After Hirata Masahide died, Oda Nobunaga kept a low profile for a while, not showing himself until after the autumn harvest. But when he finally did appear, there was none of that "prodigal son turns over a new leaf" that everyone had been hoping for—forget about him becoming all warm and courteous; in the end, he was still the same as before, and immediately reiterated the very first order he gave after becoming Family Head: build roads.
Still, Hirata Masahide's death did change him a bit. He seemed steadier, not forcing everyone to get moving across the entire Lower Four Provinces, but instead came up with a plan: first, widen and reinforce the roads between a few major castles. The standards were loosened too—the first step only required the roads to be at least two rooms wide, and they shouldn't turn to mud pits when it rained.
