Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!-Chapter 1488 - 1037: Five Years of Sustenance—Daikon, Acorns, and False Chestnuts: Wa Country’s Lifesaving Food During Famine

Chapter 1488: Chapter 1037: Five Years of Sustenance—Daikon, Acorns, and False Chestnuts: Wa Country’s Lifesaving Food During Famine

"Oh! Tofu and natto are both delicious. Especially the ’Tang Natto’ from the temples and shrines in the Capital City, it’s the perfect complement to rice! ... Is there more?"

"Uh... there is still some left..."

The sunset faded into the icy sea. The four of them devoured the food vigorously; the pot of venison porridge was almost empty. Sukeichiro the horse breeder licked his dry lips, glanced at the remaining portion of porridge in the pot, then looked at the monk soldier Watanabe Masumi and cautiously spoke.

"Watanabe-sama, would you like more porridge?"

"Huh?... Oh! No, I’m full. Buddha said, ’Do not eat recklessly’... I’ll leave the last bowl to you!"

"Hai! Thank you, my lord!"

Sukeichiro hastily rushed to the pot and scrapped the rest of the porridge clean. Murakami Kitamichi smiled, glanced at the talkative Watanabe Masumi, and continued the conversation.

"Watanabe-sama, besides rice, wheat, millet, foxtail millet, taro, and beans, there is another item that the villagers regard as a staple and the lords as an excellent supplement..."

"Oh! Murakami-kun, are you talking about daikon (radish)?"

"Exactly! The most delicious and life-saving is indeed daikon! Daikon is easy to plant and maintain, can be eaten raw, and stored for a long time — it’s the survival food for villagers! ... When I was little, during the spring famine when we had nothing to eat, a sweet dried daikon could sustain us for a day!... and the radish leaves are better than tree leaves to eat..."

Murakami Kitamichi sighed, recalling the spring famine most feared by farmers of Wa Country; it was a time when people died like grass. The elders in the village would be carried by children into the mountains for suicide, to save on food. The later shocking ’Narayama Festival Examination’ was, in this era, a very common mountain village custom. After all, the mages in the temples also said that if the elderly starved to death in the mountains voluntarily, they would be saved by the Bodhisattva after death, far better than starving in the village!

This was because disasters frequently occurred in Wa Country, densely populated, and once there was a severe drought, flood, typhoon, or earthquake, entire villages starved to death. At that time, eating tree leaves, roots, bark, insects, and even people was common! But being eaten would lead to falling into the animal path...

"Oh! Daikon! My favorite is daikon pickles! The daikon pickles from Sakurajima are the most famous in Kyushu, a single piece is this big!..."

On hearing this, monk soldier Watanabe Masumi licked his lips, recalling the Sakurajima radish from Kyushu. Although Sakurajima is in the southernmost part of Kyushu, it’s still the taste of home!

Wa Country’s affection for radish, particularly white radish, is almost ingrained, much like Koreans’ love for kimchi. Generations of Wa Country farmers have cultivated white radish to grow bigger and bigger. It’s an essential food for surviving the spring famine, failing to grow it could lead to starvation.

"Sakurajima daikon pickles..."

Hearing this unfamiliar place name, Murakami Kitamichi puzzledly touched his shaved moon-shaped head. Although he had been to the North Sea and Far North Sea, he had never left the Emishi Luao, let alone gone as far south as Kyushu. Looking at the reminiscent face of the martial family-born monk soldier Watanabe, he felt like they were speaking chicken and duck language.

However, Wa Country revered Buddhism, the officials strictly forbade meat, and there were no pigs or sheep, nor chickens or ducks in the villages. What villagers could hunt and eat stealthily were wild dogs, cranes, monkeys, cats, frogs, and sparrows, with dog meat being the most common and popular in the black market. Wealthier daimyo and merchants would eat fish and shellfish, not prohibited by Buddhist doctrines... So, the only livestock from Wa Country were draught oxen!

"Sukeichiro, have you finished eating?"

"Mmm... sob sob... the rice porridge was so delicious!..."

"Hey! Sukeichiro, why are there still two pieces of venison left in the pot?..."

"Uh... the mage in the village said, you become what you eat, if you eat venison you’ll become a deer in the next life..."

"Hmm, that too... go have a chat with Watanabe-sama!..."

Murakami Kitamichi thought for a while and handed the last two pieces of venison to the reticent shipwright Kim Hye-shin. The other nodded gratefully to Murakami, then began eating the meat without hesitation.

"Maitreya Buddha bless! Watanabe-sama, radish is for eating in spring. Then there are acorns and pseudo-chestnuts for autumn!..."

"Acorns? Pseudo-chestnuts?"

"Yes! Acorns, the seeds of oak trees, crushed in a bowl and the flour is washed to be cooked! Very filling..."

Sukeichiro pursed his lips, recalling the bitterness and fullness of acorns, but strangely felt a sense of peace. Wa Country’s villagers managed to survive the heavy taxes by diversifying their diet to a great extent. Like oak nuts, rich in starch content, a life-saving fruit.

In the rural villages of Wa Country, a large oak tree bearing seeds was a treasure of the village, to be worshipped as a Divine Tree! As for pseudo-chestnuts...

"Pseudo-chestnuts are horse chestnuts! They drop a bunch of fruits in autumn, looking just like chestnuts!..."

"What? Horse chestnuts? Fruit from the Bodhi Tree?"

On hearing this, monk soldier Watanabe Masumi was a little surprised. The horse chestnut, also known as the Bodhi Tree, blooms like the lotus blossom in abundance, is quite common in Wa country. It’s said that Master Xuanzang from Tang Land brought this Buddhist tree from India, and was one of the "Four Sacred Trees" Sakyamuni often preached about. With the promotion of temples and monks, it was planted everywhere in Wa Country.

"The chestnut fruit of the Bodhi Tree... isn’t it poisonous?"

"Yes! The pseudo-chestnut is not a real chestnut, it’s poisonous! Raw, it’s bitter and astringent, it can cause stomach upset and lead to death... Yet, this tree is abundant in the mountains, also near temples and shrines, with plenty of pseudo-chestnuts!..."

At this point, Sukeichiro smiled, speaking of the benefits and eating method of pseudo-chestnuts.

"Maitreya Buddha bless! Though pseudo-chestnuts are poisonous, peel them, toss the seed into the water of burnt plant ash, soak them... soak them for a day, the bitterness is much reduced... then cook again, and it’s a rare life-saving food that fills you up!..."

"Buddha protects! Bodhi Tree fruits soaked for a day and then cooked, become non-poisonous?"

"Uh... still a bit bitter, and after eating, it can cause stomach or headache. But actually, it’s good, not bad..."

"Ah? It’s a good thing? Why is that?"

"Maitreya Buddha bless! Because the fruit is bitter, slightly poisonous, after eating, you get a stomach ache... So the lords won’t eat them, and we don’t have to compete with them!"

Sukeichiro grinned foolishly, his eyes, however, were clear and bright, even with a hint of gratitude. Seeing this look, monk soldier Watanabe subtly turned his head, unwilling to meet Sukeichiro’s gaze directly.

"Watanabe-sama, the villagers’ lives are cheap, even if poisoned slightly, endure a little pain, it’ll be fine! Eating poisonous fruits doesn’t matter, having nothing to eat is what starves you to death!..."

After this remark, monk soldier Watanabe Masumi remained silent for a long while, feeling uncomfortable.

When he was in the martial family in Kyushu, he never paid attention to the lives of the villagers under his rule, only concerned with collecting rent via samurai. Even after becoming a monk soldier in the Capital Region, although he had seen the villages around the Capital Region, it is the most developed area in Wa Country, still somewhat decent. It was only after coming to the Northern Land that he truly understood the hardship and endurance of Wa Country’s farmers, far surpassing that of Korea, which he once visited by ship...

Thinking about Korea, just a waterway away from Kyushu, monk soldier Watanabe Masumi turned to look at the cautious and quiet shipwright, Kim Sun-su, and asked in a deep voice. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"Hachiman Mahasattva bless! Gold Shipwright, you were born in Korea, and came to the Capital Region later... How do the villagers in your hometown live, what do they grow and eat?"