On June 12, the 14th year of Tenmon (1546), outside the Imagawa Army’s garrison at Toji Temple, thousands of Kyoto people gathered in the surrounding neighborhoods, holding broken pots and pans in their hands, waiting for the Imagawa family
Twice daily relief.
After the complete food shortage in Kyoto, in addition to those who looted grain and grass along the Kyoto-Tamba line, some people also chose to beg outside the positions of the Southern and Northern armies to try their luck, hoping to meet kind-hearted soldiers to donate some food. But the Northern Army
Food and grass were in short supply, and they would definitely not be distributed to the people. Not long ago, the Southern Army violently expelled people who forced themselves to break through, so naturally they didn't look good on it.
The Imagawa family was an exception. When the begging people arrived at the southwestmost position, they had no hope. But after they begged for a long time, soldiers actually came out with a lot of coarse grains.
After the food was distributed with gratitude, the news spread like wildfire, and more and more people began to gather at Toji Temple. The Imagawa family then opened a porridge shop outside Toji Temple, and served the people at Tatsuki and Xushi every day.
They distributed gruel. By June 12, tens of thousands of people were already living on the Imagawa Army's porridge farm every day.
At the same time, on the top of the tower of the East Temple, Imagawa Yoshimoto and Taiyuan Xuezhai were standing side by side, looking at the countless creatures outside the temple.
"So, to provide relief to the victims, we have to rely on porridge shops. It's not feasible to directly distribute dry food like you did on the first day." Taiyuan Xuezhai preached to Imagawa Yoshimoto: "You don't need to cook the dry food, you can eat it directly.
, for those victims who have been hungry for a long time, it will be bad for their stomachs, and if they do not go well, they will die. Moreover, if they take the food, others will be jealous, which will inevitably lead to burning, killing and looting. Bags of dry food are used for relief.
It’s also quite a waste.”
"You cook it into porridge. For one portion of dry food, you can make four or five servings of porridge. It won't make them sick easily, and it's enough to prevent them from starving to death. Because with this little porridge, there's nothing to shoot at, and it saves you from conflicts.
."
"I heard that several other daimyo have strong opinions on me?" Imagawa Yoshimoto pursed his lips with mixed feelings and glanced at Taiyuan Yuksai - the latter had just returned from the main formation of Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine.
"Of course, the food cutoff plan is about to be completed, and we can almost sit back and watch the Northern Army and the people of Kyoto fight with each other. You, a brat, stepped in like this and helped relieve a small amount of the pressure. Can everyone not be angry?" Taiyuan Xue
Sai became happy when he heard this and patted Imagawa Yoshimoto on the back, "But you are much more mature than before. In the past, you would have been the first to speak out against the food shortage."
"..." Imagawa Yoshimoto obviously didn't quite agree with the "maturity" defined by Taiyuan Xuezhai, but he still said after a long silence: "Teacher, you have forgotten the days when we lived in Kyoto when I was young.
The people we know, whether they are monks or traffickers... there must be hundreds of them, right? They and their relatives may also be among the hungry people in front of us..."
"Of course I know that if they were really unrelated common people, you wouldn't be so kind-hearted, right? Isn't it just because you have old friends in Kyoto that you can't be cruel?"
"Does the teacher really feel uneasy if he proposes such a vicious plan?" Imagawa Yoshimoto turned around and looked at the crowd of people, deliberately avoiding the sight of Taiyuan Xuezhai: "The teacher's friend and comrade back then,
The brothers and sisters... may also be crowding in the crowd to seek a way out, and may have even died in the previous starvation and plundering. Master Zongxiu is also... Ichichi, Nakamikado, Yamashina and the others are not known in the palace.
What's going on... How did you issue the order to cut off food with a clear conscience? Don't you feel that you are murdering them with your own hands? If we were attacking Imagawakan and Zentokuji Temple, would you also issue the same order?
I won’t mention all the living beings who are strangers to us, but in order to win, you will kill even your relatives and friends without mercy?”
"My teacher's advice is to think less about these problems. The more you think about them, the more guilty you will feel. People who are prone to guilt cannot survive in troubled times. If you can't think of the results, it would be better to just avoid thinking."
Taiyuan Xue Zhai also straightened his expression, and said to Imagawa Yoshimoto with sincerity: "Of course, as a teacher, I am not afraid to think about it, and I have already thought about it clearly. There is no harm in sacrificing everything for the ambition of being a teacher. Of course,
It's impossible for you to say that you don't feel guilty, but those are acceptable things. If possible, of course I also hope to protect them."
"In this case, teacher, why don't you stop my willful disaster relief behavior? Isn't this going to ruin your plan?" Imagawa Yoshimoto retorted, but he was asking questions knowingly. Imagawa Yoshimoto also knew in his heart that in Taiyuan Snow
In Zhai's balance, he is a unique being with privileges. It is even said that he himself is more important than Taiyuan Xuezhai's ambition.
Naturally, Taiyuan Xuezhai would not express his love for his children. Instead, he would act like the free and easy old monk he always was, smiling and saying: "That is naturally my teacher's sixth chess move."
"Both the worst and the best strategies have been made, so is this the teacher's best strategy?" Imagawa Yoshimoto was a little surprised, "The battle situation has become so chaotic, does the teacher still have a back-up plan? Isn't he trying to trick me?"
Taiyuan Xuezhai just smiled without commenting.
"Why didn't you talk to Tora Chiyo? This morning, he sent someone to ask me when the relief would be suspended." When Imagawa Yoshimoto saw this, he wanted to call Hayasaka Nao and ask him to pass the order to Takeda Harunobu, but Taiyuan stopped him.
Xue Zhai waved his hand to stop him and gave Imagawa Yoshimoto a meaningful look:
"Chengfang, remember, no matter how good your relationship is with the chief baker, no matter how close the Imagawa family is to the Takeda family, no matter how close you are to your wife...an ally is still an ally after all, not one of our own.
Belief must not be unreserved."
On the other side, inside the Rensheng Temple.
Not long ago, in order to supervise the smooth transportation of food from Tamba to Kyoto, Miyoshi Nagakei had moved the headquarters of the Miyoshi Army here to personally supervise the formation and suppress the common people's attempts to snatch food. However, gradually he was still unable to do what he wanted. He also realized that,
If he really goes on a killing spree without restraint, even if he does win this battle, his future rule in Kyoto will be difficult.
The big names in the Northern Army who are also allies are also frustrated with the current situation. They want to fight back, but all the Southern Army units have built their positions into iron barrels, and there is no possibility of a breakthrough in the short term. In the competition for long-term consumption, they can only rely on
The Northern Army, which was supplied via a mountain road, would definitely not be able to defeat the Southern Army, which was backed by a large granary. As a result, war weariness spread like wildfire, and the great names of the Western Kingdom hinted at their plans to return to the country many times at military assessment meetings, making Miyoshi happy.
I just find it difficult to do.
On the one hand, they have to ensure the supply of food and grass, on the other hand, they have to suppress the people, on the one hand, they have to appease the emotions of the friendly forces, and on the other hand, they have to control the war situation - even Miyoshi Changqing feels like walking on thin ice and is exhausted.
After discussions between Kang, Shihe Yicun, Sanhao Changyi and other important officials of the Sanhao family, Sanhao Changqing made a judgment:
Instead of waiting for death, it is better to take advantage of the time when the Northern Army still has the strength to fight, and attack the Toji-Suirinji line where the Imagawa and Takeda families are located. Even if it costs huge casualties, the food road to Settsu must be opened.
Just as Miyoshi Nagakei passed instructions to the various departments of the Northern Army, and when the battle was about to begin, something unexpected happened - Imagawa Yoshimoto began to help the people. A large number of people gathered around Toji Temple, which alleviated the situation of the Northern Army a lot.
The pressure of the civil uprising also brought to naught the Northern Army’s originally planned strategy of raiding the Toji Temple - it was simply impossible to quickly cross the refugee shelters of so many people. With so many rioters staying near the Imagawa family’s position, it would also
Limit the space for the Union army to expand its formation.
As a result, the decisive battle plan that lost both urgency and feasibility was shelved. The pressure on the various departments of the Northern Army was relieved, and no one was willing to fight a life-and-death battle with the Sanhao family. At the same time, war weariness resurfaced and even intensified -
- Because everyone found that they were once again in a situation where they were consumed to death by the Confederate Army's food deprivation tactics - but now the Confederate Army did not intend to kill the Northern Army immediately - just like giving a bowl of gruel to the Northern Army.
, holding his breath, slowly trapped the Northern Army to death.
June 15, the 14th year of Tianwen (1546), Rensheng Temple.
"Continuing to consume like this is not the answer after all. Youdao is just trying to get stronger, then weaken again, and finally exhaust himself. I wanted all the ministries to fight together, but the Imagawa family's hand was holding them back, and the fighting spirit of the allies also disappeared.
I'm afraid it will be difficult to organize again." Matsunaga sighed and shook his head, showing a rare look of helplessness and frustration, "Master Xue Zhai is really vicious, one link after another..."
"The area around Toji Temple is full of rioters, which also gives us an advantage." Tokawa Ichisun said in a cold voice, "If we cross Toji Temple and directly attack the Southern Army Pass stationed on the Settsu Official Road, then the Imagawa Army will
We and the Takeda Army can't even think of bypassing the mob and quickly maneuvering to support them."
"But relying solely on the strength of our Miyoshi Army, I'm afraid it will be difficult to break through the positions that the Hexagonal Army has maintained for a long time." Anzhai Dongyasu pressed his hands and signaled Shihe Yicun not to be impatient, "And if our Miyoshi family leaves Kyoto, then here
The situation is hard to predict. No one can control the situation. What if an ally retreats and leaves? Who can restrain the troops on our behalf?"
Everyone could only look at each other in shock after hearing this, and no one could answer An Zhai Dongkang's question.
"Why don't we use our trump card." After a long time, Miyoshi Changqing raised his head and broke the silence. Bloodshot eyes were faintly visible. In the past, he had always been a flawless and well-calculated family governor, but now he showed the appearance of a gambler.
His expression said, "To disrupt the morale of the Southern Army, look for opportunities to break through the blockade in one fell swoop."
"At this point, there may be no other way." Miyoshi Yixian was also determined and said in a deep voice: "We were in contact a few days ago, and all preparations are fine. Instead of sitting and waiting for death, it is better to let go
Give it a try."
At this moment, a report came from outside the tent. Miyoshi Yoshixian signaled everyone to be silent to prevent any possible leakage of secrets, even to the Miyoshi family's headquarters.
"My lord." The guard who came raised his hands outside the tent and reported the news that everyone had not expected:
"Taiyuan Xuezhai sent an envoy to make an appointment with the lord."