Owari Yumeki Golden Day

Apart from some monks, how much fighting power could the mobilized common people have? It was only because they had the support of a large number of ronin warriors that they were able to fight Nobunaga back and forth.

"Hmph." After getting a definite answer, Nobunaga just nodded slightly.

"Do you need me and Sakon to join you..." Shichibei guessed his superior's intention. Nobunaga must want to kill these people, so we have to take on the dirty work.

Anyway, Takigawa Ieyasu was the one doing the dirty work. Shichibei would scout the area for him, confirm the number of people, and then Ieyasu would send his men to kill the ronin samurai. Physical destruction was the most direct and had the least consequences.

"You should recruit a group first." Nobunaga's mouth corners slightly raised, but it didn't feel like he was smiling.

"I understand." Shichibei didn't dare to ask the reason and agreed immediately.

"You have also made contributions, so I will increase it to 2,500 kan." Nobunaga showed his white teeth, which looked very fierce.

"I am terrified."

These words were obviously quite cheerful, but when coupled with Nobunaga's order to kill someone, it didn't seem so pleasant. Stepping back and bowing, Shichibei understood.

First, try to recruit those landless ronin from the northern and central forces. If they are willing to join Shichibei's army, it means that at least their will to resist is not firm, and they still want to live a stable life first.

By recruiting people under the name of Kawamuraya, the ronin's resistance to Oda wouldn't be too great. Even though surrendering to Kawamuraya was actually surrendering to Oda, there was also an excuse. Humans share a common tendency to make excuses for themselves.

If he didn't even want to go to Kawamuraya, preferring to wait in Anozukuo, biding his time to drive out Oda and regain his former territory, then I'm sorry, Nobunaga's sword never dulled.

As long as you dare to rebel, I will kill you.

This period of time is the last window of opportunity given by Nobunaga. If you miss this opportunity, you will never have it again.

110. Combining kindness and severity is indeed effective

Shichibei was still muttering about Nobunaga's strategy of using courtesy first and then force, when he saw Nobunaga plotting another murder with a blunt knife.

Suzuka Checkpoint removed!

Suzuka Pass is one of the most important checkpoints on the Ise Kaido. Just by looking at its name, you can tell which county it is located in and who controls it. Seki Morinobu, you're jumping, aren't you? You're holding on stubbornly and refusing to surrender.

Did he think he could just kneel down and be done with it? Of course not. While Nobunaga wouldn't break his promise to protect his family and his clan, he hadn't explicitly mentioned cutting off the Sakae clan's financial resources.

Perhaps Seki Morinobu's historical vacillation was related to Nobunaga's order. But now, under his roof, he had to bow his head. With Nobunaga's 60,000-man army at his side, and himself in Nobunaga's presence, how could he not agree?

Suddenly, I felt that this trick seemed to have been used by Chang Gong as well. Chang Gong himself controlled the import and export tariffs. With the support of the foreign customs commissioner, he ordered the abolition of all likin bureaus across the country and prohibited local warlords from charging arbitrary fees. On the one hand, this order was supported by the people of the country, and on the other hand, it greatly weakened the financial resources of local warlords.

Now, hey, Chang Gong and Nobunaga actually have a common topic. Nobunaga is to control important trade nodes and commercial towns to quickly collect money and dispatch guns and weapons.

As expected, feudal rulers had similarities in many of their governing ideas.

Having been deprived of the Suzuka Checkpoint, Seki Morinobu could only nod in agreement and then obey the order. Nobunaga dismounted from his donkey and immediately assigned a member of the Akamori clan to lead the team to dismantle the Suzuka Checkpoint.

Once the checkpoints were demolished, the number of merchants, pedestrians, and peddlers entering and leaving Ise Kaido and stopping at Anotsu and Tsushima would surely increase significantly.

Why did Nobunaga, who had millions of koku in Nobi and Nobi countries, not issue any Rakuichi Rakuza Order? Because even if he did, it would be bullshit, as if merchants and goods from all over the world would flock to him once the order was issued.

What a joke, who can come if Suzuka Pass locks the door?

If the territory is not large enough, no matter how good the commercial policy is, it will only be a castle in the air. Nobunaga was in Owari Raku City, and no matter how much profit he gave to the merchants, Seki Morinobu at Suzuka Pass would take it double.

Merchants are not fools; they won't go if there's no profit. It would be more realistic to expand the territory, perhaps even conquer all of Japan, before implementing commercial policies.

Seki Morinobu had seen enough to witness grand occasions, so he suppressed his emotions and followed the Akamegi clan, who had been assigned by Nobunaga. He certainly couldn't escape for the time being, having to serve at Nobunaga's chariot. But by assigning his son to help, he could always make it happen.

Nagano Nobuhashi on the side nodded repeatedly. His brother was teaching him the principles of governing a country.

After the banquet, Nobunaga invited everyone to watch a Noh play. The Noh troupe that had previously performed in Tsushima was now brought to Ise by Nobunaga. In the play "First", when Hideyoshi's army besieged Bitchu Takamatsu Castle, his army also had a group of artists who were dressed up in makeup.

They usually sing and dance. At night, they also work as a prostitute. There's even a man who paints his face with white powder, pretending to be a woman, and scares a Hashiba soldier so much that he runs away mid-sex. Even more ridiculous, Hideyoshi in the show doesn't care at all and even sits there laughing with Hidenaga.

Shichibei was very impatient to watch this, but those who were qualified to sit on either side of Nobunaga to watch the Noh play were all Nobunaga's direct attendants. No matter how unwilling he was, he had to sit upright and support his master.

Halfway through, someone came to inform Takigawa Ieyasu. Ieyasu moved his buttocks again, went to Nobunaga's side, and whispered a few words in his ear.

Nobunaga smiled and continued to watch the Noh play without giving any instructions. Takigawa Ikki seemed to want to say something, but when he saw Nobunaga's expression, he stepped aside.

The next day, Shichibei was preparing to return to Annozu, and word of the previous night's events had spread. Kitabatake Gukyou sent someone to meet Nobunaga and inquire about Nobunaga's journey to Ise.

Or to put it more clearly, they saw that Nobunaga had already advanced to the wooden castle, and they were afraid that Nobunaga would rush up and destroy the Kitabatake family as well.

Unlike in history, Nobunaga did not advance to the wooden castle this time. It was during another expedition to Ise that Kizoku Tomomasa, seeing the wind turning against him, chose to rebel against Oda.

Now, Kizuki Guzheng was under Nobunaga's control, and his army was heading south to Ōkouchi Castle. Although Kitabatake Guzhen was afraid of the Oda clan's massive army, he still had to ask the question.

And now that he had found out the truth, he could also find a way to send people to Kyoto to ask the five regents or even the emperor to issue an order to persuade Oda Nobunaga to make peace.

Prepare early and plan early, take one step further and live longer.

The envoys were Toiyao Mitsuyoshi and Tsuge Ue Yasushige. Tsuge Ue Yasushige's father was Fukuchi Munetaka, who was friends with Takigawa Ieyasu's father. Since Tsuge Ue Yasushige was serving the Kitabatake clan, it was better for him to show his respect by coming to Takigawa Ieyasu than for the other Kitabatake retainers to remain completely in the dark about the Oda clan.

Tsuge Yasushige and Takigawa Kazumasu were not the main focus, merely the connecting buttons. The real people to be interviewed were Toriyao Mitsuyoshi and Nobunaga himself.

As a veteran of the Kitabatake clan and concurrently serving as deputy governor of Ise Ominato, Toriya Omitsune was known for his wisdom and courage. He was likely currently engaged in a tug-of-war with Nobunaga within the camp. After all, the Kitabatake clan he represented was still capable of mustering an army of 15,000 men.

With an army of 15,000, they now had the right to bargain with Oda Nobunaga and speak on equal terms. Ten years later, someone like Ukita Naoie of Bizen would have commanded 12,000 soldiers. Nobunaga simply waved his hand, assigning Hideyoshi the responsibility, and dealt with Naoie rather sloppily.

But no matter how their talks went, Shichibei couldn't wait for the results and had to go to Annozu to recruit people.

Back at Annozu, the other big bosses thought Shichibei was there to help "press things on". They told him not to worry, they all knew what was going on and would deliver the arrow money and the dobetsu money to Nobunaga promptly and properly.

Well, this is your job to curry favor with Nobunaga. Shichibei has only one request: transfer all the Yojimbo that these people have hired to work for you to Shichibei.

In addition, Shichibei was allowed to erect notices on the main streets and bridges of the town, inviting Kawamuraya to recruit retainers. Those with talent and ability could be granted the title of Ise Province Governor, while those with average talent could also receive a salary. Kawamuraya was happy to recruit retainers, regardless of whether they were skilled in martial arts or proficient in literature.

what?

"Kawamura-dono, this, this, this..." The big boss who had previously pulled Shichibei's sleeve to act out a crying scene was about to start acting again.

"I understand that recruiting Yojimbo is the only way to protect the safety of money. Besides, the relationship between you is intricate and you are related. It is not easy to turn away people who are poor and want to seek refuge with us." Shichibei found that there was no need to act with this group of people.

If Shichibei only represented himself, then he would need to weigh the pros and cons, compete with them, and go back and forth with them. But now Shichibei represented Nobunaga, and Nobunaga's "60,000 troops" were not far from Annozu.

The army could crush the entire Annozu into dust in the blink of an eye. Talking to them with affection was useless, as they subconsciously wanted to please Nobunaga and his military power.

This is not a superstition about the use of force, but the fact is that we are living in an era where force is dominant.

It's better to ask them directly than to argue with them. If they understand that it's Nobunaga who wants it, they'll immediately kneel. Isn't it said that when war breaks out, the compradors are the first to kneel? The national bourgeoisie can be united and won over, as can the enlightened landlords. Only those who have been compradors to the powerful, who have always been kneeling, will unhesitatingly turn to the new superpower.

"hiss……"

Sure enough, once Shichibei took a firm stance and made Nobunaga's intentions clear, the big bosses who were originally preparing to start the show hesitated.

"In addition, the lord has ordered the removal of the Suzuka Checkpoint, which is a great blessing." The trick of giving a slap in the face and then giving a sweet date can be used.

"Kawamuraya will also set up a branch in Annozu." Shichibei will definitely expand his business rights in Kitase and Nakase.

The meaning of this sentence also has a hint, that is, when opening a branch in Ise, in addition to a part of the staff sent by the main store to manage accounts, rent houses and pledges, the other general staff must be local people in Ise.

That is to say, these Ise ronin who were recruited or hidden by the Anotsu clan still received official positions or salaries in Ise and served their country in Ise.

Of course, Shichibei didn't say it explicitly, that is, he didn't promise. Let them work in Ise for a year or so, and then wait for Shichibei to transfer them around.

"Please allow us half a day to discuss it." After much deliberation, a group of big bosses decided to delay for half a day.

"Of course." Shichibei agreed.

When Nobunaga entered Kyoto, he had an army of 60,000 to defend the city, so naturally, he kept his word. Shichibei only had a dozen or so men and families, and everything he did in Annozu required the cooperation of the Annozu Association.

They refused to cooperate, and Shichibei couldn't even figure out the layout of the main streets, alleys, and bridges in Annozu, let alone posting notices at the intersections to summon his retainers.

Therefore, we have to negotiate with them to gain their support. If they support Shichibei, a considerable number of the ronin who were hidden by them can be "made public."

Given the current situation, unless Nobunaga personally leads his troops to attack, it would be a piece of cake for them to hide two or three hundred people, or even three or five hundred people.

It was certain that some of the samurai who had fought openly against the Oda clan were hidden or even sent ashore by them. The war in Kinai was raging, and soldiers were in high demand everywhere, so securing a salary was not difficult.

By the way, Matsunaga Hisahide was beaten by the Miyoshi Three and had to retreat to Yamato. To be honest, this guy's ability in fighting is really a bit mediocre.

Because he was in a weak position, Matsunaga Hisahide opened his doors to all directions, recruited brave men, and organized an army to fight against the Miyoshi Three.

After much deliberation, the group finally knelt down and expressed their willingness to assist Shichibei in recruiting retainers in Annozu. As for the Yojimbo already under their command, they hoped to recruit them on a voluntary basis.

No problem. Those who are willing to follow me now are trainable and willing to bow their heads. Those who are unwilling to follow me will definitely be traitors in the future and wait to be chopped off by Nobunaga's sword.

When the big bosses heard Shichibei's agreement, they were quite happy. They felt that the ronin warriors they had promised to protect were now safe and they didn't need to hand them all over to Nobunaga.

After all, some people possessed unique identities, holding considerable influence in the villages of northern and central regions. For example, the Kusunoki clan—sound familiar, right?—was the Kusunoki clan. Their leader, Kusunoki Masatada, initially resisted, then surrendered. After his surrender, he joined the army in the attack on Gao (Shielded) Gang Castle. Taking advantage of the army's chaos, he fled with his men.

He was famous, had some appeal, and was also very rebellious. If anyone else were Nobunaga, they would have offered a reward for his capture, and anyone caught would have been beheaded in public.

Of course, Kusunoki Masatada wasn't in Annozu, but his wife, children, and elders were. The Annozu people knew the difference between the great and the small. They could find excuses for sheltering the elderly and the weak, but how could they kill a poor bird in their arms? Sheltering the treacherous thief Kusunoki Masatada would be a blatant act against Nobunaga.

Raise the flag to recruit soldiers, and there will be people to eat the food.

First, the foot soldiers of the national heroes came to surrender. After all, it didn't matter who they carried the gun for. For an foot soldier with an annual salary of five or ten kan, it was worthy of their lord to shoot three arrows in battle. Now that the lords have all fled, it is not shameful to find another job to continue serving as foot soldiers.

After that, there were the well-known samurai. There were so many powerful families in Ise that there were even rumors of the 48 families of Northern Ise. From the Nanboku-chō period onward, every generation with two or three sons would create two or three more surnames.

You can call it whatever village is given to you. Just like when we were chopping wood with Hosuka Koroku, they were working in Mino Ushio Village. Ushio Village is separated by the Ushio River, and Shichibei was curious about this name.

Later, after careful inquiry, it was discovered that there was indeed a samurai named Ushiko. If Shichibei could open his third eye, he would also find that the Hojo family also had a samurai named Ushiko, who was born in Ushiko Village, Kawagoe Castle, Iruma District, Musashi.

How great! Otherwise, where would those weird Japanese characters come from?

After these two groups had recruited about 200 people, the number of people who wanted to join them gradually decreased. No one from the well-known families in the northern and central regions came out for the time being.

It's understandable, after all, he had just been driven away by Nobunaga. Within a few days, he ran to Kawamuraya, who was under Nobunaga's umbrella, and he couldn't get over the hurdle in his heart.

If they don't come, then they don't come. Shichibei thought that with 200 people, they were more than enough to open a branch in Ise and build a post station and a stable. As they said, if we miss this village, we'll miss this place.

A group of Annozu people saw Shichibei leaving with 200 people, and cautiously asked Shichibei when he would send people to set up a branch of Kawamuraya in the town.

They promised that the branch's banto would become a member of the Annozu clan as soon as they arrived, and would be eligible to participate in the Annozu meeting. And once Kawamura-ya was established in Annozu, they would have voting rights.

"Gifu-dono has achieved victory this time. Upon returning to Mino, Lord Kawamura will surely reward him."

"That's natural."

"Could it be that you are to become the head of the Ise merchants?"

111. After gaining power, everyone will be rich and noble

Shichibei and the Annozu clan were playing a trick. "If you say I want to be the head of the Ise merchants, I'll have to say I'm not very knowledgeable and hope you'll find someone better. But if you say I want to be the Okinatra of the Oda clan, then I'll have to do it reluctantly."

After all, I, Kawamura Shichibei Nagakichi, am merely a humble servant under Lord Nobunaga, doing little but hard work. All I do is contribute to the people of my domain, so why should I be concerned with the rank of my position?

I don’t know how big this collar is yet, but I believe it will get bigger and bigger.

Taking advantage of the support of Oda Nobunaga and the intimidation of tens of thousands of troops, Shichibei took out all the more than 3,000 kan in cash he had obtained before and bought land in Annotsu nearby to build a branch office and a house.

The land needed to build a shop wasn't large, and even in prime locations, the people of Annojin could find a way to appropriate it. But the Annojin coastal mudflats were vast, and all the houses along the harbor were owned by someone.

But since Shichibei wants it, I can only sell it to him at a "fair price" with a bleeding heart.

It was foreseeable that a large portion of the annual tribute rice sales business in Kitasei and Chuse would be handled by Shichibei. Shichibei needed a large rice warehouse and storage facility, which was easy to handle in Tsushima. However, in Annozu, it was necessary to take advantage of the bloody sword of Nobunaga, which was very intimidating.

Of course, if history had not changed, there would have been no problem for Nobunaga to requisition the land of Annotsu after slaughtering 20,000 to 30,000 men, women, the elderly and the weak in Nagashima.

However, at that time, Shichibei wanted to gain control of the port of Ise-Ominato, as well as the rice warehouses and rice storage facilities within the port. Therefore, it was better to focus on current matters now, as there would be future benefits.

Toriyao Mitsuyoshi, who was chatting and laughing with Nobunaga in Nobunaga's camp, would never have thought that someone had already easily set his sights on Ise Ominato, who was under his charge.

At the moment, only the members of the Anongjin Society were silently crying out in their hearts, it was like arsenic mixed with chili peppers, poisonous and spicy.

Temporarily entrusting the Annozu clan with the management of the noya and the construction of the Kawamuraya branch, Shichibei sent 200 of the Ise retainers back to Tsushima. They would need at least a month or two of pre-job training, otherwise they wouldn't be able to start working.

Besides, if we take them to Nobunaga's camp, they might think we're being dragged to a beheading and start panicking. It would be better to go to Kawamuraya Honten first, to the gathering town that barely has a "free" atmosphere, to dispel their nervousness.

"How many people were summoned?"

"Two hundred and five people." Before Shichibei saluted Nobunaga, Nobunaga waved his hand and didn't care about it at all. He only cared about how well Shichibei did his job.

"Hmph..." Nobunaga just sneered.

If you think about it, the samurai of the Sekike and the Kikuzō clans surrendered completely. Six hundred samurai from the Kobe clan and other branches were temporarily assigned to Takigawa Ieyasu, while five hundred samurai from the Nagano Kudo clan and other branches were assigned to Nagano Nobuharu. Adding these to the total, and including those killed and exterminated by Nobunaga, there were at least a thousand samurai from the northern and central clans still operating as ronin.

Even if the Kitabatake and Rokkaku families took in some, Shichibei shouldn't have been able to recruit only 200 people.

"There are always some fish that slip through the net." Shichibei knew this, of course, but with the current investigative methods, there was no way he could catch them all.

Let alone now, even in the Edo period, the world couldn't be unified in name only. Look at Ukita Hideie, how many years did he hide? In the end, he was voluntarily handed over by the Shimazu family. If the Shimazu family hadn't intervened, Ukita Hideie would never have become the lord of Hachijojima in his lifetime.

At the end of the shogunate, the murderer who assassinated the leader Ii Naosuke in the Sakuradamon Incident unexpectedly changed his identity after the fall of the shogunate and became a civil servant in the Metropolitan Police Department of the Meiji government.

It's too easy to hide someone.

Unless you offer a reward as high as Ishida Mitsunari, if you capture Ishida Mitsunari and bring him to the battlefield, Zhixing will reward him with 320,000 stones!

Tanaka Yoshimasa was a close friend of Ishida Mitsunari. The two grew up in Hubei and served Hashiba Hideyoshi. Their friendship was no less close than that of Ōtani Yoshitsugu. Although they ultimately served on separate sides, Ishida Mitsunari, at the end of his life, gifted Tanaka Yoshimasa with great wealth as a friend.