worst thing is to put personal grudges before military affairs.

At this moment, Yinzhen's private message appeared.

He didn't want to watch it.

But when the name of the myna bird appeared, his eyelid twitched uncontrollably.

[Fourteenth Brother, I have heard about the incident at Byeokjegwan.]

Victory and defeat are common occurrences in warfare; there's no need to dwell on them too much.

The Beijing-Tianjin line is progressing smoothly; all connections have been established.

[Father Emperor inquired about the situation in Korea, and I only mentioned that my fourteenth brother had suffered.]

We're brothers, let's just do our jobs.

Not a single word of blame, every word was a comfort.

After reading it, Yinzhen's expression became even more unpleasant than before.

Hard?

These two words are even more offensive than insults.

After a long silence, Yinzhen smiled.

"As expected of the Eighth Prince, he speaks so eloquently."

Nian Gengyao was kneeling on the ground; without even looking, he could guess what was going on.

Eighth Master never draws his knife proactively, but the moment you lower your guard, the weapon to take your life is already pressed against your neck.

Seeing the flustered expression on Yinzhen's face.

Nian Gengyao's contempt deepened even further.

Yinzhen closed the private messaging app and slowly said:

"Everyone thinks I've lost."

"The myna bird thinks..."

"I'm afraid Fourth Brother thinks so too."

"You, Nian Gengyao, also think so."

Nian Gengyao said:

"This servant only cares about military affairs."

"it is good."

Yinzhen stood up.

"Then you just watch."

"I will let them know that the war in Korea is not over yet."

Nian Gengyao raised his eyes.

"What does Your Highness wish to do?"

Yinti did not answer.

His gaze moved south from the capital to a small city on the map.

Jinzhou.

Yinzhen said in a low voice:

"The Ming army is at its peak."

"They thought they were unstoppable."

He smiled.

"Then let them go!"

"The farther you go, the more it will hurt when you come back."

Nian Gengyao's heart sank.

Does Yinzhen still have a backup plan?

In the capital city, the sounds of arguing were more chaotic than the wind and snow.

Konishi Yukinaga, looking exhausted, pressed the half-finished military report he was writing.

"The description of Byeokjegwan shouldn't be too full!"

"The Ming army did not collapse."

"Li Rusong is not dead either."

"If the report to Nagoya states that our army won a great victory, and the Ming army continues its southward advance, who will take responsibility for that?"

Kato Kiyomasa sneered as he looked at his adversary.

"Are you suggesting we write that our army did not win?"

"Should we tell His Excellency the Regent that the Ming army is still fighting, that Li Rusong is still alive, and that our ambush failed to wipe out the Liaodong army?"

He pointed directly to the opposite side.

"Konishi Yukinaga, as expected of someone from a merchant background! Are you trying to negotiate with the Ming army again?"

"We need to talk in Pyongyang then."

"Now in Beijing, they also want to talk."

"Will you still want to talk once the Ming army arrives in Busan?"

Suppressing his anger, Konishi Yukinaga looked at him.

"If you don't talk when you can, what will you do when you can't talk anymore?"

Kiyomasa Kato:

"Get the knife."

Kuroda Nagamasa spoke up to ease the situation.

"You can't write military reports with a knife."

The tent fell silent.

Kuroda Nagamasa remained calm.

"Byeokjegwan can be described as a victory, and it must be described as a victory."

"After all, it's important to keep people's morale stable in Beijing."

"The generals in the army must also remain calm."

"But we must carefully consider the news sent back to Japan! We cannot let the Regent Prince think that we are helpless in Korea."

"Words should not be written in absolute terms."

Konishi Yukinaga said:

"Therefore, ambiguity is necessary."

Kuroda Nagamasa nodded.

"It describes how our army successfully laid an ambush."

"It describes the Ming army's setback in its southward advance."

"Write about Li Rusong's retreat after a series of battles."

"Write about how our army blunted their advance."

"Do not write 'Slaying Li Rusong'."

"Do not write that the Ming army suffered a major defeat."

"Also, do not write that the Liaodong army is no longer capable of fighting."

Kato Kiyomasa said coldly:

"What kind of imposing style does this writing have?"

Kuroda glanced at him.

"If you write too much, you won't be able to fill it in later, and it will backfire!!!"

Konishi Yukinaga said:

"I agree."

Kato scoffed.

"Of course you agree."

"You just want to give Shen Weijing a chance to shine!"

Konishi Yukinaga looked directly at Kato and spoke forcefully.

"Talking is also part of the fight!"

"For me, anything is open to discussion."

"But for someone with your brain (muscle head), you can just chop it up."

"Xiao west, you!!! ...

Their eyes met.

Ukita Hideie, who had been silent all along, spoke up at the last minute.

That's enough.

The tent fell silent.

Ukita Hideie looked at the military report on the table.

"Write it as Kuroda said."

"You must write it! But you must also leave room for maneuver."

"Xiao west, continue your inquiry."

"Kato, continue with the troop regrouping."

"Wang Jing must not be thrown into chaos."

"The southern route cannot be left empty either."

The southern route leads to Jinju, which is in the direction of Jeolla Province.

Everyone inside the tent knew this very well.

Pyongyang has fallen.

Bi Gee Kwan failed to defeat Li Rusong.

Wang Jing appears to still be in his possession.

But everyone knew that if the Ming army stabilized its forces and continued its southward advance, the fall of the capital was only a matter of time.

At this moment, an envoy came in from outside, knelt down and presented an urgent report from Japan.

Ukita opened it, glanced at it, and frowned slightly.

Konishi Yukinaga asked:

"Nagoya Castle?"

Ukita did not answer, but handed the letter to Kuroda.

After reading it, Kuroda's expression changed.

Seeing that his expression was off, Kato became impatient and asked.

"What's wrong now?"

Kuroda said slowly:

"Some strange things have happened in China."

"Some people say that Oda Nobunaga was seen near the old Azuchi region."

Konishi Yukinaga frowned.

"absurd."

Kuroda Michi:

"The letter also said that it was mostly rumors spread by rioters."

"But not just in one place."

Kato sneered.

"When a war goes on for a long time, all sorts of nonsense will come out."

Ukita put the letter away.

"This matter must not be revealed to outsiders."

"The military report should be written exactly as stated."

"Wang Jing, hold on tight."

"Prepare for the southern route early."

Konishi Yukinaga whispered:

"I will continue to probe Shen Weijing's intentions."

Kato Kiyomasa snorted coldly.

"You'd better not kill the deal with this."

Xiao west glanced at him.

"I won't die, because I still have you, my famous Yamato sword."