Seeing Ishihara Nobu's solemn statement, Muto Masaaki's expression also softened. Seeing this, Ishihara Nobu also continued:
"Muto-kun, now is the time when the shogunate is in turmoil. The Hojo family and the Watanabe family are about to take action under the instigation of the Zhou people. At this time, as important ministers of the shogunate, you and I should help each other and work together to help the shogunate overcome this crisis. ······················》
Although Ishihara Nobu's expression was very sincere when he said this, and he looked quite affectionate. If you don't know, seeing his appearance, you might think that Ishihara Nobu and Muto Masaaki are good friends for many years!
When Muto Zhenaki heard what Ishihara Nobu said, he frowned slightly and fell into thinking. Looking at Muto Zhenaki who was silent, Ishihara Nobu picked up the tea cup and tasted it calmly and slowly. The person showed a confident look.
At the same time, Muto Masaaki was constantly considering the pros and cons in his mind. What Ishihara Nobu said just now seemed very upright, but the most critical content of these words was the four words "mutual help"!
Also in this room before, Ishihara Nobu once expressed to Muto Masaaki that he believed that the situation had reached its current point and could no longer be resolved through political peace talks, and could only be resolved through war between the shogunate and the Hojo Watanabe family. Conflicts between local lords!
Therefore, Nobu Ishihara wanted to take advantage of the fact that the Hojo family and the Watanabe family were not fully prepared for war, so he took the initiative to provoke a war and found an excuse to declare war with the Hojo family and the Watanabe family... ·············
Ishihara Nobu believes that although the Hojo family and the Watanabe family have received support from some Fengwu troops, the overall strength is still superior to the shogunate. Therefore, the sooner the matter is resolved, the better for the shogunate!
In order to allow his idea of initiating war to pass in the shogunate, Ishihara Nobu hopes to get the support of Muto Masaaki, one of the five big brothers!
But Muto Masaaki is because the Muto family is a big noble and a beneficiary of the current political structure of Higashishima, and the family has many connections with the Hojo family and the Watanabe family!
Therefore, Muto Masaaki did not want the current power structure of Higashishima to be broken. He still conservatively hoped to resolve the differences between the shogunate and local daimyo through politics. Therefore, Muto Masaaki rejected Ishihara Nobu's request!
However, what Muto Masaaki didn't expect was that the boomerang flew back so quickly. It was obvious that Ishihara Nobu was now using this matter to make political exchanges with himself!
Although the voices supporting him are currently dominant within the shogunate, this also makes Muto Zhenaki see a potential crisis. After all, his past events cannot withstand investigation!
Now the Great Zhou Coordination Office has not exerted much force, but there are already turmoils. If the Coordination Office continues to exert its efforts, things will become even more uncontrollable and unknown!
And if I reject Ishihara Nobu now, will Ishihara Nobu make a fuss about this matter?
Although the above is a bit tricky, Muto Masaaki is confident that he can handle it. After all, he has not been a vegetarian after so many years of officialdom... ·····
But what really worries Muto Masaaki is that although he rejected Ishihara Nobu's idea last time, Ishihara Nobu's story also made him realize that the situation was more dangerous than he imagined!
Therefore, Muto Masaaki also wrote letters to Hojogawa and Watanabe Yutake, trying to use his personal relationships to mediate the tense relationship between the shogunate and local daimyo!
Originally, Muto Masaaki was optimistic about this mediation, but as he received the replies from Hojo River and Watanabe Yuutake, the optimism in his heart gradually extinguished!
Although neither Hojogawa nor Watanabe Yutake explicitly refused in their replies, Muto Masaaki and the two old guys have known each other for decades and are very familiar with each other, so he can still feel the ambiguous attitudes of the two. The taste of ambition!
As his mediation failed, although he still did not want to break the existing power structure, Muto Zhenaki had to start to examine Ishihara Nobu's proposal to start a war!
After thinking about a cup of tea, Muto Zhenaki raised his head and thought
Ishihara Shin asked in a deep voice:
"Can Ishihara-kun and the shogunate make some concessions?"
Hearing what Muto Masaaki said, Ishihara Nobu suddenly became angry. He slapped the table and said loudly:
"Muto-kun, take your words back! Such words should not come out of your mouth!"
"Both the Hojo family and the Watanabe family are a group of wolfish and ambitious people. The shogunate has tolerated them enough. Making concessions will not bring peace. It will only make the Hojo and Watanabe families think that the shogunate is weak and can be bullied. Concession will only Feeding their ambitions·····························」
"What the shogunate wants to do is not to give in, but to punish them with war, and to make the Hojo and Watanabe families repent for everything they have done!"
"We will use the blood of the Hojo family and the Watanabe family to let other daimyo know that the shogunate is the absolute master of East Island, and they must obey the shogunate's orders!"
After saying these words in a flurry, Ishihara Nobucai calmed down and looked at Muto Masaaki who was silent. He had to continue to persuade patiently:
"Muto-kun, I can understand your feelings, but the question now is not only whether the shogunate is willing to start a war, but whether the Ishihara family and the Watanabe family are willing to stop here!"
"During this period, the land and sea from Liaoyang of the Great Zhou Dynasty to the five states was very busy. It is conservatively estimated that the Fengwu Army sent at least 3,000 firecrackers of various types to the Hojo family and the Watanabe family, as well as hundreds of tiger squatting cannons of the Great Zhou Dynasty. There are still more than 100,000 shi of food!"
"And the news I got is that this is just the first batch of assistance. Ye Mingsheng personally promised the Hojo and Watanabe families that as long as the war starts, he will be the most solid backing for the Hojo and Watanabe families." Keep sending supplies to the two of them!"
"Ye Mingsheng's promise greatly fueled the ambitions of the Hojo and Watanabe families, which also gave them the confidence to challenge the shogunate... ·
As he spoke, Ishihara Nobu's tone was very helpless. As an island country, Dongdao lacks materials and comprehensive national strength and is unable to compete with the Great Zhou Dynasty. But now, under the temptation of Ye Mingsheng, the lack of internal unity has made the situation even more dangerous!
As soon as these words came out, Muto Zhenaki also realized the degree of crisis of the matter. After hesitating for a moment, he said again:
"Military aid is Ye Mingsheng's usual method. In the previous civil war of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he used military aid to intervene in the melee between the princes of the Great Zhou Dynasty. However, I heard that although he gave many firearms to the Hojo family and the Watanabe family, they were not The Fengwu Army’s newest firearms are all used second-hand firearms!”
Ishihara Shin sighed and said:
"Muto-kun, what you said is true. The firearms given to the Hojo family and the Watanabe family are all Weiyuan gunpowder guns eliminated by the Fengwu army. They do not have the Fengwu gun currently equipped by the Fengwu army. The artillery is also They are all small-caliber squatting cannons!"
"But the problem is that there are a lot of these firecrackers. Even if only half of them can be used normally, that's still 1,500. Moreover, the firecrackers of the Fengwu Army are stronger than our iron cannons in terms of range, accuracy, and power. A lot!"
"With the military aid from Ye Mingsheng, the strength of the Hojo family and the Watanabe family has also increased a lot. If we don't stop it now, things will become more troublesome. In as long as a year, or in half a year, they will His ambition will also be unbearable!"
Listening to Ishihara Nobu's narration, Muto Masaaki, who recognized the reality, let out a long sigh, and then said in a deep voice to Ishihara Nobu with some melancholy:
"I agree with your idea, Ishihara-kun, I hope your idea is correct..."
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Yi Jing, Ye Mansion
In the early morning, after washing up, Jingren came to An Miaoyi and bowed in salute;
"Jingren, please say hello to your mother!"
An Miaoyi nodded slightly and asked:
"I heard that Mr. Gu will teach you the Classic of Filial Piety again during this time?"
Jingren nodded without thinking and said:
"Mr. Gu has been telling me about filial piety for seven days. I have recited a lot of content. Mr. Gu praised me for my good recitation!"
After saying that, Jingren looked at An Miaoyi expectantly, as if waiting for his mother's praise. However, what made Jingren a little disappointed was that An Miaoyi did not praise him as he expected, but instead asked with interest. road:
"Jingren, recite a section for me!"
Jingren became a little nervous when he heard his mother asked him to memorize the text. After all, An Miaoyi was very demanding. Stumbling to memorize the text was not enough. You had to recite the text very fluently and then return it. You have to know what it means, so that you can pass the test in An Miaoyi!
Many times before, Jingren struggled to memorize the text and was severely criticized and reprimanded by An Miaoyi, so this made Jingren a little nervous when he heard that his mother was going to test him!
Taking a deep breath, Jingren recalled the contents of "The Classic of Filial Piety" and spoke:
"Zhongni lived and was served by Zeng Zi. The Master said: The former king had the most virtuous and important way. In an instant, the people in the world were in harmony, and there was no resentment between superiors and inferiors. You know this... ·······》
Although Jingren was very nervous at first under his mother's gaze and his hands began to sweat, it must be said that under the guidance of Gu Sansi, Jingren learned the "Book of Filial Piety" very well. There were some bumps in the middle, but overall it was pretty good.
Seeing that Jingren's memorization was pretty good, An Miaoyi stopped asking him to explain the meaning of the text. Instead, she touched Jingren's head and said seriously:
"Son! You have to study hard to support your mother! You are my mother's all hope now!"
"You have to surpass Jingxuan in studies and tell your father that you are his most talented son!"
Hearing his mother talk about this again, Jingren nodded silently, but he felt a little helpless in his heart. The words his mother said could still make him work hard at first, but after saying these words too much, he also felt a little helpless. Rebellion!
Although his mother has always told him that his talent is no worse than anyone else, and as long as he studies hard and learns well, he will surely surpass Jingxuan, but to be honest, there is a voice in Jingren's heart, and this voice tells his younger brother Jingxuan that his talent in learning is better than Jingxuan's. He is better, no matter how hard he tries, he can't be better...
Although Jingren is a little frustrated by this idea, because he is not the kind of person who likes to be competitive, and he is even a bit lazy in character. Although he is a little envious of his younger brother Jingxuan's academic talent, he is also able to Accept your shortcomings.
However, his mother, An Miaoyi, always gives advice whenever she has time. This also gives Jingren a recent impulse. He wants to tell his mother that he is not as good as his younger brother Jingxuan in studies, so that his mother should stop having such thoughts. Such thoughts made him feel very tired!
Although he had such an impulse in his heart, Jingren could only think about it in his heart. He knew very well what would happen if he really did this!
Although his mother's expectations make Jingren feel tired, Jingren knows that his mother An Miaoyi is doing it for his own good, so he doesn't want to disappoint his mother!
At this time, An Miaoyi did not know that her young son already had such deep thoughts in his mind. After outputting a wave of thoughts, he saw that the time was almost up and ordered to Jingren:
"Go and have breakfast! Mr. Gu, I will give you an extra lesson today. Mr. Gu will be here in just one stick of incense. After you finish your meal, review it carefully. You are still not familiar with the third paragraph. ························》
After saying this, An Miaoyi asked her servants to take Jingren to dinner, while she herself started working on today's work, compared to the idle life of other ladies in the Ye Mansion every day.
An Miaoyi is quite busy as the eldest lady. After all, she is a woman who likes to control power!
Although Ye Mingsheng didn't like her interfering in court affairs before, she still interfered in government affairs overtly or covertly. But after Ye Mingsheng calmly dealt with Huo San, An Miaoyi once again took care of her.
She was shocked by the man's cruelty and speed, which also made her dare not interfere in the affairs of the court!
Unable to interfere with matters in the court, An Miaoyi, as the eldest lady, can only focus on matters in the Ye Mansion to satisfy some of her inner thoughts about power!
An Miaoyi carefully looked through the various expenses of Ye Mansion in the previous month. When she turned halfway through the account book, she discovered something. She frowned and ordered someone to find Aunt Xia from the manor.
When Aunt Xia came to An Miaoyi, An Miaoyi stopped talking nonsense to her and asked directly:
"Why did Murong Qingwu's side have so much overspending last month? Didn't I say that no yard can overspend without my order?"
(Remember to bookmark it for next time reading!)
