In July of the 7th year of Tensho (1579), Kyushu had entered the rainy season, and it usually rained for two days in three days, and the trees and flowers all grew wildly.

The four Shimazu brothers retreated into a small mountainous area with Igatajo as the core, and there were still more than 23,000 people left. After a period of turmoil in defense and rectification, the troops finally came out of the shadow of defeat in the great battle, and although it could not be said that their morale was completely restored, at least the soldiers were able to take up arms again in the face of the enemy. "Persistence is victory!" This is the slogan that the ninja probed and told me to spread in the city.

In the face of my army of 83,000, they are at an absolute disadvantage in the number of these troops, and generally speaking, 60,000 is a gap in numbers that cannot be made up at all, especially in a joint battle. However, the ratio of four to one in the siege battle was still a little inadequate, and the resolute defense of the Shimazu army added a lot of trouble to me. The foundation of the castle here is basically all rock, and because of the continuous rain, it is difficult for the artillery to exert its power effectively, so the attack has not made any breakthrough for more than a month.

"These guys are really stubborn, and they still haven't wanted to surrender?" Looking at the blue-gray castle above me, which was almost integrated with the rocks, I let out a sigh of emotion. It's not the work of a wise man, and I've always liked a combination of political strategy.

"Shimazu rebelled against the imperial court and never looked back, it seems that he is really guilty of death and cannot be punished!" Otomo said through gritted teeth behind me, and even though I didn't look back, I could fully imagine the expression on his face at the moment. "As early as the Shimazu Tadaya era, the Shimazu family began to systematically encroach on the lands of the surrounding neighboring countries, and the guardians, landlords, and acting officials appointed by the imperial court never took them seriously. It is also cruel and cruel, and countless people have been wiped out by the original wealthy family. Today, I am fortunate to have His Royal Highness Yuzhou come with a victorious division to solve this tired egg danger for my Kyushu. Once again, I plead with you on behalf of all the people of Kyushu, ********! ”

I looked back at him, sighed but nodded at him.

This guy has been pretty much man-to-man defensively against me these days, except that he always dangles in front of my eyes at night. I know very well what he thinks, that is, to eliminate Shimazu and dominate Kyushu!

I also pretended to have inadvertently tested him about what to do with the Hokyushu territories that Maori had recaptured, and whether he had a plan for the guardians and acting officials of the various feudal states and prefectures. But this old guy's "threshold" is very fine, and he immediately pretended to be crazy and stupid with me, saying that he would be loyal to the imperial court wholeheartedly and follow His Royal Highness the Inner Palace, and these things would definitely be acted in accordance with the decrees and military orders, even if he was the representative of the imperial court and His Royal Highness the Inner Palace, he could also do it, and he had no opinion at all!

Having no opinion at all means not supporting it, and not planning to participate in the relocation of local wealthy families, isn't this just a joke to see me? Okay, old boy! One day, if I don't let you completely obey me, I'll quit Kyushu forever!

"The only person who knows my intentions is His Royal Highness Otomo, but I hope His Highness can also forgive me!" I let out a long sigh and took two steps forward to sit on a large rock. There was standing water on the stones, and the attendants immediately spread the mats before me. "I'm born cautious, the people of Kyushu can only be trusted by His Royal Highness Otomo, and the affairs of Kyushu can only be trusted by His Royal Highness Otomo!"

"Yes, His Royal Highness Xie Yuzhou's trust in the Otomo family!" Seeing that I motioned for him to follow two steps and sit down beside me on the head of another quick matter, he made a grateful expression.

"But some things ......" I looked at him, and his acting skills were indeed very hot.

It is rumored that this Otomo Zonglin has become unconscious, and all his intelligence and physical strength have been spent on a woman's belly, and he will no longer be the hero he used to be. I thought otherwise, it may be true that he was obsessed with women, but he must not underestimate this mountain tiger back then. He may have done some perverse things in the past two years, but more often because of the confusion of a powerful person on the verge of old age, which is not uncommon in ancient and modern times, including some of our idol-level figures. However, when the Otomo family was in danger of destruction, he regained his extreme shrewdness, first quickly gaining the trust of Oda Nobunaga, and then shaking his head at me, the commander of the dispatch army, but in fact he was ready to regain control of Kyushu again. My conclusion is that the person of Otomo Sorin, is definitely not simple!

"Some things are not what I want to do!" I said "helplessly" and "sincerely" that I decided to use "pessimism" against his "naivety". "The Shimazu clan has been a famous family in Kyushu for four or five hundred years, and its roots can be described as deep, and there are not a few wealthy families in the five southern countries who sympathize with and support them, so we must be cautious. In addition, several generations of Shimazu family masters have a natural temperament, and they have a lot of funding for swordsmanship schools such as the body and the show, and although these people are just wild warriors, they are also a lot of force in the countryside. This time, if the Shimazu family is completely wiped out without any preparation, once there is a storm, not to mention large and small rebellions, it will not be so easy to deal with in terms of law and order alone. His Royal Highness the Inner Mansion doesn't have so many troops stationed in Kyushu, so I'm afraid you won't be so easy at that time, Your Highness Otomo! ”

"His Royal Highness Yuzhou...... Loyal to the country, this insight is really not something I can understand! Otomo Sorin, with a slight bow to me, but he stole a sweat from his forehead underneath, he didn't want others to notice this, but I saw it anyway. It seems that he understands the "profound" meaning of my words, and I am very happy with that.

"But His Royal Highness Otomo doesn't have to worry, after all, the future affairs of Kyushu will still be dominated by you!" I saw that the heat was almost over, so I threw out a "sweet jujube", and there is pressure and hope to be free to retract and release. “…… Logically speaking, I shouldn't say this, but I think it's just a matter of one day earlier and one day later. Your Royal Highness Otomo has never been to Kyoto, but the imperial court still has a high opinion of you, especially His Royal Highness the Inner Palace, who thinks that His Royal Highness is the 'stone of stability' in Kyushu. I also hope that His Royal Highness will continue to serve the imperial court, and in the future, His Royal Highness will rely on more and more places! ”

"I am grateful for the kindness of His Royal Highness the Inner Palace, and the Otomo family will never forget Your Highness's love!" Otomo Sorin's gratitude said.

"Let's join hands and be loyal to the court!" I replied to him in the tone of a "public servant".

Of course, he may not believe what I say, but at least it will be influenced by some of his decision. People are like this, they may scoff at the temptation of high risk rates, but they will definitely keep remembering it later.

"Your Royal Highness, is it possible for our army to attack Satsuma through Higo?" I looked at the grass on the ground and suddenly asked, and a drop of rain slipped down the blade of grass and landed on my shoe.

"This ...... It's really hard to say! Otomo Sorin pondered for a moment, not daring to give a clear answer at once. Higo Ichigo, a hereditary domain of the Sagara family, was favored by many local wealthy clans. I thought that even if the Shimazu family captured it, it would be difficult to rule, but I thought that after so many years, it would be over. Therefore, I don't dare to say that I will die, but His Highness can also send someone to contact there first. After all, more than 20,000 people of the Shimazu army are still trapped in the city, and our army has no way to draw out too many troops to attack Higo! ”

"Send someone over...... That's a great idea! I looked up with a smile and casually pointed behind him. I've already sent someone to contact Higo's forces, and he's back now! ”

"Oh?" Surprised, Nakatomo Zonglin instinctively turned around, only to see a white-clothed monk walking towards here surrounded by guards.

"Meet the lord, meet His Royal Highness Otomo!" Because it had just rained and the ground was very wet, the still water ghost fox was very lazy to perform a Buddhist ceremony.

"Well, is anyone willing to come over?" As soon as I came up, I asked straight to the point, but my tone was not very urgent.

"Weichen is ashamed that he failed to achieve the lord's intentions!" The still water ghost fox's face turned red, and after a sigh, he said, "Originally, the matter has already been resolved, and the three lords have promised to surrender to our army and contact other people. But later, I don't know what happened, some lower-class retainers and wild samurai instigated a large number of ashigaru and lords, and killed all three. They even took the initiative to accept the Shimazu Army into Higo and organized a self-defense force with a large number of people participating. The enthusiasm of the people turned into a pinch in one day and one night, and the other wealthy families naturally did not dare to move when they saw this situation! ”

"Are there many Shimazu troops who have entered Higo?" I asked.

"There are about 10,000 of them, but most of them are newly organized peasant soldiers!" He thought for a moment and then added, "Many of Shimazu's reinforcements were deserters who were defeated at Ogawa a month ago, and after entering Higo, they slandered the character of the lord. Although it's all nonsense such as eating man-eating monsters, it really achieves the effect of hating the same enemy. Now the territory of Higo has really reached a state where all the people are soldiers, and even the elderly, women and children have taken up arms! ”

"Interesting, so interesting!" It seemed to me that this strategy was very familiar, as if it was enclosed in the farthest depths of memory. I don't remember what it is, but I have a faint sense of "intimacy". "Do you know who's in charge?" I really wanted to meet this person.

"I haven't figured this out, and there aren't any high-ranking people among the Shimazu generals who have entered Higo!"

"It seems that the Shimazu family not only did not get confused because the four brothers were trapped, but on the contrary, they began to fight back in an orderly manner!" I stood up and smiled and asked Otomo Sorin, "Your Highness, do you know who this person is?" ”

"Nope! I don't know if there will be anyone in the Shimazu family who can have such a means! His face turned a little pale.

"It seems that this matter must be handled carefully, and there will be other changes in it!" I looked to the west, and it was the direction of Higo. "I'll leave it to the clan here! I would like to ask His Royal Highness Otomo to join me and divide 30,000 troops to return to Funai Castle temporarily. Now that they've made their choice, I can't afford to be out of shape! ”