I formed the strongest swordsman group

The moment when Okita Hikaru's voice was about to fall, the chief commander seemed to be out of breath, and gulped the air around him.

"You're a liar! It's impossible for Mr. Ju to say such a thing!"

Hearing the words, Okita Hikaru shrugged while putting on an expression of "what I said is the truth, believe it or not".

"I didn't lie to you, Mr. Ju's original words are just like that. I just repeated Mr. Ju's original words."

Okita Hikaru's expression and eyes are not the slightest bit different, it really seems to be telling the truth.

Seeing this, the general manager was seven points puzzled and couldn't help but remove four points.

No way——while the director shouted so loudly with his eyes, his expression was obviously shaken even more, and his eyes wandered wildly, as if he wanted to measure this bedroom that he was used to living in and seeing with his eyes.

At this time, Hikaru Okita silently added some "oil" to the already burning "fire".

"Xiao Si, it's not surprising that Mr. Ju would give such an answer, right? Didn't you find that Mr. Ju's attitude towards you is obviously different from other people?"

"Yes, is there?"

Under the double influence of alcohol and shock, the chief executive's brain is already in a state of semi-shutdown, and she is now making a counter question entirely by instinct.

"Of course there is."

Okita Hikaru nodded slightly, presumably.

"This is probably the so-called 'obsessed by the authorities, by the bystanders'."

"Although it's a pity that Mr. Ju is currently planning to devote all his energy to his official career and has no plans to start a family with others in the short term, but it's also understandable."

"For a man like him, it's better to get married later. Having a family later can free up more time and energy to focus on career, and it's not too late to wait until after you've established a career."

"Anyway, it doesn't matter if a man gets married later."

"Mr. Ju has already revealed his feelings for you. Xiao Si, now it's your turn to express your opinion."

"Statement, statement? What kind of statement?" The chief executive's tongue seemed to be tied.

"You try to play dumb for me..."

Okita Hikaru sighed helplessly, her facial expression and set of movements seemed to be saying to the general manager: There is really nothing I can do about you.

"It's almost time for you to face up to your feelings for Mr. Ju, right? You had unusual feelings for Mr. Ju a long time ago, didn't you?"

"No matter how much you deceive yourself and others, no matter how many times you tell yourself 'there is no such thing', the affection for Mr. Ju will not disappear because of your deceitful behavior."

Director: "I..."

In normal times, the director-general must have refuted it as early as the first time.

But now... the chief executive couldn't utter a word for a long time, and after faltering out the word "I", his throat seemed to be blocked by something.

She pulled the edge of the quilt tightly as if she wanted to scratch the quilt on her body, and her eyes exposed outside the quilt showed a very intense color of thinking.

During the conversation with the chief executive, Hikaru Okita started "real-time tracking" of the chief executive's face throughout the process.

Seeing the thoughtful and distressed expression of the chief executive, Okita Hikaru's left mouth slightly turned up, forming a "planned" arc.

In order to prevent the chief executive from seeing her sister's expression of "the plan was successful", the slight curvature of the corner of the mouth was suppressed by Okita with brute force as soon as it appeared.

"Okay...it's really time to sleep now...so sleepy."

Hikaru Okita raised his arms high, stretched his waist, and let out a big yawn with a "hah".

Only in front of her closest husband and sister, would this slick Yujie not cover her mouth with her hands when making indecent gestures like yawning.

Hikaru Okita turned around, and laid out the quilt in his arms neatly on the tatami, side by side with the chief executive's bed.

While laying the quilt, Hikaru Okita calmly spoke again to the air in front of him with his back to the chief executive:

"Xiao Si, I've made a decision. I agree to let you stay in the test hall and to let you continue to practice swordsmanship."

"Eh?"

With a simple dumbfounded expression, the general manager conveyed a complex message of "I heard it right?".

In order to fight for the right to continue studying kendo, she had quarreled with her sister many times, and each time they broke up because the two sides refused to give in.

Why did my sister suddenly change her gender? Suddenly agreed to let me continue to stay in the trial guard hall to practice kendo?

Before the general manager turned his inner doubts into a voice of rhetorical question, he heard Okita Hikaru say flatly:

"Don't be too happy, I made such a big concession, there are conditions attached."

When Okita Hikaru said this, she happened to have made the quilt and was able to free her hands. She turned to face the chief executive with her lower body still and only turned her upper body, and raised two fingers towards the chief minister.

"I have two conditions. As long as you can fulfill any one of my two conditions, from now on, whether it's learning swordsmanship or doing other things, I won't care about you anymore."

"First, learn a skill that can support you, such as tailoring and pottery."

"Here, sister, I suggest that you learn the languages ​​of Westerners. You only need to learn English and French. You don't need to learn the languages ​​of other countries."

"According to my observation, the 'founding of the country' has become an irreversible foregone conclusion. In the face of the powerful ships and guns of Western countries, it is impossible for this country to 'close the country' as before."

"Not to mention those so-called "respecting the people with lofty ideals" slogan of "rejecting barbarians" no matter how fiercely they shouted, they can't violate the general trend like a waterfall."

"From now on, the communication between the Edo shogunate and the outside world will definitely become more and more frequent, and the demand for talents proficient in Western languages ​​will definitely increase accordingly."

"So if you master the language of Westerners, you will definitely not have to worry about food in the future."

"The country of England is currently the strongest country in the West. When dealing with overseas countries, you must never avoid the country of England."

"The strength of the French country is second only to the English country, and the friendship between the French country and the shogunate is very strong, and the two sides have launched a lot of cooperation."

“So it is enough to learn English and French. Knowing both languages ​​will definitely benefit you in the future.”

"To be honest, I'm learning English by myself now."

"Although I don't know how to pronounce many words because there is no teacher to teach them by word of mouth, I already remember the meaning of many words."

"As for the second..."

Okita Hikaru smiled enigmatically.

"That is to find a husband who I can safely entrust you to."

"Unless it is absolutely necessary, I don't intend to force you to marry someone. I will give you the greatest degree of freedom in choosing a mate. But for now, I strongly recommend Mr. Ju."

"Although there is no reason... but my intuition tells me: Mr. Ju is the one who can bring you happiness."

"I'll give you three years."

Hikaru Okita raised three fingers.

"Three years. Within three years, either learn the skills and crafts to support yourself; or marry Mr. Ju or a man like Mr. Ju who makes me think 'he will definitely bring you happiness'."

"Three years from now, if you don't meet any of these two conditions... then I'm sorry, at that time, even if you take off your clothes and sit down to me, I will never let you touch the sword again."

There is no intention of negotiating with the head office.

After finishing this one-sided notification all at once, Okita Hikaru let down her hair and took off her coat.

After taking off only a white undershirt, taking advantage of the warmth of the clothes on the body and before the winter cold outside invaded, he slipped into the warm bedding.

Just as Okita Hikaru was about to close her eyes and enter her dream, she suddenly seemed to have thought of something, and turned her head to look at the chief executive again.

"Xiao Si, I almost forgot to mention... Although I admire Mr. Ju very much, and I am very happy to see such an excellent man become my brother-in-law. But you must not do anything that is self-deprecating."

"There is absolutely no shortage of girls who like Mr. Ju."

"If one day in the future, Mr. Ju marries someone, we should find another outstanding talent."

"In short, you can't be anyone's concubine, including Tachibana-kun. Do you understand?"

"I know your character too well. You... like self-sacrifice too much. You would rather suffer yourself than see others die. You are too good-hearted."

"Because I like someone so much, I tolerate all the excesses of the other person unconditionally...I think you can do this kind of thing...Huh? Xiao Si, are you listening?"

Okita Hikaru found that the chief executive was stunned, staring straight at the ceiling that was stained gray by the night, and didn't seem to listen to her.

In fact, it was true - Okita Hikaru undressed and was about to get under the covers, and the chief executive entered a state of fugue.

All the sounds and movements of the outside world are away from him.

The consciousness that floated out of her body flew to the past not long ago, to 4 months ago...

...

Rewind the time back to August 14th in the first year of Wanyan (1860) 4 months ago——

"Sister! I don't care! I won't put down the sword in my hand!"

"You... oh, forget it, let's not talk about this topic, if we continue talking, the two of us will quarrel again, let's talk about something else——Xiao Si, what do you think of Mr. Ju?"

"Uh... how about what?"

"do you like him?"

"Hi...?! Sister! What are you talking about so suddenly?!"

"Xiao Si, it's almost time for you to think about the important things in your life. You are at the best age to get married now. I think Mr. Ju is quite a good person. You... eh? Hehe~ Look what I found .”

"What, what 'found what'?"

"Xiao Si, do you want to look in the mirror? Your face is very red now~"

...

August 15——

"Director, I don't think I need to explain to you in detail that 'inattention is a taboo in martial arts'?"

"I am so sorry……"

...

Boom! (hitting the wall)

"Senior Okita! What's wrong with you? Is your forehead okay?"

"It's all right, it's just that I accidentally hit the wall."

...

"Okita-kun!"

"Mr. Tangerine?"

"Okita-kun, you and your sister..."

"Mr. Ju, I'm sorry, I, I suddenly remembered something to do."

"Huh? Okita-kun? Okita-kun?"

...

On the night of August 15th——

"Okita-kun, are you going to take a bath now too? That's just right! Let's go take a bath together!"

"Huh? I... Yeah!"

"Let's go!"

"Orange, orange, orange! Wait, wait, wait!"

...

All kinds of embarrassing but inexplicably nostalgic memory fragments flew into the mind and eyes of the chief executive.

The chief executive's cheeks heated up further on the original basis.

If a snowflake fell on the chief executive's face now, it would melt into stagnant water in an instant.

"Mmm...!"

As if to delay his blushing face, the chief executive pulled the quilt over his head and covered his entire head.

Strange noises like moans kept coming out of the quilt.

...

That night, Qingdeng tossed and turned on the bed for a long time since copying to "Sleeping God".

The head office is also the same...

...

...

The next day, the weather was beautiful.

Since the beginning of winter in Edo, sunny days are quite rare, but today's sky is rarely clear.

The loose white clouds like cotton cover the mild winter sun more softly, the clouds are dyed a light red, and the sky is rendered into the clear light blue unique to winter.

It is a good time to travel.

At 5 o'clock in the morning (8:00 a.m.), all members of the test guard hall were dispatched to see off Okita Hikaru who was about to leave for Hino.

The atmosphere of a send-off is always sentimental.

Although the distance between Hinojuku and Edo is not too far, I don't know when the Okita sisters will meet next time.

The chief executive hugged Hikaru Okita and said a lot of private things to his sister before reluctantly letting go of her.

Thanks to what Okita Hikaru did last night, the chief executive rolled around in the futon restlessly until late at night, before finally falling asleep with the help of alcohol.

Therefore, today, the Souji has been looking at Okita Hikaru with his eyes that are flushed with red paint due to hangover and lack of sleep, with unspeakable weird emotions uncontrollably.

The same is true for Qingdeng.

As soon as he saw Okita Hikaru now, he couldn't help but recall the scene in the courtyard last night.

Before heading west today, Okita Hikari saw the opportunity and quietly told her about the "three-year agreement" with the head office.

Hikaru Okita hinted... no, correction, it was almost an explicit statement to Qingdeng: Please help the general manager to complete this "three-year agreement"~ As for whether to help her learn skills that can be relied on for a living or marry her, it is up to you It all depends on what you mean~~

At the end of the secret conversation, she reminded Qingdeng again by the way: she only accepts the chief executive as the main wife.

The figure of Hikaru Okita disappeared at the end of Kai Street, the only way to Hinojuku, before everyone in the test hall watched him off.

The "War of Swordsmanship" between the Okita sisters has temporarily come to an end—in a way that Qingdeng and the chief executive did not expect.

After Okita Hikaru returned home, the test hall suddenly became deserted.

Unknowingly, all the staff in the testing hall, including Qingdeng, got used to the presence of Okita Hikaru.

Suddenly I couldn't see this handsome figure who was very similar to the chief executive, and I was really not used to it for a while.

In the days that followed, Qingdeng's life became dull again.

When it's time to go to work, go to work in the government office where Huofu the thief should be on time.

When it’s time to rest, let’s go around the four places of Senshiya, Xiaoqianba Sword Hall, Residence, and Tsukimiya Shrine.

Qingdeng's daily life is no different from the past - except that the relationship with the head office has become a little more delicate.

Every time Qingdeng saw the chief executive, he felt inexplicably embarrassed.

Let alone a normal exchange, the team didn't even know what kind of expression the team showed to the chief.

Whenever I see Souji's pretty face... those words of Hikaru Okita - "You should marry Xiao Si", "Xiao Si has a good impression of you... To put it simply, he likes you very much", I will not Driven by Qingdeng's will, it echoed repeatedly in his mind.

However, the general manager quickly returned to his former appearance.

For Souji, who has an extremely optimistic personality, who seems to have no idea what sorrow is, it seems that troubles and depression are inherently insulated from her.

In just two days, her attitude and reaction to Qing Deng changed back to the old one.

He laughed and laughed with Qing Deng every day, and made some harmless little jokes on Qing Deng to his heart's content.

only……

Whenever Qingdeng wasn't paying attention, she would often cast quietly at Qingdeng... Emotionally elusive eyes...

In this way, time is in a calm, moving forward to December 20th.

...

...

In the first year of Wanyan (1860), December 20——

Edo, Koishikawa Kohinata Yanagi Town, Shouwei Hall, Dojo——

call--! call--! call--!

Outside the window, the cold wind howled.

Qingdeng, who had just finished his morning exercise, stood on the porch at the edge of the yard, tried his sweat with the sweat towel around his neck, and quietly watched the snow scene in front of him.

It's late December—the season when the cold tightens the streets.

Edo, located at 35 degrees north latitude, has always been a place frequented by "Snow General".

The first snow came very early this year.

Ten days ago, on December 10th, Edo had its first snow of the year. From then on, the snowflakes stopped and fell.

Before dawn today, the catkin-like fine snow began to fall leisurely, and it has not stopped until now. The ground has been covered with a layer of snow covering the soles of the feet.

Today is a rest day, Qingdeng can arrange today's itinerary to his heart's content.

In a short while, Qingdeng decided on today's itinerary - I haven't shown up at Qianshiwu for a long time, so let's meet Ah Wu today and practice the sword drawing skill by the way.

Ah, no, it's the other way around.

It should be to practice the sword drawing technique and meet Ah Wu by the way.

He almost spoke out his true thoughts.

If the boss of Kiryu knew that he had switched the order of the two, God knows what kind of eyes the boss of Kiryu would look at him.

After resting for a while, after the morning exercise, his body stopped sweating and was no longer hot, Qingdeng put on the cotton-padded clothes, fastened the black scarf, put on the snow hat, put on the snow boots, and put on the long and short knives .

After returning to Edo from Kai, Qingdeng immediately took the Dingguishen who had been damaged in the battle with Soma for repair.

Although Edo is large, there are very few skilled knife repairers.

Qingdeng often asks a knife repairman named Kaoru Meguro to help him repair knives.

Although he has such a beautiful name like "Xun" at first glance, he is actually a rough old man who is nearly fifty years old.

In Japan, "Kun" is actually a very unisex name, unlike the original name "Si" of the head office.

The latter is an undoubted female name, as long as parents with no problem in their minds, they will not name their son "Si". As for the former, both men and women can be named "Xun".

Because Dingguishen broke down too frequently, Qingdeng had to visit Kaoru Meguro's blacksmith shop every now and then.

After going back and forth, Qingdeng became acquainted with Kaoru Meguro.

Now every time Meguro Kaoru sees Qingdeng stepping through the shop door of his house with a knife, he always sighs: "Why is your knife broken again... If this goes on like this, within a year, your knife will be destroyed." It will be completely broken, and it will never be repaired again."

At the entrance of the test hall, Qingdeng, who had changed into a full set of equipment, made a final inspection of his attire.

After confirming that all the clothes that should be worn have been put on, and all the necessary items have been brought, Qingdeng pulls the door and goes out.

The moment the door was opened, the damp cold wind blew towards Qing Deng's face in an instant, and countless snowflakes poured into the hallway along the crack of the door like fallen leaves.

Qingdeng hurriedly stepped over the door frame and closed the door with his backhand.

The huge temperature difference between indoor and outdoor made Qingdeng shiver involuntarily.

"ha……"

Qingdeng cupped his hands that were frozen stiff immediately, took a breath of hot air, the warm air came out densely, and then disappeared immediately.

"It's really cold... I don't know if there will be a chance to copy the talent related to 'warm protection' in the future..."

After teasing himself in a joking tone, Qing Deng slightly lowered the edge of his hat and walked away on the snow.

Edo, covered with snow, has a special flavor.

The current time is 7:00 in the morning. Although it is time for people to go out to work one after another, the air is still full of uncontaminated "human breath", as if there is a refreshing smell of dewdrops melting in it.

While enjoying the fresh air, Qingdeng took a leisurely pace and watched with great interest the street scene full of "white winter" and "new year flavor" at the same time as the new year is approaching.

At this moment, Qingdeng suddenly saw a weak dark brown figure flashing out of the alley not far in front of him.

Although this figure was observed by Qingdeng from the corner of his eyes, it was not very real, but Qingdeng was keenly aware of this person at the first moment... as if he had known each other...

Just when Qingdeng turned his head to the side, ready to take a good look at who this person is, this person walked towards Qingdeng quickly with small steps.

Qingdeng raised his eyebrows, and stopped in his tracks.

No wonder it feels like deja vu... It is indeed someone I know.

At the age of 20, her shiny black hair is tied up into a hairstyle that only married women can wear: ball bun, tall and slender, with a good face, and slender phoenix eyes with an alluring charm.

It was Qingdeng... To be precise, it was the childhood sweetheart of "Original Ju Qingdeng", Da Yueshi who reunited with Qingdeng at the fireworks display 4 months ago.

I saw Da Yueshi leaning towards Qingdeng at a speed similar to a trot, and stopped three steps away from Qingdeng's front.

She was frowning directly at her Qingdeng staring at each other.

...

...

Edo, somewhere—

call!

The cold wind like a knife, with the sharp sound of "huhuhu", cut towards Sanako's delicate and pretty face.

"It's so cold..."

After muttering softly, Sanako lowered his head and hid half of his face in the scarf, while tightly protecting the medical book he just bought from the bookstore in his arms to prevent the pages of the book from being covered by snow. The water got wet.

"Hurry up and go home..."

Sanako doesn't like the cold, so winter...especially this kind of snowy winter has always been the season she hates the most.

If it wasn't for the news that Suhara House in Nihonbashi had newly loaded a batch of western medical books, otherwise she wouldn't have gone out so early in the morning today.

Sanako, who just wanted to return to the Little Chiba Sword Hall quickly, quickly tucked her body into the warm kotatsu, held the book she just bought firmly with one hand, and tightened the top of her head with the other to keep out the wind and to cover her body. face, to prevent passers-by from discovering that she is the white turban of "Chiba Oni Komachi", and quicken her pace.

Because it was still early, there were no pedestrians on the street.

The empty street has a good view—so Sanako, who was concentrating on her journey, suddenly noticed a tall figure standing out from the crowd in front of her.

Paso... the pair of high-toothed wooden clogs under Zanazi's feet, which can well prevent the snow from getting on her feet, stopped instantly.

The whole person froze in place.

The reason for this is because this tall figure is someone she is very familiar with.

It was also because of this acquaintance who was following a beautiful figure she had never seen before step by step...

*****

*****

Today's word count is nearly 7000 words, very conscientious, so ask for a monthly pass!

Ask for a monthly pass! Ask for a recommendation ticket! (Leopard Head Crying.jpg)

If you forget who Otsuki belongs to, you can go back to Chapter 33 of Volume 2. Miss Sanako reappears after a long absence! Congratulations, congratulations, congratulations, bang bang bang (Slapping the leopard's belly.jpg)

If nothing else happens, Qingdeng will face a certain faction tomorrow, and everyone can guess which faction it is.