Chapter 14 Shibata Katsuie

Shibata Katsuie is sixty years old this year. As a general, he has experienced many battles. As an ordinary person, he has also experienced the twists and turns of the world.Coupled with his family experience, as well as the strength of his subordinates and his own strong physique, if it is said that this talent is a leading figure born in accordance with the times, no one will doubt it.He naturally took it as his responsibility.On June 4th, he learned of the Honnoji Incident on the battlefield in Etchu Uozaki, and he immediately thought of this. "My action has a lot to do with it, and I must seek a perfect solution here." The reason why his action took some time is because of his prudence.However, his heart has already rushed to the capital like a gust of wind.

He is Oda's leading general, and he is in charge of Shibata Xiuliang Katsuya in the Hokuriku area.He was about to use his whole life's wisdom and strength to bet the outcome on this move. He abandoned the Etsuchu Uozaki battlefield where he was confronted with Uesugi's army. He hurried back and galloped on the road to the capital.Although it was in a hurry, it would take a few days to leave Etsuchu, and it took a few days to stay in Echizen Kita Village where he was stationed.However, he doesn't think it's too late.It's just that a person like him, facing such a big event, must guarantee that he will not fail once he is dispatched. Naturally, he needs to be cautious, and naturally needs time, so time is deducted from the speed.

He let the two teams of Sasaka Narumasa and Maeda Toshiie under his command stay to deal with Uesugi Kagekatsu's army that was facing each other on the Etsuchu battlefield, and he also left his subordinates in Kitanosho. In the view of Shengjia, this is already super fast However, it was already June 15th when their large force arrived at Yananose, the border between Echizen and Omi.The follow-up troops set off one step later than the main general Satsuki, and came to meet up from Beizhizhuang and Yuezhong areas. It was already noon on the 16th when the whole army was resting on the top of the mountain. See Jiangbei area.

In terms of sixteen days, if counting from the day he learned of Nobunaga's death, it would have taken twelve days.How did he know that Hideyoshi, who was fighting against Maori in the Chinese region, got the Kuaima Chuanshu from Kyoto a day earlier than Singe. He exchanged the oath of peace negotiation with Maori on the fourth day of the day, set off on the fifth day, arrived in Himeji on the seventh day, and went to Amagasaki on the ninth day , defeated Mitsuhide in the Battle of Yamazaki on the 13th, and now he is clearing out the remaining soldiers in Kinki, the capital, and even issued a post-war military order.

The road from Echchu to Kyoto and the road from Chugoku to Kyoto are somewhat different in terms of difficulty and distance, but the situation Hideyoshi has to deal with is simply not comparable to the difficulty of the battle situation faced by Satsuki.Needless to say, Singer's position is far more favorable.Whether it is planning a complete withdrawal of troops or leaving the battlefield, his situation is easier to make changes than Hideyoshi.But why is it so time-consuming?It can only be said that Singer's "cautious and safe" concept wasted this precious "opportunity" as a price.Moreover, just because he has experienced many battles and is very experienced, his self-confidence and experience have thickened his thoughtful shell. In the face of this great opportunity of great changes in the world, it actually hindered his swift actions and caused him to fail. Jump out of the conventional way of fighting.

"Rest! Give the horses water!" "When taking a break, all of you take off the food bags in your waist! However, the teams standing guard at the entrance of the village have to take turns to rest." "Come here from Nanjo, the follow-up troops who joined the queue halfway, register and report immediately, and hand over the list of personnel to Yubi of the main force before leaving here!" A village in Yananose Mountain is now crowded with people.From here to the west is the Kyoto area, and to the east passes through Yuwu Lake to the city street of Changbang, Jiangzhou.After the whole army stopped, the generals received orders from the main force led by Singer, and then went to the front and rear troops separately to issue orders loudly.The military orders were passed down wave after wave, and they thought they would spread to the entire army immediately. In fact, there are follow-up troops still marching like ants on the northern slope towards the top of the mountain.In order to get in touch with the team in front, the sound of the conch horn was heard from the foot of the mountain in summer, and the top of the mountain also kept blowing the conch horn in response.The mountains in this area are collectively called Yananose, and the specific name is Kataoka Village, Omi Ika County.Today, the small shrine where General Shibata Katsuie reined in his horse is near Tsubakipo.

Sheng Jia seems to be a person who is very afraid of heat, especially today's mountain road and heat make him very unbearable.He ordered people to place a low bench under the tree, and drew a curtain between the trees. After that, he roughly untied the belt of the armor inside, and turned his back to his adopted son Quan Liu Shengmin and said, "Quan Liu, Wipe it for me!" He loosened his armor and let Quan Liu reach in from his neck to wipe the sweat on his back.Two servant boys held large fans and fanned Singer's armpits from left to right.When the sweat was about to dry, Shengjia felt itchy all over his body, and said anxiously: "Quan Liu, rub hard, hard!" The adopted son Quan Liu was only 16 years old, staying with his adoptive father, and he was also performing filial piety during the march. Its appearance looks attractive.

Singer's skin was covered with what looked like prickly heat.Not only Singer, the skin of soldiers was covered with leather and metal in summer, causing most soldiers to suffer from a skin disease called armor disease, Singer was particularly serious.He often said that the reason why he became such a bitter summer was because in the three years since the seventh year of Tianzheng, he was almost always in the Northland, responsible for the operation of the Hokuriku area, and lived in Beizhizhuang most of the time the city walls.In fact, it is because he is old and strong, and his physique is bile, which cannot be denied.Now after Quan Liu rubbed it vigorously according to his instructions, fat-like blood immediately emerged from his pores.

A samurai outside the curtain reported: "General, now the priest and the village head and others have come to wish you a successful mission. They have brought the fish caught in the stream in this mountain, as well as rice cakes." Shengjia said in a panic, "Enough", and asked Quan Liu to move away, and put on the armor again, but turned around and saw Sakuma Genbo Yun Shengzheng next to him, and ordered, "Go and meet the people from the village. .” Xuan Fanyun was about to leave, but Mao Shou Shengzhu's family photo standing side by side with Xuan Fanyun blocked his way, and said, "No, General!" He said as if begging for himself, "This is the wish of the people in the village, even for a moment, and I would like to ask the general to meet them in person."

"Xuan Fanyun, you don't have to go." Singer agreed to Mao Shousheng's request, personally met the priests and villagers there, and accepted their blessings.Immediately after that, I opened the presented fish together with my staff and began to eat.He didn't speak to Mao Shoushengzhu, nor did he look at him.Mao's advice from Shengsuke is very reasonable, and Shengjia is not the kind of stupid general who cannot agree with him.However, a twenty-five-year-old young general gave him such advice. For Singer, it was like biting the gall of a carp, and the bitterness in his heart seemed to last for a long time.

There is also Katsusuke's younger brother Katsubei here.The elder brother is twenty-five years old, and the younger brother is twenty-one.Since they were the sons of Momon Mozaemon, who had made contributions to the Shibata family, Katsuya kept them by his side and gave them great care.However, the younger brother Katsuhei will not talk about it first. The family photos of his older brother Katsusuke always make him dissatisfied, because Katsusuke often speaks out and advises him as before.Since he was young, Singer has received many praises for his fortitude and bravery, and even has titles such as Warrior Shibata and Crushed Stone Shibata.Perhaps it is because of this that he considers himself to be unparalleled in bravery, and this style is also reflected in his daily life.In short, Singer is usually a little rough or arrogant, but he is proud of his rudeness.He lacks the concept of prudence in words and deeds. Even on a remote battlefield, he said he wanted to eat when he wanted to eat, and said he wanted to drink when he wanted to drink. When his skin disease was itchy, he said to anyone caught: "It's too itchy, scratch it for me!" "It's great that the general is so simple. Although he has such a glorious status today, he is still the same as when he was young. We don't feel restrained." Some retainers praised the master in this way, thinking that he was very upright, which is why he became a big man.However, Mao Shoushengzhu believed that this was a flattery, and it belonged to those who insisted on admonishing and expressing objections.During the long-term battle on the border between Vietnam and China, Katsusuke must have felt something at that time. Singer told him that if he had any free books to read casually, he would hand them in for a look. Katsusuke submitted the "Three Strategies" When reading a book, take the opportunity to fold the paper so that Singer can see it immediately. Later, Singer opened it and saw that there was such a sentence in that chapter: "Until the military well is reached, you will never say thirsty. Before the military curtain is finished, you will never say tiredness. Before the military stove is cooked, you will never say hunger. Winter is not satisfied." In the summer, you don’t play the fan, and you don’t open the cover when it rains, that’s called general etiquette.” At that time, Sheng’s family showed displeasure for two or three days.However, as a general, Singer still has common sense in leading his subordinates, and he would never do such a stupid act of driving away Katsusuke. It's just that he has a bilious desire and a rough nature. As the general in charge of the Hokuriku region, he is extremely majestic. It seems that it is difficult to grasp the proportion when it is mixed in.Therefore, although he will be cautious for a while, he will immediately return to the previous warrior Shibata, and even the gravel Shibata.He is not happy today not only because of today's events, maybe the words and sentences in "Three Strategies" came to his mind again.In short, the dinner table was not very lively.It happened that Hideyoshi sent someone to send a letter quickly, and the report made the brave Shishi Shibata frightened. Two envoys came, one was Hideyoshi's retainer and the other was Kobe Nobutaka's minister.Each brought a letter from the master, and the two letters were presented to Sheng Jia together.Both letters were written by Hideyoshi and Nobutaka who were stationed at Mitsui Temple in Otsu, and both were dated on the 14th. In Hideyoshi's letter, he roughly described the battle situation since Yamazaki: "On this day, the head of the traitor Akechi Mitsuhide was tested, and the battle launched in honor of the deceased lord Nobunaga ended successfully." He also wrote, "I I wanted to tell all the Oda survivors in the northern kingdom about this matter immediately, so I sent someone to present the general history to Zuntai. Needless to say, you must also be deeply saddened by this incident, but since the day the old lord died I captured the heads of the rebels in eleven days, and wiped out all the bandits. I am not boasting of my own achievements. I believe that I can comfort the noble souls of the nine springs. Therefore, please treat it as a matter of fact for the time being. Joy in misfortune, let's celebrate together!" As Hideyoshi wrote in his letter, this is undoubtedly something worth celebrating, but Singer can't be happy anyway.Before his eyes left the letter, the emotion was already written on his face.However, in his reply letter, he naturally wrote something like infinite joy and congratulations, and also emphasized that he himself led the army to Yananose. After letting the envoy go back, based on the information he heard from the envoy and what was written in the letter, it seems that there is no need to take the next step at all, so he chose Mizuno Sukezo, Washin Genjiro, Kondo Muichi, etc. to walk lightly. A healthy young man, sent to the Otsu area and the Kyoto area to find out the truth.And it seems that they have made up their minds that they can only temporarily stay in Chunpo until they figure out the situation. "No way? But, it can't be a lie, right?" On this day, Singer seemed to be more surprised than when he received Nobunaga's obituary.Although the report he received seemed to state that "Mitsuhide's head has been captured", he still couldn't dispel that trace of doubt in his mind.If anyone arrives before him and starts a war with the Mitsuhide army, it can only be Nobutaka Kobe or Nagahide Niwa, and even Tokugawa Ieyasu who is stranded in Sakai City. Tian Yichen's army.Moreover, he firmly believes that no matter which side is dispatched, the outcome cannot be determined overnight. He ranks first in the Oda family. If they get there, they will naturally have to respect him as the wise general of the crusade.In Singer's prediction, Hideyoshi did not exist at all. Singer never thinks that Hideyoshi is as insignificant as he looks, rather he knows Hideyoshi's details very well.Because when Hideyoshi was still a general, he had maliciously prevented Hideyoshi from getting ahead.When Hideyoshi was a servant named Tokichiro, no matter how much he stepped on him, he couldn't beat Hideyoshi. In recent years, Hideyoshi has become equal to himself as an important minister.For Hideyoshi's size, he has always looked at him coldly.But, despite all this, how did he leave the Maori army and withdraw his troops from China?Why act so quickly?Judging from Singer's common sense, it seems that he heard a miracle. From the next day, Chunpo, where they were stationed, began to really strengthen the security.The road was blocked, and the travelers who came from the capital were stopped by the sentry for questioning.The information collected was immediately conveyed to the base camp by the generals.Judging from the rumors in the streets and alleys, it is certain that Zhizhi's army has been wiped out, and Sakamoto Castle has indeed been captured.Some people said that they could still see the burning black smoke from Azuchi in the past two days, and some people reported in detail that Mr. Hashiba Chikuzen had already led some troops to Nagahama. After one night, Singer's heart still did not calm down, because it was difficult for him to answer the question "what should I do".The thought of shame and decency made him very unpleasant.He chose the best military horse from Hokuriku to come here, but it was like watching Hideyoshi show off his skills, which was really unbearable for him.Even so, the question of "what can I do at Singer" immediately came to his mind. As the elder of the Oda family and the chief among the leaders, his most important duty is naturally to subdue wisdom.But this matter has been completed by Hideyoshi, what is the most important and urgent task now?What is the countermeasure that can give Hideyoshi the upper hand?That's what he's been thinking about. At some point, his brain has been completely occupied by Hideyoshi, his opponent, and a sense of hatred, which is similar to hostility, has seriously affected his thoughts.He summoned the ministers who had been following him all along, and discussed this issue late into the night.As a result, more swift horse envoys and secret envoys were sent from the camp today, and they rushed in all directions.Some went to the hometown of Kitanosho, and some went to their own troops on the battlefield of Etchu Uozaki. Kazuyoshi Takigawa crossed the natural barriers of the Three Kingdoms of Shangzhou and invaded Kasuga Mountain in Echigo. In order to destroy the base of Uesugi's forces, he had secretly contacted Satsuki.Therefore, Singer also sent an envoy to send a letter to his army, and at the same time wrote a sincere private letter to Takikawa Kazuyoshi himself.Especially for Kobe Nobutaka, the emissary sent back yesterday took away a reply letter, but today Singer wrote a new letter and sent it over.The messenger also chose the veteran Suya Shichizaemon, and assigned him two clever retainers, who seemed to have imparted important secrets to him. In addition, the two Youbi wrote for half a day according to Sheng Jia's instructions, and wrote more than 20 letters.The general content is to meet in Qingzhou on July 1st to discuss face-to-face on important issues such as the successor of the main family and the disposal of the original wise territory.As the initiator of this meeting, Singer managed to keep a little bit of old man's face.And he knew very well that without himself, these major problems could not be solved at all.Taking this as an "opportunity", he changed his original marching direction and headed towards Qingzhou in Owari instead. According to the information obtained on the way, and referring to the reports of Mizuno Sukezo and Kondo Muichi who came back from the investigation, he learned that before his letter arrived, most of Oda's survivors all marched towards Kiyosu in unison.Since Nobunaga's son-in-law Nobutada's orphan Sanhoshimaru is there, everyone will naturally think that the center of the Oda family has shifted there.And Sheng Jia suspected that this incident was the result of Hideyoshi's secret manipulation by taking the lead and overstepping his authority.