I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

This will deter petty thieves! It will prevent those scheming and despicable individuals from causing trouble or offending the Shinsengumi again!

……

……

An army that clearly distinguishes between rewards and punishments is an army with fighting power.

Even before returning to the capital, Qingdeng had personally written a letter of commendation, meticulously praising the merits of every soldier who had made contributions.

Regarding the person who made the greatest contribution, Aoto personally selected someone who, while unexpected, was also reasonable: Serizawa Kamo.

The reason it was unexpected was that Serizawa Kamo was not a "Shiekan faction".

From the "four chiefs" and staff officers to the captains of the sword-drawing squad, most of them were members of the "Shiweiguan faction".

Such practices, to put it nicely, are about selecting the virtuous without avoiding relatives; to put it bluntly, they are about appointing people based on personal connections.

Anyone with even a modicum of ambition who wants to achieve upward social mobility through their own efforts will find this practice of nepotism utterly repulsive.

As a result, everyone had a preconceived notion about Qingdeng—that he would only give the lucrative positions and credits to his own people!

The rumor was finally debunked after Qing Deng published the letter he had personally written to claim credit.

The nepotistic Aoto actually awarded the credit for the Battle of Iga to Serizawa Kamo, who was not from the Shieikan Academy... This not only surprised many soldiers within the Shinsengumi, but also made Serizawa Kamo himself pause in surprise.

On the other hand, Qing Deng's arrangement is undoubtedly reasonable.

Even those who dislike Serizawa Kamo have to admit that Serizawa Kamo did indeed achieve an undeniably impressive record in this battle.

He led the soldiers of the Fourth and Sixth Divisions, holding their ground firmly on the eastern battlefield. They not only blocked the enemy's frenzied attack but also successfully drew away the main force of the enemy, creating conditions for Qing Deng's surprise attack on the enemy's main camp.

Based on this achievement alone, Serizawa Kamo truly deserves the credit!

In order to write this letter of commendation, Aoto mobilized Yamanami Keisuke and all members of the General Affairs Department, ordering them to do their best to carefully check the merits of every soldier and ensure that no meritorious person was missed.

Besides Serizawa Kamo's primary contribution, there is another person whose achievements are also quite remarkable.

This man's name is Hanzaburo.

They don't even have the surname "Miao" (苗字)... they're obviously commoners.

Although he was a commoner, he had a strong and powerful physique and had also practiced swordsmanship for several years at a sword school in the countryside.

In this battle, he single-handedly beheaded 18 people!

Without hesitation, Qing Deng listed Banzaburo as a key person to be commended in his letter of praise.

When this letter of praise was sent to Edo, the shogunate immediately approved it: Hanzaburō was promoted to the rank of Gokenin and awarded 100 koku of stipend!

Through military achievements, he went from a commoner to a servant with a stipend of 100 koku... In the Edo period, this was something that no one dared to even dream of!

Even describing this as ancestral graves emitting auspicious smoke... no! Even describing it as ancestral graves spewing fire seems too mild!

Hanzaburo's great success greatly boosted the morale of the Shinsengumi soldiers.

As long as one can achieve military merit, it is indeed possible to change one's destiny! "Fame and fortune can be won on horseback" is not just empty talk! Achieving high rank and privilege for one's family is no longer a dream!

Two voices emerged within the Shinsengumi.

The first sound is regret.

Many soldiers regretted their lackluster performance in the Battle of Iga.

"Damn it, why didn't I try harder?"

"Damn it! Why didn't I kill a few more bandits back then?"

As for the second sound... it's excitement—

"Let's start a war! I want to fight!"

"I can't wait! Choshu or Satsuma, it doesn't matter! Come and fight us now!"

"When the next war begins, I will definitely make great contributions! I will become a worthy samurai like Hanzaburo!"

Such sounds can be heard frequently in various locations within the Shinsengumi settlement recently.

……

……

Interestingly, after this battle, Aoto's reputation not only improved greatly within the Aizu Domain, but also saw a significant boost within the Owari Domain.

During their pursuit of Shibasaki Renjuro, Aoto and his companions accidentally entered the territory of the Owari Domain and encountered Hosokawa Saemon and his group, who were retainers of the Owari Domain.

During his interactions with them, Qingdeng not only didn't put on any airs, but also invited them to share a drink together.

Aoto's series of approachable actions won him the favor of Hosoya Saemon and others.

In a society with such rigid class divisions, being approachable is an absolute virtue.

If you talk to people about "equality for all", they'll think you're crazy.

Tachibana Seiden is a high-ranking military commissioner in the capital region, while I am an unknown feudal lord. How can he and I be equals?

After Hosoya Saemon and others returned to their domain, they spread the word about Seito's amiable nature.

And so, over time, the saying that "Tachibana no Seito, the governor of the capital region, is a good official who is approachable and kind to the people" quietly spread within the Owari Domain.

It wasn't until more than a month later that Qing Deng realized he had unintentionally become a highly praised official in Owari.

Faced with this series of unexpected consequences caused by his whim, Qing Deng could only laugh wryly; he had no other reaction whatsoever.

……

……

Incidentally, regarding the thousands of prisoners captured in this battle, Qingdeng also adhered to the simple principle of "making the best use of resources and talents" and disposed of them properly.

Ise, devastated and in dire need of reconstruction, is short of manpower.

Clearing ruins, moving fallen trees, building new houses, turning over fields... all of these are "labor-intensive" tasks.

Aren't these prisoners perfect free labor?

They don't have to pay them wages, yet they can order them to do all sorts of dirty and tiring work with a clear conscience.

Qing Deng once again wrote a decree, sending these prisoners to "aid" the reconstruction of Ise.

Of course, Qingdeng is not a demon, so he naturally wouldn't use them as disposable supplies.

Qingdeng will still provide the prisoners with the most basic daily food and living conditions.

……

……

Yataro Iwasaki truly deserves to be called a business genius who was able to build the Mitsubishi empire.

The day after Qing Deng led his troops to garrison Iga, he came up with a new idea to make money.

At that time, Yataro Iwasaki was taking a walk in the suburbs of Kyoto when he suddenly came across a wide river.

Looking at the river in front of him, he first sighed to himself: This river is really wide!

Then it suddenly occurred to him: "When the floodwaters rise, there will be serious consequences if there is no wide river surface."

Then a sudden thought struck him: "If we could build dikes along the riverbanks and create farmland by blocking the river, wouldn't that be a win-win situation?"

After a flash of inspiration, he rushed back to the Chamber of Commerce as quickly as possible and personally drafted an extremely detailed plan—first buy the land around the river, and then build a dam on the riverbank.

As soon as Qingdeng returned to the capital, he hurriedly presented the book to him.

To be honest, Qingdeng knew absolutely nothing about how to develop the economy.

He might be able to invent a product that sells well nationwide with a single moment of inspiration.

But how to ensure the stable operation of the newly elected Chamber of Commerce was something he was completely clueless about.

However, after years of navigating the bureaucracy of the shogunate, Seito understood one thing: it's better to be ignorant than to pretend to know! It's better to do nothing than to act recklessly!

Since you don't know how to make money, let those who do go all out!

Therefore, Aoto has only one attitude towards Iwasaki Yataro's economic plan for reclaiming land from the river:

"Go for it! Go for it! I'll take full responsibility for anything that happens! Even if we lose money, it doesn't matter. We'll find a way to earn it all back later!"

Thus, with Aoto's endorsement, Iwasaki Yataro rolled up his sleeves and embarked on his land reclamation project with great enthusiasm.

……

……

Donating spoils of war, writing letters of commendation, settling prisoners of war... After finishing this pile of tedious work, Qingdeng couldn't help but let out a long sigh, turning his exhaustion into a sound.

He finally managed to find the time.

He could finally launch an important plan he had been longing for—recruiting soldiers! Expanding the army!

The Satsuma and Choshu armies currently stationed in Kyoto, even by the most conservative estimate, number over a thousand.

The hundred or so members of the Shinsengumi are simply not enough.

Throughout history, outnumbering the enemy has always been the key to victory on the battlefield.

Most of the so-called "victorious battles with fewer troops" in history, with very few exceptions, were achieved through flexible troop deployment, creating an overwhelming numerical advantage in a local area, and then gradually eroding and defeating the opponent.

The most typical example is the Battle of Sarhu in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties of China.

Therefore, the essence of "winning with fewer troops" is still fighting with more troops against fewer troops.

Some guys always bring up the idea that "quality over quantity in warfare," and they always cite battles like the Battle of Julu and the Battle of Feishui to argue that having a large army and many generals is useless.

This is a typical example of diode thinking.

It seems that in their minds, the military only exists in two states: "small but elite" and "large but mediocre".

Why can't we build a large and elite army?

In conclusion, as long as it does not lead to logistical difficulties or a decline in organization, the more troops the better.

The strange balance of power in Kyoto, where pro-shogunate forces, pro-imperial forces, and neutral forces (Satsuma Domain) coexisted harmoniously, was unlikely to last much longer.

A large-scale conflict between the three parties could erupt at any moment.

At that time, without a strong army as a safety net, it would be impossible to withstand the pressure from all sides and achieve anything.

To always remain vigilant and constantly be mindful—this is the psychological quality a commander of an army should possess.