different warring states of japan

Chapter 1312 Settsu Three Guardians

Xue Nai tilted her head, puzzled.

"The one who serves the lord must be warrior Ji, you should be thankful, because the lord gave you the status of a warrior family, so that you have the basic conditions to repay the grace of saving your life.

As a Hime samurai, you need to be proficient in using the sword, which is the skill you must master to serve the Shiba family. "

Glancing at the weak Takada Yono, Li Huazuo said.

"It is more efficient to kill with a musket."

Takada Yukino thought for a while and said.

"Are you talking about the iron cannon? It's too slow, and it can't be accurate.

I can smell the smell of you once struggling on the verge of death. Like me, you have transcended life and death, and you are a returnee struggling to return to the human world.

You can break through the limits of the human body and learn my flying sword style. "

Li Huazuo retorted.

"And then? Will you become disabled like you? There is a price to be paid for surpassing the limits of the human body."

Xue Nai said indifferently.

"This is what you owe to the lord. Before he comes back, you must become a useful swordsman and serve my lord."

Li Huazuo looked at Takada Yukino.

"You have a lot of resentment, you hate your current incomplete state, and I'm just a tool for you to replace yourself."

Takata Yukino tried to clenched his fist, but his fingers trembled uncontrollably.

"Xiao Zuo, your resentment is also very heavy. I can feel that you hate this island country very much."

Li Huazuo was silent for a while, then said.

"Yeah, why should I like this place? What's there for me to like here?

My name, my life, my freedom were all taken away in the name of salvation. "

Takada Yukino glanced at her.

"At least you're alive."

Li Huazuo twitched the corners of his mouth, as if he wanted to laugh, but his face became even more indifferent.

"I used to know nothing, pointing to the sea and telling my partners that there is wealth waiting for us to get there. So, three ships left the homeland with my dream from the distant England.

My luck was very good, I met my big sister who took care of me, she taught me a lot, and then she died, died in a storm.

I was very sad, and a little sister comforted me. She was going to sea for the first time, and she was very scared. She hoped to have an older sister who could take care of her. I think I can be a good older sister, and then. . "

Li Huazuo stopped, Takada Yukino asked lightly.

"Is it dead too?"

Li Huazuo's eyes were a little distracted.

"On an island, she was hit by a poisonous arrow from a native, and she rolled on the ground in pain, calling my name all the time before she died, asking me to save her.

I held her until her body went cold and stiff, and that was the last time I cried.

The three ships went to sea, and I met many, many partners. Some of them were enthusiastic, some were wise, some were brave, and most of them died during the journey.

Those of us who survived got a boatload of nutmeg.As long as they return to England, everyone can live the life they yearn for, rich and happy.

However, a storm in the Pacific changed everything.I was forced to come to this island, and my companions were bewitched, they betrayed me and our faith.

Shouldn't I hate it here? "

Takada Yukino was silent for a while, then said.

"I allow you to hate this island country, but I ask you to be loyal to my lord and serve him instead of me. This is what you owe him."

Li Huazuo turned his head to look at the sky outside the court, and said calmly.

"I will serve him until the merits I have established are enough to repay his life-saving grace, and then leave this country."

Takada Yukino nodded and said.

"Then continue to practice swords, Xiaozao."

Li Huazuo glanced at her, took out a black stick from his pocket, and pointed it at the tree branch in the courtyard.

Takata Yukino stared blankly at what she did, and after waiting for a few breaths, there was a loud bang, the trunk was blasted into a large area of ​​gray and black, and half of the branches slowly fell to the ground, dust everywhere.

Li Huazuo looked at Takada Yukino.

"First, call me William. Second, I think the short gun is more suitable for killing people than your so-called flying sword style."

Takada Yukino blinked and answered.

"Okay, little one.

It's only a hundred strokes before dinner is ready, please work hard, Xiaozao. "

Takada Yono, who was discussing things with Imai Sohisa in the inner room, heard a loud noise in the courtyard, and she walked out of the room only to see a mess.

"I spent a lot of money on Yishu! What are you two doing!"

Li Huazuo and Takata Yukino looked at each other, neither said a word, and used silence to deal with the furious Takada Yokino.

---

The Yodo River runs through the Osaka Plain and the Kyoto Basin from east to west, and belongs to Settsu Kingdom and Hanoi Kingdom on the north and south sides of the border between the two countries.

The junction of the Three Kingdoms is a battleground for military strategists.There are two important cities on the north bank of the Yodo River in this section.

Diancheng at one end of the Yamashiro country, and Gaogui city at the other end of the Settsu country.The two cities are gateways to each other, both standing on the north bank, controlling the waterway of the Yodo River.

Although the Oda Army was the main force in the Settsu Raiders, the prestige of the shogunate played an extremely important role in the local samurai.

Ashikaga Yoshiaki also came to the front line in person, lashed out at Fang Qiu, stationed in Gaogui City, remotely controlled the water transportation hub, and supervised the military.

At this time, Gaogui City Residence Pavilion.

There were only two people sitting opposite each other in the room, Ashikaga Yoshiaki with a hesitant face, and Wada Yuomasa who had just returned from the front line.

Ashikaga Yoshiaki looked cautiously and asked again.

"Miyoshi Yasunaga really said that?"

Wada Yuomasa affirmed.

"I went to Sakai Port to negotiate with her in person, and she conveyed to me Miyoshi Yoshitsugu's plea to surrender. Miyoshi's family really intends to submit to the shogunate."

Ashikaga Yoshiaki pondered.

"This time I attacked Settsu in the name of revenge for the ancestors. If I easily agreed to Miyoshi Yoshitsugu, how would I explain it to the people of the world?

Also, Oda Hime is fighting fiercely ahead, and I am behind to reach an agreement with the Miyoshi family alone, isn't that inappropriate? "

Wada Yuizheng shook his head.

"Master Gongfang, the Miyoshi and Sanyo who killed the ancestors have already been punished, Miyoshi Yoshitsui was only deceived and coerced by the traitor, not the chief culprit, at most he is an accomplice.

The foundation of the Miyoshi family is in Shikoku, and the Awaji Navy blocked it. Even if we took Settsu, we had to look at the sea and sigh, and we could not eradicate the cornerstone of the Miyoshi family.

Since Miyoshi's family cannot be eliminated, why not give Miyoshi Yoshitsugu a chance to return from his lost ways?
The shogunate is currently facing internal and external difficulties. We should not expand our ties, but show your generosity, and let the Miyoshi family be used by the shogunate, which is the best policy.

Think about it, the Miyoshi family made the shogunate look like a mess back then, and even the ancestors could only choose to be tolerant in many things.

If you can subdue the Miyoshi family, then in the eyes of the warriors in the world, it will greatly boost the authority of the shogunate, your majesty.

As for His Highness Oda. .Don't you think her hand is stretched too far?

Settsu country is far away from her territory, but she is very attentive to the strategy of Settsu, which is not something that people can laugh at.

The territory of the Oda family has already exceeded two million koku, and it would not be a good thing for the shogunate if His Highness Oda was allowed to expand his influence in Settsu.

Whether it is the Miyoshi family or the Oda family, they are all foreign vassals that the shogunate needs to carefully check and balance.If you level the bowl of water, it will be in the center and it will be most beneficial to the shogunate. "

From the point of view of Wada Yoshimasa, the collapse speed of the Miyoshi family is also unexpectedly exaggerated, which makes people have a lot of speculation for no reason.

I knew that Miyoshi's family couldn't help fighting so much, so why bother to make it cheaper for the Oda family, wouldn't it be good for the shogunate to swallow this piece of fat all by itself?

I wanted to drive away the tiger and devour the wolf, but who knew that the wolf had degenerated so much that it was even worse than a dog.If the tiger is fed stronger, it will be difficult for the shogunate to control it.

Ashikaga Yoshiaki nodded slowly when he heard that, what Wada Yuimasa said was reasonable, but she was no longer the stunned young man who was casually manipulated by Wada Yuimasa and others.

Although her political level is still a little immature, it is no longer easy to fool her.

"Wada Ji, I read the post-war resettlement plan you submitted, do you want to divide the Setjin Kingdom with three guardians?

The shogunate sent people to control Higashisettsu, and the Ikeda Itami family was in charge of Nishisettsu and Beisettsu, so what about Oda Hime?She has paid a lot for the Settsu Raiders, and the shogunate cannot cool down the hearts of loyal ministers.

There is also Matsunaga Hime, who for the shogunate persuaded the people of Setjin to defect anyway, and she made a lot of contributions. "

Yoshiaki Ashikaga knew that Yoshiaki Wada had been active in the shogunate recently, and wanted to win the guardianship of Higashisettsu.In fact, she didn't object to it, and even hinted that she acquiesced in this matter.

The strength of General Ashikaga's family has long since declined. Although Shiba Yoshigin went to Kanto, the local power faction launched Hatakeyama Takamasa, the leader, and has been having trouble with Ashikaga Yoshiaki.

There is also the shogunate Ninagawa who is on the sidelines, secretly helping Hatakeyama Gaozheng, making Ashikaga Yoshiaki quite difficult to deal with.

Wada Yoshiaki is a hero from the dragon who supports Yoshiaki Ashikaga, and has the same interests as Yoshiaki Ashikaga. Letting her serve as the guardian of Settsu will help Yoshiaki Ashikaga stabilize his position.

The Settsu Kingdom was not actually defeated by the Oda Allied Forces of the shogunate, but the Settsu people took the initiative to rebel and sold the Miyoshi family.

The shogunate couldn't control Northwest Settsu, and didn't want to make the Oda family cheaper.It is the best choice to give the local Ikeda family and Itami family two powerful guardian positions and win them over to serve the shogunate.

But the three guardians of Settsu were all divided by the shogunate itself. Oda Nobunaga's force and Matsunaga Hide's tongue were all voted by Ashikaga Yoshiaki?There is nothing so good in the world, right?

Wada Yuomasa said.

"His Highness Oda is busy with the war, but he is not idle in private.

Miyoshi Yasunaga told me that the Oda family had sent someone to contact the wealthy businessman in Sakai Port, and that person was Hideyoshi Hashiba, the defender of Kyoto. "

Ashikaga Yoshiaki frowned slightly, Oda Nobunaga actually attacked Sakai Port without telling him?

At this moment, she seemed to have forgotten that she and Yuimasa Wada were calculating behind Oda Nobunaga's back. She just felt that Oda Nobunaga acted without authorization and disrespected herself, the Ashikaga general.

In Ashikaga Yoshiaki's thinking, she is a noble Ashikaga general, and she does everything for the Ashikaga world, so naturally there is nothing she can't do.

But when it comes to Oda Nobunaga, he is an arrogant foreign vassal who does things like Meng Lang without knowing the seriousness.

Abbreviation, double standard.

Seeing that Yoshiaki Ashikaga's complexion turned cold, Wada Yoshimasa followed suit.

"Matsunaga Hideo seems to be respectful to the shogunate, but he is always serving His Highness Oda loyally, and his intentions are clearly revealed."

Ashikaga Yoshiaki was even more unhappy and said.

"Slaves with three surnames are not enough to believe."

Song Yongxiu successively took refuge in the Miyoshi, Ashikaga, and Oda families, saying that although her three surnames are ugly, it is really not wronged.

Wada Yoshiaki became more and more unhappy when he saw Ashikaga Yoshiaki, and hit the railway while it was hot.

"The Miyoshi family is willing to withdraw from Sakai Port, and His Royal Highness Oda is interested in Sakai Port, why not use Sakai Port as a reward for the Oda family to send troops and allow the Oda family to send people to manage it.

As for Matsunaga Hideo, isn't she working under His Royal Highness Oda?Please ask His Highness Oda to reward her for this feat. "

Ashikaga Yoshiaki faintly felt something was wrong.

It is the righteousness of the monarch and his ministers to honor the public and reward them.This time the shogunate sent troops to take Tianjin, and the foreign ministers of various families participated in it, which was an act of royal honor.

Is it too much to deny Matsunaga Hideo's favor and ask her to ask Oda Nobunaga for it?The general Ashikaga Yoshiaki's face is somewhat thin, not as thick as Wada Yoshiaki.

But Wada Yuimsa did not smear Song Yongxiu at will, but deliberately suppressed him.

She wants to be the guardian of Dongsetjin, and the best city to live in is Gaogui City at her feet.

Gaogui Castle is the gateway for Settsu to enter and leave the Yamashiro Kingdom. The benefits of the Yodogawa Waterway are too great, who would not salivate?
Matsunaga Hideo occupies the Yodo Castle on the other side of the Yamashiro Kingdom, and he must also want to take down Gaogui Castle and eat the entire gateway into and out of the Kyoto Basin.

Wouldn't it be nice to sit on the ground and collect money?
If Song Yongxiu was not demoted to nothing, how could Wada Yuomasa snatch Gaoguicheng's fat back?

In addition to the dispute over the gate of the Yodogawa waterway between the Matsunaga family and the Wada family, there is a deeper level of conflict.

At the beginning, Miyoshi Changqing placed Song Yongxiu in Yodo City to supervise the movements of the Kyoto shogunate, and assigned the samurai family on the border of the Settsu Kingdom to Song Yongxiu's management.

If Wada Yoomasa wanted to be a powerful guardian of Tosettsu, he had to suppress Matsunaga Hideo so that the Takayama family and other local samurai in Tosettsu could switch to him.

One mountain cannot accommodate two tigers, and this level of contradiction cannot be reconciled, and the east wind can only prevail over the west wind.

Hetian Weizheng said that he was all for the shogunate, but his heart was all about himself.In order to kick Matsunaga Hideo's influence out of Dongsetjin, she stabbed her in the back and spoke all kinds of slander.

On this trip to Sakai Port, Wada not only met Yasunaga Miyoshi, but also met with the Ikeda Itami family.

The three guardians of Settsu are in the interests of the three families, but the Oda family's army that invaded Settsu is a sharp sword hanging over everyone's heads.

Miyoshi Yoshitsugu is willing to surrender, and Miyoshi Yasunaga is willing to withdraw from Sakai Port. Is it because of the power of Ashikaga Yoshiaki's general?Nonsense, it's just because the Oda army is coming so fiercely that everyone can't beat it.

Wouldn't it be nice to use Ashikaga Yoshiaki's general name to suppress Oda Nobunaga, an outsider, and then everyone hides behind to take advantage of it.

Ashikaga Yoshiaki is not ignorant of the thoughts of people like Wada Yuimasa, but Wada Yuimasa said something that hit her concerns.

Oda Nobunaga's territory already has two million shi, and she will actively expand the Settsu Kingdom, which is too much of a threat to the shogunate.

Not in his place, not seeking his government.

Yoshiaki Ashikaga desperately needs to prove himself to be a good general after getting Shiba Yoshigin away with a sleight of hand.Just like Li Shimin killed Li Jiancheng, he must prove that he is a better emperor.

Ashikaga Yoshiaki acquiesced to Wada Yoshiaki to move right and wrong. It is the balance hand used by the Ashikaga generals. It has been tried and tested for two hundred years, and Ashikaga Yoshiaki can be regarded as self-taught.

But she was somewhat worried about giving Oda Nobunaga such a big fat piece of Sakai Port.

"Although the three guardians of Settsu do not belong to the Oda family, Oda Hime won the jackpot by getting Sakai Port, right?"

Wada Yoomasa heard the hidden meaning of Ashikaga Yoshiaki and laughed.

"Master Gongfang, the Miyoshi family has withdrawn from Sakai Port, but the Kesibo family is still there."

Ashikaga Yoshiaki was taken aback for a moment, and immediately reacted, laughing.

"Yes, the Miyoshi family withdrew from Sakai Port, and the Shiba family should take on more important responsibilities for the shogunate in Sakai Port. I believe Jin Taden will not refuse, right?"

Wada Yuomasa bowed.

"The general is wise."

(End of this chapter)