I formed the strongest swordsman group

At the same moment when the icy mechanical system sound fell, Qingdeng paused in the air with his knife-retracting hand.

——? !

It is difficult to use specific words to describe Qingdeng's current mood.

Fearing that he had heard it wrong, Qingdeng quickly called the system, opened the system interface, and pulled out his personal talent list.

At the very end of the list, his new talent: Optimus Prime, was impressively listed on it.

Concentrate on the entry, and a virtual light screen introducing the innate ability pops up.

Ren Zu's hardness is higher than that of ordinary people - it is exactly the same as the introduction of the system sound that he just heard, and he did not hear it wrong.

Human Ancestor: An elegant name for a very important organ of a male.

——Sure enough, the master is among the people...

Qingdeng put away his personal system interface, then unconsciously turned his head to look at the handsome uncle who passed out on the ground not far away.

This uncle actually possesses such a talent that countless men would envy... This proves once again: no one should be underestimated. Even if it looks plain, it may be hidden.

——Does the hardness increase...

At this moment, Qingdeng felt a strange sense of contradiction in his heart.

On the one hand, he is in a delicate mood, and feels that this talent is not very useful. It can only be used when going to Wushan with women, and it is not very practical at other times.

But on the other hand... Driven by male self-esteem and sensibility, Qingdeng's mood is honestly tinged with ecstasy and anticipation.

May I ask which man would not wish that part of himself could be stronger?

If someone dares to answer "no" to the above question, then Qingdeng really wants to see with his own eyes who is so divine, who can have such concentration, and can ignore human physiological instincts.

—Forget it, why think so much.

Qing Deng thought to himself.

——Anyway, I don't need this talent right now...ahhahaha...hahaha...haha...ha...

Before he could finish thinking, an unspeakable sense of loss and frustration surged into Qingdeng's heart...

I wanted to laugh at myself half-jokingly, but the power of this wave of self-deprecating far exceeded what Qing Deng had imagined in advance...

Qingdeng doesn't like the place of fireworks and willow alleys, and in this era where there are neither antibiotics nor advanced hygiene concepts, seeking flowers and willows is a very risky thing.

Regarding the relationship between men and women, Qingdeng's vision is very simple: he just wants to become lovers with the girls he loves, and then share the same bed under the premise of your love and mine, and finally enter the palace of marriage together.

At first glance, Qingdeng seems to be very close to this goal.

He had just fought side by side with Sanako a while ago, and the two of them were still wrapped in the same scarf intimately together, walking and stepping on the snow together in Edo at night.

Kinoshita Mai was obedient to him due to her personality.

The chief executive just confessed to him last night.

The situation looked good, as if Qing Deng was only one step away from marrying them.

But in fact... Even with the most optimistic judgment, Qingdeng still doesn't think that he will marry the three of them, and then live together a happy life of husband and wife, phoenix and phoenix, and happy life. What can be achieved quickly? Target.

What the general manager thinks, Qingdeng does not know for the time being.

But Kinoshita Mai made it clear: She hopes that Qingdeng can only spoil her alone.

Unfortunately, Sanako's idea is exactly the same as Kinoshita Mai's... No, it is much stricter than Kinoshita Mai's idea!

Sanako, who has a stronger personality, is far stronger than the soft girl Kinoshita Mai on many issues, including emotional aspects.

Although she didn't say it clearly, Qingdeng could vaguely perceive from her daily words and deeds: Sanako had a harder time accepting that her future husband had other women than Kinoshita Mai.

Long way to go...

——Forget it...the day when you can use this talent will always come...

"Mr. Tangerine."

At this time, Iemo Tokugawa walked towards Qingdeng

The messy thoughts in Qingdeng's mind were interrupted by the intervention of Tokugawa Iemo's immature voice.

"Thank you for your hard work, are you injured?"

Qingdeng shook his head, and replied: "An enemy of this level will not hurt me."

Tokugawa Jiamo nodded: "Well, that's good."

While the two were talking, Tianzhangyuan and Erzhong sisters surrounded them one after another.

"Master General."

Sashige lowered her voice extremely low, and said in a volume that even Tokugawa Jiamo and others standing in front of her could hardly hear clearly:

"Let's get out of this place of right and wrong while the officials from the "Three Returns" of the Enforcement Office and the officials from the nearby Zifan have not yet arrived."

After the security personnel arrived here, even if Qingdeng and his party were the victims, they would inevitably be arrested and questioned in their own outpost nearby or even in the government office of the enforcement office.

At that time, today's long-awaited micro-service visit by Iemo Tokugawa is bound to come to naught.

Tokugawa Iemo, who understands the benefits, nodded without thinking:

"Well, you're right. Let's go."

Just when the group was about to leave quickly——

"Huh? I recognize this person. Isn't this person that Ping Shanchong?"

Suddenly, an exclamation sounded from not far away, which attracted the attention of Qingdeng and Tokugawa Jiashige.

"Huh? Ah, really, it's really that Ping Shanchong."

On the right side of Qingdeng and the others, there are two middle-aged mistresses, both in their 40s, pointing at the handsome uncle who just had a fierce battle with Qingdeng and is now fainting on the ground. Point, while talking freely.

"Huh? Miss A Ren, Miss A Tang, do you know this ronin?"

A young girl standing side by side with these two aunts asked doubtfully.

"Well, this ronin is called Hirayama Chong. It used to be the hometown of me and Atang...that is, a low-level vassal of the Owari Clan. I remember...it should have happened more than 20 years ago. Unfortunate marriage, and reduced to the present situation where he had to make his home all over the world. The incident that caused Hirayama Chong to be deprived of his salary was quite famous in the entire Owari domain, and I still remember it Remember the beginning and the end and the specific details."

"Because of a marriage, you became a ronin?" The young girl tilted her head with a puzzled expression on her face.

"Well... where should I start..."

"Aren, let me tell you. Back then, my parents and I lived near the dojo opened by Ping Shanchong, so I knew more about Pingshanchong's tragic experience than ordinary people. A well-known secret."

"Oki Hirayama was originally a teacher in a dojo in the countryside of the Owari Clan that teaches the wisdom of the mirror heart."

"With outstanding skills and good teaching ability, although Ping Shanchong's dojo can't be said to be full of brilliant people, it can also be said to be full of people."

"I remember very clearly that that year was the eighth year of Tianbao (1837)...that is, almost 24 years ago, Ping Shanchong married a very beautiful woman through a blind date. That woman...I remember her name was Aguang .”

"As I said just now, my home was near Ping Shanchong's dojo, so I was lucky enough to see that Ah Guang with my own eyes."

"It is indeed a very beautiful woman! The skin is white and tender, the eyes are big, the mouth is small, and the figure is graceful and slender. It is as if she has stepped out of a painting of beauties."

"With a handsome face, outstanding swordsmanship and talent, a thriving dojo career, and such a beautiful wife, Ping Shanchong's life is very happy."

"But... the bad thing is that his wife is so beautiful. He was missed by Takao Kansuke, the only son of Toshitiro Takao, who was the elder of the Owari clan at the time."

"Old man, do you know? He is in charge of commanding all the warriors in the feudal domain, and is in charge of all affairs in the feudal domain. It is the most important and prominent official position in the feudal kingdom."

"So, sometimes a wife is too beautiful, and it may not be a good thing."

"After Takao Kansuke missed Hikari, he deliberately tried to snatch Hikari away from Hirayama Chong and take it as his own."

"There is no suspense in this duel at all. Right from the beginning, the ending is doomed."

"Although Ping Shanchong is a teacher in a dojo, he has good swordsmanship. But he is just a vassal who doesn't even have an official status. How can he possibly beat the son of the elder?"

"What happened after that, I don't quite know."

"In short, Kansuke Takao relied on his power to force Hirayama Chong to separate from Hikari, and then successfully brought Hikari into his mansion."

The young girl who had been listening quietly all this time interjected in shock:

"Ah... His wife was robbed... Having encountered such a shameful humiliation, Ping Shanchong... Has this person never thought of taking revenge?"

After asking, the young girl turned her head and glanced at the handsome uncle who was still unconscious on the ground not far away... that is, Hirayama shot a glance, and there was some sympathy in her eyes.

"Why didn't you think about it? It's impossible for a man with a normal mind to endure such humiliation?"

"After Hikari was taken away by Takao Kansuke, Hirayama rushed to prepare to assassinate Takao Kansuke, trying to follow the example of Ogata Itsai, who killed Hirose feudal lord Ogata in one battle, and quickly got rid of Takao Kansuke. "

"However, it is easy to imitate Ogata Isai, but it is not so easy to replicate the success of Ogata Isai."

"Whenever Takao Kansuke goes out, he will always be accompanied by 10 martial arts masters hired by him with a lot of money."

"Ping Shanchong, who was dazzled by anger, resolutely decided to continue the assassination regardless of the huge gap in numbers and strength between the two sides."

"There are many different theories about what kind of tactics Hirayama Chong used to assassinate Takao Kansuke."

"According to the most widely circulated version... Hirayama rushed to ambush at the place where Takao Kansuke must pass when returning home on a dark and windy night."

"The choice of time and place is impeccable, but the gap in combat power between the two sides is too far apart."

Although Hirayama Chong fought desperately, he was still outnumbered. If his legs and feet were not quick enough and he ran fast enough, he would definitely have been hacked to death by Takao Kansuke's guards. "

"Did the assassination fail..." The young girl sighed, regret and pity appeared on her face, "A bright future, a happy family, just because the old son fell in love with his wife..."

Speaking of this, the young girl tightly pursed her lips as if she had finished speaking.

"Oh, there is no way. People who have no power and power are easy to be bullied... I will continue to talk about it first."

"After Hirayama failed to kill Takao Kansuke, he naturally had no way to stay in the Owari Domain, so he had to leave his hometown and become a vagrant."

"Maybe it was because Takao Kansuke was at fault first. The Owari Domain did not dare to make a big fuss about this matter, so they did not issue a warrant for Hirayama Chong, and let Hirayama Chong fly away."

"Although I haven't learned about Ping Shan Chong's life in detail, I have heard a little bit about it."

"I heard that Chong Hirayama sank for a while after leaving the Owari Domain, but he once cheered up and tried to make a comeback."

"He wandered around, selling himself to various vassal states, hoping to use his swordsmanship skills to get an official position in a foreign place."

"But it's not so easy to be an official."

"In each feudal kingdom, there are a lot of samurai who are idle at home, waiting in line to become officials. They are waiting helplessly for the incumbents in various positions to die or be abolished quickly, so that they can Replace it."

"It's not so easy for a foreigner like Ping Shanchong to jump in."

"What's more, many vassal states are so poor that they are almost out of control, and very few vassal states can only rely on debts from the merchants in Osaka to survive."

"These poor feudal vassals can't wait to let the gang of samurai who reach out to the vassal mansion every year for more than half of them disappear directly, so how can they hire more new samurai?"

"Hirayama has traveled to most of Japan, but none of the vassal states are willing to take him in—this is the last rumor I know about this poor man."

"It seems... Ping Shanchong is still a ronin who can't find a home."

"Not only did he fail to get out of the predicament, but he became more and more depraved... He actually teamed up with other people to engage in this kind of despicable deed... The high-spirited dojo demonstration in the past has now become a man who lives by resisting abduction and deceit. The local ruffian... What a trick!"

Qingdeng and Tokugawa Jiamo quietly listened to the conversation between the aunt and the young girl until the end.

Qingdeng subconsciously squinted his eyes and peeked at Iemo Tokugawa beside him.

I saw that Tokugawa Iemo's face seemed to be painted with a layer of light blue paint, and his complexion was very solemn.

It seems that Hirayama Chong's experience has greatly touched Tokugawa Iemo.

However, this is also a matter of course.

Iemo Tokugawa determined to restore the authority of the shogunate.

The tragedy of Hirayama Chong’s life directly and nakedly exposes the two major social contradictions that are difficult to reconcile in the current era, and the social contradictions that Tokugawa Jiashige must face if he wants to achieve ZTE.

First, unprecedentedly sharp class contradictions.

Senior samurai like Takao Kansuke occupy a lot of social resources. Take the position of "exploiter". A simple sneeze from them is a hurricane that is difficult to resist for the "exploited".

Second, the vassal system that is about to fall in the distance.

To put it bluntly, the samurai class is a group of privileged classes who do not do production, and rely entirely on the money and food from the shogunate and the vassal state.

300 years ago, when the Edo Shogunate was founded, the number of samurai was not so large, so both the shogunate and the vassals could afford to support samurai in their respective territories.

But with the passage of time, the long-term peaceful life led to a big explosion in the number of samurai.

Today, the excessively large number of samurai groups has become a huge economic burden on the shogunate and the feudal lords.

In order to maintain the rule, the shogunate and the feudal vassals launched large-scale income reduction and expenditure reduction more than once.

Reduce the number of officials; reduce salaries; find ways to reduce the number of warriors in the territory...

The life of the shogunate is getting better-but it is hard for the low-level samurai.

The increasingly difficult days forced many middle and lower-level samurai to leave the vassal state and find another way out due to family bankruptcy

The three views and social order of the Edo period made it difficult for samurai to find good jobs.

And the impoverished vassal state has greatly tightened the standards for hiring people as officials.

As a result, the number of ronin has been unable to be fundamentally reduced, which has led to the fact that the number of unemployed ronin has remained high, and there is still a steady increase...

The tragic experience of Ping Shanchong is just a microcosm.

It can be expected that similar things, and even more extreme things, are being staged in various parts of the country without interruption.

Today's Weifu visit has just begun, and I have directly witnessed such bloody and cruel people's sentiments...

Qingdeng didn't know what Tokugawa Iemo was thinking at this time.

But judging from his immediate demeanor... He guessed that Tokugawa Iemo's heart should not be too peaceful now.

Iemo Tokugawa stood there thoughtfully.

After a while passed like this, he silently withdrew his attention and eyes from the old and young couple who were still discussing Ping Shanchong.

"...Let's go."

After leaving these words, the young monarch sighed with mixed expressions, and walked straight to the crossroads ahead without looking back...

Which direction should I go next?

He doesn't seem to have made up his mind yet.

...

...

At this very moment—

Edo, Senjiya——

Kinoshita Mai knelt and sat obediently behind the counter, concentrating on checking the account books for Kiryu.

Meow~~

The figure has gained a lot of weight, more and more confirming the correctness of the saying "big oranges are the most important", lying lazily beside Kinoshita Mai's legs, combing his hair leisurely.

Suddenly, there was a sound of footsteps approaching Qianshiwu from far to near outside the door.

At the same moment when she heard the footsteps, Kinoshita Mai's delicate body stiffened suddenly.

Although after falling in love with Qingdeng, Kinoshita Mai's personality has become much more cheerful due to the influence of love emotions, but her introverted, shy and shy nature is always impossible to change so quickly.

"Yes, there are guests..." Mai Kinoshita hurriedly put away the account books, abacus and pen and ink.

Almost at the same time as she was getting ready to welcome the guests—wow—the shop door was pushed open.

Kinoshita Mai hastily lifted her scorpion head from the counter, and forced out an unnatural smile.

"Huan, welcome light... Huh? Mr. Kiryu?"

The person who pushed the door and entered was none other than Kiryu.

"Young Master, I'm back after shopping for groceries."

On his vicissitudes old face, as always, Tongyu wore a calm and gentle smile, and waved the heavy vegetable basket in his hand to Kinoshita Mai.

"Mr. Kiryu, welcome back!"

The blunt smile turned into a bright smile.

"You came back really early today. Is there no one in the vegetable market today?"

"Well, today is New Year's Day after all, so the flow of people in the vegetable market is naturally not as good as in the past. Here, young master, you have always been thinking about the white tofu."

"Okay~~ You can have soup tofu tonight~~!"

Kinoshita Mai happily took the vegetable basket from Kiryu's hand.

Just as she was humming a tune and turning around, ready to take the ingredients in the basket into the kitchen——

"...Young master, don't leave yet."

"Huh? Mr. Kiryu, what's the matter?"

Kinoshita Mai stopped her feet, turned her head, and looked at Kiryu in confusion.

"I... have something important to tell you—about your grandma."

The good news is that the author's mother will be discharged from the hospital soon. If there is no accident, she will be discharged from the hospital next Monday.

Mom is recovering well and no longer needs someone to accompany her, so the author doesn't have to stay in the hospital for a long time anymore.

So starting from today's chapter, the book will return to the previous update time, that is, it will be updated on time at 10 o'clock in the morning!