"Bastard! Hosokawa Yorimoto, you old puppet! ”

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu jumped up from the futon, kicked Hosokawa Mitsumoto, and scolded angrily.

"This is the so-called fierce battle for half a day, retreating to the mountains? On schedule? Let me rest assured? ”

Hosokawa Mitsumoto screamed, rolled on the ground a few times, then got up and continued to kneel without saying a word.

"Boom!"

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu pulled out the saber on the knife rack and rushed to Hosokawa Mitsumoto, about to cut off his head.

Shibukawa Yori, who was beside him, was shocked, and immediately jumped up and hugged Ashikaga Yoshimitsu's waist: "Your Excellency is angry!" Your Excellency! Hosokawa-kun, go out quickly, and when Your Excellency turns off the fire, it's not too late for you to come in and report again! ”

Hosokawa Mitsumoto looked up, looked at Ashikaga Yoshimitsu with an angry face, and then at the blade that shone with cold light, and lowered his head.

"Shibukawa! You're so bold, you let go! You let me go! ”

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu twisted his waist and threw Shibukawa Mitsuyori out, then rushed up two steps and slashed down with a single sword.

Hosokawa Manmoto knelt on the ground, not moving.

At the last moment, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu's knife stopped and stopped on his bare scalp, and Hosokawa Mitsumoto gritted his teeth, as if he felt a trace of coldness on the top of his head.

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was stunned for a moment, shouted, and swept the knife holder on the table into two ends, and then flew out with one kick, kicking the table to the ground.

Several guards rushed in, thinking something was wrong, and when they saw the scene in the house, they were stunned.

"Get out! Get out! ”

The guards retreated in fright.

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu finally calmed down, he carried the war knife, panted, walked to the futon and sat down, stuck the war knife on the tatami next to him, and stared at Hosokawa Mitsumoto: "Manyuan, come here, tell this minister, what's going on?" ”

Hosokawa Mitsumoto glanced up, slowly crawled over, and explained what had happened in detail.

Perhaps because he was already mentally prepared, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu's face did not change much.

After Hosokawa Mitsumoto finished speaking, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu tightened his eyebrows and said, "What is the flying ball you are talking about?" ”

"This," Hosokawa Mitsumoto showed a look of embarrassment on his face, and smiled bitterly: "Your Excellency, I just saw the flying ball appear, and then there was an explosion on the mountain, and then it caught fire. ”

"As for the rest," Hosokawa Mitsumoto thought for a moment and said, "I only know that there is someone on the flying ball, it should be Akito!" ”

Isn't this nonsense? Ashikaga Yoshimitsu almost scolded, but he still held back: "Oh, after that you broke up?" ”

"Yes! Seeing that nothing could be done, I ordered someone to set fire to the forest and evacuate in the direction of Osaka. ”

"Hosokawa-kun, why are you in such a hurry?" Shibukawa Mitsuyori, who fell to the wall, had already recovered, sat next to Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and asked, "Don't you care about the life and death of your father, the old general Yori?" Don't you know that forest fires can cut off the retreat route of the army? ”

"Shibukawa-kun," Hosokawa Mitsumoto was silent for a while, and said, "This is all my father's order!" ”

"What? He told you to raise the fire? ”

"Yes, my father has long made up his mind, and if things are not harmonious, he will die in battle on the Bofu Mountain. At the same time, he told me that if I found that the flag on the top of the mountain had disappeared or that he had been killed in battle, I would immediately set fire to the forest and return to Osaka! ”

"Really?" Shibukawa Manyori looked a little strange, staring at Hosokawa Manyoto: "Could it be that the veteran general Yori also told you that after retreating to Osaka, he immediately seized the military power of Akamatsu Manyu and led the troops back to Kyoto?" ”

"Yes! He also said that if Hyogo is not defended, Osaka cannot be defended either, and that he must return to Kyoto as soon as possible and await the decision of His Excellency the Minister of Internal Affairs. ”

Shibukawa Mitsuyori was choked, didn't know what to say, and subconsciously turned his gaze to Ashikaga Yoshimitsu.

In the short time when Shibukawa Manyori asked, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu had already recovered, he regained his usual calm, looked into Hosokawa Manmoto's eyes, and said: "Old General Lai Yuan is far-sighted, this minister is not wrong, by the way, Manmoto, how many people have you brought back?" ”

"About 25,000 people, all of them are the most elite soldiers!"

The most elite? Shibukawa Mitsuyori next to him pursed his lips, what is the use of the elite who dare not fight?

However, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu thought differently, and when he heard this number, a smile of relief appeared on his face, what he needed most now was soldiers, and the more the better.

"Why didn't Mitsusuke Akamatsu come back?"

"Oh, it's because he doesn't want to come back, he leads the cavalry near Osaka, intending to harass and delay the Ming army!" Hosokawa Mitsumoto said with some disapproval.

"Oh, okay, let me think."

"Tsukasa should be three!"

"In!"

A samurai outside the door answered, walked in, and knelt down on Ashikaga Yoshimitsu's knees: "Your Excellency, please command!" ”

"You bring the people you belong to and help Hosokawa-kun reorganize the army, within three days, to form combat effectiveness, it is possible?"

"No problem!"

"Okay, you guys go down!"

Hosokawa Mitsumoto's expression was as usual, and he bowed his head with Tsukamoto San, and then exited the door.

Calm returned to the room, and both Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and Shibukawa Mitsuyori fell silent, each thinking about things.

Long.

Shibukawa Manyori leaned over and said in a low voice, "Did Senior General Lai really give such an order?" ”

"It doesn't matter!" Ashikaga Yoshimitsu waved his hand impatiently: "It's all in the past." ”

"Okay, okay, little one understands!"

Shibukawa nodded, his face a little unpleasant.

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu didn't pay attention to Shibukawa Mitsuyori's expression, another question he cared about, he thought for a while, and suddenly said: "I was a little too angry just now, you say, will Mangen hold a grudge?" ”

"Well, it doesn't seem like that!" Shibukawa Manyori hesitated: "Besides, his father still died at the hands of the Ming army!" ”

"Hmm," Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was stunned for a moment, as if he didn't expect Shibukawa to answer like this, he blinked his eyes, gritted his teeth, and seemed to secretly make a decision.

"Mr. Kisai, what do you think?"

After a while, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu shouted from behind the screen.

After a short time, Mr. Kisai walked out and sat down on the other side of Yoshimitsu.

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu swept left and right, feeling unprecedented loneliness, Spoyoshi was dead, Imagawa Sadayoshi was dead, Ashikaga Yoshimoto was captured, and now Hosokawa Yorimoto is also dead, Uesugi Kending went to Kanto to resist the invasion of the Ming army; Hatakeyama went to Izumo to prevent the Ming army from landing in Honshu.

Now by his side, there is only this unfathomable and profound, seemingly indisputable Mr. Kisai, and Shibukawa Manrai, whose ability fluctuates.

"Mr. Kisai, you also heard just now that the Ming army has occupied Osaka and is close to Kyoto, how should our army respond?"

Seeing that Ashikaga Yoshimitsu asked Mr. Kisai directly, he didn't mean to ask himself at all, and a trace of dissatisfaction appeared on Shibukawa Mitsuyori's face, but he quickly disappeared.

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu noticed this change, but Mr. Kisai didn't, maybe he didn't care.

Mr. Kisai gently stroked the gray beard under his chin, coughed slightly, put his hand into his arms, took out a piece of paper, flattened it, and placed it on the tatami mat, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and Shibukawa Mitsuyori's eyes were immediately attracted to it, and they found that it was a painting, a hood, and something like a candle lit underneath.

Yoshimitsu and Mitsuyori looked at each other for a while, then looked at each other, and found that the other party didn't seem to understand either, so they couldn't help but look up at Mr. Kisai.

"This is a sketch of Kong Ming's lantern," Mr. Mu Zhai said with a smile, "I think that the flying ball should be similar to this principle, but it is just bigger." ”

"Oh?" Ashikaga Yoshimitsu's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help grabbing the drawings: "Really? This is the flying ball? ”

"Yes! Neither is it! Mr. Mu Zhai stroked his beard, shook his head and said: "This is not something that can be explained in one sentence, Your Excellency can order someone to make a look at the pattern, and you can understand the key point." ”

"Good! Good! I'll call someone to do it right away! ”

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was very excited, and immediately ordered someone to call a few skilled carpenters over, Mr. Kisai described it in detail, and several carpenters nodded and said they understood.

Yoshimitsu ordered them to do it immediately, and if they couldn't do it, they were all beheaded, and the carpenters nodded in fright, and then hurriedly withdrew and went to work.

After the carpenters withdrew, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu felt that his heart was much brighter, and he looked at Mr. Kisai very gratefully and thanked him again and again.

"Your Excellency," Mr. Mu Zhai smiled slightly, and said: "In the eyes of the old man, the flying ball is nothing more than an enlarged Kong Ming lantern, so there must be a weakness of the Kong Ming lantern, so it can only be downwind, not against the wind, in thunder, lightning, rain, snow, fog and other weather conditions, it must not be used, and the wind is too strong, it should not be used, so the flying ball should only be used in the case of a light wind." ”

"In this way, the speed of the flying ball must be very slow, and it is impossible to catch up with the cavalry."

"So I think the way to prevent flying balls is very simple, which is to spread out and not gather together."

Hearing Mr. Kisai's description, the smile on Ashikaga Yoshiman's face disappeared: "That is, with the flying ball, it is impossible to defend Kyoto?" ”

"This?" Mr. Mu Zhai hesitated for a moment and said, "There are indeed certain difficulties. ”

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu frowned, but quickly stretched it out, and arched his hand: "In any case, Mr. Kisai has done this minister a great favor, as long as he knows the principle of the flying ball, then he can always find a way to prevent it, and in a while, let's go and see the Kong Ming lantern together." ”

"Your Excellency's words are serious, but you don't dare to be old!"

Mr. Mu Zhai bowed slightly and smiled.

......

"Let's light the fire!"

"Yes!"

The structure of the lantern is very simple, and the carpenters of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu are highly skilled, so more than ten Kong Ming lanterns were made in two quarters of an hour (half an hour), and they hurriedly asked Ashikaga Yoshimitsu for credit.

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was overjoyed when he heard the report, and asked Mr. Kisai to help check it, and Mr. Kisai looked at it, then checked it in his hand, selected three of the lightest ones, and ordered the craftsmen to light the Kong Ming lantern.

Under the watchful eyes of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and Shibukawa Mitsuyori, the Kongming lantern in the hands of the craftsmen detached from their palms and gradually rose higher than the eaves, above the treetops, then higher and higher, and then drifted north with the wind, and gradually became invisible.

Everyone stared blankly at the direction where Kong Ming's lantern disappeared, as if they felt that the world was a little wonderful.

After the experiment, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu fell into deep thought.

After about a stick of incense, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu ordered a large number of craftsmen to be gathered, some of whom were responsible for making the current Kong Ming lanterns for archers to use for shooting training; The other part of the people is responsible for making the super-large Kong Ming lanterns, the kind that can carry people.

The first request was okay, but the second request made everyone look at each other, and looking at their expressions, it seemed that Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was crazy.

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu didn't talk to them either, and if he couldn't do it within three days, he would all be beheaded.

......

"Mr. Mu Zhai, Yoshimitsu is very grateful for the matter of the flying ball, and after repelling the Ming army, Yoshimitsu will be very grateful!"

Back in the room and sitting down, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu spoke first.

"Thank you, Your Excellency!"

“...... So what are your suggestions and considerations for the next offensive direction of the Ming army and the countermeasures of our army? ”

"In the old man's opinion," Mr. Mu Sai did not shirk, he stood up, walked to the map, and said: "There should be three directions of attack for the Ming army, the first is Hyogozu, which will attack Kyoto through Osaka and go straight to the heart of our army; The second route should be to attack the mountain ** countries, attack Kyoto from the north, and echo the Ming army in Hyogo to the north and south; The third is the Kanto region, where the Ming Kingdom used it as a pioneer to attack the Kanto, with the intention of breaking the foundation of the shogunate, because most of the samurai of the shogunate came from the Kanto. ”

"At the moment, the most worrying thing is the Hyogozu road."

"The direction of attack on this road is undoubtedly Kyoto, and the main support point of its attack is the Yodogawa River, which can enter Lake Biwa and control the flank of Kyoto along the Yodogawa River River."

"If the Ming army landed in Wakasa Province and connected with Lake Biwa, then the road from Kyoto to Kanto would be cut off, and the entire Kansai would be in the pocket of the Ming army."

"Therefore, the most important thing at the moment is to control the Yodogawa River and Lake Biwa, and at the same time prevent the Ming army from landing in Wakasa Province."

"After Uesugi-sama has eliminated the Ming army on Ezo Island, His Excellency the Minister of the Interior can order him to lead his army back to Kyoto to fight the Ming army in a decisive battle and drive the Ming army into the sea."

Listening to Mr. Kisai's description, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu shivered, feeling some itching on his back, and then he glanced at Shibukawa Mitsuyori and found that Shibukawa Mitsuyori also had beads of sweat on his forehead, and he was staring at Mr. Kisai intently.

After Mr. Kisai finished describing, both Ashikaga Yoshimitsu and Shibukawa Mitsuyori fell into deep thought.

Long.

Shibukawa Mitsuyori hesitated for a moment and said, "Mr. Kisai, what if the decisive battle fails?" ”

"Failure?" Mr. Mu Zhai smiled bitterly: "Then you can only retreat to the Kanto region and engage in a tug-of-war with the Ming army." ”

"So, why didn't you abandon Kyoto in the first place and retreat to Kanto?"

As soon as Shibukawa Mitsuyori said this, Mr. Kisai was shocked, and involuntarily looked at Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, but found that Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was expressionless.

Mr. Kisai couldn't help but mutter, "Is it possible, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu has the intention of giving up Kyoto?" ”