Pillars of the Wu family

Yoshiya Kira defended his dignity with his life. He had already been forced to land in the Imagawa family because of life, and he could no longer surrender to the Matsudaira family because of the real crisis. His self-esteem did not allow him to break through his psychological bottom line again and again. , let alone surrender to a lowly Matsudaira family. At the beginning, he chose to surrender to the Imagawa family. Anyway, he still has a family name. It was really difficult for the Ise family to be judged.

Among the samurai who died in Saijo Castle, besides a thousand generations of retainers, there were also two heavyweight figures of the Kira family, the uncle Yoshitomi Kira who was over eighty years old but hale and hearty, and Katsuhime Ashikaga's biological father Yoshiaki Kira. It's not as simple as killing Yoshiya Kira. Even the court's big boss Konoe Maeku, the shogunate Yoshiki Ashikaga, and Yoshitoki Kira who is rampant in Kanto were offended.

These few things that are so undead are accomplished at the same time. Ieyasu Matsudaira is a little unsure whether he didn’t read the almanac when he went out, or he forgot to bring toilet paper when he went out. The family is so unlucky that there is nowhere to cry.

The mess in front of him forced Matsudaira Ieyasu to dare not do anything, and tried his best to search for Imagawa Tsuruhime and his son-in-law Wanzhumaru who had been escorted away by the dead of the Kira family. The fleeing mother and son had a huge margin of escape, and where could a group of more than a dozen people find it like a drop of water into the sea.

As a result, he was busy working for half a month and didn't get anything. Immediately afterwards, the envoy of the Oda family arrived. This time, the envoy sent by the Oda family was no longer an ordinary envoy.It's Oda Nobunaga's right-hand man Niwa Nagahide.Ieyasu Matsudaira knew that the emissary of the Oda family was not kind.

The two greeted each other respectfully and greeted each other in turn.Then I heard Niwa Changhide say in a loud voice: "I heard that the Saijo Castle tragedy happened near the Yahagi River, and the uncle, uncle, and elder brother of the town government all died at the hands of the Matsudaira Tibetan Hall. My lord is very shocked by such a bad act. and anger, so I sent you to Okazaki Castle to interrogate Matsudaira Kurotoden on behalf of my lord!"

Ieyasu Matsudaira secretly said that it really came, took a deep breath like a young warrior facing a major test, stared at it with bated breath and said: "Please tell Niwaden!"

Niwa Chohide coughed and said: "First, why did Matsudaira Kurinden refuse to listen to my lord's dissuasion again and again and insist on attacking Saijo Castle? Kira Mikawa Shouden, his relatives, and genealogists? Thirdly, why did Matsudaira Kurinden hold Mikawa for half a month, and even the widow and orphan of Kira Mikawa Shouden were unwilling to let go? My lord’s questions are all over.”

Matsudaira Ieyasu broke out in cold sweat when he heard it, and immediately leaned over and said in panic: "My Ieyasu swears to Amitabha Buddha in the Western Paradise in the name of a Pure Land sect believer, and I have realized in my heart the slightest thought of harming Kira Mikawa Shouden. The purpose of the castle is to force Kira Mikawa Shouden to give up resistance. My Ieyasu never thought that Kira Mikawa Shouden and the princes in Saijo Castle would commit suicide! The purpose of searching for the widows and orphans of Kira Mikawa Shouden is to invite them to come back and inherit the legacy of Saijo. Ieyasu has absolutely no other plans!"

Niwa Chohide nodded noncommittally.Behind him, Ikeda Hengxing curled his lips in disdain and suddenly said: "The Matsudaira Kuroto Palace has caused a catastrophe! Could it be that it was because of the invasion of Kanto that the army of the town government's government invaded Kanto? If it wasn't for my lord being killed by Mino I will never allow Matsudaira Kurinden to do such an unreasonable thing! The safety of Mrs. Imagawa and His Highness Mantakemaru is not for Matsudaira Kurinden to worry about."

Ieyasu Matsudaira hesitated and said, "This..."

"I'll go back after I've asked three questions. I'm really sorry to disturb Matsudaira Kurinden's time-consuming interview, so I'm leaving!" Niwa Chohide quickly got up and said goodbye, the whole movement was clean and tidy without the slightest sloppiness.

Ieyasu Matsudaira's sidekick Honda Heihachiro wanted to refute one after another, but Honda, who was quick-sighted and quick-handed, pinned him down several times. Kubo Tadatoshi, the boss of the genealogy family, asked suspiciously: "Why do you think the envoy of the Oda family is not kind? See? Their tone seems to be reprimanding me for not doing things well, why did my Matsudaira family allies become like this?"

No one from the generations of the Matsudaira family spoke. Matsudaira Ieyasu hesitated for a while and said, "That's the end of the matter. Ishikawa Hoki will be the head of the Xisanhe Banner. Hoki's task is very heavy! We must calm down the former Kira leader as soon as possible." The leader of the family, and the samurai who took the time to appease Xisanhe, established enough trust for my Matsudaira family in Xisanhe!"

Ishikawa Suzumasa said respectfully: "Yes! Please rest assured, my lord, I will go through fire and water for the Matsudaira family!"

Matsudaira Ieyasu also said: "Appoint Sakai Zaemon Wei Tadaji as the head of Dongsanhe banner, responsible for stabilizing Dongsanhe's national lords, and shouldering the vanguard general who will attack Enjiang country. The future strategy of my Matsudaira family will be Enjiang. Please Please use your strength to tide me over this difficult time together!"

……

On June 28th of the fourth year of Yonglu, in the castle tower of Cheongju City, Owari Kingdom, Oda Nobunaga put his arm around Guidie's shoulder and shouted loudly: "Bring the wine! Bring the wine quickly! I want to drink to celebrate today Good day!"

A few surnames brought a few bottles of sake out of breath, Oda Nobunaga opened it and threw it aside, clamoring for the limited supply of soju from Kira's house, Guidie took his arm and said angrily: "Your Highness, what is this today?" What's wrong? I was inexplicably happy all day, making me think that His Highness is sick!"

"My Nobunaga is strong and healthy so I won't get sick!" Oda Nobunaga laughed and said, "There are two joys in my family, and the first is that your father-killing elder brother Yoshiryu Saito died suddenly! Gui Die, this elder brother is really interesting, he just killed his father-in-law and got leprosy three years later, and now he died after only two years of the disease, this must be a god or Buddha, who couldn't see this patricide living in the world, so he deliberately sent him down The disaster took his life."

"Did brother still die of illness? It's fine if he dies..." Saito Guicho lowered his head in melancholy. No matter what Saito Yoshiryu did to her father, it was after all her biological brother who had an inextricable blood relationship , I suddenly learned from my husband that my brother died of illness, and I described it as joy.It is inevitable that there is a bit of loneliness and loneliness in my heart.

Oda Nobunaga continued to laugh and said, "The second joy is that the idiot Matsudaira Takechiyo made a fool of himself. He accidentally killed Mikawa Kira's family. This will attract the attention of that giant Echigo and that monster in Kanto." Excuse me, Matsudaira Takechiyo will never escape my family's grasp in this life! Isn't this a very gratifying move?"

"Didn't that Matsudaira Kurinden just form an alliance with His Highness? Tokuhime is also married to Kotake Chiyo of the Matsudaira family, such a close relationship... I really don't understand it!" Saito Kiecho thought for a while and said again : "The concubine still remembers that His Highness often said, I go west and you go east, do the two brothers divide the world equally?"

"Oh! That sentence was written down by my wife!" Oda Nobunaga raised the newly brought drink and drank it down, and then laughed: "This is just a few excuses made when forming an alliance. That's all, my family still doesn't believe it. How could that kid Takechiyo believe it...Now that Matsudaira Takechiyo has offended Echigo, his life will become more and more difficult in the future, and the more difficult his life is, the more he will hug this tree of our family Dashu prays for a chance to shelter from the wind and rain, don't forget that my family has invested two precious sisters for the Yuewei Alliance! If you can't earn back with interest, it will be a big loss!"

A man's world is always full of intrigue and bloody brutality, even Oda Nobunaga's essence is the same. The Echigo alliance he refers to is actually the Owari alliance between Echigo and Oda Nobunaga during Kira Yoshishi's time Well, the original intention of the two alliances is far less pure than that of the Cheongju Alliance, and Oda Nobunaga is not just Matsudaira Ieyasu who went to Cheongju to beg for a thigh hug.

The marriage and alliance between Oda Nobunaga and Kira Yoshitoki were essentially political speculations with their own ulterior motives. The territories of the two parties did not directly border each other and there was no stake in the family business.It is just a political attempt to make long-distance and short-range attacks, so the two sides have not evolved into a weak side holding the strong side's thigh for an umbrella.It also did not become an equal alliance relationship in which several great Mings formed an offensive and defensive alliance for a certain goal or for several goals to develop together.

The relatively weak Oda family does not feel that they are weak. Oda Nobunaga controls Owari Ichikuni and actively invades East Mino in an attempt to gradually reduce the activity space of the Mino Saito clan. He needs the military, political and economic expertise of the Kira family. Support, but not the establishment of a thigh-hugging covenant of injustice, which makes Oda Nobunaga's attitude towards Kira Yoshitoshi far from being in awe as expected, but seven points of fear, two points of vigilance and one point of admiration.

The situation over there in Kira Yoshitoshi was similar. His attitude towards the Oda family was more of a use than a sincere alliance. The Oda family is another warhammer in Yoshitoki Kira's hand, in order to break open the hard eggshell in Kinai, so that he can open up more space for the future layout of Kinai.

Both of them are not in a good mood, so it is impossible to talk about who is sorry for the other, not to mention that the political minds of these two are considered to be at the top level. From each other's coping strategies, we can probably see some of the other's thoughts and form an invisible This kind of tacit understanding is to know each other's interest orientation and establish a set of political relationships that can be used by each other. How long this relationship can last depends on the changes in the current situation and the decisions of the two house governors.

These days Imakawa Tsuruhime and Wanzhumaru live in Cheongju. She and her son-in-law, who is less than three years old, hide in the hut arranged by the Oda family all day and dare not go out. Mikawa's move is only Oda Nobunaga's plan in this regard, judging from the situation.

A few days later, the diplomatic envoys of the Kira family came to Qingzhou City. Because they were too slow, the envoys of the Kira family were completely unaware of the great changes that had taken place in Mikawa. Ieyasu has completed a series of processes of exterminating the family and grabbing the land.

When Imakawa Tsuruhime came to the envoy of Kira's family with Wanzhuwan, the envoy asked in a panic what happened in Mihe Kingdom. This question scared the cowardly envoy to faint on the spot. Being helped up by the little surname of the Oda family, the emissary realized that the impact of the incident was completely out of his imagination. The purpose of his trip was to come for Sanhe, and it would be meaningless to stay now that Sanhe was gone. With a harsh word, he took Imakawa Tsuruhime and Wanzhumaru back to Echigo.

Looking at the convoy slowly leaving in a carriage, Oda Nobunaga stood in front of the terrace leaning on the railing and looked into the distance, thinking to himself: "Kill! Make trouble! The more chaotic the Kira family is, the better! It is best to be trapped in Kanto for decades. Can’t come out, so that our family can eat Mino as soon as possible and open up the passage to Shangluo! I, Nobunaga, will finally realize my dream one day. The dream of the world’s martial arts!"

……

Kanto in June enters the rainy season.Wave after wave of storms hit from the Pacific Ocean.Forcing the Kira Legion to abandon the rampant tactics and change to a long-term siege strategy, more than [-] troops deployed along the border between Sagami and Musashi, completely separating the two countries into two theaters.

At this time, Xiaojicheng finally couldn't support the endless offensive and harassment. It was not because of Hojo's lack of ability or because of Hojo's samurai's lack of hard work. People always have to eat and rest to have energy to do things, but when they beat drums to attack the city during the day and set fire to harass at night, how can people feel at ease to eat and rest.

The most commonly used food shortage strategy of the Kira Army came into effect, which had a great impact on Xiaoji City and even the entire Hojo family.Three consecutive years of disasters in Kanto have had a huge impact on the grain reserves of the Hojo family. Normally speaking, the grain storage in Xiaoji City can be easily maintained until the end of the autumn harvest. In order to ensure sufficient energy, they have to eat three to four meals a day, recruit townspeople to rush to repair the destroyed soil, and arrows and sculls need to consume more food.

At the beginning, I didn't think this was a lot of consumption. As time went by, spring and summer gradually became unbearable. The siege army of the Kira family did not simply send [-] million troops to stand in the four corners, but It was the [-] strong army of the Eight Classics that completely blocked the eight directions. This changed from the traditional city gate blocking in the Warring States Period of Japan to the eight-sided siege tactics more similar to the Ming Empire.

The so-called siege must be quelled is to give the enemy a chance to survive and let him escape.As long as the unsteady general considers abandoning the city and fleeing at this time, as long as he has this thought, he is destined to flee.Escaping from the city is equivalent to losing the support of the strong city at any time, facing the army ambushing all around in the wilderness, there is no way to survive, so running away will kill you faster than defending the city.

Many generals understand the principle that the siege of a city must be destroyed. This trick is used against those stupid generals. As long as they are not stupid generals, they will not choose to abandon the city and escape this dead end. Of course, Hojo Shiyao also understands this truth, so he chose Persevere and never give up even if he faces the crisis of falling into the city at the last moment, but some things are not useful if he doesn't give up.

The Hojo Clan is still dead. He stubbornly persisted for more than three months under the siege of Uesugi Terutora's [-]-odd army, and finally could not escape the end of breaking the city and dying. The method of using the city as a supplement still couldn't hold on in the third month of the siege, that is, at the end of June.

As the fourth younger brother of Hojo Shiyasu, Hojo Shiyasu died a heroic death. He first negotiated and asked the town government to pardon more than a thousand soldiers in the city. More than 100 people, including Dai retainers, Banner samurai, and small surnames, knelt and sat on both sides of the evaluation meeting and died. More than [-] people, including Hojo Ujiyao's wife, two underage daughters, and maids, committed suicide by poisoning. The whole family was destroyed and no one survived.

The destruction of the small machine town marks the fall of the last stronghold of the Hojo family in Musashi country. All the plans of the Sagami Hojo family to conquer Musashi country for decades collapsed, just like the Kai Takeda family lost Shinano country. The news hit him badly, and the Hojo clan had no intention of thinking about rescuing Suruga and maintaining the territories of the Lower Sou Kingdom and the Upper Sou Kingdom.

Especially when Hojo Uji Teru and Hojo Ujiki brought back an important piece of news, Hojo Ujibun and Hojo Tsunasari were likely to be killed in the hands of the Kira family, and the Hojo family was even more worried about their own fate. He couldn't control the situation, and he needed the powerful help of his wise father.

Hojo Ujiyasu has long realized the seriousness of the matter. As a retired family governor, he needs to face not only the crisis of the family business, but also worry about some changes in the mind of his eldest son, the current family governor Hojo Clan. And he had to reduce the number of public appearances. After all, he was already a retired family governor, and he could not hinder the establishment of the new family governor's prestige. After all, the family still had to be handed over to young people.

Under the crisis, the Hojo clan asked his father for help. This is not only a low-profile cry for help, but also shows that he is temporarily unable to deal with the current crisis. He needs the Hojo clan to come back temporarily to calm the chaotic Hojo family. In a sense This is also a huge loss to the prestige of his family governor, but the situation is stronger than others, and he cannot destroy the Hojo family for the sake of face and prestige.

Hojo Ujiyasu, who has temporarily returned, made various adjustments to the Hojo family. First, he sent Hojo Genan as an envoy to request a truce. The Hojo family is an authentic Kyoto samurai, and a bunch of genealogical retainers in the family served for the shogunate in Kyoto decades or even a few years ago, and the relationship is still very easy to find. (To be continued..)