Chapter 33 11. Big Traitor Hall

The main culprit of the crackdown was the Laofan Gongshan Content Hall. Ryoma didn't like this great feudal lord, he was too stubborn. Of course, it is not a good thing that the lord of the Changzhou Domain is completely controlled by others, but the stubborn ruler is even more troublesome. When the times are changing dramatically, no one knows what tomorrow will be like.Therefore, at such a time, the leader of the feudal country must either take the lead like Oda Nobunaga and open up a new era with a sword, or simply follow the trend.However, Rong Tang, as the old lord of a feudal clan, is like a hermit in the market, watching the trend of the times with a cold eye, and always going against the trend, desperately insisting on his outdated views.Such a person is bound to fail.

The most difficult thing for Rong Tang to deal with is that he believes too much in his own ability and capacity, Long Ma thought.Rong Tang is often proud of his corrupt views.Not only his own retainers, but even the lords of other vassal states are extremely stupid in his opinion.Ryoma believes that what is the use of only relying on extraordinary wisdom and talents in this situation?Relying on something so unreliable and thinking you're great is going to be a failure in the end.And even if one possesses unrivaled intellect, a person bound by such intellect is nothing but a fool. Rongtang, a wise man, possesses the demeanor of a hero.But unfortunately, he was tired by his intelligence, but also by his background.

The ancestor of Rongtang, Kazutoyo Yamauchi, became famous from 60,000 koku in Kakegawa to 240,000 koku in Tosa because of his meritorious service in the Sekigahara War.These are the favors of the Tokugawa family, so in his heart, he is always grateful to the Tokugawa family. Ryoma believes that if it is an individual, it is a virtue, but as a feudal lord, what use are these things when thinking about the fate of a feudal clan and the development of Japan? Rong Tang was bound by this "virtue".He is moved by his own "virtue", and he observes the current situation with this "virtue" at all times.Therefore, in Rong Tang's eyes, the current situation is distorted, not the normal world.

Rong Tang only advocated respecting the king and fighting barbarians in words, but in fact he hated the people who respected the king very much.He thinks that his own success is due to intelligence and intelligence, while others' success is only due to ignorance and fanaticism, so they cannot be indulged.Qin Wang is equivalent to a dose of strong medicine. Depending on the dose, it may become a good medicine, but it may also become a poison, ruining the current social order. What an unfortunate wise man. Rongtang hated ronin very much.Regarding those ronin who flocked to Kyoto, entered and left the mansion of the minister, and incited the vassals and vassals, although he did not regard them as black apples like the shogunate, he also believed that they were just useless things. "What great things can those ronin do?" He was born in a noble family, so of course he would think so.

Moreover, he is keen on controlling his own vassal state, thinking that he is Tosa's mind.The vassal only needs to act according to his own orders like his hands and feet.He doesn't want his hands and feet to think and act on their own. However, the abnormal behavior of the people stationed in the capital of the Dafan has become popular nowadays.He felt that they were arbitrarily determining the policy of the vassal state, and wanted to pull the vassal state into a direction he didn't want to see. Previously, when the power of Kyoto was at its peak, the feudal vassals also set up a position called Kyoto left-behind residence service in Kyoto.Among the Ako Ronin was an old man named Onodera Touai.This person is a sergeant in Asano's family in Bozhou, with a salary of one hundred and fifty shi, and his position is a stay-at-home service in Kyoto.During the Genroku Taiping period, their duty was to observe the popular kimono materials and decorations in Kyoto and report them to the vassal state.Then it is to communicate with scholars, singers and painters in Kyoto, and talk about romantic and elegant things.Therefore, the Juuchi couple are very good at chanting and singing, and they are also the first-class talents among the Forty-Seven Scholars of Ako.But at the end of the Bakumun, the responsibilities of the left-behind servants changed dramatically.

The Kyoto Zhouxuan officials, public officials, and reception officials of the various feudal clans all became the central forces in the Kyoto Forum. They interacted with officials of the same rank in the various feudal clans, and spent money like water in brothels in the Sanppongi area.Katsura Kogoro of the Choshu Domain, Okubo Toshimichi of the Satsuma Domain, Utojima Kibei of the Aizu Domain, and Shibusawa Eiichi of the Hitotsubashi Domain are representative figures. A coup took place in the Tosa domain, and Yoshida Toyo was assassinated. Tosa’s Kyoto officials were all employed by the Qinwang Party, represented by Takeichi Hanpeita, Hirai Shoujiro, and Mazaki Tetsuma.They used feudal fees to deal with other feudal clans, especially the radical Changzhou feudal clan.But as soon as Rong Tang entered Beijing, he ordered them to "not socialize with other feudal clans" and ordered them to go back to the feudal clan.

Not only that, Hirai, Mazaki, and Hirose Kenta three people after the death of Dongyang, in order to raise the vassal king and change personnel, they got the decree of the Nakagawa Palace, and used this decree to intimidate the upper class of the vassal state, and realized the coup d'état.This is a great fact.The old feudal lord brought up these matters again, asked the teacher to inquire about the crime, and put the three people in prison in May, and ordered them to commit seppuku on the eighth day of June.When Ryoma heard the news about Masaki, Hirai, and Hirose's seppuku in Kobe, the first thing he thought of was that, in this way, the Qinwang Party in Takeshi would also collapse.He immediately rushed to the capital of Kyoto.Although Ryoma and Wushi are friends, they are quite different from the Wushi party, with different ideas and temperament.Takeshi always said that kind of nonsense, and Ryoma often laughed at him like this.The "false words" he said are, one is to drive away the barbarians, and the other is "the king of the whole vassal".But how is that possible?According to Longma's personality, no matter what he does, he must put it into practice.But Takeichi Hanpeita likes to fantasize.Ryoma had given up on the King Qin's activities in the feudal domain early on, so he walked out of the feudal kingdom and no longer took the Tosa domain in his eyes.However, Ryoma is also very worried about those who are active in the domain.The Qin Wang activities in the domain are like children playing with fire, and one day the fire will be extinguished.

When Ryoma rushed to the Kawaramachi Domain, it started to rain heavily.The house is very quiet.Ever since the old man was furious, it was as if the fire had been extinguished in the mansion.If there are no vassals and ronin from other vassals, no one speaks loudly about the current situation.Ryoma felt that the atmosphere was weird, and while walking through the long corridor, he yelled: "I heard that Masaki and others have performed seppuku, who can tell me the details?" The rooms on either side were silent. When Ryoma reached the longhouse, he knocked on the latticed door, shouting "Tell me" as he walked forward.A door ahead opened, and it was opened by a young man.His face looks like a rice strawberry.

"Mr. Sakamoto." He whispered, "Please come in." Ryoma didn't know him, so he probably just came to Kyoto from the feudal kingdom.Judging from his rough cotton coat, red sheath, and long and short swords, he should be a countryman. "Nobuyuki Taro, Shimo Nakajima. I know very well about Mr. Masaki." His eyes were smoky. Ryoma walked into the room.Nakajima held the big tea bowl in both hands and handed it to Ryoma.Longma took a sip, it was just water.Ryoma looked strange. "I think your throat must be dry if you shout like that, so..." Nakajima laughed.

This child is available, Ryoma thought.He appreciates Nakajima's wit. Sakutaro, eighteen years old, later changed his name to Nakajima Nobuyuki, advocated freedom and civil rights together with Sakagaki Taisuke, served as the deputy prime minister of the Liberal Party, and was named a baron. He died in the 32nd year of Meiji. Nakajima Sakutaro said that during the seppuku, Mazaki and others were righteous.In prison, Masaki Tetsuma had no pen, so he twisted paper into the shape of a word, and left a death poem. The majesty of the Kyoto court has almost been restored.This is his lifelong ambition, since he has seen this with his own eyes, even if he dies today, there is nothing to be sad about.However, when Sa Chang became the supporting force of the Kyoto court, only Tosa's Kashiwamon flag could not be erected in Kyoto, all because of the pampering of the old feudal court.During the seppuku, Jian Qi scolded Rong Tang. He was only thirty years old.

Mazaki's wife has passed away, leaving only a two-year-old daughter.Therefore, when he was dying, Masaki missed his daughter very much, and left a song: Hirose Kenta often said that "whether a man's stomach can be cut beautifully depends on the man's character", and he often studies the method of seppuku.According to his research, seppuku should be pierced into the left abdomen first, pointing straight to the right, and then the tip of the knife should be tilted upwards, stabbing to the vital point under the left breast with the rest of the force, and death can be achieved immediately. That day, Hirose sat leisurely at the seppuku place, and said to Jiecuoren: "Don't cut off my head until my procedure is over." After speaking, he started seppuku according to his own method, and finally did not rely on Jiecuoren. Hirai Soujiro was twenty-nine at the time, the same age as Ryoma.In prison, he carved a deadly poem on the wall with his nails, and then sat in the seppuku place wearing a crisp white dress.The wrong person is his companion Hirata Ryokichi who went to the martial arts school to learn swordsmanship with him when he was young.At that time Liangji was pale and very nervous.Hirai turned around and encouraged him, "Relax." He relaxed his stomach and touched it for a while. "Go!" He held the dagger, shouted, and stabbed down.The wrong Liangji was at a loss, and hurriedly chopped off his head.However, because his wrist was trembling, his knife hit the back of Hirai's head and bounced back. "Hey, I told you to relax," Hirai said.By this time his face was contorted with pain. With the second cut, Hirai's head fell to the ground. "That's what I heard." Nakajima Sakutaro said. It was raining harder and harder.The room was dark, and thunder rumbled in the distance.The sound was getting closer and closer, and the sky above his head seemed to be cracked suddenly, and there was a loud noise. "God needs bloody sacrifice." Ryoma seldom said such poetic words. "The way of compromise can never change this society. Although Mazaki and others are dead, one day, I will subvert the world with my own hands to comfort the heroic spirits." Nakajima said Takeichi is not in jail yet, but he doesn't know what will happen next. Ryoma felt that this young man's appearance was a bit strange, and he called him "Michako boy" in his heart. After the eighteen-year-old youth finished speaking, he fell to the ground and said to Ryoma, "Please let me go to the school in Kobe." Without saying a word, Ryoma agreed, and then asked, "You like boats so much?" "I don't like it. I feel dizzy watching the thirty-stone boats in the Yodo River swaying in the river on the embankment." "Do you commute between Kyoto and Osaka along the embankment?" "right." "Then you still plan to walk on the sea?" "I can go to sea, if you say so. But you must show me how to walk on it." "You are really interesting." The reason why Sakutaro wanted to enter the school was not because he wanted to learn sailing skills, but mostly because of his admiration for Ryoma. Ryoma immediately met with the important officials of the feudal government, and asked him to go through the formalities for Nakajima's official appointment and allow him to go to Kobe to learn navigation skills.The other party readily agreed. After everything was done, Longma left the feudal mansion. On a whim, he thought of Sanjo Mansion in Limu Town to visit Miss Tianhe. "Mr. Sakamoto." The gatekeeper of Sanjo Mansion already knew him.What made the janitor feel strange was that every time this famous Tosa vassal came to visit his master Sanjo Mimi, he was looking for Miss Tianzuru, the personal maid of the old lady Shinshouin. Santiaoqing is a radical minister who respects the king and fights barbarians with the backing of the Changzhou Fan.People with lofty ideals all over the world place high hopes on him.The vassals of the various feudal dynasties rushed to get close to the Sanjo house, and Takeshi Hanpeita and others often came and went in and out of the mansion.Winning over ministers and relying on the authority of the court to fight against the shogunate was a common method used by people with lofty ideals at that time. Ryoma also admits that this is a way, but he hates those officials.Gongqing has no resistance to money.Previously, when the old man Ii Naobi was about to conclude a treaty to open a port with a foreign country, he gave a lot of money to powerful ministers in order to obtain permission, and the attitude of the ministers was greatly softened as a result.This matter is already known to the world. But Longma heard: "Only this Santiao lord is very rare among public ministers. He cleans himself up and can't use money to accommodate him." But Longma still has no interest in him. Since Mrs. Shinshoin was born in the Tosa Yamauchi family, the room has some samurai style. "Ryoma is here again?" Madam Shinshouin laughed. "Yes." Ms. Tian He nodded and said, "I heard that he recently studied black ship technology in Kobe. What are you doing in Kyoto now?" In front of Mrs. Xin Shouyuan, Ms. Tian He deliberately frowned as if she was worried about her brother. Ryoma was taken to a dim room next to the entrance, where he waited for Ms. Tian He every time he came. Miss Tian He walked in, still beautiful. "It's been a long time." Ms. Tian He said in her characteristic mellow voice. "Yes." Ryoma scratched his back. "Is it itchy?" "Yes indeed." He immediately put his hands back on his lap.It was unconscious to scratch his back just now, but he only noticed it after hearing what Miss Tian He said. "Mr. Ryoma is always itchy?" Ms. Tian He thought it was funny.His collar was so dirty it must always be itchy. "You don't get lice in your clothes, do you?" She held back her laugh and tilted her head. "No, there's no such thing." "That's right. If you keep lice on your back, women will hate it and don't want to approach it. Oh, yes, speaking of women," Ms. Tian He pretended to remember suddenly, and asked, "General Uzaki Zuo's daughter is called Aaron, what happened after that?" "I ask the proprietress of the Fushimi inn Teradaya to adopt her as an adopted daughter." "and then?" Miss Tian He is more interested in "then". "What's the meaning?" "only these?" "Yes." Ryoma started scratching his back again. "Stop scratching." "Well, good." Ryoma grabbed the itchy place with his hands, and then put his hands on his legs solemnly. "It's not good without a woman to take care of you. Do you like it?" Ryoma was speechless.He likes Miss Tian He, but in this society with strict hierarchy, it is impossible for him and Miss Tian He to become relatives.Chiba Sanako from Edo is in love with Ryoma. Although the two are well-matched, the other is the daughter of the master and has a superior family background.From now on, as a rogue, he will be in exile, and it is impossible for him to give Sanako happiness.Or Aaron.In this vast world, there is only Aaron. Without the protection of Ryoma, she cannot survive.Because of this, he poured into Aaron the affection he didn't have for Miss Tianhe and Sanako. "Ryoma, let me tell you, I always feel that girl Aaron will not bring you happiness." "I don't need happiness." Long Ma said. "You can't avoid the topic." Miss Tian He stared at him.This is rare. Ms. Tianhe doesn't seem to like me very much recently, Ryoma secretly sighed.He unconsciously started scratching his back again. Ms. Tian He could only smile wryly, and said, "Let's not talk about this anymore." Because she suddenly found out that she was jealous of Aaron and felt embarrassed. The two changed the subject. She is a smart woman, once she has a plan in her heart, she doesn't care about everything and is open-minded.Ryoma likes her very much.He even had the urge to grab her hand and pull her into his arms, but he tried his best to restrain it. "Ryoma, do you know that Changzhou is fighting foreign ships in the Shimonoseki Strait?" The Changzhou Fan, the vanguard of fighting against the barbarians, has already begun to act.The Choshu domain bombarded American merchant ships on the 10th day of May this year, and then launched shelling on French warships, Dutch warships, and American warships.The imperial court was very happy, and issued an imperial decree to the feudal lord of Changzhou on the first day of June, commending him for his military exploits. "Although I heard others say that you turned apostate and became a founder of the country, don't you feel very happy to hear such a feat of the Changzhou Domain?" Longma pretended not to understand.Ms. Tian He supports the anti-barbarians, and the theory of anti-barbarians is a common view among scholars nowadays.Moreover, Emperor Xiaoming in the Kyoto court was the biggest supporter of the theory of anti-barbarians.In the court, the ministers who pursue radical anti-barbarianism have taken the lead, and Sanjo Mimi is the most important person among them. Ms. Tianhe's words actually contained a kind of reproach: Ryoma, what are you doing in a daze? Ryoma knows this. "Miss Tianhe, you have said before that you like such a man." "how is it like?" "Even if everyone in the world thinks it's wrong, as long as you think it's right, you will move forward decisively. You also said that you want me to be that kind of man." "what?" "That's how I am." He started scratching his back again. At the end of the Bakumatsu period, the entire clan of the Changshu clan went on a rampage, and it even made people feel that the entire clan had gone crazy.To put it nicely, it is called heroic, but to put it bluntly, it can only be called reckless. At this time, the situation at home and abroad brought opportunities for the development of history, and the riots in the Changzhou Domain were just like a pack of explosives, blowing up the solid Tokugawa system and triggering the Meiji Restoration. Only the word "initiate" can be used.The history of Japan is amazing. At that time, Changzhou Fan was really preparing for a decisive battle with world civilization.The mood of the war against barbarians already has a religious flavor in this domain, and that war can even be called a religious war. At that time, they had completely disregarded victory or defeat and interests.The state of the extremists in the Changzhou Clan is like clams in a frying pan, just blindly manic.Of course, this kind of mania can be an excuse for the great powers to invade Japan. If they want to do it, they can definitely do it.But, fortunately, the mutual restraint among the great powers and the complicated domestic situation of each of them at that time made them give up the war with Japan. In addition, unlike the Asian countries at that time, the intensity of the Changzhou Fan's anti-barbarian activities also discouraged Europeans and Americans.They felt that if there was a war with Japan, they would probably be stuck in a quagmire.Even if they can win the war of attacking the country, the guerrilla warfare of Japanese samurai will be very difficult to deal with in the next inland war. Moreover, geographically speaking, Japan is an island country in the far east.Soldiers, ammunition, and food that traveled across the ocean to Japan were difficult to obtain effective supplies.Although it was a steam ship at that time, it was charcoal-burning after all, and it could only sail on the sea for 20 days.Next, it can only rely on the propulsion of the sails, so large-scale replenishment cannot be carried out.Therefore, the great powers did not act immediately. There is another point, of course, this should have been mentioned at the end of this story, and now I will mention it: Takasugi Shinsaku and other leaders of the Changzhou Domain used their genius minds to save this crisis. In any case, the Choshu Domain was the dynamite that broke the status quo at the end of the Tokugawa period. During Wenjiu's reign, it happened to be the time when the Civil War broke out in the United States. Longma heard Sheng Haizhou tell him about the President of the United States of America named Lincoln, and knew that he wanted to liberate the black slaves in the United States.Ryoma also knew that the southern states of the United States broke away from the United States and tried to become independent. The Civil War began the year before last, and it has continued to this day. The unexpected aftermath even affected Japan. In the spring of the third year of Wenjiu, the warship Wyoming of the Northern Army sailed into the coastal waters of Japan in order to search for the Alabama of the Southern Army.The ship just learned that the American merchant ship Pembroke was bombarded and damaged while passing through the Shimonoseki Strait. Sink the American ship!The imperial court rewarded his feat.But unfortunately for the Changzhou Domain, the Wyoming was on a military mission this time, and the captain made up his mind to retaliate.They prepare for a few days.Because of the turbulent waves in the Shimonoseki Strait, they hired two Japanese ship bosses as guides. On May 28, the Wyoming weighed anchor and left Yokohama Port, and dropped anchor on the east side of the strait in the middle of the night on the 30th, and berthed here secretly.At dawn, they began to sail slowly in the waters of the Changzhou Fan, heading for the bay where the Chengshan Fort was located. Seeing that it was a foreign warship, the forts in Chengshan, Guishan and Yandao along the coast began to fire old-style bronze cannons towards the sea.However, the range of the cannons is not enough. The Wyoming, having investigated this, ignored the shore fire and continued westward.The straits are getting narrower and narrower.The cannons on the coast continued to fire at the warship, but they still couldn't shoot.Eventually, the American warships reached the point where they could touch the port of Moji. There happened to be three warships that were regarded as treasures by the Changzhou Fan docked there, namely the Gengshen, the Renxu and the Guihai. Captain McDegar of the Wyoming ordered: "Ready to fight!" The Guishan Fort was firing.The Changzhou Fan warships in front also hurriedly prepared for the artillery battle, and then began to shoot violently.However, no matter in terms of the number or power of naval guns, the three ships combined cannot compare with the Wyoming. The battle flag flew from the Wyoming. Soon, the shell hit the Guishan Fort, and the fort fell silent.Then, they began to attack the Changzhou gunboat sailing in the strait.In less than half an hour, they sank the Gengshen and Renxu.The Wyoming then returned safely to Yokohama. On the fifth day of June, two warships from the French Oriental Fleet attacked and destroyed the fort on the coast. After the marines landed, they destroyed the Maeda Fort, and then walked away. The forts along the coast of Changzhou were defeated in the battle with foreign warships.They not only sacrificed a lot of artillery, but also lost two warships, a big defeat. In particular, the news of the defeat of the army that fought against the French fleet made the Choshu Domain fall into extreme tension again.Fan hall was very embarrassed, because they thought at first that if it was a land war, it would not be like this.All the samurai in Japan believed that as long as they took up swords and guns, no one could defeat them. Originally, not only the Japanese themselves, but even foreigners had a sense of fear towards the Japanese. They felt that if they fought naked without weapons, they would not be able to defeat the Japanese.At that time, European and American newspapers often used the transliteration of some Japanese words, such as SAMURAI (samurai), RONIN (ronin) and so on.Its meaning is to be good at using knives, to be tough and not afraid of death, to attack people like a madman. Foreigners are afraid, and it is impossible not to have an impact on their foreign policy.In Namai Village in Tokaido, the event that a British businessman was beheaded by a Satsuma vassal affected the foreign policy of the British government.While claiming compensation from the shogunate with a tough attitude, they also tried their best to avoid a war between Japan and Britain. The so-called anti-barbarian activities are meaningless if they are only about killing foreigners or using old-style troops to fight against the navies of the great powers like the Changzhou Fan.However, through these actions, they let foreign governments know one thing-the Japanese are different from other Asians in that they have extraordinary centripetal force. Japan was able to become the only country east of Turkey that was not colonized by Westerners, and the activities of the anti-barbarian patriots contributed somewhat. The Changzhou Domain was not ignorant.At the moment of their defeat on the fifth day of June, they realized that their fight against barbarians before that was entirely out of ignorance. The next day, the Fan Hall called Shinsaku Takasugi, a genius in the history of the Restoration, and immediately employed him. Takasugi immediately spoke up and proposed the idea of ​​"Armor Squad", which was immediately approved.Immediately afterwards, he rushed to Maguan and created a volunteer army without the distinction of being a soldier, a farmer, a businessman or a businessman.At this time, Takasugi Shinsaku was only twenty-five years old.Ryoma had a relationship with Takasugi at that time. After the birth of the Raiders, it became one of the strongest troops in Japan, and later became active in the Restoration War as a revolutionary army.The more important significance of the establishment of this army is that the three hundred years of class society began to disintegrate in Changzhou Fan. In this situation, what Ms. Tian He meant was that Ryoma's performance made people anxious.The Changzhou Fan raised the banner of vanguard against the barbarians, and the people became more and more angry.What is Ryoma doing at this time? "Miss Tianhe, look at me from afar. People with lofty ideals from all over the world gather in Kyoto to make noise, and I am one of them." "You are really strange." "Yeah, it's strange." Ryoma speaks the Tosa dialect.Ms. Tianhe can understand. "You admit it yourself?" "I'm not admitting it. Things in this world are like sacrifices. Seeing that others are playing flutes and drums and shouting flower stands, there's no need to run to pull them yourself, right, Miss Tianhe?" "Then you are watching from the sidelines?" "That's not true." "what is that?" "I'm the one who pulls a different flower stand from somewhere else." Miss Tianhe laughed.Ryoma's Kobe Naval Academy is probably what he called a different flower bed. "Speaking of sacrificial offerings, I remembered that the flower terraces under the city were so beautiful." Miss Tian He's tone was full of nostalgia for her hometown. When it comes to the festival, each town will carefully prepare its own flower beds, which are of various styles and compete for splendor.Flower beds can be said to be the embodiment of the aesthetics and creativity of the people of each town.People put several layers of sheds on the trolley, and each layer is decorated with dolls to create a dramatic scene that satirizes the current situation or history, and they are pulled and carried to the city for display. There will also be songs, the lyrics are very simple, usually like this: "Come and see, look at Tanezaki Town, Tanezaki Town is number one." Unlike other feudal clans, this feudal clan does not pull well-made mikoshi or floats, which is the interesting point of the Tosa feudal clan. "But your flower bed hasn't been made yet." "I'm hurrying to do it." "It's really slow. The sacrifice has already begun." "Then I'll pull it out during the second year's ceremony." Ms. Tian He felt that she had no choice but to smile wryly.She looked busy, so Ryoma left immediately. "Ryoma, get your flower bed out as soon as possible." Miss Tian He sent Ryoma outside the door. Ryoma is going to Fushimi. When turning east from the Santiao Bridge, Dongshan had disappeared into the darkness.Ryoma immediately turned south, and in a short while came to the main road commonly known as Dafo Street. "I'm so tired." Every time he said to himself loudly, he would touch his face, shout tired, and move on. Soon, he came to the west wall of the Great Buddha Hall.On the right is the ear mound, and on the opposite side is the common people's street leading to the Kamo River.In the woods of the Great Buddha Hall, owls kept hooting.You can see the lights of Kyoto across the Kamo River. At the end of the day, he rushed to Kyoto, went to the feudal mansion, visited Miss Tianhe, and then rushed to Fushimi, which was originally too reluctant.There are still twenty-four miles away from Fushimi, and his legs have already begun to give up. "This walking samurai." Suddenly, an old woman came up to say hello. "What's up?" "I have a small inn here. You are so tired, why don't you come and have a rest?" As if out of good intentions. "There are also inns in this area?" "It's for long-term merchants, it's not very clean, if you don't mind..." "Thank you. Fushimi has a woman I've been thinking about waiting for me. I'll drag my feet for a while." He took a few steps forward, but his feet didn't work. "I really can't help it." Longma beat his legs vigorously a few times before finally walking again. At this time, a team with lanterns came over in front.They were all warriors, maybe a dozen or three of them, and some of them were carrying short spears.They wore uniform jackets with dyed stripes on the sleeves of a light yellow background, a bit like the costumes worn by Ako Ronin in the play when he went to revenge. This is the famous Shinsengumi in Kyoto?When Ryoma was thinking, the team stopped in front of Ryoma.One of them lifted the lantern up to shine on Ryoma's face.The word "sincerity" is written on the lantern.That human said: "We are the Shinsengumi under the direct jurisdiction of Lieutenant General Matsudaira, the guardian of Kyoto. We are currently patrolling the city and making routine inquiries. What clan do you belong to? What is your name? Where are you going?" "Master of Tushu, Ryoma Sakamoto, head to Fushimi." Only someone in the team uttered "Ah", and a figure ran up to Ryoma, who turned out to be Nobuo Samanosuke.He probably joined this group when the shogunate recruited rogues. Ryoma thought to himself, now he will meet a difficult guy. Nobuo Samanosuke said to his companion, "I know this person." He approached Ryoma and said, "Sakamoto-kun, long time no see." Nobuo has already ordered.On the right of the dragon horse was a man with a lantern, and two or three people stood behind him.The front is the main force of the patrol.Tonight's captain is Shinsengumi's vice-leader, Todo Heisuke, who is famous for his swordsmanship.He is an Edo ronin with unusual origins, and is said to be the illegitimate son of Todo and Izumimori, the lords of the Isezu Domain.When Yugo Kondo of the Shinsengumi opened a small martial arts school of the natural Rishin style in Koishikawa Kohinanayanacho, Edo, he often went there.His personality is crisp and neat, with the temperament of a commoner in Edo.Later, he left the team with Ito Kokotaro, the counselor of the Shinsengumi, and under the protection of the Satsuma Domain, he organized an anti-murder group called the Guards of the Royal Tomb.Although he was as fierce as a ghost, he finally died in battle.Kondo admired him very much, and he still said after many years: "Only Heisuke is a pity." At this time, he was holding his arms in the middle of the team, and for some reason, he looked at Ryoma with a very enthusiastic look. Nobuo Samanosuke was five or six meters away from Ryoma, and he was afraid that Ryoma would draw his sword and face each other. To Nobuo's greeting, Ryoma looked surprised, as if saying: I don't know you. "Sakamoto Ryoma," Nobuo said by his first name, "we are in charge of driving away the vagrants in the city. I heard that you have left the feudal clan, and now you say you are a feudal vassal, so you are suspected of pretending to be a feudal vassal. Come with us to the clubhouse in Gion trip." "What nonsense are you talking about?" Long Ma looked at the crescent moon hanging like a sickle on the top of Dongshan Mountain, and said loudly.Ryoma has grown a lot compared to when he fought Nobuo back then.Now he doesn't want to have any disputes with this kind of brainless person who specializes in fighting. "Whether I am a Tosa clan man or not, you can go to the Tosa clan mansion in Kawaramachi to find out. If you find it troublesome, go there." He raised his chin and pointed to the front.There is an Intellectual Product Court, surrounded by trees.That was the residence of Laofan Gongshan Content Hall in Kyoto. "You can also go to Zhijiyuan to ask. You hinder the justice of the world and make me embarrassed. Get out of the way!" "This guy." Nobuo Samanosuke intends to use this opportunity to get rid of Ryoma. Nobuo wanted to draw a knife and use violence.Ryoma has recovered his strength, and the fatigue just now has disappeared without a trace. As long as you find that the opponent is about to draw a knife, you must preemptively strike.This is fencing.Ryoma still understands this kind of skill.Among the vassals in Kyoto now, there are no more than three people who can surpass the right of dragons and horses in kung fu.This point can be proved by the great martial arts competition in Edo in the past.But it's always just force.If you really confront someone, you can't preemptively slash at someone just because you find that the other party is about to draw a knife.Because a knife will kill people.If you kill at will, you are definitely not a normal person. Ryoma suddenly smiled, and immediately let the other party relax. "Zuo Ma." He said, sticking out his tongue and making a grimace.No one can hurt a person who smiles at him. "Let's stop here. The two of us will fight as soon as we meet. Let's end the grievances between us." "Finished?" Nobuo Samanosuke misunderstood. "I'm not talking about people, I'm talking about grievances." The Shinsengumi is a group of executioners.They have absolutely no rules and no reason for killing people.Because if you take into account the etiquette of the world, the mutual trust as a samurai, and the way of the sword, it is impossible to kill people easily. Swipe—the white blade flashed in the air. It wasn't Nobuo Samanosuke, but a man who was worried about Nobuo's cowardice, drew his sword and slashed at Ryoma. The dragon horse moved a foot to the side. "Let's not engage in unnecessary fights. Can you fight each other like this, can you save the world? Can you make a big deal? Let's use the knife in your hand to kill foreigners in the future." Nobuo also drew his long sword.He took a step, and then, a big leap forward. Suddenly, blue flames splashed in the air.Nobuo's long sword broke in two.The tip of the knife flew near the wall of the Great Buddha Hall. Ryoma put the long sword back into its sheath.Probably Jixing was also damaged. "I won't be entangled with you anymore. I'm in a hurry." Ryoma walked forward. Even though he was overwhelmed by Ryoma's aura, the Shinsengumi patrol team still surrounded Ryoma very smartly. Is there still going to be a fight after all?Ryoma carefully watched the surroundings, and also became nervous.Although he has fought with people, he has never killed anyone. The moon rose over the Miao Court, and the clouds flew past.From time to time the moon hides behind the clouds. The wind blew Ryoma's disheveled temples, and he narrowed his eyes. He moved his right hand, bent down, and glanced around.Drawing the sword, making a move, and retreating, all these actions are done in one go. Shinsengumi's lantern fell to the ground, rolling in the wind. Ryoma leaned against the black board wall on the west side of the road, and there should be an open space a few steps north along the wall.He wants to go. "I didn't cut anyone down." Ryoma said in a low voice, "I just cut down the lantern." Then he smiled, and then said: "Zuo Ma, if it was before, I would definitely follow you!" It's a big fight. I consider myself a master. But now I know how to cherish life." The members of the Shinsengumi drew their knives and wanted to surround Ryoma again.These people specialize in killing.The three rushed forward together, no matter how powerful the opponent was, they were no match for the tactics created by their leader, Isamu Kondo and Toshizo Hijikata, imitating Ako Ronin. "Zuo Ma." Ryoma said helplessly, "It seems that you are ready to go together. Think about it carefully, you have done an extraordinary job. This kind of thing won't last long, enough is enough." Nobuo didn't answer. No one dared to rush over easily.They knew that this was a move that Ryoma often used in Chiba Martial Arts. "I also have a big business of my own, and I'm just beginning to think about it. Therefore, I cherish my life very much. One day, the whole of Japan will depend on me." The moonlight shone lightly on Ryoma's face, "So, I don't have time to talk to you guys. entanglement." It was dark around.The moon is covered by clouds.Insects chirped at Ryoma's feet. “如果你们愿意加入我的事业，我会非常欢迎。我教你们开船。我的事业就是穿越万里波涛，让全世界的海洋都变成日本的。日本很小。但是，大海不属于任何国家。以此为舞台赚大量的钱，创建一个新的日本。这难道不是男人的夙愿？我看你们个个都很出众。各位应该都是为侠义而赴汤蹈火的好汉。但是，那样的话，你们始终都没有走出自我。敞开心，敞开心，试着拥有肩负日本未来的志向。只要你们有了这个志向，日本这个担子扛在肩上也并不重。其实这很可悲，因为它现在比一个病弱的老太婆还要轻。”龙马的眼眶里蓄满了泪水。病弱的老太婆这种说法，勾起了他的无限感伤。 队伍中，有一个叫松井三郎的。他是水户藩的脱藩之人，修习神道无念流的剑术，来到京都以前，就曾经杀过两三个人。他的剑法变化多端，看似虚晃一招，实则击中对手。 此时松井往前跨了一步，用刀击地，然后又往前进了两步，大喝一声，朝着龙马的脸袭来。他的目的其实是手臂。 龙马忽然持刀指住对方眼睛，往后退，同时击中了松井的手臂。 "what." 刀应声落地。 龙马是用刀背砍的。 这时，队长藤堂平助从后边走了出来，道：“诸君，请退下。” 他吩咐了一声，拔出长刀，小小的个子朝龙马猛扑过来。 龙马急忙闪身。 藤堂平助的大刀扑了个空，当的一下刺穿了龙马背后的黑木板墙。藤堂赶快去拔。这是一个可乘之机。 龙马应该乘机出击，但是他没有。 我好像见过这个人。龙马一边想一边将姿势变为左下段，开始沿着黑木板墙向前移动。 藤堂的长刀紧紧跟着龙马。他用刀尖指着龙马的眼睛，并像鹡鸽的尾巴一样颤动。 啊，他是藤堂平助。龙马看出对方使用的是北辰一刀流特有的剑法，终于想了起来。此人在玉池千叶修行，不是桶町千叶，达到了目录的级别。 藤堂应该也记得龙马。不管怎么说，龙马当时是桶町千叶的剑术教头，乃是千叶一门的高手。 藤堂开始慢慢地举刀，最终将姿势变为上段。他大喝一声扑了过来。龙马往后跳开一步，与此同时，将刀收进鞘中。 “罢了。”说着，龙马转身走开。 藤堂茫然地看着龙马。藤堂一开始就已经发现龙马便是桶町的剑术教头。不仅仅如此，当年龙马还在玉池千叶为他辅导过剑术。他差点唤一声“坂本先生”。但是，新选组内部非常复杂，他不想让同伴发现自己认识坂本龙马。 藤堂自认他以自己的方式救了龙马。 藤堂真是个怪人。龙马一边这样想着，一边拖着沉重的步子又走了二十几里路。到了伏见寺田屋，已是破晓时分。 因为是船家客找，这个时候正最忙碌。人们聚集在寺田屋前面的泊船处，靠着客栈领班的招呼和灯笼，准备乘上三十石船。 “登势老板娘，让我睡一觉。”龙马站在院子里喊道。 登势正坐在房间的一角，指挥男仆和女仆们干活。 “嗯。”她点了点头，迅速地扫视了一眼龙马。 刚跟人斗过啊，右边的袖子撕裂了，右肩上好像还有血迹，只是因为穿的是黑色纹服，看不清楚。 登势叫过一个男仆，小声吩咐道：“把精庵大夫叫来。快。”接着，她转头朝着里面喊道：“阿龙！” 阿龙走了出来。她惊奇地看着龙马，两颊泛起红晕。 “坂本先生。”登势道，“正好是登船的时候，客人刚刚离店，都还没有收拾。您先到阿龙的房间睡一会儿吧。”她笑了笑，又道：“在我房间也可以。只是我男人伊助高大魁梧，我可不想惹他生气。” “在女人被窝里睡？” “你不是也跟着令姐长大吗？我知道的，到了十三岁还跟着姐姐睡，还尿床。” "nonsense." 龙马跟着阿龙到了她的房间，壁龛里放着月琴。 弹月琴的人即便在乐坊也属另类，而阿龙却十分擅长，甚至可以说是月琴名家。 这时，精庵带着徒弟到了。精庵让龙马脱掉上衣。 “是这里吧？”他把脸凑到龙马右肩，一脸凝重。 幸亏没有伤到骨头。伤口长约两寸，能够看到薄薄的一层脂肪。阿龙看起来有些害怕，但是依旧眼神坚定地看着龙马的伤口。 龙马本想让阿龙回避，他不想让人看到自己赤裸的上身，尤其是背上的卷毛。所以，他总是面向阿龙站着，挺起胸脯。 但阿龙看的是伤口，她并不在意龙马的身体。 “发生什么事了？”精庵问。 “是猫伤的。” “看来是只很有意思的猫啊。带着两把刀吧？” “是最近在京都流行的猫。” 精庵开始用烧酒清洗伤口。 "pain!" Ryoma laughed.世间哪有疼得笑了的傻子？ “要是不好好洗洗，伤口会化脓。” 精庵在伤口处擦上药膏，缠上厚厚的纱布，便回去了。 阿龙责问道：“坂本先生，您为什么要和别人动刀？” “实在无奈。” “而且，听登势妈妈说，坂本先生的剑术名闻天下。这么好的功夫，您还受伤了。” “丢人啊。” 龙马为了不伤到对方，用的是刀背。藤堂逼过来时，他挥刀挑起对方的刀尖，这时自己的刀刃伤到了肩膀。 “剑术这东西是学而不必用的。就连原本打算靠剑术吃饭的我都这样了。” “坂本先生。”阿龙道，“要是您有个万一，我也不活了。”说毕，她满脸通红。这是非常重要的话，完全可以理解为情感的告白。龙马赧然。 “那种话没有意义。首先，我有大事要做，顾不得生死。你对这样一个人说出这种话，损失太大。对了，”龙马躺在被子上，说道，“让我听你弹月琴吧。”阿龙默默地站了起来，从壁龛里取出月琴，跪在龙马枕边。 琴就像圆月，据说正是由此得名。琴体是桐木做的，里面有两根非常细的金属丝，与表面的弦共鸣，能产生特有的余韵。 “阿龙擅长月琴。”龙马在给家乡的乙女写信的时候，特意提到了这一点，因为时下喜弹这种乐器，是领先时代的。 “弹什么呢？”阿龙一边调琴一边问道。 “弹《六段》？” “古筝的曲目？” "Ok." 龙马第一次听月琴，不知道曲目。 “哦，原来这是跟琵琶一样弹啊。” "Ok." 阿龙开始弹了起来。 琴音与琴相似，又有点像琵琶，只是有时候声音非常尖锐，有一种让鼓膜发痒的余韵，非常有意思。 龙马不仅跟乙女学过剑术，还跟她学过三味弦，对乐器并非一窍不通。 这是一种悦耳的乐声，只是有时候会混杂着尖锐之音。这种音色和阿龙相似。 “怎么样？”阿龙担心龙马不喜欢，轻轻歪头问道。 “我在听。” 龙马只说了这么一句。这时他的伤口已经疼痛难忍了。 “我还弹得不好。” “不是。”龙马微笑道，“继续弹。” “我真的还弹得不好。而且，曲目也不熟。都说月琴应该跟着长崎的唐人学，所以我想去长崎。” “那地方很远啊。” “您能带我去一趟吗？” “长崎好。将来推翻江户幕府的应该就是长崎的文化。” “月琴能够推翻江户幕府吗？” “是啊。'据长崎以讨江户'，这在将来说不定能成为名言。我也打算以长崎为根据地大展宏图。” “到时候您一定要带我去。”阿龙一脸认真地看着龙马，说道。 龙马听着阿龙的月琴，呼呼睡去。 寺田屋房檐上方，太阳冉冉升起又落下。他定是累坏了。最近，他一直在东奔西走。 “咦，天还没亮。”龙马看着眼前的灯火，小声说道。他已经睡糊涂了。 “天亮了，又黑了。”阿龙在龙马枕边说道。 比起听到这句话，更让龙马吃惊的是阿龙一直跪在自己枕边守候。 "You've been here all this time?" “不。”阿龙摇了摇头，“有时过来看看。” 她怕龙马出事，于是每隔半小时便上来瞧瞧。 “我可不会死。”龙马坐了起来。 “但是，人都会死的。” “不，我最近开始有点明白了。你看看是不是这么回事？”龙马像是在跟自己说话，“大和有一座叫三上岳的山，是一千多年前，一个叫役小角的人开拓的。山上有一个庙堂，供奉着藏王权现。自从役小角在那里点上灯以来，那里的灯火持续了几百年不灭。人们所做的事情虽然有大小之分，但其实都是这样。总会有人接续下去，让灯亮着。做这种事的人，才不会湮灭。在西方，西比、西比利……” 龙马想说的是“文明”（civilization）这个词。要是寝待藤兵卫听了，大概会这么戏谑：“是等不及了吧。” 龙马想说的是，人们应该对人类文明的发展作贡献。这样的话，人才会像三上岳上不灭的灯火一样，生生不息。 “所以，我不死。我要选择不死的人生。” 阿龙惊讶得瞪大了眼睛，紧紧地盯着龙马。这是出于感动。 从来没有遇见过这样的人，她想。不怪阿龙，和龙马一样拥有这种生死观的人开始出现在日本史上，是在幕末。 初更的钟声响起时，一个体格精焊的武士出现在寺田屋的玄关。在如此炎热的季节，他还用宗十郎头巾蒙着脸。 “有些缘由不便讲，请允许我戴着头巾进去。坂本先生在吗？”他又说：“险些忘了，告诉坂本先生，我是在江户的千叶武馆跟他学剑的平助，他就知道了。” “平助？”龙马坐起身来，问阿龙：“他是一个人来的吗？” 阿龙上了二楼，从栏杆内往外边昏暗的路面看了看。nobody. 她跑下楼梯，发现龙马已经不在房里了。龙马此时正在店里低头看着院子里的藤堂平助。 “进来。”龙马道。 登势让阿龙把他们带到了二楼一个十叠的房间。她是想，万一发生争斗，地方宽对被袭击一方有利。登势事事想得周全。 龙马和藤堂在二楼面对面坐下。藤堂已经摘下了宗十郎头巾。 他几乎是平伏在地，郑重地向龙马施礼。不管怎么说，龙马是他在千叶武馆的师兄，而且曾经指导他练习。 “昨晚不巧，我们竟然以那种方式见面。”龙马笑道，他对藤堂并无恶意。此人虽无特别的才干，却是个性情爽快的好汉。 “在下是来向您道歉的。” “道什么歉。你今天来，应当不只是因为这个吧。” "Exactly." 身为新选组的成员，私下到寺田屋来见龙马，仅仅因为这一点，便很可能会被肃清。历史上，没有任何一个组织比新选组的管制更加严格。 “那么，有何事呢？” “请您最近务必小心。因为涉及到机密，我不能跟您详细地说，但是请务必将我这句话记在心上。问题是……”藤堂道，“问题是那个信夫左马之助，他正在极力向近藤和土方建议除掉您。” “随他去吧。”龙马让登势准备酒菜。“对了，听说清河八郎在江户死于非命。藤堂君，你知道详细情况吗？”