Chapter 61: Green Jade Gourd
“The Matsudaira family comes every year.”
After realizing the enemy was the Matsudaira family, A Man’s mood immediately relaxed, and she began to confidently pontificate, “A few years ago, Oda Nobuhide was utterly defeated in Mikawa Province, fleeing faster than dung beetles rolling their balls of dung. The important town of Anshō Castle in Western Mikawa was lost, and his eldest son was captured alive. The Matsudaira and Imagawa families counterattacked directly into Owari territory, occupying several castles in Niwa and Kasugai Districts. Since then, the Matsudaira family has come to Aichi District along the Kasuga River a few times each year to capture commoners, burn down a few villages, disrupt the spring plowing and autumn harvest of the Danjō no Chū family, and incidentally rob some merchant caravans heading to Atsuta to make a fortune. It’s nothing unusual.”
Yuan Ye was leading her towards Okuruku Kiyobee’s residence. He was currently living in Takeuchi Manor, and the “Manor Head Magistrate” had summoned him, so he had to go and assess the situation. Hearing A Man pontificate now, he felt relieved—it turned out to be retaliation for the mess Oda Nobuhide, the “Tiger of Owari,” had left behind in the past. Now that Oda Nobuhide was dead, this mess had landed on the lap of the new family head, Oda Nobunaga.
He felt that there wouldn’t be a major battle, so he asked, “So, it’s just harassment?”
“Nine times out of ten, yes. It’s been like this for the past few years anyway.” A Man didn’t speak with absolute certainty, “The Matsudaira family is now a vassal of the Imagawa family, and they should be acting under orders, perhaps even being forced. They would never risk their entire fortune for a hard-fought battle. They’ll probably just grab what they can and leave.”
Yuan Ye nodded slightly, thinking that the Imagawa family’s actions were quite similar to Oda Nobuhide’s frequent habit of dragging local powerful families into wars. It weakened the strength of their great enemy to the west, the Oda Danjō no Chū family, and prevented the vassal Matsudaira family from developing peacefully, keeping them perpetually weak. It was quite a good deal.
As they talked, they chatted about some old matters concerning the Matsudaira family. For example, A Man believed that the life or death of Oda Nobuhide’s eldest son was not important at all. Oda Nobuhide should never have used the Matsudaira family’s hostage, the heir of the Matsudaira family, Takechiyo, to exchange for his son. As a result, the Matsudaira family was now acting with impunity, without any reservations, causing trouble every year. It was a great loss.
If she were Oda Nobuhide, she would have ordered her captured son to commit seppuku two hundred years ago! She would never have suffered such losses!
They continued talking like this and soon arrived at Okuruku Kiyobee’s residence.
It was still chaotic as before. Two to three hundred Oda family followers were gathered here to receive military rations rice, long weapons, and various banners. Unlike the previous time when they were mobilized for deterrence, this time it seemed they had also conscripted some ashigaru, meaning some auxiliary soldiers and laborers were being drafted into the army. It was likely they were going to fight a proper war.
Okuruku Kiyobee was busy assigning and organizing the teams, but he didn’t make Yuan Ye wait long upon his arrival. After giving a few more instructions, he invited Yuan Ye over and handed him a letter, saying, “This is a letter from Lord Kazusa-no-Kami for you.”
“Lord Kazusa-no-Kami?” Yuan Ye took the letter but was momentarily confused, not knowing who this person was.
Okuruku Kiyobee, a rigid middle-aged samurai, was silent for a moment, his expression turning somewhat grim as he sighed in a low voice, “It is Lord Oda Saburo. His Highness… has now changed his tsūna to Kazusa-no-Kami.”
Oh, so Oda Nobunaga had changed his tsūna.
Yuan Ye realized and thought it was normal. After all, Oda Nobunaga was no longer the heir with little real power he once was, but a genuine regional warlord. His tsūna should indeed be changed to an official title.
Seeing his normal expression, Okuruku Kiyobee’s face improved slightly. Without waiting for him to finish reading the letter or asking for his opinion, he directly asked, “According to… Lord Kazusa-no-Kami’s orders, you may take whatever you need from the manor’s reserves, Lord Yuan Ye. I will also assign thirty ashigaru to you. Do you need anything else?”
“This…” Yuan Ye had just finished reading the letter and hadn’t decided whether to accept yet. He hadn’t expected such decisive action, which implicitly assumed he would go. He could only quickly weigh the pros and cons in his mind. After a moment, he nodded and said, “This should be enough.”
“Excellent, then thank you for your hard work, Lord Yuan Ye. Please follow behind us and head to Nagoya Castle quickly!” Okuruku Kiyobee then called over a low-ranking magistrate and ordered him to be responsible for gathering ashigaru for Yuan Ye and procuring supplies. He then got up and went about his own business.
…………
“What does the big fool want you to do?” A Man, following Yuan Ye back to the residence, was itching with curiosity on the way and asked.
Yuan Ye directly showed her the letter and, while still contemplating the pros and cons of the matter, casually said, “He wants me to help treat the wounded soldiers. He will pay me a reward for each person I cure, and I can decide whether to go or not. If I’m willing to go, he will appoint me as the Medical Magistrate, and I can decide how to treat them.”
He hadn’t expected that after more than a month, Oda Nobunaga, having gone through a series of major events such as his father’s death, his mother and brother’s estrangement, the disturbance at the funeral hall, inheriting the throne, and the instability of the warlords, still remembered him. With war imminent, he still wrote a letter to summon him. It was probably because of the bald Jubei. Oda Nobunaga had likely sent people to keep an eye on that old fellow, and that old fellow indeed hadn’t died and had probably recovered well. This proved that he, the “Mongol Divine Doctor,” could even save “Blood Gourd.” Oda Nobunaga then decided to bring him in as a “field doctor.”
A Man had already quickly read the letter and even asked about a few characters she didn’t recognize. Then she curiously asked, “So, are we really going, or should we go home and pack our things to run away?”
“Let’s go. It shouldn’t be a problem.” Yuan Ye had finished weighing the options and felt he should go. The main reason was that the benefits outweighed the drawbacks.
He had fallen on hard times in the Japanese Warring States period. Since it was the “Warring States” period, he could guess with his eyes closed that Japan would eventually descend into chaos. Even if he fled elsewhere, it would be difficult to avoid being drawn into the war. Moreover, he wanted to develop and accumulate wealth, and living within Oda Nobunaga’s territory was the most cost-effective. It was better not to run if he could avoid it.
For example, he dared to sell soy sauce every seven or eight days before, making a huge profit, and wasn’t afraid of the shameless monks at Aragiko Kannon Temple coveting his “secret recipe” because he lived in Takeuchi Manor.
Living here, even if the Japanese monks became greedy and wanted to raid his workshop or torture him for his “secret recipe,” they couldn’t. They would first have to capture Oda Nobunaga’s manor. And Oda Nobunaga, this unpredictable lunatic, was not to be trifled with. Unless the profit was enormous, the monks, despite their greed, wouldn’t dare to do so. By the time the profit was enormous, he would have many distributors and a large number of subordinates. If the monks truly wanted to raid his workshop, they would have to fight a big battle!
Development, especially in the early stages, was difficult. Living within Oda Nobunaga’s territory would make it much easier.
Therefore, as long as it didn’t involve matters of principle, such as personal insult or the leakage of modern scientific technology, simply working for Oda Nobunaga was something he found acceptable.
Moreover, Oda Nobunaga was only hiring him to be the “field hospital director,” meaning he would be in the rear, not charging into battle under a hail of arrows. He had made thorough preparations, with full iron armor, the well-armed A Man and A Qing, and a fast horse. Even if the frontline collapsed, he would have time to retreat from the rear, and the possibility of a sudden death was extremely slim.
What’s more, this could demonstrate his unique value. In this feudal era lacking human rights, people without value would be trampled into the mud and sent to be cannon fodder. Therefore, one must possess unique value to preserve one’s autonomy.
So, he should go, there was no need to refuse.
He made his decision, and A Man was indifferent. She didn’t offer any opinions or make any grand pronouncements. If Yuan Ye didn’t want to participate in the war, she would run away with him. If Yuan Ye went to war, she would go along to help out.
Either way was fine with her!
Compared to Yuan Ye, who was born in a peaceful era, she was born amidst war and was accustomed to fighting. She lived day by day and was very casual.
…………
Upon returning home, Yuan Ye ordered everyone to prepare their weapons, pack their luggage, and get ready to move the entire family to take up his post. He also planned to bring his foolish son along, intending to get an ox cart and a mobile bed for him. Ancient wars seemed to be slow, and he didn’t know how long it would take to return. He was worried about leaving Meng Ziqi and Yayoi in Takeuchi Manor, so he decided to take them along.
A Man, however, felt that Meng Ziqi was a complete burden, constantly lying around and dragging Yuan Ye down. A large part of Yuan Ye’s constant anxiety was due to him, fearing that he might accidentally harm him. She almost wanted to suggest that Yuan Ye bury him quickly. However, she could also sense that Meng Ziqi seemed very important to Yuan Ye, not just a friend, but more like family, with a deep bond. So, she held back her words. If her grandfather were in such a state, she probably wouldn’t bury him either but would drag him along to beg for food, letting him live as long as possible.
So, she said nothing and even prepared to ask A Qing to keep an eye on him to prevent any accidents.
By the time Yuan Ye had mostly handled household matters, the ashigaru assigned to him by Okuruku Kiyobee had also been organized and gathered in front of his residence. The magistrate assigned to assist him also came to find him, asking for instructions on the next steps and what supplies to procure and take to Nagoya Castle.
Yuan Ye didn’t stand on ceremony with Oda Nobunaga. After all, he was treating his vassals, followers, and ashigaru. After inquiring, he requested a large number of ox carts, cloth, grain, fodder, and copper coins. He then wrote a document, signed it with his seal, and had the magistrate, named Maeshima Shichiro Hideshige, record it and move the inventory. As Maeshima Shichiro was leaving, he remembered something and turned back, respectfully asking, “Lord Yuan Ye, should we also prepare the identification flags?”
“Identification flags?” Yuan Ye thought for a moment and felt they should. These were for identifying friend from foe. If he went out bare like this and was mistaken for a stealth attacker by friendly forces, it would be disastrous if they attacked him head-on. So, he said, “Then let’s prepare them together. But is there enough time?”
“There is enough time. If the quantity is not large, lacquered wood carving prints can be made in half an hour. We can load the carts during this time,” Maeshima Shichiro replied and then asked, “May I know Lord Yuan Ye’s family crest…?”
Upon hearing this, A Man immediately leaned in. She had always been curious about Yuan Ye’s origins, and she was an expert in family crests. Just by looking at a family crest, she could trace back and figure out who Yuan Ye’s ancestors were. However, Yuan Ye had no family crest at all. She thought about asking if she could use Okuruku Kiyobee’s, but they had no subordinate relationship. If she drew one randomly, she might inadvertently join another family, which would be troublesome.
He pondered for a moment, pulled over a piece of paper, and drew a slightly crooked, simple sketch of a pursed-lip gourd, labeling its color as blue. He then handed it to Maeshima Shichiro, saying, “Let’s use this!”
Maeshima Shichiro immediately took the order and went to work. A Man, standing beside him, raised her Dou Dou eyebrows and mused, “A gourd crest, so your ancestors were court nobles in the Heian period. Your family status is indeed very high!”
Knowing it was a gourd crest made things easier. She just needed to inquire later which family in Saikaidō used a gourd crest or whose ancestors were court nobles in the Heian period. She could then likely pinpoint Yuan Ye’s main family and, by extension, figure out how he was driven from his home to the Tōkaidō.
Yuan Ye glanced at her, somewhat bewildered. He had simply couldn’t think of a family crest at the moment. He thought that since he was a doctor now, and ancient doctors always carried gourds, and he didn’t want to cause any trouble by impersonating another family’s crest, he had taken a gourd from the “Thousand-Gourd” of that monkey, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, to use for now. If that monkey, a commoner, dared to use a gourd as his “uma-jirushi,” then a gourd surely wouldn’t cause much trouble. But how did it become a “gourd crest”?
He didn’t understand family crests at all. Few modern Japanese people could claim to truly understand them, let alone a foreigner like him. He was basically making it up, but since things had come to this, he could only pretend not to hear.
In any case, he would use the gourd for now and change it later if necessary!
