"Okay." Imagawa Jigen adjusted his breathing a little and settled into the breathing rhythm he was most familiar with when practicing martial arts in the past. Then, as if there was wind under his feet, he jumped in front of Tanuma Di's new body. Tanuma Chishin hurriedly raised his hand to block, but Imagawa Ujimoto took advantage of his strength and struck him horizontally, knocking him half a step away.
"Excellent skills, worthy of the queen of my old master!" Tanuma Dixin admired with sincerity, and then stabbed him with a knife. However, Imagawa Ujimoto did not block. He took a small step with very nimble footwork, turned around lightly to let go of the sword, turned around and struck out straight towards the door with the sword. Tanuma Dixin was forced to feel a little embarrassed. He leaned back suddenly to avoid the blow, but his center of gravity was lost. Imagawa Ujimoto stopped his steps and at the same time swept his right leg, kicking Tanuma Dixin's lower body and sweeping him to the ground. Tanuma Chishin quickly rolled back several times before jumping up to his feet - but Imagawa Ujimoto did not pursue him.
"A humble gentleman, unwilling to take advantage of others' danger." Tanuma Dixin praised again from the bottom of his heart, "If it weren't for his inconsistent stance, he would be a good warrior. It's just that the master's life is difficult, so I still have to take his life here."
Tanuma Chishin once again raised his sword to meet him, attacking with a storm of sword skills. However, Imagawajimoto's body skills were amazingly good. With the delicate steps under his feet and his agile body, he was able to dodge them one by one without blocking. He opened all attacks, and a few occasional counterattacks made Tanuma Dixin unable to parry. Tanuma Dixinjiu couldn't attack, and his clothes were soaked with sweat. He panted heavily and looked at Imagawa Ujimoto, only to find that the latter was still breathing steadily and showed no sign of panic.
He suddenly realized that Imagawa Shimoto's martial arts skills were probably far superior to his. After realizing it, the humiliation that followed almost crushed the samurai.
"Why don't you use all your strength?" Tanuma Dixin asked in a deep voice, "I showed my flaws several times just now. Young Master had the chance to kill me, so why didn't you do it?"
As soon as the words came out, before Imagawaji Yuan could reply, Tanuma Chishin had already figured out the answer.
"Are you stalling for time? Do you have other subordinates who will come to the rescue?" Tanuma Tishin almost gritted his teeth and said the speculation he was least willing to accept. "You can't trust me and my subordinates. You feel that even if you win, I will , I won’t let you go, right? So you choose to delay and wait for reinforcements??”
Imagawa Ujimoto still didn't answer, because Tanuma Chixin's guess was correct. However, he felt that if he admitted it, it might arouse his anger and cause him to be shot with random arrows - but Tanuma Tishin obviously had no such sinister intention - but his mood was indeed extremely shameful and angry.
"As a swordsman, he was played like a child in swordsmanship; as a samurai, he couldn't even make the opponent go all out in a battle; as a man, he couldn't make his promise trustworthy. ...Haha..." Tanuma Di Shingan laughed twice, his expression extremely ugly, "What a shame and humiliation... Master, do you just look down on me like this? Just kill me if you want, why bother to humiliate me in every possible way?"
Before he finished speaking, dozens of shurikens and kunai suddenly flew out from the bushes on the other side of the road. The hunter just now became the prey in an instant when he was unprepared, and was shot and killed one after another. Tanuma Dixin He was also hit by a kunai in the center of his eyebrow, and fell down without saying a word.
"What's going on, disciple?" It turned out that Taiyuan Xue Zhai arrived on horseback, and the ninjas and warriors behind him filed out of the bushes, protecting Imagawa Shimoto, and at the same time looked at the corpses and the surroundings with vigilance. shrubs.
"Third brother... sent someone to assassinate me." Imagawa Ujimoto sheathed his sword and nodded at the corpses on the ground. "The leader reported his family name and said he was Tanuma Teishin, the Fukushima family's swordsmanship instructor."
"How is it possible..." Taiyuan Xuezhai's face darkened instantly, and he murmured almost in disbelief, "It was early in the morning when the family governor was killed, Yutai Palace had blocked the news, and we only learned about it at noon... If Detective Xuan Guanghui could There are more than a dozen people ambushing beside Puyuan Castle at this time, which means that he got the news at least this morning... or even earlier... How was this done? "
"Search the body to see if there are any usable clues. In addition, open the stomach to see if any secret messages have been swallowed to keep it secret. This is a common method used by the ninjas of the Fukushima family." Taiyuan Xuezhai gave the order and he brought The ninjas all stepped forward. When Imagawa Ushimoto saw Ohara Jinmi casually peeling off Tanuma Chi's new armor and was about to raise his knife to dissect it, he suddenly felt unbearable and raised his hand to stop him:
"Teacher, if Lord Tanuma hadn't been merciful just now, I would have died a violent death. He remembered his father's kindness and saw that I had become a warrior, so he did not assassinate me, but spared my life and wanted to fight with me. , so that we can delay time.”
"You think he was a kind and righteous warrior, so you want to keep his body intact?" Taiyuan Xue Zhai saw what Imagawa Shimoto was thinking.
"yes."
"But in my opinion, this man is extremely stupid. His pedantry ruined Xuan Guang Hui Tan's good fortune, and may cause Xuan Guang Hui Tan to lose in the end. There is nothing to pity this kind of person." Taiyuan Xue Zhai shook his head disdainfully, and then waved to the ninja leader Tu Atomsune under his command, "Zijing, you come to deal with the aftermath. Others, follow me to the Imagawa Pavilion quickly. Xuan Guanghui investigates the known information. , there is no need to delay.”
As he rode away, Imagawa Shimoto said nothing. Taiyuan Xuezhai naturally understood what his apprentice was thinking. After thinking for a moment, he slowed down his horse and said to Imagawa, "Chengfang, tell me, what are you thinking about."
"My disciple disagrees with Teacher Tanuma-sama's evaluation. My disciple thinks he is a great samurai." Imagawa Ujimoto revealed his new voice without hesitation.
"Pedantic ideas must be left behind. Those who want to achieve great things must use any means. How can we be as hesitant as he is? Thinking about the kindness of the former lord and the way of the warrior, and finally missed the important things." Taiyuan Xuezhai shook his head and said Unmoved.
"But haven't you taught me my disciple's 'pedantic' concept since I was a kid? Isn't it what you have taught me all the time? 'Repay kindness, be humble and upright, conduct yourself in society, and do not go against your conscience'? Isn't that the same?" You have always told me, do you want to be a good person? Isn’t Tanuma-sama such a good person? He did not destroy humanity in order to achieve his goals, but upheld his own conscience." Imagawa Ujihara held the rein with one hand, and the other He opened his hands to Taiyuan Xuezhai, as sincerely as when he asked questions when he was a child, "Why are you teaching your disciple now the opposite of what you learned when you were a child?"
Imagawa Ujimoto's questioning left Taiyuan Xuezhai speechless. He slowly moved his eyes away and looked at the mountains behind him on the right - deep in the mountains was Shande Temple where the master and apprentice had practiced for many years, and it was also Taiyuan. The place where Yukisai educated Imagawa Ujimoto.
After being silent for a while, Taiyuan Xuezhai took a deep breath. It seemed that he couldn't bear to look at Imagawa Shigen, but still chose to continue looking at the mountains by himself, and said slowly:
"Yes, I taught you this before. But at that time, I thought you could be an idle monk in the temple all your life. Naturally, I hope you can live like a good person. Although good people suffer, their conscience does not hurt and they can live a happy life. The most comfortable. Although the bad guys benefit, they have a guilty conscience and suffer from it day and night. As the saying goes, a gentleman is magnanimous, but a villain has a long life."
"But in the Wu family in troubled times, good people can't survive. If you keep your conscience, you can't save your life. Since you want to come to the Wu family, you can't be a gentleman. Since you want to be a villain, of course I have to teach you a lesson as a teacher. It’s a completely contradictory theory. I know that you have a kind nature and it’s hard to change, but you still have to work hard.”
Taiyuan Xuezhai let out a long sigh, and then turned his head to look at Imagawa Shigen with great guilt, but saw the familiar "disobedience" and "righteousness" in the latter's eyes.
"Master knows that you don't agree, but this matter must be changed, but you can take your time. With Master here, I can help you do all the dirty and evil things. You don't need to dirty your white feathers. Just come and the teacher will come.”
"But..." Taiyuan Xuezhai changed the subject, stared into Imagawa Shigen's eyes, and said earnestly, "When my master is gone, you will have to do those dirty things yourself. If you still stick to the right path and conscience , if you don’t want to dye your feathers red...be careful of your own death and the death of your family..."
·
When passing by a stream, Imagawa Ujimoto insisted on stopping to clean the wounds on his hands and waist. Taiyuan Xuezhai knew that Imagawa's Yuan was a bit of a germophobe and didn't like being stained by dirty things. But he also understood that what Imagawa Ujimoto wanted to clean this time was not only his body, but also his conscience.
·
On the afternoon of March 17, the fifth year of Tianwen (1536), at the beginning of Shenshi time, outside the east gate of Jinchuan Hall.
Imagawa Ujimoto and Taiyuan Xuezhai and their entourage arrived after a long journey. Surprisingly, there was no martial law at the Imagawa Pavilion, and pedestrians and merchants came and went normally. The gatekeeper guarding the city was Shouguini's close confidant Zuirin Kotaro. When he saw everyone arriving, he hurriedly came down to guide the way. At the same time, he whispered: "Niyudai is waiting for the master and the master at the castle tower."
"I know, thank you." Taiyuan Xuezhai responded, but felt faintly uneasy in his heart. Because he saw that the house at the north gate of Imagawa Hall clearly bore the banner of the Fukushima family. Genguang Etan's mother is from the Fukushima clan, and Genguang Etan himself is also the grandson of Masashige Fukushima, the current head of the Fukushima family, a famous general of the Imagawa family. If Genguang Etan wants to seize the family governor, the Fukushima family must be the number one supporter. Its flag appears here... indicating that the situation is not good.
"Why is there the Fukushima family's flag at the north gate of Sannomaru?" Taiyuan Xuezai lowered his voice and confirmed to Mizubayashi Totarō.
"I don't know. Master, it's better to ask Ni Yutai in person. It's not good for others to speculate on these matters." Ruilin Kotaro responded very cautiously. Taiyuan Xuezhai didn't bother much, and led the people to Tianshou. Kaku walked over and entered the gate of Ninomaru. However, before entering the main gate of Honmaru, Taiyuan Xuezai ordered all the accompanying ninjas and samurai to stop. At the same time, he gave a few instructions to Obara Zhenmi and arranged for one person to leave the city.
"The situation is delicate now. It's better not to bring too many people into the main pill, so as not to make others suspicious." Seeing Imagawa's puzzled look, Taiyuan Xuezai explained to him. After entering the Honmaru, the two of them rushed to the castle tower without stopping, and walked up quickly under the guidance of the maid Shouguini.
"Are all the important ministers here?" Taiyuan Xuezhai glanced at the smoke in the bundai houses of Honmaru and asked curiously.
"Reporting to the master, the day before yesterday coincided with the spring appraisal. All the important ministers came and have not left yet." The maid replied respectfully, leading the two of them to the front of Shouguini's house. "I have an order from the Imperial Palace. No need to announce, you two please come in."
Imagawaji Yuan then opened the door and walked into the room with Taiyuan Xuezhai. Before he could say hello to Shouguini who was sitting in the house, many warriors suddenly walked out. The next moment, swords were everywhere. Several sharp blades were placed on Imagawa Ujimoto and Taiyuan Xuezhai, and the door was also behind them. Locked up tightly.
"Mother..." Imagawa Ujimoto was stunned and speechless in front of this sudden turn of events, while Taiyuan Xuezai frowned.
"I'm sorry, Chengfang, I've changed my mind." Shou Guini raised his head, murderous intent evident in his brows, "I'm determined to let Xuan Guanghui Tan succeed me, and you, as a future trouble, must be eliminated."
