Chapter 909 Qingden/Shuten Doji: "Go to the place where the world is divided into two parts!" [7100]

Of course, Qingdeng couldn't say it so straightforwardly, but that's the general meaning.

Qingdeng did not want someone to jump out and cause trouble from behind when he led his army to attack the Changzhou Army.

Although most of the vassals in Gyeonggi were called to the Western Expedition, and they were powerless even if they wanted to cause trouble, it was always right to be more vigilant.

After dealing with the Gyeonggi vassals for so long, Qingdeng finally understood that one by one, they were all a group of guys who were good at riding on the wall!

Gyeonggi is the main battlefield where the "Zunbang Sect" and the "Samu Sect" fight each other. Over time, all the vassals in Gyeonggi have developed a "flexible" body.

When the "Zunping Faction" gained momentum, they rushed to flatter the imperial court.

When the "Samu faction" became powerful, they all became loyal ministers of the shogunate.

If they said that after learning about the fall of Nongwei, they did not have the idea of ​​"submitting to Changzhou" or the urge to "make flirtations with Changzhou", then Qingdeng would never believe it!

Therefore, as early as halfway back to Ojin, Qingteng had already sent a large number of envoys to the Gyeonggi vassals to inform them that "Ju Qingteng is about to return to Ojin."

The benevolent king has returned - this sentence can not only boost the morale of one's own soldiers and civilians, but can also be used to intimidate the young people on both sides!

Sure enough, as soon as Qingdeng sent envoys, the feudal vassals in Gyeonggi Province immediately sent people to Tianjin to express their loyalty.

"We are sworn in with Choshu!" and "We swear to advance and retreat together with the shogunate!"... In short, they are all clichés.

Some vassal states took the initiative and requested to send troops to help.

Although they were very enthusiastic and had a "If you don't agree, I won't go back" attitude, all their requests for assistance were politely declined by Qingdeng.

Qingdeng did not expect them to send troops to fight, as long as they obediently guard their one-third of an acre of land and do not cause trouble.

Furthermore, even if they mobilized troops to assist in the war, it would not have much effect.

According to all the information known so far, the Choshu Army, which successively captured Nagoya and Sunfu Cities with overwhelming force, possesses quite advanced guns and artillery, and there is no obvious generation difference compared with the equipment of the Shinsengumi.

In other words, the next battle will be a modern war with guns and artillery bombarding each other!

In a battle of this level, there is absolutely no room for feudal troops to intervene.

If the armies of the Gyeonggi vassals were thrown into such a battlefield, they would be beaten into pieces if they could not hold out for even half an hour.

By then, Qingdeng will have to work harder to gather the remaining soldiers to prevent morale from falling and the gain outweighing the loss.

…

…

Just three days after Aoto rushed back to Otsu, the "Second Army" led by Hijikata Toshizo arrived safely in Otsu!

That afternoon, Isamu Kondo's "Third Army" arrived in Otsu.

The next morning, Shannan Keisuke's "Fourth Army" arrived in Otsu.

At this point, this "Second China Return", which lasted for 13 days in total, has officially come to an end!

13 days, 350 kilometers...the infantry's daily marching speed reached an astonishing 9 kilometers!

Such achievements have already surpassed Yu Chaijun’s “First Great Return of China”!

At that time, the marching speed of Yu Chai's army back to Gyeonggi was only 20-25 kilometers.

Of course, if you think about it, you know that such amazing results come at a high price.

In order to boost morale, Hijikata Toizan and others did not ride horses, but used two legs to travel like ordinary sergeants!

The superior officials did not just speak out, and did not order them to work hard and fight desperately, but actually ate the same food and suffered the same suffering as them... In this way, how could the three armies not die?

After Shannan Keisuke led the "Fourth Army" to Otsu, Aoto immediately summoned him, Hijikata Toshizo and Kondo Isamu.

At this moment, looking at the three people sitting side by side in front of him, Qingden pursed his lips and sighed with mixed emotions:

"Suisan, Yong, Jingzhu, thank you for your hard work...!"

Hijikata Toshizo smiled and spread his hands:

"I don't think it's hard. To me, this level is nothing. Those team members with average physique are the ones who work the hardest. It's really hard for them to persist until now..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Kondo Isamu and Shannan Keisuke both nodded in agreement.

The three of them are all swordsmen who can match a hundred swordsmen, so naturally they will not lack physical strength.

On the other hand, ordinary people... they don't have such ability.

Qingdeng naturally knew everything about the current situation of the infantry team.

After Hijikata Toshizo's "Second Army" successfully arrived in Otsu, he couldn't wait to check it out.

Although he had been mentally prepared in advance, he still couldn't help but feel sad after witnessing the tragic situation of the infantry.

With only two legs, he ran 350 kilometers in 13 days... Just looking at these numbers, it is not difficult to imagine what a painful march this was.

There was very little rest time, and they were not even allowed to take a break to eat... It is difficult to use specific words to describe the physical exertion and mental devastation this caused to people.

Many people even run while sleeping - with their eyes half-closed, they fall into a state of half-dream and half-awake, and move forward based on instinct.

The sergeants of the Shinsengumi were able to withstand this tremendous suffering and successfully complete the arduous task of the "Second Great Return of China" mainly due to two things-discipline and physical fitness.

There is no need to say much about the former.

The first article of the "Shinsengumi Code" is "all actions must be directed."

For a long time, the Metropolitan Police Bureau has proven one thing to all members of the Shinsengumi with its solid and powerful achievements: their swords will never be merciful due to any external conditions!

[Note: Metropolitan Police Bureau: The military police force of the Shinsengumi, led by Isamu Kondo]

It is certainly tiring and painful to keep running forward.

But if you stop and disobey the military order to "return to Dajin quickly", the Inspector General's sword will come to you!

It's not difficult to decide which one to choose.

In order to save their lives, they can only grit their teeth and use perseverance and desire to survive to make up for their lack of physical fitness.

As we all know, the desire to survive has extremely strong energy and can stimulate the hidden potential in the human body.

If strict military discipline plays a decisive role, then the latter... that is, strong physique, plays an important role.

Since the establishment of the Shinsengumi, Seito has spared no effort to improve the food standards of the sergeants.

If you have enough rice, you can eat oily meat, fish, and eggs from time to time.

Although looking at it from a modern perspective, meals of this level are nothing, but compared with the meals of other armies of the same era, just "rice and rice for free" is enough to make countless people envious.

Facts have proved that the real money Qingdeng spent on this was not in vain.

With a strong body nourished by rich nutrients, most of the team members successfully survived this arduous journey home.

But even so, after arriving in Dajin, many soldiers were still so exhausted that they almost died suddenly.

Many people took off their leggings and found that their legs were as red and swollen as legs and they were basically unconscious.

As for the number of people who faint from exhaustion on their back legs as soon as their front legs stop.

However, the number of people who couldn’t persevere and fell behind midway was far less than Qingdeng expected.

Such an achievement is really unexpected.

In response to Hijikata Toshizo's words, Seito gently nodded and sighed:

"Yes, you are right, everyone has worked hard."

"This time, everyone has made a contribution!"

"I will definitely reward you all vigorously in the future!"

After hearing this, Hijikata Tosei grinned and said half-jokingly:

"Reward you all? If you want to reward all the sergeants who participated in the 'Second China Return', the cost will not be low."

Qingdeng smiled slightly:

“Isn’t it that I have earned so much money just to spend it happily in one go when it’s time to spend it?”

As soon as these words came out, the atmosphere at the scene became a little more relaxed.

However, in just a moment, Qingdeng restored the solemn atmosphere in the room.

"We will discuss the specific rewards later."

"Now, let's talk about the current war."

Hearing this, Hijikata Toshizo and others knew that the topic was about to come next, so they all calmed down their moods, lowered their expressions, and stared at Qingden attentively.

Shannan Keisuke couldn't help but asked first:

"Qingden, what's the current situation of Nobi?"

Because he had just returned and his body was still stained with dust that had not had time to be washed away, he did not yet know the current situation of the war.

Qingdeng said concisely and solemnly:

"They looted the entire Nagoya City, then mobilized all their troops and supplies and marched eastward."

"Four days ago, they captured Sunfu Castle without any effort."
To be continued...