I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

"With this money, you will be able to live a life of luxury that is unattainable for ordinary people."

"With this money... you can redeem Hiyori from Shimabara, can't you?"

Upon hearing the name Hiyori, Ikeda Toritaro's body trembled violently.

"How...how do you know about Miss Hiyori?"

Qingdeng replied indifferently:

“I even know about your secret dealings with the Tosa Loyalists, so what are your little private matters compared to that?”

"Although Miss Hiyori is not the most popular courtesan, she is still a very popular courtesan."

"For this reason, her redemption fee was not cheap."

"Exactly 200 taels of gold, no more, no less."

"Ikeda-kun, where are you going to get 200 taels of gold?"

A bead of cold sweat trickled down Toritaro Ikeda's forehead.

Qingdeng continued speaking:

Did Kiyohachiro pay you your wages?

"The salary the Shinsengumi pays you is no more than half a tael of gold per month."

"With your current income, even if you don't eat or drink for days on end, it would take you more than ten years to barely scrape together 200 taels of gold."

"And even if we manage to raise the money, what then?"

"By the time you've raised enough money, Miss Hiyori will probably have already been redeemed by someone else."

"Even if you are lucky enough to redeem Miss Hiyori, your income will not be enough to support your happy life together."

"At most, we'll live a peaceful life where we won't starve."

"A life of luxury with bells and drums and delicacies is something we absolutely cannot expect."

"Even if I want to buy a new piece of clothing, I have to be stingy and hesitate for a long time."

"You might think: Once you have accomplished the great task of bringing honor to the emperor, you will become a key minister who supports the emperor and rise to prominence without being bothered by money."

"But the problem is, how can you guarantee that your great cause of suppressing evil will ultimately achieve victory?"

"Moreover, with so many people supporting the great cause of honor and prosperity, how can you be sure that you can get a share of the pie?"

"Now, close your eyes and imagine it carefully."

At this point, Qingdeng closed his eyes as a gesture of respect.

Perhaps intimidated by Aoto's powerful aura, Ikeda Toritaro followed suit in a daze, closing his eyes as well.

In the hazy darkness, he heard Qing Deng's soft voice:

"Imagine this: your great cause of gaining prestige has not been accomplished, you have neither obtained a prominent status nor amassed a fortune, and you simply drift through life in a daze."

"Because I was poor, I couldn't afford to buy the freedom of the woman I loved."

"Because of poverty, there is nothing we can do except avoid starvation."

"There was a time when a precious opportunity that could change your life in one fell swoop was right in front of you, but you didn't cherish it, missed it, and regretted it too late."

"Now, open your eyes—the precious opportunity that can change your life is back before you!"

Qingdeng suddenly opened his eyes.

At the same time, Ikeda Toritaro also opened his eyes.

Compared to before, his eyes now held many more complex emotions.

"Kiyoshi Hachiro is indeed your close friend and comrade-in-arms."

"But can he afford it?"

At this point, Qingdeng reached out and touched the golden mountain again.

The gold coins clattered once more.

"Can he help you redeem Miss Hiyori from her servitude?"

"He can't."

"But I can!"

Qing Deng suddenly raised his voice, his momentum astonishing.

Now, tell me your choice.

"Ikeda Toritaro, are you willing to submit to me?"

Aoto cast a sharp glance at Ikeda Toritaro.

The latter, as if unable to bear the former's gaze, slowly lowered her head, staring intently at her toes.

After a moment, he stammered:

"...empty promises! How can I be sure you won't break your word?"

Qing Deng said solemnly:

"What? You don't believe me?"

“I am the renowned ‘Niou’ Tachibana Aoto, not an unrighteous and heartless scoundrel.”

"I swear on the honor of a warrior—once this is accomplished, I will fulfill all the conditions I promised you!"

"If I break my promise to you, I am willing to suffer all the cruel punishments of the world, and may I not be able to enter the six realms after death!"

As he spoke, he unfastened the Vairocana sword from his waist, gripped the scabbard with his left hand and the hilt with his right, and with a "whoosh," drew half of the blade out, then heavily sheathed it, making a crisp "clang" sound.

Upon seeing this, Ikeda Toritaro's eyelashes and lips trembled slightly, and his facial expression became increasingly complex and indescribable.

Qingdeng wasn't in a hurry and waited patiently.

Hesitation, doubt, confusion, excitement, frustration... a wide variety of emotions were displayed on Toritaro Ikeda's face, a chaotic mess.

Before he could finish, he gritted his teeth and shouted in a strong and clear voice:

"Mr. Qinghe is my dearest friend, my brother!"

He paused for a moment after saying this.

"So...ten thousand taels of gold...is not enough!"

He raised his gaze, his eyes filled with a fiery light.

Qingdeng curled the corners of his mouth, revealing a half-smile.

"Twelve thousand taels of gold!"

He said it quite readily.

In the next instant, Ikeda Toritaro suddenly pounced on the ground, bending his knees and placing his forehead and hands on the ground in the most standard dogeza (a traditional Japanese kneeling posture).

"Lord Renwang, if you do not despise me, I am willing to serve you as your lord! From this day forward, I am willing to serve you like a dog or a horse!"

……

……

Kyoto, Mibu Village, Shinsengumi Headquarters, Aoto's office—

As soon as Qing Deng returned to his office, he saw a graceful figure in bright red stand up from a corner of the room and stride toward him—it was Kinoshita Mai, who had been waiting there for a long time.

She abruptly asked:

"Qingdeng, if that Ikeda Toritaro really provides you with useful information about Kiyokawa Hachiro and the Tosa Loyalists, are you really going to pay him 12,000 taels of gold?"

When the number "twelve thousand taels of gold" was mentioned, Kinoshita Mai shrank her neck, her face full of reluctance.

Qingdeng nodded without hesitation:

"Of course!"

"For a mere twelve thousand taels of gold, we can obtain invaluable intelligence that is enough to bring down the Tosa Loyalist Party—why wouldn't we take such a good deal?"

*******

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Please vote with monthly tickets! Please vote with recommendation tickets! (Leopard crying.jpg)

Leopard discovered something: the most touching things are still real money! How many heroes have been stumped by money, how many heroes have been corrupted by money.

Chapter 720: A Frenzied Attack on Kinoshita Mai's Weaknesses! Kidnapping the Emperor! Burning Down the Imperial Palace! [4200]

Qing Deng let out a long sigh, unfastened the sword at his waist, and casually sat down cross-legged.

Kinoshita Mai quietly approached and obediently sat down beside him.

"Ah Wu, thank you for your hard work."

"It was just a matter of knocking out that Ikeda Toritaro and then carrying him into the cellar. It wasn't difficult at all."

Qingdeng gently shook his head.

That's not what I meant.

"It must have been very difficult to keep an eye on Kiyokawa Hachiro for a long time, right?"

"You've really gone through a lot of trouble."

As soon as Qing Deng finished speaking, Kinoshita Mai opened her lips without hesitation.

Judging from the shape of her mouth, she probably meant to say: Qingdeng, you're exaggerating! This is nothing to me!

However, just as she was about to speak, she seemed to suddenly remember something, paused, blinked her beautiful eyes a few times, and a sly smile slowly appeared on her cheeks.

"Hmm... well... whenever Kiyokawa Hachiro goes out, I have to follow him immediately."

"It's really tough to make sure you don't lose track of the other person while also preventing them from noticing."

As she spoke, Kinoshita Mai used her hand as a fan to fan her face, revealing a "weak" expression that said, "Ah, I'm exhausted."

Instead of a dry thank you, give me some tangible reward.