I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

The assassination attempt on Ii Naosuke outside Sakurada Gate—an event that was undoubtedly earth-shattering—occurred more than half a month ago.

Although only a short period of half a month has passed, a great deal of things have happened during this time.

Japan also has a custom of changing the era name to ward off bad luck whenever something unfortunate happens.

Just yesterday, exactly half a month after Ii Naosuke's assassination, the Kyoto court changed the era name at the suggestion of the Edo shogunate.

The reign title was changed from "Anzheng Seven Years" to the current "Man'en First Year".

The assassination of the Grand Secretary... Such a heinous incident would naturally not be left unpunished by the shogunate.

The shogunate immediately organized a "special task force" composed of trusted confidants to apprehend all those who had fled during the "Sakuradamon Incident".

Aoto and his fellow "capital police" who were not qualified to participate in this politically significant, high-stakes operation were instead responsible for maintaining order in Edo.

The assassination of Ii Naosuke...this event greatly boosted the morale of the "expelling the barbarians" faction.

In the eyes of the "expelling the barbarians" faction, the Mito Domain samurai who successfully killed Ii Naosuke, who insisted on "opening the country," were practically great heroes.

Look! The samurai of the Mito Domain are so brave that they even dare to kill the high-ranking officials. How can we cower in fear?

The morale of the "Expel the Barbarians" faction surged, causing the security situation in Edo... no, it caused the entire country to deteriorate instantly...

A large number of "patriots who resisted foreign aggression" emerged like mushrooms after rain.

They verbally abused or even killed those they considered "traitors," and coerced wealthy families to pay the military expenses required to "save the country and expel the barbarians"...

This sudden surge in the anti-foreign sentiment also attracted many local thugs and ruffians to follow suit. They disguised themselves as "patriots to expel foreigners," imitated the style of these "patriots," extorted money everywhere, and even directly abducted women under the pretext that "it is your honor to dedicate yourself to the cause of expelling foreigners."

The number of cases related to "patriots who resisted foreigners" has increased dramatically in just half a month.

In order to reverse the deteriorating security situation in Edo, the shogunate had no choice but to issue two orders to the Edo Magistrate's Office.

Order No. 1: The "Monthly Rotation" system is temporarily suspended.

In other words, the Southern and Northern Magistrates' Offices will no longer be allowed to take turns managing Edo on a monthly basis. All officials of the two magistrates' offices will be on duty regardless of the month until the security situation in Edo is restored.

Because of this order, the officials of the Nanfan Garrison, who should have been on paid leave in March, had no choice but to put on their official seals and return to the government office.

Order #2: Suppress all lawless elements in Edo City who are committing evil deeds under the banner of "expelling the barbarians" at all costs!

Faced with this death order from the shogunate, the Southern and Northern Magistrates had no choice but to divide the "three rounds" into two groups.

One group was responsible for handling cases caused by those who were not "patriots who resisted foreigners".

Another group was specifically responsible for quelling the rising tide of anti-foreign sentiment.

Qingdeng was assigned to the latter.

During this period, Aoto's daily task was to patrol the streets of Edo and search for so-called "anti-foreign patriots" who were causing trouble everywhere.

Their achievements are quite remarkable. Including the Big Nose and others who were just captured by Qing Deng, four groups of "anti-foreign patriots" have fallen into Qing Deng's hands in just over half a month.

The other colleagues responsible for cracking down on the "anti-foreign patriots" have also achieved remarkable results—but even though they are currently working very hard to crack down on these lunatics, there is still no sign that the rampant "anti-foreign wind" will subside...

At this moment, a middle-aged man quickly ran up to Qingdeng.

"Lord Tachibana! Those four guys are all tied up securely!"

This middle-aged man was none other than Hai Tailang, the head of the household in Muyu Town, who had looked down on Qing Deng when he came to Muyu Town to investigate the "Grandma Ping's Murder" case.

Aoto is no longer the "dumb boy" he used to be; he is now a rising star in Edo.

The change in his identity has led to a complete transformation in Grey Brother's attitude towards Qing Deng.

At this moment, when facing Qing Deng, there was no longer any contempt in the depths of Hui Dalang's eyes, only sincere respect and reverence.

"Okay." Qing Deng nodded. "Thank you for your hard work. Take them back to the magistrate's office."

"Yes!" After bowing respectfully to Qingdeng, Hui Dalang turned around and shouted to his men, "Take them away!"

"Get up! Move! Move!"

"Everyone stand up!"

……

The servants of the local garrison used somewhat rough movements to drive away Big Nose and the others, who were now tightly bound and led in a long line by a long hemp rope.

Big Nose and his companions no longer possessed the same imposing air they had when shouting "The rise and fall of the nation is the responsibility of every citizen" to the cloth shop owner. They all hung their heads, looking like defeated roosters.

A large number of townspeople gathered around to watch the spectacle.

"What's wrong? What happened? What's wrong?"

"We've caught another batch of 'patriots who've been robbing and extorting people everywhere."

"Tsk... These scumbags are like cockroaches, you can't kill them all... Hmm? Isn't that Tachibana Aoto?"

"Yes, it's Tachibana Aoto, the one who caught the murderer of Granny Ping!"

……

This is the place where Aoto solved the "Grandma Ping Murder Case": Koyanagi-cho, so this place is considered the place where Aoto's name is most famous.

Naturally, the most people in this area recognize Qingdeng.

Over this period of time, Qingdeng had actually gotten used to being recognized by passersby on the street, so even though he was being watched by these people who recognized him, Qingdeng remained calm.

Standing beside Qing Deng, Hui Dalang watched his men take Big Nose and the others away, then suddenly let out a long sigh of regret: "This world is getting more and more chaotic..."

"...Tachibana-sama."

Grey Brother turned his head and asked Qing Deng in a self-deprecating tone tinged with helplessness.

"When will this absurd 'expelling the barbarians' campaign finally stop?"

Qingdeng was taken aback when suddenly asked this question, and then let out a silent sigh: "...How would I know about such things?"

……

……

After the shogunate issued a death order to curb the atrocities of the "anti-foreign patriots," the South and North Bureaus now keep two members of the Doshin (a type of comrade) on night duty at their respective bureaus every night to handle all emergencies that occur at night.

Aoto, who didn't need to work the night shift today, returned to Shieikan with Saito, looking somewhat tired after another day of "patrolling the streets of Edo from morning till night".

As soon as Aoto climbed the high slope where the Shieikan was located, he saw Okita sweeping the dust outside the gate of the Shieikan with a broom.

"Ah, Tachibana-kun, Saito-kun, you're back!" Okita, carrying his broom, hurried towards the returning Ao and Saito. "Don't you two have to work the night shift today?"

"Hmm." Qing Deng nodded as he took off the scarf around his neck—even though it was almost late March, the weather in Edo was still unusually cold. "My night shift won't start until the day after tomorrow."

“I see…” Okita nodded. “Then go back inside and rest for a bit. Aunt and Mr. Kyubei will have dinner ready soon.”

As a housewife, Abi takes care of all the housework at the testing center.

According to Okita, Inoue Genzaburo would also share some of the household chores at Shieikan.

In Okita's introduction, Inoue Genzaburo, who also lives under the same roof as the Kondo family, is an old man who loves doing housework and often takes the initiative to help... even directly competing with Abi to do the housework.

Inoue Genzaburo is currently away from the Shieikan due to some business in his hometown, but the burden on Abi's shoulders has not increased as a result—because Kyubei is helping Abi.

Having served Tachibana for so many years, Kyubei, who is very good at handling all kinds of housework, has been quite proactive and enthusiastic in helping Abi with the various housework in Shieikan since he moved in with Aoto and Saito.

Cooking is probably Kyubei's best skill, and he would go into the kitchen to help Abi with almost every meal.

Because Kyubei has always been very enthusiastic in helping with household chores, he is now the one among Aoto's group who is most familiar with Abi.

After entering the Shieikan and resting briefly, Abi, Kyubei, and the others brought out a sumptuous meal from the kitchen, inviting everyone to come and have dinner.

The recent increase in income at Shie-e-kan has led to a significant improvement in the quality of meals served there these past few days.

After quickly finishing his dinner and resting for a while to allow the food in his stomach to digest, Qingdeng went to the dojo to prepare for his training for the day.

Even though he has been extremely busy lately, Qingdeng has not neglected his physical exercise.

After so much hard work and dedication over such a long period, the effects of my training are gradually becoming apparent.

Qingdeng's body became much stronger, and his body, which used to be as thin as a "white-cut chicken", began to have more defined features.

As Aoto placed his palms on the wooden floor of the dojo and began doing push-ups, Okita suddenly rushed into the dojo and approached Aoto:

"Mr. Tachibana, a guest is here to see you!"

"A guest?" Qing Deng was taken aback for a moment, then quickly asked, "Is he a servant from the Magistrate's Office?"

“It doesn’t seem so.” Okita shook his head. “It’s two people who are very well covered up, one of whom is a little girl.”

—A little girl, covering herself up so thoroughly?

Qingdeng hurried to the gate of the Shiwei Hall with questions in mind.

There were still quite a few people outside the gate.

Eight warriors, each exuding a fierce aura in both their faces and bodies, surrounded the two figures, one large and one small.

One of them was quite petite, wearing a white and yellow striped women's kimono and yellow-buttoned straw sandals.

The other person was much larger, wearing a regular kimono and hakama, with his huge belly pushing the fabric around his abdomen high.

Both men wore deep snow hats and had their faces completely covered with windproof cloth.

Upon seeing these two... or more precisely, upon seeing that large belly, a strong sense of familiarity welled up in Qing Deng's heart...

Before Qingdeng could say anything, the big-bellied man took off his straw hat and the cloth covering his face.

"Mr. Tachibana, it's been a long time."

“Mr. Angoulême?” Qing Deng was surprised.

The woman in the yellow kimono then removed all the "masks" covering her face, revealing a head of golden hair and a pair of bright blue eyes.

"Mr. Ju." The blonde girl gave Qing Deng a perfectly proper bow and said in a cheerful voice, "Long time no see!"

These two were none other than the grandfather and grandson of the Angoulême family, Antony and Elodie, whom they hadn't seen for over a month.

The outrageous actions of these "patriots who resisted foreign invaders" in this book are all historical facts; the author has not exaggerated in the slightest.

Although some works of art from island nations portray the "anti-foreign patriots" of the late Edo period as noble and righteous, the real "anti-foreign patriots" were a very detestable group. They were either opportunists or simply wanted to use the slogan of "expelling the foreigners" to commit crimes.

There are probably less than one in 100 people who are truly ambitious and use righteous means.

Chapter 108 "I am not a princess of that empire, I am the daughter of a French merchant" [6100]

Test Hall, Rooms