I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

"Whether it's due to the sharp conflict of ideas between the ruler and his ministers or it's intentional, Satsuma has not shown a clear stance until now."

"They neither openly supported Choshu nor expressed goodwill to the shogunate."

"I think they are currently observing and waiting for the situation to become clearer before they put up their cards and enter the game."

Upon hearing this, Qing Deng couldn't help but interject and ask:

"There must be some courtiers in the imperial court who are pro-shogunate, right? Could we try to win over the support of these pro-shogunate courtiers?"

Matsudaira Katamori sighed.

"Of course I tried to win over the pro-shogunate court nobles in exchange for their support, but... compared with the numerous and powerful 'Chōshū faction court nobles,' the pro-shogunate court nobles were really weak and powerless, and the support they could give us was far too meager."

"..."

Qingdeng stopped talking.

He crossed his arms and silently processed the massive amount of information swirling in his mind.

Choshu Domain – The domain lord, Mōri Yoshichika, has been sidelined, and the military and political power of the country is controlled by loyalists within the domain. In addition to holding the imperial court hostage, they also control their former country.

Under the rule of these madmen whose minds were filled with ideas of "splitting the black ships with swords" and "slaughtering the British and destroying the French," the people of Changzhou became increasingly fanatical, and the vast vassal state gradually transformed into an enhanced version of the anti-foreign group.

The characters to pay close attention to are Takasugi Shinsaku, Katsura Kogoro, and Kusaka Genzui.

What abilities Kusaka Genzui possesses is currently unknown.

The other two are both highly skilled swordsmen.

The Satsuma Domain, under the vigorous reforms of its former lord Shimazu Nariakira, became unprecedentedly powerful, possessing an industrial capacity that even the shogunate could not match.

It has a well-developed military industry, capable of independently manufacturing warships and guns; the development level of its civilian industries, such as textiles and handicrafts, is even more astonishing.

Because it adopted Western training methods, its army was no longer a simple feudal army, but had already begun to resemble a modern army.

The characters who require close attention are Saigo Kichinosuke and Okubo Ichizo.

The former is in charge of military affairs and is currently stationed in Kyoto, serving as the commander-in-chief of the Kyoto-Satsuma army.

The latter is politically savvy and now remains in Satsuma.

Choshu was determined to oppose the shogunate.

Samoyeds, on the other hand, are playing both sides, helping whoever wins.

Both sides possess formidable strength that should not be underestimated.

Both sides have their own ulterior motives.

"Lady Higo, thank you. Thanks to you, I now have a general understanding of Satsuma and Naga."

At this point, Qingdeng paused, a thoughtful look appearing on his face.

"...Lady Higo, may I ask another question?"

Matsudaira Katamori responded without hesitation:

"please say."

Qingdeng took a deep breath:

"Do you have any latest intelligence related to the Fazhu Party and the Da Yan Party?"

"..."

Matsudaira Katamori fell silent.

The opponents that Qingdeng will face next are far more than just Satsuma and Choshu.

There's no need to elaborate on the various aspects of the persecution of the party by law; Qingdeng had already forged an irreconcilable feud with them.

As for the Big Salt Party... to be fair, Aoto doesn't dislike the Big Salt Party.

Although both were secret societies dedicated to overthrowing the shogunate, the differences between them were worlds apart.

One is ruthless and will stop at nothing to achieve their goals.

The other one is derived from the "Ōshio Heihachirō Uprising" 26 years ago, with the goal of "making all people live a good life without being oppressed." Although it also used fierce means to resist the shogunate, it also had its bottom line.

Compared to the other two, the Salt Party is simply a breath of fresh air!

In addition, Aoto had a friendly past with the patriots of the Great Shio Party—Abiko Chutaro, Ebina Yesou, Ichinose Tsuguyuki, and Akutsu Shujiro—who cooperated in fighting against the Hoju Party, and they even saved Aoto's life.

Just as Qingdeng and Luosha were dueling in the workshop of Huanfudian, Qingdeng, who was no match for his opponent, had his sword broken.

If it weren't for Ebina and the others saving him at the last minute, the grass on his grave would probably be three feet tall by now.

Although Aoto did not harbor ill will towards the Ōshio Party, ... no matter what, he was always a retainer of the shogunate, while they were always enemies of the shogunate.

Their differing social statuses meant that they could only temporarily form a united front when facing the common enemy, the Party that would punish the perpetrators of the crime.

After Aoto's quiet waiting, Matsudaira Katamori finally spoke slowly:

"...Both the Fazhu Party and the Da Yan Party are very good at collecting and controlling intelligence."

“Especially the big salt party.”

"Compared to the long-established and deeply rooted Fachu Party, the Great Salt Party is undoubtedly much weaker."

"However, their intelligence gathering capabilities are truly first-rate."

"Although I do not agree with the Ōshio Party's idea that 'only by overthrowing the Edo Shogunate can ordinary people live a good life,' I deeply admire their ideal of a world of universal harmony."

"For this reason, the members of the Great Salt Party have extremely high fighting spirit."

"After all, only a mediocre person who is greedy for power and wealth and afraid of death would risk his life to join the Salt Party."

"It is precisely for this reason that the Ooshio Party has always enjoyed extremely high prestige among the common people... especially among the common people of Osaka."

"Even now, older people in Osaka still remember the name 'Ōshio Heihachirō' vividly."

Upon hearing this, Qing Deng silently raised his gaze and quietly stared at Matsudaira Katamori's face.

In the candlelight, Matsudaira Katamori's expressionless face flickered between light and shadow.

"...Lord Higo, from what you've said, it seems you admire Ōshio Heihachirō quite a bit?"

"..."

Matsudaira Katamori pursed his lips, looking thoughtful.

Seeing that the other party remained silent for a long time, Qingdeng grinned:

"Lord Higo, I won't lie to you—I really admire Ōshio Heihachirō."

Matsudaira Katamori turned his head and cast a surprised look at Aoto.

After a short while, he sighed and a complex expression appeared on his face, a mixture of amusement and disbelief.

"Although it may seem inappropriate to say such things from the perspective of a retainer of the shogunate and the governor of Kyoto, how can one not feel respect for a hero who is well-off, who could have remained indifferent when people are suffering, but who selflessly gave his all to stand up for the poor?"

After finishing his sentence, Matsudaira Katamori paused for a moment, then continued in a joking tone:

"Lord Ju, thankfully it's just the two of us here, no outsiders."

"The Kyoto governor and the governor of the capital region are praising Ōshio Heihachirō, who once gave the shogunate a lot of headaches, with lavish words... If this gets out, who knows what kind of storm it will cause."

Qingdeng shrugged nonchalantly.

"The difference in social status cannot hinder my admiration for noble souls."

"Besides, even if our conversation just now gets leaked, it won't matter."

At this point, Qingdeng adopted a teasing tone.

"The shogunate is now entirely relying on you and me to quell the unrest in the capital region. As long as the shogunate can't do without us, we can be a little more willful."

As soon as he finished speaking, as if pre-arranged, he and Matsudaira Katamori both raised their eyes to look at each other, exchanging a knowing smile.

—It seems Matsudaira Katamori is not blindly loyal…

Qingdeng breathed a sigh of relief.

For retainers like Seito and Matsudaira Katamori, Ōshio Heihachirō was not a figure to be discussed casually.

The reason why Aoto suddenly brought up this sensitive topic was to test Matsudaira Katamori.

The Aizu Domain has an ancestral precept that "the Aizu Domain has protected the Shogun's family for generations and must not blindly follow the position of other countries. If the lord of the domain has a different mind, then he is not my descendant and my retainers cannot obey him."

Judging from Matsudaira Katamori's current behavior, he has faithfully followed this ancestral precept.

The shogunate promoted him to the position of Kyoto governor, making him the guardian of the royal city. Although he felt conflicted, he resolutely plunged into this unfathomable murky water.

Frankly, it would be a real headache for Aoto if his partner—especially one with whom he would be working for a long time—was someone who would blindly obey the shogunate.

After all, Aoto did not feel a sense of belonging to the shogunate.

No human being with even a modicum of intelligence could possibly have any fondness for such an ignorant, backward, and corrupt feudal regime.

Seito never considered himself a "vassal" of the shogunate; he only saw the shogunate as a large company in which he happened to work.

The shogunate paid him a salary, so he worked for the shogunate; he did the work according to the salary he was paid—that was all.

For him, the only emotional attachment to the Edo Shogunate was to his friends, led by Katsura Rintaro, Tokugawa Iemochi, who was like a younger brother to him, and... that beautiful widow.

Therefore, if Matsudaira Katamori's true feelings toward the shogunate are not clarified, it will inevitably have an adverse impact on their future cooperation.

Now, through the heart-to-heart conversation just now, Aoto has come to understand that although Matsudaira Katamori is loyal to the shogunate, he also has his own ideas and is not blindly and foolishly loyal to the shogunate.

If that's the case, then things are much easier.

Taking this opportunity, Aoto also frankly expressed his views to Matsudaira Eiho: I am not a mindless, pedantic person who blindly supports the shogunate, just like you.

To subtly hint at his intentions, Qing Deng deliberately "revealed" himself first.

Matsudaira Katamori was, after all, a dignified lord of a domain who had undergone rigorous education. How could he not see through Seito's intentions?

Seeing that Qingdeng took the initiative to show his sincerity, he also took the opportunity to express his true feelings.

And so, the two had a brief heart-to-heart talk.

As a result, the atmosphere among them became much more relaxed.

"Alright, let's get back to the main topic."

Matsudaira Eiyasu's smile faded, and he sat up straight again.

"It is understood that the Ōshio Party has a special intelligence-gathering agency called the 'Nagame-ryō', whose highest-ranking officer is called the 'Nagame-dai'."