I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

……

……

When Qingdeng returned to the army, he was naturally treated like a hero!

The soldiers cheered wildly, shouting the name of "Niou".

The sound and the noise were truly deafening!

No sooner had Qingdeng arrived at his camp than the feudal generals swarmed around him, each with a fawning smile, to congratulate him.

"Lord Aki! Congratulations! Three victories in three battles!"

"Hahahaha! This time, Changzhou has really lost face big time! Those guys must be itching to get their hands on him right now!"

"I have long heard that Lord Aki is an unparalleled samurai! Meeting you today, I can see that he is indeed extraordinary!"

Qingdeng's formidable martial prowess not only terrified the soldiers of Changzhou Army, but also greatly shocked the regional army generals who came to serve as a backdrop!

Just like the soldiers of Changzhou Army, they only knew that Qingdeng was strong, but they didn't know exactly how strong Qingdeng was.

Only now have they truly opened their eyes to this world!

This made them even more obsequious in front of Qingdeng, eager to flatter him and afraid of falling behind.

Qingdeng dismounted from the ox, handed the reins to the guard, and strode back to the main seat.

The commander, seated next to the head of the table, smiled slightly.

"The first battle was a success, even more successful than expected."

Upon hearing this, Qing Deng couldn't help but smile.

He fought against the generals of Changzhou and won three battles in a row!

And these were three overwhelming victories!

Before the battle, Qing Deng and the others racked their brains but could never have imagined that the Changzhou army would take the initiative to launch a one-man attack.

These military achievements and tactical successes, which were practically delivered to their doorstep, were all seen by Qing Deng and his men.

Although in terms of the results, Aoto's three complete victories did not cripple Choshu and were far from enough to determine the outcome of the battle, there is no doubt that the morale of the Choshu army has been severely damaged! The scales of victory have begun to tip significantly in favor of the Shinsengumi!

Of course, Qing Deng's "three wins in three battles" had a side effect that neither the commander nor the others realized.

Qing Deng's decision to personally take on the battle was not solely aimed at overwhelming his opponent.

If the goal is simply to crush the opponent, then the souji can achieve the same effect.

Besides the "overwhelming victory," Aoto had another consideration: to let the soldiers of Choshu on the other side know that "Niou" Tachibana Aoto was here!

Today, the name "Nioh" has become like a "strategic nuclear weapon"—enemies will feel terrified as soon as they hear it!

"The King of Benevolence" is right here on this battlefield, and we are about to face "The King of Benevolence" head-on—just the thought alone is enough to increase the psychological pressure on most of the soldiers of the Choshu Army!

Qingdeng said quietly:

"No rush, the main event is yet to come."

……

……

Choshu Army, Main Camp—

Kijima Matabei's face was long and his complexion was so pale it looked like it might drip water at any moment.

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Chapter 843 Artillery Shows its Power! The Changzhou Army is Devastated! [5200]

Kitashima Matabei has been waiting for far too long.

As a staunch radical within the pro-imperial faction, he had long awaited this day—Eastward march! Eastward march! To the Kyoto region! To the Kanto region! To destroy the humiliating Edo Shogunate! To abolish all unequal treaties! To drive the Western barbarians back to the sea!

After a long wait and constant disappointment, the day of the "Changzhou Eastern Expedition" has finally arrived!

Not only was he able to fulfill his ambition of "heading eastward," but he was also fortunate enough to become the actual commander of the Fushimi battlefield... It is no exaggeration to say that ordinary words cannot accurately describe the excitement of Kijima Matabei.

To demonstrate his emphasis on this battle and to show his determination to achieve a great victory, he specially wore his family heirloom, the Wind-Broken Black Hat (armor), and dressed like a general from the Warring States period.

If he was once so full of ambition, he is now utterly exhausted!

Although on the surface this eastern expeditionary army appears to be an astonishing force, totaling 12,000 men, to put it bluntly, this legion was entirely cobbled together.

First of all, the vast majority of the soldiers were ronin and peasant soldiers who were temporarily conscripted.

They received little or no military training.

Making them yell a few times and march in formation would be barely acceptable.

However, they are completely incapable of performing even slightly more complex tactical maneuvers.

As for bloody battles, tough battles, and battles against the odds, you can't count on them at all.

Thanks to the vast financial resources of the Shimonoseki Strait, Choshu's annual fiscal revenue reached over a million koku.

Otherwise, no other vassal state could muster such a massive army, even if they exhausted all their national strength.

In addition to its diverse personnel, this legion is also filled with many semi-independent armed forces.

In order to resist the Western barbarians and realize the great ambition of "honoring the king and repelling the barbarians", in recent years, countless men from Changzhou have spontaneously formed teams and troops, ranging from a dozen to several hundred people.

The most famous of these units was the "Special Forces".

This is a special armed force that Takasugi Shinsaku established with the support of the wealthy businessman Shiraishi Shoichiro.

The term "surprise troops" refers to mixed forces composed of samurai and commoners, in addition to the feudal lords.

The original Qibing Team was simply a cold weapon unit that brought together many ambitious individuals.

As Shinsaku Takasugi gradually came to realize the formidable national power of the Western powers and the huge gap between East and West, he began to vigorously introduce Western weapons and tactics, transforming the current Special Forces into a "cold and hot" hybrid special forces unit.

In terms of combat power alone, the Kiheitai is definitely one of the strongest units in the Choshu army.

Unfortunately, due to the falling out between Takasugi Shinsaku and Kusaka Genzui, and the fact that many people believed Takasugi Shinsaku had fallen from grace and that as a man of Choshu, he was shameless for using Western weapons, they were unwilling to fight alongside him. Therefore, the Kiheitai did not participate in this Eastern Expedition.

After Kusaka Genzui issued a "General Mobilization for the Eastern Expedition" throughout the entire domain, these previously idle and self-sufficient independent armed forces responded to the call and joined the legion.

Although the morale and combat effectiveness of these independent units far surpassed those of the temporarily conscripted ronin and peasant soldiers, they were still no match for the enemy.

Putting everything else aside, their strong personalities, excessive desire for self-expression, and their undisciplined nature that makes them incredibly frustrating!

The organizational structure and military philosophy of these independent forces were a complete mess! They were no better than peasant uprising armies!

The establishment and operation of the troops depended entirely on their own passion and enthusiasm.

To put it bluntly, these independent units are less like "armies" and more like "playing the role of an army"! It's basically just playing house!

Before this, they all lived a very free and relaxed life, with no concept of "military discipline" or "military orders being absolute".

Although Kijima Matabei was the de facto highest-ranking officer on the Fushimi battlefield, he had no way to deal with these independent units.

After all, nominally they are just guest troops, here to help.

"We're here to help! You're not my lord, what are you yelling about?!"—If they're pushed too far, they might actually quit and leave with their team!

He had to effectively motivate the poorly trained ronin and peasant soldiers, while also appeasing these restless independent troops... The hardships faced by Kijima Matabei are self-evident.

If it's just restlessness, then so be it.

The problem is, these guys' restlessness has reached the point of missing crucial opportunities!

For example, Yamamoto Sakuyuki, who just had a big argument with Kijima Matabei and insisted on going into battle to fight the Shinsengumi single-handedly.

Yamamoto Sakuyuki, as well as Ishigami Moritsugu and Akagawa Gensou, who subsequently fought against Aoto, all came from independent units.

These guys all have one thing in common: because they lack knowledge and cultural education, their vision is not even as broad as that of the radical supremacists who always talk about "Changzhou Soul" and "sweeping away the Western Barbarians".

That's why they highly value the so-called "retro style".

While Kijima Matabei doesn't oppose the recent rise of "retro style," he is very disgusted by outdated products like Ikki-to, which have long been swept into the dustbin of history.

Moreover, although he was reluctant to admit it, the Shinsengumi was indeed full of experts!

Even disregarding "Nioh" Tachibana Aoto and "Tenken" Okita Souji, the others such as Nagakura Shinpachi, Saito Hajime, and Kondo Isami are no pushovers either.

After experiencing setbacks such as the Shimonoseki War, the August 18th Coup, the Tenchugu Rebellion, and the Ikedaya Incident, Choshu's elite fighting force suffered severe damage.

Kawakami Gensai, Yoshida Toshima... these martial arts masters who could take on a thousand men were either dead or wounded.

Now, the Shinsengumi's top leadership strength far surpasses that of Choshu!

In conclusion, issuing a one-on-one challenge to the Shinsengumi is tantamount to "attacking the enemy's strength with one's own weakness," which is by no means the best strategy!

Therefore, Kurushima Matabei would certainly not agree to Yamamoto Sakuyuki's request.

However, Yamamoto Sakuyuki simply refused to follow his orders.

The two had a big argument... In the end, Yamamoto Sakuyuki ignored his advice and took it upon himself to ride out into battle.

What happened next... needs no further explanation.

Thinking of this, Kijima Matabei felt his teeth itch again, his brows furrowed even more, and he involuntarily raised his hand to massage his temples, which were throbbing with pain.

—It's all because of these guys' reckless behavior that such a terrible result has occurred!

Before the battle even officially began, we had already lost three generals, which damaged our morale!

This is a classic example of an "unfavorable start."

On one side, morale is soaring; on the other, it's visibly declining...

Kijima Matabei closed his eyes, took several deep breaths, and forcibly calmed himself down.

Well, what's done is done. All we can do is try our best to make amends!

As he pondered this to himself, he suddenly opened his eyes, a sharp glint in them.

Although the current situation is extremely dire, he still has an ace up his sleeve—the guerrilla force he built from scratch!