The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 895 The Flower of Osaka—Chief Divine Guardian of the Fourth Osaka Brigade of the Divine Kingdom of Japan

The carriage traveled along the cobblestone streets of Osaka Castle Town, a strange atmosphere permeating the air—the distinctive Chinese temple-style roofs with "rice stalk crosses" characteristic of the God Worshipping Society were everywhere, yet hanging from the corners of the eaves were yellowed Shinto shimenawa (sacred ropes); some people walking the streets made the sign of the cross on their chests, while others silently bowed their heads towards the simple torii gates along the way. Occasionally, one could see a sign posted on a mottled wall that read "An image of Hong Tianwang served by camphor wood and rice stalks." This bizarre religious atmosphere, a mixture of the God Worshipping Society and Shintoism, made Luo Xinhua feel the pain in his ankle ache even more.

The wheels finally stopped in front of a gray-blue courtyard wall. Two menacing stone beasts, a blend of Western lion and Japanese komainu (guardian dog) features, squatted beside the gate, while the gnarled branches of ancient trees reached out from the wall. The courtyard gate opened to reveal a modified "shrine": the offering box in front of the main hall was still there, but it had been repurposed, now used as a sword rack and a rifle stand; the komainu in front of the hall still bore the marks of crosses on their backs. Even more striking was the dark brown wooden plaque hanging above the gate, engraved with a line of stiff, regular script—"Headquarters of the 4th Army Brigade."

Before the carriage had even come to a complete stop, the vermilion gates of the brigade headquarters were flung open with a loud crash. A voluptuous and graceful female officer rushed out first. She wore a slightly fitted, khaki army uniform, her slender waist cinched in a wide military belt, outlining her full, curvaceous figure. The gold-plated major's epaulettes gleamed on her shoulders, and a finely crafted samurai sword slung across her waist. Several junior officers followed closely behind her, their movements perfectly synchronized.

The female major strode briskly to the car, her cheeks flushed like cherry blossoms in March, her smile dazzlingly bright. Completely ignoring the officers behind her, their faces stern as they held their swords, she went straight to open the heavy car door for Luo Xinzhong, her voice sweet and soft like honey, respectful yet carrying a tenderness that made one want to be close to her.

"Commander, you're finally back! You must have had a long and arduous journey!" Each word was drawn out with a melodious and lingering tone.

Luo Xinzhong, leaning halfway out from behind the doorframe, pointed at her and laughed loudly, saying to Luo Xinhua, "Boss, look! This is my Chief Divine Blessing Officer, the Flower of Osaka, Daidouji Yumi! Impressive, right?"

Luo Xinhua frowned deeply: "Chief? It doesn't sound like there's only one. Are there second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, or even seventh seats?"

Daidouji Yumi maintained her humble posture with a ninety-degree bow, her chin slightly raised, her smiling peach blossom eyes charmingly hooking towards Luo Xinhua, her voice still as gentle as water: "You must be the elder brother that the Brigade Commander often mentions, His Highness the Crown Prince of Wu, right? I am Daidouji Yumi, the Chief Divine Blessing Officer of the Fourth Brigade. Please take care of me in the future!"

She paused, as if seeing through the unspoken doubt in Luo Xinhua's eyes, and her smile deepened: "Please don't misunderstand, this 'Chief' position of mine is in charge of more than twenty Divine Blessing Female Officers and more than sixty Divine Blessing Female Attendants in our entire Fourth Brigade! It's not just about the Brigade Commander!"

Luo Xinhua turned his head and glanced at Luo Xinzhong, who had a wicked grin on his face, and squeezed out a sentence through gritted teeth: "More than eighty people? Ah Zhong, your health is important, don't push yourself too hard."

Onodera Tsubaki, who was carrying an ebony box and walking around the carriage from the other side, nodded in agreement upon hearing this. With a serious expression, she whispered to Luo Xinhua, "Captain, our navy does have a different style from their army. Each battleship and cruiser is only assigned three priestesses. They are in charge of gunnery, navigation, and medical services, each with their own responsibilities, and there is absolutely no redundancy."

"Hmph!" Daidouji Yumi straightened up, twisted her slender waist, and instantly replaced her respect with disdain in her eyes. "Pretending! Who are you Navy kidding with your nonsense? Don't you still serve the captains perfectly?" She glanced at Luo Xinzhong meaningfully.

Onodera Tsubaki's face flushed bright red, her ears turning a deep rosy hue, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. She blurted out, "Nonsense! Article 5 of Chapter 7 of the 'Naval Shrine Maiden Service Regulations' clearly stipulates that a shrine maiden's duties are limited to her professional duties! She is not allowed to engage in private service!"

"Yo yo yo!" Daidouji Yumi covered her mouth and laughed, her laughter sweet and her eyes sparkling. "You navy people love to set up these self-deceiving, ridiculous rules! Our army's maids are much simpler. It's clearly stated during recruitment—their duties include taking care of the officers' daily lives and boosting the morale of the troops! They know exactly what they're supposed to do! That's what's truly upright!"

She stepped forward, almost pressing herself against Onodera Tsubaki, her navy blue uniform clashing with her khaki army uniform: "In the end, it's just you navy people pretending to be virtuous! You want to have your cake and eat it too!"

"You!" Onodera Tsubaki gasped, her full chest heaving as she suppressed her shame and indignation. "We're different! We graduated from the Shodoshima Naval Academy with our full curriculum! Gunnery, navigation, engineering—we risked our lives to get every single course!"

"Hmph!" Daidouji Yumi raised an eyebrow, puffed out her proud chest, and retorted relentlessly, "Shodoshima Island is so great? I'm the top student in the third class of the Artillery Department's Shrine Maiden Class at the Kyoto Army Academy! Don't look down on me!"

"Alright, alright!" Luo Xinzhong finally smiled and waved his hand, standing between the two women who were about to explode. "Yumi, go and arrange accommodation for my boss. We'll stay in Osaka for a few more days. Take good care of this one—" He gestured towards Tsubaki Onodera, "the little firecracker from the Navy."

"Hai!" Daidouji Yumi immediately put away her sharp edge, switching back to a sweet and obedient mode as if her face had changed, and bowed deeply to Luo Xinhua again. "Your Highness, please come with me." She leaned forward affectionately and naturally, as if she wanted to take Luo Xinhua's arm and help him out of the carriage.

Luo Xinhua stiffly dodged, but she wasn't annoyed. She said softly, "Watch your step, Your Highness." Luo Xinzhong waved to her, "Go prepare the welcoming banquet. The boss and I will take a stroll around."

"Hai!" Daidouji Yumi responded, then turned to look at the reluctant naval priestess standing there with the box in her arms, and smiled like a wolf in sheep's clothing. "Lieutenant Onodera, what are you standing there for? Grab your things and come with me!" She pointed to the wicker box that Onodera Tsubaki had placed on the carriage shaft. Onodera Tsubaki's face turned bright red, but she finally picked up the wicker box without a word, her delicate chin twitching, and followed behind reluctantly.

The two Luo brothers stepped side by side into the courtyard of the "Shrine-to-Training Department." Luo Xinzhong lazily waved his hand at the row of officers standing ramrod straight like wooden stakes at the entrance, still maintaining their bowing posture: "Disperse, disperse, go about your business!"

After the group of officers scurried away as if granted a pardon, the two brothers walked along the stone-paved path. Only then did Luo Xinhua notice that outside the longhouses deep within the courtyard, where the priests should have lived, rows of soldiers' leggings, reeking of a mixture of gunpowder and grease, were neatly drying. The faint sounds of drill chants drifted from the direction of the barracks. The solemn shrine had been completely transformed into a military camp, yet the lingering aura of Shintoism still lingered in the corners, seemingly telling tales of the past.

“Boss, don’t underestimate people like Daidouji and Onodera.” Luo Xinzhong put away his cynicism and his tone became more serious. “They are not ordinary shrine maidens who only know how to dance Kagura in the shrines on the street. They are all properly trained and have attended a proper military academy just like us.”

He stopped and, seeing Luo Xinhua's slightly confused expression, explained further, "That Onodera Tsubaki, the subjects she studied and the exams she took on Shodoshima were almost identical to what you learned at the Shanghai Naval Academy! I've seen her report card: third in gunnery, fifth in navigation, seventh in mines, and... well, eleventh in engine engineering! This wasn't just some random assessment by the shrine maiden class; it was the result of the entire graduating class taking the exam together! Sixth in the overall evaluation! Impressive, right? The eighth-term sword group! He received his sword personally from Prince Kusunoki Inako upon graduation!"

Upon hearing the words "sixth in overall evaluation," "sword group," and "sword awarded by Nanmu Daozi," Luo Xinhua's forehead instantly broke out in a fine layer of cold sweat. He himself, at the Shanghai Naval Academy, had consistently been at the bottom of his class, barely managing to pass and advance. It wasn't that he wasn't hardworking; astronomy, navigation, and ballistic calculations were as difficult as gibberish to him! On the other hand, his younger brother, Luo Xinzhong, known for his eccentricities, had painstakingly entered the Army Officer Academy after graduating high school, consistently ranking in the top ten of his class!

“That’s not all,” Luo Xinzhong said, seemingly oblivious to the slight embarrassment on his elder brother’s face, as he put his arm around his shoulder and continued walking forward. “After graduating from military academy, Onodera was immediately assigned to an armed merchant ship flying the Kusunoki clan’s thousand-fold flag as its first mate! Don’t underestimate her, Japan’s ‘Three Kingdoms’ is more intense on the sea than on land! All three countries have a bunch of ships flying merchant flags, but their cannons are actually thicker than those of regular cruisers! Ships like Fushimi Maru, Satsuma Maru, and Choshu Maru… when they collide, it’s a deafening roar of cannons! She’s been through a lot on these ships, experiencing at least a dozen large and small naval battles! She even carries a certificate personally written by Kusunoki Takako and receives a stipend of 200 koku, making her a high-ranking samurai of the Kusunoki Domain!”

Luo Xinhua was truly stunned this time, seemingly forgetting even the stinging pain from his foot injury: "An armed merchant ship? She...she's the first mate?"

"Yeah, what's so strange about that?" Luo Xinzhong said matter-of-factly. "It's just an armed merchant ship. The biggest one on board is a captain who hasn't had any formal training. Letting a trained graduate like her be the first mate, commanding a dozen or so sailors to maneuver the ship and fire the cannons, isn't that normal training? Are you really going to let them become shrine maidens and dance after graduation? The wars in Japan and the Three Kingdoms were all real battles! There's a shortage of officers everywhere. By the way, my Daidouji Yumi isn't bad either. She followed the artillery regiment that was the predecessor of the brigade all over the country, served as a forward observer on the battlefield, and even destroyed enemy artillery positions by visual calibration! She also served as an acting battalion commander and led a charge!"

As the two spoke, they arrived at the veranda of an old-fashioned Japanese-style room. Outside the tightly closed paper sliding door, two women who had changed into their traditional attire were quietly kneeling beside the smooth tatami mats.

Shedding her tight-fitting army wool uniform and crisp navy navy blue attire, Daidouji Yumi donned a traditional white blouse and red hakama (traditional Japanese shrine maiden) outfit. The pristine white blouse clung to her voluptuous figure, cinched at the chest with a crimson sash embroidered with ancient bellflower patterns, creating a breathtaking silhouette. The crimson hakama trailed to the ground, revealing only a sliver of her snow-white ankles. Her thick black hair was styled into an elegant high bun, adorned with a simple jade hairpin. Her face was free of makeup, yet the sacred red and white attire added a touch of gentle tranquility she rarely displayed.

Beside her, Onodera Tsubaki had also changed into the same shrine maiden attire. Her figure was even more slender and tall, the red and white colors highlighting her cool and aloof demeanor. The hem of her white robe was meticulously starched, and the wide sleeves hung down, concealing the backs of her hands. Her black hair was also neatly combed, with only a few soft strands framing her face. Her expression remained blank, but without the military cap, the delicate beauty of her features was fully revealed. Beside her knees, the ebony box sat quietly.

Daidoji Yumi smiled and bowed slightly, her eyes appearing even more alluring against the backdrop of her red and white dress. Beside her, Onodera Tsubaki simply lowered her head and eyes, clearly indicating she had never truly served the Captain before.

The two bowed deeply, their foreheads lightly touching the smooth edge of the tatami mat. Their movements were precise and elegant, and their voices were softer than ever before.
"Your Highness, Captain of the Brigade."

"The welcome banquet food boxes have been prepared."

"Please come inside for your meal."

(End of this chapter)