"Mr. Chanup?" Seeing that Chanup seemed in a daze, Ogata called Chanup's name softly.
Chanup, who had come back to his senses after hearing Ogata's gentle call, said hurriedly:
"Sorry, I was distracted."
Chanup coughed softly a few times, then said seriously:
"Mr. Majima, let's assume for now that you can really break through the shogunate's blockade..."
"If you really break through the blockade of the shogunate army and then successfully find your friend...then what do you want your friend to do for us? Help us repel the shogunate army outside the city?"
As soon as Chanup spoke, Xu Fang immediately said in a serious tone:
"certainly."
"Mr. Chanup, you should also know that if we just defend this fortress, our chances of winning are extremely low."
Chanup took a deep puff of his cigarette and remained silent.
"You are too few in number. Without external assistance, the only way to repel the shogunate troops outside the city is to delay them until their supplies are exhausted."
"Excuse me for saying this, but your numbers are too small. It is very likely that all of you will be killed in the battle, and you will not be able to hold out until the day when the shogunate's supplies run out."
"So my plan is simple."
Ogata shifted his gaze back to the map in front of him.
"You must defend this fortress and resist the attack of the shogunate army."
"I invited my friend and his cavalry to come over. When the shogunate army was focusing on attacking the fortress, I launched a surprise attack on the shogunate army's weakly defended flank. With a lightning-fast attack, I defeated the shogunate army in one fell swoop."
Ogata, who was concentrating his eyes on the map, saw from the corner of his eye that Chanup, who was sitting opposite him, had his eyes wide open and his mouth opened so wide that it felt like a fist could fit in.
Ogata remained silent for the time being, giving Chanup, who was still immersed in shock, some time to recover.
After all, Chanup was a man who had seen a lot of storms, so he quickly recovered.
He did not raise any questions about what Ogata had just said.
Instead, he frowned and cast his gaze on the map spread between him and Ogata.
"...Mr. Majima." Chanup said, "How long will it take you to invite your friend's cavalry over?"
Ogata said:
"Today I found someone who is familiar with the area depicted on this map and asked him in detail about the details of this map."
"According to that person, there are no bears, wolves or other wild animals along the way from Red Moon Fortress to where my friend is currently."
"Because the terrain is not complicated, it is rare for the road to be blocked by sudden avalanches."
"I've estimated that, unless anything unexpected happens, it will take about seven days to get from Red Moon Fortress to my friend's place by horseback."
"A round trip takes 14 days."
"14 days..." Chanup said softly, "Counting the time it takes to convince your friends to help and the time it takes to reorganize the troops, it will take about half a month..."
"Half a month... With such a long time, the shogunate's follow-up troops will probably arrive."
"Even if we invite your friend's cavalry over... using a cavalry of less than a hundred people to attack an army of 10,000... can it really defeat an army of 10,000?"
"able."
Ogata's answer was brief—but decisive.
"An elite cavalry unit of less than a hundred people, and an army of ten thousand people - the difference in combat power between the two is actually not so great that there is no chance of victory."
"My friend's cavalry is small in number but has considerable combat power. The horses they use are much stronger than those of the shogunate army."
"Although the shogunate army has a large number of troops, this army of 10,000 is not the battle-hardened army that experienced the baptism of the Warring States Period 200 years ago. Whether it is combat effectiveness or fighting will, it is not unshakable."
"The flanks of an army are its weakest point besides the rear."
"As long as we lead a group of elite cavalry to launch an unexpected flank attack, we can enter the enemy's territory without any warning."
"The cavalry's high speed and destructive power can make it difficult for the army to organize an effective defense. Even if the number of cavalry is less than 100, they can defeat the shogunate army."
"When the morale of the shogunate army collapses, that will be the moment we win."
Chanup had been listening attentively.
Ogata finished speaking, but he remained silent for a long time.
Ogata was not in a hurry and waited for Chanup to react.
"...It sounds like a strategy with a much higher chance of success than simply 'defending the fortress'." Chanup was silent for a while, then slowly said, "But the question is - are you 100% sure that your friend is now at the place marked on the map?"
"Let's assume that your friend will definitely be there. Then - Mr. Majima, how are you going to convince your friend to help us?"
"Although your strategy has a higher chance of success than 'defending the fortress', it is also extremely dangerous. Even if you succeed in repelling the shogunate army with a surprise attack, your friend's cavalry will surely suffer heavy casualties."
"How are you going to convince your friend to help with this extremely dangerous favor?"
"No matter how you think about it, it's extremely difficult to convince your friend..."
"…I know this is difficult." Ogata said softly, "but I can only give it a try."
"If your friend is unwilling to help you...what are you going to do?" Chanup asked.
"Mr. Chanup, there's no need to ask questions like this whose answers are obvious." After saying this in a joking tone, Ogata said word by word, "Whether my friend is willing to help or not is just the difference between a cavalry unit attacking the shogunate army or one person attacking the shogunate army."
Chanup looked at Ogata somewhat absentmindedly.
"...Mr. Mashima." Chanup looked at Ogata in front of him with a look that seemed to see through his body, "I am increasingly doubting whether you are a hero who enjoys a great reputation in 'Wajindi'..."
After speaking, Chanup took a deep breath.
After slowly exhaling this deep breath——
"Mr. Majima, are you sure you want to do something so dangerous? You are Kazuto, you can actually try to surrender to the shogunate army outside the city..."
"You mean to open the city gates and let my wife and I walk slowly to the military camp outside the city to surrender to the shogunate?" Ogata's tone was full of joking. "Then how can I explain to the shogunate why two Japanese people like us are in this Ainu fortress?"
"In order to check our identities, I'm afraid it will be very troublesome for my wife and me."
Finally, Ogata added silently in his heart:
——If the shogunate army saw a man whose age, build and voice resembled Ogata Ittosai appear in front of them, God knows what they would do.
Chanup pursed his lips:
"...Mashima-san, I understand."
Chanup, with a serious face, performed the great ritual of respecting Japanese people - the dogeza - towards Ogata in front of him.
"Please... lend us a helping hand!"
Ogata bowed in return:
"I will give it my all."
"Mr. Majima is so courageous, so I can't be so petty." Chanup straightened his back again, "Mr. Majima, if you meet your friend later, please tell him: If he is willing to lend a hand to us, I will give him half of our Heye Zhe... no, two-thirds of our property."
"And promise him: if he encounters anything in the future that requires help, we, He Yezhe, will do our best to help him as long as we can."
"This way, your chances of successfully convincing your friends should be a bit better."
"Two-thirds of the property?" Ogata let out a low exclamation.
"Money is just something outside of our body." Chanup said, "If we can't protect our homeland, all this money will only be given to the wolves outside the city."
"...I understand." Ogata nodded solemnly. "Thank you very much. With your two assurances, I am more confident that I can convince my friend to help."
"I should be the one who says 'I'm very grateful'." Chanup shook his head. "You are willing to fight alongside us at this critical moment. To be honest, I am so moved that I don't know how to thank you..."
"I am only doing this for myself and my wife who is still unable to move." Ogata said calmly, "So there is no need to thank me. You and I are just on the same front because of our common interests."
"Same front... This is the first time I've heard of this term. Haha, this term is quite appropriate."
After saying that, Chanup raised the pipe in his hand and took a deep puff.
He slowly let out a few big eye circles and turned his attention back to the map.
"I have carefully reviewed your plan. There are four major difficulties in your plan."
"One: Can you successfully break through the blockade of the shogunate army outside the city and find your friend?"
"Two: Can you ask your friends to help?"
"Three: After you invite your friend's cavalry over, can you defeat the shogunate's army?"
"And... the last 'four': Can we defend the fortress until you and your reinforcements arrive..."
Chanup smiled bitterly: "None of these four difficulties is easy to solve... If any of these four difficulties goes wrong, the entire plan will fail."
Ogata also smiled bitterly.
"Although it's difficult, we have no choice but to go ahead with it."
Chanup took another long drag on his cigarette.
"...Mashima-san. I have a helper here who might be able to help you break through the shogunate blockade outside the city."
…
…
Red Moon Fortress, Kunoa's clinic—
"I'm back." Ogata shouted "I'm back" and walked quickly into the clinic.
As soon as he returned to the clinic, Kunoya's teasing voice reached Ogata's ears:
"Young man, you are finally back. When we parted at the 'old place' just now, I thought you would not come back for a while."
"I didn't expect you to come back so quickly."
"Let me tell you an interesting story - your wife has been looking at the door of the clinic hundreds of times during the time you have been away."
"I'm a little worried that your wife's neck might be sprained from turning her head frequently to look at the door."
As soon as Kunoya finished speaking, Atachi immediately shouted at Kunoya with a slightly red face, like a child who had done something bad and was exposed:
"He didn't even tell me what he was doing and he hasn't come back. Isn't it normal for me to be worried about him?"
Ogata smiled at what Kunoya and Atachi had just said, and then said to Kunoya seriously:
"Cunoya, excuse me, could you please leave the clinic for a moment? I have something I want to talk to my wife about in private."
Kunoya didn't say anything about Ogata's request to leave.
After shrugging with a smile, Kunoya said in a joking tone:
"I feel like my clinic is almost becoming your and your couple's private home."
After making a joke, Kunoya strode out of the clinic.
When leaving the clinic, Kunoya couldn't wait to take out her pipe and stuff tobacco into it.
After watching Kunoya leave, Ogata pulled out the Daishakuten from his waist, held it with his right hand, and then knelt beside Atachi.
"A-Ting, you... just listen to me quietly."
Ogata took several deep breaths.
After he had gathered all his strength and made sufficient psychological preparations, Ogata slowly informed Ating of his plan to form an alliance with Chanup, as well as... his bold plan of "Chanupu defending the city and absorbing firepower, while he leads the cavalry to launch a flank attack."
Ating lay on the floor, listening quietly to Ogata's story.
Even until Ogata finished speaking, Atachi remained silent, staring straight at the rooftop. The expression on her face was difficult for Ogata to understand.
As Ogata anxiously waited for Atachi's reaction—
"The chances of success of your plan... although at first glance it does seem to be slightly higher than simply 'defending the fortress', it's not that much higher..."
"If your plan can succeed... it can be described as a 'miracle'..."
Suddenly, the silent atmosphere in the room was broken by A-Ming's whisper.
Before Ogata could react to what Atachi had just said, Atachi continued:
"Okay...be careful on your way."
A-machi stretched out her left hand and covered the right palm of Ogata, who was sitting on her left.
Ogata cast a surprised look at Atachi.
Noticing Ogata's gaze, Atachi said in an unpleasant tone:
"Why are you looking at me like that? As if you're surprised to hear my answer..."
"I am indeed surprised..." Ogata nodded seriously, "I thought... you would definitely object to me doing such a dangerous thing..."
"Even if I object, it won't be of any use, right?"
Ating gave a helpless smile.
" During the time you were missing, I was actually thinking about how to get you to leave here with me."
"And I thought about it... I found that what you said before was right... Apart from repelling the shogunate army outside the city, there is really no other way..."
A-Machi turned her head and looked directly into Ogata's eyes.
" You must have made up your mind about your plan to repel the shogunate troops outside the city , right?"
"After being with you for so long, I have more than recognized which movements you often make when you lie to me."
"At the same time, I also recognized the look in your eyes. It's the look you get when you make up your mind."
"You have made up your mind. Even if I try to stop you, I will not be able to stop you."
"In that case - just go ahead and do it."
A-machi slowly tightened her left hand around Ogata's right palm.
“Just do it.”
"Go and accomplish...what you are supposed to accomplish."
Ogata's expression was a little dull.
Feeling the strength coming from his own palm, Ogata pursed his lips and nodded vigorously.
"I'll be back soon," he said.
After saying that, Ogata paused.
Then——
"A-Ming, you just said that if my plan succeeds, it can be described as a 'miracle'."
He said with a smile on his face.
"So do you believe in miracles?"
A-Machi looked straight into Ogata's eyes seriously.
"...I believe it." Ating smiled faintly and nodded gently.
…
…
"Are you combing your dog's hair?" Chanup said as he slowly walked towards his sled dogs who were squatting in front of him and combed their hair.
Tang Shen turned his head and looked at Chanup behind him, "This is my habit. When I comb my dog's hair, I will unconsciously calm down."
"...Impurity." Chanup said in a calm and steady tone, "I have a method that may help you leave here."
"Would you like to hear it?"
"It's just that this method is a bit bold. You should be mentally prepared before listening."