When it comes to the fact that the Maori family has been reluctant to surrender to the Han Dynasty, these top civil and military officials of the Japanese army who fought against the Han Dynasty were quite dissatisfied.

They knew that the Maori family was waiting and watching the situation, wanting to gain the biggest bargaining chips for themselves and try to squeeze more concessions and benefits from themselves.

However, because the war in Kyushu involved most of everyone's energy, and the damage suffered in various places took some time to recover, these civil and military officials chose to endure for the time being and solve the matter on Kyushu Island first.

The Maori family also guarded the southernmost land of Honshu Island. If you want to go north, you must pass through them.

If they cooperate, the Han army could easily set foot on Honshu Island and attack Kyoto north, and add a combat-capable army to serve as aid; if the Maori family chooses not to cooperate, the Han army would have to face one more enemy and inject more Han troops into Zhou Pu's army.

Therefore, the Maori family is also an important goal they want to strive for.

But the Maori family's actions made them very disgusted.

"The barbarians are profit-oriented, not trustworthy, and only obey their strength. It seems that we were too generous to them before, so they were lucky enough to bargain with us." Yan Guang was still a little angry, "If they succeeded, wouldn't we become a joke! Now no one can restrain us anymore, it's time to use their strength to intimidate them!"

"Senator Yan said very much. It is impossible not to intimidate such people." Zhou Pu also agreed very much, and then asked Zhao Song for his order, "Zhao Shuai, I will go to Okura Castle to contact the people of the Maori family, and ask Zhao Shuai to order the naval warships to go to the outer sea and give them a little color! As long as there is the threat of naval guns, the subordinates will be able to suppress them and let them be used by the Han Dynasty!"

"Then it's all over to Lord Zhou." Zhao Song immediately agreed to Zhou Pu's request.

After the three of them determined the strategy, Zhou Pu rushed from Nagasaki to Okura Castle, which was across the sea from the Changshu Basilica. Because when the Han Dynasty besieged the city, the important officials in the Okura Basilica killed the vassal lords and opened the city to surrender, the vassal lords did not suffer any damage. As soon as Zhou Pu came here, he moved into the Tianshou Pavilion where the vassal lords originally lived.

He did not come alone, but summoned all the vassal lords from Kyushu Island who had surrendered to the Han Dynasty, not only to give the Maori family a warning, but also to let these vassal lords understand the power of the Han Dynasty.

In the Tianshou Pavilion, he sat upright on the main seat, with the vassal lords of Kyushu kneeling on both sides. Because they saw the military power of the Han Dynasty with their own eyes, they are now becoming more respectful to Zhou Pu, just like they met with the general in Edo.

After they gathered together, Zhou Pu stopped being polite and went straight to the topic.

"To summon you all today, there are a few important things to tell you." He looked at the lords with his eyes coldly and continued to say it on his own. "First, it is the problem of handling the situation after Kyushu Island..."

Because this matters is related to your wealth and life, all the vassal lords were eager to listen, for fear of missing a word.

"Before, I came to Kyushu Island as an envoy of the Han Dynasty and contacted Tadahoshi Shimazu, the vassal lord of the Satsuma clan. We had a great conversation and reached an agreement. Later, when our Han army came, the Shimazu lord was indeed trustworthy and raised an army to oppose the shogunate, and gave us great help." Zhou Pu said slowly, "So, we must abide by the previous agreement and hand over the entire Kyushu Island to the Shimazu family after the war. In addition to the Nagasaki Castle that the Han Dynasty was preparing to occupy and the territory that I gave to those temples and the territory that I gave to those temples and communities, Kyushu Island will be the Shimazu family in the future."

In order to let these vassal lords serve him, Zhou Pu kept secretly telling the agreement between him and the Shimazu family. Now he felt that the time was ripe, so he informed them to the vassal lords.

Although his tone was very plain, these words inevitably caused a commotion among these vassal lords. Many people could not stop themselves, so they turned their heads and looked at Tadashi Shimazu next to them in surprise, but Tadashi Shimazu was still kneeling in place, as if an old monk had entered a meditation, without saying a word.

If the entire Kyushu Island gives the Shimazu family, then... then where can we have a foothold? Except for Takaha Soshima who already knew about this, almost everyone thinks so. Fortunately, they are all afraid of the great man now, so no one dares to question Zhou Pu.

"I guess you are all anxious now and don't know how to deal with yourself, right?" Zhou Pu sneered, "But don't forget that the Shimazu family is the first Daming name to cooperate with us and raise the flag of uprising. Our great Han valued friends the most. If you have such a friend, how can you be worthy of the Shimazu family's efforts? In short, the Han Dynasty's court has decided on the plan, and this matter is irreversible. Today I am just notifying you."

Seeing Zhou Pu so decisively, some people's faces turned gray and were obviously very depressed.

"But, this definitely does not mean that you will have no place to stand in the future." After suppressing them, Zhou Pu slowed down his attitude again. "We Han valued friends the most, and you are our friends now. As long as you perform well in the future, can't we reward you more? The territory of Kyushu Island is gone, but Japan is still very large. There are large areas of territory on Honshu and Shikoku Island. Isn't it enough that the Han Dynasty rewards you?"

Then, he stretched out his hand and pointed at the veteran Takaha Soshima who had been silent. "After having a deep conversation with me, the vassal lord chose to surrender to us, and made many contributions as my right-hand arm... So to thank the vassal lord, our great man has decided that in the future, as long as we defeat the shogunate, we will give the vassal lord 500,000 stone territory on the island of Honshu! If he can make contributions in the future, I can also ask the court to continue to enfeoffment."

Five hundred thousand? After hearing this number, the vassal lords who were already in a heavy mood immediately became active. Tachibana Soshima surrendered to the great man and performed well, and received a reward of 500 thousand, which was a total of five times the territory. They couldn't help but envy and jealous of Tadaeyoshi Shimazu and Tachibana Soshima, and deeply hated that they did not get the opportunity to serve the great man first.

"But you don't have to worry. There will be times when you will make contributions in the future." Seeing that the atmosphere in the hall began to become warm, Zhou Pu continued to guide him. "The great man is about to enter Honshu Island. We will march all the way to Kyoto and restore your court to the throne! And in this battle, you all have the opportunity to make contributions. As long as you make contributions, we will reward you. Three times five times the territory is no problem!"

His words caused another commotion. Although everyone was not surprised that the Han continued to march north, they were still a little nervous when they heard Zhou Pu confirming that he was about to march. However, this kind of nervousness was nothing in front of Zhou Pu's promise.

"The territory you had before was not fallen from the sky. They were all based on the struggle of your fathers and grandparents. The foundation that was built little by little was exchanged for merit! Can't your ancestors be able to exchange for foundation? We, the great man, are we the most trustworthy. As long as you fight, we will never treat you badly!" Zhou Pu continued to encourage, "Besides, this is fighting to support your country's country and can be remembered forever!"

Zhou Pu has made it clear that Kyushu Island is now irreversible to the Shimazu family. Either they will lose their territory, Shimazu retainers or even civilians, or they will have to follow him to fight Kyoto. As long as they can make meritorious contributions, they will be rewarded.

In the situation he deliberately created, these vassal lords had no way out, and they really had to follow him all the way to the end. Of course, "A hundred times of love" and other things are just to gild them.

"Okay, I've told you what you should say. It depends on how you perform next." Zhou Pu did not give them a chance to discuss again, and waved his hand to confirm, "In the previous war, our generals of the Han Dynasty were very dissatisfied with your performance, so your vassal army will stay here for training and obey the unified command of the Han Dynasty. If anyone refuses to obey the Han Dynasty's order, he will definitely be killed!"

For the Han army, the attack on Kyoto was considered a partial division, and the main force was of course the vassal army such as Kyushu. However, the strength of the vassal armies of each vassal army was weak. Although the number was large, the combat effectiveness was not satisfactory. Therefore, at the suggestion of Zhao Song, Zhou Pu decided to continue his previous approach, dismantle the armies of each vassal and reorganize them, and turn them into an army with unified command.

This army is centered on Zhou Pu, his senators, and the Han troops. It allows Tachibana Zongmao and his subordinates to assist in command. It only takes a short period of training and will probably be able to exert greater combat effectiveness.

However, except for the Shimazu family's army, as the largest vassal in Kyushu Island, the Shimazu family's army is not small in scale and has good combat effectiveness. At the request of Tadahoshi Shimazu, Zhou Pu decided to continue the previous system and let the Shimazu family control the army itself and only accept his orders. Of course, this also has the selfish intentions of the Shimazu family, and they want to maintain a certain degree of independence.

After giving the order, Zhou Pu asked these vassal lords to leave, but he only kept both Likka Soshimatsu Tadaeyoshi.

"Sir, the army is most afraid of going out for many doors. Even if it is rash and straight forward, it is better than being gentle and unrestrained. Therefore, when the army goes north, you must not let these vassal lords be restrained." After they left, Tachihua Zongmao immediately suggested to Zhou Pu, "These vassal lords have no experience in fighting, and staying in the army is just a burden for everyone. It is better to leave them in Jiuzhou when they advance."

Due to Zhou Pu's trust, Tachihua Zongmao was appointed as the deputy general of the Northbound Army to assist him in governing these vassal armies, but he was worried that the other vassal lords would interfere with his orders and affect the overall situation.

"Take them north, the original intention is just to strengthen their momentum and reflect the great Han Dynasty's way of doing the king. The general has never expected them to perform, and I will not let them interfere in command." Zhou Pu shook his head, "Don't worry, they are just watching the army. The real person responsible for command is us. If anyone dares not obey your orders, you can execute them on the spot to serve as a warning."

"Thank you!" Tachihua Zongmao immediately took the order. For him, as long as he could command the vassal army uniformly, it would be irrelevant whether these vassal lords followed him. Zhou Pu gave him the power to execute him in front of the formation, and no one dared not to listen. Besides, he would also incorporate his subordinates into this army as officers, and under the deterrence of the Han army, it would be enough to drive this army.

After appeaseing Tachibana Soshima, Zhou Pu looked at Tadaoshi Shimazu again.

"The vassal lord, I have some work to do next. Please continue to work hard after the vassal lord, and you must not slacken off."

"Please rest assured, the bad vassal will do its best to fight the shogunate to the death." Tadaoshi Shimazu immediately responded, "Tokugawa Ikura killed Inuko Mitsuha, if you don't take revenge, you will not be a human being!"

As the war progressed, Tokugawa Iemitsu's execution of Tadahoshi Shimazu's eldest son in Edo was also reported here in order to punish the Shimazu family. However, when Tadahoshi Shimazu raised the anti-bank, he expected that Tokugawa Iemitsu would do this, so he was not as sad as it appeared. He now followed the Great Han north, just to cooperate with the Great Han to defeat the shogunate to protect his newly obtained territory, and he did not intend to fight to the death.

"As long as there are two assistants, I will be relieved..." Zhou Pu breathed a sigh of relief, "Please rest as long as the war goes well, I can go to Kyoto to celebrate the merits. At that time, I will definitely talk to you about the two, and there will be no shortage of official positions and territories."

"Is there still no news in the court now?" Speaking of this, Tadahoshi Shimazu remembered the court, "If there is no news, there will be trouble."

"There is news in your country's court now." Zhou Pu stood up straight, "They have already cooperated with the Maori family and only sent the news two days ago, saying that it has already announced that the world has begun to rebellion."

"Mori family?" Tador Shimazu and Soshima Tadaoki were both shocked at the same time.

Especially Tadahoshi Shimazu, they were enemies of the Maori family for generations, so they would not want to see the court fall into the hands of the Maori family. "Sir, the Maori family is cunning and cunning, so you must not let the court collude with the Maori family! Otherwise, both of them will be hard to control!"

"I naturally know this." Zhou Pu nodded with a smile, "Mori family has both ends, I have to teach them a lesson."

Then, he ordered the Maori Motoshinori, the messenger of the Maori family, to be brought over.

Because he had a good relationship with the Dahan before, Mori Motoshi was sent by the head of the Dahan again this time. Because the current situation is very beneficial to the Maori family, he is quite confident.

"Greetings to Master!" As soon as he saw Zhou Pu, he knelt down, with a very respectful manner.

He was wondering in his mind what conditions would the great man use to continue to win over the Maori family under the current situation.

"The messenger looks really like a spring breeze today..." Zhou Pu did not ask him to raise his head, but just sneered, with a rather bad attitude. "Now the Maori family is being won over by three parties at the same time, I guess it is a spring breeze, right?"

He changed his usual kind-hearted style and his face was very cold, which shocked Mori Motoshi. His original pride disappeared immediately. "Sir, the bad vassal has no intention! The bad vassal is as close as the sea of ​​hatred. He has always been thinking about how to revenge and how can he interact with them!"

"Since we are deeply intimate with the shogunate, why haven't we raised an army yet? Do you really think that our great men are so deceitful?" Zhou Pu was still not polite. "We were in good faith and righteousness to understand and empathize with the noble vassals, but we did not ask for the noble vassals, but the noble vassals have never been aware of the generalities. Until now, we still have to be both sides of the rat. Do you really think that we can only ask for the noble vassals?"

Mori Motoshi only felt cold all over and no longer dared to put forward the previous conditions. He just knelt on the ground. "The bad vassal has no intention."

"Okay, since you don't mean this, don't hesitate anymore." Zhou Pu gave the order mercilessly, "The conditions we gave before are the final conditions. It is best for the vassal to accept it. There is no way for the vassal to accept it. If our warships have begun to gather on the seas of the vassal. If the vassal does not surrender within five days, and raises a banner to welcome our army to land, our Han army will regard the vassal as the enemy. At that time, don't blame our Han for showing mercy!"

"Five days..." This time was not limited, and Motonobu Maori felt a little dizzy. He did not expect that the envoy would suddenly become so tough.

"Yes, there are only five days, and it starts from today." Zhou Pu's face showed a sarcastic smile, "I am now in Kokura Castle, across the sea from the Qifan. Five days must be enough for the Qifan to consider it? If the Qifan insists on his own and ignores our good intentions, then I will command the army to besiege the Qifan in Kokura Castle, which is convenient!"

"Sir! Don't do this!" Mori Motoshi no longer cared about it and repeatedly begged Zhou Pu, "Please rest assured, the bad vassal has made up its mind and will never be repeated. Please wait and go back and report it."

"Then you go back quickly, don't waste the precious time of the noble family." Zhou Pu waved his hand and signaled him to leave. "Now I have nothing to say with the noble family. If the noble family does not surrender in five days, don't blame the fire for the no-eyed artillery fire, go!"

Under his scolding, Mori Motoshi left Okura Castle in shame and no longer had the previous high spirits. Seeing him in such a distraught look, not only Zhou Pu, but also Tadaeyoshi Shimazu and Tachiha Soshishi were very happy.

"Sir, you've done a good job! You must be tough on people like the Maori family, and force them to have no way out and have to surrender to the great man and never dare to put forward any other conditions." Shimazu Tadaetsu couldn't help but praise Zhou Pu, "If you dare to predict it, the Maori family will definitely surrender within three days!"
Chapter completed!