Chapter 227: An Era of Happiness
Ezo, later known as the Ainu people.
The Ainu people originally spread across the Japanese Archipelago and were the true indigenous inhabitants. However, that is no longer the case, as they have been driven by the Wajin from Kyushu Island into Ezo Island. The highest position for a Samurai, the “Great General of the Pacification of the East,” has “pacified” the unfortunate “barbarians” known as the Ainu people.
Currently, the Ainu people have fled to the icy and snowy Ezo Island, but the Wajin have not spared them. They have established villages and observation posts （ and trade stations ） on Ezo Island. However, due to the Japanese people’s lack of adaptation to the icy environment and the technological limitations of this era, the villages and observation posts are mostly concentrated in the Matsumae region in the southwest corner of Ezo Island, and they have not yet been able to penetrate the interior of Ezo Island.
The current ruler here is nominally the Ando family, but the de facto ruler is the Kakizaki family—the former Ezo Magistrate of the Ando family. They are currently semi-independent. It will be nearly twenty years before the Kakizaki family officially sheds its status as magistrate when the Monkey initiates the land survey of Oshu.
Later, because the Kakizaki family traversed the entirety of Japan and actively participated in the Invasion of Korea War launched by the Monkey, they gained the Monkey’s approval and thus received the “Ezo Island Lord” vermilion seal, officially granting them the right to rule Ezo Island.
By the time of the Tokugawa Shogunate era, the Kakizaki family became the only Daimyo without a Kokudaka.
After Yuan Ye was blocked by the Nanbu Navy and could not proceed to the northern side of Honshu Island, he turned his fleet eastward, crossed the entire strait in a day, and arrived at Ezo Island.
Upon arrival, Yuan Ye had no intention of dealing with the Kakizaki family. He found a patch of wasteland and, using the personnel and supplies from the Wanjin merchant ships, began to construct a small landing point.
There were observers, but no one stopped him. Currently, Ezo Island is full of unclaimed land, and anyone is welcome. The most important thing is to be able to communicate with the Ainu people. Or rather, to communicate with the various tribes on the island—”Ainu people” is the name given to them by modern people. They do not even have a unified ethnic name and are currently in the process of tribal development. The word “Ainu” itself, in the Ainu Language, means “person.”
If the Ainu people were to be translated into Chinese, it would mean “everyone,” which at first glance sounds like an unfortunate video website.
To communicate with the various Ainu tribes, to further develop trade, and even to abduct them in large numbers, one must first befriend them. And the person in Wanjin best at making friends is A Man.
After this small and rudimentary landing point was built, Yuan Ye personally went ashore and took a look around. He then turned to A Man and said, “I’ll leave this to you.”
A Man certainly did not want to take on this unfortunate task. It was already a bit cold here in autumn, and she felt she would definitely not like the climate. However, Yuan Ye had earnestly requested it of her, considering it very important and that only she could do it. She had no choice but to look at the small camp with disdain and mutter, “Fine, but let’s agree on this first: as soon as I make contact with those savages, I’m going back to Xin Wanjin. I’m an Important Person now, and I can’t always stay in a place that even Dung Beetles despise—I can’t even watch shows here, I’ll definitely die of boredom.”
“You also need to understand their culture and beliefs, and learn their language,” Yuan Ye said, ignoring her nonsense and earnestly instructing, “Be friendly to them, try to get along, and if you have the opportunity, go deep inland through the local people to find more Ainu tribes, especially those who are struggling to survive.”
“Got it, got it. I know what I’m doing. It won’t be long before I figure out the situation here, and I’ll try my best to deceive them into Xin Wanjin.” A Man knew Yuan Ye was eyeing the Ainu population again. She waved her hand, too lazy to listen, and then pushed him, “Leave this to me, you go back!”
Although she disliked the task, she didn’t find it difficult. It was just learning a new language and making friends with some savages. She felt she could handle it, as that was her specialty.
Yuan Ye didn’t stay any longer. Besides the dozen or so Life Preservation Style members A Man brought with her, he also left her half a guard unit, a large quantity of Matchlock Guns, quick-firing cartridges, Ironware, Cloth, and a small amount of Gold as resources for her to develop the area. Then, he led his fleet back.
Ezo Island was too far from Wanjin, separated by half of Japan. He was temporarily unable to dispatch a large Army there, so A Man and her hundred-plus people would have to rely on themselves for the time being.
They would have to build their own camp, conduct their own trade, communicate with the Ainu people themselves, and even complete the mission.
Ezo Island is indeed good in the Modern Era, a famous granary and pastureland in Japan, excellent for tourism and sightseeing. But at this time, it is purely a wild land, with even large numbers of wolves roaming about.
According to historical speculation—and it is speculation, as there is not much relevant historical material—after the various Ainu tribes gradually fled to Ezo Island, their population decreased rather than increased for a long time. The main reason was the harsh natural conditions: the constantly knee-deep snow, and the frequent appearance of bears, wolves, and Wild Boars, all of which made it very difficult for the Ainu, who were hunter-gatherer tribes, to survive. There was a long period of food scarcity.
During this time, a large number of tribes likely could not adapt to the new environment and perished completely.
Therefore, Yuan Ye thought that since the Ainu people were having a hard time surviving on Ezo Island, why not change their location? The Japanese people did not welcome them, but the Wanjin people did. Once the Wanjin territory expanded, these Ainu tribes could completely move to Wanjin’s land to live, and he was willing to grant them Wanjin citizenship as well.
In this way, they would not completely disappear from the river of history, and they could also help him establish a new country.
Hopefully, it will go smoothly!
…
The “Sales Expedition” concluded successfully. As long as the Wanjin merchant ships were slightly armed and traveled in groups, and guarded against small Water Bandit groups, they could navigate freely on the southern side of Honshu Island. Yuan Ye disbanded the fleet before even returning to Xin Wan Jin Port, allowing the Wanjin Merchants and newly promoted Traders to act freely and conduct their own businesses.
The Wanjin Navy, led by the “Chita,” took nearly a month to return to Chidori Island—a small island directly opposite Xin Wan Jin Port, the base of the Wanjin Navy and the home port of the “Chita”—while supplementing hydrological data along the way.
Of course, a grand welcome ceremony was still necessary for their triumphant return. Endo Chiyo, Maeshima Shichiro, Izumi Heiji, and others had already made preparations. After a day of rest, Yuan Ye and the Wanjin Navy officially boarded Kan-sen ships and entered the port.
That day, Xin Wanjin was deserted, with everyone crowding the pier to cheer and welcome them. While boosting morale, everyone was in high spirits.
Everyone benefited from this “Sales Expedition.” During these more than three months, all the workshops in Wanjin operated at full capacity, and the production expansion trend further intensified, reaching a point where it was difficult to find workers. The excess profits from continuously acquired new markets made salary increases a common phenomenon.
The number of workshops also increased. With a positive market outlook, even the most conservative individuals became bolder, venturing into business and opening workshops with their skills in pursuit of a prosperous life. Everyone was in a hurry, fearing they would fall behind and miss this good opportunity, thus missing out on good times.
In just over three months, the number of registered private workshops in Xin Wanjin exploded from over 300 to over 1,100, and this number is still increasing. In fact, due to limited land in Xin Wanjin and rising labor costs, many people left this top-ranked major city on the Chita Peninsula and moved south to other cities.
Land there is cheaper, and labor and raw material prices are also lower. Only the infrastructure such as piers, ports, and roads is not comparable to Xin Wanjin City. But this is not a problem, as it can be built. After all, Xin Wanjin City was also wasteland a few years ago, and most of the Wanjin people have worked in the Labor Teams. Everyone is skilled at digging pits, building roads, and constructing houses. Building a few more large cities is not an issue.
As commerce and industry became more active, the lives of agricultural workers also began to improve. Not to mention that many adult men were deceived into workshops to earn wages, the sudden surge in prices of various raw materials also gave agricultural families, who had just recovered from natural disasters, a much-needed respite. At least they no longer had to rely on Yuan Ye’s relief food and disaster subsidies, and they had money to spend and buy household goods.
With money comes happiness. If quantified, the happiness level of the Wanjin people increased by at least 33% in this wave, and the upward trend has not stopped. The power of active commerce and industry is still evident.
If the produced goods can definitely be sold, it is an era of happiness.
Wanjin has now entered an era of happiness.
The Wanjin people celebrated in the port area and on the pier… for a good part of the day before naturally dispersing. Currently, Xin Wanjin is entering a period of mass production, as many new orders have been signed, and the clients are fighting amongst themselves, all demanding urgency. It is only because Yuan Ye, as the first generation leader of Wanjin, has extremely high prestige that so many people would leave their work to welcome him.
The people dispersed happily, but Yuan Ye could not go home to rest. First, he went to the council building to hold an awards ceremony, officially bestowing honors upon the meritorious individuals of this expedition. Then, he was invited by Speaker Izumi Heiji to review the proposals submitted by the councillors during this period.
Most of them hoped that the council would urge the Wanjin internal affairs system to fund the expansion of shipyards and requested Yuan Ye to expand the Wanjin Navy.
This was a beautiful misunderstanding. During the previous Izu naval battle, many Wanjin civilians also participated. These people rushed back to load goods afterward and, while doing so, boasted extensively, claiming that “Lord Yuan Ye, to cover for the Wanjin merchant ships, did not hesitate to use himself as bait and fought alone, only to be surrounded. It was they, these Wanjin righteous citizens, who rose up and broke through the encirclement, thus rescuing Lord Yuan Ye, and incidentally, defeating the enemy and pursuing them for over three hundred li.”
This news shocked everyone in Wanjin at the time. Everyone was filled with fear and dared not imagine what would happen to Wanjin if Yuan Ye had perished. However, within two days, all sorts of miscellaneous proposals were submitted, with countless people demanding that Endo Chiyo and others quickly fund the shipyard and that the strength of the Wanjin Navy must be greatly enhanced to prevent such an incident from happening again. The Wanjin people believed Yuan Ye was very brave, but felt he didn’t need to be *that* brave; it was better for him to stay alive.
At the same time, the Wanjin conscription work suddenly improved. Many disaster victims who had benefited from Yuan Ye’s help during the natural disasters of the previous two years, having heard rumors and mistakenly believing he was about to be beaten to death at sea, voluntarily joined the Wanjin Navy. They didn’t care if they could reach him in time to save him; they just wanted to enlist first, as being a soldier in Wanjin was a good job, killing two birds with one stone.
After reading these proposals, Yuan Ye was very pleased.
Now, the Wanjin councillors are backed by ordinary people from all walks of life. These people, upon hearing rumors and thinking he was in danger, became anxious. Even if they were afraid of losing their good lives, and afraid of Wanjin suddenly falling apart, it was still quite touching.
In a sense, this is the will of the people!
This is what he wanted. This place was already starting to be different from others.
It was becoming more and more different.
