Three days later, at dusk, twenty-six Japanese pirate ships sailed towards the coast of Songjiang Prefecture. On shore, Xu Hai and Ma Ye led thousands of pirates in a small coastal village port, lighting piles of roaring bonfires. They set up pots to cook while guiding the incoming ships from the sea.
Soon, the pirate ships, guided by the bonfires, reached the shore, and the pirates aboard eagerly rushed off the vessels.
After more than a month of tossing and turning on the high seas, the sight of land was exhilarating beyond words.
Their journey, however, had not been smooth. They had set out with thirty ships, but in the midst of a fierce storm, two large pirate ships lost control in the raging winds and waves, colliding and breaking apart. Two smaller ships, purely unlucky, were overturned by the massive waves due to their size. The bad weather ensured that no one from these four ships survived, all becoming food for the sea creatures.
In this era, the pirates’ ships were relatively primitive. Lacking keels, the vessels were pieced together with wooden planks and iron sheets, without even iron nails. Not only were they ineffective in naval combat, but they were also highly vulnerable to storms and rough seas.
“You’ve come a long way, and it’s been a tough journey. We’ve prepared hearty meals of fish and meat, along with clear and cloudy sake, to welcome you brave heroes from foreign lands. Once you’ve eaten your fill and slept for a day and a night, I’ll take you to experience the thrill of pillaging and plundering, and show you the riches of the Ming Dynasty. Here’s to a fruitful partnership, to your triumphant return laden with spoils, and to your enduring martial fortune!”
Xu Hai and Ma Ye, surrounded by their pirates, stepped forward, clasping their fists to welcome the newcomers who had crossed the seas.
“Thank you, Lord Xu and Lord Ma. I am Matsuura Shimosaburo, a foot soldier general of the Matsuura family. This is Ryuzoji Nobutake, a senior general of the Ryuzoji family and a member of its main line. Our group of fifteen hundred—well, twelve hundred now—is under the command of General Ryuzoji Nobutake.”
Two armoured pirates approached Xu Hai and Ma Ye. The shorter, middle-aged one introduced himself as Matsuura Shimosaburo and respectfully presented the tall, imposing, and spirited pirate beside him as Ryuzoji Nobutake.
The Matsuura family was currently vassals of the Ryuzoji family, so this group of pirates was under the Ryuzoji’s command.
Ryuzoji Nobutake was a member of the Ryuzoji main family, though not a core member, but rather from a branch line.
Still, his status was noble enough.
Japan’s hierarchy was rigid, even more so than in the Ming Dynasty, with strict distinctions between superiors and subordinates. Ryuzoji Nobutake, by birth, status, and position, outranked Matsuura Shimosaburo, making him the undisputed leader of this pirate band.
“Thank you, Lord Xu and Lord Ma. We’ve set foot in the Ming Dynasty, and our gains will depend entirely on you both!” Ryuzoji Nobutake bowed deeply at ninety degrees to Xu Hai and Ma Ye, speaking with sincerity and humility.
“Please, we rely on you!” Matsuura Shimosaburo followed with a similar deep bow.
“General Ryuzoji, you’re too courteous. General Matsuura, please rise—you honour us too much. We’ll be relying heavily on your bravery. Now, you’ve all come a long way and must be starving and exhausted. Come, take your seats. The feast of fish, meat, clear sake, and cloudy sake is ready. The beds are prepared too. Eat well, drink well, sleep soundly, and recharge. Then we’ll go make a big score together!” Xu Hai and Ma Ye each helped one of them up, speaking courteously and warmly.
“Please, everyone, take your seats! The fish and meat are roasted and ready!” The pirates under Xu Hai and Ma Ye’s command also stepped forward, warmly welcoming the newly arrived pirates.
“No fish! We ate so much fish at sea we’re sick of it. Bring lots of chicken, duck, and pork!” The pirates fresh off the ships recoiled at the mention of fish, waving their hands in refusal and calling for other meats.
“Tarou, you’re here too! Haha, come on over!” Some veteran Japanese pirates recognised old acquaintances among the newcomers and greeted them enthusiastically.
“Isn’t that the Ryuzoji family’s arquebus unit? Good heavens, over a hundred of them! The Ryuzoji family’s gone all out. Each arquebus foot soldier takes at least thirty kan to train, plus the arquebus and gunpowder—each elite arquebus soldier is worth at least sixty kan. That’s six thousand kan of walking silver!”
“And look, so many Matsuura family samurai lords have come! The Matsuura family’s gone big this time too.”
“Isn’t that right? Lord Matsuura Shimosaburo himself is here—he’s the Matsuura family’s vanguard general. And Ryuzoji Nobutake is even more impressive. He’s a renowned general of the Ryuzoji family, known for both brains and brawn. His title ‘Monkey of Hizen’ is famous in Hizen!”
The veteran Japanese pirates under Xu Hai and Ma Ye gawked at the newcomers, awestruck by the lavish forces of the Ryuzoji and Matsuura families.
“Heh, what a bunch of yokels. This is enough to impress you? This is just the vanguard. The Ryuzoji and Matsuura families are already assembling a larger coalition, inviting friendly neighbouring forces to join. They’re starting with ten thousand men! By then, us vanguards will all be squad leaders at the very least!” A newly arrived pirate overheard the chatter and smirked, brimming with superiority and pride.
“Heh, you’ve got to survive first,” a veteran pirate under Xu Hai and Ma Ye scoffed, irritated by their smugness.
“Survive? What’s so hard about that? I’ve heard the Ming people are weak, cowardly as rats, and terrified of us Japanese. A few months ago, our Matsuura and Ryuzoji families sent just over a hundred men to scout the Ming. Those hundred-plus men rampaged across thousands of miles of Ming territory, killed tens of thousands of Ming people, sacked several Ming counties, and even attacked the Ming’s secondary capital, Yingtian. Sure, they didn’t take Yingtian, but they shook it to its core, and the city was too scared to send troops out to face just a hundred men. If a hundred can wreak havoc across the Ming’s Jiangnan, what can’t we do with over a thousand? What Ming city can’t we take? Survive? Heh, let the Ming worry about that!” The newly arrived pirate’s confidence overflowed.
“Lots of folks from our village came to the Ming to plunder, and every one of them came back loaded, marrying wives, taking concubines, living the good life. After a year at home, they’d come back to the Ming for another haul, enough to squander for another year. They all said the Ming people just kneel and beg for mercy. Killing them is as easy as slaughtering chickens or dogs. Robbing the Ming is as simple as going to a market. I joined because I was jealous of their riches.”
“Exactly! Robbing the Ming is an old tradition in our fishing village. Which year don’t we come? The Ming soldiers are all weaklings!”
The newly arrived pirates were brimming with confidence, utterly dismissive of the Ming soldiers and unconcerned about their fate.
“That was true before, but things are different now. The Ming has a fierce man. You’d better pray to the Sun God you don’t run into him,” a veteran pirate said, thinking of a certain someone with lingering fear.
Free to read.
