I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

"Don't let today's fatigue affect your performance of duties tomorrow."

Upon hearing the word "serving the public" from Kyubei's mouth, Qing Deng's lips twitched involuntarily, followed by a silent sigh.

—Are you serving the public...?

The short one-day holiday has come to an end.

Tomorrow, he will return to the North Zone Police Station and resume his "corporate slave" status.

In his previous life, he had just graduated from police academy and hadn't even entered the workforce when he was transported to this unfamiliar era.

The government job I didn't get to eat in my past life, I'm getting to eat in this life...

Starting tomorrow, Qing Deng will officially begin his official life in the Edo period after his transmigration.

Qingdeng felt somewhat apprehensive and nervous about this.

I also felt a little bit of anticipation.

*******

*******

New book launch!

Please vote with monthly tickets! Please add to your favorites! Please recommend! QAQ

[Japanese History Mini-Lesson Begins!]

During the Edo period, people's social status was strictly limited.

Samurai were samurai for generations, and commoners were commoners for generations. Class divisions were rigidly entrenched.

Of course, this only theoretically restricts the identity of the person in question.

Samurai becoming commoners, or commoners becoming samurai—this was not too unusual in the Edo period.

If a samurai commits a serious offense, he may be stripped of his samurai status and demoted to a commoner.

There are many ways for commoners to become samurai.

The simplest way is to become the adopted son of a samurai. As long as you are adopted by a samurai, you will automatically be promoted to samurai.

Like Kondo Isami mentioned in this chapter, he was the son of a wealthy farmer and was adopted by Kondo Shusuke, thus acquiring the status of a samurai.

Another method is to buy it.

Many poor "taro samurai" sold their samurai status cheaply in order to beg for food.

Although the Edo Shogunate strictly prohibited the buying and selling of samurai registers, by the mid-to-late Edo period, due to the decline of the Shogunate's rule and the collapse of social order, its control over the buying and selling of samurai registers had also decreased significantly, so it could only turn a blind eye to such matters.

Chapter 20: Their active figures could be found in every red-light district of Edo!

The next day—

January 14, 1860 (Ansei 1), early morning—

Edo, Hatchobori, Aoto's house—

"Kyubei, I'm going out."

"Young Master, please be careful on your journey. Here, your lunchbox."

After donning a burgundy haori for warmth and a black scarf, and with two swords strapped to his left waist, Aoto accepted the bento box wrapped in thick cloth from Kyubei.

In Japan at that time, there were naturally no staff canteens, so most government officials brought their own lunch boxes.

After stepping out of the house and taking a deep breath of the cool morning air, Qingdeng stretched his limbs and then jogged out onto the path in front of his house in a perfectly standard jogging posture.

Yesterday, after realizing at the test center that his current physical fitness urgently needed improvement, Qingdeng spent the entire night developing a series of fitness plans for himself.

No matter where I go, I try to run as far as possible – this is one of the fitness plans that Qingdeng set for himself last night.

—Having a knife at your waist really gets in the way when you run…

Aoto looked helplessly at the katana and wakizashi hanging at his waist.

These two knives were crafted by Qingdeng's great-grandfather at a cost of 100 taels of silver, and are considered family heirlooms of the Qingdeng Ju family.

After Qingdeng's father died, the two knives naturally passed into Qingdeng's hands.

These two knives are indeed worth the price; both their durability and sharpness are top-notch.

With a sword at his waist, Qing Deng found that the long sword would often hit his left calf when he ran, so he simply took the sword off and carried it on his shoulder.

Following his memory, he arrived at the Hokuban-sho (Northern Office) next to the famous Gofuku Bridge in Edo. Aoto then went straight to the office of his direct superior, Arima, to report for duty.

Every morning, the first thing to do after entering the office is to report to the superiors—this is one of the rules of the office.

Halfway there, Qingdeng suddenly heard two familiar voices behind him:

"Good morning, Tachibana-kun!"

"Good morning, Orange."

Qingdeng: "Good morning, Mr. Niushan and Mr. Zhugu."

The two young men walking behind Ju, who were greeting her, quickened their pace slightly and walked alongside her.

Inoya Hanjiro, Ushiyama Masaji - the names of these two people.

They were Aoto's true colleagues—like Aoto, they were comrades-in-arms directly under Arima's command.

The town of Sadamachi, which is specifically responsible for maintaining public order, is divided into 2 Yori and 6 Doshin. Each Yori is responsible for managing 3 Doshin.

The three members of the guild under Arima's jurisdiction were Aoto, Ushiyama, and Inoya.

These two men also participated in the search operation against the "Ren-Yi Clan" the night before. The two men sitting on either side of Qing Deng while waiting for the operation to begin inside the magistrate's office were Ushiyama and Inoya.

Despite having a somewhat humorous surname, Inugani has a handsome face that has absolutely nothing to do with "pig".

Niu Shan's appearance does match his surname quite well—he has a face that is as honest and simple as an ox.

"Tachibana-kun, you had an extra day off yesterday, did you go anywhere?" Inugami pressed his handsome face close to Aoto's.

"I went to learn swordsmanship from a master yesterday." Qing Deng, who had just gotten up and was still a bit tired, yawned widely.

"Apprentice to learn swordsmanship?" Inugaya's eyes widened. "Tachibana-kun, weren't you always uninterested in swordsmanship? Why the sudden change of heart? Which sword school did you become an apprentice to?"

"The Test Hall of Natural Rishin-ryu".

"...I've never heard of either the school of swordsmanship or the name of the sword-fighting hall."

"It's normal that you haven't heard of it, Mr. Inugaya, since it's a relatively niche school of swordsmanship. I'll tell you about why I suddenly wanted to learn swordsmanship later when I have more time. Tell me about your affairs. Did you and Mr. Ushiyama go anywhere to spend your holiday yesterday?"

"Hmph!" Pig Valley revealed a proud expression, pointed his right thumb at himself, and said loudly in a proud tone, "The two of us spent the whole day in the red-light district yesterday!"

"Ah, I knew it..." Qing Deng chuckled to himself.

“There’s nothing we can do about it,” Ushiyama, who hadn’t spoken until now, interjected. “After all, this is the only hobby that Inugani and I share.”

“If I remember correctly—Lord Arima just recently lectured you two, telling you to be more restrained…” Qing Deng looked helpless. “If you get scolded by Lord Arima again afterward, I won’t be speaking up for you anymore.”

Inoya and Ushiyama... these two colleagues of mine, from a certain perspective... could be considered a pair of celebrities—celebrities in a certain circle in Edo.

Whenever these two have free time, they head to the red-light district!

The two men were much older than Qingdeng, who was only 18 years old this year; they were a generation older than Qingdeng.

Both of them are 32 years old this year. At such a young age, they have successfully accomplished the feat of "their active figures have been seen in every geisha district of Edo"!

If they were just frequenting those kinds of places, it wouldn't be enough to make them celebrities in that circle. After all, Edo had a population of over a million. With such a large population base, Edo naturally had no shortage of people who wished they could live in the red-light district 24 hours a day.

What truly made these two brothers famous was that they both possessed extraordinary skills.

And the amazing skill these two brothers possess... it's truly incredible!

Not only does Inugami have a beautiful face, but his fingers are also beautiful.

Despite having ten such beautiful, slender fingers, they possess a powerful explosive force and agility that are completely mismatched with their appearance.

With just his two hands, Inugami made countless women fall in love with him.

If Pig Valley possesses "physical skills," then Ushiyama possesses "magical skills."

Although Niu Shan has a face as honest and simple as an ox, and is usually taciturn, he is actually quite eloquent.

He could effortlessly utter all sorts of sweet nothings that women loved to hear. With just a few words, he could make any woman he'd just met ecstatic, leading countless women to declare: "Tonight, it's free! Please, come as you please!"

The two individuals, each possessing these two major skills, were nicknamed "Golden Mouth" and "Silver Fingers" respectively in that circle.

Because the two brothers share the same hobby, they often stroll through the flower market together, and they can always be seen there on holidays.

People in Edo referred to these two, who were always inseparable, as the "Gold and Silver Brothers".

Previously, the two had also invited "Yuanju Qingdeng", turning "Qiang Qiang Errenxing" into "Huajie Sanjianke".

However, because Hara Tachibana Aoto was an honest and kind person, he always declined invitations from places like the red-light district. Therefore, every time Inoya and Ushiyama invited him, Hara Tachibana Aoto politely declined.

The three of them chatted as they made their way to Arima's office.

A few moments later, they were standing in front of the office of their direct superior, Sadamachi Kai and Riki Arima Hideyuki.

"Lord Arima!" Inoya called out loudly towards the door, "Inoya Hanjiro, Ushiyama Masaji, and Tachibana Aoto, reporting for duty!"

"Come in," Arima's voice came from behind the door.

"Excuse me!" Inugaya opened the door and went in first.

The three people filed in and lined up in front of Arima.

Aoto: "Good morning, Arima-sama."

The three men bowed and greeted Arima.

Arima's office... was so clean and tidy that it was hard to imagine that anyone actually worked in that room.

The floors, walls, and ceiling were all wiped clean.

The books and files were all categorized and arranged neatly.

Arima is currently kneeling behind the desk, reviewing files. His back is so straight that it forms a perfect 90-degree angle with the tatami mat beneath him.

After learning how Inugaya and Ushiyama typically spend their holidays, you might think these two are truly unique.

But in terms of personality... these two are nothing compared to Arima.