Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

Their initial prediction was correct: with so many small boats, the large cannons couldn't keep up, and eventually a hundred or so small boats rushed up to the ironclad ship.

Early that morning, the Mori army discovered that the Oda army's Ōtakebune wasn't painted black at all, but rather covered in iron plates. Their fire arrows and flaming arrows were completely ineffective against the ironclad ships.

If you want to board the ship, the ironclad ship is a big iron box. Except for a few places at the bow and stern where you can board, the rest of the ship is covered by iron plates, so you can't even board.

Communication between the front and rear of the battlefield was impossible at this time, as there was no radio. The Kobayashi ship, which had been ordered to charge forward, was stuck and could only send someone back to tell Kodama Narihide and Murakami Takeyoshi that the ship had iron plates and they couldn't win.

Kodama Narihide, positioned at the rear, thought that Oda's large ships had finally been surrounded by Mori's small ships, but since the boarding action hadn't yet begun and Mori's forces were outnumbered, making boarding difficult, he ordered another hundred men to board the small ships, preparing for a decisive victory.

Observing the change in the situation, Kuki Yoshitaka raised a flamboyant flag, fired a signal cannon, and the large oars of the ironclad ship started moving with the full force of the slave oarsmen.

Driven by the whips, the slave laborers exerted all their strength to make the ironclad ships reach a speed of five knots. Despite this slow speed, the ironclad ships had another important use.

Big!

When such a massive ironclad ship moved, the waves it created, especially those near it, could reach a meter in height. These waves instantly capsized dozens of smaller boats that were blocking its path to the left, right, and in front of it (historical fact).

Upon receiving the signal, the Ataka and Awa naval forces also opened fire and charged into battle, rushing towards the flanks of the Mori naval forces with all their might, preparing to encircle them.

The armored ships fired continuously from their cannons, their massive hulls advancing relentlessly, even ramming and sinking the small boats that blocked their path.

The Mori Murakami navy was thrown into panic in a short time. Faced with disaster, everyone scattered and fled. The navy, which was essentially a joint-stock company, turned its ships around under the leadership of its captains. But while they wanted to escape, the generals of the Oda army wouldn't let them. At this moment, the Ataka and Awa navies had already attacked.

The final result was that Mori Murakami's navy lost so badly that they didn't even recognize their own home anymore. Of the seven or eight hundred ships that came, at most a hundred managed to escape.

Essentially, it broke the backbone of Mishima Village, and the Kobayakawa Navy and Kodama Navy under Mori's command also suffered devastating blows.

Barring any major unforeseen events, the Murakami Navy and the Mori Navy, two formidable naval forces that once dominated the western regions, have essentially faded from the historical stage.

Ships can be rebuilt, sailors can be recruited again, and the captain at the bow will truly be a great general.

These are highly skilled technical personnel who are extremely difficult to cultivate. Morimura Haru benefited from the collapse of the Sanshu clique, and Ataka Kiyoyasu benefited from the collapse of the Saiga clique; otherwise, they would not have been able to develop such a large-scale naval fleet in such a short period of time.

"Ah..." Shichibei sighed, feeling that he had missed such a good show and it was a great pity.

"Kizu Fortress and Lougan Fortress have also been captured by our army." At this moment, the envoy was led to appear in front of Shichibei. He was Morimura Haru's son, Morimura Tadamura.

“The destruction of Honganji Temple is imminent.” Shichibei nodded in agreement.

The land forces were completely surrounded, and their strength was severely weakened. Maritime rescue efforts had completely ceased, and neither military rations nor gunpowder could be delivered to the rocky mountains anymore.

"The Regent's Palace will also retreat to Luozhong." Mori Tadamura held up a bottle of wine and tilted his head back to drink it down.

I ran all the way here to deliver the news of victory. I didn't even have a sip of water, let alone eat. Now that I've finally arrived at Shichibei's place, I have to stuff myself with food.

"In this way, my lord will have no worries in the capital region." Shichibei gestured for two more bottles of sake to be brought to Moritadamura; since it was low-alcohol rice wine, he could have it as a substitute.

The water is drinkable.

Japan also has a type of sweet sake made by cooking porridge, adding yeast, and letting it sit overnight. The next day, it turns into a sweet and sour fermented product. In the summer, many places enjoy drinking this, as it quenches thirst and is filling.

"Thank you for your generous gift." Moritada simply accepted the bottle, bowed to Shichibei, and began to gulp down the wine.

Not long after, a clerk from the Kawamura-ya post station came to report that Nobunaga had led several hundred cavalrymen to retreat from Kyoto. These several hundred cavalrymen consisted of Nobunaga's pagemen, some of his personal guards, and his retinue, possibly numbering around a thousand, depending on his mood. Previously, one could expect him to bring at least two or three thousand men with him, but moving such a large force was inconvenient, so Nobunaga preferred to travel with only a few hundred men.

Oh dear, I don't know if this is a blessing or a curse.

Now that Nobunaga has achieved a great victory, it is only right and proper that we go and congratulate him. The major merchants of the Hokurikuo trade, who were meeting in Kyoto, heard about Nobunaga's great victory and quickly took out their money to prepare gifts to express their congratulations to Nobunaga.

They were all originally going to leave, but now none of them want to go. They hope that Nobunaga can at least see them and say a few words to them.

Even if it's just empty pleasantries, it's good to get acquainted first. Who knows, the Oda clan might one day invade their respective port cities. Having this connection will make future meetings easier.

Alright, Shichibei gestured to them not to buy any gifts, just prepare gold coins. Cash is worse than any other gift. Everyone, please round it up to a whole number so Shichibei can go in and announce their arrival.

Eight thousand strings of cash!

Merchants trading north along the entire route immediately gathered together and, after arguing for no more than ten minutes, raised eight thousand strings of cash.

"Alright, 8,000 kan is auspicious. Nobunaga will definitely be happy to approach you for this money." Shichibei made this promise before mounting his horse, and then immediately handed the matter over to Nobunaga, who had just returned to the Right General's residence.

Someone was giving him money for free, so Nobunaga was naturally happy to accept it. At this moment, Nobunaga was in a fairly good mood; at least he had cut off Mori's claws and completely crippled the Hongan-ji Temple. If it weren't for the trouble in Echigo, he would probably be laughing heartily right now.

"Tell them to come back in two days." Nobunaga gestured with his chin toward Mori Ranmaru beside him, indicating a time.

"In that case, I have done my duty." With this great kinship ties in front of the northern merchants, Shichibei's reputation was even more secure.

"Hmph, you shouldn't be idle either." Nobunaga gestured for Shichibei to straighten up and stop wasting his time in Kyoto.

"I don't know?"

"Immediately organize the troops and head to Danzhou."

Yes, Suga no Tatsunaga, the lord of Awaji Iwaya Castle, who has lost the support of the Mori clan, is now like a grasshopper in autumn. The Mori clan's power in Awaji will definitely be completely withdrawn, or it may even be wiped out in Osaka Bay.

If not now, when?

"Your subject understands," Shichibei replied loudly.

By seizing Awaji, not only could Kiyoyasu Ataka regain his former territory, but the territories of the Awaji lords who had been wiped out could also be used to settle Morimura Haru and others, fulfilling Shichibei's previous promise to them.

Placing them awkwardly in Izumi-Hine District, which belongs to Jiroshiro Toyama's territory, is not ideal. It would be much more stable to place them in Awaji, which belongs to Shichibei.

"Afterwards, a garrison was set up at Akashi Beach, and Mori was not allowed to enter Osaka Bay with a single sail or plank." Nobunaga also had military tasks to assign to Shichibei.

Since the Saiga clan had been wiped out by Nobunaga, their support for the Hongan-ji Temple had been cut off. Therefore, the main objective now was to block the Mori clan's support for the temple. If the Akashi Strait could be sealed off, this objective would be largely achieved.

achieve.

"In addition..." Nobunaga had other plans.

"You don't need to worry about it, let Fujikichiro handle it." Nobunaga thought to himself that Shichibei was already very busy and it was not appropriate to assign him any more tasks.

He planned to entrust the task of pacifying Mishima Murakami to Hashiba Hideyoshi, who was currently conquering Inaba. Hideyoshi's attack on Aki would certainly require naval support. Having suffered heavy losses, Mishima Murakami might not be willing to continue supporting the Mori clan.

453. Shishan sued for peace with the imperial court.

After waiting in Kyoto for two days, when Oda Nobunaga had time, Shichibei led the merchants heading north to pay their respects. These bigwigs were all very serious; they had finally had the chance to meet Nobunaga, and some were so excited that they didn't sleep all night.

Not too surprising, Nobunaga only exchanged a few words with them and gave a brief greeting. Then he had them introduce themselves one by one, and ordered his servants to bring out wine and food. He did not accompany them, but had Shichibei and Murai Sadakatsu keep them company.

After you finish eating, goodbye. You've made a net profit of eight thousand strings of cash.

To be more precise, it was probably over seven thousand kan, since the banquet did cost some money. Anyway, it was a huge profit, and they didn't put in much effort. Once the big merchants returned to their respective towns, they'd be bragging, "Do you know Oda Nobunaga? He's the king of the land! He invited me to a banquet in Kyoto the other day!"

It implies something like, "I once dined at the same table with so-and-so, and so-and-so even paid for it." A more sophisticated version would be, "I attended the New Year's gathering in Beijing the other day—something I can brag about for the rest of my life."

After the meeting, Shichibei had a couple of drinks and felt a little weak, so he nestled in Ii's sister-in-law's arms and let her clean our ears.

朵。

Surprisingly, it was quite comfortable; Shichibei started dozing off after only a short while. By the time Ii Naotora told us to turn over, quite some time had passed. Saegusa Morinaka, who had rushed in excitedly, saw Shichibei and his stepmother getting intimate and could only kneel on the veranda, waiting for Shichibei's ears to be cleaned.

"What is it? Come in first." Shichibei was just dozing off; he wasn't asleep. How could he not know such a big guy standing at the door?

It's already late October, and even in Kyoto, it's quite chilly. Kneeling on the veranda is no big deal; coming inside and getting closer to the brazier is more comfortable. Takashiro Sange no Morinaga is practically Shichibei's adopted son, so he won't be treated harshly.

"I heard that Lord Niita visited the Regent's Palace." Saegusa Morinao approached Shichibei, who was now Shichibei's head attendant.

"Lord Niwada?" Shichibei didn't move, but listened as Saegusa Morinaka continued speaking.

"This is the maternal uncle of the Honganji Kennyo Shonin." Saegusa Morinao thought Shichibei wouldn't recognize him, so he began to explain.

Niwata Shigeyasu was a legitimate Second Rank Grand Councilor, and the Niwata family was a prestigious family, the Uda Genji Ninnaji lineage.

His younger sister, Kenne, was the birth mother of Kennyo Shonin. Naturally, they had a very good relationship with the Hongan-ji Temple, which had long provided substantial support to the Niwata family and given them many gifts.

After the defeat at the Second Battle of Kizugawaguchi—no, it should be after the defeat at the Battle of Settsu-Arioka-Toyoshima—the monk Kennyo of Honganji Temple sent someone to contact Niwata Shigeyasu, hoping he could mediate. His main request was to see if it was possible to reach a peace agreement with the Oda clan through the mediation of the Imperial Court.

Honganji Temple and Nobunaga had reached a peace agreement before, which was done by imperial decree. Moreover, it was Nobunaga who requested the imperial court to issue the decree for peace. Now, it's just that Honganji Temple is taking the initiative instead.

The conditions were that Ishiyama Honganji Temple would make peace with Oda Nobunaga, Nobunaga would give Honganji Temple 100,000 koku of Kishu, and Kennyo Shonin would withdraw from Ishiyama Osaka Castle and hand over Honganji Temple, which was an integrated temple and fortress.

"What?" Shichibei finally moved, causing Ii Naotora's hand holding the bamboo skewer to pause.

“They said that Master Kyoju was willing to open the gates and surrender.” Saegusa Morinaka immediately repeated.

"It's like the sun has risen in the west." Shichibei thought Honganji would be stubborn to the end and never negotiate peace with Nobunaga.

After all, the Jodo Shinshu sect's territories in this world have been almost entirely shaved, whether it's Ise Ganshoji Temple, Mikawa Honshoji Temple, or Omi Kanemori and Echizen Yoshizaki. The Jodo Shinshu followers in these areas are all dead, not alive.

Now, only in the western and northern regions might there still be some living Jodo Shinshu followers. Even Kaga, once a Buddhist kingdom on earth, has been reduced to less than 100,000 people; one can only imagine what happened to other places.

Once it leaves Ishiyama, Honganji will be essentially abandoned. It will have neither believers nor a base for missionary work, and will be reduced to a mere religious group under the rule of the king.

Forget about starting an uprising; they'll likely only be able to struggle for survival, surrounded by powerful figures like Negoro-ji and Koyasan. Negoro-ji's fighting prowess is legendary. Japanese monks don't know martial arts? What are they doing spreading the Dharma? Passing on the torch? They're just waiting to die.

“100,000 koku…” Saegusa Morinao exclaimed.

"He's dreaming." Shichibei continued to rest his head on Ii's sister-in-law's lap, not believing at all that a peace negotiation with such conditions could be successful.

If it were that Ishiyama Castle was opened, and Kennyo Shonin went to Kishu's Sagimori Palace to diligently study the Great Sutra, then Nobunaga wouldn't mind giving Sagimori Palace an annual allowance of 10,000 or even 20,000 kan, allowing Kennyo Shonin to continue his life of luxury.

Want 100,000 shi of grain for a peaceful life?

Let him dream big.

Even near Ishiyama Honganji Temple, the 100,000 koku of temple territory that originally belonged to Honganji has now been reduced to almost nothing. Even the Kizu Fortress and Rogishi Fortress at the mouth of the Kizu River have been lost. Apart from the Honganji fortress itself, what does Kennyo Shonin have left?

“That’s not necessarily true. I’ve heard that the Regent’s Palace is very interested in Ishiyama Monzen-cho.” Saegusa Morinao had a different opinion, clearly having heard this part of the news.

"What? Does Master Xianru intend to set fire to the town in front of Ishiyama Monjo?" That's quite a condition.

As one of Japan's premier temple-front towns (Teranai-cho), Ishiyama-cho was comparable to major ports like Sakai-cho and Hakata-tsu. With a population of 40,000, the town was both a center for gun forging and a hub of commerce and trade. Various artisans gathered there, with thousands of swordsmiths and gun makers.

The prosperity of various industries, including earthen warehouses, sake shops, breweries, and paper mills, required the Honganji Temple to specially organize ten groups of monks to manage them.

This vast Terauchi town was a huge source of wealth that Nobunaga desperately wanted. He planned to take it over and collect 20,000 kan-ya (a unit of currency), and then continue collecting it year after year.

Even receiving ten or twenty thousand in additional fees is considered a loss.

Even though the administration of Ishiyama Town was handed over to Shichibei, it did not prevent Nobunaga from obtaining a large amount of income from Ishiyama Town every year, which replenished Nobunaga's gold reserves and strengthened Oda's army.

“If we burn down Ishiyama Town, Master Kenryo will lose one more bargaining chip.” Saegusa Morinaka chuckled, seemingly prompted by his stepmother’s gaze, and moved closer to massage Shichibei’s legs.

"That's right." Shichibei didn't resist the man massaging his legs; he just lay there and enjoyed it.

The service that Tokugawa Ieyasu received in history, I have now received as well. I am, at least half a Tosho Daigongen.

"You stay in Luoyang and confirm this matter later. I will be heading to Danzhou in a few days and cannot stay any longer." Although Shichibei knew that this peace negotiation would most likely fail, it did not stop him from being curious and wanting to know.

Let's leave Sanegori Morinaka in Kyoto to gather information; after all, the campaign against Awaji doesn't require many men. Shichibei had already made his decision when Nobunaga gave him the order. He would rely solely on the naval forces of Ataka Kiyoyasu and Morimura Haru; one was tasked with restoring old territories, the other with implementing new knowledge—they would certainly fight to the death.

All that's left is for my good brother-in-law, Hara Nagayori, to bring that thousand...

Five hundred or two thousand people can follow them to the island. Anyway, Awaji will get at most fifty thousand koku, the Atake family will recover ten thousand koku, Morimura Haruyasu will get five thousand koku, and the local wealthy families will get one or two thousand koku. Basically, there won't be much left.

What Shichibei would likely end up with is the small amount of land held by Suga no Tatsunaga, at most 10,000 koku. He wouldn't even be able to raise the land held by Namae Sadaharu and his group to 100 koku.