I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Wearing a top hat, a monocle over his left eye, a large mustache, a round belly, and a cane always at hand... this appearance is truly classic! It perfectly matches Qing Deng's stereotype of Western merchants!

The other person speaks Japanese, and although their accent is very strong, it's still understandable.

Upon seeing Qingdeng, he immediately greeted him with a warm smile:

"Mr. Ju! I've heard so much about you!"

"Mr. Tachibana! It is truly an honor to meet a young hero like you!"

"Mr. Tachibana! Please rest assured! Since you are Ms. Kinoshita's grandson-in-law, given my deep friendship with Ms. Kinoshita, I will definitely do my best to help you! I will never treat you unfairly!"

After exchanging a whole bunch of nice New Year's greetings, when the conversation turned to the important matter... namely the price of the guns and cannons, he changed his expression as if he had a face change, adopting a serious and earnest demeanor, and reciting a string of numbers with both decimals and whole numbers.

Muskets were one thing, but when Qingdeng heard the price of cannons, his eyes widened instantly.

For a fleeting moment, Qing Deng almost thought that Kinoshita Rin had hired a swindler to cheat him...

Finally, after Kinoshita Rin's detailed explanation, the misunderstanding was cleared up.

The Parrot rifled gun is one of the most advanced artillery pieces available at the time.

This artillery piece is currently proving its worth in the American Civil War.

From a certain perspective, John is a very conscientious businessman.

He not only guarantees to sell it, but also to deliver it.

The United States is its main source of goods.

Once the order is placed, his private fleet will cross the entire Pacific Ocean to transport guns to Osaka Port.

As for the subsequent land transport of guns and cannons from the port to Otsu, that was entirely up to Aoto himself.

Although current navigation technology is quite advanced, the power of nature is ultimately beyond human control.

That area spans the entire Pacific Ocean, and shipwrecks are common occurrences there.

If any unforeseen event were to occur—such as a storm that devastates the fleet, causing all ships and cargo to sink to the bottom of the sea and become fish food—then John would bear all the losses, and Qing Deng, as the buyer, would not need to worry about it.

Therefore, the price John offered was indeed a fair deal.

Although the price is not low, it is far from enough to cause Qingdeng any trouble.

With Qingdeng's current wealth, he could easily buy over a hundred cannons if he were determined.

However, there is a very simple truth: no matter how many cannons there are, there are still enough gunners to operate them.

Qingdeng launched a nationwide selection process, but only managed to select 200 soldiers suitable to be gunners.

Moreover, these 200 soldiers are all "quick-trained soldiers" who were put into training and still need a long period of training to gradually develop combat effectiveness.

According to professionals Asai Moriyasu and Shimada Kanichi, the current 11th Division can only operate a maximum of 30 cannons at a time; any more than that and they will be too busy.

In short: Qingdeng does not need to purchase too many cannons at the moment.

If you buy too much, regardless of whether you will use it or not, the storage costs alone will be a considerable expense.

Therefore, after careful consideration based on the current situation of the Shinsengumi, Qing Deng placed an order with John for "80 Parrot rifled cannons".

Of these, 30 were deployed to the front line, while the other 50 were reserved for backup.

Thirty cannons... While the number may not seem large, for Japan at that time, which was still in a state of "chicken fights," such a large artillery force was enough to exert a suppressive effect on the battlefield!

……

……

"Hurry! Hurry! Don't dawdle! Lord Niou is watching us! We mustn't disappoint him!"

At this moment, under the command of Juro Abe, the cannons finally arrived at their designated firing positions one after another.

Abe Juro untied the binoculars from his waist, extended the lens, and looked at the target in the distance.

Before long, his lips parted and he uttered a series of precise commands.

"Fire the reference gun, target directly in front, 25 to the right, 10 up, distance 520."

As soon as he finished speaking, a burly man standing beside him repeated loudly:

"Fire the reference gun! Target directly in front! 25 degrees to the right! 10 degrees up! Distance 520!"

Immediately afterward, like an echo in the valley, the surrounding soldiers gaped open and relayed the command down the chain of command—

"Fire the reference cannon!"

"Target directly ahead!"

"Turn right 25!"

"Upwards 10!"

"520 meters away!"

The sound of the cannons turning drowned out the rapid breathing that filled the scene.

Upon receiving the order to "fire the reference gun," a nearby gun crew quickly sprang into action.

They moved the cannon barrels nimbly.

Soon they had adjusted the shelling parameters, then crouched down, waiting for the next instructions.

Abe Juro: "Release."

burly man: "Release!"

In an instant, a shell shot out, tracing a beautiful arc in mid-air!

As the shell landed, accompanied by a thunderous roar, a vibrant flame burst into flame.

Abe Juro raised his binoculars again, observing the impact point of the shells as he loudly issued new instructions:

"Target directly ahead, 28 to the right, 9 up, distance 500, reload."

The burly man beside him repeated it aloud word for word:

"Attention all gunners! Target directly ahead! Right 28! Up 9! Distance 500! One round loaded!"

Immediately following, another scene resembling an echo in an empty valley appeared—

"Attention, all artillery!"

"Target directly ahead!"

"Turn right 28!"

"Upwards 9!"

"500 meters away!"

"Loading!"

This time, it wasn't just one artillery crew taking action; all the artillery crews were following orders and adjusting their gun barrels!

Seeing that all the artillery units were ready, Abe Juro nodded to the burly man beside him.

The burly man immediately drew the sword from his waist and raised it overhead.

"preparation--"

The gunners in each artillery group crouched down, tensing their nerves and ready to fire.

Abe Juro waved his hand.

The burly man took a deep breath and brought his knife down.

"put!"

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The cannons roared! The earth trembled! The distant command platform shook! Everything was shaking!

On the reviewing stand, apart from a very few people such as Qing Deng, Asai Morian, and Shimada Kanichi, everyone wore expressions of utter astonishment! Their eyes were fixed on the artillery barrage that was displaying its incredible power!

One by one, orbs of light rose high into the air, forming silver and red circles. These projectiles, like shooting stars, roared down after reaching their highest point, hitting their targets squarely!

In an instant, the targets were torn apart by the explosion, engulfed by the flames, and reduced to dust.

The air became pungent and acrid due to the thick smoke and fog from the cannons.

The surging heat wave returned like a tidal wave, making one's face feel hot.

Abe Juro frowned slightly, enduring the discomfort as he raised his binoculars for the third time to observe the target and the effects of the artillery fire.

"Target directly ahead, 31 to the right, 8 up, distance 480."

The rest of the process is self-explanatory.

Transmitting instructions, repeating instructions, adjusting artillery parameters, firing... the roaring barrage of bullets completely wiped out the remaining enemy.

From commander Juro Abe to ordinary soldiers, all their actions follow established rules.

The commander observes the target and issues orders; the soldiers then repeat the orders aloud; who is responsible for adjusting the firing data; who is responsible for loading the shells; who is responsible for firing; who is responsible for cleaning the gun barrel…

Everyone did their job well, and everything was so orderly and without any problems.

The entire team was like a precise machine, operating according to a pre-designed program and never doing anything unnecessary—and this is precisely the quality that artillerymen should possess!

Technical branches like musketeers and artillerymen must be meticulous about details, dividing combat procedures into extremely fine and rigorous steps to achieve systematization, in order to maximize efficiency while ensuring safety.

The burly man who always stood beside Juro Abe, repeating a sentence aloud as Juro Abe spoke, was named Toshisaburo Nomura.

He is the vice-captain of the 11th Division. Born in the first year of the Kōka era (1844), he is 20 years old this year and is a new recruit who signed up for the "Great Conscription" at the beginning of this year and has only recently joined the army.

In terms of mathematical ability alone, his level is not particularly outstanding.

The reason he was able to gain Qing Deng's favor and become the vice-captain of the Eleventh Division was entirely because Qing Deng recognized his extraordinary courage.

Perhaps because of his farming background and physical limitations, Abe Juro always felt a persistent sense of inferiority when facing tall and imposing samurai.

Therefore, whenever it was a critical moment to command his troops, Abe Juro often appeared somewhat weak and found it difficult to suppress the arrogant and fierce soldiers under his command.

After all, the “class discrimination” that has accumulated for nearly a thousand years cannot be so easily eliminated by Qing Deng’s words or orders.

Abe Juro was just a farmer, yet he was ranked above all the samurai... It's no wonder that some people felt resentful.

Compared to Juro Abe, Risaburo Nomura is practically the opposite.

He was a legitimate younger brother of a martial arts family, with a strong physique and outstanding skills. Just by standing there, his towering figure was enough to terrify the rats.