I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

He remains "Ju Qing Deng," and nothing will change.

His "Ju" is a Miao character, not a surname.

Although in semantics, Japanese surnames are equivalent to Chinese surnames, surnames and surnames are not the same concept and should not be confused.

From the very beginning, Qingdeng had no surname.

Or to put it another way: even across all of Japan, very few people have a surname.

As mentioned earlier, a surname is a noble title, and not everyone can possess it.

Tachibana, Chiba, Okita, Kinoshita, Kondo... these are family names, not surnames.

Miao is a new surname that arises when a family separates from its original clan.

Regardless of whether he has a surname or not, Qingdeng is still "Ju Qingdeng", and still "Ju-kun" or "Ju-xiansheng".

The only things that changed were his full name and his official signature in government documents.

Now, Qing Deng not only holds a prestigious official position, but also has a surname, so his full name has undergone a "major evolution" - Genjuku Netachi Aki no Kami Qing Deng Moriharu.

“Yuan” represents that Aoto came from the Minamoto clan.

"Su Ni" indicates that Qing Deng is already the third-ranking nobleman, second only to Zhenren and Chaochen.

"Orange" is the Miao character for Qingdeng.

"Kami-no-kami" was his official title.

"Qingdeng" is his common name.

"Sheng Qing" is his real name.

Of course, the occasions where one's full name is used are extremely rare—in fact, there are almost none.

There are very few occasions where the surname "宿祢" can be used.

You'll probably only see these words in official government documents.

Aoto's official name in government documents was originally "Minamoto Moriharu" or "Minamoto Tachibana Moriharu", but it has now changed to "Minamoto Sukune Moriharu" or "Minamoto Sukune Tachibana Moriharu".

Aside from having to add two more characters in official government documents, there are no other changes.

……

……

Although the imperial court's reward did not bring any substantial benefits, it was better than nothing.

The common people and the Shinsengumi members: "Lord Anju!"

The shogunate's high-ranking officials, led by Matsudaira Katamori, declared: "Tachibana no Yasunari!"

Souji: "Tachibana Yasuki... Hehehe~ Tachibana-kun, your new name sounds even better than your original name."

……

Recently, Qingdeng has been surrounded by shouts of "Lord Anzhou", "Ju Anzhou", and "Ju Anyi".

At first, I wasn't used to it.

Whenever someone calls him "Anzhou" or "Lord Anyi", Qingdeng is always slow to react.

But gradually, I got used to it.

With the demise of the Ching-ho Party, the daily operations of the Shinsengumi began to return to normal.

With Kiyokawa Hachiro dead, the position of "staff officer" became vacant.

Qing Deng has no plans to fill this position for the time being.

First, he currently lacks capable personnel to fill the role of "staff officer".

Secondly, it was a position specifically created to accommodate Kiyokawa Hachiro, which is the so-called "position created for the person".

In fact, Qingdeng didn't need any advisors at all.

With the support of talents such as "photographic memory" and "super brain +9", Qing Deng can complete most of the advisory work on his own.

Moreover, he also has Hijikata Toshizo and Yamanami Keisuke under his command.

The exceptionally talented military strategist Hijikata Toshizo and the resourceful Yamanami Keisuke had already taken on the role of staff officers.

In this way, the position of advisor to Qingdeng is like a chicken rib—tasteless to eat but a pity to throw away.

Compared to these empty honors and titles, Qingdeng prefers tangible material things, such as weapons, armies, money, and land.

Therefore, he didn't care at all about the empty titles bestowed upon him by the imperial court.

Regarding the imperial court's reward, he simply said, "Yes, I understand," and then threw himself back into his busy work.

Recently, he has been working with Matsudaira Katamori and Saigo Kinosuke to clean up the mess from the recent fighting.

The contradictions, disputes, and conflicts that had been accumulating between the two major camps—the pro-shogunate faction and the pro-exploitation faction—erupted all at once in this war that lasted for more than half a month and whose battlefields spanned Kyoto and Yamato.

In terms of results, Qing Deng and his colleagues undoubtedly delivered an impressive performance.

Unfortunately, there was only one shortcoming—the main force of the Changzhou army was not severely damaged, and the main force of the troops safely withdrew to Changzhou.

The Huisa coalition forces actually failed... This was truly unexpected for Qingdeng.

He had assumed that the Hui-Sa alliance, with its overwhelming advantage, would surely cripple the Changzhou army, or even annihilate it.

When Aoto questioned this, Saigo Kinosuke and Matsudaira Katamori both lowered their heads, their faces showing shame.

Matsudaira Katamori sighed:

"Sigh...it's a long story..."

Saigo Kinosuke nodded in agreement:

"Simply put, an unknown force has extended a helping hand to Changzhou."

The two explained the whole story in detail.

Through their accounts, Qingdeng gained a general understanding of the situation.

A terrifyingly powerful swordsman launched a surprise attack on the palace, forcing Matsudaira Katamori to take half of his troops back to defend it.

At the same time, two warriors who did not look like people from Changzhou suddenly appeared on the front line.

They are also quite capable and very skilled at guerrilla warfare.

Using the forest as cover, they skillfully maneuvered, divided, and harassed the pursuing troops, causing great trouble for the Hui-Sar coalition forces.

Ultimately, due to the excessive delay, the Hui-Sa alliance was unable to catch up with the main force of the Choshu army.

After listening to their accounts, Qing Deng lowered his eyelids, pursed his lips, and began to ponder.

An unidentified force extending aid to the Choshu army... powerful martial artists...

As if a lightning bolt struck his brain, Qing Deng instantly thought of his nemesis—the Fa Zhu Party!

After killing the Rakshasa and destroying the workshop that produced the Illusionary Elixir, Qingdeng forged an irreconcilable feud with the Fazhu Party.

The Party's "law-punishment" campaign is a giant "troublemaker," stirring up trouble everywhere and fearing nothing more than a peaceful world.

Strangely enough... this "stirring stick" hasn't come out to stir up poop for a long time.

He neither avenged the Rakshasa nor caused any further major news.

Qingdeng didn't believe that these crazy people with mental problems would suddenly turn over a new leaf.

In short, regardless of whether the forces secretly assisting Changzhou are the Fazhi Party or not, this incident serves as a wake-up call for Qingdeng—it is not yet time to let things rest! There are formidable enemies lurking in the shadows, watching with predatory eyes!

……

……

Although the Choshu army withdrew, a considerable number of die-hards remained in Kyoto.

Perhaps to vent their anger, these remnants of Changzhou caused chaos everywhere.

Murder, arson, sabotage of shogunate facilities, beheading dolls with Aoto's name on them... he was truly utterly wicked.

Their actions were so outrageous that they sent chills down one's spine and caused immense suffering to the people.

Although these are all minor, insignificant acts, we cannot let them run rampant.

Qingdengjia dispatched patrols to vigorously suppress the remaining forces in Choshu.

Apart from the rebellion of the remnants of Choshu, there were no major disturbances in or around Kyoto.

Everything was calm and peaceful.

time flies.

Peaceful days passed by one by one.

Finally! The shogunate's bestowal of titles and rewards, the highly anticipated highlight, has finally arrived!

On September 20, an envoy from the shogunate arrived in Kyoto, bringing with him a warrant from Tokugawa Iemochi.

On this day, Qing Deng bathed and changed his clothes, donning the formal samurai attire (裃).

The Shinsengumi generals who came to accompany them were also dressed in their finest attire.

At first glance, it looks grand and solemn.

They gathered with the envoys in the main hall of the camp—a place specifically used to welcome distinguished guests.

The envoy, sitting upright, first bowed slightly to Qing Deng, then opened the brocade box in front of his knees, took out Tokugawa Iemochi's warrant, and slowly unfolded it.

Everyone present had expected Tokugawa Iemochi's order to be like an imperial edict, filled with ceremonial and tedious phrases that would make people want to doze off.

But the messenger's first words shocked them.

"Well done, Tachibana-kun."

Tokugawa Iemochi wrote in plain, easy-to-understand language!

Hijikata Toshizo and Yamanami Keisuke raised an eyebrow—as rare wise men in the Shinsengumi, they quickly understood the political implications of this "vernacular order."

Tokugawa Iemochi declared to the world in a simple and direct way: My relationship with Tachibana Aoto can no longer be measured by the simple "relationship between lord and subject"! There is no need for all those complicated and roundabout things between us!

"Thanks to you, peace has been restored to the capital region."

"When I received your good news, I had already decided what kind of reward I would give you."