"Then teacher, is this battle we fought in vain?" Imagawa Yoshimoto couldn't help but said in frustration when he thought of the current situation, "Have we also missed the most effective opportunity for the righteousness we have worked so hard to obtain?"
"Yes, not only did we not get back Toe, but we also lost the area around Kabara Castle. After we fight back to Kabara, we have to take the narrow official roads around Hamaishi Mountain, Jinkasa Mountain, and Nakao Mountain. The Hojo family can leave some soldiers behind. We couldn't get through it. Moreover, the troops suffered heavy losses and couldn't recover for a year. But when we recovered, Imagawa Yoshima also recovered. Simply, Imagawa Yoshima and the Hojo family were also seriously injured and unable to launch an attack. , otherwise we won’t even be able to hold on to our capabilities.”
"Why is this happening..." Imagawa Yoshimoto found it a little hard to accept, "Didn't we plan and launch the battle ourselves..."
"Isn't it all your fault, you brat?" Taiyuan Xuezai hit Imagawa Yoshimoto hard on the head, "You didn't need to come to rescue me at all at that time! You only needed 6,000 people to completely take advantage of Yuanjiang. After pacifying it, they would bring 1,000 people back to support Imagawakan and set up a defensive line at Yokoyama Castle. If the Hojo family wanted to fight from Jundong, they would have to take the extremely narrow official road between the mountains and the sea. That road was not accessible at all. The supplies that support the army have been consumed for a long time. Even if he has thousands of troops, he can't defeat it. Once you have settled Yuanjiang and then return to Suruga, great things will happen."
"In the end, you had to give up Yuanjiang, which was within easy reach. Even if you left 2,000 or 3,000 people to recover a few cities, what would it be? If you had to come back with the whole division to rescue me, and fight with the Hojo family, both sides would lose. Isn't it like drawing water from a bamboo basket?"
"If I don't come back, old man, you are dead, who can still stand here and preach to me?" Imagawa Yoshimoto curled his lips and replied angrily.
"You brat, do you look down on my master so much? Even if you don't come, my master will still have a way to escape!"
"It's up to you, old man." Imagawa Yoshimoto turned away.
"You are such a brat. Didn't you want to strengthen the Imagawa family so that you can propose marriage to the person you like? Now that it's like this, the Imagawa family has no time to take care of itself. If you are not careful, it will be a disaster. Wait until next year's autumn harvest. , Imagawa Yoshima also recovered, and the Hojo family marched into Suruga again. We were attacked from two sides and couldn't move. How could your father-in-law allow you to propose marriage to someone you can't even touch? There will definitely be strong support nearby. I'm here to arrange a marriage for you. Then how could your sweetheart's family agree to marry their daughter to a shaky old famous family in favor of a distant family?"
The more Taiyuan Xuezhai talked about Imagawa Yoshimoto, the more and more sad he became, and he even lost the interest in talking back.
"But we still have one last chance." Taiyuan Xue Zhai noticed his apprentice's disappointment, leaned into his ear and whispered, "The Hojo family must be lax at the moment. If we make a surprise attack at night, we may have no chance of winning. If you have a good teacher, The more than 600 fresh troops who returned serve as the vanguard. The Hojo family may not be able to cope with a hard day's battle. If the Hojo army can be defeated here, the war in Kabara Castle and Kadong will turn around, and your marriage will be saved."
"Really?" Imagawa Yoshimoto asked in surprise.
"Really, but we need to prepare for the division's return to camp. You should also take a rest first. It looks like you are seriously injured." Taiyuan Xuezhai glanced at Imagawa Yoshimoto's bandaged legs and pancreas by the light of the fire. Jinhaori, who was stained with blood, whispered with some distress.
·
Imagawa Yoshimoto walked back to the camp. He wanted to go directly to the main tent to rest, but he was attracted by a faint cry in the middle of the night. The cry was not that obvious amid the patter of rain, but it was still clearly audible.
Crying in the military camp late at night is something that is strictly prohibited in all armies. There are countless poor people in troubled times. Who doesn’t have sad things? It's fine not to think about it, but if they hear the cry, the soldiers will inevitably empathize with it, which can easily lead to low morale, and even cause riots and camp roars.
However, Imagawa Yoshimoto did not pursue his intention. He just dragged his injured leg with some curiosity and limped towards the source of the sound - which was the camp where the remains of the soldiers who died in the battle were placed. The rain suppressed the smell, which made the smell in the camp less unpleasant - but once the rain stopped and the water began to evaporate, it would be so pungent that it would be difficult to get close to it.
Imagawa Yoshimoto followed the sound into a camp tent and found an older, middle-aged soldier kneeling beside a corpse, carefully covering his mouth and crying. The sound of tears falling on the corpse was louder than the sound of rain. The pitter patter. He was obviously so sad that he didn't even notice Imagawa Yoshimoto's approach. Through the dim light in the tent, Imagawa Yoshimoto could see that the face of the corpse was still very young. It should be a young soldier, probably the son of this middle-aged man.
The middle-aged man was using his blood-stained sleeve to wipe the child's face repeatedly and in vain, trying to wipe away the blood clots on it, but it only became more and more stained.
Imagawa Yoshimoto sighed, but this sigh was heard by the middle-aged man. He turned around and found that the person who came seemed to be a noblely dressed warrior. He was immediately frightened and he knelt down and began to kowtow to apologize.
"It's okay." Imagawa Yoshimoto shook his head, feeling very weak. He groped in his arms and took out a clean handkerchief and handed it to the middle-aged man. The middle-aged man took it with fear. After seeing clearly that it was a handkerchief, he suddenly broke down and burst into tears.
"Please forgive me, sir... forgive me..." The middle-aged man cried and apologized at the same time. He knew that his behavior had violated military regulations, but he couldn't bear it. He could only kowtow, "My baby Before my son left for this expedition, he had been thinking about using the reward money to propose marriage. The girl's family had already agreed to the marriage, and the girl also gave such a handkerchief to our baby... The girl's family had already agreed... ...We all agreed...We will get married when we return...but my baby is gone..."
Imagawa Yoshimoto felt a severe headache and couldn't bear to look at the middle-aged man in front of him. He turned around, only to find the body lying on the straw mat next to him, holding something tightly in his right hand.
Imagawa Yoshimoto gently opened his hand, which was full of blood clots and scars, and found that the thing held inside was a sachet. It's hard to tell what its original color was. It was completely soaked in blood and turned into pitch black after drying. But judging from the small size of the sachet and the cat pattern embroidered on it, it was obvious that it was the work of a clever girl.
Imagawa Yoshimoto knew that there was a custom in the Suruga area. After a woman is engaged by a man, she often returns a hand-sewn silk fabric as a token of love - handkerchiefs and sachets are very common choices.
Imagawa Yoshimoto's headache became worse, and his heart also throbbed. He straightened up and looked at the densely packed corpses lying inside the tent, and then at the dozens of morgue tents similar to this tent outside the tent, his eyes turned slightly red.
So many people died, all because of me. It was me who brought them to the battlefield in order to save the old man, and to strengthen my family by marrying Ginkgo.
Each of them also has parents, children, their own dreams and happiness, and a sweetheart waiting for them to come home, a fiancée waiting for them to marry...
But they are all dead and cannot go back. What kind of grief and despair awaits their families and loved ones?
This is all a war started by me.
Imagawa Yoshimoto felt a little hard to breathe. He staggered out of the tent, tore off the clothes on his chest, and breathed in the cold rain-stained air. However, he still felt more and more uncomfortable, and only the thought of not long ago echoed in his heart. The former Ginkgo expressed her feelings when witnessing the war in Omi:
·
"All wars are unjust. Feng Shui takes turns, and offensive and defensive forces change, but no matter which side wins, it is the common people who suffer." Ginkgo couldn't bear to look at the hardworking people on the official road who were driven to leave their homes and live as slaves for life. Instead, she glanced coldly at People in the store said, "Revenge and righteousness are just excuses for the Wu family. Whoever provokes or engages in war will be the sinner of the people."
…
"When I say that all wars are unjust, I don't mean that you can't resist. When the enemy comes to attack, you can only fight. But it doesn't mean that because you are forced to fight, your war is just. War means Killing and war will kill people, and many innocent people will die. Killing and death cannot be just things in any case. When you start a war to protect your homeland, you are actually being forced to do unjust things. Although The fault is not with you but with the aggressors, but this war is not something to be proud of." Gingko shook her head and re-elaborated her opinion, "I just can't understand your attitude towards war. Just celebrate when you win. , if they lose, they will seek revenge. When will the war end if this continues? Everyone should consider war a crime. Even if they win, they must feel sad for the dead instead of cheering for victory."
·
All wars are unjust... The person who said this must have suffered a lot of pain, and he must be such a gentle person.
If I want to start a war again in order to marry such a gentle woman... What would Ginkgo think of me if she knew about it?
Imagawa Yoshimoto stood up and walked quickly back to the tent. Taiyuan Xuezhai has summoned some of the family's senior officials and is urgently arranging a night attack mission.
"Teacher, let's not fight." Imagawa Yoshimoto pressed down on the map and took it away without any explanation, "Withdraw the troops. Let's go back and send back the remains of the dead soldiers."
Asahina Tenno, Okabe Chitsuna and others were stunned. Just as they were about to persuade, Taiyuan Yuksai had already nodded. Under the instruction of Taiyuan Xuezhai, the retainers withdrew from the camp one by one, ending the evaluation meeting.
"It's up to you." Taiyuan Xuezai sighed, walked to Imagawa Yoshimoto, patted his shoulder, and helped him out of the tent to a deserted place.
Imagawa Yoshimoto lowered his head and did not look at Taiyuan Xuezhai. He just let his tears fall down mixed with the rain. He clenched his hands tightly to hold back all the cries.
"Even if you can't marry your sweetheart, does it not matter?" Taiyuan Xuezhai gently patted Imagawa Yoshimoto's back and asked softly.
"It's... it's really... there's nothing I can do..." Imagawa Yoshimoto gritted his teeth and held back his tears, pretending not to care, but in reality he whispered awkwardly, "In the troubled times of the Warring States Period, there was nothing we could do about this..."
"Good boy..." Taiyuan Xuezhai slowly held Imagawa Yoshimoto in his arms, gently rubbing his head just like he did when he was a child, "Good boy..."
