Chapter 72: My Kindred Spirit!
“Lord Maeda, what is this…”
Yuan Ye hurried to the front and saw that Aragiko Castle’s lord, Maeda Toshiharu, was indeed kneeling by the roadside, dressed in coarse cloth and hemp, with his hair tied in a topknot with hemp strips, wearing straw sandals on his bare feet. He was accompanied only by his senior retainer Okumura Iefuku and a horse, presenting a picture of humble deference.
Upon seeing him arrive, Maeda Toshiharu gave a wry smile and said, “This is how the world is, Lord Yuan Ye. I’ve made a fool of myself in front of you.”
Before, when Oda Nobunaga passed through here on his way to Inaba Land, he had hidden in the castle, anxious and contemplating what to do if Oda Nobunaga demanded people or rice, or asked him to send troops to assist in battle. To his surprise, Oda Nobunaga passed by without stopping, not even acknowledging him.
This made his decision even harder. Theoretically, even if Oda Nobunaga hadn’t requested his assistance in battle, the battlefield was not far from his castle. Upon receiving news, he should have attacked on his own initiative, fully assisting his “Lord” to achieve victory and fulfill his basic feudal obligations. However, he believed Oda Nobunaga was highly likely to be defeated and flee back, and he didn’t want to waste Aragiko Castle’s human lives needlessly. He was also unsure who would be in charge of the lower four districts of Owari in the future, and he was reluctant to get involved in such murky waters.
Therefore, he did nothing.
As a result, Oda Nobunaga won the battle in one go, and by doing nothing, he had committed a crime, and a solitary one at that, with no one to share the burden of the consequences. Previously, the collective plea to postpone mobilization was a tacit understanding among all the local lords; Oda Nobunaga couldn’t punish everyone, so he had no recourse. However, the battlefield was only a dozen miles from Aragiko Castle. Others could feign ignorance afterward, saying they didn’t expect Oda Nobunaga himself to go. But he had no excuse to pretend he didn’t know.
He even heard yesterday that the Sakuma family of Inaba Land Castle, even though their lord was absent and they were vaguely affiliated with Oda Nobuyuki’s faction, had actively sent seven or eight armored followers and fifty or sixty rookie ashigaru. Compared to that…
He was in an even more difficult position.
He deeply regretted it. The moment he learned of Oda Nobunaga’s victory, he rushed to Inaba Land with a large amount of wine to offer congratulations. However, he couldn’t even get an audience. Oda Nobunaga threw an inkstone from his tent, narrowly missing his head, and directly told him to get lost.
So, all he could do was return and kneel here, waiting for Oda Nobunaga to pass by and beg for forgiveness.
This is how the world is; one must have sharp insight and follow the strong, otherwise, there is always the risk of death and annihilation of one’s clan.
However, these were things he couldn’t explain to Yuan Ye, so he could only offer a wry smile.
Yuan Ye could probably guess some of it. After all, the unfinished Aragiko Castle had left a deep impression on him. The Aragiko Maeda family was indeed very poor, and he could completely understand their reluctance to lose more lives. But understanding was one thing; he couldn’t help with such matters. He could only offer some general words of comfort and prepare to leave with his ox cart convoy once it caught up.
As expected, his ox cart convoy’s speed was the slowest in the world. They hadn’t even covered this short distance when Oda Nobunaga, along with his guard unit and retainers and pages, arrived at a gallop.
Oda Nobunaga stopped his horse in front of Maeda Toshiharu, gave him a look of disgust, and without wasting any more words, before Maeda Toshiharu could beg, he directly said, “Alright, Aken has pleaded for you. I’ll spare you this time for Aken’s sake.”
He paused, looked up at Aragiko Castle in the distance, then back down at Maeda Toshiharu, and said meaningfully, “Remember this clearly, it is for Aken’s sake that I am sparing you this time!”
Maeda Toshiharu breathed a long sigh of relief, quickly pressed his face to the ground, heedless of the dirt staining his grayish-white hair, and choked out, “Thank you for your magnanimity, Your Highness!”
He had managed to pass this hurdle. Otherwise, such a matter could escalate quickly. If Oda Nobunaga had flown into a rage, ordered him to commit seppuku as atonement, or even attacked Aragiko Castle and slaughtered his entire family, the other local lords wouldn’t have been able to say much.
After all, it was he who had failed to be loyal and filial, and was in the wrong from the start.
“Enough, enough!” Oda Nobunaga waved his horsewhip impatiently, about to tell him to get lost. But seeing Okumura Iefuku hand a horse laden with large packages to Ikeda Tsuneoki, he guessed that Maeda Toshiharu had spared no expense. The word “get lost” turned in his mouth, and he replaced it with a gentler phrase, “You may go back. Reflect well, and if you err again, you will not be lightly forgiven!”
With that, he said to Maeda Toshiie and another young page, “It’s time. You two have worked hard during this period, go home and see your families!”
He treated his own people quite well; he was quite humane. Maeda Toshiie and the young page thanked him in unison and left, supporting their father, Maeda Toshiharu.
Oda Nobunaga looked up at the sun again and instructed his attendants to rest for a moment, water the horses, and then continue their journey. He himself dismounted and beckoned Yuan Ye over, “You come too!”
Yuan Ye didn’t mind, as he was still waiting for his ox carts. He went with him to a shady spot to rest briefly. Oda Nobunaga’s way of resting was quite unique. Ikeda Tsuneoki brought a horse with a large saddlebag on its back. He pulled it over and began to unpack various items like folding stools, small folding tables, wine bags, and teapots.
Oda Nobunaga pulled over a stool and sat down, gesturing for Yuan Ye to sit as well. He picked up a leather wine bag and was about to toss it to Yuan Ye, but suddenly remembered that Yuan Ye was a prude and didn’t drink. Seeing A Man staring intently at the wine bag and swallowing, he casually tossed it to her, quite generously.
He took a few gulps of wine, moistened his throat, and then looked towards Aragiko Castle in the distance, a look of disgust reappearing on his face. He asked aloud, “Tell me, what should I do with these people?”
Yuan Ye was actually not very good at conversation. He was extremely skilled with his hands as an engineer, but not so much with his mouth. He took it as Oda Nobunaga talking to himself and didn’t respond. He simply smiled politely at Ikeda Tsuneoki, who offered him warm tea. Ikeda Tsuneoki returned a kind smile, appearing very gentle and good-natured.
Yuan Ye preferred interacting with people like Ikeda Tsuneoki but didn’t have the opportunity for a deeper connection. Meanwhile, Oda Nobunaga continued to gaze at Aragiko Castle, as if seeing something else through this unfinished structure, his expression of disgust deepening. “They are all vulgar people, only seeing an inch ahead. What should I do with them?”
Before, he had asked the local lords to build roads, but not a single one responded. He had then called for a full mobilization for battle, and again, there was a chorus of complaints. Only his own uncle had come. Now, he detested these local lords to the core, considering them all short-sighted fools. Owari had plenty of manpower and resources, yet he couldn’t mobilize them. The old retainers and local lords refused to listen to him, obstructing him in various ways.
Even if he wanted the commoners to have enough rice to eat and grow a bit stronger, to facilitate future battles, even this small matter was impossible!
Those people wouldn’t even part with a mouthful of rice. Like Maeda Toshiharu, they were both stingy and afraid to make any decisions, pure cowards. If Maeda Toshiharu had dared to attack him in conjunction with the Kiyosu Army, he might have respected him more. But Maeda Toshiharu lacked the courage, and thus only deserved his word “get lost.”
Yuan Ye could guess what he was thinking, but he still didn’t respond, content to drink his tea. Oda Nobunaga couldn’t say these things to anyone else; his entourage was full of sons of local lords. He could only confide in Yuan Ye, who had no connection to Owari. Yuan Ye just needed to be a good listener.
He wanted to be a good listener and enjoy his tea. Oda Nobunaga was a connoisseur; he didn’t know where he got the tea leaves, but they were fragrant and refreshing, with a sweet aftertaste, even better than what Yuan Ye had bought at a high price. It was a waste for Oda Nobunaga to drink it. But Oda Nobunaga wouldn’t let him off the hook. His gaze shifted to Yuan Ye, and he repeated the question, “Tell me, what should I do?”
“I don’t know.” Yuan Ye gestured for Ikeda Tsuneoki to refill his tea, having no intention of seeking attention.
After so many frustrating events, Oda Nobunaga had some ideas and wanted to organize his thoughts. Stroking the soft stubble on his chin, he asked, “Tell me, what do you think about moving them all to Nagoya Castle to live?”
Yuan Ye glanced at him. Seeing that he couldn’t avoid it, he spoke the truth, “The separation of soldiers and farmers is a good method.”
“Separation of soldiers and farmers?” Oda Nobunaga couldn’t help but ponder upon hearing this. He felt the term was very fitting, perfectly capturing some of the vague but uncertain ideas forming in his mind. He became serious for a moment and leaned forward, asking, “Do you think this is feasible? Will they be willing to go?”
The “soldiers” here referred to samurai, not ordinary soldiers.
He wanted to bring the population under the control of the local lords into his own hands. Recently, he had been thinking of relocating these local lords to the castle town of Nagoya. This way, he could personally supervise them and ensure they couldn’t shirk their responsibilities when manpower was needed.
However, this was just a thought. He had never found a good way to persuade these local lords to move to Nagoya’s castle town without provoking a rebellion. Now, he suddenly realized that Yuan Ye could follow his train of thought, and he couldn’t help but want to discuss it.
Well, it wasn’t entirely sudden. He had always felt Yuan Ye was quite talented, principled, unique in character, and elegant. He was very much like himself, an outstanding “eccentric” with a remarkably peculiar and unconventional way of thinking, able to see the future that vulgar people couldn’t. They were both considered abnormal by others.
Now, discussing it further, it was indeed true. His judgment had never been wrong!
However, Yuan Ye himself didn’t have much knowledge. He wasn’t a history student; he just knew a few terms. But he was willing to help Oda Nobunaga a little. After all, the sooner Oda Nobunaga cleaned up the mess in Owari, the sooner he could conduct his business peacefully and move freely.
This was also beneficial to him. He thought seriously for a moment before shaking his head, “It’s very difficult now, almost impossible.”
“Is that so?” Oda Nobunaga wasn’t too disappointed. After all, he had pondered for a long time without coming up with a good idea, only some vague notions. It was normal for Yuan Ye to be unable to think of something immediately. Even if he was somewhat irritable, he wouldn’t get angry because of this. He just pondered intently.
“Perhaps, we can start with the separation of farmers and soldiers,” Yuan Ye was still thinking, organizing his thoughts as he spoke.
“Separation of farmers and soldiers?” Oda Nobunaga’s thinking was indeed agile. With just a slight rearrangement of the words, he immediately understood the meaning and mused, “Recruiting more followers?”
“Given Owari’s situation, we can only subdue them with absolute strength to make them relinquish their power. There is no other way.” Yuan Ye finished his tea, and Ikeda Tsuneoki immediately refilled it, looking at him with bright eyes. Yuan Ye took another sip and continued, “Most followers also farm. Recruiting more followers isn’t very meaningful. It’s better to recruit some… people who only fight.”
Oda Nobunaga pondered for a moment again, finding this idea brilliant. Given the mobilization speed of the local lords, it would take two or three days just to pull farmers from various villages, form them into units, and distribute weapons. But if there was a force that could be deployed at any time, ready to strike them by surprise, and could train long-term to ensure the army’s combat effectiveness…
He had vaguely had this idea before. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have specifically recruited such a group of young followers who would practice whenever they had free time. Now, with Yuan Ye’s reminder, the more he thought about it, the more certain he became. He increasingly felt that Yuan Ye was his confidant, thinking along the same lines, almost like a soulmate.
He directly affirmed it, “You are right! We should indeed separate farmers and soldiers, and then separate soldiers and farmers!”
Of course, this would require a large amount of money and supplies. Forming a standing army wouldn’t be easy, nor would it be easy to support thousands of people who didn’t produce anything but specialized in training and combat. That’s why the local lords would directly conscript farmers for battle. Thus, the money he had wouldn’t be enough.
However, this wasn’t a problem for him. The Danjō no Chū family had been good at making money since ancient times. And after Yuan Ye’s enlightenment, some of his previous vague ideas about how to make money could now be definitively determined. He didn’t need Yuan Ye to sort out his thoughts further.
His gaze softened as he looked at Yuan Ye. The more he looked, the more handsome Yuan Ye seemed. He couldn’t help but want to bring up their previous conversation, but the topic jumped abruptly, “Okuruku Kiyobee was injured, you know that, right?”
“I know.” Yuan Ye replied casually. Okuruku Kiyobee had charged forward on horseback during the “Battle of Kaizu.” In the chaos, his horse was stabbed and fell, causing him to hit his head and break his arm. Yuan Ye had even bandaged it with a splint. However, he wanted to continue the conversation about the Rakuza Rakuchi policy and supporting major workshop owners for development, but Oda Nobunaga changed the subject, which was a bit disappointing.
“Then you go be a village head and magistrate!” Oda Nobunaga had been defeated last time and felt awkward asking Yuan Ye to bow down and offer him wine, making the situation very embarrassing. But this time was different. He had just achieved a great victory and felt he had the “aura of a wise ruler.” He began to want to recruit Yuan Ye.
Moreover, because Yuan Ye had been so unyielding last time and hadn’t given him any face, he was willing to make a slight concession. He figured Yuan Ye didn’t like being a page, perhaps due to his noble character and dislike for fame, profit, and social interaction. So, being a village head and magistrate first would be acceptable. It also conveniently allowed him to remove Okuruku Kiyobee, that old-fashioned, argumentative retainer who always challenged him. He couldn’t remove him before because there was no one to replace him. Most of the retainers and pages he had recruited were very young and inexperienced. If he sent them to Takeuchi Manor as village head and magistrate, in charge of two to three hundred followers and significant production, he wouldn’t feel at ease.
Now that Yuan Ye was here, it was perfect. He could serve as a village head and magistrate for a while, and then he would bring him closer to share a bed and discuss important matters.
Yuan Ye was still unwilling. He could earn money himself, so why would he manage a broken village for a meager profit? He directly replied, “I don’t want to kowtow to anyone, so… thank you very much!”
After saying that, he felt it was too blunt. He would have to do business in this person’s territory in the future, and being too blunt wouldn’t be good. So, he added, “Please forgive me, Your Highness.”
Oda Nobunaga didn’t darken his expression this time. Perhaps because Yuan Ye had always been unyielding, he had become somewhat accustomed to it. He also began to feel that Yuan Ye was indeed a “noble scholar,” neither seeking fame, nor profit, nor lust… he probably wasn’t lustful. Seeing the amusing appearance of the maidservants around him, he could tolerate that, so he was likely not lustful either.
Not seeking fame, profit, or lust meant he was a true scholar. Oda Nobunaga couldn’t get angry with such a person, especially since he saw Yuan Ye as a confidant. People were always more tolerant of their confidants, and he was no exception.
He grunted and said nothing more, preparing to leave. However, being generous and forthright, he didn’t want to take advantage of Yuan Ye for nothing. He casually removed the gold-inlaid and silver-embellished short sword from his waist and was about to toss it to him.
But as he had already taken out the short sword, he worried that Yuan Ye’s stubborn nature would make him refuse it, thus embarrassing him. After a slight hesitation, he casually threw it to A Man and left.
He needed to go back and think carefully about how to make money to achieve the “separation of farmers and soldiers,” and then implement the “separation of soldiers and farmers,” so that he could control all the useless local lords in Owari and make Owari his sole domain.
