"Ishizaka-kun, what did the court say?"

Qinghe Hachiro turned to look at the samurai sitting on his right.

The man cleared his throat and said seriously:

"Lord Qinghe and Sanjo Sanemi greatly appreciate our plan and are willing to provide us with all the support they can."

Sanjo Shimei - the leader of the imperial court's Zunban faction.

In order to revive the imperial power, realize the respect for the king and resist the barbarians, and restore the status of the emperor and the ministers, the ministers of the Zunban faction headed by Sanjo Sanimi are working closely with the Choshu clan.

Qinghe Hachiro nodded slightly, with a look of satisfaction on his face.

Then, he turned to look at the other person.

"Ikeda-kun, what's the response from Choshu?"

"……well."

Ikeda sighed heavily.

"Master Qinghe, I really don't have the face to see you..."

After that, he bent over, placed three fingers of his hands on the ground, buried his head deeply, and touched his forehead lightly to the floor - it was a standard earth seat.

Seeing this, Qinghe Balang frowned slightly.

"Ikeda-kun, please raise your head quickly. What happened? Please tell me in detail."

Ikeda maintained his seated posture and replied respectfully:

"Lord Qinghe, I have not been able to complete the task of 'contacting the Choshu Domain and reaching cooperation with them' as assigned by you."

"Changzhou people are very cautious."

"It's so cautious that I feel like they don't want to cooperate with us at all."

"I have personally visited their homes several times to explain our plans to them face to face."

"However... although they always say 'willing to cooperate with you' and 'you are outstanding patriots who understand the righteousness' and other pleasant words, in reality they have been perfunctory with me."

"So far, let alone Takasugi Shinsaku, Katsura Kogoro and Kusaka Genzui, I haven't met anyone with any status in the Choshu Domain."

"Nothing has been accomplished, and all the time has been wasted... I really feel ashamed of myself..."

After speaking, Ikeda buried his already drooped head a little lower.

After listening to Ikeda's explanation attentively, Qinghe Hachiro narrowed his eyes and muttered:

"It seems... the people of Changzhou are not willing to trust us yet..."

A thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

After a moment, his originally narrowed eyes gradually relaxed, and a peaceful smile appeared on his lips.

"Ikeda-kun, don't lose heart, this is inevitable."

As Qinghe Hachiro said this, he stretched out his palms and helped Ikeda upright with his own hands.

"A stranger came unexpectedly and shouted something about 'seizing the power of the Shinsengumi and transforming it into a powerful force that upholds the great cause of Zunbo'... If it were me, I wouldn't believe him easily."

"At this stage, we can only show our sincerity little by little and slowly gain the trust of Changzhou people."

"The Choshu Domain is currently the most powerful Zunban faction."

"Therefore, for us, who are still weak, whether we can obtain external support from the Choshu Domain is a top priority."

"Ikeda-kun, the burden on your shoulders is heavy...but I believe you will not let me down."

"I believe in your abilities - that's why I entrust you with this most important task."

"So, raise your head quickly and don't be discouraged anymore."

"You can't accomplish anything if you look downcast and depressed."

Listening to Qinghe Hachiro's encouragement, Ikeda's eyes burst with emotion.

"Yes! I will definitely fulfill my mission!"

Just like the most devout believer paying homage to his god, Ikeda looked excited and bowed his waist again with great respect - again the most standard earth seat - and at the same time, he kowtowed heavily to Qinghe Hachiro .

When the forehead touches the floor, a crisp "thunk" sound is made.

Qinghe Hachiro smiled slightly and patted Ikeda on the shoulder with neither light nor heavy force to show encouragement.

At the same time, his eyes fell on another warrior.

"Sugiura-kun, what about you? Have you made any significant progress in the tasks assigned to you?"

"..."

The samurai called "Sugiura" didn't say anything immediately.

After being silent for about 5 seconds, he let out a long breath silently.

"Lord Qinghe, I kind of underestimate Saitoichi..."

Hearing this, Qinghe Balang frowned again.

Before he could ask further questions, Sugiura continued to explain:

"After being assigned to the Third Division, I have been faithfully advancing the tasks assigned by you, trying to attract as many ordinary soldiers as possible to join our ranks."

"At first, I thought Saitoichi, who was leading the Third Division, was just a taciturn roughneck with no other skills except swordsmanship."

"I didn't expect...this person's mind is unexpectedly quick."

"Just recently, what I did seems to have aroused his vigilance."

"I'm worried that if I continue to act, I will alert others, so I don't dare to act rashly again."

Having said this, he changed into an apologetic tone.

"Master Qinghe, I am really sorry..."

As soon as he began to apologize, Qinghe Hachiro shook his head slightly and extended his hand to make a "no need to say" gesture.

"Sugiura-kun, you don't have to apologize."

"Saitoichi is indeed not a fuel-efficient lamp."

"Like you, I didn't pay much attention to this person before."

"It was only later, after my interactions with the Shinsengumi generals gradually deepened, that I was shocked to realize that this person was no ordinary person."

"Don't panic when things change, don't fear in the face of danger, distinguish between public and private affairs, and know the subtleties... Among the newly selected members, apart from Tachibana Aotobu and Hijikata Toshizo, Saito Kazuchi is the most talented general."

"According to my observation, he and Tachibana Aoden have a very deep friendship."

"Ju Qingden trusts him very much, and he is also very loyal to Ju Qingden."

"Besides, he is the kind of person who takes life and death very lightly."

"I don't care about my own life, nor the lives of others."

"If he discovers that someone is plotting to overthrow the Shinsengumi, he will definitely kill everyone with a knife without blinking an eye, and eliminate everyone who opposes Tachibana Aoden."

"When dealing with such a ruthless and loyal person, you can never be too careful."

"Therefore, your judgment is correct."

"Since the other party has been alerted, you should keep a low profile."

Speaking of this, Qinghe Hachilang slowly turned his eyes, passing his eyes across the faces of everyone present one by one.

"You all remember that Tachibana Aotobu, Okita Souji, Kondo Isamu, Nagakura Shinpachi and Saito Ichi of the Shinsengumi are not allowed to do anything unless they have to... No! No! No matter when or where they are.

Never have a head-on conflict with these five people!"

"If you accidentally come into contact with them, don't hesitate - just run away!"

…

…

Next, Qinghe Hachiro asked many more questions.

Time passes...

After about half an hour, he finally stopped asking questions.

"I already understand the general situation."

Qinghe Hachiro's face was filled with a helpless wry smile.

"Although our grand plan of 'capturing the Shinsengumi' has made considerable progress, it is still in a state of 'a long road ahead'..."

The moment he finished speaking, the atmosphere of the scene changed.

The air became heavy.

The emotion called "regret" pervaded all around.

Ikeda gritted his teeth and slapped his thigh hard with an angry look on his face.
To be continued...