Flower Spelling - Chapter 33
Chapter 33 – End of the Journey
The long and seemingly endless journey had come to an end with only ten more stops to go. However, an unexpected problem arose after they had reached Tsuchiyama-juku, the last stop on the journey. They were now running out of money.
“Eh!? Mr. Shido, you said that with five ryo we could afford to travel to Kyo! You don’t mean you used it thoughtlessly!?”
“Shut up! You’re the one who ate everything you could find!”
“I didn’t eat indiscriminately! I had calculated the number of days to Kyo and the remaining money, and bought it properly!… I trusted Mr. Shido to manage the money because you are an experienced traveller.”
Takasugi, who grew up as a young boy never need to worry about money, but Shido, who came from a good family background but was apparently poor and struggling, was so careless with money.
“I’ll never trust Mr. Shido with my money again!”
With a crisp declaration, Sogetsu looked around at the street.
“The only way to get by in this situation is to find a cheap lodging place. As for the shortage, I’ll sell my kimono…”
“No, I’ve got a better idea.”
Shido, unperturbed, took them to a huge building that stood out from the rest of the inn. This was the Honjin, or main residence, where daimyos and noble families stayed. The vast, single-story mansion was characterized by its majestic gate and entrance.
“How can we afford to stay in such a grand inn? How much do you think it costs!”
While Sogetsu was already shying away, Takasugi was imposing, gazing at the trees in the garden with a composed face.
“Leave such negotiations to Monta, don’t worry. No daimyo seems to be staying here at the moment.”
“…? How do you know that?”
“Have you ever been to an inn that had a curtain around it with the family crest on?”
“I’ve seen… a few times. Ah, so that was a sign that a feudal lord with that family crest was staying there?”
“Right. If there are no feudal lords, there is no problem in letting ordinary guests stay over.”
“I see… no, that’s not the point!” Almost convinced, Sogetsu hurriedly reverts the course of the conversation. “Even before staying here, we don’t have the money…”
The conversation was cut short by the return of Shido and a man who appeared to be the owner. They were politely shown to their room by the owner, who wore a formal air.
“How on earth did you do it?” Seeing that the owner had gone, she asked him, completely bewildered.
“When I told him we are samurai of the Choshu clan and on our way to Kyo on a pressing mission, he kindly gave us a room.”
On top of that, he even borrowed a horse from a meeting place. Of course, the expense was to be paid by the Choshu clan.
“…”
Sogetsu couldn’t decide whether to be stunned or amazed and eventually she let out a sigh that could be taken as neither.
“You really have quite the mouth.”
“Not like I am lying. It’s true that I’m under orders from the clan.” Shido puffed out his nose in pride. “Besides, I had heard that Mr. Sufu stayed here once before, so I figured that being a member of the Choshu clan would make it more convenient for the payment.”
So, thanks to Shido’s tactfulness (or rather sophistry), they spent a comfortable night that day, and the next day rode to Kusatsu-juku on horseback in one breath.
And then, tomorrow will be the day of arriving in Kyo. While sorting out her luggage at the inn, Sogetsu expressed her deep emotion.
“By tomorrow, it will be Kyo huh… I felt like I would never arrive, but now that I see it in front of me, it seems like it all happened so fast… What are Mr. Takasugi and Mr. Shido going to do when both of you arrive in Kyo? Do you want to expel the barbarians, like Mr. Kusaka and the others?”
“I don’t know. At the moment I have nothing definite in mind.” Takasugi replied, lying down on his back. “I have no intention of joining the ranks of those who frequent the noble families who think they are superior to the rest of us. If I’m going to do something, I will do it on my own. No matter how risky it may be.”
“You wouldn’t sneak into the palace and directly press the Emperor to expel the barbarians, would you?”
“Hmm, that’s good too.”
The joke was returned with a straight face, and Sogetsu hastened to turn the conversation over to Shido before Takasugi could truly consider it.
“Oh, by the way, Mr. Shido, are you making any progress with your previously mentioned plan to go to the West?”
“Ah! When I heard about Sakuma Shozan from Kusaka, I felt more and more ready to go. I have already worked out the details of my plan, and all that is left is the military funds. I’ve asked some of the men who were on Jinjutsumaru if they would like to go with me. I even invited Shunsuke to join me, but he didn’t give me a very encouraging answer.”
“Eh, even Mr. Ito?”
“I think he should leave Japan to broaden his horizons, but he refuses, saying it is a disgrace for a Japanese to study in a foreign country. Shunsuke’s feelings are understandable, but the reality is that foreign technology is more advanced than that of Japan. A decade down the line, foreign knowledge will surely help expel the barbarians. It may seem like a roundabout way of getting around the expulsion of the barbarians, but this is the shortcut.”
“I’m sure if you heard that Mr. Kusaka and the others were active in Kyo, you’d think about it too, wouldn’t you? He was quite frustrated that he couldn’t get permission to come to the capital. ??Mr. Takasugi, are you not going? You were supposed to go to England before, but you couldn’t.”
Takasugi responded without glancing at her. “I’m not going. Right now, I’m the only one in Choshu who has been to foreign country. They need a man like that.”
“I see…”
For some reason, this sounded like an excuse to Sogetsu’s ears.
??
Ten years huh…
Back in the room where she was assigned and under the futon, she recalled the conversation that had just taken place.
Japan will certainly be a very different place by the time Mr. Shido comes back from England.
Several years from now, the shogunate will be dissolved by the restoration of the feudal system. And the new Meiji era will arise.
By then, the expulsion of the barbarians would be a thing of the past.
Will I be there when it happens?
Will I be able to go home?
??If I haven’t returned yet, then?
She forced down the anxiety that was rising in her.
No. No. Don’t get anxious before you get to the capital… It all starts when you get to Kyo!
Nevertheless, once the anxiety had risen, it was not easy to get rid of.
??
The next morning she woke up feeling awful, but the bright sunshine and the elation of knowing that she was almost there gradually filled her heart.
After glimpsing the mirror-like calm of the southern tip of Lake Biwa, they crossed the well-known Osakatoge Pass, famous for the Osakanoseki barrier mentioned in ancient waka poems. At this point, Kyo is just a stone’s throw away.
The slope became more gentle, the trees gradually became sparser, and at the end of the clearing, she caught the sight of a wooden door lined with people.
“Is that the entrance to Kyo?”
Takasugi raised his bamboo hat and replied to Sogetsu, who seemed on the verge of storming off.
“You see.??Somehow, we made it.”
More than ten days of walking have passed since leaving Edo.
The group arrived in Kyo on the 10th of March, the day before the Emperor’s visit to Kamo.