Chapter 12 Section VI

The topography of the water tail is narrow and sloping.The country roads extending along the terraced fields are slender, meandering, and circling high and low.Niu Yi and the others walked about two towns on this labyrinthine road. In addition to him and Hezaemon, three other servants followed, and they walked in a single file.Suddenly, a group of elegant buildings appeared in the slightly flat place ahead. Although Mizuo has been popular as a place of otherworldliness since ancient times, this scene is always surprising.One of the houses was surrounded by thirty long earthen walls, and its scale was quite out of proportion to this small hermitage.That was the villa of the tea house.There is a heavy oak door on the north side, and there is even a room with a bonfire on the right hand side of the front. Perhaps when the owner is at home, there are guards here to take care of it.

Not long after, a male servant opened the door left and right from the inside.There is a garden with a rockery on the right in front. Led by Heizaemon, Ushiichi looked at the garden.Going inward along the forehand direction, there is a Xieshan-style building with cypress bark on the roof. Five rooms are arranged in front and back, and its structure is similar to the abbot's room in a temple.There are lampstands on the corridors connecting the houses, and almost all the lampstands are clustered brightly, as if they were new. It can be seen that the frequency of its use is not very high.

"I open the doors of each room and let them clean it. You can look at the calligraphy and paintings in each room at will, but never touch the things on the table and the things hanging on the wall. Mr. Shiro Jiro is very Careful, down to the detail of how things are placed on the table and where they are facing, I can remember clearly." "Understood. I will never do anything to embarrass you." Niu Yi nodded slightly to express his gratitude.After the others left, Niu Yi was alone, and suddenly walked towards the innermost room as if being led by someone. He didn't admire the furnishings in the house as usual, nor did he pay attention to the calligraphy and paintings, but just walked forward along the dark corridor.Even Niu Yi himself felt strange about this.When he reached the door of the room, Niu Yi stood there involuntarily, the door was closed, and it must have been pitch black inside.

From the candlesticks in the house, a faint light leaked; from behind the screen, there was a soft voice.When Niu Yi was drinking tea with Mingren, a flash of lightning flashed in his mind, and a scene appeared. At this moment, he continued to daydream about that general. There was a curtain hanging in the room, and Niu Yimao stooped and probed in quietly.A scene of a big man wearing a monk's uniform and shaved hair receiving a general appeared in front of his eyes. "I really hate this world." The man in the monk's robe had a shrill voice, like a woman.The general was lying on the ground, not even daring to lift his head.

"Why do you say such dejected words?" The general's voice was vague and low-pitched. "I'm frustrated. Even the emperor said he wanted to die. I, Mr. Neki (Ichijo Naki), Mr. Akimi (Nijo Akimi), and Mr. Kanekyo (Kujo Kantaka) rushed to persuade..." "when did it happen?" At this moment, the general finally raised his head, his face pale.Judging from his profile and thinning hair, he should be Mitsuhide Akechi. "After the morning court yesterday, we read a sentence left by Monk Kuai Chuan - Quench the fire in your heart and cool yourself. He was the national teacher of Yanshan Huilin Temple and was burned to death by Oda Nobunaga last month. At that time, the emperor I burst into tears again and wet my sleeves. Afterwards, the emperor only called me in a long time ago, and whispered a word in my ear—I want to die.”

"Sorry, why is the emperor so upset?" Guangxiu's voice became softer, almost moaning, and could not be heard clearly, so Niu Yi had to concentrate on listening. "You may also know that Lord Nobunaga has been asking the emperor to give up the throne to Prince Chengren for several years. In order to avoid and refuse this request, the emperor was exhausted. He is sixty-seven years old. When he heard the news of the death of monk Kaichuan At that time, I was filled with emotions and lay in bed for more than ten days. This is understandable." A long time ago, he suddenly looked away and looked at Niu Yi.For a moment, Niu Yi was startled, but he didn't seem to see him a long time ago, but looked at the courtyard.At some point, the sliding door on the verandah was opened, and through the light inside the house, one could vaguely see the white calamus flowers by the pond in the courtyard.The flowers are in full bloom and exude a fragrance.

The hallucinatory interview continued. "Why did the old emperor not abdicate for so long? You may know the reason. Prince Chengren, who was about to inherit the throne, was forcibly moved to the Nijo Palace built by Nobunaga for three years. Prince Chengren was there to assist his father, but recently , The instructions issued from there on appointments, sacrifices, etc., are completely contrary to the ruling of the emperor. Those are the instructions of Nobunaga. Nobunaga is too autocratic and overbearing, and even the emperor has no peace." Niu Yi could clearly hear the sigh from before.

"A hundred generations of imperial careers are exhausted, and reckless heroes emerge. This is a sentence handed down from the Ping'an Dynasty, and it has always been used as admonishment by the palace people. I really didn't expect that the current emperor and the Tianzheng Dynasty, which I served so hard for a long time ago, would verify this sentence. Perhaps As an incompetent and disloyal minister, my stigma will be passed on to future generations. I thought of this this morning, and I unknowingly shaved my hair like this. I calculated that the current emperor is the 106th generation, and the court has experienced a hundred generations. I'm exhausted, and I have no power to recover."

A long time ago, he shook his shoulders exaggeratedly, and looked as if he was crying. "How is it possible? I don't believe in such a thing. I think your idea is wrong." Guangxiu's voice trembled. "You don't need to comfort me. But if there is a samurai to save you, it's a different matter." Not long ago, he secretly glanced at Guangxiu, and this action did not escape Niu Yi's eyes.For a moment, the mournful face was no longer there a long time ago, and even the tone of voice was different from before.This is a superb acting skill a long time ago, and it was his trick.But Guangxiu didn't seem to understand the other party's thoughts.

"You mean to let me become a rescue samurai?" Guangxiu's voice sounded even more distressed. "I didn't say I wanted you to be a samurai rescuer. I'm not begging you. It's just my sigh, it's my emotion. Excuse me, would you like some rough tea? I'll call the housekeeper." "No, just the two of us. Go on." "If that's the case, I'll say it." A long time ago, he said slowly again, "Three years ago, you built a city in the black tail of Higashitanba and named it Zhoushan. We and the emperor both remember it clearly."

"You mean Zhoushan City?" This topic obviously caught Mitsuhide unexpectedly, his body stiffened, and he looked up at the former with trepidation. "That's right. It's the city you built on Mount Heiwei. You named it Zhoushan City, and you renamed the street leading there to Zhoushan Street. This is after you took all the trouble to capture Bashangcheng." "You're right." Guangxiu's voice was weak. "Brothers Hideji Hatano and Hideshang of Hachikami Castle surrendered to you. You accept it and send them to Nobunaga in Azuchi Castle. Those two brothers were very supportive of the Emperor and were once our most dependent ministers, but Nobunaga The two brothers were not allowed to enter Antu City, nor did they receive them, but they were divided into five horses outside Antu City." "Don't mention this matter again." Guangxiu begged, with a sad voice. "No, no, I have to say! You promised Hatano brothers that they would live safely after going to Azuchi Castle, and that you would hand over your aunt as a hostage to the people in Yakami Castle. You care too much about fame. As a result, the guards trapped in the city Because the city lord was murdered, the army tied your aunt to a pillar and stabbed her with a spear..." "I beg you, don't remind me of that again. I hate myself just thinking about it. Please. Please? Don't mention that again!" Guangxiu looked embarrassed, shouting as if giving up on himself. "I see, I won't mention that. But, Mitsuhide, the Emperor also knows about that." "How could the emperor care about the battles of ordinary generals?" "In the third year of Yonglu, when the emperor held the enthronement ceremony, the Hatano brothers lobbied Mori Motono to let him pay for the ceremony. At that time, the emperor was in short supply, and it is still the case now. We will never forget the kindness of the two brothers, So we can't just sit back and watch the fate of the two of them. Of course, we also care about your battle situation. When I told the Queen of Heaven about your aunt's tragic death, he could understand your state of mind and couldn't help wiping your tears with his sleeves. You may not know Bar?" "Is the emperor so observant?" Mitsuhide trembled all over, and lowered his head. "I didn't make it up. After that incident, you named the new city of Danbo Zhoushan City, doesn't it mean the mountain where Duke Zhou is located? Duke Zhou conquered Jie and Zhou..." "I didn't think that deeply." "You don't have to hide it. The Duke of Zhou is the son of King Wen of Zhou, and the younger brother of King Wu of Zhou. His name is Dan. He is a famous emperor of his generation and one of the saints of Confucianism. According to this allusion, you name the city and the streets leading there as The name of 'Zhou Shan'. There is a hidden meaning in it-comparing Nobunaga to King Zhou. This is how we understand it." "It's not like what you said at all. I didn't have that idea at all. I just wanted to imitate the famous emperors in ancient times, so I named it that way." "So, did I think too much? The emperor didn't think so. At that time, the emperor Long Yan was overjoyed, and even said that Zhi Mitsuhide was a man of knowledge and talent. I compared myself to the Duke of Zhou who defeated King Zhou. I would like to meet him. If Mitsuhide can be like How reassuring is Kusugi Masaari, who devoted himself to serving Emperor Go-Daigo, to serve us faithfully. In the past, Uesugi Kenshin of the Echigo area was the only person the emperor could rely on. After suddenly losing Uesugi, the emperor was very lonely. By the way , I heard that your son-in-law Samasuke is a descendant of the Bingo Miyake clan, is that true?" "Exactly. His original name was Miyake Yaheiji, and he was born in Changshan, Bizen. His father was named Miyake Tokuki, a local, and has died. He is a famous family, and his ancestors can be traced back to Miyake Bingo Saburo - commonly known as Kojima Taka De. Because of fate, I married my daughter to him and changed his name to Akechi Samasuke.” "It is said that when Emperor Go-Daigo was chased by the Hojo Clan and fled to Oki, Saburo Miyake sneaked into his residence, cut off the bark of a cherry tree, and left a poem-"God will live up to Goujian, there will be Fan Li was born. This made the impoverished Emperor Gou Daigo quite gratified. To this day, in the palace, this is still an exciting legend. I heard that several emperors appreciated this poem. Under the threat of Nobunaga, today Even more so with the Emperor." "Thank you very much for saying that." "Saburo Miyake didn't just leave poems and essays to comfort Emperor Go Daigo. You are knowledgeable and talented, you should know. Saburo did not change his beliefs after that. Even after Emperor Go Daigo retired, he still persisted tirelessly in resistance. He finally It is a pity that the military luck was unfavorable, and he was defeated and died. His loyalty was no less than that of Kusuki Masamari, and we and the emperor were greatly encouraged by this. You have got a good son-in-law. As soon as I return to Beijing, I will pass the news to the emperor , he must be very happy." "Thank you. I will tell Saomasuke about this allusion, and he will be very happy." "I think we have an incredible fate with you, so how about it? Mitsuhide-sama, no, Lord Zhou, if you can understand the emperor's state of mind and become the guardian of the emperor with your son-in-law, I am very happy to recommend you." "Give us a promotion?" "You can ask for anything, such as Minister Zuo, General Zhengyi, etc. Whatever you say." "I don't want any official position. Before, I made the emperor uneasy for the sake of my lord. I must not sit idly by. I have made up my mind and prepared my mind. Please give me the imperial edict, let me' crusade against Nobunaga 'Bar." Mitsuhide raised his head and said decisively. "This is too easy. If Nobunaga makes unreasonable demands again and forces the emperor to abdicate, we will have to issue an imperial edict to 'pursue the former right government'." "Really? Then, who is the edict sent to?" Guangxiu's face flushed, looking forward to the next words. "I can't say who it will be sent to. Maybe it has not been decided yet. However, Nobunaga is currently staying at the Honnoji Temple in Kyoto, and you are the closest to him who can send troops. Didn't you find out? Nobunaga was too careless this time , did not lead troops, but only led thirty or forty followers...there is no army in the area around the Benneng Temple." "What are you talking about? There is no army at Honnoji Temple! Really? Nobunaga-kun has always been cautious, it's unbelievable." "If you don't believe me, you can send a ninja to check it out first. That's right, it's empty right now. For you, that's an easy task. As for the imperial decree, you can relax and leave it to me a long time ago. Oh, night deep." As he spoke, he stood up all of a sudden, not giving Guangxiu any chance to speak. At that time, the sliding door was opened at once, and the autumn sunset shone into the house. In the afterglow, the figures of the two disappeared like smoke, and the daydream was over. "Oh, oh. I was busy cleaning, and I didn't take good care of Mr. Jifeng. I'm so sorry to let you stand in such a dark place. Are you inconvenient?" Hirazaemon hurried over to say hello. "No, no, you're welcome. I've been looking at the calamus in the garden. It's so beautiful. I was fascinated by it." Niu Yi answered casually, he has not yet fully awakened from his daydream, and has not distinguished reality from hallucinations. "The irises in the garden? There are no flowers blooming in the garden. Ah, you mean the screen with the irises painted on it?" Hearing Hirazaemon's words, Ushiichi turned his head and saw a screen with white irises painted on it. "As expected of Mr. Yoshikaze, you have such a good eye. It is a masterpiece by the famous Mr. Mitsunobu Tosa, and it is a famous painting collected by Mr. Chaya. In the sixth month of the lunar calendar this year, when the eminent monk from the temple in Kyoto came to see it, Master Chaya asked him to see it. It was put out. I was negligent, and it was my negligence to keep it there. After that, I got a hot cold, so I delayed the matter. If Mr. Chaya came and saw that the screen was still standing there, it must be It will scold me. I have to put it away quickly and replace it with other calligraphy and paintings." Hirazaemon called his servants to put away Mitsunobu's screen.When the job was over, he smiled again. "That's right, that's right, Mr. Jifeng, the calligraphy you are looking for is this, this plaque." Niu Yi turned around and looked at the door frame behind him. There was a three-foot-square plaque hanging there, with two large characters written on it——Two Forgets. In the lower left corner of the plaque, "Former Taizheng Minister" is written, and "Long ago" is written next to it. "It's so precious." "Right." Hirazaemon misunderstood the meaning of "precious" in Ushiichi's mouth.Niu Yi didn't intend to explain, and remained silent. Konoe Maejiu was just six years old when he became an official, from three to three, and from the second year onwards, he took up all the court officials one by one. He was a young talent in the Gosho family.After that, his official position was promoted step by step, the left minister, the right minister, Guan Bai... But he only served as the Taizheng minister for four months - from February to May of the tenth year of Tianzheng. It was that year that the Honnoji Incident took place. As a close minister of Nobunaga, Ushiichi clearly remembered this, because this was Konoe's strategy, he gave up the official position to Nobunaga, and in exchange, Nobunaga no longer forced Emperor Masakimachi to abdicate. Nobunaga, of course, laughed at this.The Minister of the Taizheng is just the highest official position in name. It is recorded in the edict that "he is the moral teacher of the emperor and the code of conduct for the people of the world." This is different from Guan Bai. There is no specific position, it is just an idle position. There will be vacancies when suitable candidates are available, so it is also called "vacant officials".Nobunaga will not be fooled by such an official position. (So ​​it appears that he wrote this plaque shortly before the Honnoji Incident.) That's what "precious" really means.Maybe it was just a daydream—it happened about ten years ago when he met Guangxiu's Tianzheng.If so, this plaque is a witness of the contact between the two.Niu Yi took out his inkstone box, and recorded this thought and the words "two forgetting". When Ushiichi was copying, Hirazaemon had been waiting, and after a while, he couldn't stand it any longer and called him. "Excuse me, what's wrong?" "Have you finished writing? If it is finished, I want to inquire about something. It is the meaning of these two words. Of course people like me don't understand, even Mr. Chaya doesn't know. Even if Master Konoe came here, he would just laugh I don’t answer. I heard that other adults also asked Mr. Jiujiu before, but they didn’t get an answer. Do you know? If you know the meaning of these two words, please tell me.” "Understood. As far as I know, the so-called 'two forgetting' is to cut off the two thoughts of life and death, and achieve the state of complete forgetting. This is the language of Zen. People compare life and death, and they have the idea of ​​suffering and happiness. The original meaning of this word is to cut off these two thoughts.” "Oh, oh, I still don't quite understand." Heizawaemon tilted his head, seemingly not quite understanding. "That's right. Whether it's life or death, it's hard for ordinary people like us not to think about it. But those warriors and ministers who have been living in the rivers and lakes with their lives will find the half-understood and enigmatic words of Zen very precious. Ordinary people like us don’t understand it, and even if we don’t understand it, it’s no big deal.” Hearing these words, Hizaemon's expression eased, and a slight blush appeared on his face. "I am relieved when you say that. For a long time, I have been pondering the meaning of these two words, because 'ignorance is shameful'." "Let's not discuss this issue. A long time ago, my lord and the other court officials who came here for a short stay were received by Mr. Chawu?" Niu asked cautiously, carefully choosing every word. "Of course. Everything." "When the court officials come, how many people are there in the entourage?" "It varies from person to person, but they all came quietly, so even Lord Konoe only brought a few followers." "Where are the cooks, maids, etc?" "Of course these people are arranged by us." "At that time, gather all the local girls?" "The girl accompanying the head, we called from Kyoto and Osaka. Because this job is not a little bit wrong. But even in this area, as long as you say hello to the local head, you can easily gather a group of people who are no less than those in Kyoto and Osaka. A woman's girl. As long as the court officials call, everyone flocks to them, and they think that they may be able to climb the dragon and become the phoenix. Mr. Yoshikaze, are you also interested in this?" Heizawaemon smiled meaningfully. "No, no, I don't have that kind of interest at all. I'm at my age." In fact, Niu Yi secretly thought that sooner or later he would find some of these women.The situation in the daydream is not very reliable, and I still hope to find living witnesses at that time. Niu Yi began to daydream again.If I met Mitsuhide just like in my daydream a long time ago, the content of their conversation should have reached the ears of Shiro Jiro of the tea house through those men and women pretending to be waiters, and then it would be transmitted to Tokugawa who sheltered the tea house without any mistakes. Ieyasu there. (No wonder Master Mikawa escaped so quickly during the Honnoji Incident.) Niu Yi suddenly recalled the situation at that time. In mid-May of that year, Tokugawa Ieyasu accepted the invitation of Nobunaga, and only led a very small number of subordinates to embark on a trip to Beijing.In Kyoto, starting from May 14th, I accepted the reception for seven days. After all the affairs were over, I went to Sakai from May 29th; He held a tea party and banquet with Sohisa Imai and others, and after admiring Wakamai, he stayed at the villa of Shiro Jiro in the tea house. However, that night, for some reason, he did not go to the tea house Shiro Jiro's house, but left Sakai under the guidance of Shiro Jiro, Hattori Hanzo and others. Starting from Hirakata, he seemed to avoid Kyoto on purpose, crossing from the south, heading towards He galloped on horseback in the direction of Ujitawara, and proceeded on foot when he encountered a narrow mountain road in the middle, without stopping for a moment. In one day and night, I walked a long distance, about eighteen miles (seventy kilometers).As a 41-year-old general, Ieyasu's swift action this time is incomprehensible.Later, when Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who had won the world, made fun of him for this action, Tokugawa smiled and played sloppy. "No, it's really not as fast as you came back from China." Hideyoshi could only smile wryly. (This is the secret of that operation. Otherwise, Ieyasu would be involved in the chaos of the Honnoji Temple. I thought it was Hideyoshi who benefited the most from Mitsuhide's rebellion, but I never thought it was this old fox.) Niu Yi once again understood one thing - in this world, there are no incredible things. (But if this is the case, there is one more thing that makes people wonder, that is, where is Nobunaga's remains and what happened.) Niu Yi's question turned around a lot, and he returned to this question.