Chapter 365 24. The Traitor Invaded Luojing in the Middle of the Night

"Come here! Why is there so much noise in Kyoto?" Ashikaga Yoshiteru, who had just laid down, also heard the chaotic noise in Kyoto.

The attendant outside the door gently opened the screen door and walked into the house on his knees.

"Your Highness, there seems to be a big fire somewhere in Kyoto. The sound of the fire extinguisher's clapper has been sounded in the whole town. It seems that the situation is critical." The attendant replied respectfully. Anyway, if it is a big fire, it will not be a big problem. The fire extinguisher has been running well in the past year, and there is no fire nearby, so it has nothing to do with the safety of the imperial palace.

Ashikaga Yoshiteru frowned, stood up, put on his clothes, and walked to the corridor. Sure enough, the sound of the clapper ordering the fire extinguishers in Kyoto and Kyoto continued to come, and the sound of people's voices was heard, and the Kyoto was in turmoil.

Such a big fire might have burned half of the street, or it might have burned the mansion of some noble in the palace.

Could it be the Imperial Palace?

"Quickly send someone to find the Hosokawa Military Department to find out where the fire is, what the fire is like, and whether it is necessary to mobilize the public to help put out the fire." Although Ashikaga Yoshiteru has a good relationship with the court, it is a big deal if the Imperial Palace catches fire.

"Your Highness, Lord Hosokawa's report has arrived." Just as he was about to find someone, Hosokawa Fujitaka's people arrived.

"Quickly call him, I will ask him in person." The attendants did not need to be told and hurried to help Ashikaga Yoshiteru put on his clothes. And Yamauchi Yoshikatsu, who was awakened by the noise, also rushed over.

"Your Highness, why is there so much noise in the capital?" "It's not clear yet. The Ministry of War has sent someone to report. Let's go together."

...

"Your Highness, there is an unknown military force attacking outside the capital. Judging from the torches, there are no less than 3,000 people!" The report was said quickly and hurriedly. It was not hot at night, and he was sweating and panting.

"Three thousand? Someone actually attacked Luojing at night!" Yamauchi Yoshikatsu exclaimed. Anyway, there were no shogunate retainers in the imperial palace, just the two cousins, so it was not taboo.

"Your Highness, please ring the bronze bell of Kokubunji Temple immediately and order the officials in the capital to come to the Imperial Palace to help. The Ministry of War will gather and come to the Imperial Palace to help immediately after the fire is extinguished." The messenger said Hosokawa Fujitaka's original words, and the situation was very urgent.

"Got it, you quickly tell the Ministry of War to come to the Imperial Palace as soon as possible." Ashikaga Yoshiteru showed an anxious look on his face.

Then the 5,000-jin Kokubunji bronze bell that resounded throughout Kyoto was suddenly struck, and hundreds of thousands of townspeople, nobles and officials in Kyoto could all hear it clearly.

The shogunate is asking for help!

The armor and weapons stored in the Imperial Palace were taken out by the attendants. Yamanouchi Yoshikatsu and Ashikaga Yoshiteru were not much different in stature, and he immediately put on Yoshiteru's large armor. Although it was a bit heavy, it had good protection. It was not a big problem for Yamanouchi Yoshikatsu, who had practiced martial arts for many years, and it did not affect his combat performance.

The bell was still ringing, and the shogunate officials who stayed in the capital came to the Imperial Palace in twos and threes. Ashikaga Yoshiteru had thirty men, Yamauchi Yoshikatsu had twenty men, and there were dozens of scattered people, all armed.

Thanks to Ashikaga Yoshiteru's good reputation, he would work hard to deal with anything related to the face of the Muromachi shogunate, and would never cut corners.

The outer wall of the imperial palace was completely built of stone, then painted with red mud, and then painted with white lime. It is not only beautiful and atmospheric, but also has excellent fire resistance, and is solid and has extremely high defense!

The double-eaved door, the door bolt is thicker than a woman's waist, and the two doors weigh more than a hundred pounds each. It is not necessarily possible to knock them open with any battering ram.

In a sense, Ashikaga Yoshiteru not only has face, but also has a solid defense. Now there are more than a hundred people in it, so he is a little more confident and begins to sit firmly in the center of the army.

In addition, his big brother Yamauchi Yoshikatsu happened to be there, and his status was noble, so it was no big deal for the shogunate to command a hundred people. Assign fingers and draw, and let those who can use bows and arrows gather together to guard the gate carefully. At the same time, people who were not blind at night were sent to go out to the streets, climb onto the roofs, and observe the enemy situation.

There were constantly people entering the palace, and in just half an hour, there were already more than 200 people in the palace. Ashikaga Yoshiteru also climbed onto the roof of the central hall without regard for etiquette. The fire dragon outside the capital had already entered Kyoto. Now the number of people can be clearly distinguished, and it is probably no less than 5,000!

"It seems to be the army of the Miyoshi Three!" Yamauchi Yoshikatsu, who was also observing the enemy situation, saw it clearly.

"Three-level diamond nails are pulled out, the Miyoshi Three are really arrogant, and dare to attack Luojing at night!" Ashikaga Yoshiteru was furious.

"No, there are also Marunokatsu, Matsunaga Kingo also joined the rebels!" Another exclamation. [Note 1]

"Good! Good! Good!" Ashikaga Yoshiteru said three good things in a row.

The Miyoshi Three and Matsunaga Hisamune's 5,000 troops surrounded the palace tightly, but did not attack the palace immediately, but sent a messenger into the palace.

"Your Highness, please resign and visit Jiangzhou. My lord is willing to offer 2,000 kan of money to help your Highness with the expenses of carriages and horses." The messenger was Matsunaga Saburo, the head of Matsunaga Nagamichi's wakamachu. He was also a man who had seen some of the world, at least his name was recorded in the Tamon-in Chronicle.

"Don't bother your lord. As a general, you should stay in Luojing!"

"Your Highness, you usurpers can't interfere in the affairs of the shogunate! Hurry back and tell Matsunaga Kingo, it's impossible!" Yamauchi Yoshikatsu shouted at Matsunaga Saburo and told him to get out.

Matsunaga Saburo saw that there were only 200 people in the palace, smiled contemptuously, and did not answer. He bowed his head slightly and saluted, then waved his sleeves and left the hall.

"Why hasn't the Ministry of War come yet?" When he dismissed Matsunaga Saburo, Ashikaga Yoshiteru looked very calm, but he was still unsure when he saw the 5,000 bandits.

But he was not too scared. He had understood the words of the Miyoshi Three and Matsunaga Nagamichi. It was simply that he was too much of an eyesore as a general, which was detrimental to the power and wealth of Kyoto held by the Miyoshi Three and Matsunaga Hisamichi.

They probably wanted to follow their predecessors' example and exile Ashikaga Yoshiteru, so that Ashikaga Yoshiteru could find a daimyo to eat for free. They would then support a puppet, turn black and white upside down, and they would become the great loyal retainers of the shogunate, with power and wealth at their fingertips.

Ashikaga Yoshiteru was not scared, his father was beaten away, and he was also beaten away by Miyoshi Nagayoshi. Once is unfamiliar, second is familiar, and their shogunate has been a famous long-distance running champion for generations, almost running all over Japan, and their skills are very skilled.

To comfort him, another fire dragon swarmed outside the Imperial Palace. The Luoyang Town fire and firemen and some of the public servants who were temporarily armed by Hosokawa Fujitaka also rushed to the Imperial Palace and confronted the coalition forces of Miyoshi and Matsunaga.

"Didn't they say that there were 30 guards in the Imperial Palace! There are 500 public servants in the capital!"

"Where did the Hosokawa military department on the opposite side get more than a thousand people!"

...

The Miyoshi Three Men who set up their main camp in Zixiao Road (really just a place name) and Matsunaga Hisamichi had a dispute.

"We can't let the Hosokawa army enter the palace. Shusui (Iwanari Tomomichi), take your men to stop them." The sinister look on Matsunaga Nagamichi's face was a little scary under the torchlight.

"Send a letter to the palace. If they don't leave now, they can't leave!"

The pine branch torch burst into flames with a "crack"!

[Note 1]: At this time, the head of the Matsunaga family was not Matsunaga Hisahide, but his son Matsunaga Nagamichi. Matsunaga Nagamichi had previously been appointed as the fifth rank of Uemonsa, so he was called Matsunaga Kingo to distinguish him from his father Matsunaga Dansho.