Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

"It will only take two or three days to go back and forth, so you should make more trips." The construction site of Nijō Palace is not yet completed. Shichibei does have other duties to attend to, but for now, Nobunaga only trusts Shichibei with business matters.

"Once the Ishigaki is completed, Hanbei can take over the finishing touches." While Yukiyo was charging into battle with Nobunaga, Yoriki and the others were celebrating the New Year at home.

The initial charge is long over, and they've started building the castle. So, all the servants have to come and serve. Not just Takenaka Shigeharu, but also Aochi Shigetsuna, Kuwayama Shigekatsu, Tsuchida Chikakiyo, and Ota Gyuichi have all been summoned to Kyoto. We can't all be the ones digging up graves.

The tombstones were mostly piled up within the stone walls of Nijō Palace. The remaining unused tombstones were then moved to a storage yard for future use in castle construction. With all the branch castles in Jiangnan demolished, Nobunaga would eventually build a new castle there as the administrative and military center for controlling the territory.

"I won't ask about your own affairs. That's all. Go and come back quickly." Nobunaga immediately brought paper and pen, and the official document was to be signed on the spot.

"Yes!" Alright, I'll obey.

He kowtowed to Nobunaga, who wrote very smoothly. After finishing the last stroke of his monogram, Nobunaga even breathed on it to warm it up. Actually, the weather was already warm, and the ink would dry quickly.

The construction site was rudimentary, so Nobunaga's iconic seal of unification of the realm wasn't used. It was just a formality anyway; many of Nobunaga's documents didn't have seals, though his personal signature held the same legal effect. Before the page could finish folding and sealing the document, an acquaintance rushed in.

Hosokawa Fujitaka.

They came at this inconvenient time without even announcing their arrival. What's going on? Shichibei stood up, pulled back a little, and showed Nobunaga to Hosokawa Fujitaka.

Upon seeing Nobunaga, Hosokawa Fujitaka rushed forward like a whirlwind and immediately kowtowed to him. Nobunaga was still stunned, somewhat bewildered, when Hosokawa Fujitaka blurted out a sentence.

Ashikaga Yoshiaki has already betrothed his sister to Miyoshi Yoshitsugu!

"Wow!" Shichibei, crouching behind, was startled. Perhaps on the surface, this was an example of Ashikaga Yoshiaki winning over local powerful figures. Miyoshi Yoshitsugu was, after all, the governor of half of Kawachi Province, and the lord of Wakae Castle. It wouldn't be difficult for him to gather a few thousand men to fight for Ashikaga Yoshiaki.

Those who look deeper will notice that Ashikaga Yoshiaki did not inform Nobunaga personally, nor did he obtain Nobunaga's consent. Nobunaga was the new regent of the shogunate, recognized by both the shogunate and the imperial court; how could he not inform Nobunaga of such an important matter?

Whether it was the Toyotomi regime or the Tokugawa regime, marriages between daimyo had to be reported to Toyotomi Hideyoshi or the Tokugawa Shogun himself and could only be implemented after approval.

After Hideyoshi, Tokugawa Ieyasu's main act of "rebellion" was his extensive marriage alliances with feudal lords over a period of about a year. These alliances were not approved by Toyotomi Hideyori, nor by Hideyori's successor, Maeda Toshiie. In other words, he lacked even the endorsement of the imperial guards and officials in charge of managing affairs.

Although Ashikaga Yoshiaki was the Shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate, his support as shogun came from Oda Nobunaga. The matter of marrying Ashikaga's daughter to a feudal lord should have been reported to Nobunaga at least.

Now that he doesn't even report it, no wonder Nobunaga issued a ban on him.

Hideyoshi had certainly noticed both of these points and was now secretly speculating about them. Shichibei was thinking even deeper, because the person who came to deliver the message was none other than Hosokawa Fujitaka.

If Mitsuhide Akechi were to come and deliver the message, it would be perfectly understandable; after all, that's what Mitsuhide does. In fact, if he didn't come, Shichibei would be quite surprised.

Could it be that Hosokawa Fujitaka came to deliver the message?

Do you also want to improve?

Hosokawa Fujitaka was a complete retainer of the Ashikaga clan, and had no lord-vassal relationship with Oda Nobunaga. The fact that Mitsuhide didn't report it indicates that he was unaware of the matter, suggesting that it hadn't been long since it happened. It's quite ironic that Hosokawa Fujitaka reported it to Nobunaga so soon after it occurred.

Upon hearing this news, Nobunaga showed no fury, only a cold laugh, and sat back down on the steps. Hosokawa Fujitaka, kneeling on one knee, appeared to have his head bowed, but in reality, he was secretly adjusting his posture, observing Nobunaga's reaction.

Shichibei and Hideyoshi exchanged a quick glance. Though they couldn't speak, they immediately decided that this was not something they could meddle in, and it was best to keep quiet.

Just then, Akechi Mitsuhide rushed in. Mitsuhide was a senior retainer of both Nobunaga and Yoshiaki, the kind of person who could immediately pay homage to Nobunaga without prior notice for important news. When he hurried in, he saw Hosokawa Fujitaka already kneeling on the ground.

Fujitaka, how come you're here too...?

Perhaps shocked to see Hosokawa Fujisaki come to tattle, Mitsuhide Akechi paused for a few seconds, not moving forward.

When he finally composed himself and reported to Nobunaga, it was indeed about Ashikaga Yoshiaki's marriage of his sister to Miyoshi Yoshitsugu. Such a significant matter could not be concealed by Mitsuhide; otherwise, he would lose face with Nobunaga.

Two people, one thing, but seeing this, Nobunaga actually laughed.

He burst into laughter, stood up, and waved for everyone to leave. Not only Hosokawa Fujitaka and Akechi Mitsuhide, but even Hideyoshi and Shichibei had to leave.

Yoshiaki's actions undoubtedly widened the rift between him and Nobunaga. However, both sides currently need each other, and there is no political basis for an immediate complete breakdown in relations. So…

I don't know, I really don't know. Was Yoshiaki doing this purely out of consideration for winning over Miyoshi Yoshitsugu, or was there some deeper plan? Or did he feel that as the Shogun, he had his own sphere of authority? The Ashikaga clan could marry off their daughter without needing the Kanrei's (shogun's) consent.

As they walked to the outside of the stone wall, Shichibei tugged at Hideyoshi's sleeve, and the two paused slightly, mainly to observe the situation of Hosokawa Fujitaka and Akechi Mitsuhide.

Hosokawa Fujitaka acted very nonchalantly, as if to say, "I was worried something might happen since you weren't here, so I bypassed you and reported it to the boss. You're not angry, are you, brother?"—a typical office lady.

Seeing his reaction, Mitsuhide Akechi simply stared intently at Fujitaka Hosokawa for a while, perhaps thinking of something. He patted Fujitaka on the shoulder, then patted his own hand, feigning nonchalance, took the horse from the servant, spurred it, and disappeared from everyone's sight.

166. I happened to see the mountain-named temple.

Having received orders from Nobunaga, Shichibei naturally had to pack up and head to Sakai. Hideyoshi also suggested that Hidenaga accompany him, firstly because Hidenaga was Shichibei's brother-in-law, making them family, and secondly because Hidenaga had previously been with Hideyoshi in Sakai and could guide Shichibei.

Anyway, Hideyoshi has accomplished one of his main tasks, so he's fine for now. If he's alright, then Hidenaga is even more fine.

Good. Takenaka Hanbei and the others will have to stay and help with the construction of the Nijo Palace. Inase Yoshinari and So Kotaro are also running a shop in Noo. Taking Hidenaga along will give them someone to help them and someone to consult with in case of emergency.

As for the small theater they spotted at the Nijo Palace construction site, Shichibei and Hideyoshi both chose to ignore it. Let's just listen to their words and observe their actions; these days, aren't people's hearts in turmoil?

Who knows if he was the one who flattered Nobunaga first, or if Nobunaga secretly made a wish for him first? The two of them aren't mind readers; now that the Oda clan has grown so powerful, there are always things happening that they don't know about.

Close your eyes and focus on doing your job well.

The most comfortable way to get to Sakai is by boat on the Yodo River. But Nobunaga was in a hurry because of his official business, so riding a horse was faster. He took a few servants with him, and with Hidenaga by his side, they sped off to Sakai.

The moat is wide and the gates are high, so it's not difficult to temporarily muster a few thousand soldiers. However, whether the merchants are willing to engage in a direct battle in Sakaimachi is another matter entirely.

Just like the numerous uprisings in the Kinai region throughout history, such as the Tokusei uprising, the peasants who launched these uprisings often set fire to temples, shrines, palaces, and government offices. The main reason was to avoid conflict; the shogunate and the imperial court were not without the power to suppress the uprisings, but once the flames of war broke out, the palace buildings would be destroyed.

Once Nobunaga's army arrives, Sakai may be able to hold out, but the bustling streets, wealthy townspeople, and neighboring buildings will all be reduced to nothing in the war.

I might as well vote.

Before revealing his identity, Shichibei planned to first visit the big boss of Tennoji-ya, who was also a great tea master and secretly supported Miyoshi Nagayoshi. If Nobunaga implicated him, he would definitely be guilty of the crime of exterminating nine generations of his family, like Tsuda Muneki.

Considering his prior warning that the Miyoshi Triumvirate were gathering military supplies in Sakaimachi, Shichibei certainly wouldn't expose this. However, friendship aside, admitting defeat is one thing.

With Hidenaga wearing a straw hat to cover half his face, Shichibei entered Sakai under an assumed name. In fact, even in the 21st century, there is still a Sakai City in Japan, but it has become a local government under Osaka Prefecture. It is completely unlike its former glory as Japan's largest foreign trade port.

The town now has fifty-three workshops for arquebus forging alone (I couldn't find this unit of measurement, could someone explain it to me?), and it is said to have more than five hundred master craftsmen, making it a famous arquebus production area that is in no way inferior to Kuniyu Village.

Furthermore, Sakai Town also supplies gunpowder and manufactures matchlock ropes; the entire assembly of a musket can be completed in Sakai Town. Currently, perhaps only the Honganji faction possesses the complete upstream and downstream industrial capabilities to achieve this.

That's right. Japan needed to import saltpeter and lead ingots from abroad. So much so that in the early stages of Nobunaga's encirclement, Nobunaga believed that after securing the saltpeter supply for Sakai, the arquebuses of other Japanese forces would become useless firewood.

However, the Honganji forces discovered saltpeter mines in the Hokuriku region and gradually learned the technology of accumulating and processing saltpeter. It was thanks to the long-term support of the Honganji forces in the Hokuriku region that Ishiyama Honganji possessed a large quantity of saltpeter, enabling it to continuously resist the Oda army's ten-year offensive.

Finally, the surrender of Ishiyama Honganji Castle was also related to the fact that the Oda clan had conquered Kaga Province in the Hokuriku region, and the supply of saltpeter to Ishiyama Castle was gradually cut off. Of course, there are also rumors that there was a method of burying fallen Ikko-shu followers (perhaps chopped up) in a pond, mixing them with excrement and urine, and burying them for six months to a year to produce saltpeter, but whether this is true or not is unknown.

Perhaps, but it's not as easy as mining saltpeter directly from the Kaga saltpeter mine. Without a large and stable source of saltpeter, how can the Kii Konkaji Temple, Saiga clan, and other armed military groups sustain continuous operations?

Besides the upstream and downstream of the arquebus industry, Sakai Town also had manufacturing units for almost all categories of military equipment, including swords, spears, halberds, armor, hats, bows, arrows, etc.

No wonder it became Japan's largest commercial port town. It boasted a thriving handicraft industry, a prosperous ocean trade and shipping industry, and its location in central Japan allowed it to connect with the Kinai consumer market via the entire Lake Biwa waterway. Sakai's development truly benefited from a perfect storm of favorable conditions.

Haha, from now on I, Kawamura Shichibei, will be the Sakai Daikan.

Whether this acting governorship is real or not, whether he advances or retreats, will depend on how Shichibei deploys and plans in Sakai. Bringing the entire Sakai under Kawamuraya's control is too difficult, after all, the wealthy merchants in the town are connected with a whole host of feudal lords, shrines, and temples.

To sweep them all into the dustbin of history, it would require Nobunaga's rampage and subsequent efforts from Hideyoshi to establish the so-called "sovereignty system" in Japan, concentrating all supreme power in his own hands.

In the simplest terms, without Nobunaga's violent attack on Ishiyama Honganji Temple, how could Shichibei possibly defeat those merchants who relied on the temple's influence to trade in Sakaimachi?

At that time, Honganji Temple was regarded by many as a powerful feudal lord, wielding great secular power and possessing unparalleled wealth.

The monk Kennyo of Honganji Temple was more famous than many Japanese daimyo. Its organizational structure, cloaked in religious garb, was in some ways even more rigorous than the Goon-Houkyu samurai system of ordinary samurai families.

The religious cloak provided even greater spiritual support and a large, readily available pool of manpower. There will be no peace until his secular power is eradicated.

We Shichibei don't have the ability to kill him, Nobunaga-nii, do your best!

Guided by Hideyoshi and the shopkeeper who had been to Sakaimachi before, Shichibei arrived at Tsuda Munekichi's villa. As a great tea master, Tsuda Munekichi did not live in the house behind the shop like Shichibei, nor did he even live in a house in town. Instead, he lived in a villa with a "grass hut" tea room.

The "thatched hut" is a kind of simple and quiet tea ceremony that gradually developed after Murata Jukō. Only by relying on such a small thatched hut can one experience tranquility in the tea ceremony.

Anyway, we don't understand this stuff, and we still have a long way to go in learning the art of tea. Besides, this thing is mainly for social purposes, not something we're really trying to use to make a name for ourselves. It's all just empty flattery. Praising Nobunaga's tea ceremony is no more noble than Director Qi crying loudly at his grave.

Upon knocking on the door, it seemed they had come uninvited. The servant who opened the door sized up Shichibei and his party. Only after Shichibei introduced himself as Nooki Chikakata Kawamura Shichibei did the servant pause for a moment, then forget to welcome Shichibei and his party inside, rushing straight in to report to Tsuda Muneyuki.

hum...

To be fair, Tsuda Munekichi's management of his servants was rather lacking. This suggests he might have shortcomings in certain areas. It's no wonder that Hideyoshi ultimately favored Sen no Sōyō, abandoning established merchants and tea masters like Tsuda Munekichi and Imai Munehisa.

After indulging in self-contained enjoyment for too long, perhaps we've lost some of our vigilance.

Relying on Nobunaga's brother's influence, Shichibei didn't just stand there outside the doorway, but strode straight into the courtyard. It didn't take long, as the servant wasn't very good at improvisation, but he was quite agile. Soon, Tsuda Muneki and a large group of people rushed to the door, bowing in Shichibei's manner.

Alright, alright, why bother? We're all in the business world in Japan, there's no need for this. Shichibei wouldn't hold a grudge over such a minor flaw; he just wanted to sit down and talk things over, and get the job done as Nobunaga had entrusted to him.

Tsuda Munekichi was also a high-ranking tea master with a salary of 3,000 koku, but being from a merchant background, he was very flexible and personally led the way for Shichibei. He didn't waste any words; he had already knelt before Nobunaga and paid 20,000 kan, so he didn't care about being humble for a little longer.

After Shichibei and Hidenaga sat down, and the other servants and helpers were settled, they finally had a chance to talk. Naturally, they wouldn't go to his so-called thatched hut; that hut was supposedly only four square meters—how many people could squeeze into it? You can calculate it yourselves.

It's not a place for receiving guests; it's more for private talks, exchanges, or doing something mysterious...

"The Grand Master has quite the leisure time." Shichibei picked up his teacup; this time, it was just ordinary tea.

"I was entrusted with a task earlier, and I failed to greet you properly." In the past, both of them were merchants and could have been on equal footing.

Now, haha, Shichibei was personally appointed by Nobunaga, and Tsuda Muneyuki understood the possible purpose of his visit after a little thought.

"Oh? A guest?" Shichibei asked curiously. What kind of guest would require Tsuda Muneki to personally serve him tea?

"It's Yamana Kingo (Uemon-no-katsu)." Tsuda Muneki's answer was rather unusual.

After being driven away by Hideyoshi, Yamana Hirotoyo did indeed flee to Sakai. After all, he was an enemy of Mori, and Amago had been defeated by Mori. The surrounding forces were all following Hideyoshi to attack him, and he had nowhere to go but to resign and then live as a recluse in the foreign concession.

"Is it possible?" Shichibei gestured.

Never seen this guy before? Shichibei's got some influence now, all dressed up and acting all high and mighty, he just loves seeing all sorts of people. Like when he asked Ukita Tadakatsu for his son. Since we're already here, let's meet him.

He was just a former daimyo who had lost his territory; he couldn't really be considered to have made friends with foreign vassals or colluded with the enemy.

"Please wait a moment."

Upon hearing this, Tsuda Munekichi got up and personally went to ask Yamana Hirotoyo if he should meet with Shichibei. At present, Tajima Province and half of Inaba Province are divided by local tyrants, and the local population is really a cross-province and cross-county entity. The local people such as Otagaki, Yagi, and Kakiya are powerful and play the role of a small Warring States through alliances and counter-alliances.

After a short wait, a rather elderly samurai was ushered in. Needless to say, it was Yamana Hirotoyo, the Tajima governor who had been driven away. Judging by his age, he was probably in his fifties or sixties. But he didn't look like a complete old man; he still had some imposing presence, though it was overshadowed by an air of decay.

After sitting down and exchanging greetings, Yamana Hirotoyo inquired about Shichibei's position within the Oda clan. Unsurprisingly, he was quite surprised to learn that Shichibei held the 5,000 kan (a unit of currency) position held by Noo Chikakata.

How could a mere merchant be entitled to a reward of five thousand guan?

The neighbor, Tsuda Munekichi, is one of the three great craftsmen of the land and a wealthy merchant in the Sakai-machi Guild. Yet, he only holds the title of 3,000 koku and serves as the acting governor of the Sakai South Estate. What merits does Shichibei possess to have such a fortune?

Gaining Nobunaga's favor? Impossible. Yamana Hirotoyo knew this was impossible after looking at Shichibei's ugly appearance. This meant that Shichibei was indeed talented and had served Nobunaga faithfully, which was why he was given important responsibilities.

"Lord Kawamura's visit to Sakai must be at the behest of the Kanrei." Yamana Hirotoyo, being a former Kanrei who had fled, had nothing wrong with asking.

"So that the King's Palace may know, and I have been ordered to come and serve as the deputy of Sakaitsu."

"As expected, Lord Kawamura enjoys considerable trust within the Oda clan."

"It's all thanks to my lord's promotion."