Inside the monk's house at Tokoji Temple.

Takeda Katsuyori took the Izumi Shoukan Sword from Li Xiao's hand, reached out and wiped the scabbard, then looked at Li Xiao's eyes, and said: "Li Xiao, this knife alone cannot assert that my father has the intention of inheriting the Takeda family's governor." ”

"Oh, why?" Li Xiao would love to hear Takeda's own reasoning.

Takeda Katsuyori said solemnly: "Father, it will never be easy for people to guess his thoughts. He gave me Ai Dao and Izumi Maruji, probably to warn my brother and let him know that he is motivated. After all, it is not easy to change the position of the family. ”

Li Xiao nodded, and said in his heart that Takeda Katsuyori had made progress, if he had said in the past that Takeda Shingen intended to pass on the throne to him, Takeda Katsuyori would definitely be happy.

"Your Highness, do you still have the determination to inherit your family's business?"

"Yes." Takeda Katsuyori looked at Li Xiao's eyes and replied firmly.

Li Xiao smiled and said, "Your Highness Shenglai, then why are you in charge of the Takeda family's business?" ”

Takeda Katsuyori was stunned, this question was in Kawanakajima, and he ran to Li Xiaojun's tent late at night, and he had already asked himself.

Takeda Katsuyori thought about it, and replied with his original words: "My brother Yoshinobu, his courage and ability are not enough to take charge of the Takeda family, and the Takeda family will be defeated one day in his hands, and I am more suitable than him." Li Xiao, what do you think? ”

Li Xiao smiled slightly when he heard this, and said: "Your Highness Shenglai, please forgive me for being blunt, you are telling the truth, and I agree with it too, but this does not become a reason to convince the lord and the retainers. ”

"Why?" Katsuyori Takeda asked anxiously.

Li Xiao said slowly: "This family is no longer the time of creation, now there are many good ministers and famous generals, tens of thousands of soldiers in battle, the territory of the two countries, even if His Royal Highness Yixin is not capable, but as long as the retainers of the Takeda family are willing to return to him, even if they can't enter the hegemony, they can protect themselves and stick to the territory when they take a step back." In the eyes of the lord and the retainers, a stable system is better than a capable and courageous monarch. That's why I said that the reason of ability and courage cannot be used to explain them. ”

Takeda Katsuyori thought for a while and said, "Yes, a stable system is better than a capable and courageous monarch. My Takeda family is a retainer group collegiate system, and even if my brother makes an unwise move in the future, the retainers will correct it. But then, will I never succeed to the throne of the head of the family? ”

"Not necessarily, at the beginning, Xinhu Gong can be described as heroic and heroic, for the sake of his family, he has destroyed many heroes in the south and the north, and his ability and courage are not strong, but why did the retainers exile him? Very simply, the reason is that he indiscriminately killed his retainers and abused the people, so he lost the hearts of the people. Therefore, if you want to replace His Highness Yoshinobu, the first way to replace His Highness Yoshinobu is to make His Highness Yoshinobu lose his morality, so that the lord and his retainers will be disappointed in him. ”

Takeda Katsuyori's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he asked, "But how can you make him unvirtuous?" Is it waiting for an opportunity? I can't control everything by myself, and I'm really not at ease. ”

Li Xiao smiled and said, "There is no need to be anxious, you must know that His Royal Highness Yixin will always be confused, and he will not let us down." And even if His Highness Yoshinobu doesn't make mistakes himself, we can help him do the same. But before Yoshishin makes a mistake, His Highness Katsurai, you must hurry up and make yourself strong enough, and when you are strong enough to threaten the position of Prince Yoshinobu, you can replace him when the time comes. ”

Takeda Katsuyori nodded, then sat up straight, listening intently, and waited for Li Xiao's next words.

Li Xiao raised the cup in front of him and took a sip of water, thinking for a moment of the endless incidents of seizing the heirs in Chinese history, and thinking that when it comes to political struggles, the experience of our ancestors must lie in the thinking level of the people of this era.

Li Xiaoyan said: "Your Highness, the inheritance of the throne is the foundation of the rise and fall of the family, and if it is not replaced properly, how many powerful countries will collapse in an instant. There is an ancient saying in the Ming Dynasty that those who do not seek eternity are not enough to seek a moment; Those who do not seek the overall situation are not enough to seek a city. Therefore, we must take the long-term view, in addition to His Highness's seizure of the throne, we must also ensure that the family is not subject to major turmoil in the midst of chaos, and in the process of changing forces and redividing interests in the future, the losses are minimized.

After a pause, Li Xiao said: "Your Highness doesn't want to take over a mess in the future, just because in order to ensure that Your Highness takes over the Takeda family from the hands of the lord, the Takeda family is the most complete family business." That's why I said that His Highness must become strong, strong enough to replace His Highness Yoshinobu. ”

Takeda Katsuyori was restless by Li Xiao's words, and said hurriedly: "Li Xiao, you have been talking for a long time, but you still haven't said how to make me strong." ”

Li Xiao laughed when he heard this, and said: "Your Highness, don't worry, what I mean by strong actually means that Your Highness has to win over Your Highness in three aspects, and you must have enough places to defeat His Highness Yixin." ”

"First of all, the support of the lord," Li Xiao raised a finger and said, "It is true that what the lord thinks in his heart, we can't guess, but he is now disappointed in His Highness Yixin, and it is precisely at this time that you have given the lord an unexpected and even shocking surprise performance." In any case, he will unconsciously compare you to His Highness Yoshinobu. But whether there is any idea of replacing you with His Highness Yoshishin, it is not known. But Your Highness, you must continue to win over your lordship, so that he will have a good impression of you and completely favor your side. ”

Katsuyori Takeda nodded, indicating understanding.

Li Xiao continued: "The second is the support of the Takeda family's retainers. This includes enlisting the support of the retainers of the family, the retainers of the lineage, and the retainers of the outer. We have to take a different approach to this. This is crucial, and I'll talk to you about that later.

"The last and most critical one is the comparison between Your Highness's own strength and His Royal Highness Yixin's, what you have to do is to rely on Your Highness's own merits, talent, benevolence, and the thickness of the existing retainers' team, which completely surpasses His Highness Yixin."

"In the battle of Shirane Mountain, Your Highness, you decided to die in the palace, and broke Uesugi Kenshin, this move not only won the respect of the retainers of Takeda and earned enough fame, but more importantly, the trust and expectations of the lord and lord for you."

However, while defeating Kenshin Uesugi was a courageous act, it did not bring any tangible benefits to the Takeda family. But if His Royal Highness can capture the half of the country of Nishiueno for the Takeda family in the future strategy of the West Ueno, such a feat, no one can beat the horse, and when the high merit is high and the Lord is shaken, do you think that His Royal Highness Yoshinobu will be able to sit firmly in the position of the prince? With the narrow-mindedness of His Royal Highness Yixin, he will naturally make a stupid move and make the act of digging his own grave. ”

After Takeda Katsuyori heard Li Xiao say this, he had a feeling that his eyes suddenly brightened, but he hesitated for a while and said, "But father, I may not be in charge of the matter of attacking Nishiueno." ”

Li Xiao laughed when he heard this, and said: "Lord Lord, these days will definitely summon the heroes who made meritorious contributions to the battle of Baigen Mountain, and I will have a way to persuade Lord Lord when the time comes." ”