Volume 1: The Stormy Island in the River Chapter 8: Military Council of Haitian City

  Li Xiao's words were like a thunderbolt, causing Takeda Shingen's body to tremble. Takeda Shingen's face turned bright red as an idea he had suppressed for a long time suddenly emerged from the bottom of his heart. He buried his head low, with both hands grasping his knees tightly, clearly in the midst of intense mental struggle.

  Li Xiao smiled slightly and said: "Victory relies on the young master, you don't have to answer me in such a hurry, think it over carefully before speaking."

  "No," Takeda Shōryū raised his head and looked straight into Li Xiao's eyes, saying, "My older brother Takeda Yoshinobu does not have the ability to take charge of the Takeda family. If the Takeda family were in his hands, it would likely perish. One day, I will prove to my father and all the vassals that I am more suitable to inherit the Takeda family than Yoshinobu. Therefore, please, sir, you must assist me."

  Li Xiao burst out laughing, got up from the bed, and wearing only his undergarments, spoke solemnly: "Very good, just now if you had hesitated and said something about considering brotherly affection, I would have immediately driven you out of this camp and never bothered with you again. What era are we living in? A chaotic one where the lower classes overthrow the upper! If you still harbor petty-minded thoughts and don't dare to trample on ethics and morality, then you're not worthy of contending for this world!"

  Takeda Shōryū's eyes emitted an eerie glow, and he nodded heavily. His ambition was to take control of the Takeda family, but it had been deeply suppressed until now. Since childhood, his parents and retainers had only told him how to get along with his older brother and fulfill his duties as a retainer. So he had never dared to reveal this idea to anyone, including his uncle or even his closest attendants.

  But this time he finally spoke out his mind, faced his own purpose, and suddenly felt extremely relieved.

  When Takeda Shingen walked out of Li Xiao's camp, he was suddenly filled with confidence after winning over a talent that his father and two uncles valued greatly. He strode along the road with an air of triumph, as if everything in the world was within his grasp, obtainable at will.

  In the tent, Li Xiao put on his clothes and gazed out at the night sky outside the tent, suddenly having a thousand thoughts.

  In history, the successor of Takeda Shingen was not the current favourite of Shingen himself and his vassals, Takeda Katsuyori, but rather this fourth son of Shingen, Takeda Yoshinobu.

  Perhaps this time for Li Xiao is a political investment in future success.

  Eiroku 4, AD 1561, August 29th, Kawajiri Island.

  The Takeda army withdrew from the main camp at Chausuyama and crossed the Chikumagawa River, forming a battle line near Kaizu Castle. Meanwhile, the Echigo army faced the crisis of having their rear route cut off, but still remained stationary, with their commander Uesugi Kenshin seemingly waiting for an opportunity.

  Time was slipping away day by day, and the more calm and composed Takeda army became, the more restless the Uesugi army grew. Ten days passed, and on September 9th, Takeda Shingen convened a military conference with his vassals within the walls of Minowa Castle to decide whether or not to engage in a decisive battle with the Echigo army.

  There were nearly fifty vassals of the Takeda family who participated in this military meeting, all of whom were absolutely trusted by the Takeda family, and Li Xiao was actually personally designated by Takeda Shingen to have the opportunity to participate in the military meeting.

  The meeting place was chosen at the residence of Takasaka Masanobu, the lord of Kaizuka Castle, which is a standard Japanese garden with cherry blossom trees planted all around.

  Lord Takeda Shingen, wearing full armor, sat formally on the tatami mat in the center of the room. Two young attendants stood behind him, one holding his sword and the other holding his helmet.

  To the right of Takeda Shingen were the lords of Kōkōjō Castle, Saka Masanobu, Baba Nobuharu, Imafuku Tsurumatsu and Oyamada Munechika, long-time retainers from Kai Province. To his left were Takeda Nobushige, Takeda Nobuyori, Takeda Yoshinobu, Ichijō Norifusa and Holeyama Michiyo, direct relatives or sons-in-law who formed the "One Gate Crowd".

  Notable among those who followed were the Shinano-based vassals of the Takeda family, who had not been subdued for long and were known as 'Shinano's First Division'. Representatives included Sanada Yukimura, lord of Ueda Castle, and Kiso Yoshimasa, lord of Fukushima Castle.

  When others mentioned Yukimura Sanada, Li Xiao glanced at him several times. Since he was sitting far away, he couldn't see clearly and only vaguely saw that this famous figure in later generations looked like an unassuming old man.

  But Li Xiao thought of his sons and grandsons, and no matter how he looked at it, he felt that the creator of the True Field family had a wild and ambitious appearance.

  Moriyoshi Yoshikane was a Shinano daimyo who, along with Murakami Yoshikiyo, was known for his bravery in the past. He later surrendered to Takeda Shingen's invasion. Although he was not particularly talented, his family background was very prestigious, and his ancestor, Minamoto no Yoshinaka, was one of Japan's most famous military commanders, second only to Minamoto no Yoshitsune.

  These dozen or so people were all senior retainers and generals of the Takeda clan, able to enter the house and sit at ease, sitting on tatami mats made of rush grass, with their knees together and their buttocks resting on their heels, a posture called "seiza". This way of sitting was very popular in China before the Tang Dynasty.

  And Li Xiao still had other Takeda family generals who could only kneel outside the courtyard with a small cushion under them.

  The sliding doors and partitions around the room have been removed, leaving only four pillars. This rather open design is intended to allow the military generals in the courtyard to see and hear all the proceedings of the military council inside the room.

  The Takeda family's renowned vassals all gathered on the scene, including several of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Takeda and twenty-four generals. At this moment, Li Xiao, a collector of warlords, couldn't wait to take out his camera and take a group photo as a graduation photo.

  After all the vassals were seated, the first to speak was Ina Tadatsugu, the mentor of Takeyoshi, the eldest son of Takeda Shingen's trusted minister.

  His face was stern, with a look of not being careless in speech and laughter, and the appearance of not allowing strangers to approach. Under his two thick eyebrows, his eyes revealed an intense gaze that made people feel that he had a bold and rough temperament, and also had a bit of arrogance.

  Tora no Ushiro is under the command of Takeda's family and at the same time commanding the 'Red Armor Cavalry' which is known as the strongest army in the Takeda family.

  "Furichō opened his mouth and said, 'My lord, our army is superior to the Later Lê army in terms of military strength and deployment. If we fear Tr?nh Tùng's strategy and do not take the initiative to attack, we will be ridiculed by the vassals. Therefore, we should launch a surprise attack on the Later Lê army within an hour.'"

  Just after Fu Hu Chang finished speaking, another high-ranking official who was sitting next to him also chimed in: "A prolonged standoff will affect the morale of our soldiers. Moreover, the enemy's supply lines and reinforcements will arrive soon. We should end this battle quickly and boost the army's spirits."

  These two men's consistent views represented the opinions of the Takeda family's heavy ministers, and Hikitsune Takasaka, the lord of Kaizu Castle, and Harutori Shibata, a brave general known as "Oni Mino", also expressed their support for the old generals who had followed Shingen Takeda for a long time.

  The officials continued to discuss and debate, but ultimately decided unanimously to fight a decisive battle against the Later Lê army.

  After the vassals' discussion, Takeda Shingen solemnly made the final decision: "The purpose of this battle is to make the Uesugi family dare not look at my Shinano country again. In other words, we must annihilate this Echigo army here, so I order that tomorrow we will have a decisive battle with the Echigo army."

  Takeda Shingen raised his hand and said, "In battle, a victory rate of over 50% is considered high, over 70% is medium, and 100% is low. Why? Because with a 50% chance of winning, you can inspire your troops to advance, but with a 70% chance, people will become complacent, and with 100%, they will inevitably become arrogant. So we cannot underestimate the enemy just because our army is larger. Uesugi Kenshin is a renowned general who has never lost a battle. Everyone must think that we only have a 50% chance of winning and fight with all their might. Do you understand?"

  "Oh."

  The crowd collectively bowed down, indicating submission.

  At this time a retainer who identified himself as Yamamoto Kan no Suketake was waiting outside the house for an audience.

  Li Xiao's heart skipped a beat when he heard the other person's name, and he straightened up and looked out towards the gate.