Chapter 89

After a great deal of effort, leaving Tadajiro to calm the excited villagers, Masahiro quietly arrived at the experimental field he had established. The simple fence that was initially set up had now been replaced with a sturdy wooden fence over two meters high, covered with lush vines that were clearly well-maintained, appearing dense and orderly. At the entrance to the field, there was a wooden gate made of wood, and surprisingly, two foot soldiers were standing guard on either side. Upon seeing Masahiro, the two foot soldiers immediately knelt and bowed.

Masahiro had inspected all the troops in the domain and, through the propaganda of the military inspector, these foot soldiers knew that the lord before them was their provider, and his orders were paramount. Leaving twenty low-ranking samurai outside and signaling the two foot soldiers to rise, Masahiro gently pushed open the wooden gate and entered the small farm he hadn't visited for a long time. Before he could carefully examine the field, he was drawn by the clucking of hens. Turning his head, he saw the large pheasant cage he had set up. The sudden entry of Masahiro caused the dozens of pheasants in the cage to become agitated. Masahiro smiled slightly, turned back, and continued to inspect the other areas.

The fields that were once empty were now filled with sweet potatoes, their vines recently pruned, indicating that Matsu had followed Masahiro's instructions, pruning the vines and expanding the planting area. The soybeans and melons nearby were also growing well. The corn, which was now taller than a person, had thick, sturdy stalks and lush, green leaves, clearly due to sufficient fertilizer. The wild boar dung and fish innards he had collected with great effort had indeed turned into fertilizer in the cornfield. Masahiro quickly walked towards the cornfield, ready to inspect it in detail, when suddenly a person emerged from the corn, colliding with him. The person was clearly startled and let out a woman's characteristic scream.

Masahiro immediately supported the frightened person who was about to fall backward. Upon closer inspection, it was Matsu. Matsu also recognized Masahiro, clearly both surprised and delighted, but her face was flushed. Recalling the past, this wasn't the first time she had ended up in the lord's arms. Masahiro had not informed the people in the back courtyard of his return, so Matsu was overjoyed to see him. For a moment, neither of them spoke, maintaining the posture of support. Masahiro found the beautiful woman incredibly adorable and, using his left hand to grip her waist, tried to pull her up. Unexpectedly, her body was so light, and with Matsu's face flushed and unprepared, another woman's scream echoed as she fell completely into Masahiro's arms. The two, who had been at a distance, were now in close contact, and Masahiro could feel the warmth of her breath on his neck and the scent of a woman, as well as the heat radiating from her body.

"Ah," Matsu finally came to her senses, leaped out of Masahiro's arms like a rabbit, and knelt on the ground, her head deeply buried in her neck, her whole body trembling. "Are you here to tend to the fields? Why are you alone?" Masahiro, having calmed his agitated heart, asked.

"Y-Yes, my lord," Matsu's voice was trembling and very soft, "T-There were two others, but they went to cut grass to feed the rabbits."

It seemed this beautiful woman was indeed very diligent. "Hmm, take a break. I'll go check over there," Masahiro pointed towards the pigpen and said. Hearing Masahiro's gradually fading footsteps, Matsu slowly lifted her blushing face, her body suddenly going limp.

"Have they changed their fur?" Looking at the pigs in the pigpen, which had completely shed their original wild pig fur and replaced it with the coarse fur of adult wild pigs, with their tusks beginning to protrude, Masahiro was quite surprised. The growth rate of these wild pigs was indeed fast. He hoped they wouldn't inherit the ferocity of their predecessors, otherwise, the pigpen would need to be reinforced again, and the feeders wouldn't be able to enter the pigpen. The rice fields connected to the pigpen's manure pit were indeed growing well, with the rice plants near the pigpen being the thickest and the color of the plants the darkest. Looking at these rice plants, Masahiro even had a sense of being back in the rice fields of his future life.

After inspecting everything in the experimental field, Masahiro quickly returned to the wooden gate. By this time, Matsu had stood up and tidied her clothes. Seeing Masahiro approach, she bowed deeply, her face, which had just calmed down, turning red again.

"Let's go," Masahiro, not noticing Matsu's expression, smiled and said, "We'll go back." He then opened the wooden gate and walked out. Matsu softly replied, "Yes," and followed Masahiro out, her head lowered like a young wife.

The people outside, seeing the lord return with a beautiful lady, were all deeply impressed by the lord's prowess, thinking he was indeed a model among their peers.

Under the guard of twenty foot soldiers, Masahiro, accompanied by the maid Matsu and the page Yoshimaru, arrived at the foot of Mount Yotaka. As for the other page, Shinjiro, Masahiro had already granted him a day off to return home and reunite with his family. Tadajiro, after calming the villagers, had been waiting here for some time. Looking at the newly constructed road at the foot of the mountain, which was about five meters wide and led directly to the lord's residence on Mount Yotaka, Masahiro was amazed. This was truly a miracle.

Seeing Masahiro's amazed expression, Tadajiro smiled and reported, "My lord, upon learning of your plan to build a direct road from the lord's residence to here, nearly a thousand villagers from Yotaka Village joined the labor force to widen the road. In less than half a month, the road was completed. Now, except for deepening the ditches on both sides and further leveling the road, the main road leading to the lord's residence is basically finished."

"Hmm," Masahiro nodded, deeply moved, "Find some people to set up a stone monument at the entrance to the road. This road will be called the Gratitude Road, and the story of this road will be engraved on the monument."

"Yes, my lord," Tadajiro couldn't help but applaud the lord's idea.

Following the straight road leading to the residence, it took less than a quarter of an hour for Masahiro to reach the entrance to the valley. The four foot soldiers guarding the entrance all knelt and bowed. Quickly passing through the narrow passage that had been widened, they finally entered the valley. Most of the villagers who had originally lived here had moved to the village at the foot of the mountain, and those remaining were the families of Masahiro's retainers and the families of the villagers in the secret workshop. The buildings in the valley had been re-planned, and according to Masahiro's requirements, the entire valley's flat land was divided into five areas. On the left was a field along a small stream, next to which was the village, followed by another field, and on the other side of the valley were the barracks and the training ground. The lord's residence was located on a small hill in the center of the valley, with a private garden behind it.

After settling the twenty low-ranking samurai in the barracks, Masahiro, with Matsu and Yoshimaru, hurriedly returned to the entrance of the lord's residence. By this time, the people in the residence had already received news of Masahiro's return and were waiting at the gate. The first person Masahiro saw was Kiku of the Tokita family, the little girl standing quietly, her demeanor already showing the grace of a mature woman despite her young age. Next to Kiku was the little girl Tamako, clinging to her like a young bird. Behind Kiku were the two little girls, Tsuru and Chou, who were clearly not used to their positions. Finally, there were the newly recruited cook and the two foot soldiers guarding the gate. The newly recruited cook was the family of a foot soldier who had died in the battle with the Kogi and Fujiwara families. Kiku had decided to recruit her as the residence's dedicated cook, making her the first true servant in the lord's residence.

"My lord," everyone bowed upon seeing Masahiro's return.

"Big brother," the little girl who had been hiding behind Kiku recognized Masahiro and immediately ran over happily. Masahiro smiled, picked her up, and asked, "Tamako, have you been studying your characters diligently?"

"Yes, Onee-san taught me the Three-Character Classic," the little girl said seriously, "Big brother said that if I learn the Three-Character Classic, I can have big fish. Big brother, the fish are very big, there are many big fish. One, two, three..." Masahiro, who had been delighted, nearly stumbled at the little girl's words. So, this little girl was learning to read just to eat steamed fish? And she was counting the bubbles in the pond every day? Masahiro was thoroughly defeated by this little girl but also moved by her innocence. Finally, he said, "Yes, we'll have big fish today."

The little girl, hearing that she would finally have big fish, started dancing in Masahiro's arms, making Matsu, who was behind, very nervous, fearing that she might anger Masahiro.

Deciding to act, Masahiro took the little girl to the shallow pond and caught a big fish. These big fish were caught by the villagers using the fishing methods Masahiro had introduced and were then specially given to him. Since there were so many, Masahiro had kept the live ones in the pond at the residence. After preparing the ingredients, Masahiro personally went to the kitchen to make a steamed fish and several boiled eggs using the eggs from the small farm. The other dishes were prepared by the cook.

The newly recruited cook was thoroughly shocked to see the lord in the kitchen. She was still in a daze even after all the dishes were prepared. She had never heard of a lord who could cook, but today she had seen it with her own eyes. After setting the table, she bowed to Masahiro and went to find her son Yoshimaru in the outer courtyard. In fact, she was both happy that her son had found a good job and worried about the lord's unusual behavior, wondering if he might be mentally unstable and what the future would hold for those who followed him.

Dinner was held on the grass in the courtyard, a kind of picnic. In the past, they often did this at home, but it was usually during the cool midday. Today, with the sun not yet set and having not eaten with everyone for a long time (if he returned to the wooden house, the lord usually ate alone with the maid's service), Masahiro decided to have a picnic on the grass in the courtyard.

The little girl was her usual self, clinging to Masahiro like a koala and eating heartily. The meal was unprecedentedly luxurious, with the rice being the first time Masahiro had eaten white rice since arriving. The main dish was the steamed fish he had prepared, along with several boiled eggs. The side dishes were several pieces of cured meat (dried wild boar meat) and a dish of wild vegetables. Since the pheasants in the field had just started laying eggs, the eggs in the residence were only available when Masahiro was there.

As the sun set and a cool breeze blew, the surroundings were picturesque, and Masahiro's appetite was greatly stimulated. Kiku, Matsu, Tsuru, and Chou, perhaps influenced by the scenery or the joy of Masahiro's return, were much more lively than usual, shedding their usual reserve. Looking at the people around him, Masahiro felt a sense of home.

After dinner, with the help of the maids, Masahiro had a refreshing bath and went to bed early. After nearly a month of intense battles, travel, and mental exertion, he was extremely tired and soon fell into a deep sleep. The retainers, understanding that the lord needed rest upon his return, did not disturb him.

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(PS: Dear readers, don't leave in a hurry after reading. Even if you don't have a vote, add the book to your shelf. I beg on my knees. My goal is to write over 1.5 million words, even if it means flopping spectacularly. I enjoy writing and embracing solitude.)

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