Chapter 167: The Vanguard
Yuan Ye encountered no obstacles on his way through Owari and arrived at the outskirts of Kiyosu Castle by late morning on the second day. His status was different now; he was a legitimate son-in-law of the Oda Danjō no Chū family and a publicly declared ally. Without even needing to inform Oda Nobunaga, he received a high-level reception. The magistrates of the Oda Danjō no Chū family directly settled him and his army in a manor, saving them the trouble of setting up camp themselves, and immediately sent a batch of provisions.
Yuan Ye didn’t need to manage the army’s encampment. The Wanjin Army now had a relatively mature command system and operational procedures. Such trivial matters were naturally handled by officers of various ranks according to the procedures. He gazed at Kiyosu Castle, observing the changes over the past year. Oda Nobunaga, in this era, was quite adept at managing the economy. Currently, the castle town of Kiyosu, which had been burned twice, had regained its vitality and seemed to have expanded in scale.
Perhaps with Oda Nobunaga’s growing strength, the “Rakuza Rakuchi” policy was being implemented more effectively. Commerce and industry in Owari were developing rapidly, but his relationship with temple families and wealthy merchants must have worsened.
At least the Aragiko Kannon Temple faction must have grown to detest him, likely wishing for his swift demise.
Yuan Ye watched Kiyosu Castle from afar for a while, secretly sighing that Oda Nobunaga hadn’t been idle and had surely amassed a lot of wealth this year. He felt a pang of jealousy for Nobunaga’s large population, and just as he was about to turn away to rest, he suddenly saw a Horo cavalry unit rapidly approaching the manor, flying the “Eiraku Tsuho flag.”
This flag was generally only used by Oda Nobunaga himself. Other units traveling alone mostly still used the “Mokkou-gomai flag.” Yuan Ye raised an eyebrow and called a few of his trusted men to the manor entrance to greet the guests.
When the cavalry entered the manor, it was indeed Oda Nobunaga himself. He was wearing the “Mikazuki Gusoku” and hawk feather helmet from the bride price Yuan Ye had sent, with a crimson Haori over it, looking as flamboyant and overbearing as ever.
After not seeing him for a year, he had grown a short beard and appeared much more mature. He reined in his horse in front of Yuan Ye, looking down at him from his saddle. He seemed displeased, but he tapped his horsewhip without saying anything harsh, dismounted, and asked indifferently, “Is Aken well?”
“Everything is well,” Yuan Ye replied. He reached back to take a letter from A Qing, then handed it to Oda Nobunaga. “This is her family letter for Your Highness.”
“Hmm…” Oda Nobunaga responded vaguely, his expression softening slightly. After tearing it open and glancing at it, he handed it to Ikeda Tsuneoki and strode inside. “It’s lunchtime, have lunch here!”
The latter half of the sentence was not directed at Yuan Ye. As soon as he finished speaking, Ikeda Tsuneoki began directing other attendant vassals to unload things from the horses, and called upon the village head and magistrates of the manor to help prepare the midday feast.
Soon, Oda Nobunaga and Yuan Ye were seated in a large room, each with a low table before them, several dishes, and a pot of wine. Ikeda Tsuneoki had also specially prepared a pot of excellent tea soup for Yuan Ye, and his smile was very gentle.
This was the first time Yuan Ye and Oda Nobunaga had sat together in a year.
Yuan Ye was prepared to hear him bring up old grievances and discuss why he had established his own domain, but Oda Nobunaga didn’t mention it. He simply raised his wine cup, took a sip, stared at Yuan Ye for a moment, and said in the tone of an elder brother-in-law, “You fellow, you must treat Aken well!”
Yuan Ye didn’t mind his tone and had no objections. That’s how elder brothers-in-law are. Besides, Inu-hime was a Soft Bun, and he wouldn’t bully a Soft Bun; there was no fun in that.
Seeing Yuan Ye’s compliance, Oda Nobunaga’s expression softened further, as if the previous estrangement had largely dissipated.
He raised his wine cup and took another sip, then said, “It’s very good that you could come so quickly!”
“Your Highness is too kind. I promised to aid each other, so of course, I had to come early.” Yuan Ye didn’t want to chat about family matters. He took a sip of tea soup to accompany him and began to discuss business, asking with concern, “How are Your Highness’s preparations? When do you plan to convene the military council?”
Oda Nobunaga’s expression immediately soured slightly again. His emergency mobilization was not going smoothly. The local lords were afraid to provoke him now and would obey his orders, but there was no way to talk about how quickly they would act. There were always difficulties and problems. Yuan Ye, his ally, had arrived swiftly, while most of those lords were still on their way!
However, family shame should not be aired publicly. He said indifferently, “I still need a few days. You don’t need to attend the military council; depart in advance and cross the Kiso River first!”
This was to have the Wanjin Army act as the vanguard, opening a path for his main force in advance （ If anyone dared to obstruct them ）. And this was his original plan. After all, the Wanjin Army only had four to five hundred men, not enough to form a pincer with him; they were perfect as the vanguard. His followers, who could directly confront the Imagawa family, were trustworthy in combat.
However, after he finished speaking, he was lightly tugged by Ikeda Tsuneoki from behind and only then realized that Yuan Ye was now an ally, even if a relatively weaker one. Speaking in such a commanding tone was not quite appropriate. He coughed dryly and added, “What do you think?”
Yuan Ye had no objections. The Saito father and son were in conflict, and the border between Mino and Owari was likely in turmoil. It was unlikely that anyone would be on guard. Even if he encountered a Mino local lord who offered strong resistance, he wasn’t foolish enough to charge headfirst. He could completely wait for Oda Nobunaga to bring his main force to catch up.
At worst, he would be mocked a few times. He didn’t care about his reputation, so it was inconsequential.
“No problem, I’ll depart shortly.” Yuan Ye nodded and agreed immediately, but then asked, “But what about the situation in Mino… how is it now?”
He had intended to ask if there were any changes, but it was inconvenient, so he changed his wording. Oda Nobunaga immediately had Ikeda Tsuneoki lay out a map and informed him of the latest situation. Saito Dosan had committed many misdeeds in the past, and now the entire Mino province opposed him. He couldn’t hold his ground around Kameyama Castle and was moving south （ fleeing ）, attempting to rendezvous with Oda Nobunaga as soon as possible.
Yuan Ye looked at the simple sketch map of the era for a while, estimated Saito Dosan’s approximate location, and discussed marching routes with Oda Nobunaga for a while longer. He then borrowed some horses, mules, and miscellaneous soldiers and grooms, thus completing a rudimentary military council. The main point was that Saito Dosan was being pursued by his son and facing setbacks everywhere, with no local lord welcoming his stay. It was difficult to say where Saito Dosan would be or what his situation would be when they arrived in Mino, so they could only adapt to circumstances.
After the military council, Oda Nobunaga was very satisfied to see Yuan Ye’s cooperation. He felt that even if Yuan Ye had fled to the Chita Peninsula to establish his own domain, he would be more reliable than the local lords around him. If Yuan Ye, his ally, had been hesitant or insisted on acting together, he would have had difficulty saying anything. A rescue is like putting out a fire; having a strong force as a pivot point as early as possible was always good.
Yuan Ye’s current behavior was excellent, and the estrangement in his heart lessened considerably.
He planned to reduce some taxes for Yuan Ye later （ the ship tax at Atsuta Port, as Yuan Ye was currently avoiding a financial deficit by selling goods at Atsuta Port and selling saltpeter to the Oda family ） as a reward. At the same time, he began to reveal some of his true intentions and pointed to Ogaki Castle on the map, saying meaningfully, “When you reach Mino, pay more attention to this area!”
Yuan Ye’s gaze shifted to Ogaki Castle. After a moment of thought, he was not surprised.
Mino Province belonged to the Tōsandō and had many large mountains. The southern part of Mino and the area directly north of Owari formed a shape like the character “eight” (eight), with mountain ranges gradually opening on both sides. Ogaki Castle blocked the top of this “eight,” making it a crucial city controlling southern Mino and connecting to northern Mino. Whoever could capture Ogaki Castle would essentially control the northern end of the Nōbi Plain and a significant stretch of the Nagara River and Kiso River channels, making it a strategically vital location. In the future, during the Battle of Sekigahara, the decisive battle between the Eastern and Western armies for control of the world, Ogaki Castle would be the main stronghold of the Western Army.
Looking at it now, Oda Nobunaga’s going to fulfill his alliance to save Saito Dosan was one aspect. Another was to use this opportunity to enter Mino, at least to emulate his father, “Tiger of Owari” Oda Nobuhide, and seize Ogaki Castle, thereby expanding his influence into southern Mino. Oda Nobuhide had occupied Ogaki Castle for a period, but when he attempted to push further north to besiege Inabayama Castle, he failed to take it after several assaults. As he was withdrawing, Saito Dosan launched a counterattack, and he retreated all the way back to Owari, losing Ogaki Castle again.
Yuan Ye nodded and accepted this task, feeling it was reasonable.
This was the Warring States period. Even allies couldn’t get a free lunch; all actions were pragmatic. The Saito father and son had just started their internal conflict, and while the son-in-law went to mediate, he was already preparing to seize some assets.
…
Oda Nobunaga was coveting his father-in-law’s territory, and Yuan Ye was coveting his brother-in-law’s father-in-law’s population. He was very proactive. Seeing that the sky was still bright, he had no intention of staying overnight in Kiyosu Castle and planned to rush to Mino, find a location to transport population back to Owari, and then raid some nearby Mino local lords.
He had put a lot of effort into the Wanjin Army. Even without military experience, they were basically the result of various experiments, yet the Wanjin Army could still be called “small but elite.” At his command, the Wanjin Army, which had just finished setting up camp, moved again and was soon ready to depart. Even before the horses and grooms promised by Oda Nobunaga arrived, the Wanjin Army’s vanguard reconnaissance unit had already set off.
Yuan Ye sent A Man ahead to scout, while he and A Qing followed behind. After waiting for a while, he saw Maeda Toshiie, clad in armor, his red Horo fluttering, leading his followers and a string of grooms and packhorses.
Yuan Ye waved his hand, signaling the auxiliary troops to take over these temporary logistics personnel, and went forward to meet Maeda Toshiie. They had agreed earlier that Maeda Toshiie would accompany him, serving as Oda Nobunaga’s liaison and guide.
Maeda Toshiie dismounted, surprised. “You’re departing already?”
“Of course. Didn’t we say earlier that we’d depart immediately?” Yuan Ye said casually, his gaze sweeping over Maeda Toshiie’s retainers and followers, noticing several new faces. It seemed Maeda Toshiie had also fared well over the past six months and his strength had improved.
“I thought we wouldn’t be able to depart until tomorrow.” Maeda Toshiie glanced at the main force of the Wanjin Army, which was already beginning to depart one after another, and couldn’t help but exclaim, “As expected of Sanlang, truly possessing the demeanor of a famous general, swift as the wind, fierce as fire!”
Yuan Ye, being familiar enough with him, playfully chided him, “Stop flattering me.” Then, he and A Qing mounted their horses and said directly to him, “Let’s go too. We’ll camp at Agematsu-guchi!”
Maeda Toshiie’s expression turned serious. He assigned his foot soldiers to the Wanjin Army’s transport team, and with a few of his retainers, mounted his horse and followed behind Yuan Ye, spurring his mount forward.
