Swallow Return

Although Liu Yun was still somewhat unsatisfied and had plenty of energy left, he calmly packed up his tools and ended the treatment. After all, he had resolutely extended a helping hand to relieve someone in distress, not for personal satisfaction.

In truth, compared to the superficial self-satisfaction, it is this kind of benevolent heart of a doctor who finds joy in helping others that is truly fulfilling and gratifying.

Being poor cares themselves, being wealthy cares the world.

Now that we have the ability in this life, we should do our best to provide necessary help to the lonely and helpless.

Fortunately, the current social system allows those who have the capacity to help others to do so freely.

There were no such absurd and chaotic rules as in later generations, such as "all donations must be centrally allocated and distributed by a certain association".

……

After completing this significant task, Liu Yun did not feel tired at all.

He felt an unparalleled sense of comfort throughout his body, a feeling of indescribable accomplishment. Life seemed to have suddenly begun a new chapter, with new colors and a new tone.

He heard birds chirping and thought they were singing. He saw leaves falling and thought they were dancing. Even the creaking of the door when he pushed it open seemed like a hat being removed in greeting, a celebration of the auspicious occasion.

He developed a deeper love for life, and was so moved by intense positive emotions that he longed to climb to the top of a mountain and compose a poem to express his heartfelt joy.

Unfortunately, he lacked literary talent. The line "If it benefits the country, I will risk my life; how can I avoid it because of fortune or misfortune?" didn't seem to fit the current situation, but Liu Yun couldn't think of any other poems for the moment.

In short, he is now full of vigor, high spirits, and boundless ambition. He is as powerful as a dragon and as fierce as a tiger, capable of becoming a jade pillar supporting the sky and a golden beam spanning the vast ocean.

It was already dark when I came out of the bedroom.

Liu Yun, dressed in a thin, loose yukata, stood on the corridor, feeling the cool breeze on her chest, and felt extremely comfortable.

After a while, a maidservant peeked over from afar and cautiously asked if they needed any food or anything else.

Liu Yun then realized that she hadn't eaten dinner yet.

So he instructed his servants to bring him food and to prepare hot water for bathing.

He personally went inside and woke Iori up.

It wasn't exactly a wake-up call; Iori wasn't actually asleep. She was just exhausted from the treatment and didn't want to move at all.

This condition will be fine after a short rest.

After all, she was a woman, not a young girl, and didn't have so many complicated and awkward emotions. She just had some backache and hip pain, making it a little inconvenient for her to move around. Seeing Liu Yun come in again, she smiled and said, "My lord is really amazing." Then, with her head bowed and eyes lowered, she walked forward with small steps and, despite her own disheveled appearance, diligently helped to tidy up and wipe herself.

Of course, in reality, she always presented herself as a gentle, virtuous, and demure Yamato Nadeshiko to Ryuun.

The difference is that in the past there was a certain sense of awe, restraint, and fear.

At that time, Iori gave Ryuun the impression that she was outwardly calm but inwardly extremely worried.

They worry not only about their own situation, but also about the future of their family, and even about the careers of their husbands.

The last time she left home, she was very worried, wondering if offending Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei would cause her a lot of trouble...

In this era, as the daughter of the Kyoto noble family, the Kakaiin family, and the matriarch of the Sasaki family in Omi Province, Iori's quality of life was certainly much better than that of 99% of ordinary people. Even if she really had nowhere to go, she could use the savings she had accumulated over the years to find a reliable nunnery to stay at, so she wouldn't have to sleep on the streets.

But she seemed very flustered; in layman's terms, she lacked a backbone.

It seems that we have finally found a strong backbone.

It was as if all those things that had made her uneasy had suddenly disappeared.

Then it became much easier and more comfortable.

At this moment, Iori was carefully serving Ryuun, occasionally looking up to send him tender and affectionate glances, and then looking away just as their eyes met.

On the bright side, it makes life more interesting.

But on the other hand... isn't it a bit like "being too close to someone and not being respectful enough"?

For reasons unknown, Liu Yun suddenly spoke to her, saying, "After successfully capturing Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei, we discovered over five hundred women imprisoned and abused by the monks, as well as three hundred children who should not have been born. They are now homeless. The task of dealing with these women and children has been assigned to me. What do you suggest we do?"

Upon hearing this, Iori obediently lowered her head and knelt down, saying softly, "How could I dare to say anything about such a matter?"

Liu Yun shook his head nonchalantly: "Just saying! There are no outsiders here."

Upon hearing that "there were no outsiders," Iori couldn't help but smile broadly. After a moment's thought, she cautiously said, "Although you haven't been in charge of the family for long, everyone can see that you've always been very compassionate towards the people. You certainly wouldn't have the heart to sell women and children as commodities, but you also can't just keep them around for no reason... I guess you'll be looking for older, unmarried soldiers nearby and solving the problem through marriage..."

Liu Yun was slightly surprised and praised, "That's right, your thoughts are exactly the same as mine."

Iori smiled gently, her eyes sparkling.

Immediately, Liu Yun shook his head and deliberately said, "However, since I'm in charge of this matter, I should take advantage of my proximity and select a few women with outstanding looks and temperaments for my own use. It's convenient for both public and private purposes, right?"

Unexpectedly, Iori didn't show any displeasure or sorrow upon hearing this. Instead, she nodded with an air of self-righteousness, indicating her agreement: "Yes! My lord, you've just received a new stipend of 1,000 koku from three northern villages, plus the Sasaki family's existing territory. You're undoubtedly a worthy great samurai, and you should at least have two or three concubines to make it proper. By the way, the temple you built for Master Xinghe and Master Suifeng is finished, and there's still a lot of material left. We can expand our residence to increase our population..."

This reaction was completely different from what Liu Yun had imagined.

He was stunned for a moment before he realized that this was not the great, bright, and just 21st century, a time when everyone was equal, men and women had equal rights.

Instead, it was a decadent, backward, inhumane, and severely unequal society of the sixteenth century.

In the old days, if a man told his wife he wanted to take a concubine, he was either drunk or thought the washboard wasn't hard enough.

But in this era, it's perfectly normal for a man to tell his wife he wants to take a concubine, just like saying he wants to buy new furniture.

As a transmigrator of noble character, Liu Yun was heartbroken and devastated in every sense of the word.

What pained him most and chilled him to the bone was that he felt his defenses had crumbled and he was on the verge of being eroded by this corrupt and backward era.

How pathetic, how lamentable...

While eating dinner and washing up, Liu Yun engaged in deep self-reflection.

To distract himself from his negative emotions, he then engaged in a thorough and systematic communication with Iori, conducting repeated and careful research on the most common biological questions in life.

Chapter 55 Women's work is not easy

Spring nights are fleeting, but once you taste the marrow, you'll know its true flavor.

For three consecutive days, aside from spending two hours listening to the data reports from within the territory, Liu Yun barely showed his face.

Later, Iori's skin and body simply couldn't hold on any longer, and only after her strong pleas did she return to a normal life.

Actually, there's nothing to worry about, whether it's the ancestral property of Sasaki Village or the newly acquired assets of the three northern villages.

In total, there are only a thousand villagers in the territory.

As arranged by Ryuun, Hayami Seibei was in charge of administration, Eguchi Sukezaemon was in charge of security, Okiwa was in charge of finances, Suifu was in charge of odd jobs, and Aotabo and Kurotabo were in charge of guarding the mansion.

Then there's absolutely no need to do it yourself.

What Liu Yun needs to consider is the task assigned by his superior lord.

This was also a notable characteristic of the Warring States period: warriors generally focused their main energy on serving their lord, while the affairs of their territories were entrusted to their retainers.

What if a retainer also has his own territory to take care of? Then he will entrust it to a lower-ranking retainer.

For example, Hayami Seibei and Eguchi Sukezaemon each owned a considerable amount of land, which they arranged through trusted stewards among their relatives and friends.

They delegated the responsibility layer by layer.

However, if a high-ranking samurai is too negligent and neglects his territories after handing them over to his retainers, then unscrupulous retainers may take advantage of the situation, gradually becoming too powerful to control or even usurping the territory.

This is what is known as "subordinate overthrowing superior".

Moreover, sometimes it's a cycle of subordinates overthrowing superiors.

For example, the Ashikaga family, the nominal shogun of the Shogunate, was once sidelined by the Hosokawa family, who were then appointed as governors. The Hosokawa family's position was later replaced by the Miyoshi family, who were descended from the governors. The real power of the Miyoshi family was once in the hands of powerful ministers who rose from the bottom, such as Matsunaga Hisahide and Shinohara Nagafusa.

The events are interconnected, as if preordained.

It wasn't until the late Warring States period, during the Azuchi-Momoyama period, that the daimyo of various regions were able to gradually establish a central bureaucratic system to prevent such instances of subordinates overthrowing their superiors from occurring repeatedly.

Of course, such a thing is still a long way off for Liu Yun.

His only concern now is how to settle the hundreds of women and children he brought back from Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei.

During his few days of rest at home, Kinoshita Tokichiro was quite perceptive and did not send anyone to urge him.

But Liu Yun himself felt a little embarrassed to procrastinate any longer.

After all, he had readily agreed to take on this responsibility. A true man keeps his word; otherwise, wouldn't he just be a cooing pigeon?

What a despicable and shameful creature a pigeon is!

Since she had said she would do it, Liu Yun was determined to do it well.

So, on the fifth day after returning home, early in the morning, he bid farewell to Iori, called his retainers over for a rather meaningless routine meeting, and then prepared to go to Yokoyama Castle to handle some matters.

On the spot, a sudden inspiration struck.

Look at Eguchi Sukezaemon and Hayami Seibei, aren't they both pretty reliable men? I heard that the former's wife unfortunately passed away three years ago, and the latter hasn't even gotten married yet, what a coincidence.

For low-ranking samurai like them, finding a wife was actually quite difficult. Ladies from respectable families were unwilling to marry into their household, while peasant women didn't meet their standards; they were stuck in a limbo…

Liu Yun immediately made a decision, ordering Eguchi Sukezaemon and Hayami Seibei to make a trip and each bring back a widow.

Of course, if you are willing and can afford to raise them, you can adopt more than one.

However, coercion is not allowed; one must rely on their own "masculine charm" to persuade others.

Although Eguchi Sukezaemon and Hayami Seibei were somewhat amused and exasperated, neither refused, and they indirectly agreed. After all, who wouldn't want to have multiple wives out of nowhere, especially with such a wide selection?

Liu Yun also asked Xinghe, his martial uncle.

As a result, my uncle became a little angry: "Although there are many monks in this world who do not abide by the rules and regulations, how can I go along with those people!"

I also asked Junior Brother Suifeng.

The uncle became even more furious: "He's just a child! Not even fifteen years old yet! Even if he loses interest in Buddhist practice and wants to return to secular life in the future, it will still take a few years!"

Junior Brother Sui Feng seemed to have some ideas, but dared not express them, and only secretly signaled to Liu Yun with his innocent big eyes.

But Liu Yun ignored him, and instead thought that his uncle was right, so he gave up.

Then there's Aotabo and Kurotabo...

Can monsters get married and have children? I think so, right?

Liu Yun consulted their opinions.

Unexpectedly, Aotabo and Kurotabo, two virgin yokai who had lived for over three hundred years combined, were so shy about the question that they couldn't utter a single word.

Since that's the case, Liu Yun thought to herself, "Let it go, I can't force it."

In the end, the matchmaking team, consisting of two samurai, Eguchi Sukezaemon and Hayami Seibei, along with a dozen or so bachelor veterans in their thirties with modest wealth, set off in a grand procession.

Everyone stood tall and proud, full of fighting spirit, like dry tinder and raging fire, unstoppable, far surpassing the military bearing of those going out to war.