I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Throughout the entire military posture training process for Shimada Kai and others, the commander did not leisurely sit on the sidelines to rest. Instead, he tirelessly circled around Shimada Kai and the others, dutifully checking whether their movements were up to standard.

After glancing at Shimada Kai, Souji opened the "Infantry Drill Manual" in his hand and began reading it quickly, as if confirming something.

A moment later, she snapped the booklet shut and said to Shimada Kai:

"Put your body weight on the balls of your feet, otherwise you'll feel dizzy."

Shimada Kai raised an eyebrow in surprise.

Although he didn't understand why, he still obediently did as instructed.

Following the commander's instructions, he shifted his weight onto the balls of his feet, and his dizziness immediately subsided.

—How amazing! What's the principle behind this? Why does my head stop spinning immediately just by putting my body weight on the balls of my feet?

Although the dizziness has subsided, the soreness and numbness in my back and legs are something I just can't get rid of.

To make himself feel better, Shimada Kai had to devote some of his energy to paying attention to the movements around him.

The No. 1 training ground, which was carved out, was really noisy.

"What's wrong with your legs? Why are they crooked? Straighten them right now!"

"Your shoulders have slumped again."

"Get up quickly, don't make me repeat myself."

……

The shouts of the team captains rose and fell in waves.

Compared to the hot-tempered Serizawa Kamo, the rough-mannered Nagakura Shinpachi, the ruthless and taciturn Saito Hajime, and the perfectionist Sanako, Souji is already quite gentle.

Thinking of this, Shimada Kai couldn't help but feel fortunate.

Luckily, my captain is Okita Souji!

At that moment, the man standing to Shimada Kai's right suddenly started winking—a bead of sweat was running down his brow and was about to drip into his eye.

He tried to change the trajectory of the bead of sweat by making faces and using his facial muscles, but it was all in vain.

Left with no other choice, he raised his right hand, intending to wipe away the drop of sweat.

However, at that moment, a loud shout suddenly rang out:

"Wait! What do you want to do?"

After speaking, the commander-in-chief took three steps at a time and walked up to him.

Her actions naturally startled the man.

He explained weakly:

"I...I want to wipe my sweat..."

"When standing at attention, do not move!"

With that, the commander turned his head, scanned his other subordinates, and said loudly:

"You can wipe your sweat, scratch your itch, do all sorts of little things."

"But! Before that, you must first report: 'Captain, I want to move!'"

"If you can move whenever you want and relax whenever you want, what kind of order is there? Wouldn't the formation fall into chaos?"

"Did you all understand?"

As soon as Souji finished speaking, Shimada Kai and the others immediately responded in a not-so-uniform but exceptionally loud voice:

"Yes!"

The commander's gaze returned to the person in front of him.

"Now, you can do it again."

The man took a deep breath:

"Captain, I want to move!"

The commander nodded slightly, giving him a pleased look that said, "You're a promising young man."

"Okay, move."

……

Similar scenes were also playing out in the training grounds of other squads.

Each captain, following the "Infantry Drill Manual" distributed by Qingdeng, meticulously trained... ah, no, instructed their respective troops.

Finally, the sun reached its highest point in the sky.

It's lunchtime.

When Shimada Kai heard the words, "Training is over, it's time to go have lunch," he almost burst into tears of joy.

They stood there all morning—literally all morning!

Aside from a few occasional breaks—which were all very short, ranging from 10 minutes to 3 or 4 minutes—the rest of the time was spent training in military posture!

Because he had been standing for too long, the muscles in his back and legs were stiff, so much so that when he was relieved of his military posture, he found that he could not move!

It took him a great deal of effort to get his body back to the way it could control its lower limbs.

Shimada Kai, who made it into the First Division through his own hard work, is considered one of the most physically fit members of the Shinsengumi.

If even he was "ravaged" like this, then the others must be even worse off.

When the soldiers lined up in two columns and left Training Ground A for the mess hall, every single one of them was stiff and expressionless, unable to even walk properly, looking just like puppets and zombies.

Intense fatigue gripped Shimada Kai's entire body.

The energy I had accumulated from eating seven large bowls of meat porridge this morning was completely used up during these hours of military posture training.

His stomach was burning with hunger; he felt extremely hungry, so hungry that his stomach felt like it was sticking to his back.

—I'm so hungry...Let's eat quickly...

At this moment, Shimada Kai's mind was blank, with only one small wish remaining: to eat a sumptuous feast comparable to the meat porridge he had this morning!

Shimada Kai thought that the meat porridge he ate this morning was the ultimate delicacy he had ever tasted in his life.

But who knew... his imagination was ultimately limited by poverty!

"What's this……?"

The scene is recreated—Shimada Kai is just like this morning, his eyes bulging, staring intently at the dining table in front of him.

His vision was covered by a blanket of white.

The large bowl, about the size of a palm, was covered with snow-white, glistening grains of rice, peeking out from the top.

It's not porridge, it's cooked rice!

A large bowl of white rice... that's already quite astonishing.

However, the abundance of side dishes on the table was even more astonishing!

A plate of glistening pork, a boiled egg, a piece of fried tofu, a plate of vibrant green vegetables, and a bowl of steaming miso soup.

Four dishes and one soup!

Meat, eggs, soy products, and vegetables—everything is available!

Shimada Kai's gaze seemed fixed on the dining table in front of him, refusing to leave.

Even if a stunningly beautiful woman were lying naked beside him, she couldn't take his attention away.

Shimada Kai's reaction was just a microcosm—a microcosm of everyone present.

An indescribable silence enveloped the entire venue, extending to every corner.

A pair of wide-open eyes.

Mouths that were practically drooling.

A series of astonished and pale faces.

By Edo-era dietary standards, this morning's meat porridge was an exceptionally delicious dish.

If that's the case, what words should be used to describe this "four dishes and one soup + white rice" meal?

Just as everyone was speechless with astonishment, Qing Deng's voice, tinged with a faint smile, echoed softly in the cafeteria, breaking the silence:

"'The Shinsengumi's fighting strength will be built on iron discipline and abundant food'—so you don't need to panic so much."

"From now on, 'meat porridge for breakfast, rice and four dishes and a soup for lunch and dinner' will be the basic food standard for the Shinsengumi during peacetime!"

"What's wrong? Aren't you hungry? Why haven't you started eating?"

The sound had not yet faded when the commotion began.

In an instant, a cacophony of noise, like a pigsty being fed, resounded throughout the canteen.

Embarrassingly, Shimada Kai almost cried when he tasted the soft and sweet rice.

When was the last time I ate rice with such abandon like this?

……

……

"Tachibana-kun, what you're doing..."

No sooner had Qing Deng sat down than he heard the commander beside him speak in an impatient tone.

However, before she could even cast the spell, Qing Deng interrupted her with a gesture:

“I know what you’re trying to say. Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing. The position of section chief is still vacant, so I’ve been personally managing the Shinsengumi’s finances. Therefore, I know our financial situation better than anyone else.”

At this point, Qingdeng curled the corners of his mouth and said confidently:

"Don't worry about money, I've already thought it through—I'll solve the Shinsengumi's financial problems by running trade routes!"

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