Chapter 125: Born with a rebellious bone
After forcefully taking Anjishin Ganji, Oda Nobunaga’s troops were exhausted, and their gunpowder and arrows were greatly depleted. They could no longer fight and could only reluctantly set fire to the castle town of Kiyosu before temporarily retreating.
Failing to achieve his goal of eliminating the Oda Main Family in Kiyosu, Oda Nobunaga was in a terrible mood. Upon returning to Nagoya Castle, many people were reprimanded, and Yuan Ye was no exception. He was scolded again and ordered to return to Wanjin immediately to maximize gunpowder production. The task had to be completed ahead of schedule, or the consequences would be more severe than just being scolded.
Thus, after two months of protracted warfare, Yuan Ye could finally go home. He gained nothing except a “Training Manual.” This time, as a battlefield doctor, Oda Nobunaga didn’t even pay him, as if having territory in Owari meant he was obligated to work for free.
Yuan Ye didn’t dwell on it, mainly because he couldn’t afford to offend Oda Nobunaga yet. He, along with A Qing and others, galloped back to Wanjin. Seeing the smoke rising from Wanjin in the distance, a scene of peace and tranquility, he finally felt a little relieved.
It was fine; the village was still there, not reduced to ruins, and everyone seemed to be alive. It seemed those who wrote letters didn’t just report good news and hide bad news.
As he rode closer, he noticed that during his absence, everyone had been busy. Wanjin appeared to have expanded again, with more orderly buildings. Walls were being constructed around the perimeter, and it was transforming from a village into a manor. Furthermore, a very tall Uma-jirushi had been erected at his residence, with a large golden gourd atop a thick pole, making it incredibly conspicuous, as if marking a target for artillery.
This wasn’t something he had ordered. It was likely A Man’s doing. She had always liked such flashy, impractical things. Now that she was a Samurai, she considered herself a person of status and probably valued these gaudy items even more, insisting on making things look presentable.
However, Yuan Ye didn’t mind. As long as it wasn’t a matter of principle, with his personality, he wouldn’t force everyone’s actions to align with his wishes. Occasional missteps were acceptable.
He slowed his horse and ambled towards his residence, observing the various changes in Wanjin along the way. His return as the Lord of Wanjin quickly caused a stir. Vassals, subordinate officials, and various petty officers gathered around him, expressing their relief at his safe return in a torrent of words.
Yuan Ye was also very happy. Returning to Wanjin, to his own territory, gave him a sense of genuine ease, a hundred times better than staying at Nagoya Castle.
At Nagoya Castle, he always felt a sense of oppression. Perhaps he was naturally disinclined to be around strong-willed individuals. Even if such a person had no intention of harming him, at most just scolding him a few times, he still disliked being around them, always feeling an indescribable sense of insecurity.
It was a difficult psychological state to describe. Perhaps one would need to study psychology to interpret it, or maybe he was simply born with a rebellious streak, disliking being subservient or controlled?
Was he not Liu Bei, born with large ears, but rather Wei Yan, born with a rebellious spirit?
While smiling and thanking his subordinates for their concern, Yuan Ye couldn’t help but let his thoughts wander. He raised his hand to touch the back of his head, searching for any sign of a “rebellious bone,” but felt nothing unusual. The back of his head was round and smooth, neither concave nor convex, making it impossible to discern any such feature.
“Lord, regarding the matters you previously assigned, most of them have been…” Endo Chiyo also arrived, not intending to just offer greetings. She brought a summary of official documents, wanting Yuan Ye to know what she had accomplished during his absence and to receive praise. However, before she could finish speaking, A Man snatched the documents from her hand.
Not only did A Man snatch her belongings, but she also shooed everyone away like chickens, saying, “Alright, alright, the Lord has just returned and hasn’t even caught his breath yet. Why are you all crowding here? Get back to work!”
Endo Chiyo glared at A Man, clearly regretting not having strangled her when she pulled her out of the river.
When Yuan Ye was present, if minor mistakes were made, he would not scold them but would carefully inquire about the difficulties and help find solutions. As long as the same mistake wasn’t repeated, the matter would be considered resolved, leaving people feeling refreshed and without any sense of grievance. However, A Man was completely different from Yuan Ye. Regardless of the reason or any difficulties, if the work wasn’t completed as planned, she would start yelling and even attempted to deduct annual salaries as punishment. But Yuan Ye hadn’t granted her that authority, and no one supported her during the group meetings, so she couldn’t enforce it, and thus it was dropped.
In any case, over the past two months, A Man had found various faults with everyone in the territory, offending everyone. If Yuan Ye had returned a month later, the territory might have revolted and thrown A Man into the sea with a stone tied to her.
Yuan Ye had also received many veiled “complaint letters” before. However, A Man was the “Director of the Eastern Depot,” and it was normal for the “Director of the Eastern Depot” to be disliked by “civil officials.” Having someone like her in the territory to scold people was also beneficial, as one couldn’t always be lenient and kind; there needed to be some pressure to achieve results.
Honestly, without A Man watching over things at home, he wouldn’t have been at ease leaving for two months.
He quickly stepped in to mediate, appeasing everyone: “Alright, alright, there’s no rush to talk. We’ll have a meal together tonight, and we can discuss everything then. For now, everyone, please get back to your tasks!”
“Yes, Lord!”
As the first-generation leader and the boss who paid everyone, Yuan Ye’s words carried weight. Endo Chiyo, Maeshima Shichiro, and others dispersed in several groups, returning to their work. Yuan Ye also gave A Qing, the Warrior Officials, and the senior Followers who accompanied him a few days off to rest.
After seeing everyone off, he didn’t rush to rest. He wandered around Wanjin, listening to A Man’s “slander.” After a while, he realized it was all trivial matters: who was flattering whom, who was close to whom, who had delayed the project schedule, and so on. None of it was important. After all, if there were any major issues, A Man would have informed him with a letter every three days.
The workshops were also fine; they were the source of income, and A Man kept a close eye on them. Besides completing the 【Daily Task】 for Yuan Ye and ensuring the twelve caretakers of her “foolish son” provided good massages and service, she strictly monitored the workshops. She tallied the yield daily, and if it decreased even slightly from the previous day, she would investigate thoroughly, publicly scolding the troublemakers. As a result, after two months of this, the yield had actually increased slightly, although there was considerable resentment within the workshops. Yuan Ye might have to issue a bonus later to clean up her mess.
The pier in the small bay was also completed as planned. They had also purchased three Kan-sen ships, two large and one small, and added over twenty people to form a small fleet. However, Yu Da was leading everyone out to sea for short-distance navigation training, so neither the people nor the ships were currently present. The pier was not empty, though; several dilapidated Kobaya ships were docked, and some scantily clad fishermen were haggling with a few women, hoping to exchange their fish catch for more grains, cloth, and ironware.
Just as Yuan Ye was about to approach and chat with them, A Man grabbed him, stopping him. “Don’t go over there, Lord. Those poor folk are afraid of being caught. With your imposing stature, they’ll run to their ships as soon as you approach, and it will take too much time to go back and forth.”
Yuan Ye nodded and didn’t insist. He simply said with satisfaction, “These must be the islanders from Ise Bay. Are they finally willing to come here to trade?”
“Yes, those poor folk. A group of them dared to come not long ago, bringing some stinky fish and dried seaweed to exchange for goods. As per your instructions, we traded with them at a loss, losing another seven or eight units of currency. And that’s how it’s been. A few small, dilapidated boats come every day, exchange some goods, and then leave. They’ll run if startled.”
“Is no one willing to settle here? To settle as freemen, with tax and labor exemptions for the first three years. Have you told them all this?”
“We’ve told them, but still, no one is willing to come.”
Yuan Ye was somewhat disappointed. He wanted to be a good person, to ensure these people had plenty to eat and wear, and he was willing to pay them for their labor. Yet, his good intentions were not appreciated, and they showed no trust. It had been nearly half a year, and only a few people came each day. However, it was acceptable. At least it was a good start. Once they gradually got used to the low prices here and were guaranteed personal safety, more people should come.
He watched the “future villagers” for a while, then turned back and asked A Man, “How much has the population increased during this period?”
“Only by one hundred and twenty-one, but one fell and died on the construction site, so it’s only one hundred and twenty!” A Man knew this was a matter Yuan Ye paid close attention to. She had already been fiercely scolding Maeshima Shichiro for not working diligently, driving him to the brink of depression. However, the efficiency of population acquisition continued to decrease. “Buying people is becoming increasingly difficult, and since we’ve been buying continuously, the prices have risen sharply, making it a significant loss.”
Yuan Ye shook his head. This lack of labor was a killer; nothing could be done smoothly without enough labor. Now, even spending money to acquire people was difficult. Perhaps the only option was to resort to raiding…
No, he couldn’t abandon the moral high ground. It shouldn’t be raiding; it should be rescuing commoners cruelly enslaved by the enemy, allowing them to live happy and fulfilling lives.
Yuan Ye changed his mind again and turned towards the workshop area, asking A Man, “How is the preparation for what I mentioned in my previous letter? Is it feasible?”
“It should be feasible,” A Man followed him, her hand on her sword hilt. “Those fellows have been eating well for half a year. They’re not like when they were first bought, looking like they’d die if touched. I think sending them to war would be effective, and they have indeed become more obedient and disciplined than when they were first acquired. I’ve selected about a hundred and forty people.”
“Only one hundred and forty?”
“We only have over five hundred people, so selecting one hundred and forty is already quite good.” A Man had done her best and also warned of the consequences in advance: “Moreover, these are the best workers. If we pull them out, the workshop’s yield will drop significantly, and it will likely take half a year to recover.”
“Even so, we must pull them out. This is an initial investment and cannot be skipped.” Yuan Ye had already made up his mind and would not hesitate now. Even if sending the best “industrial workers” to the battlefield seemed foolish, this was wartime, and war was the main melody. The best talent naturally had to become soldiers; it was unavoidable.
If the soldiers were not good enough and the war was lost, the losses would be even greater. Therefore, for now, it had to be this way. Those who were more obedient, more diligent, and more hardworking would have to risk their lives.
After all, if they are all honest people, they should naturally be the “organizational backbone,” taking on greater responsibilities and making greater sacrifices!
Throughout history, this point has never changed!
