元朝对日本的征服（二）

上回说到忽必烈决定征讨日本，主要是为了政治上的目的，因为他在蒙古大汗的汗位争夺中，虽然取得了表面的胜利，但是并不能服众。而成吉思汗创立的蒙古帝国，已经事实上分裂了，所以他需要一场对外战争，证明自己仍然是像陈吉思汗一样的征服者，而不是一个精于内斗的，内战内行，外战外行的人。而当时的亚欧版图基本上已经被四大汗国瓜分殆尽，忽必烈最大的征服对象南宋还不能一蹴而就。于是他将目光放在了国土狭小的岛国日本。尽管善于情报收集的赵某某，借出使日本传递国书的时机，侦查了日本的国情，对忽必烈做了详细的报告，和中肯的建议，认为攻打日本收益很小，代价太大，不是一个合算的行动。但忽必烈算的是政治账，是如何树立自己大汗的权威。国土狭小，经济落后，让忽必烈认为，日本是用来实现他目的的一个非常好的软柿子。反而更加坚定了忽必烈征讨日本的决心。

于是，在对南宋的战争还没有结果的情况下，忽必烈就信心满满的要求高丽，准备建造900艘战舰半年内完工，开启他的第一波入侵日本的攻势。但是高丽将领以按照南宋船型建造坚固的战舰，费工费时，无法按时完成任务为由，建议按高丽本国的船型建造，可以保证按时交工。显然，高丽本国的船型设计坚固程度是不如南宋的样式的。但是忽必烈低估了跨海作战的难度，他认为高丽与日本仅仅隔着一段很窄的对马海峡，夕发朝至，战船弱一点也不是太大的问题。于是就同意了。

而正在此时，南宋与蒙古的战争前线，也终于取得了重大的突破。南宋坚守了十年的堡垒重镇襄阳，终于被攻克，守将投降。这一战宋军投降的军队人数有数万之众。这么多的降兵，把他们继续用于和南宋的战争，是无法让人放心的。难保他们不会在战斗中，又突然反戈一击。所以正好将这批南宋降兵，投入征讨日本的战场，成了忽必烈一箭双雕的选择。既解决了南宋降兵的安置问题，也增强了对日远征军的实力。

为了让这群南宋降兵，能够安心的征讨日本，忽必烈在把他们调往高丽，进行作战准备的同时，还命令高丽国王，在民间抓高丽女子，与这些南宋降兵成婚。这一命令，虽然把高丽国内搞得鸡飞狗跳，但是也让这批降兵，对新主子更加死心塌地了。于是半年之后，一切准备停当，第一次远征日本的战争，终于打响。

元朝远征军，迅速跨过对马海峡，攻占对马岛，然后继续向日本的本土进攻。在第一次，蒙古入侵的战争中，日本人的表现，可以说是大起大落。虽然之前，元朝多次遣使，要求日本称臣，日本大多是不予理睬，但是这也是元朝发出的明确讯号了，如果你不准备称臣投降，那么就必须为战争做好准备。而且，元朝为了这次跨海远征，在高丽集结兵力，建造舰船，足足折腾了有大半年。如果稍微重视一点情报工作，是不可能毫无觉察的，但是从开战后的表现来看，日本人还真的就是毫无准备。

这其实是因为，当时的日本和中原王朝不同，仍然处于类似中国春秋战国的时代，或者西欧中世纪的封建制度。天皇是傀儡，实际掌权的是幕府将军，但幕府将军手下还有各路诸侯，大名各行其政。而诸侯大名们大多关心自己的领地内的事务，对于这种外来威胁，是大将军操心的事情。而幕府大将军手上的资源也是有限的。元朝蒙古人入侵也不可能立即就威胁到他的领地，所以他也不愿意把有限的资源用来保护手下这些不太听话的大名。所以对元朝的防御，基本上就是一种无人负责的状态。因而元军很轻易的就夺取了日本的外岛，并在本土登陆。

但是真正开打之后，日本人却爆发出了，非常强的战斗力。但面对数量装备都非常占优的元军，竟然打得难解难分。双方在滩头从早上一直打到晚上也没有分出胜负。随着天色暗了下来，双方都决定暂时休兵，明日再战。这种战斗力爆发其实也很好理解，原因也是在于他们的封建制度。在封建制度下，可以认为领地对于领主就像是他的私有财产。如果元朝获胜，就意味着他们的财产会被剥夺。他们拼死捍卫的，并不是日本国这个想象中的共同体，而是实打实的自己的土地和财产。所以就更加的拼命。同样的，我们也就不难理解庚子国变时候，北京城的百姓，帮助攀登北京城墙的八国联军士兵扶梯子的行为了。因为他们只是这个国家的臣民和韭菜。拥有的财产少得可怜，他们又为什么要为了这么点东西去拼命呢?

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Kublai Khan's decision to invade Japan, as mentioned earlier, was primarily for political purposes, as he had won a superficial victory in the battle for the throne of the Mongol Great Khan, but he was not convinced by the masses. The Mongol empire founded by Genghis Khan had been effectively divided, so he needed a foreign war to prove that he was still a conqueror like Chen Jishi Khan, and not a master of civil war and a master of foreign war. At that time, the territory of Asia and Europe had been basically divided up by the four major Khanates, and Kublai Khan's biggest conquest object, the Southern Song Dynasty, could not be accomplished overnight. So he set his sights on the tiny island nation of Japan. Although Zhao, who was good at gathering intelligence, took the opportunity to make Japan transmit its credentials, investigated the national conditions of Japan, made a detailed report on Kublai Khan, and made pertinent suggestions that attacking Japan was not a cost-effective action with little benefit and too much cost. But Kublai Khan calculated political accounts, how to establish his authority as a great khan. Its small size and backward economy made Kublai Khan think that Japan was a very good soft spot for his purposes. It only strengthened Kublai Khan's determination to conquer Japan.

Thus, with the war against the Southern Song still inconclusive, Kublai Khan confidently asked Koryo to prepare for the construction of 900 warships to be completed within six months to start his first wave of invasion of Japan. However, the Goryeo generals suggested that building a strong warship according to the Southern Song ship type would take a lot of labor and time, and could not complete the task on time. Obviously, the domestic ship design of Goryeo was not as strong as that of the Southern Song Dynasty. However, Kublai Khan underestimated the difficulty of fighting across the sea, believing that Goryeo was only separated from Japan by a very narrow section of the Tsuga Strait, and that weak warships were not much of a problem. So he agreed.

At this time, the Southern Song and Mongolia war front, also finally made a major breakthrough. Xiangyang, the fortress that the Southern Song had held for ten years, was finally captured and the garrison surrendered. The number of troops surrendered by the Song army in this battle was tens of thousands. With so many troops surrendered, it is impossible to rest assured that they will continue to be used in the war against the Southern Song. I'm sure they won't suddenly turn around in the middle of a battle. So just this batch of Southern Song troops, into the battle of Japan, became Kublai Khan's choice to kill two birds with one stone. It not only solved the problem of settling the troops of the Southern Song Dynasty, but also enhanced the strength of the expeditionary force against Japan.

In order to let this group of Southern Song troops, can be at ease in the war against Japan, Kublai Khan transferred them to Goryeo, combat preparations at the same time, but also ordered the king of Goryeo, in the folk capture Goryeo women, and these Southern Song soldiers married. This order, although the domestic Goryeo made the chickens fly, but also let this batch of troops, more determined to the new master. So half a year later, everything was ready, and the first expedition to Japan finally began.

The Yuan expeditionary force quickly crossed the Tsushima Strait, captured Tsushima Island, and then continued to attack the Japanese mainland. In the first war, the Mongol invasion, the performance of the Japanese was, as it were, very up and down. Although the Yuan Dynasty had sent several emissaries to Japan before, the Japanese mostly ignored them, but this was also a clear signal from the Yuan Dynasty, if you are not prepared to surrender, then you must be prepared for war. Moreover, for this cross-sea expedition, the Yuan Dynasty gathered troops and built ships in Goryeo, which was a toss for most of the year. If you pay a little attention to intelligence work, it is impossible to be unaware, but from the performance of the war, the Japanese are really unprepared.

This is actually because, unlike the Central Plains dynasty, Japan was still in an era similar to the Spring and Autumn Period in China, or the feudal system of the Middle Ages in Western Europe. The emperor is a puppet, and the actual power is the shogun, but the shogun also has various vassals under his command. The princes were mostly concerned with the affairs of their own territories, and it was the generals who were concerned with such external threats. And the shogun's resources are limited. Nor was the Mongol invasion an immediate threat to his territory, so he was reluctant to devote his limited resources to protecting his disobedient daimyo. So the defense of the Yuan Dynasty was basically a state in which no one was responsible. Therefore, the Yuan Army easily captured the outer islands of Japan and landed on the mainland.

But when the battle actually started, the Japanese were very powerful. However, in the face of the quantity and equipment are very dominant Yuan army, it is difficult to fight. The two sides fought on the beach from morning until evening without a winner. As the sky darkened, both sides decided to lay off and fight again tomorrow. This outbreak of fighting power is actually very understandable, and the reason is also because of their feudal system. Under feudalism, a domain can be considered to be the Lord's private property. If the Yuan won, it would mean they would be stripped of their property. What they fought to defend was not the imagined community of Japan, but their real land and property. So I worked harder. In the same way, it is not difficult for us to understand the behavior of the people of Beijing and the soldiers of the Eight Allied forces who helped climb the wall of Beijing when the Gengzi State changed. Because they're just subjects and leeks in this country. With so few possessions, why would they go to such lengths for so little?