After some thought, Shimazu agreed.
As a member of the Shimazu family, although the blood relationship between him and the feudal lord is five or six generations apart, after all, they were once a family and their personal connections are still there.
Furthermore, the good opinion of the Ryukyu governor was enough for him to go all out.
After leaving his house, Shimazu Hisari sat on the carriage, thinking about what had just happened.
"The Ryukyu Prefecture is short of food, and the Kagoshima Domain has more food. If someone connects with them and gets both sides, I'm afraid there will be a lot of benefits!"
Thinking of this, he felt excited.
You know, although Nagasaki is located on Kyushu Island, all the profits belong to the shogunate, and the Kagoshima Domain can only get some scraps.
It is very good for the feudal government to have extra silver income.
The more he thought about it, the more feasible it seemed to him.
As a naturalized Akito, Shimazu Hisari was very enthusiastic about serving the imperial court, and the political benefits were huge.
The next day, he had just returned from Taiwan and immediately set off for Kagoshima Domain.
The Kagoshima Domain, also known as the Satsuma Domain, was one of the main forces during the fall of Japan. Later, it controlled the Japanese navy and became the de facto feudal clan.
After the Battle of Sekigahara, the old tortoise Tokugawa Ieyasu placed the Daimyo clan, which was close to the shogunate, in Edo (Tokyo). The more distant the relationship, the farther away the territory was from Edo.
The Satsuma clan is far to the southwest of Kyushu, and its relationship can be imagined.
After Ryukyu Island was taken back by the Ming army, the Satsuma Domain returned to its previous height of 600,000 koku. Coupled with the handover of duty, the fiscal revenue shrank.
When he came to Kagoshima City, Shimazu Hisari felt quite emotional.
Several years have passed, but little has changed in Kagoshima.
The unique separation of military and peasants systems such as the outer castle system and the gate system, coupled with the stubborn four-class civilian system, made the entire Kagoshima like a stagnant water.
Almost no common people participated in Yikui, but the brutal exploitation by the feudal government gave them no chance to breathe.
Although it was already summer, the farmers' tattered shorts barely covered their knees, and their tops only had a scarf draped around their necks.
The short body has been tanned by the sun, the skin is chapped, and the eyes are dull and numb. When you meet the passing warriors, you can see their forced smiles and groveling movements.
The samurai wore straight clothes, that is, the traditional top and skirt style clothing, with swords on their waists, and swaggered by.
However, there was not much joy visible in their expressions.
When Shimazu Hisari appeared in plain clothes, there was a bit of a sensation for a while.
After all, although the shogunate had trade with the Ming Dynasty, Nagasaki was the most popular place for boys, not the poor Kagoshima.
"Sir, do you need a guide?"
At this time, a child, about ten years old, came up to me and spoke in blunt Chinese.
Although not skinny, he was still extremely thin. He was obviously from a samurai family with a poor family background.
"Thank you, no need." Shimazu Hisari smiled slightly and said in pure Japanese, but he still generously gave a copper coin: "Go buy a rice ball to eat!"
The boy returned disappointed, holding the copper coins tightly and left.
At this time, a group of samurai suddenly gathered, and the leader said in surprise: "Kunari, Shimazu Hisunari, you are back."
As he spoke, he hugged him tightly and slapped his back, feeling very excited.
"I'll come back to see you." Shimazu Hisari's eyes were slightly red.
This group of people were all close samurai friends he had played with since childhood. How could he not be sentimental?
When he arrived at his home, a group of people were sitting around.
The low house and the leaky roof made him a little uncomfortable.
"I thought that after you sold your ancestral home and went to the Ming Dynasty to develop, I would never see you again..."
Shimazu Nanhiro said in a deep voice. He raised his head, his eyes full of expectation: "Have you become rich recently?"
Facing the expectant eyes of everyone, Shimazu Hisari lowered his head and looked at his clothes again. The fabric was priceless at first glance.
Worth a fortune.
[In view of the general environment,
"It's not like I'm going to get rich, it's just enough to fill my stomach."
As he spoke, he raised his head and said: "After moving to Ryukyu Prefecture, I gave up my status as a samurai of the Shimazu family and passed the examination as a scholar."
"Scholar?" A certain warrior asked in surprise: "I have heard that it seems like our warriors can carry swords and serve as officials, but they cannot be hereditary."
His friend Shimazu Nanhiro frowned when he heard this: "Kunari, is it worth abandoning the samurai for the sake of being a scholar?"
"How is Ryukyu different from Kagoshima?"
The samurai began to discuss the matter in a whirlwind manner, expressing their disapproval of their abandonment of their status as samurai.
You must know that warriors are hereditary, no matter how poor they are, they are still superior, but scholars cannot be hereditary, and being famous for a lifetime is nothing.
Shimazu Hisari said seriously: "However, in Kagoshima, as a lower-level samurai, my descendants will always be lower-level samurai, unless the turmoil of the Warring States Period breaks out."
"Obviously, the Edo shogunate is now consolidated and has no chance."
"In the Ming Dynasty, I am currently a scholar, but my descendants may be promoted to Jinshi, and they will not only be able to be officials, but one day they can even be the chief minister of the cabinet, that is, the elder of the shogunate."
During the Tokugawa shogunate period, family elders could only be held by royal family members (direct samurai) and close lords, not even the Satsuma lord, let alone the lower-level samurai of his family.
The appointment of officials in Japan is just based on the preference of the superiors and the distance of blood. There are no imperial examinations or even imperial examinations, which are worse than North Korea.
Obviously, in the Ming Dynasty, due to the imperial examination system, the officialdom was extremely fluid, and classes were fluid but not solidified, which was completely different from Japan.
For a brighter future.
When the warriors heard this, they were silent at first, and then started chattering.
But after a long time, they had to admit that the imperial examination system was good, but it was not suitable in Japan.
Because they are warriors, their butts naturally determine their heads.
Shimazu Hisari didn't say much to them, and then invited them to the best restaurant to get together.
Just Ochazuke rice, a piece of sea fish, a radish, and a glass of sake made this group of samurai feel like they were celebrating the New Year.
When Shimazu Hisari saw it, he was filled with emotion.
At night, he sat across from his friend Shimazu Nanhiro, and his friend said with all his heart: "You have actually made a fortune, and a big fortune at that."
"Yes." Shimazu Hisari nodded: "After becoming a Tang Dynasty, I started doing business at sea, and my status as a scholar made everything go smoothly."
"Can you imagine? Nanguang."
"In Ryukyu, only my servants eat chazuke rice like today, and they eat it every day, but in Kagoshima, even the samurai have a hard time eating it."
Shimazu Hisari looked forward to it: "Nanguang, come with me to Ryukyu. Once there, you will be able to eat chazuke rice every day."
Shimazu Nanhiro was shocked and couldn't close his mouth for a long time.
It was unimaginable to him that delicacies that were beyond the reach of warriors were only meals for servants.
After thinking for a long time, he could only shake his head and said: "The status of a samurai is inherited from my family. Although I was down and out in Kagoshima, I was still a master."
"When I went to Ryukyu, I had no worries about food and drink, but I was still a servant."
"So, I would rather stay in Kagoshima."
Shimazu Hisari looked directly at his friend, who was not to be outdone and stared at each other, still unyielding.
After a long time, he sighed and shook his head, feeling unworthy of his friend.
But equally, he must respect his choice. After all, in the eyes of some people, a hungry and well-fed warrior is more important than a life of abundant food and clothing.
"I heard that you have three sons. Then give me the youngest son. I will take him to Ryukyu and let him become a Tang Dynasty man, read and write, and go out in the future.
Then I’ll take you to enjoy the happiness——”
Hearing this, Shimazu Nanhiro was shocked, and then he sat down on the ground and refused to get up for a long time.
After a while, Shimazu Hisari asked him to get up: "Get up, I can only help you so far."
In Japan, samurai can retire as a samurai. Sometimes, in order to allow the successor to take over the position better and take over the connections, the samurai will retire early and let his son inherit.
Obviously, it is better for Shimazu Nanhiro to cultivate his descendants than to enjoy happiness himself. This is the nature of human reproduction.
The next day, news of Shimazu Hisunari's treat last night spread throughout Kagoshima. Samurai big and small already knew that he had returned rich and had really become a Tang Dynasty man, and he was also a scholar.
For a time, there were many people who were envious of him, and there were even more people who looked down upon him.
However, just after dawn, Shimazu Hisari went to visit his former relatives and friends, and then went to find connections and contacted Mr. Guo.
The latter also allowed the meeting because of his reputation.
The so-called Kuni-ro comes from the fact that during the Edo period, due to the alternation of attendance, the Ie-ro who managed each clan's residence in Edo was called Edo Ie-ro, and the one who managed the territory of the feudal clan was called Kuni-ro.
On the first day of the meeting, Shimazu Hisari directly told about the affairs of Ryukyu House.
The latter was relaxed at first, but when he heard about the Ryukyu governor, he immediately sat up, tilted his head slightly, and acted like a listener.
Seeing the famous family elder like this, Shimazu Hisari was very happy.
"Its mansion is equivalent to Japan (Regoku system, sixty-six countries). The Ryukyu mansion is such a weak country and should have more privacy when it comes to exchanges between the two countries."
The old man stroked his beard and looked thoughtful.
After a while, he nodded immediately, indicating that he agreed to such a private transaction.
In terms of price, Shimazu Hisari paid more attention to his role as a middleman, but did not lower the price. He gave a price of two kilo per silver dollar.
It seems very cheap. After all, in Edo, one tael of rice is equivalent to one tael of gold, which is four taels of silver and four thousand copper coins.
However, the market price is different from the channel price, and Kagoshima cannot compare with Edo. Within a few decades of the end of the Warring States Period, Kagoshima had richer land and more food.
Coupled with the impact of good years and bad years, stable and low prices are the best choice.
And we must also consider that this is a private transaction, which is long-term and sustainable.
"By the way, do you accept cash?"
"If you accept it, you must accept it." Hearing this, the family elder poured out his bitterness:
"After the trade of that year, a large number of Chinese goods came to Japan, and our Kagoshima is no exception."
"We don't control the gold and silver like the shogunate, so we can only have a shortage of gold and silver..."
On the surface, the Tokugawa shogunate controlled all the gold and silver in Japan and controlled finance, thus having abundant financial resources.
However, the mine can be dug out.
In fact, it controls 1/7 of the land but is responsible for the entire financial expenditure of Japan. The financial pressure is not small.
Like the Ming Dynasty, the Tokugawa shogunate's commodity economy gradually prospered, but the collection of commercial taxes was poor. For example, in 1809, the shogunate collected only more than 8,000 taels of commercial taxes from Edo, which was extremely disproportionate to the scale of the economy at that time.
After expanding the financial resources of the Kagoshima Domain, the elder was very happy and talked with him for a long time before letting him go.
Shimazu Hisari was also happy that the task was completed perfectly. When he was about to leave, many men gathered inside and outside the courtyard.
All of them swung their arms and wore shorts on their lower bodies. Their naked faces were full of hunger and excitement.
"What's wrong?"
"They all want to join you -"
Shimazu Nanhiro said with complicated eyes: "Since the agreement was signed with the Ming Dynasty, Japanese people are not allowed to go abroad. Only people from the Tang Dynasty can travel as they please."
"The same is true, only Tang people can take people out——"
As the two of them talked, more and more people gathered in front of the door, and everyone looked around.
Looking, his eyes are full of desire for life.
Shimazu Hisunari was silent.
Except for Nagasaki, which is relatively prosperous due to overseas trade, the rest of the barren Kyushu Island is just a remote area.
There are even some farmers who have never eaten rice in their lives.
The solidification of classes, the feudal system, and the Tokugawa Shogunate allowed Japan to enjoy peace at this time, but they also suppressed the people.
Under such circumstances, no matter how much sympathy the literati have, it will be difficult for them to realize their ambitions.
After Shimazu Hisari hesitated for a moment, he said, "Nanguang, come and help me choose ten people. Ten is enough. No more will be taken away."
Shimazu Nanhiro nodded, inexplicably excited.
Seeing him carefully selecting his servants, Shimazu Hisari looked at the dense crowd of men and fell into thinking for a moment:
In Taiwan, there is a great hunger for young men.
In Luzon, as long as you go there, you will be rewarded with fifty acres of land.
The most abundant thing in Japan is people.
Like ants, as the world becomes more peaceful, the population increases.
If this group of people are recruited to Taiwan, can they get more sugar?
If I go to Luzon, will the conditions in the Governor's Palace be better?
Thinking like this made his thoughts drift further and further away.
At this time, Edo was the headquarters of the Tokugawa shogunate.
Tokugawa Ietsuna, the fourth generation general who conquered the barbarians, was already twenty-two years old and had been in charge of government for many years.
However, his uncle Masayuki Hoshina and his elder Tadakatsu Sakai kept the government as stable as ever.
On this day, during an imperial meeting, Tokugawa Ietsuna noticed something unusual:
"The report from Nagasaki is that for three months this spring, a tax of 100,000 yuan was collected? Is it a false report?"
"General, the report from Nagasaki is correct, and the taxes sent are also true."
Sakai Tadakatsu said: "In the past few years, Tang products have become more and more popular day by day, and their tax collection has also increased."
