"Shuntaro, I have a mission right now and I need your cooperation. In order for Furin-taifu to have enough hands and feet, you will definitely cooperate with me, right?"
Shintaro was right in front of him.
As long as Shuntaro draws his sword, he can easily cut Shintaro.
In fact, the thought of "drawing the sword and killing Shintaro" has flashed through Shuntaro's mind many times.
However - for the thoughts that flashed through his mind, Shuntaro could only suppress them with brute force again and again.
"...Tell me." Shuntaro said in a deep voice, "What do you want me to do? Want me to sneak into Edo Castle and assassinate the Shogun?"
The relationship between Edo Castle and Edo is similar to the relationship between the Forbidden City and Beijing.
The current highest authority in Japan, the Shogun, lives in Edo Castle.
Edo Castle was also the place where important officials of the shogunate met with the shogun.
As soon as Shuntaro finished speaking, Shintaro shrugged and smiled:
"How is that possible? What do you think Edo Castle is?"
"If the Shogun's head was that easy to take, it would have been taken countless times already."
"Edo Castle is the residence of the Shogun. There is a sentry every three steps and a sentry every five steps. Even if there are 10 of you, you can't kill the Shogun."
"Even if you were lucky enough to get to the general, he would have already escaped using various secret passages."
"The mission I am going to give you is the exact opposite of killing people. It is to save people."
"We need you to rescue someone from the prison in the east of Edo Castle." Shintaro's expression became a little more serious. "Rescue a person named 'Lin Ziping'."
"Lin Ziping?" Shuntaro frowned slightly.
The surname "Lin" is also considered one of the big surnames.
After going over the name "Lin Ziping" in his mind, Shuntaro found that he had never heard of this person.
"That's right, Lin Ziping."
Shintaro repeated the name word by word and continued.
"We have bribed a senior official of Chengdong Prison in advance and obtained the prisoner list of Chengdong Prison. We have found out which cell in Chengdong Prison Lin Ziping is being held in."
"So all you have to do is find that cell and bring Lin Ziping out. It's very simple."
"Keitaro knows where Lin Ziping's cell is. I will let Keitaro follow you and lead the way for you."
"And having Keitaro follow you should be able to help you to some extent."
"Help me?" Shuntaro chuckled. "You're supposed to be spying on me, right?"
In response to Shuntaro's words, Shintaro grinned and said in a joking tone:
"Remember not to run away, and don't let Keitaro die. If Keitaro dies, I might suspect you and leave some ugly scars on Furin-Tayu's body."
The thought of "drawing the sword and killing Shintaro" popped up in Shuntaro's mind again.
"…Who is this Hayashi Shiping?" Shuntaro slowly suppressed his rising anger and said in a deep voice, "Is he one of your Toyotomi officials who was accidentally captured by the shogunate officials?"
"He is not a minister of our Toyotomi. I don't know who this Hayashi Shiping is." Shintaro shrugged, "I am just following orders. My lord is anxious to see this person, so the sooner he is rescued, the better."
——My Lord...Are you a descendant of Toyotomi...
After hearing the word "Lord" from Shintaro's mouth, Shuntaro couldn't help but say this in his heart.
"My attainments in stealth techniques are not very high, so I cannot guarantee that I can sneak into the East City Prison perfectly."
Shintaro continued.
"Although Keitaro is capable, it would be difficult for him to go alone."
"As for the Iga ninjas, they are not very good at infiltration. It is easy to ask them to kidnap a tayu from Yoshiwara, but it is a bit difficult for them to take someone away from the government prison."
"So it is most appropriate to entrust this task to you who have profound attainments in stealth techniques."
"Let's start the action now. This is the perfect time, when the guards are distracted and the prisoners are generally asleep."
"Good luck to you, Shuntaro."
"When you come back after completing the mission perfectly, I can let you talk to Taifu for a few words, to let each other know that you are safe."
Looking at the disgusting smile that Shintaro gave him, the urge to chop Shintaro with a knife once again emerged in Shuntaro's mind.
…
…
Edo, some unknown place——
The lady hugged her knees and curled up in a corner of the room.
The Iga ninja named "Sennosuke" with three teardrop moles under his left eye was sitting cross-legged next to the tayu.
The other three Iga ninjas who were also responsible for monitoring Taifu sat not far from Taifu and Sennosuke, gathered together, and passed the time by chatting.
Although it is already very late at night, the frightened Taifu is still very alert and has no desire to sleep at all because of the unprecedented kidnapping incident that happened tonight.
Sennosuke, who was now sitting next to the lady, had just helped her loosen the hemp ropes that bound her hands and feet, so that she no longer had to lie on the tatami like a pig waiting to be slaughtered.
However, because the hemp rope had been tied for quite some time, the wife's wrists and ankles were still red, and some of her skin was scratched by the rough hemp rope.
The lady glanced at her wrists which were still red, then raised her hands again and rubbed them gently.
Sennosuke, who was sitting next to the Taifu, noticed Taifu's action.
"…Does it still hurt?" Sennosuke asked softly.
"It's really strange." Fuu Ling Taifu said in a calm tone, "As a kidnapper, he actually cares about whether the kidnapped person is hurt by the hemp rope."
"...I didn't want to do these things." Frustration appeared on Sennosuke's face. "Although I don't know why the people above asked us to kidnap you, kidnapping is kidnapping."
"For me, there is nothing more shameful than being violent towards a woman."
"But an order is an order, and I cannot disobey it. If I could choose, I would not want to do such a shameless thing..."
"...It seems that you still have a conscience." The lady's tone softened a little.
"…I was originally the son of an ordinary low-ranking samurai. When I was about 7 years old, both my parents died of the plague."
A hint of bitterness appeared on Sennosuke's face.
"I lost my parents and had no one to support me, so I wandered around. When I was almost dying of hunger, I was adopted by someone, and then I have been doing my current job ever since."
"Before my father died of illness, he always taught me not to do anything that would harm women or children."
"Any behavior that harms women and children is shameful."
"My father's teachings have had a profound impact on me, and I have always kept them in mind."
"However, since I started my current job, I have lost count of how many times I have disobeyed my father's teachings..."
"I feel a little sorry for my father..."
After saying that, the guilt on Sennosuke's face became even more intense.
What Sennosuke just said was all true.
After his parents both died of plague when he was 8 years old, he was adopted by Hannosuke, who trained him to be a ninja of Iga.
Sennosuke couldn't reveal their identities to Taifu.
Therefore, I can only briefly describe my past in this roundabout way.
As soon as Sennosuke finished speaking, one of the three Iga ninjas who had been chatting not far away shouted:
"Hey, Taifu. Why are you only talking to Sennosuke? Come talk to us too! We are very curious about how the Yoshiwara's oiran usually work!"
This person's words were full of frivolity.
"Stop talking nonsense." Sennosuke glared at the man.
After being scolded by Sennosuke, the man curled his lips in displeasure, then turned his head and continued to chat animatedly with the other two people sitting next to him.
"...You seem to have a very high status among your group." Taifu said softly, "I see that the three of them seem to follow your lead."
"We pay a lot of attention to seniority." Sennosuke said, "The higher the seniority, the higher the status."
"In terms of personal strength and ability, my level is average."
"The individual strength and ability of these three people are far stronger than mine."
"I can only order them around because I am older than them."
"You care about seniority? Haha, this is the opposite of our Yoshiwara brothels. In our Yoshiwara brothels, whoever can make more money has a higher status."
“Once they can’t make money, even veteran prostitutes who have worked for the prostitute house for more than a decade may be ignored or even abandoned.”
After saying that, the wife touched that spot on her chest.
"Ah, it's still there, great, I didn't lose it."
The hostess pulled open the collar of her yukata a little.
There was a small pocket sewn on the inside of her lapel.
The bag was bulging, as if it was filled with something.
The courtesan stretched out the index finger and thumb of her right hand, reached into the small bag sewn on the inside of the lapel, and pinched out a small disc that was about the size of an adult's thumb.
"What is this?" Sennosuke frowned slightly.
"Lip balm." The lady said as she opened it. "I often need to reapply lip balm because of my work."
"So I had a pouch sewn into the inside of each of my yukatas so I could carry the lipstick with me."
Accompanying the guests who ordered her to drink and eat is the main job of the housewife.
Because lip balm is always rubbed off by alcohol and food, Taifu may need to reapply lip balm many times after a meal.
For convenience, Taifu always carries her own lip balm.
Yukata can be worn as pajamas or as a base layer.
When wearing the "Oiran special costume" that is as heavy as a quilt, the tayu would wear a yukata underneath.
The "Oiran's special clothes" are very expensive, and the tayu is not so wasteful as to do something like sewing a small pocket on the inside of the lapel of the "Oiran's special clothes", which would directly reduce the value of the clothes.
So the tayu had a small bag specifically for lip balm sewed onto the cheap yukata.
The small bag is always filled with the lip balm she uses on a daily basis.
Sometimes I forget to take out the lip balm from my bathrobe pouch before going to bed.
But because the lip balm box that Taifu put in the small bag was very small, so small that it hardly hindered her movements, so even if she didn't take the lip balm box out of the small bag, it would not affect Taifu's sleep.
"Can I have some lip balm?"
"Ah, go ahead." It was just applying lipstick. Sennosuke, who already felt guilty towards the lady for kidnapping a woman, had no reason to refuse such a small matter.
With practiced movements, the lady used the index and middle fingers of her right hand to test a little lip balm, and then applied it evenly on her lips.
The lady's originally rosy lips turned into a soft pink after applying the lip balm.
If you look closely, you can see a hint of gold mixed into this soft reddish color.
"Does it look good?" asked the lady-in-waiting.
"Yeah, it looks good." Sennosuke praised sincerely without hesitation.
The lady who applied beautiful lipstick on her lips also attracted the attention of the other three Iga ninjas.
"Taifu, you actually carry lip balm with you."
"Women are trouble. To please men, they have to put so many messy things on their faces."
"I know this lip balm. It's called '笹色红', right?"
"That's right. The name of this lipstick is 'Sasairo Red'." The lady smiled and said, "The 'Sasairo Red' I use is not an ordinary 'Sasairo Red'. The type I use is very rare, and the color is better and more special."
After briefly introducing the lip balm she used to Sennosuke and the others, Taifu slowly turned her head, faced Sennosuke, and said seriously:
"Your name is Sennosuke, right?"
"Can I ask you a favor?"
"When I was brought here, I heard that Yoshiwara was on fire."
"Yoshiwara is my hometown. I was born and raised in Yoshiwara. Yoshiwara is on fire. I can't just sit there and watch."
"Can you please go to Yoshiwara for me and see how it is doing now?"
“Eh? This…” A look of embarrassment appeared on Sennosuke’s face.
His current task is to keep an eye on Fuujiya.
If Hannosuke and the others found out that he had left his post without permission, he would definitely be scolded.
"Please!" The lady's face was full of sincerity.
The thin white yukata and the bright red on her lips made the lady look very pitiful.
Looking at the lady's appearance, Sennosuke pursed his lips.
There was a conflict between the conscience and the desire in my mind.
Sennosuke has always felt guilty towards the wife for doing something like "kidnapping a woman".
This guilt slowly made the hesitation on Sennosuke's face disappear.
"...Yes." Sennosuke nodded vigorously, "I understand. I will go to Yoshiwara to help you check the situation."
"Thank you." The lady gave Sennosuke a grateful look, then moved towards where Sennosuke was and gently hugged him.
The sudden hug from the Taifu confused Sennosuke.
After a brief moment of daze, a blush of shyness appeared on Sennosuke's face.
"It's just a small matter." Sennosuke stammered, "Taifu, there's no need to be like this."
The sudden hug that Taifu gave to Sennosuke also confused the other three Iga ninjas not far away.
After being stunned for a while, these three people looked at Sennosuke with envy and jealousy.
However, neither Sennosuke nor the other three Iga ninjas noticed Taifu's small movement.
Just now, when she was applying lipstick to her lips, the lady deliberately left some lipstick on her fingers.
In order to avoid being discovered by the three Iga ninjas, Taifu turned his back to them, blocking their sight.
While gently hugging Sennosuke, she pretended to touch the back of Sennosuke's neck with her right hand, but in fact she was wiping the lip balm that she had deliberately left on the index and middle fingers of her right hand towards the back of Sennosuke's neck, leaving a bright mark about an inch long drawn by the lip balm on the back of Sennosuke's neck.
After successfully leaving the mark on the back of Sennosuke's neck, the Taifu let go of Sennosuke.
"Thank you."
"Yeah!" Sennosuke nodded vigorously.
"I'm going to go out for a while and will be back soon." Sennosuke stood up and said to the three companions not far away, "I will treat you to some good wine later, so I ask you to keep it a secret for me."
After hearing what Sennosuke said, the envy and jealousy in the eyes of the three people dissipated a little.
In fact, Sennosuke was not very afraid that these three people would inform on him.
Although his strength is average, Sennosuke is considered a veteran among the Iga ninjas and has followed Hannosuke and others for more than ten years.
With his qualifications and status, even if Hannosuke knew that he had deserted his post, at most he would only be scolded by Hannosuke and receive some minor punishment - this was also one of the important reasons why Sennosuke dared to help Taifu.
Sennosuke quickly left the Taifu's sight.
After Sennosuke left, the other three people complained about Sennosuke:
"Just now I kept saying some righteous words, making myself seem like a gentleman, but in the end I was still dazzled by beauty..."
"That's right. If it wasn't Yoshiwara's oiran who asked him for help, but an ugly one , he probably wouldn't have helped."
"Running errands is a hassle, and there's no real compensation. I won't do it even if you ask me to."
"That's right."
"Yes, I agree."
Taifu ignored the complaints about Sennosuke from the three people who remained here.
After watching Sennosuke leave, the huge stone that had been hanging in Taifu's heart finally fell.
He turned his head and looked at the only oil lamp in the room.
There was a hint of relief and gratitude in his eyes.
Because there was only this one oil lamp in the room, the light in the room was unusually dim.
Thanks to the dim light and thanks to the three people who did not pay much attention to Sennosuke, Sennosuke left here smoothly without anyone noticing that there was a very bright red mark on the back of his neck.
——Someone must see it...
The lady prayed silently in her heart.
…
…
Edo, Yoshiwara——
Before he even got close to Yoshiwara, Obunaga smelled a faint burnt smell in the air.
After climbing onto the Nihon Embankment, Obe saw the prostitutes returning to Yoshiwara with large and small bags on their backs, as well as the common people living in Yoshiwara.
Since all the civilians who escaped from Yoshiwara have returned, it means that the fire in Yoshiwara must have been extinguished. Ogata secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
After walking up the Gokuken-dori that connects to the Yoshiwara Gate and passing through the Yoshiwara Gate and entering Yoshiwara, Obaya saw an acquaintance of his at the gate of the Shirobei Club.
"Keiemon!" Ogata shouted to Keiemon who was sitting in front of the clubhouse door.
There were traces of smoke all over Keiemon's face and body. He sat in front of the club's door, nibbling on a roasted mochi.
Seeing Ogata coming, Keimon quickly stood up and waved to Ogata:
"Oh! It's Mashima-kun! Why are you here? Hmm? Who's that person behind you?"
Ogata was not wearing his white fox mask, only his human skin mask.
But in order to hide his identity, Genichi still wore his Tengu mask.
Even his two swords - Yangshen and Yanrong - were covered with scabbards and handle covers, so that no one could recognize him by his swords.
"He's my friend." Ogata briefly introduced Genichi behind him and went straight to the point, "I heard that there was a big fire in Yoshiwara, so I rushed over to see how the fire is now?"
"The flames are almost out," Keimon said. "The fire didn't spread very far. The people living near the fire escaped in time, so no one was injured. It's a blessing in disguise."
"Did anything happen to Lord Shirobei, the other servants of the club, and the town firefighters who came to put out the fire?" Ogata asked.
"Master Shirobei's left arm was slightly burned, but overall it's not a big deal. The others were basically fine too. There were only a few people who were unlucky, like Master Shirobei, whose hands and feet were burned."
"Lord Shirobei is currently at the fire scene with others, inspecting the damage and calculating the losses."
"The other officers who participated in the firefighting tonight have either gone home or are still in Yoshiwara like me."
After learning that Shirobei was safe, Genichi, who was standing behind Ogata, felt relieved.
"Although the flames are out now..." Keimon said with a wry smile, "but new troubles have emerged..."
"New trouble?" Ogata asked puzzledly.
Keiemon looked around, then put his lips close to Ogata's ear and whispered to him:
"Furin Taifu is missing."
"Missing?" Ogata's eyes widened.
"Yeah." Keimon nodded seriously.
Keiemon told Ogata the whole story.
"…That's what happened. The disappearance of the tayu is beyond the scope of what our Shirobei Association can handle, so the matter has been reported to the Bugyosho."
"Just now, the officers from the magistrate's office came here to investigate the case."
Ogata's brows had been furrowed since a while ago.
His friendship with the Taifu was not very deep, it could only be considered a "mutual acquaintance" relationship.
Ogata has always held a respectful attitude towards Furin-no-Tayu.
As a high-ranking oiran, she is humble and has a very friendly attitude towards both Uezaki and Ogata.
After becoming an oiran, she used most of her long-accumulated savings to repair the banks of the Rashomon River where she was born - this kind of selflessness and broad-mindedness made even Ogata admire her.
So even though he didn't have a close relationship with Taifu, Ogata couldn't help but feel a sinking feeling in his heart when he learned that Taifu was missing.
Keiemon stuffed the remaining half of the roasted mochi into his mouth, and then continued incoherently:
"The case has now been handed over to the magistrate's office, and we can no longer intervene."
"I can only hope that the officials of the magistrate's office can find the wife as soon as possible, alas..."
Keiichiro raised his hand and touched his belly.
"I'm still a little hungry... Mashima-kun, I'm going to go to the Braided Hata Teahouse outside to buy some more food. Do you want to come with me? And how about having a drink together?"
"No." Ogata shook his head and politely declined, "I'm not used to drinking so late at night."
"Is that so... okay." After a flash of regret in Kei'emon's eyes, he waved to Ogata and walked out of Yoshiwara.
After Keiemon left, Genichi, who had been standing behind Ogata without saying anything, lowered his voice and said to Ogata:
"Ogata-kun, this night is really not peaceful..."
"Hmm..." Ogata nodded with a gloomy face, "It's a bit unusual..."
"The man just said that Shirobei's hand was injured. I plan to go see him." Genichi said, "Ogata-kun, what are your plans?"
"I plan to go to the Umeya where Taifu works and see if I can find some clues about Taifu's disappearance." Ogata said softly, "Ueo and Taifu had an accident on the same night... I suspect Taifu's disappearance may be related to Shiranui."
The reason why Ogata wanted to help find the Tayu was, on the one hand, because he had always respected the noble Tayu and had a good relationship with him.
Another reason was that he always felt that there was something strange about Taifu's disappearance.
Uesugi was attacked and Taifu disappeared, and these two things happened on the same night.
Such a coincidence made Ogata wonder - could Taifu's disappearance also be related to Shiranui?
Ogata always felt that this possibility was not small, and this speculation made it even more impossible for Ogata to regard the disappearance of Taifu as an ordinary event.
"I think the clues you can find can also be found by the officers of the magistrate's office. After all, they are all professionals." After making a small joke, Genichi continued, "Well, let's part ways for the time being."
"I might chat with Shirobei for a while, so if you want to go back to the hotel, you can go first and don't have to wait for me."
"Yeah, you too." Ogata nodded, "You don't have to wait for me. If you want to go back to the hotel, go back first."
After a brief discussion, Ogata and Genichi separated.
Ogata went to Meiwuya.
And Genichi went to find Shirobei.
…
…
Edo, Joto Prison.
In ancient Japan, where the concept of class was so strong that it was somewhat pathological, prisons were also divided into different levels.
The prisons where ordinary civilians lived were completely different from the prisons where samurai, doctors and other people with special status in society lived.
Prisons that specifically detain ordinary civilians usually have a dozen or twenty people living in one cell.
Prisons that specifically detained samurai, doctors and others who had special status in society all held single cells, and the treatment they received was much better. The Joto Prison in Edo was an example of this type of prison.
The jailers walked in pairs, holding lanterns and moving in each aisle in a certain pattern.
At this time, all the prisoners in every cell have fallen asleep.
The prison guards patrolling the corridors were all distracted and yawning constantly.
At first glance, the East City Prison was as quiet as usual tonight.
Of course - it was just a glance.
Neither team of jailers noticed that two groups of dark shadows had already sneaked into their prison in the east of the city.
Shuntaro and Keitaro were walking on a side road in the Johto Prison.
The two men's movements were so gentle that they made no sound at all. Even the prison guards who were patrolling everywhere did not hear their footsteps, let alone the prisoners who were already fast asleep in the cells.
"Next, turn left, Lin Ziping's cell is almost here." Keitaro whispered to Shuntaro beside him.
After being forced to accept the "rescue mission" thrown to him by Shintaro, Shuntaro had to rush to the Chengdong Prison with Keitaro, who was ostensibly assisting him but was actually monitoring him, to rescue that "Hayashi Ziping".
Both of them were the top ninjas in Shiranui. If they ran all the way, they could reach the Chengdong Prison from Shiranui in less than half an hour.
Although the guards at Johto Prison are tight, they are not strong enough to stop Shuntaro and Keitaro.
The two of them had been sneaking in for some time.
Because they didn't know which cell Lin Ziping was being held in, the two of them could only search one cell at a time.
However, until now, that Lin Ziping has not been found.
The two heard footsteps coming from the front again.
After realizing that it was the patrolling prison guards coming, the two rushed to the wall next to them, used the wall as a leverage point, and quickly stepped onto the beam above.
After the two men in black stepped onto the beam, their bodies merged into the darkness. There was no movement during the entire process of stepping onto the beam.
Not long after the two men stepped onto the beam, two jailers holding lanterns appeared from the other corner, and then left through the passage under the beam.
After the two jailers left, Shuntaro and Keitaro jumped off the beam and returned to the ground.
Taking advantage of the free time, Shuntaro asked Keitaro in a cold tone:
"How are we going to get Lin Ziping out? Knock him out with brute force, and then carry him out?"
"How can you treat Mr. Hayashi Shiping in such a rough way?" Keitaro said without hesitation, "Just tell Mr. Hayashi Shiping that we are sent by Iwakura Saemon."
"Iwakura Saemon?"
"He is Hayashi Shiping's best friend, and he was the one who recommended Hayashi Shiping to our lord." Keitaro introduced him simply, "As long as we tell him that we are from Iwakura and show him this, Mr. Hayashi Shiping will probably trust us and follow us obediently."
Keitaro took out a small fan from his arms and showed it to Shuntaro.
"This is what Iwakura Saemon gave us. He said that if we show this to Hayashi Shihei, he will trust us."
After turning an unknown number of corners, Shuntaro suddenly heard some voices.
It seemed like someone's mumbling.
Not only Shuntaro, but Keitaro also heard the muttering.
"...The sixth cell on the left is Lin Ziping's cell." Keitaro said.
Shuntaro looked over there, frowning even more deeply—that seemed to be where the strange muttering sound came from…
With a puzzled attitude, Shuntaro moved towards the cell that Keitaro had just pointed out.
The scene inside the cell came into view as Shuntaro approached.
The first person who caught Shuntaro's gaze and attention was an old man.
There lived an old man in this cell, probably in his early 50s, with a mixture of black and white hair and beard.
Both his hair and beard were messy. Although he was old, his body was surprisingly strong. One could tell at a glance that he was not the kind of person who was weak and powerless.
The prisoners in other cells were all sleeping soundly, but this old man was the only one who hadn't fallen asleep yet. He was sitting cross-legged on the ground, holding a small stone in his right hand and muttering something, but Shuntaro couldn't hear what he was saying.
After taking a closer look, Shuntaro discovered that the walls and the floor of the cell were covered with writing.
The old man probably used a stone as a pen to write on the stone walls and ground.
The walls and the ground are covered with words, which looks quite spectacular.
Unfortunately, Shuntaro didn't recognize Chinese characters, and the old man's handwriting was really sloppy, so Shuntaro couldn't quite understand what the old man was writing.
The old man sitting cross-legged on the ground seemed to be thinking about something intently.
He wrote something on the ground in front of him and then quickly wiped it off.
Because he was too focused, he didn't even notice that there were two more people in front of his cell.
"Yes, he is Lin Ziping." Keitaro on the side looked at the old man's profile for a while and nodded vigorously.
"Is he Lin Ziping?" asked Shuntaro.
"There is absolutely no mistake. We have a portrait of Lin Ziping. This person is undoubtedly Lin Ziping."
Keitaro cleared his throat, raised his voice slightly, and said to the old man in the cell... or Lin Ziping:
"Mr. Lin Ziping, Mr. Lin Ziping."
After Keitaro's call, Lin Ziping's consciousness was finally pulled back to reality.
When Hayashi Shiping turned to look at Shuntaro and Keitaro in surprise, Keitaro continued:
"Mr. Lin Ziping, please..."
Before Hui Tailang finished speaking, Lin Ziping interrupted him in an unhappy tone:
"How rude of you! Didn't you see that I was thinking? I was about to come up with a new idea on how to defend against Lucia, but your sudden interruption interrupted my train of thought."
Lin Ziping's long list of words completely confused Shuntaro and Keitaro.
"Um... um... sorry to bother you... please don't panic, we are..."
Lin Ziping once again interrupted before Keitaro could finish his words:
"I'm not panicking at all. I'm just angry and a little surprised. Judging from your appearance, you don't seem to be jailers. Who are you? What are you doing here? If you're here to rob the prison, then you've got the wrong person. I'm Lin Ziping, the useless warrior Lin Ziping who can do neither literature nor martial arts."
Fortunately, Lin Ziping and Keitaro didn't speak loudly, and the prisoners in other cells around them were all sleeping soundly, so no one was woken up by their talking until now.
Ever since Lin Ziping opened his mouth, Shuntaro's brows became more and more furrowed.
Whether it was his strange behavior of not sleeping in the middle of the night, sitting cross-legged on the ground and muttering to himself, or his way of speaking, both gave Lin Ziping an aura of "weirdness".
"We are here to rescue you under the orders of Iwakura Saemon." After saying that, Keitaro took out the small fan that had just been shown to Keitaro from his arms.
"Iwakura Saemon?" Lin Ziping's originally tense face softened a little. After taking a look at the fan in Keitaro's hand, he continued, "It really is the fan I gave to Iwakura before... Is Iwakura Saemon okay?"
"That's right, Mr. Hayashi Shiping. It was your close friend, Iwakura Saemon, who asked us to rescue you." Keitaro's tone showed a hint of helplessness. "Iwakura Saemon is fine now. Please wait a moment. I will unlock the door soon..."
Just as Keitaro said this.
Lin Ziping shouted loudly enough to echo throughout the prison:
“There’s a thief!!”
The prisoners in the surrounding cells were immediately awakened.
The jailer who was nearby was also alarmed instantly.
As Lin Ziping shouted, the entire East City Prison instantly became "full of vitality".
Footsteps began to approach Shuntaro and his group.
This is the sound of the jailers rushing over.
Lin Ziping's actions once again made Shuntaro and Keitaro confused.
"Help me delay some time!" Keitaro shouted at Shuntaro in frustration, and then tried his best to speed up the lock picking.
As soon as Keitaro finished speaking, groups of prison guards appeared at the end of the passages on both sides and rushed towards Shuntaro and Keitaro with great momentum.
Their faces and hair were covered with black cloth, leaving only their eyes exposed, so there was no need to worry about the jailers seeing their faces.
Shuntaro really wanted to yell at Lin Ziping, "What are you doing?"
But because the jailers were approaching, Shuntaro could only suppress the desire to scold Hayashi Shihei and focus his energy on dealing with the attacking jailers.
Shuntaro did not draw his sword.
In such a narrow passage, it is inconvenient to draw the sword.
And Shuntaro didn't want to kill anyone in this mission that that bastard Shintaro forced him to do.
Shuntaro fought back with his bare hands against the jailers running towards him from both ends of the passage.
A jailer swung the jute in his hand and slashed at Shuntaro.
Shuntaro used his left hand to control the jailer's right hand, then raised his right hand to grab the jailer's collar and threw the jailer out heavily, pressing heavily on several other jailers.
Another jailer rushed towards Shuntaro, this one holding a spear.
Shuntaro turned his body to the side, dodging the jailer's spear, then raised his hand to grab the spear that had been stabbed out before he could retract it, and snatched it away with brute force.
He used the spike as a wooden stick and knocked down several jailers.
The four major techniques of Shiranui ninjutsu - stealth, breath holding, jutsu, and assassination - Shuntaro had already mastered them all to perfection long ago.
Facing the jailers who were armed with various arresting tools such as jute and shamataka, Shuntaro was not afraid at all even if he had to fight with his bare hands.
In a short while, Shuntaro knocked down more than a dozen people.
After showing his strength, the other jailers looked at Shuntaro with fear.
After seeing Shuntaro knock down more than a dozen of their companions with his bare hands, some of the prison guards even began to gasp.
After Shuntaro knocked down another prison guard, the crisp sound of the padlock being unlocked was finally heard on Keitaro's side.
After successfully prying open the lock, Keitaro rushed into Lin Ziping's cell and ran to Lin Ziping.
Lin Ziping subconsciously wanted to hide backwards.
But how could he possibly hide from Keitaro?
"I'm sorry."
After whispering this to Lin Ziping in an apologetic tone, Keitaro made a knife-like gesture with his right hand and cut at the back of Lin Ziping's neck, knocking him unconscious.
Except for a few ninjas, most ninjas are "prop masters" who carry a large number of props that can be used in different occasions.
Keitaro took out the long rope he carried with him and tied Lin Ziping to his back using a special binding technique. Then Keitaro shouted to Shuntaro:
“Retreat!”
…
…
Edo, Yoshiwara, Meiwuya——
Ogata originally wanted to try his luck and go to the Umeya to see if he could find any clues related to the disappearance of the Taifu.
However, outside the Jianmei House, there were officials from the Bugyosho standing, and no one was allowed to approach the Jianmei House.
So Ogata couldn't even go in to see Umeya.
I saw that a lot of onlookers had gathered outside the plum house.
At present, most people in Yoshiwara do not know that Furin Taifu is missing. Those who are watching near Kenumeya are discussing in a low voice and speculating what is happening in Kenumeya now.
Seeing that he couldn't get into the plum house, after wandering around outside the plum house without any results, Ogata let out a low, helpless sigh.
Unable to find any useful clues, Ogata had to give up and turned towards the direction of the Yoshiwara Gate, intending to leave Yoshiwara and return to the inn where he was staying before making further plans.
Ogata had just discussed with Genichirō that if one of them wanted to go back first, they could go back directly without waiting for the other.
Ogata guessed that Genichi might still be with his old acquaintance Shirobei.
The number of people returning to Yoshiwara has gradually decreased.
The number of people entering and leaving the Yoshiwara gate began to decrease again.
When the gate of Yoshiwara reappeared in Ogata's field of vision, he looked around and saw few people.
In front of Ogata, there was a young man who, like Ogata, was walking straight towards the gate of Yoshiwara.
Ogata's pace was faster than the young man walking in front of him.
Originally, there were nearly 10 steps between the two of them, but in a short while, the distance between them was shortened to within 5 steps by Ogata, who was faster.
As he and the young man passed through the Yoshiwara Gate one after the other, Ogata suddenly noticed out of the corner of his eye that there was a red mark on the back of the young man's neck.
In order to facilitate the return of those who fled Yoshiwara due to the fire, the area around the Yoshiwara Gate was hung with lighting lanterns, making the area around the Yoshiwara Gate as bright as day, so that those returning to Yoshiwara could see the road clearly and avoid bumping or tripping.
Because of the dim light just now, Ogata didn't notice the back of the young man's neck.
After walking through the Yoshiwara Gate, which was now as bright as day, with the young man, Ogata finally discovered the red mark on the back of the young man's neck.
Looking at the red mark, Ogata was stunned.
He remembered the color.
The reason why he became acquainted with Furin-no-Tayu was because he made Takigawa, who always pestered the Tayu, embarrassed in the room specially used for the prostitutes to read and practice calligraphy, which made the Tayu feel proud.
In order to thank Ogata, she called Ogata to her room that night and gave her a box of her special "Sasairo Red" lip balm.
After receiving the lip balm from the lady-in-waiting, Obe gave it to Atachi.
Ogata was deeply impressed by this lip balm.
The first impression that this lip balm gave Ogata was that it was expensive.
According to the tayu, the "Sasairo-red" lip balm is expensive to begin with, and the one she uses exclusively is even more outrageously expensive, costing one or two taels of gold for a small box.
Because it was too expensive and difficult to buy, only a few people in Edo used this lip balm.
Ogata's second impression of the lip balm was that the color was beautiful.
Although it is very expensive, it is worth it. The color of the lipstick used by Taifu is extremely different from other types of lipsticks.
If you put two different styles of "Sasairo Red" lipstick together, anyone with good eyesight can tell which one the lady used.
Ogata stared straight at the back of the young man in front of him.
The red mark on the back of the young man's neck is composed of two diagonal lines that gradually fade from dark to light. From this point of view, it seems that the mark was drawn with fingers.
No matter how Ogata looked at it, the red on the back of the young man's neck was not a pigment, and its color was definitely the color of the lipstick used by the taifu...
Ogata lowered his gaze to look at the young man's arms.
Ogata could vaguely see that the young man's forearms were very strong.
Ogata was very familiar with arms like this - his own arms looked like this too.
Looking at the young man's strong arms, Ogata's expression gradually became solemn.
The idea that Taifu's disappearance was related to the ninja in Shiranui popped up in Ogata's mind again.
Although it is certain that Taifu was not the only one in Edo who used this lip balm, those who could afford it must have been either rich or noble.
Judging from the young man's attire, he doesn't seem like the kind of person who could come into contact with Yue Qing Yunke.
Besides, who would use such expensive lipstick to draw a mark on the back of someone's neck for no reason?
Now Ogata has two options in front of him.
The first option is to run and inform the officers right now, telling them that he has found clues related to the whereabouts of the lady.
But when he turned around and ran to report to the police, the young man had disappeared.
The second option is a little simpler - follow the young man.
This multiple-choice question is not difficult to choose.
Ogata made his choice in an instant.
Ogata slowed down his pace, and after getting a certain distance away from the young man, he maintained that distance and secretly followed behind the young man.
Tonight, Ogata repeatedly thanked himself for having upgraded his "Shiranui Stealth Technique" to the "intermediate level".
The first time was when he climbed over the high wall of Yoshiwara for Urobuchi.
The second time is now.
…
…
After being entrusted by the tayu, Sennosuke hurried to Yoshiwara.
The place where the tayu was imprisoned was not too far from Yoshiwara.
After arriving in Yoshiwara, Sennosuke first found a few people to inquire about things related to the fire, and then went to take a look at the place where the fire occurred in person.
After confirming with his own eyes that the flames were extinguished, Sennosuke strode away from Yoshiwara.
After passing through the gate and leaving Yoshiwara, Sennosuke somehow recalled the hug from the lady just now.
Until now, Sennosuke still remembers the body fragrance that penetrated his nostrils, and the feeling of being surrounded by a gentle breeze.
Recalling this feeling, Sennosuke's cheeks turned red unconsciously.
——When I get back later, will the wife praise me? Will she hug me again?
Such thoughts kept popping up in Sennosuke's mind.
A silly smile appeared on his face uncontrollably.
Immersed in his fantasy, he didn't notice that someone had been following him quietly.
In fact, even if he was not immersed in fantasy, he would not be able to notice the person following him.
Because just as he said to the Taifu just now - his strength is average, and the three Iga ninjas who are also responsible for guarding the Taifu are all stronger than him. The reason why his status is higher than these three people is purely because he has a higher seniority among the Iga ninjas who pay attention to seniority.