Owari Yumeki Golden Day

Although the goal is the same, it is worth Nobunaga's effort for you. You are really lucky. Don't look at the fact that I only give you 100 kan now, but if someone else goes to the battlefield and seizes a spear, I am afraid it will only cost 100 kan.

If I asked you to brave arrows and stones, charge into bullets, wear armor, and bravely jump into the city, do you have the ability to do it?

Obviously not.

Yet, the rewards received were the same, and even bestowed in such a reasonable manner. Now that I think about it, the amount isn't important; this thoughtfulness is truly enviable.

"Ah..." After being directly pointed out, Shichibei immediately understood.

So Nobunaga wasn't making fun of me, he was actually giving me a chance. Not just giving me a chance, he was actually creating opportunities for me even if there were no opportunities.

"It's great to be young." Sakuma was very emotional. The Oda family's territory was getting bigger and bigger. They, the hereditary retainers who had already had a high position, might one day fail to keep up with Nobunaga's ideas.

"You are in the prime of life." Shichibei answered casually. Sakuma Nobumori was only in his forties, not an old man at all.

"I'm old."

After saying this, Sakuma Nobumori spurred his horse forward, leaving Shichibei to ponder the consequences of his words. It seemed to make some sense, if one thought about it.

By the time they reached Komakiyama Castle, Nobunaga's standing army had been disbanded, and the armies of his important ministers had returned to their respective homes. Shichibei was completely idle, and the wartime situation had been lifted. So Kotaro could be asked to collect the price for the horses, as he was more mobile anyway.

Before Shichibei could even settle down, So Kotaro returned with a message. Nobunaga had granted Shichibei an additional 100 kan of salary, which should have been sent to Nakanō, to strengthen the local pro-Oda faction. However, Nobunaga had instructed that the 100 kan be sent back to Kaito County in Owari.

If Shichibei was free, he would go and claim the 100 kan of Nobunaga's direct fiefdom, clarify the positions of the four directions, and then return to Komakiyama Castle to report to Murai Sadakatsu. Murai Sadakatsu would complete the military service account, write a letter of reassurance, give it to Nobunaga with his seal, and then send it to Shichibei.

Wow, you're really giving me a chance.

That was a good idea; Shichibei could claim a piece of land connected to his old territory as his new zhixing. The land around Katsubata Castle was essentially Nobunaga's direct domain, a land that had been painstakingly conquered by two generations of his family. It was the foundation of their control over the Tsushima clan, and they wouldn't hesitate to insert samurai into the area.

Of course, most of the big bosses of the Tsushima clan have territories near Tsushima, and the Tsushima Gyuto Tenno Sha also has a territories. They are roughly distributed around Tsushima and can be considered as tributary lands of Tsushima.

Just like the big bosses in Sakaimachi, they also own land around Sakai. How state-owned assets were transformed into shares, shares into private ownership, and private ownership is exempt from taxation is another matter.

After all, we can't escape from the lighthouse at this moment. The land is there, so the guardian is certainly not in a hurry.

Let's go home and check the land survey records of Kaito County. We can grab a hundred kan of land and take it into our hands. We also need to send the three hundred horses Nobunaga hired back to Kiyosu and Tsushima.

Without official business, they could just wander back at a leisurely pace. Shichibei even stopped midway to see which village had sufficient manpower and which had complete water conservancy facilities.

Since I have an additional 100 kan of wealth, I should build a large waterwheel. A waterwheel will make it easier to grind rice, which is an important source of income in the countryside.

Relying on peasant women to pound rice in stone mortars with wooden mallets would take forever. During the Qin and Han dynasties, there was a harsh punishment called "chengdan churn" (city pounding) where men were sent to government offices to pound rice. Men were sent to build cities, while women were sent to pound rice.

The same is true in Europe. The mills in European villages and manors are most likely owned by lords or feudal commercial guilds. Farmers or serfs have to pay the lords to husk and grind wheat into flour.

So, I'll just eat porridge at home. At least it doesn't cost money. Want bread? Bread is expensive.

The mills of early rural communes were indeed public, but the rural communes obviously did not last as long as the feudal lords collected usage fees.

After returning to Kawamuraya's main store, Shichibei asked someone to inquire about the cost of building a waterwheel house. After giving his instructions, he saw Inase Yoshinari standing in front of him, which must be something.

Upon asking, it turned out to be nothing urgent. Takigawa Kazumasu said that someone wanted to introduce someone to Shichibei, and asked Shichibei to visit Kanie Castle when he was free.

Yes, Kazumasu Takigawa said earlier that he would introduce a part-time worker to me.

It was too late today and there was no time to rush to Kanie Castle. The next day, Shichibei asked Inase Yoshinari to find out which nearby land had the best harvest, and then he rode to Kanie Castle.

During the Battle of Nakano, Takigawa Ieyasu was not hired by Nobunaga, so he did not participate in the battle. Now, seeing Shichibei coming, he asked Nobunaga how the battle of Nakano was going.

Information travels slowly, that's how it is. Even Takigawa Kazumasu, who has a bit of a "ninja" connotation, didn't know what happened at the Battle of Nakano a few days ago.

Shichibei was the person involved, and his account was detailed and concise, prompting Takigawa Ieyasu to nod his head repeatedly. Upon hearing that Shichibei had added another 100 kan to his salary, Ieyasu hurriedly congratulated him and, along the way, invited out the dozen or so ronin who were willing to work at Kawamura-ya.

Young or old, there were many. Sometimes, the unhappiness of life could be seen in a person's face. After looking at it, Shichibei suddenly thought of something and immediately opened his mouth to "lecture" the group of ronin.

The Kawamura family doesn't test people on swordsmanship or spearmanship, but on calculation, construction, clerical skills, etc. Anyone who passes today, the first-place winner, will be immediately awarded 20 kan of knowledge and practice, and be promoted to the Kawamura family and settled there.

The second-class hands are paid on behalf of the first-class level. If they do a good job, they may also have the opportunity to be assigned to the territory.

A dozen or so ronin suddenly erupted in a commotion. Weren't they supposed to be working as clerks in a merchant house? Why was there a territory being set up there? Was it really given to Zhixing, or was it a deception?

Many eyes scanned back and forth between Shichibei and Takigawa Kazumasu. Finally, a ronin in his forties asked Shichibei, "Are you really not looking to take advantage of them?"

How can I, the great governor of Owari Kaito County, deceive you ronin?

"Is there really such a thing as granting knowledge and action?" Shichibei asked the ronin, who immediately knelt and apologized, saying that he had come here thinking he was a clerk signing contracts, which was why he asked.

Then Shichibei gave them a task on the spot. Takigawa Ikki dismissed two who were just filling in the gaps, leaving eleven, six of whom were decent and five of whom were passable.

"Pack up and go to Tsushimagawa Village's house for roll call tomorrow. After that, I will assign you to different positions and assign you different places." Shichibei also imitated Nobunaga, took out his folding fan, and rhythmically tapped the tatami to accompany his words.

"Hehe." The eleven people immediately knelt down and saluted, especially the six who were selected after being tested by the Seven Guards, who were even more delighted.

When Shichibei returned to Kawamura's house, he asked Inase Yoshinari if he had found out anything. Combining his own observations, he sent a document about the situation around the land to Komakiyama and handed it to Murai Sadakatsu for archiving.

Since it was Shichibei's case, Murai Sadakatsu took care of it and passed the document to Nobunaga. Nobunaga took a look and saw that it was Shichibei's document of placement, so he signed it with his own seal. Murai Sadakatsu, who had delivered the document, coincidentally remarked that Shichibei had been a bit too hasty, as the document was only sent today, while he had already summoned six retainers yesterday and placed them on the Shinchi.

Nobunaga, who hadn't paid much attention at first, picked up his pen and changed the 100 kan to 120 kan. 20 kan per person would be enough to accommodate a foot soldier.

Murai Sadakatsu said nothing, narrowing his eyes as he watched Nobunaga make corrections. Once Nobunaga finished rewriting, he quickly dispatched it to Tsushima. After all, when he received the letter of reassurance from Nobunaga, Murai Sadakatsu saw the expression on Nobunaga's face, a clear sign of approval and approval. Having been around Nobunaga for so long, Murai Sadakatsu had become as shrewd as a monkey.

64. Hearing that Deji was going to marry

(As mentioned briefly in Hideyoshi's previous chapter, Kawamura Hachiki was the stockholder of Kawamura-ya, meaning shareholders. Therefore, they didn't need to know anything about it; no matter how big Kawamura-ya became, they had a small share. This was one of the organizational forms of the old feudal guilds in Japan, and should not be equated with the new samurai promotion system.)

Twenty more strings of cash?

This was something Shichibei hadn't expected. After all, according to Sakuma Nobumori, the 100 kan of Shinchi was a joke designed by Nobunaga to give Shichibei. But since it was already an addition, adding another 20 kan didn't seem like a big deal.

The man who had brought the letter of reassurance was a retainer under Murai Sadakatsu's command. Shichibei felt he looked familiar, so he quickly invited him in. After some thought, he decided to prepare seven or eight dishes and invite several courtesans to entertain him. He had a blast, and he treated the man to impeccable service.

The next day, Na and Li left, praising Qibingwei for his good care.

In the past, when they went to the village to collect the annual tribute, the village would naturally have a feast to entertain them, and the village girls would accompany them to take a bath at night. This was a common practice, and even in the Edo period, the Tokugawa shogunate often did the same.

If you embezzled the annual tribute rice, the lord would draw his sword and kill you, but accepting local hospitality was still okay. Many retainers in Edo Castle were looking forward to being given an errand to the countryside.

The village didn't really seek anything significant by doing this; it was mainly to curry favor with the higher-ups. Consequently, no one would report the newly reclaimed fields, and no one would know about the increased rice harvest.

How can a village girl compare with a city prostitute?

After sending them off, eleven ronin arrived. After showing them Nobunaga's letter of placement, Shichibei immediately assigned six ronin to his post, each receiving twenty kan (approximately 100 kan) of money and instructions to a specific location, as specified in a written document. The six men bowed respectfully to Shichibei. They had waited in Hunan for two years, with no sign of a resurgence. Now, being offered a position within the Oda clan was a natural way out for them.

After all, unlike the daimyo who had relatives to turn to or funds to spend even if they left office, they became masterless ronin once they left their domain, and they might not even be able to eat a hot meal.

In history, Masayuki Sanada and Yukimura Sanada, father and son, who were exiled to Mount Koya, were so poor that they had to sell their Sanada buttons and they almost had no food to eat.

"Alright, alright, Shichibei, let's not talk about loyalty. We small businessmen, as long as there's lasting profit, there's always loyalty. If you work with me, you won't have much chance of becoming the ruler of a country or a city. Just getting enough to eat and wear is no problem."

Putting this aside, Shichibei secretly learned of the dispatch of troops to Northern Ise. Now that Nobunaga had conquered Nakanō, the foundations of Saito Tatsuoki's rule had been shaken. Mino, once a force capable of competing with Owari, now far outnumbered Owari, even with the West Mino Three.

If nothing unexpected happens, Nobunaga will find a way to capture Inabayama either in the autumn of this year or in the late winter or early spring of next year.

After that, it would be time for Northern Ise to launch an attack. So Shichibei had to find out, lest Nobunaga ask about it later and he would be clueless.

When Inase Yoshisari heard about this, he pulled Shichibei into the house. Although the young man was still young, he had been an intern in the store for many years and was quite experienced. He knew that some things should never be made public.

Things were progressing smoothly. Much of northern Ise's commercial activity depended on Tsushima. While Tsushima Kawamuraya wasn't the largest of the Tsushima clans, it was still quite influential. Even small powerful families ordered weapons, armor, and even horses from Kawamuraya's merchants.

This is not surprising, as Tsushima was responsible for dispatching important military supplies such as lead ingots, charcoal, and saltpeter for Nobunaga. At the same time, it also manufactured bows, arrows, and armor parts for Nobunaga.

How can we describe Japanese armor? The simplest ashigaru domaru is also considered armor. The ornate, beautifully bound, and extremely complex retro armor of the Edo period is also armor. Furthermore, the military service system of Japan's Warring States period also determined the lack of standardization of armor.

So, things like the kilt, the pauldron, and even the specially woven chainmail gauntlet could be disassembled and made into individual parts. A single armor piece was passed down through three generations, and if a part was missing, it could be repaired at Tsushima. Even if the domaru itself was broken, it could be repaired, just like an iron pot. You wouldn't just throw it away if you poked a hole in it.

Just paint it after the repairs are done. You can't tell that this Domaru is older than the samurai wearing him.

Okay, as long as we can move around normally and gather information, that's enough. There's no need to mobilize yet. We have to wait until Saito Tatsuoki flees to northern Ise. By then, whoever finds Saito Tatsuoki will be rewarded generously by Nobunaga.

In addition, was this action coordinated with Takigawa Ieyasu? The samurai in charge of northern Ise was most likely Takigawa Ieyasu. Nobunaga was not particular about the people he employed; ability was the most important thing.

Speaking of this, Inase Yoshinari nodded. Many members of Takigawa's faction served as miscellaneous soldiers for the various northern Ise factions. There are two interpretations of this term: one is generally defined as foot soldiers. Another, more specific, is the temporary employment of mountain dwellers, nobori, and ronin as soldiers when war is imminent.

The lord provided armor and weapons, as well as food and a salary. Meritorious service could earn rewards, but these were generally just monetary gifts, explained clearly before arrival. To put it bluntly, they were true cannon fodder, distinguished from the "real foot soldiers" under the lord's command.

After the summer harvest, Nobunaga went to attack Ryuxing. Naturally, the small-scale local tyrants in northern Ise were constantly fighting each other. At this time, it was easy to insert miscellaneous soldiers into their ranks. Anyway, there were no advanced counter-espionage measures in those days.

The winning side may recruit some foot soldiers from the miscellaneous soldiers, or may disband after the battle, all depending on the lord's ideas.

That's pretty good. Takigawa Kazumasu was originally a mercenary, and being a menial soldier is really his profession. It must be "lifelike", just like the real thing.

With his mind at ease with a major matter, Shichibei could finally rest for a few days.

This time, it was a real break. Previously, Nobunaga had Shichibei plan the streets and post stations from Komakiyama to Tsushima. However, during this attack on Mino, Nobunaga's gold coins must have been used up in one wave, so he had no money at the moment, so he did not issue the order to renovate the streets.

What about the twenty yorikunis Nobunaga sent? They had nothing else to do, so they went to build a stable at the foot of Sekijo Castle as a temporary base. Once Nobunaga conquered Inabayama Castle, they would move to Inabayama.

It was foreseeable that Nobunaga would have to march towards Mino, either through Sunamata or Sekijo Castle, so he would have to have a base. It was impossible to set up a base in the wilderness, and Nobunaga was absolutely aware of this.

There was a Daisuke Jibu who was killed by Nobunaga in the wild.

If Yoshimitsu happily entered Odaka Castle, Nobunaga would be six or seven years old this year?

You guys go, I'll lie down at home.

There is nothing much to say about the twenty Yuli. Samurai are loyal and brave. They go to Sekiguchi to build a stable and familiarize themselves with the situation near Sekiguchi. Who knows, they might make some contribution in the future.

The six retainers summoned to Shichibei's service should not be idle either. All of them should go, and Inase Yoshinari should lead the team. Shichibei is guarding our store now, so we don't need you, our brother-in-law.

This actually caused Ai to roll her eyes...

You have forgotten your brother because you have a new love. Your brother has not had a few days of rest throughout the year.

Shichibei had no choice but to avoid Ai's glare and go to calculate Kawamuraya's accounts. As Nobunaga's business continued to expand, so did Kawamuraya's business. Previously, Kawamuraya could only earn 7 or 8 kan a month, but now its income had skyrocketed more than tenfold, and its monthly income would soon exceed 100 kan.

Moreover, the entire Kawamuraya is still in a period of rapid expansion, with money making money and constantly investing in reproduction. At this rate, Shichibei is very likely to become a big boss with a huge capital.

Then we can buy townhouse land in Tsushima, build a warehouse, and further develop and expand...

Ai was only halfway through his thought when he saw Shichibei shaking his head. In a hundred years at most, Tsushima would become so silted up that it would be inaccessible to shipping. There was no point investing in Tsushima; he should either invest in Azuchi or Osaka.

The premise of staying in Azuchi was that Nobunaga and Nobutada could succeed. When Shichibei's status was high enough, he would talk to Nobunaga about the fact that father and son could not live in the same place. In this way, even if something catastrophic happened, at least one of them would be alive, and the Oda clan would not be in chaos.

Oh, why are we talking about this? Inabayama hasn’t even come down yet.

After ten days at home, Shichibei discovered that there were truly no lawsuits in Haidong County. No wonder those pig-like warriors were able to serve as castle and county representatives as samurai generals. Apparently, there was nothing else they could do besides conscription. The collection of annual tribute relied on both wisdom and force. The wise would negotiate with the local lords, while the foolish would simply draw their swords and demand their doom.

The five nobles and five commoners were not extorted unreasonably. The peasants of Owari were unlikely to mobilize all five nobles and five commoners in an uprising. Nobunaga also collected commercial and property taxes, not relying solely on agricultural taxes.

After nearly a month of rest at home, Inase Yoshinari and the others who had gone to Kanjo finally rushed back to Tsushima. The stables only took about half a month to build, while the walk there and back took several days. Things went smoothly, and Kanjo Lord Mori Yoshinari was pleased that Shichibei had built a stable beneath the castle. These days, any savvy castle lord would try to prosper the castle town, and a stable was considered standard equipment.

When playing Taiko Risshiden 5, the castle town had stables everywhere, but the game completely simplified their purpose. There were only three remaining: one for learning mounted archery and assault, two for buying horses, and three for getting scammed by a traveling merchant from Ezo who bought you a hundred deer just to make fun of you.

"Boss, I heard something outside the city." Inase Yoshinari took the teacup handed to him by Ai and began to rub his calves.

At home, Inase Yoshinari calls Shichibei "brother-in-law," but in the shop he calls him "Danna," or boss. It's part of the feudal system, and the Japanese take it very seriously.

"Who is Goten-sama going to fight next?" Shichibei checked the expense accounts of Inase Yoshinari and his men in building the stable.

"No, no, no, I heard that Onitate-sama is going to marry Tokuhime to Mikawa-no-kami's legitimate son."

"Ahhh, this is normal." This is the most normal thing in the Japanese Warring States Period.

Matsudaira Ieyasu was now considered a prominent and powerful clan in Mikawa, finally recovering from the turmoil of the Mikawa Ikko Ikki. While he hadn't yet completely conquered Mikawa, his family fortune was nearly 20,000 kan. Such wealth was worthy of Nobunaga's current offering of a daughter to win over.

By the way, Princess Deji is only seven years old this year.

This is the political marriage of the Japanese Warring States period. It is not uncommon for children to be engaged at the age of three and married at the age of seven. There is no other way. This is how marriage is. The key is to connect first, just like Tokugawa Hidetada's daughter Tamahime, who married into the Maeda family in Kanazawa at the age of three.

Of course, Matsudaira Nobuyasu was only eight years old, so the age difference wasn't that big of a deal. It was much better than marrying a man in his forties or fifties in his teens, and she wouldn't end up a widow after just two years.

What happened next? Shichibei asked Inase Yoshinari as he looked through the accounts.

"Then I entrust you to purchase goods from Kyoto and Tang Dynasty." The voice of Sugaya Nagayari suddenly came from outside the door. Shichibei and Inase Yoshishinari were sitting at the door of Kawamura's house and chatting.

"Lord Kyuemon, please come in, please come in." Upon hearing this, Shichibei immediately stood up, put down the account book, and led Sugaya Nagayari in.

Let's sit down and talk. It's not a serious matter. Nobunaga sent his sister Oichi to the Asai family and Toyama-hime to the Takeda family, both of which were directly given large sums of money. Naturally, marrying Tokuhime to the Matsudaira family would also cost two, but not as much as the previous two. Two thousand kan would be more than enough.

Moreover, the two thousand kan didn't need to be all cash; it was also reasonable to bring some props and toys that Princess Tokuhime often used. After all, Matsudaira Ieyasu was currently a semi-vassal of Nobunaga. Once Nobunaga became more powerful, the Matsudaira family would sooner or later become Nobunaga's retainers.

Besides, this matter had been decided long ago; now they were just beginning to prepare the dowry. So-called Kyoto goods refer to silk fabrics and textiles produced in Kyoto, including some embroidered and layer-dyed fabrics. These are not produced in Owari or Mikawa, so they must be purchased in Kyoto. Other items include Kyoto-style paper, gold-maki-e lacquerware, folding screens, hanging scrolls, and flower ornaments.

Tangwu refers to the products produced in the neighboring Daiming, including a considerable amount of silk fabrics, as well as umbrellas, spices, tables, candlesticks, bronze mirrors, etc. Of course, this is what Princess Deji needs, as Daiming exported a lot of things to Japan.

When Sugaya Nagayari explained the situation, Shichibei expressed his understanding. It wasn't a difficult task; as one of the Oda clan's royal merchants, undertaking procurement was a necessary task. Shichibei only needed to inquire about Nobunaga's specific requirements and budget.

There is a list.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Shichibei took the list. "Some of the prices are known, but for others, I'll have to go to Sakai and Kyoto to find out specifically." "It's not difficult, leave it to me." Shichibei glanced at the budget at the bottom of the list and had a rough idea.

Seeing that the matter was made clear, Sugaya Nagayari prepared to leave. He was a commissioned officer and had to return to Komakiyama Castle that same day. Shichibei even offered to let him stay overnight in Tsushima, but Sugaya Nagayari refused.

Before mounting his horse, Shichibei asked, "Who will be responsible for escorting the people to the Matsudaira clan?" There must be a senior and respected family retainer who can do it. Niwa Nagahide? Or Sakuma Nobumori?

It's not that he's concerned, but mainly because Shichibei wants to go to Okazaki to see if Ieyasu is starting to show off by eating barley rice that's three parts wheat and seven parts rice.