I Was a Swordsman in Ancient Japan

The small goal of 280 votes was successfully reached yesterday, the author is very pleased and started, thank you for your support! So the author also fulfilled his promise and exploded 10,000 more.

Today's update is very late! Very sorry! (Leopard crying with headache).

There is a reason why it is so late. The author's health is not particularly good recently, so the speed of coding has dropped a lot... I will try my best to adjust in the future (cry with a headache)

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Grandfather Jiang is now so genuine that he doesn't even dare to show his air.

The palm that was tightly covering his mouth and nose was even slightly soaked in cold sweat.

He widened his eyes, fixedly staring at Ogata who suddenly appeared and killed the wolf beautifully.

The voice, height, body shape, style of the saber, sword skills, and... the look in the eyes when he drew the sword to plunder life, are all the same as the Ogata Yishi that grandfather Jiang saw on the castle tower of Nijo Castle more than half a year ago.

The only difference is probably just the appearance.

Although the Ogata Yishi seen on the Nijo Castle was not very handsome, his facial features were still pretty.

But now the young man who appeared in front of his grandfather Jiang had an ordinary face that could be forgotten when he was thrown on the street.

--This is how the same thing?

Grandfather Jiang asked loudly in horror.

——Has he changed his face by any means?

While Grandfather Jiang was racking his brains, wondering how Ogata Itsue's appearance had changed, Ogata and Matsudaira Sadanobu were now staging an embarrassing reunion.

...

...

When he saw that the person he had saved turned out to be an old man who hadn't been saved for several months, Ogata's mind actually went blank for a moment.

After recovering in an instant, the expression on Ogata's face became uncontrollably weird.

Ogata still remembers clearly what happened in Edo a few months ago.

Because of the articles written in the "Imperial Examination\

,"Because of the great sympathy caused by Matsudaira Sadanobu, Matsudaira Sadanobu appreciated him quite a lot, and directly stated that Zhao Ogata would be his surname.

To become such a small surname of a big man, in this era, is basically tantamount to making a fortune.

Whether it is the kind of surname that only does ordinary attendant work, or the kind of surname that not only does the work of attendant, but also is responsible for comforting the loneliness of the lord, they are all very promising.

The vast majority of people will definitely take the olive branch thrown by Matsudaira Sadanobu without hesitation.

But Ogata happened to be that small group of people.

Leaving aside the status of "the most wanted man in the shogunate", he was busy dealing with Shiranui at that time, and he had no extra time and energy to deal with the matter of "becoming the old man's surname".

So Ogata used the "Drag Character Jue" at that time. Tell Lao Zhong, "Let him think about it, and give him an answer after the 'Imperial Trial' is over."

Then dragging, dragging, incidents happened to Ogata one by one, and Ogata, who was dizzy, completely forgot about it...

It wasn't until they left Edo with A-Machi that he remembered that he had such an agreement with Matsudaira Sadanobu.

Because he felt that there would be no chance to meet Matsudaira Sadanobu for the rest of his life, he decided to pretend that the "agreement with the old man" had never existed, and went away directly...

Unexpectedly, only a few months later, in this icy snow country, Oo was able to reunite with Matsudaira Sadanobu, who he had let go of his pigeons for several months.

"...It's been a long time. You really made me wait a lot. You promised to give me your answer after the imperial trial is over, but I have been waiting for several months."

After hearing Matsudaira Sadayuki say this in a tone of no sadness and no interest, Ogata twitched the corners of his mouth, rearranged his expression, and tried to squeeze out a smile.

"Okay, long time no see. My lord. Are you not injured?"

"No serious problem." Matsudaira Sadanobu supported his knees on both sides and stood up, "Thank you just now. If you hadn't shown up in time, I'm afraid I would have been buried in the belly of a wolf by now."

"I owe you a huge favor."

"You're welcome. I just did what I can." After that, Ogata looked around, "My lord, why are you here?"

The wilderness still in its original state, and the noble second-in-command of the shogunate-Ogata couldn't connect the two.

"That's a long story..." Matsudaira Sadanobu said while looking up at the sky above his head, "Let's find a place to avoid the snow now, it's snowing again."

Ogata raised his head and glanced at the sky—the sky that had finally calmed down was once again snowflakes.

"There just happens to be a suitable hiding place on my side..." Ogata said softly, looking at the sky where snow began to fall overhead again.

...

...

--Great! They're gone!

Looking at Ogata and Matsudaira Sadanobu who left one after the other, Grandfather Jiang felt the tight string in his mind, and finally relaxed slowly.

He is extremely fortunate now—the place where he is hiding is relatively far from Yidao Zhai, which is nearly 200 rooms (nearly 400 meters) away.

Thanks to the distance of nearly 200 rooms, the executioner Yidao Zhai did not find him hiding in this thick bush.

It wasn't until Yidao Zhai and the middle-aged man had left his field of vision that grandfather Jiang hurriedly escaped from the bushes where he was hiding, and then turned in the opposite direction to Yidao Zhai and the others. The direction of lifeless escape.

Grandfather Jiang didn't have the guts to rest next to a bear.

He just wants to run away now.

The farther away from Ogata Yishi who has beheaded countless people, the better.

...

...

When Ogata went to pick up firewood, Machi and the others were preparing dinner for tonight.

In the past few days, every meal time and after entering an area with many animals, Aizan and Ahili will hunt some animals and come back to let everyone eat fresh food.

The cave where A-Ding and the others are currently living is adjacent to a forest, and there must be many animals in that forest, but because it is too late and there is not enough time to go hunting again, A-Ding and the others can only use their portable animals tonight. The dry food carried will last for one night.

Ah-cho laid out their dinner for tonight one by one, and roasted dried meat and other items on the bonfire.

Jerky is a kind of food that can become softer and more fragrant after being roasted with flames.

When A-Machi was concentrating on roasting the jerky on the bonfire, the voice she had been waiting for from the beginning finally sounded outside the cave.

"I am back."

It was Ogata's voice.

"Slow to death!"

As soon as Ogata said "I'm back", A-Machi turned his head to look at the entrance of the cave, and said unceremoniously, "Why did you come back so late..."

Before A-Ming finished speaking, the rest of the words got stuck in A-Ming's throat, and he couldn't utter them any more.

The scene presented in front of Ah Ding not only surprised Ah Ding, but also surprised Aizan and Yahili.

The reason why they were like this was because Ogata didn't come back alone.

Ogata had a large bundle of firewood under his left armpit.

Ogata's right arm supported a middle-aged man in his thirties.

After the middle-aged man briefly looked around the scene in the cave, he fixed his gaze on A-Ming and the others:

"Mashima-kun, who are these?"

"Those two are my friends." Ogata pointed his chin toward the seats where Aizan and Ahili were sitting, "And this one is my wife—Mashimacho."

"My wife?" Matsudaira Sadanobu praised, "Lingzheng is really beautiful."

"Mr. Mashima." Aizan asked at this moment, "Who is this?"

Before Ogata could reply, Matsudaira Sadanobu took a step ahead of Ogata and said:

"My name is Matsudaira Sadanobu. For the time being, I have the official position of 'Old Middle School'. You can call me 'Old Middle School'. If you find it troublesome, you can also call me 'Matsudaira'."

Mashima knows his true identity.

So there is no need for Matsudaira Sadanobu to hide his identity when facing Mashima's wife and friends.

Aizan and Ahili, who are Ainu people and are not familiar with Japan, don't know what the word "Laozhong" represents, and they don't recognize the name "Sadanobu Matsudaira", so they look at a loss.

As for Machi...

A-machi: ∑(っ°Д°;)っ"Sadaxin Matsudaira?!"

At this moment, she is like a female cat that is blowing fur...

...

...

Ezo, somewhere——

A red fox is walking briskly on the white snow field with a newly caught rabbit in its mouth.

Its big shaggy tail wags in a good mood - sadly, it won't be able to wag like that anytime soon.

Because just now, its right front foot stepped on a ring made of thin wire.

Only a slight "click" sound was heard, and the ring made of thin wire was tightened directly, covering the right front foot of the big fox, and then directly hung the big fox up.

"Hey woo woo woo woo woo woo woo woo woo woo woo!"

The red fox that was hoisted in the air was struggling like a fish being hoisted, flapping its limbs, and the rabbit in its mouth naturally fell to the ground.

"Hahahahahaha!"

A loud laugh full of information sounded.

An old man with gray hair flashed out from the bushes not far away.

If Ogata and A-cho were present, they would have recognized this old man immediately after seeing this old man - this old man was the Tang God who sold pets and told them important information about Xuanzheng and Xuanzhen.

"Not bad!" Tang Shen looked at the fat fox that was still hopping, "This fox looks good! It will definitely sell for a good price!"

After all, Tang Shen took out two thick threads and tied up the fat fox's limbs with skilled skills, and then let the fox out of the trap he made.

"I picked up a fat rabbit for nothing! And the body temperature! Not bad! Today's dinner is settled!"

Tang Shen picked up the fat rabbit that just fell out of the big fox's mouth.

"Hey woo woo woo woo woo—!"

I was caught, and the prey I managed to catch was just cheap for others—the big fox neighed even more sadly.

Tang Shen has long been used to hearing these neighings. Holding the back of the big fox's neck with one hand and the fat rabbit with the other, he strode towards his special sleigh that was parked not far away. The crutch that never leaves the body is clamped under the left armpit.

After many days of hard work, Tang Shen has gained a lot and has successfully caught many red foxes, squirrels and other popular animals that are relatively easy to sell.

After putting the newly caught red fox into the cage behind the sled, Tang Shen looked up at the sky above his head.

"It's getting dark..." Tang Shen murmured, "It's time to find a place to spend the night..."

Tang Shen got on the sleigh and yelled "Go!" to the big dog in charge of pulling the cart.

The well-trained sled dogs got up quickly, then pulled the sled, and under Tang Shen's control, they drove to the vast snowfield not far away.

Tang Shen, who was concentrating on driving the sled, suddenly heard a noisy sound coming from ahead.

Look forward intently - there is a large group of people in front of you.

There were about 20 people in this group, and there was a carriage in the middle of the team, which was only pulled by two skinny horses.

Based on experience, Tang Shen concluded that this group of people should be a group of peacemakers.

The area where Tang Shen is currently located is a "pro-Japanese area". The Ainu people living in this area are generally close to Heren and are willing to communicate with Heshangs. Therefore, in this area, Heshangs are often seen Walking back and forth.

Meeting Heshang here, God Tang was no stranger to it.

But the sudden appearance of He Shang in front of him caught Tang Shen's attention.

Because all of them had a flustered expression.

Tang Shen, who frowned slightly, yelled "Stop" to the sled dogs pulling the cart in front of him.

After driving the sled to a stop, Tang Shen asked loudly to the Heshang team that was getting closer to him:

"Hey! What happened?"

The leader of this peace merchant seems to be the middle-aged man who is driving the carriage.

The middle-aged man reined in the horse and stopped the carriage, then frowned and looked Tang Shen up and down.

"I'm a pet trader. I'm catching animals here." Tang Shen compared the cages that had placed many animals behind his sleigh with his thumbs, and took the initiative to report his family name, "What happened? Why are you all in such a hurry?"

"Don't you know?" the middle-aged man asked.

"Know what?" Tang Shen asked back.

"It's a war!" The middle-aged man shouted, "The shogunate sent troops to the Ainu! If you don't want to be implicated by the flames of war, get out of here quickly!"

"War?!" Tang Shen's eyes widened.

Tang Shen's head froze for a moment because he suddenly received too impactful news.

When Tang Shen's head went down, the middle-aged man went on to say:

"I don't know the specifics. I only know that the shogunate sent a large army to advance into Ezo, and the target seems to be the Red Moon Fortress!"

"Red Moon Fortress?!" Tang Shen exclaimed again, "Is it the Red Moon Fortress with the iron cannon?"

The middle-aged man nodded.

"Why, why so suddenly?! Why did you suddenly send troops to the Red Moon Fortress?!" Tang Shen's voice broke because of excitement.

"How do I know." The middle-aged man frowned, "Didn't I just say everything? I don't know the details. Maybe the shogunate wants to expand its territory."

"All in all—don't catch any more animals, run away quickly! Let's talk about it after the current limelight!"

"Right now, the war merchants in the Ezo land are rushing to escape!"

After all, the middle-aged man stopped talking to God Tang, shook the reins in his hand, and drove the carriage forward. His attendants and guards surrounded the carriage and passed God Tang.

As for Tang Shen - he is sitting on the sleigh now, with a dull expression on his face: "The shogunate actually sent troops to the Red Moon Fortress... This..."

God Tang seemed petrified, sitting motionless on the sleigh.

After a while, as if he had made up his mind, he gritted his teeth, got up and walked to the cage at the back of the sleigh, opened the cage, and released all the animals he had worked so hard to catch these days.

Not only that, after letting the animals go, Tang Shen also threw the cage directly from the sleigh.

The reason why he did this was to reduce the weight of the sled cart and reduce the burden on the sled dogs.

After doing this, Tang Shen returned to the driving seat.

"Go!" Tang Shen shouted to the sled dogs.

The direction of Yugami's advance was not to return to the south of Matsumae Domain.

Instead, he headed straight north without hesitation.

...

...

In the cave where Ogata and the others lived——

"Okay." After checking the bones of Matsudaira Sadanobu's right arm, Aizan nodded at Matsudaira Sadanobu, "The muscles of the right arm are a little strained, but it will be healed after a few days of rest. There is nothing wrong with other parts of the body. Big problem."

Judgment and emergency treatment of bruises are one of the necessary skills for a veteran hunter like Aizan.

"Thank you." Matsudaira Sadanobu smiled at Aizan.

"Come on, my lord." At this time, Ogata handed a piece of roasted jerky to Matsudaira Sadanobu, "Eat something."

"Thank you." Matsudaira Sadanobu took the jerky from Ogata.

After receiving the jerky, Matsudaira Sadanobu let out a long breath, and said quietly:

"It's really unpredictable."

"I thought the world was so big that I would never have the chance to see you again for the rest of my life. I never thought that after only a few months, I would meet you again in this icy land of Ezo, and be saved by you." .”

"Since it's a rare reunion—you can tell me: Why did you participate in half of the 'Imperial Trials' martial arts test at that time, and why didn't you participate in it later?"

"And—after the 'Imperial Trial' is over, why don't you come to see me and tell me your answer?"

After finishing speaking, Matsudaira Sadanobu added a sentence:

"I...but I've been waiting for you for a long time."

As soon as the voice of Matsudaira Sadanobu's words fell, the expressions of Ogata and Atachi became weird.

Ogata let go of Matsudaira Sadanobu's pigeons - of course A-Machi knew about it.

That's why Ah-machi showed such a surprised expression after seeing Ogata bring Matsudaira Sadanobu back to the cave just now.

Naturally, it was impossible for Ogata to just confess so honestly, saying that he was busy dealing with Shiranui at the time, so he forgot about it.

"My wife's uncle, who lives in his hometown, had some disputes with some villagers in the village, and was injured by some people in the village." Ogata said solemnly, "My wife's family is my family."

"The 'Imperial Trial' is certainly important, but it is far less important than my family members."

"So after learning that my wife's uncle was injured in my hometown, I didn't care about the 'imperial trial', and hurriedly took my wife back to my wife's hometown to deal with her uncle's affairs."

"Because I was busy dealing with my uncle's affairs, I forgot the agreement with you after going back and forth."

After Ogata's words fell, A-Machi, who was sitting next to Ogata, resisted the urge to cast a shocked and astonished look at Ogata beside him.

Take a closer look at what Ogata said just now—it was all the truth...

Ah Ding's uncle—Uncle Qing was indeed in their hometown: Shiranui, had disputes with "villagers" and was injured...

Afterwards, Ogata was indeed busy going back to their hometown with A-Machi to deal with these matters, and had no time to take care of the "Oqian Trial"...

After quietly listening to Ogata's explanation, Matsudaira Sadanobu asked:

"So that's it... you actually forgot the promise you made with me..." Matsudaira Sadanobu showed a self-deprecating smile, "Forget it... It's all a few months ago anyway. Time has passed, I didn’t even care about it long ago.”

"And you have saved my life now, and I owe you a great favor. So you forgot about your agreement with me—just let it go."

After that, Matsudaira Sadanobu picked up the jerky that Ogata handed him just now, and began to eat it gracefully.

Seeing that Matsudaira Sadanobu said that the past was wiped out, Ogata also breathed a sigh of relief. He was naturally happy to see Matsudaira Sadanobu put aside the previous grievances, because in this way, neither Matsudaira Sadanobu nor he would have to feel embarrassed about the past anymore.

"My lord." At this time, it was Ogata who asked, "Why are you in Ezo? This kind of place doesn't seem like a place where people of your status would come."

Matsudaira Sadanobu glanced at Aizan and Ahili who were not far away, and then said slowly while nibbling on the jerky:

"The reason why I came to Ezo is mainly for investigation."

"You should have heard of it more or less, right? The country of Lucia has not been peaceful in recent years, and has made a lot of moves in Ezo."

"In order to guard against the country of Lucia, I decided to strengthen the construction of the north with the Matsumae domain as the core."

"I came to Ezo this time to inspect the current situation of Matsumae Domain and Ezo with my own eyes. It is to prepare for the future construction of the north."

"My goal is to unite all the Ainu people who are willing to get close to us and people, and form a line of defense that can prevent the Lucia people from going south."

"In the past few days, I took people out to investigate. As a result, this afternoon, I accidentally encountered a snowstorm and an attack by wolves."

"During the fierce battle with the wolves, the person who carried the sedan chair for me accidentally stepped on the eaves of the snow, and both the person who carried the sedan chair and I fell off the snow slope."

"As for the next thing, you should also know. I fell down the slope and survived by luck. I was chased by a certain wolf, and then I was rescued by you."

Matsudaira Sadanobu briefly told Ogata and others why he was here.

Acho had never seen Matsudaira Sadanobu before, and this was the first time she saw Matsudaira Sadanobu's true face. Because of the lack of familiarity with Matsudaira Sadanobu, Machi has not taken the initiative to talk to Matsudaira Sadanobu since just now.

And now, after hearing what Matsudaira Sadanobu said just now, A-Machi couldn't help but say:

"You are so courageous... If it were someone else who was less courageous, he would definitely not dare to go to such a dangerous place..."

"It's my habit. I like to inspect it myself." Sadanobu Matsudaira sneered, "This can be regarded as a habit of being tortured by the people below."

"The temple can be built with only fifty taels of gold, but the people below dare to ask me for five hundred taels of gold."

"'Northern Construction' is a big deal, and the money to be spent is measured in tens of thousands. If I completely ignore this matter, God knows how much corruption will be born here."

"So I have to take a look at the current situation of the Matsumae Domain and Ezo. As for how long the construction of the North will take and how much it will cost, I can effectively prevent the construction of the North after the official start of construction in the future. , Someone deceived me."

"But I seem to have underestimated the dangers of Ezodi."

Sadanobu Matsudaira let out a self-deprecating laugh again.

"If Mashima-kun doesn't show up in time today, the general will have to choose a new and old middle school."

After finishing speaking, Matsudaira Sadanobu just ate the jerky that Ogata gave him just now.

"Mashima-kun, what about you? Why are you here?"

"I'm here to practice warrior training." Ogata, who couldn't confess his true purpose of coming to Ezo, gave this very useful reason without hesitation.

Ogata's words are not actually lying - on the way to find Xuanzheng and Xuanzhen, Ogata's skills have been continuously enhanced, and he is also practicing martial arts.

"Warrior training?" Sadanobu Matsudaira raised his eyebrows, and glanced at Atachi who was sitting next to Ogata, "Are you taking your wife to practice martial arts?"

"There should be no rules in the world - you can't take your wife to practice martial arts." Ogata said in a joking tone.

"Are you going to practice martial arts with your wife..." Matsudaira Sadanobu murmured.

For some reason, a smile slowly appeared on Matsudaira Sadanobu's face.

The color of memories gradually emerged in his pupils.

After a while, Matsudaira Sadanobu said slowly:

"Excellent swordsmanship, training as a warrior with my wife... Mashima-kun. Looking carefully now, you are the person I dreamed of becoming when I was young."

"Looking at you reminds me of myself when I was young."

"Huh?" Ogata raised his eyebrows, "What do you mean?"

Matsudaira Sadanobu untied the tiger Tetsu hanging from his left waist, and held it with both hands.

He looked at Huche in his palm with reminiscing eyes.

"When I was young... I also dreamed of becoming a swordsman with superb swordsmanship like you are now, and then wandering around and practicing with a beautiful wife. Then, seeing injustice on the road, I drew my sword to help..."

"In my ignorant and ignorant youth, in order to achieve my ideal, I foolishly practiced swordsmanship."

"I didn't know until I grew up a little bit-my ideal is too far away from me."

"My background has already determined that it is impossible for me to practice any martial arts in the future."

"Thus, I, who recognized the reality, stopped practicing swordsmanship, and the dream of my youth was gradually forgotten."

"The person who dreamed of becoming a great swordsman who can roam around is now a middle-aged man who doesn't even touch a sword anymore, and whose stomach grows bigger and bigger..."

"If I were to see my current appearance when I was young, I really don't know what he would think..."

After that, Matsudaira Sadanobu smiled bitterly, and hung the tiger in his palm back to his left waist.

"Now that I think about it—the reason why I like to go and inspect the places in person is probably influenced by my dream when I was young..."

...

...

"Drink...drink...drink..." Grandfather Jiang looked around, "Escape here...should be enough..."

In order to stay away from Ogata, grandfather Jiang ran away desperately.

Once a person encounters a crisis moment, under the influence of adrenaline, psychological hints and other factors, he will often burst out with extremely strong strength.

Normally, grandfather Jiang would never have been able to run at such a speed for so long.

But now, because he was eager to stay away from Ogata Yishi, the potential deep in his grandfather Jiang's body was stimulated in one breath. He ran for nearly half an hour without stopping until his legs became weak and he could no longer run. until.

Grandfather Jiang leaned against a big tree, and while recovering his strength, he observed his surroundings—everything was surrounded by trees. I am in a forest.

After observing the environment he was in now, grandfather Jiang looked up at the sky above his head again.

A large amount of wind and snow fell, and the dark clouds that raged for nearly half an afternoon had cleared away, revealing the sky. At this time, the sky has turned gray, and soon, the black veil will cover the sky.

Judging from the current weather, tonight must be a moonless night.

——Let’s just spend the night on the tree tonight...

Grandfather Jiang no longer had the energy to look for a new place to live.

During this time, he often did this—if he couldn't find a suitable shelter, he would climb to the tree and sleep on the tree overnight.

Grandpa Jiang looked around again, looking for a tree that was strong enough for him to sleep on.

But suddenly—he suddenly heard a "click, click, click" sound behind him.

Grandfather Jiang immediately turned his head and looked back - several warriors in armor were rushing towards him with weapons in hand.

And this "click, click, click" sound is the sound of armor plates colliding while running.

Grandfather Jiang Na's already pale face due to exhaustion became even paler at this time.

——Why are there soldiers here? !

Grandfather Jiang shouted in panic in his heart, but subconsciously wanted to turn around and run away.

However—the grandfather Jiang, who had just run wildly for a long time, has long lost his strength.

After running a few steps, he was overtaken and surrounded by these soldiers who suddenly appeared.

"Don't move!" One of these soldiers, a young warrior wearing a haori and more exquisite armor, shouted at his grandfather Jiang Da.

...

...

Kitano Shuki was as anxious as Tachibana when he learned that Matsudaira Sadanobu accidentally fell off the snow slope.

He was one of the 50 elite shogunate soldiers who were sent to Matsudaira Jonobu by Inamori to protect the personal safety of Matsudaira Jonobu.

Among the 50 people, Kitano has the highest status and is the "General Attendant" in the army. Therefore, if something happens to Matsudaira Sadanobu, Inamori will definitely be the first to question him.

Even if he wasn't asked to apologize, he would definitely be removed from his current position as "General Attendant".

So—from a rational point of view, Kitano can't let Matsudaira Sadanobu have an accident no matter what.

And speaking from an emotional level-Kitano doesn't want anything to happen to Matsudaira Sadanobu.

At the first sight of Matsudaira, Kitano was attracted by Matsudaira's sharp and energetic eyes.

This look added a different kind of charm to Matsudaira Sadanobu, who was not very handsome.

Therefore, starting from the emotional level, Kitano does not want any accidents to happen to a handsome man full of unique charm like Matsudaira Sadanobu.

So when repelling the sudden attack of wolves and starting to look for Matsudaira Sadanobu who fell down the snow slope. Kitano's hard work is not lost to Tachibana, who is Matsudaira Sadanobu's surname.

Kitano led several subordinates into a certain forest under the snow slope, trying to find Matsudaira Sadanobu in this forest.

After searching for a long time, Matsudaira Sadanobu couldn't find it. Instead, he found a ragged, dirty young man in a kimono.

In such a wilderness, he unexpectedly met a Kazuto who was alone—this made Kitano frowned involuntarily.

Kitano led his men towards the young man.

And after the young Kazuto found Kitano and the others, he showed a panicked expression, turned around and ran away.

But within a few steps, he was caught up by Kitano and the others.

"Don't move!" After surrounding the young man, Kitano yelled at the young man.

Young Kazuto was frightened by Kitano's loud and clear voice, his body trembled, and then he stood obediently on the spot, looking at Kitano and others who were surrounding him with fear.

"What's your name? Why are you here alone?" Kitano uttered two questions at the young Kazuto in one breath.

"I, my name is grandfather Jiang Sanlang." Young Heren—that is, grandfather Jiang stuttered because of nervousness, "Yes, yes..."

Grandfather Jiang racked his brains, thinking about how to answer Kitano's second question.

Seeing his grandfather Jiang stammering and unable to utter a complete sentence for a long time, Kitano frowned slightly and cast a meaningful look at his grandfather Jiang.

"...You are not a gold digger, are you?" Kitano's tone was neither sad nor happy.

But the sad and heartless voice made grandfather Jiang seem to hear the whisper of a demon.

According to the laws of the Edo shogunate, all gold diggers were punished as felonies.

So after Kitano's voice fell, grandfather Jiang hurriedly defended:

"No! I'm not a gold digger! I, I'm just... practicing martial arts!"

Kitano ignored his grandfather Jiang's excuse, but said to the two subordinates beside him:

"Search him to see if there is any gold dust."

Two subordinates: "Yes!"*2

Seeing that Kitano was going to do a body search, grandfather Jiang's face turned completely whiter than Snow White.

He subconsciously wanted to run away, but the two soldiers who were ordered by Kitano to search his body quickly stepped forward, one of them restrained his grandfather Jiang, and the other groped his body up and down.

"My lord! Found this!"

Soon, the soldier in charge of the body search found a small cloth bag and handed it to Kitano.

Kitano opened the cloth bag - it was full of golden sand and gold grains.

"The evidence is solid, do you have anything else to say?" Kitano said to his grandfather Jiang in a playful tone, "Don't tell me that you picked up this bag of gold sand."

Grandfather Jiang's face was like dead ashes.

But even so, his grandfather Jiang's desire to survive is still spurring him, making him think hard about what he can say to get rid of the crime in this desperate situation.

"According to the regulations of the shogunate, all gold diggers will be beheaded." Kitano said while fastening the bag containing the gold sand, and then put it away by himself.

After hearing the word "beheading", grandfather Jiang could no longer control his body filled with fear, and his limbs began to tremble slightly.

But what Kitano said next made Grandfather Jiang seem to see a ray of light shooting from the depths of the abyss.

"But I'll give you a chance now." Masano Kitano said, "I'm looking for someone now. If you see that person and provide information about that person, I can spare your life."

"Then my gold sand...?" Grandfather Jiang subconsciously asked.

This gold dust bears his hope. He entrusted the rest of his life on this bag of gold dust.

This bag of gold dust was no less than his second life to grandfather Jiang.

"Huh!" Kitano snorted heavily, "Of course it is impossible to return the gold dust you illegally panned! You have committed the crime of panning for gold, and I would like to give you a chance to save your life. What a great gift!"

The light that had just appeared in grandfather Jiang's pupils became dimmer again...

At this time, Kitano described the appearance characteristics of Matsudaira Sadanobu one by one.

Kitano thought: If this gold digger is haunting this area, maybe he has seen Matsudaira Jonobu who slipped under the snow slope.

After listening to Kitano's description of Matsudaira Sadanobu's appearance, grandfather Jiang was taken aback.

The figure of the middle-aged man wearing the exquisite saber that he saw just now jumped out of Grandpa Jiang's mind.

Grandfather Jiang quickly remembered - he had seen this person just now.

I wanted to steal that person's knife just now, but in the end, this person was rescued by Ogata Yasushi who disguised himself by some means...

But at this moment, grandfather Jiang suddenly felt as if a lightning flashed across his mind.

--Ok? Yes……! Why didn't I think of it...

Grandfather Jiang suddenly realized that he might have a way to not only save his life, but also save this bag of hard-earned gold dust.

Seeing his grandfather Jiang not speaking for a long time, Kitano seemed to lose his patience.

"Hello!" Kitano's tone was full of displeasure, "Why are you in a daze? If you don't speak again, I'll chop off your head!"

- Take a gamble! It's a big deal!

Grandfather Jiang gritted his teeth, determined to go all out, and nodded vigorously

"I've seen it! I've seen the person you mentioned!"

Kitano's eyes widened suddenly, and he asked anxiously:

"Where did you meet that man?"

Grandfather Jiang did not immediately answer Kitano's question.

Instead, ask:

"My lord, you are wearing armor. You should be from the army, right? Not only have I met the man you are looking for, but now I have information that is very important to you and may make you rich. Or famous intelligence."

"I can tell you the location of the person I just ran into you are looking for, as well as my important information! Can you spare my life and give me back the gold dust?"

"Intelligence that can make you rich or famous?" Kitano laughed dumbly. "You who make a living by digging for gold, what kind of information can you have?"

"I'm telling the truth!" Grandfather Jiang said anxiously, "This important information of mine may really make you rich or famous!"

"...Then let's listen to it." Kitano became a little impatient, "If your so-called important information is really valuable, then this bag of gold sand will be returned to you. My ugly words are up front—if you say The 'important information' you said is just some nonsense, then I will kill you!"

"No problem!" After nodding vigorously, grandfather Jiang Shen took a deep breath.

Afterwards, grandfather Jiang Chao pointed in the direction he was fleeing just now.

"I saw the person you were looking for fell in the snow just now! Walk in this direction and you will reach the place where the person you are looking for fell to the ground."

"He just woke up when I bumped into him."

"He was attacked by wolves when he woke up, but he was saved by a man!"

"And that person—that's the famous 'Executioner Yidaosai' Ogata Yasushi!"

"Executioner Yi Dao Zhai?!" Kitano's mouth opened into an "O" shape

*****

*****

Recently, the author has been listening to Ainu folk songs while writing in order to be able to take on the role of the Ainu as much as possible.

I recommend everyone to watch the video "Ainu Folk Songs Collection" at Station B. It is 22 minutes long and contains many Ainu folk songs passed down from generation to generation. Those who are interested can listen to it.

Although it sounds weird at first, it sounds good when you get used to it. There is no gorgeous melody, and there are no lofty lyrics, but it feels pretty good. This is probably the unique charm of the lower Liba people. .

It's a pity that this video doesn't have subtitles, so I can't understand what they are singing.

_