I formed the strongest swordsman group

Although she did not use complicated words, her emotions and determination were clearly felt by Tokugawa Iemo.

Looking at the beauty in his arms, Tokugawa Iemo was slightly surprised at first, and then smiled calmly.

He didn't say much, just hugged each other tightly silently.

"Actually, another major reason why I set up this ambitious goal is that I am forced by reality."

"In recent years, I have increasingly felt that the corruption and weakness of the shogunate are inevitable."

"Now, no matter what strategy is adopted, it will only treat the symptoms but not the root cause, delaying the complete destruction of the shogunate by a few days."

"Since the building is about to collapse, it is better to prepare early and entrust the people of the world to trustworthy people as soon as possible."

"I also had high hopes for the Tokugawa clan."

"Unless I give birth to an heir, my successor will definitely be happy."

"Hitabashi Keiki has great ambition but little talent. He comes up with ideas one after another. He has neither the indomitable will nor the will to endure hardships."

"Allowing him to take charge of the shogunate will only accelerate the demise of the Edo shogunate."

"As for the other general candidates besides Hitotsubashi Keiki, they are all weak people who cannot be reused."

"So, after searching around, the only person who fits the image of a 'saint king' in my mind is Mr. Tachibana."

"Therefore, my favor for Mr. Tachibana is largely due to my disappointment with the Tokugawa clan."

Wagongiya said in a teasing tone:

"Your Highness, if others hear your ambition, they will probably think there is something wrong with your mind."

Tokugawa Iemo smiled and said half seriously, half jokingly:

"Let them talk. I don't have anything else, but I still have the courage to withstand ridicule, and there is a lot of it."

"...Your Highness, can I ask you another question?"

"Well, tell me."

"Why do you trust General Tachibana so much?"

He Gong suddenly asked a sharp question.

"It is true that General Tachibana is the best among men."

"But... Duke Zhou is afraid of the day of rumors, and Wang Mang is humble and does not usurp the time."

As a princess of the imperial court, He Gong has extremely high cultural accomplishments - after all, they have nothing else to do except reading books and reciting poems.

She has all the Sinological allusions at her fingertips.

"Your Highness, how are you sure that General Tachibana is the Holy Master who can make the people happy?"

"Just because he can govern Qinjin Fan well does not mean that he can govern the entire world."

"What's more... Your Highness, please forgive me, I feel that even if the world is entrusted to General Tachibana, he will not be able to bring about earth-shaking changes in this world."

"At most, it will just create another shogunate, changing from 'Tokugawa Tenka' to 'Tachibana Tenka'."

"Can 'Tachibana Tenka' really beat 'Tokugawa Tenka'?"

"Maybe... in the end it will be another 'prosperity, the people suffer; death, the people suffer'... Hmm? Your Highness, why do you look at me like this?"

Tokugawa Iemo said with a smile:

"It's nothing, I just feel happy."

"You don't agree with me blindly, you have your own thoughts - which makes me very happy."

"He Gong, what you just said was very good."

"Indeed, I am not a god and cannot predict the future."

"So... to put it bluntly, I'm just betting that Mr. Orange is the one who can make history."

"However, bets are bets, and I'm not betting randomly without any strategy."

"Tachibana-kun... is a very magical person."

"I can vaguely feel that there is a 'fire' hidden in his heart."

"Because the time has not come yet, this 'flame' has not yet burned violently."

"But when the time comes, this 'flame' will show unprecedented heat."

"It was this 'fire' in his heart that made me make the decision to 'bet on Qingdeng'."

"I'm very stupid, so all I can think of in a prosperous life is nothing more than digging my belly into the ground and not picking up lost things along the way."

"Looking at Qingdeng...the world and his 'realm' in his mind may far exceed my imagination!"

"All in all, let's wait and see for now."

"This is the path I chose, and I have to witness it with my own eyes until the end."

Speaking of this, Tokugawa Iemo seemed to think of something, paused, and then changed the subject:

"Ah, right."

"This is a rare opportunity. Taking advantage of the good atmosphere tonight, He Gong, I have something to say to you."

"Things in the world are often unpredictable."

"In this troubled world, even the general Zhengyi cannot escape danger."

"So...if one day in the future, I can no longer be by your side, there are three people you can always trust."

He said, holding out three fingers.

"The first is Tachibana Aoden, the second is Katsu Rintaro, and the third is mother."

"Tachibana-kun and Sheng-kun don't say much."

"As for Mother... I know that your relationship with Mother is not very good."

"But, Mother, she is not a bad person. She just doesn't know how to get along with you. It's not that she hates you."

"If you encounter difficulties that are difficult to cope with, or have no choice, you may wish to seek help from these three people."

"They'll never let you down."

As soon as he finished speaking, He Gong scolded him angrily:

"Your Highness, please stop saying such ugly words as 'I can no longer be by your side'!"

"I don't like such unlucky words!"

Tokugawa Iemochi smiled:

"Sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."

"I just mentioned it to you out of caution."

"You just need to keep my words in mind and think of them from time to time."

...

...

The next day, early in the morning -

In a deep mountain west of Edo -

Chi -! Chi -! Chi -!

From time to time, you can hear the chirping of birds in the bushes.

The mountain breeze of early winter blows past my ears, bringing a biting chill.

Qing Deng pushed aside the vines in front of him and asked Shikizaki Jiyu in front of him:

"Mr. Shikizaki, haven't we arrived yet?"

Shikizaki Jiyu replied without looking back:

"We are almost there. Do you see the hill in front? Once we climb over this hill, we will reach our destination."

Last night, after using his money ability, Shikizaki Jiyu, who was originally hesitant, made up his mind in an instant and said, "Just leave it to me!"

This made Kiryu boss, who had spent a lot of time trying to persuade him with emotion and reason, speechless for a while.

Such a result was within Qing Deng's expectations. After all, Shikizaki Jiyu is a prodigal who lingers in Yoshiwara all day long.

It would be strange if such a person did not love money.

Of course, Qing Deng had no intention of blaming the other party.

Who would hate money? What's wrong with chasing money?

For Qing Deng, who now owns 400,000 koku of rich land, a mere 3,000 taels of gold is not worth mentioning at all.

If only this little money can be used to recast Vairocana and turn it into the legendary "black sword", it would be great.

After solemnly accepting the commission, Shikisaki Jiyori said to Qing Deng:

"'Wanlian Steel' is far from being comparable to ordinary iron, and ordinary furnaces can't do anything with it."

"If you want to cast a knife with this steel, you have to use a 'special furnace'."

"Come to Nihonbashi at 6 o'clock tomorrow morning (6 o'clock in the morning), and I will take you to my 'secret workshop'."

In this way, the master and apprentice arrived at Nihonbashi on time today when the sky just turned white - Shikisaki Jiyori was waiting there.

He said lightly, "Follow me", and then led the master and apprentice to the west, diving into the deep mountains west of Edo.

As early as last night, Qing Deng asked Mr. Kiryu whether he had been to Shikisaki Jiyori's "secret workshop".

The old man said:

"It is said that the Shikizaki family has a large smelting furnace that has been passed down from generation to generation, known as the 'Zhurong Furnace'."

"The furnace has unparalleled firepower, and the flames it emits are like Zhurong descending to the world, hence the name."

"However, I have never seen this furnace."

"The 'secret workshop' of Shikizaki Jiji should be where this 'Zhurong Furnace' is located."

The large smelting furnace that has been passed down from generation to generation, the firepower that is as strong as Zhurong descending to the world... these words all aroused Qing Deng's curiosity.

As a sword lover and a man who has studied swords, Boss Kiryu also wanted to see the full picture of the "Zhurong Furnace" with his own eyes.

Therefore, both the master and the apprentice had strong expectations for the "secret workshop" of Shikizaki Jiji.

This deep mountain is really remote and rarely visited by people.

Only the narrow path on the ground, which was trampled by countless feet, silently announced that this deep mountain is not an uninhabited area.

As Qing Deng followed Shikigaki Jiji quietly, he couldn't help but wonder:

-Why did he build his "secret workshop" in such a remote place?

Climbing up the hill, jumping down the hillside, climbing over the stone wall, pushing aside the bushes, occasionally crossing a few streams...Finally, a few wisps of smoke from the woods came into Qing Deng's sight.

Qing Deng asked in surprise:

"Huh? There is a village here?"

Shikigaki Jiji smiled and nodded:

"Yes, welcome to the 'Blacksmith Village'!"

"'Blacksmith Village'?"

Qing Deng cast a puzzled look at Shikigaki Jiji.

The other party understood and slowly explained:

"The history of this village can be traced back to the Warring States Period."

"In 1582, Oda Nobunaga conquered the Takeda family and annexed the two provinces of Kai and Shinano."

"Because they hated Oda Nobunaga and were unwilling to obey the rule of the Oda family, a group of blacksmiths in Shinano fled to the mountains of Kanto, settled down there, and multiplied their descendants - their descendants are the villagers of the 'Blacksmith Village'."

"Even though time has passed, their blacksmithing skills have not been lost and have been passed down from generation to generation."

"For this reason, the men in the village They all know how to forge iron, and their skills are very good. "

"They work on the farm during the busy farming season, and forge simple tools such as sickles and hoes to sell to earn money during the slack season."

"Our Shikisaki family has always been on good terms with the 'Blacksmith Village', and we have a deep friendship with each other."

"My 'secret workshop' is built in the 'Blacksmith Village'."

"It is a big job to recast Vairocana with 'Ten Thousand Steel', and I can't handle it by myself."

"Therefore, I need the help of the 'Blacksmith Village'."

It just so happened that when Shikisaki Ji finished his message, they just walked out of the woods.

At this moment, Qing Deng suddenly felt a sense of sudden enlightenment.

In front of him was a flat wilderness, with dozens of straw houses neatly arranged in a staggered manner.

There was curling smoke here, and there were green waters and green mountains there.

There were women chatting here, and children playing there.

The laughter and laughter were interspersed with the sound of "ding-ding" and "dang-dang" of iron... It was a happy, quiet and peaceful scene, like a paradise.

At this time, an old woman squatting next to the village entrance, smoking a pipe, spotted Qingdeng and others walking towards them.

"Isn't this Ji Ji? Why are you here? Are they?"

"I took a big job with good pay! These two are my employers! Granny Tie, I need your help, I want to activate the 'Zhu Rong Furnace'!"

When the old woman who was called "Grandma Iron" heard this, her eyes suddenly lit up:

"Oh? 'Zhu Rong Furnace'? What kind of job are you doing? You actually need the help of 'Zhu Rong Furnace'?"

"Yes, this should be the most difficult challenge in my life."

Granny Tie nodded gently, with a cheerful smile on her face:

"That big furnace hasn't burned for a long time. It's really been a long time..."

Qingto, who was listening quietly, subconsciously turned to look at Boss Kiryu next to him - Boss Kiryu was also looking at him.

Looking at each other, the two of them found strong curiosity and expectation in each other's eyes.

——Boss Kiryu really guessed right, Shikizaki Jiyose really planned to activate the "Zhurong Furnace"!

At this moment, Qingdeng's curiosity about "Zhu Rong Furnace" has reached its peak.

After exchanging a few words with Granny Tie, Shikisaki Jiyo led the master and apprentice deep into the village.

Along the way, the villagers cast strange looks at Qingden and Boss Kiryu, mostly confused.

It seems that few foreigners visit this village.

The specific location of "Zhu Rong Furnace" is more remote than Qingdeng expected.

Led by Shikizaki Shiyō, they walked to the back of the village and finally stopped when there were no houses around.

"We're here."

As Shikizaki spoke, he stood sideways so that the master and apprentice could see clearly what was in front of him.

"This is the pride of our Shikisaki family - the 'Zhu Rong Furnace'!"

In an instant... at this moment when they saw the scene ahead, both Aoto and Boss Kiryu had expressions of astonishment on their faces.

In front of their sight was an extremely huge furnace!

Its foundation is a compacted dry earth mound, on which there is a rectangular bellows furnace made of clay, about 5 meters long, 4 meters wide and 3 meters high.

Next to the foundation bed is the bellows furnace.

There are foot-operated bellows on both sides of the bellows furnace. As long as you step on the thick pedal, you can send air into the furnace and make the fire blazing.

Before this, the largest furnace Qingdeng had ever seen was the size of a refrigerator.

Has he ever seen such a giant furnace measured in meters and covering an area of ​​20 square meters?

Just as the master and the apprentice were carefully looking at the "Zhu Rong Furnace", Shikisaki Jiyoshi on the side said quietly:

"It takes about 1,000 coals to light a furnace like this."

[Note: 1 string = 3.73 kg, 1000 strings ≈ 3.75 tons]

"We will use this furnace to welcome the God of Fire and forge a sword that is unparalleled in the world!"

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