I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

"Qinghe-kun, time is of the essence, please forgive me for getting straight to the point."

“I am very interested in your proposed plan to ‘overthrow the Shinsengumi from within’.”

"The existence of the Shinsengumi is a major obstacle to achieving the great cause of supremacy."

"Therefore, our Tosa Loyalist Party is bound to be an enemy of the Shinsengumi."

"To be honest, I have been planning to 'eliminate the Shinsengumi' for a long time."

"I am greatly comforted to learn that there are righteous men like you in the Shinsengumi."

"Therefore, I am very willing to cooperate with you."

Upon hearing this, Kiyokawa Hachiro's lips curled into a smile.

“Mr. Takeshi, I am so glad to hear you say that.”

He had barely finished speaking when his expression changed drastically, replaced by regret, and he let out a long sigh.

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Chapter 715 Qingdeng's confidants are in danger! The "Test Guard Faction" has been targeted! [4400]

“I originally intended to seize the Shinsengumi and make it my own.”

"I thought the Shinsengumi wouldn't survive the crisis of 'lack of food and pay'."

"I want to take advantage of the chaos in the army to seize the Shinsengumi in one fell swoop."

"But I never expected... that Tachibana Aoto really does have some skill...!"

"He actually survived that ordeal!"

At this point, Kiyokawa Hachiro furrowed his brows, his cheekbones bulged, he gritted his teeth, and his face was filled with resentment and hatred.

"I don't know if he received guidance from a master or what, but he managed to find the extremely talented businessman Iwasaki Yataro and come up with such a lucrative idea as the 'Silver Mirror'!"

"A simple silver mirror can earn you several taels, or even more than ten taels of gold!"

"That Iwasaki Yataro was clearly just an unknown person, but he was able to keenly see business opportunities and manage the huge Shinsengumi Trading Company in an orderly manner."

"As far as I know, he is preparing to sell the silver mirror overseas recently."

"Ship after ship of silver mirrors were transported to Osaka, and ship after ship of gold was brought back!"

"In addition, he has recently begun to venture into other industries."

"He purchased a large plot of land on the outskirts of Kyoto in the name of the Shinsensho Chamber of Commerce and started a project to build farmland by blocking the river."

"If this project is completed, it will bring in a huge amount of wealth!"

"Under the leadership of Yataro Iwasaki, Shinsen Shokai is now thriving."

"With provisions and pay, the morale of the army will be boosted."

"The entire Shinsengumi, enjoying a sumptuous feast and receiving generous pay, revered Tachibana Seito and served him as their lord!"

"Nowadays, it is extremely difficult to replace Tachibana Seito and seize control of the Shinsengumi."

At this point, Kiyokawa Hachiro let out a cold snort, his face full of resentment.

"Fine, since we can't take over the Shinsengumi, let's just destroy it!"

Qinghe has always had a very clear understanding of his own identity—a loyal and devoted patriot!

He never accepted the rule of the shogunate and had the Emperor in his eyes but not the shogun.

From the day he joined the Shinsengumi, his goal was to "seize the Shinsengumi."

Spend the shogunate's money, deplete the shogunate's resources, and then use the shogunate's troops to attack the shogunate—get something for nothing, isn't that wonderful!

Using his identity as a "strategist for the Shinsengumi," Kiyokawa Hachiro secretly seized control of the Shinsengumi and transformed it into the vanguard of the great cause of overthrowing the enemy—this was Kiyokawa Hachiro's plan... or rather, his "original plan."

Just as he had said, he originally intended to wait until the New Senkai fell into disarray due to lack of supplies before secretly seizing them.

However... what happened next far exceeded his expectations!

However, it's not surprising that he made this misjudgment.

Before this, everyone would have thought that Aoto's situation was already precarious, and that the Shinsengumi was a dying force.

Without the shogunate's financial and food supplies, how long can this newly formed, temporary army hold out?

In fact, before the New Election Chamber of Commerce was established in Qingdeng, almost everyone was pessimistic about the future of the New Election Group.

Even if Qingdeng manages to keep the situation afloat, its development will be very limited.

As a result... Seito managed to overcome this difficulty with just one person and one item—Iwasaki Yataro and the Silver Mirror! And he even further strengthened the Shinsengumi!

In terms of personal prestige, Kiyokawa Hachiro couldn't even reach Aoto's knees.

In terms of logistical support, thanks to Meng Qingdeng's kindness, the soldiers of the Shinsengumi enjoyed the best treatment in the country.

Whether in terms of "spirit" or "material", Kiyokawa Hachiro was completely outmatched by Aoto.

In this state of affairs, talking about "replacing Tachibana Seito" or "securing the Shinsengumi" is simply wishful thinking!

Therefore, when Kiyokawa Hachiro realized that his "rebellion plan" was no longer feasible, he had no choice but to settle for a different plan—to destroy the Shinsengumi!

Seito's high status and favor within the shogunate, along with the Shinsengumi's formidable fighting prowess displayed in the Battle of Iga, made all the patriots across Japan acutely aware of one fact: the rapidly growing strength of the Shinsengumi had become a huge obstacle to the cause of overthrowing the shogunate!

An obstacle that cannot be moved forward unless it is removed!

In the eyes of the patriots who had a keen strategic vision, weakening or even destroying the Shinsengumi had become an urgent and top priority!

Kiyokawa Hachiro was well aware of his own frailty.

Therefore, he has been seeking support from external forces.

From the imperial court to Choshu, from Satsuma to Tosa, he sent trusted confidants to contact every power he could count on or rely on.

The imperial court's attitude was ambiguous.

Samoa has made it clear that it refuses to cooperate.

Changzhou did not respond.

Only the Tosa loyalists of Tosa expressed interest in you.

Finally, today, Kiyokawa Hachiro's confidant reported to him that Takechi Hanpeita was willing to form an alliance with them and wanted to meet with him tonight!

That's why the scene of "the two meeting in secret" was carved out.

After listening to Kiyokawa Hachiro's reflections, Takechi Hanpeita calmly said:

"I bear part of the responsibility for Tachibana Seito's current success."

“Iwasaki Yataro was originally a country ronin from Tosa.”

"Previously, Tachibana Seito personally visited Iwasaki Yataro and his family, offering a reward of 10 taels of silver in exchange for the removal of Iwasaki Yataro from the register and the restoration of Iwasaki's father's reputation."

"The IOU he wrote to me back then is still kept in my bookshelf."

"To be honest, I didn't take Iwasaki Yataro seriously at all back then,"

"I don't think Tachibana Aoto has the outstanding ability to strengthen the Shinsengumi."

"I just think that Tachibana Seiden is really crazy, actually spending 10 taels of gold to 'buy' an unknown underground ronin."

"Since it's something that won't lose money anyway, we might as well take the opportunity to sell Ju Qingdeng and do him a favor."

"Therefore, I agreed to the conditions he proposed."

"Now it seems... I was blind."

"It's such a pity to lose such a valuable talent."

Upon hearing this, Kiyokawa Hachiro's facial expression immediately turned awkward.

He had just been eloquently describing how Aoto was like a tiger with wings after getting Iwasaki Yataro, but he forgot the fact that "Iwasaki Yataro was originally from Tosa, and the reason he was able to serve Aoto was entirely due to Takechi Hanpeita's 'assistance'."

In this way, his previous words seemed to be a veiled criticism of Takechi Hanpeita.

At this moment, someone standing behind Takeshi Hanpeita suddenly spoke:

"Teacher, since you still have Ju Qingdeng's IOU, let's go and collect the debt from him!"

"That guy has plenty of money now! There's no way he can't pay 10 gold!"

"'I'll exchange 10 taels of gold for Iwasaki Yataro'—that's what Tachibana Seito said himself, and he even wrote down an IOU in black and white!"

"This money belongs to us anyway, so why not take it?"

No sooner had this person finished speaking than Takeshi Hanpeita turned his head, glanced at him coldly, and gave him a sidelong look.

"We are dignified warriors."

"How can a samurai act like a merchant, holding up IOUs to collect debts? What kind of behavior is that?"

After being reprimanded by Takeshi Hanpeita, the man immediately lowered his head, his face filled with shame.

"Teacher, I'm sorry... I was rash."

Seeing this, Kiyokawa Hachiro thought to himself:

—This person calls Takechi Hanpeita “teacher”... It seems he must be Takechi Hanpeita’s student.

Wu Shi Banping Taiyuan was a Taoist priest.

He was a talented individual skilled in both literature and martial arts.

Therefore, his dojo not only taught martial arts but also academic subjects.

The most striking feature of its temple is that it does not ask about one's background.

Whether they were high-ranking sergeants enjoying all the privileges, or lowly Bai Zha villagers and lower-ranking sergeants, they could freely become his disciples.

Takeshi Hanpeita's class status was that of a Shiratsu village gentry.

Although the social status of Baizha Xiangshi was above that of Xiashi, in the eyes of Shangshi, it was still a synonym for "lowly".