I formed the strongest swordsman group.

Chapter 996: Launching the "Mito Expedition"! Killing one to warn the rest! [4300]

"When Avalokitesvara practiced the profound Prajnaparamita, he saw that the five aggregates were empty and transcended all suffering. Shariputra, form is not different from emptiness, emptiness is not different from form; form is emptiness, emptiness is form. The same is true of feeling, perception, mental formation and consciousness..."

The monks either beat the wooden fish, struck the bell, or fiddled with the rosary.

The leading old monk lowered his head, clasped his hands together, and chanted the Heart Sutra to pray for the souls of the dead.

Qing Deng and others were wearing the same black mourning clothes and stood silently behind the monks.

Everyone who was related to Kondo Shusuke and who could come attended the funeral.

Needless to say, the students from the Shiwei Hall, led by Qing Deng.

Even Hijikata Toshizo and Elodie, who were still seriously injured, forced themselves to see Kondo Shusuke off.

I have to say that Hijikata Toshizo is really lucky.

He was shot in the stomach, but he was still alive... It's such a blessing, it's a miracle.

With Beifang Ren's careful treatment, he regained consciousness three days ago.

Although everyone advised him to have a good rest, he was still stubborn and insisted on attending Kondo Shusuke's funeral.

At that time, he said:

"To me, Kondo Shusuke is like my second father. What kind of person would I be if I didn't go and see him off?"

Since he has said so much, it is not in the best interest of everyone to persuade him any further.

Apart from the sounds of monks chanting and using ritual instruments, the funeral scene was silent, with occasional soft sobs.

Most of the men looked expressionless, while the women were generally in tears.

A Chang (Kondo Isami's legal wife), who was standing next to Kondo Isami, kept wiping away tears.

Souji's elder sister, Mitsuya Okita, burst into tears.

of course there are exceptions.

Kondo Shusuke's first wife, Bi, stood closest to the tombstone.

Among all the people present, she was one of the people closest to Kondo Shusuke.

Compared to the other female members of the family, she looked very calm.

But she had a blank expression, with neither sadness nor regret on her face, making it impossible to guess what she was thinking at the moment.

It is worth mentioning that in order to commemorate Kondo Shusuke’s heroic sacrifice, Tenshoin also participated in today’s funeral.

She did not come alone.

Behind him stood a large group of people - all of them were important figures in the shogunate.

Katsurintaro, the elder councilor, Wakanoyoshi...all the high-ranking officials of the shogunate who could be free were brought by her.

A few days ago, she also attended the funerals of Seiichiro Otani and Kiyon Kubota with a "luxury lineup".

Not only was it a grand ceremony, but the funeral procession also included the Empress Dowager, King Nioh and other high-ranking officials of the shogunate... Kondo Shusuke's funeral was extremely honorable.

If Tokugawa Iemochi had not been in a coma, he would probably have come to the funeral, making the lineup even more magnificent.

This is the honor that Kondo Shusuke, Otoya Seiichiro and Kubota Kiyone deserve, and no one will object to it.

After a while, the monks' salvation ceremony came to an end.

At this point, today's funeral has come to an end.

"A Chang, stop crying."

Kondo Isami said as he took out a tissue and handed it to Achang.

"Wipe your tears."

"Father certainly doesn't want us to cry."

"He would probably say: Stop crying, I don't like sad atmosphere."

Ah Chang took the tissue handed to her by Kondo Isami while sobbing and wiped the tears from her face.

However, her eyes were like two bubbling springs, and the more she wiped away her tears, the more they came.

Although Kondo Isami appeared to be quite calm, anyone could see that he was just pretending to be strong.

Intense sorrow swirled and lingered within his body...

He was originally a farmer, but thanks to Kondo Shusuke's adoption, he had the opportunity to change his life.

Without Kondo Shusuke's adoption and teaching, he would not have become a samurai, would not have become the fourth generation head of the Tennen Rishin-ryu main family, would not have met Aoto and others, would not have been where he is today...

It was truly a grace of rebirth... He would never be able to repay this enormous favor in his entire lifetime!
However... the son wants to take care of his parents but they are no longer around...

Before he could repay her kindness, they were separated forever...

Kondo Isami's grief is self-evident...

Everyone consciously made room for Kondo Isami, allowing him to be alone and quiet.

At this time, Qing Deng walked slowly towards Elodie who was not far away.

"Elody, are you okay?"

Qing Deng knew that Elodie had always felt deeply guilty about Kondo Shusuke's death in battle.

Elodie pursed her lips and forced out an ugly expression:
"Master, I'm fine..."

"I just feel... empty inside."

"If I could be stronger... If I could be as strong as you, Master, maybe I could save Mr. Kondo..."

After hearing this, Qing Deng's expression changed slightly.

"...Elody, you have done your best."

As he spoke, he opened his arms and gently hugged Elodie.

"No one blames you, so stop blaming yourself."

"..."

Elodie said nothing.

She lowered her head, slumped her shoulders, and buried her entire face in Qing Deng's arms, making it impossible to see the changes in her expression...

Suddenly, a strong female voice sounded behind her:
"… Mademoiselle Angoulême."

Elodie was startled.

Although the voice was a little unfamiliar, she immediately recognized who it was.

As if it was a conditioned reflex, she quickly left Qing Deng's arms and turned back - while turning around, she quickly raised her hand to wipe her face and wipe off the water stains.

Just as she expected, the person who came was none other than A Bi.

A Bi walked towards her slowly and gracefully.

As she watched A Bi getting closer and closer, Elodie's facial expression became complicated.

"Mrs. Kondo... Please accept my condolences..."

She bent down, her expression solemn, and her tone was mixed with a hint of apology.

A Bi shook his head gently:
"Ms. Angoulême, you don't have to do this. Please raise your head."

"I am not sad about my husband's death."

"My husband is an old man over seventy years old."

"It is rare for a person to live to be seventy. For a swordsman, it is rare for him to live to such an old age. There is nothing to be sad about."

"Besides, 'dying in battle' has always been my husband's long-cherished wish."

"He has gotten what he wanted and we should be happy for him."

"If we complain, it would be disrespectful to him."

After saying that, she paused.

She seemed to remember why she came and looked hesitant.

After hesitating for a moment, she asked softly:
"Ms. Angoulême, I have a question. May I ask you to answer it?"

Elodie answered without hesitation:

"Please tell me."

Ah Bi pursed his lips, then put on a solemn expression:
"Ms. Angoulême, can you tell me what my husband looked like when he was on his way to his death?"

Upon hearing this, Elodie was stunned for a moment, then she spoke seriously without hesitation and word by word:
"He's like a hero!"

A Bi's expression froze, and his eyes flickered slightly.

"A 'hero'?...I see..."

As she talked to herself, she slowly revealed a peaceful smile.

The trace of depression between his brows disappeared.

“What a wonderful ending…”

She tilted her head and cast a calm look towards the tombstone not far away, and her facial features gradually softened.

About 5 seconds later, she turned her head and looked at Elodie again:

"Mademoiselle Angoulême, please stop blaming yourself."

"Although I didn't witness my husband's last battle, I am sure he would be proud to fight alongside a heroine like you."

After that, she bowed slightly and saluted Elodie. Before Elodie could recover, she walked away.

"Alright, Ah Chang, Xiao Guang, cheer up!"

She clapped her hands vigorously, attracting the attention of A Chang, Okita Hikaru and other female relatives.

"You want to flush that guy out of his grave with your tears?"

"Even if we could get out, there's no way to revive him."

"Appropriate sadness can show the depth of emotion, but excessive sadness can prove the lack of wisdom."

"Birth, aging, sickness and death are the common sense of the world. Stop crying."

Although it was a rough consolation, it was extremely effective.

A Chang, Okita Hikaru and others gradually stopped crying.

The funeral scene returned to silence, with only the breeze and the rolling clouds.

……

……

Influenced by the funeral, Qing Deng felt very depressed, as if there was a huge stone weighing dozens of kilograms stuffed in his chest, and even his steps became heavy.

When it comes to sadness and grief, he is no less than anyone else.

Kondo Shusuke was his mentor.

Without Kondo Shusuke, there would be no Tachibana Aoto of the Tennen Rishin-ryu!
If only I could see him a few more times...

If only I could talk to him a few more times...

If only I could spend more time with him...

Regret welled up in his heart... If possible, Qing Deng really wanted to lock himself in the room, stay quiet for a few days, and then come out to see people after his mood recovered.

What a pity... The pressure of reality does not allow him to slowly compose himself.

As soon as he left the funeral, he headed straight for Edo Castle to deal with today's government and military affairs.

After the end of the "Second Edo Siege War", all kinds of matters waiting for Qing Deng and others to deal with one by one were piled up like a mountain.

There were already enough troubles waiting for him to solve.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he returned to Edo Castle, Katsurintaro found him with a gloomy expression and gave him a brand new piece of bad news -

"What? The Emperor and the Crown Prince were kidnapped?"

Qing Deng frowned and looked at Katsurintaro in surprise.

Katrintaro nodded and continued:

"Also stolen were the Three Sacred Treasures, the Yata Mirror and the Yasakani no Magatama."

Qing Deng's brows furrowed more and more tightly:
"What happened?"

Katsurintaro narrated the incident in a concise manner.

After listening to this, Qing Deng asked:
"Have you confirmed who the murderer is?"

"It's confirmed. It was Iwakura Tomomi who did it."

"Iwakura Tomomi?"

Hearing this name, Qing Deng was both surprised and not surprised.

It wouldn't be surprising if the murderer was this guy!

After all, Iwakura Tomomi's cold-bloodedness and ruthlessness are well known to the world.

As a nobleman, he actually kidnapped the Emperor, the Crown Prince and two sacred artifacts... To describe him as "audacious" is too mild!
Suddenly, Katsurintaro added:
"None of the 'Three Sacred Treasures' were lost, and there is still one 'Sword of the Cloud Cloud' left. This is a blessing in disguise."

Qing Deng retorted unhappily:
"What kind of 'blessing in misfortune' is this?"

"What's the use of a broken sword?"

"What's more, this 'Sky Cloud Sword' is a 100% fake and has no 'sacredness' at all."

Compared with the other two artifacts, the "Sword of Ame Murasaki" has suffered little controversy - because everyone is convinced that the "Sword of Ame Murasaki" currently passed down is a fake.

After Emperor Andoku jumped into the sea holding the "Three Sacred Treasures", the soldiers of the Minamoto army only salvaged the "Yata Mirror" and the "Yasakani no Magatama".

As for the "Sword of Ame-no-Kurosakumo", it could not be found no matter how hard we tried.

Therefore, from then on, the "Sword of Ame-no-Kurosakumo" that has been passed down is a counterfeit and is no longer the legendary weapon.

Qing Deng pondered for a moment and asked again:
"What is Vice Admiral Aizu's reaction?"

Matsudaira Yoshiyasu was appointed as "Sakonei Gon Lieutenant General", so his respectful title was "Aizu Lieutenant General".

Qing Deng understood Matsudaira Yoshiyasu's upright character and also knew Matsudaira Yoshiyasu's feelings for the Emperor.

Therefore, his question was totally unnecessary.

Even without asking, he could roughly guess how intense Matsudaira Yoshiyasu's reaction would be...

as predicted--

"Lieutenant General Aizu feels very guilty..."

Katrintaro sighed heavily.

"He thinks it's all because of his incompetence that this happened."

"It is reported that he intends to commit seppuku to apologize for his crime."

"He didn't even change into his plain clothes, he just pulled out the wakizashi from his waist and stabbed himself in the stomach."

"Fortunately, the young people around him stepped forward in time to grab the knife and successfully saved him."

"It's just that...his emotions are still unstable."

"If he gets a chance to touch a knife, he'll definitely stab himself in the stomach again."

Qing Deng immediately frowned and said in a deep voice:

"Tell Lieutenant General Aizu not to do anything stupid!"

"Even if you cut open my stomach, what will happen?"

"Can the lost emperor, prince and two sacred artifacts escape from your stomach?"

"If you feel grief and anger, quickly prepare your army for war! Prepare for the subsequent 'rescue of the emperor'!"

Katrintaro smiled bitterly:

"I will tell you the truth."

Although there are still many details that have not been clarified, Qingdeng has a general idea of ​​what happened.

He leaned over, leaning on his elbow, and murmured:

"One wave has not yet subsided, another wave rises..."

Katsurintaro nodded slightly to show his agreement.

After much difficulty, we defeated the French and Qi coalition forces...

It was not easy to expel the "Ichibashi faction"...

But in the end, before he could rest and catch his breath, new troubles arose!
Thinking of this, Qing Deng couldn't help but ponder:

——Is this the "era of great strife"? Unexpected incidents keep popping up one after another...

Qing Deng felt like he was cursed... cursed to never have any leisure time.

At this time, Katsurintaro spoke again:
"Qing Deng, I think Iwakura Tomomi and the others must have fled to Choshu."

Qing Deng responded calmly:

"They have nowhere else to go except Changzhou."

Katsurintaro sighed again:

"The 'Sonjo Faction' is really determined..."

"Fight and fail again and again, but fight again and again."

"We have beaten them to this point, and even the Choshu clan, the headquarters of the Sonjo faction, is on the verge of extinction, yet they are still unwilling to give up."

“Although we are enemies, I have to pay tribute to them.”

Qing Deng had no expression on his face and remained silent.

After a moment, he sat up again.

"That's fine."

"Now that the incident has happened, we can only let it take its course."

"Let's not worry about what's happening in the west for now."

"No matter what, what we should do now will not change."

At this point, Qing Deng paused for a moment, then changed his tone to a sonorous and powerful one:
"Prepare to launch the 'Mito Expedition'! Destroy the Mito Domain and make an example of them!"

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PS: It's time for some thrilling plots. I'm going to throw up if I keep writing about battles. Next chapter will be thrilling!