I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

"Is it because you now control the food, drink, and sanitation of an entire army? You always give people the feeling of a... leader."

Qingdeng blinked, then couldn't help but chuckle.

"What does it feel like to be a leader...? Perhaps."

“Ever since I came to Kyoto, every day when I open my eyes, I think about how to make the Shinsengumi stronger.”

"Having gotten used to giving orders, over time, they've probably developed a bit of a serious leader's aura."

Tenshoin covered his mouth and chuckled softly.

“Sheng Qing, ‘to act as if it’s a serious matter’ is a derogatory term.”

“I know, so I’m being modest.”

After rambling on about a few pointless and meaningless words, Tenshōin posed a new question:

"What about the Fa-Zhu Party? Have you heard anything about their latest activities recently?"

Qingdeng gently shook his head.

"No. The Party that punishes the law is more cunning than rats in a sewer; they are incredibly good at hiding."

“I strongly suspect that the core base of the Fa-Zhu Party is not in the capital region, or even in a more distant place.”

“I have sent out as many spies as possible to gather intelligence throughout the capital region.”

"In the end, all we collected were all sorts of messy, worthless junk information."

At this point, Qingdeng seemed to remember something, paused for a moment, and then spoke again after 5 seconds:

"Although I haven't been able to find out the specific movements of the Fakuju Party... I suspect they were involved in the recent 'Ise Rebellion'."

Tenshōin: "Oh? Why do you say that? Have you obtained strong evidence?"

"No, it's just my personal intuition."

“Looking back at the entire ‘Ise Rebellion,’ it exudes an eerie atmosphere from the inside out.”

"At the beginning of the Battle of Iga, I captured a junior officer of the enemy army."

"According to this person, the reason they were able to possess such a powerful armed force was entirely due to the strong support of a guy named 'Settsu Yorimitsu,' who claimed to be a local tyrant from Ise."

"Whether it was the weapons and equipment such as arquebuses and warhorses, or the strategic route to advance on Kyoto, it was all provided by Settsu Yorimitsu."

"After the battle, I specially organized a large number of people to clean up the battlefield and search for him everywhere."

"As a result, this person seemed to have vanished into thin air, and we couldn't find him anywhere."

"We asked every soldier in the rebel army, but no one knew their whereabouts."

"After returning to Kyoto, I asked Yamada Magistrate to conduct an investigation in Ise, and it turned out that there was no local powerful clan in Ise with the surname Settsu."

[Note: Yamada Magistrate: Yamada Magistrate is responsible for protecting the Ise Grand Shrine, the judicial system of Ise and Shima provinces, and the security of Toba Port. The quota is one person.]

“I suspect that this ‘Setsu Yorimitsu’ is a member of the Hoju Party.”

"They used a false name, provided money and manpower, and secretly cultivated forces to overthrow the regime."

As if splashed with ink, Tenshōin's facial expression seemed to have the word "solemn" written all over his face.

"...Sheng Qing, thank you for your hard work."

At this point, she adopted a quiet, somber tone.

"With Sa and Chang in front and Fa purging the party behind... it's like being surrounded by wolves..."

"I understand now. One thing is certain—the Party's ambition to punish the corrupt officials remains undiminished! They are constantly looking for the right opportunity, ready to deliver a crushing blow to us at any moment!"

Qingdeng nodded slightly in agreement.

……

……

Next, Tenshōin asked several more questions.

They started by asking about the Aizu Domain, then moved on to the current status of the Shinsengumi and the latest progress in conscription.

Qing Deng answered each question directly, without concealing or holding anything back.

After a while of this back-and-forth questioning, she let out a long sigh of relief, turning her exhaustion into her voice.

"Alright, we've finally asked all the questions we needed to ask."

As she spoke, she raised her arms and stretched vigorously, her upper body naturally leaning forward.

In an instant, her delicate body displayed astonishing flexibility! Her forward-leaning upper body and seated lower body formed a huge arc shape together.

Qingdeng and Tianzhangyuan were currently in a cramped sedan chair.

In other words, they were already very close to each other, practically within arm's reach.

Under such circumstances, when her upper body peeked out again... those incredible, highly noticeable hemispherical objects seemed about to jump out of her clothes and bounce onto Qingdeng's face!

At that moment, the two voices in Qing Deng's mind—human rationality and animal instinct—engaged in an extremely fierce battle!

The former steadfastly upheld the ideological position that "I am not a lustful person, but a man who enjoys eating green oranges."

The latter, on the other hand, always regards the physical law that "the greater the mass, the greater the gravity, so it is only natural that one's gaze is drawn to a giant breast."

The "confrontation" quickly came to a conclusion—in the end, reason prevailed.

Despite feeling a tiny bit unwilling, Qingdeng silently looked away.

However, in such a confined space, none of his movements or expressions could escape the watchful eyes of his opponent.

The expression on Qing Deng's face when he looked away—a hint of regret—was clearly reflected in Tenshōin's eyes.

Tenshōin blinked her beautiful eyes a few times, then smiled.

That sly, malicious smile reappeared on her face.

She continued speaking eloquently as she retracted her raised arms and leaned forward.

"Speaking of which, I just discovered something very interesting~~"

Although he couldn't explain why, in that instant, Qingdeng felt a chill run from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, and an ominous premonition arose in his heart.

Then, his ominous premonition came true.

"I've been hiding in this sedan chair for a while now, and I'm so bored."

"To pass the time, I would occasionally steal glances at the scenery outside the sedan chair."

"And guess what I found?"

"I saw someone craning their neck and looking around anxiously before Jia Mao showed up. They seemed to be looking for someone, with a look of eager anticipation."

"How strange~~"

Who is that person?

Who is he looking for this time?

"Who is this person to him?"

"Could it be his female boss whom he's been longing for?"

After speaking, Tenshōin tilted his head, revealing a troubled expression as if he were deep in thought.

It must be said that Tenshōin is indeed very talented in performing.

His tone was sincere, and his expression was vivid... If this were in modern times, he would definitely win an Oscar.

Qing Denglian twitched the corner of his mouth several times.

Helplessness, embarrassment, and awkwardness—three emotions in perfect proportion, evenly spread across his cheeks.

After a short while, as if he had given up the struggle, he said in a tone devoid of joy or sorrow:

"...That person is me, and the person I'm looking for is you."

Tenshoin frowned slightly and pursed his lips.

"What? Why did you admit it so quickly? I was thinking of teasing you a few more times while you were denying it."

Qingdeng ignored Tenshōin's complaints and continued speaking to himself:

"Although it may seem like I'm trying to cover something up, I still want to clarify that I absolutely did not show an expression of both anxiety and anticipation at the time."

Perhaps in order to "retaliate," he adopted a mocking tone.

"Your Highness, you are quite confident in yourself. How could you be so sure that the person I was looking for was you?"

"Of course."

Tianzhangyuan solemnly declared with joy:

"In the entire shogunate, besides me and Iemochi, who else can attract your attention?"

"Jia Mao is either riding on a horse or in the most conspicuous sedan chair, so you don't need to go looking for him at all."

“If we exclude Jia Mao, then it’s just me left.”

Tenshōin smiled smugly, looking at Seidō with great delight.

"To be honest, I'm very happy!"

"You must be one of the few people left in this world who still care about me and pay attention to me."

After saying that, Tenshōin laughed even more happily, her beautiful eyes almost narrowing into slits.

"Ah, that's right."

“When I said, ‘Could it be the female boss he’s been longing for?’ you didn’t immediately refute me.”

"Could it be... that you've really been thinking about me all this time?"

As she spoke, she covered her mouth with her hand, revealing a surprised expression that seemed to say, "Huh? No way?"

"..."

Qingdeng was speechless.

The expression etched on his face seemed to be a concrete manifestation of the word "helplessness".

However, after only a moment, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, and a faint smile appeared on his face.