The location of the hunt was chosen in a wilderness in Haebe County, east of Cheongju Castle. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

The temporary hunting ground is more like a joint battle. Near the main road, a phalanx was surrounded on all sides by a fence, and there were several rudimentary military tents inside.

When Fan Xiu arrived with three retainers, dozens of horses were already tied to the side of the road, and there was a constant noise in the military tent. There were seven or eight guards standing at the door, and most of them were staggering.

Such loose discipline...... If it was Nobunaga's horses, needless to say, it must have been brought out by the Maeda Toshiie.

So he continued to move forward, and was about to enter the door, when suddenly a young guard with a spear flashed in front of him, blocking the horse.

"Your Excellency!" The guard bowed down and saluted, then quickly got up, his face flushed, "Ahead is the camp of the head of the lord (Oda Nobunaga), please dismount first and then go in!" ”

Fan Xiu was slightly stunned, but then chuckled.

After three or four years in the office, most of the Owari samurai I encountered were informal and unruly, and these etiquette things gradually faded away.

For a while, my heart fluttered a little, and I didn't answer.

The retainers behind him couldn't help but misunderstand what he meant. Haruan Hattori is used to being taciturn, and Masuda Nagamori is also a cautious person, but the other one has always been uncontrollable.

"Who are you? Dare to stand in the way of ......"

Hattori Koto Taihidean glared at the guards and drew his sword.

The guard's face became even more strange, but he still refused to give way.

"Kotota!" Fan Xiu glanced back and blocked the second half of his words.

Regardless of what outsiders think, even his subordinates have such behavior, it seems that the recent promotion speed is indeed a little too fast.

Fan Xiu thought so, so he turned over and dismounted, smiled lightly at the guards who were in the way, and returned the salute.

"Thanks to your reminder."

The three people behind him also dismounted together.

The guard was stunned for a moment, and then breathed a sigh of relief, but he was flattered, and he bowed down on the spot and saluted to Fan Xiu.

"Thank you so much, sir!"

Fan Xiu was a little puzzled, but it was inconvenient to ask, nodded at him, and led the horse forward.

After walking more than ten meters away, Xiu'an suddenly muttered in a low voice:

"It's just a guard, Your Highness, you're too ......"

Fan Xiu didn't reprimand him, only stroked Xiu Jiangma's mane, and whispered:

"The wood is beautiful in the forest, and the wind will destroy it; Heaps out of the shore, and the flow will be turbulent......"

After a few moments, Xiu'an whispered a "yes" and stopped speaking.

Tie down the horse and then go inside, and it was Maeda Toshiya who was patrolling around.

"It's coming!" When Maeda saw the new guests, he immediately greeted them with someone, "If you have made a fortune, you can't forget your former brothers, and you will go to Cheongju after hunting...... No, Tsushima, the best hotel in Tsushima ......"

Without hesitation, Fan Xiu answered a few times before he stopped, and then casually pointed to the door.

"Those are your men?"

"yes. Is someone looking for fault with you? ”

"That's not going to ...... It's just a reminder to dismount when you come in. ”

"Is there such a thing? That must be Shinsuke! ”

"Shinsuke?"

"It's Mori Shinsuke, who has just been selected into the horses. This person's martial arts are also passable, but he doesn't know what he is thinking in his head......"

Mori Shinsuke?

It's just a couple with Hattori Koheita.。

"Near the lord's tent, wouldn't it be rude not to dismount?"

Maeda rolled his eyes: "You and Uchizosuke are really neighbors since childhood, and they all say the same thing!" Even the lord himself doesn't bother to take care of this kind of thing, so he doesn't need to be more careful, right? ”

Fan Xiu shook his head and smiled, noncommittal, but in his heart he wondered if he should recruit this Maori Shinsuke as well.

In this way, it must be easy to obtain the merits of Imagawa Yoshimoto. And, judging from today's events, this person is also a dedicated person.

……

Following Maeda, he advanced to the big tent and met with Nobunaga and the important ministers of the family in turn.

Shibata has always been friendly with the Heite family and has not changed, while Sakuma and Hayashi and others have obviously paid much more attention to Tsunohide than before. Even Sakuma University, which has always been difficult to approach, took the initiative to greet him.

More than a dozen retainers who needed to be visited, plus Oda's family, had already passed half an hour after the salute. So the feudal society in my heart is really red tape, and it is so troublesome to engage in entertainment activities.

Next, he was led to the preset seat, and surprisingly, Honhide's position was not in the middle of Nobunaga's personal guards, but a separate seat, and Niwa Nagahide sat next to it.

Is this treatment because of merit, or is it the status of a quasi-public?

As soon as she sat down, Niwa immediately came to give her salute.

"Fanxiu Palace, don't come to harm?"

In the past, Niwa was Nobunaga's lieutenant, and Hirate was just a guard, so he had always been called "Shizuo", but this time, the title has changed a little.

"Thank you for your attention." Fan Xiu also hurriedly bowed down and saluted back, "After a few months, Niwa Hall is more generous than before." ”

Niwa Nagahide is a pragmatic person, he just smiled when he heard this, and did not continue to greet him, but asked directly about official matters.

"The new city of the Fanxiu Palace, I don't know how it is going?"

"It's a shame to say that this year's business tax in Cheongju is a little less than last year."

"The success of the Rakuchi strategy is in the future generations and not in the present, so I guess the number of merchants in Owari has increased significantly, right?"

"Niwa Hall is wise. It is estimated that next year's tax revenue can rise by at least 30%. ”

"That's really a clever decree, if it were extended to the whole of Owari......"

"This matter needs to be calmed down for a while......"

Fan Xiu explained in a low voice, although it is not appropriate to reveal too many details, but the general situation is not hidden. Then, they exchanged courtesies and inquired about Niwa's affairs, and of course, a lot of praise was inevitable.

"I heard that Inuyama has rejoined the family? Then Iwakura has become a lonely city. ”

"It is true."

"Niwa Hall is wide and horizontal, and it is really invincible."

"How dare you...... It's all the master's strategy. ”

"What about the unknown Mino?"

……

Fan Xiu did what he liked, only talked about national politics, kept his mouth shut, and was very compatible for a while.

In his speech, Niwa's understanding of current affairs seemed to be on the same level as Oda Nobunaga, far surpassing those young samurai of his generation. Fanxiu took advantage of the later generations, and it was only on par with it.

For example, in the case of Rakushi, before others could figure out why Honshu could be rewarded, Niwa thought that it should be implemented throughout the territory, and even further proposed the idea of official coinage and unified weights and measures.

After some conversation, Nobunaga still didn't show up, but Honhide was already dry, picked up the tea bowl in front of him, and took a sip.

Niwa also stopped, was silent for a moment, and suddenly sighed again.

"When the family was in Akikare, I didn't know what the Imagawa family was doing."

Fan Xiu didn't know how to interface for a while.

The Imagawa family in Suruga hadn't used a sword for seven years – and this was certainly not because Imagawa Yoshimoto was peace-loving. Tighten your fists, just to punch them out more forcefully.

For several years, the two sides have been committed to mediating the wealthy clans in each other's territory on the border of Owari and Mikawa, but the real victory or defeat will still depend on the joint battle. Although the Oda family has greatly improved in recent years, it is still very different from Imagawa, which has the Three Kingdoms.

"Last year, Taiyuan Xuezhai passed away, and this year it was the death of Asahinai Taineng, and he lost two old men in a row, and I'm afraid that Imagawa still needs some repair, and in two or three years, it should not be a soldier." Honshu analyzed Niwa. Such self-confidence is naturally due to the recognition of later generations.

Niwa nodded, his expression softened slightly, and he was about to say more, when he saw Nobunaga walk in.

So all the people fell silent and bowed down in unison.

With the experience of the last tea party, there were no problems with the field affairs this time.

In public, Nobunaga did not hesitate to say a few nonsense words, euphemistically boasting about the strength of his family's army, and then announced that those who excelled in hunting could be rewarded with gold and even a sword.

For a while, the young samurai were excited.

The first day of hunting, so began.

Tieshou Fan Xiu has no intention of arguing with others, waiting behind, and seeing his former colleagues one by one. However, at that time, the identities were no longer the same, and the rest of the people, except for Zuozuo, who had the deepest friendship, were unconsciously three points shorter, and they did not dare to be as presumptuous as before.

Fan Xiu was a little lost, but she was helpless, so she simply left alone. The three retainers outside the tent hurriedly followed.

Koto Tai Xiu'an has a youthful nature, needless to say, Hattori Haruan and Masuda Nagamori, but they are also quite interested in hunting. But Fan Xiu was not interested, and paced slowly on a horse, without even bringing an eagle dog.

After walking for only a moment, he suddenly saw a young man jump out from the side and stand in front of the horse.

The young man was wearing long hair and untied buns, obviously not yet in Yuanfu, but his height was already the same as that of an adult, although he was dressed in a white Wu suit, his cuffs and trouser legs were wrapped with straps, a short bow hung on his back, and a bamboo spear in his hand.

"Who are you?" Xiaoping drove the horse, drew his gun, and blocked in front of Fan Xiu.

The boy didn't look at him, only at Fanxiu.

"Your palace is Daosheng's equal-handed-sama who asks for Lin Misaku?"

Could it be that the descendants of the Lin family came to seek revenge? But it's not like just sending a child who hasn't been served, right? Fan Xiu was suspicious, and quietly held the handle of the knife, but his face did not change:

"It's just not a talent. I wonder what you have to say? ”

"That's great...... the young man said nothing, he didn't forget to bow down first, but the etiquette was impeccable, "Lord Tieshou, please duel with me!" ”

Duel?

Fan Xiu didn't answer for a while, but the little Fujita couldn't help but glance at the young man and jumped off the horse.

"Your Highness, let me teach this boy a lesson who doesn't know the height of the sky!"

The boy was not afraid, but nodded.

"Okay, then I'll win you first."

Seeing Xiu'an's expression, which provoked the latter to be furious, he almost pulled out the knife without waiting for permission.

Fan Xiu frowned. After seeing which important minister this young man must have dressed in, he is now a figure on the top of the limelight, and there is really no need to offend people for the sake of a battle of will. However, in the face of a young man who has not yet been served, he can't show weakness, right?

glanced at Xiu'an, and suddenly had a plan.

"A gentleman has nothing to fight, but only an ear." Regardless of whether the people below can understand it or not, he first recited an ancient sentence, "Xiao Fujitai, you can compete with him in the skills of bows and arrows!" ”

Xiu'an is good at ninjutsu, and his bow skills are not outstanding. However, at this time, Xiu'an was only thirteen or fourteen years old, coupled with his short stature, at a glance, he couldn't tell the young from the young man, even if he lost, it was not a shame.

"Since it's what Hise-sama said, you should obey it." The young man nodded and agreed, "I just dare to ask the adults, how can it be considered a win?" ”

Seeing the young man's humble and arrogant bearing, Fan Xiu couldn't help but praise secretly.

"Today is a hunt, and whoever has more prey will naturally win."

The boy answered "yes" and was about to leave.

"Wait!" Fan Xiu kept him out, "Your Excellency, which family is it?" ”

"In Shimodakigawa Keijiro!" The boy knelt down in reply, then turned away, and disappeared in a moment.

Keijiro Takikawa? Isn't that ......

And it's no wonder.

When the young man left, Xiu'an suddenly showed a bitter face.

"Your Highness...... I only know ninjutsu, not bows and arrows. ”

"Ninjutsu?" Fan Xiu glanced at him, "People who practice ninjutsu can also be so impetuous, and they will lose their temper in anger if they provoke a little?" ”

Xiu'an was speechless and could only fall to his knees.

Chun'an hurriedly dismounted and fell, and Masuda Nagamori also dismounted.

"Brother ......," Chun'an said.

"Forget it." Tsuyosu interrupted with a wave of his hand. "This time it happened suddenly, so be more careful in the future...... Don't lose too badly in today's competition! ”

"Yes!" Xiuan immediately got up, grabbed his bow and ran away.