Spy Wars: I signed in at the Military Police at the beginning

In silence all the way, Zhou Ke followed the old man and led everyone into the gate. After passing through a path in the forest, Zhou Ke suddenly felt that the view in front of him was opened.

Looking forward along the middle road, what comes into view is a mirror-like lake, and when the road reaches the lake, it splits into two left and right roads like a T-junction.

Looking far along the road on the right, there is an antique-looking temple. Except for a bamboo forest at the back, the temple is empty, like a corner forgotten by time.

The road on the left side of the lake leads to a dense forest. From the vaguely visible torii at the entrance of the forest, it is not difficult to judge that there should be a shrine in the forest, but it is unknown to whom it is dedicated.

It was obvious that this place was not a manor as previously speculated.

Zhou Ke followed the old man and walked towards the road leading to the temple. The closer he got to the temple, the more he discovered that the area around the temple was empty. The roadside and the area around the temple were filled with tombstones.

A rough estimate shows that the number is not just a few hundred, but has reached thousands.

As the forest of steles became denser and denser, Zhou Ke followed his grandfather to the temple. Through the gate of the temple, he could faintly hear the humming sound of chanting from inside.

"Zhen Ping, let him rest here for a while. He must be tired after traveling such a long distance."

After entering the temple, at the old man's suggestion, Zhou Ke placed his adoptive father's urn in a reserved location.

The monks in the temple ignored Zhou Ke's actions and continued chanting the scriptures in the same slow and unhurried tone as before, like a group of emotionless chanting machines.

After placing the urn, the grandfather and grandson did not stay in the courtyard for long, but went straight out of the temple, followed by the warriors with flags on their backs, and walked towards the forest that Zhou Ke had just seen, which seemed to be somewhat mysterious.

"Grandpa, I just put my father down. Shouldn't we stay here for a while?" Zhou Ke found that the original relatives did not follow him, so he asked curiously to the old man who was leading the way.

"My dear grandson, we have more important things to do now. We'll come back later." Matsudaira Tadahiro didn't seem surprised by Zhou Ke's address and just continued walking forward.

"Okay, Grandpa."

Zhou Ke didn't say anything more, and followed the old man and the warriors to continue walking in silence. Soon, they came to the old torii that Zhou Ke had noticed before.

Torii generally refers to an ancillary building of a Sakura Shrine that is similar to a torii archway. It represents the entrance to the divine realm and is used to distinguish between the divine realm where gods reside and the secular world where humans live.

It is said that the existence of the Torii is to remind visitors that stepping into the Torii means entering the divine realm, and all their behavior thereafter should be done with special care.

The torii gate in front of Zhou Ke at this moment was somewhat different from the tall torii gates painted with bright red paint that he saw when traveling in later generations. The torii gate at the entrance of this forest seemed to be very old, and even looked a little dilapidated upon closer inspection.

"Stop the living! He shouldn't be here!"

An old woman who looked about the same age as his grandfather appeared out of nowhere and stood in front of the grandfather and grandson, startling Zhou Ke who was looking at the stone shrine near the torii.

"Mieko, please move aside. My grandson is the future heir of the direct line of the Matsudaira family of Aizu. This is his destiny!"

Matsudaira Tadashi didn't seem surprised by the old woman's appearance. He just frowned slightly and signaled the old woman to make way.

"Zhongren, I don't think he is ready yet. It's not appropriate to leave everything to him now. Don't you think you are a little too impatient?" The old woman had no intention of giving way.

"Mieko, if you think he is not qualified now, I will train him well when I go back! But now, please get out of the way!" Although Matsudaira Tadahiro was a little unhappy, he had no intention of forcing his way in.

"He is too young. I don't see the answer I want in his eyes. Even if you bring him in now, you won't get everyone's approval!" The old woman still maintained the same posture and stood in front of Zhou Ke.

"I don't have much time left. Please help me, Mieko! You know, we are the only two of us left in our family!" Matsudaira Tadahiro softened his tone and started to play the emotional card.

"Zhongren, you won't die for a while, bring him here in three years!" The old woman remained indifferent.

"You...ah! Forget it, my dear grandson, let's go." Matsudaira Tadahiro wanted to say something, but finally compromised.

"My dear grandson, if you have any questions, just ask them. Don't hold them back."

Halfway through the journey, Matsudaira Tadashi saw that the sad expression on Zhou Ke's face, who seemed to be hesitant to speak, gradually relaxed, revealing the same kind smile that he had when they first met at the dock.

"Grandpa, why do we have to go in?" Zhou Ke asked in confusion. Although he didn't know much about the local customs, he still instinctively felt that something seemed a little strange.

"My dear grandson, I can't tell you too much before you go in. But remember one thing: only if you get the recognition of the people in there can you truly lead our family to prosperity again!" Matsudaira Tadahiro explained earnestly.

"Then grandpa, can you come in?" Zhou Ke asked.

"Of course, but I'm old and have done what I should do. The family affairs from now on will depend on you!" Matsudaira Tadahiro seemed to guess what Zhou Ke was going to ask and replied directly.

"But grandpa, I feel like our family is doing pretty well now!" Zhou Ke felt a little confused after hearing what his grandfather said.

The Matsudaira family itself holds several titles, and is also considered a large family with a certain say in the political and military circles. Isn't this prosperous?

"My dear grandson, what others give us is different from what we fight for with our own swords. You can eat the food you beg for, but you can't eat it all the time! And you can't make a living from it!"

When Matsudaira Tadahide said the second half of the sentence, his expression became a little serious. He once again thought of the burned-down castle tower, the ruined city, and the family warriors who kept falling.

Those scenes are still vivid in my mind as if it were yesterday!

"Grandpa, I saw a lot of strange-looking warriors in the woods!" Zhou Ke changed the subject and asked about another matter.

"Strange? My dear grandson, do you mean that those warriors look too thin?" asked Matsudaira Tadashi.

"Yes, grandpa, those warriors hiding in the forest give me the feeling of women wearing armor." Zhou Ke nodded and replied.

"My dear grandson, you have good eyesight, they are female warriors!"