On the morning of May 30, Chang Panbei embarked on a journey of more than 200 miles. They threw away all their armor, carrying only spears that could be used as crutches when crossing the mountains, and the archers with bows and arrows, dressed in civilian clothes, each carrying only three days' rations, plunged headlong into the Ina Mountains.

Convincing Asahina Taichao and Sena Shijun to accept his crazy plan really took Yu Qiuhei a lot of words. Because they all thought that no army could cross this mountainous area in such a short time and enter the eastern part of the Far River. However, because at this moment, if the Asahina family doesn't do anything, it will definitely be too late to rush back to Kakegawa Castle. Asahina Taichao and Sena Shijun had no choice but to agree to Yu Qiuping's plan of action.

However, before leaving, when everyone inspected Chang Panbei's troops, the two of them hoped that Yu Qiuping's Chang Pan Bei would be able to bring enough food and armor, so that in case of an accident such as getting lost or in a field battle, they would not fall into a big crisis. However, Yu Qiuping, who has always been conservative, rejected this safe plan.

"Carrying enough rations and armor means having auxiliaries and transport equipment with you." Yu Qiuping shook his head and said, "In that case, it will slow down Chang Panbei's march, and he will definitely not be able to get out without ten days and half a month." If I don't have time to get to Kakegawa City, then what am I working so hard for? ”

"Just three days' rations ... No armor..."Sena hesitated, "It's too dangerous. Moreover, it is already very exaggerated to walk 200 miles in just 3 days, not to mention ... 200 miles of mountain roads. ”

"Your Highness, I have been following you for two years, and you know me." Yu Qiuping said, turning his head and looking at the ashigaru people who were standing neatly next to him, "I've never been a person who wants to take risks, that's why I dare to do this-" Yu Qiuping's voice suddenly increased: "It's because I have confidence in my subordinates!" ”

"Do you have the confidence to complete these 200 miles of mountain road in only 3 days?" Yu Qiuping shouted loudly.

"Yes!" The ashigaru men of Tokiwa responded to the commander's pride with a neat roar, and after a moment, they immediately fell silent, leaving only the maple bird flag to hunt in the wind.

"And I have a reason why I can't afford to lose." A touch of ruthlessness flashed in Yu Qiuping's expression - this is the first time this young man has come to this era, "His Royal Highness the Governor died because of me... I am absolutely going to avenge him! The mole must be brought to justice! ”

"Absolutely!"

There were no auxiliaries to drag down, no burden of armor, and each person only brought a dozen rice balls and a water hyacinth in a small package. The ashigaru people who are always in a row are lined up and walk on the road like a fly. In order to boost morale, Yu Qiuping and all the officers left their horses in the forest together with the cavalry riders. Yuqiu took the lead in walking at the front of the line, and none of the ashigaru people who used to be prepared were willing to slow down their pace, and their morale was high.

The journey from Mori to Shirakuhara was the smoothest of the journey. For a distance of more than 30 miles, ordinary troops have to walk for most of the day. However, under the rapid march of the rampaging Tokiwabi, it was completed in only one and a half hours. During this period, Naoe Tadahei also euphemistically said that if he marched so quickly, it was very likely that he would be physically exhausted later, so it was better to maintain his physical strength and walk slowly. However, Yu Qiuping rejected his proposal: "It's only 3 days, not a month." ”

"Physical fatigue can be overcome by will!" Yu Qiuping said softly but firmly.

After arriving in Shirakuhara, Yuakihei did not have time to visit this famous battlefield in later generations, so he continued his march eastward. The road became narrower and more rugged – the route the Takeda family used to march during the Battle of Nagashino.

At noon, Yu Qiuping ordered the whole army to rest and eat on the edge of the Toyogawa River, which flows through Shirakuhara. Everyone stuffed the rice balls into their mouths, drank the water in the gourd, and then filled the water in the clear Toyokawa River, and then embarked on the journey again. However, the next mountain road is not just a casual one-and-a-half hour and a half that can be walked for more than 30 miles.

Sure enough, as the troops got closer to Nagashino Castle, the rough and difficult roads became more and more difficult. Originally, the official road, which was still a few zhang wide, has become only allowed to allow four or five people to go on in parallel. Yu Qiuping immediately changed the queue according to the width of the mountain road, and the ashigaru who were lined up in four columns adjusted briefly before continuing to move forward. Yasunari Fukushima's platoon, which is at the forefront, is also responsible for opening the way. There are a lot of bushes and weeds on the road, rolling stones and gravel, dead branches and broken branches, which seriously affect the passage of the road. The ashigaru people used the spears in their hands as tools to clear the obstacles on the road and ensure that the road was unimpeded.

The mountain road also began to become less flat, with countless gravel under the feet, and the road surface was uneven, one foot deep and one foot shallow, which was very laborious to walk, and the slight upward angle caused great inconvenience to the march. After Yu Qiuping crossed over to this era, he has lost about 70 kilograms, and with regular exercise, he has a lot more muscles. But walking quickly on such a rugged mountain road for an afternoon still made him a little unbearable. He had been in the sun for a day, barely stopping, sweat running down his cheeks all the way down, rubbing a handful of mud with a wipe of his hand. The clothes on his body were already soaked with sweat, and he exuded a scorching smell. There were already slight cramps in the stomach of his legs, and there was a dull pain in the arch of his feet with every step he took - these shoes were far less fitting than the sneakers that Yu Qiuping had worn before.

However, when he saw the red leaves soldiers behind him, one by one, they were also enduring fatigue and hard work, and walked on the road energetically, the tiredness on his body seemed to be swept away all at once. He didn't want to lose face in front of his loyal subordinates – or rather, as their manager, he should be the most hard-working. It was this sense of honor, the end of not admitting defeat, and the support of his subordinates that spurred Yu Qiuping to drive his tired body and continue to move forward.

By four o'clock in the afternoon, the whole army had arrived outside the castle. When the defenders of Nagashino Castle saw the Maple Bird Banner, they immediately sent people out to greet them. Not long ago, the defenders of Nagashino Castle received the news of the death of Imagawa Yoshimoto, and they were in a mess, and even some peasants who had come to serve in the military fled back without permission. Due to the remote location, neither the Okabe family nor the Asahina family sent anyone to seek their statement, and they were happy to maintain a neutral position.

Yu Qiuping asked his subordinates to rest for a while in the town of our castle, and after drinking a few sips of water, he set off here to the northeast. When people are extremely tired, they can still rely on the activity of the body to persevere. However, once you stop and rest for a while, your legs will be as difficult to move as if they have been filled with lead, and you will be too tired to do so. However, Yu Qiuping understood that so far, they had only walked about sixty miles—and that included the thirty miles, which were easier to walk at the beginning. If you stop today, it will be absolutely too late. Driven by a strong will, the ashigaru people of Tokiwa set off again. After traveling for more than ten miles, he stopped at a hillside between Nagashino Castle and Dongei. It was getting late, and it was too difficult to walk at night in the mountains. Yu Qiuping then ordered his subordinates to simply raise a dozen bonfires, and the whole army rested here, and immediately went to bed after eating dinner to conserve their strength.

In order to hurry, Chang Panbei didn't even bring much food, so naturally he wouldn't bring the baggage used to camp in the village. Everyone found a fairly flat place on the mountain road and slept on the ground. After Yu Qiuping arranged the sentry, he also leaned on a stone and prepared to rest. The pebbles under him made his body very uncomfortable, and all kinds of mosquitoes were buzzing around him. However, Yu Qiuping had no time to take care of it. The extreme tiredness of his body drove him to sleep quickly.

In the early morning of June 1, the ashigaru men of Tokiwa got up on time at four o'clock in the morning, and after breakfast, they immediately continued their march. Yu Qiuping was bitten by mosquitoes in the summer mountains and forests last night, and he was really itchy at the moment. Although his legs were sore and he could barely move, Yu Qiuhei still stubbornly walked in the first place again, and continued to challenge the mountain trail with all the ashigaru. In other words, it was an ordinary army, and at this moment it was already bitter because of physical exhaustion. Everyone tried their best to steal and play tricks, grinding, refusing to go on the road, and even mutinied. Even if you barely continue to march, the speed will be extremely slow. As long as there are no samurai around you, you will want to take a break. However, under the general discipline of Joban, all ashigaru reflexively carried out the order to continue the march. Before waiting for the order to slow down, everyone didn't dare to stop for a moment - in the old days, they would definitely be punished to do push-ups.

As the troops moved deeper into the Ina Mountains, the roads became more and more difficult. In order to ensure the speed of the troops' march, Yu Qiuping asked all his subordinates to take three steps in one breath, and everyone shouted neatly and strode forward.

After most of the day's struggle, Tokiwabi's ashigaru passed through Toei and advanced further to Sakuma. This is already the junction of Minami Shinano and Enoe, and it is also the northernmost point of the journey. And this section of the road up the mountain is also the most difficult part of the whole march. The mountain road winds and turns, climbs in circles around the hills, and passes through dense forests and plank roads. The stone steps on the mountain road have fallen into disrepair, and many have collapsed, so the ashigaru had to pave the way themselves. In less than six minutes, the journey up the mountain finally came to an end, and the next march route was basically going downhill. Ignoring the pain in their toes, the ashigaru people of Tokiwa walked down the mountain quickly, and that night, they arrived at a place more than ten miles outside the Inui Castle to rest. On this day, the ashigaru people of Tokiwa traveled more than 50 miles in the most difficult and difficult mountainous area, and also entered the northern part of the Yuanjiang River from the northeast of the three rivers.

In the early morning of June 2, Yu Qiuping was not ambiguous. Although the subordinates were all tired, none of them shouted bitterness. Everyone ordered the formation to be neat, and with neat steps, they crossed Inui Castle and continued their march south. The defenders of Inui Castle watched in amazement as the famous Tokiwa Bei Momiji soldiers, dressed in civilian clothes without armor, striding out of the endless mountainous area. Especially when they saw that these ashigaru men did not carry auxiliaries and baggage, they were even more surprised. Yu Qiuping ignored it and continued to march southwest, towards Futamata, the junction of the Yuanjiang Mountains and the plains, Fumata Castle.

The defenders of Futama Castle were not as uninformed as the defenders of Nagashino Castle - they had already received news that the Asahina and Okabe factions had accused each other of being traitors and were fighting. In addition, since the Okabe family occupied Yoshida Castle and blocked the Asahina family in Mikawa, the entire Enoe was already the world of the Okabe family in a sense.

Yesterday, a messenger came from the side of Sukima Castle that the Okabe family had entered Inimajo Castle, and asked the defenders of Futamata Castle to immediately send hostages to express their attachment and help find the whereabouts of the samurai family members of the fugitive Okuhei family and the Sena family. Although the defenders of Futamatata Castle were unwilling to give in so easily, they naturally did not dare to disobey due to the huge gap in strength. After all, the Asahina family, the Yuqiu family, and the Sena family were still blocked in Yoshida Castle the day before yesterday, and if they want to rush to Inma City, it will be five or six days later. Until then, it's better to listen honestly to the Okabe family - anyway, I don't know who the mole is.

However, Nakane Masasa, the defender of Futamata Castle, who had just sent the hostages to Inimashi Castle this morning, saw clearly the maple bird flag fluttering proudly on the east side of Futama Castle, on the other side of the Tenryu River. And under the flag, the red leaf soldiers who dazzle like flames.

They are... Flying here!