Chapter 1954: Respecting the King and Fighting the Barbarians is Yu Chai
Kuroda Takataka spoke in a calm tone, but the ferocity and coldness of his words shocked Hideyoshi to the point where he was covered in white hair.
Hashiba Hideyoshi stared intently at the mentally twisted young strategist in front of him. She was completely different from the late Takenaka Shigeharu.
They are cold, have no bottom line, and do whatever it takes to achieve their goals. They are somewhat similar to Akechi Mitsuhide's thinking mode. They are both poisonous people who cannot be recognized by secular morality.
No wonder Takataka Kuroda wanted to use a good plan to provoke Hideyoshi. It was really because her clever plan was too underhanded and she was worried that Hideyoshi would not use it.
If Akechi Mitsuhide can't be killed, Oda Orphan will definitely not be able to get it.
Then in the name of defeating Akechi Mitsuhide's co-conspirator, kill Matsunagahide, capture Yodo Castle, then go down the river, capture Azuchi Castle, and kill Saito No-kun.
The saint is above, Akechi Mitsuhide's sins can only be judged by the saint. No matter it is Niwa Nagahide or Shibata Katsuie, they have no courage to disobey the saint.
However, Hashiba Hideyoshi, who was one step ahead, was able to make excuses, persecute others, whitewash his achievements, and gain political points.
Matsunaga Hide had just rebelled against Hashiba Hideyoshi and took refuge with Hashiba Hideyoshi. The two parties were in the political honeymoon period. She would never have thought that Hashiba Hideyoshi would suddenly attack her Matsunaga family at this time.
Whether he was calculating mentally or not, as long as he moved quickly enough, the nearby Yodo Castle could change hands in the blink of an eye. With this important town controlling the gateway to the Yodogawa River, Hideyoshi Hashiba could easily rush back to Azuchi Castle.
At this time, Azuchi Castle was in chaos due to the unexpected death of its owner, Oda Nobunaga.
In the name of capturing Akechi's accomplices, Hashiba Hideyoshi deceived the city gates and killed Saito Noge, so that he could naturally occupy this important town in Minami Omi, which was connected in all directions.
If you're lucky, you can also get Sakamoto Castle, which guards the entrance to Lake Biwa.
Akechi Mitsuhide was full of evil, and he successively conspired to kill Ashikaga Yoshiteru and Oda Nobunaga.
As long as Hashiba Hideyoshi's charges are well framed, the heads of Matsunagahide and Saito No-kun will be enough for her to gain political leverage to avenge the general and the lord.
In addition, Yodo Castle and Azuchi Castle have been acquired, which will become an important basis for bargaining in the internal meetings of the Oda family in the future.
Hashiba Hideyoshi and Akechi Mitsuhide did not enter Kyoto to meet Oda's orphan, which also gave the saint face. The Kinki Shiba leader was now leaderless and would not easily intervene in the internal killings of the Oda family.
In this way, Hashiba Hideyoshi gained the reputation of revenge for the king, and gained the benefits of controlling the transportation hub.
But this matter is really shameless and disgusting.
Yodo Castle is easy to defend but difficult to attack. Matsunaga Hide sincerely surrendered to her without any defense, but Hideyoshi Hashiba attacked her secretly, killed her whole family and took over her territory.
Saito No-kun is even more innocent. He is a man who knows nothing about politics. He is a poor person who was deceived by Akechi Mitsuhide.
Hashiba Hideyoshi killed these two people and forcibly occupied the two cities, flaunting his loyalty and gaining political chips. It was really ugly to be cheated.
But then I thought about it, only if the Shiba family didn't care about these two ghosts, and the Oda family didn't protect them, could Hideyoshi Hashiba bully and kill them at will.
Hashiba Hideyoshi did not like Kuroda Takataka's vicious plan, but the Battle of Yamazaki had become a mess, and Akechi Mitsuhide changed from a soft persimmon to a hard hedgehog, and he could no longer be stubborn.
After thinking for a while, Hideyoshi Hashiba said.
"Even though I captured Yodo Castle, Azuchi Castle, and the Oda retainers group, because they didn't want to offend the saint, they reluctantly admitted that I had avenged my master's death by killing Matsunagahide and Saito No-kun.
But these bargaining chips were still not enough for me to lead the post-war Oda family review.
That's fine with Niwa-senpai, she has never had much ambition, but Shibata Katsuie, Kitahata Shinba and others will not compromise easily, they will definitely compete with me for the leadership of the meeting."
Hashiba Hideyoshi deliberately wanted to dominate the post-war meeting of the Oda family because of the sudden death of Oda Nobunaga, and the huge power she had concentrated in her hands suddenly lost its owner.
The future of the Oda family can only be determined by traditional evaluation methods. Who among the careerists of the Oda family does not covet the supreme power?
Taking the leadership of the Council is equivalent to holding the knife that divides the cake. Naturally, we can combine vertical and horizontal to obtain the maximum Oda legacy.
Furthermore, when the division of the Oda inheritance ended, the careerists of the Oda family began to fight against each other.
If he wants to take the upper hand in the future Oda Civil War, Hashiba Hideyoshi must do two things.
First, eliminate the influence of the Spo family.
Whether it was colluding with the Nanman Cult, triggering the financial crisis in Sakai Port, disrupting the Shiba food stamp system, or making a surprise attack on Yamazaki, wiping out Akechi Mitsuhide as soon as possible, and taking away the orphan of Oda.
Hashiba Hideyoshi was trying to bargain with the saint after the war, so that the Shiba family would not participate in the civil strife of the Oda family and just sit on the sidelines.
Kuroda Takataka's strategy of letting Akechi Mitsuhide go and killing Matsu Hisagahide and Saito No-kun was actually an attempt to please the saint and leave room for future negotiations.
Second, use post-war reviews to broadly win over centrists.
Important ministers with low ambitions, such as Ikeda Tsuneaki and Niwa Nagahide, are the targets that Hideyoshi wants to win over. Only by taking the lead in the meeting can he have the leverage to negotiate terms with these neutral factions.
Only by making a lot of friends and a few enemies can we kill off careerists like Shibata Katsuie and Kitahata Shinbao in the Oda civil war after the meeting, and keep the Oda legacy in their hands.
If Hashiba Hideyoshi wants to unify the world, he must inherit all the legacy of Oda Nobunaga.
On this basis, we can expand to the west and gain more territory to build our own base. Only then can we possibly compete with the Spo family and seize the opportunity to seize the world.
Kuroda Takataka's strategy actually took these two points into consideration, but Hideyoshi Hashiba still felt that it was not stable enough.
Just the two heads of Matsunaga Hide and Saito Nojun, and the two important towns of Yodo Castle and Azuchi Castle are not enough to gain the upper hand.
Regarding Hashiba Hideyoshi's doubts, Kuroda Takataka had already suspected it, so he asked.
"Has your lord ever heard of honoring the king and fighting against the barbarians?"
Hideyoshi Hashiba has been working hard to learn various cultures over the years. He is no longer the Wu Xia Amon he used to be, she thought.
"Respecting diligent kings and rejecting foreign barbarians are the actions of Duke Heng of Qi recorded in the Spring and Autumn Annals."
Kuroda Takataka unexpectedly glanced at Hideyoshi Hashiba. This great name of the samurai family, who was born as a servant, was actually more knowledgeable than many descendants of famous families.
In admiration, she bowed.
"The Zhou Dynasty weakened and China was in turmoil.
Qi Henggong respected the Zhou royal family, used the name of the king to attack the barbarians, and maintained the orthodoxy. All countries supported Jing Cong, making Qi the overlord.
Today, His Highness Oda passed away suddenly. The Oda family is in a state of turmoil, the family business is in turmoil, and the ministers are uneasy.
My Lord has received such kindness from His Highness Oda and has nothing to repay. I can only respect Oda's orphan as my lord. If anyone covets the position of family governor, you will risk your life to attack him and fight to the death."