Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

The Matsunaga father and son, bound by ropes, knelt before Nobunaga until Nobunaga was completely out of sight before daring to lift their buttocks. Shichibei, standing right behind Matsunaga Hisahide, noticed beads of sweat forming on Hisahide's neck. "You old codger, so you're scared too. I thought you were really that invincible, outwitting Nobunaga."

Shichibei patted Matsunaga Hisahide on the shoulder, left with a bright smile, and chased after Nobunaga.

At this time, Matsunaga Hisahide only had territory near Tamonyama Castle, worth at most tens of thousands of koku, effectively losing most of his power. However, since he had expressed his willingness to surrender to Nobunaga, Nobunaga felt he could make use of this force and ordered Sakuma Nobumori to lead an army of 20,000 men, including Hosokawa Fujitaka, Wada Koremasa, and Ikeda Tsuneoki, to advance on Yamato.

To put it simply, Nobunaga provided the manpower, Hisahide provided the money and supplies, and they pacified Yamato Province. Tsutsui Junkei, who had previously basically seized the entire Yamato Province, completely lost all his territory under this blow and fled to Iga Province to seek refuge.

It was thanks to Nobunaga's assistance that Matsunaga Hisahide was able to build his largest sphere of influence in both the Ogawa and Kawachi provinces. Furthermore, with the complete eradication of Tsutsui Junkei's power, his rule in Yamato became much more stable, far surpassing his previous situation when he was entangled with local temples and religious forces under the Miyoshi clan.

All I can say is that this guy's interpersonal skills are perhaps somewhat commendable.

142. To intervene and manage the various towns and streets.

Ashikaga Yoshiaki was appointed Shogun and officially assumed the position of the 15th Shogun of the Muromachi Shogunate. Ashikaga Yoshihide was given the honorary title of Ōgosho and became the Former Shogun.

The honeymoon period was sweet, so sweet that Yoshiaki immediately wanted to appoint Nobunaga as the Kanrei of the Muromachi Shogunate, and hinted to Nobunaga that he could completely fabricate his family lineage into the Shiba Kanrei lineage.

It doesn't matter which generation; you can say he's a son of a concubine, a branch of the family, or even a posthumous child of the Shiba clan.

In short, it meant allowing Nobunaga to fabricate his lineage, and guaranteeing that once Nobunaga finished fabricating it, the shogun would immediately recognize Nobunaga as Shiba Nobunaga. Not only would he recognize him, but he would also petition the imperial court to ensure that the court would also recognize this fabricated lineage and grant Nobunaga the hereditary title of Left Heibei Commander.

At that time, Nobunaga would be the legitimate Kanrei of the Shogunate, a pillar of the Seiwa Genji clan and a member of the Ashikaga clan's inner circle, and could also serve as a dismounted servant, and the position of Kanrei of the Muromachi Shogunate would be hereditary.

Even Nobunaga's current eldest son, Oda Nobunaga, could become Ashikaga Yoshiaki's adopted son. This means he was an adopted son. If Yoshiaki had a biological son, then that wouldn't apply. If Yoshiaki had no biological sons, this adopted son could even receive a weak claim to the title of Shogun of the Muromachi Shogunate.

The imperial court also sent someone to ask Nobunaga if he should be appointed as the Left Heibei Commander and if he should be added as a councilor. From then on, when Nobunaga went out, everyone had to respectfully call him the Prime Minister of Gifu.

"Go and take over Ōtsu and Kusatsu immediately!" Nobunaga clearly had his own plans, and he gave the order to Shichibei.

"Is it just a separate fee for the building? Or...?" Shichibei needed to find out whether this Ōtsu magistrate position was temporary, only for a few days, or if he was to be appointed for a long term.

“Collect the extra money first, then we’ll discuss it further.” Nobunaga paused for a moment, but then, remembering that it was Shichibei who was usually timid, he understood and added another sentence.

"clear."

"Have you secured all the horses in Konosu?" Nobunaga lifted his foot and began to walk forward; he was about to meet the messenger sent by the Honganji Temple.

That's right. Now, Honganji Temple not only doesn't oppose Nobunaga, but even actively tries to get closer to him. Earlier, when Nobunaga pacified northern Ise, he deliberately left the Nagashima region of northern Ise untouched and did not launch any military attacks.

At this time, all the major powers in the Kinai region were observing Nobunaga's subsequent actions before deciding on their attitude towards him. Perhaps Nobunaga, like Ōuchi Yoshioki, would simply march to Kyoto and become Kanrei (military regent), in which case everything would continue to operate within the old framework of the Muromachi Shogunate.

They were all participants and maintainers of the old order, so they would definitely support Nobunaga. Unless Nobunaga showed any signs of overthrowing the entire old order and creating a new one.

"I have already sent people to make arrangements, and the Oshu horse merchants in Imahama and Otsu have signed contracts. In addition, I have also sent people to Kanazawa, Wajima, Hosei-tsu, Naoe-tsu, and Sakata on the northbound return ship." In matters of commerce, Shichibei has the initiative to act on his own without Nobunaga's instructions.

These ports are major towns on the northward trade route. Shichibei certainly cannot participate in the northward trade yet, but it's never a problem to start preparing in advance. Understanding the situation in the Hokuriku and Oshu regions, and investigating and compiling information about the local customs and people, are all things a merchant should be aware of.

As for the day Nobunaga marches into Wakasa and Echizen, or even Kaga and Etchu, Shichibei will surely enter these markets smoothly, accompanied by the furious punches of the Oda army.

"There's one more thing, Kunitomo and Hino. You will personally revise the official document format." Nobunaga suddenly paused, stopped in his tracks, and even turned to look at Shichibei, the commander, as he spoke.

As we mentioned earlier, Kunitomo Village or Kunitomo Town was a handicraft settlement that received the privilege of being an "autonomous settlement" from the late Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiharu. There were many such autonomous human settlements in the Kinai region, some of which obtained their autonomy by relying on shrines or regent families.

One reason is that the "Sōmura" organizations achieved autonomy by carrying out large-scale Tokujō uprisings or Tokujō uprisings, thereby reaching a reconciliation with the imperial court, the shogunate, or temples and shrines, and bearing only a very small amount of tax.

Another group, like Kunitomo Village, relied on their skills to make a living. Kunitomo was initially famous for forging Omi-made kodachi (small swords) and other weapons. After Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiharu and Kanrei Hosokawa Harumoto ordered the imitation of matchlock guns, Kunitomo, with its superb ironwork, almost instantly became one of the largest arquebus production bases in all of Japan.

Similarly, the Anata sect of Omi-Anata, having long undertaken large-scale construction projects for the shogunate, the imperial court, and temples and shrines, possessed quite sophisticated craftsmanship.

These types of handicraft or artisan settlements, which gathered together, were recognized by those in power in the past, thus gaining autonomy and the privilege of being exempt from inspections and local administration. They even went further to the privilege of "no taxes or tributes," meaning they were not required to pay taxes or local tributes.

Asai Nagamasa had neither a shogunate position nor a legitimate government status, and his management of Kunitomo Village was virtually nonexistent.

Nobunaga could not allow Kunitomo Village to "govern itself" after he had taken control of the shogunate and ruled southern Omi. Of course, since Nobunaga had just become the ruler of the land and his power base was not yet stable, he would not be radical enough to relocate or reform Kunitomo Village.

He was referring to the re-establishment of official documents, meaning that with his current de facto position of leadership, he had the authority to manage the shogunate in place of the shogun, and to re-establish the feudal obligations of the shogunate authorities and the village.

The core principle was that the arquebuses produced in Kokutomo Village should be purchased by Oda Nobunaga first.

Only firearms that Nobunaga explicitly stated he would not purchase were allowed to enter the market for sale. Oda's retainers also needed a written permission from Nobunaga to purchase firearms in Kunitomo Village.

You can still maintain your autonomy, but sales will need to be subject to the control of the new rulers. After all, the artisans of Kokuyo possess skills, and these are the skills Nobunaga needs; there aren't enough people to replace them in the short term. Naturally, the conditions Nobunaga offered were relatively mild.

The artisans in Kunitomo Village were allowed to quote prices based on normal market rates for the firearms; Nobunaga would never allow them to starve without making a profit.

"Is this arrangement acceptable?" Shichibei explained the main points to Nobunaga, who listened attentively.

"That's how it'll be done. Add one more condition: a letter from the shogun or the government office is not acceptable; only my letter will suffice." Nobunaga nodded after hearing this and added another condition.

As for the general, all he needs is a regular armed force of two or three thousand men to maintain security and order in Kyoto. He can also be responsible for the security of the Imperial Palace and its surroundings. He doesn't need too many troops, let alone arquebuses.

Just learn more about archery and horsemanship. Bows are excellent weapons too. Didn't you see Yoshida Izumo, the defender of Minosaku Castle, shooting people in the castle and killing quite a few Oda soldiers?

"Yes!" Shichibei bowed and replied.

At this moment, Nobunaga also arrived outside the hall where he was to receive the Honganji messengers. He turned around and asked Shichibei if he was dressed appropriately. Nobunaga was now concerned about his image and could no longer greet guests as casually as before.

Today's guests are also high-ranking officials of Honganji Temple. Although they are not the head priests or members of the temple, they are Hōgen-no-kata Yoriyuki and Hōkyō-no-kata Yoriyuki, who are members of the pens of the pens of the pens.

(Established in the sixth year of the Zhenguan era, the positions of Abbot Fayin, Abbot Fayan, and Venerable Faqiao corresponded to the three major ranks of Sangha Chief, Sangha Chief, and Vinaya Master. These three ranks were all high-ranking positions for monks; below them were those who passed on the torch and those who practiced.)

Because Sakuma Nobumori had gone to Yamato to fight Tsutsui Junkei, Oda Nobuhiro needed to be stationed at Nobunaga's central army as a precaution. Therefore, the person who accompanied him was Akechi Mitsuhide, who was familiar with etiquette. Shichibei did not serve as a guest; he nodded to Mitsuhide and turned to leave. Nobunaga was then escorted into the hall by two pageboys to take his seat.

Takenaka Hanbei was ordered to take the draft of the new regulations to Kunitomo Village, while Shichibei was to rush to Otsu. Takenaka was going to announce Nobunaga's orders; Kunitomo Village had no choice but to listen, whether they wanted to or not. Otsu was a different story; it required extracting a sum of money and negotiating with the wealthy merchants.

Located on the southern shore of Lake Biwa and at the mouth of the Seta River, Ōtsu possessed unparalleled commercial advantages. Historically, it later became a castle town of the Edo Zensho Domain, playing a role alongside many other famous castles in Omi Province.

For example, the town in front of Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei was rebuilt into Sakamoto Castle in Omi Province after Nobunaga burned it down. The neighboring towns of Kusatsu and Katada were important economic towns on the south bank of Lake Biwa, and all fell within the area where Nobunaga levied a special tax.

You also need to pay a toll in front of Enryakuji Temple on Mount Hiei.

It shouldn't be for this reason that the two sides became enemies. It was customary to collect arrow money and farewell money after people from all over the country came to Kyoto. Didn't you see that Honganji Temple also sent a ward official to make peace with Nobunaga and offer arrow money?

After Nobunaga expelled the Miyoshi Triumvirate and Shinohara Nagafusa fled to Awa, Sakaimachi also had to pay money to Nobunaga. Everyone had to pay, without discrimination.

Fortunately, the arrow money for Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei wasn't collected by Shichibei, but by Takei Yuan, who was in charge of collecting it for temples and shrines. The old man's hair had turned completely white; it was unclear how many more years he could serve Nobunaga.

Forget it, there's no point in meddling in their affairs. Who knows, Takei Yuan might even enjoy it. He might not amount to much in the Saito family, but in the Oda family, he'd be a powerful and influential magistrate under the command of the entire nation. He could intimidate temples and shrines, commanding their utmost respect.

When Shichibei arrived in Ōtsu on horseback and presented Nobunaga with the document for collecting the "Mubebetsu" (a tax), he was ready to start arguing with the Ōtsu merchants just like he had done in Ōtsu.

Without saying a word, they brought out three thousand kan of cash and one thousand shi of rice. They even gave Shichibei an extra fifty taels of gold.

kindness?

How self-disciplined!

That's why people living under the emperor's nose have such high awareness!

"I haven't even started arguing with you yet, and you've already prepared the money?" Seeing Shichibei's confusion, the representative of the Ōtsu clan explained frankly that they just wanted to do business peacefully. Nobunaga had stabilized the situation in Kyoto and was still conquering Settsu, Kawachi, and Izumi provinces.

To put it bluntly, it's about stabilizing the vast downstream market for merchants like them who act as intermediaries. They should not only actively cooperate with Nobunaga's policies but also strongly support his military campaigns to quell the rebellion.

While making a fortune from war is a very lucrative thing, most businessmen still need a stable and peaceful environment to earn a steady stream of money.

So it seems that Nobunaga is the only one who can bring them peace.

Wishing Nobunaga long and prosperous military career, and here's three thousand kan as a side note. Is that enough? Not enough? We brothers can chip in a little more; getting one or two thousand kan is no problem at all. Anyway, the "beam allowance" is just a pretext. Does Shichibei really have to go door to door, shop to shop, warehouse to warehouse to count how many roof beams are left?

That's enough. Taxation in feudal times was always this haphazard. In the entirety of ancient history, perhaps only one or two out of ten feudal dynasties were able to formulate detailed tax regulations and effectively implement them. The rest merely went through the motions, or didn't even bother with the superficiality.

They were so sensible, so very sensible, that Shichibei didn't know what to say. He could only praise them on behalf of Nobunaga and then grant them the authority to govern their own towns.

Nobunaga displayed a remarkably lenient attitude towards these large towns that regularly paid him various sums of money and could quickly allocate weapons, ammunition, provisions, and personnel. Of course, this leniency was based on your cooperation; as long as you obeyed, Nobunaga's interference was minimal.

The same thing happened in Kusatsu next door. Even before Shichibei's men arrived, upon hearing that Shichibei was already working in Otsu, they eagerly delivered the money to him.

For a moment, Shichibei felt a little insecure. Was this still the chaotic Sengoku period of Japan? Everyone was so obedient, completely lacking the spirit of the Sengoku era.

Haha, actually, the main reason is that Nobunaga crushed the Rokkaku clan in just one day. This not only scared the local bullies, but also made them think that Nobunaga was capable and could bring peace.

Furthermore, since Nobunaga was now a Kanrei (shogun), they were bound by feudal political obligations to cooperate with him, even to the point of submission. They also had to rely on commercial monopolies granted by powerful figures to maintain various forms of trade.

After both sides paid Shichibei the money, they jointly petitioned Shichibei, hoping that Nobunaga would take charge of dismantling a large number of checkpoints in and around Kyoto, especially along the Seta River, Uji River, and Yodo River.

Some temples, shrines, and estates of regents could obtain permits to pass through their gates, but this still required payment. Therefore, it was best to abolish all of them and retain only a few gates to supply the shogunate's expenses.

What? The checkpoints inside and outside Kyoto are to be abolished? The checkpoints used for the shogunate's daily expenses are to be retained?

These words struck Shichibei as rather perplexing. Not so much the removal of the checkpoints themselves, but the entire system of checkpoints under the shogunate. Had Nobunaga historically removed the checkpoint where Ashikaga Yoshiaki earned his daily living, and then prohibited anyone else from establishing one?

If that's the case, then it's no wonder that Yoshiaki felt dissatisfied with Nobunaga as soon as he arrived in Kyoto. Cutting off someone's livelihood is not much different from killing their parents.

143. The local officials were ordered to pay 5,000 strings of cash.

When Nobunaga first entered northern Ise, in order to suppress and weaken the power of the Seki clan in Suzuka County, he ordered the abolition of the Suzuka Gate on the streets of Ise. Nobunaga also removed all the messy small gates in northern Ise.

In addition, Nobunaga ordered the repair of the streets connecting northern Ise, Owari, and Mino, and the preparation of the port docks. He also ordered the construction of post stations and messenger houses, and the deployment of samurai generals and envoys in the local areas.

Its main purpose should be to strengthen Nobunaga's own rule over the local areas. As for whether it was already preparing for the Rakuichi Rakuza, it is still unknown.

As for the checkpoints currently set up by the Muromachi Shogunate in Shichiguchi, Kyoto? Shichibei truly doesn't know whether Nobunaga will remove them or not.

To give a somewhat inappropriate example, imagine a pedestrian carrying only simple personal belongings and a sword. How much do you think the checkpoints along the way would demand from him on his journey from Anotsu to the gate of Ise Grand Shrine?

One hundred coins!

This road is only about forty kilometers long, but at its peak, it had more than seventy checkpoints—that's right, one every few hundred meters. Of course, after the Kitabatake clan unified the government, the number decreased, with only a few checkpoints at major intersections. But the tolls collected were still substantial; according to Kenichi Takebe's "History of Roads in Japan," the amount was likely much higher.

In the same way, there are seven entrances in Kyoto, namely Oharaguchi (Oharaguchi, Yaseguchi → Hokuriku Expressway)? Kuramaguchi (Izumo Intersection)? Awataguchi (Higashi-sanjoguchi → Tokaido)? Fushimiguchi (Ujiguchi? Woodabataguchi → Nankaido)? Toba Pass (→ Saikaidou)? Tanba Pass (Nishi Shichijo Pass? Shichijo Pass → Sanin*shield* Road)? Nagasaka Pass (→ Tanba Pass). These seven gates are the most important source of liquidity for the imperial court and the shogunate.

During the Nanboku-chō period in Japan, years of war led to a shortage of national funds, prompting the imperial court to establish what were known as "Nai-ri-ro-bun-kan" (内裏率分閣), the prototype of the checkpoints. Initially, these checkpoints were managed by officials from various government offices, but later they became hereditary in the hands of court nobles. They were established and abolished intermittently, and during the Ōnin War, the shogun's wife, Hino Tomiko, re-established several checkpoints.

To this day, it still exists (historically, Hideyoshi killed them all).

At this point, Nobunaga seems to be adhering to the basic framework and rules of the Muromachi Shogunate, because he hasn't yet successfully turned in the direction of Taira no Taiko (Grand Minister of State) by relying on the imperial court and the emperor. Right now, he's still using the influence of Ashikaga Yoshiaki's Shogunate to appoint governors, grant privileges, and collect taxes.

"They probably won't demolish the Kyoto checkpoint, but as for the checkpoint in southern Omi, I can't guarantee that." Shichibei finished his casual conversation with the merchant representative with a grin, then took the money and returned to Kyoto.

On the one hand, they needed Nobunaga to grant them the red seal of the entire town's self-governing settlement, and on the other hand, they were also petitioning Nobunaga to understand his attitude.

The money was all handed over to Sugaya Nagayori and Murai Sadakatsu, and if you wanted to report something, you had to wait in line. Several major temples in Nanto also sent people to pay their respects to Nobunaga. It was all because Sakuma Nobumori led more than 20,000 men to violently invade Yamato Province. These old monks were scared and anxious, so they rushed to flatter and fawn over Nobunaga.

Since Nobunaga publicly expressed his support for Matsunaga Hisahide, these large temples that had previously openly or covertly sided with Tsutsui Junkei would have to bleed a lot in order to gain Nobunaga's understanding and retain their temple territories and sects.

No one wants the burning of the Great Buddha Hall to happen again. Building a magnificent temple is no easy task. With wars every year, neither the feudal lords nor the imperial court are wealthy, and soliciting donations is very difficult.

After sending those old bald thieves away, Nobunaga came out of the palace to eat, and only then did he have time to let Shichibei report on his work. He even asked Shichibei if he wanted to eat, but Shichibei had eaten too much at banquets in Otsu and wasn't interested in this, saying that he would finish his report quickly so as not to disturb Nobunaga's subsequent work arrangements.

I heard that Hanawa Naomasa and Hachiya Yoritaka have both reached Iimori Castle, and Shinohara Nagafusa's 20,000 troops from Nami Province might be clashing with them. Compared to Shichibei's mention of removing the checkpoint, fighting is clearly more important.

After finishing a bowl of miso soup, Shichibei briefly explained the demands of the Otsu merchants. "Remove the checkpoints, is that it?" Nobunaga replied almost without hesitation, indicating that all checkpoints in southern Omi would be removed afterward.

But not now, because in addition to collecting taxes, customs offices have another very important function: to combat crime along roads and to apprehend fugitives.