As expected, the sky quickly became dark after the sunset. As the sun set, the visibility, which could be seen several miles away from the hillside, quickly dropped to the point where you could barely see even a little further away from the fire.
However, after a while, the sky became dark, but the bonfire that had been prepared was lit, so the group of people could still talk through the light.
Henry and his group of four people, together with Joshua and Ryunosuke, the leader of the Ronin group, sat loosely around the campfire. There were only six people, but they formed a circle with a diameter far larger than a dozen people in winter. To escape the heat wave.
The other ronin around gathered in small groups elsewhere, drinking and laughing loudly, which made a serious and orthodox samurai like Narumi frown. Although it was mid-summer in June, it was still extremely hot and muggy even at night, and being too close to a fire really made people feel irritable.
But now Ryunosuke is within easy reach of them and he has not been disarmed. As a samurai who is not guarding the surroundings, he looks like he is drinking and talking freely. Is this because of his trust in Joshua and his own leader or simply? The crowd doesn't care, and it's hard for him to evaluate.
The leader of the ronin, who noticed Narumi's frown through the firelight, took a puff of cigarette. After exhaling, he saw that the frown on his brow became even tighter, so he knocked off the ashes and put it aside without picking it up again.
"Thank you for your concern, but even Chi Guiqing's old acquaintance is my guest." He did not say it directly, but Narumi could understand what Ryuunosuke meant.
——The deep meaning of this passage is that he deliberately put down his guard and treated him like a guest. This was a sign of sincerity, so in return it was hard for him to remain silent.
"Your Excellency, how can you tell our origins at a glance?" Narumi said, while the other three remained quiet. The same goes for Joshua on Ryunosuke's side. This is a proper social etiquette, and even people from Rigar who come from afar understand this.
They are not a group of children shouting and discussing, nor are they friends and relatives who get together during the holidays. At this level of formal communication, the dominant person should speak, while others remain silent unless mentioned.
This is one of the ways to keep the conversation centered and on topic. The fewer people speaking, the fewer influencing factors will prevent the conversation from collapsing.
"It's really hot in the middle of summer, isn't it?" Ryunosuke glanced at Narumi, and then subconsciously glanced at the extinguished tobacco next to him. He didn't answer directly, but mentioned the temperature.
"Indeed." The sergeant was very well-educated. Even if the other party did not answer directly, he still maintained his patience.
"The cotton and linen clothes worn by ordinary people in the summer are made of light and thin fabrics, which are breathable and comfortable. However, even so, they still sweat profusely under the hot sun."
"After the sweat dries, it turns into a layer of sticky paste that wraps around the body surface, making it annoying and suffocating. You must have had this experience before." Ryunosuke subconsciously held up his hands as he spoke, and then Rubbing his fingers, he realized he wasn't holding the pipe.
"The linen clothes are like this, but the samurai wearing luxurious brocade are even more difficult. They try every means to keep cool, and to avoid body odor, they have to use daily aromatherapy." Ryunosuke looked at the pipe placed next to him and sighed helplessly. Narumi nodded: "So, Sir, you can see it through the fabric?"
"Exactly." The leader of the Ronin Group smiled slightly.
"Then, may I venture to guess your identity?" Narumi said after a brief pause, and Ryunosuke nodded, looking very interested: "Please do."
The Nishijin weaving worn by samurai is made of silk. The gorgeous patterns that are specially treated to reflect light are usually symmetrical patterns such as tortoise shells. The sides of the outer robe and the center of the back are decorated with the patterns of the family to which they belong.
Earlier, Narumi thought that the family crest was the reason why the other party identified the domain at a glance. This was an intuitive idea, but if he stopped for a moment, he would notice the violation.
Nowadays, there is peace in the world, and there are so many warriors and Chinese people in the Moon Kingdom. There are no fewer than a thousand styles of family crests for officials in various places. Even if there are differences between the north and the south, the probability of a Chinese family like the Qingtian family, who is no more than the head of a town, being recognized by their crests at a glance is still extremely low.
It would be understandable if they were a noble like a prince. Although the Qingtian family was relatively well-known in the bamboo trade, not every bamboo vessel had its own family crest printed on it.
Therefore, it is more realistic to see clues from the fabric, but this is not something ordinary people can do.
"Qingzhou, that's not right." Narumi said, but shook his head to deny the idea.
Qingzhou is the province further south of Zhangzhou. It is a famous province with sericulture, another important economic source in the Moon Country besides farming. After planting mulberry and raising silkworms, the cocoons are used to make silk. After many processes, it will eventually be transformed into noble and graceful brocade for the nobles, Chinese and even the royal family.
"Are you from the south of Zhangzhou?" the samurai leader said, and Ryunosuke smiled and nodded: "Exactly."
The southern area of Zhangzhou borders Qingzhou, but due to slight differences in climate and soil, it is not completely suitable for large-scale planting of mulberry trees. Therefore, castor silkworms are mostly raised on a small scale here.
Castor has low soil requirements and can be planted along the roadside or in a small yard at home. In addition to using castor leaves as feed for silkworms, the bark of the rhizome is also one of the raw materials for papermaking.
Papermaking and castor silk are lined up in small-scale family workshops in the southern part of Zhangzhou. Compared with the entertainment industry in the north, it is an economically stable area, although it cannot develop as large as Qingzhou.
——The words return to their original place. The texture of castor silk is rougher than that of mulberry silk. In addition, due to the poor production level of small-scale handicraft workshops, the price of brocade made of these silks is lower than that of silk. And due to the origin and output as well as some political factors, these brocades, often called "zhangwei", were almost always supplied to the relatively poor samurai and Chinese in the vassal area.
The nobles of the major states directly under the jurisdiction of Xinjing all wear "green forging", which is the silkworm brocade produced in Qingzhou. Even the clothes worn by these "country warriors" in the vassal territory are separated - this is another link in the red tape of this four-thousand-year-old civilization: there is actually far more emphasis on secrets than on the surface, although On the surface, everyone is of the same class as the gentry Chinese, but in fact, the Chinese and gentry in the vassal area are much lower in terms of various supplies and rights than those in the Xinjing state.
On the surface, he is harmonious, but secretly he is obstructive.
Ryunosuke is obviously a noble. If he is a businessman, it is not easy to judge with this kind of knowledge. But as a nobleman who can recognize Zhang Dui at a glance, excluding unfounded speculations such as personal hobbies, the most reasonable inference combined with his current location is that he was born in such an area.
More than ten years or even decades of hearing and seeing can always make a person tainted with the color of the region. Narumi's successful judgment of Ryunosuke's origin and the previous detailed actions have also become his official start to the conversation. an opportunity.
This is all a test, and the leader of the Ronin is quite skillful. He wanted to know if Narumi was a parallel importer, and the samurai leader also proved that he could communicate on an equal footing with his outstanding qualities.
Only then can a formal conversation begin, and Ryunosuke introduces himself straight to the point - he is not a senior nobleman such as a sergeant, but a complete ex-Chinese. The former county magistrate of Pingshan County in the southern part of Zhangzhou - his original status was even higher than that of Yajiro's father, the head of the Qingtian clan, the town mayor.
The town-level units in the Kingdom of the Moon go up to the county level, but the Chinese leader of any county has two titles, depending on the population: county magistrate is a title that can only be held by a household registration of more than 10,000, and only those with a household registration of less than 10,000. County magistrate. There must be a long story about how the Chinese who led such a large number of people fell into ronin status, but Ryuunosuke didn't intend to tell it at the moment, so it was difficult for the group to explore. After all, they were away from home.
"We belong to the Qingtian family in Qingzhi Town, the feudal territory." The courtesy was exchanged, and the other party had already informed him of his identity, so Narumi responded accordingly.
However, the next question that the ex-Huazu with messy hair asked was extremely pointed, and Narumi and Yajiro didn't know how to respond as soon as he asked it.
"Oh? Bamboo is a famous place of origin. By coincidence, I heard that there was a rebellion in the north. Is it true?" He got to the root of the problem, and for a moment Mira began to be glad that Aya was not here. Although Miss Doctor is knowledgeable, she is a bit less tactful in her dealings with people. She is afraid that she will directly talk about this topic that makes both Yajiro and Narumi choke, "How do you know?" 'Write it on your face - even in the dim light of the fire it's hard to see.
The samurai leader fell into a moment of hesitation because he didn't know whether the other party was friend or foe. The deposed Chinese were not uncommon in the history of the Moon Kingdom, but it was rare in today's peaceful times for people to lose their positions from official positions to county magistrates. Usually this happens because he has committed some serious crime. In addition, he also brings a large group of armed personnel. Even if he is friendly at the moment, asking about this kind of question will inevitably make people think that he wants to join the rebellion.
It's a lot of trouble to get involved, but silence is also a kind of answer. The stubbled Ryunosuke sighed and glanced at the pipe again: "I'll take it as your confirmation."
He seemed helpless, but not irritated.
Narumi did not give a direct answer, but used the agreed-upon words to dissuade the other party: "We are just traveling to prepare for the young master's coming-of-age ceremony."
"A team composed of nobles and southern barbarians from the vassal area? With old and young women and children, in my opinion, it is more like fleeing than traveling." Long Zhijie pointed out the core of the problem without hesitation. This sentence seems to be about Shua came back and reported to him that there was an old acquaintance of Rigar in the team, which made the former Chinese interested. If their team configuration was more purely composed of samurai and ashigaru, maybe the other party would just let them go - at least it is always correct to think optimistically.
The complex composition of people, including old men like Padre Alfonso and petite women like Aya and Lulu, even if they are covered up with clothes, those with a discerning eye can still see the clues from their body shapes.
The samurai leader fell silent again. Although he seemed very capable in other aspects, his current situation was also quite difficult.
Ryunosuke is not easy to fool, he has excellent judgment and knows how to exercise restraint. Ever since he first discovered that Narumi didn't like tobacco, he had put the pipe aside. From his unconscious movements and glances from time to time, it was obvious that this adult was a heavy smoker.
Being able to restrain his addiction to smoking and being observant and meticulous means that he is a person who can strictly discipline himself to achieve his goals and is not weak in ability.
At this moment, the four of them are still treated as guests, but it would be a bit naive to expect that Henry and Joshua can escape without revealing any information about their old relationship.
This is Kazuto's land after all, where the sage and the red-haired swordsman can at most have the power to make suggestions but do not really hold sovereignty. Even if Joshua is somewhat popular, it is Ryunosuke who is really in charge, not Joshua.
But Henry's respect by Narumi and others does not rely on his personal connections. After all, the chance that the opponent is an old acquaintance of Rigar is very slim.
The reason why a sage is relied upon by everyone is because of his own ability.
"..." Narumi nodded silently towards Henry, then took a few steps back and sat a little further away.
"Oh?" All these details were taken in by the former county magistrate, and he looked a little surprised. It is very rare that the leader of the Kazuto Warriors is willing to give up the leadership of the dialogue to a Nanman, and the young master next to him has no complaints. Therefore, he also turned his attention to this tall man who he thought was an old acquaintance of Joshua and a fellow swordsman.
The sage who took over the initiative looked at Ryunosuke, and first made a gesture of invitation, pointing to the pipe the other party was placing.
"Then I'm sorry for being rude." Ryunosuke immediately picked up the pipe next to him, refilled it with tobacco, lit it, then took a deep breath, then turned his head and blew out the smoke in the direction of no one.
Henry waited until he hung down his pipe with satisfaction before speaking in his usual smooth and unwavering tone.
"What is your intention in asking these questions?" If the other party goes straight to the point, then he should follow his own rules; since there is insufficient information to judge the enemy and ourselves, then he should advance while retreating to inquire more.
The former Chinese stared at Henry for a while, then shook his pipe and said, "There was turmoil a while ago, and people were panicked. If troubled times are coming, I want to know if there is a place where I can live in peace and seclusion."
Just now he was satisfied, his posture and tone were quite relaxed, and he was not on guard or pretentious. This moment is when people are most likely to speak freely, but these words are so innocent that it is difficult to trust.
Is this relaxation just an act? ——Our Luoan girl thought like this, and while her teacher was in control of the conversation, she patrolled the surrounding area vigilantly, but the roosters next to her still ignored Jiu Yanhuan and didn't even look this way.
"Bringing hundreds of armed troops ready to go is the right way to seek peace." Henry shrugged.
"There has to be a way to protect yourself." Ryunosuke also followed his example and shrugged, taking another puff of cigarette.
"Who are you protecting yourself from?" the sage said insinuatingly.
"From the hands of anyone who wants to break our peace." The former county magistrate replied as he exhaled the smoke.
"That means, don't take sides?" Henry pointed out the core of the problem.
"I have been dismissed." Ryunosuke's words made both Narumi and Yajiro silent - the world of samurai is extremely cruel, and it is impossible to go back once you deviate. After being deposed, it is almost impossible for him to return to Xinjing's camp.
"What about the other side?" But Henry didn't buy it immediately, but asked further.
"They are all like the same raccoon dog. In the final analysis, all big shots are like this."
"Who would like a disobedient dog?" Ryunosuke took another puff of his pipe and replied while rubbing the stubble on his chin.
This conversation was very much in the style of the Moon Country. Neither party specified their goals, but the meaning was enough to be conveyed to both parties.
Neutral stance, just seeking stability. Whether his words, which are so resembling words for a scene, are his true intentions—we cannot judge this by relying on words alone.
Ryunosuke is obviously a man with skills and pursuits. It is possible for such a character to be unwilling to be ordinary and want to do something and thus disobey his superiors. In the strict hierarchical society of the Moon Country, sometimes even if you are right, the moment you speak out loud about your correctness, you will become wrong.
The 'disobedient dog' refers to this aspect - but that's not enough, our Mr. Sage draws information from his surroundings in the same way as before.
"A raging soldier, a raging general." This sentence is crude but not crude.
The general's style will greatly affect the soldiers under his command, and the casual and free-spirited people around them, and their laughter also reveal the casual and free side of this group.
Everyone can lie, and experts can even fake their expressions. However, the body language and posture details accumulated over many years of living habits cannot be easily faked.
With his messy beard and messy hair, his relaxed and relaxed attitude affects his followers. They cheered loudly before, and now they are drinking and chatting happily - but are they just slovenly gangsters who have no discipline from the beginning? Obviously not.
The team of hundreds of people still has the marching style of samurai and ashigaru. Their equipment is well maintained and their bodies are healthy and strong. The leader Ryunosuke also showed enough self-discipline in this conversation - this team has considerable quality. They are not surrendering, but they are abandoning the red tape of the past.
Such a team is rare.
They are not bound by power and violence or strict military discipline, but simply follow the leader because of his charisma.
This is also in line with Henry and Mira's understanding that Joshua is not a person who will follow ordinary people.
They are dissatisfied with the world and plan to retreat to the mountains and forests. Indeed, if you think about it from this perspective, these people seem to be bold men who would do such a thing.
——But precisely because of this, Henry would not buy it.
"Who do you want to kill?" The moment the sage asked this question, the people around him who were chatting and drinking suddenly fell silent.
The Luoan girl nervously held the handle of the knife.
"Sure enough, this statement is still too naive?" Ryunosuke took another puff of cigarette, then exhaled and sighed.
"It's too purposeful and lacks a sense of reality. Who would bother to maintain military equipment if they really want to go back to the mountains and forests? Moreover, the composition of your team is too pure. They are all combatants. There is no logistics, no old, young, women, and children. There are more than a hundred grown men. How to start a new life in the mountains and forests." Henry continued, seemingly not feeling the pressure around him at all.
"Since the beginning, we have bumped into your mighty and well-dressed team, as if we are going to fight with someone." He continued.
There was silence in the audience, and Joshua, who had always been quiet, finally spoke to Ryuzosuke: "Tell the truth, he will only help you if you tell the truth."
"Oh, okay." Ryuzosuke took away the cigarette ashes with some irritation: "He is a guy who also escaped from the feudal territory, and is now hiding in the depths of the swamp in Zhangzhou where there are poisonous insects and monsters."
"I heard that that guy has information about my enemy."
"The rumor is that there was a rebellion in the vassal territory, and the guy who had been hiding there fled all the way south to Zhangzhou." He filled the tobacco again, then used two wooden sticks to pick up a small red-hot charcoal from the campfire and put it on He went in and took a puff at the same time. After the tobacco was lit, he threw the charcoal on the ground and crushed it with his feet.
"I see that you are also coming from the feudal territory. I don't know whether the rebellion is real or not. Maybe it's just a vain attempt, and I have to lead my subordinates into another bloody battle just because of a 'possibility'. Are you chasing the enemy? I have become mad with anger. It is precisely because of my disbelief and confusion about myself that I have become a little unyielding. I am really sorry." Ryuzosuke turned away his eyes and after saying this, he smoked one after another without saying anything. .
"..." The sage looked at Narumi and Yajiro in silence, and after receiving the answer, he spoke: "The rebellion did happen, and we also experienced it."
"But the scale is not large. I wonder if your enemies have also fled here."
"...Having this possibility is enough." Ryunosuke took another puff of cigarette.
"The enemy he has been pursuing for more than 11 years, a man who tells lies, exploits women and children for his own benefit, despises family and friendship, and always retreats completely."
"The last time I tried my best, I just took away one of his eyes. This time I must..." He didn't finish his sentence, but the key words were enough to attract the attention of Henry and Mira.
"One-eyed?" The two looked at each other, and then Mira stood up and walked towards the position of her team behind her.
"Maybe it's a coincidence, but we may have some information here." The sage said.
