Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

Indeed, Shichibei could still decide the marriages of Ai and Aji, but he did not have the final say on the marriages of his three younger sisters. Even though it was Oda Nobunaga who said this, it did not necessarily mean that he did not have Oda Nobunaga's intentions.

Given how much Nobunaga cares about the morale of the Owari samurai, it's quite possible that he's already decided to use Shichibei's three younger sisters for marriage alliances with some young people he favors and hopes to recruit into the Owari samurai.

"Let's sit down and talk first." The two Endo samurai kowtowed to Shichibei and said without hesitation that their master was delighted and honored to receive Shichibei's letter. With Shichibei acting as matchmaker, even a beggar or an old man would be no problem, let alone Yamauchi Kazutoyo.

Upon learning that Yamauchi Kazutoyo was a burly young man of twenty-four or twenty-five, and a hundred foot soldiers with a salary of three hundred kan and a fief of forty-five koku, he responded with even greater speed.

Without even a moment's hesitation, he dispatched someone to the outskirts of Gifu Castle to reply to Shichibei. He was afraid that if they arrived too late, Shichibei would help Yamauchi Kazutoyo propose marriage to someone else's daughter.

Sigh, there's really no need to be in such a hurry.

That old pervert, Yamauchi Ichitoyo, was truly despicable, lusting after a twelve-year-old girl. Even though this was during the Warring States Period in Japan, it wasn't particularly unusual, but it didn't stop Shichibei from secretly criticizing him.

However, since they had said so, Shichibei naturally had to be polite and express his gratitude. He also invited them to stay, and after running to Sunomata to inform Yamauchi Kazutoyo, the two parties would be engaged.

As for when to get married?

Let's talk about it after we finish fighting Kitabatake. After all, Nobunaga will be going to war after the autumn harvest. It's too rushed and too time-consuming. It's better to wait until we're done fighting before we get back. Hideyoshi's Sunomata troops will definitely be fighting in the Battle of Southern Ise. If they achieve merit, Yamauchi Kazutoyo might get an extra hundred koku of rice, which would make him even more worthy of Endo Chiyo.

How far is Sumata from Gifu? The news had already been sent back and forth that day. Yamauchi Kazutoyo was completely obsessed with marrying Chiyo, a dream he'd longed for day and night. Fortunately, Shichibei had sent someone to inform him that Endō Yoshitaka had agreed. If it had been delayed for two more days, he might have even rushed to Gifu to ask Shichibei directly.

"Why wouldn't I agree?" Yamauchi Kazutoyo readily agreed. He immediately dispatched his retainer, Goto Yoshibei, to Gifu to finalize the details of the marriage agreement.

Furthermore, Yamauchi Kazutoyo's father and two elder brothers were all dead, but his mother was still alive and lived near Gifu Castle. As the head of a hundred foot soldiers, Yamauchi Kazutoyo was entitled to have a small, independent residence near Gifu Castle. Now that he was being sent out as Hideyoshi's retainer, his mother would certainly remain near Gifu Castle.

There's no need to be coy about it; Shichibei moved the main store to the outskirts of Gifu Castle. Now, his eldest sister's family, his second sister's family, his own family, and his three younger sisters are all under the castle walls. If a major earthquake hits Gifu, they'll be wiped out.

Kazutoyo's mother, who had become a nun with the Buddhist name Hōshūni, rushed to Kawamura-ya to express her gratitude to Shichibei after learning that he had personally acted as matchmaker for Kazutoyo. Since the parents were also present, they discussed the wedding details, finalized the engagement, and the happy occasion was complete.

After finishing this personal matter, the rice on the Nobi Plain began to be harvested and dried. This year's harvest was normal, and there were no major disasters. Apart from two torrential rains during the typhoon season, everything went smoothly.

Nobunaga was quite lucky, really. The average elevation of neighboring Shanghai was less than two meters. But the Nagoya area in later generations had an average elevation of over twelve meters. Despite being called the Nobi Plain, the terrain is actually quite high. Almost the entire city of Nagoya sits on the Atsuta Plateau, at an elevation of about fifteen meters.

Even during typhoons, the Nobi Plain rarely experiences severe flooding. Of course, the overflowing of the Kiso River is unavoidable; a short period of torrential rain can overwhelm the riverbed, and it's normal for the riverbanks to be submerged for two or three days.

The flooding of the Kiso River also brought a large amount of silt from upstream, which was used to continuously reclaim land from the sea. In later years, the coastline was more than ten kilometers away from Tsushima.

No wonder people say this land can give birth to all the best people in the world; everything about it is wonderful.

Thanks to the successful operation last year and Shichibei's good reputation in Nobi and Ryūgoku, this year they really got things going. Not only was the annual tribute rice from Nobunaga's direct domain being continuously transported to Gifu and Tsushima, but the annual tribute rice from many local noble families and the domains of Nobunaga's senior retainers was also basically sold to Kawamura-ya.

In a short period of time, Shichibei received more than 300,000 koku of annual tribute rice. Judging from the current situation, 400,000 or even 500,000 koku is by no means difficult.

Sure enough, once a business grows in scale and accumulates enough reputation, subsequent business coming in is almost a natural progression. Compared to entrusting business to small merchants you don't know or who have little influence, it's better to entrust everything to Kawamura-ya.

The good days of making money while lying down have finally come to Shichibei.

With the annual tribute rice delivered, Nobunaga also issued a mobilization order, formally requesting all troops to gather in Gifu and prepare to march to southern Ise. Before setting off, Nobunaga also asked Ashikaga Yoshiaki for orders.

You didn't pay homage when Yoshiaki ascended the throne, and you didn't come to help with the construction of the Imperial Palace. If we don't attack you, who will we attack?

With Ashikaga Yoshiaki's imperial edict, the Oda army had a legitimate reason to attack the Kitabatake clan, which wouldn't matter even if the Kitabatake clan had connections and influence with the imperial court. At most, if they were defeated and needed to sue for peace or surrender, they could invoke the imperial court to offer some leeway in begging for mercy from Nobunaga.

The advantage of using a general to command disobedience is that once you find fault with someone, they become a thief, a bandit, or a traitor.

The army that gathered at Gifu Castle numbered over 70,000. Nobunaga even requested that Azai Nagamasa and Tokugawa Ieyasu, whose army was exhausted after just capturing Kakegawa Castle, also send troops to join the battle.

Therefore, Azai Nagamasa sent Hori Hidemura, a powerful local lord from Sakata District. Hori Hidemura and his successor, Higuchi Naofabu, together controlled almost two-thirds of Sakata District. Moreover, their family enjoyed considerable influence and prestige in Sakata District, making them a prominent local power.

Nagamasa, who was pushing for the unification of Jiangbei, naturally wanted to weaken the powerful clans under his command, so he sent Hori Hidemura and Higuchi Naofabu to their deaths.

With the shogun's imperial edict, the shogunate's mobilization order, and the dispatch from the governor of Kohoku, Hori Hidemura and Higuchi Naofabu reluctantly led more than two thousand people to Gifu to join the battle.

Compared to the reluctance of the two men, Tokugawa Ieyasu was relatively enthusiastic in his arrival. He mainly felt that Nobunaga's forces were numerous, and the Mikawa and Okazaki troops would be very supportive, so he probably wouldn't need to act as the vanguard to storm the gates of Ōkōchi Castle.

Besides, Nobunaga is not stingy. When you come, you will eat Nobunaga, drink Nobunaga, use Nobunaga, and after winning, you can even take something home. A few deaths will not be a loss, so come on.

With 3,000 Okazaki soldiers, Nobunaga now had an army of 75,000 cavalry. For so many men to attack the Kitabatake clan was like a dragon charging in.

After the army regrouped in Gifu, they rested for a night at Ohashi Castle on the Ise Road, where they joined up with the Kuki navy in Tsushima Town on the opposite bank. Kuki Yoshitaka, who had received a large sum of money and food aid from Nobunaga, managed to muster nearly three thousand men, including the oarsmen and boatmen he had temporarily recruited.

As instructed by Nobunaga, the Kuki navy, in coordination with the Saji navy, directly attacked Shima Province and the Minami-Ise-do district, determined to devastate the Kitabatake forces there. This would cause trouble for the Kitabatake army in their rear, forcing them to focus on one area while neglecting another.

Incidentally, they also needed to be on guard against the possible presence of the Kitabatake clan's naval forces in Ise Bay. After Kitada Tomokyo defeated and fled the Kuki clan, he supported Kohama Kagetaka.

Historically, Kohama Kagetaka took the initiative, relying on his Atakebune (a type of ship) and believing he could easily defeat the resurrected Kuki Yoshitaka. However, he was soundly defeated by Kuki Yoshitaka and fled to Suruga, where he sought refuge with Takeda Shingen.

Later, he was incorporated into Tokugawa Ieyasu's army and became the Tokugawa family's ship commander. However, by the time Tokugawa Ieyasu was able to conquer Shima Province and help the Kohama family rise again, Kohama Kagetaka had already died.

Only by living long can anything be possible.

Upon entering Ise, Takigawa Kazumasu, acting as the vanguard, began clearing the way for Nobunaga. He also reported to Nobunaga on the movements of the Kitabatake army for his reference.

Upon learning of the Oda army's invasion, Kitabatake Tomonori and his son Kitabatake Tomofusa assembled an army of 16,000 men, abandoned Kiriyama Palace, and took almost all of their personal troops to Ōkōchi Castle.

Furthermore, numerous troops were stationed in various outlying castles surrounding Ōkōchi Castle, such as Asaka Castle, Ōmiya Castle, and Ichi Castle, where defenses were established.

Compared to the previously wavering Rokkaku army, the Kitabatake army was united and extremely determined in its resistance. Because Kizuki Tomomasa had defected to Oda early on, the surrender faction fled, which indirectly contributed to the unity of the Kitabatake army.

After entering Anonozu, Nobunaga learned of the Kitabatake army's deployment and began to plan his offensive strategy.

As usual, Shichibei was not involved in military strategy, only responsible for the water transport logistics in and around Annozu. Therefore, he did not notice the silence of the Oda retainers in the shogunate.

If Shichibei had participated in the military council, he might have realized that the senior retainers of the Oda clan were indeed not to be underestimated. With Shichibei's guidance, Takigawa Kazumasu was able to guess that Nobunaga intended to place his two sons into the Kitabatake clan. What about the other chief retainers and samurai generals?

Needless to say, others had also secretly guessed this.

Without new imperial favors to receive or rewards to bestow, the diligence in serving the emperor would inevitably diminish. When Nobunaga sought his advice, the senior retainers remained silent.

The people's reasons were also very valid. Okawachi Castle was clearly a formidable fortress, so it was normal that they didn't have a strategy for attacking it at the moment.

In the end, Nobunaga directly assigned tasks: Hideyoshi besieged Asaka Castle, Kazumasu led troops to flank from the rear, and Niwa Nagahide, Ikeda Tsuneoki, and Inaba Yoshimichi split into three groups to prepare for a night raid on Ōkōchi Castle.

Sakuma Nobumori and Shibata Katsuie sought an opportunity to attack Kiriyama Palace to see if the Kitabatake clan's family members were there. If so, they would capture them all and bring them to the gates of the city, forcing the defenders inside to surrender.

In addition, Nobunaga saw Hori Hidemura and Higuchi Naofusa sitting at the end, and waved his hand, asking the two of them to charge at Ohkouchi Castle first to see its condition.

175. Shooting two of Hideyoshi's eggs with an arrow

Hori Hidemura was only fifteen or sixteen years old. In later generations, he would be at most a high school freshman, but in these days, he had already come of age and was carrying a sword, ready to go around killing and beheading people. However, since he was still young, he usually acted on behalf of Higuchi Naofabu in the ranks.

Now that Oda Nobunaga has ordered the Horibu Corps to attack first, Higuchi Naofabu has no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it.

The two men were not Oda retainers, but rather local officials and district commanders who had come to serve in response to the shogunate's call. Judging from Higuchi Naofabu's perspective, he would just go through the motions, charge into battle a couple of times, suffer a hundred or so casualties, and that would be enough to satisfy both his superiors and subordinates. It wouldn't look too bad, and the matter would essentially be over.

In truth, Higuchi Naofabu and Hori Hidemura were not entirely harmonious and loving ruler and vassal. Whether or not one commits an act of overthrowing their superior is not always solely a matter of one person's will.

Just like the young Miyoshi Nagaharu, the lord of Awa Province, whose household affairs were entirely controlled by Shinohara Nagafusa. This led to Nagaharu's mother marrying into the family, and Nagaharu growing older. Ultimately, Nagaharu raised an army and launched a fierce attack on Shinohara Nagafusa's side, killing both Nagafusa and his son.

Now that Hori Hidemura is getting older, it remains to be seen whether the two can maintain harmony or whether some other internal strife will occur.

Naofusa Higuchi, full of scheming, spearheaded the attack on the castle with samurai loyal to the Hori clan. What kind of castle was Ōkōchi Castle? Surrounded by water on two sides and cliffs on two sides, nestled on hillsides, accessible only by a winding path. Inside the castle, eight thousand cavalrymen, including Kitabatake Tomonori and his son Kitabatake Tomonori, held out fiercely, making it difficult to attack and impossible to fall.

Hundreds of people rushed forward, but half of them slid down the slope.

In just a short while, the Hori army, attacked by arrows and cannons from the city walls, suffered nearly two hundred casualties and retreated amidst howls and wailing.

Nobunaga stood far below the castle, not even having properly assessed the castle's firepower, when the Hori army was already retreating. What utterly incompetent! Even if you didn't intend to breach the castle, at least expose all the firing positions on the walls!

At this time, what kind of status did Nobunaga hold? He was the powerful regent of the shogunate. Even the intentions of Azai Nagamasa could be ignored by Nobunaga, let alone those of Hori Hidemura and Higuchi Naofabu.

With your mere two or three thousand people, how can you compare to Nobunaga's force of over seventy thousand?

Nobunaga then ordered the Hori army to attack again without hesitation, making sure to launch a fierce attack so that all the Kitabatake army's firing positions on the castle would be exposed.

Upon receiving the order, Hori Hidemura was filled with bitterness; these were all his trusted samurai who had died. He immediately sent Higuchi Naofabu to plead with Nobunaga to at least exchange them for the remaining soldiers so that they could attack again the next day and rest.

Higuchi Naofabu increasingly felt that Hori Hidemura had grown up, and instead of obeying orders, he commanded the Hori army to launch another attack on Ōkōchi Castle.

After two attacks, Hori's army suffered 200 dead and 300 wounded, and could no longer fight. This reserve force of more than 2,000 men was essentially wiped out.

At this point, Nobunaga acknowledged that Horihidemura had exhausted all his efforts. He had also essentially ascertained the castle's firepower level. After rewarding Horihidemura with 1,000 kiwa of rice and 500 kan of cash, he summoned the Oda generals to discuss a strategy for attacking the castle.

Hori Hidemura, who harbored deep resentment, and Higuchi Naofabu, who had eliminated many of his family's opponents, had contrasting expressions.

Oda's generals, for two reasons—first, they themselves did not want to launch a full-scale attack; and second, they knew that Ōkōchi Castle was indeed formidable. Therefore, they offered various suggestions: first, they should capture all the branch castles to cut off Ōkōchi Castle's reinforcements. Then, they should drive the families and relatives of the defending samurai and foot soldiers into the castle, depleting its food supplies and starving it.

Previously, Shichibei had already bribed all the surplus grain held by the local tyrants in the villages of Minami-Ise, driving these people into the castle. No grain could be transported in with them. Thus, the Kitabatake army, which could have held out for three or even half a year, could only sustain itself for one or two months due to the influx of large numbers of family members.

The core idea is that they don't want to put in the effort or lose lives to attack the city!

Even after witnessing the Hori army's siege, Nobunaga remained unconvinced. While his own retainers might not be putting in the effort, his personal guards, the foot soldiers, and the vassals, would certainly be. After all, these men were desperately trying to earn a place under Nobunaga's command; if they succeeded, they could secure a hereditary fief of 200 koku, which would be their livelihood for life.

So Nobunaga ordered all the troops to start the action according to the strategy of the previous military meeting, while he also deployed tens of thousands of elite soldiers directly under his command to prepare for the siege.

"Is Asaka Castle easy to attack?" Shichibei saw Hidenaga come over to collect gunpowder and felt that the name Hidenaga mentioned sounded familiar.

“It’s difficult, it’s also a mountain castle.” Hidenaga must have noticed the terrain of Asaka Castle.

Now, the main castle, Ōkōchi Castle, is under the siege of Nobunaga's main force. The other branch castles will have to be attacked by the senior retainers of the clan. Not wanting to contribute doesn't mean not contributing at all. Attacking branch castles guarded by a few hundred or a thousand men is enough to show some effort and give Nobunaga an explanation.

After all, having received Nobunaga's orders, they were all shareholders of the Oda clan. Only if the Oda clan, this military and political group, prospered could they continue to receive imperial favor.

"So you're using arquebuses to suppress the city walls?" Although Shichibei was a novice, he had actually seen quite a bit about the Japanese siege tactics of that era.

"Otherwise what?" Xiu Chang was facing his brother-in-law anyway, so he might as well say whatever he wanted. Why should he show off in front of his brother-in-law?

"Pshaw, I don't know anything about this."

"Xiao Liu also said there's no need to go all out to attack the city; let's see if we can negotiate a better strategy."

"Who's guarding the city?"

"The Prime Minister of the Great Palace is auspicious."

"I don't recognize him," Shichibei thought for a moment and concluded that this guy didn't have much historical renown. However, that wasn't necessarily true, because Shichibei noticed that Ota Gyuichi, who was taking notes nearby, nodded.

Congratulations, Oojiro! You might have a chance to be featured in "The Chronicles of Nobunaga".

Look at Wang Lun. He was Li Bai's top patron for quite some time, taking him out to eat, drink, and have fun, which earned him the poem "To Wang Lun." And you, lad, managed to get it to Ota Niuichi's ears in just a few words. How easy is that?

"Oh, right, my brother said he needs a thousand strings of cash." Xiu Chang lowered his voice.

Last year, Hideyoshi attacked Tajima and plundered a sum of silver, which he stored in Shichibei's account. Now that he needs it, he naturally comes to ask Shichibei about the expenses.

"Who are you trying to bribe?" Shichibei asked curiously. He had just mentioned wanting to recruit someone, and now they already had someone to bribe.

"He's negotiating personally; I'll ask him about it later." Hideyoshi nodded slightly, but he wasn't sure which castle commander Hideyoshi had bribed.

"Gold or money?" Shichibei didn't ask any further questions.

If you want gold, Shichibei will send a few men to escort Hideyoshi back to the Asaka Castle position. If you want money, it will cost a thousand kan of copper coins to pull an oxcart.

"Gold, that would be more convenient."

“Then I’ll go with you.” A thousand kan of gold was no small sum, and Shichibei would feel more at ease if he personally handed the gold over to Hideyoshi.