The continuous rain for several days shrouded the entire Wangjing City in a rain and fog.

The mood of the Ukita Hideya, the commander-in-chief of the Japanese ** team in Wang Jingcheng, was like this cloudy and rainy day, gloomy and irritable. In recent days, there have been reports of the killing of Japanese soldiers in various garrisons in Wangjing City.

Since the negotiation with the Ming Dynasty ended, the Japanese ** team in Wangjing City was busy with various preparations before retreating. The soldiers in the city were already like arrows at this time.

Once the news spreads that a number of Japanese soldiers have been killed one after another, it will very likely cause instability in the morale of the army and seriously affect the retreat work.

For the Japanese army in Wangjing City, which is as high as more than 100,000, a stable military spirit will directly affect whether the retreat can be completed in an orderly manner.

Ukita Hideya felt that this continuous assassination of the Japanese soldiers was not an accident, but must have been a premeditated action.

In order to settle the matter as soon as possible, Ukita Hideya quickly convened a military meeting attended by major generals and ninjas, and invited the three Japanese army commanders, Ishida Mitsunari, Masuda Nagamori, and Otani Yoshitaka, to the meeting to discuss countermeasures.

"In recent times, our soldiers have been assassinated. Let's take a look at how to solve this problem? After everyone sat down, Ukita Hideya got straight to the point.

"In my opinion, this must be the work of the Ming Jinyi guards in the city. They attacked us while we were retreating. I have long said that Ming people cannot be trusted. They are cunning and treacherous, and they are good at doing things that are unseemly. Kiyomasa Kato was the first to express his opinion.

In order to successfully complete the retreat plan, Kato Kiyomasa, who has always been brave and good at fighting, was revoked by Ukita Hideya in a short period of time, and the official was reinstated.

According to Ukita Hideya's plan, he is going to arrange for Kato Kiyomasa to lead the team to be responsible for the work after the break in the upcoming retreat operation.

"It can't be. Since the Ming and Japanese sides have agreed to withdraw their troops separately, there is no need for them to engage in some more things that cannot be put on the table. "President Konishi disagrees with Kiyomasa Kato.

"Even if their army wouldn't do that, it's possible for their brocade guards lurking in the city to do it. You know, assassination is their specialty. Kiyomasa Kato said.

"Kato-kun, you have a way of fighting, but you don't know anything about the Ming people, especially their brocade guards. The Jinyi Guards are an organization with iron discipline, and they will never do anything stupid that is contrary to the decisions of their court.

"You must know that the negotiation and withdrawal of troops is the result of our negotiations with the envoys sent by their court. How dare Jin Yiwei act without authorization and destroy the outcome of the discussion? Konishi said.

"It wasn't Mingren, so who do you say did it?" Kiyomasa Kato asked Konishi angrily.

"In my opinion, it is very likely that the North Koreans in Wangjing City were responsible for these assassinations."

"Oh, Konishi-kun, go on." Ukita Hideya seems to agree with Yukicho Konishi's opinion.

"In the first place, when we entered the city, we connived at the soldiers to do something out of the ordinary against the people of this royal capital, and they could be said to have a bitter hatred for us, and this hatred would prompt them to take revenge on us;

"Secondly, on weekdays, we have strict control over Wang Jingcheng, and the people in the city have no chance to retaliate against us. Now, we are preparing to withdraw from Wangjing City, and our army in the city no longer has the energy to strictly guard the Koreans in the city at this time, which gives them the opportunity to sneak attack and assassinate our soldiers;

"Thirdly, these North Korean untouchables have always been afraid to clash with us head-on, and will only engage in sneaky things. Based on the above three points, I believe that the assassination should have been committed by the Koreans in the city, and had nothing to do with the Ming Dynasty. ”

"What Konishi-kun said makes sense. In my opinion, we pick

The direction of action should be locked on the North Koreans in the city. Ishida Mitsunari, who had been sitting upright without saying a word, spoke at this time.

"There is a detail that needs to be told to you, at the scene of this series of assassinations, almost all the soldiers killed by our army were cut off by some kind of sharp blade, and they were tied together in groups of two and then killed by a sharp blade.

"Judging from the incision in the waist of the corpse, it should have been cut with a single cut. I've been wondering, could there be such a sharp weapon on this small Korean Peninsula? It's simply unthinkable. Ukita Hideya said.

"Uki-kun, are you saying that the assassinated soldiers were tied together and cut off?" After listening to Ukita Hideya's introduction, Ishida Mitsunari asked.

"Yes. One knife two, without exception. Ukita Hideya replied.

"Ladies and gentlemen, do you know that there are five national treasure-level swords in our country, and which ones are they?" Ishida asked all of you.

"I've only heard of a sword inscribed as 'Miike Mitsuyo', and this knife is now in the hands of Lord Taiko (Toyotomi Hideyoshi). It is a large-curved and very bold sword. Ukita Hideya said.

"Yes. This canon Taikoshi was originally made by Miike Nori, a swordsmith in Chikugo Province in the late Heian period. It was originally owned by the Ashikaga clan of the Muromachi shogun, but it fell into the hands of the Taiko during the Momoyama period.

"In addition, the other four treasure swords are: Shuzhu Maru Hengji, Tong Zi Che Angang, Mikazuki Sojin and Onimaru Kunitsuna. In fact, you don't know that Lord Taiko has an unknown wish in his heart, which is to take all these five national treasure-level swords in my country.

"Now, in addition to the Taiguang Shitai knife mentioned by Uki-kun, there are also three treasure knives in the hands of Lord Taiko, including Suzumaru Hengji, Tongzi Che Anzuna, and Onimaru Kunitsuna. The only one that is missing is the three-day moon Sojin made by the sword worker Sanjo Sojin of Yamashiro Country. Legend has it that this knife got its name because of the half-moon pattern that is arranged at the knife pattern.

"In order to get this knife, Lord Taige has searched all over the country, but there has been no news. After listening to your description of the details of the assassination just now, I suddenly wondered, could this knife have appeared on this Korean battlefield? Ishida Mitsunari said.

"By the way, there is another situation, a few days ago, two of our soldiers were killed in the Muhua Pavilion, according to the soldiers who came to the scene to check later, a total of three of our soldiers were attacked at the scene, two were killed, and one was frightened crazy.

"All three are samurai. Someone examined their weapons and found that the trio should have three swords, but only two were found at the scene. It was verified that the slain samurai who lost his saber was named Masahide Mura and was from Yamashiro-kuni in the Gyeonggi region. Ukita Hideya added.

"Yamashiro Country? Isn't this the hometown of the swordsmith Sanjo Sokin? Could it be that the saber lost by this village show is the three-day moon sect that Lord Taiko dreamed of? This sword is famous for its powerful 'double carcass slash'.

"If this is the case, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to emphasize here that you must strive to recover this treasure knife while cracking the assassination incident, so as to fulfill the long-cherished wish of Lord Taiko.

"In the process of pocketing the other four treasure swords, every time Lord Taiko harvested a treasure sword, almost without exception, it was accompanied by the capture of the kingdom where the treasure sword was located.

"If we help Taeko-sama find the fifth sword he wants in this Korean land, the meaning is self-evident. Taiko-sama will be delighted. Ishida Mitsunari said.

"In this way, if the case is to be solved, the treasure knife must be found. I order: All departments in the city must strengthen their self-defense while completing preparations for the withdrawal of troops, and strictly prevent the recurrence of similar incidents;

"Patrols intensify patrols, detect suspicious persons, and arrest them immediately; Strengthen the investigation at the city gate, and encounter suspects

Arrest at once; Carry out a dragnet search throughout the city, targeting the person who holds the 'Erji' sword. Ukita Hideya gave orders to the various generals present.

"Yes!" Kiyomasa Kato, Yukinaga Konishi and others immediately stood up and made a loud promise.

"Ichiro Sugitani, you ninjas have to play your important role in investigating and spying on suspicious people in the shadows." Ukita Hideya said to Ichiro Sugitani.

"Understood!" Ichiro Sugitani agreed.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I emphasize once again that the case must be solved before the retreat deadline comes, and in addition, the Three Days Moon Sect Near Treasure Knife, which is very likely to fall into the hands of the enemy, must be recovered." Ukita Hideya further emphasized.

"Yes."

"Understood"

"The three military commissioners, what other instructions do you have?" Ukita Hideya turned his head to Ishida Mitsunari.

"I saw the 'Erji' sword in my early years, and I would find some people to draw its style, and then distribute its portraits to various departments. There's not much else to say. Ishida Mitsunari said.

"Good. Meeting. Get moving. Ukita Hideya ordered.

Back at Toyikan, Ichiro Sugitani immediately summoned the Yoshino and Kato sisters to arrange a mission. He first briefly introduced the contents of the meeting that had just ended to his three right-hand men, and then continued: "The series of assassinations of our soldiers that occurred in Wangjing City this time shows that there must be a hostile force that hostile to our army is hidden in the city.

"If we don't find them out in time, it will not only endanger the lives of hundreds of thousands of our ** people in the city, but also destroy our army's retreat plan. More importantly, it was very likely that this group of people had the Three Days Moon Sect Near Treasure Knife that Lord Taige had dreamed of. Only by catching them can the sword be recovered and sent to Lord Taiko.

"Therefore, I order: The three of you will take the lead and dispatch all the ninjas in the city, and during the day, you will disguise yourself as people from all walks of life, and go deep into the shops, tea shops, halls and other places in the city to secretly monitor and find suspicious people.

"At night, you have assigned forces to secretly lurk in various corners, focusing on the various garrisons of our army in the city. Once a suspicious person is found, report it immediately and do not act without authorization. ”

"President, who might the other party be? Is there a general goal? After Ichiro Sugitani, Yoshino asked.

"In my judgment, it is very likely that the North Koreans did it. Of course, it cannot be ruled out that it was the secret agent planted in the city by the Ming people. ”

"Didn't Da Ming make peace with us? Is it necessary for them to do so? Mieko Kato asked.

"Although Da Ming and we have agreed to withdraw our troops, who can guarantee that they will not remind and urge us to withdraw from Wangjing City on time through this method? Therefore, the focus of this operation is on the North Koreans in the city, and the Ming Jinyi guards in the city cannot be spared. Once they make a fuss, it is not easy to control. ”

"How should the Ming envoys be treated?" Michiko Kato asked.

"The three envoys are there, just take a good look at them. It's up to you. Ichiro Sugitani said to Michiko Kato.

"Yes. Subordinates understand. ”

"Good. Let's get started. ”

A manhunt in the city began.

The Japanese mobilized all the forces they could to frantically hunt down suspicious people.

A large number of innocent people in the city were arrested or killed.

However, the search went on for several days, and the Japanese people were never able to catch the suspicious people who held the sword of the Three Days Moon Sect.

Seeing that the deadline for the withdrawal of troops was approaching, the Japanese army in the city decided to take a desperate gamble and take extreme measures to force the suspects out in order to achieve the goal of recovering the sword.