As expected, the news of Ashikaga Yoshichichi's death could not be hidden. Not to mention that there were insiders in Miyoshi's family who deliberately leaked the situation to the outside world, and that Izumo Akun was unknowingly spreading information. Let's just say that Ashikaga Yoshichichi made a big fanfare.
It would not be appropriate to come to Shoryuji Castle and then disappear so quietly. Even if the cat or dog at home dies, I will still feel distressed for a long time, let alone the future shogun who is currently the Hirashima Crown Prince.
I don’t know if anyone has recognized that the person who ran out to play as soon as he arrived at Shoryuji Castle is Ashikaga Yoshitsugu. Anyway, Miyoshi Yoshitsugu was bound to be seen when he went out to play with an unknown samurai. He went to the castle town to play.
A living person leaves, and a living person comes back with a dead person. A little scrutiny can reveal that something is wrong.
You can imagine how bad the consequences will be if the news cannot be hidden. There are rumors about the Tokaichi riot and murder incident in Kyoto City. The truth is revealed so quickly. Ashikaga Yoshichichi is the one who was punished and died by the gods and Buddhas.
Unlucky guy, now people suddenly shut up and didn't dare to laugh, because some people have realized that the situation is not good.
No matter how panicked people are in Kyoto, at least it is not good for the Miyoshi family. Just as Matsunaga has described several times that an arrow has to be fired on the string, or it can be said that an arrow that has left the string has long been unable to be recovered.
I know that most of these Sanhao family are not doing things that are not done by human beings.
At that time, the arrogant and arrogant Hosokawa Masamoto did something that was not a human thing. He was unhappy for more than ten years and was affected by the dispute between the three adopted sons. Hosokawa Sumiyuki, who was a public minister, teamed up with several sycophants to chop him up as his godfather.
, some optimists in Kyoto said that Miyoshi Yoshitsugu may have to be chopped off one day. Miyoshi Yoshitsugu was wronged and angry. He blocked the arrows of the Miyoshi trio and Matsunagahide for no reason.
Even less willing to participate in the muddy waters of Kyoto.
The clan retainers led by Miyoshi Yasunaga and his faction decided to part ways resolutely. This added a serious crisis to the decision of the three Miyoshis. Matsunagahide found that all his busy work for several months was in vain, and the six members of the Miyoshi family
There are only 15,000 people in the 10,000-strong army standing in the three-good and three-person faction. All neutrals and opponents have expressed their unwillingness to wade into too deep water. They are still struggling alone inside and outside.
Now it was the turn of Miyoshi, the three of them, and Matsunaga Hide to be anxious. How could Ashikaga Yoshichichi die and have no shield to go to Luo? The general had previously described the attack as imminent and could not move, which also meant that they had no retreat. Several people discussed and decided.
Let's make a change and get a general heir. Anyway, there are still a few spare wheels that can be used.
The first candidate is Ashikaga Yoshiuchi's younger brother Ashikaga Yoshisuke. Speaking of which, this person's identity is very suitable to inherit his brother's position and move forward. However, the current problem is that the power of rumors is too strong. He has just returned to Awahirashima Imperial Palace.
Ashikaga Gisuke's legs and feet were so frightened that he was afraid that he would move his head in a daze like his brother in the past.
His brother died without leaving an heir. He had just gotten married and had no heir. The third brother, Ashikaga Yoshihito, was so young that he didn't even marry a wife. If he died in such an unexplained way, the Awa Ashikaga family would face the end of the line.
It was a crisis. It was better to die than to live. Of course, he himself did not want to die from the bottom of his heart.
As soon as he dies, he will have to give up his hard-earned position as Prince of Tehirashima to his younger brother, and maybe even give his beautiful wife to his younger brother to enjoy for free. He will cry to death in the underworld, and Ashikaga Gisuke is not willing to come. , and did not allow his younger brother to "send death". The reason was very simple. His father was bedridden and had to be around him at all times and not dare to leave him lightly. That meant that he would be sent away by someone else who would not be far away.
If you resolutely refuse to cooperate, you cannot tie people up. Not to mention the risks and consequences of doing so, let’s just say that the territories of the Miyoshi trio and Matsunagahide are all within the Kinai area, and the official location of Hirashima is the Hirashima Imperial Palace in Awa Kingdom. , that was the core territory of Miyoshi Yoshiken's eldest son, Miyoshi Choharu. If they went to arrest people, wouldn't they be giving them a hand? Maybe the three brothers from Shikoku would grab their pigtails and swell their old faces.
After much deliberation, he decided to take the risk and attack the two younger brothers of the shogunate. One of Ashikaga Yoshiteru's two younger brothers was Kakukei who was practicing at the Ichijo-in gate of Yamato Kōfuku-ji Temple, and the other was Zhou who was the master of the Tatou Luen-yin of Shokoku-ji Temple. Hao, the former is a direct descendant when the distance is far away, while the latter is a concubine when the distance is short, which makes it a bit difficult for them to deal with.
The Miyoshi trio and Matsunagahide disagreed over whether to establish a direct descendant or a concubine. The Miyoshi trio decided to choose Luonin Shu Hao at Kinkakuji in the north of Kyoto. The reason was that it was close and easy to control. It was better than being far away in Yamato. Kakukei of Kofukuji Temple is safer, since he is just a puppet and does not need to pay too much attention.
Matsunagahide advocated the establishment of a direct descendant immediately, and chose Jueqing to deal with Zhou Hao, a commoner. The reason was that the direct descendant was more legitimate and could further win the support of the shogunate. After all, their original intention was to depose the general's administrative power, and using a direct descendant would be easier to be dismissed by the world. It was accepted by the samurai family that the Miyoshi family did not have such high prestige to imitate Hosokawa Masamoto's bold move to establish a concubine.
Another very important point is the Yamato Kingdom. At this time, it happens to be under the control of Matsunagahide. Board the boat near Kofukuji Temple and pass through the Kizugawa, Yodogawa, and Katsura River to reach Shoryuji Castle. The time it takes to make a round trip It doesn’t take much delay. One of the special features of Kofukuji Temple in Nandu is that there are many monks. Jueqing is neither the abbot nor the master of the temple. Even if he suddenly disappears for a short time, he will not be discovered, let alone not spread to Kyoto. Choose Jueqing. Qingsheng is safely hidden.
On the contrary, Luyuan Temple is adjacent to the outside of Kyoto and is at the farthest end from Shengryuji Castle. Secondly, after the war, only a few dozen monks are left in Luyuan Temple. As the master of the temple, Zhou Hao, if he wants to know the ghosts, It is actually not easy to kidnap the master of a temple without realizing it. It would be easier to trick Jue Qing into sneaking out of Kofukuji Temple.
After thinking about it, the three of them felt that there was no better choice. Luyuan Yuan Zhou Hao was really not easy to do in public in Kyoto. If the kidnapping failed, it would be embarrassing. Moreover, assassination is such a delicate job. This is what Matsunagahide is willing to do. Ichijoin Kakuei is in the hands of Matsunagahide. If he is not willing to deal with these three good people, there is really nothing he can do.
One of the two brothers must die, one is Zhou Hao, who neither side can control, and the other is Jue Qing, who Matsuhisa Nagahide is sure to win. Considering the difference between concubine and concubine, it is decisive to have three good people and three good people. Agree with Matsunaga Hide's opinion and urge him to act as soon as possible to avoid long nights and long dreams, which will lead to major events.
In the evening of that day, Luyuan Courtyard was quiet and peaceful. Zhou Hao had breakfast early and prepared for evening classes. Although he was named the director of Luyuan Courtyard, he was actually responsible for only a few things every day. He repeated fasting meals and morning classes every day. A simple cycle of cleaning the temple, reading and studying ancient books, drinking tea and meditating, fasting, evening classes, and resting. Two meals a day, no more, no less, a bowl of white rice, a miso soup, a little kombu, and a little pickled vegetables.
Zhou Hao chanted sutras silently for a moment, then noticed the figures moving back and forth outside the door and shook his head slightly. After a while, he recited a Buddhist sutra and stood up, opened the door, and asked the novice monk outside the door: "Kisuke, why don't you go to bed late?" Class, what's the point of lingering outside the door?"
"Ah! Your Majesty... the Master!" Jisuke trembled with fright, and hurriedly bowed and stumbled and replied: "Just now... there was an envoy from Kyoto who wanted to see the Master..."
Zhou Hao asked strangely: "What happened to Jisuke today? He was so flustered and out of character. Did the envoy say anything?"
"No... I didn't say anything. I just said that the master of the hospital will know after he comes over for a while." Jisuke swallowed hard, lowered his head cautiously and scanned with the corners of his eyes. His heart skipped a beat when he noticed Zhou Hao's eyes, and he clenched his fists subconsciously. cuff.
"You are really weird today, are you sick?" Zhou Hao raised his hand to touch his forehead, but Jisuke dodged him and said in a panic: "Master, please come over as soon as possible! The envoy must have already I’m in a hurry.”
Zhou Hao stared at Kisuke who was behaving strangely, as if a long time had passed in the past ten thousand years, and then slowly nodded and said: "That's fine! I heard that there is a lot of trouble in Kyoto, and I don't know how my brother is doing... Lead the way. Bar!"
Under the leadership of Kisuke, he walked out of Luyuan and followed the path to the Kamo River. He saw a samurai standing in the river waiting. Kisuke stepped forward and leaned over and said anxiously: "Izumi Hirata is guarding the temple. I have brought my share..."
Hirata and Izumi Mamoru seemed to be surprised by Jisuke's reaction. They snorted angrily and whispered: "The matter hasn't been settled yet! What's the rush?"
"Are you the messenger of the shogunate? Why have I never seen you before?" Zhou Hao suddenly stopped and asked in surprise: "Kisuke! Do you know him?"
Jisuke stammered and denied: "I...I don't know him..."
"Then what did you say to him when you walked over just now? Are you hiding something from me?" Zhou Hao stared at the man who had followed him for many years, his eyes full of suspicion and dissatisfaction.
Hirata and Izumi Mamoru saw that the situation was not good and coughed dryly and said: "Come down and answer the question of His Highness Zhou Hao! I am the new council member of the shogunate. I have something important to report to His Highness Zhou Hao. I just used some tricks to ask this Jisuke to help invite Zhou Hao. .”
"Is that so?" Zhou Hao turned around and stared at Hirata and Izumi Mamoru in disbelief. He hesitated for a moment and asked thoughtfully: "Since he is my brother's new counselor, he must be in and out of the imperial palace from time to time! My brother's sword room must also be in his room. Have you seen it? Speaking of which, I, Zhou Hao, have been away from home for a long time, and I haven’t seen my brother practice swordsmanship with the famous ancestral swords for a long time. I wonder if the famous swords at home are sharp. Can Izumi Mamoru tell this poor monk? "
Hirata and Izumi Mamoru were suddenly stunned by the question. He hesitated for a while and said dryly: "Haha... very sharp, very sharp... His Highness Kōkō's swordsmanship is also very powerful, I admire you very much!"
Zhou Hao stood by the river, looking at the gurgling Kamo River in the afterglow of the setting sun, and asked casually: "I see...Then the Imperial Palace has not changed its direction, right? Is the gate still open to the west?"