Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

People like Asai Masasada, Kato Mitsuyasu, and Okada Shigetaka, who had a combined income of 50,000 to 60,000 koku, had no say in major political affairs, but they had a strong desire to improve themselves.

Come, let me hear it.

"My lord, a messenger has arrived from the Matsushiro Lieutenant General." Hiratsuka Tamehiro rushed over to report this as soon as Ikoma Chikamasa had left.

"Please come quickly." Finally, Oda Nobushige has sent someone to bribe us. Let's hear what they're offering.

The visitor was none other than Kawamura Nagayoshi, who had advised Oda Nobushige to first bribe Kawamura Nagayoshi before making any further moves. As the son of his old friend Kawamura Hiromasa, he was there to visit his "uncle."

Back when his father, Hiromasa Sugata, was alive, he served as the lord of Daishoji Castle in Kaga, with a 70,000 koku of rice. He even borrowed a large sum of money from Shichibei. However, he failed to defend Daishoji and was demoted back to Oda Nobutada's side, where he died in battle at Nijō Palace in Kyoto.

Upon seeing his old friend's son, Shichibei first showered him with concern. He was almost about to say, "I used to hold you in my arms, and you almost peed all over my hand!"

After exchanging pleasantries, Nagatoshi took out a handwritten letter from Oda Nobushige. The letter didn't contain any words of enticement or goodwill; it was mainly just written evidence.

One million shi of fertilizer!

Seeing the promise of one million koku of land made so confidently by Oda Nobushige, Shichibei's eyelids twitched. One million was indeed quite possible. After all, there were two hundred thousand koku in Bungo and two hundred thousand in Hyuga, both belonging to Oda Nobukatsu.

With 570,000 koku of Shichibei's skills, 400,000 koku of land from the two countries, and another 20,000 to 30,000 koku from other places, that's a million koku.

Seeing Shichibei's brow twitch, Nagatoshi believed that Shichibei was tempted, very tempted. Money is flexible; it will eventually run out. But Tomoyuki is dead; even if struck by lightning, the million koku of land remains in the same place.

Naturally, Nagatoshi believed that Shichibei was tempted. So many samurai strive their entire lives for a hereditary title of Chigyo.

It should be noted that, apart from the Oda clan, there is not a single feudal lord in the entire country with a staggering million koku of koku. Even Tokugawa Ieyasu, along with the Yuki clan, only managed to acquire a little over 800,000 koku.

A stipend of 500,000 koku is already considered top-tier for a powerful state retainer and a key military town. Even Nobunaga's sons, who risked everything, only reached 200,000 or 300,000 koku. Miyoshi Nobutaka, on the other hand, worked incredibly hard and now commands 300,000 koku across Awa Province and half of Higashi-Sanuki Province.

“One million koku…” Shichibei wasn’t exactly tempted, but he was still impressed by Oda Nobushige’s willingness to ask for such a price.

Are they really not afraid at all that Shichibei, with his million koku of land, is planning to carve out a territory in Kyushu and challenge the central government? Where in Kyushu is there a lord who can resist the Kawamura family with a million koku of land? Isn't this just sowing the seeds of a new era of war?

However, considering Tokugawa Ieyasu's situation, it's highly likely that Oda Nobushige also promised Tokugawa Ieyasu a legitimate claim to power in the Kanto region. It's truly a case of selling off one's father's land without a second thought; they'll stop at nothing to seize the throne.

During the generation of Shichibei and Ieyasu, they were able to maintain relations with the central government due to the bonds of marriage and the favor between lord and vassal. However, by the next generation, or the third or fourth generation, chaos was bound to ensue.

Based on this alone, Oda Nobushige is not very reliable and not suitable to pledge allegiance to. This violates Shichibei's principle of ensuring the unity and peace of the entire Japanese market.

"If Lord Kumamoto can wholeheartedly support my lord, I, the chief retainer and Ōchikata, will be promoted to councilor." In addition to one million koku of rice, Oda Nobushige is also willing to recommend Shichibei for promotion.

If he succeeds in the future, Shichibei will be respectfully addressed as the Prime Minister of Kumamoto when he goes out. The rank of the third-rank official is a position that Shichibei, who came from a humble background as a groom in Owari, never dreamed of.

"Hmm." Shichibei simply nodded slightly, remaining expressionless.

"Please give me your full support." Tada Nagayoshi felt that this price was enough to completely persuade Shichibei, and hoped that Shichibei would make a decision as soon as possible.

"I have other matters to attend to. Could you please reply later?" Of course, Shichibei wouldn't agree to anything or make any promises right now, so he made excuses.

"I understand. I will await your reply in Osaka." Nagayoshi was somewhat incredulous upon hearing Shichibei's reply.

Such an excellent price, and he still wouldn't agree? This Kawamura Nagayoshi is truly insatiable. But what could be done? Shichibei was the most honest and kind man in Owari, with a stipend of 570,000 koku.

You can bully an honest person, but you can't bully an honest person with 25,000 thugs. Because when such an honest person gets angry, there are very few people in all of Japan who can withstand him.

"Please." Shichibei made a very proper gesture, rising to see Tada Nagayoshi off.

After seeing the man off, Shichibei carefully put away the secret letter from Oda Nobushige. The promise of one million koku was quite tempting, but Shichibei valued the commercial power of the entire country more.

Moreover, this generation received a million koku. Once Shichibei passes away, Kawamura Nobuyoshi will be holding onto that million koku, and Oda Nobushige will definitely be unhappy about it.

Alright, alright, Shichibei locked the small box and got up to leave. He still had to invite Kanamori Nagachika and his son to dinner later. The Kanamori father and son, along with Yamauchi Kazutoyo, had been transferred to Sagami but had not participated in the Battle of Heian. They had also come to Osaka to observe.

"My lord!" Shichibei had just emerged from the hut when Hiratsuka Tamehiro returned.

"What is it?" Judging from his expression, Shichibei knew that something must have happened again.

"Hashiba Hakata's attendant suddenly fell ill and has passed away." Then Hiratsuka Tamehiro said something that Shichibei found unbelievable.

Five or six days ago, Shichibei had met him. At that time, apart from looking weak and unassuming, there was nothing wrong with Hashiba Hidekatsu.

How could he suddenly die like that? It can't be. Hideyoshi had only been gone for a few months, and now his successor had suddenly fallen ill and died. The Hashiba family is in chaos.

At this moment, the entire Hashiba residence was in complete chaos. Hashiba Hidekatsu went blind, convulsed, felt nauseous, experienced pain, and lost consciousness almost instantly. The doctor arrived, but before he could even treat him, he was already lifeless.

Chapter 639 Killing to silence is so clean.

Hidekatsu Hashiba was not only the adopted son-in-law of Hideyoshi Hashiba, the chief retainer and military advisor of the Oda clan, but also one of Oda Nobukatsu's most powerful younger brothers (with a stipend of 500,000 koku). Furthermore, due to his public support for Nobukatsu's illegitimate son, he temporarily gained the air of a public opinion leader and a pillar of the western provinces.

His sudden death not only alarmed Shichibei, but also Mori Terumoto, Maeda Toshiie, and others who were arguing at the time, who rushed to the Hashiba residence to check on the situation.

Before even leaving Osaka, Hashiba Hidenaga, returning to Hakata, collapsed to the ground, clutching the body of his patriarchal nephew, and wept uncontrollably, completely losing his composure. The Hashiba family had lost Hideyoshi four months prior, and now Hidekatsu; the successive tragedies had left Hidenaga a parent burying their child.

check!

Four or five days ago, when Shichibei gave Hashiba Hidekatsu 10,000 kan, Hashiba Hidekatsu was still excitedly describing his plans. As Nobunaga's biological son, although he had lost the possibility of inheriting the throne due to being adopted into the Hashiba family, unless there was a major upheaval in the country, the Hashiba family he was adopted into was composed of national heroes, which would make it easy for him to win people's hearts and seize power.

He was vomiting and having diarrhea, convulsing, and losing consciousness before dying very quickly. Unless it was some hidden illness that suddenly broke out, there's only one possibility: poisoning.

"What did Hakata's servants eat? Seal all four gates and arrest all the servants, cooks, maids, and even the laborers who came to fetch water." Shichibei wanted a thorough investigation.

Fighting is fine. Each side can use its own abilities to win over people and form alliances, but until that point, they should fight without breaking apart. Historically, when seven generals attacked Ishida Mitsunari, Tokugawa Ieyasu immediately stepped in to protect him. Besides maintaining his image as a loyal and benevolent elder, he also believed that things hadn't reached that point yet.

You could even say that you could directly raise an army. After the uprising, everyone would rely on their own abilities, facing each other head-on, swords and spears in hand, with victory or defeat left to fate. This could be considered a struggle without a complete breakdown, after all, it was an internal power struggle within the ruling class.

Damn, poisoning?

Poisoning and assassination are truly the lowest of the low. Even in the 21st century, in Western elections, no matter how fiercely contested the elections are fought, and how each side settles scores and imprisones the other after taking office, assassination is rarely used. The reason is simple: if assassination becomes the norm, it becomes unplayable.

"I had a hangover yesterday, so my lord got up late this morning. Before noon, I felt my mouth was dry and bitter, so I need to eat some porridge." Takada Harutada, Hidekatsu's attendant, barely managed to compose himself.

"What about the porridge? The bowls, chopsticks, pots, and stoves—we need to inspect everything!" Shichibei secretly planned.

Most biological toxins decompose when cooked at high temperatures. Therefore, eating cooked food and drinking hot water can avoid the vast majority of poisoning. These days, the only poisons are things like arsenic and aconite, which are readily available in nature.

Making a poison that is colorless and odorless, so that it can be added to food and ingested, is extremely difficult. Especially a poison that can kill instantly, like the one before us, is even rarer.

"Yes Yes Yes."

"Where is the doctor?" Maeda Toshiie also stood to the side. Although he and Hashiba Hidekatsu had different political views and fierce struggles, it did not prevent him from being concerned about this matter.

"Yes, yes, yes."

"Did Hakata's attendant die of illness or poisoning?!" Maeda Toshiie couldn't believe that Hashiba Hidekatsu, who had been jumping around in front of him just moments before, had suddenly died.

"Still, still, still cannot determine." The doctor was certainly not a quack; he was a legitimate traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, but he still lacked experience in autopsies.

"Immediately go to the Kyoto Dencho Magistrate's Office and get more ice, the more the better." Mori Terumoto also arrived at the scene and gave the same instructions to the servants behind him.

“Yes! Bring the ice immediately.” Shichibei immediately agreed.

Although it's only early spring and the weather isn't very warm yet, we must do everything we can to preserve the body. Only in this way can we find as much evidence as possible from the body.

"The porridge is finished, and the dishes have been washed." Takada Harutada brought bad news.

He ate porridge at noon, fell ill around 2 or 3 pm, and died at 4 pm. Theoretically, four or five hours should have been enough time to wash the dishes and prepare dinner. But given what happened, something just didn't feel right.

"What kind of porridge is it? Who cooked it?" Mori Terumoto frowned.

"The leek porridge was made by Enryō-in," Takada Harutada replied repeatedly.

Leek porridge is perfectly normal. It was the last meal Ishida Mitsunari ate before he died; it's a common and everyday food in Japan. For Hashiba Hidekatsu, who had a hangover last night and woke up this morning, it was just right.

As for Enryō-in, she was Ōkata-dono, the birth mother of Ukita Hideie, and a concubine whom Hideyoshi took from Ukita Naoie. Now that Hideyoshi is dead, she, who has already remarried several times, has no intention of remarrying and has shaved her head. Currently, she remains at the Osaka residence, handling general affairs in the kitchen and inner quarters.

"Go and invite them."

"I am here." No need to be invited; Enryōin was kneeling in the corridor. Such a terrible thing had happened. She was the one who prepared the food; she was highly suspicious and couldn't escape.

"You cooked the porridge the whole time?" Shichibei didn't doubt Enryuin, because this woman had no motive to kill Hashiba Hidekatsu.

Even if Hashiba Hidekatsu were to die, it would still be Hidenaga's son, who married Hideyoshi's second daughter, who would inherit the family business as an adopted son-in-law. Hidenaga's son was Shichibei's nephew, and Shichibei would certainly support him.

Ukita Hachiro, now known as Hashiba Hideie after his coming-of-age ceremony, is Hideyoshi's officially adopted son. However, he has no real power base in the Hashiba family, only a few dozen close associates, servants, and pagemen left behind after his father Naoie's death, who form his core group.

Moreover, he was never groomed as an heir. When Hideyoshi was chatting with Shichibei, he was thinking about helping him find another 30,000 to 50,000 koku of rice somewhere.

Even if the Hashiba family currently has no heir, they would certainly choose the son of Hashiba Hidenaga, the most prestigious among the hereditary retainers of the Hashiba family. Only a retainer of the Hashiba family would be insane to abandon his nephew, with whom he has a clear blood relationship and considerable power within the family, to welcome an outsider with whom he has no blood relation.

Can Hideie Hashiba compare to Hidekatsu Hashiba? Hidekatsu Hashiba's father was Oda Nobunaga.

“Except for the food that wasn’t delivered by me on the way, everything else was done by my own hands,” Enryōin replied frankly.

"Who delivered the porridge and rice?"

"Where is Fujikake Sanzang?" Takada Harutada immediately looked for the page who was on duty that day to deliver food to Hashiba Hidekatsu.

"Hiss..." Then he gasped for breath.

Of the seven or eight pageboys who served Hashiba Hidekatsu closely, all were present, except for Fujikake Sanzang. Something must have happened; perhaps it was this man who caused it.

"Go find them immediately and send an order to the Osaka Town Magistrate, Ataka-dono, to close the street intersections and docks." The truth is probably right before our eyes.

That's despicable! To resort to such a vile trick as poison! We mustn't let Shichibei catch us. If we do, even a clay ox has some spirit left. I must avenge my brother's eldest son. Whoever harmed him, I'll kill their entire family.

“Yes!” Terumoto Mori and Toshiie Maeda exclaimed almost in unison.

The poisoning and assassination attempt not only crossed Shichibei's bottom line, but also theirs. Right now, everyone has left their home base, their main castle, to fight for power in Osaka, a city only built last year. Being away from their own territory certainly feels like being vulnerable on all sides.

If assassinations become rampant, life will be unbearable. Assassinations must be severely punished; whoever is responsible must be killed once exposed. The mastermind behind it will also be immediately targeted, and their entire family will be wiped out.

Martial law was immediately declared at Osaka Castle. Osaka Town Magistrate Ataka Oyasu, who was Shichibei's son-in-law, set off immediately upon receiving his father-in-law's order.

In addition, Mori Terumoto, Maeda Toshiie, and others mobilized their men in Osaka to reinforce the checkpoints at various intersections. Ataka Oyasu summoned the heads of every town in the castle town and ordered them to quickly organize their men to search for Fujikake Sanzang, going door to door.

Back at the Kawamura residence, Shichibei sat down alone and began to ponder the matter. In theory, Hashiba Hidekatsu had no right to inherit the Oda line, not to mention the illegitimate son of Nobukatsu and Oda Nobushige, who were publicly recognized, and then there was Oda Nobuhisa.

All three of them are dead for nothing. In terms of seniority, Miyoshi Nobutaka and Kagawa Nobuzumi should be first. Although Kagawa Nobuzumi was only Nobunaga's nephew, he was raised by Nobunaga from a young age, making him undoubtedly Nobunaga's adopted son. The treatment he received was comparable to that of Nobunaga's other sons, and not inferior at all.

Before the emperor rode the horse, it had already been announced to the world.

Only after that will it be the turn of Hidekatsu Hashiba, Nobufusa Takeda, Shinpei Kobayakawa, and others. As for those further down the line? They're all just little kids, not worth considering right now.

So why assassinate Hidekatsu Hashiba? If it was to cut off the support of Nobukatsu's illegitimate son's faction, then they should have prioritized killing Terumoto Mori. At the very least, they should have killed figures like the Three Elders, who fully supported him and had legitimate power in the government.

Why did he kill Hashiba Hidekatsu?

In fact, the assassination of Shichibei was more impactful than the assassination of Hashiba Hidekatsu. Although Shichibei did not publicly support either side, his decision to convene a meeting and allow Narita Ujō to self-destruct indicated a degree of inclination.

Rather than letting Shichibei live and continue to cause trouble in Osaka, it's better to kill him and settle the score. Killing Shichibei will remove one of the protective walls protecting Nobuo's illegitimate son's faction.

But right now, it's Hidekatsu Hashiba who's being harmed!

I just can't understand it. A crime of passion? Isn't a Japanese crime of passion just about pulling out a knife and attacking passersby at night?

“The Hakata retainer is the son of the former master of Maeda-dono, so he shouldn’t be assassinated.” Hara Nagayori had just finished arranging for the hundreds of Kawamura family members to go out and take control of the docks, and now he saw Shichibei sitting alone, so he spoke up.

“I know Maeda Toshiie. He may have been a bit rash and impulsive in the past, but he has become increasingly shrewd in recent years.” Shichibei never doubted Maeda Toshiie.