Makimura didn't know Takigawa.
When he saw Ogata frowning at Takigawa, Makimura turned his head towards Ogata and asked in a low voice:
"Brother Ogata, do you know him?"
"…We can be considered acquaintances, but not in a friendly way."
Although when he saw Ogata frowning, Makimura roughly guessed that even if Ogata and this samurai, whom he didn't know, knew each other, their relationship must not be good.
But after hearing Ogata admit with his own mouth that his relationship with this man was not a friendly one, Makimura's face was still uncontrollably filled with bitterness.
"That man's clothes seem to be made of high-quality silk from 'Sendaitai'. He must be a very prestigious warrior. How did you become enemies with these high-ranking warriors?"
The name "Xiantai Ping" is known to everyone.
In the words of modern Earth, "Sendai Ping" is a well-known brand.
A brand specializing in high-quality silk.
Due to its excellent quality, "Xendai Ping" became one of the tributes specially presented to the royal family and the general's family.
Those who can use "Xiantai Ping" in this era are all wealthy families.
Makimura had worked as a yorikiri in Kyoto for five years and had met many wealthy and powerful families.
Since he was a man who had seen the world, he naturally had a good vision, so he could tell at a glance that the clothes worn by this warrior, whom he didn't know, were all high-end goods that ordinary warriors couldn't wear.
Unlike the first time we met in the house in Yoshiwara the day before, Takigawa was wearing a black haori with vertical striped hakama.
The sword worn at the waist was also different from the one Ogata had seen the day before.
The handles and blades of the katana and wakizashi are inlaid with decorative silver ornaments, making them look extremely gorgeous.
Because they are too gorgeous, people doubt whether these two knives have any practical value.
Although Ogata could not recognize at a glance like Makimura that the clothes Takigawa wore were made of high-quality "Sendaidaira" fabrics, he could also tell that his clothes were not ordinary items.
His fairly handsome facial features, neat and tidy topknot, gorgeous clothes and exquisitely shaped sword made him look dignified. The aura he exuded seemed to proudly announce to everyone his identity as a hatamoto samurai.
And his imposing attire indeed attracted a lot of attention.
Many passers-by who passed by him turned around and cast glances at Takigawa with various emotions.
The men's looks were mainly filled with surprise, jealousy and envy.
The women's gazes were less jealous and envious, but were replaced by many other emotions.
Takigawa is not alone.
Behind him were a number of people who seemed to be Takigawa's friends.
Ogata counted and found that there were 13 people following Takigawa.
After frowning at Takigawa who suddenly appeared, Obe lowered his body's center of gravity slightly without making a sound, and then prepared to draw his sword at any time.
I made Takigawa embarrassed at Ruya the day before yesterday.
In this era when samurai generally valued reputation and face, if an outsider accidentally touched a samurai's shoulder when passing by him, the samurai might draw his sword and attack the person.
So the possibility that Takigawa drew his sword and slashed at Ogata in order to avenge what happened the day before is still very high.
Although Makimura didn't know what had happened between Ogata and this man, after learning from Ogata that the relationship between him and this man was not a friendly one, he silently became wary and lowered his center of gravity slightly like Ogata, staring at Takigawa and the others.
While Ogata was staring at Takigawa, he was also observing Tsujiban not far away out of the corner of his eye.
The six officers guarding outside the Tsujiban gate were looking at them with strange eyes.
At the same time, they silently clenched the thorns in their hands.
Looking at their appearance, it is not difficult to imagine that if Ogata had a conflict with Takigawa and others, these officers would definitely rush up and arrest them without saying a word.
While Ogata was staring at Takigawa, Takigawa was also staring at Ogata.
Seeing this, some of Takigawa's companions who didn't understand what was going on asked Takigawa in confusion:
"Takigawa-kun, what's wrong?"
"……nothing."
Takigawa looked at Ogata, then looked at the registration area for the "Imperial Examination" next to Ogata, and then -
"Are you here to sign up for the Imperial Trial as well?"
"That's right." There was nothing to hide about this kind of thing, so Ogata admitted it very readily.
After continuing to stare at Ogata with complicated eyes for a while, he said nothing and ignored Ogata, and passed by Ogata with his companions behind him.
Ogata and Makimura watched Takigawa and the others leave.
It was not until Takigawa and his gang turned a corner and completely disappeared from their sight that they slowly adjusted their body center of gravity.
As the two of them turned their gaze away from the direction where Takigawa and the others disappeared, they heard an unpleasant voice coming from beside them:
"It's so scary... I thought you two were going to fight with those guys..."
The person who spoke was the official who was responsible for checking whether the applicants were wanted fugitives.
"I'm sorry to have startled you."
As soon as Ogata finished his apology, another official sitting next to him pouted at Tsujiban and said to Ogata:
"Luckily you didn't fight. If you had, you would both have been thrown into jail."
"If you are both arrested and put in jail, you two will definitely suffer."
"I know those guys just now. They are all hatamoto samurai. They have big families and great wealth."
"They go to jail in the morning and are released in the afternoon with the help of their families."
"Although I don't know what grudge you have against them, it's better for you to stay away from them and not provoke them."
After giving Ogata some friendly reminders, the official showed Ogata a piece of paper that looked like a document and was covered with many words.
"Keep it. Don't lose it. This thing is your proof of identity."
"Seven days later at 5 a.m., take this document to the Kitamachi Magistrate's Office."
"After confirming your identity, a special official will take you to the examination site for the written test."
"Remember not to be late."
After briefly explaining some of the key points of the "Imperial Trial", the official handed Ogata the paper that looked like the document.
"Thank you." Ogata took the paper and scanned the words on it quickly.
There was nothing extra written on the paper. It only contained important information such as Ogata's name, age, martial arts style, household registration, etc. There was a big red seal on the lower left corner of the paper.
After making sure the ink was dry, Ogata solemnly put the paper into his arms.
"Let's go, Makimura."
After saying hello to Makimura, Oobian took the lead and walked away from the registration point.
Makimura took a few quick steps, caught up with Ogata, and asked him:
"By the way, Mr. Ogata, are you confident that you can pass the literary exam? If you can't even pass the literary exam, you won't even be qualified to take the martial arts exam."
As soon as Makimura finished speaking, Xu Fang said unhappily:
"If I didn't have the confidence to pass the exam, I wouldn't be so eager to participate in the Imperial Examination."
As early as the day before yesterday, when he and A-machi were wandering around Edo Castle looking for information about the "Imperial Examination", Ogata learned what the content of the examination was from passers-by.
The content of the written test is to do the test paper.
But it’s not about writing eight-legged essays.
Instead, do fill-in-the-blank questions.
Hollow out the important content in some sentences in the Four Books and Five Classics, and then fill in the hollowed-out content.
This is all there is to the written test, fill in the blanks.
There are a total of 100 sentences. If you answer half of the sentences correctly, that is, 50 questions correctly, you will pass the written test and can enter the following martial arts test.
Ogata was not surprised that the written test only consisted of fill-in-the-blank questions.
Almost a thousand years ago, when the Taika Reform was implemented and the various cultural systems of the Tang Dynasty were comprehensively learned, the imperial examination system of the Tang Dynasty was also moved to Japan.
Unfortunately, when Japan implemented the imperial examination system, it was at a time when the power of the aristocracy was rising rapidly.
The imperial examination system, which has the spirit of equality, naturally conflicts greatly with aristocratic traditions.
The imperial examination system did not survive long in Japan.
By the Edo period, the imperial examination system had completely disappeared.
Most people in this era don’t even know what taking an exam or doing a test paper means.
In the absence of an examination culture, it would be impossible to test something as difficult as the eight-legged essay.
There are probably less than ten people in Japan who can write eight-legged essays.
Therefore, among all types of test questions, fill-in-the-blank questions are the most suitable.
It not only tests how well the test-taker has memorized the Four Books and Five Classics, but also allows people who have never taken an exam before to quickly understand how to answer the questions.
There is no more suitable exam question than this.
As soon as Ogata finished speaking, Makimura laughed a few times.
"That's true. It seems I asked an unnecessary question."
"I remember you once told me, Brother Ogata, that you have learned the Four Books and Five Classics very well."
Hearing what Makimura said, Ogata couldn't help but smile.
"It's OK."
…
…
"Takigawa-kun."
As soon as they turned a corner and moved away from Ogata, a young man standing behind Takigawa asked Takigawa.
"Who was that person just now? Judging from the way you two were acting, it seems like you and that person don't have a good relationship."
"A ronin from Izumo... I had some unpleasantness with him."
Because what happened in the house the day before yesterday was so profound that Takigawa could not forget it even if he wanted to, Takigawa still remembers the man who made him embarrassed in front of so many people - Izumo Ronin, Majima Goro.
What happened with Ogata in the house the day before yesterday was not something great and worth telling others about.
Therefore, Takigawa did not intend to tell his companions in detail what had happened between him and Ogata.
After learning from Takigawa that the man just now was just a ronin, all the friends behind Takigawa looked as if they had lost interest.
After casually answering the question his friend had just asked, Takigawa shrugged and sneered.
"Although I had some unpleasant experiences with him, I don't intend to bother with him."
"He is just a wandering stranger, and I am the eldest son of the Hatamoto Takigawa family."
"Wouldn't it be disgraceful for a dignified hatamoto to haggle over a ronin?"
Takigawa's words, which contained a hint of contempt, made the group of friends behind him laugh.
"You're right." The man who had just asked about the relationship between Takigawa and Ogata laughed, "We are hatamoto, and it would be really cheap of us to haggle with a ronin who came from some unknown country."
"Besides, we are not ordinary hatamoto." Another friend of Takigawa echoed, "We are patriots who aspire to support the shogunate. We can't waste our time on a mere ronin."
The friend's words resonated deeply with Takigawa.
"That's right." Takigawa said, puffing out his chest with pride, "Instead of wasting time on these ronin, it's better to focus on other important matters."
" Okay, let's stop talking about that guy." Takigawa waved his hand. "We just wasted some time on that guy. Let's speed up and get to the teahouse to start our 'joint research' today."
Be it Takigawa or other friends, when they mentioned the word "ronin", there was a hint of contempt on their faces and in their tone.
During this period, Takigawa and his friends got together almost every day to study the Four Books and Five Classics in preparation for the subsequent "Imperial Examination".
Takigawa and his colleagues called their daily gathering to study the Four Books and Five Classics "co-study."
Takigawa and the 13 young men behind him, who are also hatamoto samurai, are not only friends, but also like-minded patriots.
Takigawa and his men also like to call themselves "patriots" to distinguish themselves from other samurai who just want to eat and wait for death.
The shogunate claimed to have "80,000 hatamoto", but the actual number of hatamoto was less than 5,000.
Including the samurai who were one level lower in rank than the hatamoto samurai and did not have the right to directly meet the shogun like the hatamoto samurai, the total number was less than 20,000.
Although they were high-ranking samurai who reported directly to the Shogun, most of them were corrupt.
As one of the hatamoto, Takigawa naturally knew the corruption of the hatamoto and the samurai better than anyone else.
Many of the sons of the hatamoto and samurai were greedy for pleasure and neglected both civil and military skills.
When Takigawa thought about how useless so many of the hatamoto and samurai sons were, he felt a sense of superiority.
Because he was not only talented in both civil and military affairs, but also had lofty ambitions. He was determined to assist the shogunate and restore its prosperity to the level it had when Lord Ieyasu was alive.
The 13 friends following behind Takigawa at this time, like Takigawa, were determined to support the shogunate.
Because they share the same aspirations, they always get together like this to prepare for the subsequent "Imperial Trial".
They were determined to show their skills in the "Imperial Trial", gain the appreciation of Matsudaira Sadanobu, and then rise to the top and take a big step towards the goal of "supporting the shogunate".
When Takigawa thought about the fact that he was a hatamoto who was both civil and military, and who was striving to support the shogunate, he felt an overwhelming sense of superiority.
If someone of my status wasted time on a wanderer who might not even have a fixed place to live, the one who would suffer the most would be himself.
Of course, Takigawa asked himself - he just didn't want to bother with Ogata, a mere ronin, because of his status, but it didn't mean that he had no resentment towards Ogata.
Takigawa, who was walking in front of his friends and leading the way, subconsciously turned his head to look behind him where Ogata was no longer there.
There was a hint of displeasure and resentment in his eyes.
Takigawa still remembers clearly what happened in the house the day before yesterday.
Because of Ogata, he lost face in front of so many prostitutes.
Takigawa still remembers the way those prostitutes looked at him.
When he recalled the way the prostitutes looked at him at that time, Takigawa felt his resentment towards Ogata grow a little bit.
"By the way, that person standing there just now, did he want to sign up for the 'Imperial Trial'?" Although Takigawa had just said not to talk about this topic anymore, someone still unconsciously started talking about topics related to Ogata.
Takigawa nodded. "I just saw the two officials sitting behind the desk looking through the wanted posters to check if that guy was a wanted criminal. That guy should have signed up for the 'Imperial Examination'."
"That person must be the type who is eyeing the prize money." Another friend of Takigawa echoed with a contemptuous tone, "After all, he is a ronin."
"Probably." The corners of Takigawa's mouth curled up slightly, and a hint of complacency appeared on his face.
After hearing what his friends just said, Takigawa felt a strong sense of superiority rising from the bottom of his heart.
The difference in status between me and the guy who embarrassed me is as huge as the difference between heaven and earth.
What does it mean to be able to recite the Analects in Chinese? You are still just a wanderer.
Unless you can find a reliable new master to rely on, the rest of your life will be like a puddle of mud, living out your life in mediocrity in an inconspicuous corner.
But he was from a hatamoto family, and not just an ordinary hatamoto descendant.
The family salary of 3,000 koku was not the highest among the hatamoto, but it was enough to look down upon most of the hatamoto and samurai.
In addition to his superior family background, he is also proficient in both civil and military affairs, and has the lofty ambition of "assisting the emperor". His future is limitless.
When he thought of this, the unhappiness he felt at being embarrassed in the house because of Ogata was slightly reduced, and what made up for the reduced unhappiness was a strong sense of superiority.
This strong sense of superiority made the corners of Takigawa's mouth curl up even more, and he couldn't help but walk a little faster.
…
…
Edo, Edo Castle.
"Mr. Zhong, please forgive me for being blunt, but the reforms you have implemented can be described in one word: gaudy."
In Edo Castle, in a room used by high-ranking officials for meetings, the sound of people talking could be heard continuously.
There are 5 people in the room.
Although there are only five of them, these five people are, without exception, the five most powerful people in the shogunate except for the shogun.
These five people are: the elder councilor Matsudaira Sadanobu, and the only four wakanoyoshi in the shogunate.
If Nian Ji is in an official position, he is only one level lower than Lao Zhong, and there are usually 3-5 of them. He manages officials outside the scope of Lao Zhong's authority and assists generals and Lao Zhong in governing the country.
It was just a very common thing for the elders and younger people to get together to discuss state affairs.
Today was just like any other day - Matsudaira Sadanobu, who was the elder councillor, and four younger councillors gathered together to start a new round of discussions on national affairs.
However, in recent times, the number of discussions held by Matsudaira Sadanobu and Wakaniyoshi has obviously increased and become more frequent.
The reason for this is that Matsudaira Sadanobu has been carrying out a series of reforms, big and small, in recent times.
And the young men were forced, either actively or passively, to discuss in depth with Matsudaira Sadanobu the reforms proposed by Matsudaira Sadanobu.
"Instead of making these fancy reforms, it is better to focus on what can really revitalize the country."
The person who spoke was one of the four young men - Kitagawa Toshiki.
Kitagawa, who had just turned 28, spoke in a low voice.
His dark eyes were full of confidence and flashed with a bit of rebelliousness.
Let those who see it understand that these are a pair of eyes that only a practical person who is determined to get practical things done has.
Kitagawa, a genius honed through hard work and talent, who was highly praised by his teachers and friends, leaned forward in the direction where Matsudaira Sadanobu was sitting, as if he would pounce on him at any time.
Although the status of the elders was one level higher than that of the younger ones, the seats of the five people were not arranged in any different heights; they were simply arranged in an irregular circle.
After listening quietly to Beichuan's sharp remarks, Dingxin's expression did not change at all.
It was as if Beichuan's sharp accusation just now was directed at someone else, not himself.
After Beichuan finished speaking, Ding Xin asked back in a calm tone:
"Then I'd like to ask Kitagawa-kun, regarding your words just now, 'Focus on a little bit and put your energy into what can really revitalize the country', do you have any insights?"
"It's very simple! You only need to do one thing." Beichuan raised a finger, "Send envoys to the southern barbarian countries and conduct in-depth investigations into them!"
Kitagawa's words not only made Ding Xin frown, but also the other young people around him frowned.
"Can you tell me the reason?" Ding Xin asked.
"Master Lao Zhong, you should have also seen the wind paper submitted by the Dutch merchant George three months ago, right?" Beichuan said in a deep voice, "England, one of the southern barbarians, has begun to use a device called 'steam engine' on a large scale."
"The rest of the southern barbarian nations also began to gradually put the 'steam engine' into use."
"According to the story submitted by George, a small 'steam engine' has the power of a hundred animals. Just one 'steam engine' can increase a mine's daily mining output by several times, or even dozens of times."
As soon as Beichuan finished speaking, Ding Xin laughed with a strong sense of disdain:
"Kitagawa-kun, this is just like the nonsense of a three-year-old child. Do you believe it?"
"Of course I have read the rumor letter submitted by Dutch merchant George three months ago."
“I remember what’s on it, too.”
"It says: 'Steam engine' uses steam as its power."
“Isn’t this bullshit?!”
When saying this, Sadanobu's voice suddenly increased several times, causing the other three young men besides Kitagawa to shrink their necks.
"A mere steam can defeat the power of a hundred animals? Even a five-year-old child wouldn't believe such nonsense."
"Master Laozhong!" Beichuan responded with a voice that was no less resonant than Dingxin's. "To be honest, I also doubt George's statement on the wind that the 'steam engine' can withstand the power of hundreds of animals."
"But precisely because we don't know whether it's true or not, we should send people to the southern barbarian countries to investigate!"
"If what George wrote on this rumor post is correct, then the 'steam engine' is definitely a great weapon that benefits the country and the people! We must have a 'steam engine' too!"
Although Kitagawa's tone was sincere, Matsudaira Sadanobu still looked uninterested.
"We don't have the spare money or time to investigate the southern barbarian countries right now." Matsudaira Sadanobu waved his hand impatiently, "Instead of wasting this money to investigate the southern barbarian countries, it would be better to use this money to investigate the movements of Lucia."
"Russia has been sending expeditions to Ezo more and more frequently."
"Compared to England, Russia, which is eyeing Japan's northern gateway, is more worthy of our attention."
Seeing that Matsudaira Sadanobu showed no interest in his previous proposal, Kitagawa's face immediately turned ugly.
Just when Beichuan was about to say something else, another young man sitting next to him tugged at Beichuan's sleeve.
This person is another one of the four young-year-olds - Yoshimoto Suzeemon.
Yoshimoto is the oldest of the five people present - he is 50 years old this year.
Not only is he the oldest one, but he is also the most useless one.
He has no ability and only relies on his ancestors' influence to get to Ruonianji's position.
While everyone was discussing government affairs enthusiastically, he basically sat aside like a motionless puppet and said nothing - because he couldn't say anything insightful.
But it is not true to say that he has no effect at all.
Whenever the elders and the younger people quarreled, he was always the first to step forward and act as peacemaker.
Because he was the oldest, even Matsudaira Sadanobu would give face to his elder, and when he stepped forward to act as a "peacemaker", Sadanobu would also give him face.
Thanks to Yoshimoto, Edo Castle was spared many bloody disasters.
Seeing Yoshimoto using his actions and eyes to remind him not to offend Matsudaira Sadanobu again, Kitagawa pursed his lips, remained silent for a while, and then snorted coldly.
"…Forget it. Let's discuss sending envoys to the southern barbarian nations later."
Kitagawa pulled his sleeve back from Yoshimoto's hand.
"Master Laozhong, let's discuss the next thing." Beichuan crossed his arms over his chest, "The next thing we are going to discuss is also something that I have been concerned about since I heard about it."
"This matter is related to the 'Imperial Trial' that you, Lord, insisted on holding."
After hearing the words "Imperial Trial" from Kitagawa's mouth, Matsudaira Sadanobu's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Master Elder." Kitagawa cast a meaningful look at Matsudaira Sadanobu, "I recently heard such an interesting rumor from other people."
"Everyone knows that the reason why Lord Rochu held the 'Imperial Test' was to use it as an opportunity to encourage everyone to learn literature and martial arts and to revive the discipline of the military family."
"But recently there has been an interesting rumor: this is just a superficial excuse. It is used to fool some officials in the shogunate so that the 'Imperial Examination' can be held smoothly."
"In fact, Lord Ryougoku held the 'Imperial Trial' for another purpose."
"The real purpose is to accumulate experience in holding exams and gradually find out the exam content and methods that are suitable for Chinese people."
"To prepare for the revival of the 'imperial examination system' in our country in the future."
"Master Lao Zhong, is this rumor true or false? Can you give us a positive answer here?"
The other young people did not show any surprise after hearing what Beichuan said.
Their calmness silently told Matsudaira Sadanobu that they, too, had heard of the rumor.
The four young novices, led by Kitagawa, all focused their attention on Matsudaira Sadanobu.
Under the gazes of his four colleagues, Matsudaira Sadanobu did not respond immediately.
He just continued to maintain his expressionless face and remained silent.
After a short silence -
"Hahaha." Matsudaira Sadanobu chuckled a few times. "Need I say more? This is of course a false rumor."
"Reviving the imperial examination system in Tang? What benefit would it bring to our country if we revived the imperial examination system that has been extinct in our country for hundreds of years?"
"The reason why I plan to hold the 'Imperial Trial' is just to better encourage everyone to learn literature and martial arts."
"There is no other purpose."
"The rumor is nothing but malicious slander against me."
"You don't need to care."
"... I hope that you, Lord Senior, have no intention of reviving the imperial examination system." After listening to Ding Xin's words quietly, Beichuan said calmly, "The demise of the imperial examination system in our country hundreds of years ago has proved that the imperial examination system is only applicable to the Tang Dynasty, not to our country."
"We have a large number of excellent warriors, and there is no need to revive the imperial examination system."
"Since you, Lord Senior, have said that your purpose in holding the 'Imperial Trial' is very simple, I am relieved."
For some reason, when Beichuan said this just now, he emphasized the intonation of the words "said it in person".
Matsudaira Sadanobu smiled without saying anything and lowered his head to pick up the teacup beside his knees.
When he lowered his head, a hint of coldness flashed in his eyes.
It was just that because he happened to lower his head at that moment, and the coldness was fleeting, Kitagawa and others around him did not notice the coldness in Matsudaira Sadanobu's eyes.