Love is like a gust of wind, but hate will take root.
Hate is an emotion that is more unforgettable than love. As time goes by, the love of the past may fade away, but hate is like a glass of wine, getting higher and higher.
Maybe one day, the Asai family will perish, the city king will return to the Oda family, and will be arranged by Oda Nobunaga to remarry, and Asai Nagamasa will become a regret in his memory.
Looking back on the past, the love I once longed for may become dispensable, and I may even feel ridiculous for my naivety.
But he will never forget who occupied Asai Nagamasa's heart, and who made him unable to love her, leaving him alone in the empty room, tossing and turning, filled with hatred.
This hatred will accompany him throughout his life and will have a profound impact on the future of this troubled world.
At this time, Ichijun was just a married woman who was weeping and feeling sorry for herself because he could not get the response from his wife. He was dejected by his unrequited love.
———
While Kitanomi Asai Nagamasa was in trouble, Akechi Mitsuhide, who had returned to Kyoto, received an unexpected visitor.
Kyoto, Shiba Residence, Tea Room.
Akechi Mitsuhide smiled gracefully, covered his mouth and said.
"Ni Ziji, you are so lucky.
I just found a new tea person to prepare for the autumn tea party. You came just in time to taste her tea art with me and help me check it."
Nizi Shengjiu nodded with a smile, and the two of them looked at the tea man performing the show without saying anything for a while.
After the tea man presented the tea, he bowed and left. Akechi Mitsuhide picked up the tea soup and said with a smile.
"Tell me the truth, are you here for me, the tea lover?
Let me make it clear to you, I will not let this person go to you. When socializing in Kyoto, I must use her to entertain guests."
Nizi Shengjiu smiled, not taking it seriously.
Akechi Mitsuhide was not worried about her stealing the tea lover, he was just trying to test her purpose of going to Luo Jingdu for a meeting.
Nizi Shengjiu also picked up the tea soup, took a sip and sighed.
"At the foot of Kyoto, there are many talents, and the tea masters are also extraordinary. This technique and skill can only be matched by a few famous tea masters in Sakai Port."
Akechi Mitsuhide smiled.
"The person I like is naturally good.
In two days, Matsunaga Hide will also come to Beijing. She even wrote a letter in advance to name her, asking me to use this tea person to entertain her visit. I don’t know where I got the news. She is really well-informed."
Nizi Shengjiu raised his eyebrows.
"Matsuhisa Hide? I remember that you and her have not been in contact for some time?"
Akechi Mitsuhide nodded and sighed.
"Yes, I made friends with Tsutsui Junkei and Matsunaga Hide over tea, but who knew that things are unpredictable, they had some misunderstandings about me, and they lost some communication.
Fortunately, Matsunaga-hime seems to have missed our friendship recently, and I am very happy that she is willing to come to me this time."
Nizi Katsuhisa's lips twitched when he heard this, and he felt that Akechi Mitsuhide was really shady.
Back then, Tsutsui Junkei and Matsunagahide had good relations with Akechi Mitsuhide. It was because the master gave Akechi Mitsuhide full responsibility for the foreign affairs of the Shiba family.
Those two people wanted to befriend Akechi Mitsuhide, so they deliberately made friends. Who knew that Akechi Mitsuhide was not a thing, and made the two people miserable.
Tsutsui Junkei has always wanted to take over Kofukuji Temple, get hold of Master Nagakaku, and completely control the secular power of the Yamato Buddhist Kingdom.
Akechi Mitsuhide gave her reassurance, saying that he would help block Kofukuji Temple's channels for seeking help from the Shiba family, allowing her to deal with Master Nagakaku with peace of mind.
When Tsutsui Junkei actually took action, Akechi Mitsuhide made big news in Kyoto.
Miyoshi went to Luo and killed the general. Shiba Yiyin rushed back from Kanto. Master Changjue finally waited for the person who could make the decision in the Shiba family.
Tsutsui Junkei was scared to death by this. No matter how courageous she was, she would not dare to be involved in the samurai case that killed the general. In order to avoid suspicion, she had no choice but to go back to Tsutsui Castle, and all her previous plans were invalidated.
Mitsuhide Akechi helped her but stabbed her in the back. Junkei Tsutsui was not willing to talk to her anymore, and they stopped interacting with her from then on.
The same goes for Matsunaga Hide.
Akechi Mitsuhide asked Honda Masanobu to hide the truth from her as a mother, and lure her daughter Matsunaga Michi to provide convenience to the Miyoshi family in Kamiro, and even got involved in the scandal of burning the imperial palace and killing the Ashikaga family members.
But she had no evidence to prove Mitsuhide Akechi. She was accused of being a traitor and had to praise Mitsuhide Akechi in front of Ashikaga Yoshiaki and Oda Nobunaga. It was really frustrating.
Matsunaga Hide hates Akechi Mitsuhide so much, how can he continue to be friends with such a bastard?
Therefore, when Nizi Katsuhisa heard that Matsuhisa had healed his scar and had forgotten the pain, and was hanging out with Akechi Mitsuhide, he was so shocked that he forgot his purpose and became curious about this gossip.
Akechi Mitsuhide didn't hide it from her and said with a smile.
"Matsuhisa Nagahide's life was difficult. Although he used that idiot Mibuchi Fujihide to drive away Wada Weimasa, he still couldn't end up well in the end.
This time, Her Majesty Oda was in disgrace in Echizen Country. The Asai Asakura coalition almost killed her, which made her very angry.
As soon as she returned to Kyoto, she added seven more articles of agreement to Ashikaga Shogun of Nijo Castle, which, combined with the nine articles of the previous imperial order, made a total of sixteen articles of agreement.
This is to strictly standardize the behavior of the Ashikaga General. It does not leave any face to our new general, and it also prevents her from casually communicating with the outside world.
Now, when the general wants to squat in the toilet, people are watching to see if she squats in compliance with the regulations."
Akechi Mitsuhide was gloating about the misfortune, and Nizi Katsuhisa's forehead twitched when she heard it. As a traditional martial artist, it was really difficult for her to accept Oda Nobunaga's arrogance and domineering attitude.
After all, Ashikaga Shogun is the lord of the world. At that time, Hosokawa was in charge and Miyoshi Nagakei was determined to go to Luo. His attitude towards Ashikaga Shogun was also polite and he followed the etiquette of the samurai family and treated him favorably.
There is no one like Oda Nobunaga who is so foolhardy, he simply treats Ashikaga Yoshiaki as his daughter.
Oh, no, Oda Nobunaga is really Ashikaga Yoshiaki's royal mother. Poor Ashikaga Yoshiaki, his face is almost swollen now.
Akechi Mitsuhide's heart was filled with the pleasure of revenge, and she had not forgotten how Ashikaga Yoshiaki repaid kindness with hatred and threw dirt on the reputation of Yoshihiro Shiba.
Nizi Katsuhisa didn't want to hear General Ashikaga's joke, so she changed the subject.
"Aren't we talking about Matsunaga Hide?"
Akechi Mitsuhide glanced at her, nodded in understanding, and said.
"Look at my mouth, how I twisted my words to make Ni Ziji laugh.
Although Matsunagahide drove away Wada Weimasa, Wada Weimasa was not a simple person and was capable of both bending and stretching.
This time, His Highness Oda returned to Gifu Castle in Mino Province. Wada Yaimai actually blocked the road in Minami Omi and asked for an audience. He denounced Asakura Yoshikage for disrespecting the shogunate and Asai Nagamasa for his betrayal and treachery.
His Highness Oda was overjoyed and magnanimously forgave Wada Weimasa for her original fault and allowed her to return to Takaki Castle, which Mibuchi Fujihide had evacuated, and resume management of Higashi Settsu affairs.
Then, Matsunagahide remembered her friendship with me."
Akechi Mitsuhide's teasing contained a hint of sarcasm. Oda Nobunaga's move was like putting Matsunagahide on the fire.
It was Oda Nobunaga who instigated Matsu Nagahide to take action and use her connections in the Higashisettsu samurai family to squeeze out Wada Yamasa who was sent there by Ashikaga Yoshiaki.
Mibuchi Fujihide was also encouraged by Matsunaga Hide, so he sent troops to Takatsuki Castle and made a big mistake.
Now Mibuchi Fujihide was desperate and turned to Oda Nobunaga. Oda Nobunaga asked her to return Takatsuki Castle to Wada Weimasa. How dare she refuse?
Mibuchi Fujihide almost lost her reputation for the sake of this high-end city. Now that she has lost both her life and money, how can she not hate Matsunagahide who encouraged her to send troops?
Wada Weimasa almost died in the Ashikaga-Oda War, and had to run back to his hometown in Minamiomia to pretend to be dead, and then escaped.
Now Ashikaga Yoshiaki has accepted Oda Nobunaga as his mother and is completely pretending to be a coward.
At this time, Wada Weimasa took refuge in Oda Nobunaga, which could not be said to be disloyal to the general, and her integrity was intact. So she flattered him in the street, abandoned Ashikaga Yoshiaki, and completely fell in love with Oda Nobunaga.
Having Wada Yamasa, the top official of the Ashikaga faction of the shogunate, as a lackey would be of great benefit to Oda Nobunaga's layout in Kyoto.
Of course, Oda Nobunaga was happy to buy horse bones with thousands of dollars, so that Wada Taimasa could return to Higashi Settsu and continue to be her guardian of Settsu.
This also showed their attitude to the Ashikaga shogunate samurai family. As long as everyone is willing to be dogs for the Oda family, there will be great benefits.
This move is to draw fire under the cauldron and completely turn Ashikaga Yoshiaki into a puppet.
Oda Nobunaga had a wonderful thought, but Katsuki Hisashihide was completely betrayed inside and out.
From Matsunagahide's point of view, he worked hard for Oda Nobunaga, but he did not end well.
Mibuchi Fujie hated her, and Wada Noimasa hated her even more. With the two of them staring at her Yodo Castle in Kitakawachi and Higashi Settsu, she could still sleep?
Matsunagahide was worried about Oda Nobunaga crossing the river and destroying the bridge, but she didn't want to think about it. She didn't stand up for herself, but she instigated Mibuchi Fujihide to be the scapegoat.
What impression does this kind of behavior make in the eyes of Oda Nobunaga? She still has a long way to go before she wants to gain the trust of Oda Nobunaga.
After much thought, Matsunaga had no choice but to move closer to Akechi Mitsuhide again.
To be continued...