The Self-Cultivation of Warring States Warriors

Page 39

"Instead of arguing over irrelevant people, I'm more concerned about whether the war will affect my business!"

"Short-term price increases may be beneficial to us. But if the war drags on, trade routes will definitely be cut off, and that would be troublesome."

"The struggle between the two powerful clans, Miyoshi and Amago, won't end so quickly. In short, everyone should try to stockpile as much goods as possible these next few days."

"Fortunately, I had prepared several hundred bushels of rice in advance, just waiting for the price to rise."

"I'm completely unprepared, and it's probably too late to make a move now!"

"Even an hour earlier would be better! I'm too drunk to drink much, so I'll take my leave now. Please enjoy your meal."

"Then I shall take my leave."

"Same below."

……

This was in mid-April of the 24th year of the Tianwen era (1555).

In the western part of Settsu Province, on the coast near Ikuta Shrine, in the "Torii-mae-cho" (Torii-mae Town), local merchants are worried about the potential war.

Meanwhile, in a corner of the pub, a few discreet out-of-town travelers were secretly sharing their joy.

Uozumi Hikoshiro raised his wine dish as if to offer a toast, but actually covered his face with his sleeve and said in a low voice, "Lord Munehisa's judgment was indeed correct. A major war has really broken out! The batch of furs we had in advance are now worth even more!"

Imai Munehisa smiled slightly, took a sip of sake, and replied in a low voice with a nonchalant air, "That's right. Moreover, Hikoshiro probably doesn't know that at the tea party a few days ago, Miyoshi Toyozen and Matsunaga Danjo both said that the troops need leather to repair their armor and have already asked me to buy some. The total should be about five hundred pieces."

"That's fantastic!" Uozumi Hikoshiro subconsciously raised his voice, then immediately showed an apologetic expression. He carefully looked around to make sure no one was paying attention before relaxing and covering his face with his hand to ask, "Lord Munehisa, how much are you planning to bid? I think that once the battle between Miyoshi and Amago begins, a single piece of leather will be worth at least seven or eight hundred mon. If it goes on for a while, it might even exceed one kan!"

Imai Munehisa smiled, lowered his eyes and said softly, "I plan to increase the market price of 500 sen per coin by 10%, which is 550 sen."

"This...this..." Uozumi Hikoshiro stared in disbelief, straightening up and covering his mouth as he said, "We spent so much money last month, buying such a large quantity, and it only cost us 465 mon. If we only sell each one for 550 mon, we'll only make a meager profit, with hardly any profit at all!"

He spoke in a low voice, but his tone was urgent, and his face was filled with confusion.

Imai Munehisa remained unmoved, slowly extending two fingers as he explained, “I have two reasons. First, it is to demonstrate our friendship to Lords Miyoshi Toyozen and Matsunaga Danjo. After all, we met at an elegant tea party, and it wouldn’t be good if they thought we were greedy and unscrupulous merchants.”

“That makes sense.” Uozumi Hikoshiro nodded reluctantly, but still muttered unwillingly, “But to show this, the lost profits could be as high as hundreds of kan, which is just… The friendship of important people is truly a luxury.”

"Don't rush, there's a second reason!" Imai Munehisa glanced out of the tavern for a moment, then lowered his already deep voice even further, saying meaningfully, "During the tea party, those two lords were only pretending to be worried; in reality, they showed no signs of the anxiety one would expect before a battle. Therefore, I believe that although this battle is large-scale, it may not actually escalate into a fierce battle between Miyoshi and Amago. Perhaps it will only be a series of small skirmishes and standoffs, followed by peace talks."

"Huh? No way?" Uozumi Hikoshiro naturally lowered his voice further, leaning forward with an incredulous expression. "Mobilizing so many troops, but only stopping short of the main force? Isn't that a complete waste of money and supplies? Lord Munehisa, are you really confident about this?"

“I can’t figure out the specific reason either. After all, I’ve never been a samurai, so I can’t put myself in the samurai’s shoes.” Imai Munehisa shook his head, frankly admitting his shortcomings, but at the same time, his words also revealed a strong sense of confidence: “However, the meaning that Lords Miyoshi Toyozen and Matsunaga Danjo unintentionally showed is indeed so. I’m not wrong about that.”

"Hmm... I understand." After a moment's thought, Uozumi Hikoshiro nodded decisively and said, "The reason I decided to leave Hibiya is because I have unwavering faith in you. That faith remains unchanged today."

"Thank you." Imai Munehisa bowed and said, "After you become wealthy and powerful, I will certainly not let you down!"

“Of course,” Hikoshiro Uozumi returned the greeting. Then, a thought struck him, and he said, “Kubo Genban, whom we met not long ago, is now famous all the way to Settsu! He seems to be stationed nearby. Shall we go and see our old friend?”

"It's not difficult for us to enter the Miyoshi family's military camp..." Imai Munehisa said with a smile, "However, Lord Kubo Genban is in a bad mood, being forced to participate in an expedition during his honeymoon period, so let's not disturb him."

"Is that so?" A lewd expression appeared on Uozumi Hikoshiro's baby face as he chuckled and said, "In that case, shouldn't we send a beauty to comfort him?"

077 "Real Fight" vs. "Fake Fight"

Kubo Shinzaburo Yoshiaki, who was called "Genban," was indeed in a very bad mood at the moment.

It wasn't just because he was forced to participate in an expedition less than three months after his marriage.

That's only a small part of the reason.

What truly displeased him was the complex and ever-changing political situation.

Originally, after achieving an unprecedented victory against the Hatano family at the end of last year, Shinzaburo thought that this year's plan would be to strike while the iron was hot and strive for even greater results.

That's exactly how things turned out.

At the beginning of the year, some local lords in the northern mountainous region of Tanba, who had previously remained neutral, changed their attitude and took the initiative to contact Yagi Castle, saying that they wanted to attack the Akai family in Hikami District together and divide their territory.

Matsunaga Nagayori, of course, had no reason to disagree.

During last year's Battle of Honmeiyama, the Akai family sent over a thousand reinforcements, but suffered considerable losses and is currently in poor condition.

As for why they didn't continue their attack on the Hatano family, it's because they're currently holed up in a mountain valley in the southwest of Taki County, where the surrounding terrain is too treacherous, making it like a turtle shell.

Otherwise, why has this godforsaken place of Tanba been unable to be unified for so long?

However, while the two sides were discussing the details, Miyoshi Nagayoshi suddenly issued a military order in the name of Hosokawa Ujitsuna, ordering Matsunaga Nagayori to lead his troops to Takiyama Castle in Settsu Province to prepare to enter Harima Province and participate in the important battle against the Izumo Amago clan.

With the top leader speaking, the previous plans had to be abandoned.

However, the local lords of northern Tanba, led by the Adachi and Ashida families, claimed that they were capable of defeating the Akai family on their own, even without the reinforcements of Matsunaga Nagayori!

This sounds worrying, but there's nothing we can do about it.

After all, Matsunaga Nagayori, as a retainer of the Miyoshi family, had an obligation to respond to the Miyoshi family's call first.

The people of northern Tanba, accustomed to being far from the emperor and independent, would not easily heed the advice of outsiders.

Moreover, Miyoshi Nagayoshi repeatedly emphasized that this battle against the Izumo Amago clan was extremely important, and that none of the generals should be absent.

Given this, Shinzaburo, being a local of Tanba, felt there was no reason to complain.

Previously, the two campaigns against Hatano had both involved the deployment of large numbers of troops from Settsu and Yamashiro, which was the only way to achieve a major victory.

You've enjoyed the benefits of the Sanhao family community before, so now it's natural for you to do your part.

The principle of equal rights and responsibilities!

But the problem is-

After listening to Matsunaga Magoro recount the whole story, Shinzaburo discovered that the grand plan of "entering Harima to fight against the Izumo Amago clan" was actually not what it seemed at all.

……

The story begins last September.

At that time, on the border between Settsu and Harima, a small faction called the "Arima Clan" and another small faction called the "Miki Clan" fought a small battle with a total of less than a thousand people.

As a result, the Ma family was defeated and lost a large amount of territory.

Of course, for them, five villages represent a "large amount of territory".

However, the Arima family had already nominally submitted to the Miyoshi family long ago.

Since they couldn't beat their wicked neighbor on their own, they decided to seek help from the powerful figure behind him.

When Miyoshi Nagayoshi learned of this, he didn't take it too seriously and sent Miyoshi Nagayoshi with three thousand men to help his younger brother.

As a result, Miyoshi Nagayoshi accidentally overdid it and, in just ten days, completely annihilated the Miki family and occupied all of their territories.

It was said to encompass "all the territories," which was actually twenty villages plus a few earthen strongholds.

Miyoshi Nagayoshi was too lazy to manage things personally, so he retreated to his base after the battle and left his underlings, the Arima family, to be in charge of the defense.

Unexpectedly, the Miki family also had powerful backers.

The elder brother of that person belongs to another family.

The Bessho family occupies eight districts in eastern Harima. Although their strength is far from enough to compete with the Miyoshi family, they can still mobilize eight thousand troops and have always been quite martial.

At the end of the year, after receiving a request for help from the Miki family, they immediately dispatched troops to help the Miki family defeat the Arima family and make them flee in terror.

As a result, tensions began to rise at the border between Settsu and Harima.

Originally, although the Miyoshi family and the Bessho family had adjacent territories, the former kept its sights on Kyoto, while the latter was wary of Urakami, the arch-enemy of Nishi-Harima. The two families kept to themselves and did not interfere with each other.

Unexpectedly, the conflict among the underlings turned the peaceful situation into a very dangerous one.

The Bessho family, believing themselves no match for the Miyoshi family but unwilling to back down, quickly contacted Amago Haruhisa, the "Governor of the Eleven Provinces of Yin and Yang" in Izumo Province, seeking assistance.

That guy claimed to have eleven territories, but he obviously didn't actually control that many, but he was still a powerful daimyo who could summon tens of thousands of troops.

If Amago Haruhisa were to be eliminated, Miyoshi Nagayoshi would definitely be in for a headache.

At this point, there was still room for mediation.

however--

Ashikaga Yoshiteru, the exiled shogun under the protection of the Rokkaku family in Kuchiki-dani, Omi Province, was now preoccupied with seeking revenge against the Miyoshi family. He saw this opportunity and quickly dispatched an envoy to contact Amago Haruhisa, inviting him to send troops.

Amago Haruhisa had previously received the title of "Gosōbanshū" (a high-ranking official in charge of official duties) and the governorship of eight provinces in the Kansai region from Ashikaga Yoshiteru, thus incurring a debt of gratitude. He immediately responded to the shogunate's call, dispatching his eldest son, Amago Yoshihisa, to assemble troops in Mimasaka, with the chief retainer Nakai Hisakane as his deputy, claiming to lead 30,000 troops, in preparation for entering Harima to confront the Miyoshi.

Now that things have come to this point, the nature of the situation has changed.

It's no longer just a trivial dispute between two small forces on the border.

But this involves a core issue, which is—

After being driven out of Kyoto, could Ashikaga Yoshiteru still represent the authority of the Muromachi Shogunate?

Amago Haruhisa claimed to have deployed 30,000 troops, and his answer seemed to be "yes".

So Miyoshi Nagayoshi announced that he would mobilize 40,000 troops to give a "no" response.

……

After learning the whole story, Shinzaburo felt both amused and exasperated.

Clearly, neither Miyoshi Nagayoshi nor Amago Haruhisa had any real plans to conquer Harima Province at this time, nor did they have the conditions to establish a foothold in Harima Province.

Both sides deployed large armies for political purposes.

Therefore, it is highly unlikely that a fierce battle will actually occur. It is more likely that there will be a stalemate for a while, with everyone shouting a lot of slogans, each side taking down a few stubborn small forces to expand their territory, and then unilaterally declaring victory.

At other times, Shinsaburo might have thought that going through the motions, making a brief appearance, and shouting a few slogans wouldn't be too risky and there was nothing wrong with it.

I haven't left Tanba since I transmigrated, so this trip has broadened my horizons.

However, there was also a war going on in Tanba at that time!

And this isn't some politically motivated charade; they're really serious over there!

In order to cooperate with the "fake fight," they didn't care about the "real fight," which is somewhat humorous.

Previously, the local lords in northern Tanba, led by Adachi and Ashida, claimed that they were capable of defeating the Akai family on their own, which was truly unsettling.

Shinzaburo was a hardcore Koei Tecmo player and a seasoned history enthusiast in his previous life. He knew perfectly well that there was a young man named Naomasa Akai in the Tanba Akai family.

In the original timeline, that guy apparently killed Matsunaga Nagayori.

……

Incidentally, after Miyoshi Nagayoshi supported Hosokawa Ujitsuna, a member of the Hosokawa clan, to replace Hosokawa Harumoto as the Kanrei of the Shogunate, he also planned to support Ashikaga Yoshinobu, a member of the Ashikaga clan, to replace Ashikaga Yoshiteru as the Shogun.

Everything was almost ready, but in order to completely seize power over Awa Province, Nagayoshi's second brother, Miyoshi Yoshikata, killed Hosokawa Mochitaka, the nominal governor of Awa Province.

This person was also a collateral descendant of the Hosokawa family.

Ashikaga Yoshinobu and Hosokawa Mochitaka were close friends and brothers, and Ashikaga Yoshinobu was both angry and afraid of this, so he fled to Kyushu to seek refuge.

Without this card in his hand, Miyoshi Nagayoshi could no longer carry out his plan to enthrone Ashikaga Yoshinobu, so he had no choice but to send a persuader with generous gifts to Kyushu to try and slowly convince Ashikaga Yoshinobu to return.

At the same time, they also had to consider the possibility of turning an enemy into a friend with Ashikaga Yoshiteru.

Clearly, if Kyoto never has a shogun in charge, then the new Kanrei you supported, Hosokawa Ujitsuna, will be significantly less capable.

In short, if the conflict with the Amago family was a dark comedy, then this half-finished attempt to enthrone him was more like a farce.

Perhaps this is just how the Miyoshi family's regime was, always filled with various awkward elements. Whether it was the official status at the top or the foundation of their rule at the grassroots level, it was all built in an unstable way.

Sometimes it feels like Sanhao Changqing places too much emphasis on traditional order, to the point that he often sacrifices practical interests.

But he built his current vast empire brick by brick, so what right do others have to criticize him?

078 Matsunaga Family Homework

The forward command post of the Miyoshi Army was located in Eshiki Castle in the eastern part of Harima Province.

This castle was built on flat land by the coast, offering no natural defenses. Therefore, the castle lord, Akashi Yuyuki, as an outsider retainer of the Bessho family, chose to flee in advance and seek refuge with relatives by marriage.

The situation in Harima is very complicated. In theory, Akamatsu Harumasa is in charge of protecting it, but in reality, it is full of powerful local clans.

There is Bessho in the east, Urakami in the west, and Kodera and Uno in the central region. Wars of alliances and conflicts frequently break out between these various factions.

They didn't care what name the Miyoshi and Amago families came under; they only acted according to their own interests.

The detached house to the east has already fallen out with Miyoshi, so naturally they are now on good terms with the Amago family.

Urakami in the west was unwilling for the Amago army to pass through his territory, so he chose to side with Miyoshi and also formed an alliance with the Mori family of Aki.

Koji and Uno in the central region did not show any obvious attitude, and both defended their castles and maintained a cautious neutrality.

Akamatsu Harumasa, the nominal governor of Harima, has always had a good relationship with the Miyoshi family and has a grudge against the Amago family. So he came to Miyoshi Nagayoshi early on to seek refuge, hoping to use his influence to restore some of the authority of the prestigious family.

……