Swallow Back

It seems to be Masatoshi Hashisuka under the command of Tokichiro Kinoshita, and a team of men he brought.

A thin woman in white was sitting alone in the corridor, her face was haggard and her steps were vain, but her eyes were full of hope and happiness.It is Mrs. Iori, the widow of the Sasaki family.

There is also a blue-clothed samurai with a livid face, Hayami Kiyobei, who is also a retainer of Sasaki's family, and seems to be arguing with Mrs. Iori.

Eguchi Sukezaemon felt that the atmosphere was not right, he first whispered the identities of the people inside to Liu Yun, and then he entered the door and said, "Madam, the monk with the dharma name "Liu Yun" behind the lower body is the Sasaki family back then. The second son who was sent to the temple, please come back now, enough to inherit the family business! I don’t know what instructions Mr. Hashisuka has come here today, just to be a witness.”

As soon as these words came out, Mrs. Iori's expression relaxed, she breathed a sigh of relief, and her body almost fell to the ground.

The smile on Hashuka Masataka's face remained unchanged, his eyes rolled, but he didn't speak rashly.

Only that Suishui Kiyobei ​​immediately reacted, approached suspiciously and asked, "What a coincidence? Can Eguchi Palace really confirm it? Don't make a mistake!"

"Huh?" Eguchi Sukezaemon didn't understand the meaning of his colleague's words, and felt a little vigilant in his heart, looked around, and said cautiously: "Please rest assured, Sushui Temple, this is a month's effort, asking the locals all over, going around. Many circles have worked hard to find it. Didn’t our Sasaki family send our second son to Enjoji Temple in Kyoto? After the Enjoji Temple was burnt down, we went to Ozhou with Zen Master Shunshan…”

"Since we have gone around many circles, how can we guarantee that it is true? What if there is a mistake in the middle?" Hayami Kiyomi seized the loophole in the words, and suddenly interrupted: "15 years ago, it was my father who followed The previous generation of lords went to Yuancheng Temple with the young lord at that time, and left three personal tokens as souvenirs, if they are really the heirs of the Sasaki family, they should be able to show those three tokens."

"Uh..." Eguchi Shouzaemon was at a loss for words and could only turn his head to look at Liu Yun.

Liu Yun didn't take it seriously, and shook his head bluntly: "Sorry, I fell ill and lost my memory a few years ago. I forgot everything in my childhood, and naturally I don't remember the token.

This is not a lie. Since there is no memory inherited during time travel, it can only be interpreted as amnesia.

He thought for a while, remembering that the clothes, shoes, and saber all over his body were all new items he bought in recent years.

Otherwise, if the other party asks some detailed questions, they will definitely not be able to answer them.

"Illness and amnesia?" Shushui Qingbingwei frowned and shook his head: "Jiangkou Hall, I'm not doubting you, but this Master Liu Yun's words are too suspicious, you have to be careful not to be deceived!"

"Uh..." Having said this, Eguchi Sukezaemon gave in half a step, lowered his head and barely discerned: "Why didn't you tell me about the three tokens earlier... But at least there are the seals, cassocks, wooden fish and handwritten scriptures of Zen Master Shunshan. The text and the like can never be fake.”

"That can only show that this Master Liuyun is related to Zen Master Shunshan, but it is not enough to prove that he was the second son of the Sasaki family." Hayami Kiyobei ​​said solemnly: "Since he is a retainer of the Sasaki family, he cannot let his identity be allowed. Suspicious people inherit the family business."

"This... It's too much to say that it is suspicious! I think at least [-]% sure that Master Liuyun is the son of the Sasaki family!" Eguchi Sukezaemon seemed to be a little embarrassed and angry: "It's your Hayami, it seems that you don't care about yourself anymore. Are you a member of the Sasaki family?"

"Such a quarrel is a waste of words." Hayami Kiyobei ​​shook his head and ignored Eguchi to help Zaemon, but pointed his finger at Liu Yun: "It doesn't matter if it's true or not. Just look at the monk's appearance, as if he could The person who undertakes the family business? As the heir of the samurai family, I have the obligation to gather soldiers in the village, follow Kinoshita-sama on the expedition, and then make achievements in the joint battle, which is enough to win the lintel."

These remarks are the most mainstream values ​​of this era, and no one can refute it.

Eguchi Sukezaemon was speechless, and subconsciously shrank his shoulders, lacking in confidence.

What the other party said was not wrong.

The authenticity of the identity can still be discussed, but there is no doubt that monks who have not learned the way of swords, guns, bows and horses are definitely not suitable to be the heirs of the samurai family.

However, when Liu Yun heard this, there was no fluctuation in his heart, and he even wanted to laugh a little.

Hayami Kiyobei ​​gained the upper hand, so he had to be unreasonable.Seeing Liu Yun's relaxed expression, he immediately caught fire. He pointed at the saber on Liu Yun's waist, and said contemptuously, "This monk of unknown origin, holding a low-quality sword made by a Murano blacksmith, thinks he can become a samurai? In the temple You may be able to learn a few tricks, but you will definitely not be able to learn the skills of swords and bows! With all due respect, I don’t see the heroic spirit of any martial artist in you. Although you have a sword in your hand, Do you know how to pull out a knife? I'm afraid you haven't even killed a pheasant or a hare!"

Hayami Kiyobei ​​was aggressive, and his fingers were about to poke Liu Yun's face.

Iori squeezed the placket tightly with both hands, and her face was pale again, almost bloodless.

Eguchi Sukezaemon's face was red but he was speechless.

Hashisuka Masataka still squinted his eyes and wandered, neither stopping nor interfering.

At this time, Liu Yun was neither angry nor fearful, but suddenly smiled.

Indeed, as the other party said, the knife in his hand is just a common product made by an ordinary blacksmith in the countryside, and it is not worth a lot of money.

But whether a weapon is powerful is not only determined by the craftsman and material, but also depends on who is in the hands.

"What an arrogant monk! You're actually laughing at this time! Don't underestimate the family of the Wu family! Those of us who have knives, we have to maintain our lives with our lives hanging..."

Facing the chattering Hayami Kiyobei, Liu Yun's arm moved.

Then, everyone present only saw that the white light suddenly flashed and disappeared in an instant.

Then a few strands of black hair floated in the air.

Hayami Kiyobei ​​was instantly horrified, and quickly touched his head with both hands, stunned and speechless.

He turned out to have the typical moonlight head of a samurai, with his forehead shaved and the rest pulled up in a bun.

But now even the left and right sides have been cut off at the same root, becoming more than half of the bald head, with only a small clump of hair left on the back of the head.

Just now, Liu Yun gave him a quick haircut on his temples with lightning speed.

Now Hayami Seibei's "haircut" looks like the monk he looked down on in his words just now.

On the contrary, Liu Yun, because it has been determined to return to the vulgarity, has not shaved his hair in the past few days, and has grown full of black sprouts, and there is still more hair.

Hayami Seibei has turned into a wooden man.

He only saw a flash of white light just now, and only felt that his head was cold, and his hair was gone.

This lightning-fast shot, the precision of severing the roots!

If the target is not the hair, but the neck...

At this time, Liu Yun calmly put away the sword and smiled: "The inferior sword made by this country blacksmith, in my hands, can probably kill a pheasant and a hare."

Hayami Kiyobei ​​is already dumbfounded and his liver and gallbladder are torn apart, how can he still answer?

Mrs. Iori and Eguchi Sukezaemon were also speechless.

The old monk Xinghe and the young monk Suifeng were accustomed to it and were not surprised, but they didn't have any sense of existence standing aside.

Masakatsu Hashisuka, who had been sitting upright, gradually changed his expression.Instead of squinting and pretending to be wandering, it was replaced by seriousness and solemnity.

It even contains a bit of an emotion similar to fear and similar to fear.

His martial arts and eyesight are obviously higher than those of Hayami Kiyobei ​​and Eguchi Sukezaemon. He probably saw more details and more clearly about the knife just now.

"Lord Liuyun's martial arts are really brilliant..." Masayoshi Hashisuka stood up straight and spoke slowly, word by word, as if he was afraid of ambiguity: "With the ability of Lord Liuyun, there is no need to pretend to be Sasaki. The descendants of the family have come to plot the territory of a village in this area, so there must be no doubt that he is the real heir, and there is no need to argue about this matter."

"Then thank you Hashisuka-sama." Liu Yun bowed his head and bowed to show courtesy.

"No, no!" Masayoshi Hashuka bowed deeply and bowed in a serious manner, and then respectfully added: "I came out this time to inspect the land and military service, please flow. Master Yun, as the head of the Sasaki family, will bring soldiers to Yokoyama Castle to assemble within three days, and Master Tokichiro Kinoshita must be looking forward to meeting you."

"Understood." Liu Yun nodded.

"Then, I still have a task at hand, so don't bother!" After speaking, Hashisuka Masakatsu quickly withdrew with twenty Ashigaru, his movements were unusually brisk.

Hayami Kiyobei ​​stayed for a long time, struggling to squeeze out a few words: "Under... I seem to have relapsed from an old injury just now, please forgive me... Please forgive me for going home for a few days of recuperation..."

Chapter 4 The second son of the Sasaki family

Liu Yun went to the door to see off the guests, and watched Hashuka Masakatsu's back quickly disappear from sight.

Then Hayami Seibei ran out in despair.

Looking back again, seeing Mrs. Iori Yingying approaching, she bowed her knees and said, "It's fortunate that Master Liuyun is here today! Otherwise, I don't know what happened. This is really the good fortune of the Sasaki family, and it's also the luck of the concubine. "

She smiles and speaks with ease, and she does have the temperament of a mistress.But her voice and movements are very elegant and soft, and they have the gentle and cowardly look of everyone.

When Liu Yun saw Iori's demeanor, he smelled a faint fragrance in his nose, and suddenly an inexplicable strange feeling arose in his heart, and he had to back away unconsciously.

Immediately felt inappropriate again, and immediately put away his feet.

He is skilled in martial arts and has far more control over his body than ordinary people. This hesitation was quickly obscured.

In fact, for a man, it was originally a pleasant thing to receive the admiration and gratitude of a beautiful woman.

But Iori is not a blind and ignorant Shaoai, but a woman with mature experience. The admiration and gratitude in her eyes seem not so simple, but carry a certain weight of responsibility.

Moreover, theoretically speaking, the other party is the widow of the deceased brother, and he is the last brother who has not seen him for many years. This kind of relationship is a bit sensitive when he thinks about it. Liu Yun subconsciously thinks that it is better to keep a distance.

At this time, Eguchi Sukezaemon finally reacted from his shock, and he rushed over and knelt on the ground, so excited that he burst into tears: "So did Master Liuyun learn such a brilliant martial art from Zen Master Shunshan? It seems Sasaki Not only is the family not extinct, but it will be revived soon! That fellow Hayami Kiyobei ​​is so ridiculous! Ugh... The First Lord... If the First Lord knew about it, he would be relieved!"

"Master Beesuka is a well-informed person. Since he said that just now, I believe that Master Liuyun will definitely honor the lintel of Sasaki's house." Iori smiled along the topic and said: "Master Liuyun Even if you are not in the Sasaki family, you can still achieve success. But if the Sasaki family does not have Liu Yun to inherit, I am afraid that there is no hope of revitalization at all... In this way, it is really our three lives to be able to welcome Liu Yun. ."

"Yeah! Yeah! I think so too!" Eguchi Sukezaemon seemed to lack vocabulary, but kept nodding in response, eagerly pulling Liu Yun's sleeve, tearful and excited.

Liu Yun suddenly felt a little awkward.

Although he does have this plan, he hopes to rely on martial arts to earn fame and improve his life.What Eguchi Sukezaemon said was exactly what he meant.

But the problem is that the other party is a rough man!

If the admiration of a beautiful woman is both comfortable and a little stressful, then the admiration of a middle-aged rough man is not comfortable at all, only pressure and discomfort.

As a single low-level samurai, Eguchi Sukezaemon's hygiene habits are obviously not much better.This pounced over to kneel down, sweat and tears couldn't help but stick to Liuyun.

From the perspective of a traveler, it is really greasy and unsightly.

However, this guy is commendable for his loyalty, diligence and loyalty, and is a good retainer. At this time, he is excited and weeping for the future of the main family, and it is not easy to directly dismiss him.

Liu Yun coughed, took a step back calmly, and changed the subject: "Let's get down to business! Just now, Beesuka said that he would lead troops to Hengshan Castle to assemble within three days. What is the situation in Sasaki Village now? Is there a population of Tianmu? Is it clear? Are there enough troops? Is there enough money?"

"Ah, yes! What Liuyun-sama said is serious business!" Although Eguchi Sukezaemon knew it was serious business, he couldn't answer the question. He got up and took two steps back, and let Mrs. Iori explain.

This reaction was to be expected.

In fact, I had nothing to do for the past few days on the way here, and Liu Yun had been looking for Eguchi to help Zaemon to understand the situation of the territory.

But this guy is a typical uneducated country warrior. His eloquence is very bad. He doesn't understand arithmetic at all. He can only say "there are hundreds of people in the village, most of them are farming, and half are fishing". When asked about numbers Just dumbfounded.

Seeing this, Mrs. Iori didn't hold back at all, she pursed her lips and smiled, and she was about to speak.

Eguchi Sukezaemon glanced at the old monk Xinghe and the young monk Suifeng next to him, and his eyes were a little unclear.

When Iori saw it, he smiled lightly, and said warmly, "These two masters want to be very close to Liuyun-sama, and that is the Sasaki family's own people. Please discuss it together."

Eguchi Sukezaemon suddenly blushed and bowed his head silently.

Liu Yun couldn't help but glance at the woman.

Then Iori started talking.

She looked like a timid and weak little woman, but when she opened her mouth, she spoke in a well-organized manner.It doesn't seem verbose at all, but it doesn't miss any important information.

"The Sasaki family has been operating here for about 200 years, and now it is a large village with nearly 240 households. Two-thirds of them are engaged in agriculture, with 130 rice fields and 120 rice fields; the rest are on Lake Biwa. There are [-] fishermen with [-] large and small boats in total. According to the usual practice, about [-] stones of brown rice are harvested every year, and the aquatic crops are converted into over a hundred. In the past, under the Asai clan, military service was stipulated as one warrior on horseback and ten warriors on foot , [-] people in ashigaru. These are recorded in the previous documents."

After hearing this, Liu Yun couldn't help but nodded in satisfaction: "The data is very detailed! Mrs. Iori is really good at running the family. So, the Sasaki family can mobilize more than 100 people?"

"This——" Iori hesitated for a moment, lowered his head and sighed, raised his arms to cover his mouth with his sleeves, and gave a wry smile: "It's so in writing. But in the past, our master, Mr. Asai, always set military service very seriously. The number is high, but the inspection is actually neglected. It is said that there are 120 people, most of the time only half, or even a third can be fooled."

It turned out to be the case, it seems that the "empty pay" is really a matter of ancient and modern China and foreign countries.No wonder Asai couldn't beat Oda.

——Liu Yun had this thought in his heart, and then asked: "According to Mrs. Iori's intention, how many people can the Sasaki family actually mobilize?"

"In the past few years, mobilizing 80 to [-] people at a time did not cause any trouble." Yi Zhimian apologized: "However, the joint battle suffered a disastrous defeat at the beginning of the year, and the village was tortured by the rout after that, so I don't know much about myself. How many young people can use now..."

"Well..." Liu Yun felt that these words were in line with what he saw when he came, so he frowned slightly, but he didn't take it too seriously.

"Actually, there is no need to worry about the number of Ashikaga." Iori continued to add: "The treasury and granary are still adequate, and the weapons are barely enough. After all, there are [-] villagers in the village, and there are [-] people who can be drawn no matter what. But The samurai can't do anything about it. The Sasaki family originally had seven official retainers, but three were killed in the last battle, and the two are missing... Several families are either young or childless, and now the only one left is Only Eguchi Sukezaemon and Hayami Seibei are the only two, Liuyun-sama, you have seen them all."