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Volume 1 Chapter 1676 Fighting to the death for peace

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    It has to be said that Tokugawa Iemitsu did have high hopes for Naotaka Ii. Regardless of the quantity, he met Naotaka Ii's requirements, and in accordance with his ideas, he assigned many of Hatamoto's elite forces, which can be said to be his full support.  In his view, the prestige of the shogunate has been greatly damaged, and the surrounding daimyo are already ready to move, so there is no way to retreat now. The strength and will of the shogunate must be demonstrated with strong resistance in order to stabilize the people of the world and avoid  Falling into a situation of being besieged by the world.  Because the army has now gathered in Kanto and the border, it is not difficult to redeploy. And because the shogunate had previously worked hard to clear the country in Kinki and Saigoku, it has accumulated a large amount of food, which is more than enough to supply the front line.  With the soldiers fully equipped with food and fodder, and with the strong support of the general, the army quickly gathered, and then, under the personal leadership of Ii Naotaka himself, began to march towards Kinki.  Of course, the mobilization of such a large army cannot be done quietly. With the help of the wealthy families and wealthy businessmen who cooperated secretly, news poured in to the Han army like snow flakes, which also spurred the Han army to take action.  There is no doubt that the mobilization of this army shows that the strategy of the Han army has basically been successful - the shogunate has mobilized the troops gathered in Kanto and seeks a decisive battle with the Han army, so their strength in Kanto will inevitably become  Being much weaker will obviously make the main force of the Han army face less resistance. However, this also means that the Han army along the way will face greater risks. After learning the news, Zhou Pu did not dare to neglect and immediately summoned himself  The council officers around him discussed countermeasures and at the same time stepped up efforts to urge all armies to complete the pre-planned combat goals as soon as possible.  Now the Han army has invaded Ji Nei and expanded its territory in all directions, and these territories have also fallen under the control of the Japanese court.  But now that the shogunate has sent a large army for reinforcements, the situation will definitely become much more tense. Therefore, in order to defend the occupied territories and at the same time stabilize the rule of the Japanese court in these places, we must try our best to withstand their attack.  , and this requires Tachibana Muneshige to capture the planned targets Nara and Iga as soon as possible - at least let the army accumulate there and do everything possible to resist the shogunate's reinforcements.  Zhou Pu, on his side, also decided to capture Kyoto as soon as possible to calm the situation in Kinki, and then join forces to reinforce Tachibana Muneshige, who would definitely face great pressure, to help him resist the shogunate army and contain this large army in Kinki.  After winning one victory after another, Zhou Pu was very confident in his army, especially the Han army in his hands. He believed that even if the shogunate massively reinforced Kinei, he could be evenly matched with them, so everything  The key is to capture Kyoto as soon as possible, and then join forces with Tachibana Muneshige to resist the shogunate.  Under Zhou Pu¡¯s order, armies from all walks of life stepped up their mobilization and requisitioned grain and grass supplies everywhere, which made the entire Kinki very uneasy for a while.  At this time, Kyoto also felt the pressure from the Han army. ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Out of the Kyoto Governor's Office, Itakura Shigemune listened to the reports of his subordinates with a gloomy face.  "Compared with the high-spirited look before, he is now much more depressed, and even his spirit often falls into a trance.  After the defeat at Himeji Castle, he retreated with the defeated army, but the Han invaders sent a pursuit force to pursue him, forcing him to flee all the way to Kinki. The original defeated army in his hands was also completely destroyed in the retreat, and finally became the enemy.  In the end, he could only return to Kyoto with a few trusted samurai.  Although there are still many shogunate troops left in Kyoto, their morale has been severely hit by the disastrous defeat of Lord Toshidai. Everyone is worried that they will become another victim of the Han army.  The terrain near Kyoto is flat and there is no danger to defend. As long as the enemy troops penetrate deep into Kinki, they can reach the city of Kyoto. Moreover, even fortresses like Himeji Castle cannot withstand the Han invaders. Now it is even more difficult in Kyoto.  It was hard to resist.  In this gloomy situation, Itakura Shigemune had no particularly good way to reverse the defeat and stabilize people's hearts, so he had no choice but to ask the shogunate to mobilize more reinforcements and send people to deploy defenses in Kyoto.  When Tokugawa Ieyasu was alive, he went to Luo several times. Then in order to protect his own safety and reflect the status of the shogunate in Japan, he decided to build a fortress in Kyoto. This fortress was Nijo Castle.  The cost of building the city was borne by the daimyo of the Western Kingdom.  After several years of construction, Nijo Castle, located southwest of the Imperial Palace, was finally completed and became the political center of the shogunate in Kyoto. Starting from Tokugawa Ieyasu, each generation of Tokugawa generals came to Luo to receive the shogunate.  , all live hereAmong the two cities.  The Imperial Palace in Nijo Castle was also the place where generals of the past dynasties met with the daimyo of the Western Kingdom.  The palace was very large and of very high standards, and the Tokugawa family used this method to demonstrate their status.  More than ten years ago, Tokugawa Hidetada's daughter Kazuko set out from here, went to the Imperial Palace, and became the emperor's concubine. At that time, Emperor Masahito also rarely came to Nijo Castle in person to marry this woman with a special status.  .  More than ten years later, the then Emperor had become the Emperor of France, and the young Kazuko became the Empress of the Middle Palace. However, the Tokugawa Shogunate, which once ruled Japan, fell into a trap that was difficult to escape and was about to be destroyed.  Letting Kyoto fall into the hands of the enemy shows how unpredictable things are.  Itakura Shigemune now has no time to lament the impermanence of the world. Since he was driven back to Kyoto, he immediately gathered his troops and tried his best to strengthen Kyoto's defense.  The defense system he built centered on Nijo Castle and ran through half of Kyoto, making the atmosphere in Kyoto unprecedentedly tense.  However, although Nijo Castle is a fortress, its walls are very low. Although the outer and inner castles are surrounded by trenches, the defenses are still very crude compared to Himeji Castle.  During this period, although Itakura Shigemune had the trenches widened and deepened, and many defensive fortifications were deployed in the city, even he did not have much confidence that he could withstand the Han invaders' advance.  There is no doubt that today, when the shogunate army under him has been greatly damaged, as long as the Han invaders show the same determination and will as when they attacked Himeji Castle, it will be impossible to defend Kyoto. The reason why he is like this now  Being enthusiastic about strengthening the defense of Kyoto is essentially just to numb yourself with busyness.  And his busyness has not been able to prevent the situation from deteriorating step by step. The recent bad news has come one after another, which is simply overwhelming for him.  After winning the victory at Himeji Castle, the Han army quickly set off from Himeji Castle and entered Kinai. Moreover, due to the lack of troops in Kinai, they made very smooth progress and occupied Kobe along the way, leaving Kinai in chaos.  Then they set out from Kobe and marched on a large scale, sweeping through all parts of the Kinai. They first occupied Osaka, and then attacked from Osaka in multiple directions and occupied large areas of land. At this time, not only Nara and other places, but also Kyoto had become a powerful force.  The immediate target of the military.  When Itakura Shigemune learned that the Han envoy himself was leading the army, starting from Osaka and heading north along the Yodo River, sweeping towards where he was, he did not panic, nor did he have a high fighting spirit.  Unexpectedly dull.  In the face of the main force of the Han army, Kyoto will inevitably not be spared, but he will lead his men to fight for the shogunate until the last moment until his death.  When he was in Himeji Castle, he had originally planned to be buried. It was a fluke that he could survive until now, so he didn't feel much fear about it.  The only thing that worries him is how the shogunate and the shogun will survive this crisis after his death.  As the chief official of the shogunate in the Western Kingdom, no one knows better than him how critical the current situation is.  The kindness of the three generations of generals behind him made him really unwilling to see the worst result happen.  With these complicated thoughts, he was listening to the reports of his subordinates in the prison at a loss, but his mind had already drifted to other places.  Today is another bad news. The Han army that attacked Kyoto has now been stationed in Fushimi. They are already very close to Kyoto. I think they will launch the final attack on Kyoto soon.  And Itakura Shigemune also knew that Kyoto was a place where ministers gathered. They did not hate the Han army, but were ecstatic about the return of the imperial court. They all knew that the imperial court now had an army in hand, and in the future Kinki  It will definitely become the territory of the imperial court, so their life will be much better than before. In this case, they certainly will not want to resist.  And during this period, the fleeing imperial court has been sending envoys here, issuing proclamations and edicts, calling on the people here to rise up against the shogunate and cooperate with the imperial court to recapture Kyoto as soon as possible.  Although Itakura Shigemune had been trying his best to isolate the connection between Kyoto and the Han invaders, and even executed a group of people to scare the monkeys, he also knew that the people of Kyoto no longer belonged to him.  After the subordinate finished his report, he waved his hand to let the subordinate leave, and then continued to be lost in thought, without even noticing that someone had come to the room.  "Sir?" He came back to his senses only after hearing this call.  The person who came was Gao Muqing, the envoy sent by Lao Zhong Dojing Lisheng.  "Why do you want to see me?" Itakura Shigemune did not blame him for why he came directly to see him without passing through the communication, but asked directly.  Recently, Gao Muqing has been trying to make contact with the Han army.He asked about the possibility of peace talks between the two sides, but Itakura Shigemune was not confident in this - the conditions proposed by the Han Dynasty were already so harsh before, and now that the Han army is progressing so smoothly, how could they give in again?  However, Gao Muqing's words quickly cheered him up.  "Sir I have just received the news from Edo. The shogun has decided to send reinforcements to rescue Kinki!" These words rekindled the flame in Itakura Shigemune's heart. He suddenly became much more energetic and opened his eyes wide.  He looked at Gao Muqing with his eyes wide open and couldn't believe it was true.  "What?" "The general has made up his mind. He has appointed Lord Naotaka as the commander-in-chief and sent tens of thousands of troops, known as one hundred thousand, to Kinei to resist the Han invaders!" Gao Muqing explained again, "The shogunate has been  We are all preparing for this. When we receive the news, Naotakagong will have already left!" "Great!" A burst of ecstasy surged into Itakura Shigemune's heart.  Naotaka Ii is the elder of the shogunate, and can be said to be the most prestigious person in the shogunate now. He will personally lead the army to attack Kinki, and then the Han invaders will definitely be curbed. This army may even rescue Kyoto and let  The current crisis can be averted.  As long as the shogunate does its best to resist the Han invaders in Kinki, the situation will definitely be restored, and at least there will be hope for peace talks.  He raised his head and looked out the window again, but now his eyes were full of hope.  "If Mr. Zhixiao is here, there will be hope for the world!"  , "But my lord, this is not the time to rejoice. The situation is still perilous. Please be more careful, sir, and don't mess up your position because of this news!" After he said this, Itakura Shigemune calmed down a lot.  "That's right, distant water cannot save nearby fire. Now the Han army is close at hand. Even if the shogunate army sets out from Kanto now, it must not be able to rush to Kyoto quickly to rescue them. It may even never be able to reach Kyoto.  So there is still no hope for me here.  When he thought of this, Itakura Shigemune's originally high mood dropped again.  However, in his opinion, as long as the shogunate can resist the Han invaders, then even if he dies, it will be nothing.  At worst, he would die for the shogunate here, and it would be a good thing to kill more enemies.  "Sir, there is one more thing I want to inform you about from Edoit was ordered by Mr. Laozhong personally." At this moment, Gao Muqing suddenly said.  "Lao Naka-sama told me that you should reorganize your army as soon as possible, then withdraw eastward, join up with the shogunate's reinforcements as soon as possible, and attack the Han invaders together!" "What?" Itakura Shigemune opened his eyes in surprise, "Lao Naka-sama told us to withdraw  Kyoto? " The importance of Kyoto to Japan is self-evident. If the shogunate loses Kyoto, it will definitely bring a great shock to the people of the world. Therefore, it was really hard for Itakura Shigemune to hear that Lord Lao Naka actually asked him to withdraw from Kyoto.  Confidence.  "Yes, this is what Mr. Lao Zhong meant." Gao Muqing repeated it again.  "No no!" Itakura Shigemune blushed and looked a little angry, "I have already retreated once in Himeji Castle and became the laughing stock of the world. If I retreat again now how can I survive?  Come down? I can't do this kind of thing that insults the reputation of a samurai! Even if I die, I will stay in Kyoto and die!" "Even if I stay here, can I keep Kyoto?" Takagi Qing suddenly asked.  "If you can't keep it, won't your honor be damaged?" This rhetorical question made Itakura Shigemune speechless.  He really didn't have the confidence to defend Kyoto.  "Sir, you know the current situation in Kyoto, and I also know that the situation is extremely critical, and the defenders have been shaken from top to bottom, and the residents do not support us. This place is close to death for the defenders If they are forced to stay  Here, it will only make them fall into the trap of the Han invaders and die in vain." After refuting Itakura Shigemune's words, Takagi Kiyoshi continued, "And if they are transferred out, we can cooperate with Naotaka.  Your Majesty's reinforcements are coming! As you know, the great traitor Tachibana Munushige is now leading an army to attack Nara. Obviously, he wants to resist the shogunate's reinforcements If Kyoto sends troops, it can attack Tachibana Munushige from both front and rear. Wouldn't that be a great achievement?  One thing? As long as Tachibana Muneshige is eliminated, the Han invaders will definitely suffer a heavy blow. Isn't this better than staying here and dying in vain?" Itakura Shigemune thought about Takagi Kiyoshi's words carefully and felt that there was some truth.  However, he still had some reservations.  I had fled all the way from Himeji Castle, and was constantly pursued by Tachibana Muneshige on the road.??It was still like a nightmare when he thought about it now, and he never wanted to endure that feeling again.  "But the morale of the army has been exhausted. If I lead the troops to evacuate again, I'm afraid I won't be able to restrain the army on the road. We can still defend ourselves in Kyoto, but if we leave the city and are in the wild, we will probably collapse at the first touch!"  After a moment, he said sadly, "Besides, the Han invaders have now reached Fushimi. Even if we want to retreat eastward, we don't have much room to spare." "It is precisely because the Han invaders have only reached Fushimi that we have a chance.  Leave, if the Han invaders really reach outside Kyoto, then we will have nowhere to retreat!" Gao Muqing still did not accept his statement, "Sir, we can retreat to the northeast, to Otsu, and then go south.  , Cooperate with Lord Naotaka to encircle and annihilate the traitor Tachibana Mune Shigejun!" Itakura Shigemune thought for a moment, and felt that what he said was indeed reasonable, butit was still too unwilling to ask him to withdraw from Kyoto like this.  "Sir, don't hesitate any more now!" Takagi Qing urged again, "If we hold on here, Kyoto will definitely turn into a sea of ??fire, and I'm afraid the tragedy of the Onin Rebellion will happen again. Kyoto is the capital of our country,  We can't be too cruel Besides, if we do this, we will have a bloody feud with the imperial court. The imperial court is no longer the same as before. If we become mortal enemies with the imperial court, I am afraid there will be no chance for peace talks in the future!"  It turns out that in the final analysis it was for peace talks.  Itakura Shigemune suddenly realized it, and then smiled bitterly in his heart.  Has the shogunate fallen into this situation?  However, even though he was very uncomfortable, he still admitted that what the other party said made sense.  Unlike the situation where it was only in name only, the imperial court now has soldiers, money and food, and has become a force that cannot be ignored. If we have to fight to the death in Kyoto, I am afraid that this kind of hatred will really be impossible to reduce.  "Thenthen I will stay in Kyoto, take the samurai around me, and fight the Han invaders in Nijo City" After thinking about it for a long time, he finally sighed and said, "You will take the others away."  Then, he smiled bitterly.  "Presumably, Nijo Castle will be destroyed by the imperial court after the war. Even if I burn this place to the ground, no one will regret it."
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