Chronicles of The Hardships of Komachi in The Sengoku Era

Anyway, in contrast to the time-consuming battle, Shizuko's return was light.

Originally, the period was set to only seven days, and it was already folded to leave on the way. Therefore, all the post-war treatment, etc. were thrown round and returned to Ogari.

Originally, we should have stopped at Kyoto and reported to Konoe Maeko (Sakihisa), and even stayed overnight in Ashikuchi and made a report to Nobunaga, but since both of them urged Shizuko to return promptly, we reached Owari only by completing the report by telephone.

"Welcome home, Shizuko-sama.If everything is ready, please start by relieving yourself of the fatigue of your long journey. "

"Thank you. I missed the bath, so let me take it right away."Was it the same while you were away? "

“I have nothing special to report.”

Reassured by Cai's reliable words, Shizuko unravels her travel costume and takes a bath, while she eats the meal she was preparing.

As I tasted the tea after meals, I took a deep breath and finally came home.

Shizuko returned to her room and, thinking that she would not do anything about it, she lay on the floor with her arms and legs stretched out and looked up at the ceiling.

As if Shizuko had used her whole body to enjoy the ease of home, she could tell visitors from her maiden name.

Shizuko, who was in a hurry to skimp on herself, returned the customer to her maiden name, and a man came in with a gentle smile.

"Thank you very much for this expedition."May I report the results of my investigation? ”

“Yeah, I don't mind. Please, please."

The man who sat face to face with Shizuko was Masayuki Sanada, who was responsible for the intelligence of Shizuko's army.He throws an outrageous bomb statement with a flashy expression on his face.

It seems that the real aim in this disturbance was to assassinate Shizuko-sama.

"I see. You mean to drag me out of the arrows and make me outrage like a god?"

Shizuko hand-controlled Shizuko's aura of murder, urging Masayuki to continue.He speaks of the end of this episode with great enthusiasm.

"In the past, there was no such large disparity between the five inhospitals, and they maintained an exquisite balance with each other.This is now a complete one-way victory for the Konoe family, and a clear disparity has arisen between the other four families.In addition, the Takashi family, close to the Konoe family, has also expanded their influence, and it is not interesting for the remaining three families. "

"So you're saying that the Konoe family is going to take a leap and get rid of me?"It's too short-circuited and underestimates my father-in-law in the first place.It is true that I have a close relationship with the Konoe family, but even if I lost my life, the skeleton won't shake. ”

The Konoe family, unlike other Goryeo households, has invested in the industry operated by Shizuko, and has built a solid economic foundation.

Further reinvested the profits obtained there to increase the funds, and became the media king issuing the "Keisei Newsletter", which is now an indispensable source of information among the public.

The Konoe family has built a system that allows them to continue to enjoy profits, and has won the control of information by regular newspapers that have never existed before.

By this time, there was no gap in the Konoe family, which had begun to focus on armaments, and even if they were sued for direct violence, they could cope with it.

"According to the information I had gathered in advance, the court and Yan Yan had announced the restoration of the public house, but they seemed to have another means of communication and were planning to assassinate themselves"

"These are the people who survived the swirling temple of power conspiracy, right? So we got through it."It is basic to put the easy-to-understand bait where it can be seen and hide the original purpose.However, it was effective for us who were concerned about getting past them.Let's keep our eyes peeled.Especially if they have the next one. "

"Yes, Akisuke, the owner of the Nijo family, is an outlying island belonging to the present-day Nagasaki Prefecture.located between Kyushu and Tsushima).In addition, audits will be conducted on the nine and one houses, and it is expected that the involvement of the two houses will be insufficient evidence (...) "

Insufficient evidence is a prima facie thing, and as a matter of course, Shigehisa has secured enough evidence for punishment.However, if it becomes a scandal involving more than half of the five-consumers, the power relationship in the court may be renewed, and the rise of unpredictable forces may be allowed.

Despite such circumstances, the Kujo and Ijo houses were deliberately overlooked, and only the Nijo houses that were the masterminds were targeted.That said, there is no such thing as no reproach.

Many of the various interests and privileges of the Kujo and Ijo houses have been taken up, and property that had been stored for a long time has also been spewed out.On top of that, there was a visiting auditor named Auditor, who was allowed to reside there.

"Is that exile? It's also very far away from Tsubaki.We cannot condemn the head of the Goroka family, who is also related to the Emperor's family, to death, but there is no amnesty because the death penalty is said to be more harsh than exile, which is the end of the West. "

"Even if there is an amnesty, there will be no amnesty, and it will be sentenced to exile.In these cases, they peeled off their bags on the way, and sometimes they couldn't follow them, but it seemed as if Ashigaru-san was angry, and in addition to delivering the elite to the guards, they also crossed over to the powerful people of Iqiki. "

"Uncle Footman doesn't get angry because of a lot of things, but... did he do something that touched the upside down?"Well, leave it as it is.The Three Families accepted the sandstorm quite quietly. "

"They must have realized how long our hands are on this one too.If the secret is not clear, it will atrophy.It may be that you are obedient in anticipation of rolling soil, but it will not go so well.Nevertheless, the attack on Honganji was a splendid one.I've heard from Kiku that you praised me directly. "

"If you defy the Heavenly Representative Emperor, you will know that the Heavenly Punishment will fall."The fact that there is an attack from above makes sense.It's not something you can use again and again. ”

"In the rumor of whispering in the alley, there was a fire from the sky in the darkness where the sun hid, and even when the water was hanging, it became a wall of fire that never disappeared and burned away all the impurities."

The person who manipulated the rumor for convenience said that it was out.This is a heavenly punishment, and it gives the impression of what kind of consequences a monk who is to serve a god or a Buddha will have when he draws a bow to a Tenzi.

If the rumors are good, do you know why they chose the castle?

"Yes, the Ishiyama Honganji Temple is an impregnable stronghold."If you endured the deadline to get your help, the court would offer you peace. ”

If you can't drop Shizuko, the leading actor who defeated Takeda, it is not difficult to convince the Emperor to agree to a rapprochement because the longer it is, the heavier the battle costs will be.

Originally, the castle was a method of warfare where reinforcements arrived, but it was a good enough bet if you could endure it for just seven days.

"According to the report we just received, the Catholics were only able to withstand the supplies they brought in without even having to prepare supplies."If they had a deadline and were reluctant to fight, they would have surpassed us enough. ”

"Even though the transmission of information is slow, it seems that the walls of the city will not be such a solid barrier to our army, but they must have failed to gather information."From the Nijo family, if only the teachings could endure it for seven days, it would have been good for them to be in harmony.They know what it's like to have no food, so they can cook whatever they want.I don't know, it's just like being a god.... "

"Pathetic," Shizuko muttered smallly.

Later, the disturbance that would be called "the disorder of Honganji" came to an end.Since Nobunaga and Maeko had undertaken the post-war processing, Shizuko would once again sum up the back support.

Incidentally, as Nobunaga once admitted, the Honganji sect as a religion is allowed to survive, but this disturbance caused the believers to be divided into two parts.

In other words, one Nishihonganji faction abandoned its political ambitions in accordance with Nobunaga, led by Nobunaga and Shimoma, and did not adopt an aggressive expansion policy.Sympathetic to the ideas put forward by Christians, hence the bad situation now, but eventually he is a Higashi Honganji sect who wants to recover his former glory.

However, the influence of this "Honganji Chaos" on the believers was great. The majority of them became Nishihonganji sects, and the Higashi Honganji sect became a leading organization with a small number of extremists.

In contrast, Nobunaga had already lost interest in Honganji itself.As long as you don't get horny about politics, you can split it into two or three.

His stance is that he should thoroughly suppress it as soon as it is beyond his spoilage.The collapse of Honganji Temple as an armed force will put an end to the long-standing conflict between the Oda family and Ishiyama Honganji Temple.

As a result, the Konoe family dominated the court, and the control of the Oda clan in Konchi became a stepping stone.

"For the time being, we have captured the center, but there are still challenges in the west and east."I have to do something about Maori. Kyushu is very, very good. "

Maori is also very persistent, but it seems that it is gradually being pushed.

Shizuko's words mumbled while organizing the bookcase provided in her room, and the matching long can respond with a light tone.The Hinomoto faction map is gradually being dyed in the color of the Oda family.

The Maori, who are said to be the biggest and last power in the west, are also clearly bad flags.No matter how strong the system of control is and how many brave and courageous generals they have, that alone cannot stand up to the Oda family today.

At the moment, only the Hideyoshi Army is actively involved in Maori conscription, but Maori are hitting the ground running in all armies to counter this.Maori have little room, but the Oda army is ready to release the second and third arrows.

"The Maori family have their own strengths, and they have a collegial system that summarizes their opinions.However, if the situation becomes so urgent, it will not be possible to deal with it in time if it is not downward.It would be nice to have a council system if the turbulent world was over and the distance was far away. "

Is that it?

I don't think you're interested, Katsuzuki-kun.

"It's worse to expect political skill from me."In the first place, the Mori family will be inherited by my brother, and if my brother and I are bright in politics, there will be some greedy people out there. "

"Sure is." If you speak politics in many ways (...), I think you will create sparks in the Forest House. "

"Isn't that right? That's why I'm not interested in politics, as long as it's my brother's spear."My brother is the head, and I am the arm. That's good. "

Even though it's an arm that moves quite a bit on its own.

That said, when Shizuko was smiling bitterly, she heard the sound of tapping on the open door.

I'm sorry to say it sounds like fun, but can I help you a little?

It was Keiji who interrupted the conversation between Shizuko and Nagaoka.Normally, when the conversation was interrupted, Shizuko thought it was an urgent requirement, so Shizuko turned to Kei.

"Actually, Siu Six said that he wanted to do it."If you are serious about working on drifting rocks, you will get injured, and even if you are careful, there will be something unexpected.I thought I'd say no first.... "

There's no way to stop it, is there?

"If I'm going to do it, it's still what 46 wanted for himself."Just because it's dangerous doesn't stop you from quieting down, does it? "

Shizuko's mixed questions were answered brilliantly by Keizaki.And forty-six of them shall receive their maiden clothes; and they shall judge their own affairs.Shizuko, the parent, always keeps her mouth shut, which inhibits his growth.

Obviously, if it is harmful to 46, it will be stopped, but if you want to do it even though you are aware of the danger, you will not stop even if you take safety measures.

"Please be careful not to cause serious injuries to the cervical spine, from the neck to the head."

Yeah. It depends on the 46, but I'll get you to work with someone who can add and subtract, and I'll lend you my chest at first.

With his approval, Keisei lightly slapped his chest and left Shizuko's room.Shizuko's thoughts about what 46 wanted to do in front of an era when individual martial arts weren't so important.

However, as a woman, I am convinced that there is also a man's world that is difficult to understand.There may also be a relationship in which the body is nurtured by bumping together beyond the vertical relationship.Shizuko reconsidered and returned to the work in front of her.

"... there's a problem with food everywhere."

Maori?

Shizuko asks Nagaya as she moves a model that shows the battle conditions of each country in her room.Shizuko has gathered all kinds of information about the station.

Reports on Maori were being delivered several times over against Hojo, where movements were decreasing.This is not because the information about Hojo is being ignored, but because the entire Hojo is suffering from dysfunction, and there are few events to report, and the activity situation is slowing down.

In contrast, Maori was moving around vigorously.At present, the front line is Tottori Castle, which has strong defenses being attacked by Hideyoshi troops, and Hideyoshi troops without artillery were burned to the ground.

The owner of the castle who holds the Tottori Castle is the Yoshikawa family, and he is an excellent figure in the Bunraku dao.When he was entrusted with the castle of Tottori Castle, the bounty given to him was an increase of six hundred stones, and when he thought about going to the place of death, he was unhappy.

However, Yoshikawa, who had been stuck in the management of the territory and had also been involved in territorial issues, accepted this.And Yoshikawa, who had entered Tottori Castle after following the hundreds of clansmen in his gestures, immediately faced a problem.

The reason for this was that the supplies stored in the castle exceeded his expectations.At this point, Yoshikawa ordered the subordinates to collect rice for the army, but the rice did not gather in the vicinity as they thought it would be difficult to maintain the castle and the soldiers.

Since rice, which is the backbone of munitions, is not enough, yamasu and weapons are recommended.A lot of military horses have been sold out, or we can't even form a riding corps except for a minimal messenger.

"If you sell rice because there is a shortage of supplies, you can get armaments."Instead, even a small amount of rice sinks into the bottom.However, Yoshikawa had a calculation that Hideyoshi's troops would be withdrawn in October. "

"As usual, the first snow falls in October."If it kept snowing, Hideyoshi and the army would have to pull out their soldiers.Shizuko used to call it "Hopeful Observation."You'll be stupid, and the weather will never be what people think it is. ”

"Overall, the materials in the court's possession and the results of the investigation by the spies show that it has started to snow in the last few years around October."There are two times, there are three times," and I know what to expect.On the other hand, there is also the word "third honesty". "

In that case, the factor that determines victory is the harvest time at the end of summer.

If you can get the harvested rice, you can still see the sticky victory of Tottori Castle even after a little snowfall.On the contrary, if we defeated Tottori Castle by that time, the Hideyoshi army would win.

I don't think Shizuko could conquer Tottori Castle without worrying about stockpiling supplies by Hideyoshi army alone.The opponent has more ground gain than the original, and if you join up to the time limit, the damage will increase in a hurry.

"I don't think Yoshikawa will be forced out under circumstances where reinforcements from the Maori family cannot be expected.Tottori Castle is a natural fortress, so if you hold on to it like a turtle, you won't lose. "

"Hashiba, the whole army hates artillery that easily produces unusual results."Defense cannot be broken without the ability to make breakthroughs.No matter how brave the army of Lord Hashiba might be, the locals couldn't beat the snow.If we don't retreat before the snowstorms cut us off, we may even be annihilated. ”

That's right, so the way we're going to do it--

Supply Attack

Shizuko and Nagaya's words overlapped with each other.As you can read, a supply attack is a method of warfare in which the enemy refuses to resupply and awaits suicide by starvation.

Even in historical fact, Hideyoshi's famous "Tottori's Famine" was taken.Soldiers in extreme conditions are said to have descended into a hunger hell where even their fellow corpses speak of hunger.

Hideyoshi followed a similar line of thought at this time, and many damages are unacceptable given the later refrain of the Maori main castle, Yoshida Koriyama Castle.Above all, it was forbidden by Nobunaga to use force in vain, and Hideyoshi had few possible means.

"If you buy up your troops from an early stage, they will understand you and call for help."Conversely, when I buy it late, I get extra gold.From late August to September, which is the same time as the Hojo offensive? "

"It's best to aim for the post-harvest because there is no flavor even if you cut the rice from the pre-harvest field where the blue eels are harvested in order to prevent the enemy from sourcing food."But what does that have to do with Shizuko? "

The chief may speak of doubt.No matter what strategy Hideyoshi, the commander-in-chief of the Allied forces, would take, Shizuko, the commander-in-chief of the Arsenal, would have less of an impact.She's not just taking care of Hideyoshi, she's in charge of all Nobunaga's stations.

Of course, it is natural to pay attention to Maori trends, but it is not necessary to guess Hideyoshi's behavior.Shizuko replied with a bitter smile.

"I received an urgent request from Master Hashiba."I want you to give me twice as much food and rice as planned. "

"Why are you buying rice again?" That's twice as much nonsense.The munitions are distributed in such a way that no army is shorthanded?It would be strange to add only to the Hashiba army. "

"It seems that it's more difficult than I thought to procure local supplies."We are already expecting low yields this year, and both armies are constantly consuming rice. ”

Lack of expectations of rice yields means that the value of rice will rise.Although the Oda Army is moving to a different monetary economy from the US-based system, it cannot be denied that the economy is still driven by the size of the US.

This influence is noticeable in the Hideyoshi Army, which is a meeting place, and there is no shortage of people who want rice as a reward.In other words, the rice that must be eaten is the most important, and the gold that must be exchanged once is inferior to the appeal.

"The army as a whole is depleted of food, and it seems that the local harvest has become unstable, so it seems that subordinates demanding rice have continued to emerge."

I see. Hashiba doesn't have much of a heart, so if you're in a bad mood even at the lower end, your tissues might collapse.

"I had no choice but to actively release the rice, but it seems that the stockpile until winter has become unbearable."As for Hashiba, I was going to cover it with procurement from other territories, but it seems that the price of rice has generally been high and it didn't work.Even if the Maori attack is frustrating, I will be flexible. "

Shizuko sighed that if you had consulted earlier, there would have been other ways to fight.

There was a sense of heightened tension within the Hashiba army.The other factions were fighting their own battles.How do we compare to that?Not only was it still impossible to conquer Tottori Castle, but there were even signs that it was getting worse day by day.

Hideyoshi thought about crying to Nobunaga in a situation where neither the binary nor the triple were going well.Despite the irresponsibility here, I couldn't face the other generals when I cried at Nobunaga, who continued to give me a chance to recover.

(Everything comes out on the back of the back.Whether this is the place to stay and whether we should change the policy......)

Hideyoshi continued to struggle in his heart.His reports are often misleading, and there is no sign of a turn for the better.Even under such circumstances, Hideyoshi Nagata must behave confidently.

Because what stands on top of people is exposing anxiety, and the anxiety of subordinates is also contagious and plunges into a vicious circle.Hideyoshi felt heavy fatigue from scratching his feet in an unseen situation, but such a turning point came to him.

A civil servant was dispatched with a detailed report from Nobunaga who learned that the situation in the Tottori Castle Siege was unfavorable.Hideyoshi finally wondered if he had been curtailed by Nobunaga, but when he saw Nobunaga's sentence entrusted to him by the civil servant, his stomach sat down.

"Monkey, you've come all this way from an unbearable position."I made many mistakes at that time, but didn't I continue to challenge it with courage? "

In retrospect, I wasn't even a samurai in the first place.It has succeeded in a world where people are more daring than others, and the rotation of their heads has been utilized.

No matter what happens here, you are still expecting it from yourself.Hideyoshi's dying heart was at the core of the matter.

"Let them tell you that everything is going smoothly."

"I can't be convinced by that alone.Can you tell me why you think that way in this situation? "

"It is true that the current state of war is unpleasant."But the brilliant subordinates have thought through their intellect.There's nothing to be afraid of as long as you're prepared for the unexpected. ”

“What are contingencies?”

"It is expected that there will be no crops this year.In order to prepare for this, we have already sent a request for additional support to the Consultant and received his approval.I also asked for enormous support to deal with whatever happened in the future, but I was happy to accept it. "

"I understand." If Master Hashiba is so sure of victory, you will be delighted. "

At the moment, I am at a disadvantage, but I was convinced by the statement that I took sufficient measures to recover, and by the statement that I will send additional support from Shizuko.

Hideyoshi, who did not want to show that he was relying on others, thought it would be helpful if he even showed confidence by showing evidence that he had clearly asked for help. The civil servant went home after confirming the current detailed battle situation and future policy.

"Damn it! I should have asked you to spin the cannon without weirding me..."

Only a few days after he had cut off the civil servant, Hideyoshi was holding his head in regret.With regard to military supplies, we have enough to send, but we have not solved the fundamental problem of insufficient striking power in the first place.

In conjunction with Hideyoshi, it is a heavy town for Nobunaga troops.Shizuko's artillery was so effective that she could hear the octopus in her ears.I wanted to be honest enough to get my hands out of my throat to cause a lot of damage beyond the barrier to the opponent in the castle.

Shizuko's support arrived as if she had seen through Hideyoshi's predicament.The military supplies were even more than doubled the amount requested, and in addition to supplies that could be used for military funds and shortcuts, they were also delivered to the tiger boy, the "Takeda Tantrum".

"Hahaha, Shizuko-sama."I guess you can see how strong I am.You can't beat this. "

You can't even imagine losing if you're ready to go this far.

"However, it's terrifying to be able to have so many supplies ready right away without changing his appearance....."

Looking at the inventory of supplies delivered, Kuroda Guardians had no choice but to wrap their tongues around Shizuko's foresight and another dimension of procurement ability.