Himeji Castle, Date Masaki came to this castle for the fourth time in three years, the first three times he came to Himeji Castle in autumn to enjoy the maple trees, but now he came to Himeji Castle in the middle of summer in June, and his time is spent busy. In the past few days, Zhengheng has had to meet with 10 official envoys and listen to the reports of envoys, spies, meticulous envoys, and envoys from various countries, which can be said to be quite busy. Now that the gathering of soldiers and horses has officially begun, it is necessary to prepare for a complete break with Honganji.

It is feasible to attack Settsu, Izumi, and other places at any time, but it is necessary to make all arrangements in advance. First, food; second, food; The third is food. It is important to know that the violent turmoil in Ki will create a large number of people without food in the next few years.

If we don't prepare enough food, I'm afraid that even if Honganji Temple is defeated and the temple system in Kinai collapses, we must take care of the stomachs of the millions of hungry people left behind by the two, otherwise I am afraid that under the instigation of well-intentioned people, I am afraid that stealing chickens will not lead to rice.

Himeji Castle no longer belongs to the Kuroda clan, and the Date clan has made it their own. Date Masahiro lives in the main city, and some people come to complain about the disaster of Horyuji Temple and ask for reinforcements, some report the military situation, and some ask for the Kuroda clan to be destroyed.

Dressed in a kimono over his armor, he met them one by one, and he looked like a young high-ranking person, and he would say to everyone who came to visit: "Okay, let's do it!" In fact, this was just his perfunctory words, but in this way, the hearts of the people in Harima were calmed down a little.

The Kuroda people, led by Mrs. Kotera, were driven to Mido Castle. The main castle and the second castle are now occupied by the Date Army. The Himeji retainers, who had been expelled from the castle mansion, were unable to leave Himeji, and they were forced to rebuild their temporary residences and became the guards of the Ida Army in the castle. Most of the families of the retainers were transferred to Okayama. Himeji Castle became a fortress. Only Musato Kobei can live in Mido Castle. Responsible for the collection of taxes. Musato Kobei escaped for some reason when Itaka Kuroda was murdered by the lord a few years ago. It was very painful, and he was grateful that the young master Kuroda was still young, and he lived in the world with a guilty heart.

Over the past three or four years, Himeji Castle has become less and less like the Kuroda family's castle, and most of the original buildings have been demolished and the port has been expanded, making Himeji Castle the largest port castle in Harima and an important distribution center for Okayama Port.

Zhengheng was studying a piece of information that had just arrived in Kinai. The details of the disaster of Horyuji Temple were finally presented to him at the cost of several people, and after seeing the details, his brows were sometimes furrowed, sometimes loosened, and he muttered in a low voice: "I never thought that it was the early split between the three people of Miyoshi and Matsunaga Shu that finally caused the disaster of Horyuji Temple, and it caused riots in Kyoto, so that Ashikaga Yoshiteru had to delay a lot of precious time, and he really couldn't help Adou." ”

Miyoshi Sanzhong and Matsunaga Shu split into two major groups in history to seize the property and power left behind by Miyoshi Chokei's death, but they never thought that they would take the lead in splitting now, resulting in the burning of Horyuji Temple by the Miyoshi Sanzhong. So much so that Matsunaga Shu added another fire in the name of capturing the three of Miyoshi and completely destroyed Horyuji Temple.

The attendant came to report: "Your Highness. Mrs. Kodera asks to see her. ”

Zheng Heng paused, with a slight hint of doubt in his eyes, and asked, "Which little temple lady is it?" He didn't know for a while that the so-called Mrs. Kotera was not clear, for him, Himeji Castle was his castle, and as for Kuroda Kanwei, he would also become the lord of a castle in the future, and as for whether he could become the lord of a country, it depended on his ability, and in the end he would not stay in Himeji Castle, or even Harima Country.

The attendant replied respectfully: "It's the mother of the guard, Mrs. Koji, who came from Sandao City and wanted to meet Her Highness. ”

Kanbei's mother, Mrs. Kodera, was the daughter of the lord of Akashi County and the adopted daughter of Kodera Shogun. In order to win over the retainer Kuroda family, the Kotera family married her to Kuroda Vocational Taka, and the relationship between husband and wife is quite affectionate, and she is a docile and considerate mother.

Zheng Heng put down the report in his hand, raised his head, thought for a while, and then said, "Please wait for Mrs. Xiaosi to wait in the living room, and wait carefully." As he spoke, he ignored the waiter and rubbed his temples, and as the time approached, some things that he hadn't paid attention to jumped out.

Ever since he learned of the outbreak of the Horyuji Temple, Mashiro had decided to gather his troops at Himeji Castle, and his heart had not been at peace, although he had been busy for the past few days, and he had no time to calm down and think about whether all this was what he needed.

But his heart was always empty. In the past few days, Zhengheng has been waiting for information from Jinnai, and on the other hand, he has also been constantly reflecting on himself, whether his insistence for so many years is wrong, and whether he has any opinions on doing these things.

Now that he has embarked on such a path, there is no way to regret it, Zhengheng is no longer his alone struggle, but thousands of people are in his thoughts, life and death are in his hands, whether it is life or death, glory or shame.

Zhengheng stood up, stretched out his arm, and walked towards the meeting room, the current Himeji Castle is not comparable to a few years ago, although it is not as wide as Okayama Castle, but it can also be regarded as the largest city in Harima, he is familiar with bypassing the two corridors, and came to the meeting room.

Standing at the door, the corners of Zhengheng's mouth showed a slight smile, Mrs. Xiaoji moved two steps and knelt on the ground, waiting for his arrival, he stepped in, sat down in the top position, and asked, "I don't know if Mrs. has seen the guard?" ”

Mrs. Koji was dressed in a pale ink-colored kimono, the color was beautiful, her eyes seemed to have just cried, a little red and swollen, and she knelt down again and said: "Thank you for the kindness of the lord, the officers and soldiers are very well-behaved, they have already returned home once, and now they have gone to work." ”

Zheng Heng saw Mrs. Koji's face, but he didn't have a bright feeling, he looked quite dignified and ladylike, considerate and gentle, but there was a trace of obscurity between his eyebrows, and his body was weak, which made people have to frown.

Zheng Heng didn't greet him, and asked straight to the point: "Then why does Mrs. insist on seeing me today, Guanguanwei, I trust me very much, and I will grow up for a few more years." I will choose a daughter of an important minister from my family to marry him. And then entrust it with heavy responsibilities. ”

Mrs. Kodera knew that it would not be easy to meet the political balance. She seemed to have made a great effort before she spoke: "Thank you for the kindness of Your Highness the Lord, and the guards also expressed their respect for you after returning home. You're too busy to bother you. It's just that as a mother, I still can't rest assured that I can give birth to a young child. Do you know that since the sudden death of her husband a few years ago, the concubine's body has been significantly weakened, and there are no special illnesses. It's just that I've been languishing, and although it's not life-threatening for a while, there has been no sign of recovery, and my body is getting worse. The concubine was very sad about this, the husband had passed away, and there should be no regrets, but when she thought of the four young children, she felt that she had failed to live up to her former role, which was really sad. ”

Masahiro had heard Kuroda Kanbei say that he also had a younger brother and two younger sisters, who were supposed to be three young children in Kotera's mouth. After the death of Mrs. Kodera in history, Kuroda remarried the daughter of the Utagen clan. gave birth to two sons and a daughter, Ritori, Naoyuki, and Xinyu Harushi, but in this time and space, Kuroda Zhitaka only left Kuroda Kanbei, Kojiro, Xianghime, and Tiger Ji are also considered to be a prolific man. He really didn't expect Mrs. Kodera to come to him to ask Gu to come, you must know that although Kuroda Kanbei is not high now, as a small surname of Zhengheng, his future achievements are limitless, and it is more than enough to take care of his younger brothers and sisters.

Zheng Heng suddenly asked, "Madam, do you know about today's events?" "If Kuroda Kanwei knows that his mother will come to ask Masahiro to ask for orphans, then Masahiro needs to reconsider whether to reuse Kuroda Kanwei for some time in the future, how can an older brother who doesn't even want to take care of his younger siblings grow into a responsible person.

Mrs. Kodera felt a little nervous inexplicably.

She didn't know that her unintentional actions had caused her eldest son to almost lose his place in Zhengheng's mind. Although Zhengheng is known as the terminator of famous generals, directly and indirectly many famous generals in the original history have died at his hands. But as long as it is a traverser, he has such and such habits, and Zhengheng is not as fanatical as other traversers.

Mrs. Koji cried: "Today's move, the guards don't know about it, it's just a mother's helpless move. The officer and soldier Wei were only fourteen years old, and he was still a young man snuggled up to his parents in his ordinary home, and as a mother, he was relieved to entrust his young children to him. Since the death of her husband, her mother's family has been cut off, and the concubines have thought about it, and only by entrusting your young children to Your Highness can you be reassured. ”

Masahiro didn't expect that Mrs. Kodera thought that Kuroda Kanbei was too young and ignorant to take care of his younger siblings, and that the only remaining retainer of the Kuroda family, his mother, Kobei, was old and frail. Speaking of Mrs. Koji's two maiden families, the adoptive father Kodera Masashi family has died at the hands of Kuroda Kanbei who borrowed more than 1,000 soldiers and horses from Masahiro, and his biological father Akashi Masakaze has also died, and his brother Akashi Sadayuki has become a 100-stone minister in the Shiida family, and his life is also quite poor, how can he afford to take care of them.

Zheng Heng thought for a moment and replied, "I already know about this matter, but I can let them live in Sandao City temporarily, and no one will expel them." He didn't agree directly, Kuroda was not his direct retainer, Kuroda Kanbei was, if he spoke directly, Kuroda Kanbei would not refuse. This matter, in Zhengheng's view, is a mother's concern, Kuroda Kanbei may not know, and I am afraid that he will not agree to it after knowing it, and letting them live in Sandao City with peace of mind is to give her some comfort.

Mrs. Xiaoji heard Zhengheng's answer, and hurriedly responded: "Thank you for your kindness!" He walked out.

Zhengheng looked at Mrs. Koji in the distance and shook his head, hey, he didn't take this matter to heart, but what he didn't expect was that at night, Kuroda Kanbei knelt at the door and begged Zhengheng for forgiveness, which made him frown slightly.

This matter was not a big deal originally, Mrs. Xiaoji was just to entrust a few children, and she was able to entrust it to Zhengheng, which is enough to show that in Mrs. Xiaoji's heart, Zhengheng is a person worthy of entrusting orphans. It is reasonable for Masahiro to agree, and it is reasonable not to agree, now things are busy, and when everything is settled, and Mrs. Yang or Koji really dies, he doesn't mind taking care of some of her children a little, and he never thought that Kuroda Kanbei would kneel at the door and ask for forgiveness.

What to forgive, is it possible that in the heart of Kuroda Kanbei, Mrs. Kodera who did these things was wrong. You must know that Mrs. Koji is not a bystander, but his biological mother. Mrs. Kotera's coming was not something else insignificant, in her heart it was something more important than life and death, and it was for Kuroda Kanbei.

Zhengheng wanted to punish Kuroda Kanbei for this matter, but he couldn't bear to feel sad for Mrs. Koji, he looked back at Kuroda Kanbei who was kneeling on the ground, sighed, and said to the little attendant beside him: "Tell him that Haosheng takes care of his mother, and that is a good mother." ”

I don't know if Zhengheng remembered his mother when he said this. However, whether in his past life or in this life, his image of his mother has been very blurred, and sometimes when he sees some loving mothers, his faces often overlap, which may be the reason why he becomes sentimental when he sees his loving mother.

Kuroda Kanbei listened to Masahiro's reply and retreated, his eyes full of respect, he knew that he had finally passed today's hurdle. Because he knew that if he didn't come to ask for sins today, although he might not feel anything for a while, once it was a long time, it would definitely have some bad effects. Long pain is better than short pain, come directly to ask for sin. He never thought that he would get such a sentence, which made him a little confused.

Shortly after Kuroda Kanbei left, one of his attendants knelt down in front of Masahiro and reported, "Report to Dazai Daijiden, but Ma Kuniyama Nayoutoyo wants to see you." Zhengheng frowned and replied, "No." The attendant hesitated for a moment and continued to report: "But he said that if you don't see him, he will go on a hunger strike." ”

Zheng Heng said angrily: "Whatever he wants, tell him that he wants to die, and many people welcome him to commit suicide." After the attendant left, Zhengheng said disdainfully: "How many adults still learn to be angry with children, if you want to die, you should have died as early as when you were in Danma, and now you want to use death to persecute me, what does it have to do with me?" ”

Hattori Masanari trotted in, and Masahiro rubbed his temples and asked, "What happened?" ”

Hattori Masanari replied, "Bessho Anji brought an envoy from Honganji Temple into the castle, and Miki Castle should not be able to get the details of their conversation, but he was able to see the envoy's face clearly, and according to him, the figure drew the envoy's face as Honda Yahachiro." (To be continued.) )