I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Even the tiny Ooku has its damn factional strife!

Honju-in was the concubine of Tokugawa Ieyoshi, the 12th shogun of the Edo shogunate, and the birth mother of the previous shogun (the 13th shogun), Tokugawa Iesada.

To draw an analogy, Honjuin's status was similar to that of the "Grand Empress Dowager" of the shogunate, even higher than that of Tenshōin, who was the "Empress Dowager".

Honjuin's original name was Mitsu, Kenko.

Compared to Tenshōin, who maintains a high level of public interest due to her unparalleled beauty and various dubious rumors, and is frequently the subject of conversation, Honjōin's presence is rather weak, and she seems quite unknown.

In recent years, she has not appeared in the public eye, and people have almost forgotten that there is such a "hidden BOSS" in the Ooku.

Don't let Honjuin's quiet demeanor fool you; when Tokugawa Iesada was still alive, she was quite a restless character.

As the birth mother of Tokugawa Iesada, she naturally hoped that her child could carry on the family line and that she could hold her lovely grandchildren.

So, as soon as Tenshōin married into the shogunate, she would run over every few days to ask him: "Have you and Iesada had any children... ah, no, correction. It should be, 'Are you pregnant?'"

She eagerly anticipated and waited.

As a result, there was still no movement in Tianzhangyuan's belly.

Expectations gradually turn into disappointment...

Legend has it that when the rumor that "Tokugawa Iesada had not yet consummated his marriage with Tenshōin" spread, she was so angry that she went to question Tenshōin directly.

The content of her question is now unknown.

However, it's probably just those old, outdated things.

According to the values ​​of that era, it was the duty of the Odai (chief magistrate) to bear children for the shogun and continue the Tokugawa clan's lineage.

Therefore, in Honjuin's view, Tenshōin's behavior of not consummating his marriage with the Tokugawa family and not having children was simply dereliction of duty and a failure to fulfill his responsibilities as the Odai-sho (official residence).

On the one hand, she worked on the mindset of Tokugawa Iesada, and on the other hand, she urged Tenshōin to give birth to Tokugawa Iesada's child as soon as possible.

As time went on, the relationship between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law became increasingly strained.

Honjuin didn't even bother to give Tenshōin a pleasant look.

As a mere daughter-in-law, Tianzhangyuan was powerless to confront her mother-in-law and could only silently swallow her anger.

This "cold war" between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law did not last long.

Because... Tokugawa Iesada died in 1858.

Having lost her husband in middle age, and then her son a few years later... deeply devastated, Honjuin became disheartened.

With their only son gone and their bloodline extinguished, there is no point in continuing to be hostile to the Tianzhang Academy.

She moved deep into the inner palace, rarely seeing anyone, and lived a secluded life.

As time passed, she and Tenshōin reconciled, and their relationship gradually improved.

Ironically... the relationship between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law only began to thaw after their son (husband) died...

Honjuin never interfered in politics and never meddled in the policies of the shogunate.

However, she was quite concerned about Tokugawa Iemochi's personal safety.

Despite not being related by blood, she still had deep feelings for Tokugawa Iemochi.

During the succession struggle that year, the Ooku, led by Honjuin and Tenshōin, always stood firmly on the side of the Nanki faction and supported Tokugawa Iemochi's ascension to the throne.

During this process, Honjuin contributed significantly due to his high status.

Therefore, Honjuin can be considered one of the great contributors to the Nanki school.

As the esteemed "Grand Empress Dowager," and a core member and great contributor of the Nanki faction, neither Tokugawa Iemochi nor Tenshōin could act presumptuously in front of Honjuin, both in terms of sentiment and reason.

Honjuin strongly opposed Katsura Rintaro's suggestion to "go to Kyoto by ship".

His attitude was so resolute that it bordered on hysteria, with a sense of "If Tokugawa Iemochi were to sail to Kyoto, I would commit suicide."

In fact, Aoto was quite able to understand Honjuin's inner world.

Anyone who has carefully examined Honjuin's life would not find anything unusual about her intense attitude of viewing "traveling on a ship" as "going to hell".

She has experienced far too many thrills in her life.

她的丈夫——第12代将军德川家庆——在位16年（1837-1853），身子骨还算壮实，生育能力很强，与正侧室之间生有德川家定、德川庆昌等11男16女。

However, only Tokugawa Iesada's sons were able to grow up successfully.

The other children either died shortly after birth or died young.

Just when everyone thought Tokugawa Ieyoshi was going to die childless, Honjuin gave birth to Tokugawa Iesada.

Before giving birth to Tokugawa Iesada, Honjuin had already given birth to two boys, both of whom died young.

It can be said that the birth of Tokugawa Iesada was a hard-won and unexpected surprise.

The title "Midai-sho" was reserved for the principal wife; Honju-in, who was merely a concubine, was not entitled to it.

However, she was given a title befitting the mother of the next general: the Imperial Concubine.

In order to preserve his lineage, Tokugawa Ieyoshi issued a strict order: Masanosuke (Tokugawa Iesada's childhood name) should be kept in the deepest part of the Ooku! He must not be exposed to even a slight breeze!

And so, through tireless care at all costs, they finally managed to save this sole survivor.

Unfortunately... although this lone seedling survived, it grew malformed.

Perhaps the successive deaths of his brothers and sisters brought considerable shock to Tokugawa Iesada.

Although there is no direct evidence, some of Tokugawa Iesada's behavior after he grew up suggests that he not only suffered from cerebral palsy but also had some degree of paranoia.

Tokugawa Iesada was truly "born in the inner palace and raised by women".

Tokugawa Ieyoshi's strict "stay-at-home" order meant that Tokugawa Iesada almost never left the inner palace before he came of age.

This extremely isolated upbringing fostered his timid and withdrawn personality.

He always locked himself in the deepest part of the inner palace, trying his best to avoid contact with anyone.

In addition, he always felt very unsafe, as if criminals were trying to kill him.

He refused to eat the food prepared by the imperial chefs, so he built a small kitchen in the inner palace and cooked all three meals himself. He even developed a passable skill in baking pastries.

In the final years of his life, his paranoia became increasingly severe.

He locked himself in his room, refusing to see anyone except his wet nurse, Geqiao.

Judging from Tokugawa Iesada's symptoms, the rumor that he never consummated his marriage with Tenshōin might actually be true.

He wouldn't even trust the ladies-in-waiting in the inner palace who had watched him grow up, so how could he possibly trust and be close to a strange girl who had married into the Satsuma Domain from so far away?

He and Tenshōin might not have even met more than a few times.

In short, having witnessed too many unnatural deaths, it was only natural that Honjuin was very concerned about Tokugawa Iemochi's personal safety and strongly opposed him taking any risks.

We'd rather spend 100 million taels of gold to send Tokugawa Iemochi on the safer land route, away from the potentially dangerous sea route!

Because they lived in different places, Aoto had no idea how Tokugawa Iemochi and Tenshōin viewed the astronomical cost of their trip to Kyoto.

But based on my understanding of them—this mother and son would absolutely never agree to waste a precious 100 million taels of gold on such a vanity project!

When I led my army to Kyoto, Tokugawa Iemochi only gave me 3000 taels of gold!

He's so "stingy," how could he possibly approve of something so absurd!

Qing Deng could easily picture the scene—in order to persuade the "conservatives" led by Honjuin to change their minds, Tokugawa Iemochi and Tenshōin used every trick in the book, arguing until they were red in the face and their necks were bulging.

However... this mother and son, with their shallow foundations, were truly powerless against the "conservatives" represented by Honjumaru.

Thinking of this, Qingdeng couldn't help but feel a sense of emotion.

He deeply understood the difficulties faced by Tokugawa Iemochi and Tenshōin.

One was the 14th Shogun of the Edo Shogunate and the highest leader of the samurai class; the other was the incomparably noble Omikado.

Although they all have incredibly prestigious titles, they are often powerless to control their own destiny.

The foundation itself is not solid enough, the obstruction of powerful ministers, the interference of maternal relatives... the debuffs are almost stacked up!

Now that the die is cast, no matter how much regret or remorse one feels, it's too late.

Time passed...

On April 20, 1863, the grand entrance to Kyoto by the general, which cost over a million taels of gold, began in a spectacular fashion.

……

……

A massive procession of three thousand people slowly unfolded along the streets of Donghai, stretching for miles, a truly magnificent sight.

The Tokai Road is the shortest route connecting Edo and Kyoto.

Over the centuries, through years of repairs and the constant trampling of countless feet and hooves, the road surface of the Tokai Road has become incredibly smooth and hard, with deep and clear ruts in the center, making it very easy to walk and advance. It can be described as the "highway" of the Edo period.

As I said before, Japan is a small island nation.

The distance between Edo and Kyoto is not far; the straight-line distance between the two is only 380 kilometers.

Under Tokugawa Iemochi's strict instructions, the troops marching to Kyoto displayed the momentum of a forced march, moving at a rapid pace and maintaining an extremely high speed throughout.

In just seven days, Tokugawa Iemochi's expeditionary force arrived at Ōtsu, a strategically important location southeast of Kyoto.

On this day, the retainers of the Tokugawa shogunate stationed in Kyoto, led by Aoto and Matsudaira Katamori, all went out of the city to Otsu to await the arrival of Tokugawa Iemochi.

……

……

Wenjiu three years (1863), January 27th——

Gyeonggi Province, South Bank of Lake Biwa, Otsu-su——

There are 53 lodging stations along the Tokai Road, with Otsu lodging being the last one.

The warm spring breeze brushed past my ears, carrying the fresh fragrance of new buds.

The weather is lovely today, with a gentle breeze and clear skies since early morning. The azure sky perfectly embodies the phrase "as clear as if washed," seemingly reaching to the very end of the universe.

As spring arrives, the trees covering the distant mountains begin to sprout tender green branches, rustling softly in the breeze.

"Moo moo moo... Moo moo moo..."

The radish made a listless sound and listlessly pawed at the ground with its front hooves.