I formed the strongest swordsman group

Tong Wulang shuddered several times, and then subconsciously swept his eyes to observe his surroundings.

The place where he was currently standing was the main formation of the Shinsengumi camp.

The Shinsengumi generals sat on his left and right in order according to their status.

Surrounded by Qingto, Souji and others, the collective gazes were like a heavy hammer weighing on Togoro's shoulders.

He shivered several more times involuntarily.

After moving him back to the camp, Qingdeng ordered the army doctor - before going out to the expedition, Qingdeng spent a lot of money to hire several doctors who were good at treating trauma - to give emergency treatment to his broken arm.

Even so, because painkillers have not yet come out in the current era, and the adrenaline in his body has long faded, Tonggoro gradually felt that his right arm...corrected, the place that "used to be the right arm" slowly There was a continuous, increasingly intense pain.

However, compared to the pain of his broken arm, Qingden's next words made his hair stand on end.

"The two options I offer you are very simple."

"First, listen to me obediently."

"You answer whatever I ask you. Don't talk nonsense, don't fool me."

"If I find out that you are teasing me...then the harm you will bear will make you deeply understand what is meant by 'life is worse than death'."

"By the way, I wonder if you have heard of it: 'Nioh' Tachibana Aoden once served as a public official in Edo Kitabansuo and Hufu thieves."

"One of the things these two places...especially the latter are best at is getting those tough-talking people to talk. Even if it's the little bit of gossip about peeping in my mother's bath when I was a child, I can make them tell the truth. The earth reveals it."

"For this reason, I am proficient in many interrogation techniques that will not hurt people's lives, but will make them extremely painful."

"To be fair, I don't like violence."

"If you can, please don't let me recall these cruel and bloody knowledge."

"Of course, on the other hand, if you are obedient enough and don't go against me, I can give you a way out and even give you a reward."

"As for the second option I gave you, you thought you were loyal and didn't want to cooperate with me. So after being tortured, your will collapsed and you endured the intense pain of tearing your limbs while crying, Answer my questions with full regret.”

As soon as Qingden finished speaking, Tong Wulang immediately said sharply:

"The first one! The first one! I choose the first one! I will answer all your questions obediently! Never cheat! Never hide! Please let me live!"

After saying that, he lowered his waist in tears and kowtowed "bang bang bang".

Qingden nodded.

"You are very aware of current affairs, so this saves me a lot of effort."

"Then, just listen."

"First of all, tell me your name, place of origin, and any position you hold in the bandit army."

Tong Wulang put away his tears, stopped his nose, and hurriedly answered one by one:

"My name is Tong Wulang!"

"My hometown is Iori Village in Ise!"

"Because I have learned swordsmanship for several years, and also raised horses, and know a little bit about equestrian skills, so after joining the rebel army...ah, no! After joining the rebel army, I became a member of the cavalry team leader!"

Qingdeng then asked the next question:

"What is your commander's name? What did he do before he started to cause trouble?"

“Our commander is a samurai named Renjuro Shibasaki!

"I haven't seen him, but I heard that his swordsmanship is very good! He is a master of Katori Shinto style!"

"Before the incident, he was the owner of a rural sword hall! He had many disciples!"

After Qingdeng heard this, he nodded slightly and thought for a moment.

Thoughts were flying in his mind——

Renjuro Shibazaki...the samurai...the owner of Ono Kaiden...the master of the rural swordsmanship...has many disciples...

In rural areas where the average education level is extremely low, this is a rare talent.

Regardless of personal strength, just being able to start a business (opening a dojo) and making a successful business (having many disciples) means that this person has certain management capabilities.

In this way, it is not surprising that he gathered tens of thousands of people in a very short period of time.

After thinking about it, Qingdeng continued to ask:

"As far as you know, what is the current total strength of the bandit army? I want a specific number."

Tong Wulang looked troubled.

"This...I'm not sure..."

Perhaps he knew that such an answer would not satisfy Qingdeng.

So, as soon as he finished speaking, he hurriedly added:

"After raising the army, Shibazaki Renjuro raised the banner of 'One son per household, two citizens and eight citizens, overthrow the Shogunate,' and called on everyone to join the rebel army and overthrow the Edo shogunate."

"As long as one strong man from each household joins the rebel army, from now on, that household will always enjoy the low taxes of 'two citizens and eight citizens'."

"As soon as this order was issued, people continued to defect to the bandit army."

"We don't know what it's like in other places."

"I only know that in recent years, the lives of the folks in my hometown have been very difficult..."

"So, many people in our village have joined the bandit army."

"I was attracted by the favorable conditions of 'two public servants and eight citizens', so I accidentally went astray..."

"Although I don't know the current total number of thieves, I personally feel... there should be at least twelve thousand people..."

Todo Heisuke twitched the corners of his lips and muttered:

"Two public servants and eight citizens...how generous..."

Genzaburo Inoue, who was sitting next to him, stretched out his right elbow and poked his side to remind him not to talk nonsense.

Two public servants and eight citizens - that is, 20% of the annual income is given to the government and the remaining 80% is kept for oneself.

From a modern perspective, such a tax rate is outrageous.

However, in feudal Japan, this was definitely the best of virtues.

Because the official tax rate imposed by the Edo shogunate was terrifying for the four public and six citizens.

As long as he joins Shibazaki Renjuro, his family's tax rate will be reduced to half of the current rate... In the eyes of poor farmers, such conditions are indeed extremely attractive!

Qingdeng said again:

"...Tong Wulang, what you said makes me a little bit confused."

"Since Shibasaki Renjuro's banner is 'One clan per household, two citizens and eight citizens, overthrow the shogunate and justice', and he regards the Edo shogunate as the formidable enemy, then you should fight eastward."

"Why did you go all the way west and come straight to Kyoto?"

"Don't you even know where General Zhengyi lives?"

Tong Wulang's response was still very quick:

"Actually... I really don't know where General Zhengyi lives."

"I only know that General Zhengyi lives in Edo. As for where Edo is, I don't know."

"Shibasaki Renjuro said to us: It is because the Edo shogunate acted rebelliously, ignored human relations, and signed a treasonous treaty with the Western barbarians without authorization, which made our life more and more difficult."

"His Majesty the Emperor cares about all the people of the world, but he was blinded and tied up by the hateful shogunate officials."

"Therefore, we will go to the capital to kill the lackeys of the shogunate led by the Shinsengumi and the Aizu Army, and join forces with the Choshu Army, Tosa Army and other rebels to jointly support the great cause of war."

As Dogoro's words fell, a tense atmosphere instantly arose - the people who created this atmosphere were Shannan Keisuke, Hijikata Toizan and others, whose expressions suddenly changed.

Shannan Keisuke frowned and murmured in a solemn tone:

"You actually know how to seize the opportunity for justice... very smart..."

Hijikata Toisho crossed his arms in front of his chest, with a thoughtful expression on his face, and spoke slowly:

"The people who are causing trouble behind the scenes...could they be those bastards from the Zunhuang Faction, right?"

Qingdeng's expression did not change significantly.

He just raised his eyebrows and seamlessly switched to the next question:

"Where did your iron cannons come from? Where did you learn the skill of using iron cannons?"

This question pierced the hearts of everyone present.

Suddenly, there was a solemn smell in the surrounding air.

After the Aizu cavalry suffered a defeat, this confusion has been lingering in the hearts of everyone.

In the blink of an eye, everyone straightened their backs, sat upright, and stared straight at Tong Wulang.

Tong Wulang's cheeks reappeared with a dark color.

"Well... this, this... I'm just a pawn, with no power. I don't have the chance to get in touch with those important people and things."

"So, so... what I am going to say next are all rumors and rumors that I have heard from hearsay before. They may not be correct..."

Continuously adding BUFFs to himself - this behavior of Togoro made Qingto couldn't help but feel secretly amused.

"It doesn't matter, just tell me everything you know. I will judge whether what you say is correct."

Seeing that he had obtained Qingdeng's "permission", Tong Wulang no longer hesitated, took a deep breath, and continued:

"Our iron cannons were all donated by a man named 'Settsu Yorimitsu'."

Aomori: "Settsu Norimitsu? Who is this person?"

"He is Shibasaki Renjuro's military advisor."

"I don't know much about his origins either."

"I heard that he is a big landowner somewhere in Ise, and his family is very rich."

"Because he was afraid of being attacked by ronin, he hoarded a large amount of food and weapons at home, and also maintained many capable retainers."

"After Shibazaki Renjuro raised his army, Settsu Yorimitsu took all his retainers and all his wealth to defect to him."

"It is said that he identified Shibazaki Renjuro as a man of heaven, a hero who would eventually clarify Uuchi and recreate a peaceful world like the Emperor of Han Dynasty and Emperor Taizu of Ming Dynasty."

"So he willingly donated all his family wealth."

"Money, food, weapons, horses - including 60 iron cannons - were handed over to Shibasaki Renjuro without leaving a single grain or piece behind."

"That's how our iron cannons come from."

"As for the method of using iron cannons, they were all taught to us by Settsu Yorimitsu's retainers."

"I don't know how many retainers Yorimitsu Settsu has."

"All I know is that these people are very powerful and very skilled."

"Many of them are very good at using iron cannons. These people have become our 'iron cannon teachers', specializing in teaching us how to use iron cannons."

"There are also some people who are very skilled in riding, so these people have become our 'riding masters' and helped us train many cavalry."

"Setsatsu Yorimitsu's generous help makes Shibasaki Renjuro very happy."

"And because Settsu Yorimitsu is very knowledgeable and can talk about all kinds of important principles, Shibasaki Renjuro promoted Settsu Yorimitsu to his military advisor and trusted him very much."

"It is said... it is really just 'rumored'! The slogan of 'two citizens and eight citizens' and the plan to 'march to Kyoto' were all Settsu Yorimitsu's ideas!"

Tong Wulang finished speaking... No one said anything for a long time.

Looking around, Aoto, Hijikata Toshizo, Shannan Keisuke, Kondo Isamu... all had expressions of contemplation on their faces.

It wasn't until a while later that Harada Sanosuke, who suddenly opened his mouth widely, broke the silence with a teasing tone:

"Not only did he donate all his wealth, but he also willingly sacrificed his life for others... Are there such good people in this world?"

Shannan Jingshu said calmly:

"That's still true. In the late Eastern Han Dynasty of the Tang Dynasty, Mi Zhu, a wealthy businessman in Xuzhou, took a fancy to Liu Bei's talent and spared no effort to help Liu Bei, providing both money and effort. He even married his own sister to Liu Bei."

Harada Sanosuke's eyes widened with a look of astonishment.

"Ah...it turns out that there really are such people in this world..."

Nagakura Shinpachi sneered:

"Why can't we meet such a good person?"

The director-general intervened:

"Does Settsu Yorimitsu have ulterior motives? Aren't there always stories like this? He deliberately shows kindness to you, makes you careless, and then slowly takes away your power, and finally takes away you. everything of."

Kondo Isamu blinked:

"Although this possibility cannot be ruled out,...does Settsu Yorimitsu really need to do this? Since he has money, food, people, and weapons, he can go it alone and pull up the team by himself. , why bother to seek refuge with others?"

Todo Heisuke also expressed his opinion:

"Could it be to avoid becoming the target of public criticism? If you build a team by yourself, you will be easily targeted by the government, but if you attach yourself to his family's wings, you can appear less conspicuous."

Hijikata Toshizo refuted it without thinking:

"If he cherished his life and deliberately avoided the edge, he would not have defected to the bandit army and become someone else's strategist."

Chirp chirp… chirp chirp…

Everyone was talking a lot.

After a while, they gradually became quiet, and then they turned their heads sideways in unison and looked at Qingdeng, who had not yet made a sound.

They originally wanted to listen to Qingdeng's opinion.

But who knows... Qingdeng didn't say anything.

"...You all go down and rest first. Kondo-kun, take this guy to jail."

After pointing at Tong Wulang, Qingden suddenly faced the floor and said seriously with a solemn expression:

"At five o'clock today (8 p.m.), I will convene a new military meeting."

"At that time, I will inform you of my battle plan!"

"If my battle plan is a complete success... we can return to Beijing before the cherry blossoms wither!"

*******

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Today is the day to welcome the God of Wealth, and it is also Valentine’s Day. Leopard Baozi left behind his girlfriends such as Mai Shiranui, Moko Hitachi, and Ningning Ayaji to save time to code and update. For the sake of Leopard’s conscience, please be sure to vote for this book! (Crying leopard head.jpg)

Asking for a monthly ticket! Please vote for recommendation! (Leopard head crying.jpg)