"Your Majesty, there is a method, but I don't know if it's feasible." Takeda Nobuhiro sat up straight and let out a long sigh.
"Speak your mind, or shut up. What are you sighing about?" The big boss's temper was getting increasingly irritable.
"Your Majesty, I believe that the enemy's army has come from afar with the same purpose as our campaign against the Great Xia Dynasty."
"Go on..."
"They come only for women, money, and land. If they want women, we'll give them women; if they want money, we'll give them money; if they want land, we'll give them land."
"We just hope they don't invade Kyoto."
Silence fell once again.
The big boss knelt down and remained silent for a long time.
After a long while, the man finally let out a long sigh: "As long as these guys spare Kyoto and spare this Emperor, we'll give them whatever money they want, however many women they want, and however much land they want."
Nobuhiro Takeda: "Your Majesty, I reckon that ordinary women wouldn't satisfy them."
The big boss: "So what kind of women do you mean to give them?"
"His Majesty the Emperor has eight princesses. Perhaps marrying one of them to them would persuade them to withdraw their troops."
Upon hearing this, the Ōmono-no-suke immediately stood up, rushed in front of Takeda Nobuhiro, and kicked him to the ground.
"You bastard, what are you saying? How can you utter such humiliating and disgraceful words?"
Uesugi Heishin: "Takeda-kun, these princesses are the apple of His Majesty the Emperor's eye. How can they be married off to those barbarians of the Great Xia Dynasty so casually?"
"Uesugi, what do you suggest we do? For now, we can only endure this humiliation and wait for an opportunity to rise up in resistance." Takeda Nobuhiro got up from the ground and knelt down.
"There is a saying in the Great Xia Dynasty: 'A true man is one who can bend and stretch.'"
Before Nobuhiro Takeda could finish speaking, he received a sharp slap across the face.
"Can you bend and stretch? Do you still expect me, the Emperor, to endure humiliation?"
Nobuhiro Takeda did not flinch: "Your Majesty, please hear me out."
"A year ago, in order to improve relations with the Xiongnu on the northern grasslands, the Great Xia Dynasty married their princess to the Xiongnu Chanyu."
"And this tradition has continued for thousands of years."
“Every few years, the Xia Dynasty would marry its princess to the Xiongnu. Only in this way could the two families join forces.”
"However, just one year later, the Great Xia Dynasty was at the height of its power. I heard that they had already reached the Xiongnu royal court and burned it down, along with the sacred site for worshipping Heaven."
Everyone present remained silent.
They all listened intently to Nobuhiro Takeda's speech.
"Our current forbearance and humiliation are for the purpose of being able to kill them in one blow in the future."
"If we only fight to the death now, the enemy will still massacre the city and storm the palace. Your Majesty, do you think you can protect the princesses then?"
Takeda Nobuhiro's words left the other party speechless.
Silence fell over the scene once again.
"Nobuhiro Takeda, you will be in charge of making contact with the people of the Great Xia Dynasty. Make sure you reach an agreement with them; sacrificing a few of my princesses is not out of the question."
"Your Majesty, rest assured, I will do my utmost."
"Your Majesty the Emperor..." Just then, the old eunuch ran over again.
Upon hearing the old eunuch's voice, the emperor's heart tightened: "You old dog, think it over before you speak. If there's any more bad news, I, the emperor, will surely chop off your head."
"Hey..." The old eunuch knelt down on the ground. "Good news, good news! Prince Ono has returned with his men."
Upon hearing this, the Great Lord panicked: "The area outside the city is full of people from the Great Xia Dynasty. If Prince Ono returns now, he will surely fall into their hands."
What should we do?
“Now is not the time for Your Majesty to be fearful,” Nobuhiro Takeda stood up. “I will go and see how to handle this matter.”
“I will go with you. Prince Ono is my only son, and he must not be harmed.”
"If anything happens to Prince Ono, I, the Emperor, will also perish."
Ōmono-no-kami, Uesugi Hyōnobu, Takeda Nobuhiro, and a dozen or so civil and military officials rode straight to the city gate.
When they arrived at the city gate, they climbed directly onto the city wall and stood on tiptoe to look into the distance.
Beneath the city wall.
Prince Ono returned with 10,000 soldiers.
These 10,000 soldiers were all cavalry.
These cavalrymen were all tall and strong, and their warhorses were all Akhal-Teke horses.
Moreover, these cavalrymen carried gleaming sabers on their backs and held muskets in their hands.
Upon seeing this, the owner burst into laughter.
"Heaven has eyes, heaven has eyes! Prince Ono is indeed worthy of being my only son."
Where did he get such a powerful cavalry force?
This cavalry unit is equipped exactly like the cavalry of the Great Xia Dynasty.
Takeda Nobuhiro and his group were also at a loss; they couldn't understand what had happened.
"Your Majesty, Prince Ono has returned, so we can finally rest easy."
"Regardless of where His Highness the Prince brought this elite cavalry unit from, if it can assist us in defending the city, we will have nothing to fear from their attack."
Just then, the sound of horns rang out in the distance.
Han Xin led his cavalry to block the path of Prince Ono and his men.
Xiang Yu and Li Cunxiao stood on the left and right, respectively.
Their tens of thousands of cavalrymen stood ready, swords drawn, each exuding a murderous aura.
The tycoon and his civil and military officials, who had just relaxed, immediately felt their hearts tighten.
"Damn it, what exactly are these people from the Great Xia Dynasty trying to do?"
"If they dare to lay a hand on Prince Ono, I, the Emperor, will risk my life to rush out and fight them."
"Nobuhiro Takeda," the Ōmono-no-shu roared, "gather all the troops in the city, gather all the people, and have them take up arms and come with me to rescue people."
The major owner has already decided to fight to the death.
"Your Majesty, please calm down." Uesugi Heishin quickly stopped the Ōmono-no-kami. "The cavalry of the Great Xia Dynasty have not sounded their horns or their war drums. It is estimated that there will be no conflict between the two sides."
Everyone's eyes were fixed on the distance.
They had no idea what Prince Ono and Han Xin were talking about.
"Whether they fight or not, we must gather the soldiers and civilians. I, the Emperor, cannot allow any accident to happen to Ono."
"Hi..."
Soon, the sound of war drums filled the air.
A series of gong sounds rang out from within the city.
"His Majesty the Emperor has decreed that all people take up arms and prepare for battle."
"With such a large army pressing in, the consequences would be unimaginable if we did not rise up in resistance."
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