Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

With all the readily available resources—daughters, sisters, nieces, and the like—he could use them all, gather everyone he could control into a group, and form the Yushiba clan.

Ability is secondary; the key is unity and loyalty. Once you're dead, the Hashiba clan will have four million koku of land; who would dare rebel?

"Huh?" Hideyoshi suddenly paused; he probably hadn't considered this question yet.

That's right! Hideyoshi is still Nobunaga's henchman. If Nobunaga hadn't kicked the bucket, he would have been Nobunaga's loyal dog Hachiko or his loyal servant Lassie for life. In his opinion, there's no need for him to build a powerful samurai force. Why bother with so many samurai when they're just there to serve Nobunaga?

The main reason is that he has a strong peasant mentality; he only considers his own children as his own, and no one else counts.

"Look, you're now a daimyo with 120,000 koku of land in Kotani, and you might be transferred to an even more distant place in the future. It's not a good thing for your retainers to be scattered and dispersed. On the battlefield, they might not be of one mind with you." Shichibei couldn't tell you that you had to prepare for the Honnoji Battle Royale, so he could only persuade you by mentioning the need to move again and the fact that you would be fighting on a larger scale.

“Shichibei is right.” At that moment, Hidenaga also walked in and heard the last two sentences.

"Hmm..." Hideyoshi hesitated for a moment.

Both Takigawa Kazumasu and Shibata Katsuie in history bestowed their family names upon fellow villagers and relatives around the time of Tensho 2 (1563). Anyone who could be even remotely related was brought into the same lineage.

Since Hideyoshi now has the resources to expand his retinue, why not? Shichibei is even planning to bring out ten sons-in-law to become fathers-in-law during the Sengoku period.

Although all the decent villagers in Hideyoshi's hometown had been taken away by others, making it difficult for him to go back and recruit more, I've heard that there are hundreds of young people doing nothing in your kitchen.

With so many young men, if we choose carefully, surely they won't all be rotten potatoes or spoiled birds. Picking out the decent ones and making them all our sons-in-law, then cultivating good relationships with them, will surely bring more benefits than harm.

“Look at Azai Daifu, he has 450,000 koku. Your future achievements may not be inferior to his.” Shichibei thought to himself that in history, Hideyoshi would have 400,000 koku in Harima in two years, and he would soon be on par with Azai Nagamasa.

“That’s right.” After greeting the two, Hideyoshi sat down.

"A prosperous family is a blessing for a samurai family." Shichibei himself was not prosperous, but that did not stop him from saying this.

"I understand." Hideyoshi seemed to have taken it to heart, but he was a thoughtful person and would probably need to think about it for a while.

Even Hidenaga's daughter, or his sister Achi's daughter, were considered valuable political resources within the Hashiba family. Furthermore, his eldest daughter with Nene was highly likely to be paired with Nobunaga's fourth son, Ujimaru, to become the Hashiba family's heir.

"Koichiro, what are you doing in Gifu?"

"Time to allocate funds," Koichiro laughed.

If it wasn't Shichibei who came to Hideyoshi's door, then it must have been Hidenaga who came to ask Shichibei, his brother-in-law, to lend them 10,000 kan to build Nagahama Castle.

Alright, alright, that explains why both brothers are in Gifu. Turns out they're both here to borrow money.

I can lend you the money, but you'll have to pay for today's meal.

Soon the food was served, and the younger sister, Aci, came to see her uncle in person with her three children. The older ones, a boy and a girl, could already call out, while the younger one was still in her arms. Xiuchang and Aci's marriage seemed quite harmonious, as they were chatting and laughing.

Then, during the banquet, Hideyoshi jokingly asked Shichibei, "How is the Ashikaga princess doing?" He replied, "She went with Oda Nobuhiro to attack the Ikko-ikki in Echizen, and she didn't get involved in the Battle of Wakae Castle."

Upon hearing his question, Shichibei put down his soup bowl. Don't even mention it; the six women in his household were wailing and lamenting, making it seem like Shichibei was dead. If it weren't for this incident, Shichibei would never have even bothered going to Hideyoshi's house.

After hearing this, Hideyoshi and Hidenaga burst into laughter, the kind of laughter that's hard to contain. Hideyoshi, who might have initially felt a little envious, no longer felt that way; he simply winked at Shichibei.

Xiu Chang was even better, saying directly that his sworn brother's family was in trouble now.

That's right, you can have this good fortune, I don't want to share it with you.

Since Nobunaga led his troops into Kyoto, the generals of the Oda clan have gradually made connections with the court nobles. Now Nobunaga has basically established himself as the ruler of the land and has even obtained the position of Right General of the Imperial Guards, making him a person of high status.

This also meant that Oda's generals could take the daughters of fourth or fifth noble families as concubines, thus establishing marriage alliances. Shichibei's idea was to find someone gentle, obedient, simple, and without much of a past.

Who would have thought that Nobunaga would be given two precious treasures all at once?

Just as they were laughing, a servant, who looked to be about ten years old, came over with a bottle of sake and served the three of them. He was probably one of those young men who ate and drank for free in Hideyoshi's kitchen; he was dark-skinned and strong, and because he had eaten his fill, he looked quite energetic.

"Is this your personal name?" Shichibei quickly changed the subject, not wanting the Hashiba brothers to make fun of him any further.

"Yes, Sun Liu, pay your respects to Lord Kawamura." Hideyoshi took the sake bottle and poured a cup for Shichibei.

"This humble one is Kato Magoroku, paying my respects to Lord Kawamura." The child actually spoke with a Mikawa accent, which Shichibei could immediately recognize.

These days, Japanese accents vary greatly from place to place, and often you can understand someone's origin just by listening to them speak.

"You're from Sanhe, aren't you?"

"Yes, my father was originally the head of the Nagara village in Hatazu district of Sanshu, but later he fled." Kato Magoroku was quite calm and answered clearly.

But fleeing, haha, Shichibei immediately understood. It must be that group that opposed Tokugawa Ieyasu during the Mikawa Ikko-ikki uprising. After being soundly defeated by Ieyasu, they had no choice but to run away.

It's best not to expose someone's weaknesses. When he said that, Shichibei just listened and thought, "Well, they're not our own retainers anyway. If Hideyoshi likes it, then so be it."

"His father is named Kato Sannojo Noriaki, and he is the head of the foot soldiers under my elder brother," Hidenaga added, helping to introduce him.

"Huh?" Kato Noriaki?

Shichibei suddenly realized who it was—it was Kato Yoshiaki! Apparently, he was already eating in Hideyoshi's kitchen, and had grown quite a bit.

"You know him?" Hideyoshi asked instinctively.

"I've heard of them..." Shichibei didn't pretend; back in the day, he was a horse trader, so it wasn't surprising that he'd heard of people from Mikawa.

These days, farmers and townspeople, who make up 90% of the population, have neither surnames nor clan names. In a village, there might be eight Ichiro and nine Jiro, but only a very few people can be called by their full names. In fact, there might not even be one in the entire village.

"Very good, Sunroku is a very smart child." Hideyoshi didn't take it seriously and dismissed Kato Sunroku.

If they hadn't joined Hideyoshi's ranks, the Kato father and son would most likely have lived dissolute lives. By serving under Hideyoshi and witnessing his rise to power, they miraculously became powerful daimyo with a staggering 435,000 koku of rice in Aizu.

Right now, you can't tell anything about him; he's just an ordinary little boy. Who can know what his future holds?

Even Ishida Mitsunari, who would later be able to organize and mobilize an army of over 100,000 to contend with Tokugawa Ieyasu for control of the country, would probably still be a novice monk or a low-ranking monk in some temple right now. If it weren't for Hideyoshi's selection, who would have known that he possessed the talent to command an army of over 100,000?

In the same era, there were more than a handful of people on Earth who could bring 100,000 people to the battlefield without making any mistakes.

Shichibei wasn't envious, nor did he intend to recruit Kato Magoroku. Let him work for Hideyoshi; whether he does well or poorly is up to him. Besides, he's only ten years old now, so he wouldn't be of much use anyway.

After chatting with the Hashiba brothers for a while, Shichibei glanced at the sky and then got up to take his leave. He figured the "farce" at home was probably over; even if he had the energy, he couldn't possibly cry for four hours straight.

Sure enough, when they got home, most people had already settled down, and it was very quiet except for the horse snorting occasionally.

Chapter 320 Otsumaru Reincarnates as Hashiba

Upon receiving the notification, Kuwayama Shigekatsu arrived at Shichibei's residence the following day. Nobunaga had hoped to make contact with Chosokabe Motochika. It was unwise to make a big fuss on the first meeting, as this might make Chosokabe Motochika think he was valuable and demand a price.

Therefore, Shichibei's idea was to have Kuwayama Shigekatsu and Todo Takatora make a separate trip to Tosa to investigate. After that, they would consider promising him the entire province of Awa and the condition that his son marry Nobunaga's adopted daughter, Nagahide Minoru.

After Shichibei explained the matter, Kuwayama Shigekatsu first accepted the task, and then said that he had a favor to ask.

What?

Retirement.

Born in the fourth year of the Daiei era (1524), Kuwayama Shigekatsu had truly reached the age of fifty, so he wished to retire and become a "guest" of Shichibei. He would then hand over any matters of fighting to his son, Kuwayama Kazue.

Because he is currently being assigned to Shichibei, this matter requires Shichibei's assistance in submitting a memorial. Once he passes on the title of head of the family to his son, he plans to begin his retirement, devoting himself to entertaining Shichibei with his jokes and calculations.

He's not even fifty yet, how can he be an old man? He's clearly a young and energetic silver-haired youth, do you want to retire before you turn sixty-three?

It's a pity, but this is Japan's Sengoku period, and fifty years old is indeed an age where you don't know what tomorrow will bring. Shichibei and Kuwayama Shigekatsu had some history together, so he couldn't refuse this favor and agreed on the spot.

From then on, the headship of the Kuwayama family was succeeded by his son, Kuwayama Kazushige. He himself served Shichibei as a "Gyotoshu" (a type of servant) and received a stipend of 500 koku from Shichibei.

He himself thus became a confirmed retainer of Shichibei, and his son was considered Nobunaga's Naotomi Kawamura Yoriki.

Taking this opportunity, Kuwayama Shigekatsu decided to change his name to Kuwayama Shigeharu. Changing one's name when faced with a major life event is a necessary experience for Japanese samurai during the Sengoku period, a taste one must taste.

Alright, alright, hearing his name change immediately reminded Shichibei of Ashikaga Princess. What a coincidence! Since Kuwayama Shigeharu is going to Sakai to catch a ship and then transit through Tosa Province, let's take Ashikaga Princess and her five maids with us and send them all to Sakai, out of sight, out of mind.

Back in Sakai, Shichibei bought a large house from the Kaiju, right? It was originally intended for Ashikaga Yoshiaki to live in, but that old bastard Ashikaga Yoshiaki ran away. Now the house is just sitting there empty. It's all the same Ashikaga family, so it doesn't matter whether the older brother or the younger sister lives there.

Get out of here right now!

Hearing this, Kuwayama Shigekatsu wondered if something had happened. That was Ashikaga Princess, after all! Countless men in the world would love to marry her but couldn't. They were offering her as a concubine at a bargain price, and she was being picky?

However, Takatora Todo, who came in after him, smiled and said, "Don't try to persuade someone who doesn't know the ways of others."

Todo Takatora was a bachelor, living in a samurai residence a little distance from Shichibei's house. Since he didn't cook at home, he would bring a few of his servants and attendants to the Kawamura's house for meals. Others might not know, but he knew perfectly well. That horrific howl last night was unbearable for anyone.

Alright, Shigeharu Kuwayama didn't ask any further questions, only requesting that Shichibei send more men to protect her. Even if Shichibei didn't want Princess Ashikaga, plenty of others would. If she were to give birth to a son, it would be a weak claim to the title of Shogun of the Muromachi Shogunate. Of course, one needs power to have a claim; without power, it's all for naught.

Over the past century, countless men have married Ashikaga daughters, fathering numerous sons. But has any of them managed to stand out and become the "true Ashikaga"? Not a single one.

When you lack power, even having the surname Ashikaga is a sin.

"Huh?" The young major general was slightly surprised when he heard the news.

"What?" Shichibei didn't believe she wasn't disturbed by the wailing and howling from yesterday afternoon.

"No, it's just that... well, I can't quite put my finger on it." The young general really didn't know how to describe it for a moment, since she herself didn't really care that her husband had two more children.

She already had a legitimate son, a gift from Nobunaga; any more gifts would only make her a concubine. Moreover, she had already made her stance clear, so Shichibei's solemn departure naturally aroused her suspicion.

"You don't need to worry, I'll handle this myself."

"understood."

"Hikojiro!" Shichibei shouted to the outside, summoning Shigeharu Kuwayama inside.

Since we're escorting Princess Ashikaga to Sakaimachi, we definitely need to meet her and get to know her. Otherwise, if something happens along the way, we might not even recognize her.

Ashikaga Princess still refused to come out, saying it was inconvenient for her to see guests. What's inconvenient about that? We're about to send you away, what are you pretending for? Shichibei immediately asked the young admiral to inquire what was going on. The five maids had redeemed her; she hadn't been tortured or mistreated. Couldn't she come out to see a retainer?

Shortly after, the young general came out from inside, leaned close to Shichibei's ear, and whispered to him, "Your eyes are swollen from crying yesterday, so it's inconvenient for you to see anyone."

Depend on!

In an instant, Shichibei realized, "I thought you were some kind of chaste and virtuous woman, but in the end you're nothing special."

Alright, alright, we need to pack our bags anyway. We can also check the age with the daughter of Niwa Nagahide's family while we're at it. We're not leaving until at least the day after tomorrow. You, Lady Ashikaga, should just rest and recover inside. The swelling should go down by tomorrow or the day after.

Now, Shichibei effortlessly left the matter behind. He was practically skipping off to tell Inase Yoshinari to send 10,000 kan to Hideyoshi.

Meanwhile, Inase Yoshinari, who was outside, muttered to himself, "Lord Hashiba Chikuzen-no-kami still owes more than 8,000 kan, and now he's going to borrow another 10,000 kan."

What's there to be afraid of? He already has 120,000 shi of grain; he has the ability to pay off his debts. Let alone this little bit of money, even if he owed 30,000 or 50,000 guan, he would find a way to pay it off.

Said Cao Cao, Cao Cao.

Hashiba Hidenaga came along with Toda Katsutaka. Even if Shichibei agreed to lend the money, he would still have to come and sign an IOU. Until now, apart from Oda Nobunaga and Oda Nobuhiro, no one had been able to take money from Shichibei without an IOU, not even his own brother-in-law, Hashiba Hidenaga.

Nobunaga was the eldest brother, and he was a man of his word, so he refused to sign. Nobuhiro was different; he was simply being dishonest. Besides, he was Shichibei's father-in-law, so Shichibei couldn't force him to sign.

Seeing a large group of people in Shichibei's room, Hashiba Hidenaga asked what was going on. He was a relative of the family and they often visited, so it was normal for him to ask questions.

It's nothing, what could possibly happen? It's all Nobunaga's fault. He sent that Ashikaga princess away to become a nun, and nothing happened. He forced her on Shichibei; I don't know if he really wanted to diminish the Ashikaga family's prestige, or if he was just messing around with Shichibei.

If the Kawamura family causes a ruckus, he'll add, "I was just joking around!"

It's just plain annoying.

"Sit down, sit down," Shichibei gestured to Hidenaga, gesturing for him to sit down first and sign the IOU for 10,000 kan. Hidenaga also brought along the exclusive sales license for 120,000 koku of tribute rice from Kotani. From now on, the rice from Jiangbei would be managed solely by Shichibei, and no one else was allowed to interfere in the buying and selling.