As soon as Ogata finished speaking, everyone's eyes naturally fell on Ogata.
After everyone's eyes fell on him, Ogata immediately continued:
"Asai was right just now."
"Lord Hasegawa is a military officer of high rank in the shogunate."
"If we can mutually benefit from him, we might be able to exchange important information such as 'the exact location of Shiranui' and 'how many ninjas in Shiranui are currently staying in their base'."
At this point, Ogata changed his tone to a half-joking one and continued:
"If we can get the exact location of Shiranui's base directly from Hasegawa, we won't even have to help Hasegawa participate in the 'Gozen Trial'."
"We can start making plans to attack Shiranui right away, and then defeat Shiranui in one fell swoop."
"In this case, there will be no Shiranui ninjas who can participate in the 'Gozen Trial'."
"At the same time, it can also indirectly help those shogunate members who are against Shiranui to achieve their goals."
"There's no need to oppose Shiranui anymore. After all, Shiranui is gone."
Ogata's joke made many people present laugh.
Even Lin, who usually had a blank expression on her face, curled up the corners of her mouth slightly when Ogata finished speaking.
But as soon as the corners of her mouth curled up a little, she immediately flattened them.
After thinking for a while, he said in a deep voice:
"Nanabe, Ogata Ittosai, you are right."
"If we can get Hasegawa to help us, it will be very beneficial indeed."
Lin moved her gaze and scanned the people in front of her.
"I agree with a mutually beneficial relationship with Hasegawa. What about you?" Lin said.
As soon as Lin finished speaking, Xu Fang continued:
"I have no objection."
After Ogata expressed his stance, the others followed suit.
Everyone agrees with this matter.
After all, if they have to rely on the local gang "Tojo-ya" to slowly search for the exact location of the Shiranui base, God knows how long it will take for them to find out the location.
Seeing that everyone agreed, Lin nodded gently:
"...Then let's have mutual benefit with Hasegawa."
"If we want Hasegawa to agree to mutually benefit us and to tell us the information we need, then we must first verbally promise Hasegawa. Promise him that we will lend him a helping hand and send our experts to participate in the 'Gozen Trial'."
"If we don't verbally agree to , he probably won't tell us the information about Shiranui."
"Only men can participate in the Imperial Trial."
"There are many enemies of the Lord of the Hakko in Edo now, so the Lord of the Hakko cannot participate in the 'Gozen Test'. Letting the Lord of the Hakko participate in the 'Gozen Test' will only cause trouble."
"What a pity." After taking a sip of the wine in the glass, Genichi said with regret, "If it weren't for the more important task of 'defeating Shiranui', I would still want to participate in the 'Gozen Trial' even though I have enemies everywhere now."
Lin ignored what Yuan Yi had just said and continued:
"Kuro is a wanted criminal of the shogunate. If you just smear mud on your face to disguise yourself, you might get exposed."
"So - the only ones who can participate in the 'Imperial Trial' are Yahachi, Shichibei, Katsurokuro, and..."
Lin turned her attention to Ogata.
"It's Ogata Ittosai who has such a convenient thing as a human skin mask."
"If it's just for the sake of mutual benefit with Hasegawa, then there's no need to send too many people out."
"It's enough to send only one person on the field."
"Are any of you four very interested in the 'Imperial Trial'?"
As soon as Lin finished speaking, a voice rang out:
"Let me go."
The owner of this voice is Ogata.
"Ayi." A-Machi, who was sitting next to Ogata, said in a surprised tone, "Are you so interested in that 'Gozen Trial'?"
"...I guess so." Ogata shrugged and smiled.
"...Ogata Ittosai." Lin asked back with a blank expression, "Are you sure you really want to participate in the 'Gozen Trial'?"
"Yes." Ogata nodded, "I am quite interested in this 'Gozen Trial' where I can compete with masters from all over the world."
——You can also help me gain some experience points.
Ogata added this in his mind.
"...Okay then." Lin looked at Ogata meaningfully for a few seconds, then sighed softly, "You and I are just allies, and I can't interfere with what you want to do."
After saying that, Lin turned her head and looked at Mucun beside her.
"Yahachi, go find Hasegawa again tomorrow."
"Tell him: You can recommend him a friend who is good at fighting and willing to participate in the 'Imperial Trial'."
"But the premise for recommending it to him is——"
Lin held up two fingers.
"I'll tell you where the Shiranui base is."
"And in the days ahead, help us keep an eye out for intelligence related to the movements of the ninjas in Shiranui, and share that intelligence with us in a timely manner."
"Hasegawa is a government official. Through government channels, he might be able to learn about the movements of the Shiranui ninjas that are difficult for outsiders to detect."
"I see." Makimura carefully noted what Lin said, and then asked, "What if Hasegawa says he doesn't know where Shiranui's base is?"
"…It doesn't matter if we don't know where the base of Shiranui is." Lin said, "Let Hasegawa, a senior military officer of the shogunate, help keep an eye on the movements of the ninjas in Shiranui - this benefit alone is actually enough."
"If he rejects both of our conditions, then you don't have to talk to him anymore."
"It would be best if Hasegawa knew the exact location of Shiranui."
"In this way, we might be able to defeat Shiranui before the 'Gozen Trial' begins."
"Then Ogata Ittosai won't have to go through the trouble of participating in the 'Gozen Trial'."
Lin, who rarely made a witty remark, made many people present laugh.
Lian Ogata also smiled faintly.
But after smiling, Ogata said to himself:
——If possible... I would like to complete this "Gozen Trial" completely...
After saying that, Ogata subconsciously raised his hand and touched the purse lying quietly in his arms.
…
…
at the same time--
In a certain magnificent mansion in Edo—
Snap, snap, snap…
The dull sound of bare feet stepping on the tatami broke the silence of the room.
A middle-aged man who was not too old walked slowly towards the room placed in a corner of the room.
This middle-aged man had a broad forehead, faint fine lines on his slightly drooping eyes, and a short beard on his chin.
Because he had just come out of the bathroom, there was still a slight heat lingering around his body.
Also, because the middle-aged man had just finished taking a shower, his shaved hair was naturally loose and not tied into a bun.
After slowly walking to the mirror in the corner of the room, the middle-aged man stopped and looked at himself in the mirror expressionlessly.
This is a very large standing mirror. The middle-aged man is not very tall, and his figure can just be reflected in this standing mirror.
Through this mirror, the middle-aged man can clearly see that his face looks more haggard than it was a few months ago.
There were faint black marks in the lower eye sockets of his eyes.
This is not a black mark on the eye socket, but a naturally formed dark circle.
The middle-aged man raised his hand and touched the dark circle under his right eye.
Although dark circles appeared around his eyes, the middle-aged man's pupils still radiated pride and strength.
The faint dark circles actually highlight the dazzling light in the middle-aged man's eyes.
After briefly checking his current complexion, the middle-aged man withdrew his gaze from the standing mirror in front of him, then slowly walked to a table not far away and sat down cross-legged beside the table.
On the desk there were writing brushes, ink, paper and an inkstone, and a piece of paper spread out.
Half of the paper was covered with words as tiny as tadpoles.
After sitting down at the desk, the middle-aged man picked up the brush placed on the pen holder and continued writing something on the paper.
The sound of brushes sliding across paper and candles burning dominated the room.
There was no noise outside the room, and there was no one else in the room except the middle-aged man.
There was only this middle-aged man in the room.
Unfortunately, the silence didn't last long before it was broken by an incredibly young voice outside the room.
"Master Laozhong. It's me."
As soon as the young voice fell, the middle-aged man, who did not stop writing with his brush, said softly with an expressionless face:
"Tachibana, come in."
"yes."
Wow.
The sound of the paper sliding door being opened was followed by a respectful response.
The paper sliding door of the room was opened.
The person who opened the door was a young man who was probably just over 20 years old and was kneeling on one knee outside the room.
Standing up, entering the room, kneeling down on one knee again, closing the door, facing the middle-aged man - this series of actions from beginning to end is full of elegance, and any outsider would find it pleasing to the eye.
"Master Laozhong," the young man said, "I have already informed the Ruonianji masters that a banquet will be held at noon tomorrow."
Wakanoyoshi - an important position second only to Rojuku and directly under the Shogun, in charge of officials outside the Rojuku's authority.
There are currently four wakatoyoshi serving in the shogunate.
As soon as the young man finished speaking, the middle-aged man nodded gently:
"Tachibana, thank you for your hard work."
Called "Rochu" by the young man, the identity of this middle-aged man is obvious - he is the current Rochu of the shogunate: Matsudaira Sadanobu.
And this young man is the nickname of Matsudaira Sadanobu: Tachibana Yuuma.
Although Tachibana was young, because of his talent in both civil and military affairs and his intelligence, he was promoted to a minor by Sadanobu's side at an early age, and was specifically responsible for doing miscellaneous tasks for Sadanobu.
Tachibana is handsome and although he is the holder of the Menkyo Kaiden of the Chuwa Ittoryu, he has fair skin and does not look like a samurai who is proficient in swordsmanship at all.
Because Tachibana was handsome, many gossipers jokingly said that Sadanobu promoted Tachibana to his nickname because of his good looks.
It was not uncommon for powerful people to promote the handsome men they liked to become their concubines .
But anyone who knows a little about Sadanobu knows that these are just rumors, nonsense that is intended or unintentional to discredit Matsudaira Sadanobu.
Anyone who knows a little about Sadanobu knows how strict Matsudaira Sadanobu is to others and to himself.
When it comes to beauty, Ding Xin has always held the attitude of "not much interest".
After saying "thank you for your hard work", Ding Xin immediately said:
"Tachibana."
"Yes." Tachibana responded quickly.
"Tomorrow I will have a dinner with you young people and have a new round of discussions on government affairs."
"You might be very tired tomorrow, and it's getting late, so you should go down and rest early."
"Yes." After Tachibana answered "yes" loudly, she paused.
He raised his head and looked at Ding Xin in front of him... To be more precise, he looked at Ding Xin's haggard face and the dark circles around his eyes that were obviously darker than before, and said in a tone that contained some worry:
"Master Lao Zhong, please also go to bed early."
"You seem to go to bed very late every night recently. Please take care of yourself."
As soon as Tachibana finished speaking, a faint smile appeared on Dingxin's face:
"I'm fine. I'm not old enough yet."
"I am still in my prime, and this level of damage won't break my body down."
"It's just that there are a lot more things to deal with recently."
"After I'm done with this busy period, I'll go to bed early like I always do."
After hearing what Dingxin said, Dingxin opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something.
But after keeping his mouth open for a while, he finally gave up and closed it again.
After bowing to Matsudaira Sadanobu and preparing to get up and leave, Tachibana paused as if he remembered something.
Then he said to Matsudaira Sadanobu:
"Master Laozhong, I discovered an interesting thing today related to the 'Imperial Trial'. I wonder if I should report it to you."
"Oh?" Ding Xin stopped writing with the brush in his hand. "What's the interesting story? Tell me about it."
After saying that, the brush in Dingxin's hand moved again.
“I just heard about this today.”
"It is said that there is a group of samurai from the hatamoto and gokenken families who intend to show their skills in the 'Gozen Trial' in the hope of gaining your appreciation, Lord Rochu."
"Hmm?" Matsudaira Sadanobu paused with his brush and turned his head to look at Tachibana. "You have earned my appreciation?"
"Well, I don't know where these people heard it from."
Tachibana seemed to be amused by what she was saying, with the corners of her mouth slightly raised.
"They seem to think that one of the important reasons why you, Lord Rochu, insisted on holding the 'Gongzen Trial ' against all odds is to select a few outstanding people you appreciate from the 'Gongzen Trial' to serve as your own aides at a time when the shogunate reform is in full swing."
After hearing what Tachibana said, Ding Xin immediately burst into laughter.
"Are you planning to pick a few talented people from the 'Imperial Trial' to serve as your aides... Who was the first person to spread this rumor..."
"I heard that there are still a few very outstanding talents among this group." Tachibana continued, "For example, there is a hatamoto son named Takigawa Heiichiro."
"Takigawa Heiichiro?" Sadanobu said calmly, "I've never heard of him."
"I've heard about his deeds before." Tachibana said, "Among the young generation of hatamoto and samurai children, he is one of the most outstanding ones."
"He is the eldest son of the Takigawa family. If I remember correctly, the family salary of the Takigawa family is 3,000 koku."
"It is said that he studied under the Baichuan Dojo in Edo and is a descendant of the Wugai-ryu school. Some time ago, he successfully obtained the Wugai-ryu certificate of 'Menkyo Kaiden' at the Baichuan Dojo."
"In addition to being an excellent swordsman, he is also a disciple of the great sinologist, Xiang Sheng Shun|shui. He has profound attainments in sinology."
As soon as Tachibana finished speaking, Ding Xin raised his eyebrows slightly:
"Is he still the disciple of Xiang Sheng Shun|shui? He is good at both literature and martial arts. He looks like a real hero."
After saying that, the brush in Dingxin's hand moved again.
"I have never thought of looking for outstanding people to serve as my advisors in the 'Imperial Trial'."
"but……"
Having said this, Ding Xin paused.
After a pause, he continued:
"I really want some capable staff now."
"If a notable person really emerges in the 'Imperial Trial', then I may consider recruiting him as an aide or a junior officer."
"Lord Rochu." A hint of surprise flashed across Tachibana's face. "Are you really planning to select outstanding people who can serve as staff or junior officials during the 'Imperial Trial'?"
"It's just a 'if'."
Matsudaira Sadanobu emphasized the word "if".
"If there really is a talented person I appreciate, I wouldn't mind taking him in as my staff or my assistant."
"But it should be difficult for such a great man to appear."
"Compared to literary talent and swordsmanship, I am more focused on other things now."
After finishing his words in a half-joking tone, Matsudaira Sadanobu stretched his shoulders.
"Okay, Tachibana, let's stop here."
"I'm a little tired too."
"Go down and have some rest."
"After I finish this last bit of official business, I will go to rest as well."
"yes."
Tachibana was somewhat concerned about what Matsudaira Sadanobu had just said, "Compared to literary talent and swordsmanship, I now focus on other things."
But since Matsudaira Sadanobu had just said such words, Tachibana could only quickly respond loudly and then quickly leave the room.
After Tachibana left the room, Matsudaira Sadanobu focused all his attention on the piece of paper with a small half blank space left on the desk in front of him, and slightly increased his writing speed.