On June 28, when the weather in Shinano cleared, the Takeda family seized the opportunity when the main force of the Kira army was trapped at the junction of Echigo and Shinano to launch a large-scale attack, and the main force of the Western Front Army was led by Takeda Nobushihiro with an army of 12,000, and the army from Nakashinano chose to attack Koji County from Baba Pass and Aoki Pass.

The main force of the Eastern Front Army, led by Takeda Harunobu, led a 10,000-strong army from Saku-gun to the west to attack Susuki Castle, and a 22,000-strong army launched a large-scale attack from three locations in two directions at the same time, and the Northern Shinano coalition army led by Murakami Yoshikiyo and Kakizaki Keike was less than 8,000 people, and in the face of the onslaught of the 22,000-strong Takeda Army, it was like a flat boat in the wind and rain.

At the critical moment, Sanada Yutaka once again used a strategy to successfully transfer a number of Shinano people in Konoshi County, this time he used more clever methods, taking advantage of the gap between Echigo and Shinano people, pretending to be well-known to Murakami Yoshikiyo to transmit wrong information, so that Kakizaki Keijia mistakenly thought that Murakami Yoshikiyo's Katsuro Castle was attacked by a surprise attack and hurriedly went out of the city to rescue.

This exit from the city was blocked by the pocket formation of the Takeda army, and the reaction of the Kakizaki Keijia was also very fast, seeing that the situation was not good, he personally left behind the break to cover the retreat of the army, and entangled the three thousand Takeda troops with three hundred samurai not to advance an inch, successfully obstructing the actions of the Takeda army, so that there were flaws in the encirclement and won the opportunity for Murakami Yoshikiyoshi to come to the rescue in time.

Although the pocket array was broken by luck, but this Sanada Yukitaka did everything he could to bluff the people of the North Shinano country, not to say that he wanted to fight against the powerful Takeda army, even the defense was extremely careful not to take a step, and the 10,000 army led by Takeda Harunobu sometimes attacked in a big way, and sometimes attacked one place, and Sanada Yukitaka's strength was fully expanded. All sorts of misinformation are emerging. Let the pressure on the defenders of the city become extraordinarily great.

The impasse was quickly broken. The Shinano reserve army sitting in Arato Castle was surrounded by Takeda Nobuyoshi's 12,000 large army regiments, which made the pressure on the defenders particularly great, and Murakami Yoshikiyo was hit by the ambush of the Takeda army again in a rescue, and he was caught off guard and just wanted to love being beaten and couldn't take root, Sanada Yutaka took the opportunity to use the secret room in Katsuro Castle to deceive the city gate, and let the Sanada army enter the city and set fire to it.

Outside there was a large-scale attack by the Takeda army, and there was a great chaos inside between the elbows and armpits, and Murakami Yoshikiyo had no choice but to burn the castle and retreat backwards in a hurry, waiting for Murakami Yoshikiyo to converge with the defenders who broke through the siege in Katsutsuo Castle. Fleeing in the direction of Kitsunura Castle, where Kakizaki Kei's house was located, Kakizaki Keijia simply abandoned Isesaki Castle and concentrated all their main forces in Kitsunuru Castle.

That night, the two discussed how to deal with the sudden Takeda Army, Murakami Yoshikiyo as the flag leader of the North Shinano people, as the Nagao family tree generation of the Kakizaki Keijia, as the general of the North Shinano Echigo Army, the decision of the two represents the decision of all the people of the entire North Shinano to a certain extent.

"The palace of the town government told us to stick to the city, and if we can keep it, we will retreat quickly, and we will retreat tomorrow!" Kakizaki Jingjia paused for a moment, and then said, "Jingzi Hall and Jingyuan Hall have been notified there. Presumably they will prepare as soon as possible, and we are running out of time. ”

"Izumi is right. However, it is best to leave before dawn, with the strategy of Takeda Daizen and Sanada Danmasa, I am afraid that we will not be allowed to leave calmly. Murakami Yoshikiyo was worried that he wouldn't believe it, and emphasized: "If you and I are the general of the Takeda Army, will you sit back and watch us and others retreat calmly?" ”

Kakizaki Keijia patted his head and came to his senses: "Yes! The general of the Takeda Army will definitely besiege Fox City early tomorrow morning, leaving you and me is already a big profit, if you can piggyback and trap a few reinforcements, the army of the town palace wants to come to the rescue, I am afraid it is not easy! ”

Murakami Yoshikiyo glanced at a few of his own boys, as well as the two boys of the Kakizaki Jing family, muttering something in a low voice, and didn't listen to the conversation between the two adults at all, so he coughed and said, "Takeda Stable is besieging Arato Castle, I don't know if there will be danger!" Once the wasteland city is lost, we will have no way to retreat. ”

"There is a music hall in the barren castle, and there is a Usami Suruga Shouden, there should be no problem, but the Yulin Hall is right, we can't wait until dawn to leave, it's better to leave in the middle of the night, take advantage of the fact that it's just dark." Kakizaki Keijia also noticed that their two sons were deserting, and suddenly shouted: "Genzaburo, Heizaburo!" What are you doing! ”

"Ahh No! We didn't do anything! The Kakizaki brothers were startled and quickly denied it, the young names of the two brothers are very interesting, the elder brother is named Kakizaki Genzaburo Yujia, and the younger brother is named Kakizaki Heizaburo Haya, Yujia is sixteen years old this year, and the Harushi family is only thirteen years old this year, don't look at them at their age and stunned like a stupid boy, in fact, these guys are all guys who kill people without blinking, and they followed the Kira Army to participate in the Battle of Kawanakajima a few years ago, and they belong to the kind of real samurai who have killed people on the battlefield.

Murakami Yoshikiyo now has only three sons left, his eldest son Gentaro Yoshikatsu died in the Ueda Wara Battle, Genjiro Yoshitoshi died in the Takeda invasion battle, and now the three remaining sons are Genzaburo Yoshiteru, Genshiro Yoshibang, and Gengoro who is only twelve years old and has not yet been subdued.

In addition, there is his younger brother Murakami Yorihei who stayed in Kaizu Castle, and his two sons Murakami Yoshimitsu, Murakami Yoshibo is also a young samurai, these two brothers and their uncle Murakami Yoshikiyo's cousin made a marriage contract and will soon be close to each other, and the rest of the family such as the Yadai clan, the Amamiya clan, the Yokoyama clan, and the Iwama clan have declined successively because they can't recognize the form, and the Kiyohara clan, which was the first to betray Murakami Yoshikiyo, was wiped out, which is also the main force of the Murakami clan.

It was the first day of the seventh month, it was the end of the month to the beginning of the month of the evil day alternate, the Takeda army, which kept the ancient marching law, also avoided marching on this day, just like the military division also had to divinate the auspicious day of the troops, the ceremony of the formation of the troops was similar to the auspicious fortune and fortune, and the alternation of evil days has been avoided by generals since ancient times, such as the Ouchi army led by Tao Qingxian did not believe in this set and ended up defeated and killed Itsukushima, so the Takeda army would let go of Murakami Yoshikiyo so easily, so that he could easily lead the army to withdraw into Fox City.

It happened to be a light rain, the dark sky was obscured by dark clouds, blocking the only light in the sky, just after the third watch of the night, there was no light in the dark and swarthy Fox City, and the Takeda army outside the city withdrew early to rest in Katsu Castle, and there was only the chirping of crickets one after another in a wilderness.

The big hand gate of Fox City quietly opened, and the group of troops gathered up with banners, and the people and horses left quietly. Halfway through, he met the Yasuda Keigen team who did the same thing. Yoshie Jingzi team. In the dark moon and the wind are high, thousands of people sneaking in the march not to mention how funny, it makes sense for them to be so careful, in the carriage behind them sat the families of each family, accidentally forced by the Takeda army, the samurai can ride away on horseback, and the slow carriage is their own family.

More and more Shinano people gathered along the way, and it was no longer just the 7,000 or so allied troops of Murakami and Kakizaki that gathered 12,000 people from their families and relatives to flee. The team soon came to the foot of Mt. Chikuma, where on a peak of nearly 600 meters sat Arato Castle, and across the east bank of the Chikuma River was Murakami Yoshikiyo's Katsuo Castle.

Because Arato Castle has always been strong, the mountain is steep and not easy to attack, even if there are only 500 people, it can withstand the large-scale attack of 5,000 people, and it has always been an important branch city of Kira Yoshitoki in Kitashinano to enter the south, and Takeda Nobuyoshi's army was not stationed near Arato Castle, but chose to camp on the mountain not far from it, so that more than 10,000 people calmly leaned down the mountain.

The team walked slowly, and it took about an hour to get here. Kakizaki Keijia ordered a temporary pause to recuperate, and it was dark at this time and it was unclear the exact time. Murakami Yoshikiyo rode his horse cautiously to the front of the team, handed Kakizaki Jingjia a lotus leaf package, opened it and smelled a pungent fragrance, Kakizaki Jingjia was overjoyed and said: "Mountain whale bacon?" That's a good thing! ”

"I asked my subordinates to do it before leaving, and eat more to have the strength to continue on the road." Murakami Yoshikiyo listened to the gurgling river and exclaimed, "The silence of this night makes people feel uneasy!" ”

"Yulin Hall is too worried!" Kakizaki Keijia smiled calmly, and then said: "I have ordered my henchmen to buy more firewood, grass and oil, and only wait for the fifth watch to ignite the castle before dawn, and there is about an hour left for us, so we still have to rush to Haijin City as soon as possible." ”

"Burn the city? So how did they retreat? It's definitely too late for horseback riding. Murakami Yiqing frowned slightly, suddenly thought of a possibility, patted his thigh and woke up: "Why did I forget to retreat by boat!" The town hall was particularly fond of marching by boat, and since the beginning of the Omi army, almost every battle has been opened by boat, and people like us and other Shinano Turks did not like this method of warfare for a while. ”

Kakizaki Jingjia smiled: "Actually, I'm not used to waiting for the Echigo people, but the town palace is strictly ordered in front, and gradually it will be used." ”

After a while, there was a slight movement on the mountain, and soon an army marched from Qianqu Mountain, and several white flags were very eye-catching, and Shirakuzhen, who was wearing red armor, rode his horse and greeted: "I'm sorry!" The city has a large population, and it has been busy from the second watch to the present, and the speed of going down the mountain is a little slower. ”

Kakizaki Keijia looked at the long line behind him, and said politely: "The Yuezhong Shou Hall came just in time, and I just arrived for a while, is the ship ready?" ”

"It was ready a few days earlier, and it was hidden in the reeds of the river bend outside Shiozaki Castle, and we only had to go downstream along the river and meet the bend to the place." Shele Zhentong didn't want to waste time by chatting, and said bluntly: "Everyone get ready, let's go immediately!" ”

In the middle of summer in July, even if the sky is not good, the sun rises a lot earlier than in winter, and just after the fourth watch, the sky is bright, and some of the older samurai in the camp of the Takeda army get up one after another, and when they go outside the tent, they see a few clusters of blazing fire in the distance.

"Fire! Where is the fire? In that direction, there are Kitsunaku Castle, Isesaki Castle, Susuki Castle, Muroga Castle, and Arato Castle on the other side...... Did they escape? The fire quickly attracted the attention of many Takeda family samurai, and soon exclamations spread throughout the camp.

Takeda Harunobu stood by the door with his clothes on, standing and staring at the gradually extinguishing fireball, and sighed: "I still missed a step after all calculations, and if they surrounded the city yesterday, they wouldn't be able to escape." ”

"Doesn't this just show that the strength of the lord makes them retreat? This is the turning point of my Takeda family's prosperity! Takasaka Masanobu also walked to his side with his clothes on, and said with a smile: "In this way, most of the south of Kawanaka Island will not be able to hold it, and the lord can go to Kawanaka Island with a large army!" ”

Looking at the dark clouds on the horizon gradually dissipated, a ray of sunlight passed through the thick clouds, shining warmly on his face, Takeda Harunobu patted Takasaka Masanobu on the shoulder: "Pass the order, the whole army will pull out the camp and go out to Kawanakajima!" ”

Across the west bank of the Chikuma River, Takeda Nobuyoshi walked back to the camp with a disappointed face, and Arato Castle, Shiozaki Castle, and Yashiro Castle were all burned by themselves, and all the castles on both sides of the Chikuma River were burned down by the Kira family, and the raging fire engulfed the grain and grass equipment that had not had time to carry. Didn't leave the Takeda family even the slightest chance.

Strategically. This time, the Shinano people who succeeded in driving out the anti-Takeda people have already achieved some of their goals. But Takeda Nobuyoshi was still unwilling, and the long-planned strategy was broken overnight, not to mention how much regret Takeda Nobuyhiro felt in his heart.

"My brother must be angry too! If the main camp moves forward to Kawanaka Island and blocks the passage for the Shinano people to retreat, the desperate Shinano people can only sit in the fortress, and then they will definitely gain more...... Now it's just time to wait for a better time. ”

……

The Takeda clan returned victorious in the first battle, and the large army encircled and suppressed the rebels in some areas of Kono, Sakana, and Geng Prefecture, which once again shook the faith of the Shinano people to resist the Takeda family, and it took only three days to force a large number of Shinano people to flee north one after another. A wave of counterattack flooded half of Kita-Shinano, stirring up people's hearts and minds, and the people of Shinano did not know how to respond.

It was not until July 5 that the 6,000 troops of the Kira family entered the town of Asahiyama to settle the hearts of the people, and the Takeda army reined in its military strength and gave up the plan to seize the bridgehead on the other side of the Xichuan River.

The Takeda family's main camp is once again set up on Mt. Chausu, perhaps to remind the retainers of the spectrum to always remember the painful memories of three years ago, or to respond to all changes with the same, as if the whole situation has been pulled back to the situation when the war broke out three years ago. It's just that this time the Takeda family is stronger, and the Kira family lacks the support of the Echigo Army, and the strength is weaker.

It didn't take long to set up camp in Chajiu Mountain. Takeda Harunobu convened his retainers to discuss military deployment, and a large group of military generals shouted a headache when they saw the map of Kawanaka Island, and it seemed that they were really entangled by the difficult Kira family, and the situation now is much better than three years ago, but this is not enough to give them more confidence.

All the ministers put on a contemplative expression, and Baba Nobuharu sighed and decided to tell the truth: "I waited for three years to endure humiliation and burden, and Echigo has not been idle for the past three years, and I won a game in two ways last year, but I am afraid that this time it will not be easy to deal with!" ”

"Huh? What do you mean by Minong? Fan Fu Huchang said with a smile: "The lord has been strategizing for several years to arrange the current good situation, how can he say such depressing words at this moment!" I, Huchang, thought that I would win this battle, not only would I win a big victory, but I would also enter Echigo in one fell swoop and achieve the immortal reputation of my Takeda family! ”

This is true! Mino still said that it was bad! ”

"Yes, yes! This battle will be won! Mino is still too conservative! ”

The Takeda family is in full swing, they also know that Baba Nobuharu is Takeda Harunobu's henchman, and he is also a fierce general in the era of Takeda Shinto, a modern family governor Takeda Shinho, who was assigned to Takeda Harunobu early to do a good job, and has made a lot of military achievements and martial arts for more than ten years.

Takeda Yoshinobu couldn't get used to his teacher's behavior of criticizing Ghost Mino, he had been very envious of the generals who fought on the battlefield such as Baba Nobuharu since he was a child, and the young family governor heir decided to help Baba Nobuharu: "Mino is right, that Echigo is indeed very powerful, and the spies sent by the retainers have sent a lot of information, all saying that the Echigo people are rich and strong, and the elite soldiers are twice as strong as ours, but for some reason they didn't send it out......"

"Taro! Don't interject when talking about important military matters, what you have to do is to listen with your ears and see with your eyes. ”

Facing his majestic father, Takeda Yoshinobu said, "Father! Erchen got it. ”

Masatake Komai noticed that the lord's face was not very pleasant, and he knew that most of them were disturbed by a crowd, so he smiled kindly at Takeda Yoshinobu: "What Shaodian said is not bad!" It is reported that at the beginning of this year, Echigo set up a military service account of 15,000 men, not including the Kira Army. ”

"We're 22,000 troops!" Asa Lihu emphasized.

"So how much is my Takeda family's military service account?"

......The military service account of the Takeda family has been expanded several times, and there were only more than 8,000 people three years ago, including most of the people of Kai and Shinano, since the loss of the first part of Xiaoyi County a few years ago, the Takeda family has successively regained its balance from Minami Shinano and Hida, and the overall military service level will not exceed 9,000 people.

Usually, the number of military service specified in the military service account can only show part or most of the military strength of a daimyo family, such as the military service of Takeda Harunobu and the military service of his sister-in-law Takeda Yoshinobu will not be written, and then the other part of the military service during the war will be counted, and it will be composed of ronin, countrymen, and peasants who are temporarily recruited with money and rice grain.

For example, Iifu Huchang can afford 300 military service, but in fact, his maximum war mobilization force may be seven or eight hundred or even more, which is actually the price paid for mobilizing most of the combat forces in the territory to defend the homeland under the premise of sacrificing the development of agriculture, social stability, and economic order.

It's not a matter of family fate, life and death, no one can cross this red line, and think about it again, the Takeda family's more than 8,000 military service can pull up 20,000 troops, and the Nagao family's 15,000 military service can pull up how many troops, the samurai here are all battle-hardened veterans, so they naturally know it. (To be continued......)