There are only about a hundred villagers still alive in Qina Village.
Therefore, the team composed of villagers from Qina Village was not long.
Soon, the tail of the team, Ogata and Atachi's figures, completely disappeared from the sight of Skulucci and others.
"Ha..." Skulucci yawned loudly, then waved to Vasili and others behind him, "Guys, go back. It's almost time for us to prepare to leave."
"Skulucci, when do you plan to leave?" Ayaka on the side asked Skulucci at this time.
Skulucci planned to reunite with his boss for a while - Ayaka, who had a good personal relationship with Skulucci, knew about this.
"Not confirmed yet." Skulucci scratched his red hair, "We'll probably leave in a few days. What about you? When do you plan to return to Kuma Village?"
"When can I go back to Kuma Village?" Ayaka smiled bitterly. "Qina Village has become an empty village now."
Aiyaka Bull Head looked towards Qina Village, where only empty houses were left.
"What am I doing staying in this deserted village?"
"I will leave for Kuma Village today."
"If we set out now, we will probably be back in the village by evening."
"I see..." Skulucci grinned, "Then say hello to the villagers of Kuma Village for me later."
After saying that, Skulucci led Vasili and others behind him towards their camp.
As he walked towards his camp with his back to Ayaka, Skulucci did not forget to wave to Ayaka behind him.
"Aiyaka, see you again if we are destined to meet again."
…
…
As soon as Skuluch left Ayaka behind, Vasili, who was walking behind him, sighed:
"Ah... Majima Goro left so soon... I was hoping he could stay with us a little longer..."
"Why?" Skulucci asked back, "You and Majima Goro have such a good relationship?"
"It's not that we have a very close relationship. I just hope that Majima Goro can stay with us for a while longer because of... some reasons."
If they continued to discuss this topic, Skuluchi and the others might learn about Vasili's hidden hobby that he didn't want others to know about, so he took the initiative to change the subject:
"That's right, Boss."
"Since we are going to meet up with Boss Alexander later, then... Boss, have you prepared a gift for Boss Alexander?"
"Of course!" Skulucci said loudly, "I have already prepared a gift for Boss Alexander."
After saying that, Skulucci reached into his arms and took out something.
"Is this... a knife?" Vashili asked.
"Yes. In the Ainu language, this thing is called 'Tashiro', which can be understood as the Ainu mountain knife."
Skulucci drew his sword from its sheath, revealing a sharp blade that flashed with a cold light under the sunlight.
"I bought it from a village we passed by in exchange for some good wine."
"Boss Alexander would probably like it."
“Can I see it?” Vashili asked.
"Take it."
After saying that, Skulucci sheathed the machete and threw it to Vashili behind him.
Vasili looked at the machete carefully.
Although the blade's craftsmanship is far inferior to that of the Cossacks' Chasik saber, its handle and scabbard are very, very beautifully carved with patterns of flowers, birds and other animals.
"It's a very beautiful knife... It's definitely something that Boss Alexander would like." Vashili returned the machete to Skulucci.
"Boss Alexander's hobby of collecting weapons is fucking troublesome." Skulucci put on a tired expression, "What's even more fucking troublesome is that if you don't give him gifts frequently, he will make things difficult for others."
Sculucci is a person who can "flexibly switch appearances".
He only reveals his "rude" side in front of his subordinates.
In front of other people, he always behaves like a gentleman.
Sculucci's eldest brother, Alexander, has no other hobbies.
My only hobby is collecting weapons.
That kind of exotic weapon was Alexander's favorite.
It would be fine if he just liked collecting weapons, but the problem was that Alexander was a person who liked to abuse his power for personal gain.
He likes to have his subordinates help him collect weapons.
He had indirectly told his subordinates, such as Sculucci, that they should remember to pay more tributes in the future.
Any subordinate who "provides" weapons of sufficient quantity and quality will receive special favor from Alexander.
As for those subordinates who did not "pay tribute", they would be ignored by Alexander.
In order to avoid being bullied, Skulucci could only "present" some weapons to Alexander from time to time.
Skulucci has not been working under Alexander for a long time, and has only been working under Alexander for more than a year.
Because he was extremely dissatisfied and annoyed with Alexander's abuse of power for personal gain, Skulucci had recently begun to think about how to leave Alexander's team.
"Speaking of which..." Vasili said, "I heard that Boss Alexander recently spent a lot of money to get a set of Japanese armor. Is this true?"
"Yes. It's true." Skulucci raised his right little finger and scratched his ear. " Alexander used 10 horses to buy a set of Japanese armor from a Japanese merchant who has been secretly doing business with us Cossacks."
"Ten horses for a set of armor." Vashili twitched his mouth.
Although the European continent has now completely entered the "firearms age", cavalry still plays a huge role on the battlefield at present.
The status of cavalry did not decline, but instead improved.
The high status of cavalry in the army also makes war horse resources a very important strategic resource.
10 horses - 10 Don horses at that, this is not a small number.
"Is this armor made of gold..." Vashili muttered.
"I heard it's a set of Nanbando of very fine quality."
"Barbarian?" Vashili asked back.
"It is a special armor from Japan. Its characteristic is that it has absorbed the plate armor manufacturing technology from Europe. It is a special armor that absorbs the characteristics of both plate armor and Japanese native armor."
"It is said that the protective power is amazing."
"I have never seen the Nanman suit that Alexander bought with 10 horses."
"Boss Alexander once showed off this set of armor at a party, but unfortunately I was not there."
"I later heard from those who attended the party that the armor was blue and gold."
"The merchant who sold this set of armor to Alexander the Great specially gave him a blue and gold colored Jinhaori as a gift."
"From the looks of it, it is indeed a set of armor that combines both performance and beauty."
"It's a pity that Alexander the Great can't wear such armor."
Skulucci gestured to his belly in an exaggerated manner.
"With Alexander's big belly, there's no way he can fit into the armor."
"Only someone with a well-proportioned figure like me can wear that armor."
"Really? I don't know why Alexander bought this kind of armor that he can't even wear..."
Skulucci, whose values ​​are completely different from Alexander's, totally does not understand why Alexander would spend a lot of money to buy a set of armor that he can't even wear.
Skulucci and his friends chatted along the way and before they knew it they had returned to their camp.
"Okay, everyone disperse." Skulucci waved to the people behind him, "Everyone should do their own things first."
"I'll go back to the tent and take a nap."
After saying that, Skulucci yawned loudly.
"I got up a little too early today."
"After I wake up, we can slowly prepare to dismantle the camp and move."
When Skulucci's order was given, the subordinates following Skulucci immediately scattered.
But only Vasili stayed where he was and did not leave immediately.
Vashili looked around, then lowered his voice and whispered to Skulucci:
"Boss Skuluch, after you meet up with Boss Alexander this time, you must not let him know that you attacked Vladimir and Alexei."
After Vasili led a large force to meet up with Skuluch, he, as the second-in-command of the army, immediately learned from Skuluch about all the things Skuluch had done when he was not acting with Skuluch.
Including helping the village of China which was attacked by Vladimir and Alexei.
The Cossack culture has a strong nomadic color, so there has always been a "barbaric" and "brutal" cultural atmosphere.
The phenomenon of "black eating black" is actually not new.
Just don't let anyone else find out.
Although Vladimir and Alexei were not under Alexander's command, they were still Cossacks and compatriots.
If Alexander had evidence that Skulucci had attacked his compatriots, Skulucci would definitely be in big trouble.
Hearing Vasili's reminder, Skulucci just smiled.
"Don't worry."
Sculucci said.
"I know what I'm doing."
Skulucci waved his hand.
"The situation in Europe is unstable right now."
"England, that country that is like a 'troublemaker', has been fanning the flames in Europe."
"There is a revolution in France now."
"It is obvious that His Majesty the Tsar has now focused all his energy on dealing with the rapidly changing situation in Europe. He has not paid much attention to the affairs of the Far East."
"It's been a long time since we've had any good talent come to the Far East."
"I am now the most capable subordinate under Boss Alexander."
"He won't be willing to abandon me."
"Even if Boss Alexander finds out what I've done, he will probably just make a big deal out of a small matter."
…
…
Somewhere in Ezo—
"Grandfather Jiang! Tell us more about your time as a bounty hunter."
Hearing this, Grandfather Jiang smiled bitterly:
"I don't have any stories left to tell..."
Grandfather Jiang - the "former bounty hunter" who used to make a living by bounty hunting and now came to Ezo to pursue the "gold rush dream" in order to make a fortune.
I met Ogata once last summer in the castle tower of Nijo Castle.
Some time ago, after confessing to his companions that he had met the famous Ogata Issey in Kyoto, his companions always asked him to tell more stories about his "encounter with Ogata Issey" at that time.
He had only met Ogata Issue once, so there were not many stories about Ogata Issue to tell.
After talking about "Ogata Yoshisei" for two days, his companions finally got tired of it and started asking him to tell other stories about his time as a "bounty hunter".
Stories are limited. After telling stories for so many days, Grandfather Jiang has finally told all the stories in his heart.
After seeing Grandfather Jiang repeatedly emphasize that he had no stories to tell, the people who had just asked Grandfather Jiang to tell stories curled their lips and ignored Grandfather Jiang after seeing that Grandfather Jiang really seemed to have no stories to tell.
Grandfather Jiang and his companions who also hold the "gold rush dream" are now in a lush forest.
They were now following their leader to the next river where gold might be found.
At this moment, after trekking for more than an hour, they were resting in the woods.
Grandfather Jiang leaned against a big tree behind him and relaxed his numb legs.
As he closed his eyes tightly and rested, Grandfather Jiang patted a piece of cloth bag placed in his arms.
This cloth bag contains all the gold sand he has found since joining the team.
Although the number is not large, it is enough for him to not have to worry about food and drink for the next year - of course, the premise is that there is no natural or man-made disaster such as "Tianming famine" that will have a huge impact on the entire society.
Just as Grandfather Jiang was resting quietly, a deep male voice sounded from beside him:
"Grandfather Jiang, what's wrong? Why do you look so uncomfortable?"
Hearing this voice, Grandfather Jiang suddenly opened his eyes.
"Ah, Chief."
The owner of this deep male voice is none other than the leader of their gold-mining team - Busikawa.
Busi River is not a nickname, but a real surname.
It is a very rare and strange surname, just like "Grandfather Jiang".
"I'm not feeling uncomfortable." Grandfather Jiang said immediately, "I just feel a little tired, so I closed my eyes and rested for a while."
"Really...that's good." After saying that, Buseichuan sat cross-legged next to his grandfather Jiang.
"If you feel unwell, please tell me immediately."
"Yes!" Grandfather Jiang nodded vigorously.
Grandfather Jiang had great respect for their leader .
Grandfather Jiang respected him very much, both in terms of ability and character.
As a leader, he has a kind personality and treats all team members equally without any discrimination.
His outstanding leadership charm made everyone in the team, including Grandfather Jiang, follow him willingly.
And his ability as the "leader of the gold rush team" is also outstanding.
As a "gold rush veteran", he has led his team to find a lot of gold so far.
It is difficult for everyone not to respect such a leader who is full of charisma and capable of leading everyone to wealth.
"We are quite close to the Red Moon Fortress now." Sitting cross-legged next to Grandfather Jiang and leaning against the same tree as Grandfather Jiang, Busei-kawa said slowly, "So remember not to be too careless. You were a little careless just now. You actually closed your eyes and rested your mind so carelessly."
"Ten, ten thousand apologies!" After apologizing , Grandfather Jiang asked cautiously, "That... 'Red Moon Fortress' is the Ezo settlement with the iron cannon, right?"
My grandfather Jiang Zeng heard the name of the "Red Moon Fortress" by chance when he first landed in Ezo.
"Yes, that's right. It's the 'Red Moon Fortress'." Busikawa nodded, "It is said that many Ezo living in the 'Red Moon Fortress' are very hostile to the Japanese."
"And I quite hate gold diggers."
"Whenever they meet a gold digger, they always—"
Busui raised his hand and touched his neck.
"The Ezo people in Red Moon Fortress really like to wear bright red clothes."
"So if you encounter an Ezo wearing bright red clothes, be extra careful."
After hearing what Busikawa said, Grandfather Jiang couldn't help but swallow hard, with a look of fear on his face.
"The Ezo people in Red Moon Fortress...are they so scary...they kill gold diggers whenever they see them..."
Looking at his grandfather Jiang's reaction, Busei laughed a few times.
“Hahahahahahahaha.”
After laughing, Busui River patted his grandfather Jiang's shoulder.
"Don't worry. The Ezo in Red Moon Fortress are scary, but it's not that easy to run into them."
"I just wanted to scare you."
"I have been panning for gold for six years, and in these six years I have never encountered a single Ezo from the Red Moon Fortress in the wild."
"Although we should be cautious, we don't need to be too scared."
"Chief, it turns out you have been panning for gold for so many years." Grandfather Jiang couldn't help but take a serious look at the chief's face, which didn't look very weathered.
"Yeah. I started panning for gold when I was 20." Busei's eyes showed a look of reminiscence, "My hometown is in Dewa, and when I was 20, the 'Tenmei Famine' was still raging."
"At that time, we were so poor that we were almost starving to death."
"In order to have enough food to eat, I decided to take a smuggling boat and sneak into Ezo to pan for gold."
"Although I have been panning for many years, I have never found any big gold mines. In the past six years, I have only found some gold sand. So I have never made a fortune."
As he spoke of this, a soft color began to appear in the depths of Busei's eyes.
"Gold mining is no easier than farming. And only one in ten thousand people can get rich from gold mining."
"And it's very dangerous. Whether you're caught panning for gold by the shogunate or the Ezo people, you'll be killed."
"I'm old now, and for the sake of the future, it's time to find a stable livelihood."
"So after this gold rush, I plan to stop gold rushing."
Grandfather Jiang cast a surprised look at the Busi River: "Chief, are you not going to come to pan for gold again?"
"Yeah. I don't plan to do it anymore." Busikawa smiled and nodded, "I plan to use the money I've saved from gold mining over the years to open a small shop in my hometown and make a living from small business in the future."
"Chief, are you not going to pan for gold anymore?" Grandfather Jiang looked frustrated. "I was thinking of following you to pan for gold..."
"Hahahaha." Busei laughed a few more times, "Sorry, I disappoint you."
After saying that, Busei subconsciously reached into his arms and took out a pipe and a cloth bag filled with tobacco leaves.
As soon as he put the mouth of the pipe into his mouth, Busui seemed to remember something and quickly took the pipe out of his mouth.
"No, no. I almost broke my vow."
"Chief, are you trying to quit smoking now?" Grandfather Jiang asked, "I've seen you do this many times before. You put the pipe in your mouth and then took it out immediately."
"Yeah. That's right. I am indeed trying to quit smoking now." Busui Chuan stuffed his pipe and the bag of tobacco leaves back into his arms, "Because my fiancée hates the smell of cigarettes."
"Fiancée?" Grandfather Jiang exclaimed in a low voice.
"Yes. She is my childhood sweetheart. With the help of a matchmaker, I successfully got engaged to her half a year ago."
"She hates the smell of cigarettes. So I'm trying to quit smoking now."
The tenderness in Busei's eyes became even more intense.
"After I finish this gold rush, I will go back home and marry her."
"So I have to quit smoking as soon as possible before that happens."
"Then I think you still have a long way to go, Chief." Grandfather Jiang smiled helplessly, "I just saw you smoking a pipe a few days ago."
A hint of embarrassment appeared on Busei's face.
"The so-called 'quit smoking' does not necessarily mean 'never smoke again'."
"'Reducing the number of times you smoke' is also a form of 'quitting smoking'."
"My current goal is to reduce the number of times I smoke."
"I smoke much less now than before."
"The reason why I was smoking a pipe a few days ago was because we successfully mined some gold sand a few days ago, and I started smoking because I was happy."
Busei patted the cigarette that he had just put back in his arms.
"Now I only start smoking when something happy happens to me."
"Save this cigarette for when something happy happens and smoke it as much as you want."
"...Cigarettes...Come to think of it, I have never smoked before." Grandfather Jiang said with a smile.
"Oh? Then do you want to try what cigarettes taste like?"
"Well...if you are willing to let me smoke, I would be happy to try the taste of cigarettes."
"Hahahaha! Then let's wait until I encounter something happy that's worth smoking, and then we can smoke together!"
"If I let you smoke now, I might break my vow when I smell the smoke."
After saying that, Busei looked at the sky, then patted his butt and stood up.
"Alright! Have you all rested enough?"
Busui River shouted to the people around him.
"Everyone, get up! It's time to move on!"
"We must leave these woods before evening."
As soon as Busei finished saying this, there were scattered cries of grief all around.
"Hey..." someone said, "Leave these woods before dusk? Isn't that too late?"
"It's a bit rushed, but there's nothing we can do about it." Busui River said, "The trees in this forest are too dense and there's no water source. It's not suitable for setting up camp."
"And this densely wooded forest is also very dangerous. These big trees are very good for hiding. This kind of densely wooded area is the most suitable place to launch a surprise attack on people. So it is better to leave here quickly and go to an open area."
Busei has the reputation and prestige in the team, and he has spoken in such a serious tone that no one dares to disobey.
"Chief, this is a remote place with no village in front and no shop behind." A guy stood up and said in a frivolous tone, "Except for bears, deer and other animals, there will be no other people here except us."
Crash, crash, crash—!
At this moment, there were sudden rustling sounds all around.
It's the sound of people's feet stepping on the snow!
As soon as the sound of footsteps on the snow began, a series of human figures appeared from behind a big tree some distance away from Busui River and the others.
After appearing, they rushed towards Busei and others quickly, raising the objects in their hands while closing the distance between them.
There are two kinds of things in their hands - bows and arrows and... muskets!
Holding a bow and arrow, he aimed the arrow at Busei and the others.
Those holding muskets pointed the black muzzles at Busei and the others.
Bang, bang, bang…
The sound of gunfire and bowstrings being released intertwined, breaking the silence of the woods.
These people who suddenly appeared were all wearing bright red Ainu costumes without exception.
…
…
Matsumae Domain, Matsumae Castle——
Matsudaira Sadanobu was now flipping through a file in his hand.
This file records all the details of the "Naturalized Ezo Riot" incident the day before.
From the casualties of civilians to the casualties of generals and soldiers, to the current investigation results...this file covers everything.
Tachibana, the young lady who was almost inseparable from Matsudaira Sadanobu, was now kneeling respectfully not far behind Matsudaira Sadanobu.
After reading the last character on the file, Matsudaira Sadanobu closed the file and let out a long sigh:
"It seems... whether it's Aizu or Sendai, we seem to have underestimated their strength."
"We were able to defeat the rioters with only such a small number of casualties."
"In this environment where samurai are generally corrupt, it is rare that Aizu and Sendai can still have such brave generals."
"What's even more precious is that, except for the Sheng Tianmu, these warriors from Aizu and Sendai are all very young..."
After saying this, Matsudaira Sadanobu sighed deeply as if he had said something sad.
"What a pity! It would be great if such young talents could be used by our shogunate."
The file that Matsudaira Sadanobu had just finished reading detailed the performance of the Aizu and Sendai armies in suppressing the riot.
From the explanation in the files, it is not difficult to see that the reason why the Aizu and Sendai armies were able to defeat the thugs in such a short time and with such low casualties was not only because Matsudaira Sadanobu sent the shogunate army's arquebusiers to block the thugs' retreat, but also because the generals of the Sendai and Aizu armies were brave enough.
The generals of both armies led the charge, and while inspiring the morale of their soldiers, they also used their martial arts skills, which allowed them to defeat a hundred enemies at once, to tear the ranks and formations of the thugs into pieces.
This made Matsudaira Sadanobu feel a little envious.
There are many generals in their shogunate army who know how to deploy troops .
But there are not many brave generals who are outstanding in martial arts and can lead the troops.
In terms of bravery, the only one who can be compared with Gamo and the Seven Spears of Senshu is probably Inamori, the commander-in-chief of the entire army.
Matsudaira Sadanobu was touched by the current talent pool...especially the decline of young talent, and couldn't help but sigh.
There are too few young talents worth watching - this is one of Matsudaira Sadanobu's biggest concerns since he took office as Senior Councillor.
"There are fewer and fewer young talents worth cultivating in our shogunate now."
Matsudaira Sadanobu then added another sigh.
At this moment, a figure suddenly flashed through Matsudaira Sadanobu's mind.
After this figure flashed through Matsudaira Sadanobu's mind, he narrowed his eyes slightly and slowly clenched his hands behind his back.
The owner of this figure is the "talent worth cultivating" that he has always been thinking about.
What a pity - this guy stood him up and there has been no news from him since.
When I thought about being stood up by this guy, I felt a little... angry.
Not just angry at being deceived.
At the same time, he was also angry that a young talent worthy of training disappeared right under his nose.
"Master, Lord?" Tachibana noticed that Matsudaira Sadanobu was acting strangely, and asked cautiously, "What's wrong with you?"
"…Nothing." Matsudaira Sadanobu gently shook his head, "I just suddenly thought of someone who gave me bad memories."
"Tachibana, go and call Inamori for me."
"The soldiers, the baggage, the reason for the war - all these are ready."
Matsudaira Sadanobu said in a deep voice.
"It's time to start raising the three-leaf sunflower flag of my shogunate on the Red Moon Fortress."