Tokyo Sword Saint Online Dealing

At that time, swords and knives were equivalent to firearms in later generations.

The elderly village chief's face was also wrinkled with bitterness. Normally, he might have refused outright. After all, the emperor was far away, and at worst, the village would just have to relocate. As for plotting to harm Yuan Qingya out of greed, he wouldn't dare. Even if they did, they might not be able to defeat him.

Given the village's elderly, weak, sick, and disabled residents, coupled with their laborious farming tools, it would be very difficult to keep a well-trained warrior wielding a sword.

After pondering for a long time, the village chief's eyes lit up, and his expression became even more respectful.

"Sir, there is no problem."

"Ah Qing, Ah Qing!"

"Please allow this gentleman to stay at your house for the night!"

"This gentleman is willing to pay a considerable amount of [transfer money], enough for you to buy quite a few books, right?"

Following the village chief's gaze, Yuan Qingya raised an eyebrow and her smile became meaningful.

She was a young girl who looked quite young. She was somewhat pale and thin, perhaps due to malnutrition. Her face was pretty, but not stunning. However, there was an undeniable scholarly air about her, which reminded Gen Kiyoya of the female officials in the palace in Heian-kyo.

She stood alone outside the crowd, seemingly ostracized.

This is not difficult to understand.

Because she had white hair.

In ancient times, facial features that differed from those of ordinary people were often the beginning of being ostracized and isolated.

For example, right now, when trouble comes knocking, this village chief immediately passes it on to her.

Perhaps she's the type who "doesn't feel bad about losing things." To this village, she's an outsider, someone who can be discarded.

Just because of that head of white hair?

Yuan Qingya hesitated for a moment before saying, "Men and women should be different. Isn't this inappropriate?"

The village chief quickly shook his head and explained, "Sir, we don't care about such things in a small place like this!"

"You are a great man from the city, and we cannot allow you to sleep in the wilderness. We will certainly obey His Majesty's orders and go to the city to fulfill our mission. We hope that you can put in a good word for us and help us obtain arable land."

Some ordinary polite words, but there was no sincerity in them at all.

"Hey, Qing, you don't have any objections, do you?"

The village chief glared at the girl, his tone becoming somewhat stern.

The girl glanced at the village chief expressionlessly, then looked Yuan Qingya over and nodded silently.

"Please come with me."

She said this in a cold tone, then turned and left.

Yuan Qingya did not refuse, because he seemed to have found the source of that faint demonic aura.

He nodded slightly to the village chief and quickly followed.

This village is enclosed by a simple wooden fence and is only a temporary gathering place for a few dozen households. Outside the fence are hastily cultivated fields. Perhaps because they are likely to migrate at any time, they have not put much effort into farming. In comparison, the main source of food for this kind of village is probably hunting and fishing.

Musashi Province is located by the sea, and this place is not far from the coast.

This girl, known as Aqing, lived in a very remote place, far from the crowds.

Yuan Qingya leisurely followed behind A Qing and stopped in front of the simple thatched house. She said with a hint of sarcasm, "You seem to have a bad reputation among people?"

“I can see that I am a destabilizing factor in this village, and they are all afraid of me.”

"They fear my identity, they fear my people, and they fear the swords in my hand even more."

"They feared me as they would a bandit."

"That's why you pushed me onto you, why did you agree?"

"Aren't you afraid?"

Upon hearing this, Aqing slowly turned her head, a meaningful smile appearing on her somewhat delicate face.

"The newly appointed governor of Musashi Province, surely he wouldn't suddenly go mad and slaughter his people, would he?"

"If I let you stay for the night, I can earn some pocket money. Why not?"

Yuan Qingya's expression changed drastically, and she even paused for a moment.

Then, he suddenly laughed out loud, sounding quite pleased.

"Interesting. How did you figure that out?"

Aqing pouted and said matter-of-factly, "Lord Chief Minister, how about removing the family crest from your clothes next time you go out?"

"Gentian crest, besides the Genji, who dares to use it?"

"You said it yourself, the new governor is a member of the Minamoto clan, and you're wearing the Minamoto clan's gentian crest, running around busy with trivial matters for some small village."

"And then... is there any need to continue?"

Minamoto no Kiyoya raised an eyebrow and continued to ask, "Oh, can't I be a confidant of the State Secretary, a member of the same Minamoto clan, and also here to work for him?"

The girl in front of him had completely piqued his interest.

She called Yuan Qingya "Guoshi," which was the title of an official position, unlike those ignorant villagers who addressed him as "Lord of the Kingdom."

She recognized the gentian crest on Minamoto no Kiyomasa's body and knew it was the Minamoto clan's crest.

This was already remarkable knowledge for ordinary people at the time.

Aqing shook her head and stared at Yuan Qingya, saying, "No, no noble lord of the Yuan clan would come to such a small village to deliver a message. They have plenty of followers they can order around."

“You are the only one who can do this, because this is your decree, and you must personally see it delivered to every vagrant community.”

"Of course, you are strong enough that you don't need to bring any followers. You are also smart enough to know that these fools will flock to you like moths to a flame at the slightest bit of benefit."

"Therefore, your decrees will be executed perfectly."

"Moreover, the tax you waived is not a paltry sum; I have never seen such a light tax before."

"You have a good eye. Unlike those big shots who don't care about the lives of the common people, you understand that in this chaotic world, population and labor are the most important guarantees."

"Let me guess, you killed the original city lord?"

"Otherwise, your decree to reduce taxes could not have been issued so easily."

"Well, whatever you say, consider it a return gift for your payment. But I have to remind you of something."

"The people and the officials are always two opposing sides. If you get close to the people, those small groups of the aristocratic class will naturally reject you."

“The taxes you set are very low, but the fertile fields near the city belong to the estates of various powerful clans in Musashi Province. They have the right to collect taxes from the people who cultivate the land, and the common people can only dare to be angry but not speak out.”

Yuan Qingya looked at A Qing with admiration in her eyes.

“I have considered what you said, so I have been preparing for this for several months.”

"Now, all the land near Edo Castle has been taken back by me and is now under the name of the Genji clan."

"I have no worries about the future, nor am I concerned about being sabotaged by others."

It's a bit unbelievable that it's Aqing's turn now.

"How is that possible? How did you do that?"

"How could those powerful clans possibly obey you?"

"Land is their lifeblood. They have been rooted in Musashi for hundreds of years and have a strong foundation. How can you, a newly appointed governor, possibly defeat them?"

Yuan Qingya shrugged casually.

"It's very simple."

"Those who obey will stay, those who disobey will be killed."

"The most difficult to manage is that... what's their name again, the Otomo family?"

"However, when all three heads of the family died in succession within ten days, they dared not disobey my orders."

“I wish all these people who don’t care about human life and are just sitting idly by in their positions would turn against me, so I would have another reason to deal with them.”

"."

"lets change a topic."

"Your name is Aqing?"

"Would you be interested in working for me?"

"There are too many idiots around me, and too few who can help me. Smart people like you are truly rare."

Chapter 281 Such Erudition

Aqing glanced at Yuan Qingya indifferently, seemingly not taking her words to heart. She pushed open her own door and gestured for Yuan Qingya to follow.

The houses in these small villages aren't even longhouses; they're barely considered wooden structures with thatched roofs and bricks. They're definitely warm in summer and cold in winter, making for extremely harsh living conditions.

In the mountains and fields, even a small thatched hut is better than sleeping in the open.

The room was quite spacious, with beds laid out against the walls and a stove half-buried in the center. It was very simple and could not support very complicated cooking techniques, but this was the most common furniture structure of that era.

What's slightly different is that this room is filled with a large number of "books".

Books during the Heian period were considered "luxury goods." While they weren't exclusively for royalty and nobility, they were certainly beyond the reach of a frail young girl from a small village.

"Please sit down, Lord State Minister. I'm sorry, I only have one blanket. Surely you wouldn't make a weak woman like me sleep on the cold floor?"

The calm and composed girl opposite him showed no fear of Yuan Qingya; on the contrary, she made him feel somewhat close to her.

After a while, I got a little tired of those fearful looks.

Yuan Qingya sat down cross-legged against the wall, squinted at the piles of books, and shrugged.

"When in Rome, do as the host does; I will not turn the tables."

"Please rest assured, I mean no harm."

Ah Qing walked to the cabinet, busied herself with something, and said meaningfully, "Oh? Is that so?"

"I don't think so."

"To be honest, it's not far from here to Edo Castle, just a few hills away. The mountain roads are rugged and a bit difficult to travel, but it shouldn't be too late for you to get back, right?"

"The ruler of a nation goes out without even a horse?"