Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

In broad daylight, Shichibei hadn't done anything. But since Nobunaga had summoned him, Shichibei had to go. After tidying his clothes, Shichibei hurried to the Right General's residence.

Nobunaga did not receive Shichibei in the main hall, but instead invited him into his small tea room under the pretext of holding a tea party. Besides Shichibei and Oda Nobunaga, there was one other person in the tea room.

Mizuno Shingen.

Hmm? Mizuno Nobumoto had just transferred from Sakuma Nobumori's command to Oda Nobunaga's. Logically speaking, it's understandable that he went to Kyoto to pay homage to Nobunaga and express his loyalty. However, Shichibei and Mizuno Nobumoto basically had no interaction, so there was nothing that required both of them to be present at the same time.

Furthermore, Nobunaga was clearly still waiting for someone, so Shichibei could only suppress his doubts and sit in a corner of the tea room. Soon, the small door was opened, and two more people entered.

Oda Nobutada and Niwa Nagahide.

This is an odd pairing. Let's leave aside Nobutada and Niwa...

What is the relationship between Nagahide and Mizuno Nobumoto? I think about it and there seems to be no connection.

With a crisp tapping sound, Nobunaga took water from the tea kettle in front of him. The metal handle struck the rim of the kettle with a rather lingering sound.

"This is a letter from Okazaki Matsudaira Saburo." Mizuno Nobumoto, having received a hint from Nobunaga, took out a letter.

However, he merely handed it to Nobunaga without reading it aloud. Nobunaga proceeded to brew tea as usual, and after Mizuno Nobumoto returned to his seat, he bowed to the crowd and spoke one more sentence.

“Okazaki Matsudaira Saburo hopes that the lord will act as an intermediary to take control of Mikawa Province.”

"..." Almost all of Oda's senior retainers present were startled at the same time, so much so that even Nobutada let out a small sound of surprise.

“How can this be allowed…” Although Niwa Nagahide was not quite sure of Nobunaga’s attitude, he felt that this matter was indeed somewhat inappropriate.

If it were merely an internal dispute within the Tokugawa clan, then no matter how much fighting occurred within the Tokugawa clan, it would still be their business. Nobunaga's vassal was Tokugawa Ieyasu, and everyone else, including Matsudaira Nobuyasu, was Tokugawa Ieyasu's retainer.

Normally, as the lord, Nobunaga was not allowed to interfere in the internal affairs of the Tokugawa clan. This was unless Tokugawa Ieyasu made a request, or the Tokugawa clan...

The internal strife was so great that it had affected Tokugawa's ability to fulfill his military obligations to the Oda clan.

"Hmm." Nobunaga handed the teacup to Nobutada, clearly asking for his opinion.

"This is not appropriate, not appropriate at all." Nobutada had just finished knocking down Sakuma Nobumori, so he was well aware that stability was the priority at home at the moment.

If the Tokugawa clan, which owns the provinces of Mikawa and Tōtōmi, were to be divided up, the senior retainers of the Oda clan would become suspicious and even fearful.

467. Nobunaga wished to inherit Ieyasu's evil ways.

What exactly happened to the Tokugawa family?

If it really was Matsudaira Nobuyasu who wrote the letter to Oda Nobunaga, then what was the meaning of his letter? Was he plotting a rebellion against his father, Tokugawa Ieyasu? And he had no one to back him up.

Historically, there was even a claim that he had colluded with the Takeda clan, which could be interpreted as treason. But now, forget about the Takeda clan; even Takeda Yoshiyori was executed by Nobunaga—his ashes were scattered. His head was displayed on Nijo Street in Kyoto, and the rest of his body was burned.

Fuck it!

"My lord, this matter, this matter..." Shichibei was suddenly pulled over, which was already very sudden, and then he suddenly encountered this matter.

"Have some tea." Nobunaga gestured for Shichibei to take the teacup from Niwa Nagahide's hand.

"Drink my ass!" Shichibei took the bowl, casually twirled it around, and handed it to Mizuno Nobumoto, who was sitting at the back. This whole situation was completely baffling, and what did it have to do with Shichibei anyway?

"Mikawa Province is a truly terrifying place." Nobunaga said this after everyone had finished their tea and was supposed to be praising the teacups.

"Huh?" Everyone exclaimed almost in unison.

But Nobunaga was absolutely right. Going back two generations from Tokugawa Ieyasu, Matsudaira Hirotada and Matsudaira Kiyoyasu were both killed by Mikawa Kunio. Very clear assassinations; they both died quite young.

The Oda clan had few pleasant memories of Mikawa. After Oda Nobuhide conquered Mikawa, he left Oda Nobuhiro to guard Ansho Castle. However, they were pushed back by the Imagawa clan's Taigen Sessai Zenji, and suffered a crushing defeat at the Battle of Azukizaka. Even Shichibei's father was seriously wounded and died a few years later.

After a decade-long tug-of-war, the Oda clan ultimately suffered a crushing defeat, nearly losing Oda Nobuhiro to Mikawa.

For the Tokugawa and Oda clans, Mikawa was hardly a desirable place, at least not one with fond memories. But what does that have to do with Matsudaira Nobuyasu's demand for independent control of Mikawa?

"The three states' national heroes have really gone too far."

"..." No, Nobunaga, this is a bit of a jump, what's wrong?

Mizuno Nobumoto, who had been singled out by Nobunaga, began to slowly recount his story. He explained that Tokugawa Ieyasu's distrust of the people of Mikawa was completely open; everyone knew it. After his uprising in Mikawa, he...

Mikawa was handed over to Ishikawa Ienari/Ishikawa Sumasa and Sakai Tadashi to manage.

He entered Tōtōmi Province, where the "Tōtō-shū Grand Theater" had occurred, and quickly renamed Hikima Castle as Hamamatsu Castle, relocating his main castle. He abandoned his reliance on the Mikawa troops and formed his own Hatamoto (Handlord) Vanguard Army.

Even though many of the Hatamoto no Sensatsu (military officers) were from Mikawa, a closer look at their origins reveals that almost all of them were "small-statured." This means they were low-ranking or of low status, and in battle they could only carry their own spears on foot, not even worthy of a horse.

Sakakibara Yasumasa was like this, and so was Honda Tadakatsu. Of course, Honda Tadakatsu was a slightly different case; his father died in battle, and his family fell into poverty. That's how things were in Japan's Sengoku period. If you could carry a gun for me, then we were all in good hands. But if your family had no male members left to carry guns, it wouldn't be surprising if they just kicked your whole family out.

If you're capable, you can find a son-in-law, or hire someone to carry the gun, either way is fine, as long as they're armed.

Why did Tokugawa Ieyasu distrust the people of Mikawa Province so much? Apart from the reasons mentioned earlier for the killing of two previous lords, it was due to the long-standing internal divisions within the Matsudaira clan itself.

The Anshō Matsudaira clan, from which Ieyasu originated, was not the main branch of the Matsudaira clan. They joined the war between the Hosokawa and Isshiki clans, the guardians of Mikawa province, through political maneuvering within the Kyoto shogunate, ultimately destroying the main branch.

It was only after the Iwazu Matsudaira clan that the title of this branch of the clan was usurped.

He then divided Ansho Matsudaira into several branches, attempting to suppress and replace other members of the "Eighteen Matsudaira" clan. As a result, the family business he seized through usurpation inevitably faced challenges and attacks from other members of the clan.

The Matsudaira clan's long-standing internal strife had left the various branches in a state of complete disarray. Even Matsudaira Kiyoyasu only managed to suppress the opposition by conquering Okazaki and attacking branch families such as the Okusa Matsudaira clan.

Furthermore, Matsudaira Kiyoyasu attempted to establish his own independent retainer group, no longer relying on the power of the various branch families of Matsudaira. Thus, the so-called Okazaki Five, district magistrates, and junior magistrates—a system that extended from Kiyoyasu's central government to the villages—was established. The middle and lower-ranking samurai, represented by the Sakai clan, and most likely even village chiefs, entered the ruling class of Mikawa.

The various Matsudaira clans naturally refused, including the assassinations of two generations and the Mikawa Ikko-ikki uprising. All the Matsudaira branch families were trying every means to rebel against the Ansei Matsudaira clan.

It's not necessarily true that they were pure traitors who loved rebellion their entire lives. Or perhaps it was a case of the throne rotating among rulers, and this year it was their turn. This is also related to the fact that Tokugawa Ieyasu was unable to massacre these fundamentally disloyal clansmen or establish supreme prestige among them.

These days, it's quite normal to kill one or two rivals from the same clan if it's due to internal strife. But the family rule model, which originated in the Muromachi Shogunate period or even the Kamakura Shogunate period, where the head of a family is the sovereign and the various branch families respond accordingly, is quite deeply ingrained.

You can kill your own kind, but you must do so in a way that others submit to your authority. Otherwise, there's a very simple and straightforward problem: you lack the magnanimity and ability to lead a clan.

If one person rebels against you, that's a sign of a wolf in sheep's clothing. But if all the branch families rebel against you, then it's definitely a problem with you as the head of the branch.

Those within the family know their own situation; Ieyasu knew that all eighteen Matsudaira clans were plotting to replicate the story of Anjo Matsudaira replacing Iwazu Matsudaira. Outsiders, however, were unaware of this and only wondered why Ieyasu couldn't even provide support for a single Matsudaira branch.

Ieyasu not only couldn't kill all the thousands of descendants and retainers of the eighteen Matsudaira clans, but if he killed the second or third clan, he would face a united attack and the entire Mikawa province would be shaken.

People would question Ieyasu, betray him, and even kill the ungrateful Ieyasu.

Unable to kill them, yet unwilling to use them, Tokugawa Ieyasu simply fled. Yes, that's the exact word: fled. He was powerless to completely suppress the Eighteen...

Matsudaira, if he has to keep using them, then he's just running away from Hamamatsu.

One could only say that Ieyasu was very lucky, because his grandfather, Matsudaira Kiyoyasu, could only suppress and replace the eighteen Matsudaira by using the branch family that Anjo Matsudaira had separated from the main branch. At least Ieyasu himself had Tōtōmi to escape to and find a quiet place to stay.

The wealth of Totomi was used to support the Hatamoto Senju (chief advisors), and the main political affairs of the Tokugawa clan were also entrusted to the samurai who came from the Hatamoto Senju background. The people of Mikawa Province were to take care of their own affairs in Mikawa. They could respond to Ieyasu's military needs when necessary.

In a sense, it was somewhat irresponsible of Ieyasu to leave Matsudaira Nobuyasu at Okazaki Castle.

He himself couldn't even control the people of Mikawa Province, and Matsudaira Nobuyasu's mind might not even be as clever as his father's, so how could he possibly control them?

The current situation most likely indicates that the people of Mikawa Province, including the eighteen Matsudaira clans, have already swayed Matsudaira Nobuyasu. Their plan is to first gain Nobunaga's support for this good son-in-law, Matsudaira Nobuyasu, and then separate the family from Tokugawa Ieyasu, thus isolating Ieyasu, the relatively more capable head of the clan, from the affairs of Mikawa Province.

Then we'll try to find a way to manage Matsudaira Nobuyasu. If Nobuyasu distributes his power among the people, perhaps peace can be maintained for a considerable period of time.

Peace. If Nobuyasu seeks to unify Mikawa, the killings of Hirotada and Kiyoyasu will inevitably continue.

"What does Father mean?" Xinzhong seemed to have thought of something.

"Hmm." Nobunaga raised his hand and waved it at Nobutada.

The hand gesture here wasn't a refusal, but rather a sign that Nobunaga understood and didn't need to say anything more.

"Does our lord intend to personally intervene and rid Tokugawa Kyoto of this internal strife?" Niwa Nagahide also had his own guesses.

"Shichibei, what do you think?"

"I believe that since Lord Okazaki Saburo has proposed dividing the family property, he is secretly plotting rebellion. We should inform Tokugawa Kyocho-dono first." Shichibei was clearly not involved in this matter, so naturally he wouldn't say much.

In particular, Matsudaira Nobuyasu was Nobunaga's son-in-law, and his wife, Princess Tokuhime, was the daughter of Lady Ikoma, the same mother as Oda Nobutada, which made him quite different.

“That’s right. I’m going to promote him to Minister of the Right, and Jiro Saburo can be promoted to Junior General of the Right.” Nobunaga’s intention seemed to be to bring Tokugawa Ieyasu to Kyoto.

Nobunaga had previously defeated Mori Murakami's navy and then destroyed Ishiyama Hongan-ji Temple, achieving great feats. Besides the Kaga and Iga mountains, there were several others...

Apart from the unruly mountain people, the entire capital region had already achieved tranquility. Therefore, it was only natural for him to be promoted to Right Minister, and adjusting the ranks or positions of the feudal lords in his household could also be considered a way to reward meritorious officials.

Summoning Ieyasu from Hamamatsu, ostensibly to promote him to the rank of Attendant-in-Ordinary and Right General of the Imperial Guard, while actually discussing Nobunaga's request for independence, would not attract too much attention and would not alert the enemy.

"If necessary, you will escort Jiro Saburo back to his domain," Nobunaga added.

"Kankuro will go with you." Nobunaga glanced at Nobutada.

At this point, Shichibei suddenly understood. Nobunaga was planning to use Shichibei's good reputation, under the pretext of escorting Ieyasu back to Japan, to gather all eighteen Matsudaira of Mikawa and kill them all.

Why bring Nobutada? Because if Nobutada is there, then everyone from Mikawa Nobuyasu to the eighteen Matsudaira must be present. It's reasonable for Nobutada to bring two thousand guards, and Shichibei, being harmless, bringing a few attendants won't arouse suspicion.

Once they arrive, start killing them all. As for how to deal with Nobuyasu, that depends on Tokugawa Ieyasu's own attitude.

Just then, Nobunaga took a letter from his robes. (One)

Fold it open, and the signature is clearly Tokugawa Ieyasu. The letter states that he has discovered signs of support for Matsudaira Nobuyasu's rebellion among the people of Mikawa Province, and requests his instructions.

Hey!

Now, aside from the question of how Matsudaira Nobuyasu was misled by the Mikawa garrison, Shichibei has figured out all the other points. The Mikawa garrison has always been against Ansei Matsudaira; perhaps now they think it's worth a try, or perhaps they've been misled by some other force.

In any case, it's somewhat reasonable for these people to support Matsudaira Nobuyasu in opposing Tokugawa Ieyasu. During the Edo period, it was common for feudal lords to experience internal strife and request the shogunate to mediate and split up their families.

Often, the shogunate would deliberately grant partial territories to the second or third sons of the feudal lord, weakening their power. This avoided the problem of changing feudal lords, which would lead to mass unemployment among samurai and create social instability. It also weakened the feudal lords, rendering them incapable of resisting the shogunate.

The key point is that Nobuyasu's identity is special, especially after the old retainer Sakuma Nobumori was exiled, which made the people of Mikawa Province sense something different.

They might have felt that Nobunaga was going to eliminate his old retainers one by one, or

This weakened them, paving the way for Oda Nobutada's rise to power. Tokugawa Ieyasu was clearly a veteran retainer, claiming to be Nobunaga's "sworn brother," but in reality, their fathers' generation had killed hundreds, if not thousands, of each other.

Matsudaira Nobuyasu, who was Nobutada's brother-in-law, was far less close to him. If Nobuyasu replaced Ieyasu, he might still have Nobutada's support. By first dividing the family and then suppressing Ieyasu, the eighteenth Matsudaira might even be able to seize the interests of Tōtōmi Province.

At this point, some people might be wondering: If Tokugawa Ieyasu had killed these disloyal branch families himself, the world would have questioned his ability and magnanimity as the head of the clan. Why is it that when Oda Nobunaga did the killing, it wasn't viewed that way?

It's very simple.

Because Nobunaga loved Ieyasu!

He was willing to take the blame for Ieyasu's actions, making himself the central figure in the incident to deal with the rebellious Mikawa lords. His killings would only make the world think Nobunaga was even more ruthless and bloodthirsty, but that was about it. After all, Nobunaga had killed countless people; one or two more wouldn't make a difference.

While Nobunaga's massacre of the people of Mikawa Province weakened the Tokugawa clan's military strength, in reality, it allowed Tokugawa Ieyasu to truly rule the entire Mikawa province.

There's no longer a need for the fragmented rule model of having one's son guard Okazaki while the other guards Hamamatsu. Although Ieyasu's army would suffer a significant decline in combat effectiveness over the next three to five years, after a few years, once Ieyasu has recovered, its fighting capacity will undoubtedly be far greater than it is now.

"That's fine then." Nobunaga got up first and left the tea room.

Naturally, everyone got up with their own thoughts and streamed out of the tea room. Nobutada even patted Shichibei on the shoulder and smiled at him.

Our arrival in Kyoto was truly inexplicable, our arrival was inexplicable, and now even drinking a bowl of tea is inexplicable.