If the Han envoy was so straightforward and merciless, it would certainly arouse Ii Naotaka's fury, but he also knew that now was not the time to be angry, and what the other party said was indeed the truth - since his secret preparations to retreat were over

If the Han invaders find out, they will definitely want to pursue him, and then the shogunate army will probably suffer heavy losses.

Therefore, he forcibly suppressed the anger in his heart and looked at the other party as calmly as possible, "I still have a large army in my hand, and our shogunate still has the land of Kanto. If you feel that you are confident and can do whatever you want, then just go ahead.

Give it a try! We will stick with you until the end!"

However, although he appears to be tough on the surface, it is obvious that his confidence is very low.

"Yes, you still have a large army now, and the shogunate still has Kanto. But your army is already in a dilemma and is struggling. There is only a small corner of Kanto left, and it is precarious. Do you still think you can compete with us big men?"

The envoy still did not give up the attack on him, "Don't forget, you are now using a corner of Kanto to fight against the Han Dynasty and the entire Japan. Do you think you still have a chance of winning?"

Seeing the surprised look on Ii Naotaka's face, the envoy suddenly sneered, "Let me tell you a piece of news. Now the Maeda family of the Kaga Domain has also raised troops to help the court and attack the shogunate... Nowadays, most of the large domains in the world are

I have joined the banner of your imperial court and become an enemy of the shogunate. Isn’t the shogunate fighting against the world in one corner?!"

The Maeda family has rebelled!

Naotaka Ii was almost stunned for a moment.

The Maeda family has the largest territory among the outside daimyo of the shogunate, with a territory of millions of koku. Their every move will definitely attract the attention of the world. If they return... then it will definitely make the situation of the shogunate even more passive, and even

It can be said to be the final word, leaving the shogunate, which is now in danger, with no chance to turn around.

Previously, Naotaka Ii advocated in front of the shogun to raise a large army to rescue Kinki. One of his main purposes was to stabilize the hearts of people everywhere and make the Maeda family, which had already shown signs of evil, give up their ambitions of betrayal and at least remain neutral. Unexpectedly, they got up and went back to bed now.

...In other words, this troop dispatch has failed strategically and achieved nothing.

The Maeda family has always been insidious and cunning, and the shogunate has been losing ground in front of the Han invaders, and the situation is getting worse step by step, so it is normal for the Maeda family to choose to jump out and rebel now, Ii Naotaka smiled bitterly in his heart.

Now, the imperial court has re-emerged with the support of the Han invaders, and has reoccupied Kyoto. It has clearly issued an edict to the people of the world calling for the overthrow of the shogunate. The Maeda family, the Mori family, and the Shimazu family, these few leftovers from the Warring States Period,

The largest feudal lords have already risen up against the shogunate. Wouldn't the remaining families follow their examples? I'm afraid the Date family is already making preparations.

So what the envoy said was right. Now the shogunate is really using one corner to fight against the whole world and the powerful man behind the imperial court.

Already desperate.

Even with the will and character Ii Naotaka has tempered for many years, he can't help but feel discouraged now. He knows that at this point, the shogunate has lost this war, even if he can return to the army and repel those who landed in Kanto.

A large Han army was still unable to reverse the situation, and the shogunate, which had been severely weakened, was destined to be unable to change the situation.

The world of the Tokugawa family was about to collapse before his eyes. At this moment, Naotaka Ii, who had been loyal to the Tokugawa family for generations, had a sore nose and almost shed tears.

However, the willpower he cultivated over the years still allowed him to maintain his dignity in the end.

With the arrogant attitude of the shogunate, he glanced at the envoy coldly, "The Maeda family's rebellion was originally expected by us. Your country and the imperial court do have the upper hand now, but we still have so many loyalists.

As samurai of the shogun, we will fight to the end for the shogunate. Even if we die in battle, we will never dishonor the name of samurai. If you come here to show off and mock us, please come back now. We will definitely

Fight to the death!"

"Fighting to the death sounds good, but wouldn't you rather have a false reputation than worry about the lives of tens of thousands of your subordinates, or even the survival of the Tokugawa family?" The envoy remained calm, "

If you insist on fighting us till the end, wasting the lives of your subordinates, and leaving the Tokugawa family with no flesh and bones, then go back next time!"

"What do you mean?" When he understood the meaning of the other party's words, Naotaka Ii looked at the other party in surprise.

Although the messenger's words were still very sarcastic, he seemed to reveal that the man was willing to give the Tokugawa family a way out!?

"Isn't my meaning clear enough? I am the envoy sent by Lord Zhou, the envoy of the Han Dynasty. Your Lordship specially sent me here to find you. Naturally, it is not just to entertain you..." The messenger still sneered, "My Lord

I was sent here to ask you, do you want the Tokugawa family to continue after the war and not perish at the hands of your country’s imperial court and wealthy families?”

Ii Nao stared at the other person with a stern expression, and after a long while, he finally asked again.

"What should I do if I want to?"

Since ancient times, when the shogunate fell, the fate of the families that dominated the shogunate was not particularly good. When the Kamakura shogunate fell, the entire Hojo family, which actually controlled the shogunate, was forced to commit suicide and the family line was completely cut off.

When the Muromachi shogunate fell, the last generation of shogun Ashikaga Yoshiaki also had a bad fate. He was exiled by Oda Nobunaga many times. Finally, under Toyotomi Hideyoshi, he was barely listed as a daimyo with only 10,000 koku of territory and became a monk.

incident, and his son Ashikaga Yoshihiro was forced to become a monk when he was one year old. He eventually died without any heirs, and the entire Ashikaga Shogun family line was officially severed.

If the Edo shogunate really perished, what kind of dilemma would the Tokugawa family face? Naotaka Ii had thought about this problem many times and was frightened by it.

Under such circumstances, if the Han envoy who is now in control of the situation is really willing to let the Tokugawa family go...then the Tokugawa family can be considered lucky.

Previously, the shogunate Tokugawa Iemitsu and his senior lieutenant Doi Toshikatsu sent envoys many times to seek peace with the Han invaders. Although Ii Naotaka knew about it, he did not interfere in any way in order not to affect them. However, the Han envoys

A number of very harsh conditions were put forward that were unacceptable to the shogunate, so the negotiations were suspended for a time.

Now that the envoys of the Han Dynasty have taken the initiative to propose peace negotiation conditions to the shogunate, I'm afraid... I'm afraid the conditions will be even more embarrassing, at least the general will definitely find it difficult to accept them.

But the situation in the shogunate is so bad now, and he has no way to recover, so all he can pursue now is to try to get a more decent result for the Tokugawa family. So even if he doesn't have high hopes in his heart, he still wants to

Ask questions from the other person's mouth.

"We have negotiated with the shogunate before. I'm afraid sir, you already know the terms of our negotiation, right?" The envoy was still calm, "We still have the same conditions as before. As long as the shogunate agrees to these conditions, we can also make peace with the shogunate.

, and allowed the Tokugawa family to be preserved."

Previously, in front of the envoys of the shogunate, the envoys of the Han Dynasty proposed various conditions such as abolishing the shogunate and the position of shogun, changing the head of the Tokugawa family, punishing the responsible minister, and agreeing on compensation. Because it was too harsh, the Tokugawa family

Guang himself rejected these conditions - the reason was very obvious. If he agreed, he would have to step down from the position of general. How would he deal with himself then?

Naotaka Ii felt another pain in his heart.

Although the other party did not add any additional conditions, these conditions were already harsh enough.

Even a few days ago, he would not consider these conditions, but today is really different from the past. The survival and safety of the shogunate, the Tokugawa family, and even the Ii family cannot help but act cautiously.

"We can discuss the agreement on compensation. The shogunate has also made a proposal to hand over Jinshan to the Han Dynasty before. It's not that we are unwilling to pay, punish the culprits, and... we can also agree to remove the shogunate, but the Shogun abdicates.

, It’s really hard for us to agree.” After Ii Naotaka pondered for a long time, he finally spoke, “The general was just deceived by some treacherous ministers, coupled with our incompetence and ignorance, so he made a big mistake. As far as his true intentions are concerned,

He said, he has always wanted to be on good terms with the big man, so he has no big fault... If your country wants to punish the culprit, then punish us ministers. From me on down, every important minister of the shogunate can be dealt with as he pleases."

"I admire your loyalty very much, but... we cannot agree to this condition." The messenger sneered, "Tokugawa Iemitsu is the shogun. If he doesn't decide the affairs of the shogunate, who will? Since he decides

Yes, then he should be responsible... So shouldn't he take the blame and abdicate? Besides, our Han Dynasty sent troops and your country's court issued edicts, all of which explicitly regarded Tokugawa Iemitsu as an enemy. If the Tokugawa family

If Guang can survive the war safely, then how can we, the great Han soldiers, have the dignity to go back and face the people of the world?"

"In this case...then I have nothing more to say. You can go back." Naotaka Ii frowned, then waved his hand decisively, "We will fight to the end."

As a samurai retainer of the Tokugawa family for generations and the elder of the shogunate, Naotaka Ii felt that he had an obligation to do everything possible to preserve the blood and inheritance of the Tokugawa family. In order to achieve this goal, he was willing to suffer a little humiliation, but the other party proposed

The conditions were too harsh. Naotaka Ii knew that the shogun would not agree, so he was unwilling to think about peace talks.

"Hahahaha! I heard someone say before that you, sir, have a high position and are a big figure in the shogunate's mouth. It turns out that you are nothing more than that!" When seeing that Naotaka Ii did not want to talk anymore, the envoy couldn't help laughing, and then his face was full of laughter.

He looked at Ii Naotaka sarcastically, "You say you are loyal to the Tokugawa family, but in fact you are just loyal to Tokugawa Iemitsu, a thief! Do you still want to see the entire Tokugawa family buried with Tokugawa Iemitsu himself?

?We, sir, originally wanted to give the Tokugawa family a way out, but you turned down this opportunity for the sake of Tokugawa Iemitsu alone. You have falsely called yourself a loyal minister, and you have also failed to live up to the great trust of successive heads of the Tokugawa family!"

When he heard what the other party said, Naotaka Ii finally couldn't help it anymore. He raised his hand and slapped it heavily on the table in front of him, making a loud bang, and the guards outside the door also held their hands.

The sword rushed in, looking like it was going to kill the messenger directly.

But even though he was facing a threat to his life, the messenger remained unafraid and did not give in at all. He still laughed. "It's ridiculous that we adults still have expectations for you and are ready for you to save the flesh and blood of the Tokugawa family.

Let the Tokugawa family survive this storm... but my good intentions were squandered by people like you, and the fortune of the Tokugawa family ended because of you. Can a person like you be called a loyal minister?!"

Ii Naotaka's face turned pale with anger. He glared at the envoy, as if he was about to order him to be pulled out and killed. But in the end, he gently raised his hand and signaled the guards to stop.

go out.

"Why do the envoys of the Heavenly Dynasty have to persecute each other so hard? Our general has always admired your country very much. After this lesson, he will definitely be willing to be respectful to your country. Why does your country have to persecute you to this point? Let's

General, is he ashamed?" There was a bit of sadness in his voice, "Don't forget, since the big man wants to pay compensation, he should make the forces in various places as stable as possible. Now, the general has no children, and the other branches

There are no outstanding talents. If the general is forced to abdicate, who can stabilize Kanto? I'm afraid... I'm afraid it's not in line with the interests of your country."

Unconsciously, his attitude had softened, and he even seemed to be begging a little.

However, his words still did not move the envoy. The envoy still refused to give in at all, and did not even conceal his ridicule.

"I have already made it clear that we, the big men, must abdicate Tokugawa Iemitsu. This is an unchangeable result. If you want to preserve the Tokugawa family, you must do this. Otherwise, we will have to comply with your ideas and fight to the end.

In addition... don't deceive us. Although Tokugawa Iemitsu has no son, doesn't he have a brother? And he is also a legitimate brother. After Tokugawa Iemitsu abdicates, isn't it justifiable for him to become a general?"

"What?!" Ii Naotaka was once again shocked and speechless by this sudden news.

He didn't expect that the big man would secretly have the idea to let Tokugawa Tadunaga replace Tokugawa Iemitsu! And... what he didn't expect even more was that Tokugawa Tadunaga actually left Takasaki Castle directly after escaping from Takasaki Castle.

I ran to make contact with the big man.

Should he be scolded as a thief who betrayed the Tokugawa family? Or should he secretly praise him for his foresight? Ii Naotaka smiled bitterly in his heart. "Do you just want Lord Nagon to take over the entire Tokugawa family?"

"Yes, Lord Da Nayan acted cautiously and was very respectful to your court and us great men. He was favored by us. It was precisely because of our Lord's request that your court did not deprive him of his rights."

Official position, let him continue to be the great minister of the imperial court..." The messenger immediately nodded and confirmed, "In addition, he also agreed to all the conditions we proposed."

Tokugawa Tadanagi has now fallen into your hands. Even if he doesn't agree, he must agree... Naotaka Ii thought to himself.

However, if Tokugawa Tadanagi comes to take over the entire Tokugawa family, then... it is not completely unacceptable, at least it is much better than the complete destruction of the Tokugawa family. Tokugawa Tadanagi is also the legitimate son of the former general Tokugawa Hidetada.

What's more, the former general could not forget it before he died, and wanted Naotaka Ii to help save the person, if he became a general...

No matter what, it is better than the destruction of the Tokugawa family!

"You...what are you going to do with the Tokugawa family?" After a long silence, Naotaka Ii asked in a low voice.
To be continued...