Owari Yumeki Golden Day

Sending the horses to Sakuma's residence, Shichibei was able to see two future famous samurai. Hosokawa Fujitaka was said to be very elegant and graceful, but now, haha, his cheeks are thin and his forehead is big. He doesn't look thin, he looks hungry.

After all, before fleeing to Ichijodani Anyangji, he was often displaced along the way and had no food to eat all day. Anyone who had been hungry for several months would have looked like him.

Fujitaka, who will receive the "ancient and modern teachings" and become a master of waka in the future, now looks like a poor ronin.

(The knowledge of Kokin Wakashu, which is passed down from ancient times, refers to the allusions, word choice, and rhyme in the Kokin Wakashu. Simply copying waka without understanding its essence will make it difficult to create a corresponding waka.)

As for Mitsuhide, hey, Shichibei's first impression was that he was actually taller than Nobunaga. He must have had good genes to be so tall. That was all. Because they didn't get to talk, Nobunaga patted his horse and sent them both off for a run.

The two men accepted Nobunaga's gift calmly, not because they were poor and had low aspirations, but because as servants of Ashikaga Yoshiaki, it was customary for them to accept bribes while on official business and have some gray income.

Just like when an official went to the countryside to collect annual tribute, the village chief would arrange for the official to have a feast and bathe with the village girls. These were all unwritten customs. No one would talk about them openly, but both the providers and the beneficiaries were aware of them.

"That Akechi Mitsuhide is a very interesting person!" Nobunaga spoke directly when only Shichibei and Xiaoxing were left by his side.

"Hmm?" Shichibei had no contact with Akechi Mitsuhide and could not comment on anything, so he could only pass on the message to Nobunaga.

"Look at his figure on horseback." Nobunaga crossed his arms in front of his chest and looked at Mitsuhide who was galloping on his horse with a scrutinizing look.

Mitsuhide was said to be a rare cavalry general in Japan, capable of wielding a 6.5-foot-long Ōdachi (large sword) from horseback, striking left and right, and slashing through enemies with ease. Others with this skill, such as Magara Naotaka of the Asakura clan and Sanada Nobunaga of the Takeda clan, were both renowned generals in Japanese Warring States history.

By now, Mitsuhide had already circumnavigated halfway around the racecourse, circling back to where Nobunaga stood. If he had just been galloping, it wouldn't have been a big deal, as Hosokawa Fujitaka was also running behind him. But soon, Shichibei cried out in surprise. At his breakneck speed, Akechi Mitsuhide had actually pulled up the straw target in the blink of an eye.

Even though it was just a straw target, including the wooden frame, it weighed several dozen pounds. In a flash, he lifted it with one hand. This wasn't just horsemanship; it was a combination of horsemanship and martial arts, a true unity between man and horse.

When he ran to Nobunaga, Nobunaga drew out a spear and threw it into the air. Mitsuhide caught it and danced with it. With the help of his fast horse, he used the spear like a knife and cut off the top of the grass stake in one fell swoop. Shichibei didn't even see how he cut it.

"Besides that, his artillery skills are also amazing." There was a certain fiery look in Nobunaga's eyes.

Mitsuhide demonstrated his teppo technique to Asakura Yoshikage at Ichijodani, saying that he could hit a one-foot square target from about 30 meters away. He could even aim at a flying bird and shoot it down.

The most amazing thing is that his cannon is known to hit the target every time. At a target of 30 meters, he used 100 lead bullets, 62 of which hit the red star and 38 hit the target.

It can almost be said that he was the best arquebus expert in the world. Even if you searched the entire Oda clan, you would not find anyone who was better at arquebus than Akechi Mitsuhide.

"If that's all..." Shichibei certainly knew that Akechi Mitsuhide's abilities were more than that, but if it was just his martial arts prowess, Nobunaga wouldn't have such a fiery look in his eyes.

Did the Oda clan lack powerful generals? Yes, they did. Maeda Toshiie, for example, was a master of spearmanship, willing to charge into enemy territory as Nobunaga's first rider. Mori Yoshinari and Shibata Katsuie were also powerful warriors, capable of fighting and killing with ease.

Just like what Shichibei said to Tokugawa Nobuyasu, as long as you are willing to pay up, there are plenty of brave warriors who will join you.

"He bought all the rain and fire ropes in Komakiyama." Nobunaga gave the answer immediately.

Normal tinder easily extinguishes due to moisture on rainy days, so rain tinder was created by soaking the tinder in saltpeter solution and boiling it. This tinder would not easily extinguish even in the rain. When paired with the small copper cover on the gunpowder reservoir of the iron cannon, it became, in a sense, a "rain iron cannon."

"My lord, what you mean is that he is preparing for war all the time?" Shichibei suddenly understood.

"He eats faster than me, almost just swallowing." Nobunaga nodded.

There's a saying that those with big ambitions don't care what they eat, only that they're full. Wang Anshi, for example, ate whatever was available. He even ate the bait during a fishing competition at Jinming Lake, using the time he spent fishing to contemplate state policy.

"He has far-sightedness, superb martial arts, and eloquence..." Shichibei could nod his head now. It seemed that in just three or five days, all the qualities that Mitsuhide exuded were what Nobunaga liked.

The key point is that all of these are concentrated in one person!

"Yesterday, Hosokawa Hyobu said that he had been praised by Mori Uma as a man of great intelligence, courage and strength, but..." At this point, Nobunaga suddenly showed a smile that was difficult to describe.

"Then?"

"Then there is the look of an eagle watching a wolf."

"hiss……"

The most famous person with this appearance in history was Sima Yi. It is said that when Cao Cao discovered that Sima Yi had the appearance of an eagle and a wolf, he immediately prepared to kill him.

But how would Mōri Motonari evaluate Akechi Mitsuhide? Because Akechi Mitsuhide had served as a public servant of the shogunate, had been sent as an envoy to Yoshida-gunyama Castle, and had even demonstrated the art of archery and horsemanship to Mōri Motonari.

"What? Just tell me whatever you want to say." Nobunaga looked at Shichibei's expression and felt that he was a good chat partner because he knew a lot of random allusions.

Perhaps this was one of the reasons Nobunaga was so happy to chat with Shichibei. He himself was a disciple of the monk Zehiko, but the other samurai were only literate. It was rare to run into Shichibei, and at least he could share some random anecdotes and chat with them.

It's not so bad that Nobunaga said he had the eyes of an eagle and the back of a wolf, and his subordinates asked what this meant.

"It's too mysterious and there's nothing much to say. Judging from my face, I don't have the appearance of being extremely rich." Shichibei spoke frankly, because we don't fit the facial features of a full forehead, a big and straight nose, and a flat and upturned mouth.

"I think so too." Nobunaga has a bit of a effeminate look, which in any case does not match the appearance of a hegemon, but he is a ruler of the world in history.

"But this person is a servant of the shogunate and lives in the Asakura. How can the lord recruit him?" Shichibei asked in return.

Within the larger framework of the Muromachi shogunate, Nobunaga wasn't even the Owari shugo (guardian of Owari); at most, he was merely the shugodai (reputationary guardian of Owari). Ashikaga Yoshiaki positioned Nobunaga as merely a shugo (outer shugo). Mitsuhide, on the other hand, was a member of the samurai family, a true official and even the head of the official. Within the old system, Mitsuhide's political status was slightly higher than Nobunaga's.

One is from the Eight Banners and is a powerful official in Beijing. Although he is only of the fifth rank, he is better than the fourth rank prefect who is of Han descent from outside.

"Jubei, I'll give you 4,000 kan, come and serve me." Nobunaga waved his hand. He didn't care about all these messy things and used the method that best suited his character.

Throw money!

If you have money, you are a master!

Akechi Mitsuhide, who had already slowed down his horse and was about to dismount, almost stumbled. Hosokawa Fujitaka beside him was also incredulous. How could someone just give Zhixing 4,000 kan right out of the blue?

You must know that Akechi Mitsuhide's salary at the Asakura family was a mere 100 kan. With a large family to support and the dignity of a shogunate retainer to maintain, 100 kan was truly stingy. Moreover, it was only last year, as he had been running for his life before that.

"Please allow me to refuse." Akechi Mitsuhide's answer was even more unexpected.

"Do you think it's too little?" Nobunaga walked up to Mitsuhide who was kneeling on one knee. From his tone, it was clear that he was really willing to add more.

"Abandoning your lord in distress is disloyalty, coveting generous salary is unrighteousness, and trusting other people's promises is unwise. Do you want to have a disloyal, unjust, and unwise subordinate?" Mitsuhide said it very directly, and he also returned the cause and effect to Nobunaga.

"Hahahaha... You're fine, you're really fine." Nobunaga was not annoyed at all. He pulled Mitsuhide up and walked back with him almost arm in arm.

Shichibei saw clearly that Nobunaga truly admired Mitsuhide. Furthermore, Mitsuhide's performance just now clearly demonstrated his unparalleled loyalty and righteousness, and the last bit of doubt in Nobunaga's heart should have dissipated.

101. Northern Ise has made a breakthrough

It is said that Nobunaga and Mitsuhide slept on the same bed last night, probably mainly to chat. After all, Akechi Mitsuhide was indeed very talented and learned. Asakura Kageyuki had also publicly praised this point, saying that Mitsuhide could predict the enemy's moves and was an extremely intelligent general.

The next day, Nobunaga personally rode his horse and took them all the way to Inuyama. After crossing the floating bridge over the Kiso River, they returned to Komakiyama.

This moment right now might be true love.

Shichibei wasn't in charge of reception or catering; instead, he was directing the demolition of the Kawamuraya branch store near Komakiyama Castle. Lumber was being sent to Gifu Castle for the expansion of the Gifu branch. After the demolition, he would stay in a tent for a day, pack up, and head to Tsushima.

Nobunaga also rushed to Gifu with dozens of attendants, carrying large and small bags. The Sakuma Mansion was demolished, and the Komakiyama Castle Town, which once gathered tens of thousands of people, was completely demolished, leaving only a bare expanse of land.

Nobunaga previously gave us a piece of wild land under the castle to use as a racecourse. Now it has been returned to Nobunaga, and we are waiting to find another racecourse under Gifu Castle.

"Hanbei, you've become a lot darker." When I was riding back to Tsushima, I saw Takenaka Hanbei washing his feet in the ditch.

"Is the relocation of Komakiyama completed?" Takenaka had both legs stuck in the ditch, struggling left and right.

"It just ended yesterday. I asked Goro Sayaka to build a house for you at the foot of the city." Shichibei signaled the others to continue heading to Tsushima, while he stayed to chat with Takenaka.

The Takenaka family was a wealthy family with a fortune of 8,000 koku, and held a position within the Oda clan. Having a residence at the foot of Gifu Castle was essential; if he and Shichibei were to go on a campaign, the Takenaka family and children would have to stay in their residence at Gifu Castle.

It can be understood as a hostage or as protection, depending on how you analyze it.

Only the three lords of western Mino, with their large empires and wealth, could avoid relocating their main family members to Gifu and could simply hand over hostages. Within a few years, the smaller lords of Mino would be coerced into becoming complete vassals by Nobunaga, gradually losing direct ties to their territories.

Oh, by the way, Nobunaga hasn't issued the "retainers gather together" order yet.

Only Nobunaga's direct subordinates, the Makai clan, the small clans, and the permanent ashigaru settled permanently in the castle grounds; many of the other local lords remained in their own domains. However, the collective departure of the main local lords from Owari to Gifu to serve the emperor may have marked the beginning of the practice of collective residence for retainers. If this practice proved successful, Nobunaga might have implemented it throughout his domain.

"Is the Oda family's finances so abundant?" Takenaka Hanbei was a relatively old-school samurai. He studied military tactics and spearmanship, and also planned strategies, but he was somewhat lacking in territory management.

The point is that when land is enriched to a certain degree, the landowners will focus all their wisdom and energy on gaining political power. This is actually a mutual relationship; only by possessing the corresponding power can one hold on to the vast land.

Therefore, the big landowners had neither the time nor the energy to take care of the so-called territory management and agricultural innovation. They were often busy in the court or on the battlefield.

On the contrary, the rich peasants had a strong desire to get richer. Although they could not touch power, they had seen with their own eyes the wealth that the hundreds of acres of land in their hands could bring.

This group of people are often the main force in rural development and are also the supporters of agricultural technological innovation and farmland water conservancy development.

This statement has some connotations of 18th-century French physiocracy, but in today's era, it is in line with the current context.

Most samurai lords adopted a policy of continuous exhaustion, making it difficult for them to develop sufficient financial resources. Naturally, they could not, like Nobunaga, communicate with Ashikaga Yoshiaki and hand over the imperial court, relocate the capital to Gifu, and carry out large-scale construction, while also preparing the streets of the territory for the next year's campaign.

What a rich guy.

Takenaka Hanbei, who couldn't understand such lavish spending, naturally had doubts. His former lord, Isshiki Yoshitatsu, was also a powerful leader who conquered many lands, but he was never as lavish as Nobunaga.

Mino was also a large country, and the Kiso River coast was a very fertile agricultural area, just as rich as Owari. Ogaki was also the gateway to the Kaido from Kinai, and after the establishment of the customs office, it became a lucrative port of call.

Then why was Nobunaga so rich in the end, while Saito became poorer and poorer?

"No matter how hard you try to make a living, there is a limit. Prosperous trade and the flow of people can bring greater possibilities." Shichibei wanted to explain, but then he thought that the explanation would be too long, so he might as well show off in front of Takenaka.

"Hmm?" Putting on straw sandals, Takenaka Hanbei seemed to be lost in thought.

"How is the construction of the post stations in Iwakura and Katsubata going?" Official business is more important, as Nobunaga may attack the north at any time.

"Everything is in progress." When talking about business, Takenaka was also very concerned and replied immediately.

Iwakura Castle, needless to say, was captured and burned by Nobunaga. Katsubata Castle was abandoned voluntarily, after all, Tsushima had completely fallen into the hands of the Oda clan, and there was no need to build Katsubata Castle to suppress Tsushima.

Ancient fortifications were often chosen for their strategic location, either as mountain fortresses or along key transportation routes. Clearly, these ancient forts on the Owari Plain were located along key transportation routes. These old fortifications are being used to establish post stations, and in the event of a war, they could even be fortified into military strongholds.

Looking at the street below, if it is a common daimyo, the main thing to do in street maintenance is to "level it." If there are potholes, fill them; if there are no potholes, just pass through. As long as it looks like a road, it's fine.

But if he prepares carefully, his first job is digging ditches.

Why ditches? To clearly define the boundaries of the road. This isn't meant to disparage some farmers; this phenomenon does exist in many rural areas. Beyond the concrete or asphalt paved roads, there's still a half-meter to a meter of empty dirt. Those who follow the rules won't touch it, but those who don't will start planting vegetables or even wheat there.

The more brutal ones would nail iron nails on the wooden strips, and then insert the wooden strips into the ground where the roadbed should be, so that oncoming vehicles would not dare to run over their "land".

There are even some who are the most brutal, who will chip away five centimeters of cement road today, ten centimeters tomorrow, and eventually turn a two-way two-lane road into a single lane.

Killing someone for something like this? Is it possible? No way.

The final result is mostly indulgence, because grassroots governance has collapsed long ago and people are just getting by.

The same is true in Japan: if the roadbed is not properly protected, someone will dare to dig it up. Therefore, ditches must be dug on both sides of the road to clearly define the scope and boundaries of the road.

The excavated soil is used to raise the roadbed. Alas, I always feel that saying this is like mindlessly criticizing farmers, but in the countryside, people really fight for even a piece of mud.

There are real cases of people digging up roadbeds in the middle of the night and then carrying mud to their own fields to raise their own foundations. The reason is simple: some of the land in the village is high, while some is low. The high-lying land has better drainage, making it suitable for growing most crops. The low-lying land is flooded when it rains, and nothing can survive.

Even when growing rice, it does not have to be soaked in water all the time. The roots of rice will rot if soaked for too long.

So some people stole mud and spread it on their own land to raise the foundation of their own fields. Then when it rained, the water would flow to the lower places and flood other people's fields.

In the future, in order to prevent people from stealing mud on the road, the great king Okubo Nagayasu set up a mound beside the road, which served as both a mileage marker and a measurement target.

The so-called "Ilizhong" (一里竹) is essentially an earthen platform, with trees planted on top to stabilize it. From the tree roots to the road surface, the height should be 1.7 meters. Street maintenance officials patrolled the area, and if the road surface was more than 10 meters below the tree roots, no local farmer could escape.

After the soil in the ditch is turned up to raise the roadbed, it is necessary to use a horse-drawn stone roller to continuously roll the ground to make it firm so that it will not turn into a mud pit if stepped on just a few times.

Speaking of which, Japan's stonework technology is really poor. On the neighboring continent, wheat flour has become one of the staple foods in the north. The main reason is the development of stonework technology, which can produce a large number of stone mills.

While Japan also grows wheat, people only eat wheat rice. Some areas don't even grow wheat, opting instead for crops like beans, buckwheat, sesame, and barnyard grass. The main reason is that wheat can't be processed into flour for making pastries.

Some people may ask, what about those Japanese glutinous rice snacks? After the glutinous rice is steamed, it is pounded into a ball.

Another more laborious method is to pound the rice in a stone mortar until it becomes rice flour. This method is more labor-intensive and rarely seen.

So now Takenaka Hanbei doesn't use a stone mill to thresh the land, but logs. Cleanly peeled logs can also be used to thresh the land, but they have to be rubbed back and forth, more times than with a stone mill.

In theory, a layer of formed stones and a layer of crushed stone should be laid between the original road surface and the new one. This is to facilitate drainage of the road into the ditches on both sides. Kinoshita Hideyoshi once paved the road in this way during his campaign in the west.

The effect was so good that he was able to conquer the world.

Because when Akechi Mitsuhide launched the Honnoji Incident, Japan was in the rainy season. Didn't Mitsuhide write a famous poem with Satomura Shoba?

"At this time, the drizzle is falling on the May day (时は金あめが下しる月かな)"

Mitsuhide was clearly certain that it was raining every day during those days, almost non-stop. This also led him to conclude that even if Hideyoshi returned, he wouldn't be able to return quickly on the muddy roads.

Who would have known that in order to welcome Oda Nobutada to the west and reap the fruits of his success in destroying the Mori family, Kinoshita Hideyoshi carefully prepared the streets so that Oda Nobutada could walk safely.

In the end, Oda Nobutada didn't use it, but he used it himself. The road from Himeji to Settsu not only did not collapse due to the long-term rain, but even the water accumulation was not serious, so it could be passed quickly.

Is it a coincidence? Sometimes success is the result of countless coincidences coming together.

Unfortunately, Owari wasn't a stone producer, and there wasn't enough gravel to lay under the roadbed, so this step was omitted. At most, if the road started to have problems in a few years, Nobunaga could apply for funding to continue repairs.

Nobunaga also knew that the streets of Owari did not have a gravel layer, so he had an idea of ​​how many years they would last and did not think that Shichibei had built a shoddy project.

"Are there enough horses to pull the millstones?" Shichibei inspected the quality of the road and started digging with a shovel.

"Of course the more the better." Takenaka Hanbei was not afraid of inspection. He always did his work conscientiously. He cut corners as soon as he joined the Oda family because he suspected Nobunaga's sword was not sharp enough.

"Okay, I'll transfer it to you tomorrow." With one shovelful, the road surface was compacted firmly, and Shichibei was very satisfied.

The two men were standing on the side of the road talking when someone ran past from the side of the road. Not long after, he turned back, looked at Shichibei, and suddenly knelt down on one knee.

Huh? Who are you?