Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

Based on this, the production volume of various weapons in Sakai can actually be calculated. If the factor of raw materials is also taken into account, the calculation becomes even easier.

Because Japan was both an iron exporter and an iron importer. A typical example is the Amago clan, which imported iron and horses through iron trade with Korea.

A significant portion of the iron needed to forge arquebuses in Sakai was imported from overseas. It's said to have originated from southern China, with some even suggesting it was from Foshan, but the exact source of the smuggled iron remains unknown. There were even rumors that it was steel from Burma that was diverted to Japan.

The difference lies simply in the varying iron-making processes across different regions, leading to variations in impurity content and carbon content. Iron for forging cannon barrels requires high-purity wrought iron, which had to be imported.

The production of arquebuses in Sakai can be determined entirely by registering the amount of wrought iron input.

As for the management and rental of ships in Sakai, Shichibei clearly explained this to the members of the Sakai Association. Sakai ships simply operate on two routes: one is the domestic trade of return ships, and the other is the trade of red-ink ships going abroad.

The main purpose is to register and control the returning ships. The red-inked ships are large and inconvenient to maneuver in the Seto Inland Sea. They are rarely used as transport ships in the Seto Inland Sea because they are neither convenient nor cost-effective.

Historically, during the Battle of Dan-no-ura, the Taira army possessed a large number of "Tang-type large ships." From a distance, they appeared very imposing, giving the Taira army considerable confidence. However, in the Seto Inland Sea, they were actually less effective than the smaller Japanese ships that relied on oars for rapid maneuverability.

Because of the maneuverability of their small boats, the Minamoto clan's army, despite having fewer ships and fewer troops than the Taira clan, ultimately defeated the Taira clan's army.

Beneath the sea, there lies an imperial capital.

Emperor Antoku jumped into the sea. With such a warning, who would still waste the valuable Shuin-ship, which was meant for long-distance trade, by leaving it in the Seto Inland Sea for transport?

By gathering together all the merchants engaged in the ship-turning business and meticulously registering their ships and their prows, this line of business can be considered under control.

Especially at the bow, the sea conditions along the Awaji-Naruto line are quite complex. As mentioned before, this area is prone to swells and whirlpools. Without a skilled bowman, it's difficult to navigate through such complex waters.

Last year, the Ito Sojuro family's business collapsed because their ship captains were killed by Iwanari Tomomichi of the Miyoshi Triumvirate. Even though they still had ships and business opportunities, it was all for nothing if the ships couldn't be sailed.

Mastering the bow is equivalent to mastering the boat.

Shichibei recorded the physical appearance and family information of each person on the bow of the ship, compiling them into three copies: one for the Sakai-cho meeting place, one for the Kawamura village house, and one for Gifu Castle.

Every three to five months, or any other time, a surprise inspection and roll call will be conducted, and anyone missing will be immediately obvious. If it's said that the ship went out to trade or transport goods somewhere, then that's recorded, every voyage and every stop is accounted for. The return trips will match up. If someone wants to go and work for someone else, they'll have to see if their pre-memorized statements can corroborate each other.

If it doesn't match, hmph...

After listening to Shichibei's description, Nobunaga simply nodded without offering any comment. He didn't care about procedures as long as things got done. Now that he'd entrusted the Sakai district to Shichibei, he was entirely reliant on him.

The Nijō Palace is almost finished, and Nobunaga still needs to coordinate with Ashikaga Yoshiaki to complete the relocation and resettlement work. After listening to Shichibei's report, he prepared to get up and leave.

Don't rush, there's still the matter of Yamana Hirotoyo.

Shichibei, who originally had no intention of relaying a message, was eventually swayed after receiving a hint from Tsuda Munekichi. It wasn't that he coveted the vast reserves of the Ikuno Silver Mine, but rather that he hoped to gain control of the silver mine and thus possess the existing reserves to establish a Ryotsuya (a type of silver shop).

As for money, Shichibei will only have more and more, after all, he's been involved in a monopoly business and has even become a Sakai daikan (official in charge of the Sakai district). However, the value of a single copper coin is too low, and a large quantity of them is very heavy, making them too inconvenient for trade and circulation.

Sufficient silver and gold are still needed to further enhance the circulation of trade throughout Japan.

As trade expanded further, the exchange of gold, silver, and copper became essential. The immense profits involved were undeniably compelling. In the Edo period, those who could afford to run a ryokan (trading house) were the wealthiest of the wealthy, backed by powerful officials, even the shogun himself.

Shichibei already has the background, and not just any background, but a very large one. So the next step is to control the physical gold and silver; the readily available Ikuno Silver Mine is an opportunity.

To be honest, Shichibei was a bit greedy here, but people's ambitions grow along with their personal growth.

Although Shichibei doesn't currently have the ability to manage the silver mines, there must be someone in Sakai who does. Ah, that's all for later; everything depends on Nobunaga forgiving Yamana Hirotoyo for any further progress to be possible.

Thus, Shichibei's careful hints conveyed that Yamana Hirotoyo hoped to offer a huge sum of money in exchange for Nobunaga's forgiveness and the possibility of allowing him to return to Tajima.

"Yama-na-tajima?" Nobunaga had been so busy with military affairs lately that he had almost forgotten about Yamana Sutoyo.

"Last year, I dispatched Fujikichiro to lead troops in response to the Mori clan's request to attack the Tajima Konosumi Castle and expel Kingo-dono Yamana." Shichibei was surprised that Nobunaga was unaware of what had happened.

"Ah..." Nobunaga clapped his hands, it seemed he remembered.

"When I was in Sakai, I had the opportunity to meet Lord Yamana. Judging from his demeanor, he seemed to be inclined to surrender." That's all I can say. The prerequisite for Nobunaga to forgive Yamana Sukeyo was that Yamana Sukeyo had to come to Kyoto and kowtow to Nobunaga.

Money was secondary; what Nobunaga cared about most right now was face. You had to come to Kyoto to carry Nobunaga's palanquin before any other possibilities could arise. Ukita Naoie understood this perfectly, and without a word, he knelt before Nobunaga. Nobunaga then personally funded the arming of troops and sent them to Bizen to fight Urakami Munekage with Ukita Naoie.

What I want is for you to kneel down and kowtow; otherwise, there's nothing to talk about.

"So what?" Nobunaga was naturally indifferent to the fact that it was an old guardian who had already been driven away, and it wasn't even in the five provinces of the Kinai region where Nobunaga's main focus was.

Date Terumune of Mutsu and Uesugi Kenshin of Echigo both sent people to Kyoto to pay their respects to Ashikaga Yoshiaki and Nobunaga, but Nobunaga only offered them a few words of comfort and did not show them any real emotion.

Even if you try to appeal to their emotions, they won't surrender or submit out of courtesy. And even if they did, Nobunaga's reach would be limited, and he wouldn't be able to control Mutsu and Echigo.

Nobunaga didn't show much affection to Date Terumune, who had territory. What attention could Yamana Suetoyo, who had no territory, possibly receive from Nobunaga?

"Ikuno Ginzan." Shichibei leaned close to Nobunaga's ear, tilted his head back, and stood on tiptoe before whispering.

"Hmm?" Nobunaga's interest was piqued, and he stopped in his tracks.

No matter how wealthy or powerful one is, one will never feel they have too much money. The reputation of the Ikuno Silver Mine was even known in Spain. Almost every Jesuit missionary had the habit of keeping a diary, which was sent back to Europe, making many European nobles aware of the large gold and silver mines in Japan.

Even Europeans knew this, let alone the Japanese themselves. Nobunaga was quite attentive to gathering information from various countries, and he had already heard about Ikuno Ginzan.

"Master Tsuda mentioned that Yamana-dono has a strong desire to return to Japan..." Shichibei didn't make any absolute statements.

The implication was enough. Yamana Hirotoyo wanted to return to Japan so badly, he naturally needed to pay a price. However, the price he mentioned earlier was 1,000 kan of silver, while Shichibei and Nobunaga's implication was an entire mountain of silver.

"Tennojiya?" Nobunaga confirmed Tsuda Munekichi's identity.

"good."

"Hmph, you're quite adept at sewing." Nobunaga smiled upon hearing that it was indeed Tsuda Munekichi.

Social butterflies and middlemen, that's exactly what they do. They pull strings with one client and another, acting as mediators. Once the deal is done, the middleman naturally gets a cut.

What does my lord think?

"No rush. No matter how large the silver mine is, they may not be willing to part with it." Nobunaga was Nobunaga after all. Although he was tempted, he remained rational.

Don't be fooled by Yamana Hirotoyo's haste, and don't listen to Tsuda Muneyuki's seemingly convincing words. These are all just one side of the story. If this drags on for another year or two, it will only make the nearly sixty-year-old Yamana Hirotoyo even more anxious.

Anyway, it was Yamana Sukeyo who died far from home, not Nobunaga. Nobunaga has the right to remain unmoved and sit firmly on the fishing platform, so we can give him a good beating.

Spitting at a former governor who had lost his territory was an insult to Oda Nobunaga, the regent of the shogunate. Yamana Hirotoyo should kneel before Nobunaga and offer him a mountain of silver; that would be true respect.

"My lord is wise!" Shichibei understood.

"However, you know how to manage a silver mine?" Since the topic had come up, Nobunaga naturally had to ask.

"No, I've never seen it before." Shichibei didn't dare to make any promises. This kind of thing is highly specialized, and you'd have to go to Sakai or Kyushu to find someone skilled in it.

"Let's get ready and look for it." Nobunaga nodded; he liked Shichibei's obedient demeanor in front of him.

How could a leader not like an honest, somewhat timid, and obedient subordinate with decent work skills?

They're born to be bulls and horses, how wonderful!

"I will immediately send people to search secretly." No need for Nobunaga to instruct him, Shichibei also prepared to start the search.

As for Okubo Nagayasu, nobody knows his real name now. Luckily, Shichibei has connections in Kai, quite a few at that. Right now, it seems Okubo Nagayasu is still working as a sarugaku (a type of musician), since his talents from the gold mines weren't fully displayed in the Takeda clan in his early years.

The gold mines in Kai and Suruga were still being mined until the mid-Edo period. If Okubo Nagayasu had been involved in this industry, he wouldn't have remained unknown.

At worst, we can offer 200 kan, no, 500 kan, to Gao Lu to recruit him. As long as the Ikuno Silver Mine is up and running and makes Nobunaga happy, 500 kan, or even 5,000 kan, won't be difficult.

It was common for Nobunaga's subordinates to eventually receive stipends of tens of thousands of koku. Nobunaga never shortchanged his hardworking subordinates.

"Alright, that's settled then." Nobunaga then strode away.

While in Kyoto, since he didn't yet have a residence or mansion, Nobunaga always stayed at Myokaku-ji Temple. Of course, it could also have been Honno-ji Temple; in any case, they were all large temples of this type. After watching Nobunaga go to Honkoku-ji Temple to see Ashikaga Yoshiaki, Shichibei prepared to ask one of the novice monks at the temple for a cup of tea.

Upon reaching the gate, I discovered that the gatekeeper was not a familiar face. After exchanging greetings, I learned that the new gatekeeper was named Teranishi Jihei, a native of Owari, and currently the head of fifty foot soldiers.

So you're from Owari? Those are all good brothers. I even struck up a long conversation with Shichibei at the station gate. By the way, wasn't Yamauchi Kazutoyo, who was guarding the gate the other day, off duty today?

Teranishi Jibei immediately mentioned that Yamauchi Kazutoyo had been assigned to Kinoshita-dono as a retainer. Since Hideyoshi's stipend had already been increased to 6,000 kan, Nobunaga was further assigning him relatively powerful retainers. Yamauchi Kazutoyo, who was to be the head of 100 foot soldiers under Nobunaga, was given to Hideyoshi along with his entire 100 foot soldiers.

I was wondering why I hadn't seen it.

Kazutoyo Yamauchi got involved with Hideyoshi, but the two didn't have much of a relationship; it was just a power struggle.

After drinking the water, Shichibei asked for the address and found Yamanouchi Kazutoyo, who was stationed outside Honkoku-ji Temple. In just the last two days, Hideyoshi had received 20,000 kanya from Sakai-cho, and Nobunaga was overjoyed, immediately assigning several samurai to Hideyoshi.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo, who happened to be standing at the gate guarding Nobunaga's entrance, was casually slashed by Nobunaga.

169. Some people came to make a fuss, and some people laughed.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo didn't have any particular thoughts about being assigned to Hideyoshi. He was going to be a foot soldier anyway, so he might as well do it. The only thing that troubled and pained him was that he had already seen the twelve-year-old Chiyo.

Although in this era, a samurai's daughter who has fertility treatment at the age of twelve can already find a husband, Shichibei, being from the future, still subconsciously cursed, "You beast!"

According to Kazutoyo Yamauchi's plan, he certainly couldn't stay in his residence near Gifu Castle for long. He would have to move with Hideyoshi to Sunomata Castle, or travel around fighting. In that case, let alone bumping into Chiyo, he probably wouldn't even see her.

You're shameless for a 24 or 25-year-old to be after someone who's 12.

The Chiyo family was nothing special; she was the daughter of Endo Morikazu of the Kami-Yaman Endo clan in Mino County. Her mother was the daughter of Higashi Tsuneyoshi. The family wasn't particularly prominent; they had some connections, but not many.

Most importantly, his father, Endo Morikazuchi, died from battle wounds after the Battle of Moribe in 1866. His elder brother, Endo Yoshitaka, was only thirteen years old at the time and was completely incapable of managing the family business. Therefore, he married his mother to Nagai Michitoshi to stabilize the family business.

As a result, Nagai Michitoshi was severely beaten by Nobunaga's iron fist and barely managed to escape on horseback. Now that Nagai Michitoshi had gone to Kiyosu to pledge allegiance to the Ryūgen clan, the Endō family submitted to Nobunaga and handed over hostages. It was at this time that Chiyo was sent to Gifu Castle as a hostage, and was seen by Yamauchi Kazutoyo, who was guarding the gate for Nobunaga.

Tut tut...

Age difference aside, this kind of chance encounter is something you only see in novels. Not only did they meet by chance, but these two people who had never crossed paths before also fell in love at first sight.

It was all just Yamauchi Kazutoyo's side of the story; that's what he said, and Shichibei just listened to it. After he finished speaking, he put on a very distressed and sad expression.

"Do you want me to go and propose marriage to you?"

"What are you pretending for? You're acting so convincingly." Shichibei picked at his ear. He's an old scoundrel; you can tell what kind of fart he's going to spout just by looking at him.

As for Yamauchi Kazutoyo's performance level, it's not even a hair's breadth below Hosokawa Fujitaka's from the previous two days, let alone half a hair's breadth below Kinoshita Hideyoshi.

In the end, all he felt was that the Endo family was a powerful local clan with several thousand koku of rice, while he himself was just a foot soldier with a salary of two hundred kan plus forty-five koku of rice.

Although he was a direct retainer of Nobunaga and possessed considerable strength, capable of fighting alongside Nobunaga, he was still lacking in something. Now, as Shichibei pretended to wipe the corner of his eye, he was secretly suffering, hoping that Shichibei, a senior retainer of the Oda clan, would represent him in proposing marriage to the Endo family.

His father was a retainer of the Iwakura Oda clan, but he was already dead. The only one he could ask for help from, and one with enough influence, was Shichibei. As for Hideyoshi, he wasn't familiar with him and was too embarrassed to ask.

Ha ha.

"Hmm? Ah, right, right, right." Yamauchi Kazutoyo, who tried hard but still couldn't squeeze out tears, immediately grabbed Shichibei's hand.

Right now, Yamauchi Kazutoyo's acting is really terrible. He completely lacks the nonchalance and naturalness of being the first to jump out and pledge loyalty when Koyama was in charge of the evaluation. He also lacks the simplicity and "naivety" of surrendering Totomi Kakegawa Castle to Tokugawa Ieyasu and proclaiming that he was born to lead the horses for the Inner Palace.

Back then, Kazutoyo Yamauchi's acting skills were so good that, if not an Oscar, he could at least win a Japan Academy Prize. With just a statement, a show of bravado, and a firm stance, he immediately secured 200,000 koku of rice in Tosa and Kochi.

If Yamauchi Kazutoyo's success at other pivotal historical moments was related to his good wife, Chiyo, then Koyama's assessment of this performance is that it was absolutely a successful example of Yamauchi Kazutoyo himself, having lived for over fifty years, weathered many storms, and finally grasped the threshold of acting, stepping into the hall of fame.

applaud.

"Alright, I'll go get it for you later." Shichibei patted Yamauchi Kazutoyo on the shoulder. He'd already asked, hadn't he?

"Oh, oh, oh, tsk..." Yamauchi Kazutoyo seemed to be really craving it. After Shichibei agreed, he became a bit incoherent.