In the morning, when the Chen hour and the Si hour met, muffled thunders rolled in the Qiantang River. Amid the rumbling thunders, waves rushed across the river like white silk ribbons. The closer the tides were, the louder the thunders became. The white silk ribbons turned into a nearly three-meter-high wall of water that swept over, as powerful as thousands of horses galloping, no, as powerful as ten thousand ferocious lions pouncing on the river bank.
Bang!
The tide hit the shore with a loud noise, like a mountain collapsing and the earth splitting, splashing up thousands of layers of snow.
It's earth-shattering and heart-shaking.
When the second three-meter-high tide smashed into pieces on the shore, a raft was also smashed into pieces and shattered. Several broken logs were shot onto the shore like crossbow arrows.
Nao Naoko drew out his samurai sword and with one precise blow, he split the broken log that was flying towards him into two halves. The two halves of the log flew past his temples, and one half left a bloody mark on the side of Nao Naoko's face.
"Straight General..." said Matsuura Sanbanro worriedly.
"It's fine!" Naoko Nabeshima waved his hand nonchalantly, then looked at the broken raft on the shore with a look of pity, sighed and looked at the surging tide of Qiantang River, "It's a pity for Matsushita Kenichi and the other eight..."
Upon hearing this, Matsuura Sanbanro couldn't help but sigh heavily, staring blankly at the Qiantang River with a surging tide, his face still showing shock. After a long time, he said with regret, "Alas, when Kenichi and his companions were paddling the raft to explore the way, the tide was not so big. Who could have thought that it would become so terrifying in the blink of an eye, no less than the huge waves on the sea. With such a huge tide, Kenichi and his companions might have gone to meet Amaterasu..."
"Since we landed in Daming yesterday, we have broken through Funing Town, killed the Shaoxing government troops, crossed the river on a raft, and killed another group of government troops at night. We hurriedly marched to the river front and destroyed a village in front of the river to rest. After several battles, our army was not injured. I didn't expect that we would lose eight people including Matsushita Jianyi here. It's really unpredictable!"
Nao Nabeshima sighed as he looked at the rolling waves of the Qiantang River.
"General Naoto, this disaster is not the fault of war, but the unpredictable power of heaven. After all, this is the Ming Dynasty, and I'm afraid that Amaterasu's magic power is beyond her reach and she won't be able to take care of us." Matsuura Sanbanro comforted Naoto Kojima.
"Well, Sanban-lang has a point. But, the vastness of the Ming Dynasty is really shocking. If you don't come to the Ming Dynasty, you won't know how big the world is, with such beautiful mountains and rivers. The Ming Dynasty's government troops are as weak as pigs, and the people are as cowardly as chickens. How can they be qualified to rule over it? Only Yamato men are worthy of such magnificent mountains and rivers!" Naoko Nabeshima nodded, pointed his samurai sword at the rolling Qiantang River, and said with an extremely childish feeling.
"So, Your Highness sent us across the sea..." Matsuura Sanbanro took over the conversation.
"We swear to complete your Highness's instructions even at the cost of our lives, and provide guidance for the Yamato men who have come across the sea."
Naoko Nabeshima's blood boiled, he turned around and looked at the Japanese pirates behind him, and swore with a red face.
"We swear to complete His Highness' instructions until our death!" The Japanese pirates also shouted as if they were injected with chicken blood.
"However, how can we cross the river with such turbulent waves?" A Japanese pirate raised the most urgent question.
The Japanese pirates looked at the rolling waves of the Qiantang River and fell silent. They were not afraid of the Ming army, nor were they afraid of fighting. However, with such a high tide in the Qiantang River, it would be difficult for them to cross it with the rafts they had prepared. After all, they were just flesh and blood. Although they could swim, it was unlikely for them to survive under such a huge tide that was beyond human power.
"The most prosperous Suzhou and Hangzhou areas of the Ming Dynasty are just across this river. Your Highness' instructions are still ringing in my ears. How can we retreat? Make a raft and cross the river! This time, I will go first!" Naoko Nabeshima inserted the samurai sword into the scabbard and shouted firmly without fear.
"Hi!" the Japanese pirate responded.
"General Zhinan, please be patient! I believe that the waves in this river will not always be so rough. It will eventually calm down. After the waves calm down, it will not be too late for us to cross the river." Matsuura Sanbanro consoled.
"Hmm? Do we have to wait here forever because the tide is not stable? Time is precious, we must not waste it!"
Naoko Nabeshima frowned.
"General Zhinan, please wait a moment. I have ordered Haoyi and his men to kidnap the boatmen here. They have lived here for generations and must know the pattern of the waves. If the waves can settle within an hour, we will wait for them to settle before crossing the river. Otherwise, the boatmen here must know where we can cross the river safely."
Matsuura Sanbanrou explained.
"Yo! You are worthy of being Sanbanrou!" Nao Naoko Nabeshima nodded with satisfaction and listened to Matsuura Sanbanrou's persuasion.
Soon, Haoyi and other Japanese pirates brought three boatmen and three children at knifepoint. The children were obviously from the boatmen's families and were tied up by the Japanese pirates to threaten the boatmen.
Naoshima ordered the Japanese pirates who had a rough understanding of Chinese to interrogate the three boatmen separately and ask them when the tide of Qiantang River would stop.
"General, the three boatmen all said that the tide will stop in a moment. They said the tide is still small now, and the tide will be bigger in August and September." The Japanese pirates who had a rough understanding of Chinese made some gestures and guesses, and after interrogating the three boatmen, they reported to Nao Nabeshima and Sanbanro Matsuura.
"Yo! The tide is still small at this moment, which shows that Amaterasu is also blessing us. Let's wait for a while, and then let them drive the boat to take us across the river." Naoko Nabeshima laughed when he heard this.
In this way, after waiting for about half an hour, the tide of Qiantang River really became smaller and gradually subsided after a while.
"Okay! Cross the river!" Nao Nabeshima waved his hand and gave the order.
"General Nao, I have been thinking about something in the past half hour and would like to ask you for your advice." Matsuura Sanbanrou walked up to Nao Nabeshima and said.
"Why be so formal, Sanbanrou? Just tell me what you think." Naoko Kobe waved his hand.
"General Zhinan, I want to change the route. Originally, we planned to cross the river and head north, passing through the coastal cities of Daming, such as Hangzhou, Jiaxing, Suzhou, Changzhou, and Yingtian, and then enter the sea from Yingtian and embark on the return journey. Now I want to cross this river and turn west, go deep into Daming Huizhou, make a circle from the west from Nanling and Wuhu to the huge city of Yingtian, and then go to Changzhou, Suzhou, and Hangzhou, and then enter the sea and return."
Matsuura Sanbanrou looked up at Nabeshima Nao and spoke slowly.
"What? We are heading west? Sanfanlang! The richest areas of Suzhou and Hangzhou in Ming Dynasty are obviously in the east. Why do we have to go west and go deep into Ming Dynasty and take such a detour? Going deep into Ming Dynasty will definitely be full of dangers. I, Naoko Kojima, am not a coward. I am just afraid of delaying His Highness's request."
Nao Nabeshima looked at Matsuura Sanbanrou with burning eyes and asked in confusion.
"General, I planned this just to fulfill your Highness's request," explained Matsuura Sanbanro.
"Hmm?! His Highness ordered us to spy on the Suzhou and Hangzhou areas of Ming Dynasty, but he did not let us spy deep into Ming Dynasty!"
Naoko Nabeshima questioned.
"General, think about it. If we cross the sea and invade the Suzhou and Hangzhou areas of Ming Dynasty in the future, how will Ming Dynasty react?!"
Matsuura Sanbanrou said.
"The Ming Dynasty will definitely not surrender..." Naoko Nabeshima said, then looked at Sanbanrou Matsuura, "What does this have to do with changing the route?!"
"Just as the general said, the Ming Dynasty will certainly not surrender. Their government troops in the Suzhou and Hangzhou areas will certainly fight against our army. Besides, the Ming Dynasty is so vast and rich in resources and has a large population, they will certainly mobilize government troops nearby to encircle and suppress our army. Then the inland areas such as Nanling and Wuhu that Suzhou and Hangzhou rely on will definitely be the first choice. Therefore, I want to take a detour through Nanling, Wuhu and other places to Yingtian, and first spy on the strength of the government troops in Nanling, Wuhu and other places for Your Highness!" Matsuura Sanbanrou explained to Nao Nabeshima.
"Yoshi! Sanfanlang's words make sense! Then I'll listen to you. After crossing the river, we'll turn west and go to Huizhou!"
After listening to Matsuura Sanbanro's explanation, Nao Nabeshima agreed with it and nodded vigorously, accepting his suggestion.