Edo, a certain izakaya—
"Hey, have you heard of that?"
"What's the matter?"
"Just, that's...uh..."
"Why are you stuttering? Just say something quickly!"
"Cough, ache, what I'm going to say next may be terrifying. You should be careful and don't scream."
"Tell me quickly, don't suck my appetite!"
"It is said...it's really just said that Lord Niang is preparing to raise an army to rebel."
"What?!Make..."
"Shh! Don't shout, I've reminded you all!"
"Hug, sorry... is it true? Lord Nio wants to rebel?"
"Oh, I just heard from others, I don't know whether it's true or not."
"It must be fake! Most of the guy who hates Lord Ren Wang is making up these boring rumors!"
"I hope it's fake too...ah...I just returned to Edo and I, really don't want to avoid military disasters anymore..."
...
...
Edo, a tea house—
"The Dashu Gong is unconscious, which is a great time to usurp power and seize the throne. If Lord Ren is really willing to betrayal, then now is the best time to start."
"Hey, you all put your heads over, hurry up. I heard that Dashu Gong had long been dead. Lord Ren concealed the news of Dashu Gong's death, and kept silent about the funeral, pretending to be the illusion that Dashu Gong was still alive,
By deceiving the world, he would take the opportunity to mobilize troops and prepare for seizing power."
"I don't believe it! Lord Ren is unparalleled and loyal! How could he do such a traitorous thing!"
"Ha, you are too naive! How did Bai Letian say that poem? Ah, yes, 'Duke Zhou is afraid of rumors, and Wang Mang has not usurped the times', people's ambitions will change and grow. In'
Before the Honnoji Incident happened, who could have thought that Akichi Mitsuhide would rebel?”
"I still can't believe... Lord Ren enjoys all his wealth and glory, and wants money and fiefs, so why should he rebel?"
"Oh, who would think that his power is too small? A hero like Lord Ren Wang has long no longer cared about money and fiefdom."
...
...
Edo, a bathhouse—
"This may be another 'super-at-the-cap and anger for the beauty'."
"What do you mean? Who did Lord Niang fall in love with?"
"Who else can it be? Of course it is Your Highness of Tianzhangyuan! According to legend, Lord Ren admires His Highness of Tianzhangyuan very much, but he is a minister and the other party is the Great Imperial Office. The two of them will never be able to unite. So Lord Ren held his breath secretly and prepared at all times.
He was about to grab His Highness Tianzhangyuan. As long as he held supreme power, no one could stop him from marrying His Highness Tianzhangyuan."
"Is that Tianzhangyuan so beautiful? It's worth taking the risk of Lord Niang..."
"Who knows. Maybe His Highness of Tianzhangyuan took the initiative to seduce Lord Ren. She was a widow at a young age, so it was normal for her to have that desire."
...
...
Edo, a family-
"Wife! Get your luggage ready!"
"What's wrong? Why are you in such a hurry? What happened?"
"I'm not very clear either... I just heard that Lord Ren might rebel, and maybe he'll have to fight again."
"Ah? We're going to fight again? Isn't this just finished a war?"
"It's different. The last battle was against the people of Choshu and the foreign war. This time the battle was a battle within the shogunate and a civil war."
"Ahhh...it doesn't matter who is in power. Let's live a stable life..."
"Anyway, pack your luggage quickly! Be prepared to escape at any time! It's time to stop fighting. If there is another war, we can leave Edo as soon as possible!"
...
...
"Lord Ren is going to rebel", "Lord Ren will create the 'Koi Shogunate'", "Lord Ren raised an army for His Highness Tianzhangyuan"... It was like a spring bamboo shoot after the rain, this rumor suddenly popped up!
Unexpectedly!
People say things, and there are many different opinions.
Rumors that are difficult to distinguish between true and false are spreading rapidly.
Trouble is spreading widely.
In fact, not all these rumors are directed at Qingdeng.
Almost at the same time when the news of "Niwang is about to rebel", another rumor emerged: "The person who wants to rebel is not Juiceng, but Yiqiao Qixi!"
What if... Although the latter is more likely, its spread is far less than the former.
The specific reason is not complicated, it is very simple - the people are not familiar with Yiqiao Qingxi at all!
As of today, Yiqiao Qingxi has lived in seclusion for too long, and it is enough for the people to forget him.
This year happens to be a year of many disasters. One big event that can be recorded in history is dazzling, and people have no time to pay attention to the joy of Yiqiao.
In fact, even before he lived in seclusion, his popularity was far less than that of Qingdeng.
When talking about the name "Yiqiaoqingxi", the public's impression is basically "Oh, he seems to be a 'deputy general', he has no impression."
In this way, its transmission is naturally much weaker.
Compared to Keiki Ichihashi, who is not well-known, everyone is more willing to discuss Renwang!
What’s the point of talking about Yiqiao Qingxi? The great master Ren Wang, who is suspected of having an affair with His Highness Tianzhangyuan, has even more talked about it!
In this way, there was a strange thing that "both sides could rebel, but the people only discussed Qingdeng."
At the moment when rumors are everywhere, the public is already very nervous.
The "release of the new selection group" announced by the shogunate at noon today has further aggravated this tension.
No matter how gorgeous the rhetoric is, this fact cannot be avoided: Aoden, who is in charge of the "Thirty-Six Sees" has already controlled the entire Edo Castle!
As long as he has that intention, he can spend the night with Tenzhangyuan in Edo Castle tonight! The harem of lewdness!
Despite the hardships of the current situation, life still needs to be lived.
People work as usual, buy New Year's goods and prepare for the festival.
Batches of Jingcakes and Tusu wine were bought.
Bales of door pine, and the ornaments were placed at the doorstep.
At first glance, everything is as usual.
But under this strong "New Year's atmosphere", there is a surging undercurrent!
...
...
December 28, late at night—
Edo, Edo Castle, Sannomaru—
Mianomaru in Edo Castle was once the residence of the fifth general Tokugawa Tsunayoshi in front of the Monfu, so in addition to fortifications, Mianomaru also built many livable bedrooms.
At this moment, a figure suddenly appeared in a corridor in Sannomaru - Taro Katsura, holding a candlelight, walking hurriedly, and heading straight forward.
He did not carry any followers, and was alone.
After a while, he came to a door.
He didn't say hello, but just reached out and pulled the door.
As the door slowly opened, he saw Qing Deng, who had been here for a long time.
Aoden, who was bowing down in front of the desk, raised his gaze and looked at Katsura Taro.
The two looked at each other, nodded at the same time, and made a silent greeting.
Katsura Taro moved to Aoden case without hesitation, sat cross-legged, and said bluntly:
"Qingdeng, your troops have all entered the key points of the 'Thirty-Six See', and the process is even smoother than I thought."
Qingdeng nodded gently and said softly:
"Rintaro, thank you for your hard work."
Katsura Taro waved his hand:
"You're welcome, this is nothing."
After saying that, he sighed "ah" and frowned with melancholy folds between his eyebrows.
"I would have liked to scare away the 'Yiqiao Sect'..."
Qingdeng responded lightly:
"Hope so."
Since several days since Aoden has lived in Mianomaru in Edo Castle - of course, this matter is not revealed secretly and has not been known to the outside world.
There are only a few people who know the current residence of Aoden, including Tianzhangyuan, Katsuraintaro and others.
Edo Castle is the residence of the General of the Conquering Yi and his relatives. According to the rules, no one except the servants should live in Edo Castle.
If outsiders knew that Qingdeng spent the night in Edo City and had stayed for several days, Qingdeng would probably have the title of "Dong Zhuo of the Times".
Aoden risked being insulted by the world and wanted to be nailed to Edo Castle without moving, so naturally it was not for the purpose of staying overnight in the "dragon bed".
The reason he did this was both pure and heavy - to prevent a coup!
Will Keiki Ichihashi launch a rebellion? In response, Aoden, Tenzhangyuan and Katsurari Taro had a secret talk.
Although the "Nanji School" has countless members, including many loyal and righteous people, the only people who can truly trust in Tianzhangyuan are Aoto and Katsurari Taro.
After a brief discussion, the three of them made the same judgment: If the "Yiqiao Sect" wants to compete for the world, there is no better opportunity than the present!
First of all, Tokugawa Ishimatsu was seriously injured and unconscious, which was the best time to kill him.
After killing Tokugawa Ieshima, he may blame his death for "serious injuries but not healed". Even if people in the world have suspicions, it is difficult to raise objections.
Secondly, it is also the best time to kill Qingdeng!
In terms of prestige and comprehensive strength, Qingdeng has become the soul of the "Nanji School".
If the "Ichibashi Sect" wants to seize power, it is not enough to just kill Tokugawa Ishiki. He and Aoden must be killed!
Only in this way can the resistance ability of the "Nanji faction" be collapsed to the greatest extent.
If you only kill Tokugawa Ishimatsu but not get rid of Aoden, the latter will get a legitimate reason to send troops.
At that time, Qingdeng shouted "Punish Qingxi and clear the monarch's side" and raised his troops to the east. How could the "Yiqiao Sect" resist?
Anyone with a little IQ would not want to fight Qing Deng and his new selected group head-on.
Usually, Qingdeng lives in Otsu. Not only does he have unparalleled force, but he also stays in his own base camp all year round. It is difficult to kill him.
And now, Aodo is in Edo, just under the eyes of the "Ichibashi School"!
More importantly, his body has not yet healed, and the layers of linen on his body are still as thick as bricks, and his strength has been greatly reduced!
There is no better time than this... If you want to kill Qing Deng, you can only take advantage of the present!
The precious opportunity to kill Aoden and Tokugawa Ishiki in one breath is right in front of you... What a temptation this is?
Qingdeng asked himself: If it were him, he would choose to start at this time!
In short, no matter from which angle we judge, the "Yiqiao Sect" has full motivation and reason to launch a rebellion at the moment!
Since the possibility is extremely high, we can only prepare early and prepare for the future.
Qingdeng and others were unwilling to break out in a full-scale war with the "Yiqiao Sect" at this time.
They had just finished a series of fierce battles, both physically and mentally exhausted, and they really didn't want to fight a civil war with the "Yiqiao Sect" without even recovering from their tone.
Furthermore, they really couldn't bear to let the Edo scholars and people suffer new wars.
The full-scale war between the "Nanji Sect" and the "Yiqiao Sect"... God knows how long this war will last and how many people will die.
The most popular result of Qingdeng and others was naturally the news that the "Yiqiao Sect" took the initiative to dispel the rebellion.
To achieve this goal, they made many preparations, and the most important measures were two -
One is that Qingdeng lives in Sannomaru secretly to prevent problems before they happen.
The second is to transfer the new selected group to the "Thirty-Six See" to protect Edo Castle - the reason for this is to warn the "Yiqiao faction" in disguise: Don't do anything randomly! Start the war, you
But there is no certainty of winning!
The so-called "coup" is simple and difficult.
A detailed look at the successful coups in history - such as the "Gaopingling Incident" and the "Zhulu Incident" - have several common points.
The arsenal, the political center, the imperial guards... As long as you grasp these key points, the coup will be successful.
The major arsenals in Edo are concentrated in Edo Castle.
The political center of the "Nanji School", namely Aoto, Tokugawa Ishishi and Tenzhangyuan, are also in Edo Castle.
In other words, whether it is snatching the arsenal or occupying the highest political point, the "Yiqiao faction" has only one way to go: capture Edo Castle!
In short, Edo Castle is the top priority.
Aoden and others ignored nothing, and as long as they defended Edo Castle, they could be invincible.
On the contrary, if the "Ichibashi Sect" takes over Edo Castle, it will be done.
There are not many troops that Qingdeng can freely mobilize now.
The eight princes have long been disabled and lost their combat ability.
The "Sanfan Group", the "Zaishou Bow Group, the "Zaishou Iron and Fire Cannon Group" and other standing troops were also seriously injured in previous battles.
In the end, the only troops he can rely on are the seventh and tenth teams currently stationed in Edo.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have just transferred the new selection team to defend Edo Castle.
This leads to a consequence: the difference in strength between the two sides is not big!
The seventh and tenth squads are all cavalry teams, not good at infantry battles, and have too few troops, with a total of less than a thousand people.
Such combat power is not enough to turn Edo Castle into a "unfallen castle", and it is impossible to guarantee that the "Ichiqiao Sect" will retreat when it comes to difficulties.
No one can say whether the "Yiqiao Sect" will launch a rebellion or take risks... Such a thing is...
Aoden and Katsurari Taro were silent.
About ten seconds later, Katsura Taro took the initiative to break the silence:
"The rumors of your conspiracy to usurpate the rebellion are now spreading more and more."
Qingdeng sneered "ho":
"This is really not good news... If there was no 'Yiqiao Sect' interfering, then I would never touch the sword in my life."
Katsura Taro nodded slightly to show his approval.
The public suspected that Qingdeng would betrayal - it is not surprising that there would be such an idea.
It would be reasonable if these rumors were only circulated on a small scale.
But it is really abnormal to spread so quickly and widely!
I think it is certainly someone who is behind the scenes!
Who will these guys who are making trouble are... need not be said explicitly.
As Qingdeng said just now, this is really not good news - it shows that the "Yiqiao Sect" is unstoppable! They are still eager to seize power! They are building momentum for their seize power!
Qingdeng was the biggest obstacle on their coup.
First criticizing Qing Deng and criticizing the bad will greatly reduce the public opinion pressure of "killing the King of Ninja".
As early as a few days ago, Qingdeng and others realized that the "Yiqiao Sect" was mobilizing public opinion, so they immediately launched a counterattack - the rumors that "the real rebel is Yiqiao Celebration" were spread by them.
It’s a pity... Yiqiao’s low existence hurts their public opinion offensive.
At this time, after pondering for a moment, Qingdeng slowly turned his head and looked at the night sky outside the window not far away, looking at the sky:
"...Rintaro, be prepared. Although it is just my personal intuition, the fate of the shogunate, the fate of the general and His Highness of the Tenzhangyuan, and your and my destiny will be announced in a few days!"
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Chapter completed!