Chapter 7 first quarter

In my sleep, I heard the sound of mountains several times. The movement suddenly approached my ears, and then turned into a muffled underground sound.In an instant, Ota Ushiichi (Ota Nobusada) woke up from his light sleep.It was at this time that the world began to crack. This house is located under the fast-built Fushimi Castle. It is a simple house for guards. Although it looks good in appearance, the ceiling, floor, and walls inside are very fragile.In the first shock of the earthquake, the thin fir floor arched suddenly, and the whole house seemed to be sliding down at an angle. Niu Yi in the bedroom was made to roll around, and suddenly stretched his elbows in the middle, and managed to stabilize his body.Ten years ago, when he went to the Ise area to copy the historical materials of the Ise Imperial Guards in the past, there was a sudden earthquake.During that earthquake, he had accumulated some experience, which really came in handy this time.

(That earthquake was more violent.) Xinding unconsciously compared the two earthquakes, which quickly gave him self-control.Xin Ding meditated not to panic, but to be calm, he found that the moonlight penetrated into the house from nowhere.With the help of the faint light, he noticed a fir pillar that was about to break in the corner of the bedroom. The pillar temporarily touched the ceiling, forming a narrow space, and Xinding huddled and slipped through.The dust on the wall poured into his mouth and nose mercilessly, making it difficult for him to breathe. (However, if there is another earthquake, this place will collapse, so you must rush out of the house.)

Looking at the hanging ceiling above his head, Shinji made a judgment in a split second.After making up his mind, he found the direction of the study leading to the corridor, kicked open the sliding door, and finally climbed out.During the period, the door frame slammed into his left shoulder, but fortunately, he did not suffer any other injuries.Enduring the pain in his shoulder, he crawled forward, bent forward, and rushed into the courtyard. Accompanied by two or three roars, the ground shook again.Xin Ding stumbled and climbed under the roots of the old pine tree, turned his head and looked - almost at the same time, the house he had just emerged from suddenly fell down, kicking up a cloud of dust.

(Could it be Guan Baixiuji's lingering ghost.) Niu Yi suddenly thought of what happened in the morning. I heard that this year (the fifth year of Bunrok) has entered the seventh month, and there have been strong earthquakes in the Bungo area.This morning, the lord of Takeda Castle, Nakagawa Hidesei, sent someone to deliver the news to Fushimi.Rumors immediately spread in the city, and everyone just nodded, pretending to be indifferent.It is said that the news has not been reported to Lord Taige. Not only the distant Bungo region earthquake.In July last year, former Seki Hakuhide, who lived in Koyasan, was ordered by the Taiko to commit suicide by drinking hatred. Rumors soon spread in Fushimi Castle that there would be ghosts haunting him in the next year.However, until Xiuji's anniversary (July 15th), everything went smoothly.However, this year is a leap year with two Julys, so there must be no relaxation.This morning, the servants in charge of the security work discussed this topic, but there was an earthquake right after.

Niu Yi took a deep breath and looked up at the sky.The sky was unexpectedly bright, and the moon of Thirteen Nights remained in the sky.Judging from the position of the moon, it was not yet eleven o'clock.So it was less than an hour away from the time when he was used to reading a book and going to bed. (There will be aftershocks.) The next thing to do is figure out where the wind is going.The downwind direction is dangerous, but the upwind direction is not absolutely safe.There is a pattern to a fire—the fire spins and spreads.Connect the burning place and the wind direction into a straight line, and choose a low-lying and sloping area on the right or left of the straight line.

Where is the wind blowing?Xin decided to get up to make sure, and with the help of the red moonlight, he quietly looked around.Soon, with the roar that seemed to come from the ground, the earth shook again.The shock was too strong this time, Xinding gritted his teeth and endured it, waiting for the roar to subside.With the impact of this shock, the doorposts and sliding doors completely disappeared from view, and the crooked beams and columns just now completely collapsed. Fortunately, there were no fires around, and Xinding felt that there was no need to worry about the fire spreading.When he turned to the back of the house, he was suddenly dumbfounded—there was a library built by him at his own expense behind the main room, which he was always proud of, but at this moment, there was no trace of that library.At a glance, there is only sand rising like a hill.

(The wall behind the library has collapsed...) Xin Ding could still smile wryly, because he was sure that even if the library was covered with sand, it would not be damaged. Based on the experience of the Ise earthquake ten years ago, Shinsada learned the knowledge of building a library from the old minister who was in charge of the books for the Ise family.After serving Lord Nobunaga, he built a library next to his house in Osaka.He heard that the geological structure of Fushimi was not stable, so he piled stones at the four corners of the library, propped up thick oak pillars along these stones, and wrapped the wall with thick oak boards.The ground in the house is covered with charcoal, regardless of front, back, left, and right, and paulownia wood flooring is laid on the top.When building the library this time, he used the method of filling to transform the bookshelf. He can change the height and number of layers of the bookshelf at will according to the size of the book collection.

This library is strong and moisture-resistant. Although it took a lot of work, it is almost free from insects. It does not need to dry the books every year before the beginning of autumn, but only once every three years.No matter how busy the writing task is, you must put the used ancient books, drafts, etc. in it.Tonight, he followed this habit and went to bed after putting away the book. (It will definitely take a lot of trouble to dig it up tomorrow, but it was caused by an earthquake after all, so there is nothing I can do.) After figuring this out, Xinding looked blankly at the fallen shrubs in the courtyard that had long since lost their former splendor.Then, the surroundings suddenly started to be noisy.

I don't know when it started, the stone road leading to the city gate was full of military horses and military flags, and torches were lit everywhere, and everyone hurried to the main city of Fushimi Castle. ——In the event of an accident, I will take the lead in defending His Royal Highness Taige! The daimyos began to compete to show the performance of the faithful savior.But Xinding only got relief this year, became a hermit, and secretly built a new hiding place elsewhere.I plan to leave Fushimi Castle tomorrow.He really didn't bother to inquire about Taige's life or death.His focus was on another matter.

(Will this guy Hideyoshi be killed by this earthquake? If he is dead, everyone will probably say that this earthquake is the "Kanbai Earthquake".) If you take this as the title of the earthquake record, it must be very exciting.Xin Ding is half awake and half hazy at this time, and his mind is almost full of creative things. Niu shook off the dust from his clothes, and secretly looked up at Fushimi Castle through the night. Normally, the castle tower that Lord Taige is proud of will be shining golden even at night.Those roof tiles covered with gold leaf are gone now, flames and white smoke are rising everywhere below the city, and the magnificent stone wall seems to have completely collapsed.

(In this way, Lord Taige...) Xin Ding suddenly thought, if Master Taige was crushed to death like this, he would be able to create freely in the future.For independent writing, this is the best pleasure.Xinding felt a sense of rebellious relief.That night, when the fire was raging and spreading in the city, Niu Yi smiled, as if admiring the strong wind blowing the sparks. Thirteen years have passed since I met Hideyoshi in Echizen Matsuto and followed him.In his later years, Niu Yi not only took on some idle duties - such as taking care of the safety of Hideyoshi's blind concubine, Matsumaruden, but also recording Hideyoshi's words and deeds, becoming an unobtrusive propagandist. Although Niu Yi edited books flattering Lord Taige, he was not at ease in his heart.Master Taiko not only likes to brag about himself, but also does not allow Niu Yi to record the achievements of their former common master Oda Nobunaga. Niu Yi, who supported Nobunaga, could hardly wipe away the dissatisfaction in his heart—this man had received the incomparable care of Nobunaga, and had fully inherited Nobunaga's power. How could he treat his old master like this?What's more, even if he was born lustful, he shouldn't have taken Nobunaga's daughter (Sanmaru Temple), niece (Yododian) and Nobunaga's younger brother Xinbao's daughter (Himeji Temple) as concubines!He is so brazen!It is said that he even wanted to get his hands on Nobunaga's second daughter, Fuyuhime (the late wife of Gamo's family), so Fuyuhime had to become a monk to escape. As he got older, Niu Il became increasingly disgusted with himself who was willing to help Hideyoshi take care of the concubine.In the spring of the year before last, he proposed to live in seclusion, and handed over some unfinished works, such as "Records of the Temporary Rituals of Toyoko Daimyojin" and "Records of Taiko-sama's Army", to his assistant Yuki Omura.Omura used to be a fairy tale teller.The reason for doing this is nothing more than to secretly write the biography of Nobunaga. Omura Yuki wanted to record Lord Taiko's words and deeds for a long time.When Niu Yi entrusted him with the relevant work, he actually had tears in his eyes and thanked him: "That's great, your great kindness, I will never forget it!" This surprised Niu Yi a little. (Does he like Taige-sama that much?) Exclamations and ridicules almost came out of his mouth, but luckily he swallowed them back immediately. Last August, Yuki left Fushimi Castle without Taiko-sama's permission, and lived in seclusion in Osaka.He claimed that he was going to live in seclusion for his 60th birthday, but no one believed him.Previously, he was ordered by Lord Taige to write "Tianzhengji", which gained fame and gained more and more trust, but that random action made him lose trust.He wrote "Tianzhengji" to the ninth volume, but was ordered to stop it, and other seemingly completely irrelevant ballads were not allowed to be copied. In May of this year, Yuki passed away suddenly at his home in the Temma area of ​​Osaka, which was really surprising.He was said to have been plagued by headaches.Niu Yi didn't know how the book he was asked to write would turn out.If he is writing "Tian Zheng Ji" and at the same time he is responsible for the tasks assigned by Niu Yi, thus overloading his workload... Niu Yi will feel very uncomfortable.Moreover, when he learned of Yuji's death, he began to think seriously about a question. Niu Yi is nine years older than Yuji, and sooner or later he will die like him.Seven years before the seventeenth anniversary of the death of Lord Nobunaga, Wenlu wanted to complete his biography no matter what.Tonight, after narrowly surviving the earthquake, he once again remembered the resolution he had made. The next morning, two footmen rushed over.This spring, Niu Yi gave them a holiday.The older ones are ordinary people in the neighborhood; the younger Saizo is currently working for the fairy tale teacher Shiro Sasaki, and is a relative of Naosuke who was killed by Sakuma Shengmasa in Kaga.Moreover, this Saizo is actually a ninja from Kaga, who knows everything about Fushimi Castle. "Master Taige is not an ordinary person after all. The city is so chaotic, but he is safe and sound." Cai Zang is really happy.Looking at his innocent face, Niu Yi secretly smacked his lips, but he didn't show it. "Congratulations." He changed the subject and asked, "Who was the first general to rush into the city?" Niu Yi finds it interesting, like a hunter watching hounds compete with each other for the prey when hunting birds. "That person, what you can't think of... is Kato Kiyomasa who lives in seclusion! People in the city say so." In Niu Yi's mind, two pictures interlaced - the loyal and upright triumphant, and Ishida Mitsunari, who arrived one step late, frowning.In fact, Niu Yi hoped that they would not ask for credit and not compete with each other for who was the first to enter the city. "Sure enough." Niu Yi opened his mouth and spat out with a "snap". "Aren't you curious?" Only then did he hide his puzzled look. "This is a combination of an old saying-how can we know the good and the bad." "What do you say? Who is Sai Weng referring to?" "Okay, okay. I just wanted to say that sooner or later word will spread and people will definitely say that man is 'Earthquake Kato'." Niu Yi smiled wryly and avoided the topic. Kato Kiyoshi is a daimyo cultivated by Mr. Taiko himself. He was granted the title of Kumamoto Castle, and he was in charge of the Higo area, with a fief of 250,000 koku.When Hideyoshi sent troops to attack North Korea, he and Hideyoshi's favorite minister Ishida Mitsunari were at odds, which angered Hideyoshi and was ordered to return home. He is currently reflecting behind closed doors.Niu Yi doesn't like Ishida Mitsunari's villainy, but he also dislikes Kato's seemingly loyal and rough face.I heard that in North Korea, which Mr. Taiko can't see, Kato was accompanied by a woman almost every night, eating, drinking, whoring, gambling, and debauchery, which made Korean people's impression of Japan plummet.Folk artists often say that Kato returned home with syphilis. "Okay, let's stop talking nonsense here. Please help me watch the house. I'm going to see the people who usually take care of me, such as Matsumaru Temple. Say hello to them, and I'm going to live in seclusion. Do you understand?" "Understood. We were cleaning the house when you left. Be careful on your way." After a salute, Cai Zang packed up his hands and feet quickly. There was no trace of the ninja in the past on his body, and he looked like a young man.Niu has a crush on him. "You have helped me a lot. I live alone, and there are almost no valuables in the house. It is the library that bothers you. The library is buried under the dust. Please dig it out. When you are working, the cook The old lady will come. She is very strong, and the earthquake will definitely not kill her. Anyway, she will come as long as she is alive, just let her prepare some food and tea." As soon as Niu finished speaking, he hurried away.About an hour later, Niu Yi returned to the collapsed house.As expected, straw mats were laid out in the courtyard, and ochazuke, wild vegetable soup, and bean paste made by the old woman were placed on it.The brown rice distributed in the city was also received, piled up like a hill.As soon as Niu saw the old woman in the courtyard, he immediately yelled. "Grandma, it's great that you're here. You've prepared so well, thank you." Seeing that Niu Yi was safe and sound, the old woman cried with joy.Niu Yi hugged the old woman. Although he hired her after he came to Fushimi Castle, he had no relatives after all, so he had a deep relationship with her.The two hugged for a long time before separating.Niu Yi ate cleanly from the set meals. He eats a lot, which doesn't match his age.After filling his stomach, Niu Yi accompanied two servants to clear away the dust and debris around the library. After noon, the excavation of the library was over. "It was a great help, thank you very much. After that, I will sort out the collection of books and ancient books. I can do whatever I want by myself." Niu opened the door of the library slightly, got in, took out a few small silver coins from the familiar storage room as a thank you gift, and handed them to the dumbfounded three.This implicitly implies hush money, telling them not to tell others about the library and its contents. The three left quickly, and as soon as Niu confirmed that there was no one around, he opened the oak door of the library.The afternoon sun shone in all of a sudden, reflecting the situation inside the house.The house is three rooms long and wide.When I was in Antu City, there were some bookcases with family crests. Those things are gone now, and Antu City was burned down.Because of this, bookshelves can be filled to the brim in the center and sides of the room. Niu Yi lit the candles in the lantern and checked every corner of the bookshelf.During the 30-odd years of following Nobunaga, especially after serving Hideyoshi, I had a lot of money and didn't need to worry about money, so I collected a large number of rare books and ancient books.These are all safe and sound.The draft of Nobunaga's biography, related historical materials, records, etc. that I started writing in Noto fell off the bookshelf and scattered all over the place because of its lightness, but there seems to be no defect. (What happened to the most critical things?) In the left corner of the inside are five wooden boxes wrapped in old clothes.The boxes are all safe and sound.Since he hid it in Owari Joganji Temple fourteen years ago, he has traveled around Osaka and Fushimi with these five wooden boxes, guarding these unowned things alone.The iron locks on the box are rusted, but the box is still strong. Niu Yi secretly spent a lot of money to build a solid library in Osaka and Fushimi, just to have a place to hide the five wooden boxes.He carried the heavy boxes one by one with both hands, and after confirming that they were correct, he felt at ease again. (That will do. Pack them all tonight and get out of here tomorrow. The chaos after the quake is not noticeable.) After moving to a new hermitage, I will never live on mediocrity, and focus on writing Nobunaga's biography.He wants to use this biography to write down all the original intentions of Mr. Nobunaga about the five wooden boxes.This will probably surprise everyone, and the narrative of history will definitely be changed by it. correct!One more mystery must be added to that record, that is, where did Nobunaga's remains go after his death at Honnoji Temple.Everyone found it incredible, but they were all just wondering and didn't want to touch this issue again.This is even more incredible.Even thinking about it now, Niu Yi felt sad and angry. Niu Yi's anger is always directed at Taiko Hideyoshi. After the Honnoji Incident, he owed Hideyoshi two favors. One was that he was protected when he was suspected of embezzling "Minokin"; Salary. However, in October of the tenth year of Tensho—when Uichi was imprisoned in Noto, Hideyoshi went to Daitokuji Temple to hold the funeral of Nobunaga by himself regardless of the Oda family.It is said that they did not find Nobunaga's remains at all, so they had to make a wooden statue of Nobunaga, burned it to ashes to replace the body, and put it in the coffin.According to Omura Yuki's records, Ikeda Teruma and Nobunaga's fourth son Hashiba Hidekatsu carried the coffin one after another, while Hideyoshi held a tablet and a samurai sword.On the side of the road leading to Dade Temple where the funeral was held, more than 30,000 warriors were arranged to guard it with bows, arrows and muskets.There are also 500 monks from the Kyoto area. "I seem to have seen the five hundred arhats and three thousand Buddhist disciples in the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss..." Yuji's "Tianzheng Ji" is full of praise, describing the situation at the funeral. However, neither Niu Yi nor Yu Ji knew that the remains of Lord Nobunaga in this funeral were actually wood ash.Later, Niu Yi was summoned by Hideyoshi to attend the anniversary ceremony held at Dade Temple.The day before the ceremony, he came to Cizhaoyuan of Xiangguo Temple to stay with the generals, and he knew this fact. That was said secretly by one of Ikeda Terumasa's retainers.After Niu Yi promised not to spread the word, he said something else——When Guxi Zongchen, the 117th abbot of Dade Temple and the founder of the Somon Temple, learned the above facts, he was so angry that he dismissed the matter. I came up with the idea of ​​building a new Tenshoji Temple for Mr. Nobunaga. At that time, Niu Yi was just a new official under Hideyoshi, so there was no way to investigate, but Guxi Zongchen was exiled to Dazaifu in Kyushu by Hideyoshi soon after, which indirectly proved that Nobunaga's remains were not found. After that, Toyotomi Hideyoshi took over the world, and everyone no longer mentioned the whereabouts of Nobunaga's remains.everything is over. To bring up this topic is to offend Lord Taiko, who once held a lavish funeral.Everyone is afraid of Lord Taige's power, and they all need to hold their breath. (However, that has nothing to do with me. It is my final mission to find out the whereabouts of Lord Nobunaga's remains. I can't die before completing the mission! This is all for Lord Nobunaga...) Niu Yi swore secretly, and was so depressed that he cried bitterly for a while, tears streaming down his face dirty from digging the library.