Imagawa Yoshimoto led a group of guards to the Yui River in the night rain. There was a small boat parked in the Yui River, with two figures vaguely inside.
"Don't worry, Your Highness Imagawa, the young master of our family and Master Gen'an are inside, and they are not carrying weapons." The Hojo family envoy who led Imagawa Yoshimoto over explained very sincerely.
"But the ship belongs to you, so it is inevitable that there will be tampering. Our Highness must bring a sword on board." Furunoji Yutaka immediately argued with reason.
"My young master has told me in advance, it's okay." The Hojo family envoy readily agreed, which made Furunoji Yutaka even more worried about fraud. However, Imagawa Yoshimoto didn't seem to think much, and simply got on the ship.
The boat is very small, with room for only three people. There is a small table in the cabin, with a few candles lit on it, two bowls of chazuke rice and a cup of tea. Sitting behind the tea is
A monk in royal blue cassocks with half-white hair at the temples. Behind Ochazuke sat an unshaven young man in blue with an eye-catching scar on his face.
Imagawa Yoshimoto sat down at another place where there was tea and rice. Hojo Genan immediately apologized and said, "Don't blame me, Your Highness, Imagawa. My young master is naughty and refuses to make tea. He insists on using this tea and rice to welcome guests."
"It's okay." Imagawa Yoshimoto shook his head and raised his head under the candlelight. Hojo Genan suddenly froze and looked at Imagawa Yoshimoto in a daze.
After a long while, the impolite Hojo Genan apologized again and again, and then like an old man, he sighed and said with emotion: "It's so similar... with Ryuou Maru (Imagawa Ujiteru), and with your father."
(Imagawa's cousin), those facial features are so similar... I can even see the look of my late aunt (Kitagawa-don, sister of Hojo Soun). Decades have passed by so fast.
"
"Cousin." Seeing Hojo Genan thinking about the marriage between the Imagawa and Hojo families, Imagawa Yoshimoto was also a little touched. He did not use the title of the enemy's diplomatic monk, but the seniority. He then looked towards
Hojo Ujiyasu also gave a slight salute: "Brother-in-law." (Hojo Ujiyasu's wife is Imagawa Yoshimoto's sister, Zuikeiin)
"My brother-in-law is really capable." Hojo Ujiyasuya looked at Imagawa Yoshimoto, and then laughed, "I know that you are the apprentice of the old monk Xue Zhai. You have been gifted since you were a child, and I have always attached great importance to you.
, my dad also kept reminding me not to underestimate you. But I didn’t expect that I thought I didn’t underestimate you, but I still underestimated you in the end.”
"Brother-in-law, thank you for the award." Imagawa Yoshimoto bowed his hand in gratitude, but Hojo Ujiyasu shook his head.
"Yiyuan, you don't know. Since I first entered the battlefield at the age of 16, I have won every battle and conquered every attack. I have never lost a single battle in dozens of battles, big or small, and I have rarely even had a 'small victory'. Every battle has been hearty.
"Hojo Ujiyasu raised the chazuke rice and gestured to Imagawa Yoshimoto like a toast, and then started to eat it himself, "And you are the first person to draw me on the battlefield, not to mention this is just
The second battle you personally commanded was truly remarkable. This was the first time I tasted the intoxicating taste of being unable to win. It tasted like eating flies mixed with feces."
However, Imagawa Yoshimoto looked at the bowl of tea and rice in front of him, but he didn't dare to eat it.
"Worried about poisoning?" Hojo Genan gave Imagawa Yoshimoto a meaningful look.
"No, it's just that I've eaten in the evening and I'm not hungry anymore." Imagawa Yoshimoto shook his head.
"Look, I just told you not to prepare chazuke rice, right?" Hojo Genan knew what was going on and immediately turned around to glare at Hojo Ujiyasu. However, Hojo Ujiyasu didn't care. After finishing his bowl of chazuke rice, he threw it in front of Imagawa Yoshimoto.
He also took the bowl and ate it hungrily, muttering at the same time, "A warrior should have an endless appetite. If Yigen doesn't eat it, I'll eat it myself."
"My cousin and brother-in-law invited me here, presumably for peace talks." Imagawa Yoshimoto did not do Tai Chi any more. He was eager to save Taiyuan Xue Zhai and went straight to the topic, "I wonder if you have any comments?"
"The Imagawa and Hojo families have been in-laws for several generations. It would be great if they could turn their hostility into friendship and rebuild the relationship between the Qin and Jin Dynasties..." Hojo Genan immediately spoke slowly, but was interrupted by Hojo Ujiyasu impatiently waving his chopsticks.
.
"We are willing to release Master Yukisai and return the territory occupied by Hexi to you." Hojo Ujiyasu swallowed the food in his mouth, then raised his head and said, "How about it?"
"What about the conditions?" Imagawa Yoshimoto glanced at the few grains of rice left in the corner of Hojo Ujiyasu's mouth.
"On one condition." Hojo Ujiyasu raised his head again, plucked a few times, swallowed all the tea and rice in the bowl, and then slammed the empty bowl and chopsticks on the table.
"Your sister is pregnant and is expected to give birth next year. She will be my legitimate son. When the time comes, Yoshimoto, you will accept your nephew as your adopted son and inherit the Imagawa family."
"Brother-in-law has a huge appetite." Imagawa Yoshimoto replied coldly.
"Then you don't agree?" Hojo Ujiyasu looked at Imagawa Yoshimoto with a playful look.
"Yes, of course I promise."
Imagawa Yoshimoto changed the subject and almost made Hojo Genan and Hojo Ujiyasu unable to relax.
"What does the interests of the Imagawa family have to do with me? Take it as you please, no need to be polite." Imagawa Yoshimoto smiled and spread his hands like a hospitable shop owner, "As long as you put back that smelly old man of my teacher,
Imagawakan is fine for you."
An unimagined path...an unimagined negotiating opponent...
Although Hojo Genan and Hojo Ujiyasu knew that this would make them look at a disadvantage and lack confidence, they still looked at each other in confusion.
Is he really the governor of the Imagawa family?
Both of them had such doubts in their hearts.
"But seriously?" Hojo Ujiyasu glanced at Imagawa Yoshimoto suspiciously.
"Of course, let me see the old man first." Imagawa Yoshimoto nodded slightly.
"It's right behind you. I want to see it for myself."
Suddenly the most familiar voice came from behind.
Imakawa Yoshimoto, who had been confident just now, suddenly became confused. He turned his head suddenly, only to find that Taiyuan Xuezhai had already rowed to the side of the boat. Even if the most intimate figure turned into ashes, Imagawa Yoshimoto would recognize it.
, you will never get it wrong.
"Well, it's hard to refuse Master Huan'an's kindness, but there is no need to negotiate. The monk, this useless disciple, will take it back by himself." Taiyuan Xuezhai waved to Imagawa Yoshimoto and motioned for him to step on On the way back to the boat, I bowed gracefully to Hojo Genan and said, "See you again by fate, Master Genan."
"Old man, how did you..." As soon as he stepped onto the shore, the anxious Imagawa Yoshimoto hurriedly pulled Taiyuan Xuezhai's sleeve and asked.
"You are fighting like that. You are about to burn the entire mountain forest in the Yui area. We on the Fuji River can see it clearly. I took advantage of the main force of the Hojo Army to be led away by you, and the other people guarding us also While we were distracted, we led our troops to break out of the encirclement to the east. The troops left behind by the Hojo family were all trying to prevent us from running west back to Imakawakan or heading north into the mountains. No one thought that we would run to the Fuji River in the east. Where did the Hojo family think they were? Just leaving people on the bridge can stop us."
"But as a teacher, I led people to tear down the wooden wall of Fuji Village and built it into a raft in advance. When I encountered the Fuji River, I jumped directly into it and drifted along the Fuji River and ran into Suruga Bay. The Shimizu Marine Corps of the Hojo Army was The Xingjin Navy led them away, so we took the opportunity to run away. As soon as we found the army's camp, we heard that you were tricked into negotiating by the Hojo Army, so I quickly called you back, you brat."
Taiyuan Xue Zhai nonchalantly revealed this strange plan that ordinary people could never guess. Even Imagawa Yoshimoto was stunned when he heard it.
"But there is one thing that I have been trying to figure out for the past few days. I always feel that the other side has a back-up plan." However, Taiyuan Xuezhai changed the topic and whispered with a frown:
"The Hojo family sent troops across the Fuji River on the same day or even the same morning that you attacked Toga, and attacked the Fuji Village and Kabara Castle guarded by the division. This shows that they knew at that time that we were all suspicious soldiers on the banks of the Fuji River. The main force went to Yuanjiang, otherwise how could they dare to launch a cross-river attack so boldly? If they were waiting for Imagawa Yoshima to send an envoy to inform them that the main force of Imagawa Army was in Yuanjiang, it would be absolutely too late, even if Imagawa Yoshima Even if we sent out ninjas to notify the Hojo family at the first moment of being ambushed, it would be impossible to run from Yuanjiang to Hedong in an hour."
"Furthermore, the Hojo family's ability to send troops this time depends entirely on the truce agreement with the Takeda family to cede territory, and this will definitely take a long time to complete. This means that they had already calculated that we would be there many days before the battle started. The strategy of suspecting soldiers was calculated to cover up our Fuji Village in the east of Hedong."
"But if that's the case? Why didn't he tell Imagawa Yoshima? Why did he want to see Imakawa Yoshima in vain? If Chengfang hadn't come back to save me as a teacher, then Imagawa Yoshima would have perished at this moment. Why do they need to treat him like this? An ally? Imagawa Yoshima is an important chess piece for the Hojo family to contain the Imagawa clan. His destruction will do no good to the Hojo family at all. Imagawa Yoshima should not be trapped to death for both emotional and rational reasons."
"Even if the Hojo family wants to trick Imagawa Yoshima into fighting your main force to buy time for them to advance into the empty Fujikawa defense line, they can tell him that there is an ambush after Imagawa Yoshima sends troops. Then Imagawa Yoshima should be more careful, Chengfang You can't win a big victory, but you can hold back the main force for longer. Instead of like now, Imagawa Yoshima was defeated in one morning, allowing the main force of the Imagawa family to quickly return to support Fujigawa from the distant river, forcing The Hojo family has to fight."
"So no matter which aspect you look at, it is absolutely irrational for the Hojo family to choose to hide the secret from Imagawa Yoshima even when they clearly saw through Suspicion's plan."
Taiyuan Xuezhai's words made Imagawa Yoshimoto fall into deep thought - yes, why did the Hojo family do such outrageous behavior? Imagawa Yoshimoto thought hard for a long time, finally found some clues, and looked at Taiyuan Xuezhai
Taiyuan Xuezhai naturally understood what his students were thinking, nodded slowly and said:
"Unless in the eyes of a certain decision-maker of the Hojo family, tricking Imagawa Yoshizhin to death is more important than capturing Suruga."
