In Iwakura, the northern suburbs of Kyoto, there is an inconspicuous bungalow and a teahouse——

"Mr. Gui, please sit down. There is no need to be polite."

The middle-aged man made a "please" gesture.

"Then... I would rather obey your orders than be respectful."

The young man straightened his clothes, and then sat face to face with the middle-aged man - except for the two of them, there were no other outsiders in this elegant tea room.

The middle-aged people call the young man "Mr. Gui"... The identity of the latter is already obvious.

It was Katsura Kogoro, one of the "Three Heroes of Choshu"!

I saw that Katsura Kogoro was covered in dust, his hair was messy, and his face was black and white.

At first glance, I thought he was some bumpkin from the countryside.

Nowadays, the Changshu clan has become a traitor appointed by the imperial court, and the people of Changshu have become smelly street rats.

In order to sneak into Kyoto secretly, Katsura Kogoro had to disguise himself as an inconspicuous country samurai, in order to achieve the purpose of hiding his identity from others.

As the actual leaders of the Choshu Domain, the "Three Heroes of Choshu"...that is, Katsura Kogoro, Takasugi Shinsaku and Kusaka Genzui, all topped the "Wanted List" recently released by the shogunate.

The wanted posters for the three of them were plastered all over the streets and alleys of various cities and towns, and the rewards for the three of them were the same - the one who killed them would be rewarded with a hundred taels of gold; the one who captured them would be rewarded ten times as much, with a reward of one thousand taels of gold!

Of course, this series of bounties aimed at the "Three Heroes of Changzhou" only serves as an "atmosphere group" and is difficult to play a real role.

Regardless of the fact that they are all top-notch swordsmen, it is extremely difficult to pinpoint their specific whereabouts.

Each of them is an erratic master. God knows where they are now and where they will go next.

After the "August 18 Coup", the alliance of Qinjin, Aizu and Satsuma deployed heavy troops to blockade Kyoto to prevent the infiltration of Choshu people.

However... in the feudal era, which lacked high-tech means, no matter how strict the blockade was, there would always be loopholes.

Castles in ancient Japan did not have walls for protection.

The full name of Castle Town is "Castle Town", which means "the town below the castle".

Only the residences of the lords such as Edo Castle, Osaka Castle, and Takatori Castle have walls.

As for the cities and towns outside the castle, there are no defensive facilities, so you can come and go as you please.

Without city walls, there would be no city gates, and naturally it would be impossible to rely on "strict gate control" to blockade towns and cities.

In other words - if Kyoto is to be completely sealed off, every road connecting inside and outside Kyoto must be strictly controlled... You know, this kind of thing is simply unrealistic!

Therefore, there are not many ways to sneak into a big city like Kyoto.

In this way, although he was a little reckless, Katsura Kogoro successfully sneaked into Kyoto without any danger.

"Mr. Gui, we haven't seen each other for a long time."

The middle-aged man said half-jokingly.

"At that time, you were the high-spirited leader of the Zunbang faction, and I was the minister of the Samu faction who received much attention."

"But now, you have become a wanted criminal, and I have become a monk forced to live in seclusion."

"Oh, time? Fate?"

Katsura Kogoro smiled slightly and responded to the middle-aged man with the opening poem of "The Tale of the Heike" unhurriedly:

“‘The ringing of the bells of Gion Abode tells the story of the impermanence of the world’.”

The reason why Katsura Kogoro risked his life and sneaked into Kyoto was to meet with this middle-aged man.

It can be seen from this that this person is not a common person.

In fact, it is.

This middle-aged man is indeed a great celebrity - a powerful minister who has been in the limelight in recent years: Iwakura Tomomi.

Iwakura Tomomi came from a "half family" of low status.

According to convention, a minister from a "half-family" family is destined to have no chance of getting a high-ranking official.

However, by virtue of his outstanding talents, he gradually gained the trust and reuse of the upper class and became an important member of the imperial court.

A year ago, he strongly promoted the "union of public and military affairs" and urged Kazushita to marry Tokugawa Iemo, thus promoting the alliance between the imperial court and the shogunate.

He and Miyamoto were unwilling to go to Edo, and even said harshly, "Even if I become a nun, I will not marry in Kanto."

In order to make Wakura surrender, Iwakura Tomomi used all means, including bribery, coercion and other dirty tricks, and finally succeeded in isolating Wakura. Wakura, who had no choice but to agree to the marriage, had no choice but to agree to the marriage.

Iwakura Tomomi's behavior of "wholeheartedly supporting the 'integration of public and military forces'" unsurprisingly aroused great dissatisfaction among the Zonbo faction.

The Zunban faction identified him as a traitor who brought disaster to the country and the people, and listed him as one of the "four traitors" who must be eliminated in this life.

After Wakura Toto married Edo, Tomomi Iwakura, who was promoted to Major General Ukonoe Gon, also followed him.

Later, the Zunban movement in the Gyeonggi area intensified.

The Zunbang faction strongly demanded that Iwakura Jushi be strictly enforced.

The imperial court could not bear the pressure and ordered him to resign, become a monk, and was prohibited from going out.

In this way, Iwakura Tomomi was forced to live in seclusion in Iwakura Village in the northern suburbs of Kyoto, and lived a retired life without caring about worldly affairs.

Of course, his "indifferentness" only remains on the surface.

In fact, he has been secretly observing the situation in the world, always keeping in touch with the court, and actively contacting major forces such as Choshu, Satsuma, Aizu, and Shinsengumi.

He once invited Aoto to have dinner at his home, but Aoto refused because he was "busy with work" - not polite, but really busy. At that time, Aoto had just put down the rebellion in the Ise area. We are busy dealing with the aftermath and the next military expansion plan.

Anyone with a bit of discernment can immediately see that Iwakura Tomoshi is a rare capable person in the imperial court, a man of action.

He is realistic, down-to-earth, decisive in his actions, and has the courage to take responsibility. He is not the kind of dreamer who can only talk and talk, and is far beyond the comparison of Sanjou Shimei and others.

Knowing that he would offend the Zunbang faction and possibly lose his life, he still forcibly pushed forward the process of "integration of public and military forces" - this kind of courage is far beyond ordinary people.

In terms of political stance, there is no doubt that Iwakura Tomomi, who supports the "combination of public and military affairs", belongs to the Sabaku faction.

Although the ministers of the imperial court were very incompetent, they were not so weak that they wasted such talents.

Previously, even though the Zunbo faction exerted all kinds of pressure, the ministers of the Samu faction still defended Iwakura Tomoshi.

The reason why he was only dismissed from his post instead of killing him directly was that he was essentially protecting him in disguise.

Nowadays, the ministers of the Zunbo faction headed by Sanjo Sanimi have been driven out of Kyoto, and most of the ministers of the Samu faction who have come to power are mostly mediocre people.

In order to ensure the majesty and normal operation of the imperial court, the ministers of the Samu faction had to rely on Iwakura Tomoshi.

In this way, Iwakura Tomoe has a huge influence that is not matched by his status.

It is no exaggeration to say that - compared to the insignificant emperor and other useless ministers, Iwakura Tomoshi is the face figure who can represent the power of the imperial court today!

Even though he is currently retired, whether he comes back or not depends entirely on an order from the imperial court.

When the time comes, the imperial court will definitely use it again to strengthen its own strength.

Therefore, the imperial court is not a mascot without independent consciousness, and they are quite clever.

The person who can influence the will of the imperial court is not in the imperial palace, but in an inconspicuous village in the northern suburbs of Kyoto... It is really funny and ironic.

"Mr. Iwakura, I won't say any unnecessary nonsense."

Katsura Kogoro bypassed the pleasantries and said seriously:

"I'm here to discuss cooperation with you."

Iwakura Tomoshi smiled dumbly:

"Cooperation? Mr. Gui, do you think too highly of me? I am just an apartment now, what can I negotiate with you?"

"Mr. Iwakura, please don't be careless."

Katsura Kogoro changed into a stern tone.

"Everyone in the world says you are from the Samu sect."

"But I know that you are actually neither the Zuomu sect nor the Zunbang sect. You are from the 'imperial court' sect!"

"Whether you fully support the 'union of public and military forces', or sit back and watch Sanjo Sanimi and others being expelled from Kyoto, these are all just ways for you to try to restore the authority of the imperial court!"

??????55.??????

Iwakura Tomomi still kept smiling.

However, a sharp look flashed in his eyes.

Katsura Kogoro's words continued:

"Mr. Iwakura, you want to restore the authority of the imperial court."

"And I want to save this country from ruin."

"To a certain extent, your interests and mine are identical."

"Let me ask you, is the current domestic situation as you wish?"

"The Shinsengumi put down the Yamato Rebellion, the Huisa Allied Forces repulsed the Choshu Army, the Sabu faction overwhelmed the Zunbang faction, and the shogunate's prestige was greatly enhanced."

"Ju Qingden was granted a great name and guarded the western frontier for the shogunate."
To be continued...