Swallow Return

The city was surrounded by four layers of walls, covering an area of ​​several thousand square feet. The castle tower was over twenty feet high, making it a magnificent and imposing fortress from any angle.

However, the surrounding commercial atmosphere did not develop as expected.

This is probably because the trade network in the Kinki region is already mature and saturated.

Or perhaps... Oda Nobunaga's governance wasn't as outstanding as people imagined.

Azuchi Castle was frequented more by diplomatic monks, messengers, and soldiers than by merchants. The shops in the castle town provided luxurious services to the families of samurai living in the castle and business travelers from other places, but there were basically no large-scale transactions.

The most common type are bars and pubs, each with its own unique decor and outrageously high prices. Without exception, they all have private rooms that offer a high degree of privacy and effectively prevent prying eyes.

High-ranking samurai not only sought pleasure, relieved fatigue, and passed the time here, but also took the opportunity to inquire about information that was not suitable for public discussion, or intentionally or unintentionally shared information that was not suitable for public discussion.

The lower-ranking retainers mostly just talked nonsense after drinking too much, spreading dubious rumors or simply complaining about the troubles they encountered at work. Individually, they were just simple drunkards, but when they came together, they formed an unconscious group.

Compared to the spacious and brightly lit meeting halls inside Azuchi Castle, these taverns were the dark chambers within the Oda clan's political structure.

Oda Nobunaga, known as "Lord Ufu," possessed unfathomable power and cunning. His every move could silence and intimidate all his retainers, but even he could not prevent the existence of this "secret room."

The will of the people is irresistible.

Even if he used his supernatural abilities to manipulate a few, a dozen, or even a hundred retainers, he still couldn't stop the others from having their own ideas.

……

Ryuun randomly found a diplomatic monk who had been active in the Kinki region for a long time but had never made a name for himself. Then, using magic and supernatural abilities, he easily extracted some basic information about Azuchi Castle.

The second house on the left of the city gate, the Yamato-ya, has the highest "Zhao-related" content. The owner behind it is said to be the maternal uncle of a prince of the Oda family, so he is not afraid of any inspection or patrol. However, there may be a suspicion that there are spies among the higher-ups, so discussions should not be too unrestrained.

Correspondingly, the wild mountain hut that turns two corners on the right belongs to the monastic property of the Rinzai sect monks. It can be considered a "friendly third-party force" and is relatively more tolerant of excessive remarks. However, it is not strong enough and is occasionally harassed by the city officials, which makes it impossible for it to operate normally.

In the northwest of the city, there was a place owned by a relative of Sakuma Nobumori. It was once bustling with customers, but it has declined since Sakuma Nobumori fell from power. In the south, there was a place called Shiozuya, which was originally unremarkable, but recently a relative's daughter has gained the favor of the second Oda clan leader and given birth to a son, showing great potential for resurgence...

Everything is inextricably linked to politics.

The topics of conversation among the customers in the pub were mostly limited to this.

Some are studying the preferences, interests, or kinship of high-ranking officials in an attempt to curry favor; others are analyzing recently released policies and laws to find opportunities for opportunism; still others are focusing on predicting the next strategic direction in an attempt to do their homework in advance. The list goes on.

……

Before taking any action, Liu Yun didn't want to cause too much of a commotion, so after arriving at the foot of Azuchi Castle, he changed his clothes and sneaked into the streets, experiencing the surrounding area as an ordinary traveler.

With just a little bit of the superpower he recently acquired from the nine-tailed fox, he can hear all the voices within dozens of steps.

He wasn't very interested in political news about the Oda clan; he was more interested in news related to religion and the Iga Rebellion.

But after wandering around for a long time, they didn't find much. They only heard an old samurai of low rank boasting: "Lord Ufu first dealt with the seemingly powerful but actually corrupt Tendai sect, then used the Nichiren sect to deal with the strongest Ikko sect, and now he has supported the Shingon sect to suppress the Nichiren sect. His methods are too clever. So in our Oda clan, monks don't have such a high status at all!"

Evaluations of the Iga Rebellion are limited to its political maneuvering aspects.

The dispute between “After chopping off tens of thousands of heads in Iga, the lowly farmers have finally learned their lesson, and their patrols have become much easier lately” and “They’re only superficially afraid of you; when no one’s watching, they might secretly collude with Mori and Uesugi. Doing this is simply not worth it” did not involve any elements that Ryuyun was interested in.

Of course, these words are not entirely useless; they do offer some insight, but not enough.

In this light, Oda Nobunaga's methods were indeed quite effective; the lower and middle-ranking samurai were completely unable to discern his intentions.

After wandering around for a while, Liu Yun realized that he probably wouldn't be able to get any useful information from the market.

It would be better to go directly to Nobunaga's door and question him.

Or perhaps we should visit other old acquaintances first?

For example... um...

It's really hard to talk about; it seems that apart from Lady Kicho and Miss Oichi, there's nothing worth mentioning.

What should I talk about if I see them?

Just as Liu Yun was thinking about this, a voice suddenly came from one direction and caught his attention.

Have you heard about the vengeful spirits along the shores of Lake Biwa?

"A vengeful spirit? Are you talking about some kind of monster?"

"I don't know if it counts as some kind of monster, but it's said to be someone who had power in life, died a tragic death, and whose obsession wasn't completely dispelled. It accumulated over time and was recently triggered by some event, turning into a vengeful spirit..."

"If that's the case, I heard that last month someone was traveling at night in Otsu when they encountered a ferocious humanoid monster whose appearance and build were very similar to Lord Mori Yoshinari, who died more than ten years ago."

"I think I've heard something about it, like the Asakura clan's fierce general, Masakazu Naotaka, was resurrected in Anegawa. I thought it was just nonsense."

"What's even more terrifying is that Sasaki Ryuun, who was once the number one warrior and was executed for offending the Right Prince... seems to be in the form of a ferocious monster now."

"Wow, this is really bad. When that guy was alive, only His Highness the Right Prince could control him. He might be even more terrifying after he's dead!"

"Don't be scared by unfounded rumors! By the way, I've heard an even stranger story, that Lady Guidie also turned into a vengeful spirit."

"Hey, isn't that also baseless?"

"Wait...we were talking about people who are already dead, right? When did Lady Guidie die?"

"She passed away a year ago, but the news of her death was concealed for some purpose... This should be an open secret."

"What kind of unreliable rumor are you talking about...?"

"You must know that Lady Guidie hasn't shown her face for almost a year."

"So what? She didn't show up in public that often before!"

"No way, there really isn't anyone who doesn't know this, is there? Lady Guidie—this can't be said lightly—the fact that Lady Guidie's death was suspicious and that she wasn't buried is something that everyone knows very well, even though no one dares to discuss it openly."

"That's it? Isn't this just another unreliable rumor? There's not a single credible piece of evidence!"

“Think carefully about what I’m saying! You’re not new to the Oda family. Even if you’re stupid, you should know at least a little bit about some confidential matters.”

"Perhaps I am indeed quite foolish, unlike you clever people who focus your energy on inquiring about unreliable rumors. May I ask you, clever person, with so much inside information, how much 'zhixing' do you have now? If not 10,000 shi, then at least 5,000 shi, right?"

"It's not much more, but it's still 860 shi, and there was an extra bonus at the beginning of the year. It's still better than a colleague who's been stuck with 350 shi for almost ten years."

"Hey, can you please stop bringing this up all the time?"

“Hey, look at him, he’s getting anxious, he’s getting anxious…”1

The laughter and banter at the dinner table gradually escalated into a fight.

Liu Yun neither knew nor cared about these mid-level warriors, and was equally indifferent to most of what they said.

Including things like "the rebirth of vengeful spirits," it's not surprising in this world of supernatural phenomena.

Even when he heard that "Sasaki Ryuun has become a source of resentment," he simply laughed it off.

but--

They say Lady Guidie is dead. What's going on?

We hadn't even discussed this when we met with Madam Ningning before.

Judging from the tone and content just now, it seems that it's not just a complete rumor, but rather something that's not entirely baseless.

Liu Yun subconsciously used his psychic abilities to test the waters.

He then immediately realized that, although it was just an unverified claim, most samurai firmly believed that "Lady Kicho had angered Oda Nobunaga and was accidentally killed," with only a few saying they did not believe or spread the rumor.

Therefore, Liu Yun decisively adjusted his schedule.

Before seeking a reunion with Oda Nobunaga, it seems like a good idea to visit Lady Kicho first. At least confirming her safety wouldn't take much effort.

Outsiders may not know, but Liu Yun does. This wife of the Oda family usually lives with the bathhouse yokai at Seiken-ji Temple in Kyoto because of her strained relationship with her husband.

Chapter 296 May I come a little closer so I can take a closer look?

The distance from Azuchi Castle on the south bank of Lake Biwa to Seiken-ji Temple in the northwestern suburbs of Kyoto is about forty kilometers, and it would take an ordinary person at least a day and a night to travel by carriage or boat.

But for Liu Yun, who had stolen the power of the Nine-Tailed Fox, it was only a short distance, equivalent to a leisurely stroll after a meal, whether on foot or by air.

Around 4 PM, I decided to check on Lady Guidie, and by the time the sun was setting, I had already made it to my destination.

After many years, the northwestern suburbs of Kyoto remain unchanged, with sparsely populated farmland and abandoned paths all around, showing little sign of development during the peaceful years under the Oda clan's rule.

At first, Liu Yun was a little puzzled by this.

What happened to the Oda clan's emphasis on commercial development?

Fortunately, I met two farmers selling melons on the way and learned some information from their conversation.

"Hurry, hurry! We have to make it before the Naya and Shimaya come out to collect the goods so we can get a deal at fifteen mon a catty. There must be more people in our village who have heard the news, so we have to get there before others! Otherwise, we can only get ten mon at most if we sell to the local merchants."

"I understand, brother. Why are only the Naya and Shimaya asking for such high prices?"

"Because the trading rights for melons near Kyoto belong to those two companies, anyone else who wants to get involved has to pay them a fee, so the cost is definitely uncertain."

"But brother, didn't we say that after the music market opened up, we wouldn't have to pay for seats anymore?"

"That was a long time ago... Initially, the Oda clan forbade monks from collecting seat fees, which made things comfortable for us for a few years, so we supported them in driving the monks away. Unexpectedly, it was the Oda clan's official merchants who took back the seat fees after that. Oh, I think it's not called seat fees anymore, but something else? Is it some kind of public fund?"

"No matter what it's called, it's no different from the monks collecting money from customers!"

"As for the difference, the monks' power to collect money came from the imperial court and the shogunate, and it seemed to be indefinite, while these two merchants had to undergo an annual assessment by the Oda clan to maintain their status. That's roughly what I heard."

"From what you've said, brother, the Oda clan is truly formidable... but for us, there's really no difference."

"Sigh, there's no use saying more, let's hurry on our way!"

……

The words Liu Yun overheard surprised him greatly.

In his past life, he learned history through Koei Tecmo games and online novels, and always thought that Oda Nobunaga was an innovator who represented advanced productive forces. Now it seems that something is not quite right.

If there's nothing else going on, we must investigate this thoroughly.

But for now, let's go see Lady Guidie first.

After all, when they arrived at the gate of Seiken-ji Temple in the northwestern suburbs of Kyoto, the scene they saw was not quite right.

The temple gate and courtyard walls are exactly the same as before, only the colors are more aged.

You could sense from a distance that there were quite a few people moving around inside, but judging from the surrounding area, no one had been in or out for at least half a month.

There are fewer pedestrians around than before. Occasionally, travelers and merchants pass by, but they take a long detour, as if they are avoiding something.

There is clearly an anomaly.

After taking a few steps closer, Liu Yun suddenly felt a strong, inexplicable emotion welling up inside her, urging her to get away quickly and stay away from this place.

So that's why pedestrians have to take detours?

For Liu Yun, who had stolen the power of the Nine-Tailed Fox, there were almost no mental spells in the human world worth mentioning. He was unaffected; on the contrary, his interest grew even stronger, and he leaped over the courtyard wall and jumped into Qingjian Temple.