I stayed at YGIKAN until March, and then the additions to Sumoto Castle and Yura Castle were completed, and Xiujing and I moved in. Soon after, Iwaya Castle, the Iwamatsu Wari Prefecture, was completed, marking the completion of the defense system of Awaji Province. By this time, I was finally able to muster enough troops to help Nobuyasu Ataka fulfill my promise.

However, I didn't come forward personally, but only supported Ataka Nobuyasu in rebuilding an army of several hundred people, and then sent the Kumano Navy under the command of Mitsunari Futami, and the auxiliary forces under the command of Masakatsu Wasuka - the maintenance castle that was scheduled for him was about to start to be built anyway.

Last time the Miyoshi family turned around, Iwamatsu Jingding and Futami Mitsunari commanded the naval army to block the Akashi Strait, and they did a very good job. I think that if it is not a big decisive battle in the future, it will be completely possible for them to read and go on the expedition. Therefore, I also want to give Wasuka Masakatsu a chance to lead the Marine Army on his own.

In addition to the respective military strength of the three of them, the three demons of Owase Castle were also dispatched, with a total strength of 5,000 people, with Wasuka Masakatsu as the general, Ataka Nobuyasu and the three demons as the deputy generals, and Futami Hikari became the commissioner.

After discussion, the four of them decided to choose Kimoto Castle of the Kimoto Ura Arima family as the breakthrough point. This castle is located in the middle of the Horiuchi family's Shinmiyagi Castle and the three oni family's Owase Castle.,It's said to be the castle of the Arima family.,The lord of the castle is actually the adopted son who was welcomed from the Horiuchi family.,This is the second son of the Horiuchi clan tiger Nanruaka.。 In other words, this castle where the Ma family lived, as well as the territory of the nearby Arima family, were completely in the hands of the Horiuchi family; And if you take this city, it will be equivalent to cutting off the right wing of the Horiuchi family.

In addition, Mitsunari Futami also put forward a proposal to encircle the point and send reinforcements, planning to occupy a favorable terrain outside Kimoto Castle, have a decisive battle with the Horiuchi family, and rely on superior combat power to defeat the Horiuchi family in one fell swoop. This suggestion was well received, and the battle began on the banks of the Ido River, four or five hundred meters east of Kimoto Castle, with Wasuka Masakatsu and Ataka Nobuyasu occupying the east bank of the Ido River to meet the Horiuchi family forces who had crossed the river.

However, no one expected that the war would soon be over. Since the eldest son of the Horiuchi Tiger was killed in the first round of attacks, and the Horiuchi Tiger is too old to have any more children, there is only one direct heir left in the family, the second son Yuma Nanruo, who is currently trapped in Kimoto Castle. After seeing the power of Fubei, Shitora felt that he was not sure to lift the siege of Kimoto Castle and rescue his only remaining son, so he had to sue for peace with Wasuka Masakatsu and Ataka Nobuyasu, and on the condition of giving up the territory of the Arima family, he welcomed back the second son who was sent to the Arima family to inherit the family business and changed his name to Horiuchi Zenzen.

By the time I took the time to return to Mie County and pass through the Kumano area, Nobuyasu Ataka had already established himself and started to run his own forces. Then I stayed at Owase Castle for a long time, listened to the reports of the four of them, and continued to Mie Castle to wait for Naotora to give birth.

According to my estimated due date, it was almost the last time.

A few days later, Naohu gave birth to a girl who I named Wazu, because Naohu was conceived in Izumi country. When she saw Mitsu in Yuno City, she was already aware of it, so when she heard that Mitsu was inconvenient to go out to greet her, she guessed that it was because of pregnancy.

When I think of what happened, I still feel a little uncomfortable, but fortunately, Mitsu has a good physique, and after coming to Mie Castle, her body has recovered well, which is a blessing.

And the physique of the straight tiger is simply not ordinarily strong. The day after giving birth to Kazu, she went to the martial arts training ground, saying that it had been abandoned for several months and that she had to recover as soon as possible. Moreover, she even decided on Hejin's marriage, and was ready to marry Jingyi Xuanzhi when she grew up.

"In this way, the Jing family will be more peaceful, and the connection with the family will be closer!" She wisted.

"You mean to say that Hu Song will wait for Hejin all the time, when she is old enough to marry? …… Will this be too long? "I questioned her arrangement.

"What's the matter, Hu Song is only ten years old, and when Hejin is thirteen years old, he will be twenty-three years old, and the age is just right!"

“…… Well, as you said," I agreed, "but I thought you'd let your daughter do what you did." ”

"It's better for a woman to marry," Zhihu sighed, "After meeting His Highness, the concubine body understands." ”

"I'm relieved to hear you say that...... Actually, I hesitated before, because I felt that your posture under the cherry blossoms of Fenglai Temple was the most radiant. I laughed.

"Your Highness said so, the concubine body must recover as soon as possible." Naohu also showed a bright smile.

"Well, you will be in charge of the city defense after that, and there are a few children in the family, and the martial arts have also been entrusted to you!"

"The concubine must do her best." Naotora nodded.

I thought about it for a moment and decided to reveal something to her: "After the farming is over, there may be a fierce battle between the main hall and Long Island. When the time comes, I'll probably be in Awaji Province, so I'll entrust you here. When necessary, it is advisable to blockade the territory to prevent groups of people from going to Long Island to follow, and also prevent groups of outsiders from coming in to incite. ”

Zhihu thought seriously for a moment: "Listening to His Highness say this, it is indeed very possible. Last year, Ichisho Sect invaded Owari, and forced His Royal Highness Oda Nobuyuki to cut his stomach, and with the surname of the main hall, he will definitely not stop there...... However, why entrust a concubine? These things are the duty of the Lord! ”

"I'm worried about Nana," I sighed.

"Because Madame believes in the Sect?" Zhihu shook his head and retorted, "The concubine feels that the lady will never affect the affairs of the family because of her beliefs. She has always been a very knowledgeable person, and this time she was born in Hejin, and she also went to the Bodhi Temple at home to pray for blessings. That's the Shingon Buddhist temple! ”

"I believe that," I nodded, "but she is very kind-hearted, and may inadvertently do something sympathetic to the members of the sect, so it is only convenient for you to dissuade her, for you are both a family member and the head of your own family...... Otherwise, if the matter spreads, with the hatred of the main hall for the Yizong sect, it will definitely be dissatisfied with the dishes, which is very unfavorable to the family. ”

"Yes. The concubine received the order. Zhihu replied solemnly.

……，…… After explaining the affairs of the family, I returned to Awaji Province with Konatsu, who was entangled. Not long after I stayed there, news came that there was a change in Long Island.

The matter is still provoked by Nagashima Yizong. Following their invasion of Owari at the end of last year, they have made even more noise this time, with a total of 100,000 people, led by the three people who were stationed at Honganji, Shimoma Yoridan, the abbot of the temple, and Kuaki, the abbot of Hosenji. Many of the remnants of the daimyo and wealthy clans who were destroyed by Nobunaga and I were involved in the vicinity, including Saito Ryuko of the Saito family, Hiroshi Mineno, Hiroshi Honano, the younger brother of Hiroshi Honano Morisho, the remnants of the Hattori Party, Hattori Masamitsu, and Umedo Takashi, Yuya Ito, and Kanno Oki of the Ise Forty-Eight Families. Even the Ashikaga clan and the Ishihashi Yoshitada of the Mikawa Ishibashi family, who were wiped out by Tokugawa Ieyasu, crossed Ise Bay and crossed the ocean to join in the fun, and the remnants of the Kitabatake family also supported Kitabatake Guqin, the head of the East Gate of Yamato Kofukuji Temple and the third brother of Kitabatake, in an attempt to restore the territory, making Kitabatake Nobuo anxious.

Naturally, this huge movement could not escape Nobunaga's ears and eyes. On 12 May, before Nagashima could start an incident, Nobunaga preemptively dispatched 50,000 troops to attack Nagashima in two directions, in order to avenge the invasion of the territory and the death of his brother at the end of last year.

Kitabatake Nobuo in Southern Ise needed to deal with Kitabatake, Nagano Fujitsu in Central Ise needed to support Nobuo, and I in Northern Ise drew all our troops to Awaji Province, so Nobunaga did not gather troops from Ise, and all the 50,000 people he led were gathered from Owari and Mino.

Among the important ministers of the county and the prefecture above, I want to monitor the Miyoshi family who is temporarily harmonious, Niwa Nagahide wants to monitor the Asakura family who is temporarily harmonious, and Hagura Hideyoshi wants to monitor the Asai family who are about to move, and once he and Higuchi Naobo repelled Nagamasa's crusade against Horihide Village's army, Murai Sadakatsu and Naomasa Tsukasa want to stabilize Kyoto, Akechi Mitsuhide wants to look at the Enryakuji Temple of Hieiyama in the county, Hayashi Hidesada has been playing soy sauce in recent years, and Mori Nagako is still a child...... In this way, the only ones who can be dispatched are Shibata Katsuie, Sakuma Nobumori, Takigawa Kazuki and Mizuno Nobumoto. Nobunaga was all summoned, and Sakuma Nobumori and Mizuno Nobumoto served as the generals and lieutenants of the Owari group, and led Asai Masadada, Yamada Katsumori, Hasegawa Yoji, Wada Tadashi, and Nakajima Toyogo Mamoru to attack from the Owari side; Mino, with Shibata Katsuie as the general and Takigawa Kazuki as the deputy general, led the clan Bu Quan, Inaba Ryotsu, Ando Seiji, Fupo Mitsuji, Ichihashi Nagatoshi, Iinuma Nagatsugu, and Maru Mao Nagasho down the Nagara River to attack from Ota Pass on the west coast of Nagashima; Nobunaga led the main camp, and Oda Nobubo commanded in Tsushima.

It turns out that Nobunaga underestimated the power of the 100,000 Sho Sect devotees, the Saga mercenaries, and the ronin samurai clan. After four days of fighting, we were still unable to gain a foothold on the island, so Nobunaga had to order the people to set fire to the nearby villages and evacuate along the road they came. As a result, the Owari people on the east bank quickly and smoothly broke away from the battle; The Mino, who retreated along the Nagara River from the west bank, encountered great difficulties because of the unfamiliar terrain, and then fell into the joint encirclement of the local believers and the Saga people in Ise-in Bengun, and the general Shibata Katsuya fought and retreated, and was seriously injured by the iron cannon of the Saga people, and even his own Ergejin military flag was taken away, but fortunately, Takigawa Ichiyi stabilized the army, and because he had taken charge of the Northern Ise strategy, he had a slight idea of the nearby terrain, so he led the army to evacuate smoothly, and the clan Bu Quan, who was in charge of the broken back, died in the battle array.

When the news of the defeat reached the city of Zhouben, I could only express my helplessness. I am not yet able to control a war of this magnitude, or rather, I am not very willing to participate.

Most of the so-called 100,000 troops are just peasants around Long Island, who can really abandon everything they have, and even give their lives, for the sake of the Dharma lord and the owner of the mill, they are all very pitiful people. There were even many women and children, known as the "Foot Weak", who also fought and charged with the young men...... I really can't attack these people.

But there is something hateful about the wretched. Although these people are not strong in combat alone, most of them are diehards who are stubborn and cannot be persuaded at all. The reason why the Sect was able to wreak havoc everywhere was because of these self-righteous fanatical believers. If the owners and owners of the Dharma are the flames that light the fire everywhere, they are the best firewood and grass, although they are not very inconspicuous, but if you are not careful, the flames of these firewood and grass will burn you alive.

Of course, the most hateful thing is those Dharma masters and owners, who, in order to maintain the honor and enjoyment of generations, often incite the other party's people to engage in a constant rebellion, using human lives as a shield, but they themselves hide in the temple safely and recite Buddhist scriptures for the dead, even if they have fulfilled their responsibilities. This kind of behavior has been fiercely criticized by Hyotaro Ashina before, although it is extreme, but it is not outrageous, it is his personal experience for more than ten years...... I don't know if Nobunaga will think of me at this time, and whether he will consider calling me back to Kita-Ise to preside over the siege of Nagashima. But my situation here has also become very unoptimistic, and I can't get out of it.

The rules of this era are extremely realistic. If the Shin Long March wins the battle against Nagashima, then there will be no turmoil in Kinai, and even a few conspirators will hide their minds for the time being. However, Nobunaga failed, and after this defeat at home, his reputation was seriously damaged, and some people in Kinai immediately saw the opportunity and became ready to move.

The first person who is not calm is Ashikaga Yoshiaki. Although he had a honeymoon with Nobunaga, after so long, the feeling of gratitude had faded and was replaced by resentment at Nobunaga's repeated persecution. And Nobunaga is indeed a little unkind, the two imperial letters in the palace the year before and last year almost completely deprived Yoshiaki of his power as a general...... Perhaps, Nobunaga didn't think about Yoshiaki's feelings at all. And thinking of this, Yoshiaki must be even more annoyed!

Yoshiaki's imperial land is basically only a mountain city, plus a part of Tanba, but he has considerable appeal in Kinai. If it had been some time ago, it would have been difficult for Yoshiaki to encourage these wealthy families who were accustomed to defecting to the strong, but now, Nobunaga has suffered a defeat at Nagashima's doorstep, so the grass on the wall inevitably has doubts: Will Oda Danmasa collapse? Will Gongkata take the opportunity to take control of Kinai?

No wonder they hesitate. For decades, the Great King Banner has changed in Kinai, not once or twice. In the past, Hosokawa Takakuni, Ouchi Yoshiko, Miyoshi Chokei, etc., were all hot when they gained power, but often a big defeat could make their power in Kinai disappear.

Moreover, looking at the current comparison of power in the various sub-regions of Kinai, it is difficult to say who has the advantage between Oda Nobunaga and Ashikaga Yoshiaki. Yamashiro Province is Yoshiaki's imperial requirement, but there are two members of the Oda family, Naomasa and Murai Sadakatsu, who serve as the county representatives; Among the two guardians of Hanoi Country, Miyoshi Yoshitsugu is Yoshiaki's sister-in-law, Hatakeyama Akitaka is Nobunaga's sister-in-law, and Hosokawa Akimoto, who recently defected to Nobunaga. In Tsutsu, there are Wada Yumasa who has completely defected to Nobunaga, and there is also the Ikeda family who has ill intentions, and in the Ikeda family, it is still a question of who has the final say between Ikeda Tomomasa and Araki Murashige; Tanba Province generally supported Yoshiaki, but Minami Omi was Nobunaga; As for Yamato, Matsunaga Shu is undoubtedly stronger than the Tsutsui family, but does anyone know what the old guy is thinking? There's also Kii, which is almost a three-way zone.

There are not many people who can see the situation clearly; People who can further judge the trend can be said to be rare.

……，…… One day in mid-June, a small fleet arrived at the castle under the banner of an Otaku family. When I arrived, I found out that it was someone from Mie County, and he was very old—it was Masaji Watanabe, who was in charge of receiving me when I first met Kawanami.

He's helping Maeno Nagayasu patrol Isewan, and he can't get to me at work unless he has something else to report. However, he is also a person with a territory of several hundred stones now, and he has a duty, how can he be a messenger? This makes me wonder.

Unexpectedly, he knelt down as soon as they met: "Lord, something big has happened in Sanchong City, please go back and deal with it as soon as possible!" ”

"What is it? Whose business? I hurriedly asked, feeling a little foreboding in my heart.

"It's Lady Ishitani!"

"What's going on! Does it have anything to do with the Ichikotsu? I stood up all at once.

"Yes......" Watanabe Masahji bowed his head, "it was Madame Naotora who sent her ministers." Mrs. Naohu said she was sorry! ”

"What the hell is going on......" I wanted to ask first, but I couldn't help but be upset, and at the same time clenched my fists nervously. Anyway, it's definitely a big trouble to get involved with Yizong now...... Really, how did Zhihu do things, didn't he tell her in advance!

"Forget it! I'm going back to Mie Castle! "In the end, I made a decision.

So, I hurriedly gathered dozens of personal guards, explained a few words to Xiujing, and then arranged a fast fleet.

At this time, I had the time to inquire about the whole process in detail.

The whole thing started nearly a decade ago. At that time, I was still serving as the Tsushima commissioner, and I lived in the earliest Kamikawa Castle, and Nana had only married me for a short time, and she often ran around in the territory, and met many people, and was very loved by them.

However, that piece is close to Long Island, and most of the people are naturally believers in the sect, and this time it has always been a one-time sect, and many people have participated in it. Although Nagashima was victorious in the end, the believers did not receive any compensation, but were captured by the current lord Oda Nobubo and had to leave their homeland. At this time, a few families thought of the kindness of the former "Shangchuan Palace", and heard that my territory was very rich, so they dragged their families to defect.

Because of the small number of people, they did not encounter an interrogation, and smoothly entered the collar, and met the dishes that went to the Bodhi Temple to worship on the first day of the decade. Nana took pity on their plight, and because they were old people in the early days, they arranged for them to live in Bodhi Temple, and entrusted the abbot Suifeng (Ashina Hyotaro) to take care of them. Although Suifeng hated those Buddhist scum, he had no prejudice against the poor believers, but was willing to give alms, so he accepted the commission of Caicai.

(To be continued)