I Was a Swordsman in Ancient Japan

3 days later-

Edo, Yoshihara.

"Mashima-kun, it's almost time for the essay list to be released," said Guasheng Chao, who was standing next to her.

"Yeah." Ogata looked up at the position of the moon above his head and nodded, "It's indeed almost time. I'm about to leave to see if I have passed the essay test."

Participate in the literary examination of the "Imperial Examination"-this is already 3 days ago.

Long before the start of the literary examination, the government announced that the results of the literary examination will be released at 9 o'clock in the evening (20 o'clock in the evening) three days after the end of the literary examination.

At that time, the list of people who passed the literary examination will be posted on a large wooden board.

In addition to the names of those who passed, the list will also list the names of the top 10 people in this essay test.

The place where the list is placed happens to be very close to Yoshihara, on the Nihon Embankment.

The government probably considered that there will be a large number of people waiting for the list to see if they have passed the literary test or directly join in the fun. In order to avoid crowding, the place for the list is set on a relatively empty Japanese embankment.

Earlier this morning, officials from the government had set up a large wooden sign on a clearing not far from Yoshihara.

It's almost time to put on the list. There are already many participants of the "Prince Test Combination", or people who simply want to join in the fun, gathered in front of the big wooden sign.

They have all been waiting for the list with the names of those who passed and the names of the top 10 personnel to be posted.

Ogata had already approached Shiro Bingbei in advance and asked Shiro Bingbei for leave-requesting Shiro Bingbei's permission to leave Yoshihara temporarily and go to the place to see if his name is on the list.

For this small request from Ogata, who had done a great job for Yoshihara before, Shiro Hebei naturally agreed very readily.

Because the place of the list is relatively close to Yoshihara, Ogata still does not rush to set off, still performing his task tonight: standing guard in the first half of Nakanomachi.

As usual, Guasheng led several colleagues on patrols around Yoshihara.

After returning to the first half of Nakanomachi, I saw Ogata who had not yet set off, so I came to talk to Ogata, chat, and relax by the way, and relax his feet, which had been patrolling Yoshihara several times.

"I don't know if it's because everyone is going to watch the list or join in the fun, I feel that there are so many fewer people coming to Yoshihara tonight." Guasheng smiled bitterly.

"Isn't this just right?" Ogata shrugged and said in a half-joking tone, "There are fewer people coming to Yoshihara, and we will have less pressure on patrols and guards."

After that, Ogata looked up at the moon above his head again.

"...It should be time, Guasheng, then I'll leave first. I'll be back when I go."

"Yeah." Guasheng nodded vigorously, "Then see you later, I will almost continue to patrol in Yoshihara. Don't be nervous! I think you must pass the literary test!"

"I'm not nervous..." Ogata waved to Guasheng with a wry smile, bid farewell to Guasheng, and then strode towards Yoshihara.

As he gradually moved away from Yoshihara, Okinawa felt that his heartbeat was speeding up because of a little nervousness.

"He is not nervous" that Ogata said to Guayu just now is actually a lie.

Although he was quite sure of passing the literary examination, Ogata was still a little nervous.

Worried, "What if I fail the literary examination?"

If you don’t pass the literary test, you will not only lose face, but you will also not be able to explain to Hasegawa...

With a little worry, Ogata finally arrived at the place of the list.

At the end of the field of vision, there was a large standing card made up of three standing cards.

And this large standing card was posted with several large papers at this time.

Because the distance was a little far away, Ogata couldn't see what was written on this big piece of paper at all, only to see dense black spots.

Maybe it's because Ogata came early, so not many people gathered at the top of the list at this time.

Aiming at the most "weak" spot in the crowd, Ogata walked straight towards it.

After approaching the crowd gathered at the front of the list, Ogata gradually heard the voices of these people.

"Okay! There is my name!"

"Yu... That's great..."

"Fortunately, I have never forgotten to study Sinology."

Those who are fortunate enough to pass the literary test, naturally there are also people who scream or yell because they didn't see their name on the list.

"Hey! Why is there no my name on it!"

"Give me an explanation! Why didn't I see my name!"

Around the Lipai, stood nearly 20 heavily armed officials.

Lanterns for thorns, ten hands, and lighting are all available.

These officials not only protect the standing card of the list of people who have passed the essay test from being destroyed, but also take care of the group of guys who made trouble because they didn't see their name on the list.

When I came to ask "Why is there no my name on the list?", they uniformly answered "This list is assessed by the judges".

If someone is dissatisfied and tends to make trouble, use a polite tone to "remind" them not to make trouble.

After hearing the "reminders" from the officials, basically all emotional people will calm down.

After all, only that very few people have the courage and ability to provoke officials in the ruling center of this shogunate.

In addition to the cheers of rejoicing that they passed the literary test, and the roars of dissatisfaction and anger that their name did not appear on the list, there were other voices in the crowd.

"Hey, who is the first name in that literary test? Have you heard of it?"

"never heard of that."

"Is it a foreigner? I have lived in Edo for so many years, and I have never heard of this person."

"If it is a ronin from a foreign country, then the fun will be great. I heard that many Kimoto and Yu family participated in this'Private Trial.' As a dignified Kimoto and Yu family, even the ronin from another country is better But hehe."

"I'm so envious, the guy who got the first name has 100 taels of gold to get. Such a large sum of money is enough for me to live a life without worrying about food and clothing for several years."

...

There are quite a few people discussing the top name of the literary test.

After getting close enough to see the words on the list clearly, Xu Jian stopped.

Ogata's height, which was far above the average, came in handy again at this moment.

You don't even need to tiptoe, just look up normally.

Because I heard that many people were discussing the title of the literary test, Ogata couldn't help being curious about the mysterious title of the literary test.

This list is made up of several large pieces of white paper, with 10 names listed on the far left.

On the leftmost side of the 10 names, the 10 numbers from one to ten are marked from top to bottom.

To the right of these 10 names are hundreds of names.

Even if they are not introduced by others, Ogata can tell at a glance-the 10 names listed on the leftmost side of the list are the top 10 in this literary examination.

The hundreds of names listed to the right of these 10 names are those who pass the literary test and can perform the following martial arts test except for the top 10.

I don’t know how long it will take to find the name "Majima Goro" from these hundreds of names, so Ogata plans to see who is the first name in the literary test that is hotly discussed.

Ogata slowly moved his sight to the top 10 list located on the far left of the list.

Then...

Ogata's expression froze directly.

Because after shifting his gaze to the top 10 list, Ogata suddenly saw the number "one" next to the number written with a name that was too familiar for Ogata during this period of time.

Majima Goro.

Next to the number "一", which represents the first name of the literary test, the name marked "Mashima Goro".

...

...

Three days ago, when the literary examination officially started, although Takikawa was panicked because of a strange question on the test paper, after returning to calm, Takikawa seemed to be a **** helper and wrote an article about himself. The most satisfying article in my life.

After the literary examination, Takikawa eagerly wrote down the essays he had written at the time, and then handed them to friends who had a good relationship on weekdays and were quite talented.

Everyone who read Takikawa's article couldn't help but exclaim and admire.

In addition to passing it to friends, Takikawa also specially showed it to his master, Aioi Harumi.

As a well-known Sinology master in Edo, Aisheng Chunsui is 58 years old this year.

Due to his high age and lack of energy, he suffered a serious illness some time ago, which caused him to stay at home during this period of time.

While studying Sinology with great concentration, he also nursed his recovered body from a serious illness.

In order to get the evaluation of Aioi Harumi, Takikawa rushed to the mansion where Aioi Harumi lived, and personally handed his article to Aioi Harumi's eyes.

Xiangsheng Chunshui readily responded to this small request made by his apprentice.

After reading it carefully, Aisheng Chunshui gave a very high evaluation of Takikawa's article, and even directly stated that "it is indeed one of my most proud apprentices".

After getting the high evaluation of the master, Takikawa is even more sure to win the first name in the literary examination.

Tonight when the literary test was released, Takikawa and his friends who were also determined to show off their skills in the "Private Test" gathered in a high-end tea house.

The reason why they all gather in this high-end tea house to have a banquet without going to see if their names are on the list is for two reasons.

On the one hand, the reason is that they are all Qiben children, and they disdain to do things like "seeing whether their names are on the list in person".

On the other hand, the reason is that they all firmly believe that with their standards, they will be able to pass the essay easily.

Takikawa has just sent one of his servants to watch the list.

The domestic servant sent by Takikawa is not only smart and has an amazing memory, but also has a fast pace, so it is most appropriate to send him to watch the list.

In terms of time, the servant in Takikawa who was in charge of the list should be back soon.

Takikawa and his friends were having a banquet while waiting for the return of his servant who went to watch the list.

At the banquet, these friends of Takikawa continued to congratulate Takikawa.

All the people present have read Takikawa's article, and they are full of praise for Takigawa's article.

Everyone thinks that at the level of Takikawa's essay, even if he can't win the first place in the literary examination, it will definitely be stress-free to get into the top 10 in the literary examination.

Congratulations to the friends, although Takikawa did not show off on the surface and maintained a calm appearance, but his heart was very proud, and his heart was already smiling.

In order to maintain his demeanor, he has always pretended to be calm and seem indifferent to these fame and fortune.

"Takikawa, congratulations. Even if you are not the first name in the literary examination, you must be in the top 10 in the literary examination." The young man sitting next to Takikawa poured wine to Takikawa himself, and sincerely asked Takikawa. Chuanhe is happy.

"Hahaha." Takikawa said to the young man beside him in a familiar tone, "Uesaka, aren't you also? With your ability, it must be easy to win the top ten in the literary examination."

The young man sitting next to Takigawa was named Satoshi Uesaka.

Uesaka was considered the best from all the people present—the Uesaka family who had 5000 Shijialu.

In terms of rank, it is much higher than Takikawa, which has only 3,000 shi.

Takikawa and Uesaka are very good friends because of their similar personalities and similar thoughts.

Of course, Takigawa’s friendship with Uesaka also brings some utilitarian elements in it-Uesaka’s uncle is one of the four Wakanenyos currently in the shogunate: Yoshimoto Tsuiemon.

A good friendship with Uesaka will be able to obtain more political resources-this is also one of the reasons for the good relationship between Takigawa and Uesaka.

After Uesaka poured him a glass of wine, Takigawa also politely poured Uesaka back a glass of wine.

"Takikawa. If it's flying in the future, don't forget us." Uesaka said in a half-joking tone.

"Hahaha." Takikawa smiled, and then changed into a half-joking tone, "I will return this sentence to you as it is. Uesaka, if you are so prosperous in the future, don't forget us."

Takikawa's words amused everyone in the audience.

Uesaka also followed and laughed.

After taking a sip of Takigawa's drink, Uesaka let out a sigh of relief: "Takikawa, if you can successfully enter the eyes of the old man with the help of this'Private Test Combination', then it may be true. It's going to be a big one."

"If it's frightening, it would be nothing extravagant to ransom the wife of the wind chime and marry the wife of the wind chime."

Takikawa fell in love with Yoshihara's wind chime at first sight-it was not a secret among everyone present.

Everyone present knows that the reason why Takikawa, who has always been arrogant, came to Yoshihara to teach a group of wandering girls to read and write was purely to get a better look at his favorite wind chime.

Hearing Uesaka's words, Takigawa smiled slightly:

"Marrying a wind chime husband as his wife is too far away, I can't even think about it."

Although Takikawa said so on the surface, while maintaining a calm appearance, in essence, Takigawa's heart is already in a stormy sea.

Uesaka's words just reminded Takigawa.

Let Takikawa wake up: if he can gain the appreciation of Matsubaru Dingxin in the future, he can't help but gain fame, power, and profit, gain the opportunity to stay in the history, and at the same time get the opportunity to hold the wind chime in his arms.

Thinking of this, Takikawa couldn't help but start to imagine the scene of kissing Yoshizawa with the normally unattainable wind chime after Qingyun went straight up.

While fantasizing about these pictures, Takikawa's face involuntarily showed a weird, indescribable smile.

Boom boom boom.

At this moment, footsteps from far and near sounded outside the room.

After this series of footsteps stopped before and after the door of the room, what sounded immediately after the stopped footsteps was a shout:

"Master Takikawa! I'm back!"

Seeing that it was the domestic servant from Takikawa who had gone to watch the list came back, everyone present was refreshed.

Takikawa is no exception.

After quickly putting down the wine glass in his hand, Takikawa straightened his clothes, and then said loudly:

"come in!"

After obtaining Takikawa's entry permit, his servant quickly opened the door and walked into the room quickly.

There was a lot of sweat on his face, and he was still panting, and he knew that he had rushed back.

"How is it?" Someone present asked the servant of Takigawa first, "Who is the first name of the literary examination? Is it Takigawa-kun?"

Seeing someone asked this question for him, Takikawa smiled satisfied.

After all, this kind of question is asked by him, it will appear that he is very concerned about fame and fortune, making him look very unmannered.

Hearing this question, the servant in Takikawa looked embarrassed.

Looking at the servant with a strange expression, Takikawa suddenly had some unpredictable feelings...

"...The first name of the literary test... is not Master Takikawa."

Takikawa's servant gritted his teeth after hesitating for a while, and said so.

The expression on Takikawa's face froze as soon as the servant's voice fell.

Not only Takikawa, but the expressions on everyone present changed slightly.

"Which is Takigawa-kun ranked?" Uesaka asked, frowning.

The question raised by Uesaka once again made the servant of Takikawa look embarrassed.

After hesitating for a while, the servant once again said with embarrassment:

"The top 10...none of the names of Master Takikawa..."

At this moment, the expression and complexion on Takikawa's face changed again.

"Who is the first name of the literary test?" Uehankyu said.

"It's a man named Goro Mashima..."

As soon as the servant's voice fell, Takikawa's face was immediately covered with shock.

A strong color of astonishment appeared in his eyes, and then his face flushed and gradually turned pale again.

The flesh on his face was trembling slightly, distorting his originally very handsome facial features, looking very ugly and scary.

At this time, the air in this room was also filled with a more and more embarrassing atmosphere.

Everyone, you look at me, I look at you.

No one knows what to say or do now...

...

...

"Hey, do you know?"

"what do you know?"

"That Goro Mashima won the first place in the literary test of the'Gozen Test Combination'!"

"Majima Goro? Oh! That's the one who drove away the gangster from the troubled Huofu Rogue, right?"

"It's true... Didn't that person not only have such a good swordsmanship, but also learned Sinology so well..."

"Why did that man come to our Shiro Bingbei Club for what... With his swordsmanship and Sinology skills, opening a sword hall or a private school is enough to support himself?"

"It might be troublesome. How can opening a sword hall or a private school be as easy as working at the Shiro Bingbei Club?"

"And don't say that opening a sword hall or a private school is a bit of money. The private school may be better. Most of the people who open the sword hall are basically lost. These years, they are determined to make progress and will work hard to practice swords. There are not many people."

...

Dialogues similar to this are constantly appearing in the mouths of the officials in the Shirobei Club.

Because the place where the literary test was released was closer to Yoshihara, the news that "Mashima Goro" got the first place in the literary test quickly spread throughout the Shiro Bingbei club.

Most of the club officials are discussing this newcomer who has just joined their Shirobei club a while ago, and makes big news every few days.

Some people who knew Ogata came directly to find Ogata and congratulated Ogata in person.

Such as melon health.

"Mashima-kun! I heard about it just now! You won the first place in the literary examination!"

"Unexpectedly, you are also a man proficient in Sinology!"

"Really, you were too modest before, right? I keep saying that as long as you can pass the essay test."

Due to the emotional excitement, Gusheng's cheeks were slightly red.

Ogata just returned to Yoshihara.

After returning to Yoshihara, Ogata returned to the sentry post in the first half of Nakanomachi where he was originally responsible.

After returning to stand guard, people like Guasheng who knew Ogata continued to confess the good news to Ogata.

Listening to the Annunciation of Guasheng, Ogata couldn't help showing a helpless wry smile again.

"I was not humble before..."

In fact, Ogata is still in a state of bewilderment.

What he said to other people before was not humble.

He really felt that as long as he could pass the literary test, he hadn't thought about what to get the first place in the literary test from the beginning.

So when he saw the name "Majima Goro" in the column of the first name of the literary examination, Ogata was dumbfounded.

Until now, I still feel like my body is floating.

Ogata is sure that he hasn't all the 100 fill-in-the-blank questions right. After all, he is not sure whether there are many questions.

In the case that the fill-in-the-blank question is definitely not all correct, it can still take the first place, that only shows two things.

Either the level of other people is too high, even if Ogata didn't do all the fill-in-the-blank questions correctly, he still took the first place in the essay test.

Either the last "composition question" Ogata answered really well, so let Ogata corner overtake directly.

But this made Ogata whisper again.

He felt that his "composition" was not so well written, the words and sentences belonged to the very common type, and the content was completely just casual.

The more Ogata thinks about it, the more he can't understand why he won the first place in the literary examination...

Hearing Ogata’s remarks, Guasheng thought that Ogata was again humble, so he put his hands on his hips and said in a breathless tone:

"Mashima-kun, sometimes being too modest is not so good."

"The officials are not fools."

"It is impossible to judge the first name of the literary test wrong."

"Since you can get the first name in the essay test, it means you definitely deserve it."

"So be happy and don't put on a weird face."

Guasheng raised his hand and patted Ogata's lower back.

"The first place in the literary test has a reward of 100 taels. Think about how you will spend these 100 taels in the future!"

"...That's right." Ogata took a deep breath, then exhaled slowly through his nose.

The expression on his face is no longer as tight as before because of wondering why he got the first name in the essay exam.

"I really envy you, Majima-kun." Gusheng continued in a joking tone, "100 taels of gold...have become a rich man directly."

"100 taels of gold can only be regarded as a short period of time without worrying about food and clothing. It is still far from the word'rich man'." Xu Jinshi shrugged helplessly, "100 taels may not be enough. Some people have fun all night in Yoshihara."

Ogata has worked in Yoshihara for a short time.

Although the time is not very long, I have witnessed how wealthy people in this era dissipated money twice.

Probably on the night five days ago, there was a middle-aged man with a big belly holding his belly, swaggering into Yoshihara surrounded by a bunch of people.

According to people, this middle-aged man seems to be a wealthy businessman from Osaka.

That night, this wealthy businessman released a huge fortune of 200 taels of gold in Yoshiwara...

Although Japan in the Edo period pursued the basic national policy of "emphasizing agriculture and restraining business," the development of the commodity economy was the general trend of the times, coupled with various reasons such as loopholes in policies that could be exploited, leading to greater business power.

Up to now, there has even been a situation where the samurai needs to sniff on the merchants in some places.

Many Xiaofans with tight finances even owed money to those wealthy businessmen.

"That's how it is said, but 100 taels of gold is no longer a small sum for us, how about it? Have you thought about how to spend these 100 taels?"

"For the time being, there are some simple plans..."

As soon as Ogata's voice fell, an unfamiliar voice suddenly sounded beside him:

"Mashima Goro-kun, someone is looking for you."

Ogata followed the prestige.

A young man with a face wearing a special haori from the Shiro Bingbei Club, walked slowly towards Ogata with a middle-aged man with the same face.

Before and after coming to Ogata, the middle-aged man first bowed to thank the official who led him to Ogata, and then turned back and said to Ogata:

"Mashima! I finally found you! It's me, that Surprise Island who wandered in Kyoto with you a few months ago!"

Hearing these words from the middle-aged man, Ogata raised his eyebrows.

What the middle-aged man said just now is actually a secret sign.

The reason and purpose of Ogata's current work at the Shirobei Club in Yoshihara is one more than before.

That is to act as an informant between them and Hasegawa.

Because it is not convenient for Hasegawa to know where they are currently hiding, it is most appropriate to let Ogata, who was already lurking in Yoshihara, act as an informant.

Once Hasegawa hears something new in Shiranui, he will send someone to Yoshihara to find Ogata and contact Ogata.

The contact code is this sentence: I am Surprise Island who wandered around Kyoto for a while with you a few months ago.

The person who uttered this code was someone sent by Hasegawa.

Since the beginning of cooperation with Hasegawa, this is the first time Hasegawa has sent someone to find Ogata.

Subconsciously thinking that it might be Hasegawa finally detecting information related to Shiranui, Ogata immediately began his performance-pretending to be surprised, and then quickly said:

"It's you, Surprise Island, it's been a long time since I saw you."

"Surprise Island" nodded vigorously: "I heard that you are now working at the Shiro Bingbei Club, so I hurried over to look for you. Mashima, I want to talk to you about some personal matters. Is it convenient for me to come over? "

...

...

at the same time--

Inside the hotel where Ogata and others lived.

Yuan Yi didn't like to drink in the corner of the room like a waste wood.

Instead, he took out the knife oil and maintained his saber.

Shimada knelt down and sat aside while Genichi's saber was putting oil on his saber, carefully looking at the knife that Genichi was holding in his hand.

"No matter how many times I watch it, I think Yuan Da Ren's Sabre is really incredible..." Shimada swallowed.

Genichi's sword and wakame, the handle and scabbard are dark red. The knives are the most common round knives, but there are many complicated patterns engraved on them.

Not only the blades, but the blades of Yuanyi's two sabers also have the blade pattern full of Ling Ran's aura.

Even people who don't know anything about swords can see that Genichi's two sabers are by no means ordinary.

Hearing Shimada's words, Yuan smiled slightly:

"Of course, my Yang Shen and Yan Rong are much more powerful than the so-called treasure knives on the market."

Knife·Yangshen, Wakicha·Yanrong—These are the names of Genichi's two sabers.

Genichi’s Yangshen and Yanrong are the same as Ogata’s Dashaten and Da Zizai, and their lengths are longer than those of ordinary swordsmanship and warriors.

The blade length of Yangshen is 72cm.

Yan Rong's blade length is 45cm.

In terms of length, it contrasts with Genichi, who is 168cm tall and is as tall as Ogata's average value in this era.

Yuanyi had a drink just now, and his face was red.

However, even after drinking some wine, Yuanyi's hand that spatula oil on the blade was still very stable, and he didn't even shake it.

After rubbing a thin layer of oil on the blade with a neat technique, Yuan Yi looked at the "glossy" blade, and suddenly jumped out:

"Recently, I have been drinking every day, and I have been too leisurely. I want to be active.

"Huh?" Shimada was taken aback for a moment.

Shimada was only a newcomer who joined the gourd house last year. The time spent in the gourd house is not too long. Although the time is the shortest, Shimada has gradually become accustomed to the source of this kind of "suddenly will suddenly pop out of unknown meaning Words" style.

So after a short pause, Shimada's expression returned to normal, and he asked:

"Yuan Da Ren, do you want to go out for a walk? No, the lord has warned you: You can't go out casually now. If Yuan Da Ren and your enemies find out that you are in Edo now, it will be troublesome."

For Shimada's words, Yuan smiled without saying a word, and showed a meaningful smile. He didn't respond, and only continued to sweep his eyes on Yangshen's sword.

After looking at the Yang Shen in his hand, Yuan Yi raised his right hand again, putting oil on Yang Shen's knife.

While continuing to oil, Asashimada said:

"Shimada, can you go out and buy something for me later?"

"Things? Yuan Da Ren, what do you want to buy?"

"It's nothing, but I can only stay here every day. It's really boring, so I plan to buy some interesting toys to relieve my boredom."

"Yuan Dao..." Shimada smiled wryly, "You are already past the age of playing with toys, right?"

"You are wrong, Shimada." Genichi shrugged. "No matter how old people are, they all like to have fun, but the toys they play with will keep changing."

"I am a relatively pure person, and I also love to play with toys that I loved to play with when I was young."

Shimada lightly sighed, who didn't want to argue with Genichi.

"Never mind... If you want to play with toys to relieve your boredom, Mr. Yuan~www.ltnovel.com~ I bought it for you. Then, Mr. Yuan, what toys do you want?"

"I will make a list for you later, you can just buy it as you go."

*******

*******

This chapter mentioned Genichi's height, so I will list the heights of the protagonist and others in descending order.

Pastoral village: 186cm

Ogata: 170cm

Source 1: 168cm

Mamiya: 165cm

Asai: 160cm

Shimada: 157cm

Ah Ding: 155cm

Kinoshita Lin: 145cm (Yes, Lin is actually as tall as Melon)