The summer in Mutsu is short. By Hachigatsu (the old calendar's August, the new calendar's September), the mountains begin to change color. The average temperature drops below twenty degrees, and the mornings are cold enough to make one shiver.
"The foot-operated rice thresher you designed is amazing. It has made the threshing process much easier than before. The people are very pleased. As you instructed, we are using the free time for hunting and making charcoal and firewood. With the winter preparations progressing so quickly, we might be able to get through this winter safely."
"That's not good enough. We must ensure that we get through the winter safely. Have them make snow shovels as well. And don't forget to reinforce the walls with bricks."
In this era, one stone of rice is roughly equivalent to one person. Therefore, the population of the Tanabe domain is about 3,000 people. This level of productivity continues until the Meiji era. As a result, in the Tohoku region, practices like selling oneself into servitude or abandoning the elderly were common. The natural environment in Mutsu is that harsh. Even in the 21st century, there were migrant workers.
(First, I need to increase productivity per person. Then, during the free time, we should produce preserved food and improve living conditions and hygiene using bricks and soap. Since the monetary economy is underdeveloped, barter trade is common, but this also means that the economy is not dominated by money. Eventually, we will build trading ships and engage in trade with the Asakura clan of Echizen and the Date clan of Sendai.)
"Grandfather, we lack civil servants. Is there any way to address this?"
After giving his instructions, Yoshimatsu consulted his grandfather, Shigeuji. There were many things he wanted to do, but the lack of manpower was a significant issue. However, increasing the number of people would also mean increasing the stipends. His father, Shigenari, was in the stronghold of the Hachinohe clan. He wanted to borrow civil servants through his father's connections, but there was a risk of information leaking. It was a dilemma.
"Yoshimatsu, don't be hasty. It hasn't been long since you took over the Shigen family. Winter is approaching. Shigenari will return for the New Year. Why don't you discuss it then?"
Yoshimatsu folded his arms, closed his eyes for a moment, and then nodded.
The sea of Mutsu is abundant. Scallops can be dried and stored for a long time, and the shells can be burned to make soap. Dried squid can be stored almost indefinitely, ignoring the loss of flavor. Sardines can be used as fertilizer, and when dried, they can last for over two years. Red sea bream, cod, and flounder are also available.
"During the winter, we should prepare fishing nets. Teaching reading and arithmetic to train civil servants would also be good. Everyone is idle, so we should use the time effectively."
Along with snow removal, we need to improve the roads. We need to organize the household registers of the 3,000 people in the domain. We need to straighten the crooked fields to enable proper planting. There are many things to do, but we need to tackle them one by one. For this winter, the priority is to standardize the writing.
"In the future, in the Shigen family, we will prohibit the use of cursive script in official documents and use only regular script. We will also standardize the use of hiragana and katakana. Here is the specific plan."
When Shigeuji saw the paper his grandson handed him, he was taken aback. What he saw was a list of the fifty sounds. The plan was to standardize all documents, which had previously been written in cursive script, to regular script. This would likely face significant opposition.
"Why regular script? Cursive script is easier to write and is used by many families, including the Sannohe and Hachinohe clans."
"Cursive script is a simplified form of writing. However, the simplification varies from person to person, and the reader must decipher it. For example, if a message about an urgent attack by the Ando clan needs to be deciphered, can we afford to interpret it as 'probably this'? For private diaries and personal letters, cursive script is fine, but for official documents that need to convey information accurately, everyone should use the same script. Grandfather, this is non-negotiable. Even if I have to fight with my father, I will push this through."
Shigeuji smiled wryly at his grandson's serious expression. As the head of the Shigen family, Shigenari was in the stronghold with his wife, effectively making him the head of the Hachinohe family. In a sense, his son Yoshimatsu had taken over the Shigen family, though it wasn't a typical case of a younger generation overthrowing the older one.
"There's no need for that. I will also advocate for the use of regular script. However, Yoshimatsu, if you want to standardize the correct script, you must first learn kanji."
Despite his mature way of speaking, Yoshimatsu was only two years old. Shigeuji decided to start teaching him calligraphy this winter.
(Oh dear, what a prodigy.)
Shigeuji, the former head of the Shigen family, shook his head while writing a letter to his son. He understood the logic. Standardizing the script would indeed allow for more accurate communication. In Tanabe, until recently, elegance was highly valued. Floating boats on the sea of Mutsu, drinking sake, and composing tanka poetry. In those times, standardizing the script to regular script would have been impossible.
(Lord Masaharu (referring to Nanbu Harumasa) is a forward-thinking person. He might find the idea of standardizing to regular script interesting. However, my son might oppose it.)
His father should focus on managing the Hachinohe clan. Yoshimatsu said he would take care of the Shigen family. Indeed, his eldest son, who was not yet ten, had taken over the Hachinohe clan. He needed support. The Hachinohe clan was much larger than the Shigen family, and there was a considerable distance between Tanabe and the stronghold. Managing both was impossible. That's why he was here, but the next head was Yoshimatsu. As long as he didn't go astray, he should be allowed to do as he pleased.
"Looking at it this way, a letter in regular script isn't bad. Anyone can read it..."
He nodded, reviewing the letter he had written. This was a report to the head of the family, so it needed to be clear and free of misunderstandings. The head of the family, Shigenari, would likely recognize the benefits of regular script from this letter.
"I need to start teaching Yoshimatsu calligraphy. Perhaps I should ask the Zen master Juukaku from Ensoji Temple..."
He picked up his brush again.
The famous landmark of the Shimokita Peninsula in Aomori Prefecture is undoubtedly Osorezan. One of the three major spiritual sites in Japan, alongside Koyasan and Hieizan, it was founded in 862 when the Tendai monk Jikaku Daishi placed a statue of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva there. Although the subjugation of the Emishi by Sakanoue no Tamuramaro had taken place, the Tohoku region during the Heian period was still considered "Emishi territory." Pushing through the wilderness, Jikaku Daishi must have felt something profound when he discovered a hot spring area with sulfur fumes at the end of the Shimokita Peninsula. Seeing a pool of blood-red water, one might easily think it was hell.
However, spending a lifetime in such a remote place required extraordinary resolve. Ultimately, the Tendai sect at Osorezan did not last long, and for several hundred years, only the "Osorezan faith" remained.
In 1522, Buddhism returned to this land. The Soto Zen monk Juukaku, with the support of the Nanbu clan, founded Ensoji Temple near the Tanabe Castle and rebuilt the Osorezan Bodaiji. However, maintaining a spiritual site at the northernmost tip of Honshu during the warring states period was not easy. The Osorezan Bodaiji only began to function properly during the Edo period.
"Hehehe! Indeed, you are a prodigy!"
In front of Yoshimatsu sat an old man with white eyebrows, likely over seventy years old. Juukaku, the abbot of Ensoji Temple, was known within the Soto Zen sect, but in reality, he lived a modest life with minimal offerings and support from the Nanbu and Shigen families.
(That's why he can be considered a "true noble." Building a temple in such a remote place requires extraordinary resolve, on par with Xavier and Frois.)
"Master, I am good at arithmetic but poor at reading and writing. Please teach me."
"Hey! Say 'please teach me!' Not only reading and writing, but also proper speech and manners must be drilled into you. You can't be the head of the Shigen family without them."
He was slapped on the head. Yoshimatsu bowed, suppressing his inner frustration. He had decided to learn all the characters this winter and graduate quickly...
(=゜ω゜=): Isn't Osorezan famous for itako (mediums)? Do they still exist in the 21st century?
(´・∀・`): Yes, but apparently there is only one left. It's sad that the culture of "itako's spirit channeling" is disappearing.
(=゜ω゜=): Despite that, itako don't appear in the story. Why is that?
(´・∀・`): The existence of itako is unclear in historical terms. I think shamanism like spirit channeling existed since the Jomon period, but itako as a specific role only appeared in the Edo period. The oldest record is from the 1772 Higashiyama Diary, where the word "itako" is written in hiragana next to the word for "shaman." I don't think they existed in the Sengoku period.
(=゜ω゜=): I see. So they might not have existed during the Sengoku period?
(´・∀・`): It's a romantic idea, but I don't think they appear in the story.
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* The third volume of my modern fantasy "Dungeon Busters" will be released in June. I would be happy if you could read it.
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