When Kato Tadaji Prancing Horse galloped into the gate of Changmei Temple, he was still thinking about how the untouchable man who was crawling on the side of the road felt a little different.

He remembered that as he galloped by, the untouchables seemed to look up at him—these untouchables were now getting bolder!

A little unhappy in his heart, Kato Tadaji's face was a little ugly when he dismounted in front of the main hall, and he didn't want to say anything more to the abbot who respectfully stepped forward to salute, but he just bowed his head slightly.

The abbot did not dare to pay attention to his rudeness—the two of them were too far apart in terms of status—and after giving the salute, he said respectfully, "Your Excellency Tadaji, Your Excellency Hideya, and Master Matsusada are waiting for you at the hot springs. ”

Tadaji Kato nodded heavily and said, "Tadaji is going to meet you, please lead the way." "He became polite not for the abbot, but for the two people who the abbot said - Ukita Hideya, one of the several fierce generals under the command of Taiko Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and one of the five elders who received the last orders of His Royal Highness Taiko; The Master Matsusada was the name of Oda Hidenobu after he became a monk, and Oda Hidenobu was the grandson of Oda Nobunaga, who was the lord of Nakayana and Gifu Castle.

These two are a number of fierce generals in the Western Army who were loyal to the Toyotomi family during the Battle of Sekigahara, especially Ukita Hideya, whose nearly 20,000 elites constituted the core of the Western Army, and in the early days of the joint battle, they withstood the onslaught of the Eastern Army led by Fukushima Masanori, creating a very favorable situation for the Western Army to outflank both flanks, but it is a pity that the right wing of the Western Army, Kobayakawa Hideaki, first stood still, and then defected to the Eastern Army before the battle, which eventually led to the fiasco of the Western Army.

Oda Hidenobu, on the other hand, was too brave and rushed to attack before the Western Army was fully deployed, resulting in the defeat of Kiso River and Yoneno, and the loss of the strategic location of Gifu Castle before the decisive battle, and he himself became a prisoner of the Eastern Army.

After the war, the Ukita Hideya was exiled to Hachijo Island, and a year later they were rescued by the dead soldiers of the Ukita family, and they came to the Satsuma Domain, and of course became the leader of the "Kinoshita Maru"; Oda Hidenobu was exiled to Koyasan and forced to become a monk, with the legal name "Daizenin Keikan Matsusada", and the honorific title of Master Matsusada, and later after the legal ban was slightly relaxed, Yukata went to the Satsuma Domain and became the third person of "Kinoshita Maru".

In the Battle of Sekigahara, Tadaharu Kato followed his father Kiyomasa Kato on the side of the Eastern Army, and the two fierce generals were on opposite sides. However, soon after the war, Kato Kiyomasa, who was loyal to the Toyotomi family, regretted it, and mentioned to the Kato brothers many times that if he had put aside his prejudices against Ishida Mitsunari, the general of the Western Army, and entered the side of the Western Army, the world would probably not be taken away by Tokugawa Ieyasu.

It was driven by this mentality that when Kato Kiyomasa was dying, he repeatedly instructed his sons to join forces with "Kinoshitamaru" no matter what—he still had in his heart the dream of helping the Toyotomi family regain the world.

After receiving the order, it didn't take much effort for Tadaharu Kato to find the Ukita Hideya hidden at the junction of the Satsuma and Higo domains. With the abundant financial resources in his hands, Kato Tadaji and the Kato family he represented quickly obtained the understanding of "Kinoshitamaru" - after all, "Kinoshitamaru" was maintained by the financial support of the daimyo who were still loyal to the Toyotomi family in various places, and now the daimyo who were willing to pay are getting fewer and fewer, and even the die-hard Shimazu family of the Satsuma Domain completely surrendered to the shogunate two years ago and cut off the funding of "Kinoshitamaru", so the appearance of Kato Tadaji is like the nectar of a long drought for "Kinoshitamaru".

It is precisely because of this that Tadaji Kato was able to become the last of the four elders of "Kinoshitamaru", and he was solely responsible for raising the huge amount of money needed for "Kinoshitamaru".

These days, Tadaji Kato was originally in Kumamoto Castle of the Kato family to handle his family's affairs, but he received an urgent letter from the Ukita Hideya family, telling him to rush to Shomeiji Temple as soon as possible, which is the secret base camp of "Kinoshitamaru".

After running non-stop for a day and a night, Tadaharu Kato felt like his whole body was about to fall apart - he was now a fifty-year-old man, and he was no longer fine for days on a horse, as he did when he was younger.

At times like these, what could be more enjoyable than taking a soothing bath? It seems that His Excellency Xiujia is really considerate.

Thinking so, a smile flashed on Kato's wrinkled old face, and he walked in along the bathroom curtain that the abbot had opened.

"Is Tadaji-sama here?"

In the steaming hot springs of Yoshida, the old and deep voice of the Ukita Hideya came out, and Tadaji Kato, who was changing clothes under the service of the maids, hurriedly bowed down and said, "Hai! Let Hideta-sama and Master Matsusa wait for a long time, and it would be rude to be rude. ”

After changing into a crotch cloth, Tadaji Kato, supported by two maids, came to the pool of clear water at Yoshida Onsen, and bowed deeply again before he carefully stepped into the warm water.

Ukita Hideya is 55 years old this year, although he is only 5 years older than Kato Tadaji, but he has experienced too many ups and downs, and he is already gray-haired, and even the three locks of long beard under his chin are as white as snow, making him look more and more kind.

But Tadaji knew that this seemingly kind old man was actually the most ruthless, especially when dealing with those who rebelled - thinking that he had escaped from Hachijojima and had not yet established himself in the Satsuma Domain, he couldn't wait to send a chaotic wave to kill Kobayakawa Hideaki, who had defected in the Battle of Sekigahara, in his bedroom, making the Kobayakawa clan the first clan since the Tokugawa regime to change because he had no heirs, which greatly shocked the daimyo who had betrayed the Toyotomi family.

Although Master Matsusada was a monk, his fiery temper did not change at all, and he was still angry about Kato Kiyomasa's joining the Eastern Army, and even when Kato Tadaji came in, he snorted rudely, and the expression of contempt and disdain on his face was undisguised.

For him, Kato Tadaji was a little helpless, after all, Master Matsusada had the blood of the Oda family in his body, and his identity was too noble, and he really couldn't compare, so he could only pretend not to see it at the moment, and politely greeted the Ukita Hideya.

The warm spring water swept away the exhaustion of Tadaharu Kato's rush of life, and just as he was drowsy from the maid's massage, Ukita Hideya finally cut to the point, pushing a large plate over the surface of the water, and said, "Lord Tadaji, please see what is unique about this thing." ”

Kato Tadaji was in good spirits, caught the floating plate, and saw a beautifully bound wooden box on it, with green landscapes pasted on the wooden box, and two seal characters written on it - "fairy grass".

Opening the wooden box, Tadaji Kato took out a pale yellow cigarette roll and studied it carefully, and said for a long time, "Lord Xiujia, please forgive Tadaji's clumsiness...... Isn't this just chopping tobacco leaves and rolling them up in paper for easy smoking, what's so unique? Please also advise. ”

Ukita Hideya smiled faintly and said, "There is also a letter under the wooden box, Lord Tadaji might as well take a look...... Our 'Kinoshita Maru' in Nagasaki's Hanamakan has been cornered by this inconspicuous fairy grass cigarette. ”

Hearing him say this, Kato Tadaji's eyes flashed - as the financial director of "Kinoshitamaru", he took care of all the money-making properties of "Kinoshitamaru", the only exception was this Hanamakan, he knew that it was the secret force directly under the Ukita Hideya-Ranbo's sphere of influence, so he couldn't intervene at all.

Now the mysterious and powerful chaotic waves have been cornered, this fairy grass cigarette actually has such a great power?

He couldn't help but carefully examine the small scroll of paper in his hand again.