I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

He rushed to Tokugawa Iemochi and knelt down, then rolled up a tightly bound scroll in his hand.

Tokugawa Iemochi took the scroll, then gestured for the page to leave.

After the young servant left the room, Tokugawa Iemochi unrolled the scroll and laid it out.

Tokugawa Iemochi's expression changed drastically as he glanced at the words on the scroll.

Noticing the change in Tokugawa Iemochi's expression, Tenshōin hurriedly asked:

"General, what has happened?"

"..." Tokugawa Iemochi, with a stern face, handed the scroll in his hand to Tenshōin without saying a word.

Tenshōin took the scroll, glanced at it quickly—and then, like Tokugawa Iemochi, his expression changed drastically.

After being reported through multiple levels, the incident, no less serious than tonight's "arson incident," was finally presented to the highest ruler of the Edo Shogunate.

In this scroll, Usui and Atsukawa, in a meticulous style, detailed the events that have occurred today.

Tonight, the magistrate's office has deployed the entire city to guard against the anti-foreign group; the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics of Foreign Documents has been attacked; Katsura Rintaro and others who remained at the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics of Foreign Documents have narrowly escaped death...

At the end of the scroll, Usui and Atsukawa also pointed out that they strongly suspected that tonight's "arson incident" was also the work of the Exile Group.

A simple scroll sent chills down the spines of Tokugawa Iemochi and Tenshōin Naoki.

The Foreign Studies Institute was an academic center built by the shogunate at great expense to study Western learning. It was the hope for the revitalization of the country in the eyes of Tokugawa Iemochi and Tenshōin.

As for Katsura Rintaro, he was a highly regarded retainer by both of them.

There have been rumors that Tokugawa Iemochi intended to appoint Katsura Rintaro as the first "Fleet Admiral" of the Edo Shogunate... This rumor is actually true.

Tokugawa Iemochi did indeed intend to have this valuable talent, who was well-versed in Western military science, build their shogunate's naval forces.

Upon seeing the section on the scroll concerning the attack on the Bureau of Foreign Documents and the fact that Katsurin Taro happened to be working there that night, both Tokugawa Iemochi and Tenshōin broke out in a cold sweat.

Seeing that the Foreign Document Investigation Office was not completely destroyed and that Katsurin Taro had been rescued, they finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“The Extermination Group…” Tokugawa Iemochi raised his hand again to press his brow, his expression extremely grave. “Tsk… it’s truly one problem after another…”

Tokugawa Iemochi closed his eyes and let out a heavy, long sigh.

During this period... to be precise, ever since the "Sakuradamon Incident," Tokugawa Iemochi had basically never stopped to rest, and his mind had been in a state of high tension.

In order to restore the shogunate, which had become extremely chaotic due to the death of Ii Naosuke, to normalcy as soon as possible, Tokugawa Iemochi swiftly promoted Ando Nobumasa, whom he trusted greatly, to the position of head of the senior council. With the assistance of Ando Nobumasa and Tenshōin, they worked hard to quell the chaos.

But how could the chaos caused by Ii Naosuke's death be easily resolved?

While resolving the chaos caused by the power vacuum, Tokugawa Iemochi also had to devote his attention to dealing with the war.

Because the assassins who killed Ii Naosuke were mostly samurai of the Mito Domain, many ministers were eagerly demanding the "Mito Expedition" to gather the shogunate army and the armies of various domains to conquer the Mito Domain!

There were those who advocated war, and naturally there were those who advocated peace.

The debate over whether to conquer Mito was almost evenly matched between the pro-war and pro-peace factions, causing a great deal of controversy that gave Tokugawa Iemochi a major headache.

The various internal troubles within the shogunate had not yet been resolved... and one external threat after another emerged...

Tokugawa Iemochi had also heard of the "Extermination Group," which had gathered more than two hundred people to attack and kill French merchants more than two months earlier.

He had initially thought it was just a slightly larger "radical anti-barbarian" organization, but after reading the report on the scroll, he was shocked to realize that this anti-barbarian group was far more insane and terrifying than he had imagined!

It is no longer an enemy organization that can be treated normally...

Internal and external troubles came one after another... Even the strong-willed Tokugawa Iemochi couldn't help but feel a bit heavy and weary.

But thankfully, it wasn't just bad things that kept happening.

Tokugawa Iemochi took back the scroll.

Since the scroll describes everything that happened tonight, it must also describe who turned the tide and saved Katsurin Taro and the Banshu Institute.

“Tachibana Aoto…” Tokugawa Iemochi chewed on the name softly.

Hearing Tokugawa Iemochi's words, Tenshōin slowly said with a surprised expression, "It's unbelievable... this person has managed to achieve another great feat so quickly..."

The name "Tachibana no Aoto" was familiar to both Tokugawa Iemochi and Tenshōin.

The last name written on the "talent register" that Ii Naosuke gave to Tokugawa Iemochi was "Tachibana Aoto".

After receiving this "talent register" from Ii Naosuke, Tokugawa Iemochi immediately shared it with his most trusted confidant, Tenshōin.

The Tianzhang Academy gave this "talent register" extremely high praise, and most of the people listed in it were promising talents whom the Tianzhang Academy highly regarded.

Because she had also read through that talent list, Tenshōin knew that Tachibana Seito was one of the talents that Ii Naosuke had strongly recommended to Tokugawa Iemochi.

"Tachibana Aoto... Tachibana Aoto..." Tokugawa Iemochi muttered Aoto's name a few more times before a smile appeared on his face.

"It seems that Ii really didn't recommend the wrong person to me..."

After saying that, Tokugawa Iemochi suddenly put on a stern face and looked distressed.

"Shogun, what's wrong? Why do you look so troubled?" Tenshōin asked curiously, noticing the distressed expression on Tokugawa Iemochi's face.

“Oh…it’s nothing.” Tokugawa Iemochi shook his head. “I was just…thinking about how to train this Tachibana Aoto.”

"It is now certain that Tachibana Aoto, whom Ii recommended to me, is indeed a very courageous person with outstanding action, decisiveness, combat skills, and leadership abilities. He is an outstanding talent that deserves our focus and cultivation."

"We cannot afford to overlook such a talented individual."

"However, I'm a little worried about how to train this person."

Tokugawa Iemochi sighed silently.

"Judging from Tachibana Seiden's current performance... the military is the place where he can best showcase his talents."

"I'm thinking—should I transfer Tachibana Aoto to a large unit or some other unit..."

Before Tokugawa Iemochi could finish speaking, Tenshōin interrupted him:

"General, you mustn't."

"In my opinion, the best way to further train and cultivate Tachibana Seino is to maintain the status quo—let Tachibana Seino continue to stay in the 'San-kai' of the Magistrate's Office."

"Oh? Why?" Tokugawa Iemochi asked hastily.

For Tokugawa Iemochi, Tenshōin was not only his adoptive mother and most trusted person, but also his strategist.

Tokugawa Iemochi, who is only 14 years old this year, still has too many immature and ignorant aspects in the administration of the shogunate.

Tenshōin, who was 10 years older than Tokugawa Iemochi and was the princess of the powerful Satsuma Domain before marrying into the Edo Kingdom, had long been accustomed to the intricacies of politics.

Therefore, the intelligent and politically astute Tenshōin was able to make up for Tokugawa Iemochi's shortcomings in this regard.

When Tokugawa Iemochi encountered a difficult decision, he would often consult Tenshōin.

"General, in your opinion, which is more challenging: the magistrate's office, which is currently focused on dealing with the 'radical anti-foreign faction' thugs, or the currently corrupt and incompetent army?"

Tenshōin's words were extremely sharp.

The current Shogunate army can be described directly as "utterly corrupt and incompetent".

However, Tokugawa Iemochi did not show any displeasure after hearing this.

Tokugawa Iemochi pursed his lips, seemingly lost in thought.

"General, you should know very well what most of the troops are like now, except for a very few units such as the Fire-fighting Thieves and the Red-Banded Thieves."

Tenshōin then continued in her ethereal voice, speaking slowly and deliberately.

"Nearly three hundred years of peace... has corrupted most of the military."

“If we were to transfer Ju Qingdeng to the army now, that would be a real hidden gem. Staying in a place where even the air is filled with the smell of decay will only wear down a person’s spirit.”

"Therefore, I believe that the best course of action at present is to allow Tachibana Seito to remain in the Magistrate's Office for three terms."

"Right now, the Edo Magistrate's Office is the front line against the 'radical anti-foreign faction' in Edo. Every day we are fighting against those crazy thugs."

"It would be most appropriate to let Tachibana Seito stay in the Magistrate's Office to train and gain experience."

"After Tachibana Seito has gained several years of experience and accumulated certain qualifications within the Magistrate's Office, he will be transferred to the Fire Thief Training Program."

"Fire-flying thief?" Tokugawa Iemochi winked at Tenshōin.

Tianzhangyuan nodded:

"The Fire Thief Mod is very suitable as the future home of Tachibana Aoto."

"First, the Fire-Fuse Thieves Division is a special security force of our shogunate. Tachibana Aoto, who came from the 'Sanji' of the Magistrate's Office, was able to quickly adapt and take over the relevant work after being transferred to the Fire-Fuse Thieves Division."

"Secondly, the Fire Thieves are one of the very few units that have not yet been completely corrupted, making them the best place for talented individuals like Tachibana Aoto who have the potential to be generals."

Tokugawa Iemochi listened attentively to every word and sentence of Tenshōin.

"……I see."

Tokugawa Iemochi nodded solemnly.

"Then let's do as Mother says and let Tachibana Aoto continue training at the Magistrate's Office!"

After saying that, Tokugawa Iemochi smiled.

"Well then... Mother, let's talk about what reward we should give to Ju Qingdeng for his great service tonight."

“Protecting the Shenghe Fanshu Bureau...this is an achievement that deserves a great reward.”

"General," Tenshōin countered, "what kind of reward do you personally think should be given to Tachibana Seidenō?"

Tokugawa Iemochi pondered for a moment:

"...Since we've decided to properly nurture Tachibana Aoto...then I think we should start now and gradually elevate Tachibana Aoto's status!"

"Tachibana Seiden is currently only a servant with a salary of 100 koku, which is far too low a status."

"If we want to entrust him with important responsibilities in the future, we can't let his status remain so lowly."

"Mother, I would like to give Tachibana Seito a stipend of 400 koku!"

"400 koku?" Tenshōin's beautiful eyes widened even more, her face showing surprise.

But after a brief moment of surprise, Tenshōin's look of astonishment quickly turned into one of deep thought.

"...Although granting Tachibana Seito a bonus of 400 koku in one go... is somewhat extraordinary," Tenshōin said slowly, "but it's not entirely impossible..."

"I want to take this opportunity to boost everyone's morale," Tokugawa Iemochi said with a smile. "Through Tachibana Aoto, I'll tell everyone: things are different now. Now, as long as you achieve great merit, the shogunate will not be stingy with rewards!"

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