With Matters Having Come This Far, Let's Farm First!

Goto Joki and the others had originally worried that Yamauchi Kazutoyo might harbor resentment toward Oda Nobunaga over Yamauchi Moritoyo's death, so joining Oda Nobunaga had never even crossed their minds.

But Yamauchi Kazutoyo believed that being a warrior meant enduring what had to be endured and letting go when one had to.

Joining Oda Nobunaga was not a spur-of-the-moment decision by Yamauchi Kazutoyo, but one made after careful deliberation.

If the penniless Yamauchi family wanted to rise again, and if he, Yamauchi Kazutoyo, wanted to make something of himself, then he had to follow the right man.

A transmigrator's greatest advantage was a basic understanding of the major historical events to come, so Yamauchi Kazutoyo knew very well that Oda Nobunaga was about to reach the greatest turning point of his life.

It was like a small company right on his doorstep about to enter the fast lane of growth and become the nation's foremost conglomerate within the next decade or so. Of course Yamauchi Kazutoyo had to seize this once-in-a-thousand-years employment opportunity.

Moreover, such an interest group flourishing rapidly in a short time meant there would be countless paths upward within it. As long as he could enter Oda Nobunaga's service, a bright future awaited him.

Of course, that was provided Yamauchi Kazutoyo could successfully catch Oda Nobunaga's eye.

Though the Oda clan offered many opportunities, not just anyone could muddle through and make up the numbers. Yamauchi Kazutoyo needed an opening.

But it was still too early to speak of such things. The pressing matter was to get food on the table first.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo first sent Goto Joki to Kariyasuka Township, declining Asai Masasada's invitation on the grounds that his family members were unwell and he could not get away.

Oda Nobunaga had recently been assembling the Yellow Horo Guards, and Asai Masasada had been selected. For the moment, he had no time to concern himself with the Yamauchi family's affairs.

Besides, Asai Masasada had only, in effect, solved Yamauchi Kazutoyo's employment problem. He was not kindhearted enough to provide shelter for the entire Yamauchi family.

Still, Yamauchi Kazutoyo could understand. After all, Asai Masasada had a large household of his own to feed. His willingness to spare a few acres of land already counted as remembrance of old ties.

Warriors of the Warring States era sounded noble, but they were really only somewhat higher-grade oxen and horses. Aside from fighting for their daimyo, the vast majority of warriors also had to farm their own land, or they could not support their families.

To truly live that idealized landlord's life, one needed at least several thousand koku of stipends and the rank of castle lord before there was any hope.

Every faction had its own exclusionary nature. Yamauchi Kazutoyo believed that his chances of reaching castle-lord rank elsewhere were slim. Only by remaining in Owari could he count as half an insider, at the very least.

After staying at Horenji Temple for another day and waiting for Sobue Kan'emon to return from Matsukura Castle, Yamauchi Kazutoyo brought his entire family to seek refuge with his uncle, Maeno Tokiyuki.

Maeno Tokiyuki's adoptive father, Maeno Tokiuji, was the lord of Matsukura Castle and also Maeno Muneyasu's younger brother.

"Iemon, I already know about your father."

"Now that you have come to Matsukura Castle, treat this place as your own home. Though I have changed my surname, I still acknowledge you as my nephew."

"I cannot promise anything else, but I certainly will not let you starve!" Maeno Tokiyuki patted Yamauchi Kazutoyo on the shoulder and welcomed the Yamauchi family inside.

Maeno Tokiyuki's residence stood by the Kiso River outside Matsukura Castle. Several horses were tied beneath the two willow trees at the entrance, while several servants washed the horses' backs.

Being able to keep several horses showed that Maeno Tokiyuki's financial circumstances were indeed not bad. The daily expense of one horse could match that of several people.

Seated formally on the wooden floor, the younger brothers and sisters, who had wandered through hardship for many days, finally relaxed somewhat and curiously examined the furnishings in the house.

Hoshūni held prayer beads in her hand and continuously murmured sutras, as though she had cast everything aside.

Sobue Kan'emon, Goto Joki, and the others were assigned by Maeno Tokiyuki to the villages where his stipends lay. He held 120 kan in stipends in places such as Miyata Village, which meant Maeno Tokiyuki could collect 120 kan in annual tribute from those lands.

"Uncle, may I ask what I am required to do during this time?"

After taking his seat, Yamauchi Kazutoyo took the initiative to ask.

The Yamauchi clan had come to depend on Maeno Tokiyuki, and several more mouths had suddenly appeared in his household. Though the other party did not say it aloud, Yamauchi Kazutoyo himself had to understand the ways of the world.

Seeing how sensible Yamauchi Kazutoyo was, Maeno Tokiyuki revealed a gratified smile.

"Owari has been much more peaceful recently than before, so there is nothing in particular that needs doing."

"I have five tan of paddy fields in Takada Village, which I originally rented to tenant farmers. Since Iemon is here now, I will leave those fields to you."

"This way, the rich water does not flow into outsiders' fields!" Maeno Tokiyuki said with a smile.

If one had too much land to cultivate personally, it was generally rented to farmers with little land of their own. Such people were effectively tenant farmers.

The tenant farmers had to hand over a fixed portion of the harvest to the landowner and bear the miscellaneous taxes on that land. The landowner then became a "landholder," while landholders possessing great quantities of named fields were called daimyo.

Thus, daimyo sounded lofty and grand, but they were really just the great landlords of ancient China.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo took a deep breath. Was he truly unable to escape the fate of farming...

Still, Maeno Tokiyuki had at least given him five tan of land. One tan equaled ten mu, and those fifty mu could yield roughly seven koku of rice a year. One Japanese mu was about 99 square meters, while one Chinese mu was about 666 square meters—a difference of nearly sevenfold.

If Maeno Tokiyuki did not collect taxes from the Yamauchi family, those five tan would barely cover the household's expenses. But was that possible?

"Uncle, I am deeply grateful for your great kindness!"

"If you have need of anything in the future, please command me at any time. I will certainly serve you with all my heart and strength," Yamauchi Kazutoyo said respectfully.

Maeno Tokiyuki smiled faintly. "No need for such ceremony. We are family."

As he spoke, Maeno Tokiyuki turned to Hoshūni.

Hoshūni opened her eyes and slowly said, "If Kanhachirō's household has hired maidservants, then dismiss one or two of them. I am still capable of doing some minor chores."

"Also, bring me some needle and thread. I am rather skilled at delicate work such as mending and patching."

In the chaotic Warring States era, no one kept idle people. If Hoshūni did not wish to become a burden on her son, then she had to prove her worth.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo had just opened his mouth when Hoshūni silenced him with a glare, leaving him no choice but to close it.

Maeno Tokiyuki was delighted and had just been about to agree when Hoshūni spoke again. "However, Komai and Kōgō must remain by my side. I trust Kanhachirō does not mind keeping two young girls in his home?"

"Of course, of course!" Maeno Tokiyuki said without changing expression. "Such two adorable nieces—even merely looking at them every day would brighten one's mood."

"As it happens, my son Kanbei is studying Chinese characters at Bright Light Temple. Komai and Kōgō can join him."

Hoshūni casually said, "Kichisuke should go as well. He is at just the age when he needs to study."

Maeno Tokiyuki could no longer smile. Now he would have to offer Bright Light Temple additional donation money.

"What, does Kanhachirō have difficulties?" Hoshūni asked.

Maeno Tokiyuki hurriedly shook his head. The atmosphere had been built up to this point; refusing now would mean losing face.

Only then did Hoshūni close her eyes again and resume chanting sutras.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo seized the chance to say, "Uncle, I have some knowledge of letters. If there are any documents requiring drafting, I am willing to be of service. That would also save Uncle the expense of asking eminent monks to polish the wording."

Warriors of this era favored cursive script, chiefly because it was faster to write. At the same time, its simple characters made it less likely that their illiteracy would be exposed.

Since formal documents such as stipend certificates and oath documents had to use Chinese characters and could not contain slips of the brush that might create ambiguity, warriors often paid monks at temples to draft their documents.

Some warriors in better financial circumstances even specifically hired someone for the post of "assistant brush," effectively a full-time secretary.

Though Maeno Tokiyuki possessed modest means, he had not reached the point of maintaining an assistant brush.

"Iemon can write classical Chinese?" Maeno Tokiyuki was intrigued. This was truly his weak point; otherwise, he would not have spent such a large sum to send his son Kanbei to a temple to study.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo did not hide his talent. He immediately rose and walked to the writing desk, then swiftly wrote out a Chinese poem in a sweeping flow of brushstrokes, like dragons and serpents in flight.

Maeno Tokiyuki leaned closer to look. Zhao Mengfu's elegant script sprang from the page, and Maeno Tokiyuki's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

Then he looked at the content. Good heavens—it was Bai Juyi's "Grass on the Ancient Plain, Farewell."

If one asked which Tang dynasty poet the Japanese admired most, then without question it was Bai Juyi.

It was not that the Japanese considered Li Bai and Du Fu lacking; Bai Juyi's poetry was simply relatively plain and easy to understand. Even illiterates who could not read could roughly grasp the meaning it conveyed.

Maeno Tokiyuki was deeply shaken. He had never expected to have picked up a treasure.

"I never imagined that Iemon, despite being so young, could write such fine characters!" The look Maeno Tokiyuki gave Yamauchi Kazutoyo was plainly different now.

Yamauchi Kazutoyo gently set down the brush and said with an air of serene unconcern, "Nothing more than practice makes perfect!"

It could not be helped—one could not let an ancestral craft be lost!