Okazaki Castle, this is the place where the Matsudaira family of Nishi Mikawa started.
Tokugawa Ieyasu's grandmother, Matsudaira Kiyoyasu, took this area as a base and captured Mikawa and the other lands. The Tokugawa family privately remembers him as a heroic master who could conquer the world if he lived to be thirty years old.
But the fact is that the world is not so easy to win, and Tokugawa Ieyasu is actually more capable and wiser than her grandmother.
Militarily, she reorganized the Matsudaira family, which had long been in disarray after being governed by her incompetent mother for many years, and conquered both Mikawa and Ebon, competing with the Takeda and Hojo families to dominate one side.
Politically, she actively moved closer to Oda Nobunaga, strictly abided by the covenant of the Seisu Alliance, and was Oda Nobunaga's back-to-back reliable ally.
On the issue of the Shiba-Oda dispute, Tokugawa Ieyasu used his personal friendship with Shiba Yoshigan and Oda Nobunaga to insist on neutrality and not become an enemy of Shiba. Oda Nobunaga could not say anything.
As a result, Tokugawa Ieyasu received a lot of benefits from Shiba Yoshigan, and even promoted the Matsudaira family to become a descendant of the Nitta line of the famous Minamoto family, changing the Miao name to Tokugawa, and the family status was greatly improved.
———
Okazaki Castle Residence Hall, where Tokugawa Ieyasu held a banquet after welcoming Yoshigan back.
On the host's seat, Yoshigami faced Tokugawa Ieyasu's frequent toasts to show his goodwill, and he also spoke softly and calmly to save face, chatting and laughing happily.
Uninformed outsiders always think that Tokugawa Ieyasu is lucky because he has the Mikawa Princess samurai who is famous for his ruthlessness and is loyal and reliable, so the Matsudaira family can make a comeback after its decline.
Actually, the truth is not that simple.
The samurai family has never been absolutely loyal, not to mention Tokugawa Ieyasu's superb methods in controlling the two warrior groups of Mikawa and Toeji.
Just talking about the Mikawa Princess warrior herself, loyalty is a joke.
The East and West Mikawa have been fighting against each other for many years, and the internal conflicts are actually very serious. Even among the wealthy families in Nishi-Mikawa, Sakai, and Honda, who were founded by Tokugawa Ieyasu, which one is easy to get along with?
The Matsudaira family has indeed been married to these local wealthy families for generations, but if Tokugawa Ieyasu cannot suppress them, they can still turn Tokugawa Ieyasu into an incompetent puppet like her mother.
Tokugawa Ieyasu himself was sold back and forth between the Oda Imagawa family by these loyal relatives when he was a child, and was kidnapped and used as hostage everywhere.
The ability to stabilize the two countries of Mikawa and Tokugawa and revive the Tokugawa family was entirely due to Tokugawa Ieyasu's superb political skills and outstanding military ability, and had little to do with the so-called loyalty and uprightness of the Mikawa Princess samurai.
There is loyalty to the Mikawa Princess, but more importantly, Tokugawa Ieyasu has been promoting the loyalty of the Mikawa Princess, which in turn restrains the Mikawa people to show more and more pride in their loyalty.
Tokugawa Ieyasu was able to maintain his independence under the covetousness of Oda Nobunaga, he was able to work with the Hojo clan to resist Takeda, and he was able to resist Takeda Shingen's invasion without defeat.
Can such a person be simple?
It was rumored that Tokugawa Ieyasu was so frightened by Takeda Shingen that he peed his pants during the Mikado War. Yoshigan did not believe a word of those humiliating and joking words.
The reality is that Tokugawa Ieyasu not only preserved the territory of Mikawa and Enji, but also continued to buy off the Suruga people and reverse infiltrate the Suruga country controlled by the Takeda family.
It took Takeda Shingen raising the butcher knife to control the wavering thoughts of the Suruga crowd. Her seemingly tough performance turned out to be helplessness at being at a disadvantage.
After three drinks and five dishes, Yoshigami looked at Tokugawa Ieyasu and smiled.
"I heard that you have been enjoying the blessings in Binsong City in Yuanjiang Kingdom for the past few years and rarely return to Sanhe Kingdom. Why did you think of coming all the way to pick me up this time to wash away the dust and wind for me?"
Tokugawa Ieyasu smiled.
She has stayed in Hamamatsu Castle all these years because Mikawa Enji and the two countries are equally powerful. She must properly handle the newly conquered Enji people and digest them into her own arms.
But in the eyes of outsiders, they always felt that she liked the prosperous life in Yuanjiang Country. Even the Sanhe people criticized her and couldn't understand it. They often persuaded her to return to the country, which made her mentally and physically exhausted.
But how wise is the saint? He can naturally understand Tokugawa Ieyasu's actions, and he made fun of him at this time, just because he was curious about Tokugawa Ieyasu's hospitality that he came all the way to receive him.
Tokugawa Ieyasu was Oda Nobunaga's number one younger sister and best ally who guarded the gateway to Tokaido with four and a half million koku.
Even if the Shiba Oda family has now reconciled, Tokugawa Ieyasu, a politically slick man, will not appear so humble.
You know, Yoshigan had just fought a decisive battle with Oda Nobunaga involving 200,000 people and involving seven or eight countries for the daughter of the Takeda family.
The biggest enemy of the Tokugawa family now is Takeda Shingen who occupies Suruga Kingdom.
Yoshigan asked his daughter of the Takeda family to go back to visit relatives. At this time, any humility from Tokugawa Ieyasu may be misunderstood as political weakness, and the wise will not take it.
Tokugawa Ieyasu sighed.
"I beg you, the saint, to stand aside."
Yoshigan waved his hand, and all the warriors, including Tokugawa Shiba's subordinates, kowtowed to the ground and left the hall.
Even the Kamao clan left the village simply. She didn't think Tokugawa Ieyasu dared to do anything detrimental to the saint.
In the current political environment, anyone who dares to attack a saint is seeking death.
Furthermore, a saint is brave enough to be brave enough to fight alone. Who can do anything to a saint by himself?
Tokugawa Ieyasu's move was probably because he wanted to ask the saint for something, and it was not convenient to spread the word.
After the ladies left the scene, Tokugawa Ieyasu respectfully walked to the Yoshiyin case. Seeing that the scented candle was dim, he diligently picked up the cut candle and lit the candle for the Yoshiyin.
As the candle light became brighter, a faint fragrance spread out, which smelled very good.
Yoshigan watched Tokugawa Ieyasu act carefully and didn't care about the fragrance. His attention was all on Tokugawa Ieyasu.
After Tokugawa Ieyasu finished all this, he kowtowed deeply to the ground, covered his face and cried.
"Ask the saint to save me."
Yiyin was stunned, was this a crying scene? The performance progress bar was pulled up a bit too fast.
"Don't act like a little man and stand up to speak. Who will harm you? With your name of hundreds of thousands of stones, who can harm you?"
Tokugawa Ieyasu wiped away tears and said with a sad smile.
"I heard that the Kantō Imperial Palace accepted His Highness Takeda into the Great Council and has decided to conquer the people of the East.
The foreign minister boldly asked the sage, is this really true?"
Yiyin nodded and said.
"Many people in the East have committed unjust acts, and the concubines in Guandong are so excited that they voluntarily attack them and rectify their origins."
Tokugawa Ieyasu sighed.
"It seems this is true.
It is said that both His Highness Hojo and His Highness Takeda were active responders to the conquest of the East. The Hojo family aspired to Boso Peninsula, and the Takeda family aspired to Hitachi Kingdom.
If they all get what they want, I'm afraid there will no longer be a place for the Tokugawa family to stand on this Tokaido."
Yoshigan somewhat understood what Tokugawa Ieyasu said.
The current situation in Tokaido is that Takeda, Hojo and Tokugawa are three pillars.
The Takeda family owned Kai Kingdom and Shinano Kingdom, and although they also controlled Suruga Kingdom, they were never able to establish effective rule.
The Hojo family included Izu Kingdom, Sagami Kingdom, and Musashi Kingdom, but Musashi Kingdom was swept away in the Kanto strategy jointly launched by Yoshigan and Uesugi Kenshin, and the local samurai forces close to Hojo suffered heavy losses.
Hojo Ueyasu relied on Kenshin Uesugi's failed conquest to win back the Musashi Kingdom, but she mainly relied on diplomatic strategies to betray the powerful local samurai.
These wallflowers were not conquered by force, but only submitted to the Hojo family in name. The Hojo family had very limited influence on them.
Therefore, the Tokugawa family owns two countries, and the Takeda and Hojo families each own three countries. It seems that the other two families are more powerful, but the Tokugawa family with a solid foundation does not suffer much.
The relative balance of the three powers is the most important political support for maintaining this tripartite situation.
But now, the situation is about to change.
If the conquest of the Oriental Masses goes smoothly, the Hojo family will swallow up the Bosou Peninsula, which means they will expand their power to Anbo and the two kingdoms of Kamisou.
Although the Takeda family's goal is only Hitachi, Hitachi is a big country, with more arable land than the total arable land of the Boso Peninsula.
If the goals of the Hojo Takeda family are really to be achieved, the three-legged balance of Tokaido will be broken immediately, and Tokugawa Ieyasu will directly become the weakest one.
Tokugawa Ieyasu's best response was to take advantage of the opportunity when the Hojo Takeda family participated in the conquest of the East, and send troops to harass the two families' territories, forcing them to turn back, leading to the failure of the expansion.
From a military perspective, this is the best way. But politically, if the Tokugawa family dares to do this, they will be doomed.
Because the conquest of the Eastern Masses was the strategic goal of the entire Kanto Agency, it was also the compensation given by Yoshigan to the Kanto Allied Forces for not receiving land rewards during the Battle of Shiba Oda.
Now facing the political trend of Shiba Oda reconciling and joining forces to conquer the world, if Tokugawa Ieyasu dares to hold back, he will be killed by a wave on the shore.
This was one of the reasons why she cried and said that she had no way to survive, and asked Yiyin to show her a clear way.
Another reason lies in the Oda family.
The Tokugawa family's Mikawa Toe Ryogoku was originally a shield used by Oda Nobunaga to protect the Nobi Plains.
When Oda Nobunaga conquered the Kinki region, Tokugawa Ieyasu's presence in Tokaido was to protect Oda Nobunaga from being backstabbed by forces from Tokaido that threatened his base.
In the Battle of Shiba-Oda, Takeda Shingen only used a small trick to pull out a small force of troops from the Shinano Mountains, and then harassed the Nobi Plains.
If Tokugawa Ieyasu was gone and Tokaido was wide open, how many troops would Oda Nobunaga need to keep to defend his hometown?
But now, Tokugawa Ieyasu's use value of Oda Nobunaga is getting lower and lower.
Yoshigan and Oda Nobunaga reached a consensus, which means that Kanto is no longer a threat to Oda Nobunaga, and her abilities are safe.
Whether it's Takeda Shingen or Uesugi Kenshin, Yoshigan can restrain them and prevent them from interfering with Oda Nobunaga's conquest of other parts of the island country.
The Tokugawa family, the most important strategic gateway of the Oda family in the Tokaido, became dispensable.
Tokugawa Ieyasu had a good strategic vision, so he was so anxious that he got angry.
The enemies facing each other are becoming unstoppable and becoming stronger, while their own value to their allies is getting lower and lower.
With Oda Nobunaga's greed, how long can the Tokugawa family maintain its independence? Tokugawa Ieyasu's final outcome will either be to settle down and become Oda's retainer, or end up like Asai Nagamasa.
Tokugawa Ieyasu was unwilling to choose either of these two paths, so she knelt in front of Yoshigan.
Looking at Tokugawa Ieyasu who was crying miserably in front of me, I felt pity for him. Yoshigan thought he had seen through Tokugawa Ieyasu's thoughts.
But he didn't know that Tokugawa Ieyasu had more ruthless ideas and more extreme methods than he did.
As he was talking, Yoshigami suddenly felt hot and uneasy all over his body, and the pretty face of Tokugawa Ieyasu in front of him became more and more charming.
Tokugawa Ieyasu knew that the time had come as his face turned red and his ears turned red. His breathing became rapid.
She walked around the table where the dishes were placed, knelt down next to Yiyin, and said sadly.
"Brother Yiyin, please give me a hand. I am willing to do anything for brother Yiyin."
As he spoke, one of Tokugawa Ieyasu's hands dishonestly touched Yoshigoshi's calf. Beneath the pitiful appearance of begging, there was hidden a further fiery ambition.
When Yi Gin was touched by her little hand, the fire in his body burned even more intensely. He couldn't help but feel a surge in his heart, and reached out to touch Tokugawa Ieyasu's little face.
Tokugawa Ieyasu happened to raise his head, as if he wanted to get closer so that Yoshigan could touch and kiss him more easily.
It was this slightly anxious action that made Yiyin feel a little alert.
No, Tachibana Kanade just completed his once-a-week task last night. He was so tired in Kyoto recently that his waist was about to break. How could he have so much anger to vent?
Yiyin looked solemn and stood up.
"I'm a little too drunk, so I'm going to rest first. We'll talk about official matters tomorrow."
After saying that, Yiyin glanced at the hem of his clothes that was pushed out in front of him, and felt that something strange happened today. He picked up the wine bottle on the table and said.
"This wine is good. I'll take the remaining half bottle back and drink it."
Quickly walking out of the hall, Yoshigan felt relieved when he saw Kamaojigo and Ii Naomasa waiting outside.
"Go back to the yard and rest."
All the warrior girls bowed and walked out with Yoshigan in their arms, heading to the residence arranged for Yoshigan by Tokugawa Ieyasu.
After walking into the courtyard, Yoshigan handed the wine to Ii Naomasa and whispered.
"Find someone to try the wine and see if there is any problem. Send extra guards tonight, don't let up."
Ii Naomasa was shocked.
"Sage thinks there is something wrong with the Tokugawa family?"
Yiyin shook his head.
"Maybe I'm too worried, you go ahead.
Shixiang, come into the house with me, I have something to tell you."
After saying that, Yi Gin grabbed Kamao Shigo and walked straight to his bedroom.
The door was closed just now, and before Kamao Shigo could ask what was going on, Yoshiyin, his eyes red, rushed towards him.
This journey has been really hard for him, but now that he can't bear it anymore, there is no need to bear it anymore. No matter whether Tokugawa Ieyasu has problems or not, Yoshihiro must solve his own problems first.
Kamojigo was startled, but outside Ii Naomasa was nervously arranging defenses. Kamojigo did not dare to make a sound. She could only bite her clothes in her mouth and bear it silently.
———
After sending Yoshiyin off respectfully, Tokugawa Ieyasu returned to the hall and sighed slightly. He was still too impatient. One mistake cost him a great opportunity.
Tokugawa Ieyasu didn't care about the bottle of wine that Yoshigan took away, because there was nothing wrong with the bottle of wine, but the real problem was...
Tokugawa Ieyasu stepped onto the throne, picked up the cut candle he had just used, inserted the incense directly into it, and stirred out the wick.
At this time, someone hurriedly entered the hall. It was Okazaki Joyoro, who was also the preparer of the banquet, Ishikawa Sumasa.
She bowed to Tokugawa Ieyasu on the throne and asked in a panic.
"Master, has the matter been exposed?"
Tokugawa Ieyasu glanced at Ishikawa Sumasa, shook his head and said.
"The saint just took away the wine."
Ishikawa Shumasa breathed a sigh of relief.
"That's good, that's good."
Tokugawa Ieyasu shook the wick on the cut candle and asked.
"Is there any problem with this? Will there be any sequelae?"
Ishikawa Shuzheng shook his head and said.
"Don't worry, my lord, after a man smells this fragrance, he will only feel a strong sense of joy. It will not harm his body. He will be fine after a good sleep.
This is a thing used by the shrine maidens of Atsuta Shrine to stay with male guests. The craftsmanship has been refined over thousands of years, so no one will be able to tell the difference."
Tokugawa Ieyasu nodded and slowly walked out of the hall. When he passed by Ishikawa Sumasa, he whispered.
"You destroy the things yourself, don't leave any traces, and don't let others know.
Heaven knows and earth knows, you know and I know.
I will go back to rest first, and I will get up early tomorrow to pay my respects to the saint."
"Hi!"
After bowing and watching Tokugawa Ieyasu leave, Ishikawa Tsumugi quickly stepped onto the throne and took advantage of the fact that no one was around to collect the incense and wicks.
At this moment, her heart was filled with anxiety.
Heaven knows and the earth knows, you know and I know. But if one day, you only want to know for yourself, what should I do?