"Then I would like to ask, Your Highness Matsudaira, how can we help in this battle?" After the casual conversation, Imagawa Yoshimoto took the initiative to bring the topic back to business.
"I'm ashamed to say that I don't have many people on hand now. Counting the retainers who are still staying near Tojo Castle, there are less than 200 people. Although there are still Goi Matsudaira, Fujii Matsudaira, and Tojo Matsudaira at home, these three families are separated. Support me, but they can only mobilize less than 1,000 people. Kira Mochihiro of the Tojo Kira family took me in before, but the strength was not enough, and he could only mobilize 300 people."
Matsudaira Hironada told the current situation in Mikawa very honestly, without any intention of defending himself or putting in nice words, "But my great-grandfather's Matsudaira family can mobilize 1,300 people, and my third uncle's Sakurai Matsudaira family also has 1,300 people. Support Their Matsudaira Miki and Fukugama Matsudaira can mobilize another 1,000 people. In terms of military strength, I am at a very big disadvantage. Moreover, the residential city Okazaki Castle is currently in the hands of my third uncle. Okazaki Castle is a strong city. Without thousands of troops, it is probably It can’t be beaten.”
Thousands of troops - this astronomical number is unattainable in the eyes of ordinary wealthy families, but it is not difficult for the Imagawa family. After the Imagawa family unified Yuanjiang and recovered half of Hedong, the total number of troops they could mobilize has reached 16,000. If the wealthy families in Higashi Mikawa who have nominally returned to the Imagawa family are included, the number will be close to 20,000. Of course, Imagawa Yoshimoto will definitely not count them among them. During the Imagawa clan's time and Imagawa clan Teru's period, they often listened to the instructions but not the propaganda. Now they are not even willing to send hostages. Only those who can be relied on will have ghosts.
"Then how many people do you need?" Imagawa Yoshimoto asked directly.
"About 4,500 people." Matsudaira Hiroshi reported a rather accurate number.
"Why?" Imagawa Yoshimoto felt that Matsudaira Hirotada was shouting less, "Are these people enough?"
"If the number of people is too large, I'm afraid that the Matsudaira family will think that the Imagawa family is trying to use my hand to embezzle Mikawa and unite to resist me." Hiroshi Matsudaira honestly expressed his thoughts, "If the number of people is smaller, Maybe it can alleviate the doubts among the clan.”
"If the number of people is smaller, even if the Imagawa family really wants to seize Mikawa, the Matsudaira family can join forces to stop it, right?" Imagawa Yoshimoto was more direct.
"I'm offended, but I do have such thoughts." Matsudaira bowed apologetically, "It's really rude."
"Your Highness Matsudaira is sincere. Shouldn't this kind of thing be kept hidden in words forever?" Imagawa Yoshimoto suddenly found Matsudaira's attitude very interesting.
"After all, I have a request from the Imagawa family, and you should not lie under any circumstances. Otherwise, wouldn't you be benefiting yourself by deceiving others? It is really disgraceful and goes against the way of the samurai." Matsudaira Hirotada explained calmly, and then bowed again Apologize.
"Not bad." Imagawa Yoshimoto actually had an appreciation for the honest and stubborn samurai in front of him - it's not surprising, good people can always be admired.
Of course, in the Wu family's troubled times, good people can't survive.
"Then I agree to you. When do you need the Imagawa family to send troops?"
"Please hurry up, I'm sorry for the trouble. I will go back to Tojo Castle to gather my old troops first, and I will wait for your news then." Matsudaira Hirotada finally bowed to Imagawa Yoshimoto, "Please!"
·
"What? Sir, you want to send troops to Sanhe?"
After Imagawa Yoshimoto returned to the room, he explained the future itinerary to Ginkgo, which immediately caused Ginkgo to complain.
"I can't stay at home for a few days, and I have to go out to fight again. It's true that all martial arts families in the world are equally dark..."
"No way!" Imagawa Yoshimoto heard this and immediately raised his hands to show his innocence, "I haven't been at home with my wife and children for almost two years!"
"But I'm angry. I'm very disappointed now. I feel that my husband and other samurai are all on the same path!" Ginkgo put her hands on her hips and pouted in mock anger.
"Then how can we let Ginkgo calm down?" Imagawa Yoshimoto also "played for the occasion" and asked Ginkgo with a smile.
"Take me with you!"
Gingko looked at Imagawa Yoshimoto with "starry eyes", and the conversation changed so much that Imagawa Yoshimoto couldn't even react, "This Suruga is too boring. I have been married for three years, and the farthest I have been to Mount Fuji. I’m almost bored to death!”
"You want to go to the battlefield? How can this be done?" Imagawa Yoshimoto shook his head after reacting, "It's too dangerous."
"What are the dangers of this mission? Sir, do you think I don't understand?" Ginkgo took out a folding fan from Imagawa Yoshimoto's waist and fanned herself. "Nishi Mikawa was in chaos. Several people named Matsudaira were fighting around. They were all young Just making a little fuss. As soon as the Imagawa family’s army supporting the upright family governor arrives, those clan members will definitely stand in line and come back, it’s just a formality.”
It has to be said that what Ginkgo said is indeed the truth - Imagawa Yoshimoto himself also understood this mission this way. In the face of the overwhelming material difference of the Imagawa army, the Matsudaira family did not refuse the return of Matsudaira Hirotada. He only needs to march with the armed troops, send Matsudaira Hirotada into Okazaki Castle, and then punish the rebellious Matsudaira Nobusada. In the original history, things did develop like this.
"But it would be inappropriate for my mistress to go on an expedition with the army..."
"I can pretend to be sir's maid! Myolie!"
"But mother knew about it and wanted to accuse us..."
"Mom, she's going to Zentoku Temple and Fujinomiya this time, and she also wants to educate Goro. She won't be back for a month or so. We've already returned from our mission!"
Seeing that his excuses were refuted by Ginkgo one by one, Imagawa Yoshimoto could only admit it with a wry smile. Looking at Ginkgo's expectant little eyes, he couldn't bear to refuse - besides, why didn't he want to be with his lover all the time?
"But I do have a problem." Ginkgo, who was completely victorious, suddenly tilted her head and fell into deep thought, "Even if I pretend to be a maid, there are many people who know me in the horse crowd, won't I be discovered?"
"I can hide you." Imagawa Yoshimoto replied without thinking.
"How to hide? Where to hide on horseback?" Ginkgo gave Imagawa Yoshimoto a blank look.
"I have my own way." Imagawa Yoshimoto smiled evilly, and ghostly tricks came to mind.
·
So, on September 15, the 9th year of Tianwen (1540), there was an eye-catching sedan in the queue of the Imagawa army heading west. Eight people carried the sedan chair and walked along the official road, but everything seemed to be going smoothly. Behind the sedan chair were the Imagawa family's guards and horsemen, and the knights were surrounded by red bird horse seals flying high.
"How elegant it is to go on an expedition in a sedan chair. Your Highness's magnanimity and high ambitions are really beyond the reach of others." At this moment, Himura Umoha was full of praise for this arrangement, but Akai Kurotaka and Kira Uisege scoffed - he I feel that these fancy things are of no use. Kentaro Tian Shen was a little worried that Imagawa Yoshimoto was not enterprising and had neglected his martial arts and riding skills. Nafurunoji Yutaka believes that the target of the sedan chair is too large, and it may be difficult to move quickly once it becomes the target of an attack.
Only Hayasaka Nao and Mochizuki Takaki knew what was going on inside the sedan, but they did not dare to say a word.
"If you really have a husband, you have all kinds of crazy ideas."
Inside the sedan, Ginkgo carefully fiddled with the curtains and looked at the army outside through the narrow slit. At this moment, a pair of hands suddenly appeared where they shouldn't have appeared.
"Sir! What are you doing! Uh..." Ginkgo yelled and was about to protest, but Imagawa Yoshimoto kissed her directly and pushed her down onto the mat in the sedan.
"There are people outside..." Ginkgo said in a low voice while stroking her long, disheveled hair, "What are you trying to do again, sir?"
"So Myolie, please keep your voice down. Besides, the footsteps outside are so loud that you can't hear them clearly." Imagawa Yoshimoto showed his trademark evil smile, leaned down, took a wanton look at Fangze, and began to take off Ginkgo's clothes.
"Sir! This is no longer a matter of whispering, the sedan will shake!"
·
Although weird noises were happening in the sedan, the Honkamoto Hatamoto escorting around them remained indifferent - even if they wanted to move, they were not allowed to move according to military regulations - this was due to the results of Imagawa Yoshimoto's training over the past two years.
Imagawa Yoshimoto still remembered the instructions he made before his death - he asked Imagawa Yoshimoto to inherit all his policies. But those policies were a bit too bizarre. Although Imagawa Yoshimoto himself had a thorough understanding of them after careful study, he was not sure that he could convince other important officials in the family - he was too lazy to do so. So, he just picked the simplest one and put it into practice-Imagawa Yoshizhin's military management method.
After all, the fighting power of Imagawa Yoshima's banner has been witnessed by all the important officials in the Imagawa family. When Imakawa Yoshimoto implemented the military system and training methods in his family's direct-controlled banner, he did not encounter much resistance.
Each reserve force was expanded to 400 soldiers. There are 10 people in one squad, 5 squads in 1 platoon, and 8 platoons in 1 reserve. Among them are 1 cavalry platoon, 2 archer platoons, 5 infantry platoons, and 800 auxiliary troops. Everyone broke up the original organization and unified it under this organization. Unify the military system and equipment. It is no longer like the troops in the past - the troops brought by each small lord have a variety of numbers, structures, and equipment) but are unified and organized according to this standard.
For the troops of other retainers in the Imagawa family, such a request is a fantasy. But for Imagawa Yoshimoto's own direct banner, it is feasible.
The book left by Imagawa Yoshima also wrote that giving each reserve team its own number and flag is also more conducive to morale and cohesion. So Imagawa Yoshimoto made a stroke of his pen: Matsui Munonobu's first flag was a spear, and the military flag was a spear; Yamada Keitaka's second flag was a Jinsai flag, and Asai Masatoshi's third flag was a dangerous pass. The fourth bei of Da Ze Jiyin became the war shield, and the military flag was the war shield. The fifth bei of Meishan clan became the Guangdong bei, and the military flag was the snow mountain.
At the same time, in addition to martial arts and formations, daily training also included a large number of exercises such as three-sided turning, marching columns, orders and prohibitions, and attached great importance to discipline - these are all required in the military manual left by Imagawa Yoshima. Matsui Sonobu, the reserve captain of Gomaobei, and Osawa Kiyin, the reserve captain of Shoudunbei, highly praised this military training method and took the lead in implementing it in their reserves. After the training showed initial results, the remaining reserve teams also began to follow suit.
The specific result of the training is that the Gamaobei next to Imagawa Yoshimoto's sedan is currently marching on the official road in a neat pace to the beat of the drum, horizontally and vertically. Even though the strange noises coming from the sedan made the soldiers very curious, no one dared to turn around and take a look - because the reserve captain did not allow them to rest. Any unnecessary movement at this time, if discovered by the military judge, would result in a severe beating from Matsui Munenobu.
But at this moment, Matsui Sonobu's order suddenly came from the queue——
"All - stand still!"
"One, two, three, four!" After the soldiers shouted four slogans in unison, they stopped in unison.
"Look to the right!" Matsui Sonobu shouted again.
After hearing the order, the soldiers quickly shook their heads to the right, took small steps like wind under their feet, and quickly aligned to the right. The originally scattered team instantly returned to straight lines.
"Look forward!" Matsui Sonobu shouted again, and the soldiers turned back together as one person again.
"If you pass through villages and towns ahead, just walk by and don't disturb the people."
The soldiers who received the order felt as if they had been granted amnesty and finally began to walk with ease. After discovering that the sound of neat footsteps disappeared, Imagawa Yoshimoto was afraid of too much movement, so he had no choice but to let go of the ginkgo under him.
