I stood.
The movement felt significant and formal.
When Father stood from the throne, it meant he was about to render judgment, make a decree. It signaled an end to all debate, an Imperial proclamation.
“General Yamada,” I said, and was grateful my voice remained steady despite the fury churning in my chest. “You say we should move quickly to secure villages and sever supply lines by blade and flame. Tell me—when we burn the first village that refuses to declare loyalty, where do those people go?”
He hesitated. “They . . . they scatter. Flee into the mountains.”
“To join Asami forces,” I finished. “We would create more of the very enemies we are trying to prevent. We would turn uncertain villagers into active opponents. We would give Eiko more soldiers, more scouts, more people with new reasons to hate the Empire. Is that correct?”
His jaw tightened, but he nodded stiffly. “Hai,Heika, I believe it is so.”
“Grand Minister,” I continued, turning to my eldest uncle, who led domestic and diplomatic efforts. “You advocate caution and negotiation, but time is our foe. Asami forces are already on the move. Every day we delay preparing our defenses and securing our supply routes is another day they gain ground. Is that also correct?”
“Yes,Heika,” he said quietly.
I looked at the map, at the thin line representing the Shirakami Pass threading through the mountains. It was a potential lifeline if we could secure it, a potential disaster if we could not.
“We will not burn villages,” I said firmly. “We will not make war on our own people.”
Rei’s face darkened, and I saw him opening his mouth to object.
“Asami Eiko-samaseeks for us to become like her,” I continued, cutting him off. “She executed Toshi DaikiDaimyopublicly, brutally, because she wants us to respond with brutality. She wants us to burn villages and create martyrs. She wants us to act like monsters so she can point to us and say, ‘See? The Empire is no different than we are.’ We willnotgive her that satisfaction. We will not arm her with the weapon of our own destruction.”
“ButHeika—” Ryuji started.
“But,” I said, raising a hand to still theDai Shogun’s tongue, my voice hardening, “the generals are correct in that we cannot afford lengthy negotiations. Therefore, we will not negotiate. We will pay.”
Stunned silence was the generals’ only response.
Several exchanged confused glances.
“The villages along the Shirakami are poor, the pass filled with mountain folk living on thin margins. We will send riders tonight—fast riders under Imperial banners, and carts carrying sacks of rice. We will not demand loyalty or threaten. We will feed—andhirethem.”
“Hire them,Heika?” Tanaka’s brow furrowed. “You are the Son of Heaven. You should never—”
A sharp glare silenced the man. “We need that supply route secured and we need it fast, so we will make it worth theirwhile. One month’s wages for every adult who helps establish supply stations, who guides our forces, or who carries messages and spies on enemy movements. The people will have a stake in our success because we paid them fairly and treated them with respect as loyal subjects of the Empire rather than obstacles to be overcome.”
“Heika,” Yamada said carefully, “the treasury—”
“Is going to be drained no matter what we do,” I interrupted. “Feeding thousands of refugees will cost us dearly. Reinforcing the Pass will cost us. Replacing lost equipment will cost us. At least this way, we spend rice to create allies instead of burying the bodies of civilians we turned into rebels.”
“And if they refuse?” Nakamura dared in a challenging tone. “If they take the rice and betray us to Eiko anyway?”
It was a fair question, one I did not have a perfect answer for.
“Then we have lost some rice and are no worse off than we are now,” I said. “But if they accept—if they help us—we have secured critical supply routes without having to garrison every village, without creating more enemies, and without becoming the kind of leaders who murder their own people.” I paused, letting that sink in. “That is what separates us from Asami Eiko. That is why wemustwin this war—not because we are more brutal, but because we are simply better.”
The chamber was quiet as the generals and councilors thought, calculated, and weighed our options, while also weighing whether my decision came from wisdom or weakness.
My voice grew stronger as I continued to speak, the words coming easier now.
“General Tanaka, organize the Shirakami Pass. Send riders tonight. Have them carry my banner followed by generous payments of rice. Establish supply stations and prepare reinforcement routes. Move at dawn, before if possible.”
“Hai,Heika.”
“General Yamada, coordinate with theDai Shogun. Send word to every northern temple, shrine, and town on both sides of the range—Eiko’s forces are coming, perhaps everywhere at once. They must prepare for assault or siege. We will send reinforcements as soon as the routes are secured.”
