The next day——
Trial Guard Hall, Dojo——
Standing in the center of the dojo in the lower stance, holding a bamboo sword in his hand, he closed his eyes and practiced the "lower sword stance" that he was not yet very proficient in. Qingto, who was training his muscle memory, suddenly felt a wave of warmth coming from his back.
meaning.
He opened his eyes and looked back - it turned out that the morning sun had penetrated through the windows of the dojo and hit Qingden's back.
The weather is particularly nice today.
Looking out through the open window, the birds have begun to chirp and fly up and down. The sky outside has turned into a beautiful blue color, and the sun peeks out from the eastern horizon.
The bright red morning glow suddenly bloomed, forming a beautiful picture with the blue sky.
"It's dawn..."
Qingdeng is now completely accustomed to this routine of getting up at 2 or 3 in the morning and doing morning exercises until dawn.
Let’s finish today’s morning exercise. After thinking this in his mind, Qingdeng put the bamboo sword in his hand back into the sword bucket not far away, and then prepared to go to the yard to wipe off the sweat on his body and wash up.
one time.
There is a deep well dug directly into the underground water in the courtyard of the imperial examination hall. Kondo and others rely on this well for daily water use.
The habit of brushing teeth has been widely popularized in Japan during the Edo period. People in this era used poplar branches and tooth powder to brush their teeth.
The so-called poplar branch can be understood as the toothbrush of this era, which is made of willow branches. When one end of the willow branch is torn open, the torn fibers in the willow branch are like the tiny saw teeth on a wooden comb, which is very convenient for cleaning teeth.
As for tooth powder, it can be understood as the toothpaste of this era. The preparation method is to mix mint, salt and other substances into fine sand. The cleaning effect and fresh breath effect are quite good.
Qingdeng fetched a bucket of water from the well for washing his face and brushing his teeth. He stood by the well, washing himself and admiring the beautiful scenery of the rising sun.
Suddenly, there was the sound of stumbling footsteps behind Qingdeng, as if he was drunk.
Behind Qingto, Okita, who has not yet recovered from the state of "waking up," has his eyes narrowed to just a slit, his head and shoulders slumped, his hair messy from sleep hanging casually behind him, and his hands
Li grabbed his water cup and willow branch, walked toward the well with a stumbling step and a crooked route.
"Tangerine-kun... Good morning... (Good morning)"
"Okita-kun, good morning...Hey! Look at the road!"
Bang.
Okita, who was still confused and couldn't even walk well, hit a tree in the yard, making a sound like a watermelon being slapped.
Okita's forehead turned red instantly.
However, such a strong impact... did not wake Okita up.
He raised his hand, touched the area where he had just hit, yawned loudly, and then continued walking towards the well as if nothing was wrong.
After fetching a new bucket of water from the well, Okita stood next to Qingteng and brushed his teeth with Qingteng.
Among Kondo's family, the earliest people to wake up are Kondo and Okita, who get up at dawn.
Next is Abi, she won't wake up until about 7 o'clock in the morning.
Zhou Zhu is the one who gets up the latest. According to Qingdeng's observation, if there is nothing important to do, Zhou Zhu will sleep until 10 o'clock in the morning most of the time, and then leisurely crawl out of bed.
"Hey...is your head okay?" Looking at Okita's still red forehead, he couldn't help but ask.
"Ah? No Temple (it's okay)..." Okita, who was half asleep and half awake, responded inarticulately, "I am a very handsome old man... (I am very hard-headed)"
After that, as if to prove that his head was really hard, Okita continued to hold the poplar branch with his right hand to brush his teeth, and raised his left hand to knock on his forehead, making a "knock, knock, knock" sound.
"Well... you're fine."
"Tachibana-kun, Chief Secretary, good morning."
"Oh, Kondo-kun, good morning."
"Hello on my claws...(good morning)"
Kondo, who still had some tiredness from just waking up on his face, walked across the yard, fetched a new bucket of water from the well, and joined Ayoto and Okita's "washing army".
"Kondo-kun, how are you? Did you and the master have a successful tutoring session last night?" Qingto asked casually.
"How should I put it..." Kondo smiled helplessly, "It's not going well. Mother is still stubborn."
"Hmm... Auntie is opposed to us having a competition with Little Chiba Kenkan at the Plum Blossom Festival, so let her object." Okita, who had finished brushing his teeth, was now squatting next to a bucket to wash his face.
Perhaps because of the excitement of the cold water, Okita has become much more awake now, and his speech is no longer slurred.
"Anyway, we won't refuse to compete with the Little Chiba Sword Hall just because of her objections."
"That being said..." Kondo smiled bitterly, "But after all, she is my mother and our master's wife. We must give her the respect she deserves."
Kondo brushes his teeth very quickly.
In just a moment, he took out his poplar branch from his mouth and began to rinse his mouth and face.
After casually slapping a few handfuls of water on his face, Kondo raised his head and looked at Okita beside him:
"Director-General, are you free this morning? I have an errand for you."
"Hmm? Running errands?" Okita put down the handkerchief he was wiping his face with.
"You will go to Chishiya later to find Boss Kiryu and Miss Kinoshita." Kondo smiled and said, "Invite Boss Kiryu and Miss Kinoshita to come to Yushima Tenmangu Shrine to watch our game on the day of the Plum Blossom Festival."
——Boss Kiryu? Miss Kinoshita?
Qingdeng blinked twice and suddenly remembered:
——Yes... Kondo-kun and the others know Boss Kiryu and the others, and their relationship seems to be very close...
Qingdou almost forgot: there is a deep friendship between the trial guard hall and Kiryu boss.
In the beginning, he relied on Boss Kiryu's "signature" to successfully let Kondo give him a "back door" when Shusuke was not in the sword hall and should not accept new apprentices, allowing Aomori to successfully become a master and try out the sword hall.
.
"Do you want to invite Boss Kiryu and the others to watch our game? I think it will only be a waste of time." Okita said doubtfully, "Boss Kiryu always likes to be quiet and doesn't like to join in the fun. I'm afraid he will politely refuse us.
An invitation.”
"I know." Kondo nodded, "But even if you know that he probably won't come, you still have to ask him politely."
"Boss Kiryu is an old acquaintance of our Trial Guard Hall, and he is also the benefactor of our Trial Guard Hall's successful establishment. Don't be too dismissive or rude to him. All the due etiquette must be fulfilled."
"Okay then..." Now that Kondo has said that, Okita said nothing more. He nodded, "Then I will leave for Chishiya later. I happen to be very free today."
"What day are you not free from?" Kondo shrugged and teased.
"That's a long way to go."
"...Okita-kun, can I go to Chishiya with you later?" At this time, Qingto, who had been silent just now, suddenly interrupted.
"Hmm?" Okita looked at Aoto who was taking out a handkerchief to wipe his face, "Tachibana-kun, do you want to go with me to find Boss Kiryu?"
"Well. Since I returned to Edo at the end of last month and said goodbye to them, I haven't seen Boss Kiryu and Miss Kinoshita again." Aoto put the handkerchief that wiped his cheeks back into his arms, "Have they helped me?
Master, the injuries I sustained in that 'snowy night battle' were all cured by Boss Kiryu with the help of me."
"I don't know how they are doing now. I haven't seen them for such a long time, so it's time to pay them a visit after a long absence."
"Okita-kun, can you let me go with you?"
"Of course." Okita smiled without thinking, "I really want to have someone to keep me company."
…
…
After washing up, Qingto and Okita made preparations to go out together.
After combing their hair, putting on clothes, and hanging their swords, after about half an hour of preparation, Aoto and Okita left the trial defense hall side by side - of course, Saito was also leaving the trial defense hall with them.
Saito also got up very early. He got up just after Aonto and the others had finished washing.
After learning that Qingdeng was going out, he quickly completed preparations for the trip without saying a word, holding his knife and standing at the entrance waiting for Qingdeng.
As Aoto's bodyguard, Saito will always be like Aoto's "spirit behind" and follow Aoto whenever he goes out.
I have to say - Saito's taciturn and reticent personality is really suitable for being a bodyguard.
Because Saito speaks very little, his presence is extremely thin.
To be continued...