I was a swordsman in ancient Japan

Matsumae Castle, residence of Matsudaira Jonobu

"My lord."

Tachibana knelt on one knee in front of Matsudaira Sadanobu and announced respectfully.

"My lords, you are all here."

Matsudaira Sadanobu was sitting behind a table at this time, writing vigorously.

After Tachibana's voice fell, Matsudaira Sadanobu said in a flat tone:

"Oh, I see."

After finishing speaking, Matsudaira Sadanobu put down the brush in his hand and stood up from behind the table.

At this time, Matsudaira Sadanobu did not dress leisurely.

Instead, he wore the most formal dress of the shogunate officials.

The white undershirt, dark green shoulder jacket and hakama are all as clean as new without exception.

The scapular is embroidered with the family crest of the Tokugawa family that ruled the entire Edo shogunate: the three-leaf sunflower pattern.

Like Matsudaira Sadanobu, Tachibana was wearing the most formal clean dress.The same shamrocks were embroidered on the clothes.

"Tachibana, let's go."

After leaving these words indifferently, Matsudaira Sadanobu supported Wakizawa who was stuck in his left waist, and then strode out of the room.

After Tachibana answered "Yes" loudly, he walked quickly to the knife stand placed in a corner of the room, and took off the sword master Sone Toru of Matsudaira Sadanobu hanging on the knife stand.

Then he hugged Matsudaira Sadanobu's long soni tiger in his arms, and followed behind him at a slow pace of a few steps.

After leaving the room, Matsudaira Dingxin asked Tachibana who was walking behind him without looking back:

"How are the dishes prepared?"

"It's all ready." Tachibana said immediately, "The food can be served at any time."

"Very good." Matsudaira Sadanobu nodded.

Tonight, in this Songqian city, a very grand banquet will be held.

A banquet for Matsudaira Sadanobu, Inamori, the commander-in-chief of the shogunate army, and the generals of the various troops sent by the Ou domains.

There are a total of 31 vassal states in the Ou region. At the request of the shogunate, these 31 vassal states must send their troops north to the Ezo region to assist the shogunate in attacking the Ezos entrenched in the Red Moon Fortress.

31 vassal states, 31 armies yesterday, all of these 31 armies finally arrived at Matsumae Domain.

Because Matsumae Castle is only a small town, so many troops cannot be accommodated, so all the troops are currently scattered in various places in Matsumae Domain.

After receiving the news yesterday that all the troops had successfully landed in the Matsumae Domain, Matsudaira Sadanobu immediately issued an order to the troops:

The generals of the various feudal armies came to Songqian City immediately, and he, Songping Dingxin, was going to hold a banquet in which the generals of the various feudal states' troops would participate.

This banquet can also be regarded as a reception banquet.

On behalf of the shogunate, Matsudaira Sadanobu welcomed and thanked the Ou feudal clans for their assistance.

For this conquest of the Red Moon Fortress, the shogunate planned to dispatch troops of 1 shogunate troops stationed in the north early in the morning with a 5000 army, plus 5000 vassal troops composed of troops from the Ou clan.

At present, the shogunate's goal of "dispatching 1 troops" can be regarded as a successful achievement of the actual number of troops dispatched, and it slightly exceeded the planned target.

A total of about 5300 troops were dispatched by the Ou feudal clans, so the shogunate currently has a total strength of more than 10300 troops gathered in the north.

Among them, Aizu Domain sent the most troops.

The public generally believes that in terms of military power, the Aizu Domain is undoubtedly the number one in Ou.

For the shogunate's recruitment this time, the Aizu Domain did not fall into their title of "Ou's No. 2000 Military Power". They sent a total of [-] troops.

He also brought 90 iron cannons, 2 Guobeng, and 13 large barrels of various types.

Sendai Fan was the second most sent troops.

The Sendai Domain sent 1800 troops.

In addition to having slightly fewer troops than the Aizu Fan, they also brought slightly less firearms than the Aizu Fan. They only brought 75 iron cannons, 1 Guobeng, and 8 large cylinders.

Aizu Domain and Sendai Domain have a combined force of 3800 troops, accounting for more than half of the total number of about 5500.

Troops from another 29 feudal states made up the remaining 1500 men.

In fact, it is not surprising that there is such a situation that the number of troops dispatched by each domain varies from day to day.

Due to the differences in various factors such as territory, grain production, and industrial conditions, the strength of each feudal clan is also very different.

Although there are 31 feudal kingdoms in the Ou area, only the Aizu and Sendai feudal clans can be called "majestic feudal clans".

Of the 31 feudal states in the Ou area, 1 feudal states with a total of only 2 to 16 shi accounted for more than half of the Ou feudal states.

The one who sent the least troops was the "Yonezawa Nitta Fan", which is famous all over the country in the name of poverty, and people all over the country know that the clan is extremely poor. He only sent 20 soldiers.

Among the 31 vassal armies sent to the north, only 7 troops headed by Aizu and Xianzhou were equipped with firearms.

The firearms of these 7 vassal armies plus the firearms of the shogunate army currently have a total of 720 iron cannons, 12 Guobeng, and 81 large cylinders of various types.

Among the feudal clans of Ou, only Aizu and Sendai possessed Kunobeng.

Matsudaira Sadanobu learned 5 days ago that all the firearms of the shogunate and the vassal armies add up, and there are only so few in total.

When receiving this data, Matsudaira Sadanobu felt very heavy.

Because this kind of firepower is completely incomparable with the firepower possessed by the shogunate when the Edo shogunate first opened.

In terms of firepower, it may not be as good as the top princes of the Warring States Period 200 years ago.

In the Warring States Period 200 years ago, Oda Nobunaga, who almost unified the whole world, mobilized more than 3000 iron cannons when he launched the famous decisive battle with the Takeda family.

Matsudaira Sadanobu deeply felt how seriously the power of the shogunate had declined.

At the same time, I also deeply felt the heavy burden on my shoulders as the shogunate.

After walking through a series of corridors, Matsudaira Sadanobu finally listened in front of two elegant paper sliding doors.

Standing in front of the door, after making final adjustments to his clothes and the wakizashi stuck in his left waist, Sadanobu Matsudaira winked at Tachibana behind him.

Tachibana nodded lightly, and then, holding Matsudaira Sadanobu's long sone Kotoru, he stepped forward quickly, and opened the two paper sliding doors for Matsudaira Sadanobu.

With the opening of the paper sliding door, the scene behind the paper sliding door gradually unfolded in Matsudaira Sadanobu's eyes.

Behind the paper sliding door is a huge room.

The floor is covered with clean tatami mats.

The position facing the door is the most honorable chief seat.

So looking in through the paper sliding door, you can see the main seat of the room.

There were two seats on the main seat, one of which was already taken by Inamori.

The other seat was still vacant. This seat was still vacant, which was Matsudaira Sadanobu's seat.

The 31 generals of each vassal army sat on the left and right sides under the main seat in order of status.

After Tachibana opened the sliding paper door and Matsudaira Sadanobu appeared in front of everyone in the room, whether it was Inamori sitting on the main seat or the generals of the 31 vassal armies, they all lowered their heads and respectfully paid respects. Matsudaira Takanobu saluted.

Matsudaira Sadanobu strode into the room, and then sat down in the seat prepared for him early in the morning.

According to the appointment of the shogunate, Inamori will serve as the general of the 1 army composed of the shogunate and Ou feudal clans.

Inamori was promoted again.

From the original general who was stationed in the north and commanded the 5000 shogunate army in the north, he was promoted to the general of the entire army who commanded the 1 allied troops of the shogunate and Ou domains.

And Matsudaira Sadanobu only has the right to supervise this army, and does not have any command power.

But that's all it said, but no matter who, even Inamori, dare not despise Matsudaira Sadanobu, dare not listen to Matsudaira Sadanobu's words.

Who would have the courage not to listen to the words of Matsudaira Sadanobu, the second in command of the shogunate?

Inamori is the main force of the whole army, and although Matsudaira Sadanobu has no command, it is impossible for Matsudaira Sadanobu to sit in a position other than the chief seat.

Therefore, Matsudaira Sadanobu directly instructed that his seat and Inamori's seat be placed side by side on the main seat.

"Masters." Matsudaira Sadanobu, who was sitting on the main seat, said loudly to the people in front of him with a smile on his face, "Thank you for coming."

"On behalf of the shogunate, I would like to thank you."

After saying some routine scenes, Matsudaira Sadanobu asked the attendants to bring the food and announced the start of the banquet.

Plates of delicacies were brought up and placed on the table in front of everyone.

Matsudaira Sadanobu has been vigorously encouraging the officials of the shogunate and vassal government to be diligent and thrifty since he took office as the new and old middle school of the shogunate.

Therefore, in this banquet hosted by Matsudaira Sadanobu, the dishes served are naturally not luxurious, and they are just some local delicacies that are very common in Matsumae.

To add to the fun, Matsudaira Sadanobu also invited some kabuki and maiko to sing and dance.

Amidst the singing and dancing of kabuki and maiko, the banquet scene gradually became lively.

The serious atmosphere that permeated the air slowly dissipated, and it was replaced by joy.

Matsudaira Sadanobu was also smiling at this time, chatting with familiar people.

"Master Gamo." Matsudaira Sadanobu said with a smile to a young man who was sitting not far from him, "How is Master Huizhou's neck recently? Does it still hurt?"

As soon as Matsudaira Sadanobu's words fell, the young man he called "Master Gamo" quickly put down the bowls and chopsticks in his hand, and responded neither humble nor overbearing:

"Thank you for your concern, my lord. My lord recently invited a famous doctor. Under the treatment of that famous doctor, his neck has been much better recently."

The "Master Aizhou" that Matsudaira Sadanobu just said was naturally referring to the current lord of the Aizu Domain.

Matsudaira Sadanobu had a good personal relationship with the lord of the Aizu Domain when he was still the lord of the Shirakawa Domain in the Ou area, a senior middle school who had not yet become the shogunate.

And the young man sitting not far from Matsudaira Josanobu is the well-known fierce general Gamo Gamo in the Aizu Domain.26 years old this year.

Matsudaira Sadanobu has often heard about Gamo's bravery.

Although his height is not particularly tall, only about six feet three inches, he has a very high attainment in the use of Taisao.

The total length of the Taidao is generally slightly longer than that of the Taidao, and it is a sword suitable for wielding on horseback.

In terms of the ability to wield a sword, Gamo has no rival in Ou. Matsudaira Sadanobu has heard such rumors a long time ago.

And Gamo is not someone who has earned his reputation.

As far as Matsudaira Sadanobu knows, Gamo's "Tachijutsu" is a skill created by himself that can explode powerful power on horseback.

Gamo once demonstrated his martial arts in front of the feudal lord of Aizu: with just one horse and one sword, he defeated a 30-man elite cavalry team and became famous in the first battle.

The lord of the Aizu Domain not only sent 2000 troops to help out, but also let his famous warrior lead the team. The loyalty of the Aizu Domain to the shogunate and the positive response to the shogunate's call can be seen.

The 2000 army is already more than half of the military strength of the Aizu Domain.

After talking enthusiastically with Gamo, Matsudaira Sadanobu turned his attention to the middle-aged man sitting beside Gamo.

"Master Shengtianmu, what's the matter? Why do you look like you have no appetite."

"I am laughing at you, my lord." The middle-aged man who was called "Sheng Tianmu" by the old man smiled awkwardly, "As you get older, your appetite gradually decreases, and you can't eat as much as before."

After all, the middle-aged man sighed softly.

"I really miss the days when I was young, when I could eat a big bowl of rice with one fish."

Although this middle-aged man is old, even his beard and hair are slightly gray, but he is actually a famous fighter like Gamo.

However, he is not a fierce general of the Aizu Domain, but the head of the "Seven Swords of Xianzhou" of the Sendai Domain's fierce generals.

The current lord of the Sendai Domain is a person who loves the art of war and martial arts.

He loves the art of war and martial arts, imitating the famous "Qianyue Seven Guns" in the Warring States Period 200 years ago, and set up an honorary title of "Xianzhou Seven Guns".

Award this honorary title to the 7 bravest warriors in the army.

Sheng Tianmu is one of these 7 people and he is also the bravest one.

Sheng Tianmu, who is 43 years old this year, in terms of strength alone, his huge body, which is nearly 6 feet tall, contains the power that does not seem to be possessed by a middle-aged person.

Learned from the ancient style of spearmanship and farming style.He is good at using three guns.

The so-called three guns, as the name suggests, are three guns as long as three guns.

Although Matsudaira Sadanobu has not actually seen the appearance of Shengtianmu in battle, but he has heard of Shengtianmu riding on a horse, brandishing three guns, and roaring loudly, which is enough to remind people of the famous fierce general in history: Tadakatsu Honda, Therefore, some people also call the birth of the Third Eye as "Honta Tadashi is alive".

Honda Tadakatsu was a fierce general under the command of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first general of the Edo shogunate more than 200 years ago. He followed Tokugawa Ieyasu in the southern and northern wars and made great contributions to the establishment of the Edo shogunate.

Because of his bravery in battle, Honda Tadakatsu was crowned as the Three Heroes of Tokugawa, the Four Heavenly Kings of Tokugawa, the Sixteen Gods of Tokugawa, "Japan's No. Fei, the first warrior of the Warring States Period and many other titles.