Pillars of the Wu family

On April [-]th, the Naoetsu of the Kira family went northward along the coastline. Along the way, they saw a desolate land on the coast, which was completely deserted and densely forested. When they entered the mouth of the Shinano River, they went up the river. Found large swamps, sandbars, and a large number of wild birds and animals.

"This is the two sides of our Niigata town. A new town will be built between the east of the Shinano River and the Agano River." Hosokawa Fujitaka said, pointing to the land where the Mizusawa jungle gathered.

"How to manage the new fields here? Look at those lakes and sandbars, there is absolutely no way to deal with them!" Shino Honjo shook his head to express his understanding. In their eyes, this area has been an abandoned land since ancient times, and it is said that it is a gathering place for kappa and monsters. , there are only a few Chinese living scatteredly in a radius of dozens of miles, and such a piece of land has become a godsend in the eyes of the Kira family.

Wearing a Confucian scholar's robe, a scholar's cap, and a typical scholar's attire of the Ming Dynasty, Li Ding stood on another boat and praised the land: "It's really a good place! It's just a place to test the polder land handed down from our ancestors." Law!"

Matsui Nobuyuki, who has often been to Omi to ask for advice on farming issues in the past few years, can barely understand the scholar's Jiangnan accent, so he couldn't help asking: "What is a...field?" [

Li Ding was in a particularly good mood when he was able to see a large area of ​​primitive water and swamps in a foreign country, so he patiently explained: "The polder is a place in the low-lying land around the For paddy fields built with embankments to prevent water, sluices should be installed on the elevations. Usually the sluices are closed to control the water, and when there is a drought, the sluices are opened to release water into the fields. Therefore, droughts and floods are a concern. In the future, this large swamp sandbar can be turned into a thousand hectares of fertile land, and the saline-alkali land by the sea can also be used. It can be gradually changed according to this method.”

This person is a Ming Dynasty scholar hired by Kira's family with a high salary, and his surname is Li Mingding.Zi Wenju was originally from a well-known maritime merchant family in a certain county in Zhejiang Province. Since he was admitted as a scholar, he has been neglecting his studies and has been obsessed with farming, water conservancy and other miscellaneous subjects. It has been seven or eight years.

Because he doesn't seek to be superior, so his status in the clan is not high.A few years ago, the "King of the Sea" Wang Wufeng led Japanese pirates to ravage Jiangnan and oppress Yingtianfu. For a while, the capital was shocked and sent a large army to encircle and suppress the Japanese pirates. Their Li family was also implicated in the old account of colluding with Wang Wufeng in the smuggling business. This scholar He had to flee to Kyushu with his family for refuge.

"Why does my family look down on me? Agriculture is a matter of life and death for the common people. Why don't they understand? Why is it not as important as a foreign lord? Can golden gold and silver be eaten? Isn't it necessary to eat whole grains?" Li Ding said The anger accumulated in my heart was released fiercely, and I felt comfortable and at ease all over my body.

Matsui Nobuyuki did not hear Li Dingqi's fast speaking speed.Ji Li Gua La didn't know what he was talking about, and wondered if this scholar had lost his mind and gone crazy?So he asked worriedly, "Li Xiucai..."

"I'm fine." Li Ding waved his hand to indicate that he was fine, coughed and said, "Although this polder is good, it can't cure all diseases. For example, Huze, where the two rivers meet, is the most dangerous place. In previous years, the two rivers were often Is there a flood?"

"Yes! What Li Xiucai said is very true! The Shinano River and the Agano River flood every few years. The floods rush out of the dams and destroy farmland and villages. The flood damage is even more serious than the drought!" Come here Matsui Nobuyuki had done his homework before, knowing that there are always a lot of water damage in places where rivers gather, and he didn't stutter when talking to scholars.

"That's right!" Li Ding scolded Fang Qiu excitedly, with the meaning of pointing the country: "Do you know that the polder will increase the flood damage? If you don't know this, you will only harm the farmers on both sides of the strait. By then your Bad luck for the lord!"

Matsui Nobuyuki was taken aback.He quickly shook his head and said, "What? Will it still be like this? Then it's better not to build this polder!"

"Haha! Look at you! Can you calm the water damage without building polders?" Li Ding glanced at him sarcastically, and said confidently, "I'm sure that I can calm the water damage while building polders, as long as I follow my method." Surely no problem!"

Nobuichi Matsui didn't care about Li Ding's eyes at all. Ming people came to Japan with colored glasses more or less. This kind of thinking, he has long been used to it.

Knowing that Xiucai was playing tricks again, he followed suit and asked: "How to calm down the flood? Didn't Li Xiucai just say that the polder would contribute to flood damage? What's going on here?"

"If you want to know why the polders contribute to flood damage, you must first understand the function and impact of the polders. My hometown is similar to this land. But it is far warmer than here, and the climate is about the same as Kyushu!" After a short memory, Li Ding coughed lightly and said, "This kind of area with lakes, marshes, and waterways is often faced with the problem of frequent water damage. If the lake is built to build fertile land, it will inevitably occupy the channel where the river flows. The narrower the channel, the higher the river will be lifted." , the problem was not obvious when it was first built. After a long time, the sediment washed by the river water accumulated on the polder dam, making the river narrower and narrower. Once there is a big flood..."

"That was a disaster! The polder dykes were the first to be washed away, destroying farmland and villages, right?" Nobuyuki Matsui couldn't help shivering.

"So we need to find a place for flood discharge. The construction of polders should be built at the same time as the canal for diversion and flood discharge. A few more water outlets can reduce the burden of flood discharge. The specific location of water diversion needs to be carefully considered." Li Ding thought The details couldn't help frowning and pondering: "It seems that I need to stay here for a few years to design a plan for land reclamation and flood drainage, and then I can show my talents when I return to the village in the future."

Yoshitoki Kira's fleet was only for a general tour. Under Li Ding's suggestion, an observation station was set up on the east bank of the Shinano River. Stationed here, he plans to spend half a year researching a complete set of plans.

Yoshitoki Kira said impassionedly: "The future of Echigo lies in Nitta, and the future of Nitta lies in Niigata. From now on, this place will be called Niigata. It will be the largest granary of Echigo, and it will also change the old situation of remoteness and poverty in Echigo. Face...you are doing a great deed to benefit the public, your hard work will be remembered forever by Echigo, and your achievements will be recorded in the annals of history, I would like to thank you in the name of the Kira family!"

At the end of the speech, amidst the enthusiastic cheers and applause of hundreds of advance team members, they boarded the ship with smiles on their faces.Hosokawa Fujitaka, who had been waiting for a long time, came over and handed over a proposal document, and patiently explained: "The new field that is allowed to be developed within a year is down to [-] steps, and the location is not good, and the transportation is inconvenient. Suggestions Give up the development in the short term and focus on the development and construction of Niigata Nitta.”

Hastily took a few glances.Yoshihiro Kira shook his head and vetoed: "You can't put all your eggs in one basket. Niigata Nitta needs to be built, and remote Nitta should also be built. There will be more refugees coming from Ueno this year. Go back and do a good job." Leave the contingency plan to me.”[

"Yes!" Hosokawa Fujitaka accepted the rejected proposal, and asked again: "The construction of the Niigata Temporary Office will be initially completed within one and a half months. After the completion, the interior of the new town will accommodate 1000 people. I would like to ask the master of the hall whether we should mobilize the army to defend Xinding."

"Well, the logistical supplies should arrive as soon as possible, and Jinjin Yoshinori is asked to mobilize [-] troops to sit in Niigata. All the refugees who don't have any skills are transferred to Niigata, and more labor will be needed here."

Taking advantage of the monsoon blowing from the southwest, the fleet left Shimoetsu and returned to Naoetsu along the way. Not long after the fleet left Shin, they encountered a fleet appearing on the sea. Their flag was the navy of the Sado Honma family. The fleet He didn't care much and was intercepted.

Kuki Shigetaka, who served as the guard, saw the Honma navy with more than 30 Xiaozao and three ships.He smiled coldly: "It's probably because there are only a few frigates in my family, so I want to see if there is any oil or water to fish for? I went over and scolded them to leave quickly."

Because the duty of the fleet is to transport supplies and personnel, and they are leaving again and again, there are only a few closed ships to escort them, making them mistakenly think that they are sure to eat this fleet.

"What is Sado's navy going to do?" The samurai of Kira's navy shouted impatiently, "Didn't you see the flag of our family? Get out of the way!"

The Honma family's navy didn't seem to be listening, and they were still cruising around. After a while, a closed ship approached, and a samurai stepped out and shouted: "We are the Sado Honma family, you all listen to me ! Hand over [-]% of the things on board! Otherwise, don’t blame me for being rude!”

"Which Honma family are you, don't you know who we are? Open your eyes and see the flag clearly!"

"I don't care who you are. Hand over the goods, or you will all die here!" The warrior was very arrogant, and with a wave of his hands, dozens of bows and feet lightly drew their bows and aimed at the fleet.

Kira Yoshitoshi was also disturbed by the noise. He went to the deck and took a look before ordering: "Tell them that our fleet has no cargo and returns empty. Let them please go back!"

Xiao Xing went out and yelled for a long time, but the Honma family's water army on the opposite side did not retreat, which made the samurai on board very angry, shouting to attack them, Jiugui Shigetaka hurried over and asked for instructions: "My lord, we Do you want to hit it?"

"Let's hit it." Ji Liangyi looked up at the sunset at dusk, and added: "Just scare them away! The sun is not far away."

His answer and Kuki Shigetaka's question are very ingenious. At this time, it is not appropriate to let the other party know who is coming on board. No one in the vast sea can tell whether there are reinforcements for the Honma Navy. If the fight is too fierce and delays time, It would be very bad to attract reinforcements from the other side, not to mention the weather is getting late, if you can't hurry back, you will have to sleep at sea.

But after a while, there was a burst of dense iron cannons, sometimes mixed with vicious curses and painful wailing. If the opponent dared to surround him with fear, he would have to pay a heavy price for being attacked by concentrated fire.

The sound of ping-pong-pong iron cannons gradually subsided, and after a long while, there was a burst of cursing as if the conversation had collapsed, followed by another burst of iron cannons sounding intensively, this time the sound was longer and sporadic. The gunfire lasted for a quarter of an hour, and then the fleet began to move slowly.

Shigetaka Kuki's son Yajiro Kuki ran over panting and said, "Master, the Honma army has already retreated. My father said that they might come to take revenge again. Please tell me whether to escort the Lord back to Naoetsu first."

"Well! That's it!" Yoshiki Kira smiled and said after dismissing the kid from Kuki's house, "In the blink of an eye, this little guy is not too young, and it's time for Gengoro to take up his uniform."

He didn't think it was inappropriate for him to call a boy who was one year younger than him a "little guy". Fortunately, Hosokawa Fujitaka, who was sitting next to him, was in a trance, and said incoherently, "Yes! Your Highness Already married, but the subject has to wait for a few more years, how tragic it is!"

Yoshiki Kira joked: "I miss your little wife? It's called Musk, right? Speaking of which, we are still related by fate!"

Hosokawa Fujitaka is not afraid of his jokes, anyway, the matter has come to this point, and the relationship between the two is destined to be brother-in-law, so he is not afraid of his jokes, so he said with a mournful face: "The owner of the museum can't feel the pain of not being able to get married. I am 22 years old this year, but Musk only At the age of 12, it will take two years at the earliest to get married, which is really too painful!"

"Hey! Why do big men worry about wives? There are so many women, do you want me to send you a ninja to warm your bed?" Yoshitomo Kira leaned over and said with an ambiguous expression: "A girl ninja who is sixteen or seventeen years old has not been accepted by anyone. Even if you have a child, you don’t have to worry about the inheritance of the bastard, think about it?”

"Uh...forget it! Your servant is obsessed with musk. Even if the mountains and rivers are exhausted, you still don't change your original intention!" Hosokawa Fujitaka casually recited Yuefu poems, and the high-end atmosphere concealed the hesitation and wavering at that moment . [

"Why do I feel that this sentence is a bit familiar... Forget it, let's continue to study land improvement."

After holding back for a while, Hosokawa Fujitaka still couldn't hold back and asked curiously: "My lord, what should I do with the Sado Honma navy?"

"You want to know?" Yoshihiro Kira raised his head to look at him, then lowered his head while looking at the information and said, "Don't worry about them...they will pay the price."

At the evaluation meeting in early May, Kuki Shigetaka suddenly launched an attack, listing all kinds of illegal acts by the Honma navy, wantonly intercepting passing ships to rob goods, and plundering people to mines on the island as slaves. More importantly, they actually The ship that intercepted Kirayoshi was simply daring and reckless.

Honjo realized the seriousness of the situation at the first time, and hastily suggested: "The Honma family was an important minister in Jinggong's era. Back then, Jinggong returned from Yuezhong and fought all the way to Xiayue to encircle the Kanto leader Uesugi Ding He has made great contributions to the army... and Gao Xin is the niece and son-in-law of Duke Jing, so it may not be appropriate to have an in-law relationship!"

Nakajo Fujisuke also chimed in and said: "The Honma family has always been respectful, and the rash crusade may make the people of Sado dissatisfied. Please think twice at Wuweidian!"

Nagao Jingxin held back what he wanted to say, because he saw Honjo Shino winking at Nagao Jinghu, and Echigo no Ryu who had been silent all this time finally spoke, "Yitoki, is this Takanobu Honma For the relatives of the family, let them go."