Warring States Survival Guide-Chapter 215 - 150 Negotiation

Both sides approached the peace talks with extreme caution, primarily out of fear that the other might set an ambush, as the matter of negotiation itself held little new—after all, the real bargaining had already been settled on the battlefield.

The main reason Toya Hongtong sought a face-to-face meeting was to see Nozawa with his own eyes, and judge his character personally.

After a day’s communication, at dawn the next day, Toya Hongtong, Asahina Taisuke, and Yakai Chiyomoto brought twenty attendants to a flat area near the center of the battlefield, slightly to the east. At the same time, Nozawa set out from the breach in the Yang Wall with Ah Man, Ah Qing, and twenty followers.

The two sides met at the agreed location, where their attendants set down bamboo mats, tables, food, and sake. After mutually inspecting each other, the attendants withdrew to the prescribed distance as previously arranged, and only then did the principals step forward; per the agreement, neither side carried strong bows, iron cannons, or tachi—only ceremonial weapons were worn.

The two parties took their seats, east and west, and after brief self-introductions, proceeded to size each other up.

Nozawa had been fighting these opponents for over a month, and this was his first time seeing the enemy’s three leading generals. Asahina Taisuke and Yakai Chiyomoto were both in their prime, around thirty-something, a little over 1.5 meters tall—short and stout, heads shaved in the traditional chonmage style—wholly typical, old-school Japanese Samurai. Of the two, Asahina Taisuke carried a more refined demeanor, while Yakai Chiyomoto’s broad, sharply-angled face gave him a stern air.

Toya Hongtong, on the other hand, was in his fifties, stood under 1.5 meters tall, wore the same hairstyle as Asahina and Yakai, had a long goatee, and though unarmored, exuded less the aura of a Samurai and more of a scholar.

Nozawa scrutinized the three men. Of course, Toya Hongtong’s status was the loftiest—as the brother-in-law of the foremost protector Daimyo of the age, he was respected wherever in Japan he went. But Nozawa’s focus was different: his attention was largely on Yakai Chiyomoto—this man was likely kin to the future Yakai Chosuke, acclaiming himself later as "First of Tokugawa’s Four Guardian Generals," "Second Minister of Tokugawa," and "Elder of the Tokugawa Realm." Whether he was an elder or younger cousin, Nozawa could not say.

Of course, at the present moment, Yakai Chosuke was of no consequence.

At this time, Tokugawa Ieyasu was "studying abroad" at Shimizu Castle of the Imagawa family in Shizuoka, subject to the discipline and tutelage of Taiyuan Xuezhai at Linji Temple; even his name was not yet Tokugawa Ieyasu but probably Takechiyo or Matsudaira Mototaka—the very one sent to Imagawa as a hostage, only to be kidnapped en route and sent to Oda Nobuhide. Later, Taiyuan Xuezhai led seven thousand men to seize Anxiang City, capturing Oda Nobunaga’s eldest illegitimate son; Oda Nobuhide then traded this Takechiyo to ransom his eldest son home.

Ah Man had once fiercely denounced this transaction as a lousy deal—a bumpkin’s illegitimate son could never be worth as much as the Matsudaira family head. Moreover, there are those BL manga popular in later times depicting "young-love" (and homoerotic hijinks) between the young Oda Nobunaga and Takechiyo (Tokugawa Ieyasu)—one glance at which had sickened Nozawa for days, leaving a lasting impression.

So, at this time, Yakai Chosuke should be serving alongside Tokugawa Ieyasu (Takechiyo, Matsudaira Mototaka), also in Shimizu Castle, a total nobody; and his relative Yakai Chiyomoto likewise was little known, a minor figure at best. However, if Nozawa managed to stay on Chita Peninsula, someday he’d be Tokugawa’s neighbor, certain to deal with the Yakai Clan frequently—that’s why he paid extra attention now.

As Nozawa studied the Yakai Chiyomoto trio, they in turn were sizing him up. He lived up to his reputation as a "Brave General"—he was certainly big, if not the giant rumored to be two meters tall, still, at 1.8 meters he towered over this age’s standards, giving serious presence across the table from two men a bit over 1.5 meters and another just over 1.4 meters.

Nozawa’s face, however, was not the brutish mug they expected; rather, he had about thirty percent good looks, a gentle and amiable bearing—not someone who’d risk life and limb in frenzied combat.

Yet his bravery could hardly be trifling—arriving at a parley with just two young samurai (who looked eighty percent like maids in disguise) showed absolute confidence in his martial arts and skills.

The four regarded each other in silence for a time. At last, the first to break was Asahina Taisuke, who said bluntly: "Lord Nozawa, the situation is quite clear—your defeat is inevitable. We urge you to withdraw honorably now; we guarantee there will be no pursuit!"

Nozawa said nothing. He was never quick with words, nor was he a brawler—his habit, since youth, had been to resolve disputes physically, so expert debater Ah Man immediately spoke up, scoffing, "Withdraw honorably? Try saying that after you storm the walls, shit-for-brains!"

"Insolent!" Asahina Taisuke was furious; never had he expected a mere stand-in maid to butt in, and he slammed the table, rising to his feet.

"Insolent your ass, you dung beetle!" Ah Man was equally unfazed, standing up and jabbing a finger at him, "If you can’t stand it, come and... If you’re not convinced, let’s have it out—just the two of us!"

She was scared, too; with all her hard-won resources burned in the war, her heart ached at the thought of going on. Still, in a negotiation, show of strength mattered—never lose face, even if you lose the fight. One-on-one, she’d dare challenge Asahina Taisuke; maybe not in real combat, since her skills were middling (unless she used an iron cannon for a sneak attack). She could always send Ah Qing, who was trained in the Mountain Concealment Technique—specifically meant for killing heavily armored warriors, which gave her a reasonable chance against Taisuke.

Asahina Taisuke was hardly eager to fight either, but he wouldn’t back down on momentum; hand on sword hilt, he was about to retort when Yakai Chiyomoto stopped him. Speaking coolly to Nozawa, he said, "Lord Nozawa, Anxiang City fell to us—we can just as easily take your castle. Please reconsider; this is your last chance."

Anxiang City was the anchor of Western Sanhe, a grand fortress with walls no lower than the ones Nozawa had hurried together, and over a thousand defenders. Once, the "Tiger of Owari" Oda Nobuhide had dominated Western Sanhe through it, but Taiyuan Xuezhai took it in a single offensive with seven thousand men, storming the walls by building earthworks, and repelled Oda Nobuhide’s relief. The final tally: over two thousand from the Oda Family killed or captured, for Imagawa’s loss of merely fifteen or sixteen hundred—a resounding victory.

The implication: Imagawa’s current efforts were not even close to their limit. If Shizuoka mobilized for real, another seven thousand could be sent to crush Nozawa with ease. Even with six thousand, Nozawa had struggled—losing the Yang Wall. If Imagawa sent in seven thousand more, doom was certain.

Nozawa pressed down Ah Man, ignoring the threat. He replied gravely, "So, your plan is to muster a full-scale mobilization to attack a minor local clan in Chita County? If you’re not embarrassed by that, I’m happy to entertain you—by all means, come!"

Yakai Chiyomoto fell silent. With Nozawa’s stubbornness, only pulling a small force from Shizuoka would do little. Mobilizing thousands over such a distance just to stomp out a minor clan and seize a worthless wasteland was truly senseless—if Nozawa changed his mind once the army arrived, broke out to the port and cleared a channel to escape, Imagawa would be the laughingstock of Japan. Especially on the eve of their planned march to Kyoto, they could not risk this embarrassment.

At the same time, the Imagawa family was busy settling internal feudal affairs, to make sure nothing threatened their home base during the westward march. Taiyuan Xuezhai’s health was also delicate—hardly the best timing for large-scale warfare.

Still, they could not yield on face—so Yakai released his grip on Asahina Taisuke, signaling him to continue arguing, but then Toya Hongtong finally spoke. Waving his hand, he said, "Enough, enough—we all know the situation; let’s not waste words on this."

The room fell silent. The mutual posturing and tough talk were over—pointless, perhaps, but this was just how negotiations went in these times.

Toya Hongtong mused for a while, then addressed Nozawa: "Lord Nozawa, are you truly unwilling to reconsider yesterday’s proposal?"

"My apologies, I am not in a position to join the Imagawa family," Nozawa replied politely. "In my fall from grace, Oda Shogun assisted me greatly—so I will not attack the Oda Dan Zhengzhong family of my own accord."

He would not serve as anyone’s ’client vassal’—he just put it more politely.

Toya Hongtong thought a moment, then added, "Perhaps Lord Nozawa is unaware—over twenty days ago, the ’Kō-Sō-Jun’ Three Kingdoms allied by marriage, becoming one family. Therefore...we cannot permit you to reside here. I trust you understand?"

The best way to reach Kyoto in these times was along the Sanhe–Owari–Omi corridor; Chita Peninsula blocked the southern approach from Sanhe into Owari—a hard route. If anyone seized the whole Chita Peninsula, they could sever this vital path at will. Nozawa understood this, but had not expected the "Kō-Sō-Jun" Three Kingdoms Alliance to have already been formed—he knew this was a precondition for Imagawa’s march to Kyoto, as they would not dare leave Shizuoka if their rear was unstable. But he didn’t know exactly when this had happened, nor could he even recall the timing of the "Battle of Okehazama."

But it was hard to blame him—prior to traveling through time, who bothers memorizing trivial details?

For example, who remembers what year the Wuchao battle took place, or how many people were involved?

Still, now Nozawa understood why the Imagawa family was willing to pay such a price in blood to defeat him—Imagawa could march on Kyoto at any time after years of preparation, and feared someone might block the road, or cause trouble along the way. Best to eliminate such risks early.

But since Taiyuan Xuezhai was still alive and the "Kō-Sō-Jun" Alliance only just formed, perhaps it was still not time for Imagawa to go to Kyoto. Did they not know when to proceed? Or were they waiting for some signal? Or was it that the pillar of Imagawa—their military advisor Taiyuan Xuezhai—was about to die, and after his death the Imagawa family would fall into turmoil, delaying the march?

Nozawa’s mind spun rapidly, analyzing the situation, only to realize things were worse than expected—by accident, he’d become embroiled in Imagawa’s "Kyoto campaign," at the very least considered a major nuisance because of it.

But he could do nothing about that. He hadn’t anticipated the Three-Kingdoms Alliance would already be concluded. All he could do was reiterate his sincerity: "My previous promise still stands—I have no intent to oppose the Imagawa family. Until you vacate Chita County, I will not attack any Imagawa faction, nor interfere with your march to Kyoto."

The problem circled back to its origin: how could they be sure Nozawa would not stir up trouble on Chita Peninsula?