Chapter 1697: Edo Falls in Three Generations

"It really did rain!" Amid the torrential downpour, Yan Guang, Advisor to the Great Han expeditionary force against Japan, murmured in wonder. "Thankfully our troops threw the enemy into chaos before the rain came…"

Before this great battle began, back when they had just landed and were advancing on Yokohama, Yan Guang had already considered the possibility of a sudden downpour during the fight, and had suggested that Zhao Song make certain corresponding deployments. When the battle started, he had been worrying about the weather the entire time.

Fortunately, the heavens proved accommodating. Only after the Great Han army had begun its infantry and cavalry charges, then followed up with a field-artillery bombardment — a three-pronged assault that shattered the shogunate army's battle lines — did the heavy rain finally fall. The downpour posed no obstacle to the Great Han forces, who had already won a major victory; instead, it threw the already-disordered shogunate troops into even greater chaos.

As he spoke, Yan Guang seemed to have a sudden realization and stared at the expedition commander Zhao Song in astonishment.

Could this be why Commander Zhao had been so desperate to force a quick, decisive battle against the shogunate army?

Zhao Song's forward deployments and on-the-spot command just now had been extremely aggressive, and he had forcibly concentrated his forces for a frontal assault on the enemy — this was not Zhao Song's usual style. Earlier, Yan Guang had assumed it was because Zhao Song utterly looked down on the shogunate troops. Now he suspected that Zhao Song had wanted to use full force to crush the shogunate before the weather introduced an element of uncertainty, to avoid trouble dragging on.

Yet although Yan Guang kept stealing glances at Zhao Song, Zhao Song seemed completely oblivious. He simply gazed quietly ahead. The pouring rain drenched his uniform, plastering it to his body and pressing his medals flat against the fabric, but he acted as if nothing were happening.

Because of the heavy rain, the cannons could no longer function, so the artillerymen nearby were doing everything they could to limber the guns back up, preparing to move them to a nearby wood where they could take some shelter from the rain. Although this meant they would be temporarily unable to participate in the battle, their mood was extremely relaxed, for they knew that with the fight already in this state, even if they withdrew from the field now, their army would still achieve total victory. The other advisors and orderlies who had followed Zhao Song and Yan Guang here were all beaming with delight, congratulating one another.

"Send the order! All units are to continue pursuing the enemy. They must overcome every difficulty — under no circumstances can the shogunate army be given a chance to regroup!" In the midst of this relaxed atmosphere, Zhao Song suddenly shouted at the orderlies beside him. "The rain is bad for cavalry movement; the cavalry may temporarily pull back. Once the rain stops, they are to join the infantry in pursuit immediately. No one is permitted to slack off!"

Under his stern, severe shouting, the orderlies tensed up almost simultaneously. They hastily acknowledged the command, then scattered in all directions, running to the various units to relay Commander Zhao's latest order. After the orderlies had left, Zhao Song resumed that wooden, impassive expression of his, as still as an ancient well, as though he had everything perfectly planned.

Now that is the bearing befitting a general of our Great Han. Yan Guang silently praised him.

"Congratulations, Commander Zhao. This great battle is truly a rare major victory since the founding of our nation. On the strength of this battle alone, Commander Zhao's reward of a marquisate is already assured today." Yan Guang drew close to Zhao Song's side, then said in a tone far more relaxed than usual, "Commander Zhao is still so young. If you continue to serve the nation, I'm afraid a dukedom and a marshal's rank are just around the corner…"

"I think so too." Zhao Song suddenly turned his head, and a rare smile appeared on his face.

And in this same torrential rain, Tokugawa Iemitsu was wailing uncontrollably. Not a trace remained of the awe-inspiring authority and arrogance he had once possessed as shogun. Now he seemed so anguished and helpless. This young man, barely thirty years old, should have been in the prime of his strength, with countless grand ambitions to fulfill — yet he had ended up in such a plight.

In just a few short months, he had gone from high-spirited confidence to the utter despair he felt now. He knew that with this defeat, there was no hope left. All his plans had turned to bubbles.

He had made contact with the Great Han several times before, seeking a resolution outside of war, but the Great Han court's attitude was terrifyingly firm. They insisted that he abdicate the position of shogun — and for the shogun of the bakufu, abdication was no different from death.

The rain continued to fall. The icy water seeped through the gaps in his armor into his clothing, making his whole body feel freezing cold.

Routed soldiers from the front lines kept streaming past him, but not a single one stopped to defend their shogun. They simply fled, howling through the heavy rain. His grief and fury reached their peak, and tears streamed endlessly down his face.

Among the close attendants around him, some, sharing his grief and fury, were infected by their lord's state and began to weep loudly as well. Others, seeing how dire the situation had become, simply chose to flee along with the routed soldiers. In such chaos, the total collapse of the shogunate army was only to be expected.

"Lord Shogun… let us… let us leave this place!" One of the attendants beside him could bear it no longer. Summoning his courage, he desperately urged Tokugawa Iemitsu. "The front lines are in complete chaos. The Han invaders might charge straight here. Please, Lord Shogun, preserve yourself!"

Although he did not say outright, "If we don't run now, there won't be another chance!", the implication was abundantly clear.

In normal times, Tokugawa Iemitsu would have flown into a towering rage and severely punished this coward for disrupting morale. But now he had no heart for such things. His army's defeat was so obvious — what use was there in refusing to acknowledge it?

"Run… where could we even run to?" He gave a bleak smile. "With this battle lost, there is no place for me left in this world — and no place for any of you either!"

Tear stains still streaked his face, mingling with the rain and dripping ceaselessly to the ground. The dejection and despair in his expression stirred pity in everyone who saw it.

"My lord… my lord!" The attendants grew frantic. They looked around helplessly but could come up with no plan. The shogun had clearly reached the depths of despair and had entered a state of abandoning everything.

After hesitating a moment longer, and seeing the Great Han army pressing ever closer, the attendants could finally hold back no longer. They forcibly seized Tokugawa Iemitsu and dragged him toward the rear.

With the shogun himself fleeing the battlefield, the fighting became even more one-sided. Nearly all the shogunate troops abandoned resistance and turned to flee rearward. Even the battle lines and units that had not yet engaged in combat no longer had the courage to face the Great Han forces.

Only one shogunate force remained locked in combat with the Great Han army on the front line: Matsudaira Nobutsuna, the shogunate's youngest Elder. Sword in hand, he and his personal attendants and remaining troops stood firm against the Great Han army's vanguard.

When the front line had endured the most brutal bombardment, Matsudaira Nobutsuna himself had been deeply shaken. He had used every means to take cover and barely managed to escape with his life, but his men had suffered severe casualties — the entire battlefield was a scene of flying flesh and blood. The casualties were not the worst blow. When the rain first began to fall, he had been overjoyed, thinking his army had finally seen a glimmer of hope. But that hope was quickly shattered by cruel reality. Under the successive hammer blows of devastating casualties and fierce combat, the shogunate troops on the front line could hold no longer and had begun to flee in rout.

Matsudaira Nobutsuna had wanted to stem the collapse at the front, but no matter how hard he and his attendants tried, these utterly demoralized defeated soldiers had lost all will to resist and thought only of fleeing. They could not be stopped no matter what.

Matsudaira Nobutsuna was now as despairing as everyone else. He understood that the shogunate army had lost this battle — one could even say the entire war was lost. The shogunate had suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Great Han army. Whether the Tokugawa house could even continue to exist was now very much in doubt.

But unlike the wailing Tokugawa Iemitsu, he did not weep, nor did he prepare to turn and flee like the others. Instead, he gripped his weapon tighter and stared fixedly at the Great Han soldiers across from him.

Perhaps because they sensed victory, the Great Han troops did not halt their advance even in the pouring rain. They relentlessly pursued the shogunate forces and soon pressed forward again to where Matsudaira Nobutsuna stood — close enough that he could almost make out every one of their faces.

When they spotted this remnant enemy force, the Great Han soldiers did not pause. They continued their advance at the same steady pace, a thicket of spearpoints thrust before them, every man staring at him with cold indifference.

"Kill!" When the Great Han soldiers had come within mere yards of him, Matsudaira Nobutsuna let out a furious roar. Ignoring the mud that covered the ground, he charged resolutely toward the forest of spears.

With his battle cry and the clash of blades, the shogunate's youngest Elder faded away on that field, becoming just another part of the Great Han soldiers' battle honors.

That very night, amid the miserable wind and rain, Tokugawa Iemitsu and a few of his attendants rode swift horses back to Edo Castle. Compared to how he had looked when he left the city days before, he was now utterly bedraggled, and the great army that had marched out with him had been completely annihilated. His face deathly pale, Tokugawa Iemitsu stole back into the main keep of Edo Castle under cover of darkness.

After Tokugawa Iemitsu returned to Edo, word of the shogunate army's crushing defeat in battle spread like wildfire, casting everyone into deep gloom.

When he returned to the Great Interior, Tokugawa Iemitsu's heart was like dead ashes. Though this was the place where he had lived for so long and knew so intimately, after only a few days away, he felt that everything had changed and all his surroundings were utterly alien.

He stayed in the main hall in a daze, waiting for the moment the Great Han army would storm into Edo Castle — it would likely be only a matter of days before they arrived.

However, late that same night, just as he had barely managed to fall asleep, he heard a commotion outside.

He forced himself up and discovered that his Chief Elder, Doi Toshikatsu, had barged into the hall. Although he had not summoned this important minister upon his return, he supposed the man had come to seek an audience regarding the current state crisis.

But Tokugawa Iemitsu now had not a shred of energy left and felt only utter apathy.

"Go back for now. We will discuss matters tomorrow."

Yet Doi Toshikatsu did not withdraw. Instead, he pressed his head directly to the floor. "Lord Shogun, the situation is now extremely urgent. There is truly no time to delay. I beg you, my lord, to hear me out first!"

"Very well… what is it?" Though utterly exhausted, Tokugawa Iemitsu nodded weakly.

"Lord Shogun, our army has suffered defeat after defeat, and the situation has deteriorated catastrophically. I fear we no longer have the capacity to continue the war against the Great Han…" Doi Toshikatsu kowtowed deeply on the ground and said in a most earnest tone, "I beseech the Lord Shogun, for the sake of preserving the shogunate and preserving the bloodline of the Tokugawa house, to commit seppuku at once!"

When he first heard this, Tokugawa Iemitsu thought he had misheard. He stared at the man in utter disbelief. "What did you say?"

"I beseech the Lord Shogun to commit seppuku at once!" Doi Toshikatsu, however, repeated himself, dispelling Tokugawa Iemitsu's doubts. "My lord, the Great Han now holds the complete upper hand. To preserve the bloodline of the Tokugawa house, we can only act in accordance with the Great Han's demands. Therefore… I beg the Lord Shogun to commit seppuku, so as to placate the hearts of the Great Han sovereign and his ministers!"

Is this the most trusted of my chief ministers? Tokugawa Iemitsu's vision went black, and he nearly fainted again.

"You… you…"

Yet Doi Toshikatsu did not raise his head to meet his gaze. He merely remained kneeling on the floor. Tokugawa Iemitsu lifted his head and saw, through the flickering shadows outside the main hall, numerous armored soldiers moving about. Clearly, while he had been asleep, Doi Toshikatsu had already had his trusted men seize control of the area.

He wouldn't have come in here without absolute certainty. Tokugawa Iemitsu thought to himself.

It seemed that, under these circumstances, this chief minister had already cast aside his loyalty. He intended to use his lord's life as a token to claim credit with the Great Han.

There were a thousand things he wanted to say, but he could not utter a single word. Some he knew would be useless to say; others he was unwilling to voice.

"Have you already reached an agreement with the Han invaders?" he finally asked, his voice trembling. "When did you negotiate this?"

"We had some discussions with the Great Han earlier, but their demands were extremely firm — they insisted that the Lord Shogun must abdicate. Therefore, we could not circumvent this condition." Doi Toshikatsu answered with great deference. "Had my lord been able to win a great victory, I would naturally not have acted rashly. But since the shogunate is now utterly without hope, I believe it is best to act in accordance with the Great Han's will…"

"Do you think… do you think that if I die, the Great Han will simply let you all off?" Tokugawa Iemitsu shot back. "You… you are all guilty ministers who helped bring about this calamity!"

"Naturally, we cannot all escape punishment entirely. Therefore, to bear the responsibility for causing this disaster, the Sakai house and the Honda house must both take the blame…" Doi Toshikatsu remained perfectly composed. "As fudai daimyo and chief ministers of the shogunate, they failed in their duty to properly assist the shogun, to the point that such a heaven-sent calamity was brought about. This is truly an inexcusable offense and must be atoned for with severe punishment!"

Tokugawa Iemitsu now understood — Doi Toshikatsu had evidently already reached some tacit understanding with Great Han in secret. As long as he betrayed him and handed over certain key shogunate ministers to Great Han in apology, Great Han would let him off the hook and pursue the matter no further, perhaps even reward him by letting him keep his high office and rich stipend.

He wanted to curse this shogunate minister, who had received such deep favor from him, as an ungrateful traitor — but when the words reached his lips, he no longer had the spirit to speak them, and he knew too that such curses would be utterly meaningless.

"Great Han… what does Great Han intend to do with the Tokugawa house?"

"Great Han has already stated that they will allow the Tokugawa house to retain its old domains in the Kanto and keep the greater part of the lands it held when the Divine Lord was alive," Doi Toshikatsu answered at once. "Should the Shogun persist in his resistance, then Great Han will have no further reason to spare the Tokugawa house, and the Tokugawa house may face an even more desperate plight… I therefore beg Your Excellency, for the sake of the greater picture, to take your own life without delay!"

Doi Toshikatsu's renewed urging drove the fury in Tokugawa Iemitsu's heart to its very limit. He raised his hand and pointed, trembling, at this traitorous vassal — but in the end he let it fall.

"Once I am gone, the Tokugawa house will have no one left — won't we simply be at the mercy of Great Han and the Imperial Court!" He let out a long sigh.

"That, Your Excellency, is a shortsighted view," Doi Toshikatsu said, directly rebutting Tokugawa Iemitsu's words — a rare thing. "The Shogun is indeed the late Shogun's son by his principal wife, but the late Shogun did not have only one such son. Even if the Shogun is no longer with us, there is still someone who can step forward and bear the great beam of the Tokugawa house. With our assistance besides, and with the Kanto domains in hand, as long as Great Han does not press us relentlessly, preserving ourselves will of course be no problem…"

The moment he heard Doi Toshikatsu subtly alluding to Tokugawa Tadanaga succeeding as head of the Tokugawa house, Tokugawa Iemitsu's eyes flew wide open. He stared at the other man in disbelief.

"You mean to have Tadanaga succeed?!" he bellowed.

"It is not that I wish the Dainagon to succeed — it is that Great Han has agreed that the Dainagon may continue to lead the Tokugawa house," Doi Toshikatsu replied leisurely. Even without seeing his face, one could hear the deep-hidden smile in his words. "Even Lord Naotaka has already consented…"

"Even Ii Naotaka…" Tokugawa Iemitsu was stunned.

Only now did he understand why the great army led by Ii Naotaka had been so slow in coming, never reinforcing the imperiled Edo — he too had long since reached an understanding with Great Han in secret!

A wave of hopeless helplessness suddenly crashed over Tokugawa Iemitsu's heart. He felt as if a weight of a thousand jun pressed upon his chest, and no matter how he tried, he could not draw breath.

"The Shogun now understands the situation, I take it?" At this, Doi Toshikatsu finally raised his head and looked calmly at Tokugawa Iemitsu. "I beg the Shogun to bring no further disgrace upon the honor of the Tokugawa house!"

At his shout, a group of armored warriors burst in and surrounded the entire main hall. They had also seized another person and brought her straight in with them.

"Shogun!" Tokugawa Iemitsu's wet nurse, Kasuga no Tsubone, rushed to his side in tears and threw her arms around him.

You won't even spare her? Tokugawa Iemitsu smiled bitterly.

"Can you spare her life?" he asked Doi Toshikatsu.

"I beg the Shogun to take his own life at once!" Doi Toshikatsu pressed his head to the floor once more, cutting off Tokugawa Iemitsu's last hope.

A single tear suddenly slid from Tokugawa Iemitsu's eye. He looked at his wet nurse and patted her shoulder weakly. "Fuku, I am sorry…"

"Shogun, what have we sons and daughters of the warrior houses to fear!" Kasuga no Tsubone wept even as she urged him on. "I only grieve that beyond the Sanzu River I will no longer be able to look after you…"

"I have grown up. I no longer need looking after." Tokugawa Iemitsu gave one last bitter smile, then took up his sword.

Then, with a long sigh and one more "I am sorry," he drove the blade into his own belly.

The searing pain, far beyond anything he had expected, made his whole body go rigid.

"Be my second!" With the last of his strength, he shouted to Kasuga no Tsubone.