Chapter 1314 A Transaction of One Hundred Kilograms of Gold, It Is Worth the Price!

"Hey! Ichiro, keep these four gold talismans well!...Hey! Don't wear them around your neck! Put them in the bamboo basket behind you. There are so many samurai in the family, relax, they won't get lost!..."

The sun has set, casting a golden and red sunset light. The samurai on both sides sat cross-legged on the ground to rest, eating simple dry food and water. Although they were still vigilant, the atmosphere had eased a lot.

After handing the gold talisman to his confidant, Mitsuhiro Kakizaki finally regained his composure. With a wave of his hand, several samurai took four craftsmen and handed them over to the opposite Shanta tribe. And sensing a bad outcome, some of the craftsmen burst into tears, some cried bitterly, and some looked numb, but it did not shake the samurai's determination at all.

After all, these craftsmen were recruited from the territory guarded by Matsumae in the name of "preparing for Shanta". They were not from the same hometown as these Kakizaki samurai. Even if they are from the same hometown, as long as they are not their family members, and the loyal family owner has made a decision, they will resolutely implement it!

In the country of this era, the compassion of the samurai will only be born for samurai of the same status, or for the more noble and impoverished samurai. As for the humble farmers and ordinary craftsmen, they are not within the scope of respect of the samurai. This is just like in Europe of this era, the knights' respect for women is limited to the noble mistresses of respected status! And facing women from civilian families, there is no need to maintain etiquette at all, which is not at all like the beautification of later generations...

"Respected Shanta Chief, please allow me to show you several other craftsmen with excellent skills!..."

Mitsui Mitsuhiro smiled sincerely and waved his hand again. Three more trembling craftsmen came up with their own tools. This time it was another combination of craftsmen. First, a leatherworker took out a piece of cowhide that had been shaped in advance, circled it into a bulging cowhide armor, and strung the joints with iron rings. Then, a sewing craftsman carefully sewed it with thick thread and simply put the leather armor together.

The process of making this kind of leather armor seems to be different from that of the nomadic tribes in the far north. Zuwaro watched with great interest, and this time he really understood it. Until the end, a lacquer craftsman came up and painted the leather armor with the cheapest brown lacquer. With the pungent smell, a leather armor in the style of a foot soldier was formed. And Zuwaro's eyes also changed from interest to confusion.

"Chief Wato, what is this last dye, black and sticky...?..."

Hearing this, Mitsuhiro Kakizaki raised his eyebrows, thinking. He looked at Zuwaro deeply and said with a smile.

"Buddha bless you! This is lacquer, which can be applied to leather armor and utensils to make them more durable! As for the color of the lacquer, as long as cinnabar is added, it can become a beautiful red. And this outstanding craftsman is a senior lacquer craftsman in Herendi, called Haruki Urushi!..."

"As for the other two, they are leather craftsman Ushio Jiro and tailor Zhiyi Langda. Although their skills are not bad, they are not as good as the level of lacquer craftsmen. They can only be regarded as ordinary craftsmen..."

"Lord God! Lacquer? Lacquer craftsmen?... This is a craftsman I have never heard of. Even in your majesty's prophecy, it is not mentioned! But it seems very important to be able to strengthen leather armor and tools! Well... The key is this black lacquer, I wonder where it comes from?..."

Zuwaro carefully looked at the leather armor in the hands of the craftsman, looking at the thick layer of lacquer on it, and his expression became serious. Obviously, he saw the military value of this "lacquer". Compared with this new leather armor coating, the chief of the Japanese people read the situation and described a "lacquer craftsman" who was probably very ordinary as a "senior craftsman"... This is not important.

Anyway, at most, it's just half a piece or at most a piece of gold talisman. What a big deal! He was even happy to give more, so that the Japanese chieftain would be busy and look for more craftsmen who had never existed in the kingdom or even heard of it!

"... Chief of the Japanese people, my Japanese friend. Where did this lacquer come from? Is it the black oil asphalt that comes out of the ground? Or is it the sap rubber that flows from the tree? But rubber doesn't turn black..."

"Huh?... The black oil that comes out of the ground? What is that?... Oh! My good friend Shanta, you are right! This lacquer is the sap that flows from the tree, which is white at first! But when these sap are left for a period of time, they naturally turn black..."

Mitsuiki Mitsuhiro smiled and nodded complacently. Obviously, he did not realize how important the "black oil" and "white glue" mentioned by the "Shan Tatar Chief" were. Zuvaro's eyes also lit up, and he realized that "lacquer" and "rubber" were not the same. He looked at Mitsuhiro Kakizaki and asked impatiently.

"Ha! My good friend! Do you have seeds of trees that produce lacquer? Since you gave me a lacquer craftsman, you can't not give me that "lacquer tree"!..."

"Ah this? Lacquer tree seeds?... Oh! Yes, there are very few lacquer trees in the north, and they will not grow in too cold. So this Shan Tatar chief has never seen a lacquer tree. So, it's probably useless for a lacquer craftsman to come to their tribe!..."

Mitsuhiro Kakizaki was stunned, and slapped his head in sudden realization. But he was very tight-lipped and did not tell the growth environment of the lacquer tree. He just smiled and nodded, and promised the "Shan Tatar Good Friend" that he would definitely bring some lacquer tree seeds next time. Then, he pointed at the three craftsmen with a smile and asked.

"My good Shantar friend! Are you satisfied with these three craftsmen?..."

"Well, it's okay! ... This painter is a bit interesting. I'll offer a gold charm, but it must include lacquer seeds! As for the cobbler and tailor, I'm always generous to my friends, so let's give them a gold charm for the price. !”

Zuvalo nodded reservedly. Then, he once again took out two shining gold charms from his arms and threw them heavily into Mitsuhiro Uizaki's hands.

Mitsuhiro Oyizaki held the golden talisman, his heart pounded for a while, and then he quickly threw the golden talisman to his confidant Kinichiro. He was afraid that he would lose his temper again in front of Chief Shantao, his elders, and his retainers. However, looking at the golden talismans that Zuvalo took out one after another, he was shocked to the point of numbness, even a little ecstatic, as if he was dreaming.

"Buddha! What is the origin of this Shantao tribe? In the mysterious and dangerous Far North Snowfield, are there really huge mountains of gold? Can there be such a wealthy Shantao tribe? Or maybe they are obviously processed The golden talisman is inherited from a once powerful force, is it the last branch left after the tree fell...for example, it was once extremely powerful..."

Mitsuhiro Oyezaki had a hunch that he was getting closer and closer to the unknown "truth" of all this. But the enthusiastic and generous "Chief Shantao" interrupted his thoughts again.

"Haha! Don't worry! You are all excellent craftsmen, and the tribe will treat you well!"

Zuvaro smiled with satisfaction as he watched the three Kazuto craftsmen with forlorn expressions board the kingdom's longship. Then, he still had more to say, pointed at the last few remaining craftsmen, and asked.

"My good friend Kazuto! What kind of craftsmen are these last few?..."

"Oh! This one is the mason Asawa Soichiro, with his two apprentices."

"Um...mason?...Those three people put together, I can only give you a gold charm."

"This?...Okay! For the sake of your best friends, a piece of gold talisman, please take them away!..."

Mitsuhiro Uizaki looked sad, but he was smiling in his heart. The so-called masons are relatively experienced construction workers who build large houses in castle towns or villages. This kind of mason has no "unique skills" at all. It is all accumulated slowly from the experience of daily work. They can't make much money at all, and the tax they can pay to their family in a year is only one or two stones per year. And this golden talisman is worth ninety stones!

Of course, Mitsuhiro Uyizaki didn’t know. What value do these "ordinary skills" that are common in the old continent and have been passed down for a long time have to the plateau kingdom across the sea! The introduction of these skills will enable the comprehensive development of the Kingdom in the Lake, avoid many detours, and speed up the process...

"My good friend Kazuto! Are there any more?..."

"Ah! There are only the last three. They are the three brothers of the potter's family. They don't have surnames, so they are called the potters Ichiro, Jiro, and Sanlang. However, they are all good pottery makers, especially good at making large pots! Their firing skills Tao’s skills are also famous in Matsumae!…”

"Potter? Ichiro, Erlang, Sanlang? The names of these Japanese craftsmen are somewhat similar to those of the Kingdom. They are all named after their occupations, but there is an additional family ranking at the end, which is really interesting!..."

"Blessed by the Lord God! I wonder how their skills compare to those of the Kingdom's potters?...Can they make large clay pots? It seems that not many in the Kingdom can do this..."

Zuvalo thought for a moment, then readily took out a golden talisman again and continued to ask with a smile.

"My brother Kazuto! Are there any craftsmen left?"

"My brother Shantao is really gone now! If I had known you were so honest and reliable, I would have asked my family to recruit more craftsmen!..."

Mitsuhiro Oyizaki shook his head helplessly, feeling greatly regretful and giving birth to more greed.

There were not many craftsmen in Heren Land, and he only brought thirteen craftsmen this time. Among them are a group of blacksmiths, carpenters, bamboo stripper and papermakers, a group of cobblers, tailors and painters, and three each of masons and potters. Unexpectedly, the Shantao chief was so generous. Not only did he accept all the orders, but he also gave him eight gold talismans, a total of eight pounds and one hundred and twenty-eight taels of gold!

You must know that these 128 taels of gold are 720 shi of rice income! And Zhixing 100 shi, excluding farmers' rations and tax collection losses, can usually only collect one-third of the current rice, which is 35 shi...

In other words, the transactions of these thirteen craftsmen alone brought the Oyizaki family an annual income of 2,000 koku! And it is cash "gold" that will not be affected by the purchase price of rice seats and will not be eaten by merchants again. It is cash, cash, cash that can be used at any time!

Therefore, Mitsuhiro Uyizaki was very clear about the important value of these precious golds to the Uyizaki family. And Zuvalo was extremely clear about the important value of these precious craftsmen to the kingdom in the lake.

At this moment, the two "good friends" looked at each other, and they had already elevated each other's status to that of their own "brothers"! Of course, if there is a temptation that is difficult to refuse in the future, the half-brothers of different races will still not hesitate to pull out the knife and stab the brothers in both sides...

"Buddha! What on earth is this large Shanta tribe that suddenly appeared and gathered craftsmen at all costs going to do? Could it be that... they want to restore the country?... Or re-establish the country?..."

Mitsuhiro Uyizaki pondered for a moment, and decided to test the position of the "brother tribe" again, as well as the true "gold content" of the other party. So, with a smile on his face, he looked at the generous Zuvalo, bowed slightly and asked.

"My Shantao brothers! Do you need craftsmen who can grow mulberry and raise silkworms, or grow linen and weave cloth?..."

"A tree called 'mulberry'? A silkworm that spins silk? What is that? Weaving clothes with 'hemp'? Don't you have cotton?... Wait! I remember! Your Majesty mentioned in the prophecy that the silkworm that spins silk is indeed the 'silkworm'!..."

Zuwaro captured the key information and verified His Majesty's prophecy again. He was immediately excited and asked with a smile.

"My brother Heren! Isn't the 'silkworm' a precious specialty of the 'Great Ming Han Tribal Alliance' and the 'Korean Tribal Alliance'? How come your Heren tribe also has it?..."

"Haha! My Shanta brother, you are joking. Planting mulberry and raising silkworms has long been brought to our country by the Tang people who moved eastward. And the latest spinning and weaving technology was also introduced to our country from Korea with the 'exchange' of the southwestern clans... And now, although the silk industry in Kyoto is much inferior to that of the Ming Dynasty, it is already close to Korea!..."

Kakizaki Mitsuhiro smiled modestly. Such a truly powerful person, especially one who can bring great benefits to himself and his family, is worthy of his humble attitude.

"My Shanta brother, our family has a way to contact the bigwigs in Kyoto and get the best "silkworm seeds", "mulberry trees", and excellent "senior Korean silk craftsmen"!... But the cost is very high, very high!..."

Hearing this, Zuwaro raised his eyebrows and understood the unfinished meaning of this "cheap brother". He pondered for a moment, thinking of the "silkworm" specifically mentioned in the divine revelation of His Majesty, and then asked calmly.

"Oh? My brother Kazuto, do you really have a way to get silkworm seeds, mulberry trees, and some senior Korean silk craftsmen?..."

"The Buddha witnessed it! It's true! But the cost is really high..."

"Oh! Then how much is this high cost?..."

Hearing this, Kakizaki Mitsuhiro smiled and raised a finger. He paid close attention to Zuwaro's reaction and also estimated the other party's true "gold content". If the other party is willing to spend such a large price to buy back the silkworm seeds, mulberry trees and craftsmen, it proves that the other party not only has strong financial resources, but also is definitely not located in the far north! After all, silkworms are afraid of cold, and they cannot be raised in cold areas...

"One finger? You mean, ten gold tokens?..."

"No! Not ten, but one hundred gold tokens!"

Kakizaki Mitsuhiro said decisively, and looked at Zuwaro. Then, he smiled again and bowed respectfully.

"Believe me! My Shanta brothers! The silkworm seeds from Kyoto and the silk craftsmen from Korea are worth this price!..."