The life left in Gonohe Town, Dounan, was as poor as expected. However, it temporarily gained a long-forgotten stability.

The Aizu Domain, which had 280,000 stone feudal households before the war, has now become a 30,000 stone dounan domain that had to start over in such a barren land.

Yamakawa Daizo, the former governor of Aizu Castle, once again assumed the role of leader, a young man who was previously unfamiliar with Yanagizumi and had only occasionally heard of his name - but now he showed incredible tenacity and hard work, leading the Aizu warriors to continue the struggle to continue the little fire of the Aizu Domain in the bitter cold wilderness of the northern country.

Saito's allotted residence was almost just a wooden house, and he lived with four other Aizu clans. The house was narrow and the winter was still very cold, and after the arrival of Willow Spring, it took a lot of work to renovate and renovate it, and it was barely able to get rid of the dilemma of leaking air everywhere.

Saito seems to have been wounded in the final battle, and he was not well cared for when he was captured, and his recovery from his injuries was not ideal, and he still seems to be in a slow recovery period, though he refuses to admit it, nor does he reveal the slightest bit of pain in front of others.

Now that the new government has eliminated the last resistance to the Ezo Republic, it is not appropriate to talk openly about how Yanagizumi and Saito met and became acquainted with each other. Although Liu Quan still dresses as a man, she no longer uses other subtle makeup techniques to hide her feminine features, so the neighbors seem to see that she is really a woman.

Soon there was concern about the identity and origin of the young woman who was temporarily living in Saito's house. To make matters worse, the first time he was questioned with such concern, Ryuizumi felt that he should be a guest, so he turned his eyes to Saito and waited for him to explain.

...... The neighbor's aunt's gossip attitude of "Oh, who is this young and beautiful girl Ichinose-kun, hehehehe", is really terrible!

Liu Quan wordlessly lowered his head and thought about it, but found that for a while, there was really no particularly good statement enough to convince the public.

Of course, it can't be said that it is a colleague and comrade-in-arms of the former Shinsengumi. Not to mention that the Shinsengumi is now equivalent to a forbidden word, it is enough to explain to these onlookers who do not know the truth why there is a woman among the cadres of the Shinsengumi.

And now that the members of the Shinsengumi are being brutally pursued by the new government, it is not beneficial to speak out at all. So this option is completely unacceptable!

But if you don't explain it now, you will definitely have a lot of brains!

Liu Quan had no choice but to use a calm and natural attitude to tell the good neighbors who came to care categorically that she was the sister of "Ichinose Den Hachijun". What kind of hometown was destroyed by the war, and the family was all dead, so I had to come to this distant cousin, Liu Quan was extremely smooth and natural, and he didn't stumble on a single one.

...... But Yijun, please, can you not be shocked when you hear the word sister, and then your heart is empty, and your face is full of "Oh, this is a lie, this is not true, swollen to do"!!

Her convincing story has been discovered by the enthusiastic neighbors, okay!

Liu Quan looked at the enthusiastic neighbors with an expression of "okay, good, we all understand", and walked away with a mysterious smile, his heart was galloping.

Looking back at Saito's handsome face, which still had a faint touch of red, she suddenly deflated for some reason, and pressed her temples to feel more painful.

...... Kind-hearted, a gentleman. This misunderstanding is deep...... Since there is no mortal war now, and the men are married in peacetime, I should have worried about your marriage for your beloved lieutenant...... But now that you can't find your wife here because of rumors, won't I be guilty of a crime in front of the deputy chief......?!

......

In any case, ten days after Ryusen's arrival in Doonam, Saito's house, which was more deserted and dilapidated than its neighbors, was finally renewed.

Most of the neighbors came to settle in Dounan with their families, but Saito was not only alone, but also suffered a lot of injuries in the final battle of Aizu. Immediately after the war, you can't expect the Aizu Alliance, which is eager to tear the entire recalcitrant Aizu to pieces, and the chewed up alliance will have a good attitude towards the loyal warriors of the Aizu domain, can you?

So on the first day of arriving in Dounan and meeting Saito, when Ryuzumi noticed that Saito's movements were a little strange, as if his habitual left hand was a little inconvenient, and he was a little shaky after walking for a long time, she quickly realized the crux of the problem, and immediately took out the unsympathetic and authoritative attitude of a big sister and ordered Saito to go to bed rest, and then walked to the backyard to start chopping wood and cooking.

Seriously, Liu Quan couldn't be more nerve-wracking about these housework! She used her swordsmanship to complete the work of chopping wood, and the skill of cooking, thanks to the blessing of the cooking skills exchanged with the system bacteria before, was not bad—but it was difficult for a good woman to cook without rice, and the kitchen of the small family was so empty that there was not even a single mouse, so she couldn't do the northwest wind and invite him to eat!

However, before the Aizu clan accepted them, the Shinsengumi were not without poverty, and after moving all the way north during the Boshin War and finally spending a hard time in the mountains of Hakodate, Yanagizumi finally knew what he could find to use as an ingredient. So when smoke wafted from the backyard of Saito's house, the neighbors' enthusiastic ladies barely stared out of their eyes.

Early the next morning, someone came to welcome the Saito family's distant guest.

It was sent away and then and again, and it didn't stop until three or five days later.

Saito usually has work to do in the Dounan Domain, and although he has not recovered from his injuries, he still insists on going to work every day. That's why his home is a depressed one of a broken pot and a cold stove - he often comes home after work and has run out of energy, and doesn't have the time and energy to care about anything else.

Liu Quan had been working non-stop for the last six or seven years. In order to complete the task assigned by the Shinsengumi, she had to worry that her man's disguise would never show her feet, and after stepping on the edge of the abyss and walking a tightrope for so many years, she encountered a cruel decisive battle and a certain defeat - although after the fall of Goryokaku, she and Hijikata lived in seclusion in the mountains near Hakodate for more than half a year, and spent a peaceful time, but the hidden worries of Kujo Michikiyo who did not know when to pursue still hung over her head like a sword of Damocles, making her still worried and difficult to sleep on every day.

So when everything is over and everything is lost, in this desolate and impoverished land of Dounan, he only needs to do some small things such as housework every day, and this kind of life makes Liu Quan feel a little fresh and much more relaxed.

...... Probably because I don't have to worry about revealing my hidden secrets one day, and then I'll be expelled from Saito.

No, or rather, the only thing she has to worry about is how she should explain to Xiaoyi that she must disappear immediately when the system bacteria suddenly announce that the next quest world has been extracted in advance and the player must come out immediately.

But even if that happens, she believes she'll be able to walk away peacefully with the melancholy she feels every time she leaves a mission world she already knows so well.

Counting it, Dounan is not very far from Hakodate. Although the transportation is inconvenient nowadays, the sense of distance in time and space and the similar weather between Dounan and Hakodate still make Liu Quan feel inexplicably relieved.

The people who survived the hard war...... In such a barren and cold environment, we will definitely be able to continue to survive.

This is true for the primary one, and even more so for the deputy chief.

That's what she believes.

A knock on the door interrupted Liu Quan's thoughts. She heard the familiar voice.

"I'm back. ”

...... It's really strange, this situation and feeling......

couldn't help but show a wry smile, and quickly put the wry smile back. Liu Quan got up from the table and walked to the narrow entrance.

"Welcome back, Ichi-kun. She smiled softly, her gaze falling on Saito's once wounded left hand.

"How do you feel today?" she continued.

I don't know if it's an illusion, Saito seems to be a little uncomfortable and moves his right arm.

"Ahh He replied hastily, standing in the hallway a little awkwardly, as if at a loss as if he was at a loss because Willow Springs' standing there blocking his way into the house.

Liu Quan looked at him like this, but felt a little funny.

Xiaoyi, you were a mouthless wolf in the Kyoto Shinsengumi back then. It's still the same, it hasn't changed at all.

She smiled and turned away, heading straight to the kitchen behind her, her voice wafting through a door.

The answer was not specific enough, and the tofu dish for dinner was canceled. ”

She was answered with a thud, as if Saito had tripped under his feet as he took a step.

The smile on her face widened a little, and she stood in front of the stove with a smile, and after a long time tied her sleeves with a cloth belt, she reached to remove the lid of the old pot on the stove.

Dinner was simple—there weren't many ingredients to make her cook in such a poor and cold place—and as they were about to end the meal in silence, Willow Springs' mouth suddenly spoke.

"After a gentleman...... What's the plan?"

Saito seemed a little surprised, his gaze slowly shifting from the deliciously seasoned tofu on the plate in front of him to her face, his eyes flashing.

He seemed to think seriously for a moment before replying, "...... Stay here and get on with your life. ”

Ryuizumi put the small bowl of rice back on the small table, as if for a moment she wanted to deliberately reach out her chopsticks to grab the tofu in front of him—just as she had seen Shinhachi and Heisuke do similar things in Kyoto's kensho in the past—but in the end, she seemed to resist the idea of making a fool of herself and nodded solemnly.

“...... Now that you have survived the harsh war, then, live well, Ichi-kun. ”

She stared at his face and seemed to choke for a moment before continuing, "...... Don't let fate live up to your wishes. It is a rare blessing for us to be able to live until now......"

Saito was silent for a moment, then slowly lowered the chopsticks in his hand.

"What about you?...... What are your plans for the future?" he asked bluntly, not responding to her earlier words.

Liu Quan was stunned for a moment.

"Me?!"

After a few seconds, she smiled slowly.

"I really don't know. ”

"As a woman, it's not impossible to live alone...... But as you know, since I'm no longer a normal person, I think I can only stay in the Northeast......"

"I always feel that it is not possible to live without working hard, and that would be a shame to be in the first place...... Mr. Hijikata's thoughts. But now, what else can I do......"

"I wonder if I'll never be able to see Mr. Hijikata again in my life...... I guess I won't be able to see my sister again in this life. I'm so sad that I'm disqualified from seeing almost all the people who matter to me......"

She lowered her head slightly, and Saito noticed that the tips of her chopsticks were trembling slightly in her right hand, still holding them.

“...... No. Aren't you still able to visit the head office and Chizuru? I don't know what he thought, he suddenly said seriously.

"And...... You can stay here if you have nowhere else to go...... Stay in Dounan. ”

"You can stay here for as long as you want...... You can do whatever you want. There must be something you can do......"

Liu Quan suddenly raised his head. Her gaze was strange and bright, and he stumbled suddenly, and the fluent tone he had just spoken suddenly disappeared.

"Cause...... Because, supporting the deputy chief...... Until now, you will definitely find things that are worth your efforts...... You—you're not the kind of person who gives up easily, I know. ”

A look of astonishment appeared on her face, as if she had no idea what she would hear from him.

When he was almost bewildered by her unusually bright eyes, she suddenly chuckled softly and shook her head.

"It's cunning, Yijun. ”

The lines of her face softened, and in the dim light of the oil light, there were occasional shining points of light that danced on her young and beautiful face, which had endured countless fierce battles.

"To say such a thing...... I don't want to admit it, I'm kind of convinced by you, right?"

Saito was stunned.

And her thoughts seemed to float out of Dounan's wooden house, drifting far away, and she looked a little distracted.

"You're right...... There must be something else I can do that keeps me in this world. ”

"Even if I have to leave one day, I'll be the same as when I was in Kyoto—"

At this point she paused, and her gaze turned back to his face.

She stared straight at him for a few seconds, until she saw that he was embarrassed, and her voice was a little fluttering.

"W-What's wrong......?!"

She pursed her lips and smiled, let him go, lowered her head, and used her chopsticks to flick the tofu on the plate.

"We will believe in ourselves and our companions as we did in the most shining moments of our lives......"

"Stick to what you believe in and keep going. ”

She suddenly raised her gaze and threw a question at him in surprise.

"Yijun, do you believe me?"

He was taken aback.

"Ah...... Yes. ”

For some reason, he stuttered a little.

Probably intimidated by the momentum that suddenly erupted from her body.

In response, he slowly felt himself amused.

So he curled the corners of his lips slightly, put down the plate, put his hand on the table, leaned forward slightly, and nodded vigorously at her.

"It's Yukiba-kun's words...... I guess I can do anything. He said, as if he also felt a little funny that he trusted so blindly, so the smile on the corner of his lips deepened a little.

Liu Quan was stunned for a moment.

“...... Really, these lines and expressions ......," she muttered as if complaining.

"It's a foul. ”

Saito was equally stunned.

"Foul, foul?" he asked, surprised, "what did I foul?...... Can't you say I believe you can do anything? But, I do......

Liu Quan burst out laughing.

Then, without warning, she stood up, walked around her desk, walked straight up to Saito, bent down - and ran out to stroke his hair.

Saito: !?

"Ah," he saw her smile and her brows, which looked very pleasant in the very close proximity of his face.

"This one, this time, is to say, 'I am grateful for the kind support and unwavering trust you have given me.'" ”

【Extra· END】

The author has something to say: April 22:

Actually, I've thought about this kind of daily life many times

Because I remember that everyone commented before, as soon as I wrote about the deputy chief, I sprinkled sugar, and as soon as I wrote about the small one, I sprinkled glass slag

So I deliberately sprinkled some sugar on Xiaoyi!

It's a pity that I can't write some interesting scenes because of the reason that "the weather in Dounan is too cold, so I ...... to keep warm on the premise of saving charcoal".

In addition, "Ichinose Denhachi" is a pseudonym used by Koichi after the defeat of Aizu, probably to avoid being wanted by the new government or something.