Chapter 65 Yodo Yamazaki Tennosan

On this day, Nobuki Ikeda of Itami, accompanied by his son Katsukuro, joined Hideyoshi's army halfway.Xin Hui also shaved his hair when he left the army this morning and changed his name to Sheng Jin. Hideyoshi and Shinki were close friends as early as the Qingzhou period, and they knew each other's strengths and weaknesses. "Yeah, did you shave your hair off too?" "So are you!" "We coincided with each other!" "Well. You and I have one mind!" Hideyoshi and Shinki just had such a simple conversation, so there is no need to say anything else.Xinhui joined the march with the four thousand men he brought.

Since yesterday, the military strength has increased significantly again and again.At first there were only about 10,000 people from Hideyoshi, then 2,000 from Takayama Ukon, 2,500 from Nakagawa Kiyide, 1,000 from Hachiya Yoryutaka, and now 4,000 from Ikeda's army. 20,000 people. On the way to the north, there is the Yodo River on the right, and the Nose and Arima mountains on the left.During this period, there were constantly small local troops who either led thirty entourages or led children of the same clan to join. All these people expressed their willingness to participate. "It is unforgivable to act wisely and not follow the way of a monarch and minister! It is the natural iron rule of the samurai's gate to seek rebellion and support obedience. Therefore, we disregarded our previous contacts and friendships and came to join you."

So unanimous.Not all of them came to gamble because they saw Yu Chai's superiority. When I arrived at Ibaraki for a nap at noon, Hideyoshi continued to move forward after listening to information from all parties.He camped at Tomita between Ibaraki and Takatsuki. After the formation order was over, Hideyoshi immediately held a meeting to discuss the battle plan with his subordinates.At this moment, Kiyohide Nakagawa and Ukon Takayama unexpectedly had a small argument. "Let me be the pioneer!" "No, let me take the lead!" The two were stubborn and refused to give in to each other.

Takayama Ukon said: "Since ancient times, it has been the common sense of the way of the samurai to let the lord of the city close to the enemy take the lead. Therefore, no matter what, I cannot fall behind Master Nakagawa." Kiyohide Nakagawa was not to be outdone: "The distinction between vanguard and follow-up troops should not be based on the distance from the city to the enemy. The key is to look at the elite level of the army and horses, as well as the awareness and qualifications of the generals." "Then, are you saying that I, Ukon, are not qualified to be the vanguard against the enemy?"

"That's not the case. I don't know how your Excellency is. But I firmly believe that I will never lose to others. Therefore, I unceremoniously hope that I can take the lead. Please appoint me Nakagawa Kiyohide as the vanguard!" Qingxiu begged Hideyoshi in this way, and Ukon also begged for his order.Of course, Hideyoshi decided with the attitude of a coach: "Since both sides have good reasons, then let Zhong Chuan form the front line, and of course Gao Shan will also go to the front line. Both of you don't have negative forewords, go to make meritorious deeds!"

During the discussion, the reconnaissance team continued to send back information. "Since yesterday, Mitsuhide, who withdrew the troops of Dongling and Hachiman, gathered the troops around Yamazaki and Enmyoji Temple, and it seemed that he might retreat to the vicinity of Sakamoto, Kyoto. However, since this morning, he suddenly showed a clear offensive. The troops have gradually changed direction and are heading towards the vicinity of Shenglong Temple." After receiving this information, all the generals in the battalion immediately showed a sense of urgency on their brows.It is very close to Yamazaki and Katsuryuji Temple.The eyes of all the generals were shining, as if they had already seen the figure of the enemy.

Nakagawa, Takayama and others were in charge of the vanguard, so they immediately stood up and urged Hideyoshi to make a decision: "How about moving our team and the base camp to Yamazaki immediately?" Hideyoshi was not as excited and nervous as others, but said very calmly: "I plan to stay here for another day, waiting for Kobe-sama to arrive. Although I also know that the timing is constantly changing even during this half day and night, but no matter what, In this unique war, I still hope that at least one of the former lord's sons can participate. I also don't want Master Kobe to leave regrets in his life and face the world with shame."

"However, if the enemy occupies favorable terrain during this period..." "Since this is the case, there is a limit to what you can wait for Kobe-sama. Tomorrow, Hideyoshi will go to Yamazaki no matter what. I will contact you after the entire army is assembled in Yamazaki. Everyone, go forward immediately!" "Okay. Then I will send envoys to report the situation at any time." Zhong Chuan and Gao Shan left immediately. The order of vanguards leaving here is the first team Takayama, the second team Nakagawa, and the third team Ikeda won. As soon as they left Tomita, the more than 2,000 members of the Gaoshan team advanced rapidly as if they saw the enemy.Kiyohide Nakagawa was in the second team. They looked at the billowing dust kicked up by the horse's hooves and wondered, "Has the enemy army already entered Yamazaki?"

"Even so, it's still too impatient." As soon as they entered Yamazaki Castle, Takayama Ukon's subordinates immediately blocked the gates leading to the roads in the city and even the nearby paths, and all traffic was blocked. Of course, the Zhongchuan team who followed behind were intercepted by him. At this time, they also understood the reason why the Gaoshan team rushed.In this way, even if you are impulsive, you can't wait behind him. "Well, that's the case." Nakagawa Kiyohide gave up this important place and hurried to the direction of Yamate.There you can see a highland called Tianwang Mountain.

Hideyoshi camped in Tomita that night, and at noon on the second day, June 13th, he finally received a report: "Now, the army led by Mr. Kobe Nobutaka and Niwa Naghide has reached the bank of the Yodo River." "Is that so, is Nobuhyo-sama here?" Hideyoshi who heard the news was so happy that he almost fell over and ran out. He stood outside the camp and urged the people around him: "Horse! Horse!" He rode his horse back and said to the people at the gate of the camp, "I'll meet you!" and hurried to the bank of the Yodo River.Of course, several subordinates came from behind.

Beside the big river, an army of about 4,000 men and an army of about 3,000 men abandoned their boats and let their horses eat grass to rest on the river beach. "Where is Mr. Xinxiao?" Hideyoshi jumped off his horse while asking, and came among the sweaty soldiers who were watching him. No one thought it would be Hideyoshi. "Who are you?" "Chikumae." The soldiers finally widened their eyes. Hideyoshi didn't wait to greet them, he saw the backs of some generals, pushed aside the soldiers and horses and walked over. Avoiding the glistening shore, after the flood, you can see Nobutaka resting on a folding bench with a horse mark upright under a tree on the collapsed embankment. Turning around, I saw Hideyoshi walking towards him, yelling something loudly. As soon as he saw that face, those eyes, and heard that voice, Shin Hyo's heart was filled with feelings similar to regret. In addition, seeing such a retainer that his father has carefully cultivated for many years, a feeling that has surpassed the relationship between master and slave and is close to the relationship of flesh and blood is strongly reflected in his eyes. "Chikumae!" Before he stretched out his hand, Hideyoshi who walked up to him quickly held his hand tightly. "Lord Nobuhyo!" After only saying this sentence, they didn't say anything, and there was no way to say anything. The two just talked with their eyes. Both of them had tears in their eyes.In these tears, Shin Hyo told this retainer all his feelings after his father's death.Hideyoshi also really sensed his mood.Finally, Hideyoshi lightly shook each other's hands and knelt on the ground, still sobbing and said: "It's great that you came, it's great! I don't have time to say anything to you now, and I don't have such a mood...just grateful Your arrival. Because of this, I firmly believe that I must be very pleased with the knowledge of the former master. Oh, my, I, Chikuzen, can meet you here, and I feel that I have fulfilled one of my duties as a minister. In fact, from For the first time since Takamatsu, I feel happy!" Nobuhyo took Hideyoshi's hand and persuaded him personally: "This is already a battlefield, you, as the commander, make me ashamed!" The other army is Niwa Chohide.Niwa Chohide came here immediately after hearing the report in the army. He first apologized to Hideyoshi for his late arrival, and at the same time vowed to be happy to be able to join the war and live and die together.Soon, under the leadership of Hideyoshi, the seven thousand soldiers and horses here also became a wing of his camp. As soon as Hideyoshi, who greeted Nobuhyo on the river beach, returned to the barracks, he was overwhelmed by him on both sides, and he did not lose the majesty of the commander.Even Kobe Sanchi Nobutaka and Niwa Goro Zaemon Chohide will definitely have scruples in their positions as commanders of the entire army. Even so, Hideyoshi himself has no intention of stepping on Nobuyoshi's head at all, and still seems to be considerate and comforting about his feelings.After welcoming Nobutaka into Tomita's camp, Hideyoshi gave him a clear and detailed explanation of the battle plan: Now, how the enemy is doing, and our army is proceeding like this... First of all, news came from the frontline troops: yesterday, after Nakagawa, Takayama and other vanguards marched first, at night, near the west of Katsuryuji Temple, our ashigaru team had a gun battle with the enemy, and arson to test each other also occurred. Last night, except for the faintly visible flames in the distance, there was no major progress, and the sound of the guns also died down, so it was until dawn. Today on the thirteenth, the weather still hasn't improved, sometimes raining and sometimes sunny.Last night, there seemed to be a lot of rain on the mountain.Therefore, the matchlocks on both sides were extinguished, which brought great difficulties to both the Ashgaru Musketeers and the enemy. This may be one of the reasons, and the other reason is that Hideyoshi has not yet arrived, and the entire army of Nakagawa, Takayama, and Ikeda is ready to go, just waiting for his order. "I'm afraid the battle will start today, and the overall situation will probably be decided today. In any case, it depends on today. There is no time for you to rest, so please go out with me." Soon, Hideyoshi urged Nobutaka to withdraw from Tomita and march towards Yamazaki. Just as we were about to leave, it rained again.The golden gourd's horse mark looked particularly bright after being wet, and water dripped continuously from the armor and swords of the generals. On the way, Hideyoshi pointed to the sky and said, "Ah, rainbow, rainbow!" However, when everyone looked in the direction of his finger, they couldn't see anything anymore, the weather changed so fast. Arrived at Yamazaki at 4:00 p.m., 8,500 people from the three vanguard troops plus 10,000 people from the reserve army filled the mountains, rivers and rivers to the brim. "Report, the wise side's first army is now launching a frenzied raid on the eastern foothills of Tianwang Mountain, and is fighting fiercely with our Zhongchuan team." Hearing this report as soon as he arrived, Hideyoshi saw that the time was ripe.Therefore, he added Kato Koyasu's first army from the reserve army to the Ikeda team, and ordered Hori Hidemasa's first army to reinforce Takayama Ukon and Nakagawa Kiyohide's two teams. "Okay, then, let's go too!" He gave orders to the whole army for a general attack.