The Self-Cultivation of Warring States Warriors

Page 100

Because one dares not act rashly when it comes to status and position, but can do whatever one wants with wealth!

This perfectly aligns with Zhu Yuanzhang's strategy: "Build high walls, store up plenty of grain, and delay declaring yourself king."

Shinzaburo took out all the taxes collected from Kohama Bay over the past few months, added the indemnity money handed over by the prisoners, and even contributed some of his own money, to raise a huge sum of 1,500 kan, which he then distributed to the soldiers who had made meritorious contributions in battle.

Therefore, the soldiers from Settsu, Tanba, and Wakasa were all very satisfied and praised the kindness shown to them.

They couldn't offer generous rewards in terms of land; they could only give a small additional gift.

As part of the peace treaty between Miyoshi and Asakura, the rebels in Higashi-Wakasa were allowed to return to their homeland. Previous gains and losses were disregarded, and their existing territory was secured.

Therefore, there wasn't much new land to be divided up. The fertile lands directly under the Takeda clan near Koseyama Castle were extremely valuable and they were reluctant to give them up easily.

This made Shinsaburo somewhat dissatisfied.

Fortunately, Lord Kuniyoshi Awaya Katsuhisa had previously expressed goodwill, and this time he personally led a group of people to pay their respects, indicating his willingness to obey the new governor's orders and work together with the Kubo family to create a great cause.

He explained that his companions, such as Kumagai and Matsumiya, were all very reliable samurai and worthy of his trust.

Trusting Awaya Katsuhisa himself, Shinzaburo adopted a humble and respectful attitude, readily accepting their service and assigning them to the "Wakasa Sixth Division".

If the land cannot be taken away, then incorporating these people into the military would be acceptable.

Then, several powerful clans left Wakasa and followed Takeda Yoshitomo to Echizen. This was because their lands had been seized and divided among others during the war, and now they saw no other hope but to seek refuge with the Asakura clan.

This is something that can only be done in chaotic times.

Someone around me lamented that the surnames Naito, Muto, Shirai, Yamagata, Terai, Kagawa, and many others were deeply rooted in Wakasa, and it was a pity that they had been lost.

Shinzaburo figured this problem was easy to solve, so he directly selected more than twenty meritorious foot soldiers from his own ranks, promoted them to samurai, granted them the title of Wakasa, and had them inherit these family names to form the "Wakasa Seventh Guard".

Just like Nagasawa Yamato, who came from a pirate background, these people are unlikely to gain the approval of their local colleagues quickly. But that's alright, there's no need to worry too much.

In this way, Wakasa's affairs were almost settled.

The remaining question is, should we move?

Oyuki Castle, located at the confluence of the Oi River and the Yuge River in Kuwata District, Tanba Province, was built just over a year ago, and I actually lived there for no more than three months, which is a bit of a shame.

But as the guardian of Wakasa, he must stay in Wakasa for a long time.

The temporary residence of "Sasaki Yashiki" in Koseyama was only a stopgap measure, and directly occupying the castle of Koseyama Castle would be impolite.

The Kubo family's current stronghold in Wakasa is Nagasho Castle, located near the border of Tanba, which is not very convenient in terms of transportation.

Therefore, it would be best to rebuild the city near Kohama Bay.

The need for money and provisions is secondary; another problem that arises is—who should stay in Sangtian County to manage it?

189 The three states should be taken together; how can this be done arbitrarily?

After much thought, building a new city makes sense.

The location chosen by Wakasa to guard the Takeda clan's Koseyama Castle was not particularly wise. Although it was near a port town, it was not on the coast, but rather on a small hill about 500 meters from the shore, and was not directly connected to waterways.

However, in terms of defensive capabilities, this small hill is only about 160 or 170 meters high and not particularly steep, so it can hardly be considered a natural fortress. It was originally built here primarily to prepare for war with their arch-enemy, the Tango Isshiki family, but that need is no longer relevant.

The truly auspicious location nearby is a small delta, about 70,000 square meters in area, formed by several rivers flowing into the sea, 1,500 meters to the northeast. To the north lies the Sea of ​​Japan, to the west is the 100-meter-wide Minami River, to the east is the 150-meter-wide Kita River, and to the south, a narrow passage less than 20 meters wide leads to the mainland.

Building a city on this delta and constructing wooden bridges connecting the north and south would create a hub for both land and water transportation. In the event of a large enemy force pressing in, simply burning the wooden bridges on both sides would make the city easy to defend and difficult to attack.

If one had a better understanding, one might recall that this line of thought was consistent with that of the Kyogoku family of the Obama Domain in history.

However, as the residence of the governor of a country, it is expected to be more than three times the size of the previous Great Bow Castle, and the labor and material costs in Wakasa are higher than those in Tanba, so its expenses must be considerable.

Shinzaburo had Hasegawa Munehito estimate the cost, resulting in a plan with a budget of 4,700 kan and a construction period of at least two years.

A project of this scale could not be completed overnight. It could only be done in batches, like most city-building projects of this era. When there was money and time, it could be repaired as much as possible, and when there was neither money nor time, it could be put on hold. It was common for a city to take ten or eight years to build.

As for the matter of the castle governor of Great Bow Castle, there is really nothing to hesitate about.

Currently, among Shinzaburo's retainers, there are no outstanding talents who have emerged, and there are very few capable people among his relatives. If he were to move to Wakasa, the only one who could remain in Kuwata District would be Shingoro's younger brother, whose current rank is "Kubo Hiroaki".

Shingoro is now fourteen or fifteen years old. Although he has been trained as the magistrate of Noguchi Village, it is probably too early for him to be able to stand on his own. In reality, he needs to be assisted by his father, Kinbei. However, it would be a bit strange for a son to let his father be his magistrate. It would be more appropriate to entrust the position to his younger brother in name only.

This matter should be discussed with Matsunaga Nagayori, who has gradually begun to refer to himself as "Governor of Dan Province".

Shinzaburo then wrote a letter to Yagijo explaining his request.

Then Matsunaga Nagayori immediately replied with a handwritten letter, not only agreeing to the matter but also saying that there was "an important matter concerning the capture of the three provinces of Tanba, Tango, and Wakasa," and he hoped to meet to discuss it in detail.

The crucial matter of seizing the three states?

Now, recalling that Hosokawa Ujitsuna and Miyoshi Nagayoshi granted Matsunaga Nagayori the power to freely arrange affairs in Tango and Wakasa, this power was actually only used in Tango and not in Wakasa after Miyoshi Yoshioki came in person and Shinzaburo's campaign went too smoothly.

The Kubo clan's rapid and powerful advance was undoubtedly a good thing for the Miyoshi regime as a whole. With control of Wakasa and the defeat of the Asakura interventionist forces, the overall strategic situation had improved.

At least Yoshiyuki Miyoshi was very happy.

For Matsunaga Nagayori, however, it was a mixed blessing. While he no longer had to confront the Echizen Asakura family directly, he could no longer extend his influence to Wakasa. Even though he had befriended Itsumi Masatsune, he was still unable to restrain the meritorious Kubo Yoshiaki.

The idea of ​​discussing "taking control of the three states" now is a bit delicate.

No matter how delicate the situation may be, we still have to go.

Just in time, Shinzaburo planned to travel to the Kinki region soon. Firstly, he wanted to meet with Hosokawa Ujitsuna, Miyoshi Nagayoshi, and Miyoshi Yoshioki to express his loyalty in person. He also wanted to see if it would be appropriate to meet with the Shogun, who had just returned to Kyoto. Secondly, he wanted to chat with acquaintances like Master Meishu.

I'll visit Matsunaga Nagayori at Yagi Castle on the way; it'll just be a matter of taking a couple more days off.

……

After settling his affairs, Shinzaburo temporarily left Wakasa and traveled lightly to Tanba, only returning to Ōyū Castle for one night.

He didn't make any new fuss just because he became the guardian. He simply added twenty personal guards for safety reasons, forming a squad of nearly forty people.

What takes a large army five or six days to complete, a small team can do in just two or three days.

When I arrived at Yagi Castle this time, Matsunaga Nagayori actually came out to greet me from the outer wing, which was probably the courtesy due to someone of the same rank.

But Shinzaburo still took the initiative to bow and offered his flattery: "Lord Bizen no Kami successfully defeated the Hatano clan, who had been entrenched in Taki District for a hundred years. His achievements will last for generations and his name will be known throughout the country. He truly deserves to be the first general of the Miyoshi clan!"

The issue of how to address someone is very important.

Previously, he called himself "Pengyunxuan" under the pretense of becoming a monk to conceal his ambition. Now, by changing his name to "Naito Bizen no Kami Munekatsu," he believes he no longer needs to hide it.

Then it would be impolite to call him "Lord Pengyunxuan" again.

At the same time, he mostly abbreviated it to "Bizen no Katsu", indicating that he wanted to avoid the issue of changing Matsunaga's surname to Naito, and emphasized the official name "Bizen no Kami".

As expected, Matsunaga Nagayoshi was delighted to hear this and replied very politely: "We only defeated the Hatano family, but Kubo Genban defeated the Asakura family. The difference in skill is obvious."

Wait a minute... You didn't even refuse the title of the top general of the Miyoshi family, and just accepted it without hesitation?

Shinzaburo had a slight doubt in his heart, but he didn't show it on his face. He immediately put on a frightened expression: "I only barely managed to defend Wakasa by relying on the terrain, while you won the battle in the territory that the Hatano family has been operating in for a long time. How can you compare the two?"

Anyway, the principle is that no matter how humble you are, I will definitely be humble.

Matsunaga Nagayoshi clapped his hands and laughed, then pulled Shinzaburo into the castle.

After entering the reception room, which was in the typical "academy-style" layout, the two exchanged compliments for a while, which was a necessary small talk.

Shinzaburo began by expressing his gratitude: "Thank you, Lord Bizen no Kami, for allowing my brother to serve as the castle lord of Ōyū Castle."

Matsunaga Nagayoshi smiled slightly: "This matter is not worth mentioning. The reason for inviting Kubo Genban here is to discuss the plan for capturing the three provinces of Tanba, Tango, and Wakasa."

There was no need to be overly modest and say he dared not speak. Shinzaburo asked directly, "What are your thoughts?"

Matsunaga Nagayori said solemnly, "We have already gained considerable territory in southern Tango by relying on the troops of Amada and Kero-ro districts. However, we are suffering from the lack of naval forces in Tanba, making it difficult to push the battle line to the northern coast."

Shinzaburo, understanding the implied meaning in the song, immediately responded positively: "By gathering the strength of Wakasa, we can obtain 150 ships and 1,000 sailors, which should be enough to deal with Tango."

They didn't mention a single difficulty.

Matsunaga Nagayori bluntly stated, "The samurai are all newly recruited, and they probably won't fight unless they are motivated by profit."

Shinzaburo looked embarrassed: "It seems that I am not as frank as Bizen no Kami. Although I have thought of this, I still find it difficult to say it out loud."

"People all over the world are bustling about, all for the sake of profit. Why should we feel ashamed?" Matsunaga Nagayori demonstrated his knowledge of Chinese classics before quickly getting to the point: "That is why we are discussing the matter of taking over the three provinces."

Shinzaburo still didn't understand: "Lord Bizen no Kami, what are your plans?"

Matsunaga Nagayori paused for a moment, his eyes gleaming, and solemnly said, "I hope to join forces with Kubo Genban to take over the northern part of Kasa District and Yosa District in Tango. Afterwards, these territories will be acquired by the Kubo and Kawakatsu families. At the same time, the territories of the Kubo and Kawakatsu families in Tanba will be handed over to us. What do you say?"

Ah this...

The amount of information was too much for Shinzaburo to answer immediately.

From a purely profit-driven perspective, there's no problem. While Ōgū Castle is developing well, its land and population are ultimately limited. The northern part of Kazusa County and Yosa County in Tango, however, are estimated to have 40,000 to 50,000 koku of rice; even dividing half would yield 20,000 to 30,000 koku. Even if one has to contribute some effort during the conquest, successfully completing this exchange would be a guaranteed win.

Matsunaga Nagayori's willingness to engage in unprofitable business was probably driven by his desire for "unified Tanba." Most Sengoku samurai felt that having territory in both vassal states was less desirable than completely ruling one, even without any particular reason.

Especially now that he's using the title of "Prefect of Danzhou".

However, the problem is that this matter cannot be viewed solely from the perspective of territorial interests.

After hesitating for a moment, Shinzaburo tentatively asked, "Has Bizen no Kami mentioned this idea to Lord Miyoshi Chikuzen? We should also consult Kawakatsu's opinion."

The implication is that without the approval of a high-ranking leader, it would be a bit presumptuous to propose such a thing on one's own.

As a condition of the peace negotiations, Ashikaga Yoshiteru would recommend Miyoshi Nagayoshi for the position of Repair Officer, but this has not yet been completed. Therefore, Miyoshi Nagayoshi remains the Governor of Chikuzen.

Previously, they had granted the authority to control knowledge and action in the new territory, but with such a large-scale transfer of fiefdoms, they should still be cautious, right?

At this moment, Matsunaga Nagayoshi lowered his eyes slightly and said with a half-smile, "We believe that we should reach a consensus first before reporting to the esteemed officials above."

Your Excellencies, that's a wonderful use of the word.

Miyoshi Nagayoshi was always very cautious in politics and did not easily overstep the authority of a samurai. Therefore, Matsunaga Nagayori, as the deputy governor of Tanba, was theoretically Hosokawa Ujitsuna. At most, he was subordinate to both Hosokawa and Miyoshi.

And now they've welcomed back the Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiteru...

In theory, it really has become a situation where the various dignitaries above jointly decide on matters of state.

But Matsunaga Nagayoshi's use of this word is not quite appropriate, is it?

"Such a serious matter, please allow me to reconsider." Upon hearing the other party's words, Shinzaburo immediately declined, "I was just about to make a trip to the Kinai region. Should I inquire about Lord Miyoshi Chikuzen's attitude for you?"

"Kubo Genban, are you going to the Kinai region?" Matsunaga Nagayori seemed surprised. "You just checked into Wakasa and should be very busy. How do you have this free time?"

"It is not that I have entered the country in a narrow way, but that I have only been appointed as the deputy governor and temporarily take charge of the government." Shinzaburo first corrected the other party's choice of words, and then quickly got into the mood and said sincerely, "I was born in the countryside and my current position and rank are all thanks to the help of the noble people. Naturally, I must go to the Kinai region to express my gratitude from time to time."

"I see." Matsunaga Nagayori nodded, then smiled, as if he had returned to his former sharp and cheerful self. He said in a relaxed manner, "Then I'll ask Kubo Genban to inquire about it while he's at it."

……

As he left the guest room after the conversation ended, he ran into his former superior, Matsunaga Magoroku.

As Matsunaga Nagayori's nephew, that guy, although he didn't achieve too many merits, became the lord of Yagami Castle and the governor of Taki District, and the land he controlled was equivalent to half of Wakasa Province.

Of course, his position comes from the support of his elders, so he doesn't have much independence.

After exchanging greetings, Matsunaga Sonroku suddenly leaned close and whispered, "Don't you think my uncle is... a little... a little intoxicated by the title of 'Prefect of Danzhou'?"

Shinzaburo said nothing, but looked around and said in surprise, "The wind in the corridor is so strong that I can't hear what you are saying."

Matsunaga Sunroku shook his head and sighed, saying, "You mean that in a strong wind, trees that grow too tall are easily blown down, right? I will try to remind my uncle."

Shinzaburo was speechless.

190 Son of the Vice-King, Home Alone in Charge

Shinzaburo's first stop upon entering the Kinai region was to visit Miyoshi Nagayoshi at Akutagawa Castle.

Strictly speaking, he had never served as a loyal subject of the emperor for even a day, so he didn't need to be overly concerned with the etiquette between ruler and subject. But in fact, it was precisely because of this that he had to be even more cautious.

Upon arriving at Akutagawa Castle, my treatment remained unchanged. The castle's attendants maintained their polite yet somewhat aloof demeanor.

Perhaps in the eyes of those who stood before the prime minister, matters concerning a small country were not worth much praise.

After ascending the main gate and entering the palace, I waited alone for two quarters of an hour before I was finally granted an audience.

At the outset, Shinzaburo tried his best to maintain a spirited yet elegant demeanor, briefly recounting the battle against the Asakura family and expressing his gratitude for being appointed as the deputy governor.

However, Miyoshi Nagayoshi did not show much interest, only responding with interjections such as "um" and "ah".

Finally, he said in a lukewarm tone, "You've had a tough fight against Echizen and Asakura. I am well-deserving of the position of Deputy Governor of Wakasa."

Then there was an awkward silence.

Shinzaburo had no choice but to then propose that Matsunaga Nagayori exchange territories.

Miyoshi Nagayoshi let out a soft "Eh," but still didn't react much. He just shook his head slightly and smiled, "It seems he wants to achieve the 'Tanba position' and become a true governor."

Shinzaburo couldn't discern whether it was praise or criticism, so he dared not reply rashly.

After a moment of silence, Miyoshi Nagayoshi sighed again: "The governor of Bizen (Matsunaga Nagayori) is clearly similar to Yu Gengshu, yet he still has such ambition. It is truly enviable."

What is all this about?