The bitter cold wind of deep winter blew from Yatsugatake into the Kofu Plain, and the heavy snow that had raged for half a month finally stopped last night.

Takeuchi and Gozaemon stood in the shed in a daze with their red hands rubbed, there was a fire about to be extinguished beside him, which was the remains of a bonfire left over from the previous post, and his task was to watch the hostages sent by the Shinano people, and most of the hostages sent by the Shinano people were under house arrest in the small courtyard of the Hishigasaki Building, except for a few who were cited as direct samurai, and there were several courtyards like this, and the people who were imprisoned in them were all such people.

After Takeda Harunobu returned to Kai, he ordered martial law throughout the territory, and the people were recruited to rebuild the stone ditch that was not repaired a few years ago, and in the winter, thousands of farmers braved the wind and snow to repair the city, and within a few days, the people had a large area of frostbite, and the people who supervised the siege were also complaining, but the orders of the governor had to be implemented, and everyone understood that at this time they must not hit the muzzle of the gun, and the Takeda family sighed that there was a resentment in their hearts, and whoever dared to hit it would only have a dead word.

"I don't know if Gao Bai Zhai Hall can survive this winter!"

"I think it's difficult, I heard that the arrow sores are festering very badly, and I don't know what kind of arrow Najira has at home, as long as he is hit by an arrow, he will not be saved, and how many samurai have died in Kofu these days are because of this."

Takeuchi and Gozaemon couldn't help but remind: "Be quiet, don't you want to live?" ”

His colleague, Kawamura Shimosuke, waved his hand indifferently: "Eh! What are you afraid of with five? Look at where else there are people coming on this street, and who doesn't know what we're like to this day. The lord took the concubine to the Yuya hot spring to recuperate. He doesn't care about anything in the territory. The young master and the stable hall are still in the hands of the Najira family, not to mention that the entire territory of Kita-Shinano was taken away, and even Saku-gun was also lost, haven't you heard? A few days ago, the Echigo army crossed the Shinshu Pass to attack our Kai! ”

Iwashita Shunrokuro came over: "I also heard, it is said that two thousand elites came to kill one by one, but fortunately, our Kai samurai are united enough, and more than a dozen townships gathered seven or eight thousand people to scare the Echigo army back!" But in my opinion, next year will definitely be even more difficult! ”

"Not really! Our army is gone. The samurai are dead and crippled, how will they resist the arrogant Echigo army in the coming year! Ariga Dingbei smacked his lips and said, "If you want me to see that we are really difficult." ”

Seven or eight samurai stood at the door and gossiped, they were the middle and low-level samurai of the Takeda family, except for the battle, they were usually important points in the garrison city and there was nothing to do, the only thing that made people unhappy was the night of the ten-day rotation, and the night on a cold day was going to be frozen.

There was a noise in the distance, vaguely as if shouting. Gradually, they saw the flames rising, and several samurai immediately came back to their senses. Shouted: "It's out of the water!" Let's put out the fire! ”

The ignition point is a few grain hoarding points in the castle town of the Tsushisakikan, and there are small castle keepers in the city who hoard grain, and the residents outside the castle also have to buy grain from the grain house to eat, and the grain merchants of Kai are engaged in hoarding and profiteering business by virtue of being the royal merchant of the Takeda family, and they are simply very good at being a person over the years, and they have received a lot of benefits for the guards who are guarding the city, so the samurai in the city are happy to help him.

Takeuchi and Gozaemon looked at each other for a long time and exclaimed, "Oops! It seems that the fire point is the food hoarding point of the Yamanashiya City Guard, the largest grain merchant in the town, so let's hurry up and help! Let his grain house be burned, and the townspeople will starve! ”

"But it's our duty to watch these hostages......" Iwashita hesitated.

Kawamura slapped him on the head: "You stupid! What else to see! These Shinano people have already surrendered, and they are still looking at the use of these wastes, and it will be too late if they don't hurry up to put out the fire! ”

The people who built the castle brought their own grain, and the townspeople in the castle town did not work hard and did not have any food income, and the food consumption of thousands of townspeople in the town of Wasakikan throughout the winter was not a small amount, and once the grain hoarding point of the grain house was burned, the price of grain would inevitably increase several times in a short period of time, and now that the heavy snow has fallen, the traffic is blocked, and even if you want to transfer food from other counties, it is far from being able to quench your thirst.

The news of the food house running the water spread everywhere, and Takeuchi and Gozaemon followed their colleagues to leave their posts to put out the fire, but they didn't notice that a few diners in the corner shop quietly came out, their appearance was not characteristic and would be forgotten on the street, as if unintentionally walked out of the courtyard to look around, and made sure that no one noticed, so they quietly walked into the courtyard, and it didn't take long for them to come out with a dozen children of different sizes.

At different times on the same day, the same scene appeared one after another in the Kushigasaki Pavilion, and some samurai from Shinano suddenly disappeared, and dozens of people disappeared in just one day, and by the time Takeda Pedagogical came back to notice that something was wrong, these people had already left Kai and embarked on the road back to Shinano.

Takeda Spectrum discussed with the public in the middle of the night and unanimously decided to suppress the news, it is undeniable that the situation is getting worse and worse, Takeda Harunobu has been determined to be absent from all family affairs within half a year, Takeda Nobuyobu was captured, Takeda Nobuyobu, Takeda Nobuyo, and a Shinlong were killed, the most fatal thing is that Taro Yoshinobu was captured and made the Takeda family chaotic, the family governor recuperated and did not ask about the world, the heir of the family governor was captured, and the family members of the spectrum were killed and wounded, and the entire Takeda family faced a critical situation of collapse.

Komai Masao's sometimes unconscious and sometimes awake condition has lasted for more than a month, this old man has been holding on with a breath, but the weakness of the body is an indisputable fact, these days the coma is getting longer and longer, the time of waking is shortening more and more, and when he wakes up again in the middle of the night, he sees Nagasaka Mitsuken's concerned expression.

“…… How is the situation out there? ”

"It's not good, in the morning, the grain house in the castle town where the snow just stopped was on fire, and then the Shinano country hostages who were locked up in the castle town were rescued, and the ninja found that the fire was caused by man, and it can be determined that it was the handiwork of the Kira ninja." Mitsuken Nagasaka knew that time was urgent, and he didn't dare to talk nonsense.

Masatake Komai gasped and said with difficulty: "...... Is Kira Ninja again? We lost the battle on that occasion, and we lost three branch cities in a daze...... Then the camp was stolen in a daze, and our army was shaken and had no way out...... In retrospect, it's all the sins of the ninja! ”

Mitsuken Nagasaka sighed: "The lord's old illness recurred and went to Yuya Hot Spring to recuperate. Now the family is supported by the encouragement of our genealogy. But the hearts of men have been scattered! ”

"Huh! It's fate! The fate of our samurai is that the sun rises and the sun sets...... The Rising Sun General Gen Yoshinaka was so heroic that he still died tragically in Awatsu. We can't escape this catastrophe either......" Masatake Komai replied vaguely, and after a long time, he suddenly sighed, "My last date is tonight......"

"Gao Bai Zhai! Please hold on! Nagasaka Mitsuken looked at his old friend's painful look, and bitterly encouraged the old man who was about to die, and several young people standing on the side brought the decoction in a panic but did not dare to come over.

Masatake Komai suddenly sat up, grabbed Nagasaka Mitsuken's arm, as if using all his strength, and chanted loudly: "I didn't expect it to be so fast!" I have a clear heart in my life! Light and make a note of the last words of death for me! It seems like a dream is not a dream, it is empty and not empty, and the fate of the world is all in the heart......"

Let's talk about it. The old man raised his head and sighed, fell straight down, and swallowed his last breath with the last trace of unwillingness and affection.

Nagasaka Mitsuken said in a trembling voice: "Inform the lord, just say it...... Masatake Komai entered the road of Takahakusai...... Dead! ”

……

Sagami Odawara Castle, Hojo Shiyasu is talking to his eldest son Hojo Shizheng, compared to half a year ago, the Sagami lion is so old, the blow of the war loss made his body thin down, and the majestic face is still like frost unconsciously, Hojo Shiyasu is in a good mood, and he has been talking about the past for a long time. In the end, he brought the topic to the recent changes in the Takeda family.

"The Takeda family is defeated, and the defeat is even worse than ours. Kai's samurai didn't go for a while, the Takeda family had no chance to turn over, I never thought that Echigo's military strength would be so powerful, before last year, Echigo was not able to operate two battlefields at the same time, and in just two years, he could withstand the simultaneous attack in four directions, Kira Town, and Long Tail Bullet are all first-class generals in the world, we are not wronged, we can only blame ourselves for underestimating Echigo's potential! ”

"Didn't my father hate him? The child means the village rain pill, after all, it was because the knife hurt us so miserably, a few years ago, the children did not dare to go out eagle hunting at will, just worried that the leaders would make up some bad stories when they saw the family crest of the Hojo family, it was really annoying to say, why are other samurai being eagle hunting, and our Hojo family is killing and eating meat? It's not fair! Hojo Masa was still indignant.

"Aren't you here to kill and eat meat?" Hojo's Kang Waner smiled: "Speaking of that hatred, in fact, the family has already seen it, recall the changes in the past, the town hall is still an eight or nine-year-old child, and my Hojo family has no grudge in the past, and there is no enmity in the near future, what reason is there to frame us?" The Hattori clan happened to serve the Kira family before stealing the sword, so the family quickly came to a conclusion, it must be the young heart who sent a ninja to steal the village rain pill, but he didn't want to kill the Kanto Princess, causing trouble, otherwise why bother to steal only a Taidao knife instead of taking away all the financial treasures of the Furukawa Prince's family? ”

"But in this way, isn't the Ashikaga Haru clan unjustly dead? It is unbelievable that he threw his life into a deep well for the sake of a knife thief, and the child still can't understand it! ”

The Hojo clan is still young after all, and he wants to make a career at the age of his early twenties, but he never wants to be defeated by the long-tailed Jinghu until now, and he has not yet come out of the psychological shadow, Hojo Shiyasu wants to speak and stop, he knows very well that the shadow must be overcome by himself, just like the night battle of Kawagoe more than ten years ago, he overcame the psychological shadow of 80,000 Kwantung coalition troops, and finally fought a stunning victory.

"After all, he is still too young, if only he had been given a few more years of training." Hojo Shiyasu's brows furrowed slightly, and he said slowly: "The latest news, Takeda Daizen went to Chizuka Hachiman Shrine, and cut his hair and became a monk under the auspices of the Kai high monk Gihide Motobo, and his legal name is Tokuei Xuan Kiyama Shingen, and he will be called Takeda Daizen Doctor Shingen in the future." ”

The so-called De Rong Xuan Ji Shan Shin Xuan title is a simple name used by the samurai, in fact, the combination of the courtyard number, the road number, and the Dharma name, the courtyard name De Rong Xuan, the road number Kiyama, and the legal name Shingen, such a complex set of title system comes from the tradition of Japanese Buddhism, and the habit of taking the temple as the consumption has been passed down for hundreds of years. For example, Honganji Temple, Chaosheng Temple, Shengxing Temple, Ruiquan Temple, Guangdeokji Temple, and Honkakuji Dingyun are all like this.

Harunobu Takeda was not a monk at the temple. Rather, he only became a monk and not a monastery. His road name "Kiyama" is similar to Hojo Sakumo's road name "Tengaku", and the same kind of "Uncle Ming" of the former head of Myoshin Temple, Ming Shu Keijun, the upcoming abbot of Myoshin Temple, Xi Xuanmi "Xi Yuan", Taiyuan Xuesai's "Taiyuan", and "Mei Yue" of Imagawa Yoshimoto's former legal name Mei Yue Seiyoyo are also of this type.

This tradition comes from the Tang Empire, and many eminent monks were born in the era of the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty, such as the "Nanyue" of Nanyue Huairang and the "Matsu" of Matsu Daoyi. The "Huangmei" of Huangmei Hongren, the "Linji" of Linji Yixuan, and the "Huangbari" of Huangbari Xiyun are all like this.

In the future, Takeda Harunobu can not call this name, according to the regular name of the academy should be called Deei Xuan Shingen, just like the famous warrior monk of Kofukuji Temple, Hozoriin Shinei is so, if it is recorded in the document of Huilin Temple, it will be marked with Kiyama Shingen, in fact, it is the common sense of the samurai of that era to shave the Buddha at home, holding three refuges but not keeping the five precepts, in essence, he is still a samurai wearing a monk's robe and wearing the name of the law, and he is still doing the work of killing people and seizing property.

"Dr. Takeda Daizen entered the Taoist Shingen, is he just becoming a monk now? So what attitude does he want to express? Bear the blame for the failure. Expressing an attitude of concession or expressing the spirit of not admitting defeat? The Hojo clan pondered for a long time.

"I guess I don't admit defeat! If he admits defeat, the envoy of the Takeda family should have waited for a long time in Kasuga Mountain Castle. There has been no movement for two months, but now he has suddenly become a monk, he must not be willing to fail. Hojo Shiyasu said disapprovingly: "Even if he is unwilling, what can he do?" This defeat knocked out all the spirit and spirit that the Takeda family had accumulated for decades, and most of the essence accumulated by the two generations was dispersed, and no matter how hard they tried, it would be useless. ”

"According to my father, doesn't the Takeda family have a chance to turn back? But the children think they still have a chance! Hojo Clan was afraid that his majestic father would misunderstand his thoughts, so he hurriedly explained, "Does the child mean that there is no chance of recovery?" The children think they still have a chance! After all, Shinano Bankoku is still in the hands of the Takeda family, and there are still many young samurai in Kai, gritting their teeth and persevering for five or seven years, and there may be a chance to revive again if they survive this threshold! ”

Hojo Shikang knows very well what his kid is thinking, and clearly refers to whether the Takeda family can get out of the predicament, in fact, it is a metaphor that the Hojo family should insist on supporting, no matter whether his ideas are right or wrong, it should not discourage his enthusiasm, so he said appreciatively: "The Takeda family is still hopeful, but it is very difficult and not easy to achieve, on the other hand, the situation of my Hojo family is much better, and the strength can be restored after three and five years of forbearance, what you have to do is to restore the vitality of my Hojo family as soon as possible, and you can't provoke Echigo before the strength is restored, Don't try to get involved in Ueno, the sages of the Ming Kingdom said that this is what it means. ”

"The child understands...... Wait a minute! Hojo raised his head in surprise, looked at his father's extraordinarily kind face, and said in a panic: "Father said that the child should do it?" Why didn't the father do it, but ...... It's a child who does. ”

Because my father had already made up his mind, he announced his official retirement at the court meeting on the New Year's Day...... Inform Shinkuro in advance so that Shinkuro can prepare more, in the blink of an eye, Shinkuro has grown into an adult in his twenties, and the struggle of this family for more than 20 years has not insulted the inheritance passed down by your great-grandfather and grandfather, and now this burden is handed over to you to bear, you must do a good job and must not fall into the prestige of the Hojo family. Speaking of this, Hojo Shiyasu's eyes flashed with a trace of memory and remembrance.

"Father! You are at your peak in spring and autumn, full of ambition, and it is a great time to show your mind and gallop in Kanto! One failure is not enough to hurt the foundation of my Hojo family, and it only takes a few years to restore the old view, so how can you say something discouraged at this time! The people of Sanshu are looking forward to you leading my Hojo family to lay a great foundation! The Hojo clan knelt down and begged: "Please take back your father's life, my Hojo family can't do without your leadership, and the children can't do without your guidance!" ”

"Shinkuro! You are the son of my Hojo family, just like the eagle who controls the sky and looks down on the earth, destined to spread his wings and soar in the sky, how can you learn from the bird's nest and not fly to be a little family...... I have made up my mind and there is no need to say anything, just take advantage of this month's time to organize your strategy for governing the government and the army, and if you have any questions, you can come and ask at any time, go! Hojo waved his hand to pull him off.

The Hojo clan said that this war was quite easy, and the layman who didn't know the inside looked at first glance that the losses of the Nagao and Ueno families were comparable to the Hojo family, as if it was just a draw, but in fact it was not the case, the Nagao Army refused to defend the camp with a disadvantage in strength, and the Hojo family led a large army to besiege it, but in the end, it was beaten by the inferior forces of the Long Tail Army and almost completely collapsed, and most of the 8,000 soldiers who died were from the hands of the Nagao family.

In this way, you can see how strong Echigo's strength is, with two enemies and one is to take a big advantage, and finally ask for benevolence to become two for one, for the Hojo family, this is a loss-making transaction of killing 500 enemies and losing 1,000, and finally forced to accept the harsh exchange request put forward by Nagao Jinghu, which caused his uncle to lose face in Hirai Castle.

And Hojo Shiyasu, who had been smooth in history, also abdicated and lived in seclusion after the heavy blow in the third year of Eiroku, so under the crisis situation of being hit hard and unable to resist, Hojo Shiyasu's ambition was destroyed and there was little left, and not long after returning to Odawara Castle, he thought of retiring and planning.

Soon after, the news spread that the Sagami-Hojo family had passed the position of family governor to the Hojo clan, and that Hojo Shiyasu himself was living in seclusion in Odawara Castle, and his retirement also represented the end of the era of the Sagami-shi lion, and the dark clouds hanging over the Kanto region seemed to have dissipated a lot, and the future was unknown. (To be continued......)