The mighty team walked on the winding dirt road, and the road in Dongying is basically not as wide as the official road in the Central Plains, and the march is extremely inconvenient, and many roads can only be paralleled by two columns of soldiers.

This is Omiji, and there are still 80 miles to Kyoto, so the road is slightly better, and you can use ox carts.

Ahead, there is a town.

In fact, it was the location of Omi Hachiman Castle in later generations, and it was the place where Ono Yoshiko recruited soldiers, and Ono Yoshiko used to recruit troops here for several months, which brought a business opportunity, and although the Ono army had long since disappeared, most of the people in this town did not move away, and it formed the largest town in the eastern part of Kyoto.

Fukada Hall soon issued an order to rest here today.

In two days, we should be in Kyoto.

The soldiers, most of them, were a little excited.

Escorting the Lady of the Palace and the envoy of the Qi State was the 500 Falcon Regiment, and the remaining 500 Falcon mercenaries, under the command of the deputy regiment commander Wang Longhe, stayed in Owari to garrison, and at the same time helped Fukada Hall to train the new army.

Because the Falcon Regiment belongs to the commercial armed forces of the East China Sea, it cannot use the Central Plains official system.

It is similar to the overseas armed bareback army of the East China Sea, with regiments, companies, and platoons, with the regiment being 1,000 people, the company being 100 people, and the platoon being 10 people.

Occasionally, a large fleet of ships guarded by a few regiments, and the leaders of a few bareback regiments were called regimental commanders.

However, as in the officialdom, the head of a regiment of today's bareback regiment is usually called "regimental commander".

Lu Ning is like this, as the head of the Falcon Regiment, he is also respected by his subordinates as the "Regiment Leader".

The first thing these Toei samurai learned was to use polite titles.

When he first heard this title, Lu Ning couldn't help but feel a little awkward, but once he got used to it, it was nothing.

Seeing that there was Hachiman in front of them, the flying samurai were excited, after all, they were natives of Toei, and they were naturally excited to have the opportunity to enter Kyoto, an imperial city that was difficult to reach in their dreams before, and a prosperous city like heaven in the legend.

This coastal Hachiman Town, which has gradually become depressed, after all, in today's country, the flow of people is extremely rare, compared to the Central Plains before the Great Qi, not to mention the extremely developed business and trade of the Great Qi.

Hundreds of people poured into the town, and although most of them were dressed as samurai, the residents of Hachiman were still excited, and some vendors even set up stalls to solicit business.

The samurai of the Falcon Regiment lived in the military camp that Ono Yoshiko once built, although the wooden fence and the like were almost demolished by the residents, and the grass huts were even more scattered, but with a little repair, they could barely survive the night.

After all, it is already a warm spring in February, and the wind is warm and makes people tired.

Lu Ning and his entourage rested at a newly completed manor on the shore of Danhai Lake.

The manor was built with a huge amount of money by Omi Mamoru Fujiwara Keichonaga, but after the news of Ono Yoshiko's defeat came, he immediately fled back to Kyoto, but the manor naturally left servants to guard, but the servants did not dare to run, and the Hachiman people who demolished the military camp did not dare to harass the manor.

In any case, the concept of respect and inferiority of the minister is still deeply rooted in Dongying.

Tamami, later known as Lake Biwa, is the largest inland lake in Japan, and if you don't have to travel around the lake, it would be only forty or fifty miles from here to Kyoto.

In fact, from Qingzhou City to here, if you don't have to bypass the peaks and primeval forests, etc., it is not far, and under the bypass, it is about 150 or 60 miles.

Lu Ning couldn't help but sigh, if the Central Plains standard is used, in fact, how far is it from Owari Province Qingzhou City to Kyoto? Kiyosu Castle should be like the Daimyo's Mansion, which is considered the Kyoto Road and the first line of defense in Kyoto. Moreover, from Bianjing to the Daimyo's Mansion, it is more than 300 miles and nearly 400 miles away, but I originally felt that the two cities were next to each other.

And when I came to this Dongying land, more than a hundred miles, I felt that the distance was very far.

It is also true that Toei is only long and narrow, and the actual area is now in Dewa, Mutsu, and Hokkaido, but it is not as large as the area of a "road" in the Central Plains.

Living here for a long time, I am afraid that my horizons will become smaller and smaller.

sighed, but it didn't take long for him to feel that the manor of the nobles here was very good, elegant and quiet, which suited his appetite.

The group of people who lived in the manor was Kyoko Fukada and several maids, and the envoy of Qi was a group of more than ten people, including Madong Hime, who was transferred to the deputy envoy of the Kyoto Imperial Court.

In addition, it is Lu Ninghe, Jizi, and Zizi.

Sending these two small bean sprouts back to Kyoto, Lu Ning felt that he had completed his mission.

In the matter of Iwami, there are already hundreds of lines in the East China Sea doing things, but you don't have to worry too much about yourself.

It's just that if you delineate Iwami Yinshan, you still have to go through it yourself.

Originally, I wanted to use the name of Zhen Dong Ji, but later pondered, I still bought that land directly with the identity of Qi people, and in the future, the so-called legal principles were sufficient, and using legal principles to oppress people gradually became the code of conduct of Daqi overseas. Under the whole world, it is not the king's land, it is a killer weapon, and it cannot be used easily, and I feel that this supreme criterion is a bit of an empire.

……

Outside, the sky is getting late, and the sunset is full of colorful clouds, reflecting on the light sea and blue lake, and the scenery is very beautiful.

In the day throne room, Lu Ning looked at the bamboo sticks in his hand, which was a group portrait of the ministers in Kyoto, the main dozen ministers, with their lifelike images, and small characters to standard their names, personalities, experiences, and complex clan and personnel relationships.

The two little girls Jizi and Zizi are also in the room, and what makes Lu Ning a little strange is that the two little girls don't have a regular aristocratic day today, such as reading books, studying clothes, and even enjoying the scenery outside for half a day.

The two of them whispered together, cooing unknowing what they were talking about, occasionally snickering.

After a long time, they have been with Lu Ning for more than half a year, seven or eight months, and the courage of the two has gradually grown and they have become cheerful.

Speaking of which, two beautiful little girls wearing black kimonos revealing snow-white little feet carved in pink and jade came together to whisper, hugging each other from time to time and saying something close to their ears, making a particularly childish and pleasant laughter, which can really make people's mood happy.

Lu Ning was curious for a moment, so he eavesdropped, and after a few words, he shook his head helplessly.

The two little girls were saying good things about themselves, saying that although they looked scary, they were very gentle.

Of course, the word gentle may not be appropriate, and the meaning of their Dongying language is that they are particularly warm and graceful.

Lu Ning looked at the bamboo sticks again, after all, eavesdropping on others praising himself seemed to be a little wrong.

It's just that the two little girls are talking and talking, and their expressions are a little depressed.

"You have something to tell me, don't you?" Lu Ning put down the bamboo stick in his hand, the two little girls today are a bit abnormal.

Speaking of which, now Dongying women lose their hair as nuns, many of them cut their hair short, but the two little girls should be afraid of being coveted by thieves at that time, and show piety, they shaved their heads, that is, until now, they also have bald heads, when they were in Qingzhou City, their hair was long, so they went to the local nunnery to send their hair, and now it is almost impossible for people to shave their heads, and there are no tools, so they can only go to the temple nunnery to ask the real monks and nuns to drop their hair.

However, if the face is particularly handsome, the bald head is really cute, and the two little girls are like this.

Two little girls, you look at me, I look at you, you secretly pull the corner of my clothes, I secretly gently push you, obviously, they are all letting the other party say, I dare not say it.

Lu Ning was helpless and said, "Are you worried that you will be despised by your relatives after seeing your relatives?" I can help you testify that you are all clean and clean. ”

The two little girls, a little dazed, shook their heads vigorously.

Obviously, they are still young after all, although they know that they will encounter terrible things if they are caught by thieves, but in fact, they may not know what will happen, but they just listen to the advice of the servants to lose their hair, and later they feel that the hair loss can really protect themselves, so they have been shaving their hair.

They don't say that compared with later generations, they are completely different from ordinary girls today, and the education they have been receiving is to teach two blank pieces of paper and two white lotuses.

In fact, in the Central Plains, in modern times, some families will only carry out premarital education before their daughters get married, so as not to understand anything at all on the night of the girl's marriage.

It is completely different from the knowledge that later generations have been exposed to in childhood.

Jizi and Zizi, even more so.

After all, they are basically strangers to their parents, and the court masters who have educated them since childhood are even more obedient, and they dare not pass on swear words to the ears of the two princes, let alone say anything about Fengyue.

Seeing their demeanor, Lu Ning couldn't help but rub his nose, obviously they didn't understand what they were talking about, what did they have to prove that they were ice clear and jade.

"Master Ban, Zizi and I don't want to go to the Zhaiyuan anymore." It was Jizi who spoke, compared to Zizi, whose birthday was a few months older, and obviously it was her sister who mustered up the courage in the end, but when she spoke, her little face turned red, and she didn't dare to look at Lu Ning, and even, she looked like she was about to cry, she felt that her true thoughts were blasphemous, and she was too sinful, and the class master in front of her was afraid that she would reprimand herself.

Lu Ning was stunned, and then laughed dumbly, so it is so, speaking of which, they have never had any choice before, neither do they feel that it is bad to be a fastening house, nor do they think it is good to be a fasting house, but the education they have received since childhood will make them calmly complete their life's mission, serve the gods in the fasting house, and become a green lamp ancient Buddha in old age, and finish their lives.

But after being captured by the Qi people and falling into his own hands, he didn't pay attention to them, thinking that he had experienced the feeling of freedom for the first time in his life, and there was no palace teacher who chattered in his ears every day to teach what was right and what was wrong, and to make them go back to the palace again, and even sent to the shrine to be the lonely fasting official, sacrificing the terrible gods every day, they both thought about it now, and felt that that kind of life was really difficult.

And I don't want to be a fasting official anymore, I dare to say it to myself, first, it is getting closer and closer to Kyoto, and the two little girls are anxious and helpless, knowing that it will be too late if they don't say it; Second, I still have a little closeness to myself.

After all, the two little girls know that now they eat and drink their own lives, and their free and easy lives are all given to them by themselves.

Lu Ning then smiled, "If you don't be a fasting official, you won't be a fasting official, although in order to show goodwill, our country's envoy wants to return the two inner princes, but I met you two little bean sprouts, and because of me, I make the two of you feel that being a fasting official is a cruel way of life, of course I will help you, otherwise, I will harm you both." ”

Although Jizi and Zizi couldn't quite understand Lu Ning's words, they probably understood the meaning, and the class master had already agreed to find a way to make their father not send them to be fasting officials.

Although they were educated before, their father was the most powerful person in the world, but now they gradually understand that this world is not the same as what they knew before, and this class master may have a way to make his father change his mind.

The two little girls glanced at each other, their eyes were full of joy, if it weren't for the years of aristocratic education, I was afraid that they would have to cheer out loud at this time.

……

When Kyoko Fukada entered Lu Ning's grille room, the two little girls Jizi and Zizi helped Lu Ning make tea more diligently, and the two little girls now also like to study the one hundred and eight ways to cook fragrant tea.

The corners of Kyoko Fukada's mouth showed a smile that was not easy to detect and didn't know what it meant, "Master Ban, I also told you that the little guy around you is not very good, and I want to help you choose one, but now I look at it, but I don't need to." ”

Lu Ning didn't say anything, and studied the bamboo stick in front of him.

Kyoko Fukada said again: "Outside, there are Koga people who come to take refuge in me, you come to meet together?" ”

Lu Ning was slightly surprised, and immediately became interested.

Koga Zhong, during the Warring States Period, was one of the two major ninja groups in Japan, and of course, Koga Shinobi, also by the samurai, slowly moved towards the route of espionage intelligence, assassination and so on.

Nowadays, Koga's warriors should not be much different from other places, at most, there may be more places where they like to pretend to be gods.

However, its speculative ability is no different from that of later generations, who hugged the thighs of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi and expanded rapidly, while today's Kaga Warrior is well-informed, knowing that Fukada Kyoko is going to Luo, and must have inquired about the strong support that Fukada Kyoko has generally received, including the support of the Qi people for her, so he sent an envoy to wait here early.

This place is about 60 miles away from Koga County, the old nest of the Koga warriors.

Now that it has been realized, it can be faintly seen that the Koga warriors have a preference for gathering information.

"Okay, let's go together!" Lu Ning got up.

……

In Kyoto, in fact, Lu Ning was a little disappointed when he saw it, because most of the city was almost barren, that is, the neighborhood that was once named "Chang'an", everywhere was overgrown with weeds, and the houses were all thatched houses.

Of course, the Luoyang neighborhood is really prosperous, just like the big city of the Central Plains, from the time you come to Dongying, this kind of bustling situation of shops and pedestrians, it is difficult to see.

After all, almost all the wealth of Dongying is gathered here for circulation, and all kinds of strange luxuries can be seen in Kyoto as long as the ministers like it.

The Japanese architecture, which was born in the Central Plains but has already formed its own style, also gives Kyoto a different kind of exoticism.

Now in the second lunar month, it is the time when the cherry blossoms are about to sprout, and the cherry blossom trees in the powerful manor are really beautiful.

The Upper Embassy was originally the residence of a powerful man, and there happened to be vacant land nearby, so it was provided to the Qi people as the Upper Embassy.

The matter of going to the embassy naturally seems to have nothing to do with Lu Ning.

Tao Yixuan, the Xuanfu envoy of the Kyoto Embassy, last year's new science and technology jinshi, but he is in his forties, old and serious, but he obviously belongs to people outside the circle of Zhengdong, Mo said that Lu Ning's identity is that Lu Bantou is in Dongying, and he doesn't know anything about the ups and downs, he knows that he doesn't know much about Lu Ning, and he doesn't know as much as Kyoko Fukada.

Tao Yixuan only knew that his task was to agree on the right of the Upper Embassy to adjudicate the disputes and crimes of the Qi people in this place, and the ownership of the land in the Upper Embassy to Daqi, etc., which were the most basic criteria of the Upper Embassy.

Of course, there is also the right to station guards, and Yang Ye, who met him on behalf of the General Courtyard of the Lu Academy, said that he hoped that the number of guards would be increased as much as possible, and the bottom line should also be the number of one capital, that is, a hundred guards.

At the same time, as one of the two local factions of Dongying supported by the Great Qi, the Owari faction, Guanzhong Guan led the Fukada Palace, and he also had the obligation to fight for greater rights for it.

He was also instructed that there were two inner princes who had been captured by Daqi at the Fukata Palace, that is, Japanese princesses, and this matter also needed to be discussed with the Fukada Hall and handled properly.

At the same time, Tao Yixuan also knew that in Kyoto, there was also a secret envoy who had already lurked, holding the jade token of the Lu General Academy, and the secret envoy was more aware of the situation in Kyoto.

And what the people of Dongying are most concerned about is, of course, not what Tao Yixuan wants to talk about, but Daqi's true attitude towards the Kanto land, as well as the real attitude towards the emperor's royal family, to Dongying itself, etc.

These were handed over to Tao Yixuan and his accompanying staff with confidence, and he would not participate in them unless necessary, after all, in Dongying's first upper embassy, the model of the Edo upper embassy was there, if there was no big or small matter in the future, everything had to be done by himself, what was the use of cultivating these Great Qi envoys?

Lu Ning led the Falcon Regiment and lived in Kiyomizu Temple with Kyoko Fukada.

This is an ancient temple built more than 200 years ago, covering a wide area, the hill accounts for several, the small lake encircles two, there is enough place for yourself to live.

Speaking of which, the great monk Rong Zhen was born here, and he is also very senior in this temple, and he is a brother with the current presiding master Rong Xing.

Living with the flying falcon samurai in the so-called Kiyomizusha Zen Temple, there are dozens of Koga people, led by Koga samurai Kotaro Kotaro, who is an old man with white hair, but the stunts such as diving and holding his breath show are of great interest to Lu Ning.

Kotaro Kotaro is also the current patriarch of the Koga people, not only the whole clan is attached, but also takes the initiative to ask to go to Beijing with Fukada Hall, saying that the clansmen he brought are not idle people in the clan, and each has its own unique skills, maybe it can come in handy.

It is also true that these people are not only proficient in the way of killing, but by the standards of later generations, most of them are either acrobats or magicians, and Kyoko Fukada was overjoyed to see it, so she brought them all.

Lu Ning also secretly wondered, saying such a thing in his heart, is it that the ninjas want to step onto the stage of history in advance?

At least, these people brought by Kotaro Koga can be regarded as the prototype and pioneer of ninjas.

Of course, it is also a narrow territory like Japan, and the conquest between the county orders is a big war area, and even dozens of ninjas lurk in the jungle, which can defeat an army, if it is in the Central Plains, where is their existence value, iron hooves, guns and knives, arrows and rain and stone flows, all small fights and tactical intrigues and tricks will be crushed.

Kyoko Fukada and her maids, as well as Lu Ning, Jizi, and Zizi, lived in the "Bamboo Thirteen Houses", which was originally a place specially prepared by Kiyomizu Temple for the ministers and magnates to come to the temple to recuperate, and the environment was extremely quiet and quiet.

When Kyoko Fukada met the emperor, Lu Ning was naturally not qualified to accompany him, and he was happy to be pure, and he wandered around the temple for a day.

In the past life, although I also came here, but as we can see today, this temple was destroyed, and in later generations, it was repaired and expanded based on the temple rebuilt by the Tokugawa shogunate.

Obviously, I prefer the current architectural style, the main temple is magnificent, and the various Zen temples are extremely quiet, under the influence of the architectural style of the real Tang Buddhist Temple, it has developed into a unique style of buildings in Dongying.