I formed the strongest swordsman group.

Chapter 756: Life as a Daimyo Starting from Scratch! [4300]

In the third year of Wenjiu (1863), early morning on February 9th——

Qinjin Domain, Otsu——

The sky is clear and the autumn air is crisp.

Although the surrounding scenery is still lush and green, there is indeed a sense of seasonal change, and the air is filled with the unique and refreshing smell of autumn.

The misty morning light flows across the fields, floating like settled dewdrops.

Qingdeng and his group strolled among the compacted ridges of the fields.

"Moo~moo~moo~moo~moo~"

Radish wagged its tail and made happy noises.

It has been a long time since it took a leisurely walk in the wild like today.

Five days have passed since receiving the order from Tokugawa Iemochi.

It was not until today that Qing Deng finally squeezed out the time to see his fiefdom with his own eyes.

This was a small-scale patrol operation that would return to Kyoto before dark.

For this reason, the entourage was very small, consisting of only Mai Kinoshita, Yataro Iwasaki, Keisuke Yamanami, and a few guards.

I saw the guard behind Qing Deng carrying a huge flag that was fluttering in the wind.

Judging from the condition of the fabric, it is not difficult to tell that this is a newly completed flag.

The flag with a white background is extremely neat, with only one thing embroidered on it - gentian leaves with elegant lines!
Gentian leaf is the family crest of Qingdeng.

Qingdeng is already the lord of Qinjin Domain, so it is only natural that gentian leaves should be used as the new symbol and emblem of this land.

"Kei-suke, how far is it to Otsu Castle?"

Qing Deng turned his head and asked Shannan Keisuke beside him.

Shannan Jingzhu looked at the surrounding scenery and answered:

"About 10 cho to go."

【Note: 1 cho = 109 meters】

Qing Deng nodded:

"Well, we're almost there."

The destination of their trip was Otsu Castle, the domain government.

On the way to Otsu Castle, they looked left and right, just like a group of tourists out for sightseeing.

Including Qing Deng, it was the first time for them to set foot on this land.

They had only briefly glanced at the beautiful scenery here when passing by.

Suddenly, Kinoshita Mai shouted excitedly:
"Qing Deng, look! It's Lake Biwa!"

As she spoke, she pointed to the east.

Qing Deng looked in the direction of the sound—the rippling waves filled his vision.

The vast lake surface reflects the sunlight majestically.

Even if you look far away, you can't see the edge of the lake. At first glance, you might think it's the sea.

Thin clouds float at the end of the lake, as if merging with the lake surface.

Even the most skilled painter would find it difficult to reproduce this beautiful scenery on canvas.

Iwasaki Yataro raised his eyebrows and praised:
"As expected of Japan's largest lake! It's really beautiful!"

Shannan Jingsuke nodded and agreed:
“Just seeing this stunning scenery is worth the trip!”

Kinoshita Mai blinked her beautiful eyes a few times, then said thoughtfully:

"Lake Biwa is a treasure trove. If we manage it well... we should be able to make a lot of money!"

After hearing this, Qing Deng couldn't help but burst out laughing, and said half-jokingly:
"It's not difficult to make money from Lake Biwa. But it's still a bit difficult to make a lot of money from it."

There is no concept of "tourism" in Japan at present.

In order to develop tourism, the following four conditions must be met:
First, it has high-quality tourism resources.

Second, comfortable accommodation environment.

Third, people have both free time and money.

Fourth, convenient transportation conditions.

To sum up, developing tourism in the feudal era was really wishful thinking.

The first two points are easy to achieve, as tourist resources are not difficult to find and there is no shortage of comfortable accommodation, but the last two points are really difficult to achieve.

How can ordinary people who are struggling to make ends meet have the spare money and time to travel?
There are no planes, no high-speed trains, only primitive walking and cycling.

It is common to spend ten days or half a month on the road when going to a place that is a little far away.

How can ordinary people afford such consumption?
Moreover, there is a possibility of encountering bandits and robbers along the way, and in the end you may lose both your money and your life.

Only those wealthy people can afford to travel.

So, just as Qing Deng joked just now, it is indeed possible to develop tourism by relying on Lake Biwa, and it is certain that money can be made.

But expecting to make a fortune from this is undoubtedly a fantasy.

……

……

Qing Deng and others moved forward silently.

After a while, the scenery on both sides of the ridges began to change.

Looking around, there are rice fields like a chessboard, interspersed with uniquely shaped scarecrows, connecting to the villages in the distance.

It is autumn now and the rice has begun to mature and produce plump ears.

Looking at the rice fields that were gradually turning golden, Iwasaki Yataro, who came from a poor family, was overjoyed:

"Good! It looks like we will have a good harvest this year!"

Since there are rice fields, there must be farmers.

Figures of people working meticulously with their backs to the sky and facing the earth can be seen everywhere in the fields.

The sounds of hoeing the ground, "clang", "clang", "clang", came one after another.

The sudden arrival of Qing Deng and others naturally aroused the curiosity of the farmers.

They all stopped what they were doing and cast confused glances at Qing Deng and the others.

"Hey, look, someone's coming."

"Who are they?"

"I don't know, maybe they are tourists who come to see Lake Biwa."

"Look, they don't look like ordinary people."

"Why is that man riding a cow?"

"This is the first time I've seen a nobleman riding a bull..."

"You don't understand this! Noblemen are all like this, always doing strange things. Back then, Confucius rode a yellow ox and went south to Shanhaiguan to preach!"

……

The farmers were talking and chattering.

The focus of their discussion was naturally Qing Deng, who was walking in the front, riding a big black bull and was particularly conspicuous.

Unlike cities, rural areas lack media channels and are cut off from information.

Therefore, it is understandable that they did not recognize Qing Deng.

They may not know until now that they are no longer the people of Tianling.

From 5 days ago, they had a new identity: the people of Qinjin Fan!

The inspection of Otsu started just now.

Qing Deng moved his eyes around and looked at the farmland in Otsu seriously.

Otsu is indeed a blessed land with abundant resources.

The endless rice fields alone are enough to make countless farmers envious.

Seeing Qing Deng observing the rice fields, Iwasaki Yataro took out a scroll from his arms with great insight, spread it out, and cleared his throat:
"Mr. Ju, I have completed the task you assigned me. Now please allow me to report to you!"

Four days ago, Qing Deng urgently summoned Yataro Iwasaki and gave him an important task - to count and organize Otsu's specialties.

It is obvious that Qingdeng is preparing to vigorously develop the economy, so he ordered Iwasaki Yataro to conduct a preliminary survey.

Knowing that he had a heavy responsibility, Iwasaki Yataro agreed without hesitation on the spot. He then demonstrated his extraordinary ability to take action and quickly investigated the industrial situation in Otsu thoroughly.

Qing Deng nodded slightly and said "Yeah."

Iwasaki Yataro immediately looked down at the scroll in his hand and said word by word: "Otsu's traditional industries include Otsu painting, Otsu abacus, Matsumoto tiles, Zensho-yaki, Konan-yaki, yuba, crucian carp sushi, salty lake fish, Seta clams, edible chrysanthemums, and Zensho-cha."

"Among them, porcelain and tea... namely, Matsumoto tiles and Zensho tea, are Otsu's most famous and most profitable products."

"Tea, in particular, is the mainstay of Otsu's economy."

"When the black ships arrived, the shogunate supplied Matthew Perry with Otsu's tea on board."

"The refreshing taste of Zensho tea deeply attracted Matthew Perry."

"Since then, Sansho tea has been favored by Americans and has become the number one export product to the United States."

"Before this, the shogunate had not been able to expand the export scale of zensho-cha due to limited energy and financial resources."

Having said this, Iwasaki Yataro paused.

When he spoke again, his eyes were filled with excitement and he looked eager to try.

"Mr. Ju, to be honest, I already have a huge business plan in my mind!"

"Otsu is adjacent to Osaka, which is an important foreign port."

"As long as there are no unexpected circumstances such as extreme weather, you can travel back and forth between Otsu and Osaka within three days."

"Therefore, if we want to develop foreign trade, it is very easy!"

"Westerners have a special liking for tea, and selling tea to the West is a big business that is sure to make money!"

"As long as we manage it properly, we can increase the current export volume of Shansuo Tea several times!"

"By then, even according to the most conservative estimates, we will be able to earn tens of thousands of dollars in revenue every year!"

Iwasaki Yataro's words caused the other people present to look surprised.

Tens of thousands of dollars in income...this is too tempting!

The total annual income of most vassal states was probably less than 5 taels of gold.

Otsu could earn tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of taels of gold from tea alone...

Such huge profits are enough to make countless daimyos jealous - Otsu is too rich!

When Yataro Iwasaki was speaking, Qing Deng listened attentively throughout and did not interrupt.

Only after the other party finished speaking did he smile bitterly and say:

"Yatarou, your plan is great."

"But... there is a problem."

"Where are we going to get the money to 'expand tea exports'?"

After hearing this, Iwasaki Yataro was stunned.

After a while, he sighed heavily, and the excitement on his face disappeared, turning into a melancholy and helpless expression.

"Mr. Ju, this is exactly the problem that bothers me the most right now..."

……

……

After a while, Qing Deng and others gradually left the farmland behind.

Instead, a vast city slowly unfolded before their eyes.

It is the castle town of Otsu Castle!
There are thousands of tiles on the roof and curls of smoke from cooking.

The streets are crisscrossed and there are many pedestrians.

In a nutshell - this is a lively town full of vitality.

Qing Deng and others walked onto the street and unsurprisingly became the focus of the crowd again.

The townspeople made way for them one after another and crowded on the side of the street, looking at Qing Deng and the others in confusion.

Just like the farmers just now, the townspeople at the scene also felt that Qing Deng was unfamiliar and did not recognize him.

Of course, this situation didn't last long.

After all, cities are cities and towns, and they are not as isolated as rural areas.

Soon, a shout was heard from the crowd:
"Ah! I figured it out! He is 'Niou' Tachibana Aoto!"

"Tachibana Aoto? Really?!"

"So he is our new lord?"

……

Amid the commotion, no one knew who took the lead, but everyone suddenly lowered their bodies and knelt on the ground.

Then, as if a chain reaction had started, the townspeople on both sides of the street knelt down one after another, like leeks being cut.

The street, which was very noisy just now, became unusually quiet at this moment.

No one spoke, and no one dared to look up at Qing Deng.

The princes should not be looked at straight in the eye, and the emperor should not be looked up at - this is one of the important etiquettes of Japan.

What it means is that common people cannot look at the princes with equal eyes, but must kneel on the ground, that is, look up.

The emperor was not allowed to even look up; he had to kneel on the ground and turn around.

Of course, ordinary people don’t have the opportunity to see the emperor on normal days.

The Emperor is Japan's number one shut-in. He will not leave the Imperial Palace unless it is necessary.

Qing Deng is no longer an ordinary samurai, but a real daimyo.

That being the case, the lively scene he used to experience, where "as soon as he went out, many people would run to greet him," no longer existed.

From now on, all he would see would be quiet streets and bodies kneeling on the ground.

"It's so shocking..."

Kinoshita Mai murmured.

Although Yamanami Keisuke, Iwasaki Yataro and others did not respond, judging from their expressions, they were also shocked by the scene before them.

In just a few seconds, countless people on the street knelt on the ground... For those who saw this scene for the first time, it was indeed difficult to adapt in a short period of time.

It is worth mentioning that Qing Deng did not look surprised or at a loss like Kinoshita Mai and others at this time.

"..."

He looked to the left, to the right, and then to the people kneeling on the ground. He said nothing, lowered his eyelids, pursed his lips, and his face showed no sadness or joy - it was difficult to guess what he was thinking at the moment.

……

……

Although Ozu Town was a prosperous town, its area could not be compared with large town areas such as Edo and Kyoto.

Therefore, it didn't take long before Qing Deng and others arrived at the center of Ozu Town and reached their destination - Otsu Castle.

"Mr. Tachibana, that's Otsu Castle."

Iwasaki Yataro pointed forward.

Qing Deng looked up and then half-jokingly said:

"What a shabby city."

As soon as these words were spoken, the others laughed out loud.

In reality, Qing Deng's ridicule is very accurate - Otsu City has long been reduced to ruins.

Otsu Castle is an ancient castle with a long history that dates back to the Asuka period (592-710) and was built by Emperor Tenji (626-672).

In 667, Emperor Tenji built Otsu-kyo.

In 1586, Toyotomi Hideyoshi built Otsu Castle.

1600: Otsu Castle was burned down during the Battle of Sekigahara.

From then on, only some blackened, charred stone foundations remained.

Shannan Jingzhu, who has always loved ancient buildings, chanted with mixed feelings:

"It is sad that the palaces of the Qin and Han dynasties have all turned to dust."

Qingden shrugged:

"It's made of soil... That's good! It will help us build a bigger and better city!"

At this point, Qing Deng suddenly raised his voice:

"I'm going to build a bastion here!"

*******
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A new volume has been opened!

I don’t know what happened, but Leopard had severe insomnia last night... I felt dazed the whole day today and had a severe headache, so I was not in good condition today and wrote fewer words.

Leopard will try to update more tomorrow! (crying leopard head.jpg)