Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

They quickly dragged the man out of the city. As for why they had to go to Yancang first, that was self-evident. They wanted to give Longxing a scare and make sure he stayed in Qingxu City. They planned to come back next year, once he had calmed down, to send Longxing to heaven.

Then it was all about hunting wild boars everywhere, regardless of whether it was forbidden or not; once they were caught, they would skin them and cook them.

Shichibei wasn't a warrior, so he naturally didn't need to go hunting with Nobunaga. Besides, Nobunaga already had game to eat, so there was no need to organize people to deliver rice balls. Nobunaga was served by his page and attendants; we could just stay home and mind the shop.

Only then did Shichibei have time to see Tsuchiya Nagahisa again.

Tsuchiya Nagayasu lingered around the castle for several days, witnessing the continuous formations of the Oda army and the wedding of Shibata Nagakatsu. The Oda clan before him appeared prosperous and thriving, showing no signs of being besieged on all sides. The samurai and foot soldiers below the castle also did not appear to be impoverished or suffering.

So he wrote a very serious letter and sent it back to Kai. It wasn't that he was two-faced; he was simply sharing his experiences in Gifu with an acquaintance back in Kai.

The Oda and Takeda clans now have a legitimate marital alliance. The eldest son of the Takeda clan's young lord is Nobunaga's grandson. The Oda clan's young lord's principal wife is the daughter of Takeda Shingen.

No matter how you look at it, the alliance between the two countries seems unbreakable.

Seeing "Inase Yoshinari" instead of Kawamura Nagayoshi again puzzled Tsuchiya Nagaan. It wasn't until "Inase Yoshinari" smiled and nodded at him that Nagaan understood.

"Greetings, Lord Kawamura." He was indeed not stupid; his reaction was quite quick.

"Haha, I should apologize to Shinnojo for the previous meeting where I was impersonated." Shichibei gestured to Tsuchiya Nagaya that there was no need for formalities, and that he should sit closer and have a proper chat.

"No, no, no, I come from a distant country and know nothing of my origins, so it is only right that I am like this."

"In that case, I wonder what Shinnojo thinks?" After realizing his new identity, Shichibei suddenly became very clear and direct, no longer needing so much social niceties.

Just like Fan Jin before passing the imperial examination, when he pointed out a writing oversight to Zhang, a local gentry member, he was ridiculed by Zhang and others. But after passing the examination, he suddenly became respectful, saying, "Sir, we are from the same hometown, and it has been a long time since we last met." The words spoken were not significantly different, both carrying a sense of humility, but the difference in status made them perfectly appropriate.

"I am willing to do anything for Lord Kawamura." Tsuchiya Nagasu immediately declared, as long as he was working for Shichibei, he would do anything.

"But you're aware of the matter of the state's silver mine, aren't you, Shin-no-jo?" Very good, that's a very positive attitude.

"We still need to conduct on-site investigations and interviews before we can make a judgment." When talking about his profession, Tsuchiya Chōan paused for a moment, as he couldn't make any definitive statements.

After all, he had never been to the Ikuno Silver Mine, and knew absolutely nothing about the details of the mine's tunnels. What if he made overly confident claims to Shichibei now, boasting about an annual production of 5,000 or 10,000 kan of silver? What if he went to the silver mine later and found that it couldn't produce that much?

In the future, if you boast during a job interview and are found out you can't do the job, the worst you'll get is fired. But these days, if you boast too much and can't deliver, you could really get beheaded.

Deceiving one's lord was a capital offense in feudal times.

"Of course, after the spring, I will send someone to escort you to Danshu." Shichibei still trusted this chief envoy of Tokugawa Ieyasu.

"What about the tools, charcoal raw materials, and mining personnel?" Tsuchiya Chang'an immediately asked. "Silver Mountain is good, but you have to mine and smelt it to get silver."

"Just ask your younger brother, Inase Bantou, for anything you need. We have everything you need, as long as it's from Silver Mountain." Don't worry, Shichibei is a sensible man.

If you want a horse to run, you have to shoe it. If it carries people barefoot in the wild, its hooves will be worn out before it can run a hundred miles.

As for your question about why wild horses don't need horseshoes, well, they don't carry people weighing over 100 pounds.

"In addition, you might be able to refine some gold in the silver mountain. You need to report the total amount for the whole year to me," Shichibei added.

This statement, however, caught a glint in Tsuchiya Nagao's eyes. Ordinary samurai had no idea about the concept of "symbiotic resources." They'd assume a "silver mountain" only produced silver, and a "copper mountain" only produced copper.

Actually, gold is also found in silver mines, and silver is also found in copper mines, but these are secrets that miners don't usually share. They only need to deliver the silver and copper; the other precious metals that are found alongside are considered "slag."

The fact that Shichibei suddenly brought it up today shows that Shichibei isn't completely ignorant about this field, he just doesn't know as much as Tsuchiya Nagayasu.

"This..." But these associated metals are all profitable; only with profits will miners come to mine.

These days, going into the mines is not much different from going into sea trade; both are businesses where you risk your life. It's not uncommon for people to die in mine accidents on their first day. Every tunnel has its share of burials. Even in 1924, if someone was missing from a tunnel, they might not be found.

There must be sufficiently high profits, at least higher than those from farming, to motivate people to go mining.

"I don't want the gold, I just want to know the quantity." Shichibei quickly waved his hand, it was indeed not that he was greedy for that little bit of gold, but mainly he wanted to know the production data of the entire Ikuno Silver Mine.

Tsuchiya Nagayasu provides us with the accounts, but we also have to provide them to Oda Nobunaga. The silver mine was donated to Oda Nobunaga by Yamana Hirotoyo in order to retire to Tajima. The actual owner was Nobunaga, but since he knew nothing about mining, he entrusted it entirely to Shichibei, acting as a hands-off manager.

After Tsuchiya Nagayoshi has worked for a year and the annual output has been determined, Shichibei and Nobunaga will need to reach a relatively balanced and appropriate profit-sharing ratio.

Nobunaga was only responsible for handing over the mine to Shichibei; he wasn't responsible for anything else. So, if they wanted to make any profit, Shichibei had to do the accounting himself.

"..." Tsuchiya Nagao didn't answer, but seeing Shichibei's knowing look, he understood.

Shichibei then asked Tsuchiya Nagaan if there were any inconveniences he might encounter living near Gifu Castle. In truth, he couldn't stay near Gifu Castle for long; he would have to go to Tajima next spring.

Indeed, Tsuchiya Nagasuan said he had no inconvenience whatsoever. He ate at the shop, slept with bedding, what needs could he possibly have? Historically, he only began his extravagant lifestyle after he rose to prominence and joined the Okubo Tadachika faction. He was said to have over seventy concubines and an extremely strong sex drive. He slept and played every day, but he didn't have any children.

If you don't produce offspring but produce so many, your skills are lacking.

Right now, all I need is for Shichibei to help me hire someone to do my laundry and mend my clothes. If there's a real need, there are plenty of taverns and brothels around Gifu Castle. At this point, Mei's words haven't yet reached their peak in Japan; they'll spread rapidly once nationwide, cross-regional campaigns begin.

From Kyushu to the western provinces, from the western provinces to the Kinai region, and then radiating from the Kinai region to the entire country, even the retainers of the Date clan have records of obtaining plums.

If all you need is a maid to do laundry and mend clothes, that's easy enough. Shichibei told the shop assistants to hire one for Tsuchiya Nagayoshi. Furthermore, since this was their formal meeting, establishing their lord-vassal relationship, Shichibei, following the example of Oda Nobuhiro's gift to Higo Ieyoshi, presented Tsuchiya Nagayoshi with ten taels of gold.

Once you've taken my money, you're one of my people.

Shichibei personally escorted Tsuchiya Nagaan to the door, and only went back inside after the man had walked far away and turned the corner. Inase Yoshinari, seeing this, asked Shichibei, "How capable is this man? Why would Shichibei go all the way to Kai to ask for him, and even conduct two interviews? Giving him a house and hiring a maid?"

Hey, you don't understand.

Shichibei, realizing he couldn't explain, simply said, "You don't understand," and went inside with a smile. This left Inase Yoshinari completely bewildered, scratching his head in confusion.

At this very moment in Yamato, Matsunaga Hisahide saw Nobunaga's reply to him, and his doubts and speculations grew even stronger.

Serving under Nobunaga, you can be greedy, you can be wicked, you can even be evil, but you absolutely cannot be incompetent. Once you become incompetent and useless, even if you are a hereditary retainer from Owari, you will still be dismissed.

Then I must ask, is it Matsunaga Hidena?

dish!

In terms of handling political affairs, building castles, and diplomatic communication, Matsunaga Hisahide was quite adept at all of these. However, since Nobunaga was stationed to guard the borders of Yamato Province, his primary role was not in these areas, but rather to stabilize the internal situation militarily and provide external support when Nobunaga needed it.

Unfortunately, Matsunaga Hisahide couldn't do it.

Even though Nobunaga had dispatched over 20,000 troops, including Sakuma Nobumori and Hosokawa Fujitaka, to pacify Yamato Province, defeat Tsutsui Junkei, and help him reclaim Shigetakayama Castle, Matsunaga Hisahide was unable to spare any men to support Nobunaga in the previous Battle of Noda-Fukushima Castle.

The reason was that Tsutsui Junkei, who had already been brutally beaten by Nobunaga and barely escaped with his life, was able to gather several thousand men to besiege Yamato Tochi Castle.

If this isn't a dish, then what is?

Even Miyoshi Yoshitsugu and Hatakeyama Akitaka were able to mobilize troops to assist Nobunaga and confront the Miyoshi Triumvirate, who commanded a large following. Even if they only sent five hundred or a thousand men, that would still be considered sending troops.

Unfortunately, Matsunaga and his son were already burdened with defending Tamonyama Castle, Shigetakayama Castle, and supporting Tochichi Castle, leaving them with no troops to support Nobunaga. From Nobunaga's perspective, this was utterly incompetent.

Nobunaga, who was in the Noda-Fukushima camp, directly wrote a letter reprimanding Matsunaga Hisahide and his son for their lack of effort. They had helped pacify Yamato Province, yet the Matsunaga had managed to create trouble and thus prevented them from supporting Nobunaga's campaign.

You tell me, should I scold him or not?

A letter berated Matsunaga Hisahide mercilessly, and Matsunaga Hisahide immediately felt that most of Nobunaga's favor had vanished. But after seeing Nobunaga manage to escape the predicament he was surrounded from all sides, he was unable to make a decision.

So Matsunaga Hisahide wrote to Nobunaga, expressing his hope that he could come to Gifu Castle on New Year's Day of the second year of Genki and congratulate Nobunaga on the first day of the new year.

Nobunaga, who was already dissatisfied with Hisahide, immediately replied, telling Hisahide not to come and to focus on handling the internal affairs of Yamato Province.

On the surface, it was just a simple instruction. But in Hisahide's eyes, it was Nobunaga mocking him, ridiculing his incompetence in not even being able to pacify Yamato Province.

Nobunaga may have truly lost his appreciation and support for Matsunaga Hisahide, and developed a dislike for Hisahide's incompetence.

What should he do? Matsunaga Hisahide was still hesitant. Then he saw the document Nobunaga had given him, ordering him to mediate the economic dispute between Iwashimizu Hachiman-gu Shrine and Yasunori Nobukuni of Takino Castle.

I can't beat Tsutsui Junkei, but I can't beat you, Yasami Nobukuni?

Yasunori's territory is located in Kita-Kawachi, and while it's not particularly large, it still amounts to tens of thousands of koku. He also holds some territory in Yamashiro and Yamato provinces. If the Yasunori clan's territory could be annexed, the Matsunaga family's power, while not necessarily reaching new heights, would at least increase their strength in countering the Tsutsui clan.

Defeating Yasunori on the main battlefield, or mobilizing troops to directly attack Kono Castle, would be extremely difficult. This is because Yasunori is not coming out; he is holding firm in his castle. Attacking the castle would be a very difficult undertaking, and there is a possibility of failure.

Rather than a bitter struggle, it's better to resort to some intrigue and trickery. Meanwhile, Yusa Nobutaka, who already harbored murderous intentions towards Yasunori, immediately sent someone to find Hisahide after learning that Nobunaga had entrusted Matsunaga Hisahide with the case of the dispute over the rice tribute to Konosho.

How about it? Let's pull off a heist?

All I need is for you to kill Ami Nobukuni. As for the title and righteousness, I can get them immediately after Yusa Nobuyoshi becomes the head of the Hatakeyama clan. As for the territory, I'll give it all to the Matsunaga family.

how is it?

This perfectly illustrates the saying "a perfect match," and Matsunaga Hisahide's concerns were reduced by one more. He believed that Nobunaga was currently preoccupied with the war against the Miyoshi Triumvirate and Asakura Yoshikage, and had no time to concern himself with him. Even if he killed Yasami Nobukuni and seized Takino Castle, Nobunaga would most likely acquiesce in the end.

Thus, Matsunaga Hisahide began his various schemes against Ami Nobukuni, and on the surface, he even sent people to investigate the output of Kono-sou.

Chapter 217 Provoking Mori and Quickly Appeasing Him

After thoroughly intimidating Kiyosu's Tatsuoki and killing many wild boars and deer, Nobunaga led his hunting party back to Gifu. Hunting was indeed one of the best ways to train and integrate the army. Although the soldiers complained about the hardships of hunting in the dead of winter, at least they were shedding tears and sweat now, which was better than bleeding and dying on the battlefield in the future.

Nobunaga also sent Shichibei two pig legs.

He has me in his heart!

Wild boar tastes best with lots of spices, but Shichibei wasn't really into that idea. The young admiral, however, said that eating whale meat could replenish energy. That's a rumor, a complete fabrication. Someone who eats radishes and pickles every day wouldn't suddenly feel energetic after eating a bowl of wild boar meat.

Just as he was about to retort, he saw the young major general blink, and in the dead of winter, Shichibei shivered for no reason. Since returning from the battlefield at Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei in Omi, this daily routine was taking its toll; even an iron back couldn't withstand it.

While it's understandable that this is to quickly produce a legitimate son for the Kawamura family, the frequency...

With a wave of his hand, Shichibei practically fled in disarray. He wasn't eighteen anymore, the same age as Iron Hammer; alas, the best years of life are truly fleeting.

There was another reason for running away from home: Nobunaga had gone hunting with his men, and news came from Kyoto. Shichibei, who was left behind, took over the order on behalf of Nobunaga and now had to report it to Nobunaga.

Large-scale uprisings broke out in Nishioka and Uji under Ashikaga Yoshiaki's rule. Ashikaga Yoshiaki had issued a decree of virtuous governance, announcing the exemption of farmers from this year's insufficient annual tribute. This decree required Nobunaga's countersignature to be fully effective, so it was sent to Gifu for Nobunaga to sign and endorse.

It's not surprising. Firstly, the local people have a tradition of uprisings. Secondly, there was a major conflict in the capital region before the autumn harvest this year, which affected the agricultural harvest in many places, and many farmlands were destroyed and trampled.

Since it was ultimately the Shogun's matter, although the decree on benevolent rule had already been issued, the formalities still needed to be completed. Nobunaga saw this and casually signed the decree on the spot.

Unlike the decree that exempted the common people from debts owed to court nobles and temples, this decree exempted the remaining annual tribute, which only involved Ashikaga Yoshiaki and had no other political considerations.

Thinking that he still needed Ashikaga Yoshiaki's banner, Nobunaga ordered Sugaya Nagayori to lead 500 men and then inform Hideyoshi in Yokoyama to also lead 500 men to see if Yoshiaki needed troops to maintain order and suppress local rebellions.

Putting that aside, there was another matter that required political considerations, which was also reported.

After a brief period of rest and recuperation of just over a month, Shinohara Nagafusa of Hashu, who had reached a peace agreement with Nobunaga, immediately dispatched troops to Bizen-Kodama District. It wasn't that he was going to attack the Ukita Naoie family, but rather to join forces with Urakami Munekage and Ōtomo Sōrin to attack the Mōri family's forces moving in and out of Bizen-Kodama.

The Mori and Otomo clans were truly a case of killing and making peace, then killing again. Ashikaga Yoshiaki attempted to mediate once early in his reign, but clearly failed; Otomo and Mori were killed as before.

Meanwhile, due to changes in external borders and the central government of the Muromachi Shogunate, the scope of this mutual killing expanded further. Shinohara Nagafusa may have hoped to completely win over Urakami Munekage to the anti-Nobunaga side, so after accepting Otomo Sōrin's invitation, he quickly set out.

So Mori Motonari and his great-grandson Mori Terumoto, while withdrawing their troops, sent people to Kyoto to protest and complain about Oda Nobunaga, and made peace with the Sanshu and Hashu people controlled by Shinohara Nagafusa without informing the Mori clan.

Indeed, Nobunaga's harmonious relationship with Shinohara Nagafusa can be seen as betraying his ally.

When the lawsuit was submitted to the shogunate, Ashikaga Yoshiaki dismissed it and sent someone directly to Gifu, instructing Oda Nobunaga to give the Mori family a proper and appropriate response.

Speaking of this, Nobunaga really didn't know how to answer.

Nozomi Shichibei? Even Shichibei couldn't do anything. How could he whitewash something so obvious as betraying his ally? While he could activate the Timeless History skill to turn the page, activating that skill would require Nobunaga to hold absolute power, with no other force capable of counterbalancing the record of another version of events.

Given the current situation, perhaps Akechi Mitsuhide, an old acquaintance of Mori Motonari, should go to Yoshida-Koriyama Castle and say something nice to them.

Say a few kind words and promise to launch another military campaign next year. Then help Mori Terumoto find a way to get him a position as Right Guard Commander in the Imperial Court.