Chapter 100: A Piece of Land That Completely Belongs to Him!
Ten days after Yuan Ye arrived at Nagoya Castle, the castle’s operations had largely returned to normal with the cooperation of a group of new magistrates. This showed that no one was irreplaceable; even a high-ranking Chief Senior Retainer leaving wouldn’t affect the overall situation. In fact, the departure of Hayashi Hidesada and most of the old retainer faction had, in a sense, benefited the younger generation, allowing Oda Nobunaga’s young attendant vassals to enter the core of power and gradually control the entire Nagoya Castle.
Amidst this turmoil, Oda Nobunaga truly became the Castle Lord of Nagoya Castle, with no one able to restrain him any longer, truly achieving absolute power.
Once the aftereffects of Hayashi Hidesada’s rebellion had mostly subsided, Oda Nobunaga, now in control, immediately chose to take the initiative, aiming to crush his own brother who dared to challenge him. This was his only viable option. The Oda Danjō no Chū family was not without external enemies; if the rebellion dragged on, the Imagawa Family, Matsudaira Family, and Saito Family would undoubtedly intervene, making the situation even more complicated.
Therefore, a swift victory was necessary.
Thus, after all preparations for war were complete, Oda Nobunaga unhesitatingly marched out from Nagoya Castle, personally leading seven hundred followers and two thousand rookies and Ashigaru to the frontline, preparing to launch an offensive.
His uncle, Oda Nobumitsu, the Lord of Moriyama Castle, actively responded, leading three hundred followers and six hundred rookies and Ashigaru to join his forces en route.
Oda Nobuyuki of Suemori Castle did not refuse his elder brother’s “invitation” to settle the score. The next day, with Shibata Katsuie as Commander-in-Chief, he gathered many local powerful families, preparing to meet the challenge with an advantage of over fifteen hundred followers and nearly four thousand rookies and Ashigaru.
Hayashi Hidesada also mobilized, taking over three hundred followers and five to six hundred rookies and Ashigaru to march around the battlefield, actively supporting Oda Nobuyuki.
This was a battle that would decide the future fate of the Lower Four Districts of Owari Province. Yuan Ye, as the “Grain and Forage Magistrate,” responsible for managing the “Odauda Magistrate,” in other words, the “Logistics Manager” in charge of various miscellaneous transport teams, also participated in the campaign. However, he did not need to fight to the death on the frontline; his role was to coordinate and manage work in the rear camp.
As for the outcome of this battle, he was not too worried. This wasn’t due to his “historical knowledge” that often produced unexpected results, but rather because he had previously noticed Niwa Nagahide constantly requesting large quantities of saltpeter. It was likely that the three hundred Matchlock Guns Oda Nobunaga had procured were now in place and had finally completed their training, ready for deployment. These firearms were highly likely to become a trump card.
He calmly focused on his duties, ignoring the initial skirmishes, taunts, and one-on-one duels between the two sides. Only when the decisive battle for the Lower Four Districts of Owari began did he pay a little attention to the specific situation, silently listening in the camp to the sudden, massive roars erupting from the distant battlefield.
Approximately two and a half hours later, he received news of victory.
Oda Nobunaga’s surprise attack with the secretly trained Matchlock Gun unit had seized the initiative on the battlefield. Furthermore, the Three-ken Spear Ashigaru unit, reinforced with some soldiers who had undergone preliminary “Separation of Farmers and Soldiers” training, once again proved effective. Exploiting the enemy’s confusion, they broke through Shibata Katsuie’s main camp, decisively securing the victory.
Following this, Oda Nobuyuki’s forces collapsed like a mountain. Oda Nobunaga pursued relentlessly. In the end, Oda Nobuyuki’s direct followers were largely decimated, and Shibata Katsuie fled back to Suemori Castle. The local powerful families who had pledged allegiance to Oda Nobuyuki, having “suffered under Oda for a long time in Owari,” also suffered heavy losses and would likely take several years to recover their strength.
Hayashi Hidesada, who had actively supported Oda Nobuyuki, also fared poorly. After the battle began, he was relentlessly engaged by Oda Nobumitsu. After Shibata Katsuie’s escape, he was unable to stand alone and was easily defeated by Oda Nobunaga, who turned his attention towards him. Ultimately, his younger brother Hayashi Katsusada and many retainers died on the spot, and he fled back to his territory even more disheveled than before.
The throne of the ruler of the Lower Four Districts of Owari was decided in just one day. Oda Nobunaga, the “Big Fool” whom everyone detested, achieved a decisive victory through the first large-scale application of firearms in Japanese history—at least, the first large-scale application of firearms in the Guanzhong region of Japan. It was likely that no one would mock his past eccentricities with Matchlock Guns anymore.
In a sense, he had proven himself, and also proven that in this world, one need not care what others think; one only needs to do what they believe is right, and fate will eventually reward them.
With this, the internal conflict within the Oda Danjō no Chū family could be considered largely over, with only mopping-up operations remaining.
The war was over, but Yuan Ye, as the “Medical Magistrate,” became even busier, starting to collect the wounded. While he was busy, Maeda Toshiie suddenly galloped over, ignoring a large piece of flesh torn from below his right eye, his eyes bloodshot. Upon seeing Yuan Ye, he spoke no words and unceremoniously dragged him onto his horse, like a demon abducting someone.
Yuan Ye did not get angry. He instructed Maeshima Shichiro to continue gathering the wounded, and with his medicine chest, he and A Qing mounted their horses and followed Maeda Toshiie to a small woods some distance from the camp. Upon entering the woods, they saw the second son of the Aragiko Maeda Family, Maeda Toshiharu, and the fifth son, Sawaki Yoshizane.
Sawaki Yoshizane’s armor was disheveled, and his appearance was disheveled. He was sitting on the ground, holding Maeda Toshiharu in a daze. Upon seeing Yuan Ye, he snapped back to attention and exclaimed excitedly, “Lord Yuan Ye, please save my second brother, I beg you! Please!”
Yuan Ye didn’t have time to attend to him. He immediately went over and bent down to examine Maeda Toshiharu’s injuries. After only two glances and a touch of his neck, he sighed, “Lord Tōhachirō, I am sorry…”
Sawaki Yoshizane stared blankly. Looking closely at Maeda Toshiharu, who no longer had even the faintest breath, he finally understood and cried out, holding his body.
Yuan Ye could do nothing; he couldn’t resurrect the dead. He turned to look at the stunned Maeda Toshiie and sighed, “Please accept my condolences. I… alas, let me tend to the wound on your face first. You are also not lightly injured.”
Maeda Toshiie was dazed for a moment. He touched the arrow wound on his face, first shaking his head, then nodding, then shaking his head again. Finally, as if he had regained some ability to think, he managed a smile that was uglier than crying, “It’s nothing, Lord Yuan Ye, I’m fine. That… I’m sorry, no, thank you. I… I’ll come find you later.”
Yuan Ye shook his head, glanced again at the bloody wound on Sawaki Yoshizane’s right arm, opened his mouth, but said nothing more. He turned and left the woods, leaving the three brothers alone.
A Qing waited outside, leading the horses. Yuan Ye said to her, “Let’s go back!”
A Qing looked towards the woods with some curiosity, hearing the crying, and didn’t understand what had happened. Yuan Ye shook his head again and repeated, “Let’s go back first!”
A Qing stopped looking and helped him onto the horse. She then mounted her own horse, and the two rode back. As A Qing carefully watched him to prevent him from falling off due to his old injuries, she softly asked, “What happened?”
Yuan Ye was actually recovering well, much better than expected. He signaled A Qing not to be so nervous about him breaking his neck, and then sighed softly, “A tragedy occurred. The Aragiko Maeda Family took opposing sides, and brothers turned against each other.”
Previously, as the “Grain and Forage Magistrate,” he had a large staff and interacted with many subordinate magistrates. He was also fond of gathering information, so he had overheard various rumors and gossip. He knew that in this internal conflict of the Oda Danjō no Chū family, many local powerful families had hedged their bets. Even if they disliked Oda Nobunaga, the “Big Fool” and his eccentricities, they still bet on both sides. Their family’s younger generation was divided into two groups, one supporting Oda Nobunaga and the other Oda Nobuyuki, with at most more support for Oda Nobuyuki, but Oda Nobunaga also needed to have two people.
The Aragiko Maeda Family had done the same. The eldest son, Maeda Toshihisa, stayed home to manage the family business, feigning illness and remaining in Aragiko Castle.
The second son, Maeda Toshiharu, had previously been a subordinate official of the Oda Danjō no Chū family and a member of the internal affairs magistrate system, thus following Hayashi Hidesada, the former Chief Senior Retainer.
The third son, Maeda Yasukatsu, was also skilled in martial arts and was sent to support Oda Nobuyuki, serving as his Page.
The fourth son, Maeda Toshiie, and the fifth son, Sawaki Yoshizane, were already Oda Nobunaga’s Pages and naturally followed him into battle.
This way, regardless of who won, regardless of who became the next ruler of the Lower Four Districts of Owari, someone from the Aragiko Maeda Family would always be able to rise, preventing the family’s decline.
Therefore, when Maeda Toshiie, covered in blood and without even bothering to bandage his face, his eyes red, came to find him, Yuan Ye had likely guessed what had happened. Upon arrival, he confirmed his suspicions: the second son of the Maeda family, Maeda Toshiharu, had died from severe injuries, and it was highly possible that Sawaki Yoshizane was involved, perhaps even mistakingly causing his own brother’s death.
As for why they had to hide in a small woods far from the camp…
Maeda Toshiharu had followed Hayashi Hidesada, a rebel. Hayashi Hidesada was likely among the top three people Oda Nobunaga hated the most. Maeda Toshiie and Sawaki Yoshizane would never dare bring a wounded soldier from Hayashi Hidesada’s side back to the main camp, as it would only sow trouble for the future. Thus, they had to rely on their friendship to forcibly drag Yuan Ye out. Even with Maeda Toshiharu dead, they dared not bring him back. They even needed to quickly hide his corpse to prevent his head from being cut off by the “military observers” and presented to Oda Nobunaga for his appraisal.
This could only be called a tragedy. It was perhaps the most common tragedy occurring in Owari today. Who knew how many families would experience fratricide, nephew-uncle conflict, father-son conflict, or intra-clan conflict.
Under Yuan Ye’s explanation, A Qing finally understood. She was stunned for a long time, perhaps thinking of A Man. After a while, she looked at him with a confused gaze and asked, “When will the fighting stop?”
Yuan Ye sighed and remained silent for a long time, saying, “I don’t know. Perhaps we will be fighting our whole lives!”
A Qing looked away with some disappointment and did not ask further, simply riding her horse in silence.
Seeing her distress, Yuan Ye reached out his large hand and held her small one, comforting her, “Don’t think about these things. Some things are ultimately unavoidable. However, there won’t be fighting for now. At least after this battle, there will be a period of peace. As for the future… we’ll talk about it later. Living for today is most important!”
A Qing nodded gently, her disappointment slightly receding, but she still couldn’t be happy.
Yuan Ye did not try to persuade her further. He slowly rode back, contemplating future matters as he went.
The war was over. He had learned a lesson. He now needed a piece of land where he could freely expand his power to avoid a repeat of the tragedy, to avenge A Man, to fulfill A Man’s dying wish, and to find every chicken belonging to the Hayashi Family.
This was somewhat difficult in this era, even more so without losing his freedom. However, he had some ideas, but he still needed an opportunity and some time to plan more carefully.
But no matter what, he had to obtain a piece of land that belonged entirely to him. He was determined to get it!
