Chapter 196: They All Ran Faster Than Each Other
Half an hour later, the Oya Family opened their gates and surrendered.
Imagawa Yoshimoto’s death had been too great a blow to them, coupled with years of harassment from Xin Wanjin, they were utterly exhausted and lacked any will to fight, from top to bottom. Even if one or two stubborn individuals wanted to fight to the death, no one responded. In the end, the Oya Family hastily packed their valuables and gold and silver, opened the city gates, and placed their hopes on Yuan Ye keeping his promise to spare their lives.
Yuan Ye had no intention of breaking his promise. He issued travel documents to the several dozen people from the Oya Family and sent them away, leaving behind a few dozen to take over the city. He then led the Wanjin Army northward.
The next target was Takeda Castle, a place Yuan Ye was familiar with. It was here he first came to Chita Peninsula to abduct people. Now, returning to a familiar place, the scenery was the same, but the familiar faces were gone. Takeda Hyōemon, that old man, had died of illness two years ago. It was said he had coughed up blood incessantly before his death, likely due to being robbed too many times by Yuan Ye, suffering immense population losses, and his eldest son being killed. In the aftermath, he grew increasingly angry, thinking more and more, until he died of sheer frustration.
With a tiny bit of guilt, Yuan Ye sent A Man to persuade them to surrender.
The Takeda Family had been severely beaten by Yuan Ye several times in the past and had not recovered their strength. Now, facing the Wanjin Army, which was nearly ten times larger than before, they lacked the courage to resist even if Imagawa Yoshimoto were still alive. Ultimately, they made the same choice as the Oya Family.
These two families were like overripe fruit, having been repeatedly beaten by Yuan Ye. If not for the threat of the Imagawa Family, Yuan Ye would have devoured them whole two years ago. Their surrender now was, in a sense, a release. At least they no longer had to live next to Yuan Ye, the troublesome neighbor, in constant fear. However, the Ebina Family was bolder than these two, displaying the courage of “fighting to the death” and refusing to surrender, beginning a siege battle and vowing to resist to the end.
Their courage was commendable. Despite knowing the strength of the Wanjin Army, they fought valiantly. However, a low rammed-earth city wall, coupled with some wooden gate towers, arrow towers, and moats, and over a hundred samurai followers armed with bows and arrows, posed no real threat. Under the powerful cover fire of the Wanjin Army’s matchlock guns, the city walls were soon significantly breached. Afterward, their defeat was like a mountain collapsing, and they were trapped within the city by the Wanjin Army, who slaughtered them.
In the end, the Ebina Family held out for over two hours, causing Yuan Ye some trouble and delaying him, but at the cost of most of their male family members being killed.
For those who dared to resist, Yuan Ye was not so lenient. He directly confiscated the Ebina Family’s property, and the remaining family members were sent to hard labor as a warning to others.
Well, this way, fewer people die. If you listen obediently, he won’t exterminate you; at least your movable property and lives can be preserved. If you don’t listen, then you won’t be able to speak anymore.
The Chita Peninsula would belong to him from now on. His territory did not need samurai.
Yuan Ye had been holed up in Wanjin and Xin Wanjin for several years, diligently developing. All his surplus was poured into the army. His imaginary enemy had always been Oda Nobunaga. The local lords on the Chita Peninsula, even if gathered together, could only cause him minor trouble. Now, with over a hundred people scattered across various small “mountain strongholds” and villages, they were not even worth mentioning. He swept through them as if entering an uninhabited land, reaching the Odaka River in just over half a day.
The Odaka River is a tributary of the Shirakawa River, flowing into the sea near Odaka Castle. Odaka Castle was originally in the hands of the Imagawa Family, defended by Udono Nagateru and Matsudaira Motoyasu from the northern Marune Fortress. However, on the night of the Battle of Okehazama, Matsudaira Motoyasu was the first to abandon his post and flee. Udono Nagateru did not hesitate long and also fled with his men that morning. By the time Yuan Ye arrived after a hurried journey, Odaka Castle was nearly empty, with only some local lords inside.
Yuan Ye unhesitatingly expelled them, telling them all to roll north and find Oda Nobunaga. He then dispatched some auxiliary troops and able-bodied men into the city to begin reinforcing the defenses, replenishing ammunition and provisions. The city had already been under siege by the Oda Family, so its defenses were quite good and did not require major repairs. If the Imagawa Family had not abandoned the city and fled, it would have been quite difficult for Yuan Ye’s more than three thousand men to take it by force.
Odaka Castle was considered the gateway to the Chita Peninsula. Further north along the coastline were Narumi Castle and Atsuta Port. By controlling this area, Yuan Ye had effectively closed half the gates to the Chita Peninsula. He then led the Wanjin Army east along the Odaka River, continuing to sweep through and secure the branch castles and rock fortresses along the river.
These were not difficult tasks. This area was largely under the control of the Imagawa Family, as Imagawa Yoshimoto had taken this route to ascend to Kyoto. Now that Imagawa Yoshimoto was dead, many of the Imagawa troops here had already fled. Even those who had not yet fled, upon seeing the Wanjin Army approaching from a distance, had no will to fight and did not want to be surrounded within Owari Province, so they immediately departed.
Taking advantage of the chaos after the Battle of Okehazama, Yuan Ye quickly gained control of the branch castles and rock fortresses south of the Odaka River. He ordered the western Wanjin Army to continuously expel the Chita local lords from the territory and simply waited for Oda Nobunaga’s reaction.
…………
“The Imagawa Family…”
After establishing the defenses along the Odaka River, Yuan Ye returned to Odaka Castle to oversee operations. Looking at the intelligence reports sent back by the “Life Preservation Style,” he was speechless.
It was no wonder Imagawa Yoshimoto was so disgraced in later generations. After his death, the Imagawa Family’s performance was like a pile of mud… No, mud was better than them; they were like a pile of dog feces.
Matsudaira Motoyasu was the first to run, followed by Asahina Yasutomo, and then Udono Nagateru. As they fled one after another, the commander of Kutsukake Castle could no longer bear it and also began to flee. It was like a chain reaction; everyone was rushing back to Suruga, and it was unclear what they were running from.
Even according to the latest news, the Imagawa Family’s garrison at Okazaki Castle in Mikawa Province had also fled. These people ran without even seeing Oda Nobunaga’s face. It was truly inexplicable, allowing Matsudaira Motoyasu to gain a great advantage and instantly regain his independent status, no longer needing to be a vassal.
This was probably due to the “dual system” of rule during the Japanese Warring States period. When the supreme leader died, the subordinate leaders immediately began to have their own agendas, considering defecting to a new lord or preserving their strength, instantly losing the will to fight. Even if powerful, they would instantly become a scattered mess.
Imagawa Yoshimoto was truly pathetic, dying so miserably in the mud, yet not a single subordinate thought of avenging him. They ran faster than each other, as if it were a race.
“It’s not just that; the Imagawa Family’s navy has also fled,” A Man said casually while sorting through the various intelligence reports sent by the “Life Preservation Style.”
Imagawa Yoshimoto’s death was like a giant stone thrown into a pond, with huge ripples spreading out. Every moment, large or small anomalies occurred. This was the first time the “Life Preservation Style” had experienced such a test since its establishment. The intelligence reports were a mess, ranging from the Imagawa Family’s movements to a small local lord gathering troops. It was all jumbled, and even she had to personally sort through it.
Yuan Ye took these few reports. They had been gathered here through several people and multiple channels. After cross-verification, they were confirmed to be true. The Imagawa Family’s navy had indeed fled, and in great haste. Since the fleet could not carry everyone at once, much of their provisions and rookie ashigaru were left behind. Kanie Castle was in chaos, and the surrounding Oda Family’s vassal local lords, emboldened, had shifted from a defensive stance to fierce aggression, automatically encircling them from three sides, preparing to annihilate this invading force and gain military merit.
After reading this, Yuan Ye truly wished he could travel a thousand miles in a single step, from Chita District to Kaishi District, to slap Katsuyama Nobusada. This fellow, at the Oda Family’s most vulnerable point, holding five thousand troops and a considerable navy, had fled without doing anything. Yuan Ye really wanted to spit in his face – you weren’t in any danger, so why run? The Oda Family’s main forces were all in Aichi District. You should have set fire to Shimazu and then captured Kiyosu Castle!
By running like this, aren’t you putting pressure on me?
This idiot is even more exasperating than the people before him!
Yuan Ye had originally placed great hopes on Katsuyama Nobusada, expecting him to cause a great disturbance with his five thousand men in Kaishi and Kaito Districts, ideally turning everything upside down, forcing Oda Nobunaga to recall his troops, thus allowing Yuan Ye to build his defenses like a turtle’s shell. But instead…
Disappointed, he couldn’t help but say, “This guy is truly useless!”
“Perhaps the Takeda Family has also set their sights on the Imagawa Family and is preparing to interfere in the Imagawa Family’s succession dispute, which is why he had to rush back to Suruga,” A Man said nonchalantly. Warrior families were like this. For the head of a family to control territory, they needed to have many children to expand the number of family members and have enough daughters for alliances. But when the head of the family died, their children would fight for succession, with almost no exceptions.
The Oda Family was an example of this. Oda Nobunaga’s brothers and siblings rebelled one after another, which was a continuation of this succession dispute.
“The Takeda Family?”
Katsuyama Nobusada’s “Naval Surprise Attack Unit” was too far from the main battlefield and was targeting Oda Nobunaga. Yuan Ye had not paid much attention to this person before. Upon hearing this, he looked up Katsuyama Nobusada’s personal information again and discovered that he was Takeda Shingen’s sixth son, adopted into the Katsuyama Family under the “Three Nations Alliance,” similar to Sawaki Tohachiro.
This person was likely the Takeda Family’s representative for their interests in the Imagawa Family. No wonder he fled back immediately upon hearing of Imagawa Yoshimoto’s death, too lazy to even set anything on fire.
Yuan Ye shook his head and dismissed Katsuyama Nobusada from his mind. He couldn’t deal with Takeda Shingen now, and Katsuyama Nobusada had fled. Knowing this was useless.
He asked A Man, “What are Oda Nobunaga’s movements?”
“Here!” A Man took out a stack of documents from the messy low table. “Oda Nobunaga’s men have just occupied Kutsukake Castle without resistance, just like us. Then, Oda Nobunaga himself is leading his troops to besiege Narumi Castle. Okabe Motonobu has abandoned all branch castles and is holed up in the city resisting.”
Yuan Ye breathed a sigh of relief. At least one person hadn’t run. If all the Imagawa Family had fled, he would be in trouble. However, after taking the intelligence and reading it for a few moments, his excitement slightly subsided.
Oda Nobunaga, through a miracle, had killed Imagawa Yoshimoto amidst a vast army. This was extremely inspiring. Riding this great victory, his prestige soared. The Owari local lords, who previously cherished their strength and were unwilling to confront the Imagawa Family, were now gathering around him without him even asking, providing provisions and military service. They had transformed from rebellious sons into obedient grandchildren.
In less than two days, Oda Nobunaga had amassed an army of over ten thousand. It seemed he had made up his mind to remove Narumi Castle, a thorn that directly threatened Atsuta Port. He was now fiercely attacking, using the resources of the Owari local lords to force his way into the castle.
It was uncertain whether Okabe Motonobu could hold on. If this man couldn’t hold on and quickly surrendered, then the Wanjin Army might face Oda Nobunaga’s fierce onslaught directly.
Yuan Ye had no other options now. He could only silently pray for Okabe Motonobu, hoping he could hold out, and even if he couldn’t, to at least delay for some time, allowing him to prepare more and properly fortify his defenses.
