Although there is no direct evidence, judging from Tokugawa Iesada's behavior as an adult, he not only suffered from brain-damaging paralysis, but also suffered from a certain degree of persecutory delusion.

Tokugawa Iesada was "born in a deep palace and raised in the hands of women" in the true sense.

Tokugawa Ieyaki's strict "no-football" order made Tokugawa Ieyaki almost never leave Ooku until he reached adulthood.

This extremely closed growth environment created his cowardly and autistic character.

He always shuts himself in the deepest part of the universe and tries his best to avoid interacting with anyone.

In addition, he always felt that he was not safe and that some criminals were coming to kill him.

He didn't want to eat the food cooked by the imperial chef, so he built a small stove in Da'oli and cooked three meals a day by himself. He even developed a passable pastry-baking skill.

Towards the end of his life, his paranoia became more severe.

He locked himself in his room, saw no one, and only communicated with his wet nurse, Songqiao.

Judging from these symptoms of Tokugawa Kesada, the rumor that he never consummated his marriage with Tenjoin might be true.

He didn't even want to believe the Ooku female officials who had watched him grow up, so how could he possibly trust and get close to a strange girl who was married all the way from Satsuma Domain?

He and Tianzhangyuan may not have even met a few times.

All in all, it is only natural that Honjuin, which has witnessed too many abnormal deaths, is very concerned about Tokugawa Iemo's personal safety and strongly opposes Tokugawa Iemo's taking risks.

I would rather spend 1 million taels of gold to let Tokugawa Iemo take the safer land route. He must stay away from the sea route where accidents may occur!

Due to the distance between the two places, Aonto had no idea how Tokugawa Iemo and Tenzouin viewed the astronomical Shangluo fee.

But based on what I know about them - it is absolutely impossible for the mother and son to agree to waste a precious 1 million taels of gold on such a face-saving project!

When I led the army to Luo, Tokugawa Iemo only gave me 3,000 taels of gold!

How could he possibly approve such a ridiculous thing if he is so "stingy"!

Aoto could imagine the scene - in order to persuade the "conservatives" headed by Honjuin and change their minds, Tokugawa Iemoji and Tenzouin tried their best to argue with each other until they were blushing and thick-necked.

But...this mother and son, with their shallow foundations, are really insignificant in the face of the "conservatives" represented by Honjumaru.

Thinking of this, Qingdeng couldn't help but sigh.

He deeply understood the difficulties of Tokugawa Iemo and Tenzōin.

One is the 14th shogun of the Edo shogunate and the supreme leader of the samurai family; the other is the indescribably noble Odaisho.

Although they all have extremely famous names, they can't help themselves in many things.

My own foundation is not strong enough, the constraints of powerful officials, the interference of my relatives...the debuffs are almost full!

Now that the deal is done, no matter how upset or deeply regretful it is, it's already too late.

Time passes...

In the third year of Wenjiu (1863), on April 20, the general's campaign to Luo, which cost millions of taels of gold, began with great fanfare.

…

…

A huge team of three thousand people slowly spread out on the streets of Donghai, stretching for several miles. It was so spectacular.

Tokai Street is the shortest distance connecting Edo and Kyoto.

Over hundreds of years, after years of repairs and the constant trampling of countless feet and hooves, the road surface of Donghai Street is extremely smooth and hard. There are deep and clear ruts in the center of the road, which is very convenient for walking and marching.

It was the "highway" of the Edo period.

Again, Japan is an island country with a small land area.

It's not that far from Edo to Kyoto. The straight-line distance between the two is only a mere 380 kilometers.

Under the strict requirements of Tokugawa Iemo, the Kamiro team took on the momentum of a rapid march and marched all the way, maintaining a very high moving speed throughout the process.

In only seven days, Tokugawa Iemo's Kamikawa team arrived at Otsu, located in the southeast of Kyoto and guarding the throat of Kyoto.

On this day, the ministers stationed in Beijing, led by Aoto and Matsudaira Yoshiho, all left the city to Otsu to await the arrival of Tokugawa Iemo.

…

…

Wenjiu three years (1863), April 27——

Gyeonggi, south bank of Lake Biwa, Otsu-juku——

There are 53 accommodation stations along Donghai Street, and Otsu Inn is the last one.

The warm spring wind blew past my ears, and the warmth was mixed with the fragrance of new buds.

The weather today is very good, the wind is gentle and the sky has been clear and clear since early morning. The blue sky is like the best interpretation of the word "clear blue sky", as if it can reach the end of the universe.

With the arrival of spring, the trees covering the mountains in the distance begin to sprout new green branches, rustling in the breeze.

"Moo moo... moo moo..."

Carrot made a very lethargic cry and scratched the ground with his front hooves in boredom.

As for Qingdeng sitting on it, he also looked bored.

Matsudaira Yongho, who was riding a fine BMW, stood side by side with him.

The Shinsengumi generals, the important ministers of the Aizu Domain, and the other ministers stationed in Beijing were arranged behind them in order according to their status.

Hijikata Toshizo went to Edo to recruit soldiers and would have to wait for some time before returning.

For this reason, the person currently in charge of commanding the Shinsengumi generals is Isamu Kondo.

The Shinsengumi generals headed by Isamu Kondo all wore spotless light green haori - for them, this light green haori was their formal dress.

As for those with official official positions - such as Seito and Matsudaira Yongho - they all wore samurai ceremonial attire.

According to reliable information, Tokugawa Iemo's Kamikawa team successfully arrived at Kusatsu-juku (the 52nd stop of Tokai Street) yesterday evening.

If nothing else happens, they will be able to arrive at Otsujuku before noon at the latest.

By the time you get to Otsu-juku, Kyoto is just around the corner.

In order to show respect for the general, Qingden and others were waiting here early in the morning.

While waiting for the general's arrival, everyone, including Ayoto and Matsudaira Yongho, kept silent.

At first glance, the atmosphere is quite solemn.

He could neither move nor talk randomly... Although it was uncomfortable and boring, Qingdeng did not feel bored.

When he thought that he would soon see Tokugawa Iemo and Tenzouin who had been away for a long time, the corners of his mouth slightly curved uncontrollably.

Suddenly, the tips of Qingden's ears trembled slightly.

Then, he raised his eyes, looked at the end of the road ahead, and murmured:

"Coming."

With the blessing of the talent "Perceiver of Wind +1", Qingden was the first person to sense movement.

Immediately afterwards, Matsudaira Yongho, Kondo Isamu... everyone present heard the dull rumbling footsteps.

About 10 minutes later, the tip of a gun with a scabbard came into view by Qingdeng and others.

The warriors wearing bamboo hats on their heads and carrying spears on their shoulders formed a relatively neat line of six, striding towards Qingteng and others.

These warriors who carry guns are called "gun bearers".

Gun holding - the classic ceremonial configuration of the Edo period.

The spear represents war.

Carrying a spear with you means "I am always ready to go to the battlefield".

Whenever a big shot of the Wu family travels, there will definitely be a large number of guns accompanying them.

Immediately after the gunman, there was a flag with a clover printed on it fluttering in the wind.

*******

*******

Please give me a monthly ticket! Please give me a recommendation vote! (Leopard Head Cries)

PS: When writing this chapter, Leopard really felt that it was really difficult for Tokugawa Iemo and Tenjoin. There were party struggles everywhere, within the shogunate, in the Oku, and even in the Shinsengumi and Aizu, which they relied on.

Fan is not completely of the same mind...
Chapter completed!