4, Ashikaga Yoshiaki
"Squeak~~~squeak~~~" The annoying cries of the cicadas in the trees make this summer afternoon even more irritating. I sat against a pillar under the porch of the main hall with a cup of tea at my hand. I have to admit that my patience can only be regarded as moderate, and I am especially disgusted by people who don't know the results. Ashikaga Yoshiaki's campsite last night was only 15 miles away, and it was supposed to arrive around ten o'clock in the morning, but I don't know why it was so late. Most of the officials followed Oda Nobunaga to the intersection ten miles away, and in this huge Masatoku Temple, there were only two samurai, me and Akechi Mitsuhide, in addition to monks and miscellaneous servants. I don't know if it's only late to show the extraordinaryness of the "big man", but that Ashikaga Yoshiaki is just a monk who has returned to the world, and the nobility of the bloodline has long been a passing time, and the honor of the Zun clan and Yoshiman era has also become a thing of the past, and it will only be annoying to put on a shelf.
"Hey! Wise Lord! "I called out to Akechi Mitsuhide, who was leaning against another pillar and was about to fall asleep." How's your transfer to the Oda family going? ”
"Hmm......" he strained to open his eyes. It's almost there! According to the letter a few days ago, His Royal Highness Yiqiu has already approved, and now there is only one formal formalities left! ”
"That's so......" I thought for a moment and asked, "What kind of person do you think His Highness Ashikaga Yoshiaki is?" ”
"He...... "Hearing my question, Minghui Mitsuhide considered his words." His Royal Highness Ashikaga Yoshiaki can be said to be a person who values and preserves tradition very much! ”
"Tradition?" I asked curiously. "What kind of tradition? How is it maintained? ”
"Ha, ha, ha, I'll let you hear it!" He saw that I was taking this issue so seriously, so he spoke carefully. "His Highness Yiqiu attaches great importance to his bloodline, and if someone takes an indifferent attitude towards this issue in front of him, it will be a big taboo for him! In his opinion, the Muromachi shogunate's rule over the world should last as long as the sun and moon, and if this also collapsed, it would be the end of the world. ”
"And what do you say about being chased everywhere right now?" I could see that he didn't have much affection for Ashikaga Yoshiaki anymore, so I didn't use honorifics. "Can't he see that times have changed?"
"If only one of the people in power in the Ashikaga family understood this truth, they wouldn't be where they are today!" Wise Mitsuhide smiled helplessly. "Honestly, that supreme seat can be confusing, and I haven't seen anyone who can stay awake all the time! You have to tell him, 'You have only the name of righteousness in the world, and you have no real power!' He won't believe it if he is killed! So I thought about it for a long time, but I decided not to waste that effort. ”
"So if he doesn't cling to that 'first person in the world', you still have a way?" I asked tentatively.
"I think it works!" He said with his eyes to the sky. "If His Royal Highness Yiqiu can be satisfied with being an ordinary prince, I think there is still a certain chance! In any case, the Ashikaga brand still has a certain appeal. Find a small place, recruit some talents, and unite some small and medium-sized princes to protect themselves. All that's left is to sit back and wait for the opportunity! ”
"Hmm...... Maybe! "I said that, but I didn't quite agree with him in my heart. The Ashikaga family is not the only one, just look at the situation of the Furukawa and Awa families, who were either destroyed or became puppets. After all, the surname Ashikaga is too attractive, and whoever is his neighbor may not be sure. So I think the best way out for them is to give up all their territory and power, and go to Beijing to be a down-to-earth minister who eats and waits for death!
"My lord! The car of the lord and Lord Yoshiaki has arrived! Then a servant who was waiting at the door ran in and reported.
Hearing this, Akechi Mitsuhide and I glanced at each other, got up and walked towards the gate together. Looking up from afar, a vast group of men and horses slowly walked towards this side. Oda Nobunaga, Hayashi Tokatsu, Shibata Katsuie, Niwa Nagahide and other important ministers rode among them, and in the center were ten gorgeous ox-drawn palace chariots. Oda Nobunaga rode his horse next to the first palace car, occasionally leaning his head into the window and whispering.
"Doesn't His Highness Yiqiu know how to ride a horse?" I whispered to Akechi Mitsu-so, who was beside me.
"Can't ride a horse? If you don't know how to ride a horse, you will die in the chaos of the army! He said helplessly. As long as possible, he can ride a car without riding a horse, and if he can sit in a sedan car, he will not ride a car. This is the prestige of the imperial court and the shogun! ”
"Oh......" I nodded and snorted. The shogun was a foreign official, the leader of the daimyo and samurai in the world, and there was no fixed rank. Such an indulgence in the flashy fashion of the ministers will undoubtedly lead to the contempt and decline of the authority of the samurai, which is different from me! A person of my status would be despised at best, and as the nominal co-ruler of the world, he would inevitably arouse covetousness! I thought of his distant relative, Yoshimoto Imagawa, who had the same hobby, and perhaps their bloodline was really all corrupted. At this time, the queue had slowly come to the door, and Akechi Mitsuhide and I bowed to the side.
The car slowly stopped, and the attendant hurriedly stepped forward and put a footstool under the wheel. A middle-aged man got out of the carport.
"Your Highness Yiqiu, please be careful!" Oda Nobunaga stepped up and helped him.
"Good!" Ashikaga Yoshiaki's voice is kind and elegant.
I watched this man closely, the soon-to-be-known "transitioner". Ashikaga Yoshiaki looks seven or eight points similar to the general Yoshiki I saw a few years ago, but he is thinner, whiter, weaker, and his eyes are far less sharp than Yoshikuki's. Wearing a wide pale blue plain brocade dress, only on the sides of the chest and in the middle of the back are embroidered with three Ashikaga family crests, and on the head is a tall gauze black hat. Holding a small folding fan in his hand, he whispered and laughed with Oda Nobunaga beside him as he walked. Although he acted as if he would fall apart at the slightest touch, judging from his knuckles and the way he held things, he was undoubtedly a martial artist, at least not a little stronger than me.
By this time, they had already walked in front of me, and Akechi Mitsuhide and I followed. Entering the main hall, Ashikaga Yoshiaki sat on the main seat, and the first on the left hand was Oda Nobunaga, and below was the ministers of the Oda family. I also walked to the last seat and sat down, and looked across the street to see a large number of shogunate cabinet members, some of whom I knew and some of whom I had never seen.
"Your Highness, are you dining now?" After all the seats were settled, Akechi Mitsuhide stepped forward and asked, anyway, he was still the identity of the liaison officer.
"Wait a minute!" Ashikaga Yoshiaki waved the folding fan in his hand and turned his head to Oda Nobunaga. "His Royal Highness Dan Zhengzhong, I don't know how to prepare for what Takashi Fuji came to talk about last time?" It stands to reason that he will lose the advantage of negotiation in such a hurry, but he can't manage so much.
"I don't know, what is the plan of the Marquis of Chaocang?" Oda Nobunaga asked rhetorically with a "kind" smile.
"This ......," Ashikaga Yoshiaki's expression darkened significantly. 'M afraid...... I'm afraid he won't be able to get out of here for the time being! ”
"Oh...... It's a pity that the Marquis of Asakura can't do it, but it's also understandable! "Oda Nobunaga showed full understanding." But don't worry, Your Highness! He continued: "Marquis Asai of Kita-Omi and Marquis Tokugawa of Mikawa have agreed to send troops, and together with my men and horses of Mino and Owari, there will be more than 40,000 troops gathered under the banner of His Highness!" ”
"In this way, please entrust His Highness Zhengzhong!" Ashikaga Yoshiaki said excitedly.
I saw both of them laughing, Ashikaga Yoshiaki was smiling from despair to hope, but he didn't notice the condescending contempt in Oda Nobunaga's smile.
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Bear in Winter: Because there was something at night, today's chapter was posted without review, and if there are any fallacies, please leave a message in the book review. Since I will say a few more words when it comes to book reviews, this week's essence has been sent, and because it has just been restored, there will not be many essence tickets for next week, and some good book reviews in the past two days and next week can't be refined, so I apologize!