"The Ezo people in the Red Moon Fortress are extremely xenophobic," the old man continued. "They hate having anything to do with Hisam."
"Hisam?" asked Ating.
"It's the Ainu language," the old man said. "The Ainu people call all foreigners 'Hisam'."
"You actually know Ainu?" Ogata raised his eyebrows slightly in surprise.
"I only know a few simple words." The old man shrugged. "I learned it from a group of merchants who stayed here and specialized in doing business with the Ezo people."
"In short, when you two guests arrive in Ezo, be careful of the Red Moon Fortress. The Ezo people there are not very welcoming to foreigners."
"It is said that the shogunate has tried to persuade the Ezo people of Red Moon Fortress to surrender many times, but the Ezo people of Red Moon Fortress have always ignored the shogunate's surrender and have always maintained their independence."
"Although I heard that the Ainu in the Red Moon Fortress are not so xenophobic that they would kill foreigners on sight, it is still better not to get close to them if possible."
"I see." Ogata nodded gently, "Thank you for your reminder. We will pay attention to it next time."
"There's one thing I don't quite understand." At this time, Atachi suddenly interrupted, "You just said that the Ezo people in that place have a large number of iron cannons, right?"
"This is very strange. As far as I know, aren't the Ainu still a group of uncivilized barbarians? How can they have the ability to make iron cannons?"
"I don't know about that." The old man smiled bitterly and shook his head. "Maybe someone sold it to them."
After saying that, the old man raised his hand and made a "please" gesture towards Ogata and Atachi.
"I'm sorry, I seem to have said too much and disturbed your meal. "
"You two, please enjoy your meal."
I have asked all the questions I wanted to ask.
Ogata happened to be hungry now.
I was so busy asking the old man questions that I didn't have time to take a good look at the "Mutsu specialties" he mentioned.
After the old man made a "please" gesture to them, Ogata looked down.
The food on his and Ating's tables was the same.
A bowl, a larger plate, and a smaller plate.
The bowl was filled with noodles.
The larger plate contained four fish patties that were shaped like leaves.
As for the smaller plate, there were 3 green mochi inside.
"This noodle is called 'Wanko Soba'," the old man introduced to Ogata and Atachi, "The fish cake is called 'Bamboo Fish Cake', and the green mochi is called 'Edamame Mochi'."
This was Ogata's first time to come into contact with the local food of the Ou region. Looking at the three kinds of food in front of him that he had never eaten before, he couldn't help but feel curious and expectant.
He clasped his hands together, muttered "I'm eating", picked up the chopsticks, and then held up the bowl of noodles.
Use chopsticks to scoop up a handful of noodles and put them into your mouth, then bite them off with your teeth.
The name of this dish already reveals what kind of noodles it is - it is a very popular food in this era: soba noodles.
But the bowl of soba noodles in his hand at this moment tasted different from any soba noodles Ogata had eaten before.
The bowl of "Wanko Soba" in his hand had an incredible texture, very chewy. The soft and sticky noodles had just the right amount of saltiness, which suited Ogata's appetite.
After tasting a mouthful of noodles, Ogata picked up the piece of "Basaki Fish Plate".
As soon as I brought it to my nose, I smelled a faint fishy scent.
Just by taking a light bite, the aroma of the fish spreads in the mouth, and the unpleasant fishy smell never appears.
At this time, Ating, who was standing by, was also tasting the "Bamboo Leaf Fish Plate".
A-Ming seemed to like this food very much. As soon as she put the "bamboo leaf fish plate" into her mouth, her eyes immediately lit up with joy.
"Are these fish patties made of cod?" asked Ating.
"Yes. It is cod." The old man responded immediately, "First, knead the cod meat into the shape of bamboo leaves, then bake it over the fire, and add wine, sugar and other seasonings to season it."
"Sir, your tongue is very powerful. You can actually taste that this is cod meat."
"Yeah. Because I prefer eating fish." Because his mouth was full of the "bamboo leaf fish cake", Ating spoke a little unclearly.
At this time, Ogata was tasting the "edamame mochi".
The name of this "edamame mochi" tells you what kind of dish it is: mochi stuffed with edamame.
It's sweet, which is quite to Ogata's taste.
"Then - I will take my leave first." The old man bowed to Ogata and A-Machi, "Please enjoy your meal slowly, gentlemen."
…
…
After the old man left, the only sounds left in the room were Ogata and Atachi's chewing and the sound of chopsticks colliding with dishes.
The only background music was the howling of wind and snow outside the window.
"It seems like we are the only two staying here tonight..." Ating muttered.
Since entering "Shindenjuku", Ogata and Atachi have been paying attention to their surroundings.
They found that the new inn was just as the old man had said before - there were only two guests tonight.
From the time they entered Shinden-juku until now, Ogata and Atachi had only seen some inn staff headed by an old man, and no other guests besides themselves.
"Isn't it natural that there are few customers?" Ogata sighed softly, "The security in this area is so bad that travelers and small-scale caravans must stay away from this place."
Before this, Ogata had heard a lot of information related to the Ou region.
For example: Although the Ou region is large, more than 70% of its land is mountainous, and there are not many places suitable for living.
Therefore, although the Ou region is vast, its population is not large.
Another example: The Ou area is in chaos right now, with criminals everywhere.
It was not until he set foot in the Mutsu region a few days ago that Ogata truly felt how chaotic this land was.
There are endless bandits who commit murder for money.
These bandits who make a living by robbing are basically a bunch of gamblers - they bet that the person they are robbing is an easy target.
As long as you can grab a soft persimmon who is both rich and easy to bully, you will make a lot of money.
On the other hand, if you rob a tough guy who is difficult to deal with... if you are lucky, you may be able to escape, but if you are unlucky, you will have to meet the King of Hell.
The gangsters who have been causing trouble for Ogata these days are the kind whose luck has run out.
Actually, we can’t blame them for seeking death.
After all, in this era when martial arts are in decline and most samurai are either indulging in pleasure or struggling to survive, how many samurai can have the strength to fight against many enemies alone?
Ogata was alone, and had such a beautiful woman by his side - it was hard to prevent the gangsters from having bad intentions.
Since entering the Mutsu region, Ogata has dealt with several groups of robbers of varying sizes.
After getting rid of one group of gangsters, a new group of gangsters would pop up before they had gone far.
Ogata didn't know much about the Ou area, so he didn't know why there were so many bandits.
How could any travelers or small-scale caravans dare to come to a place full of bandits?
I’m afraid even the locals don’t dare to travel far.
…
…
Because this was the first hot meal they had eaten in the past two days, both Ogata and Atachi cherished this meal tonight.
With a leisurely mood, I ate all the delicious food tonight.
In such an ancient society, the nights were always very boring.
There is no TV to watch and no video games to play.
In those big cities and towns, if you have money, you can still find some things to pass the time.
But in this inn with nothing around except snow, there was nothing else to do except go to bed immediately.
Ogata and Omachi started eating dinner at around 18:00 and finished around 18:30.
After a brief rest, Oufang pulled out a quilt and made the bed at around 7 p.m.
…
…
Ogata and Atachi went to bed at 7 p.m.
It was not until nearly 11pm that they both fell asleep.
…
…
Since they didn't have to sleep outdoors tonight, both Ogata and Atachi slept soundly.
I didn’t have any dreams and didn’t wake up in the middle of the night. I slept until 7 o’clock the next day.
After waking up, Ogata and Atachi simply washed up and ate some dry food for breakfast, then prepared to leave Shindenjuku and continue their journey.
Their goal today is to reach the "Kinno-cho" that the old man told them about last night before evening.
When Ogata and Atachi were getting ready to leave in front of the gate of Shinda-juku, the old man came in person to see them off.
"My two guests, I wish you a safe journey." The old man smiled at Ogata and Atachi.
"Yes." Ogata also smiled and said, "I'll give you good luck."
"In addition to wishing you a safe journey, I also wish you peace."
Having said that, the old man suddenly let out a long sigh.
"Lately, things are getting more and more unsettled in Mutsu... There are more and more ronin committing crimes."
"As you two gentlemen can see, you two were the only ones staying here last night."
A self-deprecating smile appeared on the old man's face.
"We have a bad reputation here. Not many travelers are willing to pass through here."
"Even the warriors who are training as warriors stay away from us."
"Right now, the only safe places in the entire Ou region are probably castle towns and post houses built by the shogunate like Shindenjuku."
The old man pointed his finger at the ground below.
"Those thieves who make a living by committing crimes don't have the courage to approach the castle town or the post station built by the shogunate."
"So if you two want to stay overnight, please stay at an inn like ours built by the shogunate, as you did last night."
"It is safer to stay at an inn built by the shogunate than at an inn built by a private person."
"Yes." Ogata silently took note of the old man's advice, "Thank you for your reminder."
"Why is Northeast China so chaotic?" A-Machi couldn't hold back her curiosity and asked a question that had always puzzled her and Ogata.
"Because we are poor." The old man smiled bitterly and shrugged, "Mutsu and Dewa have never been rich."
"Most of the land is mountainous and the climate is cold, so crops don't grow well in most places. Only a small area can be called fertile."
"Although we are poor, we can still get by when times are good enough."
"But things like the situation can't always be good..."
"The 'Tianming Famine' seven years ago tortured the people of Oshu badly..."
"The reason why our Oba is in such a mess now is all because of the 'Tianming famine' seven years ago."
After hearing the words "dawn famine" from the old man, Ogata and Atachi's faces changed.
Famine at dawn - this word is an extremely heavy word for people of this era.
It can all be described as talking about tigers with paleness.
Ogata had not experienced the Tenmei Famine. When he traveled to this era last year, the Tenmei Famine had already ended for two years.
However - although he had not experienced it, he had always heard about this horrible famine from many people.
"In the 'Tenmei famine' seven years ago, our Ou region was the hardest hit."
"I witnessed this disaster which lasted for four years..."
The old man's face gradually turned pale.
It was like recalling some bad memories.
"After the disaster, neither the shogunate nor the various domains of Oshu were able to cope with the famine and feed so many people."
"The government of most of the feudal states was basically paralyzed and unable to help the starving victims."
"In order to survive, a large number of farmers have become displaced refugees."
"From what I know, the small Hirosaki Domain alone lost nearly half of its population."
"Before the Tenmei famine, Hirosaki Domain had a population of 130,000. After the Tenmei famine, only 70,000 people were left."
"The missing half of the population either fled to other places or starved to death."
"When the 'Tianming Famine' began, many middle and lower-level warriors turned to banditry in order to survive."
"The bandits that are wreaking havoc in Oshu and causing unrest in Oshu are basically low- and middle-ranking samurai who turned to banditry in order to have enough food after the Tenmei Famine broke out, or they are peasants who fled."
"I really hope that the shogunate and the Oshu clans can quickly wipe out these hateful bandits."
The old man let out a long sigh.
"The 'Dawn Famine' ended three years ago."
"We are gradually able to enjoy local delicacies such as Wanko soba and sabi fish cake again."
"Next, as long as we kill all these damned bandits, we in Ou can return to the peace we had before the 'Tianming Famine' broke out."
At this point, the corners of the old man's mouth curled up slightly.
The pupils of his eyes flashed with nostalgia, and he stared blankly ahead.
He looked like he was looking into the past.
It also seems like looking at a beautiful future not far from now.
…
…
The weather is very nice today.
The sun, casting soft sunlight on the earth, hangs high above the blue sky.
The loose white clouds like cotton make the already weak sunlight even softer, and are often accompanied by a breeze that is not cold. The treetops covered with snow then shake their waists obediently to shake off the snow on the treetops.
With such good weather, it is hard to imagine that there was such a terrible snowstorm last night.
Such nice weather made Ogata involuntarily take a deep breath of the fresh air.
Just now in the hotel... to be more precise, in front of outsiders led by the old man, Ogata had been wearing the human skin mask that concealed his identity and transformed himself into "Mashima Goro".
After leaving the hotel and returning to the deserted wilderness, Osamu took off the human skin mask, revealing his true face.
The breeze blowing on my real face feels quite comfortable.
Ogata and Atachi moved their feet in deerskin boots, making one squeaking sound after another on the snow-covered road.
The pair of deerskin boots they were wearing were purchased a few days ago from a clothing store that sold Ezo clothing when they were passing through a small town.
According to the owner of the shop, the pair of deerskin boots the two bought were genuine Yezo products, and the Yezo people usually wore this kind of boots.
Ogata didn't know whether these boots were from Yezo or not.
But these deerskin boots are really useful.
Wearing it on the snow, you won't feel cold at all. It is simply the "snow walking artifact" of this era.
As Ogata and Omachi were walking forward on the snow with their crutches , Omachi suddenly sighed softly:
"Although the 'Tianming Famine' has been over for three years, the subsequent impact of this famine has not stopped until modern times..."
The two of them just listened quietly to the old man's explanation of the reasons why the Ou region is in such chaos now, then said goodbye to the old man and set out on their journey again.
Although the two had walked to an area where they could no longer see any trace of Shindenjuku, the words the old man had just said still lingered in Atachi's mind and could not be erased.
"I have a deep impression of 'Famine at Dawn'..."
A-Ming let out a long breath, a look of reminiscence appearing on his face.
"I remember it very clearly..."
"During that time, I couldn't eat enough at every meal..."
"Because Kansai was less affected, a large number of refugees poured into Kansai."
"After the refugees came, our Kansai became chaotic."
"Although I haven't seen it with my own eyes, I heard that during that period a large number of refugees attacked rice shops to steal rice, or directly attacked the magistrate's office or the feudal government, demanding that officials hand over the rice..."
After saying that, Ating let out another long breath and forced a faint smile.
"Fortunately, this famine is over."
"People can now have enough food to eat again."
"Everyone is gradually living a good life again."
As soon as A-Ming finished speaking, Oufang smiled faintly, and then said softly in a calm tone:
"A good day..."
"Once everyone has enough food to eat, new troubles will emerge."
“After a good meal, I want to put on nicer clothes.”
“After I had better clothes, I wanted a bigger house.”
“When you move into a bigger house, you want better food.”
"After eating better food, I want to wear better clothes..."
"Things like 'being content' are easier said than done."
"Nowadays, everyone thinks that a life where you have enough food to eat is a 'good life'."
"But once everyone can easily get enough food, they will start to think that a life with enough food, good clothes and a big house is a 'good life'."
"So the 'good days' may never come..."
"Thousands of years later, ordinary people may still be working hard to pursue the 'good days' of that era."
"As expected of you who topped the Imperial Examination..." Atachi stared at Ogata beside him in amazement, "What you say is different from an illiterate like me who can't even recognize a few Chinese characters."
"Although I don't quite understand what you just said, I always feel that what you said is very powerful..."
"It doesn't matter if you don't understand." Ogata smiled and shrugged, "Just treat what I just said as the crazy talk of a madman."
…
…
Last night, the old man told Ogata and Atachi that if they walked fast enough, they could reach Kinno-cho before dusk.
Ogata and Atachi just happened to be the type of people who were fast on their feet.
Except for a short break in the morning, noon and afternoon, the two of them kept rushing towards Kinno Town.
It was not until 3:00 p.m. or 4:00 p.m. that the two finally saw wisps of smoke on the horizon ahead.
After seeing the smoke from the cooking stove, the two of them felt a little stronger and quickened their pace a little.
At the same time, Ogata put on the human skin mask again.
As they approached and entered Kinno-cho, the long-unseen bustling sounds unique to the town reached the ears of Ogata and Omachi.
Perhaps because it was close to the city town, Ogata did not encounter any criminals who intended to rob him and kill him throughout the day.
Kinno-cho was larger than Ogata had imagined, and had a larger population than Ogata had imagined.
He and Ating were now walking on an unknown street. Looking around, they saw quite a lot of passers-by walking back and forth.
"Should we find a hotel first?" asked Ating.
"Of course." Ogata answered without hesitation, "First find a hotel to stay in, and then go look for the 'Genjuya'."
Ogata asked a passerby and found out where the nearest hotel was.
This hotel, which is closest to Ogata and A-machi, is an ordinary hotel with only two floors, and is average in both size and price.
After looking at the hotel rooms and finding that the quality was quite good, the two of them booked a double room.
After finding a hotel to stay in, the two began to look for Minamoto no Tachibana.
Gentachibana seems to be very popular in this Nishikino-cho.
Ogata asked someone at random and found out the location of Minamoto Tachibana's house, then quickly arrived at the door of Minamoto Tachibana's house.
A merchant who can own two merchant ships must have a shop that is not shabby.
Ogata had imagined that the Minamoto Tachibana house would be very grand.
After seeing the appearance of Minamoto Tachibana's house with his own eyes, Ogata discovered that it was indeed true.
Genjuya is three stories high and covers a large area. It is one of the most magnificent shops Ogata has ever seen.
When Ogata and A-machi stepped into Genju-ya, they saw a young man sitting behind a counter right in front of them.
When the young man saw Ogata and Atachi entering the store, he immediately stood up and put on a gentle smile.
"Welcome, what can you do for us? We specialize in selling Yezo goods at Genjuya. We have all kinds of Yezo goods. Please feel free to choose."
Ogata walked slowly to the counter and began to negotiate with the young man standing behind it.
"What?" The young man frowned slightly, "You want to meet the owner of our Yuanjuya?"
"Yes." Ogata nodded, "We have a business... that we want to do with Minamoto Tachibana."
"Business?" The young man raised his eyebrows.
After a moment of silence, the young man spoke:
"Unfortunately, we can't just let two outsiders go to meet the boss."
"If you have anything to say, you can talk to me directly."
"I am the eldest son of the Dong family - Ichiro Nishino."
"I can relay your words to my father later."
Ogata didn't expect that the man sitting behind the counter watching over the store was actually the young master of this Genjuya , and a look of surprise flashed across his face.
After thinking for a moment, Obe told him the business he wanted to discuss with Minamoto Tachibana.
"...In other words, you want to take our merchant ship to Ezo?" Ichiro Nishino's brows, which had just relaxed, frowned again.
"Yes." Ogata nodded. "We want to go to Ezo for some matters, so we would like to ask your merchant ship to give us a ride."
As soon as Ogata finished speaking, Nishino Ichiro immediately bowed to Ogata and Atachi and apologized:
"I'm sorry, but we can't take you to Ezo."
Ogata: “The price is negotiable…”
"This is not a question of price." Nishino Ichiro interrupted, "Our two merchant ships are the life of our Minamoto Tachibana."
"You can't just let outsiders get on it."
"Please rest assured." Ogata said immediately, "My wife and I are not bad people! We will definitely behave ourselves! We will never bring any trouble to you!"
Although Ogata tried his best to prove that he and Atachi would not cause them any trouble, Ichiro Nishino was quite determined and remained unmoved.
Seeing that he was unable to convince Ichiro Nishino, Ogata could only let out a helpless sigh.
"I see." Ogata smiled bitterly and bowed slightly to Nishino Ichiro, "Sorry to bother you."
And Ichiro Nishino quickly returned the greeting: "I'm very sorry that I couldn't help you."
…
…
Ogata and Atachi walked out of the Minamoto house slowly.
As soon as they left the Tachibana House, Atachi said in a helpless tone:
"It was a bad start... The first time we asked a merchant to give us a ride, we were rejected."
"It's normal to be rejected." Ogata comforted Atachi, "After all, what the man just said is very right. Merchant ships are such expensive things. They can be said to be the life of these merchants who specialize in doing business with Ezo."
"Why would they let outsiders like us who don't know the details get on board so easily?"
Because Ogata had already expected that the "ride on the wind" would not be very smooth, he was not too depressed now.
"Anyway, let's rest in this Kinno-cho tonight."
Ogata continued.
"Leave here tomorrow morning and look for other merchants with trading ships."
…
…
Ogata and Atachi had just left——
Inside the Yuanju House——
"Brother, what are those two guests here for? Are they here to ask for directions?"
A young male voice came from the corridor behind the counter.
Then, a young man who looked somewhat similar to Ichiro Nishino walked out from the back of the corridor and slowly came to Ichiro Nishino.
"Oh, it's Jiro." Nishino Ichiro smiled, "The two foreign guests just now wanted to go to Ezo, so they wanted our merchant ship to give them a ride."
"Guests from other places? Borrowing our merchant ship?" The young man called "Erlang"'s eyes lit up a little, "Where are those two guests from?"
"I don't know. I haven't had much contact with outsiders, so I can't tell where their accents are from."
"Brother, do you remember what those two guests looked like?"
"Hmm? Why are you asking that?"
"It was a man and a woman." Although he didn't know what his brother wanted to do, Ichiro answered honestly, "The man was quite tall, with long hair, and was a samurai, with a katana and wakizashi on his waist."
"As for that woman, she is very beautiful, and she has a wakizashi on her waist."
"Brother! Thank you very much! I'll be out for a while! I'll be back soon!"
After saying this, without waiting for Ichiro Nishino to respond, the young man he called "Jiro" rushed out of the Gentachibana house.
When Ichiro Nishino shouted "Hey! Where are you going?", the young man had already disappeared.
…
…
"Hello! Hello!"
Ogata and Atachi suddenly heard a strange voice calling from behind them.
Following the sound, they looked back and saw a young man waving at them and running towards them quickly.
After running quickly to Ogata and A-Machi, the young man asked them while panting:
"Ha...you two...ha...are the ones who just now...ha...came to our Yuanju house...ha...to borrow a boat, right?" the young man asked while panting.
Ah-Ming nodded: "Yes. May I ask who you are?"
"I want to ask you something!" The young man ignored Ah-Ming's question about his identity, and instead cast his fiery gaze at Ogata and Ah-Ming, and asked anxiously, "Where are you from?"
"Why are you asking this?" Ogata frowned slightly.
"To be honest." The young man gradually adjusted his breathing, "I am the second son of the owner of Minamoto Tachibana - Jiro Nishino!"
"Second son?" Ogata raised his eyebrows.
After carefully looking at the face of the young man in front of him, Ogata found that the young man's facial features were indeed very similar to the "Ichiro Nishino" he had just seen.
“Although I am the son of a businessman, I actually have no intention of doing business.”
“I’ve always wanted to be a Kabuki playwright!”
"I am currently writing a masterpiece that will go down in history!"
"But I had no material. I couldn't write smoothly."
"So now I'm in urgent need of someone from Izumo to help me finish my script!"
After saying this, Jiro Nishino once again directed his fiery gaze towards Ogata and Atachi.
"So I want to know where you two are from! If any of you are from Izumo, please help me!"
"Izumo?" A strange smile appeared on Atachi's face.
He raised his hand and patted Ogata's back, then said:
"What a coincidence! My husband's hometown is right in Izumo."
As soon as A-machi finished speaking, Jiro Nishino's gaze towards Ogata became even more passionate.
"Are you from Izumo?"
"Yes, I am indeed from Izumo. What kind of script are you writing now?" Ogata crossed his arms over his chest, "You actually need someone from Izumo to assist you?"
"Because the main character of the Kabuki play I'm writing now is from Izumo." Jiro Nishino scratched his hair, "But I've never been to Izumo, so I don't know how people from Izumo speak, or what they eat on a daily basis."
"If I don't understand the living customs and speaking habits of Izumo, then the protagonist I created won't feel real."
"So I've always wanted to find someone from Izumo to teach me the customs and ways of life there, as well as the speaking habits of the Izumo people."
"The protagonist is from Izumo?" A look of surprise flashed across Ogata's face.
Not only Ogata, but also Atachi beside him had a look of surprise on his face.
A guess came to their minds at the same time...
"...May I ask you something?" Ogata said slowly, "Can you tell me what kind of Kabuki play you are writing?"
When Jiro Nishino heard Ogata's question, a look of satisfaction and pride appeared on his face.
"This is a script based on the heroic deeds of Ogata Issei, the 'Executioner Ittosai', who enforced justice on behalf of heaven and slew the tyrant!"
“I plan to have the script written before the New Year.”
"Then I'll give it to my kabuki friends and ask them to perform my play on New Year's Eve!"