An "auction" was held very successfully in Naya, and with the cooperation of Imai Munehisa, the bidder, the two "paintings" were finally sold to Tsuda Munekazu and another merchant for 1,500 and 700 kan respectively.\\

After a day of repairs in Sakai Town, Masayo said goodbye to Imai Munehisa and others, and began to march to Kyoto in an ox cart with more than 2,000 people.

After a day of leisure, Masaro arrived in Kyoto in the afternoon.

Kyoto, also known as Heiankyo, is a city completely modeled after Chang'an, the Tang Dynasty of China. Since the Yingren Rebellion, it has been war-torn and prosperous no longer as it was back then. In Heiankyo, Suzaku Avenue connects the Ouchiri Suzaku Gate and the Rajo Gate, the main roads such as Higashizuki Omiya, Nishi Toin, Higashi Tonin Temple, and Tokyogoku, and the main roads of Nishishu Shidainomiya, Dozu, Kitsuji, and Nishikyogoku, which run east-west to one, Tsuchigomon, Nakagomon, and Nijo to Kujo, and intersect vertically with Suzaku Street.

Zhengliang and the others stayed in a courtyard that had been arranged by Sheng Long a long time ago.

In the evening, Masahiro first visited an old man.

"This guest, the host has rested, please come back tomorrow." After knocking on the gate of a courtyard, the person who opened the door said apologetically.

"Please pass it on behalf of you first, just say that the old man of the Hizen Luo family came to visit, this is a token. Your master will definitely ask for it when he sees it. Masarashi said as he handed a small box to the person who opened the door. At the same time, Masato also glanced at Fei Duan behind him, who understood, and immediately took out a few copper coins and handed them to his subordinates.

The servant touched the copper coin, and then said, "Then please wait a little longer." The villain immediately went to Tongyu. With that, he closed the courtyard door again.

"It's rude." Ahri behind him said.

"Don't be rude, this place is the land of Kyoto, not the territory of the family, in order to avoid unnecessary right and wrong, you should try to be a little more restrained." Masara said softly. Masashi came low-key this time, and Kyoto, a place where dragons and snakes are mixed, is better to be careful.

Soon after the people went in to report, there was a rush of footsteps in the courtyard, and then the courtyard door was opened with a "squeak". A young man in his thirties walked out.

"Politics...... His Royal Highness Masara? The young man said uncertainly.

"Hehe, a year apart. The people of Jingda are still the same! Masara said with a smile. Masayoshi's visit this time was none other than Kyogoku Takayoshi, who was working under the general. Last year, when the Yokoku family coalition besieged Sashi's house, Kyogoku Takayoshi was caught as a spy by the Sashi's navy, which coincided with the Luo family's raid on the Sashi's naval army base and inadvertently rescued the imprisoned Kyogoku Takayoshi. At that time, in order to express his gratitude, Kyogoku Takayoshi left a piece of clothing with a family crest as a token on the spot, saying that if Masayoshi needed it in the future, he could take this token to Kyoto to find him. The box that Fang Cai Zhengliang gave to his subordinates contained the tokens left by Kyogoku Takayoshi.

"Sure enough, it's you!" When Masayoshi mentions last year's incident, Kyogoku Takayoshi finally confirms that the person who came is the person who saved him last year.

"The Luo Clan Hall has come from afar. If you're far away, please go inside and sit down. Kyogoku Takayoshi, who had turned around, invited.

The two soon came to a room and sat down.

Masara paid a little attention to the furnishings in the room. Except for a few chapters of tables and chairs. There doesn't seem to be anything else. It seems that since the territory was occupied by Asai Ryomasa seven years ago, Kyogoku Takayoshi was exiled and then defected to the shogun, who had a good relationship. Even so, Kyogoku Takayoshi's life hasn't improved much. In addition, the prestige of the general's family is also declining, and the situation of Jinggoku Gaoji can be imagined.

"I really didn't expect that it was His Royal Highness Zhengliang who was rescued from fire and water at the beginning!" Kyogoku Takayoshi said with emotion. After Masara rescued him, he didn't tell his name to Kyogoku Takayoshi in order to avoid being too exposed, if it weren't for Fang Cai Masayoshi who told his name. Even now, he doesn't know the real name of Lu Dao Zhengliang.

"Hehe, I had no choice but to do it at the beginning!" Masara immediately told Kyogoku Takayoshi about the original situation, and later told Kyogoku Takayoshi that the wealthy family that had detained him had been wiped out by the Luo family.

Kyogoku Takayoshi laughed after hearing this. As a retainer of the shogun's family, he suffered such a humiliation in Hizen, and Kyogoku Takayoshi was actually angry about it. Now that he heard that the wealthy family had been destroyed, of course he felt that he breathed a sigh of relief, and his good impression of the Luo family increased a lot.

"I don't know what happened to Lu Dao Zhengliang this time?" After some small talk, Kyogoku Takayoshi is colorful. He had promised that. will try his best to help the Luo family, and now that the other party is coming with a token, he must have something to ask for.

"Lord Takayoshi, I already have a territory of 110,000 stone in Hizen, and in order to make the people of the territory stable, I came to visit this time in the hope that the general's family will give Hizen the position of guardian," Masarashi said. At present, the guardian of Hizen is controlled by the Shao Er family, and the guardian generation is the Qianyi family. Both of these were powerful daimyo in the Northern and Southern Dynasties era, but unfortunately their strength has dropped greatly. Although the Shao Er family is weak, the name is there, so the position of Hizen guardian, the hope of Zhengliang is slim. In comparison, the name of the Thousand Families is much lower, and considering the factors of mutual checks and balances, it is very likely that the General's Family will allow the second guardian generation to appear in Hizen. Now that the strength of the Luo family is equivalent to the strength of a country lord, with the idea of giving it a try, Zhengliang made such a request.

"Your Highness only asks for this position?" Kyogoku Takayoshi did not respond positively to Masayoshi's request, but continued to ask.

"The official position of the imperial court is also asked to be handled by the shogunate." Masato immediately asked. The shogunate official position was separate from the imperial court official position.

"Hmm," Kyogoku Takayoshi nodded.

"In order to show their loyalty to the shogun and the imperial court, the family is willing to offer 2,000 kan coins for the shogun's family to repair the roads in Kyoto." Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiharu had just done a job of building a road to Kyoto last year, and now he was using this as an excuse to give him coins.

"At the same time, the family is willing to offer the family treasure to show their loyalty." Masara said. Hearing this, Sheng Long behind him immediately took out two wooden boxes.

Masarashi took two wooden boxes, placed them in front of Kyogoku Takayoshi, and said, "This box contains the family treasure that the family dedicated to the general. Another box is also one of the family's family treasures, this thing is given to Lord Gaoji, please do it on your behalf. "In the two boxes, a piece of adhesive paper painting was given to the general's family, and a hundred-yen adult head was given to Kyogoku Takayoshi.

"Oh?" Hearing this, Kyogoku Takayoshi opened the box that belonged to him, and then picked up the adult head and looked at it, "This? It's really unheard of, unseen. Kyogoku Takayoshi was clearly stunned by the beauty of the gift.

Seeing this scene, Zhengliang smiled slightly in his heart. According to historical records, Kyogoku Takayoshi likes to collect all kinds of famous paintings, and he also loves to dress up. Now it seems that this is indeed the case.

"Hehe" couldn't help but appreciate the gift, Kyogoku Takayoshi finally realized his gaffe, so he quickly put down the gift, smiled at Masahiro and smiled, "This matter is wrapped up in the next body, please wait for two days with His Royal Highness Masayoshi, there will be good news at that time." ”

"Then please leave it to Lord Goji." Zhengliang said sincerely.

After bidding farewell to Kyogoku Takayoshi, Masarashi returned to his residence that night. Nothing happened overnight.

On the second day, Masahiro and Ichijo Shenglong set off separately. Masahiro took Naya's letter of introduction to visit some officials who had a good relationship with Naya. And Ichijo Moritaka also went to visit some officials he knew, the most important of which was to visit his second brother, Ichijo Bodori, who held an important position in the shogunate. Although Yi Shenglong is not very well treated by his Lao Tzu Yi Fang family, he has a good personal relationship with this second brother Yi Fang.

Masayoshi's purpose in doing this is also very clear, that is, not to pin his hopes entirely on Kyogoku Takayoshi, or to get the rest of the officials to cooperate with Kyogoku Takayoshi's actions.

For two days in a row, Masahiro and the two visited almost all the officials they could visit, and the coins they brought with them were almost spent.

On the second day of April in the tenth year of Astronomy (1541), at Masara's residence, Masarashi finally ushered in Kyogoku Takayoshi.

The moment he learned that Kyogoku Takayoshi was visiting, Masaro knew that General Lu Michi had no intention of receiving him this time. But after thinking about it for a while, I also understood the reason. First of all, although the Luo family's handhouse has a territory of 110,000 stones, he is not a real lord of the country in name, and the general is indeed getting weaker and weaker, but it will take several years before he falls to the point where everyone has to fight, so now he doesn't have to surrender his identity to meet the powerful of a place; Secondly, although the Hosokawa family and the Miyoshi family are currently facing off, the Hosokawa family has not relaxed its surveillance of the shogun's family, and in order to avoid extraneous complications, the shogun has also chosen to lower the handling of the matter.

"Congratulations to His Highness Masara," Kyogoku Takayoshi said with a smile, "Although there is some controversy, the Imperial Court has decided to confer the position of guardian of Chikugo on His Highness Masara. ”

Chikugo guardian generation? Zhengliang was stunned when he heard this. Isn't it Hizen Guardian who is applying? How did you suddenly become Chikugo Guardian?

"Hehe, originally the imperial court was going to grant His Highness the position of Hizen Guardian Dai" Seeing that Masayoshi's face was unnatural, Kyogoku Takayoshi said with a wry smile, "But yesterday, the Ouchi family suddenly recommended His Highness to serve as the guardian of Chikugo, so in the end, His Highness's position was determined to be Chikugo Guardian Dai." ”

Depend on! As soon as Masara heard about the Ouchi family, he knew what was going on. Chikugo is currently the territory of the Otomo family, and the purpose of the Ouchi family's recommendation this time is obvious, which is to put an end to the possibility of the Luo family secretly taking refuge in the Otomo family, and even intends to set the Luo family and the Otomo family against each other. Thinking of this, Masato suddenly oozed a layer of cold sweat. If the Luo family borders the territory of the Otomo family at this moment, if they learn that Masato has obtained this official position, it is estimated that the Otomo family will not hesitate to kill the Luo family.

Originally, Masayo's plan was to take advantage of the good relationship between the Ouchi family and the general's family, and ask the other party to recommend it on his behalf. I didn't expect that the other party was not a fool, and after accepting the Luo family's overtures, such a trick came to make the Luo family stand on the opposite side of the Otomo family in an instant.

Yoshitaka Ouchi, you're ruthless enough.

!