Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!

Chapter 1939 1409: Cuba's Sacrifice, the Buddhist Law of Gold!

"Buddha! May my father's soul, on the other side of the Sanzu River, meet the ancestors of the Takeda Clan!… Ancestral Blessings! Bury him!…"The April spring breeze blew across the Tsugaru Strait of the Northern Country and arrived at the verdant Ezo land. Although the vast northeastern part of Ezo land would experience a winter freeze under the influence of the Thousand Islands Cold Current, the Japanese regions at the southernmost point of this Great Island were not as severe.

Even in this mid-Ming period of great cold, the port outside Victory Mountain Manor only froze briefly during January and February before resuming navigation. At this moment, over a dozen customs ships, laden with various goods, and even carrying farmers with their families, arrived at the Kaozaki Family's territory.

"Quick! Disembark! First, let these farmers disembark! Go to the sheds over there; feed each person a bowl of rice porridge!… Quickly unload the goods! Load them onto packhorses and transport them to the manor!… Be careful! These are all rice!…"

The port of Victory Mountain Manor was bustling. Heavy sacks of rice were carried by civilians and loaded onto packhorses. In Japan, mules and horses are rarely seen, and there are few horse carriages. The usual means of transportation rely on human labor and packhorses.

At this moment, although everyone was busily unloading, all faces were filled with genuine smiles. The deep sorrow from the funeral of the Family Head two weeks ago had completely disappeared! Their faces only showed gratitude to the new Family Head and eager hope for the future!

"Buddha's blessing! To pray for the deceased Lord Nobuhiro's peace, the new Family Head Mitsuhiro has issued an order, granting each household half a sack of support rice! Families of Peasant Soldiers who participated in the northern campaign against the Shandan invasion under the former Family Head will receive half a sack more!… While every Kaozaki warrior household receives two sacks of rice!…"

"The generous Family Head Mitsuhiro also said! Since he has assumed the role of Family Head, he must treat the people of his domain like his own children, just like Lord Nobuhiro did! This being his first year as Family Head, the entire territory will have its autumn harvest taxes reduced by a third, from 60% to the lord and 40% to the people, to 40% to the lord and 60% to the people!…"

"All households should strive to cultivate new fields! The rice harvested from newly cultivated fields this year will remain yours! And for the first three years after cultivation, the fields will be tax-exempt! For the next three years, you will pay half the tax, and normal taxes will commence in the seventh year!…"

Mitsuhiro has been in power for less than a month, yet he has promulgated three sweeping edicts that have completely won over the hearts of the clansmen in his territory!

The first edict is straightforward and generous: "distribute rice". Every household receives tangible rice! With the Kaozaki Family comprising over four thousand mouths, nearly a thousand households, it required approximately eight hundred sacks of support rice. And for the over two hundred non-retired warriors, with each household receiving two sacks, that's another four hundred sacks. In total, that equates to one thousand two hundred sacks of support rice! According to the Muromachi period metrology, two sacks equal one stone, totalling six hundred stones of rice!

The second edict is equally straightforward: reduce taxes and distribute wealth! The more land owned, the greater the tax reduction, mainly aimed at winning over the hearts of the House Elders and key retainers. This decree would also result in approximately a six hundred stones reduction in territorial tax revenue.

As for the third edict, it complements the first two. Since the people have ample sustenance and lighter tax burdens, they have the energy to open more farmland for the Family Head and themselves! While new fields may initially produce little, Mitsuhiro does not care about small sums and has boldly declared these new fields tax-free for three years, then half-tax for three years!

Mitsuhiro can be so generous because he has the means to be! Even though the capital region has been plagued with constant battles this year, the Kanto region experienced a bountiful harvest, reducing rice prices compared to last year.

Mori no Kiyoshi, a wealthy merchant of rice markets, has ample channels to acquire rice from Kanto at 0.6 kan per stone. He sold it to the Kaozaki at the same price of 0.6 kan per stone. So, purchasing the entire 1,200 stones of rice for the Kaozaki territory cost 720 kan copper coins! Converted to the favorable exchange rate provided by Mori no Kiyoshi, 90 kan copper coins per one pound of gold meant it equated to only 8 pounds of gold, or 8 gold talismans!

The last trade of gold with Zuwaro by Mitsuhiro easily exchanged for 24 gold talismans! This investment in the whole territory's wealth was merely a third of that initial gold trade, just a third!…

"Uncle Mori no Kiyoshi! Father just passed away, and you were so busy at the funeral, I sincerely admire your moral integrity!…"

"You sold us one to two thousand stones of rice at a purchase price of 0.6 kan per stone, without even charging for transportation… And you exchanged gold at a rate of 90 kan per pound, 10 kan more than the usual 80 kan…"

"Ancestor! You are my uncle and our Kaozaki Family's unannounced House Elder! How can I let you lose money? Perhaps, you should take two more gold talismans…"

Seeing the shiploads of rice straw bags being unloaded, full of Kanto rice, Kaozaki Yoshihiro felt genuinely embarrassed. Sincerely, he looked at his uncle Mori no Kiyoshi, insisting on giving him two more gold talismans.

"...End… Buddha…"

The golden light shone, illuminating Mori no Kiyoshi's eyes. He took a deep breath, silently recited a few Buddhist Scriptures, then smiled and shook his head, holding down Kaozaki Yoshihiro's hand. He looked into the young and clear eyes of his "nephew", paused for a moment, and sighed complexly in his heart.

"Buddha! What a 'young' Family Head! Lord Nobuhiro, this responsibility you left me… let's teach him well!"

After pondering for a few breaths, Mori no Kiyoshi candidly smiled and revealed an unspeakable merchant secret.

"Mitsuhiro, Buddha's golden light illuminates the human heart! I will exchange more goods, including rice, salt, sake, tea, weapons, armor, farmers, and craftsmen, for all the gold you are willing to exchange, all at prices more favorable than the market!…"

"Rest assured! In our transactions, I have not only not lost profit, but gained far too much, so much that even an uncle feels embarrassed. Compared to true benefits, this trade's profit in one to two thousand stones of rice is indeed thin. I can't exploit you further, lest you understand in the future and lose your trust in me…"

"Haha! Don't be puzzled! Today, uncle will tell you this secret!… The point is, gold is unlike all other things; it is the real, only wealth that everyone believes in! Its value cannot be compared to superficial wealth or its apparent worth!"

"Buddha bears witness! In your hands, a piece of gold is merely a piece of gold, able to exchange only for the value equivalent of gold itself… However, in my hands, once blessed by incredible Buddhist law, they become Buddha's Golden Body, drawing worldly reverence and trust!…"

"As long as the Buddhist law remains unseen, as long as people fail to see through this golden light, neither the nobles high above, the famous Martial Families, nor the dominant merchants, are more than mere worshippers of the Golden Body of the mundane world!… For me, this gold is my merchant's Golden Body, my mercantile credibility, the trust in which everyone believes! In my hands, a single piece of gold can serve as four, five, or even ten pieces!…"