71. Cadre assessment and appointment
After the Battle of Tobucho, the Oda army continued to march, but the next day Oda Nobunaga ordered the entire army to stop at the border at Mino. The troops turned around and set up a position, and supplies and equipment were continuously transported from Qibu Castle, which had the taste of a life-and-death duel with Asakura and Asai. Under this aggressive momentum, the enemy gradually became hesitant, and according to the latest news from the ninja, Asai Nagamasa was closed, and Asakura's pursuers slowed down.
The victory at Tobu-cho can be said to be of considerable significance, as the foolproof flanking attacks of Asakura and Asai were broken, and the sneak attack behind Asai Nagamasa was instead thrown into chaos, not only losing troops and losing generals, but also the territory in Minami-Omi was in crisis. Now Oda Nobunaga is not only stranded in Kita-Omi, but instead sends out a letter to attract friends and call friends, with a posture of not reluctantly.
In this case, my life was quite comfortable, and I relaxed my feelings by swimming in the mountains and rivers. Although Keiji Maeda and the others didn't seem to have calmed down from their excitement, Hanbei Takenaka and I began to arrange the return trip with a similar mind. Although Oda Nobunaga held military meetings from time to time, he never made any practical arrangements, despite the loud slogans.
Summer has entered the deepest days, and I often wander around the camp gate with Shinhachiro and Sango attendants, and on this day I actually ran into Oda Nobunaga, who was also lightly armed.
"It's so light!" Oda Nobunaga said with squinted eyes at me, who bowed in front of me. "I heard that you are very relaxed in the past few days, and the troops have been de-prepared and entered a state of repair?"
"Yes! ......"I pretended not to hear the sarcasm in his words. "The troops have just experienced a big war, and without mediation, I am afraid it is not conducive to continuing the war!"
"Oh, is that so?" The attendant laid a mat on the stone under a pine tree, and Oda Nobunaga sat down on it and beckoned to Shinhachiro behind me. "Your name is Shinhachiro, right? You did well that day at the Great Barrier! ”
"Thank you for the compliment!" Shinhachiro stepped forward to intervene in the salute, and he was still a child, and his face was flushed with excitement.
"If I tell you to lead an army to attack Asai Nagamasa now, do you dare to go?" Oda Nobunaga asked with a smile.
"Of course you dare!" Shinhachiro shouted at the interface that he didn't want to think about. "May I ask where you want me to fight?"
"Go! While staying there, the main hall is joking! After reprimanding Shinhachiro, I said to Oda Nobunaga, "Children don't know the depths, so please don't be surprised!" ”
"The truth often comes out of a child's mouth!" Oda Nobunaga also retreated, pointing to his side and motioning for me to sit down. "Do you say the troops really need to be repaired?"
"Repairs are still necessary, but if the lord wants to fight, his subordinates can also lead his troops into battle! But ...... "At this point, I deliberately stopped.
"You just have to say anything!" Oda Nobunaga picked up a small branch from the ground and gently tore the pine needles on it.
"My subordinate has an idea a few days ago, but it's hard to mention it to my lord...... "I took a deep breath and licked my lips." The subordinates thought that in the current situation, it was not the time to fight with Asai Nagamasa and Asakura Yoshikei! ”
"Do you think our army is no match for Asai and Asakura?"
"My subordinates don't mean that!" I peeked at Oda Nobunaga's face, and although he was serious, he was not angry. "The subordinates thought that although Asakura and Asai were hateful, they could still be put aside compared to the great cause of the lord's martial arts. Asakura and Asai occupy only one country, and even if they recuperate in time, their power will not be over-inflated! And the lord not only firmly controls the three large countries of more than 500,000 koku in Owari, Mino, and Ise, but also the five countries of and Minami Omi are now also dependent on the lord, and what is lacking is only digestion and absorption, so it will be more advantageous for the lord to hold on! ”
"Go on!" Oda Nobunaga didn't look at me, threw away the pine branch in his hand and looked at Lake Biwa in the distance.
"If the decisive battle is held now, Asai and Asakura will certainly fall apart, but what can the lord gain?" Seeing his attitude, I grew bolder. "In the short term, there will inevitably be a shortage of troops, and a large number of troops will be occupied in order to control the newly acquired Kita-Omi and Echizen. Once the control of the countries is relaxed, who will benefit? Honganji is bound to make a big deal, and the Miyoshi family will also make a comeback, and there will be ...... Some careerists will not let go of the opportunity to fish in troubled waters! This is only for now, in the long run, Takeda, Mori and these people will not wait forever, it is a matter of time before Kamiraku, if the lord can't fully control the five countries of at that time, then it will be a big deal! ”
"You mean Shomanaga Hide, right?" Oda Nobunaga retracted his gaze, looked at me and nodded, and said, "He has been persuading me with Gonroku and them to attack Asai Nagamasa immediately!" ”
"It turns out that the lord has already investigated, but his subordinates are worried!" I complimented me at the right time.
"Although I have seen this, I still have a lot of difficulties!" His gaze turned away again. "One more day here is more dangerous, and is more turbulent! But if I don't punish Asai, everyone in the world will laugh at me for Nobunaga's cowardice and incompetence, and will anyone obey my orders? ”
"Looks like you need a step!" I burst out laughing. "I think you can rest assured, someone is more anxious than you?"
"Anxious more than me? Who? Nagamasa Asai is that dog thing? Oda Nobunaga asked.
"Ashikaga Yoshiaki!"
"Ashikaga Yoshiaki?"
"It's Ashikaga Yoshiaki!" I nodded affirmatively. "Ashikaga Yoshiaki, the great general, can be said to be vacillating, although he is dissatisfied with the lord's suppression of him, but he is even more afraid that someone will come and depose him! This time, I dare say that Asakura and Asai teamed up, and he must have played a role in it, but what he didn't expect was the originally cooked ......" I saw Oda Nobunaga's face and hurriedly changed the analogy. "The matter that was set on the board was actually uncertain! I'm afraid that he has become an ant on a hot pot at this moment, and he is afraid that Miyoshi will come back and is afraid of the collapse of Asakura and Asai, maybe he has already asked the court to mediate at this time! ”
"You've thought of a lot of things in front of me, including your opinion of Asai Nagamasa!" After a long silence, he suddenly came up with such a sentence. “…… And there are many things I have mistaken about you, especially your cavalry. It turns out that I have always regarded them as flashy things, thinking that they are just whimsical, but I didn't expect them to have such great power! ”
"It's no wonder that the lord, his subordinates do like to be whimsical and act absurdly sometimes!" I deliberately avoided an in-depth discussion of the cavalry question.
"I also like novelties, which are very similar to the two of us!" Oda Nobunaga's interest was noticeably higher. "But my imagination seems to be much worse than yours, and your armor is a clear example of this!"
"If the lord likes it, his subordinates ......"
"Forget it!" Oda Nobunaga stopped me with a wave of his hand. "I've calculated carefully, I can't wear that armor!"
"Ha, ha, your samurai plot is also mixed with the glitz of the princess!"
"You kid......" Oda Nobunaga was about to teach me a few more lessons, when he suddenly saw an attendant running over.
"Lord......" The squire ran a little out of breath. Hashiba-sama and His Royal Highness Tokugawa are back! ”
"Really!" Oda Nobunaga stood up.
"Lord!" Hashiba Hideyoshi, who was covered in dust, had the urge to cry, and the people behind him, such as Wasuka, Asano, and Horio, were also disgraced.
"Thank you for your hard work!" Oda Nobunaga said in a rare cordial tone, and then turned to Tokugawa Ieyasu. "Thank you, Your Highness Tokugawa, thank you for bringing this monkey back to me!"
"Nobunaga's reputation is too much, and he is ashamed!" Tokugawa Ieyasu is still the kind of humble gentleman. "Thanks to the brave fighting of Lord Yuchai and the generals of the subordinates, this time I only did my best! It was also Nobunaga's army that smashed Asai Nagamasa's interception in one fell swoop, which allowed us to get out of danger safely. It is said that the battle with Asai was thrilling, and I, Ieyasu, admire your martial arts very much! At this point, he glanced at me, intentionally or unintentionally.
"Ha, ha, ha......" Oda Nobunaga laughed heartily. Not bad! Not bad! I, Oda Nobunaga, will never treat meritorious people badly, and I hereby declare that I will promote the Shishi Kiyoshi clan and Hashiba Hideyoshi to be the elders of my Oda family! ”
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The situation was similar to what I expected, and soon the imperial court sent Wan Xiaolu Weifang and Guangqiao Kansheng to mediate. The Asakura army retreated to Echizen, and Oda Nobunaga also returned to Shigibu. After entering the Mino border, the vassal forces gradually dispersed, but before entering Gibu Castle, Oda Nobunaga welcomed an uninvited guest......