Chapter 163: This Part Must Be Cut Too!
An hour later, Inu-hime was soaking in a bath of moderate temperature, her body and mind relaxed, yet she still felt a sense of unreality.
She had just eaten the best and most luxurious meal of her life, with many dishes she had never even heard of, some fresh, some tender, some salty, some sweet, all incredibly delicious. She had tried her utmost to maintain her composure, not showing any timidity in front of the Yuan Ye Family’s little maidservants.
This might sound a bit fantastical, and this princess seems to have had a rather miserable time, but she had truly never enjoyed much comfort.
“Tiger of Owari” Oda Nobuhide had over ten sons alone, and counting daughters and illegitimate children without formal recognition, he had around thirty children in total. In this world, when anything is too abundant, it loses its value, and the “father’s love” each person received was pitifully little.
Not to mention that Oda Nobuhide had seven or eight secondary wives and over twenty concubines, and his principal wife, Madam Tsuchida, was not an easy person to get along with.
Therefore, the inner quarters of the Oda Danjō no Chū family were quite chaotic. As one of the relatively weaker members, one in sixty or seventy, the “fortune” she could enjoy was imaginable. Whether she ate well or poorly depended entirely on others’ moods—Madam Tsuchida was very controlling and often punished these concubines and illegitimate daughters on various pretexts, including starvation and reduced rations.
Inu-hime had a good meal, which she considered a super luxurious feast, and her mood relaxed slightly. She felt that the Yuan Ye Family indeed valued her, otherwise, they wouldn’t have gone to such lengths. She figured they wouldn’t do anything to her. As her mood relaxed, the accumulated fatigue in her body surged forth. Coupled with waiting for Yuan Ye to come and him not coming, she came to take a bath at Yayoi’s persuasion.
This residence had a large bathroom. Bathhouse culture in Japan was already becoming popular during this era. On the market, things like steam baths （ where cold water is poured onto heated stones ）, and two-story public hot spring baths （ where the upper floor is for lodging, gambling, and drinking, and the lower floor is for bathing and scrubbing ）, were common. There were even professional bath attendants （ who also moonlighted in another lucrative hidden profession ）. In later works like 《 *Byōbu* of the Genroku era 》, 《 *Byōbu* of Rakuchū Rakugai 》, 《 *Byōbu* of Urban Customs 》, and 《 *Relief Carving of Pleasures of the Gentry and Commoners* 》, these were frequently depicted as a fashionable enjoyment.
Since it could bring joy, and Yuan Ye had the powerful tool of volcanic ash cement for building baths, and land was cheap, he naturally began extensive renovations. When rebuilding the residence, he designed several baths, large and small, for his own use and for others.
The bath at Inu-hime’s residence was very large, big enough for her to swim a little. It was built with both exquisite craftsmanship and grandeur. The edge of the pool was carved with beautiful relief sculptures of mythological stories, the figures lifelike, as if recounting ancient legends. Copper oil lamps were embedded in the walls, emitting a soft glow that shimmered on the water’s surface.
Inu-hime carefully soaked in it, stroking the smooth and peculiar material of the pool’s edge. As the sense of unreality deepened, she relaxed even more, her whole body turning pink, and she began to feel drowsy—her skin was very delicate and sensitive; when the temperature rose, she felt like a boiled little crab.
A Naka and A Shita accompanied her, soaking in the bath and extremely excited. They playfully splashed each other a little, then whispered excitedly to Inu-hime, “Princess, the Yuan Ye Family is truly rich, and they treat you well.”
They were very happy, feeling that they would not have to suffer anymore, at least they were far away from that old witch Madam Tsuchida. This was much better than they had expected. For example, they had imagined being neglected or even confined at the Yuan Ye Family’s residence—there were precedents for this; Nohime was currently under de facto house arrest by Oda Nobunaga, with very little freedom.
The maidservants’ chatter woke Inu-hime up. She remembered that Yuan Ye could return at any moment and quickly pinched herself hard, forcefully dispelling her sleepiness. She then gestured for them to lower their voices, lest they be overheard and embarrassed. Reluctantly, she left the bath and asked them to quickly help her dry her long hair and change clothes.
She had brought her own light, casual home wear, and the Yuan Ye Family had also prepared some for her. She hesitated for a moment and put on the plain bathrobe provided by the Yuan Ye Family. After all, the clothing styles looked quite different. Her own kozode was very traditional, quite different from the bathrobes in Xin Wanjin, and might not please Yuan Ye—Yuan Ye was stubbornly pushing his ultimate plan, and gradually changing everyone’s attire was part of the plan. The residence, naturally, had to set an example.
She quickly tidied herself up, feeling refreshed, and returned to the bedroom to kneel properly. At this point, her mood relaxed even further, and she had the leisure to look at the place where she would be living from now on—a beautiful room, much like Xin Wanjin, simple yet not plain. Not only did it have everything she needed, but many of the items were also very exquisite, and there were even two large bookshelves filled with books and picture books.
Her eyes lit up when she saw the large bookshelves. Thinking of the large bath, she felt that even if she were confined in the future, being confined here would be better than being confined at the Oda Danjō no Chū’s home. At least here there were many books to pass the time, and she wouldn’t have to bathe in a “Goemon bath”—a cauldron heated over a fire, very small and cramped.
She was curiously examining her “new home,” but before she could look for long, Yuan Ye, whom she had waited for in vain, came strolling in. He entered the room with a smile and asked, “Your Highness, have you eaten?”
This was a pointless question. This was his home, and he knew perfectly well what Inu-hime had done. He had only come after being notified by Yayoi. Upon seeing him, Inu-hime immediately stood up and nervously replied, “I have eaten. Your Highness may call me Aken… Um, have you eaten?”
“I have eaten,” Yuan Ye said, sitting down at a distance from her. He gestured for her to sit as well and smiled, “There’s no need to be so formal. You can call me… Sanlang!”
Inu-hime had no staff and her intelligence-gathering capabilities were virtually zero, relying entirely on the two maidservants eavesdropping here and there. To this day, she was still confused about the Yuan Ye Family’s situation. But Yuan Ye was not like that. Ever since he had some capital, he had been secretly placing people in the Oda Danjō no Chū’s household without stopping. Once the marriage alliance was decided, he immediately obtained Inu-hime’s complete profile—her mother came from a small local lord’s family and was offered to Oda Nobuhide as a concubine almost as a “tribute.” After giving birth to Inu-hime at the age of fifteen, her health deteriorated severely, and she died in pain shortly after being bedridden.
Inu-hime was primarily raised by her wet nurse, Madam A Shang. However, Madam A Shang also fell ill and passed away the year before last. Therefore, Inu-hime’s presence in the Oda Danjō no Chū family became increasingly insignificant, her only value being for marriage alliances.
Her personality was also very timid. She usually stayed in her own remote and shabby side hall, rarely interacting with others, and certainly not daring to compete with anyone. She appeared somewhat pitiable, so pitiable that even Yuan Ye felt a sense of mercy. Otherwise, she would not have been treated so gently—if Inu-hime had a strong personality or harbored ill intentions, Yuan Ye would have kept his distance and simply provided for her from then on.
Of course, this was also a matter of Yuan Ye’s luck. Otherwise, if a female version of Oda Nobunaga had appeared, with all sorts of eccentricities, or a “viper woman” like Nohime, full of ambition, and caused unrest in the household, then it would be his head that would split open.
His gentle demeanor made Inu-hime heave a huge sigh of relief. She subconsciously wrung her hands in her sleeves and then obediently called Yuan Ye by his given name. Yuan Ye tried his best to comfort her, sitting there and politely chatting with her for a few more sentences, asking about her impressions of the place and if there were any shortcomings he could adjust. But after a few questions, seeing the deep fatigue on her small face, and that she was merely forcing herself to stay alert, he thought for a moment and then smiled, “You must be very tired today. Why don’t we rest early!”
Inu-hime immediately nodded obediently, recalling the etiquette her wet nurse had taught her. She proactively stepped forward to help Yuan Ye undress, and A Naka and A Shita also immediately came forward to assist. At the same time, their small faces turned red, and their eyes showed a hint of allure.
They were two years older than Inu-hime, and given that people in this era generally matured early, they were already somewhat knowledgeable about such matters. Moreover, they were dowry maidservants, and one of their important duties was to substitute for Inu-hime in attending to the master of the house when she was not yet able… well, that.
It’s not appropriate to elaborate further, as it might violate regulations.
Yuan Ye was certainly aware of this. After all, while Inu-hime and the others had someone to teach them, he also had someone to teach him—that wild child A Man, fearing he would be a complete fool and clueless about such matters, had warned him early on to take it easy, and he had even been reprimanded by her for it.
Of course, he hadn’t intended to do anything anyway. Inu-hime was only ten years old （ by lunar calendar ）, and A Naka and A Shita were only a little over twelve. If anything were to happen, the difference would be negligible—like the difference between being executed for five minutes or three minutes.
One must still have principles and a bottom line. One cannot simply do whatever one pleases just because one has traveled to ancient times. Sometimes, a relaxed environment can reveal a person’s true nature and whether they are truly human. Therefore, Yuan Ye still wanted to be a decent person and had no intention of doing anything, absolutely not wanting to cause any loss of life.
He planned to raise Inu-hime as his daughter for now and deal with things after she grew up. After taking off his outer garments, he sent the two dazed maidservants, A Naka and A Shita, to rest in the adjacent room. Inu-hime was a soft bun, and A Naka and A Shita were not assertive enough to object. Even though they were very worried, they dared not openly defy Yuan Ye’s orders. After a period of hesitation, and after Yuan Ye said twice, “I know what I’m doing, don’t worry,” they reluctantly went to rest, feeling very uneasy.
These two were distracted and left without preparing the bedding. Yuan Ye was too lazy to call for help and casually divided the bedding into two distant spots, laying them out himself. He then lay down on one side and, smiling, pointed to the other side, indicating that Inu-hime should sleep there—before the wedding was over, he could not sleep anywhere else, as it would be considered inauspicious and an insult to the bride.
Inu-hime felt that it was different from what A Naka and A Shita had said, but she couldn’t object. Somewhat bewildered, she went and lay down, clutching the thin blanket tightly with her small hands, unsure of what awaited her—she was certainly nervous and afraid, as Yuan Ye looked like a big bear to her.
But after waiting for a while, nothing happened. She was exhausted from the hard day and fell asleep in a daze within a few minutes.
Yuan Ye lay in the distance, listening to her breathing gradually become steady and even. He felt a little relieved. After all, it wasn’t easy for him to give her a lesson on physiology and hygiene at this moment. It was best if she could fall asleep without a sound.
He also closed his eyes slightly, forcing himself into a state of sleep. At the same time, he couldn’t help but let his thoughts wander, feeling that if he could return to the Modern Era in the future, he would write about his difficult experiences as a novel. He would also omit this part, as it would be somewhat embarrassing.
Slowly, he too fell asleep.
