"Is Toyotomi... the Toyotomi of Toyotomi Hideyoshi?" Atachi asked in a cautious tone.
Lin nodded: "Yes, it's Toyotomi of Toyotomi Hideyoshi."
"Where should I start..." Lin stretched out her right index finger and scratched the hair at her right temple.
"You all probably still remember Shiranui who was killed by our combined efforts half a year ago, right?"
"Shiranui and our Toyotomi clan had a deep connection more than 200 years ago."
"In the Warring States Period more than 200 years ago, Shiranui was just an unknown ninja."
"It was not until I received help from my ancestor Toyotomi Hideyoshi that I became stronger."
"Shiranui grew stronger because of the Toyotomi clan, and the Toyotomi clan survived because of Shiranui."
"After Toyotomi Hideyoshi's death, Tokugawa Ieyasu, who had been under Toyotomi Hideyoshi's command, showed his fangs and usurped the power of the country from the hands of the Toyotomi clan. He then launched the Osaka Winter Campaign and the Osaka Summer Campaign, and successfully conquered the Toyotomi clan."
"Osaka Castle, the base of the Toyotomi clan, was burned down."
"Head of the Toyotomi clan: Toyotomi Hideyori committed seppuku when Osaka Castle fell."
"Hideyori Toyotomi's 8-year-old only son, Kunimatsu Toyotomi, was also beheaded at Rokujogawara."
"Only Toyotomi Hideyori's only daughter, Chiyohime, survived, but she also became a nun under the coercion of Tokugawa Ieyasu."
"The above is the final outcome of the Toyotomi clan as recorded in official history books."
“But the real history is not like this.”
"When Tokugawa Ieyasu launched the second Battle of Osaka, the Summer Campaign of Osaka, and completely destroyed the Toyotomi clan, someone risked his life to rush into the Osaka Castle, which was already engulfed in flames and blazed to the sky, and rescued Toyotomi Hideyori's only son: Toyotomi Kunimatsu."
"The one who risked his life to save others was none other than the Shiranui ninja who had received great favor from the Toyotomi clan."
"The 'Toyotomi Kunimatsu' who was beheaded at Rokujo River was just a stand-in whose appearance was indistinguishable from the real Kunimatsu."
"After being rescued, Kunimatsu was taken to Satsuma, far away from the ruling center of the Edo Shogunate, and changed back to Toyotomi Hideyoshi's original surname, Kinoshita. Since then, he has lived in seclusion in Satsuma under the name of Kinoshita, and has continued to thrive to this day. "
"This is... my and my uncle's family history."
"Both my uncle and I are direct descendants of the Toyotomi clan."
It was as if the "time stop button" was pressed. The room became silent as Lin finished speaking, and no one moved.
After a long while, Ating, who looked incredulous, muttered, breaking the silence:
"Shiranui... So there was such a history..."
If we were to say who was most shocked by what Lin had just said, it would undoubtedly be Atachi, who had once been a member of Shiranui.
Ogata had seen a lot of storms, so his reaction was relatively calm and his expression was relatively cool.
"It's normal that you don't know." Lin said, "More than two hundred years ago, after successfully rescuing Toyotomi Kunimatsu, in order to ensure that the secret of 'the bloodline of the Toyotomi clan was not cut off' would not be leaked, the ninjas who organized and planned the operation to rescue the Toyotomi clan kept this secret and did not mention it to anyone - including their families and the rest of the companions in Shiranui."
"After the ninjas who participated in the rescue of the Toyotomi clan died one by one, no one in Shiranui knew that their companions and predecessors had ever performed such a feat."
"The only ones who know about 'Shiranui's rescue of the Toyotomi clan' are the descendants of our Toyotomi clan."
In addition to Atachi, who was once a member of Shiranui, there is another person whose expression is quite interesting - that is Shimada.
"My lord... So you... are the descendant of Toyotomi Hideyoshi..." Shimada's face flushed slightly due to his excitement.
At this moment, Shimada suddenly realized that the three people sitting next to him, Mamiya, Makimura, and Asai, all had very calm expressions...
It seemed as if he already knew the backgrounds of Lin, Yuanyi and the others...
"Seniors." Shimada quickly turned his gaze, repeatedly passing his eyes over the faces of Mamiya, Makimura, and Asai. "Have you all known the lord's secret for a long time?"
"Yes." Mucun, with his arms folded across his chest, said frankly, "We knew it a long time ago. After all, the three of us are old people in Huluwu."
"Shimada, you're a newcomer who just joined not long ago." Mamiya gave Shimada a slightly apologetic smile, "So I can't tell you this important secret yet. The few of us also joined the Calabash House and worked under the lord for a long time. After being tested by the lord and confirmed that we are trustworthy people, we were told this secret."
"So that's how it is..." Shimada raised his hand and scratched the back of his head. "If that's the case, then I can understand... After all, it's impossible to tell such an important secret to someone who has just arrived..."
"So...I have always been working for the Toyotomi clan?"
"I never thought that Shiranui would have such a connection with the lord..."
Having said this, Shimada paused as if he suddenly remembered something.
"Then... in this case..." Shimada looked at Lin with a strange expression, "Half a year ago, we conquered Shiranui... does that count as being ungrateful?"
"Of course not." Lin said without hesitation, "Shiranui helped the Toyotomi clan - this is considered a return of favor."
"After all, it was the Toyotomi clan who first showed favor to Shiranui."
"Without the help of the Toyotomi clan, how could there be any Shiranui?"
"So, since Shiranui rescued Kunimatsu, we are even with the Toyotomi clan. No one owes anyone anything anymore."
"So I don't have any psychological burden in defeating Shiranui."
"...Although we all know the lord's background..." Asai, who was taciturn and had not spoken since the beginning, suddenly said, "But the lord has a brother - I didn't know that at all."
"I don't know either." Makura agreed.
Mamiya didn't say anything.
But he turned his doubtful gaze to Lin.
Judging from their words and actions, none of them knew that Lin had an older brother named "Toyotomi Nobuhide".
Lin's eyes dimmed slightly at this moment.
"…The reason I didn't tell you that I have a brother is because…I don't really want to mention anything about that person."
Genichi, who was sitting next to Lin, glanced at Lin.
Looking at Lin's gloomy expression, Yuan Yi let out a silent sigh.
"Next..." Genichi said, "Let me speak."
"Toyotomi Kunimatsu was rescued and sent to a remote countryside in Satsuma, and the Toyotomi bloodline was continued."
"A few diehard Toyotomi clan members were also rescued there."
"The throne of the world was taken away by the Tokugawa clan. Those loyalists who were rescued and brought to Satsuma Domain were so unwilling to accept this that they gritted their teeth and wished they could break them."
"So in order to regain the world, they strictly trained Toyotomi Kunimatsu, who changed his name to Kinoshita Nobuji to conceal his identity."
"And under the influence of his surroundings, Toyotomi Kunimatsu also took the restoration of the 'Toyotomi Kingdom' as his highest goal and worked hard to improve himself."
"However...restoring a country...I don't need to explain in detail. You should all know how difficult it is and how slim the success rate is, right?"
"Toyotomi Kunimatsu also knew that it was almost impossible to restore the country successfully with just his own generation."
"So after having his own children, Toyotomi Kunimatsu gave them... a brainwashing-like education."
"He told his descendants the bitter history of how the Toyotomi clan had survived to this day, and taught them that they must restore the Toyotomi clan, even if it took hundreds of generations, and take back the throne of the world."
"This education... is like a curse , passed down from generation to generation."
Genichi sneered at himself.
"Every generation of our Toyotomi clan has been taught to overthrow the Edo shogunate and rebuild the Toyotomi kingdom."
"It has been passed on and on until now, and the curse has not ended."
"You should also know that Toyotomi Hideyoshi was a man with poor fertility. He had many wives and concubines, but he only had two children in his entire life. One of the children died young. Only Toyotomi Hideyori survived and grew up successfully."
"Toyotomi Hideyoshi's difficulty in fertility was unfortunately passed down to the family."
"Although we have been thriving for two hundred years, our Toyotomi clan is still declining. When it came to my generation, there were only two direct descendants in my generation - me and my younger brother... Lin's grandfather."
"My father was also a person deeply affected by that 'curse'."
"As long as I can remember, my father has taught me to 'restore the Toyotomi clan.'"
"But maybe it's because my brain is different from that of ordinary people."
Genichi smiled and shrugged.
"So even though I have been subjected to this kind of education that is like a 'curse' since I was young, I have not been harmed by this 'curse'."
"I have never been interested in 'reviving the Toyotomi clan'."
"When I was 13 years old and first came into contact with swordsmanship, I lost interest in 'restoring the Toyotomi clan'."
"The reason why I came into contact with swordsmanship so late is also thanks to my father. He always thought that swordsmanship can only achieve the goal of defeating ten or a hundred people at most, which is not helpful for reviving the Toyotomi clan. He always forced me to learn military strategies that can achieve the goal of defeating ten thousand people, as well as the emperor's mentality."
"I came into contact with swordsmanship through various coincidences and accidents."
"After learning swordsmanship, my interest in swordsmanship completely overshadowed my interest in 'reviving the Toyotomi clan'."
“My father was furious when he saw this.”
"Originally, I tried to argue with my father and even told him that reviving Toyotomi was a sheer pipe dream."
"But my father has been too deeply affected by the 'curse' and he won't listen to me at all."
"So, when I was 16 years old, in order to escape from my father who had gone insane, and to travel around and further hone my swordsmanship, I left home and left Satsuma."
"When I left home, I tried to persuade my brother Kinoshita Katsuichi, who was two years younger than me, to leave as well."
"But - Katsuichi is different from me. He was perfectly affected by the 'curse'."
"Not only did he not intend to leave home with me, he also planned to report me to his father."
"I had no choice but to leave alone."
"After leaving home to practice, I have thought about going back home several times - but for some reason, all kinds of troubles always come to me."
"Sometimes, just quietly going to a noodle shop to eat some noodles can lead to being inexplicably dragged into trouble..."
"But thanks to these successive troubles, my swordsmanship has improved rapidly."
Ogata was stunned at first when he heard what Genichi said.
Then, as if he had found a soulmate, he nodded heavily with a strange expression full of emotion on his face.
He could relate to what Genichi just said.
He would never forget it - half a year ago in the summer, he just went to a noodle shop in Kyoto to eat some noodles, and suddenly several police officers rushed in to arrest him, and then he was inexplicably involved in trouble... and then he spent the longest night of his life in Kyoto.
"It wasn't until I was 24 that I finally had the time and leisure to go home."
"I came back home after 8 years - I didn't expect that everything has changed."
“The house is still the same house, but the parents are gone.”
"The only people left at home are Katsuichi and a strange girl - that is Katsuichi Kinoshita's wife, and my sister-in-law: Aruo."
"I came back home this time because I wanted to take this opportunity to persuade my father, Shengyi and the others not to be harmed by the 'curse' again..."
"After eight years of traveling abroad, my horizons have broadened a lot."
"It also made me more convinced that 'restoring the Toyotomi clan is a complete pipe dream.'"
"After eight years of traveling, my eloquence has improved significantly, giving me the confidence to convince my father and others."
"Who knew that my father had passed away..."
"I haven't seen Shengyi for 8 years. He has grown into a handsome man."
"I thought I'd have a chance to sober him up."
"But who would have thought that after not seeing him for eight years, he would be even more poisoned."
"Not only did he not listen to my advice, he also called me a traitor and a fool who only knew how to swing a sword, and told me to get out of his sight."
"At that time, I was full of vigor and vitality. Shengyi was so stubborn and spoke rudely to me, which made me angry."
"I yelled at him, 'Then fend for yourself! I don't care about you anymore!' Then I slammed the door and left."
"When I slammed the door and left, I sincerely thought that I would never have any contact with Shengyi again. He could do whatever he wanted."
"Not long after I left home, I ended up at Nagasaki Port, the only port in Japan currently open to foreign countries, due to a series of coincidences."
“There, I met a very powerful businessman friend.”
"With his invitation and help, I boarded a Dutch merchant ship that was willing to take me abroad."
"At that time, I had already intended to travel abroad and see a wider world."
"However, due to the Edo Shogunate's isolation order, my wish has been delayed."
"The lockdown order stipulates that no Japanese citizen is allowed to leave the country. If a merchant ship helps a Japanese citizen leave the country, that merchant will never be allowed to come to Japan again."
"Because of this troublesome regulation, only one merchant ship out of a hundred is willing to take people abroad."
"There are merchant ships willing to take me abroad - this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
"I hesitated for a long time, but finally decided not to miss this rare opportunity."
"The merchant ship that was willing to take me was a Dutch merchant ship. They were going back to the Netherlands."
"So, I took this merchant ship, left Japan, and headed to the European continent in the west."
"Originally, my original plan was to travel to the Netherlands for a year or so, and then return to Japan."
"But who knows - accidents happen all the time."
"After one year in the Netherlands, I boarded a commercial ship to Japan."
"However, when the merchant ship arrived at the English Channel, it encountered a storm and the entire ship sank. I held onto a piece of wood and floated to England."
"At that time, I could only speak Dutch and a little Chinese, so I couldn't communicate with the English at all. It was a difficult time when I drifted to England. I could only communicate with people through actions and momentum."
"Then, due to various coincidences, I arrived in France, on the other side of England."
"Then I got involved in some trouble and had to flee to the Holy Roman Empire in the east."
"After arriving in the Holy Roman Empire, various troubles continued to plague me. I went south to the Papal States, and then east to Russia."
"After arriving in Russia, I had no time to rest. By mistake, I boarded a ship to the American continent, which was even farther away from Japan."
"In short - bad luck has been following me since I went abroad. Every time I try to return home, various accidents happen and I get further and further away from Japan."
At this time, Ogata's mouth twitched.
He could no longer show an "I understand you" look to Yuan Yi as he did just now.
He originally thought that he and Yuan Yi were the same type of people, both of whom were easily entangled in various troubles.
And now... Ogata was shocked - how could he think that his level of "troublemaking" could be compared with Genichi's?
"After arriving in the American continent, I finally boarded a ship to Japan with the help of a friend."
Yuan Yi's narration of his "legendary adventure" is not over yet.
"When I left Japan, I was a young man of 24."
“When I set foot on Japanese soil again, I was already 54 years old.”
“I’ve been away from Japan for 30 years.”
“I’ve spent more time abroad than I have in Japan.”
"Because I had been abroad for so long, it took me a long time to finally speak Japanese fluently again when I returned to China."
"On the eve of leaving Japan, I had made up my mind to never care about Shengyi again and let this stubborn fool fend for himself."
"But after 30 years of working abroad, my character has become much more mature. I am no longer as impulsive and hot-tempered as I was when I was young."
"As I grew older and became more mature, I also understood Shengyi's hostility towards me."
"After returning to Japan after 30 years, the first thing I did was to go back to my hometown. I wanted to see Katsuichi and reconcile with him."
“After returning to my hometown at nearly 60 years old, I finally understood what it meant to have ‘things have changed and people have changed’.”
“The house in my hometown has become more dilapidated.”
"Shengyi is no longer at home."
"I only saw the very old Aruo, a strange young woman, and a 9-year-old girl."
"Although we haven't seen each other for 30 years, Aruo still remembers me. She recognized me as her brother right away."
"After her explanation, I learned that Shengyi had already passed away due to illness."
"The young woman in the house is Shengyi and Aruo's daughter-in-law."
"And that 9-year-old girl is Shengyi and Aruo's granddaughter—that is, Xiaolin."