We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

Shimazu Yoshitada's face was pale and his body was shaking.

He saw...

While Qu Jinshan was speaking, several Fengtian Army soldiers roughly pushed several other disheveled prisoners to the front of the battle.

Although the specific face cannot be seen clearly, the style of the tattered clothes and the cowering posture... clearly look like a nobleman in Kyoto.

He seemed to have seen one of them at a banquet.

At that time, he could only bow down and be humble in front of these people, as lowly as an ant, but now these high-ranking nobles have become prisoners of the Fengtian Army.

It's impossible that the nobles in Kyoto ran to the front line on their own, right?

This is the proof!

There is really no reason for the dignified King Feng of Daqing to lie to them, as there are witnesses and evidence.

The Queen Mother's seal is real, the Queen Mother herself is real, and even the noble ministers who were captured with her are real!

The ironclad facts were right before their eyes, instantly breaking down the psychological defenses of countless Japanese soldiers!

"The... the Queen Mother surrendered?"

"Damn it, we've been abandoned!"

"We're fighting hard here, but the nobles in Kyoto have already planned a retreat!"

"Baga! Why? Why?!"

"Your Majesty... Does Your Majesty know?!"

Questions, cries of grief and anger, and desperate cries spread across the city walls like a plague.

The originally high morale was like a punctured balloon, deflated in an instant.

Countless Japanese soldiers were at a loss, looking at their commander Shimazu Yoshitada with questioning eyes.

Shimazu Yoshitada felt the countless thorny gazes behind him, and felt a cold despair rising from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, and his vision went dark.

It’s over...Luming City can’t be defended.

It was not destroyed by artillery fire, but was completely disintegrated from within by its own queen mother.

When the Fengtian Army's ladders reached the top of Luming City like a black tide, not a single arrow was shot and not a single log or stone fell.

Even some Japanese soldiers who were close to the ladders subconsciously retreated in fear.

Just because Zhao Duo pushed Empress Fujiwara to the front line.

After all, the idea of ​​the supremacy of imperial power is deeply rooted in Japan. Even though the empress dowager's betrayal has been proven and even the emperor is involved, the soldiers still dare not shoot arrows at the empress dowager.

Zhao Duo naturally would not miss this golden opportunity. He immediately drew his sword and roared:

"Climb the city!"

The Fengtian Army soldiers, who had been holding back their strength, rushed up along countless ladders like beasts out of a cage.

They had originally prepared for a bloody battle, but were surprised to find that the resistance on the city wall was so weak that it was almost non-existent.

The Japanese soldiers either stood there in despair or fled into the city in terror.

The few who dared to resist had their swords and guns limp.

The Fengtian Army soldiers rushed to the top of the city wall like a black iron stream with almost no effort.

The city was broken in an instant!

Zhao Duo personally led the most elite assault team, and rushed straight to the top of the city like a sharp knife, and quickly captured the city gate tower and the city wall.

The remaining Japanese soldiers in the city put up sporadic and chaotic resistance, and were unable to stop the Fengtian Army's advance.

Near a hidden stable in the back city, Zhao Duo blocked Shimazu Yoshitada.

At this moment, Shimazu Yoshitada was about to change into the clothes of an Ashigaru and try to escape by blending into the fleeing soldiers with a dozen loyal samurai.

"Take it!"

At Zhao Duo's command, the Fengtian Army soldiers rushed forward.

The warriors around Shimazu Yoshitada still wanted to resist, but they saw the flash of swords and heard shouts of killing, and countless Fengtian Army soldiers rushed from all directions.

Although these warriors were somewhat brave, they were either killed on the spot or disarmed and tied up due to the absolute numbers and momentum.

Shimazu Yoshitada himself was pinned to the ground by two burly Fengtian Army soldiers.

His helmet was knocked off, his hair was disheveled, his face was covered in dirt, and his eyes were empty and desperate.

The battle quickly subsided and Zhao Duo looked around.

Although those Japanese warriors were tied up, they still stared at the Fengtian Army with resentful eyes, and kept uttering curses such as "Baga" and "How can you repair it" in Japanese.

Zhao Duo couldn't help but frown. These warriors were very difficult to deal with and were the core of Japan's resistance force.

He is fearless in battle and loyal and stubborn to the Kaibe family. Keeping him around would be a hidden danger.

He thought for a moment, then gave a cold order: "Pick out these Japanese warriors and take them to the open space over there!"

Soon, more than 20 samurai, including Shimazu Yoshitada, were roughly dragged out by Fengtian Army soldiers and gathered in a relatively open space in the center of the city.

They were forced to kneel on the ground, and the Fengtian Army soldiers behind them had cold eyes and muskets with shining bayonets in their hands.

The bayonet on the musket was invented by Li Che.

The master craftsmen of the Gunpowder Department racked their brains but could not figure out how their Highness came up with this genius 'little' idea.

Adding a blade to a musket turns it into a long weapon, the front of which can be used for stabbing and the buttstock at the back can be used as a hammer.

A bit of bland knowledge: hot weapons of any era are generally heavier than cold weapons of the same era.

Even in modern times when lightweight polymers are used to manufacture guns, guns are still very heavy, and it is normal for an empty gun to weigh five or six pounds.

And what about cold weapons?

Qi Jiguang once described in detail the size and weight of various weapons of the Qi Family Army. For example, the waist knife was three feet long and weighed one jin and ten liang, the line spear was nine feet long and weighed three jin, the long spear was twelve feet and five inches long and weighed three jin, and the sickle was eight feet and five inches long and weighed three jin.

Therefore, when muskets appeared on the battlefield, musketeers did not like to draw their swords during hand-to-hand combat, but preferred to use the butt of the rifle to hit people. A musket weighing seven or eight pounds would hit the head without a sound.

Shimazu Yoshitada was also forced to his knees. He raised his head slightly and looked through the crowd.

He happened to see Empress Fujiwara staggering towards him, escorted by several Fengtian Army soldiers.

When their eyes met, Shimazu Yoshitada's expression was extremely complicated.

He didn't say anything, but just lowered his head weakly.

And those warriors who were still struggling fiercely, when they saw Empress Fujiwara, were like ducks with their necks strangled, and all the cursing stopped abruptly.

They could curse the Fengtian Army and curse their fate, but when they saw this woman who symbolized the royal divine power, the awe and taboo engraved in their bones still made them speechless for a moment.

The air seemed to freeze, leaving only heavy breathing.

Qu Jinshan walked over to Zhao Duo, looked at the group of warrior captives kneeling on the ground, raised his eyebrows slightly, and asked in a low voice:

"General Zhao, how do you usually deal with these warriors?"

Zhao Duo's gaze slowly swept over the group of warriors.

A young warrior who was closest to him was kneeling but still had his neck stiff and a fierce look in his eyes.

A gentle smile suddenly appeared on Zhao Duo's face.

When the young warrior saw Zhao Duo smiling at him, he felt as if he had been greatly insulted, and the anger in his heart instantly overwhelmed his fear.

He suddenly raised his head and roared in stiff Daqing Mandarin mixed with Japanese: "Baga! You wolf cub from Daqing, what are you looking at? Kill me if you dare!"

puff-

The sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh interrupted all his shouting.

The young warrior's voice stopped abruptly, his eyes widening in disbelief.

His mouth was still open and roaring, but the tip of a bloody sword had already pierced through his wide-open mouth and pierced through the back of his neck!

Zhao Duo's sword was so fast that people couldn't even see his movements.

Blood flowed along the sword blade and out from the corners of the warrior's mouth and the wounds on the back of his neck.

The warrior's body twitched violently, a sound like a broken bellows leaked from his throat, and his eyes completely lost their luster.

Zhao Duo shook his wrist and drew out the sword quickly and neatly.

The body fell to the ground, and blood quickly spread in the dust.

All the warriors kneeling on the ground were shocked by the sudden killing.

Seeing their companions' tragic death with their eyes open, a biting chill instantly froze their blood.

The resentment and anger from before, as well as the remaining samurai pride, were crushed to pieces by this sword, leaving only the fear that penetrated deep into his bones.

Further away, those ordinary Japanese foot soldiers who were gathered were frightened out of their wits.

Many people felt their crotches get hot, and the fishy urine instantly soaked their clothes. They trembled like sieves and didn't even dare to raise their heads.

Zhao Duo seemed to have just done something insignificant, and even maintained that calm expression. He slightly tilted his head and lightly flicked the sword blade.

A few drops of sticky blood were bounced away, splashing into the dust not far away, and also splashing onto the pale face of Shimazu Yoshitada who was kneeling in the front.

Shimazu Yoshitada's body trembled violently, but he still kept his head down, not daring to move.

Zhao Duo then turned his gaze towards Qu Jinshan, his voice calm and composed:

"Excuse me, General, but we don't have enough troops to guard the prisoners."

Hearing Zhao Duo's answer, Qu Jinshan grinned.

This answer cannot be said to be right or wrong, but it is definitely the one that best suits His Highness's wishes.

It seems that not only his close ministers, but even the ordinary officers of the Fengtian Army can feel His Highness's disgust towards Japan.

Qu Jinshan didn't say much, but instead approved Zhao Duo's answer with his actions.

He took a musket with a bayonet from a soldier, stabbed a warrior fiercely, and said: "To serve the country."

Zhao Duo also smiled and picked up his sword, piercing through the collarbone of a warrior and executing him.

If the two generals were like this, the Fengtian Army soldiers could not just stand by and watch, so they all grasped their weapons and stepped forward.

Soon, all the Japanese warriors except Shimazu Yoshitada were beheaded on the spot.

Then came the ordinary Japanese foot soldiers, although their resistance was not as fierce as that of the samurai, and although most of them were begging for mercy...

As Zhao Duo said, the Fengtian Army did not have the troops to guard prisoners, at least not when facing the Japanese pirates!

The soldiers did not begin to clean up the battlefield until there was no Japanese soldier left alive in the city.

The red and black flag with the word "Feng" on it rose from the top of the city wall.

Below the flag are more than twenty heads of warriors who died with their eyes open.

Behind the samurai's heads, the bodies of the Japanese were piled up like a mountain.