Western Coast of Japan, Designated Trade Port
Mid December 1836
The decision made in Edo did not stay behind closed doors for long.
Orders followed soon after. Careful ones. Limited ones. The shogunate had made its stance clear—they would not open the country, but they would not ignore what they had seen either. A small group would be sent to observe the French up close. Not to learn freely. Not to exchange ideas. Just to watch, take notes, and understand what they could.
Abe Masahiro chose the group himself.
He was deliberate about it.
There were craftsmen, men who worked with their hands and understood materials. There were scholars, trained to observe without jumping to conclusions. And there were samurai—not just as guards, but because whatever this was, it would affect them too.
They arrived at the port under the usual watch.
Nothing had changed on the surface. The wooden barriers still stood. Guards still lined the perimeter. Every movement was still tracked.
