I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

They continued their division of labor as always—Sakamoto Ryoma was responsible for lobbying the Tosa Domain, while Nakaoka Shintaro was responsible for lobbying the Hizen Domain.

Following Saigo Kinosuke's gaze, Komatsu also looked in the direction of Tosa:

"I must say, Ryoma and Shintaro did a really great job."

"To be honest, I never expected that they could actually get Satsuma and Choshu, who have a long-standing grudge, back to the negotiating table in such a short time."

Saigo Kinosuke smiled slightly and continued the conversation:

"Yes, I underestimated them."

"Hopefully they can maintain this momentum."

"Whether or not we can win over Tosa is the key to facilitating the 'Western Provinces Alliance'."

"Tosa no Sakai no Sakai, Hizen no Sakai!"

Saigo Kichinosuke had a very clear plan on how to win over Tosa and Hizen.

The general outline of the plan can be summarized as "Tosa first, then Hizen!"

Hizen Domain was the most low-profile and formidable of the "Four Domains of Western Provinces," maintaining a neutral stance for a long time and rarely interfering in world affairs.

At first glance, the rulers and their retainers of the Hizen Domain appeared to be aloof and detached from the world.

But in reality, they had long wanted to get involved and reap the benefits!

In terms of personal feelings, as fellow tozama daimyo of western Japan, the lords and retainers of the Hizen Domain naturally felt closer to Satsuma and Choshu.

Admittedly, if they submitted to "King Ni", they could retain their existing power and wealth, and Aoto could also offer certain benefits to compensate the Hizen Domain.

But if the Southern Shogunate is overthrown and the world order is restored, the rewards that the Hizen Domain will receive will be more than ten or a hundred times greater.

However, to date, the rulers and retainers of the Hizen Domain have taken no action, keeping the domain gates closed and going about their own little lives.

The reason for this is simply that the "benevolent king" is powerful, so they dare not act rashly.

If that's the case, then the solution is quite simple—just let the rulers and retainers of the Hizen Domain see hope of defeating "Lord Ni"!

Saigo Kichinosuke was certain that the alliance between Satsuma and Choshu alone was not enough to sway the lords and retainers of the Hizen Domain.

However, if the Tosa Domain is included, the situation is quite different!

To be fair, the Tosa Domain was the weakest of the "Four Domains of Western Provinces".

Unlike Choshu, which became exceptionally wealthy due to its monopoly of the Shimonoseki Strait, it did not industrialize as early as Satsuma or Hizen.

However, its dense population and its fiefdom of 24 shi (a unit of dry measure) should not be underestimated.

More importantly, the Tosa Domain has been completely transformed!

After purging the Tosa loyalists who were ideologically extreme and behaviorally biased, the "Three Heroes of Tosa," led by Goto Shōjirō, began to take charge of the Tosa domain's administration.

Although their fame is far less than that of the "Three Heroes of Choshu" and the "Three Heroes of Satsuma", Goto Shojiro and others were certainly not ordinary people to be given the title of "Three Heroes".

They are young and energetic, possess enlightened thinking and an open mind, and are not opposed to advanced Western knowledge and technology.

Under the vigorous promotion of the "Three Unifiers of Tosa", a series of reforms have been initiated within Tosa, and its comprehensive national strength is increasing day by day.

If Tosa joins, the "Satsuma-Choshu Alliance" can become the "Satsuma-Choshu-Tosa Alliance," and in terms of momentum and overall strength, it already has the capital to compete with "Nioh"!

At that time, the rulers and retainers of the Hizen Domain will surely be tempted! It will be much easier to recruit them!

This is like toppling dominoes.

The formation of the "Sargas Alliance" symbolizes the fall of the first domino.

Whether or not the Tosa Domain joins the fold will be the second domino to fall.

Once the first two cards are overturned, it will surely trigger a series of chain reactions! With overwhelming force, all obstacles that have led to the "Western Four Feudatories Alliance" will be swept away!

As Sakamoto Ryoma and Nakaoka Shintaro were about to depart, Saigo Kinosuke approached them and explained his suggestion to "go to Tosa first and then Hizen."

At that moment, as soon as he finished speaking, he was greeted with smiles from the two of them.

"Mr. Saigo, what a coincidence! We were thinking the same thing!"

Sakamoto Ryoma said this with a grin.

……

……

长州藩，萩城——

"Your Majesty, as a ruler, you should always remain calm."

Iwakura Tomomi stood beside "Mutsuhito"... or rather, Ōmuro Toranosuke, meticulously instructing him.

Su Xun's "The Art of Power" states: "If Mount Tai collapses before you, your expression will not change; if a deer runs up to your left, your eyes will not blink."

"You should take this sentence as your goal."

"No matter where or when you are, you must never let anyone see your panic or weakness."

"Even if you learn of Mr. Gui's death someday in the future, you must remain calm and never show any signs of panic."

Ōmuro Toranosuke swallowed hard.

"I...I understand."

"Straighten your back! Your back is hunched over again!"

"I'm so sorry!"

"Stop stammering! Don't look away! No looking around! Is this the demeanor of an emperor?!"

"Yes! I'm so sorry!"

Ōmuro Toranosuke quickly straightened his back, not daring to relax even slightly.

Admittedly, Ōmuro Toranosuke looks a lot like Mutsuhito, and when Iwakura Tomomi found him by chance, he could hardly believe his eyes.

If he hadn't been a believer in gods and Buddhas, he would have truly believed that the gods had manifested their power, bestowing upon him the name "Mutsuhito" at a critical moment when he was desperate due to the deaths of both the Emperor and his son.

Unfortunately... he came from a very low social standing, being a low-ranking samurai who had not received a proper education and could not even recognize many Chinese characters. His words and actions revealed his crudeness and lacked any of the refinement expected of an emperor.

The only consolation is that his courage is truly extraordinary.

Despite being a "pseudo-emperor" forced into the role, he quickly got into character once he donned the imperial robes and received the Yasakani no Magatama and the Yata no Kagami.

When he gave a speech in front of the officials of Changzhou, he performed exceptionally well. His voice was loud and clear, and his words were passionate and inspiring, earning him unanimous praise from the officials of Changzhou.

Even the notoriously strict Iwakura Tomomi had to give it a thumbs up.

However, his overall quality is still too poor.

If you only meet once or twice, you might not be able to tell the truth, but if you stay in contact with someone for a long time, it will definitely arouse suspicion.

Therefore, Iwakura Tomoe, who was well-versed in public affairs, personally took charge of Ōmuro Toranosuke's "Emperor Studies" education, opened a high-intensity "Emperor Course" for him, and trained him from scratch, determined to cultivate this low-ranking samurai into a qualified emperor who would not reveal his true identity!

Furthermore, he must not be allowed to have too much contact with the outside world before he has fully mastered his craft!

After sternly reprimanding the other party, Iwakura Tomomi took out his pocket watch and glanced at the time:

"That's enough for today's classes. You can rest now."

Upon hearing this, Toriyuki Ōmuro secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

The daily "Emperor's Lesson" was the time he feared most... Iwakura Tomomi already had a fierce appearance, and when teaching him, she showed no mercy, often scolding him until he felt ashamed and as if he had been drenched in dog blood.

Although this "Emperor's Course" has only been running for a few days, it has already caused great psychological trauma to Ōmuro Toranosuke...

Even now, whenever Iwakura Tomomi appears in his field of vision, his back is covered in cold sweat from fear...

After leaving the order, "Copy this calligraphy ten times and hand it to me tomorrow," Iwakura Tomomi strode out of the room and moved to the courtyard not far away to breathe in the fresh air.

As the gentle sunlight bathed him, he unconsciously let out a long breath.

Being Toranosuke Omuro's private tutor was also very tiring for him, since he had never been an educator before.

Suddenly, Katsura Kogoro's voice came from beside him:

"Lord Iwakura, greetings."

Iwakura Tomomi followed the sound and saw Katsura Kogoro walking slowly towards him, so he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow:

"Mr. Gui, greetings. What brings you here so suddenly?"

Katsura Kogoro gave a wry smile, his expression strange:

"Mr. Iwakura, this is a huge problem..."

Upon hearing this, Iwakura Tomomi was first taken aback, then his face darkened:

"Is 'Nioh' making another move?"

Katsura Kogoro shook his head:

"No, no. A group of troublesome guests have arrived... Compared to these guests, I'd rather it's 'Niou' causing trouble again..."

Iwakura Tomomi did not understand his meaning.

Fortunately, just after Katsura Kogoro finished speaking, a hoarse male voice suddenly came from behind him:

“Mr. Gui, it really hurts me that you called us ‘troublesome guests.’ We used to work together so well.”

Iwakura Tomomi stared in astonishment... but from the shadows behind Katsura Kogoro, a strange pair—a young man with a sword at his waist carrying a middle-aged fat man who was out of shape—slowly walked out and entered his field of vision.

The person who spoke just now was the middle-aged fat man on the young man's back.

Iwakura Tomomi cast a questioning look at Katsura Kogoro:

"Mr. Gui, who are these two gentlemen?"

Before Katsura Kogoro could respond, the middle-aged fat man flashed a harmless smile:

"You must be the famous Iwakura Tomomi? Nice to meet you! I am the Yamata no Orochi of the Hoju Party!"

"The one beneath me is my adopted son, 'Ōtakemaru'. He is deaf and mute, so he often appears aloof. Please don't take offense."

Iwakura Tomomi was well-informed and had naturally heard of the infamous reputation of the Hoju Party. He also knew that Choshu and the Hoju Party had a very close cooperation. If the Hoju Party had not provided full assistance and thwarted Seido's "Choshu Conquest", Choshu would probably have been destroyed long ago.

Iwakura Tomomi's pupils contracted, and his face was filled with disbelief.

"Punish the Party with the Law? What are you doing here if you're here to punish the Party with the Law?"

Orochi's smile grew even brighter: