In the 19th year of Wanli, the 19th year of Tensho in the same period of Japan, Toyotomi Hideyoshi inherited the will of his former lord Oda Nobunaga and unified the 66 countries of Japan, ending the Warring States turmoil that lasted for more than 120 years. Toyotomi Hideyoshi came from a humble background, looked like a mountain monkey, and his family was poor, and his original name was Kinoshita Toyoshiro. After following Oda Nobunaga, through his unremitting efforts and quick wit, he gradually became a general, so he changed his name to Hideyoshi, and later admired Oda veterans Shibata Katsuya and Niwa Nagahide, so he changed his surname to Hashiba.

After the death of Oda Nobunaga, Hideyoshi gradually grasped the power of the Oda family, relying on his cunning mind, extraordinary diplomatic skills and eclectic way of dealing with the world to complete the century-old feat of unifying Japan. Therefore, he retreated to the second place, and coerced the former Sekihaku Konoe, one of the five regents of the Minister's family, to recognize himself as a righteous son and get the surname Konoe, and asked the emperor to give him the surname Toyotomi, so that he could justifiably take up the post of Sekihaku, that is, the prime minister.

At this time, in the splendid Osaka Castle, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and his wife Nene were alone in the castle tower and looked at the world, and their complacent expressions showed sadness in the blink of an eye. Ning Ning was puzzled, and Hideyoshi replied: "My Toyotomi clan has no reliable relatives, no genealogy of retainers, no matter how weakened the external daimyo is, it is not the banner instinct to completely check and balance. Tokugawa, Mori, Shimazu, Uesugi, Date and other daimyo are finally the hearts and minds of my Toyotomi family, whether it is the old department of the Oda family or the samurai who followed me, they have made great achievements, and it is difficult to meet the division of more than 100 cities in 66 countries in Japan, and it will be chaotic for a long time. ”

Ning Ning knew that Hideyoshi was quick-witted, so he asked what he wanted? Hideyoshi looked at the sky thoughtfully, and his eyes gradually brightened under the moonlight: "Thousands of miles away from the waves there is the Shenzhou Datang, rich and vast, which can relieve the worries in my heart in one fell swoop." ”

Ning Ning was shocked when she heard this, and asked Hideyoshi how she could do such wishful thinking. Hideyoshi was displeased, turned around and said, "I ended the troubled times and made a meritorious deed for the ages, but it was the protection of the gods!" Give me a divine soldier to make me Budd turn into a Quartet! The Tang Dynasty is decaying, I will let the daimyo and Qiben go to conquer and fight, both to satisfy their desires and weaken their strength, in the end, only I, Toyotomi, stand in the world, sitting on the four seas, peaceful and prosperous, everyone will no longer be as poor as when I was a child, but before that, I still need to explore a few people's minds. Hideyoshi's dancing hands and the transition between solemn, playful and gloomy words always unnerved Ninning's heart.

The next day, Hideyoshi summoned Maeda Toshiie, Tokugawa Ieyasu, Mori Terumoto, Kobayakawa Takakei, and Toyotomi Shuji at the Golden Tea House in Osaka Castle. The five of them sat down, and Hideyoshi spoke, "Since the end of the troubled times, the world has been peaceful, and I have only now drunk a cup of tea with you. We have all competed on the battlefield, but fortunately, you are all people who have the world in mind, otherwise we would not even have the opportunity to drink tea together today. ”

Tokugawa Ieyasu immediately raised his glass: "The reincarnation of the god Guanbai, everywhere he goes, he is invincible, and I am fortunate to have followed Guanbai to witness this prosperous era in the end, and there are no regrets in this life." Everyone drank tea and laughed.

Hideyoshi said again: "Ming Guo, how much do you know?" ”

Maeda Toshiie thought for a moment and replied: "Since the Song Dynasty, there has been no envoy for at least 300 years, and it is a hundred years of war, and only a very small number of people come and go to trade, and they know very little. ”

Kobayakawa added: "Most of them are still just ronin coastal raids, and in the early years, I heard that the coastal areas of the Ming Kingdom were almost defenseless and came and went freely. Thirty years ago, the Ming State concentrated its military strength and fought for several years. ”

Mori Terumoto was puzzled and asked Hideyoshi, "What Lord Sekihaku asked today, is it because he wants to follow the example of sending an envoy to the Tang Dynasty and send an envoy to Ming?" ”

Hideyoshi clapped his hands and laughed: "Terumoto, you are only partially right. I am going to send people, but not messengers, but troops! I'm not going to communicate, I'm going to conquer! I want you to go to the Ming Kingdom to create greater achievements, conquer more lands, and come under the protection of Amaterasu, which is something that only you can do. As soon as he finished speaking, Hideyoshi looked around and observed the reactions of the crowd, only to see Mori Terumoto and Kobayakawa Takakei with embarrassed faces and as if they were unwilling, while Tokugawa Ieyasu seemed to be smiling rather than smiling, and his face remained calm as usual. As for Maeda Toshiya and Toyotomi Hideji, Hideyoshi didn't care, the Toshiya family was a confidant, and Hideji was an adopted son, and he had always been loyal to Hideyoshi.

Maeda Toshiya said at this time: "If it is really as Kobayakawa said, it can be seen that the Ming State is lax in armament, but it is a thousand-year-old country, and it still needs to be explored in many ways, and the conquest of the Ming Kingdom must be through Korea, and North Korea has already rejected us, burned the national letter, and returned to arrogance, which is an excellent excuse." If you want to attack the Ming country, you must go to Korea in one fell swoop, so we need to plan properly to be foolproof. ”

Tokugawa Ieyasu said: "The conquest of the Ming Kingdom, no matter what, the first is in Korea, on the one hand, we will start to prepare for war, and at the same time send a detailed envoy to Korea to inquire about the reality of the two countries, and then consider the army is better." I thought that with the peace of Korea for a long time, the soldiers and the people would inevitably relax, and the warriors under Guan Bai were all tempered by blood and fire, and they had experienced a hundred battles. If this is the case if the investigation is done properly, it will take advantage of its unpreparedness to conquer it in one fell swoop, bully the weak, and quickly resolve the battle, blockade the coastal areas with a naval army to transport troops, and advance by land and water, without giving them a chance to breathe. ”

Hideyoshi Daiyue: "What the two of you said is extremely true, knowing yourself and knowing that the other side can survive a hundred battles, Kobayakawa, you are wise and brave, and you have been famous for a long time, and you are still out of battle this time; Huiyuan, you are also out of battle, you are still young, you should establish meritorious deeds, and don't insult the name of your grandfather, Maori Yuan's wisdom as a governor; The Rika family and Ieyasu, you don't have to fight with the young people, follow me to the country, in addition to political affairs, the remnants of Hojo in the Kanto region still need Ieyasu to bother more" Everyone took the order and left, but Toyotomi Hideji asked Hideyoshi alone: "Father, Tokugawa Ieyasu has always been deeply jealous, why didn't you let him go out this time?" ”

Hideyoshi replied: "The reason why Kobayakawa and Mori are reluctant is because if they go to the Ming Kingdom to win, they will be divided into large lines, and their advantages and power will be difficult to compare with the past, and if they are defeated, they will have nothing. That's why they, along with the samurai and daimyo of all sizes, had to go into battle. And Tokugawa Ieyasu is still being closely watched, and Zhengming will win, how can he let him establish meritorious deeds again! It's not too late to wait until the war is over. ”

After Tokugawa Ieyasu left, he went to visit the Tendai monk Masatiankai. This monk met Tokugawa Ieyasu in the seventeenth year of Tensho, and has been relied on by Tokugawa Ieyasu ever since. Seeing that Tokugawa Ieyasu was anxious, Tianhai folded his palms and asked, "Ieyasu is a hero, who has been fighting for decades, and he should have looked down on worldly miscellaneous matters for a long time, why are you so anxious?" ”

Tokugawa Ieyasu replied: "Sekihaku wants to conquer Korea and the Ming Kingdom, the victory or defeat is unpredictable, I don't know how to deal with myself, I don't allow my Tokugawa to send troops, no matter what the victory or defeat, my Tokugawa clan is afraid that it will eventually be destroyed." If you are in a hurry, you can't think of a way to crack it, and you hope for the master's guidance. ”

Amami replied, "If Ieyasu-sama is here for this, the old man thinks that it is not necessary. Peeping into the Tang Dynasty is already a crazy move, and raising troops to conquer is something that can be completed in one generation. Ieyasu-sama is a man of great merit and fame, but you are a figure on a par with Imagawa Yoshimoto, Oda Nobunaga, Takeda Shingen, Uesugi Kenshin, and Hojo Shiyasu, so you are deeply jealous of Sekihaku and want to upset the balance through war. Because of this, once the war began, it was only possible to occupy a part of the land within a few years, and until the end of the war, Ieyasu was unhindered. ”

Ieyasu thanked him, but Amami said in a blink of an eye: "However, once there is a change during the war, Ieyasu-sama must take action immediately, the machine is fleeting, and life and death are only a thought." During this time, we kept in touch with all parties, listened to the front line and Kinai intelligence at any time, and in case of any changes, we must be the first to survive. ”

Tokugawa Ieyasu pondered carefully and thanked him again: "The words of the master, Ieyasu remembered. ”

Tianhai returned the salute with his palms: "I wish you good luck and prosperity." ”

Toyotomi Hideyoshi then convened an executive meeting attended by eight people: Kuroda Kanwei, Otani Yoshitsugu, Konishi Yukinaga, Ishida Mitsunari, Asano Nagamasa, Maeda Genyi, Nagashu Masaka, and Masuda Nagamori. The meeting mainly listened to the results of the sword hunting order and land inspection in the past few years, and the report on the implementation of the separation of soldiers and peasants, so as to gather resources and prepare for the war. At this time, Masuda, Nagatsu, Maeda, Asano, and Ishida were reporting separately.

"From Kyushu to Ou, the fields currently inspected have been divided into upper, middle, lower, and lower four categories, and the number of stones and output of each country has been fully implemented."

"At the same time, in accordance with the Guanbai Decree, we have strictly supervised the weighing of the old promotion and reform of Jingsheng in various regions, and collected the annual tribute at one-third of the number of stones of different grades of land and land."

"The sword hunting order has been executed, and all the weapons of the peasants in the 66 countries of Wugi, 7 provinces and 66 countries have been confiscated"

"At present, the castles of the lords of Oshu have been inspected, and all those who disobey have been punished, and the next is the Kanto region, which is planned to be inspected in Ise in three years,"

"During the implementation of the land inspection, there was still a little resistance from the big names in various places, and there were also those who cheated and cheated and tried to obstruct it, but the general trend was inevitable and no one could stop it. The daimyo only care about small profits, and they don't know that this is Guan Bai's painstaking plan for long-term peace and stability."

Hideyoshi said: "The daimyo want to protect their wealth, and if we take it away, I will also compensate them, and you who have been fighting the world with me for so many years, I have been worried about not being able to give you enough fiefdoms to match your merits, so I plan to lead you to conquer the Tang Dynasty, and then divide the feuds, so that everyone can live a good life." Ohtani, what do you think. ”

Otani Yoshitsugu said: "For thousands of years, it has been the kingdom of heaven in the dreams of the people, and it is the lost kingdom of the gods of Takamagahara, since it is Sekihaku's wish, I, Otani Yoshitsugu, will use all my wisdom and strength to help Sekihaku complete the great cause." And I've heard that it's so prosperous and rich in produce that if we really can't enjoy it, we'll probably be too much to walk on, and we'll have to spend our lives on the mat. The crowd laughed.

Konishi Yukicho said: "If the Ming Kingdom is conquered, it will be through Korea, the minister was doing business in his early years, traveled overseas, and knows Korea well, and his son-in-law Tsushima Island Lord Zong Yoshichi has traveled to and from Korea several times as an envoy according to Guan Bai's instructions. Although the eight pieces of information on the DPRK can be grasped gradually, during the several exchanges, Lord Guan Bai seems to be intent on showing his intention to invade the DPRK. ”

Hideyoshi smiled: "Konishi, you have a seemingly shrewd appearance in white. If you let you be the only one to see me tonight, you will be daunted and guess what I want. If I say I want to fight you alone, and I can kill you with just one finger, then you don't believe it. That's the secret. It is common sense and is well known to the world to conceal intentions in the imminent war, so I would like to do the opposite, and if I make a slight show but take the opportunity to exaggerate, it will make the DPRK confused. North Korea's armament is decaying, and even if it is fully armed, what is there to fear. Konishi, your family has been doing business for generations and has had close contacts with North Korea, if you are deliberately partial, it will be difficult for your family to survive."

Governor Konishi shouted after hearing this: "The minister is willing to be the vanguard, take the royal capital of Joseon, dredge the north and the south, and ensure the opportunity to enter the Ming Dynasty, and the Ming Kingdom will collapse if it is too late to take precautions." ”

Asano Nagamasa asked, "Please, what is the need for military affairs?" Hideyoshi replied, "I need to raise three million quintals of rice." ”

Asano asks what happened to the rice? Hideyoshi replied, "I need to gather boats, chariots and horses to bring them to Busan." ”

Asano asked again how to protect it after landing? Hideyoshi replied: "You don't need to guard, just sit on the wall and wait." ”

Asano worried: "If you don't protect it, won't you be taken away by North Korea?" Hideyoshi's laughter was exactly what he wanted, and Asano was puzzled: "If the grain and grass are lost, there will be chaos, so don't do this." ”

Hideyoshi explained: "Three million quintals is not a small amount, and it is not easy to move, and it is impossible to eat easily. If the Korean garrison is properly carried into the interior as far as possible, it is the best policy for our army to wait for work, store military rations for the enemy, and make them sacrifice their lives to escort us for us. With this sub-plan, our army can take as much food as possible during the battle, and it will be inexhaustible. If North Korea is about to collapse at the first touch, then our army can also have no worries about transporting it to the north in batches. ”

Hideyoshi turned to Kuroda Kanbei and said slowly, "Kankanwei, my brainstorm, why didn't you say a word?" The conquest of the Ming Kingdom still depends on your wisdom. ”

Kuroda stood up and admonished: "The ministers oppose the conquest of the Ming Kingdom, and now that the country has not been pacified for a long time, the lords of all parties are still ready to move, so we should recuperate at this time, gradually weaken the feudal state, and consolidate the Toyotomi family business." The territory of the Tang Dynasty is vast, rich in products, with a million, how can you listen to the words of the ronin and misjudge, labor expeditions, do not know the truth and truth, I am afraid that there will be accidents, once there is a change, the country is empty, there will be chaos. As soon as these words came out, everyone present was shocked and kept silent, only looking at how Toyotomi Hideyoshi decided.

Hideyoshi showed a fierce face at this time and rebuked Kuroda: "Kankanwei, why are you so cowardly like a mouse now!" With this divine power, we should seek a hundred years of well-being for the people, fulfill a long-cherished wish for a thousand years, and send a great task from heaven. ”

Kuroda Kanbei said: "My lord, if there is a country and a city lord in rebellion at the moment, we can annihilate it with one blow, and the only way to conquer overseas is to delay the plan, and we must not be in a hurry" Seeing this scene, Otani Yoshitsugu and Konishi Yukinaga hurriedly grabbed Kankanwei, Asano Nagamasa and Ishida Mitsunari and others pleaded with Toyotomi Hideyoshi to calm their anger.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi was furious and wanted to kill the Kanbeis to set an example, Asano Nagamasa admonished: "Although Kuroda Kanbei's mouth is open, but his loyalty can be seen, his concern is that the enemy and his truth are not clear, and he is afraid that he will not be well prepared, and there will be troubles in the future. ”

Although Kuroda Kanbei repeatedly dissuaded him, Toyotomi Hideyoshi had already turned a deaf ear, and ordered Kanbei not only to participate in the campaign, but also to take responsibility for building and repairing Nagoya Castle in Hizen as the base camp, and then left with his sleeves brushed up.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi then went to visit the side room Chacha, Chacha was still immersed in the grief of losing his son Tsurumatsu, Hideyoshi also loved Tsurumatsu very much, but unfortunately died young. Seeing Cha Cha like this, Hideyoshi couldn't help but feel sad and came from it to hug Cha Cha in his arms and comforted him again and again, Cha Cha knew that if he couldn't have a child, he would not be able to protect his power in the future, and he cried to Hideyoshi while crying, and was willing to dedicate his body and mind to Hideyoshi for Toyotomi World from time to time, and Hideyoshi was moved.

That night, Hideyoshi rested at Ningning, the main room of the North Administration, and after drinking tea, Hideyoshi rested on Ningning's lap and chatted with each other. Ning Ning angrily pushed Hideyoshi away, and asked sharply: "I really don't know if this is your world, without an heir, your family's country will eventually be snatched away by people who covet power, and the world will be in chaos again, I can't give birth, fortunately Chacha gave birth to Hesong, but Hesong died early, although Chacha is young, and you are almost to the sixtieth birthday, I don't know if you can give birth, you don't care!" ”

Seeing that Ning Ning was angry, Hideyoshi immediately knelt on the ground, crawled to Ning Ning with his hands and feet and apologized quickly: "Ning Ning, Ning Ning, you have misunderstood me, I am also very sad, I don't know what to do." Ning Ning proposed to Hideyoshi that he could choose among his adopted sons, and he was prepared, and Hideyoshi agreed.

In the New Year, Toyotomi Hideyoshi feasted the daimyo of various countries in Kyoto. Such as the Warring States veterans Tokugawa Ieyasu, Maeda Toshiie, Nagamune Ibu Moto, the overlord of the Western Kingdom Mori Governor Mori Terumoto, the famous general of the Western Kingdom Kobayakawa Takakei, the Western Kingdom Musau Tachibana Muneshige, Echigo Daimyo Uesugi Kagekatsu, the one-eyed dragon Date Masamune, the Shimazu Yoshihisa brothers of Kyushu, the Gamo clan, the Shidake Shichihongun people led by Fukushima Masanori and Kato Kiyomasa, the genius military advisor Kuroda Kanbei and Ukita Hideie, Otani Yoshitsugu, Konishi Yukinaga, Ishida Mitsunari, Asano Nagamasa, Maeda Genyi, Nagashu Masae, A group of good generals such as Masuda Nagamori, plus the retainers and lords who came with the major names, were all heroes.

Before the feast began, daimyo from various countries and Toyotomi Hideyoshi paid homage to the emperor, offering tribute and gold jewelry, and listening to the emperor's instructions. During the Toyotomi period, Hideyoshi's humble background required him to establish authority and hold a position of power, so he treated the emperor with great respect and courtesy, and worked hard to restore the prestige of the imperial court. During this period, although the emperor still had no power, his ceremonial courtesies and daily necessities were all provided by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

After the emperor left, the daimyo drank and had fun during the banquet, and the daimyo pushed cups and exchanged lamps to tell the past, talked and laughed, sang and entertained, Kato Kiyomasa sword dance to help the fun, and then Toyotomi Hideyoshi was full of interest, and invited the dancing girl to lead the dance in person, and performed Noh, and the banquet reached a climax. Halfway through the wine, Toyotomi Hideyoshi signaled to stop the noise, got up and said, "Fushimi Castle has been completed, and I am very relieved. Now that Japan is unified, I will resign from the post of Sekihaku and give it to my adopted son Toyotomi Hideji, who will live in Fushimi Castle as a Taiko. Today's banquet is intended to pay tribute to all of you for many years of bloody struggle. "Thank you, everyone

Hideyoshi said again: "In the past thirty years, I have followed Nobunaga to conquer the north and the south, and made a surprise attack on Tsukasama, Sumamata Castle, Kanesaki Palace, and China Raider, and after the death of Honnoji Nobunaga, I fought with Akechi Mitsuhide in a decisive battle against Yamazaki and Shidake, and Kyushu conquered and pacified Kanto. In addition to the protection of the gods, there is also the help of all of you. But the world is undecided, and the four seas are not peaceful! The existing fiefdoms are not worthy of your great military exploits, and the famous generals and warriors and the common people of Li should not be confined to a corner of the island, but you should get more land and goods, and display your ambitions in a wider world, and share the wealth with the people there. I will inherit the legacy of Oda Nobunaga! Beyond the mountains and seas, straight into the Ming Dynasty, so that its four hundred states are full of our customs, in order to govern the king in hundreds of millions of years! ”

Immediately, the mountains in the main hall shouted long live, and Toyotomi Hideyoshi was overjoyed, laughing wildly, and immediately issued a decree to all the daimyos: "From Hitachi in the east, through the South China Sea to Shikoku and Kyushu, and from Akita and Sakata in the north to China, there are two large ships for every 100,000 stones." Ten sailors for every hundred houses in each seaport, on ships built by the lords of each nation; If there is a surplus of sailors, they will concentrate in Osaka. For the ships used by the army, the famous lords of various countries shall build three large ships and five medium ships per 100,000 stones, and the required construction costs shall be allocated by the Taige; The owners of each country will report the required construction costs in a budget table, and allocate half of them after checking that they are correct, and then pay them in full after the construction is completed. The sailors were given two men of rice each, and their wives were given an additional amount of food. The wives of those employed in the army were given food.

All ships and sailors were required to concentrate at the ports of Settsu, Harima, and Izumi in the spring of the 20th year of Tensho. The number of conscripts recruited by the famous lords of each country was counted according to the number of conscripts per 10,000 koku in different regions, with Shikoku and Kyushu conscripting 600 conscripts per 10,000 koku, Kishu conscripting 500 conscripts per 10,000 koku, Kinai conscripting 400 conscripts per 10,000 koku, Suruga, Enoe, Mikawa, and Izu conscripting 300 men per 10,000 koku, and 200 per 10,000 koku in Echigo, Dewa and Dewa. Tokugawa Ieyasu, Maeda Toshiie, Uesugi Keikatsu, Gamo Clan, and Date Masamune assembled their soldiers at Hizen Nagoya to be ready for standby. ”

At this time, Toyotomi Hideji answered and preached: "The above instructions will be drawn up by Asano Nagamasa and Ishida Mitsunari to spread to the world. His Royal Highness Bingtaige, the son has another matter, please order. Hideyoshi was full of curiosity, he didn't expect that the new Guan Bai was about to issue a decree so soon, and hurriedly motioned for Hideji to speak freely.

Toyotomi Hideji replied: "His Royal Highness Taige is eloquent and strategic, and if he wants to conquer the four hundred states of the Tang Dynasty, he must not only rely on force, but also to rebuild the classics of the culture inherited by his teachers to educate all parties." Rebuild the Ashikaga School, receive the Kanazawa Bunko books and other ancient books that were lost due to the war and transfer them to Jurakudi for protection and arrangement, encourage monks to pay equal attention to literature and Taoism, rebuild the five mountains of Kamakura, the five temples of Kyoto, and re-revitalize the literature of the five mountains. Hideyoshi was overjoyed and praised the words of the true ruler of the world. Immediately beckoned left and right, Yu Xiuci rewarded again, and threw his body and mind into the banquet again until he was drunk.