I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Shusuke, Kondo, Okita, and Saito, all martial arts practitioners, listened with curiosity.

"I see..." After carefully listening to Aoto's explanation, Hijikata nodded slightly. "So, you used inertia and the weaknesses of the human body structure to your advantage..."

After muttering to himself, Hijikata's face hardened, and he said to Aoto seriously, "Tachibana, after dinner, can you spar with me and use your move on me again?"

"Hmm?" Qing Deng raised an eyebrow, then nodded without hesitation. "Of course."

After happily deciding to have another good match after dinner, Hijikata beamed with joy.

Afterwards, Qing Deng chatted with Hijikata for a while.

Up until today, Aoto's impression of Hijikata was only that he was a very strong swordsman, one of the top swordsmen in the Shieikan; he was as close as brothers with Kondo and Okita; he was a troublemaker who was always getting into fights and causing trouble, and had the notorious reputation of being a "thorny brat"...

Now, through casual conversations with Tsuchito, Qingdeng has learned more about Tsuchito.

Hijikata's house in Edo was located next to the Shieikan.

It's only a 1-2 minute walk from Shieikan to Hijikata's house.

It is said that he rented a house very close to the Shiwei Hall so that it would be convenient for him to practice swordsmanship there.

Because of his good relationship with Kondo and the others, Hijikata often stayed to eat with them. Sometimes, when he was tired from practicing swordsmanship or practiced late, he would stay at the Shieikan. Therefore, Hijikata Toshizo could be considered a half-resident of the Shieikan.

After discussing Hijikata's residence, the conversation inexplicably veered towards how Hijikata addressed Kondo.

Hijikata called Kondo "Okatsu" – a name derived from Kondo's childhood name.

Kondo's childhood name was Katsuguro, so the locals gave him the nickname "Katsu".

……

Qingdeng chatted casually with his senior brother, whom he had only officially met that day.

Tonight's dinner ended in a fairly harmonious atmosphere.

Abi and Jiubingwei moved the leftover bowls, chopsticks, and dining table into the kitchen.

Zhou Zhu had just finished eating and was burping as he walked towards the toilet.

Hijikata, sitting cross-legged on the tatami mat, gently patted his now full belly and grinned at Aoto:

"Tachibana, shall we go to the dojo for a sparring match now? Or should we rest a bit more?"

"Let's rest for a while," Qingdeng said with a smile. "I'm really full right now."

Hijikata nodded: "Then let's rest for a while..."

"Um—is Mr. Hijikata here?!"

At that moment, a young woman suddenly shouted from the entrance hall of the examination hall.

The moment the woman's voice fell, Kondo and Okita, who were still in the hall, immediately had strange expressions.

Hijikata, however, remained calm and composed.

Only Aoto and Saito were puzzled.

"Hmm?" Qing Deng cast a questioning look toward the entrance hall. "Hijikata-kun, it seems someone is looking for you."

Hijikata Toshizo nodded expressionlessly: "I heard you."

Having said that, Hijikata stood up, crossed his hands and tucked them into the sleeves of his haori, and walked out of the hall at a leisurely pace.

"Ah..." Okita watched Hijikata's departing figure, "Those people really came..."

"Those people?" Qing Deng's expression deepened with even more confusion. "Who came?"

Okita, with a rather strange expression, gave Aoto a wry smile: "Well... it can't be explained in a few words... just come and see for yourself."

Okita waved to Aoto.

Aoto noticed that Kondo and Okita's expressions were quite strange, and he became even more curious about "those people" that Okita had just mentioned. After thinking for a moment, he nodded to Okita.

After Aoto got up and followed Okita toward the entrance, Saito also silently stood up and followed closely behind the two.

Okita led Aoto and Saito to a small window located on the side of the entrance hall.

By pressing his face close to the small window and looking outside, he could see Hijikata standing face to face with a young girl outside the entrance.

Qing Deng recognized the girl—it was the same girl who recognized Hijikata this morning when they captured him and removed his mask.

The girl, who looked like an ordinary town girl, had her hands clenched tightly in front of her chest and looked at Hijikata with a worried expression that seemed about to bring her to tears.

"Ah, Mr. Hijikata, that's wonderful! I came to see you as soon as I heard you were released from the prison."

"I just went to your house, but no one was home, so I came here to find you. I've finally found you!"

"How did you end up being arrested by the magistrate's office today? Are you alright? Are you injured? Were you mistreated at the prison?"

The girl nervously scanned every inch of Hijikata's body.

"Jing, don't worry, I'm fine."

Hijikata used… the gentle voice that Aoto heard from him for the first time, and spoke softly to the girl he called A-Jing.

"Why I was arrested by the magistrate's office today... that's a long story, and now is not the right time or place to talk about it. I'll explain it to you slowly when there's a chance later."

At this point, Hijikata paused.

Then... the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, revealing a charming smile full of tenderness.

"Jing, did you come all this way to see me?"

Hijikata raised his hand and gently stroked A-Jing's delicate cheek.

"Thank you. I just got out of prison and you came to visit me right away. I'm so touched."

“Mr. Hijikata…” After Hijikata’s large hand touched her cheek, A-Jing’s body trembled a few times. Then, her watery peach blossom eyes rippled instantly as she looked softly at Hijikata’s charming smile.

"Oh, right, right. Since you're here, I'll give you this little gift."

Tu Fang reached into his robes and pulled out a peach blossom.

"I came across this peach blossom by chance on the roadside when I was returning to Edo from Tama."

"This peach blossom left a very deep impression on me at the time."

"Of all the peach trees, only this one is in full bloom and most vibrant."

"This peach blossom reminds me of you."

"You are just like this peach blossom, delicate and lovely, making people want to cherish you."

After saying these heartfelt words, Hijikata pinned the peach blossom in his hand to A-Shizuka's ear.

"Yes, this peach blossom really suits you well."

“Mr. Hijikata…!” Shizuka’s eyes shimmered even more intensely. As if she couldn’t help herself, she threw herself into Hijikata’s arms, her small hands tightly wrapped around his waist.

Hijikata then hugged A-Jing.

A man and a woman embraced tightly, deeply in love...

Feeling abruptly interrupted by this display of affection, Aoto asked Okita beside him, "Was that girl Hijikata-kun's girlfriend... his partner?"

“...To be precise, he is one of Hijikata’s partners.” Okita’s lips twitched.

“One of them…?” Qing Deng keenly caught this word that he couldn’t help but pay attention to…

After a long, intimate moment, Tu Fang and A Jing finally let go of each other.

After saying a few more sweet nothings to A-Jing, which Qing Deng considered slightly cheesy, Tu Fang waved goodbye to A-Jing, saying, "It's getting late, you should go home as soon as possible, I'll come find you later."

With the peach blossom that Hijikata had just given her still tucked behind her ear, Shizuka waved goodbye to Hijikata vigorously as she quickly disappeared into the night.

After watching Shizuka leave, Hijikata was about to turn around and go back into the house.

But just then... a young woman's voice rang out from the opposite direction from which Ah Jing had just left:

"Mr. Hijikata...?!"

Tsuchifang, along with Qingdeng and the others who were peering through the small window on the side of the entrance hall, all turned their gazes in unison toward the sound—the owner of this new female voice was also an extremely young and beautiful girl.

But her clothes were slightly different from those of A-Jing from before.

She was dressed in expensive-looking, exquisite clothes, and was followed by a middle-aged warrior who looked like a bodyguard.

With a bodyguard and dressed like that... she must be the daughter of a wealthy merchant.

Hijikata stared at the newly appeared girl, paused for a moment, and then exclaimed in surprise:

"Ah Xiang? What are you doing here?"

Ah Xiang rushed over to Tu Fang in three steps at a time.

"Mr. Hijikata, I've come to see you!"

Why are you standing outside the door?

"Ah... Oh, I just finished eating, so I went outside to get some fresh air." Hijikata lied without batting an eye... "You said—you came to see me?"

"Mr. Hijikata! I heard you were arrested by the Magistrate's Office today!"

After Hijikata steered the conversation in this way, Ashi didn't bother to delve into why Hijikata was standing outside the door. She only heard her say urgently.

"What exactly happened? How did you get arrested by the magistrate's office? Are you alright? Are you injured? Were you mistreated at the prison?"

"Hahaha." Hijikata laughed heartily. "So that's what you came for."

"Don't worry, I'm fine."

"I was indeed arrested by the magistrate's office this morning. I'll explain the specific reasons to you later. Now is not a good time or place to talk."

After saying some comforting and sweet words to Ashi, Hijikata reached into his robes and pulled out a... peach blossom...

"Oh, right, right. Since you're here, I'll give you this little gift."

"I came across this peach blossom by chance on the roadside when I was returning to Edo from Tama."

"This peach blossom left a very deep impression on me at the time."

"Of all the peach trees, only this one is in full bloom and most vibrant."

"This peach blossom reminds me of you."

"You are just like this peach blossom, delicate and lovely, making people want to cherish you."

After reciting this long, seemingly familiar line, Hijikata tucked the peach blossom he was holding behind Kaori's ear...