At 08:00 on March 30, the 14th year of Tianwen (1546), it was northeast of East Temple and southwest of Faguang Temple.
Shortly after the Hexagon Army met the enemy on the front line of Kankyo Temple, the Asakura Army immediately marched northward and also encountered the enemy in the block west of Kankyo Temple.
"Ouchi Ryoshi." Asakura Soutei recognized the flag that made Kinki famous forty years ago.
It may be difficult for ordinary people to realize that Sotetsu Asakura and Yoshihiro Ouchi, the former head of the Ouchi family, were born in the same year as the ninth year of civilization (1477). Nowadays, Ouchi Yoshihiro seems to be a legend of the previous era, but Asakura Sotetsu is still active on the front line. In the fifth year of Eisho (1508), Ouchi Yoshihiro led the Ouchi army to Luoyang and suppressed Kinki. As an envoy of the Asakura family, Asakura Sotechi witnessed the shogunate under the Ouchi family with his own eyes, and also He has a clear understanding of the powerful combat power of the Ouchi Army.
Thirty years have passed. Ouchi Yoshihiro has long since passed away. Even his son Ouchi Yoshitaka has gradually faded out of the political arena. He did not even join the army during this expedition to Shangluo. Originally, this would be an Ouchi military son who would inherit his father's career and re-enter the army. A good opportunity to show off one's strength.
"It's just..." Asakura Soutei looked at the horse seal of Ouchi Yoshitaka standing high in the Ouchi clan's military formation with some confusion, "The master is obviously not here, why is the horse seal standing? Leader, no Should it be Tao Owari (Tao Longfang)?”
But the experienced Asakura Sotechi only thought about it for a moment before speaking out the deeper meaning:
"Tao Owari was born under the surname of Ouchi Shaoer (Ouchi Yoshitaka), and he was deeply loved. He must also have extraordinary feelings and expectations for his lord. He hoped that Ouchi Shaoer could be ambitious, wise, and mighty. , hoping that he could personally lead the army to Luo and scold Fang Qiu on the battlefield. However, things went against his wishes, and Ouchi Shao Er was getting further and further away from his expectations. But he did not want to face reality. So he came here under the banner of the family governor, Ma Yin, It seems that Ouchi Shaoer can really appear on the battlefield as he imagined, and I also hope that his sincerity can impress Ouchi Shaoer, allowing him to sweep away his decline and get back on his feet."
But then, Asakura Sodai smiled bitterly and gently stroked his gray beard:
"It's just that...the relationship between the monarch and his subjects, whether it is too little or too much, has its own dangers. If there is too little, it is easy for the monarch and his subjects to break their trust. Whether it is the suspicion of the master or the rebelliousness of the retainers, it may subvert the family. But too much More... may be more fatal. The ruler and his ministers will demand more from each other than they should. Whether it is favor or longing, once it is broken, it may lead to extreme excesses..."
"Tao Owari... As for us retainers, we only need to fulfill our duties as retainers. I am a retainer of the Asakura family. As long as I am still breathing, I will do my best to seek benefits for the Asakura family. . As long as the master requests it, I am willing to do anything and teach anything. But more importantly, the master’s own affairs are beyond the control of my retainer, and it is not my responsibility. The sense of propriety is in the Wu family. The basis for survival. If you have too many wrong thoughts, it will only harm you and your master."
·
Opposite the Asakura army array, Ouchi's army and horses were printed. Tao Longfang just held the flagpole of Ouchi Yoshitaka's horse seal, just like he held Ouchi Yoshitaka's hand when he was young - endless power could pour out of his hands, as if Ouchi Yoshitaka was standing behind him , watching him fight fiercely for himself. Even if he fights hard and narrowly escapes death, as long as he can get a word of encouragement from Ouchi Yoshitaka and see the heroic appearance of Ouchi Yoshitaka in military uniform, Tao Longfang will feel it is worth it.
It's just that... since the loss of his son in the First World War, Tao Longfang's most beloved lord has fallen into despair. Tao Longfang understood Ouchi Yoshitaka's love for his relatives and son better than anyone else, and he also understood his pain better than anyone else. But even so, Tao Longfang was still willing to wait until the day when Ouchi Yoshitaka was inspired again and rode his horse in the army again. He was extremely convinced that the talented and strategic lord would come back.
In order to make up for Tao Longfang's regret of not being able to fight in front of the king, and also to worry that Ouchi Yoshitaka would regret it in the future when he remembered that he did not personally lead the army to Luo to participate in this battle that was destined to go down in history, Tao Longfang asked Ouchi Yoshitaka. Inviting his horse seal, he acted as the flag bearer and personally held the horse seal from Tsukiyama Tomita Castle all the way to Kyoto, never leaving.
Therefore, when he saw that the Asakura army did not have the flag of the Asakura family at all, but instead it was all the Asakura Sodi family.
After receiving the flag seal from Tsuruga County Secretary, the man couldn't help but get angry.
"This Asakura Zongdi... seems to be famous in the world, but in fact he is just a coward..." Tao Longfang counted the number of Asakura's military equipment, and then counted the flags and flags of the Asakura army. , "Chaocang's army went to Luo, but they couldn't even see a flag of the master's family. How unreasonable? Does he think that as long as he can bring his subordinates and cronies to help the master's family get some petty profits, he has a clear conscience? ?」
"If you really want your master to prosper, you can only cultivate capable monarchs and heirs. Then you must constantly urge them to improve, constantly give advice, constantly impress them with loyalty and deeds, and let them contribute to the prosperity of the family. And do your best. Being so hands-on like you seems to be able to make the Asakura family stable in the short term, but what happens when you are old and gone? What happens when the young master of the Asakura family succeeds? Such a mediocre person will fail. The wealth you have worked so hard to save is only a blink of an eye."
"Why don't you use your energy to benefit the main family to educate, advise, and inspire the young master of the Asakura family? Bring him to the battlefield, mark his horse, and let him participate in this world-famous war. Being exposed to the martial arts style and determined to work hard to govern is what a minister should do, isn't it?"
"To put it bluntly, Asakura Sotechi, don't you just cherish your own feathers and are afraid of getting the reputation of a powerful official? Are you afraid of touching the master's evil scale, which will lead to your own death or even a good death? Therefore, you would rather sit back and watch. The master's family declined after your death, but they still did not take any positive actions. They only saved some money for the Asakura family as a comfort. Are you worthy of being called a loyal minister? A true loyal minister must have a purpose. The master and the master disdain all consciousness!"
"Hit me!" Tao Longfang waved the horse seal in his hand fiercely, "I have the master's horse seal here. How can you, a person who is not involved, be my opponent?"
After Tao Longfang gave the order, the 10,000 internal troops who were originally on the defensive roared out from the streets inside and outside Faguang Temple and rushed towards the 10,000 Chaocang army.
"The formation and morale are excellent. He can be regarded as a powerful general, but he is a little too arrogant." Asakura Sotechi saw the menacing Ouchi army, and calmly signaled Asakura to move slowly to the southwest. Slowly retreat, relying on the streets and alleys to fight and retreat, always maintaining contact, but not giving the Ouchi family a chance to outflank or attack, but luring the Ouchi family towards the flank of the Hexagon Army.
Rokkaku Sadeyori, who was commanding the troops to engage in battle with the Nizi Army, was so frightened that he could not understand. He was afraid that the Asakura Army would betray him and he retreated to Toji Temple. But then he thought about it, the hatred between the Ouchi family and the Nizi family was much deeper than that between the Rokkaku family and the Asakura family. Why did the Ouchi family have to attack the enemies in front of the Nizi family? As a result, Rokkaku Sadarai quickly calmed down and did not get into trouble. The actions of the Ouchi Army were just as Rokkaku Sadayori expected, and they continued to pursue the Asakura Army.
·
On the other side of the battlefield, east of Kamogawa, is Sanjusangendo. The Mimura Army stationed at Sanjusangen Hall was being beaten by the Oda Army heading north. Several Oda troops had already infiltrated into the hall, and the Mimura family's front line was gradually becoming difficult to maintain. Oda Nobunaga even personally led a team of archers to climb up to the tall building next to Sanjusangen Hall and fired rockets at the main hall, hoping to burn the monument with fire and smoke out the Sanmura Army.
The head of the Mimura family, the Mimura family, is in the main hall at the moment. His face is blackened by the thick smoke, he is coughing all the time, and he has to find a way to command the troops to fill the battle line. Looking at the continuous influx of Oda troops, and Oda Nobunaga shouting and waving his horse seal on a tall building not far away, the Mimura family couldn't help but cursed: "Damn it, Oda Nobunaga! They are just supporting characters who brought two to three thousand people here. Why are you fighting for your life with me? If you win this battle, will it bring any ground-breaking benefits to you?"
However, Oda Nobunaga ignored this, as if he had a life-or-death feud with the Mimura family, he kept urging his soldiers to attack Sanjusangendo Hall regardless of casualties. It wasn't that the Mimura clan couldn't hold on anymore, but they simply didn't want to consume too much strength, so they decisively ordered the troops to retreat. The Mimura Army slowly withdrew from Sanjusangendo Hall and moved to the Shinyoshi Shrine in the northeast. At this time, the Hojo Army was also chasing the Isshiki Army northward from Chisakein and fought to the front of the New Hiyoshi Shrine.
However, 2,000 people from the Mimura family who had evacuated in embarrassment gathered at the Shinyoshi Shrine, and
The 3,000 Isshiki troops who were ready had a numerical advantage over the Hojo family. Seeing that his troops were at a disadvantage and it was difficult to successfully attack, Hojo Tsunari took the initiative to stop and sent an envoy to ask for help from the Oda Army and the subsequent Saito Army who had just captured Sanjusangendo.
However, the envoys of the Hojo Army braved the thick smoke caused by the fire set by the Oda Army, galloping through the streets and alleys, all the way to the entrance of Sanjusangendo Hall, but still did not see the shadow of the Oda Army. I searched everywhere in the smoke, but couldn't find even a flag of the Oda family. Instead, after waiting for a while, he saw the belatedly arriving Saito family's troops.
"Excuse me, where is the young master of the Oda family? There is no one in the Sanjusangendo Hall!" The envoy of the Hojo family asked in a high voice to the vanguard of the Saito family.
"Huh? Not here?" Mitsuhide Akechi, the leader of the Saito family's vanguard, was also confused. "We haven't received any news from Lord Oda. Could it be that he went after the Mimura Army?"
"No." The messenger from the Hojo family spread his hands, "I came from that direction."
"Then continue to go north?" Akechi Mitsuhide thought for a moment before reacting, and said with emotion: "The Lord of the Oda family is young and energetic. In such a war that attracts the attention of the world, he cannot bear the ambition to make contributions. Without waiting for the follow-up troops to take over the position, and without notifying the friendly forces of their movements, they rushed northward. What should they do if they were cut off from their retreat? He quickly took over Sanjusangendo and assisted the Hojo Army. Attack the New Hiyoshi Shrine and cover the flanks and rear of the Oda army."
In order to better command the troops, Akechi Mitsuhide personally boarded the main hall of Sanjusangendo Hall, intending to take a look at the situation from above. However, there were too many buildings in Kyoto, and the view was seriously obscured. Coupled with the thick smoke surrounding Sanjusangendo Hall, Akechi Mitsuhide looked north for a long time and failed to find the Oda family's troops. In desperation, he had no choice but to personally lead a group of knights out of the north gate of Sanjusangendo Hall and rode north, hoping to catch up with the Oda family's team and inform them not to rush in.
However, after running for several miles along the way, they still didn't see anyone, and there weren't even any traces of the army walking on the ground. Where did the Oda army go? Can 3,000 people move faster than their small group of elite knights? How come you can't catch up?
At this moment, the messenger from the Saito Army hurriedly caught up: "Report to Akechi-sama, the whereabouts of the Oda family have been found!"
"Huh? Where?" Akechi Mitsuhide reined in his horse and turned around to ask in confusion.
"On the west side!" The messenger was also frightened. "The Oda army abandoned its position just after capturing Sanjusangendo. The entire army crossed the Kamogawa River through the Shichijo Bridge and headed west to kill the Kamogawa River. went!"
