I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

There is no definitive conclusion yet.

In fact, even whether this story is true or false is a question.

In short, Aoto tried to find Kikuichimonji Norimune, but unsurprisingly, he found nothing.

Since he wasn't expecting to get the long-lost sword anyway, Qing Deng wasn't disappointed.

After receiving the Bizen Osafune, Aoto practiced basic swordsmanship every day, striving to improve his skills.

The Bizen Osafune was good, but the blue boat, which was used to the Vairochana, was indeed difficult to adapt to in a short time.

The more skilled a martial artist is, the more attention they will pay to the compatibility between themselves and their weapon.

At the Qingdeng level, he rarely encounters strong individuals whose strength overwhelms him or far surpasses his.

When competing against someone of similar skill level, it mainly comes down to the details.

For example, whether you slept well last night.

Another example is whether the weapon in your hand is satisfactory.

From the very beginning, Qingdeng and Vairocana had a very high degree of compatibility.

Weight, length, blade curvature... every detail of the Vairocana is perfectly in line with Qingdeng.

It's no exaggeration to say that this knife is tailor-made for Qing Deng! Its sole purpose seems to be to become Qing Deng's personal sword!

Whenever Qingdeng holds the Vairocana, he does not feel as if he is holding a knife, but rather feels as if his arm has lengthened.

The unity of man and knife is nothing more than this.

But now, holding this unfamiliar knife, he suddenly felt extremely uncomfortable.

No matter how I wave it, it just doesn't feel right.

To put it simply: whenever he wielded the Bizen Osafune, it felt like running with prosthetic legs or playing basketball with prosthetic hands.

Although this metaphor is somewhat exaggerated, it truly reflects Qingdeng's genuine feelings.

However, after a long period of adjustment, he has finally gotten used to the new knife.

Just as Qingdeng was preparing to continue sharpening the new sword, suddenly, footsteps approached from afar outside the tent.

Before long, Hijikata Toshizo, dressed in a Western style, lifted the curtain and peeked halfway in:

"Ju, all the soldiers have arrived."

Hijikata Toshizo seems to have completely fallen in love with that suit.

Now he always wears this outfit, whether in public or in private.

Upon hearing this, Qing Deng nodded slightly:

"Okay, I'm coming right now."

As he spoke, he sheathed his sword, grabbed the clothes beside him, and strode toward the tent entrance while dressing himself.

As I left the tent, the dazzling sunlight shone directly into me.

The sun rose high behind the mountains to the east, and the sky was clear and bright.

Directly in front of Qingdeng was a large, flat open field.

On the open field, tens of thousands of soldiers stood in neat rows, their imposing presence reaching the sky!

The flag with the hollyhock crest representing the shogunate, the flag with the gentian leaf crest representing the Hatatsu Domain, the flag with the character "诚" (chéng) representing the Shinsengumi, the flag with the hollyhock crest representing the Aizu Domain, the flag with the maru cross representing the Satsuma Domain, the flag with the hollyhock crest representing the Owari Domain...

Large flags of various colors and patterns fluttered and whistled in the morning breeze.

After Qingdeng stepped onto the high platform used for military review and general selection, all the generals had already arrived.

Upon seeing Aoto arrive, generals such as Yamanami Keisuke, Matsudaira Katamori, and Saigo Kichinosuke came forward to greet him.

Just three days ago, the shogunate issued a formal appointment: Tachibana Aoto, lord of the Hatazu Domain, was appointed as the governor-general of the expedition; Tokugawa Yoshikatsu, lord of the Owari Domain; Matsudaira Shigeaki, lord of the Fukui Domain; and Matsudaira Katamori, lord of the Aizu Domain, were appointed as deputy governors-general; and Saigo Kichinosuke of the Satsuma Domain was appointed as a staff officer!

Tokugawa Yoshikatsu – the current lord of the Owari Domain, aged 40.

Matsudaira Shigeaki - the current lord of the Fukui Domain, currently 28 years old.

The reason these two were appointed as deputy governors of the Long March campaign was purely for political reasons.

Both the Owari Domain and the Fukui Domain were extremely large kin domains, with the former receiving a koku of 619,000 koku and the latter 320,000 koku.

Appointing them as deputy governors-general was mainly to give them nominal positions, thus demonstrating the shogunate's high regard for its own clans.

Both the Owari and Echizen domains sent troops to participate in this battle, so it would be unreasonable not to give them a prestigious and significant title.

Yamanami Keisuke said to Aoto, enunciating each word clearly:

"King Tachibana, all units have completed assembly and are ready to depart at any time!"

Qingdeng nodded slightly, then, holding the sword at his waist, he moved to the very front of the platform and looked down at the open field below.

Looking up, my field of vision was filled with a dense mass of people.

The Shinsengumi, Aizu Army, Satsuma Army, and troops from various domains such as Owari and Fukui were arranged in square formations, filling the field of vision within Aoto's sight.

Under the sunlight, various equipment such as rifles, muskets, and cannons gleamed.

Upon seeing Qingdeng appear, someone started waving their spear and cheering loudly.

Immediately afterwards, it seemed to trigger a chain reaction, with more and more people discovering Qingdeng, and then more and more cheers erupting.

The shouts came one after another, deafening, as if even the sky and the earth trembled!

Looking at the magnificent sight of thousands of troops and listening to the endless cheers, Qingdeng took a deep breath and tried to suppress his excitement.

Then, he waved his hand, and the hem of his light blue haori flew high.

"Set off!!"

……

……

On November 18, 1864, the first year of Genji, the shogunate officially dispatched troops, with 11 soldiers divided into three routes to attack Choshu.

The war has begun in Changzhou!

*******

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PS: In historical fact, the commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force was Tokugawa Yoshikatsu, the lord of the Owari Domain, and the deputy commander-in-chief was Matsudaira Shigeaki, the lord of the Fukui Domain. They were both nominal commanders; the actual command of the army was in the hands of the staff officer Saigo Kichinosuke.

Chapter 897 If only Tachibana Aoto were the Shogun! [6100]

Somewhere in the suburbs of Kobe—

Thump...thump...thump...thump...thump...thump...thump...

The sudden, strange noise caused the farmers on the outskirts of Kobe to stop what they were doing and look puzzled.

"Huh? What's that noise?"

"It sounds like horses' hooves."

"The sound of horses' hooves? If that's the sound of horses' hooves, then the noise is far too loud, isn't it?"

Just as they were feeling puzzled and wondering, someone suddenly pointed:

"Look!"

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately raised their eyes and looked in the direction of the sound.

A large cavalry unit was seen passing by on the dirt road beside the field.

These cavalrymen were all dressed in light blue haori, with sharp katana at their waists, and riding strong Koshu horses. They were all very dashing and imposing.

"A light blue haori...it's the Shinsengumi!"

Under Qing Deng's strict control, the discipline within the Shinsengumi was extremely strict.

The Shinsengumi Law has always been an inviolable and absolute prohibition.

Anyone who dares to offend you, no matter who you are or how much merit you have made in the past, will have only one fate: immediate execution.

Countless pitiful souls have died at the hands of their own people.

Under such high pressure, the discipline of the Shinsengumi became famous far and wide.

While it cannot be compared to the great modern army, it is certainly far superior to the other feudal armies of the same era.

Thanks to this, the Shinsengumi has always enjoyed a very good reputation among the people.

If it were any other army unit, the farmers would have run away long ago and fled far away.

Bandits pass by like combs, soldiers pass by like fine brushes, and officials pass by like shavings—this proverb left by our ancestors is a painful lesson accumulated from countless bloodshed.

Upon seeing that it was the newly formed group, the farmers on site were all relieved and no longer afraid.

Some of the bolder people even rushed forward to carefully examine this group of distinguished guests.

"Cavalry...which squadron of the Shinsengumi is this?"

"It's either the 7th Division or the 10th Division; only these two units are mounted."

"Ah! Look at that person in black! I know him! He's the 'Demon Vice-Commander' Hijikata Toshizo!"

Amidst the sea of ​​light green, only Hijikata Toshizo stood out, dressed in a black suit and trench coat, black leather boots, and sporting a very Western-style slicked-back hairstyle.

The reputation of the "Demon Vice-Commander" needs no further explanation.

To get a glimpse of it, the farmers at the scene craned their necks and peered over.

Seeing this, Hijikata Toshizo generously turned his face to the side so they could see him more clearly, while waving and smiling in acknowledgment.

Instantly, the village women and girls present blushed, their eyes sparkling with admiration.

Hijikata Toshizo was a renowned handsome man and a heartbreaker.

Wearing this tight-fitting suit made her figure appear even more slender, and her personal charm increased dramatically.