Chongwen and the others followed the deacon monk through the checkpoint and walked into the city. Generally, the castle is divided into two parts: the castle and the castle town, and the city is heavily guarded, and there is a curfew at night, and there is a dead silence. Although the town is very populous, it is extremely poor, and it is impossible to have fun at night.

There is neither a lord nor a castle, it is a purely commercial city, but also a city of pleasure. In the evening, there are businessmen who have made a fortune and indulged in extravagance and are looking for fun. Only here can they not be legally killed and looted by the magnates and samurai, and only in the city can they truly enjoy the pleasure of money, which cannot be given to them anywhere.

Even in the middle of the moon, the city is still brightly lit. The various izakayas, water tea houses, rice shops, and verandahs are doing prosperous business, and the banquet is in full swing. The streets and alleys were full of vendors who were in the business of snacks and soups, and there were still many pedestrians on the streets, from wicked young people whom, to boring men who couldn't resist their drinking, and vomited in the dark.

Most of the women's houses have a long corridor, and the women with heavy makeup stand on the porch for guests to choose, and a few secret prostitutes pop up from time to time on the dark streets, climbing to attract business from single customers. Everywhere, the singing and dancing on both sides of the street has never been interrupted, and the fragrance of wine is overflowing.

Chongwen walked on the streets of Qicheng, and most of the streets and alleys under his feet were paved with fine sand and were not muddy. After staying in the wild land for a long time, he suddenly came to this world of flowers, which made Chongwen a little trance for a while.

Turning around and looking at the two humming generals, they were looking east and west, and their eyes were not enough. Chongwen shook his head, but he couldn't laugh, he had never left his knife in the past few months, and now his ribs were empty and defenseless, which made him feel unsettled, and his shoulders and back were nervous for no reason.

Turning east and west on the street, the group came to Shitennoji Temple. It is a great temple, under the dim light, the wide steps of bluestone, the mountain gate of two zhang high, the thick and simple beams and pillars, the momentum is extraordinary. The deacon monk led them directly into the temple, the shadows of the trees under the moonlight, vaguely saw the main hall dedicated to the king of heaven, the incense was endless, there were faint lights in the rows of monks' rooms, and the sound of leisurely chanting came out.

Several people walked through the sprawling temple, and occasionally they met a nocturnal monk, and the deacons would stop to pay homage to each other. Chongwen memorized the road, but the temple was too large, and where could he remember so much in the dark, so he could only follow.

Finally into a cross-courtyard, this cross-courtyard is different from the temple, the lights are brilliant, there are strange stone bamboo mountains, in addition to a group of huge and gorgeous buildings, the bamboo forest also faintly reveals a corner of the pavilion and the platform, the light outlines the outline of the cornice, it seems deep and comfortable. There was a samurai on duty in the light and shadows, and Chongwen could see clearly that it was a samurai wearing a blue-gray samurai uniform and a double sword at his waist, not a samurai monk.

It doesn't look like a temple, it looks like a big family's house.

The two warrior monks escorted them to the Moon Gate and retreated into the darkness, and the deacon monk led Chongwen and his party along the wide corridor for a while, came to a quiet room, gently pushed open the wooden-framed paper door, and Juhai Zhongjin was kneeling behind a tea table, smiling at Chongwen.

The deacon monk first saluted Master Juehai, and then let Chongwen into the quiet room, but stopped the catfish boy and the fortune cow and asked them to rest in the police beeping room on the side of it. Seeing that Chongwen and Juehai sat opposite each other after saluting each other, the deacon monk gently closed the door and withdrew, leaving only Chongwen and Juehai in the quiet room.

Jeju Nakatsu smiled and said, "Don't come to the sea unharmed, I didn't expect to meet again so soon." ”

Chongwen didn't appreciate it, and said sharply: "The deal is over, fair and undeceitful, I don't want to see you, you want to see me." ”

Juhai is very well cultivated, and said with a smile: "What the donor said is good, but the poor monk is presumptuous." This is a tea room, and it is also a place for poor monks to drink tea and participate in Zen, but it does not belong to me, it belongs to a nobleman, and it is he who invites you to drink tea. ”

Chongwen said lightly: "Now that I'm here, let's invite him to come out and meet him." ”

Juehai clasped one hand together and chanted the Buddha's name, and the wooden door leading to the inside of the tea room opened, and a middle-aged samurai strode in. However, it was not this person who surprised Chongwen, but the person who followed this samurai into the tea room, it was Nohime.

The samurai was about 50 years old, with half a hundred hair, wearing a three-pattern samurai uniform, and the family crest was a five-seven paulownia pattern given by the emperor, with double inserts under the ribs, and the upper body was draped in brocade feathers, and the placket was not tied.

According to the figure of the servant, this person is tall and magnificent, sitting silently opposite Chongwen, without saying a word, but looking forward to himself. But Chongwen didn't even look at him, just stared at Nonghime.

Dressed in a gorgeous brocade with large sleeves, picturesque and radiant, Nohime walked into the tearoom with small steps, her eyes flashed, and she secretly squeezed her right eye playfully to Chongwen, and sat behind the samurai.

Juehai gave a salute and said, "The water in Xindianjin is about to boil, and the poor monk will go to serve the tea ceremony, you can talk." ”

In the innermost corner of the tea room, there is a small room that only allows one person to enter and exit, which is the place where the tea master cooks tea. Nonghime pressed her hands together on the floor, bowed down and bowed her forehead to her hands, got up and said softly:

"I'm really sorry, the concubine concealed her identity from His Royal Highness Da Chuhai. I am the daughter of Yoshihiro Ouchi, the guardian of the Eight Kingdoms, Ouchi, and sitting in front of you is my father, His Royal Highness Yoshihiro Ouchi, Doctor Sakyo Shusuke Gonsuke. Now that I am the interpreter, you can all trust me and trust that you can speak your minds. ”

Chongwen still didn't look at Yoshihiro Ouchi, stared at Nohime and asked, "Why didn't you tell me your true identity?"

Nohime said, "My father is a special person, he has many enemies, and I don't want anyone to use me to blackmail the Ouchi family. Later I learned that you would never use me, but I also hope that our hearts will not change because of our identity, you know?"

Chongwen sighed secretly, how could he have confided to Nong Ji that he was the Emperor of Dakang, there was no need to dwell on these. Only then did he turn his head to look at Ouchi Yoshihiro, Ouchi Yoshihiro saw Chongwen's eyes flash, bowed down and said: "His Royal Highness Da Chuhai is kind to the Ouchi family, and I will thank you in person no matter what. ”

Hearing Nonghime's translation, Chongwen said: "This is the proper meaning, there is no need to be polite. He looked around and praised: "But the place that Lord Ouchi is looking for is quiet and elegant, and it is not easy to have such a place in the drunken world of flowers and flowers in Qicheng." ”

Ouchi smiled and said: "This bamboo forest garden is the Ouchi family's other business in Kuncheng, the Ouchi clan has been related to the Four Heavenly Kings Temple for three generations, and Master Juhai is my master in Buddhism." So this tea room is full of people you can absolutely trust, and I thought we should talk about it sincerely. ”

Chongwen knew that this was Ouchi Yoshihiro's lair in Kuncheng, and it was in this courtyard that he left and right the political and business worlds of the country, trying to develop the Ouchi clan and influence the whole country. If the negotiations don't go well, he may not be safe here, and it is impossible for Yoshihiro Ouchi to give Chongwen a chance to cooperate with other powerful people.

He asked quietly, "What are you talking about?"

Ouchi said, "Let's talk about the new route. ”

Chongwen asked in a deep voice, "Lord Ouchi thinks that the new route is beneficial or harmful to the country, or the Ouchi family?"

"I remember when I was a child, my late father, the repair doctor Hiroshi Gong, called me to my side and gave me something the size of a fingernail for me to eat. It was probably the sweetest thing I've ever tasted in my life, and I still remember it. Hong Shigong told me that this thing is called sugar, and it came from Dakang on the other side of the sea.

My father may have forgotten about it soon, but I haven't. When I grew up, I learned that our country is very poor, and most people don't have enough to eat, let alone sugar. The way out of the country is in the sea, and only by going to Dakang, to Zhili, to the Ryukyus, and to the Nanban, can the country become rich and strong, and the Ouchi clan will prosper.

So I fought hard for 40 years and paid countless blood and tears just to open up the sea route. I honored the shogunate, married the Matsuura clan, and made behind-the-scenes deals with countless pirates in the Seto Inland Sea, and risked the world to stay in the castle. It is really inexplicable to ask me this question when I go to sea, and any sea route is beneficial and harmless to the country and the Ouchi clan. ”

Chongwen said with a smile: "Ouchi-sama's words are only half right, the new route avoids those endless troubles in the Seto Inland Sea, of course, it is beneficial to the Ouchi family, but it is not necessarily for the Ouchi family." ”

Yoshihiro Ouchi asked quietly, "How can you see it?"

Chongwen said: "Only this route is in the hands of the Ouchi family, which is beneficial to the adults. If this route is in the hands of the adult's enemy, it will not only be detrimental to the adult, but also harmful. ”

Yoshihiro Ouchi continued to pretend to be confused: "I don't understand the meaning of His Royal Highness Odekai. ”

Chongwen said: "If this new route is in the hands of the shogunate, the Hosokawa clan, or anyone else, the Ouchi family's monopoly on the sea goods in the city will no longer exist, and the enemies of the adults will take the place of the Ouchi family in the city. They will accumulate more money, more iron, and more supplies to support His Highness Yoshimitsu Kakune on the throne of the next general.

As for Ouchi-sama, there will be fewer and fewer ships coming to Yamaguchi Castle, trade will gradually shrink, and the adults will gradually be unable to issue a fortune to their retainers, and their strength will be further weakened. Once the Kamakura Princess, who was supported by the Lord, loses power and His Royal Highness Yoshimitsu becomes a shogun, I am afraid that the Lord's position as guardian of Izumi Province will be lost, and not only will he be far away from the castle, but he will no longer be able to influence the shogunate, and the power of the Ouchi clan will soon decline and become an insignificant rural daimyō. ”

Ouchi Yoshihiro looked at Chongwen with sharp eyes, and said slowly: "I only know one of the big seas, but I don't know the other. The shogunate had already made up its mind to engage in a trade with the Great Kang, and it was impossible for the shogunate and the retainers to let the new route become an obstacle to the trade in the sea, and they could not accept it if they were offered both hands to the sea.

Perhaps the secret agents of the shogunate already knew the whereabouts of Odekai, and were looking for His Highness in the net. Therefore, His Highness can only cooperate with Zaixia, and Zaixia does not have to worry about the new route falling into the hands of others. ”

Chongwen said, "I can cooperate with Ouchi-sama and give up part of the route to the Ouchi family. The Yasubune will not go to Sakai Port, the merchant ships of the Ouchi clan will trade on Ryuo Island, and my friends will escort the Ouchi merchant ships directly to Sakai Port.

It's just that I don't understand, now that the Ouchi clan has become a thorn in the side of the shogunate, the shogunate ministers have united to support the exploration trade and force the Ouchi family to give up their monopoly on maritime trade. If you can't keep the Seto Inland Sea route, how can you still open up a new one? In this world, no one will pay a huge price to stand with those who are bound to lose, and of course Ryuo Island will not either. ”