I formed the strongest swordsman group

Tokugawa Iemo was stunned for a moment:

"He Gong asked you to take the message? What did she say?"

Qingdeng said slowly:

"His Majesty, let me tell you: You must eat well and rest well, and don't get exhausted from being busy with official duties."

With the blessing of his gift of "photographic memory", Qingteng truthfully recounted Wagong's original words without any fabrication.

There are no complicated rhetoric, only the most sincere and simple feelings.

Tokugawa Iemo probably didn't expect Wakomiya to say this to him.

He was stunned for a moment, and then the corners of his lips unconsciously curved upward.

At this time, Qingdeng smiled and added:

"Your Highness, you have a good wife."

Qingden's previous impression of Hegong was that of a spoiled eldest lady with a strong sense of superiority, extreme discrimination against Kanto people, and being like a porcelain doll.

After today, after hearing with his own ears Wakomiya's concern for Tokugawa Iemo, his impression of this weak girl has greatly changed.

"Your Highness, although I have no intention of interfering in your family affairs, I still want to remind you: Do not delay family affairs due to official business."

"No matter how tired you are, don't let the person waiting for you at home be treated coldly."

"It's best if you go see He Gongxia tonight."

Tokugawa Iemo listened carefully with a serious expression. After thinking for a moment, he nodded solemnly.

"Well, I understand."

As soon as he finished speaking, he seemed to have thought of something interesting and chuckled a few times.

"The way you sincerely remind me is very fatherly."

Boom!

Qingdeng didn't dare to stay any longer, so he closed the door with a bang and left.

…

…

Qingdeng's footsteps gradually faded away.

After the sound of his footsteps disappeared, Tokugawa Iemo stood up slowly, turned and walked to the next room.

Wow - as soon as he opened the door, he happened to meet the fierce gaze of Tianzhang Yuan.

"Jia Mao, you really dare to say that, you actually said that I am a 'girl in love with spring'...!"

Tokugawa Iemo shrugged and laughed dryly:

"Mother, I am just telling the truth."

When Tianzhangyuan heard this, he seemed to be unable to breathe, and his plump chest rose and fell violently.

It wasn't until a while later that she managed to calm down.

"...Iatemo, what is your intention?"

A look that looked both angry and coy was directed at Tokugawa Iemo.

When things got to this point, she finally understood why Tokugawa Iemo allowed her to stay in this room.

Let her eavesdrop through the door, and then directly propose marriage in front of her and Qingdeng, killing two birds with one stone... What a good plan!

Tokugawa Iemo was not afraid of Tenzouin's sharp gaze.

He tilted his head and said calmly:

"My intention... I made it very clear when I was talking to Jun Tachibana just now."

"I hope you can leave Edo Castle, stop being an Odaisho, and live the rest of your life happily with Mr. Tachibana - this is my intention."

"To be honest, at the beginning, I just planned to watch from the sidelines and had no intention of getting involved in your relationship with Mr. Ju."

"Why...you care too much about the identity of the 'Grand Odaisho' and the eyes of the world."

"Even though my heart is full of deep friendship for Mr. Tachibana, I still deceive myself and others and don't want to face my heart frankly, which only increases my depression and troubles."

"If you were allowed to develop freely, even in the past ten lives, you would hide your thoughts deep in your heart and be unwilling to take a firm step forward."

"In that case, let me help you pierce the window paper."

"In this way, no matter what happens in the future, I can finally settle down happily."

"At least it's much better than the previous 'no up, no down' situation."

Tianzhangyuan's facial expression changed several times.

Annoyance, shame, confusion... various emotions appeared and disappeared in her cheeks, making it impossible to guess what she was thinking now.

"...Jia Mao, I appreciate your kindness."

"Although I can understand your good intentions, there is something wrong with you."

"My feelings for Sheng Qing are not what you imagine."

When Tokugawa Iemo heard this, he immediately laughed out loud.

"Mother, at this point, it would be too boring to say such things again, right?"

"Perhaps this is because the authorities are obsessed with it, but bystanders can tell."

"You probably don't realize it. In fact, Saege, Yae and other close associates around you have long seen your special affection for Tachibana-kun."

"After all, the change in your appearance after meeting Mr. Tachibana is too obvious."

"Anyone with a discerning eye cannot fail to understand the fishiness involved."

"It's just because the matter is so big that no one dares to gossip about it."

Tianzhangyuan's face turned red again.

Probably because she couldn't think of any words to refute, she hesitated for a long time without uttering a single word.

Tokugawa Iemo would not leave enough time for her to react, he would directly "pursue the victory":

"Mother, no matter what decision you make - whether to stay in Edo Castle, fly away with Mr. Tachibana, or any other option - I will fully support you."

"Your happiness is my child's long-cherished wish."

"You have done enough for the sake of the shogunate and this country. Please... think more about yourself."

After Tianzhangyuan heard this, he subconsciously pursed his lips.

For a moment, she raised her gaze and took a deep look at Tokugawa Iemo, with a complicated look in her eyes.

“…”

Finally, she said nothing, stood up, then pulled up the hem of her dress, stepped on the quick steps, and ran away from the room as if escaping.

Tokugawa Iemochi stood quietly, turned his head, and watched her back.

When he was the only one left in the room, he looked up at the sky, let out a long breath, and a bit of fatigue appeared on his face, muttering:

“It’s not easy for me as a son…”

…

…

Edo Castle, outside the gate——

“Moo…? Moo…?”

Radish noticed the strangeness of his master, and while walking straight forward, he kept mooing, turning his head and looking at Qing Deng on his back with curiosity and worry.

How did he leave the rest room, and then how did he pass through the gate of Edo Castle…This memory seemed to be cut off and extracted, and Qing Deng could not remember it at all.

He now only felt his whole body light, with a "fantasy" feeling that his feet could not touch the ground.

At this moment, his mind seemed to be equipped with a broken tape recorder, replaying the words that Tokugawa Iemochi had just said over and over again.

Marrying Tenshoin as a wife... Qing Deng had never thought of such a thing before.

To be more precise, he deliberately did not think of such a thing.

Because he knew that this was an impossible fantasy, he consciously ignored it.

However... thanks to Tokugawa Iemochi, he could no longer continue to "play dumb".

Let's not talk about the feasibility of marrying Tenshoin.

If he really married Tenshoin as a wife, the series of chain reactions triggered by it would definitely make him anxious.

Even if he could hide it from the world, he could not hide it from the wives at home.

"Sanako, Ama, Koji, this is Tenshoin Atsuhime, yes, she is the Grand Odai-no-ko of the shogunate! But this is a thing of the past, from now on, she is 'Tachibana Keiko', you must get along well!" - To be honest, Qing Deng couldn't imagine what the consequences would be after saying such words to Sanako and others...

Tenshoin has a lot of names.

Her nickname is "Yuichi".

After becoming the adopted daughter of Shimazu Nariakira, she changed her name to "Shimazu Atsuko" or "Gen Atsuko".

The main wife of the shogun was mostly from the five regent families (Ichijo, Nijo, Kujo, Konoe and Takashi) or the imperial family, as a tacit agreement of trust between the court and the shogunate, so after being adopted by Konoe Tadayoshi, she changed her name again to "Fujiwara Keiko".

In this way, if Tenshoin really became Qing Deng's wife, her name should be changed to "Tachibana Keiko".

Facing Tenshoin Atsuhime who has become "Tachibana Keiko"... Sanako and others may be in a long downtime.

Admittedly, Sanako and Ama are both noble ladies.

But compared with Tenshoin, they are really small witches compared to big witches.

Princess of Satsuma Domain + Omidaisho of Edo Shogunate... This identity is too heavyweight!

Even if you search all over Japan, you can't find a woman with a more noble status than Tenshoin.

The arrival of Tenshoin will definitely break the "balance of power" of the Tachibana residence.     In addition, if you marry Tenshoin, then Tokugawa Iemochi... the current Shogun will really become his adopted son!

Friends in the past, father and son today... What a thing!

At this moment, a sudden call hooked Qingdeng's consciousness.

"Jujun...Jujun...Jujun!"

Qing Deng was shocked and hurriedly looked in the direction of the voice - only to see Kiryu boss standing five meters away, looking at him suspiciously.

"Jujun, what are you thinking about? You are so lost in thought, and your expression is so weird."

Qing Deng subconsciously raised his hand to touch his face when he heard it.

Because there was no mirror, he had no way of knowing what his expression looked like.

However, he could roughly feel that his facial lines showed strange distortions, like a smile but not a smile, like crying but not crying.

"Nothing, I'm just...trapped by trivial matters."

He made up a few nonsense words and evaded the question.

Of course, he couldn't casually leak out such a major secret as "the Shogun wants to be my adopted son".

While rubbing his face hard to adjust his physical and mental state, he laughed at himself in his heart.

Even though it was something that hadn't been decided yet, he began to fantasize about "a new life after marrying Tenshoin"...

It can be seen that his mood is really a mess now.

Boss Kiryu looked Qing Deng up and down. Although he still had a faint look of confusion on his face, he did not ask more questions and turned to business:

"Tachibana-kun, I found Shikizaki Kiyoshi. As expected, he has been hanging out in Yoshiwara recently and has not been home for a long time."

Hearing that it was a serious matter, Qing Deng immediately showed a serious and solemn expression, and all those strange and weird thoughts were thrown behind his mind.

Boss Kiryu's voice was not finished:

"How about it? Go to see him tonight?"

Qing Deng curled his lips and answered without hesitation:

"Of course! I hope to finish everything in one day!"

...

...

That night-

Edo, Nihontsui, Yoshiwara-

In Qing Deng's memory, the last time he visited Yoshiwara was a long time ago, and it had to be traced back to the time when he was tracking down the phantom water.

Yoshiwara was still the same.

At night, pink lanterns were hung on the streets and in front of the prostitutes' houses, lighting up the entire city in red, adding a touch of charm to the atmosphere.

However, compared with the past, the flow of people on Yoshiwara Street has greatly decreased, and the air is bleak.

Since the shogunate abolished the "Sankin Kotai", the chain reaction caused by it has caused a severe blow to the economy of Edo.

Only half of the population of Edo is permanent, and the other half is mobile.

Every year, at least half of the daimyo bring dozens or thousands of followers to Edo.

Their long journey not only brings considerable income to the hotels, restaurants, izakayas, and post stations along the way, but also injects fresh blood into the Edo economy.

It is no exaggeration to say that if Edo's prosperity is "10 points", then 3 or even 4 points of it should be attributed to "Sankin Kotai".

Nowadays, with the cancellation of "Sankin Kotai", no daimyo will bring followers to Edo, causing the total population of Edo to plummet, and then the economy will be frustrated.

These activities done by Yoshiwara are purely "service industries".

The direct reduction in the source of customers has a very direct and significant impact on Yoshiwara.

The decline of Yoshiwara can be seen from the enthusiasm of the kenseban.

As soon as the master and the apprentice stepped through the gate of Yoshiwara, many kenseban came forward and spared no effort to attract customers.

[Note: Kenseban: also known as "prostitute", commonly known as "turtle man", set up a platform near the main entrance of the prostitute house to attract customers. ]

"Two guests! Where do you want to go?"

"Please be sure to come to our store!"

"We have a few new young girls in our store!"

Although the boss Kiryu is already an old man with gray hair, this does not hinder the enthusiasm of the kenseban.

Of course, no matter what they said, the master and the apprentice were unmoved and treated it as wind around their ears.

They took big steps and moved forward without stopping, heading straight to the prostitute house where Shikizaki Kiyoshi was.

In order to hide his face, Qing Deng wore a low-brimmed hat that covered most of his face, and tried to be silent to avoid communicating with others.

Suddenly, Qing Deng slightly raised the low-brimmed hat on his head and looked left and right along the edge of the hat.

In order to facilitate the selection and nomination of guests, each prostitute house would open a space similar to a window on the side of the first floor facing the street, which was enclosed by a cell-like grid fence.

The prostitutes sat in these "windows", and the passing guests freely chose the girls they liked across the fence.

It was just after dinner time, which was the most prosperous time for Yoshiwara's business.

However, due to the sharp decrease in customer flow, there were still many prostitutes who had not been named and were still trapped in the "windows".

Whenever the master and apprentice passed by each "window", the prostitutes inside showed their magical powers.

Or they changed their sitting posture, held their heads high, and tried to show the most attractive part of themselves.

Or they looked at the master and his apprentice eagerly, begging for their mercy.

Looking at these prostitutes who looked like they were in prison, Qing Deng lowered his eyelids and pursed his lips, not knowing what to think.

Boss Kiryu noticed Qing Deng's strangeness and asked casually:

"Jujun, you don't seem to like prostitution?"

Qing Deng pulled the corner of his mouth and said in a playful tone that was hard to tell whether it was true or false:

"Boss Kiryu, to be honest, if one day I win the world, I will definitely launch drastic reforms so that everyone in this world can live a dignified life."

Boss Kiryu was stunned when he heard this, and a bit of surprise flashed across his eyes.

After a while, he changed to a quiet tone:

"... Come to think of it, although we have a deep friendship, I have never asked you about your views on the 'world'."

"Tachibana-kun, if there is a day in the future when you become the common ruler of the world, what kind of world do you plan to establish?"

"You are a descendant of the Genji clan, you can definitely create a new shogunate."

"Or do you follow Taira no Masakado, call yourself the 'new emperor', destroy the Kyoto court, and create a new dynasty?"

"In this new country established by you, what kind of system do you plan to implement?"

"Do you want to completely replicate the 'shogunate system' of the Edo shogunate, and let the shogunate and the feudal domains rule the world together?"

"Or do you want to follow Qin Shihuang, use a powerful military force to wipe out the princes of the world, abolish the feudal system, establish counties, and promote centralization?"

If outsiders heard what Kiryu said, they would be dumbfounded.

To openly say such a head-losing and treasonous thing in a busy street...

Qing Deng listened quietly and smiled slightly:

"Boss Kiryu, there are too many people here, so I can't say more."

"But... I can tell you a little."

"Since I started working, the most common thing I have seen is "inequality" and the "oppression" caused by it."

"I hate "oppression" and "inequality" from the bottom of my heart."

"Therefore, the ideal world in my mind is a world without status differences, no more "oppression" and "inequality", no plunder, no war, and everyone can stand tall and proud between heaven and earth."

"Okay, that's all I can say."

"If you continue, my ambition will be completely exposed."

Qing Deng ended with a joking tone.

As if hearing something extraordinary, Boss Kiryu's pupils shrank slightly, and he looked at Qing Deng in surprise.

"...Jujun, you have big ambitions."

He spread his hands and expressed regret.

"What a pity... If you want to create such a world, you can't just rely on 'hard work' and 'prestige' to do it."

Qing Deng smiled:

"That's right, fruits that are too easy to get are not sweet."

Boss Kiryu laughed dumbly:

"...Ju Jun, if you really want to build such a prosperous world in the future, don't be polite, just ask me for help, I will do my best to support you."

Qing Deng heard this and chuckled a few times:

"Well, I will. When the time comes, don't complain."

A new month is here! Book friends who have monthly tickets, please be sure to vote for this book! (crying leopard head.jpg)

Please vote for the monthly ticket! Please recommend! (crying leopard head.jpg)