Chapter Forty-Two: A Battle Between Two Rookies

"After the fall of the Southern Song dynasty, the Yuan dynasty at one point intended to incorporate its army. However, the military preparedness of the Song was far too dismal," Guo Kang continued, explaining, "When Yuan officials took inventory of the Song arsenals, they found a vast amount of weaponry entirely unfit for service, requiring complete re-examination and categorization."

"These arms and armors were divided into three grades: upper, middle, and lower. The lower grade was essentially a polite term for garbage—completely unusable, taking up space just by being piled together, and ultimately destined for total destruction. The quality of the middle grade was also rather questionable, barely serviceable, and could only be issued to Mongolian soldiers. Only the upper-grade weaponry roughly met the requirements, so it was collected and assigned to the newly formed 'Jiangnan Army,' also known as the 'Newly Attached Army.'"

"The quality of the soldiers in this army, as mentioned before, was also problematic. In administrative regions like the Zhongshusheng, the Yuan dynasty implemented the military household system. The soldiers farmed and cultivated fields during peacetime and participated in battles during wartime. Yet upon reaching Jiangnan, the Yuan discovered that the Southern Song soldiers were so impoverished they did not even own farmland, surviving entirely on military pay—making them essentially mercenaries."

"Adopting a lenient approach to governance, the Yuan dynasty never went so far as to reallocate the land in Jiangnan, nor did they implement land surveys and grants. Consequently, the matter was left hanging. The incorporated Newly Attached Army still had to rely on the imperial court for financial support and sustenance. Naturally, the combat effectiveness of these men could hardly be depended upon."

"I find this matter rather peculiar myself," Borjan remarked. "Based on what I've read in books previously, mercenaries are supposed to be more combat-capable than militia. Why does it sound like the opposite is true in Serica?"

"That is because you have been led astray by the barbarians. The ceiling for the military system among those barbarians is simply too low, so such an outcome is entirely normal," Li Xuanying interjected with disdain.

"We can discuss this later," Guo Kang said, forcing himself to check him.

The Greeks were also familiar with systems of agriculture and warfare: the ancient peasant soldiers and the military garrison troops of the Purple-Banner Khanate both fell into this category. However, as someone who had traveled through time and space, Guo Kang understood that the known ceiling of an agrarian state's farming-warfare system did not lie in 221 BC, nor in 630 AD, but rather in 1950 at the twilight of the agricultural era—which made it exceedingly difficult to explain clearly to everyone.

Guo Kang thought for a moment and decided to return to the previous topic.

"All of this also serves as a lesson for us. A soldier's combat effectiveness is directly proportional to the actual resources invested," he concluded. "By the same token, although there was a slight improvement, the Yuan's Jiangnan Army certainly could not display any genuine combat prowess."

***

"During actual combat, the Southern Route Army, composed of the Jiangnan Army, failed to demonstrate even basic organizational capabilities. Initially, Kublai Khan held high hopes for the Jiangnan Army, designating them as the primary force for the conquest of Japan and sending the high-ranking minister Arakhan, who served as commander of various routes, personally to Ningbo to command. Yet once Arakhan reached the sea, he seemed unable to adapt to the local climate and fell ill and died."

"Kublai wanted to find a replacement, but far too much time had already elapsed. The Northern Route Army was still waiting by then, so they had no choice but to let Fan Wenhu set out with the Southern Route Army."

"Fan Wenhu took his vanguard and departed, leaving everyone else stranded in Ningbo, completely unable to manage them. Some units set off on their own accord, while others remained behind waiting for the new commander to assume office. The various generals issued conflicting commands, each leading several dozen or a hundred ships as they drifted across the lengthy maritime route from Ningbo to Jeju Island."

"Such operational organizational capability is utterly abysmal, even by European standards," Perdiccas commented. "The fleets of the Arabs possess far more order than they do."

"There is no helping it. From this, one can clearly see why they could not achieve victory," Guo Kang continued. "At this time, the situation of the Northern Route Army was also dire. Relying on their sturdy ships and powerful cannons, they defeated the Japanese naval forces, but an epidemic broke out within the army."

"Furthermore, the Goryeo army, serving as the vanguard of the Northern Route Army, performed poorly. According to the original plan, they were supposed to capture Tsushima Island as a transit station before the main force fully concentrated. Yet the Goryeo army, seemingly possessing an absolute advantage, was inexplicably defeated by the Japanese defenders of the island. Two Goryeo generals were killed in battle, and troop casualties were quite heavy. This left the morale of the vast majority of the Northern Route Army thoroughly depressed."

"The arrival of the main Southern Route Army briefly revived their morale, but by then, storms had broken out on the sea, severely damaging the fleet. The Goryeo army suffered the heaviest losses among them, with even their commanding general drowning. Consequently, everyone became even less inclined to fight."

"Encountering storms at sea is a common occurrence for military strategists. When Rome fought Carthage in the past, they encountered gales that destroyed entire fleets on more than one occasion," Perdiccas said. "I understand your point now. If naval warfare is halted simply because of a single storm, it truly only proves that this war was never taken seriously to begin with."

"Indeed so," Guo Kang nodded, saying, "The impact of this storm on the main force of the Northern Route Army should have been quite limited. The troops of Naval Vice-Admiral Zhang Xi had good habits; they went ashore to camp in advance and secured their warships, thus escaping without damage."

"Following the storm, Zhang Xi suggested that those who drowned were hardly combat-capable troops anyway, and that those remaining now were elite warriors. Since the drag-weights were conveniently gone, they could take advantage of the situation to fight with their backs to the water, attacking the Japanese forces, seizing their military rations, and achieving the war objectives."

***

"Now that sounds like a general," Perdiccas praised.

"Indeed. A true Han man, much like a true Roman, would never care about a mere storm," Guo Kang said. "Alas, everyone else had lost their will to fight, so the multitude simply disbanded and went home."

"The Northern Route Army lost tens of thousands of men in the storm. According to Japanese records, several thousand more were left stranded behind and ultimately slaughtered by the emirs. As for the Southern Route Army... perhaps very few ever joined the fray. By that time, the vast majority had not even reached the transit station of Jeju Island. Hearing that the front lines had collapsed, the lagging Jiangnan Army units scattered everywhere and likewise disbanded to return home."

"Then this battle truly holds no reference value for later times," Perdiccas mused, questioning, "The only conclusion I can draw is that one must organize the army properly before speaking of warfare. But that belongs to the realm of common sense; any qualified monarch or competent commander should have known it inherently. Must one truly suffer such a loss before taking it into consideration?"

"I also feel this war was trivial," Shi Ke remarked honestly. "Actually, our thoughts are much like yours; perhaps only Guo Kang is truly interested in this battle. He even previously entrusted Javanese merchants to help purchase materials from the Eastern Expedition Province. He is likely the only one who has ever studied this battle with any seriousness..."

Guo Kang felt somewhat awkward and could only offer a polite, helpless smile.

In this era, whether Greeks or Han, it was difficult to take Japan seriously. The Kamakura Shogunate and the Hojo clan themselves probably never imagined that this battle—which was essentially a peck between chickens—would be hyped up by future generations, leaving both supporters and detractors deeply obsessed.

Pity that everyone loved this kind of thinking pattern of using a grandson to analogize a grandfather; he himself could not escape convention either.