The name of the great swordsman begins in Okehazama.

Chapter 116 Shingen’s clever plan

In the third month of the second year of Yuangui (1571), the weather turned warm.

Yuanshan Palace is also pregnant; her belly has just started to swell, and she looks to be about three or four months along.

"My lord!" Toudou Takatora had just returned from outside the castle, beads of sweat still clinging to his forehead. "Something's happened in Hida!"

"What is it!"

"Uesugi Kenshin led 18000 men to attack Fei again!"

Nagayoshi was beginning to experience the pain that Takeda Shingen had suffered.

The thought that Kenshin had outlived a tiger by several years made him smile bitterly.

"Isn't it a bit of an underestimation of me that Uesugi Kenshin came alone?"

"Report! My lord, a large number of Takeda troops have appeared on the mountain path!"

Changqing immediately ran up to the castle tower, and the valley east of Iwamura Castle was already a sea of ​​red.

Damn it, are they coming for me? Looks like they're not from another team at all, they're the main force.

Just look at the thief squad; it numbers in the tens of thousands.

"Request aid from Lord Nobunaga, and tell the young lord not to attack rashly!"

When Nobunaga, who was in Azuchi, received Nagayoshi's plea for help, he also received Ieyasu's plea for help.

Hojo Ujimasa actually managed to invade Tōtōmi Province.

Takeda Shingen spent six months recuperating, but during this time he did not forget to use his political skills.

Hojo Ujiyasu happened to pass away in the latter half of last year. After Hojo Ujimasa succeeded him as head of the clan, he formed the "Kō-Sō-Etsu" alliance with Takeda Shingen and Uesugi Kenshin.

The three most powerful daimyo in the eastern lands have now joined forces.

Kenshin attacked Fei, and Hojo attacked Totomi.

Knowing that Mori Nagayoshi was the de facto commander of the army in Mino Province, Takeda Shingen launched a surprise attack, leading 40,000 men deep into Mino Province.

Changqing managed to gather only two thousand men in a short time to guard against Iwamura and Daqing, but now he is surrounded by the "Xianfang Clan" and ten thousand men, including Kosaka Masanobu.

Shingen then led 30,000 men into Mino.

With his support cut off, Anekokōji Yoritsuna was already in a precarious situation. Tokugawa Ieyasu was even more preoccupied with his own survival.

Among Oda's generals, Sakuma Nobumori and Takigawa Kazumasu were locked in a fierce battle at Settsu and Ishiyama Honganji Temple, Shibata Katsuie was locked in a fierce struggle with the Kaga Ikko-ikki, and Akechi Mitsuhide and Hashiba Hideyoshi were on their way to conquer Tanba and Harima.

At present, the only generals that Nobunaga can command are Niwa Nagahide and Hayashi Hidesada.

Nobunaga then mobilized 20,000 men, with Nagahide as the vanguard, to enter Mino and join forces with Hayashi Hidesada. Once they joined forces with Nobutada's army, the Oda army would number around 40,000.

Inside the Iwamura Castle Castle Tower, the lights are brightly lit.

Bonfires lit up the area outside the city, and the entire valley looked like a leaf crawling with fireflies.

Nagayoshi wasn't worried about them attacking the city. Daqing and Iwamura had long been fortified, and the Takeda army would suffer at least 10,000 casualties if they launched a strong attack.

What he was worried about was being surrounded and cut off from the outside world.

-

Takeda Shingen left 10,000 men to prevent Nagayoshi from breaking out, but led his elite troops into the Mino Plain.

There, the Takeda cavalry could roam freely.

Even if Nobunaga himself came, the outcome would be unpredictable.

For the first time, Changqing felt that the great battle was so close to him, yet had nothing to do with him.

Three miles west of Naegi Castle, Oda's army had already deployed its forces.

After Nobunaga marched forward, Shingen deliberately retreated, eventually reaching the vicinity of Naegi Castle.

This was clearly Shingen's intention to avoid the river that the western Mino River could fill. Although there were many hills in the eastern Mino, they were almost all on the Takeda side.

Nobunaga's main force numbered 20,000, with his vanguard Niwa Nagahide at 4,000 and Hayashi Hidesada at 4,000. Adding to this the reinforcements of Nobutada, he now commanded nearly 40,000 troops. On the other side, Takeda Shingen only had 30,000 men available for deployment.

However, the battlefield is not a simple numbers game.

"Lin Xiuzhen's army formation is too far forward," said Dan Yu Changxiu, his brows furrowed.

-

Lin Xiuzhen seized a hill.

His opponent, Takeda's vanguard, was Baba Nobuharu.

"That old bastard deliberately lured Lin Xiuzhen to occupy the high ground!"

Niwa Nagahide observed the enemy situation and keenly noticed that Takeda's cavalry were not in formation.

"Shingen has hidden his cavalry; should he go and meet up with Sado no Kami first?"

"It's too late. The entire army must converge on Lin Xiuzhen; we can't let that old woman die here!"

The words had barely left his mouth when a conch shell rang out.

Behind the hill, Takeda's Red Cavalry launched the first attack on Hayashi Hideyoshi, who had no choice but to hold the hill.

Within Takeda Shingen's main camp, the thunderous sound of taiko drums resounded.

The 30,000-strong Takeda army launched the first attack against the Oda army, which had a numerical advantage.

Three days later, at dusk, in Gifu Castle.

Nobunaga never imagined he would be trapped in the very place where he had declared "the unification of the realm by force".

But this well-defended city brought him only despair.

Even if he were only given a few thousand troops to roam the mountains and fields, it would be better than sitting idly in the city.

The Takeda army has completed the siege of Gifu Castle.

Thirty thousand men completely surrounded the castle that Nobunaga had built up over many years. The garrison inside the castle numbered only four thousand, most of whom were remnants of defeated soldiers.

With frequent battles in various regions, stored grain had long been transferred to the front lines, and the grain available in Gifu was only enough to sustain Nobunaga for one month.

How many troops from various regions can come to the rescue within a month?

"Is there any news from Tokugawa?" Nobunaga asked.

"Before our army retreated into Gifu, Ieyasu sent a letter saying that Hojo Ujimasa had attacked Tōtōmi Province, and Ieyasu was too busy to defend himself and had already retreated to Hamamatsu."

Nobutada's answer silenced Nobunaga.

Who can come to our rescue now?

If news of their encirclement gets out, rebellions might break out in various parts of the Oda clan's territory.

Can those retainers who keep calling themselves "Lord" easily extricate themselves from the current war?

In Iwamura Castle, Nagayoshi could tell from the appearance of the Takeda army that Nobunaga had been defeated, but he did not realize that Nobunaga was also surrounded.

"My lord, the messengers from the Takeda army have arrived again."

When Shingen besieged the city, he sent an envoy a few days later, but it was only to undermine the morale of his army.

In the end, it's still the same old story: "a gift of the entire country of Mino".

Changqing, bored out of his mind, asked, "Is it the same old rhetoric again today?"

Nagamasa said with a wry smile, "This time they said they'd only give half of Mino Province!"

Shingen actually resorted to this tactic?

Nagayoshi could almost picture Shingen's expression; he must be sitting in the main camp right now, waiting for him to eagerly slide to his knees.

Outside the castle, at the main camp of the Takeda army.

"He refused?" Takeda Shingen asked, somewhat surprised.

Nobuharu Baba, Nobutsuna Sanada, and Nobushige Oyamada had long wanted to avenge Takeda's previous defeat.

"My lord, please allow me to attack the city tomorrow. Daqing City has only about a thousand defenders. If we take this city first, the Mori clan will surely waver."

"No, Gifu Castle is the priority now. If we can defeat the enemy reinforcements, Oda will surely perish!"

When Oda's generals received news that Nobunaga was besieged, they each took their own actions.

Hideyoshi Hashiba and Mitsuhide Akechi immediately blocked the news, allowing them to safely withdraw their troops.

Shibata Katsuie managed to withdraw his troops, but the Kaga Uprising made it impossible for him to make any further progress.

Sakuma Nobumori and Takigawa Kazumasu suffered a crushing defeat.

Now, only Hideyoshi and Mitsuhide can rescue Nobunaga, and the two agree to gather at Sawayama Castle.

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