Chapter 254: Chapter 112: Aoto’s New Subordinates?

Strong enough to make many martial arts experts in the Anti-Foreigner Group willingly accept his guidance.

Besides revealing the organization he belonged to, the fat man also divulged two important pieces of intel.

First: He admitted that the assassination attempt on the Angoulême family was orchestrated by their Anti-Foreigner Group.

Second: He confessed that the organization that viewed Aoto as a national traitor and repeatedly sent people to assassinate Aoto was also their Anti-Foreigner Group.

The fat man explained why they wanted to kill Anthony and Elodie—not for any special reason, just because they wanted to kill foreigners.

Which country this foreigner is from, their identity, age, gender, all are irrelevant.

Anyway, all foreigners who set foot on Japanese soil are to be killed.

The Angoulême family was just purely unlucky—the Anti-Foreigner Group learned via some channels that a vulnerable French merchant family would soon travel from Osaka through Tokaido to Edo.

Their Anti-Foreigner Group had previously focused on eliminating "national traitors," and it was the first time they attempted to assassinate foreigners.

To ensure the "debut battle" against the foreigners was a complete success, Shinno dispatched numerous members to participate in the operation.

As for which channel the Anti-Foreigner Group used to find out that the Angoulême family would soon journey through Tokaido to Edo... the fat man was unaware.

The fat man was merely a low-ranking member of the Anti-Foreigner Group, hence he knew nothing about the number of members, the locations of bases, and other critical intel.

The above is all he knew.

Although they didn’t obtain enough critical information from the fat man, the intel he confessed dispelled much of the confusion in Aoto and others’ minds.

The Magistrate’s Office finally knew which organization had the capability and audacity to gather over two hundred samurai to attack foreign merchants.

And Aoto also finally learned which organization sought to take his head for the ridiculous reason of "having served at the U.S. Embassy."

The Magistrate’s Office promptly consolidated all the Anti-Foreigner Group intel confessed by the fat man, then reported to the Shogunate.

The Shogunate soon sent a reply to the Magistrate’s Office: Quickly eradicate this extraordinarily large Radical Anti-Foreigner Faction entirely!

Upon receiving this stern order from the Shogunate, the South and North Magistrate’s Office immediately took action.

Hosoi and Atsukawa (South Division Town Magistrate) summoned the Town Elder and Town Lord, instructing them to promote awareness of the Anti-Foreigner Group and its dangers in their respective towns, encouraging townsmen to provide information related to the Anti-Foreigner Group, with generous rewards for valuable intel.

For a moment, "Anti-Foreigner Group" became a hot topic in Edo.

Wherever one went, there were always discussions about this Radical Anti-Foreigner Organization, now considered a "major enemy to be eradicated" by the Edo Magistrate’s Office.

The Magistrate’s Office slightly adjusted its resource allocation and focus—diverting considerable resources and manpower to investigate and track the Anti-Foreigner Group.

April is the peak season for Sakura blossoms.

As early as March 25th, the cherry trees planted across Edo began gradually blooming.

By March 27th, the fluttering Sakura petals had become a remarkably beautiful scene in Edo.

Of course, officials from the "Three Times" within the Magistrate’s Office now evidently had no time or leisure to admire the unfolding Sakura.

However, Aoto was an exception.

Because on March 27th, Aoto was finally granted a long-awaited holiday.

The excessive workload and pressure had made Aoto almost forget when his last holiday was.

Yet even during the holiday, Aoto still didn’t have the leisure to enjoy the Sakura.

Since dispatching Chokata to commission Boss Kiryu to find a few reliable individuals willing to act as his undercover informants, some time had passed.

Aoto planned to use today’s rare day off to visit the Thousand Affairs House and see the current progress of the commission handed to Boss Kiryu.

...

...

Man’en 1 (1860), March 27th—

Edo, on a certain street—

"At last, the weather is gradually warming..." Aoto casually brushed away a falling Sakura petal from atop his head, then raised his right hand, observing the sun that shone brilliantly through the fingers.

Since yesterday, when the Sakura in Edo began to bloom, Edo, constantly disturbed by cold fronts, finally started to warm.

Going out now, one need not wear thick clothing, snow caps, and scarves, just a thin Feathered Robe would suffice to keep from catching cold.

The bright sunshine and neither cold nor hot temperature—this was Aoto’s favorite weather.

Feeling the gentle spring breeze brushing across his cheeks, an unwitting smile slightly curled at the corners of Aoto’s mouth in good spirits.

The current time was likely past 8:00 am, and Aoto, accompanied by Saito, was striding towards the Thousand Affairs House.

Just as they arrived at the door of the Thousand Affairs House, Aoto heard the sound of a rapidly clicking abacus from inside.

Aoto initially thought the sound was Boss Kiryu working the abacus, but upon opening the store door, he discovered that it was Mukiwa who was operating the abacus.

Mukiwa, kneeling behind the counter, expertly manipulated the abacus beads with her left hand while writing something in a large ledger with a pen held in her right hand.

Upon hearing the door open, she immediately paused, raised her head, and upon recognizing Aoto, a bright smile quickly spread across Mukiwa’s cheeks.

The changing seasons made Mukiwa’s attire much cooler now.

At present, Mukiwa was clad in a thin, bright red kimono, barefoot, her sleeves bound tightly with a sleeve binder, exposing her petite feet and two lotus arms like white porcelain.

"Mr. Tachibana!"

Mukiwa set down her pen and abacus, her pale feet thumping lightly on the spotless wooden floor as she darted from behind the counter to greet Aoto.

"Miss Kinoshita, good morning." Aoto smiled and exchanged greetings with Mukiwa.

"And a good morning to you." Mukiwa crossed her arms before her and bowed slightly to Aoto.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Aoto got straight to the point, asking where Boss Kiryu was.

"Mr. Kiryu is currently in the kitchen making breakfast." Mukiwa replied, "Please wait here a moment; I’ll go call him now..."

Mukiwa no longer needed to call Kiryu.

Because before she could finish speaking, Kiryu’s old, refined voice emerged from the inner house.

"Young Master, I believe I heard Mr. Tachibana’s voice. Has Mr. Tachibana arrived?"

With a pot spoon in hand and an apron around his chest, Kiryu slowly stepped out from the inner house of the Thousand Affairs House.

The apron Kiryu wore was somewhat adorable—the apron’s center was embroidered with a ginger-colored cat’s face.

"Boss Kiryu, good morning." Aoto greeted Kiryu upon his appearance from the inner house, "I’ve come to inquire about the progress of the commission I handed you a few days ago."

"Ha-ha-ha, Mr. Tachibana, we’ve been eagerly waiting for you." Kiryu laughed heartily, then pointed to the cushions laid out in front of the counter, "Please sit down."

"If it’s convenient, could you wait for a short while? I still need to finish preparing breakfast, but it won’t take long."

"No problem at all." Aoto waved his hand, "You carry on. After all, I’m on holiday today, not in a hurry."

Kiryu, carrying the pot spoon, returned to the inner house.

Indeed, he wasn’t lying—after just a brief moment, he came back out, no longer wearing the apron or holding the pot spoon.

Telling Mukiwa to eat breakfast while it was hot, he knelt comfortably behind the counter.

"Mr. Tachibana, regarding your commission... I’ve already found three extremely good candidates for you."

Kiryu retrieved a large ledger with a green cover from under the counter.

"Here they are... these three individuals."

Kiryu flipped this ledger to the last page containing writing, pointing to the page with three names written on it.

"Nagakura Shinpachi, Harada Sazō, and Fujimura Heisuke."

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Since the author was busy with personal matters yesterday, today’s update is slightly less. Tomorrow, I’ll strive to update more (Leopard cries of anguish).