Edo, Koishikawa Kohinagayanagicho, trial defense hall, dojo——
"Hey, Director-General, look at this lineup... it's really amazing. The so-called 'all the talents come together', it's not like this."
Hijikata peered through the crack in the door to see what was going on in the dojo, with a faint smile on his face.
As Hijikata expected, there were indeed many people who came to join in the fun after hearing about "Nioh was imprisoned".
They gathered in groups outside the gate and the wall of the Trial Guard Hall, standing on tiptoes and stretching their necks, constantly peeking at the scene inside the hall.
The person responsible for driving away these "flies" is Inoue.
Inoue, who loves housework and takes care of the cleaning, laundry, cooking and other household chores of the Imperial Guard Hall, is always ridiculed by Ayoto, Souji and others as "the old butler of the Imperial Guard Hall".
The old man’s job is to be a first-rate swordsman after all!
Holding a pair of swords, he looked sternly, stood outside the hall with his chest raised and his head raised - this majestic look really resembled a door god!
Just one stop scared away half of the "flies".
"No one is here, please leave quickly! Otherwise, don't blame me! You're welcome!"
After another drink, the remaining "flies" flew away "buzzingly".
However, it was still too much to rely on Inoue alone to guard such a large trial defense hall.
Fortunately, Nagakura and Saito quickly completed their respective tasks and returned to the trial defense hall.
The main job of the dojo diners is to protect the dojo.
When someone comes to the dojo to kick the ball, he is responsible for repelling the kicker.
When someone comes to the dojo to cause damage, you are responsible for maintaining the safety of the dojo.
After raising an army for a thousand days, it was time to use it for a while. Nagakura and Saito, who had been staying at the Imperial Guard Hall as guests for a long time, took over the important task of supporting Inoue without saying a word.
They joined forces with Inoue, each guarding one direction, and formed a "humanoid barrier" to prevent any "flies" from approaching the trial defense hall.
With the support of Nagakura and Saito, Inoue's pressure was greatly reduced.
On this occasion, the security and privacy issues of the Trial Guard Hall have been effectively protected.
In terms of results, Hijikata's plan to "unite all Ayoto's friends" was a great success.
All the people sent out, without exception, were victorious and achieved immediate success!
As far as the General Secretary and others knew, all the foreign aid they could find gathered at the trial defense hall.
Because there were too many visitors, the reception hall of the Trial Guard Hall could not accommodate so many people, so the "meeting" was held in the spacious dojo.
The current lineup of members in the group's trial gym is simply jaw-dropping.
The head of the Boshu Diao Institute, the artillery professor of the Kung Fu Institute, will soon be transferred to the important shogunate minister who will be transferred to build the shogunate navy: Katsurin Taro.
The legendary great swordsman who is still alive, the current head of the Beichen Itto-ryu branch: Chiba Nobuyoshi, and a pair of children under his knees, the "young master of the Beichen Itto-ryu branch": Chiba Jutaro, "Chiba Onikomachi":
Chiba Zuonazi.
Beiban's designated town return and force: Arima Hideyuki.
French businessman: Antoine de Angouleme, and his granddaughter: Elodie de Angouleme.
Kiryu Kazuma, who is slightly famous and has unknown connections due to opening a job agency, and his hand: Mai Kinoshita.
Political circles, academic circles, martial arts circles...
Kazuto, Westerner...
An old man over 90 years old, a petite and exquisite loli...
People of different races, different genders, people of different ages, people from different industries... They have only one thing in common: they are all friends of Ju Qingden! They all come to save Ju Qingden!
"Although I have known for a long time that Mr. Orange has a wide network of people and has friends all over the world, but after seeing this scene with my own eyes of 'all the talents come together, the young and the old gather together', I can't help but sigh: Mr. Orange is so popular.
OK."
Tufang was amazed.
"If I were to die, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to invite so many respectable people."
"But we can invite a lot of women." The general manager sighed softly, "If you were in trouble...then I should be able to see the rare sight of all the ladies from the gang house to the daughter of the samurai family gathered together.
.”
Hijikata smiled and said nothing.
He neither agreed nor objected to the ridicule made by the General Secretary.
"Mr. Hijikata, are you really sure you want to preside over the meeting?" the director asked tentatively.
"Of course!" Hijikata said without hesitation, "Gather all Tachibana-kun's friends - this plan was proposed by me. So, it is reasonable for me to preside over the memories."
"Besides, I'm the only person in the whole military training hall who can speak well and not have stage fright no matter how high-level the situation is."
At this point, Hijikata paused.
He seemed to be considering whether to reveal what he said next to the Director-General.
After a moment, he made his choice.
"And... Souji, look at it."
He chose to continue the conversation and confided some of his inner thoughts to the chief executive without reservation.
"Among the people who came here at our invitation, there are famous swordsmen, high-ranking officials, and rare Westerners... For a commoner like me who comes from a peasant background, something like this
But the opportunity to speak loudly to these important people is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
As Hijikata spoke, he put his face close to the crack of the door again, and cast his voyeuristic gaze into the dojo again. His bright and energetic eyes shone with elusive little bits of light.
When his eyes glanced at the sabers on the waists of Chiba Sadaikichi and others, complex emotions called "envy" and "anguish" appeared on Hijikata's cheeks...
…
…
Trial Guard Hall, Dojo——
"Ah, Sister Wu!"
"Elodie? Why are you here too?"
Elodie threw herself into Kinoshita Mai's arms.
Kinoshita Mai hugged her tightly and cast a stunned look at the blond loli in her arms.
Two beautiful figures, one large and one small, one red and one yellow, are closely attached to each other.
"Grandpa didn't plan to bring me here...but I couldn't sit still at home, so I forced grandpa to bring me too..."
Elodie's moans were muffled between Kinoshita Mai's two peaks.
I saw the blond Lolita wearing a goose-yellow kimono, with a light green wide belt wrapped around her abdomen, and a pair of brand new white socks on her feet that were no bigger than an adult male's palm.
Regardless of her appearance, just looking at her clothes, she would not be recognized as a Westerner at all.
Anthony, who was standing next to Elodie, also did the same thing. He changed into an authentic Kazuto attire that couldn't be faulted. He only needed to cover his face and block his hair, and others would just look like this.
You would think that this is just an ordinary town man who is a bit taller and fatter.
Although the "Radical Anti-Barbarian Movement" that was very violent in Edo last year was forcibly suppressed under the severe crackdowns of the shogunate, this does not mean that Westerners in Edo can just walk on the streets of Edo with arrogance.
It's an alley.
In fact, madmen with such radical ideas and full of "kill the barbarians and the traitors" still exist, but they are frightened by the suppression of the shogunate. They moved from the front to the backstage. Although they are no longer so grand, they still insist on carrying out their own actions.
The so-called "Operation Heavenly Punishment".
To this day, violent incidents related to "rebel patriots" still occur occasionally.
In other words, for Westerners like Elodie and Anthony, at a time when the "radical resistance to foreigners" has not subsided, leaving the place of residence without permission is an act that is definitely not "sane" or "safe"
.
Although they all disguised themselves in order to hide their identity from others, this was not a 100% guarantee.
If Elodie and the others' headscarves and face coverings fell off on the street or in other public places, and their unique Western hair and facial features were exposed, it would most likely result in irreversible consequences.
But even so, the grandfather and grandson still accepted the invitation without hesitation and came to the trial defense hall.
Normally, Kinoshita Mai would scold Elodie a few times, how could she leave the residence at will without sufficient manpower to accompany her? Don't you know that Edo is still in chaos?
But now, no matter how hard Mai Kinoshita racked her brains, she couldn't think of a single word of reproach.
Because she understands Elodie's mood very well.
Worried about Qingdeng's situation, worried to the point of restlessness, eager to do something for Qingdeng... She felt the same way.
Since she feels the same way, how could Kinoshita Mai have the heart to accuse Elodie?
What's more, Kinoshita Mai has no tenable position to blame Elodie - she and this blonde loli are completely incompatible!
Kiryu originally planned to let Kinoshita Mai stay at Chishiya, and he could come to the defense hall alone, but Kinoshita Mai, who was restless and unable to sit still at home, sternly refused.
Kiryu couldn't defeat Kinoshita Mai, so he had no choice but to let Kinoshita Mai go with him.
After Kinoshita Mai and Elodie hugged each other for a moment, they let go of each other.
At this moment, Kinoshita Wu suddenly felt a bright and compelling breath coming from behind her.
Such a strong aura... Even if Kinoshita Mai didn't use her eyes to see, she knew who was coming.
She frowned slightly and turned her head to look back - and sure enough, a certain Yamato Nadeshiko, who liked to wear blue clothes, was standing behind her with a graceful look.
Zuo Nazi: "..."
Kinoshita Mai: "..."
The two women looked at each other.
A heavy silence accumulated between them.
"...You're here."
Kinoshita Mai was the first to break the silence.
"Well... long time no see."
Zuo Nazi responded expressionlessly.
Obviously, the two women were no longer silent and even greeted each other, but the suffocating tension accumulated between them not only did not diminish at all, but became stronger and stronger.
It's getting stronger and stronger.
No matter when or where she was, Kinoshita Mai always disliked Zuo Nazi - and the same goes for Zuo Nako.
A few words of bickering, and silent yin and yang to each other - this is how Sonazi and Kinoshita get along on a daily basis.
It's just that neither Kinoshita Mai nor Zuo Nazi has the leisure to quarrel with each other at this time and here.
So, they turned their heads at the same time in a tacit understanding, neither talking to each other nor looking at each other.
…
…
About 10 minutes later——
"I am the third-generation head of the natural Rishin-ryu clan, and the master of the trial guard hall: Shusuke Kondo!"
Zhousuke raised the tea cup in his hand and looked at Kiryu and others in front of him.
Whether it was due to seniority or to show friendship to the landlord, it was appropriate that Zhou Zhu, the master of the trial defense hall, should give the opening speech.
"Here, please allow me, on behalf of all the members of the Trial Guard Hall, to express my heartfelt thanks to you all for coming!"
Everyone did not come here just for socializing, and Zhou Zhu knew this very well.
Therefore, he did not publish endless platitudes.
After a few polite opening remarks that were neither salty nor painful, he sat back down cross-legged.
Immediately afterwards, Hijikata stood up.
"I'm going to test the gate of the Imperial Guard, Hijikata Toshizo!"
Hijifang's voice was loud and powerful.
As soon as he spoke, he immediately attracted the attention and attention of everyone in the room.
Some people recognize Hijikata, such as the Chiba family, Kiryu, and Mai Kinoshita.
Some people met Hijikata for the first time, such as Katsurin Taro and Arima.
Huh? This person is a commoner? Katsurin Taro looked at Hijikata's empty waist and couldn't help but be secretly surprised.
When entering other people's residences and other private areas, you must take off your sword. If the owner asks you to hand over your sword, you must cooperate obediently - this is unwritten etiquette of the martial arts.
This etiquette rule only applies to sword fighting, and there are no rigid rules for wakizashi.
Therefore, even if they had to put away their katana after entering a certain area, samurai would still wear the wakizashi on their waists.
Just like now, when Chiba Sadaikichi, Katsu Rintaro, Arima and others entered the trial defense hall, they had temporarily removed their swords and handed them over. At this time, they only had a wakizashi left on their waists.
There is nothing on Hijikata's waist... This means that he was a commoner who did not have the right to bear a sword.
It’s no wonder that Rintaro Desheng looked surprised.
After all, from appearance to temperament, from deportment to conversation, Hijikata’s every move, every word and every deed, every frown and every smile is considered.
People who don't know better may think that Hijikata is a noble boy from a famous family.
“Time is of the essence, so I’ll get straight to the point!”
The volume of Hijikata gradually increased.
"I believe you all know this, right? Mr. Orange was harmed by a traitor. I invite you here now to discuss how to help Mr. Orange clear his grievances!"
"To be honest, this is not an easy task!"
"Tachibana-kun is a famous celebrity nowadays!"
"In officialdom, he rose rapidly."
"He is well-known among the people."
"Such a person can actually be imprisoned for no reason... This shows that the traitors who attacked Mr. Tachibana are quite powerful!"
"But we don't need to stop them!"
"Their swords are as powerful as our swords!"
“All of you here are elites from all walks of life!”
"As long as we unite as one and work together, we will be able to erupt with enough energy to free Mr. Tachibana from prison as soon as possible!"
As soon as Hijikata finished speaking, Kiryuu said calmly:
"I have good relations with Yoshikawa Torajiro, Suzuki Kentaro and others. If necessary, I can ask them to help."
Suddenly, shocked eyes fell on Kiryu.
Yoshikawa Torajiro, Suzuki Kentaro... To Edo people, these names are just like thunder!
They are all famous wealthy businessmen in Edo! All of them are rich and wealthy!
With the gradual collapse of the small-scale peasant economy, the vigorous development of the commodity economy, and the increasing popularity of money worship, the wealthy and giant merchants under the Edo shogunate have long had a transcendent political status and social influence.
"Winning over businessmen and gaining their support" has even become the basis for some ministers to settle down and make a living.
The two people Kiryu mentioned just now are top businessmen who countless people, including some officials, cannot win over even if they want to.
Such big names are actually Kiryu's friends, and Kiryu can invite them to help out...
Except for Kirintaro Katsu, who was not familiar with Kiryu, Arima and others were still surprised by Kiryu's arrogance. The group of people sitting at the bottom of the table had slowly regained their composure.
Souji and others already knew that Kiryu was the boss of the employment agency.
It makes perfect sense that employment agency owners have close ties with the business world.
Hijikata had just mentioned that someone who could open a job agency in a place like Edo must not be an ordinary person, so Souji and others were astonished and couldn't help but secretly sigh: Boss Kiryu is indeed not an ordinary person...
As if it was a competition, Chiba Jutaro straightened his back and said loudly immediately after Kiryu:
"Tachibana-kun is not only my friend, but also the friend of Xiao Qianye Sword Hall! We Xiao Qian... no, we Beichen Itto-ryu are willing to do our best for Jun Tachibana!"
The atmosphere is getting warmer.
Rintaro Katsu’s timely speech added another piece of firewood to the “fire” that filled the air of the dojo.
"Without Mr. Ju, I would have died long ago, and the Fanshu Diao Institute would become a cold historical noun. I cannot guarantee how powerful the help will be, but at least I can join hands with all the members of the Fan Shu Diao Institute to advance and retreat together with Mr. Ju."
…
Everyone expressed their willingness to go through fire and water for Qing Deng.
Seeing this, the General Secretary and others were once again amazed at Qingden's good popularity, and secretly rejoiced.
They were originally worried that the formation of the "Pro-Orange Alliance" would be difficult. Now it seems that this worry is no longer necessary!
…
…
Although time was tight and preparations were hasty, under the joint efforts of Hijikata and his team, a rough but still manageable "Tangerine Support Alliance" was finally built!
After the meeting ended and everyone left the trial hall, they immediately acted according to the jointly agreed upon plan.
The first to take action was the martial arts world represented by Chiba Kenkan.
Chiba Sadayoshi used superhuman mobility to summon all the masters of Hokushin Ittoryu dojo in Edo.
Affected by culture and historical inertia, the relationship between classmates in the Edo period was a very special friendship.
To some extent, "same sect" even exceeds "blood relationship".
As long as people are from the same school, they will feel an indescribable closeness to each other.
Among them, Beichen Yidao style is the best.
The disciples of Beichen Yida-ryu are famous for their emphasis on the distinction between sects and love to form small groups.
Even if we are not from the same dojo, it doesn't matter. As long as you and I are disciples of Beichen Yida-ryu, then you are my brothers and sisters.
This unity is an important reason why Beichen Itto-ryu was able to dominate the Japanese swordsmanship world in such a short period of time.
Chiba Sadayoshi is the younger brother of Chiba Shusaku, the founder of the sect, and the current head of the Beichen Ittoryu branch family. With such a status and such a reputation, if I ask him about his summons, which disciple of Beichen Ittoryu would dare not to obey?
At that time, all the masters of the Hokushin Itto-ryu dojo in Edo rushed to the Little Chiba Sword Hall as fast as they could.
After everyone arrived, Chiba Nobuyoshi didn't waste any time and pointed out the purpose directly.
About half an hour later, a petition signed by all the Hokushin Itto-ryu dojos in Edo was submitted to the shogunate, led by the Soke family Genbukan and the branch Kochiba Kenkan.
The content of the petition was naturally to request the shogunate to release the innocent Qingnobo and restore his innocence.
Beichen Itto-ryu is the number one swordsmanship school in Japan today.
The Dojo of Hokushin Ittoryu is located in the upper and lower parts of Edo, with the largest number of disciples.
All Hokutatsu Itto-ryu dojos in Edo support Aoto... This is no different from half of the Edo martial arts world supporting Aoto.
Following the martial arts world, the political and academic circles also began to exert their efforts.
The scholars at the Fanshu Diao Institute all respected Qingdeng who had saved the Fanshu Diao Institute. Therefore, Dumu needed to be mobilized by Lin Tailang with great effort. He only made a simple call and got all the scholars from the Fanshu Diao Institute.
enthusiastic response.
Talking nonsense...this is Katsu Rintaro's forte!
He went around non-stop to lobby officials at all levels with whom he had good relations, and frantically strengthened the "Pro-Orange Alliance".
At the same time, Arima joins hands with Inoya and Ushiyama to report the injustice suffered by Qingto through the channels of the shrine.
Then, the business community also began to speak out for Qingdeng.
Rich businessmen such as Yoshikawa Torajiro and Suzuki Kentaro, who could shake up the economy of Edo and even Kanto with just a sneeze, put pressure on the shogunate over the "arrest of Nio".
The offensive of the "Protect Orange Alliance" is not over yet!
At almost the same time that the business community launched an attack on the shogunate, the military community and Western forces made waves.
Because he didn’t know that Aoshito had a deep comradeship with the captain of the 1st division, Kanazawa, who was the leader of the Huoshu Thief Kai, and the captain of the 2nd division, Kanazawa, Hijikata ignored the power of the military and did not involve his grandson and others.
Join the "Orange Support Alliance".
But it's not bad either.
My grandsons, Kanazawa and Mizushima, voluntarily submitted a joint letter on the ground, advocating that Aoto's act of killing Akabane Koichiro was completely in compliance with military law and there was nothing inappropriate about it. Aoto was imprisoned on the grounds of "abusing his power and killing Tadayoshi in vain".
It's hard to agree.
Under Anthony's call, many Westerners who were rescued by Qingteng and benefited from Qingdeng when the anti-barbarian group attacked the settlement last year united to avenge Qingdeng and asked the shogunate for an explanation.
…
…
Edo, Tsukinomiya Shrine, a certain room——
"How could this guy... be imprisoned for such a reason..."
Tianzhangyuan put down the report in his hand, held his forehead and sighed.
At this moment, Sha Zhong's voice suddenly sounded outside the door:
"Lord Yu Du, I have something urgent to tell you."
Tianzhangyuan: "Come in."
Shazhong pushed open the door and entered.
"Master Yu Du, something happened...!"
Sha Zhong's little face was filled with solemn clouds...
…
…
Political circles, military circles, academic circles, business circles, martial arts circles, Western forces... Qingden's influence is so terrifying, and people who are willing to support him can be found in all walks of life.
From the daimyo who stayed in Edo for "paying pilgrimage" to the common people, more and more Edo people stood on tiptoes, stretched their necks, and raised their heads to watch.
Facing the fierce offensive of the "Pro-Orange Alliance", how will the shogunate respond?
How will the shogunate deal with Tachibana Aoden next?
With such a rare drama to watch, all the men, women, and children in Edo were looking forward to it.
However...just when the people of the world were eagerly anticipating it, a piece of news that was like a bolt from the blue suddenly arrived:
Ju Qingden is dead.
*******
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Those book friends who previously said that they have guessed the development of the subsequent plot, what do you have to say now? (Leopard Smile.jpg) I also said it the day before yesterday, right? The plot of this book will enter the "take-off" stage, do you believe it now?
?
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This chapter has been completed!