Owari Yumeki Golden Day

It was already around three or four in the morning, the perfect time for sleep. The sun hadn't risen yet, but it wasn't that dark. The cries of killing, accompanied by the roar of cannons, suddenly filled Shichibei's ears.

Sure enough, Saito Tatsuoki still went to the gambling table and decided to take two or three hundred of the most elite samurai foot soldiers to launch a surprise attack on Nobunaga's main camp at Zuiryujiyama in order to turn defeat into victory.

85. Robbery and Counter-Robbery

"Good boy, how dare you rob me!"

Not long after setting out from Tsushima in two boats loaded with weapons and provisions, So Kotaro was about to disembark at Inuyama and then transport them to Inoguchi when he saw four or five samurai on a small boat opposite him.

He looked like a defeated warrior, with both helmets missing. He was fleeing on his boat. He saw my two ships of military supplies and decided to take advantage of them, hoping to get some initial capital before becoming a bandit.

The samurai on the boat shouted and threatened So Kotaro with swords and guns. If he was facing a serious samurai, So Kotaro would have knelt down and kowtowed.

But the defeated warrior...

"Brothers? Want to make a little fortune?" In addition to Kazue Kotaro, two of Shichibei Shinchi's retainers also carried swords and guns.

The other five or six guys came and carefully calculated that there were five people on the other side, one of whom was obviously injured and not very capable. So four decent ones, nine of us, and two boats, could do the job.

Today it’s my turn to go out and hunt warriors!

The defeated warrior on the opposite side obviously had no cannon or bow and arrow, only a sword in his hand. Then I must bully you, So Kotaro commanded the boat under him, slowly approached, raised the oar and smashed it down at a warrior.

The samurai hadn't expected the lowly merchants to not only refuse to surrender but actually attack him. He was immediately beaten half to death by the oars and collapsed. The samurai behind him exclaimed that they had let their guard down and were about to board to kill So Kotaro, but they hadn't anticipated that two of Kawamura's employees were already wielding long bamboo poles, crossing them and stabbing him.

The person was pushed into the water with one poke. The boat was like a canoe, with five people sitting in a straight line, making it impossible to dodge. Otherwise, he would not have thought of stealing So Kotaro's boat after seeing it.

If this small boat reached the mouth of the Kiso River, a wave would hit it and there was a high possibility that they would all be swept into the sea.

As soon as they met, one man was knocked down, another fell into the water, and the two remaining standing men were immediately panicked. But panic was no use. The two samurai from Kawamura-ya, though not particularly skilled at killing, had fought in battle before. They told their men to ram the canoe. The small boat collided with the canoe, and the samurai standing on it immediately swayed from side to side.

Good opportunity, everyone shouted, and So Kotaro paddled again, knocking the older samurai directly into the water. The last samurai suddenly opened his mouth.

Upon hearing the name, So Kotaro and the others were almost incredulous and immediately stopped. They also sent people to rescue the two warriors who had just fallen into the water. After all, the warriors who served this man must be valuable.

........................

"Where is Long Xing? Where is Long Xing? I just want to know where is Long Xing's head!" Nobunaga asked Sasaki Narimasa without hesitation.

Three thousand men fought against three hundred men at night, flanked on both sides, and hacked to death over two hundred men. Why didn't they kill Saito Ryusuke? Could it be that Saito Ryusuke had grown wings and flown away?

"We are searching for it. Once you find it, please bring it to us immediately." Sasa Narimasa had no idea.

The hillside was littered with corpses of the Saito and Oda armies. Long Xing's carefully selected soldiers killed dozens of Nobunaga's soldiers before they were defeated.

But Long Xing's timing of attack was good; by the time Long Xing was defeated, it was still daybreak. Long Xing, a native of Inabayama, rolled into the ditch and disappeared immediately.

It may only take a moment before it is nowhere to be found again.

Without Ryūshū, Nobunaga's Mino conquest was only half successful. After all, Ryūshū was the best way to claim Mino. Any vassal who supported Ryūshū could easily attack Mino.

By then, Mino's people would undoubtedly be in turmoil. After all, in the chaotic times of the Warring States, one must constantly choose sides and make choices. If a powerful daimyo were to support Long Xing in his campaign against Mino, then the vacillating lords in Mino would surely find support.

"Could he have escaped by boat from the Kiso River?" Shichibei said this subconsciously. After all, we are the ones who know things first.

"You, you go look for it too!" Nobunaga was a little anxious for a rare time. He pointed at Shichibei and asked him to run and find a boat.

Sasa Narimasa searched on land, while Shichibei searched in the water, determined to find the body, alive or dead. Meanwhile, a message was immediately sent to Ikkiyoshi Takigawa in Kanie Castle, ordering him to mobilize his network of contacts in northern Ise to search for Ryuoki's possible whereabouts.

Knowing he was in trouble, Shichibei shrank back and ran away. Halfway through, Nobunaga stopped Shichibei and told him to lead the merchants scattered in northern Ise to search for him and not give up until they found Longxing.

Yes Yes Yes.

Nobunaga then kept a close eye on the battle situation in Inabayama Castle. Hideyoshi, who had taken a detour through the mountains last night, had also begun to launch a siege on Inabayama.

In addition, the lord of the Fork Castle, Mori Yoshinari, led his troops to attack the main gate of Inabayama, dispersing the already limited military forces in Inabayama Castle and making it difficult for Inabayama to support them.

It was obvious that Long Xing had not fled back to Inabayama Castle. If Long Xing had been there, the shouting and screaming would have been much louder. Presumably, some of the Saito warriors had already begun to flee, giving up resistance.

In both the north and south, Inabayama Castle was in danger, and soon the Oda clan's flag appeared inside Inabayama Castle. When Mori Kanari entered the city, someone with a dozen soldiers opened the oars for him and welcomed him in to occupy the commanding heights.

Upon inquiry, they revealed that they had already communicated with Kawamura Shichibei Nagakichi, along with a letter from him. Mori Kancheng thought, "You're just sitting on the fence, refusing to open the door and leaving me with an arrow tower." He simply ordered his retainers to escort the men out and continue the assault on Inabayama Castle's main fortress.

Inabayama Castle was captured.

When the sounds of fighting in the Honmaru Palace died down, Nobunaga knew that Inabayama had changed his surname to Oda. However, he had examined the heads of the 200 Saito soldiers on the hillside one by one, and had Saito Toshiharu examine them as well, and found that none of them were from Longxing.

Really taught Longxing to run away.

Nobunaga was so angry that he broke the whip and kicked the head of a Saito samurai away.

While he was still furious, he saw a man sneaking around the main camp. He didn't look like a samurai, but he was wearing an exquisitely decorated katana.

A merchant who had sneaked in from somewhere pointed at the man, and Nobunaga ordered him to be driven away.

That person was So Kotaro. He saw Nobunaga pointing at him and thought he was being called. Because he was too excited, he didn't notice the fire on Nobunaga's face and ran over to kowtow with a playful smile.

Nobunaga got angry at his playful appearance and kicked him over. Unprepared, So Kotaro was kicked from the top of the mountain to the middle of the mountain, rolling several times.

The katana that was originally attached to his waist fell to the ground. It was a precious sword that was completely unworthy of So Kotaro's status. Saito Toshiharu, who was standing next to Nobunaga, originally wanted to come over to persuade him, but when he saw the sword, he exclaimed in surprise.

This is my brother's sword!

In the context of Japanese ethics, Nobunaga is Saito Toshiharu's brother, and Isshiki Yoshitatsu is also his brother. This statement made Nobunaga's soul turn away, and he subconsciously replied.

"How come I didn't know this was mine?" The sword is a samurai's second life, and Nobunaga knows his sword like the back of his hand.

"No, no, no, the first one was Yise Jingzhao Daifu." In Nobunaga's eyes, Yoshitatsu was a great traitor, but after all, he was dead, so he could use a neutral official title.

"Huh?" Nobunaga was stunned. He looked at the sword and then at So Kotaro who was kicked away by him.

"Hurry, hurry and pull that guy, that guy up to me." Of course Nobunaga didn't know So Kotaro, so he could only give random orders.

Saito Toshiharu also guessed something, and immediately jumped down to help So Kotaro, and then the young men followed.

So Kotaro, who had rolled at least twenty or thirty meters, was now half-conscious, curled up on the ground like a dead shrimp, motionless. Fortunately, there were no rocks on the road, and he was simply dizzy from spinning.

So Kotaro, who was brought back to the Main Camp Shogunate, started talking nonsense as soon as he was put down.

"I'm here for a meeting. What are you, you, you doing..." Saito Toshiharu was so anxious that he took the water that Nobunaga Aoi was drinking and gave him a shower from head to toe.

Fortunately, it is May now. If I get wet in the middle of winter, I will definitely catch a cold.

"What's your name? Whose family are you from?" Like many extremely energetic leaders, Nobunaga can remember the names and departments of all his subordinates whom he often meets.

He could name every single one of his regular soldiers, including the horsemen, the minor soldiers, and the foot soldiers. Of course, since the nobles were responsible for expanding the army, he couldn't know the names of the military servants and family members who were recruited from the regular soldiers.

"I am Kawamura Shichibei from Nagayoshi's family, and So Kotaro is in charge." So Kotaro finally came to his senses.

"Where did you get this sword?" Nobunaga nodded slightly, and then asked directly about the origin of the tachi.

"Ah! Yes! This sword!" So Kotaro finally remembered why he came to the main camp. He came to find Shichibei.

Because he did something on the Kiso River, playing a game of warrior hunting, which can also be said to be robbery and counter-robbery, and captured a "treasure".

"Your Highness is asking you a question!" Saito Toshiharu saw that So Kotaro's words were inconsistent, and he meant to pour another bucket of water on him.

"It's just down the mountain, just down the mountain!" So Kotaro got up and ran after being shouted at.

Nobunaga was barely half a second behind him, and he caught up immediately. The two of them rushed down the mountain like flying, leaving everyone behind. So Kotaro seemed to be delighted to discover for the first time that someone could actually keep up with him. In the end, the two of them were practically running hand in hand.

When he arrived at the messy mule and horse pen at the foot of the mountain, Nobunaga saw the person he wanted to see most.

Saito Ryuki!

As well as Nagai Michitoshi, Hineno Hironori, Hineno Morinari and Takeshishi Shichiro who was injured in the leg.

After seeing the man, Nobunaga became very calm and composed. He shook off So Kotaro's hand and ordered So Kotaro to untie Longxing's hands.

Other warriors, don't tie them up anymore. Sit up. Do you have a stool? If not, let's sit on the haystack and chat, my dear nephew.

Seeing his good uncle Nobunaga, Long Xing didn't say anything harsh or stern to him. Instead, he asked Nobunaga if he had anything to eat, and preferably a pot of wine.

"Would you like some dried persimmons?" Nobunaga was extremely gentle. He actually took out a bag from his waist, which contained several dried persimmons.

It's not just a snack, though. Dried persimmons were, in a sense, a portable form of military rations in Japan. High in calories, portable, and easily available, they practically met all the requirements for military rations. All they had to do was pick the persimmons in the fall, peel them, hang them up, and dry them in the sun.

Persimmon trees are widely planted in Japan these days, and there are even wild persimmon trees growing in the mountains. You can pick the persimmons and dry them to make dried persimmon cakes.

Long Xing, no longer in a position to be polite, grabbed his uncle's bag of dried persimmons. He took out the dried persimmons and distributed them to several retainers. Instead, Nobunaga asked for wine. Where was the wine?

Yes, yes, So Kotaro immediately brought over a large wine barrel that held over ten liters. Unfortunately, there were no bottles or saucers, but there was a gourd ladle for watering the horses.

The few of them didn't mind, they broke the barrel and started drinking with a ladle. In just a few sips, half a barrel of wine was gone.

"How is it?" Nobunaga watched them eat and drink, and only continued to ask questions at this time.

"We lost, that's all." Long Xing sat calmly opposite Nobunaga, and his tone of answer was very peaceful.

"What about you?" Nobunaga asked a few die-hard fans who had escaped with Long Xing.

“…” No one answered. Nagai Michiri turned around and Hineno Hiro glared at him.

"The city has been broken." Nobunaga pointed to Inabayama Castle a little further away. There were still a few wisps of smoke in the city.

It was the Ashigaru's residence that was set on fire during the siege. The fire had just been put out. Mori Yoshinari and Kinoshita Hideyoshi were gathering the defeated soldiers in the city, cleaning up the corpses, and waiting for Nobunaga to enter the city for inspection.

"The soldiers in the city are few and weak, so it will not be difficult to break it." Long Xing did not turn around to look at Inabayama. Since Nobunaga said it was broken, it must be really broken, so there was no need to lie to him.

"Yes, we took it down in one go." Only at this point did Nobunaga brag.

In reality, it took a pincer attack from both the north and south to capture Inabayama. As the main castle of the Mino Saito clan, managed by three generations, it shouldn't have fallen so easily.

While the two were talking, Saito Toshiharu, Sassa Narimasa and others finally found Nobunaga and saw Ryuxing standing opposite Nobunaga and answering questions with him freely.

Another of the guys who had gone to look for Shichibei also pulled him over. So Kotaro was standing next to Nobunaga, holding a gourd. He didn't know whether to leave or not. He didn't dare stand taller than Nobunaga, but he felt he didn't have the right to sit. It was so awkward.

"What's going on?" Shichibei asked the guy who came from Tsushima, who was the one Nobunaga was talking to?

"We met a robber on the way, but Kotaro didn't take it seriously and pushed the man into the water with his oar. There was a man inside who said he was the Imperial Companion, Jibu Daifuden." The guy thought about it and downplayed his intention to kill the warrior hunter.

After all, doing it is one thing, and saying it is another.

86. A newcomer shocked the audience

To cut or not to cut?

This was a major issue, and one that only the Holy Heart could decide. Ryusei and his companions were taken to Zuiryuji Temple for custody, while Nobunaga returned to the main camp to ponder his thoughts.

Of course, before he even considered it, he issued a military order. He conscripted the civilians from the lands east of the Hangase River, the former territories of Saito Tatsuoki and his retainers, to come to Inabayama Castle and build the "Luyuan."

It's a large-scale fence made of bamboo and wood, essentially a fence. It's simply a name borrowed from deer antlers. Sometimes it's also called a "pig fence," referencing the wild boar's tusks.

Perhaps influenced by two events, Kinoshita Hideyoshi's attack on Inabayama Castle from a small mountain path, and Saito Tatsuoki's attack on the main camp from a ditch inside the castle, Nobunaga believed that Inabayama Castle's defenses still had loopholes.

Building a large-scale wall or earthen wall would be very expensive, but building the deer wall was not a big deal, and the local lords and farmers who came to serve could bring their own, so Nobunaga spent almost nothing.

As for the duty money and husband money west of the Hangase River, which exceeded 15,000 strings of cash, they had been promised to the three people of West Mino earlier, so when conscripting local people, only those east of the Hangase River could be issued.

Nobunaga did not assign Shichibei the responsibility, but instead gave it to Hideyoshi. Hideyoshi must have known the loopholes best, as he was the one who took the path, so it made sense for him to be in charge of building the long wall of Luyuan.

"Your Majesty, please don't reward me with 500 kan this time." So Kotaro completely forgot the grudge that Nobunaga had given him for kicking him, but instead looked forward to the wonderful life he would have after becoming rich with 500 kan.

"One thousand strings of cash." It's just a dream anyway, so why not dream bigger?

Long Xing's head was the greatest achievement of this battle, and it should have been given to Zhixing's territory. Now, if converted into money, it would be worth more than a thousand kan, not to mention a thousand kan. Besides, it's buy one get four free, and it also gives away four Saito samurai generals.

"One thousand kan, tsk..." So Kotaro had seen one thousand kan in cash before, but he had never owned even a hundred kan.

"You continue..." Shichibei made the usual Japanese gesture of invitation and let So Kotaro lie on the haystack to dream.

I've just learned how Saito Ryūoki was captured. Ryūoki had launched a surprise attack outside the city, only to fall prey to Nobunaga's trap and be surrounded. The attendants, both minors, desperately supported him as he fought his way out of the encirclement and fled to the river.

They found a small wooden boat that could barely fit five people. Hibino Shimono-no-mori said, "I'll take the others to continue looking for a boat, you guys run first."

What happened next was So Kotaro's fate. After traveling for several hours by water, Long Xing and others saw So Kotaro transporting goods to Tsushima. As soon as they met, the five of them tied them up and brought them before Nobunaga.

There are more than 10 million people in Japan now, and the richest man in the world has fallen on So Kotaro's head.

Even those who buy Japanese lottery tickets don’t have such good luck as him.

Now that Inabayama Castle had fallen and Saito Tatsuoki had been captured, the logistics work had come to an end. Shichibei, letting So Kotaro dream, informed his staff to pack up. No more military supplies and fodder needed to be shipped from Komakiyama, and no more wine, medicine, cloth, bamboo hats, or gunpowder needed to be shipped from Tsushima.

Everyone, prepare to disband and go home. Nobunaga generally doesn't care about the food on the way. If you run fast, you can probably run from Inabayama to Okazaki in a day and a half. You won't starve to death if you don't eat for a day and a half.

Just like Ishikawa Ienari, who had just been seen running for two days to join the battle, he didn't even touch the city gates, and the battle was over. Nobunaga rewarded him with 1,000 taels of rice and let him go home. At this time, Tokugawa Ieyasu was still mobilizing the people of Higashi Mikawa at Yoshida Castle, but it was all in vain.

The three men from Seino also returned home to collect taxes and distribute 15,000 kan of wealth. The peasant soldiers mobilized by the Oda clan were disbanded after receiving a day's supply of rice and salt.

Historically, after Nobunaga fought the Battle of Dodo, he dismissed his peasant soldiers and retainers and returned home, leaving him with only 700 men. He was ambushed by 3,000 men led by Ryuoki and Nagai Michitoshi, and fought desperately to escape.

After all, the peasant soldiers' food, clothing, and daily necessities for the expedition abroad all depended on Nobunaga's supply. Moreover, the expedition abroad had to be exempted from this year's general service or other labor. Every day of delay would cost Nobunaga a mountain of expenses.

It’s no wonder that he announced the disbanding of the peasant soldiers and reinforcements before considering whether to kill Long Xing.