I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

A tense atmosphere instantly descended between Aoto and Kitahara Konosuke.

Qing Deng remained oblivious to the changing atmosphere around him, calmly saying in a soft voice:

"I know. I understand the rules of the underworld. But everything can be discussed."

"Ootsuki Tsuneji has been locked up for so many days, he must have already learned his lesson."

"I won't waste any more time on nonsense—name your terms, what do you want for you to release them?"

Beiyuan looked Qingdeng up and down several times, his smile forced and insincere.

"Oh? You're asking me directly what conditions I want? Niou is really generous, I admire you."

After saying that, Kitahara Konosuke's eyes flickered slightly.

That gaze, as if he weren't looking at Aoto, but rather at "someone else," returned to Kitahara Kōnosuke's eyes.

A moment later, Kitahara Konosuke let out a long breath.

"If it were anyone else pleading with me, I wouldn't even bother with them."

“But since it is Lord Niou who has spoken personally… alright, I will compromise.”

“I can’t release them without any conditions. If I did, I would really lose face.”

“Lord Renwang, as long as you can pass my two tests, I will release him immediately without any further questions.”

Qing Deng raised an eyebrow.

"A test? Please tell me."

“I am not the kind of unscrupulous and treacherous person, so I will not give you a task that you are not good at or that you cannot complete.”

"I have long heard that Lord Renwang is a master of martial arts, possessing the courage to defeat ten thousand men, so I will only use tests related to martial arts."

Kitahara Konosuke raised his second finger.

"First, it's an archery contest; you must meet my shooting requirements."

Kitahara Konosuke raised his second finger.

"Secondly, it is a swordsmanship contest. You must defeat the opponent I have assigned to you."

"If you can fulfill these two conditions, I will immediately grant you the freedom of Yue Changci and never bother him again from now on."

Qingdeng asked in return, expressionless:

"...Is this really true?"

Governor Kitahara Konosuke pulled a small section of the wakizashi from his waist and then slammed it back into its sheath.

The clanging sound echoed throughout the room.

"I will never break my promise; I swear by striking the metal."

"...Okay, it's a deal."

Qing Deng grabbed the Dingguishen (a type of talisman) that was placed on the tatami mat to his right, pulled out a small section and then pulled it back forcefully—clang—a crisp sound of metal clashing lingered in his ears.

Both warriors struck their swords against their sheaths.

Thus, the vow was fulfilled.

"Tachibana-kun...!"

At that moment, Sanako hurriedly leaned towards Aoto, pressed her red lips to Aoto's ear, and whispered in a voice barely audible:

"How could you agree to such a deal so easily? Swordsmanship aside, do you even know anything about archery?"

Sanako's expression was very serious, and her beautiful brows revealed a hint of worry for Aoto.

As far as Sanako knows, Aoto doesn't know how to use an archery.

As soon as Sanako finished speaking, Ootsuki Minoru also came over.

She overheard Sanako's advice to Aoto, and hurriedly echoed it anxiously:

"Yes, Tachibana-kun, aren't you bad at archery? Think it over..."

Even Sanako knew that Aoto had never practiced archery, let alone Ootsuki Minoru, who was Aoto's childhood friend.

Qingdeng turned to look at the two women and smiled:

"Don't worry, I've recently learned a little bit about archery."

Qingdeng extended his right index finger and thumb, making a "little bit" gesture.

Recently... I've learned a little bit... Although Qing Deng said "Don't worry," his choice of words was anything but reassuring.

Just as Sanako was about to say something more—

"Excellent! As expected of Lord Renwang! Such heroic spirit!"

Kitahara Konosuke slapped his thigh.

"It's rare to see Lord Ren so magnanimous, so I mustn't be too fussy or rude!"

“Lord Niou, if you are ready, please follow me.”

"I'll take you to the courtyard; we'll have our first match there!"

Qingdeng nodded, grabbed the Ghost-Stabilizing Spirit, and stood up.

"Lead the way."

Seeing this, Sanako and Otsuki Minoru were both speechless.

Judging from the situation, Aoto is determined to accept the two trials proposed by Kitahara Konosuke...

The two women felt helpless and confused, but there was nothing they could do.

A look of resentment appeared on Sanako's pretty face.

She stood up, lightly stomped her feet twice in frustration, and then quickly followed Qingdeng's retreating figure.

……

……

—Could it be… that Niou knows archery?

Kitahara Konosuke was delighted to see Aoto accept his two challenges so quickly.

He had no intention of expanding the scope of Yuechang's freedom.

That scoundrel who dares to cheat on you deserves to be tortured to death; otherwise, it's impossible to quell my hatred.

But he couldn't very well embarrass Qingdeng directly.

Some time ago, the leader of the Shimizu clan, Shimizu Eiichi, suddenly announced to all the officers that, starting from this day forward, Niou Tachibana Aoto would be treated with preferential treatment.

Eiichi Shimizu did not explain why.

Therefore, Kitahara Konosuke dared not be too rude to Aoto.

However, it wouldn't work if we simply obeyed Qing Deng's orders and released the people.

As he just said, in the world of yakuza, face is everything.

Therefore, after weighing the pros and cons, Kitahara Konosuke came up with a compromise solution—that is, to propose to Aoto a "condition for releasing him" that seemed reasonable at first glance, but was actually very difficult to fulfill.

As the most popular celebrity in Edo, Aoto's basic personal information had long been spread throughout the streets and alleys.

For example, Qingdeng's parents have both passed away, and he is currently all alone.

For example, Qing Deng came from a very ordinary background and had not received any higher martial arts or cultural education.

Kitahara Konosuke proposed testing Aoto's archery skills for two reasons: first, because he loved archery and had converted the backyard of the house into an archery range, so the space would be readily available for the test; and second, because he was certain that Aoto couldn't possibly know how to archery.

During the Edo period, archery was not considered a noble martial art, but it was also not something that ordinary lower-ranking samurai could afford to learn.

Kitahara Konosuke had this in mind, which is why he proposed "testing archery skills".

As for the other trial, namely the swordsmanship contest... that was just something Kitahara Kōnosuke made up on the spot.

This was simply to make his "conditions for releasing people" seem more humane, and to make it seem as if he didn't only mention the tests that were detrimental to Qingdeng.

Niou was a master swordsman—this was common knowledge in Edo, even among women and children.

Kitahara Konosuke did not believe that Aoto had any chance of passing his archery test.

However, seeing Aoto so confidently declare that it was a deal, Kitahara Konosuke couldn't help but have some doubts.

—Niou wouldn't be foolish enough to fight a battle he couldn't win. Could it be… that Niou knows archery? No! That's impossible! Given Niou's family background, it's impossible for him to have learned archery! Even if he's recently risen to prominence and has the time and resources to learn archery, how skilled could he be in such a short time?

Kitahara Konosuke was filled with intense doubt and apprehension...

He led Qing Deng to the courtyard where he had just practiced archery and handed him a standard Japanese bow.

"Humph……"

Kitahara Konosuke snorted with a snort, his laughter filled with sarcasm and disdain.

At this moment, Aoto was familiarizing himself with the Japanese bow that Kitahara Kōnosuke had just handed to him.

Qingdeng's bow-holding technique... was utterly amateurish.

Touch here, wipe there.

Heft it in your left hand, then heft it in your right hand.

He seemed completely unfamiliar with the bow...

Seeing this, Kitahara Kōnosuke felt greatly relieved. He smugly thought to himself:

—Looks like Niou really doesn't know how to archery! Hmph, I was worried for nothing!

Aoto's amateurish behavior pleased Kitahara Kōnosuke, but alarmed Sanako and Ōtsuki Minoru.

After hesitating for a long time, Sanako rushed out from the edge of the yard in three quick steps and went to Aoto's side:

"Tachibana-kun, are you really... okay?"

A deep sadness was evident in Sanako's beautiful eyes.

"It should be...no problem."

Qing Deng gave a wry smile.