I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Thinking to myself, "Whoever it is, as long as they don't hold me back and can be of use, that's fine."

He never expected that the person Miss Jin was talking about would actually be an acquaintance of his...!

As soon as Aoto finished speaking, Shintaro Toujou smiled slightly:

"He was both a retainer of the shogunate and a patriot of the Ōshio party... That's not surprising, is it?"

"Isn't my grandson, Chutaro, just like that?"

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Shintaro Toujou is actually a member of the Big Salt Party! (Shocked.jpg) Well, this isn't really a big surprise anymore; many readers had already guessed that Shintaro Toujou wasn't ordinary.

Chapter 821 [Detective] Qing Deng's Reappearance! [4600]

As he spoke, he took a few steps forward, pulled the spear back from the ground, and deftly flipped it with his fingers, making the heavy spear as light as chopsticks in his fingertips.

The long gun barrel spun half a circle in mid-air before resting steadily on his shoulder.

Ebina Ye Zong—with a lingering fear on his face—moved to stand in front of Toujou Shintaro.

"Dongcheng...thanks...!"

Shintaro Toujou said calmly:

"You're welcome. That was really close. If that person's archery skills had been a few levels better, I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to stop his arrow."

As soon as he finished speaking, Qing Deng seemed amused, and a slight smile appeared on the corners of his mouth.

Aoto is still unaware of Shintaro Toujou's specific background.

However, there was one thing that Aoto was absolutely certain of—even if that person's archery skills improved a little more, Toujou Shintaro would still have a way to intercept his arrow!

Aoto had already thoroughly experienced Shintaro Tojo's skill with a gun when he returned to Edo to fend off the British fleet in Edo Bay.

Although Qingdeng won this brief exchange, he could clearly sense that his opponent had not gone all out!

If the opponent attacks with all their might, he will have to expend a lot more effort to win.

Although Shintaro Toujou may appear to be just a greasy, unkempt fat man, his fighting skills are truly remarkable and should not be underestimated!

With superb marksmanship and a powerful physique, the talent that Qingdeng copied from him was "Elephant Core +9"!

Since his transmigration, Qingdeng has encountered all sorts of people.

However, there are very few people like Shintaro Toujou who have a max-level talent with the suffix "+9"!

Thanks to him, Qingdeng gained another max-level talent, greatly increasing his core strength.

All martial arts, whether wielding swords or spears, emphasize core strength—this is especially true of spear techniques.

The spear is heavy and cumbersome. A person with an unstable lower body and unsteady waist will not only fail to master spear techniques, but may not even be able to hold the spear shaft steadily.

With the innate "Elephant Core +9" power, Shintaro Toujou... even if he doesn't know any martial arts techniques, his innate "divine strength" alone is enough to make him a formidable master!

After calming down a bit, Qing Deng couldn't help but feel a sense of awe—he finally understood why the Great Salt Party's intelligence capabilities were so outstanding.

The main methods of intelligence gathering are nothing more than "bribing others" and "sending spies".

The current shogunate is already corrupt and decadent. The civil and military officials are idle and complacent, and there is no ambition in the court. It can be said that "those who occupy positions without doing anything are filling the shogunate".

In such an environment, officials with some ability who can do hard work and get things done are extremely rare.

The number of capable officials that Qingdeng had come into contact with was truly very limited.

"Fire Dragon" is one of my grandsons, Chutaro.

Shintaro Tojo, who has extensive experience in handling cases, is also one of them.

Unexpectedly... these two are actually members of the Big Salt Party!

These two were not just capable ministers; they were also high-ranking officials with prominent positions within the shogunate!

One is the captain of the Fire Thief Modified Squad 1, who became a pillar of the Fire Thief Modified Squad at a young age.

Another one is the former Edo Hokuban-sho-cho-kai-ki, who was recently transferred to the right to become the Kyoto governor.

The former was a "frontline officer of the special forces," and the latter was a "police chief"... How many secrets of the Shogunate did they handle?

Over the years, heaven knows how much intelligence they've supplied to the Great Salt Party!

This is just one of the "mole" around Qing Deng.

How many "mole" did the Ōshio Party plant in the shogunate? How many people within the shogunate were secret members of the Ōshio Party? Seito didn't dare to think about it too much!

Thinking of this, Qingdeng couldn't help but show a complicated and indescribable expression.

At that moment, Shintaro Tojo suddenly spoke up:

“Mr. Ju, if conditions allowed, I originally intended to keep this secret to myself for the rest of my life.”

"However... the situation tonight is extremely dangerous, and we urgently need manpower."

"Compared to the lives and property of millions of people in Kyoto, whether my 'true identity' is exposed or not is insignificant."

After hearing this, Qing Deng shrugged and chuckled a few times.

"Well... things have come to this, I'm not surprised anymore."

"Although your 'true identity' did indeed surprise me."

"But after learning that the gentle and charming 'most beautiful woman in Kyoto' is actually the intelligence chief of the Great Salt Party, your little secret is no longer enough to sway my mind."

He paused for a moment, then raised his gaze again, looking at Ms. Sumire and Shintaro Toujou from left to right.

"But you guys really trust me."

"In just one night, not only did I see Miss Sumire's true face, but she also voluntarily revealed Shintaro Toujou's true identity."

“A ‘mole’ like him, holding an important position in the shogunate… ah, no, a ‘spy,’ must be quite rare, right?”

At present, the Japanese people are probably not clear about the meaning of "mole", so Aoto temporarily changed his wording to "spy".

"It seems you're not afraid that I'll bring you all to justice after tonight."

"In any case, I am the Kyoto-garrison commander of the shogunate."

"According to the pro-imperial faction, I am the shogunate's number one lackey."

"Although the pro-imperial faction is the shogunate's number one enemy at present, the heads of the important cadres of the Ōshio Party are also worth a lot."

"If I were to take the head of the Great Salt Party's intelligence chief and offer him a reward, and also remove this high-ranking 'spy,' my fiefdom might be expanded by tens of thousands of shi (a unit of dry measure)."

No sooner had Qing Deng finished speaking than Miss Jin turned her head slightly, stuck out her tongue at him, and made a face.

"Stop talking nonsense, you would never do that."

Qingdeng raised an eyebrow, a look of amusement on his face.

"Oh? I'm really curious, why do you have so much confidence in me?"

Miss Violet smiled.

Who do you think I am?

"I'm a remarkable woman who became the intelligence chief of the Great Salt Party at a very young age!"

"My weapons and skills are not just a pretty face and a silver tongue."

Although she was talking, her hands were moving at an impressive pace.

While continuing her search for Yoshida Toshima, she slowly picked up where she left off.

"I only chose to become a geisha to gather information; I personally don't like this kind of profession that relies on selling smiles for a living."

"However, I must admit that my many years as a geisha have helped me develop a lot of skills."

"Let's leave aside eloquence for now."

"As the most popular geisha in Kyoto, I probably meet more people in a month than most people meet in their entire lives."

"From extraordinary heroes of our time to shameless cowards, there is no one I have not seen."

"Over time, the rich experience I've accumulated from meeting countless people, combined with my innate intuition, has given me extraordinary 'eyesight'."

"My eyes cannot distinguish between good and evil."

"But it can reveal who is trustworthy."

"It is precisely because of this 'eye for talent' that I have been able to get to where I am today."

"Otherwise, how could I, at just over twenty years old, become the intelligence chief of the Great Salt Party?"

"Therefore, I am very confident that you will not let us down."

At this point, Miss Violet seemed to remember something, paused, and then adopted a half-joking tone:

“Aki, in a way, we really have been completely open and honest with you.”

"Now that things have come to this, you should no longer doubt our determination to protect Kyoto, right?"

"Although I am not a native of Kyoto, I have lived in Kyoto for quite some time."

"Even though he's not from Kyoto, he's better than a Kyoto native."

"Although the people of Kyoto always have an arrogant and condescending attitude, I really love this prosperous ancient capital."

"I love Kyoto's wagashi (Japanese sweets) and its exquisite ancient architecture."

“Gion has many lovely children.”

"No matter how glamorous a geisha may be, she is ultimately a low-class person who cannot be respected."

"Those children came from poor backgrounds and did menial jobs that were looked down upon from a young age, but they always tried to live."

"Even if it's just for the sake of these good children, I absolutely cannot let those lunatics of the Zunrang faction destroy this ancient capital and the homes of countless people!"

At the end of her speech, Miss Violet's tone was truly resounding.

Perhaps out of admiration for her determination and will, a brief silence fell over the warehouse—however, this silence did not last long.

About five seconds later, a somber atmosphere dominated the scene.