Chapter 4 Chapter two

The Takeda family in Kai sent envoys to Sumfu to invite Kansuke Yamamoto, that is, in mid-February.A year and a half has passed since Kansuke beheaded the unknown ronin Aoki Daizen and saved Takeda's retainer Nobukata Sakagaki.The envoy told Kansuke that the Takeda family asked Kansuke to give in for a hundred dollars.Kansuke sent an envoy back on the grounds that he wanted to think about it for two days. On this day, Kansuke, who hadn't been out for a long time, left the house.On the banks of the Abe River, the early cherry blossoms are already in bloom. "Siege the city, conquer the city!"

From just now, Kansuke kept repeating this sentence in his mouth.Is Baiguan's knowledge and practice!This kind of thing is irrelevant.The crux of the problem lies in whether they can obtain a corresponding position to actually participate in combat planning and exert their talents in attacking cities and territories.It seems that when you become an official, you have to attach relevant conditions. "Siege the city, conquer the city!" Kansuke Yamamoto had no time to admire the early cherry blossoms in full bloom, and hurried through under the cherry blossom trees.At this time, two women who looked like the wives and children of samurai walked towards each other.Seeing Kansuke, the two girls shyly sideways to avoid each other to the side of the road.

"Siege the city, conquer the city!" Kansuke ignored the two women, raised his eyes slightly, and walked forward proudly.Whenever his right foot hit the ground, his body tilted accordingly. Entering the street under the Junfu Castle, the residence of his patron Anbara Tadayoshi is located at the entrance of the samurai residence group.Because of the three tall beech trees there, the people in the city called this house the "Taiwan House". Kansuke walked into the main entrance of the "Keyakiyashiki", went straight up the steps without being notified, and met a maid in the corridor.

"Excuse me, is Anbara-sama there?" "Yes, please wait a moment." However, as if Kansuke didn't hear the maid's answer, he walked along the corridor on his own.The maid wanted to rush ahead of Kansuke and inform the master of Kansuke's visit first, but Kansuke's short stature and strange walking posture made it difficult for her to surpass. "You are at home!" Kansuke stopped outside the room at the end of the corridor and said to the room. "Who is it?" "It's Kansuke Yamamoto, who came to visit you specially." There was no answer in the room.At this moment, Kansuke seemed to clearly see that Anyuan's complexion suddenly sank, revealing a look of disgust, as if to say: This annoying guy is here.

"I'm in." Kansuke opened the sliding door, entered the room, and sat on the floor.In order to show courtesy to the patron, Kansuke leaned forward and saluted Anbara in a respectful manner. "I have something to discuss today, so I came to pay a visit earlier." "What's up?" An Yuan Zhongyin was originally sitting in front of the table, facing the courtyard, as if he was reading a book.After hearing Kansuke's words, Anhara's white-haired head turned slightly to Kansuke's side, and asked slowly. "The Takeda family sent an envoy to invite me to serve as an official."

After hearing this, An Yuan only raised his eyelids and remained silent.After a while, Xu Xu asked: "So, what are your plans?" "It's not a solution to always be like a rogue." "Where is Zhixing?" "Baiguan." Waited a moment. "In this case, I will give you a hundred knowledge and practice here." After An Yuan said this, he paused, and then said: "I don't remember ever treating you badly, right?" "It's been nine years! I don't want to be rewarded for nothing anymore. I want to truly display my ability to attack cities and conquer territories."

"Do you think you can conquer cities and conquer territories just by talking on paper?" "Yes!" Kansuke said in a low voice. An Yuan was silent, as if he was thinking about something.After a while, he said: "Are you going to go to Kai Shiguan anyway? If so, you must inform the lord." "No matter how many times I go to ask for an interview, the result is always the same. Master Imagawa doesn't want to let me go to another country to serve as an official. However, if I want to push myself, I feel terrible." "It's an exaggeration." An Yuan said seriously.

Kansuke said angrily: "Isn't that the case? Don't you think I, Kansuke Yamamoto, is scary? Isn't it so scary that it's hard to hire?" After finishing speaking, his tone suddenly changed: "However, in the past nine years, I have been cared for, and I have no worries about food and clothing. This kind of kindness will be engraved in my heart. I will go to the Takeda family as an official, and leave my heart in this Junfu!" Kansuke said so , while sneering in a low voice, the atmosphere is unpleasant. Hearing Kansuke's words, Anhara seemed taken aback, and turned around to face Kansuke.When An Yuan usually talked with people, he always looked indifferent, but at this time his eyes flashed coldly.

"How do you say that?" Anhara stared closely at Kansuke, as if trying to find out what he meant from his expression. "I want to eat the food of the Takeda family and receive the salary of the Imagawa family." "..." "Originally, I foretell the future of the Imagawa family, so I have never left this land for the past nine years." "..." "It's not a bad thing for the Imagawa family to send a retainer from their own family to stay in the Takeda family." After Kansuke said so, he remained silent. Imagawa Yoshimoto's wife is the daughter of Takeda Nobutora.For this reason, there is an in-law relationship between the Imagawa family and the Takeda family.However, Nobutora was exiled by his 23-year-old eldest son Takeda Harunobu (later Shingen), and now lives in the home of his son-in-law Imagawa Yoshimoto.On the surface, Takeda and Imagawa have a solid alliance due to their marriage. However, the conflict between Nobutora and Harunobu, the father and son, has created a cold undercurrent between Harunobu and Yoshimoto.

In this way, as the Imagawa family, it is not completely meaningless to secretly pay Kansuke a salary and send him to the Takeda family as an undercover agent. However, Kansuke stood up abruptly, turned and went out.Anbara wanted to call Kansuke to stop, but Kansuke left along the corridor without looking back. Accompanied by three samurai who came to meet him from Kai, Kansuke set out along the east bank of the Fuji River at the beginning of March.The Futu River flows rapidly, and the mountain walls on both sides of the river are gradually covered by the greenery of the green leaves. Stayed for two nights on the way.Kansuke hates running around.Although it was rumored that he traveled all over Japan when he was training as a warrior, in fact, he only set foot in the whole land of Mikawa, his hometown, and a part of Suruga where he lived for many years.There is no such thing as traveling around the country.However, he did not specifically deny the rumors, because it was really unnecessary.For him, whether it is West Japan or East Japan, he can always organize the rumors he has heard into a clear picture in his mind, as if he had witnessed the situation in any city.All kinds of knowledge about the climate and terroir of mountains, rivers and plains in various places he has learned from the group of books can make the city, the conditions of the streets under the city and the surrounding terrain that he didn't know before come alive before his eyes.

Whenever he meets and talks with guests from a foreign land, he takes the trouble to ask them in detail about various scenery and stories.He even marveled at his extraordinary memory and imagination.Once he heard something, he would never forget it.Moreover, from the only incomplete information, he can foresee various situations and various possibilities. It can be said that he can know the autumn of the world from the fall of a leaf. On the way, Nobuka Sakagaki came to meet him.Whether it's fine and soft clothes, entourage with bow and horse, or servants handed over to Kansuke, everything is meticulously arranged. Kansuke was quite satisfied.On the one hand, this is due to the unexpected and comprehensive reception, but more importantly, the natural climate and topographical conditions of Kai country are exactly the same as the picture he has drawn several times in his mind, and it is very consistent.When entering the city of Gufu, Kansuke felt that the color of the clouds in the sky here was exactly as he expected. "How many times have you been to this ancient mansion?" Nobukata Sakagaki asked lightly. "This is the third time." Kansuke answered naturally and crisply, and when he mentioned "the third time", he firmly believed that he was not lying. That night, Kansuke settled down at the home of a rich man in a village north of Takeda Home City, and the next day he came to the home city to pay homage to Harunobu, the head of the Takeda family.The appearance of the residence of the Takeda family does not look like a castle at all, except that it is surrounded by moats, it is almost the same as an ordinary mansion. In the main hall of the mansion, 23-year-old Harunobu Takeda sat in front of him, and on the left and right were the veterans of the Takeda family.Kansuke lowered his head and crouched a little further away, until Harunobu told him to step forward, he just stood up, bowed and walked in front of Harunobu. The one next to Nobukata Sakagaki, the one next to him should be.When Kansuke bowed and walked forward, he secretly glanced at Harunobu's sides, and he had a panoramic view of the three important officials of the Takeda family.When Kansuke leaned down again, Amari Bizenmoru's cold gaze remained clearly in his eyes.Only this guy looks a bit annoying, Kansuke thought. Harunobu didn't say a word, but just stared at Kansuke's unusual face with interest.After a while, he suddenly said: "This person's skeleton is very strange, never seen before. The salary of one hundred guan is probably not enough. Two hundred guan is needed!" These words are not loud, but have an indescribable sense of solemnity.Kansuke was secretly surprised and raised his head slightly.Just listen to Qingxin said again: "Give you one of my names, Harunobu, and you will be called Kansuke Yamamoto from now on!" What a handsome young general!Kansuke thought so, bowing his head silently. "Don't hurry up and thank my lord." Nobukata Sakagaki approached Kansuke and whispered to him.Kansuke raised his head, and said in a flat tone: "Thanks to the love of the lord, I am very grateful! I look forward to participating in the battle as soon as possible and conquering the city to repay the grace of the lord!" "Siege of a city is not an easy task..." Harunobu said. "Yes! Whether it's siege or land expansion, there are mysteries in it!" "Do you understand the mystery of it?" "Yes!" Such a short answer would sound flippant to anyone.At this time, Amari Bizenshou's unceremonious low sneer reached Kansuke's ears. "How many times have you participated in battles?" Ganli interjected and asked. "Never before." After Kansuke finished speaking, there was a burst of laughter at the end of the hall. Kansuke felt a little unbearable about this, and suddenly, he even felt that he couldn't continue to sit upright, and there seemed to be some energy in his body that wanted to come out, it was a confidence and courage that could be easily obtained no matter how many cities. At this moment, Nobukata Sakagaki said immediately: "Please step back and rest." So Kansuke silently backed away from Harunobu. After Kansuke withdrew, Amari Bizenshou turned to Harunobu and said: "In my opinion, I have never been in a battle, and even said that I am proficient in martial arts. It seems that I am just a mediocre person who wants to gain a lot of money with clever words and tricks." After Ganli finished speaking, Fanfu Huchang said: "I also think that it's better to appoint him for a year or two first, and it's not too late to increase his salary depending on his merits. However, with the power of insight like a god, there may be any special considerations?" "Ten years ago, when I was thirteen years old, I had a relationship with Kansuke in Sanzhou Niuqi. Since then, I made a master-slave agreement and taught him to go on a tour of various countries to practice." Harunobu had no expression on his face, just said so. At this time, everyone in the crowd understood that Qingxin's words were just nonsense, but since Qingxin said so, it was inconvenient for everyone to refute.Only Nobukata Sakagaki knows the reason why Harunobu protects Kansuke so much.Harunobu was indifferent and alienated by his father Nobutora when he was young, and he was in a bad situation. Therefore, he has a special heart of protecting whether it is a samurai with a strange appearance, or a samurai who is not trusted by people and is in adversity. Kansuke Yamamoto obeyed the arrangement of Nobukata Sakagaki and spent his second night in Kai at the home of a samurai named Seo in the corner of the samurai house in front of the Takeda Home Museum. In the afternoon of the next day, Kansuke climbed up the hill behind the residence hall.From the back of the residence building, there is a gentle hillside that gradually extends upwards, less than halfway up the mountain. If you look around, you can have a panoramic view of the entire Kai Basin, not to mention the ancient city. It is easy to capture this residence of the Takeda family.Kansuke thought so.Seen from the mountain, the entire residence is almost defenseless.In this defenseless state, it has been able to maintain until now, probably all because it often went out to fight and never led the enemy into the territory.If it is, if such a careless situation occurs in any city, I am afraid that it will not be able to survive for a day. The phoenix blew from the bottom of the hill, gently brushing on Kansuke's sweaty skin, making him feel refreshed.Kansuke sat down by the edge of a plowed field on a gentle slope, looking out tirelessly at the plain.As expected of Kai, which is called a mountain country, you can see all the steep mountains around the basin. After about a quarter of an hour, Kansuke saw a samurai riding a horse, looking at the halfway up the hill where he was, coming on horseback. This man's riding skills are really good.Not long after that, when he rode close, Takedo got off his horse, went straight to Kansuke, and said: "Is it Yamamoto-sama? We welcome you in the city!" "It's rare that you know I'm here." "When you boarded here, someone saw it." "I'll be there right away." Kansuke said as he stood up.After the warrior delivered the message, he jumped on his horse, and with the sound of hooves, his figure gradually shrank and moved away. Kansuke expected Harunobu to summon him, but when he entered the gate of the city, he saw the red and white curtains on the square opened, and the rumbling sound was endless, which seemed to be an arrangement for a martial arts venue.Two or three warriors quickly approached to salute, said "please", and led Kansuke into the curtain. I saw Amari Bizenshou sitting on the front, with several samurai standing side by side.Kansuke was led forward, and Amari said: "Kansuke Yamamoto, let's see the swordsmanship of 'Xingliu', how about?" "This is hard to follow. I thought it was my lord who called me here." "I heard that you have the skills of popular style. It just so happens that no one here in Kai understands this style of swordsmanship. There are a few who have studied the new style of swordsmanship. Why don't you try it next time, let me open my eyes later." Kansuke has no interest in things like tests.Generally speaking, the fact that he is proficient in Xingliu swordsmanship is the same as that of Roaming in various countries, which is a baseless rumor.Kansuke had never held a wooden sword at all, even if it was a real sword, he had never used it before or after that, except for the time when he killed Aoki Ozen.Under the circumstances at that time, he himself didn't know what kind of tricks he should use to deal with Aoki Taizen.I just wanted to slash away with a knife, so I slashed away with a knife.Cut off the forehead, cut off the feet, cut off the shoulders, cut off the forehead, and finally cut it in two from the shoulders.I just wanted to kill Aoki Ozen, so I killed him. But swordsmanship and the like are not.I don't even know what's popular, what's new, what's new.I don't even know how to position my hands. Not allowing Kansuke to think, two or three warriors quickly approached Kansuke, forced the wooden knife into his hand, and quickly tied up the sleeves of his clothes and tied them with a belt. "Forgive me!" Before Kansuke finished speaking, five or six warriors rushed him to the center of the square without any explanation, and surrounded him. "It's really difficult!" Kansuke tried to escape to one side, but was pulled back to the center of the square.At this time, Kansuke saw a middle-aged samurai holding a wooden sword in a stance, approaching him step by step.Kansuke had no intention of fighting, so the contest started unilaterally. "It's hard to obey!" When Kansuke shouted so loudly, he was hit hard on the shoulder. "It's really unreasonable!" Kansuke shouted again, and the other shoulder went numb.This blow made him lose all feeling in this arm.In the blink of an eye, the opponent swiftly swept Kansuke's feet with a knife.Kansuke's feet couldn't help but bounced horizontally, and then his whole body fell heavily to the ground in a strange and ridiculous posture. There was an uproar of laughter all around the square, everyone took a closer look, Kansuke fell on his back on the grass in the middle of the square. Suddenly, the surrounding noises seemed to sink into the bottom of the water, and they fell silent for a moment.A corner of the curtain of the plaza was lifted, and Harunobu's figure appeared in front of everyone behind him.Kansuke was called to Harunobu. "I heard that you competed in martial arts, didn't you?" Harunobu asked.The voice was as low as ever, but it could go deep into people's hearts. "Yes. I won." Kansuke said, pressing his right hand on his still aching left shoulder, "The one who was my opponent just now will not be useful in actual combat. He will be knocked down by the opponent in one fell swoop. " "How did you see that?" "His eyes are too rigid, like the eyes of a dead fish. In that case, even unknown miscellaneous soldiers can end him." Kansuke said so.I don't know whether Haruno believes it or not, but he nodded his head, with a look of no worries on his face.A new competition started on the square.Kansuke saluted, and stepped back from Harunobu.Both the shoulder and the waist are inexplicably painful, what a disaster, Kansuke thought. Amari Bizenshou quickly caught up with Kansuke, and said bitterly: "You taught people to beat so badly, so don't be so brazen and talk big!" "Is that one of your retainers, Lord Amari?" "It's a retainer who was recruited recently. Although he is a wanderer from the Eastern Kingdom, his martial arts skills are really good." "Such a guy will not be useful in actual combat, it will only insult your reputation." After Kansuke finished speaking, he smiled in a low voice, and while lifting the curtain, his short body quickly disappeared in the square outside. That night, Harunobu called Kansuke into the city to meet him, and there were four or five generals including Sakagaki and Amari. "With regard to warriors and common people, do their manners differ from place to place?" Harunobu asked Kansuke so. "When I toured the various countries, I saw the demeanor of each daimyo. In addition, during the nine years I lived in Suruga, I also saw the family style of Yoshimoto, and I also fought with ronin from various countries. Jiaodao. Roughly speaking, there are three categories: first, the countries of Eastern Japan can be counted as one category; second, Zizhi and Izumi can be counted as one category; three, Shikoku, and Kyushu can generally be classified as one category.” "How is it different?" "To the east of Oshu, that is, the countries of Eastern Japan, there are very few sincere people, and most of them are arrogant and rude. If they are good people, they will ignore their shortcomings and praise them; Get scolded." Kansuke speaks eloquently, showing his eloquence.No matter what he was asked, he could answer fluently, and he didn't know how he knew it. As Kansuke's recommender, Sakagaki Nobuka is very satisfied.But Amari Bizenshou frowned tightly and didn't say a word.In his opinion, what Kansuke said endlessly was a lie. From the geography of the countries to the human relations, customs, and even the establishment of the army, once asked, Kansuke can always answer clearly. "Is there any way to convince the enemy in just one or two years after conquering it?" Harunobu asked again. "After the attack, it is necessary to win over the powerful and famous families of the country, pay half of their original salary, and restore all their salary if necessary, or marry with their family members. In addition, they can summon the country's eminent monks, businessmen and The virtuous people among the common people can ask about the situation in the territory, and they can also entertain them to make them feel impressed by their kindness. An Yi started with a hundred people, and under a little planning, they managed to unify China and frighten the four countries and Kyushu. Therefore, it is all because of this that I can achieve martial arts fame." Since then, I have only seen Kansuke talking endlessly. It was late at night, and the wind was buzzing outside, and everyone retreated from Qingxin.Kansuke left the residence one step ahead of Nobukata Sakagaki and Bizenmoru Amari. Kansuke left the city from the east gate and walked across the small bridge over the moat.It was pitch black all around, only the old tree branches in the city were rustling by the wind.Kansuke was walking along the trench, and when he was about to turn around at the corner and walk towards the samurai's house, he suddenly saw a white light flashing in the darkness, and the blade pointed directly at the tip of his nose, which was really unexpected. Kansuke was shocked, and jumped back quickly, the snow-white blade was chasing after him.Kansuke stepped back step by step, regardless of where he was. In a short time, Kansuke had retreated to the northeastern corner of the residence beside the wall where the daimyo lived in seclusion, the white blade was still pointing straight at the tip of his nose, shining brightly.Only then did Kansuke shout: "who?" "I hope I can really compete with Your Excellency!" In the darkness, a voice sounded. "Excuse me!" Kansuke said.Only now did he see clearly that the person standing in front of him was the warrior who had competed with him during the day. "Hasn't the winner been decided during the day? Your Excellency must be stronger." "Stop talking nonsense! I don't want to listen!" Kansuke saw the opportunity and jumped back to distance himself from the opponent. "It's hard to obey!" Kansuke said again, "Please calm down, Your Excellency, in the next day I thought it was the lord who summoned me, so I—" Before Kansuke finished speaking, he only heard his opponent sneer and say: "Don't worry, I just want to defeat you, I won't take your life. Are you afraid of death? What a pity, no matter how afraid you are of death, this match must be fought!" "Just beat?" "good." "Do you want to compete with swords anyway?" "yes." As soon as the other party finished speaking, Kansuke drew out his knife, "Okay, then I have no choice but to accompany you." "Come on!" said the other party. Kansuke held the knife in his hand, and he didn't pull away, but just approached the opponent step by step, looking reckless.The opponent had never seen such momentum before, he was a little stunned, but Kansuke took a step forward, and raised his knife to slash the eyebrows. "Oh!" The opponent was taken aback and retreated in a hurry.Unexpectedly, Kansuke continued to press forward, took a step with his right foot, and raised his knife to strike again.Since Kansuke was already limping on his right leg, this step made his body shake violently. "Ah!" At the same time, the other party let out a miserable cry, like a mournful cry.His right shoulder had been cut by Kansuke. Kansuke was still pressing on with his knife. "Stop! Please stop!" the other party shouted. But Kansuke didn't stop, and pushed forward step by step. "stop!" At this time, another voice sounded from the side, and several figures approached rapidly in the darkness, and under the reflection of the pine torches they held, they were the faces of Sakagaki, Amari and two or three others.It turned out that Kansuke and Kansuke came to the gate of the city unknowingly during the fight. "Stop! Don't stop!" Someone shouted loudly again.However, Kansuke turned a deaf ear and rushed forward again, slashing down like a gust of wind with the sword in his hand. The pitiful cry like a night bird sounded from the opponent's mouth again.Kansuke quietly put the knife back into its sheath, his body still standing in the darkness, motionless.In the flickering light of the pine fire, the tall opponent still stood where he was, and then fell backwards.The new Heavenly Spirit Cover of Dangliu Sword Soil has been split into two halves. Amari Bizenmoru seemed to glance at the corpse, and then stared at Kansuke's side, showing incomprehensible confusion. "Is it Kansuke Yamamoto?" "yes." "It was you who killed him, right?" "yes." "Did you kill him?" "yes." Amari Bizenmoru suddenly withdrew from the light circle of the pine torch, and walked out of the city gate quickly alone.After walking a few steps, he suddenly turned around and shouted: "Kansuke Yamamoto!" Without waiting for Kansuke's answer, he turned around again and walked away quickly.Now in his eyes, Kansuke Yamamoto is no different from a monster. Kansuke and Nobukata Sakagaki walked towards the samurai residence together.When passing the gentle slope on the way, Xinfang said: "Outside of the battlefield, whether it hurts or kills, it's always bad." "Yes." Kansuke replied, with the wind in his ears.No matter after beheading Aoki Dazen or now, I feel a little tired all over my body.Once he draws out his sword and wants to kill his opponent, he will definitely kill him.Kansuke didn't find this unusual at all.He was convinced that he had such power, that he was such a person. "There will be wars starting next month. I will give you twenty-five people, and you will serve as best you can!" Xinfang said so.However, Kansuke only heard a few numbers. "As—" Nobukata Sakagaki said again, but Kansuke was absent-minded.He wasn't very interested in his position or anything.He didn't seem to hear what the letter said. "Siege the city, conquer the city!" He repeated this sentence in his heart again.He only cares about things like capturing the enemy's city during the battle.Going to the battlefield with a young general like Harunobu and capturing one city after another for him, this is an extremely enjoyable thing!Kansuke thought so.In the heart of Kansuke who had never participated in a battle, he felt very peaceful at this moment, and there was no sound of fighting in his ears.The picture of the city wall and the deployment of soldiers in the city that came to his mind was just a sketch. After Kansuke said goodbye to Nobukata Sakagaki, he walked to his residence alone.There was a gust of dust blowing from the bottom of the gentle slope, and Kansuke blocked his eyes with his right hand missing his middle finger.The slightly bluish cold stars that have never been seen in the East China Sea seem to be within reach, facing his slightly raised face.Kansuke walked downhill step by step.

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