"Such a strong man is also ...... It's unexpected! I shook my head in disbelief. Takeda Shingen is good at using strategy, I know this; He has a lot of opportunities, and I know this; It's just that I didn't expect that for this kind of "inferior" strategy according to the traditional concept, he actually came easily, I really didn't expect this!

"'The strong'? …… Indeed, he is a 'strong man'! Nagano thought for a moment and nodded. But first of all, he wanted others to see him as a 'strong man', and everyone else really saw him as a 'strong man', and he was quite successful in doing this! And your lordship, you ......," he suddenly stared at me. "You want people to see you as a 'benevolent' person, and people all over the world think so. In one thing alone, you're no worse than him! ”

"Although there is only one peak, there are countless roads leading there!" I also sat down on the bluestone railing and turned my eyes to his face. "Teacher, you're going to tell me that, right?"

"The lord is really wise!" Nagano Yemasa smiled and nodded, but then said with a straight face: "Lord! According to the old minister's humble opinion, although the lord is witty and wise and decisive, he ...... But there is a kind of unbearable heart in your heart. Although the lord has not been swayed by this emotion to this day, if he continues to do so in the long run, he will one day miss a big thing. In fact, the heroes of the world are all like this, and when Takeda Shingen instigated the Nanshinano Takato clan and the Golden Thorn clan to cause chaos, he also used such villain tactics. It's just that from the perspective of the old minister today, he is actually far less clever than the lord in this regard! "He knew that I was the most fearful of the generals of the world, so he always liked to use him as an example.

"Shingen Takeda? …… Villain ......" I thought for a moment and then smiled bitterly: "Teacher, in this plan, I gave this Hatano proclamation the nickname 'Zombie Snake'. 'Zombie Snake'...... Hum! A frozen snake was carried into the arms of a good Samaritan and immediately bit his benefactor when he woke up. In this troubled world, I have to use this kind of person, I have to do this kind of thing, but ...... I'm always on the lookout! ”

"As you said, this is something that every superior cannot avoid!" Seeing that I was not in a high mood, Nagano Yemasa changed the subject. Along the way, many people talked about the new policy that the lord would implement in Sakai Town. Of course, due to the limitation of his identity, it is impossible for Lao Chen to hear too many negative remarks, but he can obviously feel that there are different opinions. The old minister himself is not an expert in this regard, and he cannot give appropriate advice to the lord, but the old minister can see from his decades of experience that no matter whether the new policy succeeds or fails, the ensuing uproar is inevitable. Therefore, the old minister has always been suspicious, and I don't know if the lord can guide the old minister? ”

"You've heard about it, who's talking about it?" I'm a little surprised that the news can spread so quickly, not to mention that the tax system has not been changed, the new land has not been divided, and even the store has not officially opened.

"Almost everyone is concerned, but different people have very different opinions!" Nagano may have moved his cervical spine slightly because he had been doing it for a long time, and his long silver-white hair trembled like fallen leaves in the wind. “…… In the town where we stayed along the way, small and medium-sized merchants were excited, and many were ready to move to Sakai Town. Moreover, it is said that although the lord was going to expand the size of Sakai Town, he strictly approved the boundaries of the land, and if he went late, there would be no place. Our team is also under the banner of our own family, so many people secretly ask Lao Chen's subordinates about Sakai Town in private! ”

"Hmm...... That's fine! "Although I didn't release the news myself, it's not surprising that there are rumors like this. After that tea party, Kanai Munehisa and Tsuda Muneyoshi approached me individually or in an appointment, with the simple meaning that they wanted to get a certain share of the land I had given me in advance for the expansion of the new area. Several of them have invested tens of thousands of dollars to support my plan, so there is no need to dismiss them for such a trivial matter. However, it seems that a few of them are hurrying up to act, and in order to sell the remaining land at a good price, they actively released the news to the outside world. But that's fine, it saves me a lot of upfront work.

"Then there are the nobles and samurai...... "Nagano continued with a sigh of relief." Tanba didn't have a long way to get here, so we didn't pass through any great power territory, but many small city lords and wealthy families gave us warm hospitality in order to show their closeness to their lords. My subordinates have also asked them about their opinions in casual conversation, but they are generally not optimistic about the lord's policy! ”

"Why?" I'm paying attention to this issue.

"The lord canceled the verification of the transaction volume, and only calculated the tax according to the import and export volume, and the tax shrinkage must be unavoidable!" Speaking of which, Nagano Yemasa also seemed a little worried. Although he never said it explicitly, the old minister obviously felt that they were laughing at the lord in their hearts, and regarded the lord as having too much money to spend, and so easily let go of those businessmen who were full of brains. However, anyone with a little knowledge of domestic affairs would think that it was possible to buy cheaper supplies in Sakai Town, so many people wanted to send resident retainers to Sakai Town as military quartermasters! ”

"Really?! That's great!!! Ha, ha, ha......" I exclaimed excitedly, and walked quickly back and forth in the water pavilion. My original idea was to control commercial circulation and financial exchange, and to influence the goods of the daimyos, and that was the next thing to consider. But right now, those city lords and wealthy families can't wait to throw themselves into my arms, and if they want to ship back the "bargains" they bought from here, they will have to clear customs and pay taxes, and they will have to deal with my new shop! The little people are just more obvious, so how long can Mori, Tokugawa, and even Takeda and Hojo last?

"Maybe the lord has already seen the opportunity to encompass the world, right? But the old minister is still confused! "Nagano saw the sharp fluctuations in my thoughts, so he didn't speak again until I gradually stabilized.

"It's not that simple!" I calmed down and sat back down. "I have some ideas about why I did this, but I'm still trying to figure out if it works. Teacher, what do you think is the foundation of strength in the future? ”

"I want to ...... It should be a vast territory, at least that's what I've always thought! The answer he gave was the common opinion of everyone in this era, but he listened to my voice and added the latter half of the sentence.

"Yes, you are right, teacher! That's been what people have thought for thousands of years...... "I sorted out my thoughts, but I was surprised to find that I wasn't as confident as I thought I was. "At that time the land was inhabited by the common people, which was the source of the main body of the army, the soldiers; The land produces food, which is the most important condition for maintaining the army; And the strength of the army represents the strength of the country, and everything else is something that can be considered in a step back. But now the times are changing faster and faster, and the gap in quality and equipment is not so easy to make up for by quantity! When 10,000 newly recruited peasants faced 500 fierce bannermen, it was the beginning of a massacre! ”

"yes!" Nagano Yemasa said with emotion: "When the old minister was young, the main force of the battle was the peasant soldiers with bamboo guns in their hands, even if it was a daimyo with tens of thousands of stone territory, it might not be able to do anything. Coupled with the fact that the local wealthy families do not listen to the calls, the forces that can be mobilized are even more limited. My lord, do you want to get your hands on more money? "He kind of understood what I meant.

"That's true, but it's not entirely true!" His words confused him a little. "Money is absolutely important, I don't deny that. I was a businessman myself, so I knew this better than anyone else. But unlike most people, I don't care so much about whether the money is in my own hands, and it doesn't make sense to bury all the gold in the cellar, it's only worth using it. So what I want to control is the circulation of money, regardless of whether the money is my own or not, in fact, even if it is not mine, it can be used by me! ”

"With someone else's money...... Doing your own thing? Nagano was more confused, but it was as if he was seeing something in the haze. It's no wonder, after all, there was no such theory in Japan at this time.

"In a sense, it is!" I think that's actually what it means. "The significance of reforming tariffs is not to make a few more money, but to grasp both the origin of imports and the direction of exports. It won't be long before all the wealthy merchants in Sakai Town will become my appendages through this new store. All their trade relations will be in my hands, and all their money will be at my disposal! ”

"Won't it provoke a fierce backlash?" Nagano asked with some concern, in his mind that no one would take the initiative to let go of such a thing as "power".

"I don't deny that there are individual alternatives, but the desire for 'money' far outweighs 'power' is what distinguishes most businessmen from the daimyo!" I'm not very worried about that, after all, there are still a few people like Lü Buwei. "It won't be long before the merchants will see the wealth I have brought them, and they will no longer have to worry about their financial imbalances, because I will be able to transfer them to each other at any time. The price I get back is all the supplies and money that run in this country, and I obey my orders like an army to their commander! In the future, when someone tries to confront us again, he will find that his troops have no pay, no equipment, and not even rations. But that should be a long time later, but I'm afraid I won't see that day myself......"

"It doesn't matter, but the eternal foundation of the Zhuxing family will not fall!" Nagano was also infected by this picture, and he was excited. "But my lord, the power of this institution is too great, and we must beware that some people will covet it. In addition, the selection of management personnel must also be careful, otherwise it will be a tiger ......."

"The teacher is right, but no one else has been able to take over this stall completely, so they don't know what's going on at all!" I know he was alluding to Oda Nobunaga. "But it's just the early stages, and I'm not going to be able to put that much power in one institution in the future. After getting on the right track, I will separate the material and money departments, and if we have a big development, I will also set up a separate department to control mineral resources! ”