Chapter 455 14. Decision to March to Seize the Mountain

The conch shells in Hamamatsu Castle were blown, followed by the bells, drums, and cymbals below the castle. The messengers with two flags of Yamanouchi and two others behind them rode out of Hamamatsu Castle on horseback and on foot.

This was how it was during the Warring States Period. No matter what your job was or who you were, once the drums sounded, no matter who you were, you had to report to Hamamatsu Castle with your gun.

First, the foot soldiers in the castle gathered, and then in the castle town, those who were still weaving straw mats, peeling shells, and carrying large bags all dropped their work.

Then, along the spider-web-like streets, the farmers who were preparing for spring ploughing had to put down their hoes and plows, go home to put on their domaru gear, wear swords and hold guns, and bid farewell to their wives and children to serve the country.

Once the war machine started rolling, they could not hurt the enemy, but hurt themselves first. It was inevitable that the industrial and agricultural production of Hamamatsu would be greatly affected.

But Xiaoping had no choice. He had to obey the king's orders. People say that the compassion of Arhats also has the appearance of angry eyes. Those who are blindly lenient cannot become generals.

After waiting for Iwase Motomasa to lead the 300 Takatenjins to join Kobayata's army, the 4,000-strong army finally assembled.

The soldiers who originally had some complaints, after receiving the promise of "no roll call for three days after entering West Mikawa," their anger dissipated a lot, and they set out with high spirits.

Leaving Hamamatsu, Kobayata went straight to Yoshida Castle in Atsumi County, Mikawa Province, along the Tokai Road that Imagawa Yoshimoto spent thousands of taels of gold to renovate.

Although Imagawa Yoshimoto died, he still left a solid thoroughfare for future generations.

After Imagawa Yoshimoto's death, Yoshida Castle Lord Udono Nagateru united the pro-Imagawa people in East Mikawa to establish a national consultation system and form an alliance for self-defense. In the past two years, he was pulled and beaten by Yamanouchi Yoshiharu, and he was considered to be on the pirate ship of the Yamanouchi family. The key point is that except for the request of sending troops to help in the war, everything else was handled by them.

In the situation where he could not advance and was powerless to protect himself, Udono Nagakatsu still understood the principle of leaning on a big tree for shade. Other people might be shaken, but he was still loyal to the Yamanouchi clan. When the Yamanouchi clan's military service arrived, he quickly agreed.

Kobayata also knew how to behave. He was considered a vassal force, so he had to give him some travel expenses. When he met Udono Nagakatsu, he first paid 200 strings of Yongle money and 300 stones of rice. At least he reimbursed his military rations. At this time, any loyal person was worthy of praise.

"Yoshida-dono, how are the counties of Okada, Hatazu, and Kamo?" Kobayata was carrying the king's order, so he didn't bother to be polite.

"The Ikki has already taken all the counties, and the military force has temporarily stopped, but there are many dirty secrets surrounding the ownership of Okazaki Castle."

"Okazaki was in the hands of Sanshu Honshoji before, right?" Kobayata remembered that Okazaki had been captured by the Ikko clan before.

"But Sakurai (Matsudaira) Michiharu was quite dissatisfied with this and asked for it many times, hoping to enter Okazaki to unify the Matsudaira families in the three states and fight against Oda Danjo in Oshu."

The Ikko clan was mainly because their economic interests were violated. Matsudaira Ieyasu inspected the land, extorted, and even started to rob, forcing them to rebel.

But Matsudaira Michiharu and other forces were different. They were purely opposed to the peaceful Matsudaira clan bowing to the Oda clan and being a licker, and fighting for the dominance of the Matsudaira clan. It was an internal conflict. Of course, the political struggle was a life-and-death struggle. Now, Matsudaira Ieyasu has been driven away.

The last old forces such as Mikawa Kira and Arakawa, with the purpose of self-preservation and restoration of their families, had less clear demands and less ambitions. They did not want to establish a Buddhist country on earth, nor did they want to unify the three states to establish a great cause. It can be ignored and there is no need to worry too much.

So how should we help Matsudaira Ieyasu return to his country?

The Western Mikawa Ikki included tens of thousands of people, including men, women, old and young. Their backbones were all monks of the Ikko sect and the people of Mikawa. Their fighting power was different from that of ordinary Ikki.

It was a bit risky to fight against tens of thousands of Mikawa Ikki with 5,000 people. Kobayata was not very confident and prepared to brainstorm.

"No matter how many routes they come, we will go all the way!" Uncle Tsunayoshi pointed to the simple map of Mikawa and said.

"The Mikawa Ikki is mainly divided into three groups. The old Kirara faction can be temporarily abandoned. Which one should we attack first?"

The strength of Kobayata's subordinates is definitely enough to overthrow one of the groups, but Kobayata is still hesitating about who to attack first?

"Which group will Oda attack first?" Imagawa Yoshichika was more concerned about when the Oda family's troops would be dispatched.

"We are in contact. The news should be delivered soon." Kobayata also brought hundreds of naval forces this time. Who said that Western Mikawa was in chaos and difficult to pass, so Ataka Kiyokusa, Shimizu Yoshitsugu and Omura Masuji all went out together.

"Have you mastered the route in Chita?" Kobayata looked at Kiyokatsu Ataka who answered. The Chita Peninsula in Owari and the Atsumi Peninsula in Mikawa are just like the two corners of the crab claws, forming the Chita Bay.

"His Highness Oda's brother-in-law, Saji-san, sent two experienced sailors to guide the voyage, there will be no problem."

"Okay, that's good! Once there is news from the Oda side, report it immediately."

Tens of thousands of troops belong to three parties, and the Oda-Matsudaira coalition forces of more than 4,000 are still in Anxiang Castle. The biggest taboo of marching is to be defeated one by one. Fortunately, the Mikawa uprising did not have a unified command, so no one could unite to fight back.

"Is the whole army of Tansho going back to Mikawa?" Imai Meigoro also came to join the battle with his troops.

"Hmm?" Kobayata certainly couldn't say that it was mainly to complete the alliance, and then let the soldiers grab a lot to boost the morale of the army.

"What do you mean, Meigoro? Just say it directly." Kobayata blushed and waved his hand.

"The Mikawa Rebellion has been going on for more than half a year, and the military resources of all parties have been greatly consumed. If we want to gain something, Sakurai Castle may not be able to satisfy the three armies."

Imai Meigoro also learned bad things. He did not say that there was still money and food in Honshoji Temple, but said that there was probably nothing to rob in Sakurai Castle.

As soon as he finished speaking, the shrewd uncle Tsunara nodded with a knowing smile, and he had already agreed. Not long after, the others also reacted one after another.

Fighting is secondary. From top to bottom, everyone wants to make money. If you can't make money from fighting, then what's the point of fighting!

"Then send a message to Oda and Mikawa-dono that our army will advance to Honshoji Temple and cut off one arm of the Mikawa Ikki."

Kobayata knocked on the table with his bamboo stick, and the others responded in unison, expressing their agreement with the decision of this military meeting.

The generals and soldiers in the city and below heard the news of the advance to Honshoji Temple, and they were all excited. Before, the fact that Uesugi Terutora led a large army to advance to Zenkoji Temple made many people jealous, and that was tens of thousands of kan in cash.

The foot soldiers only regretted that they did not bring all the cloth bags and bag wraps from home. The cloth bags and straw bags in the nearby villages were all bought up by the soldiers at once, and everyone was afraid that they would not have enough bags.

They were so happy.