Japan's Warring States Period: The Rise of the Wakasa Tiger

When faced with Yamana Yufeng's request for help, Yoshishige's first thought was not whether to agree or not, but what consequences would arise and the subsequent chain reactions.

If he rejected Yamana Yoshitoyo's request for help, the most direct result would be that he would be forced to cede more than a dozen villages in the southern part of his adopted father's county to Yamana Masamichi. The result of this would not only further weaken the strength of the Yamana main family, but more importantly, the Inaba Yamana clan would border the Wakasa Takeda clan in Tajima.

In this way, the Wakasa Takeda clan will face pressure from both Harima and Tajima at the same time, and the Amago clan and Inaba Yamana are allies, which means that Asago County where Ikuno Castle is located will be surrounded by the Amago clan on three sides.

Under such circumstances, not to mention taking advantage of the chaos to march south to Harima, even defending the existing Asagai County would require a lot of effort.

In other words, with Yamana Masimichi, the "watchdog" of the Amago clan, watching him in Tajima, Yoshishige should forget about advancing safely into Harima. The final outcome would be that the Wakasa Takeda clan would greatly slow down its pace of expansion and development under the surveillance and restraint of the Amago forces.

What if he accepted Yamana Yufeng's request for help? Yoshishige considered two options.

One is to "help a little", which is to send troops to assist in the defense of the southern part of Yangfu County, and through the use of force to deter Yamana Masamichi from acting rashly.

This approach can certainly suppress the military actions of the Tajima side in the short term.

However, once Akihisa Amago and Motonari Mori started fighting at Yoshida-gunyama Castle, the Takeda clan's betrayal to the Ouchi clan would be exposed. In this case, the Amago clan would certainly allow Yamana Masamichi to invade Yabu County, and Yabu County would become a battlefield for the Yamana clan and the Wakasa Takeda clan to join forces to fight against the Tajima Yamana clan and the Amago clan.

Not to mention how long this battle will last, once it starts, not only Yafu County, Asago County and even the entire Tajima Province will be affected, and Yoshishige's painstaking efforts in Higashi-Tajima will be wasted.

Even though the Amago army stationed in Harima and Inaba eventually withdrew to Izumo due to its crushing defeat at Yoshida-gunyama Castle, and the battle ended with the victory of the Yamana Soie and the Wakasa Takeda clan, the horse would have suffered an irreparable and devastating blow, which would have been difficult for Yoshishige and Yamana Takanari to accept.

Therefore, Yoshishige thought of another way to provide support, which is the so-called "helping a lot".

To put it bluntly, instead of fighting with Yamana Makoto around the southern part of Yabu County, the war would be directly spread to the territories of Inaba and Harima, keeping the enemy out of the country and launching a major war involving the three countries.

To achieve this goal, we must first grasp the right timing, neither angering Yamana Makoto nor leaving him alone.

In other words, Yamana Yutoyo could neither agree nor refuse his request to obtain the southern part of his adoptive father's county, but had to delay it as much as possible. If it really didn't work, Yoshishige could also send people to participate in the negotiations.

But the principle is that before the alliance between the Takeda clan and the Ouchi clan is exposed, they must not break off relations with Yamana Masimichi, causing him to think that the issue of ceding territory can be resolved peacefully, thus becoming careless and paralyzed, and therefore not mobilizing within the territory.

When the alliance was exposed, the Takeda army immediately split into two groups. One group went along the San'in Street and headed west with the support of the famous army of Tajima Mountain. They advanced into Inaba by land and sea and directly captured Tottori Castle. The other group went south from Ikuno Castle and directly captured the Kita-Harima area.

The Tajima Yamana army also split into two routes. One route set out from Tsurugamine Castle and headed westward into western Tajima; the other route set out from Yagi Castle, captured Kitayabu County where the Inaba Yamana army was entrenched, and then directly attacked Inaba and went straight to Tenjinyama Castle, the main castle of Yamana Makoto.

As for why they chose to form an alliance and expose this time point, it was mainly to use this incident to weaken the morale and cause panic among the Inaba Yamana army and the Amago army stationed in Harima, and to magnify the suddenness of the dispatch of troops, so as to achieve twice the result with half the effort.

Moreover, when the alliance was exposed, the Amago army and the Mori army must have already started fighting. Under such circumstances, they would not be able to look east and would not have a direct impact on the battle far away in Tajima.

After considering all the circumstances, Yoshishige finally decided to use the latter method to respond to Yamana Yufeng's request for help.

However, although Yoshishige believed that supporting Yamana Yufeng was protecting himself, he did not want Yamana Yufeng to realize this. To put it bluntly, he hoped that Yamana Yufeng would be grateful to him for this matter, thereby strengthening his obedience and dependence on the Wakasa Takeda clan.

Therefore, when Yamana Yufeng came to visit, Yoshishige did not agree to his request outright, but deliberately asked back: "I wonder what Your Majesty Kinggo wants me to do?"

"Of course I hope you can come forward and have a good talk with Samasuke (Yamana Makotoshi) and ask him not to go too far." Yamana Yufeng replied.

"Your Highness should know that the Amago clan is behind Samasuke. It's not that I don't want to help, but I'm afraid that no matter what I say, he will rely on the support of the Amago clan and will not give face to the main family at all."

Yoshishige's words revealed a rather difficult meaning, which made Yamana Yufeng very anxious: "Now, the only one who can help our family is you, Your Highness. Please think of a way. As long as you can make Samasuke stop provoking and demanding territory, I and the Yamana clan will remember your kindness."

As he spoke, Yamana Yufeng bowed deeply to Yoshishige. This scene made Yoshishige feel that the time had come and it was time to talk to him about the next "countermeasures".

"Your Highness, what do you think about our family sending troops to help you guard your adoptive father's county?" Yizhong asked.

"That's good, but I don't think this is a long-term solution." Yamana Yufeng still frowned.

"Then tell me, what is the long-term strategy?" Yi Zhong asked with pretended curiosity.

"As the saying goes, 'I won't allow others to sleep beside me'. With such an ignorant fellow standing in Inaba and western Tajima, aren't you worried, Your Highness?" Yamana Yufeng asked tentatively, "Why not take this opportunity to teach him a lesson? Even if we expel him from Tajima, it will be enough to deter him and make him not dare to act rashly in the future."

"But what good will it do me to expel him from Tajima?" Yoshishige asked in return:

"To put it bluntly, our family and the Inaba Yama clan currently have no grudges against each other. What's the point of rashly sending troops to drive them out of Tajima? Besides, our family and they don't border each other. After we drive them away, won't Western Tajima belong to you?

In this way, not only will the main family not gain any territory, but they will also face the risk of breaking away from the Niwa family. This is not a wise move."

"Your Highness, please rest assured. Once we drive Samasuke's army out of Tajima, our family will not take an inch of land and will hand it all over to the Takeda family." Yamana Yufeng solemnly promised.

"I can tell that you are sincere."

Yoshishige first affirmed Yamana Yufeng's promise, but then changed the subject and raised his concerns again: "But if this happens, our family will border the Inaba Yamana family. By then, I'm afraid the border between Inaba and Tajima will never be peaceful again."

"Then what is your opinion, Your Highness? I am all ears." Yamana Yufeng felt that he had been humble enough, but he did not expect Yoshishige to still refuse to respond, which made him feel even more anxious and frustrated. "Since Your Highness wants to get rid of the harassment of Sasuke, then let's just do the big one."

As he spoke, Yishige ordered Xiaoxing to fetch the map and carefully nailed it to the wall. He then pointed to the location of Inaba and said, "Why don't we just go all out and wipe out the famous family of Inaba Mountain. Then you can rest assured."

"Destroy the country?" Yamana Youfeng's eyes widened as big as copper bells, and his breathing stagnated for a moment. Then he took a quick breath and asked in disbelief: "You, you mean to destroy the Inaba Yamana family?!"

"That's right," Yizhong nodded calmly, as if this was something commonplace.

"This Inaba Yama clan is becoming more and more arrogant with the support of the Amago clan. If you don't squeeze this 'pus', even though ceding territory in exchange for peace may buy temporary peace, it will only encourage his arrogance. Sooner or later, your clan will be destroyed by his gradual encroachment."

Yoshishige's words shocked Yamana Yufeng, who soon fell into deep thought:
Not to mention, with his and the Wakasa Takeda clan's current strength, can they destroy the Inaba Yamana clan in one fell swoop? Even if they succeed, will Akihisa Amago, who is behind Yamana Masimichi, sit idly by?

By then, the Amago clan would gather tens of thousands of troops and attack Inaba. I was afraid that I would have to retreat to Tajima before I could even get a firm foothold. This was still a good idea. If I thought about it in a bad way, the Amago army would counterattack and enter Tajima, I would really be in trouble.

Thinking of this, Yamana Yufeng said to Yoshishige cautiously with a smile on his face: "What Wuedon said is not without reason, but the Amago family behind Samasuke is not easy to mess with. Besides, haven't you formed an alliance with the Amago family? Aren't you afraid that they will get angry and send troops to attack Tajima?"

In fact, Yamana Yufeng was also worried about one thing, that is, whether the plan to send troops to Inaba was a strategy conspired in advance by the Amago clan and the Wakasa Takeda clan, with the purpose of finding a reason to destroy himself and then divide Tajima equally between the two families.

After all, Takeda Motomitsu had just escorted Takeda Nobumitsu to Aki via the Amago Territory a few days ago. It was hard to believe that they had become enemies in just a few days.

But on second thought, it seems unlikely. After all, reasons for attacking me can be fabricated at will. The reasons given by Yamana Makotoshi when he demanded the cession of land were enough. Why bother with so much effort and start a war to find an excuse by bringing the war to Inaba?

While Yamana Yufeng was still in deep thought, Yoshishige answered confidently:
"Your Highness, do not worry about the relationship between the Main House and the Amago Clan. Since I proposed this plan, I must have considered it very carefully. Your Highness only needs to answer me whether you are willing to participate in this operation."

After hearing what Yoshishige said, Yamana Youfeng started to murmur in his heart again.

Indeed, deep down in his heart he really wanted to agree. After all, if the Inaba Yamana clan was destroyed, his status and territory would no longer be challenged by branch families.

But the reality is that doing so is not only risky and can easily backfire, but there is also a very important point, which is that if it really succeeds, he will be surrounded on three sides by the Wakasa Takeda clan, and he will be controlled by others in the future. This is a result he does not want to see.

After much deliberation, Yamana Yufeng gritted his teeth and decided to give it a try at the risk of the fate of the Yamana main family. Last time, they were able to survive with Yoshishige's help, and this time they hoped that they could still consolidate and maintain the family business with his help.

However, in order to avoid being surrounded on three sides by the Wakasa Takeda clan, he still put forward a condition: "Buei-dono, I hope that after I take over Inaba, I can exchange the existing land for the territories of the four counties of Inzai."

The Inzai Four Counties refer to the four counties of Kita, Takakusa, Yakami, and Chizu among the eight counties of Inaba (also known as Inshu). The stone height (observable height) of these four counties was about 49,000 stones, accounting for 55% of the total stone height of Inaba at that time.

Yamana Yutoyo's current territory includes parts of Tajima Mikan County, Keta County, and Yabu County, with a total koku of approximately 44,000 koku.

Yoshishige was not stupid and could see the hidden meaning behind the proposal to exchange Tajima's territory for Inaba's territory.

Although the difference in koku is 5,000 koku, this is not the point. After all, if Inaba is captured, Yamana Yufeng would have to be given some territory as a reward. 5,000 koku is not an excessive request.

The point is that Yamana Yutoyo actually wanted to use this method to get rid of the control of the Wakasa Takeda clan, which made Yoshishige difficult to understand for a while.

Although Yoshishige could agree to Yamana Yufeng's request, out of kindness, he still reminded him: "If you do this, you will have to face the Niwa clan directly. Your Highness, aren't you worried?"

Unexpectedly, Yamana Yufeng shook his head and said with a smile: "I believe that you will not sit idly by and watch our family being invaded by the Niwa family."

"Hahaha!" After hearing this, Yizhong suddenly realized what was going on, and then laughed heartily: "It seems that Your Highness has already made up his mind."

"How dare I? Your Highness saw through my little cleverness at a glance." Yamana Youfeng responded with a smile.

Of course he knew that by doing so, the Yamana clan would be caught between the two lines of troops, but as the saying goes, "the bigger the storm, the more valuable the fish", fortune and honor are sought in danger, and as long as he could grasp the right measure, he could maintain a delicate balance between the Amago clan and the Wakasa Takeda clan, and maximize his interests in this balance, rather than being controlled by just one side.

Since Yamana Yutoyo had made up his mind, Yoshishige had nothing to say. After all, moving the Yamana main family out of Tajima would also be beneficial to his implementation of local policies.

After reaching a consensus, Yoshishige began to inform Yamana Yutoyo of his plan to send troops, hoping that after returning to Yagi Castle, he would delay and contain Yamana Makotoshi while making preparations for the war.

A few days after the two men had finished their conversation, Yoshishige received a secret letter from Taroko Mitsugu.

After learning that Akihisa Niwa had finally decided to send troops to Aki, he immediately set out for Asago County to check the construction of Ikuno Castle and strive to complete the construction before the battle of Aki, or at least complete the construction of the Heijo part, so that the Takeda army could assemble smoothly.

At the same time, Takeda Motomitsu and Kagawa Mitsukage arrived at Ouchi-kan in Suo and were warmly received by Ouchi Yoshitaka.

Ouchi-kan, also known as Yamaguchi-kan, is different from ordinary flat castles. This castle is the residence of the Ouchi clan built in imitation of the Nijo Palace. It only has Tsukiji walls, earth ramparts and earth moats on the outside, and only has basic defensive capabilities.

The Chikuyamakan, where Ouchi Yoshitaka hosted a banquet for Takeda Motomitsu and his entourage, was a venue built during the reign of Ouchi Yoshihiro to entertain important foreign guests. From this, it can be seen that Ouchi Yoshitaka attached great importance to Takeda Motomitsu's visit.

At the banquet, Ouchi Yoshitaka, who was only 33 years old, wore an indigo-colored straight-legged suit and a folded black hat on his head. He sat at the head of the table slowly, with a bright look on his face and polite conversation, which really won the favor of Takeda Motomitsu. (End of this chapter)