I formed the strongest swordsman group

Previously, when Tokugawa Iemo, Tenjoin and others came to Beijing, the emperor visited the shrine twice in order to pray for the peace and prosperity of the country and the longevity of the country.

Anyone with a discerning eye can see at a glance that the purpose of praying for the country is actually to put pressure on the shogunate, put the shogunate on the fire, and force the shogunate to fight against the barbarians.

The first time was a trip to Kamigami and Shigemo Shrine, accompanied by Tokugawa Iemo, Hitotsubashi Yoshiki and others.

The second time was to visit Ishikimizu Shrine - this trip was particularly thrilling.

At that time, the emperor wanted to personally award the sword to the general on the day of his visit.

In full view of everyone, the general had no reason not to accept the sword.

Once the shogunate takes over the sword, the shogunate will have no way out and can only go to the dark side on the road to fight against the foreigners.

Otherwise, it means resisting the imperial order, and the vassal states such as Choshu and Tosa will be able to obtain the righteousness and excuse of war to "punish the imperial enemies" and raise troops to attack the shogunate.

However, it was a coincidence that Tokugawa Iemo happened to be ill in bed at that time due to acclimatization.

Hitotsubashi Keiki, who was going to replace Tokugawa Iemo, received the news in advance, so he left the parade without authorization on the grounds of abdominal pain.

Fortunately, the shogunate did not accompany him during this trip, and the imperial court performed an embarrassing one-man show, which ended in failure.

Now, Tokugawa Iemo and Tenjoin have returned to Edo.

Logically speaking, the imperial court has no reason to "act" anymore.

As a result, they were going to Gyoko Shrine again.

If you think about it carefully, it is indeed unusual.

The reason given by the court this time was to pray for the Choshu clan, which was fighting against the Western barbarian countries, and to pray for a complete victory in the war against the barbarians.

But the problem is that the war between Changzhou and the Western countries has come to an end for the time being.

The war has already ended, and you’re only here to pray now? What were you doing before?

The war at Xiaguan... Strictly speaking, it was the first stage of the war and it had ended long ago.

As expected, the U.S. and French forces violently attacked Changzhou.

After several days of fierce fighting, the former was unscathed, while the latter suffered heavy casualties. The warships were all ink, and the shore batteries were destroyed. It was a complete defeat.

Perhaps in order to serve as a warning to the monkeys, the Western vassals were determined to make Changzhou bleed and suffer an extremely heavy price this time!

The temporary withdrawal of the U.S. and French forces is just to increase supplies and gather British and Dutch warships in an attempt to form a larger fleet to fight against Shimonoseki one day!

By the time the United States, Britain, France and the Netherlands have assembled their forces and launched the second round of offensive, it will have to wait until next year, no matter how soon.

Changzhou is temporarily safe.

However... it's only "temporary".

To put it harshly, Changzhou’s current situation can be described in one word—living on!

It won't be long before a more intense war will befall them.

By then, the damage suffered by Changzhou would not only be the destroyed warships and shore batteries.

As soon as the American and French coalition forces entered the battlefield, their resistance was instantly destroyed. The proud "Samurai Soul" and "Changzhou Soul" were of no use at all... They probably couldn't withstand such a terrifying stimulation. , the current Choshu Domain can no longer treat it with common sense!

After being violently beaten by the American and French forces, they did not want to sue for peace or regroup their military strength, but to vent their personal anger, they sent troops to attack the Kokura clan on the other side of Shimonoseki and seize its territory. They were like a man who lost his mind and bit everyone he saw. mad dog.

For this reason, most of the vassal states are now silently staying away from Choshu and keeping a distance from it.

After all, who would want to be near a psychopath with a knife in his hand?

As soon as the imperial court announced the emperor's new travel plan, the rumor that "the Zunbo faction will kidnap the emperor and burn the imperial palace" quickly spread throughout the streets and alleys of Kyoto.

Although this rumor did not specify whose family the Zunbang sect was, everyone in the world thought in unison - who else could it be? It must be the Zunping sect from Changzhou!

Everyone knows that although the Zunbo Sect has various factions such as the "Changshu Faction", "Satsuma Faction", "Tosa Faction", etc., only the Zunbo Faction in Choshu can be so extreme!

Given the current extremely unstable mental state of the Choshu Zunbo Sect... not to mention kidnapping the emperor and burning down the imperial palace, it is not surprising that they have done such bizarre and perverted things!

Although they don't know where the source is, Qingnobo, Matsudaira Yongho and others can't help but pay more attention to this rumor.

The rumors here are not groundless!

First of all, the places where the emperor will visit this time are the Mausoleum of Emperor Yamato Jimmu and Kasuga Taisha Shrine. The scheduled time is the end of August.

The previous two trips were in Kyoto, but this trip to Yamato was far away from Kyoto.

Regardless of whether the rumors are true or false, once the emperor leaves Kyoto, he will become a piece of meat on the chopping board and be slaughtered by others!

The emperor does not have any feather guards or imperial troops.

You can't expect those powerless ministers to protect the emperor, right?

If the emperor leaves Kyoto, it will not be surprising what kind of accidents he encounters!

Secondly, since a long time ago, the conspiracy theory that "Changshu and the ministers of the Zunbo faction colluded with each other to secretly kidnap the emperor" has been circulating among the people.

The unusual place and time of the trip reminds me of this conspiracy theory...

Forced into desperation by the anti-barbarian war, the Choshu Zunni faction decided to take a different approach and kidnap the emperor to Choshu to further deepen their control over the imperial court and gain the privilege of commanding the whole country. When you think about it, everything becomes reasonable!

To take a step back, let’s leave aside the truth or falsehood of this conspiracy theory for now.

One thing is certain: the Zunbo faction does not respect the emperor that much.

Some members of the Zunbo sect—mainly middle- and lower-level members—really loved the emperor because of convert fanaticism or other reasons.

However, the top people of the Zunbo faction, such as Takasugi Shinsaku, Katsura Kogoro, Sanjo Sanimi and others, do not love the emperor as much as they seem on the surface.

In other words, on the issue of "how to view the emperor", the senior officials of the Zunbo faction and the senior officials of the Samu faction are consistent - they regard the emperor as a tool!

As long as the emperor is kidnapped, Changzhou can, like Cao Mengde in the Three Kingdoms era, hold the emperor hostage to order the princes.

First, it was announced in the name of the emperor: The emperor came to Choshu voluntarily, and we did not force him.

Then, he continued to use the name of the emperor to order the princes of the world, cause trouble for the shogunate, repeatedly condemned the shogunate, and even deprived the Tokugawa clan of the official position of general for conquering barbarians.

Anyway, the Emperor is in their hands, and they can manipulate the Emperor's speech as they please, and say whatever they want him to say.

In fact, it didn't matter to the people of Kyoto whether the emperor lived or died.

To put it bluntly, from hundreds of years ago, the actual position of the emperor was not the leader of a country at all, but a sage-like existence, just a cultural symbol.

Even among the people of Kyoto who were born under the emperor's feet, there was no shadow of the emperor in their daily lives.

In the eyes of careerists and politicians, the emperor is a useful tool.

But to ordinary people, the emperor was just a dispensable existence.

Whether Yan Shenggong lives or dies is none of their business!

It might be better if he died.

Because it can also give them something to talk about after dinner.

Compared with the emperor's stay and life and death, the scholars and people in Kyoto were more concerned about whether the Zunbo faction in Choshu would burn the imperial palace - this was an important matter related to their livelihood!

The emperor's imperial palace is not a solid fortress with magnificent walls and a moat like Edo Castle, Osaka Castle, and Nijo Castle.

The walls of the imperial palace are very short, and you can easily climb in by setting up an escalator.

In addition, the Imperial Palace is located across a street from nearby residences.

Once the palace is on fire and a strong wind blows, countless sparks will scatter in all directions like dandelion seeds.

By then, most of Kyoto will be in danger of being burned to the ground!

In terms of population density, Kyoto is not inferior to Edo or Osaka.

Kyoto cannot afford a fire!

"Publishing rumors and spreading rumors" has always been a favorite among the people.

As the rumors of "taking the emperor hostage and burning the imperial palace" continued to spread, various versions gradually began to appear.

Choshu not only wants to hold the emperor hostage, but also holds all the officials of the imperial court hostage!

Choshu not only wanted to burn the Imperial Palace, but also set fires everywhere in Kyoto!

…

There are countless stories similar to this that are both true and illusory.

In recent days, the air in Kyoto has always been filled with the smell of tension.

Panic spread like a plague to every corner of Kyoto.

In a few places, there has even been a rush to grab rice.

Seito and Matsudaira Yongho had to come forward together and issue a joint statement to calm the mood of the people in Kyoto.

For Qingnog, this is a good reason to increase the number of people patrolling the town.

As a result, under Qingnobo's instruction, the Shinsengumi dispatched additional manpower to patrol the town on the grounds of "ensuring public order."

On the surface it was to protect Kyoto, but in essence it was to prevent Okada Izo's sneak attack.

Hijikata Toshizo is worthy of being Aoto's right-hand man.

After Qingdeng entrusted him with the task of "adjusting the number of sentries and the scale of patrols", he took action vigorously and managed the matter in an orderly manner.

After his precise adjustments, the Shinsengumi's current number of sentries and patrol team size have more than doubled!

There is a sentry post at almost every accessible location.

Almost every patrol has at least forty soldiers.

No matter how powerful Okada Izo is, he has to weigh his own worth after encountering more than forty soldiers who are not only armed to the teeth with spears, shields and other weapons, but are also good at mandarin duck formations.

As a result, so far, Okada Izo has not appeared again, and there have been no reports of "soldiers being attacked".

Heisuke Toudo has also returned to the team after recovering from his injury.

There are rumors everywhere, suspicions everywhere, a strong smell of gunpowder everywhere, and the shadow of war everywhere... Kyoto and beyond are enveloped in a heavy atmosphere.

In such an environment, time passes bit by bit.

In the blink of an eye, July quietly left, and August has arrived.

On this day, August 1, Aizu suddenly sent an envoy to Mibu.

The envoy presented Qingteng with a letter written by Matsudaira Yongho - asking Qingteng to go to Jinjie Guangming Temple alone to discuss important matters!

…

…

Wenjiu three years (1863), August 1——

Kyoto, Kinkaikoji Temple (Aizu Military Main Formation)——

"Moo~~Moo~~Moo~~"

Carrot swung his ox tail, carried Qingdeng, and ran straight to Jinjie Guangming Temple with his hoofs.

Qingden complied with Matsudaira Yongho's request and attended the meeting alone without any entourage.

Seeing someone approaching, the guards outside the temple gate immediately stood half a step aside and used a human wall to block Qingdeng.

Qingdeng reined in the reins and revealed his identity to the guards.

Looking at the sudden arrival of King Ni, the guards were all shocked and immediately reported to the inside.

Within a moment, an old man was seen hurriedly rushing to Qingdeng.

"The Orange Military Department, if you miss the welcome from afar, please let me know!"

Qingdeng nodded lightly and responded without saltiness.

He recognized the other party as the old Yamakawa Bie of the Aizu clan.

The elders of the Aizu Domain were divided into three factions.

They are the "blame-throwing faction" headed by Saigo Norimu, who advocate ignoring the shogunate's orders and returning to the Aizu Domain to defend the one-third acre of land passed down by their ancestors.

The "militant faction" headed by Sagawa Kanbei held the opposite views to the "blame-throwing faction" and followed the ancestral motto of "defending the shogunate to the death."

Finally, there is the "fishing faction" headed by Shanchuan Bingwei.

The "fishing faction" focuses on the word "fishing". They don't choose sides and are stuck between the "blame-shifting faction" and the "militant faction".

Saigo Norai's mother, who only wanted to return to the feudal clan, would definitely not get along with Ayoto.

During the recent Iga offensive and defensive battle, Sagawa Kanbei disobeyed military orders and sent out troops without permission, resulting in a disastrous defeat. He was captured by Aoto and imprisoned, causing an unpleasant incident with Aoto.

Therefore, on the whole, it is most appropriate to send Yamakawa Soldier Guard, who is the most stable and has no "black history", to welcome Aoto.

Under the leadership of Shanchuan Bingwei, Qingden strode towards the depths of Jinjie Guangming Temple.

Walking through corridors one after another, passing through palaces one after another.

Finally, they stopped outside the sliding door of a quiet, hidden room with no one passing around.

"Tachibana Military Department, please."

Yamakawa Bie turned sideways, said this to Qingden, and pushed open the sliding door with his own hands.

With a bang, the door opened.

Qingteng looked up and saw that there was only one person in the small room with no furniture except for two candle lamps - Matsudaira Yongho nodded to Qingteng as a greeting.

Qingdeng raised his feet and entered.

Yamakawa Bie who stayed outside the room consciously closed the door and left quickly.

Qingden walked directly opposite Matsudaira Yongho and sat down cross-legged casually.

As soon as he sat down, he asked bluntly:

"Higo-sama, you suddenly invited me here. Why?"

While asking the question, he took a rough look at the other person's face.

I saw Songping Rongbao's calm face, and his cheeks were full of solemnity.

To be able to make Yōho Matsudaira, who has always shown a calm face, show such an expression... It is not difficult to imagine that something extraordinary must have happened!

"Tachibana Military Department, the situation is urgent, so I will keep the story short."

After saying that, Matsudaira Yongho pushed a delicate wooden box beside his legs to Qingden's knees.

"Please look at this."

Qingteng opened the wooden box without knowing why - inside the box was a neatly folded letter.

A letter with a thin purple stripe.

At first glance, this seems to be just an ordinary letter.

However, the next moment he saw this letter, Qingdeng's pupils suddenly shrank, and his eyes burst out in shock.

"This is...Chen Han...?!"

Chen Han - the emperor's imperial edict!

The purple lace is the symbol of the emperor.

Matsudaira Yongho changed into a solemn tone.

"Yes, it is the Emperor's Chen Han. Tachibana Military Department, please read Chen Han quickly."

After Qingdeng heard this, he was not polite, stretched out his hand to pick up Chen Han, and spread it out.

The letter was filled with Chinese characters and not a single pseudonym could be found - typical imperial style.

After reading the contents of Chen Han at a glance, Qingdeng opened his eyes wide in astonishment.

About 5 seconds later, he slowly raised his head and looked directly at Matsudaira Yongho opposite, their eyes meeting each other.

"Good guy..."

Qingden twitched the corners of his mouth and showed a meaningful smile.

"The Emperor has given us the edict on clothing and belts!"

Because it is a letter written by the emperor, the words and sentences in it are difficult to pronounce and obscure.

If you don’t have a certain level of Sinology, you won’t even be able to read it.

The main content of this eloquent letter from Chen Han can be roughly summarized as - Orange Military Department! Matsudaira Higomori! Help! I was held hostage by the Zunhui patriots from Changzhou and the Zunhui faction ministers within the imperial court! My edicts are twisted, my voice muffled! I can't let the outside world know my true thoughts! I don’t want to travel to Yamato at all! I don’t want to end the curtain at all! They have gone crazy! Go and mobilize your troops and come to rescue me quickly!

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