Owari Yumeki Golden Day

Tut tut...

It's not just his ability to conquer the world; his sheer energy is unmatched. The key point is that he didn't stay up all night playing games in bed; he drove hundreds of kilometers across snowy roads, day and night, and then immediately plunged into battle. After the battle, he continued to handle official duties and even hosted lavish receptions.

Hey, I heard that in a previous life, Boss Xu used to spend two or three days every month visiting a branch office and summoning all the senior executives to work. They worked non-stop for 48 hours without any breaks and only ate small amounts of food.

He could finish all the important tasks for a branch in two or three days, return to Evergrande headquarters for a two-day break, and then head off to the next branch. If this were true, then Boss Xu's ability to accomplish things was due to his sheer personal energy, which far surpassed that of ordinary people.

Three days later, the Oda clan's army of over ten thousand arrived in Kyoto, completely stabilizing the situation. Shibata Katsuie, Mori Yoshinari, and others divided their forces to carry out sweeping operations, and their armed forces toured the five provinces of Kinai. Only then did Nobunaga finally relax. He slept for twenty hours at Honkuji Temple, and only rose to greet Ashikaga Yoshiaki when he was brought back to Kyoto.

At this point in time, Ashikaga Yoshiaki should still have loved Nobunaga more than hated him.

Just now, Shichibei had seen Ashikaga Yoshiaki calling Nobunaga "Dad." He was calling him that affectionately, over and over again, arm in arm, talking and chatting. Besides the Shogunate, which Yoshiaki couldn't cede to Nobunaga, it shouldn't be impossible for Nobunaga to also serve as his father, vice-shogun, and governor. He might even be eager for it.

With such a dedicated and brave supporter like Nobunaga, there is hope for the revival of the Muromachi shogunate.

However, after Nobunaga finished his sleep and appeased and intimidated the warlords in Kinai, he immediately began to do something important. That was Sakaimachi's assistance in the landing of the Miyoshi Three in Kinai.

To put it simply, the Miyoshi trio asked the Sakai people to rent a boat, and the Sakai people's boatmen and sailors dragged the traitor Miyoshi ashore and attacked the Shogun.

Prior to Nobunaga's arrival in Kyoto, he had adopted a conciliatory approach towards various factions. He had only temporarily seized the power of the magistrates in Otsu, Kusatsu, and Katada. Regarding Sakaimachi, he had not actually exercised any authority over it, other than the nominal title of magistrate.

Shichibei only collected money from the Ōtsu region and reissued red seal certificates. Sakaimachi, which claimed to be a "free city," refused to accept the jurisdiction of any political power. Besides presenting gifts to Nobunaga, it did not establish a separate account or send hostages to Nobunaga's side.

If the Miyoshi Three had not attacked Ashikaga Yoshiaki, Nobunaga would probably have further sorted out the various forces in Kinai and digested the easy-to-digest ones before moving on to the thorny issue of Sakaimachi.

But this time, Sakaimachi actually assisted the Miyoshi Three. I'm sorry, Nobunaga came to Kyoto but hasn't killed anyone yet.

The Sanyo thieves killed on the battlefield don't count; that was a killing in battle, not enough to serve as a warning to the monkeys. Now we have to pick two lucky chickens out to tell the monkeys in Kinai that Nobunaga is not a vegetarian, and if you provoke Nobunaga, your entire family will be killed.

Sakaimachi perfectly fits the bill, as he has a certain status, a certain reputation, and there are benefits to killing him.

Therefore, Nobunaga ordered that, in addition to reappointing Sakaimachi as the de facto deputy, he also demanded that Sakaimachi promise to never again provide any form of assistance to the Miyoshi Three. This included lending money, selling weapons, providing ships, recruiting soldiers, etc. In short, anything that had anything to do with the Miyoshi Three was forbidden.

In addition, pay 20,000 strings of money!

Whether you truly submitted or feigned submission, you had to make a public gesture. The 20,000 kan (approximately $20,000) was a gesture. After Nobunaga had traveled day and night to Kyoto, intimidating the warlords, he had to employ both kindness and force. Tributes to the imperial court, donations to temples and shrines, and even the construction of the Great Buddha Hall, the exposed structure of Todai-ji Temple, had to be financed by Sakaimachi.

Hundreds of Kawamuraya's horses died or broke during overrunning, and Shichibei had to pay for all of this. The price of the thousands of horses he hired also had to be paid to Shichibei. Although Nobunaga and Shichibei were close, they also kept their accounts separate.

Sakaimachi has to pay all the money, after all, no one else can come up with so much cash at once. Who else can I cheat if not you?

What matters is an attitude!

The Oda clan's senior officials who had already arrived in Kyoto understood Nobunaga's intentions, and Nobunaga directly instructed Akechi Mitsuhide to go to Sakaimachi to collect the arrow money as a symbol of submission. Akechi Mitsuhide was still a shogunate retainer, and he was labeled both Ashikaga and Oda, which was a perfect fit.

To reject Akechi Mitsuhide is to openly reject the Muromachi shogunate and seek one's own death!

Akechi Mitsuhide agreed quickly. With Nobunaga's powerful army at his back, this wouldn't be difficult. Now that Nobunaga was truly capable of raising an army of 100,000 or even 90,000, a mere Sakaimachi was no cause for concern.

Logically, this matter should be handed over to Shichibei, but Shichibei had another thing to do, and it was a very important matter, the kind that Nobunaga personally commanded.

The Nijo Palace was rebuilt.

Seeing Ashikaga Yoshiaki being chased away, Nobunaga immediately decided to pay for the construction of Nijo Palace for Yoshiaki himself. This would ensure that Yoshiaki had a castle with sufficient defense to hold out for three to five days until Nobunaga's army arrived in Gifu.

Having received this order first, Shichibei naturally had no time to collect the arrow money. Of course, it didn't mean that the blueprints would be produced immediately. Shichibei was temporarily responsible for surveying the terrain, confirming the location, and making a construction cost estimate.

As the Shogun's residence, some places would need to have grand gates built, and the columns of the residence would need to be decorated with gold. The cost of this would fluctuate greatly. So, he would first submit a high price, and Nobunaga would then consider whether to make any reductions or additions.

He was sitting in the palace, about to ask Nobunaga about the palace's surroundings, when Hideyoshi suddenly stood up and asked if he could be assigned to the task of collecting arrow money in Sakaimachi.

A few nights ago, Hideyoshi was completely drunk and had to be supported by two servants to climb the city wall. Although he was sober, his legs were weak after all, and he was unable to ride a horse to gallop with Nobunaga.

Furthermore, his generals were also drunk and staggering, unable to lead the troops. In the end, they could only rush to Kyoto with the army, and did not show any performance in front of Nobunaga.

At this moment, Hideyoshi and Nobunaga were a model of harmonious relationship between ruler and subject. Hideyoshi was truly willing to serve Nobunaga, and Nobunaga was generous in rewarding Hideyoshi, giving him 6,000 kan of tsukuni and acting as the governor of Sunomata Castle. The two of them were on a two-way journey.

Therefore, Hideyoshi took the initiative to work for Nobunaga.

If it had been someone else who collected the arrow money, Hideyoshi might have chosen to do something else. Upon hearing that it was Akechi Mitsuhide, the latecomer, Hideyoshi immediately jumped in. It wasn't that he thought collecting the arrow money would be easy, but rather that he didn't want Mitsuhide to rush over to him.

Can understand.

Nobunaga didn't care; he didn't seem to have any particular dissenting opinions. He was extremely confident and believed that he could control anyone. It didn't matter where they came from, as long as they could work hard for me, I would use them.

Nobunaga didn't interfere with how his fellow samurai competed, as long as it remained within the bounds of healthy competition. Later, Akechi Mitsuhide recruited Saito Toshimitsu from the Inaba clan and brought a lawsuit before Nobunaga, but the matter was resolved, and the matter was resolved.

After glaring at Hideyoshi for a few moments, Nobunaga changed his mind and ordered Hideyoshi to go to Sakaimachi to collect arrow money. He also sent the tea master Matsui Tomokan with him, as Matsui Tomokan was acquainted with the Tsuda boss. Perhaps this would be useful in future negotiations.

Hideyoshi was very happy that the task was assigned to him, and ran out like a monkey.

162. Raising an eagle, feeding an eagle, and even more exhausting for an eagle

Nobunaga saw the budget report compiled by Shichibei, which showed actual prices. He was very knowledgeable about the market. Originally, Shichibei didn't think he could handle the Nijo Palace project alone; the construction work was usually done by Niwa Nagahide.

Nobunaga didn't say anything, probably because he felt sorry for the tens of thousands of kan.

It would only cost 20,000 to extort money from Sakaimachi, but building the Nijo Palace for Yoshiaki would cost 30,000 to 50,000. This money was hard to come by. But even if it was hard to earn, it had to be built. We couldn't put Yoshiaki in such a dangerous situation again.

This time, Nobunaga's snowy night raid once again repelled the Miyoshi Trio's army, and his prestige grew even stronger. His deterrent power over the old order and framework was even greater, and his position within it was even more stable. Therefore, the construction of the city could not be done by him alone.

"In the name of the shogunate, issue the order for 'repairs in the palace'." Nobunaga put down the report and gave the order directly to Shichibei.

"Does it mean asking the lords and daimyo to provide 'samurai supplies'?" Shichibei needed to confirm, as this was a big deal.

"That's right!" Nobunaga nodded naturally.

With Yamashiro Province as the center, a circle was drawn around the entire Yamashiro Province, and imperial letters were widely issued. This was not a call to action, but a request for these daimyo and lords to send laborers and craftsmen, or provide money, to build a residence for Ashikaga Yoshiaki, the Shogun of the Muromachi shogunate.

This is the simplest feudal obligation, and it has a long history in Japan. When Shichibei and Andō Mamoru were discussing the terms of surrender, this clause was included. Andō Mamoru had no objection and thought it was a reasonable request.

Historically, Hideyoshi's construction of Osaka and Fushimi castles, and Ieyasu's reorganization of Edo and construction of Sunpu, all involved requests for the services of the daimyo. It's said that Ieyasu also requested the Toyotomi clan contribute to the construction of Sunpu Castle. The Toyotomi clan elder, Katagiri Katsumoto, argued forcefully and rejected Ieyasu's unreasonable demands.

On the one hand, Ieyasu felt that the Toyotomi family was unwilling to surrender, and on the other hand, he discovered that the Toyotomi family had talented people who could not be easily defeated and destroyed.

Let’s go back to Nobunaga. Nobunaga wanted to reaffirm his new authority as the de facto regent of the shogunate, while also distinguishing the attitudes of the Kinai and Sakon lords.

Anyone willing to pay, even if it's only a hundred taels of gold, can be put on the temporary list of those not to be recruited. If neither the people nor the money come, kill, kill, kill.

"Hehe." Shichibei responded immediately.

He turned around and went to find Hosokawa Fujitaka and Settsu Harumon. Both of them were positive about initiating a large-scale project to build the Nijo Palace for Ashikaga Yoshiaki. They immediately wrote an imperial edict and gave it to Yoshiaki to seal.

Yoshiaki signed over sixty imperial edicts like a rubber stamp, his hand sore by the time he'd finished. He was quite pleased, though. He'd saved his position as shogun and hadn't been driven out of Kyoto. Not only had he not lost face, but he'd actually earned a lot of honor. Now, by launching another major labor service, he could see if the feudal lords would still pay him homage as shogun.

Not only those vassal states who had no previous connection with Nobunaga, but even Tokugawa Ieyasu and Mizuno Nobumoto had to be sent documents asking them to perform duties and donate money.

The ones who are closer, such as Ukita Naoie and Otagaki Terunobu, and the ones who are farther away, such as Otomo Yoshitsugu, Shimazu Takahisa, Sagara Yoshiharu, and Date Teru-sama, all need to be sent. Whether you come or not is your business, and whether you send it or not is my business.

Anyway, just cast a wide net. Nobunaga had just beaten the Miyoshi trio and ran away, and he was very powerful for a while.

Hatano Hideharu, who had just arrived in Kyoto, immediately accepted the imperial letter from Ashikaga Yoshiaki without saying a word, saying that he would send ten stonemasons and offer 80 kan of silver.

The sedan chair was carried by many people. Hatano Hideji was so kind to him. Moreover, he heard that the general was attacked and mobilized his troops to rescue him. He brought loyal ministers with him. Even if it meant thunder and lightning, he would still bring loyal ministers with him. Ashikaga Yoshiaki personally received Hatano Hideji and even raised a toast with him.

Nobunaga also expressed his goodwill to Hatano Hideji who responded positively to him. He not only gave Hatano Hideji a tachi and a horse, but also invited him to watch Noh drama.

With such close ties between the two, it's hard to imagine that a few years later, Nobunaga would order the extermination of the entire Hatano clan, sparing no one, old or weak. Perhaps it was this closeness that, coupled with Yoshiaki's subsequent encirclement of Nobunaga, caused Nobunaga's love to turn to hatred. The more love now, the more hatred in the future.

Anyway, it was none of Shichibei's business, so he helped pack and seal the imperial letters one by one, and then asked Nobunaga's horsemen and the small surnamed people to rush to the castles of the princes to deliver the letter.

Hideyoshi was quite busy, on the one hand, preparing dozens of his trusted veterans. Going to collect debts, right? It was necessary to have dozens of capable thugs around him.

On the other hand, he asked Shichibei to borrow Kuwayama Shigekatsu. This guy has a good tongue, and maybe it will be useful when he argues with the Sakai Clan.

Yes, that's right. Previously, when Hideyoshi had asked Nobunaga for assistance, he'd been looking for warriors who could fight and organize an army. These men had no problem commanding troops, but they weren't necessarily good at talking. Now, Hideyoshi was personally requesting the 20,000 kan of arrow money, and he wasn't willing to let his poor communication lead to a conflict.

Sakaimachi was able to maintain its independence during the turbulent times and become a so-called "free city." This was due to its strength. In addition to the extensive trenches and canals dug around the town, it also had military forces to protect itself.

Sakai itself is a central town where population flows converge, a weapons manufacturing base, and a distribution center for imported goods such as saltpeter and lead ingots.

At a single command, thousands of yojimbo and merchant ship workers were armed. These days, there's no such thing as pure and innocent merchantmen; every one of them is a merchant and a pirate. If they discover a merchant ship at sea that's less powerful than their own, most merchants will want to take advantage of it.

If they were equipped with armor and cannons, they would not be much worse than Nobunaga's regular foot soldiers in battle.

Nobunaga didn't want the Sakai people to arm themselves against him unless it was absolutely necessary. Who would want to face off against thousands of well-equipped and accustomed enemies for no reason?

Actually, Shichibei was free at the moment and could have gone with Hideyoshi to Sakaimachi to have a chat with the big boss Tsuda. But when he thought about the fact that this was an assignment Hideyoshi had taken on, he decided not to compete with him for the limelight.

The mere fact that he prepared a large number of horses for Nobunaga along the way, enabling the thousand men around Nobunaga to quickly maneuver to Kyoto, was enough to maintain Nobunaga's favor and trust in Shichibei.

Furthermore, after showing off this once, he continued to show off like crazy. According to Nobunaga's consistent method of employing people, if you are capable, then you should give them more responsibilities.

So, you still have to hide your head when it’s time to hide your head.

If you perform too well under Nobunaga's command, Nobunaga doesn't mind giving you more money, more knowledge and deeds, and making you serve him day and night until you vomit blood.

By the way, this time Shichibei was free, so he took a look at Honnoji Temple.

It's a truly wonderful temple. It's no wonder Nobunaga chose Honnoji as his residence. Not only are the buildings tall and spacious, but the space is also quite spacious. This is crucial; having a large open area makes it much harder for outsiders to intrude upon Nobunaga's residence.

Of course, the reverse is also true. Nobunaga was inside the palace, surrounded by no one, and the onlookers outside could see inside clearly. Those inside the palace tried to escape, but were hit by cannons or arrows in the open air.

Tut tut...

How about planting two trees?

Shichibei thought so, but he was not sure which sect the Sanmen sect of Honnoji belonged to, and whether there were any taboos about planting trees around the temple.

Forget it, it's too early for that. Look at how respectful Nobunaga is outside, chatting and laughing with the wine cup brother and the brother whose whole family was killed.

Speaking of the cup brother, Asai Nagamasa was very proactive and quick to act this time, earning both Ashikaga Yoshiaki's commendation and Nobunaga's approval. I heard the process of appointing a deputy governor of Kohoku has already begun, as there is actually no Kohoku governor position currently, and Kyogoku Takayoshi is still working under Yoshiaki's command.

Therefore, it was likely that Nobunaga, the shogunate's regent, would grant the position to Asai Nagamasa. Nagamasa, truly impulsive, not only offered Yoshiaki 500 kan (approximately US$100) to build the palace, but also promised to facilitate the transportation of timber from Oshu and Ushu to Kyoto via Lake Biwa, free of charge.

After working so hard to carry Nobunaga's spear, I finally saw a glimmer of hope. If I were Asai Nagamasa, I would probably be happy for half a month.

Seeing that Shichibei had nothing to do, Nobunaga asked him to deliver the appointment document to Nagamasa. Shichibei saw with his own eyes the words written on the document that Nobunaga appointed Asai Nagamasa as the guardian deputation.

Ouch.

Shichibei, who originally thought it was just a letter, began to suspect that although Nobunaga was sending the letter to Asai Nagamasa as the Shogun, he was also a feudal lord.

From the perspective of the shogunate's authority, it was just official business. From the perspective of a feudal lord, Nobunaga, at this moment, to some extent, established the legitimate relationship between himself as the ruler and Asai Nagamasa as the subject.

"Hmm?" Nobunaga snorted when he saw Shichibei peeking around.

"Ahhh, it's okay, it's okay." Shichibei realized that he had just sat like a college student peeking during an exam.

The neck was stretched out like a giraffe, so it was no wonder Nobunaga noticed it. This was like seeing it face to face.

"What did you see?" Nobunaga took out his Tenkabu seal, which had been dipped in ink for him and stamped with it steadily.

"Hmm..." Are you lying to me again? After what happened last time, Shichibei was as smart as a monkey.

I won't say anything. I won't say anything anyway. Unless it's normal official business, then it's fine to say it. As for these speculations and assumptions, if you can, just keep your mouth shut. We don't have Chu Long's ability to persuade the Queen Mother of Zhao, nor Zhou Ji's eloquence to persuade the King of Qi to accept advice.

"Go ahead." Nobunaga put down the seal and handed it to Mori Denbei beside him to put on the bag.

"One day, Asai Bizen-no-kami will become a retainer of our family." You asked me to say this, so Shichibei said it in a nice way.

"Of course." As expected, Nobunaga really regarded his brother-in-law as a local tyrant who could be turned into a vassal.

In the past, Nobunaga only had Owari Province, and Asai Nagamasa had more than 200,000 stones of land in Jiangbei. Naturally, the two sides could interact on an equal footing, and Nobunaga even needed to send his sister to make friends.

Now Nobunaga is the one holding power in the shogunate, and the national strength is at least 2 million koku, while Asai Nagamasa only has 300,000 koku, so he can only wait to be turned into a retainer.

Whether you are willing or not, this is the trend of the times.

"It's as it should be." Yes, yes, yes, yes, right, Shichibei said without hesitation.

"Have you ever fed an eagle?" Nobunaga smiled as he handed the sealed document to Shichibei.

"I am not familiar with falconry." Shichibei put away the document and stuffed it into his chest.

The Eagle of Jiangbei, huh? It seems Nobunaga is really keeping the eagle on his side. He's afraid he'll fly off after being fed, so he keeps him hanging on, giving him little favors here and there. Nagamasa wants to leave, but he's reluctant to let him go. If he doesn't, he feels the gains are less than the costs.

Maybe, just maybe, this is also a kind of imperial mentality.

"You can learn it, maybe it will be useful in the future." Nobunaga stood up, tapped Shichibei's forehead with his folding fan, and left happily.

That's impossible to learn. Shichibei has to study the tea ceremony and waka poetry. Mastering both will take at least two or three years. Falconry will have to be put on the back burner; our schedule is really tight. There's nothing we can do about it.

After folding the documents, Shichibei rushed out the door and headed for Asai Nagamasa's camp. Asai Nagamasa had been secretly waiting for this, never leaving the house, but standing at the camp gate every day, watching, diligently waiting for the angel of the shogunate to arrive so that he could be appointed as the guardian of Jiangbei.

When he heard his subordinates report that Kawamura-dono, an important minister of Regent Nobunaga, had arrived and had official documents to show him, Asai Nagamasa jumped for joy and asked his subordinates whether he was dressed decently.

When the official document was slowly unfolded in front of him, he found that the content was indeed granting Asai Nagamasa the position of Jiangbei Shugodai. He felt that if he were asked to take off all his clothes and run three laps around Nijo Street in Kyoto, he would be considered a true gentleman.

Asai Nagamasa, a man of great importance, quickly suppressed his outward emotions after his joy. On the one hand, he announced that he would prepare a return gift for Nobunaga and write a reply. On the other hand, he immediately ordered someone to fetch 30 taels of gold for Shichibei. Shichibei had brought him such great news, so he definitely needed to express his gratitude.

Shichibei, it doesn't matter. Just go ahead and write it. I'm a bit free lately anyway, so I have plenty of time to wait here for your reply.

163. Reception of the Princes and Imperial Court