Chapter 40: A Special Vow

  An old man with white hair and beard, wearing a hemp robe and hempen shoes, sat cross-legged in front of the inner storehouse door. He gazed at Yoshirō for a long time before speaking in a hoarse voice: "I hope that you, Master of the mansion, will keep your promise! This time, I'll consider it as if you borrowed money for the sake of our family business! Please remember the laws of the Kira house, even if you are the head of the household, do not forget!"

  "I, Kiryū Manshōmaru, will never forget this!" Kiryū Manshōmaru let out a small sigh of relief, thinking that he had finally passed the test. The old man nodded to a middle-aged man who was kneeling on the side, and the latter immediately stood up and walked over to open the inner storehouse.

  The inner storehouse of the Kirishima family was located in a remote corner of the Honmaru, surrounded by corridors and woods, and except for the inner storehouse that had been locked up all year round, there was only one small wooden house standing alone, whose owner was this old man, Kirishima Yoshitomi, the uncle of Kirishima Manzaburou.

  The middle-aged man's name was Yoshitaka Kira, and he was the uncle of Mitsutomo Kira. He had already branched out to become the head of the Kira family, but after the birth of Yoshinao Ii, he returned to his original family as an adopted son of Yoshitomi Kira. For generations, one branch of the Kira family had always guarded the inner storehouse of their home. Originally, there were also some vassals and retainers who stood guard here, but due to the decline of the Kira family, with the arrival of the Warring States period, people's minds gradually became unsettled, and not many people were willing to stand guard over a permanently locked inner storehouse.

  Every year, the Kira family would deposit a sum of several hundred to several thousand ryō into their internal storage, a tradition established by Ashikaga Yoshimasa when he first built Nijō Castle. The original intention was for this fund to be used as expenses for future military campaigns by the Ashikaga clan. Later, when the castle was given to his younger son, who became the founder of the Kira family, they continued this tradition.

  Kira Yoshichika rarely came to this place, and even if he did, it wasn't to look for them. It was because his uncle Kira Yoshiyuki was really hard to get along with. His uncle Kira Yoshimichi had been hit twice and became a very gloomy person. It is said that Kira Yoshimichi also fought with his father over the family business, but it seemed he ultimately failed and was ordered to leave for the Kira Isshiki clan under the name Isshiki Yoshiaki. He returned to his original home in less than two years after the birth of Isshiki Yorinori.

  Later, his only son Kira Yoshichika, because of his youth and vigor, did not listen to his advice, and went to follow the equally young Kira Yoshihiro to attack the lord of Hachiman Castle, Arakawa Yoshihiro. As a result, both men died together in battle at the foot of Hachiman Mountain, it is said that he fell facing the direction of Nishijō Castle, still clutching the Kira family's prayer for victory talisman. This event gave him a huge blow, his wife soon fell ill and passed away, and he himself became increasingly depressed.

  Kiriyama Mantsumaru looked around and didn't see the little girl jumping around, so he asked: "Uncle! Is Katsuragi doing well? The main house hasn't seen her for a long time!"

  "Katsuhime followed her mother to the shrine to make a wish, and recently, due to some circumstances, they have been staying in the town below the castle." Kira Yoshinaka looked up at him and muttered, Kira Katsuhime was the only daughter of Kira Yoshinaka and his second wife, Lady O-Kō. She was one year younger than Kira Matsuomaru and a lovely little girl who was also Kira Matsuomaru's only childhood playmate.

  Kira Yoshinaka could not accept that his aunt, Lady Kira, was a devout follower of the Ikkō-ikki sect. Kira Yoshinaka was also a taciturn person and he did not have good relations with his wife. When Shokichi was very young, she was often taken away by her mother, which was another thing that Kira Yoshichika disliked.

  "How can a daughter of the Kiryū family live in Jōkamachi? Zenjirō, take some men to Honke-ji Temple and bring back my aunt and Katsuragi."

  "Yes!" Yamagata Zentarō responded loudly and quickly ran out with several attendants.

  "Uncle! I want to take Shōshi to Kyoto and have her receive the imperial family's etiquette lessons, so she can marry a good husband later." Kira Yoshinaka was very dissatisfied with this aunt's behavior and decided to take advantage of the opportunity to take away Shōshi.

  "But Katsuragi is only eight years old..."

  "With Ah Kui taking care of her, it's definitely more reassuring than Uncle, right! Ah Kui is a relative of my mother's and is someone who is flawless in both character and etiquette!" Accidentally selling Ah Kui again, Kiriyama Mantarou could only silently apologize to himself and think of ways to make it up to him later.

  "I understand! Kiriko will be entrusted to the master of the mansion!" Kira Yoshitaka agreed, steeled himself for his daughter's future.

  "Alright! I'll leave it to Uncle then!" Kiryu Mitsumatsu smiled slightly and nodded, before leading Hitotsu Yorozu into the inner storehouse.

  I thought the inner treasury would be a dusty place that hadn't been disturbed for years, but after entering I found my understanding was biased. The floor was indeed covered in dust, but all the coins were covered with black cloth. After lifting the cloth, you can see their true appearance. There are many types of coins, including over 20 varieties of Song dynasty coins, each with a different copper content. Ming dynasty coins include Da Zhong Tong Bao, Hongwu Tongbao, Yongle Tongbao, and a small number of Jiajing Tongbao.

  Kirishima Manzanmaru roughly estimated that the amount of Song money was very small, probably due to the fact that it had been used three times in a row, totaling less than 1,000 strings. On the other hand, there were quite a lot of Ming money, about 8,000 strings or so, which were the result of saving some expenses every year. Frugality has always been the motto of the Takeuchi family in any era.

  "Song Qian, don't move, Ming Qian take out... 5,000 yuan!" Kiryū Manzōmaru gritted his teeth and reported a huge number. The crowd around them looked at each other, not daring to make a move. Seeing that the stalemate was going nowhere, Yī Sè Liù Láng hurriedly urged: "Hurry up and do it! 5,000 yuan! If you take one more coin, you know what the consequences will be!"

  "Yes!" The crowd dispersed and began to lift strings of copper coins. Kiryū Mantarōmaru stood under the lamp, his face expression changing unpredictably, "This time it's a do-or-die action, I really don't know what the outcome will be in ōtsu, if we fail, I'll lose my position as head of the house too! So, let's go all-in!"

  Dozens of people carried copper coins out of the inner warehouse at dusk, and Kiriyama Yoshitomi and Kiriyama Yoshiteru were pale and kneeling outside the gate. When they saw Kiriyama Manzanmaru come out, this white-haired uncle was furious: "Manzanmaru! Are you going to make our Kiriyama family extinct? Moving out of the inner warehouse is a self-destructive move! Your ancestors in heaven will not be at peace!"

  The old man, although over 70 years old, was robust and free from illness or disaster. At home, he held a prestigious and special position, guarding the inner storehouse. When he got angry, even the samurai of the Kira family did not dare to come forward to dissuade him. However, Kira Yoshinaka could not retreat; he had an unyielding reason: over 1,600 people were waiting for food and drink, and without money, how could this family head continue to lead?

  "Uncle! I understand! I understand all of this!" Kiryū Mantsumaru lowered his face and walked to the opposite side, kneeling on the ground. He met Kiryū Yoshitomi's sharp gaze for a moment, then said seriously: "I, Kiryū Mantsumaru, am an unworthy descendant of the Kiryū clan! Unable to protect our family's ancestral business, I had no choice but to surrender and serve the Imagawa clan... But! I will not give up! The blood of Hachiman Shrine flows through my veins, my ancestors were Minamoto no Yoshikuni and Ashikaga Yoshikane! I cannot sit back and watch our family's downfall! Therefore, the Kiryū house must fight to the death! If we do not win, we will die! If we do not rise again, we will perish!"

  "If we don't win, we die. If we don't prosper, we perish... Hahaha, good! Good! You're indeed the descendant of Yoritomo Minamoto! With your spirit, even if my Kira family is really destroyed, I can rest in peace at the new temple in the afterlife! Remember your words! Be worthy of our ancestors! Be worthy of the Minamoto bloodline that flows through you!" Kira Yoshifuyu stood up and returned to his small hut, while Kira Yoshimichi just looked at him with a nod and followed suit, leaving behind Kira Manzoumaru sitting alone in the sunset, lost in thought.

  Looking at the fire clouds on the horizon, Kiryū Banshōmaru couldn't help but shed tears. "I seem to have merged with this terrible era! Father! Mother! I won't betray your expectations, I will remember today's oath, if not victorious then death, if not prosperous then destruction!"