The Self-Cultivation of Warring States Warriors

Page 125

These words are a way of acknowledging the other party's sincerity.

“That would be perfect.” Fujinaga didn’t mince words and immediately said, “I do have a favor to ask.”

"please say."

"Actually..." Isshiki Fujinaga paused for a moment, adopting a sorrowful and ashamed expression, "Decades ago, my ancestor was favored by the shogunate and granted 1,450 estates in the Chu District of Tango Province. However, my family has served the Kyoto government for generations and has had no time to take care of them. As a result, those estates were gradually 'seized' by the locals. As an unworthy descendant, I am powerless to reclaim my ancestral property, and I am filled with sorrow whenever I think of it..."

The so-called "escort" means illegal possession.

During the Muromachi period, because the imperial court, the shogunate, and the temples and shrines of Kyoto were unable to reach the grassroots level in various regions, their properties in distant lands were basically "seized".

Since Isshiki Fujinaga said so, it's probably true.

Shinzaburo immediately expressed his concern and asked, "Which family in Tango has taken possession of Lord Isshiki Shikibu's estate?"

Isshiki Teng sighed, "It was divided up by more than a dozen wealthy families. As the saying goes, the law does not punish the masses... I don't know what to do."

Now that we've said all that, what's there to hesitate about?

Shinzaburo immediately assured them: "I will not stand idly by in this matter! If those dozen or so local tyrants refuse to return your estates as they were, the Kubo family's six thousand strong men will go and reason with them!"

Fujinaga was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly: "As expected of Lord Kubo Sado, a model of a samurai who respects the law and upholds righteousness. In this chaotic Warring States period, there are not many people like you. Such virtuous conduct is truly worthy of a descendant of Judge Sasaki... cough cough... truly worthy of a noble family!"

He was probably too excited and said something wrong, so he quickly covered it up with a cough.

After all, Judge Sasaki has absolutely nothing to do with respecting the law and upholding justice. If you heard this casually, you might think he was being sarcastic or sarcastic.

Of course, Shinzaburo didn't care.

He now finds Isshiki Fujinaga quite pleasing to the eye.

Despite having power and pretext, he never considered establishing a base in Tango, only concerned with the ancestral estates of the 1,450 traitors who had been seized... Teaming up with someone like that is a sure bet.

Because Isshiki Fujinaga is not as pragmatic as Hosokawa Fujitaka, he appears to be more "pragmatic".

Shinzaburo doesn't have to worry about powerful neighbors who are difficult to deal with, nor does the shogunate or the Miyoshi family have to worry about him becoming too powerful. The local people of Tango don't have to worry about being oppressed too much. Everyone is happy!

Isshiki Fujino was equally delighted. This wasn't just a win-win situation, but a win-win-win-win situation for four or five people.

As for Hosokawa Fujitaka, I believe he will also have his own unique destiny.

237 Mino Saito, in charge of diplomacy

After reaching an understanding with Isshiki Fujinaga, Shinzaburo's arrangements in Tango were now as solid as a rock.

Although land surveys could not be conducted, and it was impossible to compile service contracts and military service regulations, a batch of cannon fodder troops could still be conscripted through traditional channels when needed. In addition, supporting the imperial merchants from Kohama Bay to enter northern Tango and monopolize the profits of agriculture and fisheries would not be difficult, thus obtaining some "transportation fees".

The output of Kumano County was approximately 13,000 koku, and was divided equally between Matsukura Masanobu, the younger brother of Itsumi Masatsune, and Nomura Kenmono, a local military commander who surrendered in time. The output of Takeno County was approximately 18,000 koku, and was theoretically managed by "Takaya Suruga-no-kami Akimasa".

Even if there is virtually no trade between the two prefectures, the total annual transaction volume of food and goods should still be around 5,000 strings of cash. Contracting out the exclusive sales rights would easily yield 200 to 300 strings of cash.

As for whether the small vendors were willing to voluntarily relinquish their market share, that was left to the Kubo family's trusted merchants to worry about. As for the temples and shrines that might exist behind these vendors, Master Meishu should try to handle them first; if that proved too difficult, then they could devise a solution.

The sheer number of stones indicates that the focus of governance here is on the so-called "Takaya Suruga-no-kami Akimasa," who is none other than Ichitaro, the youngest member of the Kubo family. He inherited land in twenty-five villages across the villages of Tsunano and Kizu, and also gained control over eight smaller local powers, while simultaneously dealing with hundreds of wealthy landowners and their retainers.

It's highly unlikely that the young man could untangle the complex web of interests and quickly establish authority on his own. However, as long as the Kubo family continues to enjoy military success and its members consistently have a share of the spoils, gradually integrating them shouldn't be too difficult.

Shinzaburo even went so far as to find a female descendant of the former county head to allow Inotarou to inherit the Takaya family name as an adopted son-in-law, showing his extremely cautious attitude.

Just like Naito Munekatsu's nephew, Matsunaga Magoroku, who was appointed to the important position of Taki-gun Magistrate after only a little experience.

If the main trunk is strong enough, there's no need to worry about problems with the branches; but if the main trunk is unstable, don't expect such forcibly supported branches to solve any major difficulties on their own.

Speaking of Naito Munekatsu, hasn't he been actively trying to get closer to the central leadership, hoping to gain greater support? Well, he actually caught the right opportunity and got involved in an important event.

In the early summer of the third year of Eiroku, a grand banquet and poetry gathering were held at the main castle of the island, hosted by Atate Fuyuyasu, the lord of Awaji Province. Miyoshi Nagayoshi and Miyoshi Yoshikata, who had been at odds for a year, finally reconciled in public.

Yoshikata Miyoshi, the second of the four Miyoshi brothers, apologized to his eldest brother Nagayoshi Miyoshi and promised to abandon his plan to support Yoshinobu Ashikaga as the shogun, and instead respect the current lord, Yoshiteru Ashikaga.

To express his remorse, Miyoshi Yoshikazu immediately became a monk and changed his name to "Wuwaixuan Shishu".

The choice of the phrase "beyond worldly desires" was intentional, to demonstrate that he had no worldly ambitions.

This matter was of great significance to the Miyoshi regime.

Because Miyoshi Yoshikata was not only the second of the four brothers, but also the representative of the interests of the "Shikoku faction." The previous disputes were less about his own dislike of Ashikaga Yoshiteru, and more about the dissatisfaction of the Shikoku samurai with the status quo.

About a year and a half ago, Miyoshi Nagayoshi and Miyoshi Yoshikata had a falling out, and the soldiers in Awa, Sanuki and other places lost their fighting spirit. This directly led to the deterioration of the situation on the Izumi, Kawachi and Yamato fronts, and the anti-Myoshi encirclement network became increasingly aggressive.

Things should be getting better by now, right?

Since this reconciliation was of great importance, in addition to the host Nobuyasu Ataka, a number of important figures, including Kazutsugu Sogawa, Nagayoshi Nagayoshi, and Hisahide Matsunaga, attended the event, and Munekatsu Naito was also present.

Shinzaburo's current power and status are certainly enough to participate in the upper echelons of the Miyoshi family. But he's preoccupied with handling the aftermath of the Tango campaign, so he's naturally too busy to deal with it all.

Master Mingzhou felt very sorry about this, and worried that the Kubo family's presence in the central government would be reduced. He quickly wrote to his old friends in the Kinai region to inquire about the situation.

However, a huge news story soon came from a distant country, instantly overshadowing the reconciliation of the three good brothers.

……

In late May, news came from the Tokaido region that the Imagawa clan, which controlled Suruga, Totomi, and Mikawa, had dispatched tens of thousands of troops to attack Oda Nobunaga, who occupied half of Owari Province, but had encountered a major setback.

At first, there were many conflicting accounts, all rather vague and rough, making it difficult to determine which was true. A few days later, merchants from Tsushima and horse traders from southern Omi brought firsthand, detailed battle reports, stating that the Imagawa army had suffered over three thousand casualties, including Imagawa Yoshimoto himself, and as many as twenty or thirty high-ranking officials, such as county governors and samurai generals, who were killed in action.

As a result, all the countries were shocked, and the people of the Kinai region were no less surprised than during the Battle of Itsukushima many years earlier.

Victory and defeat are common occurrences in warfare; it's not particularly unusual for a large army to be defeated by a smaller one. However, a defeat as tragic as that of Tao Qingxian and Imagawa Yoshimoto is truly rare.

Mori Motonari was in Iwami, Takeda Shingen was in Shinano, and Uesugi Kenshin (who was still called Nagao Kagetora at this time) was in Shimotsuke. All of them were defeated and lost their armor. But even though they lost, they were able to escape with most of their soldiers and, after a period of recuperation, they were good men again.

Tao Qingxian rashly landed on the isolated island, but his sea route was cut off, resulting in the complete loss of the core strength of the Ōuchi clan; Imagawa Yoshimoto was not quite as outrageous, but his situation was equally critical.

The key issue is that too many important officials have died.

In particular, those who were capable, had good relations with the Imagawa clan, and were highly valued in the provinces of Tōtōmi and Mikawa were mostly those who followed Imagawa Yoshimoto in this battle and were wiped out by Oda Nobunaga.

At this point, the pressure falls on Imagawa Ujizane, the son of Imagawa Yoshimoto. If he can lead the army to victory and regain the lost ground, he can naturally use the war as an opportunity to promote a new group of core retainers and complete the handover between the old and the new; but if he does not have this ability, he will likely face great difficulties in the future.

After all, the Warring States period was a chaotic time, and powerful figures were bound to fight wars.

Conversely, Oda Nobunaga of Owari became as famous as Mori Motonari of Aki in his time.

Although no one could figure out how he managed to win against overwhelming odds, winning is a testament to his skill.

Then the "noble people above" were all put in an awkward position.

Last February, Oda Nobunaga took the initiative to go to Kyoto to pay homage, showing a very enthusiastic attitude, but he was met with indifference and received no attention. The shogunate refused to grant him the position of Owari governor, and the imperial court showed no intention of bestowing an official title upon him.

There wasn't even a high-ranking official of sufficient importance to come out and receive them.

Only two people actually had detailed conversations with Oda Nobunaga. One was Yamashina Tokitsugu, who served as the head of the Naiza (internal government), and was a long-time friend of his family.

The other was Yoshiaki Kubo, who had come to join the fun.

In short, after the Battle of Okehazama (which doesn't seem to be called the Battle of Okehazama at this time), the Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiteru, as well as the father and son Miyoshi Nagayoshi and Miyoshi Yoshioki, and many court nobles and high monks in Kyoto sent people or wrote letters to Obama Castle in Wakasa Province to inquire: Didn't you hit it off with Oda Nobunaga at first sight and chat for several hours? What did you think of him?

Shinzaburo was immediately delighted.

Others have to quit their jobs and rush to the capital region to desperately try and make a name for themselves in order to become familiar with these "important people." It's quite comfortable for me to sit at home and do nothing, while these "important people" come to me.

Whether for public or private reasons, Shinzaburo had no time to hesitate. Without saying a word, he praised Oda Nobunaga lavishly, firmly believing that the defeat of the Imagawa clan was not accidental, but a manifestation of true strength.

This was partly to emphasize his own keen observation skills, and partly... to remind Miyoshi Nagayoshi and Miyoshi Yoshioki to be aware of the potential threat to Oda Nobunaga.

Just as the Miyoshi clan changed their western strategy after the Battle of Itsukushima, shifting from defending against the Amago to defending against the Mori clan; now that the Battle of Okehazama has occurred, shouldn't we also optimize our eastern strategy and include defending against the Oda clan in our plans?

As for the specifics of how to do it, Shinzaburo didn't have any plans.

His mind is now mainly focused on his own problems, specifically how to ensure the stability of Wakasa and Tango's territories and how to expand into Tajima, Omi and even Echizen.

In the long run, limiting Oda Nobunaga's expansion is necessary. But ultimately, that's too far in the future, and not a project for which resources should be invested right now.

Why not mention it in the letter? Trust in the leader's wisdom.

But I didn't expect...

Miyoshi Yoshioki quickly replied, stating that the Miyoshi family had been trying to befriend the Mino Saito family to counterbalance the Omi Rokkaku family, and now, considering the possibility of Oda Nobunaga's rise, the Saito family's importance has increased even further.

However, Saito Yoshitatsu is a very cunning guy. He always tries to win people over with sweet words and then turn the bullets back on them. Even though he has taken benefits from the Miyoshi family, he has always maintained an ambiguous relationship with the Rokkaku family.

At the beginning of the year, if it weren't for the staunch opposition of Rokkaku Yoshikata, the "reclusive" head of the Rokkaku family in Omi Province, Saito Yoshitatsu would have already married the young and inexperienced Rokkaku Yoshiharu. Such a person is truly not to be trusted.

Therefore, after careful consideration, we now need someone of high status, skilled in strategy, and with ample free time to handle diplomacy with the Saito family of Mino.

Yoshioki Miyoshi directly sent a message through a messenger: "Please ask Sado Kubo to take on this task!"

238 Official rank below the fifth rank

Upon first hearing this, Shinzaburo was quite surprised:

Things were progressing so smoothly on my side in Wakasa Tango, and I was just about to continue to develop them further, how did it suddenly become a diplomatic mission against the Saito family of Mino?

Although I had some doubts, after calming down and asking around, and then sorting things out and carefully reasoning out the reasons, I felt that it made sense.

It turns out that several years ago, when Saito Yoshitatsu murdered his father and seized power in Mino Province, he had a close personal relationship with Ise Sadayaka, a steward of the shogunate, and they even became in-laws through their children's marriage. Ise was nominally a trusted hereditary member of the shogunate, but in reality, his heart was with Miyoshi Nagayoshi. He didn't even follow Ashikaga Yoshiteru into exile in Kuchiki Valley, but instead stayed in Kyoto to organize a puppet regime.

From this perspective, the Miyoshi family and the Saito family of Mino have some historical connections that can be traced back to.

However, times changed. After Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiteru returned to Kyoto and regained control of the court, he deliberately promoted Matsunaga Hisahide to the position of acting steward of the government office, gradually sidelining his second-in-command, the traitor Ise Sataka. With Ise Sataka's fall from power, the relationship between the Mino Saito and the Miyoshi family became disordered and could no longer be as smooth as before.

In the past two or three years, a trend of "Miyako encirclement" has been vaguely emerging in the Kinai region. In order to counterbalance the power of the Omi Rokkaku family, Miyoshi Nagayoshi instructed Miyoshi Nagayasu to restart diplomatic relations with the Mino Saito family.

Logically speaking, Miyoshi Nagayoshi, being a shrewd and calculating man, shouldn't be such a fool who easily trusts others. However, for some unknown reason, he actually took Saito Yoshitatsu's empty promises seriously and devoted a lot of effort to him.

Through a series of maneuvers, the official rank of "Chibu Taifu" in the Imperial Court, the title of "Gōsō Banshū" in the Shogunate, and even the confirmation of the Isshiki family's bloodline were all arranged. This greatly enhanced the prestige of the Mino Saitō family and covered up their dark history of overthrowing the Mino Guardian Toki family and establishing themselves as independent.

Unexpectedly, Saito Yoshitatsu turned out to be a fickle manipulator. After securing the benefits, he immediately sent someone to negotiate a marriage alliance with the Rokkaku family of Omi. The young Rokkaku Yoshiharu agreed without hesitation, but was violently stopped by the retired old Rokkaku Yoshikata, thus preventing the marriage from being formally agreed upon.

Even if it doesn't come to fruition, the mere fact that it's a trend is enough to embarrass the Miyoshi family. After all, for the past decade or so, the Omi Rokkaku family has always been the Miyoshi regime's number one enemy.

Saito Yoshitatsu essentially got a free ride from Miyoshi Nagayoshi.

Where does this leave the dignity of the Japanese Viceroy?

As a result, Miyoshi Nagayoshi naturally lacked the confidence to continue handling diplomatic affairs with Mino Saito, and had no choice but to admit his mistake and voluntarily relinquish his responsibilities. However, with the position now vacant, no senior retainer was willing to take it on.

Anyone with a brain knows that, given the current situation, the Miyoshi family will certainly not offer any more benefits to Saito Yoshitatsu easily; however, considering the existence of the encirclement network, they are unwilling to completely submit to the Rokkaku family's embrace, thus finding themselves in a dilemma—unwilling to concede any resources, yet hoping for diplomatic gains.

In the past, Miyoshi Nagahisa busied himself with various connections in Kyoto, only to be completely outmaneuvered and end up with nothing. Now, he is unwilling to give up even a single penny of profit, yet he attempts to gain some results from it. The difficulty of this is self-evident.

Furthermore, considering the factional struggles within the Miyoshi family, Miyoshi Nagahisa of the "Mototsuke faction" had lost face, and it would be somewhat disharmonious to immediately let Matsunaga Hisahide of the "Shinsan faction" take over. As for Miyoshi Yoshikata and his group of the "Western Country faction," they were also unsuitable for this task due to some personal issues.

At this moment, Shinzaburo advised that they should be highly vigilant against Oda Nobunaga of Owari, which inadvertently created a connection with the Saito family of Mino.

Fortunately, he had enough status and reputation, and he wasn't strongly associated with any particular faction.

Thus, by sheer coincidence, he was "chosen" to fill the vacancy.

However, the message delivered by Miyoshi Yoshioki through a messenger was quite respectable: "Please ask Kubo Sado to take on this task!" The tone was clearly one of discussion, rather than a condescending command. If Shinzaburo had declined with a simple "I am not capable enough," he probably wouldn't have been blamed.

However, after much deliberation, Shinzaburo had another plan in mind—if this matter succeeded, wouldn't it be a perfect opportunity to make a name for himself? His previous plans for conquering western Omi and advancing into Tajima both required the approval of his superiors to proceed smoothly. If he could demonstrate his loyalty and importance to the shogunate and the Miyoshi regime, it would naturally benefit his future plans.

Moreover, from the perspective of a time traveler, Shinzaburo felt that he might be able to understand Saito Yoshitatsu's true intentions, and perhaps even reach a tacit understanding with him—something that others would find difficult to do.

……

Therefore, Shinzaburo verbally agreed to the matter, then arranged the internal work and set off.

This kind of complex diplomatic work certainly can't be done overnight; all sorts of details need to be communicated first.

I saw and heard quite a lot along the way.

First, when passing through Tanba Yagi Castle, he stayed overnight there and chatted briefly with Naito Munekatsu. When Naito Munekatsu heard that Shinzaburo had volunteered to take on the task of communicating with the Saito family of Mino, he remained silent for a long time, and finally shook his head and sighed, "Perhaps I really am getting old."

Two days later, he arrived in Kyoto and was invited to the shogunate for an audience. Perhaps Ashikaga Yoshiteru felt that everyone was already quite familiar with each other, so he spoke a few words from the heart, saying in a serious tone: "If, through effective mediation, the Miyoshi family can finally reach an agreement with the Hatakeyama of Kawachi, the Rokkaku of Omi, the Asakura of Echizen, the Mori of Aki, and the Saito of Mino, and all the feudal lords can govern their territories with peace of mind, it will not only be a blessing for the Ashikaga family, but also a blessing for the whole country."

Upon hearing this, Shinzaburo almost lost his composure.

What kind of nonsense is this? Wanting to revive the Ashikaga family is fine, but expecting everyone to put aside their disputes and abandon violence is really wishful thinking. You might as well go to sleep; you can have anything in your dreams.

If this had happened before the Kakitsu Rebellion, when the shogunate's authority hadn't yet crumbled, it wouldn't have been impossible to pacify the country through political maneuvering. But now, we live in the Warring States period, a time of moral decay and social upheaval.

Shinzaburo could only try his best to control his emotions and make a few perfunctory remarks before taking his leave and running away.

Next is Hosokawa Ujitsuna of Yodoko Castle. This Kanrei (regent) is still not completely out of politics, but he has lost interest. After all, he is almost fifty years old, has no son, and seems to have shed all his burdens after defeating his nemesis, Hosokawa Harumoto.

Then, heading west, one arrives at Akutagawa Castle, the stronghold of the Miyoshi family, which is now the actual center of power.

Miyoshi Nagayoshi is currently living in seclusion at Iimori Castle, rarely concerning himself with worldly affairs. The person in charge of Akutagawa Castle is Miyoshi Yoshioki, who is not yet twenty years old but has already inherited the official rank of "Junior Fourth Rank, Lower Grade, Governor of Chikuzen Province".

Upon meeting, Shinzaburo immediately expressed his willingness to take on the diplomatic work with Saito Mino.

Yoshioki Miyoshi looked pleased, but did not nod immediately. Instead, he asked, "Kubo Sado, in your opinion, what was the reason for Hyuga no Kami (Miyoshi Nagayasu)'s failure to win over the Saito family of Mino?"

It seems the two sides have really gotten to know each other better, as they're now speaking so frankly and directly, without any tactful preamble.

Shinzaburo pondered for a moment, then asked instead of answering, "Lord Hyuga no Kami is known for his wisdom and decisiveness. Why would he so easily trust someone? Could Lord Chikuzen (Miyoshi Yoshioki) enlighten me?"