Coincidentally, when Meng Guzhezhe euphemistically suggested to Gao Pragmatic that Ye Hebu hoped to expand his power in the direction of Japan, the recent situation in Japan had indeed seen many changes. Of course, the major changes occurred after Toyotomi Hideyoshi's funeral.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi's funeral ended successfully in February of this year, the fourth year of Keicho in Japan. As a former Sekishi, Hideyoshi was awarded the title "Toyokuni Daimyojin, Kotai Yushoinden Unzan Shunryu". All the merits and demerits have gone with him, and Japan is ushering in another spring day with brilliant cherry blossoms.
After seven years of war, it seemed that the war was finally over. Maeda Toshiie and Tokugawa Ieyasu shook hands and made peace, and the funeral could be held smoothly. Therefore, in this spring, people can enjoy the flowers leisurely and pray for peace in the world. However, have the troubles facing Japan and the grievances among the big shots really subsided?
The residence of President Settsu Konishi was built on an open highland on the left bank of the Yodogawa River, with the residences of Ishida Mitsunari and Maeda Toshiie on both sides. On this day, two boats brought by the Yodoya family to enjoy the flowers were moored on the river bank. On the surface, it was President Konishi who invited wealthy businessmen to come and enjoy the flowers, but the people who got off the boat were not businessmen.
The first ones to come down were the two elders of the Hide family, Mouri Terumoto and Kita Hide, followed by Nagasuke Masaie, Masuda Nagamori and Maeda Gen Yoshino, all dressed in private. Under the guidance of Konishi's old Nanjo Genzhai and Konishi Hayato, the five people quickly disappeared into the deep house compound.
It was March 11th, just after Si hour. In the deep Konishi Mansion, the owner Yukinaga Konishi, who was dressed in casual clothes, and Ishida Mitsunari, who came first, were welcoming the five people.
The gentle breeze brings warmth, and there are light clouds floating in the sky. Against the backdrop of this bright spring light, the more than 20 Yaesakura trees planted along the river bank wall look even more gorgeous.
"This is transplanted from my hometown in the mountain city. Soon the Ditang flowers will bloom..." The president said while greetings, walking to the front porch and welcoming the guests in.
Carefully prepared meals have been placed indoors, and most of the cherry blossoms outside have bloomed, as if they are competing for beauty. It is the perfect time to enjoy the flowers. However, the guests turned a blind eye to such beautiful scenery.
"Master Asano still hasn't come." As soon as he sat down, Mitsunari said: "I said he was ill, but when I sent someone to inquire, it turned out that he went to Master Maeda's house."
"Well, let's put it this way, it's for Zuofu." Ukita Hideie said unhappily and glanced at Mouri Terumoto who was sitting in the seat, but Terumoto didn't say a word.
Hideie had no choice but to turn his attention to Mitsunari and asked, "Has Zuofu's ship left Fushimi?"
"Exactly. I'm on the same boat as Hosokawa Yusai Totaka, going down the river."
"Youzhai? So Zhongxing is also on the same boat?" Mitsunari smiled and shook his head, saying: "Zhongxing had already gone to Maeda's house in advance. He asked his father Youzhai to be on the boat this time, probably to avoid suspicion and to use his father as his father. quality."
"So, where will Zuofu stay tonight?"
"Teng Tang Gao Hu's house." Mitsunari responded.
President Konishi smiled and said: "Living in Todo Mansion? It seems that Zuo Mansion is exhausted. He lives there, which means that there must not be many people accompanying him. If we surround Todo Mansion and set another fire..."
This seemed like an attractive proposition, but unfortunately no one took it up.
Sancheng was calmly pondering the president's thoughts. After Ieyasu went to the Maeda residence to check on Toshiie's condition, he wanted to stay overnight at the Todo Takatora residence, so he could take the opportunity to surround the Todo residence and set fire to Ieyasu. This would indeed keep the ghosts from noticing.
Although Mr. Konishi spoke carelessly, his thoughts were clearly visible. Mitsunari believes that no matter what the purpose of Konishi Yukinagawa's words is, there seems to be no doubt that he hates Ieyasu and is hostile to Ieyasu.
But now no one agrees, why? Could it be that among the people gathered here, some are afraid of Ieyasu, or are they attracted to Ieyasu? Or do you think this matter is not that simple, or do you think this move will not help at all?
From the beginning, Sansei saw his concerns in the eyes of the silent Mouri Terumoto. The Maori family suffered heavy losses during the last period of withdrawal from North Korea, so Terumoto is now focused on renovating the territory, but he is worried about arousing Sanzheng's resentment and turning him into an enemy, so he is ambiguous and remains silent.
What Mitsunari thought was that Maeda Toshiie's death should now be certain. Since the Toshi family can no longer maintain its prestige, it is necessary to choose another person among the elders to replace him in the government. The best candidate is of course Mouri Terumoto.
Sancheng hopes that one person can come to the table today, and that person is Uesugi Kagekatsu. However, Uesugi Kagekatsu had just transferred his title from Echigo to Aizu and replaced the Kamao clan. He had many chores to do and was not in the mood to deal with this matter. Therefore, Mitsunari hoped that Uesugi would send Ie Lao Naoe Yamashiro to guard.
When Taikaku was alive, Yamashiro Mamoru was the Uesugi family's aide, and he won Uesugi's trust. Unexpectedly, Yamashiro Shou failed to come because his lord was suffering from cold. Sancheng was very worried about this, especially if he said it at the table, it might make other people uneasy, so he could only say nothing about it.
As for Ukita Hideie, it is not difficult to judge from his first words that he is of the same mind as Mitsunari, which also makes Mitsunari feel at ease.
As for the five practices, the one who is most likely to side with Ieyasu is Asano Nagamasa who was not present today.
Mitsunari calmly calculated his own strength in his mind: Ishida Mitsunari with 250,000 koku (Sawayama); Masuda Nagamori with 200,000 koku (Yamato Koriyama); Nagasuke Masaika with 60,000 koku (Omizuchi); Maeda Gen with 50,000 koku ( Tanba Kameyama); Konishi Yukinaga 180,000 koku (Higo Utsuchi); Ukita Hideie 480,000 koku (Inyama), a total of 1.22 million koku.
Adding in the more than 2 million koku from Kobayakawa, Yoshikawa and other Mori clans, our strength is on par with Ieyasu. If we add the 1.2 million koku from Sugi Kagekatsu, we are even more certain to win.
If these people united to fight against Ieyasu, those who had previously supported Ieyasu would become panicked and think back to Taige's old grudges, which would shake Ieyasu's foundation. This is the calculation of 30%. Only by sacrificing life and death can we gain a foothold.
Of course, in Japan today, it is not just Japan's domestic forces that are stirring up the situation, but also the influence of external forces that cannot be ignored - the power of the Beiyang Maritime Trade Alliance. Of course, it can also be said that he is the powerful official of the Ming Dynasty and the pragmatic force of the Jinghua family.
The person who represents the high pragmatic force is his concubine, Kaihime, who was born in the Narita family. It is said that since returning to Japan, this woman has not gone to Misaki Castle, Kyoka's headquarters in Japan, or Tamana Castle, the new fiefdom of the Narita family, but has quietly hidden in Sakai Town, not far from Osaka.
Since she deliberately stayed in the center of Kinki, Japan, she naturally had the intention to intervene in the situation in Japan, and Ishida Mitsunari knew this well. However, Sancheng is not worried, because in his opinion, no matter how powerful Gao Pragmatic is, he cannot rule Japan with his fleet alone, and the Ming Dynasty seems to have no sign of sending troops to Japan.
In other words, no matter what Kaihime wants to do when she stays in Sakai Town, her power is objectively limited. At most, she can only ask for some benefits when she and Ieyasu are about to decide the outcome - who gave it to her? There are many benefits, so she should be able to help anyone.
There is no need to worry too much, because Sancheng is willing to promise huge benefits... It was just a promise. Whether it would be fulfilled later would depend on how quickly and smoothly the mess after defeating Ieyasu was cleared up.
Kaihime was just a woman. Although she was quite capable in commanding the defense of Ninja City, Mitsunari didn't think she had much intelligence to escape his manipulation.
In short, there is no need to worry about Kaiji. When she intervened in the situation, the fight between her and Ieyasu must have been the most intense and the most stalemate. There is no need to worry now. She should win over more allies first. This is the top priority.
In the past, 30% people always had a lot of dissatisfaction and were often full of anger. The more impatient they were, the more flaws they had. As a result, a lot of energy was wasted unnecessarily. Now that he was awake, he was surprised to find that once he made up his mind, those who had previously hated him now became rare allies and became extremely important.
"We each send some troops and launch a sudden attack at the end of the banquet at Tengtang Mansion. What do you think?" Seeing no response from everyone, the president asked again.
Sancheng could no longer remain silent. It would be outrageous if even his most enthusiastic ally did not respond, so he said with emotion: "About this matter, you will not sit idly by and ignore it. Since the Zuofu has violated the Taige As a legacy, if he does not bow his head and confess his sins to Danayan, we will never forgive him."
What Mitsunari is talking about here is exactly the private marriages mentioned above between Tokugawa Ieyasu and many daimyo of the Eastern Kingdom. This was something Toyotomi Hideyoshi had prohibited at the time. Hideyoshi required that these matters need to be reported to him and approved. Although Hideyoshi is dead now, in theory, this power should be jointly controlled by the five elders and the five monks, rather than Tokugawa Ieyasu who can make the decision without authorization.
However, Tokugawa Ieyasu himself was one of the five elders. If he made a mistake, he would have to be held accountable by Maeda Toshiie, the only person whose prestige could rival him.
"That's right." Xiujia also nodded.
"But what happened next? Yuezhou Zhongxing, Chief Accountant Qingzheng and others actually used various tricks to deceive Dai Nayan, and finally lured Dai Nayan to Fushimi, causing the world to think that we took the initiative to admit our mistakes to Zuofu, which was ugly. It’s so sad!”
Afraid of losing his composure, Sanzheng paused deliberately, calmed down, and then continued: "Not only that, but he didn't even say hello to us, so he gave Mukodao's mansion to Zuofu... This time Zuofu We must not take it lightly when we come to pay tribute, if..."
Having said this, he slowly glanced at everyone, squinted his eyes slightly and asked: "What if he cleverly deceives the seriously ill Da Nayan, gathers people, and instead finds some trouble to take over our territory, then what? So what should we do?”
"We absolutely won't allow it!" the president immediately interrupted.
Mitsunari said with a cold face: "However, Kato, Asano and others were all won over by the Zuofu... It is not impossible for him to do such a thing."
"That's true." The president frowned.
Sancheng continued: "Therefore, it is a God-given opportunity for Zuofu to stay at Tengtang Mansion this time!"
However, even though the words had come to this point, there was still no response.
President Konishi was a little impatient. He patted the table and said: "In recent days, I have found that everyone's reaction is really slow! Do you act only when you have the chance to win? How can there be such a good thing in the world! As the saying goes, strike first to gain the upper hand. If you want to Waiting for Zuofu to be full of flaws is just wishful thinking.
As Lord Governance just said, his stay at Tengtang Mansion is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us. Think about the current situation. If he lives outside the city, how can we do anything? "
After hearing the president's rare impassioned speech, Maeda Genki, who had been silent all this time, looked at Masuda Nagamori and said, "I was ordered to guard Fushimi, but I came here specially this time to hear such unexpected words. , are you deliberately trying to embarrass me?" Masuda Nagamori turned his face to the side in embarrassment.
Not long ago, Mitsunari had only repeatedly emphasized Ieyasu's tyranny. But he didn't know since when, he had "had to get rid of Ieyasu", and today he even wanted to do it. Changsheng felt that Sancheng had cleverly lured them into a big trap from the beginning. This is not difficult to see from Maeda Genki's panic.
Xuan Yiben was guarding Fushimi Castle. He came here specially because he wanted to take advantage of Ieyasu's personal visit to Osaka and go with the three elders and five men to pay homage to Hideyori and show his loyalty to Hideyori. Therefore, when the topic suddenly turned to how to get rid of Ieyasu, he was understandably confused and even shocked.
Even so, Changsheng could not question Sancheng's proposal like Xuan Yi, because he had previously promised Sancheng as a follower that he would be of the same heart and mind and advance and retreat together with him.
"Didn't you promise a long time ago that you would live and die with me and share adversities with me?" Sancheng asked him cautiously just four or five days ago. At that time, Changsheng replied categorically: "Without a doubt!"
Now it seems that was his mistake. At that time, he mistakenly thought that Sancheng was just having a naturally competitive temper, so he agreed without thinking.
Seeing Chang Sheng turning his face to the side, Xuan Fang turned to Mitsunari and said: "I thought that the Zuofu asked Hosokawa Yousai to go with him just to relieve his loneliness... Zhongxing had already rushed to Maeda Prefecture, and it is estimated that he will be with Li Nagato is responsible for the vigilance. Of course, the Tokugawa family must be fully prepared. Moreover, since he has decided to stay at Todo's house for a night, Todo will never stand idly by and will definitely step up his guard, so..."
Before he finished speaking, Sanzheng waved his hand to stop him: "Xuan Yi means that we must not take the enemy lightly and postpone the sneak attack? Xuan Yi, although what I just said may be alarmist, it is definitely not for my own selfish interests. ah."
"That's natural. This is all for the sake of the young master." Xiujia immediately came out to smooth things over and said: "As the two of you said, the opportunity cannot be missed and the time will never come again. Once Zuofu is allowed to return to Fushimi, all we can do is fight. Attack the ambush city."
Masuda Nagamori, who had been silent all this time, finally interjected: "What is your opinion, Nagasuke-sama?"
Chang Shuzhengjia also looked quite embarrassed. He hurriedly turned his gaze aside, his eyes showing panic. It seems that Zhengjia is more uneasy than Changsheng about Sancheng's tough attitude.
He thought for a long time, and then answered cleverly: "I want to hear Xuan Yi's opinions first, and then make a decision..."
Thirty percent were slightly dissatisfied with everyone's indifferent attitude. If possible, he really wanted the seven families to join forces and launch an attack on Ieyasu tonight. And once action is taken, there will be a way to get Uesugi to join. In this way, everyone except Maeda will join in the operation to eliminate Ieyasu.
Of course, the attack might not succeed, but with Ieyasu's caution and the loyalty of those around him, he might still be able to escape. But it doesn't matter. If everyone is determined to get rid of Ieyasu, Maeda will not sit idly by. Those generals who have followed Taikaku since childhood are wary of Hideyori and naturally do not dare to approach the Tokugawa clan again. In the end, when Ieyasu found that almost everyone was on the side of Sancheng, he would not dare to act rashly.
As for the final outcome of this turmoil, we can ignore it for the time being. In short, whether it is good or bad, this strong wind must blow first. As Tang said, if you don't enter the tiger's den, how can you catch the tiger's cubs?
Hearing that the main family said that he wanted to listen to his own opinions, Maeda Gen sat upright and said: "I, like you, will not fall behind for the sake of the young master, so I boldly dissuade everyone. Since both Hosokawa and his son are on the side of the Zuofu , then Kato, Fukushima, Asano, Kuroda and others will definitely support Zuofu, this cannot be ignored.
Needless to say Toudou, Horio and others must also stand with Zuofu... Once they get the news, Yuki Hideyasu will immediately lead his troops from Fushimi to come to the rescue. If this happens, not only will the world be in chaos, but it will also bring disaster to the young master... Do you think so or not, Master Masuda? "
Changsheng did not evade, nodded solemnly, and said: "I also agree with Shandeyuan. Master Zhibu is a little impatient. In fact, just now I met Otani, the young assistant of the punishment department, and chatted with him for a few words. Mr. punishment department Fu revealed some news to me...
There are two types of people who want to get rid of Zuofu: one is purely because of the young master and has to do so; there are also some people who are not really doing it for the young master, but who are jealous of Zuofu and are trying to avenge themselves under the guise of being for the young master.
If Zuofu really wants to seize the world, it will not be difficult for us to gather all those who have been favored by the Taige and rise up to resist. But if we can't hold ourselves back and act rashly, not only will our own lives be in danger, but more importantly, our young master will be implicated... The Young Master of the Punishment Department burst into tears over this. Chang Sheng understood his mood very well. "
Sancheng looked at Changsheng coldly and shook his head disdainfully. It seemed that this attack would be impossible...but he did not feel disappointed at all. It is enough for these people to be here today. The fact that they can come to participate in the secret talks on "cutting off Ieyasu" shows that they have become important allies.
Just when Sancheng was thinking of this, he heard the main family say again: "It's not surprising that everyone has their own opinions. But I still think that if you want to send someone to Tengtang Mansion, it's best to find out first. What do you think?"
Several people nodded in agreement, Konishi Governor and Ukita Hideie were still suspicious, Mouri Terumoto didn't say a word from beginning to end, and Mitsunari was very satisfied.
The Maori clan had nothing to do with the Toyotomi clan—except, of course, Kobayakawa Hideaki. They dare to take risks and side with Mitsunari, and their purpose is no different from Ieyasu: once the opportunity comes, they will also covet the world.
Mitsunari knew the reason for this, but it was still beneficial to treat them as weights for one's own side, so he said: "Then, let's find out more about the enemy before making a decision. Before that, I will go to Maeda's house first. To find out the truth.”
Not long after their discussion, the boat taken by Ieyasu and Hosokawa Yusai arrived at the dock two hundred feet away from Maeda Prefecture. When Ieyasu heard that Ieyasu was coming to Osaka, Fukushima Masanori had already ordered the roads to be blocked and heavily guarded. He told Ieyasu: "There are many daring people in Osaka City. Zuofu must be cautious during this trip."
Even Fukushima Masanori issued strict orders, and Honda Masanobu, Ii Naomasa, Sakakihara Yasumasa and others would not take it lightly. They set up muskets on the river bank and sent small boats to patrol the river to prevent sneak attacks. Ieyasu's ship was also equipped with carefully selected soldiers.
The group of people went downstream and waited until the ship docked. At this time, they discovered that two women's sedan chairs had already been parked on the pier, as if they were waiting for someone. Hosokawa Yusai, who was walking along the way, saw two women's sedans. He couldn't help but narrowed his eyes and asked with a smile: "Whose sedan are those?"
Ieyasu was very serious, but at the same time he was confused: "Yes, whose sedan is it? Could it be the messenger from the inner court?"
He felt quite uneasy, because if Mrs. Yodo or Gaotaiyuan (Ningning) sent someone to invite him to the city to rest, it would be really difficult for him to refuse. But he really didn't want to go to the city. This was not only a comfort to the Li family, but also for his own safety.
In any case, Asano Nagamasa and Yukinaga's father and son have arrived at Maeda's house, and Kiyomasa will definitely show up when the time comes. Ieyasu wanted to greet them and then went back home.
As soon as the ship docked, Shinjo Hoin Naoyori and Arima Hoin Norayori came to greet them. These two had a close personal relationship with Ieyasu, so the Toshi family must have asked them to come out to welcome them.
Before the greetings were finished, a graceful figure suddenly emerged from the female sedan chair and walked up to Ieyasu. Before everyone could see clearly, someone emerged from the female sedan behind, and he looked like a burly man.
Everyone took a closer look and saw that the tall man behind him was Todo Takatora, while the person in front was actually a woman with excellent appearance.
The others were not familiar with this woman's appearance, and were speechless for a moment because of her beauty. However, Tokugawa Ieyasu was shocked and blurted out: "Princess Narita?"
The person who came was none other than Narita Kai who was supposed to be hiding in Sakai Town at this moment!
——
Thanks to book friend "Cao Mianzi" for your reward and support, thank you!
Thanks to book friends "I am Liao Zhenxin" and "book friend 20221009163307133" for their monthly support, thank you!
PS: 5K8, I’m too lazy to make it up to 6K. 6K seems to cost more.
(End of chapter)
