Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

On this point, Shichibei is quite upright. He will fight for central authority and even try to get Shibata Nagakatsu to become a chief retainer. However, he will not force the position of chief retainer, nor will he compete for the position of young man who manages three million koku of land.

Maintaining the existing monopoly and having both oneself and allies at the core is sufficient. In business, harmony is paramount. The key is to unite the majority and stabilize the situation.

"Then I won't hide anything from you. Tokugawa of Edo sent someone to contact me." Sasa Narimasa supporting Oda Nobushige is one thing, but his old friendship with Shichibei is another.

Sasa Narimasa didn't have any deep feelings for Tokugawa Ieyasu. Neither of them came from Shimoowari Ichijo Village, so even if they were close, they wouldn't be that close.

"Please support Lieutenant General Matsushiro?" Not surprising. Maeda Toshiie also said that Ieyasu had made explicit contact with him.

Even Shichibei had connections with Tokugawa Ieyasu; Honda Masanobu had hinted at this to Shichibei. Later, Oda Nobushige's close aide, Kōda Nagayoshi, even tried to bribe Shichibei, offering him one million koku of rice.

Speaking of which, who in the world is not familiar with the Edo-kyō (Edo period) gentry?

"Mmm." Sure enough, that was Sasa Narimasa's answer.

"There's not much to say about that; we should judge by actions, not intentions." Shichibei himself had also been observing and waiting for the right price; there was no need to force others to comply.

"However, there's one thing you need to be careful about: Lord Edo's prestige has greatly increased this time." Sasa Narimasa could tell at a glance that Shichibei had definitely been bribed, so he didn't say anything more.

Anyway, he only mentioned this one point: with Oda Nobukatsu's death, the prestige that originally belonged solely to him as a member of the Japanese Heavenly Dragons suddenly shattered. Some of it was taken by Mori Terumoto, some by Shichibei, and of course, some fell into the hands of Maeda Toshiie and Oda Nobushige. But without a doubt, Tokugawa Ieyasu also received a huge share, and his reputation and prestige skyrocketed.

Although its power is currently limited to the Kanto region, it has already risen to a new level. Previously, Tokugawa Ieyasu was just one of the three domains of the Oda regime located in Kanto and Oshu. Now, with the Niwa domain gone and Takigawa weakened, Tokugawa has become the sole dominant power.

In order to effectively govern the Kanto and Oshu regions, the Osaka central government would inevitably rely more heavily on the Tokugawa clan without large-scale relocation or transfer of fiefdoms.

There was no need to wait for Tokugawa Ieyasu's eldest son to succeed him; Tokugawa Ieyasu would become the de facto ruler of Kanto.

"Oh dear, this is a problem." Shichibei knew this, but there was really no way to deal with it for the time being.

It's often said that chaos is a ladder to advancement, though this only applies to a very small minority. For the vast majority, encountering chaos only leads to death. Taking advantage of this succession dispute, Ieyasu rose rapidly through the ranks of the Oda regime in a short period.

On top of all that, he also possessed a genuine 800,000 koku of rice—no, wait, it's 890,000 koku now. He had ample power, was the son-in-law of the Oda clan, and had his son with Lady Oichi officially recognized as the legitimate heir, gaining the approval of the Owari kinship shrine. Adding these two advantages to the newly acquired "fame," it was an absolute windfall.

In Osaka, Terumoto Mori and others rolled up their trousers and waded into the muddy waters, getting their feet covered in mud, only to find that the power they ultimately earned had to be shared.

Tokugawa Ieyasu sat firmly in Edo, holding Oda Nobushige in his grasp. It was a matter of timing and fate; before he could even exert any effort, he had already monopolized power in the Kanto region.

If we had to put it in perspective, Mori Terumoto was on the first level, while Tokugawa Ieyasu had already ascended to the atmosphere.

You asked which floor Shichibei was on? That's hard to say. Shichibei himself felt he acted very carelessly this time, failing in many areas. Unfortunately, life likely won't give Shichibei a second chance. Whether it was good or bad, only future generations can judge.

"It's good that you understand. I have nothing more to say. Anyway, we're both from Owari, so we won't fight each other." Sasa Narimasa saw that Shichibei had basically considered things, so he didn't say anything more. He picked up the receipt that Shichibei had given him and prepared to go out to get the money.

He still had to stay in Osaka for a few more days because Oda Katsuhoshi needed to go through a procedure first, that is, to change from a lowly "illegitimate son" to the legitimate son of Oda Nobuo's wife, Mori Komatsuhime.

Only after completing this process can one rightfully inherit Oda Nobukatsu's throne. Although many might see this as pointless and unnecessary, even in the neighboring kingdom of Oda Nobunaga, when the emperor died, the crown prince still had to decline the throne three times with the support of the court officials.

This can only be considered part of etiquette. As the Oda clan was at the very top of the ruling class, they were certainly the ones who needed to observe these etiquettes the most.

"Alright." Shichibei stood up and saw Sasa Narimasa off.

As soon as he stepped out the door, a servant rushed in to report that Tokugawa Ieyasu of Edo wanted to allocate another sum of "mobilization funds" and that the soldiers needed some appeasement. This matter had already been handed over to Wakatoshi, who was in charge of the territory, and Hijikata Okihisa, who was on duty today, immediately sent someone to inform Shichibei.

Tsk, Ieyasu doesn't pretend at all, he just asks for it. Shichibei, however, doesn't find anything suspicious about this behavior. Wang Jian led his army to attack Chu, demanding everything from the King of Qin—money today, land tomorrow, houses the day after, whatever was available.

He didn't want to arouse the Qin King's suspicion because he held considerable military power. Tokugawa Ieyasu, on the other hand, wasn't so calculating; he was clearly looking to seize this opportunity to make a quick buck.

As mentioned before, he's in the atmosphere, so he's pretty much sitting on his laurels right now. It was Maeda Toshiie who launched the attack in Osaka, but as a key figure in Oda Nobushige's faction, he gained far more benefits than Maeda Toshiie. Now that he's asking for money again, the central government will definitely have to give it to him.

It wasn't just for him, but also for the armies of the Heian period. Many of the generals in the army were loyal to Oda Nobushige, and they too needed to be appeased.

Give it to me.

Hijikata Yuhisa sent someone to inform Shichibei, hoping Shichibei would come up with this money. Nobukatsu's grand funeral is about to be held, his and his son's mausoleums need to be built, plus the cost of repairing Osaka Castle, and the succession ceremony (including donations to the imperial court). It's questionable whether Nobukatsu's treasury of 100,000 or 200,000 yen will be enough.

Money was acceptable, but Tokugawa Ieyasu insisted on taking Oda Nobushige with him to suppress the Aizu rebellion. Shichibei wasn't stupid; this was a deal.

He then ordered Kawamuraya to lend 100,000 kan to the Oda family, who would then allocate that 100,000 kan to the Kanto region, and the matter would be settled.

When the topic of Nobuo's funeral came up, Shichibei approached Mori Terumoto. The funeral of Oda Nobunaga's father, Oda Nobunaga, could not be held casually; it had to be a grand affair to uphold the legitimacy of Oda Katsuhoshi's passing.

Mori Terumoto fully agreed with this. Therefore, Shichibei demanded that he immediately mobilize the army, including the forces of many feudal lords in the western provinces. At least 150,000 men were to be mobilized and deployed along the Osaka-Azuchi line as a funeral procession and security personnel.

Historically, when Hideyoshi held Nobunaga's funeral, he arranged for a procession of 30,000 people at the crematorium alone at Daitoku-ji Temple. The main point was to make it grand; without grandeur, one could not display one's authority.

The Oda clan's direct forces suffered considerable losses in the earthquake. Furthermore, due to the collapse of Azuchi Castle, foot soldiers were mobilized to help repair it. Bringing them back in as a ceremonial guard is pointless; they're not donkeys.

Therefore, Shichibei's suggestion was to summon the western troops to Kyoto to support Nobukatsu. After all, Nobukatsu could only organize a direct army of 70,000 men, which wasn't enough.

Desiring to experience the spectacle firsthand, Mori Terumoto immediately drafted a petition and sent it to all the lords of the western provinces, demanding that they lead their armies to his residence to jointly organize and participate in Nobuo's funeral.

Mori Terumoto, who was ready to assume the role of "big boss," also wanted to experience what it was like to command hundreds of thousands of troops. Such an opportunity was rare, and after the Heiwa War, it was unlikely that another battle requiring the mobilization of hundreds of thousands of troops would occur.

"Let's get started," Shichibei then left Osaka Castle and headed to Kyoto and Sakai to gather funds. One purpose was to transfer evacuation expenses to Tokugawa Ieyasu in Edo, and the other was to raise funds for Nobukatsu's grand funeral.

Once Shichibei left, at the Hashiba residence beneath Osaka Castle, Hashiba Hidenaga had already returned to Hakata with the ashes of Hideyoshi and Hidekatsu. Only Hashiba Hideie and his mother, along with a few servants, remained at the residence.

The investigation into the assassination of Hidekatsu Hashiba has reached a dead end. Although seasoned investigators have been brought in from Kyoto and all relevant personnel have been arrested, almost no valuable testimony has been obtained, except for coherent confessions obtained under torture.

Despite a second investigation into Enryōin, she was found to have no connection whatsoever other than being implicated in the case of cooking leek porridge.

Although the case is still under investigation, it has lost its direction and will likely remain unsolved.

Taking advantage of the absence of important figures at the residence, Enryōin summoned Hashiba Hideie and drafted a letter for him. He instructed him to immediately disguise himself and leave Osaka for Edo to seek refuge with Tokugawa Ieyasu and Oda Nobushige.

Her eldest son, Hideyoshi, didn't understand why his mother wanted him to run away. Enryōin just smiled and told him that whether he could inherit his adoptive father Hideyoshi's 500,000 koku of land in Chikuzen and Hakata depended on this gamble.

Hashiba Hideie didn't actually harbor any ambition to inherit 500,000 koku of rice from Chikuzen and Hakata. He originally intended for his adoptive father, Hideyoshi, to provide him with tens of thousands of koku. However, Hideyoshi suddenly died, and although Hidekatsu outwardly maintained a brotherly relationship with him, it was merely a lukewarm gesture, and he didn't mention allocating any koku to him.

At this moment, Hideya was actually without any prospects, but her mother, Enryuin, did not think so, and even believed that a good opportunity had appeared.

The letter provided Tokugawa Ieyasu and Oda Nobushige with an excellent pretext. Mori Terumoto, Kawamura Nagayoshi, and others were assembling a large army, ostensibly to prepare for Nobukatsu's funeral, but in reality to mobilize troops for a rapid attack on Matsushiro and Edo.

Whether Tokugawa Ieyasu believed it or not was secondary; the important thing was to intimidate Oda Nobushige and the powerful feudal lords. With this pretext, Tokugawa Ieyasu could support Oda Nobushige and turn against Osaka and Kyoto.

Hideie Hashiba, who provided them with this excuse, would have no obstacles and would have had an easy time inheriting the Hashiba family line should the Oda Nobushige faction win and seize power.

Chapter 643 Xiaoshan's Assessment of Unity

Within the Shimotsuke Koyama camp, a massive army of over 130,000 men was centered around the abandoned Koyama Castle, spread over an area of ​​more than 20 kilometers. The military camps were arrayed with numerous banners, while the main camp of Tokugawa Ieyasu and the Shinano forces led by Oda Nobushige was located on the site of Koyama Castle.

Ieyasu was the commander-in-chief, and Nobushige was the magistrate; the two of them were the core of this army.

After receiving 100,000 kan of "departure funds" from the Osaka central government, Tokugawa Ieyasu followed Honda Masanobu's advice and led an army of over 100,000 men to build Edo Port and the Aizu Road to attack the tens of thousands of local guerrillas in Aizu.

Because the heavy snow in Aizu had not completely melted and there might still be some remnants, and because Ieyasu needed to continuously win over and bestow favors upon the generals of Taira and Aizu, the army was only moving towards Aizu at a "snail's pace" of fifteen kilometers per day.

No one questioned why the advance was so gradual, instead of being swift. The Aizu people had actually been in unrest for eight or nine months; what was the point of swiftness? The castle had already fallen, and the Niwa clan had been driven away. Whether they arrived a day earlier or later, Aizu was always on high alert.

By this time, Hideie Hashiba had finally escaped from Osaka, concealing his tracks all the way, and finally caught up with the Taira army, and even met Tokugawa Ieyasu.

Tokugawa Ieyasu was initially quite puzzled by the defection of Hideyoshi's adopted son. It was only after seeing Enryō-in's secret letter that he understood.

That Enryuin, whom I've never met, is truly cunning; he and Ukita Naoie are a match made in heaven.

The murder of Hashiba Hidekatsu, a major event that escalated the conflict between Oda Katsuhoshi's and Oda Nobushige's factions from a point of open debate to a fierce standoff and verbal battle, was a source of great surprise to Tokugawa Ieyasu.

In terms of strategy, Enryuin was perhaps no less intelligent than the men of her time. If you add her forbearance and decisiveness, she far surpassed them.

Enryōin's demands were simple: if he could conquer the land, he requested Tokugawa Ieyasu to appoint Hashiba Hideie, who had brought him "good news," as his successor. He was to eliminate the opposition within the Hashiba family, allow Hashiba Hideie to marry Hidekatsu's widow, and legitimately inherit 500,000 koku of rice from Chikuzen-Hakata.

From then on, the Hashiba family served the king faithfully, willingly leading his horse and putting it in the stirrups.

Hmph, promises and such were of no concern to Tokugawa Ieyasu. Judging from the man before him, Hashiba Hideie, he was clearly not a particularly cunning individual. Without his mother, he probably wouldn't have traveled so far to pay his respects.

But they've come, and what's more, they've brought "bad news" that's a major development for all the armies in the Pinghui.

The key question is whether Tokugawa Ieyasu should follow the narrative devised by Enryōin and explain it to the generals of the Heisei. Once he embarks on that path, it truly is a matter of "those who advance will be reborn in paradise, while those who retreat will be plunged into the deepest hell."

If you succeed, you'll be a powerful and influential figure in the world. If you fail, it's no exaggeration to say you'll die without a burial place.

It should be understood that Tokugawa Ieyasu has now secured his position as the leader of the Kanto region. Although the Osaka central government is unlikely to bestow upon him the title of "Kanto Kanrei," he has become the de facto leader of the Kanto region under the Oda regime. With this generation laying the foundation and the next generation strengthening it, the prospect of controlling Bando and looking towards the rest of the country is inevitable.

Should I seize this opportunity to explore the world, or should I give up, preserve my foundation, and leave my descendants the resources to conquer the world?

After sending Hashiba Hideie away from the central army camp, Ieyasu immediately summoned his trusted ministers, including Honda Masanobu, Honda Tadakatsu, Sakakibara Yasumasa, Sakai Tadatsugu, Ishikawa Ienari, and Okubo Tadayo, to his main tent and explained Enryōin's advice to them.

Upon hearing this, the crowd reacted in various ways: some remained silent, some were excited, and some watched Tokugawa Ieyasu's expression.

Honda Masanobu, who had previously returned to Edo from Osaka, advised Ieyasu to firmly grasp control of the 120,000-strong army and to act when the time was right. But he never expected that the opportunity would come so quickly, appearing before Tokugawa Ieyasu almost instantly.

Whether to seize the opportunity or wait and see, even the resourceful Honda Masanobu found it difficult to decide for a time.

"I am not good at planning, but I can only do my best to help my lord conquer the world!" Honda Tadakatsu said immediately when everyone was silent.

As the leader of the first generation of the Hatamoto (Handmasters), a fierce general capable of independently commanding an army of over five thousand men and advocating for Ieyasu, Honda Tadakatsu's speech perfectly reflects his character.

But do you really think he was brave but lacked strategy? Of course not. In fact, these words were supporting Tokugawa Ieyasu to go further.

As a general whom Tokugawa Ieyasu had promoted from a young age, Honda Tadakatsu's friendship with Ieyasu was as strong as gold and stone. In his view, Oda Nobunaga's conquest of the land was beyond question. Nobunaga had fought his way to power with his own sword and spear, and no one could deny his worth.

Oda Nobukatsu inherited the throne and personally commanded the Mori Campaign in the west, the Kyushu Campaign, and the Odawara-Hojo Campaign. Especially in the Battle of Hyuga-Takajo, he displayed extraordinary prowess, valiantly defeating Shimazu Yoshihisa's 30,000 cavalry. Although he had many flaws and was ambitious, he was, after all, the legitimate son of the Great God of War, and possessed military achievements. He could be considered on par with his lord, Tokugawa Ieyasu.

What is Oda Katsuhoshi, who has now succeeded to the throne? He's nothing more than a six-month-old infant. He's a puppet of Mori Terumoto, Kawamura Nagayoshi, and others.

The world, the world before us, is in fact once again without a ruler!

So, besides his lord Tokugawa Ieyasu, who else could be called a "virtuous man"? No one else. Apart from Ieyasu, there was no one else.

Those who could be called heroes are long gone, and even the warlords of this chaotic era are few and far between. This is the perfect opportunity for my Tokugawa clan to rise up and seize power.

“That’s absolutely right!” Honda Masanobu immediately turned around.

The fact that Tokugawa Ieyasu summoned his ministers to discuss the matter meant that he was already interested, but not entirely. If he hadn't considered it at all, Tokugawa Ieyasu would have kept it to himself and never mentioned it again.

Enryō-in and Hashiba Hideie never existed. They wouldn't be silenced; simply finding a mountain gate to hide them would be a simple matter.

Historically, the Tokugawa clan launched a massive manhunt for Ukita Hideie, but thanks to the protection of the Shimazu clan, they were unable to find him. If someone who was one of the Tokugawa's most wanted generals during the Battle of Sekigahara could hide, what couldn't he conceal?

Unfortunately, Tokugawa Ieyasu has now brought this matter to light, prompting everyone to discuss it. Honda Masanobu glanced discreetly at the righteously indignant Honda Tadakatsu, wondering whether the man was truly straightforward or rather, quite cunning.

"Oh!" Tokugawa Ieyasu's eyes flashed, seemingly quite surprised by the strong support from his two senior retainers.

"The world is in chaos, and it is precisely the time when our lord needs to restore order." Sakakibara Yasumasa was only a step behind Honda Tadakatsu.

In the era of traditional Japanese loyalty, they didn't actually have any obligation of loyalty to Oda Nobuo or Katsuhoshi. Naturally, compared to the Oda clan gaining power, it was definitely better for the Tokugawa clan to do so. Not only could Ieyasu become the ruler of the land, but these senior retainers could also become the rulers of the new government.

"However, the generals of Heian cannot yet be considered to have joined forces," Tokugawa Ieyasu continued, throwing out another point.

"The likes of Osaka Mori Kawamura have already mobilized their troops, intending to launch a surprise attack. We are merely forced to retaliate!" This time, Honda Masanobu immediately chimed in, offering a plausible excuse.

Oda Katsuhoshi's generals in Osaka are already gathering troops. Anyway, don't worry about what they're doing with the troops, I'll just say they're coming to attack the territories of Oda Nobushige's generals.

Otherwise, why would Osaka repeatedly urge its armies to advance? It was to force the generals and the main force to leave their territory. Once the main force entered Aizu and began fighting the 40,000 to 50,000 Aizu vassals, they would be unable to retreat easily. Oda Katsufumi's army would then inevitably launch a surprise attack on the generals' rear, completely annihilating Oda Nobushige's faction.

We will all die without a burial place!

Our current actions are for self-preservation and self-protection, not a rebellion. Moreover, we support Lord Oda Nobushige, who is the righteous army of the king.