I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

But now, he has given up the "struggle"—how could he possibly silence the public's dissent on his own?

Qingdeng's mindset at this moment was already in this shape:

As long as absurd rumors like "Tachibana Seito is a man of many ways" or "Tachibana Seito likes to go to Yoshiwara" don't spread, let the people talk!

Although Qingdeng was already used to the feeling of being recognized and pointed at on the street, this was the first time he had ever ridden a horse and strolled around the streets like a "personal traveling exhibition" for passersby to see.

I felt a strange sense of shame for no reason...

What's even stranger is that Qingdeng doesn't particularly dislike this feeling of shame. It's just that her expression stiffens because she's not used to it.

Judging by the current speed of information dissemination, Qingdeng's name should not yet be a household name across the country.

However, at least in Edo, it was indeed a case of "everyone chanting the name of Niou"!

At this moment, my grandson, who was riding ahead of Qingdeng, suddenly turned around and grinned at Qingdeng:

"Hey, look! Lots of middle-aged men and women are staring at you with such sharp eyes! You'd better watch out! In the coming days, matchmakers coming to propose marriage might practically wear down your doorframe!"

No sooner had my grandson finished speaking than Jinze Zhongfu, who had just proposed marriage to Qingdeng a few days earlier, suddenly became intriguing.

Upon hearing this, Qing Deng raised his gaze from directly in front of him, glanced up and down a bit, and then scanned straight to the left and right sides.

At first glance, it might not be noticeable.

Upon closer inspection, Qingdeng suddenly noticed a series of sharp-eyed faces—those of middle-aged men and women…

These middle-aged men and women scrutinized Qingdeng from head to toe with the same kind of look they would give a product.

Some of them were accompanied by a young girl. While "appreciating" the green tea, they would occasionally peek out and whisper something to the girl next to them.

The girls either looked indifferent, as if they had heard the most boring joke in the world; or they looked shy, their cheeks flushed, their hands clasped tightly together in front of them.

A very few girls were lucky enough to make eye contact with Qing Deng. But only for a moment, and they quickly and deliberately looked away. As they looked away, their faces turned even redder—Qing Deng had seen this expression and this action countless times with Kinoshita Mai.

"Hahaha……"

Qing Deng's lips twitched slightly, and a dry laugh filled with helplessness escaped from his throat.

Who are these uncles and aunties?

Anyone with a little social experience should have immediately figured it out—they're here to "find a son-in-law from among the successful candidates"!

Although the information retrieval capabilities of that era were far inferior to those of the later internet age, one should not underestimate the intelligence networks and people's ability to collect information.

For a big celebrity like Qing Deng, basic information such as age, family situation, and marital status must have been thoroughly investigated long ago.

If whether Qingdeng was a worthwhile "investment" was a question that raised doubts in the past, then from now on, those doubts have been completely dispelled.

Qingdeng's outstanding performance in this western expedition proved one thing—even though he was demoted to the position of Huofu Thief, he could still thrive in this new world! He made great contributions and earned a lot of money!

18 years old, unmarried, without a fiancée, outstanding talent, rising rapidly in his career... These words, when put together, form a brand new term: a golden bachelor!

An excellent eligible bachelor!

These are absolutely delicious steamed buns!

With the overall decline of the samurai class, samurai who are exceptionally talented, have bright futures, and are of marriageable age are as rare as pandas, making them highly sought-after commodities in the marriage market.

These uncles and aunties, who are staring intently at Qingdeng, are there to vet their daughters.

Some people even brought their unmarried daughters with them.

See Qingdeng's real appearance for yourself.

They were considering whether it was worthwhile to take Qingdeng as their son-in-law.

Judging from the expressions on their faces, they must have a very high opinion of Qingdeng.

It is foreseeable that for a long time to come, the number of matchmakers visiting the Shiwei Hall will be overwhelming...

The thought of this sent chills down Qingdeng's spine...

It must be said that some of the girls brought along by these uncles and aunts who were eager to find a son-in-law were quite to Qing Deng's liking.

However, due to the preconceived notions surrounding Sanako and Kinoshita Mai, it is now difficult for ordinary girls to have a strong attraction to Aoto.

—I am truly devoted to Sanako and Mai!

Qingdeng, proud of his dedication, thought to himself with a confident yet slightly excited tone.

The corners of his mouth involuntarily turned up slightly.

……

……

Merit should be rewarded and transgressions should be punished—this is a matter of course.

After the punitive expedition returned to base, the soldiers waited anxiously for the shogunate's reward amidst a tense atmosphere.

While waiting, they couldn't contain their excitement and began a lively discussion.

The discussions invariably revolved around questions like, "Hey, how much reward do you think we'll get this time?" or "How much reward do you think XXXX will get?"

Qingdeng, who had the most outstanding achievements, naturally became the center of everyone's discussion.

The shogunate did not keep the soldiers waiting for long.

Just a few days later, a long list of rewards was sent to the government office of the Fire Thief.

The long-awaited rewards for Qingdeng have finally been revealed—his family stipend will increase by 250 shi (a unit of grain)! He will also be granted a set of precious armor!

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It's almost the end of the month! Please vote with my monthly tickets! Please recommend me! (Like a leopard crying.jpg)

The author is currently experiencing post-holiday syndrome, so the word count is slightly less than ideal.

But please rest assured! Starting tomorrow, the author will do his best to restore the previous level of consistent updates!

Chapter 308 Diligent Study of Military Strategy! Taking a Firm Step Towards Becoming a "God of War"! [6600]

Overall, whether it was the additional 250 shi of grain or the bestowal of a set of armor, the value of the rewards and gifts were within everyone's expectations.

After all, if ranked by merit, Qingdeng was undoubtedly the number one meritorious soldier in the expeditionary force—such a great achievement deserved a promotion and some good rewards.

Promotion, bestowal of military rank... either of these two is enough to make countless people drool.

Indeed, countless people were green with envy upon learning of Qing Deng's generous reward—such "envious monsters" were not only found in the government offices of the thieves and bandits. They were also present in various departments of the shogunate, such as the magistrate's office and the survey office.

A rise in family fortune and a bountiful legacy for one's descendants... this is the dream of countless people.

Many families have struggled for generations, from the Warring States period to when steam warships were beginning to swagger across the seas, yet Jia Lu remained unchanged.

How much wealth did our ancestors receive three hundred years ago? And how much wealth do we still receive today?

For the vast majority of lower-ranking officials in the shogunate, Aoto had almost become a "living legend"—at the beginning of the year, he was a gokenin (a low-ranking official) with a stipend of only 100 koku. However, in less than a year, he was promoted from gokenin to hatamoto (a high-ranking official in the shogunate), and his stipend increased more than twelvefold.

This kind of story of "earning merit quickly and increasing one's family fortune rapidly" has always been thought to exist only in the Warring States period three hundred years ago...

Including his original stipend of 1,000 koku, Qing Deng's current total stipend has reached a full 1250 koku. He is one step closer to the highest realm that ordinary shoguns and their retainers can reach: the Ōmi-hatamoto (a high-ranking official).

The stipends of the hatamoto ranged from 50 koku to 10000 koku.

No hatamoto (chieftain) would have a stipend exceeding 10000 koku. This was because a key criterion in the shogunate's regulations for distinguishing samurai from daimyo was whether their stipend exceeded 10,000 koku.

Once a samurai's stipend exceeds ten thousand, he is no longer an ordinary samurai, but a daimyo who can control a region.

In the Hatamoto samurai's stipend system, 5000 koku was a major hurdle.

Hatamoto with a family stipend of 5000 koku or more are collectively called "Ōshin Hatamoto".

Once one becomes the head of the samurai class, one truly enters the upper echelons of samurai society.

Many official positions that are out of reach for ordinary people... no, I should say many lower-ranking samurai can only dream of, are now open to you.

Of course, judging from the current situation, Qingdeng is still a long way from becoming a major flag holder.

For some, another reward Qingdeng received... was being granted a suit of armor, which was something to be envied so much that it made people grit their teeth.

Whether in the era of cold weapons or the era of firearms, a good set of protective gear is like a game-changer.

Even in modern countries where gun ownership is legal, there are extremely strict controls on bulletproof vests.

Generally speaking, due to the complex manufacturing process and strict government control, good armor is far rarer than good knives.

A set of high-quality armor can truly be passed down as a family heirloom through generations.

Many samurai would rather sell the sword at their waist than let the armor passed down from their ancestors get even a speck of dust on it.

The armor bestowed upon Aoto by the shogunate was the most advanced style available at the time—a set of blue and white armor.

The so-called "guzuku" was a new type of armor invented by blacksmiths after the Tokugawa family established the Edo Shogunate, combining the strengths of various schools of thought.

In other words, Guzuku represents the culmination of Japanese armor development, inheriting tradition while making new breakthroughs.

Before this, before the Edo period, the popular armor in Japan was "Ō-yō".

Compared to guzoku, the most notable features of ōgyoku are its size and weight. To satisfy the vanity of samurai, the functionality and practicality that a suit of armor should have been sacrificed to a large extent.

The torso of the great armor has a simple box-like structure, so the weight of the entire suit of armor rests on the wearer's shoulders, which puts a considerable burden on the wearer.

To show off their martial skills and express their individuality, samurai often made highly creative modifications to their armor, especially their helmets.

For example: attaching a pair of antlers to a helmet...

For example, installing a pair of crescent-shaped lights over 1 meter long on a helmet...

The armored suit doesn't have these problems.

The torso is basically a cylindrical shape that tapers at both ends, rather than a box-like structure like the Great Armor.

This design distributes some of the weight to the torso, greatly improving the wearer's flexibility.

In short: armor is purely for combat, so defensive capabilities and mobility are prioritized over decoration.

At the same time, because firearms and Western-style armor had already been introduced to Japan when the guza was created, the guza with more bulletproof designs and the nanban guza, which incorporated a lot of Western features, came into being.

Of course, there are still some people who like to show off their individuality and modify their helmets into flamboyant designs with all sorts of bizarre items on their heads, such as deer antlers, cow horns, and giant moons.

Fortunately, the armor that the shogunate bestowed upon Aoto was very normal—just a standard set of armor.

The only decoration on the helmet was a pair of shovel-shaped front stands, both in size and design, which were very simple.