I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Because Aoto had an almost obsessive and strict requirement for the hygiene of the toilets, when Tokugawa Iemochi and others saw the actual condition of the toilets in the camp, they were all greatly shocked.

Am I in the wrong place? This is a military camp toilet, not the Emperor's Imperial Toilet, is it? So many people relieve themselves here every day, how can it be so clean?

Faced with the eye-opening facilities and knowledge-enhancing regulations within the garrison, Tokugawa Iemochi and his men were dazzled and overwhelmed.

Even the generals of the "personal guard" went through a process of initial shock, then intoxication, and finally madness.

When faced with someone who is more outstanding than you, you might feel jealous or even hate them.

But when you face someone who is far more outstanding than you, with a gap between you as vast as the difference between heaven and earth, you don't even have the courage to feel jealousy or hatred!

Yamaki Unro and the others are now facing such a situation.

After witnessing firsthand the Shinsengumi's formidable fighting strength, strict discipline, and unparalleled camp layout, they completely lost the courage to continue opposing Aoto and competing with the Shinsengumi!

Even though they were dissatisfied, they had to admit that compared to the Shinsengumi, the "Third Division" was like a child's play!

Even if the entire Third Division were to commit their forces, they probably wouldn't be able to withstand a single round against the Shinsengumi's might!

Due to a clear understanding of reality, the attitudes displayed by the "personal guard" generals, led by Yamaki Unro, when facing Aoto, underwent a complete 180-degree reversal.

He addressed the commander as "Governor" repeatedly, his tone extremely humble.

When talking to Qingdeng, he almost bent his back to the ground, and his attitude was as friendly as could be.

Qingdeng had only one response to their change of heart: he gave a cold laugh inwardly and ignored them!

……

……

evening--

Tokugawa Iemochi rode slowly, a smile playing on his lips, a look of utter satisfaction on his face.

"Qingdeng, you did a great job."

"Thanks to you, I had a great time today."

"The growth of the Shinsengumi has far exceeded my expectations."

"I am very pleased to see the newly formed electoral group grow to this extent."

Qingdeng, who was accompanying him, immediately responded:

"Your Highness, I dare not accept such praise."

In high spirits, Tokugawa Iemochi rode at the head of the procession.

Tenshōin, Ichitsuki Yoshiki, and the others followed closely behind.

The group was walking back to Nijo Castle when they came to pass a straight road.

It was dusk.

Looking up, half the sky was dyed orange-red by the twilight, while the other half was bathed in the glow of the setting sun that was about to disappear behind the mountains.

The glow of the sunset slanted down from the treetops into the city streets.

On one side of the road, the eaves were already shrouded in a hazy twilight.

Bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun, Tokugawa Iemochi seemed to remember something and suddenly let out a long sigh:

"Sigh... I really don't want tomorrow to come so soon..."

Upon hearing this, Qing Deng immediately wore a solemn expression.

He naturally knew what this meant.

Tomorrow, Tokugawa Iemochi will personally go to the Imperial Palace to discuss the expulsion of foreigners with the Emperor and other court officials.

Qingdeng was silent for a moment, then asked quietly:

"Your Highness, I'll be frank—how confident are you in your ability to debate with the court?"

Tokugawa Iemochi gave a wry smile:

"To be honest—I'm not sure."

"The imperial court is aggressive and single-mindedly focused on expelling the barbarians."

"We are playing away from home, which is even more disadvantageous."

"In addition, the Choshu Domain also interfered."

At this point, Tokugawa Iemochi sighed again.

"We can only take it one step at a time..."

……

……

The next day—

Wenjiu three years (1863), January 29th——

Kyoto, Imperial Palace—

Tokugawa Iemochi, dressed in a purple court robe, knelt in the very center of the small palace.

He bowed deeply to Emperor Tonin directly in front of him from afar, and then said solemnly, word by word:

"Your Majesty! My lords! Please forgive my bluntness—expelling the barbarians is absolutely unacceptable! If we were to implement a policy of expelling the barbarians, we would be in danger of national extinction and annihilation!"

*******

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How will this debate go?

Chapter 686 Something terrible has happened! Tokugawa Iemochi has fallen ill! [5400]

Emperor Tonin, Regent Takaji Sukehiro, Kujo Naotada (former Regent and leader of the pro-shogunate court nobles), Sanjo Sanetomi (leader of the pro-imperial court nobles)... all the important figures of the Imperial Court gathered together.

They sat in order of rank, in front of Tokugawa Iemochi and on either side of him.

Compared to the imperial court's overwhelming numbers, Tokugawa Iemochi's side was truly outnumbered and outmatched.

The only people who accompanied Tokugawa Iemochi here were Hitotsubashi Yoshinobu and Matsudaira Harugaku—both of whom happened to be Tokugawa Iemochi's political enemies.

Even Qing Deng, who held the high-ranking positions of Governor of the Capital Region and Vice Minister of War, was not qualified to attend such a high-level summit.

Hitotsubashi Yoshinobu and Matsudaira Haruaki sat on the left and right sides of Tokugawa Iemochi respectively, and the three of them formed a "品" shape.

One side has more people, the other side has fewer people.

One side is seated in a semi-encircled position, while the other side is in a predicament of being protected.

This situation, this scene, doesn't look like a debate at all; it looks more like an interrogation!

Tokugawa Iemochi's preemptive strike immediately provoked a counterattack from the court officials.

"How dare you, Great Tree Master! How dare you spout such nonsense before His Majesty?!"

The speaker was named Nishikikoji Sentoku, one of the core figures of the "Respectful and Dissent Faction."

Immediately afterwards, another young court noble—Sawanobuyoshi, also a core member of the "Revere the Exile Faction"—raised his voice and launched a fierce attack on Tokugawa Iemochi:

"Lord Dashu, as the Grand General who conquers the barbarians, how can you boost the enemy's morale and diminish our own prestige!"

Then, the assembled nobles of the pro-imperial faction began to speak, raining down all sorts of sarcastic remarks on Tokugawa Iemochi.

"..."

Tokugawa Iemochi remained silent and expressionless, as if he had long expected to be treated this way, silently enduring the ridicule and jeers of the pro-imperial faction nobles.

Finally, Kujo Naotada, who held a leading position among the pro-shogunate faction, could no longer stand it. He coughed a few times forcefully and said seriously:

"How dare you! Do you think this is a vegetable market? Quiet down right now!"

The Kujo family is a prestigious family among prestigious families, and Kujo Naotada, who is 65 years old now, is the former Kanpaku (regent). He is high-ranking, virtuous, and respected. Even the arrogant and self-important nobles of the Zunbo faction have to give him some face.

As soon as Naotada Kujo finished speaking, the entire room fell silent.

As the atmosphere returned to silence, Tokugawa Iemochi seized the opportunity to speak again:

"Your Majesty, my ministers, the reason why I said 'expelling the barbarians is absolutely unacceptable' is not to embolden the enemy or demoralize our own troops."

"Your Majesty, I am merely stating a fact—we are no match for the Western barbarians!"

When he said, "We are no match for the Western barbarians," Tokugawa Iemochi emphasized his words, gritting his teeth and speaking loudly, enunciating each syllable clearly.

"In my humble opinion, it is extremely inaccurate to refer to Western countries such as England, France, and the United States collectively as 'Western barbarians'!"

"The Western countries are not barbarians!"

"In fact, it's quite the opposite."

"They are a highly developed country! They have a full treasury, advanced technology, and a powerful military."

"Let me give you a simple example."

"Ten years ago, U.S. Navy Commodore Matthew Perry led four warships into Edo Bay."

"Its escort ship, the Saskatchewan, weighs 656837 slugs!"

[Note: 1 kan = 3.73 kg, 656837 kan is approximately equal to 2450 tons.]

"A massive ship carrying nearly 66 strings of cash!"

"Your Majesty, my ministers, can you imagine this?"

"A ship weighing 66 strings of cash!"

"This is now as big as a small mountain!"

"Because of its enormous size, the ship was able to be equipped with a large number of cannons, and these cannons were the most advanced steel cannons."

"On the other hand, we not only have a small number of cannons, but every single one of them is an old bronze cannon."

"At that time, we had to pull the bronze bell ashore and disguise it as a coastal defense gun, using this self-deceptive method to save face."

"Although our military equipment has made great progress in the past 10 years, it is still not as good as that of Western countries."