I formed the strongest swordsman group

Qingdeng's answer like this made Echigoya Wensaburo and others feel disappointed.

But everyone present is worthy of being elites who have been in the cruel business world for many years. Even if they are unhappy in their hearts, they will not hurt their harmony on the surface.

I saw that all of them looked normal, without showing any negative emotions.

"Ah... troubled times!"

Someone sighed.

The other person held up the tea bowl, with a smile on his face, and said to Qingdeng respectfully:

"Master Tachibana, in this crisis of life and death, we still have to rely on capable people like you and Mr. Sheng!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the rest of the people began to croak like toads after a rainy day.

"That's right! Master Omiya is right!"

"It's a great fortune for us to have such an extraordinary hero like Mr. Tachibana come out in the midst of chaos!"

"With Master Tachibana here, the situation in the country will surely be saved!"

...

All kinds of flattery voices flocked to Qingdeng.

The "Katsu-sama" in this population refers to Qingdeng's old friend, Katsu Rintaro who was also trusted by Tokugawa Kashige from the same age.

At the beginning of the 2nd year of Bunkyu (1862), Katsu Rintaro resigned from the position of professor of gunnery at the Shogunate and Kobu Institute, and returned to the navy with the reform of the shogunate government, and served as the headmaster of the Tsukiji Naval Academy (principal of the shogunate's Naval Academy ).

On August 17th of the same year, he was promoted to the rank of Naval Admiral, and began to be active as a senior bureaucrat in the administration of the Shogunate.

Tokugawa Iemo entrusted Katsu Rintaro with full authority to form the shogunate navy.

And Katsu Rintaro did not disappoint Tokugawa Iemo's trust. With his hard work day and night, the formation of the shogunate navy finally improved slightly.

"Tachibana" and "Victory"-one is the "Minister of the Military Aircraft Department" and the other is in charge of the shogunate navy. The two are called the "double walls" under the command of Tokugawa Jiamao.

There is even a saying among the wells in Edo: "The talents of the shogunate share one stone, Ju and Sheng share nine shares, and the rest share one share."

Facing the flattery from everyone in front of him, Qing Deng smiled slightly, neither showing acceptance nor impatience.

While holding up the bowl to drink tea, his face was blocked by his palm and tea bowl, Qing Deng sighed indistinctly.

There was a faint look of exhaustion in his eyes.

...

...

The next morning, early in the morning—

In the second year of Wenjiu (1862), December 2——

Edo, Koishikawa Kohinata Yanagi-cho, Shouweikan——

"Carrot, let's go."

"Moo moo~~"

Dressed in a samurai suit, Qingdeng rode his pet beef radish and rode towards the road leading to Edo Castle with ease.

【Note·Samurai formal attire: that is, "裃". Literally and practically, it is a suit. There is a very straight "shoulders" on the upper body, and "hakama" on the lower body. The "shoulders" and "hakama" are made of the same material and pattern, and there are family patterns on the shoulders and the back of the neck. 】

Although he was already a powerful minister in the shogunate, Qingdeng still lived in the test guard hall.

Based on his current financial resources and status, it is more than enough to build a mansion in the city center that is several times larger than the testing hall, let alone moving out of the testing hall.

However, no matter how luxurious the house is, no matter how many servants there are, there is one crucial thing missing—the laughter and laughter of the companions.

Isamu Kondo is bold.

Hijikata Toshisan is unrestrained.

Inoue Gensaburo's honesty.

Shannan Keisuke's elegance.

Nagakura Shinpachi's unrestrained spirit.

Saitoichi is steady.

The sincerity of Fujido Heisuke.

Harada Zuanosuke's honesty.

Souji Okita's cheerfulness.

Qingdeng was reluctant to part with these beautiful things.

Qingdeng prefers the hustle and bustle of the moment to living the so-called aristocratic life in a luxurious but lacking in warmth.

So, he has been living in the test health hall, and has been a diner in the test health hall.

Fortunately, his choice did not arouse everyone's displeasure.

Master Zhou Zhu, Isamu Kondo and others warmly welcomed Qingdeng's behavior of "not leaving".

It's not because Qingdeng's presence can greatly enhance the reputation of the testing hall.

It's because they really like this outstanding and approachable young man.

The distance from the Test Guard Hall to Edo Castle is not short.

If Qingdeng commuted on two legs like before, he would spend at least one hour a day on the road.

No choice but to sit in a sedan chair or ride a horse.

However, Qingdeng really didn't like sitting in a sedan chair.

In Chinese sedan chairs, the seat pockets are placed on top of the bars.

In Japanese sedan chairs, the seat pockets are placed under the bars—the same as dragging a coffin.

In addition, Chinese sedan chairs generally have two bars and are carried by four people.

On the other hand, Japanese sedan chairs basically have only one pole, and most of them are carried by two people.

One of the disadvantages of this design is that the seat is very unstable and wobbles very much.

Although Qingdeng doesn't know how to "sick sedan chair", this feeling like being in an egg shaker is really uncomfortable.

Ever since he sat in a sedan chair once on the first day when he officially took office as a side member and imperial servant, Qingdeng has kept his distance from this kind of transportation.

Therefore, the only commuting option before him is riding a horse.

Qingdeng didn't dislike riding horses.

However, when it comes to horses...he already has an excellent mount - a big black bull with a round head and brain: carrot!

Previously, the radish had been fostered in Xiaoqianye Sword Hall, and Sanako was mainly responsible for feeding it.

I have to say that Sanako is really good at raising radishes.

Compared with when I just bought it, it has grown a lot stronger, its hair is black and shiny, and because of its big and round head, it looks very simple and cute... It can be straight Drag it to the "Livestock Exhibition" exhibitors.

In terms of top speed, the radish of just a cow is naturally not as good as a horse.

But in terms of riding comfort, long-term running durability, and charging destructive power, carrots are far stronger than ordinary war horses.

What's even more rare is that Luobo is very smart and understands human nature, and he gets along very well with Qingdeng.

The cow itself is a very human animal, and the radish is "the best among cows".

It can understand human beings, and it can faithfully follow orders.

Qing Deng didn't even need to hold the rein when he was riding a turnip.

As long as he says "radish, turn left", it will "moo" and turn left obediently.

He said "radish, let's go", it will "moo" again, and then stride forward without hesitation.

He said "Carrot, charge", and it will "moo!" and enter the "Bull Clash" mode.

Of course, it does not obey everyone's orders.

According to Qingdeng's observation, Luobo is only obedient to him and Sanazzi.

As for the others... it is a bit indifferent.

Occasionally Qingdeng would think this way: With the current extremely chaotic situation in the country, when he really wants to go to the battlefield one day, he doesn't need to find a war horse at all, he just needs to ride a turnip to go into battle.

The most important thing about a mount is the "integration of man and horse", rather than running fast and rushing fiercely.

Only when the rider and the mount have a very high tacit understanding can the greatest strength be erupted.

In order to facilitate commuting, Qingdeng took the radish back from the small Chiba Sword Gym, then bought a small house next to the test guard hall, transformed it into a cowshed, and used it as the radish's home, and hired a person who was good at A farmer who raised cattle asked him to take care of the diet and daily life of radishes.

Under Qingdeng's careful arrangement, Luobo's little life is very happy.

He either eats or sleeps, and his daily work is just sending Qing to and from get off work.

After a while, one person and one cow came to a certain bustling street.

Extraordinarily tall, with three swords on his waist, and riding a big black bull - after seeing such an iconic image, in a blink of an eye, passers-by on the street parted to the left and right to make way for a straight and spacious avenue.

"Ah! Nioh-sama!"

"Master Tangerine!"

"Lord Nioh! Thank you for dredging Kanda Josui! Thank you!"

...

A large number of people crowded on the left and right sides of Qingdeng, or cast admiring glances at him; or shouted excitedly; or waved their hands vigorously, hoping to make the other party notice themselves.

With a smile on his face, Qingdeng nodded frequently to the people around him, like a lord inspecting his territory.

Qingdeng enjoys a high popularity among the common people in Edo—and it should be taken for granted.

Looking back at his past achievements: the first to eliminate the Kobari group, and the second to severely injure the Qingshui clan.

Whether it is the former or the latter, it is a social cancer that is deeply hated by the people of Edo.

Qingdeng eradicated these two great evils, how can people not respect and love him?

After Luo Sha, Shimizu Eiichi and others were executed, the strength of the Qingshui clan plummeted.

The Qingshui clan, who started their fortunes with swords and blood, naturally had many enemies.

For a long time, countless large or small Yakuza groups have been standing by, eyeing the Qingshui clan.

If it can always sit firmly on the throne of "the strongest in Kanto", that's all.

But if it falls from this throne...

Then, the nature waiting for it is the extremely cruel law of nature - the law of the jungle preys on the strong.

Even without the government's intervention, just a few days after the Qingshui mansion was breached, a large number of Yakuza groups couldn't help but start attacking the Qingshui clan.

Immediately afterwards, other organizations swarmed up like sharks smelling a fishy smell, attacking in groups, dividing and eating the legacy of Rakshasa and Eiichi Shimizu.

Now, although the Qingshui clan is still alive, it is at the end of the day, with only half a breath left, and it may be completely swept into the dustbin of history at any time.

Even without mentioning Qingdeng's past achievements, his current performance is equally dazzling.

The biggest feature of the officialdom in the Edo period was that bureaucracy was extremely serious. It was normal for officials to argue with each other and kick balls. It was even more common for a trivial matter to be resolved after a month.

This is also related to the system design of the Edo period.

In order to prevent the concentration of power, the shogunate set up a bunch of people to hold each position concurrently, from senior middlemen and Ruonianji to ordinary officials.

Redundant officials and redundant staff have come to this point, and it is strange that the efficiency of work can be improved.

The samurai and civilians in Edo had long been accustomed to the ugly behavior of shogunate officials who only knew how to shirk and perfunctory when they encountered problems—until Qing came to power.

After Qingdeng took office as a side member and imperial servant, he showed a completely different style of uprightness and resoluteness from other colleagues, which refreshed the people of Edo.

First of all, it is due to his personal personality. Qingdeng himself is a person who does not like to procrastinate, but only loves quick decisions.

The second reason is that he is a favorite minister trusted by Tokugawa Jiashige and Tianzhangyuan. He is called a side public, but he is actually a side servant. There is no one with the same function as him who will hinder him.

Therefore, Qingdeng can quickly and decisively take measures no matter what type of political affairs he encounters.

Ever since, during his inauguration, he has done a lot of achievements worth boasting about.

It's like saying "the Kandajoshui has been dredged" that a certain commoner shouted just now.

Kanda Josui is a water channel built by the shogunate in the sixth year of Kanei (1629) to ensure the daily life of the people of Edo, using Inokashira Pond as the water source, and collecting the water from the pool on the way to the bottom of Edo Castle.

In Japanese, "Shangshui" refers to drinking water.

One month ago, a small earthquake occurred around Edo, and a certain section of the waterway in Kandajosui was damaged, and the water flow could not be supplied.

Kanda Josui is one of the most important water sources in Edo. If its water supply is cut off, the lives of nearly half of the Edo people will be seriously affected.

At the time when time was racing against time, Qing Deng was ordered to lead people to dredge Kanda Sheung Shui in person, and supervised the whole process of the project.

Relying on his lofty popularity and well-trained management methods, in the end—Qingdeng dredged Kanda Sheungshui in less than 2 days and minimized the loss.

In the Edo period, such a speed of doing things can be called extremely fast.

Not only has a bold and resolute style of action, but also has extraordinary achievements... So, it is only natural that Qingdeng is deeply admired and loved by the people of Edo.

Qingdeng's ordinary background narrowed the distance between him and ordinary people even more.

The existence of radish also indirectly increased Qingdeng's popularity.

This dignified man rides neither a sedan chair nor a horse, but a bull!

It's a cow!

Qingdeng's demeanor of insisting on riding a bull to and from get off work, whether he has a sedan chair or a horse, not only makes people laugh, but also makes his image more friendly.

...

Cross the avenue and turn the corner.

Gradually, the tall Edo Castle came into Qingdeng's eyes.

One person and one ox walked unhurriedly through the famous mansions that surrounded Edo Castle.

Qingdeng involuntarily swept his gaze, looking around at the imposing, luxurious, but not at all popular mansions... Looking up, it was deserted and desolate.

Under the strong request of Hisamitsu Shimadzu, the account of attending the pilgrimage was changed to once every three years. The daimyo's royal family and princes who were taken as hostages and held in Edo were also sent back to their respective vassal states.

Such an approach would do too much harm to Edo's economy.

It is no exaggeration to say that a considerable part of the reason why Edo's economy can be so prosperous is due to the account of the visit.

According to the stipulations of the account, all the vassal daimyos had to go to Edo every once in a while to help the shogun handle government affairs for a period of time, so as to consume the daimyo's time and financial resources.

When the daimyos came to Edo, their entourage ranged from hundreds to thousands.

In other words, thanks to the blessing of attending the pilgrimage, hundreds of thousands of people flowed out of thin air every year in Edo, which not only prospered the stations along the way, but also prospered the economy of Edo.

But now, the visit to the pilgrimage has become once every three years, and the flow of people entering and leaving Edo has plummeted in an instant.

The feudal mansions around Edo Castle became deserted, and even the sensual places and commercial streets such as Yoshihara, Ryogoku Hirokoji, and Asakusa Mimon Nei Hirokoji became much more depressed.

Click, click, click, click, click.

Before he knew it, Carrot had stepped onto the wooden bridge leading to Edo Castle.

Below the hooves is the bridge body, and below that is the muddy moat.

The sound of "咔咚咚咚" the cow's hooves hitting the bridge body can be heard endlessly - Qingdeng likes this sound very much, and it will make him relax unconsciously.

Edo Castle is surrounded by a spacious moat, with only a few wooden bridges connecting it to the outside world.

Seeing Qingdeng approaching, the guards who were in charge of guarding the gate rushed up immediately, and then knelt down on one knee in front of Luobo's bull's head.

Qingdeng turned over and got off the ox, and handed over the reins of the ox to the guard in charge of the gate.

On the next road, you can no longer ride a bull, you have to walk.

"Carrot, wait for me to come back."

Qingdeng rubbed the head of the radish.

"Moo moo~~"

Turnip flicked its long tail while stretching its neck, arching into Qingdeng's arms.

"Okay...let's go to work..."

After murmuring so loudly that only he could hear clearly, Qingdeng simply adjusted his clothes, then strode forward and walked into Edo Castle.

On the other side, the guard lightly tugged on the reins and led the radish to the stable next to the gate.

In the huge stable, there is a big black cow among hundreds of good horses... The scene is so funny.

In order to prevent the invasion of foreign enemies, Edo Castle was designed as a "の"-shaped structure.

Simply put, it is a mosquito-repellent incense type.

Whether it is a friend or an enemy, if you want to enter the Edo Castle Honmaru where the general Zhengyi is located, you must start from the starting point in the lower right corner of "の" and continue to advance along the only road, passing through Ninomaru, Ichi Only then can we reach the Honmaru where General Zhengyi is.

Although this kind of architectural design is very tormenting for people like Qingdeng who commute in Edo Castle, it has to be admitted that the defense of Edo Castle with both a moat and a "の"-shaped structure is very difficult. Power is top notch.

If there are 10,000 elite soldiers and inexhaustible supplies in Edo City, even if 100,000 troops come to attack, there is no need to be afraid-of course, only feudal troops that are not equipped with a large number of hot weapons.

Qingdeng, with his amazing feet, soon arrived at his office in Honmaru.

"Master Tangerine!"

A young man was waiting there early, and while kneeling to salute Qing Deng, he greeted him with a hearty voice.

This person's name is Uchimura Soutaro, he is 16 years old this year, he is Tokugawa Iemo's surname, he was sent by Tokugawa Iemo to assist Qingdeng, let's say Qingdeng's secretary.

Although he is young, he is very clever.

After nearly two years of working together, Qingdeng is quite fond of him.

"Uchimura-kun, good morning."

Qingdeng smiled at each other, then untied Dingguishen and Vairocana from his waist, and handed them to Uchimura Soutaro.

The other party took Qingdeng's knife with both hands, stood up, and carefully placed the two knives in his palm on the knife holder in the office with a gentle movement as if he was carrying some fragile object.

Generally speaking, a samurai only wears two swords, one for fighting and one for wakizasa.

Since the "Gift of Knife under the Moon", Qingdeng currently has a total of 3 Tibetan knives - the family-heired knife "Tangerine Water", the treasured sword "Dingguishen" given by Ii Naosuke, and the demon sword "Vairocana" entrusted by the boss of Kiryu. ".

Vairocana, made of special materials, has both a strong blade and a frightening sharpness that blows hair and breaks hair. It has a destructive power far exceeding that of orange juice and ghosts and gods.

However... Leaving aside Jushui, Ding Guishen is Qingdeng's old comrade-in-arms, and he has deep feelings for him.

He really couldn't bear it if he just put it on the knife rest in the test hall to eat ashes.

So, after some deliberation, he decided to use the strategy he used to pursue Sanako, Kinoshita Mai, and Soji—I want them all!

In this way, Qingdeng became a swordsman with three swords on his waist.

Although the left side of his body has become a lot heavier, it would be nice to have an extra knife around his waist.

Even precious and demon swords such as Dingguishen and Vairocana will become blunt due to too much blood and fat on the blade.

If there is an extra knife at the waist, when one of the knives is blunt, you can immediately draw the other knife to continue the fight.

In addition, more complex and varied tactics can be used.

When Sotaro Uchimura helped Qingdeng place the saber, Qingdeng quickly walked to the back of the table case and sat down on his knees—a lot of scrolls and copybooks had been piled up in the upper left corner of the table case.

Looking at the "hill" piled up with scrolls and documents in front of him, the corners of Qingdeng's mouth twitched slightly.

"Tsk... why are there so many government affairs today..."

Although he was complaining, his hands moved quickly—the left hand took down the scroll at the top of the "small mountain", and the right hand picked up the writing brush resting on the pen mountain. In the inkstone of the ink, today's work officially started.

To be honest, Qing Deng suffered a lot when he first took office as a side member and imperial servant.

The Dingding Hui Tongxin and Fan Captain he previously served as were all military officers whose work mainly involved fighting and killing, wielding guns and sticks.

On the other hand, the new position responsible for assisting Iemo Tokugawa and Tianzhangyuan this time is a purely civil servant.

Therefore, Qingdeng's previous work experience is completely useless in this cold and forbidding Edo city.

How to deal with these messy government affairs, how to deal with those famous political figures... He is completely blind.

But fortunately, Qingdeng has always been a person who is very good at learning and is also very willing to learn.

When he sent troops to fight against the bandits in Kai, he learned a lot from my grandson on how to run the army and manage logistics.

Moreover, he also has a god-level talent: the blessing of the "ghost heart" that improves comprehension.

Relying on his own efforts and the help of the "ghost heart", he quickly learned the methods and skills of governing the country and governing the country.

In the end, it took him less than a month to fully master the work content of the sidelines and imperial servants, which shocked the people around him, including Tokugawa Ieshiro and Tenzhangin.

After nearly two years of training, Qingdeng is now a professional politician who can handle the government affairs of the shogunate proficiently.

Time goes by bit by bit...

Qingdeng sat behind the desk for hours.

Before you know it, the sun climbs to the highest point in the sky.

"It's already noon..."

Qingdeng put down the brush in his hand and stretched vigorously.

After a morning of struggle, the "hill" on the desk has shrunk by more than half.

Just when he took out the bento made for him by the general manager, and was about to take a break and have lunch——

"Master Tangerine!"

Uchimura Soutaro's voice came from the direction of the corridor.

"His Royal Highness Tianzhangyuan summons you!"

"His Royal Highness Tianzhangyuan?"

Qingdeng raised his eyebrows.

"I see."

While responding quickly, he stuffed the bento box in his hand back into his bag.

But at this moment, Sotaro Uchimura added another sentence:

"Ah! Heaven, His Highness Tianzhangyuan said: I want you to bring your lunch box too!"

"……Aha?"