I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

As soon as the cooked rice comes out of the pot, it is immediately packed into a special straw bag and then loaded onto a vehicle without stopping.

One of the key points of long-distance forced marches is to ensure adequate supplies.

If you can't fill your stomach and replenish your energy in time, then don't talk about a "second China's great return".

After a brief consideration, Aoto decided to emulate the tactics that Hideyoshi Hashiba used to defeat Katsuie Shibata in the Battle of Shizugatake.

Shortly after defeating Akechi Mitsuhide, Toyotomi Hideyoshi clashed with Oda clan elder Shibata Katsuie over the political legacy left by Oda Nobunaga, leading to the famous Battle of Shizugatake.

During this battle, Hideyoshi ordered all the guilds (companies with various commercial and industrial monopolies) and farmhouses along the way to open their rice granaries, work together to cook rice, and prepare licorice for the horses.

If you provide all the rice in your house, you will be paid ten times the price afterwards.

After the rice is cooked, wet the inside of the empty straw bag with salt water and then fill it with cooked rice.

After it was packed, people were sent to transport it to Kazugatake by oxen and horses. If the person delivering the food got hungry on the way, they could take the food from the straw bag and eat it directly with a towel or their clothes.

The rice was wrapped in straw with the inside moistened with salt water, and the transporter used a towel or clothes to take the rice. This was all to prevent spoilage. The straw could also absorb the hot water vapor, and the salt water would seep into the rice, making it easy to swallow.

What followed was almost a carbon copy of the Battle of Tianwang Mountain.

With their terrifying marching speed, the Hashiba army once again seized the initiative on the battlefield, defeating the Shibata army at Shizugatake and securing victory in one fell swoop.

After this battle, no one in the Oda clan could challenge Hideyoshi Hashiba's authority, and his path to domination began from that point on.

Since there are readily available excellent examples to refer to, why not learn from them?

So, Qing Deng repeated the old story of Shizugatake and ordered the cooks to speed up the cooking. First, he cooked the rice and then packed it into straw bags with the inside soaked in salt water.

In addition to rice to fill their stomachs, Qingdeng also made sure to prepare drinking water.

He specifically instructed the cooks to add more salt to the water so that the soldiers could replenish their salt levels.

To ensure a timely supply of food, Qingdeng mobilized all available animal power and vehicles to transport rice and salt water.

While the main force was still assembling, supply convoys were already speeding away from the camp one after another.

An army marches on its stomach – an age-old truth.

Qingdeng specifically instructed the supply convoy: once the vehicles are fully loaded with supplies, they need not stop and wait, but should depart directly.

The supply convoy will set up supply stations at various points along the march route.

When the troops passed through the supply depot, they simply took the ready-made rice balls and salt water without stopping, eating as they went.

Although doing this would be very hard on the soldiers, the situation was urgent and there was no time to worry about that.

In addition, the soldiers' weapons, armor, and other equipment were also loaded onto the chariots.

In this way, the burden on the soldiers can be reduced to the greatest extent, their physical strength can be saved, and the troops can move forward lightly.

In fact, in terms of marching distance alone, the Shinsengumi's "Second Great Return to China" was much longer than the Hashiba Army's "First Great Return to China" back then!

Without a doubt, even for the elite Shinsengumi, completing this task would be extremely difficult!

As the saying goes, "An army is raised for a thousand days, but used for only one."

Qingdeng has done everything he could.

Next, we can only place our hopes on the physical strength, spirit, and discipline of the Shinsengumi soldiers!

……

……

"Moo moo moo moo!"

The radish probably sensed that it had an important task ahead of it.

From the moment it started, it kept pawing at the ground with its hooves, looking eager to try.

The neatly dressed Qingdeng stood beside the radish, scanning his gaze from left to right, his eyes sweeping over the three people standing in front of him: Hijikata Toshizo, Yamanami Keisuke, and Kondo Isami.

"Sui San, Jingzhu, Yong, I'm counting on you!"

Hijikata Toshizo's lips curled into a smile:

"Leave it to us with confidence. When have we ever let you down?"

Kondo Isami grinned, revealing his gorilla-like mouth, and continued the conversation:

"Tachibana-kun, don't worry about us! You should set off now!"

Even the usually mature and composed Yamanami Keisuke was unusually passionate at this moment:

Even if we are reduced to dust, we will bring all our troops to you as scheduled!

What Qingdeng urgently needs right now is intelligence.

He was eager to know the movements of the Changzhou army so that he could make appropriate arrangements.

Therefore, he decided to lead a portion of his cavalry back to Dajin ahead of time.

The main force followed in order.

He divided the newly elected group into three equal parts, assigning them to Toshizo Hijikata, Keisuke Yamanami, and Isami Kondo, respectively.

Commanding troops to march by force... this is no easy task.

Despite the heavy burden on their shoulders, the three of them were not afraid at all.

Looking at the three people with confident smiles on their faces, Qing Deng couldn't help but smile, his gentle eyes filled with strong trust in them.

Just then, a loud shout suddenly came from afar:

"General Tachibana, please wait!"

Qing Deng looked in the direction of the sound and saw Matsudaira Katamori striding towards him.

The other party did not come alone; he was followed by a large number of soldiers.

These soldiers, one hand on their sword and the other on their horse, are none other than the world-renowned Aizu Cavalry!

Matsudaira Katamori quickly moved to Aoto's side and said seriously:

"General Tachibana, the Choshu Domain is now an 'empty country'."

"Presumably, there are hardly any field troops left in its territory."

"The battles that followed were nothing more than one siege after another."

"Therefore, there is no benefit for me to keep these cavalrymen."

"General Tachibana, you are about to recapture Owari, and field battles will be inevitable."

"For you, the more cavalry, the better."

"Therefore, please take these 200 cavalrymen from Aizu with you!"

"They will definitely be able to help!"

After saying that, he turned his body slightly to the side.

Immediately afterwards, a fully armed general stepped out from the Aizu cavalry ranks and approached Aoto.

After seeing the person's face clearly, Qingdeng subconsciously raised an eyebrow.

This person was none other than Sagawa Kanbei, the elder of the Aizu clan and the most powerful general of the Aizu clan.

Because of a past disagreement, Qing Deng not only remembered him, but also had a strong impression of him.

Back then, when the newly established Shinsengumi went to Iga to quell the rebellion, they borrowed troops from Aizu because they lacked manpower.

Matsudaira Katamori then dispatched a group of elite soldiers, led by Sagawa Kanbei, and ordered them to do their utmost to assist Aoto.

Unexpectedly, the arrogant Sagawa Kanbei ignored Aoto's orders and led his troops into battle without authorization as soon as the war began. As a result, he ended up with the ridiculous ending of being "driven back by the musketeers' gunfire". He showed his true colors.

Upon his triumphant return to the capital, he was immediately severely punished by Matsudaira Katamori.

Matsudaira Katamori did not show any favoritism towards Aoto despite him being a key retainer of the Aizu Domain, which was considered an explanation to Aoto.

From then on, Qingdeng and he rarely saw each other.

"General Tachibana, although Sagawa made a big mistake before, he has now reformed."

"I believe he will be a great asset to you in this battle and will never make that kind of low-level mistake again."

"Sagawa-kun, am I right?"

As Matsudaira Katamori spoke, he turned his head and gave Sagawa Kanbei a sharp look.

Meeting his lord's gaze, Sagawa Kanbei suddenly lowered his body, knelt on one knee, and said in a respectful voice:

"General Tachibana, I have offended you greatly before! I was too arrogant, which led to this terrible mistake!"

"Please watch carefully!"

"This time, I... no, we will definitely show you the bravery of the men of Aizu!"

After speaking, he raised his head and straightened his chest, staring intently at Qing Deng.

His demeanor was no longer arrogant and domineering as before; it was now one of pure obedience and reverence.

Qing Deng glanced at Sagawa Kanbei, then at the cavalry behind him, and after a moment's thought, nodded solemnly:

“...Alright, Lady Higo, in that case, I'll accept your 'gift'.”

Qingdeng would never complain about having too many troops.

Since Matsudaira Katamori was willing to lend troops, and even more so the Aizu cavalry, which was of considerable fighting strength, he was happy to accept.

Seeing that Aoto readily accepted his offer, Matsudaira Katamori chuckled with a sigh of relief.

"General Tachibana, just wait and see! The cavalry of Aizu will not disappoint your reputation!"

Aoto smiled slightly in response, then turned to the Aizu cavalry led by Sagawa Kanbei and shouted loudly:

"Soldiers of Aizu! If you intend to show me the 'Aizu spirit,' then keep up! I don't have time for those who fall behind!"

Having said that, he nimbly leaped onto the ox and lightly tapped its belly with his heel.

"Moo moo moo moo!"

The big black bull raised its two front hooves, bellowed loudly, and then galloped forward like an arrow, heading straight out of the camp.

The next moment, a chorus of neighing horses filled the air.

The Aizu cavalry and the Shinsengumi cavalry, who had been waiting nearby, spurred their horses and whipped them into action.