Chapter 74 third quarter
"Xiaoichiro, what do you think is going on here?"
Yuchai's army formed a formation on Gaocang Mountain, more than one mile away from Shangyue City.The elder brother Hideyoshi pointed to the Mori and Ukita army who were full of mountains and valleys ahead, and asked Koichiro.
"Well, it's really strange..."
Koichiro was also puzzled by the formation formed by the enemy.They actually launched an army of 50,000 to attack a small town with only a remnant party of more than 700 nuns. They also erected strong fences and watchtowers, and put on a defensive posture as if they were facing an enemy.It seems that not only did they not have any attempt to circumvent the city of Shangyue and advance eastward, they also did not seem to plan to attack the Yuchai troops that were close at hand.
(How could you send 50,000 troops just to take down this small town?)
The more Koichiro thought about it, the more he didn't understand, because the cost of mobilizing troops was far more expensive than this city, so it was really not worthwhile.
"The Maori family seems to have an unspeakable secret..."
Seeing that Koichiro couldn't answer, Kanbei Kuroda opened his mouth to explain the whole situation.
Since Mao Liyuan, the previous lord, the Maori family disliked fighting and were stingy with mobilizing troops.The scale they have today is entirely the result of using diplomacy to disrupt and intimidate their opponents, and then entangle them.Especially after Yuanjiu's death, the whole family focused on conservativeness, and under the premise of safety first, expanded cautiously and slowly, just like saving with usury.Among them, Takakage Kobayakawa, who was in charge of Sanyo, was even more cautious by nature, taking steps at every step.What's more, most of his warriors are profit-seeking and highly mobile sailors, and when they see something wrong, they will immediately defect.This time the situation is particularly bad, because the attitude of Ukita Naoka, the biggest daimyo of the Mori family, has been vacillating.
At such a time, the Mori family actually didn’t want to send troops at all. Later, in order to encourage the Harima daimyo, they reluctantly sent troops here, as a demonstration to urge the local daimyo to betray the Oda family.In other words, the Maori family's dispatch of troops was not a military action, but a diplomatic means, and it had also achieved the intended goal of prompting Besho Choji to rebel.The Mori family looked forward to seeing the Oda clan exhausted from fighting the Honganji Temple, Kii's Zaga Party members, Tamba's Hatano, Northern Uesugi's, and Harima's Bessho.
After Kuroda Kanbei finished the previous remarks, he asked himself and answered:
"Then, why do the Maori family care so much about Shangyuecheng? Of course this has something to do with Yuki's family."
Before last autumn, Kazuki Castle was Ukita's vassal castle, but Hashiba Hideyoshi captured the castle and beheaded all the defenders in Bizen.The Ukita Nao family asked Mao Li to take back the city, avenge his subordinates, and save face for him.This may also be the condition for Yu Xiduo to send troops.In order to keep Ukita as an ally, Maori couldn't refuse his request.
"What Lord Guan Bingwei said is true."
This sharp commentary was the first to be recognized by Takenaka Hanbei Shigeharu.
"For this attack on China, diplomacy may be far more effective than conquest by force. In the past, the Takeda family promoted diplomacy for the purpose of sending troops, but now Maori is sending troops to achieve diplomatic goals."
After the usually taciturn wise man finished speaking calmly, he said briefly in a teacher's tone as usual: "I hope that adults can pay more attention to the movements of the neighbors and take care of both internal and external." Then he ended his speech.
"So that's the case. The observations of the two of you are really thorough. Since Mr. Hanbei and Mr. Kanbei have the same opinion, they can't be wrong."
Hideyoshi looked around and laughed heartily.Since the Maori family is aiming to recover Shangyue City, it is unlikely that they will plan any risky strategy and turn eastward.For Yu Chai's army, which was short of troops, it was a reassurance.However, last month city was heavily surrounded by 50,000 troops, and they had nothing to do.Hideyoshi tried his best to find out the enemy's weakness, but to no avail.
After three or five days, Hideyoshi couldn't hold back anymore.If Katsuhisa Niko, Kanosuke Yamanaka and the others in Kazukijo were to sit and watch, he would definitely lose the trust of the Harima people—the rumor that "the Oda family is ruthless" has spread throughout this area before.
"I implore my lord to send reinforcements as soon as possible..."
Hideyoshi begged Nobunaga again and again.When reporting the situation of the battle, he did not say that it was to rescue Kazukijo, but gave Nobunaga the impression that this was a decisive battle between the Oda family and the Mori family.At this time, Nobunaga was already tired of the protracted siege battles and the guerrilla warfare where the apostle always appeared and disappeared, and hoped to fight a vigorous field battle to determine the outcome.
Sure enough, Nobunaga accepted Hideyoshi's plea and sent reinforcements one after another.First, Araki Murashige, who was sticking to Settsu, took the initiative to lead an army of more than 10,000 to support, then Kazuyoshi Takikawa sent more than 6,000 soldiers from Ise, and Akechi Mitsuhide sent 6,000 soldiers from the soldiers who attacked Tamba to help. .The main generals of the latter two troops, Takikawa and Akechi, did not come in person, but sent senior officials of the family to take command on their behalf.In the end, the backbone generals of the Oda family led several batches of thousands of troops.In this way, the Oda side has also become an army of more than 40,000 people, plus the local wealthy family belonging to the Oda family, it is definitely strong enough to compete with the Maori family.However, a difficult problem also arises, that is how to coordinate and arrange the various troops.
Araki Murashige, who was the first to lead an army to support, had a status comparable to that of Hashiba Hideyoshi, but Hideyoshi was the general in charge of this place, so he had a higher status on the battlefield.Araki, who is knowledgeable and keen-minded, can accept this situation very well, and said rationally:
"If you have anything to do, please tell me, I will definitely act in accordance with Master Yushiba's instructions."
But when Hideyoshi asked him to break through the strong siege of the Mori family and go to rescue Shangyuecheng, he changed his words:
"I'm afraid this matter has to be summed up..."
Tactfully rejected Hideyoshi.
The vassal who acted in command of Takikawa or Akechi's troops put it even more bluntly:
"Adults often teach us that we must have a chance of winning in battle. It is too dangerous to attack now."
No one wants to lose their subordinates in order to serve Yu Chai.
As a result, the two major forces, each with about 50,000 soldiers, just steadfastly held their field positions, forming a wonderful confrontation in the mountains of Nishi Harima.But this is good for the Mori family, not good for the Oda family. If time drags on, the military rations of Shangyue City will run out sooner or later, and it will fall by then.
At the same time, Hideyoshi had limited military expenses, and it was extremely difficult to distribute rations to the generals and soldiers who came to reinforce them.The members of Hashiba's family were busy comforting the generals all day long, and Koichiro shuttled between the various military camps every day, just like a servant.
After entering May, Hideyoshi launched a series of actions in an attempt to break the current situation.It just so happened that the people Hideyoshi had lobbied for a while ago, such as Tajima’s mountain name Toyokuni and the city lord of Bizen Hachiman, sent someone to send a positive answer. Hideyoshi took this as a bargaining chip and sent Takenaka Hanbing to Kyoto to meet Nobunaga. , begging Nobunaga to send his eldest son, Oda Nobutada, to serve as the commander-in-chief of the entire army.At this time, Hideyoshi's letter even wrote:
Hideyoshi knew it was difficult to convince the public.
It reveals the difficulties of Hideyoshi, who came from a humble background, not being able to command the generals in his family. It can also be seen that the generals of the Oda family cannot unite at all due to fierce competition.
But for some reason, Nobunaga did not send the eldest son, but just added some funds.At that time, the amount written by Hideyoshi was one hundred taels of gold, and the record of Takenaka Hanbei was one hundred taels of silver.
Another month passed in a blink of an eye, and the situation remained the same.Although the Nizi troops in Yuecheng City tried their best to hold on, it always seemed unbearable.From their standpoint, seeing a large number of reinforcements guarding Gaocang Mountain a mile away, but not taking any effective actions, I am afraid that they are furious.Of course Hideyoshi was extremely anxious, but Araki Murashige and other reinforcements were still reluctant to take action.
In mid-June, Hideyoshi finally couldn't bear it anymore.If it continues like this, there will be no results, and Shangyue City will not be kept. Nobunaga will definitely come to investigate the responsibility.
"Koichiro, I'm counting on you here."
After my brother explained, he went to Beijing to meet Nobunaga, hoping to beg Nobunaga to send Nobunaga face to face.
This time Nobunaga thought it was necessary and agreed to send his own son to command, but it also came with an unacceptable condition.
"I want you to give up Kazuki Castle immediately, and quickly take care of those Harima daimyo who refuse to submit to the Oda family. For now, take the two castles of Shenkichi and Shikata on the two wings of Miki Castle."
This is a very bold indication of a switching strategy.Presumably, in addition to Hideyoshi, Nobunaga also received information about Harima from other generals who came to support him, and realized that confronting the enemy because of Kazuki Castle is hard work and unprofitable.
After his brother returned to Mount Takakura, Koichiro learned of Nobunaga's order from his brother, and his anger surged upwards.
"Katsuhisa Niko and Kanosuke Yamanaka from Kazuki Castle are our important partners. If we abandon them, the Hashiba family will definitely lose the hearts of Harima. Even if we know we can't do anything, we should continue to work hard until Until Yuecheng voluntarily surrenders."
Koichiro's proposition was also supported by Hanbei Takenaka and Kanbei Kuroda.But the elder brother shook his head sadly and said:
"Oh, that's what I said too, but Lord Nobunaga refused to agree. He said that losing a large number of soldiers for a small area is simply stupid. And Lord Nobutada will arrive soon, so I can't decide the matter. "
"That's right..."
Koichiro nodded.He had to nod.It was Hideyoshi who begged Nobunaga to send Nobutada. As soon as Nobutada came, Hideyoshi must of course obey his command.Even if they forcibly attack the Maori army to rescue Shangyue City at this time, there is no chance of winning. Even if they win by luck, at least thousands of soldiers will have to be sacrificed.Nobunaga's order of course has its own reasons. It is not worthwhile to lose thousands of soldiers in order to rescue more than 700 Nizi troops.Besides, the Oda family is still surrounded by enemies, how can they pay such a high price for a small town?
Oda Nobunaga is worthy of being a rare genius in Japan. He is never bound by tradition when thinking about things, and can always flexibly use creativity under reasonable calculations.Unlike the leader of the Japanese army in World War II, he was only obsessed with the offense and defense of Guadalcanal Island, and continued to invest in troops, resulting in a large number of sacrifices of ships and soldiers.Compared with Nobunaga, these people are far inferior.In fact, whether it's fighting or running a business, the difficulty lies in seeing the situation clearly and having the courage to let go.In this regard, Nobunaga's performance is indeed remarkable.Of course, behind reasonable calculations and flexible strategies, cruel sacrifices are often unavoidable.Abandoning Shangyue City at this time is a typical example.
As a result, the Oda army only launched an attack on the heavily defended Maori forces on the surface, and it ended in failure as expected.Then, the Oda army used this as an excuse to evacuate Takakura Mountain and move to Shushu Mountain, which was stationed earlier.
At this time, Koichiro was serving as the army of the Oda family. Although he was not worried about the Maori troops who were stuck in the heavy fences coming to pursue him, he couldn't help but feel heavy when he thought of the Niko troops guarding the isolated city and seeing the reinforcements drifting away. .
When Koichiro's troops gradually walked down the mountain in the afterglow of the setting sun, the bells of the city of Kamizuki rang in unison, and in Koichiro's ears, it was like howling with mixed emotions, which made his mood even more depressed.
After losing hope of being rescued, Shangyuecheng continued to hold on for half a month.In the middle of the night on July 5th, Koichiro received the news that Shangyue Castle fell and Nizi Katsuhisa committed seppuku.And Kanosuke Yamanaka, who was eager to revive the Niko family and gritted his teeth until the last moment, was executed by the Mori family, and the Niko family of the famous Izumo family perished like this.However, the youngest son of Kanosuke Yamanaka survived. Later, his descendants invented sake and became very rich. They also opened the Konoike exchange shop and became the ancestor of today's Sanwa Bank.In other words, the offspring of the person who was abandoned by the Oda family in Mount Harima will live longer and more prosperously than the person who abandoned him.Of course, this has nothing to do with Hashiba Hideyoshi and Hidecho brothers.
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