After splitting Mogami's head in half with one knife, Ogata squatted down and used the hakama of Mogami's upper and lower body to wipe the remaining blood, fat and brain matter on the blade of Daishiten.
After cleaning the blade and sheathing the knife, I saw a leather water bag next to the top, so I took the opportunity to wash my cheek, which was now stained with a lot of blood, with the water in the water bag.
When he was killing the Mogami guards who were swarming up just now, because the space was too narrow, Ogata had nowhere to hide even if he wanted to avoid the blood splattered on his body, so his face and armor were splattered with a lot of blood.
After quickly washing his face, Ogata let out a long breath: "Okay...it's time to leave here..."
It is more difficult to leave the camp safely than to rush into it.
But Ogata already had a plan on how to get out of here.
The plan he drew up to leave the camp was also quite simple and crude.
But before officially leaving the camp, Ogata had one more thing to do.
Ogata glanced at the armor he was currently wearing that was filled with the rich smell of blood, and then looked at the soldier who fell not far from his feet, whose armor was not stained with much blood.
"I need to change my armor first..." Ogata murmured as he began to take off his armor.
While taking off his armor with skillful movements, Ogata suddenly thought of something - he had never served in the army, but he seemed to have accumulated quite a lot of experience in wearing armor without knowing it...
…
…
There are two stables in the camp of the First Army, one is located to the south of the camp, and the other is located to the north of the camp.
At this moment, whether it is the "South Stable" in the south or the "North Stable" in the north, the horses are extremely unstable, constantly pawing their hooves and neighing.
This kind of temporary stable is naturally not made with any particularly complicated craftsmanship, let alone a stall for each horse.
Gathering the horses together and surrounding them with a thin wooden fence - this is how the temporary stables used on the march were made.
The horses used in the army are not very tall, so the wooden fence used to corral the horses does not need to be too high.
Due to various reasons such as inconvenient transportation, Japan has been slow to introduce excellent horse breeds from overseas. Until now, Japan has used domestic horses, whether they are civilian horses or military horses.
The most striking feature of Japanese horses is that they are short and weak.
The average shoulder height is only 1.2 meters, and the total height may not be as tall as a person.
With such a thin body, he naturally doesn't have much strength.
Among the various types of horses in Japan, the most outstanding horse breed is the Kiso horse - although the Kiso horse is actually just the taller among the dwarfs, and the average shoulder height of the Kiso horse is only 125cm-135cm.
During the Warring States Period 200 years ago, the Takeda family, a powerful lord who once shocked the country, used Kiso horses as fighting horses and formed the famous "Takeda Cavalry".
Now, two hundred years later, the Edo shogunate, which rules the country, mainly uses Kiso horses, which are superior to other local horse breeds, as war horses for the army.
Currently, all the horses stored in the stables in the First Military Camp are Kiso horses.
Horses are generally poor, so there are very few horses that can be used for combat, which directly limits the development of cavalry. As a result, Japan's cavalry has always been an extremely expensive unit.
The first army has 3,000 generals and real cavalry. There are only 150 cavalry responsible for charging on the battlefield.
There are only 200 horses in the two stables located on the north and south sides - these 400 horses are all the horses currently in the First Army.
The area of the camp garrisoned by 3,000 people is not very large.
The camp was attacked, and most of the area in the camp was in chaos. The noise of the generals and the sound of the burning flames were transmitted to the stables - this noisy sound and the thick smoke that kept drifting to the stables were what made
The reason why the horses in the "South Stable" and "North Stable" are extremely emotionally unstable is the culprit.
The noise, the noisy sound and the thick smoke emitted when the fire was burning frightened many horses in the stable.
The horses in the stables were frightened on a large scale - this is no small matter.
Regardless of the "South Stable" or the "North Stable", the heads of these two stables are now going back and forth in the stables they are responsible for, instructing their subordinates to calm the horses that are now very unstable.
…
…
The first military camp, the "South Stable" in the south——
咴咴咴——!
Bah! Bah! Bah! Bah! Bah!
"Let the horses calm down! Hey! You guys! Don't be lazy! Go and calm the horses!"
The general in charge of the "South Stable" patrolled around the stable with high spirits while directing his men to calm the horses that were still very unstable.
"Hey, it is said that our camp has been attacked by a large group of Ezo. Is this true?"
In the south stable, two young men comforted the horses while lowering their voices and whispering to each other.
"That's probably it... to cause our camp to be in such chaos right now, there shouldn't be any other possibility besides the attack of a large group of Ezo who are hostile to us."
"Then those Ezo who attacked our camp were repulsed?"
"I don't know that. But I guess it is only a matter of time before those Ezo who attacked our camp are repelled. Although Ezo can take advantage of us with sneak attacks, their equipment is too inferior to ours and they are repelled.
It’s just a matter of time.”
"Hey! You two! What are you whispering over there!"
At this time, a sharp shout came from behind the two young men.
After hearing this scolding, the two young men immediately looked back like thieves who had been caught stealing something. They turned around with guilty expressions and looked at the owner who was standing not far behind them.
The general manager of their "Southern Stables".
Although there are not ten thousand horses in the stable, there is no "thousands of horses braying in unison", but the unison neighing of nearly a hundred horses is enough to make people feel that their eardrums are about to burst.
The "stable manager" was so noisy by the horses that his head almost exploded. He was already in a very bad mood.
When he was patrolling around and instructing his subordinates to calm the horses, he just saw that these two subordinates were not focusing on calming the horses, but were whispering there.
He suddenly became angry and scolded loudly and unceremoniously.
"Pay attention to me! Don't let me see you whispering there again!"
The two soldiers who had just whispered to each other quickly nodded and bowed, saying repeatedly that they would not do it again.
After Haosheng scolded the two soldiers, the "stable manager" continued to patrol around.
However, it didn't take long for the "stable manager" to see a scene that made him angry again - he saw an ashigaru who didn't know which army he belonged to, holding a long gun and two knives tied to his waist.
He stood carelessly in the corner of the stable with his handle and sheath, as if he was looking at the wooden stable fence in front of him, not knowing what he was doing.
This ashigaru is quite tall, and the fence of the stable is slightly shorter than him.
Just when the "man in charge of the stables" was about to rush up and ask loudly which army the ashigaru belonged to and what he was doing here, a scene that made his pupils shrink suddenly appeared - he saw the ashigaru suddenly take off his waistband.
The handle of the knife was sheathed, and then he suddenly drew the knife and slashed at the thin stable fence in front of him...
I saw the sword flashing several times, and the ashigaru cut out a gap that was not too big or too small, almost enough to accommodate two horses walking side by side...
…
…
The first military camp, somewhere in the camp——
——What's going on in the camp now...
While Tachibana was thinking this secretly in his mind, he frequently turned his head and looked at the tent entrance next to him, his eyes full of uncontrollable anxiety.
At this moment - a calm, seemingly emotionless male voice suddenly sounded from beside Tachibana:
"Tachibana. Stay calm for a moment."
Hearing this voice, Tachibana was startled, and then lowered his head slightly with shame:
"Yes...I'm sorry, Mr. Laozhong, for making you laugh..."
The man who had just warned Tachibana was now sitting on a pony, with Sadanobu Matsudaira sitting next to Tachibana.
After learning that the camp was attacked, Matsudaira Sadanobu followed the advice of Tenmei and quickly left the coach's tent.
After leaving the coach's tent, Matsudaira Sadanobu, Tachibana, his guards and the rest hid in an inconspicuous tent in the camp.
Ever since he hid in this tent, Matsudaira Sadanobu has been sitting on a small pony, with his hands naturally resting on his legs, closing his eyes and meditating.
Matsudaira Sadanobu's motionless appearance formed a very sharp contrast with Tachibana who was sitting next to him, with a face that looked like "I'm panicking" in big letters.
After hearing the reminder from Matsudaira Sadanobu, Tachibana cleared his throat, straightened his back, adjusted the expression on his face, and tried to look as calm as Matsudaira Sadanobu.
But Tachibana is still too young and lacks experience. Naturally, it is impossible for Tachibana to change instantly just because of a reminder from Matsudaira Sadanobu.
Although he tried his best to disguise it, the anxious look could not dissipate in Tachibana's eyes for a long time.
"Lao Naka-sama." Tachibana couldn't help but asked Matsudaira Sadanobu, "Should we send someone to ask Kansei Tenmu-sama: What is the situation in the camp now?"
As soon as Tachibana finished speaking, Matsudaira Sadanobu responded without thinking:
"Tachibana, don't worry. If there are any new changes in the situation in the camp, Sheng Tianmu will immediately send someone to notify us."
Seeing that Matsudaira Sadanobu did not agree to send someone to ask about the situation, Tachibana could only suppress the anxiety in his heart and continued to wait silently in the camp with Matsudaira Sadanobu.
But Tachibana didn't remain silent for long, and then he looked sideways at Matsudaira Sadanobu beside him as if he had something to say.
The look of hesitation and determination on Tachibana's face saw back and forth.
In the end - it was determination that won.
"Lao Naka-sama." Tachibana, who no longer had any hesitation on his face, said to Matsudaira Sadanobu next to him in a cautious tone, "Are you feeling uncomfortable in any way or have something bothering you?"
"No." Matsudaira Sadanobu replied almost without hesitation, "Why do you ask?"
"Because I see that your face looks a little bad..."
After hiding in this camp with Sadanobu Matsudaira, Tachibana immediately discovered that Matsudaira's face looked strange...
Outsiders might not be able to see any changes in Matsudaira Sadanobu, but Tachibana, who had been serving Matsudaira Sadanobu for many years and whose face he saw the most every day, immediately recognized the unusual expression on Matsudaira Sadanobu's face.
According to Tachibana's experience - if Matsudaira Sadanobu showed such an expression, he was either feeling unwell or there was something disturbing that disturbed his mind.
As soon as Tachibana finished speaking, Matsudaira Sadanobu twitched the corner of his mouth slightly and said with a smile:
"Tachibana, you are worrying too much."
"I don't feel any discomfort with my body. I don't have anything to worry about either."
"Maybe it's because the light here is dim, so you saw it wrong."
Matsudaira Sadanobu had said so, and Tachibana did not dare to say anything more or ask any more questions. After acknowledging the situation, he continued to sit quietly in the tent with Matsudaira Sadanobu and wait quietly.
Suddenly - the noisy sound of horse hooves sounded outside the tent.
The sudden sound of horse hooves that was very close to them naturally shocked everyone in the camp.
Matsudaira Sadanobu also half-opened his eyes and frowned slightly.
"What happened?" Tachibana jumped up from the horse.
"Tachibana, be patient." Matsudaira Sadanobu reminded Tachibana again, then turned to look at a guard next to him, "Go outside and check the situation."
This guard standing next to Matsudaira Sadanobu is the most core component of Matsudaira Sadanobu's guard - the red cavalry.
After receiving this order from Matsudaira Sadanobu, the guard immediately nodded and said "yes", then quickly rushed out of the camp holding the knife on his waist.
Not long after, the guard came back.
"Sir, it was the soldiers in the camp who discovered a suspicious person who was riding a horse to leave the camp from the south."
"The sound of horse hooves just now is the cavalry going to chase the suspicious person."
As soon as the guard's report ended, Matsudaira Sadanobu's brows, which were only slightly frowned at first, immediately frowned: "Suspicious person?"
…
…
Ogata grabbed the horse's mane and drove the horse galloping on the snowy field outside the camp.
If you want to leave the camp, it is definitely not possible to leave on foot. It is a waste of time and it is also very easy to be discovered and then overtaken by pursuers.
Therefore, if you want to leave this place, the most effective way is to grab a horse and then ride away.
After Ogata put on a clean set of armor, he transformed into an ordinary soldier again, and once again fished in troubled waters in the camp.
The stables were not difficult to find - the camp was not particularly large, and many horses were neighing out of fear. Ogata followed the faint neighing sounds and found the stable.
"South Stables".
There is not much time left for Ogata.
The evening mist was about to disperse, and if it took too long, people would inevitably become suspicious of this single ashigaru.
Therefore, regarding how to steal horses, Ogata did not use any tricks that would consume a lot of time.
Run to the stable, split the wooden stable fence which is not as hard as human bones, and then choose a horse at random to escape - this is Ogata's method of stealing horses.
Simple and crude, but effective.
The management staff next to the stables, before they had time to react adequately, saw an ashigaru popping out of nowhere and splitting the stable fence with a knife, and then with lightning speed, he mounted a horse and split it open.
The horse closest to the gap, and then fled from the gap - by the time the management staff next to the stables reacted, Ogata had already ridden away.
The only drawback is that none of the horses in the stables are equipped with saddles or other harnesses.
For the health of the horse, and also to allow the horse to have adequate rest, the horse is only equipped with a saddle and other tack when the horse is being used, and the horse is usually separated from the tack.
Therefore, Ogata could only sit directly on the horse and then control the horse by grabbing its mane.
Fortunately, these horses are strictly trained war horses. Even if they do not use saddles and other harnesses, it will not have much impact on the riding. It will just make the rider quite uncomfortable.
The situation was urgent, so Ogata stopped being picky and fled the camp on a stolen "naked horse".
The person in charge of the stable immediately reported the matter to his superiors after discovering Ogata, the horse thief.
When Ogata rode his horse through the camp and rushed out of the camp, he also attracted the attention of many people along the way - after all, soldiers wearing the "Ogata Goku" specially designed for Ashigaru basically did not have the right to ride a horse.
.
Of course - there are also some people who mistakenly believe that Ogata is a soldier who is authorized to ride on horseback and deliver military orders in emergencies like this.
At this time, Ogata was not worried about whether anyone would find out that he was a "fake soldier".
Because the order in the camp has not yet been restored, it is difficult for the subordinates to quickly report the discovery of "suspicious cavalry" and then mobilize troops to pursue Ogata.
It wasn't until Ogata and his horse rushed out of the camp that Ogata heard some faint noises coming from behind - this was probably the sound of soldiers and horses gathering in the camp to pursue Ogata.
At this time, it was obviously too late to pursue Ogata.
Compared with the thrills of entering the camp, the process of leaving the camp was much smoother than Ogata imagined.
Ogata, who was sitting on the horse, let out a sigh of relief.
With a smile on his face, he felt the headwind blowing in his face as his horse galloped wildly.
…
…
Tachibana looked nervously at Matsudaira Sadanobu in front of him.
The guards of Matsudaira Sadanobu, headed by the Akabi Cavalry, now, like Tachibana, cast nervous glances at Matsudaira Sadanobu in front of them.
The reason why they were like this was because the tent in front of them was standing directly above the tent where they had just hidden.
Just now, after learning that a "suspicious person" had left the camp on horseback from the south, Matsudaira Sadanobu said to Tachibana very abruptly: "Help me stand on top of the tent."
Tachibana was naturally extremely puzzled by Matsudaira Sadanobu's sudden order.
Tachibana did not dare to ask "why" to Matsudaira Sadanobu's order, but for the sake of Matsudaira Sadanobu's safety, he still mustered up the courage and bluntly told Matsudaira Sadanobu that "this is too dangerous" and asked Matsudaira Sadanobu not to do this.
Regarding Tachibana's suggestion, Matsudaira Sadanobu only responded coldly:
"Cut the nonsense."
Seeing that Matsudaira Sadanobu seemed a little angry, Tachibana was so frightened that his legs almost gave out, so he didn't dare to say anything more and helped Matsudaira Sadanobu climb to the top of the tent where they were hiding.
At this moment, Matsudaira Sadanobu was standing on the top of the tent with such a carefree look.
Tachibana and others, on the other hand, looked nervous and gathered around the tent in panic, fearing that Matsudaira Sadanobu would fall from the top of the tent.
Matsudaira Sadanobu seemed not to worry that he would fall from the tent roof. After standing up straight on the tent roof, he took out a telescope from his arms.
This telescope was presented to him by a foreign businessman from the Netherlands a year ago. It is not only exquisitely made, but also surprisingly effective. It can see farther than ordinary telescopes.
Matsudaira Sadanobu carried this telescope with him, originally thinking that this telescope would come in handy during this investigation of the strait. Unfortunately, he did not take out the telescope and use it even once until the investigation was over.
Matsudaira Sadanobu never expected that the telescope would not be used in the investigation work, but would come in handy at this time.
Matsudaira Sadanobu opened the telescope and looked towards the south of the camp.
After glancing back and forth a few times, Matsudaira Sadanobu finally saw a soldier wearing ashigaru armor, riding away on a horse without any harness.
The telescope in Matsudaira Sadanobu's hand has reached its limit, and he can no longer see farther away.
Therefore, Matsudaira Sadanobu squinted his eyes and tried to see the face of the "suspicious person" clearly with his naked eyes.
It's a pity that no matter how hard Matsudaira Sadanobu tried to look, he could only see a vague shadow and couldn't see the face of the "suspicious person" clearly. He could only watch the "suspicious person" gradually move away from his field of vision.
…
After the "suspicious person" completely disappeared from Matsudaira Sadanobu's field of vision, Matsudaira Sadanobu put down the telescope in his hand.
Then let out a silent sigh.
His face is full of complex expressions that even outsiders can clearly recognize.