After the third shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu overthrew the Emperor's court and cut off Shintoism, in order to appease the Buddhist sects, the two sides reached a tacit understanding.
The martial arts and sects rarely interfered with each other. The martial arts fought against the martial arts, and the sects fought against the sects. However, at the shogunate level, there was still a decree that only respected Buddhism and gave preferential treatment to all sects.
Compared with the daimyo of Kitakyushu who relied on foreign trade, the recent shogunate was less willing to give the Southern Barbarian religion missionary rights for the sake of commercial interests.
Because the Buddhist sects in recent years are too powerful, far from being comparable to Kyushu, they have great influence on the shogunate.
If Oda Nobunaga colludes with the Nanman Sect, he will definitely offend all Buddhist sects in recent times. This is the opportunity that Yoshigan wants to seize.
In recent times, it is not just the Yixiang Sect that does not want the Nanman Sect to gain missionary rights.
Regardless of the overt and covert conflicts among the Tendai Sect, Shingon Sect, and Rinzai Sect, in this matter, the interests of each sect are consistent.
The Ichiko clan is a thug promoted by the Buddhist sect. It seems that Honganji Temple dares to issue decrees and let the Zahe people kill people, completely disregarding the face of the shogunate. This is because they are confident.
It was the Yixiang Sect who took action, but behind it was the will of the entire recent Buddhist sect.
Yiyin thought for a while and said.
"Although the relationship between the Sibo family and the Yixiang sect has not been long, the relationship between the two parties has withstood the test of the ever-changing situation, setting an example of friendly coexistence and mutually beneficial cooperation between the martial arts family and the sect.
The Si Bo family has always insisted on the unwavering belief in Buddhism and will never allow the Nanman religion to run rampant and destroy the peace and stability of recent times.
I will write a letter to Shishan and assure Master Xianru that as long as the shogunate has my Shiba Yiyin, the Nanman Sect will not be able to obtain the missionary rights of the shogunate.
Suzuki Hime, you must control your subordinates and not ruin the long-term friendship between the shogunate and Ishiyama for a trivial matter."
Suzuki Shigehide kowtowed to the ground and gave a shout of joy.
Of course she didn't want to take action, otherwise she wouldn't have come to Sibo Yiyin. She came to this great master just to shirk responsibility.
Since Shiba Yoshigan accepted this matter readily, she will definitely strictly restrain her subordinates and wait for new orders from Ishiyama Honganji Temple.
Suzuki Shigehide said respectfully.
"Of course I will listen to the Odaisho, and I believe Master Shishan will also trust the Sibo family's guarantee.
The last time the Nanman Sect came to Luo, it was Akechi Mitsuhide who blocked it and argued hard in the shogunate’s review to dispel the Nanman Sect’s delusions.”
Yiyin was stunned and asked.
"Has Mitsuhide Akechi ever done anything like this?"
Before Yoshigan went into battle in Etsuchu, he asked the Konka Shiba leaders to find a way to reach a consensus with Ishiyama Honganji Temple to help them subdue the Hokurikudo Ichikou sect temples.
At that time, the Shiba Territory had indeed accomplished this extremely difficult thing in recent years. Honganji Xianru wrote a letter to the Hokurikudo Ichikugōji Temple, completely eliminating their thoughts of confrontation.
But Yoshihiro Shiba always believed that the success of this matter was due to Takada Haruno, and even promoted her from the merchant manager of Sakai Port to the manager of Konki Town, taking charge of Shiba business in Konki.
Suzuki Shigehide was surprised to see Yoshigin, and felt nervous. She deliberately mentioned this matter because she was entrusted by others. The person who asked her to help speak was Honda Masanobu.
Honda Masanobu is a follower of the Ichikai sect. When Honganji came to power, he was eager to launch a new round of expansion of the Ichikai sect.
Mikawa always broke out, catching Tokugawa Ieyasu off guard.
With the help of Maeda Toshiie, Tokugawa Ieyasu quickly wiped out the domestic Ichiyasu clan and put forward strict requirements for the Mikawa samurai family to convert.
The Hime samurai who were unwilling to give up their faith in the Uzumaki sect left Mikawa Kingdom one after another, and Honda Masanobu was one of them.
Through Suzuki Shigehide's relationship, Honda Masanobu got the opportunity to serve as envoy to Matsunaga Hide at Ishiyama Honganji Temple. As a result, he was appreciated and stayed, and became an official of the Matsunaga family.
Because of Akechi Mitsuhide's operations, Honda Masanobu played a very bad role in the conspiracy to kill the general, and finally had to run away from the Matsunaga family and join Akechi Mitsuhide's sect.
Honda Masanobu's career swings between samurai families did not affect her relationship within the Iichi clan.
Akechi Mitsuhide was abandoned by Shiba Yiyin and was kept in confinement to think about his mistakes and wait until the incident in Kyoto was completed before making any decisions. Honda Masanobu was terrified, fearing that he would not end well if he followed him.
It happened that Suzuki Shigehide came to Luo and passed through Yamato country. He met her, a resourceful old friend, and asked her for advice.
Honda Masanobu heard that Suzuki Shigehide was troubled by the decree of Ishiyama Honganji Temple, and made a plan for her, which was to pass the matter to Shiba Yoshigan.
Yoshihiro Shiba is benevolent and loyal to the shogunate, and will never allow Ichikōmune to act recklessly in Kyoto. In addition, he has a very close relationship with Ishiyama Honganji, and will handle the matter properly.
Suzuki Shigehide received Honda Masanobu's good advice and reciprocated the favor by agreeing to tell old stories.
That is, in front of Yoshihide Shiba, he mentioned Mitsuhide Akechi's contribution to the Echichu team and secretly helped Mitsuhide Akechi.
Without Akechi Mitsuhide's strong arguments in the shogunate, Kenyōji of Ishiyama Honganji Temple would never have interfered with the actions of the Hokurikudo Ichikou clan for the sake of the business profits of Hokurikudo, which had not yet expanded.
Suzuki Shigehide didn't know that the Nanman Cult going to Luo was a conspiracy by Akechi Mitsuhide to suppress the Ichikou Sect. If she had known, she would not have spoken for Akechi Mitsuhide.
Yoshigan felt bitter in his heart after listening to Suzuki Shigehide's eloquent talk.
She really doesn't have any good people under her, and Takada Harano is also dishonest. She took all the credit for appeasing Ichibuki Mun, and did not mention Akechi Mitsuhide at all.
Akechi Mitsuhide is even more speechless. She has done so many conspiracies and tricks behind the scenes, which makes Yoshihiro hate her to the core, but she does not mention her own achievements at all.
I really don't know what she is planning.
Suzuki Shigehide was an outsider, and she didn't know the inside story of Akechi Mitsuhide's murder of Ashikaga Yoshiteru.
But after listening to her words, Yoshigan's heart couldn't help but feel relaxed. Thinking of his current dilemma, Yoshigan missed the days when Akechi was brilliant.
Although he had been tricked by Mitsuhide Akechi in the beginning, his enemies were tricked even more miserably, and in the end he got the greatest benefit.
Unlike now, I am almost stunned by these bastards from the shogunate.
Yiyin, who felt a little soft-hearted, took a deep breath and hardened his heart.
No matter what Mitsuhide Akechi had done for herself, it could not offset her sin of killing Ashikaga Yoshiteru.
Yoshigan nodded calmly to Suzuki Shigehide and said.
"I know about this matter. Since it has happened once before, Master Xianru will definitely believe in my guarantee more. Don't worry about this matter."
Suzuki Shigehide suddenly became cold when he saw Yoshigin, and he didn't know what he said wrongly, offending the great Odaisho.
She smiled, bowed and said nothing.
At this time, Hatakeyama Takamasa on the side had already figured it out and mustered up the courage to speak.
"Odaisho, I think Oda Nobunaga has ulterior motives, and we have to be on guard."
Yoshie Gin and Suzuki Shigehide turned to look at her at the same time, their eyes strange. This guy's mind worked very quickly and he was also thick-skinned.
Hatakeyama Takamasa ignored the strange looks in their eyes and kept talking to himself.
"The Oda family's contribution to Shogun Kamiro's succession to the throne is indispensable. But it's really strange that Oda Nobunaga hid in Tofukuji Temple without asking for any favors from the shogunate!"
Yiyin Youyou spoke.
"Oh? Don't you think she is a loyal and virtuous minister?"
Hatakeyama Takamasa said calmly with a serious face.
"When Wang Mang was still a courteous and virtuous man, he couldn't look at a person for a while, he had to look at how he would be in the future.
It is the righteousness of the samurai family to serve the public and reward them. The Oda family has done meritorious service but does not ask for anything in return. Oda Nobunaga must have a bigger conspiracy.
The Odai's gaze is as bright as a torch, and such disloyalty will naturally not escape your discernment. The shogunate's families are short-sighted and do not understand the painstaking efforts of the Odai's foresight.
In short, if Odaisho thinks there is something wrong with Oda Nobunaga, there must be something wrong with her!"
Yiyin was speechless, what this flatterer said made sense.
Suzuki Shigehide on the side was also stunned, he had learned a lot today.
Hatakeyama Takamasa didn't care whether Oda Nobunaga was loyal or treacherous. She had been pondering Yoshigan's attitude just now. Once she was sure of Yoshigan's true thoughts, she would follow up immediately.
Yoshigan looked at Hatakeyama Takamasa's pretty face, as if he saw a tongue-wagging dog begging for mercy, and sighed in his heart.
I recall that when we first met, Hatakeyama Takamasa was a slutty woman who looked like a playboy. If she hadn't appeared, Yamanaka Yukimori would have been dragged back to have sex with her.
It was the decline of the family business that sharpened people. Over the past few years, if nothing else, Hatakeyama Takamasa had developed the ability to observe people's words and follow their leaders closely.
I don't know how desolate and tragic her heart is beneath her shameless appearance.
Yiyin took a deep look at her and sighed.
"Hatakeyama-hime, you don't have to be like this.
I once said to Warrior Ji who was loyal to me, Ji will not let me down, and I will not let Ji down.
You and I are both descendants of the third steward, both have a famous family, and have also experienced the ups and downs of family fortunes. I understand how you cherish your current mood, but here, I don't need you to put down your dignity.
It is true that many unpleasant things happened between us, but those things have passed.
As long as you treat each other sincerely, I will try my best to protect the Hatakeyama family. This is my consistent moral obligation to my allies, and it is not an exception for you."
Yoshihiro's mentality towards Hatakeyama Takamasa is very complicated.
On the one hand, this guy suddenly fell from high to low, and his psychology is probably abnormal.
She killed the Kawauchi Yusa family without even thinking about the old relationship between the Yusa elders. She knelt down in front of her and didn't care about the Hatakeyama clan's face at all.
Yoshigan was also frightened when faced with Hatakeyama Takamasa who went to such extremes.
On the other hand, Yiyin was really helpless. He looked around and found that he could not find anyone trustworthy in the shogunate.
Even Ninagawa's own daughter was sent to the Tongxin people as a hostage, and he was secretly trying to be both a snake and a rat, and he was unwilling to report the news out of selfish motives.
Yoshigan's image of benevolence and righteousness is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. As long as Ninagawa himself does not show confrontation, he is really not afraid of Yoshigan killing the hostage girl.
These bastards from the shogunate are all very clever at bullying Yoshigan because he has a good character and cannot do anything cruel.
If it were the smiling tiger Akechi Mitsuhide who was in charge of Kyoto, they would not dare to go so far.
After all, bullying honest people.
The Hatakeyama clan has a high status in the shogunate, and Hatakeyama Takamatsu is sincerely loyal to her. Yoshigan really wants to use her, so she is more or less a reliable person.
If that's the case, then put the two sides at the level of mutual aid and give her some dignity. This will prevent her from overly suppressing her arrogance, cruelty, mental breakdown, and backlash.
Hatakeyama Takamasa was speechless as he listened to Yoshigan's soft words of comfort. Suddenly, two tears streaked across his cheeks and dripped onto the tatami.
She kowtowed to the ground, shrugged her shoulders and covered her head while crying, which made Suzuki Shigehide next to her very embarrassed. She was not suitable to be there at this time.
During the internal fighting in the shogunate, the samurai family took sides and took care of her affairs. Although she had a service, she was essentially a peripheral citizen, a mercenary leader, and a religious thug.
Yiyin said softly.
"Hatakeyama Hime?"
Hatakeyama Takamasa looked up at Yoshigan and said firmly.
"The benevolence of Odaisho is the only one I have seen in my life, and I am sincerely convinced by Hatakeyama Takamasa.
From today on, the Hatakeyama clan will look after you, and if there is any disobedience or injustice, I will not die a good death!"
Yiyin saw her face turned red and her speech was unclear, so he smiled bitterly to himself.
He just wanted to have a solid ally in the shogunate, but Hatakeyama Takamasa experienced a sudden rise and fall, and his temper became more and more extreme.
Yiyin couldn't help but sigh.
Is Ninagawa Chisei reliable? Hatakeyama Takamasa is someone I really can’t trust.
———
At the same time, Ashikaga Yoshiaki, the new general who had just succeeded to the throne in Nijo Imperial Palace, was also asking Ise Sakyu the same question.
"Will Ninagawa himself betray the Odaisho?"
Ise Sadakya shook his head and said.
"Absolutely impossible.
As far as I know, Ninagawa himself has already sent his daughter to the Shiba Doshin clan, and she will not betray the Odaisho and harm her heir.
However, she has a weak temperament and will hesitate at the slightest sign of trouble. I have successfully scared her, and she will definitely be more cautious when doing things in the future.
The superficial support for Odaisho is of no use, as long as she is worried and unwilling to go all out, there is no need to worry about her about many things."
Hosokawa Fujitaka looked sulky and said in a deep voice.
"What Mr. Ise said to scare her, did you mean to reveal that the Odaisou planned to contact the shogunate samurai family and expel the Oda family?
How can you spread this matter? There is a lot of commotion outside now, and the Grand Office will know about it sooner or later!"
Ise Sadakyo glanced at her and asked.
"So what if you know?"
Hosokawa Fujitaka choked and stuttered.
"Know...know..."
Ise Sadakyo smiled and helped her say it.
"I know it was Hosokawa Mibuchi and his family who leaked his thoughts, and it was you Hosokawa Fujitaka who betrayed him."
Hosokawa Fujitaka remained silent.
To deal with such important matters as the Oda family, Yoshihiro Shiba would never talk to anyone in person. He must have persuaded each family from close relatives to strangers, and slowly established a united front against the Oda family.
Mibuchi Haru is Yoshigan's closest elder and ally in the shogunate, and is probably the first person to be revealed.
Now, Mibuchi Haru is being kept in Shoryuji Castle and cannot go to Luo. Hosokawa Fujitaka, who was present at the time, is naturally the biggest suspect.
Hosokawa Fujitaka was willing to cooperate with Ashikaga Yoshiaki, but the Hosokawa-Mibuchi family did not abandon Yoshihide Shiba, the leader of the powerful local faction in the shogunate.
She can help Ashikaga Yoshiaki secretly, but openly she doesn't want to be exposed.
The strategy of the Hosokawa Mibuchi family is to stand in the middle and eat both ends. The tendency is one thing, but taking sides is another.