The cooperation between Shiba and Oda is in the honeymoon period.
Oda Nobunaga voluntarily gave up the invasion of Kanto, and also acquiesced in Yoshigan's participation in the strategy of Kansai. Given her temperament, this was a rare concession.
In terms of both emotion and reason, Yiyin must appreciate it.
But Miyoshi Yoshitsugi's heart and Yoshigan didn't want to be cold. He thought about it and asked.
"Miyoshihime, do you want to go back to Shikoku?"
Miyoshi Yoshitsugi blurted out.
"think!"
But she came to her senses in an instant and immediately bowed to admit her mistake.
"The foreign minister lost his temper for a moment and begged the sage to punish him. The foreign minister obeyed all the sage's instructions and asked the sage to decide whether he should return to the Four Kingdoms."
Miyoshi Yoshitsugu was a defeated general and was placed in Kitakawachi. Most of the reason was to prevent her from causing trouble again after returning to Shikoku.
After all, the retainers of the Mihaoshi family sold her out the last time the war started, so they were naturally afraid that she would go back to settle the score later.
The Shiba family kept her in Kinki to appease the rebellious ministers who wanted to rebel. Even though she was thinking about her homeland, it was hard to say it directly because she was suspected of harboring alien ambitions.
Yiyin waved his hands and said softly.
"Things are valuable when you leave your hometown, but people are cheap when you leave your hometown. It is natural for people to miss their hometown. What is the crime?"
Miyoshi Yoshitsugi choked with sobs and kowtowed.
"The saint is tolerant and the foreign minister Meng Lang."
Yiyin sighed.
"You should know in your heart that the Sanhao family is no longer the Sanhao family of the past.
Nobuyasu Anzai from Awaji Province, Yasunaga Miyoshi from Shikoku Island, and Nagafusa Shinohara, they are not happy for you to go back.
If His Majesty Oda is really determined to conquer Shikoku Island, there is no point in being impatient. In fact, there is no need to rush.
You have fought for me, shed blood, and made meritorious deeds. I have also promised you that you will have a place in the four countries in the future.
So, if you really want to join in the fun, of course I am willing to help you, but there is one thing you have to be aware of."
Miyoshi Yoshitsugi bowed.
"Sage, please give me instructions."
Yiyin said solemnly.
"The hegemony of the Miyoshi family has long since dissipated. You can't even subjugate the old ministers of the Miyoshi family, let alone be a match for His Highness Oda.
After you go back, you have to be measured.
Furthermore, the Shiba and Oda families have turned their feud into friendship and will join forces to pacify the world and restore a peaceful order to the world.
Therefore, you must not harm the overall situation of the world for your own selfish interests. Regarding the Oda family's actions in the Western Kingdom, you can only cooperate, not resist.
Of course, as long as you stick to your duties, I will also take care of you and not let the Oda family wantonly bully the loyal ministers of the shogunate."
Miyoshi Yoshitsugi nodded sharply.
"In front of the saint, foreign ministers dare not lie.
If there is really a chance to return to Shikoku Island, I would like to be a lackey under the sage and watch over them. I will never dare to cause trouble and make things difficult for the sage."
No one knows better than Miyoshi Yoshitsugu what kind of mess the Miyoshi family is inside.
When the Miyoshi family rose, the four sisters, headed by Miyoshi Nagakei, worked together to establish a hegemony and once threatened the Kyoto shogunate.
If it weren't for the sudden appearance of Yoshihiro Shiba, Ashikaga Yoshiteru would have been suppressed by the Miyoshi family long ago, and Miyoshi Nagakei would also successfully go to Luo, dominate the shogunate in the name of the governor, and achieve the peak of Miyoshi's hegemony.
Because of Shiba Yiyin's hard work, the Miyoshi family's grand hegemony was shattered to pieces early on, like a flower in a mirror and the moon in the water. The fate of the Miyoshi and the four sisters was also bleak.
Shihe Icun was beheaded by Shiba Yiyin, Miyoshi Yoshihide died of poisoning, and Miyoshi Changqing, who fell into madness, was bewitched and forced to death Anzhai Fuyang, and finally fell into self-blame and died in depression.
As the Mihaoshi and four sisters passed away one after another, the Mihaoshi family gradually fell into civil strife.
Miyoshi Chokei's original heir, Miyoshi Yoshihiro, died in the battle with Toga Iksun in Yamato, and also had the Sanuki people captured.
Yoshigan used the captured Sanuki people to force Miyoshi Chokei to make concessions and reached peace.
After the war, the Sanuki people were severely criticized by the Miyoshi family. In order to bridge the internal conflicts of the Miyoshi family, Miyoshi Nagakei adopted Tokawa Ichin's daughter Miyoshi Yoshi as the heir to the family.
The core of the Miyoshi family, the Hime Warriors, mainly come from the Miyoshi clan, Awa Country, Sanuki Country, and Awaji Country.
In the current situation, the Miyoshi clan is controlled by Miyoshi Yasunaga, the Awa clan is controlled by Shinohara Chofusa, and the Awaji Marines are controlled by Azaya Nobiyasu.
Miyoshi Yoshitsugu's foundation is in the Sanuki community, which is the old foundation left to her by Tokawa Ichino.
After the defeat of the Miyoshi trio, Miyoshi Yoshitsugu invaded Kinki again, but was jointly betrayed by Miyoshi Yasunaga and others, and was forced to surrender to the saint.
The Miyoshi family is in a frenzy of internal strife, but the Chosogabe family of Tosa Province on the other side of Shikoku Island is working hard to rise. The Chosougabe family, which has already captured Tosa Ichi, is currently conquering Iyo Province.
There are four territorial kingdoms on Shikoku Island, Sanuki and Awa are in the east, and Tosa and Iyo are in the west.
When Miyoshi Nagakei was around, the Miyoshi family could not suppress the Tosa and Iyo two countries. Now that the Miyoshi family is weak, they are being targeted by the Tosa rogues.
The Miyoshi family is torn apart internally, and the external environment is even worse. The Oda family and the Nagasougabe family are peeping from the east and west, ready to invade Miyoshi at any time.
Yoshigan does not prevent Miyoshi Yoshitsugu from returning, but he needs Miyoshi Yoshitsugu to recognize his position.
Don’t have any delusions about reviving the Sanhao family’s hegemony. That ball of mud can no longer hold up the wall.
But if Miyoshi Yoshitsugu is willing to be the watchdog of the Shiba family and use the remaining influence of Miyoshi's Toga family to go to Shikoku Island as a key tenant, Yoshitsugi will certainly be willing to support Miyoshi's return.
Miyoshi Yoshitsugu had already thought clearly about the cause and effect of misfortunes and blessings in the past few years. When he came to see the saint this time, he naturally wanted to show his loyalty to the Shiba family as a dog.
She didn't feel comfortable staying in Kitakawachi, not only because the area was small, but also because Hosokawa Fujitaka didn't like her, which put a lot of pressure on her.
Miyoshi Yoshitsugu was as brave as his mother and was not afraid of war, but vicious politicians like Hosokawa Fujitaka, who came from the shogunate and were good at hiding needles in cotton, were Miyoshi Yoshitsugu's nemesis.
Hosokawa Fujitaka was close to Akechi Mitsuhide at Shiba's house, while Miyoshi Yoshitsugu's stay in Kinki was guaranteed by Maeda's interests.
The relationship between Akechi Mitsuhide and Maeda Yoshida was not good, and Hosokawa Fujitaka was naturally unhappy that Miyoshi Yoshitsugu stabbed him in his Kitakawachi territory.
If the saint had not expressed his attitude early, Miyoshi Yoshitsugu would have to return to Shikoku Island sooner or later to be used in a useful way. Hosokawa Fujitaka would definitely have done something dirty to prevent Miyoshi Yoshitsugu from having an easy time.
Therefore, Miyoshi Yoshitsugu is currently living under someone else's roof. When everything goes wrong, he naturally wants to return home. He hopes to return to Shikoku Island as soon as possible and work as a dog for the saint. It is better than staying in Hanoi and being punished at any time.
She has been focusing on Shikoku Island in the past few years. As soon as the Oda family made any move, she was immediately noticed.
In Miyoshi Yoshitsugi's view, the time was ripe for returning home, so he naturally had to strive for it and think it through thoroughly before he dared to come to Kyoto to disturb the saint's purity.
Yiyin is also very satisfied with her attitude.
Miyoshi Yoshitsugu spent many years in Hanoi, and a lot of the edges on her body have been erased. Before the Shiba Oda war, she also actively participated in the war and made military exploits.
With such an obedient and easy-to-use warrior, Yoshigami naturally wanted to use her connections on Shikoku Island to insert the influence of the Shiba family.
Yiyin said.
"After you go back, take good care of your hometown in Higashi Sanuki.
Remember one sentence: do less, make less mistakes, and get involved less in those messy things. Do you understand?"
As soon as Yoshiyin let go, Miyoshi Yoshitsugi was overjoyed and kowtowed to the ground.
"Hi! Please follow the teachings of the saint."
The Sanuki Kingdom has a stone height of 120,000, and is connected to the Awa Kingdom to the south, Iyo Kingdom to the west, and the Seto Inland Sea to the north. It faces the three countries of Bizen, Bizhong, and Bigo across the sea.
With the support of the saint, Miyoshi Yoshitsugu is confident that he can defend his hometown of Higashi Sanuki and help the Shiba family secure this strategic location with all directions.
Tokawa Issun was the former master of the Sanuki clan, and Miyoshi Yoshitsugu was her bloodline, and he inherited the position of family governor of Miyoshi Chokei.
With the support of the saint, Miyoshi Yoshitsugu had little problem in stabilizing the Higashi-Sanuki samurai family.
Although the local territory only has 50,000 to 60,000 koku, which is indeed a bit shabby compared to Miyoshi's heyday, Miyoshi Yoshitsugu has long since looked away after all the ups and downs over the years.
It is better to have a piece of land of your own than to live in fear all day long.
Miyoshi Yoshitsugi was happy, but Yoshigan had a headache. How should he talk to Oda Nobunaga about this matter?
Or should we wait for Akechi Mitsuhide to come back and let her fool Oda Nobunaga? I wonder if Oda Nobunaga will give Akechi Mitsuhide a good look?
Maybe, she would also use Akechi Mitsuhide's medical skills and send Akechi Mitsuhide to Shikoku to negotiate with the Chosogabe family.
Anyway, Mitsuhide Akechi is the best at deception, and he has the signature power of the Fushimi Castle system, so he should be very useful in deceiving Shitoku natives like Chosougabu.
———
At the beginning of the new year, various places are busy with spring plowing, but only the Oda family has begun a new round of conquest.
The busy farming season is not the time to use troops, and the Wu family has a tacit understanding not to go to war since ancient times.
But it happened that during the Warring States Period, the traditional system of guarding the land of the Wu family was completely destroyed by the name of the Wu family that was transformed into the Warring States Period.
In particular, Oda Nobunaga came out of nowhere and liked to bully others by taking advantage of his large territory and abundant food.
Since she occupied the Nobi Plain, the Oda family often used troops to fight out of season.
She starts a war when others are plowing their fields, and she starts a war when others are harvesting their crops. It's best to win, but it doesn't matter if you don't win. Anyway, it will harass the enemy warrior family and make it impossible to successfully complete agricultural production.
Agriculture is different from industry, which depends on the weather.
In industry, we can work overtime and produce in three shifts. If we lose time, we will have to work overtime at worst.
Agriculture follows the seasons. If you miss the seasons, production will inevitably be reduced, or even the harvest may be lost.
The consequences of not having enough food are very cruel, and people will definitely starve to death. Only when all the people with food shortages are starved to death can the remaining people survive the famine.
No samurai family can withstand such consequences, so they appear to be very vulnerable to the Oda family's off-season offensive. It seems that the Oda family is invincible and sweeps away thousands of troops, but in fact, it uses off-board moves.
For territories that have been attacked several times by the Oda family out of season, either the daimyo will surrender softly, or the samurai family below will kill the daimyo and then surrender to the Oda family.
In short, agricultural production must be maintained. The middle and lower Wu families don't really care who is the boss at the top.
But Oda Nobunaga often pushed further. After controlling the upper class, he concentrated power and squeezed territorial resources, forcing the middle and lower classes to suffer miserably.
All the benefits were taken away by the Oda family to fight in the war, and the quality of life was not as good as before. Even if the Oda family became stronger and bigger as they fought, what benefits would there be to the middle- and lower-class samurai families?
They will only see their lives becoming more and more miserable, and will not be proud of the strength of the Oda family.
This is also the reason why many knowledgeable people concluded that Oda Nobunaga must die a good death. All the power of the seemingly powerful Oda family has been concentrated in Oda Nobunaga.
Everyone is a tool of Oda Nobunaga, who can take and take away everything. Once something unexpected happens to such a ruler, the strong rule of the Oda family will fall apart overnight.
Takenaka Shigeharu was the first person to see this clearly. Unfortunately, Takenaka Shigeharu fell first before he could see the end of Oda Nobunaga.
Settsu Province, Himeji Castle.
The Kodera family, a powerful samurai family in Settsu Province, sent their retainer Kuroda Takataka to Sakai Port to contact the Oda family.
Hashiba Hideyoshi, as the general of the Western Kingdom of the Oda family, also went to Sakai Port in person and communicated privately with Kuroda Takataka of the Kodera family and Konishi Yukinaga of the Uki family through the relationship with the Nanman Sect.
Afterwards, both Kuroda Takataka and Konishi Yukinaga were impressed by Hashiba Hideyoshi's demeanor and actively persuaded the family to join the Oda family and work for Hashiba Hideyoshi.
Himeji Castle, donated by the Kuroda family, became the starting point for Hideyoshi Hashiba's conquest of the Western Kingdom.
The powerful materials and personnel of the Oda family are working hard to fill Himeji Castle, turning it into a huge military depot and construction site, and constantly expanding it.
And in a courtyard in Himeji Castle, Takenaka Shigeharu's life has come to an end.
Takenaka Shigeharu was lying on the hospital bed and was dying. When she woke up from a violent cough again, she turned sideways and wanted to spit out something, but someone supported her and handed her a white towel.
Takenaka Shigeharu took the white scarf and covered her mouth tightly. When she let go again, the white scarf was covered in blood, which was shocking.
Heaving a sigh of relief, Takenaka Shigeharu looked to her side. The person supporting her was Hideyoshi Hashiba. She subconsciously wanted to salute, but was stopped by Hideyoshi Hashiba.
"My lord, why are you here?"
Hashiba Hideyoshi's eyes were red, he laid Takenaka Shigeharu down and carefully covered her with a quilt.
"You're like this, how can I not come?"
Takenaka Shigeharu smiled bitterly.
"The strategy for the Western Kingdom has been launched, and you need to decide on all the details. You have many things to do every day, so don't waste time here for me.
I can’t make it, I can’t see the day when you realize your hegemony.”
Hideyoshi Hashiba shook his head and said.
"Recuperate well and everything will be fine. When you get better, I still have many things that I need you to consider for me.
You said you would plan for me and realize my ambitions, how could you die here? I won't allow you to die!"
Takenaka Shigeharu sighed.
"I'm sorry, I'm very, very sorry, but it seems I'm going to break my promise. Since the Lord has come to see me, a dying man, please listen to my words."
Hideyoshi Hashiba took a deep breath to calm down his excitement and said.
"you say."
Takenaka Shigeharu looked into Hashiba Hideyoshi's eyes and said slowly.
"There is a cloud in the sky: when a person is about to die, his words are also good. If I say anything wrong, please forgive me, Lord.