Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

Nobunaga, who held the power to reorganize the tribes, was the de facto new ruler. Regardless of what this ruler's real name was, Hideyoshi's self-proclaimed title of "Taiko" made him the head of all the samurai families in the land. Whether or not he was the Shogun was not a completely legal requirement for ruling the country.

When Ashikaga Yoshiaki learned of this petition, it affected him far more than the newly added Twenty-One Articles of the Palace, perhaps even more.

The old framework, old order, and old legal system of the Muromachi Shogunate were not transferred to Oda Nobunaga in an instant, but gradually, step by step, through various means over time.

The current task of reorganizing the various house types is clearly a very important step.

Nobunaga not only sent official documents to the lords who needed his help, such as the Mori, Ukita, and Asai clans, asking them to come and pay homage to him, but he also sent official documents to people from remote and obscure lords.

Characters like the Jinbo clan of Etsū and the Daihoji family of Dewa, who wouldn't even survive three days in a game, have now received Nobunaga's documents.

There was no abuse of power; at least the funds were distributed to those who currently hold real power.

However, even the barely surviving Izumo Amago clan received the document, indicating that Nobunaga's move was somewhat hasty. After all, the Mori clan was currently on friendly terms with Oda Nobunaga, and were among the first daimyo to come to Kyoto to pay homage to Nobunaga and the new Yoshiaki regime. The fact that Nobunaga sent the document to the Mori's arch-enemy, the Amago clan, only shows his haste.

Oh, right, Takeda Shingen also received such a letter. I wonder what Takeda Shingen's reaction was, because his family really didn't have a house name.

The Takeda family with the name "Yagata" (屋格号) belonged to the Aki Takeda clan, which had completely declined and whose family name had even been wiped out. Or, to put it another way, the Takeda Masuzu family, led by Izu Saburo Takeda Nobutake, who responded to Ashikaga Takauji's call to rise up and start a business with him, thus receiving the Ashikaga family's favor and being granted the name "Yagata".

Their branch of the family held the hereditary position of Governor of Aki Province, and also had a career as Governor of Izu Province, hence the name "Mazushu Family." Later, they even split off from other Kai Genji families, such as the Ishiwa and Anayama clans, and competed for the position of Governor of Kai Province.

Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river; who would have thought that the most powerful one back then would be finished, and now it's Takeda Shingen's turn.

Takeda Shingen was quite the smooth talker. Since Nobunaga gave me face, I beg you to continue giving me face, and give me even more face.

Two things: first, to request a courtesy name from Ashikaga Yoshiaki on behalf of Takeda Katsuyori; and second, to petition the imperial court on behalf of Takeda Katsuyori to obtain a suitable official position.

It should start from five digits, so that it can be promoted to four digits in the future.

"Is there such a thing in history?" Shichibei was somewhat puzzled when he received Takeda Shingen's reply.

Because Katsuyori, whether he's called Suwa Katsuyori or Takeda Katsuyori, this name is definitely correct. In Shichibei's memory, there are absolutely no other names.

Given Takeda Yoshinobu's abilities, if Ashikaga Yoshiaki had bestowed a name upon Katsuyori, then Katsuyori would have had to change his name to Takeda Yoshiyori. While Takeda Yoshikatsu wouldn't be out of the question, the character "Yori" in Katsuyori's name was inherited from the Suwa family, representing the political and legal authority of the Takeda family in parts of Shinano Province, so it's highly unlikely he would have abandoned the "Yori" character.

Wow, it's Takeda Yoshiyori, isn't it?

After muttering to himself, Shichibei presented Shingen's reply to Oda Nobunaga, who, upon seeing it, did not refuse. However, since there were too many replies at the moment, it had to be postponed a little.

Moreover, Nobunaga and Yoshiaki were currently in an internal conflict, and for the moment it was really embarrassing to ask Ashikaga Yoshiaki to bestow the character "义" (justice) on Katsuyori.

Could it be that the matter fell through because the two were competing with each other? That shouldn't be the case; they're just sleeping in the same bed but dreaming different dreams right now, far from the point of fighting each other.

Normal official business will certainly continue to be carried out.

Seeing that Shichibei was standing still, Nobunaga suddenly remembered that Shichibei still had some influence with Takeda, and assumed that Shichibei was also acting on someone's behalf. He paused for a moment, then picked up Shingen's reply, which had been leaning back, added his own request to the end, and then asked Shichibei to take it to Soga no Sukechi of the shogunate for processing.

Shichibei, who was deep in thought, was puzzled. Why did he say he wouldn't do it just now, but suddenly decide to do it now? Oh well, he'll do it.

188. Takeda Shinano no Kami Yoshiyori

Regardless of Nobunaga's thoughts, since the reply had been approved, Shichibei could simply carry it out. The Takeda samurai who came to handle the matter with Shichibei was overjoyed upon hearing that Nobunaga had approved it, knowing that the matter was essentially settled.

He quickly pulled out five large gold coins. This wasn't a bribe for Shichibei; Shichibei didn't lack these few gold coins. What he lacked were fine horses from Kai and Shinano. The real intention was to sell Shichibei several good horses in April and May.

As for the five large gold coins before them, they were naturally a lubricant for the shogunate officials. This wasn't the first time the Takeda family had come to Kyoto to buy official positions and bestowed titles; Takeda Yoshinobu had done it, and Takeda Shingen himself had done it too.

What was Shingen's real name? It was Takeda Harunobu. He bought the character "Haru" from Ashikaga Yoshiharu, and also the official position of Daizen Daifu (a high-ranking official in charge of cooking). He'd done all those kinds of jobs before; how could he not know?

Good that you understand. Asking Yi Zhao about buying "righteousness" is easy, but what about asking the court about buying an official position?

Shinano no Mori.

Oh, I understand. Shichibei gets it instantly. The Takeda clan now holds both the Kai and Shinano governorships, making their position in Kai quite stable. Even Takeda Yoshinobu's suicide and Iitomi Toramasa's seppuku didn't shake Kai's resolve, demonstrating their excellent control.

Therefore, it would be reasonable to buy the position of Shinano governor in order to strengthen control over another major territory of the Takeda clan. In fact, Takeda Shingen himself bought the position of Shinano governor when he requested the position from the shogunate.

In any case, the position of governor of Japan is already an honorary title. Oda Nobuhide was the governor of Bizen, so how could he actually govern Bizen? Mitsuhide will be the governor of Hyuga in the future, so it's just an honorary title that represents status and position.

Of course, if one controls Shinano Province and then buys the Shinano governor, one might be considered a true Shinano governor.

In theory, if a samurai family wants to obtain an official position in the imperial court, the shogunate needs to make a petition on their behalf. Now that both conditions have been met, Shichibei went to Soga no Sukeki to handle the matter.

The Edo Shogunate followed the same pattern; samurai who wanted to obtain official positions could only do so through the Shogunate's petition. This was one of the Shogunate's methods of controlling the samurai lords, similar to a system where rewards came from the Shogunate itself, not from the imperial court.

Many of the systems of the Edo Shogunate were inherited from those of Nobunaga and Hideyoshi during the Azuchi-Momoyama period, as well as from the Muromachi Shogunate, which preceded it.

By the way, the person who came was named Atobe Katsuyuki.

Whether it was the power of later novels or games, this smooth-talking, shrewd, and diligent person was portrayed as a muddle-headed, incompetent, and treacherous villain in later generations.

At this time, Atobe Katsuyuki was Takeda Shingen's official seal holder and a general who came from Takeda Shingen's close academy, ranking alongside Yamagata Masakage. He was also listed among the seventeen senior retainers of Takeda Shingen.

Furthermore, his mobilization ability within the Takeda clan was second to none; he was a general among generals, having three hundred sons.

The term "kiko" in the Takeda clan doesn't refer to a single person; it's more like three hundred independent farmers, wealthy farmers, or even landowners and village chiefs. Similarly, the Kosaka Danjo, who also had three hundred kiko, was a powerful general who could mobilize up to eight thousand men.

If Atobe Katsuyuki wanted to recruit people, he could easily recruit three to five thousand.

Now that he has been assigned to Takeda Katsuyori, he will certainly handle Katsuyori's purchase of official titles and career advancement personally. In that case, if Takeda Shingen had assigned Yamagata Masakage to Katsuyori last year as an assistant chief retainer, Yamagata Masakage might have become the treacherous minister of Kai in later generations.

During the Battle of Nagashino, Honda Tadakatsu should have shouted, "That man is Atobe Oeisuke Katsusuke!"

This is probably the result of Shingen's single wrong decision. Tragic heroes who die in battle are always more likely to garner people's sympathy, while those who die heroically are undoubtedly the most loyal and righteous ministers. Those who live a life of ignominy until the end, and continue to control the government even after defeat, are simply seen as treacherous ministers.

Well, this isn't something Shichibei should concern himself with. After confirming with Atobe Katsuyuki, he headed to Nijō Palace to meet with Soga no Suke.

When they arrived at Nijo Palace and inquired, they learned that Soga Sukechi's wife had given birth, so he had taken a few days off. They suggested that they contact Settsu Harumono instead, as it would be the same.

After leading Atobe Katsuyuki to visit Settsu Harumono and presenting him with 100 ryo of gold dust, Settsu Harumono said that he would take care of everything and that Shichibei would not even need to visit Ashikaga Yoshiaki again.

In fact, Yoshiaki did send a letter to Takeda Shingen, but due to the good relationship between Shingen and Nobunaga, he didn't say anything honest and just tried to smooth things over.

Perhaps it was this letter from Yoshiaki, a tentative attempt to establish a good relationship, that aroused suspicion in Takeda Shingen's mind. This led him to send Atobe Katsuyuki to Kyoto, ostensibly to recommend Katsuyori for an official position, but in reality to investigate the relationship between Ashikaga Yoshiaki and Oda Nobunaga.

At least for now, things seem peaceful on the surface.

Even though Nobunaga issued the Twenty-One Articles of the Palace to Yoshiaki and bypassed Ashikaga Yoshiaki to re-rank the Muromachi Twenty-One Houses, at least on the surface, the two sides were still playing chess on the same table, and there was no sign of them overturning the chessboard.

Having made up his mind, Atobe Katsusuke waited in Kyoto for another four or five days, and then good news came from Settsu Harukon: the imperial court had agreed to grant Katsurai the title of Shinano no Kami, rank 5th rank, below.

Atobe Katsuyuki immediately understood what this meant and promptly presented the Imperial Court with fifty taels of gold dust under the guise of repair materials for the Forbidden City. Thus, everything was settled, and both the Shogunate and the Imperial Court praised Takeda Shingen and his son for their understanding of the bigger picture and their sense of righteousness.

The Imperial Court and the Shogunate will jointly send envoys to deliver a decree to Takeda Katsuyori. After this event, there will be no more Takeda Katsuyori; he will be addressed as Takeda Yoshiyori.

Shichibei was secretly astonished to find that Takeda Shinano no Kami Yoshi had actually cheated on him; he had once again stirred up the wings of history.

Anyway, after thanking Shichibei profusely, Atobe Katsuyuki rushed back to Kai with the imperial messenger. Such great news needed to be shared with Takeda Shingen and Takeda Yoshiyori as soon as possible.

Atobe Katsuyuki originally intended to pay his respects to Nobunaga before leaving, but Nobunaga told him that the gesture was sufficient and there was no need for further visits. In reality, Tokugawa Ieyasu eagerly rushed to Kyoto because he was quite excited to hear that he could finally acquire a Yagata-no-oka (a type of house), and he personally traveled to Kyoto to pay his respects.

The Tokugawa family is utterly shameless; they're nothing but bumpkins. They're from Mikawa province, and the "Tokugawa" name is purely a fabrication. Even now, they're still descendants of Ieyasu (whose surname is Tokugawa) and Nobuyasu (whose surname is Matsudaira).

Ultimately, Tokugawa Ieyasu probably hadn't decided which family to align himself with or who to claim as his ancestor.

Although he hadn't figured out who his ancestors were, it didn't stop Ieyasu from feeling that he was also the governor of both countries and could seek a rise in his political status. To be addressed as "Oya-gata-sama" was like eating ice-cold watermelon on a sweltering summer day for Ieyasu, who came from a humble background—it was incredibly satisfying.

You might not believe it, but Kitabatake Tomokyo actually came too! (Historical fact)

Kitabatake Nobuo was too young. Although he had theoretically become the head of the Kitabatake clan, the actual administration was handled by the surrendered members of the Kitabatake clan, as well as Takigawa Kazumasu, Kizuki Tomomasa, Nagano Nobukatsu, and others.

After being beaten by Nobunaga, Kitabatake Tomonori realized that times had changed. So, in order to maintain friendly relations with the Oda clan and to elevate his family's status among the samurai, he also came to Kyoto in an attempt to obtain a house.

With all these people here, how could Nobunaga possibly have time to say goodbye to Atobe Katsuyuki?

Another acquaintance, Yamana Hirotoyo, also tried to use Shichibei's connections while Shichibei was in Kyoto.

Previously, Tsuda Muneyuki had told Shichibei that Yamana Hirotaka was willing to offer Nobunaga a thousand kan of silver in exchange for returning to his Tajima territory. At the time, both Tsuda Muneyuki and Nobunaga said they could wait it out and let Yamana Hirotaka reveal the Ikuno Silver Mine before allowing him to return to his territory.

After enduring so many days, Yamana Yutaka was getting older and felt that he was getting old. He could no longer stay in Sakai and was already considering giving in. He was preparing to send the Ikuno Silver Mine, including the miners, technicians and various craftsmen recruited there, to Oda Nobunaga in order to ask for forgiveness.

In order to secure a meeting with Nobunaga, Yamana Sukeyo sent gifts to Kyoto that nearly filled an entire main room of Myokaku-ji Temple. Later historical records describe the gifts he offered as piled up like a mountain, second only to those offered to one person. [Note 1]

Urakami Munekage.

At the request of Naoie Ukita, Nobunaga had given Naomasa Hanawa two thousand men, who led Masahide Akamatsu, Yasuharu Bessho, and others to beat up Munekage Urakami.

Oh my god, Urakami Munekage has been beaten so badly he's practically on the verge of death. Ukita Naoie is planning to launch a major attack right now, taking advantage of Urakami Munekage's brutal beating to completely crush the Urakami family.

So, Urakami Munekage finally lowered his proud head and ran to Kyoto to beg Nobunaga and Yoshiaki for forgiveness, for his arrogant refusal to offer a ten-kan tachi.

Humans are so despicable.

What used to be a matter that could be resolved with ten strings of cash now requires three to five thousand strings, or even more.

When Nobunaga saw the gifts they brought, he sent men to take the ones he could use back to Gifu and give them to Lady Nohime to keep safe. As for the ones he didn't like or had nowhere to use, he simply summoned Shichibei and had him appraise them, treating it as interest on the 50,000 kan he had borrowed last year.

"Oh dear, what would I do with these gifts?" Shichibei groaned in despair. Finally, with no other option, he tearfully accepted them, preparing to take them to Sakaimachi to see if any big, simple-minded guy would be willing to take them.

Anyway, Shichibei himself wouldn't need them. No matter how beautifully carved those large screens, incense burners, or even large washbasins were, would they allow Shichibei to live even a second longer?

No.

If it can't, then it's meaningless.

He went to Sakai to sell off his junk, and conveniently took Yamana Hirotoyo on a trip to Kyoto. Nobunaga had received so many gifts from him, and knowing that he had lost his temper, he was naturally happy to see him.

Oh dear, speaking of which, I forgot to mention Atobe Katsuyuki. I wonder if there's been any progress on my request for them to find a minor official to manage the gold mine.

Considering that Atobe Katsuyuki is a senior member of the family, he probably doesn't know anything about this. I'll send a letter to Yonekura Nobutsugu to urge him when I have time later.

Meanwhile, the aged Yamana Hirotoyo, with his temples already streaked with gray, was finally able to meet Nobunaga, the ruler of the realm, under the guidance of Shichibei. He repeatedly apologized to Nobunaga and begged for his permission.

Nobunaga must have felt a secret thrill that a former noble lord, one of the twenty-one lords of the Muromachi district, was kowtowing to him.

After he finished kowtowing, he very generously said that he would allow Yamana Hirotoyo to retain the Yagata name and return it to Tajima Province. After saying that, he didn't mention Ikuno Ginzan at all, and got up and left.

The matter of the silver mine will definitely be handled by Shichibei and Yamana Sukeyo. Nobunaga is very busy right now, and he is about to prepare for the war against the Asakura family. Being able to meet Yamana Sukeyo is already giving face to Ikuno Silver Mine.

Upon leaving Myokaku-ji Temple, Shichibei quickly helped Yamana Yutaka onto his horse. The old man vigorously wiped away his sweat, but he wasn't about to faint. After wiping away his sweat, he stared intently at Shichibei and said, "From now on, Ikuno Ginzan will be handed over to Kawamura-dono."

Shichibei, who had originally prepared to use both kindness and force to seize the Ikuno Silver Mine, had a lot to say but couldn't say it, and in the end could only stand there.

"what?"

[Note 1]: 隼朊簟禜chlorine户榷曰曰姡Box BangLと Ashikaga Yoshiteru? Yoshiaki』Pingrensha, 2020.

189. The separation of soldiers and farmers began to appear.

Yamana Hirotoshi, you're quite sensible.

What other words could be used to describe Yamana Hirotoyo? All he wanted was to return to Komochi Castle in Izushi District, Tajima Prefecture. Not only did he offer Nobunaga gifts worth several thousand kan, but he also lost the Ikuno Silver Mine.

In a sense, Yamana Hirotoyo was quite a man of great courage. Of course, this might also be related to the fact that he was already over sixty years old, had lost all his ambition, and only thought about being buried in his hometown of Tajima.