…

At this moment——

"G-Takasugi-kun!"

The one-armed samurai with a cautious and fearful expression walked up to Takasugi Shinsaku in two steps at a time.

"Have all the officers and soldiers of the Huofu Thief Reform...retired...?"

Takasugi Shinsaku glanced at the one-armed warrior calmly:

"Can't you see with your own eyes?"

After that, he shook his right arm vigorously, throwing all the blood on the blade of the knife in his palm to the ground, and then sheathed the knife.

The one-armed warrior walked gingerly to the window next to him, stuck out half of his head and looked out the window.

Seeing the members of the 7th Squadron who had just shown off their power, they were all moaning and dejected outside the house. After confirming that there was no more abnormal noise downstairs, the expression on the one-armed warrior's face suddenly changed to one of surviving a disaster.

Happy look.

"Takasugi-kun...thank you...your swordsmanship is so powerful...if it weren't for you, my friends and I would all be finished...!"

As soon as the one-armed warrior finished speaking, Takasugi Shinsaku said quickly without thinking:

"It's not that my swordsmanship is strong, it's just that I am incompetent when it comes to dealing with thieves."

"After all, the officers and soldiers of the Huo Fu Thieves Reform have the advantage of being armed and numerically superior. If they unite as one and fight against me as one, I may not be able to be so calm."

After finishing speaking, Takasugi Shinsaku crossed his arms and leaned against the window frame next to him. He glanced at the people in black outside the house and let out a disdainful laugh.

"The Hufu Thieves fight against all kinds of vicious criminals all year round. They should be one of the most effective troops the Tokugawa family currently has."

"I didn't expect...this army, which I thought would be more or less decent, actually has such a fragile character."

"The rumors are indeed true. The Edo shogunate has indeed weakened greatly in recent years, and it no longer has the majesty it once had to quell the rebels in the world."

"But... ha! When it comes to the decline of the country, our Choshu clan is not much better..."

Speaking of this, Takasugi Shinsaku seemed to recall some bad memories, his eyelids sank and his lips tightened.

"There are swarms of insects inside and outside the feudal government... I really want to chop all those useless cowards to death...!"

After saying that, Takasugi Shinsaku took a deep breath as if to calm down.

"Okay, Gao Long, I've done everything I can do. Next, you can ask for your own blessings and find a way to escape from here."

The one-armed warrior was shocked:

"Gao, Gao Shanjun! You..."

Takasugi Shinsaku guessed what the one-armed warrior wanted to say, and interrupted him with a strong tone:

"I went to Edo all the way to Edo because I heard that there was a group in Edo that called itself the 'Anti-Barbarian Group' and its behavior suited my taste. I wanted to see it with my own eyes."

"Unfortunately, by the time I arrived in Edo, the anti-barbarian group had been destroyed."

"Fortunately, through the introduction of my friends, I found you group of surviving members of the anti-barbarian group, and finally this trip to Edo was not in vain."

"I have no affiliation or alliance with your anti-barbarian group. Apart from the common ideal of 'repelling the barbarians', there is no intersection between you and me."

"I just helped you repel the shogunate officers and soldiers just out of consideration for the fact that we are both patriots against the foreigners."

"I have no obligation to poop on you like a mother, and I have no obligation to protect you all the time."

"What to do next, how to deal with the fire outside the house and the thieves, whether to escape or stick to this broken house - you can decide for yourself. I will neither interfere nor accompany you."

After listening to Takasugi Shinsaku's words, the one-armed samurai's face suddenly turned pale, so pale that he could still clearly see it in such a dark night.

At this time, the surviving members of the "One-Armed Party" gathered in twos and threes towards the One-Armed Samurai and Takasugi Shinsaku.

Including the one-armed samurai, there were a total of 21 people in this group of lucky people who managed to save their lives during the raid by the Huofu Rogue Kai.

Most of them had witnessed with their own eyes how Takasugi Shinsaku had just used his own strength to defeat the invading officers and soldiers with such overwhelming force that they lost their armor.

Therefore, in the eyes of these frightened birds, Takasugi Shinsaku is the life-saving straw that helps them escape from here!

They looked at Shinsaku Takasugi eagerly, casting hopeful glances at this "life-saving straw" - but unfortunately, their calls for help were indifferently ignored by Shinsaku Takasugi.

At this time, the one-armed warrior perked up as if he suddenly thought of something, and said quickly:

"Ah! Takasugi-kun, although you are indeed not obligated to protect us all the time, your current situation is the same as ours, you are trapped in this house!"

“Look outside the house! The officers and soldiers surrounding this place are so densely packed that it’s impossible to fly!

"However, as long as you and I gather our strength, we will definitely be able to..."

Takasugi Shinsaku laughed meaningfully and interrupted the one-armed warrior again.

"Gao Long, you are worrying too much."

Takasugi Shinsaku turned his gaze out the window again and continued with a tone full of confidence:

"Those officers and soldiers outside the house may be able to trap you, but they definitely can't trap me!"

"If I want to escape, I can fly away at any time. I don't need to join forces with you."

The one-armed warrior seemed to have finally given up.

He lowered his head and shoulders in frustration...but in the next moment, he suddenly gritted his teeth.

"Okay...! Then we...just find a way to escape on our own!"

A fierce expression appeared on the face of the one-armed warrior, and a crazy and fierce light flashed in his eyes. He turned his head and shouted to a subordinate next to him:

"Hey! Drag out the women we captured! Move quickly!"

…

…

At this time, a team member who had just been sent by Kimura to count casualties walked quickly.

According to the report of the soldier, the casualties of the 7th Division were not particularly heavy, with only 8 dead and 3 injured.

After hearing the casualties of Division 7, Kimura's face turned pale immediately.

"Just so many people died, and the morale of the whole team collapsed...Tsuchida-kun, you are a bit incompetent as a squad leader. Do you train the troops properly on weekdays?"

"..." Tsuchida didn't dare to say anything or refute.

Like a child who had done something wrong, he stood obediently with his hands down and silently accepted Kimura's scolding.

At this moment, a voice as loud as thunder exploded above everyone's heads:

"Originals and soldiers who have been transformed into thieves and thieves! Listen to me!"

Everyone quickly raised their heads and followed the sound.

I saw a one-armed warrior standing expressionlessly in front of an open window on the second floor of the house.

A Third Division soldier standing next to Qingdeng subconsciously opened his bow and pointed the arrow at the chest of the one-armed warrior.

Qingdeng saw this and shouted quickly: "Wait a minute! Put down the bow!"

The reason why Qingden quickly asked this subordinate to put down his bow is very simple - the one-armed warrior was using his only arm to grab a young girl's hair.

The girl looks to be 15 or 6 years old. Judging from her face and clothes, she should be an ordinary folk girl.

The one-armed warrior's action of dragging the girl's hair was extremely rough, with no regard for the girl's feelings.

The girl, whose scalp seemed to be torn off at any time, looked in pain and burst into tears.

"Ohh Ohh ohh!"

"Damn it! Stop crying! Be quiet!"

The one-armed warrior slapped the crying girl unceremoniously, and a red and swollen "red maple leaf" suddenly appeared on the girl's right cheek.

The girl who was hurt by the beating and frightened quickly held her breath and bit her lips, not daring to make any more sound.

Perhaps he was afraid that the officers and soldiers would shoot him coldly, so the one-armed warrior lifted the girl in front of him and used the girl's delicate body as a shield.

"The officers and soldiers who were turned into thieves by fire! Have you seen these women?"

As soon as the one-armed warrior finished speaking, he saw several black shadows flash behind him - four warriors appeared beside him, each of them dragging a girl in their hands.

Without exception, these girls are all very young, and they are all dressed like folk girls.

"These women are all 'goods' we captured and planned to sell in order to raise 'military expenditures to resist the foreigners'!"

"If you don't want them to die, just obey my request!"

"My request is very simple - withdraw the troops! All officers and soldiers must leave my field of vision one by one! And prepare 30 rideable horses for us within half an hour! Otherwise, we will wait to give them to these women.

Collect the bodies!"

After saying that, the one-armed warrior closed the window with force with a bang.

"Hey! Wait!" Kimura shouted hurriedly.

However, no matter how Kimura shouted, the room was silent and no response could be heard.

There were actually hostages in the hands of the "one-armed party"... Such an accident exceeded everyone's expectations.
To be continued...