Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

In addition, I also need to send a message of gratitude to Hideyoshi. Hideyoshi almost lost two of his dearest eggs. He was so brave, how could I not send a message of gratitude?

After a month and a half of recuperation, although he still has difficulty walking normally, Hideyoshi is now able to get up and lie down on his own. However, when sitting, he must spread his legs to provide a stable environment for his egg sushi to recover.

Giving money is certainly a good thing. After all, everyone didn't put in much effort in this battle, so receiving some reward money can be considered as compensation for their hard work in sending troops. At the banquet, all the grown men drank quite heartily.

Because of his injury, the doctor advised Hideyoshi not to drink alcohol, but Hideyoshi had to come in person, so Shichibei sat down next to him, poured him tea, and chatted with him, asking about Koichiro's wolf howling the previous afternoon.

Speaking of this, Hideyoshi became sad again, because he couldn't use it yet, and he was worried about whether he was still capable. Having a successful daughter, Hideyoshi was previously confident in his abilities. He hadn't even considered adoption or anything like that; his mother's first child was also a daughter.

"Don't worry, it will come when it's time." What could Shichibei say?

"Ouch..." That's all Hideyoshi could say.

"Hey, how are you feeling? Let me see."

"Look, feelings are good, but new knowledge is better."

183. Nobunaga kept a mental tally.

By the way, advising Nobunaga not to get too cocky is a bit provocative, but telling Nobunaga to quickly find a new territory, conquer it, and share it with everyone is a perfectly acceptable suggestion.

If any of the retainers are restless, let them earn merit and gain new knowledge and experience. As long as their knowledge and experience are greatly rewarded by the Emperor, their hearts will be settled, and they will remain loyal and devoted to public service.

One version of events surrounding Mitsuhide's early rebellion involved confiscating his fiefdom in Sakamoto, Shiga District, Omi Province, and Tanba Province, forcing him to conquer Izumo and Iwami Provinces on his own. This greatly alarmed Mitsuhide, who believed that Nobunaga was following the precedent set by the Sakuma father and son: first seizing territory, then reprimanding him, and finally releasing him.

This was very convincing and quickly became the mainstream theory of Mitsuhide's rebellion, arguably having the most supporters among all the theories. Because in those days, the most important way to maintain loyalty was through action and knowledge.

Ignoring Hideyoshi's sentimental state, Shichibei told him to go home and frame it, and then squeezed aside. It would be safer to exchange a few words with Nobunaga while he was in high spirits.

Below the stage, an Ayako dance is being performed, with men and women dancing joyfully. In a later Taiga drama called "Taipingki," when the Hojo clan was destroyed, the dancers below were performing what was roughly the frenzied Ayako dance.

This art form, passed down to the 21st century, has evolved into art forms such as Kyogen. In addition, Japanese acrobatics also has a lineage relationship with Ayako-mai.

Compared to Noh theater, people clearly prefer watching these lively and exciting things. Of course, watching sumo wrestling would be even better. And if they could watch dog hunting, they could easily drink three big bowls of sake.

Perhaps times have changed, because the Taiheiki doesn't even show Ashikaga Takauji drawing his bow and shooting arrows in Kamakura, or the dogs in the hunting grounds, for fear of upsetting the audience.

"My lord?" Shichibei cautiously squeezed next to Nobunaga. Nobunaga was clapping his hands and only glanced at Shichibei.

"With the battle in the south, our food and supplies are almost exhausted. Should we replenish them?" Now Shichibei has learned his lesson and won't offer advice without first sounding the other side.

To be honest, 75,000 soldiers had already consumed all of Nobunaga's meager rations. The remaining supplies, stored at Anōtsu, would certainly need to be replenished. Unless Nobunaga refrains from fighting for a year and waits until the autumn harvest before launching another campaign.

If he were to mobilize troops, military rations would be an unavoidable topic, and then Shichibei's words would be easier to say.

"How much food do we have left?" When it came to serious matters, Nobunaga was serious and wouldn't overlook things just to watch a clown dance.

"There are still over 20,000 koku in Anonatsu, and 2,000 koku in Tsushima. As for Gifu, it's probably all gone." Gifu's annual tribute rice was either sold off or taken to southern Ise with the army; it was indeed all gone.

"Hmm..." Although he had expected it, Nobunaga still found it hard to express his feelings despite the enormous energy expenditure.

Although this time, a powerful lord was established through the succession of the Oda clan, since it was a succession, Nobunaga could no longer levy large-scale taxes on arrows and danzen in southern Ise.

Previously, in the campaigns against northern Ise and southern Omi, the old lords had been driven away. When Oda Nobunaga came to power in this region, he immediately ordered the collection of taxes. The tens of thousands of temporary revenues greatly offset the war expenses, and there was even a profit to be made.

This time was different; he hadn't made a single penny. Previously, he had spent a fortune bribing rice producers in southern Ise to fund his supply campaign. Now that Ōkōchi Castle had been opened to the public, the money Nobunaga had deposited in Shichibei's account was almost entirely gone.

"Besides, now we also need to reward them..." Shichibei lowered his voice.

At this moment, since Nobunaga had no new knowledge to share, he bestowed rewards upon his generals. Although Hideyoshi only received a certificate of gratitude, there were thirty gold coins attached to it, which he would receive later.

Without further ado, it's another few thousand kan of cash to be distributed. Some samurai, who were theoretically rewarded with fine horses, katanas, or tea utensils, turned around and handed them all over to Kawamura-ya for cash as soon as they arrived at the castle.

Sooner or later, it will become Nobunaga's opening slip, and everyone can go directly to Kawamura-ya to collect cash when they arrive at the castle. It will save them the trouble of buying horses and swords in the middle.

"How much money do you have left in your shop?" Nobunaga had his own answer in mind.

At the time of the autumn harvest, Nobunaga entrusted Shichibei with the annual tribute rice payment, which was approximately 150,000 to 160,000 kan. Nobunaga took 90,000 kan and used it to pay the wages of his regular foot soldiers.

For example, Yamauchi Kazutoyo was assigned to Hideyoshi as a servant, but his mother and the women in his household were left as hostages outside Gifu Castle. His 300 kan stipend was directly given to his family, who then sent it to him for expenses.

Having retainers living together is indeed quite convenient; at least their wages don't have to be sent to some remote, desolate place.

Speaking of this, it is said that during the Yuan Dynasty, the lineage of the Jochi prince, who had been transferred to the Kipchak steppe, still had fiefdoms in Shanxi. Therefore, every few years, officials from the Shanxi fiefdoms had to travel tens of thousands of miles from Shanxi to deliver tribute to the Kipchak region.

I have to say, that's amazing!

The remaining 70,000 kan were mostly used to purchase rice from southern Ise at high prices. Although Shichibei had some tricks up his sleeve, the accounts were kept perfectly clear, and Nobunaga couldn't find out.

"My lord doesn't have much money left in the shop. After today's reward, we'll be completely broke."

"Tsk."

One sentence silenced Nobunaga. He had been in a good mood today, but now... But Shichibei was just relaying a message; Nobunaga couldn't possibly hold a grudge against him for it.

"Shichibei, we're practically family now, aren't we?" After a moment's thought, Nobunaga suddenly looked at Shichibei with a warm smile.

That seemingly gentle smile sent a shiver down Shichibei's spine.

What family? Oh, they really are family, because Shichibei is now the legitimate son-in-law of Oda Nobuhiro, which makes him Nobunaga's nephew-in-law. In Japanese parlance, Shichibei could even be considered Nobunaga's nephew. As long as Oda Nobuhiro doesn't have a son, Shichibei's son will have the right to inherit the Nobuhiro family line.

"No, no, I dare not, what virtue or ability do I possess?" Shichibei understood a principle well: the nail that sticks out gets hammered down first.

"You've been with me for so many years, you must have made a lot of money. Lend me 50,000 kan." Nobunaga put down his wine cup and grabbed Shichibei's wrist.

Forget about breaking free; Nobunaga's grip was incredibly strong, and besides, Nobunaga was at least 20 or 30 centimeters taller than Shichibei. The way he grabbed Shichibei's wrist was exactly like a creepy uncle grabbing a little girl in a Japanese film.

"Fifty thousand? Do I look like fifty thousand?" There were people everywhere, so Shichibei didn't dare to shout and could only lower his voice.

To everyone's surprise, the more Shichibei resisted, the more excited Nobunaga became, and he even chuckled.

“How can it not look like him? I think it looks more than just 50,000, it looks like 100,000.” Shichibei tried to pull his hand away, but Nobunaga grabbed both of his hands and pulled at Shichibei.

"You can't do that, there are too many people here." Shichibei was almost blurting out something inappropriate.

The once lively hall fell silent, with two people sitting close together staring intently at Nobunaga and Shichibei's struggle. In a classroom in the future, everyone was initially talking animatedly. Suddenly, two people quieted down, and soon the entire room would fall silent.

That was the scene before them, with only the cheerful laughter of the Ayako dancers filling their ears. As for the other retainers and samurai, some were bolder, staring at Nobunaga and Shichibei; some kept their heads down and remained silent; and some turned away to look outside, inwardly cursing that they couldn't bear to look.

The astute Nobunaga immediately sensed something amiss. He turned and glanced around, and the person observing him immediately lowered their head, pretending to drink. The previously quiet scene suddenly erupted into a cacophony of voices.

"You stay after the show is over." Nobunaga finally let go of Shichibei's hand.

"Yes..." Shichibei knew he couldn't escape today.

Sakuma Nobumori, who was sitting to Nobunaga's left, closed his eyes and thought, "What a tragedy! What a tragedy! He can eat anything. He must have never eaten any good pork."

He immediately took his leave; having heard everything, not leaving would be tactless. Once Sakuma Nobumori took his leave, the others, no fools, even Hideyoshi, who had been sitting with his legs spread, was helped out by Maeda Toshiie. Before leaving, he even waved to Shichibei and grinned.

What's so funny? Nobunaga wants money, what's so funny?

"Don't worry, after spring, I will definitely lead my troops to attack Asakura or Miyoshi. At that time, we will have money and goods as we wish, and all towns and cities will be under your control." Nobunaga was so anxious about borrowing money that he didn't pay attention to where everyone had gone.

Now that everyone had left, he immediately pulled Shichibei up and headed towards the Tondani Residence, talking as they walked.

"Are you going to attack Asakura and Miyoshi?" Finally, this topic came up. Shichibei never expected that his advice would end up dragging him into the mess.

To be honest, if it were just a matter of lending Nobunaga a temporary sum of ten or twenty thousand kan, Shichibei wouldn't have found it difficult. But Nobunaga is asking for fifty thousand now, and he'll definitely need more money next year for the war. At the rate Nobunaga spends money, fifty or one hundred thousand kan would be nothing to him.

"Hmph, let's drink from the golden cup together, but let's face each other with swords." Nobunaga was a smart man, and he could easily see that his generals were not putting in their best effort this time.

So what if they don't put in the effort? They'll put in the effort when they fight Miyoshi and Asakura. This time, Nobunaga is supporting the strongholds of the Oda clan. Next time, Nobunaga will only exterminate their families, plunder their territories, and seize the land for himself to reward his samurai.

Although these words were spoken by Zhu Yuanzhang, and the general meaning is that the power of a monarch is unpredictable, what if we think about it the other way around? It could also be said that a warrior can drink wine with the monarch, but when the monarch is no longer reliable, it is reasonable for him to turn against him with swords drawn.

"My lord..." So you noticed that everyone wasn't putting in their best effort.

Upon hearing this, Shichibei breathed a sigh of relief. Since Nobunaga already knew what was going on, there was no need to waste any more words. As for whether or not he would become arrogant, that was a matter for later.

He understood that everyone was eager to expand into new territories and acquire new knowledge. After marching on Kyoto, a large number of samurai joined Nobunaga's forces. They fought for years, built the Nijō Palace, and donated to the imperial court and court nobles. The Oda clan's expenses expanded rapidly, making them desperately in need of new territories.

"So you have to lend me money, and I'll pay you back next year at 3% interest." Nobunaga was a man of his word, and he always kept his promises.

"I understand." Since things had been said to this extent, Shichibei really couldn't refuse.

"Have I wronged you?" Nobunaga stopped and looked at Shichibei.

"No, no, no." Of course, he wasn't aggrieved; that's what Shichibei did.

After Nobunaga appointed Shichibei as Noo's confidant, Shichibei was essentially obligated to lend Nobunaga money. Why would Nobunaga grant Shichibei a monopoly on commerce if he couldn't provide him with sufficient funds?

"Then it's settled. Send half to the city, and use the rest to replenish the rice granary and firearms." Nobunaga's war machine will never stop, so there will never be enough food and firearms.

Having confirmed this, Shichibei finally managed to leave the city. When he got home, his family was quite surprised, as several people had just returned with word that Shichibei wouldn't be coming home that night and that he should get some rest.

Why are you back?

It was returned.

What are you talking about? Shichibei's mind was completely preoccupied with the 50,000 kan; he had no capacity to think about anything else. He had barely sat down when he asked Inase Yoshinari for the account books to see how much cash was currently in the Gifu main store's accounts. They needed to collect it within the next few days and transport it into the city for Nobunaga's expenses.

Inase Yoshinari stared at Shichibei several times. His older brother, Inase Sukeemon, was Nobunaga's head servant, and he knew a lot about things. Nobunaga went to war, sometimes for two months at a time, and it was difficult to find a woman on the battlefield. So what about his page, his attendants, all sorts of servants—dogs, monkeys, raccoons—they all had to come along.

only……

"What are you thinking about? How much money is left in the store's accounts?" Shichibei kept flipping through the accounts of the past two months to understand the income and expenditure.

"Oh, it's nothing, it's nothing." Inase Yoshinari immediately got up and helped Shichibei turn to a certain page of the accounts.

"A temporary expense of 50,000 strings of cash shouldn't affect the store's operations, right?"

"It won't have any impact. We have plenty of gold and silver in our store." Inase Yoshinari was still looking around when Shichibei asked him, and that's when he answered.

"Then count out the 25,000 strings of cash tomorrow and send them into the city to be stored by the Village People's Department."

The remaining 25,000 kan were to be sent partly to Tsushima and partly to Omi, and to be used to procure grain and firearms for Gifu. Sakai was also instructed to notify that the firearms and gunpowder produced in the last few months should be shipped directly to Gifu and that their sale to other places was prohibited.

Kunitomo Village and Hino Town also followed this decree. Shichibei, as the chief magistrate and kinsman, had the authority to issue such decrees on behalf of Nobunaga.

Of course, he's not quite there yet to become the Grand Resident of the Land. Right now, he's only temporarily serving as the resident resident of a few towns. In the future, he'll definitely need to find someone to fill those less important town resident resident positions. Shichibei won't be holding the position forever.

"Have you recorded everything clearly?" Shichibei asked. Inase Yoshinari was recording; there were quite a few things to do.

"Is another war about to break out?"

"Yes, we'll be going into action as soon as spring arrives next year."

184. The cost of sleeping in an abandoned house is high.

It would take several oxcarts to haul 25,000 kan in cash into the city. With gold and money involved, just weighing it would take quite a while. Such a large sum of money must have been delivered by Shichibei and Inase Yoshinari together, and the exact amount must have been counted on the spot.

Murai Sadakatsu was quite grateful to have received such a large sum of money, thankful that Nobunaga had the foresight to support a wealthy merchant who was a close confidant of the clan. Now, whenever he needed money, it came to him immediately.

Of course, these are just my outward expressions of feelings; the feelings I truly feel are not something I can share with outsiders.