Chapter 141 Little 5 makes trouble in Xijing
Chapter 141 Xiaowu makes trouble in Xijing
Xijing, Imperial Observatory.
Several Lingtai Langs from the Imperial Observatory came to see the Left Supervisor Tang Muhe in a panic. Tang Muhe was a Western Yi, a descendant of Europeans. Seeing them coming overnight, he looked panicked and asked quickly, "What happened?"
Lingtai Langfu Qingfeng said: "My lord, we observed the sky at night and found that there were more than ten corpses hanging in the sky, floating sixty miles high in the sky, coming from the east to the west. According to their trajectory, they should reach Xijing at noon tomorrow!"
Tang Muhe was extremely surprised and went to the Sitiantai in person.
On the Sitian Terrace, there were floating bright mirrors. All of them were bronze mirrors. The big ones were over ten feet square, while the small ones were only an inch in size. They were all floating in the air.
There is a star map on the back of the bronze mirror, with patterns of the Big Dipper, the Southern Dipper, the four mythical beasts and other star palaces. The front of the mirror is either convex or concave, and is polished to be extremely smooth and flat, without a trace of dust.
By combining the different mirror surfaces of these bronze mirrors in the air, one can see thousands of miles away or observe dust particles up close.
The left supervisor Tang Muhe came to the Sitiantai. The officials of the Imperial Astronomical Observatory had already adjusted various bronze mirrors. They saw large and small mirrors moving slowly in the air, indicating that the target was also moving slowly.
The left supervisor Tang Muhe looked at the flat mirror at the bottom, and saw more than a dozen corpses reflected on the mirror, facing up with their limbs hanging down, floating in the air.
The officials below presented papers that listed the height they calculated and the flying speed of the flying corpse.
"Twenty years ago, there was a similar astronomical phenomenon... Report it to the cabinet quickly and hand it over to the cabinet minister!"
Not long after, Cabinet Grand Secretary Yan Xianzhi put on his clothes, and his maid held a lamp to illuminate the memorial presented by the Imperial Observatory.
Yan Xianzhi read it carefully and his expression changed slightly.
"Twenty years ago, corpses were hung on Jinshan Mountain. I heard that many people died. Even four kings among the Heaven Listeners died."
Yan Xianzhi's face was uncertain. The reason why the matter was settled was also recorded in the cabinet. It was because Chen Yindu, one of the wandering people, led twelve god-like beings to suppress it.
Chen Yindu, also known as the Xijing Butcher!
Chen Yindu once massacred people in Xijing, so the cabinet naturally collected all kinds of information about Chen Yindu, and everything he had done in the past was recorded in full.
Yan Xianzhi hurriedly ordered people to find all kinds of information about the Xijing butcher, and soon the documents piled up like a mountain.
Many clerks were quickly flipping through the documents in the hall. Yan Xianzhi was sitting in the hall, with maids helping him to massage his shoulders and back, and beautiful women serving him tea and standing by his side.
Yan Xianzhi was fully awake when he heard a clerk say, "Sir, I found the records of Chen Yindu from ten years ago! Ten years ago, Chen Yindu led the 32 Fu Shen Tianji to fight a great battle at Qianyang Mountain! The opponent in the battle is suspected to be the owner of the corpse hanging from Jinshan Mountain!"
Another clerk said, "Sir, thirty years ago, Chen Yindu brought four talisman gods to fight against the owner of the hanging corpse on Jinshan Mountain!"
"Sir, there are records from forty years ago! Chen Yindu brought two Fu Shen Tianji and fought against the owner of the Jinshan Hanging Corpse!"
……
After receiving various information, Yan Xianzhi had a rough idea of who the owner of the corpse hanging on Jinshan Mountain was. This person had a blood feud with Chen Yindu, and had been silent for ten years. He came here most likely to seek revenge on Chen Yindu.
"Perhaps we can use..."
Just as he was thinking this, he heard another clerk say, "Sir, we have found out the origin of the owner of the corpse hanging on Jinshan Mountain! The owner of the corpse is Chen Yindu's eldest son Chen Wu, nicknamed Xiaowu. The spies among the scattered people said that Chen Wu was created by Chen Yindu, but later lost control and turned into an evil god."
The teacup in Yan Xianzhi's hand was crushed to pieces and the tea almost splashed on him.
"You go down first."
He waved his hand, called another person and said, "Wenshan, you stay."
The clerk named Wenshan stopped and bowed. Yan Xianzhi waved his hand to let the maids and servants leave, saying, "Wenshan, please help me draft a letter of resignation. I will resign from the position of Grand Secretary tomorrow. Whoever wants to be the Grand Secretary can do it. The Xia family, the Zhang family, the Yang family, these noble families have been fighting for the position of Grand Secretary for a long time. They have been looking for trouble with me everywhere and finding faults in my words and deeds. It is time for me to step down and give the young people a chance."
Wenshan was shocked and said, "You are now in your prime, shouldering the responsibility of 50 provinces. How many upright people look up to you? How can you abandon your responsibility?"
Yan Xianzhi smiled and said, "I am old, so I have to give the young people a chance. The position of the elder has always been in my hands. Not only do the other twelve families have complaints, but even my Yan family has many dissatisfactions, but I am in the position and they are covered up. Now that I step down, I will let them fight for this position, so that they won't scold me behind my back."
Wenshan said: "Lord, after you step down, it will be difficult to come back. Lord, please think twice!"
Yan Xianzhi smiled and said leisurely: "Maybe it will be easier."
Wenshan didn't understand what he meant, so he had to do as he was asked and write his resignation.
Before the court meeting at five o'clock the next morning, the cabinet held a morning meeting. The chief minister and the other twelve cabinet ministers gathered together to deal with and review memorials submitted from various places. The thirteen cabinet ministers consulted with each other, and then announced the results of the handling at the court meeting.
Yan Xianzhi's resignation still caused quite a stir, and the other twelve cabinet ministers looked at each other in bewilderment, feeling both happy and surprised.
The good news is that the old man Yan Xianzhi finally gave up his position as the Prime Minister and Grand Secretary.
What's shocking is that this old man Yan Xianzhi must have been frightened by something and hurriedly gave up his position as Prime Minister!
This matter must be of great importance.
However, it is naturally a good thing that Lord Yan gave up his position. The twelve cabinet ministers all want to make further progress, so naturally they fight openly and secretly.
However, during the court meeting, the head of the East Factory submitted a petition, saying: "I am old and my old leg injuries have recurred. I beg to retire and return home."
There was an uproar in the court again. Ten years ago, the director of the East Factory defeated the main enemy of the Xijing Butcher and became famous in one battle. Although his legs are disabled, his power is still as great as before. He is in his prime, so why would he resign at this time?
"We eunuchs always have some hidden illnesses. It will be too late if we don't cure them." The governor sat in a wheelchair, looking very calm.
Yan Xianzhi looked at the Supervisor and thought, "He is well-informed."
At the court meeting that day, several senior officials from the Censorate and the Five Military Commanderies also submitted their resignations as they felt they were too old and wanted to give way to the younger generation.
There was an uproar in the government and the public.
At noon, Tang Muhe, the left supervisor of the Imperial Observatory, looked at the mirror and saw one more corpse on the mirror.
By nightfall, there was one more body on the mirror.
Xijing was peaceful, no news came, and people continued to live their lives peacefully.
"The great evil is invading silently." Tang Muhe whispered.
When there were as many as twenty corpses hanging in the sky, there was finally some unrest in Xijing.
"Several officials from the Ministry of Justice are missing."
Someone reported to Yan Xianzhi, saying, "They are all officials in charge of the case." Yan Xianzhi asked, "Are these missing officials responsible for the case of the top scholar in fifty provinces?"
"Your Excellency knows everything!"
Yan Xianzhi looked up at the sky and said with a smile, "Sure enough, you are here to settle old scores. Dragons can be big or small, can rise or hide. When they are big, they can create clouds and mist, and when they are small, they can hide. Now is the time for me to hide and silently watch the Creator Xiaowu stir up trouble."
For a period of time, the number of missing persons gradually increased, and there were hundreds of corpses hanging in the sky. Tang Muhe reported the situation to the cabinet, which was shocked.
On this day, there was a tide of sword lights flying up to the sky, but most of the sword lights could not reach a height of sixty miles from the ground, at most thirty miles, and could not go any further.
The number of hanging corpses in the sky was slowly increasing, people kept going missing, and corpses appeared at an altitude of sixty miles.
Panic spread like a plague, causing panic among the people of Xijing.
That is the fear of an unknown enemy. This enemy is hiding in the dark. No one knows whether his next target will be himself. No one knows how he will kill himself and hang his body high in the sky for display!
But gradually, people who were interested discovered that the deaths were all related to a public case that year.
"This murderer tried to use this opportunity to force out the real culprit of that case."
Yan Xianzhi said to the visiting governor, "Governor Feng, this creature Xiaowu is smarter than his father. The more corpses there are, the greater the pressure. When everyone is in danger, they will start fighting among themselves and explain who took away the innate Dao fetus of the boy scholar."
The governor's real name is Feng Tianhuan, also known as Feng the Eunuch and Feng the Governor. He also resigned from his post and came to see Yan Xianzhi in a wheelchair. Hearing what Yan Xianzhi said, he smiled and said, "I am no longer the governor. Old sir, please don't call me the governor anymore. Just call me Tianhuan."
He paused and said, "Back then, when the butcher of Xijing came, the blood flowed like a river and the people of Xijing were in a panic, but he still failed to force out the murderer. Even if Creator Xiaowu has better means this time, he may not be able to force out the murderer."
"not necessarily."
Yan Xianzhi smiled and said, "That person got the Xiantian Dao fetus not long ago, but now ten years have passed. Ten years, the incomparable Xiantian Dao fetus in the world is enough for an ordinary person to cultivate from the divine fetus realm to a very high realm. If I were him, I would definitely have a plan."
Eunuch Feng leaned over and asked, "Excuse me, old sir, who is this person?"
Yan Xianzhi drank his tea and said with a smile, "Like the Governor, I also know nothing."
Eunuch Feng laughed and said, "Slippery, slippery! By the way, something happened at Qianyang Mountain. Does the old master know about it? I heard that thirteen famous families sent experts to explore the Ming treasure ship, but the treasure ship broke free from the petrification and sailed from Dejiang into the dark sea. Does the old master have any news to tell me?"
Yan Xianzhi sighed, put down his teacup, and shook his head, saying, "No news. My Yan family member, along with my brother-in-law who is the governor of Xinxiang, has also disappeared. We still don't know whether they are dead or alive."
Although Eunuch Feng had spies in various places, he did not get any more information. He pondered for a moment and said, "The position of Xinxiang Governor is still vacant. Is the Yan family interested? The ancients said that when selecting talents, one should not avoid relatives. The old man might as well recommend a few masters of the Yan family to guard Xinxiang."
Yan Xianzhi sighed again and said, "In just half a year, two governors of Xinxiang have died. Xinxiang is a very dangerous place. How can I let a member of the Yan family take this risk?"
He shook his head: "I'm afraid there will be a great turmoil in Xijing now. The matter of the Xinxiang governor is a small matter. Dealing with the upcoming turmoil is the real matter."
Eunuch Feng said, "Although it's a small matter, the autumn examination is not far away. Without the Xinxiang governor to preside over it, the scholars of Xinxiang Province will not be able to take the examination. Isn't it a waste of several years?"
Yan Xianzhi thought for a moment and said, "This year is special. The cabinet will issue an order to let the scholars from Xinxiang counties go to other provinces to make do. But it will be hard for these scholars."
Although he had resigned from the post of Prime Minister, his influence remained. After he conveyed his intentions to the cabinet, an imperial decree was soon issued to Xinxiang.
After a few days, the notice was posted in various counties, attracting many people to watch.
"The scholar from our Xinxiang County is going to Gongzhou to take the imperial examination."
Li Tianqing hurried back from the county town and went straight to Chen Shi's house. He said to him, "Gongzhou is a long way away, and there are evil spirits everywhere on the road. I'm afraid that many scholars will die just in the exam! This rule was probably thought up by Xijing on the spur of the moment!"
"You slandered Xijing's order, Tianqing. I think you will be taken to Caishikou and beheaded sooner or later."
Chen Shi has recovered from the incident with Creator Xiaowu and is washing clothes at home. He won a bet with Li Tianqing, and Li Tianqing washed his clothes for five days, but now the five days have passed and he can only wash his clothes by himself.
Chen Shi took out a letter from the sleeve pocket of his dirty clothes and took a look. It was an envelope given to him by Mrs. Hua Li, and inside was an invitation to a gathering of scattered people.
He was recently busy with the Ming treasure ship, and he encountered the creator Xiaowu pretending to be his father Chen Tang, so he forgot about the letter and has not opened it yet.
Li Tianqing ran to the guest room and said as he took off his clothes: "If I have to kill someone, I'll kill your head first. By the way, Xiao Shi, I've reached the third level of the golden elixir!"
He rushed out shirtless, stuffed his dirty clothes on Chen Shi, then put on new clothes and said, "With the third transformation of the golden elixir, you are almost certain to pass the exam!"
"I also reached the third level of the Golden Elixir yesterday." Chen Shi said as he soaked his dirty clothes in water.
Li Tianqing sat down, took out a wooden basin to help him wash clothes, and shouted: "Black pot, black pot! Fetch two more buckets of water!"
Hei Guo stood up, walked to the well, put the bucket into the well, swung it, filled it with water, lifted the well rope to draw the water up, brought it to Li Tianqing's side, and poured it into the wooden basin.
While washing clothes, Li Tianqing glanced at Chen Shi and asked tentatively, "Are you still thinking about Creator Xiaowu?"
Chen Shi opened the envelope and shook his head, "I haven't thought about it."
"He is an evil spirit. No, he is an evil god!"
Li Tianqing scrubbed the clothes and said, "He pretended to be your father and had evil intentions. If Granny Sha and the others hadn't discovered it early, we would have been toyed with and eaten by him!"
Chen Shi shook his head and said, "I think that he once treated me as his own son and had no intention of harming me. If Chen Tang treats me half as well as he does, I will feel relieved."
He turned the envelope over and a palm-length wooden sign slipped out of it.
The texture of the wooden plaque is so fine that you can’t tell what kind of wood it is. It has been brushed with tung oil and has a jade-like luster.
On the front of the wooden sign is a strange pattern of two gods with human heads and snake bodies, a man on the left and a woman on the right, with the snake bodies entwined with each other in a spiral shape. The two people are facing each other, with one hand raised and the other hand clasped.
They raised their hands, one holding a compass and the other holding a ruler.
Chen Shi turned to the back and saw a pattern of a compass and a ruler.
The legs of the compass are spread apart, and the ruler passes through the middle of the compass.
This is the individual token.
The pattern of a ruler passing through a compass is the symbol of a scattered person.
Chen Shi put the token aside and took out a piece of paper from the envelope. On the paper were written the words "Gongzhou Henggong Mountain Wuling" and a geographical map was attached.
——Seeking monthly tickets
(End of this chapter)