Emperor of the Eight Islands: Book 1 in the Tale of Shikanoko (The Tale of Shikanoko series) Read Online Free PDF Page A

influence. Now fate has given us the opportunity to merge with Matsutani.”
    Masachika nodded and a faint smile appeared on his well-shaped mouth.
    “But I cannot dispossess my eldest son,” their father continued, “for whom I have such a high regard, and to give the greater estate to the younger son is asking for conflict. Therefore, I have decided that you, Masachika, will put aside your wife and go to our Miboshi relatives in Minatogura. My cousin has one daughter only and has agreed to adopt you as his son. Kiyoyori will marry your former wife and will inherit both estates. Her father is in complete agreement. This way, if war does erupt between Kakizuki and Miboshi, whichever side prevails, one of my sons will be among the victors.”
    For a few moments neither of them spoke. Then Masachika said, trying to control himself, “I am to give my wife to my brother? I am to lose her and Matsutani?”
    “There is no need to be so drastic, Father,” Kiyoyori said. “Let my brother keep his wife. I will renounce my claim to both estates. I wish to retire from the world—”
    “Don’t be a fool,” his father snapped. “You are my eldest son and heir. Do you think I would allow you to humiliate yourself and become a monk? A man does not flee from the world. He bears up under its sorrows and does his duty. Yours is to me and your family. After all, you have your daughter to consider.”
    Kiyoyori tried then and later to dissuade his father from making the two brothers enemies in such an irretrievable manner. He dared to admonish him, citing many instances from classical literature where brothers had destroyed each other and whole kingdoms, but Kiyomasa would not brook any contradiction. Masachika had to hide his rage and resentment and Kiyoyori his reluctance, and both had to submit.
    Later, after Masachika had left for Minatogura, his father said to Kiyoyori, “I believe you will improve the land and defend it. Masachika wanted only to enjoy it. It would have been swiftly taken from him. Old Matsutani knows that, which is why he agreed with me. Besides, the men prefer you and you know how to treat them.”
    *   *   *
    It was a time of troubles and opportunities. In the capital the Emperor was weak, his sons rivals. His brother-in-law, the Prince Abbot at Ryusonji, was regent in all but name. He favored the Emperor’s younger son and carried on endless intrigues against the Crown Prince.
    In the provinces the Kakizuki extended their power in the west and the Miboshi in the east while both strove for influence in the capital. Warlords fought constant skirmishes, seeking always to increase their land. More land meant more warriors, who in turn could be used to gain more land. Retainers were persuaded to swear undying loyalty, but they expected much in return. If they felt badly treated or overlooked, their loyalty was eroded; they could be seduced away to another warlord’s service, someone who appreciated them and offered greater rewards.
    *   *   *
    Kiyoyori was all too aware that no one had asked Tama, the woman who had been Masachika’s wife and was now his, for her consent or even her opinion. She was as obedient to her father as her husbands were to theirs. Kiyoyori waited several weeks to make sure she was not pregnant, and when he did approach her he felt as shy and awkward as an adolescent. She responded dutifully but without any real passion, and while he knew he could not blame her for this, it still wounded his pride. He felt his younger brother would always lie between them. Even his delight and gratitude when she gave birth to a son could not break down the barriers between them. She nursed the baby herself, used this as an excuse to keep him away, and from then on they slept apart. Kiyoyori continued to feel obscurely guilty about her and treated her with excessive courtesy, masking the absence of real warmth and intimacy. It was for her sake that he moved to Matsutani, for she loved her