Once again Daichi made it by the apartments of Kaiu Matsuhiko to talk a bit about upcoming deals. He was fairly certain the man was as tired of these things as he was, but they were damn near done and that would be a thing to celebrate.

OOOOOOH! A DEEEEEEEEAAAAAAL!

Having mustered up the enthusiasm, Kaiu Masahiko greeted Daichi with the customary nod and friendly smile. "Good morning, Hiruma-san" he said.

"Good morning Kaiu-dono." Daichi replied with a polite bow. "My apologies to have to take up your time once again but I have a few things that need your approval and advice this morning."

"That's what I'm here for, Hiruma-san. Fire away!"

"Well, seems our Imperial Matchmaker is wanting to marry Yasuki Ryoichi into the Miya for starters." Daichi replied.

"I'm pretty new to that sort of thing though, and I was wondering if you knew any of the steps of that better then I. Usually we do this sort of thing over a trade deal thus far. All she mentioned was a dowry and maybe the Emperor's Blessing on a Crab project? Though that later thing might take some effort from Ryoichi and the Miya. From what I recall."

"Huh. Well, it'd be too bad to lose him. Man can court, and no mistake. Sure we can't tell old Mariko to take a hike?"

"But yes, the Imperials have little to offer but money and prestige. If she's really after it, and if the Miya are really interested, squeeze 'em for an Imperial job or two. Imperial Legion stuff, maybe, or inspectors on the Otosan Uchi docks. But otherwise, there's no real reason to worry. A marriage can sail on through on its own."

"We could, Shiozaki-san had seemed excited about the match at first, but he's been pretty interested in Kitsu Sayomi recently. Though I also don't think he's as interested in her as he thinks he is." Daichi replied with a shake of his head.

"And I figured she was trying to sail it through as it is. Which might float in another year under different circumstances, but given how things are now?" He looked thoughtful. "I don't think I've heard of any Imperials matched this year, which seems pretty shocking all things considered. Heck after the first time I don't think she even tried to get in the way of the Crane anymore."

"So, while I could me wrong, I figure the Imperials need this marriage. Heck, she offered me one two, though I'm not really looking to marry out."

"Then squeeze them hard, Hiruma-san. Get all the goodies and as many people in the capital as you can."

"I can do that, and if I can't get anything from here, we can walk away." He said with a firm nod.

Masahiko returns it.

"Next things the Badger which is simple enough." Daichi began as the first matter closed.

"They are wanting an exchange of students. Offering two places in their school or two in some of ours."

"One place in the Hida and one in the Kuni specifically."

"That's the total of it? If so, I don't see a problem."

"That's done and done then." He replied with a smile.

"Last thing I have is just touching on the matter with the Fox. I admit I've been at my wits end trying to figure out how things actually stand in Fox lands without just trusting Kitsune-sama at her word. But I've no idea how to get that sort of information in a limited time."

"Kitsu Sayomi has been putting her head to that though, and she already found some legal ways to accomplish such a thing with no bloodshed potentially involved."

"Seem the Lion Clan are pretty keen on helping the Fox here, but don't want to do it alone, and Kitsu-san has set herself the task of convincing me so I can convince you."

He paused before adding. "Not really asking for a decision here as I'm not convinced. Im just keeping you appraised of the situation."

"Is she saying we can get the court to issue a writ? Because the average Fox is gonna love that coming from a Lion."

"What she brought up was three possibilities. To be considered that it can be said the current Daimyo is derelict in his duty to his clan. Which I would think would indeed get a lot of pushback especially from a Lion."

"The other is that he suffers from an illness that prevents him from stepping down himself. Which may actually be closer to the truth of the matter if I consider what I have heard from Kawagoi-san."

"The last is reassignment and honestly I see that as a highly unlikely possibility."

"That said without a source of information outside Kitsune-sama herself I find it hard to act at all."

"I'm right with you. He might be completely sane and running the show. I wonder if there's records here from visitors to Fox territory that may have seen him or interacted with him?"

"I don't have access to look for such things, or honestly the skill to do so." Daichi replied with a grimace. "I can see if someone else can look into that though." Kitsu-san might be able to at the very least.

"I might go by the docks though see if I can find someone who might be able to tell me something." Maybe it was a long shot but who knew.

"That's possible. The river does go down through Fox lands. You might even get a better idea of things on the ground that way."

He nodded. "I'll let you know if anything comes of it." It was completely possible nothing would, they did seem to be getting a good picture of what was really going on. Slowly but surely.

Masahiko nodded slowly in agreement. "Carry the Fortunes, Hiruma-san."