Chapter 7 Chapter Seven: The Last Instructions of a Zen Master

The first year of Hongzhi (1555) was an eventful year for Takechiyo.The sorrows and joys of life hit him at the same time, and he was not given a chance to breathe. The painstaking efforts of the retainers finally worked.In March of that year, Yoshimoto personally awarded Takechiyo the black hat, and held a Yuanfu ceremony for him.Yoshimoto originally wanted to hold the Yuanfu ceremony for Takechiyo when he was fifteen years old, but he couldn't withstand repeated pleas from Okazaki's retainers, so he finally moved the ceremony forward by one year. At the time of the ceremony, Yoshiwon was always in a good mood.Takechiyo put on the adult costume made under Yoshimoto's instructions, put on a black hat, and accepted the "yuan" character that Yoshimoto bestowed on him, and the crowning ceremony came to an end.From this day on, Takechiyo began to shave off his forehead hair, changed his name to Matsudaira Jiro Saburo Gennobu, and officially entered the ranks of adults.

The joy of the Okazaki ministers is naturally out of the question.But the shadow still hangs over everyone, because of the lingering pain caused by the death of Mrs. Huayangyuan in November the previous year. After arriving in Junfu, Yuan Yingni had no choice but to have no contact with Takechiyo on the surface in order to avoid the suspicion of the world.She is a sad person abandoned by this world, a person who lives in the shadows.Although she always pays attention to Takechiyo's daily life and secretly gives him unlimited love, she has never been allowed to take care of Takechiyo in Yoshimoto's mansion.And in order to avoid suspicion, she never showed her face in the mansion of the Shaofu of the Ministry of Criminal Justice at Guankou.

On the night of his grandmother's death, Saburo Jiro lay beside her pillow and wept all night.The last words his grandmother left him were about his biological mother Yu Da in Aguju City. "Imagawa-sama will go to the capital one day. At that time, you will undoubtedly follow him. In this way, Kariya and Akoju will become a fierce battlefield. But don't forget that there is your mother on that battlefield. Know Is it? Your mother must be secretly thinking about your future, you have to ask Lord Imagawa to arrange for you to meet your mother, and you must meet her safely. Always remember this."

Jiro Saburo Yuanxin opened his eyes wide, chewing his grandmother's last words over and over again.If he can't do something for his own mother, what's the use of him?As a military commander, if you have to attack the city where your mother is, what should you do?Fourteen-year-old Jiro Saburo Motoshin has no countermeasures.He sent his grandmother away in a daze.Not long after, I received the order to get married again. For Jiro Saburo, this is not a satisfactory marriage.He is no longer as naive and reckless as when he dated Agui—she has married into Iio Bungzen’s house and is now Mrs. Kira—and hugged her forcibly, but deep in his heart he still has his admiration for Mrs. Kira Feelings.However, marrying Yiyuan's niece is obviously much more honorable than marrying Agui.He was specially called to Yiyuan's bedroom.

"Oh, you are already a brave warrior. Yuan Xin, Ahe, whom you admire, will officially marry you in the first month of spring. Regarding the ceremony, you can tell your retainers to do it." Hearing this, Jiro Saburo couldn't help expressing from the bottom of his heart gratitude. Ahe is arrogant and lustful, difficult to control, but Jiro Saburo doesn't care too much.Probably due to her precocity, she appears more stable than other women of her age.When news of the marriage contract between Jiro Saburo and Ah Tsuru spread, the generals of Junfu looked at Jiro Saburo completely changed their eyes.Those who were still scolding "Sanhe Wild Species" the day before, changed their attitudes after hearing about the marriage.Ah He, who used to be very arrogant, has recently become very docile.

The important event of life has been settled in this way... Thinking of this, Jiro Saburo suddenly felt that the time was a bit monotonous, but he was not particularly dissatisfied. On this day, Jiro Saburo still stayed in the mansion of Shaofu of the Ministry of Justice for a while, and then returned to his residence with a joss stick in his arms.In order to marry Ahe, another house is being built in the residence, and the voices of the retainers working hard come from inside.He casually glanced around, and was about to step into the door when he heard a voice say, "Master Takechiyo...no, Mr. Yuanxin."

It turned out to be Zen master Xuezhai's servant boy in black sleeves. "Oh, come on, come in!" "Because of something urgent, Master ordered me to invite you over immediately." The servant boy seemed a little flustered, "Master is not in good health." "he is sick?" "Yes. I will report to Lord Imagawa and other important ministers immediately. Before that, I want Mr. Takechiyo... No, I want Mr. Motoshin to come over immediately." "Thank you." Jiro Saburo nodded emphatically, "I'll go on horseback, let's take a step first, I'm sorry."

He immediately returned to the mansion of Shaofu Xingbu, and took Qinyong's mount.The horse was Kiyonaga's mount in name, but actually belonged to him.He heard from the servant boy that he had neither told Yiyuan nor met the important ministers, so he didn't bring any entourage, he couldn't wait to prepare the saddle, and immediately flew to Linji Temple.Zen Master Xuezhai's illness shook his heart like a thunderstorm.If Zen Master Xuezhai could not afford to fall ill, what would happen to the Imakawa family?Zen Master Xuezhai influences Yiyuan's decision-making on military affairs.Among the retainers, no one has his courage and ability.So far, it cannot be said that Saburo Jiro has gained Yoshimoto's love and trust.He was able to grow up smoothly, all because of Zen master Xuezhai's care.Yoshimoto's son Shi is really stupid and incompetent, not worth mentioning, and there will be no one like Xuezhai Zen Master in the future... In this way, a storm may sweep through Suruga City, and maybe he will also be involved in it.

With his horse whipping, he galloped forward, and the red leaves all over the mountain fell down like petals.When he got off his horse in front of the mountain gate, his hands trembled slightly. Jiro Saburo hadn't spoken yet, the monk had already heard the noise and rushed out to greet him.He took a deep breath, held down the saber with his right hand, walked through the main hall, and walked straight to the newly built hut for Xuezhai to live in seclusion. "Is it Yuanxin?" A clear voice came from behind the screen. "yes." "Come to the pillow." Jiro Saburo was nervous for a while, and walked to the pillow respectfully, "How is the master's condition?"

Xuezhai's voice was very calm: "What a beautiful weather! Look over there." Jiro Saburo looked out of the window, only to see plum blossom branches shimmering in the bright sunshine of early spring.Xuezhai murmured: "Lying here like this, I myself have become the sun and plum blossoms. That's great!" The plum blossoms reflected on the window only had three leaves left. "Spring is over, and it's summer. It's over. Autumn is over and it's winter. What a force of nature." "Master, how is your condition?" "I don't know. Winter has come. Do you understand?"

"yes." "So, some seeds must be left for you, you are in the spring." Xuezhai's eyes were a little dazed.With a smile, his expression revealed the bone-chilling coldness of winter. "I also want to celebrate your wedding, but your wedding is coming in spring... Yuanxin." "yes." "To be honest, for your sake, I want to avoid this wedding." "You mean..." "You still don't understand? In this way, you have added another burden. The kindness of the Imagawa family is another heavy burden." Jiro Saburo nodded. "In the past, your father and the Imagawa clan formed an alliance based on interests. But once you marry Imagawa, then the next generation will have a blood relationship." "yes." "So, at first I was strongly against it...but after much deliberation, it was decided in favor. Do you understand?" "not understand." "As I once told you, I finally realized that the heavier the burden in life, the better. Patience and burden can make you grow up quickly... You have a kind of tenacity to bear the burden, don't you?" ?” "yes!" "Because of these considerations, I agreed. But I was also confused for a while, and I didn't know how to explain it to you." After these words, the snow-white quilt on Zen Master's body began to shake violently. Yuan Xin knew Zen Master Xuezhai's The time of death was approaching—he couldn't help but feel a lot of emotion, and the corners of his eyes immediately became moist. "I didn't want you to know what a burden it was for you...but I might regret it. In the end I decided to tell you...Actually, I saw the sun and cherry blossoms from the window of this room , I saw the birds and the moon playing on the branches of plum blossoms, and from then on, I decided to tell you." "yes." "You are a child with a long-term vision. You have probably considered... Marrying Yoshimoto's niece to seek harmony between the two families, but have you considered the death of Monk Xuezhai? You have to speak from your heart." Jiro Saburo Shaking his head slightly, finally, a tear fell on his knee. "I haven't thought about it. That's not surprising." Zen Master Xuezhai closed his eyes gently when he said this, "I didn't encounter this kind of thing when I was young, so I didn't know death. But people, after all, I'm going to die. If I die, what should I do... My lord is in a hurry to head for the capital, and he has forgotten about death. "However, my death will speed up his pace of entering Beijing. The day Junfu forms an alliance with Hojo and Takeda is the day he enters Beijing." Jiro Saburo stared closely at Zen Master Xuezhai's eyes, and kept nodding his head.Under the sunlight, the old man's expression was like a wood carving, very calm and peaceful. "Of course, when passing through Owari, the Oda army probably needs to be wiped out before they can enter the capital smoothly, but the Oda people are not idle people. They form an alliance with Echigo to contain Kai, and an alliance with Mino to stop Imagawa. In this way As soon as it comes, the lord's army will have to fight the allied forces of Mino and Owari. If I were in command, I would slowly find opportunities in the confrontation, but the lord can't do it." "Why? He is not the kind of violent and reckless person." "He's not impatient. But what happened behind him made him unable to keep calm. If I were to command the battle, my lord would stay in Junfu and monitor Odawara Hojo's actions at all times until the winner was decided; but if he went out in person Commander, then the one who stays in the Junfu is Shizhen. The lord is worried about Shizhen, so he must move forward in a hurry, and..." When he said this, he pointed to the kettle beside the pillow, "I'm thirsty. Bring water..." Jiro Saburo hastily handed over the water bottle. "Moreover, the habit of the Lord's fair day is extremely unfavorable when it comes to battle. Not to mention kicking Cuju and Japanese songs, even eating delicious food will make him unable to stand long-term battles. This is also one of the reasons why he is eager for a decisive battle... " With Zen Master Xuezhai's instructions, Jiro Saburo felt that the fog on these issues had been dispelled miraculously. "Then... since we have to fight decisively in a hurry, in order to accumulate enough troops to destroy the enemy, we must send out all the troops... The leader of the vanguard is undoubtedly you." Jiro Saburo clenched his fists violently. .He hadn't thought about what would happen to the Imagawa Clan after the death of Zen Master Xuezhai. "Yuanxin... At that time, if the Lord makes you and your retainers serve as forwards, how will you react? You must think more about it." At some point, a white-cheeked bird flew over the window.Listening to its free chirping, Saburo Jiro suddenly became short of breath. "The so-called great husband, the most important thing is to be prepared for everything. If my observations are different from yours, you can tell them. I think things will definitely develop that way, what do you think?" "Yuanxin... thinks so too." "At that time, your wife was still in Junfu. If you have a wife, you will have children. My lord would probably say, to ensure that you have no worries, she will stay in Junfu and make you fight to the death... In this way, what would you do?" Jiro Saburo finally saw his true situation.He once thought that by marrying Imagawa Yoshimoto's niece and thus becoming a relative with the Imagawa family, the safety of the Matsudaira family could be guaranteed; but now it seems that even if this is not wishful thinking, it can never be said to be beneficial to the Matsudaira family.In the eyes of Zen Master Xuezhai, this marriage is more like a clever plan by Imagawa Yoshimoto to try to get Matsudaira Jiro Saburo into his bag. "Your wife and children were left in Junfu as hostages. And you were forced to fight bloody battles..." He lowered his voice cautiously, Jiro Saburo tensed his body, and said: "Do I have to give you an answer here?" Zen Master Xuezhai suddenly opened his eyes, shook his head gently and smiled: "This is the last knot I leave you. But... when this knot is untied, I will probably be dead. At that time, Yuan Xin ...Why should I leave this knot for you? Why didn't I give advice to the lord so that he can manipulate you better, but call you to my pillow first..." Jiro Saburo unconsciously shrugged his shoulders and cried.He knew that Zen Master Xuezhai loved him deeply, but he had never felt this so deeply as now.No, this is not a narrow love, but a deep and broad love. It is the great compassionate wish of a monk who is trying to create a Buddhist paradise, and is equipped with the sword of benevolence to conquer the troubled times. Just as Jiro Saburo was sobbing, Zen Master Xuezhai closed his eyes again and breathed weakly. "Master, I will answer you now." Saburo Jiro wiped away his tears.Naturally, the Zen master can't see any results after his death. He wants to see the master's satisfied smile.Youthful passion and passion filled his chest unknowingly. "Oh. You mean you can untie the knot now?" "can." "What do you think." "Wonshin will forget his wife and children who stayed in Junfu." "Forget them, and become dead?" "I don't know." "Why don't you know?" Hearing this kind of strong interrogation, Saburo Jiro's cheeks suddenly became hot, "Forget about your wife and children, and focus on the overall situation. If all Yuanxin's people are killed in battle, it can bring peace, then let's spill blood on the battlefield together. If not , then even if it is the order of Imagawa-sama, I will definitely not carry it out!" "Asshole!" Jiro Saburo shrank back in horror, but his left shoulder had already been slapped hard, which was a slap in the face from the teacher. "Hmph! Say it again." "Yes. I can say it countless times. Even Imagawa-sama's order..." While Jiro Saburo was talking, he received another blow to the head.He fell silent.Why on earth is the teacher so angry?He was surprised, and even more afraid that the emotional excitement would instantly extinguish the teacher's fragile fire of life, and he couldn't help but fell to the ground.Zen Master Xuezhai lay down again, heavy breathing sounded in the room, Jiro Saburo wept softly. "Yuanxin..." "In the." "Why are you talking so casually about things that are impossible to know... You don't have a wife and children and it's impossible to know how it feels. How casual and irresponsible it is to say you're going to forget something that hasn't happened yet." "yes……" "If you could forget about your wife and children so easily, there wouldn't be so much misery and sorrow in the world." Saburo Jiro's rash answer angered the teacher, and he wanted to apologize sincerely.If he knows that the teacher will teach him this way, no matter how unbearable it is, he will endure it. "Your mother may be praying for your safety, and she may be able to communicate with you in Aguju City... This is the mother's heart... Do you understand... The mother's heart is also the heart of nature." "yes." "Deniing this kind of love is a violation of the heart of heaven and earth, and..." he said here, shaking his hand, asking for water, "You said that you disobeyed the Lord's order, so do you think the adults will easily forgive you? Don't you think that's a lie?" Jiro Saburo felt that the blood in his whole body was frozen.Yi Yuan, who has mobilized all the troops, will not let him violate military discipline at all.He originally wanted to comfort the aging teacher, but he didn't expect to say such rash words that disappointed the teacher. "Please forgive me!" Thinking of this, he suddenly burst into tears. Zen Master Xuezhai closed his eyes again.The sunlight from the windows had been removed, the light was fading, and the birds were no longer singing. Jiro Saburo finally stopped crying.Zen Master Xuezhai said again: "Go back. I can hear about the untying of that knot even in the underworld. Do you understand? Once I make a big mistake, my soul will not be reborn, and you will not will fall into a dangerous situation. Then, bad luck will always follow you." "I will work hard, I will! Please forgive me..." "Someone seems to be coming from outside the mountain gate. Come back!" "Then... leave it alone." "You, you say this again, have you forgotten what I just said? This is not a parting. Starting from this spring, my blood will flow in your body." "yes." "If you meet someone on the road, never say that I asked you to come here. You just say that you came to me to study scriptures as usual." "Yes. Then, Yuanxin is leaving." "Take care of yourself." "yes." "Do not panic. Panic blinds." "Yes... yes." When Saburo Jiro withdrew, people who learned that Zen Master Xuezhai was ill came one after another.Just as Zen Master Xuezhai expected, no one doubted the reason for his arrival first. Yiyuan came to visit Xuezhai in person the next day. He was very surprised by the seriousness of Zen Master's condition and hurriedly ordered six doctors to come for diagnosis and treatment. But just as Zen Master Xuezhai himself sighed, the coming winter of life cannot be stopped by manpower . Within a few days, Zen Master Xuezhai left this world.When he heard the news of Zen Master Xuezhai's passing away, Saburo Jiro lit incense in his bedroom.He couldn't help recalling the very similar last words of his grandmother and Zen Master Xuezhai.His grandmother asked him to try his best to avoid the war with his mother, while Zen Master Xuezhai let him inherit his behest.The last words of the two pointed out the root of the tragedy, which was Yiyuan's entry into Beijing.Whether it is the last wish of his grandmother or the knot left by Zen Master Xuezhai, fourteen-year-old Jiro Saburo cannot easily give an answer. Zen Master Xuezhai's prophecy became a reality immediately after his funeral.In March of that year, Miyoshi Changqing captured the two castles of Harima Akashi and Sanshu; Echigo’s Nagao Kagetora and Kai’s Takeda Harunobu fought fiercely on Kawanakajima, which not only showed Echigo’s power that should not be underestimated, but even seemed to be taking advantage of the situation Straight to Kanto, the territory of Hojo's Yasushi family.These incidents have attracted the attention of the Imagawa family, but the spies Yoshimoto sent out in mid-October, when Zen Master Xuezhai was about to be mourned, now brought back a shocking news: Morimoto had already destroyed Tao Qingxian of Itsukushima, and attempted to kill him in the near future. into Beijing.The situation is forcing Yoshimoto, who is about to enter his forties, and he must act quickly. All the heroes are vying to enter Beijing.Hojo, Nagao, Takeda, Miyoshi, Mori... are now at the starting point of entering Beijing, and the next step is to see who can reach the end first.If you can't bring the Oda clan under your command diplomatically, you must destroy them, otherwise you will lose the opportunity to enter Beijing.Anxious Yoshimoto finally advances Jiro Saburo's wedding date to January 5th of the following year.Yoshimoto called Jiro Saburo.In front of him, Yoshimoto showed a relaxed smile. "You have finally grown up. After the wedding, you can go back to Okazaki Castle for a while, pay homage to your father and grandfather, and take a look at your retainers." He said generously. "Thank you." Saburo Jiro didn't say much, bowed his head in thanks, he was still comprehending the knot in his heart.