Chapter 64: Tsuda's Three Generations (Seeking Collection)

  Among the many nobles who interacted with Tsunetami, the most famous one was Sanjōnishi Sanetsune, a renowned poet and master of Japanese classical literature, also known as the Minister of the Imperial Household Department. Sanjōnishi Sanetsune was a celebrated cultural figure not only in the Muromachi and Sengoku periods but also an important person in later cultural history research.

  The Sanjo Nishi family's various businesses, including the important income-generating Tennojiya and others, were all entrusted to the management of Tennojiya. This had been the foundation for maintaining the Sanjo Nishi family's frequent hosting of waka poetry parties to increase their influence. With this esteemed household engaging in commercial cooperation, the Tsutaya family seemed to have received a royal decree, with their expansion accelerating at an exponential rate over nearly thirty years.

  Sanjō Nishi Sanetaka maintained a close relationship with the Sanjō Nishi family even after his death, and also quietly expanded his network to the Chūin family. In addition to enhancing the status and influence of Tennoji Temple, Tsuda Munemitsu keenly sensed the subtle undercurrents in the seemingly calm lake waters within the temple grounds. He successively formed connections with Ishiyama Hongan-ji Temple, the Awa Miyo family, and established business cooperation relationships with them.

  There were people who helped to speak in the imperial court, and there were three goods locally. Benmotsu Temple served as a backstage, with the help of these two tiger skins, the development of Tsutaya in Sakai-cho can be said to be rapid, quickly surpassing many large merchants to become one of the top merchants in Sakai-cho and even the entire Kinki region. In his nearly thirty years of managing the Tsutaya family business, he not only developed relationships with samurai families and temples.

  "Is this the place? What a huge commercial building!" Kirishima Manzanmaru couldn't help but feel a sense of wonder. It's not easy to see familiar Ming-style architecture in a foreign country. Kyoto is like a big architectural mishmash, with buildings from the Tang Dynasty all the way to the Song and Ming Dynasties, each with its own unique style that will leave you wondering what era it belongs to at first glance.

  As soon as they entered the hall, the apprentices of Tennojiya came to greet them warmly. Chōshun seemed to know them and exchanged a few words with them before turning to Kira Yoshinaka and saying: "Lord Kira, please sit down for a moment, I'll go and contact Tsunatoyo."

  After waiting for a while and still not seeing anyone coming, Yamagata Zentarō gave a signal to Isshiki Shirō, who responded with a nonchalant wave of his hand, causing the former to become indignant and complain: "How can they still not be here? This sluggishness is truly detestable, Master!"

  "Shh! Remember the rules before going out." Kiryu Manzoumaru made a silencing gesture, pulled out a book from his pocket and began to read "Yokyoku Daikōsho" rewritten by Sanemori Saijō with great interest. It's interesting that among the 103 waka poems, 64 of them are seasonal songs, and among the remaining works, 25 of them describe love between men and women, which is really fascinating.

  After a while, Nakatsukasa Atsunobu led a young man in his early twenties to come over. Nakatsukasa Atsunobu apologized to him with a look of apology: "Kira-sama, I'm sorry! The two leaders of the Tsunada family are not here, so I can only ask this Tsunada Munemoto to receive you."

  "Oh? So you're Tsuda Sōgyū?" Kiryū Manzaburou waved his hand and chased away Yamagata Zenjirō and the others, then began to appraise this future great merchant of Sakai with interest. Perhaps because he had recently seen too many famous people in history, so many that it was starting to feel numb, he wasn't particularly surprised at meeting Tsuda Sōgyū as expected.

  "Yes! Lord Kira! I am Ten'ei, the proprietor of the Tōkaiji Temple." The young man also followed suit and addressed him as "Your Lordship", which was not incorrect. There were many ways to address Kira Yoshinaka, and different people used different forms depending on their status and position.

  Merchants all like to use their store names as surnames, which is the same as warriors using their estate names as surnames, and nobles using unusual names such as avenues, temples, pavilions, and towers as surnames, all of which are current customs.

  "What happened to your father and uncle?" He looked disappointed, but actually not. Tsunetaka was one of the three masters of the world, along with Sen no Rikyū and Imai Sōku, and he was also the future leader of the Naya group. In terms of influence, his father, uncle, and grandfather combined were not as famous as him alone.

  Today is the day of the gathering of the Naya people, which takes place every ten days. All the Naya people in Sakai-machi have to go to Sakainan-sho for a meeting to discuss matters. My father, being one of the Naya people, cannot avoid going either. My uncle, Tsunoda Michikatsu's teacher, Takebe no Okina, is planning to hold a grand tea ceremony soon, and as his direct disciple, my uncle is in charge of arranging the garden and will be unable to return for the time being.

  Tsunoda Munemitsu has a very ordinary appearance. If he were to take off his expensive silk clothes and walk down the street wearing tattered hemp clothing, no one would notice him. This kind of common face is truly unworthy of the great master's standards.

  Kiriu Manshōmaru said mysteriously, "I see. This time, the main house wants to discuss a new business with your honorable merchant house, a new business that will benefit transportation within the domain."

  "Oh! New business? Please continue, Kijirada-dono." Tsuda Muneyoshi smiled casually, without any extra reaction, looking unusually calm.

  "Hmph, I don't believe you won't take the bait." It seems that there was a slight mistake in the plan, and Tsunetaka did not take the bait. Yoshirō gave up on the trick of releasing the hook and explained the advantages of the carriage one by one. In fact, there is not much difference between carriages and ox carts, except that ox carts are single-wheeled and have a single axle, pulled by an ox walking slowly and leisurely. This rhythm is liked by the nobles, but it has no meaning for commercial transportation. Moreover, the imperial court does not allow nobles to ride in ox carts.

  However, the carriage is different. The carriages he made had the simplest suspension device from 14th century Europe. Europe has been widely using carriages since the Roman era, and the development of related technologies is also the most comprehensive. Because the body of the carriage is directly placed on the axle, the bumps on the road are transmitted to the compartment in this way, so it becomes quite painful to ride for a long time. In order to eliminate this shortcoming, someone came up with the idea of suspending the body with chains, so that the vibration from the ground cannot be directly transmitted to the body, which is also the earliest suspension device.

  The leaf spring is absolutely impossible to make, and even if it were made, it would not be dared to use. There was not enough steel craftsmanship to produce the leaf spring, and the car body's vibration was still severe. Turning too fast could even cause the carriage to disintegrate. The carriages he made were based on the technical foundation of Europe two hundred years ago, with some improvements, such as reinforcing the suspension of the carriage body, installing a rope net distributed around the fixed compartment, which can effectively prevent violent shocks and collisions between the vehicle and the compartment during turns, causing unnecessary harm.

  Passenger carts are troublesome to make and use, while freight carts are much simpler. A two-horse cart with a flatbed can carry more goods, and as long as it doesn't go on mountain roads, one horse can pull three tons of cargo. He didn't believe in Jin Tianzong or recognize his goods.

  "It's truly a wonderful creation. I have an impolite request, could Your Excellency Kiryū please tell me where the great person who created this skill is? I, Tenshōjiya, am willing to offer a reward of 100 gold coins per year! Please grant my wish!" Tsuneta Munemoto's body went limp as he bowed down.

  "What's going on? You're looking at me so sincerely, but I won't tell you that the great man is Kirishima Mutsuroumaru!" Kirishima Mutsuroumaru was underestimated once again, and he shrugged his shoulders in a way that indicated he didn't know anything.

  Note: The information about the Tsuda family was collected with great effort, and this family is also a very interesting one in the development history of Sakai-machi. Besides, there really is such a **car.