Onmyoji, a nobleman in Heian-kyo

Page 1531

"Mr. Kyosuke, you seem to be in very good shape."

"Yes, it's easy, it's just a pity it's not from home."

"Go back secretly?"

"No, there's plenty of time for that."

Kyosuke Kosaka smiled and politely declined Yaobikuni's suggestion.

He could tell that Yaobikuni was genuinely giving advice, and not joking.

But he wasn't someone who couldn't live without women; his casual remark was just that he felt that being a quiet mascot in his living room could make everyone happy.

"You don't mind that I'm only visiting Mr. Kyosuke now, do you?"

"This is still better than yesterday's Daoist treatise..."

Kyosuke Kosaka told the whole story of what happened yesterday without hiding anything.

Yaobikuni listened quietly until the story was finished, at which point she revealed a strange smile.

"Mr. Kyosuke, I have a feeling you're planning something dangerous."

Yaobikuni, who had lived long enough, was always able to easily perceive the emotions of others.

Currently, very few people don't understand it.

Sometimes she could see Kousaka Kyosuke very clearly, and sometimes she couldn't understand him at all; it was quite amazing.

Now is the time when things are clear.

Yaobikuni was already quite perceptive enough to sense that Kousaka Kyosuke had a slight dissatisfaction.

It really is "very light", almost a very light one.

However, Yaobikuni could sense that this was even more astonishing, like a volcano that had been dormant for many, many years, easily forgotten, but to her it seemed like a sleeping behemoth, only that it had not shown its strength for a long time.

"Kagura said the same thing yesterday. Why do you all like to guess what I'm thinking?"

“I was just saying Kyosuke is special.”

Kagura, who had just finished eating a dumpling, replied softly.

Yesterday, she keenly sensed that Kyosuke Kousaka was thinking about something, but as Kyosuke Kousaka said, it was for her and everyone's good, so why should she oppose anything?

"No matter what it is, it's fine... Kyosuke has already worked so hard for Kousaka Kyosuke, we can't let him continue to overwork himself."

Kagura silently emphasized this to herself, not giving it any further thought.

If there's anything she's thinking about, it's what she can do for Kyosuke Kousaka, anything at all... She believes that Kyosuke Kousaka must have his reasons for doing it.

"Stop! You guys agreed beforehand, why are you bullying me like this?" Kousaka Kyosuke exaggeratedly made an X with his hands, feeling a bit helpless inside.

I just casually thought of something, and everyone around me seems to have figured it out? Are there just too many smart people? Well, I'd better be careful.

466. Future Plans / Traveling with Minamoto no Yorimitsu

"Speaking of which, Mr. Kyosuke, what are your plans once this matter is over?"

After chatting for a while, Yaobikuni asked curiously.

Kyosuke Kosaka said, "If things go smoothly, I would like to go to the Tang Dynasty as an envoy."

“Oh, I just remembered that there are envoys from Tang Kingdom staying with Lord Kyosuke. I was quite surprised when I heard about it before, because I had heard about this before.”

Which ones?

Kyosuke Kosaka was also curious.

The nun Yaobikuni said, "It was about the war. It was about a hundred years ago. I happened to hear about the war in the Tang Dynasty at a ferry crossing. The boatman said that this was the reason why no one went to the Tang Dynasty."

"I see..." Kyosuke Kousaka felt that this was no longer interesting.

After all, this kind of thing doesn't contain much information.

When he was in elementary school, he had heard about the history of the Tang Dynasty's decline due to the rebellion of the military governors. Through what Su Chang inquired about from Han Ling Sha, Kosaka Kyosuke also learned that it was not much different from what he knew.

The fact that the Tang Kingdom has not yet collapsed surprised Kousaka Kyosuke, who felt that there was a significant problem.

Of course, you still have to go there yourself to truly understand.

"Would it be convenient to bring people over then? I'm quite curious about the customs and culture of the Tang Kingdom."

"You need to think this through. You might not be able to use your powerful divination skills. For example, the envoys from Tang Dynasty all seemed to be cultivators of immortality, but when they came to Japan, none of their spells worked, and they all felt unwell..."

"Mr. Kyosuke, aren't you worried?"

"I possess martial arts skills. Even if I cannot use spiritual power, I can accomplish many things using only physical strength."

Kyosuke Kosaka explained it this way.

In fact, what he said was not an exaggeration at all.

Even though his body hasn't been tempered by lightning tribulation yet, it has still been greatly improved due to the increase in his realm and strength.

At least at this point, Kyosuke Kousaka was certain that his body was no different from that of a so-called "god".

Whether it's a physical attack or a magical attack, his body can withstand most of it naturally without needing to consciously defend against it.

To put it bluntly, there are only a handful of gods in Japan who can harm Kyosuke Kousaka these days.

Those so-called "high-level gods" had only glimpsed him when they traveled through time and space before, and could only say that it was not without reason that Tsukuyomi was able to wipe out all those gods.

They all looked incredibly powerful, but just by looking at them, you could tell they were practically useless in terms of combat ability.

Even before he became an immortal, Kyosuke Kousaka could easily kill them using various methods.

Let's get back to the main topic.

The matter concerning Yaobikuni was proving to be somewhat troublesome for him.

Because this woman has a very unique personality.

What makes it special? It's that it has its own principles.

Is this not?

Yaobikuni had already said something that didn't surprise Kousaka Kyosuke.

"Mr. Kyosuke, please take care of me then. I feel bad asking you for this, but it won't be a problem if it's Mr. Kyosuke."

"...I knew you'd say that, but I need to see how things go first. There's always the possibility of another war in Tang. I'll let you know once I've gathered the information, and I can come straight across the sea to pick you up then."

"So something happened in the Tang Kingdom."

"...Don't speculate about things in reverse like that, it sounds absurd!"

"But Mr. Kyosuke's attitude seemed to indicate that something must have happened in Tang Kingdom."

"Nonsense. They've been promoting the cultivation of sweet potatoes and potatoes over there for a long time. It would be hard for the farmers to go hungry. So how could a riot possibly break out?"

Kyosuke Kosaka began to analyze the situation for Yaobikuni in a methodical manner.

Yaobikuni laughed: "Mr. Kyosuke, even if there are bumper harvests every year, there will still be people in the world who starve to death."

Having lived for so long, she had seen firsthand how nobles exploited ordinary people—it was all about various forms of taxation and forced labor. If a significant disturbance arose, taxes and labor would be reduced immediately, and afterwards, those who caused the disturbances would be dealt with one by one, regardless of whether the harvest was good or bad…

It's probably just a change in name only in the Tang Kingdom.

Where there is oppression, there will be resistance.

Currently, Kyoto is willing to use food to help the refugees who have fled here. Yaobikuni knows that Fujiwara no Michitsuna, and even Minamoto no Yorimitsu, who seems to have not appeared much, have put in a lot of effort.

Otherwise, Kyoto would probably have to face resistance from groups of refugees every now and then.

"There shouldn't be any people starving to death in Kyoto right now, right?" Kyosuke Kosaka couldn't help but ask about something else.

What he asked was exactly the same question that Yaobikuni had been thinking.

Yaobikuni smiled and said, "Thanks to Lady Miketsu, she collected the soil fertility of many lands before, so that we can still grow those crops that consume soil fertility."

Compared to the threat from evil gods, the general public has always been worried about food.

Even nobles are the same.

However, at this point, the grain could no longer be sold; instead, it was distributed uniformly.

"That's good. It seems that Kyoto is free from internal troubles."

"That's impossible to say."

Why were you looking at me when you said that?

"Because of these trials, Mr. Kyosuke has been seen by many as so powerful that he is no different from a god. Occasionally, when you go out for a while, your reputation grows louder and louder."

"Even you say so, so it seems I really should think about my options."

Kousaka Kyosuke pretended to be deep in thought, but in reality, he wasn't worried at all.

Even if he were to die unexpectedly, the wisp of his soul that he left behind beforehand would do what he had already thought of.

It probably means carrying a bucket and running away, far away from Kyoto.

If he is lucky enough to survive, then Kyosuke Kousaka's worries are unnecessary; his presence alone is the best deterrent to everyone.

Even the most powerful person will be cautious when facing someone who can crush them with a flick of their wrist.