I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

“Itakura Katsutora’s second son…” Tokugawa Iemochi murmured, as if recalling something, “Hmm… so he had a second son… This is the first time I’ve known this…”

Upon hearing this, Miss Hand chuckled:

"Sir, the way you're talking makes it sound like you know Katsutora Itakura."

Tokugawa Iemochi smiled faintly, avoiding any mention of his opponent's teasing remark:

"Miss Teshiro, you said Katsutora Itakura's second son is scum—what's that all about? Has he done anything heinous or immoral?"

"Hmm... well..."

Miss Teshiro subtly glanced towards the kitchen—she was probably worried that chatting with Aoto and the others for too long would affect her work, or even get her scolded by the boss.

After a fierce internal struggle... Miss Teshiro ultimately succumbed to her gossipy nature.

"Cough...!"

The young lady cleared her throat dramatically, striking a pose like a storyteller.

"To understand who this Itakura Hirahiko is, we must first start with his identity."

"He is the second son of the current Wakatoshi-yori—this identity is very prestigious, but as you gentlemen know, according to the laws of the shogunate, whether one is a samurai or a commoner, the family business must be inherited entirely by the eldest son. The other sons must either find another way out or live in seclusion at home, becoming parasites who rely entirely on the family's support to survive."

"In this choice that all men who are not the eldest sons of the legitimate wife would face, Itakura Hirahiko chose the former."

"He relied on his family's influence to start a textile business."

"The shogunate's 'Laws for the Samurai' prohibited samurai from engaging in commerce, but this law has long been disregarded."

"Back in the day, Shirakawa-no-oku even forbade extravagance and pleasure, but did anyone ever abide by it? Yet, the number of people who went to Yoshiwara to enjoy the pleasures of love was as numerous as the fish crossing the river."

"Those who know how to do business understand this. As long as you have connections and powerful backers, you can make a fortune no matter what kind of business you're in."

"Itakura Hirahiko's rise to power is a typical example."

"With the help of his good father, he quickly built up his textile business into a large and successful enterprise."

“If Itakura Hirahiko was just an ordinary businessman, that would be fine. There are plenty of merchants from Matsumae to Satsuma, so it wouldn’t make a difference if itakura Hirahiko were one of them.”

"But the problem is that Itakura Hirahiko's character and conduct are very problematic."

"It is rumored that Itakura Hirahiko was extremely mean, ruthless, and domineering."

"He paid his workers very low wages and often found ways to deduct them."

"If a worker is sick or unable to work for any other reason, their pay will be deducted."

"If you don't meet today's work quota, you'll get a pay cut."

"These are just a few examples."

"If it were just stinginess, that would be one thing, but besides stinginess, what is most despicable about Itakura Hirahiko's usual behavior is that he is extremely cold-hearted and has no human touch at all."

At this point, Miss Shoudai suddenly stopped imitating the storyteller, no longer putting on airs, and let out a soft sigh, a hint of sadness crossing her face.

People will always grow old.

"No matter how strong and healthy a person is, they will inevitably become exhausted and frail as they get older."

“There was once an old woman who worked diligently for Itakura Hirahiko for nearly twenty years.”

"Logically speaking, they've served you for so long, they've put in a lot of effort even if they haven't done anything special, so you should at least show them some consideration, right?"

"But Itakura Hirahiko fired the old woman without hesitation because of her advanced age and the significant decrease in her work efficiency."

"At that moment, the old woman knelt directly in front of Itakura Hirahiko's house and begged him not to fire her."

"Although I was not there in person, according to later accounts, the old woman really did everything she could to keep her job."

"Explain to them with both emotion and reason."

"She repeatedly said that she could still work and that she was willing to reduce her wages to 70% of what they were originally."

"At the same time, she tearfully recounted that she had elderly parents to care for and young children to raise, and that her husband had died young in an accident, leaving her as the only able-bodied person in her family."

“Her own parents, her husband’s parents, and her two daughters, both under 10 years old, all depend on her for support.”

"Even the most heinous devil wouldn't be completely unmoved after hearing the old woman's monologue, would he?"

"And then... guess what kind of response Itakura Hirahiko gave to the old woman's desperate pleas?"

"Itakura Hirahiko said: 'I'm just a businessman who does business. I opened a textile shop to make money. What's the point of doing something that doesn't make money?'"

“Your hands and feet aren’t as nimble as they used to be, and your work efficiency is far lower than before. The money spent to hire you is no longer as worthwhile.”

"Simply put, your current work ability is not worthy of the salary I offer you."

"I am a businessman, not a saint who cuts his own flesh to feed an eagle."

"I've decided to fire you and hire someone younger and more capable than you, based on my own interests. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"If you have any objections, go and sue me at the enforcement office! Let the government judge and see if you or I are in the right!"

"As for what you said about having a large family that needs your support... that's none of my business."

There are countless poor people in the world. There are many who live even more miserable lives than you.

"If I have to give someone a job every time they come up to me, kneel down, and say sentimental things with tears in their eyes, how am I supposed to make a living? How am I supposed to keep my textile shop open?"

"Here's what I'll do! I'll give you some advice so you won't complain about your former employer being heartless and ruthless later."

"Didn't you say you have a family to support and are under a lot of pressure? You can sell your two daughters to Yoshiwara!"

"I think your two daughters are quite pretty, and they will definitely be popular with men. If they are properly nurtured, they could become the most sought-after courtesans in the future."

"If you are interested in selling your daughter, you can contact me."

“I happen to know the owners of several brothels in Yoshiwara. I can act as a go-between and help you sell your daughter for a good price—how about that? Am I being generous enough?”

Miss Shoudai has finished speaking.

Silence descended upon Qingdeng.

At this moment, Qing Deng and the others all wore expressions of profound heaviness that were hard to describe.

"What happened to the old woman after that... I don't know."

The young lady took a deep breath.

As the long breath that once made his flat chest bulge high transformed into a soft sigh, his shoulders quietly slumped.

"Because of this incident, I really dislike Itakura Hirahiko. I also have no good feelings towards the group of Confucian scholars who are very familiar with Itakura Hirahiko."

"Although I don't know why those Confucian scholars would associate with a shameless scoundrel like Itakura Hirahiko... I guess they probably wanted to curry favor with the rich and powerful Itakura Hirahiko in order to profit from him."

"Although he is the second son in the family, Itakura Hirahiko is still Wakatoshi's son."

"It may be an exaggeration to say that a commoner can immediately become an official in the shogunate with just a few words, but with a powerful figure like Itakura Hirahiko backing him up, it becomes much easier to find an official position or get promoted and make money."

Before she finished speaking, the young lady turned her head to the side and turned her gaze back to the group of Confucian scholars from the Changping Slope Academy not far away, a hint of mockery flashing in her eyes.

"Those people... they're desperate to become officials."

“Every time we get together, we either lament that we were born at the wrong time and have no opportunity to use our talents, or we complain and grumble. One minute we say that this person is not worthy of being promoted to the right, that the reward is not commensurate with his merits, and that he is not qualified to be an official; the next minute we say that that person is a mediocre talent, a useless person who makes a lot of noise but does nothing.”

"Recently, Niou Tachibana Aoto has been promoted frequently due to his outstanding achievements. Those people are so jealous that their eyes are practically glowing red."

“Whenever they get together lately, they always bring up the story of Prince Ni.”

“They said: ‘You only know how to wield swords and spears. How can the shogunate promote such a brute and ignore the true talents who are well-versed in the teachings of the sages?’”

"Lost pearls in the sea, precious gems covered in dust and so on... Sigh, I'm so tired of hearing it."

Miss Teshiro swallowed hard to moisten her throat, which had become dry from her long speech, before preparing to continue.

But just then, an impatient shout suddenly pierced towards the young lady in hand like a sharp arrow.

"Ah Li! What are you doing? Why are you chatting with the guests? Have you wiped those tables over there?"

The young lady's expression suddenly froze, and her delicate body trembled violently a few times.

"Ah, ah! Boss!" The young lady turned around reflexively and said urgently to the middle-aged man who was sticking half of his upper body out of the kitchen curtain, "I'm so sorry! I'll go wipe the table right now!"

After speaking, Miss Shoudai turned around, put her hands together, and bowed slightly to Qingdeng and the others with an apologetic expression.

"I'm sorry, I can't chat with you anymore. If we keep talking, the boss will really get angry. If you want more food or anything else, just call me!"

Tokugawa Iemochi nodded and smiled slightly:

"Okay, you go ahead and do your thing. We're the ones who should be saying 'sorry.' We're so sorry for bothering you for so long."

"You're welcome. I'm the kind of person who enjoys chatting with guests. I'm very happy to have chatted with you for so long."

After leaving behind a string of cheerful, bell-like laughter, the young lady carrying the tea tray quickly walked towards the few dirty tables not far away.

After watching the young lady with the hand-held bag leave for a while, Qing Deng turned his gaze to the group of young scholars who were only one table away from them.

—A student at the Shohei-zaka Academy...?

Having traveled to this era for so long, this is the first time Qingdeng has encountered a true Confucian scholar who takes the study of Confucianism as his mission.

The eastward transmission of Confucianism began as early as the time when the two countries had contact, namely during the Han Dynasty. Later, Japan carried out the Taika Reform, which further drew on Confucian culture in Chinese politics.

Despite numerous cultural exchanges between the two countries throughout history, Confucianism was not accepted in Japan. It was merely a cultural exchange or policy maneuvering among the upper echelons of Japanese society. Such maneuvering often failed to take into account Japan's national conditions, and thus mostly ended in failure.

Until the Edo period, after Tokugawa Ieyasu established his rule, he urgently needed a strong ideology and culture as the official foundation for maintaining the Tokugawa family's ruling order.

Previously, the mainstream culture in Japan was Buddhist Zen culture, which was generally opposed to the government. The extensive promotion of Buddhist culture and the large-scale absorption of labor and national wealth by temple economies were detrimental to the future rule of the shogunate and social stability.

Therefore, Confucian culture, which has developed sustainably in China and brought practical benefits to Chinese society, became the first choice for the Edo Shogunate as the "political and cultural spokesperson".

Under the leadership of the Edo Shogunate, Confucianism began to truly flourish in Japan, becoming deeply integrated into Japanese social life and permeating all levels of Japanese society.

Being envied—Qing Deng was used to such things long ago.

So when Qing Deng learned from Miss Teshiro that this group of self-important Confucian scholars often angrily criticized him for being "unworthy of his position," he remained completely unmoved.

In the past, Qingdeng might have felt unhappy, but after experiencing many ups and downs, his state of mind has become much more peaceful.

Now, when faced with the slander from the "red-eyed monster," Qingdeng's thoughts are roughly as follows: People can say whatever they want, so let them say what they want! I can't control them, I just need to do my own thing.

However, while he didn't care about the arrogant behavior of the group of Confucian scholars, he was inexplicably interested in another activity that Miss Teshiro mentioned that these people often did at their gatherings—criticizing current affairs.

For some reason, Qing Deng really wanted to hear what insights and profound opinions the Confucian scholars, who studied at the highest Confucian academy under the Edo Shogunate, had about the current state of Japan.

Coincidentally, Qingdeng was not the only one who was concentrating and preparing to listen carefully to the discussion among the Confucian scholars.

Tokugawa Iemochi, Tenshōin, and the Nie sisters all did the same thing as Aoto at this moment.