Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

After all, they weren't just making breakfast for Shichibei; they also had to make breakfast for all the apprentice monks at the Gifu main store who had signed seven- or nine-year contracts.

There are dozens of people.

There were also some waiters and family members who had not yet started a family and naturally had no place to eat, so they had to eat in the store. They had to prepare breakfast for hundreds of people, and the large steaming pot had to be set up with ten stoves.

When Shichibei got up, he bumped into Inase Yoshinari standing at the temple entrance, directing the young monks to move firewood to the kitchen. Inase Yoshinari, who had seen him before, even grinned mischievously when he saw Shichibei.

What's so funny? It's just a small thing, nothing to be so amused about.

Upon returning from the battle, Shichibei inquired and learned that Ai was due to give birth in three to five days. Otherwise, the young general would be helping his four younger sisters cook. At the moment, Ai could barely walk and could only lie down to rest.

Fortunately, Inase Yoshinari lived with Shichibei in the backyard of the Gifu main store, so the two families could look after each other. Otherwise, he really wouldn't have been able to feel at ease, and Inase Yoshinari wouldn't have had time to stand in the yard directing the moving of firewood.

"Husband." The two were staring at each other when the young general, wearing an apron and with his hair in a bun, came running over and invited them to have breakfast.

"Hmm." Shichibei slapped Inase Yoshinari on the shoulder, telling him to stop laughing and to eat rice to shut him up.

Picking up the bowl, Shichibei said to the young major-general, "Thank you for your hard work!" In Japan, there are two ways to eat. One is that the whole family eats together. After the head of the family picks up the bowl, others can take their bowls. Even the head of the family's father and mother have to wait.

Another possibility is that there are many people in the family, so the men eat first, or they sit inside waiting for the women to bring out their food. The women then eat after the men have finished, or they eat in the kitchen.

These days there's no debate about eating at a table, since in Japan, people don't eat at a table, but rather at a small table in front of them.

After breakfast, Sasa Narimasa came to the door. As expected, he was talking about what Nobunaga had instructed him to do yesterday: to send a few men to the Shimobuya of Kawamuraya Odani Castle.

The matter is not difficult to handle, and there is no trouble at all. Just summon the person, give him an identity, and place him in Kotani. Asai Nagamasa is considered one of Nobunaga's important allies and subordinates in the Kinai region, so the more you know about him, the more you can control him.

Although Nobunaga had showered Hatakeyama Akitaka of Kawachi in the south with praise and made him quite delusional, his fighting strength was ultimately inferior to that of Azai Nagamasa. Moreover, Princess Oichi and Azai Nagamasa had already given birth to a legitimate son, a child with half Oda blood, whom Nobunaga would certainly trust more.

In the future, Asai Manpuku Maru, as a member of the Oda clan, will inherit the Asai clan's business and be perfectly integrated into the Oda clan's military and political group.

The two had finished their conversation, and Sasa Narimasa had already decided which people to send. Suddenly, a messenger came from the shop to announce that Ai was about to give birth.

Upon hearing that something had happened at home, Sasa Narimasa instructed him to take his leave. Shichibei apologized and did not see him off, but hurried off to check on Ayi.

By evening, the mother and child were safe and sound, and everyone in the family breathed a sigh of relief. Inase Yoshinari, holding the child, happily boasted that his sister-in-law's arrival brought double happiness to the family; she was truly a lucky star.

172. Why was the fifth son chosen?

That's for sure, at least now the Kawamura family has an extra backup. Even though it wasn't his own child, his sister giving birth is still a joyous occasion.

Those old acquaintances who had just finished drinking and were completely drunk were called over again. Come on, let's continue. Anyway, Nobunaga isn't fighting any wars right now, and there's nothing important to do, so it's a good time for everyone to get together.

Only his father-in-law, Oda Nobuhiro, returned to Kyoto. After all, he was stationed at Myokaku-ji Temple, shouldering the heavy responsibility of supporting Kyoto in a strategic position alongside Nijō Palace. It was already quite good that he managed to return midway through the wedding of Shichibei and the young general.

Oda Nobunaga, who had nothing better to do, came to join in the fun with the people. He sat among a group of young samurai from Owari and casually asked them whether they were going to fight Kitabatake Tomofusa, Asakura Yoshikage, or the Miyoshi Triumvirate.

Because of his exceptional performance during the Honkoku-ji Incident, Oda Nobunaga's control and takeover of the old forces in the Kinai region became increasingly sophisticated and strengthened. However, Oda Nobunaga's conquests would not cease, so he needed to seize this opportune moment—using the shogun to command the disobedient—to quickly quell the various rebellious forces and expand his own power.

When Nobunaga went to Kyoto, he gained control of many towns along the shores of Lake Biwa, as well as the two major handicraft and trade centers of Kyoto and Sakai, thereby expanding his sources of wealth.

However, this did not result in much additional territory (although many locals were recruited in southern Omi). In Japan, the core of "Goon-hon-gong" (御恩奉公) was essentially the management of one's territory. Nobunaga had recruited many dogs and men, and he needed to further expand his territory to house new people and increase the size of his own service group.

There's nothing wrong with bringing this up openly, since all three sides have already found a way to die, having cut themselves off from Oda during the previous era's changes.

As it is, with the natural law of change, old forces will always perish and fall, and new forces will step on their corpses and rush into the new era.

Since Nobunaga was going to kill people anyway, he would naturally kill these fools.

Everyone spoke freely, and Shichibei, sitting to the side, didn't interrupt, but he could sense some differences in their opinions. Because most of Nobunaga's core samurai group came from Owari at this time, their discussions about military operations inevitably carried some personal biases. Many people felt that the Oda clan's navy was not yet up to par and not suitable for immediately crossing the sea to kill the Miyoshi Triumvirate.

Snow is expected in Echizen Province in October, so at most, there are only three and a half months left. The Asakura clan is a powerful daimyo with 750,000 koku of rice, capable of mobilizing 30,000 troops, or even more. Three and a half months is far from enough time to raise an army and destroy the Asakura clan.

If Nobunaga were to retreat, all the gains from the victory would be wiped out by a single heavy snowfall. It would be a complete waste of effort and pointless.

They refuted both directions in one fell swoop, and did so with sound reasoning and evidence.

Sigh, isn't it all about wanting to take over southern Ise and northern Ise? Owari has been eyeing Ise since the time of Oda Nobuhide. Now that northern Ise has been captured, southern Ise, completely surrounded by Nobunaga's forces, is just a piece of cake.

Furthermore, two powerful clans from major territories, Kizuki Tomomasa and Kuki Yoshitaka, had already pledged allegiance to the Oda clan in Minami-Ise and Shima. The Kizuki clan could act as guides on the road, while the Kuki clan could serve as the vanguard at sea.

Kuki Yoshitaka's ship had already been fully built in Tsushima. Combined with the pirates and sailors he recruited, Nobunaga was able to launch a combined land and sea offensive.

They even launched a treacherous attack on the Kitabatake clan, using ships to bring hundreds of pirates ashore and allow them to commit murder and arson within the heart of the Minami-Ise territory.

Live together.

Shichibei himself actually had his own inclinations, preferring to attack Awaji and Awa. Although Sakai had now submitted to the Oda clan, once Sakai set sail, they would face the Awaji Atake navy.

It is clear that Ataka Nobuyasu and Oda Nobunaga were in a state of conflict, which was not conducive to the stable development of trade in Sakai, and therefore not conducive to the expansion of Shichibei's interests in Sakai.

However, our own inclinations are no match for the majority of the younger samurai in Owari. We're not like the Marines of later Japan, where the northward and southward factions at least had some tug-of-war. Shichibei, alone, couldn't argue with the majority.

Unless certain powerful groups within the Kinai region gradually gain a voice within the Oda clan, it is unlikely that calls to attack Awa and Awaji first will emerge.

Even the calls to attack Echizen and Wakasa are now very quiet, let alone Awa. Attacking the Asakura clan would allow us to seize Tsuruga and Obama, two major ports for northward trade. This is what Nobunaga himself hopes for and desires, but he cannot completely go against the wishes of his retainers and act unilaterally.

Otherwise, his seemingly unintentional casual conversation at the banquet was just a way to gauge the attitudes of his retainers.

At this point, what was lacking was a good lackey, the kind with influence within the household, someone who could speak up and echo Nobunaga's thoughts. Unfortunately, while they had lackeys, none spoke up to influence the Oda clan's strategic position.

Didn't you say there's Shichibei? Shichibei supports fighting Awaji and Awa.

As the banquet ended, Nobunaga rose to leave, and Shichibei immediately saw him off. Just as he was leading Shichibei's horse, Nobunaga suddenly realized that so many people had been spouting nonsense, yet Shichibei hadn't uttered a single sound.

"Where do you think our clan should attack next?" Nobunaga asked Shichibei instead of mounting his horse.

"I'm just a novice..." Shichibei wasn't trying to be pretentious. He was just a novice, and everyone felt more at ease entrusting the money to him.

"Tsk, it's not like I'm asking you to carry a gun and go first." Nobunaga could tell that Shichibei didn't want to talk, but he wasn't going to indulge Shichibei. The kind of person Nobunaga would indulge wasn't even born yet.

"Then..." Shichibei hesitated, unsure whether to refer to Awa, whom he truly believed in, or to Tsuruga, whom Nobunaga had been hoping for.

"Don't you want to be the supreme governor of the land?" Nobunaga stroked his horse saddle and said to Shichibei in a suggestive tone.

"Huh?" Wow, Shichibei was slightly surprised.

It wasn't that he didn't want to do it, but the entire family of the Grand Agent in another dimension had been executed. Besides, Shichibei didn't really care whether he became the Grand Agent or not. He knew he wasn't capable of managing farmland, temples, streets, towns, and mines.

To be able to serve as the supreme ruler of the land would be perfect. Simply managing all the commercial and trade activities of this Sanjin Qicuo region and establishing a government-merchant monopoly would make this trip worthwhile.

"How about it?" Nobunaga was quite good at making grand promises.

It's a pity that the last promise he made was for Akechi Mitsuhide, allowing him to freely carve out the provinces of Tokumo and Iwami. If he could also bring the Iwami Silver Mine, that promise would be even bigger than a million koku.

I don't know if the drawing was just too big, so big that Mitsuhide Akechi couldn't finish it. Having chosen not to eat the pancake anymore, Mitsuhide then committed a passionate murder.

"I only know how to serve my lord faithfully and bravely." After thinking it over, Shichibei decided that he still couldn't let his true feelings out.

If they don't release him, at most they'll be called slippery. If they do release him, who knows what might happen later when they bring up old grievances.

"Tsk! You haven't learned the simplicity of a samurai, but you've certainly mastered seven-tenths of a merchant's cunning." Nobunaga frowned, offering a critique of Shichibei.

However, Shichibei did not express his opinion, so it did not have any real impact. Nobunaga just cursed a couple of times, and after cursing, he immediately mounted his horse and rode back to his Titani residence.

Scratching his head, he prepared to write a letter to Yoshitaka Kuki in Tsushima.

The main opinion within the household is to attack Minami-Ise, so Nobunaga is unlikely to go against his retainers' wishes and attack Asakura first. Once the autumn harvest is over, Nobunaga will launch a fierce attack on Minami-Ise, and that will be the opportunity for Kuki Yoshitaka to make his appearance.

Besides building warships and recruiting pirate sailors, Kuki Yoshitaka also needs to incite the people of Shima and the surrounding areas of Dokai District to rebel against Kitabatake Tomonori and his son Kitabatake Tomofusa. This needs to be prepared in advance, the sooner the better.

When it comes to rebellion, if it's really a spur-of-the-moment decision, well, just look at Mitsuhide.

Takigawa Kazumasu, stationed at Kanie Castle, must have heard some rumors. He rode swiftly to Gifu Castle to find Shichibei and inquire about Nobunaga's current stance. He was the second-in-command of the Ise forces, and he wholeheartedly supported Nobunaga's campaign against southern Ise. He would undoubtedly be a key player in the campaign and would certainly achieve great merit.

If you make a great contribution, you will receive everything you deserve; standing out from the crowd will be a piece of cake.

Speaking of the five districts of northern Ise, he only granted them to Nobutaka, or rather Nobunaga, as a temporary administration. He didn't actually enfeoff all five districts to him; to receive a real fiefdom, he would have to work hard in battle.

Seeing his appearance, Shichibei could only feel sorry for him in his heart. Even if they were to conquer Minami-Ise and Shima, they would be entrusted to Nobuo and Kuki Yoshitaka, and it would have nothing to do with you, brother.

It wasn't until the Nagashima Ikko-ikki uprising was completely quelled that Takigawa Kazumasu received the governorship of the four northern districts of Ise, while Kobe Nobutaka received the Suzuka and Kawaku districts.

Nagano Nobukatsu received Anno District, and Kitabatake Nobuo received the five districts of Minami-Ise. These four formed a so-called "guerrilla corps," acting as a fire brigade everywhere.

Araki Murashige's rebellion, the conquest of Kishu, the Bessho Nagaharu Rebellion, and so on—the records of the Ise Army's participation in battles are almost everywhere. Later, when Takigawa Kazumasu became the Hojo clan's nemesis, the commander of the Kanto Army, and Kitabatake Nobuo was further elevated, Nobutaka and Nobukatsu were transferred from the guerrilla army to Nobutada's central army.

In the decades that followed, Ise was truly a place of constant division and reunification, a microcosm of the Warring States period.

"The Kitabatake clan resisted the imperial army and raised an unjust army; they certainly deserve to be severely punished!" Takigawa Kazumasu said with great enthusiasm, finally it was his turn to shine again.

"Brother, you came to Gifu not just to talk to me, right?" Shichibei thought to himself, "You'd better just tell me what you're talking about."

"Haha, as you know, I'm in Kanie, far from Gifu." Takigawa Kazumasu and Shichibei have known each other for many years, and Shichibei is universally acknowledged by everyone in the Oda clan as an honest man.

They are honest and trustworthy, never gossip about others behind their backs, get along well with colleagues, and are close to their fellow villagers.

"If we take over Nanshi, brother, we'll move our headquarters to Ohkawachi, which is even farther away." Shichibei certainly understood what was being said. He was just afraid that he wouldn't have a chance to make progress.

“Well, that’s different.” Hanawa Naomasa was sent to Bizen to kill Urakami Munekage, but he was still on the Emperor’s mind, and Nobunaga thought of him no matter how far away he was.

Distance is just one factor to consider; what truly matters is making contributions.

"In my opinion, our lord is indeed heading south after autumn." Shichibei heard this clearly at the banquet that day.

"With your words, this trip was definitely worthwhile," Takikawa Kazumasu chuckled upon hearing this.

"Hmm." What I said is what you hear, but once it leaves this door, Shichibei won't admit it.

"Rest assured, I am here on official business." Takigawa Kazumasu was also ordered to come to the court; he did not come to Gifu on his own.

It's a small matter, a very simple one. Nobunaga's uncle is Toyama Kageto, the head of the Iwamura Toyama clan. But he has never had a legitimate son, nor has any concubine given birth to him.

Last year, Toyama Naoren, the lord of Naegi Castle, responded to Takeda Shingen's order to invade Suruga and went to war, but was killed in battle. Many members of the Toyama clan were defeated and killed, causing instability in the Toyama family and revealing the problem of succession.

If Toyama Naokane hadn't died, there would have been no problem with Kagetoshi passing the throne to his younger brother. But now that Naokane is dead and Kagetoshi has no heir, everyone knows that Nobunaga wouldn't mind taking over his uncle's business.

So he sent Takigawa Kazumasu to hint to Toyama Kagetomo whether he was willing to adopt Nobunaga's son Goboumaru as his legitimate son and inherit the family business of the Iwamura Toyama clan.

Because they feared that sending a senior retainer like Niwa Nagahide or Sakuma Nobumori would exert too much pressure on Toyama Kageto and cause him to feel resentful, they sent Takikawa Kazumasu instead.

Theoretically, the Toyama family was a powerful local clan belonging to both the Oda and Takeda territories, and this fact was known to Takeda Shingen. However, Nobunaga wanted to accomplish the task secretly before informing them.

Work quietly, don't fire a shot.

"Oh, that's a serious matter," Shichibei thought to himself. Toyama Kagetoto was already in his fifties or sixties; who knows what tomorrow will bring? It was wise to prepare early; Nobunaga was very farsighted.

Wait a minute, so at this point, Nobunaga had already decided to adopt Nobukatsu, also known as Oda Chasenmaru, to Kitabatake.

Otherwise, why would they have pushed out Goshin Gobo Maru?

Upon seeing Shichibei suddenly appear thoughtful and with surprise in his eyes, Takigawa Kazumasu stopped his narration and couldn't help but scrutinize Shichibei.

It's just a simple matter of sending a son to Guohao's house to be adopted. It happens all over Japan. It's not surprising at all. What's Shichibei so surprised about?

Under normal circumstances, since there was a legitimate son, Oda Nobutada, the subsequent sons should have been arranged to leave one by one in order. Why would they suddenly skip over Chashin-maru and the fourth son, Oji-maru?