I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Expressionless.

Like eyes gazing at another world, staring intently at the distant horizon.

……

……

The next day—

The first year of Wanyan (1860), December 30th——

The calendar currently used in Japan is still the old calendar... namely the lunar calendar.

There is no 31st day in each month of the lunar calendar, so today is the last day of August.

In other words, tomorrow is the day that Kondo Isami, who has been preparing for a long time and is eagerly anticipating the wedding of the girl named Matsui Tsune, will be married!

To prepare for this important day, the diners, including Nagakura and Saito, were all mobilized to give the Shieikan a thorough cleaning, inside and out.

Qingdeng also came to help; he didn't do any serious work today. He started helping with the big cleaning this morning, treating it as a day off for himself, who had been working himself to the bone lately.

In the evening, to celebrate Kondo Isami's successful finding a partner and no longer being a bachelor nearing 30, everyone held a lively celebration party.

……

That night--

Edo, Koishikawa Kohinata Yanagi Town, Test Guard Hall——

"Everyone! Please look over here!"

Harada's loud shout drew everyone's attention.

Harada let out a loud burp, reeking of alcohol, then stood up, tucked his hands inside his yukata, and pulled them out from the front to remove his upper garment.

"Everyone, did you see that?"

Harada pointed to a large horizontal scar on his stomach.

"This is the scar I got when I committed seppuku!"

"Back when I was still an official in the Matsuyama Domain of Iyo, before I became a ronin who had left his domain, there was an annoying guy who slandered me as a 'small clerk who didn't even know how to commit seppuku'."

"I'm the kind of person who likes to take things seriously. Didn't he say I didn't even know how to commit seppuku? So I pulled out my wakizashi right there and then, stabbed myself in the stomach, and performed seppuku on the spot to show him!"

"Hahaha! That guy was so scared he collapsed to the ground! I'll remember that terrified look on his face for the rest of my life!"

"What shocked that man even more was yet to come! I had stabbed myself right into the stomach and made such a big gash, but I didn't die! After a period of treatment, I was lively and energetic again!"

"From then on, I had a new nickname: 'Harada the Immortal'!"

After listening quietly as Harada finished boasting about the origin of the scar on his stomach, Aoto sighed with a wry smile:

“Harada…we’ve heard your story of ‘surviving seppuku’ so many, many times…”

Whenever Harada got drunk at a banquet, he would always lift up his shirt and tell everyone the story of how he used to "commit seppuku in front of others at the slightest disagreement, and yet he didn't die."

Qing Deng had lost count of how many times he had heard Harada boast about his "heroic past".

However, Harada's sudden storytelling did add a positive touch to the atmosphere of the banquet.

"Yong, drink less. You're the star of tomorrow's wedding."

Shusuke, who was sitting next to Kondo, then spoke to his daughter, Aiko, who was beside him.

"What kind of behavior is it if you get a hangover and can't get up tomorrow or smell like alcohol?"

"Hmm? Hahahaha! Father, don't worry! This little bit of wine won't get me drunk!"

Kondo, whose cheeks were flushed from drinking and who hadn't listened to his father's advice at all, clapped his hands a few times after laughing loudly.

"Ugh... the alcohol's kicking in... Hey! Ah Sui! Sing some songs to liven things up!"

A banquet to celebrate Kondo finding a partner... How could Hijikata, who has a sworn brotherhood with Kondo, possibly be absent?

Sitting right next to Kondo, Hijikata, who had also drunk quite a bit and whose face was flushed, put down his chopsticks without a word after hearing Kondo's words, clapped his hands, and sang:

"Ahh~~"

"So cute~~"

"Make a wish upon Lord Baishan~~"

"Serve tea, abstain from salt, even fast for 21 days (3 weeks to 21 days)~~"

Even so, if there is no one to rely on despite being destined to be together, then even the gods are powerless.

"Ahh~~"

This was the first time Qingdeng had ever heard Hijikata sing.

I must say—she sang very well.

Even without any accompaniment, her a captivating performance still drew almost everyone, including Qing Deng.

Everyone put down their bowls, chopsticks, and bottles of wine, and listened attentively to Hijikata's performance.

The hall, which had been filled with the sounds of clinking glasses and lively conversation, suddenly became unusually quiet.

Qingdeng had no knowledge of music and could only roughly tell from the style of the music which it was a folk song from which region.

With his beautiful singing voice and handsome face, Hijikata might easily be mistaken for a famous singer and dancer by those who don't know him.

After Hijikata finished singing, everyone immediately applauded and cheered.

Harada, the most lively character, was the one who clapped the most enthusiastically—he shouted "Bravo!" while lying on his back with his belly up, clapping his hands and slapping his feet together.

"Hijikata, you sang so well! I never knew you could sing so well. What song were you singing just now?"

After saying that, Nagakura, who was sitting shoulder to shoulder with Hijikata, picked up the sake bottle next to him and filled Hijikata's sake cup.

Hijikata grinned and accepted everyone's praise without any politeness or humility.

"The song I just sang is a folk song from my hometown, Tama: 'Tama's Ise Ontou.' Isn't it nice? Don't let my appearance fool you. I really enjoy singing, dancing, haiku, and other refined things."

Inoue interjected with a smile:

"Hijikata! One more song!"

"No, no, no."

Tu Fang waved his hand.

Singing isn't very interesting! Let's chat instead!

Hijikata downed the drink that Nagakura had just filled for him, then turned to look at Kondo.

“Ah Sheng, how things change. It’s still so vivid in my mind that the past when I, you, Souji, and Uncle Yuan were all running around causing trouble. I never imagined that in the blink of an eye, you would be getting married and starting a family.”

Hehehe~

Kondo gave a simple, goofy grin.

"What? Ah Sui, are you envious? If you are, then hurry up and find a good woman. If I remember correctly, you're 25 years old this year, right?"

Hijikata chuckled, curled his lip, and waved his hand.

"Marriage is just a shackle to me. I have no intention of getting married and starting a family in this lifetime. But then again... among all the people here, apart from Master and Mistress, and Souji's sister and brother-in-law, you are the only one who is not single."

Kondo was taken aback: "Really?"

"Yeah," Tu Xiangqing and the others scoffed, "Look at all of us, how many of us are married?"

"It seems so... Uncle Yuan, aren't you planning to get married yet?"

At the banquet, apart from the elderly couple Zhou Zhu and A Bi, the oldest person present was Inoue Genzaburo, who was 31 years old this year.

"I haven't met a woman who can make my heart flutter yet."

Inoue Genzaburo laughed without hesitation.

"Moreover, for me, Shieikan and Tennen Rishin-ryu are far more important than getting married and having children."

"I want to take advantage of the present moment, when I am in my prime, to dedicate more time and energy to helping Shieikan and Tennen Rishin-ryu become the world's top sword schools and swordsmanship!"

“Yuan…” Deeply moved by Inoue’s answer, Shusuke said sincerely, “I am very touched that you are willing to dedicate yourself to Shieikan and Tennen Rishin-ryu… but you really don’t need to sacrifice your own happiness for this…”

Inoue smiled without saying a word. He simply picked up his wine glass and raised it to Shusuke from afar.

"Uncle Gen, you still don't want to get married..." Hijikata pouted regretfully... then turned to look at Aoto, "Tachibana, what about you? When do you plan to get married?"

"Ok?"

Qingdeng was taken aback when he was suddenly called out... Why did they suddenly start talking about me?

At only 18 years old, Qingdeng is one of the youngest people present.

Only Souji and Saito, both 16 years old this year, are younger than Aoto.

Why are you asking me when there are so many people older than me who should be getting married more than me?

Hijikata understood the bewildered look on Aoto's face and let out a meaningful "hehehe" laugh:

"Tachibana, you and that girl from the Senjiya are pretty close, aren't you? You even call each other 'Qingdeng' and 'Amai'."

The girl from the Senjiya... it's obvious who Hijikata is referring to.

"Oh right, by the way, Tachibana, you and Chiba Sanako from the Chiba Sword Hall seem to be on good terms as well."

"Tsk tsk tsk, Ju, I didn't expect you to be quite popular with women."

Hijikata raised the sake bottle, gulped down a large mouthful to moisten his throat, and then said to Aoto in a teasing tone:

"Whether it's that girl from the Senjiya or Chiba Sanako, they're both pretty good women. Especially Chiba Sanako, a woman who has a pretty face, a great figure, great temperament, and a good family background is someone you can only dream of."

"Ju, which of the two do you like? Do you have any plans to marry either of them?"

Throughout history, love gossip has always been one of the most beloved topics.

After Hijikata brought up the topic, everyone, including his master and mistress, focused their attention on Seido.

“Uh…” Qing Deng, looking extremely embarrassed, was speechless for a moment.

Mentioning Kinoshita Mai and Sanako... Aoto recalled the embarrassing moments a few days ago when the two girls discovered that he had spent the three-day fireworks festival in an extremely fulfilling way...

After the fireworks display, Aoto was busy meeting with Tokugawa Iemochi and Tenshōin, and did not meet with Kinoshita Mai and Sanako again.

Having not seen them for several days, Qingdeng both wanted to meet the two women... yet he was also somewhat hesitant to see them...