Mutsu Province, Zhizhi County.

With Date Harumune's move of the base to Yonezawa Castle, the development of Zhishi Prefecture has been significantly faster. Merchants who came by land from the southern Michitsu and Kanto regions almost always passed through Yonezawa Castle first and then entered the territory of the Tsugawa family, which also brought opportunities for Yonezawa Castle to develop in disguise.

Shinkuro Yoneya is the owner of a rice grain house in the castle town of Yonezawa Castle, mainly engaged in grain trading, and occasionally works part-time as a slave trader. At the same time, Shinkuro Yoneya also has a secret identity, that is, the head of the Tsugawa family ninjas in Yonezawa Castle.

"Shinkuro, when will the rice from the north be delivered?" A man wearing a gauze scarf walked into the rice grain house with a blank face, and then directly found Shinkuro Yoneya.

Shinkuro Yoneya glanced at the man with half-squinted eyes, and then asked, "The grain from the north hasn't arrived yet, so how about trying to bring it from the south?" ”

"The grain in the south is not as good as the grain in the north, and the price has risen. I'll wait for the grain from the north to arrive, this time the transaction volume is not a small amount! ”

"Understood, as soon as the food arrives, I will send someone to inform you!"

It seems to be a normal conversation, but the meaning expressed secretly is probably only known to the two of Shinkuro Yoneya.

"Zuo Jie, take a look at the storefront, I'll go back as soon as I go!" Yoneya Shinkuro simply cleaned up the counter, then said a word to a young man who was busy not far away, and then lifted the curtain behind him and walked in.

This is a small dark room with very dark light, Yoneya Shinkuro came to the left side of a wall with ease, stretched out his hands and gently pushed a screen, and then the whole person quickly disappeared into the room.

Shinkuro Yoneya appeared in the next room......

The room was about to get much brighter, and a few candlesticks were shining brightly. Shinkuro Yoneya cautiously came to a desk and sat down, then picked up a piece of paper and a pen and wrote quickly.

"The rise in grain prices in the south is just when the grain from the north is urgently needed, and it is expected to arrive quickly." After washing it, I drew an unknown pattern in the lower right corner of the paper, and then put it in a bamboo tube and put it aside.

After blowing out all the candles in the house, Shinkuro Yoneya walked out step by step. At this moment, with a burst of loosening of a certain floor, a figure suddenly appeared in the room......

......

Yamagata Castle, Mikiyashiki.

Miki Naogo put down a letter with a happy face, his eyes full of love. This letter came from Ueno Castle, and Miki Naogo's wife had just given birth to an heir, which also meant that Miki's family had a queen, and Miki Naogo's Zhixing Land would also be inherited in the future.

This is undoubtedly the best incentive for Miki Naogo.

"I didn't expect the lord to personally send the letter to Xia's family, which really made Zai feel terrified!" Looking at Soji Tsugawa, who was sitting next to him, Naogo Miki said with a grateful face.

"Huh." Soji Tsugawa smiled, and then replied, "My brother has not been back to Yamagata Castle for more than two years since my brother guarded this Yamagata Castle, and now that my sister-in-law has given birth to an heir, why don't my brother go back and have a look?" ”

"There is a concern for the lord of labor, but now is the critical moment for the family, how can I go away!" Miki Naogo shook his head helplessly, and then showed a solemn look, "I just received a letter from Yonezawa Castle, and under the instigation of Lord Iwaki, the Date family and the Ashina family may break out again. After three years of recuperation, it's time to unify Mutsu Province! ”

"Is the information reliable?" Why is Soji Tsugawa in Yamagata Castle? It was for the purpose of sending troops that Tsugawa Soharu had to ensure the authenticity of all information about the Mutsu region.

Miki Naogo nodded, "The information came from Yonezawa Castle, and Shinkuro Yoneya, who is in charge of Yonezawa Castle's intelligence collection, is already an old man of the ninjas, and there will be no mistakes!" ”

"Good!" Tsugawa Soji nodded, "Let the others continue to hibernate and continue to maintain the posture that the family has no will to fight, once the Date family and the Ashina family break out into a joint war, everyone must be assembled in Yamagata Castle within five days!" If there is no time, it will be severely punished! ”

"Hah!"

In three years, the Tsugawa family recuperated and got a stable time to recuperate. In the past three years, the Tsugawa family has vigorously developed the territory, and the stone height in the Mutsu area and the Rikuchu area has almost doubled.

The population purchased from the Wakasa Takeda family and the displaced people sent by Echigo's son-in-law, Nagao Keitora, were resettled in the Mutsu and Rikuchu areas to reclaim new land.

In three years, the stone height in the Mutsu and Rikuchu areas doubled to 450,000 stones. Coupled with Dewa's territory, the Tsugawa family has reached 1 million stone just by being a stone high!

After deducting the subordinate nationals and retainers' Zhixing, and after deducting agricultural taxes, the Tsugawa family's annual grain income was about 400,000 koku. Converted into money, that is 150,000 yuan.

As more and more people are sent to mine, the amount of gold and silver produced on Sado Island is increasing, reaching a staggering 150,000 koku per year.

Combined with the Tsugawa family's annual trade income of 80,000 kan, and other outputs of 30,000 kan, the Tsugawa family's annual income reached a staggering 410,000 kan!

What is the concept of 410,000?

Let's make a simple comparison.

Tokaido's first bow tori Imagawa Yoshimoto's total income for a year was 190,000 kan. The net income of the Ouchi family is 230,000 koku a year, the annual income of the Hosokawa family, the overlord of Kinai, is 350,000 guan in its heyday, and the annual income of the nouveau riche Miyoshi Changqing is only 130,000 guan now.

Owari Oda + Mino Saito + Echizen Asakura + Shinano Takeda tied together and put on a Mikawa Matsudaira can be on par with the Tsugawa family!

That's how rich it is!

However, there is money to be rich, and the area where the Tsugawa family is located is Ou and not Kinai. If it's the Kinai area, the Tsukawa family's financial resources dominate Kinai in minutes, but in the Ou area, there is no place to spend it!

Of course, Soharu Tsugawa was not idle.

Although the Tsugawa family has been very stable on the surface in the past three years, indifferent to the affairs of the outside world, and completely bored development, but in fact, Tsugawa Soji has also done a lot of things.

For example, the Wakasa Takeda family, with the support of the Tsugawa family, resisted the hostility from Hosokawa Harumoto in recent years, and even expanded their power to Tango.

Omi's Asai and Tanba's Hatano concluded trade agreements with the Takeda family. Even the Echizen Asakura family, who has always wanted to get involved in Wakasa, has restrained a lot, of course, this is also related to the death of Asakura Takakei, the head of the Asakura family.

After all, it was Asakura Sokei (Asakura Yoshikei) who took over the position of Asakura Takakei......

The current time is the 19th year of astronomy, that is, in October 1550 AD, and the rice flower fragrance says that the season of the harvest year, and the retainers of the Tsugawa family have long been eager to start a war.

The unification of Mutsu was the primary goal of the Tsugawa family.