I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Okita listened very attentively the whole time.

As soon as Yamanami finished speaking, he exclaimed in surprise, "So that's how it is... Yamanami-kun, you explained it so well! Even someone like me who isn't very bright can understand it!"

Following closely behind Okita, Aoto, who had been listening attentively the whole time, praised Yamanami's eloquence.

Aoto asked himself—he couldn't possibly summarize the feud between Ii Naosuke and the Mito Domain as succinctly as Yamanami.

"You flatter me." Yamanami smiled humbly at Aoto and Okita with great poise.

"No wonder that man said he wouldn't be surprised if he saw Ii Taisho being hacked to death in the street by the Mito Domain's samurai someday in the future."

Okita stretched out his right hand, grabbed the ponytail at the back of his head, and gently fiddled with the ends of the braid using his index and middle fingers.

"Judging from what Ii Tairo has done to the Mito Domain so far... it's not surprising that the Mito Domain's retainers would do anything to Ii Tairo..."

……

……

The next day, early morning—

The seventh year of Anzheng (1860), March 3——

In the courtyard next to the gate of the Ii family mansion, Ii Naosuke's attendants and guards were kneeling.

They surrounded an exquisite sedan chair like stars fawning over the moon.

Beside the sedan chair door, Ii Naosuke, whose hair and clothes were impeccably groomed, stood facing his wife, Aku.

"Take care on your journey." Aku, with a gentle smile on her face, bowed slightly to Ii Naosuke.

Every morning when Ii Naosuke went to Edo Castle to handle state affairs, Aku would see him off and say "Take care on your journey" – a habit that Aku had maintained for a long time.

With a gentle smile on his face, Ii Naosuke raised his hand and smoothed out a wrinkle on Akyu's collar. "The weather has been a bit chilly these past few days, remember to keep warm."

Their farewell was simple and straightforward, without any frills or affectation.

Only decades of deep friendship and long-term close companionship can cultivate this kind of "returning to simplicity" in parting.

After telling Aku to "remember to keep warm," Ii Naosuke crouched down and climbed into his sedan chair.

Just as Ii Naosuke's entourage was about to lift the palanquin, an elderly samurai suddenly rushed hurriedly through the open gate of the Ii residence into the small courtyard adjacent to the gate.

His gaze shifted, and he spotted Ii Naosuke sitting inside the sedan chair, which had not yet been lifted. He immediately rushed straight towards Ii Naosuke.

Ii Naosuke's attendants and guards did not stop the middle-aged samurai in any way, allowing him to get close to Ii Naosuke.

"My lord," the middle-aged warrior said in a low voice, "I have something to tell you."

Ii Naosuke raised his eyelids, glanced at the middle-aged samurai, and then leaned towards him.

The middle-aged samurai then bent down and pressed his lips close to Ii Naosuke's ear.

Ii Naosuke listened expressionlessly, gazing into the distance, calm and unmoved.

As the middle-aged samurai pressed his lips to Ii Naosuke's ear, Aku, still standing by the palanquin door, consciously took three steps back, giving her husband, who was no longer exclusively hers, enough space.

Ii Naosuke and the middle-aged man maintained this "you speak, I listen" posture for a long time, until the middle-aged man finally stopped whispering and straightened his back.

Meanwhile, Ii Naosuke continued to gaze into the distance with an expressionless face, his thoughts unfathomable.

“…Aku.” After a moment, Ii Naosuke, as if nothing had happened, turned his head and smiled at Aku, “I’ll be heading off now.”

"Mmm." Ajiu, whose gentle smile had never faded, nodded vigorously.

With a wave of his hand, Ii Naosuke's attendants standing beside the sedan chair quickly closed the door.

Centered around Ii Naosuke's palanquin, the procession slowly and deliberately left the Ii residence and headed towards Edo Castle in the distance.

……

……

About half an hour later—

In a magnificent room in Edo Castle—

Ii Naosuke sat upright in the center of this magnificent room, slightly to the west.

He stood up straight, his head slightly lowered, his eyes closed, as if he were resting.

Suddenly—a “whoosh” sound came, and the sliding door of a room located to the side of Ii Naosuke was slowly pulled open.

Upon hearing the sound of the door being opened, Ii Naosuke immediately opened his eyes, then quickly bent his back, lowered his head, and placed his hands on the tatami mat, performing a respectful kowtow.

Snap... Snap... Snap... Snap...

What rang out in front of Ii Naosuke was... the soft sound of footsteps falling like a feather.

A soft, equally gentle thud followed—

"My lord... raise your head."

After receiving permission from the ethereal female voice, Ii Naosuke slowly raised his head.

Sitting in front of him was a very young, beautiful woman wearing a purple cloak and with her hair tied in a short ponytail.

"...Your Highness, I am relieved to see that you are in good health."

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This chapter has 7000 words and is packed with information. I personally think I've already met my goal of "writing more today" as I mentioned yesterday (crying face).

Chapter 104 Qingdeng, "Targeted" by the Shogun [7700]

Odai-sho: The title for the shogun's principal wife.

The wife of the former shogun was called "Ōmikado".

At this very moment, the woman sitting before Ii Naosuke is none other than Tenshōin Atsuhime, the head of the Tenshōin shogunate and the current Ōmōdai-sho (Great Palace) of the Edo shogunate.

In the Edo period, with its extremely strict hierarchical system, those who could become the principal wife of the shogun were naturally not ordinary women.

Tenshōin was the adopted daughter of Shimazu Nariakira, the former lord of the Satsuma Domain, a powerful domain with a total koku of 77 koku and formidable military strength that could directly threaten the rule of the Edo Shogunate.

To strengthen the influence of the Satsuma Domain within the shogunate, Shimazu Nariakira facilitated the marriage between Tenshōin and the former shogun Tokugawa Iesada.

The Satsuma Domain is located on Kyushu Island, at the southwestern tip of Japan.

Due to its remote location and the fierce nature of the Satsuma people, many people have a preconceived notion that the Satsuma people are "savage" and "a bunch of unruly mountain monkeys".

However, Tenshōin, the "Satsuma Princess," is quite different from these stereotypes about Satsuma people.

Tenshōin's wrist seemed to symbolize her entire being.

Soft and delicate.

Her wrists were so delicate that they seemed to break at the slightest touch, as if they might vanish at any moment if grasped.

It wasn't just her wrists; her entire body conveyed the same feeling.

The short ponytail at the ankle, neck, shoulders, and back of the head... all the lines are so beautiful, delicate, light, and graceful.

Her graceful body lines, coupled with her fair complexion like moonlight and her exquisite features that seemed to have been meticulously sculpted by a master craftsman, made her look just like a beautiful porcelain doll.

The only flaw was that her cheeks were pale and sickly.

As the head nun who had become a nun after the death of Tokugawa Iesada, Tenshōin could no longer afford any elegant or luxurious attire.

She wore a simple purple overcoat, beneath which was an elegant light green undergarment... This overly plain attire, ironically, added an air of elegance to the Tianzhang Academy.

After Ii Naosuke finished speaking, Tenshōin blinked slightly and met Ii Naosuke's gaze without making a sound.

Tenshōin's every smile and gesture was just like Ii Naosuke's—carrying the composure of someone in a superior position.

“…My Lord.” Tenshōin’s voice was quite ethereal, and like her body, it evoked images of a delicate flower. “I am grateful that you have come all this way to visit me.”

Ii Naosuke bowed slightly: "How could I not inquire about the Ōmōdai's cold?"

Just now, inside his own residence, the middle-aged samurai leaned close to Ii Naosuke's ear and seemed to have said a lot to him, but what he said could be summarized in one sentence—Lord Tenshōin is ill.

"Thank you for your trouble, sir." Tianzhangyuan remained calm. "I have only caught a slight cold and am fine. There is no need to worry."

"My lord, is it really alright for you to waste your precious time visiting a widow who is always the subject of gossip and laughter?"

"Your Highness, Tenshōin," Ii Naosuke's eyelids narrowed slightly, "What makes you say that?"

At this moment, Tenshōin's expression finally changed for the first time since he entered this magnificent room.

She lowered her eyes, her beautiful face slightly furrowed.

"My lord, aren't you currently preparing to crack down on the 'anti-foreign faction' in the country? If so, then the matters waiting for you to deal with one by one must already be piling up like a mountain, right?"

“…Lord Tenshōin.” Ii Naosuke suddenly laughed, a loud laugh that shook his shoulders violently. “You wouldn’t…be sympathetic to those ‘anti-foreigners’, would you?”

"You wouldn't have become a 'repudiator' too, would you? Do you also think that we can defeat the ironclad fleets of Western countries with our samurai swords and matchlock guns passed down from the Warring States period?"

"It is not that I oppose your crackdown on the 'Expelling the Barbarians' faction." Tenshōin's tone suddenly became more stern. "I am worried that you will use the pretext of 'cracking down on the Expelling the Barbarians' faction' to once again attack all your political enemies who oppose you!"

"Hmm..." Ii Naosuke slowly stopped laughing. "I see."

"Your Highness Tenshōin, so you're worried that I'll repeat the harsh suppression I did to the 'Hitotsubashi Faction' back then."

"It seems that Your Highness Tenshōin still has great sympathy for the members of the 'Hitotsubashi Faction' who were severely suppressed by me back then..."

Tenshōin did not respond.

But the way she held her small chin high was a silent yet powerful response to Ii Naosuke.

Ii Naosuke let out a few intriguing "hehe" laughs.

"Your Highness Tenshōin, you should still remember... who the core members of the 'Hitotsubashi Faction' were back then, right?"

“The lord of the Mito Domain, Tokugawa Nariaki; the lord of the Echizen-Fukui Domain, Matsudaira Yoshinaga; the lord of the Tosa Domain, Yamauchi Toyonobu; the lord of the Uwajima Domain, Date Saiki; and… your adoptive father: the lord of the Satsuma Domain, Shimazu Nariakira.”

Ii Naosuke suddenly raised his gaze, piercing Tenshōin with a sharp, dagger-like stare.

The light in Tenshōin's eyes flickered slightly at this moment.

"Your Highness, look at this list! They are all lords of powerful domains!"

"Their slogans are quite catchy, though."