Edo, the Shimada family's mansion, in a certain room——
"Master, I have just informed you of your return. He said that he would like to come and see you before Yamada Asaemon starts to test the sword while he is still far away." Hachibei said respectfully, "Please wait a moment.
Wait a moment, Master, he should be here soon."
"Yes." Shimada nodded, "Thank you for your hard work, Hachibei."
"Shimada." Makimura, who was sitting just behind Shimada, smiled evilly, "Are you nervous now?"
"There's nothing to be nervous about." Shimada glanced at Makimura with a look of helplessness, "I'm just meeting my father, whom I haven't seen for a long time, and I'm not here to meet a blind date."
Wow.
As soon as Shimada finished speaking, the sound of the door being opened suddenly came from the side door of the room - a middle-aged man with an expressionless face entered the room through the side door that was opened.
As soon as the middle-aged man entered, Hachibei, who was kneeling behind Shimada, immediately put his forehead on the tatami and saluted the middle-aged man respectfully.
As soon as the middle-aged man entered the room, Shimada straightened his waist like a conditioned reflex and adjusted his sitting posture to an extremely standard level.
This middle-aged man sat down directly opposite Makimura and others at an neither fast nor slow speed. As soon as his butt touched the tatami, he said in a sorrowless tone:
"...Long time no see, Katsurokuro. It seems like you are doing well outside."
"I have heard everything from Hachibei. Are you Inuko's friend?"
The middle-aged man turned his attention to Makimura.
"I'm Soichiro Shimada." The middle-aged man said, "Welcome to my house. I haven't had such a young guest come to my house for a long time."
——Is this Shimada’s father: Soichiro Shimada?
Makimura said to himself in his heart, while giving Soichiro a salute that was neither humble nor overbearing:
"This is my first time meeting you. I am Shimada-kun's friend - Makimura Yahachi."
Makimura used to be a professional in Kyoto, and he was already familiar with "what kind of people to give what kind of courtesy".
"Since you are Quanzi's friend, there is no need to be polite. Just raise your head."
After Makimura raised his head, he silently looked at the middle-aged man sitting opposite him.
His hair and beard are half black and white. He has no beard on his chin, but he has a short beard on his lips that is not very popular in this era. His eyes are big and energetic. His old posture is very inconsistent with his energetic appearance.
.
If Makimura were to comment on Soichiro's appearance, he would be someone who "looks like a capable official."
Looking at Makimura, whose attitude was neither humble nor arrogant, Soichiro's eyes flashed with appreciation.
"Katsurokuro, it seems you have a good friend."
"...I have gained a group of close friends who are worthy of my trust - this is my biggest gain after leaving home." At this time, Shimada finally said the first words that Soichiro said after entering the room.
Soichiro looked at Shimada up and down several times with a sharp gaze that seemed to see through Shimada's entire body.
"I still have many things to ask you. But I'll leave all the questioning until later."
"I have made an appointment with the Yamada Asaemon family to test the sword at this time. We can't let people wait too long."
"After the knife test is over, let's have a good talk."
"Katsurokuro, Makimura-kun, are you going to wait for me to come back in this room, or are you going to move to the courtyard with me and see how the famous Yamada Asaemon tries his sword?"
Makimura and Shimada raised their eyebrows in unison, then looked at each other for a few times and began to discuss in a low voice...
…
…
Shimada house, garden——
"Shimada." Makimura lowered his voice, whispering to Shimada beside him at a volume that only he and Shimada could hear clearly, "You are a native of Edo, and you have seen Yamada Asaemon audition before.
Knife?”
"I've never seen it." Shimada replied, "My family rarely invites Asaemon Yamada to test the knife. I have never taken the initiative to learn about this 'executioner family'."
Makimura and Shimada have all heard about the name of Yamada Senemon for a long time, but they have never seen them test the sword.
So the two of them just thought together - instead of waiting in that room for Soichiro's return, they might as well try something new and see how the "Shogunate's Royal Sword Tester" whom they have heard about for a long time tests knives.
After being brought to the courtyard, Makimura found that there were quite a few people in the courtyard. These people were probably retainers of the Shimada family, and they accompanied Soichiro to watch the knife test. They sat in various places in the courtyard according to their status.
.
After Makimura looked around the courtyard and found that he could not tell who was Yamada Asaemon at all, he chose to surrender and asked Hachibei behind him for help: "Mr. Hachibei, who is Yamada Asaemon?"
?”
Hachibei was sent by Soichiro to serve Makimura and Shimada, so he is currently kneeling behind Makimura and Shimada.
Hachibei is also a master of telling small stories. He whispered in a voice that could not be heard by a third person except Makimura and Shimada:
"Yamada Asaemon hasn't come yet, he's still being prepared."
"The person who came to test the sword this time is not the current head of the Yamada Asaemon family, but the son of the current head of the family."
"Because Yamada Asaemon has been beheading people and testing swords for generations. This is their family business. Therefore, their descendants will be trained as executioners from birth, and everyone will be a good swordsman."
"Because there are so many people who come to ask for a sword test, the Yamada Asaemon family often asks the younger descendants of their family to do it for them."
"The Yamada Asaemon family has now passed down to the seventh generation. The current seventh generation of Yamada Asaemon is named 'Yamada Asaemon Fumaki'."
"Wen Xian had two sons. He often asked his two sons to test knives for others on his behalf."
"But it's a pity that one of Wen Xian's two sons has disappeared a few years ago."
"It is said that Wen Xian's missing son had extremely outstanding personal abilities. Since his disappearance, their family has been completely overwhelmed due to a shortage of manpower."
"Now I have to ask Asaemon Yamada to test the sword, but I often have to wait for a long time because they are too busy."
"We had asked Asaemon Yamada to test the knife many days ago. But it took until today for them to finally be free."
"One of the sons is missing?" Makimura frowned, "How did he disappear? Was he killed by some enemy?"
"Well... I don't know." Hachibei laughed awkwardly. "Wen Xian seems to be very secretive about the reason for his son's disappearance. He rarely tells outsiders how and why his son disappeared.
Oh, Master, Makimura-sama, please look over there, that young man over there is the one who came to test the sword today - Yamada Asaemon Yoshitomo."
Makimura looked in the direction where Hachibei's chin was pointing: he saw an expressionless young man, as petite as Shimada, walking from the corner of the courtyard to the center of the courtyard at an unhurried pace.
.
Behind him were several people dressed as attendants. These attendants were pushing a cart, with large unknown objects wrapped in straw mats placed on top of the cart.
"This young man is Yoshitomo, the son of the current Yamada Asaemon: Fumihiro." Hachibei then introduced to Makimura and the others, "He will be responsible for testing the sword for us today."
"Since one of Wen Xian's sons disappeared, Yi Chao became Wen Xian's only son."
"As long as nothing unexpected happens, Yoshitomo will be the next head of the Yamada Asaemon family, and he will be succeeded by the Eighth Generation Yamada Asaemon."
Shimada listened carefully to Hachibei's introduction and nodded from time to time.
After Hachibei finished speaking, Shimada asked:
"Hachibei, what's in the cart pushed by the waiters behind Yoshimori? It looks very heavy."
"Those things wrapped in straw mats on the cart are corpses." Hachibei said calmly.
He ignored Shimada who looked surprised and continued:
"In addition to being the royal sword testers, the Yamada Asaemon family also serves as executioners."
"Beheading the condemned criminals who were sentenced to 'beheading' on the execution ground, and making excuses for the samurai who were ordered to commit seppuku...these tasks have always been the responsibility of the Yamada Asaemon family."
"The bodies of the people they killed were basically handed over to them for disposal."
"The usable gallbladder from these corpses will be taken out to make the famous 'Human Gallbladder Pills'."
"The corpses after their bladders have been removed will be placed in a safe place. When someone comes to ask them to test the knife, they will take the corpses in their inventory to test the knife for them."
"Of course - 'Yamada Sen'emon comes to your doorstep with test knife materials', only in Edo."
"If someone from outside Edo came to ask Yamada Asaemon to test the sword, they would certainly not be able to take the body to a distant place."
"So when people from outside Edo come to invite Yamada Asaemon to test the sword, they must bring their own corpses and other materials for the sword test - this is also an unwritten rule."
"...I have heard before that the house of the Yamada Asaemon family was filled with corpses." Shimada twitched the corner of his mouth, "So is this true?"
"The Yamada Asaemon family has stored a large number of corpses - this is true, but they probably won't put the corpses at home." Hachibei laughed a few times, "I don't know exactly what they do.
Where to put the corpses, but I guess they have a special place to store corpses, and they don’t put all the corpses at home.”
While they were listening to Hachibei's various introductions in Makimura, Yoshitomo and his waiters were already in the center of the courtyard ready to test the sword.
They first used soil and other utensils to prepare an "earth altar" for placing the corpses. Then they untied the straw mat covering the trolley, revealing the scene under the straw mat - a total of seven corpses.
I didn't look carefully at him just now, but now after taking a closer look at Yoshitomo, Makimura realized that this man was really young.
It seems that he is not even 20 years old. At such a young age, he is very proficient in the process of knife testing. He prepares for the knife test with ease, completes the necessary ritual work, and then takes the knife handed by the attendant next to him -
—This is probably the sword that Soichiro wanted Yamada Asaemon to test its performance with.
After Yoshitomo took the sword, the two attendants laid a corpse on the newly built earth altar with very skillful movements.
Seeing that the knife test was about to begin, Makimura opened his eyes wide and began to look attentively.
Testing a knife with human flesh is a rather complicated process. In order to fully grasp the performance of the knife, the corpse will be placed in various postures and then cut into various parts.
Yoshitomo first made a vertical slash, cutting the first body in half from the chest.
The blood in this body was probably drained in advance, and not a drop of blood came out after it was cut in half.
After Yoshitaka finished the first chop, the waiter next to him immediately came forward and put a new body on the table. The new body was placed in a sitting position convenient for Yoshitaka to chop his shoulders.
They just kept repeating these steps.
The waiter adjusts the position of the body, and Yoshitomo is responsible for chopping.
Soon, the last step came - the waiters stacked the seven bodies together, and Yoshitsune raised the sword in his palm high and pointed it at the stacked "meat mountain"
Chopping down hard.
The knife chopped off three bodies in one go, and stopped when the blade embedded in the fourth body.
"Sanbo." Yoshitomo said softly, "It's a good knife."
Yoshitomi wiped the blade clean, put the sword back into its sheath, then saluted Soichiro and others, announcing to everyone that the sword test was over.
After Yoshitomo saluted Soichiro, the surrounding Shimada family retainers who came to watch the sword test all let out admiration and praised Yoshitomo's exquisite swordsmanship.
Makimura is also a swordsman, so he naturally understands the art of sword testing.
In the eyes of people who don't understand swordsmanship, they probably just feel that Yoshitomo just made a few casual cuts.
But in the eyes of knowledgeable people like Makimura and others, the series of sword-testing movements performed by Yoshitomi just now were of extremely high standard.
Anyone who has wielded a real knife knows how accurate it is, and how difficult it is to swing such a heavy real knife to accurately chop objects.
However, Yoshitomo held such a heavy sword and swung it without any tremor. He could cut wherever he wanted. The chest, which was very difficult to cut because of the many bones, was cut in two like tofu under his sword.
.
Just from his extremely precise swing of the knife and his ability to easily break bones, it was enough to tell that this young man was no ordinary person.
Makimura recognized Yoshitomo's last knife-testing action - it was a very classic knife-testing method to test the sharpness of the knife.
"Three bodies" means that it can chop three human bodies.
It is said that the highest record so far is the "Shichibo-kiri" created by Nakanishi Jurohei in the 9th year of Enho (1681 AD).
"Shimada-sama!" Yoshitaka said loudly.
Perhaps because of his young age, there is still a bit of childishness in Yoshitomo's voice.
"It's worthy of being called the 'California Sumitoshima Mata'! It's been a long time since I've cut off three human bodies so easily. It's worthy of the name of the 'treasure sword'."
"Yamada-kun, thank you for your hard work." Soichiro stood up with a smile at this time, "As expected of the Yamada Asaemon family, such superb swordsmanship at such a young age is admirable."
Soichiro walked up and chatted with Yoshitomi for a while. Soichiro hoped that Yoshitomi could stay at their house for a while so that they could continue to show their friendship as landlords, but Yoshitomi politely declined.
Seeing that Yoshitomo had no intention of staying at their house for a long time, Soichiro did not force him to stay, which was embarrassing.
Yoshitomo said that he would prepare the identification certificate as soon as possible, and after sending someone to your mansion, he asked his attendants to load the body that had been tested with the knife into a car and prepare to go home.
Yamada Asemon also has a "label" in Edo, which is that the service is very good.
Not only will they bring their own corpses and other knife test materials to the door, but they will also take these materials back after the knife test.
After Yamada Asaemon tries each knife, he will write an appraisal certificate for the knife, stating the year, month and day when the knife was appraised, and the specific performance of the knife.
With this appraisal certificate, the owner of the sword can prove to outsiders that this sword has been inspected by the "Shogunate's Royal Sword Tester" and is undoubtedly a precious sword.
…
…
Makimura and Shimada returned to the room where they met Soichiro for the first time.
After Soichiro personally sent Yoshitomo away from their Shimada family's residence, he led Makimura and Shimada back to this room.
There were only three people in the room, Soichiro, Shimada, and Makimura.
"Okay, Katsurokuro. Let's have a good chat first." Soichiro's tone was very calm, as if there was no emotion in it, "You have been away from home... for nearly two years."
"Two years ago, you told me that you wanted to make a name for yourself without relying on the family's strength."
"Now that two years have passed, have you succeeded in making a name for yourself?"
"...I haven't achieved any great achievements yet." Shimada said calmly.
"Then can you tell me what you have been doing outside in the past two years?"
After a moment of silence, Shimada shook his head: "...Sorry, please allow me to keep this a secret. The only thing I can tell you is that I have never slackened on my own improvement."
"Don't you want to tell me...that's fine."
Soichiro carefully looked at Shimada's eyes: "It seems that you are not talking nonsense. Your eyes have become a little sharper than before."
"What do you want to do when you come back to me this time?"
"I just came here to see my father whom I haven't seen for a long time." Shimada replied, "To be honest, if someone hadn't persuaded me to come back, I actually had no intention of coming back."
"That's it..." Soichiro laughed a few times, "Then what are your plans in the future?"
"After that, I will continue to walk my own path." Shimada's tone was sonorous and powerful, "'Do not rely on the power of the family, only rely on my personal struggle to achieve great achievements' - this is my original intention
, has never changed.”
"That's right..." Soichiro nodded gently, "Then you should work hard."
After saying that, Soichiro turned his head and looked out the window.
Then he asked a question that had nothing to do with the topic just now:
"It's almost noon now, do you want to stay for lunch?"
Shimada did not expect Soichiro to ask such a question. After being stunned for a while, he responded: "No. I don't plan to stay for lunch."
"Are you planning to leave before noon?"
"Yeah. That's what I originally planned."
"..." Soichiro nodded after being silent for a while, "Okay then. Since you want to leave, I won't keep you here."
"Katsurokuro, I don't want to ask you about what you do outside. Just don't do anything that is harmful to nature."
"Then..." At this point, Soichiro paused, and after hesitating for a while, he continued, "If you are tired of wandering outside... just come back."
Shimada looked at his father in front of him with surprise and astonishment.
After a while, he came back to his senses.
"Yeah...I will."
…
…
Shimada and Makimura walked out of Shimada's mansion side by side.
As soon as he stepped out of the mansion, Makimura couldn't wait to say to Shimada:
"I always thought that the relationship between you and your father was very bad, that's why you resisted going home."
"But now it seems that's not the case. I always feel like your father didn't treat you too badly."
"To be honest... I was also shocked." Shimada turned his head and glanced at the Shimada mansion behind him, "My father two years ago was not so easy to talk to..."
"Two years ago, I had a big fight with my father."
"When I told my father that I wanted to go out and start a career without relying on family strength, my father scolded me."
"Tell me that it is impossible for me to succeed. Let me stay at home and prepare for inheriting the Shimada family business in the future."
"At that time, my father and I were arguing so much that we were about to use a knife...I finally escaped from the house in an almost forceful way..."
"Do you want to make a name for yourself on your own..." Makimura grinned, "Although I knew you had such a goal when you first joined us, I never asked you why you wanted to do this.
Well. Have you ever been stimulated by something, so you decided to break away from the protection and support of your family?"
"There is no particularly complicated reason..." Shimada raised his hand and scratched his hair, "Many people have had this idea - they want to achieve great achievements on their own without relying on the family's strength.
."
"And I am not only one of these people, but I also happen to be particularly capable of action. When others still only dared to 'think', I had already done it. Then two years ago, I explained it to my father.
After realizing this ambition of mine, I had a big quarrel with my father, and then I ignored my father’s dissuasion, left home, and started my own journey.”
"You are also a person with quite a lot of life experience." Makimura shrugged, "Do you want to rely on your own strength to make a name for yourself...Haha, this should be considered a trouble that only rich kids like you have."
"Don't call me a rich kid." Shimada said angrily, "You should know, I don't like this title."
"Ah, sorry, sorry." Makimura laughed, "But do you really want to leave just like that? Why don't you stay and have lunch with your father after a long absence?"
Shimada shook his head: "Two years ago, after I left home, I secretly swore: If I don't make a name for myself and let my father, who insists that I can't succeed, take a good look, I will never go home, and I will never use the money I have at home.
money."
"If my lord hadn't persuaded me to go home, I wouldn't have planned to come back today."
"Why did you make such a troublesome oath..." Makimura said in a helpless tone.
Shimada turned around again and glanced at the Shimada family mansion that had almost disappeared behind him.
"Actually, if I think about it now... I was too reckless when I decided to leave home two years ago..." Shimada said with a bitter smile, "In order to show my determination not to rely on my family, I left home.
I didn’t bring a penny with me.”
"After leaving Edo recklessly, I quickly encountered the dilemma of having no money to eat."
"I'm also lucky - when I was so hungry that I was about to pick up garbage to eat, I met my lord who happened to be coming to Edo for some business."
"My lord did not give me any money or food directly."
"Instead, she asked me to help her carry her luggage. As long as I help her transport the luggage to Edo, I will be paid 100 fen."
"I remember very clearly, I ended up using the 100 Wen to buy 2 bean paste buns - they were the most delicious bean paste buns I have ever eaten in my life."
"That's it - I got to know the lord who almost saved my life, and then unknowingly, I became a member of Calabash House."
"The process of how you joined Calabash House is quite similar to mine." Makimura smiled, "I gave up my official position in Yuli. After I left Kyoto, I ran out of money and almost ended up picking up garbage.
Eating dilemma.”
"Fortunately, I met the lord in time, and just like what you just said, the lord gave me a job with money to do, so that I finally had a full meal after a long time."
"Then I unknowingly became a part of Calabash House."
"That's it... I didn't expect that Makimura-senpai's process of joining Calabash House was very similar to mine." Shimada showed a bright smile because he found someone of the same kind, "Speaking of which... I never knew how seniors joined.
Where’s the one from Calabash House?”
"Why did Asai-senpai join Calabash House? Was he also saved by the Lord?"
"His process of joining Calabash House was relatively ordinary." Makimura shrugged, "He was originally a lower-level samurai of the Satsuma Domain. Because his salary was so low that he could no longer survive, he left the domain and became a ronin. He planned to go out and fight for his life."
"Not long after leaving Satsuma Domain, I met my lord. Because my lord's salary was very high, he joined the Gourd House."
"The process of him joining Calabash House was really ordinary..." Shimada said, "What about Senior Mamiya?"
"Mamiya..." Makimura twitched the corner of his mouth, "I don't know."
Shimada: "Huh?"
"It's not like you don't know - that guy Mamiya has always been very mysterious." Makimura shrugged, "He never talks about his past, and he is also very secretive about how he joined Calabash House."
"The only thing I can be sure of is that he was the first to follow the lord, and he was very trusted by her."
"Mamiya-senpai must have been engaged in some shameful job before, right?" Shimada said in a half-joking tone, "That's why he has always been like this, unwilling to mention anything about his past to us."
"Who knows." Makimura shrugged again, "In short - he doesn't want to talk more about his past, so we shouldn't ask more."
"Whenever Mamiya plans to talk about his past, he will naturally do so."
"Okay, let's walk quickly. I'm starving. Let's go back quickly and eat the lunch made by my lord."
…
…
Ezochi, somewhere in the north——
"Look! There are lights ahead!" Lin Ziping, who was sitting behind Ogata, pointed forward.
Because of the low temperature, every breath Lin Ziping exhaled turned into white mist.
"Ahead is Tuohe Village!" Lin Ziping then shouted loudly.
"Have we finally arrived..." Ogata murmured in a low voice, and then silently increased his horse speed.
It is now evening, the sky has turned into a dull dark blue, and the Ainu settlements in the distance are all lit up.
Since the severe snowstorm 2 days ago, Ogata and the others have not encountered any accidents, and they have arrived at Tuoh Village smoothly.
According to Lin Ziping, after arriving at Tuohe Village, it was very close to Kantuo Village where the weird doctor lived.
After Ogata and his party quickly rushed to the distant Tuohe Village, the villagers of Tuohe Village also quickly discovered this uninvited guest. Ogata caught a glimpse of many men holding various weapons and pouring out of the village.
.
"It's me! Lin Ziping! (Ainu language)" Lin Ziping shouted loudly towards the men who rushed out of the village with weapons.
Afterwards, the villagers who rushed out of the village made a small commotion, and then slowly put away their weapons.
To show courtesy, Ogata and the others dismounted and walked after they were about ten paces away from the village.
As they led their horses closer to the villagers blocking them from the village, an old man walked out from among the villagers and slowly walked toward Ogata and others.
Lin Ziping: "Oluowa! Long time no see! (Ainu language)"
"Lin Ziping, it's been a long time indeed." The old man whom Lin Ziping called Ouluowa smiled and nodded.
…
…
Ezochi, Toha Village, the home of the village chief (Oluowa)——
The old man whom Lin Ziping called Ouluowa was the head of Tuohe Village.
After Lin Ziping was confirmed to be harmless due to this relationship, Ogata and others were taken to Olowa's home.
"How to make fire... This is definitely the greatest discovery in the history of mankind..." Amachi, who was shaking slightly from the cold, put his hands close to the flames of the soup and murmured as if he was in a daze.
With.
I don’t know whether it’s because they’re heading north, so the climate is getting colder, or because there’s been another cold wave recently. In short – since the heavy snowstorm 2 days ago, the temperature has been so low that people can’t wait to see it.
To the extent of holding the flame in your arms.
While Omachi was leaning against the fire to keep warm, Ogata and Lin Ziping were negotiating with Ouluowa.
"Well... I understand the specific reasons." Olowa nodded, "You seem to want us to take you to Kanto Village... (Ainu language)"
"That's right." Lin Ziping nodded, "Because it's been so long ago, I can't remember the specific location of Kanto Village, so I have to trouble you to send someone to take us. (Ainu language)"
"...I can draw a map for you, but I can't send someone to take you. (Ainu language)" Olowa shook his head.
"Huh? Why? (Ainu language)" Lin Ziping asked puzzled.
"Because it hasn't been peaceful here lately." Olowa said slowly, "Pirates have appeared here recently. (Ainu language)"
"Huh? Pirates? Here?! (Ainu language)" Lin Ziping exclaimed.
"Mr. Lin, what did Mr. Olowa say just now?" Ogata asked.
"Oluowa said there have been pirates here recently."
"Huh? Pirates? Here?!" Ogata exclaimed exactly the same as Lin Ziping just now.
*******
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Today’s chapter is a long-awaited chapter of more than 8,000 words.
Not only is the word count very conscientious, but the content is also very conscientious. I have written a lot of important details in this chapter that you will definitely miss if you don’t read carefully.
Therefore, I recommend that you read this chapter carefully and do not swallow it all.
For the sake of the author’s conscience, please vote for me more monthly (Leopard Head Cries.jpg)