Yoshiwara, the gate——
Shinzaburo held Aoden's portrait in his hand and carefully compared it with the face of the young man standing in front of him.
"Yeah...passed!"
"Damn, I can finally leave."
The young man cursed and walked away.
After working as a clerk at the Shirobei Club for many years, Shinzaburo has long ago developed the ability to hear any abuse or trash talk as if it goes in one ear and out the other.
He ignored the young man and waved to the long queue in front of him.
"Next!"
In order to speed up the examination efficiency, under the instruction of the officers of the execution office, they opened four inspection gates at the Yoshiwara gate. Due to a serious shortage of manpower, the officers of the execution station were only in charge of three of them, and the last one was handed over to Shiro
The Military Guard Club is in charge—that is, where Shinzaburo is currently working.
While waiting for the next examiner to come forward, Shinzaburo sighed heavily.
——Sigh... Why should I help the people at the practice...
As soon as he thought of this, Shinzaburo's face showed an angry look as if he had recalled some disgusting memories.
People in the Shirobei Club generally dislike the official duties of the Shirobei Club.
There is no other reason - the officials at the execution office always look down on them.
To put it nicely, the Shirobei Hall is "Yoshiwara's monastic institution."
To put it harshly...or simply put it in modern terms, the Shirobei Club is just the "security team of the brothel".
In terms of level and specifications, the Shirobei Club is one level lower than the Shogyoshi Club. Not only is everything controlled by the other party, but the materials, equipment, and welfare benefits are also not as good as the other party.
Inequality in status makes discrimination particularly serious between these two government agencies.
The officers of the execution office always behaved in a arrogant manner when dealing with the people of the Shirobei Club.
Just like just now——
"Hey! From Shirobei Club! Come and help!"
It’s okay if you don’t use honorifics.
Didn't even say "please".
Not even looking at the person!
After saying this, he didn't care that they also had work to do, so he unreasonably recruited people to help them and assist them in hunting down Ju Qingden.
It was hard for Shinzaburo and others to swallow this sigh of relief, but they had no choice but to do it - who made the status of their Shirobei Club not high?
No matter how many grievances you have, you can only endure it, endure it, and endure it again.
——In the final analysis, whether I can find Ju Qingden or not, and whether Ju Qingden is dead or alive, what does it have to do with me?
Shinzaburo curled his lips in displeasure.
He has the kind of temperament that "just wants to do his own job well and doesn't even bother to care about other people's matters."
"Searching for Tachibana Aoden" is neither the mission of their Shirobei club, nor the mission of his Nobu Saburo.
Even if Tachibana Aoden cannot be found, or Tachibana Aoden accidentally escapes from Yoshiwara, he and the Shirobei Club do not have to bear any responsibility.
Rather, Shinzaburo is quite looking forward to the situation of "achieving nothing" or "defeating success".
Because in this way, he would be able to see the annoying and frustrated officials at the execution office.
In this case, what reason do you have to work seriously?
Therefore, under the influence of these thoughts, Shinzaburo's work effectiveness... stands out in one word - fishing!
Fishing like crazy!
Fishing very efficiently!
At first glance, it seems that he is very serious when checking everyone who wants to leave Yoshiwara.
His eyes repeatedly scanned the face of the person under investigation and the portrait in his hand.
But in reality, his seemingly serious gaze was just a show-off!
Every person who came to be inspected would be allowed to pass after just a few glances.
Will anything be missed?
Will he accidentally let Tachibana Aoden escape?
It’s none of his business!
Just when Shinsaburo let out a big yawn and was about to catch fish again, a petite figure that was very familiar to him... no, to all the officers of the Shirobei Club suddenly appeared in front of him.
Within his front sight.
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"Hmm? Granny Guasheng?"
The one who came was none other than Gua Shengxiu.
"Nobuzaburo, have you been caught as a coolie?"
With a slight smile on her face, Gua Shengxiu crossed the queue and walked directly to Shinzaburo with her hands behind her back.
Shinzaburo smiled bitterly and waved his hand.
"Oh, Granny Guasheng, forget it. After tonight, I'm going to Kanyong Temple to burn some incense and ask for some good luck."
When saying this sentence, Shinzaburo carefully chose the honorifics.
This is not a secret in Yoshiwara - most of the officials at the Shirobei Club are very concerned about this "super senior" who has served in Yoshiwara for more than seventy years and has a seniority that no one can match.
", the attitude they hold is "both respect and boredom".
No one dares to question Gua Shengxiu’s character.
His selfless character, his easy-going style that never puts on the airs of his elders, and his eagerness to help others are priceless.
More than half of the people in the Shirobei Club have been supported and helped by Gua Shengxiu.
However... on the other hand, Gua Shengxiu's love for the girls made the officials at the Shirobei Club feel troubled.
Aren’t the so-called wandering girls just a bunch of exquisite products?
They are no different from the vegetables in the market, the drinks in the izakaya, and the tea in the tea house.
Just try to ensure that they don't die, right?
Their food and clothing expenses, their private lives, and their emotional status are things that their bosses should worry about.
How much money do you get in a month? Why do you need to take care of just a few "commodities" like an old lady?
The different attitudes towards wandering girls are the biggest conflict between Gua Shengxiu and the officers of Shirobei Club.
No one can convince anyone.
Over time, the two sides gradually drifted apart.
Whenever a wandering girl encounters a problem, Gua Shengxiu likes to do it herself and is unwilling to ask the officials at the Shirobei Club for help.
And the officials at the Shirobei Club were also happy to be clean.
However, this is the only point where the two sides have irreconcilable differences.
Under normal circumstances, the officers of the Shirobei Club still have the greatest respect for Kua Shengxiu.
If anyone dares to harm Gua Shengxiu, the officers of Shirobei Club will be the first to refuse!
"Hahaha, remember to call me when you go to Kanyong Temple to offer incense. I just want to pay homage to Buddha recently."
"Hahaha! Okay! No problem!"
At this point, Shinzaburo noticed that Gua Shengxiu looked like he wanted to go out, and at the same time, there was a rather unfamiliar young man standing behind him.
"Grandma Guasheng, do you want to go out?"
"Um."
Gua Shengxiu didn't say much, just nodded lightly.
"Who is this behind you?"
Shinzaburo raised his gaze and looked straight at the young man following Gua Shengxiu.
He is much taller than the average person. He wears two swords at his waist, a black scarf around his neck, and a cyan feather fabric. He has a thick beard on his face. He has wheat-colored skin that seems to have been associated with the sun for a long time. His eyes look like he hasn't slept well for several days.
I felt a dark circle...a face I had never seen before.
"This is my friend, I want to take him out."
Gua Shengxiu’s answer was still brief.
"friend……?"
Shinzaburo had a suspicious look in his eyes.
He looked at the young man's face with casual eyes.
No matter how he looked, stared, or stared, the young man remained expressionless and motionless from beginning to end.
Just like that, less than 10 seconds passed——
"...Okay, then, mother-in-law, you and your friends should take the first step."
Shinzaburo stood half a step aside to make room for an adult to pass through.
"Grateful."
Gua Shengxiu bowed to Shinzaburo.
"Hanada-kun, let's go.
A look of surprise flashed across the young man's cheeks
Under the leadership of Gua Shengxiu, two figures, one tall and one short, one young and one old, walked away...
As soon as the two of them walked away, an official from the execution office strode towards Shinzaburo.
"Hey! What happened to those two people just now? You don't seem to have checked those two people!"
He opened his mouth and said "Hello"... Shinzaburo twitched the corners of his mouth with a sullen expression, his movements unnoticeable.
"Those two people just now are people I know."
"People you know?"
The officer frowned.
"Who are they? The servants of the Shirobei Club? Or the Todai of Yumeiya?"
"What are you doing? Why do you care so much?"
Shinzaburo tilted his head and rolled his eyes at the other party.
"Anyway, he is someone I know. He cannot be a 'nioh'."
"you……!"
Shinzaburo's attitude instantly angered the officials.
He was about to curse, but just as he was about to spit out the curse words, he seemed to have recalled something important and forcefully swallowed the words that had come to his mouth.
No matter how arrogant the officials of the execution office were, they would not dare to have a direct conflict with the people of the Shirobei Club in public.
If this matter spreads out, you may be scolded or punished, or you may lose your job!
"Just wait and see!"
After giving Shinzaburo a vicious look and leaving these harsh words, the official quickly walked away from Shinzaburo's eyes without even wanting to stay for half a second.
Shinzaburo said nothing.
However, although he did not speak a word, he accurately conveyed the message of elegance with his eyes and expression as he watched the official officer leave——
Fuck you! If you have the guts, just come over here!
…
…
"It should be fine just walking here."
Gua Shengxiu looked around and after confirming that no one was around and no one was following them, he reached for the kettle on his waist and threw it to Qingdeng.
"Here, Mr. Ju, take it and wash your face."
"You actually broke through the blockade so easily...?"
Qingdeng took off the fake beard on his face and murmured in an astonished tone.
Guashengxiu smiled.
"How about it? My fake beard and 'black oil' are useful, right?"
The fake beard on Qingdeng's chin, as well as his wheat-colored skin, are all the work of Gua Shengxiu, without exception.
"Grandma Guasheng, I think it's not these disguises that come in handy, but your face."
After saying that, Qingdeng looked into Gua Shengxiu's eyes with a half-smile.
The scenes just now flashed before his eyes like a fleeting horse...
…
…
"Hanada-kun, I'm here to help you. Ah, no, that's not right. I shouldn't call you 'Hanada-kun', I should call you 'Tachibana-kun'. Alas, why is it that every man who I think is outstanding is not good enough?"
Where are the wanted criminals who don’t present themselves under false identities…”
When he heard Gua Shengxiu's words, "surprise" and "confusion" instantly appeared on Qingdeng's face.
However, this only happened for a moment.
Qingdeng, who was used to seeing strong winds and waves, and even going to hell many times, regained his composure in an instant.
He subconsciously wanted to play dumb.
Grandma Guasheng, what are you talking about? This is what he wanted to say.
But just as he was about to say these words... he saw Gua Shengxiu's eyes.
How to describe these eyes in human language?
It's just... like a lake under a starry night.
It is as clear as the night sky, as calm as the lake, and at the same time reflects the smart starlight.
There is some kind of strong determination hidden under the bottomless "lake".
This is the kind of eyes only those who have sufficient confidence in their words and deeds will have.
When he saw Gua Shengxiu's eyes, Qingdeng understood instantly - there was no point in being confused in front of someone with such eyes.
With this in his mind, he immediately gave up the idea, and while untying the bamboo hat on his head, he asked in a half-joking tone:
"Grandma Guasheng, when did you find out?"
Gua Shengxiu didn't answer in a hurry.
She looked at Qingdeng's true appearance under the bamboo hat with great interest.
When she saw Qingdeng's young face, which was not even 19 years old, she sighed with mixed feelings:
"You are truly young..."
After a little sigh of relief, she slowly said:
"When Chutaro informed me that 'Tachibana Aoden is in Yoshiwara,' I had already concluded: You are the 'Nioh' Tachibana Aoden!"
Chutaro - this should be the name of the fat man who informed Gua Shenxiu that "Tachibana Aoden is in Yoshiwara".
"If you are the 'Nioh', then it will make sense why your body smells so special."
Speaking of this, Gua Shengxiu raised his finger and pointed at his nose.
"I've told you before, right? I have a very good nose. I can tell whether a person is reliable and trustworthy just by smelling his 'smell'."
"I have lived so long, what kind of heroes have I not seen? What kind of 'smell' have I not smelled?"
"But the smell on your body...is really rare."
"In my mind, it has been a long time since I... No, I was wrong. It should be that since I had the ability to 'recognize people by smell', I have never smelled something as special and outstanding as yours."
"When I first met you, I kept thinking: Who is it that can have such a smell?"
"In fact, before Chutaro came to the door, I was already guessing whether you were the 'Nioh' Tachibana Aoden."
"As for whether there is a transcendent person in and outside Edo today who is nearly six feet tall and has outstanding swordsmanship, but at the same time, for some reasons, he has to hide his face all the time... After thinking about it, there is only one person.
'The King of Benevolence'."
"Chu Taro's arrival and notification only gave the final word to my conjecture."
Qingdeng silently listened to Gua Shengxiu's "reasoning" until the end.
"So that's it..."
There was actually a flaw in the "smell"... Qingdeng, who never expected that his "true identity" would be exposed for this reason, couldn't help but look dumbfounded.
If time permits, Qingdeng would be very happy to introduce himself to Guashengxiu again as "Orange Qingdeng" and chat with him.
But time is scarce right now.
Gua Shengxiu's words "I'm here to help you" aroused Qingdeng's interest and attention.
Gua Shengxiu seemed to have seen through Qingdeng's thoughts.
I saw her smiling slightly.
"Ji Jun, it's really thanks to you that I was able to successfully get Bai Ju back tonight."
"I owe you a favor."
"So, it's my turn to help you this time! I'll help you escape from Yoshiwara!"
…
…
Qingteng originally thought that Gua Shengxiu, who had been struggling in Yoshihara for decades, would be able to come up with some clever plan to help him escape from Yoshiwara.
For example, she knew that there was an unknown secret passage in Yoshihara that connected to the outside world.
Unexpectedly, the assistance plan she provided was extremely simple - she took out a fake beard and a box of "black oil" that can be applied to the skin to turn the entire skin into a wheat color.
"Ji Jun, you put on this fake beard, then use this jar of 'black oil' to darken your skin, do a simple make-up, and then follow me. You can say whatever you want, and leave everything to me."
There is no need to elaborate on what happens next.
Gua Shengxiu led Qingnog, who had put on simple makeup, straight to the gate of Yoshiwara. After briefly saying a few words to the gatekeeper Shinzaburo, he arrived outside Yoshiwara without any accident...
…
The simplicity and calmness of the process made Qingdeng speechless...
At this time, the two of them happened to walk to the famous landmark of Yoshiwara: Mitai Liu.
With a mentality that was completely different from that of ordinary prostitutes, Qingto turned his head back to the brightly lit Yoshihara with a complicated expression.
--That's it?
——You left Yoshiwara so easily?
——Why did I think so seriously about escaping just now?
Gua Shengxiu watched Qingdeng's expression with great interest.
After watching it to her full satisfaction, she slowly said:
"My face only played a minor role. The main role was the discord between the Executive Office and the Shirobei Club."
"When I found out that the officers of the execution office forced people from the Shirobei Club to help them guard the gate, I knew I had an opportunity."
"The officials at the execution office have always discriminated against the Shirobei Club."
"Therefore, every time the officers from the execution office came to the Shirobei Club to catch coolies, the people who were caught as coolies were perfunctory or even deliberately sabotaged."
"Nobuzaburo...ah, that's the gatekeeper we just met, and he is the 'leader' among them. I have never seen him take it seriously when helping the shrine."
"The moment I saw Shinzaburo's face, I was convinced on the spot: it was safe to help you leave Yoshiwara."
As Gua Shengxiu finished speaking, Qingdeng was secretly speechless.
"Did you take advantage of the discord between the executive office and the Shirobei club..."
As far as the process is concerned, Guashengxiu's plan still involves certain risks.
If when passing the customs, an official from the execution office had noticed the movements of Qingteng and others in advance, then Qingteng and Gua Shengxiu would definitely not be able to walk on Shijian Road so leisurely.
[Shikenmichi: The avenue leading to Yoshiwara on the Nihon Embankment]
But no matter what, judging from the results, Qingdeng has successfully returned to a world without "city walls" and "moats" - and this is enough.
After a while, the two of them got off the Japanese embankment.
The evening breeze gently stirred up Gua Sheng's beautiful sideburns and ponytail.
She held down the flying silver threads with her fingers and smiled so tenderly.
"Tangerine-kun, I will send you here."
This is the second time Guashengxiu said goodbye to Qingdeng tonight.
Qingdeng lowered his head following the sound and met Gua Shengxiu's eyes straightly.
At first glance, it looked like a very ordinary smile, but somehow, Qingden unknowingly relaxed the lines on his face.
Looking at this infectious smile, the reluctance that he had finally suppressed came to Qingdeng's heart again.
It is really strange to say that it has only been less than 2 hours since I met Gua Shengxiu, but Qingdeng is already full of intimacy with this kind old lady.
"Grandma Guasheng, I'm really under your care tonight."
Qingdeng bowed to the old man in front of him sincerely and thanked him.
"In other words, compared to what you have done for me, what I have done is not worth mentioning at all."
"Aren't you in a hurry to go to the 'battlefield'? Then go quickly."
After saying that, Gua Shengxiu stood up on tiptoes and hugged Qingdeng again.
"Mr. Ju, I wish you success."
"Be sure to come back safely."
"Don't forget what you promised me."
Gua Shengxiu changed into a half-joking tone.
"When you have free time, remember to come and visit me, an old woman."
Different from the last time, Gua Shengxiu's hug this time was very warm... so warm that Qingden felt his chest feel warm.
"Well, mother-in-law, I'm leaving!"
Qingdeng hugged Gu Shengxiu with his backhand.
The brilliance of fire reflected in his eyes.
His eyes are like lightning, his eyes are like arrows.
…
…
Back to Yoshiwara——
Bai Ling from Akaneya, who was the initiator of the situation that caused "Qingnobo almost couldn't leave Yoshiwara" due to some strange combination of circumstances, was currently hiding in an inconspicuous alley in Yoshiwara, looking at a tall slender road outside with fiery eyes.
, tall and straight figure.
"Oh...Shimano-kun..."
She murmured forgetfully.
"I finally see you again..."
The person outside the alley was none other than Shimano, who Bai Ling thought about all day and night. In order to see him again, he even deliberately stole things and called the police falsely.
Perhaps it was Bai Ling's persistence and sincerity that moved God.
Or maybe it's simply because Bai Ling is very lucky.
All in all, her plan of "falsely reporting that Tachibana Aoden was in Yoshiwara and forcing Shimano, an official of the Enforcement Station, to visit Yoshiwara again" was successful!
After learning that Shimano had come to Yoshiwara, Bai Ling immediately ran out of Akane's house regardless.
In a short time, she found Shimano at a certain street intersection in Yoshiwara, who was setting up a checkpoint with other colleagues to check passers-by.
Bai Ling, who was suffering from lovesickness, had already made up his mind: he would bet his love for Shimano and his future on tonight!
"Shimano-kun, please go down and take a rest."
"okay."
At this time, there was a conversation outside the alley that made Bai Ling tremble several times.
--coming!
Bai Ling felt his heart beating suddenly faster, as if his whole heart was about to jump out of his throat.
"Hahaha……"
She clutched her chest and took several deep breaths.
After she felt her emotions calm down a little, she held her head high and walked out of the alley, which was empty except for darkness and smell...
…
"That! That!"
Shimano, who was standing on a deserted street corner drinking water and resting, was startled by a high-pitched female voice that suddenly sounded from behind, and his shoulders shook twice.
He quickly turned around - standing behind him was a beautiful girl dressed as a wandering girl.
"Ah, um...hug, sorry...my voice was too loud..."
Because he was too nervous, he failed to control his volume and accidentally broke his voice - Bai Ling was greatly embarrassed by the bad start, and his delicate little face turned red instantly.
*******
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This chapter has been completed!