After Maeda Toshiie left, Hideyoshi Hashiba packed his parcels overnight and retreated back to Kitaomi early the next morning.

Fearing that Shibata Katsuie would regret it, she hurried slowly along the way. The 300-mile journey included a lot of mountain roads. She actually brought her troops back to Changbin Castle in only fifteen days.

The army had just passed through the mountain pass of Hokuriku Street and entered the plains. There was a queue on the roadside with the Hashiba family crest erected and waiting silently.

When Hashiba Hideyoshi arrived at the front and saw Takenaka Shigeharu in the queue, an ominous premonition suddenly arose in his heart.

She rode up, exchanged a few words with the left-behind retainers who came to greet him, and then took Shigeharu Takenaka into a private conversation.

"Hime Takenaka, I didn't ask you to take a good rest, why did you come here?"

Takenaka Shigeharu smiled bitterly.

"Shibata Katsuie was defeated."

Hashiba Hideyoshi was shocked.

"Defeated? So quickly? It has only been fifteen days since I broke camp and withdrew the troops, and she was defeated?"

Takenaka Shigeharu sighed.

“Not only did we fail, but we failed miserably.

Ten days ago, the Kanto Governor His Highness Uesugi personally led his cavalry into Kaga territory, crossed the Asano River, got behind Shibata Katsuie's army that besieged Kanazawa Obo, and raided the logistics station Matsuno Castle.

Matsuno Castle fell with a bang, and the deployment of the Echizen Oda Army in Kaga Kingdom was cut off.

Shibata Katsuie was shocked and withdrew his troops overnight, but His Highness Uesugi harassed her on her way back and set fire to Komatsu Village, Honori Village, Adoga and other places. The morale of the army was turbulent and morale was low.

Finally, when Shibata Katsuie forcibly crossed the Tetori River, His Highness Uesugi suddenly launched a surprise attack and killed fourteen generals. All the Echizen Oda Army units fled, causing each other to trample on each other.

If Maeda Toshiie hadn't made a prompt decision and cut off the Shiba family's crest personally, Shibata Katsuie would have almost died on the banks of the Tedori River.

Shibata Katsuie brought 10,000 troops to besiege Oyama. More than a thousand people died in battle alone, and countless others were injured. The Echizen Oda Army was almost collapsed.

Uesugi's main force, together with Noto's Vietnamese and Chinese mobilization forces, more than 30,000 troops have entered Kaga country, and the troops are heading south, approaching the Daishoji River.

The morale of the Echizen Oda Army was unstable, and Shibata Katsuie did not dare to withdraw from Daishoji Castle, threatening to coexist with the Daishoji River defense line."

Hashiba Hideyoshi kept gasping for breath. She never expected that just fifteen days after she left Kaga Country, the situation in Kaga's war would change drastically.

Shibata Katsuie was defeated miserably at Tetori River, and she really had no way out.

Although the Daishoji River area is within the territory of Kaga Province, it has been in the hands of Echizen since it was captured by Asakura Sodi.

The Oda family pacified the Echizen Kingdom twice, and also took the Daishoji River into their hands. This was not part of the Kaga strategy, but the Oda family's own territory.

Shibata Katsuie's strategy for defeating Kaga is already a crime. If we lose the Daishoji River again, we will be derelict in our duty to defend the territory, and we will have to shed our skin even if we don't die.

Lin Xiuzhen could still draw lessons from the past. Even if Shibata Katsuie married the city lord and became a member of the Oda clan, she would not dare to bet on whether Oda Nobunaga would turn his back on him and become heartless.

With no choice, she could only defend the city of the Great Holy Temple. The city was still alive but the people were destroyed.

Hashiba Hideyoshi asked subconsciously as his forehead became confused.

"I didn't get any news from the front line all the way back. Where did you get such detailed military information from behind?"

Takenaka Shigeharu said with a serious face.

"Shibata Katsuie has sent an urgent report to Azuchi Castle to ask for instructions from the main hall, but she did not know about the Hashiba family, nor did she send an urgent envoy to ask you to return to the army to support the front line.

On the contrary, Maeda Toshiie sent someone to Nagahama Castle to inform you of the latest military situation so that you can prepare in advance."

Hashiba Hideyoshi was stunned for a moment, then shouted.

"No! Shibata Katsuie wants to harm me!"

Takenaka Shigeharu nodded gloomily, she and Hashiba Hideyoshi had the same idea.

The original strategy of Hideyoshi Hideyoshi and Shigeharu Takenaka was to reject Shibata Katsuie's command on the front line and wait until Shibata Katsuie failed when he tested Echu, which showed Hideyoshi's foresight.

Even if Oda Nobunaga became angry afterwards, Hideyoshi Hashiba's friends from all walks of life would help him and he would take some risks, hoping that in the end he would be punished with a small punishment and a big warning would be given, and he would turn to the West for development.

But the changes in the war exceeded everyone's expectations.

Whether it was Oda Nobunaga's temptation or Shiba Yoshigan's back-up plan, both of them thought that Uesugi Kenshin's intervention would lead to a counterattack after Oda's army entered Yuechu China and attacked Ezhong Ichikuzon.

No one expected that Uesugi Kenshin would actually stir up trouble and directly enter Kaga Country and defeat the Shibata Katsu family.

Shibata Katsuie now only has more than 10,000 remnants left. Facing the more than 30,000 Uesugi Allied Forces with high morale, the Daishoji River defense line is in danger.

Takenaka Shigeharu miscalculated, and the Oda family suffered a defeat too quickly and too miserably.

As soon as Oda Nobunaga grabbed Uesugi Kenshin's collar and tried to humiliate Uesugi Kenshin with a few slaps, Uesugi Kenshin kicked him to the ground and stamped on his face like crazy.

When things have reached this point, no one can bear the responsibility for the defeat.

What kind of character is Oda Nobunaga? He usually feels like he is at a disadvantage even if he rarely takes advantage!

This time she was kicked hard by Uesugi Kenshin, and she was so humiliated in front of the two samurai families in Kinki and Kanto. Could she not be mad?

How Oda Nobunaga will organize his army to fight again and deal with Uesugi Kenshin in the future is unknown. But now, someone must stand up to take responsibility for the tragic defeat of Tetori River and bear the wrath of Oda Nobunaga.

Shibata Katsuie was responsible for commanding the Echizen Army to conquer Kaga Country. In theory, she should be the first person responsible for this defeat.

Although she is a member of the Oda clan, the most powerful general in Oda, and has a high position, she cannot bear this big pot.

According to Oda Nobunaga's character, if Shibata Katsuie is held accountable, he will probably fight to the end. No one knows whether there will be a chance to get back up and make a comeback in the future.

In order to maintain his power and position, Shibata Katsuie, a warrior known for his bravery, also began to use political means in order to escape his guilt at the critical moment of life and death.

There were many retainers who ate with Shibata Katsuie, and there was no shortage of talented people. I don’t know who gave Shibata Katsuie the bad idea, but she actually wanted to put all the blame on Hideyoshi Shibata.

Hideyoshi Hashiba had only been away from the front line for fifteen days, but the front line was turned upside down.

The Daishoji River defense line was in danger, and the military situation was on fire. But Shibata Katsuie had time to report to Oda Nobunaga of Azuchi Castle for help, so why did he forget to give one to Hashiba Hideyoshi who was marching on the Hokuriku Road?

The Hashiba Army did not experience the tragic defeat of Kaga, and the distance was so close that they could return to support at any time and participate in defending the Daishoji River defense line.

Shibata Katsuie, a veteran general, turned a blind eye to the approaching reinforcements, and even hid the frontline military information from Hideyoshi Hashiba. This was very abnormal.

If Maeda Toshiie on the front hadn't secretly sent Hideyoshi a piece of military information, and Hideyoshi sat stupidly in Nagahama Castle waiting for punishment, Oda Nobunaga might have peeled off her monkey skin.

Hashiba Hideyoshi was so frightened that he broke into a cold sweat. The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became. He gritted his teeth and said.

"This bastard Katsuie Shibata, she was arrogant and was attacked by the enemy, but she wants me to take the blame, she is really unworthy of a woman!

If the seniors of the Li family hadn't sent someone to inform me, I might have died in peace this time."

Takenaka Shigeharu shook his head and sighed.

"We wanted to use Shibata Katsuie to complete the strategy of turning to the West, and deliberately sold her a flaw, so we can't blame her for taking this flaw to the extreme.

It's my fault for not thinking well that put you in danger, my lord.

As soon as you withdrew from the front line, the Echizen army encountered a surprise attack by His Highness Uesugi and was completely defeated. You marched in Echizen and turned a blind eye to the tragic situation on the front line, and did not return to support the army.

If Shibata Katsuie intends to set up a trap, I am afraid that the main hall will be so angry that he will not have time to listen to your explanation. You will have to take the blame or not.

Even if the palace wakes up later, the deal is already done and she will never be able to help you clear up your grievances or slap her own mouth."

The more Hashiba Hideyoshi listened, the more panicked he became, and he hated Shibata Katsuie even more. But now that the matter has come to this, the most important thing is how to escape now, and Shibata Katsuie's conspiracy must not succeed.

She grabbed Takenaka Shigeharu's hand and said sincerely.

"It's useless to blame you and me now. I agreed to this matter. Naturally, I don't blame Takenaka Hime for offering advice. No one expected that His Highness Uesugi would be so ferocious.

I only hate that Shibata Katsuie is a despicable person. As a general, he dare not take responsibility and uses conspiracy and tricks to harm me.

Please ask Takenaka-hime to teach me, what should I do now?"

Takenaka Shigeharu solemnly said.

"Before the Lord comes back, I have thought about it again and again. The most important thing for you now is to hold on to these two people. If they are willing to help you, then you can hope to save the day."

"Which two people?"

"Maeda Toshiie, Akechi Mitsuhide."

Hideyoshi Hashiba asked thoughtfully.

"The plan is coming?"

"Maeda Toshiie's name is Shiba Shigeomi. When he was in the Oda camp, he was just walking on a single-plank bridge. If he was not careful, he would fall into the water.

Akechi Mitsuhide is a foreign service officer in Spur and the helmsman of the Fushimi Castle system. He is responsible for coordinating the relationship between the Sbo and Oda families.

This conflict in Hokuriku seems to be a dispute between the Oda family and the Uesugi family, but in fact the key lies with the Shiba family.

Guandong is the Saint's Guandong. If you want to reach out to the main hall, it is not in line with the Saint's wishes.

His Highness Uesugi dared to charge into Kaga without any scruples and caught Shibata Katsuie off guard because he was sure that the saint would not side with the Oda family.

However, for his own purposes, His Highness Uesugi beat Shibata Katsuie so badly that the Oda family was disgraced and the main hall would not let it go. This was not in line with the wishes of the saint.

The sage hoped that the Shiba family would take sole control of Kanto, and he also hoped that the Oda family would focus on the west and bring the Western Kingdom, Shikoku, and Kyushu under the rule of the Fushimi Castle system.

No matter how the world is divided after the Shiba family and the Oda family cooperate to conquer the country, it is in the interests of the Shiba family that the Oda family conquers the west at this stage.

If the main hall is angered by His Highness Uesugi and mobilizes troops to fight again, and the Oda-Uesugi family fights fiercely on Hokuriku Road, no matter which side has the upper hand in the end, it will consume the power of the Shiba family to unify the world.

Because the Uesugi family and the Oda family were the facilitators of the Shiba family's expansion in Kanto and Kansai, the sage definitely did not want the war on Hokuriku to continue.

The wish of the saint is the wish of Maeda Toshiie and Akechi Mitsuhide.
To be continued...