Yu Qiu Shang has been very distressed these past few days. Although, since he can remember that day, there have been few times when he was not distressed. But the pressure of this recent period has really made him breathless.
Today is already December 22nd of the 10th year of Yonglu (1567), and there are only 4 days left before the wrestling conference to be held on the 26th. However, among all the martial arts disciples who do not have Yuanfu in the end, Yuqiu
Shang asked himself that the only ones he could win were his newborn brother Ame Akimitsu and Kinoshita Hideyoshi's child Tsurunomaru, who was born to a concubine not long ago. When Tsurunomaru was born, Kinoshita Hideyoshi was overjoyed and almost lost money.
A banquet was held at home, and Yu Qiu Shang followed Yu Qiuping to the banquet.
At the banquet, his brother Yu Qiuyou accidentally brought up a topic. Yu Qiu Shang believed that her brother, who had always been very kind to her, must have only brought up that topic accidentally.
"Brother, do you think Tsurunomaru will be able to wrestle if he is so thin when he is born?" Yu Qiuyou, who had been practicing for a long time, couldn't do without wrestling in three sentences. He blurted out this sentence subconsciously, but it made his sensitive
Yu Qiu Shang suddenly stopped chewing food.
"Brother Yuuji, what are you talking about?" Naoe Seigenmaru on the side immediately spoke to save the situation, "Wrestling is not just about relying on the body! It also uses the brain!"
"Narugenmaru, do you know this again?" Yu Qiuyou didn't notice anything strange about Yu Qiu Shang, and was easily diverted by Naoe Seigenmaru, and they started chatting with him one by one.
Yu Qiu Shang, who was sitting on his knees in the dojo, recalled the scene at that time and couldn't help but clenched his fists tightly.
It was already very late, and Yu Qiuyou had stopped practicing a long time ago and went to find other children to play. Yu Qiu Shang, on the other hand, had been practicing until now. When he was really tired, he sat down by the dojo to rest for a while.
But no matter how hard he practices, his level is still far behind his younger brother. Whether it is strength, speed, or specific skills, they are not on the same level at all.
"Maybe it's because Ayou is a genius." Yu Qiushang smiled slightly and couldn't help but feel proud of his younger brother. However, when his eyes fell on his empty sleeves, the smile quickly solidified on his face.
"Maybe it's because... I'm just a cripple."
In the past, Shibata Sanzaemon's "crippling" voice became an eternal pain in Yu Qiu Shang's heart.
Yes, he also knew in his heart that he was disabled. His disability made him far inferior to others in almost all the sports that martial arts disciples must master. This is true for swordsmanship, and the same is true for wrestling.
"Shang'er, you don't have to push yourself too hard. Your father and I were a mess in these martial arts competitions back then, so it doesn't matter if we don't compare well." Yu Qiuping told Yu Qiu Shang like this.
"Shang'er, please pay attention to your health and don't tire yourself out. You are weak, so don't practice hard." Imagawa Kaede comforted him like this.
"Young Master, you have done a good enough job. Just ask for a clear conscience." Takenaka Shigeharu also told him this.
But the more tolerant his parents and teachers were to him, the more uncomfortable Yu Qiu Shang felt.
Just because I'm disabled? Doesn't everyone have any expectations for me? Do they think I can become like a normal person? I'm not willing to do that!
Yu Qiu Shang held back his energy and practiced day and night. He wanted to prove that even without a hand, he would not be much worse than his younger brother. His younger brother was the goal of his efforts and his support.
Because no matter how forgiving his parents and teachers were, his younger brother always looked at him with an equal eye and never looked down upon him because of his disability.
"I can do it." Yu Qiu Shang growled silently to himself in his heart.
"I can do it!" He growled in his heart again, stood up slowly, and walked to the training place.
·
On December 26, a martial arts competition was held in Qingzhou City. However, the children's wrestling competition that Yu Qiu Shang and the others were going to participate in was a competition in the evening, while the kendo competition among samurai was held in the morning.
The reason why the martial arts conference was chosen to be held in Qingzhou City instead of Gifu City is because a distinguished guest was also invited to participate in this conference - that is Tokugawa Ieyasu of Mikawa Kingdom. As Oda Nobunaga's most important
The ally, Oda Nobunaga, also deliberately chose Qingzhou Castle, where the two formed an alliance that day, as a martial arts training ground to show the importance they attached to this meeting.
Amakihei, on the other hand, was sent by Oda Nobunaga to receive Tokugawa Ieyasu. At this moment, the two of them were sitting in the private room on the second floor of the martial arts gym, watching the samurai on the first floor of the gymnasium constantly competing with each other in their skills.
And on the table with dishes in the middle of the private room, there is a large bowl of fried tempura - this has become a reserved dish for every meeting between old friends Ame Qiupei and Tokugawa Ieyasu.
.
"Momiji has a heart!" Tokugawa Ieyasu unceremoniously picked up the tempura in the bowl with chopsticks and put it into his mouth without even looking at the exquisite sashimi and sushi around him. "Then I'll be disrespectful."
"Haha, your highness, Tokugawa, just like it!" Yu Qiuping deliberately read out Tokugawa Ieyasu's new name word by word, and joked with a smile, "But congratulations to you, Takechiyo!"
Yu Qiuping understood how important a surname was during the Warring States Period in Japan. In this era where status was valued more than blood, it was not uncommon for adopted children to inherit famous surnames. Sometimes a name was enough to mean countless resources. Ashikaga
, the surnames of families such as the three administrators and four positions, even if they have declined, are still treated with caution by local daimyo. When Hojo Soun, whose original surname was Ise, moved to Kanto, his descendants obtained the name by changing their surname to the famous Kanto family Hojo.
The affiliation of countless wealthy families. The surname of the Uesugi family, the leader of the Kanto family, also gave the Nagao family, which was originally just the tyrant of Echigo, the reputation of repeatedly invading Kanto. There is also the Iitomi Masakei who inherited the Yamagata family and inherited the Tachibana family.
The Toji Kanren, the Maori Ryokawa system inherited the Kobayakawa family, Kobayakawa Takakage and Yoshikawa Motoharu, etc. respectively.
This time Matsudaira Ieyasu changed his surname to Seiwa Genji, a member of the famous Tokugawa family, and also traced his lineage back to the noble Minamoto family. He obviously wanted to make further achievements in these troubled times.
"Hahahaha, Momiji is joking!" When he mentioned his happy event, Tokugawa Ieyasu also laughed very honestly, "I will ask Momiji to take care of me in the future!"
"I haven't introduced you yet, this is Inuko Nobuyasu." Tokugawa Ieyasu was chewing delicious tempura and patted the shoulder of the young man sitting under him. "Sanrou, please bow to His Majesty Momiji."
!”
"I have met His Highness Hongye!" The imposing young man bowed respectfully to Yu Qiuping upon hearing this. His simple eyes and movements revealed a tenacious temperament. Although he is only nine years old this year,
But he already looked vaguely like a warrior.
"You don't have to be polite, Sanlang. We are all our own people. I am older than your father, so just call me uncle." Yu Qiuping smiled and helped Tokugawa Nobuyasu, and nodded to him with encouraging eyes, making the young man smile slightly.
He was so happy that a smile appeared on his lips.
"Uncle, I have met you when you were still a swaddled baby." Yu Qiuping shook his head repeatedly with emotion, "Time flies so fast, almost ten years have passed, and Sanlang is already a heroic boy!"
"Uncle, thank you." Although Tokugawa Nobuyasu's voice was a little joyful, he still responded politely. After standing up, he looked at his father with proud eyes, and Tokugawa Ieyasu smiled lovingly at him.
"Momiji really deserves the praise. This boy is so frizzy and already has a family. He is still not stable. How can he be worthy of your praise?" Tokugawa Ieyasu ate another piece of tempura, feeling a little unhappy at the same time.
Humbly and modestly.
"I didn't win any prizes, Takechiyo." Yu Qiuping smiled when he heard this, shook his head seriously and said, "This is really good at training you. Saburo has such an aura at a young age. It's not like the two of my family.
"Bit," Yu Qiuping said with a smile, reaching out his hands to touch the heads of Yu Qiu Shang and Yu Qiu You next to him, "You are still like a child who has not grown up!"
"What is Momiji talking about?" Tokugawa Ieyasu waved his hand holding the chopsticks after hearing this, "Shang'er and Yu'er are so smart, I can't even get enough of them to envy them!"
"That's it, dad!" Yu Qiuyou immediately responded dissatisfied, "Although Brother Sanlang is great, my brother and I are not bad either!"
"You brat, you are quite good at praising yourself!" Yu Qiuping laughed and cursed, then turned to Tokugawa Ieyasu, "If you have any good ways to teach children, you can't hide it! Tell me carefully!
"
"Well, how can we not?" Tokugawa Ieyasu smiled bitterly when asked by Yu Qiupei, "Hongye was stunned to ask why, maybe it is because the soil and water support the people! We Mikawa people have been born warriors since we were young!"
"That's true." Yu Qiuping nodded repeatedly when he heard this, waved to Kohata Jiesheng outside the door, and shouted: "Go and call Nanosuke! Let him not be on duty in the morning and come see Tokugawa.
Your Highness!"
"Sanlang, I will introduce you to a particularly remarkable Mikawa samurai later." Yu Qiuping looked at Tokugawa Nobuyasu and said proudly.
"Is it Honda Tadakatsu-sama?" Tokugawa Nobuyasu raised his head and looked at the end of the corridor outside the door with some longing eyes, "I have long admired Honda's illustrious martial name! If only I could become like Honda.
The samurai has no regrets in his life! There is even a nursery rhyme among the children of Tokaido, saying that His Majesty Momiji has two treasures, the Chidori and his bodyguard Honda Tadakatsu given by the Jibu Main Hall!
"
"Hahaha, Saburo, don't belittle yourself." Yu Qiupei and Tokugawa Ieyasu looked at each other and encouraged Saburo: "You know, when I first met Nanosuke, he was almost the same as you.
What an age! You are already an indomitable samurai now! In ten years, you can become as great a samurai as your Lord Honda!"