47 Ronin. John Allyn
and finally by insults to convey the idea to Lord Asano that it was customary to bestow gifts of money on the court Master of Ceremonies for his services. But Lord Asano had continued to ignore him, and Kira’s fear was that if he got away with this act of ingratitude it could set a bad precedent. Kira’s stipend as a court officer was not large and he had no desire to lose any extra benefits because of Lord Asano’s stubbornness. Somehow, there must be a way to get to his man. He had never failed in the past to get what he wanted from these noble young fools and he was determined that this time would be no exception.
His thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of a breathless servant with the announcement that the Shogun Tsunayoshi wanted to see him immediately. He hurried to put on his robes, cursing because he could not finish dressing in the leisurely way he had planned. Then he hastened out the door and across the palace grounds to the inner palace, wondering all the while what could be troubling the Shogun this early in the morning.
In the twenty-first year of his reign, Tsunayoshi had every reason to be contented. There had been no uprisings against his office for several decades, mainly because his ancestors had been so thorough in uniting the country, first by conquest and then by assigning fiefs in strategic locations to blood relatives. His predecessors had also done him a favor by expelling all foreigners, except for one small group of Dutch traders on an island at the extreme southern tip of the country. The Christian influence had lingered for some time, even after the expulsion, but sixty years before, at Shimabara, the last large-scale massacre of such deviants had left the country free of even this minor annoyance.
Now, after years of peace, the towns were growing, the merchants were prospering, and the arts were flourishing. It was true that the price of rice was going up, due to short supplies from the farmers who seemed strangely unable to get the most from their land, but on the whole Tsunayoshi was free from any pressing problems of state. But that is not to say that he had no problems at all.
As Kira entered, puffing more heavily than was really necessary, he could see that Tsunayoshi was indeed in an anxious state. Kira bowed as low as his robes would permit and then raised his eyes to the tall, thin man in his fifties, who was pacing mincingly up and down the ornate reception room.
Tsunayoshi’s concern, it turned out, was not with any pressing matters of state, but rather with how the performance of his dancing group would be received at the ceremonies. He had selected and coached the boys himself and was concerned that they give a good account of themselves. So much so that he had decided another rehearsal was in order and this was why he had summoned Kira. He wanted the boys assembled in the Hall of the Thousand Mats as quickly as possible so they could run through their dance once more before the distinguished guests arrived.
“You don’t know how much this means to me,” he told Kira, with a womanish wave of his kimono sleeve. “I’ve worked so hard to make this performance a success—it’s just got to come off perfectly!”
Kira bowed his head. “I sympathize with Your Excellency but I’m sure you have nothing to worry about. The ceremonies will be carried out smoothly as always.”
“The ceremonies, yes—but the dance, that’s what’s important to me. This is something new for such an occasion and if it fails, I’ll be laughed at by everyone.”
“No one would think of doing such a thing,” Kira reassured him.
“The experts will laugh behind my back even if they don’t say anything,” Tsunayoshi said knowingly. “But enough of that—everything else is all right, isn’t it? No problems at your end, I hope?”
“There are always problems, Your Excellency, but nothing I can’t handle myself.”
“Good,” smiled the Shogun. “That’s what I like to hear from my courtiers. I wish they were all as efficient as you.”
Kira smiled back at him, revealing his blackened teeth. “All I know was learned from your example.”
He bowed and started to leave, then hesitated and turned back in feigned reluctance. “There is one rather troublesome young daimyo, but I hope I will be able to correct his awkwardness before it embarrasses us.”
“You mean Asano, don’t you? I’ve noticed that he doesn’t seem as much at ease as the others. Do you want me to speak to him?”
“No—I don’t think that will be necessary. He’ll be all right once I get him to understand his proper place.”
“Yes—well, I leave that to you. But get those young boys over here in a hurry, will you?”
“I will obey,” Kira answered formally with a bow, and hurried away as fast as his elaborate robes would permit. He knew from experience that Tsunayoshi was not long on patience.
Dressed in his ceremonial robes, with every detail of his costume checked and double-checked against the rules of dress for the court, Lord Asano was carried to the palanquin that was to take him to the Shogun’s castle. Kataoka, also more splendidly dressed than usual, was about to give the order for the eight burly bearers to pick up their poles when Lord Asano’s wife appeared in the doorway of the mansion and called out. Kataoka called to the bearers to wait, then stepped aside so his master could converse with his wife in privacy.
“Please,” she said as she leaned in the window to him, “please promise me you’ll keep your temper. Show the court of Edo that we from the country also know our place in society. Perhaps—perhaps it’s not too late even now to put a few coins in the right palms. . . .”
Lord Asano made a gesture of impatience, but his expression softened as he saw her concern. His words were reproving, but his manner was gentle.
“In solemn matters of this sort, giving more than a token gift to the court Master of Ceremonies would be a cheap and vulgar act and I refuse to stoop to such a level. My councilors agree. . . .”
“Your councilors agree because you’ve already made up your own mind and they know it would be useless to oppose you. I can see that if you can’t. . . . At least promise me you’ll take his instructions in good grace and not lose your temper, won’t you?”
“I promise,” he said, and satisfied that he meant it, she stepped back and forced a smile of farewell. Lord Asano now motioned to the waiting Kataoka and the bearers were given the signal to move out.
As they rounded the corner of the house Kataoka saw Hara watching them go and caught an unspoken warning in the big man’s eyes: “Take good care of our master.” Kataoka nodded as he passed and then Hara disappeared behind them.
They moved through a portion of the immense garden that surrounded the mansion and Lord Asano noticed that even though the trees were bare the grounds were still remarkably beautiful in the early morning light. There was no single distinguishing feature, only a total impression of natural serenity, meticulously planned by his grandfather at a time when there were still wars or threats of war and the daimyo were required to spend long periods in the capital. Now, of course, things were different. There had not been even a minor uprising for as long as Lord Asano could remember. It occurred to him, as it had many times before, that life must have been more exciting in grandfather’s day when a sword was something to settle your differences with and not just a badge of rank.
The palanquin was carried briskly out the gate, Kataoka trotting alongside, but as they entered the din and crowds in the narrow alleys of the city the bearers were obliged to slow to a walking pace. Most of the tradesmen and shoppers gave way when they recognized the crested palanquin of a daimyo, but in the press of humanity some didn’t notice its presence, or pretended not to, and kept doggedly about their business until they were firmly pushed aside.
Lord Asano had never gotten used to this flocking together of the classes that one found in Edo. From the highest ranking nobles of the court to the lowest commoner, all gathered at this center of commerce to buy from the prospering merchants. There were other types present, too, including a few threadbare ronin, or masterless samurai. Farmers who could not make a go of it had come to the city to find work and there were plenty of these, proudly disdaining to ask for