Five days after I learned that Urakami Munekei had died, I was already in the castle tower of Inariyama Castle, the largest castle in Tomata Prefecture in Mimasaka Province. The resistance of the Urakami army was almost non-existent, and we captured Kume and Tomata counties without much effort, and gained about 80,000 koku of new territory.

The death of Urakami Sokei directly led to the division of the Urakami family, in fact, this is indeed the tradition of the daimyo in the eastern part of the western country, and in recent decades, no matter whose family's power changes, a good show of "brother Xiao Wall" must be staged, and this situation has not changed even when the strong enemy is pressing.

"Your Highness!" While I was discussing my next steps with Yoshimasa Nagano and Hanbei Takenaka, Fuhide Gamo walked in. "The rocks near Inariyama Castle have been occupied by our army, and the situation in Higashimisaku has stabilized!" He excitedly reported.

"You've worked hard, sit down!" I pointed to a spot next to the Takenaka Hanbei, who had been here for some time since receiving my orders. "Did you encounter any fierce resistance? What are the losses of our army? ”

"Our army did not have any combat attrition, except for some losses caused by careless marching!" Gamo Fuxiu sat down, and because the long sword was in the way, he even pulled out the sheath and put it at hand. "Strange to say! Many of the rocks were wide open and empty, and even if there were people, there were only a few gatekeepers. We opened the door after a few shouts and no one tried to resist! ”

"Could it be so?" I thought about it for a moment, and this situation really hadn't happened before. Anyway, we also hit someone else's house, so we have to "mean" it! In my previous campaigns, even if it had reached the final stage of "closing the customs", there would still be a few small wealthy families who didn't know the times to come out and jump. This has nothing to do with strength or prestige, it is completely a morbid attachment of some people. At the moment, there is no ...... "can't it be some conspiracy, right? I asked skeptically.

"......I don't think so," Fuxiu shook his head, as he said. We carefully interrogated the people who stayed behind, and the samurai and troops who were guarding began to flee one after another eight days ago, and the last group did not withdraw until the day before yesterday! Extrapolating from the time, it was when the news of the family's breaking of the coalition in Sanqichuan came. Judging by the supplies left behind, they left in a rather hurry, not like they were premeditated. In addition, the people who stayed behind were not actually ordered to stay behind, but some locals who were dismissed on the spot, because they saw that there were still many things that had not been transported, they automatically stayed behind to guard, hoping to exchange some rewards from us! ”

According to his statement, it is really an emergency evacuation, but it is rare to see such a large area. "What about the nobles? The local tycoons have all fled? I asked.

"This does not seem normal!" Obviously, Gamo Fuxiu didn't think too clearly about this issue. “…… It stands to reason that the name of a certain country changes, and as long as the local small wealthy clan is not stubborn to the end, they should not worry too much about being affected! Especially when a new owner has just taken over, this is a great time to show loyalty, and maybe even be rewarded for helping, but this is not the case at all! According to the investigation of his subordinates, most of the small wealthy families here fled into the mountains with their families. ”

"Kanosuke、Do you have any news about them?" The subject of my questioning turned to Takenaka Hanbei.

"Lord Ke'er is on the South Road, Lord Yamanaka is on the West Road, and the progress is going very well!" The half-guard Takenaka pushed the map in front of me and pointed to the two red lines on it. “…… The terrain to the south is better, and it is a large plain connecting Tamba and Harima. This area can already be connected to the Tanba territory that the family has just captured, and echoes the power of His Royal Highness Harima Hashiba. In this area, there is no longer a strength to compete with the family, so the speed of Kerr-sama's advance is very fast, the day before yesterday has crossed the border of Kume County, and the news just came that this morning has occupied Nakasentejo Castle in Zhenyu County! His hand pointed to another place. The mountain adults on the west road should be slower! The area from Nishimisaku to Higashibizen has always been the core area of the Urakami family's rule. Although there was no decent resistance, and there were no people to defend the city, small raids after marching and encamping were increasing. At present, Yamanaka-sama's troops are stationed in Oki Castle, and preparations are being made to cross the Angry Ghost River and enter the Urakami family's base camp! ”

Recently, after the basic strategy was determined, it has been Takenaka Hanbei who has been responsible for adjusting and coordinating the progress of all aspects, and his approach is a steady and steady style, at least I don't see any loopholes. "You're doing a great job, keep going with this step!" I nodded in satisfaction. "Those two aspects, or the north and northeast, can there be hostages offered by the Hao family? At least it means surrender! I asked again.

"Back to the lord, there is no one! The minister was also very surprised by this...... "That being said, I didn't see "strange" in his face, but was full of "embarrassment". "As in the neighborhood, our troops did not meet much resistance, but no one came back! When they first entered Mimasaka two days ago, they thought it was an instinctive reaction to their timidity. But after a few days, I should have a certain understanding, it seems that there is some misunderstanding here! ”

"Teacher, what do you think?" Since there is no accurate answer, I have to verify it in many ways. Now Nagano Yoshimasa generally doesn't talk without asking, probably to give young people more opportunities to perform.

"Based on the old man's experience...... It's not just a 'misunderstanding'! Nagano's gaze drifted to the distant place outside the window. If it was just a 'misunderstanding', then someone should have started to tempt it a long time ago! To say that everyone is a dead eye that recognizes a reasonable child is as unrealistic as saying that everyone is fiercely loyal to the Urakami family. No war, no defense, no peace, no surrender, usually there is only one explanation for this situation: that is, there are rumors circulating! And this is not an ordinary rumor, first, it spreads very widely; Second, its version is quite uniform; Third, there is evidence that makes people seem quite credible. What's even more worrying is that our ninja didn't get any news! ”

"There will be such 'rumors'?" The three of us in the audience were stunned for a long time, but Gamo Fuxiu, who was still an official disciple, opened his mouth and asked.

"If someone had told me before, I would have the same question, but I can't think of any other explanation for what is happening in front of me!" Nagano touched his snow-white hair, as if he was feeling the passage of time. "Kanto has many similarities with here, especially in the mountains bordering Koshin! There are also intricate roads, many large and small forces, and there are historical grievances that have been passed down from generation to generation, so it is too simple to spread rumors! I often use this method when fighting against Takeda and Hojo, but the usual approach is to make a few versions of the real and the fake, otherwise it is easy for people to see the flaws. With an effect like this, at least the old man thinks he can't do it! But this is also difficult to say, after all, no one dares to say that they know all the heroes of the world. ”

"It's normal for ninjas to have no news about this, after all, it's only been five days since we decided to enter Mimasaka!" I think that for now, the progress is smooth, the achievements are huge, and the positive is the mainstream, and there is no need to be pessimistic and disappointed about the situation that has not yet been clarified. “…… At present, our intelligence system has basically grasped the movement of the Urakami family's troops, and we have not been able to further grasp the context of the local wealthy clans, which is also my personal negligence. You don't need to have any psychological burden, but it is the result of my underestimation of the good situation, which has led to the slow action of strategic conservatives. Now that the Urakami family is no longer able to organize a strong resistance, even if such a 'smart person' comes up with a 'clever' idea at this time, it will already be difficult to save the situation! ”

"The lord is right! It seems that I am an old man, and my courage is no longer good! Nagano nodded repeatedly, and it seemed that he understood what I meant. However, after this battle, the area of the family's territory has increased greatly, and just for now, it is already nearly 600,000 stone across the five countries! Managing such a large piece of land is by no means an easy task, and you should have prepared for it. The minister implored the lord to focus on the selection of talents in this area, but it is really not possible...... You can also apply for assistance from the main hall! ”

"You're right, I've made some arrangements!" I nodded. Not only did I understand the implication in his words, but I also had a few preparations from a very early age. I have been training managers since the time of Okedanga, and some of the teenagers I sent to Sakai Town learned about development, irrigation, and taxation, and although it was still difficult to manage a large population, I was able to cope with it. Years of fighting have trained a large number of grassroots personnel, and more importantly, their loyalty to the Zhuxing family has been tested by blood and fire. Relocate some of the families of ashigaru, flag, and retired veterans to new territories, and give a very small piece of land to monitor a large area, and then cooperate with those professional young managers, there should be no problem! There seem to be fewer people who are just in charge, and I'm thinking about whether to bring back Masuda Nagamori and Nagatsuki Masake. "After all, this is still the next step, and we still have to deal with Urakami with all our might...... at present."

"Lord!" At this time, Ah Xue called out outside the door.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked casually. The generals are not in this city at the moment, and the rest of the principals are here, so what else do you need to find me?

"Lord Yamanaka sent a messenger to ask to see the lord!" Ah Xue didn't enter the door and replied outside.

"Finally someone can't hold it anymore!" I looked at the other three and smiled. These guys, who are pumping and going backwards, have finally bowed to me now, and it is unreasonable to dare to play a "big name" against a conqueror! Now that I'm here this time, I'll let you know how many eyes Lord Ma has! "Whose family is it?" I asked with great courage. The first one can be taken care of a little, and the later ones can be reduced in turn. Even if this person does not reduce his territory, he must teach a good lesson.

"It's Sadakin-sama Nagafune of the Uki family!"

"Oh? ……”