different warring states of japan

Chapter 2119: Hideyoshi's strategic confusion

Yoshikane Sasaki was surprised by the pregnancy of Naomasa Ii and Kanade Tachibana, and he happily set out on the journey back to Tamonyama Castle.

After the establishment of the provisional shogunate, the first Grand Council meeting of all representatives of the United Front Work Department, and the first joint meeting of the Sōma Federal Reserve, the Sōma reform was already on the right track.

In addition, the first group of cadets officially graduated, the Shinto dispute was successfully resolved, and a solid foundation was laid for the cultivation of successor talents for Sōma and the right to interpret Shinto.

What Yoshigin Sasaki needs now is time. It is better to rule with ease than to make repeated attempts. The seeds have been planted, and the best strategy is to wait patiently for the flowers to bloom and bear fruit.

On the other hand, Hideyoshi Ichijo was in the opposite situation to Yoshikin Sasaki.

Although Hideyoshi Ichijo, who had worked hard and struggled desperately in the past few years, successfully integrated the former territories of Oda, subdued the Mori in the west, and conquered Shikoku and Kyushu, she was even more anxious at this time.

Hideyoshi Ichijo, who already controlled half of the island country and became the leader of the court, and whose power could compete with Yoshikin Sasaki, found himself in a new dilemma.

Himeji Castle, in the courtyard.

Under the luxurious art tree, Hideyoshi Ichijo always felt that the courtyard was too small and suffocating.

After conquering half of the island country, Hideyoshi Ichijo returned to his castle, but at this moment he felt uneasy. Himeji Castle was too close to the Shiba Territory, so close that she did not feel safe at all.

If Hideyoshi Ichijo's next target is Yoshikin Sasaki, then this distance is just right, which will help Hideyoshi Ichijo quickly adjust his strategy and confront Yoshikin Sasaki head-on.

However, seeing that Yoshikin Sasaki quickly absorbed the Kyoto shogunate and completed the integration of the samurai of half of the island country step by step, Hideyoshi Ichijo lost confidence.

Both sides controlled half of the island country, but the people under Yoshikin Sasaki were united and had the spirit of a new dynasty, while the people under Hideyoshi Ichijo were treacherous and two-faced.

The Mori clan joined the Ichijo camp out of fear of the Sasaki clan and the Amago clan. Shikoku and Kyushu were conquered by force and broken up into a system of checks and balances, so they had to submit to Ichijo Hideyoshi.

  How could Hideyoshi Ichijo lead this group of half-hearted samurai from the West Island Province to compete with the samurai from the East Island Province led by Yoshikin Sasaki?

The more troublesome thing is the economy.

Thanks to the presence of Yoshigin Sasaki, the East Island Country has entered a period of peaceful development without war in recent years, with people's livelihood restored and the people living in peace.

However, due to Hideyoshi Ichijo's personal ambition, the Nishijima Province was constantly conquered, poverty among all classes increased, all industries declined, and there was widespread resentment.

  How can the tired and poor soldiers of the Western Island Country defeat the well-rested and tired soldiers of the Eastern Island Country?

But if she doesn't fight now, Hideyoshi Ichijo will also go into recuperation, and the East and West island countries will temporarily put down their weapons and move towards a cold war of peaceful competition. She will have even less confidence in defeating Yoshikane Sasaki.

The samurai of Nishijima Province, trapped in the war, are constantly transferring their wealth, investing in some industries in the Shiba Territory through Tokugawa Ieyasu's territory.

It is the instinct of the samurai to have three burrows and to leave a retreat route and preserve the family name. Even though Hideyoshi Ichijo has forcibly suppressed the capital transfer under his command, it is difficult to cover everything and completely block the channel.

Especially the cunning Tokugawa Ieyasu, whom Hideyoshi Ichijo failed to defeat on the battlefield, and many of his policies could not be forced to be followed by the Tokugawa territory.

The morale of the people was low and the continuous blood loss made Hideyoshi Ichijo increasingly anxious, not knowing what to do next.

Without a viable strategic direction, no amount of tactical victories will mean anything.

  But how can the Ichijo family defeat the Sasaki family and become the master of the island nation?

There were footsteps heard behind Ichijo Hideyoshi, and Kuroda Takataka prostrated himself and kowtowed respectfully.

Turning around, Hideyoshi Ichijo smiled, hiding his sorrow deep in his heart, and said.

"You're here. Have you arranged for the Kuroda family to relocate to Kyushu?"

As Hideyoshi walked, he waved to Kuroda to stand up, and sat on the porch. He nodded to Kuroda to sit below him. Kuroda knelt humbly and answered.

"Thanks to the Kanpaku's kindness, the Kyushu territory, and the title of 170,000 koku daimyo, I and the Kuroda family are deeply grateful and willing to die for you."

The hereditary kanpaku, a top regent from a noble family, was an official outside the imperial court, and was as important as the shogun, a pillar of the military family.

The regent is called the Kanpaku, the shogun is called the Shogun, and the emperor had already left the group chat with a curse.

After conquering Kyushu, Ichijo Hideyoshi, who was so proud of his achievements, declared himself the regent and restarted the court politics, i.e., Ichijo Kōgi.

This is also one of the reasons why it was difficult for Hideyoshi Ichijo and the samurai of Nishijima Province to work together. The pillar of the samurai family was the leader of the court officials, which was a bit too ridiculous.

But Hideyoshi Ichijo had no choice. The short-lived Ashikaga Yoshiaki refused to accept her as his adopted daughter. She could only follow the tradition of the remaining kung fu leaders of the five regents to start her own kung fu ceremony.

Now, Ashikaga Yoshiaki was reduced to ashes by lightning in Hachimangu Shrine, Sasaki Yoshikin accepted the orthodox lineage of the Kawachi Genji, and it was even less likely that Ichijo Hideyoshi would give up his status as a court leader.

In this island society where bloodline is important and noble race is recognized, if Hideyoshi Ichijo did not have an equal status with Yoshikin Sasaki, he would not be qualified to compete with Yoshikin Sasaki for the world.

Therefore, no matter how embarrassing the position of Kanpaku was, Hideyoshi Ichijo had no choice but to sit on it.

She smiled at Kuroda Kotaka.

"You deserve this. In the years since I conquered the Western Kingdom, you have repeatedly come up with brilliant ideas and helped me achieve my great cause. I deserve a generous reward.

It’s a pity that I only have half of the world in my hands now, so I can only give you these.”

Kuroda Kotaka narrowed his eyes.

She actually knew very well what was behind Hideyoshi Ichijo's extra politeness to her today.

The relationship between the two of them as ruler and subject was far less harmonious and sincere than that between Ichijo Hideyoshi and Takenaka Shigeharu back then. It was more about utilitarianism and realism.

Hideyoshi Ichijo left Kuroda Kotaka in a corner of Kyushu because he was afraid of the power of this black-hearted military strategist, but at the critical moment, Hideyoshi Ichijo had to reuse Kuroda Kotaka's evil plan.

  If you want to defeat the strong with the weak, you can only use unexpected tactics. If you just follow the routine, how can the weak defeat the strong?

And the evil and vicious nature of Kuroda Kotaka was exactly what Hideyoshi Ichijo feared the most and what he needed.

Kuroda Kotaka smiled slightly and said.

"Shiba is too powerful to be defeated."

What Hideyoshi Ichijo wanted to hear was not such words to boost others' morale. What Hideyoshi Ichijo wanted was a brilliant strategy to defeat Yoshikin Sasaki.

Hideyoshi Ichijo said with a gloomy face.

"Only when the sea is turbulent can a heroine's true character be revealed. If everything goes smoothly, what kind of heroes are needed to assist the wise leader?"

Hideyoshi Ichijo's tone was already somewhat unhappy, but Kuroda Kotaka was not afraid and continued to speak.

"Sun Tzu said, 'Know yourself and know the enemy, and you can fight a hundred battles without danger. Facing the enemy's strength and seeing your own situation clearly is not shameful, but rather precious.

Kanpaku, do you know what the samurai families in Kyushu and Shikoku are doing now? "