Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

The army camp was established, and preparations for the siege began.

Similarly, the Mori soldiers were unaware that their daimyo had surrendered, and the Oda soldiers were also unaware that Oda Nobukatsu had even begun drawing lines on the map.

So bamboo and timber were felled, and layers of barricades and horse fences were erected. Bamboo bundles and wooden shields were distributed to various parts of the army. Soldiers speaking various dialects gazed at the tall watchtowers erected on the sesame plateau. Large flags indicating advance, retreat, and assembly were planted on the watchtowers, and large lanterns were lit at night for illumination.

Shichibei is a classic example of someone who's never actually done anything but has seen things happen. He was constantly being led around by Nobunaga, and even followed Hideyoshi in killing people twice. While his skills weren't exactly top-notch, he was certainly capable of putting on a show.

You're asking about Nobuo? Nobuo's skill level isn't necessarily much better than Shichibei's. Besides, he's never commanded an army of tens of thousands, while Shichibei has participated in numerous campaigns, with tens of thousands of troops moving about as if it were nothing new.

"What's the story inside the castle?" Shichibei wasn't in charge of the peace talks; previously, these talks were handled by Nobunaga Nobutada and Mori Terumoto, Yoshikawa Motoharu, and Kobayakawa Takakage. Now that he was here, he naturally had to ask.

"First and foremost, there is one matter: the monk from within the city must be brought out. —Lin Zuodu, Governor"

"He has passed away." Master Mu Shi first announced the news.

"Oh..." Whether it was Shichibei, Oda Nobuo, or anyone else, they all sighed upon hearing this news.

Hayashi Hideyoshi truly died just before the dawn of victory. With the imminent surrender of Koriyama Castle, given the Hayashi family's past connections with the Oda clan, they would surely be granted half a province. Now that this long-established patriarch has passed away, Hayashi Ichikichi is a mere inexperienced and unreliable man; Nobunaga would be more than granting him 30,000 to 50,000 koku at most.

If Lin Tongsheng were still alive, he would probably be a senior military officer or legion commander by now. Shichibei fought alongside Lin Tongsheng back then; he was indeed a formidable figure. It's a pity he's gone.

"However, Hatakeyama Kingo-den is still within the city, which allows for flexibility and leaves plenty of room for maneuver."

"Him?" Shichibei scratched his head. This adopted son of his was having a good time in Koriyama Castle.

"So elegant and refined, such a magnanimous person." Even though Master Mu Shi had become a monk and entered the old aristocratic circle, he still highly admired certain things.

"That's a good thing, actually." He thought Hatakeyama Nobutaka was in the best of luck.

He happily skipped into Junshan City to become a hostage.

No one knows what kind of spell Oda Nobuo cast on him, nor what kind of romantic comedy he played on Mori Terumoto. Judging from his appearance, he seems to be having a great time and enjoying himself in Koriyama Castle.

"Can the terms that Izumo Province must relinquish be discussed separately from those within the city?" Oda Nobuo asked, having heard that his good younger brother, Hatakeyama Nobutaka, was doing quite well.

The original plan was to divide Izumo in two, with the Yoshikawa family receiving less than 200,000 koku of land from both western Izumo and northern Biku.

However, there is a problem: Gassan-Toda Castle is located in Higashi-Izumo. Not long ago, when Amago re-established his army and visited Nobunaga, he was quite satisfied with receiving Higashi-Izumo and Hōki after Nobunaga's promise. The 200,000 koku of land was a bit lacking, but Gassan-Toda Castle and the former territories of Amago's Shingu faction had returned, which was acceptable.

The Yoshikawa family now felt that after relocating their main city and leaving Gassan-Toda Castle, they no longer had a decent castle to live in.

It should be known that Gassan-Toda Castle was the main castle of the Yin-Yang Ichi-no-gami family. When the Amago family was at its peak, it was said to have a capacity of one million koku. Its main castle was a large city that could accommodate more than 20,000 people, and it was magnificent and grand.

It's a little heartbreaking to give up such a city.

Nobunaga changed his mind because he wanted to separate the original groups into one place.

The two provinces of Mori were separated. Therefore, the terms of the negotiation changed again: the Yoshikawa family would have Iwami and Oki provinces, the Kobayakawa family would have Bingo province, and the Mori family would have Aki province.

However, Nobunaga issued a red seal certificate, after which Kobayakawa was granted a fief of 300,000 koku in Kyushu, while the Mori main family was granted an additional fief of Bingo Province.

Between Terumoto Mori and Motoharu Yoshikawa, Katsuhisa Amago was firmly inserted. Takakage Kobayakawa also had to be removed, but the gains for all three families were all higher than before.

In other words, Nobunaga promised to give the Yoshikawa family 150,000 koku of real property, plus a silver mine in Iwami; to give Mori Terumoto 490,000 koku to Aki and Bingo provinces, and to give Kobayakawa Takakage 300,000 koku to Higo or Chikugo province.

The city will still be opened, but the terms need to be adjusted.

Historically, Hideyoshi consistently employed a strategy of division and weakening towards powerful daimyo like the Mori and Shimazu clans. Even Ankokuji Ekei of the Mori family received a fief of 60,000 koku and was later transferred to Iyo.

Kobayakawa was even transferred to Chikuzen. If Hideyoshi had been able to operate for a few more years, the Yoshikawa family would definitely have been taken away from Izumo and Iwami.

At least the terms Nobunaga offered were acceptable, better than before.

A little more. Mori Terumoto would most likely accept that, but negotiations are still necessary. As mentioned before, they've already captured Ota Motonsuna, haven't they? With changes in territory, there will also be changes in military service.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the vanguard for the conquest of Kyushu will be comprised of the Mori, Yoshikawa, and Kobayakawa families.

At that time, Hideyoshi Hashiba, Nagayoshi Kawamura, and Nobuo Oda will be in charge of the escort, while the Shikoku troops will serve as patrol troops, naval forces, and garrison troops along key transportation routes.

The tough, fierce, and arduous battles will definitely come from the Mori clan. This can be considered a pledge of allegiance; since they have surrendered to Oda Nobunaga, they must fight to the death and pay a blood tax.

Otherwise, Nobunaga would doubt your loyalty, wondering if your surrender was genuine or feigned.

"No decision has been made within the city." Master Mokushi was mainly a diplomatic monk, a messenger. The ones who could make the decisions were obviously Oda Nobuo and Hashiba Hideyoshi. Shichibei was only able to get a piece of the action.

"There's no rush in these two or three days." Shichibei noticed that Oda Nobuo seemed eager to urge him, so he held back for the time being.

"Where is the Mori clan's diplomatic monk?" Oda Nobukatsu was truly agitated. He desperately wanted to be the crown prince, desperately wanted to be the legitimate heir, and to pacify the Mori clan.

The hat will fall onto his head.

"Waiting outside the tent, this is Ankokuji Huiqiong."

"Please come in."

Ankokuji Ekei was an old acquaintance. Shichibei had not only met him, but for a time he was also temporarily held in Yucho by Shichibei as a double hostage of Ashikaga Yoshiaki and Mori Terumoto.

As a descendant of the Takeda clan of Aki, Ankokuji Ekei, born into a prestigious family, used her good looks and eloquence to make waves on the Mori clan's public stage.

Before leaving the castle, they conveyed the Mori clan's reaction to Oda Nobunaga's new terms. Or rather, their opinions, since the change in terms meant that the previously agreed-upon distribution of profits within their clan would need to be adjusted.

First, there was the Mori main family, who demanded that a woman from the Mori clan be chosen as Oda Nobukatsu's principal wife. In other words, Mori Terumoto wanted to be Oda Nobukatsu's father-in-law.

Their intentions are self-evident. They failed to board Oda Nobutada's ship, so they'll try to board Oda Nobuo's. Since Oda Nobuo has already divorced Kitabatake Yukihime, she'll most likely find a husband to carry on the prestigious Kitabatake family name of the Murakami Genji.

Previously, Shichibei had suggested to Nobunaga that Oda Nobukatsu should marry him.

She's Tokugawa Ieyasu's daughter, Tokuhime. The marriage isn't finalized yet, and Mori Terumoto doesn't know about it either; he's definitely considering giving it a shot.

Mori Terumoto himself couldn't give birth, so there was nothing that could be done; it was his own fault for being useless. But his grandfather was truly remarkable; he had a whole bunch of sons and daughters, and there was always a suitable daughter of the clan he could adopt and marry as his legitimate daughter to Nobuo.

Secondly, regarding the Yoshikawa clan, Yoshikawa Motoharu was willing to give Yoshikawa Tsuneyoshi (Yoshikawa Hiroie), who had previously been beaten by Hideyoshi and barely escaped with his life, to Nobukatsu as a close attendant. He also hoped that Yoshikawa Tsuneyoshi would marry the daughter of a prominent retainer of the Oda clan.

To put it bluntly, it means giving up a son to enter Oda's system, even if he doesn't even call himself Yoshikawa anymore, he can become the adopted son of any family.

This perfectly aligns with the Mori family's habit of casting a wide net and sending sons everywhere. Even if the main family ultimately falls, there are always branch families. As long as someone survives, the family name can endure.

Who knows, in the future, Yoshikawa Tsuneyoshi might bring great honor to the Mori family by serving as a close attendant to Oda Nobuo.

The last point is about Kobayakawa Takakage. He himself had no children. As a 48-year-old Sengoku samurai, it's perfectly normal for him to die tomorrow at that age.

He might have had some other ideas before, but now his thoughts have all shifted to one request: that Oda Nobunaga's "man of the house" be sent to the Kobayakawa family.

Succession!

It was made clear that he wanted any of Oda Nobunaga's biological sons. Furthermore, a daughter from the same clan as the Kobayakawa family could be found for him in marriage.

Kobayakawa Hidekazu was able to be adopted into the Kobayakawa family because his mother was Nomi Oki, and the Nomi clan was a collateral branch of the Kobayakawa clan. He had some blood of the legitimate Kobayakawa family in his veins, which gave him some leverage in his adoption.

Blood ties are a matter for later; just keeping the Kobayakawa clan from being destroyed is a good thing. If they could get Oda Nobunaga's biological son to inherit the family, the Kobayakawa clan would surely be safe and sound.

"Wow." Shichibei was slightly surprised. The Mori family was certainly bold enough to think and say such things.

Although he doesn't descend the mountain when it comes to big things, he's truly "brave and resourceful" when it comes to planning ahead. It's because he understands that the world now belongs to Oda, so he's determined to cling to Oda's coattails and get on board as soon as possible.

If one cannot become the new ruler of the world, one can still lie low and wait for an opportunity. Who knows, if the world changes, one might raise an army again?

"Please sit down, Monk Huiqiong." Fortunately, Xinxiong did not readily agree to the many conditions brought by Huiqiong of Anguo Temple, but instead gave perfunctory replies and asked the monk to sit down first.

Even if we don't send a messenger to Kyoto, let's at least ask Oda Nobunaga what he thinks. We should at least have a private discussion with Hashiba Hideyoshi and Kawamura Nagayoshi at the front lines to confirm the situation.

I heard the other day that Yamanouchi Takamichi, the lord of Koyama Castle, has surrendered in white robes, and soon Hideyoshi's 30,000-strong army will join the siege of Yoshida-Koriyama Castle.

Peace negotiations are never settled in a single day; it will take Hideyoshi at most two or three days to arrive. We should meet with Hideyoshi then to get a better understanding of his intentions.

Regarding the other conditions, send him by fast ship to Kyoto-Azuchi and inquire about Nobunaga's attitude. Even if Nobunaga grants Nobukatsu the authority to act expediently, he still intends to send his younger brother to the Kobayakawa family.

Well, from Nobunaga's perspective, finding a father with two or three hundred thousand taels of silver for his next son would be great. But for Oda Nobukatsu, his brothers were all strong and well-equipped, and they also had a group of loyal followers.

Before he ascended the throne, he always found it an eyesore.

539. Both women were married to the king.

The two sides held several rounds of talks. Since Oda Nobunaga in the capital had not yet sent back a clear reply, the main focus of the negotiations was on military service.

Both the Yoshikawa and Kobayakawa clans were required to maintain an army of 8,000 men, while the Mori main clan was required to maintain a force of 12,000 men. However, this was for full military service, and only two-thirds or three-quarters of the troops were normally conscripted.

All of these need to be clearly written in the pledge, specifying that for this territory, which yields 10,000 koku, 400 men will be needed. For that territory, which also yields 10,000 koku, only 200 men are needed. This applies to each county and village, and in total, the three Mori families will be able to muster an army.

Everyone knew perfectly well that while the military conscription list listed 28,000 men, the actual number mobilized was only slightly over 20,000, which was just enough for landings in Chikuzen or Buzen in northern Kyushu. This was more than sufficient as an advance force; any more landing sites would be insufficient.

Let the Mori army charge in to test the waters. If they succeed, the follow-up troops will charge in; if they fail, it will be the Mori family who die. Perfect.

The agreement was quickly reached, and the envoy from Kyoto boarded a fast boat and sped from Sakai to the Ota River, then rode on horseback to report the news and come to pay his respects to Oda Nobuo.

.

Nobunaga has already decided to give his eleven-year-old sixth son (or seventh son, according to another account) Ōtōmaru to Kobayakawa Takakage, and also requires Kobayakawa Takakage to adopt a member of the Mōri clan, marry her immediately, and have her come of age. Nobunaga has already chosen a name for her.

Nobuhei Kobayakawa.

As for the daughter of a senior retainer of the Oda clan that Yoshikawa Tsuneyoshi needed, Nobunaga directly named Niwa Nagahide's daughter as Oda Nobukatsu's adopted daughter and betrothed her to Yoshikawa Tsuneyoshi.

The marriage between Mori Terumoto's adopted daughter and Oda Nobuo required Mori Terumoto, Yoshikawa Motoharu, and Kobayakawa Takakage to travel to Kyoto to pay their respects to Oda Nobunaga. The wedding ceremony, with the daughter carried in a beautiful manner, was held at the Nijō Palace or the Right General's Residence in Kyoto.

To put it bluntly, if you want to become an in-law of the Oda clan, you have to physically go to Kyoto and kowtow to Nobunaga. It's like how Hideyoshi first married his sister Asahi to Tokugawa Ieyasu, and then soon after sent his elderly mother, Onaka, to Hamamatsu. The goal was to exchange one for one, to get Tokugawa Ieyasu to come to Kyoto and kowtow to him.

Once one comes to pay homage in person and receives the certificate of peace, the fundamental relationship between ruler and subject is firmly established. It cannot be changed unless there is a rebellion.

Peace talks successful!

Mori Terumoto announced the surrender of the castle, and the price of rice reached as high as two million koku. The Mori clan, a powerful daimyo from western Japan, surrendered under the "fierce attack" of Oda's army of 120,000 men, who advanced by land and sea.

As agreed, the Mori clan split into three: the Mori main family retained Aki Province, the Yoshikawa family retained Iwami and Oki Provinces, and the Kobayakawa family retained Bingo Province.

The territories of Izumo, Suo, Nagato, Hakugi, Bitchu, Buzen, and Iyo were all confiscated and presented to the Oda clan.

Amago Katsuhisa was immediately granted the title of Daimyo of Izumo-seibaki with 300,000 koku of rice, returning to his former territory in glory and creating a miracle. He kowtowed repeatedly to Oda Nobukatsu and Hashiba Hideyoshi, shedding blood, sweat, and tears, and after more than ten years of fighting, he finally revived the Amago clan.

However, after Yoshida-Koriyama Castle was opened to the public, Amago Yoshihisa felt somewhat "helpless" upon learning of the Amago clan's resurgence. He was the head of the main branch of the Amago clan and the current patriarch of the Amago family. But the resurgence of the Amago clan, a powerful feudal lord, had nothing to do with him.

As a minor incident, at the urging of Mori Terumoto, Amago Yoshihisa changed his family name to Sasaki, becoming Sasaki Yoshihisa. Thus, the direct line of the Amago clan shifted to Amago Katsuhisa. Amago Katsuhisa became the head of the Amago clan.

Be the governor of the house.

He also considered marrying his daughter to Amago Katsuhisa. The two were cousins, with Amago Yoshihisa as the elder and Amago Katsuhisa as the younger. It was not uncommon for a younger cousin to marry his elder cousin's daughter during Japan's Sengoku period. Moreover, this would mean that Amago Katsuhisa would become Amago Yoshihisa's adopted son-in-law and legitimately inherit the title of head of the family.

Unfortunately, not only was Amago Katsuhisa unhappy, but even Oda Nobukatsu expressed his disapproval. The Oda clan had provided the Amago clan with financial support for so many years, amounting to tens of thousands of kan (a unit of currency), and now they were giving a share to Amago Yoshihisa, a member of the surrender faction?

Let's stop here. Sasaki Yoshihisa should continue serving Mori Terumoto. Now, back to Amago Katsuhisa. Yamauchi Takamichi, whom he subdued the other day, had all his territories confiscated, but fortunately, he was spared death. The Amago family took over his territory and took him to Izumo and the former territories of Saihaku.

As expected, Amago Katsuhisa married Shichibei's daughter, naturally as Oda Nobukatsu's adopted daughter. After all, Nobunaga had gathered more than twenty noblewomen of the Oda clan for Oda Nobukatsu, and it would be a waste if Nobukatsu didn't use these daughters to win over his followers.

The Oda army gradually dispersed, occupying and reorganizing the newly surrendered territories. Meanwhile, the Mori army split into three and began to move to various territories.

Furthermore, Oda Nobunaga ordered the abandonment of Yoshida-Koriyama Castle. It's likely someone secretly reported to Nobunaga, describing the castle's impregnability. What was the purpose of building such a fortified mountain castle in those days?

Not only Yoshida-Koriyama Castle will be abandoned, but all the surrounding outlying castles will also need to be demolished. As for ordinary temples, all the moats will be filled in, and the walls will be reduced to less than 1.5 meters.