I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

After hearing this, Harada Sanosuke, Todo Heisuke, and the others also showed displeasure.

As Saito Hajime just said, some Otsu residents currently hold negative views of Aoto.

Under the protection of Qingdeng, Ōtsu, though located in the heart of the capital region, was spared from the ravages of war. The people of Ōtsu thus lived a peaceful life without fear of conflict, believing that with King Ni in power, they could rest easy.

Only now have they realized how close blood and fire are to them.

Many people turned their love into hatred and blamed Qingdeng—the so-called benevolent king was nothing more than that.

This naturally made Saito Hajime and his group feel extremely indignant.

Serizawa Kamo snorted coldly:

"Let these idiots think whatever they want, as long as they don't interfere with our operations."

Saito Hajime, Harada Sanosuke, and others nodded slightly in agreement.

Suddenly, accompanied by shouts of "Someone's coming!" and "Who is he?", Yamanami Keisuke, who was on the top floor of the main castle, which was usually called the "castle tower", slowly walked forward, moved to the window, and appeared in everyone's view.

"Silence!"

The vast square, which housed 30,000 soldiers and civilians... With such a large square and so many people, even if Yamanami Keisuke shouted until his throat was hoarse, it was impossible for his voice to reach everyone's ears.

Therefore, a "messenger" stands at intervals in the square.

As soon as Yamanami Keisuke finished speaking, the messengers relayed the phrase "Please be quiet!" one after another.

Soon, the once noisy square gradually became quiet.

Keisuke Yamanami took a deep breath and continued the call:

"I am Yamanami Keisuke, the commander-in-chief of the Shinsengumi! Lord Niou has something to say to everyone! Please listen attentively!"

After shouting, Yamanami Keisuke stepped aside.

In the blink of an eye, the square, which had just been quiet, became noisy again.

"What did he just say? Who told us to talk to them?"

"Huh? Are you hard of hearing? The person who relayed the message is standing right next to us, can't you hear it?"

"Of course I heard it! I was just so surprised, so surprised I couldn't believe my ears!"

"Is... has Lord Ren-King appeared?"

"What does Lord Niou want to tell us?"

"So, they're really going to order the abandonment of Otsu..."

"Hush! Quiet!"

The noise in the square subsided once again... because another tall figure appeared at the window of the castle tower, right before the eyes of the crowd.

As soon as he appeared, he nimbly flipped over the window and landed steadily on the windowsill of the next floor like a cat.

In this way, he was closer to the square and also closer to the crowd.

In an instant, 30,000 gazes converged and focused on Qing Deng.

Admittedly, there are indeed some petty people in this city of Dajin complaining that Qingdeng is not doing a good job in resisting the enemy.

But those who admire Qingdeng still make up an overwhelming majority!

At this moment, those who were close were delighted to be so near Qingdeng; those who were far away lamented that they did not have the eyesight of a hawk, and could not see Qingdeng's appearance at all, only a blurry little dot.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Qingdeng did not rush to speak. After scanning the square, he spoke in a calm and firm tone:

"I am Tachibana Aoto!"

“I know that you are more familiar with ‘Lord Niou’ than with this name that has so many syllables.”

Although Qingdeng also needs messengers to relay his messages, with the blessing of the talent "Piercing Clouds and Splitting Stones +7", more people can clearly hear Qingdeng's voice.

At that moment, in a corner of the square, Ōshio Heihachirō stood with his hands behind his back, staring blankly at Aoto.

He was not alone; Ziyang stood quietly beside him.

Ziyang's expression became complicated as he watched Qingdeng begin his speech.

"...Teacher, do you think that Zuo Fu's speech can turn the people into strong warriors?"

Without hesitation, Heihachiro Ōshio replied in an icy tone:

"To be honest, I don't have much hope."

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Please vote with monthly tickets! Please vote with recommendation tickets! (Leopard crying.jpg)

P.S.: Following "Darkest Hour", now it's "The King's Speech"... ah, no, it's "Nioh's Speech".

Chapter 1173 The Awakened People! The people of Otsu, join the war!

At the same time, in another direction, in another corner of the square, Sanako, Mai, Souji, Elodie, Tenshōin, and the Empress and Miyako...

After the Southern Army attacked, the Prince and Tenshōin stayed in Ōtsu.

Although Tenshōin strongly expressed her willingness to go to the battlefield, Aoto rejected her request to join the fight, considering her poor physical condition and lack of combat experience, and only allowed her to stay in Ōtsu with Kazumiya.

After Otsu was in dire need, Yamanami Keisuke and others suggested that Tenshōin and Kazuya should "flee to the east" to seek refuge in the Kanto region.

This mother-in-law and daughter-in-law are of noble status—especially the current Empress—and are not combatants, so it is reasonable to keep them away from the dangerous battlefield.

However, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law both refused to agree to the proposal.

The strong-willed Tenshōin goes without saying. The reply from Prince Kazu was very simple:

"If it were Jia Mao, he would never abandon the people and flee!"

And so they stayed, standing with Qingdeng through thick and thin.

Thanks to their special relationship with Qingdeng, the women learned in advance the purpose of Qingdeng's speech and the incredibly heavy mission he carried...

The success or failure of this speech will determine the survival of Otsu, and even the fate of the world and the course of history... Thinking of this, they couldn't help but feel their throats dry and their palms sweating.

They weren't the only ones like this—Yamaminami Keisuke, who was waiting quietly behind Aoto on the castle tower, was also so nervous that his face turned pale.

The high-ranking members of the Ōshio Party, led by Ōshio Heihachirō, the high-ranking members of the Shinsengumi, led by Kondo Isami, the women led by Sanako, and countless civilians in the square... different groups gazed at the lonely figure on the castle tower with completely different eyes.

In contrast, this figure—Qing Deng, who led the speech—was remarkably calm.

As soon as Qingdeng appeared, the 30,000 people knelt down one after another as if waking from a dream.

Under normal circumstances, Qingdeng would have immediately said, "Get up quickly."

However, this time he did not do so, leaving the people kneeling and continuing his speech.

After a brief opening remark, Qingdeng's tone suddenly changed:

"People of Otsu, please listen carefully to what I have to say."

"As you all know, a powerful enemy force, as fierce as wolves and tigers, is approaching Otsu!"

"Otsu, which once symbolized 'peace' and 'tranquility,' has now become the front line of war."

"I know you are very concerned about whether Otsu has fallen."

"Therefore, I will now give you a definitive conclusion—with our current fighting strength, it is extremely difficult to hold Dajin!"

These words immediately caused an uproar in the square!

The 30,000 soldiers and civilians who had been so well-behaved just moments before suddenly began to scream in alarm.

"Hey! You're talking on the other end! You're not mistaken, are you?!"

"Is the enemy so powerful? Even the Shinsengumi are no match for them?"

"Is Qin Jin really doomed...?"

"Then, what should we do?"

In an instant, an atmosphere of terror spread rapidly.

Kondo Isami, Saito Hajime, and the others looked at each other, at a loss for what to do.

A-Wu tugged at Sanako's sleeve, asking with a mixture of unease and confusion:

"Why did Qingdeng say these things? How can he turn the people into strong warriors if he does this? Isn't he just making them more afraid?"

"..."

Sanako pursed her lips and did not respond—because she did not understand Qing Deng's intentions either.

Ōshio Heihachirō frowned, his already unpleasant expression becoming even more gloomy.

Qing Deng's expression remained unchanged, as if he had "expected this all along," and he continued calmly:

"Dajin is the heart of Qinjin; if Dajin falls, Qinjin will perish."

"Qinjin... this vassal state that I created with my own hands, is where my ambition resides."

Upon hearing the word "ambition," everyone, from the women who shared a bed with Aoto to Kondo Isami, who was like a brother to Aoto, was stunned.

Strangely enough... despite their deep friendship with Qingdeng, in their perception, Qingdeng seemed to have no long-term plans and always took things one step at a time.

When we are of one mind, we will work hard to catch the thief.

When he served as the Commander of the Capital Region, he worked diligently to protect the capital region.

When he was the lord of Qinjin, he worked hard to build up the vassal state.

It's impossible to tell that he has any "ambitions".

Before they could recover from their confusion, Qingdeng's next words turned their "confusion" into "astonishment".

“For a long time, many people have asked me the same question: As the ‘King of Benevolence’, what kind of world do you want?”

Ōshio Heihachirō and Yamanami Keisuke's expressions turned strange—because they were the ones who had asked Aoto that question.

Suddenly, before Qingdeng began his speech, the occasional breeze stopped.

With less wind interference, Qingdeng's voice traveled farther and clearer, allowing more people to hear it.

"Six years ago, during the time I worked at the Edo Hokuban-sho, the scene I saw most often was 'blood' and 'tears'."