"Your Excellency...... We...... Can we really stop Hanko? This question sounded even harsher to the ears of Itakura Shigemune, who was already upset. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 ｉｎｆｏ

How do I know if I can block it? If so, do you need to worry about it? He couldn't help but curse in his heart.

For example, it has been peaceful for so many years today, most of the former powerful ministers and generals have long since withered, and their children and grandchildren have lost the courage and blood of their ancestors in a prosperous life, especially in this frail and sickly Honda political dynasty, and there is no trace of heroism from their fathers and grandfathers.

These days, he has been uneasy, especially when he heard the news that Mizuno Katsunari, the lord of the Fukuyama Domain, was killed by the Han army, and he was even more terrified, for fear that he would also suffer such a fate. He had already sent his family and relatives to Kanto these days, and if it weren't for the fact that both Itakura Shigemune and the shogunate rejected his request to move back to Kanto, I am afraid that he himself would have abandoned his Himeji Domain and fled back to Kanto.

Even so, he didn't give up his original fear, and he had been surrounding Itakura Shigemune all these days, as if he wanted to use him to give himself some courage. If it weren't for the fact that the Hondo family was deeply rooted in the shogunate, Itakura Shigemune would have punished him for this cowardly behavior.

"We have received the favor of the shogunate for generations, and we are the great names of the genealogy determined by the gods, so we should be loyal to the shogunate until the last moment, so what's the use of thinking so much?" He couldn't help but secretly scolded the other party, "Now that the shogunate is in trouble, it is the time for my generation to kill and serve the country, as long as we are loyal to the shogunate!" As for whether it can be stopped or not, it depends on the will of God. ”

"Yes...... Be. Honda Masato's face changed slightly, but he didn't say anything more and just nodded slightly.

Although he knew that the other party did not agree with his words in his heart, Itakura Shigemune was not interested in arguing with this pedigree daimyo anymore, and since he came to the Himeji Domain, he ordered that all the feudal forces that had been assembled should be collected under his own command - and Honda Masatomo did not resist this rule, he knew that he did not have much experience, and it was better to be the first to look ahead.

But no matter how calm and calm he is on the surface, how much confidence does Itakura Shigemune have? He also grew up in the Chengping era, and he himself did not have much confidence that he could defeat them in front of the Han army, so that the Han Kou had to stop in the western country.

So he has been constantly reporting to the shogunate, hoping that the shogunate can send more reinforcements and elite soldiers to support him in the future, although the shogunate has been sending a large army to Kyoto recently, but he always feels that it is not enough, so he has been shrinking the surrounding forces.

However, in any case, Himeji Castle is a fortress, and behind Himeji Castle is a plain, and it is a smooth road to Kyoto, and if Himeji Castle is breached, the Han Kou army can march all the way, and it is even possible to directly attack Kyoto Castle, making the whole of a place of war.

So even though he felt that he didn't have enough strength at his disposal, he personally came to Himeji Castle with a large army, intending to rely on this fortress to defend himself against the Han Kou as much as possible.

He stood on the large castle tower in the center of Himeji Castle and looked down at the army patrolling the city.

After the Han Kou landing, many people in the city chose to flee the city out of fear, and as soon as he came here, he ordered all civilians in the city who had nothing to do with military affairs to move to and Kanto, so now there are not many civilians in Himeji Castle, and there are soldiers everywhere.

These civilians who were driven away, the resource-poor Itakura Shigemune did not give them any protection, but only drove them away, so they must face a very difficult situation along the way, and they can only be displaced from place to place, but in Itakura Shigemune's opinion, this is better than being trapped in Himeji Castle and becoming a victim of artillery fire on both sides.

Of course, in addition to desperately resisting the advance of the Han Invaders, he also received another order from Edo, thousands of miles away, which could not be publicized and could only be done in secret, rather than holding on to the reinforcements and resisting the Han Invaders.

That's right, at the same time as sending reinforcements, Edo also sent a group of envoys, all of whom were confidants of the old Nakatsui Toshikatsu-sama, and this time they came here with a special mission - and this special mission was known to only a few people except Itakura Shigemune.

The Han Dynasty was wreaking havoc everywhere, and the war was connected everywhere, and he also issued a special document saying that he would crusade against the Shogunate, and that the Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu and his important ministers would pay the price for their previous disrespect to the Han, but the Shogun still secretly planned to negotiate peace with the Han and wanted to compromise with them - if this news spread, I am afraid it would bring great shock to others.

Today's shogunate has always declared that it will fight the Han invaders to the end, and that they will follow the example of Hojo Tokimune, and the whole country will work together to resist the invasion of the Han invaders. Who would have thought behind the scenes that the shoguns and important ministers were trying their best to compromise with the Han Kou, and even planned to pay a great price?

However, Itakura Shigemune accepted this reality, after all, he was the one who was going to face the Han Kou soldiers in person, and naturally hoped that this sudden battle would end sooner than anyone else. He had seen how miserable the displaced people were, and he was very afraid that if the war continued, the people of Kanto would also suffer this terrible calamity, and he was even more afraid that the rule of the shogunate would collapse in the wind and rain, and he also let him be buried with a famous name like him.

When Honda Masatomo left the top floor of the Great Castle Tower with a feeling of trepidation, the top floor began to fall silent. It wasn't until a long time later that a few fragmentary footsteps sounded behind him.

It was a young man of about forty years old, dressed like a normal samurai, but with a rather gentle appearance, looking like a civilian official, rather than a samurai who went into battle to kill the enemy.

"See your Excellency." When he came to the back of Itakura Shigemune, the visitor saluted him respectfully.

He is Takagi Kiyoshi, a confidant of Toshikatsu Doi, the head of the old middle school, and it is the leader he sent to be in charge of the peace talks this time.

He has a cautious personality and acts very carefully, although his official position in the shogunate is not high, but he is favored by Doi Toshikatsu, and this matter must be done in secret, and it must be handed over to someone like him.

He also knew the importance of his own trip, so after receiving the order, he rushed from Edo to Kyoto without stopping, and came to Himeji Castle with Itakura Shigemune.

Himeji Castle certainly wasn't the end of his journey.

"Takagi, you have seen the entire situation in Himeji Castle and even in the western country all the way, so you must be aware of the importance of the task of your trip, right?" Itakura Shigemune didn't look back at him, but still looked at the heavy building in the distance, "The high hopes of the general and the old man, you must be careful, you must not let them down." ”

Although Takagi Kiyoshi is the confidant of the old man, but Itakura Shigemune is the representative of the Kyoto office, and he is only one step away from the old man in the shogunate system, and his status is very lofty, so he doesn't have to be polite when talking to him.

"Your Excellency, please rest assured, it is completely clear below." Takagi Kiyoshi still hung his waist and replied respectfully, "The current situation is difficult, and every day that passes is corrupted, so I am willing to take the risk of my life now to negotiate with the Han Kou for the shogunate." As soon as you find the traces of Han Kou, you will go there immediately. ”

"Of course, I don't know the exact route of the Han Kou's march, but judging by the speed of their march, it won't take long to reach the territory of Harima Country, so you just need to march southwest immediately, and you can run into their army soon." Itakura Shigemune immediately replied, "However, you must keep it a secret along the way, and you must never let anyone know the purpose of your trip until you meet the leader of the Han Kou, understand?" ”

"The old and middle-aged adults also explained this way, and they will never leak the news below." Kiyoshi Takagi replied immediately.

"The morale of the Han Kou is high at the moment, so they probably won't agree to the conditions put forward by our side at once, so if they refuse, you must not be discouraged, as long as you can establish a contact with the Han Kou's high-level first, let them know what we think, this time you will be regarded as a preliminary completion of the task - in addition, you should also pay more attention to collecting information on the Han Kou, and find out how many troops they have now, what kind of composition of the troops they have, and what the morale of the enemy army is, this information is also extremely useful to us." Itakura Shigemune continued to explain, "This is probably a long-term negotiation, and you must not lose face in the shogunate. ”

"I will definitely do a good job of the things that the Lord Si Dai has explained, and try my best to find out the news of Han Ko." Takagi Kiyoshi immediately agreed.

"Very good, it seems that the old and middle-aged adults did not choose the wrong person." Itakura Shigemune smiled with satisfaction, "Time waits for no one, you can leave the city and go west tonight, so that you won't cause a commotion in the army." I will send a few faithful and tight-tongued men to escort you. ”

"Thank you, sir!" Gao Mu Qing nodded heavily, and then suddenly became serious again, "My lord, when I came, the old man also explained to me - he said that the Han Kou wolf is ambitious, and he doesn't know how to be satisfied, if everything goes well, it will be a sky-high asking price, and put forward conditions that are absolutely unacceptable to us." If we want to get the Han Kou out on terms that we can accept, then we must show that we can still resist them, so the adults must do everything possible to stop the Han Kou at all costs, and even if they can't stop them, they will suffer unbearable losses! ”

"This is natural," Itakura Shigemune raised his head again to look at Himeji Castle, "Himeji has such a natural danger, and there are fortifications that have been painstakingly managed by generations, it can be described as indestructible, even if the Han Kou is strong, if they want to break through here, they will have to hit their heads and bleed, as long as they are taught enough lessons here, then they should be sensible." ”

"I just hope that what the adults say will come true." Takagi Kiyoshi smiled slightly, and then suddenly lowered his voice again, "There is one more thing, please be sure to pay attention to it. This matter involves a lot of things, and the old and middle adults have specially explained that they will only tell the adults alone. ”

"What's the matter?" Itakura Shigemune was a little confused.

"Just before he left Edo, the shogunate received news that Dainayan-sama had fled from Takasaki Castle, where he was being held, and was missing." Takagi Kiyoshi whispered the news, "In order to avoid shaking the world, this matter will be kept secret for the time being, but please be careful and vigilant, and never let Lord Nayan and the people of Han Kou come into contact!" ”

"Lord Nayan...... I actually fled......" When he heard the news, Itakura Shigemune was also very shocked.

Tokugawa Tadanaga, the son of the previous shogun, and had previously competed with the current shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu for the position of heir, even now, Tokugawa Iemitsu has no son, he is still the most legitimate heir to the theoretical shogun throne.

Because of this special identity, his escape will of course bring great shock to the shogunate.

What's even more worrying is that if he comes into contact with the Han Kou, he will inevitably become a pawn in the hands of the Han Kou, just like the imperial court, and be used by them to become a sharp weapon against the shogun.

So no matter what, you can't let this fugitive Lord Nayan come into contact with Han Ko. For this reason, the shogunate still sent a large number of people to hunt down Tokugawa Tadashi when the army was tight everywhere, and Tokugawa Iemitsu also issued a special order, declaring that his younger brother had committed the crime of treason, and he could be killed on the spot without worrying about his identity.

Naturally, Itakura Shigemune's side had to be strictly guarded, and Tokugawa Tadanaga and his supporters would never be allowed to have a chance to come into contact with the Han Kou.

After Itakura Shigemune understood what the old man meant, he hurriedly said that he would pay attention to it, which made Takagi Kiyoshi relieved.

That same night, Kiyoshi Takagi and others, escorted by the guards assigned by Itakura Shigemune, left Himeji Castle at night and headed for the western country.

And just as they had guessed, at this time, the army led by Zhou Pu had marched all the way to the vicinity of the border between Harima and Bizen countries.

Since they defeated the army of Mizuno Katsunari, the lord of the Fukuyama Domain, and killed Mizuno Katsune, the surrounding wealthy feudal lords were even more frightened, and no one dared to fight the Han army again, and fled one after another, and his advance became very smooth, if it were not for the smooth flow of logistics and transportation lines, his army might have even entered.

However, he and the senators around him were not carried away by this series of victories, and not only did they march in a safe manner, but they also began to become cautious in their assessment of the next battle, and they no longer had the optimism they had before.

"The shogunate really acted decisively, and he really dared to give up the entire western country, and the walls were clear, waiting for us to fight over!" In the temporary camp, Huang Changguo sighed to Zhou Pu, "Lord Zhou, when we thought about it before, we all thought that the shogunate would not be able to hold back and come to a decisive battle with our army, and then our army could defeat it, and then we could let go and attack." Now they are so resolute that no matter how much we provoke them, they will not go south to fight a decisive battle with our army, forcing our army to go all the way north and lengthen its supply lines...... The more they gather their scattered forces, the stronger they become, and I am afraid that our army will have a lot of difficulties in the future. ”

"This is also expected, I didn't expect to be able to enter Kyoto smoothly." Zhou Pu wasn't anxious, "Besides, the more shogunate troops we can attract here, the more we can cooperate with Zhao Shuai's actions?" ”

"Having said that, if we encounter repeated setbacks along the way and find it difficult to move an inch, then we will lose the face of the Great Han, and we will also lose the prestige of the Great Han in front of these feudal lords." Huang Changguo replied with a positive color. "Don't forget, we only have more than a thousand Han soldiers along the way, if these feudal lords are really frightened, and even have two hearts, the consequences will be unimaginable......"

When he said this, it really made Zhou Pu a little worried.

"Then what does Senator Huang think should be done? You can't stop and still , can you? ”

"We have discussed it with several senators before, and everyone feels that since we have already started to march into the army, it is better to fight all the way, and we must not hesitate. However, the way of fighting a war should be more cautious, seeking stability rather than speed. Huang Changguo said as he made a comparison on the map, "Since the shogunate has the intention of waiting for work, then they will definitely take advantage of the geographical advantages to fight us." There is no better place than the fortified fortress, so the enemy forces are probably already gathering at Himeji Castle by now, intending to stop our advance there. ”

"Himeji Castle ......?" Zhou Pu's gaze moved across the map and finally landed on the city. "It is indeed a majestic city, and if the defenders are determined, I am afraid it will be difficult to break through quickly."

"Yes, sir. According to the information we have received before, this Himeji Castle is a large fortress with strong fortifications and a large number of castles, which are completely different from the feudal castles we have encountered along the way. Huang Changguo also nodded, "In such a majestic city, the shogunate has gathered a large number of troops, if we blindly attack it, I'm afraid it will ...... I am afraid that there will be a lot of casualties. ”

Zhou Pu thought about it silently, and also unified the other party's views.

After coercion along the way and the recruitment of the imperial court, the army under his command has now become an army of tens of thousands of people, but the core force of it is not much, that is, the 10,000 or 20,000 people he brought from Kyushu, and even the quality of these people is difficult to compliment, and the most trustworthy is the more than 1,000 troops of the Han Dynasty - and this must not be easily lost.

"Therefore, after our current discussion, the best way is to occupy a city with a port as soon as possible, and then let the navy bring the siege artillery ashore, so as to reduce the casualties of our army." Huang Changguo expressed his opinion, "Please also communicate with Kyushu quickly!" (To be continued.) )