CHAPTER 230: CHAPTER 162: THIS PART MUST BE CUT OFF!

An hour later, Princess Dog was soaking in a pleasantly warm bath, her whole body relaxed yet still feeling as if this was some surreal dream.

She had just enjoyed the most delicious, most extravagant meal of her life. There were so many dishes she hadn’t even heard of before, some fresh and tender, some salty or sweet, but all of them incredibly tasty. It took everything she had to barely maintain her composure and not embarrass herself in front of the Nozawa family’s little maids.

It might sound a bit fantastical, as if she hardly qualified as a princess, but really, she’d never enjoyed much privilege.

"The Tiger of Owari," Oda Nobuhide, had more than a dozen sons alone. Counting daughters and unacknowledged illegitimate children, there were nearly thirty kids in total. And just like anything else, when you have too much of it, it becomes worthless—so the "fatherly love" each child could get was pitifully little.

Not to mention, Oda Nobuhide also had seven or eight concubines and more than twenty consorts, while the legal wife, Lady Tsuchida, was anything but easy to get along with.

So, the inner quarters of Oda Danjo Chonosuke’s household were an utter mess. As one of the relatively weak six or seven tenths, it was easy to imagine how much "fortune" she could enjoy. How well she ate depended entirely on others’ whims—Lady Tsuchida was extremely controlling, often punishing concubines and illegitimate daughters like her for all sorts of made-up reasons, including food deprivation and meal reductions.

Princess Dog finally had a meal she considered super extravagant and delicious. Her mood had relaxed a little, and it seemed Nozawa family was taking her seriously; otherwise, there’s no way they’d make such a show for her. She figured they wouldn’t mistreat her, and as her nerves eased, the exhaustion in her body surged up. Plus, with Harano nowhere to be seen no matter how long she waited, she finally let Yayoi talk her into taking a bath.

This mansion was equipped with a large bathhouse. By this era in Japan, bath culture was already catching on. Public steam baths (where water is thrown over heated stones), and large hot bathhouses (with two levels—lodging, gambling, and drinking upstairs, and bathing and back-scrubbing downstairs) were common. There were even professional bath women (who sometimes moonlighted at another quick-earning secret profession). Later works like "Pictures of the End of the Shogunate," "Scenes In and Around Kyoto Screens," "Genre Scene Screens," and "Carved Reliefs of Entertainment for Gentlemen and Commoners" all portrayed these as a fashionable indulgence.

Since bathing could make people happy, and Harano had the volcanic ash cement to build new baths, plus land was cheap, he naturally spared no expense and built several, big and small, when rebuilding the house—enough for himself and others to use as they pleased.

The bath at Princess Dog’s quarters was huge, spacious enough for her to swim around a bit. Its design was both exquisite and opulent—mythological stories were carved in fine relief around the edge, the figures so vivid they seemed to whisper ancient legends. Brass oil lamps were set into the walls, shedding gentle light that shimmered across the water’s surface.

Princess Dog eased herself in carefully, stroking the smooth and curious material of the bath’s edge. The more unreal and dreamlike it all felt, the more she relaxed. Her skin even blushed a rosy pink and she began to nod off—she had delicate, sensitive skin that turned as pink as a boiled little crab when exposed to the heat.

Ah Zhong and Ah Xia kept her company, their excitement bubbling over as they soaked in the bath. They started a playful splash fight and then whispered to Princess Dog in delighted voices, "Princess, the Nozawa family is really rich, and they treat you well, too!"

They were quite happy—feeling that, at last, they didn’t have to suffer, at least far away from that old witch Lady Tsuchida, which was already so much better than they’d pictured. The girls had actually been afraid they’d be neglected, or even locked up in the Nozawa house—there was precedent: right now, Nongji was more or less under Nobunaga’s house arrest, her freedom extremely restricted.

Princess Dog was startled out of her drowsiness by the maids’ commotion, remembering Harano could return at any moment. Hastily, she pinched herself awake, motioning them to lower their voices lest someone overhear and they lose face, then reluctantly left the bath and let them help dry her long hair and change clothes.

She’d brought her own simple loungewear, but the Nozawa family had also prepared clothes for her. She hesitated, but ended up changing into the Nozawa house’s plain-colored bathrobe. The designs seemed different—her own kosode was very traditional, and the New Wanjin-style bathrobe was a noticeable contrast, probably more to Harano’s liking—Harano was very serious about his grand plan, and changing everyone’s clothes was part of it, so those in the house needed to set an example.

She quickly tidied herself up and returned to her bedroom, kneeling properly on her mat. Now, feeling completely at ease, she finally had the leisure to take in her new surroundings—a beautiful room, reminiscent of New Wanjin: simple yet not plain, everything necessary at hand, many of the objects finely crafted, and there were even two large bookshelves filled with books and illustrated volumes.

The sight of the bookshelves made her light up, and thinking of the big bath, she felt that even if she were ever locked up, being shut in here was still better than being locked away in Oda Danjo Chonosuke’s home. At least there were lots of books to pass the time, and she wouldn’t have to bathe in a "Uemon bath barrel"—those claustrophobic little tubs that are heated over a fire.

She was still curiously inspecting her "new home" when the Harano she’d waited forever for finally strolled in. He came through the door with a smile, asking, "Your Highness, have you eaten yet?"

Which was, honestly, an utterly pointless question—it was his house, after all. Harano knew exactly what she’d done, only coming after Yayoi updated him. As soon as Princess Dog saw him, she stood up nervously and said, "I have eaten. Please, Your Highness, just call me Ah Dog... Umm, have you had dinner yet?"

"I’ve already eaten," Harano sat down some distance from her, gesturing politely for her to sit as well, and grinned, "No need to be so formal. Just call me... Saburo!"

Princess Dog had no staff, her intelligence-gathering abilities basically zero, relying entirely on her two maids to eavesdrop and fish for gossip here and there. So to this day she was still rather clueless about the Nozawa family, but Harano was the opposite. Ever since he’d gotten some resources, he’d never stopped secretly planting people inside Oda Danjo Chonosuke’s house. As soon as the marriage alliance was set, he immediately acquired a complete dossier on Princess Dog—her mother, though of petty noble birth, was essentially sent to Oda Nobuhide as a concubine as a "tribute," and after giving birth to Princess Dog at fifteen, her health deteriorated severely, and she suffered a painful death not long after being bedridden.

Princess Dog was basically raised solely by her wet nurse, Lady Ah Shang. But the year before last, Lady Ah Shang died of illness as well, making Princess Dog even more insignificant in Oda Danjo Chonosuke’s household—the only value she had left was being married off.

Her nature was also timid and gentle, always curling up in her cold and shabby corner of the palace, rarely talking to anyone, and certainly never daring to contend with others, which made her seem all the more pitiful—even Harano found himself feeling sorry for her. Otherwise, she’d never have received such gentle treatment—if Princess Dog had a forceful personality, or any rebellious intentions, Harano would definitely have kept his distance, perhaps even just kept her locked up somewhere nice and safe.

Of course, this was also Harano’s luck. If the bride had turned out to be a female version of Nobunaga—unconventional in every way—or as ambitious and venomous as Nongji, the "Viper Woman," and ended up causing internecine strife, then it would’ve been his head on the block.

He maintained a very gentle manner, letting Princess Dog breathe a huge sigh of relief. She twisted her hands in her sleeves out of habit and obediently called him by his familiar name, and Harano, doing his best to put her at ease, chatted with her for a bit, asking about her impressions of the place, and whether anything needed changing. But after a few questions, he saw the tiredness on her little face, realized she was soldiering on purely out of courtesy, and said with a smile, "It’s been a long day—why don’t we rest early tonight?"

Princess Dog nodded obediently at once, recalling the etiquette her wet nurse had taught her; she stepped forward to help Harano undress, while Ah Zhong and Ah Xia hurried up to assist, both their faces reddening fiercely, their eyes glimmering with shyness.

They were both two years older than Princess Dog, and people matured early in this era. They already understood certain things about adulthood, and as her dowry maids, one of their important duties was to assist the master on Princess Dog’s behalf... you know, in case she wasn’t ready.

Let’s leave out the specifics—too easy to get in trouble.

Harano of course understood—all the more since the girls had been taught, and he’d been taught as well. Ah Man, that wild child, was so worried he’d be some kind of idiot and act crazy in ignorance, she’d even warned him early on to take it easy, earning herself a scolding from him for her troubles.

Of course, he’d never intended to do anything in the first place. Princess Dog was only ten (counting full years), and Ah Zhong and Ah Xia were just barely over twelve. Getting involved made no difference—a five-minute execution versus a three-minute execution, either way.

One should stick to basic principles even after crossing over; just because things are more lax here doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want. It’s only in a free environment that a person’s true nature shows—so Harano really did want to remain a decent human being, with no interest in causing an incident.

His plan was to treat Princess Dog like a daughter for now; anything else could wait until she was older. After taking off his outer clothes, he sent Ah Zhong and Ah Xia—the pair of silly maids—off to rest next door. Princess Dog, being a soft pushover, couldn’t get them to stay, and even though they were worried, they didn’t dare defy Harano’s orders to his face. After some dithering, and hearing him reassure them with "I know what I’m doing, don’t worry" twice, they finally went off to bed, anxious as could be.

The pair, absent-minded, even forgot to lay out bedding before leaving. Harano didn’t bother calling anyone, just casually split the futons into two piles far from each other, lay down himself on one, and with a smile pointed to the other, indicating Princess Dog should sleep there—for before the wedding, it would be inauspicious for him to sleep anywhere else, and almost an insult to the bride.

Princess Dog felt this was a little different from what Ah Zhong and Ah Xia had told her, but she couldn’t say no. Bewildered, she crawled onto her futon, clutching the thin blanket tightly, not knowing what awaited her—of course she felt scared; after all, in her eyes Harano looked like a big bear.

But after a while of waiting, nothing happened. Having had such a long, tiring day, she soon drifted off in a sleepy fog.

Harano lay far away, listening to the sound of her breathing evening out, feeling a bit relieved. After all, now wasn’t the time to give her "the talk." Her drifting off to sleep without a word was for the best.

He closed his own eyes, forcing himself to rest, but couldn’t help letting his mind wander—thinking that if he got back to modern times, he’d write a novel about his hardships, though he’d probably cut this part out, or else he’d be too embarrassed.

And slowly, he fell asleep too.