I formed the strongest swordsman group

Chapter 909 Qingden/Shuten Doji: "Go to the place where the world is divided into two parts!" [7100]

Of course, Qingdeng couldn't say it so straightforwardly, but that's the general meaning.

Qingdeng didn't want anyone to jump out from behind and cause trouble when he led his army to attack the Changzhou Army.

Although most of the Gyeonggi vassals were called to the Western Expedition, even if they wanted to cause trouble, they were powerless, but it was always right to be more vigilant.

After dealing with the Gyeonggi vassals for so long, Qingdeng finally understood that one by one, they were all a group of guys who were good at riding on the wall!

Gyeonggi is the main battlefield where the "Zunbang Sect" and the "Samu Sect" fight each other. Over time, all the vassals in Gyeonggi have developed a "flexible" body.

When the "Zunping Faction" gained momentum, they rushed to flatter the imperial court.

When the "Samu faction" gained momentum, they all became loyal ministers of the shogunate.

If they said that after learning about the fall of Nongwei, they did not have the idea of ​​"submitting to Changzhou" or the urge to "make flirtations with Changzhou", then Qingdeng would never believe it!

Therefore, as early as halfway back to Ojin, Qingteng had sent a large number of envoys to the Gyeonggi vassals to inform them that "Ju Qingteng is about to return to Ojin."

The benevolent king has returned - this sentence can not only boost the morale of one's own soldiers and civilians, but can also be used to intimidate the young people on both sides!

Sure enough, as soon as Qingdeng sent envoys, the feudal vassals in Gyeonggi Province immediately sent people to Tianjin to express their loyalty.

"We and Choshu are inseparable!", "We swear to advance and retreat together with the shogunate!"... In short, they are all clichés.

Some vassal states took the initiative and requested to send troops to help.

Although they were very enthusiastic and had a "If you don't agree, I won't go back" attitude, all their requests for assistance were politely declined by Qingdeng.

Qingdeng didn't expect them to send troops to fight, as long as they kept their one-third of an acre obediently and didn't cause trouble.

Furthermore, even if they mobilized troops to assist in the war, it would not have much effect.

According to all the information currently known, the Choshu Army, which captured Nagoya and Sunfu Cities with overwhelming force, possesses quite advanced guns and artillery, and there is no obvious generation difference compared with the equipment of the Shinsengumi.

In other words, the next battle will be a modern war with guns and artillery bombarding each other!

In a battle of this level, there is absolutely no room for feudal troops to intervene.

If the armies of the Gyeonggi vassals were thrown into such a battlefield, they would be beaten into pieces if they could not hold out for even half an hour.

By then, Qingdeng will have to work harder to gather the remaining soldiers and prevent low morale, which is not worth the loss.

…

…

Just three days after Aoto rushed back to Otsu, the "Second Army" led by Hijikata Toshizo arrived safely in Otsu!

That afternoon, Kondo Isamu's "Third Army" arrived in Otsu.

The next morning, Shannan Keisuke's "Fourth Army" arrived in Otsu.

At this point, this "Second China Return", which lasted for 13 days in total, has officially come to an end!

13 days, 350 kilometers...the infantry's daily march speed reached an astonishing 26.9 kilometers!

Such achievements have already surpassed Yu Chaijun's "First Great Return to China"!

The Japanese march speed of Yu Chai's army back to Gyeonggi was only 20-25 kilometers.

Of course, if you want to know, such amazing results naturally come at a high price.

In order to boost morale, Hijikata Toizan and others did not ride horses, but used two legs to travel like ordinary sergeants!

The superior officers did not just speak out, and did not order them to work hard and fight desperately from above, but actually ate the same food and suffered the same suffering as them... In this way, how could the three armies not die?

After Shannan Keisuke led the "Fourth Army" to Otsu, Aoden immediately summoned him, Hijikata Toshizo and Kondo Isamu.

At this moment, looking at the three people sitting side by side in front of him, Qingdeng pursed his lips and sighed with mixed emotions:

"Suisan, Yong, Jingzhu, thank you for your hard work...!"

Hijikata Toshizo smiled and spread his hands:

"I don't think it's hard. To me, this level is nothing. Those team members with average physique are the ones who work the hardest. It's really hard for them to persist until now..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Kondo Isamu and Shannan Keisuke both nodded in agreement.

The three of them are all swordsmen who can match a hundred swordsmen, so naturally they will not lack physical strength.

On the other hand, ordinary people... they don't have this ability.

Qingdeng naturally knew everything about the current situation of the infantry team.

After Hijikata Toshizo's "Second Army" successfully arrived at Otsu, he couldn't wait to check it out.

Although he had been mentally prepared in advance, he still couldn't help but feel sad after witnessing the tragic situation of the infantry with his own eyes.

With only two legs, he ran 350 kilometers in 13 days... Just looking at these numbers, it is not difficult to imagine what a painful march this was.

There was very little rest time, and they were not even allowed to take a break to eat... It is difficult to use specific words to describe the physical exertion and mental torture of this person.

There are even many people who are sleeping and running at the same time - their eyes are half-closed, the whole person is in a state of half-dream and half-awake, and they move forward based on instinct.

The sergeants of the Shinsengumi were able to withstand this tremendous suffering and successfully complete the arduous task of the "Second Great Return of China" mainly due to two things-discipline and physical fitness.

There is no need to say much about the former.

The first article of the "Shinsengumi Procedures" is "all actions must be directed."

For a long time, the Inspection Bureau has proved to all members of the Shinsengumi with its solid and fierce achievements: their swords will never show mercy due to any external conditions!

[Note: Inspection Bureau: Shinsengumi's military police, led by Kondo Isami]

It is tiring and painful to continue running forward.

But if you stop and disobey the military order to "return to Otsu as soon as possible", the inspection bureau's sword will come to chop you!

It is not difficult to choose what to do.

In order to save their lives, they can only grit their teeth and hold on, using perseverance and desire to survive to make up for their physical deficiency.

As we all know, the desire to survive has extremely strong energy and can stimulate the hidden potential in the human body.

If the harsh military discipline played a decisive role, then the latter... that is, a strong physique, played an important role.

Since the establishment of the Shinsengumi, Qing Deng has spared no effort to improve the food level of the soldiers.

There is enough rice, and you can eat greasy meat, fish, and eggs from time to time.

Although from a modern perspective, this level of food is nothing, but compared with the food of other armies of the same period, just "all you can eat rice" is enough to make countless people envious.

Facts have proved that Qing Deng's investment in this has not been in vain.

With the strong physique nourished by rich nutrition, most of the soldiers successfully survived this difficult journey home.

But even so, after arriving in Otsu, many soldiers were exhausted and almost died.

Many people took off their leggings and found that their legs were red and swollen like legs, and they basically lost consciousness.

As for those who fainted directly after stopping, there were countless people.

However, the number of people who fell behind because they could not hold on was far less than Qing Deng expected.

Such a result was really beyond his expectations.

Qing Deng nodded slightly and sighed at Hijikata Toshizo's words:

"Yes, you are right, everyone has worked hard."

"This time, everyone has made contributions!"

"I will definitely reward you in the future!"

After hearing this, Hijikata Toshizo grinned and said half-jokingly:

"Reward you? If you want to reward all the soldiers who participated in the "Second China Return", the cost is not low."

Qing Deng smiled slightly:

"Isn't it to spend all the money I made when I should spend it?"

As soon as these words came out, the atmosphere on the scene relaxed a little.

However, in just a moment, Qing Deng made the atmosphere in the room return to solemnity.

"We will discuss the specific reward matters later."

"Now, let's talk about the current war."

After hearing this, Hijikata Toshizo and others knew that the next topic would be the main topic, so they all collected their moods, restrained their expressions, and stared at Qing Deng intently.

Yamanami Keisuke couldn't help but ask first:

"Aoto, what's the current situation in Nobi?"

Because he had just returned, his body was still covered with dust that he hadn't had time to wash off, so he didn't know the current situation of the war.

Aoto said concisely and solemnly:

"They looted the entire Nagoya Castle, and then mobilized all the troops and supplies to march eastward."

"Four days ago, they captured Sunpu Castle without any effort."

"After a brief rest, they abandoned Sunpu Castle the day before yesterday and continued to march eastward, heading straight to Edo."

Before Aoto finished speaking, Yamanami Keisuke was stunned on the spot, his expression dominated by strong shock.

Fortunately, he was the chief of the Shinsengumi and the elder of the Qinjin Domain, and he had a strong heart after experiencing countless storms.

After just a few breaths, he calmed down and muttered:

"...Their goal is very clear, they are here to capture Edo and destroy the shogunate!"

Hijikata Toshizo curled his lips, his cheeks full of disdain.

"Let's not talk about Nagoya Castle for now, what's the matter with Sunpu Castle?"

"With such a strong castle and knowing in advance that the Choshu army was going to attack, how come they couldn't even hold out for half a day?"

"What a waste!"

Kondo Isami smiled bitterly to smooth things over:

"There's nothing we can do. You know how lax the military preparations of the shogunate were."

"Sumpu Castle has not experienced a war since the opening of Edo."

"It's inevitable that the fighting power is weak after not hearing about war for a long time."

"To be honest, the defenders of Sunpu Castle dared to fight in the battlefield instead of abandoning the city and running away, which has exceeded my expectations."

"You really can't be too demanding of them."

Yamanami Keisuke took over the conversation:

"It only took such a short time to march from Nagoya Castle in Owari to Sunpu Castle in Suruga... The speed of the Choshu army's march should not be underestimated...!"

Hijikata Toshizo, who was used to being sharp-tongued, added at the right time:

"Too good a traffic road can sometimes have a counter-effect..."

The "too good a traffic road" he mentioned was naturally the Tokai Street.

The difference between the "Five Kaido" headed by the Tokai Kaido and other roads of the same era is like the difference between a highway and a general road.

The size of the Choshu Army heading straight to Edo is not large.

According to the currently known information, its size will not exceed 5,000 people.

The streamlined size means flexibility and mobility.

On this basis, the extremely superior road conditions of the Tokai Kaido are superimposed... It is not surprising that the Choshu Army can have such a fast marching speed.

If you spread out the map, it is not difficult to find that the current Choshu Army is very close to Edo!

Further east from Sunpu Castle is Sagami Province and Musashi Province...Further east from Musashi Province is Edo!

Isamu Kondo sighed:

"There is no need to delay..."

"Their good days are over!"

Qingden's sudden shout attracted the attention of Hijikata Toizan and others.

"What are we gathered here for?"

"Now, all the troops have successfully returned to Dajin."

"Now that the personnel are here, we can finally hold a formal military meeting!"

As he spoke, he turned his eyes and let his gaze pass over the faces of the three people in front of him one by one.

"Suisan, go summon the generals of deputy captain and above!"

"I will hold the first military meeting of this war!"

…

…

Donghai Street, somewhere——

Click! Click! Click! Click! Click!

Muskets, chainmail and other metal equipment collided with each other, making crisp and harsh sounds.

Looking around, a huge army of thousands of people marched slowly on the streets of Donghai.

The strange army with two thousand soldiers and the "Slavic Legion" with two thousand soldiers, a total of four thousand soldiers and horses - they marched towards Kanto with their heads held high, their eyebrows dancing, and their momentum was like a rainbow!

They successively conquered Nagoya and Sunfu cities, and were invincible, with no single enemy... So, it's no wonder that their morale was high.

If you look down from above, this army attacking Edo really looks like a spear piercing the heart of the shogunate!

"Amanuma Spear" - the code name of this battle was taken from this.

In that legendary mythological era, Izanagi and Izanami, on the orders of the God of Farewell, stirred up the chaos of the earthly world with the Amanuma Spear. A drop of water dripping from the tip of the spear became the Yuneng Gero Island, completing the project. Creation.

And now, the Punishment Party and the Choshu Domain are also going to use their "Amanuma Spear" to create a new world!

At this moment, at the main formation of the Chinese army, Shuten Doji was riding majestically on a tall horse.

What's interesting is that he is not wearing the popular chainmail that is easier to move around, but is wearing a large dark red armor in the Heian period style.

The spade-shaped front stand on the front of the helmet is raised high, reflecting the light of stars under the sunlight.

The large armor...not to mention the current era, even in the Warring States Period three hundred years ago, this was already an outdated armor.

The armor that was popular during the Warring States Period was the armor. Its typical feature is that the breastplate has a slight arc, which can effectively reduce the lethality of bullets.

The distinguishing feature of the large armor is that it is boxy and box-like. The breastplate, back armor and shoulder armor are all flat and cannot protect against bullets at all.

In a word, this armor is not suitable for the current battlefield environment at all.

Regarding why Shuten-douji wore such outdated and bulky armor, Katsura Kogoro once found an opportunity to specifically ask the person involved.

Yes, the other party responded like this:

"There's no special reason, it's just personal preference. Don't you think I look very brave wearing this armor?"

But a normal army can only have one head.

The nominal general of this "United Legion" is none other than Shuten Doji.

Let Shuten Doji be the boss... Katsura Kogoro and others of the "Changshu Clan" criticized this.

However, no matter how dissatisfied they are, they can only endure it and avoid having an attack.

After all, the "Amanuma Spear" was planned by the Fa Zhu Party, and the three warships used to carry the troops were also obtained by them with great efforts. They took great credit and let someone be the general of this "United Legion". It is indeed inappropriate. Plan to suppress Changzhou.

Just when Shuten Doji was sitting on the horse, looking high-spiritedly at the eastern horizon, a deep male voice came from beside him:

"Shuten Doji-sama, urgent letter!"

I saw a kappa riding a fast horse, panting and handing out the letter in his hand.

"Kappa, thank you for your hard work."

Shuten Doji reached out to take it, pulled out the letter, and read it quickly.

After a while, he seemed to have seen something interesting. His brows were raised slightly, his eyes were flashing with excitement, and the corners of his mouth were grinning to the left and right, almost reaching the base of his ears.

"...Kappa, help me send an order to the entire army - stop advancing and rest on the spot!"

Katsura Kogoro happened to be next to Shuten Doji at this time.

Hearing Shuten Doji's order to stop the march, he immediately asked:

"Shuten Doji, what happened?"

Shuten Doji closed the corners of his raised lips, pursed his lips and smiled. He slowly put down the letter in his hand and turned his head to look at the west behind him. At this moment, the excitement in his eyes became even more intense.

"The Shinsengumi...Nioh is here!"

…

…

Qinjin Fan, Dajin, Judi, military conference room——

The general, the three commanders (deputy commander, director, general commander), the three assistants (the deputy commander’s assistant, the director’s assistant, the chief’s assistant), the captain of each team, the deputy captain of each team... the senior members of the newly selected group The generals are all here!

Qingdeng Dama sat on the main seat, and the others took their seats in order on the left and right in front of him according to their status.

Some of them were so busy that they seemed to have just arrived in Dajin and were called to a meeting without even having time to change their clothes.

Although their faces were stained with fatigue, they all cheered up and stared at the map in front of them attentively.

There was a detailed map in front of them, which mapped the topography from Gyeonggi to Edo, as well as the important locations of various places.

"...The above is the current battle situation."

Yamanan Keisuke said as he took back the thin stick in his hand that was used to indicate various places on the map and sat back down.

Just now, he summarized the current situation in a simple and concise manner.

After learning that Suruga Castle had fallen and the Choshu Army had penetrated deep into the hinterland of Suruga Kingdom, many people present were astonished.

Harada Sanosuke scratched his hair:

"Hey... isn't this bad? From the map, the Choshu Army is almost reaching Edo!"

Nagakura Shinpachi said solemnly:

"There is no other way... we can only rush on as fast as we can."

Toudou Heisuke twitched the corner of his mouth:

"Are you kidding me... We have just completed the 'Second Return of China' and are we going to launch the 'Great Pursuit of Tokaido' again?"

Genzaburo Inoue shook his head:

"It's impossible. The sergeants are all tired. They have tried their best to get back to Otsu as soon as possible! In a short period of time, they are no longer able to launch any more 'Tokaido Pursuit'..."

Harada Sanosuke said urgently:

"Even so, we can only fight! Master Kondo, Aunt Pen... they are still in Edo! Once Edo falls, won't they be in a bad situation?!"

Everyone is arguing.

The originally quiet military conference room gradually became noisy.

"..."

Abruptly, Qingden silently stretched out his hand and pressed it a few times.

Seeing this, everyone shut their mouths and stopped arguing.

The military conference room that was noisy one second ago became audible again this second.

"Be patient and don't be impatient."

Qingden said slowly while retracting his outstretched hand.

"Before we think about 'pursuit,' we must first think about 'how to defeat the enemy troops who come to intercept us.'"

As soon as these words came out, many people immediately cast confused glances at Qingdeng.

Todo Heisuke tilted his head:

"'The enemy troops who came to intercept us'? Mr. Tachibana, haven't the Choshu Army already penetrated deep into the hinterland of Suruga Country? How could they come to intercept us?"

Qingdeng smiled slightly:

"No, they will definitely divide their troops into two groups. One group will continue to attack Edo, and the other group will return to the east to block our westward advance!"

His tone was sonorous and powerful, making people unconsciously convinced.

Nagakura Shinpachi asked intermittently:

"This...Mr. Orange, is it possible that you have received relevant information?"

Qingdeng shook his head:

"No, this is my personal judgment - if I were the general of the Changshu Army, I would definitely divide the troops into two groups! If I don't try to block the front of the Shinsengumi and try to delay time, I will never dare to let go Attack Edo with all your might!"

…

…

Suruga Kingdom, the main formation of the Choshu Army, the main camp——

"...To sum up, that's what happened. Aoden has led the Shinsengumi back to Otsu."

The kappa, who was standing next to Shuten-douji, briefly described in a calm tone the information he had just learned about "Nioh's return".

Suddenly, the air inside and outside the camp was filled with panic!

Nioh is coming!

The impact of these words on the generals in the camp was no less than "a hundred thousand heavenly soldiers suddenly descended on their heads"!

The faces of the "Changzhou faction" generals who had been defeated again and again by Qingteng and who had never been defeated by Qingteng's sword all changed their faces.

Even Katsura Kogoro and Takasugi Shinsaku couldn't help but frown and clenched their fists as if facing a formidable enemy.

Although the cadres of the Punishment Party could barely maintain their composure, the expressions on their cheeks also became very ugly - except, of course, Shuten Doji, who had a calm smile on his face from just now, which was very disturbing. I can't see what he is thinking right now.

"This, this is impossible...!"

Ru Nu took a deep breath and turned pale.

"From the hinterland of Changzhou to Dajin... they only took 13 days to cover such a long distance?! This is impossible!"

Yunyeo expressed the sentiments of many people present - they could not imagine that the Shinsengumi would rush back to Gyeonggi in such a short time!

"Runu, don't panic."

Abruptly, Shuten Boy turned his eyes sideways and cast a reproachful look at Ru Nu.

"Although you are new here, you are a cadre of our party. How can you be so frivolous and frivolous?"

"Yes, yes...I'm sorry, I made you laugh..."

Ru Nu lowered her head with guilt on her face.

Faced with Shuten Doji's rebuke, she didn't dare to refute at all, just like a good baby, she silently acquiesced in his mistakes.

The next breath, Shuten Doji sat up slightly and said in a clear voice:

"As you all just heard, King Ni is back."

"This is wartime, and wasting time is a serious crime, so I'll put it bluntly - I'm going to divide the troops into two groups! One group will be commanded by me and continue to attack Edo eastward! The other group will be commanded by others and return to the division. Head west and set up a defensive line to stop the Shinsengumi's advance!"

In an instant, shocked eyes wandered around the camp.

Niu Gui clicked his tongue:

"Divide, divide the troops? Shutendouji-sama, isn't this right? Now that Nioh is back, we should concentrate our efforts now and strive to capture Edo as soon as possible? Why should we disperse the small number of troops?"

Shuten Doji said calmly:

"At this moment, Nioh is right behind us - in this situation, can we concentrate on attacking Edo?"

This sentence directly made those who looked puzzled speechless.

Shuten Doji continued:

"It only took the Shinsengumi 13 days to rush back to Otsu from the hinterland of Choshu - this shows that they have extremely strong marching capabilities."

"Since they can rush back to Otsu at such a speed, they can definitely chase us at the same speed."

"Don't underestimate Edo Castle!"

"Edo Castle is a copper wall built by the Tokugawa family at a huge cost!"

"What's more, there are unknown forces such as Seiichiro Otani and Sadayoshi Chiba in Edo Town."

"If we fail to capture Edo for a long time, and the Shinsengumi takes this opportunity to chase us and hit us in the ass... What should we do at that time?"

Everyone: "..."

No one refuted.

After a moment, Kaibozu said quietly:

"But... we have to attack Edo and intercept the Shinsengumi at the same time. Do we have enough troops?"

Shuten-doji smiled slightly:

"Don't worry! As long as we hold that place, we can hold back the Shinsengumi with only a few troops!"

...

...

Qinjin Domain, Otsu, Tachibana Residence, Military Council Room——

"In my opinion, the Choshu Army that turned back to stop us will definitely deploy here."

After saying that, Qing Deng leaned down and pointed on the map in front of him.

After seeing the location he pointed to, everyone showed a playful look on their faces, and their facial expressions changed wonderfully.

Nagakura Shinpachi took a breath:

"Eh... Isn't this place...?!"

Fudo Heisuke blinked in astonishment:

"Start the war here? Really..."

Harada Sanosuke looked confused:

"What's wrong? What's this place? Okehazama?"

Yamanami Keisuke smiled slightly:

"It's not Okehazama. It's more famous than Okehazama!"

Hijikata Toshizo sneered:

"After the 'Great Return of China', are we going to imitate the famous scene of the Warring States Period again?"

Qing Deng ignored the complex emotions of the crowd and said lightly:

"The Choshu Army will definitely deploy here! So we must prepare early!"

...

Qing Deng/Shuten Douji:

"Immediately go to the place where the world is divided into two - Sekigahara!"

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PS: I suddenly want to write a modern fiction with miko, ghost, samurai and ninja, just like "Thousand Loves and Flowers". I will start writing when I have the chance.