After Changjue left, Yiyin stood in the deserted courtyard, raised his head and closed his eyes, feeling Qiu Laohu's enthusiasm.
After a long time, Naomasa Ii came to him across the yard and whispered.
"A legion has been divided.
Ichijo Hideyoshi left part of his army to guard Sakai Port and both sides of the Yodo River. After the large group of troops met up with Ichijo Hideyoshi, they headed straight for Yodo Castle by waterway."
Yiyin opened his eyes and asked.
"What do you think of Yodo City? Can the Izumi-Hosokawa family hold on?"
Naomasa Ii said.
"His Royal Highness Hosokawa Fujitaka deployed the main force at Sakai Port and the south bank of the Yodogawa River. It is said that the Hosokawa army was violently attacked by a regiment and refused to retreat, resulting in very heavy losses.
Although the Hosokawa defenders on the line between Yodo Castle and Katsuryuji Castle are desperate, they may not be able to stop Ichijo Hideyoshi's full blow."
Yiyin sighed.
"The Izumi-Hosokawa family has spent all their money this time. After the war, they will probably be exhausted. There won't be one or two generations to recover."
Ii Naomasa said disapprovingly.
"After this battle, the world will be settled, and dozens of generations may not have a big battle to fight. It is the Izumi-Hosokawa family's good fortune to be able to shine the strongest light in the last battle of troubled times.
Only by shedding enough blood and earning enough military merit can the Izumi-Hosokawa family be recognized by martial arts families all over the world and become a true direct descendant of the Hosokawa clan."
Yiyin smiled slightly.
"Is the Hosokawa clan valuable? If the Shiba world is established, the Hosokawa lineage, a descendant of Shiba, is even more valuable."
Naomasa Ii bowed.
"My minister made a mistake and asked the sage to punish me."
Yiyin patted her shoulder and smiled.
"Whatever I punish you for, your divine descendant Jingyi's lineage is also extremely valuable.
Huju is five years old this year, and at that age she has entered the Lanyi School to study. You have been busy raising children in the past few years, and you have to pay attention to the affairs of the Tongxin Secretariat, which is really hard."
Hearing Yoshiyin talk about her daughter, Ii Naomasa felt sweet in her heart, but she still said solemnly.
"Sage, over there with Ichijo Hideyoshi..."
Yiyin shook his head and said.
"It was also a sniper attack on Ichijo Hideyoshi. Why didn't the Tanba people under Akechi Mitsuhide suffer heavy casualties? Is it because Akechi Mitsuhide's methods were not ruthless enough?
Hosokawa Fujitaka is a cruel person. She insists on using the blood of Izumi Hosokawa's retainers to dye her family's martial arts glory, so let her do it.
Yodo Castle is not important, nor is Shoryuji Castle. Even if they both fall, it will not change the overall situation.
Ancient Kyoto imitated the Celestial Dynasty and was divided into Xijing Chang'an and Tokyo Luoyang. Among them, Xijing Chang'an was abandoned early because of its low terrain and swampy terrain.
As the Katsura River line goes north, there are swamps all over, which is not conducive to the march of the army. Even if Yodo Castle and Shoryuji Castle are abandoned, it is impossible for an army of 50,000 to 60,000 people to march into Kyoto along the Katsura River.
The important place is Toba-Fushimi, especially Shimo-Toba, the Kamogawa River where Fushimi Castle is located, and the Uji River line.
Otani Yoshitsugi is a talented person. He built a defensive line at Toba Fushimi early and waited for an army to hit him.
I have seen the defense plan she submitted, and it is indeed very thoughtful.
How many days can we defend Yodo Castle? As long as Toba Fuzhi is as stable as Mount Tai, Hideyoshi is like a turtle in the urn and cannot turn the sky upside down."
Naomasa Ii asked in a low voice.
"When will the saint prepare to go north?"
Yiyin shook his head and said.
"Don't worry, I'll sit in Duwenshan Castle for a day, and Tsutsui Shunkei won't dare to act rashly for a day.
After Nagakaku the Master helped open the Tsutsui Castle gate, Maeda Yoshida and Nizi Yukimori's surprise attack quickly captured Tsutsui Shunkei, and it wouldn't be too late for me to head north again.
I didn't expect Tsutsui Junkei to have such courage. It was me who underestimated her. If Suzuki Shigehide hadn't tipped her off, she would have been really confused and almost made Nagakaku the Master laugh."
Seeing that Yoshigan was not in a hurry, Ii Naomasa felt a little anxious.
"Sage, Ichijo Hideyoshi didn't even care about Sakai Port and went straight to Kyoto. Toba Fushi was afraid that he couldn't hold up a legion of dogs and jumped over the wall. Please think twice.
The three young highnesses will lead some of their colleagues north to support Fushimi Castle. There are not many troops. If there is an accident...this...this..."
Yiyin couldn't help but frown when he heard the three young highnesses.
It's not that he has any objections to his three daughters, it's actually the fact that the three mothers behind his three daughters don't make people worry.
Uesugi Kenshin and Takeda Shingen went crazy and sent 800 and 500 elite warriors respectively to join the battle, known as the Hatamoto Guards.
What the hell, I'm a saint, and I don't have 1,300 Ji warriors as followers, but these two little brats are surrounded by so many elites.
Hosokawa Fujitaka spent all her wealth to fight for her life, but she couldn't raise 1,300 elite warriors. Among the 1,000 dead warriors in Sakai Port, there were only 300 elite warriors at most.
This is equivalent to the Uesugi family and the Takeda family mobilizing the Eastern Army in advance, which is too politically foul.
Uesugi Kenshin is tough, Takeda Shingen is bad, and there is Yuigahama Yui who can only cry.
She said that for the sake of her daughter's future, she asked a saint to give her a way to live, making it seem like Yiyin wants Xiaotuanzi to die.
What the hell...everyone is bullying me for my good temper...
Yoshigami was so angry that he could only pretend not to see the huge banner base of 1,300 elite warriors, and he could only give Xiaodanzi an early form of service, named Yuigahama Yoshinao.
Yoshinao Yoshinao, Yoshigan knew that Yuigahama Yui didn't have such a good brain, and Naoyoshi Hanzawa must be behind it.
Yoshigan sighed, looked at Ii Naomasa who looked worried, and said.
"Don't worry, nothing big will happen to the three little ones. I can trust Yoshitsugi Otani, and the samurai warriors of the Uesugi Takeda family will do their best. It won't be a problem to stay here for a few days.
Once Maeda Yoshie and Niko Yukimori have settled Tsutsui Castle and Maeda Toshiie's Northern Army Regiment has arrived, the time for the decisive battle has arrived."
Because of the desperate obstruction of Hosokawa Fujitaka and Akechi Mitsuhide, Ichijo Hideyoshi had to divide his troops to guard various places, and marched to Luo with 50,000 to 60,000 people.
The time for the Kanto mobilization and assembly is Hideyoshi's reminder, so a legion cannot wait and can only rush.
Yiyin did not expect the Eastern Army to join the war, he was waiting for the Northern Army Regiment.
Since Shibata Katsuie's death, Maeda Toshiie has been infiltrating Oda's old territory in Echizen Province. Coupled with her own Kaga territory, the Noto people were impressed by her, and her mobilization power actually amounted to millions of koku.
The Northern Army Regiment under Shibata Katsuie was the most dissatisfied with Ichijo Hideyoshi among Oda's old leaders.
At that time, Hideyoshi Ichijo defeated Shibata Katsuie at Kakidake. Taking advantage of Shibata Katsuie's panic when he retreated, he invaded Echizen Province and successfully beheaded him.
The Hokuri Army Regiment under Shibata Katsuie has the largest number of Owari veteran samurai in the Oda family, and the most spirited Oda veteran warrior.
These people all watched Ichijo Hideyoshi climb up step by step at Owari. Who can think highly of this servant who once warmed Oda Nobunaga's shoes?
Everyone swallowed their anger because the leader, Shibata Katsuie, was dead and the group had no leader, so they had no choice but to admit defeat.
But Maeda Toshiie, a long-sleeved guy who is good at dancing, has been working hard in Hokuriku these years, wooing new friends from Noto Province with one hand, and old friends from Echizen Province with the other. His methods are really powerful.
The Echizen, Kaga, and Noto Three Kingdoms, with millions of stones, the samurai were good at fighting, and the prestige and power that the Maeda Toshiie had accumulated for eighteen years were all smashed out at once this time.
This decisive strength is much stronger than that of the Izumi-Hosokawa family.
Maeda Toshiie will bring at least 30,000 troops this time, and the Northern Army Regiment has become the main force of the Shiba family's non-Kuanxi relations. Maeda Toshiie, the Kinki general, is overshadowed by her.
Yoshigan was still sighing that Maeda Toshiie was really awesome. When he turned around and saw Ii Naomasa still frowning, he asked with a smile.
"What other concerns do you have?"
Ii Naomasa gritted his teeth and said something that was not easy to say.
"A saint has a profound vision in his mind. I can't compare with him. But since you are not on the front line, is the power given to His Highness a little too much?
Although His Highness is extremely talented, he is only an eleven-year-old child after all.
I know that the Saint is full of expectations for His Highness, but will it be counterproductive to give too much power, or harm her if she cannot grasp it?"
Uesugi Yoshikage is already Yoshigan's hand-picked successor, and the second person in the group recognized by the entire Shibagami group.
In fact, it was easy for Naomasa Ii to offend people when she said this, but she had a strong temper and was loyal to Yoshigan, so she finally said it.
Yiyin shook his head and said.
"You don't understand. Miyuki is not an ordinary child. She can definitely do it. I believe in her."
As he said that, Yoshigine subconsciously looked into the distance, which was the direction of Kyoto and the direction where Uesugi Yoshikage was.