Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 223 "Let's do business together"

As soon as Murakami Sobezaemon came ashore, he saw the large wooden fort in front of him and was immediately stunned.

This kind of fortress cannot be built by the Ainu people!

It turned out to be just as we expected.

The entire wall of the village is made of thick round logs, a small half of which is buried deep underground. There are wooden watchtowers at the four corners for observation and shooting, and there are armed guards stationed on the towers.

There are shooting holes on the wall for the archers of the defenders to use.

Every few sections, the wall protrudes outward and has watchtowers, which seem to be built with stones or rammed earth.

Outside the village wall, there is a deep and wide trench with earth walls built on the inside, making it more difficult for the enemy to attack.

Compared with the Fukuyama Castle built by the Matsumae domain, this wooden fortress is smaller in scale, but its defensive strength is no less than that of Fukuyama Castle.

Hiss, where do these people come from?
Murakami Sobezaemon was a Kanbu Bugyo of the Matsumae domain, responsible for managing the "barbarian domain affairs" in Ezo and confirming the trading qualifications of trading ships traveling to and from Ezo.

His administrative area was basically the southern part of the Oshima Peninsula and the territory of the people, with Fukuyama Castle as the core.

More than ten days ago, the feudal lord Matsumae Munehiro ordered him to lead people to patrol the entire coast of Ezo and draw a map of the territory to confirm the jurisdiction of the feudal domain.

Of course, the task he received was not limited to "demarcating territory" for the Matsumae clan. Another important task was to investigate whether any foreign forces had "invaded" the Ezo region.

In the past year, when the Matsumae domain traded with the Ainu people in the north, in addition to frequently obtaining large quantities of Ezo brocade, it also obtained many metal tools and even exquisite hardware products. This immediately attracted the attention of the Nakano, who was in charge of trade in the domain. He reported this to the family elder and finally presented it to the domain lord Matsumae Munehiro.

In January 1604, Tokugawa Ieyasu issued a black seal to Matsumae Yoshihiro, the first lord of the Matsumae domain, officially confirming the Matsumae family's monopoly on trade in the Ezo region.

According to the provisions of this black seal, from then on, the lord of Ezo (the Matsumae clan) sent trading ships on his own to trade with the Ezo people.

In addition, the Matsumae domain had to send retainers to all trading posts and strongholds in Chigyo and Ezo to collect taxes and confirm the qualifications of trading ships to trade locally.

Because of this regulation, travel and trade between the feudal domains located in Honshu and Ezo were strictly prohibited.

The Japanese lands directly controlled by the Matsumae clan were mainly centered around fishing. Since the world-famous Hokkaido fishing grounds were nearby, the fishery catch in Ezo was very large.

In addition to fishing, Ezo's most famous industry, the Matsumae domain also produced a very famous specialty, Ezo brocade.

The so-called Ezo brocade was not produced in Ezo. It was actually a Ming Dynasty fabric that the Ezo people obtained from the Heilongjiang River basin.

The first feudal lord, Matsumae Yoshihiro, presented this as a tribute when he met Toyotomi Hideyoshi at Nagoya. It is said that Tokugawa Ieyasu also personally expressed his hope that the Matsumae family would present a complete set of kimono made of Ezo brocade.

From then on, this item became an essential item for the Matsumae domain to pay tribute to the shogunate.

However, the magistrate in charge of trade of the Matsumae domain unexpectedly learned from the Ezo people that these Ezo brocades did not come from the distant Heilongjiang River basin, but from the eastern coastal area of ​​Ezo.

The iron tools and hardware they obtained, as well as many pottery, cotton cloth, coarse salt, spices and other goods also came from that place.

Upon hearing the news, the entire Matsumae clan immediately realized that an external force might have "invaded" Ezo.

Considering that several fishing boats had disappeared in the eastern part of Ezo before, it might be closely related to this foreign force.

The Matsumae clan was very nervous and anxious about this.

You should know that although the Matsumae clan was designated as an outer daimyo without Ishitaka by the Tokugawa shogunate, its strength was actually very weak. The total population of the entire domain was only more than 5,000 people, and the number of samurai under its jurisdiction was only a few hundred, far less than the scale of thousands or even tens of thousands of samurai in some large domains in Honshu.

This amount of force is enough to suppress the weak Ainu people, but it will not be enough if they are faced with powerful foreign forces.

Therefore, for the sake of early prevention, we must find ways to test the other party's bottom line.

If it poses a major threat to the Matsumae clan, they may have to send people to Edo to seek support and assistance from the shogunate.

Murakami Sobezaemon requisitioned three small boats, took more than thirty samurai and more than fifty foot soldiers, and under the guidance of several Ainu guides, sailed eastward along the coastline.

After passing three peninsulas and two bays, the fleet arrived in the southeast of Ezo and continued to search for the rumored foreign force.

When we were near the mouth of the Wocheon River, we unexpectedly encountered two small boats fishing.

After seeing them from a distance, the other party immediately turned around and headed towards the coast, remaining sufficiently vigilant.

After hesitating for a moment, Murakami Sobezaemon ordered the fleet to follow the two fishing boats.

No matter what, we must always make contact with the other party to understand where they come from and what their purpose is in colonizing and operating here.

There was a simple wooden pier on the coast, but there were no ships moored there, and even the two small fishing boats that had just escaped here were nowhere to be seen.

It was obvious that the other side regarded them as invading enemies. In order to prevent the boats from being seized, they either drove all the small boats into the river and fled upstream, or directly dragged them ashore.

Since the other party is so cautious, we cannot be careless and land rashly.

So, Murakami Sobezaemon ordered the two accompanying escort boats to temporarily anchor at sea, while he took a small boat and slowly approached the simple pier.

After getting ashore, he took several warriors and walked straight towards the distant fortress.

When they reached the trench outside the village wall, the defenders shot an arrow towards their front, as if to warn them not to come any closer.

After stopping, Murakami Sobezaemon ordered a samurai to step forward and shout, asking to enter the village to meet their leader.

After waiting for about quarter of an hour, two people came out of the village, carrying a long wooden board, walked to the trench, and then placed the board on top.

After hesitating for a moment, Murakami Sobezaemon waved his hand and led three samurai onto the wooden planks, crossed the trench, and came to the two men.

The other party didn't say anything, but just nodded slightly at them, indicating that they should follow them into the village.

"Are you Koreans?" Murakami Sobezaemon asked tentatively.

After hearing his question, one of them looked back at him, did not respond, and continued walking forward.

"Are you... Ming people?" he asked again without giving up.

The other party still did not respond.

Who are they?

These two men clearly had oriental features, without any Ezo features, nor did they resemble Western barbarians. Furthermore, they were significantly taller than the others, likely indicating they were from the Eastern world. Because of the special permission granted by the shogunate's black seal, other Japanese feudal domains were not allowed to enter Ezo, thus excluding the influence of the daimyo of the Honbu (Honshu) domain.

Moreover, the expressions, clothing and hairstyles of these two people are very different from those of other people. I think they are either Koreans or Ming people.

However, Murakami Sobezaemon quickly excluded the Koreans.

When entering the village gate, he heard the conversation between several guards. Although he did not understand it completely, he was very sure that these people were not speaking Korean.

As a feudal official of samurai origin, Murakami Sobezaemon was not only literate, but also learned some Zhu Xi philosophy (during the Tokugawa Ieyasu period, Zhu Xi philosophy was listed as the official school of the shogunate) and had some knowledge of Chinese.

Although I cannot write proper Chinese articles, I can still cope with simple Chinese characters and shallow communication.

Before the establishment of the Tokugawa shogunate, Japanese society had been in a state of turmoil for a long time. For a samurai, literacy was not his obligation. He only had to be loyal to his master and then take up a knife to fight in battle.

After Tokugawa Ieyasu finally completed the unification by force, he implemented a policy of suppressing military power and promoting civility throughout Japan, and the focus of the samurai shifted from war to government administration within the territory.

On the one hand, it was necessary to maintain the rule from above, and on the other hand, it was necessary to cultivate administrative personnel with both talent and virtue. Obviously, the significance of warriors reading became important all of a sudden.

Moreover, since the third shogun of the shogunate, Tokugawa Iemitsu, came to power, he has regulated and guided the samurai in the country who were accustomed to holding swords to turn to "literary" education by issuing a series of decrees.

To this end, the shogunate built schools and hired teachers, creating a flourishing literary scene in Japan. The daimyo of other feudal domains followed suit, building domain schools and village schools, and striving to train their own samurai into well-rounded talents with both civil and military proficiency, thereby maintaining and promoting the development of their own domains.

Although the Matsumae domain was weak and had little contact with other domains in the country, and as a small frontier domain, it was despised and looked down upon by the daimyo of other domains, it was not a marginal domain with isolated information and backward culture.

The Matsumae clan's daimyo status was recognized relatively late, which made it difficult for them to integrate into other daimyo circles and they remained isolated from the society of samurai daimyo.

However, Ezo, which was ruled by the Matsumae clan, was often used as a frontier area for the shogunate to exile criminals, which led the Matsumae clan to take in a large number of nobles from aristocratic families who were exiled there, such as Hanayamain Tadanaga who was exiled during the Inokuma Incident (this gentleman was the cannon king who cheated on the emperor).

This allowed the Matsumae clan, which had been excluded from the daimyo circle, to get along well with the court nobles circle in Kyoto.

Historically, starting from the second generation, the lords of the Matsumae domain all married into the nobles of Kyoto. This not only improved the family status of the Matsumae family, but also brought the court culture of Kyoto to the Matsumae domain.

So, even though daimyo like Matsumae came from the countryside, they had high-class relatives in Kyoto and were not country bumpkins who knew nothing.

When Murakami Sobezaemon was in Fukuyama Castle, he had close contacts with several nobles who had been exiled to Ezo. While appreciating the scenery of Kyoto, he also indirectly learned a little Chinese.

You know, it became a fashion among the noble families to use Chinese to learn and communicate.

After realizing that these people were most likely Ming people, Murakami Sobezaemon immediately felt the seriousness of the situation.

If the other party was carrying out the colonization of Ezo in the name of the Ming government, then it would be beyond the ability of the small Matsumae clan to repel them by force.

But if the other party is a pirate from the Ming Dynasty, it would still be very difficult to deal with, and it seems that they cannot provoke them easily.

Eight years ago, a group of Ming Dynasty maritime merchants (pirates), numbering only a few hundred people, dared to collude with Catholic believers in Pinghu, intending to raise an army to overthrow the shogunate and establish a Chinese regime.

If someone had not reported this news to the shogunate in advance, attracting the shogunate army to surround and kill them, they might have really been able to succeed in their rebellion.

Moreover, Ming pirates generally possessed powerful naval armaments and extremely rich combat experience. Even the shogunate's Sekibune and Atakabune ships might not be their opponents.

If they settled down in Ezo, it would definitely be a nightmare for the Matsumae clan.

Perhaps, once they have gained a foothold, they will find Fukuyama Castle, plunder it, and destroy the feudal government.

This matter must be reported to Edo in order to seek strong support from the shogunate.

After entering the wooden village, they were led to a spacious wooden house, where they were served several cups of tea and politely asked to wait for a while while awaiting the arrival of the person in charge.

However, the words "wait a moment" made Murakami Sobezaemon wait for more than two hours, from noon until nightfall, before the other party's person in charge finally arrived.

The leader looked very young, about twenty years old. Not only did he not have a beard, he didn't even have the typical bun that was unique to Ming Dynasty men. He had short hair about an inch long.

This man was also extremely tall, over six feet tall, two heads taller than Murakami Sobezaemon who was standing up. What a tall man he was.

After a brief greeting, the other party kept looking them up and down, as if he was very curious about them.

Murakami Sobezaemon, who had been drinking tea for the whole afternoon, was already hungry, and he also looked extremely tired because of thinking too much.

But the host seemed unaware of their predicament. He neither asked anyone to provide a meal nor offered them some rest. He just stared at them with wide eyes.

"Uh..." Murakami Sobezaemon coughed lightly, straightened his body, and said solemnly, "On behalf of my feudal lord, I solemnly inform you that Ezo is the territory of our Matsumae clan. Your unprovoked intrusion here, the establishment of a settlement, and the establishment of a stronghold are an offense to our Matsumae clan and an infringement on our nation of Japan."

"For this reason, I hope that after receiving our warning, you will leave on your own... and refrain from lingering here to avoid unnecessary conflicts and disputes..."

After saying this, he bowed to the other party, then raised his head and looked over with an extremely serious expression.

Wei Zhonglong frowned and looked over to meet the other person's gaze.

The Japanese man chattered a lot and I couldn't understand a word he said.

But seeing how serious the other person looked, it was probably not something nice like "Long live friendship".

It is very likely that they are severely questioning their presence in Hokkaido, or warning and threatening them to withdraw from Hokkaido immediately in order to maintain their territorial integrity.

Haha, it’s funny, Hokkaido is originally a piece of unowned land, and it has not yet officially belonged to Japan, so anyone can interfere here.

Besides, even if it is brought under your Japanese rule, in this jungle age where the strong prey on the weak, as long as you have strong power, you can just take it away if you want. Why should you interfere?
However, it is not yet the time to intensify the conflict with the Japanese. We still need to bide our time and accumulate strength. We must not act on impulse and get into conflict with the Japanese, or even trigger an unprovoked war.

"This Japanese envoy..." Wei Zhonglong forced a smile, gesturing with his hands as he spoke in a gentle voice, "You must be from the Matsumae domain, right? We came to Beiying Island to escape the war and seek a place of peace and stability."

"Well, we can tell you frankly that our arrival will not bring any threat to your Matsumae clan, nor will it harm any of your Matsumae clan's interests."

"On the contrary, we can establish very close commercial cooperation with you, providing you with a large number of various commodities urgently needed in Japan, especially those from Ming Dynasty and Korea. We can expand the scale of your current Ezo trade several times, or even more than ten times, in a very short period of time, thereby greatly enhancing the economic strength of your Matsumae domain."

"What do you think of our suggestion?"

Let’s do business together!
"..." After hearing this, Murakami Sobezaemon's mind suddenly became foggy. He looked at him straight in the eyes and didn't say anything for a long time.

What did he say?
It seems to imply "cooperation" and also "interests".

Could it be that they want to cooperate with our Matsumae clan?

(End of this chapter)