Musashi - Eiji Yoshikawa [405]
“You’re wrong, though. Women made a city out of Osaka before Hideyoshi got around to taking any notice of it.”
“Maybe, but in a place as new as Edo, you probably won’t even be able to find a suitable house.”
“Wrong again. The government’s set aside some marshland in a place called Yoshiwara for people in my business. My associates have already started filling it in, putting in streets and building houses. From all reports, I should be able to find a good street-front location fairly easily.”
“You mean the Tokugawas are giving the land away? For free?”
“Of course. Who’d pay for marshland? The government’s even providing some of the construction materials.”
“I see. No wonder you’re all abandoning the Kyoto area.”
“And what about you? Or do you have some prospect of a position with a daimyō?”
“Oh, no; nothing like that. I wouldn’t take one if it was offered. I just thought I’d see what’s going on up there, since it’s the shōgun’s residence and the place where orders are going to come from in the future. Of course, if I were asked to be one of the shōgun’s instructors, I might accept.”
Though no judge of swordsmanship, Jinnai had a good eye for people. Thinking it just as well not to comment on Kojirō’s unbridled egotism, he averted his eyes and began prodding his troop into movement. “Everybody up now! It’s time we were going.”
Onao, who had been counting heads, said, “We seem to be missing one girl. Which one is it, now? Kichō? Or maybe Sumizome? No; they’re both over there. This is strange. Who could it be?”
Kojirō, disinclined to have a party of prostitutes for traveling companions, went on his way.
A couple of the girls who had gone back down the road to search returned to where Onao was.
Jinnai joined them. “Here, here, Onao, which one is it?”
“Ah, I know now. It was that girl named Akemi,” she replied contritely, as if the fault were hers. “The one you picked up on the road in Kiso.”
“She must be around here somewhere.”
“We’ve looked everywhere. I think she must have run away.”
“Well, I didn’t have a written commitment from her, and I didn’t lend her any ‘body money.’ She said she was willing, and since she was good-looking enough to be marketable, I took her on. I suppose she’s cost me a bit in traveling expenses, but not enough to worry about. Never mind her. Let’s get moving.”
He began hustling his group along. Even if it meant traveling after sundown, he wanted to reach Hachiōji within the day. If they could get that far before stopping, they could be in Edo the next day.
A short way down the road, Akemi reappeared and fell in with them.
“Where have you been?” Onao demanded angrily. “You can’t just wander off without telling anyone where you’re going. Unless, of course, you’re planning to leave us.” The old woman went on to explain self-righteously how they had all been so worried about her.
“You don’t understand,” said Akemi, from whom the scolding brought nothing but giggles. “There was a man I know on the road, and I didn’t want him to see me. I ran into a clump of bamboo, not knowing there was a sudden drop-off there. I slid all the way down to the bottom.” She corroborated this by holding up her torn kimono and a skinned elbow. But all the time she was begging forgiveness, her face showed not the slightest sign of contrition.
From his position near the front, Jinnai caught wind of what had happened and summoned her. Sternly he said, “Your name’s Akemi, isn’t it? Akemi—that’s hard to remember. If you’re really going to succeed in this business, you’ll have to find a better name. Tell me, have you really resolved to go through with this?”
“Does it require resolution to become a whore?”
“It’s not something you can take up for a month or so and then quit. And if you become one of my girls, you’ll have to give the customers what they ask for, like it or not. Don’t make any mistake about that.”
“What difference does it make now? Men have already made a mess of my life.”
“That’s not the right attitude at all. Now, you give this some careful thought.