Owari Yumeki Golden Day

and many more!

Suddenly, Hiraiwa Shinkichi grasped a subtle key point. Not long ago, Kawamuraya was a mere horse-carrier with a salary of 60 kan (approximately 100 kan) and a herd of over 30 horses. Now, it had become a major company with over 400 horses, branches across Owari and Mino, and hundreds of acres of land.

The speed of expansion is too incredible. How could someone develop from a small businessman with a few hundred kan to a member of the Tsushima Society with a fortune of several thousand kan in just two or three years?

In the history of the Tsushima clan, no one has ever risen to wealth so quickly. Even if Shichibei had the monopoly on horse-training granted by Nobunaga, where did the capital come from? How could the funds be converted so quickly into reproduction? Why did Takeda Shingen also grant you the exclusive right to operate Kai horses?

This Kawamura Shichibei Nagakichi is dishonest, very dishonest, and quite secretive.

But Hiraiwa Shinkichi didn't show it on the surface, but he kept his doubts hidden in his heart. He and Tokugawa Nobuyasu would be staying in Owari for several days, which would give them plenty of opportunities to test the waters and also plenty of opportunities to hint at things.

The distance from Atsuta back to Komakiyama is 40 to 50 kilometers, and it would take two days on horseback, which is already a very slow pace. If you don't worry about horsepower and change horses in between, you can make two round trips in a day.

Nobunaga was quite pleased to learn that his son-in-law had come to visit him, and he wanted to take Nobuyasu for a walk. This was a good thing for Shichibei, as he could at least go home and rest for two days.

As soon as he got home, he saw Hidenaga Kinoshita and his sister Aci busy in the warehouse behind the store. Hidenaga should be in Sunamata, and Aci should be taking care of Ningning.

Seeing Shichibei returning, the two men didn't think much of it and ran over happily to salute Shichibei.

"Why are you two here?" Shichibei handed the bamboo hat to Hidenaga Kinoshita and the outer haori to Aji.

The young couple served Shichibei very skillfully, as if it was their duty. Kinoshita Hidenaga even massaged Shichibei's shoulders, and Aci served him tea.

"My sister-in-law is visiting the Maeda family." Aci and Asong didn't know each other at all, so there was no need for them to join in the fun.

Ningning and Asong had known each other for many years, and were close friends. The key point was that Asong had already given birth to two children, the future Maeda Toshinaga, who seemed to be over four years old at this moment.

I think the pregnant Ningning went to Asong to learn from him. After all, Asong was able to give birth to two children successfully, so she is definitely better than Ningning who just got pregnant.

"I see..." Then I should indeed seek some advice. These days, all births are natural births. Failure to give birth will result in a tragic outcome of two deaths.

"What about you?" Shichibei picked up the teacup and asked Hidenaga.

"I came back with my brother..." Xiuchang lowered his voice, but there was no need to do so. The men had all gone back to the long house to rest, except for the two horse feeders who were in the front hall.

Hideyoshi stayed in Komakiyama Castle for a few days after the New Year. As soon as he returned to Sunamata, he received a piece of news that made him very happy.

Inaba and Ujiie did not attend the New Year's celebration at Inabayama Castle.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Shichibei presented Nobunaga with a sword. Although it was a formal ritual, presenting the sword to the lord also expressed the solid relationship between the lord and his subjects, and the loyalty of the subjects.

As a result, not only did Andō not go to Inabayama to offer his sword, but even Inaba and Ujiie didn't go on Lunar New Year's Day. What does this mean? It means that both families have completely wavered and are no longer willing to pretend to Ryūshō.

Of course, it is also possible that he was worried that if they went to Inabayama Castle, Longxing would leave the two of them there.

Long Xing was no fool; could he not see that the Xino clan was flirting with Nobunaga? With Zhongno lost and Zenno shaken, it was only natural for the Xino clan to find a new home for themselves.

Now that neither family is going to pay homage to Ryūshū, doesn't that mean that there is a glimmer of hope for appeasement of the Seino clan, and that the Seino clan will soon turn to Nobunaga?

Upon hearing the news, Hideyoshi ran back to Komakiyama and reported to Nobunaga.

Shichibei spat the tea leaves back into his cup and smacked his lips. "It seems the Seino clan will defect to the Oda clan sometime between February and March. Once the summer grain harvest is harvested, the Seino clan will undoubtedly openly defect."

As for why they were allowed to harvest the summer grain, that was also natural. If Nobunaga sold out the three families just to cause internal strife in Mino and consume the military strength of the three families and Saito Tatsuoki, then at least they had some preparation.

Once the summer grain is brought into the city, they will have the funds to defend it. After three to five months, Longxing will definitely withdraw his troops. Regardless, the three families will be safe and will continue to maintain their current status.

"Is the news accurate?" Although Shichibei had expected this, he still asked.

"Of course it's correct. It was said by Takenaka Hanbei." Hidenaga didn't show any special respect for Takenaka Hanbei when he spoke of him.

"That?"

"Yes, it's right at the foot of the city. I visited the main hall yesterday." Xiuchang gave the answer.

"Well, you can run an errand for me and ask him if he can spare some time tonight." After all, Shichibei was involved in this matter, so he must be curious.

If he hadn't participated, that would have been fine, but now that he has, and he happens to be at the foot of Xiaomushan City, I have to meet him and find out the specific details.

"Aci, go buy some sardines."

After sending the two away, Shichibei cleaned himself up and shaved. Nobunaga didn't grow a beard, but shaved regularly. This was probably one of the reasons he had been able to dress like a woman so effortlessly in the past few years. After all, if he wore women's clothing with a full beard, people probably wouldn't be interested in watching him.

The two returned one after the other, and Hidenaga said that Takenaka Hanbei would definitely arrive tonight. They also had sardines, but fortunately, Owari was close to the sea, and it was still winter.

After changing clothes and waiting for an hour or so, Takenaka Hanbei arrived as promised. His appearance hadn't changed at all, but there was one difference from our last meeting: this time, there was no need to speak in a low voice. It turned out that Takenaka Hanbei had a pretty loud voice, and he had lowered his voice last time because we were in a private conversation.

When he met Shichibei again, Takenaka Hanbei asked him in an intimate manner what he was busy with.

What are you busy with? Matching up a nine-year-old couple.

Having been in the Warring States period for several years, Shichibei had long since become desensitized to these people. He wasn't so surprised by whoever he saw, but it was a pity that he didn't chat with Tokugawa Ieyasu for a few days to see if he shared the same fondness for sweet and soft older sisters.

I did chat with Tokugawa Nobuyasu several times, but Nobuyasu was only nine years old, so I didn't get much out of it. Furthermore, Nobuyasu's conversations were a bit rambling, and I wasn't sure if he was just being "straightforward" or something else.

"It's not easy for Hanbei to run back and forth." Qibei still had to maintain a certain degree of etiquette on the surface. He couldn't just ask, "Have you decided to betray your old master Longxing?"

"It's just a matter of survival in the chaos." Hanbei touched his nose and laughed.

I'm not confident in answering, brother.

"What's the big deal? A wise bird chooses the right tree to roost in, and a wise minister chooses the right master to serve. Now that the Lord of Mino is not capable of maintaining the foundation, it is easy to abandon him and leave."

Well, Shichibei was the one who did this, so he must have been told in a positive light. If it were someone else, he would have been cursed as a treacherous villain and condemned by everyone.

"We are just small people and there is nothing we can do..." The two of them sat down now. The waiter brought the wine. Takenaka Hanbei didn't hesitate and picked up the wine dish and drank it all.

"Hahaha, maybe you forgot that I come from a royal merchant family." Shichibei deliberately followed his train of thought.

"Oh, ha, come come come..." Yes, Shichibei was born into a family of profit-seeking small businessman, how could he not understand such a truth?

If you want to preserve your family name in times like these, you have to be flexible and go with the flow.

After three cups of wine, Takenaka Hanbei finally opened up and talked about Ando Mamoru's persuasion of the other two families. There's no need to explain the details of how he persuaded them. As we've analyzed before, the Inaba and Uji families, who were also thinking of jumping ship, were eager for someone to take the lead and test the waters with the Oda family.

Not long after Ando Uemon, Takenaka Hanbei and Shichibei reached an agreement, the other two families learned about the conditions proposed by Oda Nobunaga and that each family would provide five important hostages.

Each family also needs to debate and discuss, and the person to be sent to Komaki Castle as a hostage must be carefully selected, so as to show sincerity without causing serious consequences.

Just like Ando Morimasa, he had to pack up his second son, younger brother, son of the family elder, etc. and send them to Nobunaga's service.

After a month or so of discussion, the three families had essentially reached a consensus, and they then formed an alliance among themselves, exchanging covenants. Only after they had fully united did they refuse to attend the New Year's celebration at Inabayama Castle.

At the same time, this was a signal to Nobunaga that he would defect, and Nobunaga would have to make a promise. They would only be able to rest assured when they could send troops to attack Inabayama Castle and crush Ryuko to death.

It makes sense and is well said.

"So, will Hanbei continue to follow Iga no Kami?" After Shichibei understood the whole process, he continued asking.

The Ando, ​​Inaba, and Ujiie families were to become Nobunaga's direct vassals and accept his direct leadership. This was agreed upon from the beginning, but other smaller powerful families were not included.

Either he could learn from Mitsuharu's failure to defeat him, resist to the end, and then destroy the family. Or he could be like Hanbei Takenaka and fall to the Oda clan at the same time.

For example, Makimura Sadatoshi (Inaba Ichitetsun) and Maruge Kanetoshi (Maruge Nagatoroshi) chose to side with Nobunaga, and were immediately recruited by Hideyoshi to serve as his assistants in the Sumata Castle.

The people of small countries also have to find a reliable big brother in the Oda family to lead them, otherwise they will be doomed sooner or later.

"Hmm..." Speaking of this, Takenaka Hanbei hesitated.

His father-in-law, Andō Morishi, had defected to the Oda clan, hoping to eventually absorb and annex the Seino clan to become a larger force. However, he was unsure whether this strategy would actually work, or whether it had sufficient success.

"Perhaps, you will be assigned to Koichirō's brother." Shichibei told the truth. In history, Takenaka Hanbei was assigned by Nobunaga to serve as Hideyoshi's assistant.

"As the governor of Haidong County, have you been assigned any tasks?" Hanbei asked unexpectedly.

"Yes, twenty strong riders." Of course there are, Nobunaga specially sent additional men for Shichibei.

Sakuma Nobumori also said that Shichibei was very lucky, and Nobunaga took special action to build a samurai group for Shichibei. Only with a sufficient and strong samurai group could he further develop under Nobunaga's command.

"So what do you think of me?"

"what!"

In fact, Qibingwei heard it clearly and understood it very well, but he subconsciously asked back because this didn't make sense. Qibingwei was ultimately a "commissioned officer" and his main purpose was definitely not to capture cities or territories.

Once you become a Yoriki and are dispatched to the Shichibei, it is very likely that you will only be able to follow the path of a commissioned officer in the future. It will be difficult for you to achieve success on the battlefield and obtain more rewards and territories.

Although most people these days are just trying to get by, and even in a war they try to stand back and shout "666", there are not many who simply give up on climbing the ladder and just want to be a rice worm, and who openly show it.

Just lie down and play badly. It depends on whether Nobunaga will weaken you or not. You are finished.

"I'm just separating from my father-in-law." Takenaka Hanbei held the wine tray and looked at Shichibei seriously.

Andō Moriyoshi had ambitious plans, seeking further development. Takenaka Hanbei sought stability, ensuring the inheritance of the family name and fortune. This would provide both sides with a way out and opportunities for growth, preventing both sides from losing everything.

If Ando succeeded, he would become a daimyo with a territorial wealth exceeding 100,000 koku, and the Takenaka family would have a strong support system. If Ando failed, and the family business eventually collapsed, the Takenaka family, seeking stability, would become a temporary safe haven, waiting for a comeback in the future.

"This matter..." Shichibei had no reason to refuse.

As Nobunaga's power grows, Shichibei's business will only grow bigger and bigger, and his business will spread out further and further. When the time comes, Nobunaga will definitely send more troops to help Shichibei expand rapidly.

Anyway, there's always someone like Nibei, Sanbei, or Taro or Saburo who'll be sent over. Rather than asking for those unknown Yori, it's better to ask for Takenaka Hanbei; at least he's not a fool, and he's really good at helping out.

"How is it? The Takenaka clan also has two or three hundred cavalrymen."

"Your words make it almost impossible for me to refuse."

79. If you have money, you have to put on airs.

Don't be impatient, brother.

This isn't something we can just discuss privately; we need Nobunaga's approval. The Takenaka clan followed the Nishi Mino trio in defecting to Oda, and whether they became Oda's allies or directly subordinate to Nobunaga depended on Nobunaga's attitude.

Nobunaga had not yet considered clearing out Mino and Owari and handing them over to Nobutada as his foundation. Therefore, the assignment of yorikuni was somewhat arbitrary, and Niwa Nagahide was assigned the Mino yorikuni by Nobunaga.

Let me give you two more famous examples. These are the generals who appear in later games or novels and can be given a special portrait.

Lord Ota of Mino Ota, Kazuyoshi Ota, and Lord Tokuyama Norihide of Ibigawa Tokuyama.

As for Aoki Ichijō, who was also from Mino, he first joined Imagawa Ujizane, and when Ujizane failed, he ran to Tokugawa Ieyasu, and when Ieyasu failed, he ran to Niwa Nagahide, and when Nagahide died, he ran to Hideyoshi, and when Hideyoshi died, he ran to Ieyasu again.

It was a truly legendary life story, but Aoki Kazushige could confirm that he wasn't Nobunaga's assigned accomplice to Niwa Nagahide. According to historical records, he and Imagawa Ujizane were likely in Kanto supporting the Hojo clan and guarding against Uesugi Kenshin's southward advance.

Takenaka Hanbei certainly understood this principle, he just came to test the waters with Shichibei in advance. If he had not come into contact with Shichibei and only knew Kinoshita Hideyoshi, it would have been fine.

But now that he knew Shichibei, Takenaka Hanbei had already learned a lot about him. One thing he valued very much was that Shichibei was from the old Owari Masamaki Banner.

Based on this point alone, as long as Shichibei is neither a fool nor an idiot and has no intention of rebelling, he will only get better and better in the Oda family.

This is similar to Liu Bang leading his old brothers from Pei County and Zhu Yuanzhang leading the Huaisi military merit group. Back then, following Zhu Yuanzhang with the background of Huaixi bastards, they violently attacked Suzhou, the core of Zhang Shicheng's Jiangnan landlord group. Didn't a bunch of Huaixi fellows make a fortune?

Whether he was killed or not, or whether he died or not, is another matter. But the fact that he enjoyed wealth and prosperity for more than a decade is certainly true.

This is what Takenaka Hanbei in front of you means. If Nobunaga distributes power in the future, you must remember me, your brother, and ask Nobunaga directly for it when the time comes.

Got it. Okay. Shichibei agreed.

Nobunaga would probably assign someone with strength anyway, so it wouldn't hurt to reserve a Takenaka family member in advance. Mino didn't have anyone Shichibei particularly cared about, so anyone would do.

The two of them had a simple meal of three dishes and a soup. After the discussion was over, Takenaka Hanbei left like a flash. This man also had impressive feet, and it was clear that he had about 50% of Nobunaga's strength.

If you ask Shichibei, he probably has about 30% of Nobunaga's feet. Not bad, isn't Nobunaga a natural talent?

Back to Nobuyasu's story. Since spring hadn't yet arrived, Nobunaga couldn't take Nobuyasu out to hunt geese with hawks, nor could he use hounds to chase rabbits. The fun of hunting was greatly reduced. At this point, all he could do was use the hounds to scare the rabbits out of their dens, then release the hawks to chase them. It didn't have the same thrill as hunting wild boar or bear.

But Nobuyasu was still very happy and followed Nobunaga everywhere. Nobunaga liked Nobuyasu very much because he had very good physical fitness. He liked guys with big sticks.

If it weren't for my son-in-law, high or low...

Never mind, that's a bit too much. The father-in-law and son-in-law were sitting in a branch of Kawamuraya. Nobunaga had promised to make Nobuyasu a pair of gloves from the rabbits he'd caught the past two days, and the rabbit skin was big enough for just that. The reason for coming to the shop was simple: Shichibei needed to dispatch another seventy packhorses for Nobuyasu to take back to Mikawa.

This is a small matter. Shichibei has already made preparations. He only needs to wait for a day or two and he will be able to mobilize enough horses and hand them over to Nobuyasu.

Nobunaga waved his hand and said, "I'll pay for my son-in-law's money." After all, there was no war after the autumn harvest last year, and Nobunaga still had a few gold coins in his pocket to spend, so he could pretend to be rich in front of his son-in-law.

Nobuyasu didn't think much of it and even nodded in agreement. Hiraiwa Shinkichi, who was standing next to him, tugged at him, implying, "Son, at least be polite to your father-in-law." Seventy horses was a fortune, so how could he just laugh?

Then Nobuyasu reacted and quickly thanked Nobunaga and said a few words of refusal. Nobunaga was a man of his word, a man who would kill your whole family if he said so. How could he ask his good son-in-law for such a small amount of money?

While asking someone to go back to the city to get the money, he asked Qibingwei how his business was going recently.

Business is slow in the winter, and will only pick up in the spring when Tōkaidō begins to prosper again. Right now, my main task is to take care of the horses and tend to the fields as well.

field?

"How is your red flower?" Nobunaga has a very good memory and is still thinking about it.

At that time, he almost rolled away the dog of an old man who was growing flowers. He held such a big dog under his arm and carried it for half a mile.

"At the beginning of last year, we prepared 70 acres of land." Shichibei reported truthfully.

At first, he planted one or two mu of safflower. After the crops were successful, he recruited a few more people to learn how to plant with him, and he built a dike covering ten mu of land. By the end of last year, he had some money, and the people who were learning to plant safflowers had gotten the hang of it, so he expanded the dike to seventy mu.

However, the old man still refused to teach anyone else the skill of making safflower cakes, and only gave it to his eldest grandson.

He could teach others, but he had to call back his Christian sons and daughters, and only if they did not abandon their faith would he teach them the technique of making safflower cakes.