The Self-Cultivation of Warring States Warriors

Page 135

Is this a legitimate theater troupe today?

What do you take me for?

Tai Chi is the world!

No wonder there were historical prohibitions against women working part-time; it turns out that it was indeed common for women to do so.

However, according to what Kanda Jiji just said, the actor who plays Minamoto no Yoshitsune, "Kokata," is a handsome young boy who looks about fourteen or fifteen years old, with delicate features and fair teeth, and he can also sell his body.

Banning women wouldn't do any good!

If you're going to be horny, you should still be horny.

Shinzaburo shook his head, indicating that he was not interested in Kanda Miyaji's pimping activities.

The main reason is that I'm used to driving all kinds of unique private cars, so I don't want to squeeze onto the bus anymore.

……

During the performance, most of the audience members were watching attentively.

After all, organizing a high-quality Noh performance in the remote Wakasa Province is not an easy task.

However, a few people were distracted and restless, trying to strike up a conversation whenever they could find an opportunity.

That was Itsuki Masataka, the lord of Suidao Mountain City, and Masaharu, the wealthy businessman of Kohama Bay.

They each sent their subordinates to fight openly and covertly over the ownership of the coastal wasteland for some time, but the conflict was suppressed and has not been resolved to this day. Naturally, they are somewhat apprehensive and find it difficult to calm down and appreciate art.

However, their repeated attempts to hint at what they wanted to express were ignored.

Shinzaburo didn't seem to know much about or have much interest in Noh, yet he wouldn't allow anyone to interrupt the atmosphere.

Only after the performance of "Senbenkei" ended did the day's performance come to a close, and only then was there room for free conversation.

This play tells the story of Minamoto no Yoshitsune's great victory over the Taira clan, but his elder brother Minamoto no Yoritomo's jealousy forced him to bid farewell to his beloved concubine Shizuka Gozen and flee to the western provinces with Musashibo Benkei and three other retainers. Interspersed within the play is a subplot about Taira no Tomomori's ghost seeking revenge, only to be driven away.

According to the customs of the Edo period, after the Noh performance, the actors should solemnly and silently pay their respects before slowly and deliberately leaving. The audience should also remain quiet and restrained, expressing their admiration with the slightest noise at most.

There weren't so many rules here, but being too casual would still be considered impolite. Led by the waiters, the group slowly walked out of the Kagura Hall of Hachiman Shrine, without any intention of fighting.

Miyuki Misaki and Kamiya Masayuki approached with fawning smiles. Shinzaburo didn't react much, but simply patted his folding fan, pointed at the stage, and sighed softly, "At this moment, even though Judge Kuro and Monk Benkei are in dire straits, they are still in the same boat, without any gap between them. They are indeed famous generals of ancient times!"

The meaning of this sentence is quite clear, and the listener will naturally understand its elegant meaning from the melody.

Masataka Itsumi immediately stated: "I am deeply grateful to Lord Sado Kubo for inviting me to enjoy this performance today, and I have also come to deeply appreciate the importance of unity."

Junichi Kukat quickly nodded in agreement: "Although I am just a businessman, I am willing to follow the example of the sages and set aside past grievances with the heroes of the country to create a great cause together."

“Very well.” Shinzaburo gave only a simple reply, paused for a moment, and got up to leave.

But we can't let him really leave now.

Yi Jianchang quickly caught up with him, feigning remorse and reflection, and bowed, saying, "The other day, my wife's cousin, for his own selfish gain, actually caused trouble with Honjō-ji Temple and the HDB flats. It's truly shameful. I should apologize on his behalf."

“How dare I, how dare I!” Junichiro Hikari also adopted a fearful and uneasy posture. “My friend Watanabe Shinchisai was originally a refined person, but recently he has probably been influenced by me and has become somewhat mercenary. He even argued with Itsuki Suruga-no-kami. I am so ashamed.”

"Ah...you're talking about that lawsuit?" Shinzaburo seemed to have just remembered it and acted nonchalantly. "I did hear Mansho and Katsura mention it, but I didn't take it to heart. You two are the most trustworthy friends and relatives. This trivial dispute can definitely be settled amicably."

Masataka Itsuki and Masayuki Hikari exchanged glances and quickly reached an understanding.

The former bowed solemnly and said, "I believe that the purchase price of 120 guan should remain unchanged, and all that is needed is for the temple to hand over half of the coastal wasteland to my wife's cousin."

Masaharu immediately shook his head: "That's unfair to Itsumi Suruga-no-kami. I think handing over half the land is appropriate. As for the price, let's limit it to 30 kan as a deposit."

At this point, both sides became polite.

Shinzaburo smiled and made a decision: "Let's compromise. Half the land will correspond to half the price, so let's say sixty kan. In addition to the thirty kan deposit already paid, you only need to pay another thirty kan."

Both of them said they had no objections.

only……

After a short while, Masaharu from the HDB flat stammered, "I heard that, Lord Sado, you plan to allocate a fixed amount of tax to the wasteland along the coast. If the materials for making saltpeter cannot be delivered on time, then... then they will be punished..."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Itsuki Masatsugu smoothed things over, saying, "Since you own the relevant real estate, you should naturally do your part. I'm just worried that my abilities are insufficient and that I might delay your important business."

Shinzaburo laughed and said, "I was originally worried that the materials for making saltpeter might be controlled by untrustworthy people, which is why I planned to make mandatory regulations. Since it is your relatives and friends who control the land, there is no need to be demanding. I believe there will be no problem."

Itsuki Masataka and Hikari Masaharu both breathed a sigh of relief.

Unexpectedly, Shinzaburo suddenly stopped smiling, became serious, and turned to point at the stage again: "Although Judge Kuro and Monk Benkei were in the same boat, they still couldn't avoid decline. Taira no Moriko, as a descendant of a prestigious family, is both intelligent and brave, yet he has only become a ghost of revenge. Why is that?"

Yi Jianchangjing was always cautious and dared not answer this profound question rashly.

Masaharu Kamiya, not being very shrewd, instinctively chimed in, "It's probably because the Mandate of Heaven rests with Lord Kamakura (Minamoto no Yoritomo)!"

“It is fate…” Shinzaburo pondered for a moment, then shook his head. “How can I presume to judge matters of fate? However, Lord Kamakura does indeed have strengths that surpass those of Judge Kuro and the other heroes of the Taira clan.”

At this point, Masayuki Kamakura was somewhat bewildered and didn't know what to say. Masatane Itsumi promptly stepped in to smooth things over: "Please enlighten me, Lord Sado Kubo, what exactly is it about Lord Kamakura that makes him so exceptional?"

“Laws and regulations,” Shinzaburo said with certainty. “Kamakura-dono established the laws and regulations for the samurai class, rather than governing the country purely based on personal wisdom and courage. Therefore, even though his descendants have passed away, the shogunate has been able to create a peaceful and prosperous era for 150 years.”

Upon hearing this, whether or not Masataka Itsuki and Masayuki Kamiya truly agreed, they both wore expressions of sudden realization and great benefit.

But it wasn't over yet.

“Exactly!” Master Mingzhou approached without warning, his voice not loud, but with an undeniable and imposing aura. “The land sale lawsuit between Honjō-ji and Itsumi Suruga-no-kami’s brother-in-law was caused by a lack of legal basis. Both sides had their own version of events, and both were reasonable, so the dispute continued.”

Yi Jianchang seemed to be deep in thought upon hearing this.

HDB's Cheng Chun nodded repeatedly, expressing great interest: "Besides land sales, if there were written regulations for all other industries, such as port access, warehouse leasing, loan processing, and courier services, merchants would naturally feel more at ease when making transactions."

Seeing this, Itsuki Masakatsu could not remain silent and could only continue to add: "Samurai also often need to buy and sell land, food, prisoners of war, weapons, and building materials, and often worry about the lack of laws."

Article 1 of 258 "Ruozhou Standards"

"Firstly, all land, houses, forests, fishing grounds, and other such properties within the country must be included in the register and detailed in order to be protected."

"Secondly, matters concerning the sale, lease, and pledge of real estate shall be based on written documents. The documents must be signed by the clerk and a copy shall be made in Kohama Castle. A stamp duty of ten mon shall be charged for each kan of the amount."

"Thirdly, any private transactions not disclosed to the agent will not be protected. In the event of litigation, we will unconditionally support the original owner in reclaiming the property."

"Fourth, the money, provisions and other obligations related to the property shall be borne by the new owner after the transaction is completed. If the transaction document stipulates that it shall be completed in installments, the buyer and seller shall each bear half of the costs during the period. The same principle applies to leases and pledges."

"Fifth, for transactions completed in installments, the responsibilities of both parties and the amount of liquidated damages must be determined at the outset. The tax on the printing of paper shall be calculated as one percent of the maximum liquidated damages."

"Sixth, properties that are still in the process of being sold in installments, or that are under lease or pledge, may not be sold, leased, or pledged again. Violation of this rule constitutes a serious crime and will be punished with confiscation of property."

"Seventh, places where water is drawn, fields where pasture is planted, and coastlines where bird droppings, fish, and shrimp are collected are also considered industries."

"Eighthly, one may buy, sell, lease, or pledge one's personal property. However, one may not dispose of the property of a 'Go-on-Chi-kō' without special permission."

"Ninth, one land, one owner. Property can be registered under an individual owner, or under a temple, shrine, village, or shop, but it cannot be registered under two owners at the same time."

After discussions among a group of samurai, monks, wealthy merchants, and local gentry, the first major entry of the "Ruozhou System," "Land Transactions," was finally formalized into a document.

The reason for choosing to deal with this major item first was because it happened to coincide with the lawsuit between Itsuki Masataka and Hikari Masaharu.

At the same time, Shinzaburo developed a new source of revenue for himself: a "one percent stamp duty".

Next, according to the planned schedule, a series of rules still need to be settled, such as "matters of service to the samurai", "matters of household registration, marriage, funerals and migration", "matters of temples, shrines, missionary work, festivals and religious discussions", "matters of town money, money, and loans", "matters of thief capture and discussions on mountains and rivers", etc.

But those aren't in a hurry.

The laws governing the division of states by the daimyo of the Warring States period ranged greatly in length. The shortest and most concise law, such as the "Wall Book of the Ōuchi Family" of the Ōuchi family, contained only eleven articles, while the longest, such as the "Collection of Dust and Mustard" of the Date family, contained a full 171 articles.

But whether it's the traditional or simplified version, it took many years of additions, deletions, and adjustments to reach the final version.

Legislation cannot be decided on a whim; it requires a long period of refinement to determine its effectiveness.

Moreover, from Shinzaburo's perspective, he didn't really care what specific laws were enacted—after all, these laws wouldn't apply to him anyway—the law doesn't apply to officials.

Even taking the opportunity to collect stamp duty is just opportunistic theft.

The real key lies in the process of “formulating and promulgating national laws”.

Faced with the return of the legitimate ruler Takeda Yoshitomo, and the fact that he is vaguely supported by the Echizen Asakura family, it is necessary to further optimize his legitimacy through legislative procedures.

Although Takeda Yoshitomo himself had no intention of vying for power, and Tomita Nagashige was temporarily misled, Shinzaburo never dared to completely underestimate him.

At the same time, in terms of the specific provisions, the opinions of samurai, temples, merchants and other powerful figures within the territory should be respected, and the interests of all parties should be protected as much as possible. In this way, the Kubo family can form a relationship of common interests with everyone.

A similar example can be found in the historical case of Shinohara Nagafusa. After the deaths of Sogawa Kazutsugu, Miyoshi Yoshikata, and Ataka Fuyuyasu, he inherited the Miyoshi family's power in Shikoku. Although lacking sufficient military merit and seniority, he seized power by enacting laws governing separate provinces, and even significantly increased the degree of unification. While Miyoshi Yoshikata was alive, he could only mobilize a maximum of 12,000 to 13,000 men to cross the sea to fight on Honshu Island, whereas Shinohara Nagafusa was able to muster an army of 20,000 to contend with Oda Nobunaga.

Of course, due to his prolonged lack of success in battle and a deteriorating relationship with his younger brother, he soon met an untimely death. But if he had possessed first-rate military talent, it wouldn't have been impossible for him to replicate Miyoshi Nagayoshi's experience.

……

In short, Shinzaburo convened key figures in the neighborhood and drafted several regulations related to real estate transactions, thus setting the stage for the "Wakashu System".

Then he temporarily left Wakasa.

The first reason was to deal with the matter of appointing officials.

Shinzaburo had received the official title of "Sado no Kami" for a long time, but the official rank of "Junior Fifth Rank, Lower Grade" issued by the Imperial Court had gone through many twists and turns before it was officially issued.

Moreover, due to the complex structure of the current bed-and-frame houses in the capital region, the process is extremely complicated.

Specifically, first, Miyoshi Yoshioki wrote a personal letter of recommendation, which Matsunaga Hisahide delivered to the shogunate. Ashikaga Yoshiteru read it and agreed, then drafted a more formal "application document," and arranged for Settsu Harumon, who was in charge of "official career administration," to communicate with the imperial court. Next, the court nobles discussed and approved it, and the clerks of the Imperial Household Department would issue a quick and simple "oral declaration" to indicate their agreement. Then, the Grand Council of State would go through the formal procedures to produce the official "ranking edict."

Then the imperial court replied to the shogunate, which in turn informed the Miyoshi family, who then notified Shinzaburo.

It took quite a while from initial interest to formal conferment.

According to unwritten rules, Shinzaburo offered a gift of fifty kan (a unit of currency) for the shogunate and the imperial court to share, and also prepared a red envelope of one or two kan for each person involved in each step.

Next, he will go to Nansoji Temple in Sakai Town to attend the funeral of Kazutsugu Sogawa.

As a key figure in the Miyoshi regime in the north, Shinzaburo had interacted with Miyoshi Yoshioki many times, establishing a certain level of mutual trust and friendship, and also getting to know some of the central government's generals and officials. However, he never had much contact with Miyoshi Yoshikata, Ataka Fuyuyasu, or Sogawa Kazutsugu.

To some extent, this can be seen as the political landscape that Miyoshi Nagayoshi intentionally created.

Only this final funeral requires a symbolic attendance.

Furthermore, following the funeral of Kazutaka Sogo, Nagayoshi Miyoshi also arranged a "Thousand-Verse Renga Gathering" to be held at Iimori Castle, with the dates being almost identical. It is unclear whether he intended to use literature to alleviate the pain of losing his brother or if it was for political purposes.

Shinzaburo wasn't really interested in joining in the fun at this event.

The main problem is that my own poetry writing ability is not good enough. Even after studying "The Tale of Genji" for several years, I can only appreciate it, but I can't create any good lines.

This is where renga (a type of folk song) falls short of the tea ceremony.

Similarly, as a tool for the samurai class to cultivate their refined tastes, it was easy to pretend to know everything when attending a tea ceremony, as long as one didn't act as the tea master. However, at a renga (a type of classical Chinese poetry) gathering, everyone had to speak, making it impossible to simply pretend to know what was important.

In particular, the upper class of the Miyoshi family had an extremely high level of education. Miyoshi Nagayoshi himself and his third brother Atsuyasu were both included in the "Thirty-Six Poet Immortals Outside the Collection". If you performed poorly, you would inevitably look very embarrassed in comparison.

Therefore, Shinzaburo's plan was to personally receive the official rank of "Junior Fifth Rank, Lower Grade" to show respect to the central government, and then move to Sakai Town to make a brief appearance at the funeral of Kazutaka Sogawa.

Unexpectedly, on the very day I arrived in Kyoto, as usual, I stayed at Daitoku-ji Temple and was immediately given a formal interview.

The visitor was a retainer of both the shogunate and the Miyoshi family, the governor of Yukiyama Castle. He conveyed the message that Ashikaga Yoshiteru had summoned Kubo Yoshiaki to inquire about details of the San'in region, and that Miyoshi Yoshioki was already aware of this and had not objected.

Since that was the case, Shinzaburo naturally couldn't refuse, so the next day he quickly tidied himself up and went to the palace to pay his respects to the Shogun.

Inquiring about matters concerning San'in was indeed a reasonable reason. Ashikaga Yoshiteru had always been concerned about the political situation in distant provinces, and he was considering whether to change his attitude towards the Mori clan of Aki.

Later, Yoshiaki Miyoshi might ask the same question.

Throughout the journey, Shinzaburo prepared his speech in his mind.

Unexpectedly, upon meeting the shogun and exchanging pleasantries, Ashikaga Yoshiteru's first question was not about the situation in San'in, but rather: "What is Kubo Sado's opinion on Hosokawa Hyobu (Fujitaka)?"

Shinzaburo was taken aback when he heard this.

Hosokawa was a prominent surname during the Muromachi period, and there were many high-ranking samurai with this surname. Among them, quite a few used "Hyōbu" as their official title. Without context, one would not know who they were referring to.

Then Ashikaga Yoshiteru emphasized: "What I am referring to is the Hosokawa Hyobu Daifu, a junior fifth-rank official of the Shogunate."

Shinzaburo then understood that the words referred to Hosokawa Fujitaka.

I had already heard that Hosokawa Fujitaka was marginalized within the shogunate because of his elder brother's position.

only……

Is it appropriate to ask an outsider this question?

259 Ashikaga Yoshiteru makes empty promises

Why did Ashikaga Yoshiteru suddenly ask Hosokawa Fujitaka?

Shinzaburo couldn't understand it for a moment.

Why would you ask an outsider about your own brother?

Hosokawa Fujitaka was born into a prominent and influential family, and later became a member of the Hosokawa clan, a branch of the ruling family. At a young age, he rose to a high position and became an important official in the shogunate.

(Incidentally, it is now generally accepted that the above account is a work from the Edo period. He was more likely a descendant of the Ohara family, a branch of the Sasaki clan, whose great-grandfather obtained the Hosokawa family name, the method of which is unknown. We will not delve into that in our novel.)