Chapter 5 first sight gun
Just when Jinghu was having a very unpleasant quarrel with Kasuga Yamazam because of the Shibata brothers, Usami Sadyuki came to Tochio quietly, and he only brought a few entourages.He came without prior notice. Although Jing Hu was surprised, he was very excited.
"I got something incredible, and I brought it here for you to see!" Usami ordered his attendants to put down the box they were carrying, and took out something wrapped in black cloth from it, "This thing is called a musket."
Jing Hu was shocked: "Oh! Did you really get it?"
Usami still looked calm as usual, but there was a smile on her face that couldn't be concealed.
Jing Hu's face was flushed and his eyes were piercing. He said excitedly, "I heard that some people use it in the capital and the Western Kingdom. Recently, even Odawara in the Kanto has been used. Have you used it? Does it work?"
"Look at it first, it looks weird!"
Usami unhurriedly uncovered the black cloth, held the gun in both hands and handed it to Jinghu.
"I've never seen anything like this before, it's quite heavy!" Jing Hu looked carefully, and asked, looking into the mouth of the gun barrel, "Is this the hole? It allows bullets, astonishing sound and gunpowder smoke to burst out at the same time."
The musket was introduced to Tanegashima in Osumi four years ago. The following year, Tanegashima could completely imitate it, and the manufacturing method was also introduced to Sakai Port the following year.The speed of spread was because Tanegashima was the only place where Japanese pirates and Japanese overseas trade ships invaded the coast of China and the South Seas at that time, and the owner of Tanegashima, Shiyao, did not regard this as a treasured secret at all.It was said that Shi Yao was only sixteen years old at the time, and bought one for two thousand taels of gold, but he just thought it was a novelty, and had no intention of using it as a cutting-edge weapon.
"How? Have you used it? Has it worked?" Jing Hu asked again.
"This thing is very useful, but it's useless in rainy weather, and it can't be shot far. It can be hit correctly within 40 meters at most. If the distance is farther, it is easy to miss the target. Also, I used it once It is very troublesome to use again, not as convenient and fast as bows and arrows. Speaking of which, these are not big problems. It's not good at all!"
"Then this one's for me! Much appreciated!"
"Please accept it!"
"Did someone from Sakai Port get it?"
"It was sold by someone from Masaburo Tachibana's family over there. Tachibana House has a nickname called 'Musker Ghost' in the West Country."
"Five hundred taels is not cheap."
"He said that when the Nanman people first brought them to Tanegashima, they sold for two thousand taels, which is not expensive in comparison."
"As long as it's powerful, it doesn't matter if it's more expensive. Did he say how powerful it is?"
"He didn't say, but the power is very strong. Once shot, the power is incomparable with bows and arrows, and the sound it makes is terrible. It is very effective in defeating the enemy's spirit. In short, you will know after trying it. Go to the shooting range go?"
"Okay! Wait, let everyone see it."
Jing Hu found all the retainers in the city.Honjo Keihide, Kanetsu Shinhei, Oni Kojima Yataro, Tokura Yohachiro, Sone Heihei, Akiyama Genzo, etc. were all present, but Shibata Sobusuke was not there, and Kagetora sent someone to find him.
"It seems that everyone is here, oh, and Matsue, go and call her!" Jinjin Xinbingwei said.
Yataro quickly declined: "Forget it, she is a woman."
"How can this be done? It can't be called Songjiang. She is a generation of female generals in this city. It is necessary to see such terrible war weapons. Besides, if you don't find her, she will be endless in the future, especially you Yataro. It’s hard work, if she blames it when the time comes, we’ll say it’s all your idea, and we’ll see how you explain it to her!” Everyone threatened in unison.
Yataro got up immediately, "That's okay, I'll call her!"
Everyone laughed.
Matsue gave birth to a boy last spring, who was strong and fat, and Jing Hu named him Yahiko Maru.Although Song Jiang is a good mother, the vulgar words and deeds of the country women have not changed.
After Matsue arrived, Usami asked them to take over the muskets one by one for observation, gave a brief explanation, and then went to the shooting range together.
On a clear autumn afternoon, the sun shone warmly on the earth, and the birds kept singing.
Usami told the samurai: "The power of this gun hitting the target cannot be seen with the naked eye, so it needs to be specially arranged."
The samurai drew a bull's-eye on a one-inch-thick, one-foot-square plank. He filled the chamber of the foreign gun with a tin stick, stuffed the gunpowder into the burner, and clamped the matchlock. Every movement was slow and careful.
"Indeed, it cannot be used on rainy days, and the fire will go out." Jing Hu said.
"Yes, this crater--it's called a crater--is no use if the powder is wet."
"yes?"
"However, in fine weather like today, it is very effective. Look, the sound is terrible. Take care."
Usami set up the gun, lit the matchlock, and pulled the trigger.There was a thundering sound in my ears, and the target had burst into two halves.
"Amazing!"
Jing Hu was amazed, and everyone echoed, among them, Songjiang's voice was especially loud: "Ah! It's such a loud voice, the child must be so frightened that he can't stop crying when he hears it!"
Usami handed the musket to Jing Hu: "Try it!"
Jing Hu followed Usami's instructions one by one to load and aim, and fired towards the new target, and he hit it steadily.
"Excellent, the bow and arrow can't follow the sound like this, it is better than the bow and arrow!"
Jing Hu was very satisfied, tried it again, and handed it over to his retainers to let them try it too.Most of them can hit, even if they miss the target, the difference is only three inches.
After the four of them shot in turn, the barrel of the gun was so hot that they couldn't hold it with their hands.The fifth Yataro Kojima who received the gun touched the gun with his hand, "It's hot!" He dodged his hand, and was afraid that the gun would fall to the ground, so he pinched the wooden butt with his fingertips, and everyone laughed.
Seeing this, Usami said: "I just forgot, this is also a shortcoming of the musket. It can only be fired six times at most. This is the case in this season, and the barrel burns faster in summer."
"So, its functions are limited after all!"
"indeed."
Yataro was followed by Matsue, but she refused to reach out her hand: "It's so scary! I will never touch that kind of thing!"
No matter how anyone persuades her, she just refuses, so she has no choice but to give up.
On the way back, everyone expressed their opinions on the musket. The conclusions were all: "This thing can't be used in rainy weather. It can only hit about forty meters. It takes a lot of time to reload. It's so expensive. It's not very useful. For signaling."
Jinghu and Usami heard it in their ears, and didn't say anything, they just smiled.
Usami stayed for one night, then said goodbye and went back. Jing Hu seems to like muskets very much. He goes to the shooting range to practice every day, and sometimes drags his retainers to practice together. They don't seem to be very motivated, but under Jing Hu's insistence, he has to follow orders. During this period, one afternoon, Qingjing summoned Hattori Genki to Kasugayama Castle. Xuangui's house is at the outermost end of the samurai's house under the city.When Qingjing's emissary came, he was chatting ramblingly with another person in the inner room. Xuan Gui is nearly fifty years old, although his body still looks very strong, but his face is very old, full of small wrinkles, and his hair is all white.The man he was talking to was a muscular, though not massive, man with a bushy beard and sharp eyes, a very athletic man of about thirty. He only came to Xuan Gui's place a month ago and stayed here. He is a fellow villager of Xuan Gui.Their conversations covered almost the whole country, and Iga was the one they talked about most. "Judging from that posture, it is probably a personal warrior in the city, I will avoid it first!" The man said so as soon as he heard footsteps in the hallway, got up quietly, and walked along the corridor to hide in the further room.His footsteps are ordinary, but as silent as stepping on the air. Xuan Gui also got up and walked to the entrance.Sure enough, it was the familiar Qingjing personal warrior, Xuangui immediately knelt on the ground, "Your Majesty, what advice do you have?" "My lord has called you urgently!" "Yes, I'll go right away." "Just wait at the old place!" "yes." After watching the samurai leave, Xuan Gui went back to the inner room, changed his clothes and prepared to go out. The man also returned to the room just now, and said with a smile, "What could it be? From my point of view, it must be his brother Jing Hu's business!" "Probably!" Xuan Gui took out the small mirror in his arms, and combed his slightly messy temple hair in front of the mirror. The man said again: "It's fine to just ignore that kind of thing, but make a big deal out of it, just like a fool turning a small pustule into a big malignant tumor. I think it is so stupid that there is no cure." Xuan Gui said without turning his head: "It's not my job to think about those things. I'm leaving, please take a look at the house!" As soon as Xuan Gui left, the man lay down on the tatami, rested his arms on his pillow, closed his eyes, and calmed down.I don't know if he fell asleep or not, and I didn't see the slightest breath. Soon, Xuangui followed Qingjing's instructions and knelt beside the seat in the gazebo in the backyard.In spring, the old papaya tree with red flowers bends its trunk like a snake and stretches out its dense branches and leaves.Before Wei Jing was alive, he always conveyed secret orders to him here. Although Xuan Gui waited for a long time, his kneeling posture did not move. He lowered his head, showing his whole white hair, like a statue.Soon, the sound of clogs stepping on the stepping stones approached, Qingjing walked in front, and Fujishi followed.Xuan Gui didn't look up, he knew it was vine purple from the sound of footsteps and the smell of spices on his clothes. The two walked into the pavilion, Qingjing sat down, and Fujizi stood behind him. "My lord is calling, do you have any important orders?" "I want you to go to Tochio. You probably know what's going on! That bastard, who doesn't care about his brother, always comes up with terrible ideas. I think I'll just let him disappear. It's you If you handle it well, I will give you several times more gold." As he spoke, he threw a bag of placer gold in front of Xuangui.He was addicted to drinking and sex all day, but he was out of breath after saying such a few words, but the anger welling up in his heart was hard to suppress, so he continued to say in a trembling voice: "Brother Xinfatian is also hateful! However, as long as you kill Sabujie, as long as you can kill Jinghu and Sabujie, you can ask for rewards. If you want gold and silver, you have gold and silver, and you want territory. I will never Breaking my promise..." He still wanted to speak, but his breath was too fast, he could only shrug his shoulders and stare at Xuan Gui. Holding the gold dust in both hands, Xuan Gui said in a low voice after a moment of silence: "It is my job to obey the lord's orders, and I dare not refuse, but I am already old, and I feel weak for a while..." Qingjing abruptly interrupted him: "You mean you won't go?" "How dare I, I said I dare not refuse, although I want to go, but..." Xuangui's tone remained steady, but he raised his head to look up at Qingjing for the first time.On Qingjing's unhealthy and unpleasant fat face, she tried to keep her eyes open, and stared at Xuangui with a needle-like gaze under her swollen eyelids. "What the hell do you mean?" Xuan Gui lowered his eyes again, "I want to find a helper. It happens that there is a fellow named 'Fei Jiadang' living in my house, and I want to go with him. If the matter goes well, let him take over as my assistant. The lord has served you, and I can retire and return to my hometown, I don't know what the lord wants?" As long as Jinghu can be killed, no matter what method is used, Qingjing has no objection, and he has no reluctance to Xuan Gui. "Okay! Just do it your way." "Thank you, my lord!" At this time, Fuji Zi suddenly said: "You are also very clear about the matter of Gen Saburo. You brought our sister and brother here at the beginning, and the fate of each other is not shallow. I hope you can wash away this grievance for him!" After finishing speaking, she covered her sleeves and cried bitterly!No matter how vicious her heart is, the sad appearance of the pear blossom with rain is really touching, but Xuan Gui still lowered his eyes and didn't look at her, just whispered: "Madam's condolences!" At this time, Fujizi leaned close to Qingjing's ear, and said something, but Qingjing nodded frequently, and got up immediately after listening, "Wait here for a while!" Then, leave with Fuji Zi. Xuan Gui still squatted motionless.The sun was in the shade, and there was a little wind, and the trees around were rustling.The temperature at the waterside dropped rapidly, water droplets appeared from Xuangui's nose, the water droplets gradually expanded, and dropped to the ground drop by drop, but Xuangui still did not move. When Qingjing and Fujizi returned, the sky was already dark. "I think, just talking about it, I'm afraid you will think it's empty, so I wrote it down, you take it!" Fuji Zi took out the document and handed it to Xuangui. Xuan Gui spread it out and saw that it was indeed Qingjing's handwriting, which said, "After the job is done, I will hire the person you recommend, and reward you as you wish!" There is also Qingjing's signature and monogram. Fuji Zi put another bag of placer gold in front of the silent Xuan Gui. Qingjing said: "This is a reward for that Feijia!" In the early morning of the next day, Xuan Gui and Fei Jiadang left Chunri Mountain City and headed north.Xuan Gui dressed up as a wandering monk, while Fei Jiadang dressed up as a mountain monk.They traveled very fast and reached the top of Mishan Mountain at noon.
The two ninjas—Genki and Feikato—arrived at the top of the hill overlooking Tochio Castle at ten o'clock that night. They sat side by side under the big rock that stood on the slope of the grassy hill, staring at Tochio Castle at the bottom of the dark valley for a long time. "Are you going to act now?" Fei Jiadang asked in a low voice. "Not tonight, I'm a little tired after walking for a whole day!" Gadang showed his white teeth, and said with a smile, "Even someone like Hattori Genki can't beat his age?" Xuangui smiled honestly and said, "Yes! However, since I was young, I never did anything when I was tired, lest I get half the result with twice the effort!" Jiadang was speechless, and stared at the city again, "It doesn't look like a very difficult city to attack! That's fine, let's talk about it after we have enough energy." "Let's find a hiding place first! It's not an option to stay here all the time!" The two went up the grassy mountain, entered the forest, and found a temporary shelter under a big rock surrounded by tree roots.The trees have luxuriant branches and leaves, and the rocks are like screens, which can block the wind and are not easy for human eyes to detect. The Mid-Autumn Festival has passed, and although the night wind on the mountain is cold, they cannot light a fire to keep warm.Wet the dry food with water, chewed and swallowed it with dried bonito flakes, and fell asleep after filling the stomach. Xuan Gui was tired, listening to the wind rustling through the treetops and the fallen leaves falling on the ground, unconsciously becoming dazed, but suddenly opened his eyes again. "What did you say?" His eyes were wide open, but there was no movement in the posture of lying on his back like a shrimp with his arms under his head. Caden replied: "Ah! Did I say it aloud?" The voice came from Xuan Gui's feet. "Can't sleep?" "yes!" "Sleep! I'm tired." "Well!" After the two fell silent, the sound of wind and falling leaves continued. Xuangui wanted to sleep, but he didn't feel sleepy. He turned over several times, but couldn't fall asleep. "Gadam." "Haven't slept yet? Aren't you tired?" There was a smile in the voice. "I'm tired, but I can't sleep. You woke me up just now when I closed my eyes. I feel better now." "Ha ha……" Jia Dang laughed softly, got up and sat next to Xuan Gui's pillow with his knees hugged. "Get up! I have something to tell you." "Well……" Xuan Gui got up rustlingly, he coughed a few times, his white hair was clearly visible at night. "Your skills seem to be rusty!" Jia Dan's tone seemed to be pitiful. "It's unfamiliar. I'm almost fifty years old." Gadang didn't answer, and looked up at the night sky as if reciting the wind and moon.The swaying branches rustled, and the stars shone brightly in the dark blue sky. Jia Dang remained motionless, and said, "Do you think Mr. Qingjing still has a future?" Xuan Gui understood the meaning of his question too well, but did not answer. Gadden added: "I really don't agree with what he has done. Although I am the person you specially hired to help, and I shouldn't say such things, I don't think he can make me feel at ease. People! I heard that Mr. Jing Hu's character is much better than him." "Hearing what you said, do you want to turn your back on Lord Qing Jing and seek refuge with Lord Jing Hu?" "Ha ha ha ha!" "I think it's probably right! However, Lord Qing Jing is the head of the Nagao family in Kasuga Mountain, the leader of the Nagao clan, and the person who manages the country as a guardian. Although his character has problems, his status is enough to rely on. In short , I have already promised Mr. Qingjing, and Mr. Jinghu seems to hate people like us very much. I have made up my mind, if you feel bad, I can't help it." Xuangui's tone seemed displeased, and Jiadang laughed again. "Are you obsessed with Fujizi? Or are you thinking of Gensaburo?" Xuan Gui didn't make a sound right away, he lowered his head and kept quiet for a long time, then said: "What are you talking about! Who dares to touch the person whom the lord loves?! It's just that I bought those two from the courtier's house in Kyoto, I feel sorry for them! " Kadang sighed: "Genki Hattori is old after all." "So! I want to give up my seat to you, and I will return home myself!" "..." "Sleep! Anyway, let's sleep." He let out a low yawn and rolled over. Caden was still next to his pillow, and soon fell back to the place where he had been lying.
The next morning, before the sun had risen, the two woke up to the sound of pulsatillas flying and noisy in the forest.There are icy pillars of frost standing in the woods, and the outside of the forest is covered with a layer of soft white frost like snow. "Last night, I thought it was still so cold even though the wind stopped. It must be frost! Sure enough." Jia Dang rubbed his face covered with thick beard with both hands, making a sound like grinding something. The two stood up together, only to hear the sound of flapping wings, and the voice of the Pulsatilla disappeared suddenly. Xuan Gui said: "There are so many pulsatillas, there must be many mussels in the forest!" He tilted his head, his face was covered with goosebumps from the cold, and under the white hair, the wrinkles on his face were deeper, showing a somewhat miserable appearance. "Have you caught a cold?" "It doesn't matter, it will warm up later." They eat like they did the night before. It didn't take long for the sun to rise and the surrounding air to warm up. They didn't go out of the woods, but just moved with the place where the sun shines, or moved their bodies, or squatted and knelt down, lying on the ground to pass the time. At noon, Jiadan suddenly said: "Would you like to see what I practiced recently?" Work done." Xuan Gui hugged his knees and dozed off. He slightly opened his eyes, and lazily said: "Oh, yes!" "This is a trick to conceal people's eyes, very good!" Jiadang stood up, stretched out the Vajra Staff and pointed forward: "We will proceed between this big red pine and that big tree with a bit bald trunk. After I appeared in the middle , you can throw me a stone, you can take anything, a knife or a dagger." "You are very confident! Just let me see!" Xuan Gui seemed to be interested, and he sat down. "Please!" Leaning on a stick, Jiadan strode towards the opposite side, disappeared into a clump of woods, and after a while, suddenly appeared in the opposite direction and walked to the designated place.He moved step by step, stepping on the fallen leaves and making a rustling sound. Soon, he walked into the designated area, his footsteps remained unchanged, but when he reached the middle, he stopped and looked back at Xuan Gui.The light from between the branches and leaves shone on his face, with a smile, and the white teeth gleamed sharply in the red lips exposed by the thick short beard.Xuan Gui was already holding a stone in his hand, and he hit it silently.The stone flew through the trees like a lead wire, and hit Jiadan's forehead impartially.The skin split open instantly, and I thought the blood would splash in all directions, but I saw Jiadang lying on his back and standing upright like a stick. Xuan Gui couldn't help applauding in a low voice. At this time, something floated down from a tall tree, it was Jiadang, he smiled, picked up Xuangui's vest from his feet, and touched it at some point.He came back shaking his vest. Xuan Gui praised again: "It's amazing. Although I discovered it after throwing the stone, I didn't notice it at all before that. If I were an outsider, I wouldn't be able to detect it!"
That night, the mysterious ghost sneaked into Tochio Castle in the middle of the night.He was alone, dressed in a dark brown ninja outfit. When going down the mountain, Jiadang asked him: "I will go too!" But he refused, saying: "Just go to see the situation tonight, it's fine to be alone, and you can come together when you want to do it!" He jumped over the city without any difficulty, climbed the wall and entered the city, and moved freely like a fish in water.Fast or slow, moving from dark place to dark place, as if coming to a place where the terrain is familiar, and there is no way to get lost.Although he had just arrived in this city, he found where Jing Hu was safely by relying on his innate and cultivated keen senses. He found a wide courtyard with a large room on the opposite side.In the whole city, it seemed that only the people inside were awake, and there were still bright lights shining through the paper windows. Xuan Gui hid among the pine trees in a corner of the yard, he breathed a sigh of relief, supported the rough tree trunk with one hand, and stroked his forehead with the other.Because I was too nervous, I was sweating all over, and my fingertips were slippery. Xuan Gui stared at the transparent paper window first, so as to calm down, then closed his eyes, erected all his nerves to observe the movement in the room. It was true that someone in the room was awake, and there was a sound of raising their knees from time to time, but no one moved.He judged from the voice that there was a short young man in the room. He often saw Jing Hu from a distance, so he was right to judge that the person in the room was Jing Hu, but he couldn't deduce what he was doing at all.Maybe he was practicing the swordsmanship of cutting people, but there should be the sound of slashing the knife and cutting the wind and the sound of the knife returning to its sheath, but he didn't hear it after listening for a long time. If you can't perceive what the subject is doing just by sound or feeling, you are not qualified as a ninja.Xuangui couldn't help feeling resentment, he felt Jiadang's smiling tone more clearly: "Is even someone like Hattori Xuangui getting old?!" Xuan Gui left the bushes and moved closer to the room.He floated lightly among the shadows of stones and bushes like a black butterfly or a bat, and soon approached the edge of the porch, holding his breath and meditating again. The sound became clearer, the sound of the soles of the feet rubbing against the floor, the raised knees, the person seemed to be leaning on the knees, but he still couldn't figure out what he was doing.Now, there is no other way but to peek. Like a snake sticking its head out of the grass, he was about to climb up the porch cautiously when he suddenly thought of something and secretly screamed that something was wrong.Only then did he realize that he was carrying the certificate written to him by Qingjing in his arms. He planned to give it to Jiadang before he came out, in case he fell into the hands of others if he missed, but after thinking about it, he still forgot.He had never been so negligent. "After all, I'm getting old..." He felt his confidence melting like a pillar of frost in the sun. He sneaked under the floor of the corridor and lay still on his stomach, thinking: "Let's stay on guard tonight, don't act recklessly at this time." The sound in the room kept urging him to find out. "It's okay to take a peek. If you are found and run away, there is no loss." Then, like an otter climbing out of the water, he rolled onto the porch, lightly and silently.When he stuck into the crack of the paper door, he smelled a strange stench, like something burning, but he couldn't figure out what it was.Just when he was about to pull away, there was a loud noise that shook the sky and the earth, and at the same time he felt a terrifying force hit his chest. When he was conscious, he was lying on his back on the ground in front of the corridor. "There are assassins! Come!" The people in the room opened the paper door and yelled loudly. Xuan Gui saw that it was Jing Hu, and struggled to get up, but couldn't do what he wanted.The chest that had been hit felt weird. He touched it with his hand and found that his clothes were torn, and there was a big hole in his chest as if it had been gouged out. It was wet and sticky, and he didn't need to guess that it was blood. He wanted to dispose of the letter Qingjing gave him, he reached into his arms and took out the letter, struggled to put it into his mouth, bit it in half, and was about to swallow it when Jinghu saw it on the corridor, and immediately jumped down to grab the letter , Xuan Gui's teeth could not be closed tightly, so he simply took a dagger to pry open Xuan Gui's teeth and took the letter away. Xuangui was powerless, a large pool of blood flowed out from the corner of his mouth, his consciousness faded away, but he still whispered: "I know, it's a musket!" Unfortunately, to Jing Hu's ears, this sound was like the sound of foam disappearing in blood water. The servant rushed over upon hearing the sound, and Jing Hu put the letter into his arms.
Usami stayed for one night, then said goodbye and went back. Jing Hu seems to like muskets very much. He goes to the shooting range to practice every day, and sometimes drags his retainers to practice together. They don't seem to be very motivated, but under Jing Hu's insistence, he has to follow orders. During this period, one afternoon, Qingjing summoned Hattori Genki to Kasugayama Castle. Xuangui's house is at the outermost end of the samurai's house under the city.When Qingjing's emissary came, he was chatting ramblingly with another person in the inner room. Xuan Gui is nearly fifty years old, although his body still looks very strong, but his face is very old, full of small wrinkles, and his hair is all white.The man he was talking to was a muscular, though not massive, man with a bushy beard and sharp eyes, a very athletic man of about thirty. He only came to Xuan Gui's place a month ago and stayed here. He is a fellow villager of Xuan Gui.Their conversations covered almost the whole country, and Iga was the one they talked about most. "Judging from that posture, it is probably a personal warrior in the city, I will avoid it first!" The man said so as soon as he heard footsteps in the hallway, got up quietly, and walked along the corridor to hide in the further room.His footsteps are ordinary, but as silent as stepping on the air. Xuan Gui also got up and walked to the entrance.Sure enough, it was the familiar Qingjing personal warrior, Xuangui immediately knelt on the ground, "Your Majesty, what advice do you have?" "My lord has called you urgently!" "Yes, I'll go right away." "Just wait at the old place!" "yes." After watching the samurai leave, Xuan Gui went back to the inner room, changed his clothes and prepared to go out. The man also returned to the room just now, and said with a smile, "What could it be? From my point of view, it must be his brother Jing Hu's business!" "Probably!" Xuan Gui took out the small mirror in his arms, and combed his slightly messy temple hair in front of the mirror. The man said again: "It's fine to just ignore that kind of thing, but make a big deal out of it, just like a fool turning a small pustule into a big malignant tumor. I think it is so stupid that there is no cure." Xuan Gui said without turning his head: "It's not my job to think about those things. I'm leaving, please take a look at the house!" As soon as Xuan Gui left, the man lay down on the tatami, rested his arms on his pillow, closed his eyes, and calmed down.I don't know if he fell asleep or not, and I didn't see the slightest breath. Soon, Xuangui followed Qingjing's instructions and knelt beside the seat in the gazebo in the backyard.In spring, the old papaya tree with red flowers bends its trunk like a snake and stretches out its dense branches and leaves.Before Wei Jing was alive, he always conveyed secret orders to him here. Although Xuan Gui waited for a long time, his kneeling posture did not move. He lowered his head, showing his whole white hair, like a statue.Soon, the sound of clogs stepping on the stepping stones approached, Qingjing walked in front, and Fujishi followed.Xuan Gui didn't look up, he knew it was vine purple from the sound of footsteps and the smell of spices on his clothes. The two walked into the pavilion, Qingjing sat down, and Fujizi stood behind him. "My lord is calling, do you have any important orders?" "I want you to go to Tochio. You probably know what's going on! That bastard, who doesn't care about his brother, always comes up with terrible ideas. I think I'll just let him disappear. It's you If you handle it well, I will give you several times more gold." As he spoke, he threw a bag of placer gold in front of Xuangui.He was addicted to drinking and sex all day, but he was out of breath after saying such a few words, but the anger welling up in his heart was hard to suppress, so he continued to say in a trembling voice: "Brother Xinfatian is also hateful! However, as long as you kill Sabujie, as long as you can kill Jinghu and Sabujie, you can ask for rewards. If you want gold and silver, you have gold and silver, and you want territory. I will never Breaking my promise..." He still wanted to speak, but his breath was too fast, he could only shrug his shoulders and stare at Xuan Gui. Holding the gold dust in both hands, Xuan Gui said in a low voice after a moment of silence: "It is my job to obey the lord's orders, and I dare not refuse, but I am already old, and I feel weak for a while..." Qingjing abruptly interrupted him: "You mean you won't go?" "How dare I, I said I dare not refuse, although I want to go, but..." Xuangui's tone remained steady, but he raised his head to look up at Qingjing for the first time.On Qingjing's unhealthy and unpleasant fat face, she tried to keep her eyes open, and stared at Xuangui with a needle-like gaze under her swollen eyelids. "What the hell do you mean?" Xuan Gui lowered his eyes again, "I want to find a helper. It happens that there is a fellow named 'Fei Jiadang' living in my house, and I want to go with him. If the matter goes well, let him take over as my assistant. The lord has served you, and I can retire and return to my hometown, I don't know what the lord wants?" As long as Jinghu can be killed, no matter what method is used, Qingjing has no objection, and he has no reluctance to Xuan Gui. "Okay! Just do it your way." "Thank you, my lord!" At this time, Fuji Zi suddenly said: "You are also very clear about the matter of Gen Saburo. You brought our sister and brother here at the beginning, and the fate of each other is not shallow. I hope you can wash away this grievance for him!" After finishing speaking, she covered her sleeves and cried bitterly!No matter how vicious her heart is, the sad appearance of the pear blossom with rain is really touching, but Xuan Gui still lowered his eyes and didn't look at her, just whispered: "Madam's condolences!" At this time, Fujizi leaned close to Qingjing's ear, and said something, but Qingjing nodded frequently, and got up immediately after listening, "Wait here for a while!" Then, leave with Fuji Zi. Xuan Gui still squatted motionless.The sun was in the shade, and there was a little wind, and the trees around were rustling.The temperature at the waterside dropped rapidly, water droplets appeared from Xuangui's nose, the water droplets gradually expanded, and dropped to the ground drop by drop, but Xuangui still did not move. When Qingjing and Fujizi returned, the sky was already dark. "I think, just talking about it, I'm afraid you will think it's empty, so I wrote it down, you take it!" Fuji Zi took out the document and handed it to Xuangui. Xuan Gui spread it out and saw that it was indeed Qingjing's handwriting, which said, "After the job is done, I will hire the person you recommend, and reward you as you wish!" There is also Qingjing's signature and monogram. Fuji Zi put another bag of placer gold in front of the silent Xuan Gui. Qingjing said: "This is a reward for that Feijia!" In the early morning of the next day, Xuan Gui and Fei Jiadang left Chunri Mountain City and headed north.Xuan Gui dressed up as a wandering monk, while Fei Jiadang dressed up as a mountain monk.They traveled very fast and reached the top of Mishan Mountain at noon.
The two ninjas—Genki and Feikato—arrived at the top of the hill overlooking Tochio Castle at ten o'clock that night. They sat side by side under the big rock that stood on the slope of the grassy hill, staring at Tochio Castle at the bottom of the dark valley for a long time. "Are you going to act now?" Fei Jiadang asked in a low voice. "Not tonight, I'm a little tired after walking for a whole day!" Gadang showed his white teeth, and said with a smile, "Even someone like Hattori Genki can't beat his age?" Xuangui smiled honestly and said, "Yes! However, since I was young, I never did anything when I was tired, lest I get half the result with twice the effort!" Jiadang was speechless, and stared at the city again, "It doesn't look like a very difficult city to attack! That's fine, let's talk about it after we have enough energy." "Let's find a hiding place first! It's not an option to stay here all the time!" The two went up the grassy mountain, entered the forest, and found a temporary shelter under a big rock surrounded by tree roots.The trees have luxuriant branches and leaves, and the rocks are like screens, which can block the wind and are not easy for human eyes to detect. The Mid-Autumn Festival has passed, and although the night wind on the mountain is cold, they cannot light a fire to keep warm.Wet the dry food with water, chewed and swallowed it with dried bonito flakes, and fell asleep after filling the stomach. Xuan Gui was tired, listening to the wind rustling through the treetops and the fallen leaves falling on the ground, unconsciously becoming dazed, but suddenly opened his eyes again. "What did you say?" His eyes were wide open, but there was no movement in the posture of lying on his back like a shrimp with his arms under his head. Caden replied: "Ah! Did I say it aloud?" The voice came from Xuan Gui's feet. "Can't sleep?" "yes!" "Sleep! I'm tired." "Well!" After the two fell silent, the sound of wind and falling leaves continued. Xuangui wanted to sleep, but he didn't feel sleepy. He turned over several times, but couldn't fall asleep. "Gadam." "Haven't slept yet? Aren't you tired?" There was a smile in the voice. "I'm tired, but I can't sleep. You woke me up just now when I closed my eyes. I feel better now." "Ha ha……" Jia Dang laughed softly, got up and sat next to Xuan Gui's pillow with his knees hugged. "Get up! I have something to tell you." "Well……" Xuan Gui got up rustlingly, he coughed a few times, his white hair was clearly visible at night. "Your skills seem to be rusty!" Jia Dan's tone seemed to be pitiful. "It's unfamiliar. I'm almost fifty years old." Gadang didn't answer, and looked up at the night sky as if reciting the wind and moon.The swaying branches rustled, and the stars shone brightly in the dark blue sky. Jia Dang remained motionless, and said, "Do you think Mr. Qingjing still has a future?" Xuan Gui understood the meaning of his question too well, but did not answer. Gadden added: "I really don't agree with what he has done. Although I am the person you specially hired to help, and I shouldn't say such things, I don't think he can make me feel at ease. People! I heard that Mr. Jing Hu's character is much better than him." "Hearing what you said, do you want to turn your back on Lord Qing Jing and seek refuge with Lord Jing Hu?" "Ha ha ha ha!" "I think it's probably right! However, Lord Qing Jing is the head of the Nagao family in Kasuga Mountain, the leader of the Nagao clan, and the person who manages the country as a guardian. Although his character has problems, his status is enough to rely on. In short , I have already promised Mr. Qingjing, and Mr. Jinghu seems to hate people like us very much. I have made up my mind, if you feel bad, I can't help it." Xuangui's tone seemed displeased, and Jiadang laughed again. "Are you obsessed with Fujizi? Or are you thinking of Gensaburo?" Xuan Gui didn't make a sound right away, he lowered his head and kept quiet for a long time, then said: "What are you talking about! Who dares to touch the person whom the lord loves?! It's just that I bought those two from the courtier's house in Kyoto, I feel sorry for them! " Kadang sighed: "Genki Hattori is old after all." "So! I want to give up my seat to you, and I will return home myself!" "..." "Sleep! Anyway, let's sleep." He let out a low yawn and rolled over. Caden was still next to his pillow, and soon fell back to the place where he had been lying.
The next morning, before the sun had risen, the two woke up to the sound of pulsatillas flying and noisy in the forest.There are icy pillars of frost standing in the woods, and the outside of the forest is covered with a layer of soft white frost like snow. "Last night, I thought it was still so cold even though the wind stopped. It must be frost! Sure enough." Jia Dang rubbed his face covered with thick beard with both hands, making a sound like grinding something. The two stood up together, only to hear the sound of flapping wings, and the voice of the Pulsatilla disappeared suddenly. Xuan Gui said: "There are so many pulsatillas, there must be many mussels in the forest!" He tilted his head, his face was covered with goosebumps from the cold, and under the white hair, the wrinkles on his face were deeper, showing a somewhat miserable appearance. "Have you caught a cold?" "It doesn't matter, it will warm up later." They eat like they did the night before. It didn't take long for the sun to rise and the surrounding air to warm up. They didn't go out of the woods, but just moved with the place where the sun shines, or moved their bodies, or squatted and knelt down, lying on the ground to pass the time. At noon, Jiadan suddenly said: "Would you like to see what I practiced recently?" Work done." Xuan Gui hugged his knees and dozed off. He slightly opened his eyes, and lazily said: "Oh, yes!" "This is a trick to conceal people's eyes, very good!" Jiadang stood up, stretched out the Vajra Staff and pointed forward: "We will proceed between this big red pine and that big tree with a bit bald trunk. After I appeared in the middle , you can throw me a stone, you can take anything, a knife or a dagger." "You are very confident! Just let me see!" Xuan Gui seemed to be interested, and he sat down. "Please!" Leaning on a stick, Jiadan strode towards the opposite side, disappeared into a clump of woods, and after a while, suddenly appeared in the opposite direction and walked to the designated place.He moved step by step, stepping on the fallen leaves and making a rustling sound. Soon, he walked into the designated area, his footsteps remained unchanged, but when he reached the middle, he stopped and looked back at Xuan Gui.The light from between the branches and leaves shone on his face, with a smile, and the white teeth gleamed sharply in the red lips exposed by the thick short beard.Xuan Gui was already holding a stone in his hand, and he hit it silently.The stone flew through the trees like a lead wire, and hit Jiadan's forehead impartially.The skin split open instantly, and I thought the blood would splash in all directions, but I saw Jiadang lying on his back and standing upright like a stick. Xuan Gui couldn't help applauding in a low voice. At this time, something floated down from a tall tree, it was Jiadang, he smiled, picked up Xuangui's vest from his feet, and touched it at some point.He came back shaking his vest. Xuan Gui praised again: "It's amazing. Although I discovered it after throwing the stone, I didn't notice it at all before that. If I were an outsider, I wouldn't be able to detect it!"
That night, the mysterious ghost sneaked into Tochio Castle in the middle of the night.He was alone, dressed in a dark brown ninja outfit. When going down the mountain, Jiadang asked him: "I will go too!" But he refused, saying: "Just go to see the situation tonight, it's fine to be alone, and you can come together when you want to do it!" He jumped over the city without any difficulty, climbed the wall and entered the city, and moved freely like a fish in water.Fast or slow, moving from dark place to dark place, as if coming to a place where the terrain is familiar, and there is no way to get lost.Although he had just arrived in this city, he found where Jing Hu was safely by relying on his innate and cultivated keen senses. He found a wide courtyard with a large room on the opposite side.In the whole city, it seemed that only the people inside were awake, and there were still bright lights shining through the paper windows. Xuan Gui hid among the pine trees in a corner of the yard, he breathed a sigh of relief, supported the rough tree trunk with one hand, and stroked his forehead with the other.Because I was too nervous, I was sweating all over, and my fingertips were slippery. Xuan Gui stared at the transparent paper window first, so as to calm down, then closed his eyes, erected all his nerves to observe the movement in the room. It was true that someone in the room was awake, and there was a sound of raising their knees from time to time, but no one moved.He judged from the voice that there was a short young man in the room. He often saw Jing Hu from a distance, so he was right to judge that the person in the room was Jing Hu, but he couldn't deduce what he was doing at all.Maybe he was practicing the swordsmanship of cutting people, but there should be the sound of slashing the knife and cutting the wind and the sound of the knife returning to its sheath, but he didn't hear it after listening for a long time. If you can't perceive what the subject is doing just by sound or feeling, you are not qualified as a ninja.Xuangui couldn't help feeling resentment, he felt Jiadang's smiling tone more clearly: "Is even someone like Hattori Xuangui getting old?!" Xuan Gui left the bushes and moved closer to the room.He floated lightly among the shadows of stones and bushes like a black butterfly or a bat, and soon approached the edge of the porch, holding his breath and meditating again. The sound became clearer, the sound of the soles of the feet rubbing against the floor, the raised knees, the person seemed to be leaning on the knees, but he still couldn't figure out what he was doing.Now, there is no other way but to peek. Like a snake sticking its head out of the grass, he was about to climb up the porch cautiously when he suddenly thought of something and secretly screamed that something was wrong.Only then did he realize that he was carrying the certificate written to him by Qingjing in his arms. He planned to give it to Jiadang before he came out, in case he fell into the hands of others if he missed, but after thinking about it, he still forgot.He had never been so negligent. "After all, I'm getting old..." He felt his confidence melting like a pillar of frost in the sun. He sneaked under the floor of the corridor and lay still on his stomach, thinking: "Let's stay on guard tonight, don't act recklessly at this time." The sound in the room kept urging him to find out. "It's okay to take a peek. If you are found and run away, there is no loss." Then, like an otter climbing out of the water, he rolled onto the porch, lightly and silently.When he stuck into the crack of the paper door, he smelled a strange stench, like something burning, but he couldn't figure out what it was.Just when he was about to pull away, there was a loud noise that shook the sky and the earth, and at the same time he felt a terrifying force hit his chest. When he was conscious, he was lying on his back on the ground in front of the corridor. "There are assassins! Come!" The people in the room opened the paper door and yelled loudly. Xuan Gui saw that it was Jing Hu, and struggled to get up, but couldn't do what he wanted.The chest that had been hit felt weird. He touched it with his hand and found that his clothes were torn, and there was a big hole in his chest as if it had been gouged out. It was wet and sticky, and he didn't need to guess that it was blood. He wanted to dispose of the letter Qingjing gave him, he reached into his arms and took out the letter, struggled to put it into his mouth, bit it in half, and was about to swallow it when Jinghu saw it on the corridor, and immediately jumped down to grab the letter , Xuan Gui's teeth could not be closed tightly, so he simply took a dagger to pry open Xuan Gui's teeth and took the letter away. Xuangui was powerless, a large pool of blood flowed out from the corner of his mouth, his consciousness faded away, but he still whispered: "I know, it's a musket!" Unfortunately, to Jing Hu's ears, this sound was like the sound of foam disappearing in blood water. The servant rushed over upon hearing the sound, and Jing Hu put the letter into his arms.