As for the Tokugawa family, the Takeda family is definitely not. Tokugawa Ieyasu was a smart man who was very protective of his reputation and credibility. As an ally, as long as you don't have problems yourself, he will do his duty, even take the initiative to think about you, and behave very reliably. And in the face of much more powerful neighbors and sect masters such as Imagawa and Oda, he can correct his position, and he also knows where his value lies, and he will not change his court casually.

When Imagawa Yoshimoto attacked the Oda family, he performed very well; When Yoshimoto died, he asked the Imagawa family to come out to avenge Yoshimoto and recommended himself as a pioneer; When Shin was unable to send troops, he also invaded Owari alone, and held out for nearly a year; It wasn't until the outbreak of the Sanshu Rebellion that the Imagawa family lost their prestige, and he decided to turn his back on Shima and set out to unify the Mikawa Kingdom.

Therefore, since he did not make up his mind to turn his back on the Oda family in the face of such a grim situation during the Battle of Mikatahara six years ago, he will definitely be loyal to the Oda family now.

Compared with Tokugawa Ieyasu, Nobuyasu is more pure, with the righteousness of being a samurai and the pride of being a lord. All along, he has always regarded Takeda Katsuyori as his opponent, and he will never surrender to the other party. In fact, in the current war in Tokaido, the Tokugawa family is the dominant side, not only recovering the entire territory of Takatenjin Castle and Enoe, but also invading the Suruga of the Takeda family, defeating Nobuyoshi Anayama one after another. In this case, Tokuki said that Shinyasu was connected to Takeda Katsuyori, and I don't think Oda Nobunaga himself would believe it.

If this is the case, why did Nobunaga give such an order? Is it to knock Tokugawa Ieyasu? Or do you want to see how far you can carry out your will? Or did he really want to destroy Nobuyasu and prevent him from challenging Nobuya's rule after he inherited the family business? After all, the Tokugawa family was a daimyo of the outside world, and their ruling foundation in Mikawa was extremely strong, and their strength was too strong; And Nobuyasu performed extremely well in the two battles of Mikatahara and Nagashino, and he has the blood of the Imagawa family, and he is very accommodating and obedient to his mother Tsukuyamaden...... "So, how did the Tokugawa family deal with it?" I asked with a deep groan, "With the wisdom of His Highness Hamamatsu, there will definitely be something to be done, right?" ”

"Yes. The head of the family received the order of the Oda Palace, and immediately detained the Lady of the Great Godai and the young master of Nobuyasu, and sent Sakai Tadaji and Okubo Tadashi to Azuchi Castle to plead, but unfortunately he could not redeem the determination of the Oda Palace," Speaking of this, Hiraiwa Qinyoshi's expression was a little gloomy, "The elder of the family, who is the assistant to the young master, was originally suspicious, but considering that he had received His Royal Highness Imabari in Xia, he will not pursue it for the time being, and ordered me to come to ask you for help." ”

"Have you already pleaded your case?" A bad feeling welled up in my heart, "How did Sakai-sama defend himself?" ”

"Lord Sakai admitted his family's mistakes very frankly, apologized to the Oda Hall on behalf of Lord Nobuyasu, and promised to strictly investigate and expel all the people of the Takeda family from the territory......"

"That's bad!" I interrupted him and let out a long sigh, "Alas! Sakai made a mistake! ”

"Your Highness Imabari, is there anything wrong?" Hiraiwa Qinyoshi hurriedly asked.

"Sakai's response is too straightforward," I sighed again, "I believe that he is a very good and responsible samurai, and if there is any omission in the battle formation, if it is not his responsibility, he will take it upon himself and try his best to take remedial measures...... However, when making a defense, it is not necessary to take such a responsibility, but to be tactful and clear, so as to gain room for maneuver and turn. ”

"Isn't it good to take responsibility?" Hiraiwa Qinyoshi didn't understand, "This can show the sincerity of my family!" ”

"What's the use of sincerity? It's a nonsensical thing. I couldn't help but shake my head. These Three Rivers samurai, determination and bravery are not said, but they are just too stiff, like big stones. These "big stones" can naturally be relied on as a dry city when used on the battle array, but if they are negotiated in this way, they are often counterproductive and cannot achieve their goals. For example, the fact that Sakai Tadaji has taken the initiative to take responsibility gives Nobunaga ample reason to punish the Tokugawa family. In this way, if he had the intention to get rid of Xinkang, now there is no obstacle at all; Even if he didn't have the heart to do so, since the Tokugawa family admitted his mistake, it was necessary for him to punish him in order to show his justice and majesty as a sovereign.

Hearing my analysis, Hiraiwa Qinyoshi was dumbfounded all of a sudden. He immediately folded his knees, knelt in front of me, and kowtowed to the ground with his forehead: "It's my family's mistake!" …… In any case, please help! ”

"Now that we're done, let's do our best." I nodded in promise.

……，…… The next time, I handed over the affairs of Xiangguoji Temple to Shinkei and went to Kira Jinya in Azuchi Castle. When he arrived at the place, Hiraiwa Koyoshi immediately went to the Tokugawa Jinya and asked Sakai Tadaji and Okubo Tadashi to come and pay a visit. On the way, Hiraiwa Kinkichi must have told Sakai about my analysis, so when he saw me, he looked very guilty.

When I asked about the defense, I found that the situation was worse than I expected. In front of Nobunaga, he actually confessed to all the crimes of Nobuyasu that Hori Hidemasa had relayed and listed in Tokuji's letters. Some of them are more reliable, for example, Xinkang likes to drink, sometimes he is angry, and his surname is irritable, and even scolds Deji and other things, which is roughly in line with Xinkang's surname; However, to say that he and he were of the same heart as Tsukiyamaden, ostracized Tokuki at home, and prayed with Tsukuyamaden not to have a boy when Tokuji was pregnant, that is probably Tokuji's prejudice and misunderstanding; And to say that Nobuyasu knew that Calamus was from the Takeda family, and deliberately approached her, it was completely Deji complaining...... But he actually admitted it all.

It's true, Nobuyasu is in Okazaki in Nishimikawa, but he is in Yoshida Castle in Higashimikawa, how can he know about Nobuyasu's internal affairs?

Based on this, when Tokugawa Ieyasu transferred to Kanto, he was not unjustly deducted from his reward. As a result, among the four heavenly kings of Tokugawa, he was the oldest and had the most merits, and the main room was still Ieyasu's aunt Kawaihime, but he got the feud the least, only 30,000 koku, which was a lot less than the 100,000 koku of the other three.

And because he agreed so easily, things were even more irreparable. I had to go to the city and try to persuade Nobunaga to try it, but I was not sure.

Sure enough, when I mentioned Nobuyasu, Nobunaga's face quickly sank.

"There has been a conclusion about this matter, and Xinkang must also cut his stomach. So you don't need to say any more! He very simply refused my offer.

It's really decisive! It seems that Nobunaga is bent on getting rid of Nobuyasu and eliminating a possible opponent for Nobutada...... I suddenly felt very disappointed, could it be that Nobunaga's stubbornness and suspicion had reached this point? In that case, will he continue to purge himself? And although my Kira family is a genealogy, and Xinjing is still his son-in-law, who knows if he will do the same to Xinjing as he did with Xinyasu? After all, my current power is indeed a little bigger, and I am already close to the direct leader of the faithful, and I also have the support of several national daimyos.

"My lord, my lord has a few words of advice that I want to say...... Although it may be a little sharper, I hope the lord can think about it! "I decided to give Nobunaga one last time.

Nobunaga was a little impatient and had already gotten up from the main seat in front of the screen, but seeing that I was so solemn, he nodded and sat down again: "Say it! I listened. ”

"Yes." I bowed deeply and looked at Nobunaga with blazing eyes, "Your Majesty feels that since the expulsion of Lieutenant General Ashikaga Zuo, the authority of the lord is heavy, and there are fewer and fewer people who can speak out and advise the lord...... Although the lord has always been wise and very assertive, this is not a good thing for the lord after all. ”

"You mean you want me to act according to the arrangements of the important ministers in the family?" Nobunaga's face was not good, and he stared at me and asked, "Just like you did in Minami-Kyushu and let the Shimazu family go?" ”

It can be seen that he is in a very bad mood now. With Nobunaga's surname, it was not suitable to continue admonishing at this time, but since the words have been spoken, let's say them completely, otherwise there will be a misunderstanding, and the situation will be even more serious.

"Don't dare! I just hope that the lord can consider the feelings of everyone in the family, "I owe it," I don't want to hide it from the lord, this disposal of the Tokugawa family, as well as the disposal of Sakuma's father and son last time, has caused a lot of panic at home......"

"Are you panicking too?" Nobunaga asked.

"Your Majesty has always acted with justice and righteousness, and I think I have a clear conscience," I said, looking at Nobunaga calmly. Since I thought about some things clearly, my state of mind has been very peaceful, and I can say these words calmly: "Now I say this to my lord, it is also out of my public heart and righteousness as an important minister...... Nowadays, some of the lord's practices are really not agreed with by the family, so the subordinates must give advice to the lord...... And if even the subordinates are silent, then no one in the family will dare to speak! ”

Perhaps it was my calm expression that moved Nobunaga, and his face was a little better: "So, what do you think I did wrong?" The Tokugawa family itself has already admitted its mistake in the matter of Nobuyasu, shouldn't I deal with it? As for Sakuma, wouldn't it be a shame for my Oda family if someone as incompetent and selfish as he was still in such a high position in his own family? If everyone follows his example, how can my Oda family rule the world? ”

"Xinkang made a mistake, so he naturally has to deal with it," I had to lower my expected goal slightly, "However, the scale of handling might as well be lenient...... His Majesty believed that the lord's might was sufficient, and that it was time to show tolerance. ”

"You let me be tolerant? Something like that happens......" Nobunaga paused, didn't continue, just waved his hand at me, "Forget it, there are some things you don't understand. Give it to me now! ”

I don't understand? Really, thought I didn't know what you were thinking? You are obviously afraid of Xinkang, worried that your son will not be able to control him, so you took the opportunity to commit a black hand! Thinking about it like this, I suddenly felt very disappointed and quite indignant: "Lord, do you have to be so stubborn? Nobuyasu was the prestigious heir of the Tokugawa family and the son-in-law of the lord, so if he insisted on execution, what would the Tokugawa family think? What will the rest of the Daimyo think? What do you think if you are married to the Lord's family? ”

"Enough!" Nobunaga scolded angrily and smashed the folding fan with his head, "I have made up my mind, no need to say more!" If you can't figure it out, just give me a few days to 'think' at home! ”

“…… Yes," I said, feeling the pain in my forehead, trying to keep my tone respectful, "since the lord has decreed, your majesty will go back and confinement for a few days." ”

With that, I rubbed my swollen forehead and got up to leave the main hall.

When I returned to the camphouse, I immediately ordered Ishiya Nobumasa to clean up a small courtyard, shut himself in, and had the main entrance temporarily sealed. Soon after, Tadaji Sakai, Tadashi Okubo, and Hirawa Jinyoshi came together to inquire about the outcome of my trip. And when they saw that I lived in a small courtyard, leaving only a small side door for people to enter and exit, they were very shocked. Such a door, even they will not leave, let alone as the guardian of the Three Kingdoms, the de facto exploration of the South China Sea - that is, I am equivalent to closing myself in confinement.

"Is it the three members of the Tokugawa family?" I heard their briefing and smiled wryly through the main entrance, "I'm so sorry! It seems that it is a loss of His Highness Hamamatsu's trust...... The lord refused to accept the advice, insisted on executing Xinkang, smashed my fan, and made me reflect for a few days! ”

"Is there really no way to get it back?" A disappointed voice said, seemingly Sakai Tadaji. Then, before I could answer, another voice had already sounded, it was Hiraiwa Qinyoshi, whom I was more familiar with: "In this case, we have no choice but to accept it...... Let His Highness Imabari be dragged down, it's really scary! We will also remember your great virtue! ”

After speaking, the three of them got up one after another and left the outer room, and the footsteps were very heavy, and gradually disappeared.

I sighed, but my heart was much lighter. In this way, I have truly fulfilled my responsibilities! The rest of the family, and even the samurai of the whole world, will see my loyalty to the master's family, as well as my faith in my colleagues. And Nobunaga's stubbornness is obviously hopeless. Now that I am self-confined, I can be regarded as giving him a final explanation, and I will not give him any reminders or admonitions after that.

But even if people knew and recognized my faithfulness, they wouldn't have come to visit me! Otherwise, if Nobunaga finds out, won't he feel uncomfortable?

What I didn't expect was that on the third day of my confinement, someone came looking for me.

"My lord, His Royal Highness Sakamoto is here to visit!" Ishiya reported on behalf of people outside the door.

His Highness Sakamoto? That's Akechi Mitsu-so...... Is he coming?

"Come here!" I commanded.

"Yes...... His Highness Sakamoto is already here. Nobumasa Ishitani replied. Then, the voice of Wise Guangxiu sounded outside the door at the right time: "Your Highness Xuanjing, it was me Guangxiu who came rashly, I hope it didn't disturb you." ”

"What did His Highness Mitsuhide say? Those who confess their sins dare not be! I quickly replied. Seriously, I was a little touched that he was able to come at the risk of causing Nobunaga's displeasure.

"His Royal Highness Xuanjing is loyal and righteous, and he is a model for my generation of warriors. What is the sin of words? Akechi Mitsuhide replied, "To be honest, I also received an invitation from the Tokugawa family, but I am really ashamed that I did not have the courage of His Royal Highness Xuankei...... Yesterday, when I heard that His Royal Highness Xuanjing was punished, I immediately rushed to Antu to plead with the lord on your behalf, but unfortunately the lord still couldn't listen. ”

(To be continued)