The Oda family only developed a Tsuda clan in Sakai Port and made no new moves. This greatly disappointed the Nanman Sect, which had great ambitions.
After Frois calmed down, she had to face reality, intending to intensify the conflict between the Oda family and the Ichikai clan. Her idea coincided with Akechi Mitsuhide in Kyoto.
At this time, in the port area of Sakai Port, Flois was talking to someone in the church.
"Augustus, my sister. I'm very sorry about Paul."
The person whom Freus called Augustus was a young man from the island country. She had a petite figure, long eyelashes, and big eyes, and her eyes were full of the brilliance of reason.
This person's name was Konishi Yukinaga. She was adopted as the adopted daughter by Konishi Lonzo. She married Konishi's son and became Konishi Lonzo's heir.
Both mother and daughter Konishi were Southern Barbarians. Konishi Longzuo's Christian name was Paul, and Konishi Yukinaga's Christian name was Augustus.
Konishi Lonzo played an important role in helping the Nanman Sect to go to Luo, and had a close relationship with Imai Munehisa.
Afterwards, in order to prevent Ichibuki from pursuing the matter, Takada Yono traced the Shiba family and simply killed Lonzo Konishi when she was out, pretending to be robbed by bandits.
Konishiya was a medicine merchant. During the war, food, weapons, and medicinal materials were all hard currencies. Konishiya's status in the business circle of Sakai Port was not low. Her death was a great loss to the Nanman Sect.
An important customer of Konishi's medicinal materials is the Bizen daimyo Ukita. President Konishi was previously arranged by Konishi Lonzo to trade with Ukita at the Okayama Fish Wear House in Bizen Province.
In an accident, Konishi Yukinagabu saved the governor of the Uki family, Naoie, so he was promoted to the title of Hime Samurai and served as an official in the Uki family.
Konishi Lonzo was going to Bizen Country to stock up on goods and visit his son and adopted daughter, but unfortunately he died on the way.
President Konishi came back this time, on the one hand, to purchase military supplies for the Uki family, and on the other hand, he also wanted to find out the truth behind the death of his adoptive mother.
She crossed herself on her chest, chanted the holy name, and then asked.
"Dear Froys, I have some questions in my mind.
My mother walks in the mountains all year round, buying and selling medicinal materials. She is very familiar with the local situation and moves very carefully.
It’s really hard for me to believe that her death could be an accident, what do you think?”
Flois said solemnly.
"Augustus, what you said makes sense.
Before Paul died, he did a great thing for the church.
I believe you have also heard that the church went to Luo again to apply to the shogunate for missionary rights. Unfortunately, due to the resistance of various Buddhist sects, this matter ultimately failed."
President Konishi was keenly aware of this and asked.
"The church has always wanted to go to Luo to negotiate with the shogunate, but it has been blocked by Buddhist sects and has never been able to do so. Being able to go to Luo this time can be regarded as a breakthrough.
Who has so much energy that the church can get rid of the obstruction of Ishiyama Honganji Temple and successfully go to Luo?"
Floyd smiled bitterly.
"That's the crux of the matter.
It was Bao Lu who found his collaborator in Shangluo. In order to prevent Yi Xiangzong from noticing, Paul, as the only insider, kept in contact with the collaborator.
Shortly after the cooperation ended, she unexpectedly left us and returned to the embrace of *.
Afterwards, the partner never contacted the church again. I don’t even know what benefits Paul gave the other party to reach this cooperation.
Maybe, the other party doesn't care about the price offered by a medicinal material dealer, and just wants to make it happen in Shangluo."
President Konishi said solemnly.
"So, the mother was killed and silenced after being taken advantage of?"
Flois sighed.
"The dead keep their mouths shut, and death can cover up all conspiracies.
I have written to Rome that the Church will not forget the sacrifice of the martyrs and we will always remember the sacrifice of Sister Paul."
President Konishi asked unwillingly.
"Don't you even have any clues?"
Looking at Mr. Konishi who looked at him sincerely, a trace of guilt arose in Flois's heart.
The Nanman Sect's guidance to Oda Nobunaga was almost ineffective. Bautista, who was responsible for the underground missionary work in Kyoto, and the sisters under her leadership all died.
Jepenny became an official in the Oda family, and although he was reused, the cunning Oda Nobunaga only wanted to absorb the Western military skills of iron cannons, but turned a blind eye to what the Nanman religion most desired.
Flois was eager to make new progress, but it was difficult for the Nanman people to integrate into this conservative and traditional island country and intervene in the affairs of the Oda family. They could only rely on the power of local believers.
The outstanding Konishi Governor has become a Hime Samurai, has been favored by the Bizen Daimyo, and received a samurai education, which is the best choice that Frois can find now.
Konishi Lonzo died for his faith, but Flois wanted to use some ambiguous clues to lead Konishi Yukinaga in the direction that the Nanman Cult hoped for.
She couldn't help but feel a sense of guilt in her heart. Even if she defended herself for the missionary cause, she could not completely dispel her guilt.
Seeing Froyce's hesitation, President Konishi obviously misunderstood, so she said sincerely.
"If the church is aware of anything, please let me know. I would be grateful."
Flois suppressed the guilt in his heart and said seriously.
"Dear Augustus, it's not that the church wants to hide anything from you, but as I said before, Paul is the only insider on this matter, and I have no proof.
Her death forced me to make guesses based on some clues, but it was difficult to determine the truth."
President Konishi said calmly.
"Then please tell me the church's speculation, and I promise not to make any nonsense."
Flois was silent for a moment and said.
"Before Paul's death, he seemed to have a close relationship with Imai Munehisa of the Shiba family. Imai Munehisa was a follower of the Shoku sect, but Paul was a devout believer of ours. This is very abnormal.
After the church successfully moved to Luo, the biggest obstacle in the shogunate against us obtaining missionary rights came from Akechi Mitsuhide of the Shiba family.
Ishiyama Honganji Temple is very grateful for the help of the Shiba family, and the cooperative relationship with the Shiba family has become closer.
My reason tells me that I shouldn’t make random guesses without evidence. But my intuition is that the church may be being taken advantage of.
The rule of the Miyoshi family in Sakai Port has ended, and now the Oda family and the Shiba family jointly govern this important port town.
At this time, we cannot harbor ill will toward the Spo family based on some unfounded speculations, as this is not conducive to our missionary work.
I'm very sorry, dear Augustus, that the Church cannot give you the truth. I can't even test it, lest it worsen the relationship with the Spurs."
Frois's words were actually mixed with some guidance. She used the results to infer that the Spo family had benefited from this incident, so she assumed that the Spo family was behind the scenes.
But in fact, she didn't know whether Imai Munehisa and Konishi Lonzo had a relationship, and she didn't know whether the Shiba family was really firmly opposed to it in the shogunate. The Nanman Cult was unable to obtain such detailed information.
But as luck would have it, her deliberate guidance hit the mark, and she guessed the truth.
Mr. Konishi frowned.
"The Shiba family...Takada Haruno...Imai Munehisa..."
As a member of the business circle of Sakai Port, President Konishi was very fond of the name of Takada Haruno in Shibaka Town, which made such a big project as the Hokurikudo Trading Road.
Flois nodded and said.
"Yes, behind Imai Munehisa is Takada Yono, an important retainer of the Shiba family. Their malicious speculations can only stop here.
You should know very well that Ishiyama Honganji Temple has brought too much trouble to the church. I can only stay rational when it comes to the Shiba family."
President Konishi nodded.
"Thank you very much for your help, dear Floyce."
After she finished speaking, she wanted to leave, but was stopped by Flois.
"Hashiba Hideyoshi of the Oda family is currently operating in Sakai Port. She has already attracted Tsuda Muneki and has a certain say in the Sakai Port business circle.
The market inventory in Sakai Port is limited, but both the Shiba family and the Oda family hope to obtain a large amount of goods from here.
In order to win the favor of their master after their death, Takada Haruno and Hashiba Hideyoshi must engage in a life-and-death zero-sum game.
Augustus, although the church cannot help you openly, my heart is with you."
When Frois mentioned this, he was clearly reminding Governor Konishi.
President Konishi nodded and said.
"Thank you very much."
Flois hesitated and said.
"As a Hime warrior from the Uki family, will there be any trouble if you interact with other Hime warriors from other families?"
Governor Konishi smiled.
"Dear Flois, although you speak Japanese very well, you still don't understand the principles of the samurai family deeply enough.
The territories of the Oda family and the Uki family are far apart, so if you interact with the Hime warriors who are not hostile, you will not be afraid of the family governor.
Even if one day there is a conflict between the Oda family and the Uki family, the relationship between the two families and the samurai family can still act as each other's diplomats and serve as family governors.
If the Oda family is strong enough and the value of my association with them is great, the family governor may even ask me to serve the Oda family instead to gain more benefits for the Uki family."
Floyce shook his head repeatedly.
"Sinners who are drowned in greed, political animals driven only by profit.
****, thank you and praise you.
May *save these evil souls, forgive all their sins and transgressions, and allow them to come before you as holy."
After listening to President Konishi's explanation, the last trace of guilt in Flois's heart disappeared. She guided President Konishi to get close to Hashiba Hideyoshi and get close to the Oda family, which was not considered a frame-up.
The two of them had solemn expressions on their faces, reciting prayers for salvation. The sunlight fell from the glazed layer on top of the church, reflecting on each other's pious faces.
———
In recent years, not only Akechi Mitsuhide and Frois hope to see Ashikaga and Oda turn against each other.
Like the everlasting beauty of the pine trees, the sight of Asakura Yoshikage, or the Nikgen of Honnoji Temple, there are countless people who are looking forward to it behind the scenes and doing tricks in secret, so I won’t repeat it again.
Ashikaga Yoshiaki and Oda Nobunaga seem to be breaking up by their own will, but all parties are dissatisfied with the status quo and are pushing to speed up this process.
At this time in Kanto, Yoshigan had already used the Kanto Hime Warriors to wander away for a year, and they must have been homesick, so they sent Yamanaka Yukimori and her Hime Samurai back to Echigo Kingdom.
Yamanaka Yukimori was originally the lord of Tomi Castle. When he came back this time, he should preside over the affairs of the Kanto Palace and reward the Kanto Princess Knights for their merits. This was the most important business.
Although she was reluctant to leave, she still obeyed the order and returned quickly. Yiyin pretended to be reluctant to leave, but in fact he was hoping that she would leave quickly.
It wasn't until one day after Yamanaka Yukimori left that Yoshiyin slowly returned to Dahu Ling, perfectly missing the schedule of the two of them.
After much deliberation, he finally decided to spend the winter in Dahu City, a place where the island is strong, because it belongs to his Kanto Spur Territory, and it is justified by its name.
If we go north to Numata Castle to join Uesugi Terutora, we will inevitably create some unnecessary associations with the outside world, so we might as well stay in Dahu Territory.
Dao Shengmeng was extremely happy for Yiyin's arrival. She gave up her residence in the city and welcomed her master to move in. However, she was not happy for a few days, and then she realized that she seemed to have little chance to be alone with her master.
Nowadays, the Sibo family's laws have become more and more perfect.
Yiyin promoted Sibo Tongxinzhong to the Tongxin Secretariat, preparing to further expand the number of Tongxinzhong and take over some power from the local government and return it to the central government.
Taking back some autonomy means that the central government needs to give instructions on many local applications and provide guidance on many affairs.
In other words, Yiyin has become very busy.
Although there is a secretariat to help, many matters must be decided by the Bank of China. This winter when the secretariat is still in the initial stage, the Bank of China is even more busy.
Dahu City, living in the museum.
Yoshigan sat on the main seat, and the papers in front of him were covered with documents. To his left and right, the papers in front of Kamaojigo and Ii Naomasa were the same.
Shima Shengmeng and Kirigakure Saizou were sitting in the center of the lower room, respectfully waiting for your Majesty to speak.
Yiyin first smiled fiercely at Shima Sheng, shook his face with a straight face, shook the information in his hand, and asked Kirigakure to hide it.
"Hojo Ujiyasu is dead?"
Kirigakure Zaizou nodded.
"Inform Tsutado-den that the Hojo family has publicly mourned. Hojo Uyasu died of illness five days ago at Odawara Castle.
It is said that during this year, she was almost sleepless to balance the dissatisfaction in her family and seek opportunities to restore the decline of the Hojo family.
After His Highness Uesugi retreated from the main kingdom in defeat and the Hojo family made a comeback, his health became worse and worse, probably due to overwork."
Yiyin sighed.
The Hojo clan joined forces in the Sano leadership and almost lost all the capital of the Hojo family. Internal retainers were in turmoil, and externally Uesugi Terutora was aggressive.
This year, Hojo Ujiyasu suffered too much. He was holding a bad hand and waited for the opportunity. After finally getting the situation back, he felt relieved. This old man was no longer good.
Yiyin sighed.
"I will send someone to deliver a piece of silk gold. This is a respectable opponent. You can go down first."
After Kirigakure Saizo bowed, he did not leave. Yoshigami narrowed his eyes and asked.
"What else?"
Kirigakure Saizo said carefully.
"There is a rumor that before his death, Hojo Ujiyasu was preparing marriage arrangements for Hojo Ushimasa, but he was shunned by Hojo Ushimasa in every possible way.
Originally, no one in the Hojo family knew that Hojo Ujiyasu had a serious health problem. It was not until she was so angry that she vomited blood and died that everyone discovered that the governor had been suffering from a serious illness for a long time, but had kept it hidden from the outside world.
For this reason, the Hojo family had some dissatisfaction with the Hojo clan's politics.
Because the current situation of the Hojo family is good, and Hojo Genan, the leader of the family, is mediating, there is no scandal in the family."