"Whoosh...! Whoosh...! Whoosh...!"
Qingdeng threw the bloody stick in his hand far away into the fire behind him.
"Who...is this guy..."
What a risk... Qingden let out a long sigh.
He just made a dangerous move! Bet on the mysterious man not noticing the wooden stick at his feet; bet on the mysterious man being careless and underestimate the enemy through deliberate practice; bet on his own body to be able to avoid the mysterious man's blade and fight back.
In this whole process, if there is any error in any link... then the person who lost his life now is probably not the mysterious man, but Qing Deng.
——Who...is this person...
Qingdeng took off the mysterious man's bamboo hat.
Although this guy's face was beaten to pieces, his facial features still maintained the general outline. If you look carefully, you can still barely see his face clearly.
Small eyes, square mouth, flat nose...
An unattractive face.
A face that Qingden didn’t recognize at all.
(Akabane? The group that suppresses the barbarians? Hahahahaha! Tachibana Aoden! Your enemies... are far more than you think!)
(Go to hell! Tachibana Aoden! Blood debt must be paid with blood!)
The words that the mysterious man shouted loudly echoed over and over again in Qingdeng's ears for a long time.
——Blood debt...?
Qingdeng's brows furrowed into the character "Chuan".
No matter how hard Qingdeng racked his brains, he couldn't think of any big enemies he had made recently.
If conditions permit, Qingden really wants to capture this unknown young samurai alive and interrogate him properly about what "blood debt must be paid with blood" and who you are.
It's a pity... Qingdeng can't protect himself right now, so how can he spare the energy to capture others alive?
"Cough, cough, cough! Cough, cough, cough, cough -!
"
A plume of thick smoke blew out from close by and hit Qingdeng directly in the face, filling his mouth and nose with an irritating and choking stench.
The wet cloth on Qingdeng's surface had already been evaporated by the high temperature of the surrounding environment, and its blocking effect on the thick smoke... was almost "better than nothing".
The moment the thick smoke hit his face, Qingden suddenly felt as if a ball of fire was stuck in his throat. His stomach acid surged. He put his hands on the ground and coughed until he almost vomited.
"damn it……!"
The mysterious man failed to kill Qingdeng with his own hands, but he succeeded in delaying time and intensifying Qingdeng's physical exertion.
Time, physical energy... they happen to be what Qingdeng lacks most right now.
Prolonging the time Qingdeng was exposed to the fire + forcing Qingdeng to consume his physical strength = directly caused Qingdeng's body, which was already on the verge of reaching its limit, to completely "collapse".
At this moment, Qing Denzhi felt the dizziness in his head rising rapidly in seconds.
My throat and respiratory tract seemed to be burning. Every time I took a breath, I felt severe pain in these two places.
Everything the eyes see seems to be covered with a layer of "rain and fog" filter. Looking up, there is a "fog".
Qingdeng tried to stand up, but his limbs... no, his whole body didn't obey his orders!
The strength in the body is rapidly draining away. Consciousness is also continuously peeled off.
In order to stay awake, Qingdeng bit the tip of his tongue.
A tingling sensation like pins and needles surged from the tip of my tongue to my head, but it didn't help at all.
If the dizziness that dominates Qingden's brain is like a huge wave that can swallow up an entire island in one breath, then the stinging pain caused by Qingden biting his tongue is just a one-meter-high embankment.
】
Can this kind of dike that can only block a small stream stop the stormy waves?
The answer is naturally no.
As soon as he moved, Qingden began to feel as if his body was floating.
The gravity of the world seems to be disappearing.
The sound and scenery of time in front of me are distorted.
Soon, even my own existence became confusing.
Then...Qingdeng didn't know much about what happened after that.
——What... "When a person is about to die, he will see a revolving door"... This is indeed a lie...
This was the last thought that came to Qingdeng's mind before he collapsed to the ground and lost consciousness completely.
…
…
News of the fire in Kodenma Town's prison house spread throughout Edo and beyond at the speed of the wind.
When he first heard about this, Souji felt as if his head had been struck by thunder, and he was completely stunned.
She couldn't remember what she did or what happened after that.
It was as if this memory had been cut out of thin air.
When she came to her senses, she had arrived at the fire scene in Kodenma Town along with all the members of the Imperial Guard Hall.
fire.
What a big fire.
It seemed like a fire that was about to scorch the entire sky.
Collapsed houses; rampant waves of flames that devoured everything in their reach; huge crowds of people seeking refuge; voices calling for relatives and friends to run for their lives...
Whenever the wind blows, countless sparks dance in the sky, dotting the night sky - so beautiful, yet so terrifying.
The red light of the flames lit up Edo, but it failed to restore Souji's face... this pretty face that was already so pale that it seemed as if ice water would drip out at any moment, back to its original rich color.
Souji stared at the boundless field of fire in front of him with dull eyes.
So far, the thought "How is this possible?" has been lingering in Souji's mind.
Although fires in Edo are indeed frequent, and although the frequency of fires in Edo is indeed so high that there will be a fire somewhere every few days, but...but...but how could it be such a coincidence? ! Why did the fire happen on the first day he was imprisoned?
Do not believe……
unbelievable……
Don’t have the guts to believe it…
However, at this moment, after witnessing this Zhurong scene with her own eyes, no matter how much she deceived herself and others, no matter how much she couldn't believe it, she had to admit this fact: the man who had made a private life-long contract with her a few days ago was deeply trapped in Fire scene, life and death unknown.
"This lord!"
Kondo Isamu's shout brought Souji's consciousness back to reality.
Kondo called to a young man dressed in a black firefighter uniform.
"I would like to ask if there is a young man about my height who has been in prison..."
Kondo hasn't finished speaking yet.
"I'm very busy right now! If there's nothing important, don't disturb me!"
It was interrupted by the roar of the firefighters.
Even with just your eyes, you can easily see the fatigue of this young firefighter.
His face was so thick with smoke from the fire that the original color of his flesh was almost invisible.
The firefighters of the town fire department are the most respected and loved group by Edo people, and there is almost no one among them.
Because of his wealth (especially those who perform his duty, such as Arima), his sumo wrestler's strength, and Huo Xiaotou (the fire brigade captain)'s courage, these three became the idols of Edo women.
This is what the saying goes, "strength and sumo wrestling add fire to eliminate the head."
The people of ancient Japan firmly believed that fires were disasters caused by monsters and monsters, so those who could face fires directly were considered heroes.
Edo is famous for its frequent fires. From the founding of the first shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu to the present, there have been more than 100 large-scale disasters in the past 200 years. On average, there will be one every six years that can burn down half or even a small area. Huge fires in most of Edo.
Hence the saying: once every six years, the earth appears scorched.
Even large fires have such a high frequency, so there are countless smaller fires.
The high incidence of fires seriously threatens the personal safety of Edo people. Therefore, the firefighters of the town fire department, who are always on the front line of the disaster area every time there is a fire, naturally become the objects of respect and love.
In the eyes of Edo people, the firefighters who dared to fight against the flames were the best heroes, courageous men, and superhero-like existences.
Even the high-ranking samurai often show respect to the heroic firefighters.
Therefore, influenced by this social culture, Kondo did not get angry or dissatisfied even if he was scolded by the young firefighter.
Of course, another important reason why Kondo did not feel any negative emotions due to the young firefighter's rebuke was that he knew he was in the wrong.
People are running around to extinguish fires and save lives, and to harass each other for their own selfish purposes... This is really not appropriate.
"I'm sorry." Kondo lowered his head and apologized sincerely, "I miss my friends so much that I made an inadvertent step. Please forgive me!"
When the young man saw Kondo's sincere attitude, most of the dissatisfaction on his face melted away.
"Do you have any friends trapped in the fire?"
"Yes."
Hijikata answered for Kondo. He was about to say something else, but the young firefighter interrupted him:
"In that case, let's help!"
"Everyone is either demolishing houses to limit the spread of the fire, or evacuating refugees! No one has time to help check whether your friends have successfully escaped from the fire!"
"This kind of thing can only be done after the flames are extinguished!"
"So, come and help! We are in urgent need of manpower right now!"
"It is winter now, the climate is very dry, and tonight is a windy night. If the fire is not controlled quickly, the tragedy of Furisode and Sakurada may happen again!"
Furisode and Sakurada - the former is the "Furisode Fire" that occurred in the third year of Meiji (1657), and the latter is the Sakurada Fire that occurred in the sixth year of Kansei (1794).
Both of these fires brought serious disasters to Edo.
"The sooner the fire is calmed down, the sooner you can go find your friends."
the young firefighter added.
Everyone in the Trial Guard Hall looked at each other in shock.
The Souji nodded first.
Put out the fire... This is not only for Qingdeng, but also for herself.
She desperately wanted to do something.
Apart from being busy, Souji couldn't think of any other way to regain her composure.
Any kind of thing is fine! As long as it keeps her busy!
After Souji nodded, Saito also nodded slightly.
Then came Kondo, Hijikata, Harada...
No one in the test hall objected, and they all cast a firm look at the young firefighter.
"Okay! Then, please come with me!"
The young firefighter gave a grateful look to the director-general and others, and then led them to the distant "front line"...
…
…
Due to the limited level of technology, even if the firefighters of the town fire department devoted all their manpower and material resources, it was impossible to put out such a huge fire that had begun to spread to the surrounding areas.
Therefore, we can only adopt the classic old method: demolition!
Demolish all the houses adjacent to the disaster area to create fire breaks, and then wait for the flames to burn until there is nothing left to burn and then naturally extinguish them.
The "dinging" of hammers and saws; the "rumbling" of houses and walls, creating a chaotic and noisy mess.
"One, two, three! Pull—! One, two, three! Pull—!"
"Spread out! Everyone spread out! This wall is coming down!"
"The boss has given new instructions! He wants us to demolish all the houses near the river embankment! Not a single piece of wood is left!"
"Okay! Kids! Did you hear that? Follow me! Don't be afraid! It's just flames, nothing to be afraid of!"
…
"Hey! Souji! Hey! Souji! Can you hear me?"
Souji, who had just woken up from a dream, looked up at Isamu Kondo.
"Huh? Brother Kondo, what's wrong?"
"Soji, your face has turned pale! Go down and take a rest!"
Kondo said urgently.
Face? Souji blinked a few times.
Although she didn't have a mirror at hand and couldn't see her face, she roughly guessed that her current complexion would definitely not look good.
On the one hand, it was out of concern for Qingdeng's safety, and on the other hand, it was because of excessive exhaustion.
Since entering the disaster relief work, the General Secretary has not had a break.
Professional fire-fighting projects cannot be done by the Director-General.
However, she can still help as long as she "demolishes the house" with her physical strength.
Swinging hammers, pushing walls, cleaning house debris... The general manager is like a top with unlimited power, spinning tirelessly.
However... "tireless" is just an adjective after all.
In fact, Souji's clothes were soaked with sweat from hard work, his face was frighteningly weak, and the muscles in his hands and feet were shaking slightly from fatigue and excessive exertion.
"...Brother Kondo, thank you for the reminder, but I don't want to rest yet."
Souji also knew that her body was extremely tired, but strangely, she felt that her consciousness was still very energetic.
She felt that she didn't need to rest yet...and she didn't want to.
Even if it was just for a second, she wanted the fire that seemed to be burning and scorching in her heart to be extinguished as soon as possible.
Seeing that the General Secretary was determined to have his own way, Kondo said quickly with an anxious expression:
"General Secretary, you..."
"Okay, Asheng, don't worry about the chief executive, just let her go."
Suddenly, Hijikata's voice broke in.
"Ah Sui?"
Kondo turned his head and looked in surprise at the earth that was shoveling the pieces of wood scattered on the ground onto the cart.
"Since the director-general has said that she doesn't want to rest, then don't force her. It's better to say: You let her continue to work, which is really good for her."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
Kondo looked puzzled.
Hijikata ignored the slow Kondo and continued silently:
"I will watch over Souji. When Souji is really dying and about to fall to the ground, even if she uses force, I will let her go down to rest. Before that, let her do whatever she wants. Just do what you want to do.”
After saying that, Hijikata raised his head, raised his gaze, and looked to the southeast, looking at the crumbling prison floor eroded by the fire.
"Tachibana-kun, please don't die... I haven't even had the wedding wine between you and Souji yet..."
Hijikata murmured in a volume that only he could hear.
…
…
The flames climbed along the walls and pillars to the highest point of the prison house.
Countless pillars of fire erupted from the shattered roof.
Golden tongues of fire entwined and jumped around each other.
The sea of fire completely engulfed the prison. Thick black smoke rising from below filled the night.
Gradually, the house fire continued to grow stronger.
The sounds of wood splitting and collapsing came one after another.
The wooden pillars, which had been burnt to fragile charcoal, collapsed silently. The walls and ceilings that lost their support sank into the sea of flames one by one.
Everything within sight gradually transformed into ruins filled with the aura of death.
The brilliant fire that shot straight into the sky, the raging tongues of fire that easily destroyed countless buildings to the ground...everywhere showed extraordinary power that was far beyond the reach of humans.
Finally, with a "bang" sound, the last remaining building structure of the prison fell apart.
The house began to collapse from the inside, and everything was like a waterfall being sucked into a whirlpool. In the center of this whirlpool, the bottomless abyss composed of red flames opened its big mouth, madly devouring everything that fell...
…
…
The disaster relief operation lasted until near dawn and then ended.
With the full cooperation of the firefighters from the town fire department, the general secretary, Kondo and other "volunteers", they were finally able to control the fire within Kodenma Town and prevent it from spreading to other towns.
In the process of striving for disaster relief, the General Secretary met many familiar old faces.
For example: Boss Kiryu and Mai Kinoshita from Senshiya.
Another example: the siblings Chiba Jutaro and Chiba Sunako of the Chiba family.
They probably all came to check on the situation because they heard about the fire in Kodenma Town and were worried about Qingto's personal safety.
Tachibana-kun's popularity is really good - under normal circumstances, Souji would definitely make a joke like this, but she is really not in the mood to make wisecracks now...
After Kiryu and others arrived at the disaster area, they immediately joined in the relief work without any explanation.
I can't say why, but anyway - Souji paid special attention to the demeanor and behavior of her two love rivals: Mai Kinoshita and Zuo Nako.
Zuo Nazi's expression was calm, unhurried and at ease.
Well, this is within the expectations of the Director-General.
She could not imagine Zuo Nazi showing his wavering and unstable side at all.
As for Kinoshita Mai's reaction, it was beyond Souji's expectation.
In her impression, Kinoshita Mai is a very introverted girl with a weak personality who gives people the impression that she is easy to bully.
She thought that after learning that Qing Teng's life and death were unknown, Kinoshita Mai would be disfigured and in chaos.
But in fact, Kinoshita Mai was very strong. She didn't cry or make a fuss. She just worked hard quietly and contributed everything she could to disaster relief and putting out the fire.
It's just that... with his good eyesight, Souji could vaguely see her slender fingertips and round shoulders, and he trembled slightly unnaturally...
It took most of a day to control the fire, and another half of a day to wait for the flames to naturally extinguish.
During this period, the news of "Tachibana Aoto's death" and "Nioh was buried in a sea of fire" spread throughout Edo.
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