Owari Yumeki Golden Day

Hadn't Okabe Motonobu come to Nobunaga specifically to demand Imagawa Yoshimoto's head? His body had been mixed in with the Imagawa soldiers who died in the battle and had long since been burned to ashes. But the head was enough, and Nobunaga could have easily extorted a thousand or two thousand kan from the Imagawa family. However, out of gratitude for Okabe Motonobu's loyalty, he didn't ask for the money, but instead, preserved the head in lime, and handed it over to Okabe.

On our side, if someone died in battle normally, their remains would be intact and cremated. The main reason for this was the fear of plague.

Of course, cremation is also possible for those who die at home, depending on the family's preference. There's no such thing as a 100% guaranteed funeral, and sometimes the ashes are even split in half, with one half going to the master and the other half remaining in the temple.

Ohashi Shigenaga had passed away, and as Nobunaga's brother-in-law, Nobunaga had to express his gratitude. No matter how big the events in Kyoto were, it was necessary to come and see his brother-in-law.

Nobunaga did not sprinkle incense ashes on Ohashi Shigenaga's spirit tablet. This time, he burned incense seriously.

Shichibei and Nobunaga were not familiar with each other and could not guess what kind of mood it was that sprinkled incense ashes on Nobuhide's spirit tablet.

After burning incense and looking at his sister and two nephews, Nobunaga prepared to return to Komakiyama. As luck would have it, he saw Shichibei who had also hurried to pay his respects, so he asked where Shichibei's home was.

inspection.

According to the normal practice of the Japanese Warring States Period, Shichibei's five sisters came out together to serve Nobunaga, massaging his shoulders and legs, and serving tea and water, while Shichibei sat below to report on his work.

Well, don't worry, Nobunaga has no interest in the five sisters of Shichibei's family. Because none of the five sisters have fair skin, and they are all from stables and are used to working.

Serving a horse is easier than serving a person.

This was also the first time that Nobunaga learned about the work of the horse messenger service. He learned that Shichibei had been slowly setting up a horse messenger station in Owari, so he directly asked Shichibei what the Kato family, the horse messenger in Atsuta, was going to do?

It was indeed this matter. In fact, Shichibei had been thinking about it a lot recently. The best way, of course, was to peacefully annex the Kato family. He had previously inquired about the marital status of Kato Nobutaka's son and discovered that he already had a wife. This path would probably be difficult to take.

Otherwise, Kato Nobunaga would have retired and given up his position as head of the family, and then Shichibei, in the capacity of Owari Denmaguchi, would have urged Nobunaga to order the Kato family to become his own vassal, and the Kato family would have been wiped out in one generation.

But now he has a wife, even if he is sent as a guest rider, he will certainly be submissive in name only. There is no way to transform him into a member of the Kawamura clan or a retainer of the Kawamura family.

As for violent means and forced mergers, whether big or small is a success or failure.

It would be fine if no one died, but if someone died, Shichibei would have to pay with his own life.

Moreover, the Kato family was also a hereditary retainer of the Oda clan, a member of the Atsuta clan, and had served as Nobuhide's merchant manager, belonging to the old Oda clan. Forced annexation would always cause resentment among the people.

"Are you married?" Oda Nobunaga saw Shichibei pondering, looking around, and asked.

"Yes, she is the daughter of Umame Shusei, a retainer of the Ohashi family." This was not the first time someone asked Shichibei.

"Then let me ask Kanshichiro to adopt this girl." Nobunaga suddenly came up with a somewhat strange solution.

What does this mean? Ohashi Shigenaga's son, Oda Nobuya, had become a member of Nobunaga's stable, and was also allowed to use the surname Oda, making him considered a member of Oda's family. If Shichibei had married the daughter of Oda's family, his political status would have been elevated, making him a prominent hereditary retainer.

After that, he can reasonably and legally take on certain duties. When Nobunaga appoints the Kato family as Shichibei's envoy, it will be a normal personnel transfer.

But the old problem has not been solved, and the Kato family cannot be digested.

It's simple. Nobunaga's method is violent but direct. Kato Nobunaga has more than one son, or even if he only has one son, so what?

The eldest son was promoted to Nobunaga's position as a Makaishu, which was also Nobunaga's training class for reserve officers. How many people wanted to get in but couldn't?

Of course, you have to make your own way before you can learn from the training class. Otherwise, if you die in battle, it will be for nothing. You need both ability and luck.

The Kato family was divided into the Kato East family and the Kato West family. The East family served Nobunaga and became samurai, while the West family continued to work as horsemen and maintained their status as merchants.

The Nishi family was transferred to Shichibei and became his guest. Kato Nobunaga had a second son, who married Shichibei's sister.

If there is no second son, then find a family of Shichibei to inherit the Kato Nishi family. This is simpler and you can directly become a retainer of Shichibei.

Of course, it was impossible for all of this to be given away for free. Shichibei had to spend money to buy out the shop, horses, and servants. Otherwise, Nobunaga would not be able to make the decision and split up the Kato family.

Anyway, this wasn't the first time the Kato family had split up. The future famous Kato Yoshiaki and Kato Mitsuyasu were actually branches of the Kato Nobunaga clan. Even the Akechi Toyama clan, the Kawazu clan, and the Itami clan were all from this lineage.

Fujiwara no Toshihito is generally regarded as an ancestor, and Fujiwara no Kita no Yu was a famous and noble family. But for some reason, Kato Kiyomasa did not rely on this branch of his family, and chose another family when he fabricated his own family background.

"My lord, Kato Yasaburo has already served in this city..." The idea is good, but there is a problem.

Kato Nobunaga's eldest son, Kato Tosuke, inherited the family business, while Kato Yasaburo, the second son, was already a minor official under Nobunaga. Shichibei had investigated this, and Kato Yasaburo was already married.

Kato Yasaburo is quite famous because, in every Taiga drama or novel involving Oda Nobunaga, he was one of the first five retainers to rush out with Nobunaga during the surprise attack on Okehazama. However, in history, Kato Yasaburo died in the Battle of Mikatagahara, so the highlight of his life was fixed in Okehazama.

One of the five extras!

"Huh?" Nobunaga didn't expect that the Kato family had already split into two groups.

"We have to find another way." Shichibei probably understood Nobunaga's temper a little bit. If you tell him the truth, as long as it does not affect Nobunaga's interests, Nobunaga will listen.

"Hmm..." It was rare for Nobunaga to take the initiative to give advice to his retainers, but he proposed a solution without any investigation. Obviously, the solution didn't work, so he was left speechless.

"We need to consider this matter in the long term." Shichibei was not in a hurry. The Kato family had no horses to replenish their stocks, and the family business would be ruined sooner or later, it was just a matter of sooner or later.

"How is your alfalfa crop?" Nobunaga was good at taking advantage of the situation and directly changed the subject, starting to talk about the alfalfa fields.

"It grows beautifully." Of course it grows beautifully when the weather is good and the crops are harvested well.

"Go, go and have a look."

After saying that, Nobunaga jumped up. He was in really good physical condition. Shichibei was much younger than Nobunaga, and he felt that he was not as energetic and energetic as Nobunaga.

Because Nobunaga was accompanied by a dozen retainers and young men, a single boat couldn't accommodate them all; it took three boats to get them all aboard. Alfalfa theoretically harvests quickly, allowing for five or six crops a year. However, the sandbar's fertility was insufficient, and since no effort had been put into planting, two crops would be enough to break even this year, and three would yield substantial profits.

Nobunaga was quite pleased to see the alfalfa shoots sprouting up again. There were people in his territory who specialized in growing horse feed, which would be very beneficial for war. Why wouldn't he be happy?

Then I heard a dog barking...

Hey, this time the dog was smarter. Seeing so many people around, it immediately shut up. Not only did it shut up, it even ran away. Nobunaga saw the red flower hut and the dike, so he naturally wanted to go and see it.

The safflower has been harvested now, leaving only bare land. The old man plans to plant a season of beans to nourish the land so that he can plant safflower again in late autumn.

As the old man was speaking, the dogs he raised saw Nobunaga. Perhaps they were frightened by Nobunaga's domineering aura, but they actually came up to Nobunaga, licked him, and even nudged his feet.

Damn, when I first came here, I was almost bitten by this dog.

Nobunaga even praised the old man's dog, patted the dog's head, and asked how much the safflower cakes sold for this year. "Selling shit, the old man still has the safflower cakes." Shichibei just went out and asked the price, and was ready to compare prices. After all, the safflower cakes wouldn't go bad if they were kept.

Didn't sell it? Nobunaga didn't know the price of safflower cakes, so he picked up a dog and walked away. Because he was Nobunaga, no one dared to stop him, so he just let him touch the dog's head and walk out with the dog under his arms.

When everyone got on the boat, the Shiba Inu was still under Nobunaga's armpit.

The Shiba Inu was already one year old and weighed dozens of kilograms. Wouldn't Nobunaga feel tired holding it? Everyone around was surprised. When they got on the boat, the old man wanted to take the dog back, but when he thought about it, it was Nobunaga. If Nobunaga took your dog, it would be your blessing.

The boat had already left the shore when Nobunaga suddenly cried out and slapped the dog on the head, as if he had suddenly realized something. He then let the dog go. The dog was even better and didn't hold a grudge against Nobunaga. It jumped off the boat and swam back to the old man.

So you don't want a dog?

"Nanabe, these sandbanks of yours are more than a thousand acres, right?" Nobunaga stopped looking at the dog and turned to look at Nanabe.

"Yes." Shichibei was watching the dog swimming. He only answered when Nobunaga called him.

"Give 500 mu of land to the Kato family, so that they can have another family business." Nobunaga very arbitrarily proposed a new solution.

"Ah, this..." Shichibei had never thought of it this way.

Now that Nobunaga had brought it up, it seemed like a reasonable option. The Kato family's horse-carrying business was already on the verge of collapse. With no horses left, it was almost impossible for them to recover their original size in the short term.

Rather than watching the family business wither and fall, it's better to change course. Maintaining the family business first will allow for a possible comeback. After all, Kato Nobunaga didn't know that Nobunaga had a chance to conquer Omi and thereby control the resources of the northern Oshu region.

To replenish horses in Owari, it all depends on the horse merchants from Koshin coming west to sell them. This road is probably now monopolized by Shichibei. It doesn't matter who sells the horses to, as long as Shichibei can pay for it, why would he still peddle them on the street?

Shichibei traded 500 mu of sandbank for three crops of alfalfa each year. The Kato family no longer had horses to keep, so they could all be sold. One mu of land yielded 30 bundles of grass per year, at 30 sen per bundle. 500 mu could bring in 450 kan (approximately 200 to 300 kan) of income per year, and after deducting labor costs, that would be at least 200 to 300 kan (approximately 200 to 300 kan).

Shichibei only made 200 kan a year because he had to keep half the grass for himself, even though he raised hundreds of horses. The Kato family got rid of their burden, so they made a profit.

Unless the world is unified next year and there is no more war, the swords and guns will be put into storage and the horses will be released into the mountains.

Otherwise, this is a good business that is guaranteed to make money, so why wouldn't you change it?

"It's decided. I'll send someone to talk to Yasaburo." Nobunaga clapped his hands and made the decision on his own.

Anyway, Shichibei didn't express any explicit opposition, and this sandbar was obtained almost for free. It wouldn't be impossible to exchange it for an opportunity to integrate the Owari Denma service.

What to do then? Shichibei could only say, "I'm overjoyed. Nobunaga has already made the decision, so there's no point in objecting."

To be honest, Nobunaga was indeed quite efficient. After all, he was quite concerned about the Owari domain. Kato Yasaburo personally rushed to Tsushima, as did his father, Kato Nobunaga. Neither of them knew how Shichibei had persuaded Nobunaga to take charge of this matter.

However, they were indeed tempted by Nobunaga's proposal. Five hundred acres of alfalfa fields were a huge fortune in themselves.

Kato Nobunaga's request was that he himself should mark out the 500 mu of land. After he personally went to the island and saw the alfalfa and barnyard grass planted by Shichibei, he hesitated for only a moment before deciding to transfer Atsuta's property.

From then on, the Atsuta Kato clan was divided into two: the one that served Nobunaga was called the Atsuta Higashi Kato clan, and the one that obtained the 500 mu sandbar of Tsushima was called the Atsuta Nishi Kato clan.

The Atsuta Kato clan's original rice fields and harvested land remained, but the Atsuta Denmamonya and all its attached properties, including over 40 servants and over 30 child laborers, were transferred to Shichibei. Kato Nobunaga retired, and Kato Tosuke took only a dozen households with him.

Shichibei had never imagined that the merger would go so smoothly.

40. Fujikichiro asks for money

The joy of organizing the Owari horse service hadn't yet faded when the returning bridegroom's escort from Kai brought Shichibei even more surprises. According to reports from his family, Yonekura Nobutsugu had submitted a petition to Takeda Shingen on his behalf, accepting Shichibei's request to purchase all of the Ko and Shin production draft horses.

Nobutsugu Yonekura felt quite regretful that Shichibei did not rush to Kai to see the bride off.

I would like to go, but the higher-ups won't let me.

But whether Shichibei went or not didn't stop Kai from selling horses to Shichibei. He came back from his hometown with more than 200 pack horses and riding horses, and even brought back four war horses.

It was barely enough to fill the gap in Atsuta's horse-training duties and build the Owari Road horse-training network, but of course, it was still a bit lacking in order to fully utilize it.

After all, when Kato Nobunaga was in Atsuta, he owned nearly a hundred horses, and he directly used sixty or seventy of them. This number of horses was not even enough to meet Atsuta's own needs, after all, Atsuta also had to connect with part of the Mikawa market.

Mikawa didn't have any large-scale market towns. It was simple. Other places often had names like Yokkaichi and Rokkaichi in later generations, but Mikawa was completely bare. It's easy to imagine that in today's age, Mikawa didn't even have a decent market town. It was a place of pure poverty and hardship.

Many things need to be transferred from Atsuta to Mikawa. Since there is no water transportation in the inland area, they can only rely on horse-drawn carriages for transportation.

Fortunately, we annexed the Kato family's stable ahead of time. Otherwise, with so many horses arriving at once, we wouldn't have enough space to accommodate them. There were only two or three kittens left in the Kato family's stable, but now there are over a hundred of them, which is just right. It's neither too spacious nor too crowded.

We have to quickly build a stable and a shed at the foot of Komakiyama Castle. The money we earned from selling alfalfa and barnyard grass is about a hundred strings of cash, which is more than enough to build a spacious stable.

Nobunaga, feeling rather pleased with himself for having "mediated" a dispute between two prominent lords within his domain, designated a horse-racing enclosure outside Komakiyama Castle for Shichibei to run around in. He was a man of the hour, as rice-growing land was worthless these days, as it couldn't be developed into paddy fields.

It's just annoying to have your pockets emptied all the time...

Shichibei found that whenever he had a little money, he would spend it all, doing this and that. Although the Kawamura family's business was expanding and the amount of fixed assets had greatly increased, their cash flow was a bit tight.

If things keep going this tight, something will happen sooner or later.

We still have to pay attention to the matter of safflower cakes and leave a backup plan for the Kawamura family.

By the way, to thank Nobunaga for his "mediation," Shichibei hurried to present him with a "tsukige" horse. Tsukige (つきげ) is a type of horse coat color, likely referring to a pale yellow hue similar to milk skin, or a less-than-pure white. Tsukige is also the yellowish-white color of milled rice.

Didn’t Kenshin Uesugi have a horse named Hosho Tsukuge? It was a Tsukuge horse bred in Hoshozu. It’s that simple. Japanese people don’t have that many fancy names.

The Tsukugema in front of him could probably be called Iitomi Tsukuge or Kai Tsukuge, depending on Nobunaga's thoughts.

Nobunaga also praised Shichibei for being sensible and accepted the moon-haired horse that Shichibei presented him. After all, it was Shichibei who was given the large horse farm outside Komakiyama Castle.

Perhaps because of the gift of a warhorse to Nobunaga, the samurai who had come to ask about a warhorse before came back again. This time he finally bought a "Lianqian Weimao" and was so happy that he gave Shichibei a full 40 kan.

The so-called "linked coins" are horses with mottled blue, white and grey spots. The small spots on their bodies look like strings of coins, with different shades of color, which is very beautiful.

Yonekura Nobutsugu was truly a good student of ours. Although he only sold us four horses, they were all quite good. They were considered among the best horses in the Koshin Kiso family, each standing over 1.35 meters tall at the shoulder.

After Kawamuraya opened, many Owari samurai began to place orders.

It is impossible to specify what kind of horse it is, but you can wait until the second half of the year when the Takeda family ships its products to see if there are any new horses arriving in the store.

Some samurai also specifically requested horses. These were used for daily riding, or as a means of transportation before heading into battle. For example, if the battle for Okehazama was imminent, Nobunaga would require you to run over ten kilometers in two or three hours to reach Atsuta Shrine. Then, you'd have to engage in battle against the Imagawa army. Even a tough guy would find it tiring.

Then the best way is to ride a horse. It will save energy to ride a horse to Atsuta Shrine than to run there on your own.

Horse riding can also be used as a warm-up exercise, so that you can wield a sword or a gun and fight against Imagawa Yoshimoto later.

Riding horses only needed strong, obedient, and willing to run. Horses that could tolerate roughage and carry goods over mountains and hills were another breeding direction.

In "Seven Samurai," there are three horses in the village, used by farmers to plow the fields. One of them is so poor that even Kikuchiyo would be thrown off if she tried to ride it. It's a typical poor horse that can only die in the stable, only used to plow the fields, and then beaten with a whip every day.

To be ridden obediently, horses also need some training, but the intensity is far less than that of war horses, who have to avoid the sound of gunfire and cannons. This alone will eliminate all timid horses.

Compared to pack horses, riding horses weren't much more expensive; they were just a means of transportation for samurai lords to ride. In Owari, they were only worth about 10 or 8 kan, which was slightly better than a pack horse.

It just so happened that among the horses that came from Kai, there were also some riding horses. They came from Kai for four or five kan, and went out from Owari for eight or nine kan, making a profit from the difference.

In recent years, while Oda Nobunaga and Takeda Shingen maintain a superficial harmony, perhaps they can make a small profit from the horse resale business.

It’s beautiful to think about.

However, the reason why the samurai under the castle were so eager to buy horses was not because Shichibei's horses were so good, but mainly because news from Kinai came back one after another, indicating that there might be a war.

First, Shichibei sent a servant to the town, who brought back the news that the Miyoshi Three had supported Awa Kubo Ashikaga Yoshiei to enter Sakaimachi and was seeking the shogun's appointment in the imperial court.

Then came the news that the son of the former shogun Ashikaga Yoshiharu, Rokuonin Shugo, had been murdered. The exact assassination was not yet known, but he was definitely killed.

Soon after, news broke that Ichijoin Kakuei, the son of another former shogun, had fled to Yajima Island in Omi, where he was being protected by Wada Koremasa. Whether this was true or not was uncertain.

But with the arrival of Hosokawa Fujitaka, the situation was basically certain.

The monk Ichijoin Kakukei now changed his name to Ashikaga Yoshiaki and sent letters to more than 40 daimyo and powerful people in Kinai, neighboring countries and China, asking these daimyo and powerful people to support him in ascending the throne in Kyoto.