Tokyo Swordmaster Online Dealer

The swords at this time were equivalent to firearms in later generations.

The elderly village chief had a bitter frown on his face. Under normal circumstances, he might have refused directly. After all, the emperor was far away and the worst that could happen was that the village would be relocated. As for plotting to murder Yuan Qingya for the money, he wouldn't dare to do that. Even if they dared, he might not be able to defeat them.

With the old, weak and sick people in the village, and the difficulty in using the farm tools to plow the fields, it was really difficult to keep a well-trained warrior armed with a sword.

After pondering for a long time, the village chief's eyes lit up and his expression became more respectful.

"No problem, sir."

"Ah Qing, Ah Qing!"

"Let this gentleman stay at your house for one night!"

"This gentleman is willing to pay a lot of money, enough for you to buy a lot of books, right?"

Yuan Qingya followed the village chief's gaze, raised his eyebrows, and his smile became meaningful.

She was a young girl who looked quite young. She looked pale and thin, probably due to malnutrition. Her face was pretty but not stunning. However, there was an indelible scholarly air between her eyebrows, which even reminded Minamoto Kiyomasa of the palace ladies in Heian-kyo.

She stood alone outside the crowd, seeming to be excluded.

This is not difficult to understand.

Because she has pale hair.

In ancient times, having facial features that were different from ordinary people was often the beginning of being excluded and isolated.

For example, now that trouble had come, the village chief immediately pushed it to her.

Because she might be the type who "doesn't feel bad even if she loses something". To this village, she is an outsider and a part that can be discarded.

Just because of that white hair?

Yuan Qingya hesitated and said, "There are differences between men and women. Isn't this bad?"

The village chief quickly shook his head and explained, "Sir, in a small place like ours, we don't care about this!"

"You are a big shot from the city. We cannot let you sleep in the wilderness. We will obey the orders of the Lord and go to the city to take the orders. I hope you can help us put in a few good words and get some land for farming."

Some ordinary polite words, without any sincerity in them.

"Hey, A-Qing, you don't have any objections, right?"

The village chief glared at the girl and his tone became a little stern.

The girl looked at the village chief expressionlessly, then looked at Yuan Qingya and nodded silently.

"Please come with me."

After saying this coldly, she turned and left.

Yuan Qingya did not refuse because he seemed to have found the source of the faint evil aura.

He nodded slightly to the village chief and quickly followed.

The village is surrounded by some simple wooden fences and is just a temporary gathering place for dozens of families. Outside the fences are hastily cultivated farmlands. Perhaps because they may migrate at any time, they don't put much effort into farming. In comparison, the biggest source of food for this kind of village may be hunting and fishing.

Musashi Province is close to the sea, and this place is not far from the seaside.

This girl, called Ah Qing, lived in a very remote place, far away from people.

Yuan Qingya followed behind Ah Qing leisurely, and stopped in front of this simple thatched house, and said with some meaning: "You seem to be unpopular?"

"I can see that I am a destabilizing factor for this village. They are all afraid of me."

"They are afraid of my identity, afraid of my people, and even more afraid of the sword in my hand."

"They fear me like they fear bandits."

"That's why I pushed it to you. Why did you agree?"

"Aren't you afraid?"

Upon hearing this, Ah Qing slowly turned around, and a meaningful smile appeared on her somewhat fragile face.

"The new governor of Musashi Province, you won't suddenly go crazy and kill your people, right?"

"If I take you in for one night, I can also earn some pocket money, so why not?"

Yuan Qingya's expression suddenly changed and his breathing paused for a beat.

Then, he suddenly laughed out loud with some happiness.

"Interesting. How did you figure that out?"

Ah Qing curled her lips and said as a matter of course: "Master Kokushi, how about removing the family crest on your clothes before you go out next time?"

"Gentian pattern, who dares to use it except Genji?"

"You also said that the new governor is a member of the Minamoto clan, and you are wearing the Minamoto clan's dragon-blood pattern, running around and busying yourself for some trivial little villages."

"Then. Do you need to continue?"

Minamoto Kiyomasa raised an eyebrow and continued to ask, "Oh, can't I be a close confidant of the Kokushi, a member of the Minamoto clan, and also come to do things for him?"

The girl in front of him has completely aroused his interest.

She called Minamoto Kiyomasa "Kokushi", which was the name of an official title, instead of calling him "Lord of the Country" like those ignorant villagers did.

She saw the gentian pattern on Minamoto Kiyomasa's body and knew that it was the family crest of the Minamoto clan.

This was already incredible knowledge for the common people at that time.

Ah Qing shook his head, stared at Minamoto Qingya and said, "No, no noble lord of the Minamoto clan would come to a small village like this to deliver a message. They have plenty of followers to order around."

"You are the only one who can do this, because this is your decree. You must personally see that this decree is delivered to every nomadic settlement."

"Of course, you are strong enough, so you don't need to bring followers. You are also smart and know that these fools will rush to you like moths to a flame at the slightest profit."

"So, your decrees will be perfectly executed."

"And the taxes you gave up are not just petty gains. I have never seen such light taxes."

"You have a good vision. Unlike those masters who don't care about the lives of the untouchables, in this chaotic world, population and labor force are the most important guarantees. You are very clear about this."

"Let me guess. Did you kill the original city lord?"

"Otherwise, your decree to reduce taxes would not have been issued so easily."

"Well, whatever, it's my reward. I have to remind you."

"The people and the officials are always on opposite sides. If you are close to the people, those small groups of the aristocracy will naturally reject you."

"The taxes you set are very low, but the good farmland near the city belongs to the estates of the various powerful families in Musashi Province. They have every right to collect taxes from the people who cultivate the land privately, and the common people can only be angry but not say anything."

Yuan Qingya looked at Ah Qing with some admiration.

"I have considered what you said, so I have been preparing for this for several months."

"Now, all the land near Edo Castle has been taken back by me and is now in the name of the Genji."

"I have no worries, and I don't worry about being hindered by others."

Now it was Ah Qing's turn to feel unbelievable.

"How is it possible? How did you do that?"

"Why would those noble families obey you?"

"Land is their lifeblood. They have been rooted in Musashi for hundreds of years and have a strong foundation. How can a newly arrived governor like you defeat them?"

Yuan Qingya shrugged casually.

"It's very simple."

"The obedient ones will be kept, and the disobedient ones will be killed."

"The most difficult one to manage is that... what's his name? The Otomo family?"

"However, when three of their family heads were killed within ten days, they no longer dared to disobey my orders."

"These people who don't take human life seriously and are full of greed and idleness, I hope they will all go against me, so that I can have another reason to deal with them."

"."

"lets change a topic."

"Your name is A-Qing?"

"Are you interested in working for me?"

"There are too many idiots around me, and too few who can help me. Smart people like you are really rare."

Chapter 281: So Knowledgeable

Ah Qing glanced at Yuan Qingya indifferently, as if she didn't take these words to heart. She pushed open the door of her room and motioned Yuan Qingya to follow her.

The houses in this kind of small village are not even longhouses. They can barely be considered wooden structures, with roofs made of thatch and bricks. It is definitely warm in summer and cool in winter, and the living environment is extremely harsh.

In the mountains, this small thatched house is better than sleeping in the open air.

The room was quite spacious, with a bed against the wall and a stove half-buried in the ground in the middle. It was very simple and could not support complicated cooking techniques, but it was the most common furniture structure of that era.

What is slightly different is that this room is filled with a large number of "books".

Books in the Heian period were "luxury goods". Although they were not something that only princes and nobles could afford, they were definitely not something that a weak girl in a small village could afford.

"Please sit down, Lord Kokuji. I'm sorry, I only have one quilt. You wouldn't let a weak woman like me sleep on the cold floor, would you?"

The calm and composed girl opposite him did not show any fear towards Yuan Qingya at all, but instead made him feel somewhat familiar with her.

After a while, those fearful eyes became a little annoying.

Yuan Qingya sat down cross-legged against the wall, squinted his eyes at the piles of books, and spread his hands.

"The guest should follow the host's wishes. I will not take the place of the host."

"Please rest assured, I mean no harm."

Ah Qing walked to the cabinet, busy with something unknown, and said meaningfully, "Oh? Is that so?"

"I don't think so."

"To be honest, this place is not far from Edo Castle. It's just separated by a few hills. The mountain road is rugged and a bit difficult to walk on, but for you, it shouldn't be too far to miss the trip, right?"

"The ruler of a country goes out without a horse?"