…

"Master, I'm leaving!"

Elodie straightened her clothes and said confidently.

Qingden smiled and nodded.

"Well, I wish you a safe journey!"

The girl was seen wearing a low-rimmed hat, a wind-proof cloak, and leggings tightly wrapped around her small and delicate ankles, looking like a traveler about to go on a long journey.

Behind her, 50 elite cavalrymen held their horses with one hand and pressed their swords with the other, ready to go.

Elodie is the head of the Finance Office and only looks after the accounting books and not the war, so it is naturally impossible for Qingdeng to take her to the front line.

He would leave her behind anyway, so it would be better to let her go to the Hachioji area and check the account books of the Hachioji Qian Renxin.

Since Seitoyo moved to the right to become Army President, "vigorously promoting the Westernization of the Eight Princes and Thousands of People Concentrated and the Military Army" has become his top priority.

Just a month ago, the guns that Qing Deng specially purchased for Thousand People Tongxin finally arrived in Hong Kong.

Before that, because he had to give priority to supplying resources to the Shinsengumi, he had no time to take care of Thousands of People Together.

Now that he was a little richer, and with the support of Tokugawa Iemo, he was able to free up his energy to promote military reforms with thousands of people working together.

With the upgrading of weapons and equipment, thousands of soldiers working together instantly completed the transformation from "one bamboo gun for each person" to "one musket for each person".

The army instructors hired by Tokugawa Iemo from France also arrived one after another and began to teach the most advanced army tactics to thousands of people.

Military reform is a long and systematic hard work that cannot be accomplished overnight.

What's more, the Eight Princes are not a professional army. They are a militia armed with half farmers and half soldiers. They have to farm during busy farming periods and can only find time to participate in training during slack farming periods.

Therefore, it will take a long time before this force can begin to take on combat effectiveness.

While vigorously promoting the modernization of Thousands of People Working Together, Qingdeng planned to review his account books and cut unnecessary expenses as much as possible to save money.

At the same time, he went to inspect the warehouse and clear out all the useless old equipment - such as bamboo guns and matchlock guns.

There is no doubt that the only person who can do this job is Elodie.

As we all know, accounting is a very dangerous job.

In modern times, the allusion of a helicopter full of auditors being blown down by rockets is both funny and frightening.

Furthermore, Elodie's Western identity also makes her extremely vulnerable to unfair treatment.

Naturally, Qingteng would not be so stupid as to let Elodie go to Hachioji alone.

He transferred 50 elite cavalry from the seventh division and ordered them to protect Elodie personally.

Not only that, he also appointed Kui Lai Shimada, the deputy captain of the First Division, to serve as Elodie's "chief of guards", with full authority to command these 50 cavalrymen.

Kui Shimada - Aoto has always been deeply impressed by this fierce soldier who worked his way up from the grassroots level. He admires him very much and intends to focus on training him.

It stands to reason that Qingdeng, who was determined to use all his strength in the Battle of March, would not fail to bring this fierce general with him.

What a pity... During the training a while ago, Shimada Kui accidentally sprained his left arm. The injury was not serious, but not easy either.

The doctor's advice is to let him rest for a while and avoid strenuous exercise.

In this case, it is naturally impossible for him to go to the front line.

Despite Shimada Kui's various requests, and even the bold statement that "even if I only have one arm, I can still go into battle to kill the enemy," Aito decided to send him to protect Elodie.

Compared with going to the front line to fight with the Changzhou people, this task is undoubtedly much easier.

Qingden didn't think anyone would be so short-sighted as to dare to step forward to find trouble when faced with Elodie, who was protected by 50 cavalry.

Shimada Kui naturally felt very sorry for Aonto's appointment.

As an old man of the Shinsengumi and the deputy captain of the first team, "obeying the orders of superior officers" has become his instinct.

Therefore, even though his heart was full of helplessness and regret, he resolutely accepted the order.

Afterwards, Shinpachi Nagakura, who was friends with Kui Shimada—the two of them were old acquaintances. Shinpachi Nagakura had often interacted with Kui Shimada before joining the Trial Guard Hall—went to find him and enlightened him.

Who is Elodie?

She is the only disciple Qingdeng has so far.

For Qingdeng, Elodie is undoubtedly an important existence like family.

The generals sent to protect Elodie were undoubtedly carefully selected loyal and brave men.

There are so many powerful generals under Qingdeng's command, but you are the only one sent to serve as Elodie's "chief of guard". This just shows that Qingdeng trusts and values ​​you.

As long as you complete this task perfectly, you will definitely be promoted and reused in the future!

In fact, Nagakura Shinpachi was absolutely right.

Not all cats and dogs are qualified to approach Qingdeng’s family.

After listening to Nagakura Shinpachi's enlightenment, Shimada Kui suddenly became enlightened, and the worries in his heart disappeared instantly.

Today, with everything ready, Elodie officially set off for the Eighth Prince.

Ah Wu, who also came to see her off, moved lightly, approached Elodie, and hugged her gently.

"Have a nice trip, Elodie."

Elodie hugged her back hard.

"Yeah! I'll be back as soon as possible!"

Qingden added abruptly:

"Elody, the weather is getting colder. Please keep warm and don't get cold."

"Master, I am not an eight-year-old child, so I would not make such a stupid mistake."

After saying this angrily, Elodie seemed to have remembered something. After a short pause, she asked:

"Master, is there any news about the recasting of Vairocana?"

"I haven't received any relevant news yet. Shikizaki Jiyue should still be working hard on it. What's wrong?"

"It's nothing, I was just thinking... Anyway, the Eighth Prince is not far from Edo. If Vairocana is recast successfully, I can go and get it back for you."

Before Qingden could ask "why", Elodie continued on by herself:

"'Broken Iron Steel'... This piece of steel entrusts my former 'chivalrous dream'."

"A sword forged from 'broken iron steel' - if possible, I would like to be the first person to see the brilliance of its sword."

"In this way, one of my wishes can be considered fulfilled."

After Qingdeng heard this, he smiled and nodded without hesitation:

"Well, of course. If there is enough time, I will let you get the knife for me."

When Elodie heard this, she suddenly smiled.

"That being the case, I'm sincerely looking forward to it!"

…

…

After chatting for a few more words, Elodie stopped delaying and said, "Master, Miss Wu, everyone! See you later!" and then got on the horse with a slightly clumsy movement.

"Mount!"

Following Shimada Kui's order, the cavalry surrounding Elodie jumped on their horses and whipped their whips.

The group of people moved forward slowly under the watch of Qingdeng and others, and disappeared at the end of the road in a short time.

…

…

The first year of Yuanzhi (1864), November 20——

Two days after the forward troops departed, the main force led by Qingdeng officially departed!

The mighty army marched all the way west, passing through Settsu, Harima, Bizen, Binchung, Bikokoku, and the Six Kingdoms of Aki before reaching the marching front line.

The Western Kingdom does not have a developed and mature transportation network called "Five Streets" like the Eastern Kingdom. The roads along the way are basically ordinary dirt roads that have not been consolidated.

When it's sunny, there's a lot of dust, and when it rains, it turns into a quagmire.

Unfortunately, as soon as the army set out, it happened to be hit by heavy rain - the "Mud General" arrived as scheduled.

Looking up, the whole road became bumpy and extremely muddy.

When he stepped down, most of the sole of his foot sank directly in.

It was nauseating, uncomfortable and unbearable. The most troublesome thing was that it aggravated the physical exertion and greatly slowed down the marching speed.

The people were fine, but mainly the carriages and horses - especially the carriages and horses with the cannons - were greatly affected.

Cannons are inherently heavy and will sink into the quagmire.

The soldiers had to place thick pieces of wood in front of the wheels of the carriage so that the cart could walk on the wood pieces to prevent the wheels from getting stuck in the mud.
To be continued...