On January 30, the procession, which had been assembled at Yinma City, began to continue its march westward. This time, the route I chose was different from the previous one, and I went along the coast and around the south side of Lake Hamana to Yoshida Castle. Along the way, Oupyeong Sadaji and Asahina Taehyung annoyed Yu Qiuping all the way, how did this soldier train. But after listening to Yu Qiuping's training method, he was discouraged.

"How is that possible?" Asahina Taehyung muttered, "At that time, I saw you training and thought it was too exaggerated. ”

"Momiji Mo didn't hide the training method and fooled us with this fake." Opei Sadaji laughed.

"You two, don't be embarrassed." Sena Shijun played a round field, "People from the Ming Kingdom naturally have different wonderful methods. Red leaves, is this how Ming trains his troops? ”

"Uh..." Yu Qiuping didn't know how to explain for a while, "Some places adopt this method of military training. ”

"No wonder Da Ming can train the division of tigers and wolves, and his prestige is far and wide." Sena Shijun sighed, "Even a teenager has such a training method. ”

"But how much do you have to do it?" Since the beginning of the round, Sena has been muttering something "how good it is", and has been babbling to himself all the way. "Such a good possession, a pair of at least sixty or seventy times." Sena swallowed, "Where did you get so much money?" ”

Yu Qiuping smiled awkwardly, and Sena Shijun hurriedly spoke out again, "Shiyi, other people's private affairs, don't talk too much." ”

Sena was intimidated by his father's authority, so he had to stop asking. But judging from the look with his eyes shining and staring at Chang Panbei, the latter was obviously still obsessed with this.

On February 3, a group of more than 2,500 people arrived in Okazaki, and Matsudaira Motoyasu still knelt outside the door to greet him. At the suggestion of Akihei Amaki, Sena ordered all riders to dismount as a sign of respect. Yu Qiuping personally stepped forward to help Matsudaira Motoyasu and the people of the Matsudaira family, and walked side by side with the latter. Yu Qiuping didn't notice that Honda Nabenosuke, who was behind him, looked at the red leaf shawl on Yu Qiuping's shoulder with extremely grateful eyes.

"Thank you Momiji." Matsudaira Motoyasu glanced at the retainers behind him, "If my expectations are good, it must be Momiji who suggested that Sena-sama dismount." ”

"This is basic etiquette," Yu Qiuping explained, "The previous adults, some of them were too arrogant. ”

"Either way, thank you a lot." Matsudaira Motoyasu sighed, "I'm okay myself," he looked at the retainers behind him, "but some of the retainers are very aggrieved." They are all good men who stand up to the sky, and it's really unfortunate to follow me, the lord of the nest. ”

"Takechiyo can't be presumptuous," Yu Qiuping said solemnly, "Everything you did was to protect them and protect the Matsudaira family. When they understand, they will be grateful to you. ”

"Hopefully." Matsudaira Motoyasu was slightly moved, but in the end it turned into a long sigh and looked at the majestic Okazaki Castle in front of him, "Looking at Okazaki Castle, my ancestral home, thinking of my grandfather's great achievements back then, I can't help but feel ashamed." ”

On the night he arrived at Okazaki Castle, workaholic Shun Sena held the first evaluation meeting without giving everyone time to rest.

"First of all, I want to explain my authority." Sena Shijun looked around at the crowd, "This time there is no order from the family governor to mobilize the army, and there is no order to order the local garrison to cooperate with our department's actions. Therefore, the troops I can command are the only ones here. ”

"The garrisons of Okazaki Castle and other cities are at most just for the sake of face, and they will cooperate with me, but I have no right to command them. In the event of a battle, their losses will not be replenished by the governor, but will be restored on their own. "So, our forces are not particularly rich, so it's best to avoid a decisive battle with the main force of the Oda family." ”

"Sena-sama doesn't need to say that," Matsudaira Motoyasu bowed, "If your lord has an order, you should respect yourself." ”

"Then thank you, Matsudaira-sama." Sena said gratefully

"When it's spring ploughing, the Matsudaira family doesn't have to be embarrassed." Sena Shitoshi said considerately, "The ashigaru people should all be working in the fields, so there is no need to call them out." If Matsudaira-sama really has the heart, it will be enough to summon the flag samurai. ”

"However, the Oda family must be plowing in the spring." Ohei Zhenji opened his mouth and said, "They mobilized a large number of people in the autumn harvest last year, and it is estimated that the autumn harvest has been delayed, and this year's spring ploughing dare not be lazy." ”

"Yes, where does that gang of Owari guys have a chance to gather troops and fight us in a decisive battle." Asahina Taehyung said disdainfully, "We didn't hit Nakono Castle, so it's a face!" The three rocks surrounding Narumi Castle will be uprooted! ”

"You still have to be cautious, don't rush in." Yu Qiuping reminded, "Was the last time the Oda family went crazy and gathered troops to attack? What if we encounter the main force of the Oda family when we attack the rock outside Narumi Castle? ”

"Momiji is right, but I still ask for stability." Sena Toshitoshi supported Yu Qiuping's suggestion, "It's better to complete the task of the Governor's Hall as the first priority, and deliver grain and grass to Narumi Castle." Shiyi, how is the preparation of grain and grass? He turned to look at his son.

"Returning to Your Highness," Sena said, "The retainers have already inspected the weight of grain and grass in Okazaki Castle, exceeding the 1,000 stone required by the Governor's Palace. There are also a large number of trolleys, flat shoulders and other means of transport. There is no problem. ”

"Alright," Sena muttered for a moment, "and after a day's rest at Okazaki Castle, we'll head to the former site of Chiritsu Castle, which is being restored. The next day, 500 koku of grain began to be transported in the direction of Narumi Castle. Try to avoid too many conflicts with the Oda family, and don't take pulling out the rock as the first goal. ”

"Also, send messengers to Tsukake Castle, Narumi Castle, and Ōtaka Castle to inform them of our plan of action." Sena Shitoshi ordered, "Tell the Metsuke group and the ninja to report on the activities of the Oda family on the border for the past ten days, and continue to monitor the border arteries. ”

On the afternoon of February 4, Yu Qiuping and others were summoned again to the castle tower for a meeting. Yu Qiuping, who was on the ground floor of the castle tower, was the first to arrive and found that there was some melancholy between Sena's eyebrows.

"Your Highness, what's wrong?" Yu Qiuping asked.

"The Oda family's troops stationed in the five rocks are much more than expected." After Sena Shijun saw that the person who came was Yu Qiuping, he didn't hide it, "The total strength of the five rocks may reach about 2,500 people. ”

"So much!" Yu Qiuping was taken aback, "Aren't they spring ploughing!" Is the Oda family crazy? ”

"These people are all standing soldiers, so they don't have to go back to spring ploughing." Sena explained.

"The total strength of the Oda family is less than 10,000! There are also people stationed on the northern border, so it is possible that they have more than one-third of the standing army! Yu Qiuping said in surprise, sat down at the table, and looked at the report of the ninja metsu group.

"That's true." Sena Shitoshi nodded, "Owari is different from other countries, as the hub of Kanto and Kansai, it has a developed business, and the annual commercial tax revenue is not to be underestimated, which is enough for them to support a standing army that far exceeds the normal proportion. In particular, Tsushima was a large trading market port that brought a large amount of taxes to the Oda family. ”

Sena Shitoshi sighed and recalled the past: "I think that when the lord of the Oda family was still Oda Nobuhide, he had not been able to unify Owari and only owned land of no more than 100,000 koku, but he was able to start a war with the Matsudaira family and the Saito family at the same time, relying on the large number of standing troops maintained by Tsushima's continuous tax support. ”

"What I didn't expect was," Sena Shitoshi pointed to the line of Furuno-Narumi-Odaka on the map, "Oda Nobunaga actually put so many standing troops here. ”

"So, with a well-developed commercial and other industry and a large population, can you have a large army without being limited by the number of stone heights?" Yu Qiuping asked curiously.

"You can understand Momiji like this," Sena explained, "Let's just say this Tsushima, his value is estimated to be comparable to the territory of 100,000 koku." ”

"I'll go, it's so fierce!" Yu Qiuping was taken aback, "Then I have long heard that the most prosperous port and commercial city in Japan, Sakai Town, can compare to how many territories it can compare!" ”

"It's hard to say," Sena smirked, "Sakai has been self-governing for many years, paying annual taxes to the ruler in exchange for his own self-control, so the lord has no way to use the true strength of Sakai Town, and Sakai Town has always had a grudge against the ruler." ”

While the two were talking, everyone had already arrived.

"That's the situation right now, it's a little bit more serious than we thought." Sena Shijun glanced at everyone's expressions, except for Asahina Taehyung's expression, which was still not afraid of heaven and earth, everyone else's expressions were a little dignified.

"Our goal is going to be adjusted slightly," Sena's tone was as calm as ever, "If the Oda family has so many troops, we may not be able to uproot any of them." And the operation of transporting military rations will also be even more arduous, and if we are not careful, there will be a crisis like last year's. ”

"Under the current circumstances, if you want to transport military rations into Narumi Castle safely and without a fight, you must use the power of the Imagawa family on the entire border to deter the Oda family from leaving the castle with an overwhelming advantage, but this is beyond my command. Therefore, this time, our first goal is to preserve the troops, and if we have the opportunity, we will try to replenish and transport food. Sena Shijun looked in the direction of the Shogun, "I have already sent a messenger to inform the Governor of the latest situation on the front line, and I am afraid that the future grain transportation plan will need to be greatly revised." Because the Oda family has intensified its efforts to besiege Narumi Castle, the intentions of Otaka Castle have been revealed. ”

"As for this time, let's first test how determined the Oda family is to besiege." Tena ended the meeting. In his heart, he whispered: By the way, let's see if the mole will have a new action.