Ye Yuxuan looked at the tea table that had been set up in the teahouse on the side, and couldn't help but make an inviting gesture and said, "Your Highness has been sitting on the boat for so long, and you are tired from thinking about it, so we might as well sit down and talk slowly." ”

Toyotomi Chiyo nodded, and followed Ye Yuxuan into the tea house set up independently in the courtyard.

Ye Yuxuan took the teapot from the charcoal stove, slowly poured tea into the teacup in front of the two of them, and said, "The news that His Highness heard looks really good, but it is not..."

When Toyotomi Chiyo first started, she still criticized the other party's tea-making method in her heart that it was not in accordance with the rules at all, but she quickly focused on what Ye Yuxuan said.

Although she has not experienced systematic political education, being able to grow up peacefully under the close attention of the shogunate is enough to prove that Toyotomi Chiyo still has a certain sense of politics, and she quickly understood what Ye Yuxuan meant.

However, Toyotomi Chiyo is not worried about this, and since she was tied up from Tokeiji Temple, her originally peaceful life has been completely disrupted. And from the moment she left the monastery, she felt like a puppet who had been manipulated and could no longer decide her future life.

Being able to see the plan made by the emperor go unexpectedly now made Toyotomi Chiyo feel a lot more happy. She picked up the teacup, took a slight sip of the warm tea, and then said calmly: "Since His Majesty the Emperor has made such a delicate plan, he shouldn't have no countermeasures for this situation, right?" I am but a puppet in the hands of His Majesty, so what can you discuss with me? ”

Ye Yuxuan looked up at Toyotomi Chiyo and said, "If everything has to be arranged by His Majesty, what do you want us to do as courtiers?" In addition, before I left the capital, His Majesty had already given me the right to make decisions on the spot, including whether His Highness would go or stay. ”

Toyotomi Chiyo raised his eyebrows, and said with some annoyance: "My go-stay, are you trying to threaten me?" ”

Ye Yuxuan shook his head and said, "No, I'm just telling His Highness the fact, we are now in the same boat." Only when this plan succeeded, His Highness could be freed and the Toyotomi family rebuilt.

And if the plan fails, we will simply return to the Ming Dynasty, but His Highness may lose more than freedom. ”

The breath in Toyotomi Chiyo's chest was suddenly blocked by these words, and she was silent for a long time before she said helplessly: "Since you know that I am not free now, what are you going to discuss with me?"

The Toyotomi family has long since perished, so you don't think that pushing me to the front will put an end to the disputes between these princes of the western kingdom, right? If these princes were really so loyal to my family, the Battle of Sekigahara would not have been won by the Eastern Army. ”

Ye Yuxuan nodded slightly, expressing his agreement with the other party's statement, and then continued: "I also agree with His Highness's opinion on the loyalty of these southwestern princes to the Toyotomi family.

However, I don't expect the loyalty of these southwestern princes to the extinct Toyotomi family, I just need a banner that can be accepted by the southwestern princes.

At present, these southwestern princes are divided into three forces, and Kumamoto-Satsuma is the most powerful, and the desire to break away from the coalition and become the leader of the southwestern princes is also the most important.

The second most powerful was the Choshu Domain, which was forced to be at the forefront of resistance to the shogunate army, and they were reluctant to break away from the coalition forces, but they also coveted the position of leader of the princes.

The last force was the newly defeated princes of Kyushu, who surrounded the Fukuoka and Ogura domains just to keep their own domains.

I thought that the reason for this situation was that the victory came too suddenly, and the shogunate was now unable to reach out to quell the rebellion in Kyushu.

Therefore, the princes who had united for survival before were now thinking about how to obtain the greatest share of victory for themselves.

The best way to resolve the dispute between these princes is to dispel their unrealistic delusions and bring them back to reality.

Although the Toyotomi family perished, as a former member of the world, coupled with the title of King of Japan canonized by my Ming Dynasty, it is determined that this banner is the bottom line that these princes can accept now. ”

Toyotomi Chiyo was a little confused by what Ye Yuxuan said at this time, and she couldn't help asking: "Haven't you been working on erecting the banner of the Toyotomi family, why do you have to discuss with me today, what do you want to discuss?" ”

Ye Yuxuan hesitated for a long time, and then said unspeakably: "In the past period, I have been studying the Japanese samurai system. I found that in the Japanese samurai family, adopted sons and children have the same inheritance rights.

Tadahiro Kato, the lord of the Kumamoto Domain, had a boy under his knees, who was only six years old. Tadayuki Kuroda, the lord of the Fukuoka Domain, had a daughter who was about five years old. The Kato clan and the Kuroda clan were both related to the Toyotomi family in the past, and they were not comparable to the princes of other families.

Therefore, I hope that His Highness will accept the son of Tadahiro Kato as his adopted son, and then marry the daughter of Tadashi Kuroda. In this way, the Kumamoto-Satsuma alliance can be broken, and most of the princes of Kyushu will be attached to His Highness, and the Choshu Domain will definitely accept it, and the isolated Satsuma Domain can only bow to His Highness. ”

Letting an unmarried woman adopt an adopted son always feels a little unruly for a Ming person like Ye Yuxuan. But for the Japanese, there is no such trouble.

Toyotomi Chiyo, who was raised by the Tokugawa family, knew that Naomasa Ii, known as one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Tokugawa, was the adopted son of Naotoka, who had never married. Therefore, she was not angered by Ye Yuxuan's remarks, but thought seriously for a long time.

Toyotomi Chiyo thought about it and still had to admit that this was the most effective way to avoid fighting among the princes of the southwest, but she still asked with some curiosity: "Since you think that Kato Tadahiro is an ambitious person, let his son enter the Toyotomi family, and form a family like the Kuroda clan for him, aren't you afraid that after he is full-fledged, he will break away from the control of the Ming Dynasty?" ”

Ye Yuxuan smiled and said, "What we have to worry about now is whether the southwestern princes can compete with the Tokugawa shogunate, not Japan in the future. Besides, the Ming Dynasty in the future will not be comparable to the Ming Dynasty today. ”

Toyotomi Chiyo was silent, and then the two talked about the detailed steps of the plan. On the morning of 22 October, Toyotomi Chiyo received Tadayuki Kuroda in the office, and in the afternoon she met with Tadahiro Kato, and in the evening Ye Yuxuan hosted a banquet for Tadayuki Kuroda, Tadahiro Kato, Hisaka Shimazu, and Sadayoshi Fukuhara.

On October 23, Ye Yuxuan accompanied Toyotomi Chiyo to meet with the major names of Kyushu led by the Ogura Domain, and Ye Yuxuan also had a private meeting with Fukuhara Sadayoshi in the evening.

On October 24, a joint meeting of the Southwest Domains was held, attended by 23 of the 22 princes of Kyushu and the Choshu domain.

The main discussion of this meeting was how to deal with the more than 550,000 stone territories of the four princes led by the Saga Domain's Nabeshima family; How to distribute the 10 princes who were wiped out in the war, with a total of 440,000 stone territories; how to deal with the defeated princes who had previously sided with the shogunate; Finally, it is the matter of how to establish the Kyushu coalition army to cross the sea to Honshu Kamiraku.

Shimazu Iehisa, who did not arrive until the morning of the 24th, entered the venue at the side hall of Kofukuji Temple with a group of retainers, and immediately wanted to sit in the top position. But he was stopped by Tanegashima Tadashiki.

"Your Highness Shimazu, your position is in the first seat on the left, not in the front." Although Tanegashima Tadashi was a little frightened, he still firmly stopped in front of Shimazu Iehisa.

Shimazu retainer Shinna Tadashi subconsciously touched his waist, but when he touched it, he remembered that the weapon was confiscated outside the palace, but he did not hesitate to step forward and push Tanejima Tadashi and said: "It's against you, don't you even know your own master?" Dare to stop in front of His Highness. Who else is eligible to sit in the position of the head other than His Highness? ”

Although Tanejima Tadashi's face turned red, he refused to get out of the way, looking at the entanglement between Shinna Tadashi and Tanegashima Tadashi, Shimazu Iehisa did not stop shouting, he looked coldly at the small door on the side of the head, thinking that the person who asked Tanejima Tadashi to come out to stop him always had to stand up.

Sure enough, after a while, a young man's voice came from inside the small door, "What are you arguing about, Zhongshi?" Today is the great day of the princes of Kyushu, how can they quarrel with people so unruly, and still not retreat. ”

The sound came, and before the words fell, Ye Yuxuan's figure appeared from the small door. Shinna Chungyoshi and Tanegashima Tadashi suddenly retreated, Ye Yuxuan didn't pay attention to the two, he walked quickly to Shimazu Iehisa, and after saluting the lord of the Satsuma domain, he smiled and greeted: "Why did Your Highness come so late, I and you adults have been waiting for two days." ”

After the Shimazu family reluctantly returned the salute, he said with a cold expression: "Lord Lao Ye is bothered, but I want to ask, our southwest princes have a meeting, can the ASEAN also interfere?"

The Ming are willing to help us fight against the unrighteous shogunate, and we are certainly grateful. But after all, you are the guests, and we are the masters of Japan. Now that even a princes' meeting has to sit at the top of your country to preside over it, doesn't Lord Ye feel a little anti-guest-oriented? ”

The retainers behind Jiajiu were vigilant, for fear that the words of the head of the family would annoy the Ming official opposite, and Shengsheng turned this place into a Hongmen banquet.

Ye Yuxuan was still smiling, as if he didn't hear the other party's taste at all, "How come, didn't we promise to several adults before, my country will not interfere in Japan's internal political affairs." All we seek is to eliminate the irrational policies of the shogunate.

I only attended this meeting of the princes as an observer, so how could I occupy the position of presiding over the meeting. I see that the representatives of all the princes have already arrived, Your Highness Shimazu, why don't we take the seats first, and then don't hinder the meeting from being held on time, how about it? ”

Seeing Ye Yuxuan walk to the position of the first seat on the right hand and sit down, the Shimazu family was silent for a moment, and finally walked to the first seat on the left hand and sat down, wanting to see what the other party was trying to do.