Chapter 142 31. It Is Better to Pursue the Enemy with the Remaining Courage

The Sun Tzu-shiru flag and the Suwa-shi Daimyojin flag on the top of Mt. Kurashō were lowered one after another, and the battlefield was full of cheering soldiers of the Yamanouchi army. Shouts of victory surged from one end of the mountain to the other, and the last surviving Takeda clan unit, the Iitomi Hōbō, also lowered the horse flag and quickly evacuated with Iitomi Toramasa and Takeda Taro, breaking away from contact with the Yamanouchi army.

Yoshiharu Yamanouchi accepted the gazes of more than 10,000 people on the battlefield, transformed into a god that everyone was paying attention to, and led his soldiers to an extremely glorious victory. And when he returned to Yamanouchi with his original team, it was no less than a double victory.

He rode a horse, and the white flag representing the direct line of the Seiwa Genji and the two large flags of the Nihiki representing the Kawachi Genji Ashikaga clan were raised high by the flag-bearing samurai. The fluttering horse flag stood in the howling north wind, indicating that Yoshiharu Yamanouchi finally won the final victory in the Battle of Uedahara.

Yoshiharu Yamauchi, under the protection of more than a dozen elite hatamoto samurai, slowly patrolled the battlefield. He enjoyed the admiration of the soldiers and also felt the heavy losses.

The entire battlefield was a hell of Shura at this time, with thousands of corpses of both sides falling to the ground in various states. The ownerless warhorse neighed slightly, the broken swords and guns were stained with blood, and wailing and screaming came from time to time. The whole Uedahara showed the cruelty of the war. This bloodthirsty monster once again devoured thousands of good lives. With countless blood and fat, the earth under his feet was moistened, pushing the wheel of history forward.

Yoshiharu Yamauchi looked at the samurai, public servants, and foot soldiers he once knew with a sad face, falling on the ground with a little residual snow, the dirty mud and blood mixed together, and the loyal and brave soldiers of the Yamauchi army fell one after another on the way to attack Takeda's main camp.

At this time, the joy of victory of Yamanouchi Yoshiharu had long been diluted. He suddenly saw a seriously injured foot soldier leader, and he was quite impressed, so he quickly jumped off his horse.

The foot soldier leader had a long arrow stuck in his chest, but it was not a fatal wound. After all, the armor on the samurai still had some defensive power, and the main wound was elsewhere. A foot soldier next to him was trying to help him stop the blood flowing from his waist.

Yamanouchi Yoshiharu remembered that this was Murakami Yoshihira from Murakami Township, Gengji County, although his ancestors and Murakami Aikuni were considered to be of the same clan. It was also one of the big families from the Murakami clan in Shinano, but the Murakami family was extremely fertile, and there were Murakami's illegitimate descendants from Echigo to Mikawa, which was nothing compared to the powerful and powerful Murakami Yoshikiyo with 80,000 kan.

This Murakami Yoshihira was just a foot soldier leader with only 60 kan, at the bottom of the samurai class, and only brought 45 long-legged foot soldiers to fight on the right wing in the assault team of Uncle Tsunayoshi.

Such low-level samurai are the real situation of most samurai. Their salary is neither small nor rich. They practiced various martial arts since childhood, including swords, guns, clubs, bows and arrows, horsemanship, climbing, and swimming. They worked hard for big and small masters for more than ten years. They led dozens of foot soldiers to fight in battles, and served as grassroots officers, charging in front and retreating in the back. If they could make achievements in capturing and killing enemy generals, they would have a chance to stand out, but most of them were just like this Murakami team leader, who fell on the battlefield in obscurity and was gradually forgotten by later generations.

Yamauchi Yoshiharu gently helped the foot soldier team leader up and told people to find his doctor quickly. This Murakami Yoshihira had been his guard foot soldier when he was young, and they had a marriage relationship. Whether it was a woman's kindness or respect for the virtuous, Yamanouchi Yoshiharu couldn't watch an old acquaintance die so miserably in front of him.

The samurai named Murakami Yoshihira obviously knew that he was out of trouble. Seeing his immediate superior, he used all his strength to hold Yamauchi Yoshiharu's hand tightly and refused to let go. Blood kept flowing out of his mouth. Yamauchi Yoshiharu asked him to stop talking. The man pointed at the foot soldier who was accompanying him.

Everyone realized that it was a very young boy with a childish face. It was only because he was tall that everyone didn't notice his youth. At this time, the boy's face was full of tears. He called his father softly and choked.

Even in this situation, who can't see that this is a father and son, "What's your name?" Yamauchi Yoshiharu's face was sad.

"My name is Yoshimitsu." The foot soldier answered intermittently.

"From now on, you will be promoted from the foot soldiers to the hatamoto soldiers. I will give you a 100-kan annual salary. Your father fought bravely and was loyal and brave. He should not have a crying son!" Just as Yamauchi Yoshiharu finished speaking, the samurai finally took his last breath with a smile on his face.

"Be careful with your father, and then go to report to Zixiaoji Saemon-no-e." The young samurai named Murakami Yoshimitsu nodded seriously.

Yamauchi Yoshiharu walked slower and slower, and kept stopping. From Chanchuan to Cangsho Mountain, there were corpses of Yamauchi soldiers along the way. He saw countless familiar faces, which were once so vivid and beautiful. Now all that is left is gray and blood red. The gray is the face that once admired him so much, and the blood red is the shiny and bright armor. One by one, the loyal soldiers have lost their precious lives and died for him, Yamauchi Yoshiharu.

Yamanouchi Yoshiharu climbed up Mt. Kurasho, and a group of Yamanouchi clan's famous ministers and generals came up to him, happily wishing him a long military career.

Yamauchi Yoshiharu sat on Takeda Harunobu's stool with an expressionless face, and ordered the Yamanouchi generals to dispatch soldiers to chase and kill the fleeing soldiers of the Takeda army and the fleeing Takeda clan samurai, and encouraged the nearby villages to carry out samurai hunting and set up a reward.

The village chiefs of more than a dozen villages near the Uedahara battlefield had already prepared contributions from the victors. Seeing that the battlefield had calmed down a little, they all plucked up their courage, and dozens of farmers from all over the country carrying muddy wine, rice balls, pickled radishes, and fruits came to see Yamanouchi Yoshiharu.

Yamanouchi Yoshiharu solemnly received these humble farmers who came to congratulate the victors, and promised that he would never launch random capture and hunting in their villages. The farmers and village chiefs from these nearby villages knelt on the ground with thousands of thanks, praising Yamanouchi Yoshiharu and his majestic army with all the words they could think of. Yamanouchi Yoshiharu listened to the group, showed his authority as the new lord, and waved his hand to let these village chiefs leave. These people immediately faced Yamanouchi Yoshiharu, bowed and left the tent.

The Battle of Uedahara ended, and the Yamanouchi family achieved an unprecedented glorious victory.

Yamauchi Yoshikatsu was still upset about not being able to kill Takeda Harunobu in battle: "Father, you must not hesitate, you must take advantage of the victory to attack Suwa Kai. If you don't kill the tiger, you will be bitten back!"