I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

This is the sound of Qing Dengduan's hand holding the teacup twitching slightly, causing the tea in the cup to splash out and spill onto the ground.

The innocent girl who was deceived... Her already flushed face became even hotter, and even the tips of her ears and neck were tinged with a beautiful blush.

"Ugh...! Ah! I... I need to go prepare lunch! Excuse me!"

After saying that, Kinoshita Mai grabbed the tea tray and ran away in a panic as if fleeing, ruthlessly "abandoning" Aoto.

Kiryu: "..."

Qingdeng: "..."

As the crisp footsteps of Kinoshita Mai faded into the distance, a heavy stillness enveloped the courtyard, leaving it utterly silent.

Kiryu turned his head, expressionless and silent, and stared straight at Aoto.

The light refracted through the glasses made the old man's eyes appear blurry, indistinct, and unpredictable.

"Hey, Mr. Kiryu, look!"

Qingdeng looked down at the teacup in his hand and said in a cheerful voice:

"The tea stalks are standing upright; it looks like something good is going to happen today!"

This is a Japanese superstition: if the tea stems stand up while drinking tea, it means that something good will happen that day.

I don't know if anything good will happen today. But I've already received an unexpected 'surprise gift' today.

"So that's why you came so early today..."

"Wasn't your action a bit too swift and precise?"

“In a few days, the young master will be going to Luoyang with you, so I want to take advantage of these last few days to cook more of the young master’s favorite dishes.”

"I made a point of leaving home very early this morning so I could buy the freshest vegetables from Yaoya and cook a delicious meal."

"And then you seized the brief moment when I wasn't in the shop and slipped in."

"Your ability to seize every opportunity is truly remarkable."

[Note: * **Takufu Cuisine:** Japanese-style Chinese banquet cuisine. * **Yaboya:** A general term for all vegetable vendors.]

Qingdeng listened quietly until the very end... He closed his eyes and took a deep breath with a hiss.

When he opened his eyes, he adopted a firm and forceful tone:

"Kiryu, draw your sword! I'm ready for battle! Bring it on!"

As he spoke, he reached out and grabbed the Vairocana statue beside his leg.

"Who said I was going to fight you?"

Kiryu Boss glared at Aoto with annoyance, then sighed, channeling his pent-up emotions into his voice.

"Ju-kun, you and the young master should take it easy."

"I'll take this opportunity to make things clear to you today."

“I regard the young master as my own son, and you are my personal disciple.”

“I would naturally be happy to see you two get together.”

"Even if you want to marry three wives... as long as the young master doesn't object, and you can truly bring him happiness, then I won't object either."

"but!"

Mr. Kiryu suddenly raised his voice and changed the subject.

What I say doesn't count.

"To be honest, I am just a bodyguard, a middleman, and a close attendant to the young master."

[Note: *御抱守* refers to the duty of holding and caring for an infant. *中中* refers to a servant in a samurai household. *近习* refers to a personal attendant.]

"Regarding the young master's future, I only have the right to offer suggestions, not the right to make the final decision."

"The final decision-maker... is only my lord, the young master's grandmother."

“I have served my lord for over 70 years, and I know his temperament all too well.”

"She absolutely hates men who are unfaithful in love."

"She once declared in public: The young master's future husband must never take a concubine or a secondary wife."

"If I told her that the man who was flirting with the young master was also involved with two other girls, to be honest... I don't even dare to imagine how the lord would react after finding out about this."

"First of all, rage is certain."

"It's certain that they'll set aside everything they're currently dealing with, gather their forces, and come to settle accounts with you."

Upon hearing this, Qing Deng immediately became serious and said:

"Mr. Kiryu, I haven't been unfaithful!"

"Although at first glance, my desire to marry three wives may seem outrageous and absurd, my actions are clearly different from the term 'womanizing'!"

"To use an analogy... those who are truly unfaithful are like those who divide the water of a river among others, and even then, they distribute it very unequally! But I have cultivated three sources of the river! Please understand the difference!"

Upon hearing this, Mr. Kiryu scoffed.

"Ju-kun, I'm afraid even the young master can't be fooled by your nonsense, can he?"

"..."

Qingdeng's lips twitched slightly, and he remained silent.

"In short, in order to protect you... ah, no, I should say to save you, I concealed your ambition to 'marry three wives'."

At this point, Kiryu sighed again.

"Even now, the lord still thinks you and the young master are just an ordinary couple."

"The lord is quite satisfied with you. She admires your extraordinary martial prowess, which allows you to fight against a thousand men, as well as your bold and courageous approach to both big and small matters."

"If she weren't so busy, she would have wanted to see you long ago."

“A while ago, she even sent me a letter specifically to ask: ‘How is Tachibana Aoto doing?’ ‘How are Tachibana Aoto and A-Mai getting along?’…”

"Oh dear, what a mess this is."

At this point, Mr. Kiryu took off his glasses, took out a clean silk handkerchief from his pocket, and carefully wiped the lenses.

Taking advantage of the break, Qingdeng bent down and respectfully bowed to the old man in front of him.

"Mr. Kiryu... thank you."

His words of gratitude were absolutely sincere, without a trace of falsehood.

Kiryu-sensei is truly a great mentor to him!

She not only taught him swordsmanship, but also acted as his "wingman," helping him build his harem!

Kiryu's protection has greatly reduced the obstacles he is currently facing.

Otherwise, if Kinoshita Mai's grandmother, in a fit of rage, led the Gourd House's army to Edo to settle scores with him... who knows what would happen then.

With such a teacher, what more could I ask for?

"My abilities are ultimately limited."

Mr. Kiryu hung his clean glasses back on his nose.

"At this stage, I can still help you keep it a secret for a while."

"But if the young master is pregnant... then there's nothing I can do to help."

"I'm certain—the lord will never allow his precious granddaughter to be pregnant out of wedlock! Not even if the other party is a hero he greatly admires!"

"She will definitely make that bastard who got the young master pregnant experience what a miserable fate awaits him if he can't control his desires."

Qingdeng said:

"Mr. Kiryu, please rest assured about that! Mai and I have not yet consummated our relationship!"

He played a word game.

He and Kinoshita Mai have indeed not yet consummated their marriage... but in other words, they have basically done everything except for the act of consummating their marriage.

"I won't pry into your affairs as young people. In short, you two need to be careful and not cause me any more trouble."

At this moment, Mr. Kiryu paused for a moment.

After a moment, he smiled and adopted a serious tone:

"Tachibana-kun, hurry up and become stronger."

"So powerful that you no longer need me to cover for you."

"At the very least, we must be powerful enough to be unafraid of our lord's might."

"I don't want to see my respected lord hunting down my beloved disciple one day in the future."

Qingdeng adopted a solemn expression and a determined look, nodding vigorously:

"I will! I will make the new electoral group the strongest armed group in the Kinki region... no! Japan, within a year!"

The Kiryu boss nodded:

"That's right, that's the kind of momentum we want!"

"Alright, let's leave these trivial matters of love and romance for now."

"Now, it's time to get down to business."

"King Tachibana, you must have heard from the young master, right? I summoned you here today to entrust you with something quite important."

As the main topic approached, Qingdeng straightened his back and stood up straight.

Since yesterday, he has been wondering what the "important thing" the other party wanted to entrust to him might be.

Not long ago, Kiryu had just given him a similarly precious gift—a revolver-mandala.

Qingdeng adopted a solemn posture, ready to listen attentively.

Mr. Kiryu leisurely crossed his arms and tucked them into the sleeves of his haori, gazing into the distance.

"Although this is something that should have been taught to you much earlier, it's not too late to teach it to you now."

"Tachibana-kun, do you remember? I once said: My sword-drawing technique... Flowing Light has a profound secret!"