The Otomo Clan and their Smuggling (5)

     In 1552, the situation changed dramatically for the Otomo Clan.  Ouchi Yoshitaka (1507-1551), who had organized the missions to Ming in 1540 and in 1549 in place of the eclipsed central Muromachi Shogunate government, was overthrown by Sue Harutaka (1521-1555) in the previous year, and Otomo Harufusa (?-1557), a younger brother of Yoshishige (1530-1587), was adopted to the Ouchi Clan, and succeeded Yoshitaka.  Harufua followed the legend of Imseong-taeja, who had been professed to be the Ouchi Clan’s first ancestor in Japan, landed the Tatara Beach in Bofu Province on February the 29th, 1552, and entered the mansion of the Ouchi Clan on March the 3rd.  He was recognized as the clan’s successor by Muromachi Shogunate next spring, and changed his name to Ouchi Yoshinaga.  3 years later, in November, 1556, Jiang Zhou visited both Otomo Yoshishige and Ouchi Yoshinaga to admonish the two to crack down on Wokou.