Akechi Mitsuhide didn't know that he was not the only one who desperately wanted Ichikusaune to get involved with the Oda family. There was someone in Sakai Port who was more anxious than her.
Sakai Port area, church.
As the morning sun rose, Louise Flois presided over today's morning prayers. After everyone dispersed, she stopped one person.
The sunlight penetrated into the nave from the glass on the top of the church and shone on the faces of the two people. Flois crossed himself on his chest and prayed to her mother that his plan would succeed.
"Dear Augustus, you have been staying in Sakai Port these days and will not return. Will doing so cause resentment to the lord you are loyal to?"
The person in front of Flois was Governor Konishi who believed in Nanman Cult. She smiled and shook her head and explained.
"I wrote back to the Uki family. My master was very interested in me being able to connect with the powerful Oda family.
She hopes that I can keep this hard-won friendship and allow me to temporarily stay in Sakai Port."
Floyce laughed.
"This is all *'s will. What a good news."
President Konishi said solemnly.
"There is one thing I hope to get help from the church. The Murakami navy in the West Seto Inland Sea has attached itself to the Mori family and has posed a great threat to the Uki family.
My master hopes that I can recruit water pirates in Sakai Port, buy and build ships, and use them to protect the territory of the Uki family.
To complete this task, I need the help of the church."
Flois nodded and said.
"I will contact the believer merchants in Sakai Port for you and provide you with personnel and material support.
The church very much hopes that devout believers like you can gain greater power in this country, which will be conducive to our common cause, the noble cause of spreading the glory of * across this land.
Of course, the lords of the Yuxi family need to pay for this."
Konishi Yukinaga smiled.
"This is natural. The Yuxi family will not be stingy to friends who provide help."
Flois smiled slightly and talked about the real reason why she kept Mr. Konishi.
"Dear Augustus, what do you think of this battle of Miyoshi and Oda?
Can the Oda family defeat the Miyoshi family and continue to maintain their dominance in Sakai Port?"
President Konishi said seriously.
"I have tested Hideyoshi Hashiba, she is Hideyoshi Hashiba's agent who stayed at Sakai Port to deal with my supply issues.
According to her, 30,000 soldiers came from the Oda family this time. The Miyoshi family came across the sea and lacked time, so the number of soldiers transported over was only more than 10,000 at most.
Judging from the number of people, the Oda family has a great chance of winning."
Flois nodded and said.
"According to the information brought back by believers from the periphery, Oda's army has occupied Tenmansen, Kawaguchi, Watanabe, Kanzaki, Kaminamba, Shimo-Namba, and Hamate, and is making pre-war arrangements.
The Oda army surrounded Noda Castle and Fukushima Castle, and the Guards, commanded by Lord Oda himself, set up defenses at Shitennoji Temple."
Governor Konishi frowned, and the terrain around Sakai Port flashed through her mind.
The Miyoshi family came ashore from Osaka Bay and occupied Noda-go, which is actually an outlying island of silt washed out by the river. It is surrounded by water and is divided into a zigzag shape by the Nakatsu River and the Kizugawa River.
Noda Castle is located near the open sea, while Fukushima Castle is located further inland on the river bank.
The Oda family surrounded these two castles, which did not surprise Yukinaga Konishi. What surprised her was that Oda Nobunaga's main formation was located.
Ishiyama Honganji Temple is not an isolated city, but a group of temples and towns with Honganji Temple as its core, only a few kilometers away from Noda Township.
Noda Township is in the north, Ishiyama is in the south, and the Shitennoji Temple occupied by Oda Nobunaga is further south.
In other words, the Oda army not only surrounded Noda Township, but Ishiyama Honganji Temple was also sandwiched between the south and the north by the Oda army.
Mr. Konishi pondered for a while and said.
"The bridges leading to Noda Township are all north of Noda. The battle between the Oda family and the Miyoshi family should be based on the north.
The military position His Majesty Oda arranged in the south of Noda Township was difficult to cross the river to support, and it was used to isolate the connection between the Miyoshi family and Ishiyama Honganji Temple.
She set up formations at Shitennoji Temple, but she was actually worried that the Ichigo clan would interfere in the war, so she set up formations in the north and south to suppress the Ishiyama Honganji Temple to prevent the Ichikō clan from assisting the Miyoshi family."
Flois said with a solemn expression.
"Augustus, you know that I don't understand military affairs. Please judge one thing for me based on your experience in the war of this island nation.
Has trust between the Ishiyama Honganji Temple and the Oda army been completely lost?
If, I mean, if the city wall on the Shishan side was shot by muskets at this time, would the tense nerves on both sides react violently and directly trigger a battle?"
Konishi Governor knew in his heart that Frois couldn't wait for the Ichikai clan to break with the Oda family, and was determined to let the Nanman Sect himself fire the first shot.
She thought about it carefully, nodded slowly under the expectant eyes of Flois, and said decisively.
"There will definitely be a fight!
As far as I know, His Highness Oda was not completely ignorant of the Ichikō clan's conspiracy against Oda. He once asked Ishiyama Honganji Temple to pay a condolence payment of 5,000 kan, but was sternly rejected by Master Xianru.
The dissatisfaction between the middle and lower classes of the Ichigo sect towards the Oda family has long been piled high with just one spark missing. If an iron cannon attack occurs, the middle and lower class believers will inevitably choose to go alone and attack the Oda family.
If bloodshed breaks out between the Ichiko clan and the Oda family, Master Mingru will have no choice but to break up and start a war, with no possibility of turning back."
Religious belief is a double-edged sword. As the supreme leader of Yixiang Sect, Master Xianru is actually riding on the back of a tiger.
The tiger beneath her was going crazy. The only thing she could do was to follow the tiger's bestiality and ensure that she would not be overthrown. As for other long-term considerations, she had to step aside before saving her life.
Flois said with a satisfied smile.
"I understand, thank you very much for your analysis. I believe that soon, the bullets of the Oda family will fall on the two villages of Lou Zhigan and Kawaguchi."
President Konishi nodded silently and said again.
"Then the Oda family must move quickly.
Because based on my understanding of the Japanese samurai family, when surrounded by powerful enemies, a group of Hime warriors like the Miyoshi family, which is full of internal conflicts, is likely to choose to request peace talks.
If the Oda family's iron cannon fires too late, it may be too late."
Floyce nodded cautiously.
"I believe it won't be too late."
The two of them were talking about the Oda family, but in fact they knew in their hearts that the shot must have been fired by a Nanman believer.
The prospect of a war between the Ichigo Sect and the Oda family is really great for the Nanman Sect.
———
The Nanman religion, which came with the Nanman trade, used the benefits of trade and technology to open a way, and soon allowed the samurai daimyo on Kyushu Island to loosen their religious restrictions and gain a firm foothold.
After successfully establishing the Kyushu Diocese, the Nanman Sect continued eastward and set foot on the Sakai Port on the other side of the Seto Inland Sea. They wanted to repeat their old tricks and use the Nanman trade to open the door to preaching.
The Yixiang Sect prides itself on protecting the Dharma of Buddhism, and has always used the brutal method of physical destruction to prevent the spread of the Nanman Sect in Settsu Country and even in recent times. It is regarded by the Nanman Sect as the biggest threat.
However, Yixiang Sect has a complete grassroots organizational structure, explosive mobilization power, fanaticism and no fear of death, and behind it is the support of recent Buddhist sects who are afraid of the powerful spreading power of Nanman Sect.
The Nanman Sect, unable to be induced by inducements, was unable to use its strengths to expand rapidly, and the Yixiang Sect successfully blocked the pace of its missionary work.
Frois thought of using the Oda family to eliminate the biggest stumbling block of the Nanman Sect in Settsu. Ishiyama Honganji Temple, Ishiyama, carefully prepared to help both parties fire the first shot.
At the same time, Honnōji Hikaru, who had endured for many years in Kyoto, finally got the opportunity he had dreamed of, and the fire of revenge was already burning in his heart.
Honnoji Temple, inside the quiet room.
Hingen of Honnoji Temple looked at the devout believers in front of him and asked softly.
"Are you sure Enryakuji Kakushu doesn't know about this matter?"
The man nodded.
"Hi, Master Kakushu went to Beijing to participate in Buddhist meetings after autumn, and has never been on Mount Hiei.
It was the religious group in charge of Enryaku Temple that accepted bribes from the Asai family and decided to lend troops to Asai and Asakura's coalition forces to attack Sakamoto Castle.
Sakamoto Castle guard General Mori Katsunari led his troops to move to Usayama Castle, and fought a small-scale battle with Asai Asakura's coalition forces at the foot of Sakamoto Town, with neither victory nor defeat.
With her guarding the Sakamoto Gate, Asai and Asakura's coalition forces are not allowed to enter for a while. She probably doesn't know that Mount Hiei has decided to join the war, and her army will soon be attacked from both sides."
Honnōji Hingen couldn't help but laugh. Yudokoni's face of compassion for all living beings was torn to pieces by the ferocious smile.
"Okay! Immediately inform the followers of our sect in Mori Katsura's army and ask them to find ways to create chaos. This battle is guaranteed to be defeated but not won. It is best to let Mori Katsura die at the entrance of Sakamoto.
Remember, you must establish the cause and effect of the Hieizan nuns’ participation in the battle, which led to the defeat of the Oda army.”
The man nodded firmly and left. Honnoji Higen sat still, staring blankly ahead for a long time, and then let out a long breath.
The blood feud of the Nichiren Sect has finally been repaid.
During the middle period of the Kamakura shogunate, Nichiren Shonin put forward a new interpretation of the Lotus Sutra, which was highly regarded by the Tendai Sect, and founded Nichiren Hokke Sect.
In the following two hundred years, the two sects debated Buddhist principles at Buddhist meetings many times. The Tendai sect gradually lost ground to the Nichiren sect, and the Lotus Sutra sect was about to change its owner.
At that time, the power of the Nichiren sect was at its peak. It had just defeated the Ichiko sect and burned down the Yamashina Honganji Temple. This caused the Honganji Temple to move its main mountain to Ishiyama, and it has since separated from the Buddhist disputes in Kyoto.
The Tendai sect took advantage of the civil strife in the shogunate and requested that the twenty-one main temples of the Nichiren sect become the last temple of the Tendai sect and paid a fee, but the Nichiren sect refused.
Then the Hieizan nun regiment went down to the capital, destroyed the 21 main mountains of the Nichiren sect, massacred countless nuns and followers, and severely damaged their vitality.
Unable to be persuaded by Buddhism, the Tendai Sect used physical destruction to directly cut off the foundation of the Nichiren Sect while the shogunate had no time to care. From then on, the Tendai Sect could no longer call itself the Lotus Sect.
In order to avoid the sectarian vendetta, the Nichiren sect had no choice but to hide in Shouchangko Town to preach. Later, when Master Xianru came to the throne, the Nichiren sect fiercely took revenge on the Nichiren sect believers.
Seeing the suffering of Nichiren sect believers, Honnōji Nichigen went to Owari Kingdom and reached an agreement with Oda Nobunaga.
The Nichiren sect used its influence among craftsmen and merchants to assist the Oda family in developing Rakuza's economic policy and help the Oda family establish their own iron cannon workshop.
Oda Nobunaga promised to help the Nichiren Sect recover the blood debts of the Tendai Sect and the Ichiko Sect.
When the Oda family successfully entered Luo and entered the capital, Honnōji Nichigen was so anxious that he raised the Buddhist flag of the Nichiren sect and provoked the Tendai religious group.
But she didn't expect that Oda Nobunaga would actually burn bridges by crossing the river. He used the excuse of Honnoji Nichigen to cause trouble and refused to help the Nichiren Sect to avenge him. From then on, he ignored Honnoji Nichigen.
The Oda family took advantage of the Nichiren sect believers and got so many benefits, but in the end they used Honnōji Nichigen as a chamber pot and threw it away after use. How can anything in the world be so cheap!
Mori Katsunari is a veteran of the Oda family and deeply trusted by Oda Nobunaga.
If Enryaku Temple on Mount Hiei lends troops to Asai Asakura's coalition forces, Mori Katsunari's troops are attacked and destroyed, and Sakamoto Castle is in danger, can Oda Nobunaga still maintain peace with the Tendai Sect?
The Nichiren Sect helped the Oda family establish a iron cannon workshop, and among the army craftsmen and iron cannon ashigaru, there were many Nichiren sect believers.
If these people had created chaos, shaken the morale of the army, and escaped first when Sen Kecheng was flanked, it would have been difficult for Sen Kecheng to be defeated.
Enryakuji Kakushu, as the master of the Tendai sect of this generation, is a sensible person. Of course she would not do such a stupid thing as lending troops to the Asai Asakura coalition to form a blood feud with the Oda family.
It's a pity that the Tiantai Sect has a great cause and many things are beyond the control of the Master Chueshu himself.
The Hiei Sanni Corps is suppressing the Hiira Mountains northeast of Kyoto and is eyeing Kyoto. The famous families in Kyoto hope to protect their own interests in Kyoto by infiltrating the Tendai Sect.
They often send other children other than their own heirs to Buddhism, and Mount Hiei is often their first choice.
Japanese Buddhism is deeply influenced by the culture of the island country. They say that Buddha saves all sentient beings, but in fact, it is divided into three, six or nine levels. Only descendants of famous families can inherit the legacy of the Buddhist family and assume the important responsibilities of the sect.
The martial arts family has its own family status, and Buddhism has its roots. The society of the island country is strict in distinguishing between superior and inferior. Even the highest and lowest are not exempt from the custom, and it depends on blood.
Over time, the religious groups on Mount Hiei became a mixed bag, and the nuns who managed the temple all had their own demands.
The Asai family was an old samurai family in Kitaomi, so they naturally had their own connections on Mount Hiei. As long as they had enough benefits, they would naturally have high-ranking nuns to help.
When the Oda family came to Luo, the Buddhist flag of the Nichiren sect was erected in the army. When the Tendai sect nuns saw it, they were furious and walked away on the spot.
This time the Asai family came to borrow troops to attack the Oda family, and the Tendai Sect followed suit to give the Oda family some color. This was quickly recognized by most of the senior nuns in the nun corps.
These pampered Buddhist nobles had no idea how terrible Oda Nobunaga was, so they dared to hide it from Master Kakushu, who was attending a Buddhist meeting in Beijing, and made the stupid decision to borrow troops.
And Honnōji Nichigen, who had been staring at Mount Hiei, finally found a good opportunity and secretly planned to make a blood feud between Mount Hiei and the Oda family on the battlefield.
Honnoji Nichigen was very much looking forward to being eaten up and wiped clean by Oda Nobunaga and crossing the river and demolishing the bridge.
After the backstabbing of the Tendai Sect, will Oda Nobunaga change his attitude of neglecting the Nichiren Sect and become a devout believer again?
Yes, Oda Nobunaga originally wanted to win over the Nichiren Sect and gain the trust of Honnoji Nichigen, and she even chose to believe in the Nichiren Sect.
At this time, the Nichiren Sect needed this powerful believer to wake up and repay the Nichiren Sect for the sins that the Tendai Sect and the Ichiko Sect had committed.
As the saying goes, the way of heaven is reincarnation, no one will be spared by heaven.
The Nanman Sect and the Nichiren Sect did not know each other, but they would unintentionally join forces to push the fragile harmonious relationship between the Oda family and the Ichigo Sect Tendai Sect into the abyss.