I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

……

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

White waves crashed against the rocks, producing a powerful and rhythmic sound.

Qingdeng reined in his horse on the beach, and the magnificent scenery of Osaka Bay came into full view.

Looking out, several ships departing from the port can be faintly seen in the distance, right next to the horizon.

Some of these ships were ordinary sailboats, while others were steamships belching black smoke.

Mr. Kiryu and Mai Kinoshita waited quietly on either side of Aoto, accompanying him to admire the sea view.

Just now, while passing by this place, Qing Deng suddenly had a whim to get a closer look at the famous Osaka Bay.

After observing quietly for about three minutes, he nodded slightly and softly praised:

“The name ‘Langhua’ is truly well-deserved.”

Namikawa – the ancient name for Osaka and its surrounding area; Namikawa Castle is the same as Osaka Castle.

Osaka was also known by other names in ancient times, such as Naniwa and Naniwa.

According to legend, Emperor Jimmu traveled eastward from Kyushu by boat. When he reached the vicinity of Osaka, the water was turbulent and the waves were rolling, so he named this place "Naniwa".

The meanings of “Naniwa” and “Nanba” are similar to those of “Naniwa”.

Because the surrounding area is mountainous, the Kamimachidai area has a large area of ​​sloping land with gentle slopes. In Japanese, "saka" means "slope", so it was originally called "Osaka".

Qingdeng is not just a place to enjoy the scenery.

He wanted to see firsthand the future development priorities of the Qin Jin Domain.

Japan is merely an island nation with a small land area and scarce resources.

Doing business only in one corner of Japan, you can't earn much money even if you work yourself to death.

If you want to make big money, developing ocean trade is essential.

Qingdeng stared intently at the ships on the horizon, thinking:

First, we need to build a professional fleet.

Without even ships, how can we talk about ocean trade?

Moreover, it cannot be an ordinary ship.

In business, time is money.

Therefore, acquiring those slow, old sailboats is definitely not feasible; at the very least, a steamship must be obtained.

Having ships isn't enough; you also need a sufficient number of professional crew members.

This whole process will cost a fortune...

Thinking of this, Qingdeng couldn't help but feel a bitter expression on his face.

If his trip to Osaka ends in failure and he fails to reach a cooperation agreement with the Karasuya, then he will truly be in a very difficult situation from now on...

Aoto turned his head and asked Kiryu, the shopkeeper beside him:

"Kiryu-sensei, how far are we from Osaka?"

Without hesitation, the Kiryu boss replied:

"Almost there. Just another 20 cho (towns) and we'll be in Osaka's castle town."

[Note: 1 town = 109 meters, 20 towns total 2.18 kilometers]

Qingdeng nodded.

“20 chō... It looks like we can get to Osaka before dark.”

With that, he turned his horse around and returned to the main road.

Kinoshita Mai quickly followed.

Mr. Kiryu moved to the front to lead the way for them.

With the powerful strides of the horses, the mere 2 kilometers or so were covered in the blink of an eye.

The vegetation along the roadside is gradually thinning out.

Instead, the number of houses and people gradually increased.

Even before entering the heart of Osaka, Aoto could already sense a vibrant and bustling atmosphere—

"Come and see! Fresh saury! Freshly caught saury! Look, these fish are still jumping around!"

"White sugar! Crystal clear white sugar! Just one lick can relieve fatigue and increase strength! If someone in your family is sick, buy them white sugar!"

"Miso denraku! Delicious miso denraku! Anyone want some miso denraku?"

[Note: Miso Dentaku: A method of eating where ingredients such as eggplant, tofu, konjac, and taro are cut into long strips, coated with various sauces, skewered on bamboo sticks, and grilled.]

……

Qing Deng pulled his straw hat down low to avoid being recognized, while observing the surrounding street scene with great interest.

Judging from the appearance, this place is a food market.

Food shops lined both sides of the street.

From street corner to alleyway, you can see vendors selling snacks and treats everywhere.

This small example reveals a larger truth: the prosperity of Osaka's food market alone demonstrates the abundance of its produce, a level that even Edo and Kyoto, both of the "Three Capitals," could hardly match.

As the saying goes, "Seeing is believing."

Only now did Qingdeng truly understand what it meant to be "the kitchen of the world".

Osaka is not only located in the heart of Japan, but also adjacent to a natural deep-water port (Osaka Port). This unique geographical location makes it a "distribution hub" for goods from all over the country.

It served as a transit hub between eastern and western Japan.

In this way, you can find ingredients and supplies from all over the world in Osaka's markets.

Bear paws from Ezochi, Nagasaki cakes from Nagasaki... even ginseng and tiger meat from Korea can appear on the shelves of Osaka merchants.

Even white sugar, a luxury that ordinary people simply cannot afford, can be found everywhere on the streets of Osaka.

Over time, Osaka earned the reputation of being "the kitchen of the world".

Just as Qingdeng was strolling through the street scene, a spirited and loud shout suddenly rang out in front of him:

"%&*￥@#*!"

Qingdeng was startled and instinctively tightened the reins. He looked in the direction of the sound and saw a middle-aged man with a smiling face and dressed in plain clothes looking at him earnestly.

[Note: Jinbe: A very simple and plain outfit, suitable for wearing at home in summer.]

"You'll find it delicious!"

The other person rattled off a whole bunch of incomprehensible words.

Not only did he speak very fast, but he also spoke Osaka dialect, which is very different from standard Mandarin (Kanto dialect), with a very heavy accent, which Aoto could not understand at all.

"Uh...sorry, I don't understand Osaka dialect. Do you speak Mandarin?"

The other person paused for a moment, then asked in return with a serious expression:

"&%￥#@*&%￥*?"

Just as Aoto was completely confused, Kinoshita Mai peeked over stealthily:

He said, "Isn't Osaka dialect just Mandarin?"

"..."

Just as Aoto was speechless, Kinoshita Mai continued:

"He just said that he hopes you can come and sit in his teahouse. He just got a new batch of good tea today, and it smells wonderful."

"Ah Wu, please tell him: Thank you for your kindness, but we are in a hurry and will not be able to have tea."

Having said that, Qingdeng lightly nudged the horse's flank and continued onward.

However, he hadn't gone far when another person stopped him.

"Sir!"

The person who appeared this time spoke Mandarin, but his accent still had a strong Osaka flavor.

"Want to try your luck in the rope lottery? The grand prize is a whopping 10 taels of gold! 10 taels of gold!"

He said this in an exaggerated tone while holding up 10 fingers.

String lottery – also known as "treasure draw". You pick a string from a pile and pull it. If you pull a special string, you win a prize. It started as a children's game, but the prizes gradually became more luxurious, and adults became enthusiastic about it. So it was banned for a time during the Kansei Reforms (1787-1793).

"No need, thank you."

"Sir! Think it over again! Such a generous prize is a rare find!"

"Thank you, but really, it's not necessary."

After a while of this back-and-forth struggle, Qingdeng finally managed to break free from the man's entanglement.

Before he could catch his breath, a brand new figure appeared in front of his horse.

"Sir! Judging from your appearance, you must be travelers from out of town?"

The guy who appeared this time was a young man dressed in comical clothes.

He appears to be a street performer.

Before Qingdeng could respond, he continued on his own:

"Since you're a stranger in Osaka, you can't come here without seeing my, Ujiro's, triumphant performance!"

After saying that, he lifted the hem of his shirt, stuck out his buttocks, and looked up at the sky.

Upon seeing this, Qing Deng couldn't help but twitch his lips.

Judging from this posture, he already recognized the type of performance the other party was about to put on.

Clearly, this is a traditional Japanese art form – the "buttock-bending" performance.

Simply put, it's acrobatics accompanied by shamisen music and ditty while farting; it's very vulgar, but it's very popular with the public.