And so it was decided. On the second day of February, Nobunaga left Cheongju with 20 people from his mother's clothes and more than 70 people from his side, and me, Xiujing, and Konatsu were among them. After a year in Owari, Natsu and I have improved our horsemanship, and we are now riding the same horse that Masakatsu Wasuka gave us. At this point, we've finished training and don't have anything to do for the time being, so we're all on the line.

A group of more than 100 people traveled southwest along the Tokaido, crossed the Nagara River, and entered the eight counties of Mino Koan. Since it was enemy territory, our group hurried through the territories of Ando Mori and Bu Koji one after another, and arrived at Minami Omi Province. At this point, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Minami Omi Province is currently under the match of Rokkaku Yoshiken, and currently has no interest in Mino and Owari, and will not ally with Saito Yoshiryu until next year, after the defeat of Norada to Asai Kenmasa.

On the 3rd of February, our group arrived in Kyoto. After staying there, Oda Nobunaga ordered Niwa Nagahide, Naomasa Tsukasa, and Beeya Yoritaka to bring a few people from the flanks to prepare gifts for the shogun's visit. But when they returned, they brought back a depressing piece of news.

"When His Majesty was preparing a gift, I heard from the people of Kakukura that Mino Saito Yoshiryu met with His Royal Highness the Shogun last month and obtained the status of a member of the shogunate......"

"What!" Oda Nobunaga suddenly clenched the folding fan in his hand.

The status of the shogunate's judges was extremely high, and it was generally held by a powerful local daimyo, meaning that the person who assisted the shogun in handling local affairs was only under management. In the past few years, Miyoshi Chokei was acting as a judge of the shogunate.

Now that Saito Yoshiryu has obtained the status of a judge, it will be difficult for Oda Nobunaga, who is hostile to him, to get any benefits from the shogunate.

Since reaching a rapprochement with the Miyoshi family, Ashikaga Yoshiki has worked hard for more than a year to rebuild the shogunate and repair relations with powerful daimyo in various regions. He successively granted the guardianship of Chikuzen and Toyozen of Otomo Yoshijo, the guardianship of Mori Takamoto Yasui, the power of Miyoshi Chokei, Yoshiko and Matsunaga Hide, and the mediation of the disputes between Takahisa Shimazu and Otomo Yoshijo, and between Mori Motoon and Haruma Niko, and his personal prestige greatly increased. Mori Terumoto, Date Terumune, and Uesugi Teruma successively worshiped the general's partiality, and many daimyo offered money to the shogunate. These things have made the general's family much better, and the threshold for the audience is getting higher and higher.

Because of this, Niwa Nagahide seemed very worried.

After letting out a sigh of relief, Nobunaga calmed down: "Anyway, let's send a gift first and ask His Royal Highness the General to arrange a reception!" ”

"Yes!" Niwa Nagahide agreed, but the man did not leave.

"What, is there anything else?" Nobunaga asked.

"I heard that there are still people in the Saito family who are still in Kyoto...... When His Majesty came back just now, he seemed to be being followed. Niwa Nagahide said, his eyes drifting to Naomasa and Beeya Yoryu.

"Do your own thing, let them keep track of it!" Nobunaga waved his hand, "Since they want to curry favor with His Highness the Shogun, they will definitely not use force here to provoke the shogunate." ”

But while they don't use force openly, they can stop us in other ways. In a sense, the former approach is a bit more beneficial to us. If they really used force, they would leave a bad impression on the shogunate, and the victory or defeat of the two sides was still undecided; However, if we had done it diplomatically, and because of our close relationship with the shogunate, it would have been difficult to achieve the purpose of our trip.

Since I can think of this, Nobunaga is certainly aware of it. So when Niwa Nagahide and his entourage turned around and brought the news that His Royal Highness the Shogun was busy with official business and could not be separated in the near future, Nobunaga didn't say anything and went back to the room on his own.

The matter was delayed in this way, and two days passed in a flash. During this period, Niwa Nagahide asked the shogunate to meet him twice, and the gifts became more and more generous each time, but His Royal Highness the shogun was always "busy".

On the third day, when Niwa Nagahide reported to Nobunaga and was about to ask to see the shogun again, Nobunaga suddenly stopped me: "Xuanjing, you go with Yonegoro!" ”

"Your Majesty...... With Niwa Senpai? "I'm a little surprised that diplomacy doesn't seem to be my turn.

"Yes, aren't you from the Kira family? Aren't the Kira family and the shogun's family relatives? Nobunaga nodded.

"But my lord, the Mikawa Kira family and the shogun's family are relatives, and below are the people of the Tosa Kira family...... I'm afraid I'll disappoint my lord. I explained.

"Whether it is successful or not, you go first and then talk! I used to ask you to help Migoro after training, but now you should take up the post early. Nobunaga said.

"Yes." I had no choice but to agree and bow to Niwa Nagahide, "Niwa senior, please give me more advice in the future." ”

"His Royal Highness Xuanjing doesn't need to be polite." The good old man replied kindly.

"Okay, okay, let's go do things first!" Oda Nobunaga waved his hand and kicked the two of us out of the room.

I followed Niwa Nagahide to the Nijo Imperial Palace, where the shogun lived, followed by a dozen stables and a few people with gifts. Niwa Nagahide routinely reported his name and "place of work" and presented a gift list. He has done this kind of thing three times, and it is estimated that the flag conveyed should have known him, so he went in to report it with some reluctance. Seeing his expression, Niwa Nagahide turned his head and smiled helplessly at me.

After a while, the flag came out, looked at me in surprise, and then conveyed to Niwa Nagahide, "The palace is just free, please come in and meet you!" ”

"Yes! Thank you for the spread of the word. Niwa Nagahide was overjoyed, ordered the side to bring the gift in, and then followed me to meet the shogun.

The two of us unsheathed our sabers outside the meeting room and went in and sat down cross-legged. After a while, the door in front of the right was opened from the inside, and two royal family members dressed in ceremonial clothes walked in and sat down on either side of the main seat, and then a young man wearing a high black hat and a purple court robe walked in and sat straight on the main seat. We know that this is Ashikaga Yoshiteru, the current shogun of the Muromachi shogunate.

"The foreign minister visits the Gongfang Palace!" Niwa Nagahide and I put our hands on the ground and bowed our heads deeply.

"No courtesy." Yoshiki spoke.

Niwa Nagahide and I raised our heads and put our hands on our knees.

"Which one is Kira Xuanjing?" General Yoshiki asked.

I bowed my head: "The foreign minister is exactly." ”

"Is it from the Mikawa Kira family?" His tone was very kind.

"Back to the Gongfang Palace, the foreign minister is from the Tosa Yoshira family."

"It's from Tosa Province......" Yoshiki nodded, and there seemed to be some disappointment in his tone. Suddenly, he turned his head and asked the person on the left: "Chief, the Tosa Yoshira family, is it under the family of Chozong, right?" ”

The man bowed and replied, "Yes." The current head of the Tosa Yoshira family is none other than His Royal Highness Kira Kinsadada, who passed from the Chosō Ibu family and married the eldest daughter of His Royal Highness Kira Nobunao, the former head of the family......"

Although I had been prepared and realized that Kora would inherit the Kira family sooner or later, I still felt very angry when I heard the news with my own ears.

After accepting Xiao Xia and Xiujing, and meeting my titular mother, Bao Xinyuan, after such a long time, I have fully identified with my identity. And Changzong and my family conspiracy to frame the family in the front, usurp the family business in the back, and forcibly marry my nominal sister, is it tolerable?

What I said before that it didn't matter, I completely forgot about it at this moment. I have only one thought now: Changzong and my family, wait for me!

I gritted my teeth and my face tense. What Ashikaga Yoshiteru said again, I didn't pay attention at all.

“…… His Highness Kira! What a faux pas! The man who was called the elder suddenly scolded, "The palace asked you!" Since he is from the Tosa Kira family, why is he in the Oda family? ”

Hearing his scolding, Niwa Nagahide cast a worried look at me. If I fail to deal with it, I will not only embarrass myself, but I am afraid that this meeting on behalf of the Oda family will not achieve my goal. If this affects my family's diplomacy because of me, then my position in the Oda family is very passive!

I let out a long breath and bowed my head: "Back to the Gongfang Palace, the foreign minister is actually the descendant of the Tosa Yoshira family, and he was only forced by the thieves, so he was exiled. Fortunately, the lord was benevolent and righteous to take him in, and the foreign minister had what he said today...... In today's world, there are not only people who uphold loyalty and righteousness like our lord, but also many rebellious ministers and thieves who rely on their strength to do evil; The palace guards the nations, and it is time to put things in order and maintain the principles of the world......"

"It's so presumptuous! How does the palace act, how can you be a small minister to put a beak? The man named Elder shouted.

However, Ashikaga Yoshiteru, who has always taken the world as his own responsibility, seemed to feel very useful after listening to my words. He stretched out his hand to stop the speech of the people around him, and asked me, "You claim to be a direct descendant, do you have any evidence?" ”

"Go back to the Gongfang Palace. Xuanzhi justice is the father. The foreign minister is the son-in-law of the Kira family, and there is a famous sword Haiyue that has been passed down from generation to generation of the Kira family as evidence. I replied with a salute.

"Haiyue? Well, Yu also heard about it. Can you take the knife with you? Hearing the name of Haiyue, Ashikaga Yoshiteru was a little interested. History records that this sword hero general loves famous swords, and it is indeed true.

"It was before the saber was lowered and the palace was left in the outer room." I replied.

"Bring it up!" Ashikaga Yoshiteru commanded.

Immediately a flag book came in from the outside and presented my saber Haiyue. Ashikaga Yoshiteru held the hilt of the knife and pulled it out in half, and a flash of sword light immediately appeared, illuminating his eyes.

"Sure enough, it's a good knife! What a knife! He praised and couldn't put it down.

I gritted my teeth and made up my mind: "Gongfang Hall Mingjian!" It is not clear who the head of the Tosa Kira family belongs to...... The ministers are courageous, please keep this knife for the public palace first, and then give it after the position of the head of the family is determined! ”

The person who was called the pro-elder listened to my words and seemed to want to say something, but Ashikaga Yoshiteru had already opened his mouth: "In this case, the sea moon will be kept by Yu Dai." Then he put away his knife and placed it in front of him.

"Xie Gongfang's palace is clear!" I bowed.

"By the way, what happened to the Oda family this time?" Ashikaga Yoshiteru asked.

Now it's up to Niwa Nagahide. He owes a debt, presents a gift slip with both hands, and hands it to another attendant: "My lord, His Royal Highness Oda Nobunaga, the head of the house, has always been loyal to the shogunate. This time, he went to Beijing to present two thousand pieces of money and two famous swords to the shogunate. Please be sure to smile at the palace. ”

"Two thousand runs, and a famous knife? Got it. Ashikaga Yoshiteru took the gift slip from the attendant's hand, looked at it, and placed it next to the Umigetsu sword.

"The foreign minister has another subordinate to the Imperial Palace," Niwa Nagahide bowed again, "After several years of exhaustion, my lord finally assisted His Royal Highness Warrior Duke Spo Yoshigin, to pacify Owari Ichikuni and return to the rule of the shogunate. It's just that there are still some people in the country who are disloyal to the shogunate and have bad intentions, and it is difficult for the lord to command the whole country to ......."

"The matter of Owari, Yu also heard about it. It was rare for the general manager to be so loyal, so Yu appointed the general manager as the guardian of Owari, and he will play His Majesty and give him another official position of equivalent rank. After receiving the gift, Ashikaga Yoshiteru was indeed very talkative, and he agreed to Niwa Nagahide's request, "Please reply to the general suke, and then come to the shogunate to receive the will." Please continue to do your best to live up to the high expectations of Your Majesty and the Shogunate...... So be it. ”

After saying these words, Ashikaga Yoshiteru stood up from his seat. Naturally, someone opened the door for him and put away Haiyue and the gift list.

"Congratulations to the Gongfang Palace!" We bow our heads and say goodbye.

Out of the general's Nijo Imperial Palace, Niwa Nagahide solemnly bowed to me: "His Royal Highness Xuanjing is loyal and righteous, and he is actually a minister of my Oda family. This time, His Royal Highness Xuanjing has made great contributions. ”

"Niwa-senpai is serious. It is a duty to be loyal to one's own family. I saluted back.

"It's just a family heirloom sword of His Royal Highness Xuanjing......"

"The territory has been lost, and there is not much point in leaving the sword empty. can exchange for a first-line opportunity for the family, and the younger generation is willing. I hurriedly said, while trying not to think about Haiyue.

To be honest, this sword is the only connection between me and the original era, and since I came to the Warring States, it has always been with me and helped me defeat Kato Kotai, and it is impossible not to feel distressed. But in that situation, can I think of a better way to protect myself and my future? Since the fixed is going to be lost, let's just order it, and make this knife more meaningful.

What's more, General Yoshiki's expansion of influence with such fanfare, presumably as in history, will inevitably be tabooed by the Miyoshi family. If it still happened, and this knife survived, it would definitely fall out like the rest of the famous knives in his hand.

With the strength of the Oda family in the future, as long as I can guarantee my status in the family, am I afraid that I won't be able to get a knife back? At that time, after understanding the meaning of this knife to my Kira family, I am afraid that someone will give it to me without me saying it.

After figuring this out, I was in a much more cheerful mood and even smiled at Niwa Nagahide.

"It's rare for His Royal Highness Xuanjing to be so open-minded, so I won't say much. The great contribution made this time, I Changxiu must carefully explain it to the lord. ”

"Niwa seniors must not be polite, I will work with my seniors in the future and learn more from my seniors."

"In that case, please don't be polite to His Royal Highness Xuanjing. I don't need to call any seniors or anything like that. ”

"Yes, Your Highness Changxiu." I replied.

……，……

After I returned, Niwa Nagahide reported to Nobunaga and praised me for my performance. Nobunaga immediately promoted me to the rank of general of the Oda family, and my annual salary was increased to 300 kan, and I was appointed as Niwa Nagahide's lieutenant.

I know that Nobunaga is very satisfied with my performance of giving up my family treasure to serve my family this time, and he has already regarded me as one of his closest subordinates. And after being promoted to a general, he has the personality of a general and can lead a team alone. I don't have a territory yet, and I don't have my own army, so in the name of "Good War" that I earned in the month of Mino, it is likely that I will lead Nobunaga's main army.

In this sense, the sea moon does reflect its value.

Because of the mission, the whole team relaxed a lot from Nobunaga to the side crowd, and many people went to the izakaya or whale house to get drunk, and some people took the opportunity to visit Kyoto. Thanks to General Yoshiteru, Kyoto is much more prosperous than the last time we came.

Only Xiao Xia was sullen. I think I can understand that she is not shallower than me at all for Haiyue's feelings.

Because it was rare to have such a relaxing leisure, I took her out of the dormitory and walked around Kyoto.

Seeing that she was still preoccupied, I had no choice but to comfort: "Forget it, Xiao Xia, if you can't take back the territory of the Kira family and truly become the head of the Kira family, then Haiyue is just a knife." ”

"But the lord said so...... It's still a pity, right? ”

"It doesn't matter, now the future of the family depends on the main family, and it is worth it to be able to win the name of righteousness for the family, and it is worth losing Haiyue." I said with a smile.

"Does the lord really no longer mind the loss of Haiyue?" Xiao Xia asked with concern.

"Of course." I nodded.

Then Xiao Xia is relieved. Originally, Xiao Xia had been worried that Haiyue was a very important thing for the lord, and he would definitely be very sad after losing it, but he still had to pretend that he was happy to use Haiyue to complete the mission for the lord's family, which must be very hard......"

"So you're actually worried about me, aren't you?" I suddenly realized that I didn't understand Natsu's mood at all.

"Well, because the lord is the most important! For Xiao Xia......"

Her words touched me very much. During this time, I didn't care about Xiao Xia so much many times, but she was silently thinking about me as a lord.

It's rare to have free today, so I decided to make it up to her.

"Xiao Xia, do you have something you want to do or something you want today? I'll do my best to help you. I said.

"Huh?" Xiao Xia glanced sideways at me, "Is the lord very free today?" ”

"yes. What do you want me to do for you? I thought about it for a moment and made a suggestion, "By the way, how about buying two kimonos for you?" Last time at the Lord's Chinese New Year's Eve feast, you didn't have the right clothes...... Why don't you go now? ”

"Let's go like this first...... Because you've been busy, it's been a long time since I've been alone with you like this. "She suddenly changed back to the long-lost name, which she had used when we were together in the mountains.