Condolences to the grassroots, this is something that Sanada Yutaka has some doubts about, after all, even if he is at most to see his retainers, and it is usually his subordinates who come to see him.

Of course, he did not oppose the actions of the letter party, because he found that the letter side was much stronger than him in some respects.

And he felt that the believer would not do a useless thing, and that there must be a special purpose in it.

In fact, this is all a move by the believer to deal with the power of the temple, a move to buy people's hearts, and the most important thing is to send charcoal in the snow.

Therefore, the Nobukata decided to start with his own grassroots forces, especially the backbone of the battlefield, those low-level samurai who were fighting on the front line.

The first place Nobukata went to was the first place on the military merit list, and he used to be an ashigaru, but he just became a samurai a few months ago.

His name is Oi Hiroyori, and his family was originally a member of the Nagawa Oi family, and after Nagawa Castle was conquered by the Takeda family, his father was unwilling to be loyal to the Takeda family, so he became a ronin samurai.

Within two years, his father was killed in Saku-gun.

Later, at the age of twelve, he wandered around under the guidance of a genealogical retainer who also went about seeking refuge with others.

Finally, two years ago, when he met Nobukata to attack Saku-gun, the old retainer asked the fifteen-year-old to join Nobukata's team incognito as Ashigaru.

As for the old retainer, it didn't take long for him to die.

Now that Hiroyori Oi is a samurai, he changed his name, and his wife is the daughter of the old retainer and has a brother-in-law.

Recently, his wife has become pregnant, and the pressure on the family has increased a lot, which has made Hiroyori Oi very difficult lately.

The letter party brought suitable condolences and chose him first.

Shinano's winter was very cold and dry, and Hiroyori Oi hugged his wife so that she could feel enough warmth.

The brother-in-law, Yan Kawataro, wiped his body and said, "Brother-in-law, why don't I go to Ashigaru next year, just under you, so that the family can have more money." ”

Oi Honglai frowned and said: "No need, after you are a samurai, as long as you learn your skills well, you can continue to be a retainer for me." Next year, the family will go to war with the Takeda family, and when the time comes, I will work harder and win military merits, and life will be much better. ”

Alain, who was hiding in Hiroyori Oi's arms, said apologetically: "It's all concubines who are not in good health, and they are not as strong as other martial arts women at all. ”

Oi Hirolai smoothed Alain's frown and said, "Alain, don't blame yourself, don't worry, life will get better and better." ”

The three of them huddled in this long room, warming each other, although it was hard, but they were happy.

At this time, there was a lot of movement outside, and Hiroyori Oi, who was a samurai, heard the sound of many horses outside, as well as the sound of talking.

Hiroyori Oi didn't know what was going on, but he had already reached for the knife that was placed on the side.

"Bang bang... Is His Excellency Hiroyori Oi here? ”

When Oi Hirolai heard this, he let go of Alain, got up and pinned the sword, and said as he walked: "It's down there, I don't know who Your Excellency is?" ”

He had already arrived at the door, and opened the door, and without the person who knocked on the door, Hirori Oi saw the letter behind him.

He hurriedly knelt down and said, "My subordinates meet the lord!" ”

Xin Fang nodded with a smile and said, "Honglai, don't be surprised when you come to visit suddenly." ”

Oi Honglai hurriedly shook his head and said: "The lord's visit will only make this humble house shine, and now that the snow is falling, the lord can rest in the cold house for a while." ”

Nobukata walked in with a smile and saw Hiroyori Oi's wife and brother-in-law, the woman's face was a little pale, and she was wearing a lot of clothes, but she was still a little trembling.

As for the young man next to him, he was bright and vibrant, and at a glance, he knew that he would be a samurai in the future.

As soon as Nobukata entered the room, he could feel a hint of warmth, but it was not very high.

Oi Hiroyori was already following behind the Nobukata, and he said, "My lord, the humble house is shabby, so it can only be like this. ”

Nobugata smiled: "I've also lived in this kind of longhouse, so I'm a little nostalgic." Honglai, I see that your wife is not in good health, and she is pregnant.

It just so happened that my wives and concubines were also pregnant, and I bought a lot of good things to protect the fetus, and I just happened to bring them with me, so let's give them to my wife first. ”

Oi Hiroyori was surprised: "My lord, this must not be! ”

Xin Fang waved his hand and said: "You can't say that, you have also paid a lot for your family, how can I watch you suffer because of your family?"

It's just my family's concern for you, don't refuse a piece of kindness. ”

Oi Hirolai knelt down and said, "The lord has an order, and his subordinates will definitely do it!" ”

The letter side smiled: "Haha, no need to be polite. As he spoke, he took the tonic from his hand and handed it to Hirori Oi, while there was a bag on the ground next to him, which was full of firewood.

Oi Hiroyori was very moved and shouted: "The lord is prosperous!" ”

Nobukata smiled with great satisfaction when he saw Hiroyori Oi's performance, while Taro Shiokawa on the side left tears of emotion.

The sound insulation of the long house is not very good, and the movement of the Oi family is soon heard by the samurai in the vicinity.

They all came out and checked the situation.

At this time, Nobugata walked out, and the samurai knelt down one after another, even though it was very cold on the ground.

The letter immediately said: "There is ice and snow on the ground, so don't be polite, now that the weather is getting colder, the situation at home has been better, how can I bear you to be frozen in this winter?"

After a while, each family will have firewood and gifts, don't dislike it. ”

These low-ranking samurai were grateful, and they thanked the letter for his kindness.

The letter party looked at these subordinates who were stunned to kowtow to him, despite the ice and snow on the ground, and his heart was very happy.

Nobukata calmed them down, and then continued on to the place where Ashigaru was always staying.

There are not many permanent ashigaru people living in Katsumao Castle, only more than 1,000 people, and if you add your family, there are nearly 10,000 people in the area where Ashigaru lives.

Some of the standing ashigaru were not in Katsubi Castle, and at this time they were all in the passes and dangerous places such as Nagawa Castle, Toishi Castle, Matsuo Castle, and Maeyama Castle.

The letter came with gifts and firewood to comfort these ashigaru and their families, and also helped some families who could not see ashigaru to write a letter home.

In the past, paper was too expensive for the average person to use, but now with his homemade cheap paper, writing letters is just a matter of effort.

There were also some ashigaru who had brothers outside, and they were also very excited about Nobukata's actions, and like samurai, they knelt down directly in the snow to thank Nobukata.

Nobukata felt that it was worth spending this money, he had a thin background, and he had relied on the righteousness of driving out the Takeda family and letting them fight with him because he could give them land.

Now what I have to do is to win their hearts.

After appeasing the samurai and ashigaru in the castle, the next day, Nobukata once again led a condolence procession out of the castle to send warmth to the surrounding villages.

Some lonely and widowed elderly families, with only women and children at home, not only sent some supplies for the winter, but also ensured that there would be a certain amount of subsidies on weekdays.

This made the widows who had worked so hard to raise their children very happy, and of course, the letter encouraged them to continue to remarry, and many of the ashigaru under his rule were not married anyway.

In this era, samurai were generally married around the age of twenty, and these samurai were generally middle- and lower-ranking samurai.

As for Ashigaru, it's too late, and most of them can only get married around the age of thirty, and they don't have to be girls, but they may also be widows who have remarried.

Of course, it's good to be able to marry a woman, and some of them die early.

After the letter had finished condolences to the village, when it was time to leave, the villagers spontaneously came out and sent the letter away.

Sanada Yutaka said on the side: "Lord, don't look at them very moved now, maybe next year the Takeda family comes, they will change." ”

The letter smiled: "We only condoled once, maybe we can't make them loyal all at once, so we will be the second time, the third time."

As long as his heart is not made of stone, then he will definitely be moved by my efforts. ”