Chapter 20: The Great Kanto Earthquake

  Because no one disturbed his sleep, he slept very soundly. When he woke up, the sky outside the window was already bright. He didn't realize he had slept until noon until he walked out of the house. In the temple, he had vegetarian food and found that the monks ate better than him. A type of noodle called "mianbao" by Tang Dynasty was even more delicious than rice.

  In the afternoon, Yamamoto Kanetsugu returned from Saijo Castle with 800 ashigaru foot soldiers, who were divided into two teams. One team was stationed inside Saijo Castle to guard the Kira residence, while the other sealed off the town below the castle, which had fallen into chaos the previous night. Some people who had been making a disturbance the previous night were arrested on the spot, and some of the local residents voluntarily identified these unidentified individuals, one by one.

  After interrogation, it was found that except for three local townspeople who took advantage of the fire to loot, the remaining 28 people all came from Suruga and Totoumi Provinces. It is said that this riot was an impromptu action by them upon seeing the town below the castle catch fire.

  Fortunately, the actions of setting fires and inciting riots were quickly met with spontaneous resistance from the townspeople, resulting in clashes between both sides with casualties on both sides. They were then apprehended by Yamamoto Kanbee's ashigaru troops. According to preliminary statistics, 33 houses collapsed due to the earthquake, 25 were burned down, 18 people died, over 100 were injured, and the losses exceeded 1,000 kan, making it a devastating loss.

  Fortunately, the Kirishima family had rebuilt Saigo Castle a few years ago, and the new castle was so sturdy that it did not suffer any damage. In the middle of the night, Kirishima Mantsumaru was shaken violently, but except for being slightly startled, he was not injured at all. The samurai and their families living in Saigo Castle were also unharmed, except for a few who accidentally fell and got hurt.

  Yamamoto Kanbei then asked Kira Yoshinaka to deal with the arsonists from last night, and it was just a routine inquiry for this kind of case. The verdict had already been decided, and all that remained was for him to affix his seal as the head of the household. The outcome of the trial was not unexpected, and those who committed such heinous crimes were always dealt with mercilessly - beheaded outside the castle walls, their heads spiked on wooden stakes and displayed on the streets of Hota "to dry in the sun".

  He thought the warriors of this era were quite cruel, with over thirty people beheaded under Yamamoto Kansuke's supervision, and Kira Yoshinaka was also invited to watch. Many townspeople ran out of the castle to watch, without showing any fear or timidity, just like watching a street performance. This cold-blooded atmosphere made him very uncomfortable, so he ran to Jikouan Temple to chant sutras for half a day before being summoned by Yamamoto Kansuke.

  "Ishida Mitsunari, Yamagata Masakage, Ogawa Suketada, Ii Naomasa, Honda Tadakatsu, Koide Hidemasa, Oda Katsunaga, and Gamo Ujisato have entered the castle."

  "Hmm." Kirishima Mantarō nodded, these people were all trusted retainers of the Kirishima family, it wasn't strange for them to rush over at this time.

  "According to rumors, this earthquake originated from the Kanto and Kai regions, and Suruga suffered more damage than our own domain. It's reasonable to assume that the preparations for the deployment of the Mikawa family in Totomi Province should be put on hold for now!" said Yamamoto Kanetsugu. According to rumors, it can almost be confirmed that the actual situation is about 80-90% accurate.

  Although Yamamoto Kanbei was serving the Kira family in Mikawa, he maintained connections with Suruga Province. This was well known to both Kira Motsunamaru and his predecessor, the late head of the Kira family, Kira Yoshichika. He had a close relationship with the Asahina family of Suruga, and when he drifted into Suruga in 1532, he was taken in by Asahina Motonaga as a guest. In fact, he also served as a tutor to Motonaga's son, Asahina Nobutomo. This relationship continued until Kanbei entered the service of the Kira family.

  It is precisely because of the deep relationship with the Asahina family of Suruga Province, especially after Asahina Morishige succeeded as the head of the house after the Battle of Otemba last year, that it has been further strengthened. In history, Asahina Morishige relied on this relationship with Yamamoto Kansuke to quickly turn to the Takeda family after Imagawa Ujizane's death, which shows that the understanding of interpersonal relationships in various countries across East Asia is roughly the same.

  These old things Kira Yoshinaka knew, but he also knew that his master had been in Suruga for six or seven years and was not a nobody, it's not strange to have his own connections. The two returned to Seijō Castle under the escort of the Mawari samurai, when they entered Jōkamachi, a group of people wearing Dōmaru, wearing Jinbaori on their heads, with the flag of the two families of Ashikaga behind them, holding three-span-long-handled ashigaru appeared in front of him.

  Their movements were uniform, and under the leadership of a samurai wearing red socks, they quickly sealed off the streets and roads along the way. Their swift and neat actions surprised everyone, including Kijirō Mimasaka no Tsunemaru, who had previously seen those sloppy and undisciplined ashigaru.

  "This is the secret weapon that Shishō has been preparing for five years? Eight hundred men at the ready! What a tremendous wealth!" Kiryū Manzōmaru's interest was also somewhat piqued, and seeing a samurai wearing black armor looking very majestic, he slowly rode his horse over and asked from above: "What is this warrior's name?"

  This samurai was quite tall and robust, holding a large scythe gun with great majesty. Seeing Yamamoto Kanbei approaching with a child riding on a fine horse, he immediately knelt down and said: "I am Watanabe Kōgan, at your service, Lord Goyashiki!"

  "Watanabe?" Kiryū Mantsumaru was taken aback, carefully sizing up this robust warrior who was less than thirty years old. "Your ancestors were from the Saga Genji clan, and Watanabe no Tsuna, one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Minamoto no Yorimitsu?"

  "Yes!" Watanabe Kōgan buried his head even deeper.

  "Your family crest is the Three Stars and One Letter, but was your ancestral home not in service to the Tōshō-gū shrine during the time of Uesugi Kagekatsu, under the jurisdiction of the main house's ancestor, Kiryū-ji Temple's Tokiwa Dōkan?"

  Kiriyama Manzaburou looked at the samurai with a slightly surprised tone, making Watanabe Kōgan even more embarrassed and unable to lift his head: "Yes!"

  "Why should a warrior of the Minamoto clan serve a house born from the Matsudaira clan?"

  "...The ancestor of the Watanabe family, Fan Gang, was the second son of Dao Gang Gong. Because he did not have the qualifications to inherit the family business, he moved to live in Pubei Village, Etian County, Sanheguo. Coincidentally, Matsudaira Shigemitsu was going down to Etian County, so the ancestor followed suit and served the Matsudaira family. This short sentence summarizes the situation of their family. The Watanabe family branch really mixed badly, they couldn't even get a foothold in the Matsudaira family, no wonder later they joined the Ikko sect to oppose the Matsudaira family."

  "I see, then from now on you, Tōno Kōgan, strive to serve the Honke with all your might! The Minamoto clan's Tōno family will once again rise to prominence!" Kiryū Manzaburou nodded slightly towards Tōno Kōgan and turned his horse around, slowly departing. Not far away, he heard a shout from behind: "I, Tōno Kōgan, swear to devote myself to the service of Otomoyoshi-sama until death!"

  Yamamoto Kan no Suketsune, who had been deliberately lagging behind, slowly came to and said with deep emotion to Kira Yoshinaka: "The lord's skill in handling affairs has become even more impressive. From now on, I, Kan no Suketsune, will never have to worry about the future of our house."

  "Master, don't joke around. I, Kirishima Kanzaburou, know my own abilities well enough. Just now was just borrowing the prestige of the Kirishima family, it has nothing to do with me personally." Kirishima Kanzaburou shook his head and smiled wryly. What's the connection between relying on the prestige of one's family and oneself? If he didn't have this tiger skin of being the young master of the Kirishima family, who would care what a nine-year-old kid has to say?

  He knew, of course, the great attraction and influence that a martial family's reputation had. Every New Year's Day, many samurai from Mikawa Province would come to pay their respects, even the head of the Lower House of Yoshida would have to visit the Upper House of Yoshida. The Imperial Court and the Shogunate would also send people to offer congratulations. People from Owari Province near Mikawa would also have to present a gift along the way.

  Those rural samurai who had no chance to meet the head of the Kira family stretched their necks to see the head of the Kira family, but because the upper Kira family had always been in charge of the public service of the shogunate, the position of the chief was a public servant, so many warriors did not necessarily see their own lord throughout their lives. This is also one of the reasons why the Matsudaira family could develop like a fish in water in Mikawa Province.

  Later, Kiryū Manzaburō's father Kiryū Yoshitaka served the Ashikaga shogunate in Kyoto for a few years. The Imakawa clan, led by Imagawa Ujizane, invaded the Inukai estate in Nishi-Mikawa, which belonged to the Kiryū family. The head of the estate, ōkawachi-shi, and his relatives from the Kogane-shi clan were killed one after another. Although the Kiryū family's Inukai estate was preserved due to Yoshitaka's plea to Ujizane, it was eventually annexed by Imagawa Ujizane in a few years as the Kiryū family declined.

  As the Tokugawa shogunate declined, so did its support for the Kira family. With the rapid deterioration of domestic and foreign politics in Mikawa Province, Kira Yoshinaka changed his long-standing practice of serving in Kyoto to one where he would serve in Kyoto once every three years, staying for only two or three months before returning home. In a flash, more than 30 years passed, and the samurai of Mikawa Province gradually became accustomed to the head of the Kira family being stationed in Mikawa Province year-round.

  PS: In the 18th year of Tenbun, the Great Kanto Earthquake did occur. The "Myoho-ji Record" contains detailed records that Hojo Tokiyori issued a "General Amnesty Edict" to exempt various taxes and labor services. Many castles in the Kanto region were destroyed by the earthquake and rebuilt after the disaster. Due to its influence and intensity, it cannot be compared with the Meiō earthquake, so it is estimated that this earthquake was around 7 levels.