Owari Yumeki Golden Day.

Before they could even exchange greetings, Valiant and Karabul, who were kneeling below Nobunaga, raised their heads. Nobunaga's attendant, Sanada Nobuyuki, had already unfolded a document and conveyed Oda Nobunaga's orders.

"Ah!" Not to mention Karabul, even Valiano was shocked by this sudden order.

"Does my lord have to repeat it again?!" Serving the people of the world every day, Sanada Nobuyuki's drinking style was quite imposing.

Wow, even Shichibei sitting to the side thinks Nobunaga is so domineering, Shichibei likes him so much. He just goes straight to the point, no nonsense at all.

No.

“If His Majesty the King has any misunderstandings about Jesus, he can speak frankly; there is no need for this,” Karabul continued, offering his explanation.

The servants guarding the door had already received their orders. Although there was no signal to smash a cup, as soon as the king gave the order, they entered the room and lifted Karabul up on either side. Karabul had at this point abandoned any semblance of clergymanship or restraint, and began speaking in Spanish.

His language was absolutely filthy, for even Varian's eyes widened upon hearing it. If Nobunaga had understood it, Japanese law allowed for immediate beheading. Even in Europe, insulting the King was a serious crime punishable by stripping one of one's land and title, and imprisonment.

To be honest, this Karabul wasn't sent to a monastery at the age of six or seven. He didn't start learning Latin grammar from a young age, gradually becoming proficient in reading and writing, and studying theology for twenty or thirty years before being released as a scholar-type clergyman.

He was the second son of a noble family, with no future in his teens or twenties. He adopted a monastic title, took pride in his rudeness and recklessness, and was an explorer-like figure who ventured into the New World.

Even before coming to Japan, he was a small-time adventurer in India.

Officials, skilled in murder and arson. At that time, Japan was still a region where Christianity had not spread, so they had to let such people take the risk and test the waters first.

Because of his minor noble birth, he was granted the rank of priest after only three years of membership, directly becoming an elder in the Japanese district. What kind of religion do you expect such a person to preach?

He might be capable of proselytizing through force, and there's no need to forcefully ignore that.

Sending him to a place with a foundation of civilization, especially since Japan's level of civilization at that time wasn't low, and its religion already had a solid system and various self-consistent legends and stories, would be pure nonsense and wouldn't make any progress at all.

Hearing Karabul's words, Matsuura Shigenori, who was kneeling on the other side, was horrified. He almost jumped up and slapped Karabul twice across the face. Before Karabul could continue cursing, Matsuura stomped on Karabul's groin. Karabul, who had been cursing, could only scream in pain as he was dragged away like a dead dog.

"I cannot bear to hear this person's foul language, please forgive me, my lord." Matsuura Shigenobu was unsure if anyone else present could understand Spanish, but he certainly could understand a lot, so he had to step forward and express his opinion.

"It's nothing." Nobunaga waved his hand, gesturing for Matsuura Shigenobu to continue sitting; he didn't care about it.

"He's good at swearing, isn't he?" Nobunaga nodded slightly to the outside, and the servants outside immediately understood. "Here, let me show you with my knife," they said, and promptly cut off Karabul's tongue to feed the dogs.

Valiant, who had watched the whole thing without uttering a single word, began to tremble. He wasn't unfamiliar with Oda Nobunaga, but he never imagined that Oda Nobunaga would have such a ruthless appearance.

Then Sanada Nobuyuki came out and conveyed Oda Nobunaga's personal demands to Varian: all policies that Karabul had formulated in the Japanese dioceses must be overturned and none of them allowed to remain.

For example, the prohibitions against Japanese people learning Latin, clergy learning Japanese, and clergy wearing Japanese clothing were all abolished.

In Nagasaki and Sakai, church schools were established to train Japanese-born, pure-blooded clergy over a three- to five-year period. From then on, only Japanese people could preside over missionary work and religious rites in Japanese churches and monasteries.

The Jesuit district elders in Japan set the return of the Tensho European Youth Corps as the deadline, and once Ito Yuhei's good nephew Ito Yumasu returned, they would assume the highest leadership position of the Jesuits in Japan.

The teachings must always be subordinate to the king; no one is allowed to defecate on the king's head.

I have heard that Ito Yuki has arrived in Macau and is waiting for favorable winds to travel to Goa, India. I immediately dispatched a ship to inform Ito Yuki that, after meeting with the Pope, I requested that the Pope explicitly establish dioceses with Japanese bishops.

No longer accepting guidance from so-called foreign churches, being allowed to come and exchange ideas was considered a leniency from Oda Nobunaga. With this year, Tensho 10 (1582 AD), Jesuit missionaries already in Japan were allowed free travel to and from Japan.

Those who wish to enter Japan afterward must submit an application to Kawamura Chokichi in Kyushu, and after review and approval, and the dispatch of Japanese accomplices, they can then conduct religious activities in Japan, with a maximum stay of three years.

After three years, they will either have to spend three years in Macau or three years in Goa before they are allowed to return to Japan. If anyone is found overstaying, they will be deported the first time, and the second time will depend on how tough they are to stand.

The problems in Nagasaki will also be dealt with at the same time.

Ōmura Sumitada donated Tsuki land to the Jesuits, that's fine; Nobunaga had also gifted Tsuki land to the Jesuits in Kyoto and Azuchi. However, the original extraterritoriality was abolished, and everyone, from foreigners to Japanese, was subject only to the laws of Japan, specifically the laws of Oda Nobunaga.

The administrative power over Nagasaki as a port for foreign trade was also transferred to the Japanese side, specifically under the jurisdiction of Kawamura Chokichi. However, Nobunaga himself did not make it mandatory for believers to pay church taxes to the Jesuits.

Believers can pay as they please, however much or how little, entirely according to their own will. It is absolutely forbidden to force them to pay according to the Japanese system of annual tribute and the five categories of public and private taxes.

Furthermore, from this point forward, the Jesuits were no longer permitted to accept any donations in the form of land titles. The establishment of churches and meeting places required the approval of the local lord (at the level of a major name). Existing buildings remained unaffected and could still be used, with certificates of preservation issued.

There were no restrictions on feudal lords and daimyo who were Christian, but forced conversion was prohibited. All shrines and temples in places such as Ōmura, Hirado, and Hinoe, as well as their associated temple and shrine territories, were restored.

Oda Nobunaga used his power to guarantee the reconstruction of these temples and shrines, with the reconstruction costs being sent by him personally. He prohibited the Jesuits and their followers from obstructing the reconstruction of the local temples and shrines.

584. Nagasaki Magistrate (Nameless Generation)

You, young Jesuit comrade, are welcome to come to Japan to preach. But don't even think about using any underhanded tactics, like trading with the southern barbarians to intimidate the emperor.

You can come in and have a good fight with the Japanese Tendai, Nichiren, and even Jodo Shinshu sects. Don't expect any daimyo to jump out and force your people to convert and be baptized.

If you want to spread your faith, then do it right here and compete with other temples and shrines for followers. If you can spread it, that's your skill; if you can't, I, Oda Nobunaga, haven't ordered any suppression against you.

I'm already giving you a lot of face by allowing you to run a church school.

What could Varian say? Karabul's tongue was just cut out and fed to the dogs. Oda Nobunaga neither forbade missionary work nor trade; he merely demanded localization.

Spain even bestowed the title of duke upon members of the Aztec royal family, bringing them back to Madrid to live as royalty. There are also mixed-race clergy members; Mexico has its own. If Mexico can do it, why can't Japan? So, if you want to come, just apply. If your application is approved, you can come. Welcome to Japan!

Alright, after seeing off the somewhat unsteady Varian, Nobunaga returned...

He smiled at Shichibei again.

"How is it? Is there any inconvenience?" Nobunaga's words sounded like he was showing favoritism to Shichibei and giving him a chance to vent his anger, but in reality, he was mainly trying to protect the interests of the Nanban trade.

"My lord is wise!" If he's not wise, then who is? Shichibei was practically ready to stand up and cheer.

Originally, they were thinking about how to fight the Jesuits and regain administrative control of Nagasaki. Now, with Nobunaga's arrival, he swiftly and decisively reclaimed Nagasaki. He didn't waste any time on nonsense with the Jesuits; all visible territory in Japan belonged to Oda Nobunaga, and no other power should interfere.

"Sign the official document with the red seal as soon as possible. Next year, we will mobilize an army of 200,000 to attack Odawara." Nobunaga's personal trip to Kyushu was not just to inspect the new territory.

Odawara Castle was an unparalleled fortress, difficult to conquer and impossible to fall. Both Uesugi Kenshin and Takeda Shingen besieged it. Historically, Toyotomi Hideyoshi mobilized various armies to gradually eliminate its branch castles and break its psychological defenses before finally forcing Odawara Castle to surrender.

Otherwise, given the strength of the 50,000 soldiers in Odawara Castle, if Toyotomi Hideyoshi had truly gone all out in a siege, he probably would have lost 20,000 to 30,000 men. Considering the Japanese army's casualty tolerance, losing 20,000 to 30,000 men at once, even for Toyotomi...

Hideyoshi would also suffer a great loss of energy.

In the historical Battle of Komaki-Nagakute, Hideyoshi suffered a major defeat at the front and was then struck by an earthquake at the rear. In the end, he reluctantly accepted the surrender of all of Tokugawa Ieyasu's territory.

How is this any different from a peace negotiation after defeat?

The failure to seize Tokugawa Ieyasu's territory of over one million koku drastically altered the power balance within the entire Toyotomi clan. Even Hideyoshi's own direct domain was not a mere two million two hundred thousand koku, but rather two million two hundred thousand koku scattered throughout various parts of Japan.

Clearly, Nobunaga was prepared for a siege of Odawara that would last six months or even a year. Therefore, it was essential to exhaust all means to raise funds for the war.

If Oda Nobutada hadn't died, things could have proceeded smoothly as planned. Now that Nobutada is dead, Nobunaga, after much deliberation, decided it was safer to hand over a complete Japan to Oda Nobukatsu.

At least all of Japan nominally or in fact submitted to Oda Nobunaga and became vassals of the Oda clan. Once a vassal, one is forever labeled as an Oda retainer.

Even if Nobunaga were dead, rebelling against Nobukatsu would still be an unbreakable rebellion!

Rebellion is unpopular, or at least not very popular. In the end, it will be an advantage for Nobuo, making it easier for him to use the righteousness of a king to punish the disobedient.

"If my lord is in a hurry, I can convene with wealthy merchants from Hakata and Hirado to make the purchase in advance with two hundred red-inked petitions." Shichibei had originally planned to convene a conference of wealthy merchants from all over Japan at the end of this year or the beginning of next spring.

It's just 800,000 kan, which Shichibei could have easily paid out by himself. However, based on the principle of "harmony brings wealth" and "everyone makes money," he brought in people like Kamiya Sōzan, Shimai Sōshū, Imai Sōhisa, Takeno Sōwa, and Tsuda Sōki. With shared interests, it would be easier to quickly establish business industry standards throughout Japan.

"Oh!" Although Nobunaga knew that Shichibei's family had a fortune of one million, or even more than three million, he was still surprised to hear that he could immediately produce 800,000 in cash.

Having assets of 800,000 and having cash of 800,000 are completely different things.

For example, if you travel to Shanghai in later generations and meet a taxi driver, and he's a local, he might own property worth ten or even twenty million yuan. But what about his savings? If he had one or two million yuan in savings, would he still be driving a taxi? It's not like the 1990s when you could earn foreign exchange anymore.

"It's just to serve you." My money is yours, Lord Nobunaga's money. As long as you...

Open up.

"No rush, we can get them to Azuchi by the end of the year." Nobunaga was very satisfied with Shichibei's attitude and smiled.

The meeting with the Jesuits is over for today. Nobunaga didn't prepare lunch, so everyone may leave. Tomorrow, Nobunaga will visit Hirado and Nagasaki again, and then head to the home of Kobayakawa Takakage in Chikugo-Yanagawa.

With Hideyoshi Hashiba and Yoritaka overseeing things here, Nobunaga ordered Shichibei to return to Kumamoto Castle to gather troops and march into Ōmura territory. He claimed that Nobunaga's authority would guarantee the return of the temples and shrines, but the two or three thousand cavalrymen and pageboys around Nobunaga would absolutely not leave; it was Shichibei who was sending troops.

Of course, when making it public, you should say it's the army of Grand Chancellor Nobunaga. Dare you try to cause trouble? If you do, 200,000 troops will be raining down on you the next day.

The entire Ōmura territory only had a little over 60,000 people, not even enough to fill the ranks of Nobunaga's army.

"It's important business, indeed important business," Shichibei said, accepting the order and leaving. They didn't need many; five thousand soldiers would suffice to suppress the village lord. There were only sixty thousand people; not counting the old and young, thirty thousand able-bodied men and women would be good enough. Five thousand organized soldiers could easily defeat thirty thousand civilians.

Besides, Varian has already been sternly warned; he should know that Nobunaga is a man of his word. If he preaches properly, there's still a religion to preach. If he doesn't preach properly? He should touch his neck and ask himself if his head is even there.

Riding south, passing through Yanagawa Castle, Kobayakawa Takakage was donating money to Kora Taisha Shrine. Isn't it surreal? Just about two months ago, Kobayakawa Takakage was wreaking havoc inside Kora Taisha Shrine, leaving a trail of heads.

Two months later, Kobayakawa Takakage officially received Nobunaga's letter of guarantee for 300,000 koku of Chikugo Province and began to act as the governor and lord of Chikugo Province.

I used to kill you, now I love you.

Both the one who kills you and the one who loves you are me, Kobayakawa Takakage.

After the donation was completed, the new head of Kora Taisha was brought in to clean up the mess and cooperate with the Kobayakawa family's rule. The initial decision not to burn down or attack Kora Taisha, but only to kill people, was to facilitate their subsequent entry into the country and quickly stabilize public sentiment.

Tell me, these religious figures are really shameless. Before we dealt with them, they thought they owned the world. Like protecting the defeated Asakura soldiers and resisting the Oda clan's land grab at Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei.

Relying on the fact that the head priest of the Enryaku-ji Temple, Kakushu, was the younger brother of Emperor Ogimachi, he disregarded the secular lord, Oda Nobunaga. And what happened in the end? In the end, naturally, the entire Enryaku-ji Temple ascended to heaven.

The Kora Taisha Shrine before him was clearly the same. Without any intention of interfering, he considered himself the shrine of Chikugo Province, the national shrine of the entire Chikugo Province, holding a high and prestigious position in Chikugo. Whether it was the governor or the lord of the province, they all had to pay homage to him.

Once Ryokan and Rinkei's heads were stuck in the spears, what national society? What great god? It was all bullshit; they were kneeling down faster than anyone else.

It's despicable!

Kobayakawa Takakage also asked Shichibei how long it would take for Nobunaga to reach Yanagawa Castle. The former lord of Yanagawa Castle, Ryuzoji Ikei, had surrendered voluntarily, so the castle was in excellent condition, and Kobayakawa Takakage was currently expanding and constructing it. A daimyo with 300,000 koku of land deserved a castle large enough to accommodate 20,000 troops.

It should only take three to five days. Hideyoshi will inform us anyway, so there's nothing to rush or prepare. Just send out troops to protect Nobunaga properly.

Thus, Shichibei returned to his domain, and the brothers Aso Koretomo and Koretomo, the father and son Kai Muneobu and Chikahide, as well as the Odai and Takamori families, all returned to Higo from the Kinai region. Because they surrendered quickly, their domains were preserved. Aso Koretomo...

He was still the chief priest of Aso, with a rank of 8,000 koku, much stronger than Ryokan, the lord of the neighboring Kora clan.

Furthermore, Nagatomo Fukami visited Shichibei again, first exchanging pleasantries, since Tadahisa Sagara was about to marry Shichibei's biological daughter, Nobuo's adopted daughter. He then expressed that Sagara's survival was all thanks to Shichibei's mercy in sparing his life on the battlefield. He assured Sagara that they should be called upon whenever they needed anything from the Sagara family.

Tsk, those are nice words, but he's already an independent daimyo with Kuma County under his control. What's the point of saying all this? He should just focus on serving Oda Nobukatsu.

Let's turn the page. The Sagara family's miraculous survival in such chaos is no small feat. After all, Nagatomo Fukami truly helped Shichibei persuade Iriiin Shigetoyo to surrender, a great achievement that allowed Kawamura's army to advance unimpeded.

With his achievements laid out before him, Shichibei had nothing to complain about, especially since Nobunaga had also compensated Ōmura with 50,000 koku of rice.

From now on, Sagara Tadafune will be a son-in-law, and since we'll both be in Higo Province, let's keep in touch. After sending Fukami Nagatomo away, Shichibei met with the other samurai families in Higo, and then mobilized his troops.

He ordered Hara Nagayori to lead 5,000 cavalry, immediately by boat to Nagasaki and Ōmura, to control Ōmura Castle, and to guard all key passes. He was to be prepared for any eventuality.

If a Christian uprising were to occur, we would suppress it head-on. If it didn't happen? That would be best; we could watch as temples and shrines were rebuilt before returning.

Furthermore, although the Nagasaki magistrate is Shichibei, Shichibei cannot actually assume the post, so a deputy magistrate must be appointed. This deputy magistrate is relatively important, and the person must be carefully selected.

By the way, where is Nabeshima Naoshige?

The other day, the entire Ryuzoji clan and the entire Nabeshima clan were sent to the Kinai region by Miyoshi Nobutaka and Mori Terumoto to beg Oda Nobunaga for their lives. I heard that Ryuzoji Takanobu received a retirement allowance of 5,000 koku, but I don't know who said that. I should have asked Nobunaga, or at least Sanada Nobushige.

Although Nabeshima Naoshige Shichibei was of no use to him, Shichibei remembered that the Ryuzoji family had a retainer who was very good at governing. He hadn't heard anything about Miyoshi Nobutaka killing the famous samurai Narifumi during the battle of Dazaifu the other day.

Narifu Juemon, historically known as Narifu Moyasu, is unknown in his current name. His father was one of the seventeen foot soldiers under Ryuzoji Takanobu.