I formed the strongest swordsman group.

Chapter 995 Qingdeng wins! The "Nanji Faction" wins! The civil war comes to an end! [4600]

The noisy sound of footsteps... and the clanging of weapons...

Iwakura Tomomi has pointy ears.

Amidst the strange noises, he keenly heard a hoarse roar:
"Run! Everyone, run!"

"The thief is at Xuanqiu Gate!"

"Damn it! Call for reinforcements!"

"Notify the Shinsengumi! Seal off the 'Seven Gates of Kyoto'! Do not let the thieves escape from Kyoto."

The Seven Gates of Kyoto - the seven city gates separating "Rakuchu" from "Rakugao" - Nagasakaguchi, Kuramaguchi, Ōharaguchi, Awataguchi, Fushimiguchi, Torishigaguchi, and Tambaguchi.

The Imperial Palace was located in "Rakuchu".

If you want to go to the outside world from "Luozhong", you must pass through the "Seven Gates of the Capital".

The essence of "Luowai" is the castle town developed around "Luozhong" and there is no city wall around it.

In other words, the "Seven Gates of Kyoto" in "Kakachu" is the last line of defense to prevent Iwakura Tomomi and others from escaping!
Once Iwakura Tomomi and others leave "Luo Zhong" and escape to "Luo Wai", the sky will be high and the birds will fly freely, and the sea will be wide and the fish will jump freely!
Iwakura Tomomi gritted his teeth, his expression darkened:
“Damn it… have we been discovered…?”

The "three sacred weapons" have not arrived yet, but the enemy soldiers have arrived first...the situation suddenly becomes tense.

Fortunately, at this moment, he heard a confidant shouting:
"My lord! My lord! They are coming!"

Iwakura Tomomi quickly turned his head and looked in the direction of the sound, and saw that the team he had been thinking about was finally running towards them.

Without bothering to exchange pleasantries, he asked impatiently:
"Where are the 'Three Sacred Treasures'? Did you get the 'Three Sacred Treasures'?"

The leader pulled down the corner of his mouth and squeezed out an embarrassed expression:
"Your Excellency! There was an accident!"

"On the way to the treasury, we encountered enemy soldiers!"

"In the chaos of the battle, we only managed to grab... and recover the Yasakani no Magatama and the Yata Mirror!"

When Iwakura Tomomi heard this, he immediately frowned.

Only two of the "three sacred artifacts" were obtained... This would undoubtedly greatly reduce the "sacredness" of the royal family.

However, now that things have come to this, it is impossible to go back and get the "Sword of Ame-no-Kurosakumo".

Iwakura Tomomi quickly suppressed the negative emotions in his heart and said in a deep voice:

"That's fine!"

"As long as we can successfully take away the Emperor and the Crown Prince, we will win!"

"Let's withdraw!"

The group did not stay long and turned around to flee, leaving Xuanqiu Gate along the same route they came.

By the way, the guard of Xuanqiu Gate was also among this team.

Having committed such a heinous act, it was impossible for him to stay in Aizu any longer and he could only flee far away with Iwakura Tomomi and others.

Although he has a family, and his parents, wife and children are all in Aizu, so what?

He already had an incredible amount of wealth that he could not spend in ten lifetimes, so he could easily build a new family after arriving in the West.

……

……

The tranquility of the night was torn to pieces.

Teams of soldiers drove through the streets of Kyoto.

Torches lit up Kyoto inside and outside.

The sounds of footsteps and shouting filled the air.

Such a huge noise was like a thunderclap, waking up all the residents in the town.

Curious people opened the doors one after another, wanting to check what was going on.

However, after seeing countless fully armed soldiers, they consciously retreated back into the house and locked the doors and windows.

Although it is not clear what happened, we can't go wrong if we stay away from places where there are many troops!

In this way, all the soldiers and common people in Kyoto stayed at home, only daring to peek at the outside world through the cracks in the windows.

In order to retrieve Iwakura Tomomi and others, all the Aizu soldiers stationed in Kyoto took action.

Every one of them was in a panic.

There were many people who were sweating profusely and whose legs were shaking.

If you put yourself in their shoes, it's not difficult to understand their fear.

The only mission of the "Military Forces in Beijing" was to protect the Imperial Palace and the Emperor.

But in the end, they didn't even accomplish this one task!
Although the time was still short, they had roughly figured out how the Imperial Palace was lost.

There was no clever plan or trick. The commander of the Xuanqiu Gate was simply bribed, and then the thieves swaggered into the palace!

With such a big mistake and such a serious error...there is no doubt that even if Iwakura Tomomi and others are finally captured, they will not escape punishment.

What's more, Matsudaira Yoshiyasu's respect for the Emperor is well known to the world.

If they can’t find a way to remedy the situation... the soldiers stationed in Beijing can’t imagine how angry their lord will be!
Don’t think too much about it… otherwise, your whole body will tremble and you won’t be able to walk properly.

Such a serious accident naturally alarmed even the Shinsengumi in Beijing.

The captain currently in charge of defending Kyoto is the captain of the 5th Division, Nimi Nishiki.

Under normal circumstances - unless a general mobilization is launched and all captains go to the front line - there will always be at least one captain guarding Kyoto.

When Iwakura Tomomi and others broke into the Imperial Palace, Niimi Nishiki was sleeping in the Shinsengumi station in Mibu-go.

After learning the breaking news that "the Emperor and the Crown Prince were kidnapped, and two of the 'three sacred artifacts' were lost", he suddenly lost all his sleepiness, stood up suddenly, and could not calm down for a long time.

Although the "Military Group in Kyoto" was the one that caused the chaos and they will bear the main responsibility, the Shinsengumi will also be to blame if the thieves are allowed to escape from Kyoto.

Therefore, Xin Jianjin naturally could not just sit back and watch.

He personally commanded his soldiers to block the "seven entrances to the capital" and divided his troops to guard the important roads leaving the capital, especially the roads leading to the west.

"Anyone who can breathe, no matter if they are human, dog, cow or bird, is not allowed to leave Kyoto!" - Niimi Nishiki ordered.

It is true that the emperor is a "mascot", and from a material perspective, there is absolutely no need to win over the emperor.

However, on the spiritual level, the emperor has extraordinary value!
As long as you control the Emperor, you can use the Emperor to control the princes! Use the Emperor's name to forge an excuse for war and then occupy the highest moral ground.

Therefore, the emperor is like Emperor Xian of Han in the late Han Dynasty - you can do without him, but it is better not to lose him!

In short, no matter who it is, no one can bear the guilt of "losing the emperor"!

The "Shinsengumi in Kyoto" and the "Kyoto Kaigun" joined forces to launch a "carpet search", searching every inch of Kyoto inside and outside in detail, wishing to turn the entire Kyoto upside down.

However... despite their extremely hard work,... there was no result.

Time passed by bit by bit... No matter how ugly their expressions became, no matter how much more anxious they looked, they could not change the result of "nothing gained".

Iwakura Tomomi and the others seemed to have disappeared without leaving any trace...

……

……

Kyoto, Kyoto, a certain noble's residence, backyard -

Iwakura Tomomi led the crowd and walked quickly towards the depths of the yard.

Suddenly, there was a movement in the shadow in front of them - a middle-aged man walked out slowly.

He and Iwakura Tomomi looked at each other and nodded.

The middle-aged man's name is "Tamasong So", he is 35 years old, from Tosa, and is a close confidant of Iwakura Tomomi.

Because he was careful, decisive and ruthless, he was highly regarded by Iwakura Tomomi.

In many cases, he assisted Iwakura Tomomi as a "military strategist".

The middle-aged man... Yu Songcao, said in a deep voice:
"Lord Iwakura, this way."

He led Iwakura Tomomi and others to the corner of the yard - an ancient well.

Yu Songcao opened the cover of the well, revealing the scene inside.

It turned out that this was a dry well.

There was not a drop of water at the bottom of the well, only darkness like the abyss.

Iwakura Tomomi turned his head and shouted to the people behind him:
"Okay, follow me! One at a time! Be careful not to hurt the Emperor and the Crown Prince!"

After saying that, he was the first to go down the well.

The wellhead is equipped with a device similar to an "elevator" - a device that is very common in mines - which slowly descends to the deepest part of the dry well.

After reaching the deepest part of the dry well, he saw a different world inside - a secret passage leading to an unknown place in the distance. From the beginning, Iwakura Tomomi had no intention of taking the land route!
If you want to escape on the ground, you must first pass through the "Seven Gates of the Capital" and then cross the entire "Luowai" - there are too many variables and uncontrollable accidents are very likely to occur.

Leaving aside the "Military Group in Beijing" for now, the "Shinsengumi in Beijing" must not be underestimated.

In this case, it would be better to just dig a tunnel and escape through the underground passage!

Iwakura Tomomi made full preparations for this night.

He first looked for ministers who were willing to cooperate.

This step is not difficult.

"Luozhong" was the home ground of the court officials.

The court officials have lived here for thousands of years.

It didn't take much effort for Iwakura Tomomi to find a like-minded partner who was willing to lend his own garden.

Then, he hired a group of professional and trustworthy civil engineers, and spent nearly half a year digging this secret passage leading to the outskirts of Kyoto.

With the help of the "elevator", Yu Songcao and others went down into the well one after another.

Not long after, all the members, as well as the emperor and the prince in the sedan chair, entered the secret passage safely.

Yu Songcao picked up the oil lamp and waved:

"Please come with me!"

He led the way in front, guiding everyone forward slowly.

The tunnel was filled with turbid air, making it difficult to breathe.

As they walked forward, Tamamatsu So asked Iwakura Tomomi behind him without turning his head:

"Lord Iwakura, what is the situation?"

Iwakura Tomomi replied calmly:

"We successfully captured the Emperor and the Crown Prince, but we were unable to take away all the artifacts. We missed the 'Sword of the Cloud Cloud'."

He briefly recounted the general process of the "Emperor Robbery".

After hearing this, Yu Songcao smiled bitterly and said:
"A flawless jade..."

He changed the subject:
"But fortunately."

"Fortunately, only the 'Kurosakumo Sword' was missing, not the Emperor or the Crown Prince."

"If it's the former, there are ways to make up for it."

"But if it's the latter, then it's troublesome."

"It's just a little bit of ink in the water, it's harmless."

"Rather, it's incredible that such a bold plan could succeed."

Iwakura Tomomi smiled slightly and echoed:
"Yes, being able to successfully capture the Emperor and the Crown Prince is already a happy ending. I can't ask for more."

Upon closer examination, it is not difficult to find that the success of Iwakura Tomomi's "Plan to abduct the Emperor" was the result of the superposition of multiple coincidences.

First, there happened to be a greedy man who was obsessed with money among the guards of the imperial palace.

Second, major events have occurred frequently in recent days.

After launching the "Choshu Expedition", a series of major events such as the "Nobi Attack", "The Second Return to China", "The Second Battle of Sekigahara", and "The Siege of Edo" occurred one after another, which was dazzling.

The attention of the people of the world - from the kings and nobles to the common people - was focused on these wars and had no time to pay attention to anything else.

Even Qing Deng, who was regarded as Iwakura Tomomi's "lifelong enemy", was tied up by these wars and unable to split himself.

In fact, as early as two months ago, Iwakura Tomomi had completed a series of preliminary preparations for the "Plan to Rob the Emperor", and all he lacked was the right opportunity.

Right now, the Shinsengumi generals headed by Aoto are not in the capital, a civil war has broken out in Edo, the "Nanki faction" and the "Ichibashi faction" have completely fallen out, and the shogunate is busy fighting and seizing power and has no time to take care of Kyoto - is there a better time to take action than this?
Therefore, he seized this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and acted decisively.

As soon as the main force of the Shinsengumi led by Kondo Isami left, he officially launched the "Plan to Hit the Emperor", causing chaos in Kyoto.

Yu Songcao was silent for a while, then changed his tone and spoke again:
"Lord Iwakura, although we have achieved remarkable results tonight, there is no turning back now."

"We will face very cruel challenges next."

Iwakura Tomomi couldn't help but smile when he heard this:
"What? Shit, are you scared?"

Yu Songcao shrugged:

"How is that possible? I haven't felt fear for a long time."

Iwakura Tomomi smiled and continued:
"Fuck, no need to worry about it."

“When you encounter a challenge, face it bravely. When you encounter a crisis, find a way to solve it.”

"Do your best and wait for fate."

"Isn't this how we got here?"

"If you want to live in peace, why don't you surrender as soon as possible and submit to the tyranny of Tachibana Aoto?"

"Give it your all and fight till the very end."

"As for whether you will be remembered in history or fall into disgrace, I will leave it all to fate."

After listening to this, Yu Songcao nodded slightly:

"Yes, I understand."

As the two were talking, they unknowingly saw the end of the secret passage - also a dry well - come into view.

Tamamatsu So went out first, and after confirming that there was no danger outside, he made a "safe" gesture to Iwakura Tomomi and others.

After receiving this signal, Iwakura Tomomi and others left the secret passage in an orderly manner.

Outside the exit of the secret passage, a group of carriages were prepared.

They loaded the emperor, the crown prince, the Yata-kyo, and the Yasakani no Magatama onto the cart, then sped away, heading straight west for Choshu.

……

……

A temple in Edo——

Aoto, Kondo Isami, Nagakura Shinpachi, Saito Hajime... They were all dressed in mourning clothes, with solemn expressions, standing right in front of a tombstone.

The name written on the stupa of this tombstone is Kondo Shusuke.

[Note: Zutapo is a Chinese transliteration of the Sanskrit word, which was directly borrowed by Japan. It originally meant a spiritual temple or a spiritual pagoda. In Japan, it evolved into a straight and long wooden plaque, which is used as a tablet similar to the blessing of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. On it are written the name of the Buddhist scripture or the name of the ceremony, the name of the person to be saved, the donor, and other information.]

The day before yesterday, the main force of the Shinsengumi arrived in Edo safely - but unfortunately, they came back empty-handed.

Ichibashi's army had already withdrawn from Edo.

Under the instruction of Aoto, Harada Sanosuke led a group of elite soldiers to pursue Ichibashi's army.

I have to say that the retreat of the Hitotsubashi Army was planned quite beautifully.

Harada Sanosuke led his elite troops in a fierce pursuit. Although he fought several brilliant battles, he did not damage the main force of Ichibashi's army.

The main force of Ichibashi's army was able to retreat to Fukui Domain.

Also retreating to Fukui Domain were a large number of direct advisers who openly supported the "Ichibashi faction".

They knew that if they stayed in Edo, they would definitely be liquidated by the "Nanki Faction", so they had no choice but to leave.

There were quite a few direct visitors who left Edo - after all, Tokugawa Iemochi was really unpopular among the direct visitors.

As a result, Edo became much quieter and less and less like a "royal capital".

On the surface, the "Nan Ji Faction" achieved a complete victory in this civil war.

The "Ichibashi faction" fled Edo and was forced to retreat to the Fukui domain.

However, anyone with a discerning eye can see that the "Nanji Faction" has only achieved a temporary victory.

This civil war has not yet come to an end!
The "Ichibashi faction" retreated to the Fukui domain and still had the strength to fight.

There are countless people who hate the "Nanki faction", hate Tokugawa Iemochi, and hate Aoto.

The war continues...

Of course, at this stage, Qing Deng and others can finally breathe a sigh of relief.

They could finally give Kondo Shusuke a decent funeral.

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In the blink of an eye, it's the end of the month again! Book friends who have monthly tickets, please be sure to vote for this book! (tearful leopard head.jpg)

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PS: In Japan, the name "fuck" (mi sa o) is unisex, and I think it's a cute name. Let the female ninja in the next book be called this name! (豹嗨.jpg)