Chapter 8 Chapter Eight: The Rain Is Coming

The fourth to sixth years of Tensho were three years of dormancy for Ieyasu, and for Nobunaga, these three years were a period of complete consolidation of hegemony and unprecedented activity. Nobunaga built an unprecedented huge project - Azuchi Castle. The territories he controlled included Yamato, Tanba, and Harima. His annual gift reached five million stones. Historically, Minamoto Yoritomo, the Kamakura Shogunate, was established in Kamakura. From Zengguan to the right general, and the highest position of Hirashigemori in the Hera regime was the Minister of Internal Affairs. Therefore, on May 11, the seventh year of Tensho, when Nobunaga built Azuchi Castle , When he moved to the castle tower, his official position had surpassed that of Yoritomo and Shigemori.

Even so, Nobunaga's innate personality of going his own way has not changed at all.On this day, he led Yuiren Mitsuhide, who had just been promoted to Hinata Shou, to patrol around the newly completed castle tower. There are more than twelve stone cellars below, and a seven-storey pavilion stands above it, majestic and majestic.The first floor is 20 rooms long from north to south and 17 rooms wide from east to west, supported by 204 thick pillars.The main column is eight rooms high, one foot five inches, six inches and one foot three inches thick.All the pillars were covered with cloth and painted with black paint.

In the twelve-fold hall on the west side, the doors and windows are made of gold, and there is a famous painting of plum blossoms by Kano Yongde inside. There are vultures hanging in the two-story hall, and the eight-story and four-story rooms next to each other are pheasant pictures, and the twelve-story hall in the south is decorated with portraits of Chinese Confucian scholars. "Come here, Baldy." Nobunaga looked back at Mitsuhide.At this time, the high-ranking people call their followers, not their names, but more nicknames.Nobunaga called Hideyoshi a monkey and Mitsuhide a bald man. It is conceivable that Mitsuhide's hair must not be too much.

"Yes, what are your orders, my lord?" Guangxiu asked cautiously, bowing down. "Take the roster of the officials supervising the project with you, and show it to me." "Yes." Mitsuhide hurriedly handed it over, Nobunaga glanced at it, and immediately returned it to Mitsuhide.What is written above is: 〖Masonry: Nishio Kozaemon, Ozawa Rokuro Saburo, Yoshida Hirauchi Woodworker: Okabe Mataemon Sculpture: Kansaiyuzaemon Painter: Ministry of First Punishment Ceramics: A View of the Tang Dynasty Hardware: Goto Heishiro〗 Nobunaga just glanced at it and returned it to Mitsuhide, Mitsuhide was puzzled. "Is there any dissatisfaction, my lord?"

"Stop thinking about it. I am very satisfied with this golden lantern and want to see who made it." "Ah, this is the engraving by Goto Heishiro." "I know it without telling you. Baldy Potato." "yes." "I really want to show one to Sanhe's in-laws." "If they saw it, they would be shocked." "Hahaha, let's go to other floors to see, there are still six floors." Saying that, Nobunaga walked out. The minister on the right shrugged his shoulders, made a face, and laughed out loud. "It seems that Takeda of Kai is going to use force against Ieyasu again."

"That's right. After Katsuyori went back, he tried his best to carry out military reforms and amassed an army that cannot be ignored." Guangxiu has always been cautious and dared not say a word.Nobunaga always asked him. "At the end of last year, Katsuyori crossed the Oi River to confront Ieyasu, and this time he came to Ejiri again. Do you think Ieyasu can drive Katsuya away with his own efforts?" "From my point of view, both Takeda and Tokugawa have been recharging their energy and strengthening their armaments over the past few years, so..." Before he finished speaking, Nobunaga, who was climbing the stairs, interrupted him impatiently: "You are really nagging, whoever wins and who loses, isn't it over in one sentence? You are rambling."

"It's really hard to say which side will win." "Hahaha, that's good, so I can send troops to attack China with peace of mind. Before sending troops, I must see Ieyasu." After going up to the third floor, the field of vision suddenly widened, but Nobunaga didn't stop here to watch.This is the place where Nobunaga will live in the future. A four-fold high platform is built in the middle, and there are twelve piles under the high platform. The room is full of gorgeous pictures of flowers and birds.The hall on the south side is eight stacks in size and is called "the residence of the sages". There are pictures of gourds and horses hanging on them.No one knows what is the relationship between the sage, the gourd, and the horse. This seems to reflect Nobunaga's character.

There are a total of one hundred and forty pillars on this floor.When he climbed to the fourth floor, Nobunaga shouted to Mitsuhide again: "Hinata Mori." The bald man became Hinata Mori, "This time, Ieyasu can't wipe out the Takeda family by himself. Anyway, I have to sharpen my sword." "You mean, if Ieyasu wiped out Katsuyai with his own strength, it will be difficult to deal with in the future?" "Exactly. So, anyway, I have to get in the way. When all our attention is focused on attacking China, if Ieyasu solves the problem by himself, it will leave me with a difficult problem in the future."

"So, shall we wait for the opportunity to send troops to Kozhou first?" "Stupid!" Nobunaga scolded, spitting and staring, "Then Tokugawa will be even more powerful. It's a lot of age to say such stupid words." Guangxiu quickly shut up. "Ieyasu is the only one who can be trusted..." Even though he thought so, the leader of the trustee always felt that Ieyasu's influence would be bad for him.If Ieyasu annexed the territory of the Takeda clan, neither the Hojo clan nor the Uesugi clan might be able to gain a foothold. Soon, his influence would further extend to the Ou region.

Soon, the two finished watching the fifth and sixth floors, and then climbed up to the seventh floor.This is a twenty-fold square banquet hall surrounded by fences.Nobunaga seemed to have forgotten all the mundane things, and was deeply attracted by the beauty of Lake Biwa in late spring. The seventh highest, the interior is covered with gold leaf.Not only that, even the surrounding corridors are covered with gold leaf, the pillars are carved with flying dragons, and the roof is painted with flying apsaras.Such a pavilion reflects the brilliance of the sun in the morning and evening, and when viewed from the bottom of the mountain, it must be radiant and resplendent.

Back then, the naughty boy with a straw rope tied around his waist, gnawing a melon in his mouth, and crawling in the mud, has now transformed himself into a right minister with power, and he can stand here and look out from the building as he pleases.In order to achieve this goal, he did not know how many people he had fought, and he did not know how many people's lives he had taken. If you think about it, how cruel it must be!During the Ise Mutomune riots in Nagashima and Echizen Kaga alone, he massacred 50,000 people. Could it be that the so-called achievement and fame are watered with blood in a tragic way? When Nobunaga looked out from the building and was full of emotions, whether it was Mitsuhide who was following behind him or the seven personal guards, in order not to hinder his reverie, they all held their breath and focused carefully, carefully.For some reason, Nobunaga suddenly turned around and walked down the stairs on the east side silently.Mitsuhide and the others had long been accustomed to Nobunaga's weird personality, and immediately followed him. The stone wall is about twelve rooms high, and above it is a seven-story pavilion with a height of seventeen and a half rooms, so there are about thirty rooms from top to bottom.Nobunaga walked down in one breath, left the castle tower, and walked to the north moat.Here is his temporary home.Three months after the order to build the city, that is, on February 23rd of the fourth year of Tensho, he left Gifu in a hurry and lived here. "Baldy, it's none of your business." Coming to the door of the house, Nobunaga winked at Mitsuhide and walked in quickly. "Ah Nong." Still addressing him as before, Nobunaga walked in vigorously, and the waiters trotted all the way to follow.He turned his head and waved his hands, saying, "You don't have to follow." Mitsuhide's cousin Nohime is still young and beautiful because she has no children.Although she has given up the bedtime to the young concubines, Nobunaga lives with her when he is busy. "You're here. Is there something else?" Madam came out with a maid to greet her. "Ah Nong, that bald man!" Before he sat down, Nobunaga said, "One of his words reminded me of a good idea. Did you bring the letter from Tokuhime from Okazaki?" It turned out that when Nobunaga moved here from Gifu, he brought almost nothing except tea sets.Everything, including weapons, gold, rice, and horses, was left to his son Nobutada. "Deji's letter?" "It's the letter that Mrs. Tsukiyama and Xinyasu are fools and complain about them." "That letter, put it in the box..." Before he could finish speaking, Nobunaga stretched out a hand: "Take it out quickly." However, Mrs. Nongji didn't intend to get up immediately to get it.She has a flexible mind and a quick response, even better than Nobunaga. She has always understood her husband's words and deeds, and her behavior today makes people feel strange. "Bring it, hurry up!" Nobunaga stretched out his hand in front of his wife again. "What's the use of something like that now?" "You are so strange today that you don't know what I use it for. You are not confused." "Do you want to use it as a basis to punish someone?" "You should understand!" Nobunaga sneered, "Are you the daughter of Viper?" "No, not now, I am now the wife of the right minister Oda Nobunaga." "Don't play tricks on me." Seeing his wife's expression became stiff and pale, Nobunaga smiled, "I want to use that letter to make Ieyasu decide to kill Xinyasu. You don't understand this, do you?" "It is precisely because I understand that I want to stop you." Mrs. Nohime's voice became sharp, "You are no longer the chief executive officer Oda, but the right minister Nobunaga, and now you want to deliberately find fault and kill your son-in-law. It will ruin your future reputation." Nobunaga smiled strangely again: "Could it be that you are still the wife of Sosuke Oda? Your resourcefulness has not grown, huh, stupid!" However, Mrs. Nong did not give in: "I know I am stupid, but a dull person has the ways of a dull woman. Please be more considerate." "No!" Nobunaga's voice became louder, and he sighed again: "If I am still the chief minister of Oda, and my son-in-law is in Sanhe, I have to help each other no matter what. However, I am now the right mansion, so I have to serve the world. Think about it." "..." "I gave Owari and Mino to Nobunaga. I didn't take anything. I ran here from Gifu City. What do you think is the reason? In my heart, I am no longer the Nobunaga of Gifu. I have to change My own thoughts. If I were Nobunaga of Gifu, I would be blinded by the affection of my son and son-in-law. "However, the Nobunaga of Azuchi Castle is no longer the Nobunaga of Gifu. No matter whether he is my son or son-in-law, he will never show mercy to those who attempt to rebel and disturb the stability. Don't you understand? You are still Nobunaga in Gifu Wife, the mind has been imprisoned." Mrs. Nong still stared at him with a stubborn look, but after a while, she stood up, took out a volume of letters from under the box, and handed it to the letter chief: "My lord." "I finally understand, I said you wouldn't be such a confused person..." Before he could finish speaking, Madam interrupted him: "Okay, let me give you De Ji's letter, and you take my head and kill me too!" At this time, several cuckoos were singing from the forest in Xincheng to the valley. "Kill you?" Nobunaga didn't expect his wife to say such words, and couldn't help but be dumbfounded.After a while, he said jokingly again: "Are you the cousin of that bald man? I think that in your blood, you all have a habit of giving muddled opinions. That bald man Mitsuhide, I burned Mount Hiei and attacked Nagashima." Sometimes, I keep bickering with me, giving some stupid opinions, saying that killing a monk is bad luck for a lifetime, it is so stupid! You are the same, you are all the same." "No, that's not the case." Mrs. Nong covered her face as if her whole body was cold, "Ah Nong has no objection, but just begs the Lord to kill A Nong first." "Oh, why don't you want to live?" "I'm so disappointed in you, I'm tired of it." "Oh? I want to kill Xinkang, and you're disappointed?" "It's not because of Saburo. It's because I think that Deji's life and Mrs. Zhushan's life will be affected. As a woman, Ah Nong can't stand it and is extremely disappointed." Nobunaga stared at his wife, feeling very strange.Nouhime resisted with such a strong attitude, which was something they had never done since their marriage. "Women are not men's playthings. Even if it's for the sake of the world, if I agree to that, as a woman, I won't feel at ease." "Oh?" "Ms. Zhushan is a victim of this tragic world. De Ji shouldn't hate Saburo and come to sue. It was just a momentary confusion, a confusion caused by affection... It is a woman's nature, and A Nong is even more sad because of it. But My lord uses this as an excuse to want Xin Kang's life and Zhu Shan's life. Anong is also a stupid woman, so kill me too!" Madam Nong's face turned red at some point.The May wind blows in through the green leaves, but the air in the room is tense as if frozen. Nobunaga shook his head, still wondering.In fact, Nobunaga's character is not as superficial and violent as the retainers thought. Sometimes, he is even more cautious than ordinary people, more patient than ordinary people, and will not get angry easily. "Well, Okubo Tadayo and Sakai Tadaji of Mikawa are here to help build the castle, let's call these two and confront them face to face." Nobunaga's attitude seemed to turn a big corner all of a sudden, and he changed his tone softly, clapping his hands and calling the waiter: "Go and call Okubo and Sakai from Mikawa here." The waiter went out in response, and Nobunaga turned his head to look at his wife: "Just pretend that you didn't say anything, and I didn't say anything either. Let's ask the two of them, what is the reputation of Xinkang in Sanhe, and then decide whether to He should be punished. How about it? If what I say is hurtful, let it go in vain; if you are wrong, don't have any more opinions." Mrs. Nong still had a livid face and did not answer. Soon, under the guidance of the attendants, the lord of the Yoshida Castle, Sakaizaemon Wei Tadaji, and Okubo Tadyo, who was given to Futamata Castle, came to the hall.Nobunaga seemed to have forgotten the quarrel with his wife just now, and greeted the two of them happily: "Come, sit in front. Thank you for your hard work every day. Being a helper in building the city is really a little bit for the two who have experienced many battles." It's hard work, but it's a good job. May 11th is an auspicious day, and I want to move into the castle tower that has just been completed. After that, I want to invite Ieyasu to show him. In short, I just need to wait for the move. Don't be restrained today, let's have a good chat." Nobunaga, who is the right minister of the second class, actually spoke so cordially, which surprised the carefree Mikawa samurai Tadashi Sakai who was good at dancing the shrimp catch dance, and Okubo Tadayo, who often made people laugh.What's more, the luxury of the city has made the two of them feel that "Nobunaga is the one who commands the world", and they have unknowingly produced a kind of coercion.Whether it was Tadashi Sakai who was lying on the ground, or Tadashi Okubo, they were all moved to tears. "Don't be restrained, you two, sit forward. During the Battle of Nagashino, Tadaji made a surprise attack on Tonousao Mountain and made the first contribution to the complete victory. Tadaji rushed and fought fiercely, and gave Takeda a blow. I heard that this Nai Katsurai is going to attack again. If the two of you are not here, Ieyasu will be in a difficult situation. It happens that the city has been built, so you have to go back quickly and strengthen your defense. So, today I will spare some time today to have a drink with the two of you. A few glasses. Ma'am, prepare wine quickly." Seeing that Nobunaga was so happy, Mrs. Nong didn't say much, she called two maids and ordered them to prepare a banquet. Gradually, the two invited people became nervous.In any case, talking with the right minister and drinking in the wife's inner room, they didn't even dare to think about it, they were just dizzy.Even Jiakang may not be easy to treat them so kindly. "You are the pillars of the Tokugawa family. From now on, we will rely on you for some matters in the family. Come on, Tadashi, you do it first!" "My lord values ​​an unknown junior so much, and I'm grateful, so I'll do it." Although it was a cup that could only hold a couple of wines, when holding it up, Tadashi's hands trembled a little. "Come on, Zhongshi continue to work, your Nimata City is close to the enemy, it will be very hard." "My lord's words make me very grateful, so I will do it too." After the two finished drinking, the maid filled it up again. "I have one thing I can't ask others. I want to ask you two: I heard that my son-in-law Xinkang has a bad reputation at home. Why?" The two secretly exchanged glances.Zhong Shi replied carefully: "This... the young master is full of blood, how could someone say such a thing?" "The young master is really brave. During the war, even us elderly people were often severely reprimanded by him. How could someone say such things behind our backs?" Zhongci continued. "Oh, even a veteran like you dare to reprimand?" "Yes, it is said that his valor surpasses even that of the lord." "Ah, I'm relieved now. Come, drink again." Nobunaga said, and urged the waiter to pour the wine. Nobunaga has secretly pointed the finger at Xinkang, which Chuji and Zhongshi never dreamed of.Both of them felt that they were very honored at this time, and misunderstood Nobunaga's words.They thought that when Nobunaga became the right minister, he must value his son-in-law more and more.Thinking about it this way, the two of them actually envied Xinkang. Halfway through the third cup, Zhongji became excited: "The young master is braver than the master, so naturally, he received rave reviews at home." They already regarded Xinkang as Nobunaga's person. "In battle, the young master really hasn't suffered a lot. Last November, when Katsuyori crossed the Ono River and came to attack, in front of the master, he and I had a conflict in the battle." "Oh? You were reprimanded by him for what you said, is that when?" Nobunaga is very good at inducing others to speak, "What did Xinkang say to you?" "He said that I am timid, do not understand war, and have no backbone." "Xinkang is indeed a little too much." "That's right. Therefore, when a fool like me is said by the young master, of course it feels uncomfortable, so I retorted that I have figured out the tactics of Katsurai, and asked him to be optimistic about tomorrow's battle. On the second day, I will I drove Katsuyori away happily." "Oh. However, although he is braver than his father, he is far behind Ieyasu in terms of being able to endure hardships. Come, talk while drinking." "Yes. I believe that as a general, only bravery is not enough. The victory and defeat are always on the line. Katsurai thought that he could always win the general, but he was defeated in the battle of Nagashino unexpectedly. Although the veterans spoke bluntly, Remonstrance, but the young master is still young, so he can't listen to it." "Xinkang seems to have a temper. I heard that once, on the way back from hunting, he met a monk. He tied the monk to the saddle and dragged him to death." "Actually, at that time..." Zhongshi also spoke casually, "I happened to be ordered by my lord to go to Okazaki to admonish him." "Oh, what did Xinkang say?" "He mentioned Lord Youfu's name, saying that Lord Nobunaga had killed hundreds of monks in Mount Hiei and Nagashima, and he only killed one. I will scold my head and cover my face." Nobunaga quickly glanced at Mrs. Nohime: "For the sake of caution, I would like to declare to you two that I have never killed a monk because of my bad temper." "yes……" "Those monks, as monks, resorted to military force and disturbed the peace of the world. Because they are all pretending monks, rebellious officials and thieves who invaded the holy land, I attacked them mercilessly. To confuse the two, Saburo is too self-willed! " Because of Nobunaga's sudden change of tone, the two looked at each other, stopped immediately, and then drank silently. Xinkang became the target of scolding, Zhongshi and Zhongji were inconvenient to say more.The two wished to say something bad about Xinkang, but once the young master was scolded, they really wanted to defend him: Although Xinkang is not perfect, he is not considered a heinous crime, this is an indisputable fact. Seeing that the two were silent, Nobunaga smiled heartily again: "What's the matter with you two, you are inexplicably serious. Mrs. Tsukiyama is still the same?" "Yes, it's still the same." This time, Zhongji opened his mouth cautiously with the mood of defending Xinkang: "Madam's persistence is indeed unparalleled in the world...to this day, I still talk about the glory of the Imagawa era, and I am afraid of it." It's stubbornness, of course, the young master's self-willedness has caused Madam a lot of trouble. We have also discussed this in private." "That's right, Madam also said that she misunderstood Xinkang. She still slips up from time to time and calls me Yoshimoto's enemy." "Yeah, this kind of persistence is incredible." "I saw Yoshimoto's son Shima Cuju in the capital, and Shima seemed to be having fun playing in front of his father's enemy, Oda Nobunaga. Madam's persistence is really admirable." "It's truly awe-inspiring." "Then, madam is still angry that Deji didn't have a son to inherit the family business, right? Is she looking for another woman for Saburo?" "That's Madam worrying about it alone. All the ministers think that Madam Young is still young, and no one would think so." "Okay, it feels good to hear something about Okazaki vividly. Come, have another drink." Only then did the two put down their glasses. "Thanks to your hospitality, I have troubled you for so long unknowingly, please forgive us to leave." The two left in a hurry, but Nobunaga sat there without saying a word. The warm wind blows in from the window, and the oil cicadas in front of the eaves sing. "Even Sheng Lai is not worthy of inheriting the family business. If Xinkang rips the maid's mouth and drags the monk to death after being angry..." This is not so much a soliloquy as it is a deliberate statement to Nong. Madame listened. "In short, Xinkang is hated by important ministers. Although it can't be said that he hates it extremely, he is not a person of strength. Besides, he has a mother who scolds me as an enemy. With Mrs. Tsukiyama's stubbornness and Xinkang's short-sightedness, Maybe Ieyasu will be strangled to death. Once Ieyasu falls, Tōkaidō will fall into chaos again..." Suddenly, Mrs. Nong fell down in front of Nobunaga and began to cry.Nobunaga's determination to get rid of Xinkang was like a tragedy from the beginning, entrenched in his wife's heart.Nohime fell on the ground, shouting with her heart: People, people, why are you so stupid, why didn't you come into the world with calm thinking... Mrs. Tsukiyama's stubbornness, Xinkang's superficiality, and his current feelings are all unreasonable. should be punished. Nobunaga looked at Nohime who was crying with his head in his arms, and suddenly patted his knee: "This is not like you, calm down." Madam Nong felt even more hopeless and cried again.