I am practicing in the Nianghua Warring States Period

"? What's going on?"

"Nobuhime has a cousin named Aichi Juami, an illegitimate son, but still a member of the Oda clan. A few days ago, Hirate-sama's disappointing son lost a horse race to him... It's said their relationship is a love-hate relationship. My uncle, Maeda Toshiie, murdered Aichi Juami in the street, and now Nobuhime has ordered him to reflect on his actions at home. It looks like he might not even be able to keep the 300 koku of Arashi Castle and the newly awarded 700 koku of land."

"Okay, that's it." Beidou Xinwei thought for a moment. He had no interest in kicking the crap out of the guy. "Wait until your uncle returns to government service before you attack him! Now... huh. I'm finally free. Mikawa is done, Ise is done—now I can finally attack Mino."

Chapter 222 Mino Surrender Faction

March 3, 1555, Girls' Day.

On March 3rd, the weather was fresh, and the Mino Doryo was attacked. Beidou Xinwei himself, with a thousand Beidou soldiers, swaggered into Daheng City and replaced Shibata Katsuie, who was guarding the city.

On March 4th, upon hearing the news, Saito Yoshitatsu was instantly furious. A general mobilization order was issued for Mino, assembling tens of thousands of Mino troops, with a reserve force of approximately 5,000 men ready for deployment. On March 5th, Saito Yoshitatsu himself led 3,500 pre-assembled troops from Inabayama Castle, heading for Hakuri County to defend the strategically located fortified city.

For the past two years, Saito Yoshitatsu has been building fortresses non-stop, clearly wary of Beidou Xinwei's field combat prowess and his ability to breach ordinary fortified cities. He's simply building high walls and storing up food! All foreign campaigns have been canceled, and even the desire to forage in Hida has faded. In short, Saito Yoshitatsu plans to build a Warring States version of the Maginot Line—perhaps a meager version, but better than nothing!

And when Beidou Xinwei himself led the team here, Saito Yoshitatsu immediately thought it was a signal of war.

For Beidou Xinwei alone, with only a thousand soldiers, the entire Mino Kingdom was in turmoil.

It feels like for him, "Yongliang will not take off its armor, and China will not let go of its saddle."

But the problem is that Beidou Xinwei is not as unlucky as Zhuge Liang, nor is his national strength so weak. He is not like Sima Xuanwang, a loyal minister of the Wei Dynasty, whose family and business are so large that they can't afford to be destroyed by dead ants, nor is his national strength so much stronger than that of the Han Dynasty.

Beidou Xinwei did not expect that its strategy of wearing out the troops would be so effective.

Beidou Xinwei went to Daheng City and sat there for the entire period from March 3rd to March 10th. On March 15th, during his holiday, Saito Yoshitatsu finally realized that Beidou Xinwei might be using a strategy of wearing out the enemy. But he had to accept this conspiracy.

He could only temporarily disband most of the peasant soldiers and send them back to farming, while retaining 3,500 men in Hakuri County to maintain a prolonged standoff with Hokuto Nobuyoshi. However, mobilizing so many soldiers seemed unprofitable. Therefore, Saito Yoshitatsu issued a well-reasoned order: the powerful families, local residents, and retainers surrounding Daiheng Castle would be required to defend themselves.

Simply put, it means setting up security teams, detective teams and the like - and since the host doesn't pay, you have to resolve border conflicts on your own.

In Saito Yoshitatsu's view, this is a practice that saves both money and effort. For him, it is the best way to save national strength, or even the only way.

The West Merion trio: I'm on the morning shift!

------------

At Masune Castle, the home of Inaba Kazutetsu, the three brothers Nishi Mino held a meeting together.

Among them, Ando Morinari's son-in-law, Mr. Takenaka Hanbei, was also fortunate to be present. In fact, given his current generational status, Takenaka Hanbei is not qualified to attend the meeting of these three brothers. Whether from the perspective of strength, generation, or even current status, Takenaka Hanbei is unknown and not even worthy of carrying shoes. The only thing he can show for it is that he has a large territory and his father-in-law is Ando Morinari.

His relationship with Beidou Xinwei seems to be very good!

"Alas... Today's order says that reinforcements from the lord's side won't be arriving for the time being, and they've allocated about 120 koku of grain and fodder." Inaba Itetsu, acting as host, entertained the other three unfortunate souls in the teahouse. "However, we are ordered to provide our own money, food, and troops to resist Daheng City."

"The commander of Daheng City has been replaced by Beidou Xinwei. I won't say much about him; he's a truly exceptional general." Ujiie Buzen stroked his beard, smiled wryly, and shook his head. "With only 3,000 soldiers from our three families, how can we possibly withstand their ferocious army?"

This meeting was quite depressing.

"But no matter what, things have come to this point - our ancestors' legacy is here, so we can't think too much about it." The three brothers from Ximenong still have aspirations.

There is no hatred without reason, nor is there love without reason. Although Saito Yoshitatsu is a piece of shit, in the Saito family, if the three of us stomp our feet, the whole of Mino will tremble.

If I go to the Oda family, will they treat me the same? —— Definitely not? So these three brothers are a bit pretentious.

but……

"Hanbei, you're quite close to Settsu-no-kami." Stroking his beard, Ando-no-kami chatted with his three brothers for a long time, but seeing that his son-in-law hadn't said a word, he felt that this son-in-law was not very sensible. "Why don't you go and have a detailed talk with Settsu-no-kami? We have no intention of making enemies with the Hokuto clan, so why not make peace?"

"The Hokuto family and the Oda family have a close relationship." To be frank, they are family, and the next generation is likely to be of the same bloodline. How could they waste their feelings on you? Takenaka Hanbei thought to himself - you are not willing to fight for Saito Yoshitatsu, a pseudo-woman, but Hokuto Nobuyuki is willing to fight for Oda Nobuhime, a beautiful girl. "The unity of the lord and his retainers is truly a wonderful story. How can a few words from me shake their hearts? Moreover, the Oda clan has been plotting Mino for two generations. How can they stop at swords because of a word from me?"

You'd better seek help from someone else.

"No, no, I'm not asking you to stop at the Oda clan." Seeing his son-in-law wouldn't listen, Ando Mamoru shook his head and said, "Our family has more assets than Western Mino. A few days ago, we contacted Fuwa Mitsuharu. Fuwa Mitsuharu said that his access to Mino has been cut off, and he will soon surrender to the Hokuto clan as a last resort. Fuwa Mitsuharu, remembering our long-standing friendship, is willing to introduce us. You should go and talk to Fuwa Mitsuharu first - make it clear that we don't want to start a war with the Hokuto clan."

"Hanbei, your father-in-law doesn't mean that the Oda and Saito families should not fight, but that we don't want to be enemies with the Hokuto family." Ujiie Bokuzen translated on the side.

Simply put: You fight your own battles, but don't hit us! We can even do the work without putting in any effort! We can just act it out for each other.

"..." Takenaka Hanbei was furious and shook his head slightly, saying, "A loyal minister cannot serve two masters, and a virtuous woman cannot marry two husbands. How could we betray our lord for such a small gain?"

Yes, Takenaka Hanbei is young, and being young means he has less experience. The gentlemen present all lived through the Toki clan's rule over Mino. Are they all disloyal people who "served two masters"?

"Hanbei, you are a student of the sages' teachings. How could you be so ungrateful as to not seek repayment?" Inaba Itetsu was the more cultured of the three brothers in Nishi Mino. "Settsu no Kami has been very kind to you. Without him, your lung disease would never have been cured! Even today, our two families are at loggerheads. But Settsu no Kami has never denied you your precious medicine for a single day? He even personally prepared medicine for you for a year, fearing that you might need it urgently and our two families would be locked in a war. Such thoughtful consideration is unmatched by the sages of ancient times. A gentleman's friendship is as pure as water, nothing could be more like this. Such a great favor, isn't it worth a greeting from you? Just go and say hello to Settsu no Kami."

Hey, what you said!

"...Yes." Takenaka Hanbei suddenly felt that he had taken the moral high ground. "In that case... then I will... go to Daheng City to have a chat."

"Report!—My Lord!"

Suddenly, just when Takenaka Hanbei agreed to go to Daheng City to find Beidou Xinwei.

A young man hurried over and knelt outside the door, not daring to open it. He just knelt outside the tea room from a distance.

"What's going on? Tell me!" Inaba Yitie's face darkened.

"Beidou Xinwei led a thousand soldiers and raided seven of our cities and strongholds in one day! They burned all the food and supplies, but did not kill anyone in our cities or strongholds. They have now led their troops back to Daheng City."

“…Oh no, he wants to fight a protracted war of attrition with us!” Ujiie Bokuzen clapped his hands, looking like he was doomed.

"Hanbei, pack up and go quickly." Ando Mamoru suddenly seemed to remember something and said, "Take your sister-in-law with you! Quick!"

"……Eh?"

"Oh, by the way! You also know my daughter." Inaba Itetsu waved his hand, not wanting to be left behind.

"I... have also adopted a daughter! Wait until I go back and send her to you right away!" Ujiie Bokuzen was so angry when he looked at the other two brothers!

Takenaka Hanbei: "..."

Chapter 223 Digging a pit and building a city

The real historical case was the inspiration for Takenaka Hanbei, and the right time, place and people are all essential.

A retainer led 18 riders to attack Inabayama Castle. To put it bluntly, he tricked the city gates into opening and used his identity to control the Inabayama Castle defense.

First, when Takenaka Hanbei committed this act, Saito Yoshitatsu was already dead, and Saito Tatsuoki was only a teenager and unable to control the situation. The Saito clan was in decline, unable to even control Inabayama Castle—theoretically, it was the young man who lost control of the family and fell prey to the West Mino Three. East Mino was also plagued by theft and theft, and with the overall situation precarious, this black swan event occurred.

Takenaka Hanbei's ability is outstanding, the key is that Saito Tatsuoki, a teenager, cannot control the situation, and the most important thing is that the people of Mino are disturbed.

"Okay, I understand." Beidou Xinwei met with Takenaka Hanbei in Daheng City.

He was taking advantage of the situation to get out of trouble. If he could kill all of Ximeng, he wouldn't have to go through so much trouble. If he couldn't do that, he would need the support of the three Ximeng people.

"Mr. Mitsuharu, this time it is thanks to you that you introduced Hanbei to us." Hokuto Nobuyoshi first said a kind word to Fuwa Mitsuharu who was standing beside him: "Thank you very much."

"Where."

Fuwa Mitsuharu was a handsome man, now nearly thirty years old. He bowed to the "young man" of Hokuto Nobuo without hesitation, feigning deep respect and awe. "It is truly an honor to serve His Highness Settsu no Kami. Furthermore, His Highness and Lord Takenaka are close friends. I am merely doing this as a favor, so how can I dare to express my gratitude?"

"Yeah." As a capable senior leader, Beidou Xinwei smiled at Fuba Mitsuji.

Mitsuharu Fuwa was the most powerful local tyrant near Daiheng Castle. He held a hereditary fief of 10,000 koku in Fuwa County. After the Nishi Mino Three, he was the Saito clan's most influential official. Some lesser-known historical texts refer to him and the other three legitimate brothers as the "Nishi Mino Four," a subtle reflection of his influence. In later Saito clan documents, his name frequently appears alongside the signatures of the three legitimate brothers, demonstrating his growing status during the clan's later years.

To put it simply: without these four brothers, it would not have been easy for the Saito family to perish so quickly.

"I look forward to your continued service to Lord Xinji." Beidou Xinwei personally walked over and patted the shoulder of the man who was ten years older than him, with the expectation of a superior to his subordinate.

"Haha!!!" Mitsuharu Fuwa was sincerely convinced - whether he was truly convinced or not was unknown, but he was acting like a grandson very well anyway.

"As for Hanbei." Stepping down from his main seat, Beidou Xinwei sat before Takenaka Hanbei. He glanced around and said, "I know why you came—but seeing you're feeling better is better than anything else."

"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. Without your care, I would not have recovered."

"Yes, yes, no need to be so polite." Beidou Xinwei was also showing off his acting skills to the talented, showing the appearance of a very experienced actor: "You and I hit it off right away, we are brothers!"

If you affect my interests, then I will not have a brother like you.

"Then I have received the sincerity of the three people from Ximino." Beidou Xinwei looked at the three girls kneeling beside him.

Two of them are average looking, that is, just average looking; the other one is pretty, you could say she's an average girl. But unfortunately, neither of them has much of a face value.

Because two were the biological children of Andō Morishu and Inaba Iktetsu, there was no other possibility of variation except for beauty derived from maternal genes. The other had good looks because she was adopted by Ujiie Bokuzen on the spot, carefully selected from among the daughters of his retainers. If nothing unexpected had happened, she would have become Ujiie Bokuzen's concubine, but now the concubine had become a daughter. At the age of fourteen, she was sent to Hokuto Nobuyoshi.

"It's just a war between two families. You can see I don't want to fight the three princes." Beidou Xinwei sighed, feigning helplessness. "But once you're in the martial arts world, you can't help yourself. If I don't take some action, wouldn't it just prove that I have a personal relationship with you princes? When I sent out troops the day before yesterday, I just stopped at the various fortresses. I hope you princes understand my earnest intentions."

No.

It's just a strategy to tire out the troops. If you don't surrender, I will definitely kill you.

"Yes." Takenaka Hanbei smiled inwardly, thinking, 'You can't control your own destiny when you are in the Jianghu? If you don't stab us, will the knife in your hand automatically stab yourself?' But what they said is true. In the chaotic Warring States period, everyone has a share of the land. If your Saito family can steal the Toki family, then naturally they can attack you. Apart from anything else, the Ashikaga shogunate was still seized from others. Ordinary people farmed the land, and suddenly a samurai came and said that they had to pay taxes so much that they couldn't eat enough. Why is this so?

"Your Highnesses have repeatedly asked me to express my gratitude for your generosity and righteousness. You showed mercy during the battle, and they promised to remember this." Takenaka Hanbei responded fluently, not wanting to speak up for his father-in-law individually. He simply wanted to finish his work quickly. "So, I hope to meet Your Highness at the appropriate time."

"Yeah." Beidou Xinwei glanced at the three girls beside him, and to be honest... he was not interested.

Cultivating a loved one is difficult, both mentally and physically—Minamoto no Raikou was the only one who managed to survive a forced thrust like that. The others would have to prepare for expansion for a long, long time. Ah, this damned enhanced body.

"These three, stay at my house now. I will send them to Qingzhou City." However, you can't refuse what they send you! There are those who have not been seen for thirty-six years! "Your Highnesses are so easy to talk to, so I, Beidou Xinwei, can't be too ungrateful. How about this, Hanbei, you go back and tell them that I, Beidou Xinwei, am willing to have a heart-to-heart talk with your Highnesses - the strategy near Daheng City will come to an end for now, and I will go somewhere else to fight against the Saito family, how about it?"

"Thank you, Your Highness."

Everyone has witnessed Beidou Xinwei's aggressiveness. His power continues to rise, reaching a point where he can rival the "Number One" and "Most Powerful in the World" figures like Uesugi Kenshin and Takeda Shingen. However, no one has bestowed upon him a title resounding throughout the Warring States Period of Area 11, and it's unclear if any have been contemplated.

And no one wants to see it on themselves.

With Xiang Yu standing in front of you, who wouldn’t be scared?

"I just don't know what Your Highness will do next...ah, I spoke out of turn." Takenaka Hanbei wanted to ask more, but suddenly realized that if he asked about the other party's strategic movements, how could the other party possibly answer?

"Hanbei is a trustworthy man, so I guess it's okay to tell him." Beidou Xinwei suddenly thought that having a few hostages with him was good news. He glanced at the three beautiful girls kneeling beside him, along with Fuwa Mitsuharu. He smiled and said to Hanbei, "I plan to build a fortress in Sunomata and use it as a base to attack Higashimino! Sunomata is a place we can attack or defend. What do you think of this place?"

"...Your Highness is truly a man of great talent."

Beidou Xinwei, a time traveler, finally heard these panacea words!

After returning, Takenaka Hanbei was indeed a trustworthy person and did not say a word.

The three beautiful girls kneeling on the sidelines, plus Mitsuharu Fuwa, had already sold this news for a good price.

So when Beidou Xinweidao Mo Mata went to inspect, it turned out to be just as expected - the locals were already prepared.

When Takenaka Hanbei returns, he will have mud stuck to his pants - if not the Rice Field Party, he will be the Rice Field Party!

Chapter 224 Traitors, scabs, and opportunists who sneaked into the Saito family

Beidou Xinwei came for an on-site inspection and found that this was indeed a bit tricky.

The difficulty is probably equivalent to the major nomadic forces in all dynasties thinking about how to survive the freezing period of the Yellow River - there is thinking, but not so much.

It's basically a "big brick flying" story - this kind of small tactical-level combat, basically you can rush through it by just rushing in. But rushing in successfully is one thing - our goal is to escort our units to the designated location and protect the construction workers there to complete the construction objectives.

The enemy's goal is much simpler - they don't need to defeat Beidou Xinwei's troops, they just need to disperse the construction workers.

Setting off a fire, setting off fireworks for a night, or something like that would generally solve any construction problems. After all, the people building the city were inevitably workers, and workers lacked the fighting spirit of samurai. And with no construction corps in those days, this had little direct bearing on combat effectiveness—once they arrived, they were caught in the vast sea of ​​guerrilla warfare waged by the people of Mino.

So!

How to solve the problem of guerrilla warfare among the people?

——Looking for scabs.

As we all know, there are many examples of labor scabs becoming leaders and then surrendering to the enemy after the masses have been incited.

How to find scabs?

Of course, we have to wait for the scabs to come to us.

April 1555, 4, April Fools’ Day.

Beidou Xinwei met someone in his own teahouse in Gunye City.

The man was dark-skinned, with a curly beard and a 1.6-meter-tall frame. Kneeling beside him were a number of people, men and women, young and old. Among them was a woman with gray hair, kneeling beside the man. She appeared to be a relative.

"Greetings, Your Highness, Hokuto Settsu-no-kami. It is truly an honor to receive your summons! —My mother, my wife, my son, and I are all alive thanks to your kindness! I will never forget it!"

The person kneeling on the ground is called Hosuka Koroku Masakatsu.

Members of the Mino Mafia. The war between Mino and Owari, coupled with various oppressive taxes and levies, led many farmers to abandon their land and abandon serfdom, fleeing to the mountains where they found a more comfortable life than serfdom. These groups grew in number, and wherever there were people, there was a yakuza. The no-man's-land quickly became a hotbed for yakuza, creating scenes of blood and violence that were completely unseen in traditional Taiga dramas. Then, one man unified the Mino yakuza.

It was Masakatsu Hosuka who was standing before him.

Even though he walks around like a bully, even people in the white world don't dare to mess with this unscrupulous Mino mafia. However, there are obvious scars and even tattoos on his arms. In Japanese eyes, he is definitely a burly and ferocious person.

Kneeling down in front of Beidou Xinwei is definitely servile.

In the face of the underworld, the underworld society, they were nothing more than scum. Unfortunately, the lifelong warrior Masakatsu Hosuka discovered that he had killed fewer people in his lifetime than Beidou Xinwei had casually killed in a single battle. And let alone the quality of the kills—killing an unarmed man was simply not on the same level as killing a fully armed, seasoned samurai general.

"Well, seeing you recover makes me very happy—" Beidou Xinwei held a fan in his hand, a satisfied smile on his face: "When my wife Kikyo told me about you, I was quite puzzled. I didn't expect you to come to Qingzhou City. Very good, at least you didn't cause trouble in my territory. I also have to thank the leader of the Hosuka clan."

"Your Highness, what are you saying? It's simply... embarrassing to me." He unconsciously used the term "villain", and there were even tears of grievance and emotion in his eyes. It was unknown whether he was a good actor or he was really wronged.