As expected by Imagawa Yoshimoto, Suwa Yorishige was indeed not a prudent person. On the night after returning to the city, he arrested all the members of the Japanese faction, including Suwa Mitsuru, out of deep hatred for Takeda Harunobu for mistreating him.
Hatred demanded that the Suwa family resist to the end and never surrender to the Kai invaders.
Peace negotiations failed, and war was inevitable. On August 27, the 10th year of Tenmon (1541), the Takeda Army officially began a fierce attack on Uehara Castle, while the Imagawa Army stationed in the northwest of the city to guard against the arrival of reinforcements. Uehara Castle is Su
As the stronghold of the Suwa family, which was run by the Suwa family for generations, and as the great blessing of the Suwa Shrine, the Suwa family also won the hearts of the people. The entire Uehara Castle united in the fort and fought hard, causing huge casualties to the Takeda family.
The Takeda Army fought hard for two days, and finally relied on Suwa Manrin to suddenly open the city gates with a group of feudal lords and factions in uprising, and then invaded the city, finally suppressing the resistance of Uehara Castle. Suwa Yorishige's position as governor of the family was also removed.
Takeda Harunobu deprived him of it and handed it over to Suwa Mitsuru, who immediately expressed his surrender to the Takeda family.
After learning that Uehara Castle had finally fallen, Imagawa Yoshimoto, who was stationed a few miles outside the city, came with his guards on horseback and wanted to congratulate Takeda Harunobu on the victory. However, when he arrived at the castle town, he realized that something was wrong with the atmosphere. One by one
The streets in the neighborhood were deserted, every house had its doors and windows closed, and only a few Takeda Army soldiers patrolled the streets.
In the silent environment, the sound of horse hoofbeats by Imagawa Yoshimoto and his entourage was particularly harsh. After hearing movement on the street, there were faint sobbing sounds of fear from many homes on both sides of the road, and the voices of parents comforting their children could also be vaguely heard.
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"What's going on?" Imagawa Yoshimoto bent down on his horse and asked an Ashigaru of the Takeda family who was standing guard at the corner of the street.
"Reporting to His Majesty Imagawa, he is under martial law and waiting for orders." The Ashigaru of the Takeda family bowed and replied in a neither humble nor overbearing manner.
"Wait for the order, what order?" Imagawa Yoshimoto looked around suspiciously. If he listened carefully, he could hear violent crying in another block to the east. So Imagawa Yoshimoto didn't ask any more questions and took the guards with him.
So he rode his horse towards the east.
Along the way, Imagawa Yoshimoto felt inexplicably anxious, and his horse speed became faster and faster. When he arrived at that block, he saw countless people driven out of their houses by the Ashigaru of the Takeda family, and were beaten on the streets.
They were forced to stand still. The Takeda soldiers were armed with spears and whips. Anyone who disobeyed was beaten severely. Then they were dragged out of the house by their hair and clothes and kicked to the street.
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When the crowds were almost cleared, these people were driven towards the east, huddled together in a crowded and chaotic manner, walking honestly under the sharp sword light of the ashigaru of the Takeda Army who were watching eagerly around them. There were cries from time to time.
There was an outburst in the queue, but this would invariably result in a severe beating - the Takeda family's ashigaru dragged the crying people out of the queue and kicked and punched them, and some people died immediately. The rest of the people saw
All of them did not dare to say a word, so they could only clench their teeth and cry quietly, shedding tears quietly. The mother held the children tightly in her arms, covered their mouths, and the tears kept flowing down. Every household has
The people didn't bring any luggage, they just took the hoes, shovels and poles they had at home.
Imagawa Yoshimoto continued to ride his horse in the direction of the queue. Only then did he realize that the dirt road leading to the wasteland east of the city was already lined with people. They were all people who had been driven from the castle town of Uehara Castle. They kicked
He stepped deeply into the mud and walked forward in a daze.
Imagawa Yoshimoto and his guards galloped on the hills beside the dirt road, raising horse hoof dust two people high along the way, and finally arrived at the end of this long flow of people - the rolling dust there was five people high.
On a large wasteland behind the hills, thousands of Takeda soldiers were surrounding thousands of Uehara Castle residents - supervising them to dig holes.
Men, women, old and young, armed with shovels, hoes, poles... all kinds of tools, dug hundreds of holes, large and small, on the wasteland. They cried while digging, and the dust and tears fell down, letting the color of the land
They all turned dark brown as if they had been beaten by raindrops - and then covered with dry soil dug out.
On the way Imagawa Yoshimoto came, more people were being driven in continuously. Under the leadership of the Takeda family soldiers, they walked to the edge of a wasteland and began to dig holes. The dust was flying everywhere, making it uncomfortable to choke.
Imagawa Yoshimoto instinctively covered his mouth and nose with a folding fan. He realized that after such a trip, the clothes on his body would be too dirty to wear, and he would have to go back and take a shower. He urged his horse to find Takeda Harunobu on the high ground next to him, and turned over
After dismounting, he asked:
"What are you doing?"
Takeda Harunobu didn't seem to understand Imagawa Yoshimoto's question. He looked at Imagawa Yoshimoto in surprise and said, "They are digging a hole."
"Why are you digging a hole?" Imagawa Yoshimoto also didn't understand Takeda Harunobu's confusion.
"Otherwise the knife will be blunt." Takeda Harunobu seemed to completely understand Imagawa Yoshimoto, and felt that there was a generation gap between the two people.
Imagawa Yoshimoto and Takeda Harunobu looked at each other for a long time. Only then did Imagawa Yoshimoto understand the misunderstanding between the two people, and felt a severe pain in his chest.
"Do you really want to massacre the city?" Imagawa Yoshimoto asked in a low voice.
"Of course, it was not agreed before that if Suwa Sakon did not surrender, the city would be massacred." Takeda Harunobu looked at the "construction site" below with his hands behind his back, "I always keep my word."
"Are you serious?" Imagawa Yoshimoto confirmed again.
"Isn't this your first time seeing a massacre, Goro?" Takeda Harunobu gradually understood why Imagawa Yoshimoto was so weird, and he smiled and said, "These are troubled times, and massacres are commonplace. Which daimyo has not massacred a city these days?"
?”
"This is thousands of human lives." Imagawa Yoshimoto took a deep breath, and finally did not express his strong opposition, but left a step aside, "Although I have no intention of interfering with the decision of your Takeda family, killing is not good after all.
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This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! "It is normal for people in Buddhism not to see these things." Takeda Harunobu shook his head indifferently, "But our martial arts family has seen a lot of blood, so it doesn't matter.
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"But it's still a few thousand manpower, isn't it good to keep it? Kai's manpower is poor, so it wouldn't be a bad thing to have more people, right? It would be good to be sent back as slaves, right?" Imagawa Yoshimoto changed his perspective - he was obviously
He couldn't bear to massacre the city, but in order for his advice to be listened to by Takeda Harunobu, he could only use his own interests to speak out - how similar was it to Theodotus when Mytilena was handling the dispute?
In contrast, Takeda Harunobu naturally plays the role of Creon - indeed there is nothing new under the sun.
"These Suwa people have always looked down on us Kai people, thinking that we are country bumpkins in a barbaric land. When Kai was still weak, they were repeatedly bullied by the Suwa people. There were countless blood feuds between the two sides." Takeda Harunobu laughed twice.
Then he waved his hand and said, "With this deep hatred and arrogance, the Suwa people can never be used by the Takeda family. Since they can't be used, then kill them all to prevent them from causing trouble for us. It's not like I haven't given them anything."
Opportunity, I promised to surrender to avoid death and not to surrender to massacre the city. Since they themselves have chosen to die rather than obey me, they should be prepared to die."
Imagawa Yoshimoto sighed, not knowing what to say.
"Wu Lang, you have a good heart, but a good heart will suffer sooner or later. Anyone who is a governor in these troubled times must be cruel. If you are soft-hearted, not only will you not be able to save people, but you will kill more people. I am cruel,
Although he committed many evil deeds, in the end he allowed more people to survive." Takeda Harunobu turned around, walked to Imagawa Yoshimoto's side, and patted him on the shoulder:
"If nothing else, let's just take a simple account of human lives." Takeda Harunobu fiddled with his fingers, "Our Takeda Army suffered more than 500 casualties in the attack on Uehara Castle, and the casualties among Uehara Castle soldiers and civilians are estimated to be more than 1,000.
Not counting the injured, even if there are dead, there are still 600 people, right?"
"Do you know how many cities there are in Shinano? Not to mention other things, just counting the other branch cities of the Suwa family and the castle of the Takato family, the branch of the Suwa family, there are 15 cities. In the entire Shinano, even if it is only
Counting Minami Shinano, there are more than 40 cities. If I capture them one by one, how many people will die?"
"But it's different now. When I slaughter the city at Uehara Castle, the whole Minami Shinano will be shaken. Even the strongest Suwa family is unable to resist. Other wealthy families and people must also know that they are destined to be unable to survive the Takeda family's attack.
Protect the territory. They have all seen the consequences of not surrendering - I proved to them that I, Takeda Harunobu, am determined to massacre the city, and I am not just talking about it to scare people. I not only have the strength, but also the ability to use it.
Determination confirmed this to them.”
"In this case, who else dares to despise my threat to massacre the city? Who else dares to resist? Under heavy pressure, I can forcefully surrender them without any blood. Killing one city, surrendering a hundred cities, how many fewer people will die in the end, Wulang himself will not
Will it count?"
"It's exactly the same as my teacher's fallacies. Did you devils with blood-stained hands agree on the same rhetoric before you were reincarnated in hell?" Imagawa Yoshimoto sighed again and said sarcastically.
"This is what heroes think alike. What one person says is a fallacy, and what everyone realizes without thinking is the truth." Takeda Harunobu opened his arms as if to devoutly embrace the mass grave in front of him, "I
