Chapter 1421 Seven Senior Masters, the Situation of the War in the South

"Twenty pounds of gold!! The one-armed Tietian Muneyoshi actually got twenty pounds of gold in exchange for it?!..."

"Buddha! In terms of food, this old craftsman is actually worth 2,700 stone meters? Is he alone comparable to the annual income of a hundred warriors?"

"Ah! Brilliant gold, shining gold, gold that attracts people's hearts! ... Stop and watch, stop and watch!"

The heavy gold was carried on his back, like a golden dream, so heavy that Morino Qing could not lift his waist. He first felt ecstatic and dazed for a moment, and then quickly used his profound Buddhist practice to stop the surging greed. Then, he immediately handed over the bamboo basket filled with gold, which was "the scourge that affects Buddhism", to Shojiro Matsushita and asked him to quickly send it back to the ship.

"Namo San! If you can turn things around, it will be the same as the Tathagata; if you are turned around by things, it will be reincarnation... stop and contemplate!..."

After the gold left his hand, Morino Qing silently recited the sutra for a moment. When he raised his head again, his eyes were clear again. He is able to deal with many noble people in Kyoto and do big business in Miwu. He is naturally a man with an electric mind! And he is also the best at figuring out people's hearts. Just after thinking about it for a moment, he can taste something.

"Buddha sees people's hearts!... The Golden Chief took out these ten extra pieces of gold. It seemed that it was not for me, but... for Soyoshi Tie Tian? For a bought-back craftsman, it stands to reason that he should be treated as a slave who can be used at will. It’s the same, but the Golden Chief actually respects him so much, like he respects a noble person? ...It’s strange, it’s really strange!”

Morino Qing looked thoughtfully at the old craftsman Tietian Muneyoshi. I saw this crippled old craftsman, who was talking endlessly when introducing forging just now, but now he pursed his lips, silently lowered his head and wiped the corners of his eyes. Then, he didn't say anything, but bowed deeply to Zuvalo!

"God bless you! There is no need to give such a big gift! When we arrive in the kingdom in the future, your status... um... Tamicao, take this master blacksmith to the cabin to rest first!..."

"Yes! Captain!..."

Samurai captain Tamiko supported the old craftsman Tietian Muneyoshi and was about to get on the boat. Tietian Zongyi quickly turned his head and looked at the crowd of craftsmen. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end he just waved.

"Iron Hammer! Bring Ling'er and the others over here!"

Following this call, five young blacksmith apprentices, as well as Tietian Muneyoshi's two granddaughters, walked out of the crowd. Morinoqing's eyes flashed, and he smiled while looking at the situation here.

"Dear Golden Chief... When I come here this time, I carefully selected a master craftsman and seven senior craftsmen... Each of them is accompanied by several apprentice family members... According to the agreement between you and the head of the Oyizaki family, the craftsmen and apprentices, It’s all about the price you pay for your skills!…”

"However, the gold you gave me just now is too much! I will not forget about these five blacksmith apprentices. I will treat them as a good relationship... The Buddha is merciful and hopes that they can settle down and establish themselves again in the mountainous land. Use your own craftsmanship to achieve blessings in this life!…”

Zuvalo was a little surprised to hear that Morino Kiyoshi took the initiative to reduce the amount. This so-called "big businessman in Kyoto" obviously loves gold, but he can suppress the greed in his heart. Regardless of his style, magnanimity or ability, he is obviously much more powerful than the previous Mitsuhiro Uyizaki!

"Well...you are good, very good!"

Zuvaro took a deep look at Morino Kiyoshi and then said with a smile.

"Friend, bring over the seven 'senior craftsmen' you mentioned one by one! As long as they have real skills, I will accept them one by one according to the five-piece gold talisman as I told Brother Mitsuhiro Uyizaki before. People!…” “Good!…”

Morino Kiyoshi clapped his hands gently, and the monk soldiers came with seven people.

"This one is a senior potter of Omi Shigaraki, called 'Yaki Pottery Noburo'. Not only is he good at making water jars and rice storage jars, but he can also build climbing kilns and cave kilns! And what he is best at is The skill is to mix clay, paint, carve and outline, and burn colorful patterns on the surface of the pottery!…”

"Senior potter? Climbing above and digging the kiln below? Shigaraki ware? Painted pottery?..."

Listening to the interpreter's diligent explanation and gestures, Zuvalo touched his chin and waved to Ichiro, the potter who came last year, to come over and test his skill. The two parties only talked for a moment, and the potter Ichiro bowed his head to Noburo the potter, and then came back to report honestly.

"Great Chief, this is a master-trained craftsman from Omi. He is much more capable than an ordinary craftsman like me. What he said was 'climbing kiln and cave kiln'. Climbing kiln is a multi-chamber kiln built along the hillside. A large number of For burning ordinary pottery, the cave kiln is dug diagonally underground and is specially used for making fine colored pottery. As for the "harmony of fire and earth" and "the kiln transforms into color"... I don't quite understand the secret of firing colored pottery. But it’s definitely awesome!…”

"Oh! Can you build various kilns and make colorful pottery?...The level of pottery making should be better than that of the Alliance and the Kingdom, right?..."

Zuvalo thought for a while, looked at the frightened Shaotao Noburo, and patted the tiger slave again.

"Tiger slave, come out with five pieces of gold talisman! Give it to the one wearing the hat!..."

"Pa!..."

Another five gold talismans were slapped in front of Morino Kiyoshi. The big businessman from Kyoto touched his nose and bowed respectfully before giving instructions.

"Xiang Erlang! Collect the gold! ...The four potter apprentices and their families are also allowed to go! The Golden Chief is generous, and I am not a fussy person either. Don't stop the apprentices and their families behind! ..."

"Come here, please invite three more master carpenters!"

After the initial establishment of mutual trust, the transactions between the two parties began to become smoother. Morino Kiyoshi clapped his hands, and the three master carpenters stood in a row in a reserved manner, all staring at their toes, not daring to look at the "vicious" mountain barbarians opposite.

The first of these three master carpenters is called "Kuraki Sadakichi". As the name suggests, he is a person who can make "cars". There were very few horse-drawn carriages in Heguo, and what he did most was the "ox-cart" used by nobles to travel. Of course, Kuraki Sadakichi is also good at ordinary wooden furniture, wooden farm tools, and puppets used in rural witchcraft festivals.

In the bamboo basket behind Kuraki Sadakichi, there is a small puppet with a very flexible "head, hands and feet". If there is a festival in the countryside, he will also perform a "puppet show" part-time, cooperating with the "witches" in the countryside and even the "traveling monks" in the town and city. This kind of performance is not only about making money, but more importantly, maintaining his status in the countryside so that he will not be blackmailed by various rogues or evil parties.

"Puppet show? It sounds very interesting! ... The festivals of the main gods and temple gatherings do need more entertainment activities! You can't hold blood sacrifices every day, right? Your Majesty has issued restrictions in the kingdom..."

Although he didn't see Kuraki Sadakichi doing carpentry work, after listening to the other party playing with vivid puppets and singing a few unintelligible slang songs, Zuvaro happily took out the gold.

The second master carpenter is called "Good Hand at Carving Wood", and he is a wood carver who sculpts Buddha statues. After gesticulating fearfully for a while, he first took out a small vivid Buddha statue and handed it to the "Shan Tao Chief Master". Then, with a smile on his face, he said that he would carve a wooden sculpture for Zuvalo and worship him every day like a Buddha...

"Don't worship me, you have to worship the Lord God! Well, good at carving images?...This is a talent needed in the temple!..."

Zuvalo looked at the hands of the "hands who are good at carving wood" and saw the thick calluses and scars left by various carvings. However, he looked at the other party's carpentry basket. It was a mess, containing chisels, carving knives, scrapers, files and saws of all sizes. At least there were enough tools.

"Tiger slave! Give me money!..."

"Pa!..."

The third master carpenter spoke very little and had a sad look on his face. His name is "Yazukijiro" and he is said to be a "good house builder" in Omi. However, he has not built a house for several years. Instead, he has built a lot of stockades and ditch walls.

In the past few years, there have been chaotic wars in the capital, and all kinds of tragic images have emerged one after another. The tragic experience of Jiro Yazuki is the epitome of the war. First, he was captured by the samurai of the Rokkaku family at his home in the town and made to build fortifications. Then, the Rokkaku family was attacked by the shogunate army, and he was almost killed by the samurai from the Western Kingdom!

However, his status as a technical talent saved him and allowed him to become a craftsman of the shogunate army. The general has been fighting non-stop, and he has been running around with the shogunate army, building various stockades and camps, and it seems that he is going to die from exhaustion. It wasn't until Hosokawa Masamoto's coup and the shogunate army dispersed that he managed to escape back to his hometown with several construction craftsmen with the same experience.

When I went back, I found that Omi's hometown had been burned down by the rebels! Both his wife and son died and were buried in a mass grave by monks. With his heart filled with despair and confusion, he took two construction craftsmen who had also lost their families to the territory of the Kaga Ichigo Sect, hoping to seek "mantra salvation" for his deceased family members... Who knew that he would be killed by a monk from the Tendai Sect on the way? He intercepted it with monk soldiers and transported it to Ezo in one go! …

"Well, have you experienced a big war in the south? How do you know how to build complicated defense fortifications?...What kind of fortifications?..."

"Ah? Shantao Man... Your Majesty... in war, you have to... build forts, platforms, walls, ditches, embankments..."

Yazukijiro stuttered a little, and he didn't know whether it was because he was nervous or scared, or whether he was born like this. He gestured hard and described the situation on the battlefield in Gyeonggi Province. Although it was from the perspective of a craftsman, Zuvalo's eyes flashed.

"What? In order to avoid cavalry charges, you need to dig pits and pits? Set up a platform at a high place and station a dozen shooters for a long time? Dig trenches, lead out rivers, and surround important forts? Build low walls and wooden fences with holes, And then shoot arrows in the back? There is also a half-high fence and a dike behind, so that the spear warriors can poke at them from above?

"O Lord God! How come the war techniques of these Southerners... seem to be much more complex and mature than those of the Alliance and Kingdom?... Sure enough, the further south you go, the harder it is to mess with those powerful farming tribes... Wait! This Chinese businessman brought such a great craftsman here and deliberately led the conversation... Is this a secret reminder to me that they are not easy to mess with?..."

Zuvalo touched his chin and was silent. Then, as if he realized something, he glanced at the big businessman Morino Kiyoshi who was smiling and "pulling out the tiger skin" again, and curled his lips.

"Tiger slave! Get five gold talismans with ropes!"

"Great Chief?..."

"Give it to my friend, the big businessman of the Heren tribe, and wear it with your own hands!"

"Okay!..."