Volume 6 The Seven Hundred and Eighty-Second Crisis
On the morning of September 5, the seventh year of Tianzheng (1579), Yu Qiuping took his guards to Sakai Town in casual clothes. Only when Yu Qiuping arrived did he realize that the situation in Sakai Town was not at all as optimistic as what he heard. It turned out that this prosperous port city,
Now it looks messy and lifeless. When Yu Qiuping came last time, countless factories, large and small, were full of workers, sweating like rain, producing goods. However, when Yu Qiuping came today, most of the small and medium-sized factories had stopped working.
, the streets that were originally bustling with traffic also seemed a little deserted. Only the large factories under the control of the big chambers of commerce still maintained production, but most factories were not full.
"Where have all the people gone?" Yu Qiuping rode his horse to the residential area outside Sakai Town and found that there were actually many crop fields in the surrounding wasteland.
"It's almost winter, and it's not a good time for farming." Yu Qiuping frowned and came to the roadside, found a man plowing the land, and asked in a low voice, "Brother, I want to ask, what are you doing now?
What are you doing?"
"Hey, plant some sesame seeds and drive away the weeds. The land will be good for farming next year." The man glanced at Yu Qiuping and continued to swing the hoe.
"Are you here to open up wasteland?"
"We originally came to work in Sakai Town. We have been working for several years and we can earn a lot a year." Seeing that Yu Qiuping was still asking, the man straightened up, put the hoe upside down on the ground, and supported it on the hoe.
Shang and Yu Qiuping chatted, "But in the past few months, the small factories have basically stopped working, and wages can't be paid. It is said that the samurai masters in the West do not let our ships enter, so the goods cannot be sold. Chambers of Commerce
We couldn't work any more, and we had no income. But we couldn't just wait, my family was still waiting for me to support our family. So many of us made a plan and decided to come here to farm.
I can have something to eat."
The man pointed to the many fields around him as he spoke, "Look, those are all fields owned by people from Sakai Town."
"What about the other workers?" Yu Qiuping asked again.
"Some people go to Maple Leaf Mountain City to do odd jobs, others go fishing, some cut firewood, and they do everything." The man said and sighed, "But how can you do these jobs?
I can make a lot of money working part-time, and I don’t know when the factory will resume work. If it doesn’t resume work, I will go back to my hometown, where there are still paddy fields for farming.”
"Thank you." Yu Qiuping cupped his hands towards this man, but felt even more worried.
·
After he rode his horse back to Sakai Town, he went to inspect the warehouses around Sakai Port without stopping. What Imai Munehisa said was true. The large and small warehouses around Sakai Port were already filled with produced materials, and even
Even some of the surrounding factories have ceased operations and been converted into warehouses for storing materials, and even the streets are packed with boxes. Yu Qiuping climbed up to a watchtower and looked at the sea around Sakai Port. It used to be the busiest
The three waterways to the west now have only a few sparse ships left. And large numbers of ships can only wait in Sakai Port, so that Sakai Port can no longer stop and have to wait at Sakai Port.
Two more temporary small ports have been built. A few ships are heading south to the Kii Channel in the south. They probably want to bypass Kii and go eastward to open up a route to the East Kingdom.
Yu Qiuping rushed to the meeting hall of the House of Commons without stopping. The hall was already overcrowded, and the hearing box next to it was so crowded with people from all walks of life that Yu Qiuping could only stand. Workers' leader Kihachiro was speaking impassionedly on the stage.
He didn't have stage fright at all during his speech, and he seemed to be really qualified to be a member of parliament.
"What our workers demand is to pass a relief law to compensate all our workers who have left their jobs due to the embargo!" Kihachiro waved his fist on the stage. "We workers have suffered such unreasonable losses without doing anything wrong! It must be
Make it up to us!"
"Nonsense." A middle-aged businessman in front of Yu Qiuping muttered to his companions. "Not long ago, a bill was passed allowing these workers to reclaim wasteland. They are not satisfied yet. Now the chamber of commerce cannot be opened.
If this continues, we all will be unable to make ends meet and cannot collect taxes, so how can we provide them with subsidies?"
"That's right." The man next to the businessman also nodded repeatedly, "People's hearts are so weak... Ever since we let those workers elect people to the House of Commons, they have been asking for a wage increase every day. They have already received an increase once, and now they have another
It’s a new requirement. If you ask me, I shouldn’t have hesitated the first time. Even if it means spending money, we must suppress their bill that time.”
"The workers have been making trouble all day long, and it doesn't matter if we don't pass it. Who would have thought that they are not satisfied yet." The middle-aged businessman couldn't help but muttered, "I've never heard of any relief law... it's a mess."
"But if these workers have no chance of survival and all run back to their original hometowns, wouldn't the hard work of our Yuqiu family to gather so many people be in vain? Where should we find workers next time?" Yu Qiuping didn't know.
For some reason, he interrupted abruptly, startling both businessmen.
"This gentleman must be a samurai." The middle-aged businessman was very discerning and could tell Yu Qiuping's identity at a glance. "What you said makes sense. Boss Imai and the others are hesitating now. This is largely due to this consideration.
.”
"But they have been forced to farm. It's not like they can't survive and can't wait. It's true." Another businessman next to him was still complaining, "Now that the Western countries have jointly imposed an embargo, our Highness Hongye is under house arrest again.
No one can take charge. We don’t know how long it will take to resume business. We can’t make ends meet, and no matter how much trouble those workers make, we can’t get the money out.”
"What is the attitude of the House of Lords towards this?" Since the House of Lords was adjourned today, Yu Qiuping was unable to visit the House of Lords, so he asked casually.
"Those samurai gentlemen are very leisurely. Anyway, they are not short of money. They have deposited a lot of money in the bank, so they are not in a hurry." The middle-aged businessman sighed, with a few forehead lines showing on his forehead. "They think it's okay.
. They said that if we submit a relief bill to the House of Commons, they will approve it. It is their assurance that makes those workers so excited."
At this moment, another noise suddenly came from the door. After a while, Yu Qiuping saw two or three members of the House of Commons, surrounded by a group of people, rushing in aggressively and about to rush to the stage.
Upon seeing this, Imai Munehisa, the speaker of the meeting, quickly led his people to stop them and wanted to maintain the order of the speeches. However, the group of people shouted slogans and kept crowding in.
"What's going on with them?" Yu Qiuping patted the middle-aged businessman on the shoulder and pointed at the pair of people who broke in.
The middle-aged businessman just glanced at them, then smiled wryly and shook his head repeatedly, "It's those two congressmen again. They are both specialized in shipping. Some of their ships were attacked by the ships of the Western Kingdom's famous ships at sea and in the port.
It sank, and many people died, and many ships were confiscated with their people and cargo. They made trouble with the survivors all day long, asking the House of Commons to legislate to compensate them for their losses, and then find a way to get those who were detained
people want to come back.”
"We have no money." The businessman beside him couldn't help but spit on the ground, "These people know how to ask for money! How can the treasury have so much money? The Yuqiu family has so many troops, so many pursuits, and so much consumption every year.
Do they have any idea of how much it will cost? There is not much left in tax revenue this year, and they have to rely on the national treasury to cover it. If trade cannot recover next year, the military expenditure of the Red Leaf Army will be too much! Is it their turn to ask for money?"
Looking at the chaotic hall of the House of Commons, and remembering what he had seen before, Yu Qiuping had already made a decision in his heart. He turned and left the parliament hall, waiting for the meeting to end in the reception room on the side. Then, he prepared to leave.
Imai Munehisa, Tsuda Muneki and Konishi Lonzo all called over.
"Your Highness Hongye?" The three of them couldn't help but exclaimed after seeing Yu Qiuping, "When did you come back?"
"I was just released the day before yesterday." Yu Qiuping joked with a smile, "I didn't announce the news, and you must not leak the information that I have returned."
"Yes." When the three of them saw Yu Qiuping making such a statement, they naturally understood that he was about to take action.
"Tell me the truth, how much loss have you suffered due to the current embargo?"
When the three businessmen saw Yu Qiuping asking this question, they almost all reported their own situation without hesitation, which was similar to what Yu Qiuping saw. Imai Munehisa also added a few words, "We are pretty good, after all, the funds are
We have plenty of money, and we have business contacts with the Oda family in many places inland. However, many small and medium-sized chambers of commerce rely entirely on sea trade with the West and cannot afford land transportation. Once sea trade is cut off, they will go bankrupt.
It can't go on any longer. If we can quickly open trade routes and let them sell their goods, they may be able to turn around and save many companies. If this situation drags on until next year, all those companies will be ruined, and many workers will probably die.
If we go back, the development of Sakai Town will be set back at least five years."
"I understand." Yu Qiuping nodded, then looked at the three of them, "Are you free recently?"
"What do you mean, Your Highness?" The three businessmen were stunned.
"Follow my army." Yu Qiuping patted his chest with his hand and smiled at the three of them, "I'll help you sell goods."
"How can Your Highness help me sell it?" Tsuda Souji burst into laughter upon hearing this, "Does Your Highness also want to open a venue?"
"It is said that the Mitsubishi Caravan has made contact with the Tokugawa family, and now it has opened a new market in the Tokugawa family." Imai Munehisa's eyes suddenly lit up, "Your Highness, could it be..."
"The Tokugawa family is nothing." Yu Qiuping deliberately made a contemptuous expression, "The market I want to help you open is much bigger than this."
Yu Qiuping spread out the map, used a pencil to slowly draw a line along the Seto Inland Sea, and then looked up at the three businessmen.