Chapter 21 Chapter 21 The Eastern Army Advances
Ishida Mitsunari visited Kobayakawa Hideaki, and met Hideaki's old minister, Hiraoka Laisheng, to teach him the opportunity, and made an appointment to attack the Eastern Army on both sides tomorrow with the beacon as a letter.After that, he rushed to the position of Otani Kichitsu in the mountain village.At this time, the rain finally thinned.
At that time, the ministries departing from Ogaki were still on their way.
In order to guard the road, Ishida's subordinates, who were the first to set off for Xiaoguan Village, passed through Guanyuan Station at Choushi, and finally arrived at their destination at Yinshi.Sancheng himself camped in Sasao, north of Xiaoguan Village.On his right are Oda Nobutaka, Ito Moromasa, Kishida Tadashi, and the Yellow Clothes under Hideyori.Shima Sakon and Gamo Bitchu Norori served as the vanguard, lurking with the archers in front of the battle.A town and a half away on the right is the Shimadzu position. They have finished stationing south of Xiaochi Village, and it is past Yinshi.Konishi Xingchang is close to Shimadzu, and is on the right side of Shimadzu, overlooking the Teratani River in the front, and leaning against the north of Tianman Mountain in the back.On the right, Ukitabe and Otanibe shoulder the important task of guarding the Nakasendo, so they have been busy until dawn.Yasuji Wakisaka, Motozuna Kuchiki, Yutaka Ogawa, Naoho Akaza and others stationed on the plain across the Nakasendo from Otani to prevent Hideaki Kobayakawa from defecting.
From Dayuan City to the farthest position, there are more than 30 li.The autumn rain that began to fall from the moment they left the city continued endlessly until the formation was completed.Marching at night, not only being exposed to rain, but also preventing being discovered, the difficulty of marching can be imagined.
The icy autumn rain drenched everyone, and it was bitterly cold at dawn, but the morale of the officers and soldiers was very strong.The whole army came out of Dayuan City in a hurry, was it because someone in the city was about to rebel?Not without such skeptics, but most of them still firmly believe that victory can be won.Taking advantage of the night, they lined up troops, cast nets from heaven and earth, and waited for work with leisure, and their number was more than 30,000 more than that of the Eastern Army, which doubled the courage of the soldiers.
But Qiu Yu is really annoying.Ishida Mitsunari's ministries finally arrived at their positions, and when they were about to take a breath, the rain stopped, which helped the Eastern Army a lot.
As soon as the rain stopped, Ieyasu in the Okayama formation woke up.Perhaps it was the silence after the rain stopped that made this veteran who hadn't fought for a long time sensitive.He picked up the map next to his pillow and listened intently.
According to the decision made the night before, the whole army has begun to move.Ieyasu stood up and walked quickly to the watchtower, only to see torches everywhere, and the neighing of war horses penetrated the darkness before dawn.
Hearing this voice, sixty-year-old Ieyasu's blood boiled.Immediately, he smiled wryly and returned to the tent.Perhaps because of the countless wars he has experienced in his life, although he knows that war should be cursed and should be avoided as much as possible, once he stands on the battlefield, he can't help but feel passionate and impassioned.Why?
When he first arrived in Qingzhou, Ieyasu was still a little worried about his health.Probably because of the bumpy road, he always felt like he was having a stroke, his body was paralyzed, he was very tired, and even his tongue often couldn't be controlled, and because he was discussing with the generals until dawn, he felt dizzy intermittently when he fell asleep.
At that time, Ieyasu shivered, and the nervous feeling was still fresh in his memory.If he had a stroke, he might be paralyzed and unable to move his tongue, wouldn't he be useless?If Ieyasu was ten years ago, he would have panicked and raised his voice to call out, but now, he is not surprised at all, which surprised himself.
Everything is left to God!I have done my best, everything is free.Takeda Shingen achieved a great victory in the battle of Mikatahara, but why was he sniped outside Noda Castle?Such a thing will happen to Shingen, and maybe it will happen to him as well.
Ieyasu sat quietly, motionless.Xiuzhong is coming, and Zhongji is also beside him.If he is really hemiplegia, he can be regarded as a successor.
Ieyasu was scheming in his heart, and he didn't tell anyone. He just called Bansaka Buzhai, took a dose of the panacea he had prescribed, and then rested.If you panic yourself, it might lead to a catastrophe.
Even though he is calm, once he comes to the battlefield, Ieyasu will be like a different person, and he will be very excited.Yesterday evening, while toasting with the generals, he watched the fierce battle between Nakamura and Shimazuo.He feels victory and defeat, morale levels, and skillful use of troops in fierce battles.
As soon as he arrived on the battlefield, Ieyasu's thoughts seemed to be much more active.Nakamura Ichiei handed over the command of the troops to Nakamura Ichishi.When he saw that Ichishi fell into the enemy's plan and went deep alone, Ieyasu shouted anxiously: "Danger! Pull him back quickly! He must not be allowed to go deep alone!" He deliberately asked Honda Tadachi to pull Ichishi back.Without Ieyasu watching the battle, the casualties of Nakamura's troops would probably be three to five times more.
At this time, while looking at the map, Ieyasu was eating breakfast brought by the two maids, A Sheng and A Liang.After dinner, he immediately put on his armor and left the barracks.A row of flags was planted in front of the camp.Under the flag, a group of messengers lined up to stand by.These messengers are of great significance on the battlefield, and they are all rare.Ieyasu's orders were transmitted to the various ministries by flying horses. They were sometimes counselors and also responsible for scouting out the military situation.
They are Ando Naoji, Naruse Masanari, Jooribe, and Hatsune Nodenemon.Yonezawa Seiemon, Oguri Tadamasa, Makino Sukeemon, Hattori Gontao, Abe Hachiemon, Otsuka Hiraemon, Okubo Sukeemon, Yamamoto Shingozaemon, Yokota Jinemon , Ogasawara Jiemon, Yamagami Goemon, Kato Kizaemon, Shimada Harubei, Nishio Fujibei, Nakazawa Lord Tax, Hosaka Kinemon, Sanada Okimori, Mamiyazaemon, Oguri Chuzaemon and the other twenty-three cavalry, they are equivalent to Ieyasu's siblings, and they will all become indispensable to Tokugawa in the future.
Ieyasu walked up to the crowd, waved to Naoji Ando and Masanari Naruse, and asked softly, "Come and see, what is the difference between the enemy's deployment and this picture?"
The three unfolded the map by the campfire.Although it was raining heavily, Ieyasu still sent someone to investigate in detail, but if the information was wrong, the consequences would be disastrous.
"There is no entry or exit."
"Okay. So, our army has followed the enemy to Qingyeyuan?"
How to meet the enemy, the collegiate meeting last night had already decided.Yamauchi, Arima, Fujido, Kyogoku, Fukushima, and Tanaka around the base camp set off first, and other troops followed suit.At dawn, all the ministries must be in their positions, ready to go into battle at any time.
The dialogue is only a few words.There was no sign of the page yet, and they must have been hastily putting on their armor.
"Let the horse!" Ieyasu shouted.
The horse was brought, and Jiakangfei stepped on it.Although he is obese, his movements are very agile.Naruse and Ando couldn't help being surprised when they saw it.Ieyasu only wore a breastplate, a black haori coat, and a bamboo hat.This kind of dress is simpler than light clothes.After getting on the horse, Ieyasu drove the horse straight west without making a sound.
"My lord, where are you going?" Naruse Masari called urgently.
"Enemy camp." Ieyasu left this sentence and walked away.Someone shouted: "Your Excellency is out! Banners! Spears! Muskets!"
Ieyasu seemed to be thirty years old again.From Zhongshan Road to Chuei, he galloped all the way without stopping.The people behind chased after him closely, and the first to come up was the standard bearer, followed by the samurai holding the gun for him.
In Jinyinshi, Ieyasu once again ordered the messengers to gallop in all directions, and strictly ordered all ministries to stand by on the spot after arriving at the designated location, and it was strictly forbidden to compete for merit.
As soon as Ieyasu gave the order, Kuroda Nagamasa on the right sent Moya Takehisa to report that they had entered the front of the Ishida Division formed on the right side of the Hokuriku official road.
"How many enemies are there?" Ieyasu asked immediately.
"This..." Mao Yawujiu thought for a moment, bowed and said, "About twenty thousand."
"Only 20,000? They say it's 140,000 to 150,000."
Mao Wujiu smiled and said: "Now it's fighting on the plains. If the enemy on the mountain sees the situation is unfavorable, they will not dare to go down the mountain easily. Therefore, in the eyes of the villain, the number of enemies who join the decisive battle at dawn is at most 20,000."
Ieyasu patted the saddle and said with a smile, "Haha! That's right. Seventy thousand against twenty thousand, we will win. Let's go!"
Although he has never mentioned it to anyone, Ieyasu has long seen through that the Yoshikawa Hiroka and Mori Hidemoto 2 who camped on the left side of the vertical well and on Nangong Mountain will never act rashly.Rushui, the father of Kuroda Nagamasa, warned Hiroshi Yoshikawa more than once: "If you join the 30% group, the Mori family's incense will be cut off." Therefore, Hiroka and Hidemoto both secretly leaned towards Ieyasu.But don't let your guard down.Therefore, Ieyasu ordered Ikeda Teruma, Asano Yukunaga, and the Suruga, Toe, and Mikawa departments to closely monitor their every move.Ikeda Teruma and Asano Yukunaga have arrived in Tarui and completed the formation, while other ministries are continuing to march westward along the official road.
When Jia Kangxi entered Taopei Mountain, it was already dawn.Although the rain had stopped, thick fog filled the air again.The mist was like drizzle, wet forehead and cheeks.
When he arrived at Taopei Mountain, Ieyasu immediately sent envoys to various ministries.In his eyes, Hideaki Kobayakawa was already one of his own, so he sent Sadaharu Okupira to him.For these, 30% may never dream of it.Fukushima Masanori and other departments, Ieyasu sent to Itami Hyogo, Muragoshi Naoyoshi, and Kawamura Suzaemon; Hosokawa and other departments sent Kosaka Sukakuro, Niko Juyou, Inakuma Shigezaemon, and Kanematsu Matashiro; Ie Naomasa and others, Ieyasu sent Sakuma Yasama, Sakuma Sonroku, Funakoshi Goroemon and others.The responsibility of the people is mainly to supervise the ministries.
On Taopei Mountain, Tokugawa’s golden fan horse seal flutters in the wind. The fan at the top of the horse seal has seven golden fan ribs, with a red sun painted on the surface, and a silver wind banner made of leather and painted with silver lacquer on the bottom of the fan. , in front of the Malaysian seal, there are twelve Genji white flags planted side by side.Beside Jiakang's bed, there was a big white banner with the words "disgusting from the filthy land, eager to seek the pure land" written on it.
Ieyasu was only nineteen years old when he first set up the banner.Back then, Yoshimoto Imagawa held high the banner and entered Dagao City, and died in Tianlewa.After Yoshimoto's death, Ieyasu had just ended his thirteen-year hostage life and set foot on Okazaki's hometown.When he returned to Dashu Temple, Venerable Dengyu comforted him and said, "I know that the city lord is very sad at this time, but the city lord must not fall down. For the sake of the future pure land on earth, you must show courage." After finishing speaking, Deng Yu Master Yu gave Jiakang this flag embroidered with eight Chinese characters.Ieyasu has always taken this as his motto.
Is this really a battle for the pure land?Whenever Ieyasu goes to battle, he always asks himself, which has become the source of his courage.
The banner that had been erected at the age of nineteen still persisted in his sixtieth year.The difference is that when this banner was set up, there were only a dozen people around him, but now he has thousands of mighty teachers.
After the elites such as Okuhei Nobumasa, Makino Yasunari, Okubo Tadaka, Takari Kiyonaga, Niwa Ujiji, and Naito Nobushiro, there are three teams of personal guards. The middle team is Matsudaira Shigekatsu, Matsudaira Chinmasa, and Mizuno Tadaka; the right wing is Sakai Shigeta , Nagai Naokatsu, Yanshan Tadashiri; the left wing is Nishio Kichiji, Abe Masaji, and Sakai Tadari.There are nine generals in three guards.This was followed by Honda Yasutoshi and Honda Tadomasa, with many mobile units, including Sakai Keji, Honda Tadomasa, Ando Nagamatsu, Matsudaira Tadaaki, Takagi Shoji, Kamiya Tadani, Yamamoto Yoshige, Inagaki Nagashige, etc. , as well as a few daimyos such as Kanemori Hoin Nagachi and Endo Yoshitaka.
Ieyasu Maqian is Xixiang Jiazhen, who is temporarily serving as a martial artist, and the representative chooses the son of Honda Zhengxin, Zhengchun.
If it was in the past, after the flags and flags were set up, everyone would shout three times: "Outstanding meritorious service!"
Ieyasu opened the map again and asked Honda Masazumi to mark the locations of each department one by one.
The first team, Fukushima Masanori's old Fukushima Tamba is on the front line of Nishi-Okatsu, backed by Myojin Forest, and confronts the Ukita Hideka of the Western Army; Complete the formation across the Nakasendo.
The second team, Tadake Hosokawa, Inaba Sadamichi, Terasawa Hirodaka, Ichiyanagi Naomori, Togawa Tatsuan, Ukita Naomori and others, set up defenses north of Nakasendo; Kuroda Nagamasa, Kato Sadata, Takenaka Shigeto, etc It is opposite to Sasao and Koike of Ishidabe.
The third team was the Banner Army led by Tadakichi, which formed a formation in front of the main formation. Honda Tadakatsu and Ii Naomasa echoed it from left to right, forming a horn-like formation.
This formation clearly demonstrated Ieyasu's determination: break through Sekigahara, take 30% of the base camp Sawayama Castle, and then drive straight into Osaka Castle.Of course, Ieyasu did not forget to order Nishio Mitsuyoshi, Mizuno Katsunari, Tsugaru Yuishin, Matsudaira Yasunaga and others to guard against Ogaki Castle; Horio Tadashi stayed behind in Akasaka and Okayama.
What bothered Ieyasu the most was who to deal with the enemies of Nangongshan.After all, Yoshikawa, Anguosi and others should not be underestimated.
Ieyasu pointed his flag at Teru Ikeda's department in the southwest of Tarui and Ichirizuka Asano Yukinaga's department in the west of the post station, and asked Masakazu, "Are there any omissions?"
"Everything is ready. From here to Nogami Village, which is connected to Asano Jin, there are Nakamura Kazuei, Koide Yoshinaga, Ikoma Kazumasa, Hachisuka Toyo, Yamauchi Kazutoyo, Arima Toyoshi, Mizuno Kiyotada, Suzuki Great love. I have made them ready for battle."
Ieyasu nodded silently, and ordered the map to be rolled up.
The Eastern Army deliberately got into the enemy's pocket, and the enemy will definitely tighten the pocket.Once the pockets are tightened, the Eastern Army will be in danger of being completely wiped out; but once the Western Army is broken through head-on, Zuohe Mountain City will be taken in one fell swoop.But in any case, this is still on paper after all.
"The encirclement of the enemy is complete!" I am afraid that Sancheng at this time is also staring at the map with bright eyes, smiling proudly.Both sides are fighting wits and courage, and the battle situation will change ever-changing.
The fog is getting thicker.It was late autumn, and as the night faded, the autumn grass that had absorbed the rain and dew became more and more withered and yellow under the trampling of people and horses, spreading a layer of sadness on the desolate land.
"Report!" A samurai with wet shoulders knelt in front of Ieyasu.Ieyasu looked at the man carefully, and said, "It's Ina's book, tell me!"
"A blue egret quietly flies towards the enemy from our military flag. It is a good omen! Victory must belong to us."
"Okay. Tell all the officers and soldiers this good news quickly." Ieyasu couldn't help but feel a lot of emotion after finishing his instructions.
The fact of the war is unbelievable. Everyone has the ability to estimate the outcome, but they are all obsessed with victory, and they shed blood for nothing.The man was actually very happy because of a heron, and he didn't realize that his behavior was superficial.Although Ieyasu knew all of this, he still didn't want to tell the truth.
It is about 28 towns from Momobeyama Honjin to Sasao, where Ishida Mitsunari is located, to the 40th towns of Hideaki Kobayakawa camp, to the 15th towns of Ibara Naomasa Ii Naomasa, to the 19th female pond 16th place of Honda Tadakatsu Towns, to Fujido and Niwa’s Fujikawa 29th Town, to the Taui 32nd Town behind him, to Mori and Yoshikawa’s Nangongshan 36th Town, to the Horio Tadashi’s Akasaka 48th Town...
As a commander, if you want to accurately grasp the battle situation and respond to changes in a timely manner, you must look at the overall situation.Only in this way can we command advance and retreat, otherwise, giving orders rashly will only cause casualties to soldiers in vain.
How foolish to rejoice at the sight of a heron flying by!Ieyasu laughed at himself while calculating repeatedly.The dense fog is very unfavorable to both sides, but they have to fumble to launch an offensive.
It's nearly two hours.If it was a sunny day, flags and flags would already be flying on the battlefield, and there would be a lot of swords and guns, but now you can hardly see anything.Looking at the Maori Department on Nangong Mountain, their banners were wet with thick fog, and their heads were drooping.
Jiakang stood up from the bed: "Send three messengers! I want a few more servants. Lead the horse!"
Ieyasu went down Taopei Mountain and drove straight to Honda Tadakatsu's camp next to Nineteen Girls Pond.Zhongsheng was taken aback and rushed out to greet him.
"Zhongsheng, have you checked the situation in Nangong Mountain?"
"Checked. Nothing happened."
"You see it that way too?"
"The men and horses in Nangong Mountain did not move, but Shitian's vanguard moved first."
"That's useless. As long as Nangong Mountain stands still, they won't be able to encircle us. Do you think Mao Li and Yoshikawa will go down the mountain?"
Honda Tadakatsu was most annoyed by Ieyasu's point: he knew it very well, but he wanted to ask.But he thought about it, maybe Ieyasu came to encourage him on purpose, so he said loudly: "Whether they go down the mountain or not, they will not be able to catch up with the battle before this morning. Ikeda and Asano have long been impatient."
"Oh, then I'll push the front line a little further." As he spoke, Ieyasu turned his head and glanced at the messenger Oguri Tadomasa, and said, "Order, the twelve white flags will enter the east of Guanyuan." He bowed his head and thought for a while , Fang said: "This is the sixteenth town, tell Zhengchun, and the troops will move forward to the twelve town. Then, let's go to war!"
"Of order!" Honda Tadakatsu chuckled.
Taopei Mountain was the best place for this formation, it was located between the two armies, it could not only command the Eastern Army, but also observe the enemy's movements.Ieyasu will not be in any danger if he camps here.Moreover, from here, you can monitor Moribe behind you, and you can spy on Hideaki Kobayakawa at Mt. Matsuo in the front left.The foothold is not stable, but Ieyasu has to move from Taopei Mountain to Guanyuan East.Some people may think that this approach is too hasty, or it is emotional.But in the eyes of Honda Tadakatsu, who was born and died with Ieyasu countless times, Ieyasu has already made up his mind.Ieyasu had always been so courageous before he came to the Imperial Palace.
Ieyasu endured all his life and never made rash advances. He always sat firmly on the Diaoyutai and watched the world.But if you don't move, you will be fine, and if you move, you will hit it.Ieyasu on the battlefield is like a veritable downhill tiger.Thoughtful thinking is when preparing for battle, once he is on the battlefield, he will certainly do something unexpected.
Today, he took the initiative to provoke.All the enemies knew about Ieyasu's formation on Taopei Mountain.And once Ieyasu moved the formation forward, how could the opponent not be dumbfounded when the fog cleared and the charge began?Walking on the muddy road, he managed to find the position with great difficulty, but continued to move forward in the thick fog. Only Jiakang dared to do this.
Zhongsheng's smile is not only admiration for such a decision, but also emotion for the thoughtfulness hidden behind the decision. "My lord, in today's decisive battle, who is the most important?"
Ieyasu glanced at Zhongsheng, snorted softly, and remained silent.
"I think the most difficult one to deal with is Shimadzu Yoshihiro," Zhongsheng said.
Ieyasu didn't answer, but still gave a light laugh, half admiring, half mocking. "The winner will be decided before noon." After a long time, Ieyasu said, "From the action last night, by this afternoon, the fatigue will increase. Whoever feels tired will lose."
Zhong Sheng saluted with a smile and returned to the camp.The vanguard of the formation has been advancing one after another, and it will be deployed in a moment or so. At that time, it will be the moment to decide the ownership of the world.
Ieyasu was still sitting on the bed, raising his eyes and concentrating.The war is about to start, and in front of the prey, he is like a tiger eager to try...