I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

"Hisao, what's wrong?"

The ronin beside the burly man all noticed the strange thing that had been carved on his body.

A barrage of questioning and puzzled gazes, like searchlights, focused on the burly man.

I felt like a burly man being roasted on a hot stove, and all the blood in my body rushed to my head.

Just as the burly man was pondering how to save face—

“…Speak.”

Qing Deng asked slowly in a completely flat tone.

"What do you want in return for stopping us from bothering you anymore?"

Qing Deng's sudden remark inadvertently gave the burly man a way out—he could conveniently gloss over the embarrassing situation of being intimidated by Tokugawa Iemochi's glare.

The burly man quickly cleared his throat and then nimbly took the opportunity to back down.

"Let it go? What nonsense are you talking about?"

The burly man steadied himself, hissed, and took a long, deep breath, focusing his energy in his dantian—the next instant, a hurricane-like roar burst forth from his throat.

"The soul of a samurai has been defiled; how can you expect me to let this go?!"

The burly man's thunderous roar immediately attracted a larger crowd of onlookers.

"What's wrong? What's wrong? What happened?"

"It seems that the woman kicked the ronin's knife, and the ronin is demanding an explanation."

“It’s ‘Sheath’…”

"Are those ronin causing trouble again...? This is really too much. Can't these ronin just behave themselves for a moment...? They cause trouble every now and then."

“Huh? I recognize this group of ronin. They often loiter around here. They're habitual criminals who extort money from people using 'scabbards'…”

"Shh! Shh! Keep your voice down, don't let anyone hear... Let's go, let's go, it's best to stay away from this mess."

……

More and more onlookers gathered, surrounding the two groups of people arguing in layers.

The burly man glanced at the ever-growing crowd around him, a hint of guilt flashing in his eyes.

He quickly averted his gaze and, feigning composure, addressed Qing Deng seriously.

"However, I am not a heartless demon without any humanity."

"Considering that the old hag behind you didn't kick my sword on purpose, I can let it go."

"However—necessary punishments must still be imposed."

The burly man, Chao Qingdeng, spread out his large, fan-like hands.

"I'm giving you two choices now."

"Give me ten taels of gold. If you give me ten taels of gold, I'll pretend nothing happened."

"Or... I'll chop off that stinking woman's foot behind you! Whichever foot she kicked my knife with, I'll cut that foot off right to the root!"

The burly man's fierce words, coupled with his menacing expression, had a considerable deterrent effect.

Many onlookers were so frightened that their faces turned pale, and they involuntarily hunched their shoulders and necks.

The burly man was quite satisfied with his performance.

He found everything impeccable, from the tone of his voice when threatening to the vicious expressions he made to enhance the “terror.”

Feedback from the surrounding crowd proved that he was not overly self-important.

However, the people he should have been most frightened by... Qing Deng and his group, without exception, all stared at him expressionlessly.

Whether it was Aoto or the two sisters; whether it was Tokugawa Iemochi or Tenshōin, they all maintained a calm and composed demeanor.

And... he didn't know if it was just his imagination—he always felt that the way Qing Deng was looking at him... was like he was sizing up a comical comedian.

His conjecture was quickly confirmed—

"……Oh."

Qingdeng smiled.

A sneer made through the nose.

Then, Qingdeng turned around and looked at Tianzhangyuan, asking:

What do you think? What are your plans?

"Hmm..." Tenshōin tilted his head, as if thinking, "Mōmō, what do you think?"

Tenshōin turned his attention and asked the question to Tokugawa Iemochi beside him.

Tokugawa Iemochi pondered for a moment, then looked up at Aoto and the Nie sisters, and said, word by word:

"...Please do it as quickly as possible. Just injure them, don't kill them."

Tenshōin nodded slightly, then turned his gaze back to Aoto, smiling sweetly:

"Since even Mao Mao has said so... then I'll have to trouble you heroes to save my leg! Please do your best to keep it safe!"

After saying that, Tenshōin playfully tucked his right foot, which was covered by a plain white sock, behind his left heel.

Qingdeng chuckled to himself.

"I will do my best."

"Hey!" The burly man frowned, for some reason, he had a bad feeling ever since he started talking. "What are you all whispering about... ugh!"

Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly saw a knee the size of a bowl rapidly enlarging in his field of vision.

Before he could react, a sharp pain spread rapidly throughout his body, centered on his face.

Chapter 332 The Benevolent King Displays His Power! Instantly Slaying the Ronin! [5000]

—That's such a classic...

Besides the word "classic," Qing Deng couldn't think of any other more fitting word to describe the actions of the burly men.

Without a doubt, the burly man and his gang used the most classic scam tactics from the Edo period.

Qingdeng will tentatively call it "Sheath Scam".

In the values ​​of the samurai class during the Edo period, the sword was the "samurai spirit," more important than one's own life, and no one could defile it.

Even if someone touches you, let alone dirt, it would be enough for a samurai to draw his sword and kill you.

This gave rise to a fraudulent method that has persisted for over a century, known as "scamming."

The specific method is as follows: deliberately hang the knife crookedly to increase the contact area of ​​the knife.

For example, someone might hang a sword horizontally at their waist and deliberately wander around in crowded places. When some unlucky person accidentally bumps into the sword, and that person seems easy to bully, the person would grab them and demand an apology, claiming that "you have tainted the spirit of the samurai."

They demanded either money or goods, or that a body part or a life be spared.

Those who fall victim to this type of scam are mostly unarmed civilians, especially young girls from ethnic minorities who are most vulnerable.

Those who use such despicable means to amass wealth are mostly unemployed wanderers who have lost their official positions and are forced to roam around.

The limitations of the era made it difficult for samurai to pursue other respectable professions besides becoming officials.

The only slightly respectable jobs were those of a doctor, a teacher at a temple, or a private school.

These are jobs that most people cannot handle.

Therefore, when a samurai loses his rank and the opportunity to become an official and receive a salary, and becomes a ronin who can no longer make a living through honest means, he is very likely to go astray and embark on a path of no return to make a living by breaking the law.

For ordinary people, the vagrants who wander aimlessly through the streets and alleys every day are more disgusting than the stinking dog excrement on the roadside.

At the very least, dog poop can be used as fertilizer in farmland.

The common people are not so afraid of samurai who have family status and stable job titles.

As the saying goes, "Those who have stable property have stable minds."

Samurai who lead stable and fulfilling lives tend to have a higher tolerance for "rudeness" and "disrespect".

The privilege of arbitrarily executing disrespectful servants, townspeople, and commoners without punishment... that is, the power of execution or pardon, is not omnipotent.

If samurai, after exercising this privilege, do not immediately notify the government office and provide substantial evidence to prove that the killed civilian did indeed commit an inappropriate or disrespectful act, they will be demoted to commoner status at best, and directly ordered to commit seppuku at worst.

On the other hand, the ronin... they don't have any of these messy constraints.

Those who have nothing to lose are not afraid of those who wear shoes.

A person who has nothing dares to despise all the morals and laws of the world.

Ronin are truly capable of killing and committing heinous acts that ordinary people wouldn't even dare to dream of.

They kill someone, then swiftly escape into some remote, desolate ravine, hiding under an assumed name... With the criminal investigation methods of this era, it would be truly difficult to arrest and bring to justice such thieves who have hidden in remote places.

To be injured or killed by such scum who cannot be restrained by law and morality... that would be such a terrible injustice.

It's infuriating, yet there's nothing we can do about it.

With the mindset of "better to avoid trouble" and for their own personal safety, ordinary people, when extorted by ronin using "scabbards as a form of fraud," often choose to swallow their anger and hand over the so-called "compensation" as demanded by the ronin.

Judging from the manners of the burly men, this was clearly not the first time they had done this kind of thing.

Tenshōin possessed a delicate and graceful figure, dressed in clothes that, while not extravagant, were still quite valuable. The burly men must have thought Tenshōin was an easy target, a fat sheep, which is why they chose to attack this pretty widow.

However, it's obvious that this clueless guy has offended the wrong person.

They probably never imagined that this seemingly easy-to-slaughter fat sheep was accompanied by a fierce tiger.

And there was more than one.

Qing Deng leaped up like a spring from dry land, bent his leg, and delivered a fierce knee strike right into the burly man's vital spot.

This strike was executed flawlessly and with tremendous power.

Qingdeng felt as if many bones, including his nasal bone and cheekbone, had shattered below his knees.

The cracking sensation of bones breaking continuously penetrated his clothes and traveled to Qingdeng's knees and thighs.

The burly man's face went from three-dimensional to two-dimensional, and his entire face flattened out.